On the Origin of Species

I think creating one's own species is one of my favorite features of Hyperlanes.

You've all created your own playable species before, and it's not overly complicated. However, there are a few points I want to clarify about this admittedly simple endeavor...

Species > Anatomy + Culture

Species creation entails assigning both an "Anatomy" and a "Culture" to your species concept. But, if possible, I want you to give it more than just that, so the species inherits its own place in the galaxy beyond just being a source of features and stats. For example, specific cultural norms, societal structures, or even a rough description of their native planet can all add wonderful flavor. But even something as simple as a species name and a vague idea of appearance will do.

This also allows any particular Anatomy or Culture to be used any number of times to create a species in Arcturus. You can even use an Anatomy/Culture combination that has already been used to create a new species, so long as they are descriptively distinct. For instance, you might want to create a Sly Arachnoid species, even though the Adé Biia already fit this description; as long as your new species is meaningfully distinct, there's no reason you can't do this.

Culture is environmental

While Anatomy tends to be strongly dependent on one's genome, Culture is purely dependent on one's surroundings. For our purposes, this means you can play around with your character's Cultural features and traits to fit their particular backstory. If you create an orphaned Dunkelung character who grew up on Beshten surrounded by Chafoorans, it's a lot more likely they will adopt the Chafoorans' Warlike Culture, rather than the Dunkelung culture of Honorable.

Embrace flavor

This point probably goes without saying for our group, but I'll spell it out nonetheless: you needn't adhere strictly to the book's flavor when creating a species (particularly when choosing an Anatomy). If you have an idea, but it doesn't fit neatly into any of the book's Anatomy categories, it doesn't mean you have to abandon the idea! You can either fit it not-so-neatly into a category you like the feel of, or we can work together to engineer a kind of "hybrid Anatomy." In fact, I've already done this to create both the Verakor and the Conjugate of Polymorphic Singularity.

Please do make sure to run your idea by me before we play, though, so no one ends up with a natural AC of 18, underwater breathing and a swim speed, resistance to poison damage, telepathy, and no down sides...