# Station 0 — Content Spec (Vertical Slice) Last updated: 2026-03-03 Scope: Vertical slice only. All content here is confirmed for VS unless marked **[OPTIONAL]**. --- ## Enemies All enemies are corrupted Adaptive Maintenance Units — same chassis class as the player, visually degraded. Their corruption manifests in their function, not their form. --- ### DRIFTER **Corruption type**: Locomotion **Movement**: Pathfinding broken. Moves in slow arcs and wide curves. Never charges in a straight line. **Attack**: Contact damage only. No projectiles. **Threat level**: Low-Medium **Design role**: Individually harmless. Disruptive in groups — fills the room with unpredictable bodies, cuts off escape routes. Forces players to unlearn "dodge in a straight line" habits. --- ### REPEATER **Corruption type**: Task-loop **Movement**: Slow. Drifts toward last known player position, stops, then executes its loop. **Attack**: Fires a burst of 3 projectiles in a fixed direction, rotates ~20° clockwise, fires again, repeats indefinitely. Does not track the player — it is completing a stuck subroutine. **Threat level**: Medium **Design role**: Pattern recognition. First enemy that teaches players to observe before moving. Dangerous in confined rooms or when combined with other threats. --- ### ANCHOR **Corruption type**: Structural integrity **Movement**: Pathfinds to the nearest wall or corner and locks in. Does not move once anchored. **Knockback**: Immune to knockback while anchored. **Attack**: Fires slow homing projectiles at the player until destroyed. Projectiles are individually easy to outrun but accumulate. **Threat level**: High **Design role**: Changes room geometry. Turns safe corners into bad positions. Forces aggressive play. Punishes passivity. --- ## Boss: THE SUPERVISOR A larger maintenance unit whose supervisor protocol has fully overridden all other functions. It does not perceive the player as an enemy — it perceives them as a malfunctioning unit and is attempting to decommission them. **Room**: Large. No environmental hazards. Preceded by a charging station in the hallway (full HP restore before entry). ### Phase 1 (100%–55% HP) - Patrols a fixed rectangular path around the room. - When the player enters a forward sensor cone, fires a sweeping calibration beam (slow AoE line that leaves a brief floor hazard — clears within ~1 second, nothing lingering). - Freely damageable from behind and sides. - No adds. Room feels almost too easy — players get overconfident. ### Phase 2 (55%–20% HP) - Patrol pattern collapses. Supervisor begins tracking the player directly. - Moves faster. Calibration beam fires more frequently at tighter arcs. - Spawns one Drifter from a maintenance hatch. - Visual state change: one arm hanging, sparking. ### Climax (below 20% HP) - Supervisor freezes mid-room. Broadcasts a distress signal (visual + audio cue). - Frozen for ~2 seconds. Not invulnerable — can be killed during the freeze. - No lore triggered on death. - On death: guaranteed body part drop, then powers down. **Emotional intent**: The freeze is not a mechanic — it's a beat. Players will kill it without thinking, then maybe feel it a second later. WALL-E tone. ### Post-boss - Body part drop (guaranteed). - Explicit early exit prompt offered. - Hub door opens. --- ## Run Items 8 items for VS. Populate item rooms and shops. BOI-style: diverse effects, some synergies, not just stat buffs. | Item | Effect | |---|---| | **Coolant Leak** | Leaves a slick trail for 1s when you take damage. Enemies that touch it are slowed for 2s. | | **Overclock Module** | Fire rate +40%. Every 3rd shot deals 0 damage. | | **Scrap Magnet** | Scrap tokens auto-collect within 3 tiles. | | **Memory Spike** | First projectile fired in each room deals 3× damage. | | **Rust Coat** | Reduce all incoming damage by 1 (min 1). | | **Static Discharge** | On taking damage, emit a short-range AoE burst (1 tile radius). | | **Fragmented Map** | Each time you clear a combat room, one unexplored room on the floor map is revealed. | | **Patch Kit** | Consumed on pickup: restore 2 HP immediately. | ### Synergies worth noting - **Coolant Leak + Static Discharge**: Taking damage becomes room control. - **Memory Spike + Overclock Module**: Active tension — sacrificing your free first shot on dead 3rd shots. - **Rust Coat + Lightweight Frame** (body part): Glass cannon with a floor on incoming damage. --- ## Body Parts 8 non-default upgrades across 4 active slots for VS. All slots have a default (baseline, no stat change) that is never listed as a pickup. Trade-offs are required — no pure upgrades. ### HEAD | Part | Effect | |---|---| | **Wide-Angle Lens** | Vision radius +30%. Projectile speed -20%. | | **Targeting Spike** | Projectile speed +40%, range +25%. Field of view -20%. | ### TORSO | Part | Effect | |---|---| | **Reinforced Chassis** | Max HP +2. Move speed -10%. | | **Lightweight Frame** | Move speed +20%. Max HP -1. | ### LEFT ARM (utility/shield slot) | Part | Effect | |---|---| | **Scatter Emitter** | Fires 3-way spread instead of single shot. Each projectile deals 60% damage. | | **Shield Projector** | Active block on cooldown (3s): absorbs one hit. No offensive change. | ### RIGHT ARM (damage slot) | Part | Effect | |---|---| | **Heavy Emitter** | Damage +60%. Fire rate -40%. | | **Rapid Emitter** | Fire rate +50%. Damage -30%. | ### LEGS **[OPTIONAL — include if bandwidth allows]** | Part | Effect | |---|---| | **Hydraulic Boosters** | Move speed +15%. Deceleration takes longer. Brief i-frames on dash through enemies. | --- ## Room Content Spec ### Room types **Combat rooms** Doors lock on entry. Unlock when all enemies are defeated. | Floor depth | Enemy count | Composition | |---|---|---| | Floor 1, rooms 1–3 | 1–2 | Drifters only | | Floor 1, rooms 4+ | 2–3 | Drifters + 1 Repeater | | Floor 2 | 2–4 | Mix of all three types | | Floor 3 (pre-boss) | 2–3 | Include Anchor; rooms tighter | Enemy count capped by room size — small rooms get -1 enemy. **Item rooms** One item on a pedestal. No enemies. Safe. 20% chance to also contain a lore terminal (not wired to any lore content for VS — terminal present, content placeholder). **Shop rooms** Unmanned. No NPC keeper. Sells 2 items + 1 consumable at fixed scrap prices. No haggling. Purely transactional — all NPC personality lives in the hub. **Boss room** See Boss section above. --- ### Environmental Hazards Both hazard types included in VS. **Oil slick** - Slippery surface. Reduces player movement control (momentum-based sliding). - Enemies unaffected. - Appears as puddles in combat rooms. **Exposed wiring** - Deals 1 HP on contact. - Blocks movement paths — functions as impassable terrain with a damage border. - Appears as sparking floor sections along walls. --- ### Run arc (VS target) | Floor | Room count | Beat | |---|---|---| | Floor 1 | 4–5 rooms | Learn the rhythm. One item. Maybe find the shop. First Repeater feels like a puzzle. | | Floor 2 | 5–6 rooms | Mixed threats. Find a body part. Build takes shape. One tense near-death moment. | | Floor 3 | 2 rooms + boss | Charging station. Supervisor fight. The freeze. Kill it. Hub door opens. | **Target run time**: 20–30 minutes. --- ## Open questions (not resolved, revisit post-VS) - Zone-specific enemy variants — do hazard types change per zone, or stay consistent? - Mini-boss rooms — add for post-VS (e.g., named Anchor variant + Drifters in a sealed room)? - Lore terminal content — terminals exist in VS as placeholders; content pass comes later. - Hydraulic Boosters — confirm in or out based on animation budget before VS build locks.