Item Database:Infantry Gear:Dropsuits
Contents
Development
History
YC114 saw changes to technologies everywhere in the cluster from starship micro engineering, warp space theory, and fulleride based technologies are now advancing the once stagnant fields of research including ground warfare research.
Various empires have different approaches on how best to protect and arm their soldiers in the new technology fallout, adapting older technology or building anew the think tanks, the prototypes, the trial and errors where for almost nothing when the Amarr was discovered to have immortal soldier technology during the Pike's Landing incident.
From that incident it was not long before the other empires had access to the technology by either stolen or similarly researched means. With the concept of a highly sophisticated improved clone at disposal, that cares not if its got killed injured or exposed to highly hazardous situations quickly sprung up a massive new direction of warfare research that cared not for the operator's safe use but to be most effective as possible.
The first generation of 'dropsuits' are mostly adaptation of existing suits augmented with the new advances of technology, working around the highly militarized clone and reckless thinking disregarding safety of the operator. The technology powering the suit; with micro reactors, shielding, biotics, wetware computers, reactive armors, and modular configurations with the most extreme cases augmenting the clone's own body into the suit has nearly brought infantry combat up to a similar level of to which a Capsuleer can control his ship.
The dropsuit's unprecedented design alone make it worth more than a dozen special force units. Throwing in a consciousness whose experience cannot die but only return all the much wiser and possibly more annoyed the dropsuit and the clone within more than priceless piece of military equipment. Similar to the Empyreans, the dropsuit operator can fine tune electronics and defense measure on the fly, reprogram his gun to efficiently use the best course and frequency of attack, and synchronize his operational knowledge into a vehicle enhancing its performance several folds.
As YC114 continued to march on empires were rapidly introducing new dropsuit technologies as quickly as possible to meet every battlefield demand out there. While some dropsuits are of new design; not all have such humble beginnings as the Amarrian dropsuits did. Other empires were simply inspired by the ground work as they entered the foray such as Caldari suits. Others have been adaptations of previously existing technologies namely the Minmatar's dropsuits which are nothing more than borrowed from maintenance and pilot powered suits armored and powered up. Some suits were developments in progress, such as the Gallente stealth suit originally intended for Black Eagle agents but was adapted to accept the new technology needs for the clones.
Identified Classes
As of 1 February YC115 the following suits types are known to be fielded and the order they have appeared in.
Amarr Heavy Frame (design predates Pike's Landing)
Pike's Landing incident YC114
Second Battle for Caldari Prime YC115
As one can note there is no parity of released hardware so far and development of new suits are at a slow pace as Concord has made no rules on technology equality applicable for ground forces. There are rumors of even more suits being in development and its unclear when they will be seeing their way into the hands of the enclaves.
Technology
Dropsuit Construction
Dropsuits along with the clones operating them are built from prefabrication units consisting of construction nanites, biomass, and the materials the suite is made out of; these are currently known as Clone Reactivation Units or CRUs for short.
Starting with the Military Grade Clone, the core of every dropsuit, is constructed out of high quality biomass laced with nanites. The clone design itself is complete with many military decisions incorporated; such as redundancy to prevent body failure and shock, enhanced skeletal and muscular strength, improved endurance, efficient metabolism, dulled pain senses and additional organs to support nanite use throughout the body complete with bodily fabrication to help supplement any additional augmentations that allow drop suit porting where needed. Encasing the innards of the clone is a bio-engineered titanium-ion based skeleton to keep the clone lightweight and strong. Despite all the liberties taken in designing these nearly two and a half meter tall monsters, have still have a very human physiology. This feature makes conscious transferal into this 'blank body' easy and sensible even if the previous body was the one that consciousness was born in. Early development of these military grade clones was only available in a male gender which has impacted several early female test subjects to the program. This was later corrected shortly before the battle of Caldari prime when the military specs were fully matched in a female psyche .
These clones are typically quickly constructed all using the same genetic footprint on the field using flash cloning process as the biomass is grown into rapidly fabricated nutrient lattice assisting the nanites in placing the materials where they belong in the body. As the requirements are highly repressive making every build the same the process becoming highly automated and requiring no technician to ensure the clone's well being and health after activation. While a highly customized clone in theory is feasible the practice has yet to expand this service to the immortal soldiers.
After or during the clone's construction a dropsuit instruction file is then downloaded with all the specifications at the request of the licensed user. After confirming the chosen license the nanites begin construction of the suit around the freshly minted clone. Some dropsuits require grafting itself into the clone's skeletal or nervous structure such a the Gallente and Amarrian suits had this been done consciously would have resulted in extensive amounts of pain.
After the augmentation of the suits a baseline tough soft or body suit layer, as every race approaches this layer differently the technology in each of them is widely different, from myofibril sleeves to grasp onto the soldiers muscles to enhance his actions, to simple pinching proofed suit. This soft layer has several unified functions common to all suits. This layer houses most of the important inner drop suit systems including the suit's reactor, wetware computers, biotic distributors, biological regulation, vital sensors, medicinal applicators along with the key critical component the nanite pumps which help lighten the immensely heavy dropsuit's weight and supplement the heavier weight of outer defenses.
Surrounding the soft body suit is the external suit layer. Once again every race approached this layer differently to deal with all types and manners of hazardous environments using a mix of soft and hard defenses such as self sealing fabric, clothing optics, interwoven sensors, shield generators, armor plating, biological power sourcing, nanite reservoirs and sophisticated sensors. This layer also allows attachment and servicing of many external pieces of equipment and provides linking function from the equipment to the suit's computers and ultimately the wearer's consciousness and subconscious.
The entire manufacturing process from an electronic license is almost 10 second in self contained Mobile Clone Reactivation devices. Much larger facilities such as those on a warbarge class vessel can afford to have several clones pre-fabricated before sending it down to the field making activation and delivery the only delay in those steps in the heat of battle.
Dropsuit Usage
Currently only immortal soldiers can use the dropsuit's safely. Non-clone personnel can expire quickly or suffer irreversible heath problems donning such suit on due to the general lack of safety for the wearer' longevity. Ailments such as cancer, broken bones, heavy metal poisoning, radiation burns, thermal scarring are just the start to the myriad number of problems a regular human could experience in a dropsuit.
That said dropsuits being used by immortal soldiers are carefully deployed. Thanks to the nature of consciousness transferal this allows an entire army of clone soldiers to nearly appear anywhere where there are willing corporations to lend their relays out to activate the Clone Reactivation Units. Because of the limited numbers however keeping one clone on employ can be generally expensive in the long run and most corporations and militaries have resorting to using dropsuit wearing soldiers on an as need basis which has been lately been incidents involving other immortal soldiers as regular infantry currently do not stand a chance against such foes.
In YC115, Dropsuit soldiers saw a massive influx into the universe and was revealed to the public when the Gallente Federation and Caldari State used them en mass to try to scramble and secure Caldari prime after the titan crashed. Loss of life on both sides involved was substantial and military leaders are having to rethink their strategies when immortal soldiers are involved resulting in the current fighting fire with fire mentality. Despite various disadvantages of both sides; the immortal soldiers fought on the ground to a standstill leading to the peace treaty in place where Mordu's Legion is now in charge of security of the planet.
In YC115, Thukker Tribe trying to establish peace in their territory invited enclaves of immortal soldiers to call their land a home. While fighting has been intense and fierce between the varying enclaves of these soldiers, the mere presence of the soldiers have drastically hampered Angel Cartel forces operating in the area. While it is yet to remain to be seen; this could set a dangerous precedent for all of the cluster as the empires are now at an arms race on raising the largest immortal army and wooing the soldiers to fight for their causes as the fighting over Molden Heath continues.