User:Gran.reicero

Culture
Appearance and clothing

The Bellato are about 70% the height of human beings (about 4'6”-5’4” on the average) and look like teenagers for most of their lives. They are typically slim, though warriors may be bulkier that most. Obesity is almost unheard of for adult Bellato. Only the really old Bellato show signs of becoming overweight.

Bellato emphasize individual freedoms, and it is most evident in the wild variety of styles and appearances that they wear. Hair styles are varied, depending on the current fad, and Bellato would dye their hair to suit their personality. They actually have the same natural hair colors as humans. Eye colors are also varied, through the use colored contact lenses, some Bellato look very striking indeed.

Tattooing is another popular way of self _expression. Though not all Bellato sport tattoos, it does not meet with disapproval. Tattoos are often used to mark the face, to emphasize a particular portion of their face. These tattoos are very personal, some can be simple cosmetic enhancements, others use tattoos to commemorate significant events.

Clothing usually follows whatever current fads are present, though they tend to favor light fabrics that don’t impede movement, and most clothes are usually body hugging to for the same reason. Living on a high gravity homeworld is difficult enough without being impeded by heavy clothes. Similarly, most Bellato wear very comfortable footwear, since gravity puts enough stresses on their feet as it is. Heels are not usually worn by many, and even if present, these are usually very low. Clothing is usually colorful, it is rare to see pure white or earth colors among civilians.

Bellato, male or female all wear various rings, bangles, pendants, or earrings. These are usually simple affairs. These accessories typically have flowing lines or regular geometric shapes.

Speech patterns

The Bellato were bred as soldiers, and so their speech is usually peppered with military references. They are best described as “rough” in their speech, as they have had little time or opportunity to learn the niceties of language. They are very informal, even when speaking in front of a crowd or assembly.

Since they frequently have contact with other races and trade with them, the Bellato language is frequently influenced by those they are most in contact with. Depending on the planet, it is common that the local “dialect” may contain words that are not present in most of Bellato space.

 Music and dance

Bellato music tends to favor strong bass tones and percussive sounds. The tempo of their music tends to be fast, since the average Bellato can’t really sit still very long anyway. The strong underlying beat in their music reflects the fact that most Bellato have a very good sense of rhythm, which is very useful elsewhere.

Bellato dance can best be described as a frenzied and frenetic festival of movement. No two Bellato will dance in exactly the same way, except that the dance is usually fast, and on the beat.

Food

Despite their size, the Bellato are three times stronger and tougher than the average human. Bred to be super soldiers, they are actually much heavier for their height. Their bone density has adjusted to match their homeworld’s 2.5G gravity, and their muscle strength can match it. In order to maintain this strength, Bellato have a metabolism that would be the envy of any human. This makes them highly active and voracious as far as food goes.

If left to their own devices, a Bellato would easily eat 1/4 his body weight in regular food per day, and not gain a single pound. Their smaller stature makes for smaller stomachs, so they tend to eat many small meals rather than a few big ones. Soldiers, however, don’t have the luxury of packing several hundred pounds of food around during a mission. Fortunately they have specially formulated energy bars to sate their hunger. Incidentally, these energy bars closely resemble our candy bars, except with 3 times the calories and calcium content.

The Bellato like to eat, especially sweets. This is an effect of their body’s demands rather than gluttony. If unable to find adequate amounts of food in time, a Bellato is quite susceptible to a sugar crash.

Alcohol is another favorite of Bellato. With their remarkable metabolism, they can be roaring drunk one moment and sober within 3-4 hours.

Family life

In the early days of the Bellato, plenty of wars were fought among the various factions on the homeworld. Unfortunately the creators of the Bellato favored creating males rather than females, so they were a rare sight in those times. Fortunately for the females, they were as strong, if not stronger, than most men present. So they would easily put down and unwanted advances from desperate men.

This led to an unusual situation, the men, seeing their chances or procreating rather slim, courted and favored the women. The social status of women was elevated above those of men, as far as the family is concerned. So in a family, the women called the shots. They were also allowed to choose more than one man as a mate, so it was not unusual at the time for women to have more than one husband. However with the current population evening out, this practice has been discouraged, though some families still practice it. Since the female is usually the head of a family, the family tree is usually traced through the mother, and the children inherit their family name from her.

Again, the Bellato physiology affects their family size. Being energetic to begin with, it’s not a stretch of the imagination to know that the Bellato are actually rather… frisky. The average Bellato family can have anywhere from 6-10 children. Despite the fact that a Bellato woman might have had this many children, overall her appearance has not changed. She would still be as slim as when she first got married.

A child is a thing of celebration, since the Bellato are smaller than the average human, their gestation period is also shorter. A mother would carry the child for 6 months before giving birth. However, the child would not be given to the mother immediately as most Bellato mothers are unable to produce adequate amounts of milk for their child. Instead they are kept in nurseries for the a month before they are turned over to the mother for care.

In a typical home, the mother makes the decisions of the house, though the chores are equally distributed among its members. The children stay with their parents until it is time for mandatory military service, which usually happens when the kids are 17 or 18 years old. It is very unusual to see Bellato still living with their parents after they finish mandatory military service. This is because most Bellato are struck with wanderlust when they reach adulthood. This drive to explore is one of the hallmarks that allowed the Bellato to expand as it did. Some particularly influential or powerful families have instead formed their own enclaves where almost all the family members can come home to. This allows safety in numbers, and consolidates their influence over an area, since they will most certainly find work in nearby.

Most Bellato marry for love, as an individual’s choice is given importance. Both the men and women can court the opposite gender. When a match is made, it is a simple matter of announcing it to the community and registering their union. Divorce is allowed; though the community makes such a decision difficult, since there are many interventions that are available to the couple should trouble arise.

Bellato live much longer than humans, thanks to genetic modifications. They typically go through puberty and rapid growth from 12-16 years, and begin to slow down at about 160 years. At this time their metabolism slows down drastically, causing them to age at a rapid rate. Few Bellato live past 200 years.

Politics

Until relatively recently, the Bellato were a feudal civilization. When the dust settled in their early days, seven nations had emerged, each recognizing the others’ sovereign power. Wars were still fought over territory, but this came to an end when they began to expand into space. They formed the Bellato Union as a way of showing a unified front to other races and chose a “queen” to represent the seven great clans.

In the first few encounters between the Corites and the Accretians, the Bellato queen decided to field her armies to the highest bidder. Veteran mercenaries, however, decided they have had enough of their monarch’s greed, because though the mercenaries fought and died at the queen’s command, none of them gained anything out of it. So they staged a revolution, deposed the queen, and set up their own government. When the old monarchy fell and the Federation was created, citizens gained any rights equal to those of the nobility.

Some of these are:

1. The right to choose their profession after military service. 2. The right to vote for their local representatives. 3. The right to speak in a public forum regarding any topic. (Though unimportant matters tend to be ignored by the local assembly.

The current government is set up this way:

The queen still represents the Bellato as far as diplomatic relations are concerned.

An executive council, who are elected into office by the senate, take the role of the approving, disseminating, and enforcing laws. The council has seven members (a nod to the old feudal system) and are chosen from the members of the senate. Law enforcement and the military answer to the executive council. Half the council is replaced every 3 Bellato years. Since there is an odd number of members, 3 are replaced in one cycle, then the other four in the next.

There is a Senate, which is composed of representatives of each planet and territory under Bellato control. As a planet gives a greater and greater contribution to the Federation, more seats are granted to it, giving greater voting power in the senate. Territories are assessed every three years, and it is possible for a planet to lose seats if performance is bad, though they are given one more assessment cycle to correct the situation. The senate legislates laws and makes major decisions that affect the entire Federation or several planets.

Local government is pretty straightforward, senators assigned to a planet are the overall administrator for the race. In the case of the contested planet Novus, this is Eldon Canter. How they decide to run things is a matter up to individual senators.

Though the nobility has lost much in terms of control over its constituents, they are still pretty much the richest Bellato around. The seven great clans still maintain control over their individual territories on the homeworld, and many representatives in the senate are from these seven clans. The clans are named Solus, Avius, Verdura, Lupus, Lunus, Telluria, and Luminus.

' Trade and industry'

The Bellato are a very ingenious race. They are highly innovative, able to find solutions where none seem to exist. They possess the ability for lateral thinking that is envied by many other races. It is through this that the Bellato became an industrial giant in this sector.

Masters of mass production, the Bellato supply goods to many other races and groups, most notably Cartella. They mostly supply manufactured goods such as engines, hovercars, farm equipment, or mining equipment. They also have a large military industry, and after encountering the Accretians, they thought that being covered in several inches of steel was a good idea when going to war. However, they didn’t like the idea that they’d be stuck in that body forever. So they thought of a solution and created a powered armor that would carry their warriors into battle. Thus was born the Massive Armored Unit, or MAU. Given their industrial base, they were able to field hundreds of thousands of these MAUs in Bellato space.

Religion

The Bellato have seen the power of religious fervor if left unchecked. To ensure that no religion can rise to wrest political power from the Council, there was a decree that all religions must acknowledge the queen as the supreme authority in religious matters. Other than that fact, every Bellato is free to follow his or her own religion and moral code. A common religion is that of the elite Bellato berserkers, many of whom follow an animist philosophy which is said to allow them to harness the power of the beast.

Factions
Given that Bellato is a Federal government, it is not unusual at all to see several interest groups vying for control over a particular matter. It isn�t a very long stretch that a Bellato, given the right price, would do practically anything. With individual freedom and happiness being emphasized among its citizens, it�s only natural that some would band together because of mutual self-interest.

Freedom always comes at a price, and for the Bellato it�s the fact that this freedom leaves several large security holes in it�s structure. Many factions have made their home within the political and economic structure of the Federal Army on the planet Novus.

The Bellato Council

Despite the revolution that overthrew the monarchy, the ruling council of Bellato is still composed mostly of individuals that come from powerful political families. There are seven seats on the Executive Council, one for each of the major territories on the Bellato world. These seven territories were established centuries ago when the Bellato rose from the ashes of a previous civilization. They recognize each other�s sovereignty, but that doesn�t stop them from trying to gain an advantage over each other. So, while on the surface the Bellato now represent a democratic government for the people, the ruling council is still composed of pretty much the same old people. Among its duties is the implementation of new laws, budget, and making decisions for the race as a whole, only this time they have to spread the wealth around.

The Bellato queen is still the figurehead for the Bellato and she represents the Federation in all high level talks with other races and major deals that affect the Federation.

Just under the Executive Council is the Federation Senate, which formulates and proposes new laws for the approval of the Council. The Senate is also the forum for discussion of actions that the entire Federation might take regarding major issues. Recently, in the hopes of counteracting the devastating effect of elemental forces against their Massive Armored Units, they commissioned the research of new armor that would be more resistant to Cora�s Force as well as Accretia�s Launchers. The result was project Exidem. However, there was a recent clamor for the review of the efficiency and effectiveness of the project�s results. The Senate is currently debating on the matter.

Each territory within the Bellato Federation receives a seat on the Federation Senate, for Novus, that representative is Race Manager Eldon Canter. Each planet receives more seats (and therefore votes) in the Senate as control over a planet is consolidated and its economic contribution more evident. Currently, Novus only has one seat, and race manager Eldon Canter is the one in it. Eldon Canter is already slated for promotion to the Executive Council, however. A successor may be chosen soon.

Antium

Old ways die hard, and many Bellato still remember the days of absolute monarchy. There are members of the nobility who would like nothing better than to see the queen restored to her rightful throne, again wielding absolute power over her subjects. These nobles think that by bringing back the monarchy, the future of their clans would be assured. At the moment they are conducting a covert war against the members of the executive council, many of whom are nobles from rival clans who have prospered after the queen lost power.

The Antium�s military might is currently small, but through middlemen it is able to gather small independent armed forces. On Novus, Neca is the one gathering support for Antium.

The Recluses

Within the Federation Army exists a secretive group of individuals called the Recluses. Their origins are still being debated, but one thing is clear: they have inherited the secrets of the Light Force Corites that fled to the Federation after the War of Color. They are now tasked with the development of Force that can be used by many ordinary Bellato. Not only are in charge of enabling the Bellato to use Force, but they are also in charge of the development of various healing chemicals through Halomental research.

Cartella

The Cartella is a powerful independent faction that includes several of the most influential and affluent Bellato merchant and political families. They help supply the Federation with the necessary arms and armor to continue its war efforts. This gives them a staggering amount of influence not only on the Senate, but the Executive Council as well. They are concerned only in one thing: profit. For the Cartella, the end justifies the means. So as long as an activity remains profitable, expect Cartella to want to extend it for as long as possible� including the war on Novus. More information on the Cartella�s strength and activities will be given in a separate document.

Caravan Merchant Union

Caravan is a small and struggling group of merchants, mercenaries, and individuals who are in one way or another opposing the near-monopoly that Cartella seeks to establish. At the moment it is also assembling the so-called Armed Men Force, a group of Bellato mercenaries that seeks to harass and impede Cartella�s activities. Rumor has it that Caravan is helping finance military actions that impede Cartella�s activities or weakens Cartella�s ties to the Federation. More details on Caravan will be given in a separate document.

Federation North Group

All military forces on Novus fall under the watchful eye of the Federation North Group. Though nominally under the control of the Executive Council, this group has weathered several changes in government, and only exists to ensure the continued existence of the Bellato as a race. Many of the positions of power within the Group are usually given to families that have served the Group well in the past. However this does not mean that particularly resourceful individuals can�t rise through the ranks.

It has several agents scattered on Novus with the express mission of keeping an eye on the other factions, most notably Cartella, which it feels may be a potential threat to the Group�s activities.

The unique mercenary history of the Bellato makes its military one of the most motivated and dedicated armies in existence. Almost all Bellato soldiers above the rank of Minor currently serving on Novus are volunteers. Through a network of middlemen, the Group acquires anything it needs and fulfills its objectives by simply putting up a reward. Sooner or later someone�s going to step up to the challenge and complete what needs to be done.

Turncoats

In a mercenary military like Bellato, it is not surprising it actually has among the highest numbers of soldiers that have been declared turncoats. Either through open opposition to the Council or by taking missions for the other races, they have earned the title Turncoat and now they are hunted by all Bellato and alien forces alike.