Swarm Armor

[Akestos]

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Intent: Terminus Infection Armor, Variable Shape, Size and Color.
Image Source: Bottom | Left | Right | Custom Text
Canon Link: Vonduun Skerr Kyrric | Charon Battle Armor
Primary Source: Terminus

PRODUCTION INFORMATION

Manufacturer: The Hive Mind
Affiliation: Closed-Market | Anyone with a Terminus or other Infection agent at Stage 5 or Stage 6 | SwarmSurge
Model: Terminus Armor
Modularity: Highly. It is up to the individual or creature how it shapes.
Production: Mass-Produced
Material: Biological

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Classification: Multipurpose
Weight: Average

- Blasters/Particle: Average
- Kinetic High to Very High

• Kinetic Piercing: High
• Kinetic Cutting: High
• Kinetic Impact, Pressure and Tensile: Very High

- Lightsabers: Average
- Heat/Plasma: Very High
- Acidic/Biological: Very High
- Ion: Very High
- Electrical: Average

- Sonic: Average
- Sonic Wave (Concussive) Average
- Explosive: Average

- Tensor or Tractor: Low

- Cryoban (Heat Absorption): Low
- Cold: Low


SPECIAL FEATURES

Strengths:

- Acidic and Biological: This armor has very high resistance to these damages. The outer shell is hardened to biological warfare. The Hive IS biological warfare, it fought long and hard to be top of the food chain.
- Ion: Very High. Being biological, Ion hits do almost nothing to the armor or anything behind or carried on it
- Heat/Plasma: Very High Resistance. The armor really enjoys the heat, the hotter the better. The reverse is true for cold.
- Kinetic Damage, built as a melee armor, most kinetic damage is resisted well. This is especially true of impact damage, with which the armor is designed to cushion the creature or individual from specifically as it is thrown about, crushed or pulled.

- Bio Restoration. Slow Regrowth of Damaged Parts. Damage regrows over a couple of days if it's superficial to the armor, the terminus microbe can also help with slow healing of any wounds beyond it. For larger damage to the exoskeleton, it might take a week.
- Can grow to shape any creature or individual, adaptable to extra weapons, talons, claws, tails, wings or other additions designed by the Hive Mind's focus and the Terminus Microbe's integration. These additions don't grow on the spot, they take months.

Weaknesses:

- Cryoban: Low Resistance. Snap freezing or taking the heat quickly from the armor will be very effective in damaging it.
- Cold: Low Resistance. Cryomancy or cold grenades, for example, would have a large advantage. Long exposure to a freezing environment also makes the armor less effective in healing or repairing itself, taking twice or three times as long.
- Tensor or Tractor: Low Resistance. Like most biological armors, tensor and tractor damage rips them to shreds more easily.
- The armor needs to grow and is the result of biological infection, meaning if you are wearing it, chances are you are part of the hive mind, swarm's will or surge impulse and under its influence. It also takes extra nutrients to grow, and significantly more food than usual while it is growing.
- The armor doesn't come off naturally. It's a natural exoskeleton grown around a creature or individual.
- You stand out in this armor. On its own, with no extra biotech, you are not going to be hard to spot in a crowd.
- Often but not always, there are several spots to grab hold of on this armor and throw your opponent about or pull at, though pulling is difficult given how much tensile strength there is.
- There is a lot of pain associated with growing an exoskeleton if you are not used to it.

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DESCRIPTION


The Terminus armor is the first incarnation of a natural exoskeleton grown around infected creatures and individuals. It is the standard variation on most creatures, growing to suit their body shape, size, and mass. The microbe is capable of altering DNA, cells and making other mutations to better serve the host. Wings, Talons, even extra limbs are possible. Though the creature wouldn't have full dexterity in an armored limb, it could still serve as an outstretched weapon, tail, horns, or claw with limited movement.

It's cheap to produce and takes time obviously given the rate of infection. 15 Days is the usual amount to cover most of the body, but up to a month to create any extra additions such as elaborate wings or talons. This sounds very useful. But it's painful. Do you remember growing pains growing up? Well, condense that into a month. The Swarm Collective Will feels this sensation as well and understands the process as a collective because most of them experienced it. The individual creature is usually given time to adapt and to stand on its own legs.

The eventual design of this also didn't magically happen overnight. There were MANY attempts at getting this exoskeleton to adapt to multiple host creatures, and even now the Terminus infection often doesn't take. So you can imagine some of the creations this armor makes, being the same way, half done. However on established species that the hive is used to working with, and the microbe is well adapted to, the armor works well, with few mistakes. Trial and error is the way this works for a new species, there is no magic bullet. There are however Hive Maturation chambers to put subjects in if further work is even needed or wanted, most cases of failure are just left as they are.

 

[Akestos]

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OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION

• Intent: Basic Material for Hive Ship Hulls, and stronger Hive Structures. Skeletal Structure
• Image Source: Alien Film | Custom Text
• Primary Source: Chromium | Chif Stone | Vonduun Skerr Kyrric

PRODUCTION INFORMATION

• Name: D13-Fulcrum M
• Manufacturer: The Hive Mind | SwarmSurge | SpaceSurge | The Hive | The Seeding
• Affiliation: Faction Name(s) SwarmSurge Closed-Market
• Homeworld: Undisclosed Hive Planet, Classified Designation: D12
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  Production: Mass-Produced
  
• Modularity: Highly
• Material: Evaporated mineral from Biological Growth and Hive Animals or Plants. Such as the Seeder Slicer Beetle

PHYSICAL SPECIFICATIONS

• Classification: Dense Mineral
• Weight: Heavy
• Resistances:
  
  Blasters: High
  
• Kinetic: Average
• Lightsabers: Very Low
• Ion: High
• Acidic/Biological: High
• Heat/Plasma: High
• Radiation: High
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  Electrical: Average
  
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  Sonic: Average
  
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  Sonic Wave (Concussive) Average
  
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  Explosive: Average
  
• Tensor or Tractor: Average
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  Cryoban (Heat Absorption): Average
  
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  Cold: Average
  

[*]
Color: Orange or red colors. Sometimes a dark red verging on black.

SPECIAL FEATURES

Strengths:

• The mineral is very good at keeping in heat.
• Load Bearing. Acts as ship hulls. Even more often it is used as fixed support beneath a shield of living armor.

Weaknesses:

• Does not self-repair like hive armor, making it more like a ship, structure or vehicle's central hull rather than external shields that would regenerate.
• Vulnerable to Lightsabers.

DESCRIPTION

Structure, permanence, something the greater Hive has struggled with creating is a concentrated structure for itself, focused pressure left on an area for when the Swarm's greater will takes form. Formed from evaporating fluids from hive creatures, these minerals look like many small creature fossils compressed together, instead, they are actually the fluids that used to be a part of those lifeforms, surrounded by their creature's shell or exoskeleton on the outer layers. The dense minerals left behind from evaporation hardened as they leave a Hive creature's body, and are usually crushed together, compacted. Generally, this requires some amount of warmth for evaporation, which is one reason why many Hive structures internally are drier or superheated even in space. There are certain Hive creatures that create a lot of heat in the area, or when building hive structures, but the structures or craft being built out of this will also often generate their own body heat to work with. As with much of the Hive, this generally takes a week or two to be fully completed, however that is down to the creatures being used as some are specialised in speeding this up, and alternatively some are ill-suited to the process.

Though this mineral is not living, they do act as bones might for the Hive, being repaired, and maintained, a skeletal structure of its body. While it can't directly sense an impact on the symbolic bone itself, it does feel the surrounding living material usually wrapped around it when that is impacted or altered, such as any living armor. Being a mineral it has slightly different properties to many living armors and is able to better insulate structures, being unaffected by prolonged periods in freezing or cold temperatures for example.

 

[Akestos]

OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION

Intent: An Acidic liquid and gas, that effects non Hive creatures only, leaving hive structures and creatures unaffected.
Image Source: Fine Art of America | Ijen Volcano | Custom Tech
Primary Source: Xenoboric Acid | Acid Storm

PRODUCTION INFORMATION

Name: Centax Purifier
Manufacturer: The Hive Mind | The Swarm's Will
Affiliation: Factions: SwarmSurge | Closed Market
Homeworld: Undisclosed Hive Planet, Classified Designation: D12
Production: Minor
Modularity: No
Ingredients: D13

TECHNICAL INFORMATION

Classification: Liquid or Gas
Method of Consumption: Inhalation or Contact
Average Life: Affecting an organism or surface for 1 Hour. However, when concentrated in a lake or pool, it can remain in the environment at rest for years. In an atmosphere it might last for a storm front or two, then dissipate as it gets diluted naturally. In a sealed container the centax purifier will happily exist until opened.
Nutritional Value/Allergies/Side Effects/ Purpose: Death. Purging. Exterminus.

SPECIAL FEATURES

Strengths:

+Does not effect Hive Creatures. It is made out of their own hardened minerals. D13
+Can be used in Hive Creatures or Bio-Technology as a weapon. Eating away at metal or living tissue.
+Hard to defend against, the Liquid is unstable, like the Hive itself. It has a tendency to just explode randomly.

Weaknesses:

-The weather can pick it up and move it, if it's not stored carefully, damaging a biosphere. This is in many cases harmful to the Hive that benefits from a sustained and balanced biosphere. It can form into storm clouds if ill-used, but unless the Hive is completely disconnected it isn't going to keep producing the stuff and harm its own food source.
-Unstable. The Acid is prone to doing things it isn't supposed to. Sometimes it'll get somewhere the Hive doesn't want internally, others it can cool a surface unnaturally making Hive growth difficult, and others still it can just explode in certain environments without warning.
-The Acid can easily be used by other factions or individuals if they have a dead Hive at their feet and a good chemist on hand.
-Chemically Inert Surfaces help protect the user but might not shield them entirely, especially against any secondary explosive reactions.
-Prone to growing very strange fungus, and smaller growths.

DESCRIPTION

Made from the Hive itself D13, the vast majority of Hive creatures are unaffected by the acid, as it is their own bodily fluids and minerals taken from evaporation. Produced in specialist hive structures by heating the mineral form of D13 after it has hardened, then combine it with other as yet unclassified hive produced chemicals as it cools again to a liquid form. The D13 is the hardened mineral form, whereas the Centax Purifier is Darth's gift upon the greater galaxy, or rather Kiara Keth's influence upon the man. Awakening from her tomb at the sacking of Eshan, her talent for Sith alchemy and bioengineering has led to many terrible creations continued in her dead brother's name.

Created on Byss. Like many One Sith creations, the acid has long been taken by the greater Swarm as its own. Maybe that was the intent, maybe not. Either way the Hive has full control of the material now, but so does anyone with a good eye for chemistry and a dead hive at their feet. Which are slowly becoming easier to find, but certainly not common yet. It requires a fair-sized hive to start producing more advanced hive structures in a biosphere. You won't find this acid appearing out of someone's back garden, but you might if the weather was warm, the storm clouds were rising and drones were pouring out of the ground.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3rLLoyl93o
Remember Coruscant​

 

[Akestos]

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Intent: Third Tier Terminus for Predators or Above. Infection Armor, Variable Shape, Size and Color.
Image Source: Game Prototype: Vignette | Vignette | Custom Text
Canon Link: Vonduun Skerr Kyrric | Charon Battle Armor | Microbal Mats
Primary Source: Terminus Armor | TerminusFlux | Kae Vine | Terminus

PRODUCTION INFORMATION

Manufacturer: The Hive Mind
Affiliation: SwarmSurge | Closed-Market | Terminus and TerminusFlux or other Infection agents at Stage 5 or Stage 6, with time in a Hive Maturation chamber.
Model: Terminus Barab Armor
Modularity: Highly. It is up to the individual or creature how it shapes.
Production: Limited
Material: Biological | TerminusFlux | D13

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Classification: Multipurpose
Weight: Very Heavy


Blasters/Particle: High
Kinetic: High
Lightsabers: Average
Heat/Plasma: High
Acidic/Biological: High
Ion: Average
Electrical: Average
Sonic: Average
Sonic Wave (Concussive) Average
Radiation: Average
Explosive: Average
Tensor or Tractor: Low
Cryoban (Heat Absorption): Average
Cold: Average


SPECIAL FEATURES

Strengths


- Acidic and Biological: The outer shell is hardened to biological warfare. The Hive is biological warfare, it fought long and hard to be top of the food chain. Biological agents have a much more limited effect.
- Heat/Plasma: High Resistance. The armor really enjoys the heat, the hotter the better. Blaster resistance is included in this upgraded variation, the temperature regulating nature of the flux variant dispersing the sudden heat and energy discharged from blasters more effectively.
- Kinetic Damage: High Resistance to Kinetic. It doesn't have the same as a regular Terminus melee focused armor, it still offers good coverage, cushioning and tensile strength.
- Bio Restoration. Slow Regrowth of Damaged Parts. Damage regrows over a day if it's superficial to the armor, the TerminusFlux bacteria can also help with slow healing of any wounds beyond it, carried around the armor internally by Kae Vines. For larger damage to the exoskeleton it might take a week to repair.
- Can grow to shape any creature or individual, adaptable to extra weapons, talons, claws, tails, wings or other additions designed by the Hive Mind's focus and the TerminusFlux integration. These additions don't grow on the spot, they take months, and in the case of this armor, any additions at all require a Hive Maturation chamber.

Weaknesses:

- Very heavy weight. Only species with a lot of muscle mass for their size are going to be moving in this well.
- Limited Production. Predators, Firstspawn or Intelligent Convergence Only. Making up only a small part of any surge.
- Tensor or Tractor: Low Resistance. Like most biological armors, tensor and tractor damage them more easily.
- The armor is the result of biological infection, meaning if you are wearing it, chances are you are part of the hive mind, swarm's will or surge impulse and under its influence.
- The armor needs to grow. It takes extra nutrients to grow, and significantly more food than usual while it is growing. The usual infection period for the TerminusFlux bacteriophage is 15 days to reach stage 6
- For this Flux based armor to be functional, the updated armor requires 15 days in a Hive Maturation chamber on top of the 15 for infection.
- The armor doesn't come off naturally. It's a natural exoskeleton grown around a creature or individual.
- You stand out in this armor. On its own, with no extra biotech, you are not going to be hard to spot in a crowd.
- Often but not always, there are several spots to grab hold of on this armor and throw your opponent about.
- There is a lot of pain associated with growing an exoskeleton if you are not used to it.

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DESCRIPTION


Coming in a variety of colors and shapes depending on the organism. The Terminus Barab armor is usually a second stage infection armor, given to Hive members via Hive Maturation chambers after integrating more malleable TerminussFlux DNA. It can be grown on ships but given the extra difficulty in incorporating this, only a limited number of specific ships will function with it. Predators and firstspawn are rare in a given surge on ground or space, the same goes for the types of ships this would grow on. Too hard to cultivate to be given to regular soldiers let alone drones. It takes liberal time and application to integrate onto a host.

D13 is used at key points on the armor to reinforce it. Cushioned internally by Microbial mats for added comfort and protection from impact damage. The armor's shell is naturally hardened to biological warfare, and unlike the earlier terminus armors, is not near as vulnerable to cold. Not having any great strength at stopping cold damage, instead, it is insulated via the Microbal Mats from the TerminusFlux Bacteria, making this armor more suited to keeping its user warm.

Inside, the armor often comes laced with Kae Vines, adding to its ability to regrow superficial armor damage and protect any exposed areas. Kae vines pass nutrients around the armor more easily, like blood to a circulatory system or wound. Cutting down the time it takes to regrow superficial damage from two days to one, but doing nothing to alter how long larger fractures or more sizeable missing pieces take to reform.

​After the Surge at Barab the Hive was able to redesign itself to function better in difficult environments, though it hasn't yet found a way to mitigate radiation further. The addition of the Barabel DNA allowed for this transition in the Hive, given that they are a cold-blooded species, the armor doesn't try to resist external conditions as much, and instead adapts to them, as a cold-blooded reptile would. This cost it some kinetic resistance but gained it more adaptation to cold.​

 

[Akestos]

OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION

Intent: StormSurge. An Ion storm and mineral dust cloud created around the Hive in space, ahead of the Surge, or around hive structures
Image Source: Custom Image VideoHive + Lightning | Dusk Sunset | Dominique Van Velsen | Custom Text
Primary Source: Ion Storm

PRODUCTION INFORMATION

Name: StormSurge
Manufacturer: The Hive Mind | The Swarm's Will
Affiliation: Factions: SwarmSurge | Closed Market
Homeworld: Undisclosed Hive Planet, Classified Designation: D12
Production: Minor
Modularity: No
Ingredients: D13 | Centax Purifier | Kae Vine | Heat | Pressure

TECHNICAL INFORMATION

Classification: Ion Storm, mineral cloud.
Method of Consumption: Inhalation or Contact
Average Life: Ion Storms last for weeks or months depending on the conditions or where they are. A Stormsurge is no different. In the vast blackness of space with nothing to hinder it, a storm can go on for years.

Nutritional Value/Allergies/Side Effects/ Purpose: To damage electronics, to weaken enemy craft and to protect Hive Worlds, very large Hives, and Surge Fleets. Sometimes created by certain very large creatures working in tandem.

SPECIAL FEATURES

Strengths:

+Can Vary in Strength. From StormSurge 1 - 10. This allows the Hive to create a Stormfront to suit its purpose. 10 being lightning all around, 1 being a dust cloud.
+Damages Ships, Droids and metal structures. Fast moving plasma flashes. These storms have a tendency to strike electronics, ships, and shields. Though they can hit organics, it's much more likely their magnetic discharge will be attracted to metal or to energy sources.
+Ion Storm's are dangerous area of effect creations. More important than that, these ones obscure what's really going on. You can certainly try to get erratic scans through an ion storm, but by its nature, it's going to mess with many devices that try. These clouds are made from the very minerals of the Hive's own dead bodies, meaning they often appear to be a different shade of the same color, which doesn't help matters visually.

Weaknesses:

-Once released, a storm is a storm. You can't then control what it is going to do. You can just send it in the direction you hope it will go.
-Vulnerable to force users or creatures who can control weather patterns or storms. The hive itself doesn't control wind direction or air pressure with these for example. Though one day it may develop more refined weather biotech.
-Some devices can capture magnetic energy or plasma discharges, giving them at least temporary protection.
-The strikes from a storm are unpredictable, a small ship flying or individual moving might pass by harmlessly. A big ship or force however is more likely to be hit.
-It is impossible to hide from force sense or an equivalent force power with this, though certainly flashes of lightning might be distracting and the hive mineral cloud dust visually unsettling.
-Harder to produce on colder planets or environments.

Strength and Weakness
+/- The Hive communicates just fine telepathically in an Ion Storm, though sonic signals are hindered somewhat.

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DESCRIPTION

Whereas terrestrially a storm surge is usually associated with water, here it is most certainly not. As with worlds such as Moorja, the Hive has found Ion storms on planets benefit it more than hurt it. At least where countering dead metal such as droids or ships are concerned. On an average day, there is no need for an ion storm, on a few days there are. These only come from long established and large hives, specific creatures, hive structures, and ships can produce them however to lesser degrees.

Orange or red in appearance from the D13 mineral and Centax Purifier gas. These clouds are often colored the same as the creatures that are within it, mostly because it is formed from the same minerals of their own bodies. Though the shade is certainly not an exact match, and not all hive creatures follow the same color scheme. Surge Domains, groups of biospheres, do tend to follow a familiar pattern with their colors or textures.

If the Hive is large enough. When the Biosphere has entered a swarm stage you might see an aptly named Living Mountain producing these. Huge superheated volcanos producing the pressure and heat necessary for ionized gases to form and a plasma storm's eruption to be produced. In ship form, it may be a huge hive ship doing the same ahead of the main fleet, for creatures it would be many working together on mass. The varying degrees of storm generally require larger sources on the higher end, a hive volcano might be able to produce a higher magnitude of storm, whereas a group of many creatures might just produce a lower magnitude orange dustbowl. For a ship, it would depend on its size as to what was possible, and how much room was allocated to doing this.