A (very long) Hacking Example, By extremely popular demand Options

[Feshy]

As it has been requested several times, by myself included, I’ve decided to write an example “hack scenario.” This is by no means authoritative – I have yet to run an SR4 game. In fact, I wrote this with the rules in front of me, looking things up as I went. I've probably got as many questions as anyone else about the hacking rules. What I'm saying is it isn’t necessarily correct. But I figure if I at least throw something out there, we can start getting comments and other examples. So by all means, if you see something wrong with my examples, let me know.

I’ve decided to basically walk through an entire run, and gloss over any non-hacker parts. That might make this post rather long, but I figure too much example is better than not enough (or the current standard, which is no example...) The team will be made up entirely of the Sample Characters found starting on page 89. Most prominent in this example, of course, will be the Hacker, on page 96. I’ve made two changes to the hacker – I’ve added the “Exploit” program at 5. I don’t know how a hacker gets by without exploit, without that you can’t get in the door. I’ve also given him an “Agent 4” program, to demonstrate the use of agents. I’ve gone ahead and used a dice rolling program to roll the dice, to add to the realism. I won’t be doing any technomancers this time.

I’ll be breaking the story into several sections, with each section its own reply to this post. It will be long enough as is... I tried to address nearly all of Eyeless Blond’s suggestions for examples posted in another thread. I think I got them all but rigging:

-hacking a secured node (plenty of time to Probe the target)
-hacking a secured node (building burning down around you)
-stealing someone's car
-Rigging
-at a meet with a Johnson
-doing a research project; legwork
-doing a disinformation project; anti-legwork?

Wrapup is the last section; please wait until it is posted to comment. It shouldn’t take me long to cut, paste, and format.

So, without further a due, I bring you Ménage-a-Trideo

The players:
Hacker – Jim Bean
Face – Façade
Gunslinger Adept – Handsome Stranger
Radical Eco Shaman – Lilly

italics is story
plain text is hacking rules.