Post by Trippy Hare on Jan 14, 2010 18:52:44 GMT -5
Though Terran engineers had been studying the ruins and remains of Elder technology at Pyrus Terra since 201PNA, it wasn't until Waeleth III's ascension to the throne in 102NA that the first replica of Elder technology was made. The difficulty of adapting Elder tech to suit Terrans was in the power source- Elders used magically crafted gems, which enabled them to control their machines remotely. Since Terrans could not use nor understand magic, the Elder golems and powersuits remained a pipe dream. Terran technology was barely capable of moving a massive suit of armor at all, and the attempts often resulted in horrific maiming for the laborers involved- usually petty criminals.
Terran engineers devised an alternative power scheme, using steam engines. After several failed attempts at a working system, Waeleth pulled funding for the project, seeing it as a waste of valuable resources. Despite this, a former Royal Engineer named Tamar Bellane decided to remain at Pyrus Terra, and funded the research himself. Bellane continued the practice of using petty criminals as labor, and eventually was forced to expand recruitment efforts to include slaves, discharged veterans, and the mentally ill.
This proved to be the necessary breakthrough. The certifiably insane workers he had enlisted were prone to improvising necessary accommodations for camp life out of available materials. One such improvisation devised a lifting platform to replace rickety ladders. This platform was powered with pressurized cooking oil- in effect, primitive hydraulics. Further experimentation refined this simple hydraulic into a functional control apparatus, which used hydraulics to move the suit, and the steam engine to provide the hydraulic pressure.
By 110NA, Bellane had built a prototype armored suit, capable of standing and walking. Though he had enough laborers to build more, he lacked the needed military experience to devise a machine that would be useful in that application. He offered a monetary reward to any current or former soldier willing to pilot the experimental suits, and soon recruited about a dozen such individuals.
Further refinements became necessary, as the structural problems of the suits became apparent when they were used for military applications. More recruits became necessary, as the pilots of these initial models had a short lifespan, and each pilot had to be trained on an entirely new design, while simultaneously, each pilot had to train the engineers and architects as to what the suit needed to do. Eventually, by 112NA, the first fully functional suits had been perfected, and the Templar Corps was officially born.
Bellane's finances had been completely drained by the effort, leaving him with little choice but to contract out his Templars as private security. Despite some initial misgivings, rumor soon spread about massive metal soldiers and their seeming invulnerability. Eventually, word spread to Waeleth III, the very man who had canned the project in the first place. Seeing the potential use for nigh-indestructable soldiers, Waeleth purchased the entire Corps of Templars in 113NA, which amounted to about a dozen suits. The Corps was integrated into Waeleth's Ministry of Law rather than the military, relegating Templars to providing security and a police-like presence in frontier or remote areas.
Waleth also expanded the Corps' base Templar model, to include other styles of Templar suits, idealized to other applications. To date, the Templar Corps has 225 pilots, and four Templar models. Despite their prowess on the field of battle, Templars are considered to valuable to be integrated into Waeleden's main army.
Terran engineers devised an alternative power scheme, using steam engines. After several failed attempts at a working system, Waeleth pulled funding for the project, seeing it as a waste of valuable resources. Despite this, a former Royal Engineer named Tamar Bellane decided to remain at Pyrus Terra, and funded the research himself. Bellane continued the practice of using petty criminals as labor, and eventually was forced to expand recruitment efforts to include slaves, discharged veterans, and the mentally ill.
This proved to be the necessary breakthrough. The certifiably insane workers he had enlisted were prone to improvising necessary accommodations for camp life out of available materials. One such improvisation devised a lifting platform to replace rickety ladders. This platform was powered with pressurized cooking oil- in effect, primitive hydraulics. Further experimentation refined this simple hydraulic into a functional control apparatus, which used hydraulics to move the suit, and the steam engine to provide the hydraulic pressure.
By 110NA, Bellane had built a prototype armored suit, capable of standing and walking. Though he had enough laborers to build more, he lacked the needed military experience to devise a machine that would be useful in that application. He offered a monetary reward to any current or former soldier willing to pilot the experimental suits, and soon recruited about a dozen such individuals.
Further refinements became necessary, as the structural problems of the suits became apparent when they were used for military applications. More recruits became necessary, as the pilots of these initial models had a short lifespan, and each pilot had to be trained on an entirely new design, while simultaneously, each pilot had to train the engineers and architects as to what the suit needed to do. Eventually, by 112NA, the first fully functional suits had been perfected, and the Templar Corps was officially born.
Bellane's finances had been completely drained by the effort, leaving him with little choice but to contract out his Templars as private security. Despite some initial misgivings, rumor soon spread about massive metal soldiers and their seeming invulnerability. Eventually, word spread to Waeleth III, the very man who had canned the project in the first place. Seeing the potential use for nigh-indestructable soldiers, Waeleth purchased the entire Corps of Templars in 113NA, which amounted to about a dozen suits. The Corps was integrated into Waeleth's Ministry of Law rather than the military, relegating Templars to providing security and a police-like presence in frontier or remote areas.
Waleth also expanded the Corps' base Templar model, to include other styles of Templar suits, idealized to other applications. To date, the Templar Corps has 225 pilots, and four Templar models. Despite their prowess on the field of battle, Templars are considered to valuable to be integrated into Waeleden's main army.