Wemic RCC

The roar shook the cave to its stony roots and the fennel torches wavered from the sudden intake of air. Dewpaw's tears rolled down her furry cheeks in love and admiration...

The Wemic are a centauroid race from an alternate universe. While centauroid, their component parts are blended much more smoothly than in a true centaur. A Wemic has the lower body of a lion and a humanoid upper body, which is covered in short fur. All Wemics have tails, and males have manes as well. Their fur, short on their bodies and bristly on their torsos, ranges from bright golden to dark brown.

Although they are technologically primitive, Wemics are far from stupid. They are highly curious and and learn easily, acquiring new skills quickly in the proper environment. In their natural terrain, plains and grasslands, they are nomadic hunters and gatherers that travel in tribes of 1d6x10 to 2d6x100. Males traditionally occupy the position of hunters, war party leaders, and chieftain of the tribe. Females gather fruits and herbs to supplement the tribe's diet, occupy the position of tribal priest (shaman) and healer, and act as diplomats to other tribes (and other races on Rifts Earth).

A single tribe of nearly five hundred members dimensionally teleported to Rifts Earth in a time of utter desperation. A monstrous hoard of metallic invaders -- the Mechanoids -- began systematically destroying the many tribes of Wemic inhabiting the vast grasslands of their homeworld. While far enough from humanoid to not attract the ire of these beings in and of themselves, their allies and friends, the faerie folk, were. Unable to reconcile their sense of honor to sacrificing their "little cousins," they stood by them and were wiped out tribe by tribe.

The Sunrunner tribe, led by the shaman Dewpaw, her mate and the party war leader Redclaw, and the chieftain Blackmane, managed the tremendous feat of opening a random rift on a low-magic world (not unlike Earth between the accident at Atlantis and the end of the last age of magic). The rift was drawn to Rifts Earth (which is something of a cross-dimensional nexus), on the plains in the old American state of Kansas, which delighted them to no small end; Kansas is almost exactly like their homeworld but without the freshwater oceans. By the post-apocalyptic calendar, the year was 79 P.A.

By an accident of fate, nearly a quarter of the tribe was separated from the main body in transit and dropped right at the border of Kingsdale. These Wemics were confused by the new locale, by the strange sights, and by the sudden lack of a motivating force or leadership. Despairing of finding a new home, or even surviving, they sent a diplomatic envoy to Kingsdale to petition for citizenship. The Dictator of Kingsdale, taking pity on the dispossessed people, admitted them to the city and offered them a deal: full citizenship rights, an education in the ways of their new world, and a home inside the city walls in exchange for all adult members of the tribe serving ten years in the Kingsdale army and the usual requirements of their descendants. The tribe instantly agreed, feeling that by far they got the better of the deal. After all, what was an army but a larger hunting party?

The Kingsdale Senate was absolutely delighted when they discovered that the females' mystical and psionic powers had risen to near-supernatural levels in the magic-rich environment of Rifts Earth; even more so when the Wemic demonstrated a knack for machines. Kingsdale made good on all of their promises and then some, and the Wemic division has become a staple of the armed and magical forces of Kingsdale.

The plains Wemic have had no knowledge of their brethren for the past twenty-six years and believe them lost forever. However, if ever confronted with their existence, they will gladly open their arms to them, despite the many differences between the tribal branches. It is unlikely for them to ever become a single tribe again, or even to cohabit (Barbarian Wemic don't like Earth cities), but they will remain amicable.

Wemic RCC

• Males: IQ 3d6; ME 4d6; MA 2d6; PS 4d6+6; PP 2d6+3; PE 5d6; PB 2d6; Spd 6d6.
• Females: IQ 3d6; ME 4d6; MA 3d6; PS 3d6+4; PP 2d6+3; PE 5d6; PB 3d6; Spd 6d6.

1. Females are innate spellcasters and major psionics. Males are minor psionics. See below for details.
2. The one thing that has contributed most to the survival of the wemics on Rifts Earth is the ability of the males to transform themselves into supernatural beings for short periods of time! When using the transformation, they manifest into a form representing their tribal name. The Sunrunners, the only tribe currently on Rifts Earth, manifest as their basic shape, but appearing to be made of pure sunlight. This acts on vampires as the globe of daylight spell with a thirty foot radius. The transformation may be achieved once per day, for one minute (four melees) per level of experience. The male Wemic becomes a mega-damage being with MDC equal to his SDC plus hit points, multiplied by two. The character's strength becomes supernatural for this period of time (see Rifts Conversion Book One for the supernatural strength damage table).
3. Wemics are immune to mind control and possession.
4. Nightvision to 50 ft (15.2 m).
5. Bite for 1D8 SDC, claw with front paws for 2D6 +PS bonus SDC, and kick with rear paws for 1D8 +PS bonus SDC. This damage becomes MD for males during the transformation.
6. Faerie Folk instinctively like and trust Wemics, treating them as relatives and dear friends. They also have a deeply ingrained respect for Wemics and play few tricks on them, and none that could possibly be dangerous. In their turn, Wemics adore their "little cousins" and will ever betray or harm them. The only exceptions to this rule are the evil Faerie Folk (pucks, unseelie, etc.), who hate and are hated by the Wemics and their gentler cousins. Most Wemics of adult age will have a group of faerie "kinfolk," 1D6 small, similarly aligned faeries that accompany the Wemic virtually everywhere, aiding when they can, cheering on when they can't, and generally lending friendship and moral support. It is considered the greatest disgrace possible (other than an outright betrayal of the tribe) to allow the death of even a single faerie kinfolk.

• Males: +4 save vs. poison/magic, +2 vs. HF, +1 vs. HF at each third level; +2 to strike and parry; +1 attack per melee.
• Females: +4 save vs. magic, +1 vs. poison, +3 vs. HF; +2 to parry/dodge; +1 to spell strength at levels 3, 6, 9, 12, and 15.