DiamondDust Armour

*“Your warriors go into combat wearing only bikinis?”*

*“No...whatever gave you that idea? Oh...that’s Yoko, she’s a NeShemar and a novice. She’s still working on her confidence and getting down to full skin. I predict once she gets used to wearing her diamondskin, she’ll lose the cover-ups.”*

*“...okay...you’ve CLEARLY been working out since the last time I saw you.”*

*“What can I say? I’m virtually an entirely new person, from head to toe.”*

*“And shiny too. Like glitter body powder much?”*

*“Diamond dust is a girl’s best friend. Ogle later, kill the brodkil now. I presume that IS why you’re here?”*

*“For all that that millimeter-thin coating of nanoparticles has to do, and can do, the networked nanites are incredibly sophisticated in terms of programming and processing power. If you really think about it, that’s some seriously smart body jewelry.”*

## DiamondDust Armour

 Crew
 Environmental
 Original Tribe
 Greaves (2)
 Necklace
 Speed Running
 Secondary Weapon
 Special System2
 Special System3
 Special System4

aka ‘DiamondSkin’

DiamondDust Armor is yet another new Clan Skyeklad ‘invisible’ armor, that allows the tribe members to be fully protected while not appearing to be wearing anything substantial at all. DDA consists of microplatlets of crystal-carbon that are held together by networked ‘smart’ nanites to form a skintight suit of crystalline scale-mail. To the naked eye, DiamondDust Armor resembles shimmering glitter, giving the skin a highlighted shiny look, with ‘pixelated’ reflections. Like the previous Cloud and Sandstorm armors, DiamondDust Armor is carried in a set of bracers, greaves, and neckpiece/choker that store the dormant nanites and nanoparticles when not in use, and are powered by induction from the gynoid/cyborg’s own power systems.

DiamondDust Armor scavenges carbon from the environment and converts it into buckyfibers and crystal armor. As carbon is very abundant in most environments, this gives the armor a ready resource from which to regenerate. Fire-pits and fireplaces, furnace ash piles, burnt buildings, forest-fire sites, and other burn sites are rich in carbon for the armor to use. It’s also common for the SkyeKlad to carry bags of lampblack, charcoal, or other forms of carbon for the armor to readily assimilate into its crystal structure.

Besides providing skintight protection, DiamondDust Armor can also be used to manipulate light in various subtle and useful ways, such as refracting and reflecting lasers. It can also grow razor-sharp crystals useful as melee weapons, and alter its surface texture to provide abrasive and traction-grabbing surfacing.

DiamondSkins are proving very popular with SkyeKlad tribe members because the armor offers protection without obscuring the wearer’s physique (and tribe members tend to be exhibitionist-proud of their physiques, constructed or not). DiamondDust Armor is exclusive to the Skyeklad tribe and can only be worn/used by specially upgraded gynoids/androids and NeShemar cyborgs of the tribe.

### Special Features

The DiamondDust Armour special abilities are only available once activated.

#### Operation

The DiamondSkin can be maintained for 1 hour before it shuts down and requires 1d4 minutes to recharge. It takes about 1d4 minutes for the armor to form, depending on available carbon in the local environment(the average modern workplace will typically require about a minute to form, while next to a large fireplace, burnt structure, or fossil-fuel fire will take only 30 seconds.

#### Protection

Bracers, greaves, and necklace have 40 MDC each. The DiamondDust grants 80 MDC and regenerates at a rate of 5 MDC per minute.

#### Weapons

##### Crystal Spikes

The DiamnondSkin can grow molecularly sharp spikes on the hands and feet, giving a +1d4 MD to punches and kicks.

##### Scratchers

Finger and toe nails are hardened to become tough and sharp; +2 SDC damage to each finger/toe; a favorite hobby of wearers of DiamondSkin is to etch glass with their diamond-hardened nails.

#### Laser Reflective

The multiple crystalline mirrors reduce laser damage by HALF. The mirror reflective properties can also be altered, defeating variable frequency lasers.

#### Parry Lasers

The wearer can parry lasers (no bonus), and, if they have enough warning, can attempt to redirect a laser blast they know is coming at them; such attempts are at -5 to strike (before any bonuses the gynoid has are applied), maximum range is only 25% of the maximum range of the attacking weapon, and damage is HALF what it normally would be.

#### Traction Pads

The angle of the crystal platelets can be changed to present an abrasive or more resistant surface; the wearer can perform a ‘sandpaper’ strike with a palm or forearm/backhand that does an additional +1d4 SDC (or +1 MDC when performing an MDC attack), and ‘microgritting’ hands and feet gives a +5% to climbing skill.

#### Sensor Baffling

The micro-fine mirrors can be used to generate an optical blur that obscures the outline and exact location of the wearer; -3 to strike the wearer, and laser targeting is useless.

### Options/Upgrades

#### Heavy Mode

’Heavy’ Mode accretes even more crystal into visible, sharp-angled panes and crystals. This is more obvious and heavier (+50 lbs) but gives 260 MDC main body, +80 each arm, +100 each leg, and +60 to the head. Sensor baffling is lost, but the wearer can grow more crystal spikes on the shoulders, forearms, knees, head, and back, giving damage bonuses to strikes involving those parts. It takes 1d8 minutes for full crystal armor to form.

#### Crystal Shield

The armor can generate a smaller and more limited crystal shield or buckler on the vambrace. A buckler (one-handed shield) is roughly 1-2 ft in diameter and has 45 MDC, is +1 to block/parry, and takes roughly 1d4 melees to form. A heavy two-handed shield is 3-5 ft in its largest dimension, has 100 MDC, and takes 1d8 melees to grow.

#### Crystal Weapons

These are larger versions of the crystal spikes, and form from a hilt device that can be attached to the bracers and/or greaves, charging until ready for use. A crystal knife does 1d6 MD and takes about 45 seconds to form, a crystal short sword 1d8 MD and takes 1 minute to form, a crystal long sword or saber does 2d6 MD and takes 1d4 minutes to form, while a crystal great/2-handed sword does 3d6 MD and takes 1d6 melees to form. Unlike normal crystal blades that shatter when held against vibroweapons, DiamondSkin blades are reinforced by their formative nanites and their tension field, and thus do NOT shatter like regular crystal.