Mortasheen - Hi Res Mantis Arthropoid and Art Files (Patreon)
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"Scimitor" was one of the earliest Arthropoid monsters, and in dire need of an update in time for the RPG!
It will however be renamed in its final upload, to "Zokar," as a homage to Zorak.
Borrowing colors from real mantids, it also follows some real quirks of mantis anatomy that are seldom portrayed in fiction, like the fact that a mantid's famous "scythes" actually terminate in the same clawed feet as its other four legs.
The complete text of its new upcoming bio is as follows!
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BIOLOGY:
Created by the hybridization of human and mantis, this dangerously clever and limitlessly patient hunter is a natural master of ambush and the art of grappling. Its unusually flexible joints, elastic muscles and lightweight body enable it to leap impressive distances, scale almost any surface and contort itself into seemingly impossible hiding places, while the accuracy and depth perception of its huge, powerful eyes are unsurpassed by even advanced technological means.
Slowing its heart rate and focusing its mind, the Zokar can go without food for an extended period of time as it awaits the approach of a suitable meal, at which point it springs forth with it elongated raptorial forearm and ensnares the prey in an arsenal of claws, spines and barbs. While its fine jaws can gnaw through most flesh with ease, it prefers to strike prey with a distinguishable head, immediately seeking to chew through the neck and decapitate the victim before it can strike back.
BEHAVIOR:
The typical Zokar is a calculating killer and somewhat antisocial loner that prefers isolation and silence whenever possible, especially to avoid the distraction of its seemingly unending appetite. Even when full to capacity, the monster is tempted to masticate any available flesh with or without swallowing, always tempted to find out what a newly encountered creature tastes like. It most of all enjoys the softer organ meats and especially the fattiness of brain tissue, which it typically saves for last as a form of "dessert," and many of its kind share a penchant for collecting the skulls or equivalent casings of favorite meals. Zokar consider cannibalism to be an extremely intimate act, though it is more commonly the casual consumption of some non-essential organs or a single limb that can be regrown over time.
A Zokar's drive to remain out of sight is similarly strong, even at its most sociable and relaxed, and it is apparently known colloquially to some human communities as a "Hide-behind."
APPLIANCE:
Zokar make equally effective personal guards or hunter-killers, and are also popular in pest control. Having no taste for vegetable or even semi-vegetable matter but finding an instinctive sense of comfort among foliage, they get along well with Botanical monsters and can become generally protective of plant life, often stationed to watch over developing Botanicals or even non-monstrous agricultural specimens.
TACTICAL MECHANISMS:
ACROBATIC: the Zokar is a maneuverable and lightweight contortionist, unimpeded by most obstacles and capable of squeezing into tight spaces.
SNAPPING CLAW: a Zokar's larger arm has incredible reach and can snap shut with deadly force.
MANTIS VISION: the monster's eyesight is more powerful than most other creatures, and provides it incredible accuracy.