QM Traitor Trader: Gotzar The Wicked

[Sundance]

Ok, so get this, the QM traitor weapon, the Syndicate Cargo Transporter, it's pretty lame and not used alot. This is my opinion of course, feel free to berate this opinion.
Here's a cool idea as the traders are getting revamped, allow traitor QM's to get in touch with a traitor trader, called Gotzar the Wicked.

How it works
It costs about 10 telecrystals and it gives you a rather menacing looking emag that can only be used on the QM computer.

Using it on the computer gives a new trader option, Gotzar the Wicked.
Clicking it will reveal Gotzar (see "Note" for what he should look like) whom will ask "for your passcode comrade", in which you enter your PDA code. Doing so, Gotzar wishes you luck on your mission, then logs off (thus removing the option to select him on the QM screen)

What it does:
Gotzar sends you a crate labelled as a Novelty Clothing Crate. Opening it, you can get numerous miscellaneous tools that vary from crate to crate, but overall deadly. The tools are non-traitor items that can be found otherwise from exploration, so you could receive an AK-47, Phaser with attachments, Modules for pods, Deadly Alien artifacts, syndicate tech such as thermite breaching charges or even an RPG, etc (there are shitloads in code from donut and later, I can't for the life of me remember them all)

Note:
I'd be willing to sprite Gotzar, but I don't know the dimensions for the QM trader screen, if anyone knows it, that'd be awful good of you to share!
Gotzar looks like a decrepit human sporting a roughly cut beard and dusty beret, with various robotic dermal implants with russian insignia on it, hinting towards his syndicate origins.

[david2222121]

Why not just have him unlockable by a regular emag? The way you're describing him right now is basically like a syndicate surplus crate with no artistic toolboxes, trash carts, or advanced laser guns.

In fact, why not, instead of adding a new one-time traitor trader to deal with, we instead bring back the tactical crates that you could order from the QM if the console was emagged, and give it the contents like you just described?

[Sundance]

Why not just have him unlockable by a regular emag? The way you're describing him right now is basically like a syndicate surplus crate with no artistic toolboxes, trash carts, or advanced laser guns.

In fact, why not, instead of adding a new one-time traitor trader to deal with, we instead bring back the tactical crates that you could order from the QM if the console was emagged, and give it the contents like you just described?

Yep, the difference between this and the surplus crate is that one gives you traitor items, the other gives you non-traitor items but can still fuck up the station.
Can you get an Advanced Laser gun in the surplus crate? That should definitely be in the Gotzar crate.

The idea was based on the fact you could originally emag the QM console, but if you were to give the contents like described, that sounds horribly overpowered, due to the fact that you also have an emag as well as the tools that are sent. And besides, emag can do alot of things, I'd rather keep is separate.

The main reason I want to do this is that I think it's cool, a shady syndicate dealer that you can actually contact, it seems more personal to me.

[UrsulaMejor]

The surplus crate was originally suggested as a QM-only traitor item. Personally, I have zero idea why it was implemented as an item for everyone. It really ruins the flavor of it and it's really annoying, because the point of job-specific items is that they can be more powerful than normal due to the DRAWBACK of being job specific. I'm actually a little miffed that the crates have ruined that "Artistic Toolbox = Chaplain: mentality, give that, if the crate were a QM only traitor item it'd still keep that sense of job-specificity on both sides. "It's most probably the chaplain, but it COULD be the QM..." as opposed to "It could be anyone".

I think this would be a really cool way of showing that QMs do it better, as they should. I mean, they've been grown from pods specifically to do their job as a quartermaster, so why is it that they can cut a discount surplus deal only just as well as all the other highly un-trained professionals on the ship?

That said, I think it'd be cooler if we just made the surplus crate QM-specific like it was supposed to be, and have Gotzar be the way that it's delivered; along with some possible non-traitor goodies thrown in like a rare in a booster pack.

[Captain_Bravo]

If someone's got an artistic toolbox, there's no fucking subtle about it. They're on a rampage, killing as many people as they can. The surplus crate removed that annoying, metagamey-as-fuck mentality of "Something is happening, good thing I know [i]exactly everything about the situation from one tiny piece of evidence!" There's no need for traitor QMs to be able to order ruinously expensive traitor stuff anymore, because they can fly out to the diner, in their provided pod, and if they have the money order all the devastating things they want.

Suplus crate is awesome, cogs is awesome, new stuff is awesome, just quit bitching and have some fun.

[UrsulaMejor]

Your perception of the capabilities of the QM to just "fly out and get devastating items" is horrendously skewed. Getting enough money to do anything in space requires the cooperation and presence of either miners or botanists, and a great deal of luck.

And the tools are balanced with the metagame in mind. You can't just pretend it doesn't exist. It's better to use it to your advantage.

The surplus crate is fun, yes. But it's a QM-specific item that everyone is getting. It just makes no sense from a flavor perspective.

[UrsulaMejor]

We're getting off subject.

Sundance's idea. I like it.

[Sundance]

Please no flame wars.
Why does my threads always end with flame wars.
Anyway.. this is really an idea. A neat idea, but it could definitely be refined if needed.
For example instead of the original idea, we could have it at 2 telecrystals, and instead gozar would say something like
"My friend, for you today I have a full mag AK-47, for the cause. Would you like some more of my wares?", which he would send out via crate. If you bought another Trader emag, you can another item, in which his response would be ".. and I shall also throw in this deadly alien artifact, comrade" which would stack up to 5 items (as you can only afford 5) Of course it could be totally random, you might get him saying "..and I shall throw in this full mag AK-47, comrade" even though you already have one.
And of course, you might only need to buy one, and spend the rest of your telecrystals on other traitors goods.
And this could be an item that could turn up in the surplus crate.

Would that be a better idea?

Anyway, I started spriting Gotzar The Wicked. Notice this is WIP, his lower half/parts of his face/background (I might throw on a filter too) are nowhere near done, just "filled in":

[Zorafm]

I like this idea. Yes, that's all I want to say.

[UnlimitedSpessmans]

This is a cool idea with a massive problem would anyone get it over the surplus crate? Because honestly the chance of getting say artistic toolbox butchers knife stimpacks compared to ak-47's and pod weapons is pretty easy for me to make.

[Sundance]

GOTZAR THE WICKED, COMPLETE. (is he too dark, or is it just right)

This is a cool idea with a massive problem would anyone get it over the surplus crate? Because honestly the chance of getting say artistic toolbox butchers knife stimpacks compared to a chance of getting ak-47's and pod weapons, and a shitload of other possibilities is pretty easy for me to make.

Fixed that for you.
But honestly I think you are missing the point. Riddle me this, why would people choose anything anyway? Because it fits into their grand scheme of things as a traitor. If I want to say "huh, let me get a surplus crate and make my mind up" then ok, but "let me get this black market crate, so this stuff I get in it I can do various gimmicks"
Gimmicks is the answer my friend. AK47, and pod upgrades? Pretend to be a russian pirate. RPG and other stuff? Pretend to be rambo.

[Sundance]

Ah crap that didn't load.
Here ya go.

[david2222121]

Well now, that's a pretty impressive looking picture you have for him.


A question, though. The other jobs tend to have some job-specific items that require a fair amount of knowledge about the job to use properly. Miners need to know enough to mass-manufacture explosives to hack, engineers need to know how to power the engine to shoot lightning, botany needs to know how to grow plants for their maneaters, and scientists need to know the really nasty chemicals for their grenades. Why not stay in line with this idea, and instead of having the QM purchase multiple one-use Gotzar contact cards, you can just buy the one then buy multiple crates for exorbitant-ish prices, so you need to actually make a bit of cash first? Depending on how expensive you keep the card, a QM traitor can also mindslave his fellow workers and make a pro/anti-capitalist cabal to overthrow the station.

[Sundance]

Well now, that's a pretty impressive looking picture you have for him.


A question, though. The other jobs tend to have some job-specific items that require a fair amount of knowledge about the job to use properly. Miners need to know enough to mass-manufacture explosives to hack, engineers need to know how to power the engine to shoot lightning, botany needs to know how to grow plants for their maneaters, and scientists need to know the really nasty chemicals for their grenades. Why not stay in line with this idea, and instead of having the QM purchase multiple one-use Gotzar contact cards, you can just buy the one then buy multiple crates for exorbitant-ish prices, so you need to actually make a bit of cash first? Depending on how expensive you keep the card, a QM traitor can also mindslave his fellow workers and make a pro/anti-capitalist cabal to overthrow the station.

Thank ye kind sir,

It took me a few reads to get your idea, but I think I understand and I dig it. Like I said, it was an idea that really could work, but it needs refining. So this is my interpretation:

Black Market Contact
Cost: 4-6 Telecrystals
Description on PDA: Delivers an electromagnetic card that hacks the QM mainframe to a frequency which can contact the egregious syndicate trader Gotzar The Wicked. First crate is on the house. Do not disappoint him.
How it works: Hitting the QM computer with the card, gives the Gotzar The Wicked option on the trader list. Enter in the PDA code as requested "comrade" and the trader will send a crate labelled as Novelty Clothing Crate. The item that is in it are as stated in the OP, the item is completely random. Note that "item" might be one item, or a set of items such as 1 AK47, or a set of Pod upgrades.
Buying more stuff from gotzar works as such
1st item: Free
2nd item: 0.5 of QM budget
3rd item: 1.0 of QM budget
4th item: 1.5 of QM budget
And so on.
Pro's:
1. If you are good at QM, then you could net alot of lethal weaponry.
2. Due to the price, you could mindslave your fellow QM's, and get them to work for the evil money making regime
Con's
1. Items are completely random. You could get the same item twice in a row.
2. To keep under the radar, Gotzar will not trade with you if the big red Nanotrasen message comes up that the station budget has run dry. This is a failsafe, to stop you from being a dick and mindslaving the HoP to transfer all the funds to QM, and thus ruining the whole idea.
3. (Not really necessary, but funny addition), Gotzar gives you 3 chances to enter in your pda code correctly, if you fail on all 3, you get a message simply saying "You disappoint me". He sends a Novelty Clothing Crate as usual, but with a 5x5 tank transfer bomb timed to explode at 5 seconds!!!

[Marquesas]

2. To keep under the radar, Gotzar will not trade with you if the big red Nanotrasen message comes up that the station budget has run dry. This is a failsafe, to stop you from being a dick and mindslaving the HoP to transfer all the funds to QM, and thus ruining the whole idea.

Hello, Luis "the god" Smith here with a spectacular episode of how to be a dick when there are ANTI-DICK FAILSAFES in place!

Simply, mindslave the HoP, transfer all but a SINGLE CREDIT to the shipping budget and then stop the payroll. You have avoided ALL the anti-fun measures with two clicks. No need to thank me.