Founders and leaders of the Consortium, the Velarians are a humanoid species of many accomplishments. Although they come from a slightly more restrictive environment than Humans, and don't share Earthlings'penchant for altering their own DNA, they adapt easily to many diverse settings and situations.

Biology

The Velarians come from a world tidally locked to its giant moon, giving it a day so long that most animal life on Velarius evolved the need to go without sleep for long periods. Velarius VII also has a somewhat thinner than normal atmosphere, so its creatures have more efficient lungs. Other than that, Velarians physically resemble Humans in many ways. The chief visible differences include their skin (which is a bluish-green color) and their wide, ribbed ears (which allow them to hear in the thin air of their planet). Velarians tend to be deep-chested and short-legged by Human standards.

Reproduction among the Velarians is also similar to the Human norm. Velarian mothers bear twins much more often than Human mothers - more than half of all Velarians are born as twins. These are usually fraternal twins, one male and one female; identical twins are as rare on Velarius as on Earth.

Velarius VII, the Velarian Homeworld

Velarius VII is the single richest and most advanced world in the Consortium, and also its capital. It's almost a double planet, with a giant moon nearly half the size of the planet itself. The two are tidally locked; Velarius has a day almost 10 standard days long.

Velarius is densely populated, with nearly 10 billion people. A space elevator provides easy access to shuttles linking Velarius with its moon Andarion, which is itself home to another 600 million Velarians. The energetic and adaptable Velarians have also settled on many other worlds, making them the most numerous people in the Consortium.

Society

The religion Scomaru Shaan strongly influences Velarian society. The teachings and doctrines of the Avatars hold as much importance for most Velarians as any government edict, and in fact secular laws often derive from or relate to religious laws. The unifying effect of the faith brought Velarius VII under a single state centuries ago.

Velarian government is an aristocratic republic: members of the hereditary nobility vote for members of the Legislative College. The College in turn selects two of its members as the Regents, or chief executives, who serve until one of them dies, at which point the College appoints another pair. Traditionally, one Regent is male and the other female.

While hereditary aristocrats totally dominated the original republic, some liberalization has occurred since the development of interstellar travel. The Regents have adopted a policy of granting noble status to a large number of talented commoners each year. Military leaders, scientists, artists, and scholars routinely get added to the class of Electors. Business leaders who amass large fortunes usually get into the Electorate by marrying nobility.

Despite the unity brought about by Scomaru Shaan, the Velarians are as culturally and artistically diverse as Humans. They take great pride in preserving as many of their cultural practices and artistic forms as possible.