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The word "Digimon" is invariable in the plural, and stands for "Digital Monster". Digimon include almost all the creatures that reside within the fictional parallel universe called the "Digital World." There are currently 882 different species of Digimon, as well as unconfirmed and new generations of Digimon yet to be revealed. The rate of new Digimon species continuously increase as the Digital World expands each year.
Digimon hatch from eggs called Digi-Eggs (デジタマ, Digitama?). They age via a process called "Digivolution" which changes their appearance and increases their physical powers. Some Digimon act feral, like wild animals. Most, however, possess human intelligence, speech, and personality traits. It was mentioned that, if a Chosen Digimon were to be separated from their partner, then they would start to become weaker.
They age in a similar fashion to real living organisms, but do not die under normal circumstances because they are made of reconfigurable data. Old Digimon and Digimon who receive fatal wounds dissolve into infinitesimal bits of data. The data then recomposes itself as a Digitama and the Digimon goes through its life cycle again. Digimon who are reincarnated in this way will sometimes retain some or all their memories of their previous lifespan. However, if a Digimon's data is "downloaded" as demonstrated in Digimon Tamers, in which all the data of a dying Digimon is absorbed by another, or if the data is completely deleted or destroyed, they will permanently die. In special cases, some Digimon do not get reincarnated despite their data still existing.
Digivolution is the process by which a Digimon "ages"[1] and grows up into larger and more powerful forms. Although the word "Digivolution" is short for "Digital Evolution", Digivolution is in fact more similar to metamorphosis in that Digivolution changes a Digimon from one form to another (which can sometimes be very different in appearance) very quickly.
Digivolving for Digimon is similar to aging for humans - it is generally a one-way journey whereby a Digimon will grow into a new form as they age and gain battle experience and data. However, moving from one form to another becomes progressively more difficult. Therefore, very few Digimon will ever naturally Digivolve into their final most powerful forms.
However, for the Chosen Digimon who is partnered with DigiDestined humans, Digivolution becomes far more flexible. Digimon who form bonds with a human are able to Digivolve more easily, generally through the use of a Digivice owned by the human. In such cases, the Digimon is channeled large amounts of energy and is therefore able to instantaneously Digivolve to a higher level. However, these Digimon will generally de-Digivolve back into a lower form after a fight. Digimon partnered to humans are also commonly able to use special forms of Digivolution not naturally available, giving these Digimon many different forms. These include Armor Digivolution.
In some cases, Digimon have also been granted the ability to Digivolve into higher forms by other, very powerful Digimon.
During Digivolution, a Digimon's appearance changes, and many of its other classifications (such as attribute and family) also sometimes do. The Digimon's fighting ability increases significantly, and the resulting Digimon is considered to be of a different species. However, Digimon species which are connected through Digivolution are generally similar in appearance.
Level Digimon species are classified by their "Digivolution level".
Digimon generally hatch out of Digi-Eggs (デジタマ, Digitama?) as Fresh level Digimon, the lowest and weakest level, roughly equivalent to human infants. Most Digimon of this level are small and do not have well-defined body parts.
Eventually Fresh Digimon Digivolve to the In-Training level, a slightly bigger and more complex form that generally still has undefined body parts.
In the anime, most Digimon encountered are of the rookie or champion level, ultimate and mega-level Digimon are rarer. Digimon of one Digivolution level are generally far stronger than Digimon of the previous level. There are exceptions where a Digimon has been able to defeat an opponent of a higher level. There are also cases, such as with Lucemon and Arkadimon, where a Digimon is far more powerful than what its actual Digivolution level would lead one to think.
For most Digimon, there are six Digivolution levels:
1.Fresh (幼年期 I Younenki I, translating literally as "Baby 1", also known as "Baby" in the English anime dub)
2. In-Training (幼年期 II Younenki II, translating literally as "Baby 2")
3. Rookie (成長期 Seichouki, translating literally as "Child")
4. Champion (成熟期 Seijukuki, translating literally as "Adult")
5. Ultimate (完全体 Kanzentai, translating literally as "Perfect")
6. Mega (究極体 Kyuukyokutai, translating literally as "Ultimate")
There is also a level beyond the standard Mega, known as Super Ultimate.
There are also other levels, the most notable being "Armor"
Digivice
It can store an endless supply of food, has the ability to heal a Digimon, and can store Digi-Eggs to be given to others later.
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...d/digivice.jpg
