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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 0:47:41 GMT
Post by Razonatair on Apr 28, 2010 0:47:41 GMT
The humanoid form is simply that; a torso, two legs, and two arms(with the optional head). Beyond that, the differences can vary.
That spherical form doesn't allow for manipulating things above it, and its fatness is unnecessary. Seems rather inefficient and nonversatile to me.
You don't seem to understand the Tunmu viewpoint. Limiting factors like squatness/fatness are despised for the damage that is done to one's adaptability. A Tunmu sees the best form as being the one most able to deal with the most mediums. To them, one must be ready to adapt at any moment, due to the tendencies that have been ironed into them for billions of years. The humanoid happens to be rather versatile in this area, our colonization of practically the whole planet being a good example. While we might put on some clothes to survive the Arctic, the Tunmu might layer their body with natural insulation beneath the skin. It is far easier to grow insulation than it is to completely shift one's form simply to travel from a desert to a tundra.
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Clarke
Celestial Castellan
Posts: 116
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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 0:52:09 GMT
Post by Clarke on Apr 28, 2010 0:52:09 GMT
It was just an example. There are still more efficient forms than human ones.
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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 2:39:09 GMT
Post by Razonatair on Apr 28, 2010 2:39:09 GMT
Fighting The Tunmu
AKA: "How best to avoid dying while still kicking Tunmu ass."
-Note: This is written from the point of view of an unknown soldier from an unknown, nonexistent civilization. This is considered the introduction to that civilization's guide on combating Tunmu.
Fighting the Tunmu is not like fighting your average, soft-skinned sentient. There are a few basic rules that one must follow in order to not get oneself killed, either during battle or after, rules which should be quickly learned by any civilization;
1. Avoid The Blood!
Never, ever, ever allow the blood of a Tunmu to splatter onto or near any orifices. An extension of this is to never drink the blood of Tunmu, and, obviously, never eat a supposedly dead Tunmu. The Tunmu Bodily Colony could be shredded apart and rendered inoperable, but it is still highly dangerous, because it isn't truly dead until the sucker has been burned, melted, disintegrated, or any method of total destruction.
Blood is specifically mentioned because many a warrior has died of an infection of Tunmu Cells, simply because they got too carried away with the fighting and forgot to properly protect themselves, and allowed Tunmu blood to splash on their mouths or eyes. After battle, it is imperative that any soldier with Tunmu blood directly on his skin be rinsed in anything with the ability to kill the Cells.
2. Leave Nothing Left Alive!
As said before, it is imperative that an army destroy any living remnant of the Tunmu in order to be sure that the area is secure. There have been times where a soldier missed some flesh on the ground, which was promptly eaten by an animal, which itself was eaten by various members of our population, who quickly succumbed to infection. Obviously, the Tunmu in this instance were smart enough to manipulate their nervous systems and turn the infected into thralls instead of outright killing them. The result was the entire loss of a colony. The lesson: Don't screw around, soldier. Scan everywhere.
3. Fire Is Your Friend!
The Tunmu seem to have some kind of primal fear of literal fire, as far as reconnaissance can tell us. The intellectuals think its got something to do with the Tunmu having a long genetic history where fire was their own real "predator."
Despite the fact that the Tunmu can easily become fireproof, and often do, there is still that lingering irrational fear of fire that gives a Colony pause before its rational mind kicks in. During that moment of pause, you can nail the bastard before he figures out what's going on. If the Tunmu attacking you haven't made themselves fireproof, then all the better, because they'll stay the hell away from a good, well-lit torch, retreating to give themselves time to become fireproof. Fire is infinitely better against the infected as well, for the Tunmu know that they can't make the thrall fireproof. There are countless stories of civilians being lucky enough to figure this out, and becoming the only survivors in a sea of thralls, simply because they lit a fire and came prepared with fuel.
Of course, this principle only applies to close combat. At range, the Tunmu couldn't give less of a damn. Even if you were made of fire, they'd still shoot you. A torch or flare is just a good thing to have in case they decide to bum rush your platoon.
4. Explosives Are Very Bad!
You ever remember all those ideas our scientists had about stopping an asteroid? Remember how they said a nuke would only scatter an asteroid and worsen the damage? The same concept applies to the Tunmu.
Sure, blowing one of the animals apart is fun, but you've now made your clean up job a bigger pain in the ass than it has to be. There's no telling where the hell the pieces will land, meaning you now have to scan an even larger area, which just recalls principle two. You might even be unlucky enough to have some blood splatter on your eyes, and then you're really screwed, all because you thought it'd be fun to watch one of them explode.
5. They're Always Adapting, And You Must Too!
Perhaps most importantly, the Tunmu are always adapting to your tactics. They are, practically by definition, the most adaptive race in the known universe. Therefore, you must always be on your toes and vigilante. The days when grunts could be morons with guns are long over. Now, it's up to every grunt to make sure he knows the enemy and its movements, because your commander doesn't have eyes everywhere.
If the Tunmu are consistently attacking from one direction and using the same tactics, you can bet your mother's life that they're up to something. If they aren't doing anything, you must always be prepared for an ambush. Rarely do our soldiers ever come back from the front without some degree of paranoia, and it's unfortunate, but that's simply war when it comes to the Tunmu. They will use everything from frontal assaults, artillery bombardments, orbital bombardments, suicide bombings, guerrilla warfare, infected thralls, and so on. I can almost guarantee that any tactic you can think of, they've already thought of it and developed a dozen more.
Never underestimate the Tanmu, because the moment you let your guard down, they will rip you apart and eat you until there is nothing left to send home to momma.
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UFO King
Satellite Scribe
We've but one Earth on which to live.
Posts: 38
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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 22:58:11 GMT
Post by UFO King on Apr 28, 2010 22:58:11 GMT
Frickin awesome-sauce. I'll never eat cherry pie again.
Say, what about molecular disintegration?
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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 23:07:00 GMT
Post by Razonatair on Apr 28, 2010 23:07:00 GMT
Communication With The Tunmu
Communication with the Tunmu is decidedly difficult. They have no "language" to speak of, and understand only images and abstract thought, however, this understanding borders on an almost artistic interpretation of images.
1. Telepathic Communication The easiest of all methods is simply having a telepathic ambassador present, or, more preferably, multiple ambassadors. A single telepath could, in theory, be overwhelmed with the "chaos" of the Hive, and effectively go insane. After all, the "voices" of trillions all talking at once can be more than one can handle, if not particularly skilled.
Multiple linked ambassadors can divide the load to sane levels, if a single mind is ineffective, and possibly make sense of the supposedly chaotic swirlings of thought that make up a Hive.
However, whether singular or a multitude, experienced telepaths who often communicate with any Tunmu Hive come to discover there is a kind of siren-like melody hidden in supposed chaos, that kind of flows into different notes representing emotion, irresistibly blissful and beautiful. This "Call of the Hive" has the potential to become first an addiction, eventually leading to the telepath becoming one with the Hive. A strong telepath can defend himself from the Call for years, even decades, but lesser telepaths grow increasingly more susceptible to it, as their strength decreases. Thus, it is often best to rotate out telepaths in order to let the effects of the Call fade, assuming they have encountered it within the chaos of the Hive.
2. A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words
Somewhat more difficult and far more susceptible to misunderstanding the medium of artistic expression. The supposed "animals" of the Hive are remarkably gifted when it comes to painting or drawing, creating dazzling images in minutes. However, what a Tunmu sees in a river could be entirely different from what an Amorusk might see symbolized by it. Thus, it is generally best that this method be the least used.
3. Let The Infection In
Very dangerous, this method involves sacrificing a sentient to the Tunmu Hive. They're injected with a small Tunmu Cellular Colony, which will most often attack the nervous system first. For a few hours, the soon-to-be thrall will hear the thoughts of the Hive, and be able to relay them to recorders. Depending on whether or not the Tunmu understand what the civilization is doing, it will either consume the thrall from the inside out, and have to be burned, or stop the infection at the nervous system, becoming a diplomatic conduit. In any case, the thrall is still extremely dangerous, and must be restrained at all times, lest some rogue, aggressive Hive element convince it to attack.
4. Teach Them
The most difficult of the four methods, teaching the Tunmu one's language is most likely the best method. It is an incredibly slow process, but the long-term effects eliminate the need to use telepaths or art to try to convey thought.
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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 23:10:20 GMT
Post by Razonatair on Apr 28, 2010 23:10:20 GMT
Frickin awesome-sauce. I'll never eat cherry pie again. Say, what about molecular disintegration? Anything involving total annihilation is effective. Like nuclear weapons and the such.
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DarthGrievi
Satellite Scribe
He's watching...
Posts: 61
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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 23:20:51 GMT
Post by DarthGrievi on Apr 28, 2010 23:20:51 GMT
*Goes and stockpiles nukes* Ah, yes, communication difficulties. Part of the zest of harder sci-fi. I like it
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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 23:23:02 GMT
Post by Razonatair on Apr 28, 2010 23:23:02 GMT
I love the irony that the Tunmu, which often behave like animals, can produce art which exceeds the likes of Da Vinci, Picasso, etc.
I was a bit reluctant to throw in the communication difficulties, but it just fits their character. It's just something extra to wrestle with in RP, I suppose.
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Clarke
Celestial Castellan
Posts: 116
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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 23:40:07 GMT
Post by Clarke on Apr 28, 2010 23:40:07 GMT
Last two updates were awesome.
One thing though. Telepathy?
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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 23:42:47 GMT
Post by Razonatair on Apr 28, 2010 23:42:47 GMT
I assume if the Tunmu can communicate across the expanse of space, I can't restrict it to them alone. That would just be unfair/I can't describe. Perhaps a very complex and rare but similar genetic mutation allows a few others of another race to communicate similarly to the Tunmu. Or maybe it's a different mutation, but they still have the ability to kind of "connect" to the Tunmu quantum grid, if you want to describe it that way.
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Clarke
Celestial Castellan
Posts: 116
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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 23:45:20 GMT
Post by Clarke on Apr 28, 2010 23:45:20 GMT
How would they do that? I don't think it would be that far off to have tunmu communicate via electromagnetism through others of their hive, but full-blown telepathy seems a bit too much, plus something that the other races wouldn't have.
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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 23:48:55 GMT
Post by Razonatair on Apr 28, 2010 23:48:55 GMT
Eh. Gec has stated his opinions on the matter. I happen to think the Tunmu wouldn't understand electromagnetic communication, having no use for it.
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Clarke
Celestial Castellan
Posts: 116
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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 23:53:36 GMT
Post by Clarke on Apr 28, 2010 23:53:36 GMT
Well, even if they could use telepathy, none of the other's organisms can(that I am aware of, at least).
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Tunmu
Apr 28, 2010 23:55:06 GMT
Post by Razonatair on Apr 28, 2010 23:55:06 GMT
They can't directly use telepathy. The Tunmu can't make the connection; other telepaths make it. And I'm sure Yuu could figure out a workaround for that little problem, knowing him.
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Clarke
Celestial Castellan
Posts: 116
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Tunmu
Apr 29, 2010 0:03:06 GMT
Post by Clarke on Apr 29, 2010 0:03:06 GMT
Telepaths?
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