The Roleplayer's Comprehensive Guide to the Overwatch [PART 1]

[YankeeSamurai]

Overwatch Transhuman Arm
(proposed) GUIDE
[Fully Updated]

-by YankeeSamurai



Contents

I. How to Roleplay As OTA
II. How to Roleplay With OTA
III. In-Game OTA Function
III. OTA Structure
IV. Weapons and Equipment


First, a quick disclaimer.  I am not trying to prove myself as an authority on all things Combine, or anything silly like that.  The guide's contents are subject to change.
The purpose of the guide's length and details is to create a rich, detailed world for the Overwatch to exist in.
If nothing else, the guide is simply for your own reading pleasure.

Welcome to the new and up-to-date guide to the Overwatch Transhuman Arm.



I. How to Roleplay as OTA

It is easiest to compare roleplaying an Overwatch soldier to roleplaying a CP. Of course, there are a few key differences that must be made clear.

The physique and internal structures of Overwatch soldiers differ drastically from that of their CCA counterparts. Overwatch soldiers are products of advanced Combine bioengineering. Their bodies have (according to http://half-life.wikia.com/wiki/Combine_soldier) "undergone extensive modifications including, but not limited to, brain and chest surgery, removal of genitalia, and implantation of various mechanical devices in the throat and around the abdomen."
Combine soldiers are more alien than human, at least in the physical sense. These augmentations can affect certain RPs. For example, medical RP can either be vastly simplified or overcomplicated, depending on the type of wound. Units feel significantly less pain than a normal human and can take great amounts of damage before becoming incapacitated. Even an average unit has greater endurance and strength than the most physically accomplished of unaugmented humans.


Notes on Emotion
For most OTA players the topic of emotion is a tricky one, and one that is apt to change throughout the course of a player's roleplay career. For the sake of simplicity, opinions about Overwatch emotion will be divided into two schools of thought: conservative and liberal.

Conservative: This is the "old way" of viewing Overwatch emotions: there are none. All units are impersonal to the max. Due to the Combine's extensive "repurposing" procedures, all units are rendered identical in every respect; the Overwatch may as well be comprised of mechanical clones.
Appearance: Units are identical in every respect. Equipment remains unmodified and is maintained in the same fashion throughout the Overwatch. Underneath their armor, the bodies of units are virtually identical in height, weight, and general build. Facial features are indistinguishable from one unit to the next. It is next to impossible for an outsider to identify a specific unit.
Speech: Overwatch units have standardized, robotic speech patterns and are unable to speak colloquially. There is little inflection in their voice. Some players believe that units cannot use sentences at all, instead dispatching radio transcriptions in an extremely rigid, computerized data-entry-based format.
Emotional: Units have no emotions whatsoever. They are machines that serve only to complete the proverbial objective. Individual personalities are completely non-existent, and the same goes for any social interaction.
Physical: All units have the same level of physical capabilities and skills. Relevant knowledge and muscle memory have been programmed into their brains during the repurposing process. There is no need for any sort of training; it is impossible for units to worsen at a certain skill and difficult at best to improve it without a special re-program.
Intelligence: As with physical ability, the level of units' mental capabilities and skills are uniform throughout the entire Overwatch. All knowledge deemed necessary is implanted into units' memories during repurposing. However, most players agree that, through experience, units can learn and deduce new information to supplement already-existing knowledge. However, it is important to emphasize that while units are able to think and rationalize to a certain extent, their reasoning is severely restricted. Units are unable to think outside of predicted, established parameters. In a sense, Overwatch units lack freedom of thought; it is impossible for their minds to wander outside certain boundaries. For example, a unit can consider several methods of assaulting a building to choose the most effective one, but it is unable to question why the building must be assaulted in the first place.

Liberal: A new perspective on Overwatch personality is beginning to emerge, in which Overwatch units retain a significantly larger amount of humanity than what has been previously assumed. In the liberal school of thought, Overwatch units are less comparable to robots and more similar to real-life professional soldiers or soldiers of various science fiction franchises such as Halo and Star Wars. The liberal "canon" tends to favor individualism and character development.
Appearance: While all units begin are initially issued identical-looking armor, some units choose to obtain upgrades for their equipment or make the modifications themselves. Units' bodies, although still greatly augmented, differ in appearance. Height can vary to within a few inches, weight and structure can vary slightly as well. Facial features including eye color, cheekbone form, nose shape, lip size, etc remain unique and unchanged. Even hair retains its color and other traits such as curliness and waviness. All of these retained factors combine to make for a more human appearance for units.
Speech: Although units observe strict radio protocol, they retain the ability to speak in the vernacular- and often do. All units are proficient in "Earth Basic," the Combine name for the English language, but vestiges of foreign accents can still be heard by the careful listener.
Emotional: Similar to normal humans, the emotional natures of Overwatch units vary between individuals. Units often interact with each other, engaging in dynamic inter-personal social relationships. They possess inherently human traits such as a sense of humor, anger, and fear. One interesting aspect of unit personality is its tendency to enrich and become more defined over time. This unusual progression contrasts with CCA officers' tendency to lose unique personality attributes over time as they convert from rather individualized recruits into faceless automatons enmeshed in protocol and procedure. In that sense, Overwatch units develop in the opposite direction of CCA units. New units usually are very rigid, strict, and protocol-driven; in some respects fitting the description of "conservative" units. As time goes on and the units gain more experience- unique traits, interesting talents, and unusual quirks begin to slowly reveal themselves. The end result of this process can be observed in the highly individualized KING commanders at the top of Overwatch structure, and to a lesser extent in element leaders.
Physical: While all units start out with similar basic physical capabilities, there is much more room for growth and improvement than in the conventional school of thought. Units benefit greatly from extra training and constant conditioning, and noticeable degradations in performance can be observed in units that have returned from extensive stretches of time in status.
Intelligence: All units begin with a standard level of mental aptitude, but that breadth of knowledge can be dynamically expanded through training and experience. There is an immense gap between the "street-smarts" of a freshly-deployed unit and a seasoned field veteran. More importantly, units are relatively free thinkers and are able to form their own opinions, even to the degree of bias. Much speculation has been focused on the boundaries of units' free thought. It is a well known fact that complex "why" questions are able to be rationally examined, but the extent to which potentially subversive anti-Union thoughts may be pursued is one that cannot be answered for sure. As of yet, there has never been a confirmed report of a rogue Overwatch unit, so it may be safe to assume that a built-in mental safety mechanic may exist. Of course, this conclusion is completely based on guesswork, so only time will tell whether units will ever rise to question the very foundations of their service to the Union.



II. How to Roleplay With OTA

As a Citizen:
Extreme fear should be roleplayed, ICly stemming as much from the units' alien appearance as from sheer unfamiliarity.
Overwatch soldiers are a striking contrast to everyday Civil Protection officers and are a depressing reminder of the iron grip that the Universal Union has on earth and its inhabitants. Again, fearRP is a must. No doubt there are countless rumors floating around of terrible atrocities committed by Overwatch soldiers. Their ferocious reputation in combat is enough to scare most would-be rebels into leaving the vicinity if Overwatch are around.
The only people who have any rationale not to be scared shitless of Overwatch units are experienced Resistance fighters, which are few and far between due to the extraordinarily high mission success rates of Overwatch troops. Those who have seen units in action usually do not survive to tell the tale.

As a CP:
Most CCA officers experience a mix of feelings upon seeing Overwatch units. Individual reactions of officers vary depending on their personality and background. For almost all officers, the OTA units' height, bulk, and sheer professional presence command respect tinged with intimidation. Nearly all try to avoid Overwatch units as much as possible because of their reputation for eccentric, even violent behavior around CCA officers. However, High Command officers feel more comfortable around Overwatch units due to their own elevated authority, as well as having experience working with them. Still, some OTA units have been known to goad, criticize, and even taunt High Command officers. The deep thinkers within the ranks of the CCA will recognize Overwatch units as the first of many disturbing outcomes of the earth's "Combine-ization." Some officers have an unusual view of contempt towards units because of their presumed loss of humanity, although this reaction is often rooted in fear as much as anything else.



III. In-Game OTA Function

City Server: The missions of the CCA and Overwatch are immensely different. The ranks of Civil Protection officers form a veritable army in their own right, but it is an army that is ill-equipped and ill-trained for outright, prolonged combat. Overwatch stabilization/response teams are usually deployed when a situation in the city is too high-stakes for failure or has the potential to overwhelm the CCA beyond the capabilities of its resources. The CCA is a police force, whereas Overwatch is comparable to the National Guard. Again, Overwatch support is only practical in dire circumstances where direct military force is necessary. Examples of such situations could be a district-wide uprising or an exogen breach.
Some may view this as a stretch, but in the urban setting of City 45, the Overwatch can be thought of as a glorified SWAT team.

Outlands Server: The Overwatch Transhuman Arm, Synthetic Arm, and Airwatch are jointly tasked with maintaining security in the vast wastelands surrounding the Metroplex Sectors, known colloquially as cities. Routine operations consist mostly of foot patrols and scanner sweeps for anomalies in biotic activity. The primary reason for the continuous patrols and sweeps is to be proactive in safeguarding the cities against exogens and necrotics, not to search for noncitizens (refugees), as is the common misconception. Overwatch patrols occasionally come under fire from Resistance groups and hot-headed noncitizens- a rash decision on their part. Rebel groups that engage in combat with patrols are subsequently classified as threats, and are actively targeted for destruction. Noncitizens that are captured by the Overwatch are usually subject to interrogation, followed by deportation to a repurposing facility.

[SoapANator]

THANK YOU! Now, I finally get a correct way to rp as an OTA thanks!

[Sawnik]

I really love the liberal way to rp OTA as it truly adds more rp when you aren't held back by the conservitive way. I hope that people start to realize that the liberal way will be better as it allows us develop our OTA characters into something more interesting than a stale robot and more into a interesting soldier like the ones we have today. Other than that, this is a really nice guide yank