by Justin Schmid
Gamer's Herald Vol 1/Num 1, June/July 1992
Reprinted w/o permission.
Where would the world be without pets? This question may seem ludicrous, but when you really think about it, almost every great leader has had a pet of some kind. Now, we cannot overlook the importance of pets. They preserve Man's compassion and dedication to something other than himself. All of the world's great leaders who did not have pets were cruel and self-centered. This is not to say that a pet automatically makes you a nice person, but they do help a great deal.
Now enter the world of Cyberpunk, 2013, wherein "the last bird died in 2008" to quote the Cyberpunk Sourcebook. Now what keeps people in check? They've admitted that this was an exaggeration, but when you think about it, most of the world's animals have died out. So, what do the people of Cyberpunk do about pets? Make them.
The world of Cyberpunk is one in which almost everything can be synthesized, so why not animals? Now, we just have to put it into context, and there you have it, PseudoPets!
Way back in the 1980's, there were many labs trying to create working robots. They were having trouble getting all the information into a small body, so they had to have huge computers linked through cables to the robot. These were the first primitive robots, predecessors to the wonders of today.
Back in 1991, Stanford's research center developed artificial muscle fibers. This was the true beginning of PseudoPets. By 1998, there had been significant advances in chipware and huge amounts of information could be stored in small microchips, therefore the robots could be independent of those cables. But in 1998, the drought and famines which gripped the world were killing off the animals of the world. The governments worldwide had to choose between feeding their people or the animals they kept under their protection, so the animals died off. In the year 2000, the wasting plague also hit the animals and that finished off additional scores of species. A few eccentrics paid millions for the surviving animals, kept them and cared for them. There are to sole survivors of several otherwise extinct species.
Around 2002, a robotics research company named PseudoWorks Inc. was established, funded by the Canadian government. While the world was going through hell, the labs of PseudoWorks Inc. were burning the midnight oil. By 2004, to comfort the starving world, K-9, a very crude robotic dog, was invented and then mass produced. It served as a distraction for a starving world who had lost their pets a few years back. The K-9 pets were shown to actually reduce the number of riots in areas where they were distributed. PseudoWorks was given world-wide praise to continue their work.
By 2007, refinements had been made and Pavlov's Pets were introduced. These were electronic pets covered with fake animal skins. They could perform simple commands and required frequent recharging. These were improved upon for the next seven years, and by the end of their development, they were quite efficient and could follow many commands, but they were still obviously mechanical.
In 2012, PseudoWorks took on a new branch, Bio-Research. This new branch investigated cloning. Cloning was nothing new. The first successful human clones had been created in 2006, so they had six years of research to draw upon. By 2014, PseudoWorks decided to drop the Pavlov Pets line in favor of bio-organic pets, PseudoPets. The first ones were very crude, a few thousand copies of one cat, or tens of thousands of copies of one dog. They were also brain-dead, so electronic brains had to be implanted.
In 2017, German labs created the first self-aware clones. This technology was soon copied by PseudoWorks (now and independent corp.), and the were able to create intelligent PseudoPets. Work over the past three years has improved the PseudoPet's intelligence and other capabilities, but there is still work to be done. There are rumors that an Artificial Intelligence is planned to be put into the head of an animal, thus creating the first fully intelligent animal.
PseudoPets are bio-engineered organisms designed to mimic living animals. They are first copied from the existing DNA of a specific animal type and then modified to suit the buyer. The color of the Pet, the size, the intelligence and the attributes of the Pet can be manipulated at this early stage. Then, once the desired pattern has been attained, the Pet's growth is accelerated to adult size and sold. At this time, cybernetics can be attached to the Pet and even the brain can be replaced by an electronic one. There are some standard PseudoPet versions at the end of these rules explaining the generation of a PseudoPet.
The following rules are for buying a unique Pet.
1) Determine which species you desire. The base cost is $250 x BOD type. Minimum cost is $250. There are several modifications to this:
2) Specify the alterations to be made while growing. Standard changes:
Extra limbs: $500 per limb Eye Color Change: $25 per eye Heightened INT: $500 per +1* Muscle Increase: $500 per +1 BOD (strength only) Size Decrease: $500 per -1 BOD Size Increase: $1000 per +1 BOD Color Change: $50 *note that at least 1 INT must be bought, up to a maximum of 3.
3) Now it is assumed the Pet has been grown to specifications and is at its full size. The animal will typically have a REF of 4-8 and an MA of 4-12. The GM will tell you what the REF and MA are, depending on the animal type. There are some examples at the end of the article. Now cybernetic modifications can be made. Note that a Pet has 0.5 spaces per 3 BOD. It costs $500 per extra 0.5 space. Here are some standard modifications:
Adrenal Booster: $250 per +1 Built-in Pistol: $500 Built-in SMG: $1000 Chipware Processor: $500 CyberSnake: $1500 LCD Screen Readout: $100 MonoClaws: $200 per claw MonoClaws w/ Poison: $350 per claw Strengthened Teeth: $150 Subdermal Armor: $100 per 1 SP CyberBrain: $2000+$500 per 1 INT CyberOptic: $250 each - Dartgun: $150 - Image Enh.: $200 - Infrared: $100 - LowLite: $100 - Teleoptics: $100 - Ultraviolet: $150 - Vid Camera: $200 CyberAudio: $250 - Amp. Hearing: $100 - Homing Tracer: $100 - Radio Link: $50
4) Skills are only possible if the Pet has a Chipware processor or if the Pet has an INT of 3 or 4. If it does have an INT of 3 or 4, then it can have 1.5 times that number of points worth of skills. This reflects the long time it takes in training, and not all skills can be learned by a PseudoPet.
5) The combat stats of the Pet must be determined. How many claws or talons does it have? How much damage to they do? Does the Pet have teeth which can do any damage at all? For small animals, typical claw damage is 1d6/3, or just 0-1. Bite damage is the same. Use BOD damage modifiers.
6) The fully outfitted Pet is ready for action. Now you must describe your PseudoPet. Here is the standard format for a PseudoPet description sheet:
Name: Species: Owner's Name: INT: Skills: REF: Cybernetics: MA: Alterations: BOD: Wgt: Weapons: Description:
Here are the various BOD types and the weight associated with it. These are just general guidelines, so feel free to alter the values as needed. You can also find the weights of animals in most encyclopedias and various zoology texts.
BOD 0: 0.1-20 Kg. BOD 1: 21- 40 Kg. BOD 2: 41- 60 Kg. BOD 3: 61- 80 Kg. BOD 4: 81- 100 Kg. BOD 5: 101-120 Kg. BOD 6: 121-140 Kg. BOD 7: 141-160 Kg. BOD 8: 161-180 Kg. BOD 9-10: 181-200 Kg. BOD 11: 201-225 Kg. BOD 12: 226-250 Kg. BOD 13: 251-300 Kg. BOD 14: 301-400 Kg. BOD 15: 401-500 Kg.
PseudoPets may be state of the art in 2020, but that doesn't mean that they are perfect. There are many subtle problems and limitations to PseudoPets. A PseudoPet cannot speak. It can on make sounds natural to its species. A PseudoPet will have the natural abilities of is species, including its senses. Thus, a PseudoCat will have natural low-light vision, a PseudoBird will have natural telescopic vision, and a PseudoSkunk will be able to excrete a very foul smell.
A PseudoPet will look just like a natural member of its species and act the same way. They are fed Bionutrients costing $10 a week per 1 BOD. The Pet uses up all of this and does not have to excrete. A Pet will have standard survival instincts, but this can be overridden on Pets with an INT of 2 or more and programmed for a certain goal. Depending on its intelligence, it will be able to follow certain levels of commands:
With every great invention, laws are created to regulate the spread and use of that invention. PseudoPets are no exception. They are very important aspects of life in 2020, therefore many laws have bee passed to control their existence. The following are laws which are fairly common worldwide, but may differ slightly from location to location.
Here are some of the standard PseudoPets currently mass produced. The only real variations available are skin/fur color.
PseudoPets are a valuable addition to any Cyberpunk game, as they add the additional dimension of animals. After all, it does add something to the game to have a top Netrunner walk into a nightclub with a Pseudo- Tiger next to her. They can be used for protection and for offensive purposes. A Corporate assassination might take the form of a little tabby cat armed with poisoned MonoClaws, or a wolf with a submachinegun built into its side. The possibilities are endless and with a few simple conversions, you can even use them in another system.
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