Dropped Mind Link Detection

[TranquiloUno]

This is obvs mostly GM interpretation (I think). I dunno if there is anything in the rules about it.

 

So with that said: Let's say Mind Link Max has setup mind links with 8-12 folks. Let's say that one of those he's created a link with is suddenly murdered from behind. Does Mink Link Max detect that the link drops? Or...does it even drop when the target dies? Mink Link seems to suggest that one side can drop a connection, but also seems to imply that either side can maintain a connection even if the other one isn't.

 

Question 1: Would either\any side of a Mind Link notice if the link drops? Passively drops I guess. Not a sudden interruption mid-convo, more like do you notice it's dropped when you wake up the next morning if somebody died while you were sleeping or similar?

 

And then I was surprised to discover that the mind link is supposed to be a mesh network (or maybe it's a star topology?) where everybody can hear everybody and point-to-point comms require a roll.

 

Question 2: Do you run Mind Link as a "party line" or discreet links between participants?

Question 3: Assuming you run Mind Link as the rules describe what would you charge for the links being point-to-point at all times by default rather than party line style?

[Gnome BODY (important!)]

1: Given that Mind Link explicitly only cuts out when "hung up", RAW the link persists until the linker cuts it off.  It is entirely more interesting to me to have the linker know that the linkee isn't linked anymore.  Did they hang up?  Did they get Dispel Mental'd?  Are they dead?  The suspense! 

 

2: I'd let the character buying it choose if all their linkees had links to each other or if the links only connected to him.  The upside of everyone linking to everyone else is that it means the linker isn't actually a critical component of their own Mind Link.  The downside is that they can't control, restrict, or filter.  Conversely, having to constantly play messenger and having the network go down when you do is enough of a downside to make free secret conversations a gimme. 

 

3. I'd charge a +5 adder to freely swap modes, otherwise no cost for picking one and sticking to it. 

[Christopher]

I can not rememember in wich book I saw it, but I once saw "Mind Link, Radio Group, also affected as Hearing" used as a form of hard to break encryption for Radio communicatin. Something that would need Telepathy to break into by raw. Or listening to the speaker (also affected as hearing).

So treating it like a point to point radio network is not wrong. Maybe even a form of VPN connection over the unsecure "thought space"? Maybe the equivalent of putting in physical wires that can stretch and are only visible to peopel with Mental Awareness?

 

APG I 169 has some specific rulings on mind link, including cases where one person (not nessearily the one with Mind Link power) acts as a relay/switch.

[Sean Waters]

Q1.  We play a game on Monday nights over Discord.  There are six of us and we usually notice pretty quickly if someone drops and we have not heard from them for a couple of minutes.  You don't get any information about the person on the other end of the line other than what they say or "hear".  I'd treat it like a landline conversation where the other party has hit the mute button, probably.  OTOH, you can only establish links with minds and, arguably, someone who is dead does not have one any more.  I think it is probably up to you to make a judgement call, but if it was me, if it was a one to one link you would know that it had dropped as if they had hung up, but not why.  If it was a multi-person link, you would have to make occasional INT rolls to realise that someone was no longer participating, but if you specifically spoke to that one person (as opposed to the group) it would be obvious they were not there any more, but, again you would not know why.  The rule is Link A character can voluntarily leave a Mind Link as a Zero Phase Action (just like deactivating any power).  When you die, your powers deactivate.
 

Q2. Mind Link is a Party Line but you can speak to a other single individual without anyone else hearing with an EGO roll requiring a half phase action.  While you are doing this you will be on mute to the rest, so they may notice you have dropped as above.  When you are speaking one to one I'd rule you can only hear one to one too.  If the other party does not want a one to one conversation they can decline it, in which case you drop from the party line until you stop trying to connect one to one.

 

Q3. Being point-to-point all the time sounds less useful than being party all the time so I would say it was a -0 limitation.  You would need to make an EGO roll to speak to (and hear) the group with this version.  Depending on how you read the rules you COULD set up multiple single person Mind Links - normally you can run multiple versions of  a constant power at the same time.  The rules do say A character can usually only maintain a Mind Link with one person at a time (even if he can establish the Link with anyone in a group). He can double the number of minds for every +5 points but I take that to mean that they can only maintain a link with a single mind per Mind Link in operation (without an adder) not that they can not establish multiple simultaneous mind links.  There is no adder for the number of Mind Links you can run simultaneously 

[Christopher]

On 2/21/2019 at 11:53 PM, Sean Waters said:

We play a game on Monday nights over Discord.  There are six of us and we usually notice pretty quickly if someone drops and we have not heard from them for a couple of minutes.  You don't get any information about the person on the other end of the line other than what they say or "hear".  I'd treat it like a landline conversation where the other party has hit the mute button, probably.

Fun fact:
Analog Transmissions were prone to always have a slight "noise" effect. It was a physical limitation, based on electric noise along the wires.

 

Digital Transmissions (like Mobile Phones) are not affected by noise the same way. Noise reduces the Bandwidth. But you do not hear it, like with Analog Transmissions. Noise only worked on first and last few "Analog centimeters" (the microphone and speaker cables). Wich was usually laughable compared to the noise of kilometers of transmission wire.

That was a huge issue as people would ask "Hello, are you still there?" all the time when testing digital communications. So right now we end up adding Noise to the Audio Signal:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comfort_noise

Just so people still know the channel is open.