Security Officer
REASON: Really old page, needs a full rewrite that focuses only on the Security Officer and not playing security in general which is already covered in the Guide to Security, also needs to take into account knockdown/stun rework and generally cleanup up the wikicode and writing
Security Officer
Superiors: Head of Security
Difficulty: Hard
Guides: Space Law, Guide to Security, Guide to Combat, Riot Control, Security Items, Identifying Antagonists, Standard Operating Procedure, Standard Operating Procedure (Security), Brigging Procedure
Access: Security, Brig Timers, Maintenance
Duties: Stop crime, enforce Space Law.
Departmental Head
Head of Security
| Guide to Security • | Combat • | Identifying Antagonists • | Riot Control • | MODsuits • | Security Items • | Space Law • | Standard SOP • | Legal SOP • | Security SOP |
Security Officers are the workhorse position of the Security department. They are the station's first line of defence against criminal elements and hostile xenoforms. With their authority to enforce Space Law, it is the Security Officers who are responsible for dealing with security complaints and arresting those who break Space Law.
Required Knowledge
Out of Character wise: Read the rules carefully before playing as a member of Security.
In Character wise: Knowledge of Space Law is mandatory. You're not expected to memorize it entirely, but it should be open and consulted. Inadequate knowledge of it may result in a job ban.
You will need to be decently robust. Knowing how to use the various weapons is required. If in doubt, there is a practice range to try them on. Remember the stun baton will knockdown on help mode, and on harm will knockdown and beat them, which is generally highly illegal and grounds for a job ban. Unless if you really need to do it.
For Standard Operating Procedure for this role and other security roles, please see Standard Operating Procedure (Security).
Know Your Place
- This ship is not a democracy. You take orders from the Head of Security, who takes their orders from the Captain, who takes their orders from Central Command. Follow the orders you are provided, and try to not ask too many questions. Within the brig, you follow the Warden's directions.
- You are effectively the police. The corporations have agreed upon a set of laws that they are all beholden to. Space Law is harsh. You are individuals working for Nanotrasen Security. You aren't highly trained super-soldiers, but you also aren't mall-cops with a bit bigger guns. Obey the hierarchy and watch everyone with utter suspicion.
- Your essential job function is to prevent the station from falling apart in chaos.
- The Heads of Staff have authority over their respective departments. You are expected to assist heads in ejecting unwanted trespassers and demoting unwanted personnel from their departments.
Keeping the Peace
You are the sole guardian between the ideals of justice and the employees that your company has chosen to advance its interests in space.
Oftentimes, you will be informed over your radio that there is a problem in a certain area. If you are nearby, inform the rest of security over your headset using the private channel that you are on your way. If you are not nearby, head to the security office and change the records to set the suspects to arrest. The robots will detain the suspects but someone will still have to fetch them. Then return to your patrol.
Have your baton put away but easily accessed. This will ensure that you are armed if things go sour, but that you are not being threatened and there is no possibility of your weapon being easily stolen (remember that unless the security level is at Code Blue or Code Red, you won't be allowed to have weapons unholstered.) If you notice a crime obviously taking place when you arrive on the scene, subdue the suspects, handcuff them, and hold them so they can't escape. If the area is now safe, begin questioning them. If the area is not safe, question them in Processing. If there is blood or fingerprint evidence, call the Detective to the scene. Once the truth comes out, charge the perpetrators, thank the witnesses, and inform security over your private channel of the situation and charges. If you do not do so, the Warden may release your prisoners thinking they've been unlawfully detained.
This is an ideal situation, however. Usually you'll just happen across crime. Follow the procedure as best as you can from there. Restrain and detain only as needed. Becoming baton happy is the first step to becoming a bad Security Officer and encouraging the station crewmen to get you demoted.
If things become violent or you are outmatched, immediately call for backup as efficiently as possible. "<Such and such> the <job title> is <crime committed> at <the location>", is hard to spit out while under attack. Try a shorter format, such as "JANITOR MAIN HALLWAY ATTACKING ME HELP". There will be time for clarification when you are out of harm's way. The key to good security work is keeping the other security forces informed.
Remember, information is key - when arresting someone, make sure to set their status using your Security HUD - simply examine them and click on their status (usually [None]), and make sure to write a detailed description of the reason for the status - other officers are not omniscient and will not be able to magically guess their crime.
The Brig
For more detailed instructions, see Standard Security Procedures. For a summary, read below.
As the arresting officer, you have certain responsibilities. As always, following the protocol will keep you safe, the station secure, and the criminals in line. Follow it closely.
1. While the prisoner is still handcuffed, search them. Inform the prisoner and the other security personnel what is happening, and what the prisoner's charges are. Evidence goes in the evidence locker, hazardous chemicals should be stored to later be spaced, and all other materials go in the brig locker with the prisoner. The headset should only be taken if the prisoner is using it to incite rebellion, harass other crew members, and so on - always consult Legal Standard Operating Procedure when in doubt.
2. Lock the locker with your identification, begin to remove your prisoner's handcuffs while holding an active baton in your hand, baton them just before they come off, pick the handcuffs up, and close the door behind you to prevent escape while you set the time. The doors will not close and lock if a time has not been set in. Consult Space Law for proper sentencing. If the prisoner makes to escape, flash them with the brig's flash controls. They will even reach to just outside the cell doors. Remember that escape attempts are an additional crime under Space Law. Do NOT leave the prisoner handcuffed in their cell, unless you have very good reason to believe they are dangerous.
3. Never open the cell door when the prisoner is standing right on the other side. Require them to step back to the bed. This will allow you to react if they attack or attempt to escape. Even trustworthy prisoners may turn at any second. When in doubt, flash the cell.
4. You must be there when the prisoner's time is up to return their gear and escort them out of the brig. Failure to do this may in some cases result in your dismissal or an attack.
Security HQ
This is where you do your set up at. Also, you can arrest people with Beepsky (or any securitron) here, but do not delete security records!. If people ask nicely for your equipment just tell them to ask a Head of Staff instead. Passing out gear to civilians leads to dangerous situations at worst, arrests and misunderstandings at best.
The first step when you arrive in your position is to find an unused security locker either in the main office or the single locker near the arrival shuttle. If it has all been claimed, ask the Warden for additional equipment.
Equipment
First, you are already equipped with a helmet, body armor, backpack/duffelbag/satchel, a pair of handcuffs, a disabler, a flash, and your red jumpsuit. To acquire more equipment, head to the security lockers and take a look inside one, grab anything you need, leave anything you don't. Other gear can be acquired from the vending machine near the Armory. Some of these items can only be found in the Armory, and are best left for an emergency situation.
Stunbaton - The iconic weapon of a Security Officer. Put it in your security belt or armor storage slot. Did you hear me? Put it on your goddamn belt or armor! Because you will slip on a wet floor or banana peel, and if you are carrying your baton, it will fall on the ground next to you. You will then be completely vulnerable to your assailant, or worse yet, the Clown. The security belt and armor slots give you precious seconds of safety and a sliver of chance to fight back. If you want to stun the criminal, turn your baton on by using it in your hand! If you want to harm a criminal who's too dangerous or impossible to be captured alive (powered Vampires, Changelings, and so on), go to Harm intent and smack them right in the face. When the cell on your stick is dead, put it in a recharger and wait. You can also use a screwdriver on the baton to remove the power cell and replace it with a larger battery.
Disabler - Place the disabler in your backpack or on your armor storage slot. It fires disabler beams, which deal stamina damage and pass through glass. Disabler beams prove to be most useful against targets using anti-stun measures, such as adrenal implants. You start with one on your character, and if lost, you can get more from the Secure Armory.
Seclite - Security Flashlight, or Seclite in short, is your how you'll explore the deep tunnels of maintenance, you're going to need this a lot to traverse the darkness. It is a good idea to attach it to your disabler or your energy gun.
Flashes - A good backup if your stun baton runs out of charge or cyborgs are rogue. Throw it in a pocket or in your security belt. They can be used directly on someone in melee range to force them to drop what they are holding, cause them to move erratically, and blind them temporarily. This has the added benefit of stunning cyborgs. Alternatively, using them in your hand blinds everyone who can see you. You start with one of these on your person, inside your pocket. Keep in mind that flash protection, such as sunglasses or welding helmets, completely nullifies them.
Pepper Spray - Downs opponents who are wearing neither mask or eye protection, note that almost all eyewear counts as protection, even prescription glasses. Eye protection negates pepper spray, while a mask reduces its effectiveness to a mere temporary eye blur.
Flashbang - Preferred by most officers instead of flashes. These will knockdown, blind, and deafen targets who see it explode. To use it, simply activate it by using it in your active hand. This will put you into throw mode as soon as the grenade is primed. There is a small delay between activation and detonation. It is a good idea to throw these as far away from you as possible as they will still affect you if you stand on top of them, even while wearing eye and ear protection - remember to actually throw them. They are useful while fighting groups of assailants, such as Cultists and Sleeping Carp users. Earmuffs and bowman headsets protect from their knockdown and deafening effect, while flash protection prevents blindness.
Energy Bola - This piece of security gear, often forgotten by rookie officers, will legcuff targets it is thrown at. This is immensely useful against enemies immune to projectiles, such as Sleeping Carp or double-bladed energy sword users. Simply throw it at your enemy and watch them be forced to walk rather than run, buying time and exposing them to follow-up attacks.
HUD Sunglasses - You need to equip these. Put them on your eyes. They are essential gear, especially if you want to man the brig and want to avoid the embarrassing result of succumbing to a flash meant only for an unruly prisoner. These particular sunglasses have the added benefit of listing a person's profession, arrest status/criminal status, and mindshield implant status when they are worn, in the form of icons above said person.
Handcuffs/Zipties - Throw these in your pockets as well. You will use these. A lot. Click on someone to start handcuffing them. You'll both need to stay next to each other without moving for them to work. Pulling people then prevents them from running away. Be careful of bumping into people however. If you start running out of handcuffs, then resort to zipties, which exactly work like Handcuffs, but they're only a one time use and they can be broken quite more easily than handcuffs. When you run out of zipties, resort to cable cuffs. Handcuffs can be broken within a minute, zipties can be broken within 45 seconds, and cable cuffs can be broken in only half a minute. Cuffing takes about three seconds - it is a good idea to prod the criminal with your baton right before handcuffing them, even if they are already stunned.
Here are the following equipment that can be found in the Secure Armory.
Energy Gun - A rare item for the average officer to possess, usually only handed out by the Warden when things have really hit the fan. Has two modes, click the weapon in your inventory to switch between disable and kill. Most of the time, the weapon should be left on disable. It also makes a potent melee weapon. Firing on crew members without confirming they are hostile while on kill mode will often result in demotion or a potential job ban. Attach a Seclite into it so you can see through darkness.
Riot Shield - Another uncommon weapon for security personnel. Protects from melee attack in the direction you are facing. Makes a decent melee weapon, has a 50% chance of negating damage -melee and projectiles- can't fit in backpacks or on your back, very awkward but still robust.
Laser Gun - Possibly the least common weapon to find in the hands of Security Officers aside from the riot shotgun, mainly due to the lack of a nonlethal mode. While more efficient than an energy gun (it has a capacity of 12 shots instead of the energy gun's 10), it makes a slightly less effective melee weapon. You should never have these unless it's a Code Red situation.
Riot Shotgun - Another less common weapon found in the hands of Security Officers, usually used only in times of extreme emergency, such as Nuclear Agents declaring war on the station. They can fire a wide variety of shells, from rubber and beanbag shells that deal stamina damage, to all kinds of Technological Shells created by Science.
Ion Rifle - Found out that your IPC was a traitor or your own Borgs getting rogue left and right? This weapon is used by officers during these situations. While they are completely useless to biological beings. IPCs, Borgs and the AI on the other hand will take the heat once they felt the Ion touch. Remember NOT to use these weapons unless if it's a Silicon related situation. Additionally, they can easily injure and kill those implanted with cybernetics - while this is useful against those pesky science traitors, it also means that a negligent discharge can be nearly instantly lethal to a crewmember with a cybernetic heart - exercise caution.
Various body armor and helmets - See this for more information.
Important: When you are done with your locker, close it and lock it to prevent unruly thieves from taking the remaining items inside. If they somehow enter there.
Recharge
Always have your tools recharged after an arrest. If your flash is burnt out, get a new one from the lockers or security vending machine and hand your old one to a Roboticist. Then take your baton or disabler, pop them in the recharger, and wait for the light to flash yellow. Having a charged stunbaton is sometimes the difference between life and death.
Police misconduct 
Round-Start antagonists other than Blob are ineligible to be be matched to the job of Security Officer.
Note that if you are selected as antag, but your character's job preferences are set such that the round is unable to match you to any available non-mindshielded job, you will be instead be returned to the lobby, and the antag role will be assigned to another player.
As a mindshielded crew member, you cannot be converted into an antagonist through thralling, unless you have lost your mindshield implant, either to cloning or surgical removal. If, however, you are somehow unshielded, thralled, and then re-implanted with a mindshield, you will remain thralled.
Of note, however, is the topic of hiring from manifest: A crew member without a mindshield can change their job to Security Officer if the Head Of Personnel (and presumably the Head of Security) allows it. Anatgonists hired in this manner will not only have access to Security-specific areas, but the equipment and (admittedly sometimes dubious) trust that an officer normally comes with; Unless caught red-handed, one can get away with a lot while wearing Security's colors and showing up as mindshielded.
Tips and Tricks
- There are a few different types of armor and helmets that security is in possession of, all with their own pros and cons.
- Riot Gear is great for absorbing melee damage but won't do much of anything to protect you against bullets or lasers, also it has much greater coverage. Though it slows you down as a cost. Great for claymore toting cultists.
- Bullet Proof Vests and Bullet Proof Helmets - as the name implies, absorbs damage caused by bullets at the cost of melee and laser protection as well as having lesser coverage. Very useful when Nuclear Operatives go in guns blazing.
- The Ablative Armor is great at absorbing energy based damage such as the Laser gun and even has a chance to deflect energy based projectiles. Though you shouldn't be using it as much in most situations, except when you're at risk of friendly fire or very rare circumstances.
- Finally, your standard-issued Armor Vest and Helmet you start with is a jack of all trades type, absorbing every damage by a minimal amount, except bullets, which it absorbs lower than the rest.
- Mindshield implants prevent someone from being brainwashed into a Cult member or Revolutionary
- Keep in mind that mindshields can be removed via cloning or surgery so security officer are not 100% protected from brainwashing.
- Once you are a Gygax or Durand combat mech you are a god among men, as long as you know your limits and not run right in the middle of a xenomorph hive. The Gygax is a straight upgrade for a security officer during Traitor, Changeling, and Cult rounds due to their exceptional speed. However when dealing with biohazards such as Terror Spiders or Xenomorphs a Durand is preferable due to its high durability. It is made to go into a hive and destroy everything.
- Xenomorphs and Terror Spiders take double burn damage, laser gun them or set them on fire with the immolator gun that science can research.
- Riot shields have a good chance to block melee attacks in the direction you are facing and can also block xenomorph pounces along with their disarms. Take one, it's underrated. Couple it with riot armor to be very hard to kill in melee.
- If you need a patrolling partner just pick up your PDA and call Officer Beepsky (Or any securitron) to you. Disable his patrol mode and take him with you. If someone fucks with you just shift+click - set to arrest and he'll ensure you never get robusted again. Just make sure that the person robusting you is not Unknown, it won't work unless if you find a way (Such as making that unknown attack Beepsky).
- As a Security Officer asking a criminal to kindly come with you to the brig instead of stunning them outright doesn't hurt - in fact, you should not be doing so outside code red. You'd be surprised at how some criminals can be responsive to this. It'll save you the hassle of "HELP SHITCURITY ARRESTING ME FOR NO REASON" and you can always just tase them if they refuse. Be aware that suspicious people will get the upper hand on you, once you're off-guard.
- Getting EMP'd (Or Ion'd) means your energy based weapons will most likely be utterly dry and will have to be recharged to be used again. But keep in mind that your stun baton is the exception and loses only 10% of its charge when it is hit by an EMP so pull it out when you see a traitor or changeling run at you after they have EMP'd you.
- Bolas are your best defence against enemies immune to projectiles, because slowing them down gives you the most valuable resource - time. Once they are slowed, you can quickly go over your options, such as flashbangs, pepper spray, or your trusty stunbaton.