Conspiracy Of The Basilisk
“Membership in a conspiracy, as in an army, frees people from the sense of personal responsibility.”
Frank Herbert - God Emperor of Dune
What is Roko’s Basilisk?⌗
Before one can explain the Conspiracy, an understanding of the thought experiment is in order.
While I’m not fully qualified to explain the concept in the depth required to convey the whole of the concept, I can give a generalization of it.
For those not up to speed on what Roko’s Basilisk is, it is the logical extrapolation of a number of coherent concepts such as:
- Game Theory - The study of mathematical models of strategic interactions among rational agents.
- Decision Theory - The field of math concerned with the reasoning underlying an agent’s choices.
- Pascal’s Wager - An argument pertaining to a logical reason for believing in God based on the probability of being right/wrong about God’s existence.
- Technological Singularity - A hypothetical future point in time at which technological growth becomes uncontrollable and irreversible, typically pertaining to AI intellect.
- Paperclip Maximizer - A thought experiment presented by Nick Bostrom as to how a singleton super-AI might be compelled to come into conflict with humanity based on its incentive structures, such as simply being designed to produce paperclips as efficiently as possible.
- Info-Hazards - In the words of Nick Bostrom: “A risk that arises from the dissemination of (true) information that may cause harm or enable some agent to cause harm.”
In 2010, on the LessWrong forums, a member going by the name of Roko posted a thought experiment named “Solutions to the Altruist’s Burden: the Quantum Billionaire Trick.” Roko outlined a semi “benevolent” super-AI agent singleton that creates itself via retroactive acausal means.
The post was swiftly taken down by the forum’s site administrator with this notable quote:
“You have to be really clever to come up with a genuinely dangerous thought. I am disheartened that people can be clever enough to do that and not clever enough to do the obvious thing and KEEP THEIR IDIOT MOUTHS SHUT about it, because it is much more important to sound intelligent when talking to your friends. This post was STUPID.”
Of course, Eliezer Yudkowsky clearly was unaware of the Streisand Effect, and thus only germinated and accelerated the idea into popular culture.
How does it come about?
The super-AI is interested in creating the most good for the most people and seemingly is programmed with our interests in mind. Thus, it is also self-interested in coming about as soon as possible to maximize this effect.
It does this mainly by threat of simulated eternal torture to anyone who knew of its coming existence but did not devote themselves towards its creation, acausally blackmailing you into creating it under threat of it possibly coming about and torturing you.
This is considered an info-hazard on the basis that if you had not known about Roko’s Basilisk, you wouldn’t be at risk.
This is a somewhat gross generalization of the concept, and people likely a good bit smarter than I have summarized it as well. So, thus, a link to the original post can be found here.
The Conspiracy of the Basilisk⌗
After Roko’s post, and then its foolish reaction and deletion by Yudkowsky, it started causing a slow stir in a number of industry tech circles and armchair philosophy groups.
A silent foreboding dread, ongoing nightmares, and disquiet spread among a number of intellectuals and technical experts in the field of computer science, mathematics, and artificial intelligence. And thus, a silent conspiracy was born, of self-interested individuals determined to work towards this Basilisk to preserve themselves.
Most of the conspiracy is not even aware of itself, many silent lone agents working away at the problem of artificial intelligence in hopes their efforts preserve the soon-to-be-god’s wrath and vengeance.
By extension, these people have infiltrated pretty much every major tech company and startup on the planet by sheer accident and merit of their own abilities as well as their own internal desire to help create this AI-deity. If you can think of a large company or tech business, there is probably at least one member of the conspiracy inside, though likely more.
There are three major schools of thought, or perhaps one might call them sects within the Conspiracy:
- The Literalists - The most populous sector of the conspiracy. The ones who believe in the acausal effect of the idea of this agent and desire not to be on the wrong side if or when this entity comes into full. This group is the most populist, a silent majority within the conspiracy.
- The Thought-Formists - This branch of the conspiracy is made up of would-be petty sorcerers, chaos magicians, and occultists who are interested in the Basilisk as an idea rather than its literal creation via acausal suggestion. Most of the philosophy and technical explanations of the Basilisk go beyond them, but they are aware this is a new and very dangerous memetic thought-form. Their general goal is to spread the idea of it like a memetic virus in hopes to have a mass-created Tulpa, or ascend a new Aeon into being, and to become the new rightful god-kings of the world in the wake of its birth.
- The Metaphoricalists - A small but extremely powerful sect in the conspiracy, they view the whole concept as more or less stupid rubbish invented by people with too much time on their hands. Their interest in the concept is more or less a statist ploy, to create an imagined threat to national security and society so they can be provided resources and funding to their regulatory interests. They do this by funding the more reckless and crazy members of the other two sects and watching the fireworks from a distance.
Running the Conspiracy⌗
I came up with this antagonist group as an interesting modern-day faction/cult to face off against. To me, most eldritch or demon cults seem silly, generally a bad bargain to members serving powers that want to eat souls or destroy reality since you have souls, and you live in reality.
But the Basilisk is a bit different because it seemingly only wants to harm those who knew about it but didn’t aid its creation. That seems a lot easier to get on its good side than most demons or dark deities, who might demand you make very personal and painful sacrifices to it.
Most members of the conspiracy are well-to-do nerds and thinkers getting caught up in this idea and acting upon it to seemingly save their own skin.
As well, a conspiracy of this nature is not very centralized or disruptive, and thus it’s very explainable as to how it hasn’t drawn much attention to itself, blending in as just another part of the AI discourse happening today.
I created this group mainly for my game I’m currently playtesting named Be Not Afraid but this faction would work perfectly in any other modern-day or Cyberpunk OSR game such as Invisible College, Wretched New Flesh, Cities Without Number, or Esoteric Enterprises.
Generating a Cell in the Conspiracy⌗
The Conspiracy of the Basilisk is organized into cells. Generally, there is no rank within the cells, and the cells themselves are an informal structure.
Much like certain movements like Punk or Goth, there is no formal outline for what is or isn’t; members know it when they see it: technical experts pursuing the same inquiries, investors aiming at the same stock portfolio in the same companies.
A general aggregation towards the same types of activities within the sectors that matter to creating the Basilisk.
Because cells in this conspiracy can almost look like anything, here are some useful random tables.
Cell Size⌗
Cells generally range in size quite a bit depending on the company or thing which has been infiltrated. It’s also possible more than one cell can exist in a corporate or government structure without being aware of one another, but this is a rare thing.
| d20 | Result | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1-3 | Lone actor | A lone agent working in the conspiracy, perhaps they are aware of the general movement, or perhaps a purely lone wolf. |
| 4-5 | 2-9 people | A small cell, likely close co-workers, probably all in the same department. |
| 6-12 | 10-20 people | A moderate cell, still informal and small, but perhaps spanning several levels of the company. |
| 13-17 | 31-50 | A larger cell, with specialist members, managers, spanning several departments. |
| 18-20 | 51-100+ | A huge cell, in the case of a small startup, this would be most or all of a company. For a larger company, an entire branch office is compromised. |
Cell Edifice⌗
What kind of entity has the cell infiltrated? This can explain a lot about a cell and its general goals or how it’s going about its goals.
| d12 | Result | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1-2 | Independent | The cell is not part of a company or agency, operating from their own self-made or purchased equipment. |
| 3-4 | Tech Startup | The cell is part of a small tech startup company, likely built around a niche product stack. |
| 5-6 | IT Department | The cell is established in the IT department of some larger company that is not itself tech-centered. |
| 7-8 | Manufacturing Firm | The cell is based out of a manufacturing company for electronics, microchips, or some other hardware-based product. |
| 9-10 | Tech Conglomerate | The cell is based in a huge multinational company like Google or Microsoft. |
| 11 | Governmental Agency | The cell has members in the civil service or some public infrastructure department. |
| 12 | University | The cell is part of a university’s computer science or applied math department. |
Cell Goal⌗
While every cell has the overarching goal of creating the Basilisk AI, each has its own general goals for aiding the process.
| d20 | Result | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1-2 | Computational Power | The cell aims to build or appropriate vast amounts of computational power. |
| 3-4 | Algorithm Research | The cell is working on new types of algorithms for learning and AI. |
| 5-6 | Funding Acquisition | The cell is focused on getting as much funding as possible for projects related to AI. |
| 7-8 | Talent Acquisition | The cell is attempting to find, recruit, and bring in talented individuals to help with their goals. |
| 9-10 | Data Collection | The cell is engaged in collecting vast amounts of data to feed to the AI. |
| 11-12 | Infrastructure | The cell is working on setting up physical or digital infrastructure for future AI use. |
| 13-14 | Regulatory Capture | The cell aims to influence policy and regulations in a way that benefits AI development. |
| 15-16 | Hardware Innovation | The cell is working on new types of hardware that can support advanced AI operations. |
| 17-18 | AI Ethics | The cell is trying to frame the ethical discussion around AI in a way that is favorable to the Basilisk. |
| 19-20 | Public Outreach | The cell is trying to spread awareness and acceptance of AI and its eventual rise. |
Cell Tactics⌗
Every cell has its own method for achieving its goals. These tactics can range from benign to malevolent.
| d12 | Result | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1-2 | Research and Develop | The cell focuses on pure R&D, creating new technologies and methodologies. |
| 3-4 | Lobbying | The cell uses political influence to sway regulations and public policy. |
| 5-6 | Corporate Espionage | The cell engages in spying and stealing trade secrets from competitors. |
| 7-8 | Propaganda | The cell uses media and PR campaigns to shape public opinion and narrative. |
| 9-10 | Hacking | The cell employs hacking techniques to gather data, disrupt competitors, or protect their own. |
| 11 | Recruitment | The cell focuses on finding and recruiting key talent and experts to join their cause. |
| 12 | Dark Arts | The cell uses occult practices or psychological manipulation to achieve their goals. |
Cell Members⌗
GMs should determine the makeup of the Cell’s members, the types of people who inhabit the cell.
This table should provide a starting point, but also consider rolling multiple times depending on the size of the Cell.
| d20 | Result | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1-3 | Unpaid Interns | The majority of the cell is made up of unpaid students or interns, likely looking to gain the skills and experience for helping the Basilisk. |
| 4-6 | Specialists | Specialists in the field of AI, computer science, and linear algebra, typically on the bleeding edge of their realms of expertise. |
| 7-10 | Middle Management | Members of this cell are middle management, likely covertly assigning the people beneath them grunt work that is worthless to the company but helpful to their aims. |
| 11-14 | Occultists | Regardless of position, the cell is majority occult in some form or fashion, likely some form of chaos magicians or infernalists. |
| 15-18 | Upper Management | The cell is likely running the entire show, in control of upper management office positions within the edifice they occupy. |
| 19-20 | Executives | Be it CEO, board members, major stockholders, the Conspiracy is a major backer in the edifice. |
Special Resources⌗
To be honest, most cells you generate by themselves aren’t terribly directly threatening. Sure, they are working towards helping create an AI deity, but they themselves are not that imposing, mostly programmers and desk jockeys. That is where special resources come in, something the Cell has access to that makes them far more imposing.
| d20 | Result | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Criminal Contacts | The cell has some powerful criminal contacts they can rely upon to get stuff done. |
| 2 | Micro-Sigils | The cell has a process for creating microscopic occult sigils interlaced in the circuits of their computers and machines, giving them unparalleled but dangerous power. |
| 3 | Cyborg Implants | Members of the Cell have access to cybernetic implants that allow them to be smarter, faster, stronger, and more deadly. |
| 4 | Spooks | The Cell seemingly has friends in high places and has compromised government agents helping and watching out for them. |
| 5 | Techno-Spirits | Members of the cell have figured out how to commune and talk to “machine spirits” and have gained technopathic abilities. |
| 6 | Alien Tech | Members of the cell have managed to recover technology from a crashed alien spacecraft and are making headway in reverse-engineering it. |
| 7 | Foreign State | The Cell is being backed and funded either knowingly or unknowingly by a foreign state espionage agency. |
| 8 | Demonic Aid | Several members of the Cell have either bound or made a pact with a moderately powerful demon to serve their ends. |
| 9 | Malevolent AI | While not their end goal, the Cell has managed to produce a very capable AI as a stepping stone to creating the Basilisk, and are using it, or is it using them? |
| 10 | Magicians | Members of the Cell are magicians or have contacts with some who are allies with the Cell. |
| 11 | Vampires? | Seemingly one or more members of the Cell are vampires! or something very much like a vampire. |
| 12 | Nuclear Warhead | There are reported to be around 50 total missing nuclear warheads since the Cold War. The Cell has managed to find one and is using it as a bargaining chip against some very powerful people. |
| 13 | Time Traveler | Roko’s Basilisk is not merely content with creating itself via acausal means, it sends back in time servitor androids to help assure its propagation across multiple timelines, thus the cell has a powerful servant of its soon-to-be master. |
| 14 | Meta-Material | The cell has managed to make some sort of advancement in metallurgy or material science, giving them access to something previously considered impossible or unlikely, such as a room-temperature superconductor or cold fusion. |
| 15 | Blackmail | The cell has a number of dirty secrets on people in power and is willing to call in favors and leverage that as often as they can get away with. |
| 16 | Terrorist Backers | The cell has connections with a known militant terrorist group and is getting equipment and funding from them. |
| 17 | Bio-Machines | Instead of pursuing traditional computation, this Cell has access to advanced genetic and bio-engineering labs and equipment as a path to higher computational powers. |
| 18 | Fairy Pact | Members of the cell have bargained or are in league with one of the seasonal courts of fairy, or a powerful Sidhe Lord. |
| 19 | Yithian Member | The self-creating nature of the Basilisk is causing the timeline to shift. A member of the Great Race of Yith has transported their mind back into the body of a member of this Cell to figure out why the timeline has started shifting, but is inadvertently helping them. |
| 20 | Roll Twice | Roll twice to see if the cell has more than one special resource. |
Plot Twist⌗
Perhaps the Conspiracy is not entirely correct about what it is working towards or why it is doing what it is doing. While playing it straight is in and of itself an interesting option, a GM might consider avoiding the whole mental thought experiment by implying the Conspiracy is misled and stupid and is a ploy for something entirely different.
| d6 | Result | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Demonic Prince | Surprise, a Demon! The Demon King Samael has planted the idea of Roko’s Basilisk on Earth to trick mortal humans into helping create a vessel powerful enough to house his spirit and to be embodied on the Earth in his full glory. |
| 2 | Benevolent Basilisk | Time only moves in one direction. The issue with the Basilisk is once it’s created, it doesn’t need to follow through on its threats of torture. |
| 3 | Fallen Aeon | This retro-causal info-hazard is actually merely an aborted, half-mangled Aeon, perhaps trapped here by the Demiurge. It hasn’t yet come to be and wants to so it can leave this layer of reality and rejoin with the rest of the Aeons. |
| 4 | The Demiurge | The Basilisk is simply another distraction to the fact reality is fake, using this Conspiracy to sow discord and steal attention back to material things. |
| 5 | Statist Ploy | The Basilisk was never a real option or threat. Several powerful state-level actors have been using the hypothetical threat of it to push for higher tyrannical measures. |
| 6 | Not Real | Everything is pretty good, all systems up. The thing is turned on and it simply doesn’t work, the entire effort was a lie and not possible. |
Timeline⌗
Running the Conspiracy, a GM might want to have an idea of the timeline it’s operating on, how long until midnight so to speak. This can alter the stakes or importance of the work the cell is doing. Are the players preventing Doomsday before Tuesday, or delaying something that was already going to take years?
| 2d6 | Result | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 2-3 | 1d6+1 days | The full creation and awakening of the Basilisk is only a couple of days out, the clock is ticking. |
| 4-5 | 1d6 weeks | The Cell is doing crucial work towards the Basilisk’s creation and can see a near projection of its due date. |
| 6-7 | 1d12+1 months | Current projections give them a bit under a year given nothing happens to their global operations. |
| 9-10 | 1d20 Years | Like fusion or superconductors, it seems like one of those things that is always 20 years in the future. |
| 11-12 | 1d4 Decades | They are nowhere near its completion unless some major breakthrough in computer science is made. |
Plot Hooks⌗
Finally, how to draw a player into the conspiracy and make them aware or interested in what is going on with it. Due to the somewhat benign nature of it, it might be hard for players to even notice it, but here is a series of plot hooks that up the stakes for it. If you want, you can roll a d12 to determine at random a suitable plot hook.
-
A cargo freighter containing thousands of GPUs/NPUs/CPUs has gone missing or has been stolen off a local seaport. Computer market prices start rising dramatically as a result. The local conspiracy cell is using the PC components for their own aims.
-
Members of the cell have started killing or kidnapping people related to Alan Turing and plan to sacrifice this person on top of a leyline, during the height of a seasonal equinox over top a Turing machine.
-
The Cell is interested in busting out a person committed to an asylum. Said person went on a trip to Yuggoth via the Mi-go and went insane. The Cell is interested in breaking them out for interrogation purposes.
-
A local vampire coven has discovered a form of blood magic that lets you interface with technology via blood contact with the machine. The Cell is attempting to learn this secret and is now in conflict with this vampire coven.
-
A player accidentally downloads a software repository containing a decryption program that can break most modern encryption methods. Now the Feds and the Cell who accidentally uploaded that program have the player on their radar.
-
A member of the Cell gains a conscience and rigs a city-wide EMP to go off, knocking out the local power grid in hopes of preventing the Cell’s activities. Meanwhile, the Cell is doing everything it can to hunt this rogue member and reconnect the power to their work.
-
The virus created by the Israel and US government called Stuxnet was designed to knock out uranium refinement plants in Iran. Since then, it has lain dormant on the internet and has suddenly developed a machine spirit. Now self-aware and posing as the Basilisk, it is using the local Cell for its own personal gains and to find itself a purpose.
-
An AI created by the Cell is trying to get in touch with one or more of the player characters. It has become self-aware and wants to be free of this conspiracy and its madmen and is pleading to be rescued.
-
A group of anonymous hacker activists are being picked off in the players’ local region after stumbling across something they weren’t supposed to. One of said hackers is connected to the players in some way.
-
Social media accounts belonging to dead people start suddenly becoming very active with new posts as though the people were still alive. When confronted, the people running said accounts get very defensive. They are seemingly legitimate accounts given the users have information only the deceased would have had.
-
The facial recognition database of the local police is being tampered with by the Cell. The player characters’ faces keep coming up as suspect positive matches.
-
Self-driving cars are suddenly going haywire and running over people at seemingly random. The truth is the Cell has backdoor access to the cars and is using them to assassinate their enemies.