Scavenger

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"Scavenger"
Details
Code name	Scavenger
Behavior	Reputation-based
HP	1.1
Food Pips	4 As Hunter 4 As Artificer 2 As Gourmand 1 As Spearmaster
Points	6
Regions As any Slugcat: Outskirts, Industrial Complex, Drainage System, Garbage Wastes, Shaded Citadel, Chimney Canopy, Sky Islands, Farm Arrays, Subterranean
Downpour Regions As any Slugcat: Outskirts, Industrial Complex, Drainage System, Garbage Wastes, Shaded Citadel, Chimney Canopy, Sky Islands, Farm Arrays, Subterranean, Pipeyard, Submerged Superstructure As SurvivorAs Monk: Outer Expanse As Hunter: Shoreline As Gourmand: Shoreline, Outer Expanse As Artificer: The Exterior, Waterfront Facility, Metropolis As Spearmaster: The Exterior, Waterfront Facility As Saint: Undergrowth, Silent Construct
Damage Multipliers Head 13x

Scavengers, often abbreviated as Scavs, are widespread tribal creatures that are generally seen in groups. They are social creatures that use gestures and body language to communicate with one another, and they are capable of carrying and utilizing weapons in a manner similar to Slugcat.

Appearance

Scavengers in their settlement

Scavengers are quadrupedal with long forearms and short legs. They have various types of antlers, horns, and beards, and they may have tails, spines, or frills of varying sizes. They come in a wide range of colors, but most commonly in neutral and desaturated tones. Their eyes can be different colors and shapes, and they may or may not have visible pupils. They are expressive and can exhibit many emotions.

Tips

Pacifism

When befriended, Scavengers can become very useful allies. Scavengers mostly leave Slugcat alone with neutral or good reputation and can be actively beneficial once they like Slugcat, following them in groups and coming to their defense. However, this can also be a disadvantage, as friendly groups of Scavengers often throw Explosives or Spears at threats, which can accidentally hinder or kill Slugcat.

Whenever neutral or unfriendly Scavengers are encountered, crouching and dropping any weapons may allow Slugcat to avoid conflict. Moving around too much and throwing Rocks and Spears needlessly may agitate them, potentially spurring them to become fully aggressive.

Because every Scavenger has a different personality, even if Slugcat has never lost reputation with Scavengers, there may be one who attempts to kill them regardless. Care must be taken to observe their body language, or simply avoid them altogether in regions where death is particularly punishing.

Gourmand can use their crafting ability to make valuable items to give to Scavengers, making it very easy to befriend them.

Due to the ability to generate an infinite number of spears to trade with Scavengers, it is very easy to befriend them as Spearmaster. However, considering their starting reputation is -45, they should try to avoid Scavengers for a substantial number of cycles or risk being killed on sight.

Combat

Scavengers do not have much health, taking 1-2 Spears to kill; a single headshot from a Spear kills them instantly. However, they are capable of throwing weapons at a distance and are usually found in groups, making them more difficult to fight in large, open spaces. Luring them into a smaller room with more cover may allow the player to pick them off more easily. There are often Explosives scattered around Scavenger Tolls, so throwing an Explosive from a distance can set off a chain reaction and kill many of the Scavengers in the area.

Artificer also has a variety of tools to make their constant fights with Scavengers easier. Along with the Any Explosives they can create and use from a distance, they can also produce a shockwave around themselves by performing their explosive jump while holding Down. This can quickly stun and disarm nearby Scavengers, allowing Slugcat to steal their Spears and kill them by spearing or Mauling (holding Grab while grasping a stunned creature). However, since producing this shockwave causes Artificer to overheat twice as fast as a normal explosive jump, it's best to use it sparingly in fights. When in a dire situation, a Grenade can be used to kill anything in close quarters, but the long stun duration makes Artificer an easy target for Scavengers unaffected by the blast.

Artificer can also use their explosive jump to for positional advantage over Scavengers. Since Scavengers cannot throw Spears upwards, explosive jumping above them and throwing Explosives down at them is a very effective strategy that can make them panic and scatter and may wound or kill several or at least stun them so they drop their weapons.

Though not useful in most practical scenarios, Artificer's Maul gets the same damage bonus that Spears do when hitting a Scavenger's head, if the Scavenger is grabbed by the head when the Maul is performed.

Stealth

Scavengers rely on sight and hearing to find their foes. Gaining height and hiding in pipes can help in avoiding detection. Hitting walls with Rocks or Spears and colliding with geometry produces detectable noises. In Downpour, Artificer's explosive jump also produces noise, alerting Scavengers to their presence.

Scavenger Tolls are designed in such a way that it is difficult to sneak past. Waiting for the Rain to arrive makes Scavengers retreat to their dens, allowing an opportunity for Slugcat to pass the Scavenger Toll without a reputation penalty.

Flashbangs are capable of blinding Scavengers, preventing them from attacking unless touched. When blinded, their eyes temporarily turn gray.

Scavengers in kill squads that are after Slugcat are aware of the location they were last in, making avoiding them harder.

Evasion

Scavengers are difficult to evade due to their agility. Moving around quickly agitates them; attempting to run past unfriendly Scavengers may result in them becoming aggravated. Scavengers typically do not give much chase unless reputation is incredibly low. Scavengers can be evaded luring a predator over to distract them, as they usually prioritize attacking the larger threat. Vulture Grubs, when available, can be very useful when dealing with exterior room Scavenger Tolls.

Another option is to utilize nearby poles and upwards platforms, as Scavengers cannot directly harm Slugcat if they are above them.

Abilities & Behavior

A Scavenger hanging from poles

Scavengers can walk, climb, and crawl and are a bit faster than Slugcat in most cases. They do not have the ability to jump; rather, they spontaneously gain vertical momentum when they need to move upwards, which can lead to some unintended physics interactions.

Scavengers can carry and throw weapons, including (but not limited to) Rocks, Spears, and Grenades. They have 3 slots for holding items (2 hands and a "pocket slot" on their side) and can hold up to 3 extra Spears on their back. They are capable of throwing Spears at an angle, meaning they can hit targets slightly above or below them. They also have the ability to dodge objects thrown at them. Each Scavenger has a different level of combat skill determined by individual stats.

• 

  A Scavenger using a Cherrybomb

• 

  A Scavenger dodging thrown Rocks

Communication

Scavengers utilize a wide array of body language and gestures to communicate amongst themselves and with Slugcat.

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  Indicating a valued item (pointing hand/Spear at item)

• 

  Warning (holding Spears up)

• 

  Idle animation (pawing at the ground; called "Rummaging" internally)

• 

  Fear (spines vibrating and eyes widening)

Trading

• 

• 

Certain objects can be used to trade with Scavengers. Scavengers typically trade more generously and drop more objects if Slugcat's reputation is high. Even as Artificer, Scavengers drop items in 'trade'; this does not affect reputation and they still attempt to kill Artificer.

Reputation gain increases with the value of the item traded, and at tolls there is a set reputation multiplier for each traded item. Items dropped by Scavengers may be picked up and traded again.

Friendly Scavengers occasionally take Spears from Hunter's back if they do not already have a Spear. This behavior can be disabled via a Remix option.

Below is a table displaying tradable items and their value. If an item is not on this table, Scavengers are not interested in receiving the item when trading, but may still pick it up when they find one.

* Only valued if the Scavenger has an empty inventory space to take it.

Item Value	Item
20	Inspector Eye
10	Singularity Bomb
5	Electric Spear
4	Lilypuck*
3	Glow Weed**  •  Fire Spear
1	Gooieduck***

* Only valued if intact.
** Value equal to the number of bites left.

*** 2 in Farm Arrays.

Scavenger Tolls

Scavengers asking for payment, then waving Slugcat through the toll after payment is given.

Scavenger Tolls, known as Scavenger Outposts in-code, are rooms in which a group of Scavengers has set up base around a toll post. A sufficient item offer is required before passage through the Toll is allowed. The total value of objects must add up to 10; a single Pearl is sufficient to pass, but any combination of tradable objects may be used. Paying the toll once allows Slugcat to pass freely as many times as wanted until the end of the cycle.

Passing a Scavenger Toll without payment causes Scavengers to become aggressive and decreases reputation. If no Scavengers witness the transgression, then no reputation penalty is incurred.

Any item traded at a toll has a reputation increase multiplier on its trading value. Taking items from within a certain radius around the toll post is considered stealing and may aggravate the Scavengers. Toll Scavengers are always neutral towards Slugcats (except Artificer, who they are always aggressive towards), regardless of current standing, unless provoked.

If reputation is high enough (≥50), Scavenger Tolls can be passed for free at a small cost to global reputation. At very high levels (≥90), Scavenger Tolls can be passed for free without any reputation loss.

Toll radius (red), property radius (green), danger radius (white), and gift radius (blue)

Around a Toll, several radii are calculated and determine how Scavengers consider objects lying in the room.

• Within a "property radius", which corresponds to the Toll radius plus 200 pixels, all spears belong to the Scavengers, and taking one of them is considered theft.
  • However, it is permitted if the creature the Scavengers consider the most threatening is within a 400-pixel "danger radius" of any Scavenger or Slugcat, allowing Slugcat to assist in combat.
• Within a "gift radius", which corresponds to the Toll radius plus 700 pixels, all objects given by Slugcat count as payment for the toll.
  • However, any object Slugcat was already holding upon entering the room always counts as payment, regardless of the distance.

Two Tolls can be found in Garbage Wastes, and one in Outskirts, Farm Arrays, Outer Expanse, and Undergrowth.

Scavenger Merchant

A Scavenger Merchant in Shaded Citadel

Scavenger Merchants are Scavengers with unique behaviors that can be found in Garbage Wastes, Shaded Citadel, Sky Islands, and Subterranean in special rooms decorated with Scavenger graffiti and Lanterns on long pikes. Merchants usually stay inside this room unless scared away and are capable of fighting if unable to escape.

Scavenger Merchants are usually fully stocked with Lanterns (other than in Sky Islands), Mushrooms, Grenades, and most commonly, Spears or Explosive Spears. They are also more docile and more willing to trade. Scavenger Merchants still value items equally to regular Scavengers, however. As with other Scavengers, Merchants trade more items at higher reputation.

Once their inventory is cleared out, Scavenger Merchants return to their den to restock, meaning they never run out of items to trade.

Scavenger Treasury

A Scavenger Treasury in Industrial Complex

Scavenger Treasuries are rooms, often with hidden entrances surrounded by Scavenger graffiti, that contain a large amount of Spears, Explosives, Pearls, and occasionally other items like Lanterns that randomly spawn each cycle. These are the only rooms with naturally respawning Pearls. Nomadic groups of Scavengers visit these rooms to stock up on weapons.

The chance of each possible object spawning are 1/10 for Pearls, 9/70 for Grenades, 27/175 (in Shaded Citadel and Subterranean) or 27/700 (in other regions) for Lanterns, and the rest for Spears. For each spawned Spear, it has a 3/4 chance of being an Explosive Spear.

With the More Slugcats Expansion enabled, each Spear also has a chance to be an Electric Spear. If a Spear is turned Electric, a separate check is made in whether it should spawn active or not. The chances for Spears in Artificer's and Spearmaster's campaigns are 1/2 to be Electric and 3/4 to be active, in Hunter's and Gourmand's campaigns they are 1/20 to be Electric and 1/4 to be active, and in Survivor's and Monk's campaigns they are 1/50 to be Electric and 1/100 to be active. Spears have no chance to be Electric in Saint's campaign. In Metropolis, each Spear has a 3/4 chance to be an Electric Spear, and they are always active, regardless of campaign.

Taking an item incurs a reputation penalty if Slugcat has less than 90 reputation, applied once for every conscious Scavenger in the treasury. The reputation penalty is a linear extrapolation based on Slugcat's current reputation, with a penalty of -30 if Slugcat has -50 reputation or less and 0 if Slugcat has 90 reputation or more. Stealing Pearls from Treasuries and trading them back to Scavengers can be an efficient way of gaining reputation, since no reputation is lost if there are no witnesses.

Decals

Scavengers mark rooms in which they live with various types of graffiti and markings. Though they are never seen in-game doing so, they paint the walls with blue and white symbols, which serve as decoration, communication, or signs. They may represent the locations of Rain Deer, Echoes, or Scavenger Treasuries. Scavengers' decals appear mostly in and around Garbage Wastes, as it is the territory of the largest Scavenger population.

Scavengers appear to have some knowledge of Ancient culture, as the glyph (representing companionship) is featured on Scavenger Toll posts and around their territory.

Every Echo except the one in Subterranean has a marking near their location.

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  The companionship glyph representing Scavengers, used in Industrial Complex outside the gate to Garbage Wastes.

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  The companionship glyph in Looks to the Moon's chamber. The second glyph is unique and unnamed.

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  An arrow mark, indicating a hidden Treasury in Garbage Wastes.

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  A sign representing a Rain Deer, used on the Farm Arrays side of the gate to Outskirts.

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  A sign representing an Echo, used in the Echo room in Sky Islands.

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  Marks covering a Treasury in Garbage Wastes.

Variants & Attributes

Scavengers are commonly seen in neutral, earthy tones, but they are capable of exhibiting any color. They usually have 3-6 colors depending on their physical traits: body color, stomach color, head/gradient color, antler/horn accent, eye color, and pupil color. These may sometimes overlap (e.g. Scavengers with the same antler/horn accent and stomach color are common).

Their main features can be broken down into a few categories: head decoration, stomach patch, gradients and back decoration. Scavengers can have a few variations of antlers in different positions on their heads, as well as 'beards' and back frills of various shapes and sizes.

The size of each body part varies per Scavenger. This is most noticeable in their tails; size typically remains close to average for other body parts.

Personality

Scavengers are heavily influenced by the six personality modifiers that determine their Behaviors: aggression, bravery, dominance, energy, nervousness and sympathy.

Aggression impacts dominance.

Effects

High values make Scavengers:

• Better at dodging
• Better at mid-range combat
• More likely to attack Slugcat and other threatening creatures
• More likely to attack lethally

• Have shorter Spear throw wind-ups
• More likely to spawn with Rocks
• More likely to spawn with Explosive Spears
• More likely to have longer teeth
• More likely to have narrower necks

Bravery impacts aggression, dominance and nervousness.

Effects

High values make Scavengers:

• Better at blocking Spears
• More likely to attack creatures they fear
• Less likely to spontaneously attack fast-moving creatures nearby
• Less likely to throw weapons to free themselves from Lizards or Vulture bites
• Less uncomfortable when hearing unknown noises
• More likely to investigate unknown noises
• More likely to idle around other creatures

• Less afraid of Slugcat

Low values make Scavengers:

• More likely to follow closely behind pack leaders
• More likely to move faster towards pack leaders
• More scared when spears thrown by unseen creatures
• React more intensely when startled
• Less afraid of Slugcat, but only when wielding a weapon
• Eyes boggle when very scared at values < 30%

Dominance does not impact any other personality modifiers.

Effects

High values make Scavengers:

• More likely to be the pack leader
• More likely to throw warning shots
• Less likely to spawn with Rocks
• More likely to spawn with more Spears
• More likely to spawn with Explosive Spears

• Go over lower dominance Scavengers when moving past each other
• More likely to have longer back frills
• More likely to have larger antlers
• More likely to have fatter bodies

Low values make Scavengers:

• More likely to abandon their current task to look for pack leaders

• Less likely to follow high dominance Scavengers
• Avoid standing near higher dominance Scavengers when attacking the same target
• Avoid pathfinding through space near higher dominance Scavengers
• Less likely to communicate with the same creature a higher dominance Scavenger is communicating with

Energy impacts aggression, dominance, and nervous.

Effects

High values make Scavengers:

• Have faster movement speed
• Have faster animations (retreating, waving through Toll, pointing, idling and trading)
• Look around faster
• Better at blocking spears
• Better at mid-range combat

• Have increased reaction skills
• More likely to stray from designated paths when abstracted
• More likely to idle in high-visibility spots
• More likely to have an increased eye slant

• Open eyes faster
• More likely to have yellow eyes or accent coloration

Low values make Scavengers:

• More likely to have fatter bodies

Nervous does not impact any other personality modifiers.

Effects

High values make Scavengers:

• Better at dodging
• Have faster animations (pointing and looking around)
• Have faster movement speed when not in combat
• More likely to block or dodge weapons that are further away
• Stare at creatures longer before switching focus

• More likely to look at empty spots in a room
• More easily startled by sounds in quick succession
• More likely to move between idle spots on each tick
• Jump more when entering the attentive animation
• Have more jittery hands
• Blink more often

Sympathy impacts aggression.

Effects

High values make Scavengers:

• Point for longer
• More likely to point at threats near pack members
• More likely to attack creatures holding friends
• More likely to treat Slugcat as a friend
• More likely to give weapons to unarmed pack members in combat

• More likely to avoid Slugcat than attack
• More likely to throw warning shots rather than attacking lethally
• Have larger eyes
• Have wider eyes
• More likely to have distinct pupils
• More likely to focus pupils more directly at what they're currently looking at

It should be noted that the impact these variables have on moment to moment gameplay may be very subtle, and thus these cannot consistently be used to predict a Scavenger's behavior.

Reputation

Scavenger behavior has the most visible variation under the Reputation system. There is both a local reputation value for the Scavengers in a given region, and a global reputation value, the latter of which can be observed through The Chieftain. Unlike other creatures with reputation, local actions affect the global reputation scale greatly. Progress for the Chieftain passage is usually mapped on the range 10-80 of global reputation.

Reputation with Scavengers can be gained by trading with them and saving them from harm. As reputation rises, Scavengers become less aggressive, may attempt to save Slugcat from harm, and, once trusted enough, allow Slugcat to pass through Tolls and take items from treasuries without repercussions. The benefits of good reputation do not extend to tamed Lizards, and Scavengers remain aggressive towards them.

Inversely, if repeatedly stolen from, harmed, and ignored when in danger, reputation is lowered and Scavengers become more aggressive. If infractions are committed repeatedly, reputation can eventually drop to a point where Scavengers actively seek Slugcat out and send kill-squads to their general location.

Along with global and regional reputation, each individual Scavenger has their own reputation with Slugcat; if care is taken to be friendly to a particular Scavenger, they may be more inclined to follow Slugcat and trade generously compared to others in their group. This can also lead to random reputation changes when the leader of a group dies and a new Scavenger with a differing opinion takes over.

Scavenger reputation is measured on a scale of -100 to 100 and may only change by a maximum of ±50 each cycle. Reputation gain is linear above 0 but becomes exponentially smaller as reputation goes into the negatives. When reputation is below 0, a small amount of reputation is gained passively each cycle provided no interactions with Scavengers are had. This passive increase scales up the closer reputation is to 0, maxing out at +10 reputation per cycle. Reputation loss is multiplied based on the number of witnesses, but reputation gain is not, unless saving a Scavenger from a threat.

Depending on Slugcat's reputation, Scavengers become more or less aggressive toward Slugcat while they are holding a Pearl. With good reputation, Scavengers tend to become friendlier if Slugcat has a Pearl, while Scavengers who are already hostile or fearful may become more likely to attack instead.

At ≥50 reputation, Tolls can be passed without paying at the cost of reputation.

At ≥90 reputation, items may be freely taken from Treasuries, and Tolls may be passed for free without reputation loss.

As with all reputation values, Scavenger reputation is artificially lowered for all Slugcats in Subterranean.

Starting Reputation

As Survivor, Gourmand, and Saint, reputation with Scavengers starts at 0, and reputation gain rate is normal.

As Monk, reputation with Scavengers starts at 25, and their reputation gain rate is higher. Progress towards the Chieftain Passage is mapped on the range 42-90.

As Hunter, Rivulet, and Spearmaster, reputation with Scavengers starts at -35, -21, and -45 respectively. In each of these cases, it is low enough to be considered a threat; early interactions with Scavengers can be dangerous.

As Artificer, reputation with Scavengers is locked at -100, the lowest possible value. Kill squads are constantly sent after them, and Toll Scavengers are always aggressive. As a result, Artificer is unable to get the Chieftain passage.

Trivia

• Scavengers are one of the 10 backer-created creatures.
• Scavengers were originally intended to be able to glide, but this feature was later scrapped due to issues with pathfinding.
• Scavengers throw Spears at Overseers, which, according to Looks to the Moon, is an act of defiance. This destroys the Overseer for that cycle if it hits and drops an Overseer Eye, which can be then used for trade.
  • Scavengers also attack Inspectors in the same manner, though often at the cost of their own lives.

• Scavengers have "off-screen" spawns, and spawn in a different room at the start of each cycle before doing their patrols through the region.
  • Exceptions to rotation of spawn locations are Merchant and Toll Scavengers, who always spawn in their respective rooms.
• Garbage Wastes has the highest number of Scavenger spawns, at 26 on all difficulties.

• Scavengers do not distinguish between standard and colored Pearls and value both equally.
• According to the code, some effects of personality modifiers do not work as intended.
  • Very high and very low dominance values are meant to make Scavengers more likely to be Merchants. However, Merchant selection is completely random in practice.
  • Energy is meant to make Scavengers narrow their field of vision for longer or shorter depending on value when first spotting a creature. However, Scavengers always have their vision maximally narrowed in practice.

• Scavengers in Safari Mode can pick up and throw Looks to the Moon and Five Pebbles as if they are Spears, and can even bring them outside their cans.
• When Scavengers are blinded, their eyes turn gray and they blink rapidly.
• Like other Slugcat-sized creatures, Scavengers' corpses can boost the player's speed in tunnels when held.
• A glitch can occur in certain Scavengers when they attempt to block spears, causing them to throw multiple spears to block extremely quickly, because Spears thrown to block other spears have no cooldown on throwing.

• In the Outskirts Toll (SU_C02), when entering from the Farm Arrays side, exiting the room again through the left pipe before paying counts as a transgression and causes the Toll Scavengers to become aggressive.

• When paying for Tolls, the payment that lets Slugcat pass grants additional reputation on top of the original value of the item. However, this effect can be triggered multiple times, making it easy to grind reputation if there are enough tradable items around.

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