Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi → The Galaxy Tales - Dirk B.
Any idea whether the gases in air are likely to be useful in a nanoid weapon (e.g., as one of the building block for nanoids), or would nanoids have to be stored pre-assembled in a resevoir in the gun? I'm hoping to make the resevoir as small as possible and assemble the nanoids as the weapon fires.
If you went with the previous concept, you could put one or two nanoids in each bullet - don't need thousands if they're going to start replicating once released.
It would be a lot of work for a nanoid to bind free-floating air molecules into anything useful. You're looking to break some pretty tight covalent bonds just to get use out of a water molecule. It's best you keep them working at the molecular level than the atomic unless they have infinite power handy
Thank ye, kindly. Firing bullets with one or two nanoids inside doesn't have the same story impact as a good old-fashioned head-splattering/heart-exploding blast. I could use a reservoir of nanoids that "blast" out of the gun, which then go to work at disassembling the target. Of course, that's gotta be one hell of a reservoir to use it in a prolonged firefight. It would probably "need" to be a blast, otherwise a simple nanoid-supressing bullet-proof suit would be impervious to attack. The punch from the blast weakens the boarding suit, and then the nanoids can get inside. Or, a two-part blast (basic blaster fire followed by nanoids in each shot). Meh.
You don't need nanoids. All you need are bullets that are high-explosive, delayed-fuse shells.
I agree. Nanoids take too much time and are too complicated when all you are looking for is brains on the pavement.
Amy, it's fiction set 2000 years from now. Nanoids take as much or as little time as desired. Kind of like the way a blaster causes bleeding of seared flesh. 
Can the wound at least bubble? Or perhaps a non-searing form of energy, used specifically to cause maximum bleeding. Invented by the Professor and built by Acme.
NJC, thanks for the suggestion. I'll review all the places where weapons are used to see if I can use your gun. Perhaps I'll use a variety of weapons. I have an electric whip in mind, too, although I'm sure it's been done.
Actually, I just remembered that the Balrog had a pure energy whip in LOTR. I knew I'd seen it somewhere.
You can design the exploding shells to be mini-EMP generators, too.
You can design the exploding shells to be mini-EMP generators, too.
What would the effect be of the EMP?
Depends how strong it is. (Remember, it will fall off as the square of the distance from the generator.) Close up it might fry electronics; further out it may just scramble logic circuits, requiring a restart to clear. If those logic circuits are controlling power switching equipment like motor controllers, something in those circuits might be fried when the control circuits space out. Further out still, it's severe RF interference (QRM).
If the AI brain is separated between different parts of the ship and the EMP goes off in a select area, that could fry the circuits and make the AI wacky. Consider it, rather than the insanity that all AIs are prone to.
Could just be local wierdness, until that part stabilizes. Who knows, it might give the ship motion sickness.
I took out the part about sentient AIs a while ago. It detracted from the opening chapter, although I hope to incorporate AIs becoming sentient spontaneously somewhere else. I thought it was cool.
Right now I'm trying to define the characteristics of flesh eaters. Something cool and violent. Can penetrate boarding suits, blow up heads, overload low-power shields, destroy inanimate objects, make people bleed profusely and/or burn flesh.
Perhaps a "blaster" with multiple settings?
Perhaps a "blaster" with multiple settings?
1. I forgot the sunscreen
2. I'm wearing a red shirt
3. BBQ
4. Liquify
5. Reactors look balmy compared to this
6. Mushroom cloud
7. The sun is jealous
8. Sh*t, I just melted the planet
9. We don't need no stinkin' solar system
10. Big bang
Norm d'Plume wrote:Perhaps a "blaster" with multiple settings?
1. I forgot the sunscreen
2. I'm wearing a red shirt
3. BBQ
4. Liquify
5. Reactors look balmy compared to this
6. Mushroom cloud
7. The sun is jealous
8. Sh*t, I just melted the planet
9. We don't need no stinkin' solar system
10. Big bang
You have too much time on your hands. Bzzt.
Post-Battle chapter is up. It pulls together all remaining story threads. Lady Kay makes an important appearance.
Only one chapter to go. Amen.
Norm d'Plume wrote:Perhaps a "blaster" with multiple settings?
1. I forgot the sunscreen
2. I'm wearing a red shirt
3. BBQ
4. Liquify
5. Reactors look balmy compared to this
6. Mushroom cloud
7. The sun is jealous
8. Sh*t, I just melted the planet
9. We don't need no stinkin' solar system
10. Big bang
I'm missing the appeal of Girl Genius, but then I never understood the humor in Calvin and Hobbes either, until I saw one day that Hobbes was a stuffed toy. Then it was hilarious. It's the Calgary winters. Slows the brain. The sleeping pills don't help.
A mad science superwoman comes into her powers. Hilarity ensues.
http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20090803
Under all ot that, it's an amazingly well-crafted story. All the parts hang together, at every level.
I'm missing the appeal of Girl Genius, but then I never understood the humor in Calvin and Hobbes either, until I saw one day that Hobbes was a stuffed toy. Then it was hilarious. It's the Calgary winters. Slows the brain. The sleeping pills don't help.
The appeal to me is that there's a Girl Genius for EVERYTHING ... 
Seabrass wins a prize for fastest turnaround on a review. Apparently, he was lurking in the shadows.
K, get in there and let me know if there's more I can do with Lady Kay before Amy gets there.
The book ending for Apollo is written!!! Now for Joseph ... time to take that boy mountain climbing. I'm probably going to jinx it, but I'm shooting to have them both up this weekend. Almost done. Just a little more. C'mon, you can do it. Finish line is in sight. Just a few more meters.
K, note I said meters. Pretty soon I'll be spelling words weirdly, using excessssive s's. Then I'll start writing dates backward. I feel like the guy in Australia's back country with only Apple Maps to guide him. I've tried four times to change my address with Social Security to an international address, and it still isn't working. I may have to write them a letter. Guaranteed to work. Pfft. (I should mention that I found a place in the dialogue for God to say pfft. I still need a place for bzzt.)
Nite.
v2 is done! I'm dedicating tomorrow as Victory over New Bethlehem Day.
Congratulations. Writing "the end" is a great feeling. Here's to many more.
Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi → The Galaxy Tales - Dirk B.
