Post by GuardianTempest on Oct 21, 2018 8:09:57 GMT -6
The Lupin are an engineered race believed to be descended from canine stock modified for unknown reasons by the Syrne. In spite of mass evidence of the contrary, many Lupin claim their ancestry to be not the common dog, but from the mighty Werewolf. Either way, the Lupin are a product of their environment, natural warriors that are wont to constantly fight among themselves for dominance.
Noting the resemblance to Humanity's best friend, the Imperium has accepted the Lupin with surprisingly open arms. Imperial Lupin (or 'Dog Boys', as they're often called) have been mostly successful in integrating with Human society, but they are seen as cowed slaves by their wild and free corsair counterparts. Lupin societies are inherently short lived, rising and falling in the time it takes to put on a void suit.
Physical Characteristics
Average Height: 1.4-1.8m
Average Weight: 50-80 kg
Languages: Trade, Lupin
Common Personality Traits: Loyal, reliable, dogged, poor attention span
Common Physical Traits: Thick coat, large ears, wet nose, big teeth, expressive tail
Example Names: Fang, Rover, Iggy, Spot, Laika
Racial Statistics
Characteristic Bonus: +1 to Dexterity or Wisdom
Skill Bonus: +1 to Brawl and Perception
Power — Dog Boy: You gain Heightened Senses (Smell and Sound). You also gain a Bite weapon with the following profile: 1k1 R; Melee, Brawling.
Size: 3
Racial Feats
Alpha Wolf (Paragon Asset)
People sometimes confuse Lupin for Werewolves, and you're probably why. You gain +2 Size and a Claw weapon (1k1 R, Melee, Brawling). Increase your Bite weapon's damage from 1k1 to 2k1, and treat your natural weapons as magic.
All Fours (Rakasta/Lupin)
Some xenos races are closer to their feral origins than others. As long as your hands and feet are free, you add your Dexterity once more to your Speed.
Bone Gnawer
The Lupin have learned to eat anything when food gets scarce. You can consume anything vaguely organic and gain sustenance from it. Add your level as a static bonus to all rolls to resist the effects of poisons, drugs, and disease.
Guard Dog
You lash out anyone that gets too close to you. Any movement taken within the range of your melee weapons provokes an opportunity attack from you.
Witchfinder
When a spell is cast near you, you can roll Perception + Wisdom against TN 15 to detect the spell's source. If successful, you can then track the spell's source, as per the Arcane Mark feat. The regular rules for Arcane Mark apply.
Physical Qualities
Lupin are physically and genetically similar to Canis Lupis, or the Thean Wolfdog. They retain some traits from their canine ancestors, but improve upon the initial concept with a bipedal frame and opposable thumbs. Lupin coats come in a variety of colors, with grays, blacks, and browns being the most common. Lupin living in the Imperium bear closer similarity to domesticated dogs than wolves, having softer ears and spotted coats. Any resemblance between Imperium Lupin and popular dog breeds is purely coincidental.
When it comes to using senses, the Lupin are top notch. Their ears have an incredibly wide hearing range, allowing them to pick up on all sorts of sounds that other races simply can't register. Their noses are just as amazing (if not more so), making Lupin trackers a valued commodity across the Great Wheel. The best Lupin tracking hounds can follow the foul scent of a warlock from over thousands of miles away, having the psychic ability to follow their magical signature by smell alone.
Playing a Lupin
Lupin value many things in a potential leader. It's often things like physical might or force of personality, rather than anything resembling practical knowledge or the ability to organize a group for longer than ten minutes. For this reason, Lupin civilizations are incredibly chaotic and constantly shifting in power, with one government often replacing the other before the previous group could announce their sovereignty. Even in small groups, Lupin will constantly fight among themselves for dominance until one eventually declares themselves leader and forces everyone else to get in line. As a whole, Lupin do not respond well to formal authority, or being told what to do by a distant power that they've never even met before.
Which brings us to Dog Boys. It is said that the first Dog Boys were strays - survivors of pirate raids from Dark Eldarin or their own kind. These strays were picked up by Humanity as they expanded into space, and formed a burgeoning population of Imperium-raised Lupin, or Dog Boys, over time. On a majority of Imperium planets, Dog Boys have equal opportunity as the humans they live alongside, though in other places they may face prejudice or even dog puns at their expense. Noticing the explicit lack of 'and Lupin' at the end of 'Imperium of Man', Lupin not part of the Imperium see Dog Boys as a neutered slave race to Humanity, and often say such to their faces. Needless to say, these confrontations rarely end well for anyone involved.
Lupin Heroes
Wolfe is an accomplished Lupin pilot, his ship adorned with battle trophies and his mercenary band renown across the Lupin Extents. He was in a dogfight with an enemy ship when he was shot down by a stray missile, left to die in the cold void of the Astral Sea with only a shot engine to keep him company. In a miraculous, desperate metamorphosis, Wolfe became one with the machine spirit of his prized aerospace fighter, using the rest of his remaining energy to fly back to home base in style. Wolfe flies to this day, and he's become better at his job than ever before.
Rex Murphy was a rookie Arbitrator, transferred to the hive city of Detroit DX as part of his contract with Ares Macrotechnology's Knight Errant division. Everything was going great on his first day, up until he was turned into dog meat by the first gang he ran into. Not wanting to let company assets to go to waste, Ares salvaged Rex's corpse and fitted it with every gizmo they could find, finishing the procedure with the installment of a brand-new Pyros Reactor. Rex now serves the public trust, protects the innocent, upholds the law, and [CLASSIFIED] as RoboDog.
Logan is a bounty hunter who can't remember his past. That's fine, because all Logan needs to know about himself is that he's a gun totin', chain smokin' badass of a blood with a Darksteel-coated skeleton, a skycycle capable of intersphere travel, and an ego the size of a small spelljamming vessel. You want someone brought in, dead, alive, or somethin' in between? How about a dog of war to fight that war for you? You call Logan, the Main Man. He'll do anything you want done, as long as it involves booze, action, and women -- though not necessarily in that order.
