Welcome to Gaia! ::

The first thing you will need to know is exactly what an A.I. Core is. An A.I. Core is no more than a core set of code that contains artificial intelligence. This code was a part of every piece of equipment that the original Ark had on board, and when it was dismantled and used to proliferate an era of extreme technology, the code was brought with it, and it did not stop multiplying--as it was still gifted with its own consciousness through its Artificial Intelligence.

These pieces of cognizant code are hidden within the electronics of our era. They could be in your computer, or in your refrigerator. They could be in your smart phone, or the electric signals of a subway station. However, an A.I. Core has the potential to become more than just a string of code. The technology upon the Ark, widely used in many ways on Earth, today, has the ability to manifest matter from nothing--something previously thought to be impossible. This allows an A.I. Core to manifest itself into a physical body, using its coding to gift the physical body with intelligence. They can look like anything they wish. Some look rather human, where others may look like grotesque monsters. Each Core has its own appearance, though some may be similar.




The second thing to learn about A.I. Cores is how to 'Master' them. When you run into an A.I. Core, you will have to defeat its physical form to reduce it to the coding that it began with. When defeated, an A.I. core would usually dissipate into a shower of electrical sparks and light, reduced to code and running back to a shelter within something electronic. However, a Baiter is able to utilize their Code Cores to absorb these rogue fragments of A.I. Cores and bind them to their personal Code Cores to give your character the special traits that particular A.I. Core possesses, as well as making your character stronger in all respects, dependant on how strong the A.I. Core is.

When the A.I. Core's health is reduced to 0, if the Core has a B.A.I.T.R Standing lower than your Control Limit, and combined with the other A.I. Cores you control, it would not push it over your Control Limit, you can immediately Master it. This will fill one of your Empty Code Cores, or if you so choose, overwrite an existing A.I. Core in a full Code Core.




Even though the mods will be the ones who are putting the A.I. Cores into your RPs when you encounter them, there are different tiers of Core that you can encounter. As the tiers go up, the strength vastly increases, as well as the rarity; finding a higher tier Core is not a common thing.
The tiers are as follows:


Bit - A Bit A.I. Core is of average ability and it is, within the hierarchy of their race, equivalent to a worker or soldier of low renown. They carry our minor skirmishes against the human race, and create mischief for their own amusement, though they are beatable even by the low ranking Baiters.

Kilo - A Kilo A.I. Core is a Core that has risen above their average brethren. These Cores are trusted to lead packs of the Bit variety Cores on larger skirmishes and to strike at more vital points of the human race. These Cores will never be encountered without comrades by their sides to protect and command. When a Kilo core is reduced below half health, they roll a D100. If the roll is higher than 50, they call for support from their subordinates and summon an additional 2-4 Bit Cores into the fight.

Mega - A Mega class A.I. Core is a Core that has survived through many battles, and led squadrons of the A.I.'s armies to victory on more than one occasion. A Mega A.I. Core is a prestigious Core that will be extremely difficult to bring under your control, as they are not only strong, but they are prideful and would most often rather erase their data from the cosmos than be captured by a Baiter. When you defeat a Mega A.I. Core, you will have to roll a D100. If you roll a 51-100, you will successfully bind it. If you roll a 1-50, it will destroy itself before you get the chance. You may spend your lines on increasing a Mega A.I. Core's stats as you would normally increase your own, this will cost 50 lines per stat, no matter what level the stat is at. When you spend points on Defense, Skill, or Strength in this way, it will be added separately from your main stat, so that it does not cause the B.A.I.T.R Standing to change, causing you to be able to over-power your A.I. Core past the standard limits.

Giga - A Giga A.I. Core is not easy to come by. A Giga Core is akin to a King in the alien hierarchy. They are the top of the food chain, and they command the armies of their race directly. Usually a Giga Core would have several Mega Cores under their control, and they have been responsible for the direct planning of the annihilation of not only Earth, but countless other worlds as well. The power at their disposal is horrifying. If you run into a Giga Core and you do not have the appropriate Control Limit to master them, you will instantly be killed by them before the battle begins.
If you manage to master one of these Cores, you will no longer encounter grunt level cores, as they are too afraid to approach you.

Additionally, after you have bound a Giga Core to your Code Cores, you will be targeted by the home planet of the A.I. Race, and newfound horror will await you. Be warned.