Precursor Race

The Precursor Race was a highly advanced and ancient space-faring alien race that arrived on Planet 4546B approximately one thousand years ago, searching for a cure for the Kharaa Bacterium. Most information surrounding them is currently unknown. The ulterior motive of the Precursors was to stop the Kharaa Bacterium from destroying their race, which was a bacterium that they discovered on an unknown planet. Their plans failed and Kharaa was released onto 4546B. It seems that this was the main cause of the death of the Precursors

Biology
No Precursor has ever been seen, so nothing is known of their physical appearance. Of the few things known about their race, one is that they lived for an extremely long time, shown in a data bank entry by the mention of a ninety-six year old Precursor being considered very young. The same individual was around 700 Earth-years old when it died due to Kharaa infection. It is likely that they were a lot larger than humans, based on the size of their bases and the objects within them, a prime example being the height of the surgical tables found in the Disease Research Facility which come up to just below Ryley Robinson's neck. For use as a surgical table they would most likely come up to around the torso of the surgeon, by this it can be estimated that the Precursor race would have averaged between seven and eight feet in height. The use of the word "seed" in reference to the unborn form of a Precursor possibly implies plant-like biology, though it is equally possible that seed could refer to an animal ovum. Imperfect translation may also be the reason behind this. The language clearly does not perfectly translate into English as shown by the naming of the Sea Emperor Leviathan.

Contact With Other Species
The Precursors are known to have scavenged technology from other races. All but one of the relics held by them were taken from other races, some of these races even more ancient than themselves. One of the relics is a sword from Earth, showing that the Precursors visited the planet and possibly even made contact with humans at some point. Inside the Sparse Reef Sanctuary the PDA notes similarities between Precursor architecture and old Earth religious iconography. This may be coincidental, however it may indicate that the Precursors had an influence on the formation of ancient human religions and societies. If this is true then it is also likely that some ancient Earth languages were based on the language of the Precursors; the PDA is capable of translating it without ever having encountered the language before, if the language was from a language family completely foreign to any on Earth then translation should be impossible. Their written language bears slight resemblances to Hebrew.

Description
Although the Precursors are not seen in-game, they were an extremely advanced race - able to create advanced technology (such as teleportation devices, weapons capable of bringing down large ships, wirelessly powered biomechanical life forms capable teleporting at will, of etc.) and the technology to capture a Sea Emperor Leviathan. They are also capable of creating Data Hubs, which they can upload their mind to, the digital equivalent of a medically-induced coma. There is only evidence of a single Precursor doing this, who were uploaded to the Dunes Sanctuary, with their body disposed of shortly afterwards.

The Precursors were able to create and use Warpers as guards for their bases and use them to hunt down creatures infected with the Kharaa Bacterium, and create technologies far more advanced than humanity's current technological state, and at the same time, predating humans by thousands of years.

The Precursors are also able to create "keys", known as Alien Tablets, which unlock various Precursor machines, including forcefields and Alien Arches, which function as teleporters. The Artifacts also possibly served as a personal computer and security clearance of sorts to it's user according to the entry for the Blue Tablet. In addition, they can create alloys that are highly heat-resistant and can last over one thousand years with no sign of degradation. Ion Cubes are another creation, having been created from an unknown element not found on the Periodic Table, and fabricated inside the Primary Containment Facility's Antechamber. Most, if not all Precursor technology is seemingly powered by Ion Cubes. Interestingly enough, Ion Cubes appear to be used in ceremonial fashion, as the three Sanctuary Caches have multiple Ion Cubes adorning them. The Precursors also created the Alien Robots that repair and, if need be, defend the Alien Bases from intruders.

Story
The Precursors came to Planet 4546B around one thousand years ago in their search to find a cure for the Kharaa Bacterium, which they had discovered while exploring other worlds and indirectly caused it to infect their species. They built four bases on the planet, the Quarantine Enforcement Platform, the Disease Research Facility , the Alien Thermal Plant and the Primary Containment Facility.

Each of these bases serves a different purpose in the fight against the Kharaa Bacterium. The planet was set up so that if the bacterium was ever released by accident, the whole planet could be quarantined, allowing no ships to enter or leave the planet. In order to enforce this, the Quarantine Enforcement Platform and Self-Warping Quarantine Enforcer Units (Warpers) were created.

The Quarantine Enforcement Platform (QEP) fires an energy pulse at any unauthorized ship that tries to enter or leave the planet, severely damaging or even completely destroying the vessel, to prevent the spread of the bacterium offworld. The Warpers are cyborgs, created through combining the body of an already existing creature with Precursor technology (more details on Warper page), capable of phase jumping at will and powered wirelessly by the Precursor Thermal Power Generator - they will attack and attempt to kill any Fauna infected with the Kharaa Bacterium. This base is responsible for causing the Degasi and Aurora to crash, as well as destroying the Sunbeam during its attempt to rescue the Player.

The Disease Research Facility (DRF) was a lab dedicated to researching the effects of the Kharaa Bacterium on living specimens. At some point, a Sea Dragon Leviathan that was attempting to retrieve its egg which was contained within the structure destroyed to the facility, causing the Kharaa Bacterium to be released into the water. This had catastrophic effects on the planet, with many species going into extincion because of it. The planetary quarantine was put into effect as a result.

The Alien Thermal Plant (ATP) located in the Lava Castle seems to be the power source for all of the Precursor technology on the planet. 30% of the power generated is stored for emergency use, 30% powers the Quarantine Enforcement Platform, 22% powers the Primary Containment Facility, 11% powers the Disease Research Facility, and 7% runs the Self-Warping Quarantine Enforcer Units (Warpers) wirelessly. It is the smallest of the four alien bases.

The Primary Containment Facility (PCF) is located in the Lava Lakes, the second deepest known biome on the planet. The main purpose of this base is to develop a cure for the bacterium by using the last surviving Sea Emperor Leviathan, and its five eggs. The Sea Emperor Leviathan contained in this base is immune to the Kharaa Bacterium due to it producing quantities of Enzyme 42. This enzyme is a vital ingredient to curing the Kharaa Bacterium. The five remaining eggs of the Sea Emperor Leviathan are dormant. They were being kept alive by the Incubator Device. The eggs require specific conditions in order to hatch, as such they have been in a state of stasis for hundreds of years. These eggs must be hatched at some point in the story. This facility also features four warp-gates to different biomes on the planet.

Trivia

 * Various Data Downloads suggest that the Precursors may be capable of some form of telepathy.
 * The ancient Mongolian blade found in the antechamber of the Primary Containment Facility suggest that the Precursors visited Earth in the past. The Alien Carving also supports this theory, as the yin and yang symbol was a major part of ancient chinese philosophy.
 * According to a data download, the Precursors were grown from seeds, suggesting that they were plant-based beings. It also suggests that they are raised in broods. Their lifecycle also greatly exceeds a century.