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Races of the Mass Effect Universe

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Races of the Mass Effect Universe RACES OF THE MASS EFFECT UNIVERSE The Milky Way is populated with dozens of races. Some are valued members of Citadel space, working to build a better galactic community; others are lawless, caring nothing for the Citadel Council's edicts; a few are outcasts, but all are unique. The following chapter will provide a the stats needed to role play a character in the Mass Effect universe along with biological and cultural background information to flesh out characters in the setting. themselves too: for example, they prefer to live in CITADEL RACES shared spaces aboard star-ships even if there are alternatives available. The asari possess the largest single economy in the galaxy. They have extensive trade ASARI and social contacts. Craft guilds, such as those The asari, native to the planet Thessia, are within the cities Serrice and Armali, hold a virtual often considered the most influential and respected monopoly on advanced biotic technology. sentient species in the galaxy, and are known for their elegance, diplomacy, and biotic aptitude. This is partly due to the fact that the asari were among SPECIES ABILITIES the earliest races to achieve interstellar flight after the Protheans, and the first to discover and settle the Citadel. A mono-gender race, the asari are distinctly feminine in appearance and possess maternal ● Wound threshold: 9 + Brawn instincts. Their unique physiology, expressed in a ● Strain threshold: 11 + Willpower millennium-long lifespan and the ability to ● Starting Experience: 90 xp reproduce with a partner of any gender or species, gives them a conservative yet convivial attitude ● Special Abilities: Asari begin the campaign toward other races. Favoring compromise and trained and with one rank in either Charm or cooperation over conflict, the asari were Leadership. They still may not train Charm or instrumental in proposing and founding the Citadel Leadership above rank 2 during character creation. Council and have been at the heart of galactic ● Natural Biotic: Asari may use any of their society ever since. characteristics as their biotic characteristic when Traditionally, asari spread their influence selecting a biotic career specialization. through cultural domination and intellectual superiority. They invite new species of advanced development to join the galactic community, DRELL knowing that their ideals and beliefs will inevitably The drell are a reptile-like race that were influence the existing culture. The asari tend rescued from their dying home world by the hanar toward communal, consensus attitudes among following first contact between the two. Since then, the drell have remained loyal to the hanar for their whom they pray to in varying situations. camaraderie and have fit comfortably into galactic Many of the older traditions of the drell civilization. have begun to die out. The younger generations no Drell are omnivorous reptile-like humanoids longer believe the old ways of their ancestors can with an appearance very similar to asari and help them now, with so many other ways to humans, but their muscle tissue is slightly denser, interpret one's place in the universe. Many drell giving them a wiry strength. Their skin is infused have embraced the hanar Enkindlers or the asari with a venom mild enough to be served in drinks, philosophies. and may cause mild hallucinations on "oral contact". The drell also possess eidetic memory, SPECIES ABILITIES an adaptation to a world where they must remember the location of every necessary resource (vegetation, drinkable water and prey migration paths) across vast distances. The memories are so strong that an external stimulus ● Wound threshold: 9 + Brawn can trigger a powerful memory recall. ● Strain threshold: 9 + Willpower The debt of gratitude that the drell owe the hanar is referred to as the Compact, which the drell ● Starting Experience: 90 xp fulfill by taking on tasks that the hanar find difficult, ● Special Abilities: Drell begin the campaign such as combat. Any drell may refuse to serve, but trained and with one rank in either Stealth or as being requested to serve is a great honor, few Acrobatics. They still may not train Stealth or turn down the offer. Acrobatics above rank 2 during character creation. Most drell are content to live on Kahje, the hanar home world, but those who do leave tend to be adventurers. These solitary drell travelers often ELCOR seek out new species elsewhere, and in turn adopt The elcor are a Citadel species native to that species' culture. Such drell number in the the high-gravity world Dekuuna. They are massive thousands, and are scattered across the galaxy, creatures, standing on four muscular legs for tending towards quiet, integrated lives. increased stability. Their large, heavy bodies are Most drell are deeply religious, believing incapable of moving quickly, an evolved response that they have souls separate from their bodies. to an environment where a fall can be lethal. This They see death as a departure from the body, and has colored their psychology, making them they also state that a person's body and soul form deliberate and conservative, but they possess a a Whole. When the soul is traumatized or rather imposing stature and immense strength, as otherwise disrupted, or the body is ill or injured, a well as thick, tough skin. They move using all four person is no longer Whole. The drell religion is also limbs to support and balance their massive bodies. polytheistic, with the drell having multiple gods Elcor speech is heard by most species as a flat, ponderous monotone. Among themselves, scent, extremely slight body movements, and sub- SPECIES ABILITIES vocalized infra-sound convey shades of meaning. Since their subtlety can lead to misunderstandings with other species, the elcor prefix all their dialog with non-elcor with an emotive statement to clarify their tone ● Wound threshold: 20 + Brawn The elcor were just making their first forays ● Strain threshold: 10 + Willpower into space travel when the asari made contact with them. Within a single lifetime they had established ● Starting Experience: 80 xp a regular trade route to the Citadel, quickly ● Special Abilities: Elcor begin the campaign with becoming one of the more prominent species in one rank in the Durable talent. Citadel space, though they still have to share an embassy with the volus. ● Lumbering: Due to their unique biology, Elcor Elcor are not suitable for making the spur- can never have an Agility score higher than 1 and of-the-moment decisions necessary in combat Elcor can never train any agility based skill more situations. Instead, they rely on sophisticated than one rank. Elcor can not make more than one VIcombat systems. These war machines can movement maneuver per turn. choose between thousands of gambits developed ● Living Tanks: Due to their immense size, Elcor and polished over centuries by elcor strategists. count as being Sil 2 and count as having 1 vehicle The slow speed and immense size of the elcor customization hardpoint. Elcor can additionally makes them easy targets. Fortunately, their carry up to two passengers. durable hide allows them to shrug off most incoming fire. Elcor warriors don't carry small arms; their broad shoulders serve as a stable platform for HANAR the same size of weapons typically mounted on The hanar are a species resembling Earth's Alliance fighting vehicles. jellyfish and are one of the few non-bipedal Citadel Elcor usually prefer to stay on their races. Hanar are known for their intense politeness colonies rather than travel in space, which may be when speaking, and their strong religious beliefs why few elcor are seen on the Citadel or on other regarding the Protheans, whom they refer to as worlds. Possibly because of their size or evolution "the Enkindlers". The hanar "stand" slightly taller in the open air, the elcor find the necessary than a human, although most of their height is in confines of space travel uncomfortable, and many their long tentacles. The invertebrate, water-native modern elcor indeed prefer the open sky to the hanar cannot support their own weight in normal former. gravity. When interacting with mainstream galactic society, they rely on contra-gravitic levitation packs Illustration 1: Images courtesy of Nach77 and Imperator Alicia that use mass effect fields. Their limbs can grip ● Amphibious:Hanar can breath underwater tightly, but are not strong enough to lift more than a without penalty and can move through any fluid few hundred grams each. Hanar also possess the liquid without suffering movement penalties. ability to secrete natural toxins ● Floating: Hanar float overland and typically will The hanar communicate using not touch the ground as they move. They are not sophisticated patterns of bio-luminescence, but able to fly higher than a few feet from the ground when dealing with other species, speak with but do not suffer the usual penalties for moving scrupulous precision and extreme politeness. Most over difficult terrain. hanar take offense at improper language, and must take special courses to unlearn this tendency if they expect to deal with other species. HUMAN The hanar have two names, a "face name" Humans, from the planet Earth, are the and a "soul name." The face name is used as a newest sentient species of notable size to enter the general label for use by strangers and galactic stage and are the most rapidly expanding acquaintances. The soul name is kept for use and developing. among close friends and relations, They never Humans first came to the attention of the refer to themselves in the first person with galactic community after a brief but intense conflict someone they know on a face name basis: to do with the turians, known by humans as the First so is considered egotistical. Instead they refer to Contact War.
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