Frontiersmen Data: Commander
Summary: By plugging in to a ship or base's command network, the commander oversees marine activities and provides them with equipment, defenses, and upgrades.
Since you will be fighting the Kharaa on home territory (our own ships and bases), you have many advantages. Some of these are obvious – like having maps of the battleground. But even more important, is the existing command network in each ship. The command network is a layer of multi-purpose nanos that spreads, root-like, just above all ceilings and overhangs. Micro-arrays of lenses, tiny packets of construction nanos, and hundreds of other nano-devices all tied into millions of relays and computing nodules – cohering into a pervasive, responsive system intimately connected to every aspect of its ship's or base's existence. This network also holds the marine's resources, distributed throughout its veins. To take advantage of the network, every ship or base has a command interface, which, before the Kharaa, was used by top administrative or authority figures to manage and govern their domain. These interfaces replaced vast numbers of support staff with one person, who could instantly turn their attention anywhere within the ship or base, and guide the crew through their duties. Used for tasks as varied as maintenance or surveillance, the command interface also allowed its user to operate some elements of the physical environment, like doors and lights; and, crucially, granted clearance for nano-construction. Put to use by a Frontiersman Commander (using a command console), the network becomes the heart of any military campaign. Gaining control of the command network is the first and most vital task for a squad. This is easily accomplished. Since we are returning these ships and bases to the previous owners, they gladly provide us with the encryption keys to access their systems. Before a squad even deploys, they are already online. For a description of the command interface, click here.
Nano-Gridlock Command Strategies and Tactics | Choosing a Commander Command Duties