Here we are - Children of Sun and Stars
the first to know and to understand
Living by the Law of the Ages
prophets and sages - forging Utopia
- Symphony X, Evolution

The N'Modugno is a postsingularity culture that developed from the "Articulum Conflict" between several cultures in their home timeline. The resulting global coalition apparently expanded greatly, and then settled down into stasis. The discovery of phasing apparently upset them, and several expeditions to Ex Tempore were sent. One of their main missions appears to have been to guarantee that no meddling in the past would ever allow the other, unnamed participants in the Articulum Conflict to win it. In fact, the N'Modugno have been quite diligent in attempts to change the timeline to the extent that their own timeline will be forever lost. From their perspective they save the integrity of their own culture. That others, both human and nonhuman, disagree with their actions is of little concern. One of the few human traits of the core N'Modugno is arrogance.

N'Modugno society is divided into three strata: the Klonu, the Thanka and the Khalamud. Klonu are baseline humans with slight nanotechnological enhancements, apparently fulfilling the same role as pets - providers of emotional entertainment, a link to the past. It is entirely possible for outsiders to become Klonu if they desire it. The Thanka are definitely posthuman, although still physical. They usually appear as exotic humans, but their central nervous system is entirely nanotechnological and quite able to do amazing things on its own. A few years back a Thanka was attacked by disparates, and escaped by having its brain break loose and escape, propelled by tentacular nanotech limbs. The Khalamud are entirely digital creatures, the uploaded versions of the Thanka residing within the N'Modugno cores.

It seems that the strata act as a kind of life progression. New Klonu are born from other Klonu, Klonus and Tankas or gained through recruitment. A Klonu can become Tanka if they are given a certain nanomachine injection, the Birth Initiation. This is only done if the Klonu has showed its great worth, skill and virtue. After the Birth Initiation nanomachines replace the nervous system and the person becomes an immortal Tanka. This phase lasts until the Death Initiation, where the contents of the Tanka mind are uploaded into the cores. The Death Initiation is similarly restricted only to those exhibiting the true virtues.

The cultural goal of the N'Modugno is to be pure virtue, literally. By living the an excellent life embodying a virtue, irrelevant parts of oneself can be removed and reduced until only nearly pure virtue-consciousness remains. The idea of being a well-rounded person is important only in skills, education and personality - in ethics everyone should aim to embody a single or a few interlinked virtues.

Politically the N'Modugno are divided into a federation of cores, each core following its own internal political system and cardinal virtues. Most are anarchic democracies, run by consensus. Some cores are members of the Conventus Lamplandae and NRC, others are entirely independent.

The N'Modugno get along well with most other human cultures. They try to avoid getting entangled in conflicts, and often play the role as neutral negotiators. Still, different cores have complex ties with various Lamplandae groups through economy, social exchange or tradition, and this sometimes drags them in regardless of their neutral intentions.

They do not get along well with the mainliner cultures, especially not the Koon, due to their history of timeline sabotage. N'Modugno cores are regularly harassed by mainliner nanny software pestering them to behave.