[Ghosts, Cloning, Multiple Characters] The Super-Sargasso Sea
You are not required to strictly adhere to Umbra lore during character creation. The aim of this page, as well as other lore pages is to provide in-character friendly reasoning behind mechanics of the game. Any character's lore is considered valid until deemed not lore-friendly by a Lore Master or Project Manager.
This page is the 2nd public draft of world building on cloning, spectator ghosts and why you will usually see only 1 of someone's characters at a time during a shift. It is subject to change & review.
Basics: Signal Resonance & the Null-Gradient Field
Common terms for Signal Resonance and the Null-Gradient field are "Souls" and the "super Sargasso sea." This field, or "sea" is the origin point of a signals energy output. "Souls" are described as energy waves from a metaphysical source that are attracted to unique signals within the brains of sapient creatures. Groups of individuals often share the same signal, which a "soul" travels between, discharging energies that are responsible for ones self-consciousness.
At the very basic level, this means that certain individuals share the same "soul." One soul could be responsible for many unique individuals. - Due to the sensitivity of researching this theory and it's unknown reactions to bluespace machinery, Nanotrasen has elected to enact regulations that prevent individuals whom "share the same soul" from working at the same time without permission from Central Command.
From a practical point of view, this means:
From a meta standpoint, you are the "Soul." - Your characters have signals which resonate with you, letting you bounce between them. There is no origin behind the soul powering a character, in-world. As a soul, you're just a mass of energy looking for a signal to resonate with.
- The "soul" is the ghost of a players character(s.)
- Each character has a "signal" which connects to them to a soul in mutual exclusivity.
- NT does not allow two of your characters to work the same shift, because you mechanically can't.
- A friend or GM who plays as one of your characters with your permission is considered getting permission from NT to allow more than one on.
This is all a player needs understand to interact in a lore-friendly way to cloning, death or ghost-related issues, if they wish to use it.
When you return to us, your past lives will be watching, cheering you on. Like a movie theatre!
- An unknown Chaplain
CLICK THE DROP-DOWN BELOW TO VIEW A FULL BREAKDOWN OF "THE SUPER SARGASSO SEA."
Information within is only for exposition, not required reading.
Historic Framing: Origins of the name.
During the forgotten times before space-flight, humans created the concept of the super Sargasso sea. This term described the fictional trope of a land where all things lost or forgotten end up.
Loose change under the cushions. That sock in the hamper missing its twin. Where did they go? They fell into the sea.
When someone is lost in life or just aimlessly wandering, it's not uncommon to be compared to feeling "lost at sea."
When humankind first began traveling the frontiers of space, nobody knew this concept would become the basis for describing scientific breakthroughs in the nature of sentience and ethics of cloning.
Scientific Framing: The Resonance Hypothesis
The super Sargasso sea is defined as the "null-gradient field," a metaphysical space which overlaps the entirety of the known universe. It's discovery was made when a senior professor discovered strange energy readings after performing tests with experimental bluespace-powered hospital equipment. The bluespace-crystalline sensors used during brain scans found erratic streams of energy pulsing from outside of the test subjects brain, seeping inward before fizzling out of detection. Further investigation found that these energy waves were only viewable after in the brains of sapient, self-conscious creatures.
What followed was an research project funded by NT, in which one volunteered family which consisted of 4 individuals sharing the same DNA through miscalculated cloning procedures, were scanned to read the wavelengths of the signals in their brains. The experiment was successful in finding duplicates of the same resonating wavelengths in each individual. Every test subject had a signal. This energy resonated between each of them, moving from one host to another.
Further experimental research concluded that these energy signals seemed to act in a metaphysical state. Test subjects did not seem effected, nor were the signals ever able to be detected without the use of bluespace.
The finalized hypothesis consisted of claiming the following:
- There exists a null-gradient field around, in which contains energy waves.
- Every sapient, self-conscious individual has a signal which attracts this energy.
- Some individuals share the same pattern of resonance with others.
Social Framing: Philosophical Effects
The null-gradient field earned it's moniker as the "super Sargasso sea" after the old humanoid term for where all forgotten things end up. Though not recognized as the official name, many began calling it such when it was discovered dead individuals could no longer host the energies inside them. But when revived, the wavelengths returned.
Of course, the unnerving nature of a metaphysical energy that drives sapient creatures has it's effect on some social structures. Nanotrasen has enacted new regulations which prohibit individuals sharing the same signal resonance from working on the same shift while the phenomena is being researched.
Educational & Philosophical writings on the subject are still being developed, but most share the same key principles:
- Resonance signals can be likened to the memories, subconscious or "Soul" of an individual.
- Two individuals with similar resonance signals can still be utterly different from each other.
- Cloning an individual is to "create a new node to pick up their previous resonance signal" or;
- A soul is not able to be in two individuals at once. "A self can only recognize one of itself at a time."
Summary
Though the super Sargasso sea has opened many new avenues into research, simply discovering it has not altered our measurements of how people act.
A "soul" or resonance signal can be simplified to a stream of energy that pings between two or more people. The "sea" is a metaphysical space which these signals originate from.
While impossible to ever fully determine complete likeness in a clone, when the procedure is done professionally and with minimal to no errors, the clone almost always exhibits to have the same signal resonance as they had previously.
- A clone who exhibits complete memory & behavioral patterns of the original may be considered the same person.
- A clone who exhibits memory loss or changes in their biological makeup may be considered a different person.