Pug

"Long ago we tried to resist the Pug," the Quarg says [...] "In retribution, they broke one of our rings. The rings are our most precious creations, nearly impossible to destroy, but the Pug know how to twist and cut the fabric of space itself."
- Quarg on Lagrange, mission: Visit the Quarg (FW Pug 3: Quarg)
The Pug are an enigmatic race of aliens hailing from a distant galaxy. They are notable in that they change their level of technology to match the race they are currently fighting, and that they treat war as a game; not for any tangible goal, but rather as a lesson or to prove a point, and their war with humanity has not been the first time we know that they have intervened in a species' affairs directly. The Quarg say that the Pug have the ability to move and destroy ringworlds and possess technology that not even the Drak have control of.
== History ==
Next to nothing is known about the Pug; the Quarg state that they are extragalactic in origin. At some point, the Quarg and the Pug went to war, but the Quarg lost, resulting in a ringworld being taken as a trophy. The Pug also have had "disagreements" with the Drak.
The Pug appear to organize themselves into different "teams", operating for different purposes, for their own mysterious ends. The Pug in Deneb are only one group, who are focused on influencing the development of humanity. What their goal is, is not known, but it is implied that after they are driven from Deneb, the Pug are still continuing to influence humanity behind the scenes.
During the Alpha Wars, the Pug gave the Deep the technology of Beam Lasers, and covertly piloted ships in the Deep's fleets. These lasers and ships would prove to be the decisive factor in the Alpha Wars. They also claimed to have "helped" humanity many times before, in relation to the Alphas. The Pug are remembered in the Deep as "the elven folk".
== Attributes ==
The Pug are oddly proportioned, with long arms and legs but short, barrel-shaped torsos and large heads, and although they only have two legs, their gait is vaguely insectoid. Their blood is milky-blue.
Their ships tend to use flowing, spiked shapes; as a result, they appear somewhat more natural than most other species' ships.
= Deneb Pug =
"Those of your worlds and your people who have shown themselves unable to live peacefully, we must govern, to teach them peace. Any who attack us, we must destroy, because we are the bringers of peace, and whoever attacks us is not on the side of peace."
- Pug on Pugglemug, mission: Bring News to Earth (FW Pug 3)
"War is a game to the Pug," the Quarg says. "They are a strange species. Even if they start a war, their goal may not be to win it, but to lose in a certain way [...] If they want war, you must play their game, and if you play their game, they may allow you to win."
- Quarg on Lagrange, mission: Visit the Quarg (FW Pug 3: Quarg)
The Deneb Pug use Tier 1 ships during their invasion of Human space.
== Technology ==
=== Ships ===
Light Warship
* Pug Zibruka
Medium Warship
* Pug Enfolta
Heavy Warship
* Pug Maboro
=== Outfits ===
Weapons
* Pug Zapper and Turret
* Pug Seeker
* Pug Anti-Missile
Power
* Pug ships have built in power generation, and therefore do not have any power outfits.
Systems
* Jump Drive
Engines
* Akfar Thrusters and Steering
* Cormet Thrusters and Steering
* Lohmar Thrusters and Steering
Hand to Hand
* Pug Biodefenses
* Pug Peacekeeping Staff 
= Pug Iyik Pug =
The Pug Iyik Pug oversee the restoration of worlds by the Wanderers. They are a different "team" to the Deneb Pug and do not overlap or have any "jurisdiction" in human space, and don't know about the Alphas. Their attitude to the player is willful ignorance or condescension.
They use Tier 3 Pug Arfectas to defend Wanderer space from the invading Unfettered Hai, but also use all the ships and technology possessed by the Deneb Pug. Two Pug Arfectas are enough to stop the entire Unfettered advance.
These Pug are aware, or have participated in, a disagreement with the Archons relatively recently, which the Archons apparently lost. Afterwards, they explain to the player in multiple ways how "depressed" and "mopey" the Archons are today.
== Technology ==
=== Ships ===
Medium Warship
* Pug Arfecta
=== Outfits ===
Weapons
* Pug Gridfire Turret
* Tier 3 Anti-Missile
== Interspecies relations ==
In general, the Pug are somewhat apathetic towards other species; this is likely due to their opinion of themselves as being far more advanced than any other race.
* Human - The Pug do not have any special opinion of humanity, although for a time they seemed to be directly opposed to humans, going so far as invading and cordoning off a section of Human space. They also seem to have shared some of their technology with the Deep during the Alpha Wars.
* Hai - It is unknown how the Pug view the Hai, as they have never interacted with them.
* Unfettered Hai - The Pug are currently opposed to the Unfettered, as the Unfettered are currently invading Wanderer space. This goes directly against the wishes of the Pug, as they control the Eye, allowing the Wanderers to move through the galaxy.
* Korath Exiles - The Pug have not yet interacted with the Korath Exiles, as far as we know.
* Kor Efreti - The Pug have not yet interacted with the Kor Efreti, as far as we know.
* Kor Mereti - The Pug have not yet interacted with the Kor Mereti, as far as we know.
* Kor Sestor - The Pug have not yet interacted with the Kor Sestor, as far as we know.
* Coalition - While it's not known if the Pug have ever contacted either the Saryds, the Kimek or the Arachi, the Quarg's fear of the Pug sharing hull repair technology with the Arachi was the main cause of the Coalition's birth, as their angered reaction led to the three races uniting against them.
* Builders - It's not known whether the Pug ever contacted the Builders, but through the Wanderers they revitalized the planets around their homeworld hundreds of thousands of years ago. The planet they oversaw the terraforming from was likely Kaeyin.
* Quarg - Both races fought a war with each other at an unknown point in the past, which left at least one ringworld destroyed and taken as a trophy. Relations remain unfriendly, with the Quarg refering to the Pug as "despicable" or "insufferable". In one mission a Pug states, "We are in fact on blowing-each-other-up terms with them."
* Wanderers - The Pug have a special relationship with the Wanderers; the entire race seems to be a pet project of theirs, traveling around through different galaxies and restoring planets. The Wanderers treat the Pug like gods, and call them the "Keepers".
* Drak - The Pug are hostile towards the Drak and will attack them on sight; however, they also view the Drak with pity, as the Drak have failed to prevent the extinction of several species.
== Trivia ==
* The Pug, as well as their pet race, are the only known species in the game to originate from a galaxy other than the Milky Way.
* The Pug are the only known race to have ships which definitively span multiple tiers.
* The Pug are the easiest race to farm Jump Drives from.
* The broken ring referred to in the quote at the top can be located through the wormhole that appears at the end of the main campaign.
Category:Species
Category:Pug
Category:Faction