Race Name (human coloquial): Tank Elephants
Race Name (proper): A’bukan
Tech Level: Mid-level technology. Low warp speeds.
Galactic Distribution: Common in mid-pegasus arm of the galaxy.

Appearance: A’bukans are nearly completed covered with a protective hard shell or dome. This dome is segmented allowing for some flexiblity and some parts retract allowing A’Bukans to expose their eyes and trunks or to have them completed covered (when sleeping or during A’buka’s often severe weather). They average to be 16′ tall to the top of their domes, about 10′ wide and 16′ long (not including trunks).
Traits: Tank elephants are the most massive of known races (Plactori’s are taller and Zeppelins larger). This causes various limitations for them as their size and dome can prevent them from accessing most other race’s space stations, ships or cities.

On their native plains, tank elephants are very quick and mobile, able to turn on a dime and run at impressive speeds but any terrain more varied than a gradual sloop can slow them considerably, however, they are capable of navigating rough terrain and even scaling cliffs (a site to behold). They are able swimmers, especially the smaller, fur-covered ‘artic’ race of A’bukan which have a layer of buoyant blubber under their domes.
Skin is orangey-yellow going to red around the eyes. The shell is often painted bright colors or designs. Artic A’bukans have white shells and light bluish-grey skin going to deeper light bluish-grey around the eyes.

A’bukans have six legs but no arms, instead using two trunks (similiar to an Earth-elephant’s) to grasp and manipulate objects. They view all life as a gift from their version of God or the Essence, which they call ‘The Mother’ or ‘All-Mother’ and hence they’ve developed as a species with minimal conflicts and largely in harmony with their natural environment.

A’Bukans are generally pleasant and congenial but also quite clear on their needs and tough negotiators. While they’ll seek to find a ‘win-win’ in relations to others, they certainly do not feel the need to compromise, unless a greater reward is to be attained.

History: A’bukans are quite intelligent but somewhat limited by their own physical limitations and bulk. Developing flight and space travel was a more challenging task for them on A’buka (which has a thinner and more turbulent atmosphere, while having far more mass than humans) but they did find a way and started exploring the cosmos. At this point the Bovines had already established a network of civilized worlds and alliance with neighbouring races, so the A’bukans merely joined into that established alliance which helped them to advance technologically.

When the Bovine Alliance joined with the Galactic Federation, the A’bukans also became members of the Federation as well. They are capable of mid-warps speeds, enough to explore their local region of space (the mid-pegasus arm of the galaxy) but not sufficient to reach the galaxy core or other parts of the galaxy within a single A’bukan life-time. Therefore it would be very rare to see an A’bukan outside of the Pegasus Arm of the Milky Way.

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