While I was working on Wyvarans, I discovered some minor, but interesting, wording in the Starfinder core rules. The wording for Hideaway Limb references arms and legs, which indicates that as written, they cannot be used in any other way. There are races with tails as thick or thicker than arms that could be reached to hide or retrieve something using their hands. With that in mind, I thought it would be a good exercise to do a writeup for a Hideaway Tail, along with stats and variations on Tail Weapons.
| Name | Level | Price | System |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hideaway Tail | 1 | 150 | Tail |
| Tail Weapon, small arms | 3 | 2,250 | Tail |
| Tail Weapon, small arms, concealed | 5 | 3,050 | Tail |
| Tail Weapon, long arms | 7 | 4,500 | Tail |
| Tail Weapon, long arms, concealed | 9 | 6,100 | Tail |
New Equipment
The following items follow the rules outlined for each category in the Starfinder Core Rulebook.
Cybernetics
Cybernetics are augmentations using machines and circuitry that integrate with the flesh and bone of the recipient. For more information about cybernetics, see the cybernetics section of Chapter 7 in the Starfinder Core Rulebook.
Hideaway Tail (System Tail)
This compartment is hidden inside your tail. You can conceal items inside and protect them with a simple passcode. The compartment can hold items of negligible bulk and items of light bulk that are either relatively small or can be folded or contracted to fit. The GM decides what can fit.
When the compartment is closed, the seam in your flesh is difficult to detect. You gain a +2 bonus to Sleight of Hand checks to conceal items in a hideaway tail. Though this compartment can usually foil a simple pat down, most security checkpoints include a scan that can detect such devices. Retrieving an item from a hideaway tail is a move action instead of a standard action.
This type of augmentation is for Small and Medium creatures only. Hideaway tails for creatures larger than Medium typically cost more but can hold items of greater size or bulk.
Tail Weapon (System Tail)
You add a compartment and cybernetics to your tail that allow you to integrate a specific weapon. A tail weapon works only if the tail is one you can normally attack with and removes all natural attacks you had with it. You are always considered to be wielding the weapon, but it doesn’t increase the number of attacks you can make in combat. The weapon must be purchased separately and is permanently dismantled as part of the installation.
The small arms tail weapon allows creatures of small size or larger to integrate weapons of negligible bulk or light bulk that are relatively small. The long arms tail weapon allows creatures of medium size or larger to integrate weapons of 1 bulk or less.
Concealed tail weapons function as their standard counterpart, except that they are designed to look like a normal tail when not being used to attack. When the weapon is concealed, the seam in your flesh is difficult to detect. You gain a +2 bonus to Sleight of Hand checks to conceal the weapon. Though this compartment can usually foil a simple pat down, most security checkpoints include a scan that can detect such devices. You can reveal the weapon as a swift action or as part of making an attack or full attack (similar to using the Quick Draw feat).