Editing Feral Stage

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The '''Feral Stage''' is the first phase of a [[Flood]] outbreak.<ref>[[Bestiarum]]</ref> In this state, the [[Flood]] operates in a very aggressive manner, and their expansion depends on finding sentient life forms. Victims become hosts to the [[Infection Forms]], and are mutated into [[Combat Forms]]. During this period of time, the [[Flood]] attacks with little to no strategy, seeming to focus primarily on consumption of intelligent beings and thus expanding their own forces.

As was witnessed during the events of ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]'' and depicted in the [[Halo Graphic Novel]], [[the Last Voyage of the Infinite Succor]]<ref>[[Halo Graphic Novel]]</ref>, at some point during the Feral Stage, the [[Flood]] begin to collectively shift their objective. When this happens, [[Combat Forms]] will work together to accumulate the biomass of both parasites and uninfected sentient beings, allowing a series of widespread chemical reactions to occur across the reserves of calcium and flesh they have collected, eventually creating what is known as a [[Proto-Gravemind]]. Once a Proto-Gravemind has consumed enough corpses and becomes a full grown [[Gravemind]], the infection can then proceed into the [[Coordinated Stage]].

==Trivia==
*This stage was the first to be encountered by the [[Forerunner]], although that fated meeting quickly led to the Flood expanding into its Coordinated Stage.
*This is most likely the stage the [[Flood]] were in when encountered in ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' and ''[[Halo Wars]]''.
*The Flood at this Stage does possess some intelligence, for example on the level 343 Guilty Spark the Flood deliberately leaves some bodies uninfected to lure others into an ambush. This befalls the Marine Squad who investigate dead Elite's and Master Chief who investigates the Marine's.

==Sources==
<references/>

{{Flood Outbreak Stages}}
[[Category:The Flood]]