In Defense of the Creatures 1 Grendels

The worst misconception about Creatures 1 revolves around the Grendels. As I took a trip down memory lane with the Creatures strategy guides, I was reminded of how incorrectly this species was presented. Nildeleer heard about how vicious and villainous she was being portrayed, and I didn’t blame her for being so sad! My theory is that Creatures 1 really was supposed to feature dangerous Grendels, but they were never completed. Instead, they turned out to be very much like Norns, and rumors had to be started to make them seem terrible.

An interesting part of the slanderous campaign against Grendels is how they’re supposed to secret poisons and spread disease. I admit that I would keep my Norns away from something supposed to do that, yet Grendels have an identical immune system to Norns. They’re no more or less likely to spread illnesses than their cousins. There are only two parts to the Creatures 1 game that make Grendels live up to this theory of awfulness. First, their genetics include some genes that make them angrier and more likely to slap others. Those genes aren’t as terrible as one may think. The second part is actually a very lazy workaround designed to exacerbate the vicious Grendel label: Grendels are hard-coded to always slap others, regardless of whether they want to or not. So when a Grendel wants to tickle or kiss another Norn or Grendel, he or she is coded to generate a slap. How awful! Luckily, there is the Grendel Friendly COB that eliminates this code and allows Grendels to tickle and kiss as much as they want to. Which, coincidentally, is typically all the time!

Nildeleer took a nap after I let her know that I didn’t believe one word of the disparaging remarks about Grendels! While it is true that the default C3/DS Grendels are extremely dangerous, the documentation about the Creatures 1 Grendels is completely unfounded. It’s a subject I’ve brought up a few times in the past, yet I think many players miss out on the whole Creatures 1 game experience when Grendels are completely avoided. Dahloi and Nildeleer have made wonderful friends with many of my Norns from this generation. They have their moody moments, just like Norns, but they’re very docile and friendly. Nildeleer and I would like to remind everyone to give their C1 Grendels a chance!