Charybdis

Common Name: Charybdis

Scientific Name: Consectrus Plicatus

Description on Science Screen: "A hardy, mysterious creature capable of folding the fabric of space itself. Its life functions produce nebula clouds as a waste product. Its methods of feeding and reproduction are unknown."

The life form designated "Charybdis" by the TSN is a bit of a mystery. In some ways it is similar to the other creatures that inhabit TSN patrolled space, as it has an outer carapace which is hardened to radiation and vacuum. However, TSN sensors have been unable to penetrate this outer shell, and so the monster's inner structure is unknown. It is reasonable to assume that Charybdis may have evolved along the same lines as the Space Shark and Dragon, but there simply is no evidence to support that. Some have even theorized that Charybdis is not a living thing at all, but is instead some sort of Doomsday Weapon designed by an advanced alien race.

If it is the latter, it appears to be a defensive weapon, because the Charybdis is largely a peaceful entity. It is not known what Charybdis consumes, as it has not been observed feeding on metals, natural materials like asteroids, or energy sources like anomalies or starships. It is theorized that the Charybdis absorbs the background radiation of stars, as it tends to become more active as it enters a star system, and tries to plot a course keeping it within the star system for as long as possible.

Whatever the source of the energy needed for Charybdis to function is, the byproduct of its consumption is obvious. As the Charybdis travels through a sector, it belches out nebulae, leaving a trail of them in its wake. The intent or purpose of this behavior is unknown, it is simply what Charybdis does.

As with all monsters, it appears on the LRS as a purple dot, and on Science as a purple asterisk. It must be scanned to identify it as a Charybdis, although its generation of nebula may give it away. Once identified, its classification "CHARYBDIS" will appear on the Science display. (This is the longest monster name used)

Behavior and Stats:

It is a good thing that Charybdis is not an aggressive monster, because if it was, it would be the most dangerous monster in the game. (Outside of The Space Monster, of course) Its massive, hardened shell is capable of withstanding 3 direct hits from a Nuke, and the nebulae it spits out act as a natural defense, preventing travel faster than Warp 1. If attacked, the Charybdis will circle around and fire a beam from its "mouth", which will cause its attacker to Jump across the map, in an effect similar to Jump Drive.

The Charybdis becomes much more dangerous when there are other threats around. The combination of the monster Typhon and Charybdis is doubly dangerous, as Charybdis limits the ship's speed to Warp 1, preventing escape from the Typhon. Other monsters can be a threat as well, and enemy ships in the area may ambush you while you are trying to whittle away at Charybdis. (Conceptually, the Arvonians should defend Charybdis, since they are known to respect other forms of life. However, it is not known if they actually do this in game)

As of Artemis 2.7, the Charybdis has an age, from "Young" to "Ancient", which can be determined with a Science scan. An older Charybdis does not seem to be significantly larger than a younger one, and it does not change the monster's health. Even though there are three different colors of nebulae in 2.7, Charybdis will always generate the original purple nebula, no matter its size, age, or the number of individuals in the sector.

When killed, Charybdis will drop a huge amount of anomalies, up to eight or more, each giving the usual rewards.

Quick Stats