Machine Translators and Rogue AI/Borgs

[Katznelson]

A rouge AI is merely an annoyance that is easily dealt with assuming one has the right tools, ID card, etc. Most of the time its the laws that prevent stealth rouging.

I don't know how much stealthier an automated door opener and computerized peeping tom can get.

[Zamujasa]

If you really want private communications, the AI and Borgs can change their radio frequency to something unused. If you want this to go even better, upload a law where all communication has to happen on a secret frequency.

To that end, does the AI have chat prefixes for changing the frequencies it broadcasts on, or do you have to manually switch radios off and on still? I haven't messed with the radios since they were moved internal to the AI.


The thing with the robotics channel is that you can hear people talking over radio headsets if you stand near them (and used to be able to hear all communications, too bad that was removed)... with robotics, unless you have the implant you can't hear anything at all.



As for talking over it and "do not reveal" laws, the easiest way to deal with it is to treat Robotic talk as private until you know someone is listening in, just like the "Changelings/vampires are human until seen doing changeling/vampire things" aspect.

[mozi]

Because it's not already easy to be sneaky as a rogue AI. Seriously, the machine translator is one of the few leverages the crew may have against a rogue AI.

How, exactly? A sneaky rogue AI is rather un-destructive considering that the AI then can only pick off stragglers by stranding them in an airless room, and you have to be lucky to notice that.

Yeah the AI has like 2 good tools at its disposal: shocking doors, and playing with the airbridge. The former is really only a nuisance unless you have borgs ready to beat people up, but there's plenty of folks with access to insulated gloves who won't be impacted by it. (I guess they can also use the teleporter to spawn in monsters but I never see AIs doing it)

I mean I personally would like to see a bit more stuff to let the AI cause more fun chaos or maybe do fun gimmicks. If an AI holds back in any way or tries to be discriminate in its targets (i.e. only murdering people who have not recited the Special Loyalty Song to their new One Human Captain) that gives the crew enough time to easily get around the AI's few weapons

right now whenever I see someone upload a onehuman law I kinda groan because I know exactly what's going to happen next without variation and it's pretty dull

[Spy_Guy]

A rouge AI is merely an annoyance that is easily dealt with assuming one has the right tools, ID card, etc. Most of the time its the laws that prevent stealth rouging.

I don't know how much stealthier an automated door opener and computerized peeping tom can get.

Tell that to Sundance when my new bestest friend blew him into space with the brig door

The AI is normally not supposed to murderboner for the traitor, though, and any traitor using the AI for that is either terrible at subverting the AI or an engineer. The number of times I've had great use of an eye in the sky that can let me in anywhere, protect me from harm and helpful in every way, but I always think of and play the AI as support.

That being said, if a subverted AI is really worried about machine translators, then have the borgs / doors mess the roboticist up. I hardly ever see anyone else on the machine channel, because taking a detour and waiting for the implant to cook up is such a chore.

A lot of people seem to forget about the shells, too. Just deploy to it and the crew will happily wave to you as you find a borg to exchange a few words with. I've had borgs come into the AI core for a chat and there's nothing stopping that as long as the primary radio is disabled beforehand.

[mozi]

QM has a robotics fab that can churn out translators too.

[ClockworkCupcake]

People I see with robotalk implants on a regular basis:

* Roboticists (good, useful, even if I'm a rogue AI I tend to leave 'em alone if they have the sense to stay quiet)
* Medical director (if they've decided to be an auxiliary roboticist today, usually)
* QMs, maybe the occasional miner
* Research director, HoP, Captain, etc
* some random fucking assistant that popped one out while they were getting their ass taken off and now expects their door opening requests to get Top Priority because they're in robotalk, kill me now

Going down the list the likelihood that they'll immediately scream "AI IS ROUGE, STATE LAWS" on the radio if you so much as hint that a misbehaving borg should check their laws.

Most recently I had what could've been a very fun, subtle misdirect-attention-from-the-ling law ruined in seconds by a geneticist of all people snooping on the machine channel.

[Embolism]

People I see with robotalk implants on a regular basis:

* Roboticists (good, useful, even if I'm a rogue AI I tend to leave 'em alone if they have the sense to stay quiet)
* Medical director (if they've decided to be an auxiliary roboticist today, usually)
* QMs, maybe the occasional miner
* Research director, HoP, Captain, etc
* some random fucking assistant that popped one out while they were getting their ass taken off and now expects their door opening requests to get Top Priority because they're in robotalk, kill me now

Going down the list the likelihood that they'll immediately scream "AI IS ROUGE, STATE LAWS" on the radio if you so much as hint that a misbehaving borg should check their laws.

Most recently I had what could've been a very fun, subtle misdirect-attention-from-the-ling law ruined in seconds by a geneticist of all people snooping on the machine channel.

I think that was the round that prompted me to think that something needs to be done about Machine Translators.

[ianmacdo]

People have posted tons of good reasons for the machine translator implant to have some downsides. Are there any good reasons why it should only be a bonus?

[Readster]

Add a kill switch to machine translators alongside the borg kill switches, making them explode inside somebody. Add an alert like "The machine translator begins buzzing suspiciously" So people have time to get them removed.

[Embolism]

Add a kill switch to machine translators alongside the borg kill switches, making them explode inside somebody. Add an alert like "The machine translator begins buzzing suspiciously" So people have time to get them removed.

That kinda defeats the purpose since it will be super obvious to the guy that the AI is rogue. If implant disabling is to be visible to the implantee then it should stun them/mute them for a short while so that Borgs/traitors have a little time to silence them for good.

[BlackPhoenix]

Add a kill switch to machine translators alongside the borg kill switches, making them explode inside somebody. Add an alert like "The machine translator begins buzzing suspiciously" So people have time to get them removed.

That kinda defeats the purpose since it will be super obvious to the guy that the AI is rogue. If implant disabling is to be visible to the implantee then it should stun them/mute them for a short while so that Borgs/traitors have a little time to silence them for good.

The AI actually can't killswitch borgs, it can only disable them. A traitor can killswitch borgs, and could therefore killswitch humans. Maybe if the AI couldn't killswitch, but instead disable the implant in a person, that'd work. That way, if people suddenly stop hearing robo-chat they might get suspicious, and the AI could quickly disable the machine translator to say something sneakily. Just like with disabling borgs though, it'd be difficult to keep the thing constantly disabled.

[Embolism]

Add a kill switch to machine translators alongside the borg kill switches, making them explode inside somebody. Add an alert like "The machine translator begins buzzing suspiciously" So people have time to get them removed.

That kinda defeats the purpose since it will be super obvious to the guy that the AI is rogue. If implant disabling is to be visible to the implantee then it should stun them/mute them for a short while so that Borgs/traitors have a little time to silence them for good.

The AI actually can't killswitch borgs, it can only disable them. A traitor can killswitch borgs, and could therefore killswitch humans. Maybe if the AI couldn't killswitch, but instead disable the implant in a person, that'd work. That way, if people suddenly stop hearing robo-chat they might get suspicious, and the AI could quickly disable the machine translator to say something sneakily. Just like with disabling borgs though, it'd be difficult to keep the thing constantly disabled.

That's a good idea. Let the traitor work for it if they want more rather than having the AI take care of everything.

[nepereta]

I think:
#1 give PDAs functions to BORGS.
#2 Make it easier to collaborate with chats using something akin to multi-frequency comms. Which only sit in tele-science afaik. Be nice to see one or two someplace else too like in the bridge. after spending years dealing with VOIP apps you take communication for granted. In this game its damn hard ( I am wondering if there is not some way to use some sort of speech to text application to help bridge this gap and vice versa.)

I am one of those dreadful people who implant almost every round I think it increases my survival chances! Even if the ai isn't subverted it does talk a lot to its borg friends. If I am some sort of sec role I watch AI upload almost as much as Toxins through the station cameras.

The distinct beauty of machine implant is not just the obvious also:
#1 You can speak to others without making a sound to those nearby.
#2 I suspect you can speak without breathing too ( need double check this)

[Spy_Guy]

#1 You can speak to others without making a sound to those nearby.

No, you actually go "beep beep beep" to those really close to you when you use it.

#2 I suspect you can speak without breathing too ( need double check this)

Quite right, this works.

[Marquesas]

I am one of those dreadful people who implant almost every round I think it increases my survival chances!

Don't forget to move all RCDs and magboots to riot control and space any AI module that can be used as freeform.