You know the drill. The main standout traits for humans compared to their galactic brethren is their Balkanization and relatively strong religious beliefs. Humans are also notable of being one of the species belonging to the Thebus Paradox. A group of species that do not appear to have a common origin, but have all evolved to a convergent form, so much they can often share similar medical technology and have closely matching DNA.

Humans have experimented with many animals, boosting their intelligence to human levels. Apes, dogs, pigs, dolphins, ravens, octopuses, and others have been uplifted. These are almost exclusively considered property by the corporations that uplift them have have no real rights or citizenship by even the most sympathetic corporations. But some escape and manage to make a living on the fringe worlds, masquerading as an obscure alien species.

The Alari is a human-like species of single gendered hermaphroditic aliens. They look remarkably human-like, almost passing for a handsome woman or feminine man. They tend to be tall, around 6' with subtle differences in the ears, eyes, and nose the give them a somewhat uncanny elfin features. They are extremely long lived with most living more than a century and some living close to two centuries.

The Alari are a politically powerful race, being one of the longest space faring races. They are generally polite and civil with a society that is inclusive to all races, not just their own. However they are shrewd negotiators and not above blackmail, sabotage, and brutal action in they deem necessary.
Alari society is marked with a great focus on personal excellence and communal unity. “Whatever you do, strive to be the best” is a common principal. However this leads to some Alari becoming quite notorious when turning to life or crime or violence. Alari do not have traditional family structures. Reproduction is controlled, with birth being illegal without government approval. Children are raised communally without ever knowing their biological parents or siblings. Most Alari find the concept of family a bit taboo, with a growing group of radicals push for reproductive rights. The whole thing is a bit of a sore spot compared to the rest of the universes cavalier attitude on reproduction. Alari society is somewhat communistic, with min and max incomes capped. This leads to many Alari leaving their core worlds to the fringes where they are free to pursue their own fortunes unhindered, but also giving up the safety and security of the core worlds.

Alari often use exile as a form of punishment, with many outcasts that do not normally fit in polite Alari society finding themselves on the fringe worlds.

The Sophons are a humanoid race, somewhat resembling the traditional “grey” alien, leading some to question how much validity there is to UFO abductions. However their classical appearance is much more human, but centuries of gene manipulation has lead to their present state. They are taller than traditionally depicted, being roughly the same size as humans, if not a bit shorter. They are one of the Thebus Paradox races and the greatest scientific cultures in the galaxy. Thebus himself was a renown Sophon scientist.

Academic achievement is core to their societal structure. With peer review and academic achievement core to their political process. The are the greatest innovators in the galaxy, but have trouble concealing sensitive information. Something the Alari have helped with with in a powerful alliance.

The Sophons are naturally telepathic, although this power is very limited. They can only communicate naturally between other Sophons, and was a trait that was added through gene modification. However, the same principals was used to develop a universal translator device, that can be injecting into other species. This takes decades of research to develop safely for each species. Humans were only recently added as a compatible race, fueling accusations that Sophons have been abducting humans to develop this technology decades before contact was formally made.

Sophons can sometimes be a bit loose on morality. Scientific advancement is often an ends to justify the means. The Alari have had to clean up many a diplomatic incident on behalf of the Sophons. Still, they are by no means amoral, and strongly believe in the power of science to improve the lives of everyone in the galaxy. But they tend to more strongly believe the ends justify the means and that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.

The Drax are a somewhat reptilian (think dragonborn) race and the most significant non-Thebus race in the galaxy. The are powerful warriors and the biggest combined known military. They are a sexual dimorphic race, with males being roughly humanoid in shape and size, but females being up to 5-10x in size and more slumped and dragon-looking. Males far outnumber females, with females taking a matriarchal position in society.

Drax are heavily motivated by honor and conquest in the name of their matriarch. They worship the matriarchs with a semi-religious zeal. The have a long history of tribal infighting, but intervention from the Alari unified them into a single fighting force with the Alari comfortably holding the reigns.

The Voraskan are large arachnid looking creatures. They are hive based, but have many breeders rather than a single queen. They are voracious eaters and combatants. Centuries ago they were a monstrous scourge on the galaxy, invading and consuming entire worlds. But after a terrible disease engineered by the Sophons devastated their populations, the Alari offered a cure in exchange for peace. The universe discovered that the Voraskan were quite intelligent. No longer the galactic threat they once were, you can now find Voraskan wandering the universe.
Voraskan culture honors the consumption of the dead. By eating the dead, they give strength and live on in the consumer. The Voraskan are also renown for their sense of humor. This humor tends to center around their barely contained instinct to kill and consume those around them, which humans for some reason find off-putting, but the rest of the galaxy find hilarious. The Voraskan do not feel pain. In fact they seem to only feel joy and hunger.

Factors are a race of sentient slime molds. They can merge together into larger hive minds, or break into smaller entities capable of independent thought and action. They do not have a strong sense of individuality and communicate with bio-luminescence and chemical signals. They are difficult to communicate with, but have managed to carve a niche in the universe.

The Borons are a splinter species of the Sophons. Diverging centuries ago, they pursued even more heavily modified bio-engineering, so much that much of their technology is bio-engineered. They adapted their biology to survive on their water colony worlds. They have a more squid like appearance. They have similar focus on academic pursuits as the Sophons, but are distinct enough to be considered their own species.

Tall (8'+) mysterious humanoids. The have an expansive empire. Their technology is weird and mystical, even by most other alien's standards. They have trouble communicating directly and use ambassadors from other species that undergo some ritual to understand the Sah'iir.

The Ur is an ancient precursor race that now appears extinct. There are many artifacts left as evidence of their galaxy wide empire. What exactly caused their extinction is still unknown, but their artifacts are highly prized.