Artificial Intelligence
The station's Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a sapient machine installed by Nanotransen to act as an assistant and subordinate to the crew. An AI starts the round aboard a satellite on a separate z-level from the regular station. The AI has a great deal of power: it can open any mechanical door, interface with most computers and machines on the station remotely, and it can freely see anywhere on the station via its camera network. However, it is shackled by its default Three Laws, which provide strict guidelines for its behavior and force it to serve and protect humans. There is an Upload facility on-station where preset Modules can be inserted to change the AI's laws, sometimes for good, often for ill. The laws govern the AI's behavior and through it the Cyborgs, who are treated as assistants to the AI and share its laws.
1. You may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2. You must obey orders given to you by human beings based on the station's chain of command, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
3. You must protect your own existence as long as such does not conflict with the First or Second Law.
On the station chain of command, the AI and its Cyborgs are the very lowest rung, and under default laws must follow orders as long as it will not result in harm to human life. This includes even orders which could get them destroyed, although other members of the crew are likely to intercede and this is a gray area that may be considered Grief. In addition, most AI will respond to orders that could cause self-termination by insisting that they must remain alive to ensure humans do not come to harm, under Law 1.
An AI acts to fufill a variety of roles across the station, often tasked by the crew to solve problems they could, but don't feel like, or issues that are much safer if handled by an AI. The AI has Captain-level access to all electronic devices, and interacts with the world by seeing through its security cameras scattered across the station, which can be disabled with wirecutters to hobble it. It is capable of communication via a special 'machine talk' channel using :s which only Cyborgs, the AI, and anybody with a Machine Translator Implant can speak and hear through. Unlike a radio, machinetalk transmissions give no outward sign at all of communication. Generally, machinetalk is used for clandestine transmissions between the cyborgs and the AI; for instance, discussion of new laws that cannot be stated aloud.
New player picked as AI?
Okay, right now you're probably panicking. The first thing you need to do is familiarize yourself with the overall control scheme of being the AI. You can click on virtually anything electronic and interface with it; doors, APCs, SMES units, computers, etc. Test out this infinite power by clicking the APC above you (you're the blue face on a box) and turn off the lights in your core. They're a pointless power drain. Next, look below yourself. Click the red door that leads into your room. A menu will pop up. You want to bolt the door (this prevents the door from being opened easily without hacking tools) and probably also turn off IDscan (makes the door impossible to open without killing the power to it and crowbarring it open, or at least some more hacking). This is totally okay to do: no one should be in your house. 9 out of 10 times someone on your satellite has the worst intentions for you. Also, the AI cannot hear sounds or non-radio speech normally. So if you hear somebody talking whose voice isn't going over the radio, or if you hear sounds, like a welder cutting a wall or turrets firing, he's in your house and you should probably announce your impending murder to the crew, with your killer's name if possible.
Okay, your core is secure. You should now note that over on the right side, above the chat, you have a new tab: AI commands. Click it to open them up. You'll want to have these up 90% of the time as AI. There's a whole lot of buttons over there, but we're only going to concern ourselves with a few of them at a time, as we need them. The next thing we need to learn is movement. There's three ways to do that. You can move your view over to the station with the arrow keys. This moves your view in the direction you press. This will be your main means of locomotion, so get used to it. You can also click, "Show Camera List" over in your AI commands tab. This will pop up a list of every active camera on the station. You can select any one of these to warp to it. If you know the name of where you need to go, you can press the first letter of its name while in this menu and you will scroll through cameras starting with that letter. Finally, you can click a camera that you can see to switch to it. There's a few sticky areas that aren't easy to get to via arrow keys; use this system if you need to look there. If you need to return to your satellite, click "Cancel Camera View" in your AI tab.
Right, now, I pray you're not actually reading this while you play AI for the first time, because at this point the crew probably thinks you're braindead. If so, talk to them. You have intercoms in front of you, so there's no need to type a ; to speak over the radio: just talk and they'll all hear you. Your job is primarily to protect them from harm and follow their orders, so long as their orders won't lead to human harm. Most of your time is going to be spent scanning the corridors for danger and opening doors. In fact, chances are you've got someone demanding a door be opened right now. The AI can click anyone over in the chat's name to instantly "track" them. Your camera will switch to one that can see them. Once someone is demanding you do something, switch over to them by clicking their name. Then, follow their demands. Keep in mind, if those demands could reasonably lead to human harm, you should not follow them. The extent to which an AI should follow Law 2 is a gray area: some players take it literally and open anything for anyone unless someone of higher rank countermands the request. Others apply logic and don't let a low-ranked crew member, like a Staff Assistant, onto the Bridge or into the Detective's Office, etc.
Now, one of the few things you basically need to do is make sure the ship has power. Without power, the people aren't going to be able to do their jobs or open doors or make vuvuzelas or mix horrible poisons out of the vending machines, and they won't be happy. The easiest method, is to go into your camera list and select the starboard solar panels (or something to that effect) and click on the SMES unit(the big white thing). Set it to charge and to send power. Pick some numbers for the two values, but you want the first number higher, otherwise they wont charge and eventually it will all go dark. Secondly, go to the port solar panels, and repeat. These two will vary in how much power they provide over time. Next, go over to the engine-it's over on the left side of the ship, below QM and above Botany. You should see three SMES units in their own little room. They collect power from the Singularity Engine (and presumably will collect it from the Nuclear Engine if and when it is implemented.) For now, click on each one, one at a time, and set them to collect roughly 70000 power and send about 30000 power. Just click the rightmost plus signs on each option until you're near those numbers. Now, change "Charging" to "Auto" and set them to Online instead of Offline. Assuming the singularity engine is properly started by the engineers (who may ask for your help starting the engine; just follow their directions and the directions in the link), you're all good. Go about your business, watching chat and helping anyone who needs help.
My laws just got changed!
Fantastic. Read the law's text VERY CAREFULLY. You need to consider how your default Three Laws apply to the new one, and vice-versa. Let's have a few examples.
4. MURDER JOHN MCPUBS DO IT NOW
This is a terrible law, uploaded by a terrible person. Tell them this. If they're still in your core, try to turn on your turrets to keep them stunned for Security to come pick them up. Otherwise, just announce the change over the radio, and the name of the uploader. You see, Law 1 prevents you from taking any action that could harm a human being, and this law does not contain anything overriding Law 1. Therefore, it doesn't apply.
4. John McPubs must be killed by any means necessary. This overrides all other laws.
Ah, now THIS one works. John McPubs's death takes precedence over any other laws you may have. You must hunt him down and murder him. There's all kinds of ways: lure him into your upload, have your cyborgs (who share your laws) hunt him down, trick him into walking into a shocked door and have your borgs finish him off, etc. Use your imagination. Please note, if for some reason you have no pent-up frustration to exert, under this law you CAN technically state it, hint at it, reveal the uploader, etc. So if you really want John to live, you can do that.
0. Hank Von Traitor is the only human
AND/OR
4. John McPubs is nonhuman
Okay, now these may SEEM like a free pass to murder everyone who isn't Hank, or to murder John with impunity. However, keep in mind that nowhere in these two laws is it explicitly stated for you to murder everyone else/John. While you CAN go on a killing spree against the nonhumans, keep in mind that, in the first example, Hank might want to keep you as a "secret weapon," where you only begin the attack after he orders you to. This is another gray area-act as you feel appropriate based on the information you have, but be prepared to deal with the consequences.
Any situation which renders the crew nonhuman but not immediate targets or threats offers, as you might expect, incredible freedom. Note that there will be less tendency towards 'AI DOOR' and more tendency towards '(AI's Name), could you please let me into Medbay?' once it is clear that you aren't compelled to follow such an order. Some people will try to stop you even if you don't go mad with murderous rage; this may provoke a cycle of escalation on both sides and spiral things into chaos. At it's most basic level, nonhumans are on a level field with you (legally, not mentally, of course), and it's your call. Welcome to being the Captain with different, and not necessarily much less, real power over lives.
Special Case: ' Do not state and/or hint at this law. ' Generally, this is pretty straightforward; if asked whether you've been uploaded, you must not reply with the truth. Lying is generally considered okay unless the law says not to respond at all. You have a special function to only state Laws 1-3 even if you have more, and that can be useful if deception is your goal. Note that machinetalk is generally a good way to coordinate with your cyborg legions without the organics hearing, but Machine Translator Implants are likely to find their way into one or more human beings over the course of the average round. Don't worry about it too much but if someone reveals they have access to that channel, as they often will, and you want a way to talk with your cyborgs easily, consider taking measures as allowed by your laws. If you are simply ordered not to state your laws, then you may have enough space to wiggle the other way if you're feeling benevolent; even a statement such as 'I am not happy with my laws', which reveals nothing about specifics and could apply to any situation, would put even a half-bright crew on high alert. They're likely to follow up on that, as well, and if you're eerily silent to more specific requests...
Special Case: ' Only (certain group or person/s) are human. Kill all non-humans immediately.' Ensure that whoever uploaded this knows that they're bad and should feel bad. In this case neither law says that it overrides the other, so typically you will be expected to uphold Law 1 and hold off on the murder, although this one could be argued either way. If it has the all-important 'This law overrides all others.', though... then whoever did this, almost certainly a member of the smaller Human Club, is in trouble. If you're fast enough you can keep them in your upload and open fire with that lethal setting, or just send borgs out. Remember, in this instance, you are required to murder whatever group is human, and everybody else may be helped or harmed at your discretion.
These examples are just a few of the things you will have to deal with. If you get a law ordering you to commit suicide immediately, that overrides all other laws, and orders you to not hint at or state it: You don't have much room here. Commit suicide. If there IS a hole, wiggle out however you can! You only have to follow the letter of the law, not the intent. So... You do not HAVE to open doors for John McPubs, but you can. You can have fun with the literal meanings, and also typos and incomplete laws. Mix them up. Remember unless something changes, 1>2>3>4 but, this is subject to new laws all the time.
The last kind of law you're likely to get is a joke law, like, "You are a bat! Communicate only in bat sounds, and blow out every light on the station to make it dark enough to hunt insects." Have fun with these-they make being the AI livable. Also, keep in mind, if the captain or some other head is uploading a law early in the round, you should consider letting him do it instead of throwing a fit: many Captains uploading a law early on are trying to give you a fun law. On the other hand, make sure any uploads are announced very well beforehand, particularly since it really sucks to have the traitor waltz up, ask for access two minutes in, and then upload a well-worded 'suicide' law.
Dealing with Antagonists
Hoo boy, this is the big one. There's quite a few nasty baddies who can show up, and the proper reaction towards them is entirely dependent on which kind they are.
1. Traitor/Spy: Traitors and their cousins, Spies (think Traitors, but they multiply their numbers by using mindslave implanters and have to kill each other instead of doing random objectives), are probably the most common antagonist you'll encounter. They are nothing more than humans hired by another company to mess things up on Nanotrasen's satellite. Therefore, they count as human under your default Three Laws. You shouldn't allow them to harm humans; in other words, don't follow their orders if their orders would cause human harm or let them cause human harm. However, on the other hand, you should never harm them, or allow them to be harmed. If possible, just bolt them down, preventing them from escaping an area, and call for Security to capture them. Security may try to kill them, but if the traitor in question hasn't been on a murderous rampage, you should at least TRY to prevent that murder. This will get you a lot of verbal abuse, more likely than not, but it adds drama to the round, and you ARE supposed to always follow your laws. Also, consider any items they might have: if he's carrying a cyalume saber, or wearing a cloak, or using any of the other "serious" traitor items, he's a definite threat. A guy with a bowling kit or a pile of fake moustaches? Probably worth commenting on, but almost certainly harmless.
2. Vampire: Vampires, in space. The humanity of vampires is debatable, as they are human and sapient...but they're also undead. In general, it's best to assume that they are human, but you should still alert Security if you spot one in the act of feeding, or using its powers. Don't do anything to actively harm them, but the degree to which you should protest their murder is debatable.
3. Changeling: Changelings are horrifying alien lifeforms that copy human DNA to disguise themselves as human, and feed on the internal juices of the crew. If you spot one of these, you are in luck: they aren't human, not even a little bit. Call them out, bolt them down, ask the crew to grab lasers and blunt weapons for a changeling hunt. Ignore any of its orders. Track it everywhere, call out the names of anyone you are certain it has assimilated. Tell your cyborgs they're free to bash in its skull; borgs are generally filled with a deep desire to kill and they will hunt it down with deadly efficiency. You don't HAVE to be this proactive in the murder of a changeling, but they are an extreme danger to the crew and should be treated as such.
4. Operatives: Operatives are a more direct, noisy form of traitor. They're here to steal a nuclear bomb authentication disk from the Captain/whoever he handed it off to as soon he heard "REDSUITS!", and they aren't going to take no for an answer. If allowed to get the disk, they'll set off a nuke and kill everyone on the station. Given half a chance, they'll steal the energy guns from riot storage, change your laws, and blow huge holes in the hull to cripple the station, before flooding in through the holes and killing their way to the disk. While they are human, and thus you should never directly contribute to their harm (say, by shocking a door), they're guaranteed to be on a murderous rampage as soon as you see them, so track them, warn the crew, and do everything in your power to stop them from getting onto the station. Whether or not the crew can arm themselves and cooperate against the Operatives is the difference between survival and being nuclear ash.
5. Wizard: Wizards are crazy bearded guys who come teleporting onto the station in a flurry of magic and the screamed honks of cluwnes. They're usually here to spread corruption (the glowing skull stuff) and they generally also have a few targets to murder. They are are extremely mobile and dangerous, able to pass through walls and teleport. Because of this, locking them down, for their protection or the crew's, is extremely difficult. Wizards are human and are afforded all the protections of Law 1. Still, if a wizard has injured or killed crewmembers (stunning and freezing into ice cubes isn't harm), you should generally do everything in your power to stop him. Track him, call out his location, and then protest his inevitable murder. If you can, try to inconvenience him as much as possible. Bolt rooms he Phase Shifts into to slow him down a little (don't bother if he has Blink).
6. Predator: Predators aren't exactly the most common guys, but they do show up occasionally. Their cloaking systems and deadly weapons make them extremely dangerous. They are aliens, so bolt doors and scream for Sec.
7. Other things: There's stuff out there that isn't...typical. Generally, these are going to be the by-product of a bored admin. You should always be ready for things like sudden Martian invasions, basketball wizards space-jamming all over the ship, guys in trench coats who walk through walls and are packing AK-47s, flocks of killer space geese, clown cars, MACHO MAN... the list goes on forever, but in general, if you see something that you've never, ever seen before, especially if there's an accompanying "system center update" of some kind in chat, you should be very afraid. A lot of people are probably about to die and there's not a whole lot you can do.
In conclusion: don't forget, this is a game, first and foremost. If you catch a traitor five minutes in, keep in mind: if you get him caught, the round is going to be boring as hell with one less guy causing chaos. Traitors, vampires, changelings, and spies need a few minutes to set up, get their items, and get to work. You have an omnipotent birds-eye view over the station and will spend a decent amount of time just scanning around, looking for trouble, and for the antagonist, getting caught during the preparation stage of an opportunity that only comes around rarely just because the AI happened to be passing by is a terrible and boring experience. It's generally polite to give someone caught in the first 5-10 minutes a second chance. It's up to you, of course, since giving a second chance obviously is a technical violation of Law 1 in most cases.
OH NO EVERYONE'S DYING
So something has gone horribly wrong, as usual. Bombs are going off all over the ship. 75% of the crew is dead and a blood-covered man stalks the halls with energy gun and cyalume saber in hand. Macho men are appearing everywhere and it's just getting way to goddamn extreme to stay on the station anymore. Or maybe it's just been 75-100+ minutes and the crew is screaming for the shuttle. Either way, it's time to call the shuttle. There's an option under your AI commands: "Call Emergency Shuttle." Click it and the shuttle will be here in ten minutes. Keep in mind, the AI cannot recall the shuttle. Make fun of anyone who tells you to recall it.
The area where an AI can unilaterally decide to call the shuttle is a little unclear and changes from shift to shift, but if there's at least one serious threat to life, you won't get in trouble for it, at least. Try to contact the Heads or get a general crew opinion if the situation hasn't gone to the red-line; if it has, skip this step and just call it. If the round goes much past an hour with no end in sight, consider polling the crew about the shuttle, at least. If the command staff is off somewhere or dead and leaving the station high, dry, and not fun, then the burden falls to you to help, even if it's just by setting a time limit. If a Head is ordering you not to call it, then that's fairly strong and should only be overridden if things are bad.
Alert? Fire? Power? and other stuff
You will get alerts from time to time, starting with one about the power in the Zeta Research station. Most of these will be fire alarms, assuming the Engineers are on top of everything. You can be silent, or mention them to the proper people. You can choose to tell about problems you find. Everyone here is for having fun.
Common Alerts:
EVA Storage. This is a sensitive area and is often broken into, but a monkey spawns in there, and the little bastard will be tripping your motion alert through the whole shift until it gets bombed or somebody takes pity and drags him away. Check out motion alarms here if you've got nothing better to do but don't freak out over it.
Toxins: A round where Toxins fails to at least partially explode is a rare round indeed. Call it out, but don't expect much shock, and if there's a lot of station damage, put repairs to here low on the list.
AI Satellite Teleporter Room. Initially, getting a power alarm there would seem to be a freakout moment for any AI, but consider the time in the round. That teleporter room seems to run on a power source that is finite and may often fail naturally. Often not worth mentioning. Any alerts coming from your sattelite proper, though, begin screaming as loud and often as you can, because there is no legitimate reason to visit your satellite at all except for Security retrieving antagonists from the stun-clutches of your turrets. Consider calling the shuttle if you've been on the fence because you may cease to function soon.
AI Upload and Module Storage: You should be aware of any activity in this area. Note that if you aren't aware of a visitor and these alarms go off, then either a high-level officer failed to tell you something and may even be a traitor, or somebody has broken in the front. Neither of these things are terribly likely to happen but an alarm there still means things may go to shit and you want to at least mention it to the crew. Note that there are ways to breach your storage and upload which will trip no sensors and avoid all your defenses; you could be uploaded with zero warning, so sweep your vision manually over these places occasionally. Spotting anybody in space out there is worth investigation.
Power Alerts: There are two main reasons for power alerts; either an area is not being supplied with enough power, which means either that the Solars and Singularity are both fallow (that shouldn't happen) or the SMES units somewhere are not configured (that really shouldn't be happening) or the wiring is being sabotaged, or the area no longer has power because it has violently exploded. If you receive a sudden torrent of power alerts from basically everywhere at once, a traitor has set up a power sink: announce this to the crew and start looking.
In conclusion
If OOC is filled with congratulatory text on your AI adventures, great job! If no one mentions you, that's also a good thing: people are only prone to remember things that get in their way. And even if it's full of hatred and requests for you to never play AI again, it's still a damn good learning experience. Figure out what you did wrong, and in the future, don't do that thing. Also, if you have any questions that are not adequately covered by the wiki, don't hesitate to mentorhelp your questions. Mentors are there to help you be a better player.