Bestiary

Companions of the reclusive hulder, Titanian caribou have dark, blubbery skin similar to the hulder them- selves. Both males and females have antlers. Their muzzles contain chemical sniffers to detect the carbonaceous compounds upon which they “graze” and fractal fingers for breaking down ice, rock, and carbon grit.

Models used in pre-Fall military conflicts had puppet socks to enable piloting by soldiers in the field. Smart mines operational today have gone wild artificial (p. 151), either following the last orders of their masters or pursuing random glitches in their AI.

Resurrected from extinction by genehackers on the exoplanet Sky Ark, this large predator grows up to 15 meters in length and 4 meters tall, and weighs up to 7 tons.

Veiled leeches are arboreal creatures from the exoplanet Plootarg. These hematophages subsist on blood and bodily fluids. Veiled leeches are smaller in size and build than a neo-chimpanzee. Their elongated skulls end in a collection of tentacles they use to latch on and suck blood from from their prey. Their six eyes can see in infrared, to spot the location of major blood vessels under the skin. Membranes stretch between their limbs, enabling them to glide between trees in Plootarg’s low gravity and quietly pounce on the backs of their victims.

This silicon-based life form is sapient and beginning to establish a primitive tool-using civilization in Vohaul’s hellish Venusian depths. They live in the surface’s liquid sulfur pools.

Void crawlers are a fascinating example of genetic tinkering. These inquisitive and clever creatures were designed to thrive in micrograv environments. So far, they have been discovered in two extrasolar locations, both beehive warrens carved out by unknown aliens. Void crawlers use eight hooked limbs to propel themselves along tunnel shafts and a pair of prehensile tails to grasp and hold them- selves in place. If caught in free fall, they cough up a convulsive spit that is just strong enough to drift them towards the nearest surface.

The horrific alien creatures known as vydra are native to the exoplanet Gwadar. Three sinuous necks end in vicious quad-hinged mouths lined with jagged teeth. Much like octopi, each neck of the vydra is lined with neurons and acts independently. The creature moves as a quadruped with lobster-like legs and a thick spiked tail. Each neck features eight clawed arms used for grasping prey. Though they lack sight, vydra sense and communicate via ultrasonic clicks with their tongue, and their breathing vents provide a fine sense of smell.

These massive, armored tanks sport two legs, four arms, a pair of tentacle manipulators, and a vast array of weapon systems capable of independent targeting. Taking advantage of their mobility and repower, the TITANs deployed warbots as their main vehicle for physical destruction around the globe.

Smooth white masks, floating out of shadows and flame, looking inexplicably hungry through doll’s eyes and expressionless dashes of mouths—the wastewalkers on the march were the last sight of many transhumans. These exsurgent cyborgs were employed by the TITANs as elite infantry during the Fall. Wastewalkers are intelligent and tactically minded, and they frequently commanded other exsurgents and TITAN puppets as shock troops, indirect re spotters, and cannon fodder.

Found on the exoplanet Sunrise, the whiplash expresses both plant and animal features. An arboreal carnivore, the whiplash moves among tree trunk and branches using its grasping roots, seeking out the best place to ambush prey. It extends a sap-covered vine from its mouth, extending up to 4 meters, which draws critters attracted to its sweet scent. The sap is extremely sticky, and once a creature is caught against the feeding tendril, it quickly entangles them and rolls them up to the whiplash’s waiting maw above.

These creatures have barrel-shaped torsos about one meter long. From the bottom, they skitter around on an irregular splay of dozens of vaguely arachnid legs. From the top, a mass of 3-meter long, whipping tentacles protrudes. The textured ones coated in sticky mucus are used for grabbing and holding (either victims or tools). The other two tentacles quickly narrow into sharp blades made of hardened bone. Their constant ailing in 360-degree arcs slices through an unarmored transhuman with ease.

Collectors are small, fast, agile, and cat-sized bots programmed with animal behavioralisms for scavenging and hoarding. Enough of these have been found in the streets of Elysium that it seems likely that someone is manufacturing them and intentionally setting them free. Collectors scurry about on spider-like legs with grip pads across any available surface, collecting any small objects that strike their interest.

The booming hacker lab culture on Mars inspires experimentation with robotic shells and non-standard, low-level AIs. The AIs range from animal mind imprints and “uplifted” complex systems
to non-human mindsets and the artistic, weird, and at-out bizarre. Some projects lead to interesting
results and even breakthroughs in ALI development; many more are hindered by improper program-
ming and a lack of understanding of non-human mind-state implementation; quite a few are simply disasters.

Xenosamplers are AI-piloted drones send out by an unknown alien species to explore exoplanets via the Pandora gate network, collect samples of alien life, and return home. For reasons unknown, these xenosamplers are unable to find their way back. Perhaps the gate connections no longer work, perhaps they were damaged or lost their memories, or perhaps the civilization that created them no longer exists.

Zephyrs are unusual predators discovered living in the upper layers of a gas giant’s atmosphere. It is strongly suspected that zephyrs were genetically engineered and seeded along with numerous other species to create a unique ecosystem on the exoplanet Fata Morgana by an unknown civilization. Zephyrs are the apex predators of this environment, feeding on the balloon creatures and jelly-like oaters that drift among the haze and storm banks.

Zombie crabs are arthropods found on the exoplanet Droplet. Very similar in body plan to the crabs of Earth, zombie crabs are significantly larger and spikier. They are carnivorous and not particularly intelligent.

Zombie crabs are so named because they spread a toxoplasma-related protist pathogen that affects the behavior of those infected. Zombie crabs are nocturnal and hunt prey at night, and they are quite skilled at moving quietly along the surf and shore to ambush victims. Not all of their targets are killed and eaten,