[mikhael]

 

Originally posted by Rampage:
I have another question:  Do Shivans breathe oxygen?

Answer #1:  Yes they do because some of their captured ships have the capability to house Terran and Vasudan pilots. (I.E.  The Dragon fighter captured in Freespace and you flying it some hours later.  The techies couldn't have installed a life-support system in several hours.)

Answer #2:  No they don't because they live in a zero-gravity atmosphere (a.k.a. space) and their is no known breathable gas in space. (I don't think they breathe hydrogen.)  And if they DO breathe, then they MUST have been created (or evolved) on a planet with gravity.  (Maybe their bodysuits had lifesupport.)

I'd say that they do breath, but they likely don't have lungs the way vertebrates do. They probably breathe through several spiracles spread across the body, like arthropoda of Earth.

I don't think that the Terran engineers did retrofit the life support systems in the missions where you fly Shivan fighters. I believe that the pilots were simply in space suits hooked up to a portable rebreather, much like a scuba system.

I don't know what gasses Shivans breathe, but its probably a fair mix (even terran air is largely nitrogen, not oxygen).


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--Mik
http://www.404error.com
ruhkferret on ICQ/AIM

"Your guy was a little SQUARE! You had to use your IMAGINATION! There were no multiple levels or screens. There was just one screen forever and you could never win the game. It just kept getting harder and faster until you died. JUST LIKE LIFE." --Ernie Cline

[Setekh]

Yep, a spacesuit would have been much easier to do, rather than installing a fully-fledged life support system. I wonder what they did about the control surfaces, though... interfacing that with Terran technology so quickly? Must've been pretty darn smart. I bet they had previous knowledge from the GTI experiments.

[Dark_4ce]

How about if the Shivan's would capture GTVA fighters and retrofit them for their needs? You know for Their "deep cover" operation. If indeed they have any. Actually. I doubt that they'd fit in them, but still, would'nt it be very useful to have a couple stashed away just in case?
 

[Sandwich]

 

Originally posted by mikhael:
I don't think the Shivans are interested in territory (they don't seem to conquer, only secure nodes, preventing transit)...

...Thus reinforcing the theory that they are interested in subspace territory. Which leavs us with the question: why?  

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[Nico]

 

Originally posted by sandwich:
...Thus reinforcing the theory that they are interested in subspace territory. Which leavs us with the question: why?  

nope, not even more: look at fs1 and fs2. Do they hold nodes? nope, they conquer them, then just leave them behind. Only sexeption is behind the nebula knossos, and nothing proves they will stay there anywhere. May just be a rendezvous point.

Anywway, this thread is realy going backward now, all this has already been discussed one or two pages ago.

[aldo_14]

 

Originally posted by mikhael:
I'd say that they do breath, but they likely don't have lungs the way vertebrates do. They probably breathe through several spiracles spread across the body, like arthropoda of Earth.

I don't think that the Terran engineers did retrofit the life support systems in the missions where you fly Shivan fighters. I believe that the pilots were simply in space suits hooked up to a portable rebreather, much like a scuba system.

I don't know what gasses Shivans breathe, but its probably a fair mix (even terran air is largely nitrogen, not oxygen).

If I remember correctly, the Marines in the hallfight cutscene were wearing spacesuits / breathing apparatus.

[aldo_14]

 

Did I miss the scene in Independence Day where Will Smith sat down and asked the invading aliens about their motivations? Is that some DVD extra? I don't think the Shivans are interested in territory (they don't seem to conquer, only secure nodes, preventing transit), resources (again, they leave resources behind) and we don't know anything about them socially to even consider ritual. In short, I dont' see your link between the characterization of Shivans and the aliens in ID4. My take on Shivan motivation has a very simple parallel in modern medicine. When you cut out a tumor, you take some healthy tissue with it to insure that no unhealthy cells remain.

Er, yeah actually.  There's a scene where the captured alien tries to use telepathy on the President,blah blah - revealing them to be a sort of race of intergalactic locusts....

Anyway, my theory on Shivans is pretty simple.  They're evil.  Simple, instinctual animals with a killing instinct, yet also intelligent enough to form plans and identify clear targets.  i think that's their purpose - to kill anything in their way.

Of course, that doesn;t mean they are the only things out there.  And it doesn't mean that they can't be scared, or that they can't run away.

[mikhael]

 

Originally posted by aldo_14:
Er, yeah actually.  There's a scene where the captured alien tries to use telepathy on the President,blah blah - revealing them to be a sort of race of intergalactic locusts....

Anyway, my theory on Shivans is pretty simple.  They're evil.  Simple, instinctual animals with a killing instinct, yet also intelligent enough to form plans and identify clear targets.  i think that's their purpose - to kill anything in their way.

Of course, that doesn;t mean they are the only things out there.  And it doesn't mean that they can't be scared, or that they can't run away.

AHA! I recall that now, thank you. It doesn't  match with the my reasoning behind Shivan motivation (as TDM/JM was implying), so I don't see how its relevant.

About Terrans in space suits in the hall fight: Of course they were. They were in an alien environment. That's why I suggest that GTVA pilots flying Maras do so in full spacesuit, rather than swapping out the Mara's in built environmental hardware.


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--Mik
http://www.404error.com
ruhkferret on ICQ/AIM

"Your guy was a little SQUARE! You had to use your IMAGINATION! There were no multiple levels or screens. There was just one screen forever and you could never win the game. It just kept getting harder and faster until you died. JUST LIKE LIFE." --Ernie Cline