Mechlink

Mechlink

A bionic implant that allows direct control of mechanoids. Mechlinks are used by soldiers to control war mechs, and by workers to control labor mechs. A person with a mechlink is known as a mechanitor.
Mechlinks are self-installable. Pressed into the back of the throat, the unit injects itself through the flesh to clamp inside the base of the skull where it meets the spinal cord. There, it threads a web of ultrafine wires throughout nearby neuronal tissue to make the direct mental link between the user and the mechanoid control band.
Mechlinks are not simply devices for sending radio signals to mechanoids, because mechanoids are not merely robots. In addition to traditional computers, mechanoids have a dim psychic presence, so fluently controlling them requires a psychic connection. By linking mechanitor and mechanoid both psychically and electromagnetically, the mechlink permits deeper control than screen-and-button interfaces.
Since the mechlink interlaces deep within the brain tissue, it can only be removed after death.
Note: A mechanitor must be capable of smithing work to gestate mechanoids.

Base Stats

Type

Medical Items – Body Parts

Tech Level

Archotech

Market Value

500 

Stack Limit

1

Mass

1 kg

HP

100

Deterioration Rate

0

Flammability

0%

Path Cost

14 (48%)

Technical

defName

Mechlink

A mechlink is an item that can turn a pawn into a mechanitor.

Acquisition

There are multiple ways to acquire a mechlink:

• Starting with the mechanitor scenario.
• Destroying the midsection of the remains of an Ancient exostrider to obtain a mechanoid transponder, which can be used to call in a mechanoid ship containing a dead mechanitor and some hostile mechanoids. The mechlink can then be extracted from the mechanitor corpse.
• Travelling to an ancient mechanitor complex guarded by hostile mechanoids. Among the desiccated corpses is a mechanitor corpse which the mechlink can be extracted from.

Summary

Mechlinks can be installed onto any pawn with >0% Psychic Sensitivity. It does not require any medical operation, and thus is self-installed when interacting with it. However, it cannot be removed except after death. Extracting the mechlink from a dead pawn does not cost any resources.

Upon installing a new mechlink for the first time, an event will trigger that causes a friendly Lifter or Constructoid to drop onto the colony, which will automatically link with the new mechanitor.

Mechlinks provide a passive stat boost of +6 Mech Bandwidth and +2 Mech Control Groups, which can be further increased.

Analysis

As it's quite rare and cannot be easily removed once installed, one should be careful which pawn to install the mechlink into.

Most essential is a good crafter who is capable of smithing, as it influences their ability to repair/gestate mechanoids, and encode subcores.

Curiously, non-violent mechanitors can still control combat mechanoids and order them to attack, since mechanoids count as separate entities from their master. That makes mechlinks the only option for pawns incapable of violence to defend themselves in combat, even if it technically isn't them doing the legwork. Therefore, non-violent pawns may possibly make for better mechanitors than those capable of violence, since they can spend more time on crafting to maintain their mechanoids than they would also learning to melee and/or shoot. Along with gene modding, a non-violent pawn could take the Awful melee, Awful shooting and Great crafting aptitude genes along with Violence disabled gene, for a total of +8 Crafting and +4 Metabolic Efficiency with no meaningful downsides. If you plan on keeping them safe behind walls while their mechanoids do the killing, you could even take the Slow wound healing and Delicate genes for an additional +5 Metabolic Efficiency.

Since the mechlink counts as an artificial body part, it will make body modders very happy, and body purists very upset to have one installed. The body modification precept also affects this.

Version history

• Biotech DLC - Added.

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Biotech (DLC)

Families

Relationships (Reproduction • Children)
Life stages (Babies • Children • Adults)
Furniture (Crib • Baby sleeping spot • Growth vat • Toy box • Baby decoration • School desk • Blackboard)

Mechanoids

Laborers (Agrihand • Cleansweeper • Constructoid • Fabricor • Lifter • Paramedic • Tunneler)
Combatants (Centurion • Legionary • Militor • Scorcher • Tesseron)
Commanders (Apocriton • Diabolus • War queen • War urchin)

Mechanitors

Control (Mechlink • Band node • Mech boosters • Mech signallers • Control pack • Airwire headset)
Mechanoid creation (Basic subcore • Standard subcore • High subcore • Subcore encoder • Subcore softscanner • Subcore ripscanner • Mech gestator)
Maintenance (Mech recharger)

Genetics

Xenohumans (Dirtmoles • Genies • Highmates • Hussars • Impids • Neanderthals • Pigskins • Sanguophages • Wasters • Yttakin)
Genes Germline • Xenogene • Metabolic efficiency
Genetic Modification Genepack • Gene extractor • Gene bank • Gene assembler • Gene processor • Xenogerm • Archite capsules
Deathrest (Deathrest accelerator • Deathrest capacity serum • Deathrest casket • Glucosoid pump • Hemogen amplifier • Hemopump • Psychofluid pump)

Pollution

Nature (Toxalope • Toxipotato plant • Waste rat • Gray pine tree • Pebble cactus • Rat palm tree • Witchwood tree • Stasis cocoon)
Mitigation (Wastepacks • Atomizers • Pollution pumps • Polux trees)
Adaptation Face mask • Gas mask • Tox grenades • Tox pack • Tox shell • Toxic needle gun • Toxbomb launcher • Detoxifier kidney • Detoxifier lung
Nonchalance Toxifier generator