Otherwise resembling an average species of lizard-like bipeds, the Kolida are tall and thin, covered only patchily in scales and with lengthy digits that they once used to pluck writhing insectoid snacks from out of nests in the ground. Intensely private people, they are sensitive to heat in a way which discourages most from wearing anything too bulky, finding also that popular kinds of fabric absorb oil that seeps from their skin and that they need to prevent sores from appearing. To counteract this they have taken to wrapping a few layers of an airy cloth completely around themselves, fastened in some places by using modern tool-belts. Uncovered are their hands and feet, but to reveal even the forearms is considered highly immodest. Sheer veils are draped totally over the head and shoulders, although it is possible to discern the interesting shape of their craniums from beneath the semi-transparent material. The lifting of this veil to reveal expressions of joy or amusement is permitted in most sub-cultures, although pinning the headdress back is not and it is expected that it will be held up only by a Kolida’s own two hands. Often highly apprehensive at the prospect of crowds or even of socialising with other species, they are nevertheless common sights throughout much of the galactic east, where they are instantly recognisable thanks to their excessive humility. Inside a Kolida home, rooms are partitioned by curtains that are strung along wire grids on the ceiling, creating the opportunity for highly specialised living spaces to be created on a whim. Because of this their houses are often subtly distracting for someone unused to the constant sound of fabric abrasing against the floor or billowing in the wind. Bizarrely, there are also individuals who have become so used to being enclosed by drapery in this way that they refuse to leave the house unaccompanied by servitors clutching from between them great strips of fabric, hiding the person that they are attending. Manufactured to resemble their reptilian inventors, these robots are similarly clothed, although there is not the same taboo about revealing the arms or head and they often have their limbs freely outstretched. Oftentimes Kolida servitors are created by specialised workspeople, making use of analogue technology instead of circuit boards and being very difficult to fix.
It is theorised that part of the reason for their modesty is the extreme sensitivity of the Kolida’s skin, which if not properly cared for with the application of creams and salves in hostile environments begins to crack quite painfully. Also damaging is direct contact with other species, who often have foreign chemical compounds in their skin that can cause blistering. Even further complicating maintenance are the patches of scaly skin that are most common on their shoulders, pectorals, thighs and back, hinting at descendance from a quadrupedal animal of some kind that might have had a soft underbelly but leathery skin elsewhere. Funnily enough these patches are less sensitive but also flake away throughout an individual’s life, meaning that the elderly or infirm will be almost completely smooth by the time of their passage. While Kolida do not usually know what their friends look like beneath their wraps, a token of trust is to pass on shed scales, which are then wrapped again in cloth and only unbundled on the occasion that their new owner feels a strong sense of longing to be with their lifelong friend. There are hormones present in the oil that the species excretes, meaning that residual traces unique to the individual whose scale it once was will be apparent to others of their people. In addition it is thought that their wraps might be a way of preventing the Kolida from developing unwanted attractions to one another based purely on the oils that they secrete. If this is truly the case then it means that their modesty has been preserved since prior to contact with off-worlders, who were probably hard pressed to find individuals willing to be studied. This would coincide with an absence in accurate analyses investigating the chemical content of their secretions. Unfortunately common knowledge of this fact has contributed to a stereotype of the species as wily seductors, an impression that is untrue and which has fueled their insularity.
Capable of functioning in dim-light, their eyes are set almost on opposing sides of the head, affording them a wide view but also a narrow blindspot that makes it difficult for them to see exactly what it is they are facing toward. Although able to see through their veils with near perfect clarity, there is an idea that some Kolida make strange motions with their heads to peer through the fabric, but they are simply trying to get a proper look at whoever they are speaking to. Often the only part of their bodies which will be seen by an acquaintance, most individuals take special care in making sure that their hands are highly presentable. They do not lavish the same attention on their feet, knowing that they are below eye level and so instead filing their finger nails to equilateral points, maybe even applying pigments to the back of the hand to conceal blemishes. For scaly skin to be positioned on the hands is considered highly unfortunate, and Kolida who have it there will not be able to achieve success as waiters or artisans amongst their own, being stereotyped as having no delicacy to their touch. With such dexterous fingers, the species is highly sought after for their skill in crafting intricate mechanisms by hand - charging a high price though for the trinkets they produce and priding themselves on the complex manner in which their creations tick. They have an equal aptitude for picking locks, and sometimes making use of specifically shaped fingernails can beat even the efficiency of a bolt grinder or laser. In either profession Kolida are known to joke that they can operate more skillfully with their feet than another person would with four pairs of hands.