Remnant

Old World Blues

"Rightly, boss, I’m not ready to give up what I had. Who I used to be." 

 ~ Pygar, Remnant Dragoon

The Remnants are synthetic humans artificially created with a purpose that was destroyed with the Fonterra eons ago. Remnants awaken from a deep stasis into the lonely, unforgiving world of Salt. Most Remnants awaken within the Last Bastille, but others are abandoned to the forgotten ruins in the Frontierland. The Remnants are too few to hold absolute power, with the overwhelming majority of them locked in a semi-permanent stasis. As Remnants age, they also universally have a deteriorating mental condition called Statica or the White Eye.

Attribute Changes

The Remnant Birthrite grants a +2 Grit Attribute Bonus.

Remnants are created without physical flaws or imperfections. They have long, ageless lives spent operating an eternal post or in search of deeper meaning.  

The Remnant Birthrite grants a -1 Charm Attribute Penalty.

Remnants are unaccustomed to interpersonal interaction. As a result, they often come off as disconnected or vacant during social interactions. Based on their experiences, Remnants are often hesitant to engage with outsiders.

The Remnant Birthrite grants a choice:

+1 Power Attribute Bonus

-or-

+1 Focus Attribute Bonus

Remnants experience a mental disorder called the White Eye, in which their perception of reality is overlaid with the illusion of memory. In a moment, a Remnant can slip into a memory from the Old World, recalling experiences of past battles and long-forgotten techniques.

The Remnant Birthrite grants a choice:

-1 Skill Attribute Bonus

-or-

-1 Will Attribute Bonus

Although they are built to perfection and are agelessly long-lived, Remnants do suffer from deterioration over time. For example, muscular actuators can wear out, leading to a clumsy performance at dexterous tasks. White Eye also causes intense dissociative episodes, leaving a Remnant potentially vulnerable during a critical moment.

Class Abilities

The Remnant Birthrite grants a choice:

Electronics

-or-

Engineering

Your choice applies as an additional selection to your Studious Tenderfoot Class Feature.

Beliefs

Remnants will often spend their lives in search of meaning, purpose, or value. After Reignition, a Remnant experiences a state of traumatic shock. The realization of the cataclysmic destruction that resulted in the loss of everything they knew takes a heavy impact on most Remnants. The harsh, unforgiving world of Salt can cause some Remnants to slip into an eternal state of madness. Many suffer from severe Miscognitions and struggle to cope in the new world without proper care and guidance. Remnants crave purpose. As they are built with a specific specialization or skillset in mind paired with being thrown into the unstructured chaos of Salt, some Remnants are left pining for order and sensibility. Those Reignited under the care of the Eternal Enclave fair off far better than those left to the Frontierland. Remnants are undyingly dedicated. Once a Remnant has pledged their loyalty to an idea, there is very little that could make them falter in their service to that idea. This makes Remnants common targets for cults of personality. Smooth talkers who claim to have all the answers and a pile of busywork can keep a Remnant in servitude for years without realizing they are being taken for a ride.

Education

Initially, the Remnants were synthetically designed with a purposeful life on the Fonterra in mind. Empty human shells, a Remnant’s Spirit could be anything from a sentient Artificial Intelligence to a reborn human consciousness. The process of critical consciousness to a Remnant body is a permanent one. When a Remnant dies, its soul dies with it. A Reignited Remnant will have all of the experiences and memories of their previous life, a mirror imprint of their last purpose that bleeds over into their active reality.

Geographical Origin

A Remnant could be from anywhere globally, but most Reignitions take place within a Ruin somewhere in the Frontierland. There is a vast clutch of Remnants that remain dormant in stasis within the only proper Remnant City, the Last Bastille. Neither external forces nor the Remnants themselves can control when Reignition begins. The Eternal Enclave works to scour Ruins in search of still-dormant Remnants to recover to the safety of the Last Bastille. The Last Bastille lies at the base of the Cobalt Range, southwest of the Dust. To the southeast lies the Kronin Territories that begin in the Petritus Stone Forest, and to the west lies the Empire of Armistice and their brambled Proving Grounds. 

Grooming

Remnants retain the grooming habits of the Old World. They make careful assessments of their appearance and attempt to look presentable and professional at all times. Remnants long-suffering of White Eye cannot care for their bodies and will suffer from increased malfunctions, breakdowns, and errors if they do not maintain proper personal upkeep.

History

The history of the Remnants began far before life touched the surface of Salt. The Humans that forged the magnificent terraforming superstructure, the Fonterra, only knew of peace and prosperity marked by centuries of advanced technological development. Once in low orbit around Salt, under the guidance of their Homeworld, the Fonterra began the slow, arduous terraforming process, utilizing the Progenitor Core to instill the foundations of life into a dead planet. Over generations, the planet air came to sustain breath, the soil came to support flora, and beasts began to walk the lands.

A new Frontierland forged from nothingness into Salt. 

And then, in an instant, the Homeworld vanished without a trace. The Fall of Fonterra plunged the millions into total darkness and isolation. No longer was this a mission of expansion and growth, but a desperate bid for the survival of Humanity. Internal tensions began to brew, creating cracks in the lasting peace they had always known. Pressures soon proved to be unresolvable, breaking out into an unwinnable civil war. Damage caused by the infighting to the infrastructure of the Fonterra at times caused catastrophic failures, leading to mass death events tallying in the hundreds of thousands. Many feared the total collapse of the superstructure.

Those that saw the writing on the wall turned to the Synthetic Revival Program. False Human Bodies that can upload an Artificial Intelligence or a digitized Human Consciousness. Originally used to grant a second chance to sick, injured, or dying Humans, Artificial Intelligences was also utilized to fill critical roles in the Fonterran labor force. Millions of those fleeing the consequences of war chose to make the irreversible choice. They sacrificed their body to be reborn as a Remnant. They were entered into a deep semi-permanent Stasis, with the promise of Reignition when the Fonterra was safe once again. 

As history would prove, those fears were not unfounded.

Millions more ejected to the surface world, deciding to try their chances against the Frontierland than die in endless warfare. Unfortunately, the war only ended with a complete meltdown of the Fonterra's Reactor, effectively killing all remaining inhabitants on board, scattering what remained of the structure to Salt's Orbit. Shards of the Fonterra spread to create a ring of debris around Salt and its two(2) moons, Photon and Deiton. Entire intact Ruins of the superstructure periodically fall from the sky down to the planet's surface below, carrying with it lost technologies, forgotten knowledge, and rare materials. 

Many Remnants that survived the fall still lie dormant in Stasis.

Within their ruined home, they slumber, waiting to awaken in the shell of everything they once loved. 

Politics

There is no ruling body or governing entities entirely comprised of Remnants. The Last Bastille is under the protection of the Eternal Enclave, but the Eternal Enclave does not have established leadership roles, instead individually acting under a sworn code of honor. Remnants of the Eternal Enclave pledge to stand watch over Remnants in Stasis, seek out Ruins of the Fonterra for more survivors of their kind, and kill any Remnant that has lost their sanity to Statica as an act of mercy.

Relationships

Remnants make for timeless companions. They often outlive all of their relationships with outsiders, but Remnants cherish their time with loved ones all the same. Unfortunately, a sad part of Remnant life comes with the deteriorating mental states caused by Statica. As Remnants age, the deterioration bleeds their memories into their reality. Remnants lose sight of where they are, who they are with, what they are doing, and eventually lose all touch with reality. As a result, Remnants may not remember the faces or names of their loved ones or become permanently locked in their past experiences.

Social Caste

Remnants do not maintain any type of social order. More experienced Remnants who have shown honor and resilience will be more respected and have their words taken with more weight, but there is no official rank or order to which the Remnants adhere. 

Values

Remnants have values that highlight sentimentality, dedication, and duty. Remnants are very nostalgic and like collecting keepsakes that remind them of their favorite people or places. They can find a lot of joy when they encounter music, poetry, and art, as they have difficulty self-expression. Remnants enjoy humming tunes while they let their minds wander and frequently get songs stuck in their head. Remnants act with purpose. They remain enthusiastically diligent in every task they set out to accomplish. Remnants can, at times, be heavy-handed, both literally and socially. However, they can bring a certain intensity to action that could punctuate otherwise casual encounters with a degree of tension. Remnants are loyal to their friends and themselves. It is said that if you befriend a Remnant, you will have a friend for life. Finally, Remnants are fierce in keeping their duties, often step up to accept responsibility, and do everything they can to avoid compromising their values.

Wealth

Remnants often Reignite into the world alone and with nothing. Some individuals may rise to the realms of wealth and fame, but many live as drifters, wanderers, or simple laborers. Many others find a comfortable living utilizing their skills from their previous lives.