Sleeper

* Machinist
* Operator
* Extractor

***Sleeper's bodies are tools for Essen-Arp; they are used up until they are destroyed.***

The **Sleeper** is the main character in *Citizen Sleeper*.

## Background

A Sleeper is a peculiar creation of modern capitalism - a robotic body running an emulated human mind, based on a scan taken from a living human. After the brain is scanned, the data is loaded into a corporate-owned, pseudo-organic "frame" - creating a sapient being that has very few legal rights, can work in extreme environments that human workers cannot, and which is treated as a tool to be used and discarded.

The largest operator of Sleepers is Essen-Arp, a huge interstellar conglomerate.

To prevent Sleepers from exercising their sapience and defecting, the corporations build in planned obsolescence: Without regular doses of Stabilizer drugs, Sleeper frames actively decay and reject their own biosynthetic organs. Similar in principle to immunosuppressant medication in transplant patients, the Sleepers need these drugs for life. The formulae for the Stabilizer is highly protected, and produced almost exclusively by the corporations who build the frames - thus, it is very difficult to escape and to stay alive for very long.

Among humans, Sleepers are met with a variety of attitudes - from indifference, through pity, to outright hostility. Most understand that to sell yourself to a corporation is not a choice made lightly, and that the life of a Sleeper is short and brutish.

The emulation process does not intentionally carry over the memories from the copied mind, but some memories make it through. Sleepers tend to have fleeting flashes of memory - small glimpses into the mind of their original. If a Sleeper sees a photo of their former self, they will recognize it as someone they once were - familiar, but not truly "them".

## Classes

There are three classes for the Sleeper to choose from. These only affect the initial perk and point distribution, with subsequent development largely unlimited.

### Machinest

A Machinist repairs and modifies automated systems used in industrial resource extraction. Sleepers assigned to Machinest work are usually diligent, careful, and structured people.

Machinists are tinkerers, diligently keeping AI controlled tech and drones working in the field. While under Essen-Arp this means endless, exhausting repairs, an escaped extractor has the skills to modify the world around them - even modify themselves.

### Operator

An Operator works with drones and high-precision remote machines to perform complex tasks from a distance. Sleepers assigned to Operator work are usually cerebral and precise people.

The Operator is the Sleeper who is closest to the digital world of emulated minds and AI protocols. In Citizen Sleeper I wanted this to feel like an almost paranormal space, as opposed to just a digital network, and so operators are the game's mediums, in touch with the "other world" of data and ghosts. This also means a frailer body, and less focus on their physical survival.

### Extractor

Extractors work on resource, often in hard vacuum environments. Sleepers assigned to Extractor work are often confident, self-sufficent, and have a high level of endurance.

Extractors are the Sleepers who, in particular, spend a lot of time alone in dangerous places.

### Other Sleepers in the **Citizen Sleeper** universe

Of course, in the **Citizen Sleeper** universe, other Sleepers do exist. However, in this game, there is just one other Sleeper that you can come across. They are an unnamed character in the game, but are referred to as Sleeper Zero in The Art of Citizen Sleeper.

**Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector** is protagonised by a new **Sleeper**, who was neither seen nor mentioned in the first game.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 'The Art of Citizen Sleeper' by Gareth Damian Martin, and Guillaume Singelin
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Citizen Sleeper