BattleFrame Girl (Technology)
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A BattleFrame Girl (also known as Frame Girl, BFG, or Frame) is a sentient robotic toy designed with a stylized appearance, typically inspired by anime. They are designed to fight and compete with other Frame Girls in sanctioned Tournaments, though they can also be designed as personal assistants or disability aids, or simply to provide companionship for their owner.
Construction
Frame and CCU
A Frame Girl is typically composed of two major components, the Frame and the CCU. The Frame is the body of the BFG, while the CCU is roughly analogous to their brain. A Frame Girl's identity and personality is connected to the CCU, which can be swapped and transferred to multiple bodies whilst maintaining the original 'self' of the Frame Girl. While the Frame Girl's personality can be influenced by the model of Frame she occupies, the CCU is ultimately what provides her underlying qualities. Companies partnered with BattleFrame Industries design and manufacture Frames which are then implanted with CCUs, which are distributed by BFI. While Frames are produced by a variety of manufacturers, CCUs are solely produced by BFI and their technology is proprietary. CCUs also rely on an interface inside the Frame to interpret the CCUs commands, and thus the CCU does nothing when connected to other technology.
A Frame Girl's CCU is typically housed in their torso, as this is the part of the body which allows the CCU to be the most protected from damage. Other models may house the CCU in a different part of the body if they have a chest-mounted weapon system or any other function that impedes the ability to house the CCU.
Frame Types
Primary article: Frame Types
Frame Types are three broad categories into which the majority of BattleFrame Girls can be divided which broadly denote their preferred approach to combat. The three categories are Melee Type, Ranged Type, and Cast Type Frames. While individual BFGs can have their equipment customized and develop their own preferences and combat style, their choice of Frame will strongly influence these choices.
Servomotors vs Nanopolymer
When BattleFrame Girls were first produced, all models made use of servomotors to create a fascimile of human musculature in the Frame's anatomy. Servomotor Frames are characterised by having bulkier construction to house the less efficient technology. Servomotors were also used exclusively throughout the production history of BattleFrame Fighters. At some point in the hobby's history, manufacturers switched from servomotors to the use of nanopolymer; this substance is able to more accurately mimic the form of musculature, performs more efficiently, and can easily be repaired through administering nanite 'bricks' to a damaged Frame. While some early designs used a combination of servomotors and nanopolymer during the technology's transition period, servomotors were almost completely phased out when nanopolymer proved to give superior performance.
Nanopolymer is subject to wear and tear when a Frame Girl is exposed to intense conditions, such as excessive physical damage inflicted in battle or overheating from high levels of exertion. When this occurs, the nanopolymers forming the Frame's systems lose structural consistency and begin liquidating, which can sometimes then leak from the joints or openings in a Frame Girl's body. Frames are typically only designed to engage in sustained combat for approximately five minutes, after which the strain will cause their systems to begin overheating. When nanopolymer is lost in this manner, it must be replaced by the Frame Girl consuming nanite bricks, which will replenish the missing nanopolymer.
While nanopolymer was previously used in human prosthetics, it was only when the technology was successfully downsized that it was implemented in BattleFrame Girls.
Blanks
Some manufacturers also produce 'Blanks,' Frames which are sold not containing a CCU. This is most commonly done as a smaller batch release alongside Frames containing CCUs in the event a Frame Girl's body is destroyed and needs to be replaced. However, smaller third party manufacturers, such as HachiDoll, will also sell Blanks if they do not have a partnership with BFI and thus cannot acquire CCUs for their Frames.
Modification
It is possible to modify Frame Girls by adding or exchanging parts. These can vary from merely cosmetic modifications, such as changing their clothes or hairstyle, to more functional changes like adding new weapons and functions or drastically altering their base model.
The BFG Community nurtures a very active modding scene, who produce their own 3D printed parts and compare alterations with other modders. Smaller manufacturers, such as Tartarus, exclusively sold modification parts for pre-existing Frames.
While some manufacturers encourage modding and offer modification kits for their Frames, others frown upon the practise and enforce their anti-modding stance by specifying that modification may void the owner's warranty.
Behaviour
Pricing and Cost
MSRP for Frame Girl models can vary depending on the complexity of their engineering, design tolerances, quantity of production and production time. Mass market Frames such as BETs can cost as little as $59.99, whereas high-end market Frames such as Durandal-Masumune's Tsubaki can cost as much as $2,255.
$180 is considered the 'magic number' in BFG communities for minimum viable competitiveness; you can either buy a Frame Girl at that price, or modify a cheaper Frame until they are roughly equivalent to that value.