To Seek Out New Lifeforms...

[Michael Barratt]

Okay, you'll have to forgive (or forget) my take on the Pagan movement in Trek. This one has been brewing for a while, and I went with it...

Rede

The word for their culture, planet, and their guiding principle, the Rede are a human people who took the eclectic pagan religion(s) of the late twentieth century and continued in those traditions throughout world war three, the sparefaring era, and current days. Their cities tend to be small, with a light population density, and though they do not shy away from modern convieniences, they tend to do a lot of crafting and farming by hand when it is not required/necessary. Many traditions have blended over the generations, and although predominantly human, quite a few individuals from other races have merged into the colony.

Attributes
Fitness 2 [5]
Coordination 2 [5]
Intellect 2 [5]
Presence 2 [5]
- Willpower +1
Psi 0 [5]

Skills
Athletics (Choose Specialization) 1 (2)
Any Science (Choose Specialization) 1 (2)
Culture (Rede-Human) 2 (3)
History (Rede-Human) 1 (2)
Languages - Federation Standard 2
Theology (Rede Paganism) 1 (2)
World Knowledge (Rede) 1 (2)

Typical Advantages/Disadvantages
2 Extra Courage Points

(This template assumes a human brought up in the Rede culture).

The Rede are, in general, a quiet sort, in tune with their environment, and craftwork, and a spiritual people devoted to their ways. Their main tenet: "An it harm none, do as thou wilt," is taken very seriously, but tends to lend the community to a lack of focus that some (especially Vulcans) tend to find inadequate or inefficient.

The Rede tend to dress in soft clothes, robes, and what could be termed "Celtic" clothing styles. Animals are a large part of their lives, from pets, companions, or beasts of burden or production of milks or cheeses. Many take up the fine art of real cooking, most have at least one or two amateur artistic endeavours. Meditation, chanting, and mental focus are a daily part of their lives. The Rede took great pains to find a planet that was very earth like, imported a large variety of earth flora and fauna, and most especially took great effort to find a planet with one moon that followed an orbit and cycle like that of Earth.

It is also of note that through true psionic ability is rare in humans, the Rede have a higher than average occurance of Psi ability, most often receptive empathy, and notably, a few empathic healers. Whether this has much to do with their lifestyle, mental focus, or ancestral DNA mixed with Betazoid or Vulcan physiology is unknown, but the Rede take it as a blessing from their Goddesses and Gods, and true psionic individuals often take a priestly role in the community.

Adventure Seed
"A Healer Among Us," - One of the rare Rede Healers (a human receptive empath with a beginning ability in empathic healing) is aboard the crews ship as part of a diplomatic group from Rede. The group is meeting with other local planetary governments to formalize trade agreements both between their worlds and with the Federation. When the empathic healer is found, near death, in one of the corridors, things get tense, fast: from all signs, it looks like the healer helped someone recover who was poisoned - but unfortunately, that person, once healed, didn't stick around. WHo is responsible, who was the victim, and why are both trying to keep it quiet?

The Doc

[Perrryyy]

Originally posted by Michael Barratt
[It is also of note that through true psionic ability is rare in humans, the Rede have a higher than average occurance of Psi ability, most often receptive empathy, and notably, a few empathic healers. Whether this has much to do with their lifestyle, mental focus, or ancestral DNA mixed with Betazoid or Vulcan physiology is unknown, but the Rede take it as a blessing from their Goddesses and Gods, and true psionic individuals often take a priestly role in the community.

[/B]

I like everything you did, except , why didn't you give them psi ability in their attributes? If they have higher than average occurance as a norm, shouldn't the template reflect this?

Other than that, I love it!

[Michael Barratt]

Originally posted by Perrryyy


I like everything you did, except , why didn't you give them psi ability in their attributes? If they have higher than average occurance as a norm, shouldn't the template reflect this?

Other than that, I love it!

Eep. I meant to include: In this instance, for the rare psionic, give the individual the "psionic" early life background package: PSI 1, Receptive Empathy 1. heh heh. Oops.

The Doc

[Perrryyy]

That's more like it!

I'd still add psi to the actual overlay, but the Early life package has the same effect.

Nicely done.

[Michael Barratt]

Inoi

An evolved herd herbivore "uniped" lifeform, the Inoi's most distinctive feature is their single trunk leg: a thick single leg that, with complex musculature and skelletal scructure, is balanced and strong to such a degree that a Inoi "hopping" moves as quickly as a human when walking, but when flat-out running, Inoi tend to move much faster. Obviously, their sense of balance is superior.

Their upper structure is vaguely humanoid, though their two arms end in flat, leaf-shaped manipulators that, while one surface, are capable of contractions and rippling that mimic about the same manipulation as that of most humanoids, with a slightly less accurate manual dexterity. Their heads are hairless (indeed, their bodies are hairless), and slightly elongated (as if "pinched" and drawn forward), with small holes for ears on either side of their cranial area, two large eyes with pale green irises which darken as the Inoi ages, and a wide slit mouth with a pair of slender tongues that work together, along with hard tooth-like ridges, to masticate food.

Attributes
Fitness 2
- Vitality +1
Coordination 2
- Reaction +1
- Dexterity -1
Intellect 2
Presence 2
Psi 0

Skills
Any Science (Choose Specialization) 1 (2)
Athletics (Running) 1 (2)
Culture (Inoi) 2 (3)
History (Inoi) 1 (2)
Language (Inoi) 1 (2)
Primitive Weaponry (Inoi Staff) 1 (2)
World Knowledge (Al'Ino) 1 (2)

Typical Advantages/Disadvantages
Excellent Chemoreception (+1), Synergy (+3)

The Inoi evolved from a herd species, and it shows in their mentality: they work incredibly well with others, and indeed seem to function better in groups than individually. "Loneliness" means something truly terrifying to an Inoi.

Inoi all learn to wield short staves as part of their childhood (as well as running and sprinting games, and races). These staves were originally part of mating competitions, where various herd would clash with clubs and sticks for the right to supremacy among the herd, but the stick-fighting has evolved to a form of martial combat that borders on artistic dancing. It is also, of course, a bludgeoning weapon attack that can be quite lethal in the hands of a truly trained Inoi warrior.

Another throwback to their evolution, Inoi have a remarkable sense of smell.

The Inoi of the current day in the Federation find themselves somewhat set apart. Greatly outnumbered by bipedal lifeforms, the Inoi often feel more comfortable in environments of vary varied alien species: of note is their cordial - even polite - alliance and treaties with the Sheliak. Their slightly less delicate manual dexterity originally limited them somewhat in the great space-faring races, but upon creation of their first warp ships, they traded with other species, learned new technologies, and have since created interfaces that optimize their slightly clumsy "hands."

Adventure Seed
"Stand Firm" - When a small cargo freighter, damaged, enters and lands on a Sheliak colony planet normally not long-term hospitible to humans, the Sheliak claim their right to merely let the humanoids die. They also claim their right to stop passage into their colony, so that's exactly what will happen! The Federation calls in one of the very few Inoi in Starfleet: a command-branch diplomat, Lieutenant Er'Atao, who is granted permission by the Sheliak to take a shuttle and small crew to the planet: which includes the players. Can they navigate Sheliak culture, help Er'Atao negotiate, and save the wounded freighter captain and his crew?

[Michael Barratt]

Idanians

A people quite often referred to as "secretive," the Idanians are a people very reserved, who guard their privacy closely, and who learned both traits from living on a world that is dying of heat.

Attributes
Fitness 2
- Vitality +1
Coordination 2
Intellect 2
Presence 2
- Willpower +1
Psi 0

Skills
Any Science (Choose Specialization) 1 (2)
Craft (Choose Specialization) 1 (2)
Culture (Idanian) 2 (3)
History (Idanian) 1 (2)
Languages - Idanian 2
Planetary Survival (Desert) 1 (2)
World Knowledge (Idania) 1 (2)

Typical Advantages/Disadvantages
1 extra courage point

Idanians are a desert people, who gather in structures built mostly underground with access ports through their roofs that retract or extend to survive the terrible sandstorms that sweep most of the globe. Most of the water in the planet is subterranean, though some icecaps exist, and ice-mining is one of the trades of the planet. The heating of the planet is an ecological fallout of astrological misfortune, the passage of a micro-wormhole altered the course of the planet's orbit, and the warming began thereafter, when the Idanians were in their late Renaissance era. They adapted, moving whole populations into areas with subterranean springs and removing nearly any form of privacy or personal space as the cost of packing enough people in and saving them all.

Idanians are a tall, slender race, with dark hair they tend to tie into elaborate braids, and skin that is often weathered and darkly tanned. Their clothing is light, designed to stay cool and yet keep in their precious body moisture. Most also own goggles with narrow slits that cut down on the desert glare. They decorate their skins with tattooing, and due to their highly-concentrated population centres, they've evolved a culture of interdependency and secret keeping that keeps a fine balance. Idanians don't speak small talk, rarely divulge details, and prefer the quiet company of others to more outgoing evenings.

Allied with no particular planet, the Idanians have little to offer, other than sand, rock, and a variety of minerals that line their planet that are of average merit. Though they have an impressive power array of both thermal and solar systems, their dilithium is all mined from their planet's second moon, and the construction of their warp-ships gave their planet a rebirth: interaction, mainly with the Federation Merchant Marine, has brought a slow, new, prosperity back into the planet. Replicators have solved the individual's need for water. Idanian glass scupltures have become a minor treasure in some circles.

Adventure Seed
"Aquarius" - An icey rogue comet is within the Idanian system's reach, and they enlist the aid of the Federation in "catching" the comet and putting it in orbit of their planet as a third moon, where they can mine it and bring precious moisture back to their planet, the first in many many stages of terraforming their planet back into something more hospitable. When something goes wrong and the comet is instead put on a path that will collide it with the planet (and kick up enough dust to significantly lower the temperature) it becomes something of a mystery: did an enemy do this to harm many of the Idanians, or did a cadre of Idanians do it themselves: knowing the deaths would be worth the price of a cooler world? Certainly, the quiet-loving Idanians are not telling.

The Doc

[Michael Barratt]

Megarites

An aquatic humanoid race who managed, with Federation technology, to step into the worlds of air, the Megarites come from the seas and oceans of a world made mostly of Jade.

Attributes
Fitness 2 [5]
- Vitality +1
Coordination 2 [5]
- Reaction +1 (in water environment) / Reaction -1 (land environment)
Intellect 2 [5]
Presence 2 [5]
Psi 0 [5]

Typical Skills
Any Science (Choose Specialization) 1 (2)
Athletics (Swimming) 2 (3)
Culture (Megarite) 2 (3)
History (Megarite) 1 (2)
Language - Megarite 2
World Knowledge (Megara) 1 (2)

Typical Advantages/Disadvantages
Medical Problem (-3; Cannot Breathe Air, Tied to Fitness, treat as a Medical Problem when not in water, but medical shots allow the Megarites to breathe water for up to one week), Zero-G Training (+1), Peripheral Vision (+1)

Megarites have a dull brown skin colour that is somewhat mottled, much like the skin tone patterns on whales or dolphins. Their faces lack mouths and noses, instead a series of gills form in three concentric semi-circles below where a "nose" would be. Their vocal aparatus, coming through the gill structures on either sides of their neck, can approximate most humanoid languages crudely, but many rely on universal translators to translate from their own native tongue of creaks, whistles, and other Dolphine/Whale type sounds. Their hands have evolved into one-opposable thumb and four fingers, though quite webbed. Same with their feet. Their foreheads are darker brown than the rest of their skin, and the patterns there seem to denote various family heritages.

Megarites have a much less difficult time adapting to Zero-G, from their lifelong experiences in watery environments and the various three-dimensional points of view that forces them to take. A throwback to their biological ancestry, they aslo have a wider spaced set of eyes, giving them a wider range of peripheral vision. They tend to enjoy EVA activity in liquid-environment suits, and many Megarites can be found in shipyards and other vaccuum construction areas. The blood chemistry and adaptability of the Megarite circulatory system makes them nearly immune to "the bends" or nitrogen narcosis.

Megarites are filter-feeders, and must absorb food by running nutrient-rich liquids through their facial gill-slits three times a day. Most humanoids find this a less than appealing sight, especially when the Megarites opt for "natural" foods instead of protien liquids, and consume water thick with tiny fish lifeforms.

Adventure Seed
"Deep Rescue" - A Galaxy class starship suffered a catastrophic warp core failure near a watery M-class world. The saucer separated with many aboard, but crashed deep into the waters, and then sank like a stone, setting loose a large wall of coral and natural minerals that pretty much buried the thing. Alas, the mineral content and depth of the water rules out the use of transporters to rescue the survivors. A Megarite team comes aboard the crews ship to lead them on the rescue mission, not needing bulky "diving gear" to go where the crew need to go, and aiding in the rescue effort.

[Michael Barratt]

Christopher Hobson, on the Sutherland, said that Berellian Engineers wouldn't be a very good idea. I'm trying to think up reasons why, and I don't want to go with some "easy out" like clumsy fingers.

I'm vaguely thinking of making them a race who used organic "technology" (ie: biotechnology) and who don't really understand the notions of physical technology with nonliving matter. I'm just not sure how they ended up in space in that regard... maybe some sort of biotech that could make it to very low warp - and there's no real way for them to get to high warp with biotech, so they've had to make the rough adjustment to metallic use...

Thoughts?

The Doc

[Michael Barratt]

The Berellians

A people whose techonological base was that of biological lifeform utilization and genetic engineering, the Berellians reached the stars after centuries of work with their empathic biological entities. They were initially contacted in potential response to the "Tin Man" entity, but were too far away to get there in time.

Attributes
Fitness 2 [5]
- Strength -1
Coordination 2 [5]
Intellect 2 [5]
- Logic -1
- Perception +1
Presence 2 [5]
- Empathy +1
Psi 1 [5]
- Focus +1

Skills
Culture (Berellian) 2 (3)
History (Berellian) 1 (2)
Language - Berellian 2
Life Sciences (Any Specialization) 1 (2)
Projective Telepathy 1
Receptive Empathy 1
World Knowledge (Berellia) 1 (2)

Typical Advantages / Disadvantages
Engineering Ineptitude (-3) *

Berellians harken from Berellia, a world rich in diverse ecological life, and interlinked species where most creatures are receptive empaths. This led to very early domestication of animals, and given the Berellian projective telepathy, easy "training" of life forms for the use of the Berellian people. The receptive empathy of the Berellians, however, made this training a kind one, not a harsh one.

As the Berellians moved forward scientifically, they went with their natural tendancies: life as tool. Intuition over logic, the Berellians have honed genetic modification technology so that they can "grow" lifeforms that serve the functions they require. There are no streetlamps on Berellia, there are tall tress with phosphourescent blooms, for example. Clothing is woven from vegetable matter, and even their transportation were life forms, insectlike or lizardian depending on climate and need.

When the Berellians first reached the space, they were greatly challenged: crafting a life form capable of living in space was beyond them for many generations, and many died in trials. Eventually a large space organism was crafted that fed on solar energy, and the Berellians managed to explore their own solar system. Eventually, many generations later, they found a way to generate a creature capable of both travelling at warp (though barely warp one) and keeping occupants alive in the process (internal biological dampening at first, then the equivalent of inertial dampeners).

Then they met the Federation. Stunned at both first contact and a people who used non-living technology, the Berellians had a lot of catching up to do - for their science had already told them that breaking the warp-three threshold would take generations of work, and was implausible. Unsuited to the task of technological thinking, the Berellians did their best to adjust, and many have learned to "think metallic." It is a long way off from merely "thinking" what you want the technology to do, and "feeling" its response.

Berellians appear as humanoids about the size of human late-teenagers: thin on average, slimmer than average humanoid adults. They have a wide range of skin tones similar to that of humans and vulcans, and have a series of spots on their hands, fingers, and arms that cross over their shoulders and climb the sides of their neck up to their temples: these spots are acually dermal representation of a neural series that flows directly from the brain of the Berellian down to their fingertips, linked to their receptive empathic abilities: touch increases their ability to use their empathic abilities (this is represented in the Focus +1 ability edge).

Their world is a lush jungle for the most part, with northern areas being more temperate, but no sub-arctic or arctic zones. Berellia still uses mostly empathic/telepathic receptive lifeform biotechnology for the most part, with an orbital space station of metallic/technological nature for the use of non-Berellian travellers. Only biotechnological Berellian drop-ships travel from the station to the surface - though others can choose to beam down, no metallic ships may land. Berellian biotechnology only responds to telepathic prompting, and gives response only through emotional response - for empaths to receive and interpret.

Adventure Seed
"A Pod in the Dark" - A pod of space-borne life forms is "migrating" through Federation space, and their natural mode of travel is causing a strange subspace distortion in their wake that keeps collapsing warp fields that attempt to break through it. Ships are stranded, and the pod of creatures keeps circling them. Can the crew, with a Berellian space-borne-species specialist, uncover why the pod creatures seem attracted to warp fields, and potentially make enough contact to ask the pod creatures to leave before the systems on the ships trapped in their midst fail completely?

* Engineering Ineptitude is the reverse of the "Engineering Aptitude" advantage: the character loses one of his die when making any Engineering skill test (but this does not apply to the biological technology of the Berellians).

[dimeboy99]

First off I want to say that I think the contributors to this thread have done an excellent job. I've enjoyed reading the material and the take upon the races.

I would love to see these templates (and the templates on the TRPGnet) collected into a pdf file or maybe saved as a word file for easy download and printing.

My LUG-Trek RP group has used several things from this board (and site) in our game and it has added to the spice and variety. Good work to all!

[Perrryyy]

I've got most of the stuff from the computer core (ie templates) saved to a word file. I'll publish it once I can make the time

[Michael Barratt]

Just wanted to say a "Thank you" for the above, as I love feedback (and, being a flawed little biped, praise). If anyone wants to leap onto this thread with other species previously mentioned on TNG, TOS, VOY, Enterprise or DS9, please do! Or new, unique aliens, them be good too!

From my Trek Encyclopedia, there are a couple of notes that I'm noticing now and want to expand:

• The "Moropa" - A civilization with whom the Bolians maintained an uneasy truce in 2366 - that gets me wondering - the Bolians get along with everyone, what kind of race would have trouble with them?
• The "Argrathi" - They're the people who implanted those false memories into O'Brien to simulate 20 years of jailtime. Wonder what else they do?
• The "Legarans" - They're the people who needed that 'mudbath' environment in the episode with Sarek. We never saw them, but what kind of humanoids(?) would live in a place like that?
• The "Paradas" - They made the replicant of O'Brien, are slightly lizardian, and have that 'secrete a smell' that alerts others to their mood.
• The "Miradorn" - Symbiotic Twins! Oooh. I'd like to do this one, too, but I need to simmer on the cultural ramifications of symbiotic twins...
• The "Frunalians" - As soon as the wormhole was discovered near Bajor, three Frunalian ships showed up, requesting to study it. Curious people, driven to science, warp around in packs? Who knows...?
• The "Kobliad" - A race of people who require a substance, 'Deuridium' to stabalize their cell structures and prolong their life... ooh, the options! How far would a species go when demand exceeds supply?

And likely a few trillion more.

The Doc

[Perrryyy]

Originally posted by Michael Barratt

And likely a frew trillion more.

The Doc

The Akritiri
Arturis' people
Rubber tree people..

we should start a list!

[Michael Barratt]

Originally posted by Perrryyy


The Akritiri
Arturis' people
Rubber tree people..

we should start a list!

Hrm. I wonder how hard that would be. I mean, there's the official Canon website, and that wouldn't be too hard to cut'n'paste into a list with short descriptors. The various encyclopedias are another source... Hrm. Then we'd have a good "starting place" for any time we wanted to write up a new species... grab one from The List. (Cue cresendo).

The Doc

[Perrryyy]

I'm sure if you & I & a few others put our collective heads & resources together, we could come up with something

Email me, we'll work on this!