The Philanthropists were a developing non-humanoid species native to Planet Q.
History and specifics[]
Their own named translated into Federation standard as "givers" or "philanthropists". Rather than capitalism, the philanthropists traded through a complex, self-serving exchange of "gift" giving. A Philanthropist was described as resembling a surface-dwelling octopus in that it had several tentacled appendages. (TOS board game: The Adventure Game)
- During some instances of gameplay, personnel from a Federation or Klingon ship attended a banquet hosted by Philanthropists and were granted gifts such as an aircraft carrier or ownership of a province on the surface. The Philanthropists expected a return gift of larger value, such as warp drive technology, which would violate the Prime Directive if given. In other instances, players made contact with the Macrons or a non-sapient species.
Appendices[]
Background[]
A Philanthropist had an unusually shaped head with three tentacles around the base of its skull and two others around its mouth similar to mandibles. (Philanthropist article at Fandom's Cosmic Encounter Wiki)
Philanthropists and Macrons originated in the 1977 game Cosmic Encounter, which was owned in the 1980s by West End Games and is currently being published as a card game by Fantasy Flight Games. As when Larry Niven adapted the Kzinti and Bebebebeque for Star Trek, game author Greg Costikyan officially added the Philanthropists and Macrons to the Star Trek universe rather than crossing them over through an alternate reality.
External links[]
- Philanthropist article at Fandom's Cosmic Encounter Wiki.