The idea for warriors called Dryads was first introduced in the US around 2080; the idea was to create a combatant with minimum raw materials and infrastructure, which could be crucial to victory if the country is quickly decimated by a large-scale attack. While the project was quickly dismissed as nonpractical, it resurfaced several decades later when the Ecotopians struggled with military production while in the same time trying to keep pollution to a minimum. A huge "forest factory" was planted near Freetown, and the first Dryads appeared in 2122, equipped almost entirely with grown equipment and weapons. Despite the formidable performance by Dryad troops, the idea never really caught on outside Ecotopian governments due to the technical difficulties related to bio-equipment and strong competition from cheaper solutions, like Assault Droids or ABC Clones; still, the Dryads were respected and feared around the world.