I also forgot to list one of the other major non-human opposing forces aside from the Alien/Xenomorph.
The Planets Entry:
"Tartarus
This is an extremely fertile world, with thousands of species of plant/animal hybrids that
use the sun's energy and the rich carbon dioxide/oxygen atmosphere for growth. Although it holds great promise, it is now the site of a major crisis for the ICC.
Tartarus was discovered only a generation ago, but it was already habitable and was
quickly developed. An unusual feature of Tartarus is its rotation, which is perpendicular
to its orbit. It takes 40 years to complete its orbit around the sun, so it has a 20 year day and a 20 year night. The constant sunlight of this extended day produces a vibrant and diverse ecosystem. On the night side there is little life, and the world waits for day to return.
There are three major continents on Tartarus, only one of which is currently in daylight and which is colonized. The environment has been ideal; there is an abundance of life with no particularly dangerous creatures, and excellent atmosphere and climate.
Knowing about Tartarus' peculiar orbit, the settlements were designed with a slow
migration in mind. Each continent would be colonized in turn, and as night settled over a
part of the colony, it would be shut down and the inhabitants would move ahead to a new
site, one which was entering the daylight.
This process was just beginning a few years ago, as sites which were within a year of
twilight prepared for shutdown and the colonists got ready to transfer to new locations on
a continent that was nearing its dawn. Darkness would settle over the rest of the first
continent over the course of eight years. The transfer was eagerly anticipated by all the
Corporations present, as a test of their abilities and an opportunity to develop new areas.
It was at this point that the most dangerous native lifeform made its appearance. Scientists had been looking forward to finding out how the environment handled the transition from day to night, but these ravenous monsters are not what they had in mind.
The creatures are called Harvesters, and that is exactly what they do. As a continent
enters its night, these immense, armored creatures burrow up from tunnels far below the
surface to devour all organic materials. This material is shredded and carried back
underground, to cysts where the Harvesters live. The Harvesters live off the organics for
years, and slowly generate the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which in turn regener-
ates the surface life when daylight returns. It is a strange ecological cycle, but one which remains in balance. Unfortunately, the Harvesters do not differentiate between their natural food and the Colonists who now live on Tartarus.
The Harvesters look something like huge amadillo. They are capable of digging and
boring through rock and concrete, and their jaws can shred almost anything. They move
in packs of several dozen, and these packs often fight each other for control of fertile areas.
A pack will coordinate its activities, and organizes for war in the same way that ants do.
Colonial Marines and other forces have been sent to Tartarus to protect the many
settlements scattered across the daylight continent. Missions include evacuating colo-
nists, delaying Harvester attacks, retrieving abandoned equipment from devastated
communities, and Harvester hunting and research. The Harvesters are sweeping across
the continent, and will be done with their work within three years if Humans do not stop
them. Parts of the continent will still be in full daylight at that time, however, and
Corporations which own communities in these areas do not want to abandon them until
night falls. In these places, plans have been made to defend the communities against
Harvester attacks; how well this will work is unknown.
To assist in these defenses, missions are being sent down into the Harvester tunnels
to see if the creatures have a weak point. To date, no one has reached any of the cysts
where the Harvesters live and store their food. When they do, another surprise is waiting
for them. The Harvesters have a smaller form which never leaves the cyst, called a Drone, which is used to defend the cyst from underground pests, ranging in size from small insects up to nearly Human size. The Drone is little more than a large pair of powerful jaws, and it is not even a self-supporting life form. Instead, the Drones grow on Harvester variants called Carriers. When they leave their Carrier to fight, they have only a few hours of life left. They attack the invading creatures by biting with their immense jaws, which lock in place. Like a bee, they give their lives defending their lair."
About Harvesters:
"Harvesters
Harvesters are large creatures which live below the ground, and they are destroying
the Colony on Tartarus . Their attack is almost impossible to stop because
they bore through the earth and attack from directly beneath the facilities. No underground protection has been found that will stop the Harvesters, although many attempts have been made. Decoying the Harvesters to the surface outside the Colony where they can be attacked by Aircraft has been used with success, but the Harvesters are cunning and these tricks are no longer effective. The primary focus at the remaining facilities is to destroy the Harvesters in their underground chambers. For this work, the Colonial Marines have been called in.
A Harvester is heavier than any land animal on Earth; it is over nine feet high and nearly
twenty feet long. Shaped something like an armadillo, the Harvester lives beneath the
ground and has massive front claws and a powerful snout for digging. It uses sonar as its main sense and has acute hearing and smell, but limited vision. The Harvester is very
maneuverable for a creature of its size and can move up to 24 feet per second . Its main purpose is burrowing and harvesting. Harvesting consists of burrowing to the surface and shredding organic plant and animal life which it processes and stores in its gut. Harvesters operate in groups and their communication and intelligence can be compared to that of a wolf pack. They are highly territorial and attack any Harvester from a foreign pack or any other threat within their area of operation. A Harvester's attack consists of the creature charging and overrunning or ramming its target.
When Harvesters fight each other, it is a push and shove match until one is turned over,
exposing its softer underbelly. This leaves it vulnerable to the shredding jaws of the victor.
The Carrier is another form of the creature, and it is very similar to the normal Harvester.
It is different in that it is not equipped to harvest and store large quantities of organic
material. Instead, it has up to 12 Drones growing on itself. These Drones can be regrown
in about three weeks.
The Drone is a smaller, boar size creature whose purpose is defense against small
animals and creatures which threaten the Lair and underground chambers. The Drone
has only one purpose, and that is to bite. It lives attached to what is called a Carrier and
has few internal organs of its own. When released from the Carrier to attack a foe, it does so with the ferocity of a creature whose only purpose is attack, for the Drone can only live a few hours once released. The Drone can climb and jump, as well as move at up to 42 feet per second . Once it reaches its target, it attacks with its jaws.
The creature is nothing more than a portable set of mandibles, and once it locks its jaws
onto its victum it will not release its grip. The jaws actually ratchet down and cannot be
opened short of breaking the thick skull and mandibles."
|
