Altess Dynasty: Located in the Anvil Galaxy, the Altess Dynasty has, through genetic engineering and breeding techniques, refined its people into a much more evolved version of the human race. On the surface, there is nothing unusual about them except they are especially good-looking and physically fit. However, they possess attributes and abilities far beyond the range of ordinary humans. The Altess see themselves as supermen who are destined to one day control the entire universe, except they are so smug and secure and so insulated by their vast wealth and power that they generally do nothing to advance their race's station in the Three Galaxies. As a result, the average Altess is lazy and non-productive, and far more likely to pay somebody to do something for him than to do something for themselves. The Altess like to live a life of luxury, enjoying the finer things, and generally distancing themselves from adversity and hardship as much as possible. The Altess have few problems and nearby races have learned to avoid Altess space due to their very advanced technology and weaponry. The only serious contenders against the Altess are the paranoid Golgans and the aggressive Dionii.
Alternate Timeline: Here is a possible alternate timeline for the Three Galaxies.
Bett Farris: The powerful governor of the planet Mycos with its 20 trillion population, she is currently rules this Golgan-dominated world along with the Governing Council. She is a popular planetary leader as well as head of the extensive and influential Farris family, the wife of the infamous Warlord Sels Farris. Lately, she has had to deal with an estimated 800 billion unemployed people sloshing around the planet in search of work. This immense level of unemployment has provided a pool of capable and willing followers for an armed underground leader known as “the Leader”, who preaches violent change. This is especially important since only real change would improve the stagnant economy of Mycos and bring new prospects for the young and ambitious.
Boarding Sleds: Usually launched by warships, these small craft are an effective way to board enemy ships, bases, and asteroid forts; the Hert-built SLEDs also have the ability to assault planetary targets as well. The Hert Federation Navy has several ship designs that incorporate boarding sled technology, including the Roughneck-class troopship and the Makrraket-class battlespace cruisers. Boarding sleds most common moniker are “boarding torpedoes”. They vary in size and number of people they carry according to class, with Class V (military grade) being the largest. Also known as "TITs", or tactical insertion torpedoes.
Bubble Steel: Combining high-grade steel and graphene creates and incredibly strong (and light) material known as "bubble steel". It is nearly one hundred times stronger than standard steel and weighs 95% less than the same amount. Naval architects have started using it, equipping ships with this fantastically hardened metal that is called "battlesteel". This metal is used especially in airships on low-tech worlds, hovercraft, mobile land bases, mobile airbases, and on wet navy ships. First developed by the Kulu Kingdom.
CCW: The two most powerful star nations in the Three Galaxies are the Consortium of Civilized Worlds (CCW) and the Transgalactic Empire (the TGE). These two superpowers have gone to war in the past and now have been locked in a cold war for the past 500 years, and their actions affect everyone living in the Three Galaxies. Hailing from Terra Prime, in the Corkscrew Galaxy, Humans number into the trillions. They are one of the founders of the Consortium, and overall, are pretty much in charge of things. Many other species try to suck up to humanity, riding its collective coat tails towards prosperity. However, just as many other races hate mankind and plot to destroy it. Humans are found in both the CCW and the TGE.
Chardar: This critical metal alloy is only located in the Anvil Galaxy and it can be mystically endowed with PPE to make incredibly strong starship armor. It is only used by the UWW Navy. However, the exact location of this vital world is top secret.
Colonizer Ships: All across the Three Galaxies, colonization of new worlds is big business. In the Corkscrew Galaxy alone there are over 150 million habitable worlds like Earth, all of which are available to anyone who can land colonists there first. In the CCW, huge colony ships are used to move these civilians around the galaxies but they also come in all shapes and sizes, the largest being the CCW Astra-class colonizer, capable of carrying 5 million sentients in stasis. According to Jane's Intergalactic Commercial Insurers more than a million ships are designated as colony vessels in the Three Galaxies, and they can be found nearly everywhere. Most are transporting people from overpopulated worlds to fresh new planets, while others transport political, criminal, or religious dissidents to unwanted worlds.
Critters' Universe: Eleven light-years from Port Natal (a Golgan planet) there is a small dust cloud which emits a healthy amount of radio waves. In the vastness of interstellar space these clouds are not uncommon, so little attention beyond marking it as a astronomical oddity. Until Jorj Critter flew into it while prospecting for anything interesting! It turned out to be an area in which space had formed a side bubble (a pocket universe), and where physical laws were somewhat different. Critter's Universe, which is only about a hundred light-years across did coexist with a large section of the Golgan Republik, who, having learned about this, decided they should own it. In response, Jorj Critter claimed the area and, with a few of his close prospecting friends, defended the Gateway using the peculiar physical properties of the alternate universe. The Republik Fleet never got within a billion kilometers of the Gateway before being reduced to solar ash. Hastily withdrawing their forces from the Gateway, the Golgans began cultivating good feelings with Jorj Critter and left the matter at that.
Darkness Weapons: A newly formed company located within the Kulu Kingdom, Darkness Weapons has innovated many new and successful hand weapons, including high-end graser and maser weapons. The company is fully owned by Jay-Alan Dark, a military innovator from the Cathedral world Spektor.
Diego Prang: head of the Consortium of Civilized Worlds government, this influential human politician has made it his lifes' work to hinder Kreeghor aggression in the Three Galaxies. He has beefed up the CCW military forces (especially the Navy) as well as fully supported colonization in the Thundercloud Galaxy and construction of the enormously costly Dusarra Dyson Sphere. These efforts, and his effective anti-corruption platform, has made him immensely popular with the working classes within the Consortium. With these successes under his belt, he is sure to win his third term as CCW President.
Dionii Hive: A aggressive race of man-sized space-travelling bugs, the Dionii are genocidal when it comes to other aliens races and have a high-tech advantage over their neighbors in weapons, stardrives, and power systems. Most of their neighbors have a shoot-on-sight policy when it comes to these deadly telepathic aliens. The Dionii have no known allies and they have destroyed many races in their march across the Three Galaxies.
Drake Belgrano: A important human reformer during the Bellevue System Revolt, this philosopher-teacher encouraged the use of non-violence in political disputes with the Republik government after the rebellion was crushed. Nearly two dozen worlds were bombarded from space by the Golgan Republik and hundreds of millions of lives were lost during the rebellion that was spawned in the Bellevue System. Now cherished and honored by billions of citizens, Drake Belgrano is a living legend, a man of peace and passion, a modern-day reformer and advocate of change through non-violence.
Drinian: the uncontested leader of the Prometheans, he in known to be several thousand years old and, along with a Ruling Council, he runs the government of Phase World. His only foibles are his utter hatred of the Splugorth and love of Kulu wines from the world Gandy.
Dusarra Dyson Sphere: a gargantuan orbital sphere with a surface area of up to 250 million habitable planets, this immense project is being constructed deep in CCW space by the Hal'vesh Builders. The Hal'vesh begin work on the Dyson Sphere almost 50 years ago and is using hyper-advanced construction technology to complete this titanic project for the CCW: its' estimated completion time is 5000 years.
Fabber: A high-tech 3D replicator; "foodies" are a type of fabber. Also see "minion maker". Fabricators (or fabbers) use powdered metal, plastic, or ceramics to rapidly "print" out parts and models. These newly-formed parts are usually subjected to a chemical/heat curing process, and are then ready to use. Light can also be used to "cure" products being made. Though the copies are not generally as strong as the original, the ability to make any spare part while in the field makes them incredibly useful. On high law worlds that use fabrication machines, most fabbers have controls built-in to their firmware to prevent them from being used to make parts for weapons. Of course, military-grace fabbers do not have these constraints, and fetch excellent prices on the black market. Other types of fabbers are pharma-fabbers, bio-fabbers (for body part replacements), and molecular or nano-fabbers.
Faberian Empire: A small super-tech alien race, the Faber were also racist xenophobes who rarely ventured out from their homeworld. Masters of planckscale-level technology, this was was extremely powerful but they were eventually wiped out by another powerful genocidal race, the Nimians. The wreckage of their homeworlds and the titanic battles that occurred during their mutual war of annihilation can be seen in the Lance Pattern worlds.
Final War: a major conflict that devastated some of the prime worlds at the heart of the Anvil Galaxy, it was fought primarily between the Faber and the Nimians. This war wiped out both species and left dozens of worlds unable to support technological civilizations.
Foodies: The food machines are an advanced machine that can rapidly convert nearly any organic substance into edible food, removing harmful toxins and viruses and adding any necessary vitamins and nutrients. As long as there is a source of compatible organics, food can be created indefinitely although its store of vitamin supplements will eventually run out. Foodies can synthesize additives and coloring to anything it makes. The processor can also distill simple organic compounds, like alcohol. Foodies are available on most interstellar-capable planets and range in technology and capabilities from the low-end (TL9) to the high-end (TL18).
Garbage Pit Universe: The strange place appears to be an obscure dimension hidden in the recesses of the Megaverse and known to only certain dimensional travelers and races. As far as the eye can see, garbage is scattered to the horizon. The Garbage Pit is one of those rare dimensions with little or no dimensional fabric, and as a result, Dimensional Teleporting in is very easy. So easy in fact, that long ago one or more races decided to use it as their own personal landfill. No one knows who started using this dimension as a garbage dump, but it is said to have been used as such for millions of years. Whatever you might expect to find at a high-tech, trans-dimensional garbage dump, is what you can expect to find here, and then some.
Golgan Republik: This medium-sized interstellar empire contains a wild array of alien races, but most of them are in the process of abandoning the Republik for a better life on their own. The Golgans themselves are still the dominant race, and a number of other races can be expected to stand with them for the time being. However, it will only be a matter of time and circumstance before those minions go off on their own, leaving the Golgans to fend for themselves once more. The Golgans are an amphibious race that have lived long in the Anvil Galaxy, at times ruling huge portions of it. The Golgans of today are a far cry from what they once were. Originally a happy and outgoing people, the Golgans have gradually turned cold, cynical, and paranoid. Their once great accomplishments have been lost to greed and war. Their current situation is the direct result of being invaded and attacked by their neighbors so many times. As a result, the Golgans trust nobody but themselves, and no government that does not have entirely Golgan leadership at the head of it. They still maintain a veneer of civility and warmth to non-Golgans and to foreigners to their society, but make no mistake: behind every Golgan smile or handshake is a nervous alien waiting for the moment to pull his sidearm and start firing. (More about the Golgans can be found in the Palladium Books).
Halvesh'oid Builders: A race of enigmatic aliens, the Hal'vesh are so advanced that they construct entire habitable planets made-to-order. They build entire worlds like Earth, as well as moon-sized warships that have tremendous firepower and can tap the higher energy states of subspace for power and movement. Also known as "the World-Builders", their homeworld is located in Hert space.
Hert Federation: A medium-sized empire of over 1,000 planets, the majority of which are former Golgan worlds. The Hert are a minor-MDC humanoid species that get along well with other races, except their neighbors, the Dionii and the Golgans. They have allied themselves with many races within the Federation as well as the nearby Virh nation, and they have been fighting a genocidal conflict with the Dionii for hundreds of years now, slowly losing ground to the innumerable bugs.
High Khan: Khimarreeloo is the leader of the Tygokor, and he has been for more than two decades. His empire has been strong enough to halt attacks from the Splugorth as well as annexing new worlds. He is an influential leader within the Anvil Galaxy, having a large space navy and millions of troops backing him up.
Hologhost: Many modern space navies prefers face-to-face meetings of its top command staffs but during wartime this can be unfeasible. It can be dangerous to have all your command staff at one location in a combat area, but meetings and coordinating attacks must still be planed and disseminated. Computer-generated “hologhosts” of various ships' captains and command staff can be projected onto a flagship for these electronic meetings instead, especially if a warship is too far distant to physically attend a tactical meeting or planning session.
Holots: A client race of the Hert race, these are large aquatic aliens that are excellent psionic masters and they work well with technology. They are huge, weighing on average 500lbs.
Hyperspace: The region of space within the Three Galaxies that most races travel, mainly because its the safest and fastest route around the region. Several other "spaces" align adjacent to hyperspace, including paraspace, the more risky "subspace" and the extremely dangerous (but much faster) "wraith space".
Iduron: a critical metal alloy used in power cores in the Anvil Galaxy, it is a fairly cheap mineral that is easily found on many worlds. This alloy prevents reactor cores from going "critical" and it is used heavily in combat warships with the Kulu Navy.
Illanium: a important mineral alloy that is only located on the planet Ripley, it is difficult to mine due to the aggressive behavior of its inhabitants. Illanium is used primarily for advanced life support systems on space stations and warships.
Jay-Alan Darkness: a innovative industrialist from the planet Spektor, his company specializes in advanced hand-held weapons. He is a brilliant weapons designer and his company has been very successful in penetrating the high-end arms market in the Three Galaxies.
Julian Navarro: the primary CCW Admiral in the Anvil Galaxy, he flies his flag on the newest Consortium dreadnought CSS Dominion out of the Argyle Fleet Base near the core of the Anvil Galaxy. From there he oversees the security of all nearby CCW worlds as well as the Dusarra Dyson Sphere construction site. Rumor has it that he has been tasked with the eventual expulsion of the Kreeghor from the Anvil Galaxy, and has detailed plans to do so.
Kingdom of Rynncryyl: Located in the Anvil Galaxy, this vile kingdom of slavers has attacked and raided its neighbors for millennia. Ruled by the cruel Splugorth Lord known as Rynncryyl, his military has recently fatally wounded the Kittani Empire and weakened many of their neighbors, allowing the Dionii to advance much more easily across the entire area.
Kittani Empire: Once a vast technological empire, this interstellar nation was critically weakened by continual Splugorth raids, destroying many Kittani worlds and creating the "Ruin Reach", an area of bombed out and useless worlds. The Kittani are not originally from this universe; apparently they fled a deadly machine race and now survive only in the Anvil Galaxy. Their weaponry is some of the most advanced in the Three Galaxies and it sells extremely well on the black market, and on Phase World itself.
Kreeghor Empire: More than 10,000 years ago, the Kreeghor were created to be a race of enslaved warriors. Supernaturally tough and strong, they eventually overthrew their masters and, beginning 5000 years ago, began systematically taking over the Three Galaxies. For a long time, there was simply no one tough enough to stop them. Then they ran into the Wulfen Empire, and managed to conquer half of it. After a brief rest, they tried to conquer the remainder and were met by an alliance of Wulfen, Noro, and humans. This was the dawning of the Consortium. What followed was the "Great War", a conflict that involved all three galaxies, killed billions of people, and raged for nearly 200 years. Today the Kreeghor are widely regarded as evil monsters, which isn't too far from the truth and their empire is vast.
Krulak Family: An extended military family that has long-term political and military connections to the Kulu Kingdom. The current head of the family (Jeremy Krulak) and the rest of his immediate relatives live on the high-population Kulu planet Terb.
Kulu Kingdom: This small human-led interstellar nation is a populist and religious society with over 100 major and minor worlds within their borders. It is located in the Anvil Galaxy. Kulu technology is a unique fusion of local MDC crystals and psionics, with Naruni weaponry to fill in any of the gaps within their military. While the majority of the inhabitants of the Kingdom are human, they are not racial snobs like their Altess neighbors and outsiders and alien races are welcome. The Kulu Kingdom is a small but wealthy interstellar nation with "Star Age" technology that has excellent relations with all of its neighbors, other than the Golgans who used to rule all the Kulu worlds just a few hundred years ago. An extensive GLOSSARY about the Kulu Kingdom is located here. Check it out!!!
Lance Pattern: Location of the former Faberian and Nimian Empires, the Lance Pattern is mostly filled with bombed-out radioactive worlds and pre-technological planets. The Lance Pattern is a large area of space located between the Virh Federation and the Hert Federation.
Lehiroh Federation: Located adjacent to the Kingdom of Rynncryyl, this small interstellar nation is dominated by the aggressive Lehiroh, a MDC bug-like alien race. Their defensive paralytic gas ability and natural MDC armor enables them to withstand the many attacks by Splugorth minions. This race has the ability to send stars into supernova: a WMD weapon.
Lightworlder: opposite of Heavyworlder; someone who has grown up in a low gravity (or no-gravity) environment. They are unable to withstand "normal" gravity that the average human does.
Long John: A slang name for the medicine created by "xenosilicates" found on the waterworld Poseidon. Long John extends the life of most carbon-based aliens, sometimes by thousands of years depending on the race and the dosage. When available, it is a fantastically valuable cargo.
Luren: a once-powerful vampire race that dominated the Anvil Galaxy a few centuries ago, they are now imprisoned on just a single world. Luckily, their saliva can cure most known diseases so they trade this ability for a some blood from each persons seeking healing.
Lycos: a heavily populated city-planet located deep within the Lance Pattern, its planetary environment was badly damaged during the Final War; Lycos had taken the side of the Faberians and had suffered Nimian retribution during that conflict. The citizens of this world eventually hired the Halvesh to repair the damage and Lycos has gone on to become one of the Anvil Galaxys' most populous and prosperous worlds.
Majipoor: This jumbo-sized world is home to the ePope, head of one of the largest religions in the Three Galaxies, the Maronite faith. A huge organization of politically aware religionists, the Maronites have followers in the trillions, all receiving direction by the ePope on Majipoor. Located in the Lance Pattern, this planet was subjected to brutal bombardment during the Final War, a galaxy-wrecking conflict fought between the Nimians and the Faberians. Today it has recovered from the war and remains the destination of spiritual seekers of the Maronite faith.
MAT: This form of highly advanced nanotechnology is partially organic and can be "weaved" into a human body. Medinano-derived artificial tissue (or MAT) is often used when soldiers are injured and loose arms or legs; the MAT rebuilds them and infuses itself into the bone structure, muscles, and blood system. These replaced legs look, act, and feel like normal organic legs and they can also be controlled by implants within the users body. Also, for short periods of time they can boost normal strength and endurance, letting a person run farther and jump higher. MAT can also shut down pain or exhaustion in the limbs it is intertwined with, and also automatically shuts off excessive bleeding in the equipped appendages. MAT is primarily a military nanotech, although mercenaries, adventurers, and others have been known to equip themselves with it before journeying out amongst the stars.
Mership: Slang for a “merchant ship”, they are almost always civilian-owned. Hundreds of thousands of these vessels ply the starlanes of the Three Galaxies. Many are family owned, while others belong to interstellar freight companies of all sizes.
Metite: a critical metal alloy used in warship construction, this mineral makes nearly impervious hull armor. Located on only a few worlds in the Lance Pattern, it is heavily regulated by several nearby empires: the Hert and the Virh.
Minion Maker: On extremely high-tech worlds, bioengineering becomes easier and easier, including cloning and genetic manipulation. The Minion Maker is a 3D fabber that builds organic "minions", living creatures generally not more than a foot in height (the machine is small). This machine makes pets for high-tech societies; they make dogs and cats, as well as other small minions like living toys and household helpers. Some people use them to make fantasy creatures as well, showing up at some high-end party with a fairy-like creature on their shoulder (its all the rage across the CCW). Cons: short life-span, low animal intelligence only. Greater abilities (like intelligence) and longer lifespans can be added at higher tech levels.
Mulligan's Travelling Pet Menagerie: owned by an enterprising fellow (Michael-Morgan Mulligan), this travelling pet show roams only within the Anvil Galaxy. "Professor" Mulligan sells genetically modified pets that are displayed during his pet show, which is wildly popular on low-tech worlds: ie planets with few entertainments. His travels also enable Mulligan to illegally trade various drugs and cures for diseases.
Mycos: Megaplanet, Jewel of the Anvil Galaxy. With its 20 trillion inhabitants, Mycos is the largest producer of goods and services within 10,000 light years. The governorship of the planet is currently held by Bett Farris, member of the wealthy and influential Farris family. A twenty person Governing Council helps Mrs. Farris run the planet and political analysts believe that whoever governed Mycos was the second most powerful individual in the Three Galaxies (the first is the Phase World leader Drinian). A glittering gem in the darkness of the cosmos, Mycos' Achilles heel, of course, is its reliance upon a dozen nearby farming worlds to supply its immense food needs. The planet is currently part of the Golgan Republik but it has been independent in the past for long periods of time. Mycos and has good relations with the neighboring empires.
Naram Federation: This human-like race has created a small interstellar nation near the Tygokor Empire. The Naram get along with all their neighbors; the Poiscteme Empire is their largest trading partner.
Navigators, the: A brilliant race of exceptional shipbuilders, the Navigators are a gas giant race that were the first race to explore the Anvil Galaxy, unfortunately sowing the seeds of their own destruction by allowing the Trierions to capture some of their space going technologies. Since that time, the Navigators have sold technology to nearly every race in an attempt to recuse themselves from the desolation they unleashed. Currently a very supportive member of the Hert Federation, the Navigators continue their pure research in the area of ship production and development, developing super-advanced warships and other vessels.
Nigelian Confederacy: Dimensionally teleported to the Three Galaxies, this solar system has evolved three sentient races. Since coming to the Anvil Galaxy, the inhabitants have built a small interstellar nation near Kittani space. Like most of their neighbors, the Nigelians are in a near-state of war with the Kingdom of Rynncryyl because of their continual slave raiding.
Nimians, the: A small pocket empire located in the Lance Pattern area, the aggressive Nimians waged a genocidal war against the more technologically advanced Faberian Empire, resulting in both politys' being destroyed. Today, many Nimian war weapons remain functional and are a danger to interstellar travelers.
noliHumans: A sub-race of humans who have been genetically altered to increase mental intelligence, however, noliHumans have also developed several stunning side-effects as well, including powerful mental abilities. Also known as near-humans.
Olympus System: One of the most strategically significant star systems within the Consortium of Civilized Worlds, the Olympus System has a total of eight habitable worlds circling the four stars (a quaternary star system). Originally it was a lifeless cluster of rocks but the CCW leadership paid the Halvesh'oid Builders to terraform it into a truly amazing star system, one that could become the economic and social cornerstone of the human space. Now, after over 500 years of continual growth, the Olympic Worlds have a fantastic GNP and huge military presence. These cosmopolitan planets have grown so much that the star system now has a population of more than 100 billion people. These worlds names are: Arretria, Bosphi, Chatalia, Dultiphar, Hankow, Hetharri, Lemmner, and Yennara. The Olympus System is located in the Anvil Galaxy.
Oon Associated Worlds: this bug-like race is located near CCW space and is its' largest trading partner. The Oon are not as militant as many nearby races but these man-sized aliens can hold their own in a fight, whether it be hand-to-hand or ship-to-ship.
Paraspace: a unique dimension located "below" our own, paraspace is a region of unstable quantum energy that can be traveled through, but it is dangerous and only extremely high-tech alien races know of (and can travel through) this region.
Paxter Haax: the current ePope of the Maronite faith (a religion with over 2 trillion adherents), his word is law to most of his followers. Luckily, Haaxs' agenda also coincidences with that of the CCW in the Anvil Galaxy, and he works closely with their leadership on several agendas, including reigning in Kreeghor power.
Pellanor: a top Halvesh eco-scientist and leader, this male/female alien is said to be thousands of years old. He is also the premier technical expert on the Dusarra Dyson Project; apparently he has helped the Halvesh make several of these immense structures in the past.
Phase Technology: A unique and devastating threat, phase weaponry was used to defend Phase World numerous times over the millennia. These weapons phase in and out of reality, making them almost impossible to hit. The Prometheans never sell capital ship sized phase technology to others.
Phase World: Homeworld of the Promethean dimensional race, the planet has a total population of 5 billion beings, 70% of which are Prometheans. Center is a huge trading location and metropolis. It is the fifth planet of an ageing red star, with a 22 hour day and 53 year orbital cycle. The temperature of Center and Phase World itself is tightly controlled and the method is secret. In general, non-citizens are confined to Center, a mile high arcology of a city. Numerous ley lines and nexuses course throughout this structure, making it a very magically active place. Phase World itself is a single planet near the heart of the Corkscrew Galaxy. It is the home of the Prometheans, a strange rare who may or may not entirely exist within normal three-dimensional space. Phase World is home to Center, a massive enclosed city that holds more than half a billion people! Center is neutral ground, and so allies and enemies alike pass through it.
Pike System: This strategic star system has a massive natural wormhole network, with no less than five wormholes stretching out into the Three Galaxies, making this system one of the most important in known space. The wormhole junction (network) itself draws enormous traffic from the surrounding regions of space and generates huge revenues for the Pike System in the form of transit fees. The Pike System consists of 3 habitable planets; Pike, Spear, and Lance. Today it is a growing economic powerhouse, easily outproducing every nearby star system. It is located in the "Lance Pattern", a region of unclaimed stars in the Anvil Galaxy between the Hert Empire and the Virh Federation.
Pocket Universe: Also known as alternate dimensions and "baby universes", more than a dozen are known to exist within or parallel too the Three Galaxies. See HERE for more.
Poiscteme Empire: a technologically advanced human-dominated pocket empire located near Hert space, the inhabitants of this polity are nearly all descendants of humans from a former CCW colony ship that crash-landed over a thousand years ago. Their advanced technology is powerful enough that their individual warships can destroy an entire star by itself. The Poiscteme also use an unusual space drive to power their ships. The Poiscteme have sided with the Virh and Hert against the Dionii for over a hundred years, combating the "bugs" alongside their humanoid allies.
Prometheans: Native to Phase World, these large, blocky, bald humanoids are some of the most alien of beings around. Their bodies are in a natural state that puts them not entirely in synch with the rest of the Three Galaxies. Through this, they have developed phase powers and technologies that can bypass almost any armor, and harm even traditionally invulnerable beings (like vampires and were-creatures). There are actually two different stages of Promethean: the aforementioned corporal beings, and an evolved, second stage. The Second Stagers as they are called are gigantic, ghostly beings with unsurpassed control over space and time. While as powerful as many gods however, the Second Stagers never leave their homeworld.
Protoculture: Several hundred years ago the Flower of Life was discovered on the Invid Homeworld. Since that time, the CCW has traded with the Invid for this unique plant. Combined with technology, the Flower of Life creates "protoculture", an enormously powerful energy source. Since then the CCW has fielded thousands of "Veritech fighters", also selling some to their allies like the Kulu Kingdom. This unique energy item has now substantially leveled the battlefield against the bellicose Kreeghor Empire.
Reformation Group: A small human micro-state located deep within Hert space in the Anvil Galaxy. A group of religious pacifists settled this area more than 2000 years ago. The Reformation Group was isolationist and peaceful until the Dionii Hive began their advance into interstellar space, placing the Group on the front line of a never-ending war. Reformation citizens highly dislike personal combat and therefore use extensive automated weaponry to defend their worlds, under the watchful eye of their high-tech Hert benefactors. These automated weapons fall under three categories: 30% are remote tele-operated by Reformation military personnel, more than 30% are robot operated (mostly using AIs), and 30% are "gamers", young people hired from across the Three Galaxies to remote operate drones and weapons. These gamers are able, using quantum entanglement, to help defend the Reformation worlds against Dionii attack and have proven themselves on the battlefield for several years now.
Rilhesh: Homeworld of the famous Selachee bankers; located in the Gredides System. The Selachee are the Three Galaxies richest bankers and they have the money to prove it. The aliens have a successful record of giving loans and having them paid off, unlike Naruni Enterprises who sometimes have to force people to pay at gunpoint. Rilhesh is located near the Golgan Republik.
Ruin Reach: A former battlezone of Kittani worlds, this area was depopulated by the continuing war between the Kittani Empire and the nearby Splugorth Kingdom, run by Rynncryyl. The Ruin Reachs' worlds are utterly bombed out, unable to support advanced civilizations.
Rusadir, the: A powerful group of industrial high-population worlds, these planets took the side of the nearby Faberian Empire during their war with the Nimians. Most were badly damaged during the conflict and (severely weakened) all 12 worlds were later absorbed into the Virh Federation.
Rynncryyl: the despicable ruler of one of the Splugorth Worlds, this monster has influences much of the Anvil Galaxy during the last 50,000 years. He also masterminded the near destruction of the Kittani worlds, creating the Ruin Reach in the aftermath of that conflict. His small interstellar kingdom (by his orders) continually raids nearby politys for slaves, an intolerable situation for his neighbors.
Samozium: a vital mineral that is used for fusion reactor fuel; it extends the energy process threefold, making it heavily sought after. This alloy is only found on a few worlds within the Hert Federation, which sells it for enormous profits.
Selachees: This beaver-like race are the Three Galaxies richest bankers. They have a long-standing record of successfully giving loans and having them paid off, unlike the Naruni who sometimes have to force people to pay. Their homeworld, Rilhesh, is located near the Golgan Republik.
September Family: Rulers of the planet Coloron and its colonies, this wealthy family has strong connections with the black market across a dozen sectors. This thuggish family is one you do not double-cross. They are also significantly involved in "trade" within the Lance Pattern.
Star Hives: These deadly aliens are vaguely insectoid in form and behavior. the race is made up of several sub-species, each specializing to fulfill one role within the hive community. Biologically, the hivespawn have been discovered to be silicon-based creatures who do not need oxygen to survive. Little is known about their culture or goals because most contacts with the Star Hives have been violent. Every time a Star Hive has been detected in the Three Gaalxies it is attacked and obliterated without warning by all humanoid fleets in the area. Raids by the hivespawn have increased in numbers lately and someone has started circulating stories about a huge, moon-sized Mother Hive that can disgorge billions of warriors, able to overpower and eat an entire planet in a matter of hours. These rumors remain unconfirmed, but may be true.
Star Leviathon: these immense creatures are born in space and are used by several races for interstellar travel. Hundreds can be seen plying the space lanes of the Three Galaxies. They are the only known "ship" capable of burst-jumping (moving into light speed almost instantly). Star Leviathons' are very valuable, but no one knows their their spawning grounds are located: it is most likely in the Anvil Galaxy since the majority of Star Leviathons are found there.
Subverse: a ubiquitous digital universe that has spread across the Three Galaxies. It was first created for sentient beings that were dying, either from old age or illness/disease. Since its inception thousands of years ago on Phase World the Subverse has grown like a spider web across known space via the galactic Interlink. Trillions upon trillions of beings have uploaded themselves into the Subverse and very few are ever lost since the "servers" of the Subverse are cleverly hidden in thousands of star systems. The only known failure in the Subverse was the Capellan System Disaster, which saw the loss of billions of digital citizens; an event that has caused safeguards to be put into place to prevent such a catastrophe from ever happening again.
Subspace: a region of space that some races in the Three Galaxies travel through, it is one of the more faster ways to navigate across interstellar space.
Tamaran: An independent world located between Golgan and Dionii space. This Earth-like world is inhabited by humanoids who can fly by utilizing solar energy and can fire bursts of energy from their hands, Tamaran is defended by heavy orbital defenses against the Dionii Empire and has waged a continual war against the bug-like aliens for centuries. Nearly 5 billion people inhabit this planet, which is considered a luxurious world by many.
Technofossil: Located all across the Three Galaxies are numerous fossilized remains of a dozen different ancient alien cultures. Most of these items are technological in form and some are very advanced. These sorts of technofossils can be very dangerous and are usually turned over to specialists who can handle these devices. In fact, a recent technofossil find almost destroyed the entire Hubri race when a lethal planetary-wide nanite swarm operated by an ancient AI was awoken in the Beta Lemnoris system and began to rapidly spread. Luckily it was disabled by Tolat intervention. Also known as "synth fossils".
Techno-Recency: A term for how technically updated a warship is. In the Kobra Worlds Navy, all vessels are classified with this techno-standard. Also known as a TR Rating.
Class 1 (brand spanking new)
Class 2 (moderately useful)
Class 3 (grossly outdated)
Thanagar: An independent world located between Golgan and Dionii space. Homeworld of the militant Thanagarian race, these humanoids have bird-like wings and can fly. Their homeworld lies dangerously close to Dionii Hive space and they have waged a constant war for over 1,000 years against that insectoid race. Their homeworld is the only known location of a unique form of metal, which acts as a energy-disrupting weapon. Population is nearly 4 billion sentients.
Thranx Commonwealth: These aliens are an insect race that has expanded to the stars using their unique posigravity drive. The Thranx get along with all their neighbors, except the vile Splugorth.
Three-Way War: More than a million years ago the Three Galaxies were dominated by several ancient alien races, the Landru, the Hur'ruk'ru, and the Krang. Eventually these three powers came to blows and over a few millennia wiped each other out. Today, remains of their vast empires exist across the Three Galaxies as "technofossils", usually deadly remnants of that genocidal war. Specialists are usually called in when these dangerous items are discovered and only a few have been converted to useful items or weaponry. This era was also known as the "Dark Times".
Tolnep Empire: Located next to Dionii Hive space, the reptilian Tolneps have been losing their war against the bug-like Dionii for over 100 years. Luckily the conflict between the Dionii and the Tolneps keep the Hive from advancing on the other front, against the Hert and their allies. Due to their racist and militant nature, the Tolnep have no allies and only huge purchases of Naruni weaponry has held back the tide.
Tolats: A crab-like race that enjoys genetically "uplifting" other primitive races, the Tolats are space-travelling aliens who enjoy each others' company as well as other sentient species. Their history goes back over 2 million years but they have told no one what they have discovered in their millennial travels among the stars. Currently, they are a member of the Hert Federation and their latest project is finding cures for the various plagues and virulent diseases that the Faberians and Nimians launched on each other during their "Final War".
Trallian League: This small race of humanoids are one of the most feared psionic aliens in the Three Galaxies; they enjoy abusing other alien beings with their long-range mental powers. Their mini-empire has been interdicted by various races for centuries but that hasn't stopped them from sporadically wreaking chaos across the galaxy. Once the Dionii Hive attacked and began overrunning the Golgan Republik, foolish Golgan ambassadors asked the Trallians to intervene on their behalf; they immediately did so, tricking entire fleets of enemy vessels to self destruct in various gruesome ways. They enjoyed the mayhem they have generated and their heinous efforts caused enormous suffering among the Dionii race. Their dreadful assistance is helpful in preventing the Republik from being totally overrun by the Bugs.
Travelling World: A huge starship (usually moving at sublight speeds and undoubtedly kilometers long) fully self-contained and ecologically stable that travels between the stars, most likely looking for a habitable world or new home to colonize. An example of this type of generation-ship is the Snee Interstellar Fleet of 14 vessels which arrived at the human world of Communion several years ago (the Snee have since been relocated into the low-population Okinawa Sector).
Tri-Species Combine: a interstellar polity located near the core of the Anvil Galaxy. The TCS is expanding slowly but quietly and has only been involved in one serious war, helping the Hert and the Virh fight against the Dionii hordes.
Tygokor Empire: a former slave races of the Nimians, this tiger-like race is extremely territorial and aggressive but currently they have no conflicts with their neighbors. The Tygokor have a deep-seated racial instinct to prove themselves on the battlefield and hundreds of thousand of them can be found fighting the nearby genocidal Dionii Hive.
Vanguard Dynasty: This wealthy family have been the movers and shakers on Mycos for generations. Their combined wealth is in the trillions of credits and they dominate much of the sectors' shipping. Their money, combined with their powerful influences in interstellar trade, make them a virtually untouchable dynasty.
Virh Federation: a minor-MDC humanoid race, the Virh look exactly like humans except for the lack of a pupil, and indeed they can cross breed with them. The Federation is mostly former Golgan territory and many races within it have happily joined the Virh after much oppression under their former Golgan masters. The Virh get along well with most of their neighbors and are helping the Hert in their war against the Dionii Hive by providing arms and testing new weapons on the battlefield.
Vitakinesis: a form of psionics which is the ability to accelerate and guide the bodys' healing process. This technique is taught only on Majipoor and is part of the Maronite religion; you must join the Church to learn this skill.
Weiji-do: WD is a virtual martial arts form that enables Kulu soldiers to better interface and use combat weapons and systems that depend heavily on computer support or military virtual interaction. WD, also known as "the Way of Manifestation" is taught to troops, especially marines and special forces, to help them think and interact effectively in a virtual space. WD meditation techniques and mental exercises enable a user to control thought more, and to precisely control a machine or weapon that they are connected to. Modern power armor and aerospace fighter operations rely heavily on virtual interfaces with their pilots, and WD training has shown a marked increase in accuracy and survival rates when used on the battlefield.
Wickerman Family: A wealthy and influential royal family from the planet Darkover. They have widespread ties with many worlds, and some say quite a few nefarious groups as well. They also have influential ties within the Lance Pattern underworld groups.
Wraith Space: a dangerous warped "underspace" that is traveled only by the most foolhardy, it is filled with ghostly spirit-like lifeforms like gremlins, wraiths, and warplings (also known as "the Foos"). Scientists insist the Foos are nothing but vivid hallucinations, but everyone who has spent enough time in their warped space knows better. Warplings, Foos, or demons, whatever you wanted to call them, are different. If you did enough warp jumps in a row, they spotted you and started giving chase. Getting killed on the battlefield was bad, but losing your soul in Wraith Space to a Foo was a lot worse. It was said they could torture your conscious mind and soul for eternity, which frightens most people away from their space. The immense increase in galactic speed was the only reason anyone traveled there and thousands of aliens go missing every year as they traversed that gruesome region of space.
Xenosilicates: Unknown on Phase World and only found on the waterworld Poseidon, these minerals lay on the ocean floor of the ocean. They have been established by Atlas Materials as unique geological form that has a wide range of extremely unusual properties, including the ability to arrest aging in humans as well as manipulate DNA chemistry with unprecedented accuracy and efficiency. Also known as "Long John", these silicates have been turned into life-extending medicines, mainly for the uber wealthy.
Xenoengineer: A high-tech scientist specializing in utilizing alien technologies, usually very advanced ones. These types of trouble-shooters are generally from wealthy worlds with very advanced technology. The Kobra Worlds civilian bureaucracy has a specialized team in this area.