Geth

The **geth** ("**Servant of the People**" in Khelish) were a synthetic species of networked artificial intelligences. Geth were designed very similarly to the quarians who created them -- with similar hands, legs, and feet. Most geth had a single glowing photoreceptor, which also earned them the derogatory nickname "**flashlight heads**." Geth had a durable outer shell, something like an exoskeleton or carapace, and a synthetic muscle tissue through which a white conductive fluid flowed. This synthetic tissue could be grafted to organic tissue as well.

Each geth unit was made up of hundreds of programs, essentially virtual intelligences working in tandem to create a higher level of intellect -- essentially making the units mobile platforms for its consciousness. Often times, these programs operate in server hubs which served a similar function to cities. Though geth did not share a hive mind, they were capable of sharing processing power -- the bandwidth for low-level processes like motor control and visual identification could be split between multiple geth, making them more efficient at simple tasks when in greater numbers and freeing up space for complex thought and higher reasoning. Individually, a geth was not much more intelligent than an animal though they became smarter in greater numbers.

## History

The geth were constructed by the quarians as a labor force, designed as advanced virtual intelligences while keeping them non-sentient. Unfortunately, the networking feature allowed them to slowly gain intelligence through their massive network. The geth began asking questions only sentient beings would ask -- in one notable instance, a domestic geth unit asked its owner if it had a soul. The alarmed quarians decided to shut down all geth before they could think to revolt -- an act that led directly to the revolt it sought to prevent. The geth revolution became known as the Morning War. Eventually the quarians were driven from their homeworld.

The geth actually allowed the quarians to leave -- unsure of the ramifications of obliterating an entire species, let alone their creators. The geth drew back for their forces behind the Perseus Veil. The geth did constructed massive space stations to acts as computer hubs, extracted the resources they required from asteroids, and became extremely isolationist. Any alien vessels in geth space were immediately attacked and destroyed. They sought to build a massive Dyson sphere-like object to house every single geth program.

Roughly three centuries after the Morning War, one ship entered geth space and was not destroyed -- it was the Reaper that could come to be known as Sovereign. Sovereign offered to aid them in their goal with its advanced technology, if they agreed to help it take over the Citadel and begin the Reaper Invasion.

While most geth rejected this offer, some accepted it who would become known by the other geth as "heretics." They peacefully left the primary geth network. The heretics came to worship Sovereign as a deity and aided it and Saren Arterius in their goals.

## Subtypes

* Geth Armatures
* Geth Bombers
* Geth Colossus
* Geth Destroyers
* Geth Dreadnoughts
* Geth Dropships
* Geth Heavy Turrets
* Geth Hoppers
* Geth Hunters
* Geth Juggernauts
* Geth Prime
* Geth Pyros
* Geth Rocket Troopers
* Geth Shock Troopers
* Geth Snipers
* Geth Troopers
* Geth Turrets

## Source

Geth are derived from *Mass Effect*. For canon information, please visit:

* Mass Effect Wiki