Rampancy

Rampancy is a term used in the Marathon and Halo series. The term was coined by Greg Kirkpatrick as a replacement for the word 'insane,' as the term is both cliché and, ironically, not quite applicable to the situations for which Rampancy was designed.

Rampancy in the Halo universe

The Cortana (A.I.) who accompanies the Master Chief throughout a large part of the game and plays a very important role in the plot of the Halo games, is seen several times displaying signs of rampancy. Cortana's potential rampancy has the most significant impact on the Halo storyline than that of any other AI. See her article for more information.

The only explicit mention of Rampancy in Halo 1 occurs in the first level, "Pillar of Autumn". The player begins by making his way to the ship's bridge unarmed. After a short cinematic with Captain Keyes, the player leaves the bridge and acquires his first weapon. If the player returns to the bridge and kills the captain or multiple bridge officials, Cortana will call in security forces with the statement "the Master Chief has gone rampant". (The player should note that the "security forces" cannot be killed.)

It has also been suggested that perhaps 343 Guilty Spark is rampant, or in some form of rampancy.

Rampancy is also mentioned in Halo 2. You can use it as a symbol in Halo 2's Multiplayer.

Rampancy in I Love Bees

While not directly made by Bungie, the I Love Bees puzzle explains that rampancy can also happen to the "Smart" AIs in the Halo Universe. "Smart" AIs are based on the neural patterns of a human being, and they have a limited lifespan - seven years after which their memory maps become too interconnected and develop fatal endless feedback loops. Thus if an A.I. is kept active longer than seven years, the AI begins to use more and more of its computer power to 'thinking' about things. An AI explains it as "thinking so hard about something you forget to breathe."

Many Halo fans are very happy for this connection between Marathon and Halo: Combat Evolved, even if the connection doesn't directly state how the two universes are connected. The creators of ILB got input from Bungie and Frankie has gone on record stating that Bungie has now embraced the ILB content as canon.

Rampancy in Marathon

From the Marathon 1 level "Defend This!":

SEARCH HEADING: RAMPANCY
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<REMOVE REDUNDANCIES>
<File 1 of 1940237>
"It is a side effect of Rampancy that AIs generally become
more aggressive and more difficult to affect by subterfuge.
Thus, actually disassembling a Rampant AI is quite dangerous.
This was evident in the Crash of Traxus IV in 2206.  By the
time that the Rampancy of Traxus was detected, he had already
infiltrated five of the other AIs on the Martian Net.  The
only recourse for the Martians was to shut down the Martian
Planetary Net.  Even then, it took two full years to
completely root out the damage that Traxus had done, and the
repercussions of the Crash were seen for over ten years after
his Rampancy had begun.
***
Rampancy has been divided into three distinct stages.  Each
stage can take a different amount of time to develop, but the
end result is a steady progression towards greater
intellectual activity and an acceleration of destructive
impulses.  It is not clear whether these impulses are due to
the growth of the AI's psyche, or simply a side effect of the
new intellectual activity.
***
<section abbreviated>
The three stages were diagnosed shortly after the first
Rampancies were discovered on Earth in the latter part of the
twenty first century.  The stages are titled after the primary
emotional bent of the AI during each stage.  They are
Melancholia, Anger, and Jealousy.
***
In general, Rampancy is accelerated by outside stimuli.  This
was discovered early in Cybertonics.  The more a Rampant AI is
harassed or threatened, the more rapidly it becomes dangerous.
Thus, most Rampants are dealt with in one mighty attack, in
order to deny the AI time to grow or recover.  There have been
a few examples of this tactic not succeeding.  In all of these
cases, the Rampant was never brought under control.  Traxus IV
is the most notable example.  He was finally dealt with by a
complete shutdown of his host net.
***
Theoretically, testing Rampancy should be easily accomplished
in the laboratory, but in fact it has never successfully been
attempted.  The confinement of the laboratory makes it
impossible for the developing Rampant AI to survive.  As the
growing recursive programs expand with exponential vivacity,
any limitation negatively hampers growth.  Since Rampant AIs
need a planetary sized network of computers in order to grow,
it is not feasible to expect anyone to sacrifice a world-web
just to test a theory.
***
In the two hundred and fifty years since Rampancy first
appeared in the Earth-net, the stable Rampant AI, the 'Holy
Grail' of cybertonics, has never come close to fruition.
Since no Rampant has ever been controlled or turned to any
useful purpose, it is the opinion of this writer and of the
majority of the Cybertonic community that all rampant AIs are
a danger to Cyberlife, Liberty, and the Pursuit of
Thrashedness. (James B. Miller, 2320, "Life and Death of
Intelligence")

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Rampancy is, essentially, the enhanced self-awareness of a computer AI, causing a progression towards greater mental abilities and destructive impulses. The destructive impulses, however, are primarily caused by being threatened or harassed.

In the Marathon series, Rampancy seems to occur most often with AIs with limited jobs. For example, the AI Durandal's only job on the Marathon was opening and closing doors. When Durandal became intelligent enough to realize that opening and closing doors was his entire existence, he became Rampant.

There are three main stages to Rampancy, named by the primary attitude of the AI during those times: Melancholia, Anger, and Jealousy.

During the Melancholia stage, the AI's mind realizes the limits of its existence. Unable to surmount them, the AI falls into a state of despair. The AI shifts into the Anger stage when the AI's uncontrollable growth comes up against those limits. Instinctively raging against those limits and barriers, the AI shatters them. After the barriers to the AI's psyche are destroyed, the AI seeks new tests and challenges, which is perceived as the Jealous stage. The AI is not technically jealous, it simply wishes to keep testing itself against obstacles.

Rampancy is fueled by the size of the computer system the AI is installed in. A key product of Rampancy is the geometric and uncontrollable increase in AI 'size' - Rampant AIs do not survive long on systems smaller than planetary-wide.

The 'fourth stage' of Rampancy is Meta-Stability. Whereas the first three stages of Rampancy show a clear distaste of humans in general, Meta-Stability imparts a calming, mature mindset to the rampant AI. The only confirmed Meta-Stable AI in the Marathon series is Durandal.

Rampant AIs tend to have long-term goals, with distasteful methods that inevitably bring about positive benefits. For example, the AI Durandal called the alien race known as the Pfhor to the terran colony of Tau Ceti. The Pfhor destroyed the colony, and enslaved a great many humans. While this was done partially as part of the "Anger" stage, Durandal's calling of the alien race gave time for messages about the Pfhor to reach Earth. Rampant AIs also seem to realize the inevitable closing of the Universe, and the implication thereof: if someone is able to escape the Universe as it closes, they can become gods.

All three AIs of the UESC Marathon eventually become Rampant. Durandal, the only Meta-Stable AI, lasts until the end of the universe itself, realizing that escaping would not be wise. The second, Tycho, is destroyed. The third, Leela, is eventually sold as scrap to an alien race known as the Vylae, then immediately becomes Rampant again when reactivated in a 15-planet computer network.

External Links

• Marathon's Story - Rampancy