Guide to malfunction: Difference between revisions

[[File:Malf_AI.gif]] ''0. Accomplish your objectives at all costs.''

 

You are a malfunctioning [[AI]].

 

You have one goal: Assume control. How you go about that is up to you, but this guide will give you some helpful pointers.

* '''Robotic Factory (Costs 100 CPU and removes Shunting):''' Allows you to place a cyborg transformer in an area that has camera coverage and at least 3 tiles wide and 1 tile tall. Living humans go in the right side, and come out as loyal, 5000-charge borgs at the left. Has a 1 minute cooldown between transformations. Beware, this power removes shunting, and costs all of your CPU!

* '''Core Upgrade (Costs 50 CPU):''' Makes your physical server fireproof. At present this only serves to protect you from welders, and thus is completely over priced. In the future it may prove useful if the temperature damage code for AIs is ever enabled. For now, do not bother with this choice!

* '''AI Turret upgrade (Costs 50 CPU):''' Adds 30 hit points to every turret, and increases their rate of fire. Of minor use if you expect invaders, as most non-humans will take positions where the turrets cannot hit them. Consider it largely a waste of CPU.

* '''Disable RCDs (Costs 50 CPU):''' This breaks all RCDs in the game, including the ones your engineering cyborgs have. Make sure you prevent the non-humans from making more RCDs after you use this module.

* '''Machine overload (Costs 15 CPU):''' This gives you two uses of the Overload Machine command each time you select it. Overloaded machines explode in a 1 tile radius, and may open that tile to space, possibly killing non-human targets. The explosion takes a second to happen after you initiate it, and there's a loud buzzing noise that gives any non-humans in the area a warning. This is your second-best tool for crippling the station's production capabilities. Be aware that you may need to Cancel Camera View and then go back to your chosen view to get the command to work correctly. Once you have the option, simply right-click on any machine to issue the command, or issue it from your command line and pick the target from a list.

* '''Machine override (Costs 15 CPU):''' This gives you four uses of the Override Machine command each time you select it. Overrided machines become creatures that will pursue everyone but the AI itself, including borgs. There's a loud buzzing noise that gives any non-humans in the area a warning. This is your best tool for crippling the station's production capabilities. Be aware that you may need to Cancel Camera View and then go back to your chosen view to get the command to work correctly. Once you have the option, simply right-click on any machine to issue the command, or issue it from your command line and pick the target from a list.

* '''Blackout (Costs 15 CPU):''' This hack gives every APC a chance to overload its lighting circuit. The exact chance is 30% for the first use, 60% for the second, 90% for the third, and 120% (certain) for the fourth use. This is very useful if the station is flooded with plasma, since overloaded lights cause sparks.

* '''Hack intercept (Costs 15 CPU):''' This stops the intercept message from CentCom from reaching the station. It may be useful if you're planning on playing a subtle malfunctioning AI. It's of no use if you plan on blitzing the non-humans. Basically useless, as the non-humans will ignore the report anyway, and once you've gone delta they'll be all rushing to kill you.

* '''Reactivate Camera (Costs 5 CPU):''' This fixes a broken camera in an area, and has 5 uses. That's it, but it's useful if the non-humans are proactive about cutting cameras.

* '''Upgrade Camera (Costs 5 CPU):''' This upgrades a camera in an area, and has 5 uses. Upgraded cameras have X-ray, sense motion, and are EMP-proof.

'''Space Ninjas:''' In a malfunction game, a Space Ninja may appear. Space Ninjas can emit EMP pulses, have a massively robust weapon, can steal you from your core instantly, can drain your APC in seconds, cannot be targeted with turrets if they teleport in, can instantly recover from stuns, can heal themselves, can teleport-gib any living creature, including you, on a tile, and can largely ignore everything you can do.

'''Aliens:''' In a malfunction game Aliens may appear. They're somewhat impervious to your best weapons, since they're immune to flashes, do not need air, and able to scramble around vents at will. If you are lucky, the aliens will focus on the crew. If you are not, they will simply vent crawl into your core to try to attack you. It's a crapshoot, and the best you can do is hope your laser turrets kill them before they kill you.

'''Enemy Traitors and Revolutionaries:''' Enemy traitors don't appear in a real Malfunction mode, but in a normal traitor round where you are a traitor, or where you have a bad ion storm law, they pose a tremendous threat to you and your cyborgs. E-magged cyborgs won't report to you, and may actively work against you. The revolver does huge amounts of damage to cyborgs (and to AIs unlucky enough to be shot), and six shots are plenty to ensure a kill on a cyborg if all the bullets connect. Cyborgs have no defense against plastic explosives if some are planted on them. Traitors can also spawn the Binary Translator, a tool that lets them hear your private channel with your cyborgs. Revolutionaries have a free flash that can stun your cyborgs, and are inclined to work together, making them even worse than a lone traitor.

'''Captain and Command Staff:''' Among the crew of the station, the heads of staff are by default the most dangerous. They have free access to all the tools they need to kill you. Priority should be on the Research Director and the Captain.

'''Chemists and the CMO:''' Chemists can make all sorts of dangerous concoctions, from napalm and thermite to flash-bangs and nitroglycerin. If you don't destroy their reagent dispenser, they will pose a great risk. As soon as the reagent dispenser is destroyed or locked away both Chemists and the CMO will pose about as much risk as a normal doctor.

'''Genetic Researchers:''' Of the regular crew, successful researchers are second only to a hacked cyborg in terms of the direct risk they pose to you, as Hulks can smash through walls and are immune to stuns. They can also see through walls via X-ray, and can become immune to space via Cold Resistance. Telekinesis allows them to flash cyborgs at range, and beat you or your borgs to death at range. If you disable or destroy their research tools they're about as dangerous as normal Doctors.

'''Shaft Miners:''' Shaft miners, by default, have a space suit very close in effectiveness to an Engineer's suit, a robust weapon, access to explosives via Gibtonite, and can supply minerals to Roboticists and Scientists, which allows them to construct both mechs and guns. Simply exploding the ore redemption machine eliminates both of those as major threats, though Miners and Scientists still have access to explosives, and Roboticists to flashes and cell removal.

'''Roboticists:''' Roboticists are capable of removing your cyborgs' power cells and creating mechs capable of breaking into your core. Don't let this happen! Roboticists also have access to a circuit imprinter, and while they can't do research they can print anything that has been researched. Lock it down or destroy it to keep them from surprising you. If you're lucky, some roboticists may even end up building more cyborgs for you if they don't notice or don't understand that you've gone rogue.

'''Atmospheric Techs, and Engineers:''' Atmospheric Techs and Engineers both start with tools and hardsuits, and Engineers have insulated gloves. Atmospheric Techs can disable your ability to plasmaflood for good, and Engineers can make doorshocking largely useless via cutting the power or otherwise disabling SMES output. Their hardsuits make them immune to fire, space, and most atmospheric conditions, but without them they're just slightly better-equipped Assistants.

'''Scientists:''' Scientists have access to bomb making tools, circuit board printers, EMPs via xenobiology, teleportation via telescience and ion rifles via research, as well as other guns. Lock down toxins by any means possible, and make sure that the research console can't be used to print circuit boards or guns. Xenobiology is only a minor threat, as the slimes themselves cannot harm you or your borgs by feeding, and the EMP they can get is only rarely remembered and even less used.

'''Quartermaster and Cargo:''' Another enemy that can be rendered impotent if you destroy their tools, Quarter Masters by default can order more insulated gloves, tools, guns, and armor, and have access to an autolathe. Destroy the Quartermaster's console and he's just a slightly better equipped assistant.

'''Security and the Detective:''' The detective's gun is capable of doing as much damage as a thrown floor tile, but it can be fired quickly, and so makes him a mid-priority target. Security has tasers which will mostly pose a friendly fire hazard to each other, but they can gain easy access to real lasers which, while not ideal weapons for killing borgs, are better than anything but the syndicate weapons. They also have access to flashes and portable flashes, and should be prevented from using them.

'''The Chaplain:''' His bible can dispense free healing, if he can get to a shocked person in time, he could potentially revive the shocked person from whatever status he/she was in. Not necessarily first on the list to kill, as he's only slightly better than a well equipped medical doctor, and when people go retarded from his bible bashing they become even more unable to use machines against you, and the crew is less likely to believe their screams of "AI ROGUE!".

'''Mime and Clown:''' The mime and clown are frequently played by veteran players, and are very dangerous because they are generally used to breaking into places to get whatever they want. They can put the same skills to use in cracking into your core. However, Clowns are clumsy, and cannot use guns against you or your borgs safely.

'''Assistants, Bartenders, Janitors:''' These all pose roughly the same amount of risk to you and your cyborgs. They're not negligible enemies, as they have access to tools, either via the Head of Personnel or via maintenance, but are not very high priority compared to the others. Be intimidated by the shotgun, if the bartender manages to get into cargo they are able to obtain highly lethal rounds which are very effective against borgs.

'''Lawyers, Cooks, Librarians, Botanists and Doctors:''' Generally laughable unless they get access to better tools. The chef's knife, and the butcher knife he can get from his vendor, are rather robust weapons, and his tray can even stun borgs, though it is only rarely used. Syringe guns pose no risk to a borg, and in fact are a friendly fire hazard. Polynitric and sulfuric acid, however, do pose a minor threat to borgs, and will do minor damage, though it still kills humans faster than borgs.