Security Guide
Security is always an important aspect. Theft is no longer such a huge issue in Hellmoo, but you never know when a crafty outlaw/asshole might pop up and whatnot. It is currently against the rules to rob a player's home or steal their vehicles if they have been online in the last 60 days. Once you are offline longer than that you're in season to be robbed. Breaking and entering is now more focused against the NPC population, the dirty skum.
Why was I robbed?
Simple reason: you were logged out for more than 60 days! Other than that it would be advisable to invest in a decent lock, an apartment in a good neighborhood and to not make it publically known you will now not log in for exactly 61 days. Rent in Freedom City if possible, install a good lock, and log in now and again.
Who can pick?
There are a pair of skills in this game, Locksmith and Hack. The primary use for these two skills are to pick locks. Locksmith picks physical locks (the type you need keys to open), while Hack picks biometric locks (the ones you open with a hand-print), although if your Locksmith skill sucks it makes picking biometric locks harder as well. They interlink in this way. Mainly builds centered around brains or reflex make good lock-pickers, and many who have no other skills geared at making money might want to invest in hack and locksmith for some thievery. It is also used in some quests and makes exploring dangerous areas much lower.
What lock should I use?
.There are quite a few different locks in the game, and they differ in what levels of security they provide.
Scanlocks: Scanlocks are picked open by anyone with a modicum of skill rather easily. Not advised to be used, really.
Voxguard bronze-platinum: For players buying voxguards is the easiest, bronze to gold is sold readily by NPCs in Smoot's Security Shack and Securite Entiere. These offer decent protection, but wouldn't deter anyone who has actually invested time into lock-picking.
Voxguard Diamonds: Very hard to break through, probably requires a very skilled lock-picker and a good amount of time with it. Player crafted.
The Home
Lets face it, your home is a place for your stuff (ever notice that your shit is stuff and other peoples stuff is shit?), and if somebody breaks in, chances are they aren't going to take that shit you were saving. They are going to take the good stuff, the SHINY stuff, the VALUABLE stuff, not that shit you were saving. That's why you gotta lock up your stuff!
Also, if you share your apartment with another person, you can keep your things separate by individually locking your own containers.
Locks: Changing the door lock is of course important, many people also put locks on the doors insides to stop people from leaving to quickly as well. Voxguards, as mentioned, are preferable.
Peepholes: A peephole is an extremely valuable, common, and cheap tool. It allows you to peek out your door without opening it, to see if something dangerous is outside your door. They are installed on the OUTSIDE of the door.(This is the biggest mistake people make, placing them on the inside allows people to look in and watch you sexhabe). They can be had for a low price at [[Smoot's Security Shack.
Door Kits: Door kits are an extra step in security. Informer door kits do what the name implies, inform you through your wristpad's radio if someone is trying to pick your lock. This is a moot point now as people aren't allowed to break into your apartment if you're online anymore, but might be something for the ultra paranoid. Another viable and easy to obtain option is a Trick-or-treat kit. These fun little kits are single use explosives that go off when somebody picks your door and fails. The best door kit by far is a shockmaster. The shockmaster is like a trick-or-treat, but with electric damage, and unlimited uses. The only way to get a shockmaster is from a player crafter.
Homecams: A homecam is a last resort item. It wont do a damn thing to protect your stuff, but it will let you know who did and exactly what they took. Not useful beyond knowing who to get your revenge on, but if you want to have absolutely everything, get one, they are cheap. They can replay a short log of the most recent actions in your home.
Stickycams: A stickycam is now more useful to watch TV away from home other than anything.
Tinfoil: Tinfoil can be installed on your walls and gives a large chill penalty, but prevents people from using clairvoyance to peek into your apartment or vehicle. This can backfire though, giving people the idea that you do have good stuff on the inside or that you're doing something naughty. Only needs to be installed in the rooms from where you can exit or enter.
Securing Your Items
What any robbery comes down to is that the picker is after your things. The most important thing you can do, is make those things harder to pick out, or harder to get to.
Stashing: The poor mans safe. You can stash an item in a room to have it require a search to find it. In an extended robbery, this is even better than a safe, since if the picker doesn't think to search, the item will not be found. The downside is trying to find it yourself if you have a crappy scavenge, but it is worth doing.
Containers: Locks can be placed on containers as well. Hiding your good stuff in an unlikely locked container is a good idea to foil robberies, if you would be inclined to do such.
Corp HQ: Storing things in your corp HQ might be a good idea as well, though you run the risk of losing it if the corp dissolves or you piss off another player in the corp. Corp HQs are very safe, but you have to factor in that a dozen other players might have access to it.
Safe Deposit: Famous Original Ray's Safe Deposit is located in Freedom City. If you have a valuable item that you aren't going to be using, and you don't want it lost in your sea of texty storage, it goes here. You get 10 slots to store items (no bags) for a slight fee based on the value of the item. It costs nothing to remove the item. There is no way an item can be stolen or lost from the safe deposit.
Homes
There are several different locations you can rent an apartment in Hellmoo, and if you have the funds, you can even buy your own custom house. I'll go down the list describing the pros and cons of each place.
Broham Gardens: This is the cheapest apartment available. That's all the good I can say about it. The security is weak, compromising of Gorillabots that most can kill with one hand tied behind their back. It wouldn't be advisable to be living here permanently.
The Bradbury: The Bradbury is the de-facto newbie apartment. Its got a relatively decent security force. It is cheap, and getting stars with Bradbury will eventually get you FCPD stars as well.
Sweaty Palms: Sweaty Palms is a perium choice, only difference between it and the Helliday Inn is the lack of electrified floors and the distance it lays from the police station. Has a helipad and public showers, too.
Helliday Inn: Very hard for a solo player to even attempt to rob, as it has electrified floors and lies very close to the police HQ. If you ever intend to go away for a long period of time, store your things here with a good lock on it.
Halliburton Arms: Halliburton Arms is located in Burbclave, and is significantly more expensive than Helliday (500k to move in). The security here consists of swarms of robotic spiderlings. If spiderlings engage the picker while they're picking, anyone involved in killing it gets stars. A step up from Sweaty Palms and Helliday in terms of luxury, but the price is generally enough to keep most people from owning one. This could be considered more secure than Helliday because of the difficulty level in robbing it. Interesting to note is that you first get Halliburton Arms stars, then you get Burbclave stars, Corpclave and finally FCPD stars if you commit crimes in there.
Burbclave Mansion: Burbclave mansions are of course the top of the line. Several rooms, an orbital defense cannon that blasts away anything trying to break in and your own re-cloning facilities.
Lurleen: Lurleen has security on par with Broham Gardens, mostly aimed at people with Hideous Freak mutation.
The Rodger Young: Pirate ship in botany bay with decent security, however committing crimes there will never get you wanted with the FCPD.
Vault 4: Vault 4 is guarded by rather dangerous bots. Especially on the lower levels. Renting a room lets you slip past them initially, though I wouldn't recommend doing any funny business in front of these laser-blasting robots.
Necropolis: Hideous Freak and abomination housing only. Undoubtedly no freaks or abominations will ever roll their character into a dedicated lock-picker, nor would anyone go out there to rob anything specific. Security is that it is in freaking Necropolis.
Custom Housing: Custom Housing nowadays is very secure as most players include security systems in their plans. Be very wary of breaking into anything like this.
Vehicles: Any vehicle left unlocked can be stolen, and such is NOT against the rules today. If you want to protect your property put a lock on it. Stickycams can be used with airplanes to get a view over who moves around (but useful for spotting friends in the area and NPCs you are looking for).