Ask me about quarian society

Since my species has always been a lot more reclusive than others (and we have or had misunderstandings with others all the time) I thought this would be a neat idea for a thread. So go on, ask me about the Flotilla, Pilgrimages, exiles, Rannoch or whatever else that has always nagged at you about our culture :)

Other quarians are also welcome to answer too!

Rannoch looks quite beautiful: tell me about it. The natural and the quarian-made. Also how it changed under Geth Rule.

Brusquely: Your people have reclaimed much of what they lost. After being forced from your typical rounds, you were left at the mercy of circumstance.

Admiration: Yet you persevered, and refused to abandon your pride. You worked hard to reclaim your rightful place, and now stand firm, once again on track. Soon, the Citadel will be coming to you for favours, if your technological supremacy is retained.

Pronounced respect: I have never shared the all-too-common disdain for your people, quarian. You have a self-respect and a will that many could choose to learn from.

Cautious request: I feel the need to ask; as a people who once lost everything but their pride, and who succeeded in taking back their place in the galaxy, have you been forced to leave behind other, more recent acquisitions in your efforts to do so? Mournful: Were there not, perhaps, traits and customs you picked up along the road back that you now have little to no use for, but feel nonetheless...attached to?

Attentive: I would very much like to know.

Hey Raga, interesting indeed! (you know my weakness of being curious about quarians)

So, basically what lester said. What's Rannoch like and how's rediscovery off all the archives and preserved things coming along?
There was a holo documentary about it some time ago, they showed how the geth obviously have preserved a lot of things but seemed to let others rot. How were they determining what they took active care of and what they just did not destroy?

It's a very biased opinion. But I think Rannoch really is the most beautiful planet in the galaxy. It's more arid compared to planets like Earth and Thessia. But the many plateaus and deserts are really very beautiful in a way most species probably never expect. Like this picture for instance.



Sunsets here are just great :)

There are also very beautiful areas like Kassali a smallish (compared to most species) coastal city we currently live in. Perched ontop of some cliffs overlooking the sea. Though me and my family live further in-land so no oceanside view for us. But the whole area is a very fertile place with a lot of farmland. We even had a little harvest festival a few months ago. Very nice, lots of dancers and other entertainment.



As for how it changed under geth rule. That's an interesting question. You would have expected them to mine the planet dry of natural resources or to cover it with geth structures. But... they didn't. The geth seemed more interested in 'preserving and cleaning up' the planet after the war rather than converting it to their own use. Not to say there aren't geth structures on Rannoch (it's clear that the planet is as much theirs as it is ours now) but they seemed to have focused a lot more of their time manufacturing or converting our space stations and satellites and mining asteroids to aid with the construction of their dyson sphere... that we blew up.


Thank you :)

Well, I'll be honest and say there isn't much of the Flotilla I miss. Especially after experiencing the joy of being a homeowner and not living in a damn cubicle. But there is one thing I'm starting to miss: the sense of community. On a ship, you know and trust everyone. And everyone knows and trusts you. But now in a city where you aren't packed together with everyone else, this is becoming less and less true. We're still a family, I suppose. But the family is starting to go their own ways.


A lot of old pre-geth relics and records are being recovered but just as much is still lost forever (the ancestor banks were destroyed during the original conflict for instance) so it's a bittersweet thing. As for the geth? I'm no expert on them and their thought processes. But they seemed to have a preference for keeping cities and certain places of interest intact. I think an actual geth would be better suited to answer this question though.

Thank you for sharing! If it wasn't so costly and difficult I'd love to visit (more a fan of natural rather than artificial landscape)

Same here! That's one of the most amazing skies I have seen in some time!

It's interesting what you say about developing individuality though, I never really thought about it but it makes some sense. After generations of living your life in a a command structure now suddenly everyone has the space and safety to pursue his own idea of life.

What's your government structures like now, I think you still have the old institutions, like teh admiralty board? But how are they defined these days with the fleet losing it's structure and size?

I heard the admirality board keeps non-quarian and non-geth immigration to minimum. Is it true, and do you know if it's going to change anytime soon?

Also, I think one of the geth here mentioned an interfacing system with the consensus for organics. Has anyone tried it?

Painfully: A sense of community. Yes.

With polite formality: Thank you, quarian. I appreciate the input.

When are the geth taking over?

They're not.

If by immigration to Rannoch, its a precautionary measure to preserve the Homeworld's ecosystem from foreign contaminants. Hence why the few visitors to the Homeworld go through very strict decontamination procedures. As for whether or not this will change, I suppose it will depend on whether we can develop the infrastructure to admit more off-world visitors.

For the latter, I can't say I have.

How do quarians prepare for going on pilgrimage? I can imagine how difficult it would be to head out on your own after spending our whole life on a ship. Also, do you think that pilgrimages will always happen in your society, or do you think they will become unnecessary?

Every pilgrim is given at least some training and some knowledge of the galaxy outside of the Flotilla (and literally everyone is going to give advice on where to go. Whether you like it or not :p). Along with a supply of nutripaste and a sum of credits to help you on your way. But it is true that most pilgrims are overwhelmed by what they encounter outside of the Migrant Fleet. You are raised in a communal society where everyone takes care of everyone else, only to suddenly deal with these aliens and their strange customs and culture, along with their possibly racism and prejudice against quarians. Not only that, but you are alone. Something you have never been up to that moment. And it is very likely you will never encounter another quarian during the entirety of your pilgrimage.

There is also the stress of bringing back a 'good' gift. No quarian wants to come back to their ship with a conductor or two and face that embarrassment. So there is a huge drive to bring back something 'big' to impress your captain and help the Fleet.

It's not all doom and gloom though. Many quarians (such as myself) really enjoyed our pilgrimages. We got to see new cultures, meet new people outside of our species, and even brought back something that aided the Fleet. :)

As for what will happen to it now? Who knows. The Pilgrimage has been a huge part of our culture for centuries (up there with getting your first suit and marriage) and I doubt it will go away anytime soon. Though I suspect it will be up to the individual parents now.

And yes, I do plan on sending my daughter on her Pilgrimage when she comes of age :)

What is Quarian divorce like?

That's in fact a really interesting conversation, Ragamuffin!

Maybe the galaxy won't be so hostile towards your kind anymore then. But I'd like to know, what about the contribution part? I hope you won't expect your daughter not to return until she had found something of worth?

It's very rare. But it usually ended with one person transferring to another ship. :p


She doesn't have to bring anything back if she doesn't want to. I just want her to explore the galaxy when she's old enough

I feel the need to add that we largely operate in a society without credits. We barter or give...so although we are educated in how credits work and what business is like from a monetary stance, it is still a very foreign concept when you go out on your pilgrimage. I feel that is why so many quarians find themselves in debt and forced into servitude.


I think the first priority is to become re-acclimated to our planet. It is hard enough to adapt to suitless-life even with Geth influence. Foreign immigration would only make it harder to adapt to our past environment. It is nothing personal I am sure, but for many the priority is a suit-less life...the prospect of actually feeling the wind on our skin or the earth between our toes is a simple but extremely alluring quality of life most species take for granted. Most of us very much want to be part of galactic society and to invite other species to share in the beauty of our home planet...but just now it is not practical. Someday it will be.


Living without a home, we learned to save everything and to put it to good use. Even our recent acquisitions are used in any way they can in the development and cultivation of our homeworld. We are starting from the ground up and everything we have is being put to good use. A colony does not leave behind all their tech and everything their society has learned when moving to an undeveloped planet. They bring what they have and what they know to the new planet - we are the same.

Hm, I think the days of this system are counted if your people wants to integrate and deal with other worlds on a regular basis. Maybe indeed, getting all the interfaces to the outside to work and establish a network will bring some cultural changes as well that cannot be foreseen yet.

This is very true too! I thought I had mentioned that but I guess it must have gotten lost when I was doing some editing :/

Though this is starting to change bit by bit too. I'm having to pay credits for some things now here which is really annoying

Unless they're from an importer, I think someone may've gone off about that a little too early. I know we had plans for an economic restructuring, but that generally takes time and an economy to actually build up from, the latter of which hasn't gotten far enough to actually warrant a rapid change.

I can see an importer charging though, between the base cost off the goods, and the fact they have to go through our customs system means they would have to recover the costs somehow.


I wouldn't say they are losing structure as opposed to gaining it. I know the military fleets merged, what with the geth war and those neo-migrants taking most of our heavier vessels along with Gerrel dissappearing from the spotlight (I don't exactly know what happened to him though, so don't quote me on this.) The civilian fleet is still active for the most part, just as a merchant navy rather than the vessels containing the majority of the population. Only other major change is special projects being mostly based groundside nowadays, and what vessels they have are incorporated into the merchant fleet.

I know the conclave and the adrmiralty board are around, but with the settlement effort progessing it's possible there'll be some upheaval there soon. (Note, this is also opinion, so don't quote me as a reliable source on this)