I can't seem to get this technique. I have the hungry ooze lash equipped, of course. No go with a melee or a stealth deck, whether Etheric or not. Is it just really rare?
Al theorized that maybe you have to have Ooze Symbiosis active to get this technique. But not only can't I get the technique, I can't get the effect either. Maybe it's triggered by being hit with only a certain percentage of max HP left? Or having no more than some numerical threshhold? I'm wondering whether maybe somehow having really high stats is making it hard for me to get the effect.
Anyway, this technique seems to be pretty hard to get, and it's not all that wonderful once you do. So maybe there's more to it than we think. Like, has anybody used it while they had Ooze Symbiosis active? If it does something really awesome under those circumstances, that might explain why you only get a turn or two of the effect when you get it at all.
I'm guessing Ooze Symbiosis is harder to get with higher stats - it triggered quite often early in my melee run.
Toxic Lash I'm not so sure about. I believe Ooze Symbiosis is only active when you have the pants equipped, and Kinak said he didn't put in anything that required multiple hungry oozes, so that seems unlikely. (MUCH MUCH LATER EDIT: This belief is incorrect)
Using the technique with symbiosis is worth a try. Could just be a niche technique though… could fit into a reflexes-based hybrid deck, although I can't see that being better than Swordplay (apart from perhaps early availability once we figure it out).
In the beginning, men were mortal.
Turns out Ooze Symbiosis should only be lasting for the duration of the combat in which you get it. So there goes that theory, unless maybe you happen to use the technique in a combat where you also get Ooze Symbiosis. As to whether there's more to the technique than we've found, Kinak has this to say:
The surface has been scratched with the ooze, but that's about it. Not that there's a ton past there, but certainly more than people have found so far.
This technique does not give negative effects to opponents. At least not with a hungry ooze lash created by feeding a hungry ooze a Midgard MK9.
Wait, does Toxic Lash still do the big bonus damage with a different ooze item besides the hungry ooze lash equipped? Because if so, I can finally see how this technique wouldn't be completely crap. I mean look, the fungus spear is available almost in the beginning of the game as well and that weapon gives the same amount of reflexes AND +4 melee power.
I forgot this was considered difficult to get… I got 4 copies in maybe 30 combats (didn't count). I was using etheric tech, light of the eye, and trash simulacrum on the first floor. Wasn't logging it but I think I often or always got it from defeating a writhing mass.
Anyway, following the toxic stream with a fire attack doesn't interact.
In the beginning, men were mortal.