All The Tropes

Hive Queen: Difference between revisions

Page Discussion

Hive Queen (view source)

Revision as of 18:54, 10 March 2018

32 bytes removed ,  6 years ago
m
→‎Tabletop Games
VisualWikitext
Line 76:
* In [[Mortasheen]], the greatest example of this is [http://www.bogleech.com/mortasheen/genetisaur.htm Genetisaur], a grotesque, phallic, [[Female Monster Surprise|''female'']] creature that spits out spermlike young that incubate in women before maturing into [http://www.bogleech.com/mortasheen/genetimorph.htm Genetimorphs]
** They also have the [http://www.bogleech.com/mortasheen/harlequeen.htm Harlequeen], who is basically the accumulated minds of all the creatures a [[Monster Clown|Joker]] hive have consumed.
** TheTyranid "Synapse creatures" in ''[[Warhammer 40,000]]'' are an interesting example because they're not the source of the whole [[Hive Mind]], only a kind of local repeater. If they're killed, nearby lesser creatures are cut off from the [[Hive Mind]], but the mind as a whole is unaffected.▼
* Tyranid "Synapse creatures" in ''[[Warhammer 40,000]]''.
** Which kind of suits their description as 'synapse creatures', they link the lower tyranid creatures to the hive mind as a whole. The Norn Queens, on the other hand, fit this trope a lot better, as they can control the hive mind's connection to an entire planet worth of 'Nids.
▲** The Synapse creatures are an interesting example because they're not the source of the whole [[Hive Mind]], only a kind of local repeater. If they're killed, nearby lesser creatures are cut off from the [[Hive Mind]], but the mind as a whole is unaffected.
*** WhichHowever, kindeven ofdestroying suitsa theirNorn descriptionQueen asdoes 'synapsenot creatures', theyreally linkdamage the lowerHive tyranid creatures to the hive mindMind as a whole. The Norn Queens, onare part of the otherHive handMind like all Tyranids, fitthey're thisjust tropehigher aup lotin betterthe "chain of command", asso they can controltell the hivesynapse mind'screatures connectionwhat to ando. entireThe planetsynapses worthin turn work to keep the animalistic lesser Tyranid creatures under control of 'Nidsthe Hive Mind.
*** However,In eventhe destroyinggame's a Norn Queen does not really damagehistory, the Hiveexact Mind as a whole. Norn Queens are part"source" of the Hive Mind likeis allunknown; Tyranidsat best, they'rethe justother higher upforces in the "chainuniverse ofhave command",been so they can tell the synapse creatures whatable to do.disrupt Theits synapsescontrol in turn work to keepover the animalistic lesser Tyranid(read: creaturesnon-Synaptic) under'Nids controlby ofkilling the HiveSynapse Mindcreatures.
**** The Tyranid Hive Mind has been described in the various Codices as a psychic hierarchy: ''"As I looked into its dead black eyes, I saw the terrible sentience it had in place of a soul. Behind that was the steel will of its leader. Further still I could feel its primogenitor coldly assessing me from the void. And looking back from the furthest recesses of the alien's mind... I can only describe it as an immortal hunger. It is this we cannot kill."'' The term "leader" refers to the local synapse creature, presumably a Hive Tyrant, since [[Word of God|they have some degree of autonomy]]; the "primogenitor" refers to the Norn Queen of the Hive Fleet (since she is ultimately responsible for breeding the individual Tyranids of each Hive Fleet). The "immortal hunger," then, could refer to the Hive Mind itself. If this description holds, then the Hive Mind is truly a bodiless psychic entity that expresses its hunger down through the Hive Fleets, but leaves the intellectual decision-making to the Norn Queens and Hive Tyrants.▼
**** In the game's history, the exact "source" of the Hive Mind is unknown; at best, the other forces in the universe have been able to disrupt its control over the lesser (read: non-Synaptic) 'Nids by killing the Synapse creatures.
***** It has been theorized that the Ultimate Leader of the tyranid swarm is one of the C'Tan specifically the one called the Outsider.[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/The_Outsider Since the the recent invasion of the galaxy by the Hive Fleets of the Tyranids, it has been speculated by some in the Inquisition that the Outsider is behind the Tyranids' arrival in the Milky Way. He may be the driving force behind the unified Tyranid Hive Mind, as he seeks to destroy the galaxy's defenders with the living weapon that is the Tyranid species. If he is the Tyranids' ultimate master, then there may be no stopping the Tyranids from consuming the Imperium of Man and all who would oppose the C'tan.]▼
▲**** The Tyranid Hive Mind has been described in the various Codices as a psychic hierarchy: ''"As I looked into its dead black eyes, I saw the terrible sentience it had in place of a soul. Behind that was the steel will of its leader. Further still I could feel its primogenitor coldly assessing me from the void. And looking back from the furthest recesses of the alien's mind... I can only describe it as an immortal hunger. It is this we cannot kill."'' The term "leader" refers to the local synapse creature, presumably a Hive Tyrant, since [[Word of God|they have some degree of autonomy]]; the "primogenitor" refers to the Norn Queen of the Hive Fleet (since she is ultimately responsible for breeding the individual Tyranids of each Hive Fleet). The "immortal hunger," then, could refer to the Hive Mind itself. If this description holds, then the Hive Mind is truly a bodiless psychic entity that expresses its hunger down through the Hive Fleets, but leaves the intellectual decision-making to the Norn Queens and Hive Tyrants.
▲***** It has been theorized that the Ultimate Leader of the tyranid swarm is one of the C'Tan specifically the one called the Outsider.[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/The_Outsider Since the the recent invasion of the galaxy by the Hive Fleets of the Tyranids, it has been speculated by some in the Inquisition that the Outsider is behind the Tyranids' arrival in the Milky Way. He may be the driving force behind the unified Tyranid Hive Mind, as he seeks to destroy the galaxy's defenders with the living weapon that is the Tyranid species. If he is the Tyranids' ultimate master, then there may be no stopping the Tyranids from consuming the Imperium of Man and all who would oppose the C'tan.]
* [[Dungeons & Dragons]]
** The Elder Brain in an| Illithid colony, and the Hive Mother of a Beholder city. In both cases, however, they're much more similar to an actual insect queen than a true Hive Queen, and neither species has a [[Hive Mind]]. The former manages to subvert even that, in a sense—Illithid tadpoles ''can'' survive outside of an Elder Brain's pool of nutrients, but without oversight and culling they tend to engage in cannibalism until the toughest one remains and grows into a "wild" version, called a Neothelid. These creatures are fully sentient, and posses [[Psychic Powers]] like their more normal kin, but are also roughly the size of a dragon, so they can't pull off [[Puppeteer Parasite]] gig very easily.
** The Formian Queens are a more straight up example.
** So are the Hivebrood, a vicious insect-race from the Basic/Expert/etc D&D rules.
Retrieved from "https://allthetropes.org/wiki/Special:MobileDiff/1579928"