D'ni items
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What follows is a list of unusual or interesting items — objects, devices, machines, etc. — that can be found on the D'ni Ages as described in the various Myst franchise games and novels. Most concern technology that was unique to the D'ni themselves.
Contents |
[edit] Culture
[edit] The Art
- Main article: Art (Myst).
- Linking Books (Kor'vakh)
- Descriptive Books (Kor'mahn)
- Trap books
- Nexus Book Machine
- D'ni Ink
Descriptive books, put simply, can be written in to "make" a world, called an Age and to link, or travel, to it; linking books are the counterparts of descriptive books and are a lighterweight alternative that can easily be carried around and used to link as well. Both types of book, however, consist of what would normally be found in regular books, i.e. an ink medium, paper pages, and a cardboard-like or wooden-based binding. The ink, however, is made from a special type of scarab beetle whose properties allows the words written in a descriptive book to actually link to the world described within. To write an Age one must describe the world one wishes to visit. The detail of the writing determines how simplistic or detailed the Age will turn out. The more precise the writing the greater detail can be achieved in the making of the Age, though if the writing is too detailed the Age might be unstable and unsuitable for visitation or habitation. A rectangle, which can technically be found anywhere in the book, is called a linking panel. Linking panels show a small, static window into the Age and the point where one will link into it, though in the Myst games it is sometimes dramatized and moves around the Age. If an Age is written improperly it can lead to disaster, as the smallest mistakes such as the degree of the axis or the rotation of the moon can lead to the destruction of the Age. Very slight changes can, however, be made to the descriptive book of the Age to slow the rate of decay if it was written improperly. If, when making changes to an Age, the differences are too large between the Age originally described and that being written, it is possible that the linking book will be directed to another Age entirely that, while still sharing the same characteristics, is minutely different. (An analogy to this is the Temporal Butterfly Effect, where one theoretical change in the past can affect the future.)
[edit] Games
- Ahyoheek: Ahyoheek is a game table found in public places inside many D'ni neighbourhoods. It is a game for two or more players which has some similarity to Rock, Paper, Scissors. See Ahyoheek for more information.
- Gemedet: Gemedet is a two-player game quite similar to Connect 4. It is, however, played in three dimensions, not two.
[edit] High technology
[edit] Maintainers' tech
- Great Zero: The Great Zero Neutrino dispenser is a device which emanates neutrinos, which are used by the D'ni location markers.
- Maintainer Marks are markers in other Ages, which are connected to the Great Zero in some way. They allow for position tracking and KI communication across Ages.
- Great Zero Markers are markers which can be "collected" with a KI. If all the markers are found and registered with the Great Zero it will be calibrated and can broadcast positional signals to the D'ni cavern.
- The Marker Dispenser is a device which can configure a KI to collect certain groups of Markers.
- Maintainer's Suits are the protective suits worn by Maintainers on dangerous missions to untested or unstable worlds. They are created out of Deretheni rock.
- KI: The D'ni KI is a handheld device developed by the D'ni shortly before the downfall of the D'ni empire. Its actual name is unknown: KI (pronounced 'key') comes from the D'ni numeral 3 (shaped like the letters KI), found on some of the first KI's found. It is unknown why the devices were all labelled 3. The KI served as a communication device for the D'ni as well as a storage device for images and a positioner using coordinates from the Great Zero and Maintainer marks. KI's could also be used to track and store markers.
The D'ni technology underlying the KI allowed for communication between Ages.
In Uru, it is learned that the DRC rediscovered the KI and managed to partially translate the devices so they could be used by DRC members and authorized explorers. The KI is needed to finish the Age of Gahreesen, and also plays a role in the puzzles in the first Uru Expansion Pack, To D'ni.
[edit] Imagers
Imagers, in the D'ni culture, were devices which somewhat resemble television screens. They could either display live data transmitted from a camera placed somewhere or a series of static images (either regular or taken by a KI). D'ni Imagers are found in most neighbourhoods, as well as in Ages, where they are sometimes used to display greeting notices or instructions.
Other kinds of imagers more closely resembled hologram emitters. An examples is Gehn's Imager of his deceased wife Keta found in Age 233.
[edit] Timepieces
As the D'ni counted time differently than the surface dwellers, their watches and clocks were remarkably different. They based their day on the bioluminecent plankton that lived in the lake of the main cavern. The plankton apparently glowed brightly for approximately 18 hours, and then with less intensity for 12 hours, creating an equivalent to nightfall for the D'ni. A D'ni day was divided 5 equal segments of 6 hours each, making for a 30-hour day. (30 hours, 14 minutes in surface time). One example of a D'ni watch can be seen on Aitrus' maps. D'ni alarm clocks/timers are found in various Ages, such as in Age 233. Larger clocks are seen in D'ni neighbourhoods.
[edit] Industry
[edit] Mining devices
The D'ni used several immense machines to create tunnels that connected the diverse caverns that formed the D'ni empire.
- The Burrower
- The Cycler
- The Excavator
- The Grinder
- Old Stone Teeth
- Rock-Biter
- Fusion-Compounder: The Fusion-Compounder turned the tunnelled rock into highly compressed molecules, which were used to create the mining products below.
[edit] Mining products
- Deretheni: Deretheni is a jet-black form of D'ni engineered stone. More malleable than Nara, the strongest Maintainer's Suits were created out of this.
- Nara: Nara is a highly compressed form of D'ni engineered stone, which is green-black in colour, and emanated a faint green light. It is approximately 30 times stronger than steel, and was used to structurally support D'ni tunnels.
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