Biotech vs. Mechtech

Biotech is more variable than mechtech. Mechtech can be mass-produced with no noticeable variation in the pieces, but no item of biotech is exactly the same as another. Both dominion and life itself are too prone to chaos, and differences creep in. Due to the precision involved, mechtech devices can swap out parts and accept upgrades with ease. If a particular model of scope can be attached to a model of rifle, then any scope from that model can be attached to any rifle of that model. Such precision is impossible with biotech. But biotech can be adapted. A bioengineer can instruct a device to change its shape and layout to reach new specifications, changing which features are expressed by the DNA and which are repressed, even adding new features or redesigning the organism with enough skill. If a biotech organism needs upgrading, the whole thing can be morphed into the new state. Mechtech can be assembled from smaller pieces. Biotech must be grown in something larger than the organism produced. This places an upper limit on ship sizes as ships are usually birthed from larger ships or dedicated docks. (In game mechanics, any biotech device can be given a +1 bonus in a particular situation but it takes a -1 penalty in the opposite situation which must be more common)

Biotech dominates in the fields of medicine, terraforming, and psychology. Mechtech dominates in the fields of propulsion, power generation, and mining.

Biotech ultraminds are capable of large, very accurate calculations, but mechtech computers are orders of magnitude better, faster, and while ultraminds occasionally make small errors in computations, mechtech computers never do. Ultraminds make up for this with their ability to handle imprecision. They are better at extracting from incomplete datasets, dealing with ambiguity. They use hunches, guesses, and instinct in coming to conclusions.

Biotech warships have long-range energy weapons that travel at the speed of light. They can self-repair, and their shielding repels all hostile attacks and quickly regenerate. Mechtech warships have a massive power advantage, being faster and have higher accuracy weapons with a greater damage output. Their stronger armor and grav shielding allow even a small mechtech ship to repel projectile bombardment from the largest asevla warships. However, given the massive advantage in energy weapons that biotech has, this is less of an advantage than it may seem. Biotech guided energy weapons can, at shorter ranges, easily tear through mechtech missile swarms, but have more trouble against high-spirited fighter pilots.

In terms of tactics, Biotech warships work best as long as they can keep their distance and snipe mechtech ships with their energy weapons. Mechtech ships will take casualties until they can close the range, at which any ships that are left will be able to tear through ships ten or even a hundred times their weight with railgun salvos. Fighter strikes are particularly effective, and fusion warheads are much more effective against biotech than they are against mechtech.