This morning I read the backstory to VO. While I found the development of the conflict between the Serco and Itani interesting, I was surprised by the seeming lack of information regarding the Hive bots.

Are they an offshoot of the Serco Guise technology?

Has there been any discussion of how the phenomenon of the Hive fits in the backstory?

From a Loading Screen Tip:

"AI hive bots and their queens were the predominant mining tools of UIT corporations for over 200 years. In AD 4217, a configuration glitch caused the first hive queen one to go rogue."

So this happened about 215 years ago.

Info regarding the origins of the Hive is contained in the loading screen when warping/jumping.

Here it is, for convenience:

The rogue AI hives are a constant nuisance for travelers. However, they've literally transformed the mining industry into a scavenging industry, as collector bots make easy prey.

AI hive bots and their queens were the predominant mining tools of UIT corporations for over 200 years. In AD 4217, a configuration glitch caused the first hive queen one to go rogue.

Hive queens were programmed to balance fleet production against cargo shipment, but when one was launched without a shipment destination, its fleet production went crazy.

AI hive queens are particularly adept at scavenging technology and integrating it into their own designs. Thus, while the queens cannot design new armaments, they've borrowed from 200 years of human innovation.

Still, it seems odd that Hive bots would be so central to game play and get almost no attention in the backstory.

im with bluetoast on this one, we want hive in backstory!

Yes, so do I. I also told someone to remove those things from the loading screens some years ago, because some of them are wrong. But I guess that didn't happen.

Anyway, I have my hands full for now, but they will get full attention in the backstory. There are some clues in the small corporation backstories on the design wiki.

Incarnate;

Is there a contact address where Quirc Taranis and I can get hold of you? We have some ideas that we'd like to flesh out that might take some of the writing pressure off of you.

~D.
"Nigel"

Sure. My email address is listed on the guildsoftware.com website. I'm not very speedy about replying right now though, between work and my personal life (taking care of my GF) things are pretty busy.

Okay, I'll shoot you an email later on today.

~D.
"Nigel"

Oooh. The "are" idea would be interesting. Imagine, 200 years of harassing other companies' trade without pissing off the UIT COuncil.

Thanks for the tip Incarnate, I hadn't noticed all the interesting material in the design wiki (i.e. UIT Corporate Wars).

If the swarm really is connected to the Corporate Wars, it would make sense that little is officially known about their creation, as the corporation would like go to great lengths to keep that information secret.