Origins/Major Influence: My memories of Gerzel's posts and Vatman22's posts in the Paranoia-Live's GM Meeting Room
Description: Each CompNode in Vatman22 Complex is functionally autonomous. Though they do not trust each other (suspecting that the other CompNodes may have been subverted by communists), they at least are nominally allied to one another and communicate constantly, creating the entity that we call today "The Computer". Naturally, all citizens swear loyalty to The Computer, and will obey all orders of the CompNodes, even if they differ from one another.
The goal of the CompNodes is to survive and protect their part of the complex from subversives (especially the Computer Phreaks - their hacks only drive The Computer deeper into paranoia and self-doubt). The CompNodes are under no illusion that the people in Alpha Complex are actually loyal to the regime, so they don't promote on the basis of loyalty, but on "trust". When the CompNodes say "trust", what they really mean is "predictability". The more predictable you are, the more pliable and manipulatable you are. Citizens start off as INFRARED (due to the the CompNodes not having enough data), and as The Computer gather more data, a citizen rise in clearance. Obviously, the CompNodes don't admit this secret in public, lest people start gaming the system.
Due to the autonomous nature of the CompNodes, citizens may differ in security clearance as they cross sectors. A person may be a ULTRAVIOLET High Programmer in MLY sector but a ORANGE troubleshooter in PLN sector. In fact, when a UV first gets promoted, the UVs in the nearby sectors stage a "housewarming party" (i.e., a military invasion). If the newbie UV survives the party, then, and only then, do the other UVs treat them as "equals" to negotiate with. But just because the other UVs may negotiate with you doesn't mean the CompNodes will. Some UVs exist solely to serve as assassins to kill other 'rogue' UVs that work for rival CompNodes.
In some complexes, the life of a citizen usually gets better as you rise in security clearance and gain more political power. This is not the case in Vatman22 Complex - the more power you have, the more enemies you face against (and the more powerful those enemies become). The CompNodes themselves, being the most dominant entities in the Complex, are driven to the brink of insanity due to the stress. Still, a few CompNodes retain a bit of benevolence towards the citizenry of Alpha Complex, and as a result ideologues (including self-proclaimed traitors like Communists, Humanists or PURGErs) are semi-tolerated (since these ideologues may propose and implement plans that would improve life in Alpha Complex). They may even make it to UV clearance - if, of course, they are predictable enough to be controlled by the CompNodes.
Obviously, some CompNodes may be captured and reprogrammed by a single UV (necessitating a well-placed assassination), but other CompNodes have reportedly been blackmailed (i.e., subverted thoroughly with "dead man switches and inhibitors") by mysterious parties (who, as a condition of the blackmail, force themselves into UV clearance). These blackmailers are really the greatest threat to the Complex - they are so powerhungry and ambitious that nothing will stand in their way.
The competition between the UVs can sometimes reach a fever pitch, requiring a procedure to help resolve disputes and keep tensions at acceptable levels. This complex holds "elections" (glorified popularity contests) where citizens of each sector vote for the Sector Presidency, a very prestigious role that only UVs can run for. The Sector President tends to be the de facto ruler of that sector that other UVs must defer to...at least until the next election season. There can still be skullduggery behind the scenes - some UVs may covertly sponsor terrorist attacks to harm their popularity of their opponent ("If the Sector President can't protect himself from an assassination by terrorists, how can he protect you from terrorist attacks?").
The competition between the CompNodes, on the other hand, then to be much more delicate to resolve. Each sector establish security checkpoints and highly-armed "Security Details" to protect themselves from "potential subversives" that may live in the other sectors. Citizens who wants to travel from one sector to another must wait in line until they reach a border patrol agent and then present the proper official permits and the requisite bribes before being allowed to proceed to their destination. Security Details are in a tough position - they must make several arrests for petty crimes every month to demonstrate their effectiveness and justify their jobs, but they can't do their job too well lest they wind up provoking a shooting war between the various CompNodes.
Spy From Another Alpha Complex: If you want to play up the conflict between the CompNodes, look at Janus Complex or Free Enterprise Complex. If you want to focus on people fleeing the violence in Vatman22 Complex, look at Civil War Complex. And if you want a spy who want to protect the interests of the whole Complex (not just the agenda of a few CompNodes), look at Chaos Complex.