Third Generation Considerations
Written onDecisions about which Norns to keep and use are always difficult. One must find a balance between diversity, favorites, and some genetic stability. It’s a necessary task for some worlds, and an absolutely essential task for Creatures 1! I carefully sifted through the genetic files of all sixty-five third generation baby Norns… It was actually rather fun, although I don’t recommend it as a relaxing activity! I had originally wanted to stick with about fourteen Norns, but I ended up with a total of eighteen Norns to use. Close enough!
With a stroke of luck, every second generation Norn who was able to breed will be represented through at least one offspring. The worst cases involve three sets of half siblings, but most are slightly spread out. The only Norns from the second generation who will not have their genes passed along are Innhavet, Toften, Flakstad, and Grytting. Innhavet was just unlucky throughout his life, and never managed to kisspop at the right time. Toften died at birth, due to a mutation. Finally, Flakstad and Grytting were lost in a corrupt world.
Even with this high degree of genetic diversity, a quick look at the chosen genetics revealed a lot of Norns with similar appearance genes. Granted, I really only focused on the head and body genes, and there will still be ways to tell everyone apart. The Santa Norn head gene has not been inherited, nor has the Purple Mountain Norn body. This brings up the idea of a population approaching a single appearance after many generations. These Norns are far from it, but would it not be interesting to see some sort of dominant appearance emerge?
Dominant genes are not possible in Creatures 1: Inherited genetics, including appearance genes, are based on the luck of the draw. Even with so many Santa Norns, though, I found it a little surprising that this gene had disappeared from this generation. Picking and choosing Norns does create some sort of bias, yet my initial choices were solely based on genetics, excluding appearances. The third generation will have plenty of genetic mutations to explore, although many of the negative or minor ones have not been included.
Hang onto your hats! This generation should fly by, compared to the saga of the second generation! The naming theme for this generation is very loosely tied in with Norse mythology… As in, about as related as a third cousin by marriage! These Norns will carry the names of characters from The Chronicles of Prydain. Hopefully the wonderful tales from these books will translate into a very interesting Albia!
18 will still be quite a few to go through, but it’s a massive drop from the numbers you’ve been working with! You’ve clearly put in a lot of time sifting through the 65 Norns. I’m going to struggle going through 20 or so!
I’ve never had it with C1 because I’ve just never played long enough, but several times in C3 I’ve had populations that have ended up with identical appearances. Honestly it’s quite boring, so I’ll add some random C1 Norns to my population periodically to keep things interesting.
I definitely feel the need to pick up the pace… I started the second generation over six months ago! Granted, I took a whole lot of time. This should give me more time to bond with the smaller number of Norns, and I won’t feel so terribly pressed for time. The biggest task right now is to hatch and add everyone else to CreatureLink!
Identical appearances kind of bore me, too. I know Norns are unique on a genetic base and even in terms of their personalities, but having them all look alike isn’t my cup of tea. It only makes sense for a single breed population, or when you’re after a certain look. At least we have the option of choosing which Norns to keep, which can help with diverse appearances!