Pathfinder, Exploration, Purpose, Endgame

In terms of diplomacy, I believe I would go about like any reasonable Elcor would. With an offering of a limited edition Elcor plushie & a copy of Fornax: Asari (No Hair) Edition. If all else fails the gun will probably kill them while I tell them to calm down.

The conversation would go something like this:

Alien - "Holy shit what da fuck is that?!"
Elcor - "With Pride: Hello alien, I am from a race called the Elcor & with to establish peace."
Alien - *Shits self*
Elcor - "Happily: As a peace offering I extend to you a limited edition Elcor plushie & a copy of Fornax for when you feel lonely."
Alien - "These are weird Asaru, they don't have eyebrows...."
Elcor - "With Curiosity: We cool?"

(Ending 1)
Alien - "Yeah, we cool tank thing."

(Ending 2)
Alien - "Of course not you overgrown (input native four legged species here)."
GunVI - "Detecting hostiles... open fire."
Elcor - "I guess I'll keep the offerings (looks through Fornax magazine)."

More on topic though it would be amazing for replayability if we could have meaningful (key word there) alliances & enemies depending on our direct & indirect choices regarding individual races.

That's kinda what it sounds like to me. That you'd be having to pick sides and that'll have some kinda outcome for the rest of the game. Question is when do you pick those sides? End of the game so the last stretch is different? Could be a theme that crops up on more then one hub area.

Personally I'd hope for more of a multiple or mid-game time period on that kinda choice. But I'd be happy either way.

Fornax would be an important tool for introducing Milky Way species to the new galaxy. It would explain the relevant physiology (and, erm, flexibility) of all the new kids. For science, of course.

I hope they take enough alcohol, there's not much that can't be solved with a beer and the obligatory I love you man.

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I have a vision of a pole and flexibility in there somewhere.

Sartoz : Not entirely, but maybe? I mean the estimated Goldilocks planets in our own galaxy is absurdly high, higher then ones that would potentially have life on them. Andromeda is way bigger then that. Good chance we could find a planet not inhabited that doesn't require us 'take over'.

That said you are going to be dealing with 'some' space faring races. And it's their galaxy, or their governments we have to deal with outside of just grabbing a planet or 3 and going for it. So we'll have to deal with that either way. I doubt we'll just invade, that's not really what are species does much of anymore. We tend to fight over other things. Especially when there's so much damn room to find something else.

It's the whole Krogan problem if you think about it. EVERY other race would of just picked non-inhabited stuff cause there's like 99% stuff no ones explored yet in the Milky Way. Krogan? Why do that when you can go to war cause wars fun and you can take other peoples shit. Only race who thinks that way in the Milky Way is Krogans and Batarians.

So yeah I doubt we'll be invading anyone. Definitely trying to find a few homes for are species while trying to deal with the political climat of the new galaxy (which is apparently war ).