Critter

This article contains **outdated information** that is inaccurate for the current version. It was last updated for *CS-442154*. Unreflected changes in the discussed game mechanics are detailed here: **EX1-444349 • FA-471618 • FA-472345 • U35-479045 • U36-481350 • U37-483944 • U38-486708 • U49-577063 • U50-581979**
This article contains **outdated information** that is inaccurate for the current version. It was last updated for *CS-442154*. Unreflected changes in the discussed game mechanics are detailed here: **EX1-444349 • FA-471618 • FA-472345 • U35-479045 • U36-481350 • U37-483944 • U38-486708 • U49-577063 • U50-581979**

*This article is related to content of the Base Game. There may be a version for the  DLC, see Critter (Spaced Out).*
**Critters** are aliens that lay eggs and some species produce materials and/or drop meat when dying. Ranching can be used to increase the number of critters, eggs, and materials. Some critters have different morphs which consume different foods, live at different temperatures, or produce different products.

## Common traits

Most critters share the following traits:

* Are not aggressive (with exception of Pokeshell, which will attack anything if there are any of their eggs nearby).
* Occupy one tile and can crawl into narrow spaces (except adult Pokeshells).
* Will die when subjected to temperature extremes (specific range depends on species). Tend to migrate to livable temperature zone accessible to it.
* Can live in any atmosphere including Vacuum, yet will drown in liquids (but will try to escape), with exception of Pacus and Pokeshells.
	+ Common critters, such as hatches, will drown in
		- 1) a liquid tile with a mass difference less than 50kg to the element's critical mass(the maximum mass for a natural liquid tile), i.e. a water tile with over 950kg of mass, or,
		- 2) any liquid environment that is over 2-tiles deep, i.e. in a 10g water tile with any amount of petroleum on top of it.
	+ On the other hand, Pacus will be reduced to the flopping state in absence of water(or some other liquids they can live in).
* Both wild and tamed critters age, lay eggs, and have a capped life expectancy (with exception of Morbs, those have no life-cycle, and Gassy Moos, which lay no eggs).
* Juvenile critters take 5 cycles to grow into an adult.
* A wild critter does not need a diet. Once tamed they will begin to lose calories and starve if not fed after a number of cycles. A tamed critter with "glum" debuff loses calories slower than a happy tamed critter.
* Tamed critters lay tamed eggs. Babies won't starve and don't require a diet. Once matured, tamed critters need a stable food supply to survive.
* Wild critters usually always stay happy, if they have enough space.
* Resource conversion can range twentyfold depending on critter status. Happy and Tamed Critters have 100% production, Wild has 25%, Glum has 20%. Wild and Glum has only 5% production rate. See also: Metabolism
* Can't use ladders for pathfinding purposes, but can pass through opened pneumatic doors, and walk on opened horizontally placed doors. Drops only at the moment a door opens. Can get confined when a tile is built on top of them or were idle in a closing door.
* Can arrive as a care package by Printing Pod (except Morbs and Gassy Moos).
* They drop meat or whatever material when they die, no matter of how this happens (being killed by a duplicant, dying of old age, drowning, ...). Killing a Juvenile critter will grant the same amount of output.

Hatch and Morb, as walking critters, share the traits:

* Can walk, jump across 1 tile gaps, climb diagonally 1 tile, and jump up diagonally 1 tile to left/right and 2 tiles up/down.
* Babies can't jump tile gaps, or up/down.
* Non-aquatic critters sometimes jump into a puddle of liquids that's less than 1 tile thick.

## External links

* Critter debuff and reproduction mechanic