#ryphorian

It’s a testament to how deep the well of playable species is in Starfinder that we can have done twelve of these week-long specials and still have a few sapients that were originally introduced in Pathfinder to cover in these entries.

And so now we come to one of the prominent sapient species of the planet Triaxus, the ryphorians!

If you are familiar with the Pathfinder/Starfinder setting, you probably already know that Triaxus is a planet with an exaggerated elliptical orbit that gives the planet a year roughly the equivalent to 300 Golarion-years, with incredibly long summers and winters with relatively brief springs and autumns in between. Entire generations of the various species that make up the two ecosystems live out their entire lives never seeing the seasons change.

This is true for the ryphorians too, but unlike other species that hibernate during the off season, their species is active throughout, their bodies expressing different genes in response to the conditions of that century-spanning cycle, not to mention cultural differences between the seasons. The summerborn live in a land of plenty, rarely wanting for anything, while the winterborn understand the harsh demands of their icy home. Meanwhile, those born transitional are either heralded as the harbingers of easy generations ahead or of incoming hard times.

Or, at least, that’s how it used to be. These days, ryphorians, especially those that travel elsewhere in the galaxy, can undergo gene and hormone therapy to become transitional or summerborn despite Triaxus being in it’s winter period canonically, leaving them free to express themselves through their bodies however they wish.

In ancient times, the free ryphorians of the Allied Territories fought an on-again, off-again war with the Drakelands (a confederation of monarchies ruled by true dragons of all stripes) alongside their allies, the Dragonkin, but now with a relative peace, that bond remains, but their efforts focus on peacetime efforts like tourism and maintaining the peace.

Apart from that mainline culture is the southern continent of Ning, most well known for the performance combat sports they host where battleflowers: nonbinary warriors that abandon gender as part of their devotion to perfecting their bodies for combat, fight to prove themselves.

Ryphorians and dragonkin alike typically live communally in large dwellings with family members, spouses, bond-mates, and the like, and so are very used to being in close proximity to others a lot of the time, and so one can normally rely on them to act with the interests of whatever large group they find themselves to be a part of, if sometimes having friction with more private folk.

Ryphorians are humanoid that lack prominent scalp hair, though they do possess pointed ears with feathering tips. They also sport impressive sets of canines in their jaws that are noticeable when they smile. From there, however, details vary between what genetic expression they exhibit. Summerborn are hairless, with bronze skin, and have large, expressive eyes. Their winterborn counterparts are covered in white or gray fur, and their eyes tend to be smaller and more prone to squinting to protect them from snowblindness. Meanwhile, their transitional kin blur the lines between the other two.

They also have slightly longer limbs than most other humanoids, and despite their hardy nature, have trouble keeping large amounts of muscle mass, giving them somewhat lithe figures.

Communally-minded and devoted, it’s easy to see how the ryphorians transitioned the Skyfire Mandate into it’s current role as good-nature mercenaries. They also tend to get along well with other species that share a sense of community, though I imagine that others chafe under their familiarity.

Rhyphorians are tough and insightful, but their inability to hold muscle mass is a common factor for them.

They are, however, surprisingly flexible like humans, letting them learn an additional technique early on.

They also have keen ears and eyes adapted to seeing in low light, improving their overall perception.

Their trimorphism also provides benefits, with summerborn being resistant to extreme heat and winterborn resisting extreme cold, with transitionals having a bit of both, reducing the harm caused by direct application of those forces and letting them endure longer.

Ryphorians have a lot of fun going for them, and getting a flexible bonus feat like humans means that they can be quite adaptable to any class. That being said, their con bonus does make front-line combatant an option, though the strength penalty does mean that they’re less likely to rely on melee weapons, even in the front line. Meanwhile, wisdom means their favored spellcasting class is mystic, but they can do just as well with any other spellcasters. There really is no class that they can’t work with in some regard, and they can get around the strength disadvantage easy enough as well.

Guess who showed up to terrorize my party with a fresh coat of paint!

Hey, thank you so much! Shepry is a transitional ryphorian - she was intentionally concieved as such by her parents, who are a noble ryphorian/dragonkin couple. I've included an example of how I draw the different ryphorian types! (Also I realize summer ryphorians are *technically* supposed to be bald, but I thought making them all somewhat furry was way cooler!)

Note: I don't often draw winter ryphorians, but when I do I often give them more animal-like traits! The winter is rough, you need a little more help... >;) I don't really include that here, though, just the differences in fur, ears, and eyes. Hope this inspires you to make your own ryphorians!

(art by Zire9 on DeviantArt)

And it’s time for the second of three evolutionary foci for evolutionists!

Last time, we talked about evolutionists that specialize in getting as many augments as possible in order to diversify their abilities, but now, we’ll be focusing on a path that enhances their combat prowess, particularly with their innate attack!

An integrated laser cannon, bio-electric nodules, draconic acid glands, a freezing-cold deathly touch… every evolutionist has a special innate attack connected to the self-perfection they seek. Some even have multiple. Either way, it is often their primary method of attack supplemented by their equipment, other augmentations, and their own constantly-shifting body.

With such an exceptional innate attack, it only makes sense that there would be some evolutionists that focus their transformation into improving their use of said adaptive attack no matter what form it takes.

Such evolutionists might have deliberately taken on this focus as part of their career path, but others might have done so reflexively to survive, such as growing up in a war zone or a harsh and dangerous environment. No matter the reason, there is no denying their lethal effectiveness.

At it’s basic stage, this focus makes the evolutionist more accurate when making multiple attacks.

This is followed up with them being able to choose to do three attacks in a full attack.

Finally, especially-skilled individuals are able to set up deadly chain reactions when hitting multiple times with their adaptive strike. Whether it be rending claws, a chemical reaction between two corrosive fluids, continuous streams of heat or electricity, or something else entirely, they can deal powerful extra damage to a foe they hit repeatedly with a single string of attacks.

Of the three foci available to the class, this one is the most simple, merely granting extra attacks, reduced penalties, and the ability to do rending damage with them no matter what form they take. However, simplicity does not mean ineffective, as it can prove quite devastating to your foes. Naturally, however, this option is meant to be paired with a heavy combat build, either focusing melee or ranged, or perhaps a mix of both. Naturally, adaptations that grant additional adaptive strike types and the ability to change damage types are almost required, but beyond that you can go super tanky or a more mobile combat build, just whatever suits you the most. Consider other adaptations as well as augmentations that suit your style as well.

The focus on the adaptive strikes today reminds me how ripe for creativity the evolutionist class truly is. Consider that any of the available damage types can be either ranged or melee, and consider how they would work for each of the niches, and that’s already a recipe for lots of evocative images. Add in your species on top of that and the sky truly is the limit.

All of her life, Izalda has dreamed of the warm sun, unusual but not unheard of for one born as a winterborn ryphorian. However, she found she was not content to just undergo gene therapy to become a summerborn, she needed to become a star, and so she began funding her transformation into an elemental being, primarily with her career as a martial artist competing in tournaments. However, a fight-fixing conspiracy threatens to snuff out her light long before she achieves her blazing apotheosis.

After a strange accident while exploring four-dimensional ruins, Brada Voss was merged partially with adaptive cybernetics by the recombinator robots maintaining the site. Since then, the pirate has been learning to control the strange machines that seem to appear from nowhere to armor and arm him, but they’ve made enough process to become a true terror in a fight.

I somehow forgot to post this Starfinder PC turned NPC

--------------

This is Tyr'na Sol Valdez, a cocky half-ryphorian/drow tiefling space pirate! who is used to getting what she wants and who she wants thanks to growing up on Apostae where tieflings are actually wanted. When off-planet she claims to be an Aasimar instead citing her golden marks as clear signs of her celestial lineage, all in order to maintain the treatment she's used to getting.

incidentally she also happens to be cursed by Lamashtu and has a were-demon form partially based on the Draegloth.

 At the time that the wood element was added to the kineticist class, Pathfinder lore had not yet revealed that the hidden elemental plane of Wood was real, instead claiming that phytokinetics drew their power from an equally verdant realms, the First World, home of the fey. For many, that may actually be the case, while others draw from the plane of wood.

However, today’s subject draws upon neither of those. Instead, these individuals draw upon the light and life of the chaotic good plane of Elysium, a realm just as well known for it’s verdant splendor as it is for it’s dedication to freedom and kindness.

These so-called elysiokineticists channel the divine light of that realm as well as it’s verdant plant life to not only strike down undead and living foes alike, but also to destroy fiends, channeling energy that is anathema to such wicked beings to destroy them.

They might be blessed with this power by divine forces or the plane of Elysium itself, or they might have bonded with the plane on their own due to natural or philosophical alighments. Either way, they can be a devastating force against evil, leaving the bodies of the undead and fiends alike as purified fertilizer for wild green life to sprout.

 Naturally, these channelers of the divine must be chaotic good, and they start with the wood element, specifically the positive blast, though they gain the wood and verdant blasts later. They do not deviate from the wood element either, gaining the benefits of focusing on one element as you might imagine.

Their connection to such invigorating cosmic energy also alters their basic kinetic powers. Rather than manipulate foliage, they can channel healing and positivity to stop bleeding, as well as minorly boost the resilience and vigor of those nearby.

What most notice, however, is their ability to alter their positive blast be imbued with the raw essence of freedom and good, turning it from a weapon that only works against undead to one that sears fiends with holy light, and it only takes a small amount of their energy to do so.

Additionally, they gain a different defensive talent that wards them against evil foes, and can even be expanded to protect briefly against any source of harm, and ward their minds as well.

Lastly, they learn a new form of blast based on the divine light of ghaele azatas, which is infused with true good and chaos to weaken fiendish foes more effectively, though the damage is the same as a simple blast. It is however useful for shutting down certain forms of regeneration.

Now, like other wood kineticists that start with the positive blast, this archetype may have to rely on mundane weaponry to face living foes at first, but as they grow in power, their primary blast becomes deadly not just to undead, but to fiends as well, two very common supernatural foes. And at that point, they also gain the wood and verdant blasts to deal with other foes as well. If you’re willing to put up with a bit of weakness in the early game, this archetype can be quite appealing.

 This archetype opens up the possibility of other kineticists that draw upon other Outer Sphere planes, with various results. Imagine a pyrokineticists that channels hellfire, or a heavenly geokineticist that draws upon the stones of the celestial mountain itself, just to name two examples.

In any case, with their power geared towards the destruction of evil, but not necessarily having the training or guidance, these blessed kineticist may develop hero complexes, eager to solve all the world’s problems, whether they need to or not, and suffering when they realize their limits. Overcoming that may be an important step in character growth.

  Blessingheart Wood is a legendary place where the trees and beasts bear the mark of the holy. According to legend, the whole forest was born from a battlefield where an entire army of demons was routed by warriors blessed with light and leaf. However, some say that some remnant of that evil still lurks dormant in the forest.

 Born strangely in the long winter of their world, Vesha is a summerborn ryphorian. The source of their strange birth is their connection the Elysium, able to summon forth the greenery of spring and summer anywhere. All agree that they are destined for great things, perhaps even the defeat of an ice devil tyrant called Rimeclaw.