Lore Stable 83 Specifications Initial Population: 1000 Experiment: Overmare replaced with a central computer controlled by a pony brain. All Security forces replaced with robobrains. Brain reprogramming equipment supplied. Examine effects of disembodied brains on leadership capabilities and resident loyalty. Status: Opened, settlement successful Demographics Mostly Unicorns and Earth ponies Unicorns have highest percentage of Stable descendents Some Gryphons, hoof-ful of Pegasi One known Alicorn brain used for research and early-warning systems Brain domes common but not everypony has one Exposed brains less common Flying jars rare but present Given only to high ranking or particularly important members of the community Preferential to Stable residents Settlement Self-sufficient community grown around the Stable Unordered List ItemUses the Stable reactor for power Unordered List ItemHome to many ponies with brain enhancements, domes, and other cybernetic modifications Open to trade with other settlements Semi-automated defense platforms Policed by Roboponies and pony guards Access to Stable restricted to authorized ponies, Roboponies, and Stable residents. Uses caps for currency Brain technology is tightly regulated, but a black market of equipment exists Layout Level 1 - Common Areas Unrestricted Zone, Open to the public Contains lounge, recreational facilities, and cantina Level 2 - Residential Restricted Zone, Stable residents only Contains housing accommodations Approximately 25% of the rooms have been converted to hydroponics to feed residents Main orchard Medical wing Level 3 - Storage Restricted Zone, Stable residents only Contains supplies necessary for the continued function of both Stable 83 and Stable City Level 4 - Brain Reprogramming Restricted Zone, authorized personnel only Various facilities for the study and reprogramming of brains Brain repair center Robopony repair facilities Brain storage Level 5 - Administration Restricted Zone, roboponies and admin staff only Command center for the whole Stable Seat of government for Stable City Instead of an Overmare’s office, the room is dedicated to a large machine that is connected to a central jar containing a pony brain. Slots for other brains have been added after the fact. Alicorn brain stored in a classified location Level R - Reactor Restricted Zone, maintenance staff and roboponies only Magitech Reactor that powers both Stable 83 and Stable City SPECIAL Stat Descriptions Strength: Measurement of physical prowess and favored by Earth Ponies. Physically crippled Unable to move objects heavier than 5 lbs. Unable to move objects heavier than 25 lbs. Unable to move objects heavier than 50 lbs. May wear light barding. Average physical fitness, may wear heavy barding. Able to dent metal with a kick. Able to wield heavy weapons like cinderblock clubs. Can break a pony's neck with a kick. Can lift a flying cart by themself. Peak performance, can carry loads twice their weight. Perception: TBD Endurance: TBD Charisma: TBD Intelligence: Measurement of mental performance, favored by Unicorns. Brainless, either the brain is missing or does not work. Drool is constantly flooding out of the mouth by this point. Practically brainless, able to speak in short words or phrases. Persistent drool is noticeable. Near-brainless, able to speak normally unless attempting larger words. Persistent drool begins here. Handicapped, able to function normally, but may struggle with hard problems. Difficulty casting spells. Average, can cast basic spells. Above-average, able to problem solve effectively. High IQ, capable of making effective use of the entirety of their brain. Can cast advanced spells. Genius, exceptionally smart, easily does calculus in their head. Brain is likely larger than average. Egg-head, Able to handle computer systems easily. Brain is most certainly large. Absolute genius, smartest pony for miles, able to reprogram complex AIs and robots with ease. Ponies marvel at the size of their brain. Agility: TBD Luck: TBD Races Alicorns Very rare, only one brain known to exist in the region Brains are very large, bulge out of their skulls, almost mane-like Griffons Griffons appear to behave normally without any brains, after a brief adjustment period. Derp and drool are still present while brainless, as is loss of intellect. Adjustment period is anywhere from one day to a week Can function at a baseline intelligence without brains INT stat capped at 3 until brain is replaced Cannot read or write, but can speak normally Robopony Roboponies are plentiful in this part of the Wasteland, always with a pastel-colored brain nestled in their clear domes. There's a mix of tracked and legged bots, but all have two tendril-like manipulator arms tipped with claws to grab objects in lieu of telekinesis. Goo Sacs A parasitic creature made of goo, it paralyzes its victim with a tendril slid up their behind as a direct means of attaching to and coating the spine. It slurps their brain out the same way and integrates the organ into itself, using it to think with and gaining access to all of its memories. It attaches itself to the victim's genitals and absorbs them, replacing them and taking their form as a kind of disguise, then uses the debrained body to carry itself to more brains, growing its intellect and expanding the physical brain nestled inside itself. As the creature grows older and eats more brains, it gains an incredible intellect, despite appearances. Being solitary creatures, it does not often travel in groups and only occasionally infects another body. If it encounters a body that is objectively better than the current one it is attached to, it can migrate to the new body and leave the old one behind. Goo Coats A parasitic and slightly magical goo-based creature created by random chance from interactions of Taint and Balefire Radiation. This amorphous blob attaches itself to the brain of its victim, completely overwhelming their nervous system and rewriting the neurons inside to adapt it to their needs. In other words, it brainwashes its victim and then takes complete control of their mind, effectively turning it into theirs. These Coats form a sort of pseudo-hivemind capable of sharing thoughts and senses between members across distances of up to 1 mile or 1.5 km and spread by direct contact with uninfected neural tissue. This can take the form of a tendril through the ear or just slapping a hoof-full of goop onto the brain directly. Once a brain has been converted, it cannot be cured and will continue to produce goo even if completely washed off (at which point the brain stops thinking until the layer is regenerated). Coats take on personality traits of the brains they infect, thus making each goo an individual while still retaining some base level traits of their 'family.' Hiveminds are formed based on lineage and not all Coats are in the same hivemind nor can share thoughts across different 'families.' Each 'family' is identifiable by the shade of goo they produce. The only involuntary physical difference after infection is a change of the victim's irises to match that of the goo's color and a slight tinting of the brainmatter. For comfort, the goo often cuts and detaches the skullcap of the host to give itself more room to grow. If necessary it can reattach the cap to disguise itself, but the increased pressure may hinder the brain's performance. Due to the forceful nature of the rewriting process, the brain is slightly damaged and thus suffers a -2 INT penalty after conversion. This cannot make brains to into negative numbers and bottoms out at 1. Diamond Cyberdogs The Diamond Cyberdogs were created pre-war as an attempt to create the ultimate soldier. With durable robotic limbs, neurochips in their skulls giving them the precision of a computer, and a pony’s brain linked to them to allow for creative and abstract thinking, they were, along with the Robopony, the pinnacle of cyborg technology.  After the war, the Diamond Cyberdogs were freed of their masters’ control, and soon became focused on not only growing their numbers, but gaining access to suitable brains. A lack of brain preservation technology meant the pony brains within their heads would deteriorate after roughly half a century… and the difficulty of preserving their brains would lead to them developing a culture that was rather… cavalier with the abuse and damaging of the minds within their skulls. As a result, they raid far and wide to acquire said brains… and as a side benefit, replace the brains they take with a robot’s processor to create a perfectly loyal slave. They live out the first few years of their lives as normal Diamond Dog pups, but when they come of age they are cybernetically modified, and sent out into the world to acquire a suitable brain to replace their original. Once they have done so, their original brain is ripped out, neurochips containing copies of their memories are installed, and their stolen brain is implanted- at which point, the new Cyberdog smugly throws away or sells their helpless original brain. Their original brains understandably end up bitter about this, because they are lied to from birth about how their consciousness is tied to their brains. Locations Big MT A place of unknown location that holds high grade technology Deals in superior brain tech Some trade routes, not frequent Sometimes experiments escape into the surrounding area No direct communication Brainless Pony Village A surprisingly well-defended and successful self-sufficient community, the Brainless Village is a gathering of ponies that have all had their brains removed. This settlement is made up of a number of repaired pre-war houses and one large warehouse with metal reinforcements. Signage in the village has only imagery and no words, since nopony has a brain to read them anyway. Despite there being no brains in the village, aside from one or two Roboponies, the settlement is well organized and capable of fending off attack. Brains extracted from the populace are often traded to other settlements for goods and services, or fed to any neurovorish creatures staying at the settlement. Warehouse The warehouse at one corner of the settlement is very significant to the villagers. It houses not only their Auto-Doc but is also lined with huge tanks that hold every brain extracted from the residents. The Auto-Doc is almost fully automated, requiring only a subject to stand inside it and an operator to press a button and it will extract the subject's brain and send it on its way into a tank. Optionally, the Auto-Doc may also deposit the brain into a jar for trade or decoration. Access to the warehouse is protected by a small Robopony security force guarding a heavy metal mag-lock door controlled by a keypad. Roboponies assigned to the warehouse are capable of scanning brains for surface-level intent and are equipped with beam weaponry. Hemisphere Raider Camp Housing the Lefty and Righty raiding parties, collectively known as the Hemisphere Raiders, this camp is a defensible and well-established base of operations for the majority of raiding activities in the immediate area surrounding Stable 83. While the groups disagree with each other, they have been known to coordinate to tackle larger scores and tougher opposition to their rule. Roboslaver Camp A former Robronco Robotics Factory turned slaver camp, home of the Roboslavers. The factory had already been fitted with automated defense turrets and patrols of bots before the war, and these defenses have only been bolstered by fencing and barricades to form chokepoints and prevent escape from the camp. Primarily producing Roboponies for the war effort, the facilities in the factory were almost entirely automated by the end of the war to improve yield and production. Production continued even after the Great War for a time, until stocks of critical components eventually ran dry. With bots patrolling and a still active security system, the factory was well-protected from scavengers. That is, until an opportunistic group of ponies managed to hack into the security system and turn it to their side. Using the stock of metals and robotic components, these ponies reinforced the factory, creating a fenced area around the facility as well as holding cells for captured ponies. Factions Hemisphere Raiders A somewhat split group of raiders whose leader attempted to replicate Cere and Bellum's brain split as a means of attaining greater control of his territory. However, lacking the proper equipment and expertise, the split was a failure and instead of creating two of himself there were now two distinct ponies, Lefty and Righty, that each wanted total control of the group. As a result, the party was split down the middle, somewhat literally as the followers of each pony also exposed and scooped out half of their brains to show loyalty to their chosen leader. Every pony in these groups have only half a brain that is open to the air. One of their eyes are perpetually pointing in a random direction, dependent on which half of their brain they are missing. As a rule, these raiders may only have an INT of 4 or less, and drool is common. Talents are not affected by the lack of a full brain. Hemisphere raiders, despite having two opposed leaders, share the same territory and are not openly hostile to each other. Lefty Lefties remove the right half of their brain and thus are more analytical, cold, and cruel. They may have difficulty expressing emotions or lack them entirely and make use of more high-tech gear such as beam pistols. Righty Righties remove the left half of the brain and thus are more emotional, talkative, and in some cases insane. They don't think very far ahead and favor more low-tech options such as clubs and pipe pistols. Stable 83 Staff The staff that manage and maintain Stable 83 and by proxy Stable City. Made up of Administrators and specialized Officers in command of mostly Roboponies, with the remaining ponies having brain domes and regular mental and neural backups. Each one has an assigned duty corresponding to their Talent and have priority access to the Auto-Doc and related facilities, such as brain repair or in extreme cases regrowth and replacement, assuming their scans are up to date. Current Staff: Administrators Cere Bellum Officers [TBD] - Science C-64 - Medical M-42 - Maintenance [TBD] - Security Brainless Villagers The brainless villagers inhabit the Brainless Village. Made up primarily of ponies, these villagers have all vowed to remove their brains either when they get their mark or when they come of age, whichever comes first. As a result they are all uniquely 'adapted' to live without any thoughts and are capable of achieving higher INT scores than otherwise possible, capping at 2. Roboslavers A group of ponies inhabiting a pre-war Robronco robotics factory, focused on capturing ponies and other sentient creatures and separating them from their brains both for cheap, cooperative labor and to manufacture more Roboponies. After many years of laying dormant, a group of opportunistic ponies cracked into the security systems of the robotics factory, turning its defenses to their side and granting them access to the facility. Inside they discovered that much of the machinery was still operational, there was just one thing missing that was halting production: brains. Realizing what they could gain if they were to create an army of Roboponies under their command, these ponies began foalnapping anypony they could find in the area and using the facilities resources to extract their brains for use in these ancient machines. The brainless bodies are then sold off as slaves, or kept in the camp as laborers or slaves for the inhabitants. After a few skirmishes with Stable 83, a temporary truce was settled on. While the factory was heavily defended, it had little in the way of resources besides an abundance of scrap and robotic parts. At the same time, 83 was perfectly capable of sustaining its population with fresh water and food, but could not easily repair its damaged Roboponies. Thus, in exchange for food, water, and access to the City, the Roboslavers would supply 83 with robotic components for repairs. Roboslavers entering the City are closely monitored, often being escorted by Roboponies or Stable security, and are banned from attempting to capture anyone inside or around the City.