Appearance
The Tlapaku are the most sociable of the Tlak mutants. They resemble beetles whose back four legs are bent to give them a half-upright stance. They stand a little over a meter high.
Special Abilities
The forelimbs of a Tlapaku have developed hands with two opposable thumbs and very long fingers; they excel at any task requiring hand-eye coordination or manual dexterity. Unlike other insectoids, their mouthparts can approximate human speech, and mimic many other animal sounds besides. While Tlapaku are very versatile, most become experts in one field – engineering, languages, negotiation, music, acting – and offer their services to any who want them.
Tactics
Tlapaku are seldom violent, but they can defend themselves with human weapons if need be. Usually, though, they will fight only just long enough to find an opening and escape.
Ecology
Tlapaku are nomadic, plying their trades in one place before moving on to the next. Some starport towns have a large semi-permanent Tlapaku colony, but Tlapaku are just as comfortable on their own or among humans and other alien species.
TLAPAKU (Nomad)
| Size | Stamina | Armor | Damage | C | K | P | So | St | T | V |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small | 17 | 6 | fists 1D-1D | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Talent: one of:
- Intelligence Analyst
- Logistics Expert
- Professional (choose specialty)
- Scholar (choose specialty)
- Tech Specialist (choose specialty)
- Tinker
- or any other talent that feels appropriate
Talents/Abilities/Inabilities
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Hands: Tlapaku have extremely versatile hands, able to use any tool just about any other species can. They gain +1D Advantage on tasks requiring raw manual dexterity.
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Mimicry: A Tlapaku can imitate any sound they hear, and speak any language they know with virtually no accent. Impersonating a specific person requires a successful Social throw.
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Sapient: Tlapaku have reasoning and linguistic abilities equivalent to an above average human.