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The Grell
October 9, 2026 at 11:00 PM
Added dated September and October changes with separate gameplay modes
The Grell are one of the four main factions in ZeroSpace, an insectoid race living in symbiosis with the plant-like Koru. Their motto, "Grow. Expand. Exterminate.", describes how they play: they are relentless terraformers who spread biomass across a planet to prepare the ground for the Koru to take root and thrive.
In the setting they are a tide of highly evolved creatures that spawn sites of raw flux crystals across the galaxy, and they were humanity's first contact with alien life. The plant-like half of the partnership is the Koru. The Grell themselves are insectoid, a distinction the official page blurs by calling them plant-like in its own story text. As the powers of the Orion Sector dug deeper into flux to fuel faster-than-light travel, the once passive Grell began to flood across worlds and wipe out anything that threatened their biosphere.
Trait | Effect |
|---|---|
Spread the Bloom | Biomass creeps outward across the battlefield and feeds Grell expansion. Enemies standing on it have their vision reduced. |
Overwhelm | Waves of evolved creatures consume anything that holds its ground. |
Infuse | A strategic infusion turns a chosen creature into a far more dangerous monster in the middle of a fight, trading resources for raw power. |
Koru Symbiosis | The Koru side of the partnership provides healing support, and Grell upgrades such as Rapid Germination speed up how quickly their structures grow. |
The Grell are led by Vynthra, the Avatar of the Planetmind, who can be selected as the commander for Galactic War missions. See Heroes and Commanders for how commanders work across the game.
The official faction page shows four sample units and says the full list is coming later. The current build data covers 14 Grell units and 12 structures, read in September 2026. Several Grell creatures come out of the womb in batches from a single order, so the cost below buys the whole batch while supply is charged per creature.
Each creature has its own page, reachable from the table below or from the index on Units. Hexite and flux both come out of the economy described on Resources and Economy.
Unit | Role | Cost | Supply | Health and Armor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Fast small melee creature, ordered three at a time | 75 Hexite for three | 1 each | 100, Light armor | |
Ranged attacker | 50 Hexite, 25 Flux | 2 | 150, Light armor | |
Short range bruiser that deals area damage | 100 Hexite, 25 Flux | 3 | 350, Medium armor | |
Tanky melee creature that spawns Arkanids when it takes damage, ordered as a pair | 150 Hexite, 50 Flux for two | 2 each | 225, Medium armor | |
Durable ranged creature that causes damaging eruptions | 75 Hexite, 50 Flux | 4 | 400, Heavy armor | |
Light skirmish flier that poisons on attack, ordered three at a time | 50 Hexite, 75 Flux for three | 1 each | 60, Light armor | |
Long range siege creature with splash damage | 100 Hexite, 175 Flux | 6 | 350, Heavy armor | |
Caster that deals bonus damage against air | 75 Hexite, 150 Flux | 4 | 200, Medium armor | |
Flying brawler that periodically deals area damage over time on attacks | 100 Hexite, 200 Flux | 8 | 700, Heavy armor | |
Tanky melee creature with the Ravage ability | 200 Hexite, 100 Flux | 8 | 900, Heavy armor | |
Small timed-life creature spawned by other Grell units | Spawned | None | 5, Light armor | |
Timed-life explosive creature | Spawned | None | 150, Medium armor | |
Builder that can only build on biomass; becomes a fast flying scout when infused, and keeps building | Spawned | None | 20, Light armor | |
Flux harvester that can spawn Cultivators, respawning 60 seconds after it dies | 100 Hexite | None | 275, Medium armor |
The official page picks out the acidic Harbinger and the rampaging Reaver as the two evolutions that define the faction, and the Harbinger received a dedicated animation pass during development. The Behemoth appeared in an early unit showcase before launch. The Lasher's bonus damage against medium armor now comes entirely from its Corrosive Secretion upgrade: the base attack lost that bonus on August 11, 2026, while the upgrade bonus rose from +50% to +75%.
Grell structures grow out of the biomass mat rather than being placed freely, and the Seedling that raises them can only build on biomass. Broodwomb, Incubator and Elderwomb also gate mercenary hiring at tiers 1, 2 and 3.
Structure | Role | Cost | Health |
|---|---|---|---|
Bloomwell | Mining outpost that raises Feeder Vines on a hexite patch, upgradeable to attack | 400 Hexite | 2,500 |
Feeder Vine | Hexite extractor, grown by the Bloomwell | Grown by the Bloomwell | 225 |
Cultivator | Generates biomass and can be upgraded to attack | 15 Hexite | 150 |
Nourishing Pod | Provides 12 supply and heals nearby units | 75 Hexite | 500 |
Broodwomb | Basic creature production | 75 Hexite | 1,000 |
Young Canopy | Research for Broodwomb creatures, and unlocks Mandragoras and Incubators | 100 Hexite, 25 Flux | 1,000 |
Incubator | Medium creature production | 100 Hexite, 50 Flux | 1,200 |
Skyclutch | Enables Skrell and Behemoth production | 100 Hexite, 25 Flux | 1,000 |
Elderwomb | Advanced creature production | 125 Hexite, 100 Flux | 1,400 |
Synapse Canopy | Research for Elderwomb creatures and second-tier Incubator upgrades | 100 Hexite, 75 Flux | 1,000 |
Deep Nest | Top bar ultimate that spawns 7 Arkanids every 2 seconds while losing 15 life per second | Top bar ultimate | 300 |
Tree of Life | Top bar ultimate that revives units killed nearby and heals allies within a 1,500 radius | Top bar ultimate | 1,000 |
Since an update on August 14, 2026 the Grell starting base begins with a full patch of biomass already established, which removes the opening scramble to spread enough mat to build on. Their structures and creatures are tuned continually through balance updates during Early Access.
The figures above describe build ZS.c36778, current in September 2026. The changes that produced them:
Date | Unit or Upgrade | Change |
|---|---|---|
August 11, 2026 | Infuse | Cost multiplier raised from 0.045 to 0.05, matching the Protectorate shield and Legion Reanimate, with the infused bonus to damage, health and regeneration cut from +50% to +45% |
August 11, 2026 | Koru Symbiosis | Increased healing cut from +30% to +25% |
August 11, 2026 | Rapid Germination | Construction speed bonus cut from +50% to +40% |
August 11, 2026 | Lasher | Base attack lost its bonus against medium armor, damage raised from 17 to 18, and the Corrosive Secretion medium bonus raised from +50% to +75% |
August 11, 2026 | Skrell | Damage bonus changed from +150% against harvesters to +50% against medium armor when the harvester armor type was retired |
August 11, 2026 | Stinger | Health raised from 90 to 100 |
August 11, 2026 | Gatherer | Move speed cut from 510 to 500 |
August 11, 2026 | Infused Seedling | Health raised from 70 to 75 |
August 14, 2026 | Deep Nest | Power cost raised from 15 to 18 |
August 14, 2026 | Boomer | Spawn count cut from 4 to 3, health cut from 250 to 150, and explosions no longer damage air units |
August 14, 2026 | Rapid Germination | Construction speed bonus cut again from +40% to +30% |
August 28, 2026 | Behemoth | Health raised from 625 to 700 and weapon damage from 30 to 35, with range cut from 12 to 11, the bonus against heavy armor cut from +200% to +100%, and the Colossal Maw range increase cut from +6 to +5 |
August 28, 2026 | Skrell | Health raised from 50 to 60, damage from 5 to 6, and the bonus against medium armor from +50% to +100% |
August 28, 2026 | Thresher | Health raised from 300 to 350, and weapon splash now deals full damage to everything in the area |
August 28, 2026 | Stinger | Upgrades reorganized from three tiers to two, and Biomass Submersion changed from +100% attack speed on biomass to +300 move speed on biomass |
August 28, 2026 | Cultivator | Health cut from 250 to 150, with the attacking version cut from 75 hexite to 50 and from 400 health to 300, and its damage per second cut from 17.65 to 13.64 |
August 28, 2026 | Nourishing Pod | Heal interval lengthened from 0.8 to 1 second and healing per energy cut from 5 to 4 |
August 28, 2026 | Harbinger and Lasher | The Harbinger second tier upgrade cut from 200 flux to 125, and the Lasher second upgrade tier moved from the Synapse Canopy to the Elderwomb |
August 28, 2026 | Mycelial Reach | Gatherer Spawn Cultivator bonus cast range raised from +200% to +250% |
August 28, 2026 | Exalted and Mammoth | Both gained the beast tag, which matters to the Grell only through mercenary and Legion interactions |
Because the Grell economy grows with the biomass mat, denying that spread is the usual counterplay. In Skirmish the Grell are one of the four factions on the ranked ladder, and the standings track a separate per-faction rating as well as a total-damage board for the faction. The Protectorate pages describe the opposite approach, a slower and more defensive style built on holding ground rather than spreading over it.
For Vynthra, Cultivator Biomass generation range increased from 21 to 24 and health from 150 to 400. Cultivator Attacker health increased from 600 to 1,000.
Grell building regeneration fell from four to one health per second. Harvester health fell from 275 to 250, base health regeneration was removed and stationary Harvesters no longer generate Biomass. Spawn Cultivator starts on cooldown and can be placed off Biomass.
