Daftpanzer
canonically ambiguous
(The swamps of Falciria, during the late Imperieelian era)
The Idea:
Life is evolving on an imaginary world (very similar to earth). Players can create new species of things, either to compete with others, or just for fun and to alter the course of evolution.
The people who create really successfully species will be rewarded with extra bonuses to spend.
During updates, I will try to decide which species do well and which dont. Most species will go extinct at some point. The world will also change over time. There will be times of plenty, and also major disasters that wipe out many species.
I dont want to continue with the first NESLife species as some people wanted (sorry). There were some anomalies in that game that I want to avoid now. Though you could say this game will be kinda biased towards the re-appearance of those creatures.
This is an experimental game, the rules will probably change as things move along! Any input or suggestions are very welcome.
Rules:
Anyone can create 1 new species per turn. No more than 1 species per person per update.
These new species are either A: totally brand new, or B: evolutions of existing creatures already in the game.
A: Brand New Species
You can start from scratch with an entirely new species, in which case you get *3* genes to start with. Brand new species will be simple creatures evolved from protozoa/plankton etc.
These new species will be more and more primitive compared to the most evolved species. At this stage of the game, they will need to be very unqiue to survive. Most likely, they will not be able to compete with the more advanced lifeforms which have evolved over time. You'd have to be very inventive to get something that could survive and compete with just a few 'genes'.
To quote Lord_Iggy:
@Daft- I agree that whole new branches shouldn't be allowed, UNLESS someone wants to evolve something genuinely different and unique- for example, the Bathyscaper is very unique, it developed in the deep ocean- however, the Nitros could have easily evolved from the Wormy or some other blobster.
B: Evolved Species
Otherwise, you can pick any existing species to evolve further. You can add up to *3* genes to that species to make a new version - note that the old version will still survive unless it gets out-competed
As the game goes on, more and more evolved forms of life will appear with more and more genes.
At the same time, you can also remove up to *3* genes if you want to remove obsolete stuff / reduce energy needed to survive / make it cheaper to reproduce etc. Streamlining things like this is important when competition is fierce.
At this point in the game, anybody can create evolutions of anyone elses creatures.
Some random NPC evolutions will also happen in each update.
To quote myself:
I guess it is more fun to start your own line of evolution, but I think the game has suffered from people doing that too much. You can still take an existing species and mould it into what you want, other players have done that very successfully and ended up with whole branches of their own.
Genes System
The idea is to provide something to describe and compare the creatures, without getting too technical. Creatures will have simplified genes for moving, eating, reproducing, defence, attack, senses, as well as more subtle stuff.
These Genes can be anything semi-realistic. I dont want to get bogged down in specifics. But I reserve the right to disallow or simplify anything I dont like.
Some very strange combinations are possible, but there must be good reasons for this or I wont allow it.
More genes make a creature more complicated, and it will generally need more energy/food etc. So anything you add should help the creature to survive and breed.
Players who create really successfully species will be rewarded in the updates with an extra gene allowance to spend on new species.
I dont pretend to be some kind of expert, im willing to change the effects of any genes in the game, if there is a good reason too.
Default abilities:
You dont need genes for all things. By default, all creatures can reproduce slowly, and have a very basic level of senses. But they cannot move or eat. The only type of gene that is definitely required is a source of energy, IE a way of digesting something. Actually finding and trapping that something is another matter. As is avoiding predators etc.
Joining:
This NES does not require any commitment on your part. To join, you can just post a new species/evolution thing. Its up to you if you ever come back to see how it does.
New Species Template:
[reminder: this will be a very primitive species compared to stuff that already exists, you need to be very inventive here!]
(new species name) : (player name)
Genes (you can start with three): [reminder: one of these must provide a method of feeding/getting energy somehow!]
Description:
Evolution Template:
(new species name) : (player name)
Evolved from: (old species name)
Gene added (you can add 3, or 4 with bonus):
Gene removed (optional, remove up to 3 or 4 with bonus): [reminder: leave at least one gene for feeding/getting energy!]
Description: