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Report RSS Homeworld: Karan Sjet Ain't Getting Younger

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HOMEWORLD: KARAN S'JET AIN'T GETTING YOUNGER

HW Karan Sjet AmDDReds

Or is she?..

Content

  1. The Sources
  2. The Age of S'jet
  3. The Look of S'jet
  4. The Voice of S'jet
  5. My Conclusions
  6. P.S.
  7. P.P.S.
  8. P.P.P.S.
  9. Links
  10. Change Log

The Sources

  • HW1 - Homeworld 1, manual, game
  • HWC - Homeworld Cataclysm/Emergence, manual, game
  • HWCO - Homeworld Cataclysm, outtakes
  • HWWOS - HW and HWC ship descriptions, well of souls
  • HW2 - Homeworld 2, manual, game
  • HW2PR - Homeworld 2, Prima Official eGuide
  • HWDOK - Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak, Expedition Guide, game
  • HWR - Homeworld: Revelations RPG
  • HWRS - Homeworld: Revelations RPG Story Seeds
  • HWM - Homeworld: Mobile, homeworldsource.net
  • HW3 - Homeworld 3
  • HWDST - Homeworld Dust Wars drafts

The Age of S'jet

HWU Karan Sjet

Karan Sjet, the only daughter of Huur Sjet-Sa and in direct line for the leadership of all Kiith Sjet, was a neuroscientist in charge of the research division that was designing the command and control systems in the Mothership. Many other researchers would have balked at having to tell an entire world that its dream was impossible, but Karan was true to the spirit of her Kiith, and not only broke the news to the Daiamid, but also suggested a terrifying solution. Again, as a Sjet, she rejected fear in the face of the Truth and demanded that her own system, using a living being as the command core for the Mothership, be applied to herself.
(c) HW1, Historical Brief, Kiith Sjet

In order to serve as a living command core to the Mothership, one of our people would have to volunteer to be surgically altered so that most of the nerve trunks serving limbs and senses would be patched into ship systems instead. The subject would then have to be embedded permanently in the bridge of the ship. Karan Sjet refused to allow her technology to be used on anyone else.
(c) HW1, Historical Brief, [A9] Karan Sjet Solution

Construction and Launch
The final hurdle in the Mothership’s design was in how to deal with the number of people needed to manage the main bridge. With incredible amounts of data needing to be processed in a short period of time, the bridge crew would have needed to be in the hundreds. Having that many command staff on the bridge was unmanageable, paralyzing the chain of command, and by extension the ability to keep the ship running optimally. With this issue threatening to put an end to the hope of returning to Hiigara, Karan S’jet, a neuroscientist, came forward, producing research that she believed could help. She suggested using a living brain to process the data alongside the Mothership’s computers and offered herself as the subject. She was wired into the ship’s central processing core using her own research to successfully integrate herself into the ship, effectively becoming the mind of the Mothership and the voice of Fleet Command. Eventually, eight decades after the first construction began, the ship would be ready for the first test of the hyperdrive.
(c) HWR, Chapter 5: Ship Combat, Motherships, The Kushan Mothership, p.134

Fleet Command.
Karan S’jet bound herself to the Mothership in order to become Fleet Command. Only with a living brain handling the huge data shunts that the Mothership requires can it function properly. Karan can handle every update and alert that the Mothership produces and can then choose to deal with them automatically or alert the crew. During combat she can observe the status and position of every ship in the fleet, as well as analyze all systems and combat response activities within the Mothership.
(c) HWR, Chapter 5: Ship Combat, Motherships, The Kushan Mothership, Key Areas, p.135

Although she was a brilliant neuroscientist, Karan S’jet was not prominent enough to make a name for herself but for a twist of fate. When technical difficulties with controlling the Mothership made it clear they would need to create a neural link between the ship and a live being, S’jet was in a fateful middle position. She was established and experienced enough to succeed at the task, yet not so senior she wasn’t expendable should the attempt fail.
It did not fail. She became Fleet Command of the Mothership, and the first Unbound of the Hiigarans, leading her people across the galaxy and to their home. She detached from the ship to walk her new homeworld for some 115 years before the Vaygr War called her once again to meld her mind with a machine. By the end of that war, she linked with the Progenitor Mothership Sajuuk. With her lifespan
extended by her cybernetic connection to a ship older than some stars, none can tell how long she will live or what wonders she will witness before her consciousness fades.
(c) HWR, Chapter 6: Historical Briefing, A Brief History of the Kushan, Pre-Exodus, Karan S'jet, p.179

HW Karan Sjet Unattached

Karan S'jet - Fleet Command
Regarded in hindsight as the most pivotal figure in the entire Kushan Race, Karan S’jet’s sacrifice allowed her to command the Mothership’s computer systems with her brain and solve a critical problem that threatened to scrap the Mothership Program entirely.
Her background, by contrast, is surprisingly modest. Though she was born to Huur and Ajora S’jet-Sa, she was effectively raised by her maternal grandfather Cambaal S’jet. He imbued her with a gentle respect for life and sparked her interest in neuroscience, which led to her enrollment in the Academy of Advanced Sciences in Tiir. She later accepted an invitation to join the Mothership Program in part to escape the responsibilities of leadership her father was thrusting upon her.
Karan’s research into developing a neural network proved to be a key solution to a complicated problem facing the Mothership Program. While no computer network could keep up with the staggering processing load from so many systems, a living brain could, and Karan would not allow anyone else to undergo the procedure she developed. Over the objections of her father, it took three months to install Karan as Fleet Command. She required multiple surgeries to adapt and prepare her body and limbs for the connectors, wires and transmitters needed to join her with the Mothership, and whole crews of engineers worked to build the chamber she would reside in. Ultimately these were a success, and even after being successfully disconnected from the Mothership upon landfall on Hiigara, Karan regained normal functionality of her limbs and mind.
Her journey from simple researcher to guardian angel and savior of the Kushan people is a thing of legend. Even before landfall on Hiigara, Karan was becoming revered by those who equated her with the gods of old. Though she modestly declines to accept her fame, the Hiigaran people cannot stop praising the one who gave up everything to lead them all to paradise.
(c) HWR, Chapter 7: Kiithid Society Briefing, Kiith S'jet, Significant S’jet, p.208

Kiith S'jet
During the Homeworld War and afterward Kiith S’jet gained a newfound reputation as their own Sa, Karan S’jet, was hailed as the savior of the Kushan people. Though Karan S’jet commanded significant influence, as did her Kiith by extension, both were careful never to abuse their power.
(c) HWR, Chapter 7: Kiithid Society Briefing, Modern Era Alliances, p.230

Karan S'jet, Neuroscientist (Major NPC)
In the years before and after the Kushan Exodus, Karan S’jet was human and only that. She loves her people and revels in scientific discovery. Born on Kharak to a prominent neuroscientist, she
discovered a fascination for and aptitude in theoretical computing, especially the interface between man and machine. After the discovery of the Guidestone, she turned her mind to solving the problems of creating a computer powerful and responsive enough to control the titanic Mothership, finally proposing the installation of a human brain.
Showing the courage of her Kiith, she volunteered her own brain for the experiment. Even as the Mothership’s construction neared its end, she had her own nervous system altered to connect with the vessel’s systems. Technicians installed her and she became, for a time, Fleet Command (see below).
When the Kushan reached Hiigara, Fleet Command was the last to step onto the planet’s surface. Although some feared she could not be safely extracted from the Mothership’s CPU, the procedure was successful, and she walked among her people once more as Karan S’jet.
(c) HWR, Chapter 10: Non-Player Characters, Kushan Fleet Personnel, p.305

Karan S'jet was the first Kushan to become Unbound, but the practice was already common among the Bentusi by that time.
(c) HWR, Chapter 6: Historical Briefing, Artifacts, The Unbound, p.194

HWU Kiith S'Jet - Karan S'Jet

If we count, Karan's age is:

  • HW1: AHL 0, Karan is around 30/40 - because she is a mature proven herself scientist, and these kind of things are achieved after 30;
  • HWC: AHL 7, Karan's out of business;
  • HW2: AHL 115, Karan's back to business;
  • HWM: AHL 130, Karan's MIA;
  • HW3: AHL 215;

So, in the events of HW2 she's approximately 150 years old. Like, going for bicentennial lady status, that has seen 2 galactic wars, genocides, great scientific miracles, religious revelations, and she was the Mothership, twice, Sajuuk-Khar and so on. So, she's a women you'd hardly impress.

Given the many trials our people have had to face since landfall, some analysts believe that it would be impossible to hold Kushan society together without the influence of Karan Sjet.

Karan has been the Sa of Sa's in the New Daiamid since its first vote. The Sjet'sa has spent the last 15 years serving as an arbiter in the Daiamid's power struggles, and her efforts to bind our people together have kept the Kushan from fragmenting, despite the tremendous pressure on our people from without and within. To have some inkling of the duties Sjet'sa has performed in the past 15 years, one has only to look back over the list of our achievements.

In the first year after Landfall alone, Sjet'sa presided over the ground-breaking ceremonies of over 150 new cities, towns and small settlements. She settled 36 disputes in the New Daiamid, blessed the hulls of four newly-built carriers, and personally oversaw the filing of land claims in the Shaar peninsula.
The second year after Landfall, Sjet'sa proposed a monument to the Martyrs of Kharak, and personally selected a site in the Desert of the Bones; over the next several months she oversaw the engraving of nearly 300 million names on a free-standing spire of basalt in the desert. Many Kushan since then have traveled to her Tower of Names to find the people of their own kiithid, and make offerings for the peaceful rest of their one-time lovers and friends.

One of the most controversial relief mechanisms that Sjet'sa has adopted for the benefit of Sleeper kiithid has been to grant limited access to the Mothership's building facilities. Sjet'sa has permitted several small families, exhausted by the struggle for land and influence on Hiigara, to seek their fortunes among the stars. Many of these smaller kiithid have built themselves carrier-class vessels, ships with a powerful enough PDA to build and support small colonies off-world. Most of these tiny settlements are dedicated to mining, hydroponic farming or manufacturing. While so many others continue building new settlements on Hiigara, these small, hard-working kiithid prosper in trade, and provide much-needed supplies to the outbound fleets. Coincidentally, the small star-faring kiithid control a much greater tonnage of ships, collectively, than any one of the major kiithid can control alone…

The Sjet'sa no longer appears daily in the New Daiamid; she presides over the Assembly only on special occasions, or when a matter is put up for her special arbitration. Since the year 7 AHL, the Sa of Sa's has become increasingly reclusive, and appears less and less frequently at social events. Kiith Sjet has built a special compound for her in the Suungo mountain range, and she occasionally mans the observatory there; she has also been seen aboard the Mothership, sometimes wandering in the unmanned passages near the old control core.

Regardless of her desire for privacy, however, her presence is felt everywhere. In the recent Kushan population explosion, the name "Karan" has been given to thousands of baby girls, and even among boys, the name "Kar" is surprisingly common.

(c) HWCO, History of the Landfall, Cataclysm Story

The Look of S'jet

Reddit KaranSjet

karan s jet wallpaper by firegar

HWR Karan S'jet

The Voice of S'jet

And here comes the voice acting:

Homeworld 1

Heidi Ernst



Homeworld 2

Jennifer Dawne Graveness

Homeworld 3

Amanda Silvera

My Conclusions

The Egghead LeaderThe Hobbit's Galadriel

Well, with age Karan Sjet is getting more and more sexualized, like the artists are not getting learnt how to draw not a sexy ideal women. And I don't like it, because it goes against S'jet character. It does not mean that she should look and behave like an old grandma, having no sexual life, but it does mean that she should not look and talk like a 20 years young girl with "breathy seduction" voice. She should represent the maturity, she is an descendant of people surviving the harsh conditions of Kharak, of a culture of losses, restrictions, self-control and self-sacrifice; a scientist; a war chief; a political leader. The women of deeds. Who's not afraid to shave her head and be more practical. :) Dreamer, but the one that knows that it requires blood, toil, tears and sweat to fulfill. Maybe, somebody like The Expanse's Chrisjen Avasarala with a moment of perfection vibe by Samuel Anderson of BSG. Unless they wanted to make an eternal elf demigod out of Karan…

Ok, she lives in a star civilization, having all the best regeneration technologies possible, botox, makeup whatever. Of course, there might be some deep symbolism of Karan's model look, like she's a star child, she is the perfect waifu of kushan people, her big… mhm.. eyes represent her open soul… There are beautiful women that don't age like others, but everyone changes over the time. The behavioral habits become your second nature, facial expressions are getting imprinted in your face muscles, events are getting reflected in the eyes, a person learns and changes. The hero should not return the same from the journey.

Come And See

If you want to continue the story of Karan S'jet - though I do not define her as a key element of Homeworld series, and HWC proves this, as it's not personal but people's story (and a Fleet Command was kind of a Silent Protagonist, like a player is the one who commands, not some Isaac Paktu) - please, pay respect to her character and develop it accordingly not just because of the fancy idea. Yes, Karan S'jet, as she should be, might be a not very convenient character from the writer's perspective as it hard to understand what development she might have, as strong people are unbound to the external conditions, but the lamest path is just to forget what she has been and seen, as you, people, wouldn't believe…

And that's why I don't like the latest trailer of HW3: the look, the voice acting and the words are something that I would not expect from Karan S'jet. As well, the new voice is so much different from HW1 & HW2.

I guess, the only plot explanation for all of this might be that Karan is really gone - any reason - and due to some "battletechy" neurolink problems - like a new pilot should adapt to the existing neurointerface - The Three Core System rejected new fleet command, until some young and naïve S'jet descendant, that "never asked for this". The Cores' Electronic Echo of Karan S'jet got activated and consumed the mind a living person, and that's why this girl tells that she's Karan, while not, and she remembers something… But tbh that's kind of Deux Ex Machina. I doubt that HW requires these kind of twists.

Anyway, let's see where we will arrive with that… Rap battle, you decide! :)

P.S.:

P.P.S.:

HW3 Story Update, https://www.homeworlduniverse.com/, 24.08.22


Interesting that Imogen S'jet is Karan S'jet's protégé, being a notable scientist. But there is a 20 years gap:

  • GSY 9706 - Karan S'jet gets lost with a mothership Khar-Sajuuk (HW3)
  • GSY 9726 - Imogen S'jet takes control over a new mothership Khar-Kushan (HW3)

So, to became noticed by 200-years old Progenitor-tech scientist Karan, she had to show some academic success, which means Imogen should have been around 30 years old to be a notable scientist, ok, 20 if she was a super-genius (and a friend of a family). Thus, in her HW3 journey, Imogen should be similar age as Karan was in HW1, or even older, as Karan wasn't a successor, she was a pioneer.

So, Imogen is around 50 years old?..

P.P.P.S.:

Homeworld 3: Revenge of Karan S'Jet!

Links

Change Log

  • 11.01.24 - added link to the "Youth and Immortality" issue in Homeworld: Stranger Things
  • 14.01.24 - added HWR Karan's picture
  • 18.04.24 - added approximate calculations of Imogen S'jet age

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