[ANI] The Invid are a "race of protoplasmic creatures" (e61.00:08) that invaded Earth shortly after the end of the Second Robotech War. Their ruler, the Invid Regis, dispatched "her entire civilization" (e61.00:24) to Earth after detecting that the Invid Flowers of Life had taken root there as a result of the climactic final battle of the Second Robotech War (e61.00.38). She lead her forces on a "crusade to locate and harvest the fruit" of their flowers (e61.00:28) as the Protoculture they derived from them was their "life-blood" (e61.01:03). The surviving defenders of Earth and the planet itself, both still reeling from their war with the Robotech Masters, were "no match" (e61.00:55) for the invading horde and within "a matter of minutes", the Invid's invasion of Earth transformed the "already devastated planet" into a "wasteland" (e61.00:45). Under the control of the Invid, the Earth was turned into a "slave colony" made to "harvest and process Protoculture (e61.01:03).

From the beginning, the Invid planned "to save only a small percentage of the humans to use as workers on [their] Protoculture farms" (e82.08:08) and the rest of the population had "always been scheduled for extermination" (e82.08:14). Before this planned mass-extermination was to take place, enough data on the human species had to be collected. The Invid studied the functions of the human body (e81.13:54) "trying to get data on the progress of human evolution" (e81.13:56). Dusty Ayres endured such studies, in which the entire right side of his body was replaced with "Protoculture-generated metallic prosthesis and organs" (e81.14:00) in procedures done without the benefit of anesthesia (e81.14:05). There was also an observational period, and Sera speaks of her and Corg's instructions to "study the behavior patterns [of humans] and learn from them" (e82.07:45).

These experiments were performed as part of the Regis' mission to find "the ultimate life form with which to rule the universe" (e83.00:37). This hunt has been the focus of all of the Invid's efforts since arriving on Earth (e83.00.17). The Regis' close relationship to Protoculture enables her to transform herself and her race into "any shape [they] desire" (e83.00:29). She felt their existing forms were inadequate, and were in fact the reason that has stopped their race "from becoming the true power it is destined to be" (e69.01:13). All forms of life on Earth were researched and clones were made of "creatures from all significant periods Earth's history" (e69.01:03) including plants from the Paleozoic era and reptiles from the Mesozoic (e69.11:06). These "evolution experiments" (e69.11:45) were conducted in natural laboratories called Genesis Pits (e69.00:01).

At the end of her period of experimentation, the Regis concluded that the humanoid form was "best suited" (e69.00:05) to her purposes -- an ironic twist considering her race had easily enslaved theirs.

To the Invid, Protoculture is "a multi-purpose energy source and foodstuff which is of prime importance to their race" (e62.00:15). An Invid colony deprived of Protoculture would "whither and die" (e62.00:18). With enough Protoculture, the Invid could "grow and become the most powerful [race] in the universe" (e62.00:21). Protoculture also allows the Invid Regis to transform herself and her race into "any shape we desire" (e83.00:29).

The "heart of the Invid civilization" (e84.11:46) is the Central Core of Reflex Point, a circular structure that pulses with the life of the Invid race. Lancer observes that whenever an Invid fighter is shot down, its image fades from the Central Core (e85.03:11). The Regis comments that "every time any of my children cease to exist our entire race looses an integral part of its strength" (e85.03:20).

The Invid race possesses a "cosmic consciousness" (e77.15:55) that allows the Regis to directly communicate with every being in her command. -Macross