Brother Reginald on 7/7/2006 at 21:34
Right, I'm doing a T3 FM based on Mechanists and i'd like a list of all the different things the Mechanists invented or improved on, for example, Mechanical Eyes, servants etc. I did a search but couldn't find anything which was very useful.
I know you guys will probably know T2 far better than me as I haven't played it in two years due to the huge number of FMs out there.
Thanks, BR
theBlackman on 7/7/2006 at 22:30
Door locks that work with the addition of a specific gear wheel as the "key".
Garrett's telescopic eye, (a remote viewing system also tied into the Scouting Orb. So a remote camera setup would not be out of line with the same parameters).
Radio transmitters and receivers (the recall beacons and the "servants" are an example).
Robots with audio/visual receptors and weapons. Small scouts, Warbots, Spiderbots, among the known devices.
Small portable power supplies. Nature unknown, but apparently steam boiler systems. (see robots)
Chemical agents (the Rust gas).
Electrical barriers and fences.
Submersible craft (Cetus Amicus).
Underwater breathing apparatus.
Various "turrets" firing blades, grenades, spears etc.
Elevators and various lighting were already in use. Whether specifically developed by the Mechs, or hold overs from the Precursor era is not stated.
I nearly forgot: An intercom system, and probably security video. Karras harranged Garrett with these in Soulforge.
S_Hole on 7/7/2006 at 22:42
uh..
you know..
in north korea they wanted to make this grand hotel and make it huge and pretty and all, and they built it, and it is one of the highest structures man has made
but they didn't really know much about financing such a large building.. especially in a country as taffered up as north korea, so the project got cancelled due to lack of funds just when it had reached it's full height
and they didn't really know much about building big things either, so the concrete was of shitty quality and it would have collapsed if they had built it completely with interiors and all, so they would have to tear it down and build it all over again if they ever wanted to finish it
so it has now stood as a concrete skeleton for 14 years as an ironic testament to how grand north korea is
(
http://homepage3.nifty.com/dprk/ryugyong.JPG)
or if that didn't answer your question... play thief 2 again
you know you'll love every second of it all over again anyway
i know i do
hammers built things
simple machines that were mere tools to an end of building things
mechanists evolved the idea of building things that interact, and not merely react, as the hammer equivalents did
computers, complicated automata, security systems and mechanical guards
the gramophone that was present in TDS
anything you could imagine in any scifi film, but implemented with power of steam
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam_punk)
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Steampunk)
imagination
june gloom on 7/7/2006 at 22:45
Quote Posted by theBlackman
Electrical barriers and fences.
where was that? i don't really remember that. but it's been a while.
metal dawn on 7/7/2006 at 22:46
Replaying Thief 2 would be the best idea.
But, off the top of my head...
<>The Children of Metal<>-Most commonly called "robots." Often refered to as the Children of the Builder, The Children of Karras, Mechanical Beasts, and Iron Beasts. Come in three different forms in Thief 2, even more in FMs. They all have a green Adonizio Crystal lens in their left eye.
Worker Bots- Some of the very first Children you meet and by far among the most common. Golden in color and small in stature. They may alternately called "Welders." (I assume this from their spoken verses. Something along the lines of '...blessed are are the welders, for they will know the Builder's Love.' I assume Love to include dedication.)
Combat Bats- Serve primarily as defensive and offensive units. Large in size and gray-blue in color. Their right arm is equipped with a cannon. They may be alternately reffered to as the "Forged Ones." (Like the Workers, I assume this from the verses; 'blessed are the orged ones for they know no fear.' I assume 'know no fear' to mean they are warriors. This verse could also refer to the Spiderbots, but since both bots serve the same purpose, I see no problem).
SpiderBots- In Thief 2, they are only located in Soulforge Cathedral. As for FMs, you never know where they might turn up. They are by far one of the nastiest enemies and easily recognizable. I sometimes refer to them as the ArcherBots (they are the only other non-organic enemies besides turrets and certain traps that shoot arrows in Thief 2).
They are red is color with two heads (the higher one probably for navigation and the lower one probably for combat), six legs, and the signature exposed boiler. The boiler is significantly harder to hit, though, since it is placed at an odd angle (clearly by intention).
The Archers is significantly faster than its larger sibling, the Forged One/Combat Bot, typically moving at medium speed when on patrol. When on attack vectors, it moves at frightening pace and an equally formidable turn radius. It is carefully armed with either sawblades or arrows, meaning it cannot be tricked into destroying itself like the Combat Bot.
<>The Cetus Amicus<>- To the best of my knownledge, Thief's first submersible. It's had many siblings and spinoffs made in fan missions. The name Cetus is borrowed from mythology, after a monsterous sea creature (I think it was from the Perseus mythos). Cetus is also a Constellation in the heavens and the Zodiac. On a interesting note, it contains the star Tau Ceti.
Notable siblings of the submarine include the massive Swordfish from Deep Trouble, the Bronze Shark from the Trickster's Gem Mine Series, and the Turtle from Turtle on its Back.
Was that okay? Too much?
EDIT: I see I missed a few obvious ones. Well I was focusing on detail, anyway.
EDIT 2:
<>The Servant Conversion Project<>-Mechanist members who have had Karras' version of the KD Servant facused to their faces. Called The Servants of the Builder or The Servants of Karras, they are located only in Soulforge in Thief 2 (which is where the Project began and--depending on how you see it--ended).
The idea was first pitched by Brother Manus, who himself probably became a victim of his own idea.
Other Mechanist officers, including Kelsus, Hellesse, and Gorrick may have been converted as well.
dlw6 on 8/7/2006 at 00:12
Karras stated at one point that the rust gas was a precursor invention, and at least one book/scroll said the gas was being shipped from KD to the city.
It was not clear to me if the brass masks were chosen for their looks, or if they contained some precursor technology that aided in subordinating the Servants' free will. I have also wondered how the cultivator, which looks a bit bigger than a fist, was installed in the servant masks yet the servants could still talk. While I haven't tried talking with an apple stuck in my mouth for some years, it's difficult as I recall.
I would suggest that the system by which Karras taunted Garret in Soulforge was a Public Address system (one way), not an intercom (two way). You see a similar one-way PA system in Angelwatch as part of the alarm. In Soulforge, each rant was played only in the room in which Garret was located when the rant began, i.e. if you leave the room during a rant, it gets quieter the further you go. This implies that Karras may have been aware of Garret's location, but could also be a game engine limitation. It does not imply that the equipment enabled Karras to hear Garret's response, if any, hence I conclude it was not two-way. Karras only responsed directly to Garret's location when spotted by a Watcher ("There you are.."), which further supports this conclusion. If Karras had an intercom system (two way distant communication), he would not have had to call Manus and others to his sanctuary and talk to them through the door, though he might have chosen to do so anyhow to exert his authority.
Don
theBlackman on 8/7/2006 at 00:36
Good point. Using a little logic with the possible applications and the inventiveness of Karass and company, (the use of video the eye/orb connection) an intercom is not outside of speculation.
I do agree, however, that the system was in fact, a PA rather than a true intercom system.
Cavador used the Precursor discoveries to advantage, but nothing says that the Rust gas was merely a leftover and that Cavador did not develop it using the Precursor technology.
In some of the scrolls, etc. mention is made of Precursor technology that Cavador discovered that gave him "tools" to develop other (unspecified) agents and devices. *para-phrased from the text(s)*
metal dawn on 8/7/2006 at 00:49
Quote Posted by dlw6
I have also wondered how the cultivator, which looks a bit bigger than a fist, was installed in the servant masks yet the servants could still talk. While I haven't tried talking with an apple stuck in my mouth for some years, it's difficult as I recall.
The cultivator in Gervaisius' may have only been a prototype.
Quote Posted by dlw6
it does not imply that the equipment enabled Karras to hear Garret's response, if any, hence I conclude it was not two-way
Or Karras simply didn't care (as in "catch up in the moment").
But what you said is more likely, I just like throwing out other possiblilities.
Quote Posted by dlw6
Karras stated at one point that the rust gas was a precursor invention, and at least one book/scroll said the gas was being shipped from KD to the city.
Karras took a lot of inspiriation from the Precursors. He believed they were the only mortal beings to ever come close to the Builder and himself in intellectual brilliance.
I'm sure sure already know this. I'm just saying for whatever value it has.
dlw6 on 8/7/2006 at 04:15
I've long pondered an FM story line that would provide some interesting game play and further explain the Precursors' odd mix of low and high tech, and oddly enough this story line (conceived after my first time through TDP and TMA) still does not conflict with any canon or subsequent FMs that deal with Precursor tech. Unfortunately I never could get DromEd to do anything beyond the basics and can't fool with it this year...
Don
metal dawn on 8/7/2006 at 04:54
I've heard a few speculations (here and there) that the Servant Masks were the down fall of the Precursors. The exact meaning of the this I can't determine, though they may have been saying that the Precursors nobles and rulerscreated slave armies and battled each other in greatly destructive wars.
That brings back the question of the cataclysm that buried the city.
Whether those armies were there at all, I don't know, but let's be hypothetical.
-The slave armies could have cause Karath-Din to be buried be cause of the destruction they caused; therefore they may have been the cataclysm.
-There's a question of whether rust gas might have used. This may explain why there are so few remains to be seen. But then again, a great deal of the city is buried, and there are large pockes of lava as well.
-Perhaps a combination of "natural" and "unnatural" causes precipitated the fall of KD. The strange weapons used this hypotheciacal war wuld have cause numerous deaths, explaining a good deal of the Precursors' numbers disappearing. Perhaps the weapons also caused enviromental canges which resulted in the slow but eventual burial of the city.
-My theories may seem unstable in light of the scrolls spoeaking of the Sons of Heaven (Va-Toraq,Va-Taran) and their societies. My answer is that these scrolls simply seem to be records and public records at that. By an archaelogical standpoint, public records very rarely (if ever) tell of events behind the scenes. The hypothetical wars I speak of could very well have happened, especially if the leaders involved were crafty (possibly like Truart but on a much more illustrious scale).
-Perhaps the Precursors realized what a danger their technologies and powers were and intentionally buried the city to keep others from making the same mistakes.
There are many theories and I may have picked a few of these up from somewhere else.
