The Gallifreyans are a species of extremely powerful telepaths located near the Galactic Core. They make their home on a planet called Gallifrey, and have only recently established official borders and begun colonization efforts of other worlds. The race originally evolved in another galaxy, one they called Scion. The Gallifreyans, while always quite kind and honorable in person, have traditionally been somewhat xenophobic, not out of fear or hate of other races, but because they wished to remain undiscovered by other species. In recent years, they have become more open and have recently put an end to their hidden lifestyle and become recognized and respected members of the galactic community. Due to their large part in the destruction of the Na'jigat, most members of other races look to the Gallifreyans as symbols of honor and virtue, and this (along with their telepathic nature) makes them superb ambassadors.

History and Culture

The Gallifreyan Order was a collection of warriors of the Gallifreyan race, that were sworn to an ancient pledge to destroy a group of entities called the Na'jigat. The Galifreyan Order was, for many millenia, the closest thing the species had to a central government, as their society was very basic, almost tribal, in nature. It consisted of two castes, the Sentinels and the Templars, divided in their combat specialization.

• The Sentinels were the more psionically attuned of the Gallifreyans, and were known for their proficiency in employing telepathic abilities on the battlefield. They were at the forefront of the Order's efforts against the Na'jigat, being the best candidate to fight against an entity of pure mental energy. Although every Sentinel was armed with a khala and was well trained in physical combat, this was not their charge, and traditionally left such combat to a Templar when opportune.
• The Templar caste included those Gallifreyans that were found to have exceptional physical strength, agility, and speed. These warriors formed the physical arm of the Order's might, as they were some of best (if not the best) warriors in the galaxy. They were armed with the ceremonial Gallifreyan weapon, the khala, which was a two-pronged blade of pure energy, with the exception of the small hilt, which contained a shard of khaydarin crystal and a pair of specialized emitters, which allowed the warrior to project his mental energy to form the physical blade.

Adun and the fall of the Erendir

Immediately following the exodus of both the Na'jigat and Gallifreyans to the Milky Way galaxy, the Gallifreyan Order found a new homeworld to base their efforts from. Not long after settling this world, they were contacted by a native race of the Milky Way, a species called the Erendir that resided very near to the Galactic Core. A race of sages and intellects, the Erendir made an impression on the Gallifreyans, and became a close and trusted ally, serving as counsels and confidants during the endless war with the Na'jigat.

Approximately four thousand years ago, a senior master of the Gallifreyan Council, a Sentinel by the name of Adun, learned of an impending attack by the Na'jigat on the Erendir homeworld. He led a large force of Sentinels there to repel them, but was largely unsuccessful. A large majority of the planet was rendered uninhabitable, and to current knowledge, every member of the Erendir race was destroyed. Adun, aware that the Na'jigat posed a dire threat to Gallifrey with this power, focused the psionic energies of all of his disciples in a desperate attempt to destroy the Na'jigat. While the Na'jigat were severely weakened, Adun proved incapable of continuing the attack, his body unable to contain the massive amounts of energy being channeled through it. Before he could finish the attack, his body succumbed, and the Na'jigat proceeded to retreat back into the Galactic Core, where they recuperated and laid in wait for many years afterward.

Although he was killed in the attempt, Adun revealed something to the Gallifreyan people; that only by the combined power of the entire Gallifreyan species could the Na'jigat be brought low. Many Gallifreyans tried to learn the feat that Adun had learned, the channeling of energies from one Gallifreyan through another, but none were strong enough to properly contain or focus the energies. A prophecy began to arise in silent corners of the Order, that stated that an impure telepath would arise that would hold the key to the Na'jigat's undoing. This prophecy went unanswered for many millenia, before becoming something of a mere tale believed only by the more starry-eyed apprentices.

The Nil'kemorya

Gallifreyan spirituality center around the idea of an all-seeing force called the Nil'kemorya, an entity comprised of every telepath whose abilities had grown so vast that they transcended the corporeal realm. Only a very small handful of Gallifreyans had been rumored to achieve this since Gallifreyan pre-history, and none since contact with the Na'jigat. The Nil'kemorya was the Gallifreyan equivalent of a deity, and some members of the Order believed that Adun was an avatar for this deity, called the Nil'kimas, a warrior that the Nil'kemorya acted through to protect the Gallifreyans and the rest of the galaxy in times of extreme need. This belief was part of the prophecies of the Na'jigat's fall, and many believers were convinced that Adun was one such Nil'kimas, but was unprepared for the challenge that awaited him.

The Chalice of Adun

Before Adun was destroyed, he attempted to regain focus over the powers he channeled by using his khaydarin crystal, a stone carried by all masters of the Order. A khaydarin crystal serves to amplify the powers channeled through it, but Adun tried not to focus his own power, but that of all his disciples. This crystal was transformed by the power run through it, and became what was known as the Chalice of Adun. The stone was lost soon after this, but was regarded by followers of the prophecy as the key that the next Nil'kimas would need to complete the task Adun started.