Re: Tit'xka (Pretty Long Post)

> Sheets, Jeff wrote:
> > B) Most clans of Tit'xka are extremely aggressive.  Don't
> > take it personally. :)
>
> Sounds like the Devourers of Ternowo.  The Devourers are related to the
> Natives, but are believed to be non-sentient.  They are highly
> intelligent predatory animals, capable of primitive language and
> tool-making (but not tool-inventing - they learn from observation, but
> are incapable of creating anything new).  Their favorite prey is
> Native.  They live mostly in the uncivilized regions.  The Zvan-Kneft
> Empire, and the Tev Confederation (pretty much the entire "Civilized
> World", the rest of the continent is made up of nomadic and semi-nomadic
> peoples), have expelled them from their territory, tho there are
> occasional incursions of exceptionally intelligent tribes.
>
Interesting.  I have begun work on the Tit'xka anatomy.  Pretty soon I will
be completely fleshing out the entire sociology of the Tit'xka as well.  To
give a sneak peek, so to speak, the Tit'xka clan is lead by the Clan Mother
(nanca /nanSa/).  Below her are the caste mothers, each given a name
according to their caste.  There are four castes: Noble's, Warrior's,
Worker's, and Priest's.  The respective Caste mothers' titles are tecnaca
/t@SnaSa/, kacexeca /kaS@tS@Sa/, ticexaca /tiS@tSaSa/, and kanqesica
/ka~xsiSa/.  The Tit'xka mothers, the only reproductive members of the
species, are capable of manipulating the genetic codes of the eggs and sperm
they hold.  This explains why the Tit'xka have evolved rather quickly.  It
also explains the hive/caste society.  When only five members of an entire
clan, up to 5,000 individuals, are capable of reproduction, the leadership
is unquestioned.  The caste mothers are in fact "daughters" of the clan
mother, and are typically genetically programmed to only be able to create
non reproductive Tit'xka.  Thus, the clan mother is the only Tit'xka in a
given clan that can give birth to her own replacement.  Needless to say, the
Tit'xka are capable of extreme finesse, and can literally build all that is
needed for the clan with only the silk glands of the worker caste.  Noble
Tit'xka tend towards scholarly activity, with the other option being
tactical or strategic expertise.  Warriors tend towards being the active
protectors of the clan, and during war times, are actively bred for high
aggression.  Nearly all Warriors have highly specialized front legs and
pedipalps, designed for efectiveness in melee combat.  The silk glands of
the warrior caste are typically used only for capturing enemies..  Workers
tend to be the most flexible Tt'xka, and tend to have overgrown silk glands.
Their pedipalps and front legs are typically specialized for construction,
burrowing, and fine manipulation.  Priests are nearly always scholarly, and
have extensive pheromone producing glands.  These pheromones are unique to
the clan, and guarantee that the individual Tit'xka are bathed in the scent
of their clan.  During exploratory tasks one will always find a Tit'xka of
the priest caste to enforce the loyalty to the clan mother.