The Perennial Wave is made up of a seemingly endless amount of nanomachines which flow out from the center of the galaxy and which deactivate or destroy complex machines and electronics. At any moment, the Wave can be at various degrees of density, which are colloquially referred to as “high tide” and “low tide.”[1] It is generally invisible to the naked eye, but may sometimes be visible as fog.
The Perennial Wave can be dangerous or inconvenient for both synthetic and biologically-based people. For example, it limits the complexity of prostheses people can wear or assistive tech they can use. For reasons that are currently unknown, it doesn't have much effect on Divines and does not affect the Twilight Mirage.
History
The Perennial Wave was created when Perennial was first brought by HORIZON to the center of the galaxy.[2] Adaptations to its effects led to the creation of the Equiaxed people among the Columnar Tabulary. It is also known to have caused the collapse of the Divine Principality's ability to travel faster than light.[3]
Following the events of "Operation Shackled Sun", it has bonded with Kalmeria, which has reduced the Perennial Wave's effects somewhat.