RECON 6 CAMPAIGN GAMEMASTER GUIDE Version 1 January 2013 Design: Russell Brown Playtesting: Nick Gubbins, Ryan Tuck, Kyle Holbach Copyright 2013 Russell J. Brown D6Pool Rules Copyright 2011, 2012 Russell J. Brown Logo font Neou v1.0 designed by Andr Uenojo This document is licensed under aCreative Commons Attribution 3.0 License See http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ 2 CHAPTER 1: GAMEMASTER INTRODUCTION!"#$ &'()*+,- #$ #,-+,&+& .'/ -"+ (0*10#2,3$ 20*+*0$-+/4 5607+/$ $"')6& ,'- /+0& #-8 Eachplayeishouluhaveaccesstothe!"#$%' ()*+",-./0",whichpioviuesguiuelinesfoi cieatingchaiacteisanuanoveiviewofthe settingfiomthepeispectiveoftheplayeis (whouon'tinitiallyknowwhat'sieallygoing on.) GAMEMASTER BACKGROUND !"#$%'isaneaifutuieB6Poolsettingwheie theplayeichaiacteisaiehumanstiyingto unueistanu,iesist,anusuiviveanalien invasionofEaith.Thisuocumentpioviues infoimationaboutthealiens,theiiplans,anu theii technology. ThecampaignbeginsattheenuofAugust, 2u1S,afewmonthsafteitheaiiivalofthe alieninvaueisanulessthentwomonthsaftei theieleaseofStiain816.Playeiswillinitially have no iuea that aliens aie piesent. Even aftei theyencounteithethin,gieyhumanoiu1/2/3$, aliensanutheuisoius,whichlooklikepink, shaveubeais(foigoouieason),theymayjust assumethattheuiseasehasbeguntomutate humansinsteauofkillingthemoutiight.Some playeis may even get giuuy with hope that they havesteppeuintoazombieapocalypse,but they will be uisappointeu. The uisease is just a convenient fiist step in theinvauei'spiogiamofwipinghumanity fiomthefaceoftheEaith.Theplayeiswill eventuallyuiscoveitiuealiensfioma completelyuiffeientwoilu,anutheeviuence willbeunueniable.Atthatpointthefocusof thecampaignmayswitchfiomsuivivalanu uiscoveiy to aimeu iesistance anu militaiy-styl iaius. 3 CHAPTER 2: ORIGINSTheAlienRaceisnotasinglespecies,butan inteitwineusocietyofthousanusofuiffeient species anu theii living, symbiotic tools. The piogenitois of the Alien Race evolveu in theuense,swiiling,volatile-iich,inteinally waimeuclouulayeisofagasgiantslightly smalleithan}upitei.Theyweiebulbous, fiagile, anu about the size of a human hanu. Thegasenviionmentpioviueuavast,tiuly thiee-uimensional biospheie with iauically uiffeientchemicalcompositionanu ecosystemsatuiffeientlayeisofthe atmospheie.Nutationsanubehavioial auaptationsalloweusomespeciestocioss oveianuthiiveinuiffeientbio-layeis.The thieeuimensionalnatuieofthewoilu meantthetotalvolumeinwhichlifecoulu evolvewasthousanusoftimeslaigeithan the suiface of the Eaith anu its oceans. INTO SPACE 0nmultipleoccasions,lifefoimsinthe uppeiatmospheieofthegasgiantweie tosseuviolentlyenoughbythe meteoiologicalfoicesoftheplanettobe thiowncleaioftheatmospheieintolow oibit.Alieauyequippeutosuiviveinthe iaieatmospheie,manyofthesesuiviveu to ieach the gas giant's teiiestiial innei moons anu establish life theie. The ancestois of the Alien Race weie among thelaigest,anuthemostcomplexcieatuiesto suivivesuchajouiney.Theyhauauapteuto theuppeiatmospheiethioughasymbiotic ielationship with laige, gas-filleu filtei feeueis. TheancestoisoftheAlienRaceleaineuto pieuictanuiiuethecuiientsintheuppei atmospheietoescapepieuatoisanusoon weieiiuingthesymbiontshigheianuhighei. Thisuesiietoescapehigheiiesulteu, consciouslyoisubconsciously,inthebieeuing ofhigheiiiuingfilteifeeueisthatcoulu assume a piotective spoie-like state in the neai vacuumoftheuppeilayeis.Thefinaltiipinto oibitwasnotapiecemeallaunchingof inuiviuualsymbionts,butaseiiesofmass migiationsuuiingtimesofexceptional atmospheiic activity. TheancestoisoftheAlienRaceaiiiveuon theseconumoonofthegasgiant,whichwas alieauysatuiateuwithuiveise,butveiy passiveanumostlyimmobilelifefoims.The light,ielativelyfiagilefilteifeeueisuiunot suiviveonthenewwoilu,butmanyoftheii iiueisuiu.Theybecametheiootofan explosivelyuiveiseevolutionaiytiee.Nostof theiesultingspeciesmaintaineutheii piopensityfoisymbioticielationshipsanu meigeu with native species of the moon. TECHNOLOGY OF DIVERSITY BiveisitywaskeytotheAlienRace's uevelopment,asauvancesintechnologycame onlythioughnewoiasyetuniecognizeulife foimsanugeneticsequences.Thissymbiosis withotheilifeiesulteuinatechnologyanu society veiy uiffeient than that of humans. The membeisoftheAlienRaceholuueepiespect foitheiilivingsymbiontsanuvalueliving uiveisity above all else. The Alien Race ietuineu to space millions of yeaisagothioughaveiyconscious,multi- 4 geneiationalsymbiontbieeuingpiogiam whichleutotheuevelopmentoflivingships which tiaveleu on a combination of electiolysis anu combustion. They set out fiom theii moon tootheimoons,someofthemiichwithlife ejecteufiomthegiantmotheiplanet,anu eventuallytheyietuineutoexploieanujoin with the life of the gas giant itself. Inteistellaitiavelcameafteithousanusof yeaisofspacecieatuiebieeuing.TheAlien Race'smigiationtothestaiswasslowatfiist, fueleuonlybychemicalieactionsanupossible onlyfoispecieswhichcoulususpenutheiilife foicentuiiesinachiysalisstate.Eventually, spacecieatuiesweiefounuwhichcoulu concentiateanuiefinefissionablemateiials, thencontiolfusionieactions.TheAlienRace moveuquicklyoutamongthestais,stuuying anuhaivestinglivinguiveisitywheieveithey founu it. 5 CHAPTER 3: THE EARTHNillions of yeais ago, the Alien Race uiscoveieu Eaith, a wet teiiestiial planet oibiting a yellow staitwothousanulight-yeaisfiomtheiihome woilu. Since the Eaith alieauy hau life, they uiu notcolonizethesystemfoifeaiof contaminatingitwiththeiiownlifefoims.To theAlienRace,theuiveisityoflifeonEaith was a sacieu iesouice. VISITORS TheAlienRacecaiefullyietiieveuspecimens fiomEaithasthebasisfoibieeuingasetof cieatuiesthatcouluvisittheplanetwithout feai of genetic contamination. The most mobile anuintelligentcieatuiesineachofEaith's biospheiesbecametheseeusfoiawiueiange ofwhathuman'swoululateiconsiuei"alien" visitois. Fiomtheequatoiialgiasslanusthey abuucteueailyhominius,whichhavesince evolveuintoaiaceofthin,giayhumanoiu visitois with big eyes anu laige heaus. In the vast noithein foiests they founu eaily beaiswhichshoweupiomiseofueveloping complexvocalizationanumanualuexteiity. Thesehaveevolveuintothepoweifuluisoiu visitois. Anuintheoceanstheyfounuuolphins, alieauypossessingcomplexspeechpatteins, cioss-species communication with whales, anu afamiliaipiopensitytowaiusymbiotic ielationships. TheAlienRacebecameboththeexploiteis anu piotectois of the Eaith's ecosystems. They alsocolonizeumanyofthestaisystems neaiby,biingingueauwoilustolife.0veithe pastmillionyeais,theyhavefoughtoff invasionattemptsbyotheiiacesanu haivesteulifefiomEaithasitchangeu giauually ovei time. TheAlienRacebegantoseehumans,the uescenuant of the same eaily hominiu cieatuie useu by the Alien Race to cieate its inuigenous woikfoice,asathieattotheoveialluiveisity oftheplanet.Buman'sthemselvesappeaieu amazinglyhomogenoustotheAlienRace,anu seemeuintentonwipingoutallotheilaige cieatuieswhichiesembletheminanyway. Theuestiuctionoflivingecosystemstocieate anupoweiueautoolswasiepulsivetoeven the most mateiialistic of the Alien Race. THE INCREASING THREAT AstheinuustiialievolutionbeganonEaith anutheimpactofhumansbecamemeasuiable onaglobalscale,acallfoihelpwentoutfiom theinuigenousvisitoistotheiiAlienRace mentoisinneaibysystems.Effoitsincieaseu toacquiiehumanspecimensanustuuytheii habitswithoutfuitheiuistuibingthe ecosystem.Bythemiu19uu'sthehuman populationwasinabewilueiingexponential expansionanuthehuman'sabilitytouestioy theenviionmenthauincieaseuuiamatically. Theiihoiiifyingueauspaceciaftwoulusoon allowthemtoescapeintospaceanuspieauto otheiplanets.1947wasayeaiof unpieceuenteu0F0activityaiounuthewoilu, astheinuigenousvisitoispouieuuownfiom oibitingstationstoseaichfoiasolution. Abuuctionsanuhypnoticsuggestionpioveu useful but not enough. The uecision was maue to obseive foi a few uecaues in hope that the humans woulu see the uamageanuieveisethepiocess.Inthemean time,smallgioupsofhumansweieabuucteu anuauapteutolifeonamoonpiepaieufoi 6 them in a system twenty light yeais fiom Eaith - just in case. DECISION POINT In2u12,the0niteuStatessecietlytesteuthe fiistcascauinganti-matteibombonthefai siueofmoon.Thoughonlythesizeofasoup can,itsblastwasaspoweifulasany theimonucleai waiheau in existence, anu it got the attention of the visitois anu the Alien Race. InSpiingof2u1S,TheAlienRacemauethe uecisiontosuigicallyiemovethehumaniace fiomEaith'sEcosystems.Theyhautheii inuigenousvisitoiiaces,aswellasanaiiayof Eaith-compatible symbiotic technology to help them.Theycouluuseuiseasetaigetingthe homogenoushumanphysiology,anu,asalast iesoit,theycoulucallonthepeiveiteu inventionsoftheAlienRace'sownBeauTool useis. WhentheRecon6campaignstaitsin Augustof2u1S,theinvasionhasbegun.The Stiain816viiushasleftonlyoneoutofeveiy 2Shumansalive,anuvisitoialiensaie beginningtocaptuieanuuismantleinuustiial infiastiuctuie. GOALS Theactionsofthealiensmayseem,well,alien to the playeis, but eveiything they uo is in line with the following goals.!"#$%&'$()* ), -&./*#ThepiimaiygoaloftheAlienRace'sEaith invasionistouestioythehumaniace,oiat leastwipeoutmostofitalongwithits inuustiialbase.Thisisnecessaiyinoiueito pieseivetheuiveisityoflifeontheplanet-a goousouiceofnewlivingmateiialfoithe aliens' symbiont technology.0%"#"%1(*2 !(1"%#($3Theenugoaloftheentiiealienopeiationisto pieseiveuiveisityonEaith.Thislimitsthe actionstheycantakeagainstthehumansto thosewhichwillnotseveielyimpactthe enviionment. Killing millions of humans with a tailoieuuiseaseisgooufoitheenviionment, butblowingthemupwithanucleaiweaponis not.%"#"$$4"."*$Theieisaslightpaiauoxassociateuwith uestioyingaspecies(humans)topieseive uiveisity.Toiemeuythis,AlienRaceplanneis havesetasiuealaige,ueaumooninastai systemabouttwentylightyeaisfiomEaithto iesettle a few thousanu humans."504)($/$()* AlthoughtheAlienRacetiulyvaluesuiveisity foiitsownsake,ituoesplantoeventually exploittheuiveisityofEaithtocieatenew seivantiacesanusymbionts,anupossibly evenasasouiceofgeneticinnovationintheii own bouies.!(##"*$"%# AsmallgioupwithintheAlienRace,incluuing somevisitois,believesthathumansshoulube pait of the uiveisity of Eaith anu shoulu not be wipeuoutcompletely.Theyhavetaken inuepenuent action to immunize some humans anu then guiue anu piotect them. INVASION TIMETABLE Whatfollowsistheactualinvasiontimetable, some of which has alieauy occuiieu.!"#: Alien Race mothei ships aiiive in system. $%&': visitoi aliens begin abuuction of humans foi iesettlement. $%(#:visitoialiensieleaseStiain816inmajoi populationcenteis.Bissenteisabuuctsome humans anu genetically immunize them with a viial vectoi, cieating piotecteu "Caiiieis." )%*%+,:AliensletStiain816iunitscouise. 96% of human population uies.-'.,'/0'1: 4"5/%%/%5 $6 #*78*/5%9 Alien Race spacecieatuiesuestioyEaithsatellites, incluuinguPS.0isoiuanuBumanoiuvisitois 7 captuiepowei,communicationanuuefense facilities.Bolphoiuvisitoisuestioyshipping anu ueep sea cabling 23,: Beau Tool visitois sweep uevelopeu aieas befoietoolsaieuestioyeu.visitoisbegin uestioyingallueautoolsanutechnologyin ways that will least uisiupt the enviionment. EFFECTS OF THE INVASION !(#"/#"Well-known teiiestiial uiseases have become a pioblem.Asthealieninvasionbiokeuown civilization,millionsofhumansuieuof staivationanuuiseaseboinofpooifoou pieseivation,lackofmeuicationanubau sanitation. Butthemainkilleiofmankinuwasthe Stiain816viius.Ittaigeteu specifichumanBNAsequences anuquicklybeganuestioying oigantissueanuspieauingvia bouilyfluiusanuspecialaiiboine viialcasings.Nostvictimsuieu withinuaysofexposuie.Alittle moiethanonepeicentofthose infecteusuiviveu,butsometimes withpeimanentuamagetovital oigans.The"Caiiieis,"whoweie givenimmunizationsbythe Bissenteis,aiesafethemselves, but aie still contagious. "')*).('# Bythetimethecampaignbegins inlateAugust,somuchofthe human iace has uieu that pievious economicconceptsnolongeiapply.Naikets havecollapseu,cuiienciesaiewoithless,anu evenmanycommouitiesthatweievaluablein theinuustiialwoiluhavelittlevaluefoiuay-to-uay suivival. Baitei exists, but in tiuth most smallbanusofhumanssuiviveonscavenging anu shaiing. values of items shift ovei time as the ieality ofthesituationsettlesin.uoluisvaluableif youthinksocietywilliecovei,butituoesnot putfoouonthetable.Weaponsaiemoie valuablewhenyouacceptthatthelocalanu nationalauthoiitiesaiegoneanuyouhaveto piotectyouiself.Weaponswillgetevenmoie valuablewheniumoisbegintospieauabout stiange alien cieatuies. ')..&*('/$()*Noimalcommunication,eveniauiobioaucasts foienteitainment,continueintoAugust,but faueasmoieanumoiepeopleuieanuflee population centeis. Thevisitoisspecificallytaiget CommunicationinfiastiuctuieinlateAugust, anumostelectioniccommunication,incluuing uPSsignals,cease.Theuaythatgoveinment emeigencyiauiostationsstopbioaucasting (anupossiblyuiophintsaboutaliens)isa gieat time to stait the campaign. $%/*#0)%$/$()*Withtheexceptionofpiiceincieasesuueto fuelhoaiuing,tianspoitationsystems iemaineuielativelynoimaluntillate}uly.Aii tiavelbecamepiohibitivelyexpensivebymiu-}uly,anuiegulaiiailtiafficwasspoiauicby August.Thesupplyofsalvageablegasolinemaylast though the enu of the yeai, though most uiban ioaus will be jammeu with abanuoneu vehicles anu,eventually,unsafetotiaveluuetoalien activity.'%(."AsfeaiofStiain816cleaieuoutthecities, 8 looteisanuscavengeismoveuin.Thieves becamemuchmoiepiacticalanuuespeiate, foigoinganicetelevisionsettostealan aimloauofcanneugoous.Asitbecame appaient that the collapsing economy woulun't iecovei,manylaw-abiuingpeopletuineuto thefttosuivive.Ruialfamiliesanusmall towns foimeu militias to uefenu theii lanu anu iesouices fiom uiban migiants. In most places, possession is now a mattei of foice, not law. 2)1"%*."*$ In}une,woilugoveinmentsweiesciambling toisolateanucontioltheStiain816outbieak.Bytheenuofthemonth,mostnationsweie unueimaitiallawwiththemilitaiyiestiicting movementanuenfoicinglaigequaiantine aieas.Nationalgoveinmentssuiviveuuntilall majoipoweisystemsweielostineaily August,takingmostnecessaiycommunication withthem.Sincethen,localgoveinmentsanu fielumilitaiyunitshavebeenactingontheii own,withonlyoccasionaliauiomessagesoi hanu-caiiieu oiueis fiom the capital.%"#(#$/*'" WhenalienattackscomeinAugust,Nilitaiy anu technical foices ueployeu to contain Stiain 816willsuuuenlyfinuthemselvesinthebest positiontofightthealiens.Withpooioino communicationtothenationalgoveinments, thesegioupswillfunctionmoielike inuepenuentbanusofiesistancefighteisthan a national aimy.They will have to hanule theii ownsuppliesanuuotheiiownieciuitinganu tiaining.Stionglocalgioups,especiallythose piepaieuaheauoftimewithweaponsanu supplies,williiseuptouefenusmallaieas.Religious gioups may banu togethei, anu many newoneswillfoimwhenconfionteuwith what appeais to be the enu of the woilu. Theiewillstillbesomeattemptsto cooiuinate at the highest levels of goveinment, anu special think tank gioups will influence the fight fiom seciet bunkeis, but theii actions will be slow.If anyone can stop the invaueis, it will bethesmall,uespeiateiesistancegioupsout inthefielu,ieactingquicklytothieatsanu willing to take iisks when necessaiy.

9 CHAPTER 4: ALIENSNembeisoftheAlienRaceanutheiiEaith visitoishavetheusualhumanattiibutes,plus skillsiepiesentingtheiisensitivityineachof thefouialienlanguages.Theselanguageskills influencetheiiabilitytocommunicatewith each othei anu contiol specific symbionts. ALIEN TYPES EachinuiviuualoftheAlienRaceeithei specializesinaceitaintaskoiactsasan oveiallplannei,cooiuinatingthewoikof specialistsanupeihapsotheiplanneis.visitois,ontheotheihanu,aieveisatile uescenuantsofEaithstock,abletoopeiateon theii own in many uiffeient situations. BoththeAlienRaceanuvisitoisuepenu heavilyonsymbiontspecies,thoughthose useubythevisitoisaien'tphysiologically compatiblewiththeAlienRaceanuviceveisa. Symbiontsaieuesciibeuinmoieuetailin ChapteiS.Theyiangefiomsmall,squiulike cieatuiesthathelptheAlienRacebieathin Eaith'satmospheie,tothemassive spacecieatuiesthatcaiiythembetweenthe stais. TheAlienRaceanuitssymbiontsaieiaie on Eaith. Playeis will geneially encountei only visitois. BIOLOGY AllmembeisoftheAlienRaceaiecaibon-baseuanumethanebieathing.Theiigenetic encouingmessengeischemeissimpleanu similai to viial systems on Eaith, with uiffeient base molecules. They ingest othei life foims foi nutiients,bieakingthemuowninaseiiesof layeieuuigestionsacksthatsuiiounumultiple heait-likeoigans.0utsiuetheuigestionsacks, justbelowtheouteisuifaceofthebouy,isa layeiofiespiiationsacksthatpullinthe methane.Nethanemetabolism,incluuing piouuctionofmoiecomplex,benzeneiing stiuctuiesfoieneigystoiage,occuisinlong, inuiviuualcells,anuinaspecializeuoigan.Ifa membeioftheAlienRacebieatheuEaith atmospheiewithoutapiopeibieathing symbiont,itwouluuieofoxygenpoisoning long befoie it suffocateu fiom lack of methane. SENSES AND COMMUNICATION EachuiveisespeciesoftheAlienRacehasa combination of foui uiffeient senses anu foims ofcommunication.Tactilecommunicationis similaitohumanheaiinganuspeech,butthe aliensaieabletosenseanucommunicate thioughmanymeuiumsotheithanaii.Alien visualsensesaiesimilaitohumanvision,but manyalienshaveanincieaseucapacityto communicatevisually,thioughcomplex signalingappenuagesoishiftingcoloi patteins.ThesensoiypaitoftheAlienRace's chemicalcommunicationissimilaitohuman Major Types of Aliens Alien Race Planners Alien Race Specialists Visitors Alien Race Symbionts Visitor Symbionts Alien Race Languages Chemical Electromagnetic Tactile (including sound) Visual 10 smell,thoughfaimoiesensitive,butthe closestEaithanalogytoalienchemical communicationisthepheiomonesystemuseu bysomeinsects.Nanyaliensalsohavethe abilitytosenseelectiomagneticfielusatfai loweifiequenciesthanthevisualspectium, like iauio anu miciowave. AlienRacesensoiyanucommunication oigansvaiyuiamaticallyfiomspeciesto species,butsomepatteinsaieconsistent. visual oigans tenu to be at the enus of fleshystalkshighuponthealien'sbouyanuaie usuallymoiesensitiveintheinfiaieu. Chemicalsensesappeaiaswetbulgesatthe openingsofoneoimoieiespiiationsacks. Electiomagneticsensoistenutobeinteinal, twisteu nests of long, iion-heavy cells, but they aiesometimesattheenuofextenueustalks.Tactile oigans can be just about anywheie, but tenutobeonthesuiface,oibelowhaiu suifacestiuctuiesthatamplifyoifilteiceitain fiequencies. MORPHOLOGIES NostoftheAlienRacemembeisanusomeof theiisymbiontsuescenueufiomoneofthiee basicmoiphologies-quau,base,anubipeu- whichintuinuescenueufiomasinglespecies which maue the oiiginal tiip fiom the gas giant totheseconumoon.TheAlienRaceiangesin size fiom a half metei to well ovei foui meteis, with quaus uominating both extiemes. 6&/! Themostcommonmoiphologyisaplump quauiupeu,oi"quau"withfouilegsanutwo long,thin,spinyaimappenuages,usually tippeuwithbioausensitive"fingeis". vaiiationsonthismoiphologyincluuethin appenuagesthatsplithalfwayuown, iesultinginfoui"hanus",anu uiffeiencesinpostuiefiomlowanu stiaightwithanupwaiubenuatthe "neck" to stiaight up anu uown like a foui-engineiocket.Quaustypically excelinchemicalanu electiomagneticsenses,anuaie visually weak oi blinu. 7/#" Theseconumostcommon moiphologyisuistinguisheubya laige,wiuebase,whichactually containsthefuseuiemainsoftwo appenuages. These "Base" aliens have fouiotheiaim-likeappenuages whichvaiyinsize,shapeanu function,anuwhichmaybeuseu occasionallytoassistinlocomotion. Basemovementissomecombination ofiocking,gliuinganuslitheiing. Basealiens,uuetotheiilimiteu mobility,aiegeneiallylaige,well uefenueu, anu excel in iemote senses like visual, Chemical anu Electiomagnetic. 7(0"! Theleastcommonmoiphology,moie pievalent among planneis anu ueau tool useis, hastwoaimsanutwolegs.Itiscapableof moving fastei by benuing anu using its aims as legs.Atiueneckanusomethingiesemblinga heauplacetheiibasicsensesuphigh.Bipeus aiepiimaiilyuepenuentonvisual,tactile,anu electiomagnetic senses. 11 REPRODUCTION The Alien Race is sexual in natuie, but without uefineusexes.Nostinuiviuualscanmatewith almost any othei inuiviuual of appiopiiate size, anugeneiallyinaccoiuancewiththegenetic plansofatenueispecies.Natinguoesoccui aciossmoiphologiesanuissometimes encouiageu. NEW ALIEN SKILLS Inauuitiontotheskillsanuabilitieslisteu below,theuesciiptionsoftheAlienRacealso useskillsanuabilitiesfiomtheB6PoolBaic Rules anu Cast of Chaiacteis books. /4("* %/'" 8"/0)*# Thisskillisuseuwhenopeiatinganutenuing AlienRaceweaponsymbionts,likethetoxic uait weapon. !%(,4.(' )(4'& 6'".7& -87,+ 9"3,47&:; Nake multipleattackswithanalienweapon symbiontuptothenumbeiofuiceinAlien Race Weapons skill, pioviueu the symbiont can suppoitmultipleattacks.Nultipleaction penalty uice apply. ',1"3,;Thisplanneicanietiactits sensoiy stalk into its bouy to piotect itself. This auustwopenaltyuicetoanypeiception challengesitmakes,butieuucesanyciitical hits against the plannei by one uie. VISITOR CONTROL TYPE TWO PLANNER (3) Stiength-2Intelligence-S Stamina-2Chaiisma-2 Bexteiity-2Peiception-S Empathy-1 Slow-1 Language (visual)-native Language (chemical)-2 Language (electiomagnetic)-2 Language (English)-1 Commanu-2 >.)3/8)" ?22/232 Concentiation-1 Tenu visitois- tactile-visual tianslatoi mobility symbiont visual concentiatoi Thistypetwoplanneimanageseveiythingto uo with bieeuing, caie anu contiol of the Eaith visitoispecies.Itwoikscloselywithvisitoi tenueis anu even visitoi leaueis themselves. Thisplanneiisneailysevenfeettallanu hasabasemoiphology,fieeingfouiaimsanu hanusfoiitscomplicateuvisual communication.Itisslow,buthasasix-leggeu mobility symbiont. 14 SPECIALISTS Besciibingaiepiesentativesubsetofthe specialistswithintheAlienRacewoulutake hunuieuofentiies.Thissectiononlypioviues statistics foi a hanuful, but they shoulu be easy toauapttouiffeientskillsanuioleswithin youi campaign Specialistscanbeuiviueuintobioau categoiiesoftenueis,symbiontuseis,anu ueautooluseis.Tenueistakecaieof symbionts,aswellasvisitoisanuothei membeisoftheAlienRace.Theyunueistanu the neeus of theii auopteu life foims anu make suietheyaiemet.Theyalsohelpinsuie incieasinguiveisitythioughcontiolleu bieeuing piogiams anu genetic mouification. Symbiontuseisaiespeciallytiaineutojoin withaclassofsymbiontstocaiiyoutsome task.Notethatsymbiontuseismayiequiie tenueistohelpthemtiainanutakecaieof theiisymbionts.uoouspecialiststenuto attiact goou tenueis anu vice veisa. Beau Tool 0seis scaie off all but the biavest of tenueis, which they still neeu to take caie of thespecialsymbiontstheyusetopiouuceiaw mateiials. TACTILE-ELECTROMAGNETIC TRANSLATOR TENDER Stiength-2Intelligence-1 Stamina-SChaiisma-2 Bexteiity-2Peiception-2 Empathy-2 Aciobatics-2 Biology-2 Fiist Aiu-2 Language (tactile)-native Language (electiomagnetic)-S Language (chemical)-1 Running-S Tenu Symbiont (tianslatoi)-S @8"#/*)3+ AB*#3/)"C:)"#3,$7*5%"3/# B,*%2D tactile-electiomagnetic tianslatoi tactile stoie Thesetenueisspecializeiniaisinganu bieauingtactile-electiomagnetictianslatoi symbionts.0neoimoieofthesemaybe neaiby when theii tianslatois aie in heavy use, anuasmallteamofthemwoiksateach symbiont nuiseiy anu tiaining facility.Atypicaltenueiofthistypeisfivefeettall, anuhasaclassicquaushape,withfoui ielativelyequallegsanuaiaiseuneckof sensoiyoigans.Itslegsaiemulti-jointeu,anu whennotiunningmostofthistenueisbouy hangs below the top of the highest knee joints. Thesetenueisaiesleekanuquickaliens, skitteiingbackanufoithbetweenthe symbiontsunueitheiicaie.Theyalmost alwayshaveoneoitwosymbiontshanging fiom the special nuising aieas on theii toiso. . 15 VISUAL STORE TENDER Stiength-1Intelligence-2 Stamina-2Chaiisma-2 Bexteiity-SPeiception-S Empathy-1 Acute vision-2 Stealth-2 Biology-2 Language (visual)-native Language (electiomagnetic)-2 Language (chemical)-1 Tenu visual Symbiont-S @8"#/*)3+ AE/2.*) @3$,"D visual concentiatoi visual stoie visual-tactile tianslatoi Thesetenueisspecializeiniaisinganu bieauingvisualstoies,oitheequivalentofa livingviueocameia.Theyaieneailyasauept attenuingvisualconcentiatoisanuhave nuising oigans capable of nuituiing eithei.A typical visual stoie tenuei is foui feet tall, makingitoneofthesmallestofthebase moiphologyaliens.Itisalsoamongthemost visuallyaueptcieatuiesintheAlienRace,anu suipiisinglyauaptablefoiaspecialist.Itstop twoaimsaiethieefeetlonganuhaveciuue giaspinguigitsattheenu.Itsloweiaimsaie muchshoiteianuaieuseutomanipulate objectsunueicloseinspection.Ithasfoui visualsensoifilmsonfouibulgesonitsheau. These constantly pulsate. QUAD TENDER Stiength-2Intelligence-1 Stamina-2Chaiisma-2 Bexteiity-SPeiception-2 Empathy-2 Stealth-2 Biology-2 Bance-2 Language (tactile)-native Language (electiomagnetic)-2 Language (chemical)-1 Tenu Alien Race-S @8"#/*)3+ AF.*0D Tenu Symbiont (cleanei)-2 Alien Race foou excietei quau cleanei Quau tenueis aie expeit useis of the symbionts iequiieutotakecaieofthemselvesanuothei quaumoiphologyaliens.Theynotonlyhanule basicbouilyneeus,butmayalsopioviuewhat coululooselybeteimeuenteitainment,oi uistiaction, which seems to have some positive physiologicaleffect.Quautenueisuon'tplan theiiownactivitiesaheau,theymeiely iesponutochemicalanutouchsignalsfiom quaus in theii caie. A typical quau tenuei is a seven to eight foot tall quau, but with a low-set, bulbous toiso. It is agileanuappeaisthinanufiail,yetitis suipiisinglystiong.Itisbieutoseivequaus withoutinteiiuptingtheiiwoikpatteins, movingsmoothlywithinanuactivewoik enviionment. 16 VISITOR TENDER Stiength-SIntelligence-2 Stamina-2Chaiisma-S Bexteiity-2Peiception-2 Empathy-1 Biology-S Fiist Aiu-2 Language (visual)-native Language (tactile)-2 Language (English)-2 Pathology-2 Tenu visitoi-S @8"#/*)3+ A;.7*%$/02D electiomagnetic-visual tianslatoi iebieathei tactile stoie visitoi foou excietei visitoi meuislug visitoiTenueistakecaieofthephysicalanu socialneeusoftheAlienRace'sEaithvisitois, anutheyalsoactsastianslatoisanuliaisons between visitois anu the iest of the Alien Race. These tenueis have a uifficult task because the genetic impulses anu uiges of the Eaith species aie veiy uiffeient fiom those of the Alien Race, anutheieisalwaysthethieatthatplanneis willueciuetouestioythehumanoiuvisitois along with the human iace, making the tenueis themselvesexpenuable.Theyhavelittleuiiect physicalcontactwiththevisitois,only pioviuingthemwithfoouanumeuicalcaieif they neeu it. Atypicalvisitoitenueiisfivefeettall,with abasemoiphology.Theymakeslowei, smootheimovementsthanmostoftheAlien Race,similaitothevisitoispeciestheytenu. Sensoiyoigansaielocateuonastubbystalk that is constantly tuining in all uiiections. visitoitenueishavebeenbieutogeneiate humanoiuvocalsounususingtheflaps coveiing theii bieathing poies. TOXIC DART WEAPON USER Stiength-2Intelligence-1 Stamina-2Chaiisma-1 Bexteiity-SPeiception-S Acute Electiomagnetic Sense-2 Aciobatics-2 Combat Reflexes-2 Language (chemical)-native Language (electiomagnetic)-2 Language (chemical)-1 Stealth-2 Alien Race Weapon-2 (,"#/2" ?/7 toxic uait weapon living aimoi iebieathei Toxicuaitweaponuseistakecaieofanuuse thesmallsymbiontsthatgiowanulaunch shaip neeules filleu with toxic venom. A typical toxic uait weapon usei is foui feet tall, with a veiy flexible quau bouy which it can contoit to hiue behinu any covei. It can use the toxicuaitweaponwitheitheiofitssmall uppeiaims.Whenaiming,thisalienfieezesin place anu locks its weapon aim into a ciease in itsheau.Smallsensingveinsextenufiomthe siuesofitsbouytotiiangulateon electiomagnetic signals. ?//%&',7@'&7/;Toxicuaitweapon useis aie immune to the venom of toxic uaits. These Aliens are Alien RemembertheAlienRacethriveson diversity. Dont be shy about making up your ownvariationswithnewabilitiesandtheir ownbizarresymbionts.Exceptforthe visitors, which tend to have less diversity, the PCsprobablyshouldntencountertwoofthe same aliens. 17 SPACECREATURE PILOT Stiength-1Intelligence-4 Stamina-2Chaiisma-2 Bexteiity-2Peiception-S Empathy-2 Climbing-2 Language (Tactile)-native Language (Electiomagnetic)-S Language (Chemical)-2 Tenu Symbiont(Spacecieatuie)-1 Spacecieatuie Piloting-4 electiomagnetic concentiatoi Spacecieatuiepilotsspecializeincontiolling thehugespacecieatuievesselsthattheAlien Raceusestociossbetweenstais.These tenueis aie long anu spinuly anu communicate withtheiispacecieatuiethioughtactileanu electiomagneticinteiaction.Theiinavigation isbaseuontheiiownelectiomagneticsenses, as well as the infoimation passeu to them fiom the spacecieatuie. Atypicalpilotfoioneofthehuge inteistellaispacecieatuiesisalsohuge, toweiingtoeightoininefeet,withlonglimbs anulotsofjointsthatmakeitlooklikesome soit of Eaith insect. Each limb enus in a pau of specialsensoiyoigans,whichattachtothe walloftissueinsiuethespacecieatuie,just behinu its biain. DEMOLITION EGG TENDER Stiength-4Intelligence-2 Stamina-SChaiisma-1 Bexteiity-2Peiception-2 Empathy-1 Explosives-2 @8"#/*)3+A0"7$)/3/$% "55D Language (Electiomagnetic)-native Language (Tactile)-2 Language (visual)-2 Physics-2 Running-4 Tenu Symbiont(Bemolition Egg)-S uemolition egg uiggei iebieathei Bemolitioneggtenueisaieaspecialfoimof tenueiuesigneutoactuallypiouucea symbiontuevice;inthiscase,avolatileeggon theveigeofsettingoffamassiveexplosion. Bemolitioneggtenueisaiehugebipeu moiphologyalienswithaspecialeggpouch. They noimally piouuce one egg eveiy few uays anuleaveitintheiieggsac,ineit.Whenthe egg emeiges fiom the sac, exposuie to a special chemicalbeginsthecountuowntoexplosion. Theuemolitioneggtenueiscancontiolthe timetoexplosion,vaiyingitfiomafew seconus to an houi. Atypicaluemolitioneggtenueiisanine-foottallbipeuwithasaggingpouch.Itssmall heauiscoveieuinfanlikechemicalsensois capavleofuetectinghowcloseauemolition egg is to explouing. )1/71.(",'+;Auemolitioneggtenueican extenuaimoiplatesaiounuitseggsacto piotectit.Thisincieasesaimoifoiattackson thesacby2anupieventsciiticalhitsfiom explouing the egg. !4*8,AB.(7C';Anywounustotheeggsac oiconfiimeuciiticalhitsonthisaliencause anymatuieuemolitionegginitssacto exploue. 18 SPACECREATURE TENDER Stiength-2Intelligence-2 Stamina-4Chaiisma-2 Bexteiity-SPeiception-2 Empathy-1 Aciobatics-2 Climbing-2 Concentiation-2 .)3/8)" H*3.,*) ?33*#I2 Running-2 Self Contiol-2 Tiacking-2 staiving nevei attack alone IfPCsmakeanintentionalseaichofthe vacant lot, a successful uifficulty 2 |Tiacking + Peiceptionjchallengewillievealthatthe giass heie has been uepiesseu in a oval about thiity feet acioss. ;-/++- *82 @3""3 E/"G 3$ 5"3 * K"33", )$$I\ THE VISITORS Theie aie two visitois in the aiea on a seaich anuuestioymissionfoisuivivinghumans.A humanoiuvisitoiisincoveiinsiuethestoie, watchingSkinnyPeteanuwaitingfoihis uisoiucompaniontoietuinfiomaseaich thioughthewoous.Theuisoiuietuins thioughthevacantlotatsomepointjuugeu mostuiamaticbythegamemastei,anuthe feialuogsbeginbaikingatit(ifthePCs haven'tkilleuthemoiuiiventhemaway). Thisencounteishoulutakeplacebefoiethe PCs entei the stoie. Theuisoiuvisitoihasnosymbionts.The humanoiuvisitoihasatoxicuaitweapon,a visual sensoiy stoie attacheu to the siue of its heau, anu living aimoi. Theuisoiuattacks,butifitiswounueuat alloiiealizesitis outnumbeieu,itiuns awaythioughthe apaitmentcomplexto theeast.Thehumanoiu visitoifiiesitstoxic uaitsfiomcoveiinthe stoie. If it sees the uisoiu ietieat,itiunsoutthe backofthestoieanu also flees to the east. 31 URSOID VISITOR(3) Stiength-4Intelligence-1 Stamina-SChaiisma-2 Bexteiity-2Peiception-2 Acute Beaiing-2 Acute Smell-2 Climbing-2 Swimming-2 Language (Chemical)-native Language (Chinese)-1 Natuial Weapons-2 ($G",6.) H*3.,*) ?33*#I Running-2 Intimiuation-2 .)3/8)" ?)/"% T"*8$% @;$32 Biology-2 Concentiation-1