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Vehicle/Bot AI question

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uwtartarus uwtartarus's picture
Vehicle/Bot AI question
Do device AI for vehicles or bots (found on p.331 Core) use Pilot like they have listed or should they have whatever movement skill would be appropriate for jamming since they are sleeved in the bot? E.g. should the Guardian Angel bot AI have Pilot: aircraft (and would they suffer the -10 penalty for remote control or is that a strictly transhuman remote controlling thing) or should they have and use the Flight skill?
Exhuman, and Humanitarian.
Hazelwolf Hazelwolf's picture
I'd imagine they would use
I'd imagine they would use pilot, since it is their primary skill. I suppose vehicle AI are structured differently to transhuman-based egos where they don't perceive the vehicle as the body they are sleeved into, but as something they control remotely. Likewise I doubt the -10 would apply since what manufacturer would come up with an autopilot that had a fundamental difficulty with controlling the vehicle. The -10 applies to transhumans probably because they are physically removed from the vehicle and may be at risk of being distracted. For vehicle AI, this is what they are meant to do. I could be mistaken, though. The jamming, sleeving and piloting distinctions have been striking me as a bit odd. On the one hand, mechanically, I can understand why you would want to be able to give the players who didn't bother with any pilot skills so they still might be able to control a vehicle by jamming it. But that's what skillsoft and vehicle AI is for, surely? On the other I can see how if pilot and gunnery covered all movement and weapons skills when it came to controlling a vehicle, that could be abused where any shell could count as a vehicle and you need only pump your CP into at least two skills.
uwtartarus uwtartarus's picture
Yeah, the remote control
Yeah, the remote control penalty I think if a fair way to limit a bot jammer who otherwise uses just Pilot and Gunnery. Also freerunning while sleeved in a car seems clunky.
Exhuman, and Humanitarian.
MrWigggles MrWigggles's picture
Well, if you've sleeved into
Well, if you've sleeved into a car, moving the car is your body so its your freerunning car. There is a lot of unspoken middleman software that translate your wanted movements to the body locomotion.
jackgraham jackgraham's picture
There are arguments for both,
There are arguments for both, but I'd usually go with Pilot.
J A C K   G R A H A M :: Hooray for Earth!   http://eclipsephase.com :: twitter @jackgraham @faketsr :: Google+Jack Graham
ThatWhichNeverWas ThatWhichNeverWas's picture
Professional Trike Pilot.
Pilot. It makes sense given AI's limited skillset, and means you can't use the same AI for different vehicles or put it in a synth and have it walk about. The Remote-Control penalty should only apply if they're not actually installed in the Vehicle aka Remote-Controlling it. Otherwise they're simply in the driver seat.
In the past we've had to compensate for weaknesses, finding quick solutions that only benefit a few. But what if we never need to feel weak or morally conflicted again?