Altarian Resistance

The **Altarian Resistance** is a Benevolent, Spiritual and Xenophobic major faction in *Galactic Civilizations III*. Drawing on their Ancient heritage, the Unwavering Altarians are very Clever (+2), Content (+2) and somewhat Influential (+1). The ships in their Organized (+1) fleets are Fast (+1) but quite Fragile (-2).

## Description

Altarians are a deeply religious race that are kind in their interaction with others, although a bit self-righteous. For unknown reasons, they are very similar in appearance to the Terrans.

The Altarians are a deeply religious race, and possess a unique history they claim was touched by powerful beings known as the Precursors. Kind and generous to a fault, their unique history means Altarians are prone to behaving more than a little self righteously when dealing with other, lesser races. For some as yet unexplained reason, Altarians appear almost identical in appearance to Terrans. Altarian prophecy has spoken of the day they would one day meet their cousins, but few know if that prophecy had anything to say about what would happen next.

## Characteristics

Altarians are careful researchers, generally content, and influential with their neighbors. Their ships are known for being fast but fragile, though they can organize large fleets of them when called upon.

The proud Altarians are three times as resistant to culture flipping and trace their heritage back to the precursors. By tapping into their Unrecognized icon name Unbroken Spirit, they can overcome the inherent fragility of their ships and take a decent beating in battle. They further their research upon investigating any anomaly and can eventually learn the ways of the precursors, potentially giving them a major technological advantage and enabling them to spread their influence through internal Unrecognized icon name Unity.

## Backstory

Altarians are a noble and ethical species. Outsiders consider them haughty because of the Altarian belief that their world played an important role in the Precursor wars. It doesn’t help that Altarians also flaunt their unique, native ability to manipulate cosmic energy.

Physically, Altarians look like humans – which caused a great deal of consternation when they first came into contact with Earth and the Terran Alliance. This commonality is the source of a great deal of mystery and legend, much of which revolves around the myth of a being of immense power (called a “Mithrilar”) that supposedly lived on Altaria at the dawn of life on that world. His presence altered the natural evolution which resulted in the evolution of the humanoid Altarian.

The rich and vivid history of Altaria far eclipses Earth’s own. The planet is a rich source of mysterious cosmic energy, over which the Precursors spent thousands of years battling for control. The Precursors eventually abandoned the planet, leaving the Altarians to build their own society.

Altaria was originally home to several different species. Multiple sentient species still exist today, but the first and oldest – the Drath – is now extinct on Altaria. Their tragic story is told elsewhere.

Altaria’s first contact with an alien species in the modern era was with Arcea. The Arceans transmitted plans to build a stargate and together, over a century, the Altarians constructed it and reaped the benefits of the resulting trade and commerce.

For reasons unknown, Altaria is uninhabitable for other species over long periods of time, even if they stay in environment suits. As a result, Altaria has not been the target of invasion by other interstellar species.

## Current Status

As a leading member of the coalition in the Dread Lord wars, the Altarians suffered greatly from the joint Drengin Empire and Yor surprise attack. No Altarian colonies survive, and Altaria itself has remained independent only by threatening to use various Precursor doomsday weapons upon any who would invade. The Altarians are now isolated on their home world, with a Yor containment fleet blockading their solar system.