Symetti Commune
Contents
Racial Description
The Symmeti are radially symmetric invertebrates that stand about a meter tall. A thick column of ringed flesh sits on top of a "skirt" of muscle and toothed suction cups that provide locomotion. The circumference near top of the column is ringed with clusters of eyes, and a symmetric "crown" of fleshy protuberances projects from the very top. The protuberances themselves are flexible, and the ends are tipped with the same toothed suction cups located beneath the skirt. They have no mouths or nose, but their crowns appear to be very sensitive to sound. Their skin is tough and leathery, and usually has a wet sheen to it. Coloration depends on the location where the Symmeti matured into an adult, and can range from dull browns to vibrant pinks and reds. Believed to have evolved from a peculiar form of fungus, the Symmeti do not eat or breath in the same manner that other creatures do. Instead they use osmosis to absorb nutrients and water through their skin. Their preferred environment is hot, humid, high pressure, and primordial. Oxygen is extremely toxic to their biochemistry. Any nutrients not available in the air have to be artificially introduced through contact with the skin. This means that in order to eat a Symmeti must smear their food on their bodies to absorb it. Agnostic about what they eat, Symmeti dinners can be literal bloodbaths. Symmeti reproduce asexually by dropping spores throughout their lifecycle. If the spore finds a suitably warm and nutrient rich place it will grow and in a few years a fully grown Symmeti will emerge.
Individually Symmeti are typically about as cognizant as an intelligent dog. However their intelligence increases in groups. This is because of the unique nature of their crowns. The crown is actually an array of metal-infused fibrous antennae capable of sending and receiving electromagnetic waves. Symmeti use these antennae to communicate and interact with their environment. The size of a Symmeti's crown dictates the range at which they can communicate, but is typically on the order of a kilometer. It takes at least six Symmeti to be in contact with each other for the group to achieve a child-like sentience. A group of thirty-six will have the intelligence of a bright human adult. When together the Symmeti act as a sort of organic Internet, freely exchanging information and ideas with each other at the speed of thought. Like a distributed computer individual Symmeti are able to "borrow" the spare mental capacity of the group and apply it towards a given task. Each Symmeti is able to form a sense of sentient individuality and purpose, and eventually they discover how best to contribute to the species as a whole.
Home Planet
The Symetti home planet is called Metric. It is a large planet shrouded in a dense, heavy atmosphere. High temperatures and humidity give the planet a primordial quality. A single continent spans the majority of the planet, and the Symetti have covered every available square centimeter of it. As to expected by such an inherently social species Symetti cities are incredibly densely populated but immaculately clean. The constant contact with the atmosphere has motivated the Symetti to be incredibly conscientious of the environment, and significant portions of the Symetti's technological and economic developments are allocated towards sustaining the ecology and preservation.
Culture & Government
The Symmeti culture is heavily centered around the balance between the needs of the group and the development of individuality. Symmeti only have the intelligence necessary to be an individual when they are in a group. Out of necessity Symmeti live in large, dense urban centers that cluster around critical resources or centers of development. The only currency of value to Symmeti is thought, and millions of mental cycles are exchanged ever nanosecond. Open communication and exchange of ideas is valued and considered commonplace, and individual possession (while not prohibited) is considered taboo. Crime is incredibly rare, particularly since any offense that would harm the group as a whole is punished by Separation. Separation is when a Symmeti's antennae are irreversibly destroyed and the condemned is forced to spend the rest of its life in a state of mindless idiocy.
Aesthetically the Symmeti are heavily influenced by radial symmetry. When Symmeti go somewhere they always walk in a straight distance towards the destination. Symmeti do not have a cultural concept of "front," "back," or the idea of "turning." Symmeti buildings, vehicles, and spacecraft are all influenced by this concept. One of the reasons it took Symmeti so long to develop spaceflight was because it never dawned on them that they could make a craft that only traveled in one direction. What most species would regard as forward Symetti regard as up.
The Symmeti government is a pure democracy. Any Symmeti can either represent themselves or designate another being to represent them while they focus their thought cycles on something else. The good of the group as a whole is of prime consideration, and for the most part the population is content to allow a select few to handle most government operations. Because communication is so open the government does not keep secrets from its people (it really can't when the people are the ones thinking about what would be secret in the first place). This also makes it easy for the leadership to convey the necessity of a particular action to the people.
Not all Symmeti are grown equally. The most brilliant have sufficient brain power to achieve sentience on their own. Others grow antenna clusters capable of ranges of 2, 5, or even 10 kilometers. Very rarely, almost once in a generation, a Symmeti will be born that has both amazing mental capacity and antenna capable of extending far beyond those of others. These unique beings are designated as Primes, and as soon as they are recognized will become leaders of their people. Their combination of staggering individual intellect and the ability to draw on the thoughts of billions enables them to make decisions and lead in a manner that no other could do.
Systems
Symetti System
Known Wormholes - 4, survey completed
Humid Venusian Planet Metric - Class III Population 12 billion
New System 1
Known Wormholes -1, no survey
Humid Venusian moon - ?
Qualities & Drawbacks
Groupthink Is Not Always a Bad Thing [+2]: Symmeti are essentially organic computers capable of sharing their spare mental capacity with others of their species. They do this via electromagnetic signals transmitted using a "crown" of antennae. As a result Symmeti are capable of amazing feats of intelligence when there's enough of them around. They are also able to communicate with the group at incredibly fast speeds, and as long as there's a link from one Symmeti to another they can talk over practically any distance. Like any system this communication can lag over great distances. The Symmeti have also developed means of communicating with machines and with other groups over large distances. Their intelligence does not increase when linked to others in this manner, only when they are within antennae range.
Fungus Among Us [+2]: Symmeti evolved from fungus. They do not eat, breath, or drink in the same manner as other species, but instead absorb nutrients through their skin. They also do not breed, but instead constantly drop spores. Spores that find a warm, moist place will eventually grow into new Symmeti. Their biology requires high pressure environments in order to absorb nutrients, and the spores will not grow outside of that environment.
One is the Loneliest Number [-2]: With rare exception individual Symmeti are about intelligent as dogs. At least six must be within range of each other to achieve sentience. Other Symmeti that are linked to the group through artificial means may still communicate with them, but do not increase their intelligence. In terms of spaceflight this means that Symmeti cannot use smaller craft and have a lot of trouble being comfortable on anything that carries fewer than a hundred beings. The idea of a Symmeti piloting a fighter craft is laughable, although they have been known to use drones and remotely piloted vehicles.
