#slugcat familiar

[mahou-mogai]

 💗。+ slugcat familiar ( gender )

♠️。— a gender familiar (link) for when your gender is connected to slugcat familiars, slugcats and familiars, a slugcat being your familiar or being a slugcat and a familiar.

 🪽。+ coined by mod queen of hatred

[needlemeister]

please don't think i have no empathy for you what you've been through... but there's nothing i can do, now, but stand here and watch it all catch up to you

[skybristle]

REBLOGS > LIKES [tags appreciated!]

"doing a huge slugcat lineup killed my art motivation" minx said, doing another one. this is for my cookie calculators au/fan campaign[s] with my bestie @drake-dragon !!! they designed some of he scugs like prodigy and paladin :]

+individual drawings below!

[midnite-enjoyer]

Oh and fun fact I have this crossover AU between Ben 10(the original series and specifically Omniverse) Steven Universe(leaning more into Future) and hear me out, Mixels-

hi sorry I was like ten pages deep into the Ben 10 tag ohoho elaborate I'm interested

[groupalpha]

Ah, you have reached your first echo. Do not panic, as you are not in any more danger. Go and meet one of those who could not ascend. I will meet you on the other side.

TA: I don't know what an echo is, but the prescience is oddly familiar.

TA: I guess they are quite close by...

[fadebolt]

The Wheel of Death has finished spinning again and it chose..... @pansear-doodles!

They have a ton of well known characters that have existed for a while, so I chose to focus on a new face that we haven't seen very much of before.

The character is a leader and a diplomat, just like one of mine (that I didn't manage to put up onto AF either, sry xd). However, they are very much opposites in most other ways

This one certainly requires a lot more context than most of my other pieces, but I think I've explained everything in the description of the actual attack.

It's a bit long, but feel free to read it up, if you're interested :3

[flickering-nightfall]

Playing with some ideas mostly regarding gender/reproduction in RW, and slugcat colonies.

Full transcript under the cut!

Creatures in Rain World are typically simultaneous hermaphrodites but require partners to reproduce, with either individual capable of being a genetic donor or carrier. Alongside what we are familiar with, this has lead to interesting reproductive strategies such as rotating donor/carrier roles, or dual/simultaneous genetic swaps.

Rotating donor/carrier roles - A K-selection reproductive strategy. One partner carries the first child, the other partner carries the next child, and so forth. Allows each partner to recover from the demands of childbearing.

Rain Deer aren't quite monogamous, but they tend to choose the same breeding partner whenever mating season rolls around. They serve as a donor one season, then bear and raise a child the next. Calves are raised away from the rain and worm grass, in places that have less food but more safety. Calf wool is softer, not yet gunked up by the dirty rainfall. Their legs are sturdier as children, allowing them to run for cover while the parent wards off threats.

Dual/simultaneous genetic swap - An r-selection reproductive strategy. Parents fulfill the donor and carrier role for each other. The more children you make, the more likely some are to survive!

Multiple batflies lay thousands of eggs in a single "blue fruit." Several eggs congeal and become nutrient paste for the surviving eggs (and for hungry slugcats). Like some plant seeds, batfly eggs that are consumed before pupating can survive passing through the digestive system. Ew.

Ancients also fell under this umbrella. Their genders (and the genders of iterators by extension, who have no sex anyways) could have been determined by a variety of other factors, such as societal role, donor/carrier preference, or simply different categorizations of personal expression.

It's difficult to say how well their common pronouns would translate to ours, but it seems they can translate to an extent, given what Moon and Pebbles use canonically.

Slugcats, like real slugs, can have children with a partner or self-fertilize. Unlike real slugs, they are often known to adopt.

In the case of self-fertilization: children who are born from one parent may display a large amount of genetic diversity despite the circumstances. Maybe slugcats have some sort of... genetic reservoir independent of their own genetic code?

Slugcats live 20-30 years on average... if they manage to reach adulthood. Their mortality rate is sadly rather high, especially in pups. If they were to develop as a civilization, it's likely their lifespan would increase dramatically.

Slugcats in a colony are more likely to have more children, and to successfully rear those children to adulthood, than those who wander alone or in small groups. The safety and stability of a colony cannot be understated.

Colonies either have a set, cycling migration path, or wander continuously. Survivor and Monk's tree home was a nesting site that their colony frequents about once a year. So it's likely that they'll see their family again!

...also, the strength of large colonies are why scavengers are likely to become the dominant species. In the time of Saint's era, continuous migration has become more of a risk, and it has become more difficult to support large populations. Slugcat populations have shrunk back to the more forgiving equatorial zones.

Saint's tongue is pretty unusual and probably unique to them, or to a small population that they hail from. Fur (of varying thickness) is much more common.

Meanwhile, scavengers are bulkier and covered in thicker insulating fur. They:

have seemingly massive populations

have a burgeoning society (the existence of merchants, tolls, bartering, elites and leaders)

are adept at communicating (non-verbally)

manipulate their environment

can build structures (scavenger-made structures were a scrapped idea from Saint's campaign)

can create complex weapons and tools

may have agriculture behind the scenes (unsure if scout parties prioritize exploration or hunting)

I would wager on scavengers developing more quickly than slugcats, but it would be nice if there was a future where both could co-exist.

[sapphicdib]

WAHHHHH OMGGG THANK YOU(!:!(@/)(&:!!!!! also omfg i love ghost and pals how the fuck was this song not already on my iterators playlist—

"Go on, praise me like a god!"

Based on the song Pathological Facade, and of course, @sapphicdib's Rot AU Sig!

Non-gif (and higher quality) version below the cut

[thunder-opossum]

The two slugcats squirmed through tight tunnels and vast open spaces. Sizzle's stomach flip-flops in the lack of gravity; it's a strange sensation, there was no heft to his body, not to anything he touched. He would compare it to falling... but even then, you can still feel wind batting against your fur. The air here was still, the oh so familiar noises of the outside were all replaced by mechanical whirring.

Artificer reached out and snatched one of the small floating creatures from the air. She stuffed it into her mouth, "Eat these, and be quick."

Sizzle reached out as well, his paws grabbing onto the organism as it flashed an aray of bright colors. He but I it it quickly, hoping it wasn't in too much terror. The texture was chewy, with hardly any taste. "What are these?" Sizzle asked, reaching for a few more.

"Food. You can eat it, and you won't die from it." Artificer didn't need to eat anymore, she had already filled her belly with scavenger meat. It sickend Sizzle. But the green slugcat still needed to survive the cycle, he ate his fill and continued through the complex machinery.

Then the two suddenly popped into a different looking room, inhabitanted by something more complex. Similar structures to a slugcat, upright posture and diget-ed paws. But it was attached to wall with cords wrapping around it's metallic skin. It beeped weird noises as it stated at the two slugcats, seemingly annoyed.

Sizzle flinched at the familiar white-eyed-glare. He let his mother move in first, and she did so with confidence, the strange hunk of metal that's been following her around poped into existence and immediately caught the other beings, eyes. A moment later, gravity returned.

Sizzle smacked his face on the warm metal floor groaning as his mother landed safely. He really needed to work on his landings. Before Sizzle could lift himself up, a blaring light enveloped his vision and his ears rang with loud noise, similar to that of an explosion. He was propelled backwards and onto the floor once again. He clutched his head in pain, but there was a sudden clarity to the noise. A voice.

The two slugcats rose to their feet as this... iterator started to speak to the two...

[timeskip i ain't writing the spiel 5P gives Arti]

What a strange thing, Sizzle was having trouble wrapping his head around being in the presence of something god-like. Scavengers were known to exaggerate their stories, but the things they've said about gods in sky boxes suddenly were more believable.

Artificer was taking it in stride. She knew what coming here would give her. And now Sizzle must question the reality of the situation. There's no way his mom could survive slaughtering an entire city. It was impossible. But she seemed entirely confident.

She heard what she needed and waved Sizzle back up to the exit as gravity disappeared once again. She moved out through the pipe, but her son heared a shift in the room. The iterator, Five Pebbles. It made him come to a halt.

"You, green one. I need to mention something to you." His voice echoed in Sizzle's skull.

Sizzle angled his body around to face the iterator. Sure listening was uncomfortable, but his words must be important.

"I have seen pieces of your journey, and you seem to exhibit complex social behavior. So if you can prosses this information, I think you should know it," blue overseers popped up around the room, flashing bright holographic screens, "as much as one animal can lie to another one... well, I don't think you should be lied to."

Sizzle looked on, confused, and the holograms started to project a familiar environment... and a familiar friend.

---

hopefully the writing made up for the art! This is all I got motivation for right now, but I think it should give you guys a kick! Sorry for any typing mistakes, new phone and such.

[a-rabid-snake]

Enot in my au, can transform his body as he wants, so he took on more of the usual and familiar look of a small slugcat

He just doesn't know how to be non-creepy

[kelocitta]

[OFFICIAL WORK] Its been a few months and I never posted the set, so here’s everything I contributed to Downpour! Including the background mural for MSC that the actual slugcats cover up :) Whole thing was a delight to work on! If you’re familiar with what the icons for the original versions of the community mods looked like, there is a few easter eggs with certain details~

[focshi]

a familiar family of slugcats...

[the-real-rain-world-confessions]

You know, I never really liked when people made slugcats more cat-like in terms of behaviour and appearance. I think it's strips away a lot of their nuance by making them act and look more like a familiar species in our world.

Idk maybe that's just me, but one of the core reasons why I like Rain World is that it's mostly alien to me. You have this unique and interesting ecosystem brought to life by great AI and you visit these God-like biochemical entities that are waaaay beyond your comprehension, BUILT by an Ancient civilization you would never get to meet

.

[forsetcabiri]

I had been comm'd to make… A slugcat OC for myself?

Here's Starscav, reclaiming intelligence and society to spread it wild, and using a 'familiar' grappling hook. Known less-friendly as the 'can opener' by the local group.

[finalshockdown]

So I got a random burst of inspiration and decided to draw @xxtc-96xx’s mewtwo characters as Rain World Slugcats! This was also a chance for me to practice digital painting, and it came out super well imo.

From Right to Left:

Pigment (Pig) - Slugpup (I felt a slugpup was more fitting for Pig over Huey since she’s younger and still kind of has to rely on the older Twos. I figure she’d be artificer once she gets bigger, but Spearmaster could work too!)

Mewtwo (Scarfy) - The Hunter (I chose Hunter for Mewtwo because the Hunter is definitely the most stoic looking out of the Slugcats (minus Artificer). There’s another reason I picked Hunter but… Rain World spoilers lmao. It’s a game that should be played blind. If ya really wanna know just go on the wiki.)

Newtwo (Newt) - The Survivor (Yeah I went basic bitch Survivor for Newtwo. I did make her slightly chonky, but not to the level of the Gourmand. She would totally fit as the Gourmand, though.)

Huebert Twobert (Huey) - The Monk (Huey being Monk actually has a couple levels to it! For one, the Monk is actually part of the Survivor’s family that they’re separated from at the beginning of the game, specifically their sibling. The Monk is also differently colored compared to the rest of the family, being a bright yellow compared to the pale white tones of the rest. Sound familiar?)

I didn’t draw any of the other babytwos, but I know for a FACT that Stain would the The Saint.

[angelofchaos001]

More AU Writings!

It's just more Splitmind Arti and Sizzle, brain had an idea and wouldn't let it slide.

@thunder-wolf64 I DID A THING, MORE FLUFF WRITING!

-----

Twip!

A spear flew past Sizzle’s head as he ducked just in time to avoid it.

Thunk!

Another embedded itself into the wall, an entire arm’s length above his head.

Whoosh!

Yet another sailed over him, and he gasped, frantically trying to scrabble up the wall in front of him. 

It seemed impossibly tall, looming over him and choking him in fear. 

He was under attack. From scavengers, no less. He understood their hostility - After all, it wasn’t every day that they checked on their treasuries to find a small green slugcat grabbing pearls - But it still stung. 

If only they would let me explain! He thought, panting as he hauled himself over the ledge. He could hear more spears being thrown, some clinking in midair, others embedding themselves into walls where he used to be.

His plan had been relatively simple. Sneak into a treasury, grab some pearls, sneak out, and give them to some scavengers when he saw them. Yes, it was dishonest, but he had to do something to save his reputation. 

They hated him now.

Caught in the act of stealing. It wasn’t a light crime. He’d seen his family violently confront rivals that dared wander into their treasuries. Except, now he was the one being confronted.

What was he going to do?!

Sizzle took a moment to stop and try to catch his breath. He had his weapons on him: The electric spear, and a grenade he’d picked up in the treasury. But the thought of using them on the scavengers . . .

On who he considered to be his closest allies . . .

. . . He couldn’t do it. It would be too far.

They’d see me as no better than their dreaded red menace.

As his breathing started to slow and even out into deeper, fuller breaths, Sizzle heard chatter behind him. He turned to see the same scavengers that were hunting him crawling up the wall from the spears they’d put in it.

He screamed and kept running, heart rising to his throat. I can’t be caught, I can’t let this happen, I can’t be hurt again, I can’t, I can’t, I can’t -

“AH!”

He tripped over his paws and was sent tumbling down a slope, rolling over and over. His fur was getting tangled and matted, and he desperately tried to cling on to his spear. I cannot lose the one thing I have.

The grenade slipped from his paws, rolling alongside him before finally coming to a stop at the bottom of the slope when he did. Sizzle groaned, shaking and struggling to get to his feet, when he heard a familiar crackling sound.

Cherrybomb!

He didn’t have a chance to look for it. He just covered his ears, ducked down, and braced for the noise.

It sounded like bombs going off right next to him as the plant burst violently. Harmless, but loud, scary, and disorienting. Even after its popping sounds died, it still left his ears ringing and deafened him. 

Something brushed against his tail and he yelped, thrusting outwards with his spear in defense. The bright flash of the electricity forced him to shield his eyes, yanking the spear out and hitting the ground running.

As he ran, he forced himself to look back at least once. He had to know what he’d hit.

One of the scavengers was crumpled to the ground, shaking and twitching, and two others were standing over it in concern. Sizzle looked at his spear, and realized that it was clean. 

No blood.

Must’ve hit a wall or something.

They got caught by a spark.

They’re fine.

They have to be fine.

He kept running. He still wasn’t away from them. Finally, he saw his salvation - A pipe. It would let him escape. He just had to make it there.

With a leap into the air, he propelled himself with his explosive burst towards the exit. Towards his freedom. He could fix this another day, explain everything. One day, the scavengers would love him again.

Right?

As he landed, grabbing the entrance to the pipe, a scavenger suddenly shot out of the den nearby and grabbed his tail, growling and hissing. Sizzle froze, staring into their eyes with panic.

They had no spears, just rocks and a grenade, but stared at Sizzle so hatefully that it made him want to cry. 

“You.” They growled, then reached out and ripped the electric spear right out of his paws.

“No! Give that back, I need it!” he cried, desperate. The scavenger snorted and held him in the air.

“Sure. Just like we need our pearls that you so graciously tried to take from us.” Their grip tightened. They sounded like a female, but Sizzle wasn’t sure. “We’ve got a way of showing discipline to your kind around here, worm-cat!”

“Slugcat,” he corrected, shaking. “Really, I meant no harm! I’m from the Wastes, my mom was - “

Their eyes narrowed. “The Wastes. A slugcat from the Wastes who can explode. If you were red, I’d have to dead on the spot, lizard.”

His eyes dropped to the ground. “Please. I wanted to bring you all a gift.”

“You had a perfectly good spear in your hands. Our elites would kill for those.”

“But I need that!” He wailed, trying to reach for it. The scavenger held it out of his reach. “Please, my mom’s going to be so mad if I lose it!”

They scoffed. “Should’ve thought about your mom before you went treasury raiding. How does it feel to know that you’re going to be giving her the pain of losing a child?!”

Sizzle’s eyes widened. No. No, they wouldn’t! Artificer will save me from this. The scavengers wouldn’t. They have hearts. This can’t be the end!

From the den, a maroon slugcat emerged and placed a paw on the scavenger’s shoulder. “Hey, Rose, take it easy on them. I’m sure they’re just a scared kid-”

Sizzle looked up at the slugcat, and they looked down at him.

“Sizzle?”

“Ruffian!” He exclaimed, hope rising. 

She smiled, then patted the scavenger. “Oh, Rose, I appreciate your concern, but I’ll handle this one. Special case and all.”

The scavenger nodded dutifully, and as Ruffian held her paw out, they passed her the electric spear. She nodded, slipping it onto a loop on her belt, and the scavenger retreated into the den.

“So, Sizzle, it’s been a while, huh?” Ruffian laughed. “Came all the way from the Wastes to the Chimney? What for?”

“It’s where mom was taking me. We’re going . . . somewhere.” Sizzle shrugged it off as he started licking his fur. How messy was it now? There was dirt and blood lodged in knotted chunks of fur that he wasn’t sure where to even start getting out.

Ruffian slowly nodded, like she was thinking. “Maybe she’s heading to Pebbles. Looking for Smog like I was.”

“Hey, Ruffian?” Sizzle suddenly asked, interjecting himself into her sentence. “You said that the scavengers hated you, right?”

“Yeah,” she said, with a sigh as she wrapped her arms around her body and leaned on the wall. “Used to. Somehow I got the ones here to trust me, I’ve just gotta lead with their name or they assume I’m your mom. Probably sucks being them right now, with one enemy and one ally who look damn near identical, huh?”

“Yeah, yeah,” he shook his head. “How did you get them to like you? They attack me whenever I try!”

Ruffian blinked. “Hm. Well, you’ve gotta approach like you’re no threat. No weapons, stay low, y’know.”

Has my spear been putting them on high alert this whole time?

“And then?”

She grinned. “Give ‘em what you’ve got. I don’t have much use for an electric spear, but the scavengers will love it. I’ll give it to Fauna, mayhaps.”

“Actually, wait,” Sizzle said. “That’s my spear. Can I . . . have it back please?”

Ruffian hummed to herself, thinking. “Sure, why not? Anyway, where’s your mom, Sizzle?”

He sighed. “Probably looking for me. I woke up early to go sneak into a treasury.”

“That was mighty stupid of you,” she said. Sizzle slumped over, before she added, “Awful brave, too, though.”

“I know . . . “ he murmured, as she passed his spear back to him. Ruffian grinned, and then dug through a thick patch of her fur to reveal a small bag, giving him an inky black pearl.

“Take this and give it to the scavs. I’m the only one with these pearls, so they’ll know you’re with me. You could also show it to some iterators, if you want, it’s got some neat information.” She laughed. “Buuuut you might want to leave the room first! Or you might end up like me!”

“Your life seems nice,” he blurted. “It seems peaceful!”

Ruffian burst out in gruff laughter. “HAH! I guess what I mean is that you could end up with this.” She pointed straight to her messed-up left eye. The black one with the cyan pupil. 

Sizzle tilted his head. “Um . . . could you explain?”

She nodded. “Of course. No problem. I do this all the time to young scavenger pups, but I don’t tell them all the details. You’re old enough to hear everything, though, I think. Come on.”

She turned and walked into the pipe. Sizzle hesitated before following after her. She was his best bet at getting to his mom again without . . . dying.

The two were walking through the chimney, and it was rather peaceful. Ruffian cleared her throat after they’d walked through the first room, and began to speak.

“That pearl contains specific information for an iterator on how to do a complicated process we’ve dubbed ‘Mind splitting’. You know what iterators are, right?”

Sizzle shook his head.

“They’re these big, metallic, bio-mechanical creatures. You live close to two of them, you know. They’ve got lots of pearls and other goodies if you can sneak ‘em out.”

His eyes widened. “That sounds like a scavenger’s paradise!”

Ruffian giggled. “That’s exactly why a bunch live on Pebbles’ roof. He’s the iterator I’m about to talk for, by the way.”

They passed through another room without conversation, and ducked out of sight from a vulture before she continued on.

“The process allows for an iterator to remove their consciousness from their own body and put it into another creature’s. But it doesn’t replace the original mind of the creature. Instead-” she paused to leap onto a higher platform, waiting for Sizzle to do the same.

He was nervous. His jumps often crashed, and they were above an endless drop. His paws tingled and his stomach dropped every time he thought about what failure meant.

“Sizzle?”

“J-Just a second!”

Ruffian shook her head before leaping gracefully back to Sizzle, grabbing him by the scruff, and making the leap on her own. He gasped, not even realizing what had really happened until they were walking again.

“There. Better?”

He could only offer a shaky nod.

“As I was saying, though, instead of removing the original mind, it just adds the iterator’s consciousness to the mind. The two creatures then have split control of the body. They take turns sharing, sometimes one will be in control at one time and later the other will be, but fights have broken out between some of us.”

“There’s more of you?” He gasped, slack-jawed

Ruffian smiled. “Lots. Me, Gourmand, Ranger, Hunter, Spearmaster, Saint, Rivulet . . . All of us have voices in our heads.”

Sizzle thought for a second. “Is that who was talking to us last time?”

“Hm?”

“When mom attacked you as you were leaving! Right before you . . . “

“Died?”

Sizzle nodded.

“I don’t know. I was already gone by that point. Pebbles probably took control for a few more seconds to say something mean, but I don’t know.”

She stopped walking for a moment and grabbed at her head. Sizzle paused, looking at her, concerned. “Ruffian? Are you okay?”

“Give me a moment . . . “ she growled, and shook her head vigorously before continuing on. “Pebbles wants to talk to you, but I don’t want him doing it yet.”

“I’d-I’d like to talk to him!” Sizzle offered, as they came towards another room. He wasn’t sure where they even were anymore.

Ruffian shrugged. “Alright. This is our stop, anyway, and he knows the path so-”

Her voice cut off as her other eye flicked to match the odd one. “Ah, wonderful to be able to properly talk to you. Sizzle, it was?”

He nodded. “Y-Yeah. Are you . . . Pebbles?”

“Five Pebbles is the full name. But that nickname suits me well, I believe.” He grinned. It was weird. This was still Ruffian’s body, her face, and her abilities - But someone else was speaking and moving. 

“Woah. Is it . . . weird to have a shared body?”

“Why wouldn’t it be?” Pebbles laughed. “It’s awkward sometimes. But me and my Artificer have a wonderful arrangement worked out. She rarely fights me, and I hardly fight her.”

Sizzle smiled. “You seem . . . nice.”

“ .  . . Nice. What an odd word to describe myself.” Pebbles shook his head. “No, I’ve done terrible things in my past. Nice doesn’t suit me. Selfish, more like.”

Sizzle’s ear drooped. “Oh. But- Whatever it was, I’m sure it’s okay now!”

He sighed. “I suppose things . . . did work out in the end. I hurt my only sister beyond saving. It’s a miracle she lives in any way today.”

"I used to have a sister," Sizzle lamented.

"So I've heard."

The pair climbed poles until they were near a shelter. Sizzle paused. “Are you sure I should stay with you? My mom won’t be happy if she finds you with me again.” And the cycles won’t bring you back to me twice, I’m sure of it.

Pebbles sighed. “Personally? I don’t care what that arrogant beast thinks. She can kill us a million times, and we will come back one million times. The cycles can be considered a gift as much as a curse.”

Sizzle gasped. “Don’t say that about her! She’s . . . “ Morally questionable? Cruel? Uncaring? All of the above?

Pebbles titled his head. “She’s . . . ? Do finish that thought, I implore.”

“She just is, okay?” Sizzle shook his fur out. “I’ll stay with you guys for a cycle, but then I’ve got to get back to her or she’ll tear every rock out of here until I’m with her again.”

Pebbles nodded, before the eye became white again. Ruffian smiled and gently licked Sizzle’s head. “Then she’ll have to do just that. We will protect you whenever we’re near, Sizzle. I promise.”

As they walked into the shelter, and it began to close on them, Sizzle’s thoughts turned into a slurry of emotions.

Is this what love feels like?

This safety, this comfort, this  . . . belonging?

Something I’ve not felt with Artificer. At least, my mom.

She was so mad at me when I got hurt.

She didn’t comfort me, she just . . .

. . .  yelled about how it’d be a waste if I died.

What would Ruffian have done?

He glanced over at the maroon slugcat, and as she fell asleep, Sizzle made the hasty decision to bury himself in her warm, rough fur. It felt like he was just a pup again, curled up and safe.

This is just like home.

-----

The fluff writing continues to make me happy =3

PROPER MOTHER (and maybe father) FIGURE TIME