New Morphs

BIOMORPHS

NEO-CANID

The neo-canid morph was developed by an ultimate faction as part of a canine uplift project called Canid Ultra. While the actual uplift attempts have thus far born little fruit, the specially designed biomorph for the next version of man's best friend has proven quite popular. They are based entirely on modified canine genetic material, though they draw from a wide variety of domestic dog breeds, wolves, jackals, and even foxes.

Neo-canids are about the size of the largest domestic dog breeds, and are often compared in appearance to a dire wolf (as a side note, the resurrection of this extinct species was also part of the Canid Ultra project). The head is large, with a significantly increased cranial capacity and muzzle that is relatively broad and short, allowing the morph to be capable of speech, though with a distinct growl. The shoulders and front limbs have been heavily redesigned. They are broader than normal canids, and the front limbs are true arms with dexterous paw-like hands, including an opposable thumb. The rear legs and hips were also drastically restructured to allow the morph to switch between bipedal and quadrapedal movement easily. The style of the morph's fur usually approximates that of a wolf, but can be easily matched to the full spectrum of canid coloration.

Contrary to popular perception, neo-canids do not find bipedal locomotion uncomfortable. However, they are slower and less agile in this mode than hominid morphs. As a result, many neo-canids adopt a three-limbed lope, holding something in one hand while using the other front paw for movement. Additionally, so long as they are not carrying anything in either front paw, neo-canids can dash on their reinforced first knuckles, moving as quickly as their unmodified canine ancestors. Unfortunately, neo-canids adapt poorly to micro-gravity, a trait the Canid Ultra team has not been able to isolate and remove.

Neo-canids have become popular with police departments and ego hunters. A number of law enforcement personnel appreciate the chance to act as their own blood hound, as well as the ability to chase down fleeing suspects. Additionally, neo-canids have proven to be extraordinarily good at reading transhuman body language and mood, due to their sharp senses and inheriting the human-reading abilities bred into domestic dogs over the millenia. Freerunners and athletes also appreciate the morph's physical capabilities.

Implants: Basic Biomods, Basic Mesh Inserts, Clean Metabolism, Cortical Stack, Enhanced Vision
Aptitude Maximum: 25
Durability: 30
Wound Threshold: 6
Advantages: Bite Attack (1d10 DV, use Unarmed Combat skill), Four-legged Dash (8/32), Enhanced Hearing, Enhanced Smell, +10 Freerunning skill, +10 Kinesics skill, +5 COO, +5 SOM, +5 to one other aptitude of the player's choice
Disadvantages: Zero-G Nausea trait, Slow bipedal movement (3/15)
CP Cost: 40
Credit Cost: Expensive

SAUROIDS

The advertisements of Sky Ark's 'jurassic parks' not wishstanding, no samples of non-avian dinosaur genetic material have survived to the present day. However, Sky Ark does attest to the success geneticists have had in re-creating archaic traits to simulate extinct dinosauria. This success has recently lead to the development of novel forms in addition to recreations. These novel dinosaurs have so far peaked with the sauroid, a pod-morph designed to mimic concepts of intelligent dinosaurs without diverging too far from homo sapiens-norm to be comfortable for human-derived egos. Claims of demonstrating 'the course of evolution interrupted by the K-T extinction' are, of course, simple hype.

Derived from psuedo-dromaeosaur and psuedo-troodon types, sauroids are upright bipeds with long clawed toes. Their long arms terminate in three-fingered hands with an opposable thumb, also clawed. Their heads are distinctly saurian, with shortened jaws with numerous sharp teeth and large eyes with nictating membranes, further to the sides of the skull than on hominid morphs. Significant work was done to enable speech, though sauroids have a distinct rasp. Tails are shorter and more flexible than those of true dromaeosaurids and troodons likely were. Beyond these basic structural features, cosmetic features of sauroids are highly variable. Depending on the preference of the purchaser, they may or not be feathered, and to a lesser or greater degree. Non-feathered scaled versions remain more popular. Scale color generally mimics some form of pre-Fall extant reptile, but need not.

What seperates actual sauroid morphs from simple reptilian-cosmetic modifications of standard morphs is underlying biology. Sauroids have a "boom and bust" metabolism. Over short periods, they are faster and able to put out much more energy than mammalian biology, but cannot put forth the same level of sustained exertion. Sauroids have a distinctive way of moving as a result, somewhat birdlike but with periods of extreme stillness broken by sudden high-speed actions, often characterized as 'jerky.' Some human-derived egos, and even more mammalian uplifts, find sauroids very offputting. Avian uplifts tend not to have this issue. Overall, the sauroid has achieved dinosur-like features to the point that it is distinctly alien to mammalian expectations, despite evolving on essentially the same homeworld.

Rumors persist that Fortean is working on a pure-biomorph sauroid variant.

SAUROID (POD BIOMORPH)

Implants: Basic Biomods, Basic Mesh Inserts, Bioware Claws, Cortical Stack, Cyberbrain, Enhanced Vision, Puppet Sock
Aptitude Maximum: 30
Durability: 40
Wound Threshold: 8
Advantages: +5 SOM, +5 COO, +5 REF, +5 to one other aptitude of the player's choice, Bioware Claws (AP -1, 1d10+1, use Unarmed Combat skill), Burst of Energy[1], Movement Rate 5/25
Disadvantages: Fast Metabolism, Social Stigma (Neogenetic), Social Stigma (Pod)
CP Cost: 45
Credit Cost: Expensive

TYRANOID (POD BIOMORPH)

A combat modification of the base sauroid design. Tyranoids are becoming a popular alternative to furies.

Implants: Basic Biomods, Basic Mesh Inserts, Cyberclaws, Bioweave Armor (Light), Cortical Stack, Cyberbrain, Enhanced Vision, Neurachem (Level 1), Puppet Sock
Aptitude Maximum: 30
Durability: 50
Speed Modifier: +1 (neurachem)
Wound Threshold: 10
Advantages: +5 COO, +5 REF, +10 SOM, +5 INT, +5 to one other aptitude of the player's choice, Burst of Energy[1], Cyberclaws (AP -2, 1d10+3, use Unarmed Combat skill), Movement Rate 5/25
Disadvantages: Fast Metabolism, Social Stigma (Neogenetic), Social Stigma (Pod)
CP Cost: 75
Credit Cost: Expensive (minimum 40,000)

NEO-TROODON (BIOMORPH)

Experimental biomorph version of the sauroid. The saurian biological brain has difficulty processing the standard non-verbal cues of Terran dervied morphs and egos, but users report a sense of being more in tune with "instinctive responses."

Implants: Basic Biomods, Basic Mesh Inserts, Bioware Claws, Cortical Stack, Enhanced Vision
Aptitude Maximum: 30
Durability: 40
Wound Threshold: 8
Advantages: +5 SOM, +5 COO, +5 INT, +5 REF, +5 to one other aptitude of the player's choice, Bioware Claws (AP -1, 1d10+1, use Unarmed Combat skill), Burst of Energy[1], Movement Rate 5/25
Disadvantages: Fast Metabolism, Social Stigma (Neogenetic), -10 to Kinesics
CP Cost: 50
Credit Cost:** Expensive (minimum 30,000)

1. Burst of Energy: A sauroid can use their "boom/bust" metabolism cycle to add +20 to any check involving physical activity or increase their movement to 8/40 for one round, or add +1 to Speed for one round, but fall into a torpor for the next four rounds. Under torpor, a sauroid's movement rate is reduced to 3/15 and they take a -10 penalty to all checks involving physical activity. A sauroid must rest for five minutes before it can use its Burst of Energy ability again.

SYNTHMORPHS

DESTROYER

Built for close quarters combat, destroyer combat morphs are popular for combat aboard stations or space vessels, where the use of projectile weapons can put critical systems at risk. The design includes extra limbs and built-in firmware support for melee combat.

The most notable feature of the design is the pair of versatile extra limbs. These limbs can switch between three configurations. The default is as an extra pair of arms, allowing the morph to attack with four sets of claws or melee weapons. The second setting is to lock the primary and secondary arms together. Though this reduces the number of objects or weapons that can be manipulated at once, it increases the power of each combined limb. The final configuration is to use the extra limbs as legs, increasing the morph's speed but leaving two arms available.

It is traditional to heavily modify the outer appearance of destroyers, often to mimic the armor of ancient warriors such as feudal samurai or medieval knights, including fanciful designs existing only in fantasy works. Other popular modifications are to invoke the appearance of Hindu gods (these versions are often called “Shivas”) or predatory animals.

Enhancements: Access Jacks, Basic Mesh Inserts, Cortical Stack, Cyberbrain, Cyberclaws, Enhanced Vision, Extra Limbs (2 Arms/Legs), Hardened Skeleton, Light Combat Armor, Pneumatic Limbs, Reflex Boosters, Shape Adjusting
Mobility System: Walker (two legs) (4/20), Walker (four legs) (8/32)
Aptitude Maximum: 40
Speed Modifier: +1 (Reflex Booster)
Durability: 50
Wound Threshold: 10
Advantages: 4 Arms/Legs, +5 COO, +10 REF (Reflex Booster), +10 SOM (+15 in two-arm mode), +5 to one of the following skills: Blades, Clubs, or Unarmed Combat
CP Cost: 70
Credit Cost: Expensive (minimum 40,000+)