Editing Colin Wallis (section)

==Abilities and Powers==
Colin is a [[Tinker]] that specializes in three groups: miniaturization/minimized technology, efficiency technology,<ref name="16.y e3">He glanced at one monitor, and windows opened to show images of the leg.  He was able to draw the crude shapes that represented individual devices even when he wasn’t looking at the screen.  A triangle here, a circle there.  Another window opened up with a line connecting it to the triangle, and he drew an identical triangle, began filling it with more shapes.  By the time he had a fourth subwindow open, he was drawing from previous notes to copy over other schematics of older work, seeing where things could go.  Everything could fit together.  The waste energy of one system could help power another.  Even on a molecular level, there were ways to harness the ambient radiation that was emitted by everything in the known universe.  Some was infinitesimally small, but it was usable.  That energy could be heterodyned, or redirected into loops long enough that they were near-infinite.  Hyperefficient, dense energy generation that could benefit from being hooked up to more devices.  It was the fundamental basis of his work: efficiency.<br><br>Which suited him well.  Efficiency, intensity, focus were all the same thing in a sense, and they were his strengths.  The flip side was that they weren’t strengths when they were applied to relationships.  Or to ''human'' relationships. - [https://parahumans.wordpress.com/2012/12/13 Excerpt] from [[Interlude 16.y]]</ref> and Hybrid technology.<ref>'''Defiant has the 'tinker up efficiency/hybrid/minimized technology' skill tree'''. Stinger has the 'missile' skill tree. Tecton has the 'Seismic and Architecture' skill trees. Leet has all of them, but all throughout those trees are entire sections with 'Use of this technology has a X% chance to fail'. You get further away from one design, that chance drops, but it's still there. - [https://forums.spacebattles.com/posts/13876454 Wildbow on Spacebattles]</ref> He uses this power to create ridiculously efficient technological devices which he outfits into his suits of armor or into his weapons.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=EarDay>Armsmaster triggers and starts off with a set of ideas. The Halberd is the central focus. So he starts out with something resembling (for core builds)...<br>
*3 or so Halberd variants.
*2 bodysuit concepts.
*Some computer/workstation elements, some devices and trinkets.<br>
Where the miniaturization came in is that he could pack a lot of tools and functions into his halberd (and to a lesser extent, the bodysuit and computers). So where another tinker might have a giant mechanical axe that they can stick two pieces of tech into while still preserving function, Armsmaster can stick three in there, and his specialty gives him quite a few more ideas on the tech he can build while also giving him the ability to pack a few more things into there at the expense of some function. So add to his list of possible builds reams of basic tech and tech improvements like…<br>
*Combat HUD - Gathers and provides combat details. Effectively gives him some more raw skill (weapon handling, dodging, deflection, battlefield awareness) in a combat situation.
*Rocket booster - The augmented tech has a built in rocket he can use to better maneuver the battlefield, get himself into the fight or out of danger.
*Grappling hook - Offensive and defensive utility.
*Battlefield mapper - Touching surface sends out reverberation to map out surroundings & pass info to visor. With halberd, slamming halberd butt into wall provides more comprehensive data, but makes noise. With computer, naturally gathers & provides some satellite data & building blueprints.
*Advanced comms - Technologically enhanced teamwork (similar to combat HUD above, but focused on avoiding friendly fire, knowing location of friendlies), plus ability to unobtrusively glance through cameras & hear through microphones given to teammates.
*Plus 2-4 more.<br>
It should be stressed at this stage that he's a very combat-leaning tinker with a fairly narrow focus and not a ~lot~ of defensive hardware, but he can expand where he takes that focus with sheer utility & toolkit at his disposal. He might well lean heavily on the tech that compensates for offensive and defensive weaknesses by augmenting his skills in an abstract way.<br><br>So he starts off with the Protectorate and he gets a chance to shine pretty early on. In a time when there are more heroes than there are departments, he takes on a role as a member of a strike squad. An issue arises, someone calls, and he and his team mobilize to solve the problem. Long periods of downtime followed by moments of action, and he shines, he thrives. He has a few standout moments and he's doing everything right from the point of view of his shard.<br><br>Much like Taylor's achievements went hand in hand with a growth in her capability and flexibility with her power (on a blunt level like the waxing & waning max range, in terms of being able to see/speak with them, and on an abstract level, like how the shard is helping more in the background or when she's unconscious), Armsmaster gets his breadth and depth too, going hand in hand with some major achievements and moments of personal growth. Taking down a key bad guy after months of preparation, getting a position as leader of the squad, moving on to leader of a city, and so on. Meanwhile, like any tinker, he builds up a repertoire by accessing other tinker stuff, scanning it, and translating it into a language and format his particular tinker brain can understand. Some stuff falls by the wayside, original ideas his shard had helped him come up with being discarded, but he takes long strides down other paths. The standard tinker costume gives way to a suit of armor, and his facility with adding more augments (tools, programs, bits of tech) into his gear improves.<br><br>His lists expand, he develops a fighting style and trains his actual skills which are then augmented further by tech, instead of leaning on tech to supply skill on its own.<br><br>This is roughly where he's at as he takes on leadership in Brockton Bay and has his first few encounters. He then starts focusing on a few bigger projects, collaborating more with Dragon. The disintegration halberd is a major project, as is the combat simulator, which plays off of things like the Combat HUD and battlefield mapper above.<br><br>Later on, following the Mannequin encounter and his shift in focus to being Defiant, he takes the leap into cyborg enhancements, wherein he starts taking some of the augments and smaller techs mentioned above and implant them into his own body. - [https://redd.it/5ngyvn Comment by Wildbow] on Armsmaster's early days</ref><ref>Armsmaster is defined in large part by his tunnel vision. He focuses overmuch and without outside factors will lean too heavily on his own perspective, goals, or way of doing things, so his levels of empathy take a hit.<br/><br/>In the conversation, Dragon steps in to steer him back on course when he starts to get too tunnel-visioned. He's clever and intuitive enough to read people (provided his own biases or focuses aren't coming into play in the initial reading) and can even make programs that do it (combat analysis, lie detector) or leverage it into helping him conduct an investigation (gather evidence, read witnesses), but given a long conversation or a context that makes things less convenient for him, he'll wind up putting his foot in his mouth, inadvertently trampling over someone else's feelings and priorities, get too focused on his own goals, or devolve into tinker-talk that makes no sense to others. Depending on the context/subject, of course.<br/><br/>Defiant has the 'tinker up efficiency/hybrid/minimized technology' skill tree. Stinger has the 'missile' skill tree. Tecton has the 'Seismic and Architecture' skill trees. Leet has all of them, but all throughout those trees are entire sections with 'Use of this technology has a X% chance to fail'. You get further away from one design, that chance drops, but it's still there. - [https://forums.sufficientvelocity.com/posts/3190962 Comment] by Wildbow on Sufficient Velocity</ref><ref>[https://forums.spacebattles.com/posts/13876454 SB efficiency trees]</ref>

His equipment has demonstrated, or has been said to have, the following features:
{|class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed wikitable" style="width:100%"
|Tinker Creations
! scope="col" |
|-
|
* Blade that rearranges into various other weapons (Halberd)<ref name=":0">[https://parahumans.wordpress.com/2011/12/31/tangle-6-6/ Tangle 6.6]</ref>
* Blade that can cut through steel (Halberd blade, spear<ref>“No,” Defiant said.  He took two steps forward and swiped with the spear, cutting her in half.<br/><br/>''Almost'' in half.  Something like chainmail was wrapped around her spine, but the spear had cut through the matching mesh that had protected her abdominal organs. - [https://parahumans.wordpress.com/2013/02/28/interlude-19-donation-bonus-1/ Excerpt] from [[Interlude 19.x]]</ref>)
* Grappling hook (Halberd blade)<ref name=":0" /><ref name="1.6" />
* Welding device (Halberd blade) <ref>His grappling hook released me, reconfiguring into what I suspected was the same setup that had fixed Lung to the ground with bars of stainless steel, back in my first day in costume.  It was shaped like a rectangle, and there were two ‘u' shaped bands of metal with electricity arcing around them, the tips of each ‘u' glowing hot enough to melt against any surface. - [[Tangle 6.6]]</ref><ref name="1.6" />
* Flail (Halberd blade)<ref name=":0" />
* Teleporting to his hand (Halberd)<ref name=":1">[https://parahumans.wordpress.com/2012/01/03 Excerpt] from [[Tangle 6.7]]</ref> Possibly a result of scanning Miss Militia's power.
* Temporal stasis trigger (Halberd) Scanned from Clockblocker
* EMP Projector/Electricity field (Halberd, spear)<ref name=":4">[https://parahumans.wordpress.com/2011/12/27/tangle-6-5/ Tangle 6.5]</ref>
* Plasma blade (Halberd)<ref name="1.6" />
* The ability to change its size (spear)<ref>He held out a rod in one hand, and it unfolded into a spear of ridiculous length. - [https://parahumans.wordpress.com/2013/02/28/interlude-19-donation-bonus-1/ Excerpt] from [[Interlude 19.x]]</ref>
* Spinning blades (spear)<ref>Blades sprung from the length of the shaft, and began spinning like propellers   One caught her from behind, and she slid forward, only to find herself sandwiched between two such sets.<br/><br/>“That’s Mannequin’s trick!  That’s so cute, that you’re copying-” - [https://parahumans.wordpress.com/2013/02/28/interlude-19-donation-bonus-1/ Excerpt] from [[Interlude 19.x]]</ref>
* Echolocation (Halberd, helmet)<ref name=":0" />
* Lie detector (helmet)<ref name=":0" />
* Combat predictor (helmet)<ref name=":0" />
* Psychic shielding (helmet)<ref name="6.6e1">“Which means you can stop trying to use your power on me, Regent.  I’ve got a little blinking light in the corner of my H.U.D. telling me you’re trying something.  I’ve set up psychic and empathic shielding, to protect myself from you and Tattletale.”<br /><br />I glanced at Tattletale.  He was psychically shielded against her?  How did that work?<br /><br />Then I remembered.  When we’d gone up against Glory Girl and Panacea, hadn’t Tattletale said she read minds?  And now Armsmaster had bad info and was figuring he was immune.<br /><br />“I don’t need to read you,” she told him, “You’re the only one with shields, so your teammates and the PRT staff don’t have any psychic shields up, and I can read them to get anything I need.  You’re not the best inventor, but like most tinkers, you’ve got a knack.  Yours just happens to be condensing and integrating technology.  Only works in your immediate presence, but still, you can stick way more technology in a space than has a right to be there… like your Halberd.” - [https://parahumans.wordpress.com/2011/12/31 Excerpt] from [[Tangle 6.6]]</ref>
* Sealed biohazard capabilities (Defiant armor)<ref>“Biohazard safe,” Defiant said.  His spear shaft tapped against his armor. - [https://parahumans.wordpress.com/2013/02/28 Excerpt] from [[Interlude 19.x]]</ref>
* Enhanced strength (Armour)<ref name="SB1">'''Gallant's armor? More details on style? Does it enhance strength? Do anything else?'''<br/><br/>The armor is primarily protective, with some cosmetic features. Think stylized medieval armor with lights recessed in the midst of it, to give him more of a 'gleaming' look, highlighting edges. The armor is basically a super-reduced version of Armsmaster's, which is a smaller-scale version of Defiant's (which is tanky and bulky). It primarily offers enhanced strength, but 80% of that boosted strength is going towards just allowing Gallant to move around easily with the armor and equipment. Between gauntlet and armor, he can throw a pretty mean punch. - [https://forums.spacebattles.com/posts/14658710 Wildbow on Spacebattles]</ref>
*Megaprojects
** [[Nano-thorn]] disintegration field (unique Halberd, later incorporated into a spear and his Defiant armor)<ref>His leg flared with a gray blur as he reached her, and be brought it down onto her back from above.<br><br>It sheared through her as though she weren’t even there, cutting her in half.  - [https://parahumans.wordpress.com/2013/02/28 Excerpt] from [[Interlude 19.x]]</ref>
|}

During their partnership, [[Taylor]] speculated that [[Dragon]] must have had Defiant adjust her gear, because "there was no way she could pack that much machinery in that much space" - unless "it was all crammed into her torso, which was impossible",<ref name="20.5">[https://parahumans.wordpress.com/2013/04/02/chrysalis-20-5/ Excerpt] from [[Chrysalis 20.5]]</ref> obviously not knowing that dragon was an artificial intelligence.

As Defiant, he replaced his internal organs and parts of his brain with artificial equivalents, reducing his need to sleep, eat and eliminate waste to less than fifteen minutes a day.<ref name="I15">[[Interlude 15]]</ref>