Modular Battlesuits.

Battlesuits and similar protection are usually depicted as being of a single thick layer. There are a number of reasons why this may not be the likely construction.

A battlesuit would in fact be several concentric suits. The innermost layer would probably be some form of environment suit. The exact nature will depend on the usage of the suit. On Earth the environmental layer will be sufficient to protect the wearer from hazards such as chemical and biological weapons or extremes of temperature. The air supply will mainly be filtered from the surrounding atmosphere, with a small oxygen supply for use in thick smock or underwater. The air intake may include a snorkel fitting. For use in space the environmental layer will be much more sophisticated. Suits for the various other planets and moons will vary depending on local conditions. Battlesuits for extended underwater use obviously include a diving suit.

Over the environmental suit will be the exoskeleton, responsible for removing the weight of the entire system. This will most likely be constructed as a framework and designed for easy removal and replacement in the event of damage or malfunction. The exoskeleton is a relatively low bulk item and could be designed for compact packing. The resulting package would probably be the size of a large briefcase or small suitcase. This would allow military or expedition vehicles to carry a number of spares. In a previous blog I considered the concept of battlesuits moving when unoccupied. It is possible the spare exoskeleton might come to you!

Outermost will be the protective layer and this may be much more like a suit of medieval plate armour than is usually depicted. The components of the armour are designed to be easily replaced when damaged. Many components are ambidextrous and can be used on either the left or right side. Many components are modular and multipurpose and can be used in several locations on the armour. The plates are simple to manufacture and replacing one is a relatively simple task. Inventive individuals may come up with novel uses for spare plates. Designing an armour with as few different components as possible will be an interesting challenge. I think the Roman lorica segmantata and manica are worth looking at for inspiration. They even made full suits for Crupellarius.

The outer plates are independent of the inner layers of the battlesuit. Damage to a plate will not necessary endanger environmental integrity. An obvious difference from medieval armour is that the plates have a “soft” outer surface. Bullets hitting hard plate often shatter into fragments, injuring other body-parts and damaging vital equipment. Most armour plates have several centimetres of soft material on their surface. This layer may include ablative properties to provide some protection against laser weapons. Plates are usually sprayed with Ablative foam [UT4e p.187] of various camouflaged colours.

If a wearer is injured the weight of the armour and exoskeleton can be removed while maintaining the protection of the environmental systems. Alternately the exoskeleton can be locked to allow it to be used like a stretcher.

 

Sentry Monitors

Sentry monitors are a well-established technology. In societies where most security patrolling is conducted by cybershells they may even be regarded as being somewhat dated.

A sentry monitor is a worn device that monitors the wearer’s body temperature and heart rate. They may be encountered being used by human security guards and soldiers on guard duty.

If the monitor detects bio-signs concurrent with the wearer sleeping the monitor activates an alarm to wake the guard. If the correct code is not entered within the given time the monitor will transmit an alert to a control centre.

If the monitor detects bio-signs indicating that the wearer is drugged, unconscious, injured or dead it will transmit a more urgent alarm to summon help.

If the monitor is removed, either by accident or on purpose a security code must be entered or an alert is transmitted.

Removing a monitor and placing it on another person serves little purpose unless the correct reset code is known.

Sentry monitors are most common in Third Wave societies. In Fourth and Fifth Wave societies they may be worn by cybershell supervisors or operators. Security cybershells usually have an equivalent system that activates an alarm should the cybershell be disabled.

RED Files

            In the movie “Red” there is a scene where a character visits the CIA archives. The archivist (Ernest Borgnine) presents him with a cardboard folder filled with heavily censored documents. It is possible that this was intended to convey how old the files of interest were. It does, however, suggest the interesting possibility that some files are of such a high level of secrecy that they are not put on computer, even on stand-alone (“air-gap”) systems.
 

 

            I will call these RED (Restricted External Documentation) files, although different agencies and organisations will doubtless have other designations or acronyms. A GM should feel free to invent a better or different term if they wish to obfuscate from the players the true nature of the file they may be after.

            Not all RED files will be an old jacket filled with papers. Some may be of more recent manufacture, their distinguishing feature being the use of a format not compatible with common computer storage media.

            It is likely that many files will be stored in a microform format. There are a variety of these and they may be quite unfamiliar to TS-era characters. They include:

            Microfilm. Microfilms may be available in a number of formats including 35mm, 16mm, or some deliberately unique or rare format. Microfilm may be in either cassette or spool format. Aside from the problems of locating and stealing a microfilm the TS-era character will have to locate/create a compatible projector or viewer.

            Microfiche. A microfiche is a transparent sheet upon which is reduced images of pages of text. It can be treated like a sheet of paper in that envelopes of them may be included in file jackets or stored in ring binders. A microfiche reader holds the microfiche between two pieces of grass and projects an image of part of the sheet on a screen. Microfiche viewers were once commonplace in libraries but by 2100 are likely to be very rare outside RED sections.
 

 

            Aperture cards. Aperture cards are a Hollerith (punched) card with a rectangle of microfilm included. These are used to store images or short documents. The Hollerith component allows for large numbers of files to be sorted or collated with relative ease. RED facilities that use aperture cards will obviously include machinery for handling Hollerith cards. Such machines are little more than a historic curiosity in the rest of the TS-verse.
 

 

            Whilst some RED files may resemble 20^th century microform formats or paper pages the actual materials used may be more modern and less susceptible to degradation.

            Acquiring RED files may involve other obstacles for characters. As well as being in very secure facilities in the first place, RED files may include features to prevent them being removed. A possible system might be microscopic antennae embedded in the very matrix of the paper or film. This is an obvious evolution of the system used in many libraries and retail shops to prevent theft. When the antennae returns a signal transmitted by security scanners an alert will be issued. Similar systems may induce the self-destruction of files if they are moved too far from their authorized location.

Vehicles: RATS Transportation

I have been considering some of the practicalities of bringing tactical cybershells into action. A multi-legged system such as a Kumo-607 can probably move quite swiftly but will still be slower than a more conventional vehicle. Many tactical robotic systems such as cyberswarms and snakebots are smaller and slower than the Kumo so will also need some form of transportation. The human elements of a platoon will also need a means of transport.

The obvious solution is some form of armoured personnel carrier (APC). These will be in use in the TS-era and will be designed to transport a greater variety of passengers. Cybershells of all shapes and sizes will travel both inside the vehicle and clinging to its exterior. Various nooks and crannies will be used for swarmhives. RATS on the outside of the vehicle will effectively act as additional weapon turrets.

The APC is not the only option of ground vehicle. A friend of mine often remarked that if troops had an adequate level of body armour then armouring their transport was not such a high priority. RATS can be transported in trucks, pickups and SUVs, these vehicles themselves likely being driven by an AI. This option is particularly attractive in scenarios where a military unit does not wish to overtly advertise its movement. If the vehicle is disabled by some means the unit simply commandeers a nearby civilian vehicle and occupies it. Perhaps the military driver program can be plugged into other vehicles and includes a “hot-wire” suite to override civilian vehicle security systems. This would make such a driver program attractive to some of the criminally inclined!

A squad does not all need to travel in a single vehicle. Suppose we provide the unit with a number of small tracked vehicles similar to the minirip or the slightly larger ripsaw? A single minirip could carry a Kumo-607 type RATS or a human in a battlesuit and still have room for a number of smaller systems and additional stores. The ripsaw could carry a couple of large RATS and a human passenger in the seat. Or the seating space could carry additional systems or stores. In effect we are considering something along the lines of a tracked vehicle that serves as a warhorse/packhorse that the combat system can ride to the battle and return to for transport or extra ammunition/equipment. The vehicle itself would have its own AI and possibly some armament. This allows the vehicle and its rider to act as a team. For example, several Kumos ride to a building on their tracked carriers. While they dismount to search the building or climb up its outside the carriers establish a defensive perimeter and assume overwatch.

Battlesuit Androids

           I’m indebted to a friend of mine for reminding me of this concept.

           In one of Gene Wolfe’s “Book of the New Sun” series Severian encounters a spacesuit with an advanced AI. The suit can move around and manipulate objects without an occupant. It is effectively a hollow centred robot and resents when Severian has occasion to wear it. The GURPS sourcebook for the New Sun series calls this an “Iron-class android”.

           A TS-era battlesuit has its own AI systems. It has sensors that the AI is capable of accessing. It probably has actuators to augment the wearer’s strength. It is therefore quite possible that many battlesuits can move around without a human occupant and can be used as cybershells for infomorphs.

           This has a number of potential applications. When a military unit is in action it will be more difficult to pick off the human controllers. Some of the battlesuits will be empty. If a soldier’s battlesuit is badly damaged he may be able to move into a nearby spare. If a soldier is unconscious or badly wounded the suit could evacuate him. In a SWAT scenario a rescued hostage or prisoner could be placed in a suit and the suit used to move them to a holding area. If a character is not in a battlesuit and is attacked they may be able to call one to their assistance from nearby. The latter idea is used a lot in the Iron Man films, Tony Stark’s suits automatically dressing him. TS-era battlesuits will have more modest abilities and need to be put on in the usual fashion. The potential of hacking a battlesuit or advanced spacesuit to infiltrate a location is possible, although military equipment such as this is likely to have very potent protective software.

Space Habitat: West Sphere and Leisure.

           According to some of my reading a spherical space habitat is the optimum with respect to containment of air pressure and mass-efficiency at providing radiation shielding. The shape also the likely result of construction methods such as the bubbleworld technique. The downside of a spherical habitat is that only a small proportion of the interior will be at maximum centripetal gravity.

           My solution to this, the West Sphere, is to construct a cylindrical surface within the interior of the sphere. The following illustration depicts a 2.23km diameter sphere with a 1.78km diameter cylinder within. If the sphere rotates at one revolution per minute the centripetal gravity on the inner surface of the sphere will be the equivalentof 1g. The cylinder is 1.35km long in this illustration so the potential 1g area is more than 7.5 million square metres.

           The volume of habitat under/outward of the cylinder floor will be subject to higher centripetal forces of between 1g and 1.25g. Such g levels are tolerable for short periods of time but these areas are probably not suited to long term human occupation. Instead the higher g levels will be used for a number of other purposes. Drainage and sewage processing for the living areas is an obvious application. Many sections of this area may be used for storage. Many automated industrial processes could be located in these levels. It is possibly that some industrial processes might be facilitated by higher gravity levels. An interesting application for the higher g levels is for gymnasiums and exercise areas. A number of jogging and cycling tracks may be located in these levels. Tracks at differing levels may be interconnected by ramps so athletes can vary how much of their training is at higher gravity levels.

           The spherical habitat will be spun with one pole towards the sun. The solar pole will be shielded against radiation by a mass of rock. The anti-solar pole will be provided with windows and shutters. External mirrors will reflect sunlight through these windows and onto the inner surface of the cylinder. Somewhat confusingly, sunlight comes from the anti-solar end of the habitat! The shutters will allow the light level to be varied and could be used to simulate a day and night cycle. It is possible in some habitats no attempt will be made to simulate night and day. In some parts of the Earth humans function very well with months of constant daylight. Housewives in Reykjavik do their gardening in the middle of the “night” so it is possible some habitats will not bother with nigh time, or at least not full levels of darkness.

           The main docking area for spacecraft is likely to be situated at the solar pole near the axis. Visitors will initially be weightless. To reach the cylinder surface they will have to travel down the inside of the sphere at the solar end, possibly using some form of funicular. The lower the carriage gets the heavier they seem to become.

           Alternately the visitor may travel down the zero g central axis of the habitat. This will be a rapid route for moving passengers or freight to locations on the cylinder surface. A number of possibly transport options can be used here, ranging from zero g trains or cable cars to simple tubes were that individuals can simply free-fall (or get blown) along. A key points tall elevator towers reach up from the cylinder surface like the spokes of a wheel and intersect the central axis, allowing travellers to descent or ascend.

           The gravity gradient of the habitat allows for a number of novel leisure activities. Fitness training in the higher g levels has already been described. The lower gravity levels above the cylinder’s surface allow for some interesting airborne sports. Manpowered flying machines will be quite practical, providing the flyer does not descend too low. Flight by flapping a pair of strapped on wings is also possible. Batsuits, such as worn by modern parachutists (above), could potentially stay airborne for hours at a time if flown competently. The elevator towers described above are likely to include various flight centres and rentals on their intermediate levels.

           An interesting proposal for the space habitat is the low-gravity swimming pool. This would take the shape of a torus-shaped trough of water of a smaller diameter than the habitat. This will be at the anti-solar end of the habitat so that it does not intersect the axial transportation systems. You will have to ascend to go swimming. The pool may rotate at the same speed as the space habitat or be spun at a slightly faster rate, depending on its diameter and the desired surface gravity. Swimming in such a pool will be a novel experience since the water surface will curve upwards. The lower gravity will have a number of interesting effects. If you bounce on the diving board enough you can fly straight upwards and dive into the water above your head! Lower gravity means that sports such as water polo will become less taxing and possible for a greater variety of players who no longer have to use most of their energy staying above the surface. In addition, or instead of the torus-shaped pool some facilities will include a large “bubble” of water at the zero g axis of the habitat. This “pond” will allow swimming in zero gravity. Gravityless swimming is also without buoyancy so there is a potential danger that someone swimming in the “pond” may become disorientated and drown before they can reach the spherical surface. To counter this the pond will be interlaced with brightly coloured guide lines which also incorporate airlines and breathing mouthpieces at frequent intervals. These lines also replenish the pond by pumping water into it. Without this system the pond will diminish as splashed water descends to the surrounding torus pool. It is possible to swim all the way across the pond and then fall/dive into the torus pool. This will bring a whole new significance to the lifeguard’s command of “no bombing!”

           It is not just sports that will take on new aspects in a space habitat. Ballet and some other dance disciplines in reduced gravity will have many new facets, with dancers leaping dozens of metres and staying airborne for seconds at a time. To exploit this ballet theatres in habitats will be built at the top of towers or tall buildings.

 

Greyhounds, Couriers and Packets.

Greyhounds (also known as Couriers or Packets) are relatively small space vessels. Greyhounds are used for the rapid transport of very high value individuals and materials. Their passenger accommodation, if any, is very basic and passengers are typically transported in nanostasis. Most of the ship is taken up by the drive, fuel and reaction mass. The purpose of the greyhound is to rapidly move objects from one place to another. Greyhounds vary considerably. Some can carry a small party, others just one or two people and others can only carry packages smaller than a baseline human.

Some greyhounds may be piloted by a human but AI piloting is more common. Many things that are moved by greyhound are confidential and the memory of an AI pilot is easier to erase.  Information too sensitive to be broadcast may be transported on a data core in a greyhound. Greyhounds may incorporate various systems to prevent their cargo being intercepted, tampered with or stolen.