Man/Machine
Apologies for the lousy spelling and bad punctuation. I just wrote this on the train over. So its not all great.
In the beginning there was god
And god created man
And man created machine
And machines merged with man
The uncomforting reality of Ghost in the Shell.
I have decided that the best way of approaching the possiblity of creating d20 Ghost in
the Shell, is by putting away the rulebook and looking at what is the goal. I hope over
the next few pages to create a sense of how the world of Ghost in the Shell ticks.
The Net
The Net in Ghost in the Shell is an organism of information, through an analogy of
viruses, antibodies, nervous systems, the Net exists. The Net is not a mechanical
organism except when looked at from hardware perspective, hardware is immaterial in the
vast sea of knowledge. Through this network everything flows. There are military, and
industrial nets, but they all tie into the larger existance of the Net. With the right
keys or knowledge these barriers disappear.
The Cyberbrained
To traverse the Net all you need is either a cyberbrain or the cumbersome gear of a
brain scanner. The cyberbrain reacts more swiftly, understands more than the crude aids
of information can ever achieve. Most often the division between those who have
cyberbrains and those who do not is starck. The world is an informational hyper age. The
amount of information needed to maintain a competitive edge in this post-modern society
cannot be achieved through the crude method of visual assimilation.
Hackers
There is a darker side though with having a cyberbrain. A man need only have a
cyberbrain to access informational nodes of the Net. Some of those nodes are people.
Even though every cyberbrain comes with an attack barrier to prevent unauthorised usage,
the more skilled hackers can pass beyond the defences. When inside a persons mind, the
only limitations are those of what is connected to the cyberbrain. Inside they possess
the body of the infected host, are able to change memories, overlay personality engrams,
or destroy the very physical mind of the host.
The Ghost
The ghost is what defines what a person is. It is his soul. The whisper in the machine,
encased in a cyberbrain unit. It is intangible, but can be quantified, and proven of its
existance. Animals, and sometimes machines can be said to possess a ghost. While
possible, it does break away from the comfort of human superiority. It is possible to
copy the ghost. As a hacker exists longer in the Net, he can create a copy of himself.
Upload all his experiences into secure locations throughout the Net that eventually
converge back to creating himself. In addition to the slow method, a persons cyberbrain
can be copied using a braindubbing machine. This machine often rips out the essence of
what makes that a person, and can copy it into software form.
Beyond the Ghost
Outside the ghost are the experiences that create the person as he is. The skills he has
learned, the memories, the acquaintances, that all plug him into the
social/informational system of society. Those with a cyberbrain are not limited to
learning through doing, but can through teaching mechs learn valuable skills, and
through specialist software be able to do what other find impossible. External memory
modules, beyond those incorporated in the cyberbrain can be utilized. Information far
wider than any human a hundred years before could possess is at their fingertips.
Databases, skills, and AI, help the cyberbrain in reaching its true potential.
Artificial Intelligence
With the advent of cyberbrains, cyberpsychology came into existence. Enabling the
creation of more humanlike AIs. An AI is an expert system devoted a narrow purpose.
Whether it is an automous information gather system, a love doll, or a mannequin. They
can be as machinelike or as lifelike as desired. Nonetheless, an AI has limited in its
responses, understanding, and personality. Often, though AIs are said to contain ghosts
even though no such ghost patterns can be discerned, although as AIs become more
advanced they begin to inherenet characteristics not of AI, but of artificial organisms.
Robots
Robots possess an AI the same way a cyborg possesses a ghost. Although some robots do
not look in the slightest humanlike, others can appear perfectly human. Humanity
constantly strives for the creation of what is in its own image, and there is the fear
that the robot may look back and pluck out that which offends them. A robot, as a
syntethic organism is far superior to the human body. It does not need to sleep, drink,
or eat. It is able to withstand stresses that a human body could not. However, the
robotic mind is fragile and can snap due to the stress of being unable to understand.
when that happens, a robot will rarely go on a rampage. Sometimes a hacker, or a
saboteur will infiltrate and tweak the programming to make the robot snap. Sometimes
combat software is overlayed into the robot, making it alone a deadly match against most
heavily armed police units.
Decots
Decoy Robots, or decots. Cyberntics and robotics, are permanently twined together. It is
hard to say even among experts when a cyborg begins and a robot ends. With decots this
blurring of distinctions is enhanced, as these artificial bodies do not have a
cyberbrain, but can be manipulated from afar, often being controlled by the original
owner. Often used to prevent assassinations or to simply pose as someone who does not
exist as a being.
Cyborgs
The quintessential expression of power. Heads of State become them, soldiers are
transformed into them, and the crippled gain new lives. Most full cyborgs live their
lives happily never knowing how much untapped power they possess. Others seek to
maintain their edge through a body that can be stronger, faster, more versatile than the
human body.
Humans
Humans still exists, but without a cyberbrain they do not have the capacity to maintain
their position in the post-modern market place. They have essentialiy become obsolete in
the information age.
