| From: | William Lydick <lydick@*******.CNS.UDEL.EDU> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | I wanna run this by PLOT-D First... |
| Date: | Sat, 9 Apr 1994 13:50:33 EDT |
I want to run the following ideas past you guys before I put them out on
SHADOWTALK because I'm unsure of how well they'd fit into the scheme of things.
I'm looking for feedback, both on Plot-D and at my e-mail address
(lydick@*****.cns.udel.edu). Since I am asking for feedback, that also means
that ANY opinions on the following idea are more than welcome, from gibbering
screaming heebie jeebies to overwhelming enthusiastic gushing.
(BTW--I've also run this by Sir Hayden and have incorporated his suggestions.)
----------------------------Beginning of Ideas Post---------------------------
My idea for my entry into ShadowTalk was to make a <<SMALL>> security company.
There would be eight characters involved, with only a maximum of five being
seen outside of the company's HQ at any given time. This company would be a
legit security company, doing security for the smaller businesses and homes
that can't afford or don't want large Corporate Security. This company would
also be involved in the shadow community (quietly, sort of) as a means of
supplementing the corporate income and also for the excitement of doing runs.
The corporate makeup would be two deckers, two samurai, two physical adepts,
the big hulking naked guy I've been posting about since Feb., and an Ork. If
this sounds strange, just wait, it gets stranger. I have MOST of the characters
written up on paper (I know, Robert...The paper stats are nearly meaningless,
but they help me figure out if an idea is feasible...besides, I may play some
of these characters at a convention this summer). The on-paper stats and info
follow all of the SR II rules for characters (Essence, Money, Equipment, etc.).
The only characters that you guys might have a problem with are the two deckers.
The one is a Troll with wiz-bang stats in computer hardware and hardware theory,
while the other is an 85 year old paraplegic who's been programming since 1984
and running around the Matrix since it's earliest incarnations (Internet,
SimNet, etc). While these two things probably don't seem too formidable in and
of themselves, when put together, they should. (synergy) The computer hardware
inside the company is first rate and top of the line, even if it wasn't bought
from top-of-the-line suppliers. The software (ICE as well) is first rate (50
years of debugging practice and drop-testing (ask about drop-tests via private
e-mail...too long to explain)). Therefore, only an AI (ie--MONICA) should be
able to get data out of the company successfully.
Now that I've got all of the decker-players listening, here's how I was planning
on introducing the company on SHADOWTALK. I was going to run a contest with a
=Y= 100,000 prize to the winner. It was going to be a datasteal. The company
was going to offer this prize to any decker/group of deckers who could get a
certain data item out of the mainframe. The prize would be distributed among
all of the people who stole the data. (ie--if ten people got the data, each
would get =Y= 10,000) The ICE in the system would be set in "ID" mode, meaning
that the ICE would read smoe kind of characteristic signature from each decker
that it caught, and, once it read the signature, would boot the decker from the
system with no damage (character knows: ICE will boot ONCE, character unknowns:
1) ICE will read signature, 2) ICE will be nice only for the initial boot).
This would serve many purposes. First, it would give the company a measure of
the decking power in Seattle. Second, it would give the Seattle decking
community an idea of the skills in the company. (After all, if you're going on
a tough run, do you want the guy you can beat or the guy who gan beat you to
guard your back?) Third, it would give the company a characteristic signature
for tracking uninvited Matrix guests if runs are made against it later on.
As most have guessed, nobody is supposed to successfully get out with the data,
but that doesn't mean that that item can't change. Besides, I've been reading
a lot of the SHADOWTALK posts, and, IMHO, the time has come for a number of
characters' lucky breaks to stop. (ie--You can't win them all!)
The challenge would have no corresponding physical-world or magical-world
portion because: a) The goal of the challenge is NOT to hurt anyone or anything
except maybe a few egos, and b) the company has to sub-contract out for any
magical security measures.
If there was sufficient demand, however, the company could arrange for some form
of physical challenge (less guarantee of a corporate success...). Under no
circumstances, however, would there be any magical challenge.
Anyway, I've rambled on long enough. Now it's your turn.
GIVE ME FEEDBACK, <<PLEASE>>!!
BTW, When I used the term "paraplegic", I was using it to denote the fact that
the guy is confined PERMANENTLY to a wheelchair. The term may not be correct,
but I'm not sure.
William M. Lydick
lydick@*****.cns.udel.edu
