Post by Insano-Man on Sept 19, 2018 0:56:47 GMT -5
This topic is a child of the Loonies article directory.
KNOWLEDGE IS POWER
While Looney research and development has remained mostly stagnant for centuries - and some sources suggest that this is a conscious choice on their part - the Loonies are among the few to maintain a consistent technological basis. All facilities, in some form or another, are given the schematics and personnel necessary to reproduce various pieces of equipment commonplace in each Looney installation. This includes weapons, armor, vehicles, industrial equipment, and pre-designed bunker modules.
Despite their prevalence, working schematics for Looney equipment are even more sought-after than the equipment itself. Similarly, while the Loonies have maintained a tight grip on these documents, their secrecy is not absolute. While law on Set is a tenuous concept in the best of circumstances, most Looney facilities deem it illegal - under punishment of immediate death - to possess stolen equipment or schematics. Recovering or destroying stolen design documents are some of the few forms of intervention that most bunkers are willing to commit to when dealing with outsiders.
The reasons why are plain. Most settlements on Set struggle to maintain a level of technology on par with the the early industrial age. The Loonies, meanwhile, maintain surpluses of infantry railguns, particle cannons, lasers, and powered armor. Looney industrial technology relies heavily on high-fidelity 3D printing and advanced refining processes that can achieve materials quality bordering on absolute perfection. Hand-tailored produce is often grown from genetically-modified seeds produced on-demand. When stressed for food, a Looney bunker can turn its industrial printers over to its agricultural facilities to produce emergency rations.
At the top of Looney technology is the Mass Transfer Satellite Repositioning Network, better known as either the MASTER Network or Green Angel Array. The system comprises an enormous network of satellites and planetside relay facilities capable of instantaneously transporting regions of space between pre-defined locations. While immeasurably invaluable, the MASTER Network is notoriously unreliable; communications lag with its satellites can result in poor accuracy. Aging or damaged satellites can cause personnel and material sent across the system to disappear entirely. When the MASTER Network malfunctions, whatever is sent through it is often lost forever.
Cybernetics and genetic modification, while within reach of most Looney facilities, are considered both taboo and needless. Augmentations are seen as expensive investments, both in time and resources, that rarely offer unique advantages to the patient. Likewise, augmentations cannot be exchanged between individuals. For most bases, producing equipment that serves a similar purpose is preferable. In the case of crippling injuries or life-threatening emergencies, however, there are no holds barred. Resultantly, many cybernetics are seen as marks of pride; a perpetual memory of survival against extreme odds.
Barring significant decay or severe mutilation, Looney medical technology is sufficiently advanced to fully reverse death. This goes hand-in-hand with the ability to apply full immortality to an individual, complete with a freeze placed on their biological age. Further still, some Looney cybernetics are advanced enough to afford significant protection against death, even in the case of complete decapitation or the total destruction of the person's body. There are no more than a dozen Looney facilities across Set that can perform these operations. Likewise, their application is restricted in the extreme.
This has given rise to the concepts of "hard" deaths, where the consciousness of a person is lost forever, and "soft" deaths, where only their body is lost or fatally wounded. Cybernetics that help protect against "hard" deaths are known under the umbrella term "hardwire". Overall, it is estimated that no more than thirty individuals across Set are fully immortal. No more than roughly one hundred have been implanted with a hardwire. Resurrections are estimated to number between 100-300 in absolute total.
KNOWLEDGE IS POWER
While Looney research and development has remained mostly stagnant for centuries - and some sources suggest that this is a conscious choice on their part - the Loonies are among the few to maintain a consistent technological basis. All facilities, in some form or another, are given the schematics and personnel necessary to reproduce various pieces of equipment commonplace in each Looney installation. This includes weapons, armor, vehicles, industrial equipment, and pre-designed bunker modules.
Despite their prevalence, working schematics for Looney equipment are even more sought-after than the equipment itself. Similarly, while the Loonies have maintained a tight grip on these documents, their secrecy is not absolute. While law on Set is a tenuous concept in the best of circumstances, most Looney facilities deem it illegal - under punishment of immediate death - to possess stolen equipment or schematics. Recovering or destroying stolen design documents are some of the few forms of intervention that most bunkers are willing to commit to when dealing with outsiders.
The reasons why are plain. Most settlements on Set struggle to maintain a level of technology on par with the the early industrial age. The Loonies, meanwhile, maintain surpluses of infantry railguns, particle cannons, lasers, and powered armor. Looney industrial technology relies heavily on high-fidelity 3D printing and advanced refining processes that can achieve materials quality bordering on absolute perfection. Hand-tailored produce is often grown from genetically-modified seeds produced on-demand. When stressed for food, a Looney bunker can turn its industrial printers over to its agricultural facilities to produce emergency rations.
At the top of Looney technology is the Mass Transfer Satellite Repositioning Network, better known as either the MASTER Network or Green Angel Array. The system comprises an enormous network of satellites and planetside relay facilities capable of instantaneously transporting regions of space between pre-defined locations. While immeasurably invaluable, the MASTER Network is notoriously unreliable; communications lag with its satellites can result in poor accuracy. Aging or damaged satellites can cause personnel and material sent across the system to disappear entirely. When the MASTER Network malfunctions, whatever is sent through it is often lost forever.
Cybernetics and genetic modification, while within reach of most Looney facilities, are considered both taboo and needless. Augmentations are seen as expensive investments, both in time and resources, that rarely offer unique advantages to the patient. Likewise, augmentations cannot be exchanged between individuals. For most bases, producing equipment that serves a similar purpose is preferable. In the case of crippling injuries or life-threatening emergencies, however, there are no holds barred. Resultantly, many cybernetics are seen as marks of pride; a perpetual memory of survival against extreme odds.
Barring significant decay or severe mutilation, Looney medical technology is sufficiently advanced to fully reverse death. This goes hand-in-hand with the ability to apply full immortality to an individual, complete with a freeze placed on their biological age. Further still, some Looney cybernetics are advanced enough to afford significant protection against death, even in the case of complete decapitation or the total destruction of the person's body. There are no more than a dozen Looney facilities across Set that can perform these operations. Likewise, their application is restricted in the extreme.
This has given rise to the concepts of "hard" deaths, where the consciousness of a person is lost forever, and "soft" deaths, where only their body is lost or fatally wounded. Cybernetics that help protect against "hard" deaths are known under the umbrella term "hardwire". Overall, it is estimated that no more than thirty individuals across Set are fully immortal. No more than roughly one hundred have been implanted with a hardwire. Resurrections are estimated to number between 100-300 in absolute total.
