The tube forest is a
ubiquitous galactic biome. Tube trees are rugose and fleshy flora that form
sponge-like growths. They have spores stick to spacecraft hulls and are carried
from planet to planet. For this reason tube forests have become the iconic spaceport
biome, much to the display of travelers. Tube trees are extremely hardy, able
to survive in barren soil and thin atmospheres. In addition to photosynthesis,
they also use chemosynthesis and radiosynthesis by metabolizing containments in
the air. As a byproduct they produce a large amount of methane, giving tube
forests a distinctive odor. They are eaten by certain worms that are also
spread by spaceships. Exansive tube forests are often haunted by cryptids.
Ancient tube forests have been known to transition into creep biomes if
cryptids are allowed to thrive.
Creeps are organisms
with strange and improbable anatomies that dissolve into stinking protoplasm
when killed. A creep ecosystem, also known as a creeposystem, is formed when a
large concentration of creeps occupies a single area. Creep flora begins to spontaneously
manifest, appearing when no one is looking. The creep flora in an area all
share some unusual property, like being able to scream or seemingly being made
of raw meat. Once the creep flora is well established, creep fauna beings to
spawn at a high rate. Creeposystems are highly valuable to the reborn, a clade
of sapient creeps. They harvest lesser creeps to use as shook troops and pets.
There is no inherent kinship between creeps however, meaning creeposystems are
just as dangerous to the reborn as they are to other outsiders.
Gnomic planets is a
loose term applied to all planets colonized by robotic probes. Many
civilizations invented autonomous self replicating robots, but the Gnomics were
the unchallenged masters. The planets that still play host to their machines
are known as true Gnomics, and they are an order of magnitude more complex and
sophisticated than there imitators. True Gnomic planets have entire artificial
ecosystems with multiple evolving clades of robots living among baroque forests
of mechanical flora. All Gnomic planets are linked together in a network of
automated trade and mutual defense. There are those that would prey upon these
worlds, but they are defended by the gnomic death spheres, massive roaming
space stations bristling with exotic weapons.
A drongus is an
ursine creature with a hulking gait and
shaggy dark brown fur. Though non-sapient
they build massive cities out of mud and stone. Inside, they dimly play
act at civilization, shuffling around clay tablets with meaningless scribbles
and paying each other with twisted chunks of metal. It is believed they were
created by the Floozies as grunt laborers, and that they have gone feral with
their masters disappearance. They are found on planets throughout the galaxy.
Found within their cities is an entire biome of city dwellers, including the
Fandorians, a rat-like race of sapients. Living among the drongus is a tricky
proposition as they react to outsiders with immediate hostility. Visitors need
to mask their scent to avoid their wraith.
Any attempt at long term settlement on a drongus planet is met with
a drongus crusade, which is a terrifying
proposition. Despite their lack of self awareness, drongus are excellent
sappers and combat engineers. A drongus crusade is a moving wave of fortifications and tunnels barreling
forward, crushing all opposition.
The Candy is a
creeping plague high in sugar content. Directed by the sinister intelligences
known as the Candymen, the Candy seeks to smother the galaxy beneath is sweet
bulk. There are 9 Candymen, each representing a different strain of Candy. Each
strain has a signature color that defines its biota. In rare cases two strains
may mix and merge, but this rare and irksome to the Candymen. Patches of candy
biome give birth to non-sapient creatures known as Candylings, as well as
sapient creatures known as candy children. Both have a strong genetic
imperative to defend and expand the candy biome that gave birth to them. Candy patches are also rife with pathogens to
lead to "Candy sickness" an umbrella term for any number of ailments
that turn living flesh into candy. The end stage of many of these diseases are
the candy mutants, creatures that resemble candy children but were born as non
candy.
All planets in the
Republic of Sea Serpents are linked by oceanic cyclers, massive cargo
freighters that transport millions of gallons of sea water from planet to
planet. The republic can then be thought of as one vast ocean with currents
that run throughout the stars. The thousand seas of the republic are rich and
diverse, the better to fat the Sea Serpents. Of special note are the cosmic
eels, a diverse clade of vermiform pesciods that are found throughout the
galaxy. They spawn on Republiform planets and travel to other worlds by obscure
methods. The Senators can commune and control the cosmic eels with their minds,
using them for intrigues beyond their borders.
The Reclaimers are
an alliance of scavengers and homesteaders who settle ruined worlds and the
heart of the alliance are those who are Orn. Orn is a fungal super intelligence
composed of smaller minds. Most people consider "the Orn" to be a race
of fungus creatures, but this is inaccurate in several ways. First of all the
proper name for a single fungal intelligence is "one who is Orn".
Secondly the Orn are not a single race but a genetic continuum of over a dozen
closely related species. Those who are Orn posses varied and versatile
metabolisms. They are able to grow in radioactive environments and they can eat
concrete. They form the ecological anchor that makes colonizing marginal worlds
possible for the Reclaimers. They are also near immortal, able to regenerate
from mere scraps of flesh. On many reclaimer worlds they are the primary food
source for the other reclaimers. In recent centuries the Yongger have joined
the Reclaimer alliance, bringing with them the Ger machine ecology. Ger
growths are autonomous factories made out of carbon based artificial life. The
Yongger have only primitive methods of controlling the Ger, so they have
turned to the Orn for help. Those who are Orn are currently trying to integrate
their biology with the Ger, with mixed success. Reclaimer worlds are plagued by those who are
not Orn, fungal beings who reject the Orn overmind. They parasitize Reclaimer
society, both culturally and biologically.
Counter Gnomics are
sapient computer viruses who are optimized to infest Gnomic infospheres. When
they completely conquer a Gnomic planets digital architecture, they reshape it
in the real world as well. Counter Gnomic planets lack the intricate designs of
Gnomic worlds, instead they are sleek and streamlined with broad stripes of
neon lighting. Counter Gnomic polities
tend to have a callus disregard for the physical world, manufacturing vast
swarms of defense drones that indiscriminately attack potential intruders.
The Jezoflorids are
plant sapients made by the Floozies. Their homeworld is an ancient seed vault,
giving them access to powerful Floozy biotechnology . They have, however, lost
the documentation. Everything the Jezoflorids know about bioengineering they
have learned through costly trial and error. Early attempts at terraforming led
to noxious jungles chocked with dangerous plant life. As the major Jezoflorid
polity, MotherCorp, expanded outwards they grew more skilled and artful. The
later Jezoflorid planets are lush paradise worlds with only a few flaws. The
earlier inner planets became strongholds of the Glade, a radical rebellion form
the oppressive Mothercorp. This has
given Mothercorp a strange topology, strong on the frontiers and weak in the
interior.
Whorler planets are
marked by the ubiquity of the Whorler microbe in every lifeform. The whorler
microbe is a psionically active bacteria that generates a psychic field around
it. Whorler planets come in three different states depending on the nature of the
field, neonatal, tyrannical and mature. Tyrannical planets are under the
control of a whorl tyrant, a singularly powerful being that can use the whorl
field to control and warp other organisms. Mature planets arise after the
tyrant has been overthrow and replaced with multiple godforms. Though these
godforms have the same powers of influence that tyrants do, they use them in
the name of order and stability instead of egotism. Neonatal planets are
created by the whorl spacer culture. They have found a way to bypass the tyrant
stage of the whorl cycle and establish artificially grown whorl godforms. The
process is still not perfected, leading to the manifestation of pseudo gods,
mysterious beings with the same powers of influence and control. Sapients who
are born on whorl planets are molded closer to the whorl morphological norm,
which is saurian in form. Remarkably, the whorl microbe allows members of
different species to crossbreed. The current whorl population is thought to be
a mix of at least 6 different species.
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