Character Contest 51 – Alien Nation
Oyshins are a race from one of my GURPS Space campaigns. The players were members of a first contact team: a mix of soldiers, pilots, mechanics, traders, archaelogists, xenobiologists, linguists, and other specialists and random characters. Their last expedition took them to Sah where they encountered the komodo dragon-like primitives.
Since HeroMachine did not have a komodo dragon head, I used the crocodile. Which caused my Oyshin to “evolve” into a heavier set. Not that komodos are small! But this Oyshins became bulkier, more deliberate. Not the fast strikers that I originally envisioned.
The encounter was amicable with the team exchanging cigars and Denver omelettes for cultural effects (weapons, art, jewelry, etc.). Trouble began when an excavation company arrived then began to strip-mine the Oyshin’s mountain homes. With limited supplies and ammo, the adventurers fought to destroy the mining operation. They did not have enough knowledge of the native culture or language to effectively communicate their intentions.
The Oyshin made no distinction between the outsiders and would routinely ambush the contact team. Try as they could, the crew could not prevent Oyshin casualties. Oyshins are extremely tough. There really is no such thing as a “knockout blow” when fighting an Oyshin. They go into a white hot rage.
By the end of the encounter, the Oyshins were decimated, the contact team almost a third of the crew, and trade disputes exploded into interstellar war. The surviving members of the team were conscripted by their respective governments and employers to fight the wars. Often times, they would face one another on the battlefield.
The band that an Oyshin wears represents his caste (hunter, warrior, or cook). The race thinks not much further ahead than the next meal. The Oyshin depicted wears purple for a war chief.
Oyshin Warrior
Close-up
HeroMachine 2.5
