Alright, everyone, I'm finally back, and we can continue our presentation. As you can all see, I'm now suited up in some of our gear, which hopefully means we won't have any more "derailments". Now, let's continue where we left off.

Like I said earlier, we bipeds are completely mortal, just like the humans in our audience. To protect our mortality, we are granted a lot of advanced equipment, some of which the Defense Corps could only dream of getting their hands on. Often, you will see us bipeds wearing the gear I have right now, known as a HERMES SCFD. For those of you who don't know, SCFD stands for Standard Combat Field Dress. DefCore does use a version of these with fewer features, so I wouldn't consider them truly revolutionary. But don't underestimate them. On rare occasions, some of you humans may also be granted one for extra protection. If that happens, then may god have mercy on your soul, because whatever requires you to wear one will have none.

The HERMES is our “low-profile” field uniform, used when we need to balance combat effectiveness while remaining discrete. It’s ideal for high-visibility urban environments where deploying a STRIDENT suit would be overkill, and where more covert DEMETER suits are unavailable or unnecessary. While it may not be as flashy as those other loadouts, the HERMES is by no means lacking. The HERMES is the oldest field suit used by Northpaw, and for good reason. It's very modular and has had numerous models made over the years, with this one being the newest. Now, let's go into detail on what this thing can do.

Some of you may notice that the coat I'm wearing doesn't seem to be very protective, but that couldn't be further from the truth. This isn't just a trench coat, it's a lightweight ballistic nanofiber coat filled with non-Newtonian protective gel. It's able to stop most modern coilguns with surprising ease. Not the vest, though, the vest is even more durable and can stop some decently high-power rounds. I also have arm and leg plates, which offer similar protection. It should be noted that this isn't my full kit, as I usually have an ammo carrier and the like, but I only bought what I felt like carrying. Now, even though you should avoid getting hit in the first place, the HERMES suit has another trick up its sleeves in the form of a shield generator.

I couldn't bring it, but you'll know we have one when you see the backpack. We also have a light exoskeleton on these things, but mine is being repaired. Moving on.

I'm sure you've all noticed the holographic visor you've seen on my face by now. This is an ARH and PDD. The first stands for Augmented Reality Holovisor, and the second stands for Personal Data Device. This is a hardlight AR visor capable of night vision, defense against visual sensory hazards, thermal vision, and more. It's a lot harder to break than it looks. If it does break, though, then you probably have a lot more than just your visor to worry about. We also have comms equipment, which is the standard. What isn't standard, though, is what I'm about to show you next. Brace yourselves because it can be a little bright.

Here goes...

...

Alright, you can open your eyes now. Not that it would blind you or that you'd need to, but I saw some of you do that anyway. This is a Holographic Disguise Field. And yes, I am indeed talking to you while looking like a human. Hell, I might as well be one.

Now, I know what some of you are thinking: “Why would a biped need to look like a human?” Well, sometimes we must move undetected in public spaces where a big, anthropomorphic figure would draw too much attention. This neat device projects a holographic overlay over the user, allowing them to gain the likeness of another individual or even species. Now, before you start thinking this makes us invisible like a DEMETER suit would, let me inform you that it’s not a stealth device, just a disguise. It doesn’t hide the fact that people are there. It’s just camouflage, and only useful for blending in without causing panic.

Now it's time to turn that off, but there's no flash this time.

...

Maybe there is a flash. It doesn't matter, though, because you're all going to have to get used to that. Now let's move on to our last piece of equipment, which is also my favorite. These are Gravity Gauntlets, and they’re exactly what they sound like. A pair of gloves that can manipulate gravity. With these, you can push or pull objects with a mere gesture to gain an advantage.

You can use it to lift objects you otherwise couldn’t, move obstacles to create makeshift cover, or even manipulate entities that can't be directly touched. But the real beauty of these gauntlets? They can be weaponized. If you have the displeasure of getting in close, a punch with these things hits a lot harder than your standard knuckle sandwich. Imagine hitting like a truck instead. It’s useful when you need to make an impression. Literally.
...

Alright, folks, that about wraps it up for now.

Now, I know some of you are itching to see more of what we’ve got access to. And trust me, I’m just as eager to show off the last loadout for today. That said, we are out of time for this session, so we'll have to wait for the next one. But don’t worry, when I get back with the STRIDENT, you’ll all get to see why those things are so infamous. Until then, remember what you've learned and be thankful you’re on our side. Any questions? Comments? Hell, complaints about how I made DefCore look like shit? Save them for next time. I'll have more answers and some stories to tell you.

Stay sharp out there, and I’ll catch you all soon. Dismissed.

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Woof! I know some of you may have seen this before and are wondering why I reuploaded it. There were a few changes done to the text here, but this is mainly because the STRIDENT suit artwork took a long time to finish than the other two images, and I want to upload them in proper order without anything in between. I know this makes me look like a neat freak, and honestly that's probably true. Anyways, I hope everyone likes the posts.


This here is the most common equipment my bipeds use, that being the HERMES suit. The HERMES gear is something I envision Ember using in most artwork, seeing as how the STRIDENT armor hasn't appeared as much. I envision it as his "standard" uniform and not something he wears when he knows there's going to be heavy combat.

There's one more piece of art in this "series" on it's way, so stay tuned and I'll put it out as soon as it's story done!

Ember Kamura belongs to me.
Artist is  rhinoking.