Ifrita

*“What they can’t slice, they burn.”*

*“I got too close to one of them Blood Rider encampments during the Infernal War; I like couldn’t tell if I was looking at a camp of friendly allies or I’d made a wrong turn and stumbled on one of the Infernals’ bivouacs. Looked like a vision of hell from where I was standing...all sorts of volcanoes belching fire, and burning people running around in between. Wasn’t until a group of actual Infernals showed up and attacked...my lucky day just to be there, I guess...that I saw what was really....and even then I wasn’t sure if I wasn’t seeing two factions of monsters fighting each other...still ain’t sure...But those ‘volcanoes’ turned out to be actual Shemar people, and those burning people...well. I now seen these ‘Ifritee’ for myself in action, and I can say this...whatever hell those Infernals come from, they musta thought it would be mighty nice to nip along back there, because them Blood Riders were dishing out flaming hot death fast and furious, with no end to the supply.”*

*“Once watched a Stapha warrior get butch-slapped by an Ifrita; wasn’t pretty. The Shemar used all six hands, and did both a palm and backhand action. Even though she was pulling her blows, the Ifrita left that minion-witch concussed and grill-smacked.”*

*“Watch out for the sickle. Now watch out for the kopesh coming in from the right. Slapped me with her left hand there. Wasn’t that sickle in her left hand? Wait, she’s got THREE left han-”*

## Ifrita Elite

Blood Rider Ifritas are a new Elite caste that is believed to be the result of repeated successful Progen-unions between Blood Rider Berserkers, or Zealots, and Sapphire Cobra Nagas, though some Ifrita are known to have been Upgraded from the ranks of the Warriors, Berserkers, and Warchiefs. Ifritas retain the bipedal humanoid bodyframe, copper skin, and affinity for fire of their Blood Rider parent, and get multiple arms, integral chemical weaponry, and great agility from their Sapphire Cobra parent. They also sport an extra eye in the middle of their foreheads, and three antennae, presumably the better to keep track of all those limbs in motion in relation to their surroundings. They are sometimes mistaken for demonic beings from the Indian sub-continent, or minions of the Vedic or Brahman pantheons. It is joked among the Tribes, citing another Progen-born Blood Rider/Sapphire Cobra hybrid, the Baslisa, that the Ifrita got the extra arms that the Basilisa missed out on inheriting, as well as the legs. Curiously enough, not long after this joke began circulating amongst the Tribes, the Tinkers and Mystics tasked with maintaining the Progen-modules began reporting a near fifty-fifty ratio of Basilisas and Ifritas being Progen-born, and even several (exceptionally rare) twin ‘births’ of Ifrita and Basilisa siblings. Ifrita born of cross-Tribal unions, however, almost inevitably gravitate towards the Blood Rider side of their heritage, while Basilisas favor their Sapphire Cobra lineage.

Ifritas are becoming especially feared melee combatants in a Tribe already respected for their hand to hand combat prowess. It’s not unknown for Ifrita looking for a friendly spar to challenge two or three potential opponents to simultaneous combat, though the wise ones drop this habit in actual battle, preferring to use their extra attacks to deal with one opponent quickly, then move on to the next. An Ifrita in full combat mode has been described as looking like a churning firestorm, wreaking incendiary havoc on anything within range. They also tend to run ‘hot’ in combat, and can quickly be surrounded by a cloud of cooling steam or vapor.

As noted above, Ifrita tend to gravitate towards their Blood Rider heritage, and are found almost exclusively in the ranks of that Tribe, though at least one has been sighted in the ranks of the Sapphire Cobra-seeded Skyeklad.

## Abilities

Ifrita can wear full body armor (standard armor types have 150 MDC), but most typically only wear light Berserker skins-and-light-alloy of only 50 MDC, unless facing seriously heavy combat.

### Underwater

30 MPH, and their swimming is typically accompanied by a lot of churning, In general, though, Ifrita HATE going into water, as it interferes with their plasma abilities (a fully lit Ifrita in deep water is a hissing, steaming, thoroughly unpleasant ball of chaos....and that’s just their mental state at the time).

### Special Systems

#### Thermal Shielding

Ifrita have the Zealot heat-resistant skin and cooling systems allow them to take NO damage from heat-based attacks (magic-based fire still does full damage). With the plasma field down, plasma attacks do only 1/4 damage (the plasma stream still has some kinetic kick to impart).

#### EM Shielding

This protects the Ifrita’s internal systems from interference by the plasma conduction fields. Note, however, that with the plasma field on, radio transmissions from the Ifrita suffer a reduction in range by two-thirds, and quality of transmission will be spotty; marred by static.

### Weapons Systems

#### Arm Lasers (6)

 Damage
 Damage2
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

Ifrita retain the gauntlet forearm lasers of the regular warriors. Just point and shoot.

#### Finger Claws

 Damage

Likewise, Ifritas’ hands feature retractable vibroblades.

##### Spark-Nails

By simply snapping their fingers/vibroclaw-nails, Ifritas can strike sparks. This is typically used for visual effect, but it also be used to ignite fires, such as their breath weapon.

#### Plasma Blast Studs

 Damage

Not so much a modification to the Shemarrian as an add-on to the combat gauntlets, powered by the gynoid’s own systems. On contact, these generate a sudden blast of plasma.

#### Plasma Palm Blasters (6)

 Damage
 Damage2
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

Ifrita can unleash a short range plasma blast from each hand. Firing off simultaneous blasts from all six hands is rare, but when it happens, it produces SPECTACULAR (and typically instantly fatal) effects on the target(s).

#### Plasma Field

 Damage
 Damage2
 Payload

This is a less-powerful version of the body-conformal plasma field incorporated into the Zealot. The field can capture plasma bleedoff from the palm plasma blasters, forming a fiery shell around the Elite.

Deals 1d4x10 MD per melee attack of an entangle, grapple, hug, or wrestling grip. Anything flammable will be incinerated on contact, including SDC bullets and weapons.

Furthermore, with the plasma field up, other plasma attacks do NO damage, as they effectively splash around the projection fields.

##### Payload

Can maintain the plasma field for 15 minutes and recharge in 15 minutes, or for 30 minutes, requiring a full 60 minute recharge period afterward. The Ifrita can reboot the field before then, but the extra power draw will cause the EShemar to be -1 on initiative, and -2 to dodge, strike and parry, and reduce maximum running speed by 25%.

#### Chemical Spray Breath

 Damage
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

Ifrita can store and regurgitate various chemicals from reservoirs in their throats. They don’t have the ability to regenerate chemical stocks, but they can store a number of different types of liquids. Favorites include psycho-effective aerosols such as airborne aphrodisiacs to bend the minds of mere fleshies, and

flammable liquids to incinerate enemies.

Various chemicals can be used. Flammable fluids are the most commonly carried, but require an external heat source (such the finger-blade ignitors or eye lasers) to ignite.

### Programming/Skills

The skills of the EShemar Ifrita depend on their origins as Warriors, Berserkers, or Chieftainesses and their level of experience. No Pariahs are known to have become Ifritas. Progen-born Ifrita tend to favor their Berserker heritage with regards to their weapons skills.

### Combat

Ifrita are potent melee combatants, armed or unarmed, and combined with their plasma abilities makes them particularly deadly.

Bonuses are in addition to those possible from the Shemar’s elective training.

Cartwheel Attack +4 to strike, but can perform a Kick and two Punches (Restrained or Regular Strength) in the same attack.