How does reclamation work?

[Aquohn]

Lore question. How are reclamation and zombie reclamation supposed to work, from a lore perspective? I mean, if the ships on our side were run by safe AI routines (which would make sense, given the levels of autonomy they have [i.e. practically nil]), then it would be easy to say it was some kind of reprogramming/virus, but if they are actually piloted, as the AI's "Why do you throw your lives away" remark implies, then...?

Also, are AutoBombs piloted? The name suggests they aren't, but the AI's used that particular taunt on me one too many times when my cloaker got killed and the transport was popped shortly after.

[x4000]

Lore-wise, originally the idea was that "reclamation" actually takes a broken husk of an enemy ship and rebuilds it with a bit of extra material it has on hand.  So reclamation in the recycling sense, really.  Some of the nanites stuff implies taking the ship over itself, but those were added later, and I think of as being a little different thematically despite sharing the same mechanic.

The autobombs aren't piloted, but the AI doesn't need to know that.

It varies from person to person what they believe, but personally I think of all the ships as being unpiloted with the exceptions of the command stations, cryo-pods, and the champions; with possible exceptions for starships, I guess.  But my feeling was that all of the smaller ships were "fly by wire."

[Aquohn]

Well, apparently the AI doesn't think so

The whole thing about Champions coming back leans me heavily towards thinking that they aren't piloted at all, though.

I was fairly convinced that the whole system was "fly-by-wire"; that the only humans in the galaxy were those in the command stations, the pods, and the cities. And I always thought that I was in the Home Command station, (literally) pushing the buttons.

Now that you mention it, I kinda feel really bad about those times I carelessly let my colony ships get blown up, and even worse about the strategies which involved leaving a Command Station and a Remains Rebuilder on a planet, for the Command Station to get destroyed over and over.

[Radiant Phoenix]

Well, apparently the AI doesn't think so

The whole thing about Champions coming back leans me heavily towards thinking that they aren't piloted at all, though.

Champions may be piloted, but they don't ever actually blow up -- if you read the journal, they actually teleport back when they're reduced to "zero" HP.

[PokerChen]

Well, apparently the AI doesn't think so

Perhaps the AI considers your fleetship AIs to be of sufficient complexity to be sentient?

[Aquohn]

Well, apparently the AI doesn't think so

The whole thing about Champions coming back leans me heavily towards thinking that they aren't piloted at all, though.

Champions may be piloted, but they don't ever actually blow up -- if you read the journal, they actually teleport back when they're reduced to "zero" HP.

I always thought "teleports back" meant "blow up and reappear after awhile", like how the game presents it.