Humanity, taxonomic designation Homo sapiens,^[3] is a sentient, self-aware, formerly technologically advanced species that has reverted to a technologically primitive state.

Like all forms of life, humanity was exterminated due to the rogue swarm of Chariot robots known as the Faro Plague. The terraforming system developed by a project known as Project Zero Dawn re-established humanity along with other forms of life. The system was intended to educate the new humans with pre-extinction knowledge. However, sabotage led to the species’ reestablishment without this knowledge, resulting in its current primitive existence.

History

In the Old World

By the mid-21st century, computer technology had advanced to the point where artificial intelligences had been created.^[5] Said technology had become an indispensable part of virtually every human’s life, from housing, domestic chores, cuisine and entertainment to medicine, industry and agriculture.^[6][7][8][9] Advancements in robotics had led to the complete automation of necessities such as transport, though holographic communication frequently made the need for human travel anachronistic.^[10] Robotics and technology corporations such as Faro Automated Solutions were at the center of all of these advancements.^[11]

However, technological advancement did nothing to lessen humanity's moral failings, such as avarice, narcissism and recklessness. This was most evidenced by the complete lack of responsible use of finite environmental resources, causing catastrophic climate change.^[12] Corporations in the military technology market such as FAS were unscrupulous in their thirst for profit, going so far as to aggravate conflicts to sell combat automatons.^[13] Additionally, corporations gained increasing political and economic power to the point of controlling nations.^[14] Military technology was also advanced by automation; indeed, by the mid-21st century, virtually every military in the world was completely automated, and corporations had their own standing automated militaries and fought wars against each other like nations.^[15]

Extinction

It was against this backdrop that Faro Automated Solutions developed the most advanced military combat platform ever developed: the Chariot line of combat robots. These robots operated in units called swarms, similar to insect swarms, consumed biomass as fuel, replicated themselves in overwhelming numbers, and could instantly take control of any enemy robot.^[16][17][18] But due to the avarice and recklessness of its founder and chairman Ted Faro, FAS also incorporated technology into the robots that inadvertently ensured that a swarm could not be brought back under control if control was lost.^[19] In 2064, a swarm owned by a corporation called the Hartz-Timor Energy Combine stopped responding to commands and went catastrophically out of control, becoming an independent entity that relentlessly consumed any and all biomass, including that of humanity. This swarm became known as the Faro Plague. Attempts to destroy the swarm militarily were futile, as it commandeered all robots sent against it and replenished its numbers far faster than they could be reduced. The swarm became known as the Faro Plague. In approximately 15 months, it consumed the entirety of the Earth’s biosphere. Humans and all other forms of life became extinct, and Earth was rendered sterile.^[20]

However, before the end came, Project Zero Dawn was implemented to eventually deactivate the swarm, terraform the Earth back to fertility and re-establish life, including humanity. Part of this system was APOLLO, which would use a vast archive of knowledge that the species had accumulated over the course of its pre-extinction development to educate the new generation of humanity. However Ted Faro, who had become unstable, developed the obsessive belief that this knowledge was a plague that the new humans must be spared from. He purged the archive and murdered those who could rebuild it.^[23]

In the New World

Reestablishment

Project Zero Dawn successfully produced a new generation of humanity, but was unable to fully educate them due to the purge of the APOLLO archive. Once the food supplies within the cradles that spawned them was exhausted, these adolescent humans were released into the wilds to survive on their own.^[24] They were able to survive and thrive, spawning new societies known as tribes, each with varying amounts of developments in various areas.

Like in the Old World, humans began hunting animals, but also the Zero Dawn machines that were still working on terraforming the planet, the humans unaware of their true purpose of maintaining the system that keeps them alive.^[25] GAIA, the AI in control of Project Zero Dawn, chose to have these machines act skittish around humans, choosing to flee at the sight of a human. At worst, machines only posed a danger to humans if they got in the way as they fled.^[26][27]

The Derangement

Upon the arrival of the Extinction Signal, all nine of Zero Dawn's subordinate functions, which had been responsible for conducting each specific part of the terraforming and life reestablishment process, became AIs themselves.^[29] HEPHAESTUS, the sub-function responsible for machine manufacture and control, saw humanity as a threat not only to its machines, but to flora, fauna and the biosphere itself, and attempted to cull their population^[30] by increasing the machines’ aggression toward humans, weaponizing the abilities of pre-existing machines, and even machines designed specifically for combat against humanity. All known tribes refer to the appearance and proliferation of increasingly more dangerous machines as the Derangement.

Despite the new dangers presented by the machines, humans were able to fight back against them, despite injuries and deaths being common consequences, with Aloy noting that thousands are killed every year.^[31] However, even simple travel is risky due to the strong likelihood of encountering machines.

Culture

Main article: Tribe

Human civilization in the New World is tribal in nature. There are seven known tribes that have been explored, with others confirmed to exist. The following tribes that have been explored include the Banuk, Carja (along with the Shadow Carja), Nora, Oseram, Quen, Tenakth, and Utaru.

Some humans have splintered off from tribes and become bandits, which have historically been a nuisance to the tribes and the topic of minor conflicts.

Population

While tribal populations have never been confirmed, it appears that the tribes on the continent that was once North America currently total under 25,000 people each and under one million total. When Aloy learned that Faro Automated Solutions had over 25,000 employees, she notes that this number of people is bigger than people in a tribe,^{[33][quote 1]} indicating that the tribes known to her at the time (the Nora, Carja and Oseram, and potentially the Banuk, Utaru and Tenakth depending on what quests have been completed) each have populations below 25,000. Further evidence includes Talanah noting that thousands were sacrificed in the Sun-Ring during the Red Raids,^[34] and the final report of Project Slipstream (which was later used for the Ascension) revealed that if launched, it could contaminate a radius of up to a thousand miles at lethal levels^[35] of radiation, which if launched in the Burning Shores could easily impact all known tribal territories on the continent. Aloy notes that this would impact thousands of people,^{[36][quote 2]} and also notes that HEPHAESTUS kills thousands every year with its machines,^[31] further indicating that the collective population of all the known tribes on the continent doesn't reach one million.

The Tenakth population appears to number in the hundreds, based on Hekarro stating that he has counted hundreds of them,^[37] and Tilda stating that the entire tribe is made up of hundreds of warriors.^[38]

Technology

Most tribes currently have little to no access to the advanced technology of Old World humans, and are without the knowledge to develop it. However, the main exception to this is the Quen tribe, who discovered some Focuses early in the history and have used them to uncover large amounts of data from the Old World, which they have amassed into what they call the Legacy. Using this information, they have been able to recreate and use Old World technology to a limited capacity.

Meanwhile, other tribes haven't rediscovered much, if any, Old World information and have had to re-accumulate knowledge that they rediscovered on their own. The Carja, for example, have rediscovered principles of architecture and have advanced architecturally beyond any other known tribe. The same can be said of the Oseram with regard to metallurgy and engineering, having developed automated, rapid-firing weapons and advanced mining technology, as well as utilizing and reproposing machine components into new forms of technology.

Conflicts

The human capacity for violence has remained the same as it was pre-extinction. Humans still engage in violent conflict, including atrocities akin to the massacres committed in the history of the Old World. The starkest example of this is the brutal reign of the 13th Carja monarch Sun-King Jiran, culminating in the atrocities known as the Red Raids.

While most tribes seem to have either a friendly or indifferent relationship with each other, there are some that remain aggressive towards each other, particularly the Quen with its neighboring tribes.^[41] Historically, some have also been subject to civil wars, such as the Clan Wars between the Tenakth clans, or the civil conflict between the Carja and the Shadow Carja.

Gameplay

Humans that can engage in combat can either be friendly or hostile towards Aloy, depending on their alignment and the context of quests. Compared to machines, humans lack resilience, as a shot to the head can kill the majority of humans instantly on most difficulties; however they back up this weakness with numbers, frequency of attacks, small size in comparison to machines and a vast array of weaponry that can overwhelm their foes.

Like machines, humans are vulnerable to context-sensitive attacks like Critical Strike and Stealth Strike, which in most cases will instantly kill them. However, some boss level and elite humans require Aloy to acquire the Leader Strike skill for them to be susceptible to such attacks, and even then some do not immediately fall. Some humans are completely immune from most context-sensitive attacks - this only applies to most unique bosses. 

Humans are also susceptible to most statuses that can be inflicted on machines, although their resistance is wholly dependent on the toughness of the particular type instead of variable like machines. Humans can be shocked, burned and frenzied with Corruption/Berserk with similar effects to machines; Freeze will slow humans down, while Tear damage is useless against them. Humans can trigger tripwires like machines, but Tearblast effects will only momentarily stagger them and they are immune to the binding effect of the Ropecaster, though they will take minor damage. Most humans can be knocked down in a single heavy spear attack unless they are a heavy or elite unit, or the player is on Ultra Hard difficulty.

The faction humans come from determines the toughness and weaponry that they carry. For example, bandits can be expected to be of moderate resilience with weapons ranging from torching staves to Firespitters, while Eclipse soldiers are much tougher with more advanced weapons like Blaze-coated axes and Deathbringer Guns. Additionally, elite or heavy weapon wielding humans can be encountered that are tougher than their regular counterparts; they take reduced damage from headshots and have improved stats. This includes faster attack speed, improved accuracy, and faster dodge and block reaction times. These units can be identified by a skull icon after scanning them with the Focus.

Humans often carry loot that is not obtainable from machines, such as Desert Glass, Slagshine Glass, Traps, and even potions. Elite human units often carry more valuable loot, with some yielding more shards than most machines when killed and looted.

Humans can sometimes be encountered in the world in varying situations: Sometimes a random group of humans can be encountered in the wild battling machines, and will reward Aloy should she help them survive. On other occasions, Carja soldiers of either faction may help Aloy fight off hostiles should the fight happen within their patrol route. Bandits can also be found clashing with machines in the wilds, creating a potential chaotic situation for Aloy to take advantage of.

Trivia

• Aloy can loot dead friendly NPCs who were killed by enemies.
• There are at least three people that the Focus reads as "humanoid" instead of "human"; two in the Embrace and one among a Carja caravan.

References

1. ↑ Into the Frozen Wilds
2. ↑ Controlled Environment
3. ↑ PR Presentation
4. ↑ Sterling-Malkeet Amphitheater
5. ↑ Turing Act criticized
6. ↑ Reiker Building?
7. ↑ Get Ti-D-O Started!
8. ↑ DO NOT IGNORE!
9. ↑ Supplier
10. ↑ VertiVIP Program
11. ↑ History: FAS
12. ↑ Refugee museum opens
13. ↑ Re: Complaint
14. ↑ Schott v. Frost
15. ↑ Reception Log
16. ↑ FAS-ACA3 Scarab (Datapoint)
17. ↑ FAS-FSP5 Khopesh (Datapoint)
18. ↑ FAS-BOR7 Horus (Datapoint)
19. ↑ Entangled Waveforms
20. ↑ Biosphere Degradation
21. ↑ Deep Secrets of the Earth
22. ↑ The Good News
23. ↑ Emergency Recording
24. ↑ ^{24.0 24.1} E9B1 Incident Log C
25. ↑ As mentioned by CYAN during/after completing The Forge of Winter.
26. ↑ As mentioned by Erend Vanguardsman during Mother's Heart.
27. ↑ The Derangement (Datapoint)
28. ↑ Geared Up: Icerail
29. ↑ GAIA's Dying Plea
30. ↑ M/ALL-US-W CM LOG 329G
31. ↑ ^{31.0 31.1} As mentioned by Aloy during Death's Door.
32. ↑ Mother's Heart (Quest)
33. ↑ Maker's End (Quest)
34. ↑ As mentioned by Talanah Khane Padish during Deadliest Game.
35. ↑ Project Slipstream: Final Report
36. ↑ As mentioned by Aloy during The Stars in Their Eyes.
37. ↑ As mentioned by Hekarro during The Broken Sky.
38. ↑ As mentioned by Tilda van der Meer during All That Remains.
39. ↑ Forbidden Legacy
40. ↑ ^{40.0 40.1} Horizon Zero Dawn (comic series)
41. ↑ As mentioned by Alva during Seeds of the Past.

Quotes