Plasmamen
Mechanics 
- Plasmamen cost 100 karma to unlock as a playable race
- Plasmamen need to wear their hardsuit at all times. Any trace of oxygen in the atmosphere will cause them to burst into flames.
- Plasmamen breathe pure plasma.
- Plasmamen are equipped with a standard issue hardsuit, fitted to suit their role onboard the station.
Plasmamen and YOU
Greetings, esteemed crewmember!
In an effort to encourage inter-species cooperation and workplace efficiency, NanoTrasen has compiled a series of helpful guides on the various peoples that you may be working with!
This particular guide refers to the those affected by Plasma-Restructurant Syndrome, commonly known as the Plasmamen (singular: Plasmaman, (colloquially Plasmawoman or Plasmids)).
Naming
PRS can affect several carbon-based species, and so Plasmaman names can come from many different backgrounds. Crewmembers are advised that it is better to look to someone’s ID badge, or simply ask them their name, rather than referring to them by their condition.
Physiology
Those affected by Plasma-Restructurant Syndrome lose much of their soft tissue as the carbon compounds in their bodies are replaced with plasma and hard mineralized deposits, leaving them with a skeletal appearance. The remaining tissue largely consists of hard dermal deposits around the bones, tinged purple from the heavy exposure to plasma. The flexile ligaments and tendons that bound the skeleton together typically remain, becoming able to operate similarly to muscles, which allows for an almost normal range of motion. The eyes of PRS affected rapidly lose ocular fluid, yet maintain their functionality due to the lenses being replaced with a lattice of crystallized plasma.
Curiously, however, their core organs often remain in a recognizable state, held within a sac of scar tissue in their abdominal cavities. While often partially desiccated and looking like husks of their former selves, they fortunately require no special care from medical personnel. Their remaining function is unknown, but they appear to still be necessary for the metabolic processes involved in PRS to occur.
Uniquely, those affected by the condition require plasma to survive. While they can no longer eat food or breathe normally, they can inhale and combust small amounts of plasma gas in their altered lungs. The slowly-burning plasma dissolves into a liquid form and diffuses throughout the pores of their solid tissue (and creates a telltale orange glow as the vapor passes through their eyes). This reaction both provides them with metabolic energy and helps to stabilize the solidified plasma in the rest of their bodies. Without a steady supply of plasma gas, they will quickly lose energy and their bodies begin to disassociate and break down.
Unfortunately, this also means that the affected must remain within a protected suit at all times. Concentrated plasma such as those found in their tissues is prone to spontaneous combustion, and even a brief exposure to an oxygenated atmosphere may cause them to ignite. Additionally, as plasma is highly toxic to most species, these suits prevent harmful exposure to other crew members. However, NanoTrasen insists that, provided you respect all workplace regulations, you will find working alongside coworkers affected by PRS to be just as safe as with those who are not.
Note: Nanotrasen takes no responsibility for injury or disability that may occur due to faulty exhalation valves.
While wearing their protective suits, it will be difficult to distinguish their features, but the standard-issue hardsuit will be color coded according to the individual’s job, and their heights can vary considerably depending on their original physiology.
The condition eliminates all primary and secondary sexual characteristics, but those affected will often maintain their former gender (if any), or adopt one to suit the culture around them.
Language
Plasma Restructurant Syndrome often damages the subject’s memory as their brain shrivels and mineralizes, and in particular, those affected often lose their linguistic skills at the onset of the condition. However, after a period of recovery and therapy, most are able to regain fluent use of Galactic Common.
Causes of PRS
Plasma-Restructurant Syndrome is an extremely rare condition, as the factors which cause it are often lethal before its onset. The symptoms commonly manifest after the subject is caught in a plasma fire. However, development of PRS also requires long-term exposure to low doses of plasma. In a carbon-based organism with an internal skeleton, such exposure will lead to small deposits of plasma forming within the victim’s bones. If the subject’s immune system has also been compromised by other factors, plasma molecules can also become absorbed within cells and damage DNA. When the concentration of plasma within an individual’s bones and cells reaches a certain threshold, they are at risk for PRS. Generally, if untreated, this contamination will lead to cancer, organ failures, and various degenerative neurological disorders. However, if the subject’s body is suddenly subjected to intense heat and pressure, the shock may catalyze a chain-reaction. If there is sufficient plasma in the surrounding environment, the reaction will continue until all the carbon compounds in the subject’s body are replaced. Plasma fires are still extremely dangerous, though, and even if the reaction occurs, the unfortunate subject may still perish. Should they survive the catastrophe, the individual would also need prompt medical attention and sequestration in a controlled environment. Very few are fortunate enough to survive such trauma. However, as plasma industry is active across the galaxy, thousands of cases are known. The largest concentration of PRS-affected people exists on the planet Boron 2, where the condition was first discovered. Formerly a human mining colony, Boron 2 orbits an unusual plasma-rich brown dwarf but has since experienced an economic decline. However, it has become a sort of resort for the PRS-affected. More choose to settle there each year, as the planet offers many amenities for those living with the condition, including facilities where they can live without need for protective suits. Boron 2 also serves as headquarters for most prominent advocacy and research organizations dedicated to the condition. NanoTrasen would like to remind its employees that only the highest safety standards are followed on all our installations, and that employees face no risk of PRS if they follow them at all times. Please report to the medbay immediately if you experience symptoms of plasma poisoning.
A Brief History
Boron 2 was settled early in the beginnings of the plasma industry. The brown dwarf, dubbed “Boron” for its high concentration of the element, had been little more than a way-station between grander stars and a stop for hydrogen-scooping. However, when eager plasma speculation swept through, prospectors discovered a curious dynamic. Boron 1, a hot-neptune, orbits close to the brown dwarf, throwing material up from within it and forming a dusty corona. As Boron 1 passes through this, material condenses on its surface, trapping plasma within cold hydrocarbon deposits.
Small interests flocked to the remote system to stake their claim, and soon Boron 2 was home to several no-name operations exporting plasma. And yet, plasma continued to condense upon the planet.
With the dangers of plasma poorly understood back then, the fine-grain plasma particles prevalent, and the slapdash nature of those operations, it was only a matter of time until an accident occurred. On March 27th, 2399, the St. Belchan’s Corp plasma mine exploded due to improper maintenance of its atmospheric system. Intense insurance litigation would later reveal that all the mines systems had experienced chronic low-level plasma contamination, and that the miners had reported strange mutations in hydroponics. The small handful of survivors became known as the first cases of the syndrome, to much scientific curiosity.
Across the galaxy, reports of the condition increased as mining operations expanded. It would be decades before proper widespread safety regulations came into force, but despite its rarity (occurring in only one of 3 million of those who worked with plasma), PRS’s dramatic effects began to draw public attention to the dangers of improperly handled plasma.
However, when the time came, as always, NanoTrasen led the tide of innovation. The Galaxy’s finest for over 300 years, it was the first to manufacture the suits which allow the PSR-affected to continue enjoying life as before, and of course, the first to show that they can be just as much an asset to the workforce as anyone else. Present Day The condition is still poorly understood. However, research is always underway, and every day medical science advances. Interestingly, the syndrome has yielded unexpected benefits to its bearers. Those who have managed to maintain good care and a steady supply of plasma have found their lifespans extended. The mutation processes changes the body such that, provided constant plasma to reverse deterioration, no appreciable aging occurs. Consequently, they make for valuable, experienced workers, well worth their medical expenses.
The wealthiest usually retire to Boron 2, but the majority of those with the condition remain mixed amongst the Galaxy’s population and workforce. Rising safety standards have reduced the rate of new diagnoses, but there are always those who treat plasma carelessly, and occasionally those who survive the results.
NanoTrasen always welcomes those leaving less thoughtful corporations, and has always been a friend to the PRS community.
Remember, employee, mutual respect and joint efforts are the way to success.
Nanotrasen Humanoid Relations department
