Neanderthals

Neanderthals are a xenotype of slow and sturdy humans.

Lore

Neanderthals are stocky, powerfully-built humanoids. Their most salient characteristic is that they are difficult to hurt: they are very resistant to injury, and their strong immune systems protect them from infection. However, without ever having evolved in a complex civilization, they are less adept than baseliner humans at intellectual and social tasks, and their impulsiveness can make them dangerously aggressive.
Homo neanderthalensis was originally an archaic population of hominids that emerged over 200,000 years ago during the Pleistocene epoch. After they were replaced by and merged with humans 30,000 years ago, they were absent for tens of thousands of years until scientists resurrected them from ancient DNA. Neanderthals now survive in sub-societies on some settled planets. On the rimworlds, neanderthal tribes carve out the same existence as their Earth ancestors did so long ago. - In Game Description

Occurrence

The table below describes the chance for a given pawn from each faction being a neanderthal. Note that this value does not account for chances in xenotype chance from ideoligion or from pawn kind, it only shows the base value before those factors.

As raiders, neanderthals have a x1.6 combat power multiplier, meaning they count as 1.6 of a raider.^[Verify] A raid consisting of all neanderthals would be 62.5% as large as the same raid with baseliners.

Summary

Neanderthals are slow in more ways than one, but they are excellent survivors. They are also strongly suited for melee fighting, and much less for shooting. They cannot be easily identified at first glance, but if you get in a fight with one, their unique talent for staying upright will soon be apparent.

Genes

Highmates have a gene complexity of 12 complexity. With a +2 metabolic efficiency, they have a hunger rate of ×80.

All neanderthal have these endogenes:

Assorted:

Strong immunity	Slow runner	Cold tolerant	Heat tolerant	Strong melee damage	Robust	Reduced pain	Slow study	Aggressive

Cosmetic:

Heavy jaw	Heavy brow	Hulk body	Standard body	Fat body

Skills:

Poor shooting	Poor social	Poor intellectual

Origins

Neanderthals have banded together to form a touchy, fierce Neanderthal Tribe. With a lot of work you may get on good terms with them. There is also a small chance for them to show up with Empire parties, and a slight chance they will appear with outlanders or pirate bands. You may also see Neanderthals with unaffiliated groups of travelers or during quests.

Analysis

Neanderthal tribes

Despite using tribal technology, neanderthals enemies should not be underestimated in combat. With reduced pain, neanderthals take twice as much damage before being downed by pain shock. Pain shock is, by far, the most common way to down enemies in combat. This is further multiplied by the robust gene, which effectively gives another ×133% health in any situation. If they get into melee range, they are brutes due to strong melee damage and the aforementioned factors. Thankfully, neanderthal raids will be smaller than usual.

Due to their melee focus, low tech, smaller numbers, and slow runner gene, kiting tactics can be effective. But kiting isn't the end-all solution. Neanderthals aren't that slow; at 4.40 c/s, they are nearly 96% as fast as a baseliner. Just wearing a flak vest will reduce a baseliner's speed to 4.48 c/s, which is very close to a neanderthal's speed. Factors like terrain, light, and injury can lead to neanderthals catching up quickly.

Neanderthal colonists

As colonists, neanderthals retain all of their strengths: reduced pain, reduced damage, and high melee damage. Neanderthals are also resistant to both disease and temperature. In return, you'll have to account for their weaknesses. Slow study results in x50% skill XP, which ends up being a large penalty for any skill. They are even worse at Shooting, Social, and Intellectual. And aggressive results in more social fights. With strong melee, social fights can easily result in lost limbs.

Overall, neanderthals are great melee colonists, though come with a few notable downsides. It may be wise to extract neanderthal genes and implant them on other colonists. This allows you to make xenotypes just as strong as a neanderthal, without the severe negative from the slow study gene.

Gene extraction

Some of the more valuable genes neanderthals have to extract are:

• Robust - Reduces damage globally. A globally positive trait.
• Poor <Skill> - If a pawn won't use these skills, poor skill genes are a net positive.

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Biotech (DLC)

Families

Relationships (Reproduction • Children)
Life stages (Babies • Children • Adults)
Furniture (Crib • Baby sleeping spot • Growth vat • Toy box • Baby decoration • School desk • Blackboard)

Mechanoids

Laborers (Agrihand • Cleansweeper • Constructoid • Fabricor • Lifter • Paramedic • Tunneler)
Combatants (Centurion • Legionary • Militor • Scorcher • Tesseron)
Commanders (Apocriton • Diabolus • War queen • War urchin)

Mechanitors

Control (Mechlink • Band node • Mech boosters • Mech signallers • Control pack • Airwire headset)
Mechanoid creation (Basic subcore • Standard subcore • High subcore • Subcore encoder • Subcore softscanner • Subcore ripscanner • Mech gestator)
Maintenance (Mech recharger)

Genetics

Xenohumans (Dirtmoles • Genies • Highmates • Hussars • Impids • Neanderthals • Pigskins • Sanguophages • Wasters • Yttakin)
Genes Germline • Xenogene • Metabolic efficiency
Genetic Modification Genepack • Gene extractor • Gene bank • Gene assembler • Gene processor • Xenogerm • Archite capsules
Deathrest (Deathrest accelerator • Deathrest capacity serum • Deathrest casket • Glucosoid pump • Hemogen amplifier • Hemopump • Psychofluid pump)

Pollution

Nature (Toxalope • Toxipotato plant • Waste rat • Gray pine tree • Pebble cactus • Rat palm tree • Witchwood tree • Stasis cocoon)
Mitigation (Wastepacks • Atomizers • Pollution pumps • Polux trees)
Adaptation Face mask • Gas mask • Tox grenades • Tox pack • Tox shell • Toxic needle gun • Toxbomb launcher • Detoxifier kidney • Detoxifier lung
Nonchalance Toxifier generator