Nanako Posted October 29, 2016 Posted October 29, 2016 This thread is for content submissions. To discuss the system please post in this thread: http://forums.aurorastation.org/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=7349&p=71781#p71781 As part of an interesting project for xenobiology, which will later be part of something larger, i'm interested in textual information about creatures. Organic lifeforms only. Anything from cats to giant spiders, to bluespace bears, facehuggers, nymphs, whatever. This also includes humanoid playable species. Only things which actually exist in the game are suitable here though. Creatures that exist in lore, but can't be spawned somehow, aren't of interest. However rare creatures that only come from adminspawning are very suitable. I'm interested in medium-to-long, interesting descriptions of any of the creatures we have on the station. Roughly 50-300 words Notably including a latin -sounding scientific name, information about the creature's origins, feeding and breeding habits, dangers they pose in combat, weaknesses, etc. Information about ingame mechanics - things that can be used to gain an advantage over this creature, are most desireable. Essentially, i'm creating a sort of ingame bestiary Most notably, every description must be divided into three parts, which will be gradually unlocked. So make sure it fits into three neat segments or paragraphs. This isn't really an indepth or historical analysis. Descriptions submitted should be from a combination of three perspectives: 1. A scientific/biological analysis, describe it as a lifeform. 2. A military/tactical analysis, how do you kill it, avoid it, or otherwise defend against it. Where did it come from? 3. A caretaking analysis, what environment does it live in, how do you keep it alive in captivity (note this doesnt necessarily mean one paragraph per viewpoint, just a guideline on what kind of info) Lore writers are highly encouraged to contribute information about their own species and any relevant subspecies I reserve the right to tweak, modify or not-use any submitted content. Posting here is no guarantee of inclusion as-submitted, or at all. Also, i claim mice.
SomeoneOutTher3 Posted October 31, 2016 Posted October 31, 2016 1. A scientific/biological analysis, describe it as a lifeform. 2. A military/tactical analysis, how do you kill it, avoid it, or otherwise defend against it. Where did it come from? 3. A caretaking analysis, what environment does it live in, how do you keep it alive in captivity (note this doesnt necessarily mean one paragraph per viewpoint, just a guideline on what kind of info) Limus Purpura, purple slime. 1. One of the many slimes brought aboard the NSS Exodus for study. This slime, like all slimes,originates in bluespace. Due to anomalous properties of bluespace particles "Mimicking" particles when coming into contact with realspace((Lore incompatibility,I know)), a creature called a slime is formed due to bluespace particles "mimicking" human (or any other species')cells, albeit on a larger scale. When one such slime happens to be caught on a ship leaving bluespace after completing a jump,slimes end up in realspace. The slimes' cores are analogous to the nuclei of cells, containing DNA- or at least, as close to DNA as it could possibly get-, but also seem to fill the function of a primitive brain for reasons yet unknown. Due to the slimes' origins in bluespace, their cores will undergo strange mutations when subjected to certain chemicals. In the case of purple slimes, they will produce a chemical called "Slime steroid", which will cause other slimes to generate more extract due to partially undergoing division. "Slime steroid" is the slime analogue of ATP. Injecting the slime core with sugar will produce a highly toxic substance known as "Slime jelly". Also due to bluespace anomalies "mimicking" organic cells, lysosomes are also "copied", causing anything organic coming into contact with a slime to gradually disintegrate, which slimes use for food to assist reproduction. Slimes reproduce through cell division, but have a chance of producing different offspring due to mutations in the DNA. 2. The purple slime, like all slimes, is sensitive to water, and will disintegrate should it come into contact with water. For this reason,a chemsprayer, spray bottle, or fire extinguisher loaded with water is a very effective weapon against slimes. However, periodically evading the slimes is also a good thing to do, lest a slime attach itself to its attacker and consume him/her. 3. A slime is best kept alive in captivity with constant feeding in the form of a monkey or similar primate. When feeding a slime, be sure to let it see you, stay near it until it recognizes you as a friend so that it will not go hostile. This should be done when a slime splits so that its offspring also recognize you as a friend. When the time has come to harvest a slime, walk into the slime pen- make sure you wear a hazard suit and that the slimes are friendly-, drag a slime out, then spray it with water to kill it. Then, use a circular saw to cut open the core and Voila! Your slime extract is ready for use!
VileFault Posted October 31, 2016 Posted October 31, 2016 Ok, so here is some lore I worked out for slimes: Slime Morphology Stilla fluxa can be divided into three gross morphological regions: the cortex, medulla, and core. The cortex forms its generally homogenous outer body, whereas its medulla contains a number of specialized components and membranes (including the cores and protocores). The core houses specialized and highly unusual components that produce markedly different Interestingly, the creature has neither cells nor DNA. The Cortex: The bulk of the fluxal (of or related to Stilla f.) cortex is a slippery, slimy excretion (called fluxaplasm) created by the membrane surrounding the medulla. At a microscopic level, fluxaplasm bonds to itself using a self-assembling microtubule lattice that forms using electrostatic forces. The creature lacks an epidermis; the plasmatic cortex sloughs off and evaporates after it stops receiving a steady supply of signaling chemicals also released my the outer medullar membrane. There are only two notably distinct structures in this region. The first of these is a network of thick fluid-filled vessels, each of which contains three separate channels. By circulating its viscous cargo back and forth through the channels with a series well-coordinated constrictions and fleshy valves, this network (dubbed the fluxal locomotive network) can contort itself and the slime in a variety of ways. This is the only known portion of Stilla f. capable of generating motion, and allows the creature to quickly navigate through its environment by undulating and bouncing forward. The second such structure is a ring of shrunken membranous sacs that surround outer membrane of the fluxal medulla. They are speculated to be vestigial, the remnants for some past process no longer at work. Each is connected to an atrophied vessel that leads back through holes in the outer membrane to connect with the web of tubules within. The Medulla: The structure of the inner fluxal medulla is rather arcane. Inside the outer membrane, which secrets the bulk of the cortex (specialized areas of which seem capable of producing further locomotive vessels), there is a vast web of fleshy strands. Most of these seem to serve a structural purpose - holding together a complex array of cores, protocores, and sacs. These often appear in different or unusual arrangements, however, and a serve a number of purposes that are subspecies-dependent. A number of large vessels, each connected to the outer ring of vestigial sacs, spirals through the medulla. Each vessel eventually connects to a core or protocol, with between 1 and 3 vessels to a core (again, subspecies dependent). These medullar sacs serve a great number of purposes - some seem to pull digested material through the outer membrane and process it further for consumption. Others are intimately related to the creature's capacity for emotive telepathy and [TBD]. The Core: The cores and protocores for the most complex and intricate of Stilla fluxa's organs... [TBD]. Slime History [TBD] Slime Naming Though I have no interest in going through the full taxonomic classification of newly discovered xenoforms, an appropriate name for the genus of both slimes and golems seems to be "stilla," the latin word for a "droplet" or "blob." Further, a good latin name for the golem seems to be "statāria," the latin word for "upright" or "standing." Last, a good latin word for the slime would be "fluxa," which translates directly to "flowing" or "ephemeral." That makes the slime golem the "standing droplet" and the slime the "flowing, erratic droplet." Note that latin names for species most often begin with a latin noun, and end in a latin adjective of the same gender. Additionally, the word "limus" means slime as in "toe slime" or "rotting slime." Also, for slimes, their color will be their subspecies, which is stated after their binomial name. This can simply be a color in latin. I have a few put together here: Rubra (Red) Viridis (Green) Cymatilis (Blue) Caerulea (Dark Blue) Purpurea (Purple) Rosea (Pink) Aurea (Gold) Metallica (Metallic) Nigra (Black) Lutea (Orange) This would make a purple slime, for example, Stilla fluxa purpuea. I have already whinged at Nanako regarding how I think all this should be presented to the player. Ideally, it would show up as short messages shown to the scanner or dissector, selected randomly from a pool. Such messages could like like this: The organism’s cortex contains several membranous sacs which are linked together by a complex lattice of minute tubules. Each is connected to a large vessel that leads back into the medulla. The vessel appears atrophied, and the sacs are shrunken. The organism has no epidermis. The outer portions of the cortex seem completely redundant. Cutting away one gelatinous layer only reveals another identical surface as the detached material swiftly evaporates. The organism’s cortex is supported by a network of thick vessels. The creature twitches forlornly as the fluid within the vessels flows back and forth. The organism’s core is by far its most complex organ. Beneath its hard outer shell, a convoluted mass of tubules pulsates rapidly. The organism’s solid core is surrounded by a mesh of hollow tubules. Some of them connect and merge, traveling into the surrounding cortex. A few larger vessels seem to enter through small apertures in the core’s otherwise solid exterior. The organism's medulla contains an unusually turgid sac, which stands out from its surroundings. When you press on it lightly, you feel... sad? I have no intention of writing a "care-taking guide" for these creatures. If you want that, you will have to find it elsewhere. I think this project should steer clear of predigested information and instead put the researcher in the moment, tell them what they see, and let them make of it what they will. They should be able to discover the truth of the matter more or less on their own. This seems like a much better approach to integrating the lore and the game than dumping a fully-edited "guide" on the player once they complete a set sequence of steps.
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