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Hiigaran History
Vaygr History
What Came Before
Karan S'Jet
A Time of War
The Vaygr
What Came Before
On Kharak the old Kiith clans believed that Sajuuk, He Whose Hand Shapes What Is, exiled them to the desolate reaches of the galaxy for their crimes. For millennia, the Exiles struggled for survival unaware of their true origins. Then, from deep below the sands of Kharak, a single discovery forever changed their history - an ancient starship, buried in the sand.
Within its ruins lay the Guidestone and the promise of their true home: Hiigara. But this was not the only discovery, for the ruins also yielded the secrets needed to reverse-engineer the Hyperspace Module that would take the Exiles home. Building an exact replica of the containment unit, the exiled Hiigarans placed the original core, the nexus that made hyperspace possible, within. This simple act would seal their fate.
Venturing forth from the sands of Kharak into the depths of space, the Hiigaran began their voyage home aboard the Mothership. Many remember the pain and sacrifices of the Return. What started out as a triumphant return quickly became a desperate struggle for survival. From the Inner Galactic Rim the Taiidan Empire rose to challenge the Exiles. Observing a four thousand year old edict against Hyperspace, the Taiidan destroyed Kharak - dooming all save the 600,000 volunteers in cryo-sleep aboard the Mothership.
Long and bitter was the journey, but the Exiles returned home…never to forget the sacrifices made by the millions who died and the vision of Kharak burning in the void. Many thought their hardships would end when they returned to Hiigara, but fate would not be so kind...
Karan S'jet
One of the greatest sacrifices made during the Return was made by the young neuroscientist Karan S'jet. She was instrumental in designing many of the systems aboard the Mothership and had herself integrated into the massive data shunt of the Mothership, becoming its living core in the process.
Under the watchful guidance of Karan S'jet, the Hiigarans have forged a new empire with colonies stretching across the Inner Rim, from the Great Wastelands to the Sarum system.
Although no longer joined to the Mothership, Karan's exposure to Hyperspace expanded her consciousness and extended her life. It is she who first sensed the coming of the Vaygr and started preparations to build a second Mothership to face this new threat. Construction of this Mothership, called "The Pride of Hiigara," was started deep within the Tanis Wastelands, far away from Hiigaran shipping lanes and the eyes of Vaygr scouts.
Once more, it is Karan who will be the greatest hope for the Hiigarans in their time of deepest despair.
A Time of War
The Hiigaran arrival forever changed the face of the Inner Rim. With the defeat of the Taiidan Empire, the Galactic Counsel fragmented into countless warring factions. Although outnumbered and surrounded, the Hiigarans managed to emerge as a dominant force for they and the enigmatic Bentusi were the only races to possess the ability to Far Jump: to cross vast distances of space and time in the blink of an eye.
With the collapse of the Galactic Counsel came the Dust Wars. What started out as small border clashes soon turned to open warfare as old grievances were finally settled. As if on cue, the Vaygr swept out of the Eastern Fringes, intent on invading the Inner Rim. At first, the Vaygr attacked in small raiding parties composed mainly of Taiidan rebels. It quickly became obvious the raids were only the beginning of a larger crusade. Within months, sightings of new ships were reported throughout the Inner Rim. No longer disrupting shipping, these new attackers were organized and deadly. One by one, star systems fell to the Vaygr and with each one, their path became increasingly clear - the Home system and Hiigara.
The Vaygr
The Eastern Fringe of the Galaxy is an inhospitable area of space dominated by unstable star systems and dangerous gravitational disturbances. This has isolated the indigenous populations from the rest of the galaxy. It's a wild and lawless area explored only by the foolhardy or desperate, controlled by petty warlords and preyed on by raiders and bandits. The greatest and most organized of these groups are the Vaygr, a nomadic, space-borne race.
The Vaygr are expansionists, Traveling from system to system on conventional drives, they enslave any races they encounter, cannibalizing their technology and culture in the process. Over the course of centuries, they have conquered and absorbed an unknown number of civilizations in this fashion. As a result, the Vaygr are less a singular race than a conglomeration of clans and factions, lead by strong brutal warlords in fleets known as Crusades.
A Vaygr Crusade is largely independent, depending on the build capacity of their motherships, deep space resourceingresourcing operations, and finely honed raiding skills. Contact between crusades more often than not leads to conflict, however Crusades have been known to work together for a common goal if the reward is great enough.
Discovery of ancient Progenitor relics over the past three centuries of Vaygr expansion combined with selective interpretation of poorly kept records has led certain warlords to believe they are the Sajuuk-Khar, the chosen of Sajuuk. For centuries, these messianic pretenders have searched for the Three Cores, keys to hyperspace and the path to Sajuuk himself. For centuries all they found were ruins and ghosts of the Progenitor Era.
This all changed when a warlord named Makaan discovered a Hyperspace Core deep in the Hethlim Ice-Fields. Already in possession of other Progenitor artifacts, Makaan's scientists and engineers quickly unraveled its secrets and, for the first time in their history, the Vaygr possessed the ability to Far Jump. This would prove a calamity, for it released the Vaygr from the confines of the Eastern Fringe into the densely populated Inner Rim.
Integrated into the data matrix of the Vaygr Flagship, Makaan has sensed the presence of the remaining two cores and the minds that controlled them. Contact with remnants of the Taiidan Imperial Fleet revealed a common purpose. Under the banner of the Vaygr, they have been moving inexorably closer to the Hiigaran system.
Through the cores, the wills of Makaan and Karan strive for dominance. With their blood, the Vaygr and the Hiigarans will stand…or fall.
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