Greatshells growing

[High prince of geeks he/him]

Greatshells have gemhearts inside them so that they can grow as big as they can. Do Greatshells have to stay out in highstorms so that they will grow larger. And if you were going to try to bread Greatshells could you keep them inside to keep them small, or smaller, to make breeding and training easier then throw them out in a few highstorms and slaughter them after they get big enough.

[shawnhargreaves he/him]

I'm not sure it's as simple as they need stormlight to grow.  My guess the growing part happens pretty much the usual way (eat food, metabolize it, grow bigger) and the role of the gemheart is to give them extra strength so their bodies won't collapse once they grow past a certain size.  This exempts them from usual physical limits as to how much weight a skeleton can support, how far a circulatory system can pump blood, etc.

 

So if you deprived one of stormlight, I think it would keep growing but then eventually die.

Edited May 25, 2014 by shawnhargreaves

[Surgebound Rainspren he/him]

also greatshells have a annoying habit of eating things. you know pets, animals, you.

[SmurfAquamarineBodies he/him]

They may also be able to make use of Stormlight in a similar fashion as Lift but in reverse.