Aqualish
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Aqualish
Homeworld: Ando
Language: Aqualish
Average Height: 1.7-2.0 meters
Skin Color: orange to brown
Eye Color: black, dark blue, red, dark brown
Hair Color: Just around tusks, dark
Distinctions: Tusks, two sets of eyes - one night, one day, belligerent personalities
Lifespan: up to 100 standard years

The Aqualish were tusked bipeds from the planet Ando whose appearance combined aspects of arachnids and pinniped aquatic mammals. Aqualish had a reputation for being nasty, crude and aggressive, and generally pursued off-world careers as mercenaries, bounty hunters, and pirates.
The three types of Aqualish, the Aquala, the Ualaq (who were the result of genetic mutation), and the Quara, were distinguished by their hands and eyes. Aquala had finned hands, while the Ualaq and Quara had clawed, fingered hands. The fingered Aqualish also varied in the number of eyes—while the Quara, like the Aquala, had two eyes, the less-common Ualaq had four. While most Ualaq and Quara had claw-like hands with five fingers, some Ualaq had three-fingered hands with very thick digits. Though Ualaq and Quara only made up about ten percent of the Aqualish population, their fingered hands made them more comfortable with technology. Thus, they were the subspecies more commonly found off-world. Because the Aquala saw the Quara as responsible for the image the Aqualish had on the galaxy as thugs, the latter subspecies were considered pariahs on Ando, which had a lower population of Aqualish than the galaxy itself.

All three Aqualish subspecies spoke mutually intelligible dialects of the same language. Despite this, the unity between the three groups was shaky, with all three subspecies considering themselves the superior breed. One of the largest and most destructive of the resulting conflicts was the Aqualish Civil War. This war was initially started by the Aquala, who blamed the Quara and Ualaq for the declining harvests of fish.

Special Abilities

Fins: Aqualish are born with the natural ability to swim. They receive a +2D bonus for all movement attempted in liquids. However, the lack of fingers on their hands decreases their Dexterity, and the Aqualish suffer a -2D penalty when using equipment that has not been specially designed for its fins.

Hands: The Quara do not receive the swimming bonus, but they are just as “at home” in the water. They also receive no penalties for Dexterity actions. The Quara are most likely to be encountered off-world.

Story Factors

Belligerence: Aqualish tend to be pushy and obnoxious, always looking for the opportunity to bully weaker beings. More intelligent Aqualish turn this belligerence into cunning and become manipulators.

Skill Min. Max
Dexterity 2D+0 4D+0
Knowledge 1D+0 3D+0
Mechanical 1D+2 3D+2
Perception 2D+0 4D+0
Strength 2D+0 4D+2
Technical 1D+2 3D+0
Attribute Points 12D+0
Skill Points 7D+0
Movement 9/12 (walking), 5/7 (swimming)