Cortical Borer

Borers no longer exist As of 28-06-17, Cortical Borers have been removed from the /tg/codebase #28851 This page is archived for historical purposes.

Cortical Borer
Igor! Fetch me the brain!
Information
Access	N/A
Additional Access	Vents
Difficulty	Easy to Average
Supervisors	None
Rank	N/A
Duties	Crawl in the corroded brain of the clown, inject meth, assume direct control, induce crippling drugs in the clown, inject meth, cry when the host eats sugar, inject meth. Overdose!
Guides	This is the guide

Cortical Borers are small worms that crawl in your brain and take control to reproduce. While it may seem bad at first, there are some upsides and reasons to keep that worm in your brain. If you don't want a worm injecting 45u of meth when you least expect it, there are ways to kick them out too!

Remember, borers are like abductors. There are reasons to kill hosts, but make sure you have a good reason to do so.

Getting a Host

Outside of the host, Borers are very weak. Your only ability is hivemind communication with other borers and a stun ability that can temporarily incapacitate your soon-to-be host.

Ambush tactics work best for acquiring a new host. Hide under a table and wait for an unsuspecting victim to pause in front of it and stun them, then crawl right in. It's worth noting that your stun only works on the tile in front of whatever direction you're facing, and it has a long cooldown. The host will also get a notice when you start crawling in.

Delicious Brain Juice!

So, you're in a brain now and you're (technically) not a useless worm anymore! You can now access most of your abilities! As long as you're in a host, you generate chemicals over time. You have a maximum of 250, and you use chemicals to cast abilities.

Your objective is to reproduce: Borers need 10 infected hosts on the escape shuttle to win. Being selective with your targets is crucial. Should you infect the e-sword wielding maniac, or the humble janitor just trying to stay alive? Why not both!? Wriggle your way into that traitor and pull the plug on them, then give our friendly janitor a speed boost so they, and you, make it onto the shuttle.

Abilities

Name	Host Requirements	Cost	Description
Paralyze Victim	No Host Only	150 seconds	Sending a psychic lance straight to an unsuspecting victim, this stuns the host long enough for you to crawl in! Use sparingly, the lance has a long cooldown. When being chased, the lance can also be used to stun someone trying to kill you, though keep in mind you have to be looking at the victim, and the victim needs to be right next to you. good luck!
Hide	No Host Only	No Cost	Allows you to hide under tables, pipes and (be careful with this one) lockers. A borer's fav
Infest	No Host Only	No Cost	Allows you to bury yourself into a host! Use with psychic lance for maximum effect.
Release Host	Host required	No Cost	Starts to leave the host
Converse with Host/Trapped mind	Host required	No Cost	Talks to the host. Nobody can intercept this. Only the host.
Secrete Chemicals	Host required	Chemical Cost Varies	Injects different kinda of chemicals into the host, from meth to bicardine.
Punish	Host required	75 Chemicals	Allows you to blind, deafen, or stun the host. Keep an eye on the cost, it's not cheap.
Assume Control	Host required	No Cost	Allows you to assume direct control of your host. This has a long delay, increased if the host has brain damage, and isn't possible at all if the host has mindshield implant. The host will then become trapped in his own mind, but he can resist and take back his body in about 40 seconds, after which he'll probably beeline for sugar and a surgeon.
Jumpstart Host	Dead Host required	250 chemicals	Revives the host. It also fully heals the host! Removes any and all stuns, too. It requires all of your chemicals, though, so prepare to save up for this one if need be.
Reproduce	Host required	200	Spawns a new Cortical Borer from the host. You must be controlling the host for you to be able to reproduce!

Chemicals

Chem	Cost	Quantity	Description
Epinephrine	30	10	Prevents oxygen damage, and heals the host if he's in critical status.
Leporazine	75	10	Quickly stabilizes the host's temperature, preventing damage from fire or space.
Mannitol	30	10	Heals the host's brain damage.
Bicaridine	30	10	Heals the host's brute damage.
Kelotane	30	10	Heals the host's burn damage.
Charcoal	30	10	Heals the host's toxin damage, and purges other chemicals in his bloodstream.
Salbutamol	30	10	Heals the host's oxygen damage; the host won't need internals while he has this chem.
Methamphetamine	50	9	Reduces stuns and increases movement speed of the host, but causes addiction when giving more than 10, and overdose when giving more than 20.
Space Drugs	75	10	Causes drugginess in the host, and makes him step randomly every once in a while.
Ethanol	50	10	Gets the host very drunk.
Rezadone	30	10	Instantly heals the host's cellular damage.

Worm away

So you just saw a botanist vomiting up slugs, and they just crawled into the vents. What can you do to stop them from brain controlling the whole station? Or did you just get a chill, and now something is talking to you and trying to take control? Here's how to stop those slugs!

Sugar

Sugar dulls the Borer, and renders it unable to use any abilities. If the Borer doesn't like you, or needs to do something, it will start to take full control. You'll need to act fast before it figures out what you're doing. The quickest way to get sugar in your system is snacks. The sugar in your bloodstream should last long enough to get to chemistry, where you can make more sugar. From there, it's a simple surgical procedure to get that sucker outta your head!

Finding a Borer

Get a MedHud! This will show who does and who does not have a borer in them. You could shoot them with a syringe gun full of sugar and morphine, then while they sleep, remove the Borer. Morphine only needed if they don't want to lose their slug friends.

Remember, too, that the slugs can be in anyone, even the head of security.

Super Strats

Borers can't stop you from eating sugar if they don't know you even have sugar on you! Try to hide it. Make a ketchup packet with sugar in it. Add sugar to the chef's burgers. Fill a dental implant with sugar in it. Those slugs won't know what hit them.

Jobs on
	Command	Captain, Executive Officer, Bridge Staff
	Security	Head of Security, Security Officer, Warden, Detective, Brig Physician
	Engineering	Chief Engineer, Ship Engineer, Atmospheric Technician
	Science	Research Director, Scientist, Roboticist
	Medical	Chief Medical Officer, Medical Doctor, Chemist, Geneticist, Virologist, Paramedic
	Service	Janitor, Staff Judge Advocate, Bartender, Cook, Botanist, Clown, Mime, Chaplain, Curator
	Munitions	Master At Arms, Munitions Technician, Flight Leader, Fighter Pilot, Air Traffic Controller
	Cargo	Quartermaster, Cargo Technician, Shaft Miner
	Civilian	Assistant, Gimmick
	Non-human	AI, Cyborg, Positronic Brain, Drone, Personal AI, Construct, Ghost
	Antagonists	Traitor, Malfunctioning AI, Changeling, Heretic, Nuclear Operative, Blood Cultist, Bloodling, Revolutionary, Wizard, Blob, Abductor, Holoparasite, Xenomorph, Spider, Swarmers, Revenant, Morph, Nightmare, Space Ninja, Slaughter Demon, Pirate, Sentient Disease, Creep, Fugitives, Hunters, Syndicate Drop Trooper
	Special	CentCom Official, Death Squad Officer, Emergency Response Officer, Chrono Legionnaire, Highlander, Ian