Organic Technology: Difference between revisions

== Literature ==

* Bio-rigged tech in ''[[Embassytown]]''. Literally everything produced by the [[Starfish Aliens|Ariekei]] falls in this category, weapons to farms to power plants. This becomes a problem when {{spoiler|the Ariekei become addicted to Ezra's voice, and the addiction spreads via the biological infrastructure of the city to infect everything they've built.}}

* In one of the [[Dean Koontz]]'s early novels, ''Fear That Man'', the protagonist awakens to an [[Ontological Mystery]] aboard at what first seems like a familar spaceship. Only upon closer inspection does he realize that all of its functions are the result of carefully hidden blob-like organisms.

* In the novel ''Star Dragon'', mankind has passed through enough [[Technology Levels]] to achieve this level of engineering, along with mastery of genetic modification. Nearly all technology is organic in nature, including toilets, which feature ''tongues'' in lieu of paper. '''Tongues!''' ([[Memetic Mutation|Do NOT want!]])

** In ''[[Star Trek: Enterprise]]'' they came across a near magical repair station that apparently used the brain of various unconscious aliens to enhance its computer system.

*** It does have a adverse effect on the minds of those connected, they tend to make the brain useless for any other purpose if connected for to long.

*** Let's [[Fanon Discontinuity|not speak about that]].

* The Zygons of the old series of ''[[Doctor Who]]'' had organic technology.

== Tabletop Games ==

* [[Cthulhu Tech]] sees this with the [[Gratuitous German|Engels]], extra-large mecha that are more or less just massive creatures covered in enough machinery to conceal their monstrosity (somewhat). They tend to have a detrimental effect on the psyches of their pilots.

** Tyranid bio weapons are notably inferior individually to their non-organic counterparts though, and their space fleets are noted to be inferior to every other faction's. It is their single minded purpose and sheer numbers that make the Tyranids so deadly.

** The original and ancient ''Warhammer 40,000'' sourcebook, ''Rogue Trader'', had "organic weapons" (such as organic chainswords) that were essentially bio-engineered duplicates of mechanical versions made of flesh and bone rather than steel and ceramics, apparently a curiosity widely used. The Tyranids were notable for always using them, but at this point the Tyranids were just random bugs rather than the galaxy-eating, [[More Teeth Than the Osmond Family|wall-of-teeth]] Great Devourer. Since 3rd edition and the 'Nids new models, it is becoming increasingly difficult to spot where the bio-weapon ends and the Tyranid carrying it begins.

** The Eldar make extensive use of a substance called wraithbone, which is a psychoplastic material that also possesses some self-regenerating capabilities. While not Organic Technology per se, Eldar vehicles and buildings aren't built, they're grown.

** The Dark Eldar have, with their relatively recent update, gotten a large swathe of Organic Technology, particularly in the Haemonculus subfaction.

*** Depending on the writer, Machine Spirits have been anything from intelligences formed from hundreds of years of a complex program slowly evolving, an inherence within Imperial computing technology, an actual CPU core housing a legitimate AI, or a collective of the fragmented minds of the controlling servitors. While Games Workshop has called each of these excused correct at various times, when you are talking about actual Imperial AI, you are referencing the Cortex. This is a very advanced fragment of [[Lost Technology]] which parts of the Mechanicus can still make very well and understand fairly well in comparison to most other things. It is a single, large, solid, crystalline mass which acts like a light-based computer. It is extremely powerful for its size, and can fairly accurately re-create the neurological structure of biological creatures (mammals, birds, pets, fish, humans). Its "firmware" and processing power are set by a combination of predetermined crystal growth patterns and in-growth manipulation (probably electroshock therapy).

* The Akashan Star Sphere or "Space Gods" from ''TORG''.

** ''[[Dark Sun]]'' had Halflings use this, either symbiotic creatures, buildings made from tissues, adapted wildlife, or types of organic automatons, such as the Scrubslug, which eats dust and debris and transforms it into organic floor wax.

** ''[[Spelljammer]]'' features several [[Living Ship]]s and military biotechnology of elves and goblinoids back from the First Unhuman War, such as several transformed creatures, giant insect zombie [[Mini-Mecha]] and Witchlight Marauder as [[Horde of Alien Locusts|a weapon of mass destruction]].

 

== Video Games ==

** While metal technology is connected with wires and cables to transfer electricity and information, Zerg buildings are connected with a mass blood vessels and muscle tissue called Creep to transfer nutrients and genetic code. Each building is less like an organism and more like an Organ, since they support the central Hatchery and will gradually shut down and die without creep to support them.

** So much so, that if left unchecked, it is almost completely certain that the Zerg would spread Creep across an entire planet, ''[[What Do You Mean It's Not Awesome?|making the entire planet a living organism.]]'' Potentially, it could then evolve itself into a space-faring creature fully capable of serving as an "ultimate weapon" to crush all Terran and Protoss opposition.