Data File Updated: Wednesday, February 27, 2008

There are only three members of the Loroi Alliance that have their own military fleets: the Loroi Union (better known as the Loroi Empire), the Nissek Hegemony, and the Historians. The Loroi Union, however, comprises nine distinct alien races under the control of the Loroi military.

The Loroi Union was created at the end of the Third Mannadi War in an attempt to avoid further conflict between the growing power of the Loroi and the other races of the region. It is a federal system whereby each member acts as a province and manages most local affairs, but is subject to federal authority. Each member does not have its own military (though each does have its own police & patrol forces), but rather subordinates itself to the Loroi military, which acts as an executive entity. 

Race: Loroi
Affiliation: Union Member (Senior)
Biology: Loroi are slender, 150-180 cm tall, blue-skinned, elflike, telepathic bipedal creatures.
Notes: Though the Loroi are nominally just a member of the Union, both civilian and military Loroi authorities maintain almost complete control over nearly every aspect of Union affairs. Loroi delegates dominate the legislative Assembly itself, as the number of delegates for each province are proportional to population (and non-member subjugated aliens are counted as Loroi population for purposes of delegation). For this and other reasons, the Loroi Union is often referred to by aliens, Union members, and even occasionally by the Loroi themselves as the Loroi Empire. See main article: Loroi.

Race: Neridi
Affiliation: Union Member
Biology: Neridi are small 80-100cm tall blue-skinned bipedal creatures. They have large disc-like yellow eyes, elongated heads and large floppy ears. Like several races in the region, Neridi are very similar to Loroi biochemically, but quite different genetically and physiologically.
Notes: The Neridi are the closest of the Loroi allies, and have been since before the Do'zin War. Full members of the Union, Neridi have operated successfully and happily in the Loroi shadow as merchants and administrators. Neridi have thoroughly amalgamated into the culture of the Empire; they even use Loroi Trade as a primary language within their own borders. They are one of the few members to colonize new worlds since the creation of the Union, and have a significant presence in the Seren sector (the sector of conflict with the Umiak). Along with the Loroi, the Neridi have suffered greatly from Umiak aggression during the current war.

Race: Barsam
Affiliation: Union Member
Appearance: Large (2.3m), powerfully-built blue-skinned bipeds, Barsam are another member of the same biochemical classification (Soia-liron) as the Loroi and Neridi.
Notes: The Barsam were an independent race that voluntarily joined the Union at the end of the Third Mannadi War, even though they had no formal alliances or conflicts with any of the involved races. They have lived peacefully since, remaining a culturally distinct but loyal member of the Union. The Barsam have one of the few state-supported religions in the Union, and the Barsam Church often sends its troubadour-clerics on evangelical missions, especially to underdeveloped systems. In particular, Barsam missionaries are devoted to uplifting their Nibiren brothers. Although close allies of the Loroi, the Barsam are also a former warrior culture (though now nominally devoted to peace) and have a strong, independent spirit, and a form of rivalry between the two races sometimes is apparent.

Race: Pipolsid
Affiliation: Union Member
Biology: Fragile, radial-symmetry aquatic floaters.
Notes: The peaceful Pipolsid have been longtime Loroi allies, since before the days of the Mannadi wars. The delicate, semi-transparent Pipolsid require specialized life support to travel, as they cannot survive outside a liquid environment. They are nevertheless active members of the Union, have aquatic enclaves on many Union planets (including Taben, one of the Loroi Sister Worlds), and in particular contribute gifted, creative scientists to the Union. The Pipolsid are emotional, empathic creatures who, despite their radical alien nature, assimilate easily into alien societies. This together with the relative ease with which Loroi telepaths can read their thoughts has allowed a very close relationship between the Loroi and Pipolsid. Which is fortunate for the Loroi, since some key Loroi technologies (particularly drive systems) are largely the product of Pipolsid researchers.

Race: Golim
Affiliation: Union Member*
Biology: Hostile-environment lithovores. Quadruped.
Notes: Although technically a formal member of the Union, the Golim are in effect slaves to the Loroi, due to their extreme sensitivity to Loroi telepathy. Golim are so susceptible that one will be completely mesmerized and open to the will of any nearby Loroi, even if the Loroi is not consciously trying to influence the Golim. The Loroi for their part are embarrassed by this relationship, but the extreme Golim resistance to hostile environments make them invaluable workers, and they are one of the few alien races that are permitted to serve aboard Loroi warships. The Loroi have gone so far as to create areas of the Golim homeworld that are off-limits to Loroi, so as to keep a sort of "preserve" of free-thinking Golim.

Race: Do'zin
Affiliation: Subjugated Population
Appearance: Large (2m) furred mammalian bipeds. Do'zin are genetically very similar to the Skarbe, an Umiak client race in the North; it is believed both descended from the same prehistoric ancestors. The Do'zin are unusual among technological societies in that they continue to be exclusively carnivorous.
Notes: Once a proud warrior culture, the Do'zin were the first race to attack the Loroi and pay the price for failure. After losing a long series of hard-fought battles in space, the Do'zin fell back to their own territory, depending on their strong martial traditions to be able to repel Loroi planetary invasions. However, the Do'zin were utterly shocked to learn firsthand of the ruthless effectiveness of the Teidar and Mizol, the Loroi psionic warfare castes, and each planet fell quickly. Captured more or less intact, they have lived under Loroi occupation for 865 years. Although they are not permitted to govern their own affairs, they remain a distinct cultural unit, and out of respect the Loroi treat them as an honorary member of the Union, permitting them to send delegates and ambassadors to major functions (even though these delegates have no authority). Skilled craftsmen, the Do'zin contribute quality production infrastructure to the war effort.

Race: Mannadi
Affiliation: Subjugated Population
Biology: Bipedal with a stooped posture, having clawed hands and feet, ghost-white pocked flesh, large glassy black eyes, a spiky mane and a wide mouth rimmed with sharp teeth.
Notes: In their day, the Mannadi were bold explorers and adventurers who had built a small empire. Originally nominal allies of the Loroi, the Mannadi began a series of wars of aggression against several races that eventually drew them into direct conflict with the Loroi. The three bloody and bitter wars with the Loroi that followed would lead to the eventual fall of their nation. The growing hostility and sense of betrayal between the combatants resulted in some ghastly behavior by certain Loroi military entities at the conclusion of the last war, which left the Mannadi essentially destroyed as a civilization. When the Loroi finally occupied the Mannadi worlds, there was not much left of Mannadi infrastructure, and there was not much left of Loroi patience. When Mannadi insurgents bitterly fought the occupation, the Loroi simply wiped them out. The Mannadi are not spoken of in Loroi society, and they are not seen outside their designated territory, which is quarantined. Mannadi space is the main gateway to the territory of the Historians, but few travel this path. 

Race: Arekka
Affiliation: Partially-occupied Independent*
Biology: Tall and lanky tripeds, Arekka are partially covered with downy insulation that can be multicolored in a variety of patterns (which Arekka individuals devote a lot of attention to preening).
Notes: Generally considered to be weird, even by the most unusual of the other races, the Arekka allied with the Mannadi against the Loroi and were defeated. The Arekka currently are technically an independent government, but more than half their territory is under Loroi military occupation, and even the unoccupied portion is under severe Loroi-imposed restrictions. The Arekka have repeatedly refused to join the Union, and would rather live with the technical title of independents, even under harsh restriction, than admit to bowing to Loroi hegemony. On several occasions, the Loroi occupation force has suppressed public Arekka movements for self-determination. 

Race: Nibiren
Affiliation: Subjugated Population
Biology: Large bipeds.
Notes: The Nibiren (Loroi Trade for “farmers”) are a low-tech, single-planet society discovered by a Loroi colonial team. Nibiren have a Stone Age hunter-gatherer society, though some have been taught basic agricultural skills by Barsam missionaries. The Nibiren very closely resemble the Barsam, though the two are not at all related genetically or biochemically; the Barsam share basic biochemistry with other Soia-liron genotypes, whereas Nibiren biochemistry is almost certainly a local evolutionary development of their native planet. This physical similarity in the face of genetic and biochemical diversity has puzzled modern Union anthropologists. Though there have never been formal hostilities between Nibiren and Loroi, the Loroi do not consider the Nibiren sophisticated enough for self-governance, and they are technically classified as an occupied population. The Barsam church maintains a strong presence on Nibiren.

Race: Nissek
Affiliation: Independent Ally
Biology: Squat (1.2-1.5m) tailed bipeds, reptilian in appearance. Notoriously high-energy.
Notes: In a long-ago conflict with the nefarious Mannadi, the Nissek were once technically at war with the Loroi, even though they were on opposite ends of the sector and Nissek ships never met Loroi ships in combat. At the time of the formation of the Union, the Nissek refused to join but agreed to close trade relations and a military alliance. The Nissek do maintain a substantial military fleet, but use it to defend their own territory; even during the Umiak War, the Loroi maintain a substantial force near the Nissek border to keep an eye on them.

Race: Historians
Affiliation: Independent Ally
Biology: Tall (2.5-3m) pale, hairless, slender bipeds. Four manipulatory limbs (two major, two minor) in addition to the two ambulatory limbs.
Notes: The Historians are a very reclusive, high-tech race. Very little is known about them, as they do not permit even traders in their territory, and the Historians themselves rarely venture outside their own territory. Instead, the Historians send out Personality Constructs, which are "virtual" personalities designed to pilot ships and interact with aliens on the Historians' behalf. It is generally believed that the Historians were the first of the local species to resume starflight after the fall of the Soia Empire, and Historian vessels continue to crisscross the breadth of known space. The Historians had remained neutral in the Umiak War until the Umiak unexpectedly invaded Historian space in 2139. Even as allies, the Historians would not agree to even limited sharing of technology with the Loroi until 2141, when it became clear the Loroi forces were on the verge of collapse.