Carver

While I'd potentially agree with you in most of these cases, this one Is a precedent we should likely be avoiding in most cases. If your character switched careers, fine, I'll overlook a trained Engineer with a degree switching to an unrelated field where the career competition is 20 year olds with no higher education. But forcing open an airlock with tools, if it's for something like Security purposes, and not for something like 'THERE'S A PHORON FIRE IN THIS ROOM I NEED TO BUG OUT', takes away the value of the actual Engineers in the round who you could instead choose to involve by asking for their assistance. You also really, really shouldn't be carrying a toolbelt as an Officer in a vast majority of cases. If you're breaking open a door by force like most other Officers who are impatient or under stress, no one is really going to care.

Pretty sure the poll for this was a 'no' given we had this added to the wiki the day after the poll ended.

When I say uncomfortable, I mean explicitly OOCly uncomfortable. Notably why I mentioned I'd just cryo if I was targeted by them, and probably ahelp the AI while I was at it.

These five have some potential to end up producing really weird/uncomfortable situations for players, I don't really mind the rest but I can see myself just cryoing if I end up targeted by any of these as the crew. The first one can be fixed to avoid weirdness by removing the 'and beauty' part of it, at least.

Only if it's comically loud.

I'll gently remind that the balance of this medical system is lasting wounds and attrition. Blood oxygenation, brain damage, organ failure. Something Security is already strong against due to medical existing, and something that these listed models ignore entirely. You don't need armour if you're on an ancient version of pointmed where your failstate is death and you're backed by an entire ship. Sure, just like toeless boots - aliens being unable to wear most human voidsuits - etc. Very snowflake to imitate an existing and functional system that separates equipment available to the various species.

I'm afraid I wouldn't take any compromise but no armour whatsoever. Despite what you insist, internal injuries and pain are exceptionally relevant - and a Vaurca can die of injuries post-battle. An IPC will never bleed to death, suffocate or pass from organ failure. Industrials are effectively the Bulwarks of IPCs, and Bulwarks are wholly unable to wear armour. As for an antag status check, that would be awful snowflake code that adds a mechanical variance between mundane (non-magical/alien) antagonists and crew, something that doesn't particularly exist at the moment outside of combat manuals. I can't support such a check, I'd rather prefer seeing armour designed for them in the uplink.

The key takeaway from my mention of brain-med is that they bleed, feel pain and are otherwise affected by most mechanics despite their wearing armour. Vaurcae are also not exactly the most resilient of species due to poor self-healing and medical not uncommonly killing them from malpractice. Much as I dislike revival mechanics, that isn't really what I'm targeting. It's more of a 'cherry on top' of the pile of balance issues. There's no way to really cleanly do this besides having armour in the uplink designed to fit industrials. But making G1s, G2s and Xions entirely unable to wear armour outside of antag-exclusive uplink gear is one compromise I'd be entirely fine with. I actually made a point of testing these differences out of curiosity, but I didn't post screenshots of the results because my post had felt fairly lengthy as-is. Off of memory last night from a brief bit of testing laser rifles it generally protected from around 7-8~ more damage per shot (I don't have the exact numbers because I didn't take screenshots of anything but testing on the combat hardsuit) to have specialized armour vs heavy, which for high-capacity semi-automatics like said aforementioned laser rifles, constitutes a fairly significant loss of damage over an extended engagement.

While I did mention the maglight, a tool that I mentioned as quite slow - oh, and if you're using a combitool implant as security there's a strong argument for powergaming there - I feel this is worth demonstration. By the same tests, a maglight took thirty hits to break the door. That is nowhere near the same time efficiency and can't be done if one has had their equipment removed from them. Vaurcae don't ignore brain-med (Dionae somewhat do, but they're loaded with a plethora of native weaknesses) and the server has made very strong efforts to move away from powergaming Security Dionae as far as mechanics go. I have taken the time just now to test this as well, and it works per the guide. If we're going to take half-measures I'd rather see Industrials wholly unable to use any armour. But I'd prefer a change that targets solely Security, instead of crippling the antagonists of these sub-species as well. Consider that telecrystals are a very finite resource that you will typically use a majority of to enforce a gimmick, leaving you not as much as you'd perhaps like to handle other matters if you have multiple big issues. Per my earlier comment, these issues are normally circumvented via cleverness such as taking the fight to space, but in this case that isn't very feasible. As for hardsuits, they are both a significant investment in regard to resources for human characters to use (and are only very rarely made by the Machinist due to resources and research required, while being essentially never taken by crew from the Vault due to powergaming concerns) while the G2 that can use armoury equipment that is not only available at roundstart but expected to be used - cannot, in fact, use these hardsuits. Spoilered to minimize post-size: Shitcurity Officer is the lad on the left, who with the same spare ID attempted to put on the same hardsuits as the G2 while using the same verb to do so - Toggle Hardsuit. Given that they are used by organic characters, I once again raise the 'doesn't ignore brain-med' point. Furthermore, these hardsuits do not exceed the power of Corporate Heavy Armour, per this direct comparison below of the Combat Hardsuit and Corporate Heavy. Thus meaning they can be effectively defeated by most non-AP longarms. .. I really hope these spoilers worked since this forum has no preview feature.

I feel quite content in my statement considering they blatantly disregard: The entirety of Brainmed including the pain system and internal injuries, the requirement of tools to bypass a majority of doors, the grab system by virtue of their modifiers (what I was referring to by melee abilities), the existence of voidsuits (yet curiously are still able to wear armour), the permanence of death and so forth. They are, for the most part, existing in a state of balance reminiscent of how mechanics were ten years ago. I would dare say they're superior to the old security cyborgs when they're adequately equipped. I prefer to address the source of the problems, not the symptoms. Being reminded of something I had meant to post in again for some weeks is none of your concern, and I truly would not care what model your character is in - though I can't imagine myself willingly enabling antagonist roles with an Industrial in Security. Laser rifles would be quaint if not that Security starts with ablative armour in their armoury, and they will generally equip themselves to counter what you are seen carrying. It is rarely feasible to carry multiple longarms. As for EMPs, they are cute but I'd prefer not to have antagonists balanced around ordering a different tool to disable each individual within a department (especially ones that have been nerfed heavily from prior iterations where they were truly effective in destroying synthetics, rather than merely disabling them). Traditionally it has been balanced in this form: If your weapon is hard countered, you bring the fight to space where specialized armour is no longer feasible - something decidedly ignored by the three IPC sub-species this thread is commenting upon. As for door ripping, generally if there's a glass door there's a window that's markedly easier to break. If the door isn't glass, then I wouldn't exactly expect to be shot. I'll note that it takes a great amount of time as well for the average Officer to break down a door physically, given few of their tools have enough force to do so - and those that are typically carried (maglight) are nowhere near the efficacy of a fireaxe or similar. Dionae can as well if I remember correctly? Though I believe it's rather traumatizing for them.

Even with weak points I'm not really sure, all of the models listed are capable of wearing armour in space which means you can't counter them wearing specialized armour as one typically counters security - fighting them out in space. It's a whole bundle of disregarding mechanics even if one ignores G1s/G2s being exceptionally utilitarian with their melee abilities and the absurd power of being able to rip open a door or punch through reinforced glass.

I have seen some rather poor industrials in the department lately that reminded me of this thread. As has been said before, the department does not benefit from objectively overpowered races that ignore a vast majority of mechanics and enable bad play in general.

I would rather we not. I play on this server because it has chosen to not be like other servers, in regard to both aesthetic and general direction.

I completely despise this brightness, please return to what we had before. I play a character with nearsightedness and find that I have perfect vision without prescription glasses now just because of how bright and high-contrast these tiles are. Even putting the brightness aside, the new metal tiles are very visually busy which I quite dislike. I really hate to use this argument, but did the tiles truly need an update? I felt like the general colouring, tone and tiles of Aurora have always been the strongest part of it's aesthetic. Mild edit since I shouldn't be wholly negative: The dark-greenish tiles at the stool area of the Kitchen are good, perhaps the one tile I do like from this. I'd like if they were an addition, rather than part of a general replacement.

And hopefully removing the dog tags, lol.

I rather like having two holodecks more, truthfully. We have so much unused rear wing-space that I really can't see issue with putting the bunker somewhere around the back. Patience belongs in Service instead of that awful dance floor.

I'd argue assistants have plenty of reason to exist, it's just that they're criminally underused. They're very helpful for Command (or any crew) who need small tasks done, or just wish to have a general helper on-hand.

Any chance we could regain the lost vending machines somewhere? Some windows in maint too, given Rec was a fantastic avenue for antags to enter/flee the Horizon via the windows? Otherwise, much as I like the old rec area aesthetically, it was sadly rather unused so I won't miss it barring the privacy of the smoking lounge. This remap is nice and maybe will be a good excuse to replace that ugly dance floor in Service with the tree again.

This feels like an assistant gimmick. I don't dislike the thought at all, but I also don't see why this couldn't be done as an assistant.

My issue even with a delay is that nanopaste is an instant heal application - it doesn't take time to reduce the damage, it's a flat -15/-15 with no diminishing returns on something that claims to have 10 uses (though the # on the sprite changes very inconsistently and sometimes doesn't change at all). Further, it can be used by all IPCs regardless of personal ability - most people require visiting a medical doctor in order to receive treatment beyond just stopping bleeding with a bandage and preventing infection with ointment. For lack of machinists I truly wouldn't care if engineers were permitted to do external repairs in their absence - but a multi-use self-heal that is highly effective and requires 0 character skill/knowledge should not be something anyone but antags have access to. If an antagonist highly damages an IPC, they should require someone else to repair them or be stuck with inefficient self-repair using tools - as most others in crew find themselves dependent on medical staff and don't just pop pills in combat.

This suggestion is more or less just for removing the ability to externally repair IPCs and prosthetics with it (including external damage repaired via maintenance hatch). Any other function (internal component/mechanical organ repairs and xenoarch stuff being the only things I can immediately think of) is something that I would hope is left intact. I don't really have any opinion on whether the xenoarch stuff should additionally be reparable via tools, as I doubt nanopaste would be any rarer for a new lack of value as an absurd healing tool.

A simple balance suggestion in the wake of a few recent discussions; Remove all self-healing capabilities of Nanopaste. This would leave it solely a surgical 'tool' used by surgeons and machinists for fixing damaged internal mechanical/synthetic organs/parts within organic crew and IPCs respectively. This would return any external synthetic damage to requiring slow repairs via actual tools. For the 'in exchange' part, return the ability for IPCs to self-heal via actual tools - at a slower action speed than being repaired by another so as to make it unfeasible in an active combat situation. Let antagonists disregard this speed penalty by some measure (Have an uplink purchase called 'IPC Self-Maintenance Kit' with a manual that removes the penalty and a box w/ a couple of cable coils and an industrial welding tool).

BYOND Key: GMR25 Character Names: Constance Marca, Frederick Dayton, Reed Calom, Valeriin Dyrukh'raszyn Species you are applying to play: Vaurca What color do you plan on making your first alien character: (RGB 101, 0, 21) Have you read our lore section's page on this species?: Yes 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: To broaden my options as I've been pondering character ideas as of late, and more than a few of these ideas have been dependent on a couple of whitelists that I do not have. To tell the truth, these ideas are mostly my mind 'shotgunning' to see what I find enjoyable - I can't guarantee I'll strongly enjoy a species until I've tried them. On the subject of Vaurcae specifically, I've had more than a few character ideas that only work for Vaurcae and their particular limitations and mentality. Furthermore, what fascinates me the most about Vaurcae are their broods, with their unique specialties and especially the colourfully imaginative worlds each brood's VR paints in one's head. I adore imagining their virtual realms, miniature universes shaping the culture of every brood and the greater hives. Identify what makes role-playing this species different than role-playing a Human: Beyond the most apparent mechanical differences of requiring phoron to survive, possessing access to the hivenet and being reliant on K'ois; their mentality is rather unique for the setting, between their dedication to the betterment of their hive and their Queen's will, and a near-dependence on access to their virtual reality. Their manner of communication via pheromones presents a markedly strong barrier in regard to truly understanding, or being understood by, other species - with only vocal synthesizers to really work with. Among their own, conflict is minimal outside of the politics between the three primary Hives as well as the more recent 'Queenless problem' that the Zo'ra are dealing with - then of course there's Lii'dra, but she hasn't been active in some time. Onto more specific differences, the most marked are present for Ka and Ra; the former wholly averse to situations where violence may even just be a suggestion, and the latter designed to securely remove themselves from such situations. While Za have no such limitations, that does not make them foolish brutes incapable of assessing danger. As for Ta, they are wise enough to know there is nearly never a benefit to putting themselves at any risk of harm. One can't talk about differences without bringing up the potent discrimination all Vaurcae face: mechanically evident by a reduced pay for what is seen as a near-disposable innumerable source of manpower, and the widespread distrust of them preventing from being allowed anywhere near Command. I would mention avowals as a nod to historical barriers in their career as well. Furthermore they have a coloured history with Mendell City in particular that paints their image poorly to many an urban Bieselite, owing to the poor state of Flagsdale and the surgent crime committed by Queenless gangs. No other species faces the same disdain, disgust and distrust as Vaurca do. Character Name: Ka'Akaix'Amox Zo'ra, Curator Please provide a short backstory for this character Hatched in the human year of 2459 and bearing no prior memories, Amox is an unbound Type A Vaurca designed to serve as an archivist of Zoleth'akeh, spending it's initial few years of life almost solely in VR tending to Zoleth's vast records. Yet, in the wake of the 35th Battlefleet's invasion in 2462 where it was tasked with recording new battles with a wholly alien force; it found a new fascination in the contemporary study and translation of the wealth of knowledge present in the martial histories, faiths and mythologies of other species. It now seeks to gather notable texts and records that may be of value to furthering Zoleth's interests in both warlike and spiritual matters, hoping to translate such valuable works into a virtual form more readily consumable by Vaurcae. Though it's work contrasts with Athvur's 'library' of human knowledge, as Amox seeks to translate and record only what it views as practical histories and texts bearing potential relevance to Zoleth's brood and the greater hive Zo'ra. In pursuit of this goal it has sought assignment aboard the SCCV Horizon, both seeking exposure to the myriad of libraries, archives and museums of alien worlds as well as the living history that may best be experienced by the one-of-a-kind exploratory vessel. This work so far has brought forth many obstacles, expected and unexpected. It has had to dedicate time toward improving it's mastery of written Basic, in order to fully understand the alien works it seeks to study. Yet this makes reading said works no easier, as it has encountered the uniquely Vaurcaesian obstacle of requiring finely controlled lighting to comfortably read printed text without ocular strain over an extended period. Such work brings an expected, yet ever uncomfortable mental fatigue due to the separation from Zoleth's realm demanded by long periods of research - with Amox choosing to read most texts within a single sitting, in order to then spend the downtime pondering over the worth of what was read. What do you like about this character? I simply enjoy the idea of an alien mind trying to gather meaning and insight from books, encountering obstacles truly unique to a Vaurca as it processes the histories and seeming absurdities of these foreign works and the cultures that birthed them, then exploring it's own perspective on these individual works. I wanted to try and create a character for an uncommon, rather unorthodox role and see how the pieces could fit together aboard the Horizon. On a further note, I enjoy the challenge of trying to write a Zo'rane service character from a brood that isn't Athvur without compromising the greater identity of the brood. How would you rate your role-playing ability? On a motivated day I'd say 7/10, if I'm feeling strongly inspired maybe 8+/10. I generally try to only play when I'm motivated, though this occasionally fades if I lose track of the idea I had going into a round. Notes: I'm never going to perfectly remember when to use Vaurca or Vaurcae, since my brain was trained on not using the e. I suspect I already misused one or the other in this very application despite thoroughly trolling my answers for such errors. My brain crinkled in on itself trying to discern which was correct for the application title, as I'm still unsure if I fumbled the title.

My concern with making the Old/Pre-FR accent less restricted would be potentially running into the 'HMR Issue' where it's concerningly overused. As it stands, you have to strongly justify a character to have it - and I think rare accents with a strong lore tie-in are interesting! But I do also like the idea of a separate, new/imitation accent for younger nobility - and think that should be the more common/widespread option.

Please make it obvious to new players that they don't actually do anything.