The Santari are a species encountered in the Sargon and Beyond: Operation Silk Roads setting, but they may also be used anywhere. Minor and Notable NPCs, as well as Santari starships, are included. The Santari were created by Dave Van Domelen, and I use them here (along with his Pranir and T!rir) with his permission.
The following information is for GMs only.
The Santari are displaced Humans, to put it simply. In all respects, they are Humans and use the Human species profile. This is because they were moved to a different region of space by a Q-like being, Santarus, and left to develop their own interstellar culture there. (Santarus may be of the same species as Apollo, or a Q.) That could well be in the region called The Space Beyond, or anywhere you need a new species. Their planet is called Santar.
They were taken from ancient Rome about two thousand years ago, and therefore retain trappings of Roman culture. They opt for organ and limb transplants as opposed to cybernetics. They prefer medical and biological solutions to invasive cybernetic implants. However, they are experts at miniaturizing technology, and have developed hyperdrives small enough to fit into a shuttle.
Of note is that the Santari do not have warp drive. Instead, they operate Hyperdrives. Warp technology is unknown in their region of space, but they are knowledgeable about other alien species. Hyperdrives open plasma-filled subspace corridors that the Santari (and the Pranir and the T!rir) use to travel to other systems. See the Pranir for additional information. The Pranir used to be a species that served the Santari, before they emancipated themselves from the Santari.
The Santari Empire is facing a period of time when they are pulling back from exploration. They have reached a point where their empire is as big as it can comfortably get with hyperdrive. They still maintain diplomatic relations with the Pranir and the T!rir. They will be suspicious of aliens with superior technology, especially those species with cybernetics. However, they would be very interested in getting their hands on warp technology, and if they do, they will look outward again, and enter an expansionistic mode. Their Roman linguistic roots may suggest that they have dealings with the Romulans, but that is not the case.
For the Silk Roads setting, the Santari are encountered in Pranir Space, but not specified so that you can place them where you need.
Santari will have Roman-sounding names, such as Veterna Severa or Dectos Vega.
The Santari have their own ships, as shown below, but they also use ships similar to the Pranir’s, so feel free to use those ship stats as well. Battlecruisers are named Imperial Santari Starship (I.S.S.), and some examples are the I.S.S. Fornax and the I.S.S. Gallicus.
Adventure Tag: ADV004
Um. Tony. This race is so cool. I wonder if I can adapt this story to my campaign in the other galaxy?
Always!
I’m running a campaign where my players are on a Cardiff Class starship with a Quantum Slipstream Drive. They will be leaving the Milky Way and going towards a Satellite Galaxy of the Milky Way, as a test run of one day attempting to go to Andromeda or the Triangulum Galaxies. Along the way they will be dropping Quantum Interplexing Beacons to stabilize a corridor for Slipstream Travel.
I think these races will be a perfect surprise for them when they get there. The unique FTL of Hyperdrive will also be a fun flavor.