Template for posts
Technology:
Faction:
History/Creation:
How it works:
Why it interests you:
Do you think humans will ever invent this technology in the future:
Technology:
Translocation Grid
Faction:
Forerunner
History/Creation:
I don’t believe any information on the history or creation of these has been released
How it works:
It uses slip space to effectively transport an individual or small vehicle, like a phaeton
Why it interests you:
It allows for near-instantaneous travel across vast Forerunner installations. Without them, coordination of forces on a massive installation would be nearly impossible
Do you think humans will ever invent this technology in the future:
I would like to see this being used on something like the Infinity. It could make it possible for humanity to make massive star ships and installations on the scale of the Forerunners
Technology:
Glassing beam on (S)alvation-class ships
Faction:
Covenant
History/Creation:
This weapon has been in use by the Covenant for at least 1400 years before the current date, 2559 C.E.—as noted in the archives regarding the initial contact between the Yanme’e and the Covenant on their homeplanet in 1112 C.E., which may have led to the Yanme’e homeworld being glassed if not for the consideration of possible Forerunner artifact presence on the surface.
How it works:
(S)alvation class Covenant ships are capable of utilizing a heavy plasma weaponry to glass planets into an uninhabitable state. There are two methods of glassing a planet. The first is an orbital bombardment which is accomplished by multiple large ships clustering together and performing a unified strike from the orbit of a planet. The strike is reminiscent of a plasma ball that is >300ft across. The second method is a low-altitude bombardment that is carried out by focusing plasma into a narrow beam through an energy projector on the belly of the ship.This method can burn up to 1 acre of land per 15 seconds.
Why it interests you:
The ships and their glassing process both are beautiful and impressive, but the reality is dark and the way they loom in the skies threatening. It is very evocative imagery to me.
Do you think humans will ever invent this technology in the future:
Yes. Just like in real life, I think in the Halo universe there is a tendency to research and re-invent enemy weaponry as a deterrence (Consider the plot of Metal Gear Solid: Peacewalker). I do not think the UNSC would want to utilize these weapons because of how traumatic an experience they were for their own citizens. It is somewhat more likely that a splinter group will someday exploit the technology.
Technology:
Slipspace Drive
Faction:
All Major Known Factions
History/Creation:
One of the interesting aspects of slipspace travel in the Halo universe is that there have been numerous approaches to its creation, and numerous iterations of the technology itself. As far as we know the Precursors, Forerunners, and the Ancient Humans and San’shyuum all invented/discovered forms of slipspace travel. To what extent those factions “borrowed” from one another - and likely borrowed from the Precursors already ancient and established technology - is unknown. But after the galactic reset of the Halo Array firing, the Covenant and the Humans had both rediscovered/reinvented that technology. Given the fact that much of the Covenant’s technology is based on reverse-engineered Forerunner tech, it might be reasonable to say that Human scientists were the first to independently recreate this effect. In 2291, Drs. Wallace Fujikawa and Tobias Fleming Shaw created the first functioning Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine, and off we went chasing stars.
How It Works:
Imagine that multi-dimensional spacetime is a sheet of 8x11 paper. You draw a star on one end of the paper, and one on the other end. They are, say, 9 inches apart. Then, you fold that paper up. Those stars are now much closer, while also maintain the same static distance; it is a “compressed” version of our normal space. You didn’t change where the stars were on the paper, you changed the nature of the paper. So you use your slipsace drive to -Yoink- a hole in the paper so you can get between those folds and close the distance. Now you’re cooking with slipspace. Human tech crumples the paper; sure it’s closer, but it’s also messy and with lots of jagged edges you can break your spaceship on. Covenant borers fold the paper more neatly, and Forerunner and Precursor tech seems to turn the paper into smoke and claim the stars were next to each other the whole time. Sufficiently advanced technology, and all that. In any case, Slipspace travel involves aspects of standard astrophysics as well as experimental aspects of modern physics: like quantum field theory and its associates: particle physics and condensed matter physics.
Why It Interests You:
Well, we’re not gonna get anywhere traveling at sublight speeds, let me tell you. To understate the issue: space is quite large. Even going the speed of light, it takes way too long to get anywhere. So, rather than go faster than spacetime says we can, why not manipulate the nature of spacetime itself! This is the foundation of most modern science fiction: the Warp Drive, the Hyperdrive, the wormhole generator. The pathway to the infinity of space is in our ability to apply and advance these kinds of incredible technologies. Halo’s representation of that technology - and the riches and dangers the opportunities of space travel present - are among my favorites in that world of sci-fi.
Do you think humans will ever invent this technology in the future:
Yes. Or something similar, or maybe something dissimilar that serves the same purpose. Provided we don’t Jiralhanae ourselves into oblivion, humans have demonstrated terrifying potential. We are clever, and that goes a long way. If we can continue to grow and learn, I hope we can sail our way through the universe.
I’m most interested in the 25th-century Internet. How does it work between planets? Are there giant ethernet cables running through Slipspace? Do automated ships constantly cache data and jump between planets? Is it still distributed and free, or has ONI locked it down? Do Insurrectionists have their own Internet that the UNSC is constantly trying to hack? How much can the average citizen look up about the Forerunners, Flood, even Covenant? And so on.