The Horror in the Darkness
- Intent: To Create A New Species
- Image Credit: XX
- Canon: N/A
- Permissions: N/A
- Links: N/A
- Name: Damhán
- Designation: Semi-Sentient
- Origins: Dathomir (Originally) : Gargon : Cathar
- Average Lifespan: Eighty-Five years
- Estimated Population: Scattered
- Description: The Damhán are an arachnid species, and as such, they possess eight legs with the upper two extending into long arms with a three-fingered hand, each finger ending in black, sharp pointing claws. Their body is divided into two sections which is called collectively the tagmata, one section is known as the cephalothorax where the head and frontal portion of the body is, and the abdomen which is situated in the back. They have glowing yellow eyes, that look like orbs, and a maw filled with razor, sharp teeth. Along their legs and upon their shoulders are hardened cartilages that act as defensive measure, or armor, whilst each cartilage is pointy, thick, and capable of piercing flesh and armor if contact is made. They possess long, wide ears.
- Breathes: Type I
- Average Height of Adults: 1.5 meters (5 feet) - Males, 2.1 meters (7 feet) - Females
- Average Length of Adults: 0. 6 meters (2 feet) - Males, 1.2 meters (4 feet) - Females
- Skin color: A Grayish hue - Females, Grayish-Black hue - Males
- Hair color: Gray - Males, White - Females
- Distinctions: The males are smaller than their female counterparts, both in height and length. The hair on the males is gray whilst the females have snow-white hair; as the skin color of the males are a greyish-black scheme and the females' gray. The armored cartilages are much longer on the females than the males of the species, whilst the arms on the males are longer.
- Races: N/A
- Force Sensitivity: Low
- Physical Attributes: Damhán possess enhanced speed and agility. Thier numerous legs allow them to run and move quickly in both speed and agility, as well as grant them enhanced speed and agility in climbing. The tips of their legs, not like the claws on their fingers, are short but sharp; making them plausible for digging into most hard surfaces upon which they can climb.
- Neurotoxin Bite: The teeth, hollow but extremely structured, are connected to saliva glands that produce a neurotoxin that can lead to the destruction of nerve tissues and damage to the central nervous system which can include dementia, epilepsies, memory impairments, and intellectual disabilities, which is a result from Neurotoxicity. This aids them in subdue their prey when trapped in webs, or killing or subduing threats.
- Acidic Web Slingers: There is a gland that is associated with their Spinneret that produces an acid coat to their Spider silk. The silk-based acid webs serve as two functions. The first is the web is sticky, trapping prey for consumption, while the acid helps to break down the surface proteins and flesh of the prey for easier consumption. The webs can be used as a defensive or attacking mechanism, which can ensnare enemies or threats with the web, whilst the acid can eat through armor and exposed flesh.
- The Force: Some of the Damhán possess the ability to use the Force, though most if not all are untrained. Mostly, in terms of Force abilities, they basically have a sense of Precognition to warn of impending dangers and a slight usage of Telekenisis; the latter being they really don't know how to properly use it, in most cases it's by accident.
- Fragility: The bodies of the Damhán are extremely fragile, constructed in a way built for speed and agility. Their bodies are not designed to withstand several blows from a mele weapon, or a blunt object, such as a lightsaber or vibroweapons and have no chance against a blaster bolt or a slug from a slugthrower-type weapon. Even a simple fall from enhanced heights can crush their bodies.
- Below Average Intelligence: Damhán are not the dumbest species in the galaxy, and they are by far not the brightest either. Thier low intelligence allows to them at least solve basic problems, but seeking solutions to more complex problems eludes them. Because of their low intelligence, they can be easily fooled and tricked, sometimes manipulated by others with a stronger intelligent disposition.
- The Force: Again, the Force shows up as a weakness. When they use the Force ability telekinesis, it's literally by accident. When it actually does occur, it confuses the dim-twitted Damhán, causing them to cower in an almost self-induced fear. And they grow extremely agitated, almost hostile like, when they experience a glimpse of danger via precognitive visions.
- Diet: Carnivore
- Communication: Galactic Basic, Na'ra (Own Language)
- Technology level: Low Galactic Standard
- Religion/Beliefs: N/A
- General behavior:
- Non-Hunters: The Damhán do not hunt, instead they lay silk-based and acid coated webs in areas where large concentrations of food sources are contained. They will eat anything caught in their webs but are known to engulf their food sources in webs for further consumption.
- Procreation: The process of creating eggs that will eventually grow into adulthood is a risky business, if you are male. The act of procreation occurs with the male holding up the front of the female to fertilize her egg sac, which contain hundreds of tiny eggs. The reason for the males possessing longer arms if two-fold. The first is to properly keep the female in position during the fertilization process, and the second is to quickly get out of her strikes; for the female will kill the male after the procreation process, and if food is scarce, she will consume the body of the male.
- Leadership: Damhán live in Clans, which are found all over the trio of planets where they inhabit. They are tied together and ruled by a patriarch and a matriarch, though there is no philosophy concerning marriages or unions; but the two ruling bodies are consistent in family life as Father and Mother. The Matriarch, upon reaching the title, is forbidden to procreate and lay eggs, whilst the Patriarch is forbidden to procreate with any female upon reaching his title. In the event of one of the 'parents' dies, a replacement is chosen through a tournament from their greatest warriors, the winner elevated to fill the vacant role.
- Caverns: Damhán live in secluded giant maze-like caverns underground. They have makeshift villages and live in hovels that barely resemble a hut. Much of the village is centered around the concept of poor living conditions, where very few happenings of importance go on. There are no trade centers, or medical centers, or anything other than the hovels. Most of the caverns do have a watering source, mostly coming from streams and cavernous pools. There are connecting bridges and other semblances of a village, but mostly to eyes of an outsider, it's a collection of squalors.
- Creators: They do not build technology as the galaxy would define it. They build makeshift mele weapons, crude and horrifying designs to cause severe damage and ghastly deaths, and defensive shields to defend against mele attacks. However, very few of them actually utilize the weapons, opting for their natural weapons like their claws, webslingers, and nasty bites.
- Technology: They are not versed in most technology of the galaxy, however, they can use tech-based weapons like blasters and vibrowweapons, and the occasional lightsaber. Outside of those, they are technologically ignorant.
The Damhán are one of the oldest semi-sentient species on Dathomir, where they originated from before inhabited the nearby planets of Gargon and Cathar. In the days before the forming of the Nightsister Covens and Clans, the Damhán were at one time the ruling force on the planet, in spite of their natural inclinations to habitat deep within their cavernous kingdoms. More organized than the roaming bands of humans that would become the Nightsisters later on, and more ferocious than the Zabrak warriors that formed the Nightbrothers, they practically held the planet by the throat. Of course, all that changed with forming of the two previously mentioned groups.
In the year of 556 BBY, the Damhán were forced into a role unfamiliar to them, as they were no longer the apex force on Dathomir. Because the Damhán grew to hate the Nightsisters, and the rising Nightsisters not fully understanding the Damhán, waged a war on one another across all of Dathomir for hundreds of years, with minimal pockets of peace in between.
Around the year 11 ABY, a time period in Dathomir called the Culling Times which would lead to a civil war on Dathomir shortly after, the Nightsisters Covens and Clans united to wage a genocidal campaign to exterminate the Damhán from the planet. Led by the Singing Mountain Clan and several allied villages of the Nightbrothers, shortly joined by other Clans, they began their campaign to rid Dathomir of the arachnid species. However, the Damhán were not without their allies, as the bitter rivals of the Singing Mountain Clan, Spiderclan, joined the Damhán bringing along with them their own allied Clans. For two years the fighting raged across the Dathomir, eventually drawing the ire and eyes of the Nardithi Nightsister Coven, who were already the most hated Coven on the planet, as they joined on the side of both the Spiderclan and the Damhán.
With the arrival of the Nardithi Nightsisters, the Culling times, previously entitled, now turned into Dathomir's Civil War. Every Clan now began choosing sides and what at once started as a conquest to eradicate the Damhán turned into an all-out war. From 13 ABY - 17 ABY, Dathomir's Civil War ravaged the planet and the Clans; until finally a cease-fire was proposed. At the gathering of the Covens and Clans, peace was finally settled, reparations were made between the Nightsisters, and the Damhán were allowed to cohabit the planet; only if they remained underground and away from any Nightsisters' territories. This didn't sit well with the Damhán, but behind the backs of the other Clans and Covens, the Nardithi and the Spiderclan had other ideas.
Secretly, the two groups helped several Damhán off Dathomir, where they would eventually settle and thrive on the neighboring plantes of Cathar and Gargon. It was there, on those two planets, that the population of the Damhán really exploded. They were free to grow and extended their territories underground, whilst the Damhán back on Dathomir were, essentially, handcuffed in their growth; for the Nightsisters would not allow them to flourish as a proper species. Though their numbers are fewer on Dathomir than those of Cathar and Gargon, the Damhán silently await until the moment where they can seize back Dathomir once more.
