Metagame Warning!
The knowledge in this page may not be accessible to the average character, as it may not be common knowledge.
Please consider if your character would know this knowledge first before using it in roleplay.
Author Note: They are a fairly common hyperspace organism, but their history and relevance to psionics isn't widely known.
Shamir | |
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An adult Shamir. | |
Classification | |
Family: | Mystolapidea |
Genus: | Vermicus |
Type Species | |
Sapiovermis | |
Found In | |
Hyperspace terrestial planets, anchor worlds. | |
Tamability | |
Insects. Huge numbers can be controlled via animalian mind control or other psionic abilities. | |
Products | |
Shamir mucus, silicon. | |
Rarity | |
Common. Forms colonies. |
A Shamir is an interloper species of worm known for their ability to consume stone and other minerals for sustenance and the construction of their colonies. They are capable of existing in realspace, and have been historically utilized by ancient psions that neuroinvasively controlled them (or contracted another psion or entity that can control them) to perform incredible acts of masonry and art that would be difficult or impossible to perform with conventional technology.
Shamir are tiny worms, ranging from the size of a barley grain to a fingernail depending on their age. They have a hardened carapace, with its color depending on what material makes up its diet. They have four small legs and two sets of three eyes.
Shamir worms are eusocial colony organisms that can be found in rocky areas in hyperspace, feeding on large sections of rocks that they use for sustenance and the construction of their colony nests. In places that use stone for their buildings they can be pests.
The most unique biological aspect of shamir is their consumption of stone and minerals, which they use a special anomalous solvent for that they secret from a gland as mucus. Shamir mucus has the ability to dissolve stone and other minerals such as gemstones fairly quickly and precisely, allowing them to acquire elements important for nutrition as well as material for their colonies and carapaces. In addition, they excrete small amounts of pure elemental silicon.
Shamir worms existed throughout history as an interloper organism that could be pulled from hyperspace and to our own world to be used, much like qarins and other similar organisms. They were conjured by ancient magicians to perform incredible acts of masonry using their abilities, using their powers to build towers and temples dedicated to their Art; it is even described that they were used to cut and engrave gemstones and create stone reliefs as artwork. Shamir were either controlled directly by a magician, or in most cases, by another entity that was themself summoned or contracted by a magician to do their bidding.
Shamir worms were also prized for their mucus, which could be collected and used to dissolve stones and minerals. Their most common use was for cutting a large amount of stone by pouring small amounts of the mucus into a crack or fault and allowing it to separate. Shamir mucus also can be used to extract metal from ores.