Relay Buoy

A Relay Buoy is a type of Void-Craft that is designed specifically to help connect a variety of locations to one another for instant communication across the Voidsea. They have played a major role in the infrastructure of many different Factions throughout history, despite coming in many different forms.

Their existence across Factional lines are the result of convergent technological innovation, with a large number of Kinde developing a similar concept at some point in their pursuits of becoming a Voidsea-Faring people.

In a space as vast as the Voidsea, where Factions can control territories thousands of light years across, communication in a timely manner is an essential aspect of keeping those Factions together. This allows for co-ordination on war or political matters, the ability to call in reinforcements when needed, and foster unity and co-operation between worlds across the Faction.

Doing this directly however, can be an incredibly difficult, inefficient, and logistically enormous. One number off in calculations can mean the targeted world never receives the message, and depending on the distances involved, it can take days at best, and centuries at most, for messages to be received.

Relay Buoy's were designed to circumvent these issues.

Definition

The term 'Relay Buoy' is more of a descriptive term than a specificational one. Due to the different types of craft that can fit this description is used to describe an object in the Voidsea that fulfils the role of a Relay Buoy. To fit this description, it must be:

An object which can be deployed in the abyss between solar systems
Be capable of performing automated tasks reliably.
Be able to receive and transmit messages across a long distance.

What is a Relay Buoy?

In their original form, Relay Buoy's were normally small, and unmanned devices, typically capable of being deployed by lone Voidships. They would receive signals sent from the Voidship, and transmit that quickly to any other Buoys, until the signal reached where it was meant to go. Often times, this was to a singular Void Island, Anchorage, or other operating base.

In essence, they function similarly to radio towers found on Void Islands - A message is sent to the Relay Network, and is passed along, Buoy to Buoy, rapidly, until it reaches it's intended destination. Rather than waiting for a connection between points A and B, the feeds are sent through hundreds, if not thousands, of Relay Buoys. Dozens at least, and thousands at most, of smaller transmissions, are sent at once, rather than one singular back-and-forth, allowing for immediate communication.

Strengths and Utility

The strengths and utility of Relay Buoy's are incredibly evident - They provide a fast, reliable, and highly versatile method of communication between thousands of Light Years.

Unlike other forms of communication, such as Quantum Communication, Relay Buoy's are not limited to singular locations, and can be redirected just about anywhere. They are not strictly two-way, and can involve many different callers from different regions of the Voidsea if needed. They are also very easy to expand upon. To connect new worlds to the rest of their faction, they only need to deploy a number of Relay Buoy's, and communication is a simple affair.

For example, Quantum Communication is a useful tool for two individuals speaking in locations A and B - However, they cannot communication with another location. Relay Buoy's allow an individual to communication from location A, to Locations B, C, D, E, F, G and so on.

Relay Buoy's are far from the only communication method any one Faction has - But it is the most streamlined and reliable over wide distances. It is also the most flexible, requiring the least number of hoops required to get into contact with an important individual.

Weaknesses

Relay Buoy's are incredibly useful for communication - But they are also major weak-spots for any Faction.

The destruction of only a few Relay Buoy's can render communication a far more convoluted and difficult affair. There are no shortage of ways a Relay Buoy can be rendered inoperable - asteroid or Voidship collisions, solar storms, or the most concerning, direct interference, be it sabotage, or destruction, to pave way for an attack by another Faction. Relay Buoy's, despite their importance, are often one of the weakest links in the infrastructure of any Faction.

Indeed, following the Technopocalypse, the sheer number of Relay Buoy's that were destroyed spelled the end of nearly every Faction at the time - and was certainly the reason that tens of thousands of worlds found themselves completely isolated from the rest of the Voidsea, many of which still have not been rediscovered.

Yet despite this, the need for Relay Buoy's was evident the moment Factions began attempting to rebuild. Despite their weaknesses, their sheer necessity cannot be understated.

Methods have been devised to counter these weaknesses, hough these come with their own issues and limitations. As the Voidsea has become more and more hostile, these weak links have needed to adapt alongside their Factions.

Adaptation

The recognition of the importance of Relay Buoy's to the continued existence of

By the end of the first millennium of the Valhallan Age, many Relay Buoy's located in the Abyss were integrated into Depth Fortresses - Defensive stations designed to protect and maintain the Communication Lanes. Many of these have transformed into Abyssburgs, such as Beacontown, where they function as rest stops, neutral ground for negotiating Factions, or useful political tools between different Kinde.