Mon Calamari



The Mon Calamari (also known as Calamari, Calamarians, Mon Cal or Mon Calamarians) are one of the sentient species indigenous to the world of Dac.

Biology and Appearance
On average, a member of the species stands between 1.3 to 1.8 meters tall and also smells of salt and the sea. Mon Calamari are fish-like amphibious humanoids with domed heads, webbed hands, and large eyes. Male Mon Calamari have protrusions on their chin called "barbels" which grow more numerous with age. Most Mon Calamari have salmon-colored skin, often mottled with light and dark patterns, though examples of other skin colors are known. They can also descend to depths of up to 30 meters below sea level without breathing, though they find it uncomfortable and often use organic gills. Mon Calamari can stay underwater for a long period of time, although a frightened Mon Calamari, particularly a juvenile, can drown. They also do not need to decompress when resurfacing.

Their hands, apart from being webbed, also feature five claw-tipped fingers; one opposable thumb with two more shorter claw-like protrusions, two long middle fingers, and two extremely short outer fingers. As an additional feature, Mon Calamari hands also present three suction-cup like holes on their palms.

Mon Calamari can swivel their eyes independently from one another, focusing on two areas at once. Mon Calamari see in different wavelengths than Humans, making it difficult for one species to view visuals designed for the other and visa-versa. Their eyes are often used to express emotion; staring with the left eye is a way of showing surprise, while staring with the right eye is either a challenge to fight or an expression of love, depending on the circumstances.

Society and Culture
The Mon Calamari are land creatures, but water is essential to their culture. They are used to moist climates and find arid areas, such as deserts, uncomfortable and unnatural. They share their homeworld with the Quarren.

In terms of behavior, they are peaceful and soft-spoken, but forceful. They tend to see life as very organized, and have no tolerance for those who would break or bend laws for personal gain. They have at times come into strong conflict with organized smuggling organizations, including the one run by Jabba the Hutt.

The Mon Calamari, or Calamarians, are an intelligent bipedal, salmon-colored amphibious species with webbed hands, high-domed heads, and huge eyes. Named for their world, Calamari.

Water covers most of Dac's surface. The planet is techtonically stable and, as a result, mountains are rare and the islands and tiny continents which do exist contain large bogs, marshes, and lake chains.

Calamari and Quarren speak a similar tongue, but most Calamarians have adopted Basic as their primary language.

Mon Calamari are shore-dwellers, land creatures with an affinity for water. Their primitive ancestors subsisted largely on fish, crustaceans, and fruit, and over the millenia, developed a rudimentary aquaculture system, farming fish in pens and cultivating kelp. Technological advances were slow by human standards, retarded by the paucity of metals in Calamari's crust. Perhaps this slow advancement explains Calamari's peaceful history; or perhaps it lies in the gentility of the Mon Calamari themselves.

The Calamari discovered and contacted the deep-sea dwelling Quarren; after some initial confusion, they developed a symbiotic civilization. This began the true golden age of their planet. As the Calamari advanced, they gradually built large floating cities which became centers of learning, government, and culture. There were aided by the Quarren, who, mining ores deposited at deep-sea volcanic vents, supplied the metals needed for advanced technology. Today these mechanical floating cities dot the oceans, artificial continents resting above the constant sea.

The floating cities of Calamari extend both above and below the water, providing needed space for fish farms, industrial centers, and living facilities. Wavespeeders travel from city to city, and shuttles move back and forth from the great space platforms that orbit the planet to the cities that ride the waves. Quarren live in the deepest levels of the cities, while Mon Calamari prefer the levels closer to the sun.

Calamarians have created a highly civilized culture. Art, music, literature, and science are at a level of creativity unsurpassed in the known galaxy. Almost from the beginning, the literature of the Mon Calamari has depicted the stars as islands in a galactic sea. It exhibits a passionate longing to explore space in search of other civilizations with which to share hopes and aspirations, as the Calamari have done with the Quarren. (However, the Quarren see this relationship in a somewhat different light.)

Stats & Skills

 * Attribute Dice: 12D
 * DEXTERITY: 1D/3D+1
 * KNOWLEDGE: 1D/4D
 * MECHANICAL: 1D+1/3D+1
 * PERCEPTION: 1D/3D
 * STRENGTH: 1D/3D
 * TECHNICAL: 1D+1/4D
 * Move: 9/12

Special Abilities
Moist Environments: When in moist environments Mon Calamari receive a +1D bonus to all Dexterity, Perception and Strength attribute and skill checks. This is purely a psychological advantage.Dry Environments: When in very dry environments, Mon Calamari seem depressed and withdrawn. They suffer a -ID penalty to all Dexterity, Perception and Strength attribute and skill checks. Again, this is psychological only.

Aquatic: Mon Calamari can breathe both air and water and can withstand extreme pressures found in ocean depths.