A Scugshroom Creation Guide In Case Anyone Has No Idea What Theyre Doing!

A scugshroom creation guide in case anyone has no idea what they’re doing!

Pick your mushroom! For my example, I’m going to use the turkey tail fungus.

Find reference photos! (I’d use multiple, as the fruiting bodies of one species will often look a bit different from each other.)

Find facts about your mushroom, and use those to determine some traits for your scugshroom!

-For example, the turkey tail fungi is often used for medicinal purposes! Because of that, my scugshroom will be a healer.

-Since I chose a polypore/shelf fungus (it has no stem and no cap), finding out the body type of my scugshroom was a little harder. But, looking at the scientific name of the turkey tail- Trametes versicolor, I found my answer!  Trametes versicolor literally translates to “one who is thin” and “varying in colour”. So they’ll be thin! However, I also want them to look strong, because the turkey tail cannot be eaten raw due to how tough it is- you can’t chew it. 

-Turkey tails are also covered in hairs, described as having a velvety or silky texture, so I’ll give my scugshroom fur!

4. Draw your scugshroom!

Here’s my first (I will probably do lots lol) scugshroom, inspired by the turkey tail fungus! Their role in the colony is a healer :)

It’s a little rushed lol, but I had fun! I hope this can help anyone who’s confused/lost! :D

SECOND SLUGSHROOM LETS GO!!!

This time I did the blue chanterelle!

blue chanterelles are edible, but not considered choice. (Not liked as much as other mushrooms). They are more often used for dyeing fabric, and are known for their antitumour properties- they can help treat stomach cancer!!!

Their texture is either soft or brittle- they aren’t very strong, so my scugshroom isn’t either! Because blue chanterelles can have a coloration of black to blue, that made me think of the phrase “black and blue” in a reference to having bruises or being beaten up, so my poor little scugshroom has a black eye. They’re not the happiest scugshroom, since blue often means sadness.

They like to knit, (since blue chanterelles are often used to dye yarn) and sew, and they help out my turkey tail scugshroom with their medical work sometimes! and they’re probably about a teenager in age.

We need to get one of @t00nyah’s scugshrooms, Pompom the therapist to come and cheer them up lol

decided to make my contribution Chanterelle - The Actor chanterelles have wildly different fragrances and whatnot, so I chose to make them a really skilled actor who entertains the colony, I guess. They can also play dead and have a high chance of confusing lizards, but as the cycle goes on the lizards care less and less about whether or not it's already dead.

Since chanterelles make a great addition to food, they often like helping out with cooking, as a hobby. Their ability to hold their breath is slightly worse than average because of the whole 'real chanterelles do not have gills' method of identification

gasp! I love them!

You didn’t specify what type of chanterelle, but I’d guess they’re based on the rainbow chanterelle due to the pinkish tint on their ears, hands and tail! I absolutely love the way you used them not having gills to mean them not being able to hold their breath- that’s so smart!!!

Pssst- fun fact! In French, « chanter » is the verb “to sing”, and « elle » is the “she” pronoun! To me, because I know French, the word chanterelle sounds (very very loosely and grammatically incorrectly) like “she sings”. (« Elle chante » would be the proper way to say that but still). So maybe The Actor likes musical theatre too! :D

Okay this one’s going on main for sure because WOW THIS IS SO COOL!!! AHHH!!!!!

You did so much work for this oh my god I’m so impressed!! This is actually so cool I love these designs so much!!!! Even the stats and everything that’s amazing!!! The way you used the bleeding tooth mushroom’s bitter taste as a personality trait, the way pompom’s white fades into brown just like in the lion’s mane when they age!!! (I want him to hug me right now she looks so huggable ahhh!!!) (I am short circuiting sorry I’m just so excited with all the work you did lol)

(And I do get the strawberries and cream joke! I find it funny that the two most common names for this mushroom are “bleeding tooth” and “strawberries and cream”. Getting very different vibes there lol)

AHHHH thank you for doing so much work I love this so much!!!!!

so...here's my part for scugshroom colony because i think it's a very fun designing challenge

@mushroominaforest i hope you won't bite me for this

THOSE are my small notes i made to simplify information i saw as important. fungi i chose are lion's mane(Hericium erinaceus) and blood tooth(Hydnellum peckii), they looked cool and i went okay. okay.

this is the Empath, or Pompom. (she/he/they/it) she's VERY big and VERY fluffy. she has a very sweet and caring personality, while holding strange fascination with cycle of death and rebirth and, weirdly enough, interest in the Rot, despite being as terrified of it as others. as his name suggests he's very empathetic and is usually first to help, he's that one responsible adult who helps kids who are afraid of doctors face their fears (haha not that im that kid...). (and yes i am implying that he frequently helps slugcats figure out when they need help and how to get it. trust me that sentence makes sense. actually, read this as 'he's basically like calypso from bluey', that's the vibe.)

she's also secretly a gourmenot child but no-one's supposed to know that /hj

this...is...strawberry and cream duo...(get it...bc strawberries and cream...)

slugcat is the Colorist, or Cream. (she/they/it) they are not yet past their puphood, so they're small (but they won't grow much because ummm i decided so). their natural appearance tends to scare some off, especially their small blood-looking spot on their lower jaw, which gives them a vampire look. she's very bitter and can come off as snappy, but it's mostly because she's been rather lonely most of her life! she found a companion in Strawberry, or the Courageous One. (he/it) Colorist is the one who patched up his wound from another lizard, and the one who made his cape as a sign of friendship. they formed a rather symbiotic relationship in which they, both seen as weaklings or outcasts in their homeland, help each other be stronger.

they're basically double trouble lol

the Colorist has incredible interest in fabric and likes making useful and fashionable items like bags or simple scarfs. they usually tend to isolate themself from others but it doesn't mean they don't see themself as a part of a collective, they're just used to not being well-liked. i can see Strawberry trying to make her interact with others more while she's just being all grumpy but still goes along with it haha.

this was a lot of fun i love thinking about how to convert facts into character traits soooooo yeah that was very fun :)

ALRIGHT CHAT my mom will be home in like 10 minutes so I will no longer be home alone I survived the 5-ish days of being abandoned lmao

I don’t like being alone

I was supposed to sleepover at my friend’s house tonight but they cancelled, and I can’t even find my cat because he’s outside somewhere and it’s dark now. I’m completely alone in my house and I hate it I hate it so much. I should be used to this by now but I’m not. I don’t want to be alone I need somebody to come and tell me it’s gonna be okay I need someone to be there for me but I’m alone

chicken of the woods!

Since chicken of the woods is known for food, they are one of the main cooks in the colony. or a hunter if 'cook' doesn't suit the colony

They are very kind and gentle, and some scugs find their overly open nature a little annoying (some people can have mild reactions to chicken of the woods upon consumption)

I gave them layered fur, to mimic the shape of chicken of the woods and because the mushroom is able to be frozen for very long pieces of time and remain edible

Another way I worked in their edibility is that lizards and other creatures are a lot more aggressive when trying to to eat this slugcat

I also gave them a stumpy tail to make them look a little bit chicken-like

ABSJAHAJAHMASHA they’re adorable 😭😭😭

(Chicken of the woods is the best vegan/vegetarian chicken alternative and I will fight someone over that)

I love how you gave them layered fur you guys are actually so genius with these designs I love looking at them all!!!! Eeeeee!!

also no!! How dare lizards try to eat this baby!! They’re so cute!!