Mass Effect Batarian

**Name**: Batarian
**Dice**: 12D
**Dexterity**: 1D / 4D+2
**Knowledge**: 1D / 4D+2
**Mechanical**: 1D / 4D+2
**Perception**: 1D / 4D
**Strength**: 1D / 4D+2
**Technical**: 1D / 4D

**Move**: 10 / 12
**Size**: 1.39 - 1.98 m
**Weight**: 42 - 130 kg

**Special Abilities**:

* **Heightened Vision**: For Batarians it is possible to use their sets of eyes independently, giving them advantage while searching and reacting to abrupt situations. All Batarians have a +2D bonus to vision based Search.

**Description**: A race of four-eyed bipeds, the batarians are a disreputable species that chose to isolate itself from the rest of the galaxy. The Terminus Systems are infested with batarian pirate gangs and slaving rings, fueling the stereotype of the batarian thug. It should be noted that these criminals do not represent average citizens, who are forbidden to leave batarian space by their omnipresent and paranoid government. Slavery is an integral part of the batarian caste system, despite being illegal according to Council law. The custom is so deeply ingrained in batarian culture that batarians consider the Council's anti-slavery standing to be prejudicial. Rogue batarian slave rings are feared throughout the galaxy, especially among colonists on remote worlds, which are often raided by batarian slavers. Victims of such raids are usually implanted with control devices in their skulls, a painful operation since the slavers rarely make use of anesthetic. The batarians are also known to enslave addicts of the biotic drug red sand when they can no longer afford to support their habit.

Despite several disagreements with the Citadel and simmering hostility toward humans, most batarians prefer profitable pursuits such as drug running and slave grabs to out-and-out warfare. They have a reputation for being shrewd businessmen and merchants, though in more lawless regions of the galaxy like Omega, negotiations with a Batarian are likely to be conducted at gunpoint. In the early 2160s, humans began to colonize the Skyllian Verge, a region the batarians were already actively settling. The batarians asked the Citadel Council to intervene and declare the Verge an area of "Batarian Interest." When the Council refused, the batarians closed their Citadel embassy and severed diplomatic and economic relations, becoming an inward-looking rogue state. Money and weapons funneled from the batarian government to criminal organizations led to many brutal raids on human colonies in the Verge, culminating in the Skyllian Blitz of 2176, an attack on the human capital of Elysium by batarian funded pirates and slavers. In 2178, the Alliance retaliated with a crushing assault on the moon of Torfan, long used as a staging base by batarian backed criminals. In the aftermath, the batarians retreated into their own systems, and are now rarely seen in Citadel space. Body language is an important part of batarian society. For example, tilting one's head to the left is a sign of admiration and respect. When a batarian tilts his head to the right it is a sign that he is (or considers himself to be) superior to the one that the gesture was directed at. Therefore this gesture can also be interpreted as an insult. The rest of the galaxy views the batarians as an ignorable problem. Their government is still hostile to the Systems Alliance, but beneath the notice of the powerful Council races. It is not known what the average batarian thinks about their enforced isolation, as the Department of Information Control ensures that only government approved news enters or leaves batarian space. Given the batarian government's oppressive and totalitarian ideals, it is speculated
their supreme leadership is one of fascism or absolute monarchy. The batarians blame humanity for their troubles and claim they were forced to fend for themselves, despite the fact that their exile is largely self-imposed. However batarians still provide up-to-date glossaries and linguistic rules to the rest of the galaxy (allegedly so they can continue distributing propaganda). Possibly due to the prevalence of batarian criminal gangs, batarian languages have become lingua franca in the Terminus Systems.

**Personality**: Batarians place an extremely high value on social caste and appearance, and overstepping one's place is frowned upon. Casting aspersions on the monetary worth of a social better is considered a serious insult. Batarians strongly believe that species with fewer than four eyes are less intelligent; they often gain the upper hand in interspecies arguments because other races find it difficult to know which eyes to focus on when speaking to them.

**Physical Description**: Batarian faces are covered with short, fine hairs that grow longer and thicker around the mouth. Their most
distinctive physical feature is their four eyes, an uncommon trait among other races. Batarians also exhibit different skin tone colors:
while most encountered batarians are a dark, brown-red hue with pale facial ridges, at least one, Balak, has what appears to be a
black and yellow striped pigmentation with light green facial ridges.

**Homeworld**: Bataria Prime
**Religion**: Little is known about batarian religious beliefs. Treatment of the corpse is considered unimportant, unless the batarian's eyes have been removed by an enemy. It suggested that the batarians' religious beliefs are based on words from sacred texts.
**Biotics**: There are some known batarian biotics who are trained as shock troopers and sentinels.
**Example Names**: Balak, Charn Edan Had'dah Eluam Ran'perah Groto Ib-ba Jath'Amon Jella

**Source**:

* Mass Effect Wiki: Batarian
* Mass Effect d20 RPG (pages 19-20)
* thedemonapostle