As many are no doubt well aware, three-dimensional printing has become extremely commonplace. Pixels--now the Universal currency--act as fuel for the technology, a testament to its many practical uses. Yet "printing", as many boring history books seem to recount, was not always as useful as it is today. Ancient documents, all mysteriously titled "Instructions", hint at the existence of archaic, two-dimensional printers that ran on ink and the thin, flimsy material known as paper. The technological transition from paper to pixels was a relatively rapid one. Pixels replaced paper almost entirely in a single cycle, and the two-dimensional printers were thrown away en masse. It was naturally inevitable during this time that someone (definitely NOT a scientist) would make the mistake of attempting to load a 3D printer with paper. "PERFECT." The printed android turned out appearing a little strange, but was otherwise perfect down to the slighest detail. The circuitry was intact, the outer shell was complete... but all of it was made of paper. The robot was, of course, completely useless. "...Huh." So the not-a-scientist slapped a piece of paper with a hastily-drawn caricature of a colleague onto it and left it at said colleague's desk as a prank. He was then promptly fired after coming up with the nickname "Stationery" to describe his creation. "Haha! It looks just like Steve. I bet he'll love to see this sitting at his desk." Of course, the "mistake" was not a unique one. Technologically inept individuals everywhere were soon feeding paper into 3D printers, and the results were startlingly similar. Similar, yes. Startling... no? Time has a way of revealing the true consequences of science, however, and it was eventually discovered that the aptly-named "Stationery" were not, in fact, stationary. Their circuits, being complete, were functional, but as they were made of paper, they were slow. So slow indeed that they were often only perceived to move after they had not been seen for a long time. Even though they crumbled at the slightest touch, Stationery were soon regarded as one of science's most frightening accidents. Though many were destroyed following the revelation of their nature, it is still very possible to find some of their number in long-since abandoned 3D printing facilities across the Universe, hopelessly toiling away as their snail's pace allows the environment to constantly undo their maintenance. Mechanics and Summary: Drops/Loot: Stationery drop mostly paper, perhaps a few pixels or other consumables as well. Environment/Habitat: Stationery can be found in abandoned printing facilities and ancient cities/ships with 3D printers. Spawn Rate/Spawning Conditions: Stationery spawn very rarely wherever an old 3D printer is nearby. They appear 1-10 at a time when they do appear, however. Health/Mana/Energy/Armor: Minimal. They all go down in a single hit. Movement: Extremely, ridiculously slow. They do not appear to move at all unless patiently observed over long periods of time. Attacks/Damage: None. The Stationery are meant to be an extremely weak, harmless race with an unfortunately high aptitude for scaring other species. They are more akin to "smashables" than actual monsters, as many of them are pitifully frail and go down in a single hit to the any-part-of-the-body. Though their slowness can easily frighten those unfamiliar with their history, it has been found that "following" a Stationery can sometimes lead to the discovery of an otherwise hidden maintenance room or passage. They're also a great source of paper for those interested in printing "accidents". They all move.
I don't think an electric circuit can run effectively on paper (without burning) but hell what do I know? Silly paper robots!
Well, I tried to find a scientific explanation for why they were able to work. It is very possible (and actually quite neat) to make a circuit work out of the right kind of ink and paper, depending on the circumstances. I figured it wouldn't be too much of a stretch, given Starbound's futuristic setting, to suppose that something like this might have worked at some point. The idea was originally to have this as a race that folded themselves origami-style out of books, perhaps as a sort of "mimic" that spawns from lore entries found in the wilds. I couldn't come up with any explanation short of "magic", though, which I've noticed is something Starbound seems to stylistically avoid.
Er sorry bout that, was reading a little bit to much Latvian jokes earlier. This is a superbly well done idea, and a bit terrifying as well. I like the back story on their creation (not a scientist parts were a nice touch).
I was looking at one of the pictures, then scrolled back up. When I went back down, I could of sworn that paper man was facing the other way... And then I saw one move, then stared at it for a minute just to catch it moving again. I'm so easily entertained.
It could be a special kind of paper that is produced by the incompatibility between 3-D Printers and Paper. Something like this, perhaps: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shape-memory_polymer Basically, an electrical charge or increase in temperature would cause the paper to revert back to it's "permanent state", effectively causing it to suddenly fold itself into an origami robot. I think this would be totally awesome, especially if they can actually move quickly and attack for decent damage. Of course, low defense would be an obvious handicap.
I never really considered the idea of memory metals mixing with paper, but it's a fantastic explanation if I've ever seen one. I'll probably create a topic at some point that details different types of "mimics" that could exist within the game, and that'll definitely be one of them provided you're okay with me using that explanation.
Oh, by all means, go for it. Also, shape-memory polymers aren't all metals, but with a 3-D printer it might not matter. Any material could be printed into a shape-memory polymer... like, it restructures the paper molecules to look like the kind in a shape-memory polymer, so the paper molecules act like another type of molecule but still are actually paper... maybe?
Haha, whatever works! There's a lot of science-fictiony stuff in Starbound already, so I'm not after a *completely* perfect scientific explanation. ...Maybe.
I realize it's been quite a while since I posted this topic, but I'd really like some more feedback on the idea.
