ARMOR

Imperial adventure sims set in the wilderzone frequently portray the Tribes of Man as savages in garishly-painted armors adorned with spikes, hologram tabards, and fur cloaks. Those zeit-visioneurs who know better engineer a more realistic perspective, but even they are prone to fanciful flights. The one thing all depictions of the wilderzone share is the presence of powered armor. Even though perhaps only ten percent of the population at most even has the training necessary to use powered armor, the overwhelming stereotype in the Empire is that all tribals wear shells.

It is a stereotype we in the Empire should not let cloud our thinking. Though they have many strange customs, a brazen independence, and a penchant for tremendous violence, the Tribes of Man are not primitives. At the same time, there is a paradoxical truth in the popular misconception. Tribal warriors are trained to be deadly in and out of their suits, but by far the most significant combat unit in the wilderzone is the warrior in powered armor. When a tribal speaks of going to battle, she means in her hard-shell. Though tribal warfare can involve frequent switching of armors to accommodate shifting tactical needs, most tribal warriors keep a personal armor, to which they can become quite attached. The more "professional" tribes such as the Blood Eagle or the Stormguard do not form such emotional bonds.

Armors are technically called "scarabs," from SCARAB, which in turn is said to stand for Servo-Coordinated Armor with Refluxed-Agility Boost. However, I understand this term could also refer to powered armor's origins as a primitive form of exo-suit used by ancient colonists on the planet Venus in Sol system during the Cybrid wars. Despite its antiquity, few tribals use "scarab" in common parlance, simply calling the gear "armor, "hard-shell," "shell," or simply "suit." There are indications that some more traditional tribes have lately taken to calling their armors scarabs once again-this practice is particularly noticeable in the radical faction of the Children of Phoenix: the Harbingers. (I'll speak more of this group in a future report, but I warn you now that they are a frightening source of discord in the wilderzone, and I fear they are gaining influence.)

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