Exo: Difference between revisions

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==History==
==History==
===Origins===  
===Origins===  
The Exos were designed and built during humanity's Golden Age by the [[Clovis Bray (corporation)|Clovis Bray corporation]]. The original intent of the project was to develop a durable, synthetic housing for an uploaded human consciousness (an "exomind"), which would effectively render humans immortal.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 2", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#-07-|-07-]]''</ref> However, early exominds fell victim to a degenerative process termed the "loop/billboard/crash" cycle, characterized by loss of sapience and seizure-like involuntary movements, culminating in a state analogous to brain death. This problem eventually claimed the life of [[Clovis Bray II]] after he was uploaded into an exomind format.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "NOTE—WHY EXOMINDS FAIL", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#-020-|-020-]]''</ref>
The Exos were designed and built during humanity's Golden Age by the [[Clovis Bray (corporation)|Clovis Bray corporation]]. The original intent of the project was to develop a durable, synthetic housing for an uploaded human consciousness (an "exomind"), which would effectively render humans immortal.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 2", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#-07-|-07-]]''</ref> However, early exominds inevitably fell victim to a degenerative process termed the "loop/billboard/crash" cycle, characterized by cognitive and motor stereotypy (abnormal, repetitive behaviors), athetosis (slow, involuntary writhing movements of the limbs and extremities), and gradual loss of sapience. While degenerating exominds would still pass the Turing test for a time, they were [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophical_zombie philosophical zombies]], and would ultimately enter a state analogous to brain death. This problem eventually claimed the life of [[Clovis Bray II]] after he was uploaded into an exomind format. Crashed exominds could be restored from backup, but the "billboarding" process would simply begin again.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "NOTE—WHY EXOMINDS FAIL", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#-020-|-020-]]''</ref>


Following the discovery of the [[Anomaly (artifact)|K1 artifact]] and the paracausal force [[Clovis Bray I]] called "[[Darkness|Clarity]]", Clovis I mounted an expedition to [[Europa]] to find the secret of immortality promised to him by "Clarity". There, under the instructions of a mysterious entity he called "[[Clarity Control]]", Clovis I stole a [[Vex]] from the [[Ishtar Collective]] and used it to build a gate to a Vex megastructure, the [[Forge Star]].<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 6 AMENDMENT", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#-029-|-029-]]''</ref><ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 7", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#ENTRY 7|ENTRY 7]]''</ref> Upon studying samples of Vex [[radiolaria|radiolarian fluid]] recovered from the Forge Star and observing its synergy with "Clarity", Clovis I discovered that introducing "Clarity"-altered radiolarian fluid, deemed "[[Alkahest]]", to an exomind's hardware miraculously solved the "loop/billboard/crash" problem.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 8", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#-40-|-40-]]''</ref> However, even this solution was not permanent, as the new generation of Exos fell victim to Dissociative Exomind Rejection.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "NOTE—D.E.R.", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#-45-|-45-]]''</ref>
Following the discovery of the [[Anomaly (artifact)|K1 artifact]] and the paracausal force [[Clovis Bray I]] called "[[Darkness|Clarity]]", Clovis I mounted an expedition to [[Europa]] to find the secret of immortality promised to him by "Clarity". There, under the instructions of a mysterious entity he called "[[Clarity Control]]", Clovis I stole a [[Vex]] from the [[Ishtar Collective]] and used it to build a gate to a Vex megastructure, the [[Forge Star]].<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 6 AMENDMENT", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#-029-|-029-]]''</ref><ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 7", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#ENTRY 7|ENTRY 7]]''</ref> Upon studying samples of Vex [[radiolaria|radiolarian fluid]] recovered from the Forge Star and observing its synergy with "Clarity", Clovis I discovered that introducing "Clarity"-altered radiolarian fluid, deemed "[[Alkahest]]", to an exomind's hardware miraculously solved the "loop/billboard/crash" problem.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 8", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#-40-|-40-]]''</ref> However, even this solution was not permanent, as the new generation of Exos fell victim to Dissociative Exomind Rejection.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "NOTE—D.E.R.", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#-45-|-45-]]''</ref>


Clovis I discovered that DER could be staved off by two methods. The first was the "reboot", wiping the mind's memories post-transfer so that it would not remember its old body and so better accept the new one. Despite the term "reboot", also referred to as "resets" or "memory wipes", the process did not actually remove memories and only blocked off associative access to them (as memory engrams were stored in too many areas of the brain to easily locate and delete).<ref name = "e10">'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 10", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#ENTRY 10|ENTRY 10]]''</ref> While effective, it was not a cure, and the reboot procedure would often be repeated several times over the Exo's life. It would also be used for functional purposes, such as restoring Exos whose minds had become "compromised," such as by Vex infection.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 11", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#ENTRY 11|ENTRY 11]]''</ref> Successive reboots cumulatively eroded an Exo's mind and their ability to retain any memories at all, with excessive numbers of reboots causing insanity.<ref name="SoWLegacyPt2">'''Bungie (2020/3/10)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: [[Season of the Worthy]], Playstation 4, Activision Blizzard, [[Weblore]]: [[Weblore#Legacy_Pt_2|Legacy Pt 2]]''</ref> The Clovis Bray corporation estimated that the maximum number of times an Exo could be safely rebooted was around 20.<ref name="Ghost Scan: Core Terminus, Mars"/> As reboots did not technically remove any memories, Exos sometimes remembered traces of them, especially for Guardians and some can gain access to these buried memories by purposefully dying or killing themselves. By default, Exos had a number appended to their names that signified the number of reboots they had experienced, with the original human used as the zero-index. Hence, the human Mohammed would be followed by the Exo Mohammed-1, Mohammed-2 after one reset, etc. This number was stored in the Exo's memory as hardware, and so could not be forgotten.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 13", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#ENTRY 13|ENTRY 13]]''</ref>
Clovis I discovered that DER could be staved off by two methods. The first was the "reboot", wiping the mind's memories post-transfer so that it would not remember its old body and so better accept the new one. Despite the term "reboot", also referred to as "resets" or "memory wipes", the process did not actually remove memories and only blocked off associative access to them (as memory engrams were stored in too many areas of the brain to easily locate and delete).<ref name = "e10">'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 10", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#ENTRY 10|ENTRY 10]]''</ref> While effective, it was not a cure, and the reboot procedure would often be repeated several times over the Exo's life. It would also be used for functional purposes, such as restoring Exos whose minds had become "compromised," such as by Vex infection.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 11", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#ENTRY 11|ENTRY 11]]''</ref> Successive reboots cumulatively eroded an Exo's mind and their ability to retain any memories at all, with excessive numbers of reboots causing insanity.<ref name="SoWLegacyPt2">'''Bungie (2020/3/10)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: [[Season of the Worthy]], Playstation 4, Activision Blizzard, [[Weblore]]: [[Weblore#Legacy_Pt_2|Legacy Pt 2]]''</ref> The Clovis Bray corporation estimated that the maximum number of times an Exo could be safely rebooted was around 20.<ref name="Ghost Scan: Core Terminus, Mars"/> As reboots did not technically remove any memories, Exos sometimes remembered traces of them, especially for Guardians and some can gain access to these buried memories by purposefully dying or killing themselves. By default, Exos had a number appended to their names that signified the number of reboots they had experienced, with the original human used as the zero-index. Hence, to use Clovis I's example, the human Mohammed would be followed by the Exo Mohammed-1, Mohammed-2 after one reset, etc. This number was stored in the Exo's memory as hardware, and so could not be forgotten.<ref>'''[[Mysterious Logbook]]''', "ENTRY 13", ''[[Mysterious_Logbook#ENTRY 13|ENTRY 13]]''</ref>


The second method Clovis Bray used to prevent DER was to introduce familiar organic conceits into the Exo's mechanical body, such as the drive to eat or reproduce. While these "humanisms" were not functionally necessary, they nevertheless reduced the chances of DER developing, as without routine feedback from bodily processes the Exo would become convinced those processes had failed and develop severe [[wikipedia:Cotard delusion|Cotard delusion]].<ref name = "e10"/> The "humanisms" may extend to certain sensations of discomfort, such as nausea or physical exertion, as Cayde-6 has demonstrated on occasion, though he is not a reliable source.<ref>'''Bungie (2017/8/9)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: Playstation 4, Activision Blizzard, [[Looped]]''</ref><ref>'''Bungie (2017/8/9)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: Playstation 4, Activision Blizzard, [[Exodus Crash]]''</ref><ref>'''Bungie (2019/10/1)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: [[Shadowkeep]], Playstation 4, Activision Blizzard, [[Never Live It Down]]''</ref> It is not possible for an Exo to become intoxicated by alcohol, however.<ref>'''Bungie (2018/9/4)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: [[Forsaken]], Playstation 4, Activision Blizzard, [[Lore]]: [[Lore:The_Man_They_Call_Cayde#Turn|The Man They Call Cayde]]''</ref>
The second method Clovis Bray used to prevent DER was to introduce familiar organic conceits into the Exo's mechanical body, such as the drive to eat or reproduce. While these "humanisms" were not functionally necessary, they nevertheless reduced the chances of DER developing, as without routine feedback from bodily processes the Exo would become convinced those processes had failed and develop severe [[wikipedia:Cotard delusion|Cotard delusion]].<ref name = "e10"/> The "humanisms" may extend to certain sensations of discomfort, such as nausea or physical exertion, as Cayde-6 has demonstrated on occasion, though he is not a reliable source.<ref>'''Bungie (2017/8/9)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: Playstation 4, Activision Blizzard, [[Looped]]''</ref><ref>'''Bungie (2017/8/9)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: Playstation 4, Activision Blizzard, [[Exodus Crash]]''</ref><ref>'''Bungie (2019/10/1)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: [[Shadowkeep]], Playstation 4, Activision Blizzard, [[Never Live It Down]]''</ref> It is not possible for an Exo to become intoxicated by alcohol, however.<ref>'''Bungie (2018/9/4)''', ''[[Destiny 2]]: [[Forsaken]], Playstation 4, Activision Blizzard, [[Lore]]: [[Lore:The_Man_They_Call_Cayde#Turn|The Man They Call Cayde]]''</ref>