Anne Radcliffe on Nov 6, 2014 wrote:

I like the way you think, 'Row4n412'. I too suspect that alchemy has been involved in the creation of the Armada, since it does seem that more than mechanics is involved here (or perhaps I want to think so because I like chemistry and its historical antecedents ). All kidding aside, it would make a lot of sense and fit very nicely into the 'scientific' world view of the time of the Age of Pirates... not that this is a historical game or anything like that, only those little snippets of period life add greatly to the fuller sense of the fantasy world of the Spiral. Like so many of the clothes we and the NPCs wear... (yep, here I am, thinking about clothes again).

I wonder, however, if there are spirits involved or we are looking at something more like a homunculus providing the 'living' aspect of the Armada. It seems likely some active 'vital force' is involved, but what? All good fun for speculation!

And yes, the Lady Elite's role... Blind Mew has hinted one is involved in 'public relations' and she does seem the likely candidate, especially in the way she is dressed: another sort of 'dress to impress', but unlike Deacon's intimidating dark aristocratic ensemble or Rooke's powerful 'black knight', hers sends the signal strongly of aristocratic lady. A different sort of enforcer than Rooke, convincing through charm rather than force.

And I am thinking that charm might be quite literal. Many of us have encountered the lovely & treacherous Miss Faye, who has the talent of making us believe that we should really be on her side... at least briefly. Faye does this through a mask, but what if the Lady Elite has charm as part of her essential nature?

I think you might be on to something here Anne, the only time we have ever seen the Lady Elite is in the puppet show from Avery. At that time, the Lady Elite is shown sitting, and holding a mask. Perhaps this mask has the same properties as Faye, only perhaps stronger?

Just remember the queen is the most powerful piece on the chess board......

Virtuous Dante Ramsey

DuranteRamses87 on Apr 22, 2015 wrote:

Just remember the queen is the most powerful piece on the chess board......

Virtuous Dante Ramsey

True and this is why I believe she's not the Queen, but the knight.

Row4n412 on Nov 4, 2014 wrote:

It seems we all agree on many aspects of the Armada's spiritual nature. Each of you is closer to my opinion than the last. Please allow me to interject my own theory which is based on Mary Shelly's definition of alchemy in Frankenstein. Alchemy would thus be a combination of scientific and magic technology. The spiral is a universe that obviously works along physical principles different than our own, and we call these principles "magic". The spiral also works along physical principles similar to those by which our universe operates. Let's call these "scientific". Don't worry, I don't really think KI has tapped into an existing universe.
My theory is that somehow, the toymaker who built Kane made him to be a vessel for some powerful spiritual entity other than a disembodied human spirit, instead of a computer operating the clockwork body. This entity commands Kane's body to move and speak, and it powers those actions with its innate magic. Kane in turn created the rest of the elites, probably in secret from the toymaker, using those same principles he learned from his creator or Caligostro. Kane wrought the other elites especially well, but put less-powerful entities than himself inside them. Kane wrought the rest of his Armada clockworks less carefully, but put a third tier of mid-capable entities in the officers' clockwork bodies and an even less capable tier of spirits inside the common corps. Over time, Kane and the other elites have improved their process and designs, creating ever more powerful common corps soldiers, which Kane assigns to the more crucial tasks, We have mostly seen and scrapped the less powerful clockworks because we have been fighting the Armada outside the center of Kane's priorities until Marleybone, and we can expect to see more powerful common corps troops as we get closer to Kane's principal interests. Yes, the Grand Design is even more important to Kane than enslaving Marleybone. I also suspect that the Armada ships are sentient and under Kane's control.
As for the Lady Elite's purpose, I think she is designed to specialize in Public Relations. She is most likely a privateer by class, and Kane needs her to keep the Valencian aristocracy lulled into complacency, believing they are still in charge of the Armada and their world.

I wanted to point something out about the Armada that goes along with your theory, and that is how certain witchdoctor attacks work with armada troops. Moves like Davy Jones' Reach and Mutineer's Grasp seem to pull out some sort of physical manifestation of the soul to attack, (The heart and the soul respectively). Jubo's grasp and Jubo's Embrace can suck some sort of life force out of the armada troops. Now the thing about these attacks is that they can only attack living things, They do not effect rocks and whatnot, yet the armada are effected. This seems to suggest that there is some sort of life in these puppets.