My Thoughts On How Tenno And Warframes Work.

[Tesseract_The_Pariah]

To start off, I want to talk about what a Warframe is in my eyes.

A Warframe seems to be a partially biological, engineered type of powered armor that interfaces with a Tenno's body to allow it to exude Void powers.  We can see how it is at least somewhat based on biology in its contours and smooth shape, the least organic one appearing on Vauban. 

 

There are a few things I think Warframes are, and aren't.

They are:

Neural Interfaces

Originating in Biology

Powered - in terms of charges running through them, but...

With no actual muscle to speak of.

 

I was thinking of this as I was doing my annual research on power armor, and of course Warframes come to mind.  They just don't have the bulk to allow for muscle bundles/servo bundles to really be there. 

I say this because of the Tenno's joints.  Look at Volt's knees, Oberon's elbows, and Nova in general.

While I still think they are plated and metallic in nature, they are obviously not designed to augment a Tenno's strength.  Obviously, a warframe would be heavy.  it's armor.  It's a life support system, a neural interface.. 

If it's so heavy, how does a Tenno still have the agility and endurance to parkour about?

The answer is simple. 

They don't need it. 

That's right, this is where the conversation would normally go to what I think the Tenno are and how strong they are, or what their physiology is, but that comes later.  I have a few more things on the Warframe.

1. How a Tenno sees through a Warframe

2. Constructing one

 

and then we'll get to Tenno biology.

 

----------------

1. Eye holes, I don't haz it.

What I'm about to suggest is a bit outlandish.  Moreso than the lack of a visor or external mounted camera on any Warframe.

I suggest that the helmet has photo-receptors all over it, and those receptors would pick up light waves and such, then the helmet/systems would stream that data into the Tenno's brain.

Why the brain and not into an oculus rift style setup in the eyes?

Because the Tenno have 360 degree vision.  They can see all around themselves.  It explains how we can twist around in melee combat and not lose track of the target, or how we can so easily keep track of things in combat.  Hell, it could even explain the third person view. 

See, in melee combat you always want your eyes on the target, and this is why any novice of swordsmanship would facepalm at all those spinny moves anime ninjas do in melee combat, or what we do.  The principal is, you want to have something in between you and the enemy at all times, and you want to see what they are doing at all times.  Spinning does not facilitate this.  If you were to turn away even for a second, you'll get a new hole.

But Tenno don't have that problem.  We can see 360 degrees around us, and so we can effectively spin around in melee combat and use our full body weight and speed to spin around and slam it into the enemy.

And I think the benefits of having eyes in the back of your head are self apparent.

 

---

That made me think of how we actually construct Warframes. 

 

We have three pieces of a warframe that are distinct from each other, in conjunction with an Orokin cell/reactor, the power source.

The Chassis is self explanatory and is there to keep everything else safe, as well as being distinct from the helmet.  This will come in handy later.

The systems include all the neural thingies going on below the chassis, and if you look at the icon they also go up to the head.  To try and predict what they might be is a fallacy - we have no idea.

The helmet is the real meat of this and ties back to the first point.  It is distinct from the Chassis, and that is what makes me so interested in it.  It implies that this is a distinct make from the entire rest of the outer shell of the Warframe - and it is.  My theory is that it is actually made differently due to the various materials you make it out of to help a Tenno channel powers and the fact that it is speckled with ocular receptors. 

 

Now, onto manufacture instead of make.

We know that the Warframes are indeed, Biological.  We see evidence in their design and their function.  For one, no Tenno has ever been infested.  This ties into how WE are infested, more on that later, and also ties into how the Warframe is a biproduct of the Technocyte virus.

See, the Orokin used Technocyte in all sorts of things.  It was the basis of their technology, and Warframes are no different.  They're made by the biproducts of Technocyte as well as the Tenno themselves being infested - this has been mentioned in devstreams and is apparent in how no Tenno has ever been infested.

-----------------
Tenno Biology.

"The Sentients had won. They had turned our weapons, our technology, against us. The more advanced we became, the greater our losses. The war was over unless we found a new way. In our desperation we turned to the Void. The blinding night, the hellspace where our science and reason failed. We took the twisted few that had returned from that place. We built a frame around them, a conduit of their affliction. Gave them the weapons of the old ways. Gun and blade. A new warrior, a new code was born. These rejects, these Tenno, became our saviors. Warrior-Gods cast in steel and fury striking our enemies in a way they could never comprehend.
Excalibur was the first.
- Orokin 'Warframe' Archives"

 

Tenno are mutated by the void.  We are afflicted with a strain of Technocyte that comes from the void, or is perhaps supercharged by its energies.  I won't post it here, but the Ember Prime codex also has a bit of what I'm talking about.

Anywho, we know no specifics except that J-3 Golem said something along the lines of "We are your flesh", so we are related. 

In my personal opinion, Tenno are mutated, and within them this technocyte is supercharged with void energies.  Because we were exposed to the void as children, we also have altered brains/psychologies that allow us to interface properly with the technocyte.

In the Ember codex we see how some Warframeless Tenno have powers on their own (Ember) and don't need a Warframe.  What I suggest is that we can shape our powers with warframes based on specific mutations in specific individuals; each Warframe is based on an individual's mutations, and with a little biomodificiation we can transfer these via Warframes into other Tenno.  The design of a Warframe bolsters these powers, and optimizes them. 

Meaning, any Tenno can have any power, but to be REALLY good with it, a Warframe is needed.

 

And Tenno themselves are somehow bioengineered to be agile, or have gone through A LOT of training.

Technocyte makes them stronger as well. 

 

So, hopefully i covered that alright.  I'm well aware that my cohesion is falling apart, I've been up too long.  If you have any questions please ask them in a post.  I'd love to discuss this.

Edited July 3, 2014 by Gaminus

[PsychedelicSnake]

An interesting read, for sure. I admit I skimmed a bit of it, but as far as I can tell the only thing your opinion differs in from mine is the last part, suggesting that any Tenno can have any power. It's more of a preference thing, mind you, so it really isn't a big deal.

 

Nevertheless, a good read, Tenno.

[Megakruemel]

I read it and i must say, that is what i was thinking too. I see no holes in your logic and this piece of text is well written. I always thought, that we had to have some kind of agumentation to look around and i thought the energy-bits on the warframes were kind of like eyes but i could be wrong, since an eye on the side of your chest is kinda...well not really practical.

 

The only problem i have, is that the Tenno tend to shapeshift when entering different warframes. The genderchange should be most noticable. So I always thought that each warframe had a different Tenno in it and it seems the community thinks so too (fan art that shows tennos without helmets, storys about personality etc.).

 

The "Nano-virus" theory is spot on as well. As we know the virus can alter the body into any shapes possible (volatile runners explode, toxic crawler emit poison and Ancients can heal or disrupt shields). I would not be surprised if the Tenno somehow manage to control the virus to control the suit. Like saying that some Spores are supposed to manage the vision, others the movements.

 

Anyway- it was interesting to read your thoughts.

[PsychedelicSnake]

 So I always thought that each warframe had a different Tenno in it and it seems the community thinks so too (fan art that shows tennos without helmets, storys about personality etc.).

This is what I believe as well.

[Tesseract_The_Pariah]

An interesting read, for sure. I admit I skimmed a bit of it, but as far as I can tell the only thing your opinion differs in from mine is the last part, suggesting that any Tenno can have any power. It's more of a preference thing, mind you, so it really isn't a big deal.

 

Nevertheless, a good read, Tenno.

 

 

I read it and i must say, that is what i was thinking too. I see no holes in your logic and this piece of text is well written. I always thought, that we had to have some kind of agumentation to look around and i thought the energy-bits on the warframes were kind of like eyes but i could be wrong, since an eye on the side of your chest is kinda...well not really practical.

 

The only problem i have, is that the Tenno tend to shapeshift when entering different warframes. The genderchange should be most noticable. So I always thought that each warframe had a different Tenno in it and it seems the community thinks so too (fan art that shows tennos without helmets, storys about personality etc.).

 

The "Nano-virus" theory is spot on as well. As we know the virus can alter the body into any shapes possible (volatile runners explode, toxic crawler emit poison and Ancients can heal or disrupt shields). I would not be surprised if the Tenno somehow manage to control the virus to control the suit. Like saying that some Spores are supposed to manage the vision, others the movements.

 

Anyway- it was interesting to read your thoughts.

 

See, problem is that it is implied through gameplay elements that the Tenno are each individual, and YOU yourself, as a player are controlling/are a single Tenno. 

[PsychedelicSnake]

See, problem is that it is implied through gameplay elements that the Tenno are each individual, and YOU yourself, as a player are controlling/are a single Tenno. 

There is a segregation between story/lore and gameplay at the moment. Not to mention that we simply do not know. Many things are implied, but nothing is confirmed.

[Tesseract_The_Pariah]

There is a segregation between story/lore and gameplay at the moment. Not to mention that we simply do not know. Many things are implied, but nothing is confirmed.

I don't know, I still feel like the segregation in this game is quiet thin compared to others.  I mean, WE personally make differences. 

I'd at least like to exist as a Tenno by proxy of a player character instead of this segregation...