Safe Acension for Baseline Bob

[QwertyYerty]

Thanks, it is helpful. I have some more questions though.

Who are the transapients who oversee this process, and why do they do it (as far as we know)?

This varies depending on where you are. Keter and the Solar Dominion are described as having rather a thing for helping sophonts ascend, so have specific groups or classes of transapients who do this (there's a partial story on the site that talks about something called Guidance that operates in the Solar Dominion and is part of this operation there), either because they buy into the culture/memetic or because the ruling archai have directed them (or created them) to do so.

In other places it may be something some transaps volunteer to do because they want to. Or they do it in exchange for something from the modo in question (this might especially apply to the NoCoZo, but could take various forms elsewhere as well. For example, some period of time of indentured service, or just 'owing a favor' to the transap. Or whatever.). There are also the Transcension Mazes which somewhat automate the process and are presumably created by transaps who want to help lower minds ascend, but don't feel like personally overseeing the process all the time.

On the most general level, it's not really known in the setting why the Sephirotic transapients keep modosophonts around or put effort into helping them ascend/transcend. Although there are many theories. Maybe its the way the archai reproduce themselves. Or maybe they just like the additional company. Or maybe any number of other possibilities.

What specific techniques of controlling this extra capacity are taught? An example would be great.

If we knew that, we'd presumably be busy ascending ourselves

Somewhat more seriously, we've never really tried to quantify this very much. The actual methodologies and techniques may be as far beyond our RL experience and understanding as karate is beyond a Neanderthal (remember, quite a lot of augmenting can be done before one starts even getting close to transapient level). Or it might just be a matter of the group putting its mind to it to come up with at least some plausible options.

Are all successful acensions the same?

Earlier in the OA project, we pretty much treated them that way, not counting the differences between S-levels. As the project has evolved, our view on this has shifted and the current take on things is that there is some variation from transapient to transapient (or between clades of transapient), either due to different beings arriving at different 'locations' within the entire landscape of possible states of being within an S-level or due to a manifestation of something analogous to the differences in personality and traits that different humans display due to some combination of nature and environment.

How do modos get access to this process legally?

The transapients rule Terragen civilization, and within the Sephirotics make the process freely (or mostly freely - see above re the earlier question about why a transap might do this) available. Modosophont governments and legal systems have no say in the matter. Those that attempt to do so are either remade or eliminated and replaced by transapient action. Or simply ignored. Although very few modo governments are going to contemplate this in the sephirotics because they are the product of transapient memetics and likely firmly believe that attempting to ascend is a right or close to it.

Is there a financial cost for the modo? If so, how much is it, and how is it typically afforded? Can you get a loan for an acension?

In the NoCoZo or other polities that use money, there might be. But if so, the cost is likely pretty nominal. In other empires, access to the process is freely available. Of course, it's also a lot of work and takes a good bit of time and may make you into a totally different being who finds everything about your current existence (including friends and family) to be massively insignificant - and there's always a finite chance that it will go horribly horribly wrong and kill you (or worse), so the actual number of people trying to ascend at any given time is pretty low.

Also thank you everyone who has been replying to me so far, I love the OA enclyopedia and I'm brand new to the forums!

Newbie,

QwertyYerty

You're very welcome Hope the answers are helpful.

Todd

Thank you Todd, the answers have been very helpful. I realized I have a few more questions though.

Once a human ascends, how does a post human maintain themselves?

Do they require other beings in order to maintain them?

I read that there are possibly different "mind paths" to ascension, such that everyone ascends differently. Is this process of different paths in ascension random, or is it possible to control how the mind ascends?

I read that posthumans sometimes have two personalities, a pre- ascension one (ex. Bob wants to stay home with family) and a post- ascension one (ex. Bob wants to study esoteric space field). I know that S1 minds are beyond are comprehension, but are there any common behaviors among post humans other than sounding relatable until they say or do something that is incomprehensible to us mere baselines?

Is it possible for a S1 post human mind to remain in their heavily modified bodies, or do they require a much larger mind/ body in order to work? I saw on one of the charts that S1’s are typically about the size of a complex or a large space ship, with tech from the transapients.

How long does the ascension process usually take?

Do polities legally consider the ascended humans as the same people as their pre- ascended personalities?

If I wanted to make baseline Bob into an S1 transapient, what modifications should he be given so that he could begin the process?

What is the success rate/ survival rate among modosapient humans who attempt an ascension properly supervised by transapients?