With Manipulators and Tricksters functioning as the bulk offensive forces of Hyacinth's army, Deltas bring up the rear as support. They produce psionic shields and can incite a powerful psionic aggression in their allies. A group of Deltas is called a swell or a gaggle.

Deltas are the smallest of any regular puppet, standing at 2' 8" (76cm), with rather light builds. Deltas have an almost otherworldly slightness to them; they run in long, floaty strides, and their movement produces less noise than other puppets of similar size. They display these traits in addition to an uncanny ability to vault on and balance atop taller obstacles, much like cats. Their defining trait only reinforces this unusual quality: Wispy clumps of thin psionic tendrils that tend to levitate freely in the air, as if weightless. This lightness comes at the cost of their own durability; even most subpuppets outdo their physical endurance. Deltas also display extremely strong psionic potential, resembling an unburdened Reconcilant.

Deltas are dedicated support units, and rarely approach the front lines if given a choice. They linger behind other, more durable puppets, providing psionic support to their allies. These supporting skills rarely do damage directly (save for their shields causing damaging impulses when struck), but grant nearby allies better offensive and defensive potential. A full directory can be found below.

As far as puppets go, Deltas are extremely frail. In terms of absolute frailty, they are only surpassed by Arrays and Wisps. This results in them practicing extremely evasive behaviour in combat, hiding deep behind the frontlines and supporting allies from afar. In particular, they like to hide near the back edges of a Mesosa's squall, using the cover while relying on other puppets to distract foes.

This frailty and the fact that Deltas are generally the friendliest of any of their kin means that almost every other puppet type sees protecting them as a priority, especially Praetors. If a Delta is injured, it is most often a Praetor that will take it in, typically accompanied by the attacker receiving a significant beating.

Outside of combat, Deltas commonly flit around their allies, attempting rudimentary first aid to help with wounds or sickness. They can be found licking other puppets' wounds, fashioning simple bandages or splints out of their psionic fields, and such. Deltas also display the flexibility of their psionic fields during peacetime, using them to manifest simple equipment like planes or straight edges to help with physical labour.

Deltas have an interesting mix of distinct and generic triggers. They share a number of triggers found commonly across other puppet types, but also have a number of triggers found in them and nowhere else. It is generally believed that their powerful psionic abilities are both the beneficiary and explanation of the odd mix of common and rare traits.

Deltas utilize a mix of defensive and offensive supporting skills in combat, though their psionics rarely cause damage directly. This section is dedicated to listing the details of their psionic abilities:

• Shielding: A Delta's bread and butter is the psionic shields that they can project around nearby allies. These thin skinshields effectively meld with the recipient's body, acting as emergency splints for broken bones and sealing flesh wounds. When attacked, shields reciprocate some of the damage they receive as a psionic impulse that can cause nerve damage in their target, with this damaging impulse becoming much stronger if the shield is completely broken by the attack.
• Tower Shields: While not exactly a separate phenomenon from their normal shields, these special barriers behave very differently. Deltas conjure these buckler or tower shield-shaped barriers directly into the hands of Manipulators, allowing the Manipulator to block attacks and even deliver a damaging impulse via bashing a target with the shield. These shields don't seem to rely on durability, instead wearing off after about a minute. These solid fields can be projected in a variety of shapes, allowing them to be used as temporary tools or platforms.
• Assistance: A mild sort of psionic assistance centered on a single ally. This sort of aid is usually borderline instantaneous; helping a fellow land a single attack or something of the sort. Deltas tend to only use this ability when no more pressing assistance is needed.
• Berserking: Deltas can incite a more powerful neurochemical response in their target ally, notably enhancing their strength and precision for a period of time. Moreso, multiple Deltas can "stack" this effect up to twice, amplifying the boon further.

Deltas are curious things, given they were the first time a puppet didn't at least prefer to be fighting enemies directly. They're also the first time I really leaned on Hyacinth's psionic nature (before this, the only puppet that shared any psionic importance was Reconcilants with their subpuppetry. Deltas being support units have kind of had their niche traipsed upon by the Mesosa, though like other light puppets, Deltas differentiate themselves from larger puppets by a mix of dexterity and versatility.

Originally, Deltas only had the ability to shield. They were entirely dependent on their shielding capabilities, and once they had a full-strength shield or two up they were basically idlers. Psionic aggression and assistance were added to diversify their pool and reduce the risks of downtime, but also helped define them into a more well-rounded support class. Now Deltas are for everything, and everyone, which gives them a very strong niche even in cases like the Mesosa or mezzers like Delegates. Deltas also have the most interactions with other puppet types, owing to how versatile their psionic materials are.