*These three articles were lifted from a post on Compuserve, a post which I had to copy by hand from a hardcopy. My friend no longer has the file, nor does he know who posted it. I do not have access to Compuserve. Any imperfections, errors, etc. are mine. I apologize in advance. If you can give me information on who posted it or who wrote it, please let me know. Thanx.

New Critters

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Changeling

The changeling is sometimes confused with a shapeshifter, because of abilities similar to, but far more flexible than, those of shapeshifters. The changeling is capable of mimicking an object physically, but it cannot reproduce a working copy of an object with complex moving parts, nor can it copy an object chemically. Changelings cannot use cyberware or bioware, not can they mimic the function of such a device. Noticing a changeling requires a Perception test with a target of 10, but this does not apply to a astrally perceiving mage or shaman, as changelings cannot mask their auras any better than anyone else. Some have speculated that the changeling may be a mutant expression of HMHVV, similar to the virus that created Nosferatu, Banshee, Fomorian, Goblin and Wendigo races, but possibly affecting the shapeshifters. Shapeshifters deny this. HMHVV cannot affect shapeshifters. Most changelings are evil.

           B Q S C I W  E  R
Changeling 2 6 4 5 4 4 2D6 7
   Initiative:  2D6

Powers: regeneration, engulf(like water w/o elemental effects), essence drain
Weaknesses: essence loss, Allergy-Silver(Severe), Vulnerability(Fire)

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Balrog

The Balrog is one of the bigger nasties in the Awakened world. Balrogs are often cave-dwellers, and have a strong affinity for fire-effect magicks. While a majority of Balrogs are evil, many Balrogs are more or less neutral. Nearly all carry a hatred for elves, just as elves carry one for them. Balrogs are terrible foes and terrific allies. Tir Tairngire offers a bounty for their heads. Balrogs have large, bat-like wings, and stony skin. They are occasionally mistaken for trolls, Fomorians, and the occasional dragon. Some have speculated that Balrogs may be holdovers from the last age of Magic, like dragons. Few Balrogs currently inhabit the world

Magic Capability: Innate, many are magically active, usually following the shamanic tradition. Common totems include Wyrm, Gator, Wolf, occasionally Bear. (Basically anything large and powerful.)

Young: Unknown. Close study of these creatures is difficult, and willing volunteers are rare.

Habits: Often nocturnal and rarely use cyberware, though urban specimens have been known to use bioware and headware, occasionally spurs or razors, sometimes cyberguns.

        B   Q  S C I W E  R
Balrog 7/2 2x4 5 1 4 6 12 3

Powers: Engulf(fire), Thermographic vision, Flame aura, Hardened Armor

Weaknesses: Allergy-Silver(Severe) some show: Allergy-Elven Things(Severe)

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Quickling

The Quicklings are about the fastest little $#!%#@&'s that you'll ever see. They stand about two feet tall, and often remain totally, or near completely, invisible. Their origins are unknown, their motives unclear. Quicklings lack direction, rarely acting on their own, usually responding to the commands of another. Quicklings require great concentration to effect invisibility or flight. While in flight, Quicklings may not respond to anything without stopping. While invisible a Quickling may not fly, but can do anything else, but at a disadvantage which increases the chance of their discovery. Quicklings lose their invisibility or flight should they lose concentration or become unconscious.

Magic Capability: Unknown due to little observation. The abilities that they display show some potential, though.

Young: unknown

Habits: unknown

          B  Q   S C I  W E R
Quickling 1 17x6 1 1 10 1 8 13
   Initiative:  3D6

Powers: Confusion, Accident, Flight, Invisibility

Weakness: None

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Lonesti

Source: NAGEE 6, The Petting Zoo - [email protected]

[Taken from Salan Ultha's _Unmasking the Demons_, 1468 AD]

A creature of ancient and mysterious origins, the result of a magical experiment gone horribly wrong. The energies that were part of the spell created a void of energy on the astral plane, while creating a life on the material plane. These creatures must feed on the magic force of others in order to survive. Although such a creature would typically feed on life-force, as a vampire, the energies involved mutated the creature, changing its requirements from life-force, to magic. The first meal the newly created creature consumed were the magicians that created it.

Lonesti have no essence. In order to survive, the magic they steal from others is slowly leaked from the prime plane, where it is stored in their physical form, to the astral plane. This allows creatures that are capable of astral perception to easily recognize Lonesti by merely perceiving them on the astral plane.

The manner by which these creatures feed is unknown. What is known is that the creatures are basically humanoid. Also, observations have shown that when the creatures have consumed the double the magic to be found in one human they 'give birth'. This process is similar to the reproduction process of bacteria.

Lonesti transfer memories genetically, so the memories possessed by the first, are possessed by all who currently exist. This may account for the incredibly intelligent nature of these creatures, whose IQ would easily reach the genius level. All can speak an ancient and dead language, giving rise to the speculation that this is the original tongue of the magicians that originally created the Lonesti.

All are extreme megalomaniacs, to the point that they will gladly perform genocide on mundaners. They regard magicians as food, and all other races as tools to obtain that food. They are without any sense of morality or humanity whatsoever.

Their greatest strength, other than the ability to drain magic, is their immunity to mana based spells, and all combat spells. This is due to the utter lack of an astral form. All creatures have an astral form, even mundaners. The absence of one in the case of the Lonesti disallows the use of mana based spells which must have an astral form to complete the link to the physical plane.

Powers:

• Immunity to age
• Immunity to magic*
• Magic drain.

Weaknesses:

• Magic loss.

* Only combat spells and mana spells. Physical spells and damaging manipulations are exempt from this.

>>>>>[So there you go... This Salan dude isn't found in any of the bases, and there was no info in any public library. Its all I could get, hope it helps...]<<<<<

-- Null Cipher (17:53:22/05-30-50)

>>>>>[GM NOTE: In 2011 there were only 3 of them that awoke out of 21 that had hidden in order to prevent the annihilation of the entire race. By 2050 there are 11. If either the Elves or the greater Dragons discover that some still live, they will spend every available resource to hunt the Lonesti down and kill them all.]<<<<<

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New Races

All new races are newly awakened or previously unknown forms of metahumanity (a term which does not include vampires).

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Kinder

Source: inspired from **&*

The kinders are short, impish, child-like, and very elvish. The kinder is a branch off of the elven race, sometimes confused with halflings and children, but distinguished by their elven appearance. Kinders are notorious thieves, finding it almost impossible to resist stealing objects that they find beautiful, and if they cannot steal it, they will often trade things far beyond its worth for it. Kinders must make a Willpower test with a target of 8, however, as a comfort, skill tests for thievery receive a +2 dice bonus, even without the skill itself. Kinders often get annoying. This is also treated as a skill test with a rating of the character's Charisma and a target of the subject's willpower. The subject can resist. Kinders do not fear death and it is impossible to really surprise them (though they can pretend for their friends). Any penalties an ambush would impose are thus considered null and void.

B: -1
Q: +2
S:
C: +2
I: +2
W: -2

Powers: lowlight vision

Weaknesses: see above

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Gargoyles

(homo sapiens daemonis)

Source: Unknown

Identification: Gargoyles are an imposing 2.1 meters in height, very large, although still smaller than a troll. Average weight is 80 kilograms. Their stone grey skin is smooth around the arm and leg muscles, growing harder and more rocky around the chest, abdomen, head and neck areas. Certain gargoyles of Middle Eastern descent are reddish-brown in color, though most conform to the grey pattern. Gargoyles have no hair at all, and their braincase is much enlarged over the human one. In some, the skull has two distinct little horns, about one to three centimeters long, though in most this feature does not manifest itself. The eyes are teardrop shaped, with the pointed end of the drop facing in towards the boned nose. The mouth is wider on the face than on most other races, and the teeth are considerably sharper. The ears are small, and nearly invisible on the head. Gargoyles have large bat wings which can be folded up against their backs for protection. The skull has 39 teeth. Gargoyle women have two mammae.

Habits: Most of the documented sightings of gargoyles come from the area of Denver, where the mountains provide adequate cover for the creatures during the day. Some reside in the upped stories of abandoned buildings, typically leaving only at night to gather food. They live in groups of about ten individuals, one-half of which are female. The typical life span is about 70 years, though individual gargoyles claim to have lived as long as 500 years (this is, of course, unconfirmed). Their breeding season is unrestricted and gestation is 300 days.

Young: Usually one. Birth weight is 4.1 percent of mother's weight. Suckling time is more than 15 months. All newborns are gargoyles.

Commentary: The eyes of a gargoyle are similar to those of the trolls, with the ability to see heat, making their night activity nearly unrestricted. Their wings are not vestigial, though they may fly only slowly, and in areas where there are many obstructions, like a city, hardly at all. Their clawed hands are strong grasping organs. They probably scare the hell out of everyone else, who see a classical demon staring back at them.

Game information: +2 Body, +1 Quickness, +1 Strength, -1 Charisma, Dermal Armor (1), +2 severity for allergy reactions, Bite or stab in combat (4M4), Thermographic vision

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Dyenne

(homo sapiens angellis)

Source: Unknown

Identification: The typical Dyenne, or "angel", is approximately 1.9 meters in height. They weigh 55 pounds, including their wings. Most look much like elves, though the pointed are absent, and their backs sprout feathered wings. The wings vary in color with the individual's hair and skin color, with blacks tending to have brown or coppery wings, and the palest of Europeans having reddish or pure white wings. Though thin, their real secret to having such light weight is their birdlike hollow bones. Head hair is usually very fine.

Habits and Habitats: Dyenne are active most often during the day, though they are capable of functioning at night, as well. They are vegetarian. Generally, they live in small communities of ten or so individuals, half of which will be women. Dyenne can expect to live eighty years, though certain individuals claim to have lived as long as 600 years (though, of course, this is highly unlikely). The breeding season is unrestricted, and gestation is 320 days.

Young: Almost always one. Birth weight is 6.2 percent of the mother's weight. Sucking time is over 16 months.

Commentary: Dyenne fly faster than gargoyles, though not much so, and their wings do not fold back into their body like the "demon"'s wings do. They have nearly human eyes.

Game info: -1 Body, +1 Quickness, +2 Charisma, Wings (they can fly slightly faster than gargoyles), look like angels to many humans

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Grrzl

(homo sapiens felinis)

Source: Unknown

Identification: Grrzl, or "Cats" stand about 1.6 meters tall and weigh about 60 kilograms. Grrzl are covered with a fine fur, which ranges in color from bleach white to jet black. The skull has 32 teeth, generally more pointed than those of their human stock. Ears are slightly pointed, but not to the extent of elves. Eyes are light reflective, causing a shining effect at night. Women have two mammae.

Habits: Grrzl are generally nocturnal, but operate in both daylight and night equally well. Cats aren't exclusively carnivorous, but prefer meat and fish to vegetables. They live in small family groups, pairs of adults, or alone. Grrzl life expectancy is about 90 years. Their breeding season is unrestricted, with a gestation period of about 305 days.

Young: Almost always one but twins are not unheard of. Birth weight is 5.3 percent of mother's weight. Suckling time is just over 16 months.

Commentary: Grrzl eyes are heavily endowed with rod structures, allowing them to see in darkness better than homo sapiens. Also, they have retractable claws equivalent to Retractable razors.

Game Info: +1 Body, +4 Quickness, -1 Strength, +1 Intelligence, -1 Willpower, Retractable Razors, Low-Light vision

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Halfling

Source: NERPS: Shadowlore

Homo Sapiens Waerlous

• +2 Quick, +1 Char , +1 Int,
• -1 Str
• Low-Light Eyes
• +1 die when using Social Skills

ALSO KNOWN AS:

• Warrows
• Wee Folk

Appearance:

• Average Height: 1.1 m,
• Average Weight: 50 kg.

Identification

Warrows appear to be human children of ages 8-10 yrs. Hair and eye color vary as it does in humans. The childish facial features of this race disarm most people. Most individuals have displayed the most uncanny ability to persuade adults of all races with their charm.

Young

Gestation period is 8 months. Newborns are typically 16 inches long and 5 lbs. in weight, but are very healthy. Unlike other races, any individual who changes into a Warrow does so between the ages of 6 and 8. Warrows also seem to develop quicker mentally than their other racial counterparts. The reasons for this are not understood at the present.

Notes

Legally in UCAS and North America, Warrows are termed Dwarves. The general population sees them as Dwarves or small human children even though their appearance and mannerisms can be vastly different.

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Rules and requirements

Requirements For Critters

1. The new character's "race" must be sentient. If the critter has a charisma rating listed, then it's probably sentient.
2. New metahuman races should be treated as metahumans. This does not include vampires of any shape or form.
3. Characters should be able to move and live on land for purposes of game play (this one's just a suggestion).
4. Characters are not allowed cyberware which in any way interferes with any of their race's powers or abilities (GM's discretion).
5. Critters with two sets of non-related Attributes cannot modify each with the same amount of Karma, ie, boosting a shapeshifter's human form Body to 6 from 5 does not also lift its animal form Body 1 point. Separate Karma should be spent to modify each, but in creation separate Attribute points are not required to be spent on each (see Creation, below).
6. Finally, all characters should be subject to review by the GM, to make sure that they don't upset balance in the game.

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Spirits As Player Characters

by JP ([email protected])
improved, changed and edited by JSJ ([email protected])

*Character ally spirits start with immunity to normal weapons and manifestation as their innate abilities (they may choose inhabiting in place of these two, though I can't see why). They will always receive sorcery at no cost, aside from their three base Free Spirit powers.

**Because ally attributes are handled differently than other spirits (which equal their force in astral space and receive modifiers when manifest), a player assigns his six attributes from the points listed for the chosen priority. Since raising an ally's force rating has no direct effect on their attributes (as it would with other spirit types), a player may raise them by paying karma like a non-spirit character. An ally has no racial maximum on their attributes, though attributes may not be raised higher than 1.5 times it's current force.

***Spirits with the sorcery power receive it at a skill level equal to their force. This may be raised as any other skill, though it may not exceed six at character creation.

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For reasons of balance, it is suggested that GMs limit the number of PC critters/spirits to one or maybe two. This does not include metahuman races submitted on the Internet (minotaur, ogre, gargoyle, etc) because they are primarily to be used as races and not critters.

Feel free to make any changes you wish to this set of character requirements.

Character Creation

Critter characters of all types are required to make Race their first Priority (even if using the More Metahumans rule) and only receive one Karma point (they get lots of other bonuses anyway). If all members of the character's race are described as being magically active, Magic should then be Priority B, or C if the GM wishes to allow an adept. (Physads & Physical magicians are at the GMs discretion) The character's Essence is as listed, making a dice roll where indicated. To find Racial modifiers, subtract 3 from each Attribute (except Essence and Reaction). Find Reaction by estimating Reaction normally for the Critter's stats as listed. Then subtract this from the listed Reaction. Critters also receive any listed bonuses for Initiative. To better reflect the rules, maximums should be figured by multiplying the figures in the table by 2 (again, this doesn't apply to Essence). For Attributes which did not receive a modification (were listed as 3 on the table) the maximum is automatically six. Reaction is figured normally, accounting for any modifiers. For better balance, it may be advisable for extremely large creatures to divide racial modifiers by 2 (for example: dragons). Critter Characters are required to take any and all of the weaknesses listed for their "race" without any bonuses. Critters listed as dual beings have automatic access to the astral plane, but to bypass the normal restrictions on the astral movement of dual beings, they should be required to be full mages/shamans or shamanic adepts to astrally project normally. In this case, powers should be applied at the GM's discretion. Such characters may be attacked upon the astral plane at any time. Critter characters (unless the "critter" is actually a form of (meta)humanity) should be required to use clonal or forced growth limb replacements should the need arise.

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John Pederson, [email protected] or [email protected]

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