Vessels

From Gothpoodle

Latest revision as of 15:12, 13 March 2013

Human

• Baseline Human: Common in Third Wave and not uncommon in Fourth Wave nations. In Fifth Wave nations, “baselines” are usually either immigrants from poorer countries or elderly.
  • Complication: Floater (2028): Baseline humans raised in zero-G or microgravity who lacked compensatory genemods. Most grew up in poorer orbital or L5 communities. They can also represent early Duncanites. They tend to be tall and fragile and suffer in normal gravity.
• Genefixed Human: At a minimum, most parents screen unborn children for any genetic “flaws” and, if they exist, have them fixed. A genefixed human is someone who has gone through this screening, even if no gengineering was needed.
  • First-Generation (2020): Screened for genetic defects.
  • Second-Generation (2035): Screened for physical features which would cause someone to be considered unattractive.
  • Third-Generation (2050): Screened for mental instability.

Human Genetic-Upgrade

Genetic upgrades are the product of eugenic genetic engineering. A genetic upgrade is completely human, but his genes were selected to emphasize particular traits. Couples usually donate their own eggs and sperm, which are tweaked by the gengineers and fertilized in vitro. Single, infertile, or gay parents can clone themselves or acquire needed eggs or sperm from gene banks. A child’s sex can be specified or left to chance. Once the upgraded, fertilized egg is ready, it can be implanted into a mother’s womb or raised in an exowomb. Two people sharing the same upgrade sequence are not twins: their gene donors determine unspecified traits such as facial structure and hair, eye, and skin color. However, the process is delicate enough that if upgrades of different types mate with normal humans or each other, they’ll probably end up with a baseline human child.

• Alpha Upgrade (2050): The Alpha was the first commercially successful genetic upgrade certified to be error-free. It has been widely licensed and pirated. Careful eugeneering ensures an attractive, athletic, healthy individual. There are 40 million living Alphas.
  • Olympian (2065): The second-generation Alpha possesses metabolic and glandular modifications to burn off excess fat and optimize crisis response.
• Helot Upgrade (2080): Sometimes called “Social Man,” the Helot genetic template was developed in China about 2080. Its supporters claim that the upgrade makes human beings much better able to live in a crowded urban civilization, reducing aggressive and selfish impulses without curtailing overall intelligence. Detractors point out that these traits are exactly what a would-be ruling elite would desire, making the human population more docile and tractable. In fact, several recent experiments with totalitarianism have used the Helot genotype in an attempt to prevent popular uprisings. The outcome of the experiment is unclear, since the first Helot cohorts are only now reaching adulthood. About 250,000 Helots exist today, most of them in central Africa, southeast Asia, Indonesia, and Peru. Elsewhere Helots are few, since the genotype is unpopular among parents who have a choice of genetic template for their children.
  • Helot II: A more elaborate version of the Helot genotype is rumored to have been developed by TSA scientists just before the Pacific War. This template would have involved a complete restoration of the vestigial human vomeronasal organ, allowing the variant form to be strongly influenced by pheromones. According to anti-nanosocialist propaganda, the TSA elite planned to use dominance and sexual pheromones as a tool of political control; people with the “Helot II” genotype would have been particularly vulnerable to such an attack.
• Ishtar Upgrade (2064): General-purpose upgrades such as the Alpha are common, but more specific packages are designed for parents who want particular types of offspring. The Ishtar gene sequence is one example, created to produce children optimized for professions such as dancer, gymnast, pop star, or model. Biotech Euphrates eugeneers selected a light, elfin build and a facial bone structure to produce distinctive but attractive looks. An extra feature was an augmented liver. In a controversial move, Biotech Euphrates modified the Ishtar neurochemistry with gene sequences thought to enhance ego and competitiveness. Some believe that they went a bit too far . . . There are 150,000 Ishtars alive.
  • Siduri (2079): A second-generation Ishtar that increases lifespan and reduces the ego issues.
• Mahatma Upgrade (2057): One of the earliest genetic templates designed to fulfill a human ideal, the Mahatma upgrade first became popular in the late 2050s. Research dating back to the turn of the century revealed that certain kinds of “religious” experience had an identifiable neurological basis. Based on the Alpha-series upgrade, the Mahatma received careful adjustments to brain structure and neurochemistry, making them particularly open to this kind of mystic insight. Mahatmas are emotionally stable and good at tasks that require concentration. These traits alone would make the template popular, since they significantly improve chances of success in the classroom or workplace. However, Mahatmas are also prone to certain altered states of consciousness, from simple meditative calm to a deep identity-blurring trance. There are about 5 million Mahatmas today, working in a variety of professions. They do seem statistically more likely to be openly devout, or to follow a religious profession. On the other hand, their greater sensitivity to mystic experience does not seem to lead them toward any one specific ideology. Statistically, Mahatmas tend to have the same religious backgrounds as those around them.
• Metanoia-Series Upgrade (2065): Genetically enhanced intelligence remains controversial, due to the subtlety of gengineering required and the difficulty of measuring results. Radical attempts at redesigning the brain often result in insanity. More modest successes have been achieved: GenTech Pacifica’s Metanoia made careful use of gene sequences known to correlate with enhanced memory and concentration, and “Metas” now consistently score 10-20 points higher than baseline humans on the ASIT. The upgrade is increasingly popular, with 1.3 million alive today.

Parahuman

Parahumans are products of species gengineering, and incorporate nonhuman DNA sequences.

Econiche

Even while humanity was colonizing the solar system, it was also moving to inhabit the last remaining wilderness areas on Earth itself. Just as several variant human types appeared in space, others were designed to live comfortably in regions of the homeworld which had long stood empty. Such designs usually came at a cost in general ability. None of these “econiche” types ever appeared in large numbers, since the hostile environments for which they were designed could also be handled through more mundane technology.

• Aquamorph (2075): GenTech Pacifica’s Aquamorph is one of the more visible econiche parahumans. Aquamorphs store oxygen in the myoglobin of their muscles, much like cetaceans. Thousands live on Earth, many near the Elandra sea habitat.
• Drylander (2077): Drylanders were designed to live comfortably in some of the world’s most arid regions, tending wilderness preserves or assisting in desert reclamation projects. They appear nearly human from a distance, but have a number of transgenic features that become apparent up close. The type’s metabolism has been carefully altered to conserve water and deal with wind-blown dust. The large eyes have been radically modified, giving them keen night vision and protecting them with a nictating membrane. As a result, Drylanders can function quite well in the cool desert night, and many of them prefer a nocturnal existence. Drylanders were first developed in the United States. Many of the subspecies still live in the southwestern U.S., but others have spread to desert and steppe zones all over the world. The largest communities today are in western Australia and in northern Africa, where major desert reclamation projects are underway.
• Misha (2055): This parahuman type was one of the first human subspecies to be created. The type borrows a great deal from ursid genetics, giving it thick body hair (effectively fur), strong resistance to cold, and a moderate ability to hibernate. Side effects of the modifications include a bearlike temperament and an increased need for sleep year-round. Mishas can function without special clothing or equipment in temperatures as low as -75°. When the temperature gets below -60°, however, they feel a strong urge to find shelter and hibernate. This occasionally helps them to survive extreme conditions, but it can be inconvenient when there is work to be done. Drugs and other treatments can mitigate the hibernation urge, but have undesirable side effects. Misha parahumans were first developed in Russia, and are still most common in Siberia. Mishas (and the nearly identical Kodiak type) have spread to Alaska, Greenland, northern Scandinavia, Nunavut, and Antarctica. Although their tolerance for warmth is almost as good as an unmodified human’s, they do prefer colder climates and are rarely found in the tropics. They find employment in all kinds of cold-weather industries.
• Ranger (2079): This parahuman type is fairly recent, depending as it does on several radical modifications of the basic human sensorium. The goal was to produce a genotype which would be able to survive in almost any wilderness environment, alone and with a minimum of technical support. A magnetic-field sense was borrowed from migratory birds, and several sequences for acute hearing and smell were also added. The digestive system and metabolism were upgraded to allow the consumption of almost anything organic. The genotype’s unusual senses are not perfectly integrated into the brain, leading to irritability and chronic insomnia. Meanwhile, subtle tinkering aiming for a self-reliant attitude may have been too successful. Ranger-series parahumans have begun to appear in the Amazon basin and in the wilderness regions of Canada, Russia and the United States. They often find employment as wilderness preserve rangers, scientists, or guides. In recent years several Isolate communities dominated by this parahuman type have been founded.
• Tennin (2058): Duncanite gengineering optimized the Tennin metabolism for life in zero-G and microgravity environments without bone and muscle wasting. Now Tennin make up a majority of the Duncanite population. They tend to be tall and thin, with good looks and unusually long toes usable as grasping fingers. There are about 160,000 Tennin. Avatar licenses the genes; many non-Duncanite spacers pick it for their children.
• Wu Tsao (2084): Gengineered by the Wimmin’s Pantropic Collective of Margaret Station, these parahumans are a fusion of Tennin and Metanoia. They are exclusively lesbian females who can give birth to clones of themselves.
• Yousheng (2068): Xiao Chu created this pantropic parahuman design for Mars settlement. They’re similar to an Alpha-series upgrade, but have modified lungs and biochemistry for surviving on the surface with minimal protection, as well as radical hormonal and reproductive cell genemods. The latter reflect Rust China’s desire to increase its population, but have also led to accusations that Xiao Chu is “turning humans into bioroids.” Rust China offers economic subsidies to colonists who choose to have Yousheng children.
  • Viking (2080): Since 2080, Colonial Genetics has offered a licensed version without the hormonal and reproductive modifications.

Homo Superior

Adaptation to a specific ecological niche is only one goal met by genetic engineering, and not the most common. The most frequent approach is to give the variant type greater general capability, making it “human, only more so.” In 2100, most of Earth’s population is made up of these Homo superior variants. The Alpha, Ishtar, and Metanoia-series upgrades are the most common, but others have appeared recently on Earth.

• Brownie (2055): One of the earliest attempts to engineer humans for increased health and longevity was the Brownie variant. Rather than tinker with the inner workings of cell biochemistry, the Brownie’s designers chose to improve gross human physiology. A Brownie appears strange in a world where so many people have been designed for tall, slender attractiveness. Brownies are short and stocky, with heavy layers of muscle and fat padding torso, upper arms, and upper legs. Their spines are curved, giving them a naturally forwardleaning posture. Their knee joints have been re-engineered to bend in both directions, giving them a slow, awkward looking gait. Their voices sound muffled and nasal, the result of tracheal reconfiguration. Strange as it may seem, all these modifications tend to make the Brownie tough and durable. Brownies are very resistant to disease, falls and other accidents, and the slow progress of time. They age just as quickly as unmodified humans do, but their bodies simply don’t wear out as rapidly. Although the first cohorts of the subspecies are not yet old enough to demonstrate their durability, most estimates indicate that the average Brownie can expect to live well over a century with minimal medical intervention (and therefore very low medical costs). There are about 1 million Brownies in the world today, mostly in Europe and the United States. A surprising number have made their way into space – the template’s modifications to skeletal structure have made Brownies nearly immune to bone-mass loss in zero-G. Although the merits of the design are rarely questioned, the Brownie template is unpopular due to its odd and unfashionable appearance.
• Herakles Parahuman (2086): Pushing the limits of genetic technology, the Herakles series represents one of the most elaborate Homo superior designs available in 2100. The first cohorts are only now approaching adulthood. The expense of the genotype (and its apparent problems) have limited the type’s appeal. There are only about 10,000 Herakles parahumans alive, most of them in Greece. The muscles, skeleton, and nervous system have all been engineered for maximum performance. The immune system and overall biochemistry have been broadly modified to allow virtual immunity to toxins, infectious disease and cancers. Several changes to cell structure allow dramatic extension of lifespan. Finally, modifications to the brain allow a Herakles to get by with very little sleep. The sum of these modifications appears to have stretched the state of the art in human gengineering to its limit. Next-generation designs will probably supplement genetic alteration with symbiotic viruses or other techniques. For now, the Herakles is plagued with minor metabolic and psychological problems.

Ideal

The homo superior variants are designed for greater capacity, health, and lifespan, but this does not always satisfy would-be rebuilders of humanity. Often a redesign of the human genotype is motivated by ideology; the engineers are driven by a desire to change “human nature” itself. Such variant forms can be quite distinctive.

• Ariadne (2066): One of the more controversial ideal-parahuman types has been the Ariadne, first developed in the 2060s in the United States. Some social movements of the time called for the complete emancipation of women from male domination – through the creation of a human subspecies that would not require males to survive or reproduce. The Ariadne subspecies fell short of that goal, as genetic engineering was unable at the time to produce true parthenogenesis. Even so, with modern reproductive technology the new subspecies has been able to get by. Ideological fervor has allowed Ariadne communities to survive despite their inability to reproduce themselves “naturally.” Today there are about 200,000 Ariadnes. Most of them live in Isolate communities or have emigrated to the space colonies. Although most of Earth’s Fifth Wave societies have relaxed their intolerance of the Ariadne lifestyle, such prejudice has been intense at times. Most Ariadne communities remain convinced that they are persecuted and cannot live safely in the global society. Ariadne scientists are among the leaders in reproductive modifications. For the most part the Ariadne genotype is a typical Homo superior type, slightly above the human average in intelligence and overall health, engineered for longevity and disease resistance. The “fight-or-flight” response has also been carefully improved to give the variant superior emergency reflexes. The controversial aspects of the variant are in its reproductive systems. Ariadnes cannot become pregnant unless they wish to, and they cannot bear male children. Male fetuses are spontaneously aborted by an autoimmune reaction by the time they reach the hundred cell stage. Meanwhile, the brain and hormonal mechanisms responsible for gender identity have been subtly modified, giving Ariadnes a strong predisposition toward homosexuality. Not all Ariadnes function as homosexuals, but most of them are at least bisexual, and fully heterosexual individuals are quite rare.
  • Ariadne II (2086): The product of collaboration between Earth-bound Ariadnes and geneticists on Margaret Station, the new version of the genotype will attain reproductive self-sufficiency once the first cohorts reach adulthood.
• Avatar (2061): Like the Ariadne, the Avatar design was motivated by social conflicts over gender roles. Rather than try to redefine what it meant to be masculine or feminine, this design reinforces typical gender stereotypes. As such, it is an exercise in sexual dimorphism, in which the physical and psychological differences between males and females of the subspecies are exaggerated. Male Avatars are strong, robust, alert, stoic in the face of pain, and strongly egoistic. Female Avatars are dexterous, soft-voiced, and retiring. Both sexes are engineered for great physical attractiveness, and have extreme secondary sexual characteristics which make their masculinity or femininity almost fiercely obvious. The Avatar design is a fairly early variant, having first appeared in the Middle East. It has been surprisingly popular, even outside the strongly patriarchal cultures where it was first marketed. Today it can be found almost everywhere in Africa, the Americas, Europe and the Middle East. There are about 500,000 Avatars today. Male Avatars tend to gravitate toward high-risk occupations such as the military, while female Avatars (especially those who overcome their natural shyness) are often successful as diplomats, negotiators or entertainers.
• Kouros (2082): Cultural struggles over “gender politics” have often bred extremism, such as that which gave rise to the Ariadne parahuman design. One response to the gender wars has been to withdraw from the field of combat entirely. For example, members of the “asexual” movement of the 2060s used bodysculpting and other techniques to remove all sexual characteristics, expressing not only a rejection of gender politics but a rejection of gender itself. In the early 2080s a variation of this ideology gave rise to the Kouros-series design. Kouros parahumans are true functional hermaphrodites, able to perform either the male or female role in sex or reproduction. Indeed, a Kouros can reproduce alone. The physical appearance of a Kouros is distinctive and not in any sense androgynous. Facial features and body shape were each designed to be significantly different from either male or female norms. The result is sometimes considered attractive but is often disturbing to non-Kouros humans. In an attempt to give the Kouros a distinctive mindset that was neither “masculine” or “feminine,” the designers concentrated on creativity and communication skills. One unplanned side effect is a breakdown in emergency response reflexes, which often causes the Kouros to “freeze” in stressful situations. The oldest cohorts of the new subspecies have reached adulthood, and have almost universally avoided military service (but are showing some promise in linguistics, diplomacy, and the creative arts). There are about 50,000 Kouros in the world at present.
• Sigma (2079): One branch of the Transhumanist movement was led by the “cyberprophets,” pop-culture philosophers who claimed that the ultimate end of human evolution would be in communion with machine intelligence. To that end, in the early 2070s they commissioned the Pandora parahuman design in an attempt to build humans who could think as quickly as a sophisticated AI. The Pandoras were a mixed success at best, so the sponsors attracted considerable controversy when they purchased the Sigma design as an extension of the Pandora template. Despite the cloud over their conception, the first Sigmas have reached adulthood and are showing promise as scientists, engineers, and web managers. There are about 80,000 Sigmas. The emphasis of the Sigma design is on cognitive speed and mathematical ability. The speed of information processing across neurons has been increased, and the brain’s structure has been modified to grant greater mathematical and abstract-reasoning ability. An unplanned but desirable side effect has been to make almost all Sigmas lightning calculators. Modifications to the brain’s sleep centers have enabled them to get by with very little sleep for days on end. Unfortunately, all these modifications to the brain have led to borderline mental instability. Further, the interface to the brain’s speech centers has still not been perfected. While Sigmas do not exactly stutter, they have great difficulty slowing their speech patterns down when conversing with non-Sigmas, and this has much the same effect.
• Ziusudra (2073): This Biotech Euphrates “ideal” parahuman is designed for high intelligence and lengthened lifespan. The Ziusudra looks fully human. Its many transgenic genemods include a redesigned heart, arteries, spleen, and gastrointestinal tract, plus alterations to cellular repair systems to aid longevity. Currently, 11 million exist. There are many licensed or reverse-engineered variations.
  • Nyx (2084): Genehackers Inc. reverse-engineered the Ziusudra and made radical modifications to sleep-regulating structures in the brain, but seem to have compromised some of the parent design’s attributes. They need less sleep but don't have the increased lifespan.

Bioroid

Bioroids are living beings created fully formed through biogenesis.

• Felicia (2076): This transgenic combat bioroid resembles a lithe, anthropomorphic cat-person. Created by Biotech Euphrates for the eccentric Sultan of Brunei, and three-time Kyoto Cup winners, their successful thwarting of a coup attempt by the Sultan’s less eccentric sister resulted in other armed forces ordering them. Today, many Felicias serve in military and security units (primarily in counter-terrorist forces), or as bodyguards and bodyguard-courtesans. The Felicia has one unintended glitch: after an emergency-overdrive response, glandular imbalances sometimes result in mood swings and heightened appetites. This example is the last preban model, the AS-3J (later licensed as the C-33 Lynx).
  • Felicia II (2082): The “postban” version which removes the emergency-overdrive response. Most work as aerospace pilots, athletes, aerobics instructors, dancers, personal pilots, chauffeurs, etc.
• Hecate (2093): The Hecate model is designed to work on the cleanup of hazardous materials, especially in cases where human level initiative and intelligence are required. They can enter hazardous areas with minimal protective equipment, sensing directly what toxins are present in the area. They can analyze the situation and act when standard hazmat cybershells fail. Hecate bioroids are almost immune to poisons, although corrosives and certain bioactive chemicals can still damage them. Since they are unlikely to survive long in any case, Hecates are designed with very short active lifespan. The Hecate model is widely considered a moral abomination, even in nations which accord bioroids no civil rights. Institutions which use them are likely to suffer protests and other forms of bad publicity. They are hairless, with bright lemon-yellow skin, thick muscles around the mouth and nose, and eyes with nictating membranes.
• Incubus (2084): A pleasure bioroid based on a discontinued Biotech Euphrates design. Polykeratin tissue and hormonal nanofactories let the Incubus switch its apparent and functional gender, or be both at once. It boasts exceptional voluntary control of certain muscles and responses to heighten its partner’s experience.
• Sea Shepherd (2080): This GenTech bioroid is a skinnier and more streamlined version of the Aquamorph parahumans with sharp teeth.
• Spartan (2084): The Spartan is a typical high-end combat bioroid, with hormone-boosted muscles, reinforced skeleton, reduced pain response, and sharpened reflexes for emergency situations. The most attractive feature of the Spartan is its ability to use heavy infantry support weapons alone, without mechanical or personal assistance. The Spartan model was developed in the United States, and is now widespread throughout the Americas. Versions of it can be found in China and have also been pirated by the nanosocialist states.
• Tiaoqi (2086): These bioroids are designed by the Martian Triads for enforcer and "bouncer" duties. They are physically intimidating and have the strength to back it up. In appearance, they are huge and solid, with hands like clubs, low brows, and beady eyes.
• Valkyrie (2088): This Martian Triad-produced combatrix bioroid is a combination pleasure model and combat model, popular in the role of bodyguard. All Valkyries are female. They are made with control over both sex and dominance pheromones. An unexpected side effect of the model is increased appetites.
• Xenocop (2089): The Xenocop bioroid design is intended for police and paramilitary situations rather than open combat. Xenocops must be able to work within human communities, overcoming any anti-bioroid prejudice and making contacts with informants. When on patrol, they are alert, tough, and fast, able to run down most suspects in short order. Xenocops were first developed in the United States, but they have become popular in most bioroid-using nations. They are commonly employed by large police departments and private security firms.
• ZR-3 (2070): An early Xiao Chu Mars-operation bioroid, used both as workers and soldiers. The same as the Viking variant of the Yousheng parahuman template.
• ZR-5 (2075): These Xiao Chu space-operations bioroids have light-gray skin, blue hair, and small suckers (derived from tree-frog genetics) on their fingers and toes.
• ZR-7 Tianyi (2072): The ZR-7 Tianyi is a popular “social interface” bioroid biofactured by Xiao Chu, often employed in jobs such as butler, front-desk secretary, flight attendant, host/hostess, etc. Since the 2080s, the Martian Triads and other syndicates have sold illegal knockoffs of the Tianyi as pleasure bioroids – Tianyi look like fashion models.
• ZR-12 May-I (2074): This type of bioroid gets its nickname from the phrase "May I help you?" Produced by Xiao Chu as the ZR-12, they are intended for service work that requires what would have been known in earlier centuries as "the human touch", and is today known as "biorelations". They often serve as store clerks, administrative aids, or servants. These bioroids are common and legal in both Rust China and America/Mars.

Cybershell

Cybershells consist of a computer brain and peripherals (at minimum, sensors and communication systems).

• Bush Robot (2097): One of the few bush robots to see commercial sales is the Exogenesis Bushmaster. It is a stickframe bush robot with three manipulator arms equipped with multi-branching, ultra-dexterous fractal manipulators. Its arms double as legs; thrusters mounted beneath its body provide zero-G maneuverability. Its computer brain is distributed through its body rather than centralized in any one place. Only 326 Bushmasters were made before Exogenesis was sold, but Nanodynamics will likely resume production. A few dozen were acquired by the European Space Control Agency and presently serve aboard E.U. spacecraft. Several Bushmasters hosting SAIs and ghosts are among the orphaned Exogenesis cybershells resisting the Nanodynamics takeover. 80 lbs., 5’ tall.
• Buzzbot (2075): Small aerial cybershells are used on Earth, Mars, and Titan for everything from aerial surveys to photojournalism to package delivery. Israel Robotics’ IRI-4 Malachi is typical: a miniature helicopter with two shrouded counter-rotating rotors, a cluster of simple sensors, and one manipulator arm. 5 lbs., 1’ tall.
• Computer: This cybershell is a static computer: It has external sensors and communication systems, but cannot directly manipulate objects or move under its own power, although it can surf the Web.
• Cryobot (2073): Cryobots are built for ice-penetrating amphibious operations, and have been used beneath Antarctica, Europa, and Callisto. Vosper-Babbage’s Vostok is a typical cryobot, usually used for research and engineering, but it can carry hand-held weapons. It is a 2’-wide hemisphere housing a radiothermal generator and hydrojet propulsion unit. Behind the hemisphere is a cylindrical post 1’ wide and 3’ high, atop which is a spherical brainsensor housing. Halfway up the post are three folded manipulators that can act as arms or legs. The Vostok is designed to melt its way through ice, then explore underwater. It can walk tripod-fashion on its limbs, or balance on two of them and use the last as an arm. 400 lbs., 5’ tall.
• Cyberdoc (2070): System Technologies’ Hippocrates is a typical highend medical cybershell. It looks a bit like a mechanical starfish. Its limbs are studded with pressure, sonic, and microvisual sensors. Three of its “legs” do double duty as arms, and these are tipped with claws that are able to perform ordinary operations or microsurgery, or inject drugs. It can manufacture its own drugs. In extreme cases, it can even enfold a patient, placing him into life support or filtering his blood. 150 lbs., 5’ wide.
• Cyberdog (2063): The Gemini Volksrobotics Phydeaux is designed to look and act like a household pet. The cyberdog always has soft fur and appealing features, but doesn’t necessarily resemble a dog; the external styling can be made to match a very large cat, a fox, a bear cub, even a fantasy creature. Internal machinery mimics the body heat, breathing, and pulse of a real animal, although a close examination will reveal the cyberdog’s mechanical nature. A cyberdog is often kept in homes that have children, acting as a guard, faithful companion, and teacher. The internal AI can speak, or interface with household systems to provide complex visual displays. At night, the cyberdog’s keen senses and sleepless nature make it a superb household guardian. 35 lbs., 3’ long.
• Cyberdoll (2080): Cyberdolls are androids designed to look like people. The Clockwork Souls Android/Gynoid range are typical: beautiful, anatomically correct, and fully functional. Their lack of a pulse and inability to sweat, breathe, tan, bleed, or bruise can reveal their true nature, as will any medical or X-ray scan.
  • Infiltration Android (2090): Deep Indigo is a secret combat model developed by Nanodynamics for the CIA and SIA.
• Polypede (2078): Tenzan Heavy Industry’s Polypede is typical of multifunctional engineering polybots. It consists of multiple chains of intersecting modules, each with its own small manipulators, sensors, and power supply. Its default form is a 6’-wide “spider” with six legs and two arm-legs, but by removing and locking modules, it can reconfigure itself into a 20’-long burrowing worm, a 20’-long robotic arm (which must clamp one end to a larger object such as a vehicle or spacecraft), or even a high-speed rolling hoop! It can also plug other heavy equipment into itself, allowing its use in many engineering tasks such as grading, loading, mining, and heavy-equipment assembly. 800 lbs.
• RATS (2070): Robotic Armored Tactical Systems (RATS) are stealthy ground-combat cybershells intended to supplement or replace human infantry. The Darwin-Sogo Type 100 Yamaneko (“mountain cat”) is typical: an ovoid fourlegged body, with two short manipulator arms, retractable sensor booms, and a protruding gun tube. The spines studding its torso detect air vibrations, while its clawed legs enable it to burrow through sand or soil easily. 6’ long, 250 lbs.
• Snakebot (2067): Various snakebots have been popular since the early 21st century. The Naga, from Dhanmondi Dataflex of Bangladesh, is a typical example: a multi-segmented serpentine cybershell designed for search and rescue, maintenance, and scouting. It can easily navigate complex terrain: burrowing through loose soil; crawling down fissures, ducts, or sewers; and slithering up scaffolds or trees. The Naga can also transform its entire body into a robot arm by clamping one end to a heavier object, or become a hoop for rapid rolling movement. The “head” of the Naga incorporates two short tentacle manipulators and a multifunctional sensor and communications suite. 7’ long, 60 lbs. Combat models exist with stealth technology and weaponry.
• UCAV (2090): Unmanned Combat Air Vehicles (UCAVs) are robot fighter aircraft. Strix is a typical example: a hyper-agile close air support fighter from Eurospatiale, built for the French Armée de l’Air and the submarine carriers of the Marine Nationale, and widely exported. Strix is a tailless aircraft, 8’ long, with a blended wing-body configuration. The airframe is a reactive smart-matter nanocomposite cyberframe stressed to 30 Gs, which has an integrated ECM defense system. The airframe can dynamically alter its shape in flight for increased lift or maneuverability. Strix’s vectored-thrust turbofan has sea-level supercruise in excess of 1,100 mph. Weaponry is a 15mm emag cannon with 400 rounds, plus an internal bay that can house up to 200 lbs. of bombs or smart missiles. 800 lbs.
• Virtual Interface Implant (2047): Many infomorphs live inside people! This cybershell is a virtual interface implant: a tiny computer brain and communicator, seated in someone’s skull or distributed through his body, and connected to the host’s nervous system. It sees and hears using its host’s senses, can communicate both with him and the outside world (including the Web), and monitor his health and mental state.
• Volkspider (2070): Volksrobots are cheap but reliable cybershells designed for a wide range of activities, from acting as personal gofers to repairing and cleaning buildings. The System Technologies V-100 Volkspider is typical: a six-legged, two-armed machine with minimal accessories. Fifth Wave kids often knock together machines like this from kits, teleoperating them around the neighborhood or loading in their companions. Suction cups let it climb walls. 2’ across, 25 lbs.
  • Tech-Spider: Space-tech cybershells such as the Tenzan Heavy Industries THI-200 Suchi-Rukara (steel-collar worker) are common.
• Wearable Virtual Interface: A wearable virtual interface could be virtual interface glasses or a distributed virtual interface (DVI) consisting of a monocle, ear piece, and belt computer. It sees and hears using the sensors built into it, and can speak to its wearer directly, or anyone else via radio. A Printed DVI has some of its circuits tattooed on the user’s body or clothing.
• Wingbot (2078): The Kenzaki Robotics Tengu is a multipurpose cybershell, suitable for bodyguard, perimeter security, and microbot delivery functions. It is physically delicate and weak, but very fast even when confined to the ground. In the air, it can reach speeds of up to 80 miles per hour, its mobility limited only by the requirements of winged flight. It has two arms, with an electroshock device installed in one and a pneumatic drug injector in the other; these are generally used as nonlethal weapons in defense of the robot’s owner. Cargo compartments in the body and each wing are designed to carry up to 3 lbs. of microbots, which can be delivered by the cybershell in either walking or flying modes. If the wingbot stays on the ground, it can stretch out its battery charge for up to 30 hours. The batteries are depleted after only about two hours of flight. 45 lbs., 3’ long.

Bioshell

Bioshells are living bodies whose higher brain functions have been subsumed by an implanted bioshell interface computer. Most are clones or bioroids whose organic brain was gengineered to never develop in the first place. It is possible to transform a living body into a bioshell, but its mind will be destroyed in the process. In many nations, it is illegal for an AI to inhabit a bioshell.

• Necromorph Bioshell: It is possible to use a combination of cellular regeneration and tissue engineered transplants to repair a corpse and reanimate it as a bioshell.