The Kalash was an alien ship of unknown origin that crashlanded on Kharak.
History[]
The Kalash was a warship of unknown origins that, around 110 KDS, was pulled into Kharak's orbit after a hyperspace drive malfunction caused by a gigantic interference bubble formed by the Second Core, a Progenitor artifact hidden within the wreck of Khar-Toba, the ship that brought the exiled Hiigarans to Kharak. The ship materialized in the planet's upper atmosphere and quickly deorbited, broke apart and crash-landed in the region known as the Sarathi Basin. It is unknown if there were any survivors.
In 1065 KDS, the Coalition of the Northern Kiithid retrieved fragments of the Kalash that remained in Kharak's orbit. While none of the fragments were functional tech, they gave the Kushan minor insights on the nature of starship technology.
For their part, Kiith Gaalsien members, the owners of Great Banded Desert, exploited and reverse engineered several crashed starships, making amazing leaps in technology. However, there are no indications that the Kalash wreck, located very far at north, was exploited too.
In 1106 KDS, during Operation Skaal Brii, the Coalition Carrier Ifriit-Naabal explored the Sarathi Basin and found the Kalash's wreck. They remained some time at what they called Kalash Site, exploring its remains, managing to identify the ship's name and salvage a piece of its sensors array, the Sensor Waveform Amplifier, which greatly enhanced the carrier's sensor capabilities. Unfortunately, the Carrier was severely damaged on its way back north at Hell's Gate, and crushed by a sand dune. The Gaalsieni searched and stripped the carrier, probably in search of the artifact, but they couldn't find it, as it was hidden within one of the carrier's bulkheads.
By 1110 KDS, The Coalition launched a second expedition to the Great Banded Desert. Operation Khadiim, led by the carriers Kapisi and Sakala. While the Kapisi's fleet passed through Hell's Gate, they found the Ifriit-Naabal's wreck and recovered the Sensor Waveform Amplifier, which they installed in their own carrier. From the recovered data, they uncovered the Kalash's existence and location, though not what it was, and headed there.
The Kapisi crew found the Kalash crash site, and under the leadership of Rachel S'jet, scanned the ship's wreckage despite the Gaalsien's attacks. Later, the expedition began demolishing the different parts of the Kalash, including its frontal guns, to access and use its resources and artifacts. That act, seen by the Gaalsieni as a profanation, led them to attack the Kapisi. The expedition was only saved from annihilation by the arrival of the other Coalition carrier, the Sakala.
After defeating the Gaalsieni, both Carriers resumed their trip south. The last remnants of the Kalash were left behind, but the help they provided to the success of the expedition was key to the Kushan race survival and return to the stars.
Description[]
The Kalash was painted in white and yellow colors, and even after a thousand years in the desert, it still kept them. The ship exhibited an arrowhead-like design, with what appears to be two big guns emerging in front of it. After crashing, the bow of the hull was still in one piece, projecting over a cliff. The stern lay in three square parts, disseminated under the cliff.
Notes[]
- The Kalash was the first ship to be located and studied by the Coalition: before this, only small fragments of destroyed vessels had been recovered in orbit, never bigger than an office chair.
- It is unknown the affiliation of the Kalash, but it's doubtful than it belonged to the Taiidan Empire as it doesn't bear their navy colors. The simple fact that it was a warship proved than it wasn't a Kushan ship: all of The Exile ships were unarmed. As most of the spaceships found on the desert were from other, unknown civilizations that explored the Outer Rim, the Kalash was likely from one of them.
- The Kalash is the only known ship found on Kharak which its name is uncovered: the Khar-Toba, as it means the First City, it remains unknown if it was the ship's name or the name of the city founded around it. And the Taiidan (ship) also remains unconfirmed if it was its real name.
Trivia[]
- The Kalash is a remnant from Hardware: Shipbreakers, Blackbird Interactive's MMORTS that evolved into Deserts of Kharak. In that game, it was going to be known as the Kalash IV, a container carrier that crashed on the desert world of LM-27.
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