City Technology
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–Dante | ||
The City as shown in Limbus Company, as well as Lobotomy Corporation and Library of Ruina, has developed various types of innovative technology. While many these are tied to the Wings and the Singularities in their possession, others are of wider public use, being found all across the City. This article aims to be a collection of such inventions.
Body Modification Procedures
Procedures to modify one's organic body are extremely common in the City, being used by people of all walks of life, from wealthy Nest citizens, to laborers of the Backstreets. Body modification procedures are widely considered necessary for anyone who undertakes Fixer work.[1] Through these procedures, one's entire body can be modified, except for the brain, which must be kept intact.
Prosthetic Substitution
Prosthetic use consists in the substitution of organic body parts for mechanical or bionic ones. This can be partial, or full-body; in the latter case, the user's brain is removed from their body, and placed into the new, prosthetic one.
Full-body substitution is an irreversible procedure, and therefore usually ill-advised compared to other options. It is often chosen by people in need of money, who are then able to sell their old body and their organs for a good sum, or by people who do repetitive work, as a completely mechanical body is able to withstand the stress better than an organic one, and is not subject to physical needs such as that of food and drink.[2] Full-body prosthetics instead require the use of brain fluid and fuel to keep the user's brain and body in good condition, as well as occasional physical maintenance.[3] It appears that in current models, fuel might have been replaced by electrical energy.[4]
Prosthetics can be of varying quality and aesthetics. Low-quality prosthetic substitution comes at the cost of the loss of one's senses. This can be overcome through the purchase of desire stimulation chips or medicines, or that of a more expensive prosthetic, as high-quality models come with sensory organs. The most expensive models are capable of adjusting the user's emotions or completely shutting off desires.[5]
As of current times, full-body prosthetics most commonly resemble mechanical human bodies with heads of various shapes, as those shown during Canto III, that had become widely popular in Calw in the years preceding the start of the main story. In the past, possibly tracing back to the times of Lobotomy Corporation's founding, full-body prosthetics had a less human design, resembling square metal cases, such as the prosthetic utilized by the Tieqiu Boss, as well as the Sephirot of Lobotomy Corporation. This design is around a decade old by the time of Limbus Company, and is considered incredibly antiquated during the events of the story.[6] During the Smoke War, bio-prosthetics (prosthetics made of organic, non-human material) such as Gregor's insectoid arm, were also in wide use, although they've fallen out of style in more recent years.[7]
Augmentations
The City offers various options for strengthening one's body. Augmentation does not require the complete substitution of a limb, instead being a procedure that enhances its natural abilities; this makes augmentation procedures the most important investment for those involved in Fixer business. Augmentations can be applied to a wide range of body parts, including the heart (as is the case for Bada from Library of Ruina), the muscles (as is the case for The Red Gaze, whose legs are enhanced with artificial muscle fibers),[8] to even one's physiological reactions (as appears to be the case for Hindley).[9] Augmentation does not necessarily reflect on improved combat performance; instead, it allows the body to better keep up with the necessities of combat and of the combat techniques one has learned.[10] For example, enhanced physical strength may allow a Fixer to carry a larger weapon, but it will not change their basic skill in wielding it.[11]
One's skin can be enhanced as well: tattoo augmentations, famously used by The Middle, used to be a patented technology tied to the Singularity of a fallen Wing, but following its collapse, they became fairly common in the City, being more affordable compared to other options. Tattoo augmentations can grant skin as hard as steel, as well as enhanced physical strength.[12]
Concept Incinerator
A concept incinerator has the literal ability of erasing a concept, particularly an invention.
When something is burned within a concept incinerator, the invention passes into oblivion, together with its memory and all traces of it left in the world, and the documentation and records of it become blurred.[13] The effectiveness of a concept incinerator depends on the quality of the product, with a certain range of prices being available.
Dimensional Container
Space manipulating technologies are widely used in the City, being commonly employed by various Wings and applied to many different products. One popular utilization of it is that of dimensional containers. A dimensional container, or dimensional attache case, is a container that is able to store items greater than the container's apparent dimension.
The technology of a dimensional container bends the space inside the case, and compresses both the size and the mass of its contents, ensuring their weight is barely felt by the carrier.[14] This makes dimensional cases ideal for long distance transport, such as that operated by the Devyat' Association, as well as household utility and security services, which makes the cases popular among Butlers. Dimensional containers are available in different makes and sizes, with the most expensive having a smaller external size and bigger inner capacity.[15]
While human beings can theoretically enter dimensional containers, doing so poses a danger to them. As a result, there are Hana and Devyat' Association rules prohibiting it.[16]
Fabric
In the City, clothing can be imbued with special properties through the use of particular types of textiles. Fixer uniforms are typically created with such fabrics, and include benefits such as a high degree of protection, or greater movement speed, with high-quality fabric providing as much protection as an augmentation procedure.[17] Fabric can also affect the wearer's emotions, creating effects such as bolstering their courage.
These textiles are created by Tailors through various means; one such method, used by The Carnival is weaving fabric from living beings through the use of a Singularity of a fallen Wing.[18] Enhanced fabric is available for purchase and widely used by Fixers and important figures of the City, with certain high-quality types being only available through Workshop memberships, while some Tailors are tied to organizations and only provide fabric for those affiliated.
Gesellschaft
The Gesellschaft is a net of extra-dimensional connections utilized by Faust.
For more information, see Gesellschaft.
Memory Wipe Procedure
A memory wipe procedure can be used to remove specific memories. After the process, the subject will no longer be able to access the wiped memory, and will not be able to recall the wiping process either.[19]
The procedure can be performed in two main ways: the more common one, as used by Alfonso on the Sinners, is a simple removal of the selected memory,[20] which can then be moved to other persons or objects,[21] while the cheaper option, popular in the Backstreets of the City, involves the complete destruction of the memory, and runs into the risk of affecting other memories.
Mirror Technology
Variations of Mirror and Glass Technology have begun to spread across various corners of the City.
For more information, see Mirror.
Monoliths
A Monolith is an artifact capable of forcing an individual into distorting or turning into a Peccatulum. It has the appearance of a flat black stele, around two meters tall. Similarly to the Golden Boughs, Monoliths have recently started appearing around the City, scattered throughout the Backstreets of the various Districts, where they have caught the attention of the Five Fingers and other Syndicates, as well as that of a number of Wings.[22] Limbus Company began its research on the artifacts and recovery expeditions much earlier than other factions and firms, allowing them to create a large stock that makes them the main providers of Monoliths in the City. Specifically, it is the LCA that works to retrieve the Monoliths, after which they are transferred to Moses and the LCD.[23]
Golden Boughs and Monoliths share other similarities. Much like a Bough, a Monolith amplifies and releases feeling— unlike a Bough, the Monolith releases a "signal" that specifically pushes someone to face the emotions boiling within their mind, therefore pushing them into distorting.[24] A Distortion caused by a Monolith is noted to differ from a naturally occurring Distortion, as it can be cut short by external forces, such as knocking out the affected individual.[25] Despite this, it appears the voice of the Distortion is still involved in Monolith-induced Distortion.[26] A Monolith's effect may also turn the individual into a Peccatulum, however. Researcher Hohenheim hypothesizes this as a simple "game of chance", believing there to be a 50/50 shot of either becoming a Distortion or Peccatulum.[27]
Additionally, unlike the Bough, the Monolith is described as a supposedly human-made device with an inner mechanism, which can be turned on or off. Dante describes this process of "locking down" the Monolith as the act of drawing a trail of light over the device.
Monoliths are also a part of Limbus Company's purchase catalogue. During November 984, T Corp. Executive Director Herbert requested to purchase the Company's entire stock of Monoliths, with Faust communicating this intent to the higher-ups of the Company.
Transportation
The entire City is covered by the WARP Train network, which provides fast transportation between the Districts. The WARP Trains are powered by W Corp.'s Singularity, ostensibly a teleportation technology, that allows all trains to reach their destination within 10 seconds, regardless of distance, and passengers to avoid using automobiles, as the streets of a Nest are prone to traffic congestion.[28] The WARP transport system was also previously known to be remarkably reliable, having had no recorded incidents in a decade[29] prior to the events of Library of Ruina. All these factors contributed to making WARP Trains the most widely used means of transportation in the City.
Following the occurrence of an incident in the past few years, WARP Corp. is experiencing reduced revenue due to decreased first class ticket sales, forcing them to expand economy class carriages.
The price of WARP Trains appears to be standardized throughout the City, with the first class ticket costing around two or three times the monthly wage of an average person in the Nest, and a year's wage of a Backstreets dweller.[30]
Other means of transportation mentioned to be used in the City include buses, normal trains,[31] automobiles,[32] and a subway system.[33] In Hongyuan, cars are not commonly used; instead, a common method of transportation is use of a "Palanquin", a car chassis manually carried by people stationed beside each wheel. Airplanes are not used in the City, nor are they a widely known concept in current times.[34]
P Corp. WARP Train Station
T Corp. WARP Train Station
V Corp. WARP Train Station
First Class Hibernation Devices
Economy Class Seating
Station Interior
Palanquins in the Hongyuan Backstreets
References
- ↑ Library of Ruina Eri's Page - "Body augmentation comes first. There’s no point having masterful skills or fancy equipment if your body can’t keep up, y’know? And training hard isn’t gonna do it. (...) Body augmentation is more of a necessity than an option these days."
- ↑ Library of Ruina The Brotherhood of Iron post-Reception - Roland: "You can sell off your old body and organs for a good chunk of cash. Two, when you need to do repetitive work for a long time. I heard mechanical bodies like that aren’t bad for that kind of labor. Broken parts can be quickly replaced, and desires can be kept under control, so it has its merits."
- ↑ Library of Ruina The Brotherhood of Iron pre-Reception - Mo: "T-these bodies just need brain fluid, fuel, and some repairs from time to time."
- ↑ As seen in Canto III, Sinclair's family is connected to electrical plugs during their "meal time". The bodies of prosthetic users as seen in Limbus Company are often shown to run on electricity in some capacity, as scenes of combat featuring them often depict electrical discharge, as seen for example in The One Who Grips Faust's Uptie art.
- ↑ Library of Ruina Mo's Page
- ↑ Canto 2-16 - Rodion: "Isn’t that model… a bit too antiquated? It kinda looks like it belongs in a museum."
- ↑ Intervallo 6.5-20 - [Sasha] (speaking to Gregor): "Also, is that a bio-prosthetic? Must be an old timer, huh? I thought those things went out of style forever ago."
- ↑ Leviathan Book 12, The Corridor / Shin (心) / Mang (望)
- ↑ Hindley's Passives—obtained through augmentation—interact with his Sanity, with one of them allowing him to recover from Panic.
- ↑ Dante's Notes (Combat Capability, Record #1) - "Heathcliff tells me that an untrained, inexperienced body enhanced by surgeries just turns you into a slightly sturdier punching bag. Ryōshū chimed in to add that the type of procedure, choice of weapon, and style of martial arts matter, too."
- ↑ Hindley's Combat Encounter is a practical demonstration of the concept, showing an augmented combatant with an unusually high amount of HP, but low damage output abilities.
- ↑ Library of Ruina Dino's Page
- ↑ A Restaurateur's Mild Fathoms - Yi Sang: "For instance… It has the ability to make it as if Miss Faust never invented Mephistopheles. No, not quite. It simply… is oblivionized, as though the brain had never conceived it. Any documentation, photography, the tiniest bits and parts of its composition, and even Miss Faust’s own memories will be dimmed and obliterated."
- ↑ Devyat' Assoc. North Section 3 Rodion/Identity Story
- ↑ Dante's Notes (Dimensional Container, Record #1)
- ↑ Intervallo 7.5-3
- ↑ Library of Ruina The Carnival, Episode 1 - Roland: "There’s a good reason a lot of hotshots in the City are dressed in normal-looking attire and not plate armor. (...) You’ve probably seen it from some guests, but those aren’t just regular clothes."
- ↑ Library of Ruina The Carnival's Page
- ↑ Dante's Notes - "Odd. I remember everything that K Corp wanted me to forget, but that room… I can’t remember a thing about the memory wipe procedure itself."
- ↑ Reminisced League of Nine - "The Sinners had memories of seeing something in the laboratory, but none of them could recall what it was, how the tears were collected, or how HP bullets were made."
- ↑ The Tale of a Great Fixer Who Once Reached for The Dream - Jia Xichun: "Some parts of the City even sell them as local products."
- ↑ Intervallo 7.5-13
- ↑ A Blade Fiend's Fathoms
- ↑ Intervallo 5.5-18 - [Ezra]: "I'm picking up a super huge bump in the Monolith signal in the area near you! That signal can force people to Distort, for your information! We HAVE to contain it before that seeping signal goes completely out of control, okay?!"
- ↑ Canto 6-32 - Faust: "Unlike the case with the Monolith, this is a Distortion occurring as it normally should. [...] such Distortions occur as though it has been ordained by fate itself. Once the sequence has started, it cannot be stopped without a strong will from the subject of Distortion."
- ↑ Intervallo 5.5-24 - Aeng-du: "Oh… Yes. I hear you. Your voice is finally… growing clearer…"
- ↑ Intervallo 7.5-14 - Hohenheim: "This is a very simple matter. Nothing more than a coin flip. Heads, or tails."
Faust: "It appears you are still insisting on your absurd 50:50 theory." - ↑ Intervallo 4.5-1
- ↑ Library of Ruina Molar Office pre-Reception - Rain: "WARP hasn’t had any accidents in the last ten years, though."
- ↑ Library of Ruina The Puppeteer pre-Reception
- ↑ Intervallo 6.5-16
- ↑ The Final Problem
- ↑ Branch D-02
- ↑ Leviathan Book 14, Focus - Garnet: "More importantly, I can’t tell for sure if I knew what an “airplane” was in the first place."
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