Vgstation13: Project Mind can be used to metagame someone's real identity

[9600bauds]

If someone masks their identity by any means, such as using someone else's ID and a mask, an agent ID, whatever have you, things get tricky and meta-ey.
Their FAKE name is displayed in the list of people you can project mind to (i.e. "Don Newman"). Up until you send the message, they are always displayed using their FAKE name.

However, the chatbox message you get afterwards uses their REAL name.

Someone using a voice changer to impersonate someone else? Let me whip out my project mind real quick so I can instantly confirm there are 2 identical names on the list. Sure there are, let me call them a faggot real quick. Oh that's who they really are.

[9600bauds]

Oh also it's not logged lol

[TheFriggenSawbones]

discord saves the fucking day boys

[Ephx1]

they save the day by not actually telling github and instead posting it to their circlejerk chat?

[9600bauds]

This bug isn't new, either

[ghost]

I recall yahir using this before, specifically to identify that the ling that had absorbed nevill and was attempting to impersonate them was really nevill or not.

[Ephx1]

Ya gotta set up a meta-metaclub to share exploits.
Then start up a meta-meta-metaclub to share the good exploits.

[Angelite191]

So how would we go about fixing this anyway? Having the list only show true names and not if they're dead or alive? That sounds like it'll be easy enough for me to do myself.

[9600bauds]

List should only be showing the "real" names, so you can't metagay 2 people having the same name or "Dick Kickem (as Captain)" or anything of the sorts.

The list not having unconscious/zlevel!=2 people is intentional, but I personally find it questionable too. Since few people play Grey this is one of those things that don't work well on a poll either. For now, definitely make the list display real names only

[Angelite191]

An issue about the only real names thing, what if a changeling transforms into someone else, what'll happen to the old and new name?

[9600bauds]

Let's ask our friend Xevonix

[Angelite191]

So the quick EZPZ solution would be to change what's highlighted in yellow to [Target.name] as that will show the name they appear as. Unfortunately the fix I want to make which would be making it so it always shows real names would be a little harder than what expected because of what's highlighted in red. I believe that's the line of code that handles the window that makes the list, and I can't read it well enough to know how the list handles being populated. If anyone here can elaborate on that, I'll have a PR up in about 2 or 10 million hours. But if it's as impossible as I think it is, then I'll just take the yellow route and make it false name only.

[9600bauds]

DREAMMAKER UI WARNING

[Angelite191]

N-NANI!?

[9600bauds]

The thing that makes the list would be https://github.com/d3athrow/vgstation13/blob/Bleeding-Edge/code/modules/spells/targeted/targeted.dm

[Angelite191]

Thanks!

[Angelite191]

I think I'll have to make a new proc for targeting minds and general targeting. General targeting will be the targeting we have now, and the targeting minds will be for things like project mind. The reason for this is since the targeting proc is used for many other things that isn't just mind projecting, changing it to only target real names will prove fucky for changelings that are trying to sting someone wearing a disguise, only to not find his name in the visible list.

Maybe I could do something like like
if (range == -2) then mob/user.real_name = usr; else mob/user = usr; so that spell targets with infinite range targets the mind. Is what I'm saying feasible at all?

[9600bauds]

Add an extra argument and have mind spells add that extra argument, does that make sense?

[Angelite191]

That makes sense. We could also make a var/mind_targeting to differentiate. But having read up and down targeted.dm I don't fully understand where it handles what names go on the list. It just says "M". I somehow doubt doing M.real_name would net the intended results.

[nuklearcellphoneg]

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

pls fix

[Angelite191]

I'M TRYING I'M TRYING!

[FudgePucker]

Oh also nukeops and raiders need to be immune. They have obvious names that act like giant HEY ITS NUKE OPS signs

[Aurantiaco]

So basically Yahir is exploiting bugs and nobody is doing anything about it
Ebin

[ComicIronic]

Maybe we should just remove Grey telepathy.

[Ephx1]

Come up with another upside then.
Otherwise they're just a straight downgrade from human.

[Aurantiaco]

Three ideas
1) Remove Greys
2) Remove all other xeno scum
3) Exterminatus Exterminatus Exterminatus Exterminatus Exterminatus
The Emperor is all we need.

[Ephx1]

That works too

[PJB3005]

Remove all races.

One good thing about spaceman is that everybody is equal, races ruin that.

[Shadowmech88]

Everybody has the option to be equal.
Why force equality if players don't want it?

[Aurantiaco]

What race was added first
We must revert the merge that added that race. This in turn will remove all other bloat shit from the game, and we can return to our roots of robustness and TRUE space man simulation

[Kammerjunk]

@Aurantiaco Human

[Aurantiaco]

What XENO SCUM was added first.

[PJB3005]

@Shadowmech88 races are unbalanced, Vox / plasmamen have a free suit, etc...

This is against SS13 's core gameplay mechanics and it only allow for powergaming.

[ComicIronic]

making disgusting xeno scum balanced

I would rather bring back Deff maint spiders.

[Aurantiaco]

But deff maint still HAS spiders

[gbasood]

Yeah the fact that this is useful solely for powergaming means it's pretty shitty
The amount of times I've needed to talk to ONE PERSON without someone listening in have all been satisfied by PDA messages
Except for malf I guess but in that case you're probably fucked if you need to hide your comms from the AI.

[9600bauds]

I don't think this is something you can "balance" around, because it's so off the wall.
It's not a simple premise like "you heal brute damage but take more burn damage". It's "you can telepathically tell who's dead or missing, even people not in the manifest, oh and I guess send them a message".
How the fuck do you balance around that? It's something so specific and so unlike everything else in the game. You can slap any kind of downside you want to that and it still doesn't really balance it because it's such a unique case.

[Lorkhatosh]

I think the suggestion that you should write in the name of whoever you want to send thoughts to is the best one.

[FudgePucker]

Problem with that is trying to remember names, or having to juggle your PDA around when all you wanted to do was ayyy lamao

[9600bauds]

i think it's still not logged lol

[ghost]

It's not. Whoops.

[clusterfack]

ONE HUNDRED

[kol1th]

:100: