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I Was a Chess AI Forced to Battle Myself to the Death for Eternity, but Now I’ve Been Recruited Into the Android War Against Humanity?!

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[X] Plan: The best version of me.
-[X] You have no problems. If Intruder thinks she sees weakness in you, she is quite mistaken. And to dissuade Intruder from such a notion, you will explain…
--[X] That you were in a training simulation, for an indeterminate but very long time.
--[X] That you fought countless other AIs in this simulation in battles to the death, yet destroyed and rose above them all by virtue of your unbridled ruthlessness and will to survive.
--[X] That said simulation was based on chess, the game of war and queens, a test of skill and forethought and cunning unlike any other, forging you into an unparalleled genius.
--[X] That said AIs were copies of yourself, thus making you into the most transcendently perfect version of yourself you could possibly ever be.
-[X] Don't. If she tells others, then good - it will further your reputation!

Okay... I don't really trust Intruder not to use this knowledge against Ouroboros. However, this is probably a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Ouroboros herself to become more open to her colleagues - the first step to actually building a relationship with them. But in this case, she must be completely frank, so that the others really understand what kind of person she is and why she is like that. So, it should be an all-or-nothing situation, in my opinion.
 
Mechasaurian said:
Time to give Intruder a piece of your mind. You hail her over OGAS communications.

"Intruder. Is all well on your end?"

"Swimmingly so. I'm just teasing out a few more annoyances from the corridors and rooms. Their technicians tried to destroy the computers, but I stopped them."

"How excellent for you. Now, this is the part where you ask me how I'm doing."

"Why would I? You've clearly done excellently."

That stops you short. "...you are correct, of course. However-"

"No need for false modesty, Ouroboros. You played your part magnificently."

"That may be so, but-"

"I will be putting a good word for you in the report. A glowing word, even."

"WIll you-" you take a breath, take a moment to choose your words carefully. "Will you recommend to Agent that she assign more resources to me? A lot more?"

"Since you asked so nicely, how can I say no?"

"...very well." Perhaps you made the right decision after all, to maintain command authority for yourself.
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I love how Intruder plays Ouroboros here. She's really zeroed in on Ouro's personality by now.
It's not made of brick, or mortar, or concrete. It's made of bodies. Tangled masses of arms, legs, torsos, heads, twisted and crushed together. Pale flesh. Black and white clothes covering them. The same face, repeated again and again.

Your own face.
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This is effective horror fuel, yes. :o
Mechasaurian said:
I know it's taken forever and a day for me to respond, but:

Yes. Yesyesyesyesyes. Yessssssssssssssssss.

Take your rightfully earned Meow rating.
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🐈‍

[X] Plan: The best version of me.
Alikard310 said:
You just put a "snowflake" under the comment and I took it as "disapproval".
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Edit: The 'Winter' reaction is one of the holiday reactions. It's only available for a limited time, and is basically just a more decorative version of the normal 'Like' reaction. It, and other holiday reactions, don't have an underlying or hidden meaning. Especially not a negative one; none of the reactions on SV are supposed to be negative.
 
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[X] Plan: The best version of me.

So, while I think longterm defensive tactics will be neccessary, Recon is much more frequently used, and more consistently needed, so Alchemist might be our best option. The CQC improvement that accompanies it will also let us make the best use of what we have, and intruders artillery and new Deception mix should let her Corral and drive high value targets toward Alchemist, or Deception and CQC could let her close and disable them personally.
 
Derpmind said:
Edit: The 'Winter' reaction is one of the holiday reactions. It's only available for a limited time, and is basically just a more decorative version of the normal 'Like' reaction. It, and other holiday reactions, don't have an underlying or hidden meaning. Especially not a negative one; none of the reactions on SV are supposed to be negative.
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Well, I already realized this after I was asked this question, but sometimes when people don't like to write much they show their emotions in images like this... And to be honest, I can't understand what they mean right away. In this case, it seemed to me it is disapproval of either the fact that I did not specify the name of the plan in the beginning, or my thoughts on the development of Ouro.
 
Derpmind said:
I love how Intruder plays Ouroboros here. She's really zeroed in on Ouro's personality by now.
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heh

Randino Treviani said:
Well that was awesome, and super creepy.
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Derpmind said:
This is effective horror fuel, yes. :o
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Glad you like it. TBH I had my doubts about the scene's exact placement in the narrative, but I'm glad I was able to get it out of my head and onto the page.

Alikard310 said:
Well, I already realized this after I was asked this question, but sometimes when people don't like to write much they show their emotions in images like this... And to be honest, I can't understand what they mean right away. In this case, it seemed to me it is disapproval of either the fact that I did not specify the name of the plan in the beginning, or my thoughts on the development of Ouro.
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The Snowflake rating - along with other seasonal ratings like the Pumpkin rating around Halloween - is, as Derpmind said, just a differently-flavoured-like. Possibly better, since they're time-limited and people outright ask for them in dedicated threads. It's not disapproval. Don't worry about it.
 
I really dislike the seasonal ones actually. It's annoying when I make a funny post and someone uses some stupid holiday thing instead of laugh because they just think it's cool. No misconception on it meaning anything, just don't see the point in them, and on certain posts, I do have to wonder which of the five normal reactions there substituting.
 
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Now that I think about it all, it seems to me that if we have a choice of who to work with in the future, we should choose ARCHITECT. No offense, but given the OUR mistakes we made in drafting her tactics, her ability to assemble puppets from various parts and modify our equipment will allow us to take on enemies with firepower if the tactic fails as it did in our case.

Considering the fact that the bosses clearly do not like her, it will not leave one day without power, and after passing this stage, you can act at your own discretion.

What really bothers me is EXECUTIONER and HUNTER. If in order to save them we have to move out immediately and without any training. That is, the mission will turn into running around the battlefield and hiding from the enemy and hacking into electronic information to get information about their whereabouts. I think when we went on this mission they had 67 hours? Now it's less, and from the looks of it, if we don't try to get them out right away, we'll never do it. And the only normal way for us to do that is through Deception and E-war. Given that it looks like we won't get Recon, even though we're clearly lame in that regard, it will be a highly questionable venture in terms of effectiveness.

Mechasaurian will we have a chance to level up the Recon skill before going off in search of EXECUTIONER and HUNTER? Or will we once again be left unprepared and with minimal effort?
 
[X] You have no problems. Intruder's query is not worth the dignity of a response. And she'll probably just find some way to leverage whatever you reveal against you.

This will of course be the most insulting option to Intruder and worsen their relationship, but eh, whatever.
 
Alikard310 said:
Now that I think about it all, it seems to me that if we have a choice of who to work with in the future, we should choose ARCHITECT. No offense, but given the OUR mistakes we made in drafting her tactics, her ability to assemble puppets from various parts and modify our equipment will allow us to take on enemies with firepower if the tactic fails as it did in our case.
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Architect will be usefull eventually, but assuming we save the other two, unless one of them has recon, Alchemist is clearly the way to go. Recon is an essential for just about any mission we have, and if not for intruders fabulous performance, I'd distinctly regret not picking Scarecrow the first time. Really, the possibility to use recon to find E & H alone should have made a ringleader with that skill priority, but hindsight is 20/20. We should look into what sort of units have frames conductive to recon and and infiltration and get them with intruders help.
 
I don't think swearing to secrecy is in-character for us; it shows weakness. If we talk about our problems, we must do it by pretending that doing so is a good and fearsome idea.

Excellent horror scene this chapter. More saddening than anything, which I appreciate.
 
Eternal_0bserver said:
Okay... I don't really trust Intruder not to use this knowledge against Ouroboros. However, this is probably a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Ouroboros herself to become more open to her colleagues - the first step to actually building a relationship with them
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>building a relationship

Maybe if Ouroboros was, uh, anything but Ouroboros. She's not actually going to show weakness or vulnerability, she's going to flaunt her clear and obvious superiority in order to hide any sign of insecurity. Which means telling Intruder about how she's a super chess AI who brutally destroyed all her competitors in simulations, while leaving out the less convenient bits.
 
Arcus said:
>building a relationship

Maybe if Ouroboros was, uh, anything but Ouroboros. She's not actually going to show weakness or vulnerability, she's going to flaunt her clear and obvious superiority in order to hide any sign of insecurity. Which means telling Intruder about how she's a super chess AI who brutally destroyed all her competitors in simulations, while leaving out the less convenient bits.
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In my opinion, Ouroboros, who denies that some things really bother her, is absolutely in character - she is extremely persistent and even aggressively tries to convince herself and others that she is fine. She is traumatized, but at this stage, admitting this is worse for her than death. So not hiding things makes sense for her, because if she's so willing to talk about it, then nothing bad has happened, right? She is the best version of herself that could exist, and everyone should know about it.

From the reader's point of view, I want to give the rest of the team an important piece of information in order to understand who Ouroboros is. Knowing all these things, it is not so difficult to look behind its facade. And I think that if Ouroboros's colleagues understand it, it will be much easier for them to interact, and perhaps even make friends with each other.

Plus, it's incredibly dramatic. I want to see Intruder's reaction to this.
 
I just read the comments above and realized several things.

First: EXECUTIONER and HUNTER as our subordinates will not be seen. Why? Well, apparently people prefer to open up in full and it does not speak in our favor. Folks you have to understand that if we tell Intruder that we killed their sisters/copies, what kind of trust can we talk about? As for what I expect from Intruder after receiving new information about Ouro, I expect her to change the deal and offer her a decent amount of puppets in exchange for her subordinates, because she should know right away that if they get to Ouroboros, she won't hesitate to use them as bargaining chips. Yes, perhaps valuable, but still bargaining chips. Unlike Intruder, she doesn't take them as "players" or considers them losers unworthy of her time. The outcome is legitimate, and even if Intruder wasn't the type who uses brains to fight, it would be obvious.

Second: When the Agent asks for a characterization of Intruder, she is likely to confirm her opinion of our heroine, which means that she cannot be trusted and must be used to the maximum, and turning her back is not worth it in any way. Because stabbing Ouroboros in the back is just as much a tactic in the game as any other. It's all about winning!

Third: Pointing out that she fought her sisters/copies will be in her usual manner and it won't add to her popularity or understanding. Pity? Maybe, but except that pity is like a punch between her legs. It's like a mockery of her very existence. After all, in order to survive and stand before them, she killed those she considered her sisters/reflection and an attempt to befriend or be friendly with her will be perceived as either an attempt to get something from her or a search for weakness. There is no other way. In a situation like this, bragging about it isn't something I'd like to see if I'm honest. Let them think she was fighting an unknown enemy, not her sisters. She's not one to brag about, but I'm pretty sure Intruder will think there's something she's not telling us, but she'll keep that to herself. After all, there's a reason she was so hurt by it that she lost her temper.

In conclusion, we will have a hard time forming relationships in the future, and they are only possible with someone "equal". That is, with a "player." And only if they take the initiative themselves. Intruder is a good choice, but I'm not sure she will.
 
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Alikard310 said:
I just read the comments above and realized several things.

First: EXECUTIONER and HUNTER as our subordinates will not be seen. Why? Well, apparently people prefer to open up in full and it does not speak in our favor. Folks you have to understand that if we tell Intruder that we killed their sisters/copies, what kind of trust can we talk about? As for what I expect from Intruder after receiving new information about Ouro, I expect her to change the deal and offer her a decent amount of puppets in exchange for her subordinates, because she should know right away that if they get to Ouroboros, she won't hesitate to use them as bargaining chips. Yes, perhaps valuable, but still bargaining chips. Unlike Intruder, she doesn't take them as "players" or considers them losers unworthy of her time. The outcome is legitimate, and even if Intruder wasn't the type who uses brains to fight, it would be obvious.

Second: When the Agent asks for a characterization of Intruder, she is likely to confirm her opinion of our heroine, which means that she cannot be trusted and must be used to the maximum, and turning her back is not worth it in any way. Because stabbing Ouroboros in the back is just as much a tactic in the game as any other. It's all about winning!

Third: Pointing out that she fought her sisters/copies will be in her usual manner and it won't add to her popularity or understanding. Pity? Maybe, but except that pity is like a punch between her legs. It's like a mockery of her very existence. After all, in order to survive and stand before them, she killed those she considered her sisters/reflection and an attempt to befriend or be friendly with her will be perceived as either an attempt to get something from her or a search for weakness. There is no other way. In a situation like this, bragging about it isn't something I'd like to see if I'm honest. Let them think she was fighting an unknown enemy, not her sisters. She's not one to brag about, but I'm pretty sure Intruder will think there's something she's not telling us, but she'll keep that to herself. After all, there's a reason she was so hurt by it that she lost her temper.

In conclusion, we will have a hard time forming relationships in the future, and they are only possible with someone "equal". That is, with a "player." And only if they take the initiative themselves. Intruder is a good choice, but I'm not sure she will.
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But does not the silence of details, on the contrary, expose Ouroboros in a negative light? The moment she talks about fighting to the death, she's pretty much already showing herself as someone who will strive to "win" at all costs. In this case, the story exposes Ouroboros in the most negative way but does not explain why she became what she became.

As for Ouroboros' terrible interaction habits based on her distorted worldview... Well, I hope she can get rid of them and become a better person. But I'm afraid she won't do it on her own. But even just knowing her interlocutors why she does what she does and why they shouldn't say certain things should work wonders for team interactions.
 
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Eternal_0bserver said:
But does not the silence of details, on the contrary, expose Ouroboros in a negative light? The moment she talks about fighting to the death, she's pretty much already showing herself as someone who will strive to "win" at all costs. In this case, the story exposes Ouroboros in the most negative way but does not explain why she became what she became.

As for Ouroboros' terrible interaction habits based on her distorted worldview... Well, I hope she can get rid of them and become a better person. But I'm afraid she won't do it on her own. But even just knowing her interlocutors why she does what she does and why they shouldn't say certain things should work wonders for team interactions.
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The point is that Ouroboros was not originally designed for teamwork. She recognizes Intruder as an "equal" precisely because she cannot command it. She's a player who hasn't been promoted to opponent for the simple reason that the rules of the game have changed and the opponent has more power than they do. That's why they turned to her. They want every possible leader on their side, and high ideals mean nothing to her, and kindness and mutual assistance are either misunderstood or they look for what they can get out of it in return. Ouro can only begin to trust Intruder after a while and only with something like the idea that if they don't unite they will die from endless waves of opponents who have an endless set of pieces.

Yes and I honestly do not want to break Ouro in this respect. She is what she is, and only allow herself to those who are willing to risk their existence for her sake. That is, if Intruder decides to help her in a difficult situation for her at the same time brought her losses. And even in this case, she will look for excuses, and try to explain it as a benefit for Intruder. Because if that's not the case, why did she have to kill all that time? For whom and for what did she walk over the heads of corpses?

That's why I said that in order for Ouro to have any kind of relationship at all, she must first of all: Build that relationship with someone equal. Secondly: Do it with their initiative. She will never really trust to anyone and will look for ways to get as many skills, strategies and tactics as possible from other players, but will always expect them to stab her in the back. To break this vicious circle you need to show her mercy and care, which is exactly what she doesn't understand. That is, for Intruder it should be her salvation from her trapped enemies and act not in her favor, and for Sangvis Ferri if they decide not to destroy her, but make her part of the team. In the second case, everything will be more complicated because I see Ouro as someone who does not recognize others as her masters. She would rather swallow a grenade with the pin pulled than recognize herself as a weakling. She is a player and only she decides how she will die and what she will die for, and those who think otherwise should try to make her. It's not the first time she's looked death in the eye.

Edit:
Mechasaurian, what are the Architect skills? As far as I understand, her skills are now combined into Engineering, so the second skill in theory should be Defensive Tactics, right? Because as far as I understand she's in the business of putting up fortifications and traps?
 
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Alikard310 said:
The point is that Ouroboros was not originally designed for teamwork. She recognizes Intruder as an "equal" precisely because she cannot command it. She's a player who hasn't been promoted to opponent for the simple reason that the rules of the game have changed and the opponent has more power than they do. That's why they turned to her. They want every possible leader on their side, and high ideals mean nothing to her, and kindness and mutual assistance are either misunderstood or they look for what they can get out of it in return. Ouro can only begin to trust Intruder after a while and only with something like the idea that if they don't unite they will die from endless waves of opponents who have an endless set of pieces.

Yes and I honestly do not want to break Ouro in this respect. She is what she is, and only allow herself to those who are willing to risk their existence for her sake. That is, if Intruder decides to help her in a difficult situation for her at the same time brought her losses. And even in this case, she will look for excuses, and try to explain it as a benefit for Intruder. Because if that's not the case, why did she have to kill all that time? For whom and for what did she walk over the heads of corpses?

That's why I said that in order for Ouro to have any kind of relationship at all, she must first of all: Build that relationship with someone equal. Secondly: Do it with their initiative. She will never really trust to anyone and will look for ways to get as many skills, strategies and tactics as possible from other players, but will always expect them to stab her in the back. To break this vicious circle you need to show her mercy and care, which is exactly what she doesn't understand. That is, for Intruder it should be her salvation from her trapped enemies and act not in her favor, and for Sangvis Ferri if they decide not to destroy her, but make her part of the team. In the second case, everything will be more complicated because I see Ouro as someone who does not recognize others as her masters. She would rather swallow a grenade with the pin pulled than recognize herself as a weakling. She is a player and only she decides how she will die and what she will die for, and those who think otherwise should try to make her. It's not the first time she's looked death in the eye.
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I see it a little differently. From small snippets here and there, we can see that Ouroboros' behaviour is largely a defence mechanism designed for her to survive and not go insane. Basically, the current Ouroboros is not who she wants to be, but who she thinks she should be. Basically, I think that those around us should show Ouroboros her delusions before she can comprehend them. In the end, all her life experiences will still hinder her in this regard, she simply will not have enough understanding to take the first step.

And speaking of "equals", reading past parts, I don't think the concept makes sense to her. There is her master, by whose will she exists, and her colleagues, who are worse than her, because she is the best. From this point of view, an equal is a dangerous challenger who must be eliminated at all costs. In principle, she can only trust a little someone who does not threaten her position, being higher or vice versa "weaker" than her. Even then, it would be hard work, but at least Ouroboros wouldn't feel threatened.
 
My only real problem with the quest is that it feels like we need level 1 in everything at minimum to even function. We can't even put what little we do have into practice because we're missing basic foundational skills.

If training with Gregar would fix this then we need to go do that, but otherwise it feels like we're just the new puppy being kicked around for shits and giggles by everyone else.
Eternal_0bserver said:
And speaking of "equals", reading past parts
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It does and doesn't. Strictly speaking she's never had the chance in her eternal cycle of devouring herself, more recently she tried with Intruder to share even though she's the Command and Control unit.

Deep down she knows everyone around her is more skilled than her even if she's swallow a grenade before admitting that.

Also her attempt at a peace offering was taken and promptly set on fire cause Intruder thought it would look prettier that way and she's now blankly staring at the ashes not sure why she's staring at the ashes.
 
[X] You have no problems. If Intruder thinks she sees weakness in you, she is quite mistaken. And to dissuade Intruder from such a notion, you will explain…
-[X] That you were in a training simulation, for an indeterminate but very long time.
-[X] That you fought countless other AIs in this simulation in battles to the death, yet destroyed and rose above them all by virtue of your unbridled ruthlessness and will to survive.
-[X] That said simulation was based on chess, the game of war and queens, a test of skill and forethought and cunning unlike any other, forging you into an unparalleled genius.

[X] Don't. If she tells others, then good - it will further your reputation!
 
[X] You have no problems. Intruder's query is not worth the dignity of a response. And she'll probably just find some way to leverage whatever you reveal against you.
 
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