Creature Design Philosophy
Creature Design Philosophy posted in Gamma World forum comment posted by derek_holland The defect Abnormal Sustenance Dependency in Dragon 109 is only partially a defect. The table has blood, two types of carnivory (fresh and super fresh), radiation, herbivory, and poison (limited to a specific type and intensity). Only radiation and poison are limiting in where a species can dwell and even then, those are fairly common in GW.
I got to thinking about that and dietary mutations and defects allow for speciation as they allow the organism and its descendants to survive in new habitats. And from there I looked through the book's mutations and found some more:
- Redundant Vital Organs reduce the penalties of parasite mutations as well as allows prey organisms to survive attacks from new predatory species (i.e. the mutant can move into new habitats more easily as it survives predation attempts).
- Electric Aura Allows the invasion of stony deserts as it can be used to shock the ground and expose ambush predators. Later it may evolve into a sensory system, much like that of the electric eel.
- Directional Sense and Clairvoyance/Clairaudience allow for easier colonization of mazes, be they compacted city ruins, industrial vaults, or complex burrows.
- Cryo and Pyrokinesis are obviously useful for temperature regulation. Yetioids (cousins of the sasquatch) can be found anywhere, even the tropics, because of their ability to chill their environment.
- Psychic Void allows mutants to successfully invade "haunted" forests and other places where the native vegetation uses telepathic and empathic attacks to keep everyone out.
As for defects, these are less about colonizing one place as being driven out from a previously acceptable habitat. There is no preadaptation here, just a drive to find somewhere to live and possibly evolve to in future generations. The most important defects for this are the X Sensitivity, Severe Phobia, and X Intolerance mutations. One of note is Sound Sensitivity as there are few places where one can escape loud sounds- high in the atmosphere and deep underground are the only two places I can think of for more natural environments.
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