 Alternate Matrix Rules, Everyone is doing it |
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 Nov 5 2007, 10:51 PM
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#26
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Moving Target  Group: Members Posts: 236 Joined: 17-October 07 Member No.: 13,735  |
I read through it and am working on a second read through now. Maybe a little more explanation of the above statement. Does this mean that a none orphan brain. (ie a brain on electronics) Can be affected by D programs? And the programs that involve various aspects of 'brain hacking' might be better served with more explainations of how much you can FUBAR someone with brainhacking. For instance, with Jingle. Putting a fact into someone's head and giving it alot of Veracity. To what extent can this fact be? Could a brainhacker inplant the fact in a target "Giving your certified credsticks to me is a really good idea" It sorta like using the Influence critter power? Thanks for the great work. Overall I am liking what I am reading, thus far. Ps. Also maybe a little more explanation about how to assign an orphan brain a PAN. Do they just have to be within a hacker's signal range? Or do you have to 'plant' a comlink on them somehow? |
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Nov 5 2007, 10:51 PM
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#27
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,246 Joined: 8-June 07 Member No.: 11,869 |
That makes sense. This post has been edited by Buster: Nov 5 2007, 11:50 PM |
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Nov 5 2007, 10:54 PM
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#28
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 225 Joined: 13-July 07 Member No.: 12,235 |
Hey, cool, it's the Matrix book I've been clamoring for, and I didn't even need to wait for Unwired to come out. I can die happy from having technomancers turn my brain into tapioca now. The part I'm most concerned with right now is the Permanency rules. Fifteen combat turns seems arbitrary. More importantly, it's too big to use while the party members are getting shot at by corpsec. The biggest question I have about these rules is whether they will facilitate hackers doing their stuff in concordance with the rest of their party, rather than the hacker and the GM throwing dice at each other while everyone else goes for a game of Guitar Hero. This, naturally, requires playtesting. Unfortunately I don't have a group right now, so I can't contribute to this, but I'd love to hear how it goes.
On a related note, I am really, really glad you took the time to make this. The Matrix rules have always bugged the hell out of me, and you've tackled them well in this. If I do get a group, these are going to be the default rules. So, thanks. |
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Nov 5 2007, 11:23 PM
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#29
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Immoral Elf Group: Members Posts: 15,247 Joined: 29-March 02 From: Grimy Pete's Bar & Laundromat Member No.: 2,486 |
And there is a lot of information to absorb. :eek: Nice job though. How do you have time for this with University and stuff? |
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Nov 5 2007, 11:25 PM
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#30
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 236 Joined: 17-October 07 Member No.: 13,735 |
I think Wealth might be a little over the top. Its one of those abilities that once the Virutakinetic can invoke a sprite with it, he doesnt really need to shadowrun anymore. That is a power I think should be reserved for AI's (going on the idea that AI's are the Matrix version of Free Spirits) |
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Nov 5 2007, 11:46 PM
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#31
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,246 Joined: 8-June 07 Member No.: 11,869 |
That's exactly why there isn't much complaining, the old rules suck and everybody knows it. |
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Nov 5 2007, 11:51 PM
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#32
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 246 Joined: 26-January 06 Member No.: 8,198 |
We talk a lot too. See that Desu power? Yeah, that'll learn me to ever make a joke. |
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Nov 5 2007, 11:54 PM
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#33
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,246 Joined: 8-June 07 Member No.: 11,869 |
Under the heading "System", you'll want to remove this sentence: "This kind of N Processor networking is functionally impossible in the year 2007, and requires not only a tremendous amount of processing power but also software based operating systems that are mathematically much more capable than the ones we have today."
This is not only possible today, but available as free downloads. Checkout the SETI project, protein folding project, and Beowulf (the supercomputer system, not the movie). More are in the pipeline as I type this (and even more would be if I wasn't typing this). The new multicore stuff from Intel and some video card companies is just amazing. Typo alert: Under Resonance Skills, the last sentence of the second paragraph just sort of stops. |
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Nov 6 2007, 12:13 AM
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#34
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 232 Joined: 7-October 07 Member No.: 13,604 |
I'm a little lost on what exactly constitutes an orphan brain. Does this include any brain (meaning that hackers can mind control magicians and steal their memories)? Is it limited to brains with cyber attachments and no PAN (this is how I want to read it)? If an orphan brain is one that's simply not directly connected to a PAN via cyberware, it makes those mages and adepts who have no cyberware pawns. Even if this isn't how you meant it, it should probably be clarified. |
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Nov 6 2007, 12:27 AM
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#35
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 225 Joined: 13-July 07 Member No.: 12,235 |
I'm pretty sure an orphan brain is a brain that isn't presently subscribed to a PAN. In Frank's model of the Matrix, using more technology makes you less susceptible to it. So walking around in 2071 without anything running on batteries will result in you getting knocked out with biofeedback and dumped in an alley somewhere after people steal your memories and make you think you're Richard Nixon just for kicks. By 2071, people have a pretty decent knowledge of how the brain works - messing up the brain's organic signals makes it harder to predict and analyze what's going on. Thus, an orphan brain is one that's not connected to a PAN, but you don't need cyberware for that. If you don't want to hurt your magic score, go get yourself some nanotrodes. |
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Nov 6 2007, 12:29 AM
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#36
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,246 Joined: 8-June 07 Member No.: 11,869 |
I love the idea of brain hacking (who doesn't love Ghost in the Shell?), but personally I would make a few changes to the "Hacking an orphan brain" section to make it more realistic.
(Didn't mean to clutter up your house rule thread with my house rules, I just wanted to toss you some ideas as karma for your awesome rules. :D ) |
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Nov 6 2007, 12:38 AM
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#37
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Target Group: Members Posts: 87 Joined: 11-September 07 From: Saeder-Krupp Rhine-Ruhr Regional HQ Member No.: 13,215 |
Frank, this is beyond awesome. Technomantic Mentors/Resonance Personifications/what have you were the first thing that I was hoping to see when I started reading, and you didn't disappoint. I'm running an Emergence Campaign with an in-the-closet Technomancer hiding from the Vory, and I think I'll put your rules to the test. Maybe even hit him with a Resonance Mentor when he isn't looking... his backstory did say he believes it to be the remnants of Ol' Meg. :vegm:
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Nov 6 2007, 12:52 AM
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#38
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,246 Joined: 8-June 07 Member No.: 11,869 |
Another idea: Background Programs take Artisan skill to create (Specialty: Simsense Art).
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Nov 6 2007, 12:58 AM
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#39
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 246 Joined: 26-January 06 Member No.: 8,198 |
Let you guys know, since he's in Czech he's asleep since an hour ago, so keep the questions coming.
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Nov 6 2007, 01:18 AM
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#40
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Bushido Cowgirl Group: Members Posts: 5,782 Joined: 8-July 05 From: On the Double K Ranch a half day's ride out of Phlogiston Flats Member No.: 7,490 |
...and mildly dain bramaged |
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Nov 6 2007, 01:18 AM
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#41
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 232 Joined: 7-October 07 Member No.: 13,604 |
That's what worries me. Why would brains automatically be connected to the wireless world without even making any effort? I could see someone not washing enough of the nonpaste to sever a connection, or someone getting a simple piece of cyber that they think won't require a PAN getting fucked, but every average Joe? Honestly, in the wrong hands, this is a game breaking mechanic, allowing a hacker to create his own Cobra army by brainwashing random people. In addition, Frank states:
This makes me assume that the orphan brain refers only to those with cybernetics and no PAN.
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Nov 6 2007, 01:19 AM
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#42
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,269 Joined: 18-September 06 Member No.: 9,421 |
I like what I've read so far. I'm about to basically reboot my game with your char-gen rules because I like them so much and with people coming and going and me just now getting people back stable the continuity of the game has kind of gone down hill lately. So, I'm going to add this too. I may make a printable version soon, depends on microbiology, however I'll keep checking back and if you host a print friendly one before then I would love it. I will make sure to keep you updated on how it all works out. If you would like I'll try and actually keep a log on the matrix stuff instead of just my impressions. Also, how IS Charles Uni going for you?(if you don't want to clutter the thread I'll shut up, but I am genuinely curious. A PM would be wonderful.)
Chris |
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Nov 6 2007, 01:26 AM
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#43
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Running Target Group: Members Posts: 1,246 Joined: 8-June 07 Member No.: 11,869 |
Hippie. :D |
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Nov 6 2007, 01:26 AM
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#44
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Bushido Cowgirl Group: Members Posts: 5,782 Joined: 8-July 05 From: On the Double K Ranch a half day's ride out of Phlogiston Flats Member No.: 7,490 |
...I have to pass these on to my GM as well. This makes my Matrix Specialist, Violet ( #51 ) a much more "interesting" character to play.
...nah, she's only 19 & that went out of style more than 90 years ago. ...'sides, she lives in Seattle, not Humboldt County, CaliFree :grinbig: |
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Nov 6 2007, 01:41 AM
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#45
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 225 Joined: 13-July 07 Member No.: 12,235 |
The brains aren't automatically connected to the wireless world. However, thinking that this means brains are immune to wireless signals is like staring down a shadowrunner and saying "If I think that you don't exist hard enough, you won't be able to shoot me in the face." Brains aren't connected to the wireless world, but the Matrix is everywhere (ooooOOOOoooo...), and in 2071, scientists are able to scan brains from a distance (whereas nowadays they can only scan brains in an MRI machine or whatever, but make no mistake, they can already do so quite accurately), and they also have a lot more knowledge about what makes brains go. This is why hackers are able to hack brains. They scan the output and go, "Ah, he's thinking of cheese pizza!" When the brain is in its natural state - the state scientists have the most data on - it's easy to hack. When it's got cyberware messing with it, it's harder. Naturally, this allows hackers to shoot peoples' brains with mini ray guns and brainwash them into thinking they're Cobra Commandos. Which leads into your next point...
Mages can already spontaneously take control of entire mobs of people with a huge success rate and little personal sacrifice. Seriously, it's not even a thing for them. They can control people like puppets. This already is a game-breaking mechanic in the wrong hands, and has been discussed in a number of threads. However, part of the mission of these house rules is to give hackers something else to do with their leet powers when they're not getting the Macguffin data from the research node. This is why hackers can now read minds and fry brains as a matter of routine. An important thing to remember is that brainwashing people and killing them dead is already something mages and sammies do all the time. Now hackers get to do it, but worse. Which is fine, because they've got other stuff to do in the Matrix. Finally:
The reason he says that is because to control your cybernetics, they have to be subscribed to your PAN. If you don't have a PAN, your cyberarm doesn't work. Indeed, if you have cybernetics and you don't have a PAN...well, what the hell are you doing? An orphan brain is what it sounds like: a brain with no functioning cyber to protect it against the ravages of the Matrix. |
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Nov 6 2007, 01:53 AM
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#46
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 232 Joined: 7-October 07 Member No.: 13,604 |
I would actually argue this is the other way around. Each person's brain is wired slightly differently. Once you have cyberware installed, it's a go-between that helps any hacker find his way around since the pathways are reasonably standardized. That's why cyberware is so prohibitively expensive (since installation include customization to work with you personally), why secondhand cyberware doesn't always work as well and is even more difficult to install, and why people with cyberware should be more easily hacked. |
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Nov 6 2007, 02:00 AM
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#47
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 225 Joined: 13-July 07 Member No.: 12,235 |
Normally I would (maybe) agree with that, but the thing is, cyberware comes with this stupidly advanced program called a Firewall. It does numerous impressive things constantly to keep people from hacking your brain, and while maybe it should be easier to hack someone whose brain is wired but who just got blasted with an EMP compared with someone who never had a piece of cyber installed in their life, the assumption that Frank's model makes is that it is not significantly harder, and certainly not so much harder as to make up the difference in security provided by a Rating 1 Firewall. Remember, cyberware in this model actually uses peoples' brains to process information. In its normal state your brain is churning along, wasting all those precious processing cycles. Does your brain naturally know how to stop someone from frying your brain with their mind control programs? I didn't think so. When the datajack is installed, the MCT Firewall Advantage Plus program is able to use some of that spare brain power to actively keep people away from your brain. Neat, huh? |
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Nov 6 2007, 02:09 AM
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#48
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 232 Joined: 7-October 07 Member No.: 13,604 |
The firewall isn't the issue. In fact, taking a firewalled piece of cyber into consideration would definitely make it harder. My point there was to say that the architecture is arranged via he portal. Dorrways in the mind are labeled when you have cyberware. That doesn't mean you can simply waltz in without dealing with defenses. My issue is with the brain suddenly being treated as a receptor for everyone.
When you look at the rules for magic, every living is treated as an astral construct. The key to being magic is being alive. The wireless world, on the other hand, is not at all related to being alive. In fact, outside of technomancers, who I could see perhaps being able to hack brains, the wireless world is dependent on technology. If dead zones can exist, then it's apparent to me that the brain is not the root of the Deep Resonance and can't actively engage the Matrix without assistance. The science of Technomancy isn't even explored, so without a valid reason for the brain being directly connected, I can't possibly believe that hackers could simply slice into our mind from afar without us installing some sort of back door. |
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Nov 6 2007, 05:55 AM
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#49
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Moving Target Group: Members Posts: 225 Joined: 13-July 07 Member No.: 12,235 |
If the college dropout at the cyberjack installation shop at the mall can deal with your neural pathways, then so can the awesome hacker pointing his ray gun at you. The thing is, even though every mind is different, we already have a pretty good idea at what different areas do, and we can already influence it to a pretty neat extent. Doctors can stick electrodes on someone and induce specific things. By 2071, hackers can really mess with it - really well. The magician can zap you with an orgasm spell, the hacker can zap the gate in your brain that releases all the happy neurotransmitters. If your brain is cybered up, the structure of the brain hasn't fundamentally changed, but you have been given a program that knows how hackers can mess with you and is specifically designed to combat it. I really just want to stress that while looking at the stuff hackers can do to an unguarded brain, keep in mind, whoever's doing this to you could have just shot you instead. Why should a mundane person be more susceptible to magic than an awakened person? Seriously, I want to know why you think that is. You'll notice that a lot of parallels have been drawn between magic and matrix in these rules, and I think that's a very good thing - hackers, and especially TMs, desperately needed an injection of cool. The situation is analogous in the matrix. Why should a non-matrix person be more susceptible to matrix things? For the same reason as mundanes and magic. (Note: The reason for this stuff involves a lot of flavor mumbo-jumbo, and is therefore left as an exercise for the reader.) |
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Nov 6 2007, 07:54 AM
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#50
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Prime Runner Group: Banned Posts: 3,732 Joined: 1-September 05 From: Prague, Czech Republic Member No.: 7,665 |
Good morning. I'm getting ready for class, but here's a quickie:
Here's the problem: in Shadowrun it is established canon that:
Those two facts lead us to the horrible realization that someone else can do this "for you". That is, if you aren't already connected to a PAN, someone else can connect you to a specially designed PAN that causes only pain and misery. And they can do this from across the room. The PAN is protective. It doesn't "let people into your brain", they already have access to your brain. They can hack your autonomic nervous system and cause you to have debilitating stomach cramps. They can hack your sensory cortex and take control of the vertical and the horizontal. They can map and read your memories. People can use BTLs even if they have no datajacks. People can use BTLs on other people who don't have PANs against the will of their victims. --- It is an extrapolation of established Matrix canon in Shadowrun. It is obviously not the only one. The core rules are going in a different direction where the human brain is less and less important to the rnning of the Mattrix as hardware and software exceeds the metahuman's dataprocessing capabilities. I don't that on the grounds that there's precious little reason for hackers to exist if a sufficiently large pile of money is greater than any Hacker. And from a game balance and strcture point of view, I have reason to believe it is a good thing. Hackers need something to do while they are participating in runs on Amazonian villages. There needs to be a reason for your enemies to throw down IC and secrity hackers rather than just nplugging all the juicy targets. Yes, you could have a world in which brains not already attached to computers were sacrosanct and protected from hacking. But we have no reason to believe that Shadowrun is such a world. And I do not believe that the stories and games set in the world of Shadowrun would work better if it was. -Frank |
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