| Information |
|---|
| Scientific Name: Manipiscis avarii |
| Classification: Psionic piscinoid |
| Avg. Height: 9′ 6″ (290cm) nose-to-tailtip length |
| Avg. Weight: 300 pounds (136kg) |
| Avg. Lifespan: 80 Terran years |
| Homeworld: Gahnlo |
| Native Language: Gahnlese |
G’ahnli are fish-like telepaths that delight in commerce and distant cousins of the Ydahri. They can be found as merchants at every large port in the Stellar Consortium. They require mobile water containment vessels when outside their ocean environment. They keep no family ties, and believe in a completely unrestricted free market.
Gahnli are roughly dolphin-shaped, but have longer pectoral fins, and large, willowy flukes. They are covered completely in small, plate-like scales, which come in colors ranging from dark brown to bright purples and oranges. They have gills on each side of their body, and their fins end in hook-like digits. These digits are capable of grasping objects, but are not nearly as dexterous as human fingers. Their eyes are starbursts of many colors, and can see nearly the same spectrum as humans, though they see stronger in the low frequencies, such as reds, oranges and yellows. Their snouts are slightly elongated, and covered by large, fleshy lips. They have numerous cone-shaped teeth, and live on a diet of small fish, which are always eaten raw.
The life of a Gahnli revolves around the search for profit. Gahnli take great pleasure in working, as long as it is something that is creating value. Gahnli have a special love for trade, as they believe it is the best way to increase the wealth of the universe. Both parties in a trade, the Gahnli believe, become more wealthy through the trade. Only when both parties are trying their hardest to get the best deal will the net increase in wealth be highest. Thus, while they are in constant search of more money, the Gahnli are not necessarily a greedy race. They see their individual search for profit as increasing the overall wealth of the universe. The Gahnli believe such economic idealisms as strongly as many creatures believe in religions. The Gahnli view any restriction on trade as an obstacle to the increasing wealth of the universe. Unlike many races, the Gahnli work not to make possible those things they like to do, but work because it is what they like to do. The idea of vacation, or time off, is rather incomprehensible to most Gahnli, as they would much rather work than do anything else. Gahnli almost never retire, and work in whatever capacity they are physically capable of until they die.
When outside the oceans that are their natural environment, the Gahnli must use mobile water containment vessels to move about. These vessels vary greatly in size, function, model, and equipment, but the standard version is a hovering cylinder tank. Filled with seawater, such tanks have temperature and salinity regulators, water filtration, and motion controls. Also standard on most tanks are data storage, long-range comm units, small food storage, translation devices, air-lock style drawers that allow items to be moved in and out of the tank, and weak manipulator arms for working with objects outside the vessel. A Gahnli can live for about a week in such a tank without worry, but most Gahnli find the tanks rather cramped, and try not to spend more than a day at a time in them before returning to seas.