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Sunday, September 30, 2018

Antikythera Nova Pt. 3: Technology

This is the third and final post in my series of micro-setting posts about my Antikythera Nova scifi setting. Part 1 is about the premise and history, and part 2 about the factions.


Technologies

Gaussian propulsion: Many forms of combustion-based propulsion, in terms of vehicles and weaponry, have been replaced by electromagnetic accelerators. During the journey of the Malik Tous, and still on many of the less terraformed planets, spaceships, space stations, and orbital colonies, combustion is an extreme risk. Furthermore, Gaussian weaponry can be fired at a higher velocity, at a higher frequency, and silently.

Smart rockets: While not replacing ballistics altogether, many fire arms now use smart rockets. While lower-velocity than ballistic weapons, smart rocket bullets can be used defensively, deflecting incoming projectiles, and can smartly lock-on to targets and navigate environments. Most have limited range if used non-ballistically, but they can also be equipped with various sensors, making them useful for local environment scanning or data collection.

Plasma and laser: Plasma tech consists of balls of energy, whereas lasers are any continuous beam of light within a focused bandwidth. These technologies are used as weaponry, as well as to transmit information.

Power armor: Traditional space suits have developed to the point of being light and comfortable, however many jobs in space require power armor. In particular, the space marines have various power armors which provide enhanced strength and speed, weapon and reflex assistance, jetpacks, augmented reality, and various other useful features.

Nanotube plate armor: The Gabor have developed an armor made of some kind of matte, carbon-like material filled with nanotubes of a possibly organic nature, or modeled after organic materials. The armor is tougher, and significantly lighter, than any power armor, and neither the KFP nor HLC have been able to reverse engineer it.

Cintamani and the Makara: Cintamani is a high-energy gem found throughout the Pickman Galaxy. Longterm exposure to cintamani induces a mutation in some humans, who are referred to as Makara. In the early stages of the mutation, they grow patches of cintamani gems or crystalline skin. Next, they develop enhanced speed, strength, agility, and dexterity, and the ability to traverse space unprotected. Eventually, they begin to develop psionic abilities not unlike the Gabor. However, over time they become increasingly crystalline, and what little organic material remains becomes bestial; an alien form with vague mammalian, reptilian, and aquatic features, but mostly altogether alien. These Makara lose their human intelligence, lash out violently at anything around them, and attempt to flee into space if threatened.
This risk aside, both the KFP and HLC have a supersoldier program for makara, including makara training and research. This research includes creating makara under controlled circumstances- a politically divisive practice. In the KFP, the general public is not aware of this cintamani-related mutation, and even among military personnel, if they know of the makara at all, they know of then only as part of a supersoldier program.

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On an unrelated note, if you have not done so already (and given how little data I have, I suspect you have not >.>), please take my Weird & Wonderful Survey! It should only take a minute, it will really help me, and also I want to show people how much fun it can be to play with data, but I can't do it if I don't have any!

Likewise, please participate in my GNS study! This is a somewhat controversial topic and I've received a lot of resistance on it. All I can say is that if my study is somehow fundamentally flawed, then either I won't find anything, or what I find will require a degree of healthy skepticism, but it is possible I may find interesting effects or interesting trends in the data, which could inform our understanding of GNS or tabletop or inform better follow up studies, but the only way any of that happens is if I get data! There is literally no harm in participating, so if you value empirical science at all, why not just take a minute and let's see what the data have to say!?

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