Zhodani

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Status Major Race
Size 2.0m
Weight 90kg
Homeworld Zhodane (Zhodane 2719)
Multi-world yes

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Razza Umana Principale (Homo sapiens zhdotlas) che occupa il Consolato Zhodani, una regione nella regione spinward dell'Impero. Il Consolato Zhodani governa direttamente una sfera di spazio approssimativamente di 70 parsecs in diametro (1 Parsex = 3,26 anni luce), nella quale si stima che viano l'80% dei membri della razza Zhodani, il rimanente vive negli stati "clienti" politicamente affini e probabilmente sotto un certo controllo.

Caratteristiche fisiche.
Gli Zhodani sono una distinta, sebbene interfertile, specie di Humaniti discesero indipendentemente da una discendenza umana trapiantata dagli Antichi. In generale, loro tendono ad essere più alti dei Solomani o Vilani, e più magri di fattezze, gli esemplari maschi sonoalti circa 2.0 metri che di media e con un peso medio di 90 chilogrammi (molto stabile come media), tendono ad essere bruni di carnagione e dai capelli scuri.
La loro più importante differenza è l'accentuato uso Psionico. I nobili Zhodani spesso portano un turbante come copricapo che serve ad accentuare la loro altezza.

Società.
La società Zhodani è divisa in tre gruppi ereditari:
· *Nobili* sono la classe dominante ed affrancata. Loro compiono tutte le funzioni governative e decisionali, e vengono addestrati in modo esteso al'utilizzo della Psionica.
· Gli *Intendenti* sono i direttori ed amministratori della società. Loro sono ad esempio dirigenti d'azienda di affari, ufficiali militari sotto il grado di ammiraglio o generale, e riempiono posizioni governative e di solito non-elettive. Gli intendenti sono ricompensati per la grande diligenza al servizio dello stato, o la vittoria in giochi nei quali si confrontano le abilità psioniche con il conferimento di titoli nobili.
· *Prole* (o proletari) costituiscono le masse, a loro è impedito l'uso della psionica, poichè non vi ricevono addestramento e potrebbe essere pericoloso.
La clase Prole include tutti i membri dei militari sotto il grado di ufficiale, più commercianti ed esploratori, personale di gestione direttiva minore, tecnici, artigiani, e lavoratori in genere.

Non c'è mobilità diretta verso l'alto per la classe prole a meno che i poteri psionici non siano scoperti in loro come bambini, nel quale caso saranno insediati nella classe di intendente.
Intendenti che lavorano bene nelle loro posizioni possono essere elevati al rango della nobiltà. Così i prole possono avere delle speranze per un destino migliorato per i loro bambini;
Gli intendenti sono incoraggiati per sforzarsi sodo, e c'è un'infusione continua di sangue nuovo nella nobiltà.
L'abilità di psionica estesa fra le classi dominanti permette che il governo Zhodani ripulisca dalle erbacce la società, rieducando i sovversivi come membri utili di società.
Con rare eccezionei gli Zhodani sono estremamente patriottici.
I cittadini di Zhodani possiedono un grado alto di'onestà personale.
La psicologia, la scienza comportamentale, la scienza delle comunicazioni, e dell'istruzione sono estremamante raffinate.
Nella società Zhodani fenomeni di "Devianza Mentale" o tendenze criminali possono essere scoperte presto ed essere corrette con facilità. La società Zhodani è generalmente felice, particolarmente tra i Prole, paradossalmente.
Gli individui sono membri di un organismo integrato dove ognuno contribuisce al successo della colettività.
La relativa mancanza della mobilità diretta verso l'alto per i prole è compensata dalla possibilità per i loro bambini di salire verso l'alto se hanno il corretto potenziale.
Il carico della responsabilità imposto sugli intendenti è illuminato dalla possibilità sempre presente di ricompensa tramite l'elevazione alle classi nobili.
I nobili sono ricompensati per l'elevata responsabilità dei loro incarichi con un notevole grado di benessere nella vita, ma è inconcepibile un Nobile che si lasci andare ad una vita di ozi e non lavoro sodo per il bene della società.
In ogni caso il rispetto per tutte le classi è elevatissimo nei due sensi, così come il rispetto dei diritti dei cittadini.

Morality
The Zhodani have a general distaste for other human races which do not practice psionics. Effective indoctrination and ever-present possibility that one's mind is being read have removed dishonesty and deviance as common features of society. Disagreements still occur, competition thrives, passions flare. But all takes place in an atmosphere of honesty and truth. Individuals can express their feelings without fear and problems are openly dealt with. In non-psionic societies, much is kept secret within the mind. A Zhodani visiting the Imperium would be appalled by the deviousness and dishonesty that pervades society.
Imperial distaste for the Zhodani is based on two facts. First, the Zhodani practice psionics, and an Imperial cannot be sure that a Zhodani is not invading his mental privacy at any time. Imperials feel exposed and uncomfortable in the presence of Zhodani. Second, because of their psionic abilities, the Zhodani have the most effective authoritarian rule in history. Imperial citizens, used to a great degree of local autonomy, fear Zhodani conquest because of the loss of freedom it would entail.
Crime and Enforcement
Typically, Zhodani society does not expect violence or dishonesty, and most of its enforcement apparatus is devoted to annual check-ups of individual attitudes. Each prole has a caseworker who maintains a file and performs an annual check-up for correct attitudes, as well as feeling for any problems or situations in need of assistance. Enforcers within the community enforce traffic regulations, arbitrate disputes, and watch for disturbances. These enforcers are similar to police, but can detect problem situations in the course of their patrols.
Within the Zhodani Consulate, crime takes on a different guise than it has in other human societies. Willful crime by proles is easily detected and dealt with, and as a result, occurs only infrequently, Any burglar broadcasts his intentions before the fact, and can be detected after the fact as well. Enforcement agents find it relatively easy to apprehend criminals, and they are reeducated to more honest values. Because of the enforcers' psionic talents, it is possible to detect intentions of a criminal nature, and even intent is considered criminal. Those crimes which do occur are more often crimes of passion, or derangement. For example, two merchants may honestly disagree on some point of commerce, and it is possible that in their frustration, they may come to blows. This is a crime of passion, not premeditated, and easily resolved by an arbitrator. Or an individual may feel for some reason oppressed by the tasks or responsibilities expected of him, and crack under the strain. Suddenly and unpredictably, he becomes violent and must be restrained by the enforcers.
The Thought Police: One aspect of Zhodani government is the Tavrchedle', translated as the Morality Guardians or the Thought Police. This organization is staffed by intendants and nobles, and is charged with maintaining correct thought within the population. They are constantly on the alert for aberrant thought. When detected, they home in on its source, apprehend the individual, and take him to a re-education center. There, psionics is used to monitor the progress of reeducation and the individual remains in custody until corrected. To an Imperial it would be easy to look upon the Thought Police as a sort of secret police oppressing the masses. To the Zhodani, this is not the case. They are instead a respected community service. Even its clients feel relieved after being located and assisted back to normalcy. That, of course, is how they are supposed to feel.
Security: Because of the basic openness and honesty of the Zhodani, the arrangements for security are minimal. Locks on doors are simple if present at all. Walls and structures are built for protection against the elements rather than against criminal penetration. Even re-education centers (there are no prisons to speak of) have only loose security arrangements.
Zhodani Names
Nobles and intendants have a single name, chosen in the individual's 5th olympiad. Intendants' names end in the suffix -iepr. Nobles have several suffixes, depending on rank: -atl corresponds to social level B, -stebr to C, -tlas to D, -tlasche' to E. There are several suffixes for F and over, that most like to be encountered in the Imperium being -iashav.
Proles have two names, a family name and a personal name. The personal name comes first. Family names are numerous, most originating from place names (town, estate, or planet) or occupations (miller, baker, radioman), although the significance has been lost. Common prole suffixes are -qaf ("from", as in Dliant Jdiprzhdilqaf, or Dliant from Jdiprzhdil, a large estate on Zhodane), and -nad ("-er", as in Tliaqrnad, or miller, from Tliaqre', "to grind grain").
· Proles: Qenzh Chtilnats, Shtelke' Dliatsevqaf, Plevianeqr Stonjinad.
· Intendants:Tliablzhdiliepr, Plitsiepr, Dle'yazheiepr.
· Nobles: Detspreflatl, Jrvatsistebr, Chipldlatstlas, Stezfialtlasche'.
Government
The Zhodani Consulate is a participatory democracy in which only nobles are allowed to vote. Executive and judicial functions are performed by a series of councils of varying sizes depending upon the nature of their duties and the size of the area they govern. Each council elects one of its number as chief executive officer, and a number of its members as delegates to the next higher council. A city council will elect a number of its members as representatives to a planetary council, and so on up the line through subsector and sector to the Grand Council of the Zhodani. Nominally, each member of a council serves for one Olympiad (three Zhodani years), but in practice, each councilor serves until his replacement arrives and replaces him officially, or until word of his re-election to another term is received. Often times, the district from which a councilor is elected will have only his relatives as voters, and his re-election is virtually assured. Standard practice (when possible) calls for Zhodani councils to submit important questions to a plebiscite of those affected. The principle can be suspended where immediate action is required, but the official ordering the action stands responsible to the voters and must justify his actions as soon as possible.
Supreme executive power is vested in three consuls, one elected each year for a term of one olympiad by and from the members of the Grand Council. No consul may be elected twice in succession, and retired consuls become life members of the Grand Council.
History
The Zhodani date their empire from the traditional date of the first organized use of psionics on Zhodane, -6731 Imperial, the year of the first olympiad. They achieved jump drive about 1300 years later, in -5415 Imperial. The expansion of the Zhodani was gradual and uneventful. Although some states on the fringe resisted absorption into the Consulate, most were annexed peacefully.
The Zhodani first came into conflict with the expanding Third Imperium in the 6th century of the present era. The First Frontier War (589 - 604) marked the beginning of open hostilities, involving all eight coreward subsectors, and lasting for fifteen years. Subsequent wars (the Second Frontier War in 615-620 and the Third Frontier War in 979-986) saw tremendous Zhodani incursions into the Spinward Marches. Mishandling of the Third Frontier War caused the abdication of Emperor Styryx in 986. The Fourth Frontier War was little more than a skirmish, compared to earlier conflicts. Neither side was prepared for the war, and an armistice was quickly worked out. The only lasting effect of the war was to shift Esalin/Jewell (Spinward Marches 0204 )from Imperial control to neutral world status.