From "The Soft Weapon":

"......The first man to see a puppeteer had done so during a Campish revival of "Time for Beany" reruns. He had come running back to the scout ship, breathless and terrified, screaming" Take off! The planet's full of monsters!"
"Whatta they look like?", asked a colleague.
"Like a three-legged centaur with two Cecil the Seasick Sea Serpent puppets on its hands, and no head."
"Take a pill, Pierson. You're drunk.........."


...And so they were named.

At an Online Conference held on the 5th June 1996 on the Compuserve Science Fiction and Fantasy Forum, I asked Larry what inspired him to create the Puppeteer species, Larry said:

"..... I was fed up with humanoids. Chad Oliver in particular, an anthropologist, wrote story after story claiming that THIS is the only workable shape for an intelligent being. The puppeteers were my first attempt to show him a shape that could evolve to intelligence...."

 Entire Conference transcript . Text File 28K.

Appearance

Most races in Known Space have similar exterior physiologies. The Puppeteers do not match this standard in any form; their appearance is shocking to most humans. Unlike other species, the Puppeteers strongly resemble the herd animals of their ancestry, a triangular body that is wider in the front than in the rear. Three legs end in small, pointed hooves set in a nearly perfect equilateral triangle. The skin is covered with a creamy-while hide, soft and pleasant to touch.

 A Puppeteer's mane-covered frontal hump is a thick, bony skull which protects its huge brain. Two independently working heads rise sinuously on flexible necks from either side of the brain case hump. The heads appear similar to the head of a python, including the snake's forked tongue. However, the Puppeteer's heads have dry, thick lips which extend several inches beyond the mouth, ending in finger-like knobs. The Puppeteer uses the lips like hands, but with far more dexterity than any human; this is once of the reasons for the race's superior toolmaking. The forked tongue also serves as additional fingers.

 Each head has one eye set deep in a protective socket of bone. Because the necks of the head are capable of twisting in any direction, a Puppeteer has nearly perfect 360 &degree; vision (one head facing forward, the other facing back). The Puppeteer possesses a highly developed visual cortex to process all this visual information. A running Puppeteer holds one head high and the other low to obtain a panoramic perception and to see around obstacles. The two heads also provide outstanding facility for precision work, since the Puppeteer has both a simultaneous close-up and general view of an operation.

 In addition to their striking appearance, one of the most disturbing aspects of the Puppeteers (at least to humans) is the tendency of the heads to regard one another in silence or carry on conversations with themselves. A Puppeteer may also carry on two conversations at once. It is thought that the silent heads facing one another may be a form of Puppeteer laughter.

 The hind leg is set in a complex hip joint, providing a range of complex motions. When a Puppeteer feels threatened, it defends itself by turning, facing both heads backwards, and kicking. A kick from a Puppeteer to the heart can easily kill a man outright. Coincidentally, it is this attack which has illuminated study of the Puppeteers, showing that the race does not run from danger, but instinctively turns around from danger, to turn and kick. The few Puppeteers questioned on this point say that sane Puppeteers always turn and run from danger, and add that the majority always judges what is sane and what is not.

Evolution

Pierson's Puppeteers (first discovered by spacer Olaf Pierson) are a supra-intelligent species whose herd-beast ancestors only found solace and protection amongst their own kind. They were prey to many different carnivores, and for protection developed a disproportionate instinct for survival. This survival instinct did not take the form of over aggressiveness, as was the case of other races, but appears as a racial trait that causes them to flee from danger in any form, no matter how insignificant or long-reaching in terms of the Puppeteer's advancement of their civilisation. This instinct is often seen as over-cautiousness by humans and sheer cowardice by the Kzinti. As the Puppeteers develoved, they were able to out-think the dangers of their homeworld, eventually becoming the dominant live form. Puppeteer civilisation rose long before the evolution of man on Earth. Puppeteers themselves are very long lived and soon a full trillion of them roamed their home planet.

 The instincts of the Puppeteers force them to strive for dominance in the social orders of other races to ensure their own safety. They possess technology far in advance of any race (with the exception of the Outsiders), and have used this advantage as a means of indirect influence; the need for caution does not allow the Puppeteers to act directly with or against another race. They distrust aliens and the motives of aliens, conducting their business through agents or robotic intermediaries. As a result, the Puppeteer business empire filled ten million cubic light years, reaching civiliazations unheard of by Known Space.

Guardians

The Man Kzin War 7 Novellete - "A Darker Geometry" written by Gregory Benford and Mark O. Martin, described a new caste of puppeteers, called the Guardians.

This Guardian caste is one of the most closely guarded secrets of the puppeteer race. The Guardian caste is small in number but have all been trained from birth for the necessary occasional insanity of aggression and combat. The Guardians stand over 2 metres tall and are clad in impact-armour, mirrorplate (to reflect laser fire) and battle helmets with razor tips, and armed to the teeth. A typical warrior is equipped with gun holsters, space ready magnetic boots, cutting tools, lasers and projectile weapons. They have been cybernetically enhanced with metal implants to give them even greater strength. The Guardians take their orders directly from the Hindmost and carry out the Will of Those Who Lead From Behind. They enforce treaties among the two political puppeteer factions and advise the Deep Council on matters of war. They are also often assigned as bodyguards to the smaller cowardly puppeteers who have to liaise with aliens.*

*These Guardian caste of puppeteers are not stickly "cannon" and do not feature in the rest of the known space stories as written by Larry Niven.

Grooming

Despite the strangeness of their appearance, most humans find sane Puppeteers beautiful to behold. A sane Puppeteer's mane is always well groomed, specially cut depending on social status and personal preference. Natural mane colours are similar to terrestrial horses, running from browns to auburn and yellows.

 Puppeteers of high rank often ornament their manes with jewels or braid them with bright metallic strands. The manes themselves are kept fluffed, curled into ringlets, or straight. Their creamy hides practically glow.

 Unkempt manes usually indicate insanity. The vanity of sane Puppeteers must create tremendous social pressure for the insane to keep well groomed, which most likely adds to the already existing insanity.

 

Language

The beautiful musical language of the Puppeteers cannot be imitated by beings with a single throat (which unfortunately includes every other sentient life-form in Known Space). The language's complexity is compounded by an eighteen note octave scale which apparently relates as much information to a Puppeteer as actual words. Their separate larynxes can produce intonations that range from dissonant harmonies to burst or orchestral music. It is impossible to determine the sex of a Puppeteer by the timbre of its voice, and it is frustratingly thought by some male humans that the voice of a Puppeteer is that of an attractive woman.

 The Puppeteer's huge brain allows them to carry on two independent conversations at the same time, in two separate languages. They are outstanding linguists, a feature of both their vast intelligence and their need to protect themselves diplomatically. They speak Interworld, the language of Known Space, when speaking to humans.

An upset Puppeteer loses the ability to maintain human vocal expression. A terrified Puppeteer's scream resembles a dying steam calliope.

The Madness of the Puppeteers

Puppeteers judge others of their race in terms of sanity. Sane Puppeteers, have no need for variety or adventure, and never need to explore new territories of any sort on their own. They find no need for independence and, almost without exception, will only socialize with other Puppeteers.

 

An interpretation of Puppeteer psychology regarding the insane by F.W. Moore, originally submitted to the Larry Niven Mailing List.

It's Hindmost did this
And Nessus that
So chuck them'em out
The nuts
But when dirty work's afoot
And the herd in trouble
We sure need'em
To save our butts.

Wishful thinking, superstition, and other predominately human traits are completely alien to sane Puppeteers. They view humanity's discovery of scientific laws and alien world through trial-and-error, risk, and serendipity to be the height of imprudent thinking. The Puppeteers employ nothing but careful observation, investigation, and nearly unending experiments to ensure that no personal or social risk is taken by any portion of the race. Their powers of deductive reasoning and logic are unmatched.

 The Puppeteers have a practical attitude toward problem solving which is a reflection of their survival instinct; any act they perform (even on a personal level) is undoubtedly geared toward the safety of the race. Any act that conflicts with this basic instinct is considered insane. It is for this reason that the few Puppeteers who have had contact with other races are judged mad by their civilization, who see direct association with anything as dangerous and unpredictable as an alien an unreasonable risk.

 Puppeteers see no line between pragmatism and their safety. They are quite willing to go to any lengths to protect themselves and provide a safer environment, even if it means destroying another race. Their lack of moral sense could easily be construed as a ruthlessness matched only by warrior races like the Kzinti and Pak. The Puppeteers can be egotistical, manipulative, and arrogant to the point where they are blind to their own mistakes.

 Puppeteers always assure themselves the advantage in interstellar affairs. To maintain their safety, they do not hesitate to resort to blackmail, bribery, or any other form of influence including carefully applied violence, though they would always hire an outside agency to perform such a task.

 In human terms, Puppeteers are egotistical, arrogant, and have no moral sense whatsoever. Puppeteers do not see this behaviour as negative since the only thing that matters to them is their safety. A human sees a Puppeteer's behaviour as deviant, but the only deviant behaviour acknowledged by the Puppeteers themselves is their manic-depressive cycle.

 All Puppeteers display this behaviour. The manic-depressive cycle is triggered by shock or threat, either of mission failure or physical trauma. A depressed Puppeteer tucks both necks beneath its forelegs, folding itself into a cationic, misshapen ball. The Puppeteer often remains folded for hours or possibly days, quivering with fear, withdrawn from a hostile universe. However, the presence of preventable danger often brings the Puppeteer out from hiding, giving way to unusual bouts of daring and heroism when the insanity of others makes no risk seem insane.

Sex Life

Puppeteers do not discuss their sex life with aliens.

 The Puppeteer reproductive systems requires the use of three separate genders, not two. A non-sentient female is used as a host for the growing foetus, while the other two genders both have ovipositor or penile organs, one deposits eggs, one sperm. Nessus the puppeteer featured in Ringworld was of the egg-bearing type, while the Hindmost provided sperm. The drone or host animal is a "cousin" species to the puppeteers which breeds among themselves to produce more drones. The sentient Puppeteers refer to these drone animals as "females". Both sentient genders of puppeteers preferred to be addressed as "he", at least in English. When the foetus is mature it hatches of out of the drones body and is cared for by its Puppeteer parents.

 Fellow Larry Niven Mailing Listreaders,Carol Phillips and Ted Scribner, wrote a story featuring the early (pre-Core) exploits of Beowulf Shaeffer entitled "Many Kinds of Loving". While the story is "unofficial" and the authors do not want it displayed in a public place, individuals over the age of 21 can usually obtain a copy by emailing either of the authors, stating clearly in the letter that they are over 21. The story contains a great deal of explicit sex, and is considered unsuitable for under 21's.

 The story in part explored the sexuality of puppeteers in a way that Niven had not considered and some very interesting interpretations to puppeteer reproduction were made by Carol.

The Puppeteers by their very nature are vegetarians, so the concept of having the puppeteer embryo feeding on the host drone "female" and then breaking out of the female's body is slightly inconsistent with evolution as we know it. In the story, Carol suggested that perhaps the Puppeteers bred, not by Larry's "Digger Wasp" theory, but instead that the host, an animal smaller than the Puppeteers but of the same basic body structure, and often kept as a "pet" by the Puppeteers, is impregnated (perhaps using the mouth's as orifices) by the winning Puppeteers following "The Dance" (the highly competitive dance practiced constantly by the Hindmost in the Ringworld Throne).

The gestating embryo is held in a special womb or even the stomach. The Puppeteer parents strictly supervise the diet of the host whist the embryo is developing (ensuring a vegetarian diet only for the hosts are omnivorous), and when the Puppeteer foetus grows large enough, or uncomfortable to the host, it is either "born" or "regurgitated" to be cared for by its true Puppeteer parents.

 No forms of contraception, except abstinance and neutering surgery will work for Puppeteers. The population on their homeworld is currently at one Trillion.

Copyright © 1996 - 2001 Nesssus
Most recent revision 24th February 2001 
Sources Consulted: Ringworld, The Soft Weapon, The Guide to Larry Niven's Ringworld by Kevin Stein, A Darker Geometry (Man Kzin Wars VII) by Gregory Benford and Mark O. Martin and Many Kinds of Loving, a Niven-inspired story written by Carol Phillips and Ted Scribner.