Borer changes

[daisuke08]

 

So borers are obviously made for higher RP environments and, coming from the perspective as someone fairly new to SS13 in general (been playing for like maybe a month or two now), it really doesn't work out on this server with the way community treats antagonists.

 

Honestly I don't even consider a borer an antag (and they probably aren't considered to be one) because it has no real defense mechanisms, no objectives (when you join as a borer there's literally no text that explains anything), and no consequence for letting them go other than NT doesn't like them and may or may not blow up the escape shuttle. You're just this slow as hell worm and everyone wants to kill you because you're a bug.

 

So suggestions I'm thinking of to maybe help alleviate these issues are:

 

- Give them an actual objective such as spawning a certain number of borers and having them in a host on the shuttle at the end of the round.

 

- Perhaps giving them a growing mechanic similar to xenos where they store chemicals over time while in a host and then get some new passive abilities or actives as a reward for not dying immediately.

 

General ability and stat changes such as,

- Making them way faster than they currently are cause you quite literally die in one or two hits, you have no actual offense, and everyone will run circles around you. (maybe making it so they're fast at the start and then when they get a host and grow and become capable of reproducing, they drop back to their current speed)

- When they do get a host, make it so after a certain amount of time or maybe an option that cost chemicals, they can give the host an urge (similar to cult mask) to not kill the thing in its head or to protect it.

- Maybe an ability or two to use when not in a host to help them escape from people trying to chase it such as creating some alium space lube on whatever tile you're on to help give those assistants chasing you with a toolbox the literal slip.

- (I'm not sure if something similar is already a thing in game) as they grow inside their host, they find a way to avoid being detected by basic scanning equipment like medhuds and need a full body scan to show up. (damn doctors ready to decap you for having a borer I swear)

 

[Spacemanspark]

 

Yes, and when a borer DOES infect a host, they usually run around and release plasma.

The end.

 

[veganzombeh]

I was working on a PR for a borer improvement a while ago. Basically my plan was that borers would infest their host in "stages". Initially they would have pretty much no control over the host, maybe only speaking to them, then as they invest more chemicals, they gain more powers. I might continue it if I have some free time.

[MrFinnT]

 

make borers can decide like an alien it if wants more control /evolve. in the first stage it would be only detectable through a body scanner, but if it goes on until the last stage of full controll everyone can see it from outside it is mindcontroller, through a skinchange or something like that.

that would encourage talking to your host instead of taking over and gray tiding around

 

[pazneria12]

I agree completely