Forms

So, you're here hoping for answers to questions about forms and what they can do for you? This is the place for those answers!

What is a form, and how do I gain more of them?

Long Answer: Mechanically speaking, a form is a flag placed on a player's account, which indicates that you've been fully infected with a set of mutations (we call each set of mutations an 'infection'), and this allows access to the form later on, with Adept and Recursion dedications (more on those later). To be fully infected, you must be mutated by a critter until you have all of your mutation slots matching the slots filled by the infection in it's entry in the Infection system, and then getting one further mutation of the same.

Short Answer: A form is an infection that you've experienced completely, and you gain more by fighting mobs until you get a message that you've mastered a new form.

What do I do with forms?

Forms have have many uses, most often cited of which is the use with the Nanite Adept and Recursion dedications. These two dedications allow shifting into mastered forms at any time, at the cost of some energy and mako battery, for Nanite Adept and Recursion respectively. The other use main use for forms is as a way to gain freecred, as each form mastered will give between 1000 and 5000 freecred. A third use, which some players may deny, is to satisfy OCD urges, as there are more than 200 different infections that can be mastered.

How can I keep a form once I've found one I'm happy with?

This question's answer is full of conditionals and exceptions and has a plethora of different answers out there, so let's stick to the 4 most common.

1. By far most popular is Nanite Adept, which costs 50 Mako, but gives the most flexibility in regards to forms. This is a dedication, which once purchased allows a character to access and shift to all of the mastered forms connected to the player's account. It may seem expensive at first, but there are a great many ways to gain mako. With further items, you can refine your shifting, a
2. Recursion is effectively 'Nanite Adept Lite', and allows for purchasing mastered forms as options to shift to one at a time, for 5 mako each, once you have 10 recursive forms, you get Nanite Adept for free, as you've spent 50 mako on forms.
3. Nativizing has the most caveats, but is also one of the more interesting mechanics in the game. Any time you are mutated, you have a 50% chance of being mutated towards your native form instead of towards what triggered the mutation. This ensures that a nativized mutant will never stray too far from their native form. In addition, Native mutants have a special command, 'shift native'. This instantly returns them to their native form for 7% mako battery charge. Try 'help Nativity' for more info on Native mutants.
4. The final option is the least permanent, and is the use of a consumable called 'Form Fixatives'. These will prevent mutation for 500 combat rounds, or a really long time outside of combat, but beware, they are just a status, and so will wear off as soon as you lose in combat, submit, or take a Universal Antidote.