Crashfish (Below Zero)
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Description | Explosive prey fish, raised in containment. |
| Inhabit | Sulfur Plant |
| Attitude | Defensive |
| Health | 25 |
| Damage | Explosion: Varies depending on distance |
| Drops |  Crystalline Sulfur |
| Perks | Very good weapon (with propulsion cannon) |
| Biome | [Arctic Kelp Caves](/wiki/arctic-kelp-caves), Crystal Caves, Crystal Castle, Purple Vents, Twisty Bridges Caves |
| Size | Egg: 1, Adult: 4 (2x2) |
| Debug ID | crash |
| Egg Incubation | 1 (day/s) |
| Bioreactor Energy | +189 Energy / +560 Energy |
The Crashfish is a defensive fauna species. The Crashfish lives in a symbiotic relationship with a flora species named the Sulfur Plant.
Appearance
The Crashfish is a round, oval shaped fish with widely spaced nostrils, a wide mouth, and one pale yellow eye with a large black pupil. The top of the body is red and scaly, whilst its underside and face are covered by smooth, cream colored skin. Many spikes protrude outwards from the Crashfish's body; these spikes are beige in color, tipped with red and are responsible for triggering their characteristic explosive chemical reaction. The same spikes make up its fins, though these are much more brightly colored than the spikes found elsewhere on the body.
Behavior
Upon sensing the player's presence, the Sulfur Plant opens up like a flower and the Crashfish emits a menacing gurgle, revealing the Crashfish inside. If the player approaches further after the Crashfish's initial warning, the Crashfish will launch itself out of the Sulfur Plant and charge at the player. If the player instead heeds the warning and backs off, the Crashfish will retreat back into the Sulfur Plant.
If the Crashfish explodes next to a Seatruck with the player inside, it can deal serious damage to the vehicle depending on proximity. Should an unaware player not see the Crashfish after hearing its warning noise, it is highly advised to swim in the other direction from where the sound originated. Crashfish also deal about 45% damage to a Prawn Suit, making them a very real threat to it.
The Crashfish is a very fast swimmer and can also easily catch up with an ill-equipped player, dealing severe damage to their health. The Crashfish becomes aggressive when the player gets too close, and can be identified with its loud gurgle. Using evasive maneuvers to put obstacles between the player and the Crashfish rather than swimming away in a straight line is advisable in most circumstances.
While the Crashfish is also scannable inside the Sulfur Plant, caution is advised when attempting this process.
Crashfish eggs can be found near Sulfur Plants. Take care when collecting them, as nearby Crashfish explosions will destroy them.
Infant Crashfish can be used as ammo for the Propulsion Cannon, and can be used as a type of bomb. It should be noted that when inside an Alien Containment, Crashfish will not explode. However, once release out into the wild, the Crashfish will swim in random directions and explodes after 20 seconds.
Databank Entry
This unusual species has developed an emergency defense mechanism based on mutually assured destruction.
- Forward-mounted Eye: Enables the creature to identify and track potential predators.
- Sulfur Plant: The sulfur plant has evolved to feed on sulfuric compounds secreted by the crashfish, which makes its nest within its leaves. Stronger, more protective plants provide superior nesting grounds, which in turn provide the plant with more nutrients from larger crashfish.
- Defense Mechanism: Concentrations of sulfur build up in the organism over time. If the crashfish collides with something at sufficient speed the spikes on its torso are impacted, triggering an explosive chemical reaction.
Assessment: Equip stasis rifle, repulsion cannon or similar before approaching shallow caves
Source: Scan
Gallery
Front view
Side profile
Dorsal view
Size comparison with the player
A Crashfish in the Twisty Bridges
A Crashfish hiding in a Sulphur Plant within the Twisty Bridges Caves
A Crashfish in the Purple Vents
A Crashfish in the Arctic Kelp Caves
A very unhappy Fred Lachance after a run in with a Crashfish
Trivia
- The Crashfish can be used to the advantage of the player, especially if they have a Propulsion Cannon on hand.
- The Crashfish has some similar aspects to real-life blowfish, as seen in the concept art. In the game, it swells like a balloon, complete with spikes.
- The Crashfish also bears a striking resemblance to the Cacodemon from the first person shooter DOOM, which itself is based upon the Astral Dreadnought of Dungeons & Dragons.
- According to the databank, the Crashfish explodes when one of its spikes is struck. This resembles the classic naval contact mine, which detonates when one of the "horns" on its casing is crushed by contact with a ship hull.
- The Crashfish and the Sulfur Plant have an inter-species mutualistic relationship, one of only five such relationships observed so far on Planet 4546B. The other four are between the Crabsnake and the Jellyshroom, the Titan Holefish and the Symbiote, the Ventgarden and the Spiral Plant, and the floater's body.
- The Crashfish databank entry was ported over from Subnautica untouched, leaving in the advisory of using a Stasis Rifle or Repulsion Cannon despite neither tool being present in Subnautica: Below Zero.