"Are you sure this is safe?" Linnea asked, sweat plastering her hair to her scalp. She couldn't tell if it was more from nerves, or from the heat emanating off the fleshy internals of the 'armor,' and decided she didn't particularly care.
"Not at all," replied Tallus, then laughed at her startled expression. "Relax, Lin. This comes from the top. They say Rhaspor herself built and tested it. If she survived it, so can you. Besides," he added, bending to scoop the final piece off the ground next to them, "It's just basic combat trials. We'll all be right here to rip it off you as soon as it eats your mind. Only kidding," he quickly reassured her.
"If I live through this, I'll make you regret it," Lin grumbled, despite her fading anxiety. Tallus hefted the helm - a gleaming, milky-white affair, the smooth surface of which was only interrupted by a row of four lifeless eyes - and she nodded at him. "Let's get it over with, then."
He slid the piece onto her head, and she was plunged into darkness.
"Ready?" Tallus asked, his voice muffled to her by the helm.
"Ready."
There was a pause, and then, all at once, a thousand tiny pinpricks of pain lit up across her body, more annoying than alarming, as countless nerve endings shot from the inner flesh of the armor into her skin, burrowing deep, and locked in place. With the unnerving sensation of floating within her own body, she became aware of the armor as an extension of her own flesh and bone. She could feel its strength supplement her own, feel the air brush past its enamel-coated bone plating and into small crevices of exposed muscle. It was...exhilarating.
"Lin?" Tal's voice wavered just enough to betray him. "Everything alright in there?"
She opened her eyes and blinked, and four eyes opened and blinked with her, revealing a far wider view of the world than she was used to. She looked down, examining her new body, itching to test what it could do, and smiled.
"Never better."
Daipomatic bioarmor is a type of organic integrated exoskeleton designed specifically to enhance the abilities of members of
The Hunt . Each piece is handcrafted by fleshweavers and tailor-made for a specific wearer. Once donned, the armor is activated with Daipomatic animating Thread, and inserts nerve endings through the wearer's skin to connect to their own nervous system, giving them unparalleled control and enhanced combat prowess. The armor was originally designed by
Silena Rhaspor, and developed into five separate patterns, each modified to aid a specific clan-role of the Hunt in combat.
Design Overview
Hunter's Daipomatic Bioarmor (hereafter HDBa) is not an organism in its own right, but rather a suit of organic components brought to life and controlled by the wearer's own brain. The basic construction of the suit consists of:
- A thin, inner, dermal layer which lays directly upon the wearer's skin
- Connective nerve tissue, which penetrates the wearer's skin and connects them to the armor itself
- A thick layer of musculature
- A relatively light yet sturdy layer of bone
- A thin layer of keratin, which also covers major joints and breaks in the bone for mobility
- A thin coating of protective enamel, as found on teeth
- Leather straps and steel pins to assist in initially putting the suit on
Advanced suits (AHDBa) also graft additional exscinta and endoscinta within their plating, further increasing physical and
Neural Threading capabilities.
Design Patterns
Although base HDBa suits are manufactured and available to Hunters, most prefer a suit specifically built and modified to benefit their clanrole. Hence, five main patterns are manufactured on top of the HDBa-Base.
Vanguard Pattern
The HDBa-Vanguard is built with a less dense layer of bone and a thicker layer of keratin, allowing the widest range of motion with the largest increase in the wearer's agility. The helms boasts 6 eyes, 4 aural, and 4 nasal organs for advanced perception, and boasts a sparse stubble of bristle-like whiskers for additional sensory input. One additional exscinta grafted into each forearm, and additional endoscinta in each limb, are supplied with neural tissue and glands built to generate Peace and Shine, to supplement the body's own supply.
To support the highly adaptive close combat nature of the Vanguard, AHDBa-Vanguard also come with slots built into the lower back torso to hold secondary weaponry such as short swords, daggers, and/or hatchets, and smaller slots on the sides of the abdomen to hold throwing blades. The spine and legs of the Vanguard pattern are also uniquely strengthened to protect the wearer from hard landings and impacts.
Hammer Pattern
The HDBa-Hammer turns the wearer into a walking tower of flesh and bone. It features the thickest bone plating with an additional shoulder pauldron, and hulking musculature to match. The forearms are uniquely flared in defensive, shield-like formations, and the chest tapers to a deflective point and features a tall neck guard. Made for grappling and surviving the grasp of Afflicted and Elder Children, the HDBa-Hammer itself is a weapon, as the edges throughout the armor are accentuated and inset with steel blades, and the widest, flat portions of armor feature hooked barbs or edged scales designed to tear through flesh like sandpaper.
AHDBa-Hammer variants feature additional endoscinta supported with Peace-generating glands for Seronic defenses (i.e., stonelimb transfiguration) and Shine-generating glands to manage Daipomatic repairs. Because Hammers often wield two-handed weaponry, additional exscinta are not included, but the Peace glands can be repurposed if a new weapon or weapon repairs need to be generated.
Arrow Pattern
HDBa-Arrow is the first pattern designed for ranged combat. It is light and extremely flexible, and primarily built to strengthen the arms and back. Arrows typically fight with warbows, and the armor reflects this in its slim and agile design, intended to increase the ease of drawing and loosing a bow with minimal bulk. The helm features four eyes, two of which provide enhanced long-range vision, and several pairs of antenna-like protrusions along the top ridges, which help determine wind and weather conditions.
The AHDBa-Arrow helm is noticeably larger, as it contains massive stores of Drive to power Threading abilities stemming from the School of Gu'ul Tamat. Arrows will rely on clairvoyant vision to predict their enemies' movements, allowing them to adjust their aim and hit critical mass time and time again. The inner wrists also sport an additional exscinta each, if the Arrow so chooses to manifest their own unique Seronic or Serakalic arrows.
Flame Pattern
Designed for high-intensity Akalic ranged attacks with a wide area of effect, the AHDBa-Flame includes wrist- and shoulder-mounted Serakalic cannons to supplement the Akalic weaponry typically carried by Flames. Like the AHDBa-Arrow, the helm also contains stores of Drive to power the Flame's clairvoyant vision. The armor overall is sturdier than that of the Arrow, since Flames are more likely to see close combat, and the arms specifically are reinforced to smooth the aiming of Akalic weapons.
The AHDBa-Flame helm only has two eyes, but they are elongated, giving a uniquely wide field of view to assist in target acquisition. The chest features criss-crossing protrusions, within which, past a membranous film, the wearer can store an impressive amount of cartridges, shells, bombs, and other Akalic munitions.
Pillar Pattern
The most versatile clanrole, the HDBa-Pillar is built to mirror this versatility. Primarily constructed for speed and Threader support, the suit is relatively light with extreme additional leg and back musculature. Extra exscinta are scattered across the limbs - 3 on each forearm and thigh - allowing for versatile combinations of Threads and Weaves, supported by large glands producing Peace, Spark, and Shine for offensive and medical capabilities.
The AHDBa-Pillar variant also features Drive glands, used to perceive where in the melee the squad is weakest, and Halt glands, used to maintain an expanded consciousness and relay battlefield communications.
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