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Old 12-12-2013, 04:29 PM   #1
vicky_molokh
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Default MORE types of Cabals?

Greetings, all!

Currently, canonical Transhuman Space has only one type of a Cabal network: the one granting a very limited form of Intuition. Non-canonically, in the campaign I play in I've seen at least one different Cabal-like net - larger, less lag-sensitive, and oriented towards invention. No idea about mechanics, but it seems to improve Concept Rolls and/or prototype design (but not actual production, of course); there was a hint about being able to partially skip the trial-and-error of prototype-building-and-debugging thanks to mixing simulations and the many minds subconsciously tinkering with the simulated prototypes (warning: most of this is my guesswork based on the scarce in-game clues). Maybe it grants Versatile, I dunno.

The two ideas I have go along the lines of highly-limited (Hypersensory plus the cabalish lag-vulnerable limitation) Empathy (which I don't exactly need, since Caine has the Empath Talent) or highly-limited (ditto) Danger Sense (which another PC has without any cabals, though). But I think these two are kinda too obvious.

Perhaps anyone has more interesting / unusual ideas? Or just other thoughts on the matter?
Thanks in advance!
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Old 12-12-2013, 08:23 PM   #2
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Default Re: MORE types of Cabals?

Cabal Network?
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Old 12-13-2013, 04:05 AM   #3
vicky_molokh
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Default Re: MORE types of Cabals?

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Originally Posted by Keiko View Post
Cabal Network?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Owen Smith View Post
My thought exactly. Where is this canonical cabal network in the books Vicki?
TM134 and TM136.

In short, it is a memenet type that needs to work in clusters of no less than 10 and no more than 20 people each, and grants Intuition to its members, but with a -2 to the Intuition rolls, and requiring a connection with no more than 1 second of ping; oh, and since it's designed around human-like subconsciousness, it works for biosophonts and Ghosts, but not for AIs.
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Old 12-13-2013, 04:39 AM   #4
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Default Re: MORE types of Cabals?

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Originally Posted by Owen Smith View Post
Right, and everything in Toxic Memes actually exists does it?
It's not in the urban legends section, nor is it presented ambiguously; it's in a textbox and in the actual trait write-up section, so it does exist.
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Old 09-02-2014, 03:57 PM   #5
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Default Re: MORE types of Cabals?

Here's one for which I have an idea, and which I might try to invent in the campaign I play in, if allowed by the GM and the dice.

Digital Dreamwebs
This is a technology heavily inspired by cabal networks, but rather than a step forward along the same path, it's better characterised as a sideways jump. Unlike cabals proper, DDW research began not with the aim of reinforcing or improving some hidden powers of the mind, but rather as an attempt to collectively bring clarity into the workings of dreams - in both senses of the word. As a way of easing the task and cutting some corners, slinks and VIIs were skipped over in favour of working with outright Ghosts, allowing more flexibility and tighter interfaces.

The result was a development of a semi-subconscious ('half-submerged') collective informational space. Minds connected to it are able to temporarily maintain a state between awake and asleep, a thin bridge between the conscious and the subconscious; if they're open to the experience, they can almost effortlessly exchange the substance of life lessons learned. As time goes by, dreamwebbers find insights into their own psyches. Those who have the willingness to look, can fully understand their (often hidden) aspirations, and mobilise them into a coherent, subtle, yet consistent guiding force.
Finally, the time spent in the web can be used to perform many mental tasks, as long as the proper interfaces are available. Dreamwebbers seem particularly fond of spending it on exchanging knowledge or coming up with new ideas. Alas, the 'half-submerged' state wreaks havoc with coordination and proprioreception, so it isn't possible to control or teleoperate a body from within the dreamweb, nor is it possible even to practice physical skills within virtual environments connected to it.

Latency parameters and member prerequisites differ somewhat from the cabals proper. Acceptable ping is in the seconds, thus allowing networks to be formed between, say, Terra and Luna, although anything over one minute is too much. Minimum network size is somewhere between 25 and 50; there is de facto no maximum, as the network can be reconfigured to isolate several clusters in cases of interference, and there is no need to converge on single decisions at all. The nature of the interfaces means that only Ghosts can be part of the web. Obviously a hypothetical person with Doesn't Sleep would be unable to connect to the web.
Finally, just like cabals proper, dreamwebs have a list of requirements towards the personality of members. While cabals proper are incompatible with people who are uncreative, weak-willed, too focused or too distracted, dreamwebs tend to violently reject people on the cynical (in the modern sense) and banal end of the spectrum, as well as those not predisposed to an exchange of ideas and celebration of variation. The common term for those is 'dreamslayer'. The following traits disqualify one from joining a dreamweb:
Bloodlust (if SC<=9), Bully, Callous, Delusions of solipsism or similar, Doesn't Sleep (duh), Extreme or regular Fanaticism, Hidebound, Incurious, Intolerance against broad groups, Jealousy, Killjoy, Low Empathy, Nightmares (one must buy off the trait immediately after the first few nights in the web), No Sense of Humour, Non-Iconographic, Paranoia, Phobias for alien or new things, Sadism, Selfish (if SC<=9).

Being of a dreamweb is represented by taking the following traits:
Reawakened (-60% Cabal) [4],
Less Sleep 5 (-60% Cabal; Mental Activity Only -20%) [2],
Versatile Sleeper [1] (i.e. can reconfigure sleep cycles arbitrarily).
The cabal limitation differs from the standard one, -60% instead of -65%: minimum member count is higher, maximum lag is higher too; also, the Hard to Use is dropped as neither trait requires a roll to use.

Also, spending some time in the web allows a dreamer to buy a Higher Purpose representing its wishes and aspirations. While this seems like an afterthought at this point, it was actually one of the primary reasons behind the invention.

----

How does it look?
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