Override Protocol
⚡ Protocol · First Signal · Level 35
Rules Text
Take control of enemy unit with 3 or less ATK this turn.
Energy
4
TECH
5
CMD
3
SUP
1
Abilities
Weakness
Specifications
"Administrative privileges. Mine now."
Lore
Override Protocol is the Terran's most aggressive electronic warfare tool — a targeted intrusion that hijacks a hostile unit's command systems by brute-forcing its communication frequencies. Units with weak offensive systems are particularly vulnerable, as their limited processing power can't resist the Terran network's overwhelming bandwidth.
Extended Lore
Override Protocol is classified as a Level 4 cyberwarfare tool — one step below weapons of mass destruction in the Terran military's threat classification system. Its development was controversial, its deployment is restricted, and its existence was denied by the Terran government for over a decade before battlefield footage made secrecy impossible.
The protocol works by flooding a target unit's communication systems with a massive burst of encrypted data across every frequency the Terran network can identify. The burst is designed to overwhelm the target's signal processing capabilities, creating a window of confusion during which the protocol injects a command override into the target's control systems. Units with low processing power — typically those with weak offensive capabilities — cannot filter the malicious commands from legitimate ones and temporarily accept the Terran network as their command authority.
The override is temporary by design. The injected commands degrade within a single combat turn as the target's native systems reassert control and purge the foreign code. This time-limited nature was a deliberate choice by Dr. Kia Bell, who designed the protocol: permanent mind control, she argued, would be strategically destabilizing and ethically indefensible. A temporary override — long enough to turn an enemy unit against its allies for one decisive moment — achieves the tactical objective without crossing ethical lines that Bell considered sacrosanct.
The protocol has specific limitations. Haegori units, whose temporal shielding operates outside the electromagnetic spectrum, are immune to frequency-based intrusion. High-powered units with robust processing cores can filter the override commands before they take effect. And the protocol itself is expensive to deploy, requiring the full bandwidth of the local relay network for the duration of the override — meaning no other protocols can be broadcast simultaneously.
Despite these constraints, Override Protocol remains one of the most feared tools in the Terran arsenal. The mere knowledge that a Terran commander might turn your own units against you introduces a paranoia that degrades enemy cohesion far beyond the protocol's direct tactical impact.