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An asari team sport, best described as a biotic form of hockey (no stick). There are various subforms, differing in field and team sizes. The sport's top league is the Asari Pildavi Union, consisting of university teams. Team sizes are 6 players per team (all field players, no special goalkeeper). Rotation takes place during a match which lasts four quarters of roughly 20 minutes each. The field has the form of a square but with the middle line connecting two corners, the score zones being the other two corners. The surface used to be sand but artificial, Eezo-doped surfaces became more popular to enhance the show.
Cheerleading is common but not mandatory.
Equipment
Bring your biotics, we bring the ball. This is basically all that is needed. In ancient times this sport, like all other asari sports, was practiced nude. In the modern era (400 BC until today) the classic pildavi outfit consists of a special pair of shoes (depending on the surface played on), a pair of tight shorts or short skirt and a tight sports top. No additional protection gear is allowed, all has to be provided by biotics.
The ball is about 8 centimetres in diameter and made of hard rubber.
Pildavi has a reputation for being hard and injuries are not uncommon but this is seen as part of the game and the general excitement.
No mods allowed
One of the strictest rules of the League is the ban on body mods, implants and genetic enhancement in players. Whoever plays the League must be without any form of temporary or permanent enhancements to their bodies. Only regular amplifiers are allowed as these are today considered part of "natural biotics" and mostly issued at child age. The League observes this before each match. The Teams are responsible for their players and an infringement of this rule would result in a ban of the complete team. No infringement has had to be enforced during the entire history of the League.
As a consequence you only see young players and real students in the league and no massively enhanced mutant players. A few hundred years ago there was another sanctioning body allowing augmentation, an attempted rival to the popular APU, but this wasn't received well by the asari public in general as the sport is supposed to value tradition and not be a technological event.
There is, though, an exception to this rule: any medical implant, which "restores a natural ability", like lost limbs, eyesight or such "to an average asari level" can be allowed but the case must be admitted individually by League officials.
The current season also marked a turning point when two human biotics were allowed to play under this rule. Their implants were considered as "establishing a comparable degree of biotic control to an asari". Only Fatmira Jilal managed to secure a spot with the Asteria Astros though.
The Reaper Wars hiatus
The Reaper War and the following deactivation of mass relay travel caused a two season break. This was last the case back during the Krogan Rebellions.
Post war champions:
2188: Thessia Thunder
2189: Nos Astra Pulsars
The Terminus Cup
Inside the Terminus Systems there is another league, the IPC. Oriented more towards spectacle and action, they tend to be looser with traditions than the old asari institution. Still mainly asari, it features some more other species, for example turians, because more mods are allowed.
The Terminus Cup is a once-a-year event held between the Nos Astra Pulsars, as an APU team, and the Highfield Harriers as an IPC team.
Some notable teams
These teams form the current League:
- Thessia Thunder (Serrice U, Thessia – record champion with 657 titles – record of 16 consecutive)
- Thessia Stardusters (Miloon U, Thessia – the smaller of the two Thessian teams and Thunder's arch-rival. Famous for once hosting the “blood bowl”, a derby against Thunder where emotions erupted into a 50,000 asari spectator catfight. The match was called a no-contest after several hours)
- Sunda Snowflakes (Sunda U, Trategos – famous for their extremely cold stadium, nicknamed “the frozen one”. Record of being unbeaten in home games for six consecutive seasons)
- Nos Astra Pulsars (Nos Astra U, Illium – team with the highest budget, constant challenger to Thunder)
- Monoi Wildkats (Monoi Tech, Lusia – mostly a runner-up and champion of the hearts)
- Astella Surf (Astella U, Nevos – famous for simply refusing to play on Trategos once: “I won’t freeze my Azure over this” – a points deduction for the following season prevented a reprise. No win on Trategos for 317 years)
- Etheai Dirtskirters (Etheai Poly, Sanves – renowned for still playing in their original 2000 y/o stadium on sand)
- Lymetis Zeolites (no university, Lymetis High – no budget, booked for last place, sentimental favourite of many followers. Once in a while, they upset the frontrunners though)
- Aurolis Auroras (Aurolis Combined, Niacal)
- Marya Bluebirds (Marya U, Lemos)
- Polos Isotopes (Polos Tech, Cyone)
Agessia Miners (Thuval Mining U, Agessia)
Asteria Astros (Blackdamp Argric. Academy, Asteria) Notable for having the first human player ever in the APU on their roster, Fatmira Jilal.
Hyetiana Supernovas (Port Lerama U, Hyetiana)
Calabsa Comets (Taria U, Calabsa)
Epira Huntresses (Harbour Song U, Epira)
For the 88/89 Season there are two new teams:
Citadel Keepers (formerly Nebulas, the multiple champion has two human players on their roster)
Paros Pioneers (originating from Paros, the capital of Chroma)
Players
Mie Lakunis: Mie "the empress" Lakunis the legend of all players and currently works as an expert for the APU vidcasts
Taleeze: played for the Monoi Wilkats during her studies, is a member of CDN
Vale: played for the Etheai Dirtskirters