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Description
Yautja society is based on the concept of The Hunt. Whereas humans on earth were agrarian, the yautja never settled down. Their culture revolves around the concept of hunting and stalking prey. Very similar to a pack mentality, the strongest and most efficient member of the group is the leader. This alpha male controls the actions of the group. So far, only males seem to participate in hunts. As a rite of passage into adulthood, each male yautja must hunt and kill his first kainde amedha, or "hard meat". These hard meats are commonly known to humans as aliens. Apparently the yautja and aliens have a connected evolution and the yautja consider them to be the ultimate prey. Yautja appear to value other predatory species as the most challenging targets. This would also explain their preference for hunting humans, another highly successful predatory species. The yautja are very fond of trophies, skulls being the most sought after.
The yautja warrior's behavior is controlled by a code of ethics. This code appears similar to human warriors codes such as bushido and chivalry in that it promoted bravery, martial skill, and loyalty to the pack. Most yautja will not hunt or attack a creature it considers "weak" or unthreatening. When the yautja encounter the females or young of their prey, they often spare them, considering it dishonorable to shed the blood of those who cannot defend themselves.
The rite of passage hunts are generally conducted on uninhabited planets. Before a hunt begins, the yautja "seed" the hunting grounds with alien eggs which are obtained from a captive queen. Once the eggs hatch and the alien brood mature, a group of unblooded warriors land on the planet, supervised by two or three veteran warriors. Equipped only with hand to hand weaponry and armor, the young yautja are sent out. Those who survive and claim a kill are then inducted into their clan as fully blooded warriors. As a side note, it is considered a great honor by the yautja to participate in the hunts which obtain the alien queen from which they obtain their supply of eggs. To obtain a live queen, the yautja hunting party must venture into an alien creche, succeed in defeating all the queen's warrior drones, and then subdue the queen herself. Needless to say, many of these parties never return. To understand the respect yautja hold for the lethality of the aliens, in at least one instance, the yautja have accepted a human into their hunting clan who has successfully slain an alien in single hand to hand combat. |
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