Romulans

Species Name: Romulan
Homeworld: Romulus (destroyed), later Rator III and diaspora holdings
Physiology: Evolutionarily linked to Vulcans, Romulans are biologically similar but with key deviations—particularly in cardiovascular and neurological systems. Standard Vulcan medical protocols are often insufficient or ineffective without adaptation. Romulans possess greater cold tolerance, slightly lower average strength, and a more emotionally reactive neurology due to lack of strict mental disciplines like the Vulcan kolinahr.

Cultural Overview:

• Secrecy and Control: Romulan society is structured around hierarchy, surveillance, and strategic obfuscation. The Tal Shiar, their internal security and intelligence service, maintains loyalty through fear, precision, and preemption.
• Strength Through Cunning: While honor is respected, survival and state security are paramount. Open trust is considered naive; loyalty is monitored, not presumed.
• Diaspora and Fragmentation: Following the destruction of Romulus (post-2387), Romulans have splintered into factions—loyalist remnants, Free State adherents, Tal Shiar purists, and independent warlords. Many distrust their own leadership as much as outsiders.
• Legacy of Isolationism: Romulans historically operated in shadows—cloaked ships, secret alliances, and misinformation campaigns. Even in cooperation with the Federation, transparency is rare and calculated.

Starfleet Roles:

• Rare, but not unheard of—particularly among defectors, post-collapse refugees, or operatives embedded as part of fragile Romulan-Federation détente.
• Romulans in Starfleet gravitate toward Intelligence, Tactical, or Science roles, where their strategic thinking and cultural paranoia serve as assets.
• Distrust from peers is common, but so is begrudging respect for results.

Species Mechanics (STA 2e RAW + Canon Expansion):

ATTRIBUTES: +1 Control, +1 Fitness, +1 Reason
TRAIT: Romulan

• Medically distinct from Vulcans: Vulcan-targeted treatment protocols incur +1 Difficulty unless adapted.
• Culturally suspicious: suffer or impose social Complications depending on context. May reduce Difficulty on Deception, Surveillance, or Counterintelligence tasks.
• Reputation for subterfuge and betrayal: may gain Advantage when others underestimate them or assume manipulation.
• Emotionally reactive: unlike Vulcans, Romulans are not trained to suppress emotion; this can fuel both focus and volatility.

SPECIES ABILITY — PARANOIA:
When an action scene begins, if the Gamemaster wants an adversary to act first, they must spend +1 Threat beyond the normal cost. This reflects Romulan tactical anticipation, constant readiness, and strategic distrust—rarely caught unprepared when a threat emerges.