Seeing what we're sitting on top of is kind of important.
[X] Do not poke the unknown magic! You're a Xenotech Specialist, not a Mage.
[X] Put together some specialist detector equipment to locate the source of the mana saturation, don't explore further than the floor of the arena yet. (Will use up a research turn fine-tuning the equipment for this particular variant of magical energy)
[x] Poke the angry magic ball with words! Maybe nom it if it doesn't speak up when questioned? Its not being productive just sitting there gradually burning out, after all.
[x] Put together some specialist detector equipment to locate the source of the mana saturation, don't explore further than the floor of the arena yet. (Will use up a research turn fine-tuning the equipment for this particular variant of magical energy)
you are back i have waited for you so long! i am HAPPY
Meh, I am of the exact opposite opinion. I think we could omnomnom the angry ball for energy and be no worse for wear, but we shouldn't rush going to the source of whatever magic permeats the place.
[x] Poke the angry magic ball with words! Maybe nom it if it doesn't speak up when questioned? Its not being productive just sitting there gradually burning out, after all.
[x] Put together some specialist detector equipment to locate the source of the mana saturation, don't explore further than the floor of the arena yet. (Will use up a research turn fine-tuning the equipment for this particular variant of magical energy)
Also, I want to experiment on the samples in those canisters.
This is one of those meditative stories. Not a lot going on, but it's clear and moves steadily.
[X] Do not poke the unknown magic! You're a Xenotech Specialist, not a Mage.
- Not yet, anyway. Getting energy and material from nothing but time and effort is still quite magical, after all.
[X] Put together some specialist detector equipment to locate the source of the mana saturation, don't explore further than the floor of the arena yet. (Will use up a research turn fine-tuning the equipment for this particular variant of magical energy)
- This is, however, additional procrastination on basic crystals/abilities that haven't been unlocked. We should research Delegation Protocols and a command crystal immediately after this early warning system against 'prison magic' activity is complete (so we at least have a better grasp of how Delegation works mechanically).
On the research page, "2000" should be "1900" unless modifiers to Research costs are listed elsewhere.
The Crystal's thoughts on what was expected from the wireless intangible-forcefield(?) project are inconsistent between Cycle 24 and 25; in 24, it doesn't expect more than 10% information transfer and doesn't mind because it's only a proof of concept, but in 25 it gets its proof of concept but is unhappy due to only getting 10% information...?
For the first one: I'd marked it off in the big status block but hadn't edited the threadmark, will sort that out.
The second one I wasn't sure quite how much counted as 10% when its practically illegible by this point anyway, its supposed to be about 5% or less. Its too miniaturized for its own good without something directly controlling it at the moment, and spat junk back that in theory resembles the correct message. Basically, we're unhappy that it worked so badly that just not working would've been more encouraging.
Late edit: We'd get the basic command crystal immediately once the research is there. If you want a fancier one it will, of course, cost more to make but is probably more useful, or at least slightly more impressive.
Adhoc vote count started by Aklyon on May 13, 2017 at 5:52 AM, finished with 282 posts and 6 votes.
[X] Do not poke the unknown magic! You're a Xenotech Specialist, not a Mage.
[X] Yolo it and push onwards deeper into the ruin!
[X] Do not poke the unknown magic! You're a Xenotech Specialist, not a Mage.
[X] Put together some specialist detector equipment to locate the source of the mana saturation, don't explore further than the floor of the arena yet. (Will use up a research turn fine-tuning the equipment for this particular variant of magical energy)
[x] Poke the angry magic ball with words! Maybe nom it if it doesn't speak up when questioned? Its not being productive just sitting there gradually burning out, after all.
[X] Put together some specialist detector equipment to locate the source of the mana saturation, don't explore further than the floor of the arena yet. (Will use up a research turn fine-tuning the equipment for this particular variant of magical energy)
[X] Put together some specialist detector equipment to locate the source of the mana saturation, don't explore further than the floor of the arena yet. (Will use up a research turn fine-tuning the equipment for this particular variant of magical energy)
[x] Poke the angry magic ball with words! Maybe nom it if it doesn't speak up when questioned? Its not being productive just sitting there gradually burning out, after all.
[X] Do not poke the unknown magic! You're a Xenotech Specialist, not a Mage.
[X] Put together some specialist detector equipment to locate the source of the mana saturation, don't explore further than the floor of the arena yet. (Will use up a research turn fine-tuning the equipment for this particular variant of magical energy)
[x] Poke the angry magic ball with words! Maybe nom it if it doesn't speak up when questioned? Its not being productive just sitting there gradually burning out, after all.
[X] Put together some specialist detector equipment to locate the source of the mana saturation, don't explore further than the floor of the arena yet. (Will use up a research turn fine-tuning the equipment for this particular variant of magical energy)
A bit into the cycle, the Alterin finally are all gone from the crater, having packed up camp and left, Das, Ro, and Loudest One included.
Amusingly, one of the floating island investigators did end up bringing one of your stone swords up to swing at the door before they messed with it properly. To the surprise of no one, it failed to penetrate the forcefields.
Plural.
And while the extra test runs this produces for your prototype are appreciated, losing it is not. Because thats what happened when they got the door open, things were lost. Whatever is no longer contained inside that fielded room is blazing like a star on essentially every sensor except the manafield one you're having constructed in the Arena down in the bunker, which is picking up exactly zero trace of it. You can barely see the edge of the crater with all the interference it blares forth, much less hear yourself think! Its fairly tempting to just fire at the damn thing despite it being very much out of your current effective firing range just to make it come closer so you can hit it with your investigating explosions!
This would also ruin your cover, because even Alterin wishing wells are most likely not armed.
After a good while of grumbling over things, however, you did have a second infiltrator swordminion, have they heard anything...not particularly. You should be able to overcome the interference with more power and listen in on the expected chaos, however.
...Aha. One of them was thinking ahead and uploaded a recording during the testing.
---
Floating Island Recording #301. Hopefully final door test is now go.
[massive static sound of the forcefield generator straining to override multiple fields at once]
"Theres more than one there? We only detected a single field."
"Sounds like its gonna break at this rate!"
"Turn it off and recalibrate already! We are getting through this damn door today, even if it takes longer than usual to tear down the barrier. Barriers."
"Quick, someone else finish the calibration. Fon looks like he's about to vomit across the room."
[Fon instead passes out, loudly]
"He's still breathing, right?"
"Fon is still alive, yep. Damn unnatural material."
{An amount of downtime occurs, with general background noise}
"Ok, we're good to go. Power it back up and cycle it through the fields one at a time."
[Rising hum as it hits greater resistance in the forcefields, abrupt stop]
"Generator's out, we need a new fuel cell."
Distant voice: "At least it was that and not something to do with the door!"
[Return of the rising machinery hum, controlled stop]
"Forcefield modifier is asking for a higher input than we have in the mobile gen to break down this last field."
"Overclock the generator then, we can fix it later with that tank that shoots things into being repaired. Lets get into this excessively-fielded room and see what treasure they left behind."
[Rumbling followed by loud shattering sound, followed by a lack of background noise]
WHO ENTERS THE SECRETKEEPER'S SANCTUARY.
"We do. We are here to investigate these floating ruins."
NO KNOWLEDGE MAY LEAVE THIS ROOM. BEGONE, OR AT MINIMUM DO NOT STEP FURTHER INTO THE SANCTUARY.
"Is there something that needs to stay sealed we shouldn't know about?"
WHAT KILLED US, THE MOST NOBLE, MOST HONORABLE, MOST HATED OF THE WARRIOR-MAGE SURVIVORS OF OUR WAR FOR REINOS, MUST NOT LEAVE.
ALL WHO ENTER ARE FORFEIT TO THE SPIRIT OF THE ISLAND TO RECHAIN IT. RELINQUISH YOUR HERETICALLY-CLADDED BARRIER-DESTRUCTION DEVICE AND BEGONE. WE MUST REBUILD THE DOOR.
[Abrupt explosion, probably the forcefield modifier]
"The hell? Can't you at least give us a hint of what we uncovered?"
NO.
[Explosion]
"Gah, really?"
YES.
[Explosion]
"Are you bluffing us?"
NO. CEASE INTERRUPTIONS. WE MUST REBUILD THE DOOR.
[3 explosions in sequence]
"Bu-
--- OW. That is one hell of a massive cutoff noise. Either the recorder exploded, or the thing behind the door did whatever is drowning your sensors in star-tier noise. That is more than enough old doomy bits for one cycle, so you ignore the angry ball entirely and focus back on the manafield sensor.
There was some form of magical ceiling in here that has reformed exactly around your intruding arm of armite half-crystals, leaving no hole even if physically you've punched a hole in the arena ceiling and filled it in with a meshed armite/crystal mix. The place was saturated such due to being the top of a long stream of rising magic bumping into the arcane ceiling. The source, from what you could tell, was a fair bit out of range of your (admittedly not the best, but functional) sensor construct, but was directly downwards of the arena center. Likely whatever is being kept in the depths of this doomsday prison/bunker/useful armite source.
Where to?
[] Dig Deeper into the Underground Thing
[] Check out the nearby surface areas while the alterin are distracted
[] Nowhere, there is science to be done. (Research focus turn, mention what you'd want focused on after we finish our current target)
[] Nowhere, there is expansion to be done! (Spend the whole reserve on expansion of our energy production, or our research output)
-[] Using As. matter to go further
-[] Using Basic crystals to get more per crystal.
--[] Maybe using a Refined Crystal Cluster or some other Big Crystal instead? (see bottom of crystals threadmark for example)
-[] Using Research crystals for faster progress but slightly less energy per turn available.
Original compressed name: Shining-in-the-Space, Prime Crystal, Outer Layer Omega-Current, Xenotech-Specialist/Experimentals-Researcher True Crystalline.
Minions Status:
Infiltrator Greatsword (1x): Plenty of reserve power, recording. Shape of a stone greatsword with crystalline hilt components. Tiny solar panel and thermal absorbers. Out of command range.
Focused Manafield Sensor Construct: Setup in the Arena of Power, attuned to its magic saturation.
The Alterin Threat:
They are bad at communication security here.
They are at least somewhat organized (managers)
They appear to lack an answer on the more arcane-bullshit sort of thing around here. Though we hardly know much either, how is that island floating...
They do take research data security seriously, and have a logging system.
Current base is not a full one.
They appear to not be concerned with nighttime security outside of basic measures.
They have a different definition of 'wishing well' than you do.
Opening the fielded door bothered the Secretkeeper's Sanctuary, which might've gone badly for them?
Location: In a crater. Pretending to be a wishing well. Near some suspicious alterin.
Normal:
Assimilated matter
The quick, dirty solution to your lack of range.
Template: Matter
Energy production: 20 per cycle
Fabrication cost: 50 energy, nearby material.
Basic Crystal
Created by converting solid materials, like rock or assimilated matter.
Energy production: 50/cycle
Template: Refined
Fabrication cost: 200 energy, nearby solid material or crystal.
Storage Crystal
A stabilized hunk of additional crystal, giving you more room to store energy without side effects.
Template: Space-filling
Fabrication cost: 200 energy, empty space.
Research Crystal
Because doing everything yourself is slow and complicated.
Template: Space-filling
Traits: Data Storage (replaces Energy Storage: Basic)
Fabrication cost: 700 energy
Research Output: 1/cycle, Research cost 10 energy/cycle.
Repair Crystal
A good helper.
Energy production: 50/cycle
Template: Refined
Traits: Repair Protocols
Fabrication cost: 1,200 energy
Mine Crystal
Storage crystal stripped down and prepared to explode via overcharge.
Template: Space-filling (minimal energy storage)
Fabrication cost: 200 energy, empty space.
Farseer Crystal
An excellent companion to scouting crystal. Energy production alignments have been realigned for exceptional sensory range instead.
Template: Intrusive
Traits: 1st Visual Augmentation
Fabrication Cost: 750 energy
Scrying Crystal
I see you.
Template: Intrusive
Traits: 2nd Visual Augmentation
Fabrication cost: 2250 energy
Available traits:
Energy Generator (Basic), Energy Storage (Basic), Data Storage, Absorption Fields, Defensive Offense, Explosive Entry, Repair Protocols, Visual Augmentation
Check the crystals threadmark for energy costs and details.
Minions Status:
Infiltrator Greatsword (1x): Plenty of reserve power, recording. Shape of a stone greatsword with crystalline hilt components. Tiny solar panel and thermal absorbers. Out of command range.
Focused Manafield Sensor Construct: Setup in the Arena of Power, attuned to its magic saturation.
The Alterin Threat:
They are bad at communication security here.
They are at least somewhat organized (managers)
They appear to lack an answer on the more arcane-bullshit sort of thing around here. Though we hardly know much either, how is that island floating...
They do take research data security seriously, and have a logging system.
Current base is not a full one.
They appear to not be concerned with nighttime security outside of basic measures.
They have a different definition of 'wishing well' than you do.
Opening the fielded door bothered the Secretkeeper's Sanctuary, which might've gone badly for them?
Location: In a crater. Pretending to be a wishing well. Near some suspicious alterin.
Current crystal designs
Normal:
Assimilated matter
The quick, dirty solution to your lack of range.
Template: Matter
Energy production: 20 per cycle
Fabrication cost: 50 energy, nearby material.
Basic Crystal
Created by converting solid materials, like rock or assimilated matter.
Energy production: 50/cycle
Template: Refined
Fabrication cost: 200 energy, nearby solid material or crystal.
Storage Crystal
A stabilized hunk of additional crystal, giving you more room to store energy without side effects.
Template: Space-filling
Fabrication cost: 200 energy, empty space.
Research Crystal
Because doing everything yourself is slow and complicated.
Template: Space-filling
Traits: Data Storage (replaces Energy Storage: Basic)
Fabrication cost: 700 energy
Research Output: 1/cycle, Research cost 10 energy/cycle.
Repair Crystal
A good helper.
Energy production: 50/cycle
Template: Refined
Traits: Repair Protocols
Fabrication cost: 1,200 energy
Mine Crystal
Storage crystal stripped down and prepared to explode via overcharge.
Template: Space-filling (minimal energy storage)
Fabrication cost: 200 energy, empty space.
Farseer Crystal
An excellent companion to scouting crystal. Energy production alignments have been realigned for exceptional sensory range instead.
Template: Intrusive
Traits: 1st Visual Augmentation
Fabrication Cost: 750 energy
Scrying Crystal
I see you.
Template: Intrusive
Traits: 2nd Visual Augmentation
Fabrication cost: 2250 energy
Available traits:
Energy Generator (Basic), Energy Storage (Basic), Data Storage, Absorption Fields, Defensive Offense, Explosive Entry, Repair Protocols, Visual Augmentation
Check the crystals threadmark for energy costs and details.
I...don't have a description of them in my notes, actually. They were simply 'The amethysts' for the longest time in the old game, and here they've continued being the purple background pseudo-antagonists with space tech so far, since we started near them.
I...don't have a description of them in my notes, actually. They were simply 'The amethysts' for the longest time in the old game, and here they've continued being the purple background pseudo-antagonists with space tech so far, since we started near them.
or something like a classical "grey" but more purple and blue and not in gladiator armor
or are you just going to do a "vulkan" "asari" a human with a diffrent skin tone and head things like ridges? i would be ok with that and you can seartch on the internet for a good picture like on deviantart
Aklyon is there anything specific kind of pictures that you want me to find? and what do you think of the suggestions and can you choose the pictures you like most and explane why?
So I don't have an answer for the Alterin part, but I did have a thing to mention about this picture in particular from the bunch swarm put up that I'm looking at.
If they, for some reason, decided they needed some humanoid power armor, it'd probably be similar to the High Tech one there. Replace the joints with Command Crystals, place one in that center hole, add an additional one inside what would be the helmet but is more just an armor plate in this case. Some amount of armor on top of the circuitry skeleton, with lots of glowy bits on top, mostly for style.
Which gives me a good example to explain how we'd do Experimental stuff instead of just tech research, too. They're basically just larger science projects that rely on us instead of throwing many iterative versions of the same thing at the metaphorical wall until one works better or breaks less, or whatever the goal is. One big pile of practical research at once instead of many little cycles of virtual.
Crystalline Humanoid Power Armor Experimental Project:
Energy Cost: TBD
Requirements:
-Minimum 6 Command Crystals (Greater or higher grade), additional ones add to the overall cost and add redundancy to the control systems.
-Flexible material (for movement and conduits)
-Armor material (for external armor) [Armite would work here, or any other sort of armor-y material we discover]
-An amount of weaponry, crystal-based or otherwise attached. (More gun obviously would buff the price of building it, but is more dakka. Does not have to be obvious weaponry, though!)
-Wireless Theory completed (It will obviously not be staying put on top of us the whole cycle all the time.)
-4 cycles to test functionality, connectivity, weaponry, and train the command crystals/crystallines in how the communication network will function. (probably 2 cycles to produce afterwards)
Optional:
-Shield generators (would require we have one to begin with that we can duplicate)
-Jetpack of some sort to navigate bad terrain
-More explosions
-Decide how large it actually is
-Threatening-sounding model name for the opponents to shout in worry/terror/despair/etc
-Nicer-looking alternate design for when we aren't being intentionally scary but cannot convince them to come to us.
-Other stuff
it would need to be a durable creature, to say the least. We're far better with mechanoids or mechanisms, since they're more likely to break down for reasons we can fix, and we're still a large space rock being in the end: Whats simply 'Some energy' to us could easily set our target organic on fire, or incinerate them immediately at worst. Sure, if you have enough targetsvictimstest subjects, you will find out how high they can tolerate essentially raw energy being dropped in them through some sort of embedded crystal, but we'd need a lot of them. And something to use the remains for.
Its like a reversed version of our standard new materials testing, where you go down in power use until you succeed instead of up until the target fails.
it would need to be a durable creature, to say the least. We're far better with mechanoids or mechanisms, since they're more likely to break down for reasons we can fix, and we're still a large space rock being in the end: Whats simply 'Some energy' to us could easily set our target organic on fire, or incinerate them immediately at worst. Sure, if you have enough targetsvictimstest subjects, you will find out how high they can tolerate essentially raw energy being dropped in them through some sort of embedded crystal, but we'd need a lot of them. And something to use the remains for.
Its like a reversed version of our standard new materials testing, where you go down in power use until you succeed instead of up until the target fails.
We already are starting from the lowest reasonable power level possible. For Crystalline. Going lower would mean breaking out the very unused data charts for energy levels regularly less than whole numbers.
We already are starting from the lowest reasonable power level possible. For Crystalline. Going lower would mean breaking out the very unused data charts for energy levels regularly less than whole numbers.
In the process of trying to vote, I've realized I'm unclear about a lot of mechanics, which simply wont do for a Crystalline.
1. Does the Manafield sensor mentioned in this update count as crystal type? Such as a variant of the Farseer or Scrying Crystal? Or is it specialized enough to this one place and situation that there's no point listing it anywhere?
2. Are we taking significant penalties (slowed research, can't see a meter in front of us, etc.) from the electromagnetic noise being generated by the Secretkeeper? If so, what would be the right way to stop these penalties? Wall of Armite Half-Crystal? Wall of Armite? Dome of one of those? Researching strengthened conduits? Some Absorption Field Crystals?
Big Crystal: A crystal that naturally takes up more than one map square at once. Generally does more but less efficiently for the build cost required, but can also be specialty crystals that simply require more space.
3. This implies the opposite of the Big Crystal example at the bottom of the same post. Here— because of reduced efficiency— the only reason to ever use a Big Crystal instead of filling the same space with smaller Crystals is for higher features (like being a True Crystalline), but there the example takes up four spaces for 300en/cycle, when filling those spaces with Base Crystal would only be 200en/cycle.
4. Since turning assimilated matter into Crystal always halves the cost of the Crystal, is there any reason to ever not go [asm. matter]→[wanted Crystal] when otherwise valueless matter is available?
5. Is this levitation, teleportation, or just sliding-along/adhering-to surfaces? Would we be able to disconnect our Core from surrounding Crystals and move just inside the Armite protection of the prison?
6. If we were to turn our Storage|Research Crystals exposed to the air into defensive/offensive/telescope Crystals, would that change be visible?
7. If we were to fill all scouted and secured rooms in the prison with crystal, what interesting things would be lost? (Out of your descriptions, I'm not quite sure what counts as a potential historical/magical/material discovery and what's definitely junk.)
8. Is there a point at which we'll use or need to start caring about a third dimension? Overworld map says yes, but I'm not sure when our current Map will be bridged to that.
As a tentative vote, if I don't get back for my questions answered;
[X] Assimilate matter around the outside of the prison. How big is it really? If you spot something weird, make a Farseer Crystal and move on in non-weird directions; if it's something really weird, take a vote.
[X] Build 5 Research Crystals from the closest Asm. Matter; this will give us exactly enough Research points to finish Dampening Fields in 3 cycles.
Oh, and @the swarm, @Nevill; are you two voting to build a tower of Base Crystal with a Scrying Crystal on top? Creating a minion? The first might blow our cover or make the Alterins wary of feeding the "wishing well" and the second we apparently can't get telemetry back from without finishing wireless research.
I am not sure what the option entails myself, but I thought it was meant as expanding a little when the changes to the area aren't watched closely. Presumably, we still act out of the crater, just extend our 'feelers' further.
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