Races

In the centuries since humanity took to the stars, they've discovered over a dozen different alien species and waged war on at least half of them. While some of those wars are still simmering or even raging, humans made peace with the Itla and the Erkaan and even became allies. The three races regularly mingle, although the culture difference regularly get in the way of easy communication.

Humans
Humans are a race that can be brought to the edge of extinction and they will pop right back up. They have an unusual knack for surviving and adapting whatever situation is thrown at them. This allows them to gain a large variety of skills or specialise in a few. They lack sheer strength and a natural affinity for magic, but they can work hard and gain it.

Humans are generally between 1.55m and 2.10m tall (5'1 and 6'10), making them one of the most varying race in terms of length. In appearance, there's no shortage in difference, either. Their skin tone can range from porcelain white to honey brown or even a dark umber. Their eyes can be blue, brown, white, green, or anything in between. Even their hair comes in wildly different types; some curly, some straight, some wavy. They truly live up to their name as the most diverse race.

Humans have a lifespan of about eighty to ninety years. They are mature at the age of twenty-two, are in their prime between twenty-five and twenty-eight, and can be considered elderly after sixty-five years of age.

Itla
Some think that Itla are descendants of the Precursors, and while they are a mystical people, they don't exactly live up to the name. Unlike the legends, Itla are small and weak, with frail bones and small statures. They're fairly distant from matters of the two other races, instead devoting themselves to the Star Triad. They are a people that take religion and the Stars very seriously and are closer to the Triad than most. Almost all Itla are Summoners.

Itla are between 1.30m and 1.50m tall (4'4 and 5'). While they are humanoid, patches of fluorescent scales grow all over their skin, and they have eyes in shades of turquoise, violet, emerald, and gold. Their hair is curly and wild, often brown or black. Most notably, they have a tail that ends in a fluffy, diamond-shaped tuft, which they readily use as part of their body language.

Itla have a lifespan of about fifty to sixty years. They are mature at the age of fifteen, are in their prime between seventeen and twenty, and can be considered elderly after forty-five years of age.

Erkaan
If there's one race that humans never want to fight, it's the Erkaan. They're honed for the hunt and for battle and can wipe the floor with almost any opponent. They have a love for tech, and you can regularly find them tinkering when they're not training or working. Erkaan despise magic, though, and refuse to use it themselves, considering it weak to call on the Stars for help.

Erkaan are between 2.10m and 2.45m tall (7' and 8'). While they are human, they're built leaner, longer, and stronger. Their skin, eyes, and hair are opalescent shades ranging between milky white and a faint lilac, shimmering when it moves. Most notably, they have horns sprouting on their temples, curling like a ram's.

Erkaan have a lifespan of about two hundred to two-hundred-twenty years. They are mature at the age of fifty, are in their prime between sixty-five and eighty, and can be considered elderly after one-hundred-eighty years of age.