Phenos' Guide to Changelings (Revision 1.1)

First blog post because having everything on my dropbox, with no one to critique it, is getting lonely.

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== Phenos' Analysis of Changeling Kind ==
Supplemented by Ashura (Changeling, male Medic class; runt)

To be delivered to Princess Celestia and/or Twilight Sparkle,
whichever is quicker for information exchange purposes.

Appearance:
- Insect-like in general, but pony-like in terns of basic anatomy and size, Hive Queens being more towards alicorn anatomy (Lanky, large jagged horn)
- Carapace in place of fur; black chitin, with a dusky indigo "saddle" (carapace) by default
- Very delicate, fragile "skin" under their 'shells,' similar to crustaceans almost
- Translucent insect-like wings; drones have small, tattered ones while Queens have larger, slender ones (makes noticable buzzing noise due to high flapping speeds)
- Holes through the bottom portions of legs and parts of the ears
- Tattered fin from top of head to top of neck (replaced by a more 'normal'-looking mane on Queens, Princesses, and rare 'individualized' changelings)
- Tattered tail, same shade of lighter grey as head fin (replaced with a more 'normal'-looking tail on Queens, Princesses, and rare 'individualized' changelings)
- Solid blue eyes in most cases, with the exception of Queens having more fish-like eyes; the former is more luminescent though
- Hard to notice difference between genders, the females having a slightly more slender body type and lighter frame as well as a smaller average amount of tatter
- Harder to notice differences between individual changelings; mannerisms, stances, hole configurations, tattered appearances, all of which slightly differ

Abilities:
- Limited control over low-density Emotional Magic, Queens with higher ability
- Precise, agile, but fairly slow Flight (akin to hummingbirds)
- Ability to stick to walls via resin; see below
- Secretion of resin, which is somewhere between honey, crazy glue, and quick-hardening concrete solution, depending on its mixture and/or user disposition
- Shapeshifting (See personal notes below)
- Sensing of emotions (linked to taste)
- Feeding off of emotions; see Dietary Habits below
- Enhanced night vision
- Hivemind access

Habitat:
- Caves (smaller, sometimes lacking a queen)
- Underground tunnels, presumably excavated by magic (larger)
- Apparently prefer dark places

Life Cycle / Behavior:
While dependent on the Hive, Changelings are usually born via the "conventional" method, though sometimes - usually when mass-production of drones are needed - they're simply grown in and "hatched" out of bio-luminescent cocoons. The contents of these cocoons groom their hosts until they are released as foals; in both cases the prolonged exposure to the local 'birthing fluids' is what's responsible for the holes and general tattered-ness of their forms. (Said fluid helps with the development of chitin but ends up being detrimental to the softer extremities, like the wings). They then grow into adults over the course of the next ten to twelve years, much like ponies. Since a Hive Queen has the ability to "connect" to the minds of her subjects via the Hivemind, said Queen (or suitable authority figure(s)) ends up setting the "threshold" a changeling's development must surpass before they are raised to perform their specific role in the functioning of the hive, usually chosen by their peers. Occasionally development will encounter difficulties, the changeling either remaining in the cocoon until somepony outside intervenes, or until they break free prematurely; the result of the latter is less holes and tatter, but said changeling is both considered underdeveloped and unworthy of attention (in the case of Ashura, being a rare breed of changeling with higher magical prowess, he was barred from the usual solution of disposal "natural selection", the side effect being eternal hatred and distaste; it was made clear to me that there's never been such thing as a "male queen"). If there is an absence of a Queen in their hive, the changelings may take it upon themselves to pool their minds into a collective, the strongest female (both physically and mentally, almost always of the Medic persuasion) becoming recognized as the Queen; this allows said female access to a second stage of growth, one resulting in the final appearance (e.g. Chrysalis). Some hives, usually those smaller in size, have no real need for a queen, and thus can split authority into groups based on age and experience; Ashura's hive is an example of this.

Roles:
- Queen: exactly what it says on her tin, she controls the entirety of the hive, and is intimately aware of all its members' actions and connections; in computer topology, she is both the Server and Console, the latter especially when concering the Hivemind. All Queens are females in the larger, "respectable" hives, no exceptions.
- Reaver: like soldiers, but better, usually the commanding presences over the changeling forces beneath them; in computer topology, these are Routers, capable of intelligently relaying the Queen's orders to different portions of the hive. In military terms, these are the Captains.
- Elite: a sub-class of Reavers, these are the few that become specialized towards a specific element. It's akin to the ascension that Queens go through, but it's all hard work and natural affinity without the 'needed' aid of ascension protocol, e.g. the royal jelly. Elites are almost always given the rank of General or above, rarely slightly below.
- _________: like Reavers, but more constrained; they are responsible for their own distinct "cells" that the Reavers give objectives to. In computer topology, these are Switches, though within each individual "cell" is the occasional Hub that simply serves to re-relay orders and information between members of the "cell" in question. In military terms, the 'switches' are the Lieutenants and the 'hubs' are 2nd Lts.
- Drone: the backbone of hive structure, fulfilling many different roles within the hive, from food-growing to caring for little ones; in computer topology, these are Clients, and in military terms these are the soldiers, privates, etc.
- Nymph: like drones, but ~95% of nymphs are females, just as ~95% of drones are males. Nymphs breed with drones, pretty much, but are just as capable of adopting the roles of drones since sexism is very frowned upon.
- Incubator: A sub-sect of the Medic caste, specifically those who have the honor of taking care of the pupae, in cocoons or otherwise. Generally this is also where the "unworthy" healer changelings end up, if they aren't capable of leaving the hive or ascending into Princess- or eventual Queenship.
- Medic: Healer changelings, the specialized breed with more tolerance for heavy magic, thus making healing easier (this class is carefully controlled by the Queen herself, since these are the changelings that could possibly succeed her throne). Most of this class are Nymphs, as the Medic class is seen as more of a feminine job
- Recon: tasked with searching for information, such as where good food sources and possible (future) hive locations may be, and for infiltrating other command structures; much like spies, but they're designed to gather and relay, never to complete specific missions
- Inflitrator: combined roles of both the Forager and Recon castes, but with the added responsibilities that come with the term 'spy.' Cue Mission Impossible theme.
- Forager: tasked with gathering love and returning it to the hive, to be shared amongst its members. These, along with Infiltrators, Elites, Medics, and "princesses" are the only ones gifted with the knowledge of how 'liquidized' emotions are work, because said substance is what evolves into Royal Jelly and, being what it is, is food for the hive as a whole. To divulge or abuse this knowledge is treason, so their roles are both doubly important and doubly acknowledged.
- Feedless: Changelings that can't actively feed. Viewed by most hives as a blight on their structure, these are almost always relegated to working Drones or Incubators, because their inability to feed is genetic (dominant gene). Thus they can't breed, and as a whole are seen as disposable by all except those with the 'all changelings are family' mentality.

Language:
- The Hivemind, which is a form of low-frequency telepathy; the frequency is assumed to be low due to the high distances the connection can handle. It is implied that all changelings are capable of access to the Hivemind, even from their "conception."
- Equestrian, fairly obvious, but only learned actively by those which go out to meld with Pony society. Changelings are capable of learning any language easily, and are equally capable of adopting and/or neglecting the use of various accents, but most learning of this type is via knowledge exchanged through the Hivemind.
- Vespid, which is the term Ashura uses to name the various clicks, hisses, and other insectoid noises which comprise the language; it is assumed that only a Changeling is sensitive enough to notice the subtle differences that the language requires in order to be spoken, much less interpreted.

Methods of Feeding:
- Exchange; emotions being swapped through both the hivemind and/or the emotion sensing ability
This can also work with magic-infused crystals; Emerald and other green-hued gems seem to be better 'tuned' for emotion-based magic storage
Feeding from pools or containers of 'liquidized emotion' falls under this category as well, but in liquid form storage and feeding is more efficient
Sustenance from "legit" food products, includes certain breeds of fungus
Minor gain, doesn't really sate hunger, but is required for resin production
Overeating results in overproduction of resin, which results in "icky bowels"
- Passive feeding; positive emotions being given willingly
Largest gain, most preferred
Fatigues donor based on "quality" of feelings, strong feelings like love being most preferred and the least taxing on the donor
Lust is a feeding that counts for this, but in terms of quality is a lot like fast food; fulfilling, but not really that healthy
- Active feeding; positive emotions being absorbed unknowingly
Changelings disguise themselves as a loved one or friend, being "loved" as who their disguise corresponds to, not requiring the fostering of relationships or friendships
Less gain than Passive, but less taxing on the changeling and easiest to achieve
Drains donor, not just fatiguing but actually pulling their emotions out; akin to vampirism, but to changelings is addictive because of its "boosting" side-effect
Gives a /temporary/ boost; the more one feasts, the stronger one gets so long as the emotion is strong like love (magic strength increases exponentially)
- Chrysalis' form of Active feeding
Involves turning ponies into living batteries via hypnosis into a constant state of giving off love, cocoons maintaining their life functions
Even lesser of a gain than Active Feeding, even if it's technically a subsection of Active (a weakness that can be overcome with quantity)
Can be combined with a form of Taboo feeding that 'changelifies' ponies
- Taboo feeding; Active feeding, but achieved by sinking fangs into victim
Extremely powerful, direct boost to strength albeit temporary; think a lifetime of emotion being poured into the changeling
Generally unused because the knowledge is so ancient
High Risk / High Reward:
- Changeling can die due to overload of feeling, the flow of power being hard to limit or cut off prematurely; panic reduces the chance of this to none, as concentration is required to keep the flow stable
- Victim usually dies, either due to blood loss or complete loss of the will to live; in the case of the latter, the body's organs shut down as they "no longer feel the need to function"
- Purest version of this method is eating a pony's soul so yeah, the host of the soul would die given the soul is outright consumed (see personal notes!!)

Strengths:
- Hivemind; changelings have the ability to be aware of their peers and to receive orders over long distances
- Their auras; changelings can store any amount of emotion within their bodies much like rechargeable batteries, but the larger the aura the more mana is returned to the Ether, so a changeling's "maximum storage" is where influx is equal to release
- Their abilities, see above
- Durability, because of their chitin
- Their Resin and its properties

Weaknesses:
- Hivemind; changelings have little free will when connected, and have difficulty adapting to individual situations (changelings don't deal with singularity well)
- Food source; almost all changelings can be starved to death by not loving them
> Vulnerable to powerful negative emotions being forced upon them, especially honest guilt!!
- Vulnerable to certain types of magic: massive amounts of the unfocused positive variety, e.g. The Magic of Racism the burst of magic driving the changelings out of Canterlot (the love was too dense, number one, and since it was a Dual Spell anyway, well....); certain spells which "short out" their forms (Ashura says that forced transformations are akin to being burned like their green flame would if it was actual flame, with their chitin being oil, mixed in with a forced rearranging of skeletal and muscular structures) by forcing large amounts of random, unassigned magic against/into it;

The Changeling Emotional Spectrum:
Broken Bonds (the hidden limitbreak)
Love, Righteous Fury (aka Spiral Power), and Hatred (the three most powerful)
Family love, Intimacy (Phenos' vices); Laughter (the panacea)
Lust (the fast food); Hot Fury/Anger, Disgust, Fear (the stronger negatives)
Friendship (is magic), Loneliness (the self-sustaining vice)*
Compassion, Affection, Gratitude (the 'delicacies'); Pity, Disdain
generic Happiness, Sadness (the 'condiments')
Willpower (the essence of magic itself; please, no green lantern puns)

*If a changeling can feed on ambient negative emotions while being lonely, theoretically a changeling could infinitely recycle that loneliness as the act of doing such compounds the feeling. While a pitiable practice, it has been noted to sustain at least one changeling for several months, given the addition and careful rationing of any and all other ambient emotions absorbed.

Notes on Shapeshifting:
- It can apparently be honed to the extent that, instead of a complete form switch, one's form can be 'refined;' in the case of Ashura (my primary information source), his refined form combines both pony traits and changeling traits. It is admittedly hard to tell whether or not there's an intermediate step of "fattening," since changelings are closer to mares in physiology even when male, just slightly thinner.
- Shapeshifting is notably influenced by the Law of Conservation of Mass, requiring far more energy to shift into a form with higher mass, though shifting into a form with far less mass risks the changeling not having the energy needed to shapeshift ever again unless they can condense the aura into their bodies, which is both a very obscure science and very dangerous; changelings do have certain leeway, given the formation of full wings and horns, and in Ashura's case 'refining' the usual changeling tatter.
- Certain changelings can shapeshift enough extra mass to copy non-organic material, like clothing, but said non-organic material is still made from a changeling's organic material; a literal case of "you are one with your weapon" in some cases

Personal Notes:
Changelings identify themselves from their peers by the configuration of their holes and tatter within their legs and wings (and, given the hivemind, the differences in their magical signature), the process being more of a subconscious kind of thing (especially in terms of the magical signature thing); even then, however, most changelings are known by their caste and their number (with a Hive abbreviation in front when needed). Most don't ever get any names until either A, they become royalty or B, they gain some type of individuality, enough that their presence in a 'normal' hivemind would alienate them. This usually results in a caste change, rarely in 'disposal' "natural selection" practices depending on that type.

When changelings are born, they are fed with love from other changelings. This, in effect, teaches them what love is and where to look for more? It's hard to explain effectively, though I theorize this is also linked to the induction of changelings into the local hivemind, as well as their abilities being reduced due to foalhood

Almost all changelings are required to have a dedicated food source, since only those with high magical potential (e.g. royalty, Medics, and some skilled Recon changelings) are capable of Feeding on ambient energy, and even then it takes a lot of practice (or a lot of desperation). However, if a changeling is capable of feeding on ambient emotions, they can absorb them being given off by ANYthing capable of feeling said emotion(s), including other changelings. Without needing their consent.

When changeling sperm cells come into contact with the reproductive cells of another race, they adapt. They kind of make an edited copy of the other race's genetics, based on the changeling's own genes. Bearing young is indeed quite possible, though the species of young depends on the mother's species; e.g. a changeling and a pony mating would produce a foal. At least, that's how it's supposed to work in practice.

Changelings have extremely delicate skin underneath their chitinous exoskeleton, kinda similar to crayfish or crabs, and as such blunt force is capable of breaking the chitin but not causing too dire of an injury... though it is still very painful. Curiously enough the chitin itself is capable of self-repair as well as 'shedding' old shells (repaired chitin is weaker than fresh chitin; changelings generally "molt" every few months)

Emotions and the energy within are closely related to Aura. Since one's Aura can be positive or negative, replenishes over time with rest, and can be channeled for power, it is assumed that Taboo Feeding directly drains a victim by sucking out their Aura and thus robbing them of the body's animating force. Without Aura, the animating force, one's body dies.
Given Taboo Feeding sucks out another's Aura, in the case of Trinket, my theory is the changeling responsible took both the Aura and it's source, the soul, into said changeling's body, which resulted in both a self-sustaining food source and a split personality (given both souls are inhabiting the same body)

Love, or any kind of emotion really, can be imbued into certain types of liquids and/or gasses, then pressurized to form "liquidized emotion." While I theorize that the emotional magic, or what have you, bonds into the water much like cohesion creates clouds... there's no concrete proof to this. It is believed that at the center of every hive is a literal "pool" of all this, and if/when the pool is mixed with enough magic and changeling resin, it evolves into Royal Jelly, which is also used to help a Queen's ascendance (It acts akin to the fluids a changeling is immersed in at birth, resulting in the customary "Alicorn-like" changes in appearance). For this reason, liquidized emotional is usually refered too as Nectar, but for convenience purposes has been listed as its definition in this guide.

While it is an extremely rare and extremely underhoofed trick to use, a changeling's saliva can act as liquid emotion. Normally this doesn't seem like a bad thing, but when you make that emotion something like fear, and then coat the fangs with it, the resulting bite results in a horrible analogue to a snake's. Because such dense amounts of emotion are channeled into that "venom," it only takes one bite to the neck for it to diffuse into the blood and act as a potent hallucinogenic. So potent, in fact, that symptoms coincide with most related forms of neurotoxin... and can actually BE a neurotoxin given an overdose. (The only known theoretical solution is a changeling blood transfusion)

Changeling cocoons are, of course, formed with hardened resin. The fluids within are thought to be somewhere between a thinner resin and liquidized emotion, and it's been revealed that the goo can support a self-sustaining coma for whatever might be inhabited by said cocoon. Changelings can actually take advantage of this by sealing themselves within one and using the fluids to heal wounds, in exchange for time spent and vulnerability from outside influence.

Crystals of any type can be used for storing, focusing, or channeling all types of magic, but the type of crystal alters the way this happens. Emeralds in particular are the gem of choice for changeling magic because, well, changeling magic is also green. It's kinda like how Fire Rubies come to exist, in theory.

Resin is what you'd call 'changeling goo,' yes, but it has several notable properties, the chief of which is its ability to hold mana like water can hold kool-aid. It very much resembles maple syrup in that its viscosity depends on how its made, but when combined with "chale" (ground-up chitin, usually from post-molt changeling 'shells') it turns black and thickens into the well-known structural building material for, say, giant spires and columns. Resin can harden on its own, but without chale being mixed in it becomes brittle and (largely) useless.

The changeling 'eye' looks the way it does because it acts as a screen, one that any combination of aspects used for this portion of a disguise can be projected upon. The "eyes are the windows to one's soul" phrase is taken with more than a grain of salt by the beings that NEED to mimic the real thing, and as such the eyes are THE most complicated portion of a disguise, followed by the wings if integrating into a chiefly pegasi-centric society.