An extremely long sequence of Shaper Keys
Shaper Technology are the remnants of the items left behind by the Shapers when they vanished from Coda. These items are generally called Shaper Artifacts or Shaper Structures or Shaper Constructs. Each Shaper artifact is unique and serves a different purpose. Anything could or couldn’t happen when around a Shaper Structure. There are various types of Shaper Constructs.
Shaper Key
A Shaper Key
Shaper Keys artifacts that have a cylindrical hole at the center. These keys usually have a unique “eye”-like shape. They can be found anywhere on Coda. Many keys when combined could form a Shaper Spine or a Shaper Tunnel. The purpose of individual keys is a mystery. Keys can be of varying sizes.
Scars—known to have an affinity towards Shaper objects—are known to worship these particular artifacts. They have even made several artistic depiction of them in their habitats. One such prominent artwork is seen in Scar Nest. Examples of Shaper Keys:
- The Wedged Key
- Keys are found near the middle of Great Falls Anomaly, Monument Watch Anomaly, Silent Path Anomaly Shadowmark Anomaly, and Spires Anomaly
- Three Keys inside the Construct that can shield Scelos
Shaper Spine
An Overgrown Inactive Shaper Spine
Shaper Spines are serpentine arms that may or may not contain immense amounts of energy. are formed from numerous Shaper Keys joined together. They can have great sizes and lengths that could span various regions. Shaper spines can either be active or inactive.
Inactive Spines have broken Shaper Keys. This means either a key is missing from the spine or severely damaged, causing it to lose its Shaper Energy. These are essentially, overgrown inactive structures. Many spines are found across Coda. A popular inactive Shaper Spine is The Iron Serpent, which caused the entire Monument Watch Subregion to become flat!
Shaper Snake, an active Shaper Spine at the Energy Release Brink
Active Spines can emit destructive Shaper Energies. They may be an outcome of cataclysms. The frequency of release depends on how much time it takes to silence the cataclysm. During the middle of Echoes of Reality, an active Shaper Spine, colloquially called the Shaper Snake, emerged from the depths of the Emerald Abyss Subregion and destroyed a good part of the Sanctuary Ruins.
The difference between a Spine and a Tunnel is that Spines will have one or both their ends closed with a Shaper Door.
Shaper Tunnels
A Shaper Tunnel’s Entrance
Shaper Tunnels are special types of joined Shaper Keys that can be used to go from one location to another without being harmed by Shaper Energy. Once a tunnel is entered, it cannot be exited until the other side is reached. Fortunately, Shaper Tunnels are always bi-directional.
The difference between a Spine and a Tunnel is that Tunnels will always have a bi-directional entry and exit way.
Different types of Shaper Keys can form different types of Tunnels, by design. These designs are cosmetic in nature only. Northern Bastion itself has several tunnels, most of which, for an unknown reason, take the user to the Emerald Abyss Subregion. Another differently designed tunnel is found inside Harken's Facility.
The Tunnels have a special property where no matter how it is entered, the user is auto adjusted to the central axis of the tunnel. Faster speeds can be reached within a tunnel when moving forward. When exiting a tunnel, there is a short duration where the user lacks movement control, since the tunnel forcibly ejects the user at the exit. Most tunnels also have a special feature where they can cool a javelin’s boosters when entered.
Shaper Rings
The Ring Gate
Shaper Rings are ring like structures that aren’t many in number. They are found in certain locations only. There is no real known purpose of these structures.
Some believe they are locked doors to different and far-away locations. While think they are objects of astronomical importance. These rings can become volatile and cause destructions. However, they are not considered Shaper Relics, but a different type of Shaper Instrument.
There must be at least one ring-like structure for it to be considered a shaper Ring. Some rings are found above ground, like, the Ring Gate and one near the Crescent Lake. Some are found under water like the Abyssal Loch.
Shaper Door
A Locked Shaper Door
Shaper Doors, as the name suggest are doors to Shaper Ruins. Most times, these doors are closed and reveal any mechanisms to open them. However, sometime, special mechanisms randomly become available which will allow them to be opened. Shaper doors hive various secrets of interest to both Arcanists and Lancers. Sometimes, they even reveal other Shaper items like Shaper Tunnels.
Examples of Shaper Doors opened by special mechanisms :
- The door to the Core, the Well, the intermediate door inside the Bane Engine, the door to the Conduit's Exit, and the Ruin entrance and exit of the location South of Fort Tarsis, all require an Echo Lock Ruin to be silenced.
- The Shaper Vault inside the Echo of Reality Region requires three Legion Engineering Apparatus to be placed on pedestals for it to be opened.
- The Shaper door to the Sovereign Mine, can be opened by Arcanist instruments.
- The internal shaper door of the Bane Engine can be opened by solving a Shaper Thing.
- The internal Shaper Door to the Well could only be opened by a version of the Monitor's Device.
Shaper Puzzles
Part of a Shaper Thing puzzle
Shaper Puzzles are puzzles when solved reveal items of interest, silence cataclysms, and obtain treasures. These puzzles include:
- Relics of Heliost seen during Icetide.
- Shaper Thing: This puzzle requires matching colorful symbols inside a ferro-fluid filled container. This is seen during the expeditions, Triple Threat, and Tempting Target.
- Colorful Tubes: These require the tubes to be submerged to prevent cataclysms. This is seen inside the the Sunken Cell Stronghold and Ring of Magnus Cataclysm Event.
- Disk Puzzle: This requires the alignment of symbols in a straight line around a disk. This is seen during the expeditions Vanishing Act and the Sunken Cell Stronghold.
- Beam Puzzle: This requires one to evade pillars of blue energy which would cause javelin boosters to heat up instantly. This is seen in the Critical Objective, Early Warnings.
- Cymatic Pedestal: This puzzle requires to match the pedestals projecting cymatic symbols that are revealed in a sequence. This is seen inside the Sunken Cell Stronghold.
Shaper Relics
See Shaper Relics for full details.
Shaper Relics are Shaper Instruments that can cause cataclysms and change reality. What a relic does cannot be predicted. But if a relic becomes volatile, it must be silenced. Only Freelancers are properly trained to silence Shaper Relics. Shaper relics can be of any shape. Most relics are relatively smaller, but some can reach monumental sizes. Often Shaper Fragments of relics are left behind when relics are improperly handeled.
Shaper Ruins
See Shaper Ruins for full details.
Shaper Ruins are structures that hide several Shaper Secrets in them. Size of a ruin is not truly defined. Some are larger than life structures, while others could fit inside a room. Ruins are usually dormant. But they can become unstable when large amount of Energy is released. In such cases, the ruin almost, always, has a hidden mechanism to stop the chaos. It is unknown what would happen if the instability continues.
Shaper Energy
Shaper Energy Seeping in Vines.
See Shaper Energy for full details
While not exactly an artifact, Shaper Energy is the energy given out by all Shaper Instruments that are not inactive. This energy likes to constantly clash with the Anthem of Creation and in the process create reality altering cataclysms. Cyphers can easily determine the presence of this energy.
Shaper Energy can disrupt and give rise to various hazards, usually electric like Shaper Nodes or highly charged like Charged Shaper Orbs. It can also be emanated in other forms through objects like Shaper Crystals and Vines.
Trivia
- Everything related to the Shapers are supposed to be mysteries.
- Shaper Artifacts are inspired by real-world tools like drill, etc.
- Shaper Energy from artifacts can seep into possibly-living organisms. A good example of this is Shaper Vine.
- The terms Shaper Spine, Shaper Tunnels, and Shaper Puzzles are colloquially used in the
Anthem community. The real terms are not yet revealed.
