Ssú

Ssú “the Enemies of Man”
The Ssú are mankind’s deadliest foes, still filled with bitter hatred because humans destroyed the original form of their planet. The ancient Ssú were once masters of the land masses of Tékumel, while their cousins the Hlüss ranged the coasts and the seas.

They are friendly to the Hlüss and may be neutral to Shunned Ones and Hláka.

Physical Attributes
"“Four wide-spraddled legs extended out from the twisted column of the torso ... The head was oval, the face only vaguely human; there were two eyes, round and black-gleaming, and nostril slits but no nose. The mouth consisted of a vertical ellipse. It was the thing’s skin that was the most repellent: it resembled mottled gray parchment peeling from a roll, the ends loose and ragged, very much like the winding sheet of a corpse long in the grave.”"Both Grey and Black Ssú are similar in appearance: a central torso set upon a narrow abdomen from which extend four equidistant legs. There are two upper arms ending in three digit hands (the largest ‘finger’ functions as a thumb). The head has two eyes, nostril slits, and a mouth shaped like a vertical oval. Their outer hide is wrapped around their limbs like paper on a roll, similar to a mummification wrap, but loose and baggy, and this ‘skin’ keeps pulling off in fragments.

They sometimes rear up on their back legs to fight, using their middle limbs to hold a shield or another weapon.

The Ssú smell rather like musty cinnamon, and their language sounds like a sweet, high chiming, rippling up and down the scale like a chorus of little bells.

They have three sexes: 15 percent are males, 5 percent females, and neuter worker-fighters makes up 80 percent of their population.

Grey Ssú
Grey Ssú are between 1.71m (5'6") and 1.90m (6'2") in height.

Black Ssú are between 1.83m (6') and 2.4m (7'8") in height.

Enclaves
The Ssú wish to retake their ancient stronghold of Ssúganar (now in Pecháno).

The Grey Ssú dwell just north of Salarvya and Pechano.

The Black Ssú are found on a biggish island far off in the western ocean.

Both also have strongholds on other continents threw out Tékumel.

Appearances Online
"Secret of the Ssu". archive-url=https://www.oocities.org/stevejohnson.geo/Tekumel/Tsolyanu.htm. Retrieved 12 October 2020.