Note from the writer: These colorful ooze people have quickly become quintessential Dark Matter, so as we look ahead to the release of the sourcebook’s new version for the 2024 ruleset, we have to start with them!
“Another failed experiment,” muttered Yr. The amoeboid’s nucleus flashed dark red with resigned frustration as a pair of automatons scraped viscera off the walls and ceiling of his medical bay.
“The serum made no difference—those cows were just like the last batch,” grumbled Yr. He made his way to the next room, where a terrified human lay restrained on a table, yelling incoherently.
Yr tapped the man on the shoulder with a blobby appendage, setting off a ripple of changes through the amoeboid’s body, settling into the vague shape of a human with an overlarge head and bulging eyes.
“Sorry for the inconvenience,” Yr apologized in the man’s language. “I wish I could repay you for your livestock, but we have rules against that sort of thing. Now please stop squirming while I prepare a memory modification.”
— Yr, amoeboid scientist, assessing a Void experiment
Amoeboids are intelligent, vaguely humanoid-shaped oozes that can mimic the form of any creature they touch. These beings dwell on Maw stations, experimenting at the cutting edge of science and parlaying with any creature they encounter.
Fluid Anatomy
Amoeboid bodies are composed of a translucent jellylike substance with a complex network of nerves visible throughout, emitting a dim light. They range in color from blues and purples to bubblegum pink, with scintillating rainbows in between. Within an amoeboid’s head floats a large, brain-like nucleus surrounded by five radially spaced eyespots—their unearthly equivalent of a face.
An amoeboid can take a genetic imprint of a creature they touch, molding into an inexact copy, visibly made of the same jelly material. When in this form, they can speak the language of their subject and move in much the same way, allowing them to empathize with virtually any creature.
Mawkeepers
Amoeboids originate on the Maw stations and most reside there, researching the stations’ ancient technology, repairing ships and Dark Matter engines, and meeting people from across the ‘Verse. By default, their position is that of galactic ambassadors, a role which many amoeboids relish. They tend to regard newcomers with curiosity and enthusiasm, a disposition that has transformed their Maw stations into central meeting places across the ‘Verse
Scientists and Visitors
Most amoeboids view the ‘Verse through a lens of science and reason. With proper experimentation, the multiverse can be defined solely through the workings of magic and physics. Amoeboid researchers regard no subject as taboo as long as its methodology is sound and likely to produce useful data.
For centuries, amoeboids have taken to secretly visiting undeveloped worlds, disguising themselves and their saucers to experiment upon the inhabitants. These experiments are usually noninvasive but nonetheless unwelcome. As a result, many worlds share tales of strange visitors from the stars, looking much like them, but strangely distorted, stealing away individuals by night and performing strange rituals in brightly lit rooms. Amoeboids will also vivisect the odd head of livestock, but these occurrences are more likely to be blamed on predators than on visitors from the stars.
Amoeboid Traits
Creature Type: Ooze
Size: Medium (about 4-5 feet tall) or Small (about 3-4 feet tall), chosen when you select this species
Speed: 30 feet
As an Amoeboid, you have these special traits.
Amorphous. You can move through any space as narrow as 1 inch.
Biomimicry. You can take a Magic action to touch a creature and shape-shift into its general form. Your size and other statistics don’t change. If the target has a Burrow Speed, Climb Speed, or Swim Speed, you gain that Speed, to a maximum of 40 feet.
Your transformation lasts for 1 hour or until you dismiss it (no action required). If you shape-shift into
a form incapable of wearing clothing or armor, your clothing or armor falls off. Your ability to handle objects is determined by the form’s limbs rather than your own.
Flexible Form. You can take a Magic action to stretch, compress, and mold your body into a myriad of shapes. You can shape-shift into any static form that you choose that is no larger than 8 feet in any dimension. When you assume this form, you can replicate something’s basic shape but not its color, texture, moving parts, or fine details. You can’t change your body’s volume, nor can you move, attack, or cast spells while you’re shape-shifted into a static shape.
Reform. Whenever you’re hit by an attack that deals Bludgeoning, Piercing, or Slashing damage and you don’t drop to 0 Hit Points, you can take a Reaction to immediately regain 1d4 Hit Points, up to a maximum of the amount of damage taken.
This healing increases when you reach character levels 5 (1d6), 11 (1d8), and 17 (1d10).
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Hello there! Loved your original Dark Matter book and I’m hyped to hear the new version coming. I’ve actually had an idea buzzing in the back of my mind since reading through it and now might be the best time to pose it you you. Have you considered making a bard college of Comm: A, that genre of music popular within the Dark Matter Setting? Seeing as the music involved is naturally and very much randomly generated by whatever signals are picked up, perhaps a Comm: A bard would either be something akin to a random Wild Magic Bard, or perhaps a bard with abilities that change depending on its environment or the individuals surrounding the bard (if any).
Please let me know what you think!
Hey, that’s a super fun idea! I could play around and see if there’s a good implementation there.
I’ve actually cut Comm:A from the appendices, thought, because I really don’t want to grapple with the reality of where AI-generated content (in this case, music) is in the present day. When we first wrote Dark Matter, AI-generators existed in college computer science labs and were fun experiments — now they’re at the center of a controversy of copyright and artistic expression. Perhaps there’s a way to straddle that line with a more nuanced approach if we gave it a whole subclass? Something for me to chew on
I do get where you’re coming from, yeah, though Comm:A didn’t exactly seem AI-generated since it’s literally just a radio (not a program) intercepting signals on that channel, so it strikes me more as windchimes making music to the breeze that passes through it (though perhaps tweaking the dial on that radio could inexplicably alter the genre or flavor, as if the origin designed the signals that way).
That being said, Comm:A (as well as the Murmurs which are functionally just that but white noise whispers) have always caught my attention as a powerful potential plot point; say you wanted to figure out where they’re coming from, and arcanists, researchers, and bards alike are in a never ending search to find out where the signals and sounds come from. Perhaps Old Un is simply broadcasting music himself for all to listen to on his grand stage, and is allowing the people to quite literally contribute a ‘Verse. Perhaps the Murmurs too are simply an unseen audience. These unto themselves could make excellent adventure starters.
Maybe reflavor it a bit if you feel it’s a bit controversial, but I really don’t wanna see that potential lore nugget disappear into the Void.