Nautilids

The fishlike Nautilids are now fewer than they ever have been. At its height, the nautilid race was a force to be feared, with a fleet that fought alongside the elves in the Crusades and an indomitable homeworld, named Poseidon for its endless oceans. Alas, this was never to last. When the cruel fires of their home star consumed Poseidon, the Nautilid race was left adrift in their ships, searching for another world that could support them. Poseidon was a world of unique composition—a mixture of rare elements and gases was dissolved in its deep oceans. This liquid, known as the Poseidon Solution, is central to the Nautilids’ biology. Though the Nautilid possess great intelligence and are swift underwater, the Solution also allowed them to grow large, for minerals in the Solution facilitate extremely efficient gas transfer into their gills. Nautilids are technically amphibious, possessing both a set of lungs and gills, but venturing too long without the Solution makes respiration difficult. Thus, Nautilids ships and aqua suits are filled with Poseidon Solution.

Race Against Extinction

Ultimately, the blessings of the Poseidon Solution have become a curse. Long they have searched, but the Nautilids have never found an oceanic planet with similar enough waters to the Solution to start anew, nor can the properties of Poseidon simply be terraformed into a new planet. Nautilid populations are in steady decline, and have been for generations, for only aboard ships with ample Solution can Nautilid infants be born. From their large and water-filled Whorl ships, the Nautilids have systematically combed the galaxy for planets that have the potential to become New Poseidon. Every lead and every clue are analyzed, without exception. In pursuit of this goal, nautilid scientists have pushed the boundaries of exploration and colonization, so far, to no avail. Finding the right planet is like picking a single drop from a sea of stars, if that drop even exists. It is no secret what is on the line: the Nautilids are in an agonizingly slow race against extinction; right now, unfortunately, they’re losing.