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Since you will be fighting the Kharaa on home
territory (our own ships and bases), you have
many advantages. Some of these are obvious – like
having maps of the battleground. But even more
important, is the existing command network in
each ship.
The command network is a layer of multi-purpose
nanos that spreads, root-like, just above all
ceilings and overhangs. Micro-arrays of lenses,
tiny packets of construction nanos, and hundreds
of other nano-devices all tied into millions of
relays and computing nodules – cohering into a
pervasive, responsive system intimately connected
to every aspect of its ship's or base's existence.
This network also holds the marine's resources,
distributed throughout its veins.
To take advantage of the network, every ship
or base has a command interface, which, before
the Kharaa, was used by top administrative or
authority figures to manage and govern their domain.
These interfaces replaced vast numbers of support
staff with one person, who could instantly turn
their attention anywhere within the ship or base,
and guide the crew through their duties. Used
for tasks as varied as maintenance or surveillance,
the command interface also allowed its user to
operate some elements of the physical environment,
like doors and lights; and, crucially, granted
clearance for nano-construction.
Put to use by a Frontiersman Commander (using
a command console),
the network becomes the heart of any military
campaign. Gaining control of the command network
is the first and most vital task for a squad.
This is easily accomplished. Since we are returning
these ships and bases to the previous owners,
they gladly provide us with the encryption keys
to access their systems. Before a squad even deploys,
they are already online. For a description of
the command interface, click here.
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