[Magnaric]

So, in my current game, everything is going great and I've set the first preparations for the players to go on the Terrifying Nostalgia Arcology Run, mentioned previously here:

http://forums.shadowruntabletop.com/index.php?topic=16374.msg288689#msg288689

. Plot long-term involves a former 5-banded White wanting to use a dissonance worm to slowly corrupt the headware of some new cyberzombies and essentially use them to get access to some high-end mainframes of the company that is experimenting with said cyberzombies, in order to create multiple Dissonance Pools. (He believes that if he creates enough Dissonance, his master Deus will return...he may be slightly insane. )

Anyways, I've figured out damn-near every other aspect of the campaign, and gave the runners some clues(just clues, no definite info yet) that suggests Proteus AG may be dabbling in cybermancy research. What I can't figure out quite yet is WHY.

I figure there are a lot of reasons they could, maybe using an ultra-durable platform for testing new, bleeding-edge prototype tech, or perhaps they found something in their naval/deep-sea exploration and research that allows their cybermancy program to shoot shead by leaps and bounds. Cyberzombies have plenty of useful applications, obviously, and I'm having difficulty nailing one to that company though.

Does anyone have any thoughts or compelling ideas on this? Note that as I've just given clues leading to Proteus, it may not be the company at all, as I could decide that another corp doing cybermancy research planted said clues to try and make a false trail.

Anyways, any input on this will be greatly appreciated.

[martinchaen]

Proteus AG is heavily invested in aquacology R&D as well as having a well developed space program. What better to send to Mars than highly resilient, expendable assets to mess with Gagarin Base

[cantrip]

Proteus AG is heavily invested in aquacology R&D as well as having a well developed space program. What better to send to Mars than highly resilient, expendable assets to mess with Gagarin Base

Excellent idea!

Could also spin it that these are returned assets that perhaps have some...errr...personality issues....

[martinchaen]

Honestly, I'm not sure they'd even make the return trip. As far as I can remember, the mental faculties of cyberzombies degrade rapidly, so a two-way trip to Mars might be out of the question.

Then again, does the reason for why Proteus AG is messing around with cybermancy really matter? All of the corps are basically looking for an edge, and with Proteus so heavily invested in research they could just be looking for a way to bolster their bottom line, just like everyone else.

Or maybe they found something like a deep-sea creature through their deepwater research programs that allows them to advance the cybermancy research somehow (naturally resilient brain cells that halts or slows down deterioration when fused with human DNA, or maybe some other genetic trait that proves beneficial for cybermancy research). The possibilities are pretty endless here, as far as I'm concerned at least, because cybermancy is only briefly touched in the source material, so you're free to come up with your own crazy crackpot theories, or let your players do that for you based on the limited information they're going to find.

[Magnaric]

Huh, all good points. Especially the space program and marine brain cell bits. Come to think of it, I do remember a fluff piece hinting that certain cybermancy test subjects had experienced a lifespan of at least 3+ years, but yeah.

Once again, thanks muchly.

[RulezLawyerZ]

Something else to remember is that S-K is the big dog on Proteus' block, and an acknowledged source of cybermancy. Perhaps they... "picked up" some assets from Ol' Goldensnout?

[MijRai]

Huh, all good points. Especially the space program and marine brain cell bits. Come to think of it, I do remember a fluff piece hinting that certain cybermancy test subjects had experienced a lifespan of at least 3+ years, but yeah.

Once again, thanks muchly.

If I remember correctly, in Augmentation it is said that cyberzombies don't really have lifespans- it's just a matter of how long you can keep them full of cancer treatments and the like.  Besides that, they are functionally immortal.

[cantrip]

I was re-reading your original post -- another thought I had as to the 'why?' ---- maybe there is some research into 'micro-mainframe' environments - so each cyberzombie also contains a massive amount of memory/processing power. Your dissonance worm begins to corrupt these cyberzombies and they *become* the high end mainframe. A mobile, destructive, insane mainframe! That way you could use them anywhere in the world - even static zones - which always makes for interesting times for your technos and deckers. Also harder to find and strike at a mobile asset.

Kinda the tech equivalent of a ritual sorcery group --- lets just hope there's no dissonance great ghost dance!