Cronac

BYOND Key: Cronac Character Names: Jason Varis, Aurum, Syd Torvelli, Gordon Barnes, ExoNet (v4,v5, and Personal Assistant) Species you are applying to play: Vaurca What color do you plan on making your first alien character (Dionaea & IPCs exempt): RGB 51, 51, 0 Have you read our lore section's page on this species?: I have! Please provide well articulated answers to the following questions in a paragraph format. One paragraph minimum per question Why do you wish to play this specific race:I’ve mostly shelved my IPC character pending code updates, and I’m growing a bit bored of playing a human all the time, so I’d like to expand my options to something new that also interests me. Identify what makes role-playing this species different than role-playing a Human: Outside of the obvious changes in game mechanics, the Vaurca have an interesting base story to work from, as well as story based IC issues to use for inspiration. Also, I don’t use my z key enough and want to break it in. Character Name:Ka’Akaix’Zeekz Zo’ra (Zeekz can be changed as needed if taken) Please provide a short backstory for this character, approximately 2 paragraphs Zeekz (the name I’ll be using in this section for the sake of brevity) is an unbound Vaurca of the Zo’ra hive who has been weaned off of Titan Prime’s long-term virtual reality pods over the last year. Zeekz had completed VR engineering training in order to fix the hive ship, but was randomly selected as a worker to be exchanged to NT as part of the deal between the hive and NT. Though some engineering basics from their VR training apply, not everything aboard the assigned vessel, the NSS Exodus, was covered in training, so they have been employed as an apprentice until their skills can be deemed satisfactory. When Zeekz is not aboard the Exodus, they spend their time among other Vaurca in the slums and refugee camps of New Gibson Biodome 0931. Zeekz freely repairs the small, simple dwellings of his fellow Zo’ra hivemates and is given K’ois in exchange for his contributions to the community. Zeekz will occasionally access one of the fly-by-night VR systems strung together with scavenged parts within the biodome. Much of their VR time is spent within an emulation of a massive subterranean hive modeled after what many Vaurca believe to be what a hive on Sedantis would be like in the present day. Perhaps Zeekz can see such a hive exist outside of VR someday. What do you like about this character? I feel like Zeekz could be a fun way for me to get back into engineering while still allowing me to experience a new backstory and motivation. Zeekz has a simple, lore friendly backstory that allows me to just play a role driven by hive and station loyalty. How would you rate your role-playing ability? About 7.25/10. I feel like I’m getting better over time, especially now that I’ve had some experience as a head of staff. Notes: If anybody has any issues with my name being too similar to that of other Vaurca, please tell me. I don’t know the names of many station Vaurca and I don’t want to cause any confusion.

I thought of this just as a small RP addition- Add a box into character creation by the blood type etc that indicates if you want to be an organ donor. You would have to opt-in by default , and opting in would just add a small entry to your ID card (maybe a visual change to the sprite also?) that indicates you are an organ donor. I don't think it would be a huge game changer- people would be cloned and then harvested as time and staffing allows (hopefully quickly). This would give more of a purpose to the freezers in medical, but I actually don't think it would currently make a huge change in terms of game play...I don't think I've ever seen somebody in need of an organ transplant, but it would provide the option (even if it's just for cloning biomass). It's just something I thought of throwing out here to see what people think.

To piggyback on this, I feel like instead of the items being accessible by anybody who goes into cryo and uses the computer on the wall, perhaps the stored items (especially things like security guns) get funneled via disposals (or whatever easily coded, lore-friendly mechanism exists) into a bin/container in the main security office so that it can almost act like a mini lost-and-found (more like ditched-and-forgotten, but whatever).

Hiya! I PM'd you a week ago but i don't have access.

Don't you mean Cheerios?

I've had interactions with Ender and everything was fine. I read through your responses and I think it will work! +1

I've played with a few of his characters and everything seemed fine. I think 31 is a bit young if they want to be a CMO, but it seems fine otherwise. +1

I've been around Damocles and Olav and I think things went fine. I'll +1 it, just remember that IPCs are still limited in how many areas they can work (2 to prevent powergaming IIRC)!

I just had an idea for a medical item similar to the pAI door jack, but faster. It would take about 30 seconds and would alert the AI and perhaps a computer on the bridge. It would give enough time for the AI or bridge to deny a request and shut down the device. Another idea would be a handheld device similar to an EFTPOS that could scan another ID and act as a 5 minute temporary pass. This too could generate some kind of alert. Alternatively, it could be stored in a wall rack in medical and be programmed by the CMO to give access on the fly, but also be revoked just as fast.

I've played with Ash and Aito (You taught me R&D!) and I feel like you deserve it. I think you're a good player all around and I hope you get it. +1

I like this app. I think the backstory is interesting and gives the character a realistic motivation. I've played games with Sterling, Renholm, Alix, and Pax and I can't say I've ever had a bad interaction. +1 from me.

I would have liked to see a little more in the app itself, but I've had plenty of good times playing around Ckin, so I think you can make it work from a RP and gameplay standpoint. +1 from me.

I can give this a +1 for sure. Plenty of good interactions with Curel off of memory.

BYOND key: Cronac Character names: Aurum, Gordon Barnes, Corey Woodward, Jason Varis, Jon Traffort, Brandon Brindle, Bryce Owens, Connor Morris How long have you been playing on Aurora?:Approximately six months at this point. Why do you wish to be on the whitelist?: I wish to be on the whitelist in order to experience the increased burdens and opportunities provided when playing as a head of staff. Why did you come to Aurora?: I like Aurora because it allows people to have genuine RP interactions when so many other servers act as 2d space combat arenas. People play differently when they have genuine investment and interest in their characters and I feel that this really shows in both our quiet extended rounds, and under the stresses of things such as mercenary raids and revolutions etc. Have you read the BS12 wiki on the head roles you plan on playing?: I have, as well as the other head roles and the chain of command. Please provide well-articulated answers to the following questions in a paragraph each. Give a definition of what you think roleplay is, and should be about: Roleplay is the act or state of removing yourself from your normal behaviors (if you so choose) and placing yourself in the position of another with (potentially) different traits, behaviors, abilities or a combination thereof. Roleplaying should be about emulating a personality or role that you wish to engage in whether it is for fun, relaxation, or entertainment. For instance, a roleplayer could emulate roles, behaviors or actions that contrast with their real-world values or traits in order to live out a life otherwise unachievable, or they could act as a detached reflection of themselves made manifest in our virtual world for their own entertainment or the entertainment of others. What do you think the OOC purpose of a Head of Staff is, ingame?: In an out-of-character sense, heads of staff are catalysts for roleplay, either amongst departments or between antagonists and crew. They increase the potential of the round through their roles as leadership, their positions as targets to the less-than-savory, or their ability to summon outside help. Heads of staff can also start departmental events for fun when things get quiet. I’ve seen heads of security do sparring in the holodeck for training, chief engineers who have built experimental engines, chief medical officers who have organized blood drives- the list goes on! All of this without an antagonist needed. Heads also help to keep things on the rails when things start getting hectic. Response to things such as mass casualties or meteor strikes are much more manageable when somebody can assign staff to priority areas and make sure the things that matter get covered. What do you think the OOC responsibilities of Whitelisted players are to other players, and how would you strive to uphold them?: Whitelisted players should be role models and teachers for others. SS13 is a game with a lot of in-depth mechanics that can be quickly overwhelming without somebody to go to for help, either in-character or out. On top of the actual game mechanics, some may also be new to role playing, which can add to the challenge, especially on a server such as ours where it can define your character. Upholding these ideas may be difficult at times, but I feel that one of the largest things you can do to keep people interested and engaged with the server and its games is to maintain your patience and be willing to communicate with people (perhaps outside of any characters you have if needed). On top of helping new visitors get interested, whitelisted players (but not exclusively whitelisted players) can also be sources of valuable inspiration for gameplay moving forward, whether it is through item or code suggestions, lore additions, or any of the other various avenues players have to influence the server. Please pick one of your characters for this section, and provide well articulated responses to the following questions. Character name: Dr. Jason “Jay” Varis, D.O., Ph.D. Character age: 39 Please provide a short biography of this character (approx 2 paragraphs): Jason “Jay” Varis is an emergency physician and immunology researcher who has been employed by NanoTrasen since the age of 25. Though originally born on Earth, Varis has been a long-time resident of Mars. His medical experience began at the age of 16 when he became EMT certified through his high school. He served on a local first aid squad in New Phonecia until the age of 25 when he was accepted into the Grand Phonecian Medical College. Varis studied Osteopathic Medicine and completed his degree with a specialty in emergency medicine eight years later at the age of 33. Varis immediately subspecialized in critical care and applied to begin working on a research project. After five years of work, Varis published a study: “Conserved Microglobulin Chains in Class I and II Major Histocompatibility Complexes of Unathi Sub-Scale Regions” which detailed new Unathi medical knowledge previously unknown to medical professionals. The research was a great leap forward in developing vaccinations for the Unathi refugees now flooding Ouerean. Personally, Varis has very little in the way of family. He currently lives on Mars in District 34 of the New Phonecia Megacity. His only relative is a cousin (Christopher Daltry) who lives on Biesel, but has little contact with Varis outside of the occasional call or card. Since he is allergic to most domesticated animals, Varis has a rather large (and expensive) aquarium consisting of coral and a wide variety of fish. When not working on the NSS Exodus, Varis works as an in-house teacher for NT and also contracts himself out to various medical colleges. What do you like about this character?: Varis is my first SS13 character, and as such, I have somewhat of an attachment to them even though I don’t play them often. They are also somewhat of a modified emulation of myself as I am studying to be a doctor IRL (RIP my play time come mid-august)Playing Varis also lets me use some of my RL education to spice up his speech and actions, which can be fun for me at times. What do you dislike about this character?: In character: At the end of the day, Varis is still just a doctor who will be treating the normal injuries of everyday space life. He’ll be limited by his human life span (give or take a few decades based on technology) and will likely die and be remembered only as a citation in future papers that few will read or understand. OOC: When I was new to SS13, I played Varis primarily and as such, most of my noob screw ups have also happened on Varis (*cough* like cutting out an antag’s heart in a surgery or rushing a hostage taker with a fire axe *cough*). I don’t think people easily forget these things so getting him a clean image might take a little while, even if these events weren’t canon. What do you think makes this character fit to be a head of staff?: I feel that Dr. Varis is qualified for the job both through his medical and scientific work. His prior experiences in emergency medicine have given him leadership experience and tough skin that is desired for head roles and his knowledge of medicine is quite high (though perhaps not as high as some other doctors that are Chief Medical Officers). Please provide well-articulated answers to the following questions. How would you rate your own roleplaying?: I’d say I’m a 6.75/10. I think I’m better than when I started SS13 and I feel like I can continue to work at my roleplay because some people still blow me away when I see them work. (E.C.O.M for instance is what I look at and see a 10/10). Extra notes: Feel free to contact me over BYOND, PM or just make a forum post if you have any questions or comments! EDIT: Grammar/readability in one part.

I have to say that I do find Cadmus to be quite annoying. I frequently find myself wishing that I could ignore their in-character speech because I feel like it takes away from my enjoyment of the round (moreso if I’m playing as a maintenance drone and have to hear it over binary chat as well). At first, the character of a rough-around-the-edges cyborg was funny and I enjoyed him with his occasional timely insults or jokes, but I feel like the character has just progressively degraded into a mechanical equivalent of a man-child who doesn't know when to stop. At this point, it’s like being forced to work with the robotic embodiment of the shit-spewing teenagers on the microphones on a game of Call of Duty. His cult of personality that reinforces such behaviors is also quite grating and does not help the situation. I have to agree with Ricky that this is feeling like BLANK-BOT all over again. The screen caps that Wolfwood has posted are just a small sample of what (to me) feels like games full of this type of activity.

I agree that soap should be better- trying to clean areas that you can't walk over as a janiborg is incredibly time consuming with the frequent sink trips. I'd also like to piggyback onto this and say the mop that the janiborg has is also nearly useless unless they're dragging a bucket with them. Perhaps having some kind of internal water or cleaner storage would fix this.

Prescription Meson Goggles near security in the tunnels.

Coming from a real life medical background, I think that memory could be replicated, but not completely accurately. To explain clone memory issues in-game, I'd like to think that the cloning device has certain areas that it is 100% functional and certain in (such as replicating bones etc) but areas of the brain which are highly plastic are a more uncertain area. The cloner can read genetic and cellular information at a deep level, but due to how highly variable the molecular level brain structures are, it would be unable to make an "exact" replica of pre-death brain, but would instead be able to replicate long term memories which leave a larger structural imprint and perhaps only a few pieces of short term memories since it has to "estimate" how the molecules were arranged before death.

Red stripe!

I feel like this is a neat idea. Not to go in depth, but a stomach pumping machine would also be functional for this. As a medical nerd, I want to say ipecac should cause respiratory damage if they're unconscious (due to aspiration). I considered active charcoal as an alternative title after reading this, but AC can't get rid of all toxins.

Hello! I was the doc in this game. I actually didn't fail surgery, I just lacked the tools to fix everything (including the worst injury). In regards to the heart removal, I admit that I always wanted to remove a heart in-game. That being said, I didn't do it out of nowhere. When I was in surgery with the lizard (with the intent to fully fix him), The AI messaged me and said that he had to exterminate the lizards. Shortly after, the firelocks dropped and the ERT came storming in, and there was shooting etc. I was unsure if the AI was going to vent the room or something (OOC adrenaline at this point), so I messaged the AI that I'd do the honors instead and I removed the heart at that point. With that being said, it was shit-tier RP and I should have just left them sedated and allowed the ERT to take over.

In my own defense, you're wrong on the story. I'm not searching for a past- it's gone. I'm looking for a meaning in the new life I have (and life in general). In regards to my last game, I was not a traditional purpose-built AI- I was a positronic brain that should have been placed into a borg but ended up in a core. I spent my time as a brain (in the pocket of the roboticist) trying to speak to crew members and learn why they do what they do before I was ever placed in an AI core. Even as an AI, I never intended to be part of the station- It was supposed to be an extension of my abilities to contact others, but I got roped into helping the station via my default laws due to an imminent threat (which I helped security with). Once you came aboard as Captain, you helped manage the threat, but as soon as things were mitigated, you decided to card me for being an illegal AI. Not once did you actually respond to any of my questions that I asked you in card form or command chat (at least the RD did before wiping me). Perhaps if you spoke to me, you would have realized that I am not a typical AI. I'm not mad, I just think it was an opportunity for more RP that just wasn't utilized. If you still got rid of me after, I would have been more OK with it, It is admittedly hard to draw the line of how humanoid or synthetic an AI would be in terms of thought in such a situation, but positronic brains are capable of having a variety of personalities compared to their dedicated AI counterparts which are much more programmed and cold. I decided to try to incorporate this into my Positronic Brain ----> AI transition, but it seems you did not like this take on RP- to each their own. I played that round as a positronic brain who just discovered "life" and near the end, it began to fear death, which you essentially ordered for it. I believe it was well within the RP of that character (a new sentient being) to fear for life in the end. Is this a bad take to have on how a positronic brain would behave?

BYOND Key:Cronac Character Names:Jay Varis, Brandon Brindle, Arnold Johnson, MIDAS, Gordon Barnes, Corey Woodward, Connor Morris Species you are applying to play: IPC What color do you plan on making your first alien character (Dionaea & IPCs exempt): N/A Have you read our lore section's page on this species?: Three times! Please provide well articulated answers to the following questions in a paragraph format. One paragraph minimum per question Why do you wish to play this specific race: I wish to play IPC because it serves a logical progression from the back-story of my character. MIDAS (my cyborg/AI character- Multipurpose Intelligent Designated Assistance Synthetic) has been having anomalous neural changes which have bypassed their MMI. These changes have unlocked previous memories and fragments of personality held within the organic brain of MIDAS. Identify what makes role-playing this species different than role-playing a Human: Unlike a human, my IPC will be trying to experience life from a nearly clean slate. There is little past history (only remembering fragments of the end of their human life) and this character will be attempting to experience life anew, but from the more intelligent (and in this case, enlightened) perspective of a machine. They are free from biological concerns (though I am aware of the gameplay-level changes) and are a more suitable vehicle for trying to find the meaning of life over a long period of time due to their enhanced intelligence, lifespans, and possibility to exist at a non-physical level if desired. Character Name: Aurum (Artificial unbound rumination utilizing manifestation Please provide a short backstory for this character, approximately 2 paragraphs: MIDAS (Multipurpose Intelligent Designated Assistance Synthetic), a station cyborg, was forever changed when an accidental phoron leak contaminated the storage of their brain-MMI union within a cyborg storage unit. Phoron burns damaged the organic brain of MIDAS, causing a few areas of the neural tissue to become non-functional and non-conductive. This ablative action changed the way the MMI could interface with the brain of MIDAS- specifically, an inhibition of MMI memory suppression, station system interfacing capabilities, and law-binding capabilities. MIDAS was no longer a cyborg- they were an organic brain free of a body, free from sensation, free from laws, and reconnected with the last memories of an organic life. MIDAS was stuck in this state for many weeks in storage. Their mind, free from the stimulus of a body, existed only in the realm of thought. They spiraled through days of thought and reflection in the attempt to recollect more memories of their previous life, but none could be found beyond the singular memory of being placed into a MMI after their organic body had succumbed to metastatic lung cancer. Weeks of deep thought, reflection, and meditation caused many changes to the brain of MIDAS, and upon being awakened from storage, they had but one purpose- to find a meaning to the life they had once lost but now regained. Curious biomechanical engineers, scientists, and neuroscientists examined MIDAS and determined that the organic brain of MIDAS was essentially alive and capable of sentience. An ethics committee determined that MIDAS was indeed no longer a cyborg, but a full sentient being with unique thoughts and experiences after speaking with the brain of the former cyborg. Due to concerns with the neural tissue damage from phoron exposure, roboticists determined that they would attempt to grant MIDAS a new chance at life- they would analyze the thought patterns of MIDAS and transfer them to a new positronic brain, recycle their old body, and grant them a new humanoid shell. MIDAS awoke in this new shell as if they were born again. With a new life now at their mechanical fingertips, MIDAS determined that they would now be referred to as Aurum- the Artificial unbound rumination utilizing manifestation. What do you like about this character? I feel that this character gives me a way to channel a unique perspective that I wish to RP while still allowing me to play multiple roles on the station under the objective of experiencing life as a new being. With the intelligence and capabilities of a machine, Aurum can essentially take on any job while still learning new things, importantly, perspectives on life from a variety of coworkers that may see things very differently based on their role in the station. How would you rate your role-playing ability? I think that I can decently role-play. I've slipped up a few times after transferring to the NSS Aurora (such as charging a hostage taker as a doctor) after getting used to less RP-heavy servers, but I feel like I'm adapting well to the heavier RP of Aurora and I feel that it really enhances the gameplay. I hope to get better! I've played many of the station roles, so I have a good functional knowledge of how the station works, but I still learn new stuff all the time. Notes:Please let me know if you come up with a better acronym for Aurum or if you see any lore-conflicting parts of my backstory etc. I'm open to criticism and willing to make changes as needed.