Caste System

"This is what White Diamond expects of all of us...! From a thin flake of mica to the deepest, hardest stone, we all must make sacrifices for the sake of our perfect empire!"

The Gem Homeworld maintains a strict caste system with every type of gemstone having predetermined roles and places in the social pyramid, each with their own privileges and ordained purposes. Gems who in any way deviate from this, be it intentional or not would be considered defective. Since penalties for such actions are so severe most disgruntled Homeworld Gems either keep their dissensions to themselves or go into hiding. Because there are so many of one type all Gems — except the Diamonds — distinguish themselves via coded serial numbers.

Diamonds
The Diamonds are the highest-ranked caste similar to royalty and referred to as the "matriarchs" of Gem society; they make up the Great Diamond Authority. All Diamonds are of a massive size, towering over other types of Gems and even most fusions seen. They all have diamond-shaped pupils in their eyes.

Almost all Homeworld Gems are fanatically loyal to the Diamonds, seeing as how Peridot 5XG adored Yellow Diamond. Gems also appear to be categorized under their respective Diamonds as Blue Diamond referred to the Crystal Gem Sapphire as being "of her court" and Peridot said she was "made for" Yellow. Infidelity displayed towards the Diamonds is considered punishable by death at the worst. Their honorific (from their subordinates) is "My Diamond".

There appears to be a caste ranking within the Diamonds themselves as White Diamond was shown to be hierarchically superior to the other Diamonds and the leader of the Authority. Conversely, Pink Diamond was below White, Yellow and Blue and had to obey their orders.

Emeralds
Emeralds are among the high-ranking Gems. In the Steven Universe Podcast Rebecca Sugar and Ian Jones-Quartey emphasized that Emeralds (specifically the one seen in "Lars of the Stars") are elite Gems known to be in charge of fleets. The only known Emerald owns three ships (her own personal shuttle, the Sun Incinerator and Destiny Destroyer) and is in charge of an unspecified amount of Gems.


 * Emerald - An Emerald whose primary craft was stolen by Lars Barriga and the Off Colors, who she continued following ever since in her imperial warship to reclaim her most prized possession from them.

Sapphires
Sapphires are of the nobility class, described as rare aristocratic gems and part of the "elites"; in spite of this they have no immunity from potential outcast status. They can see into the future using their "future vision". So far, Sapphires are the only non-fusion Gem type with this ability. However, defective Sapphires, an example being the Off Color Padparadscha can have visions of events slightly in the past. Their honorific is "Your Clarity".

Garnets
While the exact role of Garnets are unknown they seem to be high-ranking as the only caste member seen is one in charge of lower-ranking Gems. Types of Garnets include Hessonites, Demantoids and Pyropes as mentioned by Blue Diamond in "Together Alone". The Crystal Gem Garnet seems to have no relation despite sharing a name as Blue is surprised to hear that she calls herself one.

Hessonites
While the exact role of Hessonites are unknown they are Gem commanders. The only one seen is Nephrite's ex-leader. She issued her and her crew the order to travel to Earth and later retreat from the incoming Diamond attack. She would return in Save the Light (marking her official debut in the series canon). Like the one mentioned some Hessonites are tall with poofy hair.


 * Hessonite - The former superior of "Squaridot" and Nephrite and former owner of the Light Prism. She commanded Nephrite and her crew at least from the colonization of Earth until the end of the Gem war. She traveled back to Earth in order to retrieve the Light Prism, once again encountering the Crystal Gems.

Demantoids
A type of Garnet mentioned by Blue.

Pyropes
Another type of Garnet mentioned by Blue.

Morganites
While the exact role of a Morganite is unknown, they are known to be high enough to have their own personal Pearls and Ruby guards, similar to Sapphires. One Morganite is mentioned by the Off Color Rhodonite to have, at some point replaced her components after discovering them fused.

Lapis Lazulis
Lapis Lazulis are extremely valuable to the Gem empire. As stated by Yellow Diamond, Lapis Lazulis are made for terraforming. Peridot also said that Lapis Lazulis are typically partial to water and flying.

Their use for terraforming planets likely explains one's ability to manipulate bodies of water with ease (and possibly her enjoying farming).


 * Lapis Lazuli - A Lapis Lazuli who was trapped in a mirror for thousands of years and used by Homeworld for their invasion of Earth during the war. She was eventually freed by Steven Universe and is now a Crystal Gem.

Jades
While their exact role has not been shown Jades appear to be high up in the caste given they attended the Era 3 Ball. Unlike other Gems Jades can have distinctive differences between their physical appearances depending on which type of Jade they are.

Nephrites
Nephrites are in charge of piloting Homeworld Dropships to begin colonizations and also serve as pilots for various other ships. Their rank in the caste system is never clearly stated but appears to be high considering they captain their own ships and Yellow Diamond was shown to contact one directly in "Jungle Moon", something she would not do with lower-ranking Gems. Numerous Nephrites were corrupted with one (known as "Centipeetle") formerly being a captain in charge of other Nephrites and in command of a dropship that went to Earth. These Gems flew in Gem spaceships and started building structures on Gem colonies.

Aquamarines
According to the Crystal Gem Pearl (as well as one of their members' own gloating) Aquamarines have a high rank in Homeworld's hierarchy. They appear to serve as assistants to the Diamonds, using their own ships to travel to other planets and collect things the Diamonds want. Rebecca Sugar said that Aquamarines are one of the very high-ranked blue Gems on Homeworld.

Topazes
The roles of Topazes seem to be that of soldiers, obeying orders and acting as bodyguards for assigned Gems. A fusion of two Topazes was sent to Earth by the Diamonds alongside an Aquamarine to retrieve different "variations" of human beings for Pink Diamond's human zoo. These Topazes are incredibly efficient at trapping and engulfing victims within their fusion-form. Topazes also act as guards of entrances to places suitable for more "elite" Gems as seen in "Familiar". Rebecca Sugar says that Topazes are high-ranking yellow Gems. However, they are not as high as Aquamarines in ranking.


 * Yellow Diamond's Topazes
 * Topazes (left and right) - Two Topazes sent to Earth by the Diamonds as a fusion in order to retrieve different "variations" of humans for Pink Diamond's Zoo.
 * Chamber Guards - Two Topazes who stand guard outside Yellow and Blue Diamond's Chambers. A pair of Topazes who guard Blue Diamond's Pool Chamber; each wield a mace just like the Topaz fusion. Two of them return in "Change Your Mind" guarding Yellow Diamond's Bubble Chamber.
 * Bubble Chamber Guard - A Topaz fusion who wields an axe and stood guard outside the Bubble Chamber.
 * Blue Diamond's Topazes
 * Two Unknown Topazes - Two yellow-orange Topazes, one with her gemstone on her navel, the other with an unknown gemstone placement who surrounded Rose Quartz and Pearl before they escaped the Cloud Arena.

Zircons
Zircons act as lawyers for the courts of Homeworld. They presumably have no choice over what cases they prosecute or defend for as revealed in "The Trial" and are assigned them instead. In the Podcast Rebecca Sugar and Ian Jones-Quartey said they have a sort of medium rank on Homeworld, serving the upper class but having no individual power.


 * Blue Zircon - A Zircon who defends Steven during his trial.
 * Yellow Zircon - A Zircon who acts as the prosecutor during Steven's trial.

Peridots
Peridots serve mainly as technicians and Kindergarteners, sometimes performing field assignments on other planets such as the Peridot who befriended Steven. Being maintenance workers Peridots have a low rank, only being allowed into more elite Homeworld areas if a job is needed to be done there.

Era-2 Peridots are given Limb Enhancers to compensate for their lack of abilities older Gems have due to the depletion of resources on Homeworld. One Peridot so far has been shown to have telekinetic control over metallic objects.


 * Peridot Facet-2F5L Cut-5XG – A former Yellow Diamond court member and current member of the Crystal Gems.
 * "Squaridot" - A subordinate of Hessonite nicknamed for her hair. She is currently bubbled.

Quartzes
Quartzes are a soldier caste. Made to fit the role of an elite warrior, Quartzes have incredible height, broad shoulders and an intimidating muscular build. Rose Quartz and Jasper both fit this description. Amethyst is also a Quartz although she does not fit the description because she "stayed in the ground too long" and was therefore "overcooked". Some Quartzes are used as bodyguards and escorts as shown in Jasper's case. They appear to be less numerous than Rubies. According to Ian Jones-Quartey some have defensive powers as well (like Rose's) since "they can't all be tanks." Quartzes are described as being "huge, loyal soldiers". Jasper stated that Quartzes are made to fight and Jaspers specifically always get what they want. Some also act as guards at Homeworld outposts such as Pink Diamond's zoo. They were commonly made on Earth. Quartzes are the most diverse known Gem type with Gems including Amethysts, Carnelians, Jaspers and Rose Quartzes.

Other Quartz types include Agates, who rank higher and seem to be administrative in nature and Citrines, who seem to be elite guards (including Emerald and Hessonite's guards).

Agates
So far, Holly Blue Agate is the only one of the Agates shown. She is in charge of a group of Quartz soldiers and manages Pink Diamond's Zoo. Quartzes of her type seem to have a higher ranking than standard "made-for-battle" ones. Their purpose seems to be administrative in nature. Yellow Diamond states in "What's the Use of Feeling (Blue)?" that they are meant to be terrifying figures that intimidate Gems under them into obedience. In "The Trial", it is revealed that they can also be bodyguards for high-ranking Gems, such as a Diamond. It can be assumed that, based on the way Holly Blue Agate acts around Sapphire, that Agates, while having some authority, are not very high-ranking Gems, or at least not as highly ranked as Sapphires.

Citrines
Citrines are Quartz Gems who seem to be an elite caste of guards serving high-ranking Gems.

Rose Quartzes
Rose Quartzes are new compared to other Gems, having been created by Pink Diamond on Earth. Sometime between the start of Rose Quartz's rebellion and Pink Diamond's shattering every Rose Quartz in existence was bubbled. They currently all reside in Pink Diamond's Chamber in her Zoo. It was stated in "That Will Be All" that Blue Diamond wished to keep the Rose Quartzes around for the sake of preserving Pink Diamond's legacy while Yellow Diamond wanted every Rose Quartz be shattered as they believed one of them was responsible for the start of the Rebellion and shattering of Pink Diamond, although this is not the actual truth. While being soldiers Rose Quartzes are known for their defensive powers rather than the average offensive abilities Quartzes have.

Amethysts
Amethysts are Quartzes with purple coloring. The Prime Kindergarten on Earth produced Gems of this type. Amethysts act as soldiers or guards as seen with the Amethysts guarding Pink Diamond's zoo.

Carnelians
Carnelians are Quartzes with maroon red coloring. The Beta Kindergarten on Earth produced Gems of this type. Based on the Amethysts, it can be presumed they would be Gems of the soldier type as well.

Jaspers
Jaspers are a kind of Quartz mostly shown to have tangerine skin and reddish-orange markings though some are different colors, shapes and sizes depending on the type of Jasper they are. Similar to Amethysts they act as either soldiers or guards.

Tiger's Eye
A type of Quartz which is yet to be seen but has been mentioned by name.

Others
Other Quartz Gems lacking specific gemstone identifications.

Bismuths
Bismuths are a building caste in charge of constructing temples, spires, arenas and other structures for aristocratic members of Gem society on Homeworld's colonies. As such, they possess a broad stature for intensive physical labor, above-average resistance to heat and damage and hands capable of fluidly changing form without the need for typical Gem shapeshifting to fit a wide variety of purposes.


 * Bismuth - One of the original Crystal Gems who was poofed and bubbled by Rose Quartz and later Steven when she developed a weapon devised to shatter Pink Diamond, unaware Rose and Pink were one and the same. She permanently rejoined the team after "Made of Honor".
 * Unknown Bismuth - A Bismuth that appeared in a flashback in "Same Old World". She was the one who poofed Lapis Lazuli during the Rebellion.

Rubies
Rubies are another type of soldier caste and the lowest-ranked of all Gems. They also fill the role of personal escorts and bodyguards and act as scouts on recovery missions. Due to their high numbers individual Rubies are are considered highly-expendable foot soldiers and much of their worth in Homeworld's army comes from fusing with each other.

Rubies have almost no differences in appearances and are not supposed to have different personalities; the fact that they do "flies under the radar" because they act serious around higher-ranking Gems.

Pearls
Pearls are a servant caste and have such a low rank they aren't even considered real Gems by Homeworld, instead being viewed as property. They are expected only to serve and be submissive and obedient, simply waiting on their owners and not acting independently in any way. Pearls also provide simple luxuries like singing, dancing and visual entertainment by projecting holograms.

Unlike other Gems Pearls do not have a set uniform as they can be "customized" by owners in color and appearance. The position of a Pearl's gemstone is made to match that of their owners.

Pebbles
Pebbles also act as servants in Homeworld's caste system but unlike Pearls who belong to one individual gem they appear to serve everyone. They have building and sewing skills that are enough to fulfill different tasks at incredible speed.

Unknown Roles
Identified Gems that lack a known Gem type or role.
 * Desert Glass - A corrupted Gem with the ability to create structures out of sand. She is currently bubbled in the Burning Room.
 * Watermelon Tourmaline - A corrupted Gem with the ability to create strong gales with her breath. She was uncorrupted in "Change Your Mind," and was last seen at Rose's Fountain.
 * Snowflake Obsidian - A former Crystal Gem mentioned by Bismuth in "Bismuth". She is a type of volcanic glass. She got uncorrupted in "Change Your Mind" and was last seen at Rose's Fountain.
 * Rutiles - Not much is known about Rutiles, though they seem to have piloting capabilities.
 * Rutile Twins - A Rutile whose gemstone incubated incorrectly and formed with two upper bodies with separate personalities.
 * Other Rutiles - The Rutiles that ran away after the Rutile Twins emerged.
 * Larimar - A formerly corrupted Crystal Gem mentioned by Bismuth in "Made of Honor" nicknamed "Little Larimar".
 * Beryl - A formerly corrupted Crystal Gem mentioned by Bismuth in "Made of Honor". Since aquamarine, emerald and morganite are types of beryl in real life, Beryl may have had a high ranking in Homeworld society.
 * Serpentine - A formerly corrupted Crystal Gem mentioned by Bismuth in "Made of Honor" currently bubbled in the Burning Room.
 * Pyrite - In "Familiar", Blue Diamond mentioned that she let Pink Diamond name a batch of Pyrite as "Fool's Gold".

Fusion Gems
Fusions (or specifically Same-Gem Fusions) are used as weapons in the caste system. They are used in times of war and solely for combat, seen as objects rather than their own beings. A fusion outside of battle is considered highly inappropriate and extremely unorthodox, being regarded as disgusting, embarrassing or discomforting to behold (as inferred from Jasper and Peridot's reactions towards Garnet). However, the existence of Topaz reveals that despite Peridot and Jasper's prejudices fusion outside of battle is indeed legal on Homeworld providing the fusion itself is same-Gem and may only be allowed for certain Gem castes (e.g. soldiers).

To a further extent, only fusions of the same type are seen as acceptable (such as a fusion consisting of several Rubies or Topazes). Fusions between Gems of different varieties are considered more of an abnormality in Gem society as the Gem diplomats of Blue Diamond's court in "The Answer" referred to Garnet's fusion with words such as "disgusting" and "unheard of". As other examples Rhodonite and Fluorite, two "off-color" fusions of different Gem types were cast out from Homeworld's society and forced to hide to avoid being shattered. Rhodonite's components were replaced by her commanding Morganite after she found out they liked to fuse. The reasoning for prejudice against Different-Gem Fusions is because they create an entirely new Gem which disrupts Homeworld's system; the new Gem has no place in the caste system and thus holds no job that will benefit the Diamonds' empire.

Defective Gems
Gems that are defective (also referred to as "off-color") serve no use to the Gem empire and are cast out from society. If caught, these Gems are shattered. The only known exceptions to this are the Quartz soldiers stationed at Pink Diamond's Zoo who were kept in service by Blue Diamond due to previously belonging to Pink Diamond. Amethyst was another exception, being allowed to attend the Era 3 Ball providing she wore limb enhancers to reach her "height requirement".

Corrupted Gems
Corrupted Gems, also known as Gem Monsters are Gems who have become "corrupted", assuming monstrous forms. One of the main objectives of the Crystal Gems (other than their protection of humanity) is to defeat and contain the Corrupted Gems and hopefully cure them. These types of Gems do not exist on Homeworld and as such have no place in Gem society.