Betaziod

Betazoids hailed from the Core planet of Betazed. They were all but indistinguishable from Humans except for their dark-colored eyes and highly developed telepathic abilities. A peaceful race, the Betazoid people appreciated fine arts, literature, and philosophy. As all Betazoids were telepathic, they usually did not need to vocalize their thoughts to one another in order to communicate, but could do so for the benefit of off-worlders.

It was a natural ability, and likewise the strength of the skill varied from one to another. Their telepathic abilities developed at adolescence. However there were cases where the child was born with fully functional telepathy. In such cases extensive therapy was usually needed to condition the patient to screen out background noise. Screening was a skill that was absolutely necessary for the well-being and sanity of a Betazoid, particularly for those with keen telepathic sensory skills.

Their empathic/telepathic contact led to a natural trait of complete honesty, somewhat troubling to off-worlders when practiced fully. Mature Betazoids came to take their gifts for granted, and felt helpless without them. In fact, as a species accustomed to openness, they felt uncomfortable around members of those few species - such as the Rygelans - whose thoughts they could not read. Similarly, the minds of animals could be a bit frightening to them, and they tended to prefer smaller animals.

Betazoids could reproduce with humans, although this often diluted the telepathic abilities of the offspring. The children of such a union often developed empathic rather than full telepathic abilities, though they could still communicate telepathically with their Betazoid parent and a bonded mate.

Betazoid society tended toward more formal and elaborate traditions and ceremonies than most cultures in their present evolutionary stage. Some of the rites often made the more conservative off-worlder uneasy at first. Betazoids practiced an old style of marriage arrangement called genetic bonding, wherein children were promised to each other for marriage later by their parents. On the same note, Betazoids were known for their ability to love more than one person without losing their ability to love their mate, nor were they bound by their marriage customs. Because marriage was a celebration of the act of love to Betazoids, the wedding ceremony itself was traditionally conducted in the nude.

Childbearing was similar to Humans, except the normal gestation rate for Betazoid females was ten months rather than nine. Betazoid women could sometimes read the thoughts of their unborn children. During mid-life, Betazoid women experienced a condition known as "the Phase," which quadrupled their sex drives. Though there were no official gender-based restrictions in place within Betazoid society, women had traditionally held many positions of authority. Betazoids were a species of pacifistic philosophers who were more likely to observe than act, and consequently had little use for weapons or even defense systems.

During the reign of the Galactic Empire, the Betazoids were severely subjugated and their world occupied due to their natural abilities. All Betazoids were branded as Jedi sympathizers and Betazed essentially became a planetary internment camp.

RPG D6 Stats
Technology Level: Space

Government: Representative Democracy

Home Planet or System: Betazed

Attribute Dice: 12D

DEX 2D/4D

KNO 2D/4D+2

MEC 1D+1/3D+2

PER 3D/5D

STR 1D+2/4D

TEC 1D/3D+2

Special Skills:

Perception Skills:

Telepathy: Time to use: one round to several minutes. Betazoids possess a natural telepathic aptitude.

Special Abilities:

Telepathy: This ability is a free-action used between two Betazoids or a Very Easy difficulty with another willing telepathic species when communicating telepathically, sending thoughts in the form of words and images between them. They may pick up emotions and surface thoughts of other species or unwilling telepathic species by making a telepathy roll, opposed to the target's willpower or Perception rolls.

Story Factors:

Honesty: Their empathic/telepathic ability leads to a natural trait of complete honesty.

Pacifists: Betazoids tend to be pacifistic, urging conversation and understanding over conflict.

The Phase: During mid-life, Betazoid women experience a condition known as "the Phase," which quadruples their sex drives.

Move: 10/12

Size: 1.5-2 meters tall

Lifespan: 120 standard years

Behind the Scenes
The Betazoids are a cross-over species based on the species by the same name in Star Trek canon.