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Wag
 
Group: Basic Members
Last Login: 2 days ago @ 9:22 PM
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Some of you might remember that a couple of years ago I made an attempt at starting a colonial cyberpunk game. Unfortunately it suffered from a number of problems (vanishing aides, cashflow issues, everyone else in the world suddenly deciding to run the same sort of game) and so it never saw the light of day.
I've mentioned the hacking system from the game a couple of times on here and one or two people have enquired about it. I was taking a wander through my archives earlier and I found the work I did on the game in there, so I thought I'd release it into the public domain so people can read and comment upon it.
Firstly - to explain some assumptions. C²:Aphelion was designed for 40-60 players, but with an eye to extensibility if necessary. To that end, we decided to use item lammies, although it was not demanded that they be attached to the weapon; they simply had to be carried on one's person. (We still use the same system for Six Pillars.)
In addition, we wanted to avoid a situation where a player had to have an actual computer to play a hacker. Many of our sites were likely to be damp and/or far from power sockets, and so we knew that physreps would have to do.
Finally, we wanted the system to be self-reffing and thusly based on trust. Our intentions were for roughly 1 referee to 20 players at any given time (the game was 24 hr time in), so we wanted to avoid heavy ref intervention.
So. In the game data files could be represented as laminated cards. These could have two possible uses - some would have a direct game effect (ICEbreakers, skillsofts, etc) and some could be handed in at the ref desk in return for a document detailing the file's contents. (Although this was an unfortunately ref-intensive element, the simplicity of exchanging a card for a numbered sheet made it more palatable).
Host computers were themselves represented by an item card on a special plastic ring, the "system stack". Data cards and defence programs (ICE) could be loaded onto this ring in whatever order the owner wished, up to a maximum based on the power of the host ("System Stack: 8 cards max", for example). When breaking in, the hacker would begin at the host card and work his way around the ring removing data cards as they emerged (should he wish) and placing them on his own computer's stack.
Along the way, he would probably encounter ICE. ICE came in two forms - Blockers and Monitors. Blockers represented simple exclusion methods, similar to firewalls - if they were not bypassed the system could not be hacked further. Monitors represented sneakier protection methods - they could simply be ignored, but if any data files after them were removed, then they would trigger if not bypassed (and they were represented by split open lammies, so it was impossible to be certain what they would do).
ICE could, however, be bypassed using ICEbreaker software. All ICE would have a series of alphanumeric codes, typically 3-4, which represented the techniques used. Most ICEbreakers would also carry one or more of these codes. If the hacker had ICEbreakers enough to match all the codes on an ICE card, then the ICE would be bypassed.
Secure Devices (equipment secured to a specific character's biometric fingerprint) would also have a plastic ring, but instead of a System Stack and data cards, the ring would have an unsecured Item Card at its end to represent the hacked Device. The hacking process would work identically.
It's worth pointing out that Data Cards could not exist outside of a Stack. Even storage devices like Memory Sticks would possess a Stack, although of course they could not usually run ICE (except in rare and expensive cases).
Finally, many Data Cards could be Encrypted, and so could only be read either by the owner or by a hacker with a sufficiently powerful Decrypter on the same stack.
There were a few problems I could forsee with this system. Firstly, it depended entirely on the ref team to hand out data; Secondly, it did not allow for people "sharing" computers, they had only one or more pre-designated owners. Finally, it was of course easy for people to cheat.
So. What do people think? Any comments or suggestions?
PD - Brother Farael of the Ordo Dictum Dominus
EOS - Some Raggard Scum, previously Some Arimin Scum
6P - System creator (now retired), Andrei Treune of Clan Suner (for the moment)
RL - Will Robinson
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Wag
Group: Basic Members
Last Login: 2 days ago @ 9:22 PM
Posts: 1,305,
Visits: 3,712
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Ach. Wrong board. Mods, could you move this to the Scripts and Rules board please?
PD - Brother Farael of the Ordo Dictum Dominus
EOS - Some Raggard Scum, previously Some Arimin Scum
6P - System creator (now retired), Andrei Treune of Clan Suner (for the moment)
RL - Will Robinson
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