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- Custom Dimorphics - Lineaged Dimorphics - Lineaged Rules - Size - Clusters - Variations - Combining Dimorphics - Import Examples -
What are Dimorphics?
Dimorphs are only naturally present on Male dinosaurs
Dimorphic markings are special markings that are inherited by male dinosaurs, from their Fathers and Grandfathers over generations! In many cases, you can identify specific lineages from the dimorphic marking alone. Dimorphic markings are optional and you can always choose to not include them if you don't like how they look on your dinosaur. This would make your male dimorphic-less.
Females can have cosmetic dimorphic markings with the use of a Parallel Dimorphic item. They follow the all the same design rules as if the dinosaur was male. The Mother can not pass this dimorphic marking onto her offspring; but the offspring can still inherit the same dimorphic marking from their Grandfather(s), if applicable.
The appearance of a dimorph depends on if your character has a lineage or not!
First generation males have custom dimorphics
If your dinosaur has only 'unknown' ancestors in their 'Lineage' profile tab, that means your character is a first generation, lineageless dinosaur. For these dinosaurs, you can create your own custom dimorphic marking; as long as it follows all of these rules:
- Must layer above all other markings
-- Some mutations layer above dimorphic markings - Can not affect eyes or teeth
-- Keratin and mouth dimorphics can ignore their respective normal rules - Must appear natural in shape - see Marking Guide
- Must be opaque; markings under dimorphics should not be visible
- Only one color is allowed for the whole dimorphic
-- Can be any colour but can't be darker than the darkest black allowed - Only one edge type is allowed for the whole dimorphic
-- Four choices: Hard, Textured, Feathered or Gradient - Can not cover more than 15% of the dinosaur
-- Includes negative space - Must follow the two cluster rule
Lineaged males must use dimorphics from their lineage
If your character has parents, that means your character has a lineage. The dimorphic marking's design is based on a mix of any two male ancestors of your choice within the last two generations, or a single Father or Grandfather if you prefer.
Do note, due to the way the site is coded, if a pair of Grandparents are the same sex, the site will list one as the opposite sex in your dinosaur's 'Lineage' tab; as Grandsire (XS) or Grandam (XD), where X is Sire (S) or Dam (D), depending on which side of the lineage they are on. You should check the sex of all Grandparents on their individual import pages!
- Dimorphs can only be derived from Fathers and Grandfathers
-- It can not come from any Great-Grandfathers
-- For Male x Female breedings: Your choice of two from any Grandfather(s) and/or the Father
-- For Male x Male breedings: Your choice of two from any Grandfather(s) and the Fathers
-- For Female x Female breedings: Your choice of two from any Grandfather(s) - If there is only one applicable male in the lineage, you must use that one
- If there are no applicable males in the lineage, your dinosaur can not have a dimorphic marking
-- Includes offspring from a first generation Female x Female pair or from dimorphic-less male lineage(s) - If you are not sure what the dimorphic is on any male ancestor, check the 'Info' tab at the bottom of their import profile! There will be a brief description of the dimorphic marking there as well as a color RGB.
If you use a Toxic Newt and a Noxious Newt together on a male with lineage, then they can have a completely custom dimorphic marking, as if they were a first generation dinosaur. This can also be used to add a custom dimorphic to dimorphic-less males.
Dimorphic Rules
Once you've chosen the two ancestors you want to base your dinosaur's dimorphic marking on, its time to design it! You must follow these rules when designing your dinosaur's dimorphic marking:
- Must layer above all other markings
-- Some mutations layer above dimorphic markings - Your dimorphic must mimic how it looks on the ancestor(s)
-- The range and shape can deviate a little but must still be similar in appearance (see variations)
-- Cannot be larger than it originally appears on the ancestor(s)
-- It can be helpful to overlay the ancestors' imports over yours to see the range
-- If an ancestor has a dimorphic on a feature not present on your dinosaur, such as a variant or mutation, then their range is not useable unless your dinosaur also has those features
-- You can slightly extend the range to meet the lineart like normal markings; such as if your dinosaur is feathered or has spikes within range of the ancestor's dimorphic; it's up to admin discretion if this looks too different from the original
-- You can pick a new custom shape and placement area with the use of a Noxious Newt - Must be opaque; markings under dimorphics should not be visible
- Only one color is allowed for the whole dimorphic
-- This color must be color-picked from a gradient of both ancestors or the exact color of one
-- If the lineage only has one male, the color must be his exact RGB
-- If an ancestor is illegal and has multiple colors, you can only pick one
-- You can pick a new custom color with the use of a Toxic Newt - Only one edge type is allowed for the whole dimorphic
-- Four possible choices: Hard, Textured, Feathered or Gradient
-- You can pick the edge type from either ancestor
-- If an ancestor is illegal and has multiple edge types, you can only pick one - Can not cover more than 15% of the dinosaur
-- Includes negative space
-- You may need to reduce size if combining two dimorphics with different ranges
-- You will need to reduce size if an ancestor's dimorphic is too large for current standards - Must follow the two cluster rule
Edge types
Here's visual examples of the four allowed edge types for dimorphic markings!
Size
Dimorphic markings cannot cover more than 15% of your dinosaur; this is an approximate and is up to admin discretion.
- Negative space is also considered in the total size of dimorphic markings
- This is for each side of your dinosaur; if the design is symmetrical then we only count one side of limbs, head, etc.
- For asymmetrical designs, each side can have 15%
- If combining markings from two ancestors, you may need to reduce the sizes to fit this maximum
The following boxes are species-specific estimates for 15% of the dinosaur, based on the standard bald variant of the import. Dimorphic markings are compared to these boxes to determine if it is acceptable coverage; they may not be 100% accurate and the final decision is still up to admin discretion. The box is for the entire dimorphic, so if you are using two clusters, one box is meant to cover both clusters. You are free to cut up the box as you wish.
Click the buttons below to see the boxes for all species and click the image for a full-size version to overlay onto your import. You should download or copy-paste them, not screenshot them, because it's important for the box dimensions to be exact!
Two cluster rule
Each dinosaur can have two clusters or groupings for their dimorphic marking. This allows two separate areas that can have different patterns in each if you like! You do not need two clusters for a dinosaur, you can have just one if you prefer. Remember that the 15% coverage allowance is spread across both clusters, if you are using two clusters. Here are some examples of dimorphic markings with two clusters:
Correct examples
Incorrect examples
This dimorphic is spread out too much, creating a dimorphic that covers nearly the entire dinosaur!
This example is incorrect because it has three different clusters; the tail base, crest and around the mouth.
Although the dimorphic is all centered on the face, this would count as three clusters due to the spacing of the patches.
This is loopholing that connected shapes usually count as one cluster. This is a three clustered dimorphic trying to count as one long cluster.
Acceptable Variations
Combining Dimorphics
Let's combine two dimorphics!
Now that we've read all the rules, we can apply them to some dimorphic markings. We will say these are our chosen two male ancestors we're basing the dimorphic marking on. We can break their dimorphic markings down as follows:
There are three main attributes of a dimorphic that work independently of each other - the edge type, the color and the shape/placement (these two are linked to each other as one). You can mix and match these three attributes between the chosen ancestors.
The offspring will be able to choose between a hard or gradient edge for their dimorphic as these are the two present edge types! They can not have both of these edge types, you must choose only one for the whole dimorphic marking.
Then we can choose two of the areas and corresponding shapes, as long as the combination doesn't exceeed the 15% size limit. You won't be able to take the shapes from one area and put it into a different one. Solid in this context refers to the shapes being unbroken patches of color, not the edge type. The areas and shapes can be broken down into:
- Solid chin
- Solid front feet
- Striped snout
- Spotted hip
For the color, we can choose one color from either male or anywhere from a gradient between the two, which will look like this:
Correct examples
Incorrect examples
This example is incorrect because it has two different edge types; a gradient-edged throat and hard-edged spots. While both of these edge types are options here, only one edge type is allowed for the whole dimorphic!
The color for this dimorphic is not color-picked from the ancestors' gradient! You also cannot put the patterns of one dimorphic in the area of another; these areas must be solid not striped. Each must stay within their respective range!
These markings are out of range compared to the ancestors! You cannot put the patterns of one dimorphic in the area of another; the hips can not have stripes. This design breaks the two cluster rule and is more than 15%.
This example is incorrect because it breaks the two cluster rule by having three clusters; the hips, front feet and head. This is also larger than the maximum size 15% of the dinosaur and the coverage would need to be reduced!
Import Examples
Correct examples
This shows a dimorphic marking affecting the gums and tongue! All parts of a mouth dimorphic must be the same color.
This shows two dimorphic clusters, one each for front and back feet, that has a natural design that blends with the other markings.
This example correctly combines dimorphics from two males! Where the wing meets the body does not count as a hard edge, it's a natural stop between feathers and skin.
This is a skull-like dimorphic that still appears natural! There's no intriciate skeletal or teeth shapes. This dimorphic could still be described as a natural mask-type marking.
In this example the dimorph is legal because even though it's very long, it is thin and retained around the same area- it goes down the arms, which would be the "same" area instead of crossing the whole body.
This is a good example of a dimorphic marking affected by items! This is a female import using a Parallel Dimorphic to display a dimorphic marking, and a Toxic Newt to change the color from the Father's.
Incorrect examples
In this case the dimorphic making shows multiple edges; textured and hard edged. It's also partially transparent in the center of the marking; the dimorphic marking should be opaque.
This dimorphic is creating too many clusters. There's a total of six here; the frill horns, the nose/eyebrow horns together, the cheek spike, the beak, the front claws and the back claws.
This skull-like dimorphic would be considered too tattoo-like because of the intricate skeletal and teeth shapes.
This example is illegal because it's too large and also presents multiple edges; a hard edge and a gradient on the tip of the tail.
This dimorphic incorrectly combines the parents' dimorphics! The skull shape on the face does not match that of either parent.
This dimorphic is incorrectly layered below other markings, which gives it the appearance of having two different edge types.