FUCK YEAH ROMULANS

1. The Original Series

2. The Next Generation

3. Nemesis

4. Nemesis (Promotional)

5. Enterprise

All these people wearing bracelets only on their left wrists. That's a beta canon thing. Specifically, it is the Romulan equivalent of wedding rings in the Vulcan's Forge / Heart / Soul series and its one Tales of the Dominion War short story erratum. What a lore deepcut, amazing.

Like, Michael Chabon's blog posts tying the Qo'wat Milat to the Imperial family and tan qalanq being honor blades and Narissa's subtle invocation of the dueling rules from the short story were already pretty blatant, but this is so specific to this series it's hard to ignore.

She walked into her office like a question she didn’t want to answer—and a mistake she wouldn’t survive.

Tal Shiar investigator Lallee has seen every kind of trouble this planet can pour into a glass, but Nomi is something else entirely. Beautiful, sharp, and wrapped in secrets, she says her wife is missing. What she doesn’t say could fill a morgue.

The case pulls Lallee into a world of vanished money, crooked deals, and lies that don’t stay buried. Every lead drags her deeper, every truth cuts closer, and at the center of it all is Nomi—always just out of reach, always one step ahead.

Lallee knows she’s dangerous. She knows she’s being played.

But Nomi doesn’t just haunt the case—she gets under Lallee's skin, in her head, in the quiet spaces where good judgment goes to die.

Some women don’t just break your heart—

Romulan Slave Bones

A belated birthday gift for my buddy. He requested that I draw bones in a Romulan slave attire, based on the excerpt from the book, "Killing Time."

My cousins... when I worldbuild, I worldbuild. :).

The post at Out of Ambit will spell it all out for you.

This was iconic tho. Pop off Queen, kill that asshole, I hated his vibe and he was creepy. Good for her.

Commission for Nahi on BSKY featuring their romulan OCs Did'it and Done'it! I'm having such a great time doing this commission.

In my mind, full of endless ramblings about my beloved Romulans, one of the things I continually return to is their faith and devotion to their families.

To me it makes sense that these are often one and the same, mingling the ideas of Fate, Elements, loyalty and remembrance of loved ones and ancestors into guiding moral principles that help Romulans see not only their place in their immediate families but among their people as a whole. They don't see themselves as being entirely independent, but as part of the mesh that binds their families, society, and Empire together. The individual doesn't matter as much as the family and the people, if one dies in service to them it is a great honor and one that would be remembered faithfully by following generations.

The idea that by honoring one's ancestors you are proving their lives and sacrifices, along with victories and accomplishments, isn't unique yet it can be profound. While certainly not divine the dead retain their identities, are still seen as functional members of their clans and help guide as well as guard the Houses that they are from.

I imagine each family, large or small, has their own little shrine set up for ancestors. Maybe it is something as humble as a few names and pictures, or a large, beautiful outdoor shrine where names are carved deep in stone, listing lineages and accomplishments so those who follow know they come from greatness.

A listing of the ships that departed Vulcan, along with what one a Clan descended from, would be a very common feature. Linking present to past, and keeping fresh the memory of the Sundering, their persecution and flight from the oppressive rising of Surak's teachings.

When a man marries into his wife's clan he is typically gifted a small tablet listing several generations of his family. This may be kept privately or added to his new family's ancestral shrine.

To be at a shrine, even a small one, is to be in a sacred moment, at a sacred place. Romulans who don't practice more general religion would still respect such shrines, for even they have roots going into deep time and know they are just brief custodians of their families honor.

Respect is demanded at a shrine. A bow to acknowledge and submit to those that have gone before. Prayers or supplications may be spoken, or written down and placed in the little shrine. Gifts left to give the spirits in respect. Flowers, ale, small foodstuffs, perhaps a weapon taken in combat, things given to show the ancestors that their work and lives were not in vain. It is a showing to those that have passed on that their descendants continue to live in the Romulan way, having listened and learned the lessons of their pasts with pride then bring further glory and honor to the family and by extension the Empire.

When leaving the sacred space one would bow, taking steps backward out of it and bow again before continuing with one's day.

While there are large temples, complete with priests, priestesses, monks, nuns and every other stripe of clergy exist there are also countless little shrines. To family, to the Elements, to the little spirits that watch over fields and shipyards. While they are not gods they are still respected.

To show discourtesy, rudeness, or lack of humility at a Romulan shrine is deeply disrespectful. It was to invite disaster, upon the offender and possibly beyond. If severe enough it could lead to serious consequences, especially if it is by an outsider. It shows poor upbringing and a questionable character. How could you hope to trust someone who couldn't even behave when someone was taking a moment and honoring their ancestors?

In a highly regimented, secretive society where families join for power and place, making alliances and forging conspiracies to advance family lines, adding a third familly into it seems like a recipe for disaster. Are they chosen from a third family? Two from a single House? That seems like begging for a massive power imbalance. In less powerful families it might be beneficial, but as you go up?

Sisko: If Klingon and Romulan sense of honor are so similar, how did your peoples' alliance crumble like that?

T'rul: Because the Klivamsu scammed us!

Worf: Scammed?! YOU Romulusngan took advantage of the Empire!

Jadzia: Grievous insults by complete accident from day one. I know, I was there.

*everyone turns to her*

Sisko: Could you explain, old man?

Jadzia: I warn you, it sounds really stupid.

*they all LOOK at her*

Jadzia: OK. One of the main provisions of the treaty was an exchange of Romulan first generation cloaking devices for type 1 K't'inga-class battlecruisers, the D-7. And cultural expectations made both sides think the others were honorless and stupid. When the Romulans received the first batch of cruisers, they found out that the disruptors had been removed, the torpedo launchers were still there but without ammo, and older ships built by the lowest bidder. The Romulans had no problem with the removal of the disruptors, and were in fact surprised the Klingon left the torpedo launchers to try and bait them into buying torpedoes, a really stupid move that made reverse-engineering easier, and didn't take exception at the fact the Klingon were already developing the type 2, but felt insulted at the state of the ships. As far they were concerned, they should have been quality hulls of recent construction, maybe even built specifically for the trade, not older ships in dire need of maintenance with the spare parts sold aside. Considering they had reopened the production lines for the first generation cloaking devices just to deliver the highest quality products, the entire Tricameron and the Grand Fleet felt personally insulted, and the fact the High Council had left the torpedo launchers in the most transparent commercial move they had ever seen only made it worse.

*Worf is embarrassed, as he didn't know that*

Jadzia: On the other hand, the High Council thought the Romulans were foolish for delivering brand new cloaking devices, and at first refused to authorize reverse-engineering of material from an ally... But were incensed when the Romulans openly disassembled half of the entire first batch for reverse-engineering.

T'rul: Wait, the Klingon WEREN'T going to do the same at first?! That's... That's just-

Jadzia: That's respect for an ally, as the Klingon saw it. But that accidental exchange of insults left both sides furious at their allies - and more appreciative of the Federation. Then there was the failure of the common bird-of-prey program, border skirmishes and incursions mostly between House forces and the predecessors of the Free Rihannsu, the House of K'toh-maag being disbanded for corruption after it was discovered they had sold disruptors and new model torpedoes to various Romulan commanders and the Free Rihannsu, and finally House T'kar, now the House of Antaak, trying to seize Artaleirh during the Romulan Civil War, right in the middle of a battle between the Free Rihannsu and the Grand Fleet. And at the end of the Civil War, Empress Ael, who had been one of the commanders that bought Klingon disruptors from K'toh-maag, formally denounced the alliance. And since then, they can't resist but mess with each other at least once every five years, with the closest thing to a reapproachment being when the Romulans formally apologized to the Klingon for losing control of the Reman shock troopers during the Khitomer Massacre, without even considering to give back the planet without a fight. One that I may add they were planning to lose, having left behind only the shock troopers to be massacred, except both Kravokh and K'mpek thought it was a trap and didn't try to retake the planet.