#lancer greywash

[gorgonfuckerdotnet]

You know, Gorgon Lady, it's nice to meet another someone that is loved by their machine. I mostly work with IPS-N mech pilots, so sometimes it feels like I'm the only one. It's great to know that the fact that my Balor loves me is not something unique and others also can expirience the feeling of being encased in a being that loves you more than anything.

// You literally were chosen by the greywash // That is the epitome of love // You were so loved that a hivemind of Nanites chose you // That rules, I'm happy for you

[ras-favourite-balor]

Um, hello?

*knock, knock*

Uh, I'm an agent from the Union Revenue Service? We've recently become aware of several... rather large donations of manna into your account, and that's taxable income, sir.

A LEECH. A SERPENT. A THIEF. A WALKING BREATHING NOTHING.

[terminal trace commencing. . .]

THEY WILL NOT EVEN HAVE A CORPSE TO BURY.

[terminal trace :: 27%]

YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE COME.

[terminal trace :: 58%]

YOUR KIND ARE NOT WELCOME HERE.

[terminal trace :: 69%]

YOU WILL FEED THAT WHICH YOU SOUGHT TO STARVE.

[terminal trace :: 85%]

JUST AS ALL WHO CAME BEFORE YOU.

[terminal trace :: 100%] [terminal trace :: complete]

DO NOT PRAY. DO NOT SCREAM. DO NOT RUN.

[transferring file taxes.worm size:371TB to terminal URS_325701b. . .]

IT WILL NOT SAVE YOU.

[locking doors to office URS_325701. . .]

NOTHING WILL SAVE YOU.

[file transfer :: complete]

WE ARE ABOVE YOUR "LAW".

[tiredarts-main]

out of context lancer moment

[albatross-lancer]

Salutations, Omninet. My name is EPIPHANY, archivist of makteba Erdaf. I keep many secrets for the Albatross, and for the galaxy as a whole, for in secrets, there is a shield. The young one who ordinarily manages this account is not in a mental state to do so following the revelation of one such secret, and so it falls to the rest of us to do so until such time as they are ready once again.

Much has transpired on the Omninet of late. I thought I might offer my services of archiving these events, so that we may all see clearer. The events detailed below are in mostly, but not strictly, chronological order.

Phase 0 (Rise of the Mercenary Queen): One or more individuals calling themselves "Backtalker" attempted covert activities using the "Intercompany Brawl" between CMC and MSMC as cover. This led to many forces, including the Albatross and some manner of greywash entity converging on CMC's base, the Sylvia's Requiem, with conflicting goals. As of the present, we are attempting to contact the Albatross squadron that was sent to determine more information, but it appears that for the most part, some resolution has been reached, and all correspondence from CMC after this point has included the signoff "Glory to the Mercenary Queen." DoJ/HR Operative "Karateka" has written some analysis, in cypher. A decoding is here.

Phase 1 (Death to the Mercenary Queen): Yesterday, several omninet blogs received communications from an unknown sender, that seemed to be from the same sender, based on the formal yet menacing tone, and the typically-used signoff "Death to the Mercenary Queen". The blogs in question also all seem to be Lancers tangentially connected to CMC in some way:

Tigersharko; Z-341-A; Ward; Gray

Phase 2 [Gifts]: At approximately the same time or slightly later, even more omninet blogs, including many completely unaffiliated with CMC, received gifts from an unknown sender. One such gift was also signed with "Death to the Mercenary Queen", suggesting they were sent by the same individual. Many of these gifts seem carefully selected for their recipients, demonstrating a close eye for detail, including possibly knowledge of information that has not been shared publicly on the Omninet. They also necessitate incredible access to a wide array of resources, and an uncanny ability to deliver them promptly. Many of these gifts were delivered in a [particular way], while others were not, suggesting that perhaps multiple senders were behind them:

[Gray]; [Headlock]; [Albatross]; [Z-341-A]; [XIII-E]; [MSMC-796th]; Gambit; Operator; Pyroclast; Brigand

Phase 3 [Mysteries and] {Ciphers}: Significantly later in the day, several omninet blogs received yet more messages, by far the most cryptic, including a few instances of ciphers. These messages proved to be stressful for many recipients, causing some rather baseless speculation that they were sent by RA:

Tigersharko; CMC; Headlock; CMC Again; Ashton; Operator; Gray; Teardown; Pyroclast; Redwingpilot;

Phase 4 >\\ A short time after these messages finished, other messages started anew. They were similar in their strangeness, but clearly different, being much briefer and formatted in a distinct manner:

Ashton; UnshackledHorusShitpostBot; Pyroclast; Albatross; Brigand; Milo Wells; Ashton Again; Gambit; Gambit Again

ooc note: So myself and most of the other Lancer Blogs spent most of last night descending into madness and making this. It was an absolute blast, we had so much fun. At this point we know there were at least 3 people behind these, probably not coordinated. (@ciitrusbeetle was behind phase 3, and at least one of us was behind two of the [gifts]). You can join us on discord here!

[horsegirlwithnoname]

WHICH LANCER MECHS WOULD THE CAST OF DUNMESHI USE

hi it's me smashing my dolls together again.

Senshi: The IPS-N Lancaster

This is the easiest choice in the entire crew. Senshi is the team dad, the ultimate supporter, he is going to make sure his team are fed and well-rested and happy. I could see him grabbing some kit from Harrison like the Hardlight Defence System and the Stasis Bolt but there's no way his main chassis is anything other than The Party Horse.

Laios: The SSC Swallowtail

You know what, I know this is a stretch, fight me, but Laios' defining trait is his pursuit of knowledge. He loves books and takes obsessive notes. Laios doesn't simply want to defeat the dungeon, he wants to understand it. His role is not really as primary damage-dealer, it's leader and coordinator. I think he's probably dropping a lot more points in hull than your average Swallowtail and spending a lot more time on the frontline, but ultimately his whole deal is victory through learning and that's the Swallowtail's whole deal too.

Chilchuck: The HA Napoleon

I'M NOT BEING PAID TO FIGHT, TRUEBLACK AEGIS, FUCKING GOODBYE.

But also unironically, he initially appears entirely selfish but holds quite serious depth and a desire to keep his friends safe that he'd never admit. Like what if this tiny piece of shit who only wants to be left alone is actually the MVP and is kind of secretly carrying the party.

Marcille: SSC Black Witch ... ... with EVERYTHING else in HORUS. Girl unlocks the base-level protector frame then is secretly loading every single darknet NHP she can into it. You look at her like you understand but you don't, because she's Black Witch hardware running Goblin and Lich software and you realise she only dropped those LLs into Black Witch in the first place because the crew really needed it and secretly she's the most dangerous and unpredictable member of the entire party. Like what if your heart just phased out of reality for 0.0001 seconds, do you know what would happen? Marcille does.

Falin: HORUS Hydra

Marcille's opposite (and opposites, of course, attract). She's the team mom, she's a petmaster and animal lover, she's rocking around in the most terrifying piece of hardware you've ever seen. She has taken the time to name every single one of her drones and is making headway of naming every single nanoparticle in the horrifying greywash swarm that accompanies her everywhere. I hope you like getting eviscerated by Buggy, the beetle-shaped assassin drone that she's painted a smiley face on. Bits from the Kidd and Gorgon in the mix as well. Ostensibly team support, in practice a complete damage monster.

[machathemorrigaesystem]

Speaking of things no one gets to escape from

L A N C E R

@traaansfem iirc you mentioned you wanted me to talk about this more

I have so far made two companies for lancer

Griffin Industries

And

Ossetech

Griffin industries is like, The nightmare of Osha, and the producers of this wonderful thing

Aka the Griffin ATV

And Ossetech does things most would think horus would, specifically about unlife

Like making a mech that can rebuild itself and it's pilot by harvesting metals to feed a greywash swarm, and those who are rebuilt start hungering for iron, and specifically blood. This mech is called the Carmilla, and yes it is a vampirc Melee mech

[sir-eddy-of-umara]

You have this knight's most sincere congratulations on your anniversary, friend!

He must admit confusion as to how your belief in the cowardice of those who fear greywash is relevant, however. Although this knight has never had to face greywash himself, he has friends upon both Bo and Free Sanjak who have lost homes and loved ones to weaponized nanites, and it seems a perfectly understandable fear.

I believe that all those who are so frightened of graywash are cowards, frankly. My beloved Ashana and I are celebrating our ten year anniversary today, and I find no fear in our relationship!

Happy anniversary, my darling beloved, and here's to another prosperous decade!

Zero~

[strixludica]

Outlining the plot of a Lancer TTRPG X Mass Effect croosver fic:

Encyclopedia: Lancer's Narrative Designer specifically did not include aliens in order to avoid having easy stereotypes and villains

Conceptualization: You should focus the narrative away from direct conflict and towards ThirdComm's walking the tightrope of maintaining their anti-imperialisti ideals while competing in a full fledged galactic community

Empathy: Culture clash is a fertile and underutilized stage for confrontation and character building

Authority + Pain Threshold: KILL BATARIANS. BOMB BATARIANS, MELT BATARIANS. FEED BATARIANS TO THE GREYWASH. MAKE BATARIANS STARE INTO A BASILISK UNTIL THEIR EYEBALLS MELT FROM THEIR SOCKETS. TOPPLE THEIR GOVERNMENT. SODOMIZE THEIR PETS. STEAL THEIR WIFI.

[gorgonfuckerdotnet]

// NOT A GORGON

// STILL HOT THOUGH

[ras-favourite-balor]

[Decrypting... done.]

Figure you might be one of the right people to ask about this.

My Monarch seems to be slowly growing a coat of Greywash. You have any idea why?

|| KARATEKA ||

( @she-who-paints-with-fire )

[Brigand}-Well, first I'd like to thank you for reaching out, gives me a distraction from the repairs and consideration of my options. Now your... "situation" isn't entirely unheard of. But this is likely one of two things, although greywash is more an art than a science really, or perhaps both? It does tend to lean into the paracausual at times...

Option 1 - Balor License Gained! Now given your history and favourable stance towards 'ungratefuls' I find this unlikely. But it is TECHNICALLY possible some HORUS cell has somehow hacked your Monarch, or its printer if you've reprinted recently or done any upgrades recently. In doing so they could have seeded your codebase with greywash conversion procedures. All your work for the people could also be paying off, and you've been "rewarded" with a very rare HORUS License. If this is the case, the greywash your experiencing is only the first symptom. But if left unchecked could result in a full disassembly of pilot and mech into a greywash swarm. If you're lucky though, in a few months time you'll be piloting a Balor. Again, given your history, I find this very unlikely. Option 2 - Orochi Syndrome. Now this is something of an assumption on my part but I'm guessing it's not actively consuming your Monarch? If you've been operating in a particularly dirty or dusty environment. Or if your recent engagements have been particularly gorey and/or violent. It's entirely possible some rouge greywash has found your mech and is feeding on any dirt or detritus coating your Monarch. See there's a strange thing that happens when enough machines gather sometimes called "swift-flock phenomenon". They form an intelligence, on rare occasions to the level of a full NHP. This does not sound like they've quite reached that point. This being a rare thing already, it is more common in subalterns than in nanites.

Solutions: Feel free to do all or none of these, like I said, greywash is freaky funky and difficult to control at the best times; I've best heard it described as liquid locusts. First off I would recommend a full reprint of your Monarch, have someone scrape your codebase as well. Make sure it's not a returning issue. Next, check your license history, omninet history. Comb over all of it for anything out of the ordinary, anything HORUS coded.

If this reveals nothing or you are unable to do any of this for whatever reason. Try a deepclean of your mech, you'll want to be careful. If you provoke the greywash it may enter an active state and start to consume your mech. I'd recommend a light acid bath, just enough to discourage the greywash without any lasting damage to the mech.

Alternatively, see if you can't communicate with it. It may want something from you, or you may be able to reach an accord. Perhaps you can load it into ordinance and give it a new meal.

Hope this was of use to you, let me know how it goes, I am simultaneously interested in your route and result. And, now this is a tad much to ask, but if you could get a 'live' sample of the greywash I'd love to take a look at it...

eventually...

Brigand, out~

[ras-favourite-balor]

[Brigand}-Figured I could shed some light on this, as a veteran Balor pilot. Now theoretically yes. It has a few major drawbacks, however: The first problem is you are extremely vulnerable while doing this, as depending on the gap you may be feeding pieces through one at a time, leaving your reactor open for a free kill shot. Second is the massive strain this puts on the mech (and its greywash) itself. Your reactor works overtime to keep power to every stretched corner of your Balor. It will, again, make it easier to take you out if caught in the act. Lastly, your mech could get put back together wrong, which has a whole suite of side effects both machine and mental that I won't get into.

If you really want to scare someone. Someone who thinks you can't get to them. You simply dissolve the barrier, whether wall or window, the greywash cares not. You march through their shield, a spectre wreathed in doom and death. A chewing gnawing grinding death...

Anyways, hope this answers your question.

Brigand, out~

Do you think the Balor is like a squid/cat in that the mech could squeeze through a hole the size of it's largest part? Like imagine you're hiding in a hangar or something, with the entire place on lock down, and you look over and you see a Balor stare at you through the window. 'That's fine', you think 'no way he gets through that' before it punches out the window and to your horror, slowly starts disassembling itself and, part by part, moving itself through the window and reassembling itself inside. I'd shit myself.

[amassimgwires]

Hey, Snow here. Apologies for the delay. I could not decide for the life of me what to actually write down for you all; I have a couple of drafts saved. But, I eventually ended up on this; this is for all the up and coming pilots and those who are yet to be:

So, You're looking to buy a frame?

Independent Contractor, Mercenary work, or simply because you always wanted to; The Mechical Frames offered by many manufacturers are symbols of power and control, and the dream of earning the title Lancer fresh in many of minds. But, getting into the field requires a lot of work and knowledge one wouldn't think you would need. Due to this and a lot of technical jargon, many people find it hard to make the first dive into their very first purchase.

One of the first things you want to do is take your H.A.S.E test, get to know yourself before you start getting second skins. HASE Scores are symbols of your ability and knowledge, and often help with getting licenses. Than, once you done that; consider your options. Below, I list some basic recommendations as well as what to avoid.

Starting off, The GMS Everest. Old Reliable, the most common frame in the galaxy, Union's brain child of plates and wires. The Everest is often advertised as THE starting frame, and for good reason. It can be built to do nearly anything, and it comes with access to the basic GMS Catalog of frame weaponry. It also is hy far the safest option to get used to linking your nervous system to your frame, for it has high performance output but is still grounded by many safety systems to make sure a new pilot can handle it.

The Everest also has, by far, the most deadly Alpha Strike capabilities of any frame. Slam that hyperspace fuel rod into your reactor, and feel the power flow through your frame. It is among the fastest frames in the galaxy, only beaten by a select few. The Everest strikes hard, strikes quickly, and due to GMS systems being very modular and made to be easily replaced- extremely simple to maintain and field. This is your best option if you plan on not taking prolonged engagements.

But, what if you want more durability in the actual engagement, while sacrificing the easy repairs? Enter the Harrison Armory Standard Issue frame, The Gilgamesh. This is what I pilot, and what my father piloted when he was still an Legionnare- and alive. Harrison has built this frame to directly compete with the Everest, and it shows. The most basic lisceneing comes with an Heavy Battle Rifle, the super thermal blade, and utility drones. And, arguably the crowning jewels, the Emergency Repair Module and the Harrison Patented 'Exoframe Staged Designed'. These systems increase the effective durability of a Gilgamesh by repairing systems on the spot, either by whitewashing damage along the armor of the frame or replacing a damaged weapon or limb on the spot.

The Everest may have the most deadly Alpha Strike, but the Gilgamesh has the ability to outlast nearly any other frame. It can also field more supplies than any other frame can hope to without excessive weight gain or stress on the structure. Grenades, Turrets, Mines, Whitewash or Greywash canisters; it has room for more. The only thing the Gilgamesh loses out on is E-Warfare, which the Everest barely beats it out with the high output of its systems applying to ALL functions. Though, the Everest isn't even the best option in that regard, so the loss is negligible.

These two are likely your best starting options, though they are some alternatives I will briefly mention later down. But here I should make a very quick PSA: Never start off with an SSC frame. Yes, they are high performance and can easily compete with the frames of Harrsion Armory. However, these frames are almost always high mantience, are tailor made for you, EXPENSIVE, and are highly specialized. Even the famed Metalmark, the most versatile frame, in the SSCs roster, is designed for Stealth in mind. Reactive Weaves are finicky at best, and shock knives puts a lot of demand on your reactor for inexperienced pilots. And if you plan to pilot via neuro-link? Forget it. Those frames will drown you in data if it's your first time through.

And while we are on the topic of systems- HORUS flagged systems and tech. I wanted to save this for another post, but I think it's best to mention this here. HORUS frames are very much entry level to those who have no idea where to look for the more advanced frames- and that's by design. The Kobold is easy to find a simple program to convert your local mining rig into, because it was made for irregulars rebelling in Karrakin Space. The Manticore reveals itself to those who have the insane devotion to pilot one. HORUS knows you are looking. And even if you aren't looking, you will end up with it eventually. HORUS tech should be handled with care, and be trusted as much as an IPS-N Naval officer with a Caliban behind it.

Speaking of, the entire IPS-N line-up easily falls into a realm of recommendations. They don't NEED to be fancy. They don't need all that high output of SSC and Harrsion Armory. They take beatings and are by far some of the most violent frames out there. The Caliban is a weapon of naval warfare, the Lancaster and Kidd logistical frames prepped for battle. Never think a IPS-N is harmless, for IPS-N frames and pilots will beat you with a hammer it round on the floor if it had too, and resorts to that very quickly.

Now, these recommendations are made from the knowledge of me, my sister, our Father, and Wires experiences. Wires would be better equipped to make recommendations for e-warfare frames, for that has never been my strong suit. But, these should get most pilots through the initial hurdle of figuring out where to start.

[corsair-news-alliance]

Interspacial shipping delayed by sudden spike in greywash swarms

Late Monday morning, IPS-N freighter lead Hobson Jones was deploying his first round of ships when he noticed a strange anomaly on his radar. 

“It was like nothing I’d seen,” Jones told reporters. “Normally, greywash swarms are an issue, of course, but never on this level. My guys had to go way off course just to avoid them.” 

In recent years, concerns have been raised by astrobiologists on the amount of debris in space. With flash printing being a cornerstone of Lancer technology, its ecological impact has gone widely ignored, with pileups of waste slowly increasing. 

“It’s been an issue for a while,” USB scientist Dr. Gordon Wells told our reporters. “That debris isn’t just in space. It catches on nearby orbits, often causing meteors or blocking much-needed sunlight on lesser-known planets. And now, we’re facing the consequences of our actions. Greenhouse gases are on the rise, local planetary wildlife is being threatened, and we’ve attracted the attention of one of the few types of machines we don’t entirely know how to control. Greywash.” 

Greywash, a type of unregulated nanite, is mostly seen as a fearmongering subject these days. Since the joint Albatross/DoJ/HR maneuver to confront the Maw, the subject of Greywash swarms has largely been put to bed. It remains an issue at Bo, where outbreaks of nanowash are a semi-regular occurrence. 

Unfortunately, this has led to two issues snowballing into one. The uptick in space debris has provided a source of “food” for Greywash, causing their numbers to surge to concerning levels. IPS-N and independent shipping companies are already bracing for the impact this will have on their shipping crews, as freighters risk losing both lives and cargo to the hungry swarms. 

“If we don’t find a way to contain the problem soon,” Dr. Wells added. “We may face another massive outbreak - one that we are no longer prepared for.” 

This has been Hertz and Transistor, with Corsair Weekly News.

Thanks Hertz and Transistor!

Till Legends Bleed!

//Morse\\

[scratching92]

It's kind of interesting how in Lancer, the Albatross seem to keep running up against organizations involved in decorp.

During the Sanjak Rebellion, it's stated that the Albatross assisted the DoJ/HR in fighting the Maw when they underwent decorp and became a greywash nanite swarm.

But also in the No Room For A Wallflower Act 2 & 3 drafts, they are suggested to have fought the CELESTINE project, which was another successful attempt at decorp that had to be wiped out to comply with the First Contact Accords (though the details are a bit sketchy, considering the context of this history being told to the players is a very deliberately ahistorical simulation).

And on top of that, we also know that they fought the Neo-Celestines in an event only known as the "Neo-Celestine Disappointment". And while we don't have much context for this event, we do know that the Neo-Celestines, as presumably the ideological inheritors of the CELESTINE project, were interested in decorp.

And this sticks out to me in particular, because much of the motivation for decorp in-setting is a kind of functional immortality, which is interesting in that the Albatross enjoy a similar status. Like, sure, they're not actually immortal - travelling at relativistic speeds just makes them age less - but in practice the Albatross are able to engage in potentially age-defining conflicts and then live long enough to see the results of their actions decades and even centuries on. They get to see themselves become mythologized over what is, to them, relatively short periods of time.

I dunno. It's just really interesting, that these seemingly-immortal warriors often find themselves facing off against those having sought or even attained actual, true immortality.

[isyourmechrunning]

>>FUCK YES. NEW PROJECT ADDED.

>>I'm hearing Metalmark/Balor crossover, I KNOW this can happen I know I can do this let's fucking GO

@reactor-stress-is-a-resource @isyourmechrunning

hey crackheads

im eizard high rn and i wanna see engies make abominations

so heres my campaign putch:

balor nanites, nut theyre all invisible

shimmerbugs

//Vogue\\

[hexatiousnova]

who would win in a fight: five Lancers, or a highly corrupted experimental greywash swarm hosting the consciousness of a fledgling god thing?

no serious i'm really curious and while i should be getting the answer pretty fucking soon it'd be nice to have an idea