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'!

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.

Spoiler

Show

#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

[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?

[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.