Races
When you join a season of Orbitarion, the first decision you make is your race. This choice defines everything — how your ships fight, how fast you grow, and what role you play in your alliance.
There are four playable races in Orbitarion, each built around a distinct combat philosophy. No race is strictly better than another. Each has strengths that shine in certain situations and weaknesses that skilled opponents will try to exploit.
A fifth faction — The Void — exists in the universe but is not playable. They appear as NPC garrisons in nebulae and on the Star Map. See the bottom of this page.
The Four Playable Races
United Earth Command
Tag: UEC · Archetype: Tank
The backbone of human civilization. UEC ships are heavily armored fortresses that fire last but hit the hardest and survive the longest. Built for players who want to be nearly impossible to destroy.
Bonus: +20% construction speed, +10% armor on all ships
Odonari Hive
Tag: ODO · Archetype: Stealth
A biological swarm civilization that grows, consumes, and overwhelms. ODO ships are cheap, fast, and invisible on scanner. They attack before you know they're coming.
Bonus: −1 tick ETA on all fleets, +15% research speed
The Aetherians
Tag: ATH · Archetype: EMP
Masters of energy manipulation. ATH ships fire first and freeze enemy vessels instead of destroying them, giving allied kill ships free targets. The ultimate battlefield control race.
Bonus: +20% research speed, +10% EMP efficiency
Sytherian Cartel
Tag: STC · Archetype: Steal
Pirates, smugglers, and opportunists. STC's Fighter, Corvette, and Frigate classes carry boarding hardware that captures enemy ships mid-battle — stolen vessels join your fleet and fight on permanently. The only race that grows by taking, not by building.
Bonus: +10% scan success, +5% agility on steal-ships
Choosing your race
Not sure which race to pick? Here's a quick guide based on playstyle:
| If you want to... | Play |
|---|---|
| Be hard to kill, win by attrition | United Earth Command |
| Attack fast and stay invisible | Odonari Hive |
| Control the battlefield, support your alliance | The Aetherians |
| Snowball by capturing enemy fleets | Sytherian Cartel |
| Win with pure economy and fast research | The Aetherians or Odonari Hive |
| Dominate the endgame with massive fleets | United Earth Command |
Race comparison
| UEC | ODO | ATH | STC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Armor | ★★★★★ | ★★ | ★★★ | ★★★ |
| Speed (ETA) | ★★★ | ★★★★★ | ★★★ | ★★★ |
| Research speed | ★★★ | ★★★★ | ★★★★★ | ★★★ |
| Production speed | ★★★★★ | ★★★ | ★★★ | ★★★ |
| Combat role | Frontline tank | Swarm striker | Battlefield control | Capture & convert |
| Difficulty | Easy | Medium | Medium | Hard |
Races and alliance synergy
The real power of each race comes out in coordinated alliance attacks. A composed strike force might look like this:
- ATH sends EMP frigates to freeze the defender's main fleet
- UEC sends a heavy kill fleet to destroy the frozen defenders
- STC sends steal-ships to capture surviving enemy vessels — adding them to the alliance's fleet pool
- ODO or UEC sends Orbital Pods to steal orbitals after the battle
Each race contributes a different lever — control, kill, capture, or capture-and-steal-orbitals. Understanding your role in this kind of coordinated attack — and playing to your race's strengths — is what separates good players from great ones.
The Void (NPC)
Tag: VOID · Archetype: NPC · Not playable
A collective consciousness that abandoned biology long ago. The Void exists as autonomous NPC fleets, encountered in nebulae and across the Star Map. They never inhabit player planets, never initiate attacks, and never propose alliances. They sit in their garrisons until you come to claim them.
Roughly 70% of equivalent-class player ship strength across the board, no special abilities, immune to STC ship-stealing.
Documentation reflects Orbitarion v2.0. Last updated: 2026-05-19.