Borgs and jobs

[Vuk Farkas]

Our fellow humans that suffered major body damage and couldnt be cloned, or a violent antag that got borged as an alternative to being spaced, doesnt matter... these machines are too specialized, but well equipped, durable (if reinforced and shielded), and under strict AI laws (unless someone tinkers with their brains). This is all nice as is really  however i would like to see at least light bodies being able to use their hands properly (so basically they become machine people, or fully cybernetic humans). This way we can have Cyborgs that can actually do a job on their own completely (like surgeons doing transplants for example) and they trade off good armor for being able to use their hands! (maybe even their modules that grant them all the equipment). Another thing would be nice if they could be security! To be actually able to catch criminals... integrated tazers and cuffs (but lethal lazers would need to be separatelly added by roboticist, with permission from HoS) with AI and HoS, HoP and Captain holding the kill switch in case somethin goes wrong... Or other proffessions like science... wery useful there as they need not fret explosions or radiation as much as humans do! And who cares about toxins and freezing temperatures... unless the floor is melting no need to worry... just watch out for that EMP!

[babayetu83]

this thread will get mercilessly shat on since for some reason people really seem to hate cyborgs and think they shouldn't be able to have fun and be severely crippled in functionality

[medsal15]

Why do you think the sec module was removed?

[misto]

making civvie borgs a little more empowered to actually carry out their jobs without needing a human to handhold them would be ok

but security borgs, no way man, you cant trust them tinmen with a job like that

[Xeram]

There used to be secborgs.

Then the allies landed in Europe and with the Soviets deposed Hitlerbots.

[Mageziya]

The inability to use hands is why I absolutely hate playing borg, but the problem is that's its a restriction needed balance borgs. They've got a good, though boring, balance of good and bad traits right now, and being able to use hands would remove the biggest drawback of playing borg, kicking them uncomfortably into the overpowered zone.

[misto]

The inability to use hands is why I absolutely hate playing borg, but the problem is that's its a restriction needed balance borgs. They've got a good, though boring, balance of good and bad traits right now, and being able to use hands would remove the biggest drawback of playing borg, kicking them uncomfortably into the overpowered zone.

perhaps alternative drawbacks could be proposed, in exchange for the gift of functioning hands

well, the main borg who suffers most from having no hands is the medborg, who must beg humans to come shove a dead fuck into the scanner for it, and whose surgery tools are nearly useless except when it is murder time. perhaps just the medborg could be allowed to have hands

[medsal15]

The inability to use hands is why I absolutely hate playing borg, but the problem is that's its a restriction needed balance borgs. They've got a good, though boring, balance of good and bad traits right now, and being able to use hands would remove the biggest drawback of playing borg, kicking them uncomfortably into the overpowered zone.

perhaps alternative drawbacks could be proposed, in exchange for the gift of functioning hands

well, the main borg who suffers most from having no hands is the medborg, who must beg humans to come shove a dead fuck into the scanner for it, and whose surgery tools are nearly useless except when it is murder time. perhaps just the medborg could be allowed to have hands

Hand module/tool

[Noah Buttes]

Secborgs were the closest thing to actually having Hitler himself coded into the game.

On the other hand, I do feel like borgs are bit useless now for anything except murder.

I feel like the proper way to balance this is to make certain special tools borg exclusive, so that they're more competent at specific portions of some jobs.


I feel like the original borg hose for the hydroponics model was a step in the right direction, why is that commented out anyway?

[Frank_Stein]

Really, robotics and AI are both due for an overhaul in how they work and what they do for the station.

While building cyborgs as an alternative to cloning is all well and good, it's barely scratching the surface of what robots can do and be.

[Vitatroll]

Allow click-slide interactions for standing kitchen and medical equipment. Not sure why this isn't a thing. Coding restrictions? This solves a lot of problems and causes very few.

Secborgs: No. Not unless they ran on their own laws, were electromagnetically shielded, limited in number, and practically useless at their job to the point of being the borg version of an emergency suit. I know, I know; a borg with chem stuff can already harmlessly apprehend a perp with little effort and can solo the entire station with little knowledge. I just don't like the idea or even how it sounds. I mean it just sounds very... Gestapo.

The closest I would probably concede to at this time is something like shoving a brain in a secbot with hard-coded (could be emagged ofcourse) laws. No dragging, slow movement, and the only communication you get comes in the form of beepsky-curses and the baton of justice. Even this would be horribly abused.

[Noah Buttes]

Allow click-slide interactions for standing kitchen and medical equipment. Not sure why this isn't a thing. Coding restrictions? This solves a lot of problems and causes very few.

Secborgs: No. Not unless they ran on their own laws, were electromagnetically shielded, limited in number, and practically useless at their job to the point of being the borg version of an emergency suit. I know, I know; a borg with chem stuff can already harmlessly apprehend a perp with little effort and can solo the entire station with little knowledge. I just don't like the idea or even how it sounds. I mean it just sounds very... Gestapo.

The closest I would probably concede to at this time is something like shoving a brain in a secbot with hard-coded (could be emagged ofcourse) laws. No dragging, slow movement, and the only communication you get comes in the form of beepsky-curses and the baton of justice. Even this would be horribly abused.

What if we could just shove brains into securitrons

[Ed Venture]

The inability to use hands is why I absolutely hate playing borg, but the problem is that's its a restriction needed balance borgs. They've got a good, though boring, balance of good and bad traits right now, and being able to use hands would remove the biggest drawback of playing borg, kicking them uncomfortably into the overpowered zone.

I agree with Mageziya. First time I played as a borg and saw that they could not use their arms I said "Wow that's pretty lame that a fucking robot can't use it's arms" Then when I tried to look past that and play as one anyways I was so bored that it is impossible to express in words how bored I was. Keep in mind that what I am about to say is my opinion but the bottom line is I feel borgs are single handily the most boring job this game has to offer. I would rather play as a human with no arms or legs with a muzzle on then play as a borg. Which you may think is odd for me to say since I just said that I hated not having arms but as I said even when I accepted the nonsense that is a robot that can't use it's arms I was still bored and seeing how I have a experiences where I lost all my limbs I was still entertained.

Really, robotics and AI are both due for an overhaul in how they work and what they do for the station.

While building cyborgs as an alternative to cloning is all well and good, it's barely scratching the surface of what robots can do and be.

I agree with Frank 100%

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Also Secborgs were shit let's hope they never return.

[Roomba]

I think there's other factors beyond not being able to use hands that make borgs not all that fun to play. After some thought, here are the top three issues:

A: Being bound to laws. Default laws already mean even the lowest assistant can order borgs around, and any fun gimmick you try is often immediately countered by some funhating head (and what other kind of person plays a head) uploading a law to make you stop that. Not much can be done about this one,  I suppose, that's kind of the whole point of being a borg.

B: Borgs are generally considered 'fair game', more so than anyone else acting up. An assistant making a fool of  himself gets a few minutes in the brig, a borg acting up the same way gets summarily debrained. An assistant shouting 'rouge AI' is all it takes for trigger happy vigilantes to begin open season on borgs, and I've lost count of the number of times people have gone 'if you don't open this door right now I will killswitch you' over the last borg round alone. This is more a player culture thing than anything, but it's not very fun either.

C: Movement speed. Light borgs can move pretty fast, but the tradeoff is dying in a stiff breeze. Standard and heavy borgs have to settle for moving at walking speed, which is not very fun and means you take forever to get anywhere on such a big map. Last I tried, adding any standard/heavy parts on an otherwise light borg frame will overencumber them, reducing their speed to around standard borg levels, which  means there's no way to get a happy medium  (unless you go for a speed upgrade, which takes up valuable upgrade space and burns away your energy super fast).

[Frank_Stein]

I could get behind Sec Borgs again if it was limited to only the Head of Security for that rounds brain being able to pick the module.

That or if they were just Broborg part 2: Electric Boogaloo and they just were around have mirror shades, big mustaches, bad ties, and Polish sounding names. Give em donuts, coffee, cigarettes, and a bull horn for yelling at people, and a special lawset that where they only take orders from other Sec and have to call everyone "Chief"