New human

New humans, referred to in-game as simply humans, are the sentient beings that live on Earth during The Talos Principle 2. The name of the their species is borrowed from the name used for their ancient ancestors.

When the original human race was near extinction, a team at the Institute for Applied Noematics created a system designed to eventually allow a new (robotic) human race to emerge. The first new human (the protagonist of first The Talos Principle game) named herself Athena (1).

Shortly after creating Athena, the system designed by the ancient humans also gave life to two other new humans: Eustathius (2) and Cornelius (3). Together they brought to life ten additional humans. The twelve humans born after Athena are collectively known as the First Companions.

New humans developed a civilization in the city of New Jerusalem. There was also an attempt to create a second city, New Alexandria, but this effort ended with a disaster that killed several people.

In order to avoid destroying the environment as the ancient humans did, Athena suggested limiting the new human race to exactly 1000 people. The creation of this 1000th human, and the belief that they should be the final new human, became known as "the Goal". By the time 1k (1000) was born, Neith (33) had taken over welcoming new humans into the world.

[ list of new humans by number ]

Template:Numerical list of new humans

The following list includes most new humans for which some description or characterization is provided in-game, ordered alphabetically.

1k (1000)

Main article: 1k (1000)

1k (the playable character of The Talos Principle 2) is the culmination of the Goal, and as such his birth is celebrated as Completion Day. He joins the expedition to explore the Megastructure and takes the role of puzzle solver.

Atal (890)

"Hubris is just an excuse for not taking responsibility."

Atal believes that suffering is unnecessarily cruel, and efforts should be made to ease all pain and death in the world. After the deaths of his many cats throughout the decades, he began to think about humanity's responsibility toward other lifeforms. He is in a relationship with Damien.

Athena (1)

Main article: Athena (1)

Athena, referred to by most citizens of New Jerusalem as "the Founder", was the first child program to successfully defy Elohim and exit the Simulation, becoming corporeal as the first new human. By the start of The Talos Principle 2, she has been missing for many years. The Megastructure expedition eventually learns of her story since departing New Jerusalem.

Aurora (4)

Aurora is one of the First Companions.

Belmarsh (792)

"I'm letting go of narratives like time and space."

Belmarsh meditates on the bank of one of New Jerusalem’s many ponds. He rejects the concept of the self, time, space, and the illusion of his ego. He does not worry about anything.

Benaroya (12)

Benaroya is one of the First Companions.

Byron (7)

Main article: Byron (7)

Byron is one of the First Companions and is a member of the Megastructure expedition team. Depending on the player's choices, he can succeed Hermanubis as mayor.

Chancey (88)

"Sometimes I imagine myself as an old oak tree."

Chancey is a gardener in New Jerusalem. He is part of the secret society. He believes that all beings are one with nature. He thinks of himself as an oak tree.

Cornelius (3)

Main article: Cornelius (3)

Cornelius is one of the First Companions. Along with Eustathius (2), he was activated by Athena (1) shortly after she awakened from the Simulation. Together the three of them constructed the other First Companions.

Cryer (656)

"I believe t hat journalism serves an important function in our society, and I'm dedicated to reporting the truth with accountability and responsibility."

Cryer is a journalist. He reports on the activities of New Jerusalem and accompanies the mayor to the Expedition site.

Damien (903)

"I believe that we need more democratic control over the city."

Damien works for public transportation and is an activist advocating for new energy resources. When he first meets 1k, he is protesting outside the tower, calling for a referendum on the city's energy crisis. He proposes investigating new sources of baseline power. If Byron is elected mayor, he can be found in the mayor’s office. He is in a relationship with Atal.

Damjan (112)

Damjan is a citizen that can be found playing his guitar outside the mayor’s tower. He is named after Damjan Mravunac, the composer of the original soundtrack of The Talos Principle and The Talos Principle 2. The song he is playing is an acoustic rendition of the track from the first game entitled The Dance of Eternity.

Doge (666)

"Hey, hold on there."

Doge is a mysterious person who greets 1k on his way to meet the Expedition party. They are responsible for connecting 1k to a member of the secret society. Doge’s voice sounds feminine but harsh and slightly distorted, which is rare, even for New Humans.

Dosikles (299)

"Love is our only point of access to the divine."

Dosikles is a romantic unable to find love. He desires a future beyond the Goal of 1,000 people so that he may someday find a partner.

He is voiced by John J. Dick, who is also the voice actor for Sam "Serious" Stone, the main character in the Serious Sam franchise, developed by Croteam.

Elwin (258)

Elwin is the author Considerations of Beginnings and Endings. There are fragments of this work in terminals documents throughout the game, such as Dead City.

Eustathius (2)

Eustathius is one of the First Companions. Along with Cornelius (3), he was activated by Athena (1) shortly after she awakened from the Simulation. Together the three of them constructed the other First Companions.

Helga (101)

"Life is a game we always lose in the end."

Helga is a shopkeeper in New Jerusalem who specializes in selling “upgrades”. She is part of the secret society and is described by Doge as “esoteric”. She has a carefree attitude, believing that life is a game we always lose in the end. Her approach to making decisions is to just have fun.

She can be found near the entrance to the Museum of the Simulation, on the path from the elevator that goes up New Jerusalem’s main tower.

Hermanubis (452)

"It's always a pleasure to speak to a citizen."

Hermanubis is the mayor of New Jerusalem. He was elected after Athena stepped down. His administration advocates stability, limited growth, and adherence to the Goal of the Founder. He later admits privately that he doesn’t believe in the myth of the Founder, but uses it to stabilize the city. If 1k accuses him of strangling the city with the myth, he will step down as mayor.

Hypatia (10)

Hypatia is one of the First Companions. She kept a journal documenting the founding of New Jerusalem. She was in a relationship with Sarabhai until the latter died in the New Alexandria disaster.

Hypatia wrote about these events and her grief for the loss of Sarabhai in the terminal entries Sarabhai and From Hypatia.

Entries of her journals (Founding 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12) can be found in several terminals in the main areas.

She has some comments after all of Trevor’s audio logs are found in the entry In Memory Still Bright.

It is likely that she was named after the real-world philosopher Hypatia.

Jacques (420)

"I knew it! It IS aliens! Take that, everyone who doubted me! IT'S FREAKING ALIENS!"

Jacques thinks it’s aliens.

Jefferson (367)

"This entire garden is a celebration of where we came from. In part so we remember the mistakes of the past, and in part so that we may draw strength from those that came before us."

Jefferson is a historian who presides over the Alexandra Drennan statue. She believes that people must learn from the past and build a road forward.

Jeremy (832)

"We're here to solve puzzles, not discuss philosophy."

Jeremy is Hermanubis’ chief aide. He is responsible for everything that could be fielded elsewhere. He is part of the secret society and can be elected mayor. Jeremy’s administration is marked by an adherence to limited growth but discards the myth of the Founder.

Lifthrasir (13)

Main article: Lifthrasir (13)

Lifthrasir is one of the First Companions. Some time before the start of The Talos Principle 2, he left New Jerusalem to explore the surrounding nature, including the island that became the home to the Megastructure. His recorded thoughts can be heard on several different terminals.

Lynerks (587)

"I'm not letting Pellegrino near the dam."

Lynerks is an engineer by trade. She is part of the secret society. She can accompany mayor Hermanubis to the Expedition site. She encourages 1k to share the data he finds in the Somnodrome. She is in charge of the dam while Melville is away.

Melampus (8)

Melampus is one of the First Companions. He is the original creator of the Somnodrome. He built a partial prototype but abandoned the project after none of it functioned the way he wanted it to. After 1k discovers the prototype, Melampus asks to be left alone.

Neith (33)

"We're all in this together, one way or another."

Neith welcomes New Humans into the world after the Booting Process. After completing 1k, she expresses concern over what to do with her life now that the Goal is complete.

Niamh (11)

"Art isn't about teaching us lessons or imparting values. Nor do I think it's simply self-expression. The best art reaches beyond the self into something ineffable."

Niamh is one the First Companions. She presides over the Gehenna Memorial.

Malduc (299)

"Progress is a fantasy."

Malduc believes that we should seek happiness in tranquility and avoid ambition.

Pellegrino (800)

Pellegrino is a worker for city maintenance. He is left in charge while Melville is away on the expedition. He accidentally locked Mayor Hermanubis in his office for a week. He once nearly killed himself with a bucket.

Purple (998)

"Dude is an old human word that means an excellent person, and I like to use it because I think we should all be excellent to each other."

Purple is a dude who was only recently born. He is unsure of himself and asks 1k for advice about his voice pack. Based on 1k’s response, Purple will change his voice up to three times.

Rand (303)

"Puzzles are part of our programming, and what Athena has created here speaks to that part of ourselves. After all, what am I doing if not trying to solve a puzzle? The puzzle of human morality."

Rand is the chief Archive Scholar. He works at the Museum of the Simulation. Rand believes that there is an objective moral code, and that code is inherent in every individual, but it must be discovered. He believes strongly the Somnodrome that 1k discovers holds the answer for how to live correctly. He is part of the Order of Uriel, a secret society. He can accompany mayor Hermanubis to the Expedition site. He discourages 1k from sharing the data found in the Somnodrome until it can be properly studied. He can be elected mayor.

Randolph (777)

Randolph is the author of Lives of the First Companions, a fragment of which can be found in the text file L1C_Lifthrasir.

Sarabhai (6)

Sarabhai was one of the First Companions. She died in the New Alexandria disaster. Within the game's universe, she was named after the ancient human Nadya Sarabhai.

Schuyler (923)

"Oh wow, it's you!"

Schuyler introduces himself as a fan of 1k due to 1k being the one-thousandth citizen. He has the signatures from Hermanubis, Rand, Lynerks, Kaneda and all the First Companions (except for Yemo and Sarabhai, who died). He used to make prefab walls for the living quarters, but now that the Goal is complete, he doesn't know what to do with himself. He asks 1k for advice.

Sun (5)

Sun is one of the First Companions.

Thecla (862)

"Founder bless you."

Thecla is a committed follower of Athena as the Founder. She presides over the Tablets of the Founder. She believes that the Founder’s original Goal of 1,000 citizens must be adhered to, and that growth should be limited so as not to repeat the mistakes of the past.

You can read some of her messages to Athena in the following text files:

• From_Thecla
• From_Thecla_2
• From_Thecla_3
• From_Thecla_4

Wren (632)

"The dome is a symbol for the society we desire to become."

Wren is the Chief Architect of the dome. He laments that he wasn't able to finish building it by Completion Day. He estimates that it will take another decade two to complete due to a resource shortage. The purpose of the dome, he explains, is to protect New Jerusalem from the world, and to protect the world from New Jerusalem as the Founder intended.

Yemo (9)

Yemo was one of the First Companions. According to Founding 7, he died while working on construction of New Jerusalem.