Space monsters (More properly called "Xeno-organisms") are rarely seen creatures that inhabit deep space. Some are peaceful, like the beautiful and gentle Space Whales, but some, like the Typhon (or "Classic" Space Monster, so called because it has been in Artemis since 1.41) mean almost certain death if they cross your path.
The "Monsters" option in the Server Configuration allows you to specify only a few or many monsters, or eliminate them from a mission completely. As of Artemis 2.2, there are many types of monsters, which represent a surprisingly complex ecosystem. It is hinted that eventually some of these creatures may be "mined" for resources, but for now they merely hunt each other -- and the Artemis and her crew.
Quick Stats
| Monster |
Health |
Top Speed |
Pod? |
Damage |
Range |
| Typhon |
30000 (Invulnerable) |
6.0 |
N |
10-60 |
2000 |
| Whale |
1 |
1.0 |
Y |
N/A |
Contact |
| Shark |
100-200 |
1.8 |
N |
30 |
Contact |
| Dragon |
700-1300 |
1.8 |
N |
168 |
Contact |
| Piranha |
27-31 |
1.2 |
Y |
6 |
Contact |
| Charybdis |
400 |
0.8 |
N |
Teleport |
1000 |
| NSect |
60-100 |
2.4 |
N |
10 |
Contact |
| Jelly |
1 |
0.06 |
N |
N/A |
Contact |
| BioMech |
70 (50-550 shields) |
1.8 |
N |
Varies |
700-2200 |
| Wreck |
20 |
Immobile |
N |
N/A |
N/A |
Notes:
- All monsters but the BioMechs appear as purple dots on the LRS, and purple asterisk-shapes on Science or the other consoles. They are identified only by the name "ZZ", until scanned by Science, at which time they are indicated by a name similar to those above. A description of the monster will also appear in the area below the monster's name.
- BioMechs always appear as enemy vessels, so they will be unidentified just as enemy ships are, and will appear as their silhouette after they have been scanned. Since they are ships, BioMechs will show ship-like Intel on the Science screen when they are scanned for a second time, (Monsters will not, and cannot be scanned twice)
- Similarly, even though most BioMechs will not respond to attempts to communicate, since they are ships they will appear on Comms. Stage 4 BioMechs (see below) can be communicated with, but Intel will not provide any hints about how to communicate with them. This may change in the future.
- As of Artemis 2.7, the Intel section does provide information on how close the BioMech is to evolving to the next stage.
- Wrecks appear as a silhouette, even before they are scanned. This allows them to be identified right away.
- Monsters tend to randomly roam around the sector, and do not attack friendly or enemy ships and bases unless they are attacked. In some cases, aggressive monsters such as the Typhon will seek out any ships that come within their detection range and attack them. Unlike enemy ships, however, monsters will not "seek out" targets outside of their detection range and destroy them.
- As of Artemis 2.5, BioMechs have a complicated life cycle that consists of seeking out asteroids and anomalies and evolving into a higher stage of development. At Stage 4, the final stage of development, the BioMech will seek out a mate and reproduce, spawning more Stage 1 BioMechs. They also act with a collective mind when attacked, and will seek out the player ship and its allies at any range, as an enemy force would. In such a case, the Stage 4 BioMechs can be communicated with in an attempt to stop the attack.
- Once tagged, all monsters will display a blue bar below the monster name, and a number to the right of that. Both the blue bar and the number represent the monster's health, and the bar will get shorter as the monster is damaged.
- The blue bar was added in Artemis 2.3, and appeared when the monster was scanned. In Artemis 2.7, it was changed to only appear after the monster is tagged.
- The numeric health display was added in Artemis 2.7, and allows the monster's exact health to be known. Monsters vary in health and the numbers above are only an average approximation.
- A tagged monster will also display the date it was tagged, and the ship that tagged it. Tagging was added in Artemis 2.7.
- Tagging provides no additional information on BioMechs. BioMechs can still be tagged, for the purpose of marking the creature with a timetag, as with any other monster or ship.
- Once tagged, monsters display a small tick mark next to their purple dots on the Science console. The same monster can be tagged up to 4 times, although only one tick mark will be displayed.
- Monsters can heal, and will return to full health if left alone long enough. Science can monitor the health bar to report when the monster is close to death, or if attacks are not working.
- A monster's regeneration rate depends on its full health. In particular, Dragons are exceptionally powerful due to their health increase in 2.7, and must be hit with multiple nukes at the same time to have a chance of being destroyed. Similarly, the Typhon's extreme health makes it regenerate so fast it is effectively invulnerable.
- As of Artemis 2.7, monsters have an age. "Young", "Mature" and "Ancient" individuals have been seen. Ancient monsters have the maximum health in the range given, young monsters have the minimum health. Older monsters also tend to be larger, but age does not appear to change damage dealt.
- Wrecks also have an age, although it may not be implemented in an entirely logical way at this time. For instance, new wrecks spawned from enemy kills are often "Ancient".
- Typhon's age does not appear to vary. It will always be "Ancient" and have 30000 health, even though it cannot be damaged. Note that Wrecks, Whales, Jellies and Charybdis also do not differ in health based on age.
- Prior to Artemis 2.7, all monsters had the average of the health given. Dragons had 320 health and did 65 damage.