Hive Joining

Xenowarden pod ships have the ability to merge together, forming a larger vessel. This requires eight such pod ships to “dock” together while closely orbiting a star, as the power required is quite taxing on their solar batteries. Over the next 24 hours, the ships fuse together, forming a Xenowarden arkship. The crew of each pod spends this time in meditation, communing with the spirit of their ship, guiding it to join with the others and form a single mind. Any damage to the ships during this period of time is catastrophic, potentially resulting in a loss of all eight vessels.

In addition, a pod vessel with this system can dock in an existing arkship if the larger craft has an open slot in its hive bay. This can be temporary or permanent, as desired by the ship and pilot. If the docking is to be permanent, it requires 1 hour for the pod to merge with the arkship.