Spy (discontinued game mode)

This page is about discontinued content. The following information is not current. It is kept for historical purposes. For the current antagonist, see Spy Thief. Please note that "mindslave" is the old name for what is now called the mindhack implant.

The Syndicate has an exclusive job opening and has sent its candidates to battle it out among the helpless denizens of Space Station 13. The last man standing gets the job! The spy's primary objective is to assassinate all other spies on the station, and they may have a bonus objective. Their main asset is their ability to recruit followers. Through leadership, guile, and deviousness, they will prove themselves worthy of that promotion.

The Spy's Kit

As a spy master, you start with the following essential gear:

Multi-use Implanter

This device has 4 charges and injects a special implant in your target. The recipient is 100% loyal to you, and unlike regular mindslave implants, this one does not wear off. However, the implant can be removed like any other, and possibly overridden by another spy's implanter.

The implant may also not work on occasion, for instance when you try to enslave another spy master. You will receive no indication that the implanting failed, but the target will immediately know what's going on. If they're smart, they'll play along just long enough to slam that dagger into your back.

Note: Special guidelines apply to mindslaves.

Suppressed .22 Pistol

A weak ranged weapon, now known as the Orion silenced pistol, for which you have to order spare magazines separately. Adequate for dealing with lone targets without necessarily giving your position away, but don't bother shooting people in body armor.

Syndicate Dagger

Actually quite a decent little knife. It can be thrown for an instant stun and causes the target to start bleeding heavily. It's also effective to finish off downed opponents. Catching someone with a dagger generally confirms that they are a spy or one of their recruits.

Syndicate Uplink

A modified uplink, with most rampage-oriented items (cloak, energy sword etc) removed. Don't be greedy, consider buying some items for your mind slaves too!

The Game is afoot!

You have Syndicate gear and the ability to recruit an army. The hitch is that your targets do too, and you have no idea who they are! You will need to be able to gather intelligence, arm your soldiers, and protect yourself all at the same time. Consider what jobs will be best suited to your strategy. High-access jobs such as the captain and Head of Personnel are often quickly targeted for recruitment. Even security officers aren't exempt from being pressed into an enemy's gang - as if they didn't already have enough reasons to try and stop you!

Bear in mind that Conspiracy is meant to be a stealthy kind of mode, so if you're really good, the normal crew might not even notice your activities. When implanting people, try to avoid doing it in public or the jig might be up. If you're a spy master, you should search out people who might be good to implant and get to them before someone else does. Assemble a decent team as quickly as you can, make sure no one saw you implanting or followed you, and give your new troops orders. Consider sending your slaves off on the more dangerous or mundane tasks, as you're more important! Remember that you can discretely issue orders by PDA, though a captured PDA message log may trace back to you.

Do try to stop your slaves from going nuts and killing everyone in sight. This is not very stealthy and will most likely bring the wrath of security and the crew down upon you. If other spy masters are smart, they'll realize what's going on as well and quickly move against you. The spies do not need to wipe out each other's recruits, only the other masters.

Hiding in Plain Sight

So, you're a mindslave? Great! Firstly, and most importantly, you must follow to the letter every order your new master gives you! If he tells you to set yourself on fire and then jump into space, do it! (Let's hope your master is not that harsh!)

There is no one stopping you, but it's not a very good idea to go nuts and start killing everyone in sight, or launching a one-man crusade against security. Most likely you will be captured, beaten to death, mistaken for a traitor or de-implanted, ruining all your fun. If your leader is halfway competent, he'll most likely tell you to scout around and try and find out who the other spies are. If you find them, report back your info. If your leader is even more competent, he might even arm you. Otherwise, consider getting some form of weapon or protection for yourself.

Sound Sleuthing Tips!

• Stealth is the name of the game! The less people who know who you are or see whats going on, the better!
• If your mindslave tries to cheese out of their obligation by running off before you can issue an order, adminhelp it.
• Keep an eye on the cargo bay and the armory, where dangerous weaponry can be ordered or looted. Some spies may attempt to eschew stealth entirely and go on a rampage. Do what you can to throw a wrench in their plans.
• Consider what departments you recruit from. Certain jobs will fit together very well, but seeing people from completely different departments congregating in one spot and whispering will raise a lot of suspicion.
• Implants can be taken out with surgery and put in a regular implanter to use as you see fit. You can recycle your dead comrade's implants this way, or capture an enemy and turn them to your side!
• Think outside the box with your approach! For example, are boring phasers REALLY needed? Why not try a radbow for stealth-shooting? There are lots of items, go nuts!

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