ᴏɴᴇꜱ ᴀɴᴅ ᴢᴇʀᴏᴇꜱ
❛ Here at First United Astral Engineering, your priorities are our priorities. ❜
- Intent: To create a more capable successor to the PG-unit; a droid designed to intertwine the characteristics of astromechs and explorer droids.
- Image Source: x
- Canon Link: n/a
- Permissions: n/a
- Primary Source: n/a
- Manufacturer: First United Astral Engineering
- Affiliation: First United Astral Engineering
- Market Status: Open-Market
- Model: FAE/APS-series "Aperture" Personality Droid
- Modularity: Yes.
- Production: Mass-Produced
- Material:
- Durasteel
- Titanium
- Gammaplast
- Glasteel
- Heat-Resistant Shell
- Droid components
- Classification: Second Degree (maintenance droid)
- Weight: Light
- Height / Size: Small [ 1" ft 1" in | 33 cm ]
- Movement: Management Rail
- Armaments:
- Electro-Shock Prod
- Misc. Equipment:
- Photoreceptor
- Holoprojector
- Scomp Link / Data Probe
- Electro-Shock Prod
- Spotlight
- Resistances:
- Energy/Blaster: High
- Kinetic: Very Low
- Lightsabers: High
- EMP/ION: Very Low
- Sonic: Average
- Elemental: Very High
- Chatterbox- APS-series droids communicate in Galactic Basic by default. They exist to serve as companions, and as such are programmed with dynamic thinking and freeform personalities. While they are designed to focus on the concrete task assigned to them upon assembly, Aperture droids are known for developing distinct identities fairly quickly.
- Additionally, Aperture droids are capable of learning and mastering several foreign languages upon repeated exposure and constant teachings, much like an organic. An alternative presents itself in the form of connecting the droid to a language database, allowing it to install them via a lengthy download process.
- Handlebars - All APS-series droids come manufactured with twin handles at either end of their chassis, allowing their owners to handle them with ease. While still a noticeable weight, Aperture droids are easily portable, and aren't nearly enough to significantly dampen the movement of carriers - whether it be via handles or through other means, such as in a backpack.
- Manoeuvrable Optic- The inner casing housing the single photoreceptor Aperture droids have is incredibly mobile, capable of rotating it within all directions, including behind it.
- Let There Be Light - The photoreceptor is often bright, allowing it to barely illuminate the area in pitch darkness. If said occasion were to occur, Aperture droids come manufactured with an internal flashlight, able to aid navigation within hard-to-see locations.
- Core Receptacle - As opposed to astromechs, whose scomp links and data probes are located behind panels within their chassis, an Aperture droid's probe is melded with its back panel, and as such it needs to be manually inserted into an access terminal by its handler in order to use it. While this may not be as easily accessible as an astromech's method, the Aperture droid's interconnected probe guarantees no way of it getting snapped or forcefully removed by an enemy.
- Plug Me In - Upon connection to a data port, whether it be a starship, a base, or otherwise, an Aperture droid is granted all the usual astromech permissions.
- Expertly Hacked - A data port belonging to a base allows the droid to freely manipulate its doors, shut down security systems, access the building layout, and retrieve data stored inside.
- Look How Small You Are Down There - A data port belonging to a starfighter allows the droid to seize control of the vessel, piloting it, as well as calculate hyper jumps.
- 4000 Kelvin- Aperture droids are designed to adapt to and operate in near-apocalyptic environments, and as such prove to be incredibly resilient. Not only is their sturdy chassis enough to let them tank drops from high altitudes, their heat resistance proves remarkably effective, able to withstand temperatures that would otherwise melt an organic in a near instant. Their heat resistance, as such, proves surprisingly effective against mild lightsaber attacks, as a light swing won't be enough to sever the droid in half. Not that they'd be able to do much against the full thrust of one as it sinks inside their circuits.
- The Future Starts With You - Furthering their well equipped ability to function in dire situations, an Aperture droid is prepared to self-sustain itself in the case of a complete societal collapse, and are designed to function on power sources as low as 1.1 volts for protracted periods of time, due to their insanely long battery life.
- Preservation of Mass - Aperture droids are capable of functioning even when whittled down to their most basic of selves; a mere, inch-long core housing all its memories, personalities, and directives. This increases the droid's chances of survival during instances in which its outer chassis is severely damaged, and the core itself gives off an electrical charge capable enough of powering incredibly basic vessels, such as a potato battery (albeit, with much less critical thinking).
- Modded Support - Much like its predecessor, the PG unit, Aperture droids are very easily modified and highly customizable. Many are given pre-determined tasks to excel at upon exiting assembly, but clients may very well construct their own. The chosen interest more often than not acts as the foundation of the droid's developing personality, making it a very influential decision.
- Catch me CatchmECATCHME - An Aperture droid's most obvious weakness is, of course, its mobility. With a complete dependence on navigating via management rails attached to surfaces, this severely limits the freedom of movement upon patrolling ships or bases. Even worse, however, is when the droid is faced with an area lacking a rail altogether. If it were to progress, it would need to forcefully detach itself, leaving itself at the complete mercy of anyone coming into contact with it. Unlike other droids, Aperture units rely on being carried by their handlers in order to be brought along on missions, and the utter lack of movement proves it near impossible to escape enemies when firmly grasped.
- No Fingers - Unlike humanoid droids such as protocol or assassin droids, the ASP-series units lack any appendage used to interact with, excluding the two handlebars they can fruitlessly wiggle. Not even with the utility arm astromechs possess, this leaves Aperture units without any way to feasibly carry or input specific things, and also means that, while more than capable of piloting them, they're not particularly useful at repairing starfighters, unlike their astromech counterparts.
- Tiny and Insignificant- Aperture droids are relatively small in size, being able to comfortably fit in backpacks, which may aid in sneaking them within places, but their small stature means that it takes significantly less force to destroy them. A mere crush can leave an Aperture unit grasping onto life, and while they're capable of surviving incredible heights and lethally scorching temperatures, they are still what many expertly trained hunters would call... target practice.
- Terrifyingly Human - The main appeal of personality droids are... their personality. As far as droids go, they are worryingly human. They express individuality, critical thinking, self-preservation, pain, and fear - things that completely go against the cold, mindless drones that make droids appealing. Memory wipes would entirely negate their reason for existing, their personalities reset without meaning, and as such you sacrifice the point of the droid. Not only that, but Aperture units are programmed to respond to stimuli in such realistic ways, that they may often go against orders in hopes of saving themselves. They're only human. Or so they act.
- Corruption at 100% - A major downfall at the cost of producing such highly-human droids is their increased risk of corruption. Being subject to too much overwhelming material - be it physical, such as one too many rushed downloads and installations, or mentally, such as a traumatic experience at the forefront of battle - leads to the Aperture droid's core corrupting. Once corruption begins, the droid's primary functions begin failing, with the unit progressively forgetting its name, its memories, and its personality; until it's nothing but a frantic, broken shell obsessed with its prime directive. Corruption during early stages is salvageable if acted upon quickly, but an Aperture droid is too far gone at 50%, with the only option left being to destroy it. Corrupted units are a danger to droids around them, as their corruption can spread through contact or by sharing data ports. It is advised to discard your APS-series personality core immediately upon irreversible corruption.
Upon the successful launch of Industrial Automaton's PG-series Utility Droid line, customers praised the droid for its adorable companionship, but craved more in portable droid relations. Spotting an opportunity to tap into the market, First United Astral Engineering begun its work on their newest series of droids - the APS-series Personality Droid, affectionately nicknamed the "Aperture" line due to their large, centred optics. Specking into the same core principles as the PG unit, the Aperture line would focus on amiable, reliable companionship, with an incentive on portability for the easiest convenience. Gone was the PG unit's basic programming and droidspeak; the personality droids were capable of complete speech, providing a more authentic experience for those wishing to engage in droid interactions.
Where the PG-series was small and nimble yet incredibly frail and prone to destruction, the APS-series invested in durable materials for a tougher, tankier build at the expense of the droid's mobility - something that would be countered by its transportability. The Aperture line proved to be a worthy contender, favored primarily by more adult audiences as opposed to the PG's child-suited nature, as the spherical droids excelled during battle as a result of their sturdy chassis and critical thinking. Personality droids were nonetheless outclassed by the infamous R2-series astromech, as the Aperture line suffered heavy consequences as a result of its much higher dependence on handlers.
A remarkably well manufactured droid, stored in such a small body, the FAE/ASP-series "Aperture" Personality Droid achieved its goal: to become the mature older brother to the rather pet-inspired PG-series, and lent itself to several clients whether it be for its wide array of programmable input, its relentless patrolling aboard starships, its genuine relationship with its handlers, or its usefulness as a surprise slicer.
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