Ang-Tii

 

History:

  The Aing-Tii Monks are a group of aliens who drift around in their spaceships, meditating, and contemplating. They pretty much stay within the Cron Drift, although they occasionally come out (like they did in Vision of the Future). They have been around for a VERY long time, as Master Yoda knew of them.

My guess is that they originated on one of the planets within the Cron Drift, which was either destroyed or rendered uninhabitable when the Drift went boom.

  As to how the Aing-Tii made their way into the GE sim, you should probably check with Fel about that. He got it legalized, and was an Adept. Then he left, and now I'm in charge. I have a lot of books & teachings to go off of, though, so we're not really hurting for information.

  This strange race of creatures inhabits the furthest reaches of the Kathol Outback, near the Kathol Rift. They are one of the few travelers who actually seem to be able to navigate through the Rift, having been seen emerging from the Rift of several occasions. As a race, the Aing-Tii are tall, edentate mammals whose bodies are covered by bony plates. They have four legs, although they most often stand erect. Their heads are covered by helmet-like plates, and are dominated by two large eyes. They have no visible mouths, but use a group of long, thin tongues to sense and communicate. The tongues are used for tasting, smelling, and feeling. Much of their bony armor is covered with intricate, painted symbols that resemble the markings seen on their strangely-organic starships. Their tails, also covered with thick plates, are prehensile and often used in defense and attack. The Aing-Tii are also Force-sensitive, although they don't use it and control it the way Jedi Knights do. No one is sure exactly why, but the Aing-Tii patrol the Kathol Outback between the Marcol Void and the Kathol Rift looking for slave ships. They incapacitate the slavers with their Sanhedrim starships, then free the slaves.

 

Extended History: (as described by a Monk who remains anonymous)

  The Aing-Tii as they are seen in the GE are not quite the same group as in the book, Vision of the Future. Those are the Aing-Tii Monks. The Aing-Tii in the GE are the Aing-Tii Practitioners. The main difference between the two is that while the Monks sit around in their ships in the Cron Drift meditating, the Practitioners actually go out and do stuff, and apply their Code (simple as it may be) to the rest of the galaxy as best they can.

The Practitioners were founded by a small group, perhaps 2 or three Monks, who decided that they did not approve of the path the rest of the Monks were taking. It was all well and good to meditate and learn the ways of the Force and the Galaxy... but what good was that knowledge if you kept it only among a few and never spread it outside the galaxy.

  These Monks, therefore, began speaking out among the others, saying they should send out a ship, to teach the others in the galaxy what they had learned. While the majority of the Monks disagreed with this new group, they did manage to gain a small following, enough to man a single Sanhedrim ship. They therefore put together a large library of their learning, and went out to teach the others of the galaxy.

  They first went to the Empire to try and teach them, but the Empire's classic distrust of non-humans drove the renegade Monks away. They then wandered around the Galaxy, here and there, attempting to teach people. They found only one student, a man named Fel (baronfel25). They taught him, and as he learned he made copies of all the Monks' information, including the plans to their Sanhedrim ships. Fel eventually learned all he could from the renegade Monks, and the Monks moved on. Since they had found no more willing students, they continued on into the Unknown Regions in search of more students. Their fate since that point is unknown.

  Fel, though, collected the information he had copied, and stored it in a library on the planet Exocron. He then spread feelers of information out, and slowly began to draw students to him... something the Monks could not do because they lacked ties with the other races of the known galaxy. Of these new students, several were Jedi and former Jedi. All of them were humans, all capable of feeling the Force.

  Thus began the Aing-Tii Practitioners. Fel wrote a Code of behavior, and attempted to teach the students, but soon found the job more than he had bargained for. Therefore, he announced to his students that he would be renouncing the Aing-Tii powers, and leaving. When he did so, he appointed the most advanced of his students, Dan Avantrix (yes, me) as head of the Practitioners in his place. At that point, I was just a Journeyman.

  I did not immediately promote myself to the level of Master as I'm sure some of the other students expected me to. I was not the most well-loved student there at the time. Luckily, I had the support of the other Journeymen, Coraz Baha and Myn Donos. I spent quite a bit of time going over the documents Fel had collected, and learning as much as I could about the Monks and renegade Monks, without bothering to try and learn the advanced teachings.

During this whole process, I was able to refine the essence of the Aing-Tii Code to one sentence. "Before using the powers we control, we must think through the ramifications of their use, and take those into effect in deciding to use them." It may sound a bit puerile, but what it boils down to is this. The Code for the Aing-Tii dictates that before any use may be made of a Practitioner's power, they must fully think through the effects of that use. They then have to judge the possible results of their use, and look down the road. If the effects are acceptable, then they may use their abilities that way. If they are not, then they may not use their abilities that way. That is the basic precept that governs the Aing-Tii. They have no guiding direction for their powers, unlike the Jedi or Sith.

  The Aing-Tii Practitioners are allowed the most freedom in the use of their powers... but the process of training to use these powers teaches all Aing-Tii to think logically and therefore is self-controlling. To even harness these powers, the Aing-Tii must concentrate, and think through the effects in their mind. The Sith and Jedi focus on emotion as a way to reach the Force... the Aing-Tii rely on careful thought and thoughtful meditation instead.

There was one other important revelation I discovered about the Aing-Tii set of powers... that they were incompatible with the Jedi powers. Because the two practices relied on different methods of touching the Force, it was impossible to combine the two. That revelation explained the difficulty that Myn, Coraz, and the other Jedi students were having. I was indeed force sensitive, but I had forsaken that heritage in the past (I shortly trained under Myn, just enough to learn to use a saber), doing my best to completely ignore it. Up until this point, I had succeded. Upon learning this, I announced it to my fellow students... that they must make a choice which path to take. Either they must forsake their Jedi learning, and begin anew with the Aing-Tii, or they must give up the Aing-Tii. The majority of the students decided in favor of their Jedi heritage. The exception was Myn Donos, who was learning many of the same lessons I was on his own, rather than from careful study. He joined me in the library, and began studying himself... but his research was instead on how to "un-learn" his Jedi training, whereas mine was still learning everything I could about the Aing-Tii and their powers.

  During this whole time, I was still training, learning things about the powers through experience. The vast knowledge I was gaining from the books helped in my quick learning, as did my naturally pragmatic outlook. Eventually, and with the support of Myn, I proclaimed myself a Master, and rightful leader of the Aing-Tii, rather than simply first among students. Later, after much work of his own, Myn reached the level of Master. The two of us formed the Aing-Tii Council. Until an Adept rises to lead the Aing-Tii again, the Council will make all rulings on the Code (I'll explain that bit in more detail later).

  Some time after both of us had reached Master, we realized that the school on Exocron was a waste of time... we had no applicants appear, save one or two who invariably left. Therefore, we closed down the school and left. I kept the hardcopy versions of the Aing-Tii books, and Myn took data copies of all the documents. We both at that point left to return to taking care of our respective factions.

  That's the history of the Aing-Tii in a nutshell... now there's our beliefs, abilities, doctrines, teachings, etc. to go into (remember what I said about long?)

 

Beliefs

  Now, the Aing-Tii Code is nowhere NEAR as organized as the Jedi Code or the like... in fact, it tends to be a rather nebulous thing. It constantly grows and shrinks as it is refined. I already described it in general, so read my last post if you haven't already.

  The Code dictates that every Aing-Tii MUST think through the consequences of using their powers. And in fact, that becomes vital to using the powers. By the time an Aing-Tii has reached Journeyman level, it is impossible for them to use their powers without thinking it through.

Once they have thought it through, they must weigh the effects of their choices. The Code is somewhat vague on what is acceptable or not. For one thing, the effects must be for the greater good. The effects may not harm the other Aing-Tii. Under NO circumstances may the effects aid or even tolerate slavery. If this aspect of the Code contradicts any other aspect, this one takes priority, although a better solution is to be looked for first. Slavery, though, is NEVER tolerated by the Aing-Tii. That is one of the precepts of the Monks that has been passed down to the Practitioners. In any use of the Aing-Tii powers where a sentient is killed, the Practitioner responsible must return as soon as possible to the Council of Masters to make an accounting for himself or herself. The Council will then decide if the use of the Aing-Tii's powers was appropriate. If it was not, the offending Practitioner is stripped of all rights, and instructed to never use their powers again. For the purposes of the Code, the use of Sanhedrim ships are considered simply another aspect of using the Aing-Tii powers.

  The Code also has punishments laid out for infringements. However, it's rather simple, and rather straightforward. Any Practitioner accused of breaking the Code must stand trial before the Council of Masters. If the Council finds the Practitioner guilty, they are instructed to never use their powers again. If the individual is then found to ever use their powers again, they are deemed Rogue. This sentence carries with it much more weight than declaring a Jedi rogue. In essence, it is a death mark.

  The Rogue Aing-Tii is a fugitive. Any Aing-Tii who locates the Rogue is duty-bound, by the Code, to kill the Rogue. If they do not at least attempt their best to kill the Rogue, they too are declared Rogue. Also realize that to a Master, it is a somewhat easy matter to kill an individual from across the galaxy, although it requires much concentration, and knowledge of almost exactly where this person is (within a few cubic kilometers). The Council of Masters takes an active role in hunting down Rogues, as well. A Practitioner, upon locating a Rogue, is encouraged to inform the Council. At that point, the Council will attempt to destroy the Rogue from where they are.

  To an outsider, this practice may seem rather harsh. But to those who have learned the Aing-Tii, it is quite understandable. An Aing-Tii who is capable of acting against the Code, and ignoring their better judgement, is one who is on the verge of insanity. Remember that there is no such thing as a crime of passion with the Aing-Tii powers. For the powers to be used, requires a clear head and much thought. Therefore, if an Aing-Tii is far gone enough to be declared Rogue, they will most likely turn their abilities to the destruction of anything and everything they are capable of destroying. Unfortunately, this includes just about any non-Force sensitive person they come within a few meters of. It is therefore of utmost importance that the Rogue be stopped, before they can wreak more havoc on the galaxy.

  Should a former Practitioner decide that they wish to leave the ranks, and learn another aspect of the Force, that is not held against them. That is because just as it is impossible to retain Jedi skills and learn the Aing-Tii, it is impossible to retain Aing-Tii skills and learn the ways of the Jedi or Sith.

  Now, most of the rest of this stuff can be found in the official Aing-Tii rules... but I'm re-phrasing it here for complete clarification.

 

Powers: Transportation of matter

Initiate: Level 1; No powers

Apprentice: Level 2; Equipment scale over the size of a room

Journeyman: Level 5; Character scale over planetary distances

Master: Level 7; Capital scale over system distances. Ability to transport organic matter

Adept: Level 8; Death star scale over galaxy distances. Ability to transport organic matter

Equipment scale: 1 post

Character scale: 2 posts

Capital scale: 3 posts

Death star scale: 4 posts (Moving a Death Star scale E.G. A small moon , will tire them out instantly)

Notes:

An Aing-Tii Monk may not transport another object, living or inanimate, into a solid object. Liquid and gaseous objects will be subject to displacement/diffusion effects.
An Aing-Tii Monk must make a number of different posts dependant on the scale of the object they wish to transport.

Example one: Transporting a gun (Equipment) from someone's holster

Post one Shoneb looked at the stranger coolly in the eye, he could see the gunslingers hand twitch near the gun on the hip. The image of the weapon came to his mind, the weight, the density, bonds between the molecules. Shoneb though his Aing-Tii abilities transported the gunslingers blaster to his hand.

Example two: Transporting themselves (Character) out of a room

Post one Shoneb wanted to leave this room, drawing upon his Aing-Tii training he knew the exact location of every molecule in his body. It would be simple for him, a Master of the Ang-Tii ways, to move himself such a short distance.
Post two Sensing where he wished to travel to was clear, Shoneb transported, appearing on the other side of the wall he looked around. The corridor was clear, he could now begin phase two of the mission.

 

Training:

  Apprentice: Level 1; Be willing to learn, and to un-learn any previously learnt knowledge. This may take some time depending on the knowledge and the strength the Force-user had to the Force before under going this training. During this time the apprentice learns how to use the methods of the Aing-Tii ways, they learn how to transport small objects over very short distances, though not without mishap until the apprentice becomes skilled at the 'basics'.

Journeyman: Level 5; This requires the student to posses a fair amount of skill in moving objects, both large and over long distances. It also requires that you can successfully touch the Force to monitor a room for purposes of transporting objects to/from it. You also need to be able to transport to/from places you've never personally been to. That's where tapping into the Force comes in, not just in moving things.

Master: Level 7; This requires that you be able to move large objects over extreme distances (like between systems). It requires that you can transport living objects without killing them. It requires that you can safely monitor areas many light years distant for the purposes of transporting to/from them. It also requires a degree of fine control, small transports of objects to create doorways in solid walls, etc.

  Adept: Level 8; An Adept requires not only hard work and training, but also a small amount of innate skill. It is much easier for Force Users to reach the Adept level (once they have un-learned their previous use of the Force) than it is for a non-Force User. That is because a Force User is, in general, a more powerful practitioner of the Aing-Tii Methods than a non- Force User. However, in the end it is much harder for a Force User to reach the Adept level than a non-Force User, because for many Force Users the task of un-learning their previous methods of touching the Force becomes too large a step. Once you are Adept level, it's fairly easy to move just about anything up to the size of a space station (something as large as the Death Star would place tremendous strain on the Adept) from any system in the galaxy to any other system.

 

Aing-Tii and the Force:

  We are manipulating the Force here, same as the Jedi or the Sith do. However, for us the Force is not looked at in terms of light & dark, but instead we see it as a rainbow, with very little moral connotation. That is not to say that how you use the methods does not color them. That simply says that the methods themselves are neither good nor evil.

  Anybody can learn these methods of manipulating the Force. This is because the Aing-Tii methods do not require nearly the same level of touch with the Force that the Jedi or Sith methods do. Those methods require that you "feel" the force. With the Aing-Tii methods, however, we do not need to feel the Force and be part of it, we simply learn to draw on it. The limited amount that we learn to touch the Force is used primarily to monitor the places we transport to/from.

  Unfortunately, this limits what we can do. Much the same as a leper has very little dexterity, there is little we can do through the Force. To be specific, we only have one ability. That is, put simply, to instantly teleport matter from point A to point B. To the fully trained Adept, neither size nor distance is much of a barrier. As we train, we learn how to move larger things farther.

 

Notes:

  Note: A Force 'user' is a Force sensitive who has trained in the art's of the Force. A non-Force 'user' includes Force sensitives who have undergone _no_ training, all non-Force sensitives are included under this category.

  Note: Only one object may be transferred at a time by the Aing-Tii powers, though transference is instantaneous.

  Note: If a Force-user takes steps to learn the Aing-Tii ways, to progress they most lose all their pervious abilities, and slowly rebuild their understanding in the one aspect of the Force. To learn the Aing-Tii ways, you must 'un-learn' what you have already learnt. A character may not be a Force-user of any other kind and Aing-Tii.

  Note: A non Force sensitive Aing-Tii monk is different from a Force sensitive Aing-Tii monk. Only Force-users trained to 'feel' the Force, or those who carry within them the natural ability to 'feel' the Force my progress to the rank of Adept as they posses the "small amount of innate skill" to reach this level. Non Force sensitives are limited to the rank of Master.

  Note: Force sensitive Aing-Tii monks are able to use the Light/Dark level 1 powers, whereas the Non-Force sensitive can not. The former would have the 'danger sense' of a Jedi, the latter would not.

 

Rules

  The Aing-Tii have five ranks.  The lowest rank, Initiate, is given to the completely untrained. That has no level, since they cannot use any Aing-Tii powers. Any Force Users from other aspects of the Force will remain at this level until they have managed to un-learn their previous methods of attenuating themselves with the Force.   The second level is Apprentice. This is given when the Aing-Tii has learned how to reliably access their powers. They have very little skill, but they have managed to bring their talent under control, and have conscious control over it.  The third level is Journeyman. This is roughly equivalent to the Jedi level of Knight. This level Aing-Tii is quite proficient in their skill, and capable of completely controlling it. They have learned the mental discipline required of them, and are ready to pass on to fine control, and complex things, such as teleporting living objects.

  The fourth level is Master. This is the highest that most Aing-Tii will ever reach. The Council is formed of all the Practitioners of this rank (for the present, eventually there may be too many masters for that, and everything will change). At this level, the Practitioner has learned just about everything there is to learn about the Aing-Tii.

  The fifth, and highest level, is Adept. In the history of the Aing-Tii Practitioners, we have only ever had one adept, Fel. The difference between an Adept and a Master is one of power... sheer power. Where the Aing-Tii Master is capable of moving capitol ships from system to system, the Adept is capable of moving small moons anywhere in the galaxy. In addition the Adept is ALWAYS the head of the Aing-Tii. The Adept presides over the Council of Masters, and is the final word when interpreting the Code. Should the Council ever vote on an issue, the Adepts vote counts the same as 1/3 of to total vote, with the Masters of the Council totaling 2/3 of the vote. Thus, were there 4 Masters on the council, each Master would have one vote, where the Adept would have two. If there were 10 Masters on the council, the Adept would have five votes.

  The Adept is also capable of one skill that no other rank can do... they may designate an area of space to transport, rather than an object. Thus, it is possible for an Adept to transport several battleships at once, provided that they are close enough together, simply by designating the space enveloping them as the object to be transported. This method does pose problems, though, at the destination end. For this to work, there must be a completely clear area for the teleported items to appear in... thus objects may only be transported to a vacuum. Were this sort of transport attempted with a destination inside an atmosphere, the displacement would cause at best massive meteorological problems. This is something that the Code would not allow. An Adept is mentally incapable of violating the Code.

 

Powers

  Ok, the power of the Aing-Tii is, theoretically, very simple. The Aing-Tii simply have the power to teleport matter from point A to point B, instantaneously. They also have the ability to look where they're going to be placing this stuff, to make sure they're not trying to stick it deep in the rock (although it would probably make some interesting fossils... throw archaeology all to hell). Unfortunately for those of you who are getting tired of hearing me drone on (remember, I told you to bring a pillow), in practice it's nowhere near that simple.

  You see, the Aing-Tii can get quite creative with this. For example, an Aing-Tii is capable of moving matter over a VERY small distance... but essentially lurching whatever is above or below the matter, as it is displaced slightly. This would be somewhat the equivalent of one of the sharp movements in an earthquake... without the follow up movements. Worse than subsonic vibrations.

  Or, the Aing-Tii could move the matter in a specific section of a wall to another section of that wall, increasing its density... and incidentally, creating a doorway.

  At the Initiate level, Aing-Tii are given only very small objects to train with... objects the size of marbles. These are very simple to deal with. The Initiates are not allowed anything else to practice on, since they are not yet capable of controlling their talents. To reach the next rank (Apprentice), the Initiate must learn control their talent, to be able to call upon it when wanted, and not have it manifest itself when not desired.

  Apprentices are given a series of increasingly large objects to work with. They also are taught how to use the Force to view places they have not been, and how to look at the destination for their transfer. To achieve the next rank, the Apprentice must learn how to transport large objects to anywhere else on the same planet. The Apprentice must also learn how to view other places in the Force. This is NOT the same sort of sensing that Jedi do. Instead, this is manifested around a location, and the Aing-Tii detects the spatial relationships of matter. The Practitioner is not capable of telling WHAT the matter is, although they are quite capable of guessing, since all matter is different. The only distinction in the different kinds of matter is between its phases (solid, liquid, gas).

  Journeymen have mastered the ability to move objects over moderate distances, and now must learn to expand their range. However, they must also learn fine control of their powers. This is the point in their training that Aing-Tii learn how to move single molecules, and to re-shape matter. This is the skill involved in opening a door in a solid wall. In addition, Aing-Tii learn at this stage how to transport living matter. Previously, should an Aing-Tii attempt to teleport something alive, it would transport flawlessly, just when it arrived it would be dead. While an effective method of hunting for food, this is not a recommended method of travel. The Journeyman learns how to transport living matter (and keep it alive), although it is still quite possible to transport living matter such that it does not survive the process (if desired, it's a conscious choice). The biggest test of this skill is when the Journeyman teleports himself or herself for the first time. To reach the next rank (Master), the Adept must master fine control, and teleporting living matter.

  The Master is precisely what the term implies, a Master of the Aing-Tii powers. They are completely capable of moving any matter up to the size of a Cruiser to any system within the Known Regions. They are fully capable of transporting living matter without the subject feeling too much disorientation. They are capable of monitoring large areas through the Force. It is unknown what is required to reach the next level (Adept), since the only Adept in the history of the Aing-Tii left no records of his own passage to Adept.

  And now, ladies and gentlemen, I think I'm done. I'll see you in here next week at the same time, and I promise I'll find something interesting to lecture about... although you may wish to bring your pillows again, just as a precaution.

 

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