The Culture - Revision history

imported>Administrator: 94 revisions imported

2023-06-23T14:10:47Z

94 revisions imported

← Older revision	Revision as of 14:10, 23 June 2023
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imported>Administrator: 1 revision imported

2023-06-19T14:04:59Z

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146.199.115.92: /* Other civilizations */

2023-05-02T18:11:54Z

Other civilizations

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:11, 2 May 2023
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	*The Vail - a really unknown race in the Cultures universe who’s claim to fame in the construction of the Shellworlds some 1.3 billion years prior.		*The Vail - a really unknown race in the Cultures universe who’s claim to fame in the construction of the Shellworlds some 1.3 billion years prior.

	*Hegemonising Swarms - Basically the Culture's pet term for Grey Goo. Occasionally a self replicating weapon is unleashed in a war or someone's Roomba gets the wrong sort of Malware and begins harvesting all matter it can to make more Roombas that continue to do the same and will (in theory) keep going on until all the universe is Roombas. Contact has a special division to deal with these flare-ups called Restoria, or less formally Pest Control.		*Hegemonising Swarms - Basically the Culture's pet term for Grey Goo. Occasionally a self replicating weapon is unleashed in a war or someone's Roomba gets the wrong sort of Malware and begins harvesting all matter it can to make more Roombas that continue to do the same and will (in theory) keep going on until all the universe is Roombas. Contact has a special division to deal with these flare-ups called Restoria, or less formally Pest Control. As with many things in the Cultureverse, they happen often enough to not be a surprise to most involved Civilisations nor usually a great threat.

	[[category: Literature]]		[[category: Literature]]

1d4chan>A Walrus: /* Other civilizations */

2023-02-08T02:22:56Z

Other civilizations

← Older revision		Revision as of 02:22, 8 February 2023
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	*The Vail - a really unknown race in the Cultures universe who’s claim to fame in the construction of the Shellworlds some 1.3 billion years prior.		*The Vail - a really unknown race in the Cultures universe who’s claim to fame in the construction of the Shellworlds some 1.3 billion years prior.

			*Hegemonising Swarms - Basically the Culture's pet term for Grey Goo. Occasionally a self replicating weapon is unleashed in a war or someone's Roomba gets the wrong sort of Malware and begins harvesting all matter it can to make more Roombas that continue to do the same and will (in theory) keep going on until all the universe is Roombas. Contact has a special division to deal with these flare-ups called Restoria, or less formally Pest Control.

	[[category: Literature]]		[[category: Literature]]

1d4chan>Slipmcripfist: typo

2022-11-20T18:19:04Z

typo

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:19, 20 November 2022
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	The Iln - oh f&$ no! A race of “aero, spiniform, mid gas level giants (read a kinda squid with a shell…maybe based off Banks Dwellers from The Algibrist)” that lived some 800 million years prior and were chiefly known for destroying “Shellworlds”. The did this with presumably their machines that, though about the size Prius, had the firepower to easily take on say, 15 + capitol ships in one blow with little to no effort and tend to create antimatter (the go to power source of most Involved) spirit bombs that implode said shellworlds.		The Iln - oh f&$ no! A race of “aero, spiniform, mid gas level giants (read a kinda squid with a shell…maybe based off Banks Dwellers from The Algibrist)” that lived some 800 million years prior and were chiefly known for destroying “Shellworlds”. The did this with presumably their machines that, though about the size Prius, had the firepower to easily take on say, 15 + capitol ships in one blow with little to no effort and tend to create antimatter (the go to power source of most Involved) spirit bombs that implode said shellworlds.

	*The Vail - a really unknown race in the Cultures universe who’s claim to fame in the construction of the Shellworlds ~~som~~ 1.3 billion years prior.		*The Vail - a really unknown race in the Cultures universe who’s claim to fame in the construction of the Shellworlds some 1.3 billion years prior.

	[[category: Literature]]		[[category: Literature]]

172.58.4.97 at 02:51, 21 October 2022

2022-10-21T02:51:13Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 02:51, 21 October 2022
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			{{British}}
	[[File:Gsv.jpg\|400px\|thumb\|right\|It's more fun in the Culture. Scale, 200km]]		[[File:Gsv.jpg\|400px\|thumb\|right\|It's more fun in the Culture. Scale, 200km]]
	{{Topquote\|You might call them soft, because they’re very reluctant to kill, and they might agree with you, but they’re soft the way the ocean is soft, and, well; ask any sea captain how harmless and puny the ocean can be.\|Cheradenine Zakalwe, ''Use of Weapons''}}		{{Topquote\|You might call them soft, because they’re very reluctant to kill, and they might agree with you, but they’re soft the way the ocean is soft, and, well; ask any sea captain how harmless and puny the ocean can be.\|Cheradenine Zakalwe, ''Use of Weapons''}}

2600:8804:B17:BD00:B578:C94D:8A5:6E9D: /* Other civilizations */

2022-10-01T06:12:03Z

Other civilizations

← Older revision		Revision as of 06:12, 1 October 2022
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	*The Gzilt - a race of minorly reptilian humanoids who were almost one of the founding species of the Culture, but declined at the last minute. Like many other species before them, on reaching a certain level of ennui they decide to Sublime, leaving all their tech and territory to other species as a kind of civilisational will. Their culture is organised into clan-like regiments based on periods of compulsory military service, and a permanent reserve status on leaving active duty. They have one religion based on a holy text that appeared randomly in their pre-history. The book had a variety of technological and social shortcuts built into the religious language, as well as listing several prophecies that then happened to all come true. The book's seeming infallibility lead the Gzilt to a certain arrogant civilisational mindset, seeing themselves as the favoured people in the galaxy, despite many other civilisations having similar occurrences or - in the case of the Sublimed and Minds - being actual godlike beings. There's just one problem: The Book was a social experiment by a rogue alien scientist into manipulating the development of young races, which worked just a little too well. As this revelation is the kind of thing that could cause enormous civil wars, not to mention botching the impending Subliming, the remains of the Gzilt military attempt to destroy the secret before they ascend.		*The Gzilt - a race of minorly reptilian humanoids who were almost one of the founding species of the Culture, but declined at the last minute. Like many other species before them, on reaching a certain level of ennui they decide to Sublime, leaving all their tech and territory to other species as a kind of civilisational will. Their culture is organised into clan-like regiments based on periods of compulsory military service, and a permanent reserve status on leaving active duty. They have one religion based on a holy text that appeared randomly in their pre-history. The book had a variety of technological and social shortcuts built into the religious language, as well as listing several prophecies that then happened to all come true. The book's seeming infallibility lead the Gzilt to a certain arrogant civilisational mindset, seeing themselves as the favoured people in the galaxy, despite many other civilisations having similar occurrences or - in the case of the Sublimed and Minds - being actual godlike beings. There's just one problem: The Book was a social experiment by a rogue alien scientist into manipulating the development of young races, which worked just a little too well. As this revelation is the kind of thing that could cause enormous civil wars, not to mention botching the impending Subliming, the remains of the Gzilt military attempt to destroy the secret before they ascend.

	The Iln - oh f&$ no! A race of “aero, ~~spinnyform~~, mid gas level giants (read a kinda squid with a shell…maybe based off Banks Dwellers from The Algibrist)” that lived some 800 million years prior and were chiefly known for destroying “Shellworlds”. The did this with presumably their machines that, though about the size Prius, had the firepower to easily take on say, 15 + capitol ships in one blow		The Iln - oh f&$ no! A race of “aero, spiniform, mid gas level giants (read a kinda squid with a shell…maybe based off Banks Dwellers from The Algibrist)” that lived some 800 million years prior and were chiefly known for destroying “Shellworlds”. The did this with presumably their machines that, though about the size Prius, had the firepower to easily take on say, 15 + capitol ships in one blow with little to no effort and tend to create antimatter (the go to power source of most Involved) spirit bombs that implode said shellworlds.

			*The Vail - a really unknown race in the Cultures universe who’s claim to fame in the construction of the Shellworlds som 1.3 billion years prior.

	[[category: Literature]]		[[category: Literature]]

2600:8804:B17:BD00:B578:C94D:8A5:6E9D: /* Other civilizations */

2022-10-01T05:46:16Z

Other civilizations

← Older revision		Revision as of 05:46, 1 October 2022
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	*The Gzilt - a race of minorly reptilian humanoids who were almost one of the founding species of the Culture, but declined at the last minute. Like many other species before them, on reaching a certain level of ennui they decide to Sublime, leaving all their tech and territory to other species as a kind of civilisational will. Their culture is organised into clan-like regiments based on periods of compulsory military service, and a permanent reserve status on leaving active duty. They have one religion based on a holy text that appeared randomly in their pre-history. The book had a variety of technological and social shortcuts built into the religious language, as well as listing several prophecies that then happened to all come true. The book's seeming infallibility lead the Gzilt to a certain arrogant civilisational mindset, seeing themselves as the favoured people in the galaxy, despite many other civilisations having similar occurrences or - in the case of the Sublimed and Minds - being actual godlike beings. There's just one problem: The Book was a social experiment by a rogue alien scientist into manipulating the development of young races, which worked just a little too well. As this revelation is the kind of thing that could cause enormous civil wars, not to mention botching the impending Subliming, the remains of the Gzilt military attempt to destroy the secret before they ascend.		*The Gzilt - a race of minorly reptilian humanoids who were almost one of the founding species of the Culture, but declined at the last minute. Like many other species before them, on reaching a certain level of ennui they decide to Sublime, leaving all their tech and territory to other species as a kind of civilisational will. Their culture is organised into clan-like regiments based on periods of compulsory military service, and a permanent reserve status on leaving active duty. They have one religion based on a holy text that appeared randomly in their pre-history. The book had a variety of technological and social shortcuts built into the religious language, as well as listing several prophecies that then happened to all come true. The book's seeming infallibility lead the Gzilt to a certain arrogant civilisational mindset, seeing themselves as the favoured people in the galaxy, despite many other civilisations having similar occurrences or - in the case of the Sublimed and Minds - being actual godlike beings. There's just one problem: The Book was a social experiment by a rogue alien scientist into manipulating the development of young races, which worked just a little too well. As this revelation is the kind of thing that could cause enormous civil wars, not to mention botching the impending Subliming, the remains of the Gzilt military attempt to destroy the secret before they ascend.

			The Iln - oh f&$ no! A race of “aero, spinnyform, mid gas level giants (read a kinda squid with a shell…maybe based off Banks Dwellers from The Algibrist)” that lived some 800 million years prior and were chiefly known for destroying “Shellworlds”. The did this with presumably their machines that, though about the size Prius, had the firepower to easily take on say, 15 + capitol ships in one blow

	[[category: Literature]]		[[category: Literature]]

2600:8804:B17:BD00:B578:C94D:8A5:6E9D: Additionally

2022-10-01T04:58:48Z

Additionally

← Older revision		Revision as of 04:58, 1 October 2022
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	[[File:Gsv.jpg\|400px\|thumb\|right\|It's more fun in the Culture.]]		[[File:Gsv.jpg\|400px\|thumb\|right\|It's more fun in the Culture. Scale, 200km]]
	{{Topquote\|You might call them soft, because they’re very reluctant to kill, and they might agree with you, but they’re soft the way the ocean is soft, and, well; ask any sea captain how harmless and puny the ocean can be.\|Cheradenine Zakalwe, ''Use of Weapons''}}		{{Topquote\|You might call them soft, because they’re very reluctant to kill, and they might agree with you, but they’re soft the way the ocean is soft, and, well; ask any sea captain how harmless and puny the ocean can be.\|Cheradenine Zakalwe, ''Use of Weapons''}}

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	It is basically what would have happened if the humans from the [[Dark Age of Technology\|Golden Age of Technology]] did not have a small problem with genocidal [[Men of Iron]]. More cynically, it is what would happen if the government of ''Brave New World'' was a galactic superpower: making sure everyone wants for nothing, but desperate for something to fill the emptiness. Well, they are a bit less extreme than that; eugenicism is ''definitely not'' something the Culture would agree with, but that's the general idea.		It is basically what would have happened if the humans from the [[Dark Age of Technology\|Golden Age of Technology]] did not have a small problem with genocidal [[Men of Iron]]. More cynically, it is what would happen if the government of ''Brave New World'' was a galactic superpower: making sure everyone wants for nothing, but desperate for something to fill the emptiness. Well, they are a bit less extreme than that; eugenicism is ''definitely not'' something the Culture would agree with, but that's the general idea.

	The Culture is set in our own timeline, with the stories taking place between 1300 AD and 2100 AD; Earth is contacted roughly around 2100 AD. It is the product of six or seven pan-human civilizations that decided to merge together 10,000 years ago and create what is basically a space utopia. The Culture is a post-scarcity society, where basically everything is available for free, time being the only resource to take into account. It does not have a centralized government, as it is more a society than a real state or nation. Very few written laws exist (and if you feel the need to ask what are these written laws, then ''there is clearly something wrong with you'') and people are basically allowed to do pretty much whatever they want. Now, in the novels, we do not have many details about how the Culture actually works, but, in Banks' words, it's "an ethical and cynical anarchy that tries to be a ''rather good society'', following socialist, libertarian and anarchist principles.		The Culture is set in our own timeline, with the stories taking place between 1300 AD and 2100 AD, (though the second to last book takes place in 2947AD);Earth is contacted roughly around 2100 AD. It is the product of six or seven pan-human civilizations that decided to merge together 10,000 years ago and create what is basically a space utopia. The Culture is a post-scarcity society, where basically everything is available for free, time being the only resource to take into account. It does not have a centralized government, as it is more a society than a real state or nation. Very few written laws exist (and if you feel the need to ask what are these written laws, then ''there is clearly something wrong with you'') and people are basically allowed to do pretty much whatever they want. Now, in the novels, we do not have many details about how the Culture actually works, but, in Banks' words, it's "an ethical and cynical anarchy that tries to be a ''rather good society'', following socialist, libertarian and anarchist principles.

	(This may [[wat\|sound weird]] if you're from that part of the English speaking world where the term "libertarian" was hijacked by a guy in a dumb-looking bowtie with a weird fixation on selling babies; in most other locales, "liberal" is basically synonymous with capitalist, and "libertarian" more or less means "left-anarchist").		(This may [[wat\|sound weird]] if you're from that part of the English speaking world where the term "libertarian" was hijacked by a guy in a dumb-looking bowtie with a weird fixation on selling babies; in most other locales, "liberal" is basically synonymous with capitalist, and "libertarian" more or less means "left-anarchist").

1d4chan>A Walrus: /* Other civilizations */

2022-09-27T06:24:02Z

Other civilizations

← Older revision		Revision as of 06:24, 27 September 2022
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	*The Sublimed - technically not a race but are encountered by virtually every spacefaring society. The Sublimed are the end stage of almost every civilization, representing ascension into an energy based being residing in an adjacent dimension. The technology to do so isn't actually that complicated, but only a Mind level AI or sizeable planetary community can Sublime and still maintain any meaningful presence. They're effectively capable of doing anything they want, but don't tend to interact with the material universe, save for seemingly random and inscrutable actions (like flinging moons at the planets of civilisations that hunt the local variety of space whale, or keeping people away from memorial planets of dead civilisations with weaponized barriers of spacetime). Many civilisations have tried to enter the Sublime without subliming first. Almost all attempts result in failure, and the tiny number that enter and come back aren't mentally capable of describing what it's like. The Culture is considered unusual because it's had the ability to Sublime for millennia, but hasn't - the Sublimed themselves consider them the equivalent of a party guest that stays a bit too long. The Culture, conversely, finds it a bit too convenient that most civilisations sublime everyone at once, implying coercion of some kind. Even when a Subliming goes well, the local galactic community have to make sure that less advanced civilisations don't make a rush for the abandoned remains of the civilisation and disrupt the local order.		*The Sublimed - technically not a race but are encountered by virtually every spacefaring society. The Sublimed are the end stage of almost every civilization, representing ascension into an energy based being residing in an adjacent dimension. The technology to do so isn't actually that complicated, but only a Mind level AI or sizeable planetary community can Sublime and still maintain any meaningful presence. They're effectively capable of doing anything they want, but don't tend to interact with the material universe, save for seemingly random and inscrutable actions (like flinging moons at the planets of civilisations that hunt the local variety of space whale, or keeping people away from memorial planets of dead civilisations with weaponized barriers of spacetime). Many civilisations have tried to enter the Sublime without subliming first. Almost all attempts result in failure, and the tiny number that enter and come back aren't mentally capable of describing what it's like. The Culture is considered unusual because it's had the ability to Sublime for millennia, but hasn't - the Sublimed themselves consider them the equivalent of a party guest that stays a bit too long. The Culture, conversely, finds it a bit too convenient that most civilisations sublime everyone at once, implying coercion of some kind. Even when a Subliming goes well, the local galactic community have to make sure that less advanced civilisations don't make a rush for the abandoned remains of the civilisation and disrupt the local order.

	*The Empire of Azad - an autocratic monarchy of humanoids based in an isolated part of the galaxy. They have made contact with other galactic civilisations, but all have been technologically inferior - the Culture is the only civilisation they have encountered that are more advanced, to a ludicrous degree. Their main shtick is having three sexes (males as workers and soldiers, females as trinkets and breeders, and an "apex" sex that controls everything). The other more important feature is the game of Azad: A ludicrously complicated board-game played on football pitch sized boards, it plays like a real life version of ~~Civilisation~~ writ large (the specifics are left deliberately vague). The complexity of game simulates the skills needed to rule the empire, so the winner of the regular tournament becomes the Emperor. Male and Female Azadians are allowed to play, but are never allowed to get very far due to the apex sex being the only ones allowed to hold offices and having access to specialised schools and learning drugs. The Culture encounters them during a period of aggressive expansion, which isn't a positive thing as Banks intended them to be a dark reflection of parts of our own civilisations. The Culture sends a professional game-player to participate in the tournament (in an unofficial capacity), effectively acting as a proxy war between the Empire and the Culture.		*The Empire of Azad - an autocratic monarchy of humanoids based in an isolated part of the galaxy and the most [[/tg/]] relevant. They have made contact with other galactic civilisations, but all have been technologically inferior - the Culture is the only civilisation they have encountered that are more advanced, to a ludicrous degree. Their main shtick is having three sexes (males as workers and soldiers, females as trinkets and breeders, and an "apex" sex that controls everything). The other more important feature is the game of Azad: A ludicrously complicated board-game played on football pitch sized boards, it plays like a real life version of Civilization writ large (the specifics are left deliberately vague). The complexity of game simulates the skills needed to rule the empire, so the winner of the regular tournament becomes the Emperor. Male and Female Azadians are allowed to play, but are never allowed to get very far due to the apex sex being the only ones allowed to hold offices and having access to specialised schools and learning drugs. The Culture encounters them during a period of aggressive expansion, which isn't a positive thing as Banks intended them to be a dark reflection of parts of our own civilisations. The Culture sends a professional game-player to participate in the tournament (in an unofficial capacity), effectively acting as a proxy war between the Empire and the Culture.

	*The Affront - a race of gas-dwelling octopus-like beings that can be best described as a cross between a jolly British colonial aristocrat and your average [[Dark Eldar]]. At best, they are considered to be boisterously good-natured (if they become your friend, you're in for life) and, at their worst, monstrously sadistic; one of the first things they did when they achieved genetic engineering was to [[Slaanesh\|alter their females and young males to only feel terror and agony in any sexual situation as a means of population control and because the older and more powerful males considered it more fun that way]]). It's not that they can't understand the concept of morality, but rather that they take the idea of pain building character to a rather grotesque extreme. This attitude carries over to their other race relations, with less powerful races being considered as fair game and more powerful races to be placated enough to let them keep doing terrible things. Even worse, the Affront seem to thrive on the negative attention they get from their neighbours, even changing their name to the Affront from whatever they were called originally. The Culture is put into a difficult position with them, as they are too advanced to be readily manipulated and don't pose any threat to the Culture to prompt military action. This doesn't last long.		*The Affront - a race of gas-dwelling octopus-like beings that can be best described as a cross between a jolly British colonial aristocrat and your average [[Dark Eldar]]. At best, they are considered to be boisterously good-natured (if they become your friend, you're in for life) and, at their worst, monstrously sadistic; one of the first things they did when they achieved genetic engineering was to [[Slaanesh\|alter their females and young males to only feel terror and agony in any sexual situation as a means of population control and because the older and more powerful males considered it more fun that way]]). It's not that they can't understand the concept of morality, but rather that they take the idea of pain building character to a rather grotesque extreme. This attitude carries over to their other race relations, with less powerful races being considered as fair game and more powerful races to be placated enough to let them keep doing terrible things. Even worse, the Affront seem to thrive on the negative attention they get from their neighbours, even changing their name to the Affront from whatever they were called originally. The Culture is put into a difficult position with them, as they are too advanced to be readily manipulated and don't pose any threat to the Culture to prompt military action. This doesn't last long.