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The Aria
Species: Aria
Designation: Sentient
Classification: Avian Humanoid
Diet: Omnivorous
Lifespan: 80 Galactic Standard Years
Height: Average 6 to 7ft
Worlds: Kothlis
The Aria (Söngvari – Lit. “Songfolk.”) were a Near-Human sentient avian species native to the planet Kothlis in Bothan space. A nomadic people, they moved near constantly about their own planet, following the seasons. The Aria – as their name might imply – are a highly musical people who hold vocal music as a near-sacred art. They are deeply spiritual and revere the living force.
Biology
Beings half way between the human and the avian, the Aria visually appear to have the torso, head, facial features, and internal workings of a human however with the wings and legs of avian species – complete with feathers and down. What appears to be human hair on the head is actually down.
An adult Aria will average 6 to 7ft in height, but may be as little as 5ft or as tall as 8ft, with a great variance. The full wingspan of an Aria is almost always around double their full height, with little exception.
Despite following the spring, the Aria have pale skin, ranging from ashen grey to a pale caucasian, and seem to be incapable of tanning. This is only true of Avian born on Kothlis, however and other breeds have been noted elsewhere where Avian have emigrated. The feathers and down of Aria may be Black, Brown, Burgundy, Speckled White, or White.
As a flying species, the Aria have hollow bones and are capable of breathing even at high altitudes where there is little air. In addition, they have exceptional stamina and the average Aria has the capability of flying for several days uninterrupted. Noted champions of the species have boasted of having flown for weeks on end without food or water, however these claims are unsubstantiated.
As a race that reproduces sexually, the Aria has two sexes – Male, and Female. Males of the species exhibit greater stamina and fortitude. Unlike similar avian species, the males do not have brightly coloured plumage or natural decoration. In addition they are incapable of growing facial hair and tend to have much, much shorter hair crowning their head – if any at all.
Females of the species are quicker and more agile, and tend to have better reflexes. Their athletic and lithe build and their unique muscle structure lead to a wide diversity in femininity.
The Aria are not at all resistant to the extreme cold, hence their nomadic nature on their homeworld, and become quickly distressed and panicked if exposed to low temperatures.
Their vision is beyond exemplary in daylight, however, they have extreme difficulty seeing at night – more-so than the average sentient.
An Aria is considered an adult and may marry at the age of fifteen – at which age they are ready to reproduce. They are, however, not fully – physically mature until around the age of seventeen.
Breeding
The Aria mate for life and are fiercly loyal to their partner. Aria rend to prize their partners on the beauty of their voice, leading to interbreeding being a rare occurence. The Aria may mate with Human and Near-Human species, though notably few examples have been noted.
Children of the species are born live and are fed with milk directly from the mother. They are quite hardy – learning to walk and fly within the first six months after they are born.
Pregnancy of this species lasts on average fives months and results in an average of two to three births. Aria become sexually mature around the age of Fifteen and become barren around the age of Sixty.
Strengths
The Aria are naturally agile and have great stamina, allowing them to outrun most species. Their heightened eyesight allows them to see at great distances.
Due to their brain chemistry, they have natural homing abilities that allow them to navigate at a near supernatural level.
Weaknesses
Due to their hollow bones, the Aria are naturally fragile – particularly enthusiastic hugs have been known to leave an Aria hospitalised. In addition, they are particularly weak to the cold, needing thickly layered clothing to deal with even the slightest of cold climates.
The Aria are naturally clumsy on the ground, and have a hard time dealing with spacial awareness.
Diet
While the Aria are omnivorous, they prefer to eat meat and have domesticated a breed of cattle sized lizard from which they harvest meat and eggs.
An Aria fed entirely on vegetables will not meet with any adverse effects beyond a relatively short period of gastric discomfort.
Behavior & Temperament
Nomadic and attuned to the living force, the Aria were once written in legend as spirits of the wind, impossible to tie down, and just as hard to understand. They tend to be quite forgetful and care little for recording history beyond the legends and songs of champions.
When it comes to that which they do not need, they give freely and without concern, but guard their treasures jealously. Gold and jewels adorn the bodies of many Aria, their planet abundant with both, and their nature attracting them to the beauty of such things. A jeweller is the second most prized profession among their people.
Alpha males of the species are spoken of as Champions and have a deeply competitive spirit, seeking glory above all else.
Communication
While they are now fully fluent in basic, Aria once communicated using only song. Each Aria had an incredible vocal range that allowed a single phrase to contain full paragraphs of information. This musical communication is now weaved into their wondrous art, giving them the ability to craft songs full of meaning where not a single word of basic is spoken.
Culture
Nomads, ever following the spring, the songfolk once believed that they were the children of the sun, ever flying towards her – trying fruitlessly to return to her side.
Thinking of neither the future, or the past, the Aria live simple lives. They live, love, and collect their shiny mementos, building home after home around their homeworld.
This sleepy way of life needs little policing and has little structure. Contests are wrought for entertainment, and prizes are material, pulled with ease from the giving land.
Ever hoarding, it is in an Aria's nature to collect gems and jewels, and to adorn themselves with gold. Despite this, much of the species find piercings distasteful - to the point of anathema - preferring to make clothing or amulets of their precious belongings.
Above all is their sacred gift of song. Every Aria has a voice with deep and varied range, and crisp and clear as a spring morning. Even as religion has past into antiquity, one tradition has remained – that the maiden with the most beautiful voice be adorned with flowers and named as Daughter of the Sun. Such a maiden will find herself no difficulty finding a life partner.
History
What little of Aria history that was recorded has been found to remarkable in the fact that it is unremarkable. The species lives as if a single nomadic tribe, peaceful and sleepy, their way of life seemingly unchanged for thousands of years.
Even the coming of a connection to the republic seemed to change them little. The few that made their way out into the galaxy found it cold, crowded, and uninviting, run by a strange concept called 'credits.'
Due to their nature, little of their true past remains, and only bardic legends of champions who may never even have existed remain.
The Aria export little, and import even less, only those who feel a sense of greater purpose, such as those sensitive to the force venturing away from the flock out into the galaxy.
Technology
While they have access to spacefaring technology, and some factories exist on their home planet courtesy of their Bothan neighbours, the Aria homeworlders prefer their own more tribal lifestyle and defy progress.
Intent
Basically making an entire race based on a character that appears thrice in a Star Wars character, just to justify having a birb for an OC.
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Unidentified_envoy
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