Mechanical
Basic Information
Anatomy
Mechanicals, at least most of the ones currently discovered, have similar anatomy to most sentient species. Two arms, two legs, a torso and a head. This is where many of the similarities end, for the limbs of Mechanicals, depending on the model, can be removed and interchanged with other models. It has become quite common to see Mechanicals with mis-matched limbs due to the scarcity of servicable parts. There seem to be four 'main' types of Mechanicals found so far; standard models with 'male' and 'female' structures, a shorter 'care' model for young children and the elderly, and a 'combat' model that thus far no one has been brave enough to activate.
Additional Information
Social Structure
Mechanicals are social creatures, and are always willing to help those around them, sometimes to a fault. It's part of their programming, what they were built for; to assist their creators. Without Atmo connecting the Mechanicals via the air, they have to communicate via traditional methods on the ground. Still, they are quite social with one another, and rarely see one as greater than another.
Uses, Products & Exploitation
Mechanicals, when they were first built, were used for... well, just about anything one could imagine could be done by a Mechanical, and several other tasks that couldn't. The number of models built to automate everything from garbage collection to large-scale shipping coordination to acting in museum villages would boggle the modern mind.
After their re-discovery and activation, Mechanicals have struggled to find a new purpose for themselves. Many have had to take on jobs that they were not originally designed for, while others find themselves leaping headfirst into opportunities they never would have been able to pursue in the past. One has become a well-respected doctor, while another is striving to become an actor.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Mechanicals can be found all over the Mortal Lands, although most are inactive after being ordered to shut down at the end of the age of the Memoria. Those that have been discovered and re-activated usually reside in the major cities, where the artificers that race to learn their technology live. The most dense population is in Poartlind, although a few reside in more far-flung areas, including Observation Station Okta-Seko .
Average Intelligence
In their prime, each Mechanical was connected to a 'hive-mind' as the humans call it. Mechanicals themselves called it 'Atmo', although it has long since shut down. Each Mechanical now must rely on their own internal databases for information and wisdom. Some have larger databases than others. Some have actually bothered to fill those databases.
While no single mechanical could have the attribute 'moronic' ascribed to them, There are a couple who have not emerged from the centuries unscathed. The Wawati, in particular, are a rather curious example of 'artificial intelligence' gone wrong.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Mechanicals have sight, sound, touch, and a module that, while it cannot evoke emotions associated with smell, can certainly sample the air for certain chemical compounds like smoke. Depending on the model of Mechanical, a variety of other sensors are included for everything from barometic pressure to heat vision. They are unable to taste, however, as they do not need to eat.
As far as those acclimated to Mechanical technology can tell, the sensory capabilities of Mechanicals should be greater than the average human. 'should' being the operative word, as thousands of years without maintenance has left many with broken components that cannot be easily replaced, leaving some blind or unable to detect when they have picked something up.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
In the times of the Memoria, Mechanicals did not have names, rather labels based on what they were designed for, such as Metrologic 16 or Burrito Quinto. The Humans of the modern age, however, seem to have a great attachment to having a proper name, viewing the Mechanicals as people in their own right. Those Mechanicals that have been reactivated, therefore, have gone and chosen their own names. Some on their profession, others on bodily traits, others based on the people they have met. There has yet to be a single defining characteristic for modern Mechanical names.
Beauty Ideals
As Mechanicals cannot and feel no need to reproduce, they do not look for the typical signs of 'beauty' one has come expect when choosing a mate. Most of them are unfamiliar with the idea of having partner at all, outside of work conditions. But there are Mechanicals, especially in Poartlind, that have found themselves advancing far beyond what their original programming was intended for. The closest they have come to describe as 'beauty' in terms of a Mechanical is... Uniqueness. For a species that was quite literally mass-produced to look identical, those that have managed to change their form via shape or color must be very unique indeed.
This being said, there is not a uniform standard for 'unique', and it is left to the individual Mechanical how more unique changes to their morphology may be considered 'beautiful'.
Major Language Groups and Dialects
Mechanicals can speak every known language under the sun, provided they have the requesite software and libraries. Explorers have strived to find more of these 'libraries' to improve their cabailities as translators and ambassadors, but as they do not seem to exist in any physical form, have been quite hard to track down.
Most Mechanicals that have been revived, by default, speak both the language of the Memoria and the language of Mira. Many have further expanded their libraries to include Lunican, the language of the Archiapegalo.
History
The Mechanicals as a species were first created several thousand years ago by the Memoria, who came to the Mortal Lands from beyond the stars. The Mechanicals were their helpers, assistants who could go where the Memoria could not. Over time, more and more Mechanicals were designed and constructed to complete a variety of tasks, from simple secretary work to complex chemical manipulations. Soon Mechanicals operated almost every aspect of Memoria society, leaving the Memoria themselves to struggle to find meaning in this workless utopia they had created.
Then the Memoria were inflicted with an infertility plague. No amount of research or technological ingenuity could cure this affliction, and the Memoria slowly died out. Once the final Memoria had passed and was cremated, the Mechanicals shut themselves down by the order of Atmo, the overseeing AI. Save for a few rogue models that dotted the land, all was as quiet as it had been before the Memoria step foot upon the star.
Thousands of years passed. The great structures of the Memoria rusted away and returned to the earth, save for a few built to withstand the tests of time. Many Mechanicals were lost, either by fire or earthquakes, or simply rusted away until there was nothing left but wiring that quickly vanished to birds seeking strong material for their nests.
While their inert forms littered the landscape for centuries, sometimes revered as fallen gods by the tribes of the Mortal Lands, their true nature was not discovered until the late 1800s when a Mechanical was reactivated while clearing out an old storehouse. After much confusion and panic, the Mechanical was given to an artificer's shop in the Boiler District of Poartlind to figure out what to do with. Over time the purpose and capabilities of the Mechanicals were learned, and explorers set out in droves to find more of these mysterious, useful creatures.
While only a couple hundred Mechanicals have been reactivated at most, they have quickly integrated themselves into society. The humans of the modern age viewed them more as equals with their own fates rather than as tools to be used and discarded as the Memoria did. This shift in worldview allowed the Mechanicals to expand their horizons in more ways than they could haver have imagined, if it is possible for a Mechanical to imagine. They began to build a culture of their own, slowly, putting together a united future for the first time, one that was built with individual hands rather than a overseeing collective.
Genetic Ancestor(s)
Origin/Ancestry
Constructed by the Memoria
Lifespan
500 years with maitenance, not accounting for a thousand-year shutdown
Average Height
4'3"-8"
Average Weight
200-500 lbs
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Most Mechanicals have neutral, metallic tones on their frames; some still have the original powder-coating applied by the Memoria, while others have had theirs flake away over time, revealing the bare metal underneath. There are a few that have applied new coatings, these in far brighter colors than the bland whites and greys they had been coated with before. While these new coatings do not withstand the elements as well as the original powder-based coat, the Mechanicals in question seem to enjoy them far more.
Geographic Distribution
Related Ethnicities
Related Technologies
Related Materials
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