Kiith Somtaaw

In the Homeworld series of computer games, Kiith Somtaaw is one of many kiithid - or extended family-clans - that belong to the Kushan race. Originally a major religious kiith, the Somtaaw later became almost entirely geared towards mining.

Following the events of Homeworld the Somtaaw were left with a substantially smaller portion of their original number, most having been slaughtered in an event known as the Kharak Genocide. After battling through various legal trials to achieve rights for use of the Mothership construction facilities for a limited period of time, they succeeded with their main goal of building a self-sufficient command ship, the Faal-Corum. Using lessons learnt during its design and manufacture, they devised and built a second superior version, the Kuun-Lan. Still left with a modicum of time after the construction of the two prior giants, they quickly made the Clee-San, a small state-of-the-art research vessel.

They continued their heritage of mining, except now they did it in space, preferring the honest work to the blood and violence of war.

Their stint in the Homeworld storyline comes during the events of the game Homeworld: Cataclysm. After an Imperial Taiidani incursion attempt, they were dispatched to rescue a Kiith Manaan destroyer stranded in the outskirts of the Hiigaran star system. In the process, they discovered an artifact built by no known Galactic races. Considering the potential such a discovery held, the ruling Somtaaw council decreed it could give them great leverage in the new Hiigaran government, and ordered the Kuun-Lan to keep it a secret within Somtaaw. The Kuun-Lan then met up with the Clee-San, and the device was opened up for analysis. However, the artifact contained part of the intelligent nanotechnology organism, the Beast. The infection rapidly spread, forcing the ship to jettison its entire lower section.

The missions in Cataclysm largely follow the Kuun-Lan as it gathers information, while turning from a mining fleet into one built for war. The game ends in a climatic final showdown against the Beast flagship, the Naggarok.

They are mentioned in passing in the Homeworld 2 strategy guide, during the debate over reactivating the Hiigaran hyperspace core. They were opposed to the idea, creating a deadlock in the Hiigaran Government, until Karen S'Jet intervened.

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