/tg/Station 13

As in the title, for things like medbots, mulebots, floorbots, etc. it'd work like this:

You'd unlock the bot, then screwdriver it open to reveal a panel. You could then stick an mmi in, close it up and lock it. They'd get no laws (though if they need laws as a balance issue, I guess.)

The mmi would override the default activity of the bot and would gain a hud/vision overlay relevant to the bot. Radio enabled mmis and positrons would also get access to relevant department radio.

PDA attempts to give the bot orders give the controlling mmi notifications of what people want it to do instead.

With the exception of medbot and laying down mobs, none of the bots can drag normally. (standing up or otherwise not being on the floor interrupts medbot pull)

All the bots would have general, and some bots would have additional department access. Hopefully some sort of built in flashlight too for dark areas.

You'd need to fix the ability of small robots to walk on space, though.

As an extra indicator, small bots with mmis will have a different colour light indicator, and all say speech will appear to come from the mmi/positron inside (possibly also showing the name of the bot in parentheses)

If it really became a balance issue, you could have mech beacons able to be attached to them, and have mech console functionality for them.

I'd also assume emagging or whatever equivalent would have a similar or somewhat similar effect on them to normal small bots. Probably the most effect would be removing some of their limitations and giving them laws to obey you.

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For mulebots: Clicking on an object attempts to load it, clicking on a tile with a load attempts to unload it there. If it can't pick it up, it will buzz. All wire status effects mulebot as usual. Mulebot would get cargo/maint/general access. Radio enabled mmis get cargo radio. Possible upgrade from robotics: optical mesons, and Heavy Duty Loader (Can load any large unanchored object that isn't a pilot-containing mech, or can load up to three crates at once, appears as a bundle. I'm pretty sure there's sprites for this already somewhere, and if not I saw them in one of vg's dmi.)

For medbots: You get a medhud overlay, and clicking on a valid injured mob from a distance will emote the 'hey wait' medbot say to them. (and possibly do a point arrow) Clicking on an injured mob in melee distance will attempt to medicate them. Clicking on an uninjured mob or one that would get overdosed by your actions (unless emagged) will fail and not allow you to do so. Hopefully medbots would get medical/general access. Also medical radio if you have a radio enabled mmi. Possible upgrade from robotics: Extended medical tools

For cleanbots: You run around cleaning stuff with your brush. Clicking on tiles would attempt to clean them with a delay, but you could que multiple tiles at once without moving. You get general and maint access, and some sort of service radio if radio mmi. Possible upgrades from robotics: Faster brush

For floorbots: You run around replacing floor tiles, or building new ones. Clicking on space will attempt to build support and then a floor. Clicking on supports would just build a floor. Clicking on a tile-less floor would attempt to put a tile there. You can load small tiles by clicking on them. You get general/maint/airlock access, and engineering department radio if radio-mmi. Possible upgrades from robotics: Emergency thrusters for getting caught in space, ability to synthesize tiles.

For Secutrons/ED: You run around enforcing the law. You normally can't robust or arrest anyone who isn't labeled as a prisoner or wanted, or fire the ED taser unless specifically clicking on a wanted/prisoner target. However, if a human modifies the settings, they can enable the bot to arrest/fire at will. Secutron clicking on a distant valid target will give the beepsky warning shout, ED clicking on a distant valid target will give the ED shouts on a cooldown and fire the taser. Clicking on a valid target in melee will attempt to stunbaton them, or if already stunned, arrest them. Both would get security/general/maint access, security hud, and radio-mmi would get security radio. Possible upgrades from robotics: A robust module that allows them to drag handcuffed mobs, and manipulate cell timers.

Etc etc for any other small bots that would apply.

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Also what would be neat is the ability to go to robotics and get a custom paintjob. Hot pink Ed.

I separated out medbots, floorbots, cleanbots, mulebots, and EDs into parts you can overlay and greyscaled them. I also added lights and a panel where I thought it could fit.

I did this for VG though so it also has a buttbot.

https://dl.dropbox.com/s/48nbzg4uzynry3d/aibotsgrey.dmi

I did it for this PR that fizzled out kinda and wasn't really that finished. https://github.com/d3athrow/vgstation13/pull/5000

I can add/remove anything if you ask. I'm not really an artist though so I'm really only able to work with existing sprites, and I'm not sure what I can do with the secutron sprite as it has specular lighting and refraction in its visor baked into its pixel art and it'd look like ass if I tried to separate it out.

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Additional possible idea: Do what goone did and make an Ai-Brain board or whatever. You can use it in hand to start the process of linking, and all active ais get a notification and can sign up. A random AI that signed up is chosen and the person who used the board gets an inspecific general statement about linking being finished. The roboticist wouldn't know what ai was in there, and could use a screwdriver to reset it back to default. Emagged versions would instead ask for a name entry, and if the name was a valid active AI, it would link them directly.

Alternative suggestion to above: Instead of having a signup, using it just picks a random active ai that has the option on and links it, and notifies the ai that they can now remote into the link. Whatever mob activated it still has no idea who's controlling it unless they ask, and even then some AIs are known to lie. Honk.

They could then use the board in any construction that would normally require a posibrain or an mmi. The linked AI would be able to directly control the board and whatever its put into, and would get and eject ui button for returning back to normal AI eye. AIs controlling something like this would not be subject to the laws of the object the board is inserted in; only their own laws.

Heads up on secutrons: Their "can arrest" criteria are to do with Threat Level, not just a binary "arrest/nonarrest"
If your threat is 4 or more, it goes for you.
Being set to Wanted gives you 4 threat
Having no ID gives you 1 threat
Having no ID on "ID check" gives you 4 threat
Having a gun in your hands on "guncheck" gives you 4 threat
Having a gun on your back/belt on "guncheck" gives you 3 threat
The secbot being emagged gives you 10 threat
Hitting the secbot gives you 6 threat
Being a mutantrace gives you 1 threat
Wearing wizard gear gives you 1 threat

It would probably be easier to base their ability to arrest (without settings change by a human) on that instead, then.

Not-Dorsidarf wrote:Heads up on secutrons: Their "can arrest" criteria are to do with Threat Level, not just a binary "arrest/nonarrest"
If your threat is 4 or more, it goes for you.
Being set to Wanted gives you 4 threat
Having no ID gives you 1 threat
Having no ID on "ID check" gives you 4 threat
Having a gun in your hands on "guncheck" gives you 4 threat
Having a gun on your back/belt on "guncheck" gives you 3 threat
The secbot being emagged gives you 10 threat
Hitting the secbot gives you 6 threat
Being a mutantrace gives you 1 threat
Wearing wizard gear gives you 1 threat

Didn't know that about Wizard gear, time to amass as many "1 threats" as possible and have Sec confused about what they can brig me for.

Also I found wands seem to qualify as guns. Including the Wand of Nothing so better stash that wand before going on a harmless massacre

What a terrible fate for a debrained perma prisoner to be stuffed into cleanbot instead.

Saegrimr wrote:What a terrible fate for a debrained perma prisoner to be stuffed into cleanbot instead.

It'd be worse if tg had buttbots. Remove the prisoner's butt and shove their mmi right up it.

I reskin beepsky on occasion. The reactions over Common are the best. "Is that an ass with a baton?"

Well, if small bots could equip helmets via click+drag then you could probably do some of that picture. Maybe a drone hands/hud upgrade from robotics for whatever it ends up being useful for? Then again you might as well just construct a drone at that point.

I worry about player beepskys being way robust, he is already pretty hard to kill without human intelligence. But this whole idea is way to cool to not try

Wyzack wrote:I worry about player beepskys being way robust, he is already pretty hard to kill without human intelligence. But this whole idea is way to cool to not try

It's funny you think the beepsky is the potential robust one.

Imagine a mulebot. Now imagine it with one engine wire cut, both radio wires cut, the loader mechanism and warning lights cut.
It can pick up people, go fast, and run over anyone, and nobody can tell it otherwise.


Good..

Now imagine a human's piloting it, and they can reverse direction as much as they want, and abduct bodies to take to a changeling or cult hideout.
Honk.

Well, there's always these, the minibots, colored after various hats to signify their role.
But with the new drones they kinda fell to the wayside.

I thought they might make a comeback to differentiate drones and brain powered drones.

I'd love to be a cleanbot going around just cleaning.

Would they be able to talk?

ThanatosRa wrote:Would they be able to talk?

Yeah. It would show their positron/mmi name when they talk. Alternatively it could be so you see their bot name when they talk but that could get confusing if there were a lot of bots named the same thing. It wouldn't really be a drone position as much as a "brain in a small bot".

However, if themed drones/minismallbots is what people want to do instead of this, then I suppose that'd be a different story.

Holy shit I'd love to be a floorbot and just meme around the entire round.

https://github.com/d3athrow/vgstation13/pull/5000
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kevinz000 wrote:derp

It's based on a different codebase where small bots aren't machinery, so it'd be faster to re-write it than to port it. That and the neural stuff is supposed to be a xenoarch find; a system tg doesn't have. You'd need something better to balance it against.