RimWorld: Biotech – All Genes Explained

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You can now evolve all your pawns in RimWorld with the help of the Biotech DLC and the new genes that it added. Do you want cat-human hybrids that can spit fire? Well, you can now create the weirdest abominations you can think of, and more! With the help of the RimWorld Biotech genes, there are no more limits. Here are all the new genes added to RimWorld with the addition of the Biotech DLC.

Table of All the Genes in RimWorld: Biotech

Archite

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate	Complexity
Gene implanter	Carriers of this gene can implant a copy of their xenogerm into another person through a somewhat gross-looking injector organ. Their own genetic material will then regrow very slowly. If they implant while their genes are regrowing, they will die.	0	3
Perfect immunity	Carriers of this gene have archite-enhanced immune systems which intelligently destroy invaders. They are totally immune to most normal illnesses.	0	3
Non-senescent	Carriers of this gene do not go through senescence in the normal way. They never get chronic age-related diseases like cancer, bad back, cataracts, or dementia.	0	3
Scarless	Carriers of this gene have a special type of regenerator cell which can heal old wounds and chronic illnesses like bad back.	0	4
Ageless	Carriers of this gene have archites in the bloodstream which continuously reverse the process of aging. Starting at the age of 13, carriers begin to biologically age slower. By 18, the aging process stops completely.	0	3
Deathless	Carriers of this gene have archites in the blood which will sustain their life processes no matter what. As long as the brain remains intact, a carrier of this gene will never die.	0	7
Archite metabolism	Carriers of this gene have special archites in their cells that facilitate and optimize metabolism. This improves overall genetic and metabolic quality.	+6	6

Ability

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate	Complexity
Fire spew	Carriers are able to spew flammable bile generated by a special organ in their neck. The bile sticks to anything in a small area and can ignite people, objects, and the ground.	−2	0
Foam spray	Carriers grow glands in the neck that generate and store a fire-retardant foam. They can spew this foam over an area to extinguish fires.	−2	0
Longjump legs	Carriers have special hemogen-powered muscle fibers in their legs which allow them to jump great distances.	−2	0
Animal warcall	Carriers of this gene can perform an animal warcall, using a powerful bellow and psychic connection to call an animal to fight for them.	−2	1
Acid spray	Carriers grow glands in the neck that generate and store a sticky acid substance, along with acid-tolerant tissues in the mouth. They can spew this acid over an area, where it will stick to enemies and burn them over time.	−2	0

Hemogen

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate	Complexity
Bloodfeeder	Carriers of this gene have small retractable fangs and an organ on the roof of the mouth which can extract hemogen from fresh warm blood. They can bite an unresisting person, suck the blood, and gain hemogen directly.	−1	0
Coagulate	Carriers of this gene have special glands on their hands and wrists, as well as a unique salivary compound that they can use to rapidly tend wounds.	−1	0
Piercing Spine	Carriers grow an opening in their upper chest along with a quiver of keratin spines. Using a hemogen-powered chemical reaction, they can fire these spines at high speed at nearby targets with surprising accuracy.	−1	0
Hemogenic	Carriers of this gene have a reserve of biological strength powered by a resource called hemogen. The resource can be gained and spent in various ways, all of which are unlocked by other genes. Carriers lose 2 hemogen per day from biological entropy.	+1	1
Hemogen drain	Carriers lose an additional 8 hemogen per day from biological entropy.	+6	1
Deathrest	Carriers of this gene must periodically regenerate themselves in a special coma called deathrest. Deathrest takes days, but can confer substantial bonuses. Deathrest can be accelerated and its effects enhanced by the use of a variety of special buildings and technologies.\n\nThose who put off deathresting will suffer from deathrest exhaustion.	+6	0

Healing

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate	Complexity
Slow wound healing	Carriers of this gene heal from wounds half as fast as normal.	+2	0
Fast wound healing	Carriers of this gene heal from wounds twice as fast as normal.	−2	0
Superfast wound healing	Carriers of this gene heal from wounds four times as fast as normal.	−3	0
Weak immunity	Carriers of this gene gain immunity to diseases more slowly than normal. They may die from infections that others would survive.	+2	0
Strong immunity	Carriers of this gene gain immunity to diseases faster than normal.	−1	0
Super immunity	Carriers of this gene gain immunity to diseases more considerably faster than normal.	−2	2
Superclotting	Carriers of this gene have extra-power coagulating factors in their blood, and will stop bleeding very quickly when wounded.	−1	0

Psychic

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate	Complexity
Psychic bonding	Carriers of this gene have a special neural organ that makes them psychically bond with a lover for life. As long as the lovers are together, they will be happy. If they are physically separated, they will be disturbed by the distance. If one dies, the other’s mind will be badly disrupted.	−1	1
Psychically deaf	Carriers of this gene are deaf to all psychic energy and influence outside their own minds. They cannot be affected by psychic influence, nor can they ever wield psychic power.	+2	0
Psychically dull	Carriers of this gene are less psychically-sensitive than others.	+1	0
Psy-sensitive	Carriers of this gene are more psychically-sensitive than average.	−2	0
Super psy-sensitive	Carriers of this gene are much more psychically-sensitive than most.	−5	2

Beauty

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate
Staggeringly ugly	Carriers of this gene have misshapen, asymmetrical facial structures and blotchy skin. They’re hard to look at.	+2
Ugly	Carriers of this gene have exaggerated facial features and poor skin that are generally considered ugly.	+1
Pretty	Carriers of this gene have unusually symmetrical, balanced facial features and extra-clear skin which gives them a pleasing appearance.	−1
Beautiful	Carriers of this gene have remarkably precise and symmetrical faces. Their features are distinctive and strong without being exaggerated, and their skin is nearly perfect. They are generally seen as beautiful.	−2

Miscellaneous

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate	Complexity
Furskin	Carriers of this gene grow thick fur all over their body, which protects them from cold temperatures.	−1	1
Furry tail	Carriers of this gene grow a fluffy tail which partially protects them from cold temperatures.	−1	1
Smooth tail	Carriers of this gene grow a slender tail that can act as a dexterous fifth limb.	−1	1
Human hands	Carriers of this gene have regular human hands.	0	0
Trotter hands	Carriers of this gene have hands that partially resemble pig trotters. This reduces their ability to manipulate objects.	+1	1
Elongated fingers	Long, delicate fingers improve the carrier’s manipulation capacity. This aids with many tasks, especially crafting and construction.	−1	1
Nearsighted	Carriers of this gene have difficulty seeing at a distance. Their shooting accuracy at long ranges is reduced.	+2	0
Strong stomach	Carriers of this gene have an extra toxin-filtering organ in their stomach and will never suffer from food poisoning even after eating rotten food.	−1	0
Dark vision	Carriers of this gene see well in low light and are unaffected by mood penalties related to darkness. They have a reflective layer behind the retina that amplifies their ability to see in the dark.	−1	0
Inbred	This genetic condition affects a person’s fertility, immunity, and mental capacity.	−2	0
Robust digestion	Carriers of this gene grow a multi-fold stomach, allowing them to digest raw foods more efficiently than baseline humans. In general, they get the same nutrition from raw food as from if it is cooked. They also don’t mind the taste of raw food at all.	−2	2
Mild cell instability	Carriers of this gene need less metabolic energy to stay alive, at the cost of reduced stability in their cell-replication machinery.	+2	0
Major cell instability	Carriers of this gene need much less metabolic energy to stay alive, at the cost of greatly-reduced stability in their cell-replication machinery.	+4	0
Pollution stimulus	Carriers of this gene get a chemical rush from being exposed to pollution. This makes them move faster and helps them think clearer. A similar gene is found in combat-engineered mega-insects.	−1	1
Unstoppable	Carriers of this gene are not slowed down when taking damage.	−2	1
Slow learner	Carriers of this gene have deficient long-term memories and don’t understand new ideas quickly. They are slow at learning new skills and knowledge.	+2	0
Fast learner	Carriers of this gene have excellent memories and grasp new ideas quickly. They learn faster than others.	−2	0

Movement

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate	Complexity
Slow runner	Carriers of this gene move more slowly than normal.	+3	0
Fast runner	Carriers of this gene move more quickly than normal.	−3	0
Very fast runner	Carriers of this gene move much more quickly than normal.	−5	0
Naked speed	Carriers of this gene move slower while clothed, and faster while naked.	+2	1

Mood

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate	Complexity
Depressive	Carriers of this gene are highly predisposed to negative emotion. They’ll see the bad in every situation and have a much lower mood than others.	+5	0
Pessimist	Carriers of this gene are predisposed to pessimistic perceptions. They’ll tend to interpret things negatively and have lower mood than others.	+3	0
Optimist	Carriers of this gene are predisposed to optimistic feelings. They’ll have higher mood than others.	−1	2
Sanguine	Carriers of this gene are highly predisposed to optimism and not at all inclined to think negatively. They’ll have much higher mood than others.	−2	3

Temperature

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate
Cold weakness	Carriers of this gene are slightly less comfortable in cold temperatures.	+1
Cold tolerant	Carriers of this gene are slightly more comfortable in cold temperatures.	−1
Cold super-tolerant	Carriers of this gene are much more comfortable in cold temperatures.	−2
Heat weakness	Carriers of this gene are slightly less comfortable in warm temperatures.	+1
Heat tolerant	Carriers of this gene are slightly more comfortable in warm temperatures.	−1
Heat super-tolerant	Carriers of this gene are much more comfortable in warm temperatures.	−2

Resistance and sensitivity

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate	Complexity
Partial antitoxic lungs	Carriers of this gene are resistant to environmental toxins. They get less toxic buildup from tox gas, polluted terrain, and toxic fallout, but are still vulnerable to direct attacks with venom or injected poison. Additionally, they build up rot stink exposure slower.	−1	0
Total antitoxic lungs	Carriers of this gene are immune to environmental toxins, but not from direct toxic attacks. They get no toxic buildup from tox gas, polluted terrain, or toxic fallout, and they are not bothered by acidic smog. They are still vulnerable to direct attacks like venom and injected poison. Additionally, they are immune to rot stink exposure.	−3	2
Fire resistant	Carriers of this gene have special fast-acting sweat glands and heat-resistant skin. They only take 25% of the normal damage from fire. The chance of them catching on fire is also drastically reduced.	−2	0
Tinderskin	Carriers have dry, thin skin which burns easily from fire, and their immune systems react very poorly to this kind of threat. Damage from fire is multiplied by 4.	2	0
Pyrophobia	Carriers of this gene have an intense fear of fire. When fires are close, there is a chance they will have a mental breakdown at any moment.	4	0
Tox resistance	Carriers of this gene are resistant to toxic buildup from any source. This includes pollution, toxic fallout, tox gas, and direct attacks with venom or injected poison. They’ll gain half the amount of toxic buildup compared to others. Cellular filters in the lung and skin reduce the dose of toxins entering the bloodstream.	−2	0
Tox immunity	Carriers of this gene are totally immune to toxic buildup from all sources including polluted terrain, toxic fallout, tox gas, and direct attacks with venom or injected poison. They are also not bothered by acidic smog. The carrier’s biochemical pathways are modified to route around interference from nearly all known toxins. Along with enhancements to the kidneys and liver, this keeps carriers comfortable in even the most toxic of environments.	−4	2
Mild UV sensitivity	Carriers of this gene have biological compounds in their skin that react painfully to UV radiation. They are unusually sensitive to sunlight.	3	0
Intense UV sensitivity	Carriers of this gene have biological compounds in their skin that react dangerously to UV radiation. They are intensely sensitive to sunlight.	4	2

Violence

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate
Kind instinct	Carriers of this gene are high in trait agreeableness and are very conscientious. They rarely insult others or starts fights, and will sometimes offer kind words to brighten the moods of those around them. They also never judges people by their appearance.	−1
Violence disabled	Carriers of this gene are emotionally and mentally incapable of engaging in violence. They are overwhelmingly resistant to and horrified by the idea of hurting another.	3
Kill thirst	Carriers of this gene lust for the feeling of ending another’s life. They will become irritated if they go for too long without killing someone in close combat.	4
Dead calm	Carriers of this gene feel calm in every situation and have a very placid demeanor. They will never start social fights or have aggressive mental breaks.	−1
Aggressive	Carriers of this gene are quick to anger. They are twice as likely to start social fights. When they have mental breaks, they are twice as likely to choose an aggressive kind of break.	2
Hyper-aggressive	Carriers of this gene are hormonally high-strung and very aggressive. They are three times as likely to start social fights. Any mental break they have will be of an aggressive type.	3
Weak melee damage	Carriers of this gene do less damage in close-quarters combat. Weak fast-twitch muscle fibers make their strikes shaky and weak.	1
Strong melee damage	Carriers of this gene do more damage in close-quarters combat. Extra-strong fast-twitch muscle fibers make their strikes accurate and powerful.	−2

Sleep

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate	Complexity
Sleepy	Carriers of this gene get tired somewhat faster than others.	2	0
Low sleep	Carriers of this gene get tired less quickly than others.	−4	2
Never sleep	Carriers of this gene have a unique metabolic process which allows clusters of neurons to sleep while the rest of the brain stays awake. They never need to sleep.	−6	3

Pain

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate
Delicate	Carriers of this gene take greater injuries than others from the same damage. They have thin, brittle bones and less binding molecules in joints and flesh.	3
Robust	Carriers of this gene take less injuries than others from the same damage. They have thickened, densified bones, nearly-solid ribcages, and strengthened binding factors in joints and flesh.	−2
Reduced pain	Carriers of this gene feel half as much pain compared to a baseliner. Reduced neuron activity in the brain’s nociception centers makes pain dull and faint. This can be advantageous sometimes, and dangerous other times.	−1
Extra pain	Carriers of this gene feel more pain than others given the same injuries. Neuron activity in the brain’s nociception center is amplified, so pain feels extra-intense and fiery. This can be protective, but overall it’s considered a negative and makes it hard to push through difficult situations.	2

Cosmetic

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate	Complexity
No hair	Carriers of this gene grow no hair on the head.	0	0
Short-haired	Carriers of this gene can only grow short hair.	0	0
Long-haired	Carriers of this gene grow hair on the head very quickly.	0	0
Greyless hair	Carriers of this gene keep their natural hair color as they age.	0	0
Only bushy beards	Male carriers of this gene experience rapid beard growth and are uncomfortable cutting their beards.	0	0
Beardless	Carriers of this gene grow no facial hair.	0	0
Unisex beards	Carriers of this gene always have thick facial hair, even women.	0	0
Ink black skin	Carriers of this gene produce a pigment that turns their skin a pale black color almost as dark as ink.	0	0
Slate gray skin	Carriers of this gene produce a pigment that turns their skin slate gray.	0	0
Light gray skin	Carriers of this produce a light-gray pigment in their skin.	0	0
Sheer white skin	Carriers of this gene have sheer white skin, unlike natural skin tones, due to a special engineered reflective cell covering.	0	0
Blue skin	Carriers of this gene produce a pigment that turns their skin a blue color.	0	0
Purple skin	Carriers of this gene produce a pigment that gives their skin a purple color.	0	0
Pale red skin	Carriers of this gene produce a pigment that turns their skin a moderate red color.	0	0
Deep red skin	Carriers of this gene produce a deep-red pigment that gives their skin an almost bloody appearance.	0	0
Pale yellow skin	Carriers of this gene produce a pigment that turns their skin a grayish yellow color.	0	0
Deep yellow skin	Carriers of this gene produce a pigment that gives their skin a deep yellow color.	0	0
Orange skin	Carriers of this gene produce a pigment that gives their skin an orange color.	0	0
Green skin	Carriers of this gene produce a pigment that gives their skin a green color.	0	0
Red eyes	Carriers of this gene have deeply red-pigmented eyes.	0	0
Gray eyes	Carriers of this gene have pale white-gray eyes.	0	0
Heavy brow	Carriers of this gene have a prominent brow.	0	0
Facial ridges	Carriers of this gene grow raised ridges of skin on their face.	0	0
Fat body	Carriers can have fat bodies. A person can have more than one body type gene; one body type will be chosen among those that are allowed.	0	0
Thin body	Carriers can have thin bodies. A person can have more than one body type gene; one body type will be chosen among those that are allowed.	0	0
Hulk body	Carriers can have large bodies. A person can have more than one body type gene; one body type will be chosen among those that are allowed.	0	0
Standard body	Carriers can have average-shaped bodies. A person can have more than one body type gene; one body type will be chosen among those that are allowed.	0	0
Human ears	Carriers of this gene have regular human ears.	0	0
Pig ears	Carriers of this gene will grow pointed pig-like ears.	0	0
Floppy ears	Carriers of this gene grow long, floppy hound-like ears.	0	0
Cat ears	Carriers of this gene have cat-like ears.	0	0
Pointed ears	Carriers of this gene have pointed ears.	0	0
Human nose	Carriers of this gene have regular human noses.	0	0
Pig nose	Carriers of this gene have pig-like snouts.	0	0
Human jaw	Carriers of this gene have regularly-shaped jaws.	0	0
Heavy jaw	Carriers of this gene have large jaws.	0	0
Gaunt head	Carriers of this gene have a pinched, gaunt appearance in their face and head.	0	0
Human headbone	Carriers of this gene have regular human skulls.	0	0
Mini-horns	Carriers of this gene grow two small horns protruding from the forehead.	0	0
Center-horn	Carriers of this gene grow a single horn protruding from the center of the forehead.	0	0
Human voice	Carriers of this gene have regular human vocal chords.	0	0
Pig voice	Carriers have a squealing voice like that of a pig.	0	0
Roar voice	Carriers have an animal-like roaring voice.	0	0

Aptitudes

There is one of these genes for each skill in RimWorld.

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate	Complexity
Awful skill	The carrier’s aptitude in skill is reduced by 8. Aptitude acts like an offset on skill level. Additionally, all passion is removed from skill.	2	1
Poor skill	The carrier’s aptitude in skill is reduced by 4. Aptitude acts like an offset on skill level.	1	1
Strong skill	The carrier’s aptitude in skill is increased by 4. Aptitude acts like an offset on skill level.	−1	1
Great skill	The carrier’s aptitude in skill is increased by 8. Aptitude acts like an offset on skill level.	−3	2

Drugs

There is one of these genes for every drug in RimWorld.

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate	Complexity
Drug addict-resist	Carriers are only half as likely to become addicted to drug.	−2	1
Drug addict-immune	Carriers of this gene never get addicted to drug.	−5	2
Drug dependency	Carriers of this gene need to ingest drug on a regular basis to survive. After duration without drug, carriers will suffer from drug deficiency. After duration, they will fall into a coma. After duration, they will die.	4	1

Reproduction

Name	Description	Metabolic Rate
Sterile	Carriers of this gene cannot reproduce by natural means.	+1
Fertile	Carriers of this gene have a higher chance of becoming pregnant or impregnating others.	0
Low libido	Carriers of this gene are less likely to engage in lovin’ with their partner.	0
High libido	Carriers of this gene are more likely to engage in lovin’ with their partner.	0

And that is all you need to know about all the genes in RimWorld: Biotech. Check out other interesting RimWorld guides, news, and articles:

RimWorld: All Traits | RimWorld: How to Get More Components | RimWorld: How to Feed Animals

Adrian Oprea

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Adrian Oprea is the Founder and Head Writer of Raider King, specializing in complex RPGs and grand strategy games since 2021. With over 1000 published guides, Adrian provides in-depth walkthroughs for titles like Baldur's Gate 3, Warhammer 40K, Pathfinder series, and Paradox grand strategy games. His hands-on approach involves hundreds of hours testing different builds and strategies to deliver experience-based recommendations. Based in Bucharest, Romania, Adrian founded Raider King in 2022 to bring honest, detailed gaming content to players worldwide.

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