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The "face" of a Steltek over standard comm lines.
The Steltek (Cytisucimex rerumaconduxitpirata steltek) are an ancient race - perhaps the most ancient race to inhabit the galaxy. They ruled a galaxy-spanning empire long before Terrankind emerged on Earth; relics of a Steltek base found on Mars in the mid-27th Century were eventually dated to 2.4 billion years of age, and even then the Steltek were far more technologically advanced than any known starfaring race. They eventually retreated from the galaxy after bringing ruin upon themselves with their technology (possibly in a civil war). Before leaving, the Steltek attempted to destroy all of their technology so that developing races would not bring the same ruin upon themselves. However, some pockets of their technology still remain; a few Steltek remain in order to eliminate them whenever possible.
- Personality: What little that is known about the Steltek comes from an encounter between privateer Grayson Burrows and a Steltek scout craft in the Nitir system in late 2669. The transcript of this encounter was later sold to Dr. Lemuel Monkhouse, who was largely considered to be the foremost Terran expert on the Steltek. The Steltek appear to be a very "precise" race, speaking in unambiguous terms (despite an apparent distaste for use of the first person). They exhibit little more than tolerance for less advanced races but are not overtly hostile towards them either (otherwise they probably would've blasted Burrows from the stars outright). Their mission to eliminate pockets of their own technology from the universe wherever it exists seems to be driven out of genuine concern for the well-being of other races. Whether this indicates an altruistic or self-serving nature cannot be determined without further encounters, which are unlikely to happen in the near future. It is clear that the Steltek are not everywhere; otherwise they may have intervened when the Nephilim began their assault in the Epsilon Sector in 2691 after one of their artifacts was discovered.
- Physical Description: Again, a lot of what's known of the nature of the Steltek is from the Nitir encounter and not from direct contact; the following data is a "best guess" when it comes to their nature. The Steltek appear to be a race of "photosynthetic consumers", perhaps 1.5 meters tall and 40 kilograms or so in mass. They're probably bipedal but definitely irregularly shaped, with their bodies made up of a plant-like structure that exhibits rapid motility. It's assumed since their "mouth" was moving as they spoke in the Nitir encounter that they are capable of standard auditory communication, though they have no apparent sensory organs of any kind. A theory has been posited that the Steltek may in fact be partially psionic in nature, using some kind of brainwave translator to modulate their thoughts into sound and vice versa. They don't appear to be particularly strong but are obviously quite intelligent creatures. Any other information on their physical form is simply unknown, including how they are capable of movement and motor control, exact feeding and rest requirements, and mode of reproduction.
- Motor Appendages: 1 + 1d5
- Visual Organs: 2
- Field of Vision: Optimal 270 degrees forward, Peripheral 360 degrees.
- Auditory Organs: 1
- Olfactory Organs: 1
- Gustatory Organs: see Physical Description
- Propulsive Appendages: 2
- Reproductive Organs: Numerous
- Relations with Other Races: Steltek are reclusive, preferring to be completely uninvolved with less advanced species if at all possible but reluctantly making contact if the situation warrants it. There are some who believe that they have some kind of (probably antagonistic) relationship with the Nephilim, though there is little evidence to back up that claim.
- Territory: At one point, the Steltek held the entire galaxy under their dominion. These days they're confined to well-hidden enclaves, possibly located within a different space-time domain. As such, they don't hold territory as most species define it. Those that have tried to follow the Steltek to wherever it is they now call home haven't come back to tell the tale.
- Onomastikon: There hasn't been enough contact with the Steltek to establish almost anything about them. The field of Steltek onomastics in particular remains a complete mystery. In the one documented encounter with a Steltek craft in recent memory (the aforementioned encounter in the Nitir system), the commander of the Steltek craft merely identified himself as "Steltek". It is possible that the species has outgrown the need for names entirely but again there is no evidence either way. Editor's Note: For Steltek characters, roll 10d10 but do not sum up the result. Instead, the character's creator may arrange those numbers in any order they'd like and attach the result with a hyphen to the word "Steltek" as the character's name. An example Steltek name might look like "Steltek-3584192401".
- Motivation: The Steltek have only one reason to be out amongst the stars and that is to find whatever pockets of technology they have left behind and either retrieve or destroy it. Any Steltek encountered in normal space is on that mission and it's a Very Bad Idea to interfere with it.
- Basic Characteristics:
- Size Class: C4
- Base HP: 40
- Base HD: 52/55/47
- Physical Attribute Building Point Pool: 100
- Mental Attribute Building Point Pool: 150
- Discipline Building Point Pool: 280
- Genders: 1
- Life Stages: Adolescent at 30 years. Adult at 54 years. Middle age at 84 years. Old Age at 119 years. Venerable Age at 162 years.
- Lifespan: 170 + 1d% years.
- Height: 1.1 + (2d5 x 0.08) meters.
- Mass: 30 + (same 2d5 from height x 2.00) kilograms.
- Speed: Runner (Biped) - 5 kph (9 m/rd); 2 (short-range combat), 1/3 (long-range combat)
- Trade Value: ¤1,285
- Racial Abilities and Restrictions:
- Mental Blast. Angered Steltek are capable of releasing a powerful burst of energy, the exact nature of which is unknown. This counts as a Natural Weapon-Like Attack that inflicts 4*d10 points of Lethal Damage at a range of up to 125 meters in a circular area around the individual (use BHD).
- Mysterious, Powerful Nature. The Steltek are the stuff of legends; they have Reputation at +15 with all other races except the Nephilim.
- Masters of the Universe. The Steltek have mastered pretty much every field of expertise in existence and pass that information down to their progeny via racial memory; a beginning Steltek character automatically starts with 1d% points in Math Expert and/or any of the "Sense" Talents of their choice.
- Tells It Like It Is. Steltek are unambiguous and will not obfuscate the truth to achieve their goals; they have Honest at -20.
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