Sybercyl

A female sybercyl.

The **sybercyl** are an isolationist race native to the island of Leifort's Enclave, off the coast of Thynosia. Originally humans, the sybercyl have embraced artificer technology so deeply into their culture that they have gone as far as to replace their body parts with cybernetic replacements, powered by metal and magic. Their culture heavily enforces the manipulation of their body from organic to mechanical. Some sybercyl see this as oppressive, and attempt to escape their island - more often than not, however, their identities as sybercyl will come back to haunt them.

## Description

The most notable differentation from humans that sybercyl have is their skin tone. Rather than the varying tones of humans, sybercyl have skin that ranges between reddish pink to dusky purple. The same is true of their hair, which can naturally be black, red or purple. Depending on their age, sybercyl will have various different cybernetic enhancments applied to their bodies. The most early of these modifications is replacing the eyes with similar-looking but more efficient mechanical designs. As they reach adulthood, they may have their arms replaced with mechanical versions, or their legs changed for more powerful running apparatuses, and even parts of their brain replaced with more efficient arcane processors.

## Society

### Locations

Most of sybercyl society has revolved around the island of Leifort's Enclave for centuries, since their divergence from humans in the early Third Era. Many sybercyl see Leifort's Enclave as the center of the world.

### Sybercyl Technology

Sybercyl cybernetics span many different types, ranging from eye implants to replacing full limbs. These devices originate from their race's skilled artificers and mages, who create and install the devices on other sybercyl and themselves. These implants are designed to be impossible to remove safely, once installed. Attempts to "uninstall" hardware often results in fatal jolts of arcane energy, and very specialized tools are required to repair sybercyl mechanical implants. These anti-removal methods are purposefully installed as a precaution by the Leifort's Enclave. The only way to "safely" remove a sybercyl implant is to remove whatever body part it is attached to entirely - for example, a full amputation of the arm for an arm replacing cybernetic.

Over their lifetimes, sybercyl will be introduced to more and more augmentations, to the point the oldest sybercyl appear more similar to steel-bound than any organic life. Older sybercyl will typically have all of their limbs replaced, the majority of their brain augmented, both eyes changed, and various augmentations placed atop their other cybernetics.

### Culture

The culture of the sybercyl - and in particular, their homeland of Leifort's Enclave - is one centered around isolationism, efficiency, and cybernetics. The island's government enforces a culture that revolves strongly around the cybernetic augmentations artificers give their population. They believe that cybernetics are essential for the state's efficiency to be increased. Cybernetics are used to increase work production in the population, and allow them to work more for longer hours. Some heavily-modified sybercyl are capable of working for days on end without rest. Furthermore, many sybercyl are *strongly* isolationist - sometimes to a violent point. Leifort's Enclave makes it aggressively clear to approaching ships that they will not be permitted to dock, and attempts to do so will result in violence. As well, sybercyl on the island are entirely prevented from leaving of their own free will. This is all to prevent the technology the sybercyl possess from reaching other races and nations off of their own shores.

While few sybercyl ever manage to escape the island of Leifort's Enclave, those who do rarely hold the same beliefs of their friends and family. Those who escape - called "renegades" by the rest of sybercyl society- typically reach the mainland of Thynosia by raft, and then proceed to seek out jobs they can use their cybernetic enhancements in. Scholars and arcanists who stuby the technology of Leifort's Enclave often seek out renegade sybercyl to interview them about their nation's origins, and about their cybernetic limbs. Some escaped sybercyl will turn to adventuring, fearing that Leifort's Enclave will send out bounty hunters to capture them and bring them back - this is an unfortunately common practice for the island.

## Combat

In combat, sybercyl will typically use their implants to deadly effect. For example, some arm cybernetics are capable of "unlocking" their wrists backwards and revealing unarmed weapons charged with electrical magic. Those with improved brains are typically capable of more efficient magical skills, and those with augmented legs tend to use them to deadly effect with kicks. Weapons training is not necessarily important in Leifort's Enclave, and only those chosen to be guards are trained in weapons like swords and shields.