Polysmorph: Difference between revisions

2,552 bytes added ,  22:53, 25 September 2022
drops most of lore, to potentially be revised further but this shall suffice for now
(drops most of lore, to potentially be revised further but this shall suffice for now)
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|headerbgcolor = black
|headerbgcolor = black
|headerfontcolor = white
|headerfontcolor = white
|genus = Unknown
|genus = Homo Mimus Praestabilis Verto Sapiens
|imagebgcolor = lightgrey
|imagebgcolor = lightgrey
|img_generic = Polysmorph.png
|img_generic = Polysmorph.png
|img =  
|img =  
|specietype = POLYSMORPHS
|specietype = POLYSMORPH
|speciename = Polysmorph
|speciename = Polysmorph
|homeworld = Multiple Homeworlds
|homeworld = N/A
|central authority = Nanotrasen
|central authority = Sano-Waltfield Industries
|allowed command roles = [[Chief Engineer]], [[Research Director]]
|allowed command roles = [[Chief Engineer]], [[Research Director]]
|guides = No external guides
|guides = No external guides
|paycheck=0.6x}}
|paycheck=0.6x}}
Polymorphs are a lab-created Xenomorph Hybrid from multiple testing facilities owned by Nanotrasen. They have unique acid blood and an aversion to fire similar to their Xenomorph counterparts. Polysmorph have been released from their colonies during the year 2551 and have begun spreading among Nanotrasen facilities while among the facilities they are generally avoided or disliked due to their appearance along with their behavior. Their names tend to be 2-3 syllables ending in a vowel and may include a surname from their home colony.
 
'''Polysmorphs''', often referred to singularly as polys, are human-xenomorph hybrids that were spawned as part of a series of failed experiments conducted by '''Sano-Waltfield Industries''', a notable subsidiary of '''Nanotrasen''' that specializes in colonization. While they have since been released from their colonies into Nanotrasen care, theirs is a dying species that is unlikely to see the next century. Regardless of this eventual doom, polysmorphs tend to function as relatively stable workers, ignorant of the quick decline of their kind. While most have some level of unstableness due to trauma inherently sustained from their biology, they’re still lightly trusted on SIC stations, so long as their employment with Nanotrasen continues.
=Gameplay =
=Gameplay =
==Naming Convention==
Polysmorph is an optional species that can be chosen for play in the character creation menu. Customization options include teeth, dorsal tubes, and domes. They also tend to hiss when talking, and their lisp is far more noticeable than a lizard's. They are exclusively female, in part due to their xenomorph genes.
Polysmorphs tend towards single-word names, usually with two or three syllables, and almost always end in a vowel. Examples include “Thrinia,” “Alei,and “Saavi.They do not have surnames as they do not have any true families, but it is not unheard of for them to adopt one based on their home colony.
 
Polysmorphs are the rarest species present in SIC space and effectively have minimal rights, not only as discontinued experiments but also creatures expected to go extinct in the next century. Nanotrasen abuses this to pay them nearly half of what a human would receive. They are also not considered under a standard Asimov silicon lawset, meaning you will not receive the protection or benefits that silicon crew can provide. In fact, a malign human may be capable of exploiting your inferior position to inconvenience or threaten you. It is advised to be cautious in your interactions with humans if the AI is under an Asimov lawset as a result, especially if you are a member of security.
==Racial Benefits==
==Racial Benefits==
*Takes one-fifth the normal damage from acid, as their blood is sulfuric acid
*Takes one-fifth the normal damage from acid, as their blood is sulfuric acid
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*Suffers 25% more burn damage than normal
*Suffers 25% more burn damage than normal
*Cannot wear normal shoes, as their legs are digitigrade
*Cannot wear normal shoes, as their legs are digitigrade
*Likely subject to racism due to their xenomorph-like appearance
==Diet==
*Likes all forms of meat
*Dislikes grain, dairy, vegetables, and fruit.


==Diet==
== Unique Mechanics ==
*Likes: Meat.
*Dislikes: Grain, dairy, vegetables, fruit.
==Roleplay==
Polysmorphs are an optional playable race. You can make a Polysmorph character in the character panel, and change aspects of its appearance such as teeth, dorsal tubes, and domes. Polysmorphs attack with their claws to slash and hack people, though this does not deal any additional damage. They also tend to hiss when talking. In addition, they have digitigrade legs and can't wear normal footwear and can only wear footwraps.


Polysmorphs have sulphuric acid in their blood and take almost no damage from acid. They also take lower damage from cold but take more damage from heat and fire.
* Their unarmed is a slash with their claws, though this deals no additional damage
* Surgery can be hazardous on them due to their acidic blood


Note that as a Polysmorph, the AI does not consider you human and is not obligated to listen to you and an Asimov AI will often respond lethally should they find you harming a human, however, this also means the AI can allow you to put yourself into harm's way in a positive manner, such as opening an airlock exposed to space to save someone. Also, [[Captain|certain]] [[Head of Personnel|crew members]] will show you the depths of racism previously reserved for the clown.
=Lore=
=Lore=
==Origin==
Far off on backwater planets at the distant edges of Nanotrasen space lie several hidden genetics research bases. The purpose of these bases was, initially, for experimentation on captured xenomorph specimens. The goal of this experimentation was two-fold: to figure out how to control Xenomorphs in order to help suppress outbreaks and to create a modified version of Xenos that could be kept under the control of NT as workers. Over time, the first goal was deemed impossible and was forgotten as the hive link shared between the Xenomorphs was virtually impossible to replicate convincingly. This left the second objective, genetically modifying them to create a new workforce. Work on this eventually produced the first Polysmorphs sometime around 2465.


   Initially, the scientists began mixing DNA from different animals, such as domesticated dogs and rats, with xenomorph DNA. These experiments initially showed some success with animal-xenomorph hybrids, but it was soon found that their DNA deteriorated rapidly regardless of what the scientists did. Through trial and error, it was found that stable hybrids could only be created using DNA from humans. However, even though they had managed to prevent the hybrids from rapidly deteriorating at a cellular level, they were still largely feral. This led to another long series of trial-and-error experiments lasting several years before the first properly “sentient” Polysmorphs began to be produced.
== History ==
The '''xenomorph''' threat was first encountered in 2436 by colonists who found derelict eggs in a strange, gem-encrusted, humming ruin. As the colonists had gone out on their own, illegally claiming a world, it was not until the second batch of colonists, under a charter from Sano-Waltfield Industries, arrived from Ceres in 2439. Armed with the assumption that there would be squatters to evict, the second group had a sole survivor that managed to launch off the planet. Submitting a hostile xenobiology report to the '''Sol Interplanetary Coalition''', Sano-Waltfield secured military intervention to assess and eliminate the threat. What quickly became clear to recon teams was that the creatures that had massacred both groups of settlers bore a resounding similarity to the creatures imagined in a series of films produced in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, also dubbed xenomorphs. While it is theorized that one of the first human '''wizards''' was responsible for their spontaneous creation, some notable differences can be discerned between the fictional and the real, though it’s easy to wave this as imperfections or biases in the wizard’s spell or imagination. There is yet no confirmed explanation as to how they exist. The colony was cleared mostly by bullets and fire, though some eggs and facehuggers were held in a state of relative security by Sano-Waltfield.
 
While there were a couple of incidents where xenomorphs broke containment in certain research facilities, attempts to make xenomorph hybrids that could be domesticated and exploited began in 2440. Once there was evidence of a hivemind in xenomorph biology in 2442, the desire to create a “mole” vastly grew. It was hypothesized that such a hybrid could not only reveal and report xenomorph communication but then be exploited for intel regarding potential outbreaks or hives on unexplored worlds. The first experiments involved rats and dogs, though DNA degradation of the subjects was rapid and control of the massively mentally distressed creatures was nigh impossible. DNA stability could only be found in human hybrids, which Sano-Waltfield permitted regardless of the countless ethical violations. However, they were still immeasurably hostile, so research was difficult to continue. It took a generation of trial-and-error experiments before sentience was confirmed in the second generation of hybrids, now dubbed “polysmorphs”. In 2460, experimentation transitioned into the creation and maintenance of several different colonies, in an attempt to socialize the polysmorphs, as humans and xenomorphs are both social creatures by nature. Colonies were established in specialized space labs, then on a wide array of various planetary conditions, ranging from lush and vibrant to acidic and lethal.
 
The colonies were then only scarcely managed. They were given enough resources for them to survive, but no outside intervention was imposed. There were three notable trends observed across each and every colony, despite their various conditions of quality. The first was the development of a vocal dialect similar to but separate from the xenomorph’s tongue. While researchers had been unable to decipher the original at this time (the '''universal recorder''' was invented in 2503), it was hypothesized (later confirmed) that the polys’ tongue incorporated more gestures of the self. Simply put, the xenomorph language does not permit for an acknowledgment of oneself outside of the hivemind, nor are emotions represented in such a way outside of direct context to a present circumstance, such as “this mech is threatening” rather than “I feel threatened by the mech”. Polysmorph dialect, on the other hand, not only introduces the latter statement’s form but also allows for far more nuance in self-expression. As such, vocal disagreements could be observed between colony members. However, dissent never escalated to physical levels, sans body language that mirrored general human movements.
 
The second trend was that of general social equality. While various took on differing jobs of various hazards, each colony member was treated aptly by the others, and there was no development of a social hierarchy typical in human settlement and development. While disagreements and discussions occurred, there was never conflict that would have placed a single individual higher or lower than the others. Each earned their food, and priority was given to those sick or injured to better enable them to recover. The third and final trend was that of a seeming lack of need to community necessary tasks between the groups. While it would later be revealed that polysmorphs lack a hivemind connection, this still revealed some level of intuitive social order that exists in their communities. The dome-shapes that denoted various roles in xenomorphs mostly mirrored what became apparent in the polysmorph colonies; drones were laborious workers, sentinels acted as guards and hunters, and praetorians acted as logisticians and quartermasters. The curious divergence came in the form of the polysmorph queens; they generally took on roles of scientific or innovative roles. Despite this stacking of hierarchy, social equality still mostly stuck, though more value was given to related specialists when appropriate.
 
These colonies never grew beyond a few hundred polysmorphs at a time. As polysmorphs are naturally incapable of reproduction, the only chance for this to be reversed was scientific intervention. This never came to be. '''Galactic Common''' began to be taught to polysmorphs in 2497, as colony life had worked in suppressing and stabilizing much of the dysfunctionality otherwise observed in isolation. Interviews then conducted revealed no connection with such a hivemind, and exposure to actual xenomorphs tended to produce an uncanny and anxiety-inducing effect in polysmorphs. Realizing their investment a complete failure, Sano-Waltfield moved to cut off support to the colonies entirely. It was at this point that Nanotrasen stepped in and scooped up whichever polysmorphs remained. Those that quickly grew distressed and ballistic outside of colonial society were quietly moved to various positions of undocumented, menial labor, most commonly plasma mines. Those stable (enough) were released into normal employment on Nanotrasen stations, albeit with significantly reduced benefits and pay. While SIC officials were greatly distressed at the thought of introducing xenomorph-human hybrids into the quickly diversifying society, an agreement was made that Nanotrasen would hold responsibility for the behavior and actions of all polysmorphs, in return that they would be functionally forced to work for Nanotrasen under the presumptions of “overseen civilizing” and “social education”.
 
While the experiments that create polysmorphs have since ended, most of the thousands that remain still work under Nanotrasen. There are some who have fled into space or away from their assigned positions, but the vast majority grapple with their new conditions as time grows ever-shorter on their species’ existence. Despite the response to being taken out of the colonies widely ranging among individuals, they fulfill their assigned roles regardless. There are very few polysmorphs who attempt to advocate for the continuation of polysmorph creation, criticizing Sano-Waltfield for their violation of the most fundamental ethical guidelines in scientific research, then permitting a sapient species to slowly die out. Despite the fervor they can possess, public opinion mostly remains indifferent; polysmorphs remain the rarest species in SIC space, and the eccentricities of most enforce a general idea of “wrongness” around the hybrids.
 
== Naming Conventions ==
Polysmorphs tend towards single-word names, usually with two or three syllables, and almost always end in a vowel. Examples include “Thrinia,” “Alei,” and “Saavi.” They do not have surnames as they do not have any true families, but it is not unheard of for them to adopt one based on their home colony, which could be the planet's name or some name bestowed by the scientists that oversaw their colony.
 
== Culture ==
To be done soon


   Each lab maintained their own small Polysmorph “colony” consisting of 100-200 individuals, with the largest having a population of 433 at its peak. Over time, each colony began to develop their own hive-like culture. While each was slightly different, they all had a few key similarities. First and foremost was that all members of the “hive” were of equal standing. This meant that, at least for those that could properly express themselves, each individual had the same say in matters pertaining to internal management of the group, such as food allocation. The second most significant similarity was that each individual almost inherently knew their assigned role in the colony without necessarily having to be told it. This was speculated to be a result of the inherent caste system used by Xenomorphs being loosely transferred into the hybrids. Across all colonies, individuals that resembled similar castes of Xenomorphs (drones, sentinels, queens, etc.) tended to have similar roles in the colony. Finally, Polysmorphs across all colonies developed a near-identical dialect of what is assumed to be the same “language” Xenomorphs use to communicate with each other vocally. This language was the primary one used by the Polysmorphs and seemed to come naturally to them, with freshly-created Polysmorphs only requiring a few weeks to learn the language in its entirety. Galactic common, however, took several years to fully learn.
== Lifespan and Health ==
To also be done soon


   The colonies themselves were nothing spectacular. Some research bases were able to accumulate more funding than others, and as such had marginally better living conditions for the Polysmorphs. This included things like proper education and access to technology. Others were nothing short of slums, with individuals living in close proximity to one another in shoddily-constructed habitats that only barely kept the atmosphere in and the desolate nothingness of the barren planets they lived on out. Despite this, once the program was eventually discontinued in 2551 due to a lack of new developments, some Polysmorphs opted to remain in the colonies with their peers. Where possible, a few of these colonies were maintained as it was deemed profitable to keep them working on whatever they were occupied with. Most colonies, however, were disbanded entirely and the members of them scattered across the various space stations and settlements owned by Nanotrasen. Integration of Polysmorphs into the workforce after the discontinuation of the project was difficult. Many Polysmorphs were not ready to work with those of primarily other species. Individuals that were only barely mentally stable soon cracked, with many cases of rampages or catatonia recorded among the Polysmorph workforce. Eventually, these cases lessened and the need to re-contain the Polysmorphs faded.
== Roleplay Traits ==


   As of today, most Polysmorphs in the workforce are, while still usually less stable than an average human, mentally well enough to continue working in the hazardous conditions often found on Nanotrasen stations and ships. They are (despite the original goal of the project creating them) paid about the same as most other employees and generally treated as, if not equals, neutral outsiders by other crew members.
* Most are significantly odd or eccentric in some wild capacity. Very few functional polysmorphs exist, though they tend to take higher positions within the Company
==Anatomy==
* The first generation of polysmorphs still live; it is unknown how long they can last before perishing of old age
Polysmorph anatomy varies greatly between individuals, primarily dependant on the methods used by NT scientists to create their unique genetic sequence. Some look more similar to true Xenomorphs, while others may have much more human-like characteristics. For example, most Polysmorphs have a tail but a relatively small portion do not. Additionally, some have a rounded head very similar to that of a human, while most others have varying shapes similar to those of the different Xenomorph castes. Finally, Polysmorphs have a wide range of heights. The shortest ones stood only 5 ½ feet tall, while the largest measured were nearly eight feet in height.
* Otherwise ignorant or too consumed with their probable, eventual extinction
Internally, Polysmorphs (at least those still alive) have similar body functions to true Xenomorphs. Most significantly, this includes extremely acidic blood and inherent resistance to all acids. Because of their extremely corrosive blood, surgery on them is often difficult without proper tools and protective clothing. They also have greater ability to see in darkness than humans. However, unlike true Xenomorphs, they still require a certain amount of oxygen and food to maintain the more human-derived organs, such as the brain or heart. All surviving Polysmorphs are also female, suspected to be a result of all true Xenomorphs also being inherently female.
* Can massively become enveloped in work, moving about tasks without word or comment
==Behavior==
* Generally uncurious or disinterested in more abstract ideas or irrelevant topics or information: not fans of small talk
Polysmorph behaviour varies wildly between individuals. Some are wild and feral, while others very calm and analytical. Nanotrasen tends to avoid keeping the more animalistic ones as crew members on their stations, resulting in primarily those with dispositions similar to the average human being found anywhere in space. NT is not entirely against using the more undesirable ones for menial labour, though.
* Tend to care little for vices such as drugs or leisure
* Fails to understand most social relationships beyond a baseline friendship, nor are they interested in anything beyond that
{{Jobs}}
{{Jobs}}
[[Category:Lore]]
[[Category:Lore]]
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