Sometimes, during breeding, the genes of a cub get a little messed up! What comes afterwards can be a wild card. Mutations randomly occur when breeding a lioness. Although lower fertility levels are more likely to produce a mutation naturally, they can be produced from a lioness of any fertility level. Even then, some mutations are more debilitating than others, while some mutations are more common. As a general rule, lethal mutations and hybrids tend to be quite rare.
Types of Mutations
Adult Mutations
Not all mutations are visible from birth. Adult Mutations are mutations that change the appearance of an adult lion, or affect them in some way during their adult life stage.
Cryptids
So far, there is only one Cryptid mutation, but we've decided to separate them from the other visible mutations just in case more are added in the future! These mutations are based off of cryptids sighted in real life.
Hybrids
Hybrids? Say what?! That's right—your ladies aren't always as loyal as you think. 
They may sneak off to have a tryst with a male of another species, and you might find yourself with a Jaglion, Leopon, or Tigon cub on your paws! For details about hybrid mutations, be sure to check out this page.
Lethal Mutations
With breeding comes great responsibility. Any breeding can cause a Lethal Mutation to occur, although the odds are incredibly low; however, you may want to prepare yourself in advance, so you know just what to do if your lioness happens to give birth to a lethally-mutated cub.
Patches and Piebalds
While Patches and Piebalds are technically considered to be visible mutations, there are just so many of them that they've earned their own page. If you want to see all existing patterns, check this page out!
Primals
Just like Patches and Piebalds, Primal mutations are visible straight from birth. There may not be as many variants for Primal as there are for Patches and Piebald, but there are so many intricacies when it comes to Primal breeding—you'll definitely want to give this page a read-through!
Visible Mutations
Unlike adult mutations, Visible Mutations are visible straight from the moment your cub came into this world.
Mutation Items
Breeding
It is highly recommended that you stack some of these items with a Buffalo Scrotum, as the chance of a mutation occurring rolls per cub. For full information about all breeding items on-site, please refer to the Breeding Items page!
* As Cotton Root Barks are the most cost-efficient way to boost random mutation chance, players often start dedicated Cotton Root Bark projects in order to hunt rare mutations.
* The breeding cooldown induced by Cotton Root Barks can be skipped with a Shadow of Deaths or Yohimbe Barks.
* Cotton Root Barks cannot be "stacked" as the boosted mutation chance is used instantly upon the next breeding.
Potential bonus item when buying $50 worth of GB in one transaction during the Black Friday sale.
, Lion Scrotum 
Purchase from the Carrion Shop for 2000 SB.
Purchase from The Boneyard for 100 LB.
Rare drop from winning a battle against a January event NPC.
Purchase from the Gorilla Enclave for 300 MT.
Purchase as a Referral Reward for 10 RP.
Jackpot Reward from Slots.
Potential bonus item when buying $50 worth of GB in one transaction during the Black Friday sale.
, Lion Scrotum Purchase from Champion Shop for 400 MB.
Potential bonus item when buying $50 worth of GB in one transaction during the Black Friday sale.
Extremely rare drop in explore during the August Event.
, Lion Meat * If used on a lioness with a mutation that has additional requirements (such as certain Adult Mutations that are tied to a Mane type), additional breeding items may be required to better ensure a pass.
* Lion Scrotum is the only item that can be used to pass on a mutation that does not naturally pass. This differentiates the item from Cotton Root Bark, Lion Meat, and GMO Cow, which affect the random mutation chance of a litter.
Guaranteed drop from a very rare encounter during March's event.
Potential bonus item when buying $50 worth of GB in one transaction during the Black Friday sale.
* Pennyroyal does not boost Ennedi Vossoko chances: if Pennyroyal is used on a breeding with an Ennedi Vossoko lion, only the chance of a Primal, Primal (Felis), and Primal (Smilus) cub being produced is boosted.
Mutie On Demand
There are several "Mutie On Demand" applicators that you can use on your lions in order to apply mutations directly onto them.
Removing Mutations
If, for any reason, you decide that you no longer want your lion to be mutated, there is an item that will remove their mutation.
Inheritance
Important Note: Most mutations are not naturally inherited. "Inherited" means to be genetically passed down from either parent. The only mutations that are naturally inherited on Lioden are as follows.
- Dorsal Fur. This mutation can be passed down from both males and females. Breeding two Dorsal Fur lions together doubles the chance of producing Dorsal Fur offspring.
- Jaglions. This mutation can only be passed down from Jaglion females. Jaglion males cannot pass their mutation and can only breed to lionesses with Goddess fertility.
- Leopons. This mutation can only be passed down from Leopon females. Leopon males cannot pass their mutation and can only breed to lionesses with Goddess fertility.
- Overgrown Fur. This mutation can only be passed down from Overgrown Fur females. Only female offspring can inherit this mutation.
- Mngwa. This mutation can be passed down from both males and females. Breeding two Mngwa lions together doubles the chance of producing Mngwa offspring.
- Patches. All Patches patterns can be passed down from both males and females. Breeding two Patches lions with the same pattern together doubles the chance of producing Patches offspring with that pattern. If two different patterns are bred together, there is an equal chance of offspring inheriting either pattern.
- Piebald. All Piebald patterns can be passed down from both males and females. Breeding two Piebald lions with the same pattern together doubles the chance of producing Piebald offspring with that pattern. If two different patterns are bred together, there is an equal chance of offspring inheriting either pattern.
- Primal. This mutation can only be passed down from Primal males (including variations) as well as Primal (Ennedi Vossoko) and Primal (Ferus) females. Male and female offspring can inherit this mutation.
- Primal (Ennedi Vossoko). This mutation can be passed down from both males and females. Male and female offspring can inherit this mutation, but only if a Primal (Ennedi Vossoko) parent is bred to a Primal, Primal (Ennedi Vossoko), Primal (Felis), Primal (Ferus), or Primal (Smilus) parent.
- Primal (Felis). This mutation can only be passed down from Primal males (including variations) and Primal (Ferus) females. Male and female offspring can inherit this mutation.
- Primal (Ferus). This mutation can only be passed down from Primal (Ferus) males and females. Male and female offspring can inherit this mutation.
- Primal (Smilus). This mutation can only be passed down from Primal males (including variations) and Primal (Ferus) females. Only male offspring can inherit this mutation.
- Tigons. This mutation can only be passed down from Tigon females. Tigon males cannot pass their mutation and can only breed to lionesses with Goddess fertility.
All other mutations can only be passed down from a mutated lioness with the aid of a Lion Scrotum.
Purchase from Champion Shop for 400 MB.
Potential bonus item when buying $50 worth of GB in one transaction during the Black Friday sale.
Extremely rare drop in explore during the August Event.
, Lion Meat * If used on a lioness with a mutation that has additional requirements (such as certain Adult Mutations that are tied to a Mane type), additional breeding items may be required to better ensure a pass.
* Lion Scrotum is the only item that can be used to pass on a mutation that does not naturally pass. This differentiates the item from Cotton Root Bark, Lion Meat, and GMO Cow, which affect the random mutation chance of a litter.
Mutation Roll Order
Finally, Tigon Boost & Mukombero chances are applied if they were applied to the breeding. If they are successful, they overwrite any previous mutation that was set.
† Note: this is only specifically for lionesses with one of these mutations, as they are heritable. If the lioness is a Jaglion, it will roll for her mutation's natural pass chance first, then move on to Patches/Piebald if she was bred with a Patches/Piebald stud, etc. The same goes for Leopons - it will roll for her mutation's natural pass chance first, then move on to Patches/Piebald if she was bred with a Patches/Piebald stud, etc. Finally, the same goes for Overgrown Fur and Tigons. Patches/Piebald will only roll with their own natural pass chance if either the lioness or the stud has that mutation.
†† Note: Primal (Ennedi Vosoko) will overwrite other primals if successful, despite rolling after the others.
If the mother does not have a heritable mutation, the official mutation roll order will operate the same as listed above, just without the chance to inherit the mutations that do not occur randomly without at least one parent with that mutation who can pass it to cubs (like Primals, Patches, Piebalds, Mngwa, and so on).
To clarify, heritable mutations will only roll if one of the parents has the mutation, and it can be passed down from that parent. If you do not breed a lion with a heritable mutation, they will not "roll" when your cubs are conceived and generated. If you do not use mutation-boosting items, they will not "roll" when your cubs are conceived and generated. The mutation roll order above is only assuming that a lioness has a heritable mutation, is bred to a Dorsal Fur, Mngwa, Patches, Piebald, or Primal stud, mutation items have been used on her, etc.
* Note: the Tigon boost was only applicable until November 30th, 2018. Though the Tigon boost rolls last, it will overwrite all other mutations if it triggers. It is recommended that you do not use the Tigon boost on a lioness with a heritable mutation, as any potential Leopon, Jaglion, Mngwa, Overgrown Fur, Patches or Piebald cubs that may have been produced will be overwritten by the Tigon boost's activation.
* Note: the Dorsal Fur guarantee is only applicable once you have it active on your account due to having it awarded to you by completing the Punk Breeding Challenge, which can be repeated each year. As it rolls last, it should not overwrite any other potential mutations!
Mutation Tiers
Not all mutations are equally rare! Some are more common, and some are super rare. The June Development Update #93 introduced a rebalanced tier for mutation rarities, and this was the very first time that any rarity tiers were officially confirmed by the developers!
The mutations from lower tiers (such as tier 1) are more common and widespread among the site, and the higher the tier, the rarer the mutations within that tier are.
The mutation tiers are presented below:
| Rarity Tier | Mutations |
|---|---|
| Tier 1 | Achromia, Bobbed Tail, Folded Ears, Mane Fluffy, Mane Imperial, Mane Noble, Mane Silky, Mane Succubus, Mane Whiskered |
| Tier 2 | Mane Fuzzy, Mane Ruffled, Mane Scruffy, Melanism |
| Tier 2.5 | Clawless, Maneless, Overgrown Claws, Overgrown Teeth, Overgrown Tongue, Polycaudal, Tailless |
| Tier 3 | Blind, Mane Feathery, Mane Frizzy, Mane Shaggy, Mane Villous |
| Tier 4 * | Cleft Palate, Conjoined Cubs, Cyclopia, Deaf, Double Uterus, Dwarfism, Extra Limbs, Eyeless, Harlequin Ichtyosis, Lipomatosis, Sirenomelia, Toothless, Two Heads * Note: within tier 4, there is an additional chance to roll either a first-generation Leopon, Tigon or Jaglion at a very low rate. |
Customisation
Decors
Official site decors are not created to fit mutated lions. If an official decor happens to fit a mutated lion, it is purely coincidental and not intentional by the site artists. Keep in mind that equipping official decors onto mutated lions may result in some... interesting placings if the mutation has major lineart changes.
If you want to decorate your mutated lion, your best chance would be to look for custom decors for sale that were drawn specifically to suit a certain mutation.
Eventually, we plan on hosting a "Mutation Decor Compatibility" resource for all mutated lions with major lineart changes (ie. Dwarfism, Leopon, Primal, Tigon, etc.)! There is no current ETA as Lioden contains thousands of decors that need to be checked, but perhaps one day in the future... 
Oasis
If your leader has a mutation and you wish to customise them using the Custom Lion Oasis tool, don't fret—their mutation will remain even after customisation! A lion's appearance consists of their base, eyes, mane colour, mane shape, markings, and skin. Mutations are not tied to your lion's appearance data. When you use the Custom Lion tool, it doesn't wipe your leader's age, cubs bred, heritage, karma, or stats; it only directly affects your leader's appearance.
As a visual example, this is a king pre-customisation. He's a Primal (Ferus), but unfortunately is a little... lacking.
We decide to go spruce him up in the Custom Lion Oasis tool. Unfortunately, the tool does not display mutation lineart if you happen to have a mutated king—but, as previously stated, his mutation will remain, so let's go on and customise him!
Perfect. We decide this is what we want, so we hit "Customize!" and are then redirected to his page.
What a stunner! 
So, there you have it. The tool can safely be used on any pride leader with any mutation. It only works on leaders. You cannot target any other lion within your pride, so the only way to customise an existing lion that is not a pride leader is by using applicators.
Poses
Some mutations can be equipped with poses! Not every mutation is compatible, unfortunately, but the ones that are compatible are as follows.
- Achromia
- Blind
- Clawless
- Double Uterus
- Eyeless
- Melanism
- Overgrown Claws
- Overgrown Teeth
- Overgrown Tongue
- Patches (all patterns)
- Piebald (all patterns)
- Primal Fangs
Mutation Titles
As of June Development Update #93, breeding a lion with a certain mutation for the first time will unlock a special title based on that mutation for your king to use next to their name! If the mutation is an Adult Mutation, it will be awarded once the lion's mutation is revealed (so once they grow up to adulthood)! These can be set up on the Quests and Snakes page, and give no notification when they are unlocked.
You can view all the mutation-exclusive titles on the Titles page!
Achievements
There are several achievements that you can get from breeding mutations on Lioden!
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