Arknights Lore: Integrated Strategies - Relics and Their Real-Life References

Hypergryph really went all-out on this event, and among the 182 IS-exclusive relics they released, there are many that are a nod to real-world objects or events. Without further ado, let's get started.

If you are looking for an explanation of this mode, or the full list of relics/items, you can find them here:

Rye bread, or "хлеб" ("bread" in Russian) as the CN version calls it, is a kind of bread made from rye, a cereal grain. They were a staple food throughout the middle ages. Judging from the colour, this is a straight bread made from sourdough and rye meal, which gives them a greatly extended shelf life, and they are favoured as rations.

Peyote, a spineless cactus containing psychedelics, is native to Texas and Mexico. They are often dried to sizes barely larger than an American 5 cent coin, and natives have been using them for thousands of years for religious/healing purposes. However, as it causes hallucinations, they are illegal for use in many places with the exception of religious ceremonies. Other than peyote, many other cacti are also used in similar fashions.

Yucca baccata, more commonly known as banana yucca, is native to Southern US and Mexico. They are named as such due to their fruits' resemblance to stubby bananas. The fruits, which taste similar to sweet potato, are dried for preservation through winter and it remains popular among natives.

Sandworm is the Chinese colloquial name for Sipunculus nudus, a type of unsegmented marine worm that's also called peanut worms. They are used for both fish bait and for human consumption, and a popular dish involves making these sandworms into aspic.

During the World Wars, British field rations consisted mostly of bully beef, biscuits, tea, and chocolate. The beef was named such from the French "boef bouilli" and was essentially tinned corn beef with gelatin. The biscuits were baked to be as hard as possible and can be stored for years as long as it's kept dry, and are said to be able to almost stop a musket ball. Soldiers would soak them in water before consumption or risk deteriorating their dental health. The chocolate was made without fresh milk due to wartime rationing, and was high in calories.

Needless to say, they don't taste good.

A Swedish candle is a section of a tree trunk, usually cut through the middle in quarters or sixths that stops before completely separating the log to provide ventilation, and the centre is set on fire. They became known in Europe during the 17th century and were used as campfires and for cooking. According to oral accounts, the Swedes developed the use of these "candles" during the Thirty Years' War so that their soldiers did not have to carry firewood around, since fresh wood can also be burned with this method.

These are modeled after real-life rabbit hutches.

The reason why diesel engines are so loud is because they rely completely on compression to heat up the fuel mixture, which is particularly evident when the surrounding temperature is cold. Most diesel engines also contain a turbocharger that's essentially a mini jet engine that improves the engine's efficiency. That, combined with the sound of the components such as the air compressor and the cooling fan, makes diesel engines extremely loud.

Throughout history, Africa and South America have always been a steady supplier of gold. The Inca Empire and the legend of El Dorado, a lost city of gold, led many explorers and colonists to South America to search for riches. Musa I of the Mali Empire in West Africa was supposedly the richest man who has ever lived, and he spent so much gold during his pilgrimage to Mecca that it affected Egypt's economy for years to come. In more recent history, the Brazilian Gold Rush in the 1690s created the longest gold rush in the world and produced the largest gold mines in South America. The Witwatersrand Gold Rush in 1886 resulted in the Mineral Revolution that caused a wave of rapid industrialization in South Africa.

This statue is based on the drawing of Cthulhu by H. P. Lovecraft. In the short horror story "The Call of Cthulhu", a statue of Cthulhu was found during a raid on a voodoo cult.

Blood diamonds are diamonds mined in a war zone that finances the war effort. Even today, blood diamond trades exist in parts of Africa and South America.

Modeled after maneki-nekos, these cat statues are said to bring good fortune.

A reference to the Reese's candy marketed by the American company Hershey's.

The number 777 is often associated with the supernatural and good luck. In Judaism, 7 is considered a "perfect" number. In Christianity, 777 represents the perfection of the Trinity (the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit). 777 is also used to signify a jackpot in many slot machines.

The band on the item says "No Trading No Killing", a phrase often used when protesting against the (sometimes illegal) hunting of endangered animals for their products.

These types of sunglasses are called shutter shades, and were popularized by professional wrestler Randy Savage and later by Kanye West.

Reminiscent of the mask worn by Obito Uchiha in the Naruto series.

A possible reference to the alien in The Thing, or to Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness. Both works feature alien species found in the arctic regions.

The CN name is a more obvious reference to Lovecraft's horror novella The Whisperer in Darkness, featuring aliens that pus human brains in jars that allows said human to withstand space travel.

These types of helmets are called armets, developed during the 15th century and were used extensively by men-at-arms. Its use was spread all over Europe. The second half of the item description refers to the British Empire at its peak, where its territory covered 24% of the world's land area and had a population of over 400 million.

A Hog's Tooth is a special necklace given to US Marine snipers on their graduation. Made from a 7.62×51mm NATO round, it follows the superstition that a sniper is invincible until "the bullet with their name on it" is shot. Hence, if said bullet is never fired, the sniper remains invincible.

Although many methods of anesthesia have emerged since ancient times, the simplest of them all is a knock to the head.

Sarsaparilla is a type of soft drink, similar in taste to root beer, that was popular in the United States in the 19th century for its apparent medical properties. In Asian countries, it is known as Sarsi or Sarsae, which matches its CN name.

References the popular Red Bull energy drink.

References the Laoganma chili sauce, although whether or not chili sauce constitutes as a beverage is up for debate. The EN name seems to be derived from Dr. Pepper, another kind of soft drink.

Captain Morgan is a real-life brand of alcoholic spirit drink with a rum flavour. Although it's called a "spice rum", its alcohol content does not meet the requirements to be considered rum (35% compared to the typical 40% in rum). It originated in Canada and remains popular to this day.

Aquavit (or okovita), meaning "water of life" in Latin, is an old name for vodka or other low-quality drinks similar in alcohol content. Vodka is typically used to refer to clear drinks that are higher in quality and okovita usually refers to the lower-quality ones. Spirytus vodka, containing 96% alcohol, is the strongest liquor sold in the world. It is not recommended to consume several bottles in one sitting.

Referencing an iconic scene in Monty Python and the Holy Grail, in which King Arthur's servant, Patsy, mimics the sound of horse hooves by banging two coconut shells together.

Indiana Jones once hid inside a fridge to protect himself against an atomic bomb. Of course, it is not advised to be attempted at home, as no regular fridge will survive a nuclear blast. This, however, inspired many memes and references, once such example being Fallout: New Vegas, where you can find a fridge containing a corpse and a hat similar to the one Indiana Jones wore.

In the Fallout series, the Pulowski Preservation shelters (which look almost identical to this item) are coin-operated shelters found in urban areas. They were advertised as a last-resort against a nuclear attack.

The image used for "Bad Guy" is likely modeled off of a Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey.