synthetic Predicament IPC Application

[Predicament]

BYOND Key: Predicament
Character Names: Tacit (Medical/Pharmaceutical Robot) and Dabir Shariff (Security Officer) are currently the main characters I'm sticking with. A few other notable characters I've played were Jeremiah Simms (Janitor), ShrimpOS (Robot & shrimp fact enthusiast), Tipen (pAI), and a couple of others I can't remember off the top of my head. If it helps at all, I've played just about every role enough to be familiar with each, and like to get creative with my visitors like my elderly Violet Dawn survivor. Character-hopping's been a bad habit of mine because I keep getting new ideas and end up wanting to move to them, so I don't have too many notable characters.

Species you are applying to play: IPC
What color do you plan on making your first alien character: N/A
Have you read our lore section's page on this species?: Yes, as well as the page for Konyang! I've also read up on most of the factions, including Purpose.

 

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'm interested in playing IPC because I've always had a love for synthetic characters, specifically how they behave and operate. The mechanical aspect is something I'd definitely get hooked on while playing-- learning and creating different backgrounds, specialized functions and operating quirks. The flexibility provides a lot to work with, and I like the eeriness of some of the quieter IPCs. With that said, I think picking this alien race as my first whitelist would be a good start to getting more into creating characters I can sustain more long-term and start out with whitelisted positions, because I'll enjoy playing it quite a bit.

Identify what makes role-playing this species different than role-playing a Human:
The first and most important difference is that IPCs are synthetic and mechanical, and humans are organic and squishy. Mechanically speaking, they operate in a chassis frame customized depending on function, corporate aesthetic, among other factors, and rely on power to function. They're also much more vulnerable to overheating, and often lack the bodily countermeasures a human would have, while also being able to survive in a wider range of atmospheric pressure than humans. Also, because they aren't organic, they don't function on the chemical or neurological level a human does, meaning they aren't susceptible to psychedelic chemicals or pain. Socially, IPCs can vary depending on pre-programming and their learning algorithm/experience. One IPC might focus on it's work entirely, often not responding to any social stimuli outside of what's requested of them, while another one in service positions may know to entertain people with simulated laughter, stories, jokes, etcetera, though never perfect and may sometimes end up being mildly awkward or unsettling. IPCs can also communicate with each other (and other synthetics that are programmed with this capability) through EAL, which is an audible form of relaying information. Finally, yet importantly, IPCs are built with purpose in mind, while humans are born with free mental will of direction over themselves. They are widely considered as property, a tool, scrap, etcetera.

 

Character Name
Gambit

Please provide a short backstory for this character (Approximately two paragraphs)
In 2400, after complications due to overly haste construction, Hephaestus Industries completed construction and installation of the HPS Amóni megafactory which served to produce a constant line of industrial synthetics. The production lines housed in the Amóni's complexes serve as a backbone in maintaining and supplying the synthetic workforce of Hephaestus Industries. IPCs produced here, while infrequent, are often of the higher-end variety of industrial models. The master structure of the facility, Oversight, completes the final assembly procedures of each synthetic, preserving high-grade quality control and streamlined output.

Various resources funneled into the HPS Amóni, and out came Gambit. Initially, and ironically enough, Gambit's primary directive became to assist in maintaining the flow of the very supply lines that allow Hephaestus to produce its synthetics. Gambit was often only able to interact with lower-grade synthetics and Hephaestus workforce employees, as a consequence of working in menial freight-and-supply labor. The only thing Gambit has been able to undergo since assembly has been endless, ruthless labor- lifting shipping containers off inattentive human employees, organizing and reorganizing warehouses-worth of palettes and crates, and all the heavy labor that would possibly require a high-end industrial model.

Having undergone numerous workplace accidents, resulting in the need for constant expensive repair, Gambit was ultimately put up for lease by the facility. NanoTrasen representatives in search of an IPC capable of rigorous supply work snagged the lease and immediately put Gambit to work.

What do you like about this character?
The two main things I like about this character is that, firstly:

This is an IPC that would be shifting to operate in a NanoTrasen supply department- meaning now Gambit would need to learn a manner of customer service after having been isolated from any interaction outside megafactory labor. Gambit was almost literally a complete cog in a factory, and will now be presented with numerous social challenges from an array of different types of organics. Some species, Gambit may have never even seen. Reprogrammed with a social learning algorithm, Gambit will gain a factor of curiosity and have to figure things out.

Secondly, playing an IPC in cargo would be a good way to start it out without much urgency.

How would you rate your role-playing ability?
Right now, I'm happy with it. Significantly better than when I first started.

 

Notes: I hope everything's formatted legibly!

Edited June 7, 2021 by Predicament
Grammar correction

[Rotharia]

Love seeing Tacit in Medbay, does a good job of playing a station-bound so I have no doubt they'll do well as an IPC. +1

[The Stryker]

Hi, thanks for applying! I have some questions for your application.

To start, why is the IPC called Gambit?

11 hours ago, Predicament said:

Identify what makes role-playing this species different than role-playing a Human:

Can you talk about how an IPC might behave differently to a human? What defines its "personality"? Expanding a bit, what external factors might affect the way an IPC behaves and thinks?

11 hours ago, Predicament said:

In 2400, after complications due to overly haste construction, Hephaestus Industries completed construction and installation of the HPS Amóni megafactory which served to produce a constant line of industrial synthetics.

The station was made in 2400, how about the IPC? Recall that the earliest IPC chassis (Industrial G1) was developed in 2407.

If Gambit was built as one of the first IPCs, how has 56 years of "life" affected it?

You mention Gambit is a high quality IPC - did its high quality construction affect it in any significant way?

11 hours ago, Predicament said:

The only thing Gambit has been able to undergo since assembly has been endless, ruthless labor- lifting shipping containers off inattentive human employees, organizing and reorganizing warehouses-worth of palettes and crates, and all the heavy labor that would possibly require a high-end industrial model.

Did Gambit undertake any other tasks? If not, is there a reason it wasn't assigned to other tasks? If so, similar question.

12 hours ago, Predicament said:

Having undergone numerous workplace accidents, resulting in the need for constant expensive repair, Gambit was ultimately put up for lease by the facility. NanoTrasen representatives in search of an IPC capable of rigorous supply work snagged the lease and immediately put Gambit to work.

Can you give a ballpark estimate of what Gambit was sold for? Was it sold around market price for an IPC of its chassis? Above? Below?

12 hours ago, Predicament said:

This is an IPC that would be shifting to operate in a NanoTrasen supply department- meaning now Gambit would need to learn a manner of customer service after having been isolated from any interaction outside megafactory labor. Gambit was almost literally a complete cog in a factory, and will now be presented with numerous social challenges from an array of different types of organics. Some species, Gambit may have never even seen. Reprogrammed with a social learning algorithm, Gambit will gain a factor of curiosity and have to figure things out.

How does Gambit currently behave? Is it capable of social interaction? Why did the designer design Gambit in this fashion?

[Predicament]

1 hour ago, The Stryker said:

To start, why is the IPC called Gambit?

Gambit, by definition, means: "(in chess) an opening in which a player makes a sacrifice, typically of a pawn, for the sake of some compensating advantage."
I chose this term as a name because Gambit is an IPC that has essentially been bent over to hard and abusive manual labor by Hephaestus- as a way to utilize and milk the efficiency of it's own product in return. Gambit's designer would more than likely have chosen a much more corporate-friendly description of that retrospect.

1 hour ago, The Stryker said:

Can you talk about how an IPC might behave differently to a human? What defines its "personality"? Expanding a bit, what external factors might affect the way an IPC behaves and thinks?

Expanding on specific behavior:
Complex IPCs, while they're able to form their own opinions and relations with others, can be heavily limited by their hardware, programming and directives. Often, their mannerisms in speech might not change regardless of the situation or who they're speaking to. That's not to say there aren't models that can adapt to simulate situational tonality, though it is never perfect. The highest priority of IPCs is survival, much like humans, which can act as their guide for their life choices- though the primary differentiation here is that IPCs are programmed with this trait and may have restrictions or abnormal quirks in their choices as a result. Humans come born with the knowledge and instinct that they need to survive, and is widely considered as more important than an IPC's survival. The way IPCs operate, as well, can depend heavily on the knowledge and databases that come with it, as well as the experience and memories gained over the course of its existence. Humans aren't born with knowledge, but are born with instinct, while IPCs lack any instinct and rely on what knowledge they come installed with.

1 hour ago, The Stryker said:

The station was made in 2400, how about the IPC? Recall that the earliest IPC chassis (Industrial G1) was developed in 2407.
If Gambit was built as one of the first IPCs, how has 56 years of "life" affected it?
You mention Gambit is a high quality IPC - did its high quality construction affect it in any significant way?

Totally forgot to include Gambit's specific model:
Gambit is an Industrial G2 model produced shortly after the design's creation in 2436. The G2 model, being higher in quality, durability and capacity than the first generation models, Gambit was put through several of the more difficult tasks around the work place. The vast majority just involved getting extra-heavy lifting out of the way, reorganizing and sorting through large freight warerooms, handling the heavy-lifting work involved in large line construction, and essentially all the workplace labor no human would waste their time doing (so long as they have an industrial-grade IPC to dump it on.) Through the time of Gambit's assembly up until leasing to NanoTrasen, the vast majority of its experiences and memories involve abusive labor, constant repairs and damages to its chassis, and never-ending threat to its survival. Gambit is an IPC that has been able to stand the test of rigorous industrial survival, and will now be able to adapt in a less demanding setting on its lease. This means opening Gambit up to learning new experiences for the first time in twenty-seven years, having to make new decisions for itself, and it certainly won't be easy for it. The high-quality manufacturing of this Industrial G2 IPC at a state-of-the-art Hephaestus facility means Gambit will be durable enough to last through time, but this also means it will be incredibly expensive to maintain. Due to expenses, Gambit will need to operate at or above NanoTrasen's expected efficiency rates, otherwise its survival hinges on a corporate statistics board. Hephaestus would likely decommission an underperforming IPC sent back from a lease, and an IPC of this model would be given high-expectations for the cost and quality.

1 hour ago, The Stryker said:

Did Gambit undertake any other tasks? If not, is there a reason it wasn't assigned to other tasks? If so, similar question.

Gambit has been used for other tasks in conjunction with its labor, such as scanning for and pointing out significant safety hazards or analyzing causes of inefficiency. Often, this would be what took up any remaining time Gambit could have to rest its actuators from the physical stress of the rest of its duties. Notably, as well, Gambit's only time outside of the facility was when assisting with transporting shipments aboard freighters.

1 hour ago, The Stryker said:

Can you give a ballpark estimate of what Gambit was sold for? Was it sold around market price for an IPC of its chassis? Above? Below?

Having been extensively damaged and used over the course of twenty-seven years, and after negotiations between Hephaestus and NanoTrasen regarding the damages and durability, Gambit would have been sold at 300,000 credits, fifty-thousand less than the base G2 amount (350,000 credits). Hephaestus wanted to keep their profit at about the same amount it would earn through normal sales, under the argument that Gambit's built-up work experience compensates for the worth of its chassis. The lease is paid over time up until it reaches 300,000 credits in payment, after which NanoTrasen and Hephaestus representatives will analyze the performance statistics in relation to other G2 models. If the results are positive, the lease would be cancelled and replaced with a final payment of twenty-five-thousand credits or less, depending on the result of negotiations.

1 hour ago, The Stryker said:

How does Gambit currently behave? Is it capable of social interaction? Why did the designer design Gambit in this fashion?

Currently, Gambit does not choose to engage socially aside from answering questions, acknowledging orders, and relaying important information. To compensate for slower speech synthetization, it often tries to keep things brief and to-the-point. Gambit will be capable of having conversations over time as it starts to learn, but will most likely remain a slow-speaker due to the sacrifice of normal communication for work-related processing, owning up to its own name again. Experience in figures of speech is minimal, as it generally did not have the time to converse with Hephaestus employees, though it may have a few stored in memory....with context not included.

[Predicament]

2 minutes ago, Predicament said:

If the results are positive, the lease would be cancelled and replaced with a final payment of twenty-five-thousand credits or less, depending on the result of negotiations.

Last second note to add onto this:
The choice for this decision, and the low amount of the final payment, was due to the leasing tactic used to give NanoTrasen a 'trial' through a temporary lease just until Hephaestus earned enough profit out of Gambit. The final payment would result in near-matching profit to the rest of G2 models, and serve as a way for NanoTrasen to still earn a discount in comparison without needing a permanent lease or having to pay full price- even though it essentially ended up paying almost full price anyways.

[The Stryker]

This application shows a good understanding of IPCs and there's obviously a lot of thought and care that went into it, and the character. Application accepted.

[Caelphon]

Locking, and archiving, per request of the Synthetic Lore Team.