Bioship Designs

[EJ Heijnis]

There are some really interesting designs in this thread. Very inspiring!

 

[AlexH]

I put in some reference to an old classic sentient being that is capable of driving himself, as well as a mish-mash of other sci fi ref. Feel free to leave comments and critiques. Any constructive criticism would be appreciated!

View attachment 30107

Herbie! It's you!

 

[AlexanderSen]

Thanks for the vote of confidence!

I had some new ideas in regards to bioships. One of these ideas is a Space Ark type bioship. I imagine the ship would be built by an ancient race of aliens, known as the Handlers/Masters, the ship would go around collecting all the DNA samples of the all the superior and strongest species it encounters (collecting data of the best specimens to clone) throughout the Galaxy and stores the collected DNA in the ship's gene banks. The ship can then resurrect creatures it has encountered from it's data/seed/sperm/cell/gene banks. I have not figure how the ark bioship should look like yet, but I imagine it functions like a hive ship, so it might have a honeycomb structure and or queen bee hive design elements.

The Ark ship would carry with it the cellular genomic goo that is the building blocks of life which the bioships use to clone beings. These Bio-Engineered Ships who's aged cannot be verified because these organisms have longer life spans than the handler species they are basically living fossils. The next generation of the Master's, not knowing the details of birth dates the Masters would turn to myth and legends to understand the birth of these ancient creatures.

I asked myself what kind of culture would be able to and or choose to use biotech? I would believe it would be a culture which has mastered the genome, granting them powers like:

- Immortality - they live forever. IOW Not dying from/through natural causes

- Eternal Youth - they are forever young (non aging)

- Cloning - Resurrection and replication bringing back the dead and the power to bring back extinct species

- Reincarnation - cloning bodies and the transferring of the Masters minds to new better types of bodies

- Regeneration - healing and re growing of limbs

- Genetic engineering, modification, and artificial selection

- Virgin Birth - abiogenesis from pool of genetic goo and Test tube babies - Artificial breeding and growth

- DNA mapping / Seed banks and mapping of the genome - a large library of genes

- Extensive understanding in Ecology Botany and Zoology

- Germ warfare - biological and chemical weapons

- Ritual self training and animal training - bonding with the intellect of bioships

- Mind over matter and mastery over self - cognitive self-programming

- Breeding and Artificial insemination

- Virus immunization and superior cells which fight off all diseases

- Bacteria cellular nanobots which when injected into subject can modify the being from inside out

I imagine perhaps the alien Masters in the past tampered with their own genes and developed bio-weapons, perhaps they even developed a viral disease that mutated and ran out of control on their planet and turned the Master's home world into a dsytopian toxic world. The Master's had to go on a mass exodus off world and journey to new planets and as they spread throughout the galaxy, they began collecting the best specimens in hopes to stop the mass pandemic that was occurring on their home world, the Masters started breeding the collected species out to create the perfect specimen / being that could help the Masters save their home world. The Alpha was the name of the first being that the Masters attempt at developing clones. The Omega the ultimate being combined from the best DNA genes of all creatures. Eventually they were able to modify their genes so much they were able to decide what they wished to become.

With the Masters faith in the biochemistry and bio-engineering they would believe in and have myths about mastering the genome. Their belief that life on their home planet arose from and was born from the bubbling pool of chemicals near underwater geological vents - the heat and conditions allowed chemicals to bond and form skins and pockets of RNA proteins. In these underwater volcanic vents bubbling forth chemicals, needed for carbon life, known as the fountain of life - was pools of bubbles forming, combining (eating or encapsulating other pockets of chemical proteins), bumping into each other, exploding and releasing new combinations of chemicals that combined when encapsulated in a skin pocket, these formations of chemicals eventually lead to the regulation of RNA proteins into simple celled organisms.

From the stew in the bubbling pool of chemicals formed strands of simple chemical proteins (RNA) which was the basis of carbon based life.

BTW Sorry for the poor grammar.

 

[AlexanderSen]

On a slightly different but related topic,

I wonder as a species, if these aliens which have god-like powers, would believe in a god or gods? Perhaps they would see themselves as god(s), or somehow directly linked to a creator god.

If these aliens have god like powers, then does it de-mystifiy their god to just a being who wields powers that are greater than them just for the moment? Or at least until they uncover the workings of their god's powers - such powers that once seemed godlike, once uncovered of how it works, is then no longer godlike or supernatural, but everyday and common, so would the aliens still believe in a god(or gods)?

Or if they believe in an all powerful god, then how would they interact with other species? Would they see their species as superior to other species due to their relationship with god, or as equals - as brothers and sisters created by the same creator god?

In relationship to aliens and god, and as well as own own existence as humans with god which we as humans only have witness the truths of this planet, no human in recorded history has traveled to other worlds(beside only a handful who have traveled to space and a even fewer to the moon, if you even count those as other worlds). So how can we as a collective organism prove an existence of a greater all powerful god when we are limited in a our means to understand god or gods as we have only witness life on this planet - so, who is to say of other worlds? Just something to think about...

Whether there is a god I cannot say for certain but in my experience everything happens for a reason. Thing only seem random because we do not know the source of the effect. But like the laws of the universe they play a role in the daily workings of existence. Whether or not we understand these laws or its logic is another matter.

Back to the topic of these aliens and the creator of these bioships I was thinking early in their history they were early beings called golems - soulless(non-sentient) beings made from mud/muck, and the primordial soup/stew in the universe. One of the first Alpha-type golems turned into a sentient being, an alien(man) aware of his own existence who was named Adam. Adam then began to understand words and meaning of ideas, and as the group of Alphas used knowledge to over come dangers and gain profit from their endeavors - the fruit of knowledge, they left that utopian world that once was their naivety, and changed into the world that to them became a place of knowledge as power.

 

[AlexanderSen]

Here is a ship based upon the honeycomb cell pods. I imagine each pod on the body is a place where the aliens can store DNA, breed, and clone different specimens.

 

[AlexanderSen]

Here is a Racing Bioship I just came up with. Not much research here, not sure how it would work and function - not so concept heavy, but just a fun piece to do. I guess it's a racer so, not much more needed to say than that. But I like the sleek lines and fast trimmed and slim kind of feel of the ship. Just experimenting with rough sketches to line drawings and photo-dropping textures in. Not sure how to refine it into a finished piece, feels kind of unresolved, so I am just trying out different methods and styles.

 

[AlexH]

It's always interesting to see how a sketch progresses - thanks for sharing.

 

[AlexanderSen]

In my last Space Ark design I felt that something was missing. So, I added a tail like piece to the Ark Bioship and it feels a lot better to me. The silhouette before was a little too much like a blob, now it feels more like a spaceship.

I am not sure how interstellar travel would work with this ship, but I'll leave that for later.

The organic ship would carry with it the DNA of sampled creatures and it wouldn't need that much space to carry them because only a small genetic sample of each type of creature would be needed to in order to clone and breed the species with some genetic engineering involved.

 

[AlexanderSen]

I felt the Interstellar ark design was too small and needed to be much bigger, so I cloned it and repeated the honey comb design and made the ark much bigger. It feels more like an giant space ship now. I like how the collage design looks kind of feels like a DNA double helix. Next is to flush it out and add color, which I have been mulling over trying to think of a easier way to color it than individually coloring each cell. I have a size comparison of the newer bioship ark design with the previous design.

 

[AlexanderSen]

I did another take on the hive bioship and really emphasized the helix more, so it can be more easily recognized. I like the design mirroring DNA, but I feel the new ship is kind of small, but at the same time it is hard to just scale up the size of the vehicle. I find that just making it bigger is a bit sloppy, as the doors, seats, controls, and all the internal equipment must be a certain size in relationship to the users. You can't just make it bigger without adjusting the size of the equipment (which function as visual clues) or it will feel like its hacked together. That being said, I don't know what size to make the incubator cells that are used to gestate the genetically engineered embryos in the middle of the ship, as there are different types animals which are different sizes when born. I suppose I could say that when first the zygote is inseminated the embryo and babies all start out relatively small and the same size...

 

[AlexanderSen]

Here is a the bioship design from the previous post with textures and colors. I was re-imagining the design as a bioship carrier, it would still have a hive mind presence but it would focus on carrier type roles and only carry space fighter pods instead of infantry geniod type creatures. The spikes like things in the newer design are the guns of the cellular-like pod bays which are placed all over the surface/hull of the carrier bioship that carry smaller strike craft. These smaller drone like strike craft would dock to the carrier with a tail which would latch onto the larger carrier ship backwards into the pod bay so that it's front and weapons would face outward when docked. This way the guns of the smaller pod strike craft could be used and fired from the docking bays this way the fighter pods would function both as weapons for the larger carrier bioship or detach and fly off and function as separate individual fighters.

The pods also allow for rapid to simultaneous deployment because the pods are all on the hull thus effectively allowing swarming actions and formations to be more effective. There is no taxi time needed when docking/launching the fighter ships. These carrier does not have traditional hangar bays and launch ramps because fighter pods being in space, unlike in an atmosphere, don't need a long runway to build up speed in order to generate enough lift to fly, they can just detach and take off immediately, so hangars and runways can be combined to reduce space and maximize deployment.

I was imagining that the carrier ship would have umbilical cords in the docking bays that the fighter pods could latch to and would connect to the smaller fighter craft for resupply, feeding it fuel and ammo.

I also included some initial rough designs of the strike craft and pods types.

 

[Brian G Turner]

The Drone Carrier is interesting - I like the organic shape - but I'm not sure you'd need a conning tower (correct word?) for a bridge or communications as presumably tech would be advanced enough that neither would need to be on a vulnerable outcrop.

 

[-K2-]

Just a thought regarding how the 'pods' reside then are released... instead of the word "pod," I was instantly struck with the word "spore" when I saw it. It sounds more organic, plus it implies weaponry, defense, transport, etc. in an organic way.

K2

 

[AlexanderSen]

The Drone Carrier is interesting - I like the organic shape - but I'm not sure you'd need a conning tower (correct word?) for a bridge or communications as presumably tech would be advanced enough that neither would need to be on a vulnerable outcrop.

Good point! Thanks for the input.

I agree with you about having the command bridge on an outcrop being dangerous, so I am playing with some other ideas to address this issue. Also, feel free to dispute me on my ideas as I am just throwing out ideas in a brainstorm and using this as a sounding board.

But before I begin, I have to state that I feel that it is impossible to create a perfect vehicle, IMHO successful vehicle designs usually focus on a maximizing a particular set of strengths and or focusing on specific roles while forgoing other ones. Like the common saying "Jack of all trades, master of none."

My point is - everything is a choice and so what is the cost of having or not having a conning tower/sensor array?

My reasoning for having a conning tower is it allows for better cone of vision - like lobster and snail eyes which are away from the main body, allow for a better line of sight around the vehicle itself. If your eyes are too deep inside the head, or too close to the body, you can't see what's going on around you very well. Having eyes and sensors away from the body allows the creature to see it's own body or hull and deck if it is a ship (it would also give the ship an extended view of the horizon if it was planet bound, on an ocean for example) but the problem is they tend to be rather weak and an easy target for enemies.

That being said, there are several ways they could address the problem of its weakness of the bridge and command center. One way, a simple solution, is it could be it grown with much better armor like humans and our stronger skulls made from bone.

Also another idea is having a multitude of eye stalks |(sensor arrays) that would stem out from the craft that are connected to the hive mind/brain deep inside the body of the ship, these eye stalks would be spread out so it is impossible to take out in one shot, so if one eye stalk is damaged it can have the other eye stalks take over the damaged eye stalk's duties. I thought this might be good idea for a battleship type of bioship.

To even further expand on this idea, if the carrier ships have a hive mind or some sort of psychic link to its drones (I don't know if this idea is overdone in scifi, but...), perhaps a hive mind could see through the eyes of its drones thus eliminating the need for a sensor array cluster and conning tower on the main carrier. So, instead of having a system where you can easily disable a ship by just destroying its bridge and thus crippling the whole ship or squadron in a single blow instead have a system with a multitude of sensors on every ship that would relay info back to the hive mind, thus having multiple redundant sensors that would create a system which could survive even if one set of sensors are destroyed, because there would be other ones which could replace the ones destroyed, kind of like how the internet works (or at least how the internet was originally designed to work...).

 

[AlexanderSen]

Oh BTW after doing some research about head sensory development and why animals have brains in their heads as opposed to brains in their chest, or any other part for that matter.

I found this term, its called - Cephalization, which is actually a thing where sensory organs tend to form around an outcrop (like an conning tower) and or along the anterior of an creature.

Cephalization - Wikipedia

 

[AlexanderSen]

I am trying to develop my own unique spin on Bioships and Alien Biotech. Initially I did some designs just for fun, but after doing some research I found that other people had done similar ideas already. So, in order to develop more original and interesting ideas that have not been done before, I thought i would do some more research and find all other alien races in other IP(intellectual Properties) which use biotechnology.

Here is a list of different Alien Races that I found that use Biotech. Are there any notable ones I am missing?

Tryanids / Genestealers - Warhammer 40K
Zerg - Starcraft
The Flood - Halo
Species 8472 / Undine - Star Trek
Alien - Alien, Aliens, Prometheus
Cthulhu - not biotech per se, but similar and cool

Thanks and much appreciated for any help!

 

[Joshua Jones]

I am trying to develop my own unique spin on Bioships and Alien Biotech. Initially I did some designs just for fun, but after doing some research I found that other people had done similar ideas already. So, in order to develop more original and interesting ideas that have not been done before, I thought i would do some more research and find all other alien races in other IP(intellectual Properties) which use biotechnology.

Here is a list of different Alien Races that I found that use Biotech. Are there any notable ones I am missing?

Tryanids / Genestealers - Warhammer 40K
Zerg - Starcraft
The Flood - Halo
Species 8472 / Undine - Star Trek
Alien - Alien, Aliens, Prometheus
Cthulhu - not biotech per se, but similar and cool

Thanks and much appreciated for any help!

The Shadows and Vorlorn from Babylon 5
The bugs from Starship Troopers
I feel like this came up at some point in Dr. Who, but I cannot place where.
The Wraiths in Stargate Atlantis
There are the Reapers from Mass Effect and the Raiders from the new Battlestar Galactica, but they are sort of a special case of biotech/mechanical tech hybrids.
Most space video games have something like this, as well.