Amorph

From StarWiki

The amorph are a gelatinous, silicon-based, life form.

Description

Originating from a planet completely uninhabitable to humans because of its incredibly hot temperatures and unbearably high gravitational field, the amorph are an intelligent race of gelatinous, grey, ooze. Their composition isn't fully understood, but it is known to be primarily silicon, as opposed to carbon in most known lifeforms. Their structure is that of an amorphous solid. Meaning they are completely liquid, until a force is exerted on them and then they behave like a solid. They have no limbs, no detectable nervous system, no centralized brain, sensory organs, or genitalia.

Having no apparent technology of their own, no one is sure how the amorph have managed to make their way out into space and spread throughout the known universe. It is believed that the first ones to leave their planet must have hitched a ride on an exploratory vessel to their homeworld. When they were first discovered on Earth crowded around active volcanic calderas, they were thought to be nothing more than autonomous puddles of ooze, some sort of accidental side effect of the Big Oops. It took the amorph a long time to learn how to speak humanoid languages to interact, since they have no vocal abilities they actually speak by squishing and smacking their body ooze about. Their voices sounding somewhat like armpit farts.

They are believed to reproduce through karyostenosis, much like single celled organisms on Earth, although, there is no detectable nucleus in a amorph.

The race itself is very old, they have lived unchanged for several million years. They do not have a social structure or any sort of written history. They just are.

Abilities

Being liquid has its advantages, they can flow through locked doors. Cutting weapons do little, or no damage - passing through. For some reason thrusting still does damage, it is thought that it disrupts the cellular bonds in a concentrated area just enough. Due to the nature of their habitat, which is extremely hot, they are actually healed by heat or fire based attacks. They have even been observed 'bathing' in lava flows. Cold based attacks slow them down, if used enough they can even cause them to freeze solid for a short period of time.

Ingestion of nutrients is done through direct cellular absorption. They can break down and digest almost any material in mere seconds, but inorganic objects are more nutritious to them, rather than carbon based foods.

Since they do not breathe, they do not need oxygen. They could survive under water and in open space without a problem, if it weren't for the cold temperatures.

Though, being liquid, the amorph can not manipulate weapons, and while they could fit into armor, they are unable to maintain a single shape for a long enough period of time to make it worth the effort. They can manipulate basic things like door knobs, buttons, and switches.