Information Stygian Reaches Technology in the Stygian Reaches

[AutoFox]

TECHNOLOGY IN THE STYGIAN REACHES

SITE LORE

The Stygian Reaches, being an area long disconnected from the old Galaxy, is an unusual case in the realm of technological development and norms. Prior to the reestablishment of contact between the Reaches and the old Galaxy via Linchpin Torus, the last time the Reaches had any synchronization with broader technological trends was during the age of Xim the Despot, tens of thousands of years ago.

As a result of the disconnect, those cultures which were established in the region were forced to iterate on technologies already in use, their ability to do original R&D hampered for several centuries by a lack of resources and a priority on survival. Once this hurdle was cleared, of course, technological progress resumed to the extent which was possible, however the trajectory of development had already diverged significantly from Galactic standard.

In general, Stygian technology in the present day is less sophisticated than equivalents in the old Galaxy, in large part due to the effects of the Great Unmaking. Besides this, there are crucial differences in the way technology is used, and in the direction it has been taken by many cultures.

SPACE TRAVEL

SPACE TRAVEL​

Space travel in the Stygian Reaches differs somewhat from what has become the norm in the old Galaxy. Due to the state of technology at the time contact was lost, and due to persistent conditions within the Reaches, hyperspace travel is much less straightforward than it is in the old Galaxy. Hyperspace navigation in the Stygian Reaches is largely dependent on beacon networks, which mark out safe hyperlanes and provide up-to-date astrogation data to ships in transit. Straying from paths between these beacons is possible, but exceedingly dangerous due to the amount of astrogational hazards present throughout the Reaches.

As a result of this fixed point astrogation network, the majority of private and commercial starships in the Reaches lack certain features which would be considered standard in the old Galaxy. Although they are available, for example, very few ships besides certain military and specialty civilian vessels carry a navicomputer, with most relying fully on the beacon networks for course instructions.

Due to the widespread hazards of hyperspace travel in the region, even with the beacon network, many small ships such as starhoppers and starfighters do not even bother to carry a hyperdrive, relying on larger vessels to carry them over interstellar distances for the sake of safety. As with navicomputers, subcompact hyperdrives do exist, but are considered foolhardy to use in most areas.

Despite the danger of leaving the established beacon networks, there is a market for vessels appropriately equipped to do so, as well as beings willing to fly them. Due to the widely dispersed, often fragmentary nature of civilization in the Stygian Reaches, efforts to maintain and improve communication between worlds are vital, and scouts - beings with the right stuff to venture out into unknown space and plot new routes through the trackless interstellar wilderness - are considered heroes to many cultures. Some take their chances with navicomputers and sensor readings, while others employ less scientifically grounded techniques. For all, the promise of danger and wonder awaits...

Of additional note, although the dominant cultures of the Reaches have ships approaching modernity in terms of layout and technology, this level of sophistication is not evenly distributed. There are regions where the local civilization might use atomic drive, solar sails or even solid fuel slugs to propel their spacecraft. This often leads to strange configurations not seen on more modern vessels.

TRANSPORTATION

TRANSPORTATION​

In large part due to the effects of the Great Unmaking, planet-bound transportation has stagnated somewhat in many parts of the Stygian Reaches. Although repulsorlift technology is known and used, it is primarily limited to use in spacecraft, military vehicles and transportation for the wealthy and powerful. Everyday people rely on less sophisticated forms of transport, such as groundcars and other wheeled vehicles; minimally developed settlements may even employ beasts of burden. For air travel, some even employ vehicles called "airplanes" which rely on aerodynamic lift and constant thrust to stay airborne, a harrowing prospect for one who may have grown up never knowing life without reliable anti-gravity.

As a result of this more primitive technology, many cultures in the Stygian Reaches rely more heavily on graded and/or paved surface roads for travel between settlements, or alternatively permanent guide-rails for trains. Leaving the transport networks of these worlds in a "conventional" vehicle requires a specially built off-road model, or at least a standard vehicle which has been modified for the purpose.

DROIDS & AUTOMATION

DROIDS & AUTOMATION​

Droids and computer technology in the Stygian Reaches is, much like its modes of space travel, a divergence from the trajectory taken in the old Galaxy. The first known droids to be operated in the Reaches were imported by the ancestors of the Satrapy of the Frontier Territories, notably including a number of Guardian-class war-robots and the technical knowledge of their production and maintenance. It is believed the Sith had their own droid technology at this time, but as with many things about the Sith, the nature of their technology is not widely known. After the closing of the link to the old Galaxy, this technological knowledge base - as advanced as anything in the old Galaxy at the time - disseminated throughout the region.

Droid technology in the Stygian Reaches is separated into two major periods; those machines built before the Great Unmaking, and those built afterward. Prior to that demarcation, droid technology reached a high order in the Reaches. Automation was never as common as it grew to be in the old Galaxy, with sophisticated droids not normally becoming, for example, a household good, but machines of the day were at least as advanced as those found in the old Galaxy, if not more-so in some ways.

After the Unmaking is, of course, a different story. Records from the period of the Unmaking are fragmentary, but large sections of the droid and general automation industry were damaged or erased, leading to the loss of much specific technical data and production capacity. Since then, some of the knowledge has been rediscovered or recreated, but the process has been slow. As a result, droids and high-order computers are relatively rare in the modern Reaches, and are treated as much more valuable and less disposable than their equivalents in the old Galaxy, despite generally more primitive construction. Older machines, especially those produced before the Unmaking, are highly prized. Information generated or evaluated by machines is also typically given more weight than it might be in the old Galaxy, and droids of all kinds are treated with somewhat more respect, although they are still often considered property.

Certain classifications of droids common in the old Galaxy, such as astromechs, have no real equivalent on the Stygian Reaches.

WEAPONRY

WEAPONRY​

Weaponry in the Stygian Reaches is also somewhat different from what is typically seen in the old Galaxy. Influenced largely by the archaic beam tubes brought over by the ancient Tionese, modern Stygian weapons are represented by technologies such as beamers, cyclobeamers and sparkers, which were developed directly from them. Despite the availability of these more developed weapons, which are comparable in power to laser and blaster weapons from the old Galaxy, original beam tubes and beam tube pistols remain in service in many places, largely due to their lower cost and comparatively simple construction. Projectile weapons are also more widespread than in the old Galaxy.

Although still quite powerful, energy weapons in the Stygian Reaches typically lack range, even compared to their Old Galaxy counterparts. Shipboard beamer and sparker weapons, for example, typically have about half the effective range of their equivalents, meaning that ship-to-ship combat is typically fought at much closer ranges. At longer ranges, projectile weapons such as torpedoes are more commonly used; other weapons such as concussion missiles and flak guns are also used.

Ground engagements, meanwhile, typically involve massed cycler cannon and surface-to-surface rocket artillery. Trench warfare is still practiced by many cultures in the region, meaning that the use of trench-breaking tanks, weaponized gas, flamethrowers, projectile scatterguns and other "primitive" weapons is still relatively common.

DEFENSIVE TECHNOLOGY

DEFENSIVE TECHNOLOGY​

Due to the divergence from normal Galactic technology, defensive strategies in the Stygian Reaches differ greatly. Of major note, deflector screens have not been invented by any culture in the region. Instead, ultra-strong armor materials such as trikiirium have been developed, and more rudimentary protective measures such as hull magnetic seals remain standard. While most ships can be equipped with the latter, affording a modicum of defense against light energy weapons and space debris, armor plating is more difficult to acquire for civilian vessels, and often leaves glaring weak points where coverage is incomplete. This aspect of armor protection applies to warships as well; simple broadside slugging matches between trikiirium-plated ships can be lengthy and inconclusive, while exploiting the inevitable gaps requires skill, but can produce dramatic results.

Of note, personal armor for soldiers, civilians and others in the Reaches typically takes the form of metallic segmented plate and chainmail. Rarely, this might be augmented by a personal magnetic seal, however such technology is rare and energy intensive, limiting its use.

OTHER TECHNOLOGY

OTHER TECHNOLOGY​

There are a million smaller ways in which Stygian technology differs from that found in the old Galaxy, although aside from the major categories covered above, few others require exhaustive description. Nevertheless, there are a few things to bear in mind, including the following.

Stygian tech does not use Galactic standard parts, connectors, materials or software. Although many droids of the region can understand and sometimes even speak a dialect of binary, to universal droid language, they otherwise only vaguely resemble the models an old Galaxy droid technician might know, right down to the screws and basic circuit plugs. Using old Galaxy technology to interact with Stygian tech requires at least an adapter of some kind, and likely extensive modifications to one or both devices. The same can be applied to almost any piece of technology, from kitchen appliances all the way up to starships.

Certain everyday technologies are, to put it politely, less sophisticated than they could be. The technology of holography has been in a rut for some time, with most installations still requiring a large mytag crystal to serve as a viewing tank. Cathode ray tube displays are also more prevalent than holograms. For data storage, the use of obsolete datapunch and datatape formats is still fairly widespread, with solid state datacards being unknown.

INTENT​

To explain the state of technology in the Stygian Reaches.