Druuge
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| Druuge | |
|---|---|
 The Druuge had upturned devil-style eyebrows in Star Control II.
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| Ship | Mauler |
| Homeworld | Zeta Persei 1 |
| Contacts | Humans, Utwig, Burvixese |
| Quote(s) | "Yours for the amazing bargain of only 100 crew." |
The Druuge are a fictional race of beings featured in the sci-fi Star Control computer game series.
The Druuge are a selfish and corporate race of ape-like aliens seen in the Star Control 2 game for the PC. The protagonist's interaction with the Druuge is needed for the acquisition of important plot-advancing items. These can be gained either by trading with the Druuge's preferred currency (slaves) or, more humanely, by other items of interest found around the galaxy.
Individual Druuge exist to serve the Crimson Corporation, a megaconglomerate that owns their entire planet including their air/water/food...basically every known resource. In theory Druuge are free to quit the corporation if they do not enjoy their conditions, but if they try this they are instantly found guilty of stealing said air from the company and sentenced to death.
When a Druuge exceeds his/her usefulness, or grows too weak or old to work, or goes into debt, or can't afford to pay the fees demanded by the corporation... it ends up "feeding the furnace." They're mercilessly tossed into the reactors of the nearest power station, their bodies used as living fuel.
The Druuge use a variety of complex legal justifications to allow their self-serving behaviour. For example, they feel that given the hostile nature of the galaxy, any ship that is un- or lightly armed is going to, at some point in the future, be destroyed by some belligerent race. As such, they are essentially salvage in a preliminary state and not the property of their pilots, so the Druuge can 'salvage' them without violating the laws of ownership. In other words, the Druuge can attack anyone weaker than them, steal their ship and sell the crew into slavery.
[edit] Druuge Mauler
Essentially a huge flying cannon, the Druuge Mauler is a slow-moving vessel but capable of firing tremendously damaging projectiles over extreme distances. The damage inflicted is equal to the Ur-Quan fusion bolt (6 crew fatalities); however, the Druuge Mauler experiences a recoil effect that accelerates the ship backwards with each shot. The acceleration from each shot is cumulative and after successive shots the Druuge Mauler ship will find itself flying backwards at a *tremendous* velocity, far greater than that normally generated by its engines. This characteristic can be used strategically; however the Druuge Mauler pilot must be wary of any nearby planetoids, as collision with one at high speeds can be devastating.
The true drawback of the Druuge Mauler ship is its extremely slow power recharge rate. Each shot drains the batteries and in most cases some of the crew must be thrown into the furnaces (colloquially known as the "Yaargher" due to the distinctive cry of the unfortunate crewman thrown in) to regenerate power more quickly. Each feeding of the furnace ultimately weakens the Mauler vessel, thus the Druuge Mauler pilot must be sure to kill the opponent with the minimum number of shots. High accuracy is a premium among Mauler pilots. For the same reason, the Chenjesu Broodhome vessel is an extremely effective adversary to the Druuge Mauler - its D.O.G.I. drones can render a Mauler useless in seconds. Utwig Juggers are also a serious menace due to the energy-converting shields which render it invulnerable to the Mauler's shells, all the while a Jugger captain can patiently wait until the Mauler's crew is all used up in the furnace before closing in for the kill.
