New zone: Far Far Underground

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New zone: Far Far Underground

Postby Fishkeeper » Thu Jan 25, 2018 9:07 pm

I like the idea of this zone being accessible only through a hole in The Wilds, potentially introduced in a new update by announcing that an earthquake has rearranged things and potentially uncovered new areas. A few short caverns, nothing too interesting (though a very good opportunity to slip in a Saber Gordo somewhere, a long-closed-off cavern), and then an entrance into the new zone. The zone would not function like the Wilds, would probably have at least one home portal, and a Treasure Pod near the entrance would yield another Teleporter color that you can use to make an easy entrance to the Far Far Underground.

The Far Far Underground is a strange area, newly discovered, with several odd new species of slime. It was carved out by an underground river long, long ago, the remnants of which are still present in pools of clean, fresh water.

The Far Far Underground is primarily home to Slimes well adapted to the dark, whether through large eyes, a light source, or no eyes at all. Tiny Stickies climb the walls, Burrow slimes flee an approaching rancher, and odd lights blink further away in the dark than anyone has yet dared to venture. The flora are strange, the fauna even stranger, but there may well be riches here for the taking if you dare to venture into the depths.


There are five new types of Slimes in this zone: Sticky slimes, Burrow slimes, Chroma slimes, Orb slimes, and Fang slimes. Slimes such as Crystal and Rads would also be present, and probably Phosphor slimes.

There are also three new food items: Blind Hens, Shroomers, and Clingfruit.
Far Far Underground foods.png
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The expansion unlocks a few new upgrades to existing items: a Sun Shade for the gardens (basically just a cloth canopy on sticks), a Sun Shade for ponds (same idea), and the Hard Floor (explanation in Burrow slime entry below) for corrals. Also an Auto-Feeder edit that allows them to be loaded with Plorts.

Finally, the Flashlight gets a powerful new upgrade that functions as a floodlight,and another Ranch expansion is unlocked. It's potentially another underground area connected to the Grotto, and a new build item and type of plot comes with it. A Cliffside Garden, which can be built on a plot called a Cliffside Plot (probably only works on gardens for now), which comes sideways out of cliffs and look like a sideways patch of dirt. All plants can be planted in Cliffside Plots, and fruit trees will grow sticking out to the side like they do when you find them wild. Veggies grow sideways but act normally. All upgrades for normal gardens are available, except that the rot-prevention soil is a patch below the garden so the food lands on it after popping out of the ground/off the tree.


ENTRYWAY
__________________________________________________________

The first areas of the caves resemble The Grotto, dimly lit but easy enough to see in, with occasional small holes in the ceiling far above. No serious hazards yet, aside from Rock slimes. A few ponds may be scattered around with normal Puddle Slimes in them, and Clingfruit can be found. If you're fast and have sharp eyes, you can most likely locate some of the little Sticky slimes, hiding in the Clingfruit plants.

Clingfruit plants are odd shrubs that grow clinging to walls, reaching up with wide, fanning branches towards the sunbeams streaming from far above. Curiously, they taste like insects. Their small size makes them popular as snacks for those used to the taste, though. In a garden, they should be shaded from the sun, as direct sunlight wilts them and prevents them from growing fruit.

Favorite of: Sticky slimes.


Clingfruit shrubs aren't very large, the size of the Pogofruit bushes you see clinging to cliffs, and have fruit maybe 1/3 the side of most other fruits in the game. They require a Sun Shade when grown in a garden not in a cave, but otherwise function normally. When not grown in a Cliffside garden, they're very squat, sprawling bushes, as if they can't quite hold up their own weight.

Sticky Slime + Gecko.png
Sticky Slime + Gecko.png (5.37 KiB) Viewed 4592 times


Sticky Slime

Stuck on you!

Diet:
Fruit

Favorite food:
Clingfruit

Slimeology:
Sticky slimes are the smallest known slimes, only a third the size of most others, and their largos are barely larger than normal slimes (editor's note: they could be normal sized, I just like the idea of a tiny slime). Despite this, they have a fantastic jumping ability, rivaling even Tabby slimes when upset or hungry enough. They creep about the walls of the Far Far Underground, searching out fruit to eat, and skitter (how do they skitter without legs? no one knows) away from loud Ranchers or any potential threats.

Rancher Risks:
Sticky Slimes are incredibly sticky, clinging to anything they touch, including Ranchers. A large number of them clinging on can hamper movement speed unless dislodged with a quick jetpack rev. They can even climb the walls of a corral to some extent, meaning that they need to be roofed in. If frightened by a Tarr or left to go hungry, they can bounce enough to use up the corral roof's energy, leaving them free to spring out and run amok.

Plortonomics:
Sticky plorts are largely used as toys. Their springy nature means they can be easily molded into excellent bouncy balls that never lose their bounce, and a popular new children's shoe features Sticky plort soles, causing every step to bounce the wearer several feet into the air. Wisely, the shoe also comes with Sticky plort elbow and knee pads. Reviews are mixed but promising.


Sticky slimes are cute little guys usually found on the walls of an area, especially around Clingfruit bushes. Their favorite toy is the Mini Mountain, a toy-sized mountain for them to hop on. If they hear a jetpack, they tend to run away, but will come back when the jetpack stops. They may even hop on a rancher and cling on, slowing Beatrix down, until scared away by the jetpack again. Aside from that, they're harmless, just a bit tricky to catch since they tend to be up high on the walls.
Their plorts are lower value, in the 20-50 range, but they're so damn cute everyone will want some. Largos are also bouncy. A Pink/Sticky or Tabby/Sticky largo would probably be ridiculous to watch.


MIDWAY
______________________________________________________________________


Further into the cave system, it starts getting darker, and the upgraded flashlight starts to come in handy. I like the idea of there being a pit full of Odd Onion/Carrot patches and a large number of Crystal slimes, meaning the pit would be full of shards all the time like a cartoon deathtrap thing. Don't go down there. Except for that purple Treasure Pod.

Here you start to find Shroomers, and the patches of sunlight get rarer. The Chroma slimes are present around those few patches, plus Crystal and Rad slimes, with the occasional Rock slime, and one pool with Puddle slimes so you can pick up water to use on all those Crystal spikes. If you look carefully, you find Burrow slimes.

Shroomers. Looks like a fungus, acts like a fungus, tastes like a fungus, but the Gardens seem to think it's a veggie. Better not question it too much. These make a great ingredient in a lot of recipes, particularly Far Far pizzas. Not surprising for a maybe-fungus, they don't like the sun.

Favorite of: Burrow slimes.


Functions like a normal veggie in gardens, even though it looks like a mushroom, but needs to be grown in a cave or under a Sun Shade so it won't decay instantly. Also decays if harvested and placed in the sunlight for more than a second or two, needs to be put into a Silo or Auto-Feeder and dispensed only into a corral with a Sun Shade.

[Pic to be added. Slime with a glass-like appearance if not recently fed, with two large, bulging eyes like a chameleon's and a pink tongue that can shoot out several times its length. Turns the color of whatever plort it's eaten recently.]

Chroma Slime

A whole rainbow of possibility!

Diet:
Plorts (author's note: could be meat w/ no preference)

Favorite Food:
Plorts from meat-eating slimes

Slimeology:
These are colorful slimes indeed, when well-fed. When hungry, they're transparent, but their lengthy tongues mean they're rarely hungry. They feed on plorts, snagging them with long tongues and reeling them in almost instantly, then turn the color of the plort they've recently eaten. Because of this diet Chroma slimes can't become Largos, but other slimes can eat Chroma plorts and become Chroma Largos.

Rancher Risks:
Chroma slimes use their long tongues to grab food, and will often attempt to eat Ranchers. Normal Chroma slimes are harmless enough when doing this, and have minimal effect when tongue-tapping a Rancher. However, Chroma Largos have spiked tongues which can do considerable damage if they attempt to eat a Rancher. Additionally, hungry Chroma Largos will use their tongues as clubs against anything that stands in the way of a meal, potentially shorting out Corral walls just enough to escape.

Plortonomics:
Although transparent, Chroma plorts take and magnify pigments exceptionally well, making them the bases of some of the most vivid paints in the known universe. The plorts can also be used to make stained glass astonishingly bright in color.


Chroma slimes are based on chameleons, clearly. They can be troublesome if hungry, but are harmless and adorable when well-fed. Their favorite toy is the Paint Palette, which they can't use but seem to enjoy anyway.
Their plorts are higher-value to make up for the risk, more in the 75-160 range. They're also very pretty slimes to have around! Plus, the plort-diet thing is really interesting, and a good solution to the problem of having way too many low-value plorts after combining easy-to-feed slimes and rare slimes. I'd feed 'em Rock plorts, probably.
These have a really interesting trait: Chroma slimes can't become Largos, since they eat plorts normally. However, other slimes can eat Chroma plorts and become Chroma Largos.


[Pic to be added: Burrow slimes. Dark grey slimes with pink stars on their faces, like star-nosed moles.}

Burrow Slimes

Sometimes a lump of dirt is just a lump of dirt. Sometimes it's not.

Diet:
Veggies

Favorite Food:
Shroomers

Slimeology:
Burrow Slimes are the only known slime to burrow underground. If alarmed or caught out in the light, they leap into the air to gain speed and rev their spinning noses, then dive underground and vanish. A lump of soil on the ground may be just a lump, or it might contain a resting Burrow slime. Try not to step on them!

Rancher Risks:
Burrow slimes, if stepped on, respond by leaping out of the soil to gain speed for a soil dive. This can do some damage to a Rancher unfortunate enough to be standing in the way of their nose-drill. Additionally, they burrow out of corrals if allowed to go hungry, and then INTO any corrals containing suitable food. Largos, alarmingly, can still burrow, but are much easier to spot.

Plortonomics:
Burrow plorts are as hard as the ore their producers encounter, and as such can be used for anything from backhoe 'teeth' to hammers, with no danger of them chipping or breaking under anything resembling ordinary forces.


Burrow slimes are the main reason for the corral upgrade mentioned above. It's described as "another corral wall, this one several inches underground, overlaid with soft dirt to keep your burrowing slimes content", and looks like a layer of loose dirt about as deep as a Cuberry is tall. Keeps Burrow slimes in unless they're extremely determined to get out, and (hopefully) keeps Tangle vines from going through the floor of a corral.
Burrow slimes generally hide underground, appearing as lumps of dirt, and can either be vacuumed out of the dirt or out of midair when they jump before a dive. They're based on starnose moles.

(I'm getting tired and it's dinner time, next part of post will come later. That will cover Blind Hens, Orb and Fang slimes, and the deepest parts of the cave. Will edit it onto this one if possible.)
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Re: New zone: Far Far Underground

Postby EmeraldPlay » Fri Jan 26, 2018 10:06 am

Nice idea.
My avatar was taken from Miomilla's chart.

Not visiting this place as often so contact me on Discord if you want anything from me.
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Re: New zone: Far Far Underground

Postby GoldenLucky99 » Wed Jan 31, 2018 5:52 pm

Woah, this is awesome.
I haven't seen this detailed of a description since... I don't know... never?

One question: Wouldn't a saber gordo sort of defeat the purpose of not getting pure sabers?
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Re: New zone: Far Far Underground

Postby Valeritan » Fri Feb 02, 2018 8:18 am

This idea is amazing!
I draw stuff and stuff.
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Re: New zone: Far Far Underground

Postby Fishkeeper » Sat Feb 03, 2018 1:08 pm

Thanks everyone!
I have a fairly large amount of experience in fiction writing and have come up with multiple planets and more original species than that, designing an area within an established world is comparatively easy.

Yeah, the Saber gordo would be only if the devs want to add in pure Sabers. They're supposed to be extinct, but hey, maybe there's a gordo living in a cavern somewhere, fed by a slow but constant stream of hens falling in?


I've been busy lately, but here's the second part!

Blind Hens are a type of hen found only in the deeper parts of the area, Midway and down. They behave like normal hens, but may be more prone to charging ahead and falling off of things. Blind Chickadoos, likewise, are functionally similar to regular Chickadoos. They have pale, strange eyes, a lighter color than standard members of the species, and blue spots on the wings that glow just a tiny bit in sheer darkness. Functionally identical to other Hens.

Favorite of: Fang slimes.

"A slightly creepier bird to feed your slimes."

"The creepiest Chickadoo on the Range."

About: Blind Hens are thought to be a variant of Hen Hen produced when a number of normal chickens fell through a hole into the Far Far Underground. Despite the name, they aren't entirely blind, but very close; they can only see areas of light, nothing else. This doesn't appear to affect or bother them in any way, they generally behave like normal chickens, aside from being more prone to running off the edges of cliffs. Strangely, their Roostero counterparts are completely normal.


The Depths
_________________________________________________________


In the deepest parts of the cave, there are no more patches of sunlight. Periodic bunches of glowing plants give bits of light, but you'll need the upgraded Flashlight, which dimly lights the area around you, to see clearly. Further upgrades to the Flashlight increase its strength and reach.

More Shroomer patches are present, in addition to plenty of Blind Hens (often near the Shroomers), and the occasional group of Rad slimes. Chromas may rarely be found, tending to be around the patches of glowing plants. There are also many large pools of water, containing Orb slimes, and Fang slimes are present if you watch carefully.

[Pic to be added: Orb slimes. Same shape as a Puddle slime, if a bit taller. Large, round, white eyes, body the same strange pinkish-white as an IRL blobfish. Has two long, thin whiskers coming from either side of its body, like a catfish's whiskers. Occasionally does a 'yawn' animation that reveals a large, toothless mouth, doubling its height with how far open the mouth stretches.]

Orb Slimes

A Puddle Slime's blinder, paler, scarier cousin.

Diet:
Water, all foods

Favorite food:
None

Slimeology:
Thought to be Puddle slimes that were trapped underground long ago. They lost their sight due to not needing it, and developed a pair of whiskers to feel their way around. Like Puddle slimes, they feed on water, but will also eat any fruits, veggies, or Hens that touch their whiskers. They will also attempt to eat any slimes, excluding Puddle slimes, that touch their whiskers, but will only manage to mouth at the other slime until it hops out of reach. They also attempt to eat a Rancher who touches them, but are too soft to cause any harm.

Orb slimes need fresh water to survive and will evaporate if left on any other surface for too long. However, they last longer out of water than standard Puddle slimes.

Rancher Risks:
Orb slimes have minimal risks on the ranch, and even a bonus. When placed with Puddle slimes, they will attempt to eat any other slimes that land in the Pond with them, frightening the other slime out and preventing it from flustering the Puddle slimes.

Orb slimes, like their Puddle counterparts, won't produce plorts if crowded. Up to four Orb and/or Puddle slimes can be kept in the same Pond with no issues. This is not out of shyness, they simply don't like to bump into other slimes. Puddle slimes appear to think of them as simply odd cousins and will happily tolerate them.

Like Puddle slimes, Orb slimes vanish if out of the water for too long, but can last longer than Puddle slimes. Orb plorts vanish if left on dry land, but, again, last longer than Puddle plorts.

Plortonomics:
Orb plorts are used to make an even more exclusive, even more expensive bottled water than Puddle plorts. The water glows with a weak pinkish light, but is otherwise identical in taste and temperature to standard tap water. The proceeds from those people elite enough to purchase this exclusive drink are used to purchase sections of Earth oceans for conservation purposes- so far, over 90% of the ocean on Earth is protected from fishing, drilling, and anything more destructive than sports and sightseeing.


Orb plorts would probably be in a slightly higher price range than Puddle plorts. Their favorite toy is the Friendly Catfish, a rubber catfish-toy styled like a blind catfish and described as "an Orb's fishy friend!". They won't produce plorts if there are more than 4 slimes in the pond, 5 if there's a toy. This might be a bit tricky to manage in a mixed pond, but I'd think that either the Ducky or the Catfish would up that limit to 5. Having both toys would draw each slime to its preferred toy, but wouldn't raise the limit past 5. When Orb slimes are crowded, they get a similar redness on their faces to the Puddle slimes, but around their eyes as well in more of an angry appearance.

As described, Orb slimes try to eat other slimes that land in the pond with them. This causes the other slime to temporarily do the frightened-eyes and hop away, but it calms as soon as it's out of the pond and the Orb stops trying to eat it. They can't harm other slimes, and they can't harm a Rancher despite trying to eat Beatrix. It's cute more than anything. It's a useful behavior, also, as it chases any freeranged slimes out of the pond rather than letting them stay and fluster the Puddles.


Deeper into the cave than the ponds full of Orbs are areas full of jagged rocks, lots of little alcoves and cracks in rocks, basically just nooks and crannies everywhere. If you turn off your flashlight, it'll be almost completely dark, but spots of light will start to approach after a short time. These are Fang slimes, and they don't like your flashlight, so they won't come out into the light without incentive. You can also find Boom and Tabby slimes, mostly in crannies in the rocks.

[Image to be added. A slime that vaguely resembles a deepsea anglerfish. Dark brown in color, with a long whisker-like appendage coming off its forehead. Has a glowing orb on the end of the appendage. The orb is dimly lit when the slime is well-fed, and brightens when it starts to get hungry. The slime has no visible eyes, and, instead of a face, has a very large mouth that extends around almost half its body. The mouth has a distinct underbite and a number of fangs sticking up, like a deepsea anglerfish's mouth. This slime is designed to be just a bit creepy, though in a cartoonish way. Picture a slime styled like an eye-less version of the anglerfish in Finding Nemo.]

Fang slimes

The bitiest slimes around, short of Tarrs! But... so... shiny...

Diet:
Meat, other slimes if hungry and no meat is close enough

Favorite Food:
Blind Hens

Slimeology:
Fang slimes are eerie creatures, well-developed to live in the dark. They have no eyes, but can detect light with their entire bodies. They flee the light, and are therefore not well-studied, as most Ranchers don't dare to turn off a light in their habitat and sit still. They also run from the sound of Jetpacks.

Fang slimes use their lights to draw prey close. When the slime starts to get hungry, the light begins to glow brighter, a hypnotic effect that draws prey in. At first, it only draws chickens. When the slime is especially hungry, its light glows bright enough to attract even other slimes. Whatever the prey, it will approach to the Fang slime and stand still, eyes wide, seeming transfixed, and will make no move to flee. Chickens are the Fang slime's preferred food, but it will eat Slimes if hungry enough.

Rancher Risks:
Fang slimes bite if you get close enough with no lights. They can be shooed away easily enough with a light flash or a rev of the Jetpack, but come back if you stay quiet with no lights. They will also eat your other slimes, if left to be hungry in the vicinity of other slimes. These are highly predatory Slimes. The upside to that is they're less likely to eat plorts- you practically have to throw a plort in one's face to make a Largo. They prefer moving food.

Fang Largos can do some damage if hungry. Newly created Fang largos, though fairly rare, are always hungry, and have a very strong light that draws in everything nearby. They also tend to be more prone to eat nearby Slimes, and their bites can do much more damage to a Rancher.

In addition to all that, Fang slimes cannot be kept in the light. They must have a Solar Shield. Even with a Solar Shield, they hop around in visible agitation for a few seconds when placed in an outdoor corral, and need some time to adjust to the light before they're willing to eat. Fang slimes are best ranched in an underground area, and still need a Solar Shield or several minutes to adjust to the light. If placed in open sunlight, they immediately become incredibly agitated and, if left in the sunlight, will eventually vanish.


Fang slimes would have valuable plorts for the trouble of ranching them, up near Quantum and/or Dervish slimes.

If you wait long enough with the light off, Fang slimes come right up close and start biting Beatrix. This isn't a major concern, they only do a few points of damage, but you probably shouldn't let them do it for very long. You can either sit still and wait for them to get close enough that you can suck them up by their bits of light, turn off your light for a bit and then pop it on to catch them before they run, or throw Hens past cracks in the walls to lure the slimes into jumping out. This area has the occasional Boom and Tabby slime, the crack-luring isn't a guaranteed Fang, but it's a good way to pick some up.

Other Slimes are drawn to Fang slimes, and will crowd around them, seeming hypnotized. Boom slimes stop exploding, Tabbies stop jumping, Hunters stay visible, Crystals don't make spines, Rocks don't spin. Basically, the slimes just sit there and stare until the Fang slime either gets out of range or eats one of them. Hungry Fang slimes favor Blind Hens, but, if surrounded by nothing but slimes, will eat one. This causes the Fang's light to dim, since it's not hungry, and the other slimes jump away in fright.

If the Fang slime is starving, its orb glows bright enough to start luring in Beatrix! This isn't dangerous, but the player may find, upon standing still near a starving Fang, that they begin to slowly walk towards it. Walking away will break the attraction, and revving the Jetpack or shining a Flashlight on the slime will frighten it away. If no action is taken, Beatrix will walk up to the Fang slime and stand still as it bites her. This can be a serious danger if it's a Largo. Don't stand still near a hungry Fang Largo.

Fortunately, Fang slimes and Fang Largos are very slow when not fleeing from the light, even starving ones.

Fang slimes generally aren't very interested in plorts. They'll eat plorts, but show very minimal interest unless the plort is freshly produced and still moving from being popped out. To produce a Largo, it's best to throw the plort directly at a Fang slime. They aren't Tarr-proof, just much less interested.

These guys are made to be somewhat creepy and dangerous, but not overly so. Fang Largos are rare to encounter in the wild, and will usually feed themselves on nearby slimes.
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Re: New zone: Far Far Underground

Postby Valeritan » Mon Feb 05, 2018 8:34 am

I love it!
I draw stuff and stuff.
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