I'm planning to run a game set in a distant oceanic world which consists of 95% water and most land masses are...

I'm planning to run a game set in a distant oceanic world which consists of 95% water and most land masses are archipelagos. A human colony fleet was sent there through a space gate that collapsed. A good number of colonists in the expedition were aquatic humans who were modified invitro to express dormant amphibious traits such as gills. Their intelligence was also enhanced. Their colony vessels crashes on the aquatic world and lost contact for a century. Many have gone native living simple lives in villages. Others live in the deep sea, building technologically advanced cities living in isolation. Game is set 10 years after regaining contact with the main Human government body the sent the expedition. Tensions form with the descendants of the colonists and the Human Government as they start to colonize the planet. This is a new Aquatic frontier. The world also shows evidence of Alien ruins and a semi sapient tribal species which seem artificialy uplifted.

A question though. Will genetically modified humans whi are adapted for deep sea environment look drastically different? Will they look slimmer? Will their skin be different?

A human adapted to living in the deep sea is bordering on what can even be considered human

They would look more alien than other terrestrial aliens would look to a human

Yes, but the other way around. They'll look fatter, and their bodies will be more streamline, like for example they won't have necks.

And yes, their skin will be thicker and they won't have hair.

Also
>Human Government
I hope you don't mean that Earth is one country.

Their skin will also be very pale and tinted towards green or blue due to blue light frequencies being the only ones to penetrate water.
Eyes would also be atrophied, probably with the ability to see in ultraviolet, and if they are genetically engineered, also perceive bioelectric fields in some manner, as regular vision under water, even with artificial lights, is not very far at all.
A natural sonar could also be developed in place of ears.
They would be ridiculously alien given enough time and engineering.

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I like these, but I think you are making them too amphibian. If they are very technologically advanced, they'd be living in underwater cities most likely, because production without dry land is a huge fucking hassle; just try assemble a PC underwater, or even just work some sort of metal. The more advanced the technology, the more precise the production becomes and the more they need dry-factories to make stuff.

Imo anyway. Maybe they go into some sort of Giger esque bio-mechanics/bio-engineering instead.

MUTATION

if they have that advanced dry undersea cities then there is really no need for them to be any different than surface humans

They had to build those cities. Being resistant to the effects of flood-ins, high pressures, or quick pressure change also helps. As does not having to get a minisub every time you want to visit your aunt who lives in the next city-complex 10 minute swim from here.

Have you read Low?

Read Low.

>They had to build those cities
environmental suits or robots

>Being resistant to the effects of flood-ins, high pressures, or quick pressure change also helps
safety suits that inflate and protect the wearer

>As does not having to get a minisub every time you want to visit your aunt who lives in the next city-complex 10 minute swim from here.
humans today do this all the time, driving the car for every little thing when they could just walk there in 10 minutes.

genetic engineering is far more work for less payoff over a long period of time to develop for what advanced tech can do, and be made much faster. Of coarse going the genetic engineering route is fine, thats the aesthetic you want.

But you need to find the reason why this group of humans decided to change themselves to fit the environment, and not create tools to change the environment to fit them.

>genetic engineering is far more work...

This depends on how advanced their genetic engineering is. Maybe it took a bored scientist an afternoon.

The big benefit is that when all those above aren't available for some reason (such as not having supply lines because your stargate collapsed) you can still thrive despite the lack of land.

>Of coarse going the genetic engineering route is fine, thats the aesthetic you want.

I'm not the OP, just sayan.

Thats why I refrained from using Earth. This Humanity has spread out the stars quite a bit.

Ragnans from Macross? Maybe there is virus that targets humans and g-modded humans are immune? Maybe they were the last hope from a insidious affliction?

>But you need to find the reason why this group of humans decided to change themselves to fit the environment, and not create tools to change the environment to fit them.

I agree. For Ops scenario, what I suggest is that certain deep sea enclaves.have taken to genetically modifying themselves for spiritual or indivualistic reasons, possibly related to the alien ruins there. This can be part of the conflict between them and the new wave of colonists, who are wierd out to find all these fish people, who may or may not even consider themselves part of the human race anymore.

As for their physical appearance, webbed fingers and toes, eyes with secondary membranes, skin adapted to hold in heat better (feels rubbery) possibly denser skeletons to handle depth pressures, large changes to internal organs (probably too many to list)

Oh ok make it look like theu were aliens but really are the descendants who evolved that way? Because of something in the planet? Would love that they werent too alien so they can still mate with normal humans.

DRINK PISS

>distant oceanic world which consists of 95% water and most land masses are archipelagos
>a space gate that collapsed
>a few other things that qualify as spoilers
Yeah, I thought Gargantia was pretty cool too, OP.

haven't watched it actually

You might want to check out Blue Planet the rpg, its pmuch like what you're talking about.

Also the novel Starfish by Peter Watts. Its about modified humans doing deep sea trench stuff and how you basically have to be already traumatized to work under that much ocean.

>I like my boat, place to be, won't cut my throat while I'm asleep

I don't like the over cyberpunk nature of Blue Planet, but its close to what I like. I just like the gillfolk

>Also the novel Starfish by Peter Watts
Excellent suggestion

I just want one cup a' hydro!
Best Costner, favorite soundtrack of the 1990s

Been meaning to read this, thanks for the reminder

animufag plis

kawaii

Sauce on pic. please?

Did you use Google Image Search in conjunction with the filename of OP's picture

You reminded me of our extremely promising Dark Heresy game on an ocean world, with mysterious murders and potential for Lovecraftian horrors.
And then it went completely to shit after everyone got busy.
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Also yeah, they would. If they can survive deep water, they would look like pale blobs.
Perpetually moist skin, membranes and all that for anyway. But you can pretty much disregard all that for the sake of aesthetics.
And shame on your for not recognising Berserk.

Oh hey! Consider that idea stolen.

This is a cool setting OP. Now excuse me while I keep this thread bumped with pictures of kickass submarines

This is one of my favorite "humans vs. sea monster civilization" animu's I've ever seen. The merbitches were fantastic. As were the elder whales

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Attack Submarines and Mermaids are all any setting in any game need. Everything else is just window-dressing

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And don't forget
if your setting doesn't feature a black manta villain in it, your setting a shit