Cassian



Long ago, the Cassians were chosen by the Eldan to establish the Dominion - and they're going to make sure the pathetic vermin infesting the galaxy don't forget it. Destiny is a terribly heavy burden, and the Cassians bear it with style.

History
Gifted with ambition and intelligence, the humans of planet Cassus experienced a period of rapid technological advancement more than two thousand years ago, leading to the development of space flight and interstellar exploration. Such achievements caught the attention of the Eldan's mechanical servants the Mechari, who brought news of these remarkable beings back to planet Nexus.

At the behest of their masters, the Mechari journeyed to Cassus in a fleet of hyper-advanced starships. Standing before an awestruck assembly of planetary leaders, they demanded that the legendary Cassian Sword-maiden Tresayne Toria journey with them to Nexus - and in return the Eldan would provide the Cassians a gift of immeasurable value. Refuse, they said, and the consequences would be dire. The valiant Tresayne agreed for the sake of her people, and she and her attendants were never seen again.

In time, the Cassians received their precious gift - an extraordinary human-Eldan hybrid known as Dominus the Half-Blood. Bearing gifts of powerful Eldan technology to the people of his mother’s homeworld, the message of Dominus was a simple one: swear loyalty to him, and together they would rule the greatest empire the galaxy had ever seen. The Cassians unanimously agreed, hailing Dominus as the emperor of the newly established Dominion.

Despite the Eldan's disappearance a thousand years ago, the Cassian-led Dominion has steadily taken control of the galaxy through intimidation, political intrigue and a score of impressive military conquests. For the Cassians, the discovery of planet Nexus represents the fulfillment of an ancient destiny - and they will stop at nothing to ensure that the Dominion reigns supreme over the legendary Eldan planet.

Physical description
Cassians display typical human diversity in height, weight, and skin tone. Aside from distinctive clothing and armor styles, they are physically indistinguishable from their Exile kin.

Homeworld
The Cassian homeworld is the planet that gave them their name: Cassus, a core world at the the heart of the Dominion. To date, no fossil evidence that humans evolved on that world has been discovered, however. The planet of shared origin for the galaxy's humans remains unknown.

Exile Humans and Cassians
Only Dominion humans are generally called "Cassians." Those who left Cassus hundreds of years ago and now side with the Exiles are simply known as "humans."

Highborn and lowborn
The most powerful Cassians are highborn, meaning they have a small amount of Eldan genetics in their family dating from the Ancestral Decree. The so-called lowborn, on the other hand, possess only trace amounts of Eldan blood (if they possess any at all). As the names imply, the highborn are considered the ruling class, while the lowborn make up the working-class population. Many Exile humans descend from lowborn families.

Highborn families
Highborn families are generally aligned with one of the Great Houses of the Luminai - and this grants them certain rights, honors, and privileges. Leaders of the families are usually the eldest and wisest members, as long life is a sign of "purer" Eldan blood in their veins.

Many highborn families are strongly associated with certain subfactions of Dominion society, such as the military or the Vigilant Church. Many generations of the Aurelius family, for example, have been high-ranking officers within the Dominion Military.