Evolution In The Playground: Season 8

[Aegis J Hyena]

Dawn breaks on a new, pristine world. One with no biological fauna on it... only flora of many different shapes, sizes, colors and allergen-producers. No sounds emerge from the forests save the blowing of the wind... no chirps of crickets, no buzzing of flies, no nothing... for fauna of any sort has not yet arisen.

This is an Earth-like planet, with the same four seasons that we humans are used to. Gravity equal to Earth's exists, with the planet the right size for its part of the Habitable Zone. Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall come and go without being noticed by anyone, anything, or any plant. The sun rises in the east and sets in the west, same as Earth, and a single large moon shines overhead reflecting light from its sun back down onto the planet below.

Then, one fateful night...

WWWWHHHHHHOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM...

The clouds part, and a massive comet... nay, an asteroid, strikes through the planet's atmosphere. It defies the planet below commanding it to make way for itself, screaming across the sky and rending the heavens asunder. Micro-meteors and debris trail off as it crosses, some burning up in the atmosphere, some large enough to survive the trip to the planet's surface, and still others as large as boulders slamming to the ground with the force of hundreds of kilotons of TNT.

The asteroid breaks up into three huge chunks. The first chunk bounces off the atmosphere like a basketball being dribbled, spiraling off into space before slamming into the moon and making it appear that the moon's face has a sharp "nose" of dark, angular, different-styled stone than its regular composition. The second chunk explodes in the atmosphere, causing a sonic boom that flattens untold amounts of trees, splintering them like toothpicks. The third slams into the ocean, causing a tidal wave that reduces the nearby landscape to a washed-out beach and neatly scours the nearby forests and hills clean of all plant life.

This third chunk broke apart while sinking to the bottom, bubbling and hissing as the water cooled it after its roaring surge through the atmosphere. When it broke apart, a huge chunk of a strange lavender crystal stone was exposed.. While this chunk promptly sank to the bottom faster than the rest of the meteorite, at the same time it was also being intentionally "propelled" away by some unseen force.

The strange lavender crystal shattered, releasing its contents into the unsuspecting pristine waters of the planet's oceans.

Some strange advanced civilization had seeded the comet with a single fast-breeding bacterium they called X. Neutralis Thromalius. Colorless and measuring only an inch both long and wide (so it looked like a square), this bacteria had the potential to go on to be the sentient, sapient force for the planet and would shape the world to its whims and desires.

In order to bend reality to its whim, it just needed to survive the deepest oceans, first!

By the time it reaches the surface, the frozen wasteland left by the millions of cubic feet of dirt thrown up by the asteroid should be thawed.

While utter darkness in the bitter depths, bone chilling waters that freeze the bones within your skin, and crushing pressures capable of actually getting through Donald Trump's thick skull are not really a sentient life form's best friends... Life Finds A Way. It always finds a way.


*************************************

Yes, I've done seven of these in the past on another forum. Population there dried up, so...

All right, folks. It begins, upon request by some forum-goers here. I want you, the forum, to "suggest" mutations of this colorless, translucent bacteria. As there are other bacteria in the ocean to prey upon and be preyed upon by, let's see if you survive. Suggestions for mutations can include anything from what it eats to what color it is to how it moves and defends itself. Be creative within the length of a single tweet. Nature likes to Keep It Simple.

For the first week and a half, I will write a post once every day explaining which mutations made it. As beneficial mutations are rare, I will be rolling on Random.org (1-100 random roll, 90+ keeps the mutation). I will then write about what our little bacteria does, as well as what its opponents do... and there WILL be other critters in the ocean to deal with!

If I roll more than fifteen mutations with a 90+ I will select the top seven by roll-off, culling the list by 7 each time until I have under fifteen total. If I roll NO mutations making 90+, I will select the one that rolled highest and apply that. Life marches on!

I write to the whim of the dice. In future rounds of the game when specific paths open up, I will be rolling for its successes and writing as the dice fall. It will not be as RNG-dependant as you think, as specific actions and paths will add bonuses and penalties to the rolls based on previous actions and whatever story unfolds.

Each post, for this first round, will equal about 100,000,000 years. When we hit 1 Billion Years, various paths will open up and evolution will slow down as you vote on said paths (three choices will be listed, vote on one). At 2 Billion, more paths open (five, vote on two) and evolution all but stops; basic appearance and abilities will be "locked in" until we end at 3.5 Billion (seven, vote on three)... then the next stage of the game will begin as you decide to Proceed Unto Land or Remain in The Deeps as an aquatic race. The discovery of religion and magic (and how to deal with both!) will come later.

Tweet your suggestions to (and follow me, in order to keep updated) @DrHervisJasper -- please tag it #Civolution if it can fit within the 140 letter length of your suggestion. Boy, I picked the wrong platform. Out of 70 friends on my Steam, not one has a Twitter.

Will the new race be steampunk? Natural-materials only? Medieval taken to the 21st century and onward? Ancient Egypt? A tale of a desert species living under the moon because the sun burns them all to death? Robots? Tree-root beings? An elemental race? Reptilian? Anthropomorphic?

That's for you guys to decide... and for me to find out!

That... is enough out of me. It's time to get this Civilization underway. Whether you read for the story or actively take part in the tweet-voting to influence the incoming civilization, may you Enjoy Your Stay. Can you, the Collective Stick-Figure-ness of the forum, give rise to a Civilization starting from the primordial soup, or will you be forever lost, condemned to the gene pool of history?

Let's... find... out.

Start suggestin'! :smallcool:

Good luck, guys.

[Jon0113]

Should we only suggest one per post?
Aside note: acidic blood

[GuesssWho]

Question: are we carbon-based? Because being, like, arsenic-based could be useful if we ever get to space . . .

[Aegis J Hyena]

One per post (Edit: One suggestion per post of mine, so one per day), and there's no specification about what elements we're based on. So if you want an Arsenic based life form, suggest it.

Also doing this at http://riseoftheinternet.wix.com/oneszeroesandtwos --- but they will be separate universes.

[Xefas]

Tweet length, huh?

I suggest we mutate a turgid proboscis with which to penetrate the outer wall of other organisms and drink their sweet, sweet organelles. #teamproboscis #turgidityforlife #meatismurder #butmurderisprettyradactually #futuresuperpredator

[Ramsus]

Ok so we're still a bacteria right? So the really noticeable choices aren't available yet. So... let's see. I think we should be able to change our shape so that we can mimic parts of the environment or bacteria other more predatory ones wouldn't attack or conversely if we're predatory mimic non-predatory ones.

[GuesssWho]

Yeah, that's my suggestion. #arsenicworld #poisoninvadingaliens LOL

[Aegis J Hyena]

I hope more than just four people begin to suggest ideas... heh. In other forums I had 12+ before the population of the place hit -10 HP...

Post coming tomorrow afternoon-ish, but don't let that dissuade others from joining in... :)

[GAAD]

You know what I'm going with?
MAGIC.
Let's make our bacteria MAGIC! ... somehow.
Maybe more sensitive to ley lines? Able to use them as a navigational and sensory system?
What are midichlorians? I have never heard of them before.

[HalfTangible]

You know what I'm going with?
MAGIC.
Let's make our bacteria MAGIC! ... somehow.
Maybe more sensitive to ley lines? Able to use them as a navigational and sensory system?
What are midichlorians? I have never heard of them before.

... Midichlorians are microscopic bacteria that infect your science fantasy franchise and turn it into utter s@#$.

I suggest: Electrical discharge to fight off predators and incapacitate prey.

[Aegis J Hyena]

I've made the rolls for these first few suggestions, and written the story around them. I am not posting until tomorrow, though, to give others a chance to suggest things and enrich said story. Random.org was... less than kind (one roll was a natural 1, which WILL backfire here...) and only one roll above a 90+ (but I won't say which yet). You'll see in about 9 or 12 hours. :)

[Aegis J Hyena]

Huh. I was expecting a few more players. Spread the word a little bit more?

=================================================

Acidic Blood (90+): Natural 1 (Critical Failure)
Turgid Proboscis (90+): 27 (Nope)
Bacterial Mimicry (90+): 57 (Nope)
Arsenic-Based Life Form (90+): 80 (Nope)
Sensivity to Ley Lines (90+): 93 (Success!)
Electrical Defenses: (90+): 77 (Nope)

THE TIME: 100,000 Years BBB (Before Birth of Brains)
THE PLACE: The Deepest Ocean, with bone chilling temps
Lifeform Survival: 90% (This is an estimation of how well your species is surviving; below 50% and you have problems)

The Situation:

X. Neutralis Thromalius has survived for 100,000 years, feeding on carrion and the ocean floor. During this time it attempts a lot of different ways to better itself.

First, when some stronger-cell-walled bacteria try to muscle it into its cell wall spikes, X. Neutralis Thromalius attempts to make them pay for it by evolving acidic blood. By storing its toxins in one area of the cell and turning itself to aim it at the spikes, anyone breaking X. Neutralis Thromalius' cell wall is in for a rude surprise. The problem with this is that the spray of toxins filled the water around it, and hurt it far more than its predators, which evolved effective filtration systems to deal with it. Next our hero bacteria tries to take the concept of cell wall spikes it's encountered to a greater level, by evolving a long, fat "spine" with which to siphon fluids like a mosquito would. Didn't work... the opponents just evolved thicker cell walls to block it.

X. Neutralis Thromalius tries to make itself seem like its predators, in order to effectively hide. THAT didn't work, as it seems X. Neutralis Thromalius has a distinct chemical "signal" that alerts other cells, forcing it on the defensive. When its poisons and "acidic blood" don't work, X. Neutralis Thromalius attempts a new strategy, by switching from carbon and oxygen in the water to arsenic instead, to poison anything that comes within range. It didn't work, as the filtration systems of the enemy just continued to evolve (at the cost of mostly everything else, so your predators are weaker now).

X. Neutralis Thromalius did discover it could run instead of fight, and developed a sensivity to Ley Lines. Fading out of phase and connecting to the lines, it can literally cling to a ley line and shoot off like a squid exhaling water as "magic" courses through the world... shooting it along at a lightning-fast pace like a subway track. Of course, such a hold can't be held forever but a great deal of distance is traveled allowing the bacteria to populate every corner of the globe... and allowing you to constantly shift your environment in the deeps, making you very hard to take down as you pick the battlefield in which to evolve.

While X. Neutralis Thromalius tried to evolve an electrical defense from the "jolt" let off after such a journey via ley line, it didn't work as the electricity produced wasn't enough to break others' cell walls and damage them. Doesn't mean it can't happen in the future (since previous ideas can simply be suggested again).

Thus ends 100,000 years. Start suggesting mutations to deal with the new situation, and I'll post again tomorrow :) Onward to 200,000 years!


Enemy Predator Cells:

* Have effective Filtration Systems (++RPois)
* Cell walls are thick (-Speed)
* Resistant to Electricity (+RElec)
Danger Level: 3/10 (8+ and you're in a bad way)

X. Neutralis Thromalius

Sensitive to Ley Lines (+Magic)
Distinct Chemical Signal (-Stealth)
Can pick the battlefield (+Elemental Resistance)

Poisoned Self (-15% Survival)
Ley Lines for Travel (+5% Survival)

[Ramsus]

Is the poisoned thing something that's going to last a particularly long time?

I think it's funny the one thing we managed was... magic.

Let's evolve some flagella or something for extra speed.

[Aegis J Hyena]

The self-poisoning? No, I wrote it down just to record it.

The predator cells evolving poison resistance? -That- will stay around a while. Although other mutations in reaction to whatever you end up getting might remove some of it, especially if it's not used often. Use it or lose it, so to speak.

[Jon0113]

Might be worth moving it to message board games? Seems slightly lost in all these other games, and it does have a message board game feel to it (there are 2 similar games currently running there)
Either way, I'm going for a parasitic nature (one where we actually control the host/victim)

[Xefas]

Alright, so they've got walls built to stop a piercing weapon. But how are they against a crushing force?

I propose we evolve a hinged jaw to squeeze our prey between our wall-spikes, tearing, crushing, and breaking them open to then absorb their free-floating innard-goop. #omnomnom #hingedjaw2016 #hingedjawforpresident #feelthejaw

[Aegis J Hyena]

If someone moves the thread to where it belongs most (and leaves a link so I can bookmark it) then I won't complain. Or do I need to make a new thread entirely? I'd rather not, now that I've already made this one.

[GuesssWho]

Hmm . . . how about fins, so we can maneuver better? Since speed seems to be our thing.

[Fion MacCumhail]

i think it's a bit early for fins and jaws.
so i suggest developing sensitivity to vibrations/tremors, which would allow us to make out predators and prey in the deep dark sea and might eventually lead to a keen hearing.

(heat sensitivity would also be helpful in locating underwater volcanoes and black smokers. are we allowed to make multiple suggestions?)

[HalfTangible]

Other cells are slow and ponderous. Let's take advantage of that and go faster.

Say... Waterjets of some kind.

[GuesssWho]

i think it's a bit early for fins and jaws.

True. I second flagella, then.

[Xefas]

i think it's a bit early for fins and jaws.


http://i.imgur.com/fACHiPh.jpg
#omnomnom

[Bobbybobby99]

Hello! I suggest a secreted diaphanous veil, a sort of detatchable plasmic membrane parachute, used to entangle enemies and prevent collisions after traveling on ley lines. It's a speed reducer, but it makes us harder to hold. #plasmaparachute, #VesticleDerived, #phospolipidsFTW.

[Aegis J Hyena]

-Anything- can be suggested. If you want fins and jaws this early, I'll work it into the storyline. as just being cell-wall tier and not "animal" tier.

Bobby --- I posted quite a few more scenes, seems like no one is picking up the slack, so. :P

[GuesssWho]

You might want to ask a mod to move the thread, I'm pretty sure they can do that.

Fins it is, then :smallsmile:

[Aegis J Hyena]

I'll leave it here unless a mod moves it of their own accord, that way I can easily find it with my bookmark.

[Rain Dragon]

Oh. Is the bacterium only a single cell organism?
I think the clear answer is it should become a multi cellular organism posthaste! This would be a great advantage, I think.

Also, hi.
Also, hashtags wot? :smallconfused:

[GuesssWho]

Because he asked that the suggestions be short, like a tweet LOL

[Rain Dragon]

Because he asked that the suggestions be short, like a tweet LOL

Ah, I see. Thanks.
/hides various lengthy thoughts on the benefits of multicellularism
/wonders how they're* going to manage
#Relief #No140CharLimit #ButStillCantManageBrevity

*Just referring to me, don't worry

[GAAD]

My suggestion worked?
I am important! We have magic!

Now I think we should develop thicker cell membranes, so as to sustain more damage.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Flagella: 71
Parasitic Nature: 21
Hinged Jaw: 49
Fins: 72
Water Jets: 25
Membrane Parachute: 84
Multicelluar: 95
Thicker Cell Membranes: 78

THE TIME: 200,000,000 Years BBB (Should have been 100 million years instead of 100,000 -- I'm not doing things 100,000 at a time! Heh. I wanted 10 turns to a billion years, not 100 :) )
THE PLACE: The Deepest Ocean, with bone chilling temps
Lifeform Survival: 85%

The Situation:

X. Neutralis Thromalius has made it to 200,000,000 years, and has populated almost every dark corner of the globe thanks to traveling the Ley Lines.

Rather than evolve flagella, fins or even water jets for speed, most travel is done via the Ley Lines. The "need for speed" also sort of prevents thicker cell membranes for defense; why fight when you can run as the nearest Ley Line is literally inches away. The sensitivity to Ley Lines has strengthened X. Neutralis Thromalius enabling it to go further "out of phase" than it could before. The membrane parachute idea is tried but your speed along the Ley Lines is too fast and any attempts to make a membrane over time just end up ripping the thing before it gets anywhere. Combat doesn't seem to be your deal; you phase out when confronted by predators and travel away on the Ley Lines. The hinged jaw was defeated by stronger cell walls evolved by other bacteria.

Because of your unwillingness to fight and because of your opposing bacteria having too-thick shells to leech off of, you've edged away from a meat or protein based diet. You've remained on the bottom, feeding a bit off of carrion but more and more edging towards plankton and dead plant matter specifically. There's quite a bit of it down here, since there's no oxygen in the ocean... yet... and thus nothing rots. With a lack of predators as they've all evolved really thick cell walls to defend against your attempted offenses, you now have quite an abundance of food. Your "opponent" bacteria are now rock solid in defense, but also slower than an internet troll's thought processes. While you're still not fast enough to really "run circles" around them, they're too slow to chase you.

On the other hand, if you're aiming for a meat diet, you'd better do something about that soonish...

Finally, the close proximity to the Ley Lines has caused X. Neutralis Thromalius to split, mutating. Instead of single celled, it is now multicelluar, but unspecialized.. Rather than look like one square little bacteria, it's now a mess of faceted squares around a central nucleus... but is that a good thing? The "radioactivity" of the Ley Lines has basically turned the bacteria into a sort of half-dead-ish cancerous thing. Were it not for the abundance of dead plant matter to feed that half, you'd be forced to try to break through the hard shells of the other bacteria and likely fail. Or worse, making them evolve to counterattack, such as a white blood cell layer covering their thick shells.

The Cancerous part of you may mutate uncontrollably next post (80+ on the roll), leading to who knows what if something isn't done. Maybe you want to keep it and see what it brings?

Onward to 300,000,000 years!

Enemy Predator Cells:

* Have effective Filtration Systems (++RPois)
* Cell walls are extremely thick (--Speed)
* Resistant to Electricity (+RElec)
Evolves speed next post
Danger Level: 2/10

X. Neutralis Thromalius

Sensitive to Ley Lines (+Magic)
Distinct Chemical Signal (-Stealth)
Can pick the battlefield (+Elemental Resistance)
Multicelluar, but Cancerous (-Health; requires near-constant upkeep or the cell dies)
Can Phase Out of "normal space" (usually to connect to a Ley Line)
60% to "Herbivorism"

Enemies can't catch you (+5% Survival)
Cancerous, Vampiric, requires a constant source of food living or dead (-10%)

[Fion MacCumhail]

while it's possibly not as useful as enhanced regeneration at this point, i suggest the ability to incorporate other organisms (let's hear it for mitochondria).

[Ramsus]

While I approve of the above idea, multiple people voting for the same thing doesn't seem to effect our odds... so I might as well suggest something else. Which will be evolving to be able to eat minerals as well (rocks, metal, crystal, etc.)

[Jon0113]

Well my 2 combined rolls were 22, so doing well in regards to that. This time I will suggest a drill of some kind, hopefully strong enough to attack other cells

[MintyNinja]

I love these games and was one of the originals on these boards with Third Emperor and the Iregise. It might help if you call it a Spore Game instead of Civilization because I think the Civ games are thought to be similar to the Empire Games and this is quite different (for now).

As for suggestions: Pack Tactics

If we can get a group of our vampiric buddys to gang up on a cell, we might be able to take it down. Think wolves vs. moose.

[HalfTangible]

Someone already suggested incorporating other life forms, so I'm going to suggest that the different cells specialize.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Thread title changed. I HATE calling it Spore itself, since Spore basically failed (just as I thought it would).

I MIGHT do another post tonight to speed things along, we'll see if the mood strikes.

Things that failed in the past (such as the membrane parachute idea) -can- be re-suggested.

Edit: I might move the thread too, or start a new continuation of this one in another forum here after all. Not yet, but soonish. MintyNinja: http://hyena-yena.deviantart.com/art/The-Katha-506747540 was the result of the last civilization game I did in another forum.

[Xefas]

I suggest we take our phasing magic one step forward and evolve a tentacular ethereal proboscis that sinks not into our foes' flesh, but siphons directly from their vital lifeforce via this "out of phase" plane we can interact with.
#ghostcancer #countthromalius #legacyofxneutralissoulreaver #animavore

[Rain Dragon]

Hmm, faster mutations...
Potentially really neat.

I vote for fireballs! That you can lob at enemies.

#MoreMagic #WhatCouldPossiblyGoWrong #IfWeDieItsTotallyMyFault

[HalfTangible]

Hmm, faster mutations...
Potentially really neat.

I vote for fireballs! That you can lob at enemies.

#MoreMagic #WhatCouldPossiblyGoWrong #IfWeDieItsTotallyMyFault

We're in the ocean. :smalltongue:

[Rain Dragon]

We're in the ocean. :smalltongue:

...phasing around on ley lines.
That the flames are highly likely to be suffocated by all of this ocean concerns me not. Nor does the possibility that magic fire is fueled by ocean!

#ThinkofthePossibilities #OkayMaybeImaLittleConcerned

[HalfTangible]

...phasing around on ley lines.
That the flames are highly likely to be suffocated by all of this ocean concerns me not. Nor does the possibility that magic fire is fueled by ocean!

#ThinkofthePossibilities #OkayMaybeImaLittleConcerned

If the fire is fueled by solely by ocean water then the second we use this ability the entire planet is doomed to burn to death. :smalltongue:

[MintyNinja]

Thread title changed. I HATE calling it Spore itself, since Spore basically failed (just as I thought it would).

I MIGHT do another post tonight to speed things along, we'll see if the mood strikes.

Things that failed in the past (such as the membrane parachute idea) -can- be re-suggested.

Edit: I might move the thread too, or start a new continuation of this one in another forum here after all. Not yet, but soonish. MintyNinja: http://hyena-yena.deviantart.com/art/The-Katha-506747540 was the result of the last civilization game I did in another forum.

Here's the Irgise that I mocked up in Paint way back in the day: Irgise (http://s1228.photobucket.com/user/SurviedNinja/media/Irgise.jpg.html?o=29)

I think this was while they were still face-burrowing spiny rock-munchers before they gained various spit and sonic blasts.

[Rain Dragon]

If the fire is fueled by solely by ocean water then the second we use this ability the entire planet is doomed to burn to death. :smalltongue:

I didn't say solely.
Clearly it'd be fueled by magic as well. Maybe we could detach hopelessly mutated cells, set them on fire and lob them at enemies.

Tssk, just imagine.

/neglects to mention potential fiery doom


Here's the Irgise that I mocked up in Paint way back in the day: Irgise (http://s1228.photobucket.com/user/SurviedNinja/media/Irgise.jpg.html?o=29)

I think this was while they were still face-burrowing spiny rock-munchers before they gained various spit and sonic blasts.

Ooh, cool.

[Bobbybobby99]

I vote for the cancerous growths to mutate into, wait for it... throwing cell corpses at our enemies! Now, we repurpose the corpses of cells dying from lack of food in the cancerous structure instead of using new material, and let the remains float behind us connected by phospolipid tethers! Whenever a predator get's near, we release the cell corpse and strip it's center of membrane so the innards leak out, scattering our distinct chemical signature everywhere and blinding them with cytoplasm! #complicated, #corpseintheface, #plasmictether.

[Belac93]

I vote the cancerous grows are attached to the stomachs of predators that eat us, making them eventually mutate into a version of us. :smallbiggrin:
#badnow=good #screwyoupredators

[GuesssWho]

Fire doesn't make sense in the ocean, but ice does! I suggest we freeze dead cells and throw them at our enemies. #icemagic #iceknifespell

[Aegis J Hyena]

EDIT: Missed your Ice Mutation just as I was finishing the post there. Maybe next turn...

Cancer mutates (80+): 40 (Nope)
Assimilation of other Microbes: 92
Mineral Diet: 34
Drill Tentacle: 4
Pack Tactics: 66
Cell Specializtion: 95
Mineral Diet: 34
Drill Tentacle: 4
Improve to Ethereal Plane: 82
Superheated Water Jets: 65
Tetherball Cancer Traps: Natural 1 (...)
Mutation Before Digestion: 95
Next "Random Mutation" occurs at 600,000,000 years

THE TIME: 300,000,000 Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Deepest Ocean, with bone chilling temps
Lifeform Survival: 77%

The Situation:

X. Neutralis Thromalius has advanced to 300,000,000 years, and finally has some named enemies!

There are two major predators of X. Neutralis Thromalius. First we have Q. Zozo Kefii unoriginal? me? which uses stealth. It's learned to mimic X. Neutralis Thromalius, by altering the wavelength at which its cell "shell" reflects light, appearing as if they were just returning from out-of-phase. Then it strikes with four long stinging finger-like cells. It takes the "cancer" cells and uses it as a dead "shell" around itself, but keeps them separately layered from the main cell by a lubricative layer. Thus other bacteria leave it alone thinking it's diseased. The other is F. Ugli Krinni, a speed demon that masks its background energy to appear as a "hub" on a Ley Line where X. Neutralis Thromalius can attach. Then it uses an intense pulse of metal toxicity to turn the water around it to sulfuric acid... utterly dissolving anything that gets stuck to its sticky glue-like outer cell wall.

This latter bacteria is also damaging the Ley Lines that way. Because the world is fresh, it's not having much of an impact. If Ley Lines are severed, they just tie themselves together elsewhere but at a lower density (meaning less magic later, but it's a -world- of Ley Lines... how much damage can one bacteria do?).

Various new attack methods have been developed. First a drill tentacle was tried but that kept getting severed at first chance by F. Ugli Krinni. You tried lobbing "chemical fire" (evolving a superheated water-spewing cell) at opponents, but they resisted. Attempting to improve upon the out-of-phase so you could hide or Plane Shift didn't work, and a brief change to a mineral based diet only met with a bad taste due to memory of F. Ugli Krinni's metal toxins. You tried coordination and pack tactics, but the general effect is that opposing bacteria SWARM like honeybees in response, outproducing anything you could.

Meanwhile, back in the bowels of X. Neutralis Thromalius, while the cancer itself doesn't mutate, the bacteria does, now the size of a baby's pinky finger. One third of the cancerous cells have been converted to DNA resequencers, stealing DNA from attacking cells and infesting it with its own immune response. You're now resistant to most general forms of bacteria thanks to your assimilation ability, though several brands of bacteria are beginning to modify themselves to produce grease, which they use to "skate" away from both you and ley lines, thinning the food supply.

You've specialized a second tendril near the Prehensile Tail. This tendril breaks apart in those that eat you, depositing your DNA everywhere on the cell's natural death and eventually give creation to more X. Neutralis Thromalius with some of the host's DNA as a bonus. This adds a chance for "random extra mutations" (I'll roll on a wild surge table every 3 turns and creatively apply whatever comes up) because who knows what else is lurking in the depths. The cells that have survived have now "specialized", allowing you a choice of one Offensive Mutation, one Defensive Mutation, one Utility Mutation, and one Vanity Mutation. You can suggest one or all of them and I'll roll them as any other mutation for the next 3 turns. These addtional mutations are 86+ to happen, and will become "hallmarks" of the bacteria as a whole. However, only the highest roll (if more than one of a given type is successful) will be kept.

Of course, you can't have the good without the bad, and in this case we have a major bad. X. Neutralis Thromalius attempted to "shoot" out its cancer cells on tethers, trying to attach to opposing bacteria and drawing them in for the kill that way. It doesn't work, and instead the cancer is amplified as the cells specialize.X. Neutralis Thromalius now has a visible "dead shell" made of itself that covers half of its body (including the part that moves the cell). Half the time, this "Dead Shell" kills the host cell over time, and the other half of the time it breaks apart on touch, exposing what you could call a "soft underbelly". You lost quite a bit of population here.

The currents are changing and a lot of dead-ish plant matter is suspended in the water. These two adversarial microbes might not follow you if you decide to ascend to somewhat warmer waters (for given values of warmer, down here). An option to free-float in the lower deeps instead of feed on the bottom will be available at 500,000,000 years.

The Cancerous part of you may mutate uncontrollably next post (76+).

Onward to 400,000,000 years!

Basic Enemy Predator Cells:

* Have effective Filtration Systems (++RPois)
* Cell walls are extremely thick (--Speed)
* Swarms like bees if attacked (+Berserk)
* Water Jets for speed bursts (+Speed)
* Resistant to Electricity (+RElec)
* Resistant to Heat (+RFire)
* Produces Grease (+Escape Artistry)
Danger Level: 3/10

Q. Zozo Kefii

* Advanced Mimicry and near-Invisibility (++Stealth)
* Dead Cell Shield (+Armor)
* Four Attacks per round
* Actively hunts X. Neutralis Thromalius
Danger Level: 4/10 and increasing next turn

[b[F. Ugli Krinni[/b]

* Very very fast (+++Speed)
* Mimicry of Ley Lines (++Stealth)
* Releases toxic metals (+Poison)
* Immune to Acid
* Sticky Outer Cell Wall (+Hold Pers... er, Cell)
* Actively hunts X. Neutralis Thromalius
Danger Level: 4/10 and increasing next turn

X. Neutralis Thromalius

Sensitive to Ley Lines (+Magic)
Distinct Chemical Signal (-Stealth)
Can pick the battlefield (+Elemental Resistance)
Multicelluar, but Cancerous (-Health; requires near-constant upkeep or the cell dies)
Can Phase Out of "normal space" (usually to connect to a Ley Line)
DNA Resequencing ("Wild Surge" Mutations every 300,000,000 years until 2 Billion, will always be beneficial if weird)
On Digestion, enemies spawn X. Neutralis Thromalius with DNA improvements
Hallmark Mutations available (86+, One offensive, defensive, utility, vanity; cell will have only one of each if more then one suggested successful)
Can Assimilate other Microbes (+Health)
58% to "Herbivorism"

Cancerous, Vampiric, "dead cell shell" may go necrotic (-8 and increasing)

[MintyNinja]

Damn... that didn't really go in our favor...

Okay, I'm not sure what part's we're allowed to make suggestions on, but I think it's time to move higher to warmer waters.
We should aim to develop Fin-like protrusions for increased Speed and Maneuverability.
And not sure how this works, but my vote is for a Hallmark Offensive Mutation.

[Ramsus]

I think we might want to flip the predator/prey relationship with F. Ugli Krinni if possible before they do too much damage to the planet's magical nature (either eliminating it completely or causing it to be chaos magic all the time because the world itself can no longer establish long term magical connections to anything).

Edit: If I might suggest to my fellow players, don't try and make our phasing an offensive feature. Later on this would prevent us from being able to have people teleport around and not wind up naked and damaging the furniture.

Hope I've understood this right...

Regular mutation suggestion: Necromancy! (I mean yeah ok at this level of complete non-intelligence this would ordinarily be totally useless... but we're kinda half-undead already apparently so we could use very basic instinctual necromancy to revive that tissue or just animate it and use it like someone might use a completely numb robotic arm attached to their body they could still somehow control.)

Offensive Specialization: Increased general strength.

Defensive Specialization: Toxin resistance/immunity

Utility: Basic sight (hard to disguise yourself as a non-physical object when we can see the physical object)

Vanity: Uh... I dunno... not much I can think of beyond color and basic shape at this stage. I'll suggest silver color.

Edit: If we're only supposed to pick one, I'll vote for my Utility choice.

[GuesssWho]

I'm going to suggest the ice magic again.

Offense--a spike on the end of our tail
Defensive--shed the dead cells to distract predators (focus on this if we can only do one)
Utility--strengthen Ley Lines
Vanity--dark colors, to hide better in the depths/at night

[HalfTangible]

The creature harming ley lines should be our priority. Not only is it hurting us long-term, but short term it's making ley line jumps far more dangerous. So for our normal mutation choice, I'm going to opt that we evolve a method to detect it. If we learn how to not get hit by it, it'll change its tactics.

More importantly (see Utility)

Offensive Mutation: Evolve an ethereal spear that can be launched from our prehensile tail, allowing us to reproduce through stabbing.

Defensive Mutation: Resistance to sulphiric acid. Again, we want our predator to change its tactics so that the ley lines aren't being damaged anymore.

Utility Mutation: Evolve an ethereal slime that repairs and maintains ley lines. This should be a priority even if we do get rid of this predator; the ley lines are currently our most valuable asset. We need to keep them working well.

Vanity Mutation: Vibrate to sing.

...

What? Nobody else wants to have a whale song? We could sing a song at our deaths and get something to eat our tails of mass reproduction =3

[Ramsus]

What? Nobody else wants to have a whale song? We could sing a song at our deaths and get something to eat our tails of mass reproduction =3

That is a great idea! I approve.

[Jon0113]

Normal mutation: electrical magic attacks (as its magic hoping we won't be affected by it as we are in the water)
Though I would go for a theme for the others
Offensive: sonar attack (ability with vibrations to attack enemies)
Defensive: sonar shield (produces a wall of sound to protect us)
Utility: sonar repair (for the ley lines instead of ourselves)
Vanity: sonar interior decorating (using sonar to change our habitat to make it feel more comfortable)

Realise the last is a bit of a stretch, just can't come up with anything else sonar

And if I can only have 1, I choose offensive as utility from others seems better

[Bobbybobby99]

Err... My suggestion didn't turn out so well, evidently. :smallredface:.

But....
Normal mutation; we only have the deadened side as young-uns-it detaches from us and we eat it for extra strength as we become adults!
Offensive;we magically kill our enemies with magic!
Defensive;we surround ourselves with death magic so that any enemy that get's close to us is necrotized!
Utility; use death magic to make the Ley lines not die!
Vanity; I'd second the whale song, but my personal suggestion is a sharp whistle that can be used for expressing emotion.

[Fion MacCumhail]

given that we're currently living in the deep sea, where does the light that Q. Zozo Kefii uses for its mimicry come from?

anyway...
normal mutation: enhanced regeneration.
offensive: i second HalfTangible's ethereal ovi-/viropositor.
defensive: general acid resistance.
utility: sensitivity to vibrations/keen hearing, which will alllow us to tell friend from foe in the dark and - while in the water - at a much longer distance than sight.
vanity: singing it is.

[Ramsus]

Personally I think attacking our enemies directly with magic during the bacterial stage is a bad idea since it might make magic semi-useless if everything is immune to magical effects later on.

[Aegis J Hyena]

[QUOTE=Fion MacCumhail;20270351]given that we're currently living in the deep sea, where does the light that Q. Zozo Kefii uses for its mimicry come from?

Some things down there can still see "light". Just not you (I haven't given thought as to how exactly you'd figure it out, that was the best way I could think of describing its mimicry). In either case, Q. Zozo is still good enough at mimicking you to fool you...

Edit: I just realized what the initials of F. Ugli Krenni spell. Uh, oops? Heh. Starting to see a theme in the utility section, quite a few different ways to heal the ley lines that way. I've written everything down up to this point, will make the rolls later today. Rolls have been made up to this point, so if others want to join in the game and suggest, I will still roll for their suggestions. :) (no roll went over 90, so I applied the highest roll.)

Edit #2: I should say that the Hallmarks will strengthen over time, leading to the sentient race's calling cards.

Not going to say "it generates its own"... too cliche. I'm just ignoring it, really... fact is, it mimics you, it's good enough to eat you that way. :P Maybe ultraviolet light / sense / something?

[Fion MacCumhail]

since we don't have any kind of sight yet, anyway, i'm just going to assume that it mimics our chemical signal.

[Rain Dragon]

Oh, did I miss it? Well, just in case I didn't...

Enhanced ability to sense movement in the ocean through feeling currents (if that at all makes sense).

Offensive Mutation - Become a bit spiky
Defensive Mutation - Camoflage
Utility Mutation - Genetic defenses against the necrotic cancerous tissues
Vanity Mutation - Deep blue

[Belac93]

Only have 2 ideas right now.
Utility--the ability to use ley lines as sensory organs. So seeing everything connected to the particular ley line.
Vanity--a more jellyfish like main body.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Cancer mutates (76+): 23

Fins for Speed: 49
Necromancy: 48
Ice Control: 21
Detection of F. U. K.: 17
Electricity Attacks: 28
Eat the Dead Shell: 53
Sensing Movement: 32
Enhanced Regeneration: 57

No rolls over 90, applying best roll (Enhanced Regeneration).

Hallmark Mutations:

Offensive: Strength+ (58), Spike Tail (91), Ethereal Spear (88), Sonar Strike (50), MOAR Magic (40), Spikes (58),
Defensive: RPois (67), Dead Shedding (54), RAcid (91), Sonar Shield (70), Necrotic Aura (6), Camoflage (98)
Utility: Eyes (61), Ley Line Strengthening (48), Slime that repairs Ley Lines (99), Sonar repairing Ley Lines (65), Necromancy regenerating Ley Lines (96), Vibration Sensitive (43), Genetic Defenses (90) , Clairvoyance through Ley Lines (42)
Vanity: Silver Coloration (6), Darker Colors (85), Vibrations (Singing) (18), Sonar Social Marking (38), Emotional Warning Whistling (88), Jellyfish-shaped Body (62), Deep Blue Coloration (96)


Next "Random Mutations" occur at 600M, 900M, 1.2B, 1.5B and 1.8 Billion years
Hallmark Suggestions end after the 600 million year mark

THE TIME: 400,000,000 Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Deepest Ocean, with bone chilling temps
Lifeform Survival: 59%

At this point I'll just call F. Ugli Krinni the "FUK Virus" if you don't have a problem with the acronym...


X. Neutralis Thromalius has been a busy little bacteria, burping and farting all over the ocean. It's at this point that its hallmarks begin to emerge, which will slowly improve with time unless something changes quickly (other suggestions roll higher than what I've rolled so far within the next 200,000,000 years). Its prehensile tail has grown a huge spike almost as big as its own body, which it can now use to stab its prey, bludgeon its foes, or a mixture of both. It's learned to hide its chemical trail, making so that it can sneak up to ley lines and run (while Q. Zozo Kefii is still rather dangerous, its danger level will fall in short order -- you're going to out-evolve it for sure).

The strongest of its hallmarks is the connection to the Ley Lines it seems to have developed, using the dead shell around one half of itself to secrete a compound that actively repairs the "strands" of a given Ley Line's thread. Think of a Ley Line as a mass of fiber optic cables; if one splits from the center, your slime will repair it. Over time X. Neutralis Thromalius will slowly gain magical power from this symbiosis... whatever this bacteria evolves to, it's going to be very much a magical being, tied to the world's magic. Finally, the bacteria has taken on a wavy dark blue coloration that ripples with the ocean's currents. If the dead shell were stripped, that half of the bacteria would be a much lighter blue-white.

With the connection to the Ley Lines via the slime, there's a curious "electrical spark" effect. If you're hurt, energy from the Ley Line jumps from a slime-coated area, to any injured X. Neutralis Thromalius in the area, healing them instantly (because there's not much to heal at this stage). The range is short... maybe less than five inches. With time that might improve, though, and is the source of some enhanced regeneration you are now enjoying. If your rival bacteria don't one-shot you, they're not going to be able to hurt you much.

... and that's where the bad news comes in.

While Q. Zozo Kefii is being left in the dust (while it may be fast and get several strikes a round, you're now out-healing the damage it can dish out) and the other various bacteria are leaving you for weaker things that don't put up much of an escape effort (although they are continuing to evolve, I'm just not mentioning it except in their write-up), F. Ugli Krinni has combined its mastery of Ley Line Mimicry, its toxic metal outburst, and its sticky outer "self" to "jam" itself into a Ley Line and wait for you to come and heal it. While it hasn't learned to fade out of phase, it does follow you and knows generally where the Ley Lines are and has adapted to connect to them.

When you do come and heal an injured Ley Line, it releases its toxic metals and the Ley Line's power supercharges this. When you are healed, its metals and toxins carry over in the little "healing spark". Such a massive discharge of superpoison wipes out any life getting close and those FUK Virii that aren't near a Ley Line can cruise in and devour the remains. On top of that, the power of the acid is amplified by the Ley Line... to eat right through it.

One of two things happen at any FUK Virus infestation: The Ley Line ends up literally snapping (prompting a massive electrical discharge that fries anything in range) or the infestation plugs it all up (think of a heart attack where the Ley Lines are the arteries; just one stoppage does major damage) and the Ley Line flickers. Too many infestations, and the Ley Line will die. Ley Lines are collapsing all over the world because of this, rapidly turning the world into a magic-poor realm unless something is done... AND FAST!

The Cancerous part of you may mutate uncontrollably next post (72+, caps at 60+).


Onward to Half a Billion Years, after which you have a choice... ascend the waters and to a plentiful (if mostly plant) food supply... or stay in the deep depths. No need to vote on it yet, that's after the next month. You can suggest different hallmarks (or the same ones that failed last roll) if you want; two turns remain for those.


Basic Enemy Predator Cells:

* Have extremely effective Filtration Systems (+++RPois)
* Cell walls are extremely thick but getting thinner (-Speed)
* Swarms like killer bees if attacked (++Berserk)
* Water Jets for speed bursts (+Speed)
* Very Resistant to Electricity (++RElec)
* Resistant to Heat (+RFire)
* Produces Grease (+Escape Artistry)
Danger Level: 3/10

Q. Zozo Kefii

* Advanced Mimicry and near-Invisibility (++Stealth)
* Dead Cell Shield (+Armor)
* Four Attacks per round
* Actively hunts X. Neutralis Thromalius
Danger Level: 5/10 and falling fast, no longer a threat after 600,000,000 years

F. Ugli Krinni

* Very very fast, but slowing (++Speed)
* Mimicry of Ley Lines (+++Stealth)
* Releases advanced acidic metals/compounds (++Poison/Acid)
* Immune to Acid
* 20% Magic Resistance
* Sticky Outer Cell Wall (+Hold Pers... er, Cell)
* Can Interrupt a Ley Line, with disasterous results
* Actively hunts X. Neutralis Thromalius
Danger Level: 5/10 and increasing next turn

X. Neutralis Thromalius

Sensitive to Ley Lines (+Magic)
Distinct Chemical Signal (-Stealth) Not obsolete yet due to the Hallmark, but it's getting there.
Can pick the battlefield (+Elemental Resistance)
Multicelluar, but Cancerous (-Health; requires near-constant upkeep or the cell dies)
Can Phase Out of "normal space" (usually to connect to a Ley Line)
DNA Resequencing ("Wild Surge" Mutations every 300,000,000 years until 2 Billion, will always be beneficial, if a little weird)
On Digestion, enemies spawn X. Neutralis Thromalius with DNA improvements
Hallmark Mutations available (86+, One offensive, defensive, utility, vanity; can keep suggesting for two more turns; if the roll is higher than listed, suggestion replaces current Hallmark)
Can Assimilate other Microbes (+Health)
62% to "Herbivorism"; you've been killing in self defense rather than for food...

Hallmarks assist in Survival (+12%)
Cancerous, Vampiric, "dead cell shell" may go necrotic (-10% and increasing, caps at 16%)
The FUK Virus is making life VERY difficult (-20%)

Offensive Hallmark: A spike on the end of the Prehensile Tail allows for a fatal piercing sting. (91+) {Increases length next turn}
Defensive Hallmark: The bacteria can Camoflage its chemical scent trail, allowing it to stealth past unseen (98+) {Adds toxins to the trail next turn} This was very very close to becoming a Displacement effect but nothing has eyes yet and I didn't want to go too far too fast.
Utility Hallmark: The bacteria extrudes a slime that repairs Ley Lines. (Need a Critical 100) {Increases in potency at 1 Billion Years}
Vanity Hallmark: A deep, almost hypnotic Deep Blue Coloration which shifts with the ocean waves. (96+)[/b] {This will likely become an octopus's color change much, much later}

[Ramsus]

I'm ok with our Hallmark stuff. At least enough that I don't see the need to swap it.

Not really sure what to do about FUK (Is it a virus or a bacteria? This matters as a virus isn't going to get bigger along with us as far as I know.) since it seems to always get perfect adaptations to counter what we're doing and then some while we get random stuff and pretty much none of the things we need to fight it.

For our regular mutation this time I'll suggest some kind of sight since I guess not triggering whatever FUK does is about the only way to combat it and if we can see it we can go on the offensive.

[GuesssWho]

We got one of mine, neat.

Okay, we need to do something about these things. Their acronym is far too apt. Can we make the Ley Lines slippery as we go by, so they can't hold on?

[HalfTangible]

I'm not sure what else to do about the FUK virus/bacteria. Obviously we need to get rid of them or come up with a way to neutralize their damage to the ley lines, but how is another matter.

Maybe we evolve to reproduce inside of things that eat us? ... eh, this thing's already melting everything around it. I'm going to suggest that our little bacteria evolves to create brand new ley lines to try and minimize the damage this thing is doing to our budding magic setting.

[Chek]

The only way to prevent damage to ourselves and the laylines from the F.U.K organism is to preemptively stop the release of the heavy metals (or develop some REALLY effective countermeasures).

Evolve slime to contain molecules, which will bind to organelles responsible for releasing the heavy metals and disable them. Since it waits for us to slime the laylines, maybe it'll be too late to do anything at this point.

F.U.K seems to be specialized into hunting US, with the acid being it's only means of attack or defense, hopefully it'll die out before this turns into an arms race (our next step would be to evolve the molecule into a protein with more felixibility and damage).

[Jon0113]

I think the main problem is still with the ley lines being attacked. I vote, therefore, to have the ability to neutralise the poison through the ley lines

[Fion MacCumhail]

again, i suggest sensitivity to vibrations/keen hearing (not as a hallmark, though), which will alllow us to tell friend from foe in the dark and - while in the water - at a much longer distance than sight.

could someone else suggest general acid and/or poison resistance so we get more chances to evolve something to deal with FUK?

[Belac93]

I vote that we split the ley lines. If they are coruppting the existing ones, then lets make our own.
So we use the energy of the existing ones to make ley lines that are different enough from the existing ones that the FUK cannot use them. And then we destroy the existing ones. Maybe a bit drastic, but we want the magic to survive.

[MintyNinja]

In direct opposition to the F. Ugli Krinni I suggest that we become Magnetic. Hopefully in the way that we can push those heavy metals out of our path as we zip these lines.

Editing to fit our theme: Let's use Electro-magnetism like Magneto. Perhaps we can only do it around the Ley Lines, or while phased out, but let's get the ability to mold those metallic monsters mentally.

And I would hope this wouldn't need votes or rolls, but can we form our shape to be more Scorpion like? Lead with the Spike Tail (under or over) to just clear our path for us.

[Aegis J Hyena]

(Is it a virus or a bacteria? This matters as a virus isn't going to get bigger along with us as far as I know.)


(our next step would be to evolve the molecule into a protein with more felixibility and damage).

Not being a biologist hyena, I don't know enough to know these kinds of things. I didn't know a virus doesn't "gain size" nor the fact proteins have more flexibility. I'm impressed with all the good ideas you're churning out, too, and already I'm thinking of ways to adapt FUK (your Wishes are being twisted by the divine as we speak). See if you can't get others to join in and suggest more stuff. Variety is the spice of the multiverse :)

Next post probably later tonight-ish, before I stream.

[Fion MacCumhail]

Not being a biologist hyena, I don't know enough to know these kinds of things. I didn't know a virus doesn't "gain size"...

not only that, but viruses also don't hunt (they don't even have a metabolism) and replicate by infecting other lifeforms.
anyway, given that FUK preys on us, a multicellular organism, i'd say it's probably a multicellular organism as well or at least a bacterium that forms colonies.

[Bobbybobby99]

I vote for... Us just stopping the virus all-together by adapting our Plasmic Membrane to prevent access! Viruses gain access to a cell by entering one of the protein pumps in the membrane, or the cell mouth-we make our protein pumps jagged and impenetrable to them, and our cell mouth incompatible with their shaping!

[Fion MacCumhail]

I vote for... Us just stopping the virus all-together by adapting our Plasmic Membrane to prevent access! Viruses gain access to a cell by entering one of the protein pumps in the membrane, or the cell mouth...

that's not what FUK does, though.


When you do come and heal an injured Ley Line, it releases its toxic metals and the Ley Line's power supercharges this. When you are healed, its metals and toxins carry over in the little "healing spark". Such a massive discharge of superpoison wipes out any life getting close and those FUK Virii that aren't near a Ley Line can cruise in and devour the remains.

[Aegis J Hyena]

In comparison, http://tinyurl.com/hegwex8 shows what the alternative universe is up to.

[Bobbybobby99]

Nevermind that! I need more sleep! Pears fiddle orangely! We should develop a communication system through whistling so we can coordinate our Ley-line repair and become a social species!

[Aegis J Hyena]

Workin' on the post now before I stream (link is in signature if you wanna watch). If more suggestions pop up before I finish, I'll try to add those in, if not, should be about an hour.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Cancer mutates (72+): 59

Sonic Whistling for Coordination: 87
Electromagnetics: 27
Ley Line Splitting: 26
Vibration Sensitivity: 48
Neutralization of Poison: 15
Slime Evolution: 76
Creation of New Ley Lines: 66
Slippery Ley Lines: 8
Addition of Sight: 19

No rolls over 90, applying best roll (Whistling for Coordination)

Hallmark Mutations: None suggested (next turn is the last to suggest them)
Next "Random Mutations" occur at 600M, 900M, 1.2B, 1.5B and 1.8 Billion years


THE TIME: Half a Billion Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Deepest Ocean, with bone chilling temps
Lifeform Survival: 45% (rough estimation)

The Situation:

X. Neutralis Thromalius has hit half a billion years! Life is finding a way to exist in the oceans... it's just... a turbulent sort of life.

The fight between itself and F.U.K. continues. While the latter infests the Ley Lines, the former can't survive or thrive. Because the Ley Lines are amplifying everything about F.U.K. including its breeding rate, it's chasing you away from all the sources of protein rich meat. You've had to make do with plants and decaying matter again, taking a huge surge upward towards likely herbivorism.

Lots of different approaches are made to deal with F.U.K. and their troublemaking. Since their sources of attacks are acidic metals, magnetics are first tried in order to steer both towards F.U.K. causing problems and away from F.U.K. that are too far along in taking out a dead-on-arrival Ley Line. Your magnetic burst didn't have enough of an impact to make a difference. Next a neutralization of poison was tried but F.U.K. is too supercharged by the Ley Line (and it's starting to have a visible effect). Several workarounds are attempted when you can't beat F.U.K. in a face to face fight.

First, the idea splitting off damaged parts from healthy parts, to make the Ley Line go "around" the infection. All F.U.K. does is breed faster to counter. Then, vibration in the water to alert you to when it's about to "super-acid-poison" the general area around a Ley Line. F.U.K. counters by "holding it in" and not vibrating its release until it is too late. After that, an attempt is made at making new Ley Lines (similar to a spider spinning "Ley Thread") off of your tail end, but that just gives F.U.K. more breeding ground. Then an attempt is made to make Ley Lines slippery while you travel, so that F.U.K. can't hold on. Unfortunately A) neither can you and B) F.U.K. evolves grappling tendrils. If it gets a hold, it's not letting go.

Fortunately since it's still "the deepest waters", the fact you can't hang on to Ley Lines you've previously traveled doesn't yet mean you are stuck to one locale of the world now.

While you have not been able to evolve sight to see the bacteria in the "flesh" as it were, it does. This is one of the first things F.U.K. does when attacking a Ley Line now, forming a hivemind with a single point of failure. This point of failure is a huge, motion sensitive "eye" that hangs off of the Ley Line floating like a suspended balloon. If popped, it releases immature F.U.K. The balloon is coated in the same metal that makes up the bacteria's body now. If the eye is attacked it does disrupt coordination between F.U.K., causing mayhem. The balloon itself is not sucking resources from the Ley Line. Yet. When it super-acid-poisons the area, the balloon is safe from the effect.

Finally, you DID manage to evolve something. A small jet on the underside of the tail has become an oxygen holder for holding waste oxygen from its environment, and when this is released it makes a little "twerp" sound. By adjusting the strength of release, you can make sounds... and have evolved "vibration sensitive auditory canals" to listen for them. If F.U.K. can coordinate, so can you! The other bit of good that came with this evolution is that it's -oxygen-, a powerful poison to most bacteria in the deep waters. F.U.K. is not immune to its own poison and is willing to shell its own position to win... in fact, it has no poison resistance at all, and maybe this is something you can use.

F.U.K. is now almost exclusive to Ley Lines, so if you travel far and away from them they cannot hunt you down and eat you.

Onward to the second half of the first Billion years! Big things will happen at the Billion Year Mark.

WILL YOU... (pick one; highest number of votes gets applied)

A) Ascend to warmer waters in general, with more plentiful food, less predators, avoiding F.U.K. but having a scarcity of Ley Lines to travel on?
B) Stay in the deeps and fuk with F.U.K. (sorry, couldn't resist) by attempting to "herd" predator cells and their filtration systems against them?
C) Change your environment (thanks Elemental Resistance) and avoid F.U.K. entirely, thriving on other Ley Lines elsewhere or find another source of food? (Suggest the environment)
D) Evolve Parasitically onto F.U.K. to give it a taste of its own medicine?

This is just a taste of options to come. Paths and choices will become regular features to vote on after 1 Billion Years...




Basic Enemy Predator Cells:

* Have extremely effective Filtration Systems (+++RPois)
* Cell walls are extremely thick but getting thinner (-Speed)
* Swarms like killer bees if attacked (++Berserk)
* Water Jets for speed bursts (+Speed)
* Very Resistant to Electricity (++RElec)
* 10% Magic Resistance
* Produces Grease (+Escape Artistry)
Danger Level: 3/10

Q. Zozo Kefii

* Advanced Mimicry and near-Invisibility (+Stealth)
* Dead Cell weight (+Armor, -Speed)
* Three Attacks per round
* Actively hunts X. Neutralis Thromalius
Danger Level: 3/10 and falling fast, no longer a threat after 600,000,000 years



* Very very fast, but slowing (++Speed)
* Mimicry of Ley Lines (+++Stealth)
* Releases toxic metals (++Poison)
* Metallic Texture (+Defense, +Armor)
* Forms "Balloons" that are hiveminds with immature F.U.K. in them
* Immune to Acid
* 20% Magic Resistance
* Sticky Outer Cell Wall (+Hold Pers... er, Cell)
* Grappling Tendrils; once it grabs it never lets go
* Can Interrupt a Ley Line, with disasterous results
* Actively hunts X. Neutralis Thromalius
Danger Level: 6/10 and increasing next turn

X. Neutralis Thromalius

Sensitive to Ley Lines (+Magic)
Distinct Chemical Signal (-Stealth)
Can pick the battlefield (+Elemental Resistance)
Multicelluar, but Cancerous (-Health; requires near-constant upkeep or the cell dies)
Can Phase Out of "normal space" (usually to connect to a Ley Line)
Has an organ for the storage of Oxygen
DNA Resequencing ("Wild Surge" Mutations every 300,000,000 years until 2 Billion, will always be beneficial, if a little weird)
On Digestion, enemies spawn X. Neutralis Thromalius with DNA improvements
Hallmark Mutations available (86+, One offensive, defensive, utility, vanity; can keep suggesting for two more turns; if the roll is higher than listed, suggestion replaces current Hallmark)
Can Assimilate other Microbes (+Health)
72% to "Herbivorism"

Hallmarks assist in Survival (+10%)
Cancerous, Vampiric, "dead cell shell" may go necrotic (-12% and increasing, caps at 16%)
The FUK Virus is making life VERY difficult (-25%)

Offensive Hallmark: A Long Spike on the end of the Prehensile Tail allows for a fatal piercing sting. (91+) {Increases length or damage at 700 Million Years}
Defensive Hallmark: The bacteria can Camoflage its chemical scent trail, replacing it with slow-acting toxins that trap bacteria who follow it for too long (98+) {increases to an Ink Cloud at 800 Million Years}
Utility Hallmark: The bacteria extrudes a slime that repairs Ley Lines. (Need a Critical 100) {Increases in potency at 1 Billion Years}
Vanity Hallmark: A deep, almost hypnotic Deep Blue Coloration which shifts with the ocean waves. (96+) {This will likely become an octopus's color change much, much later}

[Bobbybobby99]

I vote we ascend to warmer waters. That virus is just too much for us to handle. Then, for the next mutation (I can't believe that my whistle suggestion was actually followed), I say that we develop simple manipulatory tendrils-a bit like arms, but only a few cells thick, but with our oxygen whistles originating from the tips, so we can blow away the competition.

[HalfTangible]

The eye is sensitive to vibration. Mutate to use our new whistling ability as a sonic attack.

Hesitantly, I will throw my weight behind B

It may be petty and foolhardy, but I don't wanna run. I want this thing DEAD.

[MintyNinja]

Looking at a few things, this next round will be different. We have a Wild Surge coming in and it should be helpful and after that turn our Tail gets longer or stronger, depending on a choice. I think we finally have a chance to fight back with Oxygen against F.U.K. so:

B) Stay in the deeps and fuk with F.U.K. (sorry, couldn't resist) by attempting to "herd" predator cells and their filtration systems against them.

I want us to move the oxygen gland to the tip of our spike tail like a Poison Gland.



Also I like how we're becoming Octopus-squid-scorpion things. Pretty awesome.

[Fion MacCumhail]

again, i suggest sensitivity to vibrations/keen hearing (not as a hallmark, though), which will alllow us to tell friend from foe in the dark and - while in the water - at a much longer distance than sight.

now, about what to do...


It may be petty and foolhardy, but I don't wanna run. I want this thing DEAD.

i share that sentiment, but i wonder what would happen to us, then, if we managed to eradicate FUK in this way and suddenly lost our host.
so i'm voting for option B), which i hope will also be a step towards becoming more complex or even developing minor brain functions.

[GuesssWho]

I'd like a combination of C and D. Can we mostly live around black smokers, but lay our 'eggs' in the FUKs?

Mutation: tail doubles as 'ovipositer,' causing enemies to immediately grow more of us.

ETA: will we only have one of each type of hallmark, or what?

[Aegis J Hyena]

Only one of each type of hallmark. If you want to suggest a different one, go ahead, but I'll have to beat what I rolled previously. The rolls are very high as is, in one case requiring a critical 100 to beat.

I couldn't NOT suggest the "herd predator cells against the FUK" idea, it stood out so brightly to me and I was afraid no one would notice just how advanced their filtration systems are...

At One Billion years, 3 paths open up (you vote on one), at 2 Billion, five (pick two) and at 3 Billion and beyond, seven (pick three).

Wait until you get characters. THEN things get interesting, because they WILL have their own actions. They'll get both "Standard Action" (three per game year; posts will be a game month apart once you pass 3.5 billion years) and "Finest Hour" (one a year, a supercharged action, so if you roll a critical...)

[GuesssWho]

It IS a pretty cool idea, true. But I was reading about parasitic wasps, and . . . yeah.

[Ramsus]

I'm gonna keep trying to get us sight.

I'll vote for B.
Edit: Really don't want to be a parasite since that means we're tying ourselves down to something else's evolutionary progress.

Hyena, I notice that FUK seems to get 3+ beneficial mutations that perfectly counters things we try to do but don't even get to keep every time we get a single random thing. There's no way we're going to be able to compete with that or anything in the long run. That doesn't seem fair (or in another way of looking at it, you're going to wind up killing our species for sure in not terribly long if this pattern continues). If we're doing something long enough and well enough for them to evolve even a half-way decent countermeasure we should be keeping that mutation. Otherwise it shouldn't be a mutation that stuck around long enough for them to evolve a countermeasure to most of the time. And when they do, it should have some kind of opportunity or energy cost (in other words they evolve that countermeasure instead of other things that might be more useful or they evolve that countermeasure but the amount of food they need to exist and run all of their several dozen or so countermeasures eventually becomes a problem for them since they're so specialized on a single food source which by itself isn't large enough to sustain their numbers).

I'm also wondering how they can both damage the ley lines and survive off of them. That's a bit like living in trees despite the fact that your method of hunting is burning down the same trees.

[HalfTangible]

Changed my vote to B as well.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Hyena, I notice that... *snip*

I'm also wondering how they can both damage the ley lines and survive off of them. That's a bit like living in trees despite the fact that your method of hunting is burning down the same trees.

Part of it is the rolls and me writing to the dice's whims; in almost -every- other Civ game I've run, they haven't rolled half as bad as some of these months (I've usually rolled three or four 90+s per month). Part of it is my knowledge of biology being measured in negative numbers. So if you see something akin to "burning tree" syndrome, that's probably my ignorance. I'm a fortune teller, not a biologist. :) The last bit is me just focusing on the one organism. Normally you'd have five to deal with right now. That and I did say they're willing to shell their own position so it's not like they'll survive right along with you in the long run (what can possibly go wrong).

It'll get easier once you hit One Million Years, because then paths open up and it gets much easier to deal with things (and FUK can -get- FUK'd). Unless you start rolling some 1s in the next few months, I don't see how you'll completely die off. You might not have a lot of numbers going into the next stage (but neither will anything else...)

[GuesssWho]

It might make more sense if we simply never evolve things that aren't 90+ at all.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Yeah but trial and error is more fun. Wouldn't be very interesting otherwise.

[GuesssWho]

Yeah, but your descriptions imply that we do have most of these powers, they're just not helping right now.

[MintyNinja]

For the record, I see the current method as fine, if a bit difficult.

If we were to attempt a compromise, perhaps the opposing cells only evolved countermeasures to rolls under 25. Would that seem fair?

[GuesssWho]

That works. Makes things a bit less crazy.

[Jon0113]

I would go for b.

if we can have a mutation as well I would have some kind of ability to neutralise the connection between fuk and the ley lines, possibly by sending signals through the ley lines

[Chek]

If FUK now infests ley lines as colonies then there's no way to counteract or prevent the acid from being released. We could try to survive it, but the ley lines would be a lost cause anyway.

I vote to suppress our affinity for ley lines (since we retain the genes, expressing this trait again should be much easier later should we need it) and let the FUKers starve. Stay away, and steer for clear waters (Option A for when we have the choice to leave).

I had hope we wouldn't have to abandon the ley lines for our survival, but I'm not seeing much of a choice here. Hopefully the other traits we've evolved allow us to compete independently of the ley lines.

An FYI for those who favour becoming a parasite to FUK: draw an energy diagram and you'll see both our species die off if we only feed on each other.

[Aegis J Hyena]

I like the countermeasures for rolls under 25 idea. Beats trying to think counters for -everything-. I'll start doing that. Post should be tonight. :)

I always assumed that things were tried but if the roll failed it would be a "does more harm than good and was dropped", instead of holding -all- the suggestions.

Don't rule out the Ley Lines just yet. Like I said, unless I start throwing 1s everywhere, things -should- be ok...

EDIT: I've made the rolls. A teaser. The cancer mutates (I rolled a second surge, applying it negatively). Rolled a Critical 100 on one mutation. One mutation got countermeasure'd.

[Rain Dragon]

I'm going to suggest a way to shoot our oxygen at Krinni

[Aegis J Hyena]

Cancer mutates (68+): 85 (Mutation!)

Manipulatory Tendrils w/ Oxygen Blasters: 34
Sonic Assault: 43
Oxygen Gland moved to the Tail: 11 (Countermeasures developed)
Vibration Sensitivity: 76
Oxygen Cannons: 75
Tail as Ovipositor: 91
Sight: Critical 100
Herding Predatory Cells (65+): 56


Next "Random Mutations" occur at 900M, 1.2B, 1.5B and 1.8 Billion years

THE TIME: 600,000,000 Million Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Deepest Ocean, with bone chilling temps
Lifeform Survival: 77% (rough estimation)

The Situation:

||| WILD SURGE! WOOPWOOPWOOP |||
||| Who the hell pushed THAT button? |||
||| Caster can identify gems and approximate their value on sight |||

||| CANCEROUS MUTATION! |||
||| Is the universe supposed to glow pink like that? |||
||| All coins carried by caster are turned to lead |||

(Rolled with http://www.padnd.com/random_surge.php?action=random)

I was expecting option A to win, so as to escape being FUK'd.

600,000,000 million years and X. Neutralis Thromalius has had enough of being FUK'd around with. Some of the first things it tries in order to deal with the infestation of FUK involve its own oxygen-containing organ. First, an attempt is made to move it to the edge of the tail for both offense and extra movement, but the gland seems like it's going to stay put. It's getting bigger, though, to compensate for the weight of the tail. This allows you to stay more balanced and thus able to move faster. The end result failed when FUK counteracted with a coating of hydrogen of all things, leading to somewhat explosive results when it combines THAT with its other metals and acids (hydrochloric acid + aluminum + oxygen = boom).

(I got the chemical idea from watching https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmTZcNVzp7A)

The resulting explosion destroys everything life-based where it goes off. It doesn't damage the "fabric" of the Ley Line, however. To continue the artery metaphor from earlier, this explosion is like a defibrillator jumpstarting things. You have lost a LOT of population from this explosion... BUT you learned from this and the net result was an overall gain when you started targeting the balloons instead of the Ley Line itself, thus cutting off its source of future progeny. After this some attempt at adding a manipulatory "finger" on one end (with an oxygen gland) was attempted, but the oxygen gland just doesn't seem to want to move.

Undaunted, X. Neutralis Thromalius attempts to use its "Twerps" as a sonic weapon (doesn't seem to help) and tries to evolve to become more vibration sensitive so it can both hear its own kind and communicate better, especially when it's trying to herd cats the other predatory cells against FUK, which doesn't seem to work. FUK seems to be using the "fabric" of the Ley Line as an insulator (think thick jacket) to prevent the other predators from getting in before it blows itself up. What DOES happen are two things; the first being an advance in size and complexity. The multicelluar situation has advanced to specific "organs", complex muscles and a bigger shape; at 1 Billion Years we're getting into "fish" territory. The other is that while you couldn't put the oxygen gland on the tail, you COULD put manage to put reproductive organs there.

When you start to learn to use the tail's stinger as an injector, the X. Neutralis Thromalius that are birthed from the dying FUK balloons both infect the FUK infesting the Ley Lines, and come with the motion-sensitive knowledge thanks to your ability to assimilate other microbes. On top of this, the sight gained from this is completely overhauled and enhanced. You now have a single colorless motion-sensitive eye at the "front" of X. Neutralis Thromalius which can see through stealth and mimicry, neutralizing FUK's primary habit of sneaking up on you. You can also "see" the health of Ley Lines and know where FUK is still infecting. You don't see color, though. Just black and white.

You're now far bigger and more advanced than FUK, eventually to the point of out-resisting it at the cost of population. But you WILL resist it (unless I seriously start throwing 1s everywhere). All it depends on is how much you want to get involved with it interfering with the Ley Lines.

Finally, the two wild surges. The first is the beneficial one. Your "all-seeing-eye" is now able to sense the size and shape of "large thick stationary objects" (stone) as well as highlight a new source of plankton and microbes that live on such stone. This brings an increase towards herbivorism. The molecules you harvest from said stone enable your outer cell wall to become thicker, stronger, and resistant to the grappling tendrils of FUK. While you're not immune to the poisons and acids and explosions FUK is doing, your "shell" is very resistant to physical damage and will get stronger with time.

The second one is a result of your cancer finally mutating. The rear end where your tail is, is now a sickly gray instead of dark bluish. It's developed a hyper-allergy to lead. FUK has not let this gone unnoticed, and will be focusing its toxic metal generation towards lead next turn.

The Cancerous part of you may mutate uncontrollably next post (80+).

Onward to 700,000,000 Million Years... and the discovery of a new type of Ley Line! You can thank the Critical 100 for that.


Basic Enemy Predator Cells:

* Have extremely effective Filtration Systems (+++RPois)
* Cell walls are extremely thick but getting thinner (-Speed)
* Swarms like killer bees if attacked (++Berserk)
* Water Jets for speed bursts (+Speed)
* Very Resistant to Electricity (++RElec)
* 16% Magic Resistance
* Produces Heavy Grease (+Escape Artistry)
Danger Level: 3.5/10

Q. Zozo Kefii

* Advanced Mimicry and near-Invisibility (+Stealth)
* Dead Cell weight (+Armor, -Speed)
* Three Attacks per round
* Actively hunts X. Neutralis Thromalius
Danger Level: 1/10, goes extinct next turn, to be replaced with something else the turn after

[b[F. Ugli Krinni[/b]

* Very very fast, but slowing (++Speed)
* Mimicry of Ley Lines (+++Stealth) {You ignore this}
* Releases toxic metals (++Poison)
* Explosive on contact with Oxygen {Will lose this shortly as it focuses on lead instead of a mess of elements seemingly at random}
* Metallic Texture (+Defense, +Armor)
* Forms "Balloons" that are hiveminds with immature F.U.K. in them {The Balloons are undefended}
* Immune to Acid
* 20% Magic Resistance
* Sticky Outer Cell Wall (+Hold Pers... er, Cell)
* Grappling Tendrils; once it grabs it never lets go {You are able to escape being grappled 50%}
* Can Interrupt a Ley Line, with disasterous results
* Actively hunts X. Neutralis Thromalius
* Actively hunts almost all other cells
Evolving focus on lead next turn
Danger Level: 5/10

X. Neutralis Thromalius

Very Sensitive to Ley Lines (++Magic)
Immune to Mimicry
Distinct Chemical Signal (-Stealth)
Can pick the battlefield (+Elemental Resistance)
Starting to edge into "fish" territory (fish-shaped life will explode at one billion years, making way for the next stage)
Can Phase Out of "normal space" (usually to connect to a Ley Line)
Tail is now an ovipositor
Has an organ for the storage of Oxygen
Has an "All Seeing Eye": Detects Stealth
DNA Resequencing ("Wild Surge" Mutations every 300,000,000 years until 2 Billion, will always be beneficial, if a little weird)
On Digestion, enemies spawn X. Neutralis Thromalius with DNA improvements
Can Assimilate other Microbes (+Health)
83% to "Herbivorism"

Hallmarks assist in Survival (+8%)
Cancerous, Vampiric, "dead cell shell" may go necrotic (-16%)
The FUK Virus is making life difficult (-15%)

Offensive Hallmark: A Long Spike on the end of the Prehensile Tail allows for a fatal piercing sting. (Increases length or damage at 700 Million Years)
Defensive Hallmark: The bacteria can Camoflage its chemical scent trail, replacing it with slow-acting toxins that trap bacteria who follow it for too long (increases to an Envenomed Ink Cloud at 800 Million Years)
Utility Hallmark: The bacteria extrudes a slime that repairs Ley Lines. (Increases in potency at 1 Billion Years)
Vanity Hallmark: A deep, almost hypnotic Deep Blue Coloration which shifts with the ocean waves. (This will likely become an octopus's color change much, much later)
Wild Surge Mutation: Stone-eating microbes you've assimilated allow the creation of a heavy, defensive shell. (Improves to carbon-based shell at 1.5 Billion Years)
Corruption: You are hyper-allergic to lead.

[Aegis J Hyena]

In case people don't "get" the mutations, I went "Gems = stone, and you have immense boosted sight, able to identify value on it" It's a stretch, but it works. The other one I just took "lead" and ran with it.

[GuesssWho]

Nice.

Hmm . . . lead is poisonous, and these things aren't very poison-resistant. Can we do something with that? Oh, wait, sensitive to lead. Damn.

Okay, then. How about we try to get another eye? We can have all-around vision!

[Ramsus]

So now we're some kind of magic sight enhanced wasp-fish. That eats plants. We need to be more omnivorous. Not sure how to suggest we do that outside of a... "is there any reason we're not doing eating other creatures now?" Surely there must be other things trying to eat plants that are less scary than we are.

I like the second eye idea, but might as well suggest something of my own. How about expanding our phase out to be a reaction to danger. So for example that explosion triggers and we just phase out avoiding the blast then phase back in and eat all the leftover chunks of meatyness/goo.

[Jon0113]

I think we should go more omnivore as well, so I will suggest our slime can also paralyse other creatures, letting us feed on them

[MintyNinja]

I too like the idea of going more Omnivorous, however I have other ideas.

I want to vote for a Longer Tail. This might be a turn early, I apologize if so.
I want to form Social Groupings.

[Fion MacCumhail]

and again, i suggest sensitivity to vibrations/keen hearing, which will alllow us to distinguish between conspecifics, prey and predators in the dark and - while in the water - at a much longer distance than sight. it should also do wonders for communication.

by the way, shouldn't "Distinct Chemical Signal (-Stealth)" be marked as "cancelled out" or something due to our defensive hallmark?

[GuesssWho]

By the way, shouldn't "Distinct Chemical Signal (-Stealth)" be marked as "cancelled out" or something due to our defensive hallmark?

Probably, yeah.

[Bobbybobby99]

I vote for a hard non-reactive coating on our tail and lower 'body', concealing the fleshy and lead sensitive part, while also boosting damage.

[GuesssWho]

https://i.gyazo.com/b3c5b63a8551d520ad38a33dc8bdff61.png

[HalfTangible]

I'm going to suggest (again) that we gain the ability to create new ley lines.

This just seems too important to leave undone.

[Aegis J Hyena]

That's some pretty nice art.

I've already got a general idea of how the bacteria is going to evolve to a "fish" stage when we hit 1 Billion Years (another advance at 2 Billion, and the beginnings of potential intelligence at 3 Billion), so it's going to look a lot different from the "worm-like bacteria" it looks like now.

[GuesssWho]

I used a monster maker :smallbiggrin:

[Aegis J Hyena]

Made the rolls up to now. 3 counters. 1 Critical 100. I think the RNG is trying to tell us something with which critical was rolled. I'll post in the afternoon to give others time to suggest.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Cancer mutates (80+): 41

Another Eye: Critical 100 (Really, RNG? Wow.)
Reflexive Phase Shift: 7 (Countered)
Paralytic Slime: 13 (Countered)
Social Groupings: 79
Vibration Sensitivity: 22
Hardened Butt: 12 (Countered)
Creating New Ley Lines: 33

Next "Random Mutations" occur at 900M, 1.2B, 1.5B and 1.8 Billion years

THE TIME: 700,000,000 Million Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Deepest Ocean, with bone chilling temps
Lifeform Survival: 78% (rough estimation)

The Situation:

We're now at 700,000,000 years and counting, and the first and major thing discovered is a new type of Ley Line. Where regular Ley Lines look like thick "threads" woven throughout the planet and are a light blue-purple in color (kind of like a neon sign), the new flavor of Ley Line is a distinct bronze with silver motes of light swirling around it in loops and twists. It seems Mother Nature is raging back at FUK and making new types of Ley Lines to counteract all the heart attacks She is suffering from these little FUKers. FUK cannot hold on to this new type of Ley Line at -all-, where you don't have much of a problem using them the same way you did regular Ley Lines. On top of THAT, in the physical realm, microbes and plankton gather and amass on where the Ley Lines would "be", resulting in a literal "tunnel" made of potential food. Good, right?

Everything has a down side. The catch here is that these new Ley Lines lead up, into higher, warmer waters. Using them as your source of travel and power will bring you out of the depths for good and expose you to new, very tough enemies earlier than planned (at least four varieties of predator, compared to two or three if you ascend at 1 Billion Years instead of now).

To make sure you had a back up plan, you attempted to continue along with social grouping, vibration sensations and even weaving or creating new ley lines None of those worked for various reasons (stone shell too thick to sense vibrations, the chemical trail just won't bond properly and bigger groups means bigger predators to find those groups).

Among the bad news... you managed to evolve a reflexive Phase Shift right to the nearest Ley Line. Unfortunately this happened so often as almost anything (including the shadow of a predator when it goes over your eye) triggered it that FUK now phases right alongside you... and is empowered as it's usually festering inside the Ley Lines absorbing what was supposed to be your own power as you traveled them! To slow them down or stop them you evolved paralytic slime... but unfortunately basic predator cells simply countered this by building resistance. You attempted to harden your "ass end" that was unshielded, but both the predator cells -and- FUK have evolved armor piercing (the former in their jaws, the latter in their tendrils) to deal with that. Combined with the new jets that squirt lead molecules at you if you get close, it's pretty much time to throw in the towel, I think.

The FUK are now a superpredator of the deeps, starting to branch out and eat anything within range, not just you. They've learned not to clog up the Ley Lines (they're losing their stickiness), and have become a "nest based" critter. The FUK Balloons have doubled in size, mostly to offshoot your parasitism. When you release so many young at once, -something- has to survive. You're not going to outfight them at this point. Fortunately, they're specialized to you, and you have the new Bronzilver Ley Lines so deprived of their food source they should die out right?

Your body is beginning to spread out into an octogon shape, as having a large surface area makes it unlikely that you'll be swallowed by basic predator cells. It hasn't changed much, but that's the shape it seems to be favoring as you're beginning to emerge into "fish" territory. If you let it shape itself and don't suggest a basic shape, you will likely end up shaped like a turtle or crab with a faceted shell thanks to the stone microbes you've assimilated. At 1.1 Billion years you'll have things like fins/basic fish stuff.

Finally, your eye mutated and split. You've got a choice of three possibilities. The first is have your eyes on flexible tendons, able to roll up and down the body (much like a pulley system). This allows the ability to almost look in any direction you need. The second is that the single eye splits into two, but they remain at a fixed chosen position somewhere on the body. The last is to enhance the eyeball you already have, being able to see further as well as see in color. (you'd see through Invisibility, ignore Displacement effects, and so on but you'd have a Hypnotoad eye).

Now the question remains... stay in the deeps and mess with or just avoid FUK, trying to knock it off its perch as a superpredator... or ascend into higher waters early (and all but guarantee herbivorism because of all the plankton attracted to their position in the physical world) using the new Bronzilver Ley Lines. (yes, this is a vote choice... stay down, or ascend?)

The Cancerous part of you may mutate uncontrollably next post (76+).

Onward to 800,000,000 Million Years... two rounds to go before we hit the first major milestone! now go find more players. Maybe PM your friends or get people off-site onto the site and show 'em what's up... :)


Basic Enemy Predator Cells:

* Have extremely effective Filtration Systems (+++RPois)
* Resistance to Paralysis
* Cell walls are extremely thick but getting thinner (-Speed)
* Swarms like killer bees if attacked (++Berserk)
* Water Jets for speed bursts (+Speed)
* Very Resistant to Electricity (++RElec)
* 16% Magic Resistance
* Produces Heavy Grease (+Escape Artistry)
Danger Level: 3.5/10

Q. Zozo Kefii: EXTINCT: Something replaces it next turn (though we're late in the first stage, I may ignore this)



* Very very fast, but slowing (++Speed)
* Mimicry of Ley Lines (+++Stealth) {You ignore this}
* Releases toxic metals, focusing on squirting jets of Lead (+++Poison)
* Explosive on contact with Oxygen {Will lose this shortly as it focuses on lead instead of a mess of elements seemingly at random}
* Metallic Texture (+Defense, +Armor)
* Forms very large "Balloons" that are hiveminds with immature F.U.K. in them (a defended nest-based bacteria)
* Immune to Acid
* 30% Magic Resistance
* Resistant to Paralysis
* Sticky Outer Cell Wall (+Hold Pers... er, Cell, but is losing this next turn)
* Grappling Tendrils; once it grabs it never lets go {You are able to escape being grappled 60%}
* Can Interrupt a Ley Line, with disasterous results (will be losing this at 900 million years)
* Actively hunts X. Neutralis Thromalius
* Actively hunts almost all other cells

Danger Level: 6/10

X. Neutralis Thromalius

Very Sensitive to Ley Lines (++Magic)
Immune to Mimicry
Distinct Chemical Signal, now a warning to get out of your way
Can pick the battlefield (+Elemental Resistance)
Bronzilver Ley Lines are a new source of travel around the globe; these attract plankton (+Magic)
Can Phase Out of "normal space" (usually to connect to a Ley Line)
Tail is now a specialized ovipositor
Has an organ for the storage of Oxygen
Has an "All Seeing Eye": Detects Stealth
DNA Resequencing ("Wild Surge" Mutations every 300,000,000 years until 2 Billion, will always be beneficial, if a little weird)
On Digestion, enemies spawn X. Neutralis Thromalius with DNA improvements
Can Assimilate other Microbes (+Health)
85% to "Herbivorism"

Hallmarks assist in Survival (+4%)
Cancerous half may go necrotic (-16%)
The FUK Virus is making life difficult (-10%)

Offensive Hallmark: A Long Spike on the end of the Prehensile Tail allows for a fatal piercing sting. (Adds tail segments or splits in two at 1.3 Billion Years)
Defensive Hallmark: The bacteria can Camoflage its chemical scent trail, replacing it with slow-acting toxins that trap bacteria who follow it for too long. (increases to an Envenomed Ink Cloud at 800 Million Years)
Utility Hallmark: The bacteria extrudes a slime that repairs Ley Lines. (Increases in potency at 1 Billion Years)
Vanity Hallmark: A deep, almost hypnotic Deep Blue Coloration which shifts with the ocean waves. (This will likely become an octopus's color change much, much later)
Wild Surge Mutation: Stone-eating microbes you've assimilated allow the creation of a heavy, defensive shell. (Improves to carbon-based shell at 1.5 Billion Years)
Corruption: You are deathly-allergic to lead.[/b]

[Bobbybobby99]

First, I vote we ascend to warmer waters on the bronze Ley lines. That FUK virus is just too much for us. Second, I vote for the pully system; 360 vision should give us a significant advantage against those new predators in warmer waters. Third, I say that we develop the ability to shoot clouds of greasy, black oxygenated proteins; if we're going to be herbivores, we're going to avoid predation, and that's comprised of knowing when you're about to be eaten, and forcefully preventing it with poisonous clouds of proteins.

[Fion MacCumhail]

1. hmm, i'm not quite sure whether we should stay or leave at this point...
2. i vote for two fixed eyes. that way we can guard more of our body with our shell.
3. again, i suggest sensitivity to vibrations/keen hearing, which will alllow us to distinguish between conspecifics, prey and predators in the dark and - while in the water - at a much longer distance than sight. it should also do wonders for communication.

also, what happened to the enhanced regeneration we got here? is it subsumed under some other property?


Cancer mutates (76+): 23

Fins for Speed: 49
Necromancy: 48
Ice Control: 21
Detection of F. U. K.: 17
Electricity Attacks: 28
Eat the Dead Shell: 53
Sensing Movement: 32
Enhanced Regeneration: 57

No rolls over 90, applying best roll (Enhanced Regeneration).

[Ramsus]

I'll also have to vote for warmer waters as staying down here seems just unrealistic not to, despite the fact that I want us to still try and find meats to eats.

Also voting for eye pulley system. (Though mostly just super happy we have two eyes as this now gives us depth perception which should be a pretty big advantage this early on.... unless we've been behind the curve on eyes for a long time or something.)

If shape is a free thing to suggest, I'll vote for being octahedron shaped. (That's the shape of a d8 in case anyone doesn't know.)

As for a regular mutation, I'll suggest another tail since this would increase our speed, control of movement, AND our offensive capability.

[Aegis J Hyena]

also, what happened to the enhanced regeneration we got here? is it subsumed under some other property?

Written off and assumed, because things are going to get infinitely more complex in just a couple of turns when a "cambrian explosion" happens at 1 Billion Years. It'll still come into play, and I'll try to work it in with the Bronzilver Ley Lines somehow. If it doesn't get mentioned, don't worry too much about it.

And yeah, it's pretty heavy handed writing, weighted toward ascending the waters, but that's just what fell out of my fingers while I was typing. I write where the dice go and fingers take me.

But really RNG? Two critical Eyes? If this keeps up, we'll have an aquatic armored Beholder before they reach land...

[Jon0113]

I vote we stay down here, I really want to beat this fuk virus

I vote for the hypnotoad eye

I vote for alkaline blood - opposite of acid blood, but just as damaging to enemies (without us the fuk virus would starve, so we just need something to keep it off)

[Aegis J Hyena]

For giggles I just rolled the other four wild surge mutations and wrote 'em down. (yes, they're all beneficial, and yes, they're a bit weird.)

First one: :smallamused:
Second one: :smalleek: :smallamused:
Third one: :smallbiggrin:
Last one: :smallconfused: :smalleek: :smallsigh: :smallsmile:

[MintyNinja]

I vote we Ascend to Warmer waters.
Normal mutation: A mouth / maw. Directly below the eyes.
In an attempt to force feed us meat, I'll say we should try to eat other herbivores that might be circling our food-tubes.
The eye should split in two and remain at the forefront of the body for depth perception (and hunting).

[GuesssWho]

Can we spread out? Some of us go above while some stay below as a kind of backup in case the upper waters are too hard?

I agree, we should eat anything that tries to eat our tubes. The moving eye sounds useful, especially if we can move it near the other eye when we need depth perception.

As for a regular mutation, how about spikes all over? That should make a good defense.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Ascend: 3
Stay Down: 1

Two Fixed Eyes: 2
Pulley System: 3
Eyeball Enhancement: 1
{just six people playing? We need more votes! Do I need to do a Steam giveaway here to lure people in? -_(\ }

Cancer mutates (76+): 82 (Uh oh...)

Black Poison Protein Cloud: 72
Vibration Sensitivity: 2 (... one of these days you'll be successful, I swear...)
Second Tail: 37
Alkali Blood: 90
Evolution of a Mouth: 45
Defensive Spikes: 94

Next "Random Mutations" occur at 900M, 1.2B, 1.5B, and 1.8B years

THE TIME: 800,000,000 Million Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Open Ocean, with chilling temps (but warming up)
Lifeform Survival: 70% (rough estimation)

The Situation:

||| CANCEROUS MUTATION!! |||
||| Don't push THAT button, Frank! |||
||| All free-willed undead within 1 mile become mindless for 1 day |||

We're now at 800,000,000 years, and you've undergone some changes. The first is that your eyes are now on a pulley system of nerves and tendrils, and you're able to roll them to any point on your body and peer out at the world through "flaps" in your skin (yes, skin, we're advancing). The now-hardening skin (incoming shell) has sprouted a number of defensive spikes which are essentially non-retractable, nonpoisonous copies of your tail stinger (they're not ovipositors though) so anything trying to bite down on you will be in for a nasty time. Your blood has turned highly alkali, able to neutralize acids in the water (which would have been useful against FUK) as a defensive measure as well as giving anyone a nasty taste in their mouth. Bad tasting and spiky... two evolutionary survival traits. Select for them today!

The bad news is that while evolving your now-alkali blood, the weaker half of your body was unable to save versus poison, so to speak. Ever hit your funny bone or have that prickling pins and needles effect from sleeping on a body part for too long? This is the same thing. Your "cancerous" half has become extremely sensitive to all forms of touch, and if hit too hard it renders you completely stunned and "mindlessly dead in the water" for many minutes at a time. If you were an intelligent race, it would be orgasmic, but in this case all it does is stun you to the point of blacking out. Fortunately your blood and spikes will protect you right now, but it's only a matter of time before things are evolved to deal with them.

You've ascended to higher, warmer waters. "Warm" is a relative term but you get the idea; it's still very very frigid down here. You've been experimenting with a few other traits, such as a second tail (more food for predators, as the tails are not spiked), the evolution of a mouth (not quite there yet; absorbing things through a membrane in the front of your body is how you eat right now), an attempted poison cloud behind you (predators ignored it) and vibration sensitivity (which would be really nice right now but wow, RNG) all seem to be ineffective. You DID improve your Defensive Hallmark, expanding the poison chemical trail to an Envenomed Ink Cloud. While ineffective on predators (right -now- but that will change, because it's your hallmark) it's super effective on the plankton that are your prey, preventing them from evolving defenses as you "mow the lawn" covering the Bronzilver Ley Lines.

With your ascension, let's meet the neighbors. I'm removing FUK from the list because you've gone too high and will not really encounter them again (but I do have plans for them, they WILL evolve right along with you and may or may not make an appearance much later)

There are four major predators of note. The first is J. Som Ywah, a huge bacteria with a whip-like tail, a huge mandible in its front and an elastic surface making it hard to grasp. It coasts through the water rapidly but it doesn't have fins for sharp turns. It's specialized for hitting hard, needing only one bite to shear you in two. It seems to be more interested in basic predator cells though, or eating anything it runs over during its speed bursts.

The second is R. Melod Wooni, a huge tank of a cell that looks like a square with electrical tentacles at the corners that whip about, trying to capture prey. When it's killed its central nucleus explodes in a burst of electricity. So far all it does is kill the unwary, but it seems to be evolving a suction cup on one half of its flat 2D body. It's beginning to use this to "hitch a ride" on bigger predators, dangling beneath them.

The third is Z. Bim Yowie, whose presence is a nightmare, literally. This spherical critter has a spike-lined tendril-mace out one end of it, making it look like a thorny orange with no eyes but a lot of multicolored bio-lumination. It uses this bio-lumination to flash patterns that instill nightmares / fear in its prey, by directly influencing the same realm regular Ley Lines are on. Prey is then stunned and can't move while Z. Bim Yowie moves in for the kill with its tendril-mace. While not immune to poison, it IS engulfing your spiky shell like it didn't matter and just dissolving anything around it instead of the cell-wall / flesh / shell itself. While powerful, it IS mindless (so to speak) and as long as you don't look directly at or sense it, you're fine.

The last predator in these waters is H. Vali Yinyo, a serpentine thing with a mouth on each end of itself and hundreds of little motion/vibration detectors all along its body so it can twist and thrash towards anything that disturbs it. It floats like a lump, waiting for anything to get within range.

How do you cope? Let's hear the mutation suggestions.

The Cancerous part of you may mutate uncontrollably next post (80+).

900,000,000 Million Years... and then our first milestone at a "cambrian explosion" at 1 Billion years.

Basic Enemy Predator Cells:

* Have extremely effective Filtration Systems (+++RPois)
* Store filtered waste to barf out at predators (+Poison)
* Resistance to Paralysis
* Cell walls moderately thick and have developed oyster shell-like qualities
* Swarms like killer bees if attacked (++Berserk)
* Water Jets for speed bursts (+Speed)
* Very Resistant to Electricity (++RElec)
* 15% Magic Resistance
* Produces Heavy Grease (+Escape Artistry)
Danger Level: 4/10

J. Som Ywah:

* Worm-like with a Mandible (+Critical Hits)
* Moderately fast but not built for sharp turns (+Speed)
* Not terribly interested in you
Danger Level: 3/10

R. Melod Wooni

* Tank (3 hit dice)
* Electrical tendrils that stun prey (+Electrical attack)
* Counters on death with electrical surge
* Has a suction cup to hitch a ride (+Fast Travel)
* Kills the unwary but easy to avoid... for now
Danger Level: 4/10 and potentially rising

Z. Bim Yowie

* Spike Lined Tendril-Mace for stunning (+Stun Attack)
* Bioluminicent, announcing its presence
* Instills fear (+Fear Attack)
* Ignores your spikes
* -not- Immune to Poison
Danger Level: 4/10 and Rising

H. Vali Yinyo

* Serpentine doublemouth (+Multiple Strikes)
* Detects vibration and strikes insanely fast (+Accuracy)
Danger Level: 2/10 and Rising Fast

X. Neutralis Thromalius

Very Sensitive to Ley Lines (++Magic)
Skin instead of cells, slowly hardening to a shell (+Armor)
Skin-Shell is Spiked (+Counterattack)
Alkali Blood (+Poison)
Can pick the battlefield (+Elemental Resistance)
Bronzilver Ley Lines are a new source of travel around the globe; these attract plankton (+Magic)
Can Phase Out of "normal space" (usually to connect to a Ley Line)
Can Assimilate other Microbes (+Health)
DNA Resequencing ("Wild Surge" Mutations)
Immune to Mimicry
Half-shaped like an d12, half-shaped like a d8
Distinct Chemical Signal, now a warning to get out of your way
Tail is now a specialized ovipositor
Has an organ for the storage of Oxygen
Has two "All Seeing Eyes" attached to nerves/tendrils on a pulley system; detects Stealth
On Digestion, enemies spawn X. Neutralis Thromalius with DNA improvements
90% to "Herbivorism"

Hallmarks assist in Survival (+2%)
Cancerous half may go necrotic (-16%)
The FUK Virus is making life difficult (-5% but disappearing next turn)

Offensive Hallmark: A Long Spike on the end of the Prehensile Tail allows for a fatal piercing sting. (Adds tail segments or splits in two at 1.3 Billion Years)
Defensive Hallmark: The bacteria can squirt a Poison Ink Cloud that slows its foes, enabling escape. (increases damage or area of effect at 1.6 Billion Years)
Utility Hallmark: The bacteria extrudes a slime that repairs Ley Lines. (Increases in potency at 1 Billion Years)
Vanity Hallmark: A deep, almost hypnotic Deep Blue Coloration which shifts with the ocean waves. (This will likely become an octopus's color change much, much later)
Wild Surge Mutation: Stone-eating microbes you've assimilated allow the creation of a heavy, defensive shell. (Improves to carbon-based shell at 1.5 Billion Years)
Corruption: You are deathly-allergic to lead.
Corruption: Critical Hits stun you for minutes at a time.

[MintyNinja]

I, for one, do not like having cancer. But I can't seem to think of anything to do about it...

I suggest that we develop a form of stealth where we phase in and out of this reality without having to connect to Ley Lines. I call it Ghosting.
Should it work, we might be able to hunt J. Som Ywah.

Let us be the real nightmares down here.

[Jon0113]

Dammit, the one that works for me is for a creature no longer than

Going for defensive this time, going for some kind of insulation, hopefully protect against both the electrical attacks and the stunning attacks

[Fion MacCumhail]

I, for one, do not like having cancer. But I can't seem to think of anything to do about it...

you could suggest a more potent immune system that can fight cancer cells.

anyway, as you may have guessed, i suggest sensitivity to vibrations/keen hearing, which will alllow us to distinguish between conspecifics, prey and predators in the dark and - while in the water - at a much longer distance than sight. it should also do wonders for communication.

[Rain Dragon]

Genetic defenses against the necrotic cancerous tissues

There's this.
There are various things which our bodies use to fight cancer. If nobody wants this cancerous necrotic tissue, then it might be an idea to suggest some various ways to better cope with it. Another idea which doesn't directly have to do with the cancer is if you evolve regeneration and the ability to detach dying parts of the creature.

What is this pulley system eye thing? It sounds ridiculous. oO

[Aegis J Hyena]

What is this pulley system eye thing? It sounds ridiculous. oO

I envision it as a water-filled sock filled with nerves and tendrils and a bunch of eye holes to see through (kind of like when V was looking out through the holes in that corridor after the trap), and the eyeballs roll around, being tugged or pushed by said tendrils. When I said pulley system I was thinking kind of like hanging clothes out to dry on an outside line, and you could tug the one line to make the clothes (or in this case eyeballs) move in a given direction.

[Ramsus]

The cancerous cells are now an issue what with them giving us nothing but disadvantages. I say we evolve to absorb and gain sustenance from our own cancerous cells. Hopefully as they appear in they body rather than waiting for them to pile up. This will have the nice side effect of making us pretty much immune to cancer (and thus later on make radiation less of an issue).

[HalfTangible]

The cancerous cells are now an issue what with them giving us nothing but disadvantages. I say we evolve to absorb and gain sustenance from our own cancerous cells. Hopefully as they appear in they body rather than waiting for them to pile up. This will have the nice side effect of making us pretty much immune to cancer (and thus later on make radiation less of an issue).

Hm. It'll also give us a source of sustenance to help ward off starvation, like fat cells... Good idea. I'd second this, but that wouldn't improve the roll.

Instead I'm going to suggest that we mutate to give OTHER creatures cancerous tumors like we have when we sting them. Because I'm a sick guy.

[GuesssWho]

Can we get fear immunity?

Also, we should eat enemies we kill. Even deer eat meat sometimes, because it's easier to digest.

[Ramsus]

Immunity to fear would probably wipe out the species. Unless you mean magical or externally chemically induced fear but... those aren't elements that have shown up yet.

[GuesssWho]

Immunity to fear would probably wipe out the species. Unless you mean magical or externally chemically induced fear but... those aren't elements that have shown up yet.

Yeah it has, actually. The Yowie thing instills fear.

[Bobbybobby99]

I vote for the plasmic membranes of our cancerous part to randomly squirt out their innards and cytoplasm whenever we get afraid, forming a highly alkali, oxygenated cloud, and an effective defense, while also minimizing the cancer threat.

[GuesssWho]

https://i.gyazo.com/5a8284563cc137f9176e2ed0f06e018f.png

[Aegis J Hyena]

Cancer mutates (80+): 65

Ghosting: 45
Insulation: 67
Vibration Sensitivity: 47
Self-Devouring: 18
Cancerous Attacks: 62
Fear Resistance: 13
Poison Cloud: 78

No rolls above 90, applying the highest roll (Poison Cloud)

Next "Random Mutations" occur at 1.2B, 1.5B, and 1.8B years

THE TIME: 900,000,000 Million Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Open Ocean, with chilling temps (but warming up)
Lifeform Survival: 84% (rough estimation)

The Situation:

||| WILD SURGE!! |||
||| Oh look, it's THIS thread again. |||
||| Acrid smoke billows from the nearest well, filling the area |||

We're moments away from hitting the big one billion year mark (and, of this typing, I'm less than 24 hours from my 39th trip around the burning explosion keeping the earth alive). You've evolved the ability to spurt your blood and whatnot at your enemies to blind them in their soft spots, if not damage them. Combine this with the wild surge mutation, and you wind up with a specialized organ that combines your alkali blood, bacterial waste, oxygen, and deadly proteins into a fatal smokescreen. This is a powerful blast, able to kill predators and plankton alike. On top of THAT, when the "smokescreen" combines with your Ley Line-repairing slime, it hardens into a clear shell, trapping anything unfortunate enough to get caught in the "Yuk Fluid" (unless you have a better name for it).

Fear resistance was attempted to stave off Z. Bim Yowie, but it adapted as its surface area gives it more than enough room to try millions of variations of its bio-lighting in order to induce the nightmares/fear. Ghosting was attempted, but it didn't work -- it actually seems like you're slightly losing the ability to phase, mostly because the things up here are too big to be one-shot from a surprise out-of-phase attack. Exposure to the Bronzilver Ley Lines will enable you to keep your phasing through at least 2 Billion Years, so don't worry about it. "Eating yourself" to gain resistance to the cancer didn't work, and neither did attempting to infect other critters with it -- they're too specialized and healthy. Finally, insulation didn't work (opponents too powerful) and vibration sensitivity didn't come in handy (creatures too big, vibrations too strong, you'd be stunned).

J. Som Ywah is ignoring you, instead working its jaws on basic cells and gnawing on R. Melod Wooni, adapting to be immune to its electricity.

R. Melod Wooni has evolved to use the suction cup as a vaccum, sucking up anything within range (predator, prey and plankton alike). It free-floats in the water, not really moving much at all, but what it loses in movement, it makes up for in size. It's almost 60% larger, and its tentacles have a much greater range now. The four corner tentacles all now have stingers covered in backward pointing spines, so if it impales something, that stinger is going to -stay-.

Z. Bim Yowie has arranged its bioluminescence to resemble a big plus sign that pulses with power. It's slowly beginning to leech power from the Bronzilver Ley Lines to power its fear blasts (if it'd criticalled, and yes I do roll for some things, it'd ignore resistance that way) but what it leeches off it returns as death energy. The Bronzilver Ley Lines are now "tainted" with necromancy, which your slime completely neutralizes, rendering it inert on contact and transmuting your slime to a thick brackish grey jelly that seems impervious to water (yet is too heavy to float and just remains suspended where it touches necromancy).

H. Vali Yinyo has tripled in size, and seems to have lost a central nervous system, thrashing mindlessly at anything it can catch. It is using more energy than it can create, and looks like it might be the first on the extinction hit list. (It was supposed to rise fast and outpace Z Bim Yowie. I rolled four 1s on 6 rolls.)

NEXT! Let's hear your final mutations for this first stage; things are getting far more interesting in the next post.

The Cancerous part of you may mutate uncontrollably next post (76+; this is the last roll before it evolves off).

Onward to a Billion Years!

Basic Enemy Predator Cells:

* Have extremely effective Filtration Systems (+++RPois)
* Store filtered waste to barf out at predators (+Poison)
* Resistance to Paralysis
* Cell walls moderately thick and have developed oyster shell-like qualities
* Swarms like killer bees if attacked (++Berserk)
* Water Jets for speed bursts (+Speed)
* Very Resistant to Electricity (++RElec)
* 15% Magic Resistance
* Produces Heavy Grease (+Escape Artistry)
Danger Level: 4/10

J. Som Ywah:

* Worm-like with a Mandible (+Critical Hits)
* Moderately fast but not built for sharp turns (+Speed)
* Ignoring You
* Completely immune to electricity
Evolving paralytic tendrils next turn
Danger Level: 2/10

R. Melod Wooni

* Tank (3 hit dice)
* Electrical tendrils that stun prey (++Electrical attack)
* Counters on death with electrical surge
* Has a suction cup it uses as a vaccum (Eats a LOT of -your- food this way)
* Kills the unwary but easy to avoid... for now
Evolving detachable spines next turn
Danger Level: 5/10 and potentially rising

Z. Bim Yowie

* Spike Lined Tendril-Mace for stunning (+Stun Attack)
* Bioluminicent, announcing its presence
* Leeching power from Bronzilver Ley Lines, returning it as Necromancy
* Instills fear (+Fear Attack)
* Ignores your spikes
* -not- Immune to Poison
Danger Level: 4/10 and Rising

H. Vali Yinyo

* Serpentine doublemouth (+Multiple Strikes)
* Detects vibration and strikes insanely fast (+Accuracy)
* Mindless
Danger Level: 2/10

X. Neutralis Thromalius

Very Sensitive to Ley Lines (++Magic)
Skin instead of cells, slowly hardening to a shell (+Armor)
Skin-Shell is Spiked (+Counterattack)
Alkali Blood (+Poison)
Can pick the battlefield (+Elemental Resistance)
Bronzilver Ley Lines are a new source of travel around the globe; these attract plankton (+Magic)
Can Phase Out of "normal space" (usually to connect to a Ley Line)
Can Assimilate other Microbes (+Health)
DNA Resequencing ("Wild Surge" Mutations)
Immune to Mimicry
Half-shaped like an d12, half-shaped like a d8
Distinct Chemical Signal, now a warning to get out of your way
Tail is now a specialized ovipositor
Has an organ for the storage of Oxygen
Has an organ for spewing blood/waste/proteins
Has two "All Seeing Eyes" attached to nerves/tendrils on a pulley system; detects Stealth
On Digestion, enemies spawn X. Neutralis Thromalius with DNA improvements
95% Herbivore

Cancerous half may go necrotic (-16%)

Offensive Hallmark: A Long Spike on the end of the Prehensile Tail allows for a fatal piercing sting. (Adds tail segments or splits in two at 1.3B Years)
Defensive Hallmark: The bacteria can squirt a Poison Ink Cloud that slows its foes, enabling escape. (increases damage or area of effect at 1.6B Years)
Utility Hallmark: The bacteria extrudes a slime that repairs Ley Lines. (Increases in potency at 1 Billion Years)
Vanity Hallmark: A deep, almost hypnotic Deep Blue Coloration which shifts with the ocean waves. (This will likely become an octopus's color change much, much later)
Wild Surge Mutation: Stone-eating microbes you've assimilated allow the creation of a heavy, defensive shell. (Improves to carbon-based shell at 1.5B Years)
Wild Surge Mutation: You have adapted an organ that creates Yuk Fluid, which is useful when paired with Ley Line-Repairing Slime. (Yuk Fluid dissolves stone at 1.4B Years)
Corruption: You are deathly-allergic to lead.
Corruption: Critical Hits stun you for minutes at a time.

[Fion MacCumhail]

again, i suggest sensitivity to vibrations/keen hearing, which will alllow us to distinguish between conspecifics, prey and predators in the dark and - while in the water - at a much longer distance than sight. it should also do wonders for communication.

[GuesssWho]

Can we get some kind of resistance against electricity?

[Jon0113]

I'm again going for insulation against hopefully the electric/stunning attacks. I feel that would deal with the 2 biggest problems at the moment

[Ramsus]

Yeah, hope we get hearing soon. We also need a real mouth with real teeth (or dissolving acids in the mouth but then everything we eat is goo and that makes cooking way less interesting to our species down the line). Preferably omnivore type teeth.

Congrats on having not died yet Hyena!

[MintyNinja]

Damn, I missed a day. Someone suggested mouth and teeth, and hearing...

Hope this is in on time: Fins for movement!

[Fion MacCumhail]

hmm, no new turn today, it seems. ah well, i guess that's understandable.
happy birthday, Aegis!

[Aegis J Hyena]

You were saying?

Cancer mutates (76+): 79 (... Go to hell, Murphy, and tell the devil I'm coming for him next.)

Vibration Sensitivity: 37
Electricity Resistance: 61
Insulation: 79
Mouth With Teeth: 25
Fins for Movement: 63

No rolls above 90, applying highest roll (Insulation; not mentioned in the write up, but assumed)


Next "Random Mutations" occur at 1.2B, 1.5B, and 1.8B years

THE TIME: One Billion Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Open Ocean, with warming temps
Lifeform Survival: 80% (rough estimation)


The Situation:

||| CANCEROUS MUTATION!! |||
||| Surrender now, maggots, and you will not be har- *BOOM* |||
||| Target's Weight Doubles |||

"Oh, lord, here we go again." *click* "No, I did hiveminds last game, **** that." *click* "No, you're NOT getting permanent blindness, karma can **** itself!" *click* "Hmmm... that one I can do..."

One Billion Years, and we have an extrasolar event. Another massive asteroid struck the ocean, churning up the oceans into tidal waves and endless destruction. Most life in the deeps has been set back if not extinguished, and now in order to survive you need to pick an actual environment to focus your power in. Since you have some elemental resistance, you can still "pick the battlefield" and come out with an advantage over whatever you run into, once you choose your chosen environment for the next billion years (at least).

With the onset of a "cambrian explosion" brought on by the survivors of the Asteroid Event colonizing and adapting the world over, you've lost the three least useful mutations you had in order to focus on the stronger ones. You lost your spiked skin-shell, becoming flat-skinned again as the spikes were creating drag which reduces speed and thus ability to escape from predators. You lost the ability to spawn more of yourselves after being eaten, as the advanced life forms up here have stomach juices. Finally, you lost the chemical signal, to further aid in stealth and hiding from your enemies.

You've also suffered a slight loss in the ability to phase; being away from the "original" Ley Lines is slowly draining the ability. It's offset by exposure to the Bronzilver Ley Lines, and this loss of phase may become a displacement or blink or dimension door effect down the road. Right now you can still phase out and in, but it takes a lot more energy to, especially now that we're into "fish" territory. At 1.5 Billion Years I will be writing a 3.5E entry for your species (I'll do another at the 3 Billion mark).

You've taken a distinct change in appearance. The back half of you has faded to a dull bluish grey, the cancer part gone. It is in the shape of a d12, and is the size of a basketball. Your spike-ended tail has become longer (about six inches long), thicker (width of a human arm) and retains its prehensile ability, with the stinger itself being larger than many small fish. Surrounding the tail is a visible dark gray ring that fills with blood when you're excited; this is your weak point vs critical hits from that previous cancer mutation. Underneath the tail are now three (instead of one) specialized Ley-Line Slime producing organs (may increase to five later) and these can now repair nerve damage you suffer.

The front half of you is shaped like a d8, colored dark aquamarine, the size of a softball, and opens outward revealing the organ used to spray your toxins/smokescreen. This is how you currently eat, with a "suction" organ located just underneath the toxin spraying one. You suck in nourishment and use the same organ to barf out waste "pellets" like an owl. These things sink into the depths. Your movable eyes are now on a narrow "band" in the center of the body; this band is plus shaped and so you can move them to any place on that band and still have excellent vision. Your shell has hardened somewhat, resulting in decent armor versus your predators (rough estimate, AC 16).

Finally, we have the downside to all of this. The creatures in your area have begun growing... and growing... and growing. You grew as well in order to keep pace, but the growth got out of control just as you finally outlived the cancer. As a result, you're "Andre The Giant" huge compared to the rest of things, and thus both heavy and slow. You spend most of your time free-floating near the Bronzilver Ley Lines, not moving very much so as to conserve energy and simply phasing out when danger approaches. You've had to adapt the oxygen storage organ to the body's center in order to become ballast and not thus sink like a rock back into the depths (unless that is what you want and that option will open later). You can still use the Bronzilver Ley Lines to travel, but physics is now noticable on you because you're so big. Even out of phase, critters can still see that something is zooming along the Lines... and may learn to lay in wait.

The bacteria we've met so far will evolve next turn so you get a better idea on what you're dealing with. I'm going to be going into Second Life tonight (my name there is Xymbers Slade if you want to drop in) and designing your creature in three dimensions, so that tomorrow I will have a basic appearance to put up in as an image. You should probably suggest names for yourself, since we're not technically a bacteria anymore, but into the realm of fish.

With the onset of One Billion Years, you have a few choices to make. Mutations will slow down a little bit; you can suggest one every 200,000,000 years. Other years will have mutations added in. Paths have opened up, and instead of freely suggesting ideas, you have to pick a path to take. Three choices are available; you pick one. At two billion years this will change to five (vote on two) and at 3 billion, seven (vote on three).

Today's question... where will you evolve? Right now things are in the extremes; we'll narrow those down in this set of billion years.

WILL YOU...

A) Evolve in the Tropics? Heated water means more speed, more bacteria to eat and a faster mutation rate, but there's also more predators (danger level 4-6) and a lack of either Ley Lines or Bronzilver Ley Lines (Still around, but sparsely intertwined).
B) Evolve in a Temperate Zone? Lots of food here, with access to both kinds of Ley Lines. What predators lack in numbers here they make up for in danger level (7+).
C) Evolve in a Tundra Zone? Here there are far more Ley Lines than Bronzilver Ley Lines and a lack of food as well as a very slowed mutation rate. What food is here is likely owned by you, as it's too cold to hunt you here resulting in a lack of predators.

Onward to 1.1 Billion Years!

Basic Enemy Predator Cells (Found everywhere):

* Have extremely effective Filtration Systems (+++RPois)
* Store filtered waste to barf out at predators (+Poison)
* Resistance to Paralysis
* Oyster shell-like
* Swarms like killer bees if attacked (++Berserk)
* Water Jets for speed bursts (+Speed)
* Very Resistant to Electricity (++RElec)
* 15% Magic Resistance
* Produces Heavy Grease (+Escape Artistry)
Danger Level: 4/10

J. Som Ywah (Probable environment: Tropics):

* Worm-like with a Mandible (+Critical Hits)
* Needs to constantly gnaw, like a rat or rabbit
* Moderately fast but not built for sharp turns (+Speed)
* Ignoring You, but not for long
* Completely immune to electricity
* Has Paralytic Tendrils for immobilizing prey
Danger Level: 3/10

R. Melod Wooni (Probable environment: Temperate):

* Tank (3 hit dice)
* Electrical tendrils that stun prey (++Electrical attack)
* Counters on death with electrical surge
* Has a suction cup it uses as a vaccum (Eats a LOT of -your- food this way)
* Kills the unwary but easy to avoid... for now
* Tendrils have Detachable Spines filled with "spasm venom"
Danger Level: 5/10 and potentially rising

Z. Bim Yowie (Probable environment: Temperate or Tundra):

* Spike Lined Tendril-Mace for stunning (+Stun Attack)
* Bioluminicent, announcing its presence from a distance
* Leeching power from Bronzilver Ley Lines, returning it as Necromancy
* Instills fear (+Fear Attack)
* Ignores Spikes
* -not- Immune to Poison
Danger Level: 4/10 and Rising

H. Vali Yinyo

* Serpentine doublemouth (+Multiple Strikes)
* Detects vibration and strikes insanely fast (+Accuracy)
* Mindless and fading fast
Danger Level: 1/10, likely extinct next turn

X. Neutralis Thromalius

Very Sensitive to Ley Lines (++Magic, but potentially weakening)
Shell is Spiked (+Counterattack)
Alkali Blood (+Poison; intensifying next turn)
Can pick the battlefield (+Elemental Resistance)
Bronzilver Ley Lines are a new source of travel around the globe; these attract plankton (+Magic)
Can Phase Out of "normal space" (usually to connect to a Ley Line)
Can Assimilate other Microbes (+Health, possibly a Cold Aura later)
DNA Resequencing ("Wild Surge" Mutations)
Soft internal body parts are insulated against Electricity (+RElec)
Immune to Mimicry (likely the next thing to be gotten rid of if nothing here uses mimicry in the next few turns)
Half-shaped like an d12, half-shaped like a d8
Tail is now a specialized ovipositor
Has an organ for the storage of Oxygen, currently being used for ballast
Has an organ for spewing blood/waste/proteins
Has two "All Seeing Eyes" attached to nerves/tendrils on a pulley system; detects Stealth
Herbivore

Offensive Hallmark: A Long Spike on the end of the Prehensile Tail allows for a fatal piercing self-defense sting. (Adds tail segments or splits in two at 1.3B Years)
Defensive Hallmark: The bacteria can squirt a Poison Ink Cloud behind it that slows its foes, enabling escape. (increases damage or area of effect at 1.6B Years)
Utility Hallmark: The bacteria extrudes a slime that repairs Ley Lines and regenerates nerve damage. (Increases in potency or "bends the planes" at 1.8B Years)
Vanity Hallmark: A deep, almost hypnotic Deep Blue Coloration which shifts with the ocean waves. (This will likely become an octopus's color change at 2 Billion Years)
Wild Surge Mutation: Stone-eating microbes you've assimilated allow the creation of a heavy, defensive shell. (Improves to carbon-based shell at 1.5B Years)
Wild Surge Mutation: You have adapted an organ that creates Yuk Fluid, which is useful when paired with Ley Line-Repairing Slime. (Yuk Fluid dissolves stone at 1.4B Years)
Corruption: You are deathly-allergic to lead.
Corruption: Critical Hits stun you for minutes at a time.
Corruption: You are immensely heavy and incredibly slow.

[GAAD]

To the poles! Tundra ho!

[Bobbybobby99]

Hmm... I say we evolve in the temperate zone. No particular reason, just because.

Then, I suggest we form a more efficient, dolphin like shape (otherwise known as a 'fan tailed teardrop'). The current shape just isn't aerodynamic.

[GuesssWho]

I suggest a proper mouth, with teeth, and vote tropics. And can we be called phasefish for now?

[Ramsus]

I'm voting for Temperate. Gotta keep that magical connection intact if we want to become proper wizards down the line.

As for mutations, well someone said mouth already so I'll say hearing this time.

[MintyNinja]

Going to vote Tundra: We need Ley Lines. We may need to start evolving towards Whale and Dolphin like proportions in order to better survive. I don't know if we get to request a mutation this round, but if so let's get...

Magisynthesis, which is a catch all term for utilizing magical energies as plants use photosynthesis. Creating our energy without draining the Ley Lines. This will mitigate the need for as much food and may make survival much easier.

As for a name, let's go with: Reykavin.

[Aegis J Hyena]

This is a TERRIBLE mockup, but you get the general sense of what I am going for.

The eyes can move independently, on bands horizontally and vertically over the shell (they're -inside- the shell, like a knight is in his suit of armor, or maybe like the band of light K.I.T.T. has... this is just a lousy mock-up.)

http://www.freewebs.com/ihalon/Mock%20Up.png

[Jon0113]

I'll go for temperate as well, strong predators hopefully means we become stronger
I thought it is now we don't do random mutation, but if we are, I will go for jet propulsion (speed + size sounds good to me)

[Fion MacCumhail]

i'm rather surprised that we're now completely herbivore although we possess an ovipositor and can (probably) kill all kinds of stuff with our poison and our spiked tail.

anyway, i vote for the temperate zone as its advantages (food, magic, less adaptation necessary if the world climate turns towards one extreme or the other) outweigh the one disadvantage of a higher danger level, in my opinion.

and of course, i suggest sensitivity to vibrations/keen hearing, which will alllow us to distinguish between conspecifics, prey and predators in the dark and - while in the water - at a much longer distance than sight. it should also do wonders for communication.

oh, and on the matter of speed, could someone be so kind as to tell the laws of physics to shut up and sit down and suggest a haste spell or something like that?:smallwink:

[Ramsus]

i'm rather surprised that we're now completely herbivore although we possess an ovipositor and can (probably) kill all kinds of stuff with our poison and our spiked tail.
Same here.

[Aegis J Hyena]

*looks innocent, steeples fingers, grins* :smallcool:

[GuesssWho]

Yeah, and meat is easier to digest too. Maybe we're only mostly herbivores, and eat meat if we get an opportunity?

[Aegis J Hyena]

Tundra: 2
Temperate: 4
Tropics: 1

J. Som Ywah evolves to chase you (70+): 40 (You will see no more of Som Ywah unless the environment changes to more tropical lands.)
Z. Bim Yowie evolves to chase you (70+): 92

Aerodynamic Shape: 52
Mouth with Teeth: 13
Exceptional Hearing: 3
Magisynthesis: 8
Jet Propulsion: 52
Vibration Sensitivity: 46

No rolls above 90, applying highest roll by roll off: Shape (99) or Jet Speed (6)


Next "Random Mutations" occur at 1.2B, 1.5B, and 1.8B years
Next Mutation suggestions at 1.3B Years

THE TIME: 1.1 Billion Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Open Ocean, with warming temps
Lifeform Survival: 70% (70/1000, rough estimation)


The Situation:

I'll be adding your Lifeform Survival each turn to a running total, then roll randomly at the end of 2 Billion Years (so, d1000, roll under the running total). If I blow the roll, your species doesn't go extinct but it does suffer a large drop in numbers; sometimes the whims of chance don't favor those that do things right. I'll do the same at 3 Billion, where if that roll fails it's extinction if you failed this roll (unless you bounce back remarkably well).

Each action on the list of paths will add or subtract from the chance but you won't know how it influences until the following turn. I've got most of this mapped out for the billion years of this stage, and will edit it as mutations are suggested and I write to the whim of the dice. Not exactly a linear railroad, but not 100% freeform anymore, either. Yes, you might end up extinct through bad or unlucky choices but no one said raising life from the depths would be easy.

Your bacterial opponents are now named monstrosities, with their descriptions below.

You've elected to live in a temperate region of the open ocean. Floating along, you have ample time to change yourselves a bit before things start to get serious. You're still not able to sense vibration as well as you'd like even though you had the opportunity. Various means of obtaining food were attempted, from a mouth with teeth (unneeded when you can just suck up nourishment as-is, why fix what ain't broken) to flat out magisynthesis (which goes bad when the Ley Lines "hiccup" every now and again, forcing you to let go when the "milk" sours). Fortunately, it's not an advanced version of FUK, as they never left the deeps. While attempting to evolve a faster body, the constant pushing through the water while traveling the Ley Lines just streamlines your shell's "facets". You're now much faster and you can use your tail as a sort of rudder. Not totally agile, but getting there.

Speaking of Ley Lines, they're branching out into many, many flavors. We have the regular Ley Lines of the world, and those that are up here are relatively free of FUK, or whatever it is that FUK became. We have the Bronzilver Ley Lines, which were immune to FUK's influence (and indeed, to almost all other influences save your own)... and now we have three new types.

The first type is a coppery red with platinum-silver lines criss crossing it in an X pattern. This type seems to be attuned to the element of fire, with the waters around such lines about 20 degrees warmer than normal. The second type is a deep brown in color, and literally feels like a gooey mess when you attach. It almost "feels" like it's returning "dead energy" to the planet and you feel a little sick attaching to them. The last type is a bright neon yellow, much like regular Ley Lines but this is a far more intense glow. When you attach to these, it feels like you can "see forever" and it quickly turns to a crazy LSD trip. These latter lines are exceptionally rare, as you've found maybe three.

The bacteria you've dealt with aren't so "bacteria-y" anymore, as they went to "fish level" right along with you and now have names and descriptions. Right now your current enemies are a large population of Clapspitters and Wrappers, but the Aquatic Flashminds will not be far behind. Your current problem is that the overpopulation of Clapspitters is making it hard for anything else to survive, and if allowed to let breed out of control will dominate the oceans and then over-populate and poison them before dying off. While they are resistant to biological poison, spiritual poisons have an effect on them... which suggests that using the Ley Lines... your domain... against them is the answer.

So how do you deal with this first threat?


WILL YOU...

A) Kill them with applications of the Copper-Platinum (Copinum?) Ley Lines, causing them to pulse and roast anything within range?
B) Attempt to poison them with big doses of the Yellow Gold Ley Lines?
C) Break the Corrupted Brown Ley Lines and kill them off that way?

Onward to 1.2 Billion Years!

Basic Enemy: The Clapspitter (Eats anything):

The Clapspitter is a oyster-shelled troublemaker that shoots its own filth in order to incapacitate foes. Its amazing filtration system renders it immune to poison. When injured, it ejects a waste chemical that summons more of itself towards the wounded one, swarming its intended foes with biting ("clapping" its shell shut rapidly) and ejecting of waste products in a huge cloud around it. It is quick, using a specialized organ to shoot itself through the water by expelling water. When hard pressed it extrudes a heavy, visibility reducing grease that makes it very very hard to catch. It is slightly magic resistant, but very resistant to paralysis and electricity.

Danger Level: Could Be Trouble (4/10) and Rising Fast

The Muncher (J. Som Ywah) (Carnivore)

The Muncher is a long (two feet) worm with a huge armor-piercing antlion mantible at one end. While it moves fluidly through the water it cannot corner or turn fast. It has evolved an organ for the storage of electrical energy; while it can't generate any of its own, it can use what it steals and stores against its opponents. Around its rear side and around its mandible, it has paralytic tendrils for the capture of prey. It constantly needs to gnaw and wear down its front mandible, devouring floating chunks of anything it can find. Right now it is ignoring you... but not for long...

Danger Level: Could Be Trouble (3/10) (Currently out of your environment... but WILL evolve alongside you and you might run into it later)

The Wrapper (R. Melod Wooni) (Eats anything)

The Wrapper is a huge (4 feet) bony square-shaped manta ray-style creature that uses electricity to attack. Floating along on the currents its central suction cup filters stuff from the waters... and if it attaches to the underside of a living body like a lamprey, it'll eat its way into the creature's stomach for THEIR food, too. Soft parts are protected with a light-frame pliable bony exoskeleton that protects it and makes it very difficult to take down. The tentacles surrounding its edges are both electrical in nature (which is how it attacks) and have detatchable spines much like a jellyfish, whose venom causes muscles to spasm at full strength. This will tear skin and break hard parts, killing its target. The four spines at its corners are larger, longer (two feet) and will penetrate shells, remaining stuck due to their backward-facing spines.

Danger Level: Definitely Trouble (5/10) and rising next turn

The Aquatic Flashmind (Z. Bim Yowie) (Carnivore)

This apple-shaped thing has "lungs" on its bottom center that suck in and expel water to allow it to move clumsily about. Its entire surface is covered in multicolored bioluminicent "spores" that

both announce its appearance and can rearrange so as to produce a psychic "Predator! Run!" fear effect that usually herds it right into more of its waiting friends (or even a nest of Wrappers). It gets additional power from leeching nearby Ley Lines, returning the energy as necromantic "corruption" (though it doesn't poison or damage the Line, it does reduce the amount of "life energy" available in the world). It has a easily-bending shape, making it immune to spikes and sharp points, and its "stem" of the apple shape is actually a spike-lined tendril it can use for clumsy steering... or whacking the life out of anything that tries to eat it.

Danger Level: Definitely Trouble (5/10) and rising next turn

????? (Appears at 1.4B Years, Danger 7+)
????? (Appears at 1.9B Years, Danger 8+)
????? (Appears at 2.1B Years, Danger 8+)
????? (Appears at 2.6B Years, Danger 9+)
????? (Appears at 3B Years, Danger 9+)

The Phased Reykavin (X. Neutralis Thromalius)

Looking like a D8 and a D12 had a baby, the Phased Reykavin is a three-foot wide, dark blue colored... shelled thing that aerodynamically glides gracefully though the water. Sensitive to the Ley Lines of its temperate ocean habitat, it is able to extrude a slime from behind it that repairs the Ley Lines of the world. These same slime-extruders can also spit a poison ink cloud that slows down anything behind it so it can make a getaway, or fart oxygen or water for propulsion. Two extremely well-developed eyes move on bands just inside its stone-hard shell, one horizontally, one vertically. These can be positioned as needed, so both eyes can face forward on one band, behind, or wherever it needs to look to learn about its environment.

Its ability to assimilate other tiny background microbes on touch for minor sustenance generates an aura of cold that slows down approaching predators and it can modulate this aura to protect itself from extremes of heat, cold and other environmental factors. To attack it can smack things with its weighted stinger-equipped tail, open its mouth to spit a heavy alkali concoction that poisons, or use its tail to inject some of its eggs. Its multifaceted shell has a number of tiny spikes on it so that anything biting it is in for a rude surprise. It is resistant to electricity due to its natural insulation (a byproduct of healing the Ley Lines, which appears as a thick, brackish grey jelly), which it sucks back in and adds to itself.

When pressed it can phase out, attaching itself to a Ley Line and traveling away at over 60 feet per round. Creatures in normal space can see this as if something invisible were moving through the water (currents are left in its wake) but interaction is impossible. If TRULY pressed or cornered it can open its mouth and spit Yuk Fluid -- a heavily acidic/toxic blast in front of it that dissolves soft parts and acts as a smokescreen thicker and chunkier than the ink cloud behind it.

It is currently evolving quickly and wildly, with extra features yet to be added.

It is highly allergic to lead, nearly instantly dying on contact with it if such an attack pierces its shell, eye bands, or slime-extruders. If struck with enough force (critical hit), it is stunned for minutes at a time. For its size, it is incredibly dense and slow (roughly 30 pounds, most of that in shell).


The prehensile tail will become segmented or split into two at 1.3B Years.
The ink cloud increases damage or area of effect at 1.6B Years.
The Ley Line Slime increases in potency or "bends the planes" at 1.8B Years.
The coloration will switch to color changing chromatophores at 2B Years.
The Shell improves strength and becomes translucent at 1.5B Years.
Yuk Fluid will dissolve Stone at 1.4B Years.

[GAAD]

Wait. One of the options is "kill it with fire"?
Take it.
Burn them! Burn them all!
Uh, Phoenix? Don't you, maybe, think that you could help me with this delicate operation?
What? No! You keep sciencing that doohickeymathingamajig. Let me know when you need somebody murdered.
In the meantime,
BURN THEM ALL!

[Fion MacCumhail]

"kill it with fire" it is.

[Jon0113]

Break open the corrupted ones

[Ramsus]

I'll vote for B just because I think that's funny. But I don't really care too much. Dang we need hearing/teeth soon though.

[Bobbybobby99]

I'm indifferent on our methodo dealing with them, and I vote for us to continue our increase in being aerodynamic.

[GuesssWho]

B, because weaponized LSD just sounds cool. And I suggest we strengthen the cold aura.

[MintyNinja]

Kill it with fire.

Looks like we've got a real bruiser coming in a turn or two, so let's keep our heads about.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Burn with Fire Lines: 3 (+7%)
Poison with Yellow Gold: 2 (+5%)
Break the Corrupted Brown: 1 (-5%)
Goddamn, just six players... sigh... that's more than the twitter version though, which only had four and is dropping.

Next "Random Mutations" occur at 1.5B and 1.8B years
Next Mutation suggestions at 1.3B Years

THE TIME: 1.2 Billion Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Open Ocean, with warm temprate waters
Lifeform Survival: 77% (147/1000, rough estimation)


The Situation:

Since you suggested mutations at 1 Million for 1.1 Billion, no mutations occur for this turn. You can suggest them now for next turn though. (so you can make suggestions at 1.3, 1.5, 1.7 and 1.9B).

||| WILD SURGE!! |||
||| Did you HAVE to kill my +2 MA +1 AG Rat Ogre, Nuffle? |||
||| At death, caster is resurrected but continues to Decay |||

The Clapspitters are trying to run the ocean like they own the place, and you work the "Copinum" (I'm corrupting the spelling to Coponium because it sounds cooler) Ley Lines to flare out and roast them any time they become too population heavy. This works really really well, as when one is killed the rest go into a berserk feeding frenzy, which lures them closer to the Line... and ripe for being fried themselves. Their population drops rapidly, and it also leaves them with more bodies than they can eat. This attracts the other nasties in the ocean, but they're too focused on the free buffet to give thought to you.

All this free food gives you the option to adapt to eat meat/carrion should you desire it. However... 100,000,000 years is a very long time to "heat up the waters." While each individual use of the Coponium Ley Lines to fry your opposition doesn't do much, over time it begins to heat the waters and they stay heated, kind of like a stream carving a tunnel over millions of years. The net result? The ocean waters are fully about ten degrees warmer than they would have been and have been radiating heat onto the shores. Algae and such are now in thick carpets stretching out from shorelines, and many of these carpets break off and float in the free waters (and sink down to your level, providing more food). The good news is that it drives creatures that prefer the darker, colder depths (such as the Aquatic Flashmind) below you, so they can't survive well in your chosen environment.

The bad news is that The Munchers have moved in, being attracted by the food supply and the heat. Before long the food supply of slaughtered Clapspitters will die out and the Munchers will be out for you (and likely everything else).

The Wrappers have evolved heat absorption on the ends of their spiked tendrils, which they use for short bursts of speed in a "spin" with their tentacles extended, trying to catch anything they can. This is attracting the Munchers something fierce (lots of movement, big size), and the Wrappers' bony exoskeleton is getting stronger (and heavier) to deal with them. The Wrappers are beginning to seek you out specifically, though they won't have an impact yet.

The Aquatic Flashminds on the other hand have been driven away by the heated waters and are going below you. Older specimens of The Phased Reykavin that sink too low are easily snatched up by the Flashminds, as the mallable shape of the creature is slowly becoming less and less like a ball-with-lungs and more and more like a non-newtonian fluid with a spiked club attached (when it hardens it really sinks fast, but it usually takes the old and the weak along with it, never to be seen again). The creature's central "brain" seems to be learning to control itself to form into the shape of nightmares and impossible geometric shapes. Were it doing this against sentient foes, this would be a Confusion effect on top of its fear. When it does shift its form, its brain is exposed for a few short seconds...

Finally, you've learned to increase your "willpower" and health even more. You've gained such a strong grip on life thanks to your connection to all manner of Ley Lines and assimilation of microbes powering your Cold Aura that you've become able to "program" a part of your brain with a "reactive death program" --- if you die, your body animates and keeps doing what it was doing for about sixty seconds after death... which might give you the edge you need in battle, to tough things out.

With the Clapspitters out of the way for right now numbers-wise, your big threats are the Wrappers, the Munchers, and the Aquatic Flashminds if they decide to try some funny business next turn. You can only effectively deal with one... so which one?

WILL YOU...

A) Deal with the Wrappers by modulating your Cold Aura to deal with Electricity as well, cutting off their main attack?
B) Go after the Munchers, aiming to disintegrate their mandibles by application of Yuk Fluid?
C) Scare off the Aquatic Fleshminds by raising the water temprature even more?

Onward to 1.3 Billion Years!

Basic Enemy: The Clapspitter (Eats anything):

The Clapspitter is a oyster-shelled troublemaker that shoots its own filth in order to incapacitate foes. Its amazing filtration system renders it immune to poison. When injured, it ejects a waste chemical that summons more of itself towards the wounded one, swarming its intended foes with biting ("clapping" its shell shut rapidly) and ejecting of waste products in a huge cloud around it. It is quick, using a specialized organ to shoot itself through the water by expelling water. When hard pressed it extrudes a heavy, visibility reducing grease that makes it very very hard to catch. It is slightly magic resistant, but very resistant to paralysis and electricity.

Danger Level: Could Be Trouble (4/10) {Population Low}

The Muncher (J. Som Ywah) (Carnivore)

The Muncher is a long (two feet) worm with a huge armor-piercing antlion mantible at one end. While it moves fluidly through the water it cannot corner or turn fast. It has evolved an organ for the storage of electrical energy; while it can't generate any of its own, it can use what it steals and stores against its opponents. Around its rear side and around its mandible, it has paralytic tendrils for the capture of prey. It constantly needs to gnaw and wear down its front mandible, devouring floating chunks of anything it can find. Right now it is ignoring you... but not for long...

Danger Level: Could Be Trouble (4/10) and rising next turn...

The Wrapper (R. Melod Wooni) (Eats anything)

The Wrapper is a huge (4 feet) bony square-shaped manta ray-style creature that uses electricity to attack. Floating along on the currents its central suction cup filters stuff from the waters... and if it attaches to the underside of a living body like a lamprey, it'll eat its way into the creature's stomach for THEIR food, too. Soft parts are protected with a light-frame pliable bony exoskeleton (getting heavier) that protects it and makes it very difficult to take down. The tentacles surrounding its edges are both electrical in nature (which is how it attacks) and have detatchable spines much like a jellyfish, whose venom causes muscles to spasm at full strength. This will tear skin and break hard parts, killing its target. The four spines at its corners are larger, longer (two feet) and will penetrate shells, remaining stuck due to their backward-facing spines. These spines also store heat, giving it a burst of speed when it needs.

They are beginning to hunt The Phased Reykavin as a prime food source.

Danger Level: Definitely Trouble (6/10)

The Aquatic Flashmind (Z. Bim Yowie) (Carnivore)

This apple-shaped thing has "lungs" on its bottom center that suck in and expel water to allow it to move clumsily about. Its entire surface is covered in multicolored bioluminicent "spores" that both announce its appearance and can rearrange so as to produce a psychic "Predator! Run!" fear effect. Its body is slowly changing structure to that of a non-newtonian fluid. It gets additional power from leeching nearby Ley Lines, returning the energy as necromantic "corruption" (though it doesn't poison or damage the Line, it does reduce the amount of "life energy" available in the world). It has a mallable shape, making it immune to spikes and sharp points, and its "stem" of the apple shape is actually a spike-lined tendril it can use for clumsy steering... or whacking the life out of anything that tries to eat it.

It seems to be able to rearrange not just its surface area, but more and more itself, as a non-newtonian fluid with a central pulsing red nucleus.

Danger Level: Definitely Trouble (6/10)

????? (Appears at 1.4B Years, Danger 7+)
????? (Appears at 1.9B Years, Danger 8+)
????? (Appears at 2.1B Years, Danger 8+)
????? (Appears at 2.6B Years, Danger 9+)
????? (Appears at 3B Years, Danger 9+)

The Phased Reykavin (X. Neutralis Thromalius)

Looking like a D8 and a D12 had a baby, the Phased Reykavin is a three-foot wide, dark blue colored... shelled thing that aerodynamically glides gracefully though the water. Sensitive to the Ley Lines of its temperate ocean habitat, it is able to extrude a slime from behind it that repairs the Ley Lines of the world. These same slime-extruders can also spit a poison ink cloud that slows down anything behind it so it can make a getaway, or fart oxygen or water for propulsion. Two extremely well-developed eyes move on bands just inside its stone-hard shell, one horizontally, one vertically. These can be positioned as needed, so both eyes can face forward on one band, behind, or wherever it needs to look to learn about its environment.

Its ability to assimilate other tiny background microbes on touch for minor sustenance generates an aura of cold that slows down approaching predators and it can modulate this aura to protect itself from extremes of heat, cold and other environmental factors. To attack it can smack things with its weighted stinger-equipped tail, open its mouth to spit a heavy alkali concoction that poisons, or use its tail to inject some of its eggs. Its multifaceted shell has a number of tiny spikes on it so that anything biting it is in for a rude surprise. It is resistant to electricity due to its natural insulation (a byproduct of healing the Ley Lines, which appears as a thick, brackish grey jelly), which it sucks back in and adds to itself.

When pressed it can phase out, attaching itself to a Ley Line and traveling away at over 60 feet per round. Creatures in normal space can see this as if something invisible were moving through the water (currents are left in its wake) but interaction is impossible. If TRULY pressed or cornered it can open its mouth and spit Yuk Fluid -- a heavily acidic/toxic blast in front of it that dissolves soft parts and acts as a smokescreen thicker and chunkier than the ink cloud behind it. If slain, its body activates "programming", allowing itself to continue doing the last thing it was doing for a good sixty seconds.

It is currently evolving quickly and wildly, with extra features yet to be added.

It is highly allergic to lead, nearly instantly dying on contact with it if such an attack pierces its shell, eye bands, or slime-extruders. If struck with enough force (critical hit), it is stunned for minutes at a time. For its size, it is incredibly dense and slow (roughly 30 pounds, most of that in shell).

The prehensile tail will become segmented or split into two at 1.3B Years.
The ink cloud increases damage or area of effect at 1.6B Years.
The Ley Line Slime increases in potency or "bends the planes" at 1.8B Years.
The coloration will switch to color changing chromatophores at 2B Years.
The Shell improves strength and becomes translucent at 1.5B Years.
Yuk Fluid will eat through Stone at 1.4B Years.
The body's reanimation "program" extends duration to three minutes at 1.7B Years.

[Ramsus]

I'll vote for C. Also meat eating. And again I'll suggest having a mouth with proper teeth.

[Jon0113]

A for me, agree with meat eating.
And I will suggest sensitivity to outside stimuli, giving us basic senses (realise I'm not being original on this thread, but there you go)

[MintyNinja]

I'll vote for A, dealing with our predators is how we stay on top.
I would like to add Meat Eating to our repetoire of talents as well.
I'm gonna suggest that we evolve a Magic Elemental Lance: Using our own Chilled Zone, the Heated Atmosphere, or if it works, the Static Shield to strike at our foes with either all three elements or just one at a time.

[HalfTangible]

Meat eating sounds good.

A is less dangerous than B or C, I'll go with A.

I will suggest mind-reading so we can sense when our enemies come

[Bobbybobby99]

A, and manipulative tendrils. We ought to evolve those now, so we aren't crippled when we move into industry and craftsmanship.

[Fion MacCumhail]

1. i agree that we should add meat to our diet.
2. i vote for A, as the wrapper seems to be our biggest problem at the moment (it's at 6/10 and lives closer to us than the flashmind) and protection from electricity should also help a little against the muncher.
3. again, i suggest sensitivity to vibrations/keen hearing, which will alllow us to distinguish between conspecifics, prey and predators in the dark and - while in the water - at a much longer distance than sight. it should also do wonders for communication.

[Bobbybobby99]

Oh, and I also vote for omnivory, and putting up a recruitment thread to attract more people.

[GAAD]

I'll go A
And how about some sort of way to control how to pull things out of phase? Nothing like ripping half of someone's body into an alternate dimension. :smallsmile:

[Aegis J Hyena]

I'm not good with advertising, so someone else can put up the recruitment thread for me. (I wonder if we could get the Giant himself to vote once or twice...)

I think that's everyone who plays, so I'll do the tallyin' and get another post up, as I'm feeling somewhat creative.

[GuesssWho]

I vote A, and meat eating. I suggested a cold weapon, right?

[Aegis J Hyena]

A- 7 (+5%)
B- 0 (I said "You're completely ignoring the Munchers?" out loud...) (+7%)
C- 1 (-7%)

Elect to Eat Meat: Most of you :P

Mouth with Teeth: Critical 100
Basic Senses: 44
Elemental Lance: 14
Limited Telepathy: 41
Manipulatory Tendrils: 75
Vibration Sensitivity: 74
Phase-Yanking: 91

Next "Random Mutations" occur at 1.5B and 1.8B years
Next Mutation suggestions at 1.5B Years

THE TIME: 1.3 Billion Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Open Ocean, with warm temprate waters
Lifeform Survival: 82% (229/1000, rough estimation)


The Situation:

Another 100,000,000 years have passed, and you've elected to choose to deal with the largest predators first. The Wrappers' suction cups have evolved to a "biting mouth on a tendril" in the center of both sides of the beast. You've remodulated your Cold Aura to work off your bioelectric field -- you can deliver a NASTY shock now, as well as repel the shocks of others. While you can't kill the Clapspitters this way and the Wrappers are immune to their own bioelectric field (so they're unharmed by their own zaps) you -can- push or warn them away this way and even position them for a prime strike with your tail. You're learning to target holes in the bony structure surrounding Wrapper soft parts (+Accuracy).

However, focusing on the Wrappers have brought the Munchers to the forefront. Your solid heavy shell is a perfect source of "gnawing" on, and the Munchers have taken to you like a disease takes to a mummy victim. The Munchers' mandibles have grown larger (enough that its head is top heavy, so that will be evolving next turn) and it now has four of them instead of just the one (that it used kind of like a cleaver). Your shell and size make you too thick for Munchers to penetrate... but if they evolve their mandibles a bit more or come up with a new trick, you're going to become their prime food source. They're learning to band together... not socially, but attracted by each other's chemical signals much like the Clapspitters do.

The Aquatic Flashminds have disappeared into the darkness of the deeps once and for all, unable to deal with the warmer waters. They seem to be getting together socially, joining with each other and connecting specialized nerves and connections from nucleus to nucleus. When enough of them gather they "pulse" and send a psychic ripple up into your territory. Those that fail to save are driven down into the depths by confusion and fear where they can be easily captured and drawn into the central "hive" that seems to be forming when enough of them connect to one another, much like the neurons of a brain.

When the Munchers evolve their mandibles, you take the page right out of their book and step up your game, evolving a huge mouth on the front of your shell. The teeth point backwards, like a shark's, so anything you bite down on isn't going to get away. If you grin, that's a sign you're going to attack. You're not strong enough to bite through a fully-sized Wrapper, but you can now take down younger ones.

You've also learned a new handy trick, in that if you "lasso" something with your Ley Line Slime, or somehow connect a "circuit" between you and a target using two of your three Ley Line Slime Extruders, you can shift partially and take the target with you. This induces a stunned state where the target is completely incoherent and thrashing about, being in "two worlds at once" until they fade back into phase a few seconds later. Wrappers are too big to fully use this power on... but just about everything else is not.

Finally, you have a choice. Your tail can either become segmented (granting pinpoint accuracy on top of the accuracy you already gained this turn), or it can split into two and flatten (keeping the sting, but also gaining movement control). Go ahead and vote on that, too.

WILL YOU... (despite four choices, pick one)

A) Focus on the Clapspitters as a food source, trying to drive them to extinction and thus allowing you to outpopulate the Wrappers and Munchers?
B) Focus on the Wrappers, bringing down a source of danger and depriving the Munchers of a food source?
C) Focus on the Munchers, to prevent those mandibles from getting any -more- specialized?
D) Descend into the depths and deal with the Aquatic Flashminds before retreat out of range by biting into their non-newtonian "brain connections" and severing the hiveminds?

Onward to 1.4 Billion Years!

Basic Enemy: The Clapspitter (Eats anything):

The Clapspitter is a oyster-shelled troublemaker that shoots its own filth in order to incapacitate foes. Its amazing filtration system renders it immune to poison. When injured, it ejects a waste chemical that summons more of itself towards the wounded one, swarming its intended foes with biting ("clapping" its shell shut rapidly) and ejecting of waste products in a huge cloud around it. It is quick, using a specialized organ to shoot itself through the water by expelling water. When hard pressed it extrudes a heavy, visibility reducing grease that makes it very very hard to catch. It is slightly magic resistant, but very resistant to paralysis and electricity.

Danger Level: Could Be Trouble (4/10)

The Muncher (J. Som Ywah) (Carnivore)

The Muncher is a long (two feet) worm with four huge armor-piercing antlion mandibles at one end. While it moves fluidly through the water it cannot corner or turn fast. It has evolved an organ for the storage of electrical energy; while it can't generate any of its own, it can use what it steals and stores against its opponents. Around its rear side and around its mandible, it has paralytic tendrils for the capture of prey. It constantly needs to gnaw and wear down its front mandible, devouring floating chunks of anything it can find. While Wrappers are immune to their own bioelectrics, electricity stored by the Munchers CAN be used against them.

They are focusing on both the Wrappers and the Phased Reykavin as food sources.

Danger Level: Could Be Trouble (5/10) and possibly rising.

The Wrapper (R. Melod Wooni) (Eats anything)

The Wrapper is a huge (4 feet) bony square-shaped manta ray-style creature that uses electricity to attack. Floating along on the currents its central suction cup filters stuff from the waters... and if it attaches to the underside of a living body like a lamprey, it'll eat its way into the creature's stomach for THEIR food, too. Soft parts are protected with a light-frame pliable bony exoskeleton (getting heavier) that protects it and makes it very difficult to take down. The tentacles surrounding its edges are both electrical in nature (which is how it attacks) and have detatchable spines much like a jellyfish, whose venom causes muscles to spasm at full strength. This will tear skin and break hard parts, killing its target. The four spines at its corners are larger, longer (two feet) and will penetrate shells, remaining stuck due to their backward-facing spines. These spines also store heat, giving it a burst of speed when it needs.

They are hunting The Phased Reykavin as a prime food source.

Danger Level: Definitely Trouble (6/10)

The Aquatic Flashmind (Z. Bim Yowie) (Carnivore)

This semi-intelligent amoeba is made of a non-newtonian fluid and floats limply in the water until it can either attach to more of its kind (forming a network of connections between nuclei much like a human brain) or gather enough psychic energy to produce a psychic "Predator! Run!" fear and confusion effect to drive its prey down to it. It gets additional power from leeching nearby Ley Lines, returning the energy as necromantic "corruption" (though it doesn't poison or damage the Line, it does reduce the amount of "life energy" available in the world). It has a mallable shape, making it immune to spikes and sharp points, and a "tail" coming off of the nucleus itself is actually a spike-lined tendril it can use as a lure... to whack the life out of anything that tries to eat it.

It is developing a rudimentary hivemind intelligence and is focusing more on the Wrappers as a food source, but it'll eat anything.

Danger Level: Definitely Trouble (6/10)

????? (Appears at 1.4B Years, Danger 7+)
????? (Appears at 1.9B Years, Danger 8+)
????? (Appears at 2.1B Years, Danger 8+)
????? (Appears at 2.6B Years, Danger 9+)
????? (Appears at 3B Years, Danger 9+)

The Phased Reykavin (X. Neutralis Thromalius)

Looking like a D8 and a D12 had a baby, the Phased Reykavin is a three-foot wide, dark blue colored... shelled thing that aerodynamically glides gracefully though the water. Sensitive to the Ley Lines of its temperate ocean habitat, it is able to extrude a slime from behind it that repairs the Ley Lines of the world. These same slime-extruders can also spit a poison ink cloud that slows down anything behind it so it can make a getaway, or fart oxygen or water for propulsion. Two extremely well-developed eyes move on bands just inside its stone-hard shell, one horizontally, one vertically. These can be positioned as needed, so both eyes can face forward on one band, behind, or wherever it needs to look to learn about its environment.

Its ability to assimilate other tiny background microbes on touch for minor sustenance generates an aura of cold that slows down approaching predators and it can modulate this aura to protect itself from extremes of heat, cold and other environmental factors. To attack it can smack things with its (accurate!) weighted stinger-equipped tail, open its front "beak-mouth" to spit a heavy alkali concoction that poisons, or use its tail to inject some of its eggs. Its multifaceted shell has a number of tiny spikes on it so that anything biting it is in for a rude surprise. Underneath its "beak-mouth" where it stores its poison organs is a larger, shark-like mouth that can bite into flesh and not let go. It is extremely resistant to electricity due to its natural insulation (a byproduct of healing the Ley Lines, which appears as a thick, brackish grey jelly that can store charges like a wand), which it sucks back in and adds to itself.

When pressed it can phase out, or make a circuit with its Ley Line Slime and pull others out of phase, dealing damage in the process. It can also attach itself to a Ley Line and travel away at over 60 feet per round. Creatures in normal space can see this as if something invisible were moving through the water (currents are left in its wake) but interaction is impossible. If TRULY pressed or cornered it can open its mouth and spit Yuk Fluid -- a heavily acidic/toxic blast in front of it that dissolves soft parts and acts as a smokescreen thicker and chunkier than the ink cloud behind it. If slain, its body activates "programming", allowing itself to continue doing the last thing it was doing for a good sixty seconds.

It is currently evolving quickly and wildly, with extra features yet to be added.

It is highly allergic to lead, nearly instantly dying on contact with it if such an attack pierces its shell, eye bands, or slime-extruders. If struck with enough force (critical hit), it is stunned for minutes at a time. For its size, it is incredibly dense and slow (roughly 30 pounds, most of that in shell).

The prehensile tail will advance again at 1.9B Years.
The ink cloud increases damage or area of effect at 1.6B Years.
The Ley Line Slime increases in potency or "bends the planes" at 1.8B Years.
The coloration will switch to color changing chromatophores at 2B Years.
The Shell improves strength and becomes translucent at 1.5B Years.
Yuk Fluid will eat through Stone at 1.4B Years.
The body's reanimation "program" extends duration to three minutes at 1.7B Years.

[Bobbybobby99]

I vote for tail segmentation, option C, and once again for manipulatory tendrils.

[Aegis J Hyena]

No mutations this upcoming turn... but next turn you can suggest again.

[MintyNinja]

Segmented tail and option A as it allows us to rise above ALL predators in time for that new one to arrive.

EDIT: Also, our Yuk Fluid will be eating through stone next update, that might prove useful.

[GuesssWho]

I'm also going with segments and C.

[Fion MacCumhail]

how come the wrappers are still at 6/10 after what happened this turn?:smallconfused:

anyway, i vote for splitting the tail so we get more agile and for option C (not picking D might really bite us in the butt later on, but then again, so might picking it).

[androgial]

I shall join in this madness of genetic evolution. I vote segmented tail and EEEP deal with the biter deal with the biter (option c please)

[Ramsus]

I vote for C and (pointlessly?) vote for two tails.

[Jon0113]

Segmentation and c

Won't be able to do the recruitment thread today, but if no one else does it will try tomorrow

[Aegis J Hyena]

Segments: 5
Two Tails: 2

A: 1 (-8%; the other creatures would have ganged up on you)
B: 0 (-5%; Useful but not the best choice)
C: 6 (+5%; they need to be dealt with...)
D: 0 (+8%; ... but they're a bigger threat than the Munchers)

Next "Random Mutations" occur at 1.5B and 1.8B years
Mutation Suggestions Now available

THE TIME: 1.4 Billion Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Open Ocean, with warm temprate waters; slightly cooling
Lifeform Survival: 87% (316/1000, rough estimation)


The Situation:

No more mister niced Phased Reykavin. You go on a strong offensive to deal with the Muncher threat, using your Yuk Fluid to its fullest extent and turning the hunters into the hunted pretty quickly. Over time you've brought them down from four mandibles to two, but their back ends close to its tail have taken on a sticky outer coating. You're too big to be caught by its stickiness though, and it doesn't help them in trying to hold you down so they can bite into you. The stickiness does catch the Clapspitters, but is dissolved by their own spewings. The Munchers are forced to withdraw from gnawing on you, and instead turn to the Wrappers, who can't evolve fast enough to protect against their bites.

The two mandibles that are left turn into clamps-on-a-tight-spring, snapping shut with enough power to decapitate a target. This snap-shut attack is biting right through the Wrappers' bony defenses and tearing their inner soft parts apart. To counter this, the Wrappers have lengthened their tentacles to "big jellyfish" length, and these dangle all over the place instead of directly below the body of the Wrapper. If anything comes close (especially a Muncher) they all target the same trigger. The Munchers try to counter this by becoming parasitic, and now once they lock on they never let go. Your shell is too thick to break right now, but if they evolve any stronger armor piercing, they will be able to get through.

Meanwhile, the Aquatic Flashminds have linked together in masses totalling hundreds of individuals. Much like the growing framework of a human brain, the combined powers of the non-newtonian blobs with nuclei are starting to generate a hint of thought besides the usual "survive or be eaten" responses. This is only empowering its fear and confusion attack, driving things above you in the waters into the near-lightless depths to be devoured. When they wrap part of themselves around a Ley Line, their bodies harden into a solid state that is impervious even to the Munchers' mandibles.

When enough grip a Ley Line, the result is usually a visible greenish white "city-mass" where a hole in the center would denote where the Ley Line would be. They're ignoring the Coponium Ley Lines, avoiding the Yellow Gold Ley Lines at all costs, and they seem to be trying to cross-link the corrupted brown ones into both the regular Ley Lines and themselves, making them impossible to remove (and requiring Yuk Fluid to completely disintegrate them).

Unfortunately, as long as they're crosswired with the Corrupted Brown, it proves a bit dangerous. The regular Ley Lines are resistant to your Yuk Fluid, but not the Corrupted Brown ones (which are like the "intestines" of the usual Ley Lines, for a lack of better word). Breaking the Corrupted Brown ones with your Yuk Fluid spews gallons upon gallons of both spiritual and physical poisons into the ocean as the break from these things is powerful enough to breach the planes. This'll kill the Aquatic Flashmind-nests, but also everything else, be it you, Muncher, Wrapper, or what have you.

Your tail has split into specialized segments. Not only does this allow you to fine-tune the tail's control (increasing your own control in the water as you move) but the segments move independantly, so it can sneak in or around a target as needed. No boost to accuracy yet, but it's likely to happen at the next mutation.

Finally a new predator has entered the arena, but won't get involved until next turn. Go ahead and suggest mutations in the meantime. :)

The Wrappers you can avoid with your superior sight, the Munchers can't hurt you (for now), and the Clapspitters are still trying to get back their numbers. Right now the threat is the Aquatic Flashminds, and in a big way. If allowed to continue, the world will be out of balance on the Necromantic side of magic, and you can tell it's already happening with the introduction of the newest creation to the arena. How do you deal with the Aquatic Flashminds?


WILL YOU... (despite four choices, pick one)

A) Apply Yuk Fluid anyway ("If you're not willing to shell your own position, you're not willing to win.")?
B) Rely on physical power, evolving your slime to combine with your poison ink to burn them off one nest at a time?
C) Rely on your phasing ability to pull them "half out of phase", ripping them off the Ley Line in the process?
D) Attempt to crosswire a Yellow Gold Ley Line into them, spreading to the rest of the network?

Onward to 1.5 Billion Years!

Basic Enemy: The Clapspitter (Eats anything):

The Clapspitter is a oyster-shelled troublemaker that shoots its own filth in order to incapacitate foes. Its amazing filtration system renders it immune to poison. When injured, it ejects a waste chemical that summons more of itself towards the wounded one, swarming its intended foes with biting ("clapping" its shell shut rapidly) and ejecting of waste products in a huge cloud around it. It is quick, using a specialized organ to shoot itself through the water by expelling water. When hard pressed it extrudes a heavy, visibility reducing grease that makes it very very hard to catch. It is slightly magic resistant, but very resistant to paralysis and electricity.

Danger Level: Could Be Trouble (4/10)

The Muncher (J. Som Ywah) (Carnivore)

The Muncher is a long (two feet) worm with two serrated clamps on a spring at one end while its back end is covered in a thick sticky substance to catch smaller prey. While it moves fluidly through the water it cannot corner or turn fast. It has evolved an organ for the storage of electrical energy; while it can't generate any of its own, it can use what it steals and stores against its opponents. Around its rear side and around its mandible, it has paralytic tendrils for the capture of prey. It constantly needs to gnaw and wear down its front mandible, devouring floating chunks of anything it can find. While Wrappers are immune to their own bioelectrics, electricity stored by the Munchers CAN be used against them.

They are focusing on both the Wrappers and the Phased Reykavin as food sources.

Danger Level: Definitely Trouble (6/10) and rising -FAST- (Low population)

The Wrapper (R. Melod Wooni) (Eats anything)

The Wrapper is a huge (4 feet) bony square-shaped manta ray-style creature that uses electricity to attack. Floating along on the currents its central suction cup filters stuff from the waters... and if it attaches to the underside of a living body like a lamprey, it'll eat its way into the creature's stomach for THEIR food before sucking out all the soft other parts of their victim. Soft parts are protected with a light-frame pliable bony exoskeleton (getting heavier) that protects it and makes it very difficult to take down.

The 3-foot long tentacles surrounding its edges float everywhere around it in a tangled mess, and are both electrical in nature (which is how it attacks) and have detatchable spines much like a jellyfish. Their poison causes muscles to spasm at full strength and tear skin and break hard parts, killing its target. The four spines at its corners are larger, longer (two and a half feet) and will penetrate shells, remaining stuck due to their backward-facing spines. These spines also store heat, enabling it to flash-fry anything it stabs upon release.

They are hunting The Phased Reykavin as a prime food source but their extreme resistance are making it tough vs electricity, so it relies more and more on its main corner spines.

Danger Level: Definitely Trouble (6/10)

The Aquatic Flashmind (Z. Bim Yowie) (Carnivore)

This semi-intelligent amoeba is made of a non-newtonian fluid and floats limply in the water until it can either attach to more of its kind (forming a network of connections between nuclei much like a human brain) or gather enough psychic energy to produce a psychic "Predator! Run!" fear and confusion effect to drive its prey down to it. It gets additional power from leeching nearby Ley Lines, returning the energy as necromantic "corruption" (though it doesn't poison or damage the Line, it does reduce the amount of "life energy" available in the world). It has a mallable shape, making it immune to spikes and sharp points, and a "tail" coming off of the nucleus itself is actually a spike-lined tendril it can use as a lure... to whack the life out of anything that tries to eat it. It is developing a rudimentary hivemind intelligence and is focusing more on the Wrappers as a food source, but it'll eat anything. It cannot seem to damage the Threxian Sifter.

It has developed a nest mentality, and its "corruption and necromancy" is intensifying. It seems very close to generating a hivemind thought process and sending pseudopods of itself like a slim up to your level of the ocean.

Danger Level: What's that, Sandvich? Kill them all? Good idea! (7/10)

The Threxian Sifter (T. Fulbo Noofis) (Mostly Carnivore)

The Threxian Sifter is the most fish-like creature to date. It has a long beak at the end of its body filled with razor-thin bone blades that, as its name would attest, "sift" through the water looking for both plant and meat as it thrashes its head from side to side. If it encounters living meat, it shreds it with the thrashing. Six tendrils dangle below it from an oval body, three to either side. These deliver an energy drain, slowing its targets to the point they can't fight back.

If they connect to a Ley Line with half of those, or worse a Ley Line tainted by the Aquatic Flashminds, the energy drain is intensified. It cannot abide cold tempratures but that seems to be changing, as the hairs on its body are starting to lengthen and thicken with a thick layer of some kind of blubber (the beginnings of polar bear style fur). A single fixed eye is in the center of its soda-can shaped head, and an eel-like tail longer than your entire body enables constriction if it gets itself around you.

It seems to be fading in color and taking on the appearance of something half-dead, or dying.

Danger Level: What's that, Sandvich? Kill them all? Good idea! (7/10)

????? (Appears at 1.9B Years, Danger 8+)
????? (Appears at 2.1B Years, Danger 8+)
????? (Appears at 2.6B Years, Danger 9+)
????? (Appears at 3B Years, Danger 9+)

The Phased Reykavin (X. Neutralis Thromalius)

Looking like a D8 and a D12 had a baby, the Phased Reykavin is a three-foot wide, dark blue colored... shelled thing that aerodynamically glides gracefully though the water. Sensitive to the Ley Lines of its temperate ocean habitat, it is able to extrude a slime from behind it that repairs the Ley Lines of the world. These same slime-extruders can also spit a poison ink cloud that slows down anything behind it so it can make a getaway, or fart oxygen or water for propulsion. Two extremely well-developed eyes move on bands just inside its stone-hard shell, one horizontally, one vertically. These can be positioned as needed, so both eyes can face forward on one band, behind, or wherever it needs to look to learn about its environment.

Its ability to assimilate other tiny background microbes on touch for minor sustenance generates an aura of cold that slows down approaching predators and it can modulate this aura to protect itself from extremes of heat, cold and other environmental factors. To attack it can smack things with its (accurate!) weighted stinger-equipped tail, open its front "beak-mouth" to spit a heavy alkali concoction that poisons, or use its tail to inject some of its eggs.

Its multifaceted shell has a number of tiny spikes on it so that anything biting it is in for a rude surprise. Underneath its "beak-mouth" where it stores its poison organs is a larger, shark-like mouth that can bite into flesh and not let go. It is extremely resistant to electricity due to its natural insulation (a byproduct of healing the Ley Lines, which appears as a thick, brackish grey jelly that can store charges like a wand), which it sucks back in and adds to itself.

When pressed it can phase out, or make a circuit with its Ley Line Slime and pull others out of phase, dealing damage in the process. It can also attach itself to a Ley Line and travel away at over 60 feet per round. Creatures in normal space can see this as if something invisible were moving through the water (currents are left in its wake) but interaction is impossible. If TRULY pressed or cornered it can open its mouth and spit Yuk Fluid -- a heavily acidic/toxic blast in front of it that dissolves soft parts and stone alike and acts as a smokescreen thicker and chunkier than the ink cloud behind it. If slain, its body activates "programming", allowing itself to continue doing the last thing it was doing for a good sixty seconds.

It is currently evolving quickly and wildly, with extra features yet to be added.

It is highly allergic to lead, nearly instantly dying on contact with it if such an attack pierces its shell, eye bands, or slime-extruders. If struck with enough force (critical hit), it is stunned for minutes at a time. For its size, it is incredibly dense and slow (roughly 30 pounds, most of that in shell).

The prehensile tail will either detatch like a gecko's or become a thicker flexible "spine" with multiple poison glands at 1.9B Years.
The ink cloud increases damage or area of effect at 1.6B Years.
The Ley Line Slime increases in potency or "bends the planes" at 1.8B Years.
The coloration will switch to color changing chromatophores at 2B Years.
The Shell improves strength and becomes translucent at 1.5B Years.
Yuk Fluid will eat through metal ore at 2.1B Years, and processed metal at 3B Years.
The body's reanimation "program" extends duration to three minutes at 1.7B Years.

[MintyNinja]

Let's Crosswire some Yellow Gold Ley Lines into the Flashminds. Meaning D.
Let's name the Yellow Gold Ley Lines, as we did the Copinium ones. I suggest Psygold.
Might as well name the Brown Ley Lines, too. How's Necrullite?

I'm going to resubmit my suggestion for a Magic Elemental Lance. I think attacking things with Magic would be a large decider for us in coming times.

Our shell will be evolving this turn, it looks like it's Stronger AND Translucent, so that's cool. If it's one or the other, then I vote for Stronger.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Both stronger and translucent, yes. So the Munchers will still have -some- difficulty, but that won't happen until after the turn passes.

[Bobbybobby99]

I vote once more for manipulatory tendrils, and for C. Option D looks like it's just asking for pollution trouble, option B seems like they would just evolve against us, and A just seems overconfident.

[Fion MacCumhail]

i vote for option D since the flashminds really seem to hate the yellow ley lines (see also the 1.2B years post : "Poison with Yellow Gold: 2 (+5%)").

and again, i suggest sensitivity to vibrations/keen hearing, which will alllow us to distinguish between conspecifics, prey and predators in the dark and - while in the water - at a much longer distance than sight. it should also do wonders for communication.

[Ramsus]

I'll vote for D because the potential outcomes are too funny not to give a chance. As for mutations... how about we lose that lead allergy?

[GuesssWho]

C, and weaponizing the cold aura.

[Aegis J Hyena]

The Corruptions are staying at least until 3B years, after which you might be able to remove them (at... a cost...).

[Ramsus]

In that case I'll suggest we grow an extra tail for more movement since we're so slow.

[Jon0113]

Option d, and I will go for basic senses like my last suggestion

[Aegis J Hyena]

A) (-9%; would have badly damaged the Lines)
B) (+3%; wouldn't do enough damage to keep them off, though)
C) 2 (+7%; this would have done the most damage to their "mind")
D) 4 (-7%; they just evolve resistance and defenses)

Elemental Lance: 82
Manipulatory Tendrils: 39
Vibration Sensitivity: 98
Weaponizing the Cold Aura: 37
Extra Tail: 87
Basic Senses: 54

Last "Random Mutation" at 1.8B years
Mutation Suggestions Not available

THE TIME: 1.5 Billion Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Open Ocean, with warm temprate waters; cooling off
Lifeform Survival: 80% (396/1000, rough estimation)


The Situation:

||| WILD SURGE!! |||
||| I have yet to meet one that can outsmart bullet. |||
||| Next meal prepared by caster tastes like demihuman flesh |||

You've decided to try to re-route the Psygold Ley Lines into the Aquatic Flashmind "nest cities". If they want all the magic energy for themselves, then they can have it, and then an abundance of it, and then all of it and then some! Have an over-poisioning, you basta... ... ... yeah, no. It wasn't that simple. It looks like they were feinting. When you shove the (very) few Psygold Ley Lines you can find into their cities, they just harden their non-newtonian bodies so that the energy can't flow to them and thus poison them off the Ley Lines. What does happen that in order to attach the Psygold Ley Lines to the nest-cities, you had to "cut" them, and thus they spurt like arteries sending their "magic LSD" energy all over the place. Because of your new vibration sensitivity about bloody time you're able to keep away from the business end of the spurting and retreat, and thus don't take on any sort of new corruptions. The bad news is that the lower depths are flooded with "magic LSD", preventing you from entering without risking mutations.

There is some good in this. The nest-cities have hardened to protect themselves from your meddling, and they're using more energy than they can take from the Ley Lines because they have to keep -constantly- solid to remain protected, rather than gooey and ever-changing as they cling to the lines. When they're solid, they can't "necromanticize" the Ley Lines as much. Some die off, some mutate into cancerous blobs, others tough it out and become immune to the Psygold Ley Lines (Illusion/Confusion/Mental Resistance). Because of the flood, no regular food can survive down at the Aquatic Flashmind level, and this means their city-nests have to expend even MORE energy trying to expand their range and drive their food down to them (think of it like V being dispelled by Xykon and falling into the Mind Fog, which will only intensify the deeper you go).

Since you can't dislodge the Aquatic Flashminds at this point without descending into their abyss, you've focused on food for survival. There is now a heavy abundance of both meat and plant life floating in the waters, now that the "cambrian explosion" happened and there's diverse plant and animal life. You've learned to modulate your Yuk Fluid to disintegrate biological waste but leave the nutrients intact (in short, mulching the opposition rather than disintegrating it). This means you can literally eat almost anything plant or animal (and increasing to stone/ore/metal later). All of this food has empowered your shell, making it stronger and impervious to the Munchers while at the same time turning translucent and enabling the exposure of bioluminescent "nodes" to communicate with, along the path of the muscles upon which the eyes travel.

Meanwhile, the Clapspitters are being devoured en masse by the Threxian Sifters and are unable to get their numbers back. Their shells are no match for the thrashing the Sifters do, shattering upon impact with the bone blades. The Munchers have focused on you, having evolved two things this turn. The first is that they got their numbers back FAST. They had an explosion in population when they went rabidly against the Wrappers in the meantime. The second is that they're turning their mandibles into spiral-like mandibles, effectively turning them into makeshift drills... PERFECT for boring through shell, Wrapper, or even heavy body of the Sifters. It looks like their next trick will be aiming for pinpoint accuracy, so they can get at weak points in your shell. You're smaller than the Sifters, which they're somewhat avoiding (but not for long, big creature means big unarmored target).

The Wrappers are slowly losing their electricity, favoring their now -very- hot corner spines and their flash-cooking ability. The Munchers are still too fast and aerodynamic to catch, the Clapspitters are too small to target, and your shell is (almost) impervious to them. However, it's turning toward the Threxian Sifters as a potential food source since if they can angle just right and hit with a corner spike, one hit will stun them while a second one will be enough to kill -- they have to target close to the head to score a hit, and that's where the brain is being stored, right behind its eyeball...

WILL YOU...

A) Evolve an even bigger size, to scare off the Munchers and defend against the now-shark-sized Threxian Sifters?
B) Descend into the abyss and deal with the Aquatic Flashminds once and for all, risking harmful mutations?
C) Focus on extincting the Clapspitters and potentially the Wrappers, exploding your population and hoping there are too many of you to extinct?

Onward to 1.6 Billion Years!

Basic Enemy: The Clapspitter (Eats anything):

The Clapspitter is a oyster-shelled troublemaker that shoots its own filth in order to incapacitate foes. Its amazing filtration system renders it immune to poison. When injured, it ejects a waste chemical that summons more of itself towards the wounded one, swarming its intended foes with biting ("clapping" its shell shut rapidly) and ejecting of waste products in a huge cloud around it. It is quick, using a specialized organ to shoot itself through the water by expelling water. When hard pressed it extrudes a heavy, visibility reducing grease that makes it very very hard to catch. It is slightly magic resistant, but very resistant to paralysis and electricity.

Danger Level: Could Be Trouble (3/10)

The Muncher (J. Som Ywah) (Carnivore)

The Muncher is a long (two feet) worm with two serrated clamps on a spring at one end while its back end is covered in a thick sticky substance to catch smaller prey. While it moves fluidly through the water it cannot corner or turn fast. It has evolved an organ for the storage of electrical energy; while it can't generate any of its own, it can use what it steals and stores against its opponents. Around its rear side and around its mandible, it has paralytic tendrils for the capture of small prey. It constantly needs to gnaw and wear down its front mandible, devouring floating chunks of anything it can find. While Wrappers are immune to their own bioelectrics, electricity stored by the Munchers CAN be used against them.

They are beginning to form in huge social groups for better coordination. They are focusing on both the Wrappers and the Phased Reykavin as food sources and are eyeing the Threxian Sifters.

Danger Level: Definitely Trouble (6/10) and definitely rising
Evolving a Drill Mandible next turn

The Wrapper (R. Melod Wooni) (Eats anything)

The Wrapper is a huge (4 feet) bony square-shaped manta ray-style creature that uses electricity to attack. Floating along on the currents its central suction cup filters stuff from the waters... and if it attaches to the underside of a living body like a lamprey, it'll eat its way into the creature's stomach for THEIR food before sucking out all the soft other parts of their victim. Soft parts are protected with a light-frame pliable bony exoskeleton that protects it and makes it very difficult to take down.

The 3-foot long tentacles surrounding its edges float everywhere around it in a tangled mess, and are both electrical in nature (which is how it attacks) and have detatchable spines much like a jellyfish. Their poison causes muscles to spasm at full strength and tear skin and break hard parts, killing its target. The four spines at its corners are larger, longer (two and a half feet) and will penetrate shells, remaining stuck due to their backward-facing spines. These spines also store heat, enabling it to flash-fry anything it stabs upon release.

They are hunting The Phased Reykavin as a prime food source but are rapidly turning toward the Threxian Sifters, who are responding in kind should they encounter one.

Danger Level: Definitely Trouble (5/10)

The Aquatic Flashmind (Z. Bim Yowie) (Carnivore)

This semi-intelligent amoeba is made of a non-newtonian fluid and floats limply in the water until it can either attach to more of its kind (forming a network of connections between nuclei much like a human brain) or gather enough psychic energy to produce a psychic "Predator! Run!" fear and confusion effect to drive its prey down to it. It gets additional power from leeching nearby Ley Lines, returning the energy as necromantic "corruption" (though it doesn't poison or damage the Line, it does reduce the amount of "life energy" available in the world). It has a mallable shape, making it immune to spikes and sharp points, and a "tail" coming off of the nucleus itself is actually a spike-lined tendril it can use as a lure... to whack the life out of anything that tries to eat it. It is developing a rudimentary hivemind intelligence and is focusing more on the Wrappers as a food source, but it'll eat anything. It cannot seem to damage the Threxian Sifter.

It is immune to confusion and illusions.

It has developed a nest mentality, and its "corruption and necromancy" is intensifying. It seems very close to generating a hivemind thought process and sending pseudopods of itself like a slime up to your level of the ocean.

Danger Level: What's that, Sandvich? Kill them all? Good idea! (7/10)
Evolves rudimentary sentience at 2B Years
Is slowly fading out of phase to better match the Ley Lines it feeds on

The Threxian Sifter (T. Fulbo Noofis) (Mostly Carnivore)

The Threxian Sifter is the most fish-like creature to date. It has a long beak at the end of its body filled with razor-thin bone blades that, as its name would attest, "sift" through the water looking for both plant and meat as it thrashes its head from side to side. If it encounters living meat, it shreds it with the thrashing. Six tendrils dangle below it from an oval body, three to either side. These deliver an energy drain, slowing its targets to the point they can't fight back. If they connect to a Ley Line with half of those, or worse a Ley Line tainted by the Aquatic Flashminds, the energy drain is intensified. It cannot abide cold tempratures but that seems to be changing, as the hairs on its body are starting to lengthen and thicken with a thick layer of some kind of blubber (the beginnings of polar bear style fur). A single fixed eye is in the center of its soda-can shaped head, and an eel-like tail longer than your entire body enables constriction if it gets itself around you.

It seems to be fading in color and taking on the appearance of something half-dead, or dying. It has increased to the size of a large shark. It is beginning to capitalize on your weakness to critical hits as it mace-bashes its face against your shell, stunning you 40% of the time.

Danger Level: What's that, Sandvich? Kill them all? Good idea! (7/10)
Evolving stronger neck muscles next turn
Evolving a serpentine neck next turn

????? (Appears at 1.9B Years, Danger 8+, Necromantic)
????? (Appears at 2.1B Years, Danger 8+)
????? (Appears at 2.6B Years, Danger 9+, Potentially Necromantic)
????? (Appears at 3B Years, Danger 9+)

The Phased Reykavin (X. Neutralis Thromalius)

Looking like a D8 and a D12 had a baby, the Phased Reykavin is a three-foot wide, dark blue colored... shelled thing that aerodynamically glides gracefully though the water. Sensitive to the Ley Lines of its temperate ocean habitat, it is able to extrude a slime from behind it that repairs the Ley Lines of the world. These same slime-extruders can also spit a poison ink cloud that slows down anything behind it so it can make a getaway, or fart oxygen or water for propulsion. Two extremely well-developed eyes move on bands just inside its stone-hard shell, one horizontally, one vertically. These can be positioned as needed, so both eyes can face forward on one band, behind, or wherever it needs to look to learn about its environment.

Its ability to assimilate other tiny background microbes on touch for minor sustenance generates an aura of cold that slows down approaching predators and it can modulate this aura to protect itself from extremes of heat, cold and other environmental factors. To attack it can smack things with its (accurate!) weighted stinger-equipped segmented tail, open its front "beak-mouth" to spit a heavy alkali concoction that poisons, or use its tail to inject some of its eggs. Its multifaceted shell has a number of tiny spikes on it so that anything biting it is in for a rude surprise. Underneath its "beak-mouth" where it stores its poison organs is a larger, shark-like mouth that can bite into flesh and not let go. It is extremely resistant to electricity due to its natural insulation (a byproduct of healing the Ley Lines, which appears as a thick, brackish grey jelly that can store charges like a wand), which it sucks back in and adds to itself.

When pressed it can phase out, or make a circuit with its Ley Line Slime and pull others out of phase, dealing damage in the process. It can also attach itself to a Ley Line and travel away at over 60 feet per round. Creatures in normal space can see this as if something invisible were moving through the water (currents are left in its wake) but interaction is impossible. If TRULY pressed or cornered it can open its mouth and spit Yuk Fluid -- a heavily acidic/toxic blast in front of it that dissolves soft parts and stone alike and acts as a smokescreen thicker and chunkier than the ink cloud behind it. If slain, its body activates "programming", allowing itself to continue doing the last thing it was doing for a good sixty seconds.

It is currently evolving quickly and wildly, with extra features yet to be added.

It is highly allergic to lead, nearly instantly dying on contact with it if such an attack pierces its shell, eye bands, or slime-extruders. If struck with enough force (critical hit), it is stunned for minutes at a time. For its size, it is incredibly dense and slow (roughly 30 pounds, most of that in shell).

The prehensile tail will either detatch like a gecko's or become a thicker flexible "spine" with multiple poison glands at 1.9B Years.
The ink cloud increases damage or area of effect at 1.6B Years.
The Ley Line Slime increases in potency or "bends the planes" at 1.8B Years.
The coloration will switch to color changing chromatophores at 2B Years.
The Shell repels missiles at 2.1B Years.
Yuk Fluid can disintegrate waste, leaving only nutrients. It will eat through metal ore at 2.1B Years, and processed metal at 3B Years.
The body's reanimation "program" extends duration to three minutes at 1.7B Years.

[Ramsus]

I'll vote for B since the shell now doesn't seem to be helping us and we might get some beneficial mutations out of the deal.

Though if the option to just go up closer to the surface was there I would have picked that instead.

[Aegis J Hyena]

A choice to go closer to the surface will be at 2 Billion... then hitting land at 3 Billion. Suggesting a mutation to get there faster is possible, but not this turn...

[Fion MacCumhail]

I'll vote for B since the shell now doesn't seem to be helping us and we might get some beneficial mutations out of the deal.

it says we'd be risking harmful mutations, nothing about potential benefical ones. that might be a feint, but i think i'll vote for A.

[Bobbybobby99]

I vote C, and CoughIToldYouSoCough.

[GuesssWho]

So what did that wild surge do, exactly?

And I guess I vote A.

[Jon0113]

I'll go for c

[Aegis J Hyena]

The surge had to do with food, so I just empowered your Yuk Fluid to a higher level so you can pick and choose what to eat, so to speak.

The last surge is a water breathing effect, so I'm just adding lungs or extra air-producing organs.

[androgial]

add another vote for option B

[Aegis J Hyena]

Looks like we have a three-way tie... 2 votes apiece for tomorrow's post. We're going to need a tiebreaker...

[MintyNinja]

No one else is capable of dealing with the Aquatic Flashminds whereas the Sifter has a boatload of foes. I vote B.

As a reminder, our ink cloud needs a vote: I say Damage.

[GuesssWho]

Yeah, damage sounds good.

[Ramsus]

I'll also vote for damage.

[Aegis J Hyena]

A) 2 (-8%; it'd scare off the Munchers but not the Sifters)
B) 3 (-5%; it's the lesser... lessest of three evils -- yes, sometimes you'll wind up with all three being negative, best to just try to mitigate damage)
C) 2 (-12%; more Phased Reykavin means more food, so their populations would have exploded just as much as yours do)

Mutations in the Deeps: Corruptive ones are Bad, Necromantic could go either way, and Magic LSD are just plain out there.

Corruptive Mutation Roll 1 (80+): 76
Corruptive Mutation Roll 2 (80+): 20
Corruptive Mutation Roll 3 (80+): 22
Necromantic Mutation Roll 1 (80+): 92
Necromantic Mutation Roll 2 (75+): 43
Necromantic Mutation Roll 3 (70+): 45
Magic LSD Mutation Roll 1 (50+): 76
Magic LSD Mutation Roll 2 (50+): 47
Magic LSD Mutation Roll 3 (50+): 45

Last "Random Mutation" at 1.8B years
Mutation Suggestions available, so start suggestin'

THE TIME: 1.6 Billion Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Deep Ocean, with lukewarm temprate waters and chilling out
Lifeform Survival: 69% (471/1000, rough estimation)


The Situation:

You've descended back into the deeps to deal with the Aquatic Flashminds once and for all, taking a page from the Munchers (I almost wrote Munsters) and learning to work in teams. Using your Ley Line Slime, one of your kind clamps down on one end of the Ley Line and phases out so it can't be harmed, tightening the "flow" until it's cut off. Then another clamps down on the other end, like a tourniquet. When the supply of magic energy dries up they drop their hardness and become gelatinous again and when they do, they're affected by the Magic LSD that had flooded the ocean floor so many thousands of years prior. It's still potent after all these years and it has the effect of shutting them down and "drying" them up. They shrivel and for the most part die off, though you didn't evict 'em from existence you damn sure kicked them out. The dead now look like dried up starfish with their central nuclei as hard as shiny stones.

||| NECROMANTIC MUTATION!! |||
||| Freefall! One out! |||
||| Target speaks gibberish but believes he is speaking Common |||
||| (Translation: You get a language.) |||

||| WILD SURGE!! |||
||| No more miss nice Lich Pony, dearie. |||
||| Target Saves vs Death or skull shrinks by half, causing death |||
||| (I had to think about this one, so I decided to make it an armor piercing virus.)


While down in the depths, your exposure to the necromantic returns of the Aquatic Flashminds has given you a new mutation. You've developed a sort of... language. This is achieved by flashing the nodes on your eye muscles, and then vibrating the entire "ring" of muscle at varying pitches. This has had a noticible effect on your dead, and you've found you can command the dead using this technique. It only works on your own dead, and it only works in that 60-second "program" after death, but it's still -something-, and the Aquatic Flashminds cannot kill that which is already dead, so. Their numbers are now VERY low, but you'll have to stay down here another turn to get rid of them completely, risking more mutations at lower chances (70+ Corruptive, 60+ necromantic, 30+ Magic LSD)

The downside to this is that you also seemed to have contracted a species-wide virus that causes your shells to painfully contract, cracking and then shattering to leave you easy prey for the Aquatic Flashmind "pseudopods" it tends to shoot out to catch physical prey. If the Munchers got a whiff of this broken armor you'd be in real trouble. Many of your species end up "unarmored" and thus they end up dying off, resulting in another -6% to the Lifeform Survival roll. It was at 75% after the choice was factored in, and will be factored at 69 +/- whatever the next one is on the next turn.

Up above, the Threxian Sifter has evolved both a stronger neck, intensifying its mace-like strikes with its face, and a serpentine neck covered with flexible bony plates. The Munchers can get at these when it flexes, and the Wrappers have taken to try to attach themselves to the bottom of the creature, but the Sifters are knocking them around quite literally. Sifter-on-Wrapper fights usually end with the Wrapper losing that engagement. The result is usually chunks of Wrapper floating in the ocean for both it and the Munchers to eat. The Clapspitters are starting to fall behind in numbers again as the Munchers turn on them since most of your kind has disappeared back into the depths.

WILL YOU... (pick one)

A) Focus down the Aquatic Flashminds before they have a chance to recover, risking mutation but with a 50% chance to drive them extinct?
B) Return to higher waters, avoiding the mutation-causing waters of the Aquatic Flashminds' home environment, focusing on bringing your numbers back up?
C) Stay down in the deeps avoiding the Flashminds, and repair the Ley Lines? These things really DID damage them over such a long period of time. Risks mutations, but less so than option A.
D) Return to higher waters, evolving to get rid of this potentially dangerous armor-shattering virus/bacteria?

Your ink cloud has turned sulfuric, dealing increased damage, and can now paralyze for a very short time.

Onward to 1.7 Billion Years!

Basic Enemy: The Clapspitter (Eats anything):

The Clapspitter is a oyster-shelled troublemaker that shoots its own filth in order to incapacitate foes. Its amazing filtration system renders it immune to poison. When injured, it ejects a waste chemical that summons more of itself towards the wounded one, swarming its intended foes with biting ("clapping" its shell shut rapidly) and ejecting of waste products in a huge cloud around it. It is quick, using a specialized organ to shoot itself through the water by expelling water. When hard pressed it extrudes a heavy, visibility reducing grease that makes it very very hard to catch. It is slightly magic resistant, but very resistant to paralysis and electricity.

Danger Level: Irritating (2/10) (Likely Extinct before 2B Years)

The Muncher (J. Som Ywah) (Carnivore)

The Muncher is a long (two feet) worm with two spiral-shaped "drill" clamps on a spring at one end while its back end is covered in a thick sticky substance to catch smaller prey. While it moves fluidly through the water it cannot corner or turn fast. It has evolved an organ for the storage of electrical energy; while it can't generate any of its own, it can use what it steals and stores against its opponents. Around its rear side and around its mandible, it has paralytic tendrils for the capture of small prey. It constantly needs to gnaw and wear down its front mandible, devouring floating chunks of anything it can find. While Wrappers are immune to their own bioelectrics, electricity stored by the Munchers CAN be used against them.

They are beginning to form in huge (hundreds) social groups for better coordination. They are focusing on both the Wrappers and the Phased Reykavin as food sources and are eyeing the Threxian Sifters.

Danger Level: What's that, Sandvich? Kill them all? Good idea! (7/10)

The Wrapper (R. Melod Wooni) (Eats anything)

The Wrapper is a huge (4 feet) bony square-shaped manta ray-style creature that uses electricity to attack. Floating along on the currents its central suction cup filters stuff from the waters... and if it attaches to the underside of a living body like a lamprey, it'll eat its way into the creature's stomach for THEIR food before sucking out all the soft other parts of their victim. Soft parts of their own are protected with a heavyish-frame pliable bony exoskeleton that protects it and makes it very difficult to take down.

The 3-foot long tentacles surrounding its edges float everywhere around it in a tangled mess, and are both electrical in nature (which is how it attacks) and have detatchable spines much like a jellyfish. Their poison causes muscles to spasm at full strength and tear skin and break hard parts, killing its target. The four spines at its corners are larger, longer (two and a half feet) and will penetrate shells, remaining stuck due to their backward-facing spines. These spines also store heat, enabling it to flash-fry anything it stabs upon release.

They are hunting the Threxian Sifters, but are having real trouble.

Danger Level: Definitely Trouble (5/10)

The Aquatic Flashmind (Z. Bim Yowie) (Carnivore)

This semi-intelligent amoeba is made of a non-newtonian fluid and floats limply in the water until it can either attach to more of its kind (forming a network of connections between nuclei much like a human brain) or gather enough psychic energy to produce a psychic "Predator! Run!" fear and confusion effect to drive its prey down to it. It gets additional power from leeching nearby Ley Lines, returning the energy as necromantic "corruption" (though it doesn't poison or damage the Line, it does reduce the amount of "life energy" available in the world). It has a mallable shape, making it immune to spikes and sharp points, and a "tail" coming off of the nucleus itself is actually a spike-lined tendril it can use as a lure... to whack the life out of anything that tries to eat it. It is developing sentience rapidly and is focusing more on the Wrappers as a food source, but it'll eat anything. It cannot seem to damage the Threxian Sifter.

It is immune to confusion and illusions.

It has developed a nest mentality, and its "corruption and necromancy" has transformed into an energy drain. It likes to send pseudopods of itself like a slime up to your level of the ocean.

Danger Level: What's that, Sandvich? Kill them all? Good idea! (7/10) (Low Numbers)
Evolves rudimentary sentience at 2B Years
Is slowly fading out of phase to better match the Ley Lines it feeds on

The Threxian Sifter (T. Fulbo Noofis) (Mostly Carnivore)

The Threxian Sifter is the most fish-like creature to date. It has a long beak at the end of its body filled with razor-thin bone blades that, as its name would attest, "sift" through the water looking for both plant and meat as it thrashes its head from side to side. If it encounters living meat, it shreds it with the thrashing. Six tendrils dangle below it from an oval body, three to either side. These deliver an energy drain, slowing its targets to the point they can't fight back. If they connect to a Ley Line with half of those, or worse a Ley Line tainted by the Aquatic Flashminds, the energy drain is intensified. It cannot abide cold tempratures but that seems to be changing, as the hairs on its body are starting to lengthen and thicken with a thick layer of some kind of blubber (the beginnings of polar bear style fur). A single fixed eye is in the center of its soda-can shaped head, and an eel-like tail longer than your entire body enables constriction if it gets itself around you.

It has faded to a dark color, giving it natural stealth. It appears dead until approached, at which it starts thrashing about trying to mace bash with its face. It has increased to the size of a large shark. It is beginning to capitalize on your weakness to critical hits as it mace-bashes its face against your shell, stunning you 40% of the time.

Danger Level: What's that, Sandvich? Kill them all? Good idea! (8/10)

????? (Appears at 1.9B Years, Danger 8+, Necromantic)
????? (Appears at 2.1B Years, Danger 8+)
????? (Appears at 2.6B Years, Danger 9+, Potentially Necromantic)
????? (Appears at 3B Years, Danger 9+)

The Phased Reykavin (X. Neutralis Thromalius)

Looking like a D8 and a D12 had a baby, the Phased Reykavin is a three-foot wide, translucent dark blue colored... shelled thing that aerodynamically glides gracefully though the water. Sensitive to the Ley Lines of its temperate ocean habitat, it is able to extrude a slime from behind it that repairs the Ley Lines of the world. These same slime-extruders can also spit a sulfuric poison ink cloud in a six foot radius that slows down and almost paralyzes anything behind it so it can make a getaway, or fart oxygen or water for propulsion. Two extremely well-developed eyes move on bands just inside its stone-hard shell, one horizontally, one vertically. These can be positioned as needed, so both eyes can face forward on one band, behind, or wherever it needs to look to learn about its environment. The muscles controlling its eyes are bioluminecent with a series of vibrational nodes, allowing communication through a system of blinking light, sound and color.

Its ability to assimilate other tiny background microbes on touch for minor sustenance generates an aura of cold that slows down approaching predators and it can modulate this aura to protect itself from extremes of heat, cold and other environmental factors. To attack it can smack things with its (accurate!) weighted stinger-equipped segmented tail, open its front "beak-mouth" to spit a heavy alkali concoction that poisons, or use its tail to inject some of its eggs. Its multifaceted shell has a number of tiny spikes on it so that anything biting it is in for a rude surprise. Underneath its "beak-mouth" where it stores its poison organs is a larger, shark-like mouth that can bite into flesh and not let go. It is extremely resistant to electricity due to its natural insulation (a byproduct of healing the Ley Lines, which appears as a thick, brackish grey jelly that can store charges like a wand), which it sucks back in and adds to itself.

When pressed it can phase out, or make a circuit with its Ley Line Slime and pull others out of phase, dealing damage in the process. It can also attach itself to a Ley Line and travel away at over 60 feet per round. Creatures in normal space can see this as if something invisible were moving through the water (currents are left in its wake) but interaction is impossible. If TRULY pressed or cornered it can open its mouth and spit Yuk Fluid -- a heavily acidic/toxic blast in front of it that dissolves soft parts and stone alike and acts as a smokescreen thicker and chunkier than the ink cloud behind it. If slain, its body activates "programming", allowing itself to continue doing the last thing it was doing for a good sixty seconds.

It is currently evolving quickly and wildly, with extra features yet to be added.

It is highly allergic to lead, nearly instantly dying on contact with it if such an attack pierces its shell, eye bands, or slime-extruders. If struck with enough force (critical hit), it is stunned for minutes at a time. For its size, it is incredibly dense and slow (roughly 30 pounds, most of that in shell).

The prehensile tail will either detatch like a gecko's or become a thicker flexible "spine" with multiple poison glands at 1.9B Years.
The ink cloud increases damage or area of effect at 2.2B Years.
The Ley Line Slime increases in potency or "bends the planes" at 1.8B Years.
The coloration will switch to color changing chromatophores at 2B Years.
The Shell repels missiles at 2.1B Years.
Yuk Fluid can disintegrate waste, leaving only nutrients. It will eat through metal ore at 2.1B Years, and processed metal at 3B Years.
The body's reanimation "program" extends duration to three minutes at 1.7B Years.
Their vibrational "language" can Command simple dead (Skeletons, Zombies) for sixty seconds, increasing to 2 minutes at 2.1 Billion Years.

[Ramsus]

Can I vote for us just mutating to lose the shell entirely and have a sleeker faster body shape?

I'll vote for A since the dang things will just come back if we leave them alone and apparently if left alone their power scale is such that if we kept avoiding them they'd just wind up being able to fear-dominate the entire planet or something. Which is weird since we don't get anywhere near that much power from the ley-lines.

Edit: To be clear, I'm only voting for this option because you've made it clear every time that we avoid them that we're basically not allowed to do that and they just drastically increase in power each time. So it's not really much of a choice since I'm 90% sure we'd just have to come back and deal with them later if we did anything else.

[Bobbybobby99]

A, and nice again, manipulative tendrils.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Edit: To be clear, I'm only voting for this option because...

They -have- been a rather persistent thorn, haven't they? I didn't mean for it to come across as "not allowed" to not deal with them. You don't have to deal with them, they won't choke off magic entirely (it'd be a dumb world, being without magic...). I just write a bit blindly when I type these things and go where my fingers want to, but the playing field should be more level in a few turns. They -should- be out of the way (whether you avoid 'em or not) by 2 Billion, because you'll likely be ascending some more and go completely out of their range / troublemaking and they won't be able to keep up, remaining confined to the deeps.

... mostly because I need to make room for new more dangerous critters. I don't intend for them to keep up... if I'd railroaded my way completely the Wrappers and Munchers would already be dead by now...

[rabite]

Option A
Mutation: try to use the Laylines-Powers to let our dead stay longer than 60 seconds (resulting in one controlled undead Reykavin per alive one)


Hello everyone! Greetings from europe.

[GuesssWho]

Option A, and cold weapon.

What does 'bend the planes' mean, exactly?

[Jon0113]

I'll go for b, and an immune system

[androgial]

i will vote A and suggest mouth tentacles with which to hold prey so we can eat and run while eating.

[MintyNinja]

I'll say C for diversity.
Once again, Magic Elemental Lance.
Also, our necromantic brethren will last a bit longer with this turn. May help turn the tides of battle.

[GuesssWho]

Good, we can always use more Residual Human Resources :D

[Fion MacCumhail]

i vote for A and... i have to come up with something other than hearing? weird...
okay, i suggest we improve our phasing out so we can become incorporeal (and thereby immune to physical attacks) for a certain amount of time and remove unwanted stuff (thorns, poisons, viruses etc.) from our bodies that way.

[Aegis J Hyena]

*pulls self out of bed at 2 in the afternoon* My sleep schedule is sooooooo off. Heh. I'll have another post up later tonight-ish.


What does 'bend the planes' mean, exactly?

Right now, it's like bending water. think refraction, but the image shown is another plane. I'm envisioning it as "opening up a window, but not actually crossing over." You could reach through, but not completely cross.

[GuesssWho]

Huh.

Well then, what's the other plane like?

[Aegis J Hyena]

I have yet to decide what the "other plane" is like. We'll see when the ability pops up.

A) 6 (-3%; what survived was the toughest of the tough even though extinction was successful)
B) 1 (+6%; know when to fight and when to run)
C) 1 (+5%; a nice comprimise to a predator that all but locked in their position)
D) 0 (+8%; this thing is dangerous, and what if it itself mutates?)

Losing the Shell Entirely: 36
Manipulatory Tendrils: 83
Undeath Life Extention: Critical 100 (not mentioned, but added to the species write up at the bottom)
Weaponized Cold Aura: 43
Stronger Immune System: 82
Elemental Lance: 18
Improved Phasing-And-Purging: 34

Extinction of the Flashminds (50+): 65

Virus Causes Damage (90+): 37 (It will disappear at 2 Billion Years if you don't focus it down)
Virus Mutates (90+): 88

Mutations: Corruptive ones are Bad, Necromantic could go either way, and Magic LSD are just plain out there.

Corruptive Mutation Roll 1 (70+): 91
Corruptive Mutation Roll 2 (70+): 7
Corruptive Mutation Roll 3 (70+): 47
Necromantic Mutation Roll 1 (60+): 18
Necromantic Mutation Roll 2 (55+): 56
Necromantic Mutation Roll 3 (50+): 91
Magic LSD Mutation Roll 1 (30+): 63
Magic LSD Mutation Roll 2 (30+): 3
Magic LSD Mutation Roll 3 (30+): 25

Last "Random Mutation" at 1.8B years
Mutation Suggestions not available

THE TIME: 1.7 Billion Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Deep Ocean, with lukewarm temprate waters and chilling out
Lifeform Survival: 62% (533/1000, rough estimation)
(69% - 3% (choice A) - 3% (Greater Energy need) + 4% (Heat Resistance/Immunity) - 4% (Elemental Fear) - 1% (Slower Eyes) = 62%)


The Situation:

||| CORRUPTIVE MUTATION!! |||
||| Error in Negative Zero. Abortry Fail? |||
||| All Bags of Holding within 120' of caster dump their contents |||
||| (Hmmm... your glands are kind of like bags... and it beats the first one I rolled. Don't. Ask.) |||

||| NECROMANTIC MUTATION!! |||
||| I think so, Brain, but isn't water wet? |||
||| Next fire set by target will not ignite |||
||| (Ooooh, useful... greater fire immunity...) |||

||| NECROMANTIC MUTATION!! |||
||| It's the sock of 1000 pennies! |||
||| Caster develops a fear of elementals |||
||| (I'm going to have fun with this one... turns into a fear of great power in the Ley Lines) |||

||| WILD SURGE!! |||
||| I smell the color yellow. |||
||| Caster's eyes open sideways instead of up and down |||
||| (A bit clumsy, probably slows 'em down...) |||


You've had it with the Aquatic Flashminds destroying your Ley Line livelihood. They are preventing Ley Lines from growing out into the upper depths of the oceans, and they need to learn to step aside and stand down. When they don't, you knock them aside and PUT them down. In the long run, using the powers of your Ley Line Slime, you tied together the Necrullite, the Psygold, and the Coponium Ley Lines together and basically blasted them with an overload of many kinds of raw magical energy that they could not defend themselves against. When they're taking all the power, there IS such a thing as too much power. The Aquatic Flashmind "hive mind" is extinct as a species, as what specimens are left are too few in number to properly populate. My original plan was for them to evolve into selfish "necromantical spirit guardians of the Ley Lines" later, becoming a part of your culture, but you wiped 'em out, so the Ley Lines are yours.

While spending time in the depths you unfortunately came out with a few extra mutations. The first one is a bad one: Those of your species that dealt with the Aquatic Flashminds came out with a really bad case of incontinence. Your Ley Line Slime producing glands, poison ink producing glands, oxygen-producing gland and Yuk Fluid producing gland are now stuck in the "on" position. So you're dribbling stuff out behind you constantly, though the poison ink isn't mixing with the Ley Line Slime. On the other hand, you're also drooling Yuk Fluid, leading to a pretty nasty cloud of gunk surrounding your "beak" that holds the gland. You're not immune to your Yuk Fluid, and your shark mouth takes a little bit of damage which manifests as open sores and such, leading to occasional stinging pain in the salt water environment. This eventually leads to a lot of scarring, but nothing "cancerous".

The second one is that you've become attuned to the Coponium Ley Lines in such a way that you're immune to heat entirely; you no longer fear the heat of all hells combined. You seem to have improved upon your cold aura to crystalize the water around you to freeze on command, cooling off the heat coming from the Coponium Ley Lines. By the same token however, you've (as the third mutation) realized as a species that there is such a thing as too much power, and have steered away from too-large concentrations of Ley Lines. What you did to the Aquatic Flashminds could just as easily be done to you; having too much power is worse than having no power at all.

The last one impacted your ability to see. Your eyes close sideways and because the muscles there have been switched from up and down to sideways, it's a lot harder to move your eyes about on their bands resulting in slower movement of the eyes. It's an irritant, but not too much trouble, kind of like when your arm is broken and you have to do exercises to get the stiffness out during recovery.

Since you spent most of the time of these 100,000,000 years killing the Aquatic Flashmind Hivemind (which would have given real meaning to "terrors at the bottom of the sea" like a cthulhu mythos), you don't know what's been going on in the upper waters (but will find out soon enough since you're ascending back out into open ocean next turn).

WILL YOU...

A) End the Clapspitters before the Munchers and Wrappers finish them off? You could probably go after the Wrappers, too...
B) Focus on evolving that virus out before it does some damage? If your shell breaks, that leaves you easy food for the Threxian Sifters.
C) Focus on evolving your "always on" glands into a single gland, trailing "poison ink slime" that repairs Ley Lines?

Onward to 1.8 Billion Years (and lungs of some kind...)! We're almost done with this stage... things change a little at 2 Billion...

Basic Enemy: The Clapspitter (Eats anything):

The Clapspitter is a oyster-shelled troublemaker that shoots its own filth in order to incapacitate foes. Its amazing filtration system renders it immune to poison. When injured, it ejects a waste chemical that summons more of itself towards the wounded one, swarming its intended foes with biting ("clapping" its shell shut rapidly) and ejecting of waste products in a huge cloud around it. It is quick, using a specialized organ to shoot itself through the water by expelling water. When hard pressed it extrudes a heavy, visibility reducing grease that makes it very very hard to catch. It is slightly magic resistant, but very resistant to paralysis and electricity.

Danger Level: Irritating (2/10) (Likely Extinct next turn)

The Muncher (J. Som Ywah) (Carnivore)

The Muncher is a long (two feet) worm with two spiral-shaped "drill" clamps on a spring at one end while its back end is covered in a thick sticky substance to catch smaller prey. While it moves fluidly through the water it cannot corner or turn fast. It has evolved an organ for the storage of electrical energy; while it can't generate any of its own, it can use what it steals and stores against its opponents. Around its rear side and around its mandible, it has paralytic tendrils for the capture of small prey. It constantly needs to gnaw and wear down its front mandible, devouring floating chunks of anything it can find. While Wrappers are immune to their own bioelectrics, electricity stored by the Munchers CAN be used against them.

They are beginning to form in huge (hundreds) social groups for better coordination. They are focusing on both the Wrappers and the Clapspitters as the Threxian Sifters have evolved a sleek body shape that confounds their drills.

Danger Level: What's that, Sandvich? Kill them all? Good idea! (7/10)

The Wrapper (R. Melod Wooni) (Eats anything)

The Wrapper is a huge (4 feet) bony square-shaped manta ray-style creature that uses electricity to attack. Floating along on the currents its central suction cup filters stuff from the waters... and if it attaches to the underside of a living body like a lamprey, it'll eat its way into the creature's stomach for THEIR food before sucking out all the soft other parts of their victim. Soft parts of their own are protected with a heavyish-frame pliable bony exoskeleton that protects it and makes it very difficult to take down.

The 2-foot long tentacles surrounding its edges float everywhere around it in a tangled mess, and are both electrical in nature (which is how it attacks) and have detatchable spines much like a jellyfish. Their poison causes muscles to spasm at full strength and tear skin and break hard parts, killing its target. The four spines at its corners are larger, longer (two and a half feet) and will penetrate shells, remaining stuck due to their backward-facing spines. These spines also store heat, enabling it to flash-fry anything it stabs upon release.

They are hunting the Threxian Sifters, but are having real trouble.

Danger Level: Could be Trouble (4/10) (Endangered)

The Threxian Sifter (T. Fulbo Noofis) (Mostly Carnivore)

The Threxian Sifter is the most fish-like creature to date. It has a long beak at the end of its body filled with razor-thin bone blades that, as its name would attest, "sift" through the water looking for both plant and meat as it thrashes its head from side to side. If it encounters living meat, it shreds it with the thrashing. Three tendrils dangle behind it where tail connects to body looking for other potential food sources that venture too close (which it snags and drains their life energy.) It is beginning to cover itself in a fine hair or fur, with blubber beneath it that seems to be storing the energy it takes with its tendrils. Underneath it, it is evolving metallic scales. A single fixed eye that has split into two pupils is in the center of its soda-can shaped head, and an eel-like tail almost six feet long enables constriction if it gets itself around you.

Their aerodynamic bodies make them nearly immune to the tendrils and spines of the Wrapper.

It has faded to a dark color, giving it natural stealth. It appears dead until approached, at which it starts thrashing about trying to mace bash with its face. It has increased to the size of a large shark. It is beginning to capitalize on your weakness to critical hits as it mace-bashes its face against your shell, stunning you 40% of the time.

Danger Level: What's that, Sandvich? Kill them all? Good idea! (8/10)
Evolving greater accuracy next turn
Evolving Lightning Resistance next turn (to defend against Munchers)

????? (Appears at 1.9B Years, Danger 8+, Necromantic)
????? (Appears at 2.1B Years, Danger 8+)
????? (Appears at 2.6B Years, Danger 9+)
????? (Appears at 3B Years, Danger 9+)

The Phased Reykavin (X. Neutralis Thromalius)

Looking like a D8 and a D12 had a baby, the Phased Reykavin is a three-foot wide, translucent dark blue colored... shelled thing that aerodynamically glides gracefully though the water.

Sensitive to the Ley Lines of its temperate ocean habitat, it is able to extrude a slime from behind it that repairs the Ley Lines of the world. These same slime-extruders can also spit a sulfuric poison ink cloud in a six foot radius that slows down and almost paralyzes anything behind it so it can make a getaway, or fart oxygen or water for propulsion. Two extremely well-developed eyes that open sideways move on bands just inside its stone-hard shell, one horizontally, one vertically. These can be positioned as needed, so both eyes can face forward on one band, behind, or wherever it needs to look to learn about its environment. The muscles controlling its eyes are bioluminecent with a series of vibrational nodes, allowing communication through a system of blinking light, sound and color.

Its ability to assimilate other tiny background microbes on touch for minor sustenance generates an aura of cold that slows down approaching predators and it can modulate this aura to protect itself from environmental elemental extremes. To attack it can smack things with its (accurate!) weighted stinger-equipped segmented tail, open its front "beak-mouth" to spit a heavy alkali concoction that poisons, or use its tail to inject some of its eggs. Its multifaceted shell has a number of tiny spikes on it so that anything biting it is in for a rude surprise.

Underneath its "beak-mouth" where it stores its poison organs is a larger, scarred shark-like mouth that can bite into flesh and not let go. It is nearly immune to electricity and heat due to its natural insulation, which is a byproduct of healing the Ley Lines. This byproduct appears as a thick, brackish grey jelly that can cool things on touch or store charges like a wand. However, it doesn't keep these "stored charges" long and has an instinctual need to "cool" the "hot", fearing a great power buildup would damage and overload themselves and the Ley Lines.

When pressed it can phase out, or make a circuit with its Ley Line Slime and pull others out of phase, dealing damage in the process. It can also attach itself to a Ley Line and travel away at over 60 feet per round. Creatures in normal space can see this as if something invisible were moving through the water (currents are left in its wake) but interaction is impossible. If TRULY pressed or cornered it can open its mouth and spit Yuk Fluid -- a heavily acidic/toxic blast in front of it that dissolves soft parts and stone alike and acts as a smokescreen thicker and chunkier than the ink cloud behind it. If slain, its body activates "programming", allowing itself to continue doing the last thing it was doing for a good sixty seconds.

If their Ley Line Slime contacts one of their dead, it resurrects as a mindless zombie for sixty seconds. This is in addition to its original 60 second death programming. This only works once per corpse. Due to that critical that was rolled, well, you can see where the reanimation program is going...

It is currently evolving quickly and wildly, with extra features yet to be added.

It is highly allergic to lead, nearly instantly dying on contact with it if such an attack pierces its shell, eye bands, or slime-extruders. If struck with enough force (critical hit), it is stunned for minutes at a time. For its size, it is incredibly dense and slow (roughly 30 pounds, most of that in shell). They have their glands stuck in the "on" position, forcing them to expend more energy and thus require more food to survive.


Offensive: The prehensile tail will either break away like a gecko's or become a thicker flexible "spine" with multiple poison glands at 1.9B Years.
Defensive: The ink cloud increases damage or area of effect at 2.2B Years.
Utility: The Ley Line Slime increases in potency or "bends the planes" at 1.8B Years.
Vanity: The coloration will switch to color changing chromatophores encompassing the entire shell at 2B Years.

The Shell repels missiles at 2.1B Years.
Yuk Fluid can disintegrate waste, leaving only nutrients. It will eat through metal ore at 2.1B Years, and processed metal at 3B Years.
The body's reanimation "program" extends duration to five minutes and 3 Undead at 2.6B Years.
Their vibrational "language" can Command simple dead (Skeletons, Zombies) for sixty seconds, increasing to twice that at 2.1 Billion Years.

[GuesssWho]

Does it really matter who extincts them? If not, I'll go for B.

[Ramsus]

I'll vote for B too.

A bit annoyed at how the Flashmind thing turned out. Originally I wanted to leave them alone and have them be terrors of the deeps and having weird spirit things in the world would haven been cool too. But you made them come off as if they were going to wind up just eating the entire world if we didn't kill them off by having them be a problem like three times after we'd tried to avoid them (and by that last time their reach must have been a hundred miles or more above where they lived). It's a bit annoying to get punished (in multiple ways no less) for doing something that felt like you were forcing us to do.

[GuesssWho]

(and by that last time their reach must have been a hundred miles or more above where they lived).

. . . the Marianas Trench is 6.8 miles deep, so unless this plant is way different from Earth I rather doubt that.

[Aegis J Hyena]

My original thought was "what if mother nature was a necromancer" and went "nah, you don't want Her wielding that school of magic as a specialty".

As for "reaching up from the depths", I envisioned it as large blobs or patches of them everywhere in the lower depths, slowly expanding their reach until they got up to your level.

Sorry if it felt railroaded. That shouldn't happen much if at all in the next billion years.

[Ramsus]

I was just exaggerating the depth because even 1 mile is a huge distance for a fish sized thing.

The blobs thing would have been nice for you to actually note. It came off as if they were just incredibly powerful.

[GuesssWho]

I was just exaggerating the depth because even 1 mile is a huge distance for a fish sized thing.

The blobs thing would have been nice for you to actually note. It came off as if they were just incredibly powerful.

True, but it was a pretty big exaggeration.

I agree about wanting to know more.

[androgial]

vote for b also. bah so close for mouth tentacles maybe next mutation.

[Jon0113]

I'll go c..

[rabite]

C sounds fantastic.

Also, yay necromantic slime monsters!

[MintyNinja]

Voting for B.

Also voting for Bends the Planes.

[GuesssWho]

Yeah, that sounds interesting. We might win up as a phase spider-like thing if we can actually get to those other planes next.

[Bobbybobby99]

I vote for C. Also, I think we might have become officially incontinent as a race :smalltongue:.

Jellyfish often rise from the lightless, cold depths of the sea all the way up to the surface at night, so it's fairly plausible, I would say, for the Flashy-folk to do something similar with Deep and Slightly-less Deep.

[Fion MacCumhail]

i vote for B and for our slime to become more potent.

[Aegis J Hyena]

A) 0 (+5%; one less irritant means more room for you)
B) 5 (+6%; probably better to get rid of it now than later)
C) 3 (+2%; would have been nice to streamline)

Virus Causes Damage (90+): 5 (it's gone now)
Virus Mutates (90+): 22

Mutation Suggestions Now Available

THE TIME: 1.8 Billion Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Medium-Deep Ocean and rising, with lukewarm temprate waters but warming up
Lifeform Survival: 68% (601/1000, rough estimation)


The Situation:

||| WILD SURGE!! |||
||| Who activated the I-Don't-Get-It Machine? |||
||| All water carried by Caster's enables Water Breathing when consumed |||
||| (Lungs. Gotta be Lungs.) |||

This is the turn you choose for mutating potency in the Ley Line Slime or "Bending the Planes" --- not the previous one besides we only had two votes and they were one for each :) Potency just increases the slime's power (as well as the insulation's power, leaving you near-immune to electricity) while "bending the planes" enables you to open a window to the "next plane over" (likely the Etheral). Living flesh can't cross -over-, but you can "open" the window. Usually this would be done on a Ley Line to examine it, like opening up the hood on a car and going "look at all the wires and tubes in there!". It works both ways, so living flesh (such as it is) on the Etheral can't come through the window, either.

You spend the majority of the time evolving defenses to deal with the armor-crumbling virus. While you're doing that, a pair of small flesh-connections have emerged on your body that seem to be extra growths on the eye-bands. Positioned to either side of the beak mouth, these may be the start of tendrils upon which your eyes could move to, and thus get a better look at their surroundings instead of just having a flat "band" upon which to travel. While you do that, the Wrappers are in a bad way, having been hunted to very low numbers by the Threxian Sifters and are likely next on the chopping block.

The Munchers on the other hand are evolving smaller size (for speed) and a long tendril-tentacle (like a rat's) on the other end of their bodies. The tendril seems to be an anglerfish lure. Their drills are stronger and they can damage your shell, but you're somewhat resistant to electricity, so their "power" is rendered mostly harmless. Their bites on the other hand are getting more vicious and they seem to be targetting your eye bands and soft parts, waiting for you to open the beak mouth so they can shoot in sacrifice-style and cause heavy wounds. Fortunate your "incontinent cloud" is detouring them efficiently... until they evolve later to deal with poison...

The Munchers have attempted to focus down on the Threxian Sifters, but the Sifters have evolved greater accuracy with their mace-faces (piercing the water as easily as an arrow pierces air) and are slowly growing more and more electricity resistant from the attempted electrical shocks of the Munchers' stored energy.

Finally, your last wild evolution -- a set of lungs! Well, a pair of oxygen producing organs, one to either side of your central brain and original oxygen producer. You now have a huge supply of air to shoot out your other organs, allowing quicker flight. You can build up quite a lot of speed this way, bringing the fight to the Threxian Sifters by ramming them. On top of that, your incontinent cloud combined with the salt water environment has started producing large scabs/calluses around your shark mouth and jaws, adding to armor and defending against the drill-bites of the Munchers.

Go ahead and vote on your tail too now that I think about it for next turn (just to get it out of the way early) --- either it can be pulled off like a gecko's, or become a hell of a lot stronger (and heavier to compensate).

WILL YOU...

A) Ascend the waters early by using your new lungs as floatation devices, going out of reach of the bigger Threxian Sifters?
B) Focus down the Munchers to lower numbers? They can't hurt you -now-, but if they start evolving hard...
C) Focus down the Threxian Sifters, by ramming them with your shell in an assault, using your tail to pierce their fat?
D) Focus on the callus/scabs, evolving them to "padded armor" to cover the soft bottom portion of your body?

Onward to 1.9 Billion Years!

Basic Enemy: The Clapspitter {Extinct}

The Muncher (J. Som Ywah) (Carnivore)

The Muncher is a foot-long worm with two spiral-shaped "drill" clamps on a spring at one end while its back end is covered in a thick sticky substance to catch smaller prey. While it moves fluidly through the water it cannot corner or turn fast. It has evolved an organ for the storage of electrical energy; while it can't generate any of its own, it can use what it steals and stores against its opponents. Around its rear side and around its mandible, it has paralytic tendrils for the capture of small prey. It constantly needs to gnaw and wear down its front mandible, devouring floating chunks of anything it can find. While Wrappers are immune to their own bioelectrics, electricity stored by the Munchers CAN be used against them.

They form in huge (hundreds) social groups for better coordination. They are focusing on both the Wrappers and the Phased Reykavin as the Threxian Sifters have evolved a sleek body shape that confounds their drills.

Danger Level: What's that, Sandvich? Kill them all? Good idea! (7/10)
Evolving fins next turn for sharp turns

The Wrapper (R. Melod Wooni) (Eats anything)

The Wrapper is a large (3 feet) bony square-shaped manta ray-style creature that uses electricity to attack. Floating along on the currents its central suction cup filters stuff from the waters... and if it attaches to the underside of a living body like a lamprey, it'll eat its way into the creature's stomach for THEIR food before sucking out all the soft other parts of their victim. Soft parts of their own are protected with a heavyish-frame pliable bony exoskeleton that protects it and makes it very difficult to take down.

The 2-foot long tentacles surrounding its edges float everywhere around it in a tangled mess, and are both electrical in nature (which is how it attacks) and have detatchable spines much like a jellyfish. Their poison causes muscles to spasm at full strength and tear skin and break hard parts, killing its target. The four spines at its corners are larger, longer (two and a half feet) and will penetrate shells, remaining stuck due to their backward-facing spines. These spines also store heat, enabling it to flash-fry anything it stabs upon release.

They are hunting the Threxian Sifters, but are having real trouble.

Danger Level: Could be Trouble (4/10) (Very Endangered and likely extinct at the end of 2B years)

The Threxian Sifter (T. Fulbo Noofis) (Mostly Carnivore)

The Threxian Sifter is the most fish-like creature to date. It has a long beak at the end of its body filled with razor-thin bone blades that, as its name would attest, "sift" through the water looking for both plant and meat as it thrashes its head from side to side. If it encounters living meat, it shreds it with the thrashing. Three tendrils dangle behind it where tail connects to body looking for other potential food sources that venture too close (which it snags and drains their life energy.) It is beginning to cover itself in a fine hair or fur, with blubber beneath it that seems to be storing the energy it takes with its tendrils. Underneath it, it is evolving metallic scales. A single fixed eye that has split into two pupils is in the center of its soda-can shaped head, and an eel-like tail almost six feet long enables constriction if it gets itself around you. Their aerodynamic bodies make them nearly immune to the tendrils and spines of the Wrapper.

It has faded to a dark color, giving it natural stealth. It appears dead until approached, at which it starts thrashing about trying to mace bash with its face. It has increased to the size of a large shark. It is capitalizing on your weakness to critical hits as it mace-bashes its face against your shell, stunning you 60% of the time.

Danger Level: What's that, Sandvich? Kill them all? Good idea! (8/10)

????? (Appears at 1.9B Years, Danger 8+, Necromantic)
????? (Appears at 2.1B Years, Danger 8+)
????? (Appears at 2.6B Years, Danger 9+)
????? (Appears at 3B Years, Danger 9+)

The Phased Reykavin (X. Neutralis Thromalius)

Looking like a D8 and a D12 had a baby, the Phased Reykavin is a three-foot wide, translucent dark blue colored... shelled thing that aerodynamically glides gracefully though the water. Sensitive to the Ley Lines of its temperate ocean habitat, it is able to extrude a slime from behind it that repairs the Ley Lines of the world. These same slime-extruders can also spit a sulfuric poison ink cloud in a six foot radius that slows down and almost paralyzes anything behind it so it can make a getaway, or fart oxygen from an internal set of lungs for propulsion. Two extremely well-developed eyes that open sideways move on bands just inside its stone-hard shell, one horizontally, one vertically. These can be positioned as needed, so both eyes can face forward on one band, behind, or wherever it needs to look to learn about its environment. The muscles controlling its eyes are bioluminecent with a series of vibrational nodes, allowing communication through a system of blinking light, sound and color.

Its ability to assimilate other tiny background microbes on touch for minor sustenance generates an aura of cold that slows down approaching predators and it can modulate this aura to protect itself from environmental elemental extremes. To attack it can smack things with its (accurate!) weighted stinger-equipped segmented tail, open its front "beak-mouth" to spit a heavy alkali concoction that poisons, or use its tail to inject some of its eggs. Its multifaceted shell has a number of tiny spikes on it so that anything biting it is in for a rude surprise. Underneath its "beak-mouth" where it stores its poison organs is a larger, scarred shark-like mouth that can bite into flesh and not let go.

It is nearly immune to electricity and heat due to its natural insulation, which is a byproduct of healing the Ley Lines. This byproduct appears as a thick, brackish grey jelly that can cool things on touch or store charges like a wand. However, it doesn't keep these "stored charges" long and has an instinctual need to "cool" the "hot", fearing a great power buildup would damage and overload themselves.

When pressed it can phase out, or make a circuit with its Ley Line Slime and pull others out of phase, dealing damage in the process. It can also attach itself to a Ley Line and travel away at over 60 feet per round. Creatures in normal space can see this as if something invisible were moving through the water (currents are left in its wake) but interaction is impossible. If TRULY pressed or cornered it can open its mouth and spit Yuk Fluid -- a heavily acidic/toxic blast in front of it that dissolves soft parts and stone alike and acts as a smokescreen thicker and chunkier than the ink cloud behind it. If slain, its body activates "programming", allowing itself to continue doing the last thing it was doing for a good sixty seconds.

If their Ley Line Slime contacts one of their dead, it resurrects as a mindless zombie for sixty seconds. This only works once per corpse.

It has finished evolving wildly.

It is highly allergic to lead, nearly instantly dying on contact with it if such an attack pierces its shell, eye bands, or slime-extruders. If struck with enough force (critical hit), it is stunned for minutes at a time. For its size, it is incredibly dense and slow (roughly 30 pounds, most of that in shell). They have their glands stuck in the "on" position, forcing them to expend more energy and thus require more food to survive.


Offensive: The prehensile tail will either detatch like a gecko's or become a thicker flexible "spine" with multiple poison glands at 1.9B Years.
Defensive: The ink cloud increases damage or area of effect at 2.2B Years.
Utility: The Ley Line Slime gains corrosive stickiness at 2.4B Years.
Vanity: The coloration will switch to color changing chromatophores encompassing the entire shell at 2B Years.

The Shell repels missiles at 2.1B Years and Magic Missiles at 2.9B years.
Yuk Fluid can disintegrate waste, leaving only nutrients. It will eat through metal ore at 2.1B Years, and processed metal at 3B Years.
The body's reanimation "program" extends duration to five minutes and 3 Undead at 2.6B Years.
Their vibrational "language" can Command simple dead (Skeletons, Zombies) for sixty seconds, increasing to twice that at 2.1 Billion Years, and three minutes at 2.7B Years.

[Bobbybobby99]

I vote B; it seems sensible. Then I once again vote for manipulatory tendrils. By the gods, that one is going to work eventually.

[GuesssWho]

Hmm . . . B, plane-bending, detachable/regrowable tail.

Oh, and full eyestalks, if that's not happening automatically. If it is, that cold weapon again.

[MintyNinja]

Hmmm....

Going after the Munchers leaves the Sifters to get us.
Going after the Sifters leaves the Munchers to get us.
Padded armour in an environment with two major enemies and third soon approaching?

I vote A. Let's get the hell out of dodge.

I also vote for Bending the Planes and a Stronger Tail.

As for Mutation... Magic Elemental Lance! (Seriously, think Tri Attack from Pokemon if you have to. It also fits on our tail.)

[Ramsus]

I'll vote for A, gecko tail, and plane bending.

As for the mutation hmmm.... grabby tentacle things? Basically something to become a manipulator later on.

[Fion MacCumhail]

i vote for B, more potent slime and a stronger tail - ditching it wouldn't make a lot of sense since we use it for attacking and procreation.

and again, i suggest that we improve our phasing out so we can become incorporeal (and thereby immune to physical attacks) for a certain amount of time and remove unwanted stuff (thorns, poisons, viruses etc.) from our bodies that way.

oh, and could someone else suggest increased intelligence now that the flashminds are gone and can't use it against us anymore?

[androgial]

yes lets get out of dodge. another vote for A. a vote for stronger tail. and i will try to mutate redundancy organs.....like the klingons.

[Narshe]

(Hi all!)

I vote for A, plane-bending, and a stronger tail. Mutation: evolve the ability to inject toxins that will turn other creatures into undead when you strike a killing blow.

[GuesssWho]

i vote for B, more potent slime and a stronger tail - ditching it wouldn't make a lot of sense since we use it for attacking and procreation.

Gecko tails grow back, though. And if enemies eat our tails they'd probably get poisoned and filled with eggs >:D

[Fion MacCumhail]

given that our poison glands don't seem to be at the tail and that our enemies probably all have stomach acid by now, i don't think that's very likely.
and the losing and regrowing of the tail is a much better deal for the geckos because they don't rely on their tail as much as we do.

[GuesssWho]

We'd probably only use it in extreme emergencies, but point.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Hmmm... that was a quickish vote... looks like almost everyone playing has voted... I guess I can do another post later tonight-ish... watch this space...

[GAAD]

I, meanwhile, vote for...
A) getting the pineapple out of dodge,
Gecko tail that grows back,
Bending planes (because OBVIOUSLY)
and pizza for everyone. Ramsus' treat.

[Jon0113]

I'm looking at the next enemy, and thinking a would be the best option

I'm going to go for increase intelligence/tool use, whichever makes sense

And I'll go for the stronger tail

[Aegis J Hyena]

A) 6 (-7%; out of the Frying Pan, into the Fire, with more dangerous predators than you're ready for; you would have been "ready" for them at 2B years) I had this written down as "the easy way out is always trapped", sorry... don't kill me too much
B) 3 (+5%; one less threat to worry about)
C) 0 (-3%; It'd work but you'd tend to lose the engagement more often than win)
D) 0 (+3%; More defense means more time to fight/run)

Manipulatory Tendrils: 31
Full Eyestalks: Critical 100 (REALLY, RNG!?)
Elemental Lance: 91
Grip-Tendrils: 41
Phase-Purging: 78
Redundancy: 60
Necromantic Toxins: 82
Increased Intelligence: 88

Plane Bending: 4
Potent Slime: 1
Gecko Tail: 3
Stronger Tail: 5

(Was expecting the Gecko Tail -- I would have had each segment with its own individual tail-sting so if one breaks off, you still have a stinger.)

Mutation Suggestions Not Available

THE TIME: 1.9 Billion Years BBB
THE PLACE: The Medium Ocean and rising, with warming temprate waters
Lifeform Survival: 61% (662/1000, rough estimation)


The Situation:

Tired of the trouble the Threxian Sifters and the Munchers are doing, you've shot up to warmer waters. Here, sunlight is plentiful, as is algae and other microorganisms you can disintegrate with your Yuk Fluid. The Munchers can't handle the water up here (seems the water is fresher and not as salty, and they kind of need the salt) while the Threxian Sifters are not pursuing. You've outrun them both, only to run into some new, more dangerous creatures that did a real number on your numbers before you could keep well enough away from them. They're listed below, but I'm not going to go into them here.

You're close to the surface layer of the ocean, as well as close to landfall. Do you go closer, living in the "sea shelf" layer, or do you stay out in the open waters? Food and opponents are plentiful either way (yes, vote on it). Next turn I WAS going to say it's time to rename the beast as you're hitting a new milestone, but since you ascended early to escape the dangers of the deeps, I think it's time to rename it -now- based on its new appearance (and it will be evolving further once we advance to next turn as well, which might drop the danger level some).

Two major mutations happened during this time. First was the onset of a powerful offensive weapon from your two eyes -- an Elemental Lance that, thanks to modulating your chill aura, can chill the water, heat it to boiling, electrify it using stored energy (costs quite a lot of your insulation as a charge but also does the most damage) or toxify it to a high acidic level. The second mutation is that the eyestalks have not only fully "extended" (becoming almost a foot and a half long), but lightly-armored as well, so they can't just be severed by anything here. You can now look in any direction independantly of the other stalk, and withdraw the stalks into the shell at the point where shell meets Yuk Fluid beak. You can still have the eyes travel on the narrow bands as well, hidden within the shell, and use the lance. On the end of the stalks it manifests as a beam; inside the shell it manifests as a short-range cone.

You've adapted your Ley Line Slime organs to "bend the planes" --- you can open a window to the Etheral plane, but living flesh cannot cross over nor can anything living cross over to you. It does "expose" Ley Lines that are too faint to see, or exposes dying Ley Lines that you could potentially recharge by feeding it your own energy back into it. You have also evolved your tail to become a flexible "spine" of muscle compariable to a mace. The stinger is longer and bigger, and the egg sac storing your eggs is also larger. You are losing the faceted shapes of the d12 and d8, slowly turning more spherical and oval.

Your ability to kill microbes on contact with your chill aura is lessening as your shell is too thick and tail too specialized (an organ will take over the elemental bits) so that mutation is getting phased out (heh).

WILL YOU...

A) Focus on the Not-Dead-Yet-Dead you've encountered, trying to heat-beam them with your elemental lance?
B) Use your Elemental Lance to scare off the Slamshredders before their gongs become armor piercing?
C) Chase down the Sea Rodents, attempting to inject them with eggs (while evolving your eggs to deal with their immune system)?

Onward to the second milestone: 2 Billion Years... and the amount of paths will increase from 3 to 5 and you vote on two.



The Muncher (J. Som Ywah) (Carnivore) {Escaped From}
The Wrapper (R. Melod Wooni) (Eats anything) {Extinct}

The Armored Websnare Serpent (Carnivore)

This is an eight-foot long armored serpent that while slow, can build up a great amount of speed given enough time. Its scales discharge a sticky greenish goo that seems to harden on contact with a second chemical discharged from its fangs. The serpent bites its own tail, extrudes the hardened goo by spitting into the donut hole, and weaves a web that catches fish which it then eats. Its eyes are fly-like, giving it excellent vision so it can break the donut and flee if something manages to break its (jointed?) scales.

It is hunting the Phased Reykavin (because it's slow) but is having problems due to the latter's shell and ability to phase right out of its web and escape. It is learning to target the space between shell halves where the eyes are housed.

Danger Level: Definitely Trouble (6/10) and rising next turn

The Bonechiller Manta (Herbivore)

This thing could be best described as a "skeletal manta ray" where the "webbing" of its body is instead finely intertwined mini-Ley Lines. Completely herbivorus, it sits there floating along, defending itself from predators by letting loose an extremely powerful energy drain that then powers their internal Ley Lines. A solid nucleus in the center of a rounded "skull" on the top of its webbing serves as its tiny little brain and keeps it floating. Its energy drain is triggered on touch but is directional in a large cone; if it is double or triple-teamed it has a hard time defending itself otherwise.

It seems to be unable to disentangle itself from a regular Ley Line, should it brush across one of any variety (the lines stick together like gum under a seat). If it finds a Psygold Ley Line, it will mutate uncontrollably and usually die.

Danger Level: Could Be Trouble (4/10)
Can mutate uncontrollably, randomly (10% per turn)

The Sea Rodent (Carnivore)

This is a rodent-shaped, three-eyed abomination... about the size of a large crocodile. It tends to lay in wait on the water's surface, snapping at low-flying critters (or flying fish!) over the water with its vorpal bite. The webbing between its digits extrudes a chemical that de-oxygenates the water around it, killing, stunning, or exhausting anything relying on oxygen to survive. It has no armor, but its waterlogged fur swells and tends to turn aside stingers, pincers and anything else sharp. A layer under the fur is filled with air and an "immune system" layer, preventing it from being poisoned. Its tail has a bony weight on the end, likely an evolutionary throwback which it is using currently for counterbalance.

When underwater, it hunts the Armored Websnare Rodents. It is avoiding the Phased Reykavin, but is completely immune to their Yuk Fluid.

Danger Level: Definitely Trouble (6/10) but possibly falling

The Slamshredder (Eats anything)

This venomous beast looks like a giant worm the width of three human arms. Five eyes (the central projecting a dangerous heat beam) are equidistant along its length, and on either end of the worm are large fins shaped like gongs. Smaller fins to either end of it enable decent moving around. It strikes like a snake, slamming these "gongs" against a target to stun it, and then using the heat beam to kill it. The fins have serrated scales that tear into bare flesh on contact, but can't do much against other scales or hard shells.

It is hunting the Bonechiller Mantas, is too small to hurt the Sea Rodents and busting through the armor of the Armored Websnare Serpents. It is beginning to hunt the Phased Reykavin, striking faster than they can phase out. They can't really hurt them otherwise (heat immunity), as their fins only stun the Phased Reykavin and can't crush or pierce their shells, but that is often more than enough for other scavengers (and Armored Websnare Serpents) to get involved. If you're stunned, the Serpents can slip right in through the shell's bands and they go right for that muscle and eyes.

Danger Level: What's that, Sandvich? Kill them all? Good idea! (8/10)

The Not-Dead-Yet-Dead (Eats anything)

This creature is an abomination to living things. It looks like a floating human hand made of dead plant and animal material that pulses with electricity as if from a dying brain. The central nucleus has six light sensors as eyes, hiding behind shelled "hatches" to protect them. When something triggers its sensors, the hand "orients" with a giant fin off of the back of its "wrist" and opens up, revealing tiny mouths on the ends of the fingers and a larger stinger at the center of the palm. It charges, squirting water out of its wrist, and delivers a fatal blast of carbonation with its stinger. Either its victim blows up and into pieces the fingers feed off of, or the carbonation poisons its bloodstream, killing it in the process. Those killed by it deform into the familiar hand shape.

Its sting is sharp and strong enough to pierce the shells of the Phased Reykavin, but multiple "hands" are required to take one down. That's what they're doing, learning to team up.

If they manage to sting a "corpse zombie" (dead Phased Reykavin) they can completely uproot control of the program and add it to their bodies.

Danger Level: What's that, Sandvich? Kill them all? Good idea! (8/10)
It is necromantic in origin, but is treated as a living thing.
It is weak against directed heat, causing it to burst.

????? (Appears at 2.1B Years, Danger 8+)
????? (Appears at 2.6B Years, Danger 9+)
????? (Appears at 3B Years, Danger 9+)

The Phased Reykavin (X. Neutralis Thromalius)

Looking like a streamlined pair of dice with their corners rubbed off so it is now somewhat spherical and oval, the Phased Reykavin is a three and a half foot wide, translucent dark blue colored... shelled thing that aerodynamically glides gracefully though the water. Sensitive to the Ley Lines of its temperate ocean habitat, it is able to extrude a slime from behind it that repairs the Ley Lines of the world. These same slime-extruders can also spit a sulfuric poison ink cloud in a six foot radius that slows down and almost paralyzes anything behind it so it can make a getaway, or fart oxygen or water for propulsion. With concentration, these slime-extruders can "grip" the "fabric" of reality and "pull open" an eight inch wide hole in reality, leading to the Ethereal Plane. Its tail is on a flexible muscle-spine that strikes with lightning speed and accuracy, with several poison nodes that burst on death.

Two extremely well-developed eyes that open sideways move on bands just inside its stone-hard shell, one horizontally, one vertically. These can be positioned as needed, so both eyes can face forward on one band, behind, or wherever it needs to look to learn about its environment. Two lightly armored stalks close to its front can be extended, giving the eyes exceptional vision and ability to see both detail and color at a distance of fifty feet. The muscles controlling its eyes are bioluminecent with a series of vibrational nodes, allowing communication through a system of blinking light, sound and color, and larger nodes are on the ends of the two front stalks.

To attack it can smack things with its (accurate!) weighted stinger-equipped poisonous tail, open its front "beak-mouth" to spit a heavy alkali concoction that poisons (slowly losing usefulness in favor of Yuk Fluid), or use its tail to inject some of its eggs. Its multifaceted shell has a number of tiny spikes on it so that anything biting it is in for a rude surprise. Underneath its "beak-mouth" where it stores its poison organs is a larger, scarred shark-like mouth that can bite into flesh and not let go. It is nearly immune to electricity and heat due to its natural insulation, which is a byproduct of healing the Ley Lines. This byproduct appears as a thick, brackish grey jelly that can cool things on touch or store charges like a wand. However, it doesn't keep these "stored charges" long and has an instinctual need to "cool" the "hot", fearing a great power buildup would damage and overload themselves.

When pressed it can phase out, or make a circuit with its Ley Line Slime and pull others out of phase, dealing damage in the process. It can also attach itself to a Ley Line and travel away at over 60 feet per round. Creatures in normal space can see this as if something invisible were moving through the water (currents are left in its wake) but interaction is impossible. If TRULY pressed or cornered it can open its mouth and spit Yuk Fluid -- a heavily acidic/toxic blast in front of it that dissolves soft parts and stone alike and acts as a smokescreen thicker and chunkier than the ink cloud behind it. If slain, its body activates "programming", allowing itself to continue doing the last thing it was doing for a good sixty seconds.

If their Ley Line Slime contacts one of their dead, it resurrects as a mindless zombie for sixty seconds. This only works once per corpse.

It is highly allergic to lead, nearly instantly dying on contact with it if such an attack pierces its shell, eye bands, or slime-extruders. If struck with enough force (critical hit), it is stunned for minutes at a time. For its size, it is incredibly dense and slow (roughly 38 pounds, most of that in shell). They have their glands stuck in the "on" position, forcing them to expend more energy and thus require more food to survive.


Offensive: The tail's toxic sting gains potency or armor piercing at 2.6B years.
Defensive: The ink cloud increases damage or area of effect at 2.2B Years.
Utility: The Ley Line Slime gains corrosive stickiness at 2.4B Years.
Vanity: The coloration will switch to color changing chromatophores encompassing the entire shell at 2B Years.

The Shell repels missiles at 2.1B Years.
Yuk Fluid can disintegrate waste, leaving only nutrients. It will eat through metal ore at 2.1B Years, and processed metal at 3B Years.
The body's reanimation "program" extends duration to five minutes and 3 Undead at 2.6B Years.
Their vibrational "language" can Command simple dead (Skeletons, Zombies) for sixty seconds, increasing to twice that at 2.1 Billion Years.

[GuesssWho]

Yeah, that's why I didn't vote A. There's been nastier stuff above since the start.

I will vote A this time, though, because corpse theft is bad. I also vote we head for the sea shelf, since we'll be able to make burrows to hide in, and suggest we call ourselves Zombeholders.

ETA: oh, and art: https://i.gyazo.com/da2eefaa65ef2627f8789ec8392d1800.png

[Aegis J Hyena]

I kind of feel bad about A being a "The easy way out is always trapped", but I don't have another instance of it in my notes right now. In fact, the next two turns should have nothing but positives to the survival unless 1s are rolled on the next mutations. Thanks for the art, Guesss!

[Ramsus]

I figured A would either be a good choice (getting there early) or bad one (getting there before we're ready), so it's not a big shock.

I'll vote for A, because only WE are allowed to be masters of the undead! Apparently. I mean, we wiped out the other guys who were going for it so... might as well now.

Also I vote for our mutation that we're not getting that we mutate to lynch GAAD.

[MintyNinja]

Woot, Elemental Lance!

Now to think of new things to want.

Vote A, Sea Shelf, and Zombeholder.

Looks like we get Color Changing Chormatophores soon, too.

[Bobbybobby99]

Hmm. I'll vote A. Too dangerous. Then I would prefer it I'd we didn't head for the sea shore, either way.

It really is funny how we're becoming undead beholders, but it seems like we need something more dignified, somehow. Like the Wizoculars.