Thunder Mead Games
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Abdarian Offshoot · Advanced

Techno Abdarian

Neither flesh nor machine — symbiosis

⚠ Draft · Playtest — Not Final This race is a work in progress and its mechanics are not locked. The ability-score array and Race Point costs in particular are still being reconciled (the source totals don't yet balance) and some terminology is being converted to house rules. Play it only with DM approval, and expect the numbers to change. Feedback welcome.

These Abdarians are technologically advanced through their symbiotic relationship with the mender swarm. This tribe made a conscious effort to alter their physiology and incorporate the swarm's benefits and limitations; genetic manipulation and machine implants are now a natural part of Techno Abdarian biology.

Physiology

Without their mechanical systems, their minds would be limited to the savage nature of their ancestors. Without their biological side, their machine side would lack both sentience and the ability to process minerals into metals, eventually collapsing from an inability to repair itself. The Techno Abdarian is neither flesh nor machine; they are symbiosis.

The typical Techno Abdarian stands about 5'9" and weighs around 190 lbs. While at first glance they appear human, closer inspection reveals veins of cable interwoven with flesh and blood, and hair threaded with fine cable filaments. Unlike others who undergo surgery to install enhancements, a Techno Abdarian's form is completely natural — each is born with this synthesis of flesh and machine, never altered by surgery.

Life Cycle

The Techno Abdarian reproduces asexually, limited by the swarm that lives within them. Young are born with only 5 Miniature Menders; as they mature they gain one each year and one for each point of Constitution, and for each Hit Die gained they add 5 menders plus 1 per Constitution modifier. When a Techno Abdarian reaches 300 Miniature Menders, its body releases a hormone that begins the reproductive cycle.

A sack grows in the abdomen over four months; 100 menders sacrifice themselves to build the infant's implants. Born blind and deaf, the child relies on its enhancements to see and hear — instantly bonding it to the swarm. It grows rapidly, walking within days, and follows its parent for three to four years before it is considered an adult. This is a male-only line — there are no female Techno Abdarians.

Interfaces

Their most striking feature is a set of small, prehensile interface wires used to link directly into machines and digital systems. Their internal processors keep schematics of most devices and carry communication protocols they update regularly; linking into a new machine, a Techno Abdarian can write the code to drive it with a successful check, much as a person adapts to the quirks of a new tool. Access fails only in special cases — a locked or proprietary input, a missing port — and even then they can often jury-rig a way in.

Racial Traits

Type: Monstrous Humanoid (dwarf subtype); darkvision 60 ft.

Size / Speed: Medium; 30 ft.

Ability Scores: +2 Strength, +6 Constitution, −6 Intelligence, −4 Wisdom, −6 Charisma. (Net as transcribed — under review; see the draft notice above.)

Fearless: +2 racial bonus on all saving throws against fear effects.

Duergar Immunities: Immune to paralysis, phantasms, and poison; +2 racial bonus on saves against spells and spell-like abilities.

Rapid Healing: Recover 1 hp per hour.

Greater Spell Resistance: SR 11 + character level.

Powerful Build: Functions in many ways as if one size larger (see below).

Chameleon Stride (Sp): Chameleon stride at will.

Ferocity: Continues fighting even when below 0 hit points.

Claws: Retractable bone claws, 1d6 (19–20/×2).

Powerful Build

The physical stature of Abdarians lets them function in many ways as if they were one size category larger. Whenever an Abdarian is subject to a size modifier or special size modifier for a Combat Maneuver Bonus or Combat Maneuver Defense (such as during grapple, bull rush, and trip attempts), the Abdarian is treated as one size larger if doing so is advantageous. An Abdarian is also considered one size larger when determining whether a creature's size-based special attacks (such as grab or swallow whole) can affect him, and may use weapons designed for a creature one size larger without penalty. His space and reach remain those of his actual size. These benefits stack with effects that change the subject's size category.

The Mender Swarm

Every Techno Abdarian hosts a swarm of Miniature Menders — tiny silver wasp-like constructs, each carrying a group of larvae, that live within the body and define its life cycle. A body can support up to ten menders per Hit Die.

In groups of ten or more, menders can repair the host's enhancements that are still functioning, drawing on available material. When raw material runs out, the swarm begins consuming the host's own armor first, then bone — a genuine cost, later repaired in turn. When in a swarm the menders grow smarter, gaining a bonus to Intelligence and Wisdom the larger the group. Outside their host the menders are fragile and vulnerable to cold.