Alexander Teucui

Cryptid: The Evolution

Introduction:	2 1: A history of Monsters:	2 2: Life of a Monster	4 The Cocoon	4 The other you	5 Cryptid Physiology:	5 Plotpoints yet to be implemented	6 Chapter II: Birth of a Monster	6 Concept	6 Attributes and Skills	6 Assign Cryptid Template	6 Fragment	6 Society	6 Bloodmemory:	6 Aspects:	7 New Advantage: Bloodmemory	7 New Advantage: Neodrenalin	7 Morality: Balance	7 Merits	9 Clans/Fragments	9 Kindly Ones	9 Hoardbuilders	10 Driven	10 Beastlords	11 Dreamspeakers	11 Systems:	12 True Form	12 Molting	12 Drawbacks:	12 Fire	12 Going under	12 Chimerism	13 The Great Curse:	13 Factions:	14 The Beast Lords	14 The Exiles:	15 The Infected:	16 Systems	16 Aspects	16 Skulking and Stalking	16 Interaction	17 Vitality:	19 Weaponry	19 Senses: better senses more irritating stimuli	20 Secretions:	21 Body-Shape	22 Movement	23 Fertility:	25 Powers of the mind:	25 Mystic Path:	25 Appendix: Antagonists	26 Tcho-Tcho	26 Chimeras	26 The Skinners	27 Abandoned Ideas and alternative concepts:	27 The Urges	27 Loss of sensitivity	28 Alternate Morality-path	28

Introduction: Once, long ago, the world was full of monsters. Every dark shadow had one, every corner a potential lair for the hideous beasts of the world. Then, one day, the monsters grew to such prominence that one day someone brought a monster home and called it a puppy. After that, humans spread like wildfire, taming, ripping, tearing, and burning what couldn't be brought under the sway of rope and spear. Monsters slowly vanished until the modern day, and yet people still insist that monsters exist. They say that monsters never went away, that they just went into hiding, and that the monsters are still out there. They're right, in a way. They're just looking in the wrong place. The monsters are real, and they are there. It is true that strange and terrible Monsters are lurking in the last truly wild places of earth, the Mokole M’be of central Africa, the Bunyip of Australia and other Cryptids. Other Monsters have simply adapted to civilisation and are living alongside Man.

Cryptid: the Evolution is a game about humans that

Mood: Homesick- Cryptids don’t fit into human civilization but need people to retain their humanity

Theme:

Lexicon: Origo: Cryptids living in enclaves without contact to humanity Vicanus: lat: ‘Those who live in towns’ Cryptids infiltrating humanity

1: A history of Monsters: Society: Cryptids have probably been around since the Age of the Amphibians, but if they were they left neither records nor fossils. The first human legends about monsters were most likely inspired by them, and some of the first gods as well.

Throughout history there has been the occasional legend about humans ruled by inhuman creatures, like the Naga kingdom of India or the Ogre in the Puss in Boots. Undoubtedly some of these legends are examples of Cryptids that lived openly among humans, but all of these legendary societies are long gone. In most legends humanlike monsters live in small hidden communities or as hermits, well apart from mortals. The lack of archeological evidence for inhuman civilisations could be explained by the fact that clothes, shelter and tools would have been a matter of convenience instead of necessity. Their adaptive capabilities allowed them to thrive in remote locations where mortals would be hard pressed to even survive, so they could retreat farther into the wilderness whenever expanding mortals became a serious threat. Most of these hidden enclaves where isolated from each other, and developed their own culture and legends over time. So the few genuine historical documents written by different Cryptids during the Ages tend to contradict each other at every turn.

The tactic of living alongside human civilisation worked quite well as long as there were big white areas on the map of the world. And with greater numbers and better and better weapons mankind started to actively hunt things that went bump in the night instead of cowering in fear behind closed doors. Even scales hard as steel, became less impressive once crossbows came around. By the 18th century Cryptids were nearly extinct in Europe, North America and parts of Asia. The first Vicanus appeared during the second half of the 19th century in Europe and North-America, where fire was slowly replaced by electricity. Hundreds of competing philosophies formed parallel to each other during this time of confusion, while isolated groups of Vicanus tried to explain what had happened to them. With the integration into human society came access to ever improving means of telecommunication. Isolated groups that stumbled over another by chance, started exchanging letters and over time grew into secret societies that communicated via telephone. By the early 20th century several prominent schools of thought existed that fought for dominance : The Beast-Lords embraced the teachings of a Origo-enclave a Vicanus from Michigan discovered in Thailand. They see themselves as descendants of legendary beasts that once ruled the world and were betrayed by the ancestor of mankind. The Exiles trace their origin back to a Enclave in the catacombs of Praque. According to their belief not all animals accepted Man as their ruler, and the rebels were cast out of paradise for their stubbornness. Banned from paradise but not sinfull enough to end up in hell, their souls drift across the earth searching for a suitable vessel to form in their likeness. The Infected were founded in France and tried to expose the scientific principles behind their transformation, basing their ideas on books about lycanthrophy and similar mythical diseases. The Darwinists saw themselves as the next step of human evolution, postulating the theseis that evolution worked in leaps instead of a slow gradual changes. And that the Cryptids were the result of such a transitional phase. The competive nature of Cryptids ensured each group was more than willing to defend their ‘truth’ with acts of sabotage and assassination attempts. These ideological differences erupted into a full-out Shadow-War when WWI erupted and patriotism and propaganda drove additional rifts between the Changed. During WWII the Darwinists political enemies successfully painted them as sympathizers with the Nazi ideology of a master-race and even implied they were the true power behind Hitler. The Darwinist lost many supporters in the following years, some denounced their ideas out of fear, others were killed. The event that finally ended the war between the political faction and brought a modicum of peace was the onset of the Cold War. With mortal authorities investigating every suspicious activity as a potential sign of a Communist plot or capitalist subversion, cooler heads used the momentary lull in fighting to lobby for peace. While radical splinter-groups continued fighting the good fight, several respected figures began arranging cease-fires and neutral zones. Even with the Shadowwar, solidifying alliances and forcing several smaller groups to join up with the big players to survive, the political Factions were far from being unified governing bodies. Formulating laws and treaties that were acceptable to every major faction was a long and gruelling process. Current political situation: The Infected have absorbed the remnants of the Darwinists and several other scientific groups and rechristened themselves ‘The Enlightened’. The Enlightened are unified by their scientific approach toward their new existence, but not by any sort of unified idea what the right explanation for the science-defying abilities of Cryptids might be. A group of environmentalists calling themselves “The Children of Gaia” is rapidly gaining strength. They see themselves as Earths antibodies against the human infection and promote environmentalism with varying radicality. A Senate is hosted every year in a different city by a different faction, who speaks for roughly 70% of the existing Vicanus and houses at average 30 speakers. The triumvirate dominates the Senate, thanks to their overwhelming number of votes (=potential soldiers). Every faction present may present a claim to a city to vote upon. Faction becomes personally responsible for the action of every Cryptid within the city but gains free reign within. Laws as written: Don’t stir the hornets nest. (You pay for your life if your action call the wrath of a supernatural faction or humanity unto the rest of the Cryptids.) No discrimination based on political beliefs Appointment of a Justicar who keeps the peace. (Triumvirate are the global players, but USA has no big influence if you live in Congo or Serbia. Central government is deliberately modelled on archaic models when most of the power lay with governors and lords. Powerstructure similar to medival Europe and the royal families.(Czar nephew of English king and married to daughter of polish bishop etc.)) Today something like a global Cryptid-culture with own websites, information networks is emerging.

Today the triumvirate controls most of Europe and north America and starts to expand into the other continents from the cities outward.

You hunt alone. (declaing oneself renegade to hunt inhumans)

Castes: Plebes: most Chimera: the rank and file Justicar: lawkeepers

2: Life of a Monster

The Cocoon The How and Why a normal man or woman wakes up as one of the Vicanus one day is one of the great mysteries the different political factions are trying to answer. The only common ground all of the Changed have, is that they longed for a change in their life in some way. Nobody is even sure if this desire for change is caused by some latent Cryptidness in a persons genes or if the desire for example attracts a passing demon to transform a person. Other than this the circumstances surrounding a transformation, vary wildly. Sometimes a woman is attacked by an huge animal and carried of to some remote location, where her captor covers her in a quickly hardening goo. Sometimes a Barfly vaguely remembers leaving his favourite watering hole with a strange woman on his arm. A most remember going to bed like every other night. Regardless of what came before, they all end up in a cocoon of some sort. Sometimes half a dozen leathery sacks are fixed to the ceiling of some abandoned cellar, at other times a chitinous spiky chrysalis lies in the middle of a thorny thicket. In this state, (that rarely last longer than a month and is never shorter than a week) the new Cryptid dreams of an alien world, a savage paradise where they test their strength and cunning against majestic beasts in a struggle for dominance. And despite the danger, every cryptid knows, that this world is where they belong, that they found Home. While they dream their bodies adopt some of the bestial characteristics they posses in their memories. Just before the Cryptid breaks from his cocoon the Dream changes to fleeing from someone or something through the decaying ruins of paradise. As they lie there hacking and coughing up a foul smelling liquid the dreams rapidly fade away, leaving a feeling of great loss in their wake.

The other you The creator is never around when his offspring emerges, and in most cases its presence isn’t strictly necessary to ensure the survival of its children. New instincts tell them exactly what they are capable of and what to do to ensure their survival. The changes to her body are the most obvious difference after a cryptid emerges from her cocoon, but her new instincts are what really marks her as inhuman. On a subconscious level each Cryptid is aware of what he or she is: an apex predator and their new instincts form a second personality of sorts that isn’t influenced by human morality. This ‘Other Self’ views the world in shades of blue and orange instead of black or white or shades of grey. The 'Other’ is what remains of the characters identity after all human ideas of proper behaviour and of right and wrong are stripped away. As such it is every bit as intelligent as the character but tends to act in a rather alien way; think of a bear that knows exactly what cameras, telephones and doorknobs are.

Cryptid Physiology:

A Cryptids biggest advantage is the ability to partially change his bodies to imitate other creatures. When he emerges from the cocoon he has inherited only a few such mutations, called Aspects, from his progenitor. By feasting on the flesh of other creatures a Cryptid soon learns to imitate the griffon, satyr, yeti and other beasts of legend. Less traditionally minded Cryptids assume the forms straight out of a John Carpenter-film. To change his form, a Cryptid retreats to a secluded place to cocoon himself once again. When he emerges a few hours later his body has shed or acquired Aspects to adapt to the new situation. The aesthetics of these changes depends very much on the subconscious: insecurities tend to spawn thick armor-plating or threatening weaponry to keep the dangerous world at bay, self-loathing might manifest as mangy fur or gnarled limbs  and self-confidence as resplendent plumage or colorful scales. The Cryptid has only vague control over the nature of his changes, like “Preparing for a fight”, “Trying to pass as human” or “Living in the jungle” while her subconscious fills in the details. The mutable nature of their bodies allows Cryptids to recover from crippling injuries in a matter of days and even replace lost limbs given enough time. The flesh and blood of a cryptid impart a fraction of his power to anyone who consumes it, and a large amount can turn animals and humans into monsters called Chimera. The Fecundity of a Cryptids body means corpses turn into a stinking heap of mold in a matter of hours and spilled blood disappears even faster.

Plotpoints yet to be implemented

Overarching goal: To restore Home Ocean inaccessible Addicted to danger? Frenzy if neodrenallin reaches zero? Loss of 1/week

Factions differ by way they try to reach Home: Enlightened: Understanding their condition and finding peace through Knowledge Reconcilers/Exiles: Reclaim their place in paradise by proving worthy of gods love Beastlords: Reclaim their rightful place on the top Children of Gaia: Natuer is the closest the Cryptids have to a home so it has to be protected.

Chapter II: Birth of a Monster

Concept Attributes and Skills Assign Cryptid Template Fragment Choose a Fragment, representing the memory of Home that stayed with you and which determines the way you try to regain your peace of mind.

Kindly Ones: Punish those who destroyed Home Hoardbuilders: They safeguard mementos of Home Driven: Trying to recapture the essence of the dream Tyrants: Reviving their glorydays in every way they can Dreamers: Remembering the lost Home and dreaming of a new Home.

Choose a second Skill among Brawl, Athletics, Stealth, Intimidate and Animal Ken that gains 8-again with a powerpoint. Society Beastlords: The descendants of legendary Beasts infiltrating human society The Exiles: Descendants of the beasts that would not accept the rule of man and were cast out of paradise. Souls take over a mortal upon death because they belong neither to heaven nor hell. The Infected: Humans infected by a strain of semiintelligent microorganisms containing a racial memory and capable of bioengineering that challenges contemporary science. The Children of Gaia see themselves as earth last defense against Humanity.

Bloodmemory: Starts at 7 and determines how much you are in tune with your monstrous heritage. Aspects: Every Cryptid starts her second life with some of the inhuman features they exhibited during the Great Dream. Choose 8 Aspects you can use to design your true Form.

New Advantage: Bloodmemory Merits: Access to higher mutations. More mutations at once Drawbacks: Form becomes increasingly static

Bloodmemory	Max Skill/Attribute	Max Aspects	Min Aspects	Social penalty	Bloodpotency
 * 1	5	10			1 Generation
 * 2	5	12			2 Generations
 * 3	5	14			3 Generations
 * 4	5	16
 * 5	5	20
 * 6	6	25
 * 7	7	30
 * 8	8	40
 * 9	9	60
 * 10	10	100

New Advantage: Neodrenalin The term Neodrenalin originates with the Enlightened, and describes the mysterious powersource fueling a Cryptids metabolism. Regaining Neodrenalin: The thrill of the chase: Eating the flesh of prey that provided a real challenge. The most dangerous game: Gain one point for every willpower a human spends to resist you. Fullfilling your Urge: ????? Morality: Balance Trying to cling to mortal morality while making concessions to the Other. With the loss of Balance Cryptids stop bothering with tools whenever possible.- One of the most drastic and frightening personality-shift is the loss of a subconscious barrier against violence. Even the most timid person is capable of killing enemies with the nonchalance of a movie-hero once she emerges from the Cocoon. Of course just because you can do something doesn’t mean you will: The Change doesn’t erode a Cryptids sense of right or wrong, it just turns killing into an intellectual dilemma.

Being able to heal from any injury in a matter of hours, further desensitizes Cryptids to violence.

The jury is still out whether the Other is an artificial construct a Cryptid uses to differentiate between his human side and his new instincts or if it is an actual entity that shares the body with a Cryptid. But all Factions agree that the Other is inhuman. It’s the small voice at the back of the head that tells him how much better the steak would taste if it were still raw, that compels him to sleep on a high perch above the ground or cooped up in the nice secure hollow under the bed. It can be frightening to realize you have started to instinctively sneak up on people whenever possible, but ultimately these impulses can be dealt with the same way normal humans deal with the impulse to take every attractive person out on a date: by ignoring it for the most part. Most Cryptids find some sort of Balance between clinging to their humanity and allowing the Other free reign. It is hard to see the point in suppressing the new instincts completely when most of them manifest as harmless quirks. Example: Sure eating raw flesh isn’t something you can do in public, but there’s nothing wrong doing it once in while at home. After all it tastes good and it’s just a matter of preferences and not an overwhelming urge. And you really have a nice voice so nobody should complain if you answer the birds with a song of your own early in the morning. That and chewing on your pencil allows you to ignore the urge to literally but heads with people when the argument turns heated and you can nearly feel the familiar weight of antlers on your head. And it is exactly the fact that it isn’t trying to convert the Cryptid into a slavering killer that makes the Other so dangerous. The more the balance shifts in favour of the Other, the more it will erode all the little things that defined the Cryptid s a human being until there is nothing left but a particularly cunning beast. It gently opposes everything civilised by making more primitive alternatives more attractive. Ingredients seem to loose flavour once cooked, clothes seem restrictive, steering a car through the streets seems so much hassle compared to unfolding your wings and flying in a straight line. The Cryptid starts to rely more and more on his natural abilities instead of tools until he abandons them altogether. Only someone without thick fur would need a house for shelter, someone without strong claws a shovel to dig and only someone with a woefully weak stomach needs to cook his food after all. So why keep up a job when you can simply live on treebark and rabbits somewhere in the woods. Preventing this fate is rather simple: The Cryptid constantly reaffirms his humanity by interacting with other people on a day-today basis and immerses himself in all the small rituals that define civilisation. The other way for a Cryptid to loose his humanity is to simply abandon it. A Cryptid has a lot of power at his disposal and the Other can be a tempting scapegoat for all manners of illicit activities. But even excuses like “The Other made me do it” do not change the fact that the Cryptid choose to indulge some forbidden whim. Cryptids who indulge their human vices without restraint loose control much the same way Cryptids who indulge the Other do. The less they see themselves as normal humans the more they become the monsters Balance	Threshhold Sin	Dice Rolled	Alternate Sins Going a week without assuming your True Form Going a month without assuming your True Form Not using tools for a week Going a month without seeing a sentient being
 * 10	Going three days without human contact
 * 9	Using Fire
 * 8	Going under
 * 7	Going a week without human contact
 * 6	Killing a sentient being in the heat of Battle
 * 5	Mass property damage, Creating a sentient serf		Not hunting for [time]
 * 4	Murdering a sentient being in cold blood
 * 3	Torture,Going a week without seeing a civilised being
 * 2	Killing a packmate
 * 1	Mass acts of depravity

Rationalisation: Going without human contact – Hard to retain your human side without regular reminders Using Fire - Killing a sentient being in the heat of Battle - going a week without assuming the True Form - Giving in to the Other – Mass property damage - Torture - Murdering a sentient being in cold blood - Going a month without seeing a sentient being – Even inhuman beings are better than having only the Other for company. Killing a packmate - Mass acts of depravity -

Merits


 * Packmate: Other will treat chosen Person as a friend

Clans/Fragments

The Cryptids are divided by the Fragments of the Dream that is most vivid in their memory. Each Fragment brings with it a particular Urge: some way to cling to these last memories of paradise. Kindly Ones The urge to punish Alternate Titles: Furies, Scourges

[Picture]Symbol:Damocles sword?

The Kindly Ones seethe with fury whenever they remember that Home was lost because someone screwed up, and they won’t let it happen again. Their Fragment of the Dream is a glimpse of the perpetrators, and they long to get their claws on them and those like them. Like their namesakes most furies take great delight in punishing the wicked, but what constitutes as ‘wicked’ and ‘fitting punishment’ can vary wildly. Factions: Scourges are often seen as radicals and warmongers, and many of them prefer indeed violent solutions if a problem presents itself. But they are also the first to take action, if they smell corruption among the ranks of their comrades. They make excellent security-chiefs, but without someone to keep their fanatic tendencies in check they often lead their followers into war. Appearance: Most scourges combine strength and agility in a form that is equally suited to stalking and fighting. Their True Forms often bristle with natural weaponry and have fine senses to track their prey. Background: Policemen, lawyers and mob-enforcers are naturals, since they have already devoted their live to upholding certain codes of conduct. But in the end a strong sense of justice, a vengeful streak or righteous wrath is all, that’s needed to join the ranks of the Kindly Ones. Character Creation: Urge: Punishing a wicked person. Cunning Furies soon realize that there is a better way to satisfy their thirst for vengeance than prowling the streets until Lady Fortuna presents them with a crook: Baiting the prey. Some furies take strolls through unlit parks at night or flirt with everyone wearing a wedding ring. Stereotypes Vice- wrath

Brawl

Hoardbuilders Alternate Titles: Wyverns, Goblins The urge to protect [Picture]Symbol: A dragon coiled around a jagged spire

The dragon sitting on his hoard of gold, Ladon guarding the golden apples, the serpent Kaliya stealing the water of the World; there are many legendary monsters that guarded great treasures. The Hoardbuilders remember Home by collecting mementos they associate with the Dream. Factions: While their reputation for corruption is often exaggerated, more than one Wyvern has given in to the temptation of siphoning off communal resources to expand their private collections. Their talent for acquiring things, one way or another, makes them natural candidates for the positions of treasurer or armourer. Appearance: Hoardbuilders who resort to thievery in order to expand their collections, are called goblins and their true forms are built for sneaking and hiding. Those who can expand their collections without resorting to Larceny tend towards powerful true forms clad in thick plates of armour and have an uncanny knack to hide amidst their treasures. Background: Character Creation Urge: Significant contribution to their collections. Stereotypes

Vice- Greed Stealth

Driven Nicknames: Paragons, Adrenalin-Junkies To celebrate Life The urge to get the best life possible [Picture]Symbol: A Pegasus in flight

The Driven try to relive the dream by re-enacting their most vivid memories, whether it was racing the wind, trying to win a mates affection or something as specific as hunting prey through a thunderstorm at night. Success or failure are of secondary importance, compared to the opportunity to recapture some of the lost sensations. As they become better and better at their favourite activity, Paragons are often forced to up the ante in some way to keep the fun from ending to early. Factions: Their time-consuming hobbies are seldom compatible with the responsibilities of important offices. As a result, Paragons are often the Wil Appearance: Background: Character Creation Urge: Spending 6 hours engaged in their favourite pasttime Stereotypes

Vice- Gluttony/Lust Athletics

Beastlords Alternate Titles: Tyrants The urge to dominate [Picture]Symbol: A throne of bones standing atop

What Tyrants remember best is, the knowledge that they were on top of the world and they try to keep the memory alive by attaining positions of power. Depending on his disposition a Tyrant may lead through example and bask in the genuine respect and love of his followers, rule through fear and ruthlessness or buy the loyalty of his cohorts by leading them from one success to the next. Factions: Their craving for control and power leads many Tyrants in pursuit of the office of senator or tribune. Unfortunately some tyrants place more stock in expanding their own power than the best interest of their followers. Appearance: Tyrants are always a impressive sight, their True Forms sport leonine manes, iridescent scales, neck- frills, impressive dorsal spines or oversized weaponry. In their humans forms they dress to impress: power-suits, military garb or high-fashion. Background: Men and women who wielded power before are natural candidates for Tyrants, their newfound abilities help them to solidify and expand their position. But the sensation of being the Alpha can be even more captivating for the weak and downtrodden. Character Creation: Urge: Stereotypes

Vice Envy/Pride (I should be the king around here) Intimidate

Dreamspeakers Alternate Titles: Waiting for the right time [Picture]Symbol: A Dreamcatcher formed by a spidernet between two ribs. Several feathers and skulls of small animals are dangleing from it.

Dreamspeakers have no particular memoryfragment they try to keep alive, instead they prefer to reminiscence about Home in quiet places that stir faint memories. Finding a Haven that is just right can be a lengthy process and many Dreamspeakers are willing to fight tooth and nail for their sveltering greenhouse, cellar full of comfortable rugs or natural cave. Factions: Most Dreamspeakers gravitate to the role of the resident mystic or philosopher naturally. Their preoccupation with abstract concepts and spirituality means they sometimes loose sight of more mundane concerns, but overall Dreamspeakers tend to be a stabilizing element among in every faction they join. Appearance: A Dreamspeakers True Form often resembles a great herbivore with its massive frame and ponderous gait. Despite their normally placid demeanour, a Dreamspeaker can be as terrifying as a charging rhinoceros or raging boar if her ire is roused. Background: Character Creation: Urge: Stereotypes:

Vice sloth Animal ken

Systems:

True Form Each cryptid has a human form and a true form. Human form sports min Aspects worth Primal Urge. Both forms can be changed with extended roll taking (Primal Urge hours) per roll. Each success subtracts/adds one point worth of aspects.

Molting

Ability to frighten animals Heal 1 hl per day a limb per week Tick-body Drawbacks: Never able to return fully into the sea. Need three times the nourishment of a creature of similar size

Fire: Out of all the hallmarks of civilisation the Other hates fire the most. Walls can be smashed, weapons can break against armoured hide, armor can be crushed and horses can be overtaken but there is no way to fight fire. If faced with a sizable fire or a mortal wielding fire as a weapon(torches and flamesthrowers, guns don’t count). Going under If the Cryptid represses his instincts for two long, they can overwhelm his conscious mind during times of stress. It is possible to remember what happened but it means a Morality check for everything you remember doing.

Chimerism Drinking the blood or eating the flesh of monsters turns creatures into lesser Monsters. Eating the heart of a monster makes you one yourself. Gain one Aspect/Bloodmemory Potency of blood is reduced by 1 per generation. The Great Curse: Human tools tend to break at unfortunate moments, when Cryptids are around. Malfunctions favour Cryptid and there seems to be some kind of intelligence at work here. Cameras seem especially susceptible, but once in a while there are other malfunctions too. [Rule of thumb: One malfunction of non surveillance equipment per Bloodmemory per story] [Fate magic on an epic scale?/ Or a spirit of Ludditism] [Explains why some critical malfunction occurs whenever someone tries to imprison a Cryptid. ]

Unsorted One part Kroot, one part landlocked Leviathan Cousins Longing for a Home that doesn’t exist in this world. Dreams show alien landscapes that just seem RIGHT.

Goal of the Senate: Prevent large scale war between Cryptids and other Factions or bloody infights that could cripple them for years.

Traits: Molting of 8 Hours heal 1hl per Slime invested./has to gorge itself (5kg of food per hl) before entering healing sleep

Monsters can steal the Strength/Power of other creatures by eating their flesh. (Halves the cost powers)

Morality-stat: Aberration/ Deviation: Mutations add points. Governs the difficulty to recognize the Monster as unnatural freak

Environment starts to adapt to the presence of a monster. Starts to become more fecund. Severity and speed depends on Bloodmemory Natural effect of Chimerism Stage I: Plants grow, Animals are fertile. Percentage of twins in human population rises Stage II: Plants grow to exceptional proportions. Animals start to show increasingly peculiar behaviour. Molds and Fungi grow faster too. So do Plaques. Stage III: Plants grow unnaturally fast. Animals swell to great size (+1 Size) and carnivors and ominvors become more aggressive.

Serfs: Creatures bred to serve the Cryptids. Messenger-Lizards for example. Getting them to reproduce is a well-kept secret.

Factions: Differing origin stories vs different approaches to the new lease on life

The Beast Lords Theme: Back to the spiritworld In 1874 the Vicanus Joshua Cragg managed to establish peaceful contact with an sizable Origo-enclave in Thailand. Their written legends became the basis for a faction that claims ‘The Wisdom of the Ancients’ as their own.

The Rule of the Beast Kings Sometimes evolution explodes without warning. Consider the Cambrian explosion: life went from soft-bodied jellies to a disgusting amount of diversity in almost no time at all. All manner of life hides in the lines between the fossil record; fossilization is so rare that we can't account for everything living during a specified time period. Especially things that didn’t have skeletons to fossilize might stay forever hidden. There are Times when the biodiversity declines sharply in a small amount of time The earth trembled under the paws of the Beast Kings long before monkeys even thought of walking upright. These Creatures could steal the power of a worthy foe by drinking his hearts blood. Some of them became mighty beyond measure like He Who Bends Mountains Like Grass, others like the Mother of Deserts had countless hungry sons and daughters that left only bare rock behind wherever they went or were so subtle that no foe ever saw them coming. They were known as the Beat Lords. In an eternal struggle for dominance each sought to prove that he alone was worthy of being the King of Beasts. Some forged pacts with lesser Lords who hoped to benefit from such an alliance, others bullied weaker kings into following them. Most of the time the scales were balanced, the Great War nothing more than countless meaningless skirmishes between the Hordes of the Beast Kings. Five times the Kings themselves took to the field to claim the throne of the current Beast King, and each time the rivers ran red with blood as entire species died out, science remembers these wars as the five major extinction-level events. But every time new Beast-Kings arose to govern over the primordial world.

The Sixth War

While the world was recovering from the fifth war, the Monkey-Lord Bandar-log was looking for a new friend to protect him. Monkeys have always been clever and charming and this one was no exception. He saw that the Wolf-King was widely feared, and that his daughter Nagirlu-Ur suffered, because her loyalty and courage did not make up for her lack of wits. Whenever Nagirlu-Ur skulked off to escape the jibes of his brothers and sisters, the Monkey-Lord happened to cross her path and fled to the safety of the tree-tops before she could devour him. Each time he told her a witty insult or devised clever prank she might use to get back at her siblings, in exchange for his life. Nagirlu-Ur’s siblings thought her astonishing ideas were because she thought very slowly but also very thoroughly whenever she went of alone, and the young Wolf liked the change in her reputation. Soon she valued the monkey’s advise more than a quick meal, and called upon Bandar-log more and more often. And the clever monkey told her how gratefull he was for the brief times of security when she was there to protect him during their conversations. When he asked her to convince the stones to help him and his children so the monkeys could live in peace, she thought it a clever idea. The rocks wouldn’t refuse a descendant of the mighty Wolf-King and despite their might they were no part of this war, just like Bandar-log wished to be. And other Beast-Kings had made pacts with the Elements before, convinced the wind to carry them or asked the sea to shelter them; surely there could come no harm from asking the rock to shelter her friend. But as soon as he was alone, Bandar-log slipped away into a deep cavern. The cave was so deep in fact that it reached all the way to the ever-hungry flames, who are waiting for their turn to devour the world. Only blank earth was left whenever fire managed to escape from its prison. But even when the rock did it’s best to protect him, the flames started to devour Bandar-logs silky fur, while he cajoled and bargained with them. When the flames finally agreed to help the Monkey-Lord they had eaten all of his fur aside from a tiny patch atop of his head. When the other Beast-Kings saw Bandar-Log emerge from the cave, carrying fire in his hand they grew fearful and tried to devour him, but the rocks gave the Monkey-Lord blades of sharp flint and the flames devoured those who escaped his knife. The rest, as they say, is history. When the Wolf-King learned of the role his daughter had played in the rise of man, his wrath was terrible. Fearing for her life she fled to Bandar-Log and he honoured their past alliance, up to this day her descendants are man’s best friend. Man didn’t become undefeated ruler of the world overnight of course. For a long time, fire and tools merely kept the other Beast-Kings at bay. But ever so slowly civilisation spread and heroes slew the Hydra, the Basilisk and the Roc. One by one the great Beasts fell.

The Reptiles had always had a special affinity to Sun, and when he finally answered their desperate pleas and taught them the secret of his fire the Dragon-Lord thought he might rule the world once again. Everywhere his children emerged from their hiding places to reclaim the world and turn mans most potent weapon against him. Thus began the Age of Dragon-Slaying. When the remaining Beast-Kings saw that man had become to numerous to beat with brute force, they retreated to build up their strength. Most retreated deep into the Wilderness but some were not too proud to learn from Bandar-Logs children and walk unseen among their midst. A few learned to walk unseen among the humans.

Subgroup The Exiles: Marcel Filon and Sylvie Fontaine scoured every bookshop in Paris to find an explanation for the strange changes they were going through. The occult texts he found indicated that he was cursed by god. The Animals who refused to accept Man as their ruler, were cast out of paradise to await the lords foregivness. After the Fall some of them learned to assume human shape in hopes of sneaking back into heaven in this guise but instead they were cursed to live among humans without ever fitting in until the second coming. To this day they fear Michaels burning sword/the fire of hell.

Banned from paradise because they wouldn’t accept Man as their master.Many died in the wastes before the gates of paradise Terrible demon punished all who tried to return(father wolf?). the strongest adapted. When man came to claim their land they were understandably pissed. Since they are banned from heaven but do not belong to hell they have to linger on earth untikl the rapture. If one of them dies the soul taked possession of a mortal and the mortal soul is cast into heaven or hell.

Radical sect of reconcilers who think they have to punish enough sinners to win the lords grace.

The Exiles: Theme:

The Enlightened:

Theme: For Science!!! Think of the possible applications! Humans always fear what they cannot control, and yet, at the onset of illness, we do not grow afraid, as if we do not even notice, as if the invasion were just a speed bump. We react with medicines and panaceas, with cough drops and orange juice. Yet, we are afraid. Somehow, on some subconscious level, humans fear disease; it is, after all, one of the world's most prolific killers, and it can't be attacked with the more conventional means used in controlling a murderer or thief. An infected individual isn't always in control of his or her faculties. Sometimes body temperature randomly fluctuates. Other times the infected goes down to the store to find everyone staring at her strangely, or perhaps the infected awakens in another person's apartment only to find a body of the occupant, hollowed out and partially eaten. The police tell her there's no evidence she did anything, and they let her out a day later. Perhaps the Infected finds herself writing in a strange language or doodling elaborate artwork she wasn't even paying attention to.

Children of Gaia Theme: Recapture the feel of Werewolf the Apocalypse Majority tries for peacefull reforms to interweave mortal society with nature. Militant Faction: “Red Claws” in reference to “nature red in tooth and claw”. Advocate that eating everyone who leaves the city is the best way to teach the humans some respect for nature again. Systems

Aspects

Powers: recollections, relics, atavisms Cascades: have to be bought one after another 4+ Aspects come with a ban.

Represent the Mastery over Body and Mind

Skulking and Stalking

..

Change the colour of your eyes, skin and hair at will. The changes  can’t affect areas smaller than an inch across. As long as he is mostly naked the Cryptid counts as partially concealed *** Gift of the Squid The colourchanges are fine enough to imitate freckles. Additionally you can change the       texture of your skin at will to add wrinkles, warts and scars. He also counts as substantially concealed
 * Gift of the Chameleon
 * Your colouring changes so fast and precise that the Cryptid is for all practical purposes invisible.

Your body strongly resembles some sort of inanimate object like a tree, a grassy hill or a big rock defined when you buy the Aspect(Conservation of Mass applies). With a bit of preparation (3 turns) you can become nearly indistinguishable from the real thing as long as you stay absolutely motionless. You also gain the ability to stay in uncomfortable poses for extended periods of time. This Aspect is compatible with the Gift of the Squid to imitate a wider variety of shapes.
 * Mimicry

•	Fake death: Intelligence+Medicine necessary to realize Monster isn’t dead


 * While walking you move in absolute silence. Taking a dashing action or moving in another rapid fashion merely inflicts a +2 penalty to discover you.
 * You are impossible to hear even while moving at a full sprint.

•	octopusink
 * Hide in a thick cloud of foul smelling smoke once per scene(organic smokebomb) everyone inside counts as invisible

Interaction
 * Assume shape of creature you just tasted blood from

Instill Emotion This Aspect is known under several different names, depending on the evoked emotion and the way it is evoked: Upon purchase the player defines which emotion is instilled, wether it is instilled via the Cryptids voice, appearance or smell and whether the emotion is centred on the Cryptid. Opponent can resist for a scene with 1 Willpower

Options: -Always on vs. requires continous effort(+1 difficullty to all rolls due to distraction)

Range: -Always full power: roughly 100 yards - Arms reach Only those in close proximity are affected
 * up to 10 yards
 * up to 25 yards
 * 50 yards

Power
 * Roll Charisma+Expression to affect everyone with less Composure than successes. All social rolls that would benefit from the chosen emotion have difficulty -2. Those that run contra to the emotion receive a penalty of +2. Aspect is clearly tied to the Cryptids song, skitteling motions, awfull stench or similar obvious source.
 * Subtle: Sucessful Perception-roll necessary to identify source of emotions
 * By using a willpower the Cryptid can intensify the emotion to overwhelm a targets reason. Fear becomes outright panic, attraction blooms into undying love and sadness matures into soulcrushing despair. Because of the mysthic quality victims resist with Composure + Bloodmemory. The use of this Aspect is always obvious.

The most common variations of this Aspect are known under various names Crocodiles tears: Pity for the Cryptid Banshees Wail: Despair Terrifying Mien: Fear of the Cryptid Sirens Song: Love for the Cryptid Call to Battle: Wrath Irresistable Challenge: Wrath for the Cryptid

New Merit: Jaded *-***: You are no longer influenced by the Instill Emotion-Aspect of a single other Cryptid after you have spent enough time around him to acclimatize yourself to his presence. * if the Cryptid in question is a close associate *** if you only meet him occasionally.


 * Howl of Madness: Spend one Willpower. Roll Manipulation+ Expression: Everyone whose Composure+Resolve is lower than the successes suffers gains a derangement for the next [11-victims willpower] days

Clouding the preys mind The Cryptid emits spores or vapours containing a complex cocktail of mild hallucinogens and narcotic substances designed to cloud the minds of those around him.

This Aspect is recognizable by a pungent smell when in use and normaly affects everyone within a [Bloodmemory] yard-radius around the Cryptid. The effect kicks in automatically after the victim has spent [3 + Stamina + Powerstat] Minutes in the company of the Cryptid. Keep in mind that many supernatural creatures are extremely resistant or even immune to poisons and mind-altering substances.


 * opponents lose 1 die from resolve and Intelligence (3 + Stamina + Powerstat) minutes after encountering you, willpower negates effect for ten minutes.
 * opponent looses one resolve and one intelligence per (3 + Stamina+Powerstat) minutes. Never less than 1 in both attributes. Never looses more than three points.


 * Secrete addictive Substance at will


 * Voice of Many: Imitate a wide variety of sounds

•	Alternate mode of communication: Scent or body language.
 * Speak with animals
 * attract type of animal (Canines, Bees, )


 * Talk really loud/ Narural megaphone
 * Deadly Scream


 * Deaden facial musculature: opponents face a up to +3 difficulty of gleaning your emotions at a cost of an equal penalty to your own social rolls. Takes a minute per +1 penalty to either deaden your facial muscles or reliven them.
 * Control bodylanguage reflexively. Constant +2 difficullties for enemies -2 bonus to your own rolls
 * Social Chameleon: Roll Inntelligence-Subterfuge to imitate Accent and body language of a person you studied for 5-Wits minutes.

Vitality:

•	+2 Dice against Poison and Disease. Able to eat everything that is mostly organic and not toxic. Healing Rate doubled.
 * +4 Dice. Immunity to ingested poisons. Healing Rate quadrupled.
 * +6 Dice. Healing rate x8. convert one Lethal Damage to Bashing

•	Double time til Fatigue
 * Quadruple time til Fatigue
 * Relentless: As long as you stay in motion you need neither sleep nor rest.


 * redundant organs: +2 hl
 * redundant brain: immune to headshots.
 * bullets inflict bashing damage
 * all weapons inflict base damage nothing more for a scene

Better Body •	add one dot to your physical attributes. Decide every metamorphosis anew
 * add an additional dot
 * add an additional dot
 * add an additional dot
 * add an additional dot

Armor •	 1/0 Armor
 * 2/1 Armor
 * 3/2 Armor
 * Armor against one threat piercing weapons, sharp weapons or blunt impacts increased by 2

•	one additional breathable environment (Water, Smoke, sulphurous air) •	hold breath for an half an hour per dot of Stamina •	Immunity to extreme temperatures +50° -50° choose one upon activation •	Immunity to hard radiation
 * no harm through vacuum or High Pressure choose one at activation.

Weaponry
 * able to store water much like food


 * Cause lethal damage with a natural attack.
 * 1-point Version of the Power becomes retractable
 * One 2L to one loose one die for all fine manipulation with that limb
 * One 3L fine manipulation impossible


 * +2 Bashing with a natural attack


 * aggravanted Damage for a scene.
 * Avatar of destruction: 5 L Damage to EVERYTHING you come into conact with for the next half an hour.


 * Electric Charge: Victim must test for knockback, can only be used once every 5 rounds


 * Quills: see Body Barbs Pandoran. May manifest as caustic slime, sharp quills, nettle cells

•	Impaling: Gain +1 to attacks made directly after dash-action

Projectile Attack Wether it involves a spray of boiling or caustic liquid or actual projectiles formed from bones this Aspect allows a Cryptid to harm his opponent without ever coming within arms reach. The range is 10 metres and you only get three uses per scene. The Damage is lethal.
 * -***** one additional shot
 * -*** 2L/3L
 * -***** +5 yards per point


 * Additional Dose/Shot: Can be taken multiple times. Each one gives an additional use to a specific aspect.


 * Crushing attack: You can grind bones to dust in you mighty grip. You gain one extra dice while grappling. Your Grappling Attacks cause lethal damage.

Neuroinhibitors attack strength and dexterity/ Try to grapple and immobilize target, victim resists with stamina against a effective strength of [ranks] / tovin causes bashing damage.

Senses: better senses more irritating stimuli


 * Pain Editor: You feel no pain and ignore all wound penalties. But your storyteller keeps track of your damage for you.

•	Infrared Vision

•	Heat-sense: recognize all Heat-sources in 5 metre vicinity
 * Recognize all heat sources in Metabolism x3 metres

•	Sense magnetic North
 * Sense Electromagnetic Fields in 5 metre vicinity,

•	Hear Infra- and Ultrasound
 * Echolocation: loose one die for every 10 meter distance to the object. Loose 2 dies for fine work or combat.
 * perfect echolocation: Echolocation is able to replace eyes. -1 die for ranged combat over 50 metre (speed of sound)

•	Track by smell ** I smell your Fear: +2 to empathy
 * Peering through the curtain of time: Intelligence+ Investigation to piece together what happened in the last 24 hours at this location.
 * tracking roll always succeds unless there is magic involved. DM decides how much time it takes to fin the trail again.
 * even magic can’t fool the hunter. Contested roll against magic

•	Differentiate the separate ingredients of everything you taste

•	protected Sense: Can’t overload one of the senses Smell+taste or Sight or Hearing

Sharp senses: •	9-again
 * 8-Again
 * filtered perception: able to ignore (Bloodmemory) worth of penalties from distraction.

•	low-light vision

•	additional eyes not located in the head

•	tremorsense


 * Eye for Weakness: +2 to attacks against surprised or helpless targets.


 * -*** gain informations about someone by tasting their blood. Diseases, appearance.

Inhuman Reflexes Secretions: Produce stuff in greater quantities
 * + 2 Initiative, +1 Defense after all other effects (i.e. after doubling for a Dodge, not before)
 * ignore Onslaught penalties equal to your Bloodmemory

Glue: Produce glue with a strength of [Bloodmemory] either becomes gummy or hardens into a hard shell.

Produce 50 yards of webbing per neodrenalin.
 * Web, prerequisite Glue 1

Injection:

Poison causes lethal damage Effect: The Claimed produces venom, deliverable through glands in the skin, fangs, or even in an aerosol from the mouth. The poison’s Toxicity is 2 plus the number of points spent on this Aspect. The type of poi-son and its vector of delivery must be determined upon taking this Aspect. By default, the poison is injected; the ability to exhale a poisonous gas or secrete a con-tact poison costs two extra points. The poison inflicts damage once every hour until 24 hours have passed or the victim has died; spending two points increases the rate of effect to once per minute. The target may resist using Stamina + Resolve + Primal Urge. The damage is bashing by default, and can be upgraded to lethal by spending an extra point. The duguthimis immune to its own venom

Soporific causes bashing damage Miasma: Liquid: Injection:

Irritant: Much like the skunk or the spitting cobra the Cryptid can spray opponents with a strong irritant to discourage them from coming any closer. The Cryptid can spray the irritant up to 10 yards with a successful Stamina+Athletics roll.
 * Watering eyes, running noses, itching or burning sensations on exposed skin are all possible symptoms. Loose two dice from all Perception-rolls for the rest of the scene.
 * Depending on the irritant opponents have to fight hard to do anything else but cough, gag or scratch uncontrollably. -2 to all physical actions for the next 3 turns if victim fails a stamina+Resolve roll.

Body-Shape

•	Additional grasping limbs: +1 die for grappling, Omnidexterity •	Additional legs: +1 Str for carrying, +1 Speed

Named for the alchemical process whereby a solid mate-rial was made more pliable and waxen, this Transmutation allows a Pandoran to squeeze through openings that it might not normally be capable of bypassing, compacting the body and impossibly bending bone. Cost:None Dice Pool:Dexterity + Athletics Action:Instant The Pandoran is capable of squeezing through any aperture that it can fi t its head through, fully emerging on the other side on its next turn. Until its next turn, the Pandoran does not gain the benefi t of its Defense. Moving thus takes one instant action per 10 feet of passageway through which the Pandoran must travel. Roll Results Dramatic Failure:Not only does the Pandoran fail to navigate the opening, but it becomes stuck, losing its De-fense for the period of time while it is stuck. It may escape with a successful Dexterity + Athletics roll, ending up on the side of the opening it began. Failure:The Pandoran fails to pass through the opening Success:The Pandoran passes through the opening. Exceptional Success:Not only does the Pandoran suc-cessfully navigate the opening, but it retains its Defense while doing so
 * Flexible body: Squeeze through tight openings, gain boni to escape grapples


 * - ***** Change Size


 * Pockets


 * -*** Greater reach


 * Your body secretes a slime that makes it nearly impossible to get a good grip on you. The difficulty to escape from grapples is lowered by two as is the difficulty to squeeze through narrow openings. Unfortunately you leave quite a trail behind.


 * Your body secrets a sticky substance which may remain gummy or dry into a hard shell. You gain +4 to rolls pertaining to climbing or holding and maintaing a grapple. Disarming attempts against the Cryptid are also harder. You also suffer a -2 penalty to escape from a grapple and leave residue.

Broad Back: *-*** Your powerful build allows you to bring exert incredible force if speed isn’t much of an issue. +2 Strength for the sake of Lifting, carrying and similar activities..

Bioluminescence Movement


 * Glider: Have some way to decelerate your fall and even steer to a limited attempt.
 * Fly: Awkward flying halve Movement Rate
 * Elegant Flier: full movement rate, can only hover for a turn
 * King of the sky: double movement rate
 * Fly without wings: No Wings necessary.

•	+4 dice for jumping
 * +8 dice for jumping
 * Jump as a move-action
 * Riochet: Jumps pinpoint accurate and Monster is able to split his total jump distance into several smaller Jumps to change course.

•	Double Dexterity for landbased Speed.
 * Double landbased Speed

•	no movementpenalty in a specified terrain thanks to adapted body

•	add four dice to climbing ** climbing as a reflexive action *** Wall walking(as pandoran) With the power of Flux, the Pandoran can create tremen-dous sympathy between his extremities and the surface of a wall, causing his fl esh to take on a texture complementary to that of the wall, allowing him to cling to it with ease. Cost:None Dice Pool:Strength + Athletics Action:Instant • Normal Surfaces:With this Transmutation active, the Pandoran can easily climb those surfaces that others might climb. The Pandoran moves at its normal Speed up, down or across the surface. It even retains its Defense while doing so. Pandorans clinging to a surface may take normal actions, such as attacking, but doing so causes the Pandoran to be unable to use its Defense in such situations. • Impossible Surfaces:When climbing surfaces that are nor-mally impossible for even skilled climbers to navigate (such as the sheer sides of a steeply pitched marble building), the Pandoran uses the normal climbing rules (World of Darkness Rulebook, pp. 64–65), with the following modifi ers: Modifi er Situation –3 Surface is upside-down (ceilings, etc.) –2 Surface forms an acute angle with the ground –2 Surface is very smooth (chemically smoothed metals, glass, ceramics) –1 to –3 Bad weather –1 Surface is moderately smooth (newly polished marble, textured glass) +1 Surface is moderately textured (wooden wall) +2 Surface forms an obtuse angle greater than 135 degrees with the ground +2 Surface is very textured (rough natural mountain face, brick wall) Like a normal-sized arachnid, the Azlu can walk on walls or even the ceiling of a structure and move as freely as it can on the ground. The Host must have at least four of its limbs in contact with the surface it’s climbing at a time, and it’s still affected by gravity. (That is, if it loses contact with the surface it’s climb-ing, it falls down, not toward the climbing surface.) Also, the surface it’s climbing must be able to sup-port its weight, which may vary greatly by size. This Aspect is innate to all Azlu •	ignore the first [Bloodmemory x 5] yards of free-fall


 * Catlike balance

•	swim with walking speed

tunneling Fertility:

•	Congratulations, you are capable of parthogenesis. The normal rules concerning Cryptid-offspring apply but you no longer need a partner.
 * Your body is home to symbiotic creatures capable of helping you with one task. Bloodmemory in number. Regrow after a day if killed.
 * you communicate with your inhabitants and they try to help wherever they can.
 * Pay one powerpoint, watch some instincivly loyal soldiers mature in a matter of minutes. Bury your enemies under waves of disposable mooks.

•	Living Orchard: Your Body is a breeding ground for various plants. Benefits depend on the Storyteller.

Powers of the mind: Domain of the Vicanus: Modern times need more than brawn to survive


 * -*** choose one additional favored ability per dot.

•	Battle-rage: Ignore Wound penalties. Trying to influence your mind is more difficult (+2). You have to attack constantly.
 * Like a wounded boar you become only more ferocious if wounded. Turn Woundpenalties into boni.


 * Absorb memories: Works like auspex 3 only focused on humans and animals.


 * Light sleeper: Define up to [Int] triggers that ensure the Crytids awakens at once. Cryptid is assumed to be awake for the sake of recognizing the triggers.

•	Savage Focus: Ignore all distractions while meditating.

•	Wisdom of ancients: pay a willpower and treat brawl, setealth, survival etc as three for you next roll.


 * /*** Chorus of minds: see mage


 * -*** Biological Imperative: By introducing overwhelming new instincts the Cryptid gains a bonus to resolve for a scene concerning a particular plan. As a side effect he must spend willpower to deviate from the plan.


 * Telepathy

Mystic Path: Domain of the Origo: ancients secrets Do not count as Aspects. Serfs and Biomanipulation Mindpowers Summon Gremlins and Spirits Grow Crystal
 * Increased Brainpower: +2 bonus to every mental skillcheck
 * You are able to breed terrifying diseases within you body. Promethen 245

Call Spirit Acting as Cheval Claim territory Accelerate the rotting of organic materials Heal others Boost intelligence Assimilate Armor and weaponry Shortlived Zombies by supercharging corpses

Appendix: Antagonists

Tcho-Tcho: Tribe that ritually hunts monsters to steal their power. The Origo: Cryptids who shun human contact and have retreated into the wilderness. Animal-Kings: Massive Versions of common animals whose serfs can reproduce. They could repopulate the earth with the Species their represent. It is unknown how any of them are alive today.

Chimeras Humans are not the only ones whose bodies undergo such profound shifts in biological paradigm. The other creatures of the world also undergo such mutation at times. Rats may double in size and acquire newer, nastier teeth, the alligators of the sewer may stand upright and fire blasts of electrical energy, plants may become ambulatory and filled with a vengeful rage, and crows may distend and gain the ability to spray acid.

Chimeras tend to form where the infected gather, and almost immediately begin forming ecosystems of their own. They prey on infected, and seem capable of detecting when and where they will be, coming after them, those they've been around, and anyone else caught in the way. In addition, the mere presence of a Chimera in the area results in the creation of less powerful Chimera from the surrounding animals and plants. This can lead to small, tightly knit ecosystems that constantly require sustenance from the outside to persist, as the mutant plants are not as effective in culling energy from sunlight as their normal brethren. They begin to hunt, seeking paths out of their circle of mutated friends and spreading the pathogen as they do. Chimeras mean more Chimeras, and eventually even ATP zombies, humans whose minds have been consumed by the pathogen and hunger for the flesh of the healthy. Chimerical activity eventually draws infected out of hiding, as the beasts know where to find them, and they must either fight or run. Monsters Outside Sometimes the creatures infected by the pathogen cease to be what they are in totality. This occurs most often when plants or animals are infected, though in more than a few cases the monster that is man becomes something more terrible, with features reminiscent of its own inner demon. The human mind is easily sublimated by instinct, smell, and the animal hiding inside. When the ruling order is turned inside-out, and the man is consumed by the monster, the flesh will follow. Mutant beasts stalk the corridors of the night, from shuffling, zombie-like entities to twisted human or animal forms that hunt for living, breathing flesh. In a few cases, these monsters resemble beasts of legend, such as three-headed dogs, scale-covered monsters with wings, or massive worms. Otherwise, they are sticky with patchy flesh, overgrown hair, large eyes, and other features vaguely resembling their original forms. They are driven with a biological imperative to feed on organic matter, from plant to animal to human, and their territories are often devoid of life if they have been active for too long. Such creatures are called Chimeras, and they actively seek out the infected as their most preferred prey.

The Skinners Only a few among the Great Beasts didn’t fear fire, the Wolf-King, The Dragon-Lord who ruled before him and Phoenix. The Dragon-Lord and his children were too proud to try anything approaching subtlety and Phoenix was too caught up in her romance with the sun. Since open attacks had failed, the Wolf-King bid his mercurial lover to teach the greatest of his children how to assume the shape of men and women and spy on Bandar-Logs offspring. One of Wolf-Kings children, Migon-Ur the Scavenger, was the exact opposite of Nagirlu-Ur, he was a bit too proud of his cunning but not very brave. Always finding ways, to get parts of the spoils without actually working for it. When the Wolf-king didn’t send him with the others, Migon-Ur was baffled: Wasn’t he the most cunning and subtle among the wolves? Wouldn’t he be best suited to walk among them unseen, discover the secrets of their success and match wits with Bandar-Log? Well he’d just prove how clumsy and incompetent his kin were! Sure learning to assume the guise of men and women was a neat little trick, but they could never show their face again once they were found out. Migon-Urs plan for walking among humans was so much better, just like humans skinned wolves to wear their skin he would skin a human to don its skin. And should he be discovered he’d just assume the guise of another human and begin his schemes anew. And so the Scavenger stole life after life from Bandar-logs children, watching, sowing mistrust and stealing their most sacred secrets. Then he went before the Wolf-King to show how much more he had learned by living a hundred human lives while his brethren had lived only one.

Abandoned Ideas and alternative concepts: The Urges Some behaviour-patterns are hardwired into a Cryptids nature and trying to ignore them always causes them great distress in the long run. They are commonly refered to as Urges. Ignoring an Urge for to long can cause the other to take control until the task is done. The Urge to live: The hardest to resist, but at the same time the Urge that least interferes with a Cryptids decisions. If a Cryptid becomes depressed enough that he stops caring about his or her life, the Other takes over after a while.

The Urge for secrecy: Exposing the existence of the Cryptids to humanity carries the risk of extinction. Roll every [Morality] hours you are not working towards eliminating the threat to the Masquerade

Urge for Independence: Cryptids are natural Alphas and deferring to someone who is clearly physically inferior runs contrary to their instincts. Taking commands from a fragile mortal feels about as demeaning to a cryptid as taking commands from a ten-year old feels to an adult. Roll every [Morality] hours

The Urge for Freedom: Knowing he can’t leave any time she chooses is irritating to a cryptid. Roll every [Morality] hours you are locked into a close

Loss of sensitivity Most people find these new thoughts terrifying, they are disgusted that suddenly the thought of feasting on raw flesh makes their mouth water, they fight against the nagging feeling that they should sleep on a high branch or roar at the top of their lungs to mark their territory, in short: they fight to retain their humanity.

Alternate Morality-path In theory it is possible to deny the Other completely, but should it ever break free it will run amok. It is a path as hard as that of a beggar-monk, without any real reward beyond knowing you are still fully human in mind and soul. [Use the Humanity-Morality but every time you go under the Other frenzies like a Vampire aka. goes on a killing spree.]

char for Dirge in progress(please ignore)

Appereance
Still waiting on the permission from an artist too use his picture.

History:
Alex family traces their lineage back to the rivergod Teucui and her ancestors ruled as powerful god-kings during the Bronze-Age. From time to time Teucui would honour an especially pure boy, by entering his body once he came of age. Each reincarnation would usher in a new era of glory for his faithful followers and strengthen his divine bloodline by siring new children. Alex was born in the ancestral castle at the shore of the Austrian lake Brichest, into a family obsessed with their past glory and the purity of their divine blood. Her mother Alena showed all of the signs associated with the pure-blooded children of Teucui: Power over aquatic animals, the ability to divine the future from fishguts and similar divine gifts. Alenas husband came from a family the last incarnation of Teucui had blessed with his seed and had been promised to Alena since her gifts manifested, much to his chagrin.

Alena was convinced she would be the mother of Teucuis next incarnation and two miscarriages over the span of five years didn’t keep her from trying a third time. When the fishguts told h, this child would be healthy and wield great power, she named it Alexander in honour of her father and arranged for a caesarean section so her child would be born under the most auspicious omens possible. Alexander Teucui was indeed a blessed child because she didn’t suffer from any of the family’s long history of serious health-problems but her sex made her unsuitable as a vessel for Teucui. Alena was determined to mold her child into a legendary priestess if it was banned from becoming a god, which made Alexs’ childhood a bit odd, but not altogether unpleasant. She spent the first seven years of her live solely with her parents, her grandfather and two servants, so she wouldn’t be corrupted by any outside influence. She spent her childhood listening to stories about the glorious past of Teucuis children, reenacted various battles in the woods surrounding the castle and on holy days she went to the sacred grotto in the dungeon and drank from the sacred blood of Teucui to watch the paintings on the ceiling come to life. Teucuis legendary enemy wielded a lightingbolt as his weapon of choice, which led to Alex family shunning electricity wherever possible.

When a six year old Alex learned to read simple texts out of sheer curiosity and boredom, Alena and her father decided to home-school her instead of sending her to grammar school. Her mother would have continued to isolate Alex completely from the outside if her father hadn’t put his foot down once Alex finished 4th grade. There were a lot of times during the following years when Alex wished he hadn’t: Sure school seemed like a magical wonderland at first, because she had very rarely seen electric lights and computers (the castle was still lit with gaslamps to accommodate her families neo-luddite tendencies) but there were some pretty serious drawbacks to this new world: Back home everybody was nice to her and told her how special she was, but the kids at school were mean because she had a boys name, because she didn’t know who the Ninja turtles were  or because she came from the rich family of crazies. Returning home to Castle Brichest soon became the best part of her day, but even her family-life gradually lost the glamour it held during Alex childhood, mostly because she grew more perceptive and independent. Her father avoided coming home as much as possible, her grandfather wasn’t so much tough but fair as bitter and condescending and her mothers affection waxed and waned depending how well Alexander Jr. lived up to her name. Thanks to Alex stunted social skills, her family still looked like a desirable alternative to the bullies at school.

Alexs’ interest in science began as a normal teenage rebellion, a way to shock her mother by revealing some supposedly magic rites as simple stage magic. Profaning a sacred ceremony in such a way, earned Alex the first thrashing of her life and she never did it again. Secretly finding out the trick behind her mothers supposedly magical abilities and fooling her mother into thinking Alexs’ own parlour tricks were actual magic, became Alex way of asserting independence. For the next years Alex fulfilled her duties as future priestess grudgingly and counted the weeks until graduation when she could finally move out and get a job. A year before Alex would have finally graduated, Alena brought home a frightened 15-year old cousin called Victor and declared he was Teucui reborn. Alex thought he mother had finally snapped, until she saw Victors’ body warp into something gnarled and inhuman over the course of several minutes before settling back into a more human shape. Trying to explain such a blatant violation of mass became the most important thing in Alexs’ life. Since normal scientific tests and theories no longer sufficed, Alex struggled to come up with her own. She spent hours at the local library, searching the internet for stories about n-dimensional space and quantum mechanics, about highly advanced progenitors guiding humanity towards civilisation in the guise of gods and tales about similar encounters with people whose existence defied the laws of nature. An awful lot of idiots seemed hell-bent on killing these ‘monsters’ without trying to understand what was really going on. It took Alex a while to sift through the crazies and self-proclaimed witchhunters, but she finally found a kindred soul, two souls to be entirely precise.

‘B10-Agent’ and ‘MadamMoreau’ had successfully contacted a community of lycanthropes in Georgia and were eager to assist Alex with blueprints for test-equipment and useful literature in exchange for Alex research-data. They even set up some kind of trust-fund for Alex that was in "B10-Agent"s' words "a pure untraceable middlefinger for the establishment." Given that B10-Agent also showed her how to hack into the databases of various universities, Alex figured she shouldn't ask too many questions. Alex stopped going to school, spending her time in a rented storage-unit assembling equipment and trying to replicate Victors trick of storing excess mass in an nth-dimension. When the emails from her American friends stopped without warning, Alex decided that now was as good a time as ever to finally cut her ties with her family. It wasn’t hard to convince her father to loan Alex enough money to start over somewhere else. And her mother was too preoccupied with her destiny as the high-priestess of Teucui to put up much of a fight.

Sheet:Alexander Teucui