Technology in Alpha Sector

First up on the much-requested fluff front: technology! What with being a science-fantasy setting, there's a lot to talk about with regards to technology and how it's shaped the setting.

The "default" time period is something the inhabitants of Alpha Sector call the Common Era. It's been about 600 years since the First Colonial War and technology has finally started to approach the marvels of pre-Schism society.

Up first: phasedrives, and then we touch on the infranet.

Phasedrives
Invented some time during the First Expansion— or, more accurately, found some time during the First Expansion, relics of the extinct Uclasions and remnants of humanity’s own long-dead empire. They had allowed explorers and pioneers to cross known space in a week rather than everyone’s lifetime, which had effectively drowned out the scientific community’s protests over using technology that was completely alien. When faced with finally attending their child’s birthday on time or blowing up the universe in one big interdimensional paradox, the rich and powerful had flocked to the prototype phasecraft in their droves.

But even after centuries of research the most effective drives remained massive; the drives alone were often bigger than ships with conventional propulsion systems. Although even the tiniest shuttle could be given low-yield phase units, these took hours to charge and were capable of only moderate trips between specially designed phase beacons— so they were mere planet hoppers, not true interstellar craft.

The Legion decided that the way to get around this was to manufacture absolutely gargantuan vehicles that would make the best use of the time and resources required to make the most powerful drives, but most other nations still rely on beacons and buoys. Phase beacons act like a kind of gravity well, drawing in craft that might otherwise overshoot their marks.

Ultimately… humanity isn't entirely sure how phase technology works, and what the long-term drawbacks may or may not be. But that doesn't stop the peoples of Alpha Sector from phasing all over the place, or using the infranet. Speaking of which...


The Infranet
A direct extrapolation of phase technology, the infranet is the name given to a sort of particle field that can be manipulated and read and written to like a hyperspace hard-drive. In short, if you thought of phasedrives as allowing a shortcut through an interdimensional sea, the infranet was the culmination of technology that can read the ripples in that sea.

A good-quality infranet transceiver can send and receive communications from across thousands upon thousands of light years in real space with mere microseconds of latency. Like phasedrives, the infranet requires a planet to have a phase beacon in order for the more local networks to tap into what's sometimes dubbed the Universal Computer System.

In the past infranet speeds were far lower, meaning that for particularly large files (such as AI routines or scenarios for immersive simulations) courier services were needed. Nowadays this is not an issue, but on more distant worlds infranet access is still limited and unreliable due to inferior or faulty phase network arrangements.

More recent research has allowed for "endless" batteries that tap into the infranet as an ambient energy source, but this technology is still in its infancy, i.e., only the military and the mega-rich can field such devices. In short, this could mean that the next generation of phasedrive technology may be self-powering and far more compact, no longer demanding fusion generators or antimatter cells.

This was meant to be short, whoops. But what sci-fi universe would be complete without increasingly unlikely weaponry:


Kinetic weapons
Chemical propellants are restricted, and kinetic weapons are outlawed altogether in some star systems.

There are several reasons for this. Solid projectile weapons— aka combustibles, slug-throwers, bullet weapons— are seen as inhumane in many nations, mostly due to their association with the Ploror Conglomerate. They are also incredibly simple to manufacture by the standards of the time and are harder to scan for at a distance.

A humble slug-thrower is energy efficient, easy to maintain and invulnerable to electromagnetic interference. While modern ballistic armour is highly resistant to such weaponry, personal defence shields are not; and since civilians usually have neither, this makes them a firm favourite of criminal cartels.

Kinetic impactors still exist on a more massive scale and are commonly used in space combat. Some handheld coilguns and railguns are in use by modern armies, utilising magnetic and electrical fields like most energy weapons do.

Despite all the supercorporate hand-wringing, the only real disadvantage of a kinetic weapon is the need for ammunition. But since "endless" phase-based recharging units are incredibly expensive, most energy weapons are similarly restricted by their need for a power source, which is particularly troublesome for infantry.


Energy weapons
The term photonic is usually used to refer to a weapon that utilises a laser beam as an integral component but not necessarily as the sole means of dealing damage. Photonics are by far the most common ranged weapon in Alpha Sector, and tend to be "faux-plasma" weapons that hit the target with laser light, and then eject the superheated waste gas as a additional projectile along the path of the laser. Despite the apparent manifestation of the discharge, the so-called "bolt" of a photonic is in fact a pulse, a short-lived beam.

The classier photonics and plasma weapons have a low-power setting to incapacitate targets, using a very brief high-intensity beam to vaporise a small portion of the target's skin: the end result is a very painful plasma burst that often floors the target. While a particularly fragile or unlucky person could be killed by such an effect, armoured opponents and mechs are largely invulnerable to it.

Laser weapons— that is, weapons that use lasers as their direct and only method of inflicting damage— are vulnerable to atmospheric conditions and they're particularly ill-suited at piercing modern defence shields. They are, however, capable of hitting a target instantaneously and with near-perfect accuracy. Stereotypically, lasers are the preferred weapon of assassins but in reality a single bullet or neurotoxin dart might be preferable.

Plasma weapons became man-portable a few decades before the Second Colonial War; but they remain prohibitively expensive and prone to overheating. Of course, this is of little concern to the Domarian Legion or the Montakon Confederacy. Their armies continue to manufacture plasma sidearms purely simply because they can, a sort of prestige project as they race to outfit their officers and specialists with the most intimidating firearms available.

The blooming of plasma severely limits effective range, necessitating advanced containment fields. Even more so than with fusion technology (see Special weapons below), the magnetic field's generators are the most vital component in a plasma gun: otherwise the end result is essentially a misshapen hot blob which can't strike the target before diffusing. Contrary to popular belief the "bolts" from such a gun are accidental; escapee plasmoids resulting from vented waste gas, these are essentially aesthetic muzzle flashes to a beam weapon. Plasma guns are often called mags by their users, and the infamous Domarian-made mags are adaptable enough to propel solid projectiles (not that they'd ever dream of doing so, that'd be inhumane) and a range of miniature grenades at various velocities.

Particle beam weapons are classified as energy weapons even though they tend to deal most of their damage via kinetic means. While the smaller ion rifles are especially effective when used against mechs and other targets with electrical components, a ship-mounted neutron cannon can produce a near-light-speed beam of hydrogen atoms that can collide with and obliterate an unlucky opponent, with the added bonus of bypassing electromagnetic shielding. Plasma weapons and particle beams are often seen as interchangeable, but particle guns are more energy efficient and ultimately set to overtake all others once the issue of size and fire-rate is resolved.

Heavy versions of the above all tend to achieve the same end result, but plasma cannons are the most prevalent infantry weapon. Laser cannons are primarily used as countermeasures to intercept drone fighters or missiles. Particle beams are especially effective in a vacuum, and along with lasers are the most commonly seen energy weapon on starships: the size/weight and power requirement of an accelerator is less of an issue.

With the use of improving magnetic stabilisers, photonics and plasma guns are continually becoming more accurate and longer-ranged. Mastery of such fields is one of the core pursuits of all research departments; both in directing projectile weapons, and in utilising the same technology to repel them with increasingly potent defensive shields. In space, a hypothetical close-ranged fight between two supermassive high-tech craft would degenerate into grappling with tractor beams (and directing plasma and antimatter through them) while trying to counter the other's shielding as broadside kinetic cannons continually exchange fire.


Melee weapons
Close quarters combat remains a core tenet of military tactics and training. Even in the most advanced and skilled armies, weapons such as knives persist because they're so simple to manufacture and harder for scans to detect; and they're not liable to run out of ammunition or short circuit when exposed to electromagnetic effects, which is always a bonus.

Modern developments have allowed "traditional" close-combat weapons to keep up with the times; bayonets that borrow their host weapon's charge in order to superheat themselves or electrify targets, swords with monomolecular edges that can cut through all but the most advanced armours, photon batons that discharge on impact to guarantee a messy and energy-efficient death.

If only because of Ancient tradition and romanticism, swords remain popular with collectors and professional fighters in specialised tournaments, although axes, maces, and hammers have proven more practical versus armoured opponents. Hatchets and clubs are sometimes seen as standard-issue handouts to soldiers when cultural preference calls for something other than a combat knife.

While once dismissed as unwieldy and impractical, the increasing strength and resilience of fighters has seen a rise in heavy two-handed implements such as sledgehammers. A blastproof cyborg operative can dispatch an entire squad with impunity simply by running up to them and hitting them repeatedly with their melee weapon of choice— right up until a rival cyborg crushes their head with a blunt instrument, or a team of mechhunters appears to fry them with ion beams, or a telekinetic pulls their arms and legs off.

Like plasma weapons, high-tech melee weapons are often seen as prestige projects; impractical, but impressive nonetheless. While a sword that can cleave through anything is undeniably useful, it’s hard to justify spending thousands upon thousands on its manufacture when the same money could buy a crate of assault rifles. Conversely, a lightweight (but still very sharp) bladed weapon may be many times cheaper than a sidearm, and still effective despite simple production techniques.


Special weapons
Nanotechnologically constituted munitions (nanocon) are a blossoming favourite of the Duality Corporation, and to a lesser extent their Jaoshijean competitors. So far the prototypes have proved incredibly versatile: a single thumb-sized nanotech magazine (admittedly, used with a generous reservoir of base material) can supply a hundred high-velocity pellets, a dozen globules of high-impact superheated metal, or a trio of massive nanodrone slugs that cling to the target and rapidly eat them alive. Unsurprisingly, the latter fire mode isn't widely publicised. Nanocon weapons are being marketed in a fashion that emphasises their clean, revolutionary approach to dealing death.

Despite the terminology, "nanodrones" as utilised in offensive applications are microscopic, but they tend to be orders of magnitude larger than their molecule-effecting brethren in fabricators; otherwise breaking down a hostile entity would take days, which just wouldn't do. And as for self-replicating grey goo plagues that advance across the galaxy eating everything and replicating themselves... well, even the Duality Corp isn't that deluded. Their stock would crash.

Atomisers, also known as disruptors, are incredibly high-energy devices that use the transdimensional nature of phase technology in a manner which should have occurred to humanity earlier: for annihilating things. Thus far they have proved impractical to weaponise, unless a potential victim could be persuaded to stand still between the various arrays while such a machine charges. Atomisers are usually used to dispose of dangerous materials (and convicted murderers in the case of the Domarian Legion) but they have recently been used to create "thresholds" near phase beacons: security fields which can be activated to obliterate unwelcome visitors. It's rumoured that several R&D groups are working on a cannon designed to create such a field within a single target; such rumours are dismissed in public, laughed about in interviews, and fervently hoped to be true in private.

Antimatter has been a staple fuel source for countless generations, but it is becoming increasingly popular for ordnance as its manufacture and harvesting becomes quicker and cheaper. Together with nuclear weapons, most capital ships have a supply of antimatter bombs should they feel like scouring a planet bare.

Relativistic (or more accurately near-relativistic) weapons are the most effective means of smashing huge parts off even the vastest warship. Any craft can use conventional engines to become a relativistic kill vehicle assuming they have time enough to gather such momentum, and at high enough speeds explosive payloads become superfluous.

Fusion weapons— sometimes called sun lances or sun guns depending on how corny the observer is feeling— are a Uclasion technology. Plasma guns are sometimes referred to as sub-fusion devices: true fusion weapons currently exist only as artefacts, used by Grandcruisers or Paleon Guardians. Taking plasma technology to the nth degree, they utilise magnetic manipulation to create a line of frictionless space, and then use their generator to produce and maintain a lance of star-hot temperatures that has thus far proved virtually impossible for any material or defensive shield to resist.

Something that hasn't really been touched upon yet but I guess it's a pretty major part of the setting! Augmentation: cyborgs, stims, psionic amplification!


Cybernetics
In Alpha Sector "cyborg" is currently used to mean any individual with at least 50% augmented body mass, whereas "bion" has arisen as a sort of mirror of "psion": the latter refers to psi-practitioners, the former to anyone with bionic enhancements. In modern times it’s arguable that the majority of the Sector’s populace is some sort of bion due to the pervasiveness of optical implants for day-to-day communications and infranet browsing. Minor implants are now largely normalised and routinely bought and replaced.

Full augmentation packages can be truly transformative. Manual labourers can be built to resist environmental hazards while doing work that might once have been the purview of heavy lifting machinery. Rich fashionistas might recreate their entire body to resemble alabaster with streaks of gold, or to be an exact copy of some megastar or historical figure.

(A far cry from the pioneers of the First Expansion who were confined to immobile banks of computers and made to act as unsleeping analysts, navigators and commanders for long-term exploratory vessels. The preferred term, incidentally, is "computer-assisted-human crew" and not "brain in a jar".)

In militaries, restrictions on standing armies has led to a shift away from affordable, mass-produced implant packages and towards unique, bespoke agents. A military cyborg in Alpha Sector is now more akin to a main battle tank than infantry, capable of taking and meting out a great deal of punishment.

There are numerous cyborg sub-cultures and the divide between those who treat implants like status symbols and accessories and those that need them to survive can be quite stark. Many cyborgs are indentured to employers to cover the cost of their procedures: a controversial state of affairs that’s rather similar to the way the High Council expects their adepts and apprentices to pay off their training fees through tithes.


Stims
The distinct laws of the nations of Alpha Sector complicate the control of substances. The Domarian Legion, for example, is permissive insofar as any drug is fair game if it doesn’t impede the user in their duties, whereas the likes of the Federated Systems criminalises the taking of stims except in military applications. Modern technology has allowed for stimulants to be produced with increasing ease: it’s near-impossible to enforce bans when a family’s food processor can also, with a few tweaks, dispense mind-altering pills.

Even when agencies do charge smugglers, proving the intended destination and use of their cargo serves as a stumbling block. A drug like "Chaos" gives a sense of irrational elation and well-being… and also renders the user virtually immune to psionic incursion (which the Legion doesn’t mind, but the High Council practically finds treasonous). "Ice" calms and soothes and numbs pain receptors but also paradoxically heightens the senses and improves reaction time, and is thus a popular choice for snipers and assassins. Law enforcers would claim that they need to expect the worst in their line of work, but detractors might point out that it’s folly to ignore less sinister recreational applications.

Special mention should be given to "Vibe", a Conglomerate-era military-grade psionic performance enhancer with a range of long-term side effects. Vibe is one of the few stimulants that’s almost universally outlawed in Alpha Sector, in part because of a few outlying cases where users OD’d and destroyed parts of the cities they were occupying at the time. This has not stopped the High Council’s operatives from continuing to use it.


Genestamps
A form of nanotech-driven temporary genetic modification, so-named because using an applicator "stamps" the recipient’s skin with an identifying mark. This is now used for brand awareness but originally it was so medical personnel could read a patient’s stamp and know exactly what was causing them to have a seizure. The dangerous and experimental past of genestamping is now largely overshadowed by the ability to change your hair or eye colour on a whim.

Genestamps are used to test and sample otherwise permanent genetic-alteration procedures. It is very common for them to be applied in conjunction with stimulants, so much so that the line between the two is quickly being eroded.

Take Bulwark™: an applicator that, within the space of a few minutes, will harden the user’s skin and deaden them to all pain. Very useful, but it’s understandable why even the most grizzled members of the Mercenary League wouldn’t want to spend the rest of their lives being a brick-red, lurching mannequin that can’t feel anything.


Psi amplification
While chemical stimulants are normalised and used at every level of psionic society, psi is completely incompatible with any form of cybernetic augmentation. Or at least this was the understanding as recently as a century ago, feeding into all sorts of pseudo-science about "natural" psionics and vital essences.

The truth is that psionic ability can greatly benefit from technological enhancement, from external amplifier devices to full-body neural arrays. While it’s true that careless installation of mental implants can reduce or completely eliminate psi potential, it’s also true that specifically tailored mods can boost it. It’s now widely accepted, even amongst the purist factions of the High Council, that psi amps are a necessary evil. An expensive, risky, much-sought-after evil.

Nevertheless the augmentation procedures are not without risk. Sometimes the boost from an amp is negligible, and sometimes the procedure has lasting consequences. Many former psi-operatives, their bodies and brains taxed by untested hardware and a cocktail of stimulants, have died young or lived to see their abilities dwindle away to nothing. The expectation that High Councillors have power befitting their station has led to even psions in non-combat roles going all-out with implanted amplifiers and burning out quickly.

External amps are an older tech but maintain appeal due to their less invasive nature: you don’t need surgery to upgrade to the latest model. They vary greatly in size, shape and effectiveness: it is not unknown for amps to be built into other weapons, or into ceremonial implements such as staffs or sceptres. Some Highs even employ miniaturised amps that can fit into jewellery or clothing.

Genetic modification to improve (or grant) psi is illegal, although many believe this is a law that the High Council openly flaunts. For generations psions have been encouraged to have children with other psions and some have accused the Highs of using arranged marriages to formulate some sort of selective breeding programme. Regardless of the truth of the matter, one fact is clear: psions are more common, and they are getting more powerful.