Rogue Drones
Rogue drones and wild drones are the terms used over advanced drones that mutated out of control. A few years ago some ingenious Gallentean inventor had the idea of creating super-advanced drones that could think and act on their own - in essence acting in every sense like a regular space ship except being unmanned and computer controlled. First prototypes were encouraging, but then disaster struck. The drones became unruly, then unmanageable. Some of these were huge - the largest drones ever constructed, these drones were even equipped with warp drives and equipped with the latest advancements in artificial intelligence. These mother drones, as they were called, along with several lesser drones soon managed to spread out, not only within the same system as the research facility that birthed them, but also to other systems. Only later men discovered exactly how - the drones attacked and took over space ships, then used them to jump to other systems, the drones themselves safely hidden within the ship. Needless to say the super-drone research was soon abandoned by the Gallenteans.
The rogue drones soon started behaving very much like other living beings. They constructed a home for themselves, usually deep in some remote asteroid field, and began plans for reproduction. This involved both the mining of asteroids and attacks on unsuspecting mining vessels - all with the intent of gathering the materials needed to expand their homes and to build their own drones. As the months passed drone lairs popped up in a dozen different places and today they can be found in almost every corner of the world, harassing and killing spacefarers of every sort. As each drone lair is started by a separate mother drone they often evolve in quite different ways. Each new generation of rogue drones shows some new mutations, creating a huge diversity in the shape, size and power for rogue drones.
Recently a new type of drone lairs have appeared, commonly called hulk lairs. It seems that when rogue drones manage to capture suitably large vessels, like large cargo freighters or cruisers, they don’t dismantle the ship completely, but instead start to incorporate the lair into the ship’s hull. Eventually these hulks break free from the drone lair that captured them and start drifting out of the asteroid field, sometimes even under their own accord; the propulsion system still being intact. Hulks like these have been found drifting in deep space, far from human settlements, but occasionally they drift close by settled planets or through space routes. This can cause severe problems for the populace and space farers, often requiring heavy military involvement to get rid of.
In areas where rogue drones are numerous and seen as deterrents to normal mining and trade operations the local authorities have taken it up by themselves to employ armed forces to destroy rogue drone lairs, or at least keeping them from spreading too heavily. A favored tactic among those hunting rogue drones is re-programming their AI circuits, effectively taking control of them. However, this tactic is hard to pull off, not to say very dangerous. Discussions have been held between the empires and within the CONCORD about possible ways for a joint effort to rid the world of rogue drones, but these discussions have not let to any concrete deals being made and thus it is still in the hands of local authorities to deal with the drones as they see fit.
Agent Missions involving Rogue Drones
- Alluring Emanations
- Attack of the Drones
- Drone Distribution
- The Drone Infestation
- Drone Detritus
- Infested Ruins
- Ice Installation
- Like Drones to a Cloud
- New Frontiers
- Pile of Pithix
- Rogue Drone Harassment
- Rogue Spy, Rogue Hunt, Rogue Eradication
- Roving Rogue Drones
- What's In A Name
Complexes involving Rogue Drones
Rogue Drone Ship Classes
Note: Drones seen at asteroid belts are named similarly, for example Strain Sunder Drone instead of Strain Sunder Alvi.
Sub-frigate class
Arachula Apis Asmodeus Apis Beelzebub Apis Belphegor Apis Dragonfly Apis Incubus Apis Malphas Apis Mammon Apis Moth Apis Scorpionfly Apis Tarantula Apis Termite Apis
Frigate class
Barracuda Alvi Decimator Alvi Devilfish Alvi Hunter Alvi Infester Alvi Raider Alvi Render Alvi Silverfish Alvi Splinter Alvi Sunder Alvi
Interceptor class
Strain Decimator Alvi Strain Infester Alvi Strain Render Alvi Strain Splinter Alvi
Assault Ship class
Strain Barracude Alvi Strain Devilfish Alvi Strain Hunter Alvi Strain Raider Alvi Strain Silverfish Alvi Strain Sunder Alvi
Destroyer class
Dismantler Alvior Marauder Alvior Predator Alvior Ripper Alvior Shatter Alvior Shredder Alvior
Cruiser class
Annihilator Alvum Atomizer Alvum Bomber Alvum Destructor Alvum Devastator Alvum Disintegrator Alvum Nuker Alvum Violator Alvum Viral Infector Alvum Wrecker Alvum
Heavy Assault Cruiser class
Strain Annihilator Alvum Strain Atomizer Alvum Strain Bomber Alvum Strain Destructor Alvum Strain Devastator Alvum Strain Disintegrator Alvum Strain Nuker Alvum Strain Violator Alvum Strain Viral Infector Alvum Strain Wrecker Alvum
Battlecruiser class
Crippler Alvatis Defeater Alvatis Enforcer Alvatis Exterminator Alvatis Siege Alvatis Striker Alvatis
Battleship class
Alvus Controller Alvus Creator Alvus Queen Alvus Ruler Domination Alvus Matriarch Alvus Patriarch Alvus Spearhead Alvus Supreme Alvus Parasite Swarm Preserver Alvus
See Also
- Rogue Drones (chronicle)
