BOTO (Bestiaforma mutabilis)
by Fred Furtado

     Boto is a weredolphin that lives in the Amazonian rivers and comes ashore on full moon nights to seduce young women and procreate.

Initiative: 5 + 1D6
Attacks: Humanoid, 6S
Powers: Enhanced Physical Attributes in animal form, Influence (Desire), Regeneration
Weaknesses: Allergy (Silver, Severe), Vulnerability (Silver)
Notes: The Identifying Feature is a breathing orifice on the top of the head. Active Magic is rare.

FOO CREATURES
by Paulino de Souza

     Foo creatures are protective spirits that manifest through special statues of lionine dogs. Such statues require special materials and rituals to be turned into receptacles for the spirits.

Powers: Empathy (Hillariation), Fear, Enhanced Movement, Guard, Immunity to Normal Weapons, Mana Detection, Search (Any terrain), Manifestation

GIANT SNAKE (Eunectes jormungandri)
by Paulino de Souza

IDENTIFICATION

The Giant Snake is the Awakened form of the anaconda (E. murinus). This Awakened snake reaches lengths of up to 60 meters and diameters of up to 3.5 meters and may weight up to 40 tons. The Giant Snake follows the same pattern of coloration of its progenitor species, being just slightly darker. Like the anaconda, it has 2 spurs at the posterior third of its body that are remnants of the posterior limbs.

SIMILAR SPECIES

Although some species of the genus Boa have yielded Awakened species that reached up to 15 meters in length, none of them can compete with the sheer size of the Giant Snake.

HABITAT

Large rivers and lakes.

MAGIC CAPABILITY

Innate.

HABITS

The Giant Snake is mainly aquatic and can remain submerged for almost 2 days. Even though it prefers water, the Giant Snake is quite comfortable at land, and may reach amazing speeds for brief periods of time. Reports indicate that when moving at these speeds, Giant Snakes crush great part of the vegetation in its way, generating a very loud sound that can be heard kilometers away.

It feeds on any animal that comes across. Depending on prey size, the Giant Snake may either gulp or constrict it. It has a very slow metabolism and may remain dormant for long periods of time, from several months to a few years. When awakening from its dormancy, a Giant Snake is very hungry and eats constantly, until it has had enough to initiate another dormancy period. During that time, Giant Snakes are very dangerous.

Giant Snakes have poor eyesight, but compensate with their highly developed sense of smell.

YOUNG

The reproductive habits of this species are virtually unknown. It is likely that Giant Snakes are ovoviviparous as its progenitor species. Very few young specimens have been observed so the frequency of their mating has yet to be established.

ECONOMIC VALUE

As is the case with several Awakened species, parts of this animal are sought after in the magical black market. But ever since the Amazonian government declared it a protected species, it has become extremely difficult to find them.

RANGE

Tropical regions of South and Central America.

COMMENTARY

It is believed that there are very few specimens of this species, since no ecosystem would be able to sustain a large population of these creatures. These snakes were first sighted during the Amazonian coup, when they literally crushed the Brazilian columns.

Other unconfirmed reports describe amazing battles between Giant Snakes and Juggernauts.

POWERS

Enhanced Quickness (1/day, (Essence)D6 turns), Enhanced Movement, Enhanced Senses (Smell)

WEAKNESSES

None

SHADOWTALK

>>>>>[Taking down juggernauts?!! Get out of here!!! I’ve seen juggers, from a safe distance I might add, and there can be no fragging snake mean enough to eat one of them!]<<<<<

– Chopper Charlie (19:12:47/ 1-2-58)

>>>>>[oooooOOOOoooo! Mean gringo’s seen mean armadillo, and now thinks he knows it all!! Go peek at the Amazonian official net, man, and look for the war recs, and then come talk to me.]<<<<<

– Garra (19:14:18/ 1-2-58)

>>>>>[If you’re talking about these snakes taking on tanks, juggers have eaten tanks, low brain!]<<<<<

– Chopper Charlie(19:17:04/ 1-2-58)

>>>>>[By the dozen? Go check those files, it’s propaganda all right, but I don’t believe they had to exaggerate any of those records.]<<<<<

– Garra (19:20:47/ 1-2-58)

>>>>>[Is it true what they say about the dragons being very protective of these snakes?]<<<<<

– Thresher (13:12:13/ 1-3-58)

>>>>>[That’s what I heard, specially after BIO-BRAS put a reward for any sizable piece of these snakes.]<<<<<

– Garra (13: 13: 22/ 1-3-58)

>>>>>[What’s this BIO-BRAS? And what do they want with the snakes?]<<<<<

– Thresher (13:15:03/ 1-3-58)

>>>>>[It is a corp from SPCS that’s after the Giant Snakes’ highly complex proteins to develop som#%&*$@!^*)(

>>>>>[Garra?]<<<<<

– Thresher (13:18:34/ 1-3-58)

>>>>>[Gar%^%*^&$#^(

GAME INFORMATION

Attacks: 12D (constriction), 5S (swallow), + 5 reach
Powers: Enhanced Quickness (1/day, (Essence)D6 turns), Enhanced Movement, Enhanced Senses (Smell)
Weaknesses: None
Notes: Swimming multiplier is 6.

The swallow attack is only applicable to targets with 3 meters or less and requires the Giant Snake to make, at least, three net successes. Once swallowed, the target must resist the specified damage each round, but impact armor helps at half value. However, attackers from the inside of the Giant Snake bypass its armor and have their Power level increased by 2.

Constriction is only possible with bulky targets larger than 4 meters. The specified damage for constriction is only applicable in the round following a successful attack.

GIANT TATUÍ (tah-too-EE) (Sand Shark)
Hippa behemah

by Fred Furtado

     The Sand Shark has become a significant problem in Brazilian beaches. Common in more desert beaches, it waits buried in the sand for prey, springing up a the merest vibration to attack.

Initiative: 4 + 2D6
Attacks: 6S
Powers: Corrosive Salive, Hardened Armor
Weaknesses: Allergy (Pollutants, Severe)

GREATER TATARANA (TAH-tah-r’an-nah)
by Fred Furtado

     The Awakened form of a poisonous caterpillar, it is very dangerous.

Initiative: 2 + 1D6
Attacks: 2L
Powers: Corrosive Saliva, Corrosive Secretions, Venom

Shadowtalk:

>>>>>[HEADLESS MULE]<<<<<
by Fred Furtado & Paulino de Souza

>>>>>[Chummerinos, this one I got from a minor BBS here in Seattle. Check it out.]<<<<<

– Captain Chaos (12:05:45/ 01-05-58)

>>>>>[Hoi, ppl. Forget about greater maned wolves and tree lions, *this* thing is truly SCARY! Let me tell you how me and some of my now-deceased teammates got fragged up by one of this monsters.

A couple of months back, a Johnson hired us for a run down in Amazonia. It was a simple wetwork on a corp slot who was vacationing in a ranch in the central marshlands. The nuyen was right for the job, the Johnson said he would take care of the travel and we would still have time to get to know the chicas from Rio on the way back. So we agreed.

During the following week, we did our homework and studied everything we could about Amazonian laws, geography and paranimals. After getting some Linguasofts of Portuguese and Tupi, we hauled our gear to a private airstrip in Tacoma, where we met the Johnson. Travel was okay. We stopped once in CalFree and again in Paraguay (or, at least, what’s left of it).

Then a stealth chopper flew us across the border and dropped us 10 klicks from the ranch. We proceeded by foot with me on the lead, Topaz right behind, ready to whip up some mojo, and Red-Fang and Brickwall bringing up the rear. Halfway through, I started picking up these galloping and snorting sound. As I said, we had done our homework, there were no wild horses in those marshlands, and no one with any degree of sanity would be riding at that hour of the night. Anyway, I assumed it was a guard and signaled to the rest to hit the dirt and play dead. That’s when I felt this weird feeling of panic rising up in my chest. I figured that’s because it’s my first run outside the sprawl and so, but when I saw Brickwall getting up and running for his life, I knew something was wrong. Brickwall is a mean, green motherfragging Troll, who managed to survive in the buzz for ten years without any chrome except a level 1 boosted reflexes. And I’d never even seen the guy fret before.

Topaz stood up and threw a manablast at whatever I thought was riding the horse. It didn’t work and I heard her saying "They’re fighting it." "Drek!" I thought "More of them!" And then Topaz lighted up, like one of those fire elementals she kept talking about, and screamed. She had just been wasted in flames, right in front of me. Before I could grasp what was happening, something jumped over me and Red-Fang. I looked back in time to see something that looked like a two-meter tall horse running after Brickwall. Funny thing was: the fragger had no head! And to top it all, it seemed to be breathing fire. I looked around expecting to see other horse things, but there were none. I still don’t know what "they" Topaz was referring to.

The panic finally took over me and I started running back toward the extraction zone. I remember Red-Fang going after the horse thing, guns blazing.

I waited a full hour before calling for extraction, all the time trying to contact Red-Fang or Brickwall. Neither one answered. The chopper got me out of there and I never even considered going near that area again.

The Johnson went ballistic and left me in Paraguay. I had to spend all I had, and then some, to make it back to Seattle. I tried to find some data about the horse thing, but there were no records about a paranimal that looked like it.

Frag the girls from Ipanema! I ain’t ever going south of the Rio Grande again.]<<<<<

– Ironbear (13:34:29/ 10-22-57)

>>>>>[Ironbear is wrong. There are records about the headless mule on the Amazonian (formerly Brazilian) Parazoological Journal. In the June ‘37 issue, there is a short communication, with a brief description, where they name the species Eqqus acephalus. Here’s the picture from the article.]<<<<<

Doc (15:34:17/ 1-5-58)

_display_PICTURE_:_loc_305/33#7AEE

>>>>>[Look what I dug up in the BIO-BRAS databanks:

53ey446y7666%^&^%% ...kened form of the mule, a hybrid between the horse (E. caballus) and the burro (E. asinus). Second, it is actually almost headless. The cranium is almost vestigial and the neck is completely reduced. The only visible trace of the head are the nostrils situated above and slightly forward from the animals shoulders _2.0 Mp UNREADABLE_ ... tan throughout the body, with the tail being black. However, the most striking feature of this animal is the flaming breath it exhales from its nostrils..._7.5 Mp UNREADABLE_ ...es not breed. Apparently, in some offsprings, a certain gene cluster is homozygous for all the recessive alleles, causing the headless phenotype to develop. Allelic frequencies indicate that this happens once in every 1,000 births.

Sorry about the mess, but those bozos have some nasty ice in their net, man. I’ve also heard that they are paying big nuyen for a live one.]<<<<<

– Buzz Deck (10:11:24/ 1-6-58)

>>>>>[Hmm...]<<<<<

– Looking-for-the-Cash (18:29:37/ 1-6-58)

>>>>>[Ma sun, I woodn’t rush too collet dis bounty. Ive seen dis mansterss in the Plane Abovi. Der ar much evil sprits ridin on der back and the mule feed dem wif our life, our secred essence. Plis ma sun, stay away fhrom dem mules!]<<<<<

– Pai Dedé de Shango (21:00:32/ 1-6-58)

>>>>>[Does anybody has a spellchecker or, better yet, a decoder?]<<<<<

– Buzz Deck (21:03:56/ 1-6-57)

>>>>>["Hmm..." still.]<<<<<

– Looking-for-the-Cash (21:15:20/ 1-6-58)

>>>>>[Better run, merc. After we are through, there will be no abominations left in our beloved country. Brazil forever! Down with the dragons!]<<<<<

– True Brazilian (21:16:34/ 1-5-58)

>>>>>[How come the mule didn’t fry Drecklessbear and Red-Fang?]<<<<<

– Curious Cat (00:04:45/ 1-7-58)

>>>>>[Five will get you ten they were heavily wired. If the Shango pop’s right, and "dem mules" feed on essence, they would be like dry bones to "dem."]<<<<<

–StoneFoot (00:08:53/ 1-7-58)

>>>>>[Any ideas about this drek of evil spirits riding the mules’ back?]<<<<<

– Looking-for-the-Cash (00:11:07/ 1-7-58)

>>>>>[From what I see in Ironbear’s report these spirits are the "they" Topaz was talking about. It looks like they live in some sort of symbiotic (symspiritual?) relationship with the headless mule. It probably feeds them with essence while they protect the mule in the astral plane.]<<<<<

–StoneFoot (00:21:32/ 1-7-58)

>>>>>[But they won’t protect the mule from a dart full of narcoject.]<<<<<

– Looking-for-the-Cash (00:25:14/ 1-7-58)

>>>>>[Darts?! You gotta mean explosive rounds!]<<<<<

– Curious Cat (00:27:33/ 1-7-58)

>>>>>[They need it alive, deadbrain!]<<<<<

– Looking-for-the-Cash (00:29:27/ 1-7-58)

>>>>>[And stupidity killed everybody else....]

– Curious Cat (00:32:52/ 1-7-58)

GAME INFORMATION

Attacks: 6S, + 1 reach
Powers: Essence Drain, Fear, Flame Breath, Immunity to Fire, Magical Resistance
Weaknesses: Allergy (Sunlight, Mild), Essence Loss
Notes: Someone observing from the Astral, would see the spells being attacked by small, twisted, sometimes humanoid entities.

IARA (ee-AH-r’ah)
Iarae dissimulatrix (Merhomo fluvialis)

by Fred Furtado & Paulino de Souza

     The Iara is the Awakened form of the Brazilian giant otter.

Initiative: 4 + 1D6
Attacks: 6S
Powers: Desire Reflection
Weaknesses: Allergy (Pollutants, Severe)

IPUPIARA (ee-POO-pee-ah-r’ah)
Fluvihomo nefandus

by Fred Furtado

     This terrible creature is an anthropomorphic Awakened piranha.

Initiative: 5 + 2D6
Attacks: 6M, Humanoid
Powers: Enhanced Senses (Low-Light)

RIVER DRAKE, LESSER
Caiman draconis

by Fred Furtado & Paulino de Souza

     The Awakened form of the Brazilian alligator ranges from Amazonian basin down to the central western marshlands.

Initiative: 5 + 2D6
Attacks: 6S
Powers: Enhanced Movement (3/day, EssenceD6 turns), Enhanced Senses (Low-Light and Thermographic Vision)
Note: Swimming multiplier is 5.

UIRAPURU (wee-r’ah-poo-R’OO)
Leucolepis modulator (novalis)

by Fred Furtado

     An Amazonian bird with magical protection powers. Very valued by talismongers and runners who have to face a lot of magical opposition.

Initiative: 4 + 1D6
Attacks: 2L
Powers: Hypnotic Song, Magical Guard, Magical Resistance
Note: Uirapuru’s feathers grant an extra die for Spell Defense.

Mist Form
by Fred Furtado
     This spell duplicates the Awakened power Mist Form (Shadowrun II, p. 219). It requires a voluntary subject and does not transform clothing and equipment. While under the effects of this spell, the magician cannot speak, but can cast spells. However, Mist Form precludes the use of most (if not all) Centering Skills and some geasa.
Note: The Mist Form spell was designed by Flashfingers and kept secret. He did not publish, sold or otherwise promoted it. So, if a character wants to learn it, he has either to design it from scratch, steal the spell's formula, or convince Flashfingers to teach it to him. He keeps a copy of the formula in the Eldritch Riders' base, which has elemental guardians, wards, etc. Flashfingers will teach the spell to any member of the Eldritch Riders, but that person is bound by the Oath not to teach the spell to outsiders.
Type: Mana                    Range: Touch               Target: Willpower
Duration: Sustained     Drain:(F/2)D

Ares 66K Sniper Rifle

Created by Ares to compete in the sniper market, the 66K is the stealthy sniper companion. Constructed completely from ceramic components, this rifle is invisible to Magnetic Anomaly Detectors (MAD), allowing it to be transported even in high-surveillance areas.

Chandler Shotgun

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