[Question]
  [
[Inspiration](https://puzzling.stackexchange.com/q/31247/74193)
[Conway's Game of Life](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conway%27s_Game_of_Life) is a well known cellular automaton "played" on an infinite grid, filled with cells that are either alive or dead. Once given an initial state, the board evolves according to rules indefinitely. Those rules are:
* Any live cell with 2 or 3 living neighbours (the 8 cells immediately around it) lives to the next state
* Any dead cell with exactly 3 living neighbours becomes a living cell
* Any other cell becomes a dead cell
Game of Life is known for having simple rules yet structures can quickly become chaotic with minimal change.
Consider the following initial state:
[![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/QRJpe.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/QRJpe.png)
In 5 generations, this reaches [this](https://i.stack.imgur.com/9spDV.png) configuration, which is a period 2 oscillator. However, by adding in 8 live cells next to it:
[![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/9vuK4.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/9vuK4.png)
we end up with a completely empty board after 54 generations.
---
Now, consider instead the following initial state:
[![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/c2aWk.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/c2aWk.png)
That is, `CGCC` made up of living cells. Each letter is in a \$4\times6\$ bounding box, with a single empty column of cells between boxes, for a total bounding box of \$19\times6\$. [This](https://i.stack.imgur.com/Z8m0j.png) is a zoomed-in version.
After 256 generations, the board looks like
[![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/SgfJs.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/SgfJs.png)
From this point, no meaningful change will happen: there are 2 oscillators which do not interact with anything else, and the rest are still lifes.
Your task is to "destroy" this by adding in living cells around the initial configuration.
You will start with the `CGCC` initial state, as shown above. You will add \$n\$ living cells to the board. Those cells must be outside of the \$19\times6\$ bounding box of the `CGCC` (but may touch against the outside). When this new initial state (with your added cells) is run, it must eventually result in an empty board.
Note that the board is considered infinite, so if your configuration produces any spaceships, it is not a valid configuration.
Your score is equal to \$n\$. The lowest score wins, ties are broken by the fewest generations required to empty the board. Please provide either a testing environment to demonstrate your solution, or provide a video/gif of it running.
[Here](https://copy.sh/life/?gist=fc6c7fb852fee0d1c6a6a7508ebffa9d) is a pre-filled `CGCC` pattern in a GoL simulator
  
[Answer]
# Score 1, 35 generations
Sorry, but I guess I wrecked the challenge. I brute-forced all meaningful one-dot additions by hand, and found no other answer that wins against this.
## Raw ASCII format
```
 OOO  OOO  OOO  OOO
O    O    O    O
O    O    O    O
O    O OO O    O
O    O  O O    O
 OOO  OO   OOO  OOO
               X
```
## Image of initial state
[![Initial State](https://i.stack.imgur.com/rBppi.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/rBppi.png)
## Copy.sh export
```
#C Generated by copy.sh/life
x = 19, y = 8, rule = B3/S23
b3o2b3o2b3o2b3o$o4bo4bo4bo$o4bo4bo4bo$o4bob2obo4bo$o4bo2bobo4bo$b3o2b
2o3b3o2b3o$$15bo!
```
[Try this pattern on copy.sh!](https://copy.sh/life/?gist=f0a24cbfaf523f8dd222874dc00f8b11)
## Slow animated gif
[![Slow Animated GIF](https://i.stack.imgur.com/uGHob.gif)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/uGHob.gif)
[Answer]
# \$n=2\$, 41 generations
```
#C Generated by copy.sh/life
x = 19, y = 8, rule = B3/S23
11bo$b3o2b3o2b3o2b3o$o4bo4bo4bo$o4bo4bo4bo$o4bob2obo4bo$o4bo2bobo4bo$b
3o2b2o3b3o2b3o$10bo!
```
Run it online [here](https://copy.sh/life/?gist=026375df121d031861f13af06eae8c2c). Here's what the initial position looks like:
[![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/QYzZ3.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/QYzZ3.png)
[Answer]
# Score 8, 69 generations
This is what I promised for in the comment, but it got already beaten by Dingus...
I can't upload images right now, so I include a text-based initial configuration and the copy.sh export format.
## Raw ASCII format
```
X                  X
 OOO  OOO  OOO  OOO
O    O    O    O
O    O    O    O
O    O OO O    O
O    O  O O    O
 OOO  OO   OOO  OOO
         X
                          X
                         XX
                         X X
```
## Copy.sh export
```
#C Generated by copy.sh/life
x = 28, y = 22, rule = B3/S23
o18bo$b3o2b3o2b3o2b3o$o4bo4bo4bo$o4bo4bo4bo$o4bob2obo4bo$o4bo2bobo4bo$
b3o2b2o3b3o2b3o$9bo$$$$$$$$$$$$26bo$25b2o$25bobo!
```
]