<HTML> <HEAD> <TITLE>Natural Selection Manual</TITLE> <META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> <script language="JavaScript"> <!-- function MM_swapImgRestore() { //v3.0 var i,x,a=document.MM_sr; for(i=0;a&&i<a.length&&(x=a[i])&&x.oSrc;i++) x.src=x.oSrc; } function MM_preloadImages() { //v3.0 var d=document; if(d.images){ if(!d.MM_p) d.MM_p=new Array(); var i,j=d.MM_p.length,a=MM_preloadImages.arguments; for(i=0; i<a.length; i++) if (a[i].indexOf("#")!=0){ d.MM_p[j]=new Image; d.MM_p[j++].src=a[i];}} } function MM_findObj(n, d) { //v4.0 var p,i,x; if(!d) d=document; if((p=n.indexOf("?"))>0&&parent.frames.length) { d=parent.frames[n.substring(p+1)].document; n=n.substring(0,p);} if(!(x=d[n])&&d.all) x=d.all[n]; for (i=0;!x&&i<d.forms.length;i++) x=d.forms[i][n]; for(i=0;!x&&d.layers&&i<d.layers.length;i++) x=MM_findObj(n,d.layers[i].document); if(!x && document.getElementById) x=document.getElementById(n); return x; } function MM_swapImage() { //v3.0 var i,j=0,x,a=MM_swapImage.arguments; document.MM_sr=new Array; for(i=0;i<(a.length-2);i+=3) if ((x=MM_findObj(a[i]))!=null){document.MM_sr[j++]=x; if(!x.oSrc) x.oSrc=x.src; x.src=a[i+2];} } //--> </script> <link rel="stylesheet" href="css/alien.css" type="text/css"> </HEAD> <BODY BGCOLOR=#000000 leftmargin="0" topmargin="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" onLoad="MM_preloadImages('images/design/buttons_nav_on.gif','images/design/buttons_gen_on.gif','images/design/buttons_front_on.gif','images/design/buttons_alien_on.gif','images/images/alien_bacterium_s.gif','images/images/alien_hive_s.gif','images/images/alien_chambers_s.gif','images/images/alien_species_s.gif')" background="images/design/page_background.gif" text="#FFFFFF" link="#0099FF"> <table border=0 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 width="704" height="512" align="center"> <tr> <td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=40 height=1></td> <td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=33 height=1></td> <td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=24 height=1></td> <td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=375 height=1></td> <td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=82 height=1></td> <td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=175 height=1></td> <td> <img src="images/design/spacer.gif" width=39 height=1></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan=2> <img src="images/design/surround_ne1.gif" width=73 height=34></td> <td> <img src="images/design/surround_power.gif" width=24 height=34></td> <td colspan=4> <img src="images/design/surround_n.gif" width=671 height=34></td> </tr> <tr> <td height="103" valign="top"><img src="images/design/red/surround_title_w.gif" width="40" height="103"></td> <td colspan=3 height="103" valign="top"> <table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" height="103"> <tr> <td height="57"><img src="images/design/red/surround_title_animated.gif" width="432" height="57"></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" background="images/design/red/surround_title_s.gif"><span class="sectiontext"><font color="#FF6600"><a href="alien.html" class="sectionlink">Kharaa Data</a> :: <a href="alien_species.html" class="sectionlink">Species</a>: Changing Species</font></span></td> </tr> </table> </td> <td height="103" valign="top"><img src="images/design/red/surround_title_c.gif" width="82" height="103"></td> <td height="103" valign="top"> <table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" height="103"> <tr> <td><a href="introduction.html" onMouseOut="MM_swapImgRestore()" onMouseOver="MM_swapImage('button_nav','','images/design/buttons_nav_on.gif',1)"><img name="button_nav" border="0" src="images/design/buttons_nav_off.gif" width="175" height="25"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td><a href="general.html" onMouseOut="MM_swapImgRestore()" onMouseOver="MM_swapImage('button_general','','images/design/buttons_gen_on.gif',1)"><img name="button_general" border="0" src="images/design/buttons_gen_off.gif" width="175" height="23"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td><a href="frontiersmen.html" onMouseOut="MM_swapImgRestore()" onMouseOver="MM_swapImage('button_tsa','','images/design/buttons_front_on.gif',1)"><img name="button_tsa" border="0" src="images/design/buttons_front_off.gif" width="175" height="28"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td height="2"><a href="alien.html" onMouseOut="MM_swapImgRestore()" onMouseOver="MM_swapImage('button_alien','','images/design/buttons_alien_on.gif',1)"><img name="button_alien" border="0" src="images/design/buttons_alien_off.gif" width="175" height="27"></a></td> </tr> </table> </td> <td height="103" valign="top"><img src="images/design/surround_title_e.gif" width="39" height="103"></td> </tr> <tr> <td height="103" valign="top" colspan="7"> <table width="768" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" height="424" align="left"> <tr> <td background="images/design/red/surround_w.gif"><img src="images/design/red/surround_w.gif" width="40" height="482"></td> <td width="472" background="images/design/red/background.gif" valign="top"> <p><img src="images/design/red/background_n.gif" width="689" height="16"></p> <table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" width="100%" height="63"> <tr> <td align="center" valign="top"> <table width="100" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> <tr> <td><img src="images/titles/alien_changingspecies.gif" width="628" height="25" hspace="25"></td> </tr> <tr> <td> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <table width="628" border="0" cellspacing="5" cellpadding="5" align="center"> <tr> <td> <p> <img src="images/images/10red_data.gif" width="13" height="10"> Ever resource conscious, the bacterium always first creates <a href="alien_skulk.html">Skulks</a> – they seem to provide the best results for the least investment. After aliens spawn as Skulks, they can change their form into the other four species described here. A gestation sac forms around them, and resources and information are drawn from the bacterium. The alien that emerges appears to have the same knowledge and <a href="alien_evolutions.html">evolutions</a> as it did in its previous form. An alien must have access to enough <a href="alien_resources.html">resources</a> to gestate into each species. Some complex forms also require two or more <a href="alien_hive.html">hives</a> to be active.</p> <p>The higher cost of more complex species leads to fascinating variation in tactics. Losing one <a href="alien_onos.html">Onos</a> costs the aliens as much as a dozen (evolved) <a href="alien_skulk.html">Skulks</a>. Because they basically "cost" nothing, Skulks seem to be more reckless and willing to die to destroy their target than their more powerful, and more expensive, brothers. On the other hand, a single Onos can destroy an entire squad and base.</p> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> <table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" width="100%"> <tr> <td align="center" valign="top"> <div align="center"> </div> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> </td> <td background="images/design/red/surround_e.gif"><img src="images/design/red/surround_e.gif" width="37" height="482"></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="3" height="2"><img src="images/design/red/surround_s.gif" width="768" height="81"></td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> </BODY> </HTML>