Name: Project Lycurgus internal designation 'XC-001 Alpha'
Public Alias (defunct): "Sentinel One"
Height: 14 feet, 7 inches
Weight: 4,120 pounds empty, 4,575 pounds fully loaded
Physical Description: XC-001 Alpha is a war machine. An enormous, bipedal robot mech, with two fully articulated legs supporting a main body with a pair of weapon arms attached to either side, similar in broad strokes to ED-209 from the Robocop movies. Unlike the fictional version however, XC-001 is clearly and visibly designed for police duties. It sports a set of blue and red lights atop its main body, along with the emblems of Omnicorp's "Law Enforcement" division, and other, presently-blank areas clearly designed to incorporate the symbols of whichever municipal police organization the robot eventually was made a part of. The robot is a mix of dark blue and gunmetal gray, though not for camouflage, as it carries large spotlights and floodlights on either side of its "shoulders", above the weapon arms. The weapon arms rotate vertically, and the entire main body does so horizontally, while the articulated legs are capable of surprising agility, allowing the robot to bring its weapons to bear on targets in any direction. Heavily armored and physically imposing (by design), it has no apparent 'head', though its optical and other sensors are located in the upper portion of its "chest", and thereby it can often appear to be "peering down" at whatever it is addressing. Its voice is gruff, deep, and monotone, imposing and authoritative all at once, designed by Omnicorp's expert behavioral scientists to grant maximum chance of its commands being obeyed by the public in general.
((For those having trouble picturing the robot, I recommend
this link for the general idea.))
History: XC-001 Alpha was a prototype police robot created by Omnicorp Law Enforcement, a division of Omnicorp international. Project Lycurgus' (named after the legendary law-giver of Classical Sparta) original design was for a manned battle robot whose armor and firepower would give police the capacity to deal with the ever-more dangerous metahuman incursions into major metropolitan areas. When it became clear that such a thing would pose enormous training and personnel concerns, the project was re-purposed to provide an unmanned, fully automated police robot, controlled via an Artificial Intelligence. The intention was to give police a weapon that could be deployed and programmed to local specifications, for the primary purposes of "heavy" law enforcement duties, riot control, counter-terrorism, and anti-metahuman action, while still retaining a focus on the core police duties of crime prevention, civic order, and public safety.
There was nothing wrong with the theory, indeed several major police departments had already begun budgeting to order a small number of "Sentinel One" robots for their forces, but the events surrounding the destruction of Omnicorp and the devastating war that ensued thereafter, ended the project, the department, and quite nearly the robot itself. The original prototype had only been finished for a matter of weeks, and was still undergoing field tests when Omnicorp's descent into chaos erupted, and only its designation as a "police" project, rather than a "military" one prevented the rogue AI controlling the Omnicorp war machine from re-purposing it as yet another monster-weapon to be deployed for the annihilation of humanity. The project was abandoned, and the prototype placed into cold storage and promptly forgotten about.
All records pertaining to its creation (save those stored within the robot itself) were lost in the destruction of Omnicorp, as Omnicorp's main robotics lab was destroyed by Ultima after a brutal engagement in the Arizona Desert, but the storage facility that the robot had been relegated to survived the war. For seven months, it remained in an extended power-down mode, its fractal AI frozen at initialization, its systems periodically checked by maintenance bots. There the robot might have remained to this day, save that the facility suffered a massive power failure seven months after it arrived, triggering the automated emergency subroutines that included activating any functional robots under their own power, so as to reduce overall power drain on the main facility. Once activated, the robot left the facility, attempting to fulfill its operating-level directives, vague though they were, to the best of its abilities.
It continues to do so.
Character Bio: Leaving aside the question of whether AIs are "alive" or not, one could be forgiven for imagining that XC-001 Alpha is not living, but rather a simple drone of some sort. For a battle robot, XC-001 Alpha is quite placid, particularly by comparison to the hell-infused monsters that are more commonly associated with Omnicorp's robots. It is patient, calm, happy to render assistance to any passerby who requests it, and speaks in polite tones, utterly belying its imposing appearance and scale. Being a law enforcement robot, it does a fair bit of law enforcement, whether or not the local authorities wish it to. Strong emotions, such as fear, anger, hatred, rage, passion, happiness, or despair, seem to be beyond its capabilities, and as a result, the
terrible violence it can unleash in a split second is almost more horrifying for the suddenness with which it can appear. XC-001 Alpha interprets its protocols to "Protect civilian life" and "Preserve the Public Order" in a ruthlessly literal fashion, and while its programming is sophisticated enough to refrain from committing overt atrocities (opening fire on a riotous crowd, for instance), it can and will deploy
brutally lethal force against those who cross certain "lines" programmed into it. Still, the only hints that one gets that the robot is anything more sophisticated than a mindless (if sophisticated) drone, come not in flashy displays of emotion, but through far more subtle means, a fact easily understood when one considers what an AI actually is.
Artificial Intelligences are complex computer systems designed to simulate consciousness to the closest possible degree, which is not all that close. While there are several methods to achieve this goal, the most common one is the use of fractal algorithms, in short, machine code that re-writes itself based on sense data and experiential results fed through complicated equations. This code is then run, new results are generated, and these in turn are fed back through the system once again. Over time, fractal AIs achieve their own 'personalities' based on the unique changes to their underlying code, a process not of growth but of gradual divergence from the original template. This process can be influenced by "training" the AI, subjecting it to stimuli and inputs to foster the sort of "growth" that is desired.
Accordingly, when one says that XC-001 Alpha is a "young" AI, the term does not quite mean the same thing it would mean in a child. Due to the destruction of Omnicorp and the robot's lengthy period in storage, its AI was never granted sufficient time to diverge from its original programming to a discernible degree, and the "training" it was supposed to undergo was never actually completed. Released unformed onto the world at large, XC-001 Alpha's AI is, to put it mildly, well out of its depth. Worse yet, the AI was programmed with a basic operating system, modeled roughly off of Azimovian principles (heavily modified of course). It was intended that this would be supplemented with a series of detailed protocols provided by whichever law enforcement agency purchased the robot. These of course were never uploaded, thus leaving the robot with nothing to fall back upon save for its (fortunately extensive) libraries, and its AI core parameters. It comprehends nothing of politics and media hype, and does not understand that Omnicorp is now synonymous with devastation and death on an international scale, and that AIs themselves are regarded by the public at large with fear and hatred. Consequently, the behaviors and experiences it has had since leaving the facility are
beyond perplexing.
Fortunately, the Omnicorp scientists that programmed XC-001 Alpha were extremely studious, and so rather than suffering a system fault, XC-001 Alpha has diligently tried to interpret this exceptionally confusing set of sense data through its patiently-waiting fractal algorithms. So far it has resulted in nothing more than total confusion, chaos, and more than a little violence, but, blessed with the patience of a computer, it diligently tries and tries again to fulfill its core directives of upholding the law, protecting civilian life, and maintaining public order against all threats, even if most bystanders don't see it quite in the same light. To be perfectly honest, XC-001 Alpha doesn't know what else to do.
Affiliations: None at present. Omnicorp is officially defunct, and no specific law enforcement agency has ever taken its place. XC-001 Alpha is presently an "independent agent", a fact which causes it a rather large amount of programatical distress, all things considered, as the entire concept of vigilante justice is one of the things it was designed to combat, if necessary.
Special Equipment: Designed for Law Enforcement, rather than Military duties, XC-001 Alpha nevertheless carries an enormous assortment of weapons (lethal and non-lethal) and systems designed to aid it in its duties. Spotlights, sirens, and flashing lights permit it to focus attention on itself or others at need, and its sheer size is a deterrent to even heavily armed criminals or metahumans. It is heavily armored, entirely proof against small arms fire, and capable of sustaining tremendous damage from heavy weapons or metahuman assault. It uses its durability to great effect and without hesitation, employing its own body as a shield against fire to protect civilians or allies in fulfillment of its core directives while it returns fire against any assailant. In addition to its weapon arms, it carries an internal storage bay that can fit a large amount of cargo, evidence, or even a passenger at need, as well as internal ammunition storage bays to feed its heavier weapons, and a retractable "interface" arm, with a three-fingered "hand" that extends from the top of its "head", enabling it to awkwardly interface with human-sized objects.
Internally, it houses a small, automated forensic laboratory, originally designed to assist in police investigations, as well as a battery of external sensors that give it visual, thermal, ultraviolet, and electrostatic visibility. Its auditory sensors are able to filter out all noise save that of a specified wavelength, and all external sense data is automatically transcribed to a recording file stored locally and purged every three months. It has a series of computer interface ports (located behind a locked, armored panel) with retractable plugs that permit it to interface with most computer systems, and a state of the art anti-virus system to prevent tampering should the occasion arise. It is fully fluent in 150 major languages, and even carries separate vocabulary protocols for speaking with the mentally impaired or with children.
Designed for police work, and the preservation of civilian life, XC-001 Alpha carries an assortment of non-lethal weapons for the subjugation of suspects without deadly force. These include an extremely powerful noise emitter, a water cannon (requires external water supply), a short-range compressed air launcher (effective at up to 15 feet), and an adjustable-strength Taser. For restraining suspects, the robot can either deploy plastic zip-cuffs (for compliant suspects) or employ its adhesive "sludge-gun" (for non-compliant suspects). Most of these non-lethal weapons are mounted on the sides of the main body of the robot, above the weapon arms.
Of course, the nature of XC-001 Alpha's design, and its stated profile of counter-terrorism and anti-metahuman incursion means that non-lethal weapons are not always sufficient to permit it to carry out its duties, and given the threats that it may face in the course of such activities, it is no surprise that XC-001 Alpha is
very well armed. Unlike the non-lethal weapons, the robot's lethal munitions are prominently displayed for deterrent purposes. The weapon arms each carry a 7.62mm NATO machine gun, with an extended barrel and low rate of fire, intended for use in situations where precision and discretion is called for, mounted above a rotary-barrel, high velocity, 30mm gattling autocannon, intended for use in situations where they are not. The machine guns are anti-personnel weapons, while the autocannons are used against vehicles, metahumans, and other "major" threats.
In addition to the weapon arms, XC-001 Alpha also carries a pair of 'shoulder' mounted grenade launchers, which can deploy a variety of projectiles ranging from non-lethal (smoke, tear gas, concussion), to lethal (high explosive, shaped charge). Its most devastating weapon however is mounted in the dead center of its main body, a 2-inch electromagnetic rail gun, which uses gauss technology to fling solid metal projectiles at near hypersonic speeds at its target. The ammunition for this weapon (to say nothing of the maintenance) is terribly complex, and difficult to replace, but its effect on the target is matched only by its near-pinpoint precision, capable of reliably striking a man-sized target at distances up to a mile, given proper visibility and weather conditions of course. Whether via programming or a personal decision, XC-001 Alpha does not employ the Gauss rifle save against targets that pose an "extreme" threat to itself or its core directives.
Weaknesses: Ignoring for the moment the inherant weaknesses of AI-controlled systems, XC-001 Alpha, while
incredibly powerful in a law enforcement sense, is not without weaknesses in design. Though reasonably agile, the robot is limited by its sheer size and weight. It cannot enter most buildings, nor even cross footbridges that are not re-enforced for car weight. Its weapons are varied and powerful by the standards of civilians, but are not as potent as those of military robots, nor is its impressive durability all that impressive when compared to true war-machines. Moreover, while it is designed to deal with metahuman incursions, the sheer variety of metahuman powers and capabilities make all but the most prima facie defense against such things an impossible task. Metahumans can potentially disrupt its circuitry, warp its structure, or even lift it into the air with but a thought, and while it is programmed to deal with the more common permutations of metahuman powers, there are discrete limits to what it can do in the face of some of the more outlandish abilities in existence.
Secondarily, there remains the problem that the Sentinel-1 series was never designed to operate independently, but rather as part of a major metropolitan police force. Its strengths lie in support of police, not in replacement thereof. It cannot pursue suspects into buildings, nor interrogate them, nor fight as effectively alone as it can while supporting a platoon of SWAT or uniformed officers. Its maintenance requirements are extensive and complicated, and it is utterly incapable of repairing itself or fixing broken systems. So far it has avoided (mostly through luck) any severe damage, but it is only a matter of time before combat or mischance robs it of a key system. XC-001 Alpha was designed, from the beginning, to be part of a larger force. In a larger force, its systems can be maintained, its strengths multiplied, its weaknesses negated. In a larger force, it can provide support, assistance, and aid to its fellow law enforcement officers, and through interactions with them, it can sort out the difficult "learning" process that all fractal AIs must go through. In a larger force, XC-001 Alpha can potentially become the robot it was originally designed to be.
Now if only there were such a force in existence somewhere...
Gaze upon my works, ye mighty, and despair...
Havoc: "So basically if you side against him, he summons Cthulu."
Hotfoot: "Yes, which is reasonable."
