This variation was made for the special Biohazard infantry units.

Xiscapian battle armor is power armor with thirteen variants throughout the military and the armed forces. The suit’s most basic layer is a sealed black skinsuit (also called a body glove) made of a non-Newtonian fluid given structure by carbon nanotubes, designed to protect the wearer from a wide variety of dangers. It acts as a reactive armor and the last line of defense, stiffening where needed to absorb force. This provides cushioning, reduces the impact of blows and helps to regulate the temperature of the user. The skinsuit is often worn as off-duty dress by Imperial soldiers.

The armor is a light-weight metal-ceramic alloy layered over a powerful exoskeleton of servomotors. This enables the user to lift many times their body weight, run faster, jump higher and offers a great deal of protection to the limbs and torso of the wearer. The metabolic energy used by the wearer is also reduced when they are carrying a load, attributable to increased support and power to the joints. This increases endurance.

The suit makes the user completely impervious to blunt force damage that is not powerful enough to deform the armor. Thanks to its exoskeleton is can withstand pressures orders of magnitude heavier than the body of the wearer, giving them increased resistance. It offers significant protection against shrapnel from a distance of five meters, stun beams, small projectiles and some explosives. The armor’s reflective nature, combined with integrated heat sinks, can cause certain energy weapons to be deflected or absorbed without harm to the user.

The helmet is divided into four layers: Outer armor, force-resistant mesh identical to the material used in the skinsuit, magnetic shielding to prevent enemy remote hacking of the onboard computers, and finally the interior insulator. Cellular padding around the skull helps prevent injury. The lens on the helmet include polarized and anti-flash components to prevent the trooper from being blinded by flash-bang grenades, explosions or other bright lights, and allows them to see through smoke, fog and fire via an on-board sensor array. A built-in Heads-Up Display also identifies friendly and enemy units, displays a map of the terrain and topography of the surrounding area if available, a communications link to comrades and friendly units, climate controls, scanners and a helmet fiber-optic camera. The communications link cycles automatically to prevent enemy interception or jamming, and contains three audio options, one for transmissions, one for communication to other troopers, and one for speaking externally without filtering. The helmet is outfitted with an oxygen intake filter, which prevents the user from inhaling harmful substances such as smoke, dust or poison gas, recycles air in such cases where hazardous substances are prevalent, and holds a reserve of O2 for situations in which the exterior gases are absent or not breathable. Controls for the helmet and the rest of the armor are accessed via neural link.

Hooks on the shoulders and back allow for the comfortable carrying of a pack or rucksack, while personal items can be carried within internal compartments of the armor. In absence of a pack, a primary weapon can be slung or adhered to the back of the wearer. A utility belt has pouches for carrying items that must be immediately accessible, such as medical syringes, as well as spaces for grenades, a sidearm holster and a sling for a melee weapon. Standard outfitting of the suit compartments includes high-tension wire, grappling hooks, ammunition, beacons, rations, a spare commlink, water, medical packs, a survival kit and shock handcuffs.

The boots of the soldiers are generally ribbed to help them gain traction on smooth or unstable surfaces. Those stationed on ships or aboard stations have magnetized boots and grav-field generators to insure that they stay upright and mobile if the artificial gravity fails, with options to deactivate these features to allow for unrestricted movement. The armored gloves included with the suit are rough to help the user maintain a tight grip on whatever they are holding. Tails are segmented to allow for maximum freedom of movement, including the ability to curl and gesture for prehensile tails, but the armor generally does not facilitate the complex tool manipulation possible for the bare tail. Armor pockets for the ears conform to them and allow them to twitch and rotate fully so as not to restrict hearing.

Most types of armor are outfitted to handle personal shield generators, which further protect the user from damage. While the suits are made to interact with and compliment the modifications of the troopers, virtually all come standard with four on-board medical systems. These include an epinephrine prompter, or adrenergic to provide an artificial adrenaline rush; an analgesic inducer to act as a pain killer; a mild, carefully dosed amphetamine for heightened states of alertness and focus; and a nanite forge to automatically dispatch units to heal wounds and decontaminate tissues or organs upon exposure to bacteria, viruses, radiation or other nanobots. A second, separate forge is available to repair breaches to the armor itself. Because it can be hermetically sealed it can protect the soldier in any environment, including the vacuum of space. The armor is designed to be flame-retardant, insulated against electricity and function while immersed in liquid or in vacuum. It has a climate control feature that regulates the wearer’s temperature to keep them comfortable even in subzero temperatures or extreme heat.

Specific suits are tailored to the soldier wearing them, and are outfitted differently depending on specialization and mission profile. Notable differences include the “slim” version of the armor worn by Ascians and most pilots, tankers and other vehicle crews: it is smaller and lighter than the standard version, trading protection for mobility. Biohazard and medical suits include sophisticated medical diagnostic suites, and snipers and Special Forces are often outfitted with active camouflage cloaks and stealth devices. The hexagonal “compound” helmet has multiple spectra of vision integrated into it, including, ultraviolet, ultrasound and infrared.

Artwork by Karaig.