Thursday 31 March 2011

fig 960: Lord Copernicus Diamond, Kraz Refinery


A 31st century gold rush broke out in the Kraz system when vast golden seams were discovered running through the previously ignored and uninhabited planet then known only as Beta Corvi XXIII . Copernicus "Cop" Diamond, a humble mining robot from the Corvus Coal Pits, was the discoverer of this gold, and within days he was the richest robot in the Southern Sky. He claimed the planet as his own, renamed it Diamondas, and created a vast city of refineries and golden spires, using his new found wealth to also entirely refashion his body from gold, including his distinctive diamond-shaped head.

Unfortunately, his exploitation of the lax environmental laws of the region soon led to the planet being swathed in thick yellow clouds; not a problem until they burst in a great toxic shower of aqua regia, or nitro-hydrochloric acid, the only acid which can dissolve gold. Cop was never heard from again, and his great city was washed away into nothing.

Wednesday 30 March 2011

fig 385: Reporter, Eye of Orion News Agency


Robotic journalists were prized for their photographic memories, inbuilt recording systems, and the ability to transmit stories to the newsroom instantly from hundreds of light years away. Many, however, became star reporters, like Snitch Sprocket of the Eye of Orion News Agency, pictured here in front of the Arcturan Royal Opera House. Sprocket was a household name around the galaxy for centuries, famed for his battery-acid barbs and for breaking the biggest celebrity scandals of the day.

Friday 25 March 2011

fig 68: Robotic dignitary, Delta Centauran Empire


Many of the highest ranking officials of the Delta Centauran Empire were robots, as was the case in many of the ancient worlds. Robots were particularly prized in diplomatic circles, partly for their generally cool and logical approach but mainly because they could take an ambassadorial position on even the most toxic, atmosphereless moon without a problem. The grinning robot here was probably in just such a role, receiving his first visitors for decades; even the remotest of rocky outposts required a diplomatic presence, so when there were visitors they were sure to receive a spectacular ambassadorial reception

Thursday 24 March 2011

fig 498: Forgist Missionary, Monoceros Region


The distinctive robotic missionaries of the Forgist religion, those who believed in the Forge Mother as the bringer of all life (From the forge we are born, and to the forge we shall return), were still a common sight until relatively recently in the most far-flung areas of the colonised universe. Founded by the robotic settlers of the great fiery cities of Io, Forgist missionaries were easily distinguished by their perpetually burning iron stovepipe hats, and the ceremonial anvil and hammer which they carried at all times. Though Forgism was a robotic religion, there was the occasional human convert; as, however, the conversion ritual involved bathing in liquid flame before having one's head beaten with the ceremonial hammer, they didn't have to wait long for their return to the Forge Mother.

Wednesday 23 March 2011

fig 39: Buddybot, Centaurus Region


Many robots were built with no purpose other than companionship in mind, like this buddybot created to keep lonely children company on the travelling mining colonies of the Centaurus region. Unfortunately children would grow out of their robotic playmates and would often leave them behind when the colony moved on to a new world; it was not unusual for such robots to spend centuries wandering through the wilderness looking for somebody to play with.

Monday 21 March 2011

fig 238: Doorman, Ganymede Space Port


Every port town has its seedier side, though Ganymede's was seedier than most. Controlled for most of its history by rival robotic and human mafiosi, and generally populated by starsailors, soldiers, miners and mercenaries, Ganymede offered a heady mix of brothels and brawlers. Here we see, as was often the case, a hardened, battlescarred Earthbuild robot standing guard outside a particularly sleazy nightspot, ready to ensure only the right kind of undesirables get inside.

Sunday 20 March 2011

fig 710: Night Watch, New Brittanic Empire


A curious but reassuring sight across the New Brittanic Empire, the towering Night Watch robots served not only to light the way for nocturnal pedestrians and also to keep the peace on city streets. On three legs to support the great weight of a cast iron lamp (and to prevent them being toppled over by mischievous children) the Night Watch were unarmed, but able to use force when necessary, though usually their presence alone was enough to keep things quiet.

Saturday 19 March 2011

fig 45: Ceremonial Guard, Marinia IV


At the entrances to the ancient underwater cities of Marinia IV were the Silverfish, enigmatic robotic guards who would silently guide visitors beneath the waves, pointing their tridents toward the great gleaming palaces of the deep.

Friday 18 March 2011

fig 492: Salesman, Himalian Timeshare Inc.


The life of a travelling salesman has never been easy, but is more arduous still when there's a distance of several thousand miles between each slamming door. Robots were frequently employed as travelling salesmen in more remote regions, and their task was a thankless one; this thirty-first century model has the rather dispiriting job of trying to sell luxurious timeshare apartments on the less-than-aspirational Himalia Group- four grey, frozen lumps of rock orbiting Jupiter.

Thursday 17 March 2011

fig 168: Kleigen's Pedagogic Robot, Enceladus Academy

Robots were prized by the galaxy's most prestigious educational establishments for their vast knowledge, clarity of expression and no-nonsense attitude, especially in the sciences (robotic arts teachers tended to achieve mixed results). Created by Professor Kleigen in the late 28th century, variations on the model seen here went on to become legendary teachers at elite schools such as the Enceladus Academy for Boys, destination of choice for the sons of Saturnian diplomats; here we see the uncertainty principle being expained to a class of ten-year-olds. Programmed to have complete free will, however, not all of Kleigen's Pedagogic Robots went on to pursue careers in academia; a group of KPRs founded a robot/human free-love commune on Despina, while another became lead singer with the superstar Jovian-metal band Technetium Mother.

Wednesday 16 March 2011

fig 571: Serving bot, Pride of New Xanadu


The Golden Age of Space Travel: stately starliners cruising dreamlike between the galaxy's most affluent and exotic destinations, the great and the good sipping cocktails as they drift among the stars. Many of the most luxurious ships prided themselves on their courteous and attentive robot staff, like this little serving bot from the Pride of New Xanadu, the largest vessel of the second Zeta Aquilean dynasty. Unfortunately, on its maiden voyage the robots went insane, murdering the human crew and plunging the ship's 100,000 passengers into a black hole, bringing the great golden age to a swift close.

Tuesday 15 March 2011

fig 638: Lyrean Royal Delivery Service

Who could fail to be charmed by a special delivery from this little messenger? The Lyrean Royal Delivery Service was founded in the 34th century by Queen George XIII of Lyra, to despatch goods to the furthest corners of the vast Lyrean Empire. Under the motto Through rising tides and falling stars the robotic couriers of the LRDS, bearing the royal crown and harp insignia, were famed for their perseverance and reliability on even the most hostile terrain. Unfortunately they were less well known for their speed; the average delivery time to the furthest outposts of Empire was 37 Earth years.

Monday 14 March 2011

fig 97: Eye of Providence, Vega III


By the end of the 57th Century, the great city-planet of Vega III had become overrun with crime and violence, and the authorities took drastic action. The gargantuan Eye of Providence robots were brought in to clean up the city, wreaking fiery justice on all miscreants and casting a terrifying shadow across the planet's crowded streets. Hooked into Vega III's extensive surveillance systems, the hovering Eyes really were all-seeing; few wrong deeds went unnoticed, none went unpunished. But the plan went horribly wrong: either the robots were too strictly programmed, or the citizens too immoral. In six days the city's population of thirty million had been reduced to zero; Vega III remains a ghost-planet to this day, but the shadowy spectres of these tyrannical pyramids can still be seen floating above the city, waiting to pass judgement on anyone foolish enough to enter.

fig 572: Automatonian High Priest


Very little is known about the robotic civilization of Automatonia, or the strange religion practiced by its inhabitants. Founded by robot separatists from the early Lacertan colonies, humans were strictly forbidden to enter the planet which shut itself off entirely from the outside world. The early settlers created huge numbers of new robots, and it is thought the Automatonians lived in a manner akin to monks in a holy order. The strange stone structures seen here still stand on the planet's surface today, though the civilization has long disappeared, offering a tantalizing glimpse of this mysterious world. The image of the high priest is based on the reports of a 51st century robot explorer, a rare visitor; it was said that the few remaining natives spent most of their time in a meditative state, attempting to achieve unity with the flow, the electrical charge in the air which they believed to be the universal lifeforce. This ritual would however often lead to overloaded circuits and exploding heads; the Automatonians unsurprisingly disappeared entirely less than a century later.

Sunday 13 March 2011

fig 496: Itinerant Earthbuilt Robot, Parisdeux


The rather depressing figure of a down-at-heel Earthbuild was a common sight in colonial cities from the 30th century onwards. These by then rather ancient machines, having long outlived their original purpose, struggled to find a new life among the stars. While some were gladly accepted into robot communities, others preferred to try their luck in the human worlds, usually without success; there were simply newer models on the market who could do the same job more effectively. Here we see a somewhat sad looking hobot (as they were often known) on the streets of Parisdeux, the shining jewel of the New Francophone Empire; whether he found a future in this brave new world is unknown, though by the 34th century there was a thriving Quartier Robotique with a large Earthbuilt population.

fig 894: Subaquatic Fishing Robot, Europa

While most of the early lunar colonies founded around the outer planets were mining communities, the great ocean planet of Europa was different. Its vast, mysterious waters were home to all manner of curious beasts, of infinite scientific and, crucially, gastronomic interest. The Europolitan Fishing Company seized upon this opportunity, sending in hoardes of robotic fishermen specially created to plumb the fathomless depths. These hulking automata were designed to catch, kill and store their precious finds before they could be brought to the huge floating processing plants, and thus sent to the most exclusive galactic eateries. But after a very brief boom, where new and more delicious species were being discovered and hunted to extinction every day, the seas proved unsustainable. The remaining creatures were too wily and too warlike, and Europa ultimately too hostile for commercial operations, leading to the collapse of the company in just under a year. The robots were abandoned, and all industrial operations closed, with any human settlers soon leaving Europa for the more civilised colonies of Ganymede and Titan. Though uninhabited for millennia, Europa was recently a destination for Junoan explorer Cadmus Thorne, who reported eerie lights emanating from deep beneath the watery surface. Perhaps the robots, with their atomic engines and rustproof Callistomium shells, have survived in that strange underworld, their vast headlamps still hunting for their elusive aquatic prey...

fig 62: Steambot, Cronian Mineral Co.



Though outlawed in most populated worlds, coal-fuelled, steam-powered robots were prized for their manual labour uses in the harsher outposts of the solar system. Cheap and dirty, many steambots were used to strip worlds of their natural resources and then left to rust, it making more economic sense to build more robots than to waste precious cargo space. These deserted robots became some of the first to establish their own societies, most notably the great furnace cities of Io. Here we see an early steambot of the Cronian Mineral Company; the huge Dionean crystal it holds being worth many millions of times its own value. The black rockets of the CMC were a familiar sight in the early years of colonisation, usually bringing devastation in their wake.