Lysogenic Viruses for Virology

[Silavite]

Lysogenic viruses would be an interesting addition to virology. A lysogenic virus modifies a cell's DNA with its own, however, it does not instruct it to start producing viruses until a 'trigger' occurs, usually some type of stress in the organism.
In gameplay terms, it would mean you'd have a healthy individual with lots of cells ready to produce viruses once they've been infected, however, the virus must be triggered by something, be that a certain gas, chemical, lack of oxygen, temperature, or something else. Once the virus is triggered, it would instantly be at stage 5 (depending how long the virus has been dormant in the host's cells, of course. It the virus has only been in the host for 3 minutes before activating, then it would start out at stage 2 or 3.)
This could lead to some interesting traitor tactics, like giving everyone a heat triggered virus, then wait a while, and let loose with a fever.

Relevant Wikipedia Page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lysogenic_cycle

[DemonFiren]

Or a plasma fire. If the virus fucks mobility or intelligence, that would massively up deadliness.

The problem is medhud detection. Maybe make it visible by blood analysis, but not HUDs?

[CocaneStyle]

Virology needs to be redone completely, 90% of it is garbage with no use.

[deathhoof]

Its possible to make invisible viruses, but the system is so broken that you cant get any decently lethal invisible virus.

[PKPenguin321]

Its possible to make invisible viruses, but the system is so broken that you cant get any decently lethal invisible virus.

I think you can if you're creative enough, it's not intended to be easy. One of those "easy to learn hard to master" things, plus the added need for a little RNG.

Virology needs to be redone completely, 90% of it is garbage with no use.

What? Have you even played a round with a half-decent virologist before?

[Silavite]

My point is that it would make getting a virus into someone vastly easier. The trade off is finding how to trigger it without being suspicious.
>Your target hangs around at the bar
>Make killer virus
>Inject corpse in morgue with virus
>Bring it to the chef for gibbing
>Offer your target a diseased burger

Of course at this point, they would only get symptoms, and know they have the virus until it is triggered.

[CocaneStyle]

Its possible to make invisible viruses, but the system is so broken that you cant get any decently lethal invisible virus.

I think you can if you're creative enough, it's not intended to be easy. One of those "easy to learn hard to master" things, plus the added need for a little RNG.

Virology needs to be redone completely, 90% of it is garbage with no use.

What? Have you even played a round with a half-decent virologist before?

I am a very good Virologist, good enough to know what works and what doesn't. The amount of creativity you have with viruses is very limited, for example you can't really use good symptoms for bad viruses and many "neutral" symptoms have no use. Bad viruses are very limited as nearly all symptoms are heavy stat drains regardless of what they do or how good they actually do it.

[deathhoof]

Its possible to make invisible viruses, but the system is so broken that you cant get any decently lethal invisible virus.

I think you can if you're creative enough, it's not intended to be easy. One of those "easy to learn hard to master" things, plus the added need for a little RNG.

Virology needs to be redone completely, 90% of it is garbage with no use.

What? Have you even played a round with a half-decent virologist before?

I am a very good Virologist, good enough to know what works and what doesn't. The amount of creativity you have with viruses is very limited, for example you can't really use good symptoms for bad viruses and many "neutral" symptoms have no use. Bad viruses are very limited as nearly all symptoms are heavy stat drains regardless of what they do or how good they actually do it.

This is correct. Infact the most harmful virus you can make while keeping invisibility is something like blindness or deafness or lsd, but it would have to be heavilly buffed with neutral symptoms.

[Vigilare]

The problem is that playing virologist is just

draw plasma to dropper
inject plasma to beaker
check virus mutation
draw synaptizine to dropper
inject synaptine to beaker
x30


And yes I know about "dirty symptoms"

1: draw blood into dropper
2: inject blood into beaker
3: draw plasma into dropper
4: inject plasma into beaker
5: check virus mutation
6: empty beaker
{x29}
7: put beaker in pandemic
8: make more blood

repeat from step 1

or if you get something good, make a bottle or two after 'check virus mutation' and continue from step three

means you don't have to risk losing the wrong symptom when you apply synaptizine to your precious filt/comp/resp/stim virus
"oh I got self-resp, now time to remove the coughing sympt-- whoops there goes self-resp"

[lumipharon]

Scrub.

Have beaker of base blood (some random symptom, ideally in the range you're trying to get)
Have a beaker of reagent (plasma/mutagen/virus food)
Have a beaker of synaps
Have empty beaker A
Have empty beaker B

1: Put a drop of base into A.
2: Put a drop of reagent into A.
3: Check for new/wanted symptom.
4: If not wanted, empty and go back to step 1.
5: If wanted, put another drop of base in A.
6: Take one drop out of A into B.
7: Put a drop of synapse into B, check for isolation.
8: If wrong symptom, POUR IT BACK INTO A, and return to step 6.
9: If it's the right symptom, make a culture, and empty A.

I once taught this to someone who had literally played one round. After 10 minutes of teaching, he was powering through and isolating every symptom for me, while I made my 30 virus epidemic.