Wearable Gravitic Wingsuit

Name: Gravitic wingsuit.

Description: A custom-fitted black wingsuit, typically with decorative red highlights (though suits can be made a different colour upon request).

Abilities:

• Has sewn-in gravits all over the suit (magnet-like gravitised pieces of metal that reduce the effective mass of matter within an approx. 50-cm [20"] radius to just 10% of its original mass. Moving the arms and legs around redistributes the mass reduction effect.
• Has detachable bat-like wings.
• The combination of wings and gravits allows gliding, limited flight and even limited hovering. (The limitation is the wearer's own energy to flap the wings/arms, usually exhausting the wearer after about five to ten minutes -- exact duration depends on the wearer.)
  
• Flight is not particularly fast (little more than 10 m/s [22 mph]) unless in, say, high winds or a jet stream. Requires two turns to get up to that speed.
• Wearer can "speedrun" at up to 20 m/s [45 mph], skipping just off the ground, using the wings for balance. Requires three turns to get up to that speed.
• Built-in toggleable heater wiring to keep the wearer warm. Drains battery charge, of course.
• Built-in voice-controlled wearable computer located in the waist area. Has GPS and emergency beacon functionality. Equivalent to a modern holophone. Images and video can be displayed using the (optional) echolocator blindfold (though low-res and monochrome), or (for that matter) in wireless dataglasses.
• The suit and its electronics are waterproof, but being under more than about 20 m [65 ft] of water (or in an equivalent situation) will cause pressure damage to the electronics.
• Built-in gecko pads on the wrist and heel coverings. These stick to solid surfaces, allowing climbing.
• Mass of 1.5 kg [3 lb]. Effective mass of 150 g [5 oz].

Conditional abilities (optional):

• Built-in echolocator blindfold (optional), 50-m [160-ft] range. 20/80 vision (20/30 if focussed on a subject within 10 m [30 ft]), requires neural hookup. Cannot read or see colours with this. Can see in complete darkness. May be able to "see through" thin clothing up to 6 m [20 ft] away and can "see into" people's internal organs within 3 m [10 ft]. Ultrasonic emitters can be disabled, severely limiting vision to something like 20/200 if there's noise and blinding the user if there's no noise around. Located in the hood as a pair of ultrasonic emitters and sensitive microphones embedded in a blindfold.
• Built-in lightweight retractable titanium claws (15-cm [6"] length), three on each wrist (six in total). Usually used for extra traction when climbing or extra dexterity in general, but can see use in self-defence.

Disadvantages:

• Due to the gravits, some items may behave weirdly (or even have EM or gravitic interference) when carried or used by a suit wearer.
• Requires a lot of skill, training and/or practice to use properly, else the user will be flailing around in variable gravity in the air, even injuring themselves.
• Electronic components are vulnerable to EMPs.
• Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries are located in the waist area near the waist computer.
• If EMPed, the gravits will stop working (or even increase mass to above normal) until the EMP is over (plus one or two turns), despite not requiring external energy to use (due to electromagnetic effects).
• Renders the wearer extremely vulnerable to knockback and subsequent blunt force trauma.
• Since the suit reduces effective mass, the wearer can very easily be picked up and thrown, even by someone with relatively low strength.
• Wingsuit wearers tend to become very physically weak after years of use. Many wearers end up in wheelchairs when not wearing the suit.
• Other than lightweight and airy waterproof and flame-retardant fabric (and aerogel in the wings), no armour at all. Armour cannot be worn under the suit either, as the suit has to be custom-fitted. The suit does nothing to stop bullets or knives or whatnot.
• Low weight limit for flight of about 50 kg [110 lb].
• While wearing the wings, the wearer is unable to use his hands for anything and has to make do with gecko pads (and titanium claws, if they come with the suit) for any semblance of manual dexterity. Wearers often adapt to this by using their feet for dexterous tasks, which means wearers often wear foot wrappings rather than full-on shoes.
• If the wearer is too heavy to fly, they can only glide with the suit. Weight limit for gliding is 100 kg [220 lb].

Conditional disadvantages (optional):

• Flashbangs and loud noises blind the echolocator. Blindness lasts for the duration of a flashbang or explosion plus three turns, or the duration of a loud noise plus one turn.
• Echolocator ultrasonics may disturb or alert animals and florans within 30 m [100 ft] which are unused to the noise.
• Echolocator interferes with other worn vision-related tech (like camera glasses) when the hood is worn.
• Echolocator is not calibrated for submersion in water and entirely useless in vacuum.
• When extended, the titanium claws impede normal use of the hands.

How it works:
A gravitic wingsuit allows its wearer limited flight at the cost of protection and the use of their hands. The suit works by means of gravits which reduce the effective mass of anything near the wearer and suit. The mass reduction is easily felt by a bystander running his hand near the suit.

Flavour text:
Designed by Samantha Talonios for herself and her friends, gravitic wingsuits grant their wearer limited flight and great freedom of movement at many costs, but to wearers, it's often worth it. Many wearers of these suits often end up quite physically dependent on them, their acquired physical weakness often landing them in a wheelchair, or at least giving them a bad limp, when not wearing the suit.

Attainability: Semi-closed. One must request a gravitic wingsuit directly from Samantha. This is a favour typically done only for friends and loved ones.
Tags: Civilian.
Category: Wearable.

 

Hey, VSauce, Actual Staff here.

The hell's a gravit?

Before I can even begin to remotely give this app its given due process, the 'gravit' needs to be apped first, as this concept has no acceptable precedent present in this setting's lore.

This App will receive a Denied grade until a sufficient workup and grade of these 'gravits' are written and posted.