The Grox are a race of short humanoid cybernetically enhanced gremlins, who reside at the center of the galaxy. They are considered evil by anyone else, but you can actually set up an alliance with them, even though it is hard to accomplish. The Grox reside on T0 planets in over 2000 (!) star systems and they guard the center, in which resides Staff of Life, a tool that can turn barren wastelands into paradises teeming with life.