The Mass Effect universe is a huge and diverse one, and humanity is taking its first tentative steps onto the galactic stage at last. There is already a complex web of politics, feuds, alliances and even stereotypes and myths already in place, and the Salarian people are no exception. They’ve had a big impact on the galaxy, in good and bad ways alike.
The Salarian people are one of the three Council races as of 2183, alongside the Asari and the Turian people. The Salarians are hard to miss, and Commander Shepard dealt with more than a few Salarian shopkeepers, scientists, soldier, tech experts, mercenaries and more while on the quest to save the galaxy from evil. What should Shepard know about the Salarians?
10 The Krogan Absolutely Hate Them
The Krogan people deeply resent (and secretly fear) the Salarian people, and not without reason. Centuries ago, it was the Salarians who created the genophage, an engineered virus that affected Krogan fertility rates to keep the Krogan population in check. This had many negative impacts on Krogan society and even their collective mental health.
As a result, the Krogan people are always looking for a chance to kidnap, torture and execute any Salarian they find, even though the genophage’s original developers are long dead. As of 2183, no Salarian or Krogan would ever get along.
9 The Salarians Are Mostly Male
The Asari are noted for being an all-female race, while most other races, such as the scaly Drell and the Turians, are more 50/50. Then there’s the Salarians, who have a 90-10 male to female ratio.
Females may lay many eggs, so this ratio isn’t a problem for the Salarians when it comes to maintaining their population. This means that most Salarians whom Shepard meets are men, but in 2186, Shepard meets a Salarian woman, Dalatrass Linron, aboard the Normandy SR2 during an inter-species summit.
8 Salarian Reproduction Is Political
The Salarians use inter-family politics for their reproductive cycle. It’s nothing like human society, where nuclear or extended families (or single-parent families) are common. Instead, the Salarians use complex family and clan politics to determine who mates with whom, and all Salarians involved try to get something out of it.
In fact, the Salarians use records of family trees and family alliances as references, and missing that record can spell serious trouble for a Salarian family. One Salarian compared such records to dog pedigrees.
7 Salarians Do Everything Fast
The Salarian people are noted for having a high metabolism, and this affects them in many ways. Salarians think faster than other races do, being able to work through vast volumes of data and ideas to reach a conclusion before anyone else can. Of course, this doesn’t mean they’re never wrong; as Mordin put it, Salarians can still make poor decisions out of envy, rage or grief.
What is more, the Salarians burn the candle at both ends and have a fairly short lifespan. Most Salarians pass away from old age around age 40, and only a few live much longer than that. A 16-year-old Salarian is a fully-grown adult, such as Mordin’s nephew, who is a professor.
6 Salarians Have Perfect Memories
This is a trait that the Salarians share with the Drell: a perfect memory. The Salarians cannot truly relive moments the way Drell (like Thane) do, but still, the Salarians are notorious for remembering just about everything, both as individuals and as a race.
Many Salarians find work as scientists, researchers, engineers and other STEM professionals, and being able to remember so many details can only be a boon when working with complex physics, math, chemistry and formulas.
5 Salarians Get Along With The Systems Alliance
Some alien races are more cautious about humanity than others are, and some humans trust aliens more than others. The Cerberus organization is born out of a cynical desire to protect humanity from aliens, but some aliens are reaching out with a hand of friendship. Such as the Salarians.
The Salarian people are curious, reckless, optimistic and generally have a “why not?” attitude about most affairs. This generally matches the dynamic “can do” attitude of the unified humanity, meaning the Systems Alliance and Salarian Union enjoy strong ties, since they understand one another.
4 Salarians Have A Proactive Military
The Salarian people are generally more interested in research and science than anything, but they are far from pacifistic. The Salarians have a lean and mean military that is almost entirely geared for offense. The Salarians believe that they will never have to fight a defensive war for any reason.
How can they be so sure? Because they always strike the first blow in a war. Salarians study their enemies and make extensive preparations, then strike without warning and aim for their enemy’s weakest points. Salarians don’t declare war or fight fair; their military is more like a ninja in space. The Asari commandos are like that, too.
3 The Salarians Keep Many Secrets
The Salarians have a well-earned reputation for hoarding secrets and spying on other races and civilizations. Most other species accept the fact that the Salarians know just about everything, and it may be difficult to force a Salarian to give up everything they know. Salarians keep records on everything.
What is more, the Salarian STG likes to conduct questionable operations for the sake of science and preparing the Salarian Union for future operations. For example, STG agents captured a Yahg alien and took it to Sur’Kesh for study, even though the Yahg homeworld of Parnack is officially off-limits.
2 The Salarians Resemble Typical Gray Aliens
Some of the aliens of Mass Effect were designed with clear real-life inspiration in mind, such as the Salarians. Based on their appearance, their fondness for science, and their cold and calculating ways, they are the ultimate alien stereotype as humans understand it.
Before meeting the Salarians, Asari and other aliens, humans pictured intelligent aliens as short, large-headed creatures with big, black eyes and a fondness for sticking probes and needles into their human captives. Now those aliens have arrived for real as the Salarians, but fortunately for humanity, the Salarians aren’t abducting cows and farmers at random. They have better things to do.
1 The Salarians Protect Their Biotics
These Salarian soldiers are tough, but they are not biotics. Unlike the Asari commandos, who can always use biotics, there are few biotics in the Salarian military. The few that do exist are prized by the Union’s leaders, and their lives are not carelessly thrown away in firefights.
Instead, Salarian leaders tend to give intelligence and support roles to their few biotic soldiers, to avoid putting them in the enemy’s crosshairs. The Turians do something like this, too; they don’t like biotics in general, favoring firearms and sharp discipline in battle instead.
