reaper support Palaeoctopus - The reaper supporting, giant land Octopus!

[Katanaa]

IT IS NOT A SHOULDER PET, THOSE ARE REPLIES

Common name: Palaeoctopus
Species: Palaeoctopus Callidum
Time: Late Cretaceous
Diet: Carnivore
Temperament: Mischievous

“Wild:
A distant relative of the seekers in the red chambers, Paleoctopus is somehow even more of an oddity. This giant cephalopod is perfectly at home on land for starters, but it's the company it keeps that makes it more intriguing. Its ink has special properties that not only block out charge light, but marks afflicted creatures with enticing pheromones that tell nameless where to get their next meal. After the grisly banquet, Paleoctopus freely picks up the scraps.

Much like modern octopuses, this creature shows high levels of intelligence. Their dextrous tentacles means nowhere is safe from their curious exploration, including locked doors! They seem especially interested in stealing anything shiny that isn't bolted down. In addition, with a focused blast from their siphon, their ink can launch them great distances into the air away from danger!”

“Domesticated:
Once tamed it’s talents don’t stop from what is seen in the wild! Aside from its other ink capabilities, they can create an ink projectile to lure creatures to a different spot and make them stuck! This has made for some unique sneak attacks upon other tribes.

The ink it uses can also be used to support allied reapers, by blocking any charge light getting to them! This ink also seems to share similar properties to that of the pheromones that reaper queens use to calm young reapers, perhaps it can be used as a substitute?”
=============================================
Introduction and summary:
Hello! This is my submission to the Aberation vote, I thought ark could use a little more cephalopod love (since ammonite isn’t tamable and tuso is water-locked) so I have made a land octopus for Aberation. I have also added little tags to determine areas of interest for either PvP or PvE users so you can skim through this much easier to find something you like!

It is/can:
- Ridable, without a saddle. 
- Use its ink to boost itself into the air, higher than a reaper or karkinos jump.
- Support reapers via covering them with its ink which reduces charge light debuff by around 50%. Also provides more reaper benefits, though only on reaper babies as it makes them docile towards you, like a more common reaper pheromone. 
- Can unlock enemy doors and vaults. This is done via a lockpicking mini-game.
- Can equip actual shields for better defense.
- Able to produce dyes and “bulk paint” on structures.
- Can make a ink ball that is used in a similar way to an oil jar, used for distracting and making creatures stuck.
- Auto item collector, means it will pick up items such as eggs or poop that are dropped automatically and put into its inventory, this can be configured. 
- Is a thief with stealing items that would normally aggro a creature, as it can silently pick up things like roll rat gems and even rock drake eggs without being detected, though this is limited.
- Pearl gatherer.

Detailed information:

Wild behavior:
It is mainly found in the red chamber, but is rarely seen in the blue zone as well. It’s a truly mischievous creature, looking more towards having fun than killing you, such an example will be if you have skins equipped and have additional skins in your inventory it'll swap around your equipped skins for the other ones in your inventory, and after the charade it will run off, likely laughing at you in its cephalopod brain. but if you choose to harm one, prepare to be inked and targeted by nameless! 
================================
Reaper supporter: (Useful for Pvp mainly but can be used for boss fights so has some Pve utility)
Reapers can become pretty useless in some situations, that's where this cephalopod buddy comes in, Palaeoctopus can spray ink on a reaper to reduce charge-light effects by 50%, essentially putting it near the rock golem in terms of damage taken, though its still killable. 

There are also other helpful reaper-related stuff with its ink. When applied to you or a tribemate, reaper babies will become docile.
================================
Other ink uses and how ink works: (Mixes of Pve and Pvp utility)
The use of its ink doesn’t stop there, as there are more uses such as travel or distraction.
These uses are:

- If you have ink on, Z-fruits are useless towards you, as the flashbang effect is removed, though being inked does have the effect of making your visuals darker.
- Throw a ink projectile that will lead a wild/enemy creature to a spot like honey, it will also get them stuck for a short bit.
- Can use its ink to boost itself through the air, like a rocket.
- Can make enemies targeted by seekers and nameless. Basically just using nameless/seekers as minions towards a specific target.

Ink works by being slowly filled up over time, ink itself has four fill points to where it can be used:
- If it has 1 point filled, it may use its ink on players. (Calming reaper babies, z-fruit useless, etc)
- If it has 2 saved up, it can be used to boost itself or make 2 ink projectiles.
- And finally at 4 it can boost reapers.

However if it is fully imprinted, it has 6 fill points, so 2 additional points for either player use or boosting. This helps with ink fatigue so its a worthy investment. 
================================
Ink rocket/jet: (Travel utility)
The ink rocket ability it uses comes in very handy in escaping things, or just traversing the rough aberrant environment, a singular ink rocket launch will take you higher than a karkinos or reaper jump, but you can actually perform another ink rocket launch in the air, essentially chaining the two, you can even do it three times if you've fully imprinted a Palaeoctopus. Though using it twice without the imprint will give you ink fatigue of course, so watch out for that. 
================================
Radiation/element water swimming: (Travel utility)
Palaeoctopus can swim in the radioactive water that would normally damage many other creatures, this also means, much like the magmasaur, it can provide protection towards its survivor against the dangerous purple water. 
================================
Ink Fatigue: (Balancing factor)
If Palaeoctopus does not get a chance to rest up with some ink leftover, then it will become fatigued and be much slower and take more stamina to move around, this effect is less when in water. The effects on its stamina and speed are around 20%. 
================================
Shields: (Can be both Pve and Pvp utility)
You can equip shields onto palaeoctopus for it to use, there are two useful modes when using shields.

Active mode:
When in active mode you will need to aim where you are being attacked at/shot at to defend,
This is more damage effective but harder to grasp.

Passive mode:
Passive mode requires no control but is less effective, just giving more general defense.
================================
Dye generation and bulk painting: (Just Pve utility really)
Palaeoctopus can generate dyes just by having the right berries in its inventory, say red dye for example, all you would need is just tintoberries in its inventory and it will start producing red dye.

Along with this, it can paint the entirety of a wall for example, but also target up to 4 walls to paint, thus it can help with painting a base by bulk painting multiple parts of a structure (so 4 walls, 4 foundations, 4 ceilings, etc.)
=================================
Lock Picking: (Pvp utility only)
Using Palaeoctopus means you are able to unlock metal tier structures and vaults, though a mini game is required, and this mini-game leaves you completely vulnerable.

The mini-game consists of you trying to land a bar into a green zone, this will be displayed on top of your hotbar. This progressively gets more difficult the higher tier in structure you go. And if you miss twice, you get reset completely.

Tier 1/easy: Thatch and wood, 3-5 second mini-game. 

Tier 2/medium: Stone, 10-15 second mini-game.

Tier 3/hard: Metal, 30-40 seconds.

The times depend on whether you are unlocking a vault, door, gate, etc.
====================================
Auto-item collecting and "thieving": (Pve utility)
Palaeoctopus can be set to automatically pick up items in its area of range, such items that can be included are:
Unfertilized eggs
Poop/fertilizer
Achatina paste

Thieving is one of its abilities, if it is not right next to a creature that can potentially aggro on it when it takes the item is taken it will be ignored, while this is basically what it is normally, the range for Palaeoctopus is much smaller for aggro radius, allowing you to have an easier time taking precious roll rat gems or rock drake eggs without alerting the entirety of the red zone. 
====================================
Pearl gathering: (Pve utility)
Much like anglerfish, Palaeoctopus can gather Silica pearls along with black pearls at around the same rate, since anglerfish aren’t available on land. You will also only harvest pearls from trilobite corpses.
====================================
How its ridden:
You don't exactly ride Palaeoctopus normally, when you want to travel with Palaeoctopus, you will be grabbed by one of its tentacles, and this will give you control of it the same way any other ridable creature would. 
====================================
Taming method:

To tame a Palaeoctopus you need either silica pearls or black pearls, as it likes shiny items. With either of the pearls you must walk up to one and drop them, like a gacha. The palaeoctopus will pick it up and fill its “trust bar” and when the bar is full, it will be tamed.
 

Though there are stages to this trust:
Stage 1: This is the 0-30% range, in this area the Palaeoctopus will trust you enough to be around you for 20 seconds without spraying ink or losing trust.
Stage 2: 30-60% range, in this area you can stay with a Palaeoctopus for 40 seconds without it spraying ink/losing trust.
Stage 3: 60-90%, in this area you can pretty much just chill with it, and not worry about time.

After that it will be tamed.
===================================
Comfort food:
It has a unique comfort food that is needed for 100% imprinting, which is reaper pheromones. Which it also needs to eat, but for food nameless venom can also be used, though less effectively.
===================================
Stats:
Its stats make it more like a speedy glass creature, while not being very bulky or having a lot of weight, it can move around quickly and for long distances. Its base health for example would be 550, it makes up for this with its abilities. 

Edited July 16, 2023 by Katanaa

[Cruzoor69]

Creating a bigger octopus was my originally thought but to go with something smaller.  I do like the ideas katanaa brings to the table.

 

Edited July 8, 2023 by Cruzoor69
Alright Added, leaving comment instead.

[Draw2Death]

My 3rd pick after Koola and Lobster hope you best of luck Lil octopus!

[Cruzoor69]

Palaeoctopus – The Ancient Octopus

Name: Palaeoctopus.

Species Name: Palaeoctopus Newboldi.

Time Period: Late Cretaceous.

Diet: Carnivores

Temperament: Passive until attack.

 

Introduction

In modern times, there are around 300 species of octopus. Intelligent and diverse, these eight-armed Cephalopoda can be found across our planet.  From the Giant Pacific octopus to the Wolfi. In the fossil record, there are known species that date back over 500 million years like the Tusoteuthis.  Well… that’s a squid so it doesn’t count. But the Palaeoctopus dates back to the late Cretaceous period. The reason I chose an octopus for this submission is due to the abilities that these creatures have and how they could be utilized in-game. Not to mention that an octopus wouldn’t be misplaced amongst the alien denizens of the map.

Wikipedia link to the Octopus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octopus

Wikipedia link to the Palaeoctopus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palaeoctopus

Website of Prehistoric Cephalopoda: https://eartharchives.org/articles/500-million-years-of-cephalopod-fossils/index.html

 

Wild

The Palaeoctopus would be found in the blue zone. Around the Luminous Marshlands amongst the ponds in Aberration.  Catching fish or smaller prey with its tentacles. Encountering larger animals would force the octopus to flee, squirting ink at attackers and blinding them.  Upon confronting survivors, the Palaeoctopus would become curious.  Grabbing hold of a survivor, restricting their movements.  Struggling may provoke the Octopus to attack.  Palaeoctopus, when killed, would yield raw fish meat and oil when harvested.

 

Taming

The diet of octopuses in real life is small fish, crabs, clams, and snails. So, feeding them items similar to these would be ideal. While the octopus holds onto the survivor, passively feeding them the items in the last slot of the toolbar would begin the taming process. The octopus would let go of the survivor until it is ready to feed again. The Palaeoctopus would make random requests for raw fish meat, prime fish meat, Karkinos eggs, or even pearls.  Sometimes, the octopus might require the survivor to give it a tool like a stone pickaxe or primitive spear so it can play with it. This would also increase its taming meter.

 

Once Tamed

Once tamed, the Palaeoctopus would act as a shoulder pet, wrapping four of its tentacles around the survivor.  The other four would act as extra arms to do whatever the survivor wishes. Think of them like Doc Ock’s metallic arms, capable of multiple tasks. Using a variety of tools and equipment.

However, the Palaeoctopus must reach a certain intelligence level in order to use specific items.  The octopus would have a new stat called “Intelligence”.  This would work similarly to how the players would level up. For example, When the player levels up, engrams will be available to unlock.   The wooden club engram is unlocked at level 8, so the Palaeoctopus would have to reach level 8 in intelligence in order to use that tool. 

Like the Mantis, the octopus would have slots in which the survivor can equip items.  For example, one could have a pickaxe, one holding food which you could be passively fed, a torch held aloft in a third, and a pistol in the fourth. If the octopus was given heavier equipment like a rocket launcher if it reached level 87, it would take up multiple slots. Or if the octopus was given a shotgun, it would hold the gun in one arm but must have shotgun shells in another in order for the creature to use it.

Alternatively, the octopus could also pick items up from the ground within a radius of the survivor. Which could be useful when earthquakes erupt, and items emerge.

 

Color Changer

An adaptation that octopuses have is the ability to blend into their environment by using the chromatophores cells underneath their skin to change color.  While this feature could be useful to camouflage the survivor when equipped, it would be too similar to the rock drake’s ability to turn invisible. Also making it overpowered with the “multi-tasking” arms. Instead, I came up with the idea that the octopus would have the ability to copy the color regions of another creature and apply it to its own.

Asides from using mods like the dino colorizer, and during events where items can drop consumables, there is only one way to change a creature's color in the vanilla game; through breeding and mutating. There are a total of six color regions that can affect a creature's appearance and not every creature uses all of them. Only through mind-numbing effort can you breed a creature with the colors you want.

Link to the Dino Colorizer! Mod on the Steam Workshop: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=902616446&searchtext=dino+colour

What I’m proposing is that the Palaeoctopus would not only have the ability to copy a color region from any creature but apply the color to other creatures as well.  In both events, the octopus would latch itself onto the targeted creature and proceed to either copy or apply one of the color regions. However, when giving a color region to another creature, the octopus would require a resource in order to change its color. Perhaps at the cost of element ore which was first introduced in Aberration and would make sense lore-wise since element has the capabilities of changing organic matter.  This would give survivors the ability to not only customize their creatures but keep hold of colors.  Especially when limited-time events spawn creatures with exclusive colors.

 

Weakness

Since Octopus are water-based creatures, they need to stay hydrated otherwise they would dry up and die.  A similar feature could be applied to the Palaeoctopus.  If its water meter diminishes, it will start losing health and perish.  So, keeping the Palaeoctopus near water would be ideal.  Survivors could place water sources like waterskins, water jars, and canteens in their inventory and the octopus would use them to stay hydrated. Keeping them near taps in your greenhouse would also work. A hotter temperature would mean the water would go down quickly, making the Palaeoctopus harder to use in desert environments. This dependence on water would provide a limitation on the octopus and keep it from being too overpowered.

 

Conclusion

Originally, the Palaeoctopus was meant to be a rideable creature, allowing the survivor to scale walls and spit oil like throwing an oil jar.  But the shoulder pet was a better idea.

While these are my ideas for how the Palaeoctopus could work in Ark, I would like to know what you think.  Could you see this creature being utilized in Ark?

[typhoonmkt]

i like the design

[TestingMan20]

This is by far the coolest entry so far, other than the Motobite!!
A land octopus? Sign me up!!

[CosmicSaturday]

Very interesting submission. Hopefully it makes it in.

[Natesaurus]

No this, this is a genius idea. Honestly, with the right designs, this could work perfectly on this map. Heck, make the tentacles look like rockwells for the fun of it.

[Arkentia]

why i can vote?

[Carcharodonte]

me gusta la idea de que añadan mas cefalópodos al juego

 

[Ibbys]

I love it! 

[AudioDK]

Heck yes to the cephalopod. Idc what it does. Want octopus.

[imahuntya]

A bit big for my taste, but hey, I like the idea of an octopus.

[Durzep]

Very awesome and unique.  Have been wanting a cephalopod dino forever! Love it.

[LordSaladin16]

Sounds like a good fit for Abberation

[Jiberto]

This is definitely what I'm picking as number 1 if it makes the top 10

[Romuluas]

Such an awesome concept!

[DynastyOfDragons]

Had this creature in mind for Genesis 1, so that's why many of the things in here are Genesis 1 related. However, I believe these are still relevant to the current Palaeoctopus submission.

(survivor invisibility) Introducing Palaeoctopus, the Crafty Camouflaging Cephalopod   Tags: semi-aquatic, cephalopod, attacking with survivor, turret mode, weapon wielding, special meat, camouflage, hypnosis, shoulder pet

Common Name: Palaeoctopus Species: Palaeoctopus chromimus Time: Late Cretaceous Diet: Piscivore Temperament: Opportunistic   Wild:    “I have yet to see a creature nearly as adaptable to its environment Palaeoctopus chromimus. It thrives in every single biome in the Genesis simulation, an incredible feat for a cephalopod. Its secret seems to be its amphibious nature, being able to live out of water for long durations of time.   Palaeoctopus are also clever little buggers. They use color changing skin to either hypnotize prey or camouflage so well with their surroundings that they become invisible to the naked eye! I’ve also noticed they are particularly curious about man-made items like weaponry. They get spooked easily and spray a blinding ink when approached by creatures larger than them, so approach cautiously.”   Domesticated:    “The utility of color change cannot be stated enough. While on the shoulder of a survivor, it can grant its invisibility to them, though a weaker version of it. Hypnosis may come into great value in particular situations.   It’s important to note survivors can find use in its intelligence and coordination as well. It can attack while on the back of survivors with tentacle or ink, and can even properly handle melee and ranged weaponry. A Palaeoctopus’ knowledge is contagious, and increases the rate of learning in other nearby organisms.   Though I have yet to try it (nor the will to), I’ve heard Palaeoctopus meat is considered a fine delicacy by survivors and creatures alike.”   Introduction:   Greetings, survivors! I introduce to you the mimicking mollusk; the Palaeoctopus!   The foundational ideas for this dinosaur include:   Role as a shoulder pet that attacks with the user Camouflaging and invisibility Whip effect on melee attacks Ranged ink Ability to wield weapons   ARK only has two cephalopods, one being the untameable Ammonite, and the other being the Tusoteuthis, which is locked to the water. Considering octopi are known to be able to survive on land for at least short durations, I propose this concept so that we may have better representation of cephalopods in ARK. The way this operates as a shoulder pet is also unlike anything that has been introduced to the game.   Wild:   Palaeoctopus can be found in every biome of the Genesis simulation where there are bodies of water, most commonly in the Ocean biome. It is most often seen swimming around, but it may also travel onto land where it is more vulnerable. It's an opportunistic predator that will lure in fish and shoulder pet-sized creatures with its hypnotic colors. Anything bigger than itself regardless of the danger will send it into a panic, spraying blinding ink and cloaking itself beyond visibility.   Survivors will cause Palaeoctopus to panic on sight. However, if there are enough of them in the water, they may attempt to hypnotize you and attack you while you’re dazed.   Taming Process:   The Palaeoctopus is a curious critter, and finds man-made equipment quite fascinating. In order to tame it, it must be distracted with a weapon thrown into the water. Once it picks up and examines the weapon, it may be approached and fed Fish Meat. Taming speed and effectiveness is affected by both the quality of the gear and the quality of the food. Repeating the same weapon-type constantly will cause it to lose interest, so try giving it new things to examine when you can. This will cause it to spook and go invisible, dropping the weapon in the process. In the water, it will spray ink around it, while it doesn’t do this on land. While it may seem easier to perform this process on land, the Palaeoctopus is on a timer due to decreasing Oxygen outside of the water. Once it uncloaks, the process can be repeated until it is successfully tamed.   When tamed, it no longer only eats Fish Meat.   Tamed:   Congratulations! You’ve successfully tamed a Palaeoctopus! This talented tentacular fella has several tricks up its sleeve that come in handy in your time on Genesis 1.   Actions: Mounted Attacks: The Palaeoctopus will attack alongside the survivor it is riding depending on their weapon type. Melee: When using melee weapons, the Palaeoctopus attacks with its tentacles. This has a whip effect, knocking items out of a survivor’s hands. Ranged:  When using ranged weapons, the Palaeoctopus will shoot out ink. The ink applied the effect of Tusoteuthis’ Squid Ink, hindering vision and slowing the target down. Colors: The Palaeoctopus can toggle between three set modes involving its color. Standard: No color gimmick. Camouflage: While off-shoulder, it will go Shadowmane-level invisible. While on-shoulder, it will grant Rock Drake-level invisibility to itself and the survivor. This drains stamina at a decent rate, and the invisibility will end once stamina is depleted. Hypnosis: Flashes colors that hypnotize creatures within close proximity to it. This drains stamina fast, and the hypnotic effect will end once stamina is depleted. Turret Mode: A turret mode like a Velonasaur can be toggled off back, either launching ink or shooting the ammo of an equipped weapon.   Passive Abilities: Equipment Slots: Like a Mantis, the Palaeoctopus can equip weapons. However, it can also use ranged weapons like bows and guns. Equipping weapons into these slots will replace the effect of unarmed mounted attacks with the actual weapon’s properties. It can wear a helmet as well. XP Boost: All creatures, including survivors, will have their XP gain increased in their presence because of its sheer brain power. This also stacks with and enhances the Lystrosaurus’ unique effect. Palaeoctopus Meat: These cephalopods drop the unique Palaeoctopus Meat, which is essentially mutton-tier meat used primarily to tame aquatic and semi-aquatic carnivores, though quite effective on terrestrial ones as well. Many of its properties are the same as mutton, raw and cooked. Inky Death: Upon dying, it will expel all the ink from its body in a pool that slows down movement and attack speed. This also applies to the host its riding if killed on the shoulder. ⚠ Drowning on Land ⚠: When out of the water, the creature’s Oxygen stat will deplete gradually over time. This can be helped if you jump into a water source with it to refresh it, or have a source of water in its inventory like a Water Jar or Canteen.   Utility & Scenarios:   PvE: Palaeoctopus are useful in many ways for taming. Their ink attacks with ranged attacks like tranq arrows and tranq darts help slow creatures down, making them easier to hit and avoid. For passive tames, its cloak can provide cover as you approach a creature. Palaeoctopus Meat is great for getting the best taming effectiveness on water-dwelling creatures, and may come in a pinch if mutton isn’t readily available. A gradual increase to XP gain in their presence also ensures that dinosaurs and survivors level up fast and can prepare for particular activities sooner. With a ranged weapon equipped, it's possible Palaeoctopus may be the best shoulder pet to help in boss fights. Imagine having a shotgun, and then a second shotgun being fired by an octopus on your back.   PvP: The Palaeoctopus’ cloaking ability will get the most mileage in PvP. Granting players temporary invisibility is incredibly powerful, and can result in some very interesting strategies and playstyles. The whip effect and ink on unarmed octopi is great in foot PvP with one-on-one confrontations. Equipping weapons onto the octopi increases the danger they pose with the increased damage they can put out. Hypnosis can help divert the attention of creatures and survivors away from a particular point-of-interest for a short period. Upon death, the ink pool immobilizing enemies can also be used to your advantage. When off back, the invisibility and the turret mode synergize to be fairly terrifying. There are some exploitable weaknesses, however. Limited stamina means many of its abilities are temporary, and players will need to keep that in mind. Starting to drown mid fight may also pose potential problems unless worked into your advantage by timing the formation of an ink pool. Lastly, it can be fired off of a survivor’s shoulder. Being a very frail squishy thing, it dies very quickly and can put the user into a disadvantageous position.   Conclusion:   Without a doubt one of the more unique directions to take a shoulder pet. Fairly strong in its toolkit while having weaknesses that can be exploited by players and AI alike that rounds it out as (mostly) balanced. The oceans devoid of interesting creatures and cephalopods have middling representation in ARK, so these can be fixed by Palaeoctopus’ inclusion into the game.   Have fun, survivors!   References (Other Species of Octopus for Inspiration):

 

[Shoddy399]

i have always been a sucker for cephalopods the squid being one of my most favorite creatures

[Arambourgiania]

Love this idea and I see you added it to the more popular Palaeoctopus submission, good move.

[ashgcy]

Now this is the kind of concept we need for Aberration.

Cephalopods are weird, cephalopods on land are even weirder, and cephalopods that fly with an ink rocket? Now that is an aberrant animal right there!

Edited July 8, 2023 by ashgcy

[DragonFireRex2]

Love the idea of a land octopus!

[ElPINGUcubano94]

I love the amount of thought and creativity that went into this creature. The fact it has synergy with reapers is awesome. I like that it’s pvp oriented but in a more support role. The fact it can gather pearls like an angler is good utility. 
 

if I can add a few suggestions, I would say that as most ab creatures it should take either no or extremely reduced fall damage. It should be able to cling to surfaces and climb in any direction similar to rock drake due to its dexterity and powerful tentacles. The octopus should also be immune to radiation due to its chromatophore cells. 

And while the ink coating can apply to tribemates, yourself, or allied creatures to make them immune to plant Z, the ink ball projectile is a separate attack, in addition to making whatever it hits a target for nameless, it would blind and slow enemy tames and survivors for a few seconds and make them receive dramatically increased torpor, like double or triple (including from the reapers acid spray). It has a cooldown for balance    
 

Great job on the creature, you have my vote. 

[TomatoRandom]

Im a simply person, i see a cephalopod,i instantly vote.

CEPHALOPODS RISE UP!

[SaintSoulsborne]

Oh wow. We've never had a octopus in Ark