When The Race sent a probe to Tosev-III, one of it's functions was to evaluate the biota of it's ecosystem for (among other things) biochemical compatibility. As it turned out this would not be an issue, Tosevite Plants and Animals, including the domesticates and cultivars of the natives were fully edible by the Race. This was seen as a major boon to the Conquest and Colonization Fleets and one which would simplify logistics considerably by reducing the amount of hydroponic gardens, algae tanks, fish ponds and culture vats required. Food stores could be comfortably topped up with local fare, the colonists could eat foodstuffs prepared from native fare, livestock could graze on local vegetation and a few more items in time could be added to the Empire's menu. Needless to say, shortly after touching down the Soldiers of The Empire began sampling local meat and local produce. As expected, some of such local fare was found to be tasty, others were found to be adequate and some items did not appeal to the taste-buds of conquerors. But there was one item which was soon stumbled on which did have a rather unexpected effect: Ginger.





The common Tosevite herb was sampled casually at first, but soon it's effects were known. To Tosevites ginger was just one of many flavoring agents with some minor medicinal properties. To The Race it was a powerful narcotic. A taste of Ginger would induce a powerful high in which would cause the sampler to feel powerful, wise, fast and strong for a short period of time. After that came a crash which would leave them male in a bad funk feeling small, weak, slow and miserable and just itching for another taste to bring them back to that Ginger High for days after. The physical effects on males of the Race were fairly minimal, but the highs (which disrupted one's ability to think straight and assess situations) and crashes (which ruined morale and made the user more lethargic and sluggish of mind) disrupted the effectiveness of Race Troops. The same applied to Ginger Addicts who were forced to go without. In the high stress enviroment of facing a foe far more technologically advanced than they thought possible many males of the Race turned to Ginger to escape their plight. Many Tosevites profited from the Ginger Trade as well. Despite the Fleetlord's banning of the substance an illicit trade in the substance thrived in the ranks of the Conquest Fleet and Ginger would be a continuous problem on this world for decades to come.





Worldwar belongs to Harry Turtledove

