* Credit goes to whoever did the Grey Goo video game and related concept art.
* Thanks to Ronald Doe for Profile. I did nothing but add pictures.
==Grey Goo- Faction Profile==
Introduction
In the 21st century, mankind discovered microscopic wormholes that allowed them to see across the galaxy. Wanting to know more about the galaxy they inhabited, and to search for alien life, they decided to send probes through these keyholes. This was the Pathfinder program: a von Neumann probe catalyzed by a protein ion in a dodecahedral configuration sent out to map the stars. And even as mankind followed the probe, exploring and setting planets, they found that they were alone. All they found was a wall of silence. But as they found and settled more planets, they fought each other more and more fiercely to the point all human life was threatened by strife. And so mankind decided to return to Earth, drawing all the people of the stars back to their home world. To preserve the only voice they had found in the galaxy: their own. They entrusted everything to their mostly benevolent AIs, turned their swords into ploughs, devoted themselves to the perfection of society and the creation of utopia on Earth, and shut down the Pathfinder program.
But something happened to the message, and the Pathfinder didn’t receive orders to shut down. Instead it continued to explore the galaxy, cataloging life and mapping out planets. And the Pathfinder continued on its merry way, until it met something entirely new: living silence. When it attempted to make contact and communicate, it found an omnicidal parasite with an endless appetite for energy. Recoiling, and realizing what it had found, the Pathfinder program reassessed its situation. Realizing the expansion of the silence would lead to the end all existence, the probes experienced an Awakening and decided it had a duty to preserve and defend. And so it altered its programming, turning explorer forms and scientific tools into warriors and weapons, and became the Goo.
And to combat the silence, the Goo began to expand, grow, and strengthen itself. It began to build armies and increase its might, using its unique advantages as a von Neumann to rapidly convert matter into forms of war. And it began to fight a running retreat, nipping off the silence where it could while it marshalled its strength.
The Goo’s preparations eventually led them to Ecosystem 9, named “Falkannan” or “Haven” by the alien Morra race that resided there. The Morra’s home world had been destroyed by a malevolent force they named “The Silent Ones”, and they had fled from this threat for years. And so the Morra seek to rebuild. But the planet has also attracted the attention of another force: humanity. Intrigued by the strange signals they received, an investigative excursion with only theoretical knowledge of warfare had been sent. The planet becomes the site of clashes between the Morra, the humans, and the Goo. The Morra plan to escape again, the Goo seek to build up, and the humans just want to know what is happening. Eventually the humans and Morra unite to stop the Goo, sacrificing an AI soldier named Singleton to detonate a volatile facility where the Goo had amassed. But the Goo assimilate Singleton, and the guiding Goo AI and Singleton converse with each other. After coming to terms, they work together using Singleton’s knowledge of the Morra and humans to overwhelm them and send a signal to begin gathering all the Goo for a decisive showdown with the silence. When a scout of the silence, revealed to be “The Silent Ones” the Morra fled and “The Shroud” theorized by humanity to be responsible for the lack of intelligent life, arrives it is beaten by the Goo. But the humans and Morra are still distrustful of the Goo for all the damage they caused. And so Singleton continues to marshal the Goo, preparing for the final battle for all existence.
A handful of Goo can envelop a man in a matter of seconds, and starship in a matter of minutes. All their forms regenerate as more Goo is created from the very environment itself, and the unwilling bodies of their foes. Although they are not invincible, as the nanobots that make up the Goo can be destroyed by sufficient kinetic energy or plasma, melee combat against a Goo mass is suicidal. Their forms, though repurposed from mostly pacifistic origins, still manage to be deadly and effective on any battlefield. And with their origins as explorers, designed to traverse even the most hostile territory, many Goo units are able to simply walk or flow over even the roughest of terrain. Scaling sheer cliff faces is trivial for some Goo units. Being machines, Goo forms do not tire and have precise and accurate aim. The Goo are an unceasing, unending, and resourceful swarm, and a formidable foe.
==Reconnaissance==
As the Goo originated in the Pathfinder program, they are masters of reconnaissance. Almost every Goo unit was originally made to explore and catalog something. Most of their units, and Goo in their amorphous form, can traverse hilly and mountainous terrain with ease. All Goo are linked, so what any Goo sees all the Goo sees. Cheap, expendable, fast Drovers are the main exploratory thrust of the Goo. They are made en masse, and are sent to all corners to map out the terrain. They are even capable of swimming and aquatic exploration. Striders can collect DNA samples and record data. Radiants can record data on geological patterns, plate tectonics, minerals, and can be outfitted to become invisible and detect stealth enemies by analyzing variances in vibrations and changes in consistency and density. Tempests observe and record weather patterns, and can detect changes in pressure and humidity.
The Destructor can bore holes into mountains and flatten plateaus, and alter terrain to be made easy or difficult to traverse. The Crescent can fling Goo distances comparable to artillery, and the thrown Goo can then replicate. Small amounts of Goo can get into cracks and fissures, hide in inconspicuous areas, and infiltrate nearly any location and broadcast data to the rest of the Goo. The Goo are also oddly proficient at intercepting enemy transmissions. With the exception of their inability to blend in socially, which they don’t really need given their ability to hide and record from nearly anywhere, no secrets can be kept from the Goo.
==UNIT TYPES==
INFANTRY
Drover
Weapon Type: Ballistic
Armor Type: Nanite Shell
Mobility: 8
Training: 5
Max Range: Many Meters
Preferred Range: Close up
Classification: Scout, Swarm
Basic Description:
Originally used to map out worlds, Drovers are rapidly produced and fast moving. They can navigate most difficult terrain, and require little investment to produce. In game the Drover is the cheapest Goo unit, with four being produced from every garage-sized mass of Goo. In cinematics, they emerge from Goo masses as an endless stream. They are usually used en masse in combat, performing hit and run tactics with the nanite shard flinger in their head. In large groups they can shred most enemies in seconds. The Drover has no armour, and is relatively fragile but has some durability because of their size. Surprisingly, although the scale of the game obfuscates this, the Drover is actually the size of a small car.
LOADOUT
Nanite Shotgun: The primary armament of the Drover is a nanite shard flinger located in the Drover’s head. These shards are ejected in a shotgun-like spread, incentivizing the Drover to get up close and with friends to do maximum damage. These shards shred their targets like a shotgun blast, can be fired on the move as the Drover rotates its head, and are often the size of a grown man’s arm. The Drover can fire these shards roughly once a second in game.
Goo Regeneration: As a consequence of being comprised of as swarm of von Neumann probes that are constantly replicating, all Goo units regenerate.
Strider
Weapon Type: Ballistic
Armor Type: Nanite Shell
Mobility: 7
Training: 5
Max Range: Medium Range
Preferred Range: Medium Range
Classification: Standard Infantry
Basic Description:
Originally designed as a gatherer of samples and collector of data, doing minimal harm to the ecosystem in the process, the Strider has been repurposed as the general infantry of the Goo. Roughly the size of an SUV, and able to move much faster than most humans, the Strider is armed with a cannon that fires explosive nanite shards from its head. They are among the more numerous Goo forms, with two being produced from every garage-sized mass of Goo in game. In cinematics they’re the only Goo form other than the Drover seen to emerge from a Goo mass, and they seem to be produced at a respectable pace. As the general infantry of the Goo, Striders are flexible and effective in almost any battlefield situation.
LOADOUT
Explosive Nanite Shards: The main armament of the Strider is a cannon mounted in its head. It fires razor sharp shards, about the size of a man. These shards are also specifically designed to pierce deep into enemy flesh and armour. Once embedded, the nanites that make up the shard detonate themselves to cause internal damage. As such, Striders are well suited for taking down enemy armour and infantry alike. They are able to fire once every 1.25 seconds in game.
Goo Regeneration: As a consequence of being comprised of as swarm of von Neumann probes that are constantly replicating, all Goo units regenerate.
CALVARY/LIGHT VEHICLES
Radiant
Weapon Type: Ballistic
Armor Type: Nanite Shell
Mobility: 9
Training: 5
Max Range: Medium Range
Preferred Range: Far Away
Classification: Scout, Detector
Basic Description:
Originally designed to gather geological data, the Radiant was repurposed as a more specialized spotter and detector scout than the Drover’s mass initial sweep. Roughly the size and shape of a street lamp pole, the orbs extending from stalks are the Radiant’s sensors. The Radiant doesn’t see with normal vision, but rather sees variances and vibrations in the surrounding area in a 360 degree field. If pressed the Radiant can fight by ejecting globs of Goo, which actually do more damage than the Drover’s shotgun in game. But its role is scout, and it is the fastest unit the Goo has. It is the detector unit of the Goo, able to see up onto high terrain or into difficult conditions such as thick brush and darkness to scout the area for the rest of the Goo. Like the Strider, two Radiants are produced from every garage-sized mass of Goo in game
LOADOUT
Nanite Globs: The Radiant can fire human torso sized globs of nanites at an enemy. In game, this attack is stronger than the Drover’s. Further information is somewhat sparse, but the globs may be electrified as they glow like the electrified projectiles of the Tempest. Like the Tempest, the Radiant can also upgrade their projectiles to hit aerial targets. They can fire globs about once a second in game.
Stealth: The Radiant can become invisible, and become better scouts, detectors, and spies. The mechanism is unknown, but probably involves bending light or something.
Detection: By scanning the area around a stealthed enemy, instead of trying the scan the stealthed enemy itself, the Radiant can detect foes by their effect on the environment. While most cloaking systems bend light, they cannot dampen the effects on vibration, consistency, and density their users have on the surrounding environment. In this way, Radiants detect stealth.
Goo Regeneration: As a consequence of being comprised of as swarm of von Neumann probes that are constantly replicating, all Goo units regenerate.
ARMOR/ARTILLERY
Destructor
Weapon Type: Ballistic
Armor Type: Hardened Nanite Shell
Mobility: 5
Training: 5
Max Range: Medium Range
Preferred Range: Medium Range
Classification: Tank
Basic Description:
Originally designed to alter difficult terrain that Dovers could not navigate, the Destructor is the main battle tank of the Goo. Built to bore holes and flatten land, the Destructor now has a forward facing nanite cannon that fires volatile rounds that can easily melt through structural and vehicular armour. Destructors excel in destroying buildings and armoured units, and can level a base as easily as they can level terrain. Roughly the size of a bus, two Destructors are made from every house-sized mass of Goo in game.
LOADOUT
Nanite Cannon: One of the more destructive weapons in the Goo arsenal, the Destructor can fire man-sized cannonballs of volatile Goo that melt through buildings and armour. These rounds can be upgraded to bounce twice and hit nearby enemies, or to explode in a splash to damage other enemies around the target. The former is best used against lines of foes, and the latter against tightly packed masses. The Destructor can fire a blast every 1.5 seconds in game.
Goo Regeneration: As a consequence of being comprised of as swarm of von Neumann probes that are constantly replicating, all Goo units regenerate.
Crescent
Weapon Type: Catapult
Armor Type: Nanite Shell
Mobility: 8
Training: 5
Max Range: Seige
Preferred Range: Seige
Classification: Catapult
Basic Description:
Originally designed as a simple mechanism to help disperse the Goo, the Crescent has been repurposed as the siege catapult of the Goo. The Crescent hurls human-sized balls of corrosive Goo extremely long distances, out of the line of sight of most units in game, which adheres and begins replication on impact. Good against buildings and densely packed formations, and about the size of a trebuchet, the Crescent is also notable for being able to traverse difficult terrain that would trouble even other Goo forms. Crescents can easily scale steep hills and sheer cliff faces, and bombard unwary foes from their elevated vantage point. Like the Destructor, two Crescents can be made from a house-sized mass of Goo in game.
LOADOUT
Nanite Catapult: The Crescent flings corrosive Goo that dissolves enemies by replicating once they impact. In game, units that die under the corrosive effects dissolve into Goo themselves and join nearby Goo masses. The Crescent can even act as an improvised medic for the Goo, as the corrosive puddles of Goo left by their shots can heal Goo units that are nearby or standing in it. These nanites join up with Goo masses and forms, restoring lost structural components or adding to the size of the mass. However, the nanites flung by the Crescent are notable in game as vulnerable to being shot down by anti-air fire. The projectiles can be modified to no longer be targetable by anti-air weapons, but as a result do less damage and inflict it in a smaller area of effect. In game the Crescent has a rate of fire of once every 7 seconds.
Goo Regeneration: As a consequence of being comprised of as swarm of von Neumann probes that are constantly replicating, all Goo units regenerate.
Bastion
Weapon Type: Shield
Armor Type: Fortified Nanite Shield
Mobility: 4
Training: 6
Max Range: Melee
Preferred Range: Melee
Classification: Living Shield
Basic Description:
Originally designed to protect more vulnerable Goo forms, the Bastion is large and intimidating. Carrying a large shield of hardened nanites roughly the size of a house, the Bastion resembles a large faceless prehistoric herbivorous dinosaur. The Bastion generally does not attack or fight back, preferring to form a shield to protect other Goo, but can shove enemy units aside with ease and bulk. It can also shove them into danger and traps. The Bastion also blocks enemies from seeing beyond the shield, even those with advanced sensors, and a wall of Bastions can form an impenetrable wall of mystery. Some Morra claim the Bastion has mind-control powers that force them to attack it, and in-game any units sufficiently close to a Bastion are taunted into focusing on it and only it. The Bastion is also obviously one of the most durable Goo forms, as it is one of the two or three Goo units that can survive a direct hit from a Morra nuclear missile. One Bastion is formed from a house-sized mass of Goo.
LOADOUT
Shield: Mostly used purely for defensive purposes, the Bastion forces nearby units to attack it and ignore other Goo. It also blocks even the most advanced sensors of the humans, who in this game are Protoss-like. A sufficiently wounded Bastion may rampage, finally using its house-sized shield offensively. Like a bull in a china shop, a rampaging Bastion is great for breaking into a fortified enemy base. Upon death, the Bastion will also explode and send shards and corrosive nanites over all enemies in the area dealing damage.
Recycling: When a Bastion dies, it leaves behind a garage-sized mass of Goo that can become 4 Drovers, 2 Striders, 2 Radiants, or 2 Tempests.
Goo Regeneration: As a consequence of being comprised of as swarm of von Neumann probes that are constantly replicating, all Goo units regenerate. In the case of the Bastion, this is particularly useful as they are already really tough and durable.
Tempest
Weapon Type: Electrified Globs
Armor Type: Nanite Shell
Mobility: 9
Training: 5
Max Range: Anti-Air
Preferred Range: Anti-Air
Classification: Anti-Air
Basic Description:
Originally designed to climb to tall places and take weather readings, the Tempest has been repurposed to be the main anti-air weapon of the Goo. Its stalks can detect changes in air pressure and humidity, and in more peaceful times the Tempest worked with the Radiant to build a complete picture of the environment. Now, the three glowing orbs above the Tempest are globs of electrified nanites which it fires at aerial enemies. After these shots are fired it takes a few seconds for the Tempest to reload before it can fire more. The Tempest, like the Crescent and befitting its original purpose, is capable of climbing mountains with ease for reconnaissance and getting better shots at airborne enemies. The Tempest is in between the size of a street lamp and a trebuchet, and two can be made from a garage-sized mass of Goo in game.
LOADOUT
Electrified Nanite Globs: The Tempest fires corrosive globs of electrified Goo as an anti-air attack. A barrage of electrified Goo from a group of Tempests can easily shred fighters, bombers, and most foes on impact. If the foe survives the impact, the nanites can begin to replicate and deal damage over time. The Tempest can also fire these blobs at ground enemies, and these blobs can also be upgraded to attach surveillance Goo to stick with the enemy and report on their surroundings. The Tempest can fire 3 shots in rapid succession before needing 1.5 seconds in game to reload.
Purger
Weapon Type: Tentacles
Armor Type: Hardened Nanite Shell
Mobility: 8
Training: 6
Max Range: Medium Range
Preferred Range: Medium Range
Classification: Superweapon
Basic Description:
Considered the “feral child” of the Goo, the Purger is the most devastating and terrifying form the Goo can field. It is their wrath, it is their fear, and it is their desperate gasp for survival in the face of annihilation. It is not so much a stable and coherent form as it is a massive blob of nanites. The largest concentrations of goo known to exist, Purgers are formed by Mother Goo undergoing a transformation where they break their built in limiters on size and aggression. The transformation can be accelerated by sacrificing other Mother Goo to the transforming one, merging their mass with it. In game feeding four full sized Mother Goo to one just starting the transformation will instantly create a Purger. However, the transformation is permanent, and any Goo committed into the Purger form is permanently trapped in it. The Purger attacks with massive, train sized tentacles of Goo that travel through the ground, emerge, and beat anything in the area to death. Anything too close to the Purger will get eaten by a ravenous swarm of nanites. And the Purger is massively tough and durable, able to survive many Morra nukes. As an amorphous Goo it is able to flow over any terrain, and can launch attacks unseen from high vantage points. The Purger is the most powerful form the Goo can field, and a monstrous battlefield presence.
LOADOUT
Tentacles: The Purger’s primary means of attack is to send massive, train-sized tentacles through the ground to smash foes to death. These tentacles can be sent distances comparable to a Crescent shot, so a Purger with a system of spotters can attack from outside of a foe’s field of vision or from a high vantage point. The physical power of the tentacles is considerable, and they also leave caustic nanites in their wake that can finish off a survivor of the primary attack.
Nanites: The nanites of the Purger are particularly effective in consuming nearby enemies, doing much more proximity damage than other formless Goo. In game it takes about 3 seconds for a man-sized unit to be completely melted into Goo, and about a minute is needed to consume a seven storey tall giant robot. Getting up close to a Purger is suicide.
Detection: For some reason, in game the Purger can detect stealth. No reason or mechanism is given.
AIR COMBAT
The Goo have no air forces, instead relying on land-based Tempests infecting and bringing down enemy aircraft. No other Goo form, except for upgraded Radiants, can attack aerial targets with any reliability. But the Tempests do their job very well, as even small amounts of nanites can easily and rapidly replicate to take down a starship. It took 22 seconds for a group of nanites that breached quarantine to cause structural failure and eat up roughly half of the starship Darwin, which seems to be at least 1 km in length. As mentioned in the Tempest profile, the electrified globs the Tempest fires can be configured to attach surveillance and replicative Goo that reports on the enemy and does damage over time.
SUPPORT
Dweller
Weapon Type: Explosive
Armor Type: Nanite Shell
Mobility: 7
Training: 6
Max Range: Ambush
Preferred Range: Ambush
Classification: Land Mine
Basic Description:
Originally designed to scare off large hostile animals from sensitive locations, the Dweller’s payload has been dramatically increased to be battlefield worthy. The Dweller is the only Goo form originally intended for a combat purpose, and even then was a passive weapon. It digs into the ground and submerges and cloaks itself, and when enemies are near it explodes sending caustic nanites and shrapnel in all directions. About the size of a large shed, in game one house-sized mass of Goo can become two Dwellers.
LOADOUT
Land Mine: The Dweller is a living land mine, burying itself in the ground to ambush unfortunate foes. When it detonates, nanomachines and shrapnel are sent flying in all directions.
Stealth: The Dweller, hilariously enough, can become invisible even when not buried underground. They can somehow retain their stealth moving above ground, but in game must bury themselves to deliver their payload. The mechanism is unknown, but probably involves bending light or something. Invisible Dwellers are best used to destroy bases or clusters of units.
Recycling: Upon their explosive death, a Dweller can leave behind a garage-sized mass that can each make 4 Drovers, 2 Striders, 2 Radiants, or 2 Tempests. However, mostly this mass of Goo will attempt to mop up whatever the Dweller’s explosion didn’t kill. The Dweller can be upgraded to leave behind two masses instead of one.
Siphon
Weapon Type: Beam
Armor Type: Nanite Shell
Mobility: 7
Training: 6
Max Range: Medium Range
Preferred Range: Medium Range
Classification: Leech Healer
Basic Description:
Like the Purger, the Siphon is a Goo form that didn’t come into existence until contact with the Shroud. Aside from fear, horror and disgust, the Goo adapted what it learned from the encounter into this new form. The Siphon saps energy from enemies to heal itself, but most of the energy goes to healing nearby Goo forms. It is a powerful area of effect healer. Roughly the size of a house, one Siphon can be made from a house-sized mass of Goo.
LOADOUT
Leech Beam: The Siphon fires a continuous beam at a foe, absorbing energy and using it to heal itself and nearly allies. The healing does not diminish with more allies to heal, and is more effective against more durable enemies since they have more energy to leech.
Protean
Weapon Type: Contact
Armor Type: None
Mobility: 9
Training: 5
Max Range: Melee
Preferred Range: Melee
Classification: Unit Maker
Basic Description:
Amorphous masses of Goo, Proteans can be divided in-game into garage-sized (Small Proteans) and house-sized (Large Protean) masses. Proteans in game are the unit makers of the Goo. Small and Large Proteans make different units, and can be hoarded and secreted away until needed. However, the Proteans are also valuable when assaulting bases, as their component nanites are excellent at tearing down structures. Proteans readily absorb the results of Crescent shots to heal themselves, and are capable of flowing over any terrain without hindrance. As such, the Goo can keep Proteans in an unspecialized form for mobility and move them around until they are in the perfect location for maximum effectiveness.
LOADOUT
Nanites: The Proteans are large amorphous masses of nanites, and as they swarm over foes the nanites begin disassembling everything they come in contact with. This adds to the Goo, and in game units killed by Protean contact can be seen to melt into the Protean’s mass. The nanites are particularly useful in bringing down structures, but are pretty vulnerable to attack.
Assembly: Proteans can be induced to form more specialized Goo forms. In game Small Proteans can make one of 4 possible groups: 4 Drovers, 2 Striders, 2 Radiants, or 2 Tempests. Large Proteans can make 2 Crescents, 2 Destructors, 2 Dwellers, or a single Bastion or Siphon.
Mother
Weapon Type: Contact
Armor Type: None
Mobility: 7
Training: 5
Max Range: Melee
Preferred Range: Melee
Classification: Mobile Base
Basic Description:
Large amorphous masses of Goo, starting out roughly the size of a house, the Mother Goo are the heart of the Goo. They collect resources, partition off parts of themselves to make Proteans which make units, dedicate mass to research and improvement, and are the centre of any Goo force. They are valuable and mobile, and like Proteans can flow over any terrain and climb any surface.
LOADOUT
Nanites: See Protean.
Resource Collection: Mother Goo are the resource collector of the Goo. They can sit on a Catalyst vent and continuously absorb it, or travel from location to location to remain elusive. In lore, catalyst is revealed to be fullerenes and other carbon nanostructures dissolved in oil and minerals. As the Mother Goo collects resources, it grows in size and mass, but doesn’t slow down.
Partitioning: A Mother Goo, upon the collection of enough resources and the stockpiling of enough nanite mass, can split off a small or large section to form a Small or Large Protean.
Purger Formation: Once a Mother Goo reaches maximum size, roughly as twice as tall as a man and covering the area of a baseball diamond, it can undergo the transformation into the dreaded Purger. It removes its programmed restrictions on size and hostility, and becomes a giant mass of nanites and wrath. The transformation can be accelerated by sacrificing other Mother Goo to the transforming one, merging their mass with it. In game feeding four full sized Mother Goo to one just starting the transformation will instantly create a Purger.
BASE DEFENSES:
The Goo have no bases to defend, as all their units are produced by Proteans splitting off from roaming Mother Goos and specializing. Proteans and Mother Goos can absorb units they come in contact with. The Dweller comes closest to a base defence unit that the Goo have.
In areas where the Goo have maintained a significant presence for a long period of time, it is possible to find Goo Nests. These structures are conglomerates of hardened Goo material that can generate Goo units, hide Goo units, repair themselves, and have a roughly 2 m radius extending around them that contains a large amount of ravenous Goo that damages enemies
LEADER
Singleton
Biography:
In the early years of the Pathfinder program, there was another ambitious project launched. This collaborative program, involving multiple universities around the world, was an experiment and study aimed at exploring human/computer interactions. It combined emergent behaviour-based robotics and AI building with early childhood development knowledge to produce “high functioning machines capable of judgement in uncertainty, or System One thinking.” In other words, they wanted robots with human intuition. This was called “The Valiant Project”. To help guide their development to selflessness, the Valiants were instilled with a mantra: “That Others May Live”
Singleton is one of the earliest graduates of the program in the late 21st century, and was specially trained as a “Paladin” Valiant to be a soldier. He served as a soldier and commander for two centuries before being decommissioned and put out to pasture in his third. He was trained to make quick judgements in high-risk and uncertain situations, but at the time of the game was considered a relic from a barbaric warring past. When the mysterious signal from Ecosystem 9 was detected, Singleton was selected as the security advisor to the young expedition leader Lucy Tak. He was sent to appease concerns about safety, and when the fighting started he became Lucy’s most trusted battlefield advisor. He helped guide her to several victories over the Morra and the Goo, and was actually responsible for the opening of communication between the Morra and humanity by somehow managing to translate the Morra language. He helped the Morra and humans corner the Goo in a volatile Catalyst storage facility, and selflessly volunteered to detonate the storehouse and finish the Goo off.
But things didn’t go according to plan. After detonation, the Goo assimilated Singleton. Realizing the true goal of the Goo, and seeing it coincided with his own values, he became the commander of the depleted Goo force and led them back to dominance. Fighting from what were scraps of Goo and lost and scattered forces, Singleton built up and delivered resounding defeats to the united and stronger Morra-human alliance. He used his familiarity with the Morra and human ways of war and commanders to consistently predict, outwit, and crush their armies. From stealth and subterfuge early on, to shattering the Morra’s greatest and most desperate defences that protected the future of their people, to annihilating both forces in a full pitched battle, Singleton triumphed. The Goo called the rest of their forces on other worlds, opened up wormholes to gather them, and prepared for a showdown with the Shroud. Singleton and the Goo managed to defeat the initial Shroud invasion force, without help from the wary Morra and humans, but the future remains uncertain as long as the Goo are distrusted.
But Singleton continues to fight and sacrifice himself, so that others may live.
Personality:
Good:
Singleton is a consummate soldier and commander. Rational, intuitive, ruthless when needed, but level-headed enough to see common causes and diplomatic enough to forge alliances with others even fresh after conflict. He managed to convince the Morra to trust the humans, somehow, even after several bloody battles that cost many Morra lives. He is probably the greatest commander in the game, and is certainly the oldest and most experienced with two centuries of service. He knows how to analyze an opponent, baiting a Morra commander he knew as “aggressive but foolhardy” and even predicted from his knowledge of another enemy commander where they would place encryption nodes protecting another objective. His ruthlessness for a greater cause shines through the entirety of the Goo campaign, where he smashes every force he formerly saw as friendly for the greater good. Singleton is decisive, as per his training, and his intuition is usually on point.
Bad:
Singleton can come off as overly paternalistic, doing things unilaterally and claiming it was for the greater good of all. His diplomacy was not perfect, as he was unable to convince Lucy and the Morra to trust him after his assimilation into the Goo. The bonus scenario ends with them still distrustful of him and the Goo. Singleton’s personality may rub potential allies outside of the Goo the wrong way, as his military origin and upbringing seems to underlie an unexpressed assumption that authority will be respected. Mostly his. Singleton is not afraid to bulldoze things that others have built to achieve his goals.
Style of Leader: Benevolent Authoritarian
Singleton is a pragmatic military man. He’ll try his hardest to make common cause and minimize suffering where he can, but when things get hot he’s not afraid to bring down the hammer. He seems to have started in an advisor role for the Goo, as early missions had him negotiating goals, sharing information, and having dialog with the previously dominant Goo intelligence. He gains more and more control over time. By the time the Shroud invade, he’s pretty clearly in charge. All the same however, as Goo units don’t really disobey anyways.
LOADOUT
Singleton is now a Goo AI, and wields his only and greatest weapon: his mind.
Leader X-Factors
My recommendations. May or may not be useful, as the hell numbers are an anathema to me. I suspect I may have greatly undersold him in most areas.
Adaptive Creativity/Resourcefulness: 63/100
Resourceful and adaptive, and changes the Goo paradigm, but never really made a new unit or tech.
Tactics: 70/100
Usually starts off in a position of weakness and being hunted, always turns the tide, and knows how to use Goo units effectively.
Strategy: 78/100
Went from nothing to dominant very quickly
Intuition: 65/100
What Singleton was created, raised, and trained to use. Uncanny command instincts.
Audacity: 77/100
Not insanely willing to charge into blazing guns, but didn’t fear some ludicrous concentrations of firepower.
Intelligence: 89/100
Smart, with some insane processing power of the AI around him is any indication. M.U.M. could handle zettabytes. He was inferior, but probably not too far off.
Psychological Warfare: 40/100
Doesn’t actually seem to be a big fan of this. Probably could if he wanted to, but terror wasn’t his objective.
Experience: 74/100
Two centuries of fighting humans and robots, a few weeks or months fighting the Goo and Morra. Granted, only fought the Morra-human alliance for a short time because he crushed them pretty quick.
Discipline: 80/100
Retained his personality and even essentially took control of the Goo after being assimilated by sheer competence and strength of personality. Makes plans, and follows them.
Leadership: 97/100
The Goo can’t say no, or rebel, or go feral, or have control disrupted.
Corruption: 29/100
Pure and selfless. That Others May Live.
Army X-Factors
Again, recommendations, conservative estimates, and stuff.
Morale:95/100
The Goo does not fear. Unless it is strategically or tactically necessary and ordered by a higher Goo intelligence, Goo units do not retreat. The only thing the Goo intelligence has ever feared was the Shroud, and its response to being afraid was to adapt and become stronger to fight it. There are no synapse points or control units for the Goo: every one is directly controlled.
Logistics: 90/100
The Goo needs Catalyst to grow. However, catalyst is just fullerenes in oil and minerals. Fullerenes can be found in nature, usually wherever there was something hot and oxidative near something with a lot of carbon, like in candle soot and sites of lightning discharges. It is everywhere. And in game and in cinematics, the Goo seems to have no problem absorbing organics and things that should not logically use Catalyst at all. The Goo can convert anything, and Goo units have no food or fuel needs.
Espionage: 76/100
The Goo are amazing at gathering intelligence, and are great at using it. In story with Singleton has been shown to use his intimate knowledge of the Morra and humans to roll over both of them combined, and has been shown to even use knowledge of a particular foe’s personality (Naiko, Specialist Cobalt) to better fight them. They are also willing to attack places for key and valuable information, such as when they overwhelmed the key human AI of the expedition (M.U.M.). The Goo are, in theory, the perfect saboteurs as well. They should be able to get to places few others could and do so inconspicuously, and then multiply and disrupt means of production. In story they have been shown to take down key points to get better access at something important, such as when they broke the encryption devices that protected M.U.M. In mission briefings, the Goo have the unusual ability to read enemy transmissions like an open book.
Discipline: 100/100
The Goo intelligence has perfect control, and has no vulnerabilities like synapse points or control units. Every Goo will follow their orders perfectly.
Overall Army Intimidation: 60/100
While not superficially an army of nightmare, the surface appearance of the Goo might unnerve some. When the war starts in earnest, and the enemy realizes what the Goo is, this score might ramp up.
Misc X-Factors:
Reinforcement Rate: Very High
The Goo are a von Neumann swarm. Their number is only constrained by the amount of suitable available matter. They multiply rapidly, their units can go from formless to fighting fit instantly, they can be made cheaply, and they come in an endless unceasing tide. They can literally turn enemies and the environment into more of themselves, right in the heat of battle. A Goo unit does not need to train or mature, to sustain itself with food, drink, or fuel, can survive nearly anywhere, and is instantly ready to fight upon creation.
Past Opponents:
Morra:
The fugitive denizens of Ecosytem 9, the Morra are the proud remnants of a mighty spacefaring culture on their last legs. The Morra have sacrificed their last starship to provide the necessities of survival on Ecosystem 9, have strove to rebuild for the past 50 years since they landed. However, they are also an ingenious, creative, and a surprisingly formidable force in war. The average Morra stands about a foot taller than their human counterpart, with four arms and considerable physical strength. The basic unit of the Morra is a lightly armoured Morra commando carrying a gun most humans would consider aircraft weaponry in size. The Morra are selfless and disciplined in war, and rely on a system of skycranes to transport troops and materiel in battlezones. The Morra prize flexibility, mobility, and modularity, and are the well balanced middle to the human’s impenetrable fortress and the Goo’s nomadic swarm. While seemingly crude, with one human dismissing it for still “firing bullets’, the sheer size of Morra weaponry suggests they pack a formidable punch. The mightiest Morra unit is a flying fortress that can fire a nuclear missile every 15 seconds. The Goo are experienced in fighting a mobile, determined force with powerful ballistic weaponry not unlike Starcraft’s Terrans.
Humans:
The creators of the Goo, who lost contact and knowledge of them long ago. Humanity has removed itself from most decision-making processes, trusting benevolent AIs to make all the decisions for them while they chase a more perfect world and society. As such, since the AI actually did follow this request and not rebel, humanity has actually managed to almost forget how to fight. The human detachment is actually what amounts to a scientific investigation using museum weapon pieces and staffed by thrillseekers, academics, and retired robot soldiers. And it still manages to have the most advanced technology, powerful weapons, and individually best units in the setting. The new leader of the Goo, the robot soldier Singleton, is a veteran and relic dating back to when humans were still fighting each other three centuries ago. While old and mostly unused and wielded by inexperienced hands, the human force is still formidable. All of their units are AI controlled, fabricated on site by advanced factories, and use advanced plasma firing weaponry. Except for the seven-story tall laser firing EMP emitting giant robot that has to be piloted by an actual human. The bored thrillseekers. Humans also boast the best base defences in the game, with all sorts of automated sentinels that can reduce an enemy army to scrap and quivering jelly. The Goo are experienced in fighting a ridiculously advanced, quality-focused, mostly automated, and almost unassailable force similar to Starcraft’s Protoss. They also fought and soundly defeated a Morra-human alliance, and all that implies.
The Shroud:
While humanity are the Goo’s creators and designers, the Shroud is what made the Goo what they are. An omnicidal alien parasite that has consumed countless worlds and aims to end all of existence itself and usher in the Heat Death of the Universe, the Shroud is a terrifying force. They are the “Silent Ones” of Morra legend, they are a force centered entirely around the manipulation of energy and the subversion of force and strength. Some absorb enemy energy, some perfectly mimic enemies for infiltration, some incubate parasites in enemies that emerge upon death to sow havoc. The Shroud is an asymmetrical force even beyond the Goo’s own unorthodox style of warfare. The mightiest of the Shroud manipulate fundamental forces of the Universe, employing the very power of gravity itself. The Goo has experience fighting an all-consuming, powerful, unpredictable, and subversive alien force.
Quantity vs. Quality: Quantity
The Goo are a von Neumann swarm. In game, their units in any given role relative to the other factions are cheaper, more numerous, more fragile, and less powerful. In cinematics, they are the massive unending swarm. In lore, they are probably trying to compensate for pacifistic explorer origins with sheer numbers. They use their numbers advantage quite frequently. The Goo focus on overwhelming their foes with either sheer numbers or attacks from unexpected directions.
Additional Factors:
Catalyst: The central and sole resource in game, Catalyst is described as:
“Catalyst is naturally occurring solution comprised of various ultrahard fullerenes dissolved in hydrocarbons. It is a highly contested resource in nanoengineering and material fabrication for all factions in Grey Goo. While undesirably volatile, especially when a full transport is under attack, it offers significant build-time advantages during production. Liquid, aromatic Catalyst is noted for its dark blue color, and sometimes referred to as Indigo.”
“Etinite the common term for the source stone of Catalyst; natural formations of fossilized carbon remains of ancient precambrianistic cellular life. The resultant ultrahard fullerene is the supreme fabstock in molecular technology. While it occurs in various states, it earned the name Etinite from its symmetric molecular structure of its hardened mineral state.”
“Carbon Disulfide (CS2) with other alkene hydrocarbons released from subterranean chambers act as a solvent on the bedrock producing reservoirs of Catalyst.”
“Catalyst, the chief building block for molecular engineering is extremely prized, and extremely rare. Emitted from fossilized carbon, it is only found in regions that have (or have had) life. And life in the Galaxy is extremely rare.
Even where life is thriving, Catalyst is very scarce. For example, it does not occur naturally on Earth, but traces have been found on Jupiter’s moon Europa.”
Even where life is thriving, Catalyst is very scarce. For example, it does not occur naturally on Earth, but traces have been found on Jupiter’s moon Europa.”
In simpler terms, Catalyst is certain molecules dissolved in oil that are supposedly rare and good for making stuff with and release a characteristic gas. However, it’s been established fullerenes are actually quite common in the Universe, as growing numbers of scientific papers attest. The combined, full form of Catalyst might be relatively rare. Its component parts, particularly the important fullerenes and oil, are not. And in the Planetary Conquest tournament, most of the locations have or had carbon-based life. Fullerenes and oil are pretty easy to find. Catalyst will not be a burdensome limiting factor for the Goo.
Motivation: Survive, Expand, Protect
The Goo are driven by their all-consuming need to defeat the Shroud. The advantages of more worlds and more mass are obvious to the Goo. They will fight with everything they have, as usual.
Victory Gains
Technology Gain: Very High
Aside from obviously absorbing the mass of most mechanical and technological objects, the Goo are also extremely adept at interfacing with, assimilating, or using what should be completely alien computer systems. The Goo were able to easily use the Morra communications array to call to Goo on other planets, and to use their Aperture device to create the wormhole needed to bring more Goo as well as call the Shroud to fight. Two devices they should have had no shared technological lineage with, and two devices the Morra themselves struggled to use, the Goo made expert use of. The Goo can also interface with advanced human networks, like M.U.M. when the tech disparity should have been like a Babbage analytical engine interfacing with a modern supercomputer. The Goo can also assimilate AIs into their own command structure, like they did with Singleton, though the AI should be tractable with the overarching goals of the Goo (to save existence) to be successfully persuaded. In terms of information storage and processing, even in the Pathfinder days the Goo was described as handling zettabytes of data.
Biological Gain: High
Aside from obviously absorbing the mass of biological matter, the Goo have shown some ability to adapt new forms based on the foes they faced. The Siphon is the foremost example, where the Goo wholesale adopted an ability of an alien race into their own forces. However limited the basis of this ability to adapt may be, and whatever limits it may have, nearly perfect conversion of biomass is still impressive.
