The salarians are a reptillian species native to the planet Sur'Kesh. They are most recognized for their observational skills and their non-liner thinking -- these skills tend to make salarians superb in the fields of espionage and scientific research.
Physiology[]
Salarians are an amphibious species of bipeds. They are tall and slender, with long and thin heads that culminate in two horns comprised mostly out of cartilage. The entire salarian body contains considerably more cartilage than most sapient species.
Salarian blood has a greenish color to it, whereas salarian skin and eyes have a great degree of variety in their coloration. Salarian skin is most often shades of blue or grey, but can also be seen in brighter hues of greens and reds. Salarian irises can be dark green, purple, red, blue, or brown -- with pupils that appear to be a wide horizontal slit. They are capable of seeing ultraviolet and the short-wave end of the light spectrum. Instead of eyelids, salarians have a thin membrane. As a result, salarians blink upwards. Salarians also roll their eyes as a means to protect them from irritating particles or dryness in the air, rather than as any sort of indication of emotion.
Salarians have an extremely high metabolism. This permits them to function only one arn of sleep per solar day. The metabolism drives a faster-paced mind and body, making salarians seem hyperactive to most other species. Meanwhile, salarians view most other species as sluggish. Salarians think fast, talk fast, and move fast. Unfortunately, this also means salarians have a shorter lifespan than most other spacefaring species -- a salarian older than 40 cycles is very rarely found.
Salarians have a photographic memory. They will rarely forget a fact. This also contributes to the "imprinting" that they do as youth -- salarians will inherently defer to those they knew as youth simply because of the memories they share.
Reproduction[]
The salarian sex drive is not hormone based. Salarians do not engage in sex for pleasure -- although they are sometimes attracted to asari, they are not susceptible to the pheromones of female Orions. There are few, if any, romantic relationships among salarians.
A salarian female will lay a clutch of dozens of eggs once each cycle. The fertilized eggs produce female salarians, the unfertilized eggs produce male salarians. Social codes discourage the fertilization of the majority of the eggs, and as a result 90% of the salarian population is male. These codes also indicate who is able to fertilize eggs.
The eggs hatch in the midst of solemn ritual. Dalatrasses of the mother's and father's clans are present when fertilized eggs hatch. In this way, it is ensured that the young female salarians will imprint evenly on both clans and loyalty will not be divided. Unfertilized eggs are isolated with the Dalatrass of the mother's clan, so the the young male salarians will defer to her wishes.
History[]
Salarians originally developed into a very primitive state, where they remained for many thousands of years. They were considered "lizard people," and were looked down on by the Protheans -- who even considered their body parts delicacies. Protheans preferred eating parts of salarians while the victim was still alive, as the fear was believed to add "spice" to the flavor.
Eventually, however, the salarians developed their own technologies and expanded into the stars. They colonized several worlds, building the settlements of Aegohr, Mannovai, and Jaëto -- which would remain centers of salarian society for centuries to come.
The salarians found their way to the Citadel only a few decades after the asari. They became one of the founding species of the Citadel Council. In a gesture of goodwill and trust, they opened up records regarding the League of One -- in turn, the League slew the leaders of the Salarian Union. In response, the members of the League were hunted down and killed.
The advanced technology of the salarians proved an invaluable asset for the Citadel Council. In an early effort to create a standing military for the Citadel Council, they genetically manipulated the Yautje -- creating both the Nausicaans and the Kradin, though neither ultimately proved controllable enough to be of use. They later used their superior technology to provide the krogan with new technologies and a new homeworld so that they could be manipulated into helping defeat the rachni. This proved a success -- but directly led to the Krogan Rebellion. The salarians developed the genophage that the turians unleashed upon the species.
Culture[]
Salarians value invention and will use cutting edge technology, even if it is unreliable. They frown upon brute force in all situations, preferring more sophisticated systems.
Salarians have a reputation for being manipulative and underhanded. However, to them, spying and intelligence gathering -- particularly when it comes to other species -- is a matter of course and should be expected. They do not view their actions as underhanded in any respect.
Salarians seldom keep secrets from each other -- and only do so for two reasons: personal or guilt-based reasons, which often leads to suspicion; or secrets considered dangerous. Body language that salarians never learn to fake or imitate indicates which reason is behind a secret that a salarian may not want to share.
Though female salarians are rare, they wield great respect and power. They are typically cloistered away on salarian controlled planets. Females are often the influential diplomats and politicians, directing matters of policy. The leaders of each clan -- the Dalatrasses -- are always female. Though males can advance to positions commanding respect in business and in military matters, they seldom expand into the political realm. The exception to this rule is Valern -- a male representative of the salarians to the Citadel Council in 2983 CE.
An off-shoot of salarians, the Lystheni, are outsiders of salarian society. The reasons for their exile are unknown to those outside of the two groups, but the Lystheni are not welcome in territories under the jurisdiction of the Citadel Council. They are often found amongst batarians or exile quarians at Omega.
Traditions[]
The full names of salarians are quite long and, in order, indicate the individual's homeworld, nation, city of birth, district, clan name, and finally their given name. In short form, a salarian might answer to their clan name or their given name.
The first day of the salarian new year, Betau, is a holiday celebrated by nearly all salarians. It marks the end of the winter season on Sur'Kesh. On this holiday they repay debts and petition others for favors.
Government[]
The government of the salarians is the Salarian Union. It is a convoluted web of matrilineal bloodlines forged through interbreeding and political alliances.
Salarians are broken into clans, which are in turn broken into circles. Each clan is led by a matriarch or Dalatrass. The clan's circles are then broken up as follows: First Circle - a salarian's parents, siblings, uncles, aunts, and first cousins; Second Circle - second cousins, etc; and so on. By the fourth or fifth circle a clan can number from thousands to millions of members. A salarians first loyalty is always to the first circle, and diminishes as the circles expand.
Economy[]
Salarian economy is minimal compared to many other Citadel species and is based solely around the sale and use of the highest of high technology.
Military[]
The salarians have possibly the smallest military of any of the Citadel Council species. It is entirely a volunteer army that utilizes the best military technology in the the Milky Way. The size of their military should not be an indication of weakness, however, as their use of intelligence has historically brought them tremendous success.
Salarians typically rely on diplomacy in order to stop a war before it starts, however if that does not work, they will always attack first, without warning, and begin the war with a decisive victory. They learn virtually everything there is to know about enemy tactics through their Special Tasks Group -- the precursor to the Citadel's own Spectre program.
Salarians do not possess natural psionic abilities, however exposure to Element Zero can create biotics among their species. Biotics are considered extremely valuable and are not permitted to join the military, but are often relegated to intelligence services.
Religion[]
Salarians are not typically religious, however there are some faithful members of the species. One organized religion -- often referred to as a cult -- worships a goddess who they believe the overlapping craters on Trelyn resemble. Many salarians believe in a "wheel of life" that is similar to human beliefs in reincarnation.
Notable Members[]
- Mordin Solus
Source[]
Salarians are derived from Mass Effect. For canon information, please visit the Mass Effect Wiki.