Montrose

Writing for Montrose

Division of the Sexes

• While males and females "switch" roles compared to earth, the swap is not one-to-one. Females will tend (or at least prefer) to hold public-facing and high-profile jobs, while males take on low-profile jobs.
  • Yes, this does mean that, even though montrose males are often expected to look pretty and beautiful, you're still more likely to see pre-contact males doing jobs like sanitation work.
• Montrose sexuality, even in conservative societies, operates much differently. Males expect to be cornered or kidnapped in acts of playtheft and tend to base their sexual self-worth in view of females giving them such attention.
  • Playtheft can of course go too far and has its detractors because of it, but it's nigh-impossible to alter the trajectory of montrose instincts so far as this is concerned.

Religion

• Most of Ar is monotheistic and worships a single Goddess (usually capitalized), who has different names depending on the particular branch of religion. "Gys" has been used as a swear referring to the Goddess.

First Contact and Conquering

• In the timeline present, the montrose's home planet Ar was discovered by Planetary Acquisitions, but they were subsequently chased off by an ally of the Lio Empire, the ssarith.
• Montrose society at the time is roughly pre-modern, a mix of 50s to 90s technology. They are a fragmented world with multiple nations and languages. There are some places that remain unmodernized (moreso and with more land area than earth has). Montrose only barely started something akin to the Space Race when the ssarith discover them.
• Some named languages: Tannic, Uzani, Lombri. Named nations: Tannic Coalition.
• The ssarith have something of a vested interest in Ar. Their homeworld is less than a hundred years from destruction via an expansion of their star, and Ar has been the first world they've found that could suitably host their species--a problem of course given that, not only is it inhabited, but the ssarith do not consider themselves colonialists. It is decided to go ahead with the plan anyway, because the alternative would be leaving the montrose to their fate. This doesn't necessarily ingratiate the montrose.
• In the invasion, the ssarith greatly overwhelm the the entire planet of Ar to the point it's not even funny how much of a curbstomp it is, even as the ssarith do their very best to limit casualties; most of Ar is pacified after only two weeks. Afterwards, the ssarith dismantle all montrose-held weapons of war and divide up the planet into 128 dominions, each overseen by a ssarith lord. The dominion system is not appreciated at first as many of these regions mix up the previous nation-state borders. The ssarith take on many functions of government, but many lords are pressured to including montrose in on the process in the interest of making the people feel represented.
• The ssarith impose a a large number of social reforms with an eye toward reconciling montrose psychology with their actual society--some reforms of which include abolishing restrictions on transgender and homosexuality, allowing males suffrage and to hold public office, diminishing the control of oligarchs, improving labor laws and requirements, etc. Many of these reforms, while welcome by the underclass, have unintended side effects and need quite a lot of fine-tuning.
• The montrose end up becoming very close friends with the ssarith, and subsequently allies of the Lio, but this is going to take a long time.
• Feel free to write about the montrose before or after first contact.