Evolution Quest - Life Finds a Way

[open_sketch]

Evolution Quest
This is Evolution Quest. In this quest, you will play generations of a creature on an alien world. It is inspired by Wayne Barlow's Expedition and Maxis' Spore. We will be following individual members of a species over hundreds of millions of years as it gains greater complexity and the world shifts around it.

This game is played in turns. Each Turn represents one generation, and is broken into four phases. In the opening Phases, you will play vignettes of a creature's life. Each stage confronts you with a random threat which you must overcome to survive to the next phase. When you have completed all the stages of a creatures naturally life, a retrospective stage will be held to determine the direction your creature takes in it's evolution to the next Turn. Then, an events table will be consulted to see what changes have occurred in your environment and to your species over the timeskip and the next turn will start.

The timeskips will not be fixed in length. They will likely become shorter and shorter if your species gains intelligence. Note, however, that intelligence is not the endpoint of this game. The point of the game is to create an interesting xeno-evolutionary history.

Game Rules
This game has flexible attributes and statistics. You will gain attributes through your choices, and points in those attributes. When you make a decision, you may be required to roll these attributes alone or in combination. You will roll 2d6 and add your Attribute against a target, from 6 (very easy) to 12 (very hard). If you meet or exceed the target, things go your way. If you roll 1 or 2 under the target, you will be offered a hard choice. If you roll under that, you fail and die.

In the evolution stage, you will be offered three choices, one pertaining to events in each phase, to add or improve attributes. If you die early, you get fewer and worse choices.

Let us begin.

Current Creature
Generation 2

Scatria
Cavatibia remus
A long, tube-like fish with three prominent fins, exhibiting radial symmetry.
Aquatic, sexual egg-laying mesocarnivore.
Sex: Female
Appearance: Female
Age: Juvenile State (-1 to all)
Size: 1
Lifespan: 1 Juvenile, 1 Adult

Basic Attack: 0
Speedy Swimmer: 1
Sonar: 0
Light Sensitive: -1
Magnetic Navigation: -1
Immunity: 0

Special Traits
Jet Escape: Add +1 to any escape attempt. One use per Phase.
Protosocial: Other animals of the same species are not threats to you in normal circumstances.
Mesocarnivore: 3 plant feeding = 1 food point
​

Evolutionary Tree
- Cavatibia jaiunus
- Cavatibia remus

 

[open_sketch]

In the beginning, there was a primordial darkness. Life arose from complex carbon chains creating reproducing patterns, single-celled creatures gathering into colonies which, in time, specialized and created multicellular life. The rising tide of complexity led to a spark of awareness among these early creatures, of their surroundings, each other and themselves. Reaction became instinct, and instincts became behaviors.

We know a few things about this unnamed planet. Water exists in all three states, it can retain an atmosphere with oxygen and carbon dioxide, and carbon-based life is sustained both through photosynthetic and heterotrophic processes. What else do we know about this world?

Gravity
Relative to the Earth.
[ ] 0.5
[ ] 0.75
[ ] 1
[ ] 1.5
[ ] 2

Oxygen Content
[ ] Low
[ ] Compatible to Earth
[ ] High

Water Presence
The presence of oceans, shallows seas or swamps will be determined by other choices.
[ ] The entire planet, save perhaps some high peaks, is entirely underwater.
[ ] Very High
[ ] Earth-like
[ ] Lower
[ ] Desert

Temperature
[ ] High
[ ] Average
[ ] Cold

Tectonics
[ ] The world is extremely geologically active.
[ ] The world is quite active.
[ ] The world has plate tectonics and volcanoes, but these are not everyday concerns.
[ ] The world's tectonics have slowed nearly to a halt.
[ ] The world's tectonics are dead.

Finally, roll me 2 d6s; one for Moons and one for Stars.

 

[Lord_Asmodeus]

Gravity
Relative to the Earth.
[ ] 0.5
[ ] 0.75
[ ] 1
[ ] 1.5
[X] 2

Oxygen Content
[ ] Low
[ ] Compatible to Earth
[X] High

Water Presence
The presence of oceans, shallows seas or swamps will be determined by other choices.
[ ] The entire planet, save perhaps some high peaks, is entirely underwater.
[ ] Very High
[ ] Earth-like
[X] Lower
[ ] Desert

Temperature
[ ] High
[ ] Average
[X] Cold

Tectonics
[ ] The world is extremely geologically active.
[X] The world is quite active.
[ ] The world has plate tectonics and volcanoes, but these are not everyday concerns.
[ ] The world's tectonics have slowed nearly to a halt.
[ ] The world's tectonics are dead.

Lord_Asmodeus threw 2 6-faced dice. Reason: Moons Total: 6

 

[Dessard]

[X] 0.75
[X] High
[X] Earth-like
[X] Cold
[X] The world is quite active.

Dessard threw 1 6-faced dice. Total: 1

 

[Darkandus]

Gravity
[x] 1
Oxygen Content
[X]High
Water Presence
[x] Higher
Temperature
[x] High
Tectonics
[x] The world is quite active.

 

[jaiveer00]

[X] 2
[X] High
[X] The entire planet, save perhaps some high peaks, is entirely underwater.
[X] High
[X] The world is extremely geologically active.

rolling

jaiveer00 threw 1 6-faced dice. Reason: i dunno Total: 3

 

[Dark Ness]

[X] 2
[X] Low
[X] Earth-like
[X] Average
[X] The world is extremely geologically active.

 

[will408914]

Gravity
Relative to the Earth.
[ ] 0.5
[ ] 0.75
[] 1
[X] 1.5
[] 2

Oxygen Content
[ ] Low
[ ] Compatible to Earth
[X] High

Water Presence
The presence of oceans, shallows seas or swamps will be determined by other choices.
[ ] The entire planet, save perhaps some high peaks, is entirely underwater.
[X] Very High
[ ] Earth-like
[ ] Lower
[ ] Desert

Temperature
[ ] High
[X] Average
[ ] Cold

Tectonics
[ ] The world is extremely geologically active.
[X] The world is quite active.
[ ] The world has plate tectonics and volcanoes, but these are not everyday concerns.
[ ] The world's tectonics have slowed nearly to a halt.
[ ] The world's tectonics are dead.

 

[Kanata.EXE]

Gravity
[X] 1

Oxygen Content
[X] Compatible to Earth

Water Presence
[X] Earth-like

Temperature
[X] Average

Tectonics
[X] The world has plate tectonics and volcanoes, but these are not everyday concerns.

 

[Jenny]

Gravity
Relative to the Earth.
[X] 0.5
[ ] 0.75
[ ] 1
[ ] 1.5
[ ] 2

Oxygen Content
[ ] Low
[ ] Compatible to Earth
[X] High

Water Presence
The presence of oceans, shallows seas or swamps will be determined by other choices.
[ ] The entire planet, save perhaps some high peaks, is entirely underwater.
[ ] Very High
[ ] Earth-like
[X] Lower
[ ] Desert

Temperature
[X] High
[ ] Average
[ ] Cold

Tectonics
[ ] The world is extremely geologically active.
[X] The world is quite active.
[ ] The world has plate tectonics and volcanoes, but these are not everyday concerns.
[ ] The world's tectonics have slowed nearly to a halt.
[ ] The world's tectonics are dead.

Jenny threw 1 6-faced dice. Reason: Moon Total: 4

Jenny threw 1 6-faced dice. Reason: Stars Total: 3

 

[frostgiant]

[X] 2
[X] High
[X] The entire planet, save perhaps some high peaks, is entirely underwater.
[X] High
[X] The world is extremely geologically active.

 

[Namefrog]

Gravity
[X] 0.5
Oxygen Content
[X] Low
Water Presence
[X] The entire planet, save perhaps some high peaks, is entirely underwater.
Temperature
[X] Cold
Tectonics
[X] The world's tectonics are dead.

Namefrog threw 2 6-faced dice. Reason: moon,stars Total: 2

 

[Doomed Wombat]

Gravity
Relative to the Earth.
[ ] 0.5
[ ] 0.75
[ ] 1
[ ] 1.5
[X] 2

Oxygen Content
[ ] Low
[ ] Compatible to Earth
[X] High

Water Presence
The presence of oceans, shallows seas or swamps will be determined by other choices.
[ ] The entire planet, save perhaps some high peaks, is entirely underwater.
[ ] Very High
[ ] Earth-like
[X] Lower
[ ] Desert

Temperature
[ ] High
[ ] Average
[X] Cold

Tectonics
[ ] The world is extremely geologically active.
[X] The world is quite active.
[ ] The world has plate tectonics and volcanoes, but these are not everyday concerns.
[ ] The world's tectonics have slowed nearly to a halt.
[ ] The world's tectonics are dead.

 

[EricD]

Gravity
Relative to the Earth.
[ ] 0.5
[X] 0.75
[ ] 1
[ ] 1.5
[ ] 2

Oxygen Content
[ ] Low
[ ] Compatible to Earth
[X ] High

Water Presence
The presence of oceans, shallows seas or swamps will be determined by other choices.
[ ] The entire planet, save perhaps some high peaks, is entirely underwater.
[ ] Very High
[ ] Earth-like
[X ] Lower
[ ] Desert

Temperature
[ ] High
[X ] Average
[ ] Cold

Tectonics
[ ] The world is extremely geologically active.
[ ] The world is quite active.
[X] The world has plate tectonics and volcanoes, but these are not everyday concerns.
[ ] The world's tectonics have slowed nearly to a halt.
[ ] The world's tectonics are dead.

 

[open_sketch]

10 more minutes, then votes will close.

 

[Claudette Savagely]

Gravity
Relative to the Earth.
[ ] 0.5
[ ] 0.75
[ ] 1
[ ] 1.5
[X] 2

Oxygen Content
[ ] Low
[ ] Compatible to Earth
[X] High

Water Presence
The presence of oceans, shallows seas or swamps will be determined by other choices.
[X] The entire planet, save perhaps some high peaks, is entirely underwater.
[ ] Very High
[ ] Earth-like
[ ] Lower
[ ] Desert

Temperature
[X] High
[ ] Average
[ ] Cold

Tectonics
[X] The world is extremely geologically active.
[ ] The world is quite active.
[ ] The world has plate tectonics and volcanoes, but these are not everyday concerns.
[ ] The world's tectonics have slowed nearly to a halt.
[ ] The world's tectonics are dead.

roll:2d6 whoopsie doodle, how do I roll again?

 

[Skippy]

Gravity
Relative to the Earth.
[X] 0.5

Oxygen Content
[X] High

Water Presence
The presence of oceans, shallows seas or swamps will be determined by other choices.
[X] Very High

Temperature
[X] High

Tectonics
[X] The world is quite active.

CRAB PEOPLE CRAB PEOPLE CRAB PEOPLE

Skippy threw 2 6-faced dice. Reason: MOONS AND STARS WOOP WOOP Total: 8

 

[Iron Wolf]

Gravity
Relative to the Earth.
[X] 0.5
[ ] 0.75
[ ] 1
[ ] 1.5
[ ] 2

Oxygen Content
[ ] Low
[ ] Compatible to Earth
[X] High

Water Presence
The presence of oceans, shallows seas or swamps will be determined by other choices.
[ ] The entire planet, save perhaps some high peaks, is entirely underwater.
[ ] Very High
[ ] Earth-like
[X] Lower
[ ] Desert

Temperature
[X] High
[ ] Average
[ ] Cold

Tectonics
[ ] The world is extremely geologically active.
[] The world is quite active.
[X] The world has plate tectonics and volcanoes, but these are not everyday concerns.
[ ] The world's tectonics have slowed nearly to a halt.
[ ] The world's tectonics are dead.

 

[Imaflatsquid]

[X] 2
[X] High
[X] The entire planet, save perhaps some high peaks, is entirely underwater.
[X] High
[X] The world is extremely geologically active.

Imaflatsquid threw 1 6-faced dice. Reason: 2 Total: 6

 

[open_sketch]

Votes Locked

 

[open_sketch]

[X] 2
[X] High
[X] Very Very High (mix of High and Ocean)
[X] High-Average
[X] Quite Active

Moon: 1d3 (3) rocky moons.
Star: Binary System, close stars.

(note: some votes were averaged for a more representative sample)

The planet, as of yet, has no name. Nothing that lives upon it can name it.

From above, the Planet is an almost featureless blue and white orb, massive clouds and storms sweeping over an endless ocean. From the surface, you could see one or more of the three small moons orbit Laplace resonance, or conjoined blob of the binary stars. The heat of these stars is intense on the surface, driving the huge storms.

Closer inspection would show, however, that the world does have land masses. Though not small by any measure, they are dwarfed by the seas around them, small volcanic archipelagos poking up through the waves. Right now, these islands are lifeless, just black rock protruding from the seas. New ones are formed constantly from volcanic discharge into the seas, and they often disappear just as quickly.

At the poles, freezing rain and even snow are driven by the fierce wind. At the equator, the oceanic surface evaporates at a heightened rate, leading to near-constant belt of steam during the day which are swept up in the winds of the upper atmosphere and distributed over the planet.

Were you to proceed over the edges of these islands, you would find them dropping away with startling speed to the flat ocean bed below. These oceans are shallow, averaging in depth of less than three hundred meters, and there are few great oceanic trenches or mountain ranges despite the tumultuous tectonic activity. Anything that protrudes is crushed below the planet's gravity and eroded flat by the rapid storm-currents, so the shelves of volcanic land just drop away to the flat underwater plains, with occassional plateaus marking growing or shrinking islands.

On these plains and volcanic shelves, a vast diversity of life has erupted. The ocean is filled with algae colonies, and more complex plants cling to the upper volcanic shelves. The ocean floor only barely supports photosynthesis, leading to broad-surfaced plant life on flexible stalks, often detaching upon maturity to spread seed down-current. Animal life has just begun to take root in these spaces. Much of it is still microbial, small multicellar masses, or else nerveless drift-creatures that feed on algae, adhere to the drift-leaves, or afix to the lower shelves and filter-feed from the jetstreams with vast organic nets. However, the first waves of creatures with complex nervous systems have begun to arise, and three distinct families of creatures have emerged.

Which shall we follow?
[ ] Duroputamin, exoskeletal creatures.
[ ] Distenti, forward-facing creatures with long, soft bodies and a solid endoskeleton.
[ ] Obhaeres, nonskeletal creatures with radial symmetry.

Is the creature we are following a carnivore, omnivore or herbivore?
Note: This is hardly a locked-in choice. It will be one of the most frequently changing attributes of your creature.
[ ] Carnivore
[ ] Omnivore
[ ] Herbivore

What is the means of locomotion for these creatures?
[ ] Swimmer
[ ] Legged crawler
[ ] Waterjet
[ ] Mollesc-like "Foot"
[ ] Drifter

Select 2 sensory features common to this family of creatures. All creatures can smell, taste and feel.
[ ] Sonar
[ ] Light-sensitive Eye
[ ] Developed smell/taste.
[ ] Developed touch (whiskers/antenna)
[ ] Magnetoreception
[ ] Electroreception
[ ] Write-In

Let's talk reproduction.
[ ] Parthogenic
[ ] Heterogamy
[ ] Sexual

Speaking of, what's the sex situation?
[ ] Hermaphroditic
[ ] Male and Female
[ ] They do that thing where they are different sexes at different points in their life cycles...
-> [ ] Male young, female maturity
-> [ ] Female young, male maturity
-> [ ] Situational switch

Is there sexual dimorphism?
[ ] Extreme.
[ ] Considerable.
[ ] Just appearances.
[ ] No.

How are the young born?
-> [ ] By budding.
-> [ ] Egg-laying
-> [ ] Live-Birth of larvae
-> [ ] Live-Birth

Whatever you don't choose will still be around and will evolve alongside you. Your choices will influence their development as well; some of these traits will apply to them to create a common ancestry. It is possible you will not end up in the dominant family of life, be warned!

 

[Dessard]

[X] Obhaeres, nonskeletal creatures with radial symmetry.
[X] Carnivore
[X] Mollesc-like "Foot"
[X] Sonar
[X] Developed smell/taste.
[X] Parthogenic
[X] By budding.

 

[open_sketch]

(don't be afraid to discuss rather than just voting btw)

 

[Jenny]

Which shall we follow?
[x] Obhaeres, nonskeletal creatures with radial symmetry.
Pfft. Skeletons are for losers.

Is the creature we are following a carnivore, omnivore or herbivore?
Note: This is hardly a locked-in choice. It will be one of the most frequently changing attributes of your creature.
[X] Omnivore
EAT ALL THE THINGS!

What is the means of locomotion for these creatures?
[X] Waterjet

Select 2 sensory features common to this family of creatures. All creatures can smell, taste and feel.
[X] Sonar
[X] Magnetoreception
One ping only.

Let's talk reproduction.
[X] Sexual
Aw yiss.

Speaking of, what's the sex situation?
[x] Hermaphroditic

Is there sexual dimorphism?
[X] No.

How are the young born?
-> [x] Egg-laying
I mean, come on, what, you think we're going to carry our offspring? Like, in a sac?

 

[Namefrog]

[X] Distenti, forward-facing creatures with long, soft bodies and a solid endoskeleton.

[X] Omnivore

[X] Swimmer

[X] Sonar
[X] Magnetoreception

[X] Sexual

[X] They do that thing where they are different sexes at different points in their life cycles...
-> [X] Situational switch

[X] Just appearances.

[X] Egg-laying