History Characters / Traveller

* AnatomyArsenal: Aslan don't need swords. They have claws. The 2022 rulebook's art shows their hands with a claw on each of the four fingers, and a fifth "dewclaw" that comes out of the ''palm'' and looks like a velociraptor scythe-claw. When a human duels in Aslan fashion he uses an artificial claw called an ''ayloi''.

* PlanetOfHats: Probably inventiveness and flexibility, but also a certain racial/cultural superiority by the time of the Third Imperium.

* AnatomyArsenal: Aslan don't need swords. They have claws. When a human duels in Aslan fashion he uses an artificial claw called an ''ayloi''.

* YoungestChildWins: By Vilani tradition the third child in the family gains the estate. This is to make sure that no position is frozen within one dynasty for too long.

* MagnificentBastard: Deft manipulation of the opponents of the early Imperium was how Cleon grew his empire.

* RatedMForManly: The whole Sword Worlds thinks it is this.

* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Beer. Swordies make some of the best beer in known space. It is the [[RatedMForManly only true manly drink]] according to Swordies.

Aliens who resemble lions in form. They are a warlike people who live in a tribal structure and have a highly developed philosophy about the need for honor.

* SupremeChef: PlayedWith. The Vilani lived on a planet with food that is often actively poisonous to humans without processing, making skillful cooking a matter of survival. Thus chefs(called ''Shugilii'') became glorified until they filled much of the work [[TheMedic doctors]] and [[GoodShepherd clerics]] would among the Solomani.

* AsskickingEqualsAuthority: Arbellatra was a fleet admiral in a distant territory of the Imperium who used her fleet to conquer the Imperium.

* AsskickingEqualsAuthority: Vargr societies that get too big for one leader to personally dominate tend to break up.

* BizarreAlienReproduction: Whenever two Hivers meet, they exchange reproductive material using their rearmost arms (humans sometimes call this "shaking hands"). After a certain time, the resulting larva falls out of its parent and is driven into the wilderness outside of Hiver cities. Most die; only a few survive long enough to gain sapience and return to civilized territory. The ones that make it back are taken in by the adult Hivers and are raised thereafter.
* ConvenientlyAnOrphan: Hiver reproduction is such that no Hiver knows who its parents are -- they are effectively all adopted.

* OneGenderRace: The Hivers have only one gender. Any Hiver can reproduce with any other.

* StarfishAliens: They even look like starfish.

* TechnicalPacifist: Most Hivers are psychologically incapable of directly attacking anyone. They have little problem with getting others to attack for them, though.

* {{Claustrophobia}}: All K'kree are claustrophobic unless they have some form of mental defect -- from [[NervousWreck fragile nerves]] to [[InsaneEqualsViolent violent schizophrenia]]. K'kree cities don't even have ''buildings'' -- populated areas are tented with transparent materials with properties separated by fences, with no walls whatsoever unless they are load-bearing components or for shade. Their ships are as similar to this as possible; saucers enclosing a single large open space, with holographic projectors making it seem like they're standing on a planet's surface. This is one of the ''many'' things that make them pathetic in space combat; as there are no interior compartments, a single breach in the ship's hull instantly kills everyone aboard not wearing a suit -- meaning everyone aboard, as most K'kree are too claustophobic to wear ''helmets''.

* OctopoidAliens: Several, most notably the Githsiaskio.

!!Imperial Intersteller Scout Service

!!Answerin
A human minor race from a world in the Vilani's home sector. They're famed for their cultural aversion to even acknowledging, yet alone showing, fear.

* OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame: Short, known for their engineering and mechanical talents, only the men are seen out and about... they're dwarves. They're not subterranean, but the allied Llyrnian race apparently is, so they have tunnelers on their team as well.

A hursute human race, along with the Geonee one of the early rivals to the Vilani, then incorporated into the First Imperium as subjects, and in time the Second and Third Imperia.

* KlingonPromotion: Vargr leaders have to constantly prove that they should be leader, or they will be deposed by someone who can prove they should be leader.

Centaur-like herbivors on an everlasting crusade to rid the universe of carnivores. The largest of the major races physically, and the most xenophobic culturally.

Wolves given humanoid form and uplifted to sapience by the Ancients who live in a chaotic society.

* FantasticRacism: to Sword Worlders, to a degree. Being in near constant conflict doesn't help.

* InsufferableGenius: Comes across as this at times.

* GoodOldWays: There ways are tens of thousands of years old and they don't like changing them.
* HiddenElfVillage: Downplayed. They live in scattered, out-of-the-way places and have the power to psionically suggest indifference to them in other races. They aren't exactly hidden, it's just that no-one notices them much. Played straight in that Droyne colonies can develop and maintain ''any'' TechnologyLevels up to ''Grandfather's'', which usually results in their neighbors aiding in hiding them to keep their markets from being disrupted by SufficientlyAdvancedAlien technology -- as well as maintaining a supply of ultratech goodies for themselves. They just rarely feel the need to advance their technology level.

* PsychicPowers: Zhos are unique among humaniti in that they developed psionic powers into a science early in their history and continue to make use of them. This is in part because they shared their world with Droyne - until they visited their moon and a bio-engineered plague killed them all.

* TheSpeechless: Hivers don't have vocal cords. They can use voice synthesizers to speak but use hand gestures among themselves. The Hive Federation's standard language is actually that of the Gurvin, one of their earliest and most important allies.

* StarfishLanguage: Hivers communicate among each other through a combination of written symbols and hand gestures. Because Hivers have five arms, it's physically impossible for any other species to mimic their language.

Centaur-like creatures on an everlasting crusade to rid the universe of carnivores.

* {{Claustrophobia}}: All K'kree are claustrophobic unless they have some form of mental defect -- from [[NervousWreck fragile nerves]] to [[InsaneEqualsViolent violent schizophrenia]]. K'kree cities don't even have ''buildings'' -- populated areas are tented with transparent materials with properties separated by fences, with no walls whatsoever unless they are load-bearing components or for shade. Their ships are as similar to this as possible; saucers enclosing a single large open space, with holographic projectors making it seem like they're standing on a planet's surface. This is one of the ''many'' things that make them pathetic in space combat; as there are no interior compartments, a single breach in the ship's hull instantly kills everyone aboard not wearing a suit -- meaning everyone aboard, as most K'kree are too afraid of enclosures to wear ''helmets''.
* EvilVegetarian: Their ''entire culture'' is based around a "Manifest Destiny" to eliminate every carnivorous species in the universe.

* FreudianExcuse: Species-wide; where most sapients developed intelligence to outsmart and consume prey, the K'kree developed it to outsmart and escape ''predators.'' They thus have an instinctual horror of ''anything'' that consumes meat. This has caused them no end of trouble.
* KillerRabbit: They're an entire culture of vegetarian herd-dwellers who treat each other with the tenderest of care. They also kill every carnivorous creature they can get their hands on, and only stopped their jihad against meat-eaters when they realized how hilariously outgunned they were.

Uplifted wolves who live in a chaotic society.

* KlingonPromotion: Vargr leaders have to constantly prove that they should be leader, or they will be deposed by someone who can.

* SpaceOrcs: They're a species of {{uplifted|Animal}} wolves known for their high aggressiveness and warlike natures. Their society is limited to what groups a charismatic leader can hold together, and Vargr leaders need to constantly prove their strength or be deposed and replaced. The rest of the setting's species see them as a vast horde of barbarians, marauders and SpacePirates (and the Vargr do see pirates as admirable cultural heroes), although their ability to threaten the rest of the galaxy is hampered by their constant infighting.
* SpacePirates: The Vargr recognize corsairs as a sort of cultural hero archetype.
* WeAreStrugglingTogether: Even more than humans or Aslan, the Vargr have persistent issues with internal divisions and fighting amongst each other.

* GloryDays: They were once the [[{{Precursors}} Ancients]].
* GoodOldWays: They are tens of thousands of years old and don't like changing their ways.
* HiddenElfVillage: Downplayed. They live in scattered, out-of-the-way places and have the power to psionically suggest indifference to them in other races. They aren't exactly hidden, it's just that no-one bothers to look. Played straight in that Droyne colonies can develop and maintain ''any'' TechnologyLevels up to ''Grandfather's'', which usually results in their neighbors aiding in hiding them to keep their markets from being disrupted by SufficientlyAdvancedAlien technology -- as well as maintaining a supply of ultratech goodies for themselves. They just rarely feel the need to do so.

The founder of the Third Imperium.

Great-great-great-great-grandson of the Third Imperium's founder. Aka "Cleon the Mad".

The victor of the Imperial Civil War and founder of the last dynasty to rule the Third Imperium.

* {{Cincinnatus}}: Sort of; she deferred to the Moot's authority knowing she would get the throne anyway. Whether or not she was thinking primarily of the public good or her own is not made clear.

* JustTheFirstCitizen: Arbellatra defeated the last "Emperor of the Flag" Gustus but didn't take the throne. She acted as Regent instead until seven years of searching failed to find a legitimate heir to the throne.
* LadyOfWar: Leader of the victorious Imperial forces during the Second Frontier War was her warm-up to defeating the Emperor.
* OfferedTheCrown: Which she accepted.

The ruler of the Spinward Marches in the name of Emperor Strephon. His first name is ''not'' [[Creator/ChuckNorris "Chuck"]].

* RoyalDecree: Made notable use of an Imperial Warrant during the Fifth Frontier War.

The Last Emperor of the Third Imperium

* HesJustHiding: Strephon's assassination is what kicked off the fall of the Third Imperium, but it was a double who was killed -- Strephon was off overseeing a secret project, and went into hiding for a time after the assassination. %%InUniverse

%%* ReasonableAuthorityFigure

* AbusivePrecursors: Grandfather had around twenty children -- each of whom had twenty of their own (hence the name "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Grandfather]]") -- and then discovered a few thousand years later that their experiments were interfering with his own. His solution is to kill them all.

* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: This is what the Guard specializes in. They are only called out to combat in circumstances where the situation has deteriorated so much that nothing short of KillEmAll will rectify things.

* SpaceCossacks: To some degree yes, although it has been an awfully long time since they arrived here. However they maintain independance in the face of the Imperium. Also the sample campaign ''100 Parsecs'' is one of the best examples of this trope.

* AlienLunch: Vland, the planet they were abandoned on, had no related Terran life deposited with them and the native life's biochemistry was quite alien. The good news was that this meant none of the local germs could make them sick, local parasites weren't interested in them, wounds didn't get infected, etc.. The bad news was that the Vilani couldn't eat any of the food -- at least unprepared. A small group of the population had been taught some basic techniques by the Ancients on how to process their food through fermentation and various chemical treatments -- which basically made them Monsanto's wet dream; the sole source of edible food on the planet, and the de facto rulers of their race. Vilani food is said to be [[BlazingInfernoHellfireSauce very spicy]] to mask the tastes of the remaining inedible proteins and poisons left in the food after processing, and if they have non-Vilani guests they supply a side dish of antihistamines that are usually given to Vilani children.

* AbusivePrecursors: Grandfather had around twenty children -- each of whom had twenty of their own (hence the name "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Grandfather]]") -- and then discovered a few thousand years later that their experiments were interfering with his own. His solution: KillThemAll.

* BizarreAlienSexes: Lurent have three, Souggvuez have five, Threep have six.

* OneManIndustrialRevolution: ''UpToEleven.'' The Droyne were stuck at 1950's-level technology for '''sixty thousand years.''' Then Grandfather was born -- combining [[Literature/GalacticMilieu Marc Remillard]]'s PsychicPowers with UsefulNotes/NikolaTesla's DitzyGenius -- and he immediately dragged his species into the stars kicking and screaming. To note;