INTELLIGENCE REPORT - "DIGITALIS"

[Shrike30]

INTELLIGENCE REPORT - "DIGITALIS"

We've made contact at the Cydonia site with a new variation or mutation of Creeper we're calling "Digitalis" until the science department gets more time with it.  Since the original Cydonia sighting, only Commanders from Task Force Alpha are encountering Digitalis, but we're hoping that getting word out early will prevent any unfortunate incidents among other task forces, and maybe lead to a better understanding of Digitalis.

• Digitalis originates at Creeper Emitters.  Orbital laser spectrometry and magnetic interferometry analysis of the soil at the Cydonia site shows that there are subtle differences in soil composition where Digitalis will grow, making it's spread predictable if uncontained.

• Digitalis grows in a crystalline fashion, new offshoots forming from existing digitalis growths.  Damaged digitalis seems incapable of spawning new growth, but heals rapidly, making this disruption of growth temporary at best.
• Digitalis prevents the "evaporation" of thin Creeper, aiding in it's spread.  Video of the Cydonia encounter makes clearly visible a patch of Digitalis, coated in Creeper, growing well ahead of the frontline formed by Creeper spread alone.
• Digitalis is evidently capable of growing in areas not yet coated with creeper, as the same patch mentioned above can be seen expanding onto a hillock above the height of surrounding Creeper.  It also appears to be unconcerned with shields, growing and remaining anchored within their field of effect.
• Digitalis seems to draw some sort of essential element from Creeper Emitters.  Patches of Digitalis separated from direct contact with Creeper Emitters, even when coated with Creeper, do not appear to grow or heal.
• Digitalis is capable of growing across large gaps between celestial bodies, "webbing" them together, creating navigation hazards for local spacecraft and other potential dangers.
  

There's great concern that Digitalis will prove to be a "wicking" mechanism for Creeper, causing it to spread much more rapidly along areas coated in Digitalis and possibly in ways not previously predicted (up slopes, over walls, against prevailing wind, across gaps between land masses or asteroids, or even through shields), or may prove to be similar in function to a "networked" power source, causing the growth of new Creeper structures at power sites once the Digitalis has spread to those locations, but there's very little evidence to support any of these things happening so far.  This intelligence report will be updated as more information becomes available.  In the meantime, be safe, Commanders, and our best wishes go out to the members of Task Group Alpha faced with this new, uncertain threat.

[TrickyDragon]

cool story <3 
love the imagination ^^ 

[cooltv27]

the shields do not seem affect digitalis
the weapons weapons will auto target creeper then digitalis
digitalis will not allow an easier path up terrain
4. weapons attacking creeper will also harm digitalis under it

[4xC]

Suppose digitalis is on a slope that you want to take, but there is no way to put a PC on a higher level to eradicate it because either you have not enough energy, the levels are too thin, or the enemy is too strong in the other areas; could digitalis that has grown and been cut off be unharmful in that case and, possibly, harmful in other cases?

[Chawe800]

I'm actually a little disappointed by digitalis. They don't seem to do much anything and are extremely susceptible to mortars  :-[

[Michionlion]

I'm actually a little disappointed by digitalis. They don't seem to do much anything and are extremely susceptible to mortars  :-[

Keep in mind that all properties of the Digitalis are subject to change - that is actually what the beta members are for, of course - to help with that.

[lurkily]

V said it himself in the video - its in the extremely early stages of development, so everything that's intended for it probably hasn't been implemented yet.

[Shrike30]

I could see it preventing structures from landing... in the sense that an air exclusion tower keeps strafers/bombers/guppies from operating in an area, Digitalis might make it impossible for cannons, mortars, etc to land where it's grown.

[4xC]

I could see it preventing structures from landing... in the sense that an air exclusion tower keeps strafers/bombers/guppies from operating in an area, Digitalis might make it impossible for cannons, mortars, etc to land where it's grown.

Best idea for digitalis I have seen yet I think. I thought the landing location options could use a little more limitation. They always did for the first 2 games and there were moments in both where special attack forces of the creeper (spores and phantoms) bor an IMMEDIATE threat to the base hearts. If the digitalis was pregrown, this could be pretty useful. And perhaps creeper should flow faster on empty digitalis. I still don't see why it makes sense to have PC's and Mortars have the option to harm both digitalis and creeper at the same time though. Both were harmed simultaneously in the clip and therein lies the need for potential upgrades from us.

I know Graunidad said in another thread that it would be pointless to talk about digitalis since it was so early, but when I discovered the existance of the new enemy, I knew right away it would be 1 of the biggest topics of late for a long time.

And here's the proof: a whole digitalis thread. BTW: Does anyone know why the post draft typing box zooms to the top if it has a certain number of lines like this very last one is? Or why it typically happens when a quote is used?

[Shrike30]

And a new picture is posted!  I like the o's used to indicate where the digitalis can grow, it's a little easier to pick out for me than the shifting colors of textures was.

[4xC]

Reminds me of the displayed fields in 2 when it was designed so that players could see them. Maybe ripe digitalis ground (where the circles are) visibility should be optionable too.