Startopia features 9 different races and several minor races and unique characters.
Virtual Artifical LifeformThe Virtual Artifical Lifeform, or VAL, is the player's servant and the robotic assistant, helping administrate station operations with a biting wit and a sense of humour drier than the Kasvagorian homeworld.
Arona DaalAn infamous merchant who makes the rounds around the player stations local area, selling a wide variety of wares at high prices and even offering a few highly exotic items.
- Chekhov's Gun: He mentions selling old mucous wine early in the game, and mucous wine is suspected as the cause of the Zedem diplomats illness in the climax of the first mission and turns up as a cause of illness after that. He even tries to offer the player some mucous wine, nouveaux, but admits he doesn't drink it either.
- He Who Must Not Be Seen: Until the ending
- Honest John's Dealership: And HOW!
- Ho Yay: Some of his remarks to the player seem oddly homoerotic. See below, for some rather disturbing implications, or a possible explanation for his affection..
- Intrepid Merchant
- Loan Shark: Subverted. He will loan the player some funds in the event of an energy crisis, but his interest rates are extremely low.
- Luke, I Am Your Father: In the ending. Especially odd, when you consider VAL implies the player is an Earth human.
The Groulien Salt HogsA race of salt of the earth, porcine aliens with a Protestant work ethic and a mind for employment as soldiers, recycling plant and factory workers. Their leading organisation is the Groulien Workers Party.
- Beware the Nice Ones: The salt hogs don't look like much, but they're all armed and can fight almost as well as Kasvagorians (and are a lot cheaper to hire en masse). Their version of Christmas involves handling out a random selection of toxins to the kids alongside some gifts (apparently to teach them that life isn't fair) and the last Administrator who failed them was fed to a flesh-eating intestinal parasite.
- British Accents: Their grunting language is translated into Cockney for the benefit of the player. Space Cockney.
- Crapsack World: Like the quarians, the fluff for Salt Hogs explains that most of their worlds are all giant Generation Ships that are constantly falling apart, which requires the race to be....
- Mr. Fixit: A Planet of Hats example.
- Pig Man
The GreysA race that formerly indulged in cattle mutilation and alien abduction, but has now turned to peaceful medical endeavours, help cure the citizens of the galaxy in the aftermath of a great war. Their leading organisation is the
Grey Council.
The Zedem MonksA race dedicated to an ascetic religion worshipping a wrathful deity called Zedem. Apparently, one of the most prominent figures in the Zedem movement is, or was, Father Zederous. Their leading organisation is the Zedem Conclave.
- Crystal Dragon Jesus: Zedem seems like a Straw Deity for the Old Testament God.
- Saintly Church: For all their traditionalism and moralising, the Zedem Monks are peaceful, take their asceticism seriously. and show genuine concern for their fellow sentients' spiritual well-being.
- Science Is Wrong: They do not get on with the empirical Turakken.
- Sex Is Evil: They get the least enjoyment out of the Love Nest and the love-producing Oroflex, as well as feuding with the Sirens.
- The Zedem will, unless severely deprived, instead try to fulfil their 'love' need by praying at the temple, which actually does provide them with a small bonus (moreso if they are absolved by a resident monk). Go figure.
- The Fundamentalist
The Grekka TargA race of communications specialists and techno geeks regarded as smug and arrogant by other races. In actuality, they are largely dull and uninteresting, due to their hive mind and social structure. Their leading organisation is the Targ Collective.
- The Generic Guy: They have no particular advantages or disadvantages species wise, other than being able to fight, manning comm stations, having a preference for cold and dry environments and giving half the normal satisfaction in conversation.
- Insufferable Genius, Jerkass: Their reputation.
- Insectoid Aliens
- No Social Skills: Nobody really likes to talk with them.
- Stalker Without A Crush: Within the constraints of the game, criminal Targs simply slow down the rate that passing space ships are located / communicated with, the 'fluff' is that they use your station's communication and observation tools to spy on anyone they feel like.
- Terse Talker: Messages from targ traders indicate they talk like this.
Dahanese SirensA race of winged, scantily clad, beautiful humanoids. The only race in the game to have two genders, though the difference is purely aesthetic. Their leading organisation is the Siren Academy.
The KasvagoriansA race of tall, spikey shouldered
Proud Warrior Race Guys with a passion for battle and skill to boot. Their leading organisation is the Kasvagorian Kingdom.
- The Big Guy:
- Genius Bruiser: They man the command centre, the complex nerve center for your station's entire defense network.
- They apparently spend most of their time in there playing pong, if the screens are any indication.
- Proud Warrior Race Guy
- Shifting Sand Land: On the Biodeck, Kasvagorians love High-Heat, Low-Humidity climates common to this sort of Land.
- Spikes of Villainy: Inverted, as they are the only characters with spikes in the game.
The KarmaramaA race of hippies and botanists who like nothing more than to spend their days in harmony with nature. Their leading organization is the Karmarama Commune.
The TurakkenA two headed race of scientists and researchers. They also have a strong desire for love. Their leading organisation is the Turakken Committee.
- Horny Scientist: They have the highest love need of any of the races.
- Multiple Head Case: Both literally and figuratively. When asked if they need anything, often each head will motion differently until they look at each other and agree. Which is probably why they make such good scientists. Each individual has two opinions, which allows for more ideas to be explored.
- The Smart Guy
The Polvakian Gem SlugsA
Hutt like green and yellow-white skinned race with unimaginable amounts of wealth. Their leading organisation is the Polvakian Aristocracy.
- Ascended Glitch: There's a bar/bathhouse specifically for Gem Slugs. Occasionally, a Gem Slug will 'freeze' while sitting in one of the baths, completely frozen, while the game still calculates its dropping health, hunger, and happiness traits. The developers caught it, but thought it appropriate that Gem Slugs would occasionally neglect their own health while taking care of being happy.
- Power Floats: They use power chairs to get around.
- Shout-Out: To the Hutts, of Star Wars. A decadent, wealthy sluggish race that requires artificial levitation to float around?
- Solid Gold Poop: When happy, they excrete a jeweled material called Turdite, which is worth great amounts.
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