The Vivacious Deadlock: S3G6: Round Three: The Sable Masque

Originally posted on MSPA by MrGuy.

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Name: Doplio

Gender: N/A. "It" is probably the best way to describe it.

Font colour: #8B668B

Race: Fungus

Weapons: Naturally produces caustic puddles; can mimic teeth and claws

Abilities: Able to copy the form of other living beings, as detailed below.

Description: In its natural form, resembles a grayish-purple moss. Otherwise, functionally identical to whatever it copies in terms of visual appearance. Tends to manifest pseudopods/limbs and various varieties of eye, simply for convenience.

Biography:

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SpoilerAspergillus dopliospium was first recorded in the year 4254, having developed on a planet that had been terraformed for experimental purposes roughly 2000 years earlier. The environment varied wildly, and satellites often bombarded the planet with intense radiation, so that both mutations and natural selection would be maximized. When the research team came to investigate, most of the planet appeared as expected (if one can really have "expectations" for such a thing), except for a 60-meter area around a small cave in a forest. At first, it seemed perfectly ordinary-- many different species, some evidently carnivorous, some evidently herbivorous. However, one of the team spotted a strange orange liquid, both caustic (pH 12.[img]images/smilies/icon_cool.gif[/img] and poisonous; this made it rather odd that the animals seemed to take no steps to avoid it, often slogging right through it with practically no harm evident. Further investigation found that the apparent carnivores never ate any herbivores, and for that matter, there didn't seem to be much consumption of plant life either. In fact, inside a certain radius, no animal could be observed eating anything whatsoever.

Due to the mysterious conditions, the entire area was designated Threat Level 6~8, "Potential For Very High Danger." The team quickly did their best to escape, with the very one who had discovered the mysterious toxin not noticing the spores that had crept into his suit. A few weeks passed, with that one oddly silent; eventually, the medic went to check on him. Immediately upon entering the room, he discovered several pools of the orange liquid throughout, as well as mold coating the walls. Luckily for the astronauts, he was able to activate the emergency recording unit, allowing the rest of the team to see the mold bearing down on him, coating his body, and nearly devouring him. The captain barged in and blasted it with a phaser, only to find two medics standing there before him. Determining which was real was simple enough; when he posed a question, one answered in perfect English, the other in nothing but a strange gurgling noise. The mold, along with the copies it had made, were quickly eradicated from the ship, save for a small sample placed in an airtight container to be considered for military purposes. Tests were performed on the mold for years, and over time, it gained a slight grasp of language, enough to speak when given vocal cords; but before it could be fully developed as a feasible bioweapon, it disappeared mysteriously, leading to theories of espionage...

Theme Song: Serris Battle

CLARIFICATION OF ABILITIES

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SpoilerAspergillus dopliospium duplicates other creatures, as far as scientists can tell, like a retrovirus in reverse: it takes a DNA sample, "adds it" to the DNA already present in a cell, and replicates from there. The important thing to note is that Doplio can only copy intrinsic abilities. For example:
-- Copying someone with intrinsic magical ability would convey it. Copying someone who had to study to gain it would not.
-- Copying a zombie created through necromancy, nanites, etc. would result in a copy of the person's living form. Copying a zombie created through a virus or parasite would result in a copy of their zombified form.
-- Copying a martial artist could allow Doplio to replicate their musculature with a bit of effort, but would not grant it their techniques.
-- Copying, for example, Superman or Spider-Man would convey superpowers, given that they stem from their alien/mutant DNA. Copying, for example, Green Lantern would not, since his power comes from an outside source.
-- Copying non-organic creatures, e.g. robots and golems, is right out. Copying a cyborg or something similar would result in the form they would have without cybernetics.