Logika

Logika are the last and greatest creations of the 42nd Guild Magistrate, Charles André: robotic humanoids with the ability to express independent thought. The first was made in 1712 AE, the last in 1740 AE. Multiple sources state that logika are able to speak, problem solve, and learn, as well as express a level of self-awareness. It is frequently recorded that they have near-perfect memories, similar to that of humans, and a few claim to have dreams of a life not as a logika.

Though André filed a patent in 1712 AE (as well as one for each of the improvements he’d made since then), it was separate from the Alchemy Guilds and therefore the research has not been stored in the Guild archives.

The Mk 0 (1712 AE)
André’s reasons for creating logika are as unknown as his method for creating them. All that is known from those early years of logika is that the first ever logika was made in 1712 AE. According to observations by Guild Magistrate (then Journeyman Rivet) Evie Clarke, this first logika was “only a mechanical bust with crude, static facial features,” but “had the ability to speak through a voice modulator within its cranial space.” She goes on to state that the logika informed André of its name — Beckett — and asked, almost obsessively, when it could “return home.”

André himself did not seem disturbed by this behavior, and Clarke noted that when she and her husband, Journeyman Medium Jacob Clarke, became friends with André in 1728 AE, the Guild Magistrate kept Beckett on his study desk and held regular conversations with it. Many of the conversations seemed stilted, but only by the nature of the rudimentary voice box rather than Beckett’s actual understanding of the world.

In 1730 AE, Clarke returned home from a day working at the Hub, the headquarters of the Alchemy Guild, to find the smashed remains of Beckett on the floor of André’s study, another logika standing over it with a mallet. When questioned as to why it had committed such an act, the logika (named Roslyn) informed Clarke that Beckett “asked for it to end.”

The Mk I Series (1715 AE - 1723 AE)
Italics indicate no longer in existence. Following the creation of Beckett, André began to devote more time to the manufacturing of full bodies for the logika. These “Mk I” models, first created in 1715 AE, had awkward metal skeletons with their inner gears exposed to the air, causing many of them to rust and undergo frequent maintenance. The first of the Mk I logika (Mk I-A thru Mk I-C2) were also unable to walk, though jerky hand and arm motions were common. It wasn’t until late 1721 AE that the Mk I logika finally gained somewhat full mobility (with the Mk I-D and onwards able to walk with stuttering steps), at which point the André townhouse began to grow crowded with the number of logika that filled its halls.
 * Mk I-A (Alice)
 * Mk I-B (Oliver)
 * Mk I-C
 * Mk I-C2 (Joanna)
 * Mk I-D
 * Mk I-E
 * Mk I-F

The most famous of the Mk I logika was named Joanna, and a favorite subject of Clarke’s logika studies. Created in 1718 AE, Joanna was a decade old when it first met Clarke, and the first of the logika to address the Journeyman Rivet of its own accord. Clarke recorded conversations from a wide range of abstract topics including religion, politics, morality, and life after death, all of which Joanna showed rather startlingly self-aware opinions of. Unfortunately, when Clarke attempted to transfer Joanna’s consciousness to a more modern, mobile body in 1734 AE, she discovered that the logika would no longer power on.

The Lost Medium
Theories abound as to why André, a Master Rivet of over twenty years at the time, was unable to manufacture working bodies for the Mk I logika. Once a bright Apprentice in the Medium Guild, it is rumored that in 1678 AE he fell into an illegal and controversial romantic relationship with a Master Medium. The Master Medium was prosecuted by the Medium Guild’s Master of Rulings and expelled from the Alchemy Guilds, while André — still early into his Apprenticeship — was given the opportunity to switch disciplines.

Not many other details are known regarding the incident, but despite his brilliance as an alchemist André was a subpar Rivet, and struggled through his Journeyman and Master boards before finally being appointed Rivet Archmaster by then-Guild Magistrate Katherine DuMont in what some consider a fluke of circumstance: after the Rivet Strike of 1706 AE, when many Master Rivets left the Guilds due to massive disputes over idea copyright with the Medium and Spark Guilds, André was deemed the most competent of the remaining Masters and granted a position which he himself believed he did not deserve.

The Mk II Series (1728 AE - 1734 AE)
Italics indicate no longer in existence. The Mk II logika saw a vast improvement with the arrival of Evie Clarke and her husband Jacob in 1728 AE. Having become fast friends with André, Clarke often lent him her expertise in all matters machinery, especially when it came to building robotic parts for the Guild Magistrate’s ever-growing collection of logika. The Mk-II logika saw a marked difference in balljoint movement and we able to sit, lie down, and run.
 * Mk II-G
 * Mk II-H (Henri)
 * Mk II-I
 * Mk II-J
 * Mk II-K
 * Mk II-L (Roslyn)
 * Mk II-L2 (Ian)
 * Mk II-L3

As André grew older, many of the Mk-II logika were the ones who helped him the most, showing a rather stunning loyalty to the man that Clarke found unusual. Henri and Ian in particular loved to be around him, and often joined André while he tinkered in his workshop, trying to help him with his research. Clarke made note that they acted with an almost-childlike disposition, and her conversations with them were much less advanced that those she held with Joanna. She described Henri as “distracted” and Ian as “impatient,” and neither were interested in speaking with Clarke for very long. Upon André's death, they remained with Evie for several months prior to departing.

Mk II-L, otherwise known as Roslyn, was perhaps the most hostile of any of the logika. It expressed extreme dislike for Clarke and her husband, sometimes locking doors or barring Clarke from entering the townhouse, and often hovered over André almost possessively. It was considered extremely clever (observed by Clarke to be one of the fastest learners of the logika), and could calculate complex math without instrumental help. Upon André's death, Roslyn left immediately for whereabouts unknown.

The Mk III Series (1734 AE - 1740 AE)
The Mk III series undoubtedly had Evie Clarke's signature scrawled all over them. After much convincing from both André and her husband, Clarke finally agreed to design and manufacture new bodies for future logika in 1734 AE. Completely reimagined, Clarke married cutting edge prosthetic technology with a few innovations of her own, including miniaturized hydraulics and an improved internal battery, to create an efficient framework and a sleek outer shell. The biggest change, however, was not the aesthetics but rather the Mk IIIs' smooth, near lifelike movement and corrected voice modulators. Aside from their obviously metal outer shells, it was difficult to tell the difference between the gait of a logika and the gait of a human.
 * Mk III-M (Lambert)
 * Mk III-N
 * Mk III-N2
 * Mk III-O
 * Mk III-P
 * Mk III-Q (Nic)
 * Mk III-Q2 (Calliope)
 * Mk III-R

In 1737 AE, Clarke's husband Jacob invented what would be known as "Selkie Skyn" -- a material similar in look and feel to that of human skin, made from synthetic materials -- to drape over small portions of the logika to create the appearance of a human. Coupled with a wig, Selkie Skyn helped create the illusion of a young human without facial hair to include eyebrows, which had to be painted on. It was, however, quite expensive (more expensive than all of the materials needed to create a logika combined), and so covering was limited to the face and sometimes the hands. Jacob, unfortunately, died in a tragic laboratory accident just the next year, and never completed his research to try to find a cheaper way to manufacture Selkie Skyn.

As did the rest of the logika, the Mk III series departed André's townhouse upon his death, but the Mk III logika feel a particular attachment to Clarke, and often visit her for the free recharging and maintenance she offers no matter their level of fondness.

Nowadays
Logika are scattered throughout the world, most locations unknown, though only those listed above are feasibly in existence. Legally Clarke, as Guild Magistrate, has made them her own personal Guild property for "research purposes," which allows them to enter any Guild chapter for recharge and maintenance and provides a measure of protection under the law as harming them would be considered destruction of Guild property. This doesn't, however, stop all logika hate crimes, nor has it precluded a select few from seeking citizenship in more tolerant locations like Gilatria.

Prior to André's death, Clarke was able to install the improved internal battery she used in the Mk III design to almost all of the remaining logika; they are now able to subsist for an average period of 1 week before requiring a hookup to an electrical generator to charge, one of which can be found at any Guild chapter, large estate, or government building. If the logika come to visit Clarke (mostly at the Hub in Syndulla, or wherever she may be at the time), she offers free maintenance and the occasional small upgrade as well. [For roleplay purposes, we will be looking for a charge and maintenance post once every 2 turns to keep you honest.]

Their current mindsets and standards of living vary widely, and while Clarke strives to keep tabs on all of them, she has way more pressing matters at hand...