No, I meant Remnants selling to Orbitals. I had thought Remnants were more advanced; since it said that they had highly advanced technology, so I assumed that they were the most technologically advanced, while the Orbitals just lived on the remains of the Old Earth.
Now, knowing about the infrastructure, I understand it better now. Thanks!
The Earth example is pretty cool, BTW.
Humm, I might've been a bit unclear, I suppose. Orbitals don't live in the remains of Old Earth - they live cosily in orbit, and are unarguably the most advanced and 'safest' society in Sol. Remnants are advanced, too, even more advanced in some specific areas (survival and adaptation tech, terraforming, etc.).
Looks pretty sweet to me. I'd definitely be interested in playing
So, for nanoclouds and hacking, is it assumed that they're just everpresent, and that makes it impossible to disconnect from the network? Or is it just so essential that doing it to avoid hacking would be like strapping your arm behind your back so it doesn't get cut off?
Oh! And you probably already know this, but Venus would be a lot easier to colonize than a lot of people think. Just not the surface. Nitrogen-oxygen mix is a lifting gas in it's atmosphere, and 50km or so above the surface, the temperature and pressure are fairly similar to Earth's.
Wireless networks are so ever-present it would be an extreme move to cut yourself off, yeah. This isn't because of the nanoclouds, though - they made up the 'datasphere' of Earth, which was taken over by the Rampancy and later purged. It was never rebuilt, and the current system is generally thought to be safer. Most people have casters, augs that project a local wireless network called the proxnet (a term I have shamelessly ripped off Dan Simmons, I think), allowing for easy exchange of data between individuals. These casters also support and provide access to a wider farnet, and the casters can link together and boost their signals - so places with high populations generally have stronger and faster networks. This also makes it very difficult to shut down the network - every user is a source of it as well. The Old Earth datasphere included everyone from above, while this originates from below, from yourself, making it easier to disconnect and more secure.
I don't know if that fully makes sense; elements of the setting are still up for changes. And to properly answer your question - yes, you can cut yourself off, but you lose access to a world of communication and data. For those who have lived their entire lives connected, the psychological shock alone can be pretty bad. It's generally seen as a desperate move, and very suspicious in normal society (your proxnet casting is also a kind of ID in most places). It's not even a perfect solution - some signals can penetrate even shutdown systems and reactivate them without the user's consent.
That said, plenty of Earthborn and outsolar weirdoes live their entire lives without casters or any access to prox- or farnet.
I'd actually forgotten that about Venus. A lovely idea to work in.
@Orbitals and trade: Some good thoughts and points. Certainly the Orbitals are ever-hungry for culture from everywhere else (though they obviously also produce their own), whether Old Earth antiques and relics, the latest in android philosophy, reports of highly immoral psychological experiments run in some isolated outsolar outpost, etc. etc.
Information is also big - Earth may occasionally provide the location of some secret vault built during the Descent or such, but mainly it is just 'gangland gossip'. But this is a society who doesn't need to worry about survival or value things as we do. An Orbital following Earthborn politics like one might follow a favorite tv show will be happy to greatly reward someone for a few latest rumors from the ground. Scavenged tech and curiosities from outsolars etc. are also much sought after. Not because it's somehow more advanced or powerful (though sometimes it is), but simply because it's so
different and exciting.
If you want to think of it that way, the Orbitals are still an enormous consumer culture with endless demand for experiences and things not native to their maintained perfect little home.
Of course, there are still things the Orbitals might want that are more 'important' (from our perspective; not necessarily theirs). Captured footage of a new Machine superweapon. Sensor readings indicating extremely high-power experiments in a thought-abandoned station off Io. A Martian report of potential weaknesses in Orbital security systems. You get the point.
You have to keep in mind, though, that the Orbitals are less a state and more a bunch of people who only occasionally come together as a group. The interests they have, the trading they do, differs from individual to individual.
You've probably let me ramble on for too long. Though I do want to get into detail about the Machines, but maybe that can wait. I welcome questions, criticisms, ideas, though.
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Topic: Gaming Block (Game Discussion Thread) (Totally Not Roller's Block) (Read 407998 times)