Terran

"We humans are about the most ornery cusses in the galaxy."

- Michael Liberty

The Terrans are the humans of the future. A fairly technologically advanced race with young psionic potential, the Terrans of the Koprulu Sector are descendants of humans originally sent from Earth in stasis with the intention of being part of plan to colonize new planets.

The Terrans are the most fractured of the three races, human nature often draws the numerous Terran factions into conflict with each other. Indeed, the Terrans of the Koprulu Sector have found themselves in the middle of a war between the Protoss and the Zerg, and have struggled to survive amidst the war while also dealing with civil wars.

The word Terran is a blanket term that applies to all the generations of humans descended from humans of the "Long Sleep" who spread to world after world. The term is used synonymously with the word human; sometimes even to refer humans who do not descent from the "Long Sleep", although the latter practice's use is limited to entities of the Koprulu Sector. Humans of the United Earth Directorate based on Earth refer to themselves with terms such as humans, mankind or humanity.

Blizzard Entertainment sometimes uses the word "Terran" to describe the humans from Earth.

Overview
The Terrans are basically the same as humans of the twenty-first century, but they are slowly evolving into a psionically potent race, a small number possessing psionic abilities. Terrans have a genetic history of psionic power originating from their roots at Earth, although they are still generations away from reaching their full potential. Most have no psionic powers.

The Terran are much more technologically advanced than current humans, but are still partly within the same "style", using projectile firearms and relying more on fossil fuels and nuclear energy than more futuristic forms of energy, such as matter-antimatter reactions or plasma.

Early History
Human technology and culture went through major changes after the twentieth century. One of the most important new forms of technology enabled the transfer of advanced technology to even the poorest third world nations, enabling them to acquire superior military technology such as nuclear weapons and challenge the former superpowers, both economically and militarily.

At the end of the twenty-first century, private companies developed cybertechnology and genetic manipulation techniques, the latter eventually resulting in mutations ranging from enhanced senses to advanced telepathy.

By the twenty-third century, the human population had reached 23 billion and was still growing, rapidly polluting the world and using up natural resources. World leaders continuously tried to slow population's growth. General opinion at the time was that Earth was moving towards total catastrophe.

As the human gene pool warped as a result of companies working for their own profit, humanists, fundamentalists and other conservative organizations clashed with these corporations and their results, forcing many companies to close down. Violent terrorist and extremist groups were born from the civil unrest and eventually world was at a brink of total breakdown in society.

The United Powers League

 * Main article: United Powers League

On November 22, 2229, a new world order was created in an attempt to turn mankind's course. Known as the United Powers League (UPL), it replaced the defunct United Nations to work as its reincarnation as defender of humanity, bringing 93% of Earth's population under its control. Only a few volatile South American countries remained outside its sphere of influence.

The UPL claimed it was an "enlightened socialist" organization - one of its first acts was to attempt to end racial separation - but frequently resorted to fascist police actions to maintain the public order.

The Unitariate Commissions started attacking religions, banning many of them. in 2231.

The UPL united much of Earth under its power, essentially destroying racism by removing cultural differences of humans and imposing English as the primary world wide language, resulting to ban of many countries' native languages.

Project Purification
While not a religious organization, the UPL embraced the philosophy of "the divinity of mankind". Actions of hard-line members of the UPL resulted in law being enforced which led to launch of Project Purification, its goal to remove mutations and unnecessary cybernetic prosthetics from the human population. The UPL sent troops around the world, imprisoning hackers, synthetics, the cybernetically enhanced, tech-pirates, and criminals of every kind in act that was known as the Project Purification. In the process, over 400 million people were killed. However, the UPL controlled the media to such an extent that the general population was not informed of these events.

Despite its atrocious acts, the UPL successfully developed new advanced forms of technology. Many fields of science that had been largely ignored for centuries, such as space exploration, were reopened under the jurisdiction of UPL. The UPL developed warp drive and cryonic technologies, opening the frontiers of space; within forty years the UPL had founded colonies on moons and planets in the Solar System.

The Long Sleep
During this period, a brilliant young scientist named Doran Routhe made plans to consolidate his power within the UPL. He had not been involved in Project Purification, as his passion lay in colonization of planets outside the Solar System. Routhe was convinced that vast hoard of minerals and other resources collected from outside the solar system would make him one the most powerful men in the UPL. Thanks to his connections within UPL and some good luck, Routhe managed to get thousands of people captured by UPL as specimens for his project. The prisoners were brought in Routhe's secret laboratories with him planning to use them in his project to colonize new planets.

Routhe and his science team secretly prepared to put 56,000 prisoners in stasis for transport but before this, Routhe, having carefully signed up all genetic and cybernetic changes in the prisoners and fed the information to supercomputer equipped with revolutionary artificial intelligence. The computer, named ATLAS prosessed the data and by multiple tests estimated how many of the prisoners could survive the hardships of the long voyage in stasis; only 40,000 passed these tests. These 40,000, people were loaded into four supercarriers designated the Reagan, the Argo, the Sarengo, and the Nagglfar and loaded for a one year journey into deep space to Gantris VI, an outlying planet. Only the Nagglfar had a navigation system; connected with the supercomputer ATLAS set onboard the ship.

ATLAS scanned the prisoners en route, and discovered something unusual about them; a small proportion (less than one percent of the prisoners) possessed a mutant strain which augmented psionic potential. While currently weak, it would manifest in only a few generations. This information was logged and sent back to Earth. Originally the voyage was supposed to last only one year, however, the guidance system of the Nagglfar connected with ATLAS failed and all data regarding Gantris VI's and Earth's location were lost.

Doran Routhe's experiments had become known by this time; his reputation was ruined when the ships traveled past Gantris VI.

The ships traveled at faster-than-light speeds in hyperspace for nearly thirty years without destination. This event would become known as the Long Sleep.

Eventually the warp engines of the ship reached critical levels, and after traveling 60,000 light years (across the galaxy) and 28 years traveling at warp speeds, the ships returned to normal space. Soon the ships engines failed and their life support system batteries were exhausted. Working with their emergency programs, the ships began to descent on nearest planets in the Koprulu Sector that could support human life.

Reagan and Sarengo headed for planet which would later be known as Umoja. Sarengo, which had suffered heavy damage while hitting the planet's atmosphere crashed, killing 8,000 prisoners on board and leaving the Sarengo Canyon. Reagan was more lucky and successfully landed on planet's surface. After landing the ship's stasis program shutdown and the prisoners began to wake slowly. When they awoke, the survivors had no idea where they were or where Earth was, as they discovered that ATLAS had somehow erased all data of their journey from their computer banks. Argo landed on the planet Moria and her passengers would discover the same thing as Reagan's while searching through their computer banks. Only people on board Nagglfar, which managed to land on the planet of Tarsonis, were able to access directly into ATLAS that their ship was carrying. Their fear's came to true; they would never see Earth again. Even if data concerning Earth's location would have still been intact Nagglfar was in unrepairable condition. Survivors of the three ships spread out on the three planets, making use of their ships the best they could while trying to survive in this "New World".

The Confederacy and the New World
With no means of communication with the three planets and being unaware of their neighbor, the "Terrans", as they would be known, lived decades in total information blackout. After sixty years each planet had become prosperous colony, but Tarsonis was the largest and most advanced; its people having access to ATLAS. This allowed Tarsonians to built next generation spaceships, giving them the ability to explore nearby planets and eventually discover their neighbors.

After becoming aware of each other, the three planets were able to benefit from their neighbors through trade. Although Tarsonis attempted to convince the other two colonies to join in a conglomerate government, they refused, even as Tarsonis established seven new colonies on nearby planets, including Korhal, and her military power expanded rapidly. Soon Tarsonis declared a new form of government, an interstellar Terran Confederacy. Morians, having the system's richest mines in their control, were afraid that the Confederacy would interfere with their business. As a result a military government, the Kel-Morian Combine was founded to protect all Morian mining guilds that came into conflict with the Confederacy. This led to a rise of tensions between Moria and the Terran Confederacy, leading to the Terran Guild Wars.

Terrans at War
During the four-year war, the Morians devised the Larscorp Goliath, which was well-suited to the constant urban warfare. Corporate information liberations stole the plans for the Goliath for the Confederacy, who built them as well. Space warfare was conducted between large battlecruisers and medium-sized gunships. The latter would eventually evolve into Wraith fighter after the war.

During the latter stages of the war, the two sides clashed on worlds such as Mar Sara.

After four years, the Confederates declared victory after "negotiating" peace with the Kel-Morian Combine. Moria was left independent, but its supporting guilds were annexed, along with worlds such as Mar Sara. Since then, Moria has founded new mining colonies and provided the Terran Confederacy with so much money that they are effectively immune to Confederate laws. As a response to the defeat of the Kel-Morian Combine, the Umojan government created a new military called the Umojan Protectorate.

Physiology
"Your brain...it is somewhat limited."

- Zamara commenting on Terran mental prowess.

Physically, Terrans are much the same as they were half a millenia ago, standing at 1.5-1.8m on average and having a wide variety of physical features (pigmentation, eye color, etc.). Genetic material has remained within in the gene pool, blonde hair and blue eyes still occurring naturally, despite being carried by recessive genes. Due to advances in medical science, human life expectancy has been extended to at least 150 years, without any mental degradation.

Physically, Terrans are inferior to races such as the Zerg and Protoss and for all intents and purposes, mentally as well. However, Terrans are known for their tenacity and ability to adapt to harsh circumstances. In addition, Terrans are only a few steps away from developing into a formidable psionic power.

Religion
Until the coming to power of the United Powers League, Terrans possessed a diversity of beliefs; beliefs that were subsequently repressed. This remained true with the Terran Confederacy and as such, the majority of Terrans can be said to be agnostic/atheist. However, a few planets in the Koprulu Sector, notably the Fringe Worlds, have resurrected old Earth religions, Christianity among them, in addition to creating new cults.

Terran Factions

 * ''Main article: Terran Organizations

"We could not unite under one banner or even form a coalition. In fact, every time there was a chance for that, one faction or another did something to enhance the advancement of their own political agenda over the other factions. Often at the expense of the rest of humanity."

- Michael Liberty

The Terrans are a heavily factionalized species, with many different goverments and even more groups trying to overthrow said goverments. The three dominant factions in the Koprulu Sector are the Kel-Morian Combine, Terran Dominion and the Umojan Protectorate, the Dominion having taken the place of the now defunct Terran Confederacy. Earth and its colonies are controlled solely by the United Earth Directorate.

Terran space also have a significant number of Pirate Militias, which have caused conflict with the Terran Confederacy and the Terran Dominion. The Confederacy considered the Kel-Morian Combine and the Umojan Protectorate to be pirate militias, as well.

Terran Technology

 * Main articles: Terran Technology and Terran gaming

The Terrans have greatly advanced their technology since the 21st century. The descendants of the Long Sleep have the ability to create space stations, modify memories and communication holograms.

Terrans have developed advanced weapons of war, such as the Battlecruiser, Siege Tank, Nuclear weapons, Ion Cannons, effective spacecraft, such as the Wraith, the Viking and the Science Vessel, and recently the powerful Thor. Some of their combat ships and even troops have access to cloaking devices.

Militarily, Terrans have developed have the ability to quickly repair their vehicles and structures in the field. The key in Terran warfare is their flexibility. Their primary structures are equipped with jet engines which enable flight to other places.

Terran have access to artificial intelligence that is widespread in use and is reasonably sophisticated, at least in software. The Adjutants seems to be the most widespread artificial intelligence of the Terrans.