#O.P.U.S. Gears

[gear-project]

How did the Conclave know of Dr Paradigm's name and vice versa?

The story itself doesn't give a full clear explanation.

Based on what we understand, however, the P.W.A.B. were researching Gears and they probably came across Gear data that was relevant to their needs when researching Gear Sentience.

Dr. Paradigm is one of the few Gears to "wake up" from the Catatonic state that most Gears fell under when Justice died (i.e. most normal Gears from the series Justice was created from ceased to function).

It could just be a fluke, or perhaps a surge in his evolutionary capacity, I'm sure not even Asuka R. Kreutz knows the full reason Paradigm gained a mind of his own.

But, similarly to Gears, Demihumans have also "awakened" from a non-sentient state to begin developing identities of their own... in other words the shift to sentience is similar in their case as it would be for Gears (though the conditions for triggering it probably aren't as clear).

It is probably because of Dr. Paradigm and Testament that the Conclave opted to create the O.P.U.S. though it was ultimately Ariels who finalized their development.

Unlike other Gears who "can" gain sentience, OPUS Gears have that potential taken out of them, and they can only obey any orders given to them absolutely.

Tragic, but that is how they were created, and thus their unfortunate fate.

High King Ky Kiske and U.S. President Vernon Groubitz are secretly trying to find a way to safely dispose of the OPUS, since they were distributed globally as a hidden "weapon" meant to obey Ariels' beck and call and dominate humanity (despite being branded early on as a Valentine deterrent).

As for Dr. Paradigm himself... I'm sure he has been keeping an eye on the Postwar Administration Bureau for a while, so it's only natural that he'd be observing the Conclave's movements up till now... though it was Ky's assistance that he was able to find sanctuary in Illyria.

Of course, it wasn't the P.W.A.B. who created Paradigm, though they were responsible for converting Testament (and other former humans) in to Gears, though the full history on that has yet to be revealed.

[gear-project]

So who is the new character in the story opening?

If I had a WORLD DOLLAR for every time someone asked me that!

Since this is the game's OPENING, it's not considered spoilers to discuss/speculate, so with that out of the way... let's take a dive on who this new guy is!

Right off the bat, he seems to have a Black Halo, which suggests he's either connected with the Valentines, with the Backyard, or with Anti-Matter Gears (possibly something to do with Heaven's Edge, even). Black Halos usually suggest a fallen Angel.

This guy was seen stroking Nagoriyuki's sword, which might be something he "gifted" Nagoriyuki (or he is perhaps working with him on a mission of some kind). He also has horns (which suggests a Demon or Youkai origin as well, Makai World?) He's got a gun, so it's pretty obvious he's a Mercenary of some kind and KNOWS how to fight. He's got a sense of style too, apparently.

The next two shots delve a bit in to his origins... all the scars on his body suggests he's been a guinea pig experiment for a while... former P.W.A.B. Experiment? Even the silhouettes are of Scientists who appear to have been working on him.

This, again, supports my hunch that he (and Nagoriyuki) have a past that is connected with either the P.W.A.B. or the Conclave in some capacity (like Bedman as well).

Next couple shots show him holding a vial of some sort, meaning he's got his hands on something malicious related to Gear technology! And he probably up to NO GOOD with it!

I daresay he might even be connected with Crow Kuruwaba at some point... but that's jumping the gun a bit.

Next we see a shot of these "Love You" fellas... they're probably former human experiments turned in to something like the O.P.U.S. Gears, including the Phalanx Nine supersoldiers.

I'm guessing the vial has something to do with these things, so most likely Mr. Black Halo might be controlling a private army of them from a distance, and he's probably "using" Nagoriyuki for his own nefarious plot.

Short of his "actual name", this is all the information I can give you guys thus far! Hope it helps!

For now, I'll just call him Mr. Black Halo, since we don't got anything else to go on, but I will add a fresh tag once we get more on this villain!

[gear-project]

Having that Testament was controlled by Justice and how it felt after recovering his original self. Do you think that Testament was a wasted potential for note being part of Xrd? Knowing that they didn't know that the Conclave helped with the tournament and Justice was about to be merged by Chronus and then Elphelt it would bringe more development for Testament. Plus, It would have been funny if Testament's reaction about Sol being Dizzy's father. More info about their relation with Ky and Sin.

I assume that's a typo and you were asking if it's a wasted potential of Testament "not being in Xrd"?

While it is VERY TRUE that the Conclave WERE the ones behind the Postwar Administration Bureau and they WERE the ones that turned Testament in to a Gear… there were quite a few other things going on at that time (cited in GG2 Overture) that impacted the situation.

The first aspect relates to Dizzy and Ky Kiske: Dizzy was forced to go in to hiding at that time BECAUSE the Conclave were active, which also meant that if Ky made any rash moves they could have used their connections to locate and harm Dizzy (or even use her as a hostage to control Ky).

That's also a key reason why Testament couldn't actively act against them, either… they had far too much authority and were also fully capable of manipulating Testament like they originally HAD in the original 2180 Tournament.

It wouldn't be too difficult to assume that Johnny had been keeping tabs on the Conclave's movements as well… and he related all he knew back to Testament as well.

And it was shown in Accent Core's events that Johnny and Ky were working together to bring DOWN the P.W.A.B. and capture Crow Kuruwaba, so it stands to reason that anything Johnny knew… Testament did too.

The second key reason is related to Justice: the Conclave had FULL CONTROL over the Cradle, and they even had the ability to control an army of O.P.U.S. Gears using Justice' power to Control Gears as a Command Type Gear.

Considering the fact Testament could barely resist Justice' influence the first time around, it's very hard to say for certain if the Conclave couldn't simply activate the Cradle and manipulate any and all Gears that tried to resist them on all fronts.

We know that Dizzy and Sol were able to resist the manipulation of the Justice Copy that Crow created, but even in the case of the First Valentine, not only was Sin manipulated, but nearly all of Izuna's Tribe and Dr. Paradigm's Tribe of Gears were completely controlled.

And that alone was from the powers of a Valentine. Imagine how powerful the genuine article (Justice) would be if her powers were fully unleashed on every Gear in the world?

Sol sensed the same type of Headache-inducing "noise" in Ramlethal, though we don't know if Ramlethal and Elphelt both had the same powers to control Gears as the original Valentine could. It's also very likely that Jack-O' had similar powers too.

Anyway, it was a combination of the Standoff situation between Ky and the Conclave and the threat potential of the Valentines is part of the main reasons Testament couldn't get very involved in the situation.

Testament likely didn't want to put Dizzy (or her son, Sin) at risk if it could be helped… and that was BEFORE Happy Chaos became a threat!

As for getting revenge on P.W.A.B… I'm sure Testament considered it, but with the Assassins involved it probably got a lot more complicated.

I can't say for sure what Testament will do from here on in, but it's probably with the family's interests in mind.

Side Note: Testament considers individuals like Eddie and Bedman (and his sister Delilah) to be fellow victims of the War, so it’s possible they might visit one another at some point.

[gear-project]

Annon-Guy: Was there a reason Ky and Leo didn't want the Assassins Guild being merged with their forces (apart from their criminal record for obvious reasons)?

That reason would be the aforementioned Crow Kuruwaba and his P.W.A.B. Mad Science Laboratory.

Having to be in bed with Assassins was enough of a headache, but Gear experiments? Even something like the Cyprus Project was a little bit much in terms of overkill on ideas.

Add to this, and they are responsible for the O.P.U.S.... which are basically "lobotomized" Gears with no free will. As if Gears hadn't suffered enough during the Crusades.

[gear-project]

So does Ramlethal have the entire Phalanx Nine unit under her command and is it possible for them to gain sentience at all, assuming the Second Guard is an original character and a Gear? Also, their armor is wearable now?

First, you have to understand that the Phalanx Nine are based off of the original Pontifical Swiss Guard.

Originally, the Swiss Guard had to be Catholic, Single Males of Swiss Citizenship who completed Basic Training with the Swiss Armed Forces and obtained certificates of Good Conduct, along with a reasonable education.

Most who accepted to serve do so for a minimum of two years, and at maximum four years, most primarily as bodyguards of the Pope.

They were most commonly known to wield a halberd spear or partisan polearm, depending on their rank, though in modern times they use pepper spray, small pistols, rifles, and a submachine gun, if circumstances require.

This was all before the Catholic Church was disassembled due to the chaos that was the Dawn of Revival of 1999.

Compared to them, the Phalanx Nine are an even smaller squad of "Swiss" (implied) elite soldiers (though we do not know their total size, even if the name implies there are "nine" of them) that serve the Pope Maximus or whomever the Sanctus Populi assign them to for various tasks.

So far, we've only seen them wield what appears to be a magic sword, but given that Sin summoned his other weapon upon shedding the armor, they probably have other weapons as needed.

Based on implications, the Phalanx might also be GEARS, or at least derived from O.P.U.S. Gear technology, since they were easily manipulated by Former-Pope Ariels to fight against any and all her enemies (though it is possible that Happy Chaos had a hand in their manipulation, even as humans).

Of course, that was before Sol defeated Ariels, so since then, most likely Ky put together a completely new group of Phalanx, who are likely former members of the Illyrian Military, if not trusted men selected from Ky, Leo, or Daryl's men.

Since Sin was selected as a member, he probably had to earn his stripes a bit before being accepted. Ky probably assigned him the role so that he would obtain more worldly experience, not simply acting as a bounty hunter like he did with Sol.

It is also likely that the two Phalanx are meant to assist Ramlethal's Rapid Deployment Brigade in terms of rank and authority, so she doesn't always have to "pull rank" in emergencies. This is because the Sanctus Populi is an International Organization.

While Ramlethal has command of the two Phalanx, I don't think they are all Phalanx members, for varying reasons, nor do I think Ramlethal has as much authority over them (depending on how far away she travels from Illyria, depending on her missions).

In all probability Ramlethal still answers to the High King, First and Second Kings of Illyria, as well as the newly-established Conclave, and acts as their representative.

The public still classifies Ramlethal as a GEAR, even though she's closer to a Human (a Valentine)... at least that seems to be the case for the time being (though this was before Gears could obtain citizenship...).

This is all the limited info we have so far.

[gear-project]

I'm a little confused on something, didn't Ariels create weapons for the Valentines like Ramlethal's? She did create and design them for specific tasks and missions in dealing with Sol Badguy unless Ariels is hiding something about the creation of Valentines.

Ariels was responsible for a few things, like Elphelt's and Ramlethal's basic clothing or Valentine's physical appearance resembling Aria Hale, but the weapons themselves have a different story.

With Elphelt's Valis Cyprus Tech guns, that was all connected with the Cyprus Project, which apparently is something Ky Kiske knows about in relation to Illyrian technology developed by the former members of the Conclave. Pope Ariels might have funded it, but the actual details on what was made are still rather vague (though it's indicated that King Daryl is also aware of certain things being worked on… like the Airship Fleet he eventually commandeered).

Even if Ramlethal's weapons had some connection with the Cyprus Project as well… there's no evidence to indicate it right now.

Furthermore, the Cyprus Project itself was described as "weapons developed as Anti-Backyard technology", meaning the weapons themselves were meant to be an Anti-Valentine deterrent along with the O.P.U.S. Gears.

Though you could argue that Ariels was "telling a lie" when developing those weapons and Gears… the premise, and the people working on the project would probably not have been aware that they made a weapon FOR a Valentine in the first place.

It's just like the idea of a GEAR wielding an OutRage weapon… Gears are scary enough… OutRage are even scarier… but for one to wield the other is unheard of (unless of course it's Sol Badguy who built it in the first place).

Obviously, Ariels was very deeply involved with the creation of the Valentines, however she wasn't the only one who created Valentines, much less weapons connected with them.

Asuka created Jack-O'… and he created Justice along with the OutRage Armor that Justice used during the Crusades and after.

Since Valentines are very closely connected with Gears… it wouldn't be a stretch to say that the OutRage technology, or even Cyprus/Oratorio technology (or, if you want to completely blanket it, call it Illyrian Technology) were built based on the knowledge acquired to create Gears in the first place.

But, well, time marches on… it's obvious that Ramlethal's RATTLE Swords have been upgraded since Revelator's events, so either Ramlethal herself made the upgrade, or someone was helping her (possibly even Sol, who knows?)

There is a Gear by the name of Gunsmith Dog (no relation to the Junkyard Dog weapon) who runs a group called "Bullet Heaven" and is apparently responsible for Sol's weapon modifications to some extent.

Anyway, even if Ariels was involved with some things… we don't know the full details.

[gear-project]

What do you suppose is the status of Crow and Professor Paracelsus? It's unlikely that Crow will be able to pursue his objectives to create his own Justice without the backing of the P.W.A.B and the Conclave, and I doubt that he would willfully work with the new administration since it doesn't coincide with his goals. Meanwhile, Paracelsus was practically kidnapped by the government. Do you think he'll be released and return to Frasco?

Frasco (or Flask if you prefer) was Paracelsus' original Mansion to begin with... so he had already made a name for himself long before the Government took an interest in him.

According to Rev2 information, there was a SECOND Frasco Laboratory built to replace the original, though it seems as though this was built under the Conclave's supervision with regards to the Cyprus Project and O.P.U.S. Gears.

Leon Mining, Crow Kuruwaba, Paracelsus... and a man named Director Repro Crowley... these four were the ones responsible for the O.P.U.S. Gears, Cyprus Blacktech, and the Robo-Ky Series, not to mention past history with experimental Forbidden Magic linked with the Assassins Organization.

Even if the Illyrian Government absorbed most members of the former Assassins in to their numbers, it's not clear how they would treat the Scientists and Researchers who had conducted inhumane experiments over the years. Even Bedman was a partial result of their meddling so it seems.

While Crow did try to mass produce Justice, and even tried to recapture Dizzy to clone her, I doubt High King Ky would permit any further involvement with a man like Crow (even if, perhaps, Happy Chaos might've been involved). Leon Mining himself is also responsible for trying to clone Zato and Millia's powers as well, against their will.

There's also evidence that suggests Testament's origins lie with these researchers as well... though we don't know the full story on that quite yet.

I do not know if Paracelsus himself is entirely innocent of these affairs, but if he created A.B.A. and experimented on Flament Nagel, then he is capable of a whole lot more, even if he was taken by the Government against his will.

If there is anyone who can uncover the truth of their current situation... perhaps it is A.B.A. herself! Her creator was very important to her, long before she met Flament Nagel her current partner. I would think that finding his whereabouts would be very important to A.B.A!

[gear-project]

Yop

Almost at the end of Rev2, when Ky was about to die with Sol, Daryl said that mankind needed Ky since they need to regain their HOPE after Ariels almost crushed all hopes back then.

Now in the Another Story... the story starts speaking about the heroic acts of Ky and ends speaking about Ky too...

Thing is..

-How and when Baiken learned about Sin? Does she know who is Sin's mom?

-Ky abdicating the Irillya Throne as First King, what are the implications of that?

Baiken's had a connection with Dr. Faust, May, and also Ky himself in the past (GGXtra events).

Baiken also once fought Dizzy and broke her sword, much to her consternation! (GGXPlus events)

Once the incident in Miyabi died down, Answer, Kum Haehyun, and Faust probably explained everything about the Japanese and Gears to everyone involved, Baiken and May included.

Anji also keeps tabs on quite a few people when he was looking for "That Man" on Baiken's behalf.

Dr. Faust in particular was responsible for helping Dizzy brood her "egg" (which was Sin)… so it wouldn't be outside of the cards for them to have had any discussions on Sin's past.

Sin is also a member of Phalanx Nine now, so he probably met Baiken directly and exchanged pleasantries previously over these past 3 weeks.

As for Ky's Abdication: I do not know if the People of Illyria will accept it. Since Ky is very popular (and Dizzy's popularity as Ky's Wife is also gaining traction).

There's also Leo Whitefang's and King Daryl's positions to consider as well.

Since this leads to Gears gaining citizenship in Illyria, Sin is going to be very busy for starters... but also it means people get to decide who sits on the throne... and they very likely still want Ky to be there for them.

There are still nations out there that use Gears in inhumane capacity, like Australia... but things are moving forward, and people are more accepting of Gears (and Valentines, and O.P.U.S.).

It's all very convoluted, but hopefully we'll learn more of Illyria's History very soon!

[gear-project]

Who exactly would even go after Delilah for Baiken (and possibly Ramlethal) to protect her? Hardly anybody in Guilty Gear knew of Bedman's existence, so I don't know who would take interest in Delilah for malicious purposes, unless Crow is back or Happy Chaos.

Happy Chaos is definitely a big possibility, especially given how powerful he is.

But also anyone who was involved with the Conclave outside of Chronus, Axus, Libraria, and Bardius (including former P.W.A.B. members, like Crow, Leon Mining, etc).

As said before though, Delilah is a key witness to events related to former Pope Ariels and her actions within the Sanctus Populi organization.

Ariels created a massive buildup of military weapons that was recovered by King Daryl, but she was also responsible for creating the O.P.U.S. Gears (which the Phalanx Nine have a connection to).

There's probably other things, like the Cyprus Project, and the Frasco/Flask Second Laboratory as well.

Suffice to say that there are still some countries out there (such as Australia) that conduct illegal Gear Cell research to this very day... and they have yet to be sanctioned for their actions.

[gear-project]

In the story trailer we can also see a Phalax Unit with them. Was that touched upon in Xrd? Becuase I thougth they all shut down when the Juggallo Pope was defeated.

Pretty sure Ariels was never a member of the Insane Clown Posse, but... oh well.

The Phalanx Nine were under Ariels' control almost exclusively for a time, but since she was defeated, Ky and the remaining surviving members of the Sanctus Populi had to restructure authority and chain of command.

Most likely the Phalanx Nine were tasked with more specific guard operations (and because they might no longer be human, like the O.P.U.S. Gears...) they were probably assigned to assist Ramlethal with her role as leader of the Illyrian Special Brigade.

[gear-project]

Silly question but did any of the Opus survive? They kinda have a cool design and I'd like to see one of their numbers as a character. Maybe use it to expand on the Ganymede Archipelago and how the Gear Society formed by Paradigm functions since given their bodies and magic they certainly are a post-scarcity society?

Your first mistake was assuming that the O.P.U.S. were wiped out.

While Ky Kiske and Potemkin did say it might be in the world's best interest to remove the Opus Gears from the world as a threat... they haven't made any immediate decisions on that topic yet... which will probably be a big discussion at the next G4 International Summit.

The issue is that every nation in the world currently owns their own private Opus army... and what they do with that army of Gears flies in the face of past historical mistakes which were triggered back during the Crusades.

Basically it's like sitting on a pile of dynamite with a zippo lighter and a can of gasoline in your hands.

Even worse is the fact that only Illyria,  America, and Zepp know the truth of this issue, and it doesn't account for other Gears being illegally distributed/manufactured.

Still... unlike normal Gears, OPUS Gears were built with no capacity to disobey or evolve past the commands they are given, so in that sense they were less "human" than even normal Gears are capable of.

Even if said OPUS Gears are given a "place to function" in society... they will never be fully capable of acting outside their parameters.  Meaning they probably won't ever be given human rights or the ability to make choices.

Unless some means were possible to completely reconstruct them.

For now... it's a highly controversial international topic.

[gear-project]

Is Illyria the strongest military force in Guilty Gear?

It’s certainly the largest continental nation in the world at the moment.

But, simultaneously, it doesn’t account for the Federation of China, Zepp, the Southern Autonomous Oceanic Federation, America in its current state, or other lesser known groups/affiliations.

Part of the issue at hand is that Illyria was what you call a major ��distributor” of military weapons in the form of the O.P.U.S.  But they have yet to reveal the fact those Opus are Gears (only America seems to know the truth of the matter, but has kept quiet about it).

Because Illyria is run by 3 Kings, and those kings were elected under dubious circumstances via the Conclave, it’s unclear what future lies in store for Illyria as a nation... or for its people.

Prior to Illyria being founded in 2183, it was still a conglomerate of struggling-to-rebuild nations: Europe, Russia, Northern Africa, the Middle East, etc...

It’s because they banded together that they somehow managed to establish the resources to become such a significant national superpower.

Most likely there will be some shuffling of responsibilities and ranks/roles within the nation’s infrastructure in the future... but if its citizens/residents have no objection to still living together “as a nation”, then it falls on people like Ky, Leo, and Daryl to lead them in the direction the people have chosen.

[gear-project]

1)What exactly System for Gear? 2)Does each Gear has different system?

Sega NAOMI, RingEdge, and Sony PlayStation (I’m kidding!)

Gears don’t exactly have what could be defined as an internal OS, they receive Commands through a Command Type Gear’s form of subliminal Mind Control, sometimes referred to by Sol as “Noise” or a “Headache”.  This is also a form of resonance between Gears and beings similar to Gears.

Valentines receive Commands as Directives when they are first created, but unlike Gears, there is a stronger potential to resist those Commands (because they are near-Human), though it does psychological damage to a Valentine as consequence.

If Gears are idle for an extended amount of time, it’s possible for them to act independently and grow a sense of self-awareness.  They are still susceptible to Commands however.

O.P.U.S. are a newer type of Gear that can function independently but will never disobey or resist orders once they are given until they are incapacitated or destroyed.  Phalanx 9 Soldiers are similar to the Opus, but enhanced.

Most Gears are comprised of Animal and Human DNA that is refined and perfected, then “dubbed” on to a Magic Array that affixes their substance in to the permanent form of a Gear Celled Organism.

The Gear Cells naturally enhance their growth and regeneration potential to its maximum limits, and thus a Gear is created.

Of course each Gear has a different type of “Soul” imprinted on it, and only certain types of Souls can be used to create Gears, but suffice to say, that is the main process.

Gear Cells can be transplanted in to other organisms to enhance them, but it’s unknown to what extent it affects the body, as it can be risky, and affect the subject’s health and lifespan.

[gear-project]

A question on Zepp and Illyrian Knights, is Zepp's military group more reliant technology than Illyrian Knights in a sense in terms of their firepower and base of operations?

Back during the Crusades, Zepp avoided getting involved with the Sacred Order for various reasons, as I’m sure you’re aware.

http://gear-project.tumblr.com/post/139073946114/how-did-gabriel-and-slayer-first-meet

In modern times, Magic has gotten just as advanced as Technology, though the roles between these nations are reversed.

Illyria was originally founded and controlled almost exclusively by the Conclave and Sanctus Populi, and they were not on the best terms with Zepp since Gabriel’s Coup in 2180.

This time Illyria had internal political issues to sort out (the Conclave were not on good terms with Zepp in the past and tried to use Assassins to frame them as Warmongers towards America, see Butterfly and Her Gale novel info for details http://gear-project.tumblr.com/tagged/Butterfly-And-Her-Gale).

Illyria’s Military implements the “Questionable Use” of O.P.U.S. Soldiers, basically they own their own Private Gear Army!  This intel hasn’t surfaced to the public, but High King Ky Kiske shared the information with Zepp’s Potemkin as a show of good faith to restore diplomatic relations with Zepp in light of the Conclave’s betrayal.

“Minus” the Opus Gears and advanced weapon technology “Former” Pope Ariels Commissioned, both nations would be fairly even in Military strength.

Though the balance is slightly tipped in Illyria’s favor both because of the size of the nation, and King Daryl’s recent acquisition of the former Assassins’ Guild Members (and possibly any assets that belonged to the Postwar Administration Bureau).

Hopefully Zepp and Illyria will maintain this trend of Peace between the Nations.

As said before though, while Zepp relies on old Technology, it is on near-equal terms with Illyria’s Magic technology in these times, so in a sense it’s an arms race on a different scale.

Research on the Backyard may tip that scale even further in favor of Magic, however.

On the flipside though, Zepp is an Airship Nation, so it is more mobile than Illyrian forces.

[gear-project]

Since we know that Justice's armor is an OutRage, would the armor that the first generation Valentine possessed (and any armor that Elphelt, Ramlethal and possibly Dizzy could plausibly manifest) count as a fake OutRage like the counterfeit Zessen that Mizuha's grandfather had?

http://gear-project.tumblr.com/tagged/Fake-OutRage

OutRage were designed either as a support to Gear Technology or as an Anti-Gear Weapon.

Justice-related technology borders on Anti-Backyard Weaponry.

http://gear-project.tumblr.com/tagged/Cyprus-Project

http://gear-project.tumblr.com/post/120348020174/is-dizzys-gamma-ray-also-considered-a-form-of-the

Cyprus Project Weapons as well as the O.P.U.S. Gears were designed as Anti-Valentine deterrents.

Considering the idea Elphelt used such Cyprus technology herself suggests it was either stolen or given to her by the Conclave.

The "innate ability" to transform in to a combat mode shouldn't be considered a Fake OutRage in this case, since Gears are already classified as W.O.M.D. weapons by themselves.  That applies to Valentines and any manifestation of Backyard Residents whose Magic potential exceeds the 12 Steps in Scale complexity.

OutRage Technology is relatively dwarfed by Backyard Technology at this point, but since Valentines are Gear derivatives, the native origin of the technology in terms of compatibility and use is similar.

Backyard Technology is NOT considered a "Fake OutRage" however, it's the real thing so keep that in mind.

A "Fake OutRage" implies it is a "tool" meant to imitate the power but either cannot do so or was never designed to.  Gears by their nature (Valentines included) are Living Magic beings, not "tools" or "devices" despite their weapon status.

In fact, OutRage may be closer to Gears than we have yet to realize!

[gear-project]

You mentioned that Testament had to fight against other test subjects when he was captured by PWAB to undergo Gear conversion. Is this mentioned in his profile on websites,manuals, etc?

Testament is pretty vague about his past connections, and even his P.W.A.B. 'report' only hints at the notion of a "Gear Cell Grafting" process that left him as the only fully-functioning Gear with a stronger sense of self among his peers.

But, well, it was confirmed in GGXrd's Timeline that Testament, along with a contingent of the Sacred Order's Knights were whisked away and presumed K.I.A. during the Crusades, but in fact they were kidnapped by the Bureau for experimentation (most likely on the Conclave/Pope Ariels' Orders).

While Testament's account doesn't reveal much, his encounter with the Forbidden Beast "Eddie" (Zato's Corpse) actually shed more light on their past together as manufactured "ghosts" from a lost era.  

Testament refers to Eddie as "one of the original victims", though how that came to be isn't clear.

When Kliff encounters Testament after this point (roughly the year 2140), he is seen giving orders to Gears to kill Humans, so he actually had made contact with Justice by that point and was given a sort of "higher ranking" among the other Gears.

Even Justice herself later states that she had a hard time controlling Testament because of how strong his will was.

Be that as it may, not once was it ever mentioned that the Gears Testament controlled were either his former comrades turned Gear, or whether those comrades even survived the Gear conversion process like he did.

There is yet another vague hint, however... that was suggested in Testament's encounter with the Gear Gig in Guilty Gear Dust Strikers.

Testament says Gig was reborn the same way he was (or rather, in the process of being reborn?), but he also says he sympathizes with her as being yet another victim.

What I can definitely confirm, however... is that not all Gear conversions are stable ones, the Night of Knives events and the events of Lightning the Argent are proof of these.  

Humans who get injected with Gear Cells that don't properly accept the grafting process can potentially die from the sudden (sometimes violent) mutation, as was the case with the Vitae ingestion incidents and the God Series... ironically Sheevus being the only "partially successful" conversion... though Sheevus immediately went insane after he became a Gear Mutation from ingesting Vitae directly.

Seeing as Testament was the only "surviving Gear" of those events (outside of Eddie, who technically isn't a Gear per se), it still holds true that Gears were pre-disposed to being given 'command orders' to kill their targets, and sometimes this was used as a "test" to see if a Gear was functioning properly.  After all, a Gear that can't obey Commands is essentially deemed useless (as was the case of the Prototype Gear of 2040).

Testament's "encounter" with Justice is perhaps what saved him from being dismantled at that time, as he was still resisting his orders.

The reason the P.W.A.B. were using the Sacred Order as Gear subjects was probably a failed attempt to create a counter-measure against Justice.

Likely the "O.P.U.S." Units are (ironically) an end result of that research, since they have no qualms about obeying any commands they are given, the same applies to the Phalanx Nine Swiss Soldiers that Ariels created.

Still, there's a lot of gaps in Testament's story to tell... so perhaps the story will move in that direction and reveal more!