Race Overview

In the First Time, some 4,000 years ago, a long and terrible war brought about the collapse of the ancient Kushan empire. The victors, the savage Taiidan, would have slaughtered all Kushan had it not been for the outcry for mercy from the races of the Galactic Council. As a gesture of goodwill, the conquerors spared the lives of the defeated; the survivors were sent into exile on the remote desert world of Kharak. None were permitted to follow or aid the fallen; all memory of them was erased. Even the exiles themselves soon forgot their origins, and so it would have remained were it not for the Guidestone, a single artifact that had survived the journey. Made of rock from the sacred "Angel Moon" of their lost homeworld, Hiigara, the Guidestone showed them the way back to their ancient home. The long-awaited and much-prophesized rediscovery and reclamation of the Kushan's ancient birthright is the story of the Homeworld War. A brave, resilient, and resourceful people, Kushan pragmatism is reflected in their gray, blockish ship designs. Many of their combat vessels, including the massive Mothership itself, were hastily converted from civilian designs, yet performed as well as those of the Taiidan Imperial fleet. Neither are the Kushan reluctant to make sacrifices, the legendary example of which was the scientist Karan Sjet, who had herself integrated into the Mothership as its living core, Fleet Command.

Story

The story of the Kushan Exodus to Hiigara is widely known and often told; most of us already know all about the voyage. In a matter of months, the survivors of our entire race traveled from the prison world of Kharak to our once and future homeworld. The trip was a major turning point not only for the Kushan people, but for most of the civilized galaxy; our return to Hiigara was not only the end of our 3,000-year exile, but the end of the Taiidan Empire, and its tyranny over billions. Shortly after their relocation to the harsh desert world of Kharak, the Exiles forgot both their origins and technology. It took them 3,000 years to struggle back to the stars. Having rediscovered hyperspace and the location of their original planet, all the families of Kharak, or kiithid, united to build a mothership that could take them home. Just as they prepared to embark, however, the brutal Taiidan Empire took notice and attacked. Enforcing an ancient decree forbidding the Exiles from developing hyperspace technology, the emperor had his forces immolate the planet. Only those already in space survived. This cruel slaughter appalled dissidents throughout the empire, and the mothership's heartening retaliation and escape catalyzed a long-overdue rebellion. Amid wholesale civil war, and with the help of the highly advanced trader race known as the Bentusi, the Exiles regained their homeworld, and the emperor and his pirate mercenaries were defeated. The Galactic Council recognized our claim to this world. The sacrifice of thousands has left a trail of destruction behind us, like a path across the galaxy... to Hiigara, our homeworld. So much destruction, so many lives lost, for this place... a place of wonder to those who knew only the sands of Kharak. Our colonists were released from their long sleep. All symbols of the old empire were destroyed, but the conflict will never be forgotten. A celebration marked the beginning of a new time. No longer Fleet Command, Karan Sjet survived extraction from the Mothership's core. She insisted that she be the last person to disembark and set foot on the Homeworld.