Could species be allergic to each other?

GamingGlen

Banded Mongoose
Humans shed a lot of dead skin into the air. Our lungs have been used to it for millenia (this word is not liked by the spell checker). But would alien species get sick from it? Or, could humans get sick, or have some other respiratory problem, from alien cast offs?

These questions came to be when I was wondering what an Aslan feels like to the touch, and secondly what do they smell like. This would also apply to other aliens. Are Aslan furry? What kind of furry (e.g., short beard, Nerf, shag carpet, bristles, tennis ball)? Bwaps must keep their skin moist. So are they wet and slimy to the touch? Is the seat they just got up from now damp? Would any other species want to sit in that location? And that brought up another thought about materials: do higher tech materials, especially for seats, absorb alien casts offs to make it safe to sit upon for other species?

Then, what do they sound like? If an Aslan male speaks with a squeaky voice, how many bar fights would have been started when humans laughed after a drunk Aslan sang? :D

Most alien modules I have read talk about how aliens look. But to be truly alien, a description of smells, touch sensation, and sounds should also be described. Maybe I just missed reading those modules, but if I was a betting man I'd bet those are not covered, or at least in less than 10% of any written material.

This came up as I was thinking about an Aslan female scientist in a module who will approach a PC scientist with a lab ship to propose working together, sharing the findings from an Ancients' site, but she needs his ship as the planet has very little research facilities. She knows the character from being a college classmate (a contact), and for amusement, she is interested in interspecies liaisons and asks why he never took up her offer back in college :twisted: . And then she purrs. Do Aslans purr?
 
I would expect allergies to be curable by interstellar TLs.

Aslan evolved from Earth cats. What more do you really need to know? I suppose you might also read the various alien supplements. For example I know from Gurps that Aslan do not have sandpaper for tongues like Earth cats do, but is Gurps stuff even the same universe? (That they are called alien supplements does show that traveller firmly human centric in its outlook).

I always assumed cross species relationships were common enough on some worlds that no-one even cares anymore, and on others to be some giant crime. Much like today where attitudes vary even across cities in the same nation.
 
I agree with your assumption on cross-species relations - like today some worlds / cultures will be open and accepting, others virulently opposed, and the rest scattered across the continuum in between. Those feelings could be based on tradition / past history, cultural / religious biases, perceived (or real) medical concerns, socioeconomic status, politics, or any combination of the above.
 
Linwood said:
I agree with your assumption on cross-species relations - like today some worlds / cultures will be open and accepting, others virulently opposed, and the rest scattered across the continuum in between. Those feelings could be based on tradition / past history, cultural / religious biases, perceived (or real) medical concerns, socioeconomic status, politics, or any combination of the above.

It is even different between play groups. The group I've played with for years are "manly men" and would disdain any reference to intimate relationships with "furries". They would never ever play a female character, and they think I do most of the time (over the years about 10% of my characters have been female). I joined a new and younger group, now running Traveller for them (they're Traveller rookies), and they are much more accepting of differences. I expect some ribbing from others when I have the NPC be overt about a "date", and the player is usually decent enough to play along. The younger group is much more into RP. (such a welcome change from the older group being power-gaming 35+ YO munchkins)
 
Moppy said:
I would expect allergies to be curable by interstellar TLs.

I expect this, too. But how? What tech? Many worlds of the Spinward Marches are somewhat low on tech so those allergic treatments might be more expensive if available at all.

But I suppose I could go along with all the shows and movies that gloss over interspecies contamination, especially concerning alien viruses*. (except those movies, typically horror, that has the premise about contamination)



*I've often wondered, if aliens did show up, could we shake hands/paws/tentacles or talk to them directly or would we have to be separated by glass walls/force fields?
 
GamingGlen said:
Moppy said:
I would expect allergies to be curable by interstellar TLs.

I expect this, too. But how? What tech? Many worlds of the Spinward Marches are somewhat low on tech so those allergic treatments might be more expensive if available at all.

But I suppose I could go along with all the shows and movies that gloss over interspecies contamination, especially concerning alien viruses*. (except those movies, typically horror, that has the premise about contamination)

*I've often wondered, if aliens did show up, could we shake hands/paws/tentacles or talk to them directly or would we have to be separated by glass walls/force fields?

If you are going to handle contamination then you may need to handle it when travelling from world to world, and not just for space furries. This would make adventures a little annoying:
When a ship docks at the high port only one designated representative is allowed on shore to, perform administrative tasks only, and must be suited or restricted to a certain area. Later after the crew has appropriate checks, everyone can disembark.

Or you know, you can do the whole Star Trek enterprise fan service decontamination soap-up rubdown. I am sure condittore (spelling?) has some pictures of that in their stash, which no doubt appear here soon.

Also wet cats aslan decontamination shower haha.
 
A lot of people are allergic to foods and pets everyone else has no problem with. We either develop cures/treatments, and remember modern Earth is still considered low tech on the Traveller TL scale, or we learn to avoid what we can't handle as best as possible. It seems a majority of humans in charted space can regularly deal with aslan, vargr and k'kree dander. The minority who can't either avoid or science finds a way around. This is going to include all the alien life forms encountered during exploration and colonization. Some worlds may be listed as Tainted or Exotic based on an average human's reaction to chemical or biological agents that causes an allergic reaction.
 
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Okay, the one in grey. If anyone is going to spread allergies (and nearly every other infection known and unknown), it's her.
 
GamingGlen said:
It is even different between play groups. The group I've played with for years are "manly men" and would disdain any reference to intimate relationships with "furries". They would never ever play a female character, and they think I do most of the time (over the years about 10% of my characters have been female). I joined a new and younger group, now running Traveller for them (they're Traveller rookies), and they are much more accepting of differences. I expect some ribbing from others when I have the NPC be overt about a "date", and the player is usually decent enough to play along. The younger group is much more into RP. (such a welcome change from the older group being power-gaming 35+ YO munchkins)

I’ve noticed that generational difference as well, especially at conventions. It’s a topic that probably deserves its own thread...
 
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