The Xenobiologist is not a biologist. Biologists work in labs with sterilised equipment and funding from academic institutions that no longer exist. The Xenobiologist works in the field -- on uncharted worlds, in Derelict biodomes, in the fungal forests of Rim death-worlds where every spore is a potential bioweapon and every creature is undocumented. The Xenobiologist catalogs life that has never been catalogued. The Xenobiologist is the reason the party knows the difference between a creature that will flee and a creature that will fight to the death.
Asset Realisation books the Xenobiologist as "biological survey asset -- field-deployed." The corps send Xenobiologists to worlds the corps intend to exploit: mining colonies, agri-world terraforming projects, military outposts. The Xenobiologist surveys the local biosphere and identifies threats, resources, and opportunities. Some corps deploy Xenobiologists to weaponise alien biology -- toxin extraction, pathogen harvesting, gene-splicing research. The Xenobiologist who refuses this work is reclassified as "asset -- noncompliant" and finds their funding, permits, and extraction privileges revoked.
The Xenobiologist's Catalogue is their life's work: a growing database of every organism encountered, with attack modes, vulnerabilities, harvestable compounds, and ecological context. Against catalogued creatures, the Xenobiologist and their allies fight with superior knowledge. Unknown creatures are catalogued in the field -- the Xenobiologist reads the organism while the party holds it off, and the party's chances improve the moment the analysis completes.
Operating on the Tech/Academic chassis (d6 HD, half BAB, Fort/Ref poor, Will good, 4 SP). No armour -- field research requires mobility and unimpeded senses. Pistol, knife, sample extractor -- the Xenobiologist fights to survive, not to kill. Prime requisites: INT (analysis) and WIS (knowing when the specimen is about to attack).
Rules Reference
Field
Value
Armor Allowance
None
Bab Tier
half
Base Skill Points
4
Hd
d6
Hd Sides
6
Max Level
20
Multiclass Notes
Xenobiologists can multiclass with Academic and Sawbones archetypes. Non-humans use simultaneous multiclassing rules.
Archetype Niche: The Xenobiologist is the party's alien-life expert. Xeno-Catalogue turns every new organism from a threat into a resource -- identified weaknesses, harvestable compounds, and combat bonuses against catalogued creatures. Field Bio-Analysis provides environmental threat detection and deep organism understanding. Xeno-Exploitation weaponizes biology: toxins from alien venom, pharmaceuticals from xeno-fungi, bio-materials from creature chitin. The Xenobiologist's niche is turning the alien ecosystem into a toolkit.
Level Table
Lab Assistant
Field
Value
bab
0
fortitude
0
level
1
reflex
0
skillPoints
16
title
Lab Assistant
will
2
xp
0
Field Researcher
Field
Value
bab
1
fortitude
0
level
2
reflex
0
skillPoints
4
title
Field Researcher
will
3
xp
2500
Xenobiologist
Field
Value
bab
1
fortitude
1
level
3
reflex
1
skillPoints
4
title
Xenobiologist
will
3
xp
5000
Senior Xenobiologist
Field
Value
bab
2
fortitude
1
level
4
reflex
1
skillPoints
4
title
Senior Xenobiologist
will
4
xp
10000
Master Xenobiologist
Field
Value
bab
2
fortitude
1
level
5
reflex
1
skillPoints
4
title
Master Xenobiologist
will
4
xp
20000
Grand Xenobiologist
Field
Value
bab
3
fortitude
2
level
6
reflex
2
skillPoints
4
title
Grand Xenobiologist
will
5
xp
40000
World-Biologist
Field
Value
bab
3
fortitude
2
level
7
reflex
2
skillPoints
4
title
World-Biologist
will
5
xp
70000
High World-Biologist
Field
Value
bab
4
fortitude
2
level
8
reflex
2
skillPoints
4
title
High World-Biologist
will
6
xp
110000
Life-Catalogue Master
Field
Value
bab
4
fortitude
3
level
9
reflex
3
skillPoints
4
title
Life-Catalogue Master
will
6
xp
160000
High Life-Master
Field
Value
bab
5
fortitude
3
level
10
reflex
3
skillPoints
4
title
High Life-Master
will
7
xp
220000
Gene-Reader
Field
Value
bab
5
fortitude
3
level
11
reflex
3
skillPoints
4
title
Gene-Reader
will
7
xp
290000
High Gene-Reader
Field
Value
bab
6
fortitude
4
level
12
reflex
4
skillPoints
4
title
High Gene-Reader
will
8
xp
360000
Xeno-Shaper
Field
Value
bab
6
fortitude
4
level
13
reflex
4
skillPoints
4
title
Xeno-Shaper
will
8
xp
430000
High Xeno-Shaper
Field
Value
bab
7
fortitude
4
level
14
reflex
4
skillPoints
4
title
High Xeno-Shaper
will
9
xp
500000
Life-Weaver
Field
Value
bab
7
fortitude
5
level
15
reflex
5
skillPoints
4
title
Life-Weaver
will
9
xp
570000
High Life-Weaver
Field
Value
bab
8
fortitude
5
level
16
reflex
5
skillPoints
4
title
High Life-Weaver
will
10
xp
640000
Galactic Biologist
Field
Value
bab
8
fortitude
5
level
17
reflex
5
skillPoints
4
title
Galactic Biologist
will
10
xp
710000
High Galactic Biologist
Field
Value
bab
9
fortitude
6
level
18
reflex
6
skillPoints
4
title
High Galactic Biologist
will
11
xp
780000
The Living Catalogue
Field
Value
bab
9
fortitude
6
level
19
reflex
6
skillPoints
4
title
The Living Catalogue
will
11
xp
850000
Supreme Xenobiologist
Field
Value
bab
10
fortitude
6
level
20
reflex
6
skillPoints
4
title
Supreme Xenobiologist
will
12
xp
920000
Special Abilities
Xeno-Catalogue
Field
Value
level
1
name
Xeno-Catalogue
description: The Xenobiologist gains Xenology as a class skill with a +3 competence bonus. When encountering a new alien organism, the Xenobiologist makes a Xenology check (DC = 10 + creature's Threat Rating). On success, the Xenobiologist identifies: species (or closest known relative), ecological role, attack modes, vulnerabilities, resistances, and any harvestable compounds (toxins, Pharmaceuticals, bio-materials). The creature is added to the Xenobiologist's Catalogue. Against catalogued creatures, the Xenobiologist and allies gain +1 to attack and damage (increasing by +1 per 5 Xenobiologist levels). The Catalogue can hold a number of entries equal to INT score.
Field Bio-Analysis
Field
Value
level
3
name
Field Bio-Analysis
description: With 10 minutes of analysis and a biological sample (tissue, blood, spore, secretion), the Xenobiologist can determine: the organism's home environment, diet, reproductive method, social structure (solitary/pack/hive), and whether it is native, engineered, or Fold-tainted. The Xenobiologist can also identify biological hazards (toxins, parasites, diseases) in the environment before the party is exposed. At level 9, analysis takes 1 minute. At level 15, the Xenobiologist can synthesize a counter-agent to one biological threat (antitoxin, antiparasitic, fungicide) from the sample itself with a Xenology check DC 20.
Xeno-Exploitation
Field
Value
level
5
name
Xeno-Exploitation
description: The Xenobiologist can extract and weaponize or utilize compounds from catalogued organisms. With 1 hour of work and a Xenology check (DC 15 + creature's Threat Rating), the Xenobiologist can produce from a harvested sample: a toxin (applied to weapons, DC = 10 + Xenobiologist level + INT mod, 2d6 damage + effect based on source), a Pharmaceutical (heals 2d8 HP, removes one condition, or grants +2 to an ability score for 1 hour), or a bio-material (bioluminescent coating, adhesive secretion, chitin armour patch +2 AC for 1 encounter). The Xenobiologist can carry harvested compounds equal to INT modifier. Compounds degrade after 72 hours. At level 12, the Xenobiologist can cultivate a living sample (maintain one catalogued small organism as a contained specimen that regenerates compounds).