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So, noob question here: what exactly are servo-skulls? Are they just robotic bits stuck into a skull for no actual effect save grimdark, or do they retain some sort of sentience?

Also, bonus question: are there something like 'pattern' servo-skull components, or can you just slap whatever you want on them without it being tech-heresy?

Here you are
http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Servo-skull#.U7U0ALHm5Ls

Artificial intelligence beyond the superstitious belief of "machine spirits" is tech-heresy. Recovered technology that uses intelligence of any kind is handwaved as a "Machine Spirit" doing the work. The best example of this is probably their computers - or "cogitators" - which they regard as being automated through their machine spirit, rather than simply being an "intelligence" of sorts.

So, whenever they want to build something autonomous, they need to give it intelligence with a human brain. It's not just servo-skulls - Servitors are a good example, as are several machines which have an actual skull on them (a good example being the autonomous factory equipment and turrets in the Space Marine game). Not only is the skull kept intact because it looks cool, but because it is a pre-made vessel for the brain. The brain is heavily modified, essentially lobotomised, any individuality, personality, or thought processes reduced to that of a mindless, obedient drone. They are programmed with specific information relating to their given task. A skull fashioned in this way probably has equal intelligence and problem-solving skill as a Tau drone, but with the very important attribute of not being tech-heresy.

Only Servitors still have human brains in them. Everything else, including Servo-Skulls, have purely mechanical cogitators instead. This limits them to a small number of preprogrammed functions, but you don't have to worry about keeping a human brain in good condition all the time. Servo-Skulls basically serve as general assistants or as an extra limb or set of eyes for their operator. They don't have to be made of human skulls, they just are because the Imperium has a skull fetish, it supposedly honors the skull's original occupant and allows them to continue to serve, and if it was clearly an autonomous mechanism with nothing 'human' about it people would be a lot more nervous around them.

 Lord-Captain Cepinari wrote:
Only Servitors still have human brains in them. Everything else, including Servo-Skulls, have purely mechanical cogitators instead. This limits them to a small number of preprogrammed functions, but you don't have to worry about keeping a human brain in good condition all the time. Servo-Skulls basically serve as general assistants or as an extra limb or set of eyes for their operator. They don't have to be made of human skulls, they just are because the Imperium has a skull fetish, it supposedly honors the skull's original occupant and allows them to continue to serve, and if it was clearly an autonomous mechanism with nothing 'human' about it people would be a lot more nervous around them.

That's what I suspected, but yeah, I made the mistake of looking for logic in 40K...

Remember;

In 40k, fuzzy logic really does tickle.

Apparently becoming a Servo-Skull is a great honour.

 Lord-Captain Cepinari wrote:
Only Servitors still have human brains in them. Everything else, including Servo-Skulls, have purely mechanical cogitators instead. This limits them to a small number of preprogrammed functions, but you don't have to worry about keeping a human brain in good condition all the time. Servo-Skulls basically serve as general assistants or as an extra limb or set of eyes for their operator. They don't have to be made of human skulls, they just are because the Imperium has a skull fetish, it supposedly honors the skull's original occupant and allows them to continue to serve, and if it was clearly an autonomous mechanism with nothing 'human' about it people would be a lot more nervous around them.

Oh. That makes it kind of silly, then. Sure, the Imperium does have a "skull fetish", but why don't we see any true drones?

 Frozen Ocean wrote:

 Lord-Captain Cepinari wrote:
Only Servitors still have human brains in them. Everything else, including Servo-Skulls, have purely mechanical cogitators instead. This limits them to a small number of preprogrammed functions, but you don't have to worry about keeping a human brain in good condition all the time. Servo-Skulls basically serve as general assistants or as an extra limb or set of eyes for their operator. They don't have to be made of human skulls, they just are because the Imperium has a skull fetish, it supposedly honors the skull's original occupant and allows them to continue to serve, and if it was clearly an autonomous mechanism with nothing 'human' about it people would be a lot more nervous around them.

Oh. That makes it kind of silly, then. Sure, the Imperium does have a "skull fetish", but why don't we see any true drones?

Because skulls are far easier to come by. You don't have to build the housing. The organic-brained servitor is used in place of human labor because it's utterly fearless (virtually mindless outside of its programmed tasks) and requires a human (Tech-Priest in this case) controller to provide commands to. Servitors can perform a range of functions, but they seem to be pretty well set to a certain range. Gun-Servitors, for example, follow their handlers and will target and fire upon perceived threats. Labor servitors perform grunt labor tasks, etc.

 Frozen Ocean wrote:
Oh. That makes it kind of silly, then. Sure, the Imperium does have a "skull fetish", but why don't we see any true drones?

Because it's gonna be skull-shaped anyway, so why go to the bother of manufacturing a skull-shaped casing when there are millions of perfectly good skulls lying around? And yes, it is kind of silly. Welcome to 40k!

 Bludbaff wrote:

 Frozen Ocean wrote:
Oh. That makes it kind of silly, then. Sure, the Imperium does have a "skull fetish", but why don't we see any true drones?

Because it's gonna be skull-shaped anyway, so why go to the bother of manufacturing a skull-shaped casing when there are millions of perfectly good skulls lying around? And yes, it is kind of silly. Welcome to 40k!

Full blown skull fetish, they tried rehab but its to deep in there skulls...

 Frozen Ocean wrote:

 Lord-Captain Cepinari wrote:
Only Servitors still have human brains in them. Everything else, including Servo-Skulls, have purely mechanical cogitators instead. This limits them to a small number of preprogrammed functions, but you don't have to worry about keeping a human brain in good condition all the time. Servo-Skulls basically serve as general assistants or as an extra limb or set of eyes for their operator. They don't have to be made of human skulls, they just are because the Imperium has a skull fetish, it supposedly honors the skull's original occupant and allows them to continue to serve, and if it was clearly an autonomous mechanism with nothing 'human' about it people would be a lot more nervous around them.

Oh. That makes it kind of silly, then. Sure, the Imperium does have a "skull fetish", but why don't we see any true drones?

With real drones you have to build the casing and housing for the working. Meanwhile you just have to stick some electric stuff into one of the skulls they have lying around all over the place and you've got a Servo-skull.

Psienesis wrote:Because skulls are far easier to come by.

A million times this.

If you were going to make a robot, would you use cheap, plentiful materials, or would you use expensive ones that are more difficult to find? The Imperium is short on absolutely every resource except for manpower and, by extension, corpses.

What it probably was was that someone started making drones out of skulls because that was all that was available. Then someone complained, and the engineer said "no, wait, this isn't degrading a skeleton, it's venerating it. Look at how much I'm honoring him, right? Right?". And then extrapolate that into absurdity over 10,000 years and it becomes heresy to even suggest that they make drones without venerating a hero of the imperium by not using his skull.

when i die, i wanna be a servo skull!

Just because.



Thank you WMS.