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'''caBasilisk''' is a [[Human]] [[personal armor|personal]] and spacecraft armor manufacturer headquartered on [[Cascom]]. They also manufacture [[shield generator]]s. Founded in [[2530]] to research new armor composites, Basilisk received the bulk of its initial funding from the [[United Empire of Earth]] (UEE) until the end of the Messer Era in [[2792]]. In the aftermath, their budget was significantly reduced during the governmental reorganization, so they opened their products to the civilian market.<ref name="galactapedia">{{Cite RSI|url=https://robertsspaceindustries.com/galactapedia/article/R9BwxzG9KZ-basilisk|text=Galactapedia: Basilisk}}</ref>

Although most of their massive yearly profits come from military contracts, the armor they provide to the military is cheap and weak because of the budget cut from [[UEE]]. They break out the high quality product for high-end private sector sales.<ref name="writerguide">{{Cite RSI|url=comm-link/transmission/12972-t|text=Writer's Guide: Part Four}}</ref>

In [[2535]], [[High-General Volder]] toured the facilities of an upstart hull plating manufacturer that, to the shock of many industry insiders, had recently landed a major [[UPE]] military contract. [[Simone Visconti]], the company's chief engineer and CEO, nervously followed along, carrying her research data. She was ready and willing to answer any questions about how her revolutionary techniques had created some of the most damage-resistant hull plating in the Empire. Yet according to legend, High-General Volder had only one question for her. "Why the hell did you name it Basilisk?" "Because they're extremely hard to kill," responded Visconti. Before she could elaborate on the few ways this mythological creature could reputedly be killed, High-General Volder strode off, indifferent to the details. Historians agree that Volder was focused on the big picture. Simone Visconti, on the other hand, obsessed over every last little factor. This unwavering dedication to detail birthed Basilisk's reputation as the producer of high quality armor, a distinction that still sticks, even though some claim the company's product quality has eroded over the years.<ref name="portfolio">{{Cite RSI|url=https://robertsspaceindustries.com/comm-link/spectrum-dispatch/17122-Portfolio-Basilisk|text=Portfolio: Basilisk}}</ref>

[[Simone Visconti]] was born on [[Asura]] in 2509. Her parents worked for one of the major mining conglomerates that fueled the planet's economic boom. A constant curiosity and intellectual aptitude were apparent in Visconti from a young age, and they eventually earned her a full scholarship to the [[University of Persei Analytical Research and Quantification]] (UPARQ). Visconti spent a little over a year studying physics at the prestigious school before abruptly leaving to finish her education at the considerably less-esteemed [[University of Tram]].

Whenever asked about it, Visconti simply said that "it wasn't for me" — a phrase friends and colleagues grew accustomed to hearing when something didn't interest her. However, biographers later learned from Visconti's UPARQ classmates that by mid-semester of her second year she had become bored with studying physics and wished to switch disciplines to engineering. UPARQ officials denied her request and told her to wait until the following semester to make the adjustment. Instead, Visconti stopped attending classes and spent her time in the library devouring engineering texts. Suddenly, her scholarship was in jeopardy, as the prospect of her failing all her classes became a reality. But rather than return to classes she had no interest in, Visconti simply walked away.