Primitive Polygon
๐๏ธ Game Master
I made a system that comes up with truely bizzare new alien species, and I thought it would be usefull for coming up with decent alien NPC enemies that were actually... well, alien.
Shall I plonk this on the Wiki, or is it a bit too dice-based and open-ended for Star Army? If you think it would flood the race list with one-off enemies, I can always create an extra page and tell people to keep their results there...
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Need a new, original alien NPC race for a plot, pronto? You can use this list to randomly generate a new one with just a few minutes, one dice and a sheet of paper/word program to record your results.
No permission required to use the results, but sending your feedback to LavaLung would be nice... You can of course ignore some of the questions if you already had some specific ideas in mind, too. ;D
Part one- Overall Anatomy
1) Species type. Roll result-
1- Exoskellital (Including Insects, arachnids, or crustaceans)
2- Marine (Including fish or squid)
3- Scaled (Including lizards or amphibians)
4- Warm-blooded (Including mammals or birds)
5- Plant based (Mobile plants like sentient venus fly traps, walking mushrooms.)
6- Hybrid (Roll another two times and combine the results!)
2) Body structure. Roll result-
1- Long bodied (A body mostly based around the spine, like snakes, caterpillars, centipedes or worms)
2- Shell-backed (A large amount of natural armour, possibly segmented, Like turtles, pillbugs or armadillos)
3- Flat bodied (Like some fish or mites. Could also include bat-like beings.)
4- Insectoid (A separated thorax and abdomen, like most insects.)
5- Humanoid (A boxy torso, with a conjoined abdomen and all the limbs running directly to the corners.)
6- Rounded (A rounded body. Might have all of the limbs running from one side (like a squid or jellyfish), but not necessarily.)
3) Head type. Roll result-
1 to 2- No head. Sensory organs are based all over the body.
3 to 4- Basically a lump on the body, where two or three of the sensory organs are based in the same place.
5 to 6- A proper head with a neck, containing most of the bodies' sensory organs.
4) Limb types. Roll result-
1- No arms or legs. moves like a worm, snake or snail.
2- Legs but no arms- flexible mouthparts may make up it.
3 to 4- Legs with flexible feet, capable of being used like hands.
5 to 6- Both arms and legs.
5) Number of legs (Ignore this if it doesn't have any). Roll result-
1 to 5- Roll an extra dice, and time the result by two. The result is the number of legs.
6- An odd number of legs. Roll an extra dice, and time the result by two, then take away one. The final result is the number of legs (the creature is asymmetrical).
6) Number of arms (Ignore this if it doesn't have any). Roll result-
1- One arm, mounted underneath or as a tail.
2 to 5- Plenty of arms. Roll an extra dice, and time the result by two. The result is the number of arms.
6- An odd number of arms. Roll an extra dice, and time the result by two, then take away one (the creature is asymmetrical).
7) Creature size. Roll result-
1 to 2- Small, from 1 to 5 foot tall.
3 to 4- Vaguely human sized, from 5 to 8 ft tall.
5 to 6- Massive compared to humans, around 9 to 15 ft tall.
8) Wings?
1 to 4- No wings.
5- Wings instead of arms (None if it doesn't have any.)
6- Folding wings on the back, aswell as arms.
9) Tail?
1 to 3- No tail.
4 to 5- It has a tail.
6- Roll an extra dice- it has that many tails.
Part two- Seek, Eat, Procreate.
1) Vision organs.
1- It 'sees' by vibration, using antenna, horns or just it's arms and legs. (Alternatively, it could hear it's way around with large ears.)
2- It 'sees' by taste, using a long tongue or possibly a large nose.
3- It has clusters of a great many tiny eyes. Roll an extra dice for the number of clusters.
4 to 5- It has large, sensitive eyes, complete with eyelids. Roll an extra dice for the number of eyes.
6- It has extrasensory abilities like heat vision, electromagnetism or even psychic sensitivity.
(Note- yes, rolling anything other than 3 to 5 on this chart means the creature has no eyes.)
2) The mouth.
1- No jaw. Eats prey by swallowing them whole.
2 to 3- A fairly average mouth with teeth, and a single jaw.
4- A insectoid mouth with many jaw-like mandibles. Roll an extra dice for the exact amount (A roll of one is a beak).
5- Spider-esk fangs- punches into the prey, injects venom and then drinks them like soup.
6- Strange placement. Roll an extra dice (1-3 is on their hands, 4-5 is on their tail), then roll again on this table for type.
3) Diet.
1- Vegetarian.
2 to 3- Omnivore.
4 to 5- Carnivore.
6- Absorbs energy (Light, heat, electrical, radiation...)
4) Genders.
1 to 3- Can be either male or female.
4 to 5- Asexual.
6- Neither, grows by airborne spores.
Part three- Environment and Culture.
1) The climate they are used to living in.
1- Extremely hot, like inside a volcano.
2- Dry and arid, like in a desert.
3- Underground.
4- Hot and humid forests.
5- In swamps, or totally underwater.
6- On or underneath an Arctic tundra.
2) Social structure.
1- Pacifists, who treat each other as equals and try not to disturb the nature around them.
2- True communists, who aren't necessarily violent and at least try to treat each other equally.
3- Patriotic capitalists, who have a monetary system and a military, determined to build a better future for their race.
4- Corrupt capitalists, who lie to their own people to stay in power and generally have large militaries.
5- Monarchists, who have some kind of 'noble' kingship in place, and a big army so that it doesn't get overthrown.
6- A dictatorship or anarchists, controlled by a single person with an iron fist, that are so powerful they don't even have to lie about what they are doing.
3) Technology specialisation.
1 to 2- The race has access to advanced metallurgy, and uses a great deal of tanks, hydraulics and solid firearms in their armies.
3 to 4- The race concentrates on energy manipulation, able to use plasma, radiation and electro-magnetic weapons to great effect.
5 to 6- The race has a long background with genetic engineering, using artificial muscles and clones to wage war.
FINSHED! REVEIW YOUR RESULTS!
Example of a generated race-
(Answers-
Mammal Plant hybrid
Insectoid body
A proper head with a neck
Legs with flexible feet, capable of being used like hands
Eight legs
Small, from 1 to 5 foot tall
No wings
It has a tail
It 'sees' by taste
A fairly average mouth with teeth
Carnivore
Asexual
In swamps, or totally underwater
Corrupt capitalists
advanced metallurgy)
...which could be shoehorned into...
"The Zhll, with strange, furry, three-piece segmented bodies somewhere inbetween a giant furry ant and a vegetable, are a small but tough species that has a fondness for ballistic firearms- and despite their size, eight multi-use limbs means they can actually pack a lot of firepower at any one time. The freaky, mushroom-like head splits down the middle to show a mouth full of teeth, aswell as a long tongue that is used to 'taste' it's way around the swamps that it inhabits. It has a great taste for meat, and is asexual so it can produce very quickly, making it a pest not to be underestimated. What government they do have is controlled from behind the scenes, tricking the easily fooled masses into doing whatever the group leaders seem necessary to keep themselves on top."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Shall I plonk this on the Wiki, or is it a bit too dice-based and open-ended for Star Army? If you think it would flood the race list with one-off enemies, I can always create an extra page and tell people to keep their results there...
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Need a new, original alien NPC race for a plot, pronto? You can use this list to randomly generate a new one with just a few minutes, one dice and a sheet of paper/word program to record your results.
No permission required to use the results, but sending your feedback to LavaLung would be nice... You can of course ignore some of the questions if you already had some specific ideas in mind, too. ;D
Part one- Overall Anatomy
1) Species type. Roll result-
1- Exoskellital (Including Insects, arachnids, or crustaceans)
2- Marine (Including fish or squid)
3- Scaled (Including lizards or amphibians)
4- Warm-blooded (Including mammals or birds)
5- Plant based (Mobile plants like sentient venus fly traps, walking mushrooms.)
6- Hybrid (Roll another two times and combine the results!)
2) Body structure. Roll result-
1- Long bodied (A body mostly based around the spine, like snakes, caterpillars, centipedes or worms)
2- Shell-backed (A large amount of natural armour, possibly segmented, Like turtles, pillbugs or armadillos)
3- Flat bodied (Like some fish or mites. Could also include bat-like beings.)
4- Insectoid (A separated thorax and abdomen, like most insects.)
5- Humanoid (A boxy torso, with a conjoined abdomen and all the limbs running directly to the corners.)
6- Rounded (A rounded body. Might have all of the limbs running from one side (like a squid or jellyfish), but not necessarily.)
3) Head type. Roll result-
1 to 2- No head. Sensory organs are based all over the body.
3 to 4- Basically a lump on the body, where two or three of the sensory organs are based in the same place.
5 to 6- A proper head with a neck, containing most of the bodies' sensory organs.
4) Limb types. Roll result-
1- No arms or legs. moves like a worm, snake or snail.
2- Legs but no arms- flexible mouthparts may make up it.
3 to 4- Legs with flexible feet, capable of being used like hands.
5 to 6- Both arms and legs.
5) Number of legs (Ignore this if it doesn't have any). Roll result-
1 to 5- Roll an extra dice, and time the result by two. The result is the number of legs.
6- An odd number of legs. Roll an extra dice, and time the result by two, then take away one. The final result is the number of legs (the creature is asymmetrical).
6) Number of arms (Ignore this if it doesn't have any). Roll result-
1- One arm, mounted underneath or as a tail.
2 to 5- Plenty of arms. Roll an extra dice, and time the result by two. The result is the number of arms.
6- An odd number of arms. Roll an extra dice, and time the result by two, then take away one (the creature is asymmetrical).
7) Creature size. Roll result-
1 to 2- Small, from 1 to 5 foot tall.
3 to 4- Vaguely human sized, from 5 to 8 ft tall.
5 to 6- Massive compared to humans, around 9 to 15 ft tall.
8) Wings?
1 to 4- No wings.
5- Wings instead of arms (None if it doesn't have any.)
6- Folding wings on the back, aswell as arms.
9) Tail?
1 to 3- No tail.
4 to 5- It has a tail.
6- Roll an extra dice- it has that many tails.
Part two- Seek, Eat, Procreate.
1) Vision organs.
1- It 'sees' by vibration, using antenna, horns or just it's arms and legs. (Alternatively, it could hear it's way around with large ears.)
2- It 'sees' by taste, using a long tongue or possibly a large nose.
3- It has clusters of a great many tiny eyes. Roll an extra dice for the number of clusters.
4 to 5- It has large, sensitive eyes, complete with eyelids. Roll an extra dice for the number of eyes.
6- It has extrasensory abilities like heat vision, electromagnetism or even psychic sensitivity.
(Note- yes, rolling anything other than 3 to 5 on this chart means the creature has no eyes.)
2) The mouth.
1- No jaw. Eats prey by swallowing them whole.
2 to 3- A fairly average mouth with teeth, and a single jaw.
4- A insectoid mouth with many jaw-like mandibles. Roll an extra dice for the exact amount (A roll of one is a beak).
5- Spider-esk fangs- punches into the prey, injects venom and then drinks them like soup.
6- Strange placement. Roll an extra dice (1-3 is on their hands, 4-5 is on their tail), then roll again on this table for type.
3) Diet.
1- Vegetarian.
2 to 3- Omnivore.
4 to 5- Carnivore.
6- Absorbs energy (Light, heat, electrical, radiation...)
4) Genders.
1 to 3- Can be either male or female.
4 to 5- Asexual.
6- Neither, grows by airborne spores.
Part three- Environment and Culture.
1) The climate they are used to living in.
1- Extremely hot, like inside a volcano.
2- Dry and arid, like in a desert.
3- Underground.
4- Hot and humid forests.
5- In swamps, or totally underwater.
6- On or underneath an Arctic tundra.
2) Social structure.
1- Pacifists, who treat each other as equals and try not to disturb the nature around them.
2- True communists, who aren't necessarily violent and at least try to treat each other equally.
3- Patriotic capitalists, who have a monetary system and a military, determined to build a better future for their race.
4- Corrupt capitalists, who lie to their own people to stay in power and generally have large militaries.
5- Monarchists, who have some kind of 'noble' kingship in place, and a big army so that it doesn't get overthrown.
6- A dictatorship or anarchists, controlled by a single person with an iron fist, that are so powerful they don't even have to lie about what they are doing.
3) Technology specialisation.
1 to 2- The race has access to advanced metallurgy, and uses a great deal of tanks, hydraulics and solid firearms in their armies.
3 to 4- The race concentrates on energy manipulation, able to use plasma, radiation and electro-magnetic weapons to great effect.
5 to 6- The race has a long background with genetic engineering, using artificial muscles and clones to wage war.
FINSHED! REVEIW YOUR RESULTS!
Example of a generated race-
(Answers-
Mammal Plant hybrid
Insectoid body
A proper head with a neck
Legs with flexible feet, capable of being used like hands
Eight legs
Small, from 1 to 5 foot tall
No wings
It has a tail
It 'sees' by taste
A fairly average mouth with teeth
Carnivore
Asexual
In swamps, or totally underwater
Corrupt capitalists
advanced metallurgy)
...which could be shoehorned into...
"The Zhll, with strange, furry, three-piece segmented bodies somewhere inbetween a giant furry ant and a vegetable, are a small but tough species that has a fondness for ballistic firearms- and despite their size, eight multi-use limbs means they can actually pack a lot of firepower at any one time. The freaky, mushroom-like head splits down the middle to show a mouth full of teeth, aswell as a long tongue that is used to 'taste' it's way around the swamps that it inhabits. It has a great taste for meat, and is asexual so it can produce very quickly, making it a pest not to be underestimated. What government they do have is controlled from behind the scenes, tricking the easily fooled masses into doing whatever the group leaders seem necessary to keep themselves on top."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\