CELLQUEST: RIP in Piece [DEAD due to inactive host]

[dragonpaul99]

> Celebrate your new-found intelligence by shoving a bunch of rocks into your mouth.

C

[Sam B]

Technically, dragon, you don't have a mouth.

Also, our planet and species are still unnamed. Suggestions and/or votes for both are welcome.

Act:

Rather than risk yourself fighting the other cells for some actual food, you instead opt to fill your tiny body with the delicious meteor dust surrounding you. The minerals are rich with nutrients, filling your belly to 80% and giving you a single DNA Pt. If only you had a more efficient means of absorbing these minerals, you might be able to completely fill your belly.

Nevertheless, you have gained a new Cell ability: Cell Division! At the cost of half of your Belly and a bit of your size, you can split yourself into two separate cells and evolve your species as a whole! However, your Belly must be at least 80% full in order to divide. Time to increase your numbers and climb that food chain!

Having gorged yourself on all those meteoric particles, you feel full of energy. The light above you is still shimmering, but it seems darker and further away. All the dead meat close enough for you to detect seems to have been eaten by other cells, who have started to feed on each other, while more other cells still feast on the plentiful plant matter.

You have 1 DNA Pt(s)

What do you do?

A. Investigate that light already.
B. Investigate the plant-eating cells.
C. Investigate the meat-eating cells.
D. Ride the current.
E. Other: ___________________


Stats:

Homeworld: (Aros-1, first to 3 votes wins)
Name: (Suggestions: First to 3 votes wins)
Traits: Cell (You are full-fledged cell with a nucleus), Asymmetrical.
Appearance: You are a brown, slightly crystalline, spiral-shaped cell, with a tuft of flagella at one end and a red eyespot at the other.
Diet: Can eat almost anything, prefers minerals.
Belly: 80%
Size: 0.5; Woah there, tubby.
Sense: .5; Able to detect light, and sense nearby chemicals.
Mobility: .6; You can move quite well for your size, but cannot fight the current.
Intelligence: 1; You have a nucleus.
Attack: 0; The most dangerous thing you can do is shrivel up and die.
Defense: .3; You have a durable S-Layer, protecting you from basic attacks.

Abilities:
Cell Division: Split yourself into two cells and evolve. Slightly reduces size and halves Belly (req. 80% Belly or higher to use)

[Aabcehmu]

I maintain that we investigate the light, given that our ability to detect it will give us an advantage in environments in which it is common, and so vote for A.

[Knight_of_Hide]

E: Other: Divide

We have the power

Aros seems like a cool name for a homeworld. I'll vote for that.

Might as well throw a Name out there as well. Biobe

[Kíeros]

> B Investigate the less likely to immediately attack cells.

[Ross_Varn]

Let's keep holding off on that name, guys. We can debate that when we actually have a brain. >.<

> B. Chicken of the sea...

[Aabcehmu]

Aros-1, though, seems a bit strange. That would imply that it's the nearest to its parent, which would be Aros without a number, and ordinarily planets which are the nearest to their star are inhospitable to life as we know it. I also agree with Ross_Varn, and believe we should wait until our species is capable of at least some level of self-awareness and metacognition before we decide on a name.

[Knight_of_Hide]

I think the name of the planet would be 'Aros' while the 1 was the number of votes it had.

[Aabcehmu]

Ah. That explains it.

[Sam B]

Knight is correct about the number = votes thing. Sorry I didn't make that more clear.

Act:

You forgo the mysterious light for now and swim towards the nearest grouping of plants and the cells eating them, taking advantage of your spiraling form to corkscrew yourself through the water. You sense about 3 smaller cells gathered around a large chunk of plant matter, and a single large cell (though not quite as large as you) grazing not too far behind them.

The trio of cells are all so similar you cannot tell them apart, each of them small and spherical, with a pair of Flagella on either side. They are slowly but noticeably absorbing the unknown plant from one side.

The large cell behind them is almost disc-like in shape, with a mouth on one of its sides and nothing on the other. The cell's mouth is also surrounded by a ring of hair-like Cilia, which are spinning around to create a funnel of water, pulling all the food in front of the cell into its greedy gullet. Fortunately for those smaller cells, it is facing away from them.

While you examine those cells to the best of your nucleus's ability, you detect some slight movement in the light shining through the water above you.


What do you do?

A. Join the cells in their meal.
B. Investigate the area above you.
C. Go back and look for the carnivorous cells... ?
D. Other: ___________________


Stats:

Homeworld: (Aros: 2; first to 3 votes wins)
Name: (Biobe: 1; First to 3 votes wins)
Traits: Cell (You are full-fledged cell with a nucleus), Asymmetrical.
Appearance: You are a brown, slightly crystalline, spiral-shaped cell, with a tuft of flagella at one end and a red eyespot at the other.
Diet: Can eat almost anything, prefers minerals.
Belly: 60%
Size: 0.5; Woah there, tubby.
Sense: .5; Able to detect light, and sense nearby chemicals.
Mobility: .6; You can move quite well for your size, but cannot fight the current.
Intelligence: 1; You have a nucleus.
Attack: 0; The most dangerous thing you can do is shrivel up and die.
Defense: .3; You have a durable S-Layer, protecting you from basic attacks.

Abilities:
Cell Division: Split yourself into two cells and evolve. Slightly reduces size and halves Belly (req. 80% Belly or higher to use)

[dragonpaul99]

Head towards the light.

B

[Kíeros]

> You should Be examining the area above you.

[Sam B]

Act:

Ignoring the cells for the moment, you spiral upwards toward the light. It is much dimmer than it was when you first sensed it, but still visible to you. But before you can make much progress in getting closer to it, you detect the source of the movement that drew your attention: Yet another cell. This one is about average sized, but still a runt compared to your long hulking excuse for a body. The cell is coated in tiny cilia which tread the water as it slowly descends. It is quite rounded on one end, but tapers into a thin point at the other, and the mouth in the middle of its wider end gives it a striking resemblance to a Taijitu, or the symbol for the human (wha?) concept of Yin and Yang. (Yin and who?)

Sensing your sudden proximity to it, the cell suddenly triples its speed, rocketing down to the floating plant matter and affixing itself onto one of the small grazing cells. Within seconds another cell identical to the attacker appears from somewhere below, attaching itself to the same poor cell being eaten by the first. In just a few moments their defenseless victim is a shriveled and dead, and the duo of hunters waste no time in sharing their kill. Good thing you got out of there before those things attacked, or that might have been you getting assailed by tiny little predators.

Down bellow the two Taijitucells continue picking off the smaller and weaker herbivores. The larger food-sucking cell seems to have drifted off someplace else, and the plant matter is gradually floating away from the microscopic massacre taking place. The mysterious light continues to dimly shine somewhere far above you, and you're beginning to feel a bit hungry again.

What do you do?

A. Ascend.
B. Try to eat some of the unknown plant down below?
C. Look for another food source?
D. Stay right where you are.
E. Other: ___________________

Stats:

Homeworld: (Aros: 2; first to 3 votes wins)
Name: (Biobe: 1; First to 3 votes wins)
Traits: Cell (You are full-fledged cell with a nucleus), Asymmetrical.
Appearance: You are a brown, slightly crystalline, spiral-shaped cell, with a tuft of flagella at one end and a red eyespot at the other.
Diet: Can eat almost anything, prefers minerals.
Belly: 40%
Size: 0.5; Wide load comin' through.
Sense: .5; Able to detect light, and sense nearby chemicals.
Mobility: .6; You can move quite well for your size, but cannot fight the current.
Intelligence: 1; You have a nucleus.
Attack: 0; The most dangerous thing you can do is shrivel up and die.
Defense: .3; You have a durable S-Layer, protecting you from basic attacks.

Abilities:
Cell Division: Split yourself into two cells and evolve. Slightly reduces size and halves Belly (req. 80% Belly or higher to use)

[dragonpaul99]

Ascend.

[Kíeros]

> SearCh your area for food near it.

[Shrump]

C. We'll need a full belly before we investigate the light.

[Knight_of_Hide]

We need something to Chomp on.

[Aabcehmu]

I agree and vote for C. It is favorable to use resources that other cells don't use, since it means you're less likely to meet competitors, and predators need to stray farther from more populated areas to hunt you. In addition, I propose the planet name Faindith.

[Sam B]

I'm gonna go ahead and vote myself to finalize Aros, because names are just great. Everything should have a name. I bet if the other cells knew you didn't have one, they'd all tease you and make fun of your weight problem. Also the fact that you don't have a name.

Act:

You bolt off in no particular direction in search of something edible that doesn't have a tendency to get other cells killed. It is tiring, but eventually you come to a more elevated area of the seafloor, and on it you can sense a large mass of plant with many cells swimming around and feeding on it. It is like an oasis in a literal sea of sand. Also water.

Being the starved obese little microbe you are, you quickly scurry over to the nearest bit of unocupied plant and dig in. The plant in question is Violet Seakelp, an especially delicious gathering of algae that is very popular among deep sea dwellers and cells. You restore 60% of your Belly and gain 2 DNA Pts from the nutritious meal.

The mysterious light is barely visible now, and it appears to have descended somewhat since you last looked. Or maybe it's just that you are higher up now? Either way, your Belly is still not totally full, but you feel much more energized now. You feel like you could go back to chasing the light, but this forest of kelp is large and you have only explored its outer edges.

You have 3 DNA Pt(s)

What do you do?

A. Go after that damn light already.
B. Explore the Violet Seakelp forest.
C. Eat just a bit more?
D. Split and evolve?
E. Other: ___________________


Stats:

Homeworld: Aros.
Name: (Biobe: 1; First to 3 votes wins)
Traits: Cell (You are full-fledged cell with a nucleus), Asymmetrical.
Appearance: You are a brown, slightly crystalline, spiral-shaped cell, with a tuft of flagella at one end and a red eyespot at the other.
Diet: Can eat almost anything, no preference.
Belly: 80%
Size: 0.5; Wide load comin' through.
Sense: .5; Able to detect light, and sense nearby chemicals.
Mobility: .6; You can move quite well for your size, but cannot fight the current.
Intelligence: 1; You have a nucleus.
Attack: 0; The most dangerous thing you can do is shrivel up and die.
Defense: .3; You have a durable S-Layer, protecting you from basic attacks.

Abilities:
Cell Division: Split yourself into two cells and evolve. Slightly reduces size and halves Belly (req. 80% Belly or higher to use)

[Aabcehmu]

I vote for D, followed by C, if possible.

On second thought, I agree with Knight_of_Hide, and change my vote to C.

[dragonpaul99]

Divide and conquer.

[Knight_of_Hide]

We should eat while there is plenty, and it also gives us more points to evolve with!

C

[Shrump]

I say B. We should first fing out what sort of creatures live in this little oasis before we evolve. Just so that we can properly adapt.

[LegendaryQ]

D, I'd prefer that we remain without a preference food-wise.

[Sam B]

Huh. Somehow I chopped your health off the stats section during your first evolution and didn't notice. Sorry 'bout that. Also, a compromise to this tie.

Act:

Feeling particularly gluttonous you continue gorging yourself on all this incredibly delicious Violet Seakelp. Your ample body swells to new heights, and widths, as your Belly is completely filled! You gain another 2 DNA Pts for stuffing yourself like the fat protozoan you are, and your gargantuan size has caused your HP to go up as well.

But being large is not as great as it originally seems, and you soon feel your energy draining away as your simplistic body struggles to keep itself running. (-2 HP) Your surface area-to-volume ratio has become too displaced because you are far too large for a single-celled organism! To save yourself from a quick death, your body instinctively divides, halving your full Belly and reducing your Size to a much more stable level. Your newly created double swims into the Seakelp Forest as you feel yourself changing once again...

You have 5 DNA Pt(s)

A) Grow Cilia: Mobility +.2, new ability: Dodge (-2 Pts)
B) Develop a single additional Flagellum: Mobility +.1 (-1 Pt)
C) Upgrade S-layer: Defense +.2, can be combined with Osmosis. (-2 Pts)
D) Gain Mouth Pore: Attack +.5; enables predation on other cells and aids feeding in general. (-3 Pts)
E) Gain Osmosis (Ability): Attack +.1, enables predation on other cells and aids feeding in general. (-3 Pts)
F) Store Remaining DNA Pt(s)


Stats:

Homeworld: Aros.
Name: (Biobe: 1; First to 3 votes wins)
Traits: Cell (You are full-fledged cell with a nucleus), Asymmetrical.
Appearance: You are a brown, slightly crystalline, spiral-shaped cell, with a tuft of flagella at one end and a red eyespot at the other.
Diet: Can eat almost anything, prefers plants.
Belly: 50%
Size: 0.3; Slightly larger than an average cell.
Sense: .5; Able to detect light, and sense nearby chemicals.
Mobility: .6; You can move quite well for your size, but cannot fight the current.
Intelligence: 1; You have a nucleus.
Attack: 0; The most dangerous thing you can do is shrivel up and die.
Defense: .3; You have a durable S-Layer, protecting you from basic attacks.
HP: 13/15

Abilities:
Cell Division: Split yourself into two cells and evolve. Slightly reduces size and halves Belly (req. 80% Belly or higher to use)