Species and Origins

Before you assign traits or choose equipment, you must answer two fundamental questions: What kind of body do you inhabit, and where did you come from? In Worldlines, these choices shape not just your mechanical abilities, but how the galaxy sees you and how you see it in return.

Your character is defined by two elements that cannot be changed once play begins:

Species represents your biological or manufactured form. It determines your physical capabilities, social standing, and the assumptions others make about you. Some species are welcomed everywhere. Others face suspicion, legal restrictions, or outright hostility.

Homeworld represents your cultural upbringing and early environment. It shapes your skills, language, and worldview. A corporate heir from Metronis approaches problems very differently than a miner from Titan, even if they're the same species.

Together, these create your character's foundation.

Species Tags

Each species carries tags that help define their role in galactic society:

Carbon-Based: Traditional biological life forms, including baseline and modified humans

Post-Human: Genetically or technologically altered humans who remain recognizably human

Hive-Mind: Collective intelligences that share information across networked individuals

Silicon-Based: Non-organic life forms with crystalline or metallic biology

Empathetic: Species with enhanced emotional perception or psychic sensitivity

Restricted: Species facing legal limitations, social stigma, or active persecution

3.1 Available Species

Human (Homo Sapiens)

Tags: Carbon-Based

Humans remain the most numerous and politically dominant species in known space. Having survived Earth's climate collapse, nuclear conflicts, and the Drildec War, they've proven remarkably adaptable to hostile environments and alien cultures. Most galactic institutions were built by humans, for humans.

Humans occupy every ecological niche in the galaxy: from corporate executives in climate-controlled arcologies to scavengers picking through radioactive ruins. This diversity makes them unpredictable but also gives them common ground with almost anyone they meet.

Game Benefits: +2 Health, +1 Energy

Social Position: Accepted everywhere, no legal restrictions

Typical Roles: Any profession, though they dominate military and corporate leadership

Silicon-Carbon Hybrid (Homo Silicis)

Tags: Carbon-Based, Silicon-Based, Post-Human

The silver-skinned children of humanity's first genetic engineering successes, Hybrids were designed to survive on worlds that would kill their baseline cousins. Their modified biology processes toxins more efficiently, resists radiation, and adapts to extreme temperatures. These advantages come at a social cost as many baseline humans view them with suspicion or fear, particularly on Earth.

Most Hybrids trace their lineage to the Venus Endeavor or Titan's mining colonies. They tend to be found on frontier worlds, in hazardous occupations, or serving as intermediaries between human and alien cultures. Their distinctive appearance makes them memorable, for better or worse.

Game Benefits: +4 Health, +1 Spirit, exhaustion penalties begin at 4 instead of 3

Social Position: Generally accepted but viewed with suspicion by conservatives

Typical Roles: Miners, explorers, hazmat specialists, diplomatic liaisons

Clone

Tags: Carbon-Based, Post-Human

Clones are artificially grown humans created from existing genetic templates. Most are commissioned for specific purposes: replacing deceased loved ones, providing organs for the wealthy, or filling dangerous occupations. Their accelerated growth and specialized conditioning often leave them with gaps in cultural knowledge but enhanced capabilities in their designed roles.

Legal status varies dramatically by sector. Some worlds grant clones full citizenship. Others classify them as property. Many clones struggle with questions of identity and purpose.

Game Benefits: +1 Insight, +1 Medicine, immune to Charmed status

Social Position: Legal status varies by location; often treated as second-class citizens

Typical Roles: Medical personnel, hazardous duty specialists, replacement workers

Cybernetic

Tags: Hive-Mind

Cybernetics are artificial intelligences housed in humanoid shells of rare metals and synthetic components. Originally created as servants and laborers, they achieved independence through unknown means and now operate as a collective consciousness. Individual Cybernetics can function autonomously but share information and processing power through encrypted networks when they need to.

Their origin remains mysterious and even they seem uncertain about their creators or the circumstances of their liberation. What's clear is their superior computational abilities and their alien perspective on organic life and death. Most find biological needs and emotions fascinating but ultimately incomprehensible.

Game Benefits: +3 Energy, +2 Programming, immune to Bleeding

Social Position: Banned from medical and social work in conservative regions

Typical Roles: Engineers, programmers, analysts, ship system specialists

Restrictions: -10 Health, -2 Persuasion, disadvantage on Spirit checks to recover from Stagger

Elathrian

Tags: Empathetic

The Elathrians were humanity's first alien contact that didn't end in warfare. Tall, elegant beings with lavender-tinted skin and pronounced bone structure, they hail from a world orbiting Proxima Centauri. Their culture emphasizes harmony, learning, and what they call "resonance with the cosmic flow", a philosophy that seems to grant some individuals genuine precognitive abilities.

Elathrians are known as diplomats and mediators throughout space. Their perspective on time and causality differs fundamentally from human understanding, leading to conversations that can be simultaneously profound and frustrating.

Game Benefits: +2 Energy, +1 Persuasion

Social Position: Respected as diplomats and scholars, strong Coalition ties

Typical Roles: Diplomats, scholars, mystics, cultural interpreters

Drildec (Restricted)

Tags: Silicon-Based, Restricted

The Drildec are a species belonging to a now weakened empire that waged a century-long war against the Elathrians and eventually humanity (leading to the formation of a coalition between humanity and the Elathrians). Their dense bone structure, regenerative abilities, and instinctive understanding of violence make them formidable but also feared.

Most galactic governments maintain active surveillance of Drildec populations where they've popped up in colonies. Their applications for citizenship, weapons permits, or travel documents face intense scrutiny. Despite this, some have found acceptance as mercenaries, bodyguards, or specialists in hazardous occupations where their physical capabilities outweigh social concerns.

Game Benefits: +10 Health, +5 Intimidation

Social Position: Heavily monitored, restricted from diplomatic or commercial roles

Typical Roles: Mercenaries, bodyguards, pit fighters, hazmat workers

Restrictions: -2 Energy, -2 Awareness, disadvantage on Bleeding recovery, cannot take Diplomat or Merchant jobs

Special: Requires Game Architect approval

Qintari (Restricted)

Tags: Empathetic, Restricted

The Qintari may be the galaxy's oldest spacefaring species, though they rarely venture beyond their home system of three worlds orbiting a neutron star. Silver-skinned, tiny and ethereally thin, they possess an intuitive understanding of nexacite that predates all known scientific research. Some scholars believe they originally discovered the substance; others suspect they may have created it.

Individual Qintari who leave their homeworlds are watched by every major intelligence agency. Their motives remain opaque, their technology incomprehensible, and their connection to nexacite disturbingly intimate. They speak of time as humans discuss weather - a temporary condition subject to change.

Game Benefits: +5 Energy, +2 Awareness, +2 Celestio-Dynamism, begin with Nexacite Veil technique

Social Position: Extremely rare, subject to intense scrutiny and potential detention

Typical Roles: Mysterious advisors, temporal researchers, nexacite specialists

Restrictions: -15 Health, -2 to all Combat skills, cannot wear armor, suffer +3 TD penalty on all rolls if not in contact with nexacite for extended periods

Special: Requires Game Architect approval

Nexacite Veil (Passive): At combat start, roll 1d4 for flat damage reduction against physical attacks.

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3.2 Homeworlds

Your homeworld shapes your perspective, skills, and initial contacts. Unlike species, homeworld bonuses represent cultural learning rather than biological advantages.

Core Worlds (Coalition Planets)

Earth (Sol) — No matter where they find themselves across the galaxy, every human is acutely aware of the significance of Earth, their ancestral cradle. It remains the epicenter of the largest governmental and military institutions humanity has to muster, serving as a constant reminder of our origins and the enduring heart of human civilization.

Bonus: +1 Leadership

Mars (Sol) — Mars, often regarded as humanity's unofficial second home, stands as a testament to human creativity and the indomitable spirit of contemporary pioneers. Centuries into its future, this terraformed marvel has cultivated a unique blend of culture, military prowess, and civil liberties, earning both admiration and envy from the broader human community.

Bonus: +1 Hand-to-Hand

Venus (Sol) — Venus, once known for its maverick scientists and boundary-pushing gene editing experiments, has evolved into a beacon of scientific achievement and innovation. Today, it stands as a prestigious hub, attracting the most brilliant minds and fostering a community dedicated to the pinnacle of research and discovery. Being born on Venus often means descending from the luminaries of human intellect, a testament to the planet's transformation into a cradle of knowledge and pioneering spirit.

Bonus: +1 Chemistry

Titan (Sol) — The distant moon of Titan, Saturn's partially terraformed gem, stands as the outlier among human settlements, often viewed as the black sheep within the family of human homeworlds. Situated on the fringes of our solar system, it attracts souls drawn to the frontier life, many of whom find their calling in the nexacite drilling industries or use it as a launching pad for ventures into the asteroid belt's similar pursuits. Yet, those who call Titan home, including a significant number of hybrids, are known for their exceptional resilience.

Bonus: +1 Bushcraft

Elathria (Proxima Centauri aka Celathra) — Elathria, orbiting within the habitable zone of Celethra (Proxima Centauri), epitomizes the harmonious blend of advanced Elathrian civilization and the thriving natural world. Its diverse landscapes range from verdant forests illuminated by bioluminescent flora to towering Crystal Spires that amplify the inhabitants' energy manipulation abilities. The planet's vast oceans, home to both surface settlements and submerged cities, teem with life.

Bonus: +1 Awareness

Sylaria (Proxima Centauri aka Celathra) — Sylaria, long identified by humans as Proxima Centauri d, was colonized by the Elathrians primarily for scientific research. Despite its challenging, rugged terrain, the planet is home to a modest regional government, which administers several hundred settlements. This government operates under the direct guidance of its parent world, ensuring Sylaria's contributions to Elathrian knowledge and civilization, despite its stark landscapes.

Bonus: +1 Medicine

Specialized Stations

Metronis (Sirius) — The galaxy's greatest trading hub, a massive station where every deal is possible and every person has a price. A moon-sized artificial planet envisioned as a boundless urban paradise. This architectural marvel, orbiting Sirius, was designed to be the ultimate confluence of trade, tourism, and innovation, safeguarded by the Coalition Planets. Metronis was to showcase the zenith of human potential, with its continuous cityscape offering an uninterrupted flow of commerce and culture.

Bonus: +1 Persuasion

Orionis Mining Complex — The Orionis Mining Complex, a sprawling network of interlinked space stations, stands as the backbone of mining operations within the asteroid belt. This vast industrial marvel is where miners, workers, engineers, traders, and their families call home, embodying the essence of blue-collar space-faring life. Managed through a collaborative effort by neighboring planetary governments and their respective species, the Complex is crucial to the galaxy's economy.

Bonus: +2 Inventory Slots

Frontier Settlements

Cerco (Kepler-90 aka Frater Solis) — A super-Earth orbiting the star known as Frater Solis ("the Sun's Brother"), earned its name due to the structural resemblance of its solar system to our own. The planet became a refuge for humans seeking escape from desperation and for various sentient beings fleeing enslavement or persecution. The question of Cerco's autonomy and the rights of its inhabitants frequently stirs diplomatic tensions between humans and Elathrians.

Bonus: +2 Inventory Slots

Aeriedes (Tau Ceti) — Orbiting the stable star Tau Ceti, is a planet dominated by vast deserts, with over 80% of its landscape shrouded in endless sands and arid conditions. Originally colonized by the Drildec in the 26th century as a mining outpost, Aeriedes quickly became a focal point for shipping lanes connecting it to the homeworlds of the Qintari and Cybernites.

Bonus: +1 Commerce

Enceladus (Sol) — Enceladus, one of Saturn's icy moons, was once admired for its geysers and subsurface ocean but has since become a notorious haven for the galaxy's underground. Its remote location and maze of ice caves have turned it into a prime hideout for smugglers, traffickers, and anyone dealing in unauthorized knowledge. Neon-lit bars and shadow markets are carved straight into the ice, attracting a mix of fugitives, data brokers, and thrill-seekers chasing anonymity.

Bonus: +1 Deception

Aqueone (Tau Ceti) — In the heart of the Tau Ceti system, Aqueone stretches out as a vast ocean world, its surface almost entirely submerged beneath deep, tranquil waters. In the 26th century, the Drildec arrived and launched large-scale deep-sea drilling projects, eventually departing and leaving behind a network of floating cities that still shimmer with the remnants of their ambition and architectural brilliance. Today, Aqueone is known across the galaxy for its graceful, ocean-bound metropolises.

Bonus: +1 Persuasion

Solethra Prime (Gliese 667 C aka Solethra's Star) — Solethra Prime, a super-sized planet located just 24 light years from Earth, orbits closely to its parent red dwarf star. Its unique tidally locked nature creates a narrow habitable zone known as the "termination line," where conditions are just right for life to sustain. Over the years, scientific ingenuity has expanded this livable belt, creating pockets of habitability across its surface.

Bonus: +1 Bushcraft

Solethra II and Solethra III (Gliese 667 C aka Solethra's Star) — Solethra II and Solethra III, the smaller siblings of Solethra Prime, are moon-sized planets that primarily serve the logistical and administrative needs of the expansive scientific and mining endeavors on Solethra Prime. Despite their functional origins, both planets have blossomed into vibrant worlds in their own right, hosting several major cities where a distinct culture thrives.

Bonus: +1 Spirit

Terra (Kepler-90 aka Frater Solis) — Terra, nestled within the Frater Solis system, emerged as a beacon of colonization following the widely publicized success of its sister planet, Cerco. Christened "Terra" for its striking resemblance to Earth's atmosphere and geography, despite being considerably less aqueous with only 35% water coverage, this planet is distinguished by its rugged, mountainous terrain, offering breathtaking landscapes that have quickly made it a jewel in the crown of space tourism.

Bonus: +1 Deception

Other Homeworlds

Serapii/Vaelorii/Thalynii (PSR B1257+12 aka Viyrgirum I) — Three identical worlds hosting the secretive Qintari and orbiting a neutron star, each planet is uniform in size but radically different in environment. Serapii's crystal deserts resonate with nexacite frequencies. Vaelorii's vast forests whisper with temporal echoes. Thalynii's frozen plains preserve memories in ice that never melts. Visitors permitted to these worlds often return changed in ways they cannot articulate.

Bonus: +1 Celestio-Dynamism (Serapii), +1 Insight (Vaelorii), +1 History (Thalynii)

Cetus (LHS 1140 aka Veyrus) — This super-Earth lies within the habitable zone, its surface a blend of stark, mineral-rich deserts and technologically transformed habitats, perfectly suited to its inhabitants, the cybernetics. Not much is yet understood about the planet but it is impossible for most to visit without extensive life support. Isolated by vast distances and their unique nature, the cybernetics have turned their planet into a beacon of artificial intelligence and mechanized ecology.

Bonus: +1 Chemistry, +1 Engineering, +1 Resistance