Wonderland

Wonderland
Type: Terrestrial
Primary Star: G9V (Yellow Dwarf)
Gravity: .7 g
Diameter: 8919 km
Atmospheric Pressure: 1.9
Atmospheric Composition: 45% Oxygen, 41% Nitrogen, 4% Methane, 2% Water Vapor, 2% Argon, 1% CO2, trace other gasses
Surface Temperature (Mean): 30 C
Day Length: 32.4 Hours
Orbital Period: 274 Days
Satellites: None
Gate Access: Martian
Notes: Alien Life (Xenofungus), TITAN Traces
Wonderland is an extremely odd little terrestrial world. It's atmosphere is thick, causes severe oxygen toxicity in standard Earth biology and is characterized by a light greenhouse effect - though volcanic activity seems very minimal. It is also noted for having over twice as much Water Vapor in the atmosphere than Earth, making it extremely humid and prone to rains. Wonderland has a particularly bright star (White Queen) which warms it and bathes it in radiation which is mostly absorbed by it's thick ozone layers.
What's most curious however is that the entire "biosphere" of Wonderland appears to be colonized by a single species or collection of subspecies of xenofungus. It is unknown if these are a singular mega-fungus, like some theorize the organisms of Tanaka are, or if there are discrete colonies - what is known is that other than some passive microbes, there are no real other lifeforms on Wonderland. The Wonderland Fungus itself is very differentiated, probably the most complex and advanced xenofungus every encounters, though luckily it appears colonial and not parasitic. It forms several very large structures of a wide variety and functions as part of large colonial structures. Tall umbrella like formations shield smaller fungus from rain, and absorb materials from the water and air (and may interact with the light), spiny "mine" formations send roots and channels deep down to absorb needed minerals in the ground, broad and tiered fungi grow and distribute spores via airflow in areas on the edge of a colony, and spindly web-like fungi seem to act as rudimentary sensory organs - detecting bioelectric fields and air disturbances, sending pheromone or electrical cues to nearby fungi clusters. All of it connected by a fibrous, lichen-like ground covering which seems to send electrochemical signals between macro-fungus forms almost like neurons - called "Croach". Not everything is passive on Wonderland, however. Evolution (possibly through other species or via alien invasives from the Gate) has prompted the fungal colonies to be able to defend themselves with tree-like formations which grow spined "fruit" filled with explosive compounds that when activated send a spray of chitinous spines of hardened carbon and metallic elements at nearly supersonic speeds - which will cause serious injury to an unarmored transhuman. These defensive formations appear to operate via cues from sensory formations, or local disturbances. Some researched also seem to have encountered "suicide" forms near particularly large clusters of croach which burst into pyrophoric explosions when people get too close. There has been some concern raised if the fungus (usually called "Phantomwise") is actually sapient, but leading tests indicate that while the xenofungus and it's croach layer process a decently large volume of information, the complexity of that information is very limited, and it is currently unknown if they have any kind of "storage" organ for that information - so it is assume they are sub-sapient and probably not more intellectually complex than colonial insects. It isn't yet known if the Phantomwise fungus is originally one specie of xenofungus which adapted to different forms, or if several similar groups of fungus evolved together to form a large colonial relationship. They do, however, heal damage at an astonishing rate comparable to medical nanotech.
The name from Wonderland comes from the exotic structures of fungus, the thick cloud layer offering unusual lighting, and the fact that Phantomwise Xenofungus appears to be bioluminescent or otherwise fluoresces for some as yet undetermined purpose. This may simply be a byproduct of it's alien metabolism, or an evolutionary throwback which has not been phased out by natural selection. Either way, the tall fungal formations, which can grow over 3 meters in height, often produce a wide spectrum of bright colors and reflections of light across both the visible and UV spectra - creating an unusual "backlight" off the cloud cover. What portions of Wonderland which are not covered by fungus appear to be mostly metamorphic rocks piled on top of jagged volcanic rock formations from the planet's earlier history, or sedimentary formations caused by water erosion. Wonderland has several large lakes in lowlands, and also shallow seas in the polar region where it gets cooler. The Gate and it's small research complex are in some manner of impact basin in the northern hemisphere, which has been cleared and now cleanly marked by biodefense units.
However, the phantomwise fungus is not the only thing of note on Wonderland. Ground-penetrating scans indicate several artificial tunnel networks under the surface, which appear to show signs of nano-scale tool use in patterns similar to those caused by titan nanoswarms and bots - indicating possible signs of their presence. With nothing confirmed, however, Pathfinder is still open to exploration.

Phantomwise Fungal Forms:

Umbrella Form/Gatherer Form
The Umbrella and Gatherer forms are the most common formations of the Phantomwise xenofungus. Umbrellas grow tall, with broad rounded tops which resemble earthy mushrooms but upwards of 3 meters in height - and gather resources from air and rainwater, and interact with limited UV radiation which filters through Wonderland's atmosphere. Gatherer or Miner forms grow under Umbrellas or at the edge of the "croach" biomass and are short, hardened spines at most a meter in height and are connected to deep "root" systems which seek minerals and nutrients in soil and rock below. Both forms are completely immobile and harmless - though their rubbery surface is slightly caustic to the touch. They have a Durability of 10 total each - but are highly flame retardant, gaining 10 points of armor for fire and fire-based attacks.

Sensory Forms
The second most common form, these fungal types form clusters of long, thin filaments which spring directly from the croach and resemble some sea creatures. They extend in all directions, sometimes up to a meter, but are too thin to stand straight up against gravity. These forms can sense electrical fields as Bioelectric Sense up to 20 meters. They can sense nonliving electric fields as well, but just distance and relative position. They have a Durability of 5.

Breeder Forms
Breeder forms are tall, conical towers which reach about to the Umbrella forms in height and are tiered or segmented. These forms produce spores which can grow other specialty forms from the croach, and tend to appear on the edge of Phantomwise colonies or in areas which are distressed or have been damaged. The spores are not parasitic, but are a skin and eye irritant and can cause an allergic reaction in biomorphs. Any morph not environmentally sealed who comes within 5m (or 20m if "blooming" and actively spreading spores) must make a SOMx2 test. If they fail they take -10 to all actions while they remain in the area of the spores. On a Severe or Critical failure, they have an extreme reaction, and take -30 to all actions as they develop severe symptoms and even begin to hallucinate - and must make a current DUR test or pass out. Toxin Filters and Medichines are immune. The forms have a Durability of 20, and like Umbrellas are Fire-proofed.

Antibody Forms
Antibody forms are Phantomwise' active defenses, which spring up in areas where the fungus is being disturbed or harmed. They look similar to trees or shrubs, a central stalk at most a couple meters in height, with many branches from its crown and upper body which produce spiny "fruits" which are actually their biological weapons, filled with explosive compounds which react with an electrical signal to fire hardened, chitinous spines in clusters at those who get too close. Some of these appear even to be beginning to adapt to transhuman invaders with secondary "munitions" which are like reactive rounds and explode on contact with the enemy.
Threat Level: Yellow
Numbers: 2-6
COG 1 COO 5 INT 10 REF 10 SAV 1 SOM 5
WIL 5 INIT 4 SPD 1 DUR 20 WT 4 DR 35
Splinter Spore: 55, Cone. 2d10+4, AP -4. 5/10/15/20
Sensory Spotter: The Antibody Form can perform Indirect Fire/Blind Fire attacks at no penalty on targets which are outside their sensory range but inside the range of a Sensory Form.
Natural Ammo: A single antibody form has 2d10 spores on it to use as ammunition. They regrow them at a rate of 1d10/2 a day.
Fray/Armor: 0, 2/2 (+10 Armor against Fire)
Perception: 40
Move: 0/0
Skills: Exotic Ranged Weapons: Spores 55
Ware: Bioelectric Sense, Medichines
Stress Test: 1d10/2
Shatter Spore Variant: This type can also perform a shatter spore attack where pressure activated fluids inside the shard explode on contact with the target, 45. This deals 2d10+10 damage, which is reduced by armor, but the AV of that armor is reduced by that amount until repaired. 2/4/6/8

Node Forms
Node forms are probably the closest Phantomwise comes to having a "brain" (though their intellect is still very simple). These spherical or otherwise rounded bodies only appear deep in the xenofungal colony, where the croach is very dense, and are often ringed with antibody forms. They can be upwards of a meter across and a meter or more tall, and sometimes are supported above ground-level by thick bundles of croach. They contain organelles which produce and store electrochemical energy, and which produce and coordinate the signals to various other forms in a local area. They have thick, rubbery surfaces and very amorphous insides, and they are reported to be quite caustic to the touch. If endangered, they appear to be able to release their energy in a burst to destroy themselves as a defense against something trying to steal their resources.
Threat Level: Yellow
Numbers: 1
COG 5 COO 5 INT 10 REF 1 SAV 5 SOM 1
WIL 10 INIT 2 SPD 1 DUR 30 WT 6 DR 45
Caustic Surface: Touching a Node Form causes 1d10 DV from it's acidic surface. Armor negates this damage, but it's AV is reduced by the damage dealt until repaired.
Coordinator: All fungal forms roll using the COG, INT, SAV and WIL of the Node Form if they are within 100m of it.
Self-Destruct: If threatened or heavily damaged, the Node can activate its stored chemical energy to ignite and rupture as a Complex Action, damaging everything in a 5m Area. This deals 2d10 damage, and those in the area must roll REFx2, or be set On Fire and take the damage ongoing.
Fray/Armor: 0, 2/4 (+10 Armor against Fire, take minimum damage from Kinetic weapons)
Perception: 50
Move: 0/0
Ware: Bioelectric Sense, Medichines
Stress Test: 1d10/2