Caste System

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

Diamonds
Diamonds are the highest caste, similar to royalty and referred to as the "matriarchs" of Gem society; they make up The Great Diamond Authority. All Homeworld Gems are fanatically loyal to the Diamonds, seeing as Peridot formerly adored Yellow Diamond. Gems also appear to be categorized under their respective Diamonds, as Blue Diamond referred to Sapphire as being "of her court" and Peridot saying she was "made" for Yellow Diamond. They are also of a massive size, towering over the other types of Gems seen, even some fusions. Any form of infidelity displayed towards the Diamonds is considered punishable by death. Their honorific (from their subordinates) is "my Diamond".


 * White Diamond - A member of the Diamond Authority. Yet not shown in a full appearance, her silhouette and hand were shown in "Your Mother and Mine".


 * Yellow Diamond - First appearing in "Message Received", she is the commander-in-chief of Homeworld's military.


 * Blue Diamond - First appearing in "Steven's Dream", she is the overseer of many of Homeworld's diplomatic Gems.


 * Pink Diamond / Rose Quartz - First mentioned in "Earthlings" and first appearing in "Jungle Moon", she was the initial leader of Earth's colonization before being allegedly shattered at the hands of Rose Quartz during the Rebellion. In reality, she took upon the identity of Rose Quartz and staged her death in hopes of removing the Gem Homeworld's presence on Earth.
 * Steven Universe - A human-Gem hybrid and current member of the Crystal Gems. He inherited the gemstone of his mother, Pink Diamond.

Sapphires
Sapphires are of the nobility class, described as being rare aristocratic gems and part of the "Elite". They can see into the future using their "future vision". So far, Sapphires are the only non-fusion gem type shown with this ability. However, defective Sapphires, an example being Padparadscha, are only able to have visions of events slightly in the past. Their honorific is "your clarity".


 * Sapphire - A Sapphire that was sent to Earth as a diplomat to attempt to disband the Rebellion, a current member of the Crystal Gems.


 * Padparadscha - An "off-color" Padparadscha Sapphire, deemed defective for her ability to only see events that have already occurred.


 * Pink Diamond's Sapphires - Sapphires who used to belong to Pink Diamond, first mentioned by Zircon in "The Trial".

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


 * Emerald - An Emerald whose ship was stolen by Lars Barriga and the Off Colors, since then she has been following them in her imperial warship, to reclaim her most prized ship from them.

Morganites
While the exact role of a Morganite is unknown, they are known to be in charge of lower-ranking Gems. One Morganite is mentioned by Rhodonite to have, at some point, replaced and outcasted Rhodonite's components after discovering they liked to fuse.


 * Unknown Morganite - A Morganite mentioned to have, at some point, replaced and exiled Rhodonite's components after discovering they liked to fuse.

Aquamarines
According to Pearl (as well as Aquamarine's own gloating), Aquamarines seem to have a high rank in Homeworld's hierarchy. Rebecca Sugar says that Aquamarines are one of the very high-ranked blue Gems on Homeworld.

The only Aquamarine seen was the one sent to Earth by the Diamonds to retrieve different "variations" of humans for Pink Diamond's Zoo. Aquamarine is the smallest non-Corrupted Gem seen so far.


 * Aquamarine - An Aquamarine sent to Earth by the Diamonds in order to retrieve different "variations" of humans for Pink Diamond's Zoo.

Topazes
Topazes' roles seem to be that of soldiers, obeying orders and acting as bodyguards for their assigned Gem. A fusion of two Topazes was sent to Earth by the Diamonds to retrieve different "variations" of humans for Pink Diamond's Zoo. These two Topazes are incredibly efficient at trapping and engulfing victims within their fusion. Rebecca Sugar says that Topazes are high-ranking yellow Gems. However, they are not as highly ranked as Aquamarines.


 * 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.

Agates
So far, Holly Blue Agate is the only Agate shown in the show. 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 high-ranked as Sapphires.


 * Holly Blue Agate - An Agate who manages Pink Diamond's Zoo.


 * Pink Diamond's Agates - Agates who used to belong to Pink Diamond, they were her bodyguards during the Rebellion, first mentioned by Zircon in "The Trial".


 * Yellow Diamond's Agates - Agates who reside in one of Yellow Diamond's Asteroid Mines, first mentioned by Rhodonite in "Your Mother and Mine".

Lapis Lazulis
Lapis Lazulis are made to terraform, as stated by Yellow Diamond. Peridot states that Lapis Lazulis are typically partial to water and flying. It is unclear how high they rank in the caste system, though they seem at least equal to or higher than Peridots.

Lapis Lazulis' use of terraforming planets likely explains Lapis Lazuli's ability to manipulate massive bodies of water with ease (and possibly explaining her enjoying farming).


 * Lapis Lazuli - A Lapis Lazuli who was trapped in the Mirror for thousands of years, ultimately used by the Homeworld Gems for their invasion of Earth; eventually freed from the Mirror by Steven and now resides on Earth allied with the Crystal Gems.

Bismuths
Bismuths are a building caste, in charge of constructing temples, spires, arenas and other structures for the aristocratic members of Gem society on both Homeworld and Gem 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 possessed a zealotry towards Rose's beliefs in personal freedom, giving her the choice to make what she wanted. Before the end of the war, Bismuth introduces Rose to a weapon known as the "Breaking Point", which would completely shatter a Gem's gemstone, destroying them completely. Rose, feeling it is cruel, fights Bismuth, poofs and bubbles her, and keeps her fate a secret from the rest of the Crystal Gems. It was not until about 5,300 years later that she is freed, Steven learns the truth, and she is poofed and bubbled again, but this time the Crystal Gems are told of what truly happened.


 * Unknown Bismuth - A Bismuth that appears in the flashback in "Same Old World". She is the one who poofed Lapis during the Rebellion.

Nephrites
Nephrites are in charge of piloting Homeworld Dropships to begin colonizing other planets, and may also serve as pilots for various other types of ships. Their rank in the caste system is never clearly stated, but it appears to be high considering they captain their own ships and Yellow Diamond was shown to contact a Nephrite captain directly in "Jungle Moon", something she would not do with a lower ranking gem.


 * Unknown Nephrite - Pearl once took a Nephrite out of the cockpit of a drop ship during the Rebellion.


 * Nephrite-XJ Cut-763 - A Nephrite who works for Yellow Diamond. In the flashback she shows hesitation for doing her job as the planet they are terraforming have organic life, Yellow Diamond ignores her complaints and demands her to do her job, or else she will shatter her and her crew herself.


 * Nephrite-XJ Cut-763's Crew - The crew of Nephrite-XJ Cut-763.

Peridots
Peridots serve mainly as technicians and Kindergarteners, sometimes performing field assignments on other planets, such as the Peridot who befriends Steven. Their exact role is currently unknown; however, they are higher than Pearls (but not high enough to own a Pearl of their own). 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 capabilities over metallic objects.


 * Peridot Facet-2F5L Cut-5XG – A former Yellow Diamond follower and current member of the Crystal Gems.

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 by Jasper. 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 to be "huge, loyal soldiers". Jasper states that Quartzes are made to fight and that Jaspers, specifically, always get what they want. Some Quartzes also act as guards at Homeworld outposts, such as Pink Diamond's Zoo. They were commonly made on Earth. Quartz is the most diverse known Gem type, with Gems including Amethysts, Carnelians, Jaspers, and Rose Quartzes.

Other Quartz types include Agates, who rank higher than most Quartzes and seem to be administrative in nature, and Citrines, who seem to be an elite caste of guards (including Emerald's sixty-seven elite Citrine guards and Hessonite's Citrine guards in Save the Light).

Rose Quartzes
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 the Rose Quartz Bubble Room in Pink Diamond's Zoo. While Blue Diamond only wishes to keep the Rose Quartzes around for the sake of preserving Pink Diamond's legacy, Yellow Diamond wishes that every Rose Quartz be shattered, as they currently believe that one of them was responsible for the start of the Rebellion and the shattering of Pink Diamond, although this is not the actual truth. While being Quartz soldiers, Rose Quartzes are known for their defensive powers rather than the average offensive abilities Quartzes have. This is perhaps part of why it was not seen as being out of the ordinary for Rose Quartz to have the healing abilities she had, when she was actually Pink Diamond in disguise.


 * Unknown Bubbled Rose Quartzes - A large collection of hundreds of Rose Quartzes, inactive and bubbled by the Diamonds after a Rose Quartz allegedly shattered Pink Diamond.

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


 * 67 Elite Citrines -A group of sixty-seven elite Citrines who are mentioned to have guarded Emerald's ship, the Sun Incinerator, on the planet Klavius 7.

Amethysts
A kind of Quartz Gems with a purple coloring. The Prime Kindergarten on Earth produced Gems of this type.


 * Amethyst Facet-5 Cut-8XM - A defective and short Quartz and current member of the Crystal Gems.


 * Amethyst Guards -A group of Amethysts guarding Pink Diamond's Zoo. Many are from the Prime Kindergarten and are members of the "Famethyst".


 * Amethysts Facet-5 Cut-8XG, 8XJ, 8XK, 8XH, and 8XL - Five Amethysts from the same section of the Prime Kindergarten as the Crystal Gems' Amethyst, and members of the "Famethyst".

An unknown group of Amethysts that were formerly members of the Crystal Gems while Bismuth was active. They are currently presumed to be inactive.
 * Unknown Crystal Gem Amethysts -

Carnelians
A kind of Quartz Gems with a maroon red coloring. The Beta Kindergarten on Earth produced Gems of this type.


 * Carnelian - A defective and short Carnelian guarding Pink Diamond's Zoo, and a member of the "Famethyst".


 * Unknown Defective Carnelian - An unknown defective Carnelian mentioned by Peridot in "Earthlings".

Jaspers
A kind of Quartz Gems shown mostly to have tangerine skin and reddish-orange markings, however some Jaspers can come in different colors depending on the type of Jasper they are.


 * Jasper - An especially powerful Quartz Gem, as noted by Peridot in "Earthlings".


 * Jasper Guards - A group of Jaspers in charge of guarding Pink Diamond's Zoo, and members of the "Famethyst".


 * "Skinny" - A defective and tall Jasper guarding Pink Diamond's Zoo, and a member of the "Famethyst".


 * Snow Monster - A Corrupted turquoise-blue Jasper with pink spots that was captured in the Great North by Jasper, she was forced to fuse with her but she escaped from her.


 * Orange Great North Monster - A Corrupted brown-orange patterned Jasper that was captured in the Great North by Jasper, who was used to attack the Crystal Gems, but ended up being poofed and bubbled.

Others
Quartz Gems lacking specific gemstone identification.
 * Unknown Quartz Warrior – A Quartz warrior shown to have fought Rose Quartz during in Pearl's flashback through her Hologram Projection in "Sworn to the Sword".


 * Beta Kindergarten Quartz Monsters – Various Corrupted Quartz Gems captured and incarcerated for Jasper's Corrupted Gem army, later freed during "Earthlings".


 * Pink Diamond's Quartzes - Quartzes that appear in "Your Mother and Mine" in flashback scene. They were made on Earth and to serve Pink Diamond.

Rubies
Rubies are another type of soldier caste. Garnet describes them as "common", seeing as they are all originally identical to one another. They appear to be used as personal escorts and bodyguards for high-ranking Gems. Seeing as they are so numerous, inferred from Ruby's comment of there being "tons" of her, Rubies are considered somewhat unimportant and highly expendable grunts, though they compensate by fusing together into bigger constructs of themselves. Rubies are also sent to different planets to seek out specific Gems. As Rubies are merely common soldiers, they are not very intelligent, being easily fooled by Steven's claims that Jasper is on Neptune and Amethyst's obvious disguise as Jasper, and according to Holly Blue Agate, they are seen as being incompetent or irresponsible. In the Steven Universe Podcast, Rebecca says Rubies' main strength on Homeworld is their ability to combine, as an individual Ruby would never be sent alone to do anything. Rubies aren't supposed to have different personalities, the fact that they do "flies under the radar" because they act serious around higher-ranking Gems.


 * Ruby – A Ruby that remains fused with Sapphire as Garnet, a current member of the Crystal Gems.


 * Ruby (right shoulder gem) – A known Ruby that used to protect Sapphire, as shown in "The Answer".


 * Ruby (right back-hand gem) – A known Ruby that used to protect Sapphire, as shown in "The Answer".


 * Ruby-1F4 Cut-4ND ("Eyeball") – A known Ruby sent to retrieve Jasper, a veteran of the Gem war on Earth; a witness who testified against Steven in his trial.


 * "Army" – A known Ruby sent to retrieve Jasper.


 * "Navy" – A known Ruby sent to retrieve Jasper, would later steal the Roaming Eye after deceiving the Crystal Gems.


 * "Leggy" – A known Ruby sent to retrieve Jasper.


 * "Doc" – A known Ruby sent to retrieve Jasper, as well as the leader of the "Ruby Squad".


 * Rhodonite's unknown component Ruby - A Ruby who used to work for a Morganite before being replaced.

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


 * Zircon (Defense) – A Zircon who defends Steven during his trial.


 * Zircon (Prosecuting) – A Zircon who acts as the prosecutor during Steven's trial.

Rutiles
Not much is known about Rutiles, though they seem to have piloting capabilities.


 * Rutile Twins - Two defective Rutile Gems whose gemstones fused together when they were first forming, making them permanently conjoined as one Gem.


 * Other Rutiles - The Rutiles that ran away after the Rutile Twins emerged.

Pearls
Pearls are servants in the caste. Described by Peridot as being "someone's shiny toy", Pearls serve as domestics and ladies-in-waiting to their owners. They are expected only to serve and be submissive and obedient. Their work consists of domestic tasks such as cleaning or holding their owners' things. Pearls are also status symbols on Homeworld reserved for higher castes, as Peridot comments that the idea of a Peridot owning a Pearl is a ridiculous notion. Pearls may also be earned by committing an act of heroism towards the Diamonds, as Eyeball states in "Bubbled". As seen in "Gem Heist", Pearls also serve the function of footmen, opening doors for their masters; they are expected to consistently exhibit subservience by remaining silent unless spoken to and remaining a few paces behind their superior when walking with them. They also provide simple luxuries like singing, as seen in "That Will Be All". Physically, all Pearls appear to have a slender form and a beak-like nose. They can also be "customized" to resemble their owners in color, appearance, and gem placement, (as seen from Yellow and Blue Pearl). However, this is not always the case, as Pearl successfully passed off being Sapphire's Pearl despite sharing no resemblance to her "owner", and also Pearl was the servant of Pink Diamond, even though her gem was on the head, while Pink Diamond's was on her navel. As can be observed in "Back to the Barn" and "That Will Be All", Pearls are normally dismissed with the phrase "That will be all", generally followed by the owner clapping her hands twice, when they are no longer needed.


 * Pearl – A renegade Pearl loyal to Rose Quartz/Pink Diamond, she is the one that shapeshift into Rose Quartz and pretending to shatter her own Diamond. She is a current member of the Crystal Gems.


 * Blue Pearl – A Pearl that serves Blue Diamond.


 * Yellow Pearl – A Pearl that serves Yellow Diamond, acting as her receptionist and screening her calls for her.


 * Rhodonite's unknown component Pearl - A Pearl who used to belong to and serve a Morganite before being replaced.

Watermelon Tourmalines
Watermelon Tourmalines' roles on Homeworld (as well as their rank and physical characteristics are currently unknown), as the only Gem of this type shown has been corrupted.


 * Watermelon Tourmaline – A Corrupted Gem with the ability to create strong gales with her breath. She is currently bubbled.

Unknown Green Gem
Currently, it is unknown what type of Gem the Centipeetle Mother is. However, in "Monster Reunion", she is shown to be a captain in charge of other Gems (presumably of the same gemstone). These Gems fly in Gem spaceships, and started building structures on Gem colonies.


 * Centipeetle – A Gem sent from Homeworld to start building on Earth, an early Gem Colony. However, she got caught in the war and was ordered to retreat. She was unable to board her ship in time and suffered from the attack caused by the Diamonds, resulting in her corruption.


 * Centipeetle's Crew – A group including two Gems that appear in "Monster Reunion", who became corrupted by not evacuating Earth and not leaving their captain behind. As of now, they live together in the Ancient Gem Colony Ship.

Fusion Gems
Fusions (or specifically Same-Gem Fusions) are used as weapons in the caste. They are used in times of war, 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 prejudice, fusion outside of battle is indeed legal on Homeworld providing the fusion 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 several Topazes). Fusion between Gems of different varieties is considered more of an abnormality in Gem society, as the Gem diplomats of Blue Diamond's Court in "The Answer" refer to Garnet's fusion as "disgusting" and "unheard of". As another example, 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 commander, Morganite, after she found out that they liked to fuse. The reasoning for the prejudice against different Gem fusions is because they create an entirely new Gem, which disrupts Homeworld's caste system; the new Gem has no place in the caste system, and thus holds no job that will benefit the Gem empire.

Defective Gems
Gems that are defective (also referred to as "off color") serve no use to the Gem empire and are outcasted 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.

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

Level 2 Canon

 * Hessonite - A Hessonite who is the main antagonist in Save the Light, the director of "Squaridot" and former owner of the Light Prism.


 * "Squaridot" – A boss who appears in Save the Light, nicknamed "Squaridot" for her square hair. She is currently bubbled.


 * Hessonite's Nephrites - A group of Nephrites working on Hessonite's war ship. They are said to be performing a drill at the time of the Crystal Gems' arrival to the ship.


 * Hessonite's Citrine Guards - A group of Citrines who act as guards on Hessonite's war ship. They are only heard by the Crystal Gems before their final confrontation with Hessonite.