One of the three primary castes which comprise Lorath society, Occhestians are Lorath which have been bred for the purpose of honing abilities of the mind. This caste has been separated by events into two groups, the Occhestians of the Occhestian Republic, and the Occhestians which remained with the Lorath Matriarchy, the New Tur'lista.
Current Leadership: Occhestian Republic Senate
House Occhestia, or the Occhestian caste, has been developed for the purpose of providing a population of individuals to Lorath society which are gifted with genetic structures that favor advanced development of the mind, in both physical and psychological meanings. Due to the Occhestian caste having a strong focus upon matters of thought, they have been deemed as the core group behind scientific development, medicine, pursuits of logical thought, and Occhestians are sometimes viewed as excellent tacticians. Due to Lorath religious dogma, Occhestian culture has developed to favor a patriarchal system of family and social structure, a distinctive departure from the majority of Lorath culture which has been developed as a Matriarchy.
Unlike the Lmanel and Fyunnen, the Occhestian population has developed to have relatively weaker bodies, while not frail, there is little chance that an Occhestian could out-strength either of the other two castes in a physical challenge focused upon feats of raw strength. While weaker in lifting capacity and other displays of exertion, Occhestian individuals display a notable resilience in regard to stamina and endurance due to an inherent capacity to focus their minds beyond pain or fatigue. Along with their smaller build, Occhestian genes have resulted in an ear shape which joins the ear-lobe to the jaw, resulting in a somewhat different ear shape than what would be seen as a 'normal' ear which could belong to a Nepleslian or other humanoid. Occhestian eyes usually favor the various shades of yellow, gold, and amber which are common to Lorath individuals. Occhestian hair while naturally white is often dyed blue.
Average Height: Between 5'0“ and 5'10” on average. Average Weight: 90 - 140 lbs on average.
Due to the Occhestian focus on pursuits of the mind, and a lack of emotional attachment to the 'sanctity' of the body, Occhestian culture has grown to embrace cybernetic augmentation, elective surgical augmentation, and genetic augmentation. These practices have produced an extensive advancement in such fields, and permit a variety of customizations to Occhestian bodies, even purely for recreational purposes in some cases.
Through careful genetic engineering programs and augmentation, the neurological physiology of the Occhestian caste has been given an expanded range of function which includes tactile telepathy1), remote empathy2), and other feats of mental focus3). However, Lorath psionic capabilities are unable to accomplish feats such as telekinesis or levitation.
Focused upon pursuits of the mind, Occhestian culture has been driven to focus upon personal academic accomplishments in regard to social recognition and personal success as well as the success of family units. Due to the importance of such success, Occhestian families have been encouraged to enroll their young in education facilities where offspring are kept in a dedicated educational environment, education of young Occhestians continues from their early development4), to their early adulthood, often the age of 35 Yamataian years. Upon reaching adulthood, Occhestian individuals can either be assigned by their family or clan to a given vocation, or can choose to pursue their own personal interests with a distinctive expectation of success from their peers, due to this mindset, Occhestian individuals are often quite driven to success, even to extremes which result in questionable behavior. In the home, Occhestian family units focus upon the patriarch, with fathers, brothers, and sons being the prominent members of households. However, despite a majority of Occhestian families favoring the patriarchs of the family, in the event of a female conveying a distinctive superiority in academics as well as mental discipline, a family can be driven to recognize the benefits of matriarchal behavior and recognition.
While driven to tasks of study and research, Occhestians also have developed an appreciation for arts which are capable of conveying notions of refined thought processes, such as music, sculpture, literature, and sketches. Often, Occhestian art strays away from abstract art, and favors conveying precise ideas and imagery.
Following with traditional Lorath religion, the Occhestian caste has been incorporated into religious society as followers of the god aspect of Lorath mythology. According to traditional Lorath religious dogma, the male god aspect of the twin-deity system has been assigned to represent matters of academics, ruthlessness, and death through absence of compassion, with the intent of portraying a deity which functions through the execution of actions with pure intelligence without the temperance of wisdom. This god image is revered by the Occhestians, and plays a key part in the patriarchal nature of Occhestian society, as well as a key figure in the Occhestian psyche in regard to pursuits of academics and accomplishments. However, due to this dogma, a distinctive theological rift has formed between the most zealous of the Occhestian caste, and the rest of Lorath society.
Due to events which transpired during the year YE 28, a sizable portion of the Occhestian caste chose to separate from the majority of the Lorath Matriarchy Matriarchy. During this separation, a minor civil war took place between the Occhestians which intended to seperate from the Matriarchy, and the Fyunnen caste. After the resolution of the conflict, one third of the Occhestian population left the Lorath home world, and ventured into the northern reaches of mapped space, to found the Occhestian Republic. Since the founding of the Occhestian republic, a movement developed within the Occhestian culture, giving rise to the Occhestian Separatists, a political group which advocated violent attacks against the Lorath Matriarchy. This zealous behavior resulted in the Occhestian Republic and the Occhestian Separatists breaking from each other, giving rise to two colony groups.
During YE 31, the Lorath Matriarchy carried out a purge of the Occhestian Separatist held colonies, dissolving the political group purely by removing the entire population. During this same time, the Occhestian Republic acknowledged a desire to return to affiliating themselves with the Lorath Matriarchy, resulting in a peace agreement. However, due to persisting distrust between the Matriarchy and the Occhestian Republic, a formal alliance has not been put into effect.
After the events of the YE 28 rebellion and exodus of the Occhestian caste, the two-thirds of the Occhestian population which remained with the Matriarchy were recognized as loyal to the crown and were given the title of New Tur'lista, on behalf of the Tur'Lista, the ruling caste of the Matriarchy, to honor their display of wisdom and loyalty. Furthermore, when referring to Occhestian caste Lorath which have been and are loyal to the Matriarchy, those individuals and groups should be referred to as New Tur'listian, as opposed to Occhestian.