Physicist (Aequus)

Physicist

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Statistics

Type	NPC
Environment	Valid house
AI Type	Passive AI
Damage	0
Max Life	250
Defense	0
KB Resist	50%

“

An alien scientist from a neighboring planet, sent to Earth to survey for unnatural phenomena. Kind of an airhead despite her astronomical IQ; she forgot to bring a radio to report back home with.

— Bestiary (Physicist)

“

This tiny contraption follows the Physicist wherever she goes, constantly logging data from the environment to ensure nothing is missed. Miniaturized for personal use from a larger surveillance model.

— Bestiary (Physicist Drone)

The Physicist is an NPC vendor that will spawn once the following criteria has been met:

• There is an empty House.
• Ultra Starite or Omega Starite have been defeated.

She sells many unique items, usually of a technological or summoning theme, including Pylon Drones, special utilities which can defend your houses.

The Physicist is accompanied by a Drone pet at all times, which floats near her position and can be interacted with similarly to town pets. However, clicking the "Pet" option on its dialog panel will simply play a squeak sound effect. The Drone has no HP, cannot be attacked, and generally does not interact with the world at all, instead disappearing in a burst of sparks if the Physicist dies.

She will attack nearby enemies with spinning, multicolored energy shots similar to the projectiles fired by the Umystick to defend herself.

Analysis

The Physicist will offer Analysis quests to the player, accessible by clicking the "Analysis" button on her dialog panel. She will request an item of a random rarity, detecting the "first" compatible item (closest to the top left) in their inventory that is not favorited or a coin as the one being offered for submission. Confirming this by pressing the "Submit" button will remove the item and reward the player:

Main reward (100% drop chance, only one given)

• Phase Mirror, a combination Magic Mirror (with a unique teleport animation) and unlimited Wormhole Potion.
• Personal Drone Pack, a light pet that can detect nearby treasure and enemies similarly to the Suspicious Looking Tentacle.
• Holo Lens, an accessory that allows you to preview the contents of chests by hovering the cursor over them, including locked chests.
• Hyper Jet, a tool which activates 3 seconds after dying. If it is safe, the respawn timer will begin to tick down x5 faster, works in as an accessory, but also works inside your inventory or Void Bag.

Secondary reward (50% drop chance)

• Gravity Chest, a chest which picks up nearby items.

After completing an Analysis quest, the Physicist will prepare another quest after several hours, indicated in her dialogue if the "Analysis" button is clicked again in this time.

Items sold

Item	Cost	Availability	Quote
Physics Gun	10	Always available.	"This zero point energy field manipulator sees common use in laboratories. It excels in handling large objects or hazardous materials."
Portal Gun	10	Always available. (Unless disabled via configuration)	"This quantum tunneling device allows you to open seamless gateways through space. It is how I arrived here in the first place!"
Gravity Globe	5	Always available. (Unless disabled via configuration)	"Flipping this device upside down will reverse its holder's local gravity. It is disguised as a simple decorative object for ease of transport."
Precision Gloves	5	Always available.	"Designed for training in medical and nanotech work, these gloves reward their wearer for making accurate operations."
Halting Machine	5	Always available.	"This device neutralizes local gravity on small objects. Useful for those accustomed to working in zero gravity."
Holographic Meatloaf	5	Always available.	"Popular with photosynthetic species. This meatloaf is projected with only the highest-quality light."
Bloody Tear	2	Always available.	"I discovered this artifact while doing research on a "blood moon". The watery crystal at its core contains high amounts of an unknown energy."
Galactic Starfruit	2	Always available.	"The energy readings from this fruit are nearly identical to those observed during a "glimmer". I recommend you use with caution."
Solar Tablet	5	After Plantera has been defeated.	"I discovered this artifact while exploring underground in this island's lush areas. Scans indicate an unusual concentration of dark energy within."
Pylon Gunner	10	Always available.	"When deployed near a pylon, this drone will autonomously defend against any hostile lifeforms within range."
Pylon Healer	10	Always available.	"When deployed near a pylon, this drone will autonomously provide care to any injured citizens within range."
Pylon Cleanser	10	After Omega Starite has been defeated.	"When deployed near a pylon, this drone will autonomously repel any parasitic superorganisms within range."
Anti-Gravity Block	250	Always available.	"This advanced platform projects a beam of reversed gravity that counters natural downwards force. Designed to increase usable area in factories."
Gravity Block	250	Always available.	"This advanced platform will enforce a standard gravity setting and counteract all opposite forces. Designed for use on spaceships."
Physics Block	250	Always available.	"This material was designed to absorb all energies that attempt to act upon it. As a result, it cannot be manipulated by the Physics Gun."
Emancipation Grill	250	Always available.	"This semi-transparent particle field will vaporize any unauthorized material that passes through it. Designed to destroy contraband automatically, but may detect false positives on teeth or inner ears."
Supernova Fruit	5	After Omega Starite has been defeated.	"This apple is emitting incredible amounts of radiation. I project that handling it without sufficient protective gear would reduce your lifespan to about 2.5 minutes."
SPACE	2	While the Painter is present.	"This mural seems to depict a spacefaring race I have not heard of before. Perhaps I should investigate them after my business is concluded here."
HOMEWORLD	2	While the Painter is present.	"A speculative depiction of the Starite homeworld. Unfortunately, it is too far away for me to teleport there and confirm."

Living preference

	Biome	Neighbor
Loves	n/a	Cyborg
Likes	Desert	​Goblin Tinkerer ​Steampunker ​Mechanic
Dislikes	n/a	​Dryad ​Witch Doctor
Hates	The Hallow	​Wizard ​Occultist

For more information, see NPC happiness.

• The Physicist is liked by the Goblin Tinkerer and Cyborg, and disliked by the Steampunker and Mechanic.

Names

The Physicist may have any of the following names:

• Lina
• Lumia
• Astra
• Eridani
• Termina
• Kristal
• Arti
• Gina

The Drone may have any of the following names:

• Quimble
• Pimble
• Nimble
• Zimble
• Spinzie
• Pinzie
• Zinzie
• Xinzie
• Squondle
• Mondle
• Chondle
• Wandle
• Squizzer
• Chizzer
• Whizzer
• Fizzer
• Zizzer
• Tizzer
• Skeebler
• Beebler
• Zeebler
• Xeebler
• Teebler
• Weebler
• Meebler
• Whibbler
• Blipper
• Bleeper
• Blooper
• Zipper
• Zooper
• Pooper

Quotes

Interaction quotes

Condition	Quote
Always available	"Quite the exotic gravity you have here. My planet's pull is only about 38% the strength." "It seems there is something to chaos theory after all..." "Not all seeing further is by standing on the shoulders of giants. Some use flying saucers instead." "[⍀⏃⋏⎅⍜⋔ ⌇⟒⋏⏁⟒⋏☊⟒]. Oh, my apologies, I must have slipped back into my native language."
At night	"My homeworld should be visible in the sky from here... do you see it? Hm. Likely not, with ocular receptors like that."
During a Blood Moon	"These conditions appear to have an effect on human biology, but investigating it has been... difficult." "I have been unable to recreate the erratic behaviors caused by these events with a simple red light. Something more must be at play."
During a Glimmer	"The glittering lights that mark the arrival of the stars... there is so much yet to learn from this still." "All of my data probes keep getting hit by falling stars! Infuriating!"
While in a Graveyard	"Is this how you bury your dead? Rather formal, compared to the mass graves on my homeworld." "Do you hear that sound? Have I left my PKE meter on debug mode again?"
During a Windy Day	"My eyes are quite sensitive to the wind. If only I had brought a pair of goggles..."
During the Rain	"Fascinating! I knew of it before, of course, but seeing liquid precipitation in person is an entirely different experience."
During a Thunderstorm	"What was that sound? We don't have anything like this on my planet!"
During a Party	"This 'party' is most unnatural. How do you sustain such levels of festivity?"
During Martian Madness	"What is happening?! I had not authorized an invasion! I had nothing to do with this!"
After completing a Martian Madness	"I apologize for my... overly militant superiors. At least you fended them off in one piece."
While the Celestial Pillars are alive, or while the Moon Lord boss is spawning/present	"All of my sensors are going haywire! This world's moon is emitting incredibly powerful waves of energy, and its projected area is centered directly on this island!"
If Secrets of the Shadows is enabled	"When I was first calibrating my portals to transport me here, I discovered a disturbance created by some sort of floating-ship object. It may be in my best interest to investigate this." "You haven't been making deals with any cat-like creatures... right?"
If Polarities Mod is enabled, after Golem has been defeated, and the Mechanic is present	"Have you seen my giant magnet? About 12 feet long? I leave it unattended for one moment and it vanishes on me..."

Analysis

Condition	Quote
Quest is available	"My scanners indicate signs of <rarity>-rare objects. It would be of great service to me and my department if you could locate one of these relics from your world."
Quest available, valid item in inventory	"That '<item>' would be a perfect sample for our research, may we have it?"
Item submitted	"Thank you for your service."
No quest available	"You have done enough work for now. Although I have a pending sample request which will be coming in at <time> if you are interested."

Happiness quotes

Condition	Quote
When homeless	"I would request a drop-pod laboratory from my homeworld, but... I neglected to bring my radio. May you construct a habitat for me?"
When far from home	"A scientist's work is not for the weak of mind. For instance, I occasionally have to leave my house."
When in a sparse area	"I enjoy space in all definitions. It's nice to have ample room to set up all of my equipment."
When overcrowded	"The abundance of nearby lifeforms is throwing off my readings. More room would be appreciated."
	"I had heard rumors of your species' inconsiderate housing habits. It's unfortunate to see they're true."
When in the Desert	"The clear weather of the Desert is ideal for both long-range observation and sending communications back to my homeworld. Excellent!"
When in The Hallow	"What a childish place the Hallow is. This is an insult to someone of my intelligence."
When in an Evil biome or the Dungeon	"My equipment keeps malfunctioning in <name of Biome>, as if there is some kind of persistent virus in the air."
When near the Cyborg	"<name of Cyborg> is utterly fascinating! Even our best scientists could only dream of a truly sapient AI!"
When near the Goblin Tinkerer, Mechanic, or Steampunker	"<name of NPC> is a competent engineer. It's nice to talk to someone that can keep up with my expertise."
When near the Princess	"<name of Princess> has reached out to me about relations with my race. I am no ambassador, but it's nice to see your rulers are fair and just."
When near the Dryad or Witch Doctor	"<name of NPC>'s methods confuse and upset me. Rituals and prophecies have no role in understanding the world."
When near the Wizard or Occultist	"<name of NPC> is far too whimsical for my tastes. Don't they know 'magic' is just sufficiently advanced technology?"
When neutral	"My surroundings are acceptable. As they say on Mars, an alive soldier is a happy soldier."

Drone quotes

Condition	Quote
Always available	"Beep boop."
	"Beep bop."

Trivia

• If the Drone is named "Pooper" or "Little Zumbo" (by way of a Name Tag), its squeak sound effect when "pet" will be replaced by a fart noise.
• The symbols in the Physicist's dialogue "[⍀⏃⋏⎅⍜⋔ ⌇⟒⋏⏁⟒⋏☊⟒]. Oh, my apologies, I must have slipped back into my native language." translate to "RANDOM SENTENCE" in alien language cipher.