Toaru Majutsu no Index Wiki:Featured articles/This month's featured article/2023

Openers for articles that have been featured in 2023.

January
The Featured Article this time around is about the Aztec Calendar Stone, derivatives of which Etzali faced during his time in Group.

As its name suggests, the original calendar stone is a complex ancient calendar used by the Aztecs, arranged in a circle and inscribed on stone. The contents of the calendar stone are sufficient to produce original-class grimoires, even with only a portion of the stone's overall content.

Under Tecpatl's leadership, the Return of the Winged One mass-produced calendar stone-derived grimoires to arm the cabal's soldiers. Two such grimoires are known; the Time related to Life and Death, a dissertation expanding on such times in the calendar and written on animal skin, and the Moon Rabbit, based on the story of the Fifth Sun's creation and inscribed on a collection of stone tablets.

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Recently featured: An Involuntary Movement

March
The Featured Article this time concerns Shadow Metal, a rumored substance which doesn't naturally exist in the world.

According to rumors, when many different esper abilities clash (such as during the Daihaseisai), a metal that doesn't exist naturally is created. This urban legend has been considered baseless and the result of increased security during the Daihaseisai to prevent people from stealing DNA maps during the games.

However, there is actually some truth to the rumor, as Shadow Metal has indeed been produced on a few occasions, during certain interactions involving powerful esper abilities and similar strong powers. At present, many of the details concerning the properties of the mysterious substance and how it is generated are still unknown.

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Recently featured: Aztec Calendar Stone

May
The Featured Article this time is for Pantagruel, a character exclusively appearing in Toaru Majutsu to Kagaku no Ensemble.

A magician who specialized in communicating with the dead, with additional skill with sigils and magic contracts, Pantagruel revered Aleister Crowley and sought to speak with him, but failed to make contact from his supposed remains.

Suspecting that Aleister might still be alive, and with Academy City the only place left unchecked, Pantagruel planned to find his idol, exploiting the new social network Rondo Net for his end goal, the Silver Star Miracle.

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Recently featured: Shadow Metal

July
The Featured Article this time is for a mass driver, a type of electromagnetic catapult used to accelerate and launch payloads at high speeds, capable of reaching space.

The launch system primarily consists of a magnetizable holder containing a payload, a path which it travels down, and powerful electromagnets positioned down that path. The electromagnets are used to accelerate the payload down the path, which then continues travelling after leaving the path on the momentum it has acquired.

Aside from mass drivers with a straight linear track, there are also ring and silo-type mass drivers. While the technology has mainly been seen with Academy City and its cooperative institutions, based on the ground, there is at least one use by a space company outside of it, mounted on airborne launch platforms.

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Recently featured: Pantagruel

September
The Featured Article this time concerns the Lambskin Parchments involving in events during World War III.

These were a set of old occult parchments, which Accelerator encountered in Russia while looking a way to cure Last Order, in a duralumin briefcase handcuffed to a soldier on the same train he was hiding in and targeted by Academy City forces. Sensing a lead, he kept the parchments and sought answers regarding them on his way, being attacked by several parties as result.

The parchments were needed to fill a gap in Fiamma of the Right's knowledge for his plans, containing information the Russian Orthodox Church had on archangels and their symbols, and what to substitute to activate a Roman Catholic spell under Russia Orthodox standards. Aleister also sought their retrieval, due to potential problems if other factions analyzed them.

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Recently featured: Mass Driver

November
Fitting the current circumstances, the Featured Article this time around is for the HsSSV-01, also known as the Dragon Rider, an Academy City prototype appearing at of Shinyaku Toaru Majutsu no Index.

The Dragon Rider is a combination of a Powered Suit and a jet-powered motorbike, the former necessary for riding the latter. The armored and aerodynamic bike has a top speed of 1050 kph and can climb 70 degree inclines at over 300 kph. The suit reinforces the wearer's body and supports their physical capabilities to enable them ride the motorbike at high speed. It automatically manages all actions beside acceleration and decceleration, responding to the rider's thoughts, and providing information and other support as required.

Originally intended to be Anti-Skill's newest patrol bike, the Dragon Rider was drafted for World War III, though it was never used as the war ended sooner than anticipated. The prototype was to be placed into storage, but it ended up being commandeered en route, seeing action in the incident caused by the Freshmen.

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Recently featured: Lambskin Parchments