Aslan Preview
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That's because the inspiration you talk about is on the meta-level. In-universe, no one was inspired to shape Aslan physiology and psychology to resemble Panthera leo. In- universe any resemblance between Aslan and Terrestrial lions is, if not purely coincidental, then at the most a result of convergent evolution. Now, convergent evolution is fine to explain resemblances in broad strokes, but the more details you add that are identical, the harder it becomes to ignore the fact that the Aslan were, on the meta level, inspired by lions. And we want to ignore that, because in-universe, this is not true.
But will it be a pleasant surprise?
No, it was met by the quite reasonable objection that we'd rather Aslan government, class hierachy, sultural attitudes, and customs didn't resemble Sengoku Japan any more than it already did. Instead, how about looking at how some completely different culture handled similar population pressures and see if any of them can be adapted to make the Aslans less like the Sengoku Japanese?
Well, crime is a strong word, but apart from that, what's your point? There's a huge difference between expanding on previously published information in ways that doesn't invalidate it and doing so in ways that does invalidate it.
I've done so in the past. I think it's a fascinating topic. However, I must confess that I abandoned it because I didn't think I'd be able to convince Marc Miller to allow a retcon of the world generation system to account for it. It'd be a wonderful subject for a Variant article for JTAS Online, thuogh.
Was that because the only response you got to your post about the dietary discrepancy was one that expressed approval and agreement?
Hans
That's a very good question. Many Aslans would probably not think so. Those whose clans used psionics would disagree.
Aslans talk a lot about honor, but it's worth noting that some of them are able to rationalize piracy as honorable (Probably only an extreme fringe, but they're mentioned in AR1). I think that Aslan adherence to Fteir resembles the way European knights adhered to the Code of Chivalry. Some believe it and follow it religiously; most think it's a fine idea and something everone ought to pay strict attention too, especially the neighbors, but sometimes you have to make exceptions in special situations, such as the one they're in right now; and a few think it's absolute tosh and follow it only because their stuffy neighbors would clobber them if they didn't (however, if the neighbors won't find out...)
Some humans have 'situational ethics'. I think some Aslans have 'situational honor'.
Hans
Ishmael,
When we say "assassin" we bring a great deal of cultural baggage with the term. we immediately think of sneaky attackers skulking about, silently killing by ambush or misdirection, and just as stealthily departing. That baggage isn't part of the Heriate's use of the term. For one thing, Aslan (most of the time) assassins are incrediably open about their work.
They'll announce that they're going to kill their target, even going as far as announcing the day, time, and method of death. The "sneaky" part of the only applies during the approach. Once the assassin has his target in sight, it's a simple matter of revealing himself, challenging the target to a duel, killing the target, accepting the applause of onlookers, and striding off into the sunset.
So for an Aslan assassin the real job is the matter of reaching his target and stating "Hello. I'm Inigo Montoya. You killed my father, now prepare to die" After that, Aslan cultural strictures allow a successful assassin to simply walk away. (Usually...)
All that means is that psionics is just another tool and as a tool it's "value neutral". If it isn't used in a dishonorable manner, such as ripping a target's heart out of their chest at a distance via telekinesis, then using psionics is fine.
We also need to remember that the Aslan honor code is purely cultural and, like any cultural artifact, is subject to different interpretations. I'm sure the Aslan engage in hair splitting exercises over "situational honor" in the same we humans engage in hair splitting exercises over "situational ethics".
The simple fact that they control as much of Chartered Space as they do strongly implies they're just as pragmatic as any other Major Race. They'll make a lot of mouth noises about "honor" and, when that honor code cramps their style too much, they'll find a dodge, invent a loophole, or just flat out ignore their code while daring someone to do something about it.
The current honor code dates from about the time the Aslan reverse engineered Pathfinder's jump drive and began their expansion. Once enough clans had signed onto the new system, the holdouts were either convinced by force, driven over the border as refugees, or butchered out of hand down to the last kit. The Aslan don't refer to this as the Cultural Purge for nothing.
So, how fast and loose can an Aslan or clan play with the Heirate's cultural strictures? That will depend on how many people are watching and the strength of the parties involved. We've been explicitly told that a ranking member of the Tlaukhu, the Syoisuis Clan, engages in many practices that most Aslan find distasteful. However, because their clan is monolithic by Aslan standards and has trillions of members, the Syoisuis get a pass. No one is going to challenge them to a duel when they use the shrimp fork during the salad course.
An assassin who successfully knocks off a Syoisuis clan member may be shocked to find himself decorating the nearest gallows no matter what the Heirate's honor code can say on the matter. And whether or not the assassin's clan decides to avenge that death will depend on whether or not they want to tangle with the Syoisuis.
Regards,
Bill
?????
At no point did I even infer that it was 'in-universe', so wtf?
But to take some inspiration and apply only a scant few items and apply the most obvious ones to somehow make the race "alien" while ignoring all the underlying aspects is exactly what forces stereotypes about that said race.
and no, for OTU orthodoxy, it probably wouldn't be a pleasant surprise exactly because "it's not OTU"
As I recall, it was met with violent objection. In a reasonable objection, you might have suggested an alternate culture, but none were mentioned even after I asked for suggestions, etc. And again, to apply broad aspects of a single culture without looking to underlying roots only leads to crass stereotypes. As far as what you'd like... that doesn't concern me, nor was that the reason I turned to the direction I did. If the meta-game inspiration was Sengoku Japan, then it'd be silly to try to force another culture on top of it and would probably result in even worse stereotypes. If the inspiration was not Sengoku Japan, then your argument disappears in a puff of smoke.
The strongest words seem to be reserved for those who suggest any changes to some folk's perception of the OTU.
If we accept the meta-game inspirations as mentioned above, then what have I suggested that would directly invalidate anything? Perhaps if by digging deeper than the simplistic treatment done, it would cause everything to collapse like a deck of cards. Is that what you fear?
You had the same response, did you not? And because you THOUGHT Marc Miller would object? Only you decided not to bring it out for discussion or mention your findings when I first brought it up. Nor anywhere in the years I've been looking over here and the TML and other places anyways. You certainly didn't think it interesting enough pursue as a variant article ( if you did and I just missed it, please provide a link ). You know it would destroy the OTU's version of the Aslan.
Your insinuation as to my motives makes you appear rather hypocritical.
Hardly the manner which encourages reasonable discussions, regardless if there is agreement or objections. Why should I bother to attempt to contribute to this game when It is met with such virulent resistance, insinuations, and in the past, insults?
This is not what a hobby should be.
Bill,
I'm quite aware of how the Aslan view assassination. I'm also aware of how they view the honor of equal fights. Thus the question.
The matter must be done face-to-face.
Otherwise " I'm going to kill you at 6pm on next fiveday while you are taking a bath" would be quite honorable even if it was a shot through the window or setting a bomb.
If the target is not up to a fight for honorable reasons, a champion is allowed to stand in.
My question was meant to highlight "situational honor"
( That it mentioned psionics was a poor segue for other posts. )
Some clans might find it dis-honorable whereas other clans might be fine with it.
If all Aslan were as monolithic with their ideas of honor as some sources would have us believe, then there wouldn't be any duels, would there... the party who did wrong would admit to the wrong and atone for it.
"Great Conclave" which is said to have standardized the Aslan culture -63 Imperial to combat cultural drift as the race expanded over great distances. The Uwaralyekose ( Cultural Purge ) began in -56 Imperial to convince clans to conform, even by use of force.
The dates I have make it much much later that the Pathfinder incident.
Thats from "Cats and Rats"
I'm quite aware of how the Aslan view assassination. I'm also aware of how they view the honor of equal fights. Thus the question.
The matter must be done face-to-face.
Otherwise " I'm going to kill you at 6pm on next fiveday while you are taking a bath" would be quite honorable even if it was a shot through the window or setting a bomb.
If the target is not up to a fight for honorable reasons, a champion is allowed to stand in.
My question was meant to highlight "situational honor"
( That it mentioned psionics was a poor segue for other posts. )
Some clans might find it dis-honorable whereas other clans might be fine with it.
If all Aslan were as monolithic with their ideas of honor as some sources would have us believe, then there wouldn't be any duels, would there... the party who did wrong would admit to the wrong and atone for it.
"Great Conclave" which is said to have standardized the Aslan culture -63 Imperial to combat cultural drift as the race expanded over great distances. The Uwaralyekose ( Cultural Purge ) began in -56 Imperial to convince clans to conform, even by use of force.
The dates I have make it much much later that the Pathfinder incident.
Thats from "Cats and Rats"
Ishmael,
And your question did just that. Hans and I both used the phrase "situational honor" in responding to you.
Precisely. Despite the codified results of the Great Conclave, there is still quite an amount of varying interpretations regarding the honor code, the Fteir. That provides a nice amount of tension within Heirate and between clans. Pretty nuanced, don't you think?
You are, of course, correct. The post was poorly written on my part. I was trying and failing to make the same point you just did so succinctly; interstellar expansion brought about a troubling cultural drift that had to be addressed.
This concern over culture returns us to a point I tried to make in the last thread. The Aslan already see themselves as already unified in the only manner that counts to them; They are unified by culture. That's their world view, that's one of the things that makes them alien.
I dug through the last thread with it's confusion regarding coyns, Yaskodray, humans living 300,000 years ago, Major/Minor race designations, and other noise to review your ideas concerning Aslan "anthropology" (for lack of a better term). The various hints you dropped concerning the angles you were investigating are quite intriguing and I'm eager to know how you'll be tackling the sex ratio issue in the materials you're preparing.
Canon states there is a 1:3 male-to-female ratio. Such skewed birth ratios is an evolutionary disadvantage, so it seemed that a such a birth ratio wouldn't plausibly arise. You then wisely pointed to the regular infanticide practices of most felines(1), the new dominant male takes over a lion pride or clutter of barn cats killing all the cubs/kittens he has not fathered, but some people then expressed reservations over the Aslan practicing routine infanticide in order to produce the canonical ratio(2).
A few other mechanisms were bandied about, but I've been wondering however if it may be possible to move the "winnowing" process Aslan males theoretically undergo from infancy to adolescence?
I've nothing in either AM:1 or S&A addressing sex ratios at birth, nearly every time the 1:3 ratio is mentioned the word "society" is used. Assuming that the sex ratio of Aslan kits is roughly 1:1 for the evolutionary reasons previously discussed and assuming that the Aslan don't practice infanticide as a sop to the squeamish, what if Aslan society experiences, expects, and accepts a high mortality rate among male "teenagers"?
We've got Aslan male teenagers going through the Aslan version of puberty and chocked full of the Aslan version of testosterone running about taking insane risks, dueling at the drop of a hat, and generally raising seven kinds of hell. Could this, coupled with the more "usual" death rates in infancy and young adulthood plausibly produce the 1:3 ratio?
Hope to hear you views.
Regards,
Bill
1 - Before anyone chimes in here, Ishmael knows very well that the Aslan aren't cats. However, he also knows just what species GDW generally modeled the Aslan after.
2 - While I don't have an opinion one way or the other, practicing infanticide would definitely make the Aslan alien!
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far-trader
SOC-14 10K
Probably not the ideal thread for it, but it is where the action is...
Here's another angle re skewed societal sex ratios, from the premise that the Aslan are very specific about what professions each sex is best suited for and from an historical analog (which is escaping me at the moment, it'll come to me, or someone else here will recall it... )*
What if the 3:1 is entirely a societal construct.
"Males" are (mostly - 1) genetically male but to become "Male" is difficult, even for genetic males. Some degree of test by trial or somesuch. So difficult is it to be recognized as "Male" that only half the genetic males make the grade. The other half are effectively "Female" and relegated to such roles, though without the physical ability to bear young (naturally, or not - 2).
"Females" are not all genetically female but there is no test to be "Female". Anyone not a "Male" is a "Female" by default.
There is no shame or sexual practice preference in any of this. No physical changes are adopted or required. It is simply a societal rule.
So 1/2 of all Aslan are genetically Male. But only 1/4 of all Aslan are socially "Male".
1 - some rare genetically Female may have the stuff to try and succeed in becoming socially "Male"
2 - they are Alien, maybe both sexes can bear young, given the right conditions
* Eunuchs? Close but not quite? I think there was more to the one I'm almost recalling.
EDIT: Whipsnade got it in one in the next post: Berdache, or more preferred now "two-spirit" or a literal translation of "man-woman" in the native language
Ditto.
Here's another angle re skewed societal sex ratios, from the premise that the Aslan are very specific about what professions each sex is best suited for and from an historical analog (which is escaping me at the moment, it'll come to me, or someone else here will recall it... )*
What if the 3:1 is entirely a societal construct.
"Males" are (mostly - 1) genetically male but to become "Male" is difficult, even for genetic males. Some degree of test by trial or somesuch. So difficult is it to be recognized as "Male" that only half the genetic males make the grade. The other half are effectively "Female" and relegated to such roles, though without the physical ability to bear young (naturally, or not - 2).
"Females" are not all genetically female but there is no test to be "Female". Anyone not a "Male" is a "Female" by default.
There is no shame or sexual practice preference in any of this. No physical changes are adopted or required. It is simply a societal rule.
So 1/2 of all Aslan are genetically Male. But only 1/4 of all Aslan are socially "Male".
1 - some rare genetically Female may have the stuff to try and succeed in becoming socially "Male"
2 - they are Alien, maybe both sexes can bear young, given the right conditions
* Eunuchs? Close but not quite? I think there was more to the one I'm almost recalling.
EDIT: Whipsnade got it in one in the next post: Berdache, or more preferred now "two-spirit" or a literal translation of "man-woman" in the native language
Ditto.
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Dan,
GOOD. SWEET. STREPHON.
Berdache!!! You're suggesting a berdache tradition among the Aslan! That's absolutely superb, truly original out-of-the-box thinking.
I never even thought about that angle. I hadn't even remembered it until you post. Wow.
It certainly puts a new spin on the "lesbian Aslan" snickerings that have gone for decades.
Berdache... Those "surplus" Aslan males a 1:1 birth ratio provides aren't killed off as infants or encouraged to like insanely risky fools during adolescence, they're just shunted into the Aslan version of the berdache tradition.
What a freakingly beautiful and excellent idea, Dan. You just made my year.
I can't wait to read Ishmael's views on this latest wrinkle.
Regards,
Bill
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mike wightman
SOC-14 10K
The Hivers practice infanticide of a sort
Anyway - back to Aslan.
I love the idea that male Aslan shunted into a female career become counted as females. Does this mean there is a rare female male?
Anyway - back to Aslan.
I love the idea that male Aslan shunted into a female career become counted as females. Does this mean there is a rare female male?
far-trader
SOC-14 10K
Thank you very much, for both the praise and the word*. Yes, that's the one I was trying to dredge up outta my little grey cells. I had you on the short list of those who might help me on that
Though to be honest I'm not so sure on reflection that it is that original. I have a vague notion of it being proposed for Aslan before. Unless it was me did it then too. If that's the case, ain't foggy memory grand
I can steal my own ideas * though I see there is now (always has been that I was unaware of?) some negative connotations to the word Berdache, so just the concept then, as practiced by some Native North American tribes is more what I was angling for, now referred to a "man-woman" or "two-spirit" (in whichever language) with no prejudices implied
Wikipedia for those interested:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two-Spirit
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far-trader
SOC-14 10K
Yep, noted in the notes of the post. It would be very rare though.
I just thought it'd make some very interesting role-playing opportunities as well as helping the sex ratio idea.
G. Kashkanun Anderson
SOC-13
Ahem -- Bill ... Dan ...
I suppose this was previously interpreted as an expression of the Aslan's rigid concept of gender roles; but in light of your recent posts, perhaps it's the other way around? I guess they call it sociobiology for a reason, after all ...
Alien Module 1 - Aslan said:
I suppose this was previously interpreted as an expression of the Aslan's rigid concept of gender roles; but in light of your recent posts, perhaps it's the other way around? I guess they call it sociobiology for a reason, after all ...
Quite. Much in the same way that most 21st-century humans don't see any problem with women dressing in typical male clothing; but yet a guy going out on the town in a pantsuit or (God help him!) an evening gown is considered to be a sight.
I know you didn't imply that it was 'in-universe'. So I brought it up, because it's an important distinction.
I don't get that argument. So the original authors were inspired by a couple of Earth features. Why would that oblige us to stick grimly to those features no matter what? What's wrong with taking a few traits here a few traits there, mix and match, and then extrapolate from there? Even better, of course, to make up some entirely new features and extrapolate from them, but that's not so easy, and in any event not what happened with the Aslan.
I've explained why I think it's a bad idea to force the similarity any further. It will break the fourth wall (even further than it's already broken). It's bad enough that people look at a description of the Aslan and say "That's SO like lions and samurai". We don't want to reinforce that impression. On the contrary, we want to reinforce the impression that it's only a superficial resemblance.
I don't think you were. I think you read something in the opposition to your ideas that wasn't there. But I wasn't talking about the tone of the objection; I was talking about the basis for it. I've explained why I think objection per se was perfectly reasonable. Assuming for purposes of argument that the tone actually was as violent as you claim, I would not in any way claim that such a reaction was reasonable.
I just got the idea as I was writing my reply. It was meant as lagniappe, not to claim that it was suggested originally.
Ah, but to come up with alternate underlying roots instead of heedlessly applying the underlying roots of the original inspiration... that makes for originality.
I disagree.
I dislike gratuiously changes to canon, yes. I don't see that as a Bad Thing. I much prefer that people add subtly and deftly to canon instead of demolishing what has already been established in order to fit new idea into the picture. Fitting ideas to established canon: Nice. Fitting canon to new ideas: Not Nice.
I deny that I use strong words until I've been forced to repeat myself several times.
I've explained my concern in a previous post.
Huh? I was the one who provided that response. You mentioned the missing attention to the dietary requirements of carnivores, omnivores, and herbivores. I agree with you. So I wondered just why that would discourage you.
What findings? All I said was that it's been talked about before, that I thought it was an interesting subject, but that I hadn't pursued it. I'm pretty sure it was on the TML (It was so long ago that I don't think I had any other forum to frequent). But I could be wrong. What does it matter, anyway?
I already said I hadn't pursued it. I have lots of ideas for articles that I don't pursue. Recently I've even tried to inspire others to take some of them and run with them.
What insinuations would that be? Do tell me what I've been insinuating. I'm sure I'll be fascinated to find out what I've been insinuating. Was it something bad?
Resistance you met. I don't think it has been as virulent as you think, but maybe I'm just less sensitive than you. As for insinuations and insults, try considering the possibility that you see insinuations and insults where none are intended. "I disagree with you" is not always a code phrase for "You're a stupid nincompoop!"
Hans
Cats & Rats made it quite clear that Aslan don't treat a male engineer as a woman because he's an engineer; they do it because they assume an engineer would be a female. Same thing for female warriors. When they become aware of their mistake, they switch to treating male engineers as male and female captains as females.
It's an interesting idea, and has been brought up before in connection with the Zhodian worlds (where the Humans have the problem that their male:female birth ratio is (roughly) 1:1 instead of the Aslan ratio of 1:3[*]), but it is such a distinctive and interesting feature that I submit that (in this particular case) the total absence of any mention anywhere IS strong evidence of absence.
Hans
[*] Unfortunately I can't remember if the text I'm thinking of was canon or fanon.
It's an interesting idea, and has been brought up before in connection with the Zhodian worlds (where the Humans have the problem that their male:female birth ratio is (roughly) 1:1 instead of the Aslan ratio of 1:3[*]), but it is such a distinctive and interesting feature that I submit that (in this particular case) the total absence of any mention anywhere IS strong evidence of absence.
Hans
[*] Unfortunately I can't remember if the text I'm thinking of was canon or fanon.
far-trader
SOC-14 10K
I'll grant, in retrospect, that probably twigged the idea at some point. I'm even inclined to imagine the idea originally proposed may well have always been one of "twin-spirit" but I don't recall it ever being so noted or described.
Instead it was as far as I recall always treated and described as gender based. If you had an Aslan and it was a Navigator it was a female physically. A physically male Aslan would never be a Navigator.
I wonder if the gender based specifics came later (were they part of AM1? I can check later but Hans may have skimmed the rest of it checking and/or know the answer) and perhaps the original idea was something more like twin-spirit but for whatever reason that didn't get clarified?
That clears up some of it anyway.
AM 1 was pretty clear, too, that they only determined gender by job for those species where they couldn't tell at a glance, and then correct that when they find out otherwise.
But if a female human pilot is challenged by a male aslan, and accepts, and duels on her own behalf, well, it's going to be hard to explain to her why every male aslan around calls her Mr. Ripley.
But if a female human pilot is challenged by a male aslan, and accepts, and duels on her own behalf, well, it's going to be hard to explain to her why every male aslan around calls her Mr. Ripley.
here goes nothing.
I'm going to make a huge huge assumption here and say that Aslan sex is determined by genes much like humans/mammals. As aliens, this might not be the case, otherwise that would give a primary sex ratio of 1:1 barring any outside factors such as a heritable male-killing Wolbachia infection such as infects some forms of butterflies.
Therefore sex ratio at birth is 1:1 unless stillborn fetuses skew the secondary sex ratio consistently to one sex. Or if zygotes separate to increase the number of male fetuses. This may be the reason lion cubs skew heavily to male directly after a coalition of adult males take over a pride ( killing existing male cubs and killing any adults that don't run away ). This seems to be a mechanism to keep such male infanticides from skewing the overall sex ratio of lions away from 1:1, which appears to be the best Evolutionary maintainable strategy.
That leaves the tertiary ratio which is 3:1 in lion prides and in lions, all males within the pride have access to all females in the pride, so the operational sex ratio is slightly higher.
This is where all the mating occurs. In lion prides, the females are related and if the males can hold off any outside challengers, incest may occur and without the eventual rotation of males, in-breeding too. Once males reach mature age of 3 or so, they are driven out. They form coalitions with other males for better survival and to increase the chances of being able to take over other prides. Unattached females do likewise, although some may stay within the pride to keep the number of females constant within the pride. Sometimes the male and female coalitions meet and form all new prides of their own.
So where does that leave the Aslan?
By that point in life, fully 2/3's of the male population is unable to breed at any given time. That's not the same thing as dead, although I'd expect high mortality during all those wars and feuds and duels in spite of rituals and non-lethal endings.... situational honor may cause duels and feuds to be more lethal than advertised (?).
I'm also not sure how the relatively low birth rate ( compared to lions ) of Aslan will affect things...more study is needed. I should point out that 'violent male competition' is a cause of skewed ratios. But that can also lead to population drops if too many males become too injured to mate.
One explanation is that the 3:1 tertiary sex ratio occurs at higher social whereas lower to middle 'prides' have fewer females. Lowest class may simple not be part of any 'pride' at all. This should be balanced in small part to unattached females, which in the case of lions, form their own groups which are often taken over by groups of unattached males. If access to females is a function of social class, then there should be some form of social mobility. Perhaps using Soc as honor in a similar fashion to how Vargr use charisma.
The social gender solution had been considered and mostly discarded as unable to cover 2/3's of the male pop, but is certainly part of Aslan society. They may or may not be low-social. There is a precedent in "rats'n'cats" for Aslan using job function to determine the sex of a human. There shouldn't be any great leap to assume the Aslan would do that within his own race too in social situations at least.
I'd think it'd mean a social castration of sorts as he'd be removing himself from the reproduction pool. I'm not 100% sure of this solution though..... it would possibly break the gender role aspects of the Aslan with the OTU material just being a matter of semantics. This requires more thought. In any case, once a male took on the female role, he'd be expected to remain in that role until death. It'd probably be chosen for the cub at a young age to give time to learn the female script, etc. Actual castration of youth so normal sex drive doesn't bollux it up? hmmm
if all males within the 'pride' have access to all females AND they practice some form of ancestor worship, I'd think heredity would be traced through the female side as there might be no guarantee which male caused fertilization. The lead male would be the defacto father, but family trees go through the mother.
In short, my own beliefs are that there is some social gender determination, perhaps with actual youth castration in some cases, but most of the unaccounted for males are just unattached perhaps forming coalitions serving one clan or another striving to improve their standing enough to enter a breeding family group. An example of this might be the mercenary group depicted in FASA's Aslan Mercenary deckplans.
These are the touchy ones eager for duels or other action to prove themselves.
These are also the ones who expand outward looking for their own holdings to form their own breeding group. Unattached females watch to see who succeeds before committing themselves to any coalition.
These are also the outcasts who do the dirty work of society that everyone pretends aren't there.
There's enough holes in all this to make my head hurt.
I still need to study more.
It just seems bad that most of the writing of Aslan concern male behavior despite the fact that taken literally, the stated 3:1 female:male ratio for the entire species would mean that the OTU focuses on only the 1/4 of Aslan population which does not handle money (economy/trade) and does not handle innovation/technology except as a black box.
We all know how human females act; we deal with them every day in real life. We don't have that luxury for Aslan and that leads to 'humanizing' them because there is so little information on them ( at least in the few materials I own ). More attention needs to be paid to the ordinary day-to-day life of the alien races. It would be nice if someone who is a good writer could author a piece from a female Aslan's point-of-view.... a female that players might commonly come across. We need more info on females here.
for what its worth, my 13 year old daughter read rats-n-cats because she thought the Aslan looked cool. She broke out laughing because it seemed to her that the females control everything and that males need assistance to even handle money.
also...get rid of 'marriage' ... it is unnecessary and leads to pre-conceived notions of how sexual relations and relations with females are.
There is no lesbianism, per se... just very affectionate females who show affection freely, but it has nothing to do with reproduction.... just sharing closeness with loved ones. Same with males although the actual sex act would be shameful except with a re-gendered male acting as female.
Coitus is for reproduction
other forms of touching are for showing affection ( privately, usually, but possibly more open for females and human observers put their own lewd thoughts in the reports ). Aslan don't share human attitudes towards sex. They're not stern and stoic all the time.
am I on the wrong track?
or in the right ballpark....
I'm going to make a huge huge assumption here and say that Aslan sex is determined by genes much like humans/mammals. As aliens, this might not be the case, otherwise that would give a primary sex ratio of 1:1 barring any outside factors such as a heritable male-killing Wolbachia infection such as infects some forms of butterflies.
Therefore sex ratio at birth is 1:1 unless stillborn fetuses skew the secondary sex ratio consistently to one sex. Or if zygotes separate to increase the number of male fetuses. This may be the reason lion cubs skew heavily to male directly after a coalition of adult males take over a pride ( killing existing male cubs and killing any adults that don't run away ). This seems to be a mechanism to keep such male infanticides from skewing the overall sex ratio of lions away from 1:1, which appears to be the best Evolutionary maintainable strategy.
That leaves the tertiary ratio which is 3:1 in lion prides and in lions, all males within the pride have access to all females in the pride, so the operational sex ratio is slightly higher.
This is where all the mating occurs. In lion prides, the females are related and if the males can hold off any outside challengers, incest may occur and without the eventual rotation of males, in-breeding too. Once males reach mature age of 3 or so, they are driven out. They form coalitions with other males for better survival and to increase the chances of being able to take over other prides. Unattached females do likewise, although some may stay within the pride to keep the number of females constant within the pride. Sometimes the male and female coalitions meet and form all new prides of their own.
So where does that leave the Aslan?
By that point in life, fully 2/3's of the male population is unable to breed at any given time. That's not the same thing as dead, although I'd expect high mortality during all those wars and feuds and duels in spite of rituals and non-lethal endings.... situational honor may cause duels and feuds to be more lethal than advertised (?).
I'm also not sure how the relatively low birth rate ( compared to lions ) of Aslan will affect things...more study is needed. I should point out that 'violent male competition' is a cause of skewed ratios. But that can also lead to population drops if too many males become too injured to mate.
One explanation is that the 3:1 tertiary sex ratio occurs at higher social whereas lower to middle 'prides' have fewer females. Lowest class may simple not be part of any 'pride' at all. This should be balanced in small part to unattached females, which in the case of lions, form their own groups which are often taken over by groups of unattached males. If access to females is a function of social class, then there should be some form of social mobility. Perhaps using Soc as honor in a similar fashion to how Vargr use charisma.
The social gender solution had been considered and mostly discarded as unable to cover 2/3's of the male pop, but is certainly part of Aslan society. They may or may not be low-social. There is a precedent in "rats'n'cats" for Aslan using job function to determine the sex of a human. There shouldn't be any great leap to assume the Aslan would do that within his own race too in social situations at least.
I'd think it'd mean a social castration of sorts as he'd be removing himself from the reproduction pool. I'm not 100% sure of this solution though..... it would possibly break the gender role aspects of the Aslan with the OTU material just being a matter of semantics. This requires more thought. In any case, once a male took on the female role, he'd be expected to remain in that role until death. It'd probably be chosen for the cub at a young age to give time to learn the female script, etc. Actual castration of youth so normal sex drive doesn't bollux it up? hmmm
if all males within the 'pride' have access to all females AND they practice some form of ancestor worship, I'd think heredity would be traced through the female side as there might be no guarantee which male caused fertilization. The lead male would be the defacto father, but family trees go through the mother.
In short, my own beliefs are that there is some social gender determination, perhaps with actual youth castration in some cases, but most of the unaccounted for males are just unattached perhaps forming coalitions serving one clan or another striving to improve their standing enough to enter a breeding family group. An example of this might be the mercenary group depicted in FASA's Aslan Mercenary deckplans.
These are the touchy ones eager for duels or other action to prove themselves.
These are also the ones who expand outward looking for their own holdings to form their own breeding group. Unattached females watch to see who succeeds before committing themselves to any coalition.
These are also the outcasts who do the dirty work of society that everyone pretends aren't there.
There's enough holes in all this to make my head hurt.
I still need to study more.
It just seems bad that most of the writing of Aslan concern male behavior despite the fact that taken literally, the stated 3:1 female:male ratio for the entire species would mean that the OTU focuses on only the 1/4 of Aslan population which does not handle money (economy/trade) and does not handle innovation/technology except as a black box.
We all know how human females act; we deal with them every day in real life. We don't have that luxury for Aslan and that leads to 'humanizing' them because there is so little information on them ( at least in the few materials I own ). More attention needs to be paid to the ordinary day-to-day life of the alien races. It would be nice if someone who is a good writer could author a piece from a female Aslan's point-of-view.... a female that players might commonly come across. We need more info on females here.
for what its worth, my 13 year old daughter read rats-n-cats because she thought the Aslan looked cool. She broke out laughing because it seemed to her that the females control everything and that males need assistance to even handle money.
also...get rid of 'marriage' ... it is unnecessary and leads to pre-conceived notions of how sexual relations and relations with females are.
There is no lesbianism, per se... just very affectionate females who show affection freely, but it has nothing to do with reproduction.... just sharing closeness with loved ones. Same with males although the actual sex act would be shameful except with a re-gendered male acting as female.
Coitus is for reproduction
other forms of touching are for showing affection ( privately, usually, but possibly more open for females and human observers put their own lewd thoughts in the reports ). Aslan don't share human attitudes towards sex. They're not stern and stoic all the time.
am I on the wrong track?
or in the right ballpark....
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