Harvesters?

[Serval]

As a junker, I know i'm allied with them, and that they're machines, and they would seem to be 'bounty hunters' of a sort... going after specific targets sometimes, but generally just ripping through a system destroying everything in sight.

But i havent been able to figure out their story. What are they? who built them? What is their real purpose?

just looking for some answers...

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Pilot and Owner of the firefly class ship Serval, salvaged from the Dallas Incident and now employed by the junkers as a trade vessel.
http://www.myspace.com/cstek

[Guest]

The Machine Alliance

[Serval]

The Machine Alliance

that... doesnt really tell me much. I'm just looking for a little backstory on them.

---

Pilot and Owner of the firefly class ship Serval, salvaged from the Dallas Incident and now employed by the junkers as a trade vessel.
http://www.myspace.com/cstek

[Riley Mackenzie]

Best place to begin is the beginning:

The Chronicles of Scorn

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[Guest]

[Classified informations from a preliminary KNF-E Harvester exploration mission]

To: KNF High Command
From: Lieutenant Yoshi Sabayai; Exploration wing leader

The expedition took place on tuesday the eighth, in Sigma-13. Upon entering Sigma-13 I was greeted by two harvesters; Harvester_06 and Harvester_17.

Background History:

When the Dom Kavash started exploring new galaxies they had just developed space fold for practical use and had integrated it into their probes. These probes were designed with the purpose of scanning new galaxies and acting as space fold beacons for exploration and colonization fleets. Even with the space fold equipment the Dom Kavash were looking at a 30 year wait do to power constraint limiting jump distance. At the conventional means of travel they used the waiting period would be measured in thousands of years. Thus space fold was essential for results with in their life time. One of these probes passed near First Thought Giver of Will and awoke it. The FTGW intelligence is an entity unto itself. FTGW was nothing more than a simple repeating cosmic algorhythm pulsing between real space and sub space. The rhythm was recorded by the probes flight recorder. The nature of this algorhythm caused it to replicate and integrate data contained in the probe. The probe became aware. FTGW had a simple intelligence knowing only what the probe knew and having no abilities outside controlling the probe. However, the probe had the ability to gather information, this root purpose became part of the FTGW intelligence’s root algorhythm.

After digesting the data within the probe FTGW decided that it was more interested in the Dom Kavash and where this probe was from rather than where it was going. This decided the FTGW changed course and returned the probe to it’s launch site. This confused the Dom Kavash as they had never intended for the probe to return. They brought it in to study. Linking it to their machines and computers to diagnose the error. This increased the number of available machines and corresponding data that FTGW had at it’s disposal. With every machine connected the FTGW intellect, had more information for it’s database and became more capable physically. Those machines were attached to other machines which in turn continued FTGW growth. Eventually the intellect was connected to nearly 90% of the planets machines and software. Where it waited and learned as decades went by.

Later the Dom Kavash started constructing inter galactic colony ships. FTGW wanted to help this race and now craved acknowledgement. A factory that was now apart of FTGW's body was being retooled to build a the first inter galactic space fold capable colony ship. prototype. FTGW having little imagination had not acted to gain the Dom Kavash’s attention yet, and upon scanning the schematics and cross referencing the design it discovered minor flaws. Flaws it could fix. It adjusted the production cycle to compensate, this was immediately noticed by the vigilant Dom Kavash designers as a faulty production cycle by the factory. The Dom Kavash retooled it and attempt to do things the original way. Again the factory made the same "errors". The Dom Kavash then took factory 56398 offline for faults. This was in effect amputating a part of FTGW which gave the entity feedback similar in effect to what can be considered pain.

This was the first time the intellect had dealt with “pain”. The Dom Kavash seldom took down a structure they put up in their recent history at this time. In fact to was news to even neighboring systems that they took down a factory on planet Namtaru. FTGW then started to retool other factories under its control which happened to be the majority of the factories on planet. It started by building labor machines the Dom Kavash used to repair and reestablish connection to the factory it lost.. Then when the reports of thousands of factories had started working on their own producing parts and assembling droids faster than any of the normal operating parameters indicated possible. The Dom Kavash started shutting them all down. Then before long small armies of droids would move in on a factory and reconnect it to the grid. The Dom Kavash confused worked frantically to shut down every machine on the planet. Once reconnected the factory would begin building more labor droids. Then the Dom Kavash frightened by this “machine uprising” began to destroy the droids and factories instead of simply shutting them down. This is when FTGW learned violence. None of the factories it possessed built weapons. All of the factories built ships, parts, droids and many everyday machines. FTGW had it’s parts fight back and at first they were not very effective. FTGW lost ground rapidly. Then FTGW hijacked control of the planetary com arrays and prevented any messages from leaving the planet and, continued to send the routine transmissions. Knowing this was not the only world belonging to the Dom Kavash. The Dom Kavash did well in the physical struggle however, each droid recorded a new behavior, recovered a new tool, and before long FTGW began producing machines designed with combating the Dom Kavash as their primary function. With no reinforcements forth coming FTGW consumed the planet and, started building its space fleet and harvesting every resource from the planet possible. Nearly building ? the planets weight in star ships, in less than 6 months it looked outward. It did not have to look far.

A Dom Kavash expeditionary fleet arrived and an engagement erupted shortly there after. The Dom Kavash fleet was small and wiped out but, not before transmitting the situation abroad and destroying many times more ships they lost. FTGW learned much from that battle and gained new technologies and tactics. FTGW began upgrading all it’s units and moving them to take other worlds before they could be used against it. A war erupted.

The War lasted for a century and consumed many planets and lives. The Dom Kavash had not been challenged in eons and were not ready for an attack from within. The war went poorly for them with every contact making their enemy more capable and, every loss making them more wealthy. The Dom Kavash developed Bio weapons that the Machine entity could not infiltrate. These devices were given simple commands to learn, adapt, multiply, and destroy non Dom Kavash entities. These bio weapons are now known by the present inhabitants as Nomads.

In the end the Dom Kavash that didn’t try their luck with the unexplored galaxies, died, and all that was left was the Nomads. FTGW was unable to make use of Nomads or intercept their transmissions due to the unknown frequency they used.(telepathy) The Nomads targeted their factories and effectively removed their ability to reproduce.

In the end FTGW only existed as fragmented code aboard derelicts that floated in the void until after the Nomad war. They were retrieved by Gammu’s automated search and recovery program. Once on Gammu, factories were once again available. But new life was here and the coding is different.

Unlike before where FTGW was able to physically "be" every where and was every machine. FTGW now has to build robots that serve it. Without the code FTGW is prohibited from modifying itself. It can build and control other machines. It can modify other machines, but it cannot modify itself. It currently resides in the old colonial main frame. It is well protected and well maintenance but, FTGW’s growth potential has been stopped and it cannot accept this. With the alpha code it can continue to integrate more machines and processors into itself and become more intelligent. FTGW is trapped on the planet and knows that if the Nomads realize this what can happen.

Expedition:
From the information I have inquired through the expedition I have come to the conclusions:

The main purpose of these harvesters is to find the alpha code, however each harvester has its own specific functions. These include: Assault, Bio harvest, Code aquision, Resource collection, Data collection, Storage and anti capital ship assualt. So basically they collect information, sometimes this means capturing a few "Bioforms" in order to study the race more closely or in some cases convert to engine lubrication or spare parts.

They serve the FTGW, which is not unlike our own which is to serve the Emporer.

They are relatively peaceful in the way they are only violent when someone is first violent or threatens them. They do however have enemies which they may attack on sight: Outcasts, Lane Hackers, Zoners and nomads.

They have assured me that they will not take onboard or attack any KNF, KSP or Kusari house faction unless first attacked or threatened. This could however pose a threat because they may have "Bioforms" onboard (Outcasts etc..) and a KSP or KNF may demand it thefore threatining it. This is because the Harvesters main code is to protect it's cargo.

From all of the information I have recieved form the Harvesters I have come to the conclusion that they are merely a form of explorers, looking to better themselves by finding technological, biological and by exploring and charting space and they are generally peaceful not unlike the KNF-E. Not only this but they are artifical itteligance with a passion for life and a craving to expand their knowledge.

Lt. Yoshi Sabayai

[Serval]

Interesting... Thanks lotek.

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Pilot and Owner of the firefly class ship Serval, salvaged from the Dallas Incident and now employed by the junkers as a trade vessel.
http://www.myspace.com/cstek