Arachnidion

Arachnidion is the largest Neogi empire of the Quara'tun System. Founded on Cryphoeca in the Lith-Crillion Era, Arachnidion was always on the move. In Neogi fashion, the empire was nomadic, predatory, after exhausting the local food supply, they moved on to devastate the next. By the end of the Lith-Crillion Era, Arachnidion and others neogi states had exhausted their food supply. To meet their insatiable hunger, they fell upon each other in what became known as the Great Neogi War. It was a war of neogi against neogi, each fighting for survival, and more importantly their next meal. Starvation was the real killer in this war, neogi hoped the ruin and devastation would come to an end by miracle or ingenuity. The hope for a miracle part is what led to the worship of Mokerrian, and her promises of salvation. The ingenuity was the hope that Arachnidion and other nation-state planners would find a way of producing or getting more food. Lasting much of the Horgon Era, the Great Neogi War ended with only one survivor, Arachnidion. They now loosely lay claim to an entire world. Their ability to control a world a quarter the size of Bal-Kriav was made possible with the advent of of their first skyship. These flying vessels, primitive by today's standards, were held together by spider silk and carried on the winds by ballooning.

Arachnidion most loyal soldiers are its umber hulks. The history of neogi and umber hulk bodyguards goes back to the time when dwarves sold them to the neogi for use in mining and digging underground warrens. By the start of the Great Neogi War, the dwarves were long gone, eaten to sate the neogi's unchecked dominance and constant need for meat. During the war, the relationship between neogi and umber hulks had become almost familial, with neogi and umber hulk enjoying the company of each other; there was also the fact that the neogi cannot bare the taste of umber hulk.

By the First Epoch, Arachnidion was the sole powerhouse on Cryphoeca. With no enemies left, neogi began to gather umber hulks as a show of strength - the more you had, the more powerful, respected, and feared you were to other neogi. This has resulted in short-lived dictatorships, usually no more than a decade in length, soon toppled by several powerful neogi joining together and using their personal armies to overthrow another. Once the usurpers are done, the uneasy alliance soon ends with fighting between the victors a neogi's natural desire to dominate those around them.

The umber hulks are too dumb to see the relationship. It is a master-minion relationship. Umber hulks on Cryphoeca are the neogi's dogs.

- T'got Tin, void mariner of the Tercell - "Neogi Hounds"

Arachnidion's third most populous race are their frost giants. These giants were the first people dominated by the neogi on their home world Cryphoeca. Their resistance to the neogi was long, but numbers were not on their side. They sided with Arachnidion. It is said a pact was forged between Thyrm and Mokerrian stating that frost giants were not to be preyed upon or even eaten in death. Broken many times out of so-called necessity, or vile intent, violator rarely get away. They are eventually found by bounty hunters and agencies set-up to enforce the god pact Arachnidions Promise; in secret some neogi refer to it as Mokerrians Pity.

For the neogi, there is no differentiation between eating a dead slave and eating a dead neogi - they are both sustenance. They view cannibalism a practical means of culling the weak, because to their sinister minds the weak are a drain on resources better suited for those most likely to survive and grow big. This idea of big is a important among their kind, with the biggest and fattest neogi held in high regard. Neogi with big slaves are viewed even greater.

- Vice Admiral Khuziglun, of Deep Six, from the Stellar Debates, Meeting 903 - "Everybody is Food"

Near the end of the Horgon Era, Arachnidion again faced starvation. On 19 Hollow 1946 HE, they were given a new lease on life when a Suellk voidship landed on Cryphoeca near the ancient ruin Salticidae. This Suellk exploration mission ended with all the ship's crew captured and eaten. The captured voidship was studied and reverse engineered. A century later, the neogi were making expeditions into the Void collecting lifeforms to repopulate their world and gathering food and slaves from others worlds of the Quara'tun System. The empire's void navy has grown to its great size today because of their high demand of meat. They can't get enough on their own barren world so they invade others. Arachnidion's void-faring armada numbers in the hundreds, larger than all the voidship navies of Bal-Kriav.

In addition to wars for food, Arachnidion has waged wars for resources. In the First Epoch, they went to war with Deep Six. Lacking blutium on their own world, they sought out this metal on other worlds. Required to build their lifejammer engines powering their voidships, they sometimes make raids on Nurak's blutium mines.

Late in the Third Epoch, Arachnidion joined the Drachdekai Pact, making war with the peoples of Bal-Kriav.