Changeling 'Birth Teratoma' change

[notghosti]

About The Pull Request

Changes how the ability birth teratoma works.

Previously only 3 'true absorbs' Aka bodies husked were needed to spawn near infinite teratomas. One every two minutes if thats all they dedicate their chemicals to assuming normal rates

This changes the amount of true absorbs to purchase the ability to one. However. Only for every teratoma to be birthed, a body needs to be husked.

Effectively
If you've husked 5 corspes?
You get 5 teratomas.

Why It's Good For The Game

Pictured is a round where 21 teratomas were spawned.

21 grief machines with no value to their lifes as they are effectively cheap. You can suicide bomb yourself to little consequence as its non factor when theres another egg you can go inhabit and instantly start again.

Your still as welcome as always go welder bomb an assistant, sabotage the engine, or n20 flood medical. All that changes is if your going to die in the process make sure your living your best life. As it may be your only.

I'm willing to hear the ratio of bodies husked to teratomas spawned be adjusted, such as two teratomas for every husk be discussed. But a minimum floor of three for infinite seems problematic.

Changelog

🆑
balance: Birth teratoma is reduced to 1 absorb needed to purchase
balance: Birth teratoma can only be used once for each changeling absorption.
/:cl:

[Tostah]

Im already skeptical of having the birth teratoma ability locked behind killing and husking 3 people. Changeling isn't a murderbone antagonist, and this already encourages changelings to step beyond their objectives and start hunting random people.

One victim per teratoma is essentially a murderbone license for a changeling. "why did you kill all of science?" "I wanted more teratomas!"

[notghosti]

As you said, they aren't a murderbone antagonists. They can't just go on a murderbone rampage on all of science for free teratomas. They still need to escalate an attack and RPing through it. No matter the system that's still a rule break otherwise. If that's the wanted objective they could reason it through much easier methods such as their primary objectives to have the most DNA or above 7 strands. (Even though they can sting for these).

As for the actual obtaining the ability. Lings don't generally go for husking sentient people for teratomas currently. They go for soulless husks of bodies. Whether be it morgue or humanized monkeys. That offer no resistance. Unlike three scientists who all have radios and the ability to run and fight.

[Tostah]

As you said, they aren't a murderbone antagonists. They can't just go on a murderbone rampage on all of science for free teratomas. They still need to escalate an attack and RPing through it. No matter the system that's still a rule break otherwise. If that's the wanted objective they could reason it through much easier methods such as their primary objectives to have the most DNA or above 7 strands. (Even though they can sting for these).

As for the actual obtaining the ability. Lings don't generally go for husking sentient people for teratomas currently. They go for soulless husks of bodies. Whether be it morgue or humanized monkeys. That offer no resistance. Unlike three scientists who all have radios and the ability to run and fight.

Doesnt the fact that you can turn humanized monkeys into terratomas make this more spamable? If you were stuck on a cooldown previously, the only thing stopping you now would be the amount of humanized monkeys you can eat?

[notghosti]

Doesnt the fact that you can turn humanized monkeys into terratomas make this more spamable? If you were stuck on a cooldown previously, the only thing stopping you now would be the amount of humanized monkeys you can eat?

I don't see why it would make it more spammable. The things that acted like as a cooldown before, IE, its chemical cost, are still in place. They could eat three humanized monkeys before just as easily and unlock infinite teratoma. The only effective buff is you could get a teratoma out on the first body rather than the third. Which that fact is easily changed back with a value tweak if really needed.

Before you could wander the halls casually, if you hit 60 chemicals, dip into maintenance for 10 seconds and close the airlock, spawn a teratoma, and then dip out through another exit. While the mechanics of husking bodies is both time-consuming, stationary, and most importantly, leaves a body trail.

It turns it from a passive reward. 3 husks for infinite teratomas. To an active one.

[ofscarletdreams]

is there a maximum amount of charges they can store to prevent them from sitting in front of a cloner for 20 minutes and then turning into a griefer assembly line next to a random ass scrubber in maintenance

[notghosti]

Currently it does not, this just tracks how many you have spawned compared to how many bodies have been husked.