A WolfQuest Genetics Experiment
In more recent updates, WolfQuest now shows the player wolf and their mate's K locus genetics on the info page. Due to this, several steps in the old plan are outdated, and I've decided to redo the experiment. The old experiment is beneath the spoiler below:
Genetics play an important role in WolfQuest's gameplay, the most prevalent of which is the wolves' genotypes. A wolf's "genetic coat colour", or phenotype, is dependent on the K locus, on which the dominant allele, K, represents a black coat, and the recessive, k, a grey (or brown, etc) one. Aside from colour, this locus also has an effect on the disease resistance of the wolf. Wolves with homozygous recessive alleles kk (grey) have average disease resistance, while wolves with heterozygous alleles Kk (black) seem to have a higher resistance to disease. However, homozygous dominant alleles KK (black) is usually fatal in wolves.
This locus is present in the mechanics of WolfQuest 3, and primarily affects the litter size and illness rate among the player's pups, based on the parents' genetics. Therefore, the idea behind this "experiment" is to breed for genetics. Bad genetics.
Learn more about how genetics work in WolfQuest on the knowledgebase article, and the 2018 devlog about the K locus.
Goals
- Breed a KK wolf
- Find a KK mate (optional)
- Breed a KK pair
Methods
Breed a KK wolf
To breed a KK wolf, I will start with a black Kk player-created wolf, called LO1 (Lights-Out-01). All wolves created from scratch are either Kk or kk, never KK. Next, I will find this wolf a mate (LO2) whose phenotype is also black. To be sure, I will examine their coat and rough tint in the wolf creator menu. LO2 will be much more likely to be Kk than KK, and I will assume as such that they are Kk.
Once I have a pairing of Kk black wolves, I will breed the wolves and take note of their amount of pups in the resulting litter (litter Tx), called Tx.y, where x is the litter number, and y is the pup number. I will keep track of who gets sick, for how long, and when. For sake of ease, I will be switching to easy difficulty in order to prevent the illness deaths of likely KK pups. Difficulty does not affect the sickness rate of pups.
Once the pups are grown, I will select the pup that got sick the most, and make them playable. I will then test their genetics by finding them a kk grey mate with four stars of diversity, and breeding them three times. If all pups in all three resulting litters are black Kk, the wolf is highly like to be KK, and becomes LO3. If any pups are grey, the wolf is set aside and I will test a different one from the litter until there are no plausible options left. This part requires raising the test litters to completion if their coat colours are unclear.
If none of the pups in LO1 x LO2's litter turn out to be KK, another litter from them will be completed.
This objective is considered to be completed when I justifiably believe I have a wolf LO3 whose offspring with a kk mate are always Kk.
Find a KK mate
This goal is optional. This task is very time consuming, and technically unnecessary in the short term, as I can easily play an SCMP game with friends playing KK wolves as well, though the pups would be unobtainable.
In order to find a KK mate for LO3, I will find a black phenotype mate with maximum one star of diversity. To be sure, I will examine their coat and rough tint in the wolf creator menu. The mate, during testing, will be Mx, where x is the mate number, until its genetics are confirmed. If the mate is KK, it will become LO4.
Next, I will breed the wolves. As LO3 is KK, all its pups will be black no matter what. Thus, in order to test the mate's genetics, I will test every pup in the litter's genetics. To do this, I will pair them with a grey kk mate with four stars of diversity, and breed them three times. If in any of the litters even one pup is grey (kk) instead of black, the wolf is not KK, and therefore, LO3's mate is not KK, and a new mate will be selected for genetics testing.
If after at least three litters and testing of said litters' pups none of the mate's grandchildren are grey (kk), the mate is likely to be KK, and designated LO4.
This objective is considered to be completed when I justifiably believe I have a KK mate for LO3, LO4, whose grandchildren are always phenotypically black.
Breed a KK pair
This is the easiest goal to complete on its own, the aim of which is to see just how it goes. Illness deaths with not be prevented for this objective, and I will note the statistics of pup illness frequency and duration.
This objective is considered to be completed when I have recorded the illness statistics for at least ten KK pups.
Description
Genetics play an important role in WolfQuest's gameplay, the most prevalent of which is the wolves' genotypes. A wolf's "genetic coat colour", or phenotype, is dependent on the K locus, on which the dominant allele, K, represents a black coat, and the recessive, k, a "grey" (or any colour other than black) one. Aside from colour, this locus also has an effect on the disease resistance of the wolf. Wolves with homozygous recessive alleles kk (grey) have average disease resistance, while wolves with heterozygous alleles Kk (black) seem to have a higher resistance to disease. However, homozygous dominant alleles KK (black) is usually fatal in wolves.
This locus is present in the mechanics of WolfQuest 3, and primarily affects the litter size and illness rate among the player's pups, based on the parents' genetics. Therefore, the idea behind this "experiment" is to breed for genetics. Bad genetics.
Learn more about how genetics work in WolfQuest on the knowledgebase article, and the 2018 devlog about the K locus.
Goals
- Find a KK mate
- Breed a KK pair
Methods
Find a KK mate
In order to find a KK mate, I will use a grey kk wolf and find them a black phenotype trial mate with a medium to high diversity (likely to be higher diversity as the pups will all be Kk, the healthiest genetics). If the wolf is listed in the menu as Kk, I will end the trial and find a new black wolf. If all of the black dispersals are Kk, I will start a new game to find new wolves until a KK wolf is found.
This objective is considered to be completed when I have a KK mate whose genetics are listed in the game menu as KK.
Breed a KK pair
This is the easiest goal to complete on its own, the aim of which is to see just how it goes. I will edit the kk player wolf, rerolling its genetics for black wolves until it has KK genetics. For their litter(s), illness deaths with not be prevented, and I will note the statistics of pup illness frequency and duration. I expect that more than half of the pups from a KK pair will die from sickness.
This objective is considered to be completed when I have recorded the illness statistics for at least ten KK pups.