On Fri, Aug 8, 2014 at 12:59 PM, Kurt Feltenberger <kurt@thepaw.org> wrote:

On 8/8/2014 12:42 PM, Bruce Johnson wrote:

1. What Traveller (Classic/Mega/Mongoose) Tech Level would be
> represented by such recordings?
>

This is essentially personality recording and implanting.

I would put it at ‘Not Available Here’ TL, because the canowyrms it represents. (if you can implant the personality and skills of an alien Doctor into your head, there is much much mischief that can be done doing it between members of the same species. See, for example, the Joss Whedon series ‘Dollhouse’<http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1135300/>, which is essentially the same concept.)

It is much more likely that expert systems + robotic surgery bots (which we have now) would be utilized.

Isn't this actually in canon, though? Adventure 6: Expedition to Zhodane had the technology and formed a core part of the adventure.

Actually, no. (I have the Big Floppy Books handy and looked it up.)

That is, there is a "personality overlay machine" described as a "conglomeration of devices and techiques" in the adventure, which enables the user to "assume an alternative personality which is both consistent with his research aims and is non-threatening to local subjects."

But the new personality is merely that: a new personality. There is no mention of gaining new or different skills or attributes (something which almost rises to the level of a taboo in Classic Traveller, after all!). Basically - although the adventure text never comes right out and says so - the purpose of the personality overlay is to prevent the user's actual identity from being revealed to anyone making a casual probe of his mind.

Richard Aiken

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"A word to the wise ain't necessary -- it's the stupid ones that need the advice." - Bill Cosby

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