Aberrant: Ba'alt - Re: Team HQ

[Narrator]

I know Jack had mentioned that he was building an expansive structure that could be used for the team but in all sense of curiosity, where do you all see this Structure?

Is it 5 miles up a tower high above the cloud cover in the posh areas of the city, or is it way outside the city in a restriced and undeveloped "raw" land where its basically wildlands?

What kind of security is there? Do you form housing for the 97 hitchhikers and develop jobs for the 60+ non-nova's and help them re-integrate?

Where do you all see your character actually declaring residence? (there should be plenty of room in the HQ as I see it.

,,

Eve will follow the suggestions of Zephraine but she will request the team stay within close proximity and will outfit a room or several rooms to accommodate her as an apartment.

[Dr. Chronos]

Something like Lex Luthor's Sky Scraper.

Big Tower. Various corporations (i.e. Temporal Solutions) can 'rent' space.

[Narrator]

Quote:

Something like Lex Luthor's Sky Scraper.

Big Tower. Various corporations (i.e. Temporal Solutions) can 'rent' space.

I like that idea, easy to visualize and incorporate various security measures as I can see in my minds eye the cartoons and such.

In all reality it willl end up like a cross between CADMUS facilities and Lexcorp HQ with all the ultra-tech from Eve, Jack, and Nigel. (reminds me, I need to put Nigel's Matrix up). Even the so called Super badguys will have difficulty penetrating the base defenses.



Paril will offer many ultra tech location, Think Coruscant from Star Wars as far as the scenery goes. So the height will be tremendous, in the miles high levels.

[Jack-in-the-Green]

Actually, check Jack's "place of business" in the War Councils freepost thread. Jack owns five floors for his operation, and he has personal space somewhere beneath the building.

He is glad to shuffle some electronic cards around to purchase additional floors with front companies as team members require, up to and including purchasing the entire building (though it'll look like the building's real estate is owned in parcels by a large number of smaller entities). His security is ridiculous, and he has no problems extending it into floors owned by the team.

If yet more space is required, for some reason, he can also go into purchasing parcels of surrounding land and connecting them back to the core skyscraper. He doesn't put up the 'hitchhikers' on his own initiative, but he had no problem with providing the space if the team wants to do so.

[Narrator]

Yes, I was waiting for Jack to chime in. His set up is rather defensible and has probably the most secure institution on the planet today what with his group intelligence feat and his cracking various governmental databases. Next to him is the planetary authorities and House Carlisle as far as security goes. And if him and Eve hook up, intellectually speaking, The building could easily become The most secure place on the planet.

[z-Kara]

If it is ok with Jack and the group, Kara would like to have a small apartment located on one of the levels of the Teams Headquarters. Not to get too cartoonish but I imagine it to be along the lines of personal space similar to what the members of the Titans have. She will rent/buy her own accomadations elsewhere. She is a girl that likes to seperate business from pleasure. She would have at least two other properties that she will secure with her own means. No offense intended to anyone but she IS a security op of Pax Concordat. I think she is way up to the task. One of her apartment lofts would be here in the city in one of the corporate zones and her other property would probably be a beach house on some tropical island. She will use company means to make sure that all her properties are secured and she will open them up to the team members as a safe house.

[Dr. Chronos]

She is a girl that likes to seperate business from pleasure.

Doc is just the opposite. Social gatherings is business is power is opportunity... although Crumble does on occassion step out of character and enjoy the night out on the town.

[z-Kara]

Kara completely agrees with your statement. I fail to see how Doc and Kara are opposites.

Maybe, and this is probably a stretch, but maybe Doc cannot tell when Kara is on the job and when she is relaxing. Just a note, Planet Paril is vacation for Kara.

[Jedi Richard Thorne]

Since I believe I'm one of the hitchhikers, how much room are we getting? Richard's a good person to handle the care of melee weaponry, so if there's a place like that he'd be happy to earn his way taking care of the weapons.

[Narrator]

Quote:

Since I believe I'm one of the hitchhikers, how much room are we getting? Richard's a good person to handle the care of melee weaponry, so if there's a place like that he'd be happy to earn his way taking care of the weapons.

You will be granted a small one bedroom apartment with high tech accourtements and all your bare essentials will be cared for like food, basic clothing, etc. If you take this route, your resource level will be at 2 AP's which equates to about 20k a year by year 2000 standards. IF you dont want 'provided' housing, you are on your own with the equivalent of about 60k a year or AP 4 wealth rating. With that you can afford a two bedroom apartment with squaller decor and nowehere near the high tech luxuries.



The above wealth rating is assuming that you start to help out in whatever way you can with the care and support of the Organizations needs. More may be earned as we go pending on exactly what we decide your good at.

[Smite]

I approve of the design of building and our level of security.

I would still like to see us become a military presence with a fleet at some point but that's just a desire to seek military strength.

[Narrator]

Quote:

I approve of the design of building and our level of security.

I would still like to see us become a military presence with a fleet at some point but that's just a desire to seek military strength.

Eve would certainly back you on this....

[Jack-in-the-Green]

Jack is already thinking in that direction ... certainly something that could be touched on in War Councils.

[z-Kara]

So if we are going to design a fleet, are there sufficient/adequate resources here on planet Paril or will we have to import resources from other planets or systems to be a suitable presence? Unless someone here has matter creation, I don't know if the planet has the resources to accomodate our ambitions.

[Narrator]

Quote:

So if we are going to design a fleet, are there sufficient/adequate resources here on planet Paril or will we have to import resources from other planets or systems to be a suitable presence? Unless someone here has matter creation, I don't know if the planet has the resources to accomodate our ambitions.

Paril certainly does have the resources available but most of the larger stores needed to build large ships, not to mention a facility to hold a large ship or a orbital shipyard are all military level accomodations and require prior clearance and approval for military only. This is something JACK would need ot work on or tat would need to be raided or acquired as the level of clearance to use the shipyards and to requisition the materials is beyond what the players could get casually....((in game events will be needed))

[Smite]

Quote:

<!--quoteo(post=229:date=Jul 3 2006, 12&#58;50 AM:name=Kara Rathien)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Kara Rathien &#064; Jul 3 2006, 12&#58;50 AM) ←</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec--> So if we are going to design a fleet, are there sufficient/adequate resources here on planet Paril or will we have to import resources from other planets or systems to be a suitable presence? Unless someone here has matter creation, I don't know if the planet has the resources to accomodate our ambitions.

Paril certainly does have the resources available but most of the larger stores needed to build large ships, not to mention a facility to hold a large ship or a orbital shipyard are all military level accomodations and require prior clearance and approval for military only. This is something JACK would need ot work on or tat would need to be raided or acquired as the level of clearance to use the shipyards and to requisition the materials is beyond what the players could get casually....((in game events will be needed))
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

While this planet may have the resources, we may want to arrange to place our shipyard (and to get the necessary numbers to really make any kind of real difference we will need a dedicated space yard) in a concealed location. This location would need to have the raw materials for the bulk of the construction (super-structure and skin). Perhaps an asteriod belt or something similar.

Ideally we would need to primarily automate the construction process and integrate in Pax and similar technologies. Beyond that it would likely be important create systems with a significant amount of automation to reduce the manpower required to crew the ship. Since freewilled AI are Ban breakers, there would likely need living creatures interfaced at the critcal decision points. (Maybe using a similar interface as the one the Deckers of this world use).

Likely the majority of our effort would come at the design and setup steps. Beyond that, we would need to create a covert supply train for the materials that aren't local and programs to train our personnel.

What do the rest of you think?

[z-Kara]

This can EASILY be a Pax Concordant "sponsored" endeavour. It only requires a simple call and the personnel will be on the way. And on cloaking the shipyard, how strong of a cloak do you want. I mean it can be cloaked in its own personnel pocket dimension.

[Smite]

Quote:

This can EASILY be a Pax Concordant "sponsored" endeavour. It only requires a simple call and the personnel will be on the way. And on cloaking the shipyard, how strong of a cloak do you want. I mean it can be cloaked in its own personnel pocket dimension.

That is definitely what I was thinking of. We have our own pocket dimension, we move a few asteriods in for raw materials and then gradually transport in the other material in via some manner of dimensional connection. Since the dimension could be at anywhere, it would increase our options.

We will need to add enough different tech/designs to disguise its origins, but there is no reason not to get help were it is available.

A decent size stardock, and we would be able to launch ships out into secondary staging points for staging and maneuvers. (Before we start raiding).

Depending on how much we are willing to commit to this (and whether or not doc would be so kind as to cloak the facility in hypertime) we could likely get this ball rolling very quickly.

[Jack-in-the-Green]

<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->... are there sufficient/adequate resources ...<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->Jack is a massive corporation specializing in high technology. It shouldn't be a problem to just buy the necessary materials. In fact, most of the early manufacturing process will probably be contracted out, with the small components gathered up and sent to a central site for assembly.

<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->... we may want to arrange to place our shipyard ... in a concealed location.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

One way or another, this will certainly be the case. 'Cloaking' it, in any sense, might not be necessary, though, since the Ban doesn't have any problems with ship manufacture (or even arming ships, so long as the guns aren't obviously displayed). And if Ba'laan actually comes looking for the shipyard at some point, hiding it away in a pocket dimension isn't likely to help much (wasn't the last world you were at in a pocket dimension?).

But ... folks do seem to forget that, with all of Jack's focus on computers lately, his actual powers are all about breaking the Ban and dickering around with peculiar cosmic real estate. If it proves to be a good idea to move manufacturing out of this dimension, Jack's supernal space is better than anything, anywhere else - it is way more conclusively out of the Ban's influence, for one, since it is actually the space outside of the universe.

<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Since freewilled AI are Ban breakers, there would likely need living creatures interfaced at the critcal decision points.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->Not true. Again, Jack didn't get the benefit of figuring out how to 'bribe the Ban' and such - he did it the hard (but more effective) way. He is invisible to the Ban, he's partially invulnerable to its influence, and he can hide other events from the Ban's influence, when necessary. And, since he can clone himself, he can spread this around a great deal. Ideally, he even gets into gadgeteering and starts building technology which can imitate these effects.

<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Beyond that, we would need to create a covert supply train for the materials that aren't local and programs to train our personnel.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

There's no need to be covert. Jack runs a technology corporation - he can buy materials and transport them without anyone remarking on it.

<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->We will need to add enough different tech/designs to disguise its origins, but there is no reason not to get help were it is available.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

All technology will be completely new. That's why Jack has been designing cybernetics for Smite - a small scale test of applying his mass mind abilities to research and development. He'll look at any ship/weapons designs he can access, but the actual technology going into the ships will be Jack's technology - completely impossible to trace back to anyone because it is designed completely from scratch.

He'll draw upon Paril's technology, designs from his relationship with House Carlisle, House Rathien tech from Eve, Pax technology from Kara ... whatever ... and the technology he designs will involve ideas and inventions from all of the above, but the end result will be entirely new.

If he can get down a gadgeteered device to replicate his Ban-invulnerability, the new ships might even be better than anything any of those folks can field, simply because his designs won't have to dance around the Ban. Even better would be if he could develop a 'jump drive' of a sort capable of replicating his power to step into supernal space. Then, the ships could be both manufactured and piloted entirely outside of the universe, only stepping back in to make attacks.

This is something Jack's been spending a long time getting ready for - about 18 months, actually. The War Councils thread is there because he's already figured out most of the logistics, and he has most of the resources in place. He's ready to move ahead (both with this, and with quite a bit more), and he figures it would be a good time to work out how much the team wants to be involved.

[Jedi Richard Thorne]

Quote:

Ideally we would need to primarily automate the construction process and integrate in Pax and similar technologies. Beyond that it would likely be important create systems with a significant amount of automation to reduce the manpower required to crew the ship. Since freewilled AI are Ban breakers, there would likely need living creatures interfaced at the critcal decision points. (Maybe using a similar interface as the one the Deckers of this world use).

The Brain/Brawn series by McCaffrey is an idea - it's something that would take time, but essentially, you take embryos that won't physically mature properly, and permanently wire them into electronic systems. Depending on the complexity of the ship, you might need two or three of them working in concert to control it, but you won't set off the Ban for AIs while getting the benefits of them.

[z-Kara]

The Brain/Brawn series by McCaffrey is an idea - it's something that would take time, but essentially, you take embryos that won't physically mature properly, and permanently wire them into electronic systems. Depending on the complexity of the ship, you might need two or three of them working in concert to control it, but you won't set off the Ban for AIs while getting the benefits of them.

[Jedi Richard Thorne]

Quote:

<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->The Brain/Brawn series by McCaffrey is an idea - it's something that would take time, but essentially, you take embryos that won't physically mature properly, and permanently wire them into electronic systems. Depending on the complexity of the ship, you might need two or three of them working in concert to control it, but you won't set off the Ban for AIs while getting the benefits of them.

That's Disgusting!!<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> But highly effective, and right up the alley of what seems to be needed to make the ships more effective. And for the pro-life NPCs in the audience, we're helping people live who otherwise would have died.

[Smite]

Quote:

<!--quoteo(post=264:date=Jul 4 2006, 05&#58;27 PM:name=Kara Rathien)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Kara Rathien &#064; Jul 4 2006, 05&#58;27 PM) ←</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec--><!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->The Brain/Brawn series by McCaffrey is an idea - it's something that would take time, but essentially, you take embryos that won't physically mature properly, and permanently wire them into electronic systems. Depending on the complexity of the ship, you might need two or three of them working in concert to control it, but you won't set off the Ban for AIs while getting the benefits of them.

That's Disgusting!!<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--> But highly effective, and right up the alley of what seems to be needed to make the ships more effective. And for the pro-life NPCs in the audience, we're helping people live who otherwise would have died.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->


There are some fundamental flaws with that. The first is the stability of the mind that is created, especially considering the abberant circumstances. Another is the lack of an ability to repair borders or effect repairs manually. Combine this will a lack of portability and cross training, and you do run into some rather serious problems.

[Renata Hodges]

Kara Rathien saud;

<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->The Brain/Brawn series by McCaffrey is an idea - it's something that would take time, but essentially, you take embryos that won't physically mature properly, and permanently wire them into electronic systems. Depending on the complexity of the ship, you might need two or three of them working in concert to control it, but you won't set off the Ban for AIs while getting the benefits of them.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd--><!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->That's Disgusting!!<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

Indeed. If that plan goes ahead, be thankful Allison's away...or she'd give you an earful.

[Jack-in-the-Green]

If a technological Ban-resistance can be worked up, then self-guiding AIs are certainly the way to go. The Ban won't like it, but neither will it like people running around and blowing shit up. If not, the McCafferyism idea isn't bad.

Sure, they can't effect repairs without appropriate in-ship robotics, but they're also more likely to survive an incident and limp home than a human crew (fewer squishy parts). And they can't repel borders, but they can self-destruct ... just depends on what you want out of your fleet. Of course, the argument that many of them might be stone crazy is valid.

[z-Kara]

Just because we CAN does not mean that we should.

Completely artificial intelligences also have draw backs. There are powers in the multiverse that can take control or rewrite AI's on a whim. It is a good start but not the Ultimate solution.

Kara is a firm believer in a consciousness being in control of the trigger. A conditioned consciousness is preferred instead of a programmed consciousness. I know this requires a bit more time than having matter creation and instantly building a fleet but it can be done.

[Dr. Chronos]

RE: War Councils thread

I have I think one last thing to sort out before I start posting there.

Quote:

But ... folks do seem to forget that, with all of Jack's focus on computers lately, his actual powers are all about breaking the Ban and dickering around with peculiar cosmic real estate. If it proves to be a good idea to move manufacturing out of this dimension, Jack's supernal space is better than anything, anywhere else - it is way more conclusively out of the Ban's influence, for one, since it is actually the space outside of the universe.

<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Since freewilled AI are Ban breakers, there would likely need living creatures interfaced at the critcal decision points.

Not true. Again, Jack didn't get the benefit of figuring out how to 'bribe the Ban' and such - he did it the hard (but more effective) way. He is invisible to the Ban, he's partially invulnerable to its influence, and he can hide other events from the Ban's influence, when necessary. And, since he can clone himself, he can spread this around a great deal. Ideally, he even gets into gadgeteering and starts building technology which can imitate these effects.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->I'm not sure Doc knows you're immune to the ban IC. As far as I know you just don't have any powers that break the ban.

[Jack-in-the-Green]

<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->I'm not sure Doc knows ...<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

He's mentioned it in rambling, impenetrable discourse before. But, of course, that's not terribly helpful - again, War Councils is the time he's picked to start making his activities and capabilities more transparent to the others.

[Jack-in-the-Green]

Incidentally, the 'real' Jack stays out of sight somewhere on the base property (specifically, in a secure location underneath the skyscraper). He has the chance to indulge his paranoia, so he's exploiting his resources to the utmost.

He doesn't really make any bones about that (so you could figure that out in the 6 months since he started making physical appearances), and anyone with Quantum Attunement or something similar would be able to tell the difference between a clone and the original, since the clones have to burn quantum constantly just to remain in this universe.

[Jedi Richard Thorne]

Quote:

Sure, they can't effect repairs without appropriate in-ship robotics, but they're also more likely to survive an incident and limp home than a human crew (fewer squishy parts). And they can't repel borders, but they can self-destruct ... just depends on what you want out of your fleet. Of course, the argument that many of them might be stone crazy is valid.

Essentially, it is replacing a computerized, programmed AI with an organic, conditioned NI (Natural Intelligence). Technically an AI, by itself, couldn't effect repairs - it would have to control robotic units to do so; the Brain-in-a-jar could do the same thing. Think of Pilot controlling the DRDs in Farscape.

The crazy part is valid; in the series, the biggest fear all of them have is being disconnected from the ships/systems they are supposed to be running, because once they are disconnected, they are in complete sensory deprivation. Even if these are just baseline minds we're using, a decade of training would make them experts on their ships, and they are probably more adaptable than AIs, but at the same time they'd be weak to nova/psion mental powers, and the physical container that houses their body is as vulnerable as the computer core of an AI.

I merely mentioned the idea as an alternative to Ban-breaking technology. It will take longer, but we don't have to worry at all if Jack's artefact-style Ban-redirection fails. Transportation for these ships is a whole other matter, since FTL is banned as well, right?

[z-Kara]

Faster than light is ok. Instantaneous travel for mass groups is what is banned.

Brains or children in jars is not Kara's idea of a good alternative.

Dependant AI's is probably the ticket that Kara would suggest.

[Jedi Richard Thorne]

Quote:

Faster than light is ok. Instantaneous travel for mass groups is what is banned.

So Trek style warp drives are cool, but Trinity warper psions are right out? That makes more sense.

[Narrator]

Quote:

<!--fonto:Book--><span style="font-family:Book"><!--/fonto-->
<!--coloro:#cc0000--><span style="color:#cc0000"><!--/coloro--><!--fonto:Book--><span style="font-family:Book"><!--/fonto-->? Instantaneous travel of any kind not involving the actual crossing of space by a physical form.<!--fontc--></span><!--/fontc--><!--colorc--></span><!--/colorc-->
<!--fontc--></span><!--/fontc-->

It is implied that any travel "resembling" instantaneous travel is bad.

[Jack-in-the-Green]

Realize that we wouldn't be talking about programed AI's - those are perfectly legal under the Ban, and we have them all over the place around Paril. If AI pilots/crew are involved (and Jack can crack the Ban-resistance problem), they would be fully intelligent AI's, capable of learning and adapting, and probably much more quickly than any human. After all, there are limits on what the human brain can do, sans superpowers. An AI just has to reprogram itself.

[z-Kara]

*OOC: Ever watch Battlestar Galactica? Not exactly the type of existance that I want to vist*

Before Ba'laan and the Ban there were complete systems over run by aritificial intelligences. I am sure their creatures made safety features and such but, AI's can evolve.