Equipment in Aliens

The items below are those which are routinely carried by Colonial Marines, as well as other military and non-military personnel.

Equipment harness
This harness has attachments for holding the miscellaneous items which might be carried by military personnel, including grenades, flares, and a medical kit. There are also several utility pouches which can be used for anything from ammunition clips to personal items. The equipment harness is standard part of all Colonial Marine Combat Fatigues and its weight is already included in that of the Fatigues.

Field Radio
A normal military radio for communication across distances up too 100 miles. It is used for routine communications between troops and their Armored Personnel Carrier. The Field Radio automatically encodes and decodes transmissions to and from other Radios sed by the same unit or as part of the same operation. These codes change constantly according to the programming within each unit and therefore cannot be decoded.
The use of a Field radio can be Traced, with the aid of basic espionage and communication equipment. It is a very difficult task, the task gets easier for each full 30 seconds the that the target transmits.
It is also possible to Jam an opponent's radio communication, with the same equipment that is used for Tracing. This is a very difficult task. If a jamming attempt is successful, the targeted radio cannot be used effectively for communication for as long as the jamming equipment is operational.

Intelligence Unit
This is a multi-purpose computer that fits easily into a briefcase. An intelligence unit generally stores a wide variety of information pertaining to a given mission, including all available date on important locations, personnel relating to the mission or present at the locations and other vital items. It includes a scanning device a picture is fed into the scanner which then searches the Intelligence Unit's files and produces any relevant information including the identity of any people where the picture was taken, and so forth. The scanner is capable of processing pictures of fingerprints as well as supplying limited forensic information from closeup pictures of pieces of evidence. it can also enhance the image so the user can study it as closely as desired.

An Intelligence unit is also capable of storing and processing information fed into it by the user to develop case files and the like and of tapping into other computer systems for additional research. For example, if the user of an intelligence unit has authorization the unit can draw data from law enforcement computers and perform fingerprint matching vehicle registration searches and similar tasks.

Light and Comm Gear
Another standard part of all Colonial Marine Combat Fatigues and available for use by those without Combat Fatigues. Light and Comm Gear provides a single bright light which is mounted over the wearers shoulder and can be aimed in any direction, a headset communications device allowing voice contact with the rest of the wears unit and with the commanding officer, a simple video camera which is mounted to the wearers helmet, passive infrared sighting gear, and a transmitter which automatically sends medical and visual data back to the Command Post overseeing the wearer. The Power cell for this unit lasts 12 hours of operation. Replacement cells weight .2 pounds.

Medical Kit
Generally carried by two or three members of each Strike Team a medical kit allows any character with a Medical Aid Rating of novice or better to apply first aid.

Motion Tracker
A sonar unit combined with passive air density sensors the Motion Tracker is used to provide Colonial Marines with information about unseen opponents. Given the range of environments they fight in and the frequency with which they encounter unusual life forms this general purpose detection device sees a great deal of use.
A Motion Tracker will indicate the position, size and speed of any object within 180 feet. The size of object the motion tracker is scanning for is determined by the user down to a minimum diameter of 6 inches. The frequency and settings must be adjusted repeatedly to filter interference and operating the motion tracker in cluttered terrain is difficult without a good deal of skill and experience. Motion Tracker will not work in vacuum.
The Motion tracker can register movement on the far side of a solid obstacle but the air flow between the two locations must be unblocked and the operators task is made more difficult for each corner and intervening obstacle increase the difficulty level by one step one corner is very difficult, two is extremely difficult.
If the operator uses the motion tracker successfully then he or she receives accurate information regarding the number, position and speed and size of all moving objects within the tracker's range, if the roll is failed then the information will be inaccurate to some degree. If the roll is failed by 1 or 2 the tracker will show the range and speed to all nearby targets but the number and size of the targets will be unknown, if the roll is failed by three or four only the range will be known while the failure of five or six results in the operator receiving no significant information. If the operator fails by 7 or more then the GM should give the operator information which is significantly incorrect.

Orbital Communicator
This unit is very similar to the Field Radio but it has a tracking dish for talking to Spacecraft and Dropships in orbit. It uses the same encryption methods as normal field radios but has more power so it can reach Spacecraft. On Planetary surface it has a range of 100 miles. An Orbital Communicator can also be traced like a field radio but it is an extremely difficult task that gets easier by one difficulty level per full minute of transmission. Jamming is also extremely difficult.

Personal Data Transmitters
Commonly issued to all Corporate and military personnel who are exposed to danger, the Personal Data Transmitter (PDT) broadcasts the individual's location. In General this broadcast is tracked by the computer at the facility to which the wearer is assigned but the broadcasts use standard wavelengths and can be picked up by any person with a suitable communications equipment.

For people in non-security environments, PDT's are surgically implanted to eliminate the chance that they will come off by accident. Military and security personnel cannot afford to have their locations broadcast to opponents, of course, so their PDT's are either incorporated into their Equipment Harnesses or are in the form of wristbands. These PDT's are used only when radio security is not important, and are turned off or removed by most troops if there is any indication that they present a security risk. In cases where the battle is more or less "Civilized" where the two sides are providing good medical care to captives and where there will be a prisoner exchange after the battle troops leave the PDT's turned off until they are seriously injured and then turn them on to broadcast their locations so medical personnel from either side can find them.

Portable Welder
This utility tool is carried by most Marines and is used for either welding or cutting metal. It can cut or weld a manhole-sized opening in standard ship or construction plate in 90 seconds, and can make two such cuts before requiring recharging.

Position Trackers
These are small simple devices used by Colonial marines and other security and rescue personnel when they are searching for people wearing PDT's. Position Trackers can be specifically tuned to a given broadcast code, and display the distance to the nearest PDT using that code. They are especially valuable for recording wounded personnel.

Pulse Communicator
This device serves the same purpose as an Orbital Communicator but is used by Recon Specialists and others who need secure communications. A complete message is fed into the Pulse Communicator by the operator and it is then transmitted to its target in a single pulse. At the same time a return pulse can be triggered which the communicator deciphers,
This type of communication is almost impossible to trace, jam or intercept. It only has enough power for a brief broadcast, but it is very small and can be easily concealed when disassembled it is smaller than a briefcase. Normal two-way communication is not possible with this unit but it does allow an agent in the field to transmit vital data to his or her superiors and to receive periodic orders.

Communications, computers and finance
All civilized areas of a world are linked by sophisticated telecommunications and electronic data transmissions systems, even on Terraforming and Mining Worlds. These systems include telephones with full visuals, networked information processing for computers, and an assortment of other convinces. The most notable features of these systems are listed below.

Business Cards
In a logical extension of telecommunications technology most business cards are printed on plastic cards which have digital information encoded into the plastic. The card is inserted into an optical scanner which is built into every phone, and which automatically dials the number on the Card. The standardization of this technology has made address books and hand-dialing nearly obsolete.

Computer Information Retrieval (CIR) Booths
These are the equivalent of public telephone booths, which incorporate telecommunications and computer technology and allow the user to tap into the local computer network. The fees for general use are low and are charged directly to the users credit account. There are listings for all businesses with their locations services and prices and most individuals residences and public facilities. All of this information is cross-indexed making it possible to track down the residence of a particular citizen or to obtain a list of all the businesses which sell a particular produce.
Inquires about residences and citizens are logged with local law enforcement and it is possible to pay to have your name and residence removed from the standard public listings.

Credit Cards
Every citizen carries a small plastic card which is used for identification and as currency. The card includes the citizen's unique identification number, as well as appropriate account numbers.
There is a black market for secret and illegal purchases. This market functions on a barter system, although gold and rare metals like iridum are sometimes used as currency. In all cases, the GM can convert the barter values of items int their credit equivalents. For reference, the standard value of one ounce of gold is 500 credits; GM's may use this as a basis for assigning prices where necessary.

Jammer
This unit is a box about eight inches across and is used to protect a limited area against audio surveillance. This area can be up to 15 feet across and must be surrounded b walls. Any microphone or "bug" attempting to fllow a conversation within the secured area will pick up only a undecipherable buzz.
If it is also necessary to defeat video surveillance the users must wear Jammer Headsets. These include full faceplate which prevent the wearer identification, lipreading and other analysis, and the wearers communicate over a closed circuit that networks the Headsets.
Jammers are often built into limousines and other vehicles used b wealthy business people. In these cases the headsets are unnecessary within the enclosed areas.

Locator
This device is available on every world which is listed on the Star Map as a Colony or Major Colony as well as on Earth. It is held in the palm of the users hand and contains a keypad and a small display. The Locator uses the radio telecommunications to link with its own satellite system and will pull up the local street map and indicate the users current position on the grid. In some areas of Earth this information is no longer correct and may be dangerously outdated.

If the locator is tapped into a CIR booth it is possible to show the locations of any desired businesses, public sites, and so forth. An itinerary can be loaded into the Locator at that time to indicate a path for the user once he or she has left the CIR Booth. The Locator can also serve as a personal data transmitter and has an emergency beacon.

Radiophone
This is another handheld device which operates through the computer information retrieval system. It provides the user with the audio portion of normal telephone service and uses radio to stay in contact with the nearest CIR booth.

Security Device
A flat plastic box, about three inches square. It functions as a broad-spectrm detector and can be passed over a person's body to determine if he or she is carrying concealed weapons or any other metal or any electrical unit. It is capable of presenting the general shape of the detected item on a small screen. Larger versions of this exist as walk-through booths and are widely used.

Shopping Booth
An expanded version of the CIR booth which is installed in the homes of the wealthy and in Corporate offices. The user simply steps in and calls any desired stores and a sales person appears full length on the screen. The sales person can call up images of the products which interest the user or can get them and present them for viewing. Sales can be completed quickly and easily with items delivered by a freight service and appropriate efficient shopping tool, which saves both time and money and is especially popular on Earth where travel is dangerous.

Video Camera
A lightweight camera which is just a few inches across and which uses the CIR system to transmit images back to a home Video Recording unit where the data is stored on a laser drive. Images can also be replayed from the home unit to the Camera, where they are played into the eyepiece for editing or viewing The video camera can be used for normal video recording or in a single-frame mode which essentially takes photographs.