Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 1d

Glad you like!

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 1d

Historically, kalioctera communities have leaned towards the matriarchal and polyandrous, with females taking protective and leadership roles and often having numerous male partners.

4

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 1d

Kalioctera exhibit sexual dimorphism. Male kalioctera are small, fast, colorful, and capable of flight. Females are much larger and tougher, with horns and more wicked mandibles, though slower and capable of only limited flight (more like assisted jumps, really).

1 4

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 1d

They breathe and talk via spiracles in their abdomen, below their thorax.

1 2

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 1d

Each kalioctera has a chitinous exoskeleton, compound eyes, mandibles, antennae, claws, and six limbs. They have two pairs of wings: hardened protective elytra forewings (not used for flight) and softer hindwings that fold under the elytra for protection.

1 3

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 1d

Kalioctera (kah-LEE-OCT-ur-ah) are a gregarious, wood-boring, herbivorous, beetle-like species. They are masters at crafting elaborate tunnels and homes within the pillars and are known for their artisanal, architectural, and wood-working skills.

1 1 4

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 1d

Follow our Dev blog! Http://snarlrpg.com/blog

1 1 2

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 1d

Beetle people! Kalioctera are one of the species you can choose from when making a character in The Snarl (our upcoming weird fantasy RPG).

(Art by @crimreaper.bsky.social )

2 kalioctera beetlefolk. A large female and a small colorful male perched on her shoulder.

3 53 150

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 2d

Over on The Snarl's Dev blog, we talk about a key aspect of the setting: the gargantuan trees called pillars that make up the entirety of the world.

snarlrpg.com/the-pillars/

The Pillars

The pillars are ancient if not immortal, having existed since the dawn of recorded history.

snarlrpg.com

1 2 5

Reposted by Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 8d

When you make a character in The Snarl, you can choose from twelve different species that live in the world known as the Weald. Today I’m going to talk a bit about one of the stranger ones: Clackers.

A living tree creatures, with lichen-like sensory organs and a glowing red crystal in its chest, holding an axe

3 11 33

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 8d

Art by @crimreaper.bsky.social !

5

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 8d

Clackers come in a wide variety of forms, large and small. Many mimic the forms of other Weald species; others are more esoteric. Their sap-like blood possesses regenerative capabilities.

A small quadruped Clacker tree creature with birch-like bark holding a horn

1 7

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 8d

In this way, a mind is granted a second life, in a new clacker body. Clackers are venerated as resurrected elders, each granted an opportunity to continue to share their wisdom. It is possible for PCs of other species to be resurrected as clackers if they die.

1 3

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 8d

Upon maturity, they are transplanted to a Dream Pool. As they draw nourishment from the pool’s liquid, they grow a mind crystal within their form that absorbs an intelligence from within the pool’s Dreaming.

1 3

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 8d

The clackers found among the Weald’s societies are non-sapient trees that were carefully pruned, shaped, grafted, and trained by woodshapers since they were young saplings, each grown into an individually unique form.

1 3

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 8d

In the process, their mind is absorbed into a shared consciousness called the Dreaming, which serves as a repository of knowledge and lived experiences. Living folks can immerse themselves within a Dream Pool and commune with the Dreaming.

1 4

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 8d

Before I go into clackers, however, I must first mention Dream Pools. Dream Pools are a central fixture to Wealdfolk settlements — when someone dies, their body is interred into the pool, where it is dissolved.

1 3

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 8d

When you make a character in The Snarl, you can choose from twelve different species that live in the world known as the Weald. Today I’m going to talk a bit about one of the stranger ones: Clackers.

3 11 33

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 9d

Skill based, 2d10 vs target number, with some twists. Combat is zone-based theater of the mind with tactical elements. There's some innovative stuff with the mechanics, we'll post about that down the line.

1

Reposted by Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 10d

Hey folks, let’s talk about our upcoming weird fantasy RPG, the Snarl!

First up: an overview of what the game is — and isn’t! Every fantasy setting is based on underlying assumptions that shape the world. These are some of the defining characteristics of The Snarl.

The Snarl Is Strange. The environment is lush and wild and teeming with flora and fauna—and yet to a human’s alien eyes, it is unnatural, impossible to have grown into being by organic means. It is a place of beauty and wonder—and undefinable wrongness. The residents, of course, know no different.

The Environment Is Feral. The Weald is verdant and alive. Millions of species thrive here—and millions more prey upon them. Outside of settlements and nomad camps, the Snarl is a dangerous place, teeming with dangerous wildlife. Stragglers and wanderers often do not return. The residents are familiar with their local regions, but the Snarl grows quickly. Numerous civilizations have been swallowed under the leaves and mulch.

Magic Is Unusual. This is not a world of spells and grimoires. All denizens make use of sap reverently drawn from the pillars and consumed for supernatural effects. Spirits lurk invisibly everywhere, working as caretakers of the environment, taking physical form only when needed. The sparks who see and command these spirits also manipulate esoteric forces within the environment for their witchcraft.

2 9 18

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 10d

We'll be posting more about the Snarl as we head towards the Open Playtest later this year! Follow our Dev blog: snarlrpg.com/blog

Blog

The Snarl is an upcoming weird fantasy tabeletop RPG by Posthuman Studios, the makers of Eclipse Phase.

snarlrpg.com

1 7

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 10d

There Are No Gods. There are no signs of divine power or omnipotence. If there are supernatural forces behind the Weald, they are long absent and negligent in their duties. The Weald’s sapients have myths and tales and even creation stories, but no organized religions or faiths.

There Are No Humans. Abandon your anthropocentric mindsets. This world was not crafted by or for human hands. Embrace your new limbs and senses. Adapt yourself to non-human modes of thinking.

Threats Are Encroaching. The Weald’s ecological systems are unbalanced. The Blight and the Creep consume more of the world every day. This has disrupted the equilibrium of entire societies and bioregions. Strife looms with the displacement of refugees from their homes and never-before-experienced scarcity.

1 7

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 10d

Hey folks, let’s talk about our upcoming weird fantasy RPG, the Snarl!

First up: an overview of what the game is — and isn’t! Every fantasy setting is based on underlying assumptions that shape the world. These are some of the defining characteristics of The Snarl.

2 9 18

Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase @posthumanstudios.com · 11d

Davidson from @moosewithcup.bsky.social brings us a complete playthrough video of Eclipse Phase: SCUM: www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmT6...

1 9

Reposted by Posthuman Studios • Eclipse Phase

Sprite / Anarchotech @anarchotech.bsky.social · 16d

Are you a freelance artist who likes drawing giant trees, forests, and weird creatures? Or do you know of such an artist? Post portfolio links please!

3 19 12