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The Salarian Union, officially known as Union of Independent Salarian Clans is the political entity within Citadel Alliance that represents the Salarians species, and is among the oldest civilizations in Citadel Space, with the current Union tracing its political lineage back to the united salarian government that launched the exploration missions resulting in first contact with the Asari and the formation of the Citadel Council.
History
Salarians were already thriving on Sur'Kesh 50,000 years before, albeit in a thoroughly primitive state. Eventually, they progressed technologically to the point of colonizing planets beyond their own.
On their first three interstellar colonies, the salarians planted settlements named Aegohr, Mannovai, and Jaëto. According to Kirrahe, those settlements "remain at the heart of salarian territory to this day".
The salarians were the second species to discover the Citadel, only a few decades after the asari. They opened diplomatic relations at once and became one of the founding species of the Citadel Council. In a gesture of trust, the salarians opened the records of one of their intelligence services, the League of One, but this quickly created problems when the League's members found themselves in danger as a result. The League slaughtered the entire Union inner cabinet, but were later hunted down, leaving only relics behind.
Sur'Kesh, the homeworld of the Salarians
The salarians also played a significant role in the advancement of the krogan species. The salarians provided the krogan with advanced technology and a new, tranquil home planet (in order to manipulate the krogan into eradicating the rachni for the Council). The peaceful home world and better technology put less strain on the krogan as a species; they no longer had to worry about simply surviving on a dangerous planet with primitive technology, as they did before contact with the salarians. This comparatively easy life, combined with their exceedingly high birth rate, allowed the krogan the time, numbers, and energy to spread through Citadel space, aggressively claiming formerly allied planets as their own. In order to end these "Krogan Rebellions," the salarians then provided the turians with the genophage, a biological weapon that effectively sterilized the krogan, resulting in almost all krogan pregnancies ending in stillbirth.
Though their military is considered small, and their ground forces lacking operational endurance, salarians are currently seen as the premier intelligence and information-gathering arm of the Council. As such, they are well respected, but some races, especially the Terrans, see the salarians as manipulators.
Government
The salarian government, since at least the formation of the Council in 500 BCE, is called the Salarian Union. It is a labyrinthine web of matrilineal bloodlines, with political alliances formed through interbreeding.
In many ways, the salarian political network functions like the noble families of Earth’s Medieval Europe. Structurally, the government consists of fiefdoms, baronies, duchies, planets, and marches (colonization clusters). These are human nicknames, as the original salarian languages is both unpronounceable and indecipherable to the unaided human ear. Each area is ruled by a single Dalatrass (matriarchal head-of-household) and represents an increasing amount of territory and prestige within the salarian political web.
Approaching 100 members, the first circle of a salarian's clan comprises parents, siblings, uncles, aunts, and cousins. The next circle includes second cousins, etc., and escalates to well over 1000 members. The fourth or fifth circle of a clan numbers into the millions. Salarian loyalty is greatest to their first circle and diminishes from there. Their photographic memories allow salarians to recognize all their myriad relatives.
Military
Salarian Warships in a wargame exercise
In principle, the salarian military is similar to the Terran Federation, a volunteer army but on a smaller scale that focuses on maneuver warfare. What differentiates the salarians is not their equipment or doctrine, but their intelligence services and rules of engagement. The salarians believe that a war should be won before it begins (a doctrine also espoused by some of humanity's greatest generals, such as Sun Tzu).
The unquestioned superiority of their intelligence services allows them to use their small military to maximum effectiveness. Well before fighting breaks out, they possess complete knowledge of their enemy's positions, intentions, and timetable. Their powerful intelligence network is spearheaded in the field by the Special Tasks Group (STG), which is responsible for monitoring developing situations and taking necessary action, usually without the shackles of traditional laws and procedures. This may be as simple as scouting and information gathering, or as complex as ensuring a conveniently unstable political situation stays that way. The effectiveness of the STG during the Krogan Rebellion is what provided the template for the Council to establish their Spectre program immediately afterward.
A group of STG Operatives
The STG however, has recently been overshadowed by Terran Military Intelligence on many occasions, as attempts to establish their typical information network in the Federation has so far been stymied and restricted to the Eastern most colonies and exclaves. This is speculated to be due to the Federation's usage of psychic abilities, who can detect covert agents with their mind-reading and hypnotizing techniques. Their failed attempts at cracking Terran security has been a common cultural stereotype in Citadel Space, a Turian Spectre once commented "Salarians are good, but only an idiot can fool a mind reader." It is fortunate for everyone that in recent years Military Intelligence has purposefully extended ties with the STG.
In every war the salarians have fought, they struck first and without warning. For the salarians, to know an enemy plans to attack and let it happen is folly; to announce their own plans to attack is insanity. They find the human moral concepts of "do not fire until fired upon" and "declare a war before prosecuting it" incredibly naive. In defensive wars, they execute devastating preemptive strikes hours before the enemy's own attacks. On the offense, they have never issued an official declaration of war before attacking.
Biotics are virtually unknown in the salarian military. Those with such abilities are considered too valuable to be used as cannon fodder and are assigned to the intelligence services.
While capable of defending themselves against most threats, the salarians know that they are small fish in a universe filled with sharks. As a point of survival, they have cultivated strong alliances with larger powers, particularly with the turians. Though the relationship between the two species was rocky at first due to the krogan uplift fiasco, the salarians take pains to keep this relationship strong enough that anyone who might threaten them risks turian intervention.
Any conflict where the Salarians are the frontline troops is one that has already politically failed.
The salarian navy has sixteen dreadnoughts, which is considerably less than the maximum they are allowed to build under the Treaty of Farixen. This slowdown in dreadnought production was a consequence of the increasing complexity of the salarians' designs. After acquiring older terran laser technology and covertly stealing turian experimental stealth technology data, the salarians were able to produce dreadnoughts with stealth capabilities, a previously unthinkable feat. Salarian dedication to adopting bleeding-edge technology is also demonstrated by their ships' costly armament. Warships are equipped with the latest GARDIAN defense systems and utilize ultraviolet antiship lasers, which has superior stopping power and fire rate but more costly and difficult to maintain compared to Federation shipboard laser cannon. Even salarian scouting flotillas are armed with hull-mounted laser cannons. This level of armament is only matched by the Terran Federation which has a virtual monopoly on laser arms sales.
Salarian STG units are equipped with a variety of extremely high tech weaponry including the Scorpion, a pistol capable of firing high explosive "sticky projectiles", the Viper, a laser rifle, and the Venom, a shotgun capable of firing micro-grenades. The salarian military also fields the A-61 Mantis Gunship. It was after exposure to Terran weapons and equipment that the Salarians offered a mutually beneficial research treaty, with Yini Mina Precision Devices allowed to work closely with the Union.
Notable salarian units include the 3rd Infiltration Regiment, First Fleet and the Third Fleet.
Culture
Salarians excel at invention, preferring to use cutting-edge technology rather than settle for anything less. For example, their GARDIAN starship defenses and high density laser weapons put emphasis on high performance over reliability even though a malfunction could cost lives.
The salarians see information gathering and even spying as a matter of course when dealing with other races, but to them this is not underhanded: they simply embrace the dictum of "knowledge is power". Federation Counter-Intelligence agencies however, have made a habit of exposing and expelling salarian spy rings. Referred to as "The Game", no ill will is had between the two agencies and both see it as a wonderful opportunity to test themselves and cut their teeth on a real challenge.
A salarian information broker once told Ambassador Maghernus, "No matter how good you are, just remember, your species only has been transmitting data through electrical impulses for less than 400 years. My species has been directing the primary espionage and intelligence operations for the Council for two thousand years."
Normally, the rare salarian females are cloistered on their worlds out of tradition and respect. Powerful female Dalatrasses are dynasts and political kingpins. They determine the political course of their respective regions through shrewd negotiation. Though male salarians rise to positions of great authority in business, academia, or the military, they rarely have any input on politics; one notable exception to this rule is Councilor Valern, a male salarian representing his race on the Citadel Council in 2183 CE, a long line of such councilors, typically from the STG.
Due to their method of reproduction, salarians have no concept of romantic love, sexual attraction, or the biological impulses and social rituals that complicate other species' lives. Male-female relationships are rare (due to the scarcity of females) and more akin to human friendship. Sexuality is strictly for the purpose of reproduction. Ancient social codes determine who gets to fertilize eggs, which produces more daughters to continue the bloodline. Fertilization generally only occurs after months of negotiation between the parents' clans, and is done for purposes of political and dynastic alliance. No salarian would imagine defying this code.
Salarian names are quite complex. A full name includes – in order – the name of a salarian's homeworld, nation, city, district, clan name and given name. For example, a salarian named Gorot II Heranon Mal Dinest Got Inoste Ledra would be called either by his clan name, Inoste, or his given name, Ledra.
The salarian race also includes the Lystheni "offshoot." How the Lystheni are distinct from mainline salarians and why they are currently unwelcome in Council space is relatively unknown among Federation inhabitants. Lystheni salarians may be found living among batarians, exiled quarians, and other galactic refuse at Omega.
Salarians celebrate "Betau," the first day of their New Year. Traditionally, it marks the end of winter in the southern hemisphere on the salarian homeworld, Sur'Kesh. During this occasion, they repay debts, and petition favors from one another.
When it comes to keeping secrets, salarians have two types of social cues. The first type is personal or guilt-based, and invites suspicion and exploration. The second type is for secrets deemed dangerous if discovered, and signals discourage curiosity for protection of the relevant parties. Reflexive body language conveys the type of secret and cannot be faked convincingly; an analogue is that of a human faking a yawn.
Economy
The Union economy is the smallest of the three Council races, but still far larger than the Federation. It is based on "bleeding-edge" technologies; salarian industries are leaders in most fields, second only to Asari based companies in specific fields liek Biotics and Mass Effect technologies. They make up for a lack of military quantity by holding a decisive superiority in quality and information. A significant level of economic activity is in the trading and production of data and media.