In the galactic field of politics, the sabarians can be regularly seen both forming the backbone of an organization's internal structure or as the outstretched hand of negotiation. Their efforts may sometimes be invisible, but the effects are always tangible; even sabarians far from the diplomat's stage can find themselves in positions of proposing compromises or serving as mediators, or at least expected to do so by virtue of their race's history. One of Ealdremen's most prominent factions, the Alamo Empire, was named for a sabarian that inspired the Empire's eventual founder, and so the sabarians' legacy of unity continues for future generations.
Etymology and Other Names[]
The name sabarian is derived from the country of Sabaria, thought to be where the race originated. The prolific nature of the sabarians and their historical self-advocacy have resulted in this name becoming emblematic of the race, similar to the tumorians within the Veriol Alliance. Sabaria, as a name, is thought to derive from, or at least hold a relation to, an old Common Habou word, saavari, meaning low tree. Sabaria could then be taken to mean a land of low trees, indicating an older environment where the sabarians initially settled.
Biology[]
The sabarians' rounded faces, large eyes, and curled, bushy tails may endear them to other races, which may regard them as cute or trustworthy based on their appearance. Similar to the noctra race from Gerualdi, sabarians' fused-together front incisors are very often visible even when their mouth is closed due to their less prominent lower jaw and the relative size of their incisors. They must regularly gnaw on hard objects to keep their teeth from growing at too rapid of a rate, which can lead to dental problems as they outgrow the mouth; typical food is never enough to slow the accelerated growth of the teeth.
Grey, red, black, and brown are the most common colors displayed by sabarians, but they often have "ticked" fur that is one color at the base and develops into another color at the tip. They also commonly have ring-like patterns on their tails or different splotches of color not seen in their main body coloration, such as white, around their faces, limbs, or necks. Most sabarians have hair atop their heads that is of a similar color to the rest of their body, though there are some whose hair will display the same ticked or splotched patterns seen in the rest of their fur.
Sabarians have highly flexible wrists and ankles that allow them to rotate their hands and feet to point completely backwards; this allows them to climb surfaces that many others would deem impossible and even climb head-first down sheer walls without much trouble. Their long bushy tails and their glossy wings help maintain their balance. The wings of a sabarian, unlike most other winged races, are neither comprised of membrane nor feathers. Rather, their wings are chitinous, like those of an insect, developed from the bones of their backs and shoulders. A sabarian's wings are thin and glossy, typically resembling a winged insect's in some way. Extremely young sabarians may be able to hover if they are particularly small, but they lose this ability early in their childhoods, and no adult sabarian is capable of true flight without the assistance of magic or technology; however, members of a rare subspecies may have a membranous structure from their wrists to their ankles that allows them a limited ability to glide.
Sociology[]
To a typical sabarian, the greatest values are often those that transcend their initial context and apply across a variety of situations. Their governments usually seek to make laws with few exceptions or caveats, instead favoring straightforward laws that are often very weak or extremely rigid with very little middle ground so that they will be fairly applied to everyone regardless of circumstances. Historically, sabarian societies operated on good faith and the idea that most people will endeavor to follow a law's intentions rather than search for loopholes or alternative interpretations. To this end, most sabarian-made laws, contracts, or other legally binding documents will not only state the agreement or law itself, but also plainly spell out its intended purpose. On the grand field of compromise, being upfront about intentions is thought to facilitate negotiation, as it removes the need to guess why the other party is behaving the way they are. This attitude has won them powerful allies throughout their history, most notably the robotic sabarus alphas that swore allegiance to Sabaria and its people for the natives' benevolence towards them and willingness to believe their good intentions.
Sabarian-dense areas tend to emphasize conformity and not losing one's composure even in the face of disrespect and spite. Self-restraint and keeping a realistic, broader perspective are both the hallmarks of maturity to most sabarians and are ideals to endeavor towards even outside of politics. In essence, they value being rooted in reality and not seeking after immediate gratification. Their emphasis on remembering greater purposes and long-term goals is potentially what makes their societies focused on unity; a society that facilitates aimless contention in the name of honesty will be forever divided, its people only seeking their own self-interests. On ther other hand, a society that encourages conflict to be discussed only in peaceful negotiations that are equally invested in the welfare of both parties will respect both itself and other societies. Emotions such as anger and sorrow have no place in public and should be discussed and resolved in private, away from even one's own family; only once these emotions are appropriately accepted and put away should a sabarian return to a discussion. They do not view outbursts as passionate so much as a sign of poor self-control.
Because of their focus on the long-term, sabarians tend to have what others may regard as an environmentalist focus in their legislation and in how their societies are structured. They do not view a priority given to the natural world as inherently political so much as a natural form of logic; a tree that is cut down may supply wood today, but if allowed to grow, it will disperse seeds that will grow into more wood over a longer, but still within a generational, span of time. They disparage the taking of resources that could have grown to be "more" and make great use of metals and other minerals because their growth is on a geological scale rather than a biological one. Even still, they are careful with their resource management and will rarely deviate from budgets, even in the face of unforeseen problems, because of potential long-term effects.
Racial Traits (D&D 3.5e/Pathfinder)[]
Sabarians are a Small race and inherit such bonuses and penalties for their size. Sabarian characters may choose either +2 Dexterity and -2 Constitution or +2 Charisma and -2 Strength to be applied to their starting attributes. Sabarians find themselves reacting more quickly than many other races or make good use of their renowned oratory abilities, but they are usually frail or struggle in a world that is physically oversized to them.
When a sabarian successfully uses the aid another action for another character's skill or ability check, they gain Cooperation's Fortune and receive a +2 luck bonus the next time they have the same skill or ability check in that same day. For Craft, Profession, and Perform, the checks do not have to be of the same subtype. If a sabarian successfully aids another again before using their current Cooperation's Fortune bonus, they may choose to keep their current Cooperation's Fortune bonus or replace it with the new one, but they may not keep both.
From their Compromising natures, sabarians receive +2 Diplomacy. A sabarian character also receives +2 Climb from being a Natural Climber and has a climb speed equal to their base land speed.