Shebu

*“Getting to open water is no assurance of safety in these territories. Going inland won’t save you either. Face it, Minion, wherever you go, you meet your doom in Darkwater territory!”*

*“Tinker, I have here the shoulder cannon off a Splugorth Kittani Destroyer Armor. I’ve claimed this weapon as war-booty and I mean to make good use of it! What are the chances of you being able to mount it on the back of my mighty Shebu steed?”*

*“For the pure $#!+s and giggles of imaging the expressions on the faces of those you doubtlessly intend to use it on, I think the chances are pretty good I can do it!”*

## Shebu Aquatic Warmount

The existence of this EShemar Darkwaters Warmount literally surfaced fairly recently with the revelations of how, even in the midst of the Shemarrian Civil War, the Darkwaters Tribe maintained a vigorous campaign against the Splugorth. Fearing rightfully so that the Splugorth would seek to exploit the confusion of the Shemarrian Civil War to their own ends, the EShemar Darkwaters’ leadership made the painful decision to split their forces, one part remaining ashore to fight their Loyalist sisters, the other foraying against the Splugorth. To keep the alien slavers off-balance, the Darkwaters elected to take the war out to sea, to meet the enemy BEFORE they reached North American shores. Large patrols would course through the waters offshore, looking to intercept Splugorth forces and drown them at sea. In order to maintain this sustained presence, the Darkwaters needed vehicles and warmounts able to perform at sea, operating from offshore outposts and bases. Vehicles initially came from ocean vessels scavenged and repaired (or simply ‘confiscated’ from pirate bands), while the Darkwaters’ first EShemar-designed Warmounts were amphibious warfare units such as the K-7 SeaSword; small and lightly armed but high speed water-transports, and the K-8 Ironback, large, lumbering, and heavily armed. However, those weren’t enough, and the Darkwaters looked to develop their marine strike capabilities even further with new Warmount types.

### Description

The K-24 Shebu emerged to meet the need for a solid amphibious assault unit complementing the larger K-8 Ironbacks, and supplementing the smaller K-7 SeaSwords in the maritime patrol/attack role. The K-24 resembles a technological cross between a killer whale or beluga and a raptor, or a shark and a seal, with a long powerful streamlined body, large toothed jaw at one end, powerfully fluked and sharp-finned tail at the other, carried on two thick reverse-jointed legs. On land, the Shebu balances on its two legs and runs like a Monst-Crane, while in the water, the lower legs draw up into the large upper thighs, two bladed lateral fins snap out, and the streamlined Warmount powers through the water, propelled by a combination of mechanical action and high-power waterjets. The rider sits astride the beast, and is able to direct its actions, control its weaponry, and use her own handheld weaponry as well.

### Use

Though not as fast as the Sea Sword, the Shebu is better armored, and carries a heavier weight of armaments, including a powerful sonic cannon concealed inside its bulbous head, eye-mounted lasers, and slashing vibroblades. Additional weaponry includes modular weapons packs (common to many Shemarrian designs) and expendable ordnance such as missiles and torpedoes. Its better mobility on dry land makes it ideal for coastal patrols and amphibious assaults, allowing the Darkwaters to pursue opponents up onto the beach or back into the water as the situation dictates.

The K-24 is beginning to become more common in the ranks of the Darkwaters (and small numbers are showing in the ranks of the maritime divisions of the Shemarrian Star Nation Horrorwoods), leading to many older K-7 SeaSwords being cut loose by their former riders and deployed more as semi-autonomous ‘shepards’ or ‘attack sharks’.

Shebu have a ‘natural’ hatred of Horune Land Shark Drones, recognizing them as blood-enemies. Even though a Shebu isn’t able to stand up to an HLSD one-on-one, they be hard to restrain from making at least hit and run attacks against their sworn nemeses. If the Shebu can outnumber the Land Shark Drones, they will dogpack the Horune creatures, swirling about just out of weapons range, darting in to harass and wear down the transformed sharks until they are destroyed.

## Abilities

#### Leaping

Able to 16 ft up/across from standing position, while a running leap in excess of 60 MPH can propel the Shebu 60 ft across and 30 ft up. Can make a powered leap in water of 50 ft up and 80 ft across.

#### Climbing

The Shebu can scamper along tough terrain, but is not really suitable for climbing steep surfaces. Climbing skill equivalent to 60%.

### Sensors

#### Sonar

The Shebu has a sonar with a 7 mile range.

### Weapons Systems

#### Sonic Cannon

 Damage
 Rate of Fire

Mounted in the bulbous forehead is a powerful sonic cannon.

Damage: 1d6x10 MD per blast, plus 3d6 MD to a 10 ft diameter area around the blast area (double damage and range underwater).

Sonic weapons do HALF damage through light ‘soft’ armors like MDC barding and padded armor.

Unprotected personnel must save versus non-lethal poison (16 or higher) or be stunned for 1d4 melee rds. People in sealed power armor save at an 8 or higher for the wide area blast, but make a standard save for the concentrated blast.

The sonic vibrations can also be used to set up a resonance in hard armor that can stun or disorient living beings. Humans (and those most like them) will find these subsonic vibrations particularly irritating, the barely audible buzzing setting up painful discordance in their eardrums and auditory apparatus. Beings with enhanced hearing are particularly vulnerable to this attack (DOUBLE all penalties). Cyborgs and those with baffled hearing implants will NOT be affected by this.

Save versus psionic attack (12 or better) or be -1d4 to initiative, HALF all bonuses to strike/parry/dodge, and -1d4 to Maintain Balance. Roll under P.E. or fall unconscious for 1d6 melees.

Power Armor and EBA-wearers will be more susceptible to the effects of resonance, owing to their close proximity to the materials being affected. The effects are greatly diminished to occupants on a vehicle owing to the many interior structures that serve to dissipate and insulate the sound waves.

#### Vibroblades (2, lateral fins)

 Range2
 Damage

The lateral fin blades seem to have been copied off the Aqua-Tech Orca-50 power armor’s shoulder mounts, but are slightly longer and more stoutly reinforced.

#### Eye Lasers (2)

 Damage
 Damage2
 Damage3

The Shebu’s eyes can fire blue-green lasers, modified versions of other warmount eye lasers.

#### (Optional) Torpedoes

Torpedoes or mines can be carried and deployed from the flanks of the Shebu. However, the added structures and mass impose extra drag, at least until the ordnance is expended.

* Mini-Torpedoes: One 10 shot pod can be mounted per side. Reduce speed by 10% for one pod, 20% for two pods.

* Short Range Torpedoes: Three can be mounted per side. Reduce speed by 10% for one, 20% for two.

* Medium Range Torpedoes: One can be mounted per side. Reduce speed by 15% for one, 30% for two.

 Damage
 Damage2
 Rate of Fire
 Payload

Spear/Harpoon Gun: One can be mounted per side. Reduce speed by 10% for one, 20% for two. Loaded with either standard harpoons/spears, or can use MD penetrators for fighting against megadamage/supernatural creatures.

#### (Optional) Modular Weapons (2)

The Shebu has provision for torso-mounting two weapons similar to those standard to the Monst-rex.

### Programming

The Ecotroz have installed robotic AIs, then infected the matrix with a low-level Ecotroz sentience. The Shebu has a rough intelligence of 2d6+4.

Typically has the following:

 Track and Hunt Sea Animals

The Ecotroz entity can also pick up one Secondary skill at levels 2, 6, and 12 of experience, though the nature of the Shebu intelligence and design is such that it is limited to skill selections from Technical: Language (understanding) and Lore, Espionage (Detect Ambush, Detect Concealment), Wilderness (Track Humanoids, Track Animals, Hunting, Identify Plants and Fruits).

### Combat

 Dodge
 Parry
 Auto Dodge
 Strike
 Roll
 Pull Punch
 Disarm
 Leap Kick (2 attacks)
 Leaping Pounce/Stomp
 Restrained Nip
 Full Strength Bite
 Power Bite
 Head Butt/Body Block
 Tail Lash

The Shebu is adept at fighting both on land and in the water, making it an excellent amphibious assault warmount.

The Shebu can make a tail lash attack that has 50% chance of knockdown.

## Ecotroz Fragment

The Ecotroz intelligence fragment inhabiting the ‘bot gives the Shebu an aura and behavior more befitting a sentient being than a robot.

The Ecotroz fragment does occasionally need sleep/rest...though they only need 2 hours of rest/meditation per 24 hours...they can push this, going without for as many days as they have I.Q. points, but will have to go dormant for 4d6 hours after such exertion.

Note also that the Ecotroz-possessed ‘bot can infect other bots with the Ecotroz viral-entity, by bite or sustained touch (takes 3 attacks).

### Psionics

The Shebu has the following Natural Psionic Abilities (no ISP Cost), all equivalent to 6th level with regards to range and proficiency.

* Sense Evil
* Sense Magic
* Sixth Sense
* +10 save versus Horror Factor

## Variants

### EcoS-K- 24F

This variant arose to meet the need for airborne support. Though the EShemar Darkwaters had already been in communication with the EShemar Hawkmoons for some time, the Hawkmoons’ own pressing need for their struggling production of airborne Warmounts like the Battlehawk kept them from supplying the Darkwaters in anywhere near the numbers the Darkwaters needed. Furthermore, the K-4 Chirops and K-6 Battlehawks were not well-suited for marine operations anyways. However, the Hawkmoons did generously share their design data with the Darkwaters, who were able to modify the K-24 into a ‘flying fish’ variant, complete with folding wings. The K-24F subsequently became a rude surprise to the Splugorth when squadrons of these Warmounts burst from the waters to launch assaults on Splugorth shipping, often in concert with underwater attacks from standard model K-24s.

#### Size

Has a wingspand of 30 ft w/ wings fully extended.

#### Flying

Hover to 400 MPH, maximum altitude of 18,000 ft.

### EcoS-K- 24G

The ‘Narwhal’ variant, this version does away with the sonic cannon to mount an 8 ft-long unicorn-like horn in the forehead (not sticking out of the mouth) that serves as both a ramming weapon (glancing blow 2d6 MD, stab 4d6 MD, and a 2 APM power strike does 1d6x10 MD), that also doubles as a particle wave gun (based on reverse engineered Naut’yll technology), 4,000 ft range, 2d4x10+10 MD per blast.