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The Alien Homeworlds


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This thread should focus on where the various alien species are from. At this point, we have the Overmind, which is a species that has enslaved several other alien species for use in warfare. They don't necessarilly have the entire species however, perhaps just a group of each they've captured. But enough to send a contingent to earth to deal with the humans.

So let's develop where each alien race came from (remembering the Ammonites/Ethereals are from Earth), how they came into contact with the Overmind, etc. All the background that would lead the Overmind to send an expedition to Earth to try and capture it.

We need names for star systems and possibly other aliens that the Overmind could be fighting that we won't encounter in this game. Does the Overmind just conquer other species, or are they using the other aliens as troops to fight another war? These other aliens could be a potential threat/goal for future versions too. Edited by Breunor
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Hey Breunor,

I think we need a root document, set in stone, so to speak, as to the alien heirarchy: a sort of definitive "pecking order."
As I remember it was something along the lines of:

1)Ethereal
2)Sectoid
3)Muton
4)Floater

At least as I perceived their order of intellect-- anyway, each could be a separate thread to post on as to origins, etc.
Whatttaya think?
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  • 1 month later...
[quote]They don't necessarilly have the entire species however, perhaps just a group of each they've captured.[/quote]

Seems more likely... Anyways, I like the possibility of an 'unexpected alliance...' Besides the tought that the aliens are by definition evil is rather unimaginative, don't you think? However, if it is done, it will need much tought, doubly so than what we have to consider in v1...
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For Overminds, I see three main possibliites:[list]
[*] They're from somewhere near the galactic Core. We can either use Niven's Core explosion idea for why they spread out, population pressure, or just because.

[*] They're from the outer rim of the galaxy, where the night sky would only have a couple stars.

[*] They're from Somewhere Else (lesser magellenic clouds, another dimension, etc.)
[/list]Another idea is to follow the StarGate theory of alien overlords...they're a (sessile) paracitical race. All their technology is aquired from subject races. Maybe they need mobile hosts to spread their spawn.


Edit: another idea: Maybe 'our' overlord is a freak...considered a pervert by its fellows for playing with lesser races.

[b]Edit by Red Knight: Modify the list tag to show it as a list. [/b]

-The Captain Edited by red knight
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[quote name='Breunor' date='Jun 11 2003, 10:22 AM']This thread should focus on where the various alien species are from. At this point, we have the Overmind, which is a species that has enslaved several other alien species for use in warfare. They don't necessarilly have the entire species however, perhaps just a group of each they've captured. But enough to send a contingent to earth to deal with the humans.

So let's develop where each alien race came from (remembering the Ammonites/Ethereals are from Earth), how they came into contact with the Overmind, etc. All the background that would lead the Overmind to send an expedition to Earth to try and capture it.

We need names for star systems and possibly other aliens that the Overmind could be fighting that we won't encounter in this game. Does the Overmind just conquer other species, or are they using the other aliens as troops to fight another war? These other aliens could be a potential threat/goal for future versions too.[/quote]
Some of this sounds like two books I just finished, "Foundation and Empire" and "Second Foundation" by the great Asimov. :D

A mutant called the Mule takes over world after world in revenge for being forced as an outcast in his youth, and added each planets military to his. His mutant power was to control the emotions of humans to the point of making them permanently loyal to him but the person lost the ability to take any initiative. I think he did not even need to be in visual contact to "sense" people or mess with your mind but he could not see ideas in your mind. Good books IMO. But start at least with Prelude to Foundation to have an idea of what is going on.
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If the aliens were fighting another full scale war, it may explain why
their invasion force is so limited. I don't care how good you are,
several waves of Battleships at the start of the game would do
us humans in. There has to be a reason why they don't come at
us full force.

I think a cool overmind concept would be to make it an organism
that actually covers an entire planet. Say it feeds on biological mass
and used up it's native planet's (by spreading over the entire surface)
and now it needs a massive supply of "food." So it controls a number
of alien races that are responsible for "harvesting" this food from
all habitable planets in the galaxy. It could send portions of itself
with the aliens to keep them under control. So the martian "brain"
would actually be a piece of the overmind.

As for the antagonist race, they could be another sentient race that
developed on the same world as the overmind and fled before the
overmind consumed the planet. Maybe the overmind could be their
creation, like some sort of failed biological supercomputer experiment.

As for the location of the homeworld, I think it would be cool to have it
set on a "Dark Planet." That's a planet that has been slingshotted
out of it's parent star system and is just flying blindly through space.
That would make it almost impossible to find the planet unless you
allready knew it's location. One drawback to this is, you would have
to explain how the overmind can survive without an atmosphere and
near absolute zero temperatures. I guess it's own metabolism might
be enough.. It would also have to have left it's parent star system after
the overmind had already consumed it (maybe the overminds doing).
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the overmind covering an entire planet sounds a bit like "Solaris", a very good SF book :)

i'd like to devise some cross-links. shut me up if i got it all wrong...

ok,so the overovermind's portion (==overmind) sent out to gather food was inactivated for quite a long time - it originates back to the complete eradication of all life on mars centuries/millenia gone. since then, is has stayed there until its next order from the overovermind comes floating in (or, it realises the neighbour planet has become real yummy in the meantime). As it is, the fully equipped war machinery which was stationed there to harvest mars has left a while ago to fight its full-scaled war. So, the Overmind lacking them, starts abducting humans for fresh material and clones also... well we all know where this leads.

The essential part is, that the Overmind was stripped dry of resources. That would certainly explain the first trickling waves of ufos which increase steadily. It would also explain the fear-by-terror tactic (to avoid serious resistance leading to general failure from the beginning) and the divide-and-conquer tactic (getting the human governments to collaborate --> no resistance). As signs of weakness, those tactics are abandoned later on when the alien force becomes awesome once more.

well, my brainstorm ideas for the diverse alien origins:

first, aliens who are sent initially to earth which have been enslaved by the overmind a long time ago - the real background of those aliens will be considerably hard to find out because the race itself has been sent to and fro and been twisted and reworked upon all the time. As a result, maybe the true nature of these aliens can only be determined if the Overmind is put to the question or a real highranking alien is freed from the overmind's psi control and remembers fragments of their race having been free and peaceful once... :)

second, the "aliens" which are constructed by human material to fight are clearly identified by autopsy - it's rearranged human flesh (shocky!)

third, aliens which aren't really controlled by the overmind, only steered and in reality driven by an own hatred for humankind can be interrogated where they eventually reveal their personal hatred (like the race in TFTD - uh, only know in german: Kiemenmensch - help me out there)

fourth, aliens which were originally "pets" or partners for enslaved races and simply cannot be used without their masters and vice versa (because they form a formidable fighting team). Since those aliens defer naturally to their real masters, the Overmind only needs to steer them. Their nature will be revealed by analysing their live behaviour - and the homeplanet by interrogating their masters (well could be the same or an invasioned planet in the past)

that's about it folks, tell me what that sounds like.
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[quote]like the race in TFTD - uh, only know in german: Kiemenmensch - help me out there[/quote]

Dispite my ineptitude in German, I can say that, I atleast have a good guess what that race is; Gillmen. Oddly enough, even though I took a course ages ago in German, I learned what the word mensch means(I'm not sure though) from Deathgate Cycle books. It means "man/men" right?

In the english version of TFTD the gillmen don't hate the humans, they just are controlled by the aliens...
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How's this for partnership theories (assuming I have all the matchups right):[list]
[*][b]Sectoid/Cyberdisc[/b]

Cyberdiscs were designed/built by Sectoids long before the Overmind(tm) enslaved them. The psychosynaptic circuitry is attuned to the unique telepathic 'frequencies' of Sectoid thought patterns, rendering them uncontrollable by even the most powerful Ethereal. As this circuitry is is an integral part of the Cyberdisc AI system, removal or alteration of it result in complete loss of the on-board control system (ie: a cyberdisc lobotomy).


[*][b]Snakeman/Chryssalid[/b]

These two species have evolved a symbitoic relationship. A chryssalid excretes an enzymatic fluid necessary for snakemen eggs to be viable. In it's unaffected form, the Snakeman egg is a heavy gelatinous mass, similar to Terrestrial frog eggs. In this form, the eggs must be kept underwater, or the developing fetus will rapidly dehydrate. The Chyssalid enzyme reacts with egg's surface, creating a tough waterproof shell, and negating the need for the egg to remain submerged. A side effect of this reaction affects the fetus genetically, rendering it immune to the Chyssalid venom. Snakemen are the only alien race to possess this immunity. Attempts to partner Chryssalids with outher species had unfortunate results.


[*][b]Floater/Reaper[/b]

The Floaters' cybernetic systems allow them direct access to the Reapers' hypnogogic control implants.


[*][b]Ethereal/Sectopod[/b]

The Sectopods are simply the ethereal's attepts to replicate their personal version of the Cyberdisc. WIth similar psychosynaptic controls, only Ethereals can control Sectopods. The Cyberdisc flying ability was deemed less important than expanding the firing capabilites, with an additional plasma cannon replacing the flight mechanism and self-destruct.


[*][b]Muton/Silacoid/Celatid[/b]
No ideas at all. Any takers?
[/list]-The Captain.

Edit: typos Edited by Cpt. Boxershorts
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[quote name='Cpt. Boxershorts' date='Jul 25 2003, 06:16 PM'][*][b]Muton/Silacoid/Celatid[/b]
No ideas at all.  Any takers?[/quote]
The 3 races have nothing to do with each other. Muttons are soldiers, but are generally used as slaves at alien bases, to do the hard building work. Celatids are Ship builders, making the organic layers in the alloys, but are also exelent "blood dogs". Silacoids are helping Celatids to melt the metalic layers to a level with they can start to form into the wished form.

Celatids and Silacoids are sent in as a last resort. When they fail, the ethernal will come in (they are normally too buisy with the jobs at Mars, keeping control.).

Muttons don't acturly control them. Small scanners inside their brain area lets ethernals control them like a computer game, preventing them from killing the muttons. These are also used under the alloy process.
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Shouldn't the Mutons get a [u]useful[/u] Terrorist? If all races got one, then why not the Mutons? (you can hardly call Celatid/Silacoid a useful terrorist, now can you :P ) Edited by j'ordos
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[quote name='Anglachel' date='Jul 22 2003, 09:15 PM']Some of this sounds like two books I just finished, "Foundation and Empire" and "Second Foundation" by the great Asimov. [/quote]

Sweet! I just got the series. Have yet to read 'em.

Anywho...back to topic...

[quote name='Cpt. Boxershorts' date='Jul 22 2003, 07:55 PM']Edit: another idea: Maybe 'our' overlord is a freak...considered a pervert by its fellows for playing with lesser races.[/quote]

I like this idea. The overmind is an outcast, intentionally expelled or accidentally separated from the godlike galactic overlord being...thing. Over the millenia, it has fitfully slept, unwittingly transforming the beings abandoned with it, and perhaps the creatures of Earth, growing in power to its full potential, and most importantly, slowly going insane. Now it has awakened! :rock:
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[quote name='j'ordos' date='Jul 29 2003, 11:51 AM']Shouldn't the Mutons get a [u]useful[/u] Terrorist? If all races got ine, then why not the Mutons? (you can hardly call Celatid/Silacoid a useful terrorist, now can you :P )[/quote]
Because Muttons are so dumb.

-cyperdisk: most be controlled by a psi-capatible alien. AKA, no mutton.
-Reaper: Does Muttons have those big implants? nah.
-cryssaloid: when the terrorship lands, it will contain ONLY cryssaloids!
-sectopod: see cyberdisk.

There might by more terror represents out there, but muttons WONT be able to control them with their weak psi-strength, and they just dosn't have implants.

there. Also, as i said before the muttons are a last resort (because of their strong arms they are exelent slaves; the other races are weak: give them a gun and lets move out :happybanana: ). The ethernals are not controled by you to start with (they are almost as high up the ladder as da big brainie), and they arrive about the time of the muttons to give you extra firepower.
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With regards to explanation of the celatid and silacoid, this would mean that celatids and silacoids will be present in any ship and not exclusively to the mutons.

Anyway, I do agree that we should think up a new helper race for the muton. His helper races are so useless that it's a great humiliation to be killed by either a celatid or a silacoid.

On the same strain, we should modify reapers to be much tougher, even against explosive, plasma and laser weapons. I don't ever remember any of my men being whacked by a reaper.
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Actually, according to the Alien Alloys CTD, The [u]Silicoids[/u] [i]are[/i] the alien alloy. They grow the alien alloy, and eventually become the organic layer (which gives it the self-repairing ability). They generally only show up in bases anyways (at least, I've never seen one outside of a base).

We're probably effectively severing the Silicoid/muton relationship.

Celatids are still up for grabs. Maybe make them harder to see (because of the size) and put them on all Muton ships. [i]Then[/i] they're a threat...a near invisible floating fetus hanging out 30' above you spitting acid why you try to capture a ship.

Maybe rather than damage, have the venom destroy armor. Have fun hunting Mutons in t-shirts.

edit: as for reapers, I suspect the AI they're planning will make them a threat (rather than target practice as they run aimlessly around).

-The Captain Edited by Cpt. Boxershorts
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Howabout the overmind being the preserved brain of Kekkonen, who has come to make Finland a galactic force? :huh:

That... That idea... Was spawned in the lower pits of |-|ell...

[quote]Anyway, I do agree that we should think up a new helper race for the muton.[/quote]

Howabout the Mutons being so good on the battlefield that they don't [i]need[/i] any helpers?
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[quote name='Fred the Goat' date='Jul 30 2003, 12:45 AM']I like this idea.  The overmind is an outcast, intentionally expelled or accidentally separated from the godlike galactic overlord being...thing.  Over the millenia, it has fitfully slept, unwittingly transforming the beings abandoned with it, and perhaps the creatures of Earth, growing in power to its full potential, and most importantly, slowly going insane.  Now it has awakened!  :rock:[/quote]
And its name is Cthuhlu! :D
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If Mutons are typically only seen at alien bases, do they need a helper alien? They sort of become the helper for anyone else in the base. If the silacoid is making alloys at bases for ufo construction, then the mutons could be the builders, engineer equivalents if you will. They can be explained as having toughened hides to withstand the environmental effects of working in the alien assembly lines.
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[quote]And its name is Cthuhlu![/quote]

<_< Actually the name is Cthulhu... Sorry...

[quote]If the silacoid is making alloys at bases for ufo construction, then the mutons could be the builders, engineer equivalents if you will.[/quote]

So, are they engineers that can fight, or soldiers that know how to build things?
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Yeah, everyone seems to think that the mutons are somewhat stupid (but geniuses on the battlefield), so they would be unlikely to be engineers.

However, you can find Muton engineers in ships, so maybe they can be. :huh?:
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I suggest people take a look at my first version of Alien Origins in [url="http://www.xcomufo.com/forums//index.php?showtopic=1887&hl="]Alien Origins & War[/url]
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Or, for those of you are as incredibly lazy as me, [url="http://www.xcomufo.com/forums//index.php?act=Attach&type%3d%70ost&id=33994"]here[/url] is a direct link.

EDIT: That is, that is a direct link to the document attachment dipstick is reffering to.
EDIT: Ok, dipstick did it himself. Well done dipstick, we are here to teach... Edited by miceless
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So if the mutons are general purpose soldiers, do they need a support alien specifically for them? They don't have to be stupid, just succeptible to psi IIRC.

Cthul-who? :D A good tie in for TFTD IMO. 'Ancient alien races that ruled the earth eons ago, and now they lay dormant in the depths of the abyss, waiting to rise again and destroy the world of man...' :master:
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  • 2 weeks later...
Well, as a reason for why muton's helper races work with them, maby we could just say that muton's beat (torture) the hapless celatid into submission. I mean, mutons have no psi or implants- All they have is their strength so I think that would be how mutons control their sidekicks.
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[quote]Another idea is to follow the StarGate theory of alien overlords...they're a (sessile) paracitical race. All their technology is aquired from subject races. Maybe they need mobile hosts to spread their spawn.[/quote]
I gotta be honest, I LOVE STARGATE. It would thrill me to no end if we included little Stargate lore here and there...

Gold
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+ it ties in nicely with the Egyptians Dipstick was writing about.

But if Celatids were larval Mutons, would they take them to battle? OK, they are a warrior race, but still... I think they would protect their offsprong too.
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  • 1 month later...
Well, we can develop species here too. We're developing the aliens as a whole.

As for mutons, I don't think they should have gooey floating babies. The charm of the mutons is that they were once a lot like us, but now they've been subjugated by the overmind. Take care, lest the same befall you, and your reproductive organs be surgically removed! Also, they're probably grown in vats, and born as fully developed and neutered fighting machines.

Alien Homeworld...okay. How about this? The aliens that we see are a throwback from a sort of Precursor empire, a vast, unimaginably powerful network with giant brain leaders (and one giant brain godlike emperor) that controlled most of the galaxy/local cluster/universe/whatever seems appropriate. For some reason (I don't think we, as humans, should ever figure out what that reason is) the empire collapsed into NOTHING. Not even chaotic war. It just ceased to be. But somehow, one brain survived, crippled and insane, and made its way to Mars...
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Well, I saw sillacoids and celatids at terror sites.

No offense FTG, but I don't really like the idea of an insane alien brain. I perfer my aliens to be perferctly sane and in control of themselves when they kill you. I mean, I perfer to base my aliens on maleovelence as opposed to insanity/stupidy.

Sorry if I didn't make sense there, but im very tired.
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Stupidity? Not at all. Malevolence? Of course. Malevolent insanity. Insane malevolence. How about irrationally cruel? Does irrationally cruel work? I could do pure evil too, but it has to be twisted, screwed up evil. :D
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  • 1 month later...
Ok guys, I guess it's time to introduce myself first...

My name is Christian, I currently live in Munich, Germany, but I am Danish, and have also lived in New Zealand for a while... I am a marketing person, and a writer so I will try to contribute to the creative writing department... I am currently working on the stories of the different alien homeworlds... so anyone working on the different alien species are very welcome to contribute ideas... So far I am working on the homeworlds for the Overmind, the Ammonites, the snakemen, the Mutons, and the world that the Ammonites came to after leaving earth...

EDIT will keep the attachment up to date... Edited by X-Clu-Zif
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[quote name='Jenny' date='Nov 15 2003, 01:20 PM']Sounds good, I'm looking forward to reading some of your stuff!
I hope you're more creative than me, although that shouldn't be too hard. :P[/quote]
That's why you left CTD and joined programming department? ;)

@X-Clu-Zif: I take it you've already read the existing texts, since you mentioned the Ammonites? Well, just in case you don't know yet, all other descriptions of aliens that are finished can be found at the CTD asset list (if Breunor updated it, that is :D ), [url="http://www.projectxenocide.com/ctassets/creativetext.html"]http://www.projectxenocide.com/ctassets/creativetext.html[/url]
Hmm, can't wait for a description of Char and Aiu...ehhhr... wrong game :)
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Heh, Jenny can program too? :)

Anyway, I'm looking foward to seeing your work. You should look over the CTs for the various races to begin with (as J suggested) and try to base your ct off of that. It might also be nice for you to include something like this: Mutons come from a Jungle planet, thus they perfer to work in tropical or sub tropical enviroments. Just to add a little flavor to our aliens.
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I like where your coming from, i particularly liked this statement

“From the subject's description, we suspect that this world is actually a moon of one of the earliest extrasolar planets Earth had discovered. It is known to astronomers as HD-70642 b, orbiting a type G5IV-V star approximately 29 parsecs from Earth. More detailed information of this world is unknown to our current subject, however higher ranking individuals may know more.”

^_^ i can be of no further assistance
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Hmm besides some grammatical errors that are incredibly easy to fix, I only see a few problems. 1. You don't really mention that the overmind has a slave empire, this may be necessary or not, I don't know.
2. Ammenomites (sp?) Came from earth, they genetically modified animals (hence created humans) and left for space. Once they did that, they were enslaved by the overmind. Sectoids have very little relation to ammeommites (sp?) unless the sectoids donated some genetic material to get the Eth's genes patched up. This is all AFAIK because I don't really have the time to look it up now.
3. You don't make it sound like the overmind is evil. :)

Other than that, it looks great!
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[quote name='j'ordos' date='Nov 15 2003, 04:29 PM'][quote name='Jenny' date='Nov 15 2003, 01:20 PM'] Sounds good, I'm looking forward to reading some of your stuff!
I hope you're more creative than me, although that shouldn't be too hard. :P[/quote]
That's why you left CTD and joined programming department? ;)
[/quote]
:wink:

[quote]Heh, Jenny can program too? :)[/quote]

I have a basic understanding of c++, that's about it. I learn as I go basically. ^_^
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[quote name='Cpl. Facehugger' date='Nov 16 2003, 10:38 AM']Hmm besides some grammatical errors that are incredibly easy to fix, I only see a few problems. 1. You don't really mention that the overmind has a slave empire, this may be necessary or not, I don't know.
2. Ammenomites (sp?) Came from earth, they genetically modified animals (hence created humans) and left for space. Once they did that, they were enslaved by the overmind. Sectoids have very little relation to ammeommites (sp?) unless the sectoids donated some genetic material to get the Eth's genes patched up. This is all AFAIK because I don't really have the time to look it up now.
3. You don't make it sound like the overmind is evil. :)

Other than that, it looks great![/quote]
Thanks for the reply...

I did this as an idea page, so the grammar and stuff is going to be very bad... I basicly wrote it down between my two posts today... So it was kinda quick...

1. It's going to be quite clear that the Overmind enslaves people... Especially in the Muton and Snakemen case... I haven't been working much on the other races yet, as I have seen no description of them as of now...

2. Ok I'll work on that the missing link is really missing because it never existed except in a test tube being genetically modified...

3. When I'm finished with this, the overmind is going to be the meanest thing on Earth (except it's not on Earth but who cares right...)
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Ok new theory...

The Overmind (or minds actually as they are several beings) are just ancient etherials... and the even weaker physic limits it's space travel. And they are going to die if they stay on the planet where they currently are... (Shii-yin) but they can only do one space travel, so they want to go to earth, but earth has to be secured first...
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Intresting theory, but the overmind was around far longer than the eths. In fact, the overmind enslaved many alien races before the Eths. Using the current story outline that is. Edited by Cpl. Facehugger
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