Technologies
Weapon Technologies:Mass Accelerator Weaponry - Systems Alliance Weaponry is based on the use of Mass Effect field to reduce the effective mass of projectiles while electromagnetic rail systems accelerate projectiles down the barrel. Thus the power of a weapon is determined by two factors, the mass of the projectile and the length of the barrel, which determines how long the projectile is under acceleration. This technology is the basis for all Systems Alliance weapons, from infantry small arms to the axial main cannons of their largest dreadnoughts.
Shield/ Armor Technologies:Kinetic Barrier Shields - Kinetic barriers, colloquially called "shields", provide protection against most mass accelerator weapons. Whether on a starship or a soldier's suit of armor, the basic principle remains the same. Kinetic barriers are repulsive mass effect fields projected from tiny emitters. These shields safely deflect small objects traveling at rapid velocities. This affords protection from bullets and other dangerous projectiles, but still allows the user to sit down without knocking away their chair. The shielding afforded by kinetic barriers does not protect against extremes of temperature, toxins, or radiation. Furthermore, kinetic barrier shields provide little to no protection against directed energy weapons as barriers can only act on physical matter.
Ablative Armor - Ablative armor is a material covering the outer surface of Alliance military vessels and other heavily armored platforms and is primarily intended to counteract directed energy weapons. Ablative armor is composed of a hard material that breaks up when struck by weapons-fire, absorbing massive amounts of energy. In the vacuum of space, the debris from consumed ablative armor further serves to attenuate incoming directed energy attacks.
Ceramic Armor - The standard armor plating material for the Alliance is manufactured ceramic, typically reinforced with metal or carbon fibers.
Cloaking Technologies:The Systems Alliance does not possess any form of invisibility cloak, but they do have the IES (Internal Emissions Sink) Stealth System. This system is not standard equipment, but it is equipped on many Alliance naval frigates and above.
It works like this, the heat generated by routine shipboard operations is easily detectable against the near absolute zero background temperature of space; however, an IES is able to temporarily "store" this heat in lithium heat sinks deep within the hull. The IES stealth system has a few limitations. The system doesn't work during FTL flight because this blue-shifts a ship's emissions beyond the sinks' ability to store, and even while out of FTL, any visual scan (i.e. looking out of a window) will reveal the vessel. However, this is rare since most ships rely on scanners rather than visual contact and spotting another ship in space is difficult. A ship with IES can go to 'silent running' for around 2-3 hours, or drift passively through a system for days before having to vent and give away her position. The stored heat must eventually be radiated, or it will build up to levels capable of cooking the crew alive.
Sensor Technologies:The Systems Alliance does not possess any form of faster-than-light sensor technology, though they are currently conducting research on commercially purchased units. The sensors the Alliance does have fall into one of two categories, active or passive. Passive sensors are used for long-range detection, while active sensors obtain short-range, high quality targeting data.
Passive sensors include visual, thermographic, and radio detectors that watch and listen for objects in space. A powered ship emits a great deal of energy; the heat of the life support systems; the radiation given off by power plants and electrical equipment; the exhaust of the thrusters. Starships stand out plainly against the near-absolute zero background of space. Passive sensors can be used during FTL travel, but incoming data is significantly distorted by the effect of the mass effect envelope and Doppler shift.
Active sensors are radars and high resolution ladars (LAser Detection And Ranging) that emit a "ping" of energy and "listen" for return signals. Ladars have a narrower field of view than radar, but ladar resolution allows images of detected objects to be assembled. Active sensors are useless when a ship is moving at FTL speeds.
Communication Technologies:Real-time communication is possible throughout Alliance space thanks to networks of expensive mass relay comm buoys that can daisy-chain a transmission via lasers.
Comm buoys are maintained in patterns built outward from each mass relay. The buoys are little more than a cluster of primitive, miniature mass relays. Each individual buoy is connected to a partner on another buoy in the network, forming a corridor of low-mass space. Tightbeam communications lasers are piped through these "tubes" of FTL space, allowing virtually instantaneous communication to anywhere on the network. The networks connect across regions by communications lasers through the mass relays.
With this system, the only delay is the light lag between the source or destination and the closest buoy. So long as all parties remain within half a light-second (150,000 km) of buoys, seamless real time communications are possible. Since buoys are maintained in all traveled areas, most enjoy unlimited instant communications. Ships only suffer communications lag when operating off established deep space routes, around uninhabited outer system gas giants, and other unsettled areas.
During wartime, comm buoy networks are the first target of an attack. Once the network is severed, it can take anywhere from weeks to years to get a message out of a contested system. In systems where a buoy network has not yet been built or has been destroyed, rapid communication means ferrying information through high-speed courier ships and unmanned data drones.
Drive Technologies:Ion Drive - Ion drives electrically accelerate charged particles as a reaction mass. They are extremely efficient, but produce negligible thrust. They are mainly used for automated cargo barges.
Fusion Torch - The primary commercial engine is a "fusion torch", which vents the plasma of a ship's power plant. Fusion torches offer powerful acceleration at the cost of difficult heat management. Torch fuel is fairly cheap: helium-3 skimmed from gas giants and deuterium extracted from seawater or cometary bodies. Propellant is hydrogen, likewise skimmed from gas giants.
Antimatter Thruster - In combat, military vessels require accelerations beyond the capability of fusion torches. Warship thrusters inject antiprotons into a reaction chamber filled with hydrogen. The matter-antimatter annihilation provides unmatched motive power. The drawback is fuel production; antiprotons must be manufactured one particle at a time. Most antimatter production is done at massive solar arrays orbiting energetic stars, making them high-value targets in wartime.
Mass Effect Fields - A mass effect drive core decreases the mass of a bubble of space-time around a ship. This gives the ship the potential to move quickly, but does not apply any motive power. Ships use their sublight thrusters for motive power in FTL. There are several varieties of thruster, varying in performance versus economy. All ships are equipped with arrays of hydrogen-oxygen reaction control thrusters for maneuvering.
Power Technologies:Manual Capacitor - Many essential systems are fitted with emergency power provided by a handcrank inducing a charge in a bank of capacitors that acts as a high efficiency, short-term battery. Large systems can provide a couple hours of power while palm-sized units can power emergency communications or small backup weapons.
Hydrogen Fuel Cells - Most Alliance technology is powered by hydrogen fuel cells that generate an electrical current by reacting hydrogen from the cell with oxygen either stored in tanks or extracted from the atmosphere. This system only emits water vapor and is fairly efficient and compact; however, it is not adequate for large power loads or discontinuous and highly variable loads.
Thermonuclear Reactor - Most large vessels and other high energy consumers are powered by fusion reactors. These reactors use high temperature plasma and magnetic confinement to heat and compress pellets of deuterium fuel, creating a brief high efficiency fusion reaction. Waste materials from this reaction often undergo subsequent fission, producing additional energy. Regular high power pulses are converted into a steady stream of electricity to provide power.
Matter/Antimatter Reactor [M/Am] - Alliance military vessels and vehicles are powered by Matter/Antimatter Reactors that produce power by combining the two materials. Many large vessels have distributed small M/Am reactors powering local systems. This configuration is more efficient than a central reactor and also makes the vessels power less susceptible to catastrophic failure. While M/Am systems are the most efficient, this requires the production and transportation of antimatter fuel. A large portion of the Systems Alliance is devoted to the harvest or production of antimatter to fuel their military and fuel considerations impose operational restrictions on all Alliance vessels.
Unique Technologies:Mass Effect Fields - Mass effect fields are created by multiple specially shaped subspace fields working in concert. These fields can increase or decrease the mass content of space-time.The stronger the field, the greater the magnitude of the mass effect. In space, low-mass fields allow FTL travel and inexpensive surface-to-orbit transit. High-mass fields create artificial gravity and push space debris away from starships. In manufacturing, low-mass fields permit the creation of evenly-blended alloys, while high mass compaction creates dense, sturdy construction materials. The military makes extensive use of mobility enhancing technologies, with mass effect-utilizing fighting vehicles being standard front-line issue in most military forces. Mass effect fields are also essential in the creation of shields to protect against enemy fire on the ground, and protect starships in planetary orbit or during space battles.
Many biotics can also use mass effect fields which are biologically generated and controlled. This requires intensive training, and cybernetic implants, but can produce impressive offensive or defensive effects. Some biotics' talents are not strong enough to be offensively viable, but all biotics are sensitive to the presence of mass effect fields.
However, the use of mass effect fields creates static electrical charge. In starship drive cores, this charge must be grounded at regular intervals, either by touching a planet surface or interacting with a planet's geomagnetic field, to prevent the electricity discharging into the hull and causing catastrophic damage. For biotics, this manifests as an occasional static shock when they touch metal or other people.
Medi-gel - Medi-gel (medical gel) is an all-purpose medicinal salve combining an anesthetic and clotting agent used by paramedics, EMTs, and military personnel, produced by the Sirta Foundation. It heals various wounds and ailments, instantly sealing injuries against infection and allowing for rapid healing by having the gel grip tight to flesh until subjected to a frequency of ultrasound. It is seal-able against liquids - most notably blood - as well as contaminants and gases.
Military Drones - Drones are small robots used to support and supplement organic soldiers on the battlefield. They have no artificial intelligence of any kind, but follow fixed, minimally adaptive programs. Most varieties employ mass effect levitation to improve mobility.
All modern armies rely on veritable fleets of drones for routine soldiering (static garrisons, patrols, etc.). The use of drones in non-critical duties keeps manpower need down and reduces casualties in low intensity conflicts. Less advanced races and cultures with less sensitivity to casualties have correspondingly fewer drones in their inventory. Drones are of little use in conventional open field battles, as they are poorly armed and armored.
In addition to combat drones, support drones are used to assist organic units in the field. Reconnaissance drones are small, stealthy craft that screen combat units in the field and warn commanders when enemies are spotted. Electronic Warfare drones supplement battlefield technicians, serving as mobile jammers and ELINT (ELectronic INTelligence) gathering platforms. Military and civilian police utilize "dazzler drones" equipped with powerful strobe lights to disorient and subdue intruders using nonlethal force.
Drone formations are officially referred to in wings (i.e., "Deploy the 4th Assault Drone Wing on the left flank!"). Common soldiers often refer to friendly formations as flocks and enemy formations as swarms.
Virtual Intelligence [VI] - A virtual intelligence is an advanced form of user interface software. VIs use a variety of methods to simulate natural conversation, including an audio interface and an avatar personality to interact with. Although a VI can provide a convincing emulation of sentience, they are not self-aware, nor can they learn of take independent action. VIs are used as operating systems on commercial and home computers. Menial VI "agents" are also available. Agents are compact and specialized. Some serve as personal secretaries, filtering calls and scheduling meetings based on user-defined priorities. Others are advanced search engines, propagating themselves across the extranet to collate user-requested data. Commercial VIs in a variety of stock personalities are available at any software retailer. Boutique firms and hobbyists also build unique VIs to personal specification. Although software emulation of living personalities is illegal, reconstructions of famous historical figures are common.
Ship Technologies:
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