Caseal

An ancient race of humanoid mechanical constructs, the **Caseal** are a
space-faring race living in the remains of their creators' civilization.
 Sentient and intelligent machines capable of higher thinking, they are a
 very inquisitive though pragmatic at times. Though each "class" of
Caseal have varying constructions suited to differing purposes, they are
 generally free to do as they please, much in the same way as humans
are.

Unlike most constructs, sexual dimorphism does exist amongst the race,
the females often times being smaller than the males who are often as
tall as 7 feet on average. As well as these differences, they do also
have varying degrees of human-like features, including hair that may
either be many soft strands or a sculpted helmet-like shell. Certain
Caseal may even be indistinguishable from a human in a large suit of
armor.

Due to the detached nature of their reproductive processes, they have no family culture beyond brother or sister groups.

## Physiology

Caseal bodies are made of a nano-molecular robot body that is beneath an
 armored shell made of similarly formed material; of which tasked with
protecting the vital internal components from harm. This makes the race
naturally quite heavy for their size due to the density of the metals,
but has the upside of a rather firm durability. The metallic materials
that form their bodies have been described as being akin to steel, with
all of the oxygen reactivity of a slab of gold.

Being humanoid, they feature two arms, and two legs, and a single head
with two eyes, nose, and a mouth. Among these base traits however, many
Ceaseal may have a varied set of body types ranging from agile bodies
with wheels embedded into the heels, to large and heavy brutes. Some
more interesting examples may include animal-like tails, ears, or
face-covering metal plates. These physical differences have no bearing
on mental state, however.

Providing energy for their bodies to continue with prolonged existence,
their chests contain miniaturized dark-matter reactor cores
(interestingly enough, on the left side, where the human heart would
be). They are fully encased within protective shells that both prevent
radiation from seeping out, but also prevent damage to the internal
components. The core itself serves the purpose of not only driving forth
 the replication of the molecule-sized machines that comprise a Caeal's
body, but also providing energy to the brain, motors, and any integrated
 shielding or weapons systems that a subject may or may not have.

Many Caseal tend to come equipped with external thrusters for boosts of
speed, a trait owed to the race's origins as military, security, and
otherwise hazardous tasks. Some may even prefer to hover over walking,
albeit such a trait is rare.

Reproduction of the Caseal is facilitated through usage of their nanite
makeup. This begins with an act akin to sex in mammalian species' where a
 partner, mechanical or otherwise, implants a data-bearing sample into a
 willing subject, prompting nanomachines to be created for the task of
replicating data or converting DNA to a usable form to begin formation
of a new Caseal. Time will pass and a small worm-like protoform of
nano-material will eject itself from the host's body to begin ingesting
matter within deep underground burrows in order to build mass in
subterranean depths away from the dangers of surface life. Once a
certain threshold is attained, the protoform will return to a depth just
 below the surface and begin the short process of reforming and
re-purposing its nanite body to form a fully functioning Caseal.