Changes

Possibly the most terrifying aspect of Genestealers is their insidious method of reproduction. Genestealers reproduce completely separate from a Hive Fleet, unlike the majority of other Tyranid creatures. Through the use of a tube-like tongue called an '''Ovipositor''', known informally as the '''Genestealer's Kiss'''{{Fn|10a}}, they insert a tiny embryonic organism containing their own genetic material into a host victim. Over time this organism alters the host's genetic code, and their consciousness is also completely suppressed by a localised version of the Hive Mind, known as the '''Brood Mind''', becoming a virtual slave. Any offspring born by the host will be horrific [[Genestealer Hybrid]]s, which the host will be psychically mesmerised to care for, giving rise to the [[Genestealer Cult]]s that grow in secret within human and other societies. {{Fn|3}}{{Fn|4a}}{{Fn|4b}} Oviposition of victims is quick but not instantaneous, and should the Genestealer be killed, distracted, or otherwise interrupted during the act only a partial infestation will occur. This imparts the quasi-host with some aspects of a true hybrid, potentially including an extreme will to survive, vulnerability to a Patriarch's influence, and other related conditions, while still retaining much of their free will.{{Fn|18}}