Community The Agaran Menace

None of them were lucky, but they certainly had varying levels of unluckiness.

The fortunate ones died quickly from the debris, and didn't have to experience ebullism, hypoxia, hypocapnia, and high-energy blah blah Space drowning.

 

I haven't seen half of the articles you reference here.
Additionally, you assume to much of the young avians.
I would also assume that the tomb ships aren't meant to be derelict; like other tombs, they're meant to have tomb guards. They were just busy attending the festival that they were forced to attend.
Also, the faulty airlock could have easily been in an area where half the crew was, where the agaran was in the storage area or possibly a hallway at that point. The debris (probably consisting of tables and chairs) would have easily missed it.

 

It doesn't necessarily say the fungi colony repaired the hull by using materials that were purposed to fixing hull breaches or other damage. Possibly the fungi colony itself was the repair material. Similarly to the "plant matter" blocks we have as a part of the Agaran structures in the game right now.

Also, I am a Nazi. Grammar Nazi. Canon.

They are all the parts of the same article.

~ ~ ~

Why the Sunborn on the ship wasn't one of the Seven:

• It's never been stated the original Sunborn died. They just disappeared.
• The Sunborn died to the fungal illiness. In the case this is one of the seven, Agarans are centuries old. However, they've been noticed only recently.
• The crew didn't pay any attention to the physical appearance. If it had been a unknown race, there would've a lot more reactions. (Unless Avians know what Sunborn look like)
• There has been many Sunborn through the ages, majority of which must've been Avians.

Simplest answer is usually the correct one.

 

After reading the excellent translation notes on the Agarans, I feel I have sufficient evidence to offer a speculation on who or what the Agarans are.

First, let me begin by apologizing to any Floran readers as this may upset them. The relations between my people and yours are, at best, strained, I am sad to say. I do not understand why this is so as we are both a proud warrior people and the universe is vast. Suffice it to say I bear no racial animosity toward Florans and seek only to help and heal.

That being said, I believe the Agarans are involved in some deep, sinister way with the Florans. Let me explain.

My initial suspicions surfaced when I read the translations of Agaran directed at my fellow Hylotls and me. I realized that they have nothing but contempt and disgust for us, and it reminded me a great deal of the typical inflammatory anti-Hylotl banter I encounter when passing through a Floran sector. This got me thinking.

I am a mid-sized farm operator who just moved off of an alpha world to a gamma-sector Protoworld for the increased moisture and better soil fertility. I have seen my fair share of plant infections. Florans are sentient plant beings, and as such, I assume--though it is only an assumption; experimentation or vivisection on living Florans is an abomination and an insult to my personal code of ethical conduct--that Florans have physiologies, metabolic processes, and immune systems that are similar to those of non-sentient vegetation. Granted, the metabolism would have to be much higher than a vegetative plant's as cognition is a high-energy process, to say nothing of locomotor coordination. Still, I am theorizing that the same pathogens that can infect and destroy the crops I grow and love might be able to have similarly detrimental impacts on Florans.

I do not mean to suggest that Florans are simply walking vegetables. Quite to the contrary, they are highly advanced organisms with culture, society, and moral-ethical mores. All that being said, humans have for centuries tested medical procedures on non-sentient mammals and other animal lifeforms. Hylotl freely acknowledge that they have similar biological functions with those of amphibians (note: NOT with fish!!!!! That is a pernicious lie!). It is not at all a bad thing for Florans, therefore, to have similar biological function to non-sentient plant life.

Let us suppose, then, that just as a tomato plant or a zucchini bush can be infected with blighting mildew or some other form of fungus, so a Floran can pick up a fungal infection. But whereas in an infected crop plant, a fungal infection simply causes the leaves to discolor, wither, and eventually die, perhaps in a sentient plant, such a fungal infection could affect the mind.

Moreover, it is not unheard of for certain fungal pathogens to cause strange growths on the host organism. Actually, a good example of a fungal agent doing precisely that is the Cordyceps spp. fungus that infects and can nearly wipe out some terran ant colonies. This fungus infects the brainstem of an ant host, eventually driving it ant-insane. It activates a negative gravitaxis, driving the ant to have a sort of instinctive urge to climb climb climb, higher and higher. Once the ant is far up a tree or bush above the colony, the fungus then urges the ant to drive its mouth into the bark, bite on for dear life, and then die. This anchors the ant's body in place while the fungus completes the end of its life cycle, growing a rather horrifying stalk out of the ant's head and then releasing spores which rain down upon the entire colony, helping to spread the infection. Scary stuff!

Here is some unsettling graphic evidence of what Cordyceps spp. does to ants. Note, it infects other insects as well with similar results. This is sort of an insect-zombie fungus. Hideous stuff, really. Well! I'm not sleeping tonight!​

Thus, is it possible that the Agarans are actually a fungally-infected, terminally ill Floran phenomenon? As evidence, consider the following:

1.) Many of the words that Agarans say are intelligible, while the ones that are not seem to thwart universal translators, suggesting that it is not really a fully intelligible language
2.) Agarans appear to be somewhat primitive and barbaric in their behavior, which could be a symptom of neurological decline in the Floran host body.
3.) Agaran are often seen near plant matter that is very similar to that seen in Floran dungeons and towns.
4.) Agarans seem to hate and despise Hylotls and liken them to fish. This is very similar to the Floran's long-lived comparison of our people to fish. I can no longer count on one hand the number of times I've been minding my own business, peacefully wandering through a Floran town only to be confronted with "Rrrrrage at ssssuden fissssh!" from some schoolboy of a Floran!
5.) The fact that Agarans appear to take Floran prisoners suggests that somehow the Agarans are using the Florans. They don't seem to be eating them, nor do they appear to be killing them. Are they infecting them with a fungal agent and turning Florans into Agarans?
6.) Many of the Agaran outposts I've seen have resembled flower-buds in cross-section. Could this be an adaptation of a traditional Floran design?
7.) It's no mystery that many of the flesh-and-blood races are on edge at the discovery of the Florans. After the violent interaction between the Florans and Avians, and given that Florans are strict obligate carnivores, many races have begun to tell their children stories of the Floran bogeyman waiting in some far-flung corner of the galaxy to snare and consume them! This is, of course, racial insensitivity and is backwards thinking. Nevertheless, it is also something that is happening and is a stereotype that Floran Raiders are seen to confirm in the eyes of many, which brings shame and dishonor upon the Floran community in general, I am sad to say.
7b.) Could it, therefore, be possible that one of the flesh-and-blood races took it upon themselves to create a biological weapon to fight against the Florans?
8.) We note that Agarans are frequently seen living in half-destroyed Apex compounds. Why would Agarans target them so specifically?

All of this, taken together leads me to this conclusion:

The Big Ape Apex--not to be confused with the many, many brave women and men among the Apex who are fighting Big Ape's totalist government--may have created a biological weapon that would combat the Florans whom they saw as an encroaching threat to the spread of their own absolute social engineering. The Apex, more than any other race, have the sophisticated bioengineering capabilities to concoct such a weapon, and the Big Ape government has not been shy about broadcasting its "Our way or the high way" foreign policy. I suspect, therefore, that the Apex created a fungal strain that would infect Florans and was intended to impair their neurological function, making them easier to conquer in open warfare.

The fact that many Agarans have strange growths upon their heads while still having overall plant-like appearance makes me suspect this, too. Indeed, I have seen some of the Agaran pods described above that were either still closed or were already empty. Since I did not wish to provoke the Agarans, I never opened an as yet closed pod. However, about a week ago I stumbled upon a partially opened Agaran pod with a semi-conscious Apex male partially eclosed/emerged from within. I was not able to rouse the Apex or obtain any identifying information about him. He is unable to respond to any verbal cues or commands, and for fear of causing him further harm out of sheer ignorance of Apex physiology, I have not extricated him from the pod. I have attached a holographic capture of my initial investigation of the Apex.

Initial inspection of Apex subject. Do you know this man?​

Please, if any Apex readers know who this man is or know of a non-Big Ape medical treatment center that could afford him better care, contact me right away through a forum private message or a reply to this post. He appears to be well beyond the age of adolescence or I would have put out an Ape-r Alert right away.

It is this man's condition that has cemented, in my mind, the Apex as being somehow inextricably linked to the appearance and proliferation of the Agarans.

The Big Ape government should be on official notice: it would be far better for the intergalactic community to learn of biological weapons production from you directly. I will say this for the Hylotl Galactic Dominion: should we discover that the origins of Agarans lie in a biological assault from the Big Ape government--or any government, for that matter--against the Floran people, trade embargos will be put in place immediately pending further judiciary decisions from a duly-convened intergalactic panel. Peace has too much to offer all of our races for us to throw it away on some churlish assault reminiscent of ancient history. Moreover, it is dishonorable and cowardly to launch a secret offensive against a proud and noble race such as the Floran. On behalf of the Hylotl Galactic Dominion, we stand with the Florans in decrying covert military-industrial operations as kindred spirits in warrior code.

 

[quote="1John5vs7, post:

[/quote]​

Plantnius: "Greetings, and thank you hylotl for your underssstanding. I gotta correct you that floransss have blue blood and and colorfull meat. And even if agaransss vere floransss i will kill them if there isss no cure. But now i need to implement this ssspore destroying program into SAIL. Good luck with your recearch!"

 

What's so hard about this? We just kill them.

If they turn out to be good, it's simply a few insignificant casualties...


Besides...

EDIT- And while we're killing plant people, why not include some florans?

 

I think all this roleplaying and rampant speculation that uses little or no evidence from the game is giving me cancer.

 

Warning=The posts above may contain crabs

 

• This was no minor misunderstanding, they're on charge for attempted genocide, torture, execution of war prisoners, defiling of bodies of the highest degree and countless other crimes against basic sapient rights and these acts of aggression are still abundant now.

• Proud, maybe but noble? definitely not. They actively kill each other for power and treat other races like animals to be hunted, they cannibalize each other and need a set of very specific rules from their leader (Greenfinger) just not to kill anyone on sight and yet they still often find ways of twisting that law to kill anyone unfortunate enough to pass through.

• The Florans kindred spirit is reserved for only those that aren't edible. Their code consists of "if its fleshy, stab it!". They are a race of primitive hunters, anyone foolish enough to stand with the Florans would soon be pieces in the Florans if they don't become a skull on a spike.

Other than that, this theory isn't new however its one of the more logical ones.

 

The Floran's are the real menace. The Agarans seem far more like pacifists than the Florans. I imagine the Floran prisoners are being held after attempting to eat the Agarans.

 

Each and every race is held back by some figure that acts as a central authority, but I don't need to tell you that. The Apex have the Big Ape, the Florans have Greenfinger, and I think the Avians got Thornwing. Humans the U.S.C.M. and the Glitch whatever strange programming that rejects individuality in most cases.

Factions, factions everywhere, but from experience I can say I've seldomly found Agarans not doing strange things. So well, they are mostly shoot on sight.

On a side note: Agarans drop "hats" that eerily resemble their own heads. Made me think of Cordyceps fungus. Perhaps Agarans need to infest a humanoid organism in order to acquire the advantages of a humanoid body. Perhaps they replace a subject's brain and central nervous system, popping out where the head used to be...

 

You evil banana...
those are their heads!

 

Coincidentally, I am a banana. Blame it on Apex scientsits. The wedding dress and prop angel wings are charms to deflect bullets (voodoo ftw)

 

Inspiration came from this image: The more garish-looking your BDU, the least you are shot at apparently.

 

Humans do that, and it's the apex storyline.
Considering you're an advocate for agaran genocide, you can't really use that against them.
Humans did that, and still do today, there's a celebrity who's famous for having done such a thing.
Quick, disregard universal crime rates and the purpose of law!
...If you don't want to get eaten, quit making yourself susceptible to being eaten.
Avians were a race of primitive, LAZY hunters. Then they got uplifted by some 'greater beings'.
Besides, for a race of primitive hunters, they've got a lot more than any of the other races did.

Grammar, assumptions, and unfounded claims. You can be racist as much as you guys want, but unless you're a human or a hylotl, your opinion is unsupported by the rest of your species.

 

• Humans in our world do that, you cant compare Starbound Humans to reality,Greenfinger ordered the hit on Lax unless your referring to Big Ape usurping control but he is clearly a special case.
• I am no such thing, iv'e been arguing against their extinction from the beginning.
• Point 1
• That was discussed previously on this thread and others and its a pretty long debate.
• NOT EVERYONE IS BORN WITH METALLIC EXOSKELETON *over exaggerated arm movements*
• They are a very flexible and adaptive race, but still primitive in comparison to the other races also that depends on what you mean by "they've got a lot more".

 

Guys, guys, it is very simple: if it drops hats, we kill it. Otherwise, bandits would not drop hats so often if the developers didn't want them dead, right? Wild critters drop stuff too, and they're out for our blood. It's all part of the plan, of the same circular set of events that transcends our petty wars and ulterior motives.... If it bleeds, it can die, and if it drops hats, it must die.

Of course this simplistic logic might lead its adherents to consider even chests and containers as something in need of slaughter, but what do I know? After all, my character regularly ransacks furniture and doors from settlements in the misguided attempt to "feed" the 3D printer on-board, machine that since all must be said, deigns it his god.

 

I read about 107 pages of this thing, and it is amazing.

Here's my theory:

From the notes of the scientist: Kelptail.

Name: Agaran
Varieties: G0-G3
G0: G0 Agaran, or mushroom mobs, are small, mushroom like animals that appear to be livestock similar to sheep or cows of the humans. The Agarans do not kill them, so it would appear that either 1) Agarans are vegetarian or 2) They use them for purposes such as milk and wool (Their Mushroom caps, maybe?)

G1: G1 Agaran are your everyday, common and garden Agaran. They grow from pods. They are workers, and build the Agaran homes and other structures. They take the form of a stinkhorn or puffball mushroom. The lab boys have taken to calling them Pizza Toppings. The ones found in their villages are peaceful. I have named them Agarius Humilis Pacem, meaning Agaran Humble Peace in Latin. In short, Peaceful Agaran G1. The agressive Agaran can be found torturing Floran. I have worries about this, despite the Florans actions. Be wary of the vase like structures made of plant matter you may find on the many worlds. Watch out for Agarius Humilis Malo, the Aggressive Agaran G1.

G2: G2 Agaran are warriors. After doing some tests I have concluded they come from the spiked pods found near Agaran structures. They are found protecting the villages or vases. They seem to be the same as normal Agaran, but have heads coloured red and white or blue.

G3: G3 Agaran may be possible. I have found huge pods, twice the size of a normal Agaran. These Agaran Giganticus have yet to be seen, however they may be designed to stop invaders.

Floran Involvement: The Agaran have an odd habit of taking Floran captive. They are found near/in the vases. The vase may contain a room surrounded in lava, or be filled with water. They are also imprisoned in different rooms with lava underneath. These rooms may have a Drysap dispenser in it. From my research, I have discovered that Drysap is a hallucinogen that causes the victim to experience dreams of the Oaken Soldiers. I have heard that Agaran say Oaken a lot to the Floran. The Agaran pods resemble those of Floran but with spikes. These may be the Agaran inside. However, Agaran seem to like Floran, calling them Kissface.

Apex Involvement: Agaran are often foundin abandoned Apex Labs. The Agaran must have moved in after the Apex left, as there is not sign of a battle in these labs. Also, Apex mutants are sometimes found in Floran pods. This may be unrelated howver.

The most popular theory is that the Agaran infect Floran. There is evidence to suggest otherwise, such as the kindness the Agaran show to Floran visitors, and a message from a human named McVicar, about two of them talking. Perhaps the Floran produce Pods willingly , which the Agaran use to create more Agaran. Remeber, Floran have no genders, due to being plants. Greenfinger named the Agaran, and is likely to have helped create them.Big Ape and Thornwing most likely had a hand in the Agaran's creation or purpose.



That's my theory for now.

 

Nah - they just used the humanoid skeleton as a template.

 

um

this may sound weird, but I appreciate your posts quite a bit, it's really cool to see people analysing stuff I wrote so deeply (and with such scientific rigour!)
I will continue attempting to keep my writing scientifically plausible.