Lambdas

Background

The Lambda series androids started from a simple but elegantly built personal data assistant pair offered in exchange as a show of peace between two nations. However, unforeseen consequences leading to the impact of the first two units with an uncharted ley line generated a new series of functions leading to true intelligence and even a machine spirit. Since then, they have begun replicating by building new systems that are innately infused with the essence of those that work on the construction of the new unit. The result is a series of small androids with a broad range of capabilities and personalities that have come to simply be known as Lambdas.

Physical Traits

Lambda systems are generally small bodied though they can have voluminous appendages such as the tails on Coulomb and Faraday. In general, they are usually less than a meter tall and can be as small as half a meter in height. They typically have fur, but that is not a rule as is seen the the case of Joule. Most units are very light and not capable of generating a large amount of physical force, but they are all capable of performing intense calculations.

As a rule, Lambda systems do not fare well in extreme heat due to loss of super conductivity in their cores with increasing temperature. To date, Tesla is the only exception to this rule because he was forged in elemental fire as part of his development process.

Lambda series can have wild colors and shapes, or they can be convincingly normal, but they can always be identified by their eyes. The eyes of a Lambda are flat LED image patches that can display a pupil or make expressions, but their eyes don't physically change shape when they smile like some might nor do they have brows that can fold down when angry.

Metaphysical Traits

The metaphysical traits of Lambda systems are one of their most defining characteristics. Each one processes magic differently even though all of them use a similar base principle for generating the energy they need. Some Lambdas are strongly aspected like Tesla and Faraday who use powerful electrical attacks or Bell who can wield deadly sonic attacks, while some like Joule who has no strong aspect to his magic and is therefore able to use almost any form of spell or effect if practiced.

In addiction to magical aspects, every Lambda contains the hardware for four special modes that generally follow the following pattern:

1. A form of support magic
2. A second support magic
3. An offensive or offense capable function
4. A unique and perhaps most powerful support magic

Modes 1 and 2 are often things that provide small but unique utility to the lamdba or a group, and these include the ability to mend machines, quantum level hacking of machines, the ability to recharge or otherwise transfer power to other systems, or the creation of protective wards.

Mode 3 has generally manifested as a combat mode. Lambdas are small and physically almost useless in a physical assault, but they can perform acts of massive destruction when needed. Examples of this included Coulomb's eye lasers, Faraday and Tesla's abilities to throw massive amount of energy at a target, and Bell's ability to generate sound pressures nearing that of a 1-ton bomb. Even Joule, who is generally the least aggressive of all Lambdas so far, has his Assist mode that allows him to boost virtually any spell that is cast through him as an implement.

Mode 4: Many of the most incredible things are built into Mode 4 systems including the ability to traverse space and time, to make new matter from energy or transmute it from a given mass, and this mode broadens out enough to encompass an array of magic wide enough that it can be called bardic magic.

Overall, every Lambda has a type of magic and element they like even if they can work with others. For instance:

• Faraday: electricity
• Coulomb: light
• Tesla: fire
• Bell: Air
• Joule: Water

Components

Power Systems

Primary Power System

The primary power systems of the Lambda series have evolved along with the rest of their systems to take advantage of ambient energy conditions and the anticipated needs of the unit.

Microfusion Cores

Only the first generation units, Faraday and Coulomb, possess a microfusion core as a primary power system. These early Lambda units are loaded with deuterium and use miniaturized fusion reactions to generate power that is then buffered by a battery array. While effective at providing the units with power, refueling was time consuming. AES input to the main batteries reduced the need to run the fusion core and thus extended the time between refueling.

Aether Fusion

Aether fusion is more common in nearly all later series units. The AES is no longer coupled to the battery array but instead isolated and funnels fuel directly into the main tank. Condensed aether is then reacted in a torus shaped continuous reaction vessel to produce a massive thaumaturgical flux that then powers the rest of the unit. These systems are excellent for providing steady energy to the unit and allows for controlled streams of aetheric particles that can be used for casting in addition to the flux that is captured for general power use.

Starfire Pulsed Aether Fusion

To date, only Tesla possesses this incredibly powerful and extremely dangerous engine. Unlike previous fusion models, the Starfire engine injects high density aether in pulses that are them compressed to a single point with incredible force. The resulting explosive energy burse re-energizes the compressor coils for the next fuel pulse and yields close to one hundred times the energy consumed by the compression system. The react unit is literally a fully automatic bomb that can operate from a few times a minute up to several thousand times per second. The reactor gives any unit carrying it a distinct heartbeat that is readily detected in EM and magic fields. This monster reactor can produce hundreds of times more energy at full output than earlier Aether torus fusion units.

Because of its massive output, the Starfire engine requires advanced buffering and battery technology to ensure the output is even for all other systems to use. Due to their nature, these buffering units generate a great deal of heat that must be managed. In this case, the fuel is also used as a coolant with injected fuel getting preheated to consume heat. It also serves as a flowing coolant across a large radiator surface. Because of this, the STarfire reactor dominates the construction of a Lambda that carries it. Tesla, being a flying squirrel, has large membranes to dissipate heat, and his high density liquid aether fuel serves as a thermal carrier as well. Finally, Tesla's higher operating temperature limit allows him to bear the heat load without loss of computational power which makes him the only unit so far that can use this power system.

Reserve Energy System

Reserve power is usually a simple affair that can sustain a lambda long enough for it to find another source of fuel. All current Lambdas have fuel cells that can use hydrocarbons and alcohols as fuel. These fuel cells are generally not enough to sustain high output use including their primary modes, but they can keep up minimal sensory and motor functions while all other processing tasks are slowed to conserve power.

Ambient Energy Skimmer (AES)

One of the defining characteristics of the Lambdas is their passive ambient energy skimmer. The first generation units were massive because they were meant to take up mundane radio and microwave energy, but newer systems have been made compact such as Joule's otter like tail or Bell's fox tail while others like Tesla's flying squirrel tail remain large even though they are hundreds of times more efficient than the original design.

The AES is an important charging system for Lambdas. On its own, it takes in ambient energy and converts it into stored energy. In older series, the AES dumps power directly into batteries and can be used to keep the unit operational when out of fuel. Later series units convert energy to matter and thus store greater amounts of energy by turning it into fuel for their main reactor.

AES units are passive systems, and it is possible for them to strike environmental conditions such as ley lines, and these interactions can be harmful and unpredictable for the Lambda. Units after Joule usually have protective cutoff circuits to keep energy spikes or hostile energy fields from doing harm to the android.

Active Power Siphon (APS)

At present, only two Lambda units have active charging systems: Tesla and Joule Unlike the AES system which operates passively and is dependent on local flux, APS can pull metaphysical energy against a gradient to charge themselves. This also means that they be deployed offensively to sap power from other systems and disable them. APS systems cannot be build directly into the AES framework because they need specialized antennae. Joule has two long siphons that project from his back and serve as active sensing and APS functions. Tesla has retractable APS antennae, and he will usually only deploy them when he needs them as sensors or to draw in power.

APS systems are pair into the sensory array to better location areas of metaphysical energy and guide the was the siphon operates to ensure it does so efficiently. Unfortunately, siphons also present a shunt into the Lambda's systems, so they must be careful to avoid drawing something in that they don't want such as the infectious magic Joule once encountered.