Approved Tech Phase II "Divine Eyes" Sensor and Electronics System

[Mellifluous Magenta]

OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION

• Intent: To create a sensor and electronics suite for large starships and stations.
• Image Source: N/A
• Canon Link: N/A
• Permissions: N/A
• Primary Source: Phase I “Spyglass” Sensor and Countermeasure Module and Phase III “Dream Sight” Combat Electronics System

PRODUCTION INFORMATION

• Manufacturer: First United Astral Engineering
• Affiliation: Agents of Chaos, Closed-Market
• Model: Phase II
• Modularity: Yes; May be Installed in Military Starships greater than 50 meters and Stations.
• Production: Mass-Produced
• Material: Internal Circuitry and Electronics, Duraplast, Integrated Ion Shielding, and Faraday Cage Construction

SPECIAL FEATURES

• Oversight and Governing
  • Multiple Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary Data-Brain Modules
• Hull-Mounted 360 Degree Passive Reception Array
  • Photoreception Array
  • Aural Simulation / Auditory Detection Array
  • Photoamplification System (x200 Optical Zoom)
  • Optical Transducer Panels
  • Self-Cleaning System
• Cyber-Security
  • Pyrowall / Socketguard / Echo Pulse
  • Network Security Data-Brain Modules
  • Bio-Hexacryption Networks
  • Quantum Processing and Data Management
  • Genetic Code, Retinal, and Dermatoglyphic Verification
  • Rapid Repetition Defense Measures
• Information Storage and Processing
  • Memory Crystal Network
  • Various Secondary and Tertiary Memory Crystals and Processors
• Communications
  • Comm Security System
    • Bio-Hexacrypted and Encrypted Communications
    • Ion Scrambling System
  • Cooperative Engagement and Battle Net Networking (Capable of Sharing Sensor Data and Firing Solutions With Friendly Units)
  • Quantum Entanglement Communication
  • Universal Translation Module
  • Comm Laser
  • Hyperwave Comlinks
  • Broadband Antenna
  • HoloNet Transception System
  • Holoprojection System
  • Universal Translation System
  • Subspace Transceiver
  • HoloNet Transceiver
  • IFF Transponder
  • Subspace Image Transmitter
• Targeting Systems
  • 3K40 Targeting System
  • Auto-Tracking Fire Control Systems (Full or Partial Automation)
  • Targeting Sensor
  • Targeting Laser
  • Triple-Array Sensor and Computing
    • Countermeasures Compensation Computer
• Anti-Targeting/Countermeasure Systems
  • Missile Deactivation Transmitter
  • Universal Jammer
  • Electronic Countermeasures
  • Lock-Threat Warning System
• Sensor Modes
  • Passive (Passive Sensors Only)
  • Active (Full Sensor Power, Active and Passive Sensors)
• Standard Sensors
  • LIDAR
  • Comm/Scan System
  • Sensor Net
  • Blue and Red Force Tracking
  • Solition Antenna
  • Electro-Photo Reception
  • Dedicated Energy Reception
  • Energy Wave Detection System
  • Radiation Sensor
  • Spacial Flux Dilation Spectrometer
  • Tachyon Detection Scanner
  • Automatic Electromagnetic Discharge Filter
  • Hyperwave Signal Interceptor
  • Magnetic Signature Sensor
  • Multisensor Airflow Analyzer
  • Life-Form Scanner (Unable to Pierce Stealth Technology)
  • Heat Scanner
  • Gravitic Sensor
• Material Sensors
  • Long-Range Spectrometry Sensor
  • Magno-Sweeper
  • Scan Grid
  • Mineral Spotter
• Navigation Sensors
  • Stellar Navigation Sensor
  • Proximity Sensor
  • Gravitic Sensor
  • Navigation Scanner
  • Terrain-Following Sensor

STRENGTHS

• Jamming Resistant: Utilizing an extensive network of powerful sensors and data-brains, the Divine Eyes are largely resistant to jamming due to perpetual sensor cross-referencing processes which occur virtually every time a given sensor receives information and an advanced sensor fusion network. In addition, the hull-mounted passive photoreception array eliminates blind spots, affording the operators perpetual awareness of what is on and around their hull at all times. In addition, under conditions of heavy jamming, especially of that originating from dedicated electronic warfare systems, the Divine Eyes can depend on its passive reception array alone, affording it a frightening degree of awareness of vessels that are within visual range of its photoreceptors.
• Network-Centric Warfare: Built with network-centric warfare in mind, the Divine Eyes are designed to take full advantage of information by transmitting it to other friendly units in order to facilitate shared situational awareness, thereby enabling a broader scale of strategic coordination.
• Cyber-Defense: In establishing a platform of network-centric operations, a robust cyber-security network was implicitly necessary. As such, the Divine Eyes possesses a number of integrated cyber-defense systems, including anti-slicing data-brains, pyrowalls, multi-step verification procedures, and oversight programs intended to search for alien programming.

WEAKNESSES

• Hull Damage: Damage, even minor, to the host vessel’s hull will almost always result in damage to the passive sensor array, dampening its effectiveness and resulting in the potential manifestation of blind spots. However, only the most catastrophic damage is capable of rendering the entire passive array nonfunctional, at which point the host vessel is typically already disabled or destroyed.

DESCRIPTION
The Phase II “Divine Eyes” Sensor and Electronics Systems was conceived soon after the development of the functionally similar Spyglass module and the Dream Sight systems, both of which are comprehensive electronic suites intended to give their host platforms heightened awareness over their given battlespace. The Divine Eyes utilizes similar technology to both platforms, possessing a hull-mounted passive photoreception array which acts as the host vessel’s eyes and ears in both a literal and metaphorical sense. In addition, the Divine Eyes is built as a platform of network-centric warfare and is capable of transmitting and receiving information from other friendly ships, such as firing solutions, sensor readings, and intelligence, even if the other ship lacks a Divine Eyes module or a similar system. By unspoken necessity, the Divine Eyes also has a comprehensive network of cyber-security packages and defense measures, featuring multiple layers of defense which are designed to shield the host vessel’s networks, programs, data, and hardware from attack.

The Divine Eyes also provides a degree of defense against ordnance and guided missiles, via an array of electronic countermeasures which include universal jamming systems, deactivation transmitters, lock-threat warning systems, and other electronic anti-ordnance technologies.

When utilized on more advanced and expensive ships equipped with more powerful anti-stealth sensors, such as Quantum Entanglement sensors, crystal gravfield traps, mass detectors, or similar anti-cloaking or anti-stealth technologies, the Divine Eyes is capable of interfacing with those sensors and smoothly integrating their data into its network.

All in all, the Divine Eyes is a composite system which refines a number of ancient and modern technologies into a single comprehensive package.

 

[Gir Quee]

Mellifluous Magenta , I'll be your judge for this submission.

Manufacturer: Agents of Chaos

If you could please hyperlink this to the faction home page for ease reference please.

Universal Jammer

Tell me a little bit about how this works in this submission. The original device wasn't built to have effects on this scale, and I'm not entirely sure what purpose it fulfills on a starship. Is this meant to hide things onboard the using vessel or hide the vessel itself, etc?

Quantum Entanglement Sensor

This is a piece of (theoretical) tech in real life if we're talking about quantum entanglement radar. People speculate that the real-life version will be used as an anti-stealth countermeasure. Does that have a similar purpose here in this system, or does it do something else?

Full-Spectrum Transception and Universal Sensor System

Full Spectrum Transceivers are sometimes referred to as "universal sensors". Are these the same system in this case? Or is the Universal Sensor System something different?

Jamming Resistant: Utilizing an extensive network of powerful sensors and data-brains, the Divine Eyes are largely resistant to jamming due to perpetual sensor cross-referencing processes which occur virtually every time a given sensor receives information.

Keep in mind that Full-Spectrum distortion projectors are basically designed to defeat this design concept by attacking all different types of sensor types simultaneously to try and prevent single, consistent readings to be gathered. Canonically, sensor array computers are eventually able to cut through this jamming by doing what you're describing - comparing sensory input from different sensors over time, but it's usually a gradual process, rather than an instant cut-through absent scale differents: a starfighter jammer is probably going to be cut through very quickly (on the order of seconds) by a large capital ship concentrating its scanning capabilities on something with that small of a power output.

 

[Mellifluous Magenta]

I removed the Full Spectrum Transceiver and the Universal Sensor System as that is probably a bit redundant.

The Universal Jammer is meant as an anti-missile/ordnance counter measure, largely intended to defeat the types of sensors used in missiles.

The system has a large degree of automation pertaining to sensor monitoring, but it also has "eyes" on its hull in the form of a photoreception array which are also actively monitored by a number of data-brains. In essence, anything that isn't hidden by a cloaking device, some kind of cover (such as a thick smoke screen), or an obstruction (such as an asteroid or the body of another ship) can still be seen by the photoreceptor array as long as the target vessel is within visual range, regardless of the jamming measures employed. Upon "seeing" a ship, the data-brains will take the range and then translate that data into readings. The quantum entanglement radar in this submission is intended to bolster that, but on this system it can't detect cloaked vessels.

I hope that explains things! Thank you for picking up this submission BTW.

Gir Quee

 

[Gir Quee]

Mellifluous Magenta , I'd write that bit about the universal jammer somewhere in the submission itself.

As I understand it then, the intent of some these systems is to have a pretty powerful anti-stealth effect (even if the target ships are not cloaked). Sensor masks, nightshadow hull coating, and about a half dozen technologies can make a ship much more stealthy but not cloaked. This means that this factory rule comes into play.

Particularly rare or powerful special features may necessitate using a lower level of production (cloaking technology, personal cloaking devices, gemcutters, crystal grav traps, moon dust, equivalent stealth or anti stealth technologies), or rare canon technologies (Hyperwave Inertial Momentum Sustainers, etc) and their equivalents will only be permitted at Semi-Unique production.

If the intent is to make this a mass-produced system, a lot of the effectiveness of its anti-stealth properties are going to have be reduced significantly.

The opposite end of the spectrum is also possible - make it highly effective against stealth ships at semi-unique production. If you do go this route, it would make sense to me to make it at least somewhat effective against cloaked starships as well.

 

[Mellifluous Magenta]

What specific systems and capabilities would I need to remove to keep it at mass?

Gir Quee

 

[Gir Quee]

Mellifluous Magenta , sorry I haven't replied sooner, I sometimes don't get notifications. If we're ever working on a submission together, feel free to send me a PM if I don't get back to you within a day. On to the submission itself.

It's not so much a matter of the specific systems as it is of capabilities.

If you want to keep it at mass production, the anti-stealth capabilities of this are going to have be fairly minor with explicit limitations. Something like "improved tracking of baffled drives at close range" would be appropriate, for example. If there's a specific sensor type or anti-stealth element that you want to focus on, I can provide some better suggestions for this.

 

[Mellifluous Magenta]

I added a weakness pertaining to the targeting of ships with "semi-stealth" technologies and a small blurb about the purpose of the missile deactivation transmitter and other electronic anti-missile systems. I removed the Quantum Entanglement and Mass Detection Sensors as well.

Gir Quee

 

[Gir Quee]

Mellifluous Magenta , that reads more like a strength to me than a weakness.

While most sensor arrays have some limited capability to potentially detect a ship equipped with those stealth devices, it's just that, potential. This reads to me that this absolutely is going to see those stealth ships but may have difficulty providing accurate targeting information. While that's definitely not on the same anti-stealth level as a CGT or some other specialized anti-stealth sensor, it's definitely far superior to the average sensor that's mass-produced.

The wording of "semi-stealth" here is also problematic, as it's a very general term that doesn't have a set definition that everyone agrees upon. The board itself only recognizes tech as "stealthy" or "not stealthy", though there is certainly a continuum of stealth (effectiveness and devices) between a simple camouflage paint job and a cloaking device. Different scenarios can also have a radical effect on things - the matte black paint job of a StealthX is probably pretty useful in deep space, but it's probably close to worthless while flying in broad daylight over Mon Eisley. For that reason, in general when it comes to stealth and anti-stealth technologies, I have found that it's best to focus on describing how something works rather than stating absolute effects.

I think the basic idea that the visual sensors stand a better chance of observing stealth ships with sensor coatings has merit though, especially since the photo-receptors have a 200x zoom. I think it's reasonable that they'd stand a better chance of detecting something that just looks slightly off in the background compared. It's important to write (and emphasize) this though as not a sure, absolute thing though.

 

[Mellifluous Magenta]

I reworded the weakness slightly to account for those factors.

I also added a blurb in the description about it being able to interface with more powerful anti-stealth sensors when it's installed on ships equipped with them.

Gir Quee

 

[Gir Quee]

Mellifluous Magenta , I think it's perfectly reasonable to have this be able to integrate with other advanced sensors later on. There's two things we need to work on with this right now.

1) We have to explicitly state somewhere in here that this is pretty limited in its ability to simply detect a stealth ship's presence (not only the ability to target it).

2) We have to explain the method of operation on how it does this explicitly as well. In other words, if you're using enhanced optical sensors to notice visual irregularities in the background of space, we have to state that within the submission itself. We cannot have blanket statements or terms like "similar non-cloaking based stealth technologies" because it doesn't explain how this system works against different types of stealth technologies.

 

[Mellifluous Magenta]

Could I have this moved into Pre-Factory? I think I need more time to think of something for this.

Gir Quee

 

[Gir Quee]

Mellifluous Magenta , moved accordingly. Tag one of us when you're ready to move it back to judging.

 

[Mellifluous Magenta]

I'm ready to move this back to Live. I decided to lower the production to [Limited] and made a few changes to take advantage of and accommodate it.

• Removed "Non-Cloaking Based Technology" Weakness, rewrote as a Strength.
• Added Reference to "Sensor Fusion" in "Jamming Resistant" Strength.
• Changed Manufacturer to First United Astral Engineering.
• Changed Production to [Limited]
• Added "(The Armada)" next to "Agents of Chaos" in Affiliation.

Gir Quee

 

[Gir Quee]

Mellifluous Magenta , as someone not really familiar with the Agents of Chaos, what is "The Armada"? Is it a specific fleet within the Agents of Chaos? A general term for the collective navy of the Agents of Chaos, etc?

• Non-Cloaking Based Technology: The Divine Eyes is extremely capable of quickly detecting and targeting vessels utilizing more common stealth technologies via the hull-integrated passive reception array and the active scanning network. These includes vessels equipped with anti-sensor coatings, engine bafflers, heat dispersion devices, and various other sensor masking systems.

A lot of my comments earlier about the potency of anti-stealth tech and how to describe it still come into play, even with limited production. It's best to describe how a system works but not immediately assume performance against a stealthed foe.

Ideally, if you're going to play a game of stealth and anti-stealth, it should be cat-and-mouse, with your opponent having a fair chance to avoid detection if they play their cards right. It's just as much about behavior as it is technology.

Clearly, someone who charges in with guns blazing in their stealth ship is likely going to bee easily detected, regardless of how well written and thought out their tech is. Conversely, someone who uses silent running techniques and tries to steer away from searching vessels shouldn't be instantly detected, if they are by this sensor, it's likely going to be viewed as meta-gaming by them (and not unlikely by the judges in an invasion setting as well).

Here are some thoughts on how to write this specific section of the submission:

The Divine Eyes is extremely capable of quickly designed to detecting and targeting vessels utilizing more common stealth technologies...

This describes intent, and gives your possible opponent some room to maneuver with their writing.

via the hull-integrated passive reception array and the active scanning network.

This is a description of how it works. As a Factory Judge, I like to see descriptions on how something works when it comes to stealth and anti-stealth technology, because it should let people know how it is intertwined with their behavior/tactics and technology. In practice though, this specific description is overly vague. It doesn't give opponents room to devise either specialized versions of common tech or behaviors that would allow them to potentially avoid detection. This section needs to be more concrete and specific to give your opponents that room. Here's an example of what this section could look like:

...via using passive dedicated energy receptors to cross check active radar pings

 

[Mellifluous Magenta]

I decided to bring it back up to [Mass-Produced]. I also went through and scrubbed most references to the sensor's ability or inability to detect vessels using stealth technology, though I did add a caveat regarding stealth technology next to the Life-Form Scanner.

Gir Quee

 

[Gir Quee]

Mellifluous Magenta , changes look solid. Approved!