Cloning Decay Syndrome is a disease that affects, as the name implies, Grineer clones. Responsible for the decaying physical state the faction as a whole exhibits.
History
It is unknown when Cloning Decay Syndrome first began to manifest, but (like other similar clone-decay tropes) it likely came about due to repeated re-cloning of already-cloned genes.
Searching For A Cure
The Grineer have been searching for a cure to the Syndrome for some time now. Notably they have been searching in ancient Orokin ruins and derelicts for anything that might help them find one and seem to be desperate enough for it that they have been hiring smugglers and thieves like Maroo to help them find it. Their hopes for this were dashed, however, when Tenno stole the codices and used them to access an Arcane Machine inside an Orokin Derelict.
Cures
The Grineer have approached solutions to Cloning Decay Syndrome in a number of ways:
- Captain Vor seemed to believe that the "divine blood" of the Tenno might hold the cure, and studied Tenno (against the wishes of the Twin Queens) in an attempt to figure out how to use it. This is his driving motivation throughout Vor's Prize.
- Tyl Regor is known to have made strides in curing the disease through genetics. The seemingly-not-augmented Manics may be the results of his successes. As he hired Maroo during Stolen Dreams it's also likely he believed the Arcane Codices held information related to a potential cure.
- While not technically looking a cure, Sargas Ruk has replaced much of himself with advanced augments due to his rejection of his flawed flesh as a way to bypass it.
Speculation
Some players have speculated that while the physical decay of the Grineer is a part of the Syndrome's symptoms the sterility of the Grineer is actually caused by another factor - namely Orokin design. Citing the similar terminology of "flaw" mentioned by Vor and exactly the same word used by both the Detron Crewman Synthesis and Lotus in Natah in regards to the Sentients. These players believe that such a flaw was intended to keep them in check should they ever rebel (as was the reason given for the weakness to the Void in the primitive Sentient in the Synthesis).
It is possible that the Grineer's interest in the lab aboard the Orokin Executorial Frigate in the Guardsman Synthesis was due to them not being able to reproduce naturally and thus needing to clone to make more of them. This and a lack of females originating directly from the Grineer might support this belief.
Trivia
- Although a part of Grineer lore for some time, it wasn't until the Update 15.0 (2014-10-24) introduced the Stolen Dreams quest that the Grineer's genetic deterioration was given an official name.