The bee people: Miaxi! From minor to major race?

(The two threads have been merged )


With Terra's blessings I present ideas to expand the race of Miaxi:

Biology and culture:

When a miaxa uses her stinger on a small creature, it will likely not be a problem for her as it would not detatch. On larger creatures with thick skin such as giant races, the barbed stinger would catch tightly, then detatch painfully. This is extremely traumatic to a miaxa. Left untreated they very well may die, and plenty don't even seek treatment. This is because they cannot regrow their stinger, so they would likely have to relinquish their duty of protecting the hive to take up another position, such as farming, gathering, scouting or diplomacy. The prospect of losing their place in the warrior caste is considered humiliating to most miaxi warriors: they would rather die bravely in battle than retire to a "less important" position. There can be a bit of disparity between the warrior caste and ex-warriors; the latter would rather like to consider themselves veterans since they have already risked their lives in battle.

Artifice:

Miaxi have developed a type of equipment called a stingsheath worn on their insect half, which is mostly used by miaxi that have lost their stinger. It is crafted from an insect exoskeleton, for example that of a tonorion. Some miaxi who haven't lost their stingers wear a stingsheath so theirs cannot become detached, but it is rather difficult for a miaxa to remove one herself. Most would not want to be unprepared to give their lives to finish off an enemy as soon as possible if the hive was threatened, so stingsheaths are looked on as “dishonorable” by some in the warrior caste. Those wearing stingsheaths will find that they are not wanted for major attacks, which require venom to dispose of enemies as quickly as possible.

The Miaxi have always been a favorite of mine and it disappoints me to see them on the minor race page with very little information about them. They have great potential for being a truly deep and interesting race of Felarya. I've used them with permission from their creators in a couple stories and really want to see them used more. After talking with their creators and given permission I have written up a more detailed and in depth look at this amazing race. Here is all you ever wanted to know about Miaxi and more. From life, diet, social interaction, combat, and even living spaces. Please tell me what you think and feel free to post ideas or changes you feel that would make them more fitting to Felarya.
For those interested in the stories I've used them in so far the links are here:
ReCilvilization of a PolleNation
Kelsey's Lake chapter 9

And now: the text!

============
Miaxi Life
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Appearance
------------

Miaxi are a race of half human-half bee people native to the jungle regions of Felarya. There are many breeds of Miaxi though they all stand 7-9 feet tall, their Queen growing much bigger from 60 feet to over 90 feet. Their human bodies emerge from the thorax of the bee half and extend vertically while the bee body extends horizontally. They stand on six long insect legs that end with claws and have large tufts of fuzz in certain places. Together with their human arms they have ten limbs altogether. The skin of their human halves is smooth and generally pale, their hair shades of blond and gold. While having human facial features all Miaxi have black compound eyes and long antenna, giving their heads a generally insectiod appearance.
The bee half of a Miaxi is identical to the original insects: a large yellow abdomen and thorax covered in fuzzy hair and wrapped by several black stripes. The end of their abdomen holds their stinger, a large black barb that they can use to impale targets and inject venom. Miaxi also have transparent wings that are attached to the shoulder blades on their human half which they use for flight. Although delicate their wings are somewhat resistant to harm.


Hive
------

Much like the honeybees of other worlds the Miaxi make their home in massive hives of their own construction. Sometimes these hives are built into already existing places such as hollowed trees or large caves, but most of the time they are full standing structures in their own right. Hundreds of meters tall a miaxi hive sets itself apart from the surrounding environment by its size and texture, when there is a colony of miaxi around it’s very hard to miss.
The hive is constructed around the environment, as in large rock structures or tall thick trees are used as supports for the main structure. The main building material is Miaxi wax, a special filmy substance secreted by the miaxi which hardens into a firm and pale coating. Layers of this wax are built on top of each other to form the huge structure of the hive, the shiny material giving the hive a sheen that can be seen at great distances.
Inside the hive is a labyrinth of hallways and catacombs also built primarily out of wax, the smooth pale walls being naturally repellent of filth buildup and damage. The hive is made up of two shells: the outer and the inner. The outer shell is very empty and leads outside the hive, and is also filled with holes like cheese that lead various places deeper inside. Here there are many platforms for miaxi to rest and guards to stand watch. Sometimes walkways are built here as well in case the hive has visitors or victims that are unable to fly. Many of the hive’s primary farms are also located here, the many large holes allowing sunlight and starlight in to give them the energy needed to grow.
The inner hive is much different, the wide open space of the outer shell making way for winding passageways and chambers. The only open space here is at the very center of the hive where a large circular shaft leads from the very bottom of the hive all the way up to the Queen’s personal chamber at the top. The inner hive is further divided into layers, each one holding a particular type of chamber which ascend upwards in terms of importance.
At the very base of the hive are the farms, large patches of soil filled with crops grown to satisfy the hunger of the miaxi swarm and light the hive. The next level contains storage chambers, generally secluded rooms that food stuff and other materials are kept until needed. These places are off limits to anyone save the workers and guards. Above the storage are the nurseries, large chambers insulated with wax and loam to keep heat in. Here eggs are sealed inside honeycombs to grow into adult miaxi, only opened for feeding and when the miaxi inside reaches maturity.
The next three levels are housing and make up the bulk of the interior structure. Starting above the nurseries is public housing, the place where the worker miaxi live. Long hallways curve around the inside of the hive with hundreds of small rooms lining the sides, each room little more then a box with a bed inside. Above these rooms is the guard housing, a level almost identical to the public housing except the rooms are larger. The next level up is the Queen’s chamber which sits at the very top of the hive. This room is massive and holds a huge bed for the Queen and many small storage spaces for food and eggs. There are several tubes leading out of this chamber where workers carry eggs down into the nursery levels.
The inside of the hive would normally be very dark as it is closed off from the outside world, a problem the Miaxi have solved in a very clever way. There is a strange species of gourd called the Burstmelon, its name being a complete misnomer. These odd plants actually have more in common with squashes, and they get their title by their ability to create biological light. The miaxi grow these glowing plants and use them as lighting for the inside of the hive, their warm light giving the pale walls a very cozy feel.


Lifecycle
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All miaxi begin their lives as an egg about the size of a human. These eggs are laid by the Queen and cared for by the other miaxi. After being laid the eggs are immediately taken to the nurseries and sealed inside a honeycomb chamber where they begin maturing. Before becoming adult miaxi the egg undergoes two stages: larvae and pupae.
In the larva stage the growing miaxi is little more then an egg with a human torso. Their appearance and behavior is akin to a human child, very self centered and demanding, a combination that gives the nurses in charge of caring for them headaches. This is nothing compared to the pupae stage however: as after sufficient growth they become much like human teenagers complete with rowdy and rebellious mannerisms. Much more mature as pupae the growing miaxi can be a handful for even experienced nurses.
The final stage in the miaxi lifestyle is adult: a stage reached once larvae sufficiently mature and grow wings. Upon full maturity the adult miaxi pushes her way out of her honeycomb and into the nursery, her body still soft and wings extremely delicate. It takes several hours for a emerging miaxi’s carapace and wings to fully harden and during this time she is assigned her role in the hive and briefed on its workings.


Diet
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Unlike the honeybees most humans are used to Miaxi are omnivores, eating both plants and animals. Being slightly larger then a human most miaxi are only able to prey on animals they can fit in their mouth: small rodents, bugs, and the occasional tiny if they happen to get caught. As miaxi can fly small birds are also on the menu, although miaxi dislike the feathers and are unlikely to eat them given the choice. The only miaxi to eat humanoids is the queen herself, her massive size compared to her children allowing her to ingest and digest much more verity in prey. She is also voracious, so anyone brought into her chamber has no hope of escape whatsoever. When the queen is hungry for humanoids it is best to avoid the hive and all miaxi as much as possible so that you aren’t selected for her meal.
Being omnivores miaxi eat many types of plants ranging from fruits to vegetables. When out gathering or hunting a miaxi will not hesitate to pick ripe fruit and gobble it down. The sweet juices of most fruit remind them of the honey they make and are a desirable treat for any miaxi. As for vegetables in a miaxi’s diet most humans are surprised to learn they grow their own. Inside their massive hives are large multilayered farms of Chutluck plants, a small starchy chuck of a plant that makes up the core of the miaxi diet.
Nobody can have a conversation about the miaxi for long without bringing up their honey, a savory golden goop that has been fought over by human and predator alike. Mixed in the deep recesses of the hive the miaxi combine necter and chutluck plants with other unknown ingredients to form this amazing substance. Many non-miaxi have fought and died for even a small taste of miaxi honey, and having any quantity of it can save an adventurer from certain death in the stomach of a giantess.


Social
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Miaxi are extremely social amongst the members of their hive, the bonds between individuals almost telepathic. This is thanks in no small part to their Queen, who through pheromones and sub-psychic abilities links all the members of the hive together. This acts very similar to the dryad network, although in an extremely limited fashion. Through the telepathic link and pheromones it is extremely easy for a miaxi to tell what another is feeling in seconds. The mood of the Queen is also passed through her children in this way, and her feeling at the time can greatly affect the mood of the entire hive. It is highly recommended against making the Queen upset as it could turn the entire hive against you in an instant. This hive mind of sorts also keeps the personalities of the swarm very similar, the only miaxi to develop their own identity being the ones that leave the nest often and encounter humans. It is rare for a miaxi to survive without this link however.
Within the social network of the hive order is maintained with great thanks to the caste system. Each miaxi is assigned a rank within the hive and spends their life performing the duties it entails. There are foragers, farmers, nurses, guards, honeymakers, royal servants, and even miaxi specialized in dealing with other races. A miaxi being changed to another rank is very rare and only in extreme circumstances, usually the result of a severe injury.
Most miaxi hives have positive relations with nearby human and neko settlements, their peaceful nature giving them no reason to dispute unless they feel threatened. Many villages and towns have strong alliances with miaxi hives, usually trading resources in exchange for honey or protection from predators. The miaxi benefit from these relations as the humans are excellent hunters and can cook meat so it becomes even more delicious, a favorite treat to many Queens. It is humans that are the source of names for the miaxi, as after a certain period of time humans may start calling a miaxi by a name to remember them by. This is considered an honor by some miaxi and disrespect by others, a named miaxi can become somewhat of a social outcast at her hive if she uses it too often.
As a whole Miaxi have negative relations with giantesses and other large humanoid predators, their sheer size and voracity posing serious threats to the safety of the hive. Although most predators are smart enough not to attack a miaxi there are those who are either too stupid or hungry to attempt it. The stores of golden Miaxi honey are also prime reasons to fear giantesses, as their huge power can easily rip into a hive and cause chaos. This is not to say Miaxi hate all giant predators however, as there are some instances where they can work together to a common goal.
One species of giantess that Miaxi actually enjoy are dryads. Dryads benefit from the information miaxi can bring them and the assistance in pollination of their flowers. The same works in reverse as the miaxi learn great deals of information from the dryad and use their pollen in the making of their honey. Despite this there are some dryads that do attack miaxi just as any other race, though this is mostly dryads that are based on carnivorous plants.


Communication
-----------------

While the vast majority of Miaxi living in any given hive of the hive develop their own general personality their identities are based solely on their roles in the hive. Because of their identities being so closely related to their duties miaxi perform their daily routines without need of outside persuasion. It is quite rare for a miaxi to interrupt another while performing a task except when there is either immediate danger or the miaxi in question is to be given a direct order that overrides their current task. Because of this self reliance and motivation it is uncommon for miaxi of different ranks to interact on a regular basis. Interaction between miaxi still occurs, and there are several methods in which they do.
The primary method is of course the Queen, her psychic link not only able to influence the mood of an individual miaxi but also plant subconscious orders if the need arises. This is how the amount of miaxi in any particular rank is regulated, as when one rank needs more members or another has too many they can be easily influenced to switch. These subliminal orders are also the way the Queen alerts her children that she is hungry, the psychic orders allowing them to bring her food without needing to be verbally told.
The second method that Miaxi communicate with is smell. All miaxi are capable of producing various types of pheromones from their bodies, each with a different meaning. There is a pheromone for danger, hunger, sickness, every emotion possible, and one for each rank in the hive. Using these pheromones miaxi can identify the condition and rank of any of her sisters without needing to verbally interact. Thanks to these incredible pheromones the hive can be extremely efficient as miaxi can complete tasks without having to stop and converse using speech. There is also no confusion about ranks as individuals can be identified in an instant.
The third method Miaxi communicate with is speech, though unlike most other races that use verbal languages the miaxi use it much less. Speech is mainly used for asking and responding to questions that cannot be immediately answered with smell. If a miaxi doesn’t smell right or seems to be in a place she shouldn’t they would be questioned verbally. Each rank uses speech in different magnitudes as well, a place as busy as the nursery would need speech much more to identify problems and request assistance then a farmer simply harvesting plants.
Miaxi are a unique speech using race as they do not rely on individual names to identify each other. With the rank system and pheromones there is little need to assign each member of the hive their own personal title, it would simply decrease efficiency. In the place of names Miaxi identify each other by rank: a nurse would be called “Nurse,” a guard would be called “Guard,” and so forth. In situations where a single miaxi needs to be singled out from a group, such as in a nursery, the physical characteristics of the miaxi in question are used for identification.
This lack of names does not mean that no miaxi ever has one; it is just an unnecessary and foreign concept. Many miaxi that leave the hive and interact with other speech using races learn the concept of names are may be given one or even name themselves. These “named” miaxi are then likely to nickname her sisters in attempt to emulate the races that use names on a regular basis. Miaxi such as these are also highly likely to develop more distinct personalities and identities, their new name giving them something to identify themselves they never had before. If enough Miaxi accept names for themselves it is possible for an entire hive to acquire names, making them much more like a city then a rank based hive mind. This doesn’t happen very often however, as Miaxi that develop too much individuality lose their psychic link with the Queen and become harder to control. This might make the Queen feel threatened so mass names inside a hive are very rare.


Combat
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When engaged in combat most miaxi will have a difficult time fighting alone, and while their size gives them the advantage over humans giant predators are just as deadly to them as they are to the other prey races. The main defense against attackers a miaxi has is their venom tipped stinger, a large barb able to discharge a powerful toxin at an incredible rate. Against human sized targets the sting is fatal, but larger animals are less affected by it the more mass they have. Another side effect of using their sting against giant predators is that the miaxi delivering the sting can easily die after delivering the venom, though despite this danger a miaxi will make no hesitation to use their sting in the defense of the hive.
Because of the dangers posed by single combat miaxi rely heavily on swarm tactics, a dozen or more diving in to attack a single target. Despite their size a giant predator like a naga can be fatally poisoned by little over a dozen stings. This makes attacking a hive a very unwise decision, as even if a giant predator were able to fend off the first couple dozen miaxi there are hundreds more inside the hive that could attack if felt threatened. In addition to this wounded or dying miaxi produce a pheromone that sends any miaxi in the vicinity into a battle frenzy, the more miaxi you defeat the more are alerted to the danger you pose.
Not all miaxi are completely weak on their own, the guard breed are specifically born and raised to be fierce defenders of the hive and its queen. These miaxi have chitinous plating on their bodies and reinforced stingers to lessen the dangers of delivering its venom. Most guard miaxi also carry a simple spear of some kind to increase their range or as a throwing weapon, the tip coated with their venom for extra potency. Only the strongest and most loyal guard miaxi are selected to become the Queen’s royal guard.

That's certainly a more in-depth description than what I'd posted (That was accidentally in Ideas Discussion, instead of Change suggestions)

Pretty good stuff all around. My only qualm is this:

"It is humans that are the source of names for the miaxi, as after a certain period of time humans may start calling a miaxi by a name to remember them by."

No one can write about a character without a name, and it seems like an unfair requirement to have any possible miaxa character be dealing with humans specifically.

Yes I had been made aware of your post on the subject. I've been holding onto this for a while now and not until I started discussing my design of Miiaxi I drew did I put this up. Ever since I first started using the miaxi in my stories I've wanted to see them be made a major race instead of a minor one.

Excellent point by the way, after using a bunch of nameless Miaxi in my stories I came up with a solution. Miaxi call each other by "sister" most of the time but when identification is needed they use rank. IE: "You nurse!" or "Forager over here!" If there are multiple of the same rank present they use characteristics such as "short nurse" or "wise guard."

They are all nameless in their original portrayal and I like that, not to mention is makes alot of sense as the primary communication methods are pheromones and the queen. talking and names aren't always needed. I see the concern though so I'll expand on the "humans give names thing." As long as one miaxi gets a name from a human and returns to the hive she will be familiar with the aspect of "names" and start nicknaming her sisters. "Names" then spread through the hive like a virus until any number of Miaxi have names. This should solve that problem.

Also the same could work with predators, as long as at least one miaxi has contact with a creature that uses names the notion can spread through the hive.

Well that's some very interesting ideas and development here ^^
I propose we merge the two threads into one if you agree ?

For the naming... mhh
Indeed having none would make a story telling very difficult, so maybe they could go with nicknames like you proposed, according to their particularities and fucntions ^^

Hm. As for names, I feel compelled to point out that they'd be quite crucial for building an effective goal-oriented group among beings that use audible language to communicate. It seems to me that the "nameless" trait of the miaxi was concocted only to make them seem less human and more "hive-ish". If that were the case, a different method of communication would be needed (an increase in the shared link, perhaps), or a massive drop in the sapience of individual miaxi. I assume we want to keep the average miaxi capable of some independent thought, even if they're much more communal than humans are.

I'd imagine that the "nicknames" thing would have quickly evolved into a naming structure based upon rank and function. Hell, even numbers would work. The point being that even an individual cog in the machine would sometimes need to be addressed individually, and thus would need to have some manner of differentiation from the others. After all, every gear in a clock is labeled before construction, is it not? There's a big difference between having no sense of individuality (which would make them non-sapient to a T) and putting the hive before the individual at a level humans would see as fanatical.

I wrote up another section "Communication" using suggestions that should be enough to clear up confusion. Hope it makes sense.


Communication
-----------------

While the vast majority of Miaxi living in any given hive of the hive develop their own general personality their identities are based solely on their roles in the hive. Because of their identities being so closely related to their duties miaxi perform their daily routines without need of outside persuasion. It is quite rare for a miaxi to interrupt another while performing a task except when there is either immediate danger or the miaxi in question is to be given a direct order that overrides their current task. Because of this self reliance and motivation it is uncommon for miaxi of different ranks to interact on a regular basis. Interaction between miaxi still occurs, and there are several methods in which they do.
The primary method is of course the Queen, her psychic link not only able to influence the mood of an individual miaxi but also plant subconscious orders if the need arises. This is how the amount of miaxi in any particular rank is regulated, as when one rank needs more members or another has too many they can be easily influenced to switch. These subliminal orders are also the way the Queen alerts her children that she is hungry, the psychic orders allowing them to bring her food without needing to be verbally told.
The second method that Miaxi communicate with is smell. All miaxi are capable of producing various types of pheromones from their bodies, each with a different meaning. There is a pheromone for danger, hunger, sickness, every emotion possible, and one for each rank in the hive. Using these pheromones miaxi can identify the condition and rank of any of her sisters without needing to verbally interact. Thanks to these incredible pheromones the hive can be extremely efficient as miaxi can complete tasks without having to stop and converse using speech. There is also no confusion about ranks as individuals can be identified in an instant.
The third method Miaxi communicate with is speech, though unlike most other races that use verbal languages the miaxi use it much less. Speech is mainly used for asking and responding to questions that cannot be immediately answered with smell. If a miaxi doesn’t smell right or seems to be in a place she shouldn’t they would be questioned verbally. Each rank uses speech in different magnitudes as well, a place as busy as the nursery would need speech much more to identify problems and request assistance then a farmer simply harvesting plants.
Miaxi are a unique speech using race as they do not rely on individual names to identify each other. With the rank system and pheromones there is little need to assign each member of the hive their own personal title, it would simply decrease efficiency. In the place of names Miaxi identify each other by rank: a nurse would be called “Nurse,” a guard would be called “Guard,” and so forth. In situations where a single miaxi needs to be singled out from a group, such as in a nursery, the physical characteristics of the miaxi in question are used for identification.
This lack of names does not mean that no miaxi ever has one; it is just an unnecessary and foreign concept. Many miaxi that leave the hive and interact with other speech using races learn the concept of names are may be given one or even name themselves. These “named” miaxi are then likely to nickname her sisters in attempt to emulate the races that use names on a regular basis. Miaxi such as these are also highly likely to develop more distinct personalities and identities, their new name giving them something to identify themselves they never had before. If enough Miaxi accept names for themselves it is possible for an entire hive to acquire names, making them much more like a city then a rank based hive mind. This doesn’t happen very often however, as Miaxi that develop too much individuality lose their psychic link with the Queen and become harder to control. This might make the Queen feel threatened so mass names inside a hive are very rare.

mhh a pheromones-based mean of communication.. i think it works well and it makes sense in a hive-system ^^
I still think some basic nicknames should be used though, if only because telling a story without naming characters would be a very diffiuclt exercise, should someone decide to base an entire story inside a Miaxi hive.

Alright I have expanded the species with your ideas, both of you. You did a great job on that
Please tell me if you think it looks good ? ( I haven't checked for possible typos or errors. i'll do that tomorrow as it's pretty late here )

I am considering putting the miaxi as a full fledged race. After all they are pretty numerous.

Looks good. The pheromone explanation ties things together pretty well.

One sentence has me thinking on a couple more points though:

"She is very voracious, so anyone brought into her chamber has no hope of escape whatsoever."

Seems to imply that a queen accepts no guests, only food. If this is the case, does it follow that though miaxi trade with other races, that the queen is largely unknown to the world outside the hive (barring her tastes, as the case of Threnos Island) and known only through representatives?

On a note of characterization, would a miaxa queen take a name for herself, being a singular entity that controls the hive mind, but not of it in the way the lesser miaxi are? Her alone having a name could set her apart this way, showing she's "above" the tiers of workers.

Or would a queen set the standard of no name, with no direct social contact with outsiders making a name pointless for her?

The first thing I noticed was that the Gyspas species name is the same size as the Miaxi species sections. It makes them seem like part of the Miaxi section. Making the Miaxi a full race would fix this problem and since they are a pretty common species a good idea as well. Making them a major race is after all the point of this thread.

On the major race thing, in the wiki where they are now there is alot of information and their section is much larger then all the other minor race sections. It makes the page a bit confusing since Bold text is used on all the species names. If you read it goes a bit like : "Chimeras, Ghosts, Chilotaurs, Miaxi, Diet, Hive, ETC." Since there is so much information having their own page would take the confusion away from the minor races page.

The "Defense" section should I think be called "Combat." It talks about personal defense and hive defense, and since both defense types deal with combat the title "Combat" seems more fitting. The "Social" and "Communication" sections being merged left out many of the finer details such as Miaxi + Dryad relations and much of the information about how Humans and Miaxi can work together with trade and protection. Felarya is a world where no one is safe, and right now the part about how giant predators CAN rip into the hive and into its inner core is omitted. I feel this is something important to keep in as it shows not even their hive keeps them entirely safe in Felarya.

All of the information on their lifecycle is also not currently added. If you feel it needs to be expanded on more that is something that can be done. It is something I feel is important though as its a very important part of the hive. Also not many races on the wiki have childhood or raising in their articles.

Oh course if they were made a major race and had their own page there would be no need to keep any information out of their article as it would not "clutter up" or make the minor race page "confusing." Then all aspects of their life including their interaction with dryads, humans, predators, and their complete life cycle could be put in for a more full fleshed out look at the Miaxi race.


As for what fish is concerned about. The queen is the most important member of the hive and would be not put in danger under any circumstance. Even her having a visitor would be unacceptable. She would also be the last one to receive a name if the hive became "infected" with names. As the only queen simply saying "the queen" has gravity and authority. If she had a name all of a sudden she becomes more "relatable" and much of the fear and respect her title has will be lost.

Well I always tweak things here an there when I add an idea to the wiki.
I wasn't sure of the dryad relation, but it's something that can be added later, the same for interaction with humans. I don't want to make too much generality.
While the Hive of Threnos island have a very harmonious relation with Izatem city, I'm not sure the same can be said for all other hives. After all when the Queen is hungry, the Miaxi will seek to snatch nearby humans to feed her. I don't see that going too well with them.
There is also the fact I don't want to have too long entries so I tend to sum up things. There is various cases of bios where the Wiki version is much shorter than the original one.

For now the Miaxi species is put in light so I'm for seeing what people will make of it and then we can further expand it I think ^^


As for the Queen .. mhh that's an interesting question. Me I do believe it would varies from Hive to Hive. In some cases I can see the Queen receiving visitors as an exceptional honor bestowed to them. As for a name... both ways have their merit. She could remain nameless to be just like other miaxi or she could have one to highlight she is unique among the Hive. I think Terra should decide personally.

I must also ask both of you if you agree with the disclaimer ^^

I agree to the disclaimer on this too

I agree to the disclaimer yes.