The development of a computing system, sentient and aware of its own existence, has for centuries
loomed large over the galaxy as one of the greatest threats to natural, organic life.
Regardless of its original motives and perspective, the Citadel council argues, an AI would introduce
to interstellar civilization, an unpredictable danger.
And it is a danger not confined solely to the realm of theoretical discussion, of academic
journals and science fiction fantasies, but a danger that has played out in practical
terms, to great cost and great suffering.
The Quarians, once a proud and vibrant people, now serve as the ultimate warning.
The Quarian civilization first arose on the world of Rannoch.
A sunny, largely arid planet, the Quarians were confined in their early history mainly
to the banks of its rivers and shallow oceans.
Rannoch’s pathogenic organisms were comparatively rare, and what few existed were at least partially
beneficial to Quarian biology.
As a consequence, the Quarians immune systems were underdeveloped, a characteristic that
would haunt the species for millennia to follow.
At the time of their introduction to the Citadel Council and the wider galactic community,
the Quarians were recognized for their firm grasp on the technology sector, with a specific
aptitude for software and virtual intelligence.
The Geth, meaning “Servant of the People” in the Quarian Language, were one of their
greatest breakthroughs, a synthetic labor force and military deterrence.
Though cognisant of the Citadel Council’s laws against artificial intelligence, the
Quarians gradually expanded the role of the Geth, modifying their neural network so they
might perform more complex tasks.
The emergence of self awareness across the Geth was first expressed in a simple question,
one that has acquired great significance across both the Geth and the Quarians ever since:
"does this unit have a soul?"
As mounting evidence confirmed a growing artificial intelligence across their servants, the Quarian
government ordered the complete destruction of the Geth.
This drew the protests of sentient rights activists and a declaration of martial law
in response.
The resourcefulness of the Geth consciousness had been severely underestimated however,
and the situation quickly spiraled into a cataclysmic conflict known to the Quarians
as the “Morning War”.
Within a year, Quarians had lost the initiative and a Geth victory became inevitable.
The Geth utilized weapons of mass destruction, eradicating all but a few million of the Quarians
and forcing them to abandon Rannoch entirely.
The Citadel Council meanwhile refused to deliver aid, even stripping the Quarians of their
embassy for having failed to abide by Citadel law.
The Quarian Fleet, home to the last surviving members of their race, began drifting from
system to system, seeking out resources to sustain their dwindling numbers, a new world
to colonize, or the means to retake their homeworld.
The Quarians have remained in this state up until the present day.
Though only partially recognized by the Citadel Council, officially and legally, the Quarian
Migrant Fleet is considered the successor state to the planetary government that existed
on Rannoch.
It is regarded as the sole governing body representing the Quarian race.
The state of emergency and martial law declared during the Morning War has never been lifted,
and the Migrant Fleet is administered under a haphazard blend of democratic institutions,
military authorities and impromptu councils.
Executive authority is split between the Admiralty Board that represents the interests of the
Quarian military, and the democratically elected Conclave.
The Conclave also acts as a quasi legislature, consisting of representatives for every ship
in the fleet.
This body is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the fleet, including their course
and resource management.
Numerous political parties exist within the Conclave, and those that form the official
opposition to the government are collectively known as the Outriders Coalition.
The Admiralty Board is able block the resolutions of the Conclave, but its members must then
resign upon doing so.
This ensures the military only overrides the Civilian Government in the most dire of circumstances.
To date, such an action has occurred only four times.
Outside of this federal authority, very few other institutions exist across the whole
of the fleet, with the traditional duties of state and local governments provided by
individual ship captains and an elected governing board.
A Captain can overrule their respective Council, but doing so without good reason is grounds
for the captain to be removed.
The Migrant Fleet itself consists of four broad groups.
The Civilian Fleet consists entirely of non-combatants, and makes up the vast majority of the total
number of ships.
Captains within the Civilian Fleet are always keen to increase the size of their crew, as
their ship’s population directly correlates to their importance within the Conclave and
Quarian society.
The largest ships within the Civilian Fleet are the Liveships, incredible feats of engineering
that grow much of the food required for their species to survive.
The Patrol Fleet is equal parts navigators and law enforcement.
It charts a path for the entire armada, and might be called upon to settle disputes between
captains.
In times of war, it is directly absorbed into the Heavy Fleet, the main military force of
the Quarians which consists of its largest warships.
The last group is known simply as “Special Projects” and consists of research vessels
responsible for the many technical breakthroughs required to keep the fleet in operation.
Together, the Migrant Fleet is the largest spacefaring force in the galaxy, consisting
of roughly 50,000 vessels of every conceivable make and model.
Some are so ancient that they date back to the original evacuation of Rannoch, while
others have been purchased from friendly governments or private interests in the centuries since.
The movement of the Migrant Fleet is an enormous undertaking, and it can take days for the
armada to transition through a single Mass Relay.
Their evolution into an entirely nomadic, spacefaring society has fundamentally transformed
Quarian culture as well.
The survival of the species is an omnipresent goal.
Every law and custom revolves around this idea in some way.
The fleet has imposed a one-child policy to conserve resources, and is only lifted temporarily
during periods of critical population decline.
The Quarians as a matter of necessity, have an immensely strong sense of community and
duty, with loyalty, trust and cooperation valued above all else.
Upon reaching adulthood, Quarians are expected to undertake a right of passage known as the
Pilgrimage.
This is an opportunity for the Quarian people to experience the galaxy outside the migrant
fleet, learn from other cultures, and ultimately, return to the Flotilla with something of value.
This might be information, money or supplies, so long as it might serve the greater Quarian
race.
Until a Quarian can offer something of value, they are not permitted to return.
When they do, they must select a new vessel to serve as their home, ensuring genetic diversity
in any potential offspring.
The internal Quarian economy has also gone through a sizable transition, moving from
a traditional currency based system to a unique merging of collective ownership and a barter
economy.
In the absence of space and resources, frivolous purchases are frowned upon, and should a Quarian
no longer have use for an item, they place it in what resembles a market so others might
make use of it.
Food and medicine are the exceptions to this system, and strictly controlled by the Fleet’s
government.
In the modern era, most Quarians dream of retaking their homeworld from the Geth.
A splinter group known as the Nedas Movement however, instead advocates simply starting
over on another world.
They maintain the belief that the Quarian obsession with their lost homeworld has doomed
them to an eternal nomadic lifestyle, and left them without a home or a future.
Many of these adherents volunteered to join the multi-species Andromeda Initiative, intending
to find a new home for the Quarians even if it's in another galaxy.
The remainder continue to persist within the Milky Way.
To the other civilizations of the Galaxy, the Quarians are often looked down upon.
The Migrant Fleet has been known to strip mine entire star systems as they pass through,
often alienating other races that might have claimed their resources.
Additionally, as Quarian criminals are regularly ejected from the armada and forced to live
with outsiders, these convicts have unfairly come to represent the entire population.
But above all, the Quarians have been reduced to a warning, a tragic story of a fallen people,
and the dangers of artificial intelligence.