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Introduction: Greetings, survivors! I introduce to you the ever-evolving arachnid; the Deinocroton! The foundational ideas and selling points for this arachnid include: Changing roles depending on its stage of life Skill tree with unique abilities Glow pet that can eventually be ridden Reeling harpoon mouth Ability to climb walls Deinocroton fits well with the alien and horror-esque landscape of Aberration’s deepest caverns. The map lacking a new tameable creepy crawly has been a huge missed opportunity that can be rectified with Deinocroton’s inclusion. The planned abilities and mechanics of this creature, as explained in detail later on, set it apart as potentially one of the most unique creatures ARK has ever seen. It also takes advantage of the introduction of wild baby dinosaurs into Survival Ascended. Dossier Data Common Name: Deinocroton Species: Deinocroton lumos Time: Late Cretaceous Diet: Sanguivore Temperament: Adaptable Wild: “I think Deinocroton lumos is the first species on the ARKs I’ve seen that exhibits ontogenetic niche partitioning. To put that into simple terms, they fill different roles in the ecosystem depending on their age. Larvae hatch in the upper reaches of the caverns, and migrate further down the larger they get. The larvae are true parasites like normal ticks, while juveniles and adult specimens are pure ambush predators. If their victims successfully kill their attackers, they’ll explode into a pool of irradiated guts and gore. It’s almost as interesting as it is certainly horrifying to witness. Unlike the ticks of Earth, both females and males of all ages will gorge themselves on blood. They prefer creatures that produce charge, since they are seemingly unable to produce their own.” Domesticated: “Though I doubt many survivors would enjoy having this vampiric arachnid near them EVER, they do provide some very interesting uses. Like in “nature”, each phase can fill a unique role. Larvae can rest on your shoulder and be thrown to latch onto targets, while older individuals can be ridden to climb along the cave’s walls. Deinocroton grow at a rapid rate after feeding on blood and charge, and when they molt, certain parts of their body will mutate and adapt to certain conditions. Survivors may be able to directly influence their growth to become better specialized for specific purposes, whether it be supporting, attacking, or defending.” Wild: The Deinocroton can be found in all three levels of the derelict ARK’s caverns. However, each layer contains a different stage of their life cycle that gets older the deeper down you go. Phase 1: This early stage is about the size of any other glow pet, and it is found within the Green Zone. They latch onto the bodies of larger creatures like Spinos, draining their blood. They may attach to your tame, and you can get them off by hitting them. Phase 2: This middle stage is closer to the size of an Araneo, and it is found within the Blue Zone. They rest on the walls of the cave, looking on from a distance and waiting for prey to approach. Prey the size of a human or smaller is speared with a long harpoon-like structure (called a hypostome) and reeled toward them like a Bloodstalker, and you can break out in the same way. They come in different forms, so they’re unpredictable. Phase 3: This final stage is about the size of a Trike, and it is found within the Red Zone. Unlike their previous stages, these Deinocroton bury themselves underground, waiting for prey to pass over them before lunging out. Their hypostome harpoon can now drag creatures of their own size. Being pinned and distressed attracts the attention of other beasts in the depths. Individuals possess even greater variety than Phase 2. All of these stages are attracted to charge light, and will most likely ignore survivors and their tames as long as they don’t have chargelight on. They will also explode upon death, bursting into irradiated blood. Phase References: Larva (Phase 1), Nymph (Phase 2), Adult Female (Phase 3) Taming Process: Only Phase 1 and Phase 2 can be tamed. Phase 3 Deinocroton are too independent and stubborn to be convinced of human allies. Phase 1: Use aberrant variants of larger creatures as hosts, as the ticks will be lured if they’re hostless. Multiple individuals can latch on at once and suck the blood of the host creature, and will eventually tame. Managing your creature’s health is of utmost importance, as its death will cause the ticks to become disinterested and lose taming effectiveness rapidly. Phase 2: Almost identical to a Bloodstalker, though they will only accept glow pets or humans who have charged batteries on hand. Even if you don’t have these things, they will still attack you, but will not tame. Tamed: Congratulations! You’ve successfully tamed a Deinocroton! Now with this predatory parasite under your control, you’ll find that it will provide you with a swath of unique uses. Skill Tree & Evolution Mechanic: Each phase is dramatically different from the previous. All Phase 1’s are the same, while Phase 2’s and 3’s will have the option to be upgraded upon reaching those phases. A meter will slowly increase overtime and can be sped up by feeding the Deinocroton blood packs and batteries. When the meter is full, the creature is ready to molt and enter the next phase. From here, survivors can upgrade certain aspects and abilities in the style of a skill tree. Think of Evolve's evolution mechanic in the style of what Therizinosaurus, Moschops, or Troodon have. Phase 2 will begin which particular path you want to go down, while Phase 3 will focus on specializations within that class. The appearance of the individual will permanently change. Classes: Support: Upgrades charge light and resource collection. Attack: Upgrades attack strength and maneuverability. Tank: Upgrades damage resistances and lifesteal. Phase 1: Shoulder Pet Actions: Throw: When thrown off of your shoulder, it will leap through the air and latch onto a large enough target. It will start stealing their health and generating blood packs in its inventory. This also induces torpor. Charge Light: Like normal, charge light can be toggled on and off by using the “Lights!” emote. Phase 2 & 3: Mount Actions: Primary Attack (, , ): A basic bite attack. Secondary Attack (, , ): A reticle will appear, allowing the Deinocroton to aim. Press the primary attack to shoot out the hypostome harpoon and reel prey towards you. As long as the harpoon is connected, health and charge (if applicable) will be drained rapidly over time. Victims can free themselves by attacking, dealing damage to the creature. The Attack tree enhances the drain rate and range of this attack. Charge Light (Click C, , ): Charge light can be toggled on and off while on its back. Jump (Press Space, , ): A basic jump. Can attach to walls and climb. The Attack tree enhances jump height. Burrow (Phase 3 Exclusive): Like a Purlovia, the Deinocroton can hide underground and act as a living landmine. It can be set to different modes depending on what the survivor wants. Dormant: No attacking. Trap: Catch large creatures in their jaws, rendering them immobile. Explode: Explode, killing itself and others around it. Passive Abilities: (Available across all Phases) Charge Light: Like a regular glow pet, Deinocroton emits charge light, though it operates slightly differently. They can’t regenerate their own charge, and must collect it from outside sources, such as ally glow pets. The Support tree enhances charge capacity, range, and regeneration. Radiation Immunity: They are immune to radiation. Lifesteal: Like a Desmodus, Deinocroton steals health from their targets and collects blood packs as they attack. The Tank tree enhances lifesteal, and the Support tree enhances the blood pack collection. Death-splosion: Upon death, the tick will explode and deal AOE damage. The damage of the explosion scales with the amount of stored chargelight in its body and the phase it is currently in. The Tank tree enhances the damage of the explosion. Unique Breeding: Only Phase 3 Deinocrotons are able to breed, and only Phase 1’s will hatch from eggs. Once they have hatched, they can be used as tames right away. The upgraded traits of the parents do not carry down to their offspring. Utility & Scenarios: PvE: Each phase possesses a unique niche. Phase 1 can be used as a typical glow pet and as a taming tool, using the torpor quality of its blood sucking to knock large creatures unconscious. Phase 2 is the most mobile, and is one of the better traversal methods. With its ability to climb, it can grab Rock Drake eggs fairly easily, though be wary of their lower stats. Phase 3 is the strongest, and can be used as a proper battle mount. Regardless of phase, their ability to steal blood packs and their production of charge light will always be useful. Deinocroton exclusively used in PvE may run a primarily Support build. PvP: Each phase also has a distinct PvP use. Phase 1 can be used as an annoying parasite, draining health and constantly applying tick damage (hah) overtime. Players would need to remove them by attacking them, and due to their frailty, will most likely kill them. Phase 2 fills the niche of a poor man’s Bloodstalker, being an agile wall climber that can snatch riders off of their mounts. Phase 3 is the most useful, as it is the strongest and bulkiest of all. Damage reduction and survivability from a Tank build may allow it to fight on the ground. A Phase 3 buried under the ground to act as a trap or landmine to guard your base serves its own utility as well. Regardless of phase, charge light will repel tamed Reapers, and their explosions upon death will force survivors to be cautious when approaching and dispatching the ticks. Conclusion: While another arthropod recently won, being the Rhyniognatha, Deinocroton is distinct enough from it that they have little to no overlap outside of being bugs. Bloodstalker comparisons can also be drawn, with Deinocroton possibly being considered a slower and bulkier counterpart. Its abilities and versatility based on its unique mechanics provide an interesting experience for players and change up how they play the game. A giant monstrous tick glowing in the depths of Aberration is a horrifying, though fitting, sight to behold. Have fun, survivors! Art by Jadstone Written by Dynasty