[... Stages & Certs ...]
The first few stages will not include a "pet" of any sort, but those will likely go by fairly quickly. Just be prepared for that!
[... The First Photo ...]
This will be a black and white photograph of the CryPtid, likely older and taken by some sort of amateur photographer. There will be several standard photos of the creature to choose from for this stage.
[... The Second Photo ...]
A more professional photo, this one is in color - probably taken by the Researcher him/herself, or by someone close to them. There will be several standard photos of the creature to choose from for this stage.
[... The Evidence ...]
This will be something from the animal itself - a feather, claw, bit of fur or hide, etc etc. For this stage, there will be two or three things to choose from and each will have set lineart to be colored.
[... The Manifestation ...]
What's this?! Somehow, collecting all of this evidence of the creature's existence has called it into being... Now you have this ghostly ... thing following you around o_o Basically, this is where the "magic" of Gaia comes in. Having collected things relating to the creature, those items and the Researcher's belief in their search has cause the creature itself to being to come into being. At this point, the creatures could still have some set lineart - but possibly a couple of different poses per critter? And some could be unique art for the rarer species.
[... The Reality ...]
Now the ghostly animal has become real! They can interact with the Researcher and the world around them. This stage will also be the same as the previous on art. Am also thinking that at this point, the Researcher and animal will have formed a bond of some sort, allowing them to communicate in some way (strength of bond will be up to the player).
[... The Attachment ...]
This would be the big, HEAVY RP required final stage. Basically, along with the animal, the owner will receive art of their Researcher interacting with the animal. DEFINITELY want all unique art here. Considering also having some trait of the animal "bleed over" to the Researcher. For example, if the animal was cat-based, the Researcher might gain cat ears or something. Unsure on that, opinions welcome!!
[... Cert Sample ...]
The certs would basically be a corkboard with a piece of paper listing information and then having the photos and item from the first three stages tacked onto it. In the later stages, the animal, etc would be posed in front of the corkboard. I've made a sample cert with the first three stages - though in actuality the photos would be different shots and not the same thing twice. ALSO, each cert would be somewhat customizable - in that owners could pick how the info and items are arranged on the corkboard :3
