What do the Ijad look like?

[Soren]

Ijad don't have a lot of experience with riding around on sapient hosts. So they've been scrambling to develop some kind of ethical framework for how you ride a human being without, um, brain-raping them. Right now they sort of agree that there are a bunch of things they can biologically do (like flooding your brain with hormones and other neurochemicals to alter your mood) that are super gross and ethically wrong to do to a sapient brain without consent. They've got a shocking level of inter-tribal consensus about it - even extremist groups like the Armored-of-God are kind of squicked by the idea of turning someone into a meat-puppet. Not that religious and political leaders on Earth haven't tried to play up the possibility, but it hasn't gotten much traction outside of cranks.

When Ijad ride a body, they rely on your own reflexes and sense-of-body to move stuff around. They can store learned skills, like surgery, and exercise them with a host's consent, but they can't make your body move against your will. Cheap holovid thrillers to the contrary.

Individual Ijad are, well, individuals, with dreams and ambitions et cetera. No hive mind. There are some bonded Ijad-humans in Free Colonial and even UMFL service, by ethical conviction. The converse, actually, is where most of the bigotry is - Ijad-humans who identify culturally and politically as 'Ijad' are suspicious and sort of prejudiced against un-bonded humans. That's one of the reasons some Ijad leave or align with other factions.

[randolph]

There are some bonded Ijad-humans in Free Colonial and even UMFL service, by ethical conviction.

Given that you can visually detect the symbiote, I'd be very surprised if any official SU organization (such as the UMFL) didn't immediately capture any bonded Ijad-humans for study, much less leave a potential traitor in active duty.

Unless SU culture as a whole is already remarkably and miraculously pretty chill about the whole "alien-Other-we're-at-war-with" thing? I mean, it's only been 47 years since first contact - 47 years ago realtime was 1965, and we're still fighting prejudice against things that have been present openly in our societies for a lot longer.

[Soren]

There are some bonded Ijad-humans in Free Colonial and even UMFL service, by ethical conviction.

Given that you can visually detect the symbiote, I'd be very surprised if any official SU organization (such as the UMFL) didn't immediately capture any bonded Ijad-humans for study, much less leave a potential traitor in active duty.

Oh, they tried with one. His squadmates busted him back out. And the guy who thought up that little snatch operation had a hunting accident - you know, the kind you have when assault rifles accidentally go off in long bursts at close range. Afterwards the word came down quietly that he could stay if he submitted voluntarily to some tests.

(It's also important to remember here that the UMFL is seen as politically unreliable and kind of disposable - 'spend their lives freely, they're only colonial troops'. But unofficially, yes, they're unlikely to be entrusted with sensitive missions, and I'm sure their commanders have orders to kill them if they start acting funny. Whether those orders will be obeyed... is a fascinating question. Go make some fiction!)

Unless SU culture as a whole is already remarkably and miraculously pretty chill about the whole "alien-Other-we're-at-war-with" thing? I mean, it's only been 47 years since first contact - 47 years ago realtime was 1965, and we're still fighting prejudice against things that have been present openly in our societies for a lot longer.

They're pretty chill (the Fourth World War wasn't all that long ago), but it's also good propaganda. Aggressive egalitarianism is an important part of keeping Earth unified and the Union strong, and a lot of member nations on Earth with voting powers are going to look askance at anything that smacks of overt appeal to ethnic prejudice in a politician or military leader. Not, like I said, that it isn't there. But it doesn't have a lot of traction.

Now, cultural prejudice against the Ijad is huge. There's a lot of talk to the effect that their ideology will lead to repeat of the catastrophic wars that wrecked Earth's biosphere, for example. It's like the ideological prejudice the rest of Europe felt against France after the Revolution and during Napoleon's reign - they didn't have a problem with mass murders or political repressions, they had problems with regicide, republicanism, and you know, the other guy winning.

[Zero Revenge]

Not to ignore all the delicious fluff about the Ijad [since, this is all really good to know actually!] But...

Fourth World War? O___o" Could we have details? [The Martian War?]

Edit: I assume then, if linked... the Ijad "parasite" dies with its host? Or can it detach itself? Assuming it's death?

[morganm]

Great stuff; very heavy man... still processing some of this.

Anyway... I had questions: What happens to the host when an Ijad detaches? Do they heal and are other wise back to normal? Does it cause the host to die? If they live I would imagine there would be significant psychological effects. Perhaps feeling abandoned or feelings similar to loosing someone close to you since it's been described as a pretty close, and mutual, relationship. Chemical imbalances causing all kinds of psychological or even physical changes since it's been described that the Ijad use chemicals and hormones on the host.

What if an Ijad gets sniped or assassinated but the host is otherwise unharmed? Does the host live on after the Ijad corpse is removed? Does the host die as well when the Ijad dies?

Otherway around... what if the host dies? Does the Ijad detach and move on or are they killed as well?

How about if a host goes into a comma or is otherwise mentally incapacitated? Can the Ijad just take complete control and use the host as needed with no more ethical boundaries? Or since the host lacks any capacity to control itself the Ijad can't really control the body either?

Thanks!

[Mantisking]

When a human is ridden by an Ijad, it's like having someone else around. It's not like they're necessarily in control of your body, though you could have them do stuff with it if you wanted. Like, if the Ijad riding on you is a surgeon and you're a dairy farmer, you know which one's gonna be doing which jobs. But most of the time, the original inhabitant of the body has greater control; after all, they've grown up with it. Both consciousnesses are there and in full communication with each other the whole time, but the human (at least in most cases) can revoke body privileges.

So it's like having an actual voice inside your head. Is it considered bad manners to have a conversation out loud with your Ijad when you're walking around in public?

[Forged]

Now I want to see a Ijad/human rap battle face off. 1 body two styles!

[addking]

Nice, now that I settled on my Ijad faction name (Fire of the Mind), I have been waiting for more fluff, so that I can decide exactly what drives them.

[Wadmaasi]

so that I can decide exactly what drives them.

In Solar Calendar, Ijad drives you.

[Soren]

so that I can decide exactly what drives them.

In Solar Calendar, Ijad drives you.

Like a little go-kart.

[Wadmaasi]

Like a little go-kart.

It's pretty meta. I mean, in a Scrambler, an Ijad is driving a spider monkey is driving a mobile frame. ...whoa.

[Dukayn]

...whoa.

I know Kung-Fu

[gatlinggouf927]

Oh: I'm sure there are humans who want to exterminate the Ijad. Soren's Armored-Of-God Ijad want it the other way around. There are racists everywhere.

exactly the angle i was going! the fluff story for my unit/corporation are a group of pissed off humans whose home planet was "converted" by a more militant minded Ijad group, of course this led to families splitting up having to kill one other (as some of course wished to join the Ijad) and after a long and tiring war lost their home, thus! REALLY PISSED OFF HUMANS WITH MECHA AND A GRUDGE... what makes it better? utilizing old christian "holy warrior" motifs (Varangian Guard frame line up: Paladins, Crusaders, Templars, Inquisitors, and Justicars... yup) to wrap it up in a nice xenophobic "eff you brain squid" package... mwhahahaha

[Joshua A.C. Newman]

What do they want from each other? Who else is involved?

[gatlinggouf927]

What do they want from each other? Who else is involved?

huh, i thought i posted a reply like this earlier but i guess not...

so i dont know if this was aimed towards my last post, however, this is the back story to our campaign world. Though still early in development, it should answer any questions on my groups motivations. I'm playing the Varangian Guard backed by Valhallan Industries, ironically playing the role of evil corporate bastards bent on taking over as many systems as possible and improving profits across the board XD

viewtopic.php?f=9&t=1329

i'm sure EVERYONE on the forum asks you this, but if you could skim over it and give us a rough "whoops-can't-do-that" within the MFZ universe it would be greatly appreciated by our group, currently there are 4 powers vying for the planet, and 4 friends representing each side, with a probable 5th joining the ranks ^_^;

[CaGeRit]

So how are Ijad hosts considered by non-ijad hosts? You have stated that there is a great deal of prejudice against them, are there places or colonies in which Ijad hosts and non-Ijad hosts live semi-peacfully?
The idea of the cohabitation of the Ijad, Humans and Ijad/Human hosts actually opens up a lot of very interesting scifi type pathways. I could see an entire story based around such a colony and a division of its police force dedicated to interspecies crimes, crazed mindjacking Ijad terrorists, racial humanist extremists, and of course the day to day discontents and malcontents set to the backdrop of two species trying to co-habitate and go about their lives under the looming oppression of the solar union.

[afny]

So how are Ijad hosts considered by non-ijad hosts? You have stated that there is a great deal of prejudice against them, are there places or colonies in which Ijad hosts and non-Ijad hosts live semi-peacfully?
The idea of the cohabitation of the Ijad, Humans and Ijad/Human hosts actually opens up a lot of very interesting scifi type pathways. I could see an entire story based around such a colony and a division of its police force dedicated to interspecies crimes, crazed mindjacking Ijad terrorists, racial humanist extremists, and of course the day to day discontents and malcontents set to the backdrop of two species trying to co-habitate and go about their lives under the looming oppression of the solar union.

Considering Soren's post earlier in this thread, it seems like that situation wouldn't be common but certainly could arise. I'm working on a backstory for my company/a bit of a setting and this is an element I really want to play with.

[warhammer651]

I'm rather wondering how common it is for a bonded human to become romantically involved with an unbonded human.

Seems like another voice in your head giving advice and commentary would put a bit of a damper on things.

[afny]

I'm rather wondering how common it is for a bonded human to become romantically involved with an unbonded human.

Seems like another voice in your head giving advice and commentary would put a bit of a damper on things.

I'd imagine there is a certain amount of emotional entanglement--not unlike romantic involvement--in the Gestalt that is a Human-Ijad. What I mean is, they (the Human-Ijad) has already succeeded in one partnership. Given that, they could probably succeed in another if given the right opportunity. They get along well enough to cohabitate in the same body; they could probably agree on a romantic partner.

Wow, just thinking about that raised so many more questions. Do Human-Ijad prefer the pronoun "they"? Do they have two names, or a hyphenated name, or do they just use the dominant personality's name? How do Ijad reproduce? Do they consider themselves parents to children fostered by previous hosts?

[CaGeRit]

So how are Ijad hosts considered by non-ijad hosts? You have stated that there is a great deal of prejudice against them, are there places or colonies in which Ijad hosts and non-Ijad hosts live semi-peacfully?
The idea of the cohabitation of the Ijad, Humans and Ijad/Human hosts actually opens up a lot of very interesting scifi type pathways. I could see an entire story based around such a colony and a division of its police force dedicated to interspecies crimes, crazed mindjacking Ijad terrorists, racial humanist extremists, and of course the day to day discontents and malcontents set to the backdrop of two species trying to co-habitate and go about their lives under the looming oppression of the solar union.

Considering Soren's post earlier in this thread, it seems like that situation wouldn't be common but certainly could arise. I'm working on a backstory for my company/a bit of a setting and this is an element I really want to play with.

I can hope can't I? I like less pointy backgrounds when dealing with games. It gets rather dull when its all "ARRGH I WILL KILL YOU EVERY CHANCE I GET!!" and "WELL I WOULD KILL ALL OF YOU AND NEVER CONSIDER TALKING TO YOU UNLESS WHILE ITS ALSO WHILE KILLING YOU". Thats why I love Heavy Gear, the sure the north and south go at it and are at war with each other, but there is still communication, trade even. Hell, they will even ally against a greater foe if need be.