MOKA

The Moka (Hexapodus agriventris) is a medium-sized, hexapodal browser domesticated across the Asari Region of the Eastern Equatorial Section in the Habitual Belt on VOI 700 D. Bred by Exohumans in the Beta Age for shed fiber (“pen-felt”), light pack work, a mild buccal “cheek-curd,” and eggs, Mokas became staple pen animals. After the Peace Treaty of the Gamma Age and the vegetarian policy, meat/curd/egg consumption ceased; herds persist for fiber, manure, traction in gardens, and breeding stock.

• Shoulder Height: 0.9–1.1 m
• Body Length: 1.4–1.7 m
• Weight: 60–95 kg
• Build: Low barrel torso; six legs — short fore probe-limbs for scraping/foraging; robust mid & hind pairs for gait.
• Hide: Matte, suede-like dermis with callused plaques on flanks/shoulders; slate–umber mottling; dust/mud in seams.
• Head: Broad, flat muzzle with keratin rasp pad and prehensile split lips (no beak, no exposed teeth).
• Eyes/Ears: Large dark eyes (horizontal pupils); leaf-shaped heat-vaning ears.
• Tail: Short, bristled counterbalance.
• Brood Anatomy: Ventral brood plates (flexible keratin lamellae) that fold down to shelter a nest; oviposition slit posterior to pelvis.

• Ovipositor & Brood Plates: Females scrape shallow bowls with probe-limbs, lay leathery eggs, then cover them with warm brood plates.
• Cheek-Curd Glands (Beta Age use): Buccal fermentation sacs expressed under handler techniques (prohibited Gamma Age).
• Heat Vanes: Ear lamellae radiate heat during hot twilights.

• Armor Class (AC): 12
• Hit Points (HP): 28
• Speed: 40 ft. (land)

• Shoulder Shove: +4 to hit, 1d6 bludgeoning; on hit DC 12 Str save or pushed 5 ft.
• Stamp (Threatened): 1d4 bludgeoning; disadvantage to hit if two other Mokas are adjacent (herd milling).

• Herd Calm: Advantage on saves vs. fear within 10 ft. of two+ Mokas.
• Sure-Footed: Advantage on checks to keep footing on scree, mud, or pen debris.
• Nestwise: Advantage on Survival checks to locate or conceal nests in pens or reed beds.

• Diet: Reeds, sedges, tubers, crop waste.
• Social: Herd animals; settle to low humming cues from handlers.
• Activity: Most active in cool twilight; dust-bathing is communal.

• Freeze-and-Mottle: Drops low; flank mottling breaks outline among reeds and shadow.
• Alarm Hiss: Ear vanes flare; a soft expulsive hiss ripples through the herd.

• Beta Age: Eggs (soft-shelled, leathery), cheek-curd, shed fiber, light pack, manure.
• Gamma Age: Animal products banned; eggs only for breeding; fiber/manure permitted; traction in gardens.
• Handling: Halter loop behind ear bases; probe-limbs respond to tap commands.

• Clutch: 6–12 leathery eggs in shallow moss-and-silt bowls (often communal “creche rings”).
• Incubation: 5–6 weeks under brood plates and warmed compost.
• Hatchlings: Precocial; follow dam within 24 hours; brood plates used as windbreak during first week.
• Weaning: 4–5 months; breeding maturity ~2 years.
• Lifespan: 18–22 years (captivity).

At dusk in a scrap-and-timber pen, a female Moka settles over a shallow nest: six legs tucked, probe-limbs tidying the rim while ventral brood plates tent a cluster of speckled, leathery eggs. Dust hangs in the air; ear-vanes breathe heat into the cooling light.

• Egg Heist/Rescue: Poachers target fertile clutches; stealth and tracking challenges ensue.
• Spooked Herd: A nest disturbance triggers milling and visibility penalties.
• Supply Threads: Salt bricks (historical curd practice) vs. Gamma Age bans create legal/ethical quest hooks.

• Habitual Belt
• Equatorial Sections East and West (Asari)
• Eastern Equatorial Section of the Habitual Belt
• Wildlife of Asari

Known Predators:

• Arr (targets calves)
• Moar (rare, on open slopes)