There have been rather tumultuous events within the Thymos in recent months. I have been dissatisfied, to say the least, with the performance of Agents acting on our behalf. Granted, we defeated the fury of Quetzalcoatl, and survived the unexpected assault of Kaldrak with minimal structural damage, but there is no guarantee that we will be so lucky next time. The Spirit World is becoming openly hostile to our interference, and we must prepare ourselves. We need a force capable of defending EsperCorp, and the world, if necessary.

The Arena is a training ground for the Agents of Geomon to distinguish themselves in battle. All who dedicate themselves to regular practice will be rewarded for their vigilance. The most powerful among you will be honored and earn reward as well.

How it Works

Agents compete by accumulating ‘Arena Points’ over a 2-week period. Prizes are awarded as Agents build up their point scores. At the end of the competition, the 25 Agents with the most Arena Points will be awarded with highly valuable prizes.

The Arena can be reached from the ‘Ops’ Menu. From there you begin an Arena Battle, view rankings, prizes and other pertinent information.

Duels 

• Each Arena Battle randomly matches you with another Agent of the same rank seeking to duel.

• Duels are 5 v. 5 Geomon. You must have 5 Geomon in your Duel Party to compete.

• If another Agent cannot be located to duel you, you will be assigned a Battle Drone equipped with 5 Geomon chosen randomly from EsperCorp’s population.
• Points are assigned after the battle’s completion.
  • If you win your Battle, you are awarded 10 Points.
  • If you lose your Battle, you are awarded 7 Points.
  • If you disconnect from your Battle you will be awarded no points.

Battle Charged

Duels are limited by the amount of Charges you have. By default, you can fight 3 Duels before you need to recharge.

• A Battle is charged once every 3 hours, with a maximum of 3 charges.
• You can purchase recharges for tokens once your duels are depleted.
• You can upgrade your charger to have a higher maximum for tokens.

Rewards

Prizes are awarded based on the total number of points you earn, and to the top duelers at the end of the two-week tournament period. These prizes can and will be subject to change from tournament to tournament. Here is a list of the rewards we are offering now:

Those of you interested in the various fauna of the Thymos will no doubt be enthralled by Geosaur, which is being offered to Agents who accumulate more than 300 Arena Points in the allotted time. This unique saurian Geomon was discovered by EsperCorp some time ago, but its existence has been kept a secret until now.

The more battle-oriented among you will be interested in the prizes awarded to the top 25 Agents at the end of the Tournament. For those elite few we offer the following prizes:

Infernatron is a mechanical robot with both missile and flamethrower attachments, along with a host of other unique abilities. It is constructed of diamond and ruby crystals, and runs on purified Fire Energy.

Scott McDouglas, our Chief Engineer had been using this Mechanical Geomon for construction purposes in order to expand the size and strength of EsperCorp’s Thymospheric Structures. I immediately saw in it the potential for something more. I do not doubt that you will agree.

This concludes my summation of the EsperCorp Arena. Go forth, Agents, and apply the skills we have given you. I have no doubt that this new forum will drive us to greater and stronger heights within the world of Thought.

-Dr. James Alister

Many of you must be thinking, ‘How can there be another fire salamander? We’ve already got Mandra!” Well, it would seem that for some reason fire lizards are quite popular ideas in today’s culture, spawing enough instances that this particular meme has started to mutate into different species.

Ambix was first speculated to exist by Agent xxxBlackxxx in the Espercorp Spirit Speculation Spectacular. We originally thought ‘Siren’, as it was named, was simply a different breed of Mandra, but further investigation proved them to be a fully unique species. Here are some of the initial scans Espercorp made while researching Ambix:

Mr. McDouglas is attributing this latest discovery to an upgrade in our scanners in the latest version of the Geomon Software. In his words our scanners  ”weren’t slick enough to pick up these slippery little sprites.”  I have had only a day to observe Ambix since its discovery in the wild, but I am so excited about it that I simply had to publish my findings.

Appearance and Behavior

Ambix resemble a specific type of Salamander, notably those that have not yet undergone metamorphosis and still have gills outside of their body. One particular species, the Axolotl Salamander, never outgrows this stage and spends its entire life in the water.

No water-bound life for Ambix it seems– they move as freely through the air as they do the water. There are some limitations to their powers of levitation, because they tend to appear at low altitudes. And yes, they can go in the water. Their flames disappear beneath a gelatinous membrane when they dive, and their bodies emit a sparkling glow from the furnace burning within.

Ambix come fairly small, the smallest being about the size of my pinky finger. At this time most of the Ambix discovered are relatively young and low-level, but even high-level specimens we’ve scanned do not exceed more than two feet. That’s not to say larger ones don’t exist. More likely they are clever at hiding and we haven’t found them yet. But so far research would indicate Ambix have either a minimal diet or a very efficient metabolism.

Location

Ambix appear mostly in warm weather in places with low to high amounts of water, but so far rare specimens have been cropping up occasionally all over the world– in cold areas as well as deserts!

This kind of uniform population dispersion tends to correspond with Geomon that are closely related to human beings. After all, the places we scan are almost all places where people are, too. Winglet, for example, can be found anywhere on earth, because they feed almost exclusively on people’s wishes. I suspected that Ambix might also share a similar ecological relationship with humans.

A rough indication of where Ambix have been scanned so far, and where we expect them to be based on that data.

Compostion

The first thing we did with the scans you Agents have been collecting was get better composition statistics. Dr. Nielson and Dr. Alister, as always, helped me to compile the scans and develop a picture of the average Ambix.

It turns out that the primary sources of Fire in an Ambix are these emotions: Passion, Excitement, and Ambition.The primary sources of Water consist of Confidence, Serenity, and Persistence. Determination, which usually forms with high concentrations of both Fire and Water was also found.

There are of course trace instances of many other emotions, and other emotions could be derived from the above list. But the ‘gist’ of the Geomon, as I like to say, is plain as day. Ambix is a Spirit of Inspiration.

Hypothesis

My more reserved colleagues would say it’s too early to make such a claim, but I have a hunch. I speculate that Ambix will form whenever a particularly strong idea erupts from a person’s mind. We’ve often scanned our brain while we’ve been engaged in different aspects of our work here at EsperCorp, and the effects of a breakthrough idea are not unlike an explosion, or a lightning strike. All of a sudden a series of intense chemical reactions shake the Thymos. Ideas crystallize and shatter into beautiful, radiant forms, and with it come a cascade of emotions and thoughts that burst into flame or melt or dissipate all around.

Based on our records, a good, strong idea would generate enough energy to create up to a dozen Ambix at once.

It’s easy to forget, not being able to see visually their effects, how powerful our thoughts can be. How much Spirit Matter we can create with just one powerful, resonating idea. Thoughts are the primary forces that move and change the Thymos, and we are the dominant thinking beings on this planet.

Conclusion

What do Ambix do, once they’ve been sprung into the world? Do they go out and seek other elementals like themselves? Do they search for another head to nestle in, to grow slowly into another burst of inspiration? Mere speculation, of course. More research into the life cycle of Ambix will have to be done before we can say what their behavioral tendencies and reproduction methods are.

I hope this was inpirational to some of you! Please share your own research about Ambix in the comments below!

-Dr. Rhine

New Energy Calculation

EP was always a little unwieldy, and difficult to calculate. No more! After further research it has been discovered that  Espers have 1-8 EP, depending on their level. Abilities cost 1-5 EP, and you always start battles with full EP!

I find it a lot easier to strategize in battle when I don’t have to do complicated subtraction problems in my head, and I think you will too!

Recalibrated Esper Stats and Abilities!

Espercorp has spent a lot of time getting the most accurate readings yet of the power and growth of all your favorite Espers! This should lead to more balanced battles, and new strategies to explore.

Additionally, following one of Dr. Alister’s research studies we found that Espers actually weren’t suited to learn 3 different Ability Trees, but rather 2! So we figured out which ones.

Some Espers have changed their secondary ability. Some have lost their secondary ability. Some even have completely different Elements than before!  For example, Chimera is now a Fire/Toxic type. And I guess we thought Tengu was a Light/Air Esper before, because it could fly, and kept burning people. But it turns out it’s not either of those things! It’s actually an Ice/Electric Esper that happens to be able to fly! Crazy, huh?

New Ability Learning System

So probably the biggest change is that the Esper Ability System is totally revamped. This new system not only eliminates the need for Ability Points, but allows Espers to learn abilities from both of their trees without having to build up from the bottom in both of them!

Here’s how it it works. Every 6 levels after a battle you will be given a choice between 2 abilities.

After 2 levels, the ability you just learned will get stronger, gaining a level just like they do now. 2 more levels, same thing. After 6 more levels you get a choice for another ability! You get your Ultimate Ability at level 40, and now Ultimates have 3 levels, so if you get all the way to level 50 your Ultimate will be super-powerful.

Right now if you take your current Espers in to battle you will find they have no Abilities. But as soon as the battle is over you’ll be started on the Ability Choosing Sequence. One new Ability every battle.

However, if you’re the hard-core Agents I think you are, you’ll want to really sink your teeth into the strategy of this new system. So you’ll want to head over to the Ability Web.

The Ability Web

This is how we’re laying out an Esper’s 2 Trees. You can see that each half of the Web corresponds to an element. You can select each ability to see what it does, and how its power increases from level to level.

There are three tiers to the web, Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced, getting more powerful from the outside in.

Let’s spec out my Shawnox here. When you want to learn a new Ability, press Learn. This will give you your next choice.

You start by choosing between the abilities on the far right and left of the web. I really like Electric Espers, so I’m going to learn Spark.

Since my Shawnox is already level 40, all of my abilities will automatically be at level 3.

Now I have a choice between the two Abilities to either side of Shock, Ionize and Pollution. I’m not crazy about passive abilities, so I’m going to pick Ionize!

Awesome! Now, it’s time to move to the Intermediate Abilities. I can pick either of the abilities that are next to the abilities I’ve already learned: Flux or Short Circuit.

I’m going to pick Short Circuit.

Now I get a choice between Flux again and Nausea, a Toxic Ability. Cool!

Now I have 2 Intermediate abilities, so it’s time to move up again, the Advanced Abilities! I can get either Sludge or Gamma Ray. Both are good choices– I can’t decide!

Starting to get the picture?

You get 2 abilities from each ring, and new abilities have to be connected to an ability next to them. Once you’ve build up 2 abilities in all 3 tiers, you get a choice between 2 Ultimate Abilities.

Here’s my fully spec-ed Shawnox:

But you know what? I want to try something different. Maybe I can get a better combination of abilities if I start with Infection. So I’m going to Reset my Shawnox’s abilities using the button in the bottom left.

Bam, all my abilities are cleared, just like a Tabula Rasa. In fact, it is a Tabula Rasa! All the Tabula Rasa’s you may have owned are gone now. Don’t worry, you’ll be compensated for those that you had.

You can make almost any combination of Abilities using this system! Here are some different ways I could spec out my Shawnox:

And here are some other Espers all tricked out:

The Ability Web is available for 100 tokens. We think this is a really neat feature, and it’s entirely optional. If this whole web thing is too complicated for you, you don’t ever have to worry about it. Purchasing the web gives you 1 free Reset, and you can purchase more Resets for a much cheaper price than Tabula Rasa’s were going for. So we think it’s a pretty good deal.

And finally…

Field Agent Missions Levels 15-20

Finally, there is a series of missions available to Agents who are 1 Star Field Agents. The missions are designed for Agents between levels 10 and 15. This is the first of a series of missions that will comprise the new Field Agent Program that will span from the beginning of a Trainee’s adventure until they become an Ace Field Agent. Soon afterwards will come missions for levels 15-20, and so on and so forth until there is a whole series of sequential missions. If older Agents are interested in experiencing this mission series, I recommend starting a new account to complete them!

We’re relying on you Agents to tell us how you feel about the new update. Try the balance out, let us know if it feels right to you. We want to create the ideal Geomon experience, and you have the power to determine what that will be. So tell us, either here in the comments or on the forums, or email the staff at support@espercorp.com!

UPDATE: User Logins are now supported on Geomon! Log in with your Agent name and password, and choose your own Avatar!

Today I’m going to tell you all a little bit about the troubles I’ve had working with ANCHOR in the past. Now, I don’t want to trivialize the stability issues we’re experiencing now, or offer up excuses. I don’t make excuses. But you oughta know, connecting to the ANCHOR wasn’t always as easy as it is now. It takes you three tries just to connect you say? There were days where I was sure the whole thing was just going to shatter around me. Most of you weren’t even around in the days of Red Lilyfly.

Some Agents may remember it was around Halloween the year before last when we found our first scan of Lilyfly Red. Espercorp was fascinated, sure we’d discovered some kind of hybrid species. But when the wild population dropped dramatically in the days following, it seemed that instead we’d simply found a unique persona of normal Lilyfly. No matter, we readjusted our data to reflect that and though nothing more of it. For a while. Then the bugs started to happen.

Rampant login errors, server downtime for no reason. Certain users couldn’t log in and we had no idea why. But I started to notice…every account seemed to have a Lilyfly Red. A chill ran down my spine, and I decided to pull up a particularly bad account manually. This is done by calibrating the Vault Access Chamber, which has custom controls that allow me to bring an Agent’s Vault (a container existing in the Thymosphere) to my real-world location. I brought my Esper Screen to get a good look around.

The moment I opened the Vault, a swarm of Lilyfly came bursting out.

It was like a nightmare—a storm of blood red chaos shooting straight at me through the screen. I couldn’t ‘feel’ anything really, but nevertheless I started to panic. It’s a weird sensation, when you know an Esper is touching you but you can’t see it. I shut the door immediately, not really knowing how many Lilyfly had gotten out.

We discovered that Lilyfly Red had been multiplying in people’s Vaults, unbeknownst to us, for months. There were whole Vaults of them, roosting in the crevices, mucking up the works. Here’s the crazy thing: somehow they had developed the ability to bypass all the normal security measures we place on Espers in ANCHOR. They had even gotten out of Agent’s Vaults and into the Central Servers. That’s bad, let me tell you.

We had to take a full team of level 50s to every single Vault. In preparation we used a whole army of 2 dozen high-level Tengus to build a Light Shield around the Vault to make sure none of the Lilyfly Reds got past us. Then we’d open the Vault and dissipate as many as we could. It was like a mass fumigation effort, except it all had to be done manually and you couldn’t even really see what you were doing, since it was all happening in the Spirit World.

Anyways, we rooted out every single inactive Vault that showed signs of infestation. And yet even now, every once in a while we find one, just hanging out, causing trouble. What scares me the most is something Dr. Liu suggested after the whole episode. She said that maybe the Thymosphere ‘evolved’ Lilyfly Reds as a defense mechanism against our ‘invasion’ of the Spirit World. They have weird unexpected effects on ANCHOR devices that I’m still trying to work out. How could that have just happened by chance?

I still have nightmares where I’m covered in them. I’ve trained Bart, my Mozzy, to sniff them out, and he’s always keeping an eye out for me while I’m in the Engine Room. If there’s ever another infestation, I promise you I won’t be caught with my pants down. Anyways, all that’s to say that the bugs we’ve got right now really aren’t that bad! Just some growing pains as we prepare to grow our program. I’ve got it all under control over here. Yessir, ain’t nothing to worry about at all.

Needless to say, it’s an alarming occurrence that requires  explanation. Since Christmas I’ve had to fend off countless emails from inquiring Agents demanding just that. Well, I’m working on it. My whole winter break got taken up researching the subject. Not that I’m complaining, mind you, but I was hoping to have some time off and instead I had a business trip to the North Pole. Anyways, it’s taken me some time to compile my notes on the subject, and compare my research with the Chief Spectrologists at Espercorp. But here it is, finally.

Initial Encounter

The best way to start this is to begin with a story. It was 12:03 am, the very beginning of Christmas Eve. The stockings were hung above the Espercorp Furnace with care, and we had decorated a Treant and let him loose in the main lounge.  I was answering support email when I suddenly got a company-wide instant message from Scotty:

‘everyone to the hub NOW.’

Scotty doesn’t usually take the time to add periods to his sentences so I knew that this was important. By the time I got there everyone was already crowded around the Esper screen, looking at something big and red. “What is it?” I asked.

“It’s Santa!” Rusty exclaimed with joy. I laughed initially, but after a closer look, the resemblance was unmistakable, even through the blurry resolution of the Esper Screen:

Apparently he had appeared before Scotty just minutes ago, and since then Scottyhad been trying to engage in communications. It’s never a good idea to battle a new Esper right off the bat, because you don’t really get a sense for its personality once it’s antagonized. It also seemed a little rude to immediately attack the Santa Claus. So Scotty started out by offering it a cookie. By cookie, of course, I mean a concentrated disc of energy.

Santa took the cookie and ate it in one gulp. He then did something remarkable. With a wave of his hand, he materialized a crystal container, just like the ones that Scotty made to transfer large batches of items. How he knew how to do that we still don’t know. Scotty thinks he must have been able to read his thoughts.

Santa left the container floating in front of us and then took a giant leap straight up and through the roof.

“After him!” shouted Dr. Alister. I saw a flash of purple on the Esper screen and I knew his Varg was on the move.

“Don’t let it engage,” said Scotty. “We don’t know what this guy can do.”

But Dr. Alister rushed out of the room without a word. We all followed, up the stairs and to the roof. We couldn’t bring the Esper Screen, as it was too big and had to be plugged in. On our Radars we found nothing but Varg, howling at the night sky.

Scotty scanned the immediate upper atmosphere. For a split second he detected a few Dvalinn, but then they were gone.

Field Report: The North Pole

After some deliberation it was decided that we needed to follow up on this immediately. We needed more data of Santa Claus, to determine what it was. We had speculated that ‘unique’ Espers might exist, but never found one before. It made sense that a manifestation of such a prevalent folk legend would exist in the Thymosphere, but why would it specifically contact us? How intelligent was this entity, anyway?

The most likely place for Santa Claus to be was, naturally, the North Pole. Dr. Jones was already away visiting his family, and Dr. Liu was sick with the flu, so it fell to me to conduct this emergency mission. I took a ferry to the mainland and caught the next flight to Siberia.

I had three transfers and the trip in total took about 21 hours. I tried to sleep on the flight, but by the time I arrived at the tiny, one-runway  airport my brain was already feeling the fatigue. I pushed it away, though. The adrenaline of the chase came back to me in a rush of cold Northern air.

Dr. Alister had some contacts in the country who picked me up. They were a surly, quiet bunch, but they spoke English well enough when they chose to. We set up the ANCHOR equipment in the backseat of their off-road vehicle and headed North.

I calibrated the Radar to scan for the particular oscillations that Santa had given off. As a further measure, I dropped cookies periodically. It seemed the best thing to do to attract its attention. This continued for some time, to no avail, and the hazy twilight of night in the North Pole descended. We arrived at an outpost for the night, and I gratefully slept.

The next morning the Thymosphere had changed completely. Everywhere around us  I picked up remarkable crystal structures returning readings of—to my excitement— candy. This was it. Overnight, Santa Claus’ Factory had sprung into existence around me.

I called out my best Ice Espers to explore. Iorek, my trusty Nanook, led an exploration party of Korora, Erawan and Ilwyn. I kept Norbert, my Wyvern, safe in my ANCHOR for deployment, just in case. Bundled up in about a dozen layers of clothing, I wheeled the ANCHOR equipment outside to explore the world, which to me was a frozen waste but to my Espers was doubtlessly a colorful wonderland of Esper food.

We scanned a number of energy signatures that resembled that of the known humanoid Espers, like Dryad and Sylph, but they stayed well hidden from our Radar, and I only caught partial scans. I imagine they were Elves.

I caught plenty of scans of the buildings, however. Their walls were made of crystallized Ice Energy and Tanzanite. Their roofing was snow. Studded throughout the walls in various embellishments was candy of every shape and size. I had only a modest portable Esper Screen that took greyscale captures, but here you can see what appears to be a candy cane drainpipe and a peppermint window.

But for all that, no Saint Nick. I began to feel restless. Little did I know that at that very moment, every other Agent in the world was meeting him, as he travelled instantaneously across the Thymosphere to every active ANCHOR he could find. But I was in the middle of nowhere, offline. I couldn’t connect to the main ANCHOR hub, and had only my Party of 5 Espers to my name.  The weather was growing colder. In retrospect I acted rashly, but I don’t think anyone can blame me for trying to catch an Elf.

I took two of my most subtle and nimble Espers, Ilwyn (Ghost) and Korora (Pokey), and sent them to explore one of the nearest buildings. Pokey went equipped with a candy to present to the first Esper it found. I had Ghost go in through an alternate entrance.

I gave them instructions remotely, and together we cornered one of the elves, which at this point was still a partial energy signature on my Radar. It wouldn’t sit still long enough to get an accurate read, but between the three of us we were finally able to corner it. But right in the middle of the Scan, it disappeared. Just poof, like that.

Perhaps there was a chill in the weather wind, but I suddenly became very nervous. Sure enough, the Thymosphere began to change very rapidly. The candy on the walls abruptly disappeared, and the walls of the structures became tall, jagged, and unforgiving. And a large energy signature began to approach my location. It was Santa, accompanied by a party of two Duneyr, two Durathror, two Dainn, and two Dvalinn.

Now I’ve done it, I thought, and called my Espers to me to prepare defensive formations.

Here’s the crucial part of my report that I still am unable to explain. When Santa Claus landed in front of me, my whole Radar went to static. And when it cleared up again, everything was different. Santa Claus wasn’t there anymore. It was something different, a massive Ice Esper that resembled an Alpha Jotun. I’ve since dubbed it Jack Frost. Level scans were through the roof, far higher than 50. Where once had been an assortment of seasonal Deer, there were only eight massive Dvalinn. They surrounded us. Even though I was in the real world and theoretically safe from anything these spirits could do to me, I don’t mind telling you I was scared.

We all just stood there, frozen in time for a moment. Then Jack Frost let out a massive Ability storm. The Dvalinn next to him added their strength to the storm that suddenly engulfed me and my Espers. The closest ability it resembled was Absolute Zero combined with Blizzard, and it targeted all of my Espers at once. They all immediately froze solid and then shattered before my eyes.  I didn’t know how to react. It’s difficult to freeze one Ice Esper, let alone three at once. And then to one-hit all 5 of my Espers—- I didn’t think that kind of power existed in the Thymosphere. 

When the dust settled there was nothing. My Radar detected nothing, no Santa, no Factory, not even a single Selkie in a radius of miles. My Espers had been sucked back into my device, no health left to stay manifest. Disconnected from the ANCHOR hub as I was, it would take me 12 hours before I could generate enough power to heal them again. There was an air of finality to the episode. I was sure that even if I waited until my Espers were ready to make another excursion to the North Pole, I would find nothing. Defeated, I decided that it was time to head home.

Just before I packed up, however, my Radar detected something. It was an Item, a container, like the one Santa had given us not 48 hours ago. I collected it carefully with ANCHOR and examined its contents. Inside was a massive lump of Coal.

So that’s that, Agents. It’s all we know about the episode. The one other thing that we can tell you is the countless scans you Agents made of Santa Claus on Christmas Day gave us a lot more information about him. He has the size and energy capacity of the strongest Alpha Espers we’ve encountered, but so far has not attacked anyone. Unlike Alpha Espers or individual instances of normal Espers, the Santa that appeared to everyone was the same iteration. So it was the same Esper, not a bunch of different Santas, that somehow travelled throughout the world at instantaneous speeds. Since that day no one has reported sighting Santa Claus. We haven’t yet mounted another expedition to the North Pole, and even if we did I imagine it would prove fruitless. However, I have no doubt that around Christmastime next year, Santa Claus will be back. And by then, with your help, Agents, we’ll be ready to get some answers.

Today I’d like to address a phenomenon that happens quite frequently in the Spirit World: Esper Dissipation. Often when I explain the average day of a Field Agent to those unfamiliar with Geomon, they react in shock at the notion of fighting creatures and causing them to dissipate. It strikes them as inhumane. But once you understand the nature of dissipation, you see that it’s really a natural part of the Thymosphere’s ecosystem, and is generally harmless to the Esper.

Dissipaton occurs when an Esper loses the ability to maintain a solid state any longer, usually as the result of some kind of outside force. Its energy is depleted and its physical frame damaged in such a way that it undergoes a rapid breakdown in structural integrity resulting in dissipation. The Esper literally breaks apart into a multitude of little pieces of Energy and Matter that fly off in every direction. During the process, parts of the Esper might break off, fuse, or crystallize in various manners depending on the circumstance.

What’s left behind are various energetic compounds, some of which we are able to collect using ANCHOR technology.  There are always some number of stray crystal shards, which are useful for our experiments here at Espercorp and have thus been adopted as our de facto currency. Espers also tend to leave behind refined samples of their Elemental Energy, of which we collect samples for research and development. It is important to note that a portion of the dissipated Energy is also absorbed by your party in the form of Experience. Other Items you may find, like flawed crystals, etc. are all left over from that Esper’s dissipation.

But what happens to Espers when they dissipate, you ask? Well, based on our observations they seem to float around as mist for about thirty minutes. Evidently they remain aware, or at least their various disparate particles remain attracted to one other, because slowly bit by bit the Esper will reassemble itself. It starts by taking on a shapeless, amoeba-like form and  absorbing whatever Energy it can process. During this time the Esper is quite vulnerable. A predatory Esper could easily snap up the raw energy for its daily meal, and if too much of the dissipated Esper is consumed, it will never be able to reform.

Often when Espers are in this state they hide within an object of like Energy. For example, a Plant Esper might blend with a tree formation, and absorb Plant energy until it has gained enough strength to take its previous shape once more. Even once it has achieved a solid form it is not entirely safe. It will be low on strength, and in need of sustenance before it can again defend itself.

Can you guess what Esper is hiding in this Tree?

Now, this invites the question: why don’t our own Espers have this problem? When our Espers are healed they don’t come out of it 2 levels lower. They retain all their strength, and continue to grow stronger. The answer, my Agents, is bonding. Espers bonded to a crystal need never fear losing any of their Energy, because the very chemical bond that keeps them from running away also keeps them from dissipating wildly. Whenever any excess energy from a bonded Esper is knocked off, it gets sucked right back into the crystal, where it is stored until the Esper is healed. When a bonded Esper dissipates, it explodes into a huge Sphere of Energy, but the bond pulls it together again. It’s really remarkable that these energetic properties of the Thymosphere lend themselves so well to our purposes here at Espercorp.

In conclusion, if you find yourself worrying about the huge number of Espers dissipating, don’t. Dissipation is a natural part of life in the Thymosphere. The landscape changes rapidly, and Espers get absorbed and created at every instant. Your scope of the Thymosphere is limited by the ANCHOR devices, but here are huge spiritual weather patterns that you are entirely unable to detect.  Entire habitats of Espers get erased and reformed every day. And for every flock of Piccio that dissipates, another will reform and take its place. All Energy in the the Thymosphere is self-contained. It all feeds back into the same system. I seriously doubt that the 8,000 or so Field Agents we have active in the field will make a significant difference in the Thymosphere’s ecosystem for some time to come.

-Dr. Cornelius Rhine

Founder, Espercorp

Discovered by Agent xcellz

Size: 0.8 m

Energy: 15eV

Strength: Shadow

Weakness: Mind

Appearance:

Imps are flying mammal Espers that have the appearance of a flying cat or monkey with spiked horns running down their backs. An opposable spiked tail provides balance while steering themselves in the air, and can be used for grabbing and stabbing. Their batlike wings are comically small given their heavy, rotund bodies— were this creature to appear in the terrestrial world it wouldn’t be able to get an inch off the ground. But the Imp can fly, and even hover, flapping at an alarming pace. They aren’t very agile, and they often crash as a result, but their bodies are tough and elastic, so they usually bounce back with little damage.

Behavior:

In the wild, Imps are scavengers. They tend to settle into a tree or found enclosure such as a cave or hollow trunk, and there they maintain their nest, a mismatched assemblage of found objects and dissipate from other Espers. They sleep on a bed of Embers at night and throughout most of the day, awakening at dusk to search for food.

Imp are omnivores, and will scavenge whatever food they can, be it the thoughts of passing humans, or an unsuspecting Esper. They often like to hide in trees and pounce on their prey from above, but being more opportunists than planners,  they do not have the patience to wait anywhere for long.

Other Notes:

Although Wild Imps aren’t very impressive by their lonesome, they display entirely different attitudes when they become bonded to a

human. The bonded Imp becomes extraordinarily attuned to the human’s desires, focusing entirely on their master’s thoughts as they manifest in the Thymosphere. Within hours of bonding they will offer gifts, as a cat might present a mouse to its owner. I have found that when I need an Esper to help manipulate elements of the Thymosphere, Imps are far more responsive than Cottle, which are easily distracted by their own side-projects. But however eager to please, Imps are so clumsy and short-sighted they are a risk within a laboratory setting. I attempted to use a few of them for an experiment and they set fire to the test subject within twenty minutes.

I am not familiar with the fantasy genre material that Agent Santos assures me the Imp Esper is derived from, but he tells me that they have a long history as fairy or demon-like mythological beasts in ancient folklore. They are considered mischievous rather than outright malevolent, which matches my own observations. It seems that their behavior comes from a motivation to get the attention of human-kind, or rather to be associated with power. Unable to actually take control of their own situations, they gravitate towards those who do, and align their interests as best they can.

Discovered Nov. 26 2010 by Agent zippylee

Size: 0.5m

Energy: 30eV

Strength: Earth

Weakness: Fire

In honor of Thanksgiving, we’re going to explore an Esper that literally embodies the spirit of the season: a Turkey Esper that crops up when American’s thoughts turn towards their stomachs and roasting featherbirds stuffed with bread and raisins. I’m a vegetarian, but I wasn’t always such. I still remember the delicious meals I would enjoy every year with my family. Mashed potatoes and gravy, creamed corn and carrots, green beans and almonds, and of course the Turkey with cranberries. It’s no surprise that Gobbler have started showing up already, in anticipation of the nationwide feasting that will occur this week.

Appearance

Gobblers look basically like a turkey, though they have some interesting additions. Often they will appear as a roughly-drawn picture, or more often, a colorful hand or handprint. We suspect this has a lot to do with the common elementary school activity of drawing turkeys with a hand-print. As we have seen in other areas of the Thymosphere, the thoughts of children are much stronger, perhaps because their imaginations still roam free, not yet having been reined in by the strictures of terrestrial institutions.

In addition to its variable shape, Gobbler is often seen in traditional Pilgrim Garb, and sometimes (more rarely) in an Indian Headdress. These are, of course, a product of the stereotypical notions that most people have about the circumstances surrounding the “First Thanksgiving” as it were.  Gobbler are formed from these thoughts about Thanksgiving as well, and costuming is one of the many ways that the Thymosphere manifests physically.

Behavior

Gobbler are almost manically drawn to the consumption of their terrestrial brethren. This Thanksgiving while you eat your meal, there is bound to be a Gobbler clucking around your dinner table. They recognize a turkey, even when it’s cooked, and will often stand right on top of it. Despite this, they don’t seem to be upset by the notion that they’re being cooked and eaten. Not that I’m an expert on determining the emotions of birds. But what we’ve observed, just by releasing a Gobbler in the Espercorp kitchen on Turkey Night, is that they seem very peaceful. They will even take their excess Spirit Energy and produce packets of Consumables in the form of various Thanksgiving dishes, and lay them out for other Espers to eat, literally sharing themselves with others. I think that’s a pretty nice thought, don’t you?

Other Notes

This is the big Gobbler population boom, and it happens once a year, but it doesn’t last long. Their plump bodies are rich with Spirit Energy, and during Thanksgiving Season you can expect predatory Espers to be feasting on them by the thousands. Since Gobblers themselves are benign and rather, well, dim, they don’t fare too well in the wild. Any Gobbler found after Thanksgiving week is a very lucky bird indeed. Doubly lucky, since Gobbler haven’t got the best Luck attribute in the world. If I were one of you Agents, I would bond with one and keep it protected. Who knows what an Esper with that much energy could become with a little training! Just be sure to keep them away from your Fire Espers. Gobblers go up in flames like a 10-month old Christmas tree!

As you know, the irreplaceable Mr. McDouglas recently perfected the Esper Screen (now officially dubbed the Spectrescope), which allows us to essentially view the Thymosphere! But Agents, have you considered what our spectrescope might show if we turned its gaze not on outward on the Spirits but inwardly, towards ourselves?

Matter of the Spirit World is created by output from the Terrestrial World, and the most prolific Spirit-matter-makers are us, human beings. Humans have more enormous, advanced brains than any species that has ever existed in the history of our planet, and we are constantly thinking. And every time we think, those thoughts are added to the Thymosphere.

They’re easier to detect on the Spectroscope than Emotions or Moods, because they’re more focused and thus more concentrated and dense. A single thought often consists of dozens of unique emotional compounds, as well as unique combinations of specific ideas and concepts.

Sometimes, the meanings of the thoughts are clear:

Other times, they’re more complicated and confusing.

Thoughts swell into being like gaseous bubbles of Spirit energy. Espers love them—they’re like delicious snacks prepared especially for them. If they see a particularly tasty thought, they might just swoop in and snatch it from you right then and there.

Different Espers prefer different thoughts, and that’s a primary factor in determining why certain Espers show up in certain areas. Winglet, as you know, feed almost entirely on wishes, and Baku suck up dreams. Gullbro tend to peck out bits of Jealousy from thoughts that they find, and Elgar graze on Confidence.

We’re still learning to recognize which thoughts are what, but if these thought scans are studied further we at Espercorp may be able to develop the first brain scanner that can actually read people’s thoughts! That, as you can imagine, is both an intensely exciting and intimidating prospect for a Scientist. For obvious reasons, we’re going to keep this technology private for now. My research from now on will probably gravitate towards exploring the smaller details of the Spirit World. What makes up the individual components of Espers? How are the various Elements of the Thymosphere are formed? My goal is that be studing the point at which the physical becomes thought, we will be able to discover more about the basic nature of this new frontier into reality and consciousness.

Global Chat System

First of all, we now have a Global Chat system within Geomon. The Forums are great, and we are loving our new Moderators, but not very convenient when you’re out exploring away from your computer, or if just want to keep your eyes peeled on the Radar. So now adjacent to the Friends List on the Radar Screen is a button that will lead you to the Espercorp Global Chat.

There are four Chat Channels. There’s a Global channel for everyone, a Support channel for anyone who needs help, a Field Agent channel (which one depends on your own Rank), and a Trade channel (self-explanatory). You can “subscribe” or “unsubscribe” to each of these rooms by tapping on their icon. While subscribed to a channel you will receive all messages sent to it, so long as you are in Chat.

When you touch the text field it brings up the keyboard. Pretty straightforward. Then you have a choice of sending your message to whatever channel you want. Just tap the icon, and you’ll see the label in your text field change to match.

The message above is directed to the Global Channel. Now I’m going to Support!

But that’s not all! You can also send messages to individual Agents!

Simply type “@” followed by their Agent name, and then a space:

Just like on the Facebook! This will send a “whisper” to the Agent that only they can see! So you can have private conversations with different Agents, while using Geomon!

For now Agents can only receive messages if they’re in the chat room. I know you’ll all want a feature that sends you a notification when someone wants to talk to you on chat, and stores those messages and et cetera. And you probably want the option to create chat rooms with more than two people, too, don’t you, Hypothetical Impatient Agent. I’ll get to it, don’t worry. It takes times to program these things, you know. For now I think this is pretty neat.

So go out there and have some fun with this feature! Please don’t abuse it with negative, derogatory language or spam. That wouldn’t be very fun for anyone, and then I’d have to come up with some crazy backend safeguard to keep it from happening, and that’s just more work taken away from adding all those cool features I haven’t gotten to yet.

Oh, and Protip: You can tap any of the labels in the chat history to change where you send your messages to. That goes for Agents, too!

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Location Conditions Info Panel
Alright here’s another big update: Now, instead of just the weather and temperature, we have a whole Conditions Panel that shows you what sort of factors ANCHOR can detect in your area! These are all factors that are known to attract certain Espers, so now you can have a better idea of what Espers you expect to see in a given location!

For example, I’m near a park, and Monnas love to swing on jungle gyms. But I’m also near an Industrial District, where Lagarto tend to lurk.

In addition, all of ANCHOR’s detection factors have been vastly improved and updated to better reflect recent fluctuations in the Thymosphere. You can all expect to see a wider variety of Espers now, no matter where you are!

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New Agent Tutorial Program

Returning Agents wont be as interested in this, but you will be happy  to learn that I’ve successfully trained your friend and our Social Media Intern, Rusty Nickel, to do a job better than a computer! Or at least a Tutorial Drone. I wouldn’t have thought it possible either, but I guess some things really benefit from the human touch. So Rusty is now in charge of ushering new recruits into the wide world of Espercorp. This includes a brand new mission-based Field Agent training program which gives a thorough introduction into exploring the Thymosphere and is definitely worth checking out.

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Friend Finder + Blocker

I’ve made a bunch of tweaks and minor improvements to the Friend-finding system on Geomon, most notably the ability to Block and Remove Friends, which will hopefully not be a very widely used feature but is important because it’s something you need to have if you’re gonna be any kind of legit, right? Anyways the whole other-Agent-Profile-page looks all kinds of snazzier, so cool.

You also now have the ability to “Find friends on Facebook” through the app! So where you normally search for other Agents by name, you can also Search on Facebook, and it will pull up a list of your friends that also have Geomon!

It takes a while, especially if you have a lot…fortunately, I don’t!

And then you can friend them! (This also may take a while)

I want to stress that this only finds friends who have already installed Geomon and linked it their Facebook accounts. You wont be spamming anyone with “Join me on Geomon” or any other kind of obnoxious social networking Auroch dissipate.

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Other fixes

Let’s see…there are some animation fixes, and little graphical facelifts here and there. You now buy more vault slots by sliding over to the end of your vault and hitting this plus button thing here:

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Speed Shift

One important thing to note is that ANCHOR now doesn’t have the Esper with the highest Speed go first! Now the likelihood is based on a percentage determined by relative Speed. So now when you have two Espers of more or less equivalent speed, the slightly faster one doesn’t always go first! This is a bit more fair, and more realistic of what is actually going on in the Thymosphere when you conduct a battle.

Lastly, we now have functionality for much more interesting Missions in the Ops section!

Before all we could really do was have you collect materials for us, but now we have a lot more tricks up our metaphorical sleeve! What kind of tricks, you ask? Well, you’ll just have to find out for yourself!

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Alright Agents you’ve read enough and I’ve worn out my fingers typing this thing out. Go get out there and explore the Thymosphere!