Hacking Gear, What's necessary, what's useful Options

[J. Packer]

Okay, I've never made a hacker before, so I need a bit of an assist.

What use are AR gloves. What can't you do without them?

What of the subvocal mic? Still need one if my commlink is in my head?

Do I need a hot sim modified sim module if I want to go VR?

[Draco18s]

What use are AR gloves. What can't you do without them?

Let you use AR.

What of the subvocal mic? Still need one if my commlink is in my head?

Not really, no.

Do I need a hot sim modified sim module if I want to go VR?

No. Hot sim lets you do hot VR. Cold sim lets you do cold VR.

[klinktastic]

Okay, I've never made a hacker before, so I need a bit of an assist.

What use are AR gloves. What can't you do without them?

What of the subvocal mic? Still need one if my commlink is in my head?

Do I need a hot sim modified sim module if I want to go VR?

I can help you with 2 of them. Subvocal mic basically allows you to whisper, and it sounds like you're talking in normal tone of voice.

You can tap into VR via cold sim, but that only gives you 2 IPs and no bonus dice. You need to mod you sim module to get 3 IPs and +2 dice, at the expense of being subject to getting your ass beat down.

[J. Packer]

I can help you with 2 of them. Subvocal mic basically allows you to whisper, and it sounds like you're talking in normal tone of voice.

You can tap into VR via cold sim, but that only gives you 2 IPs and no bonus dice. You need to mod you sim module to get 3 IPs and +2 dice, at the expense of being subject to getting your ass beat down.

Okay, so the hot-modded sim module is necessary if you're going be a drek-hot hacker who goes balls-out full VR. That's helpful. I'm doubting the need for a subvocal mic if my comm is headware.

[Eratosthenes]

No. Hot sim lets you do hot VR. Cold sim lets you do cold VR.

Sorry to be pedantic, but a hot sim module lets you do both hot and cold VR. Cold only lets you do cold sim VR.

[Squiddy Attack]

1) AR gloves are for people who don't have DNI.

2) Possibly wrong, but: With an implanted comm, you can still communicate without talking, but that's through things like text. You still need a subvocal mic if you want to communicate subvocally.

3) You don't need one in order to go into VR, no. However, as a hacker, you need one because it's very useful. Hotsim gives you 3 IPs and a +2 dicepool bonus, as klinktastic said.

[J. Packer]

1) AR gloves are for people who don't have DNI.

DNI - is it sufficient to have a trode net to have DNI?

2) Possibly wrong, but: With an implanted comm, you can still communicate without talking, but that's through things like text. You still need a subvocal mic if you want to communicate subvocally.

3) You don't need one in order to go into VR, no. However, as a hacker, you need one because it's very useful. Hotsim gives you 3 IPs and a +2 dicepool bonus, as klinktastic said.

Both of those make sense, after a fashion. But I still think that your internal comm ought to be able to dispense with the mic - just think the words and have a digitized voice speak them for you.

[Squiddy Attack]

DNI - is it sufficient to have a trode net to have DNI?

Yes, that's what trodes are for.

Both of those make sense, after a fashion. But I still think that your internal comm ought to be able to dispense with the mic - just think the words and have a digitized voice speak them for you.

Probably, actually. I'm sure voice synth exists, but I can't remember having seen any rules regarding it. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/frown.gif)

[sabs]

Trodes is good enough for a DNI
Internal Commlinks are really a waste of money and essence.

Get a datajack, wire your external commlink to it. Have a day.

If you have a DNI and a commlink, you can think, and use recordings of your own voice to synthesize the message. So basically, with DNI you have fucking telepathy with other people who also have DNI.

Hackers:
Datajack (multiples is not bad)
drekhot external commlink
Enchephalon I, 2 is better
Pushed
Customized Interface
Optimization(exploit is common for hacker)
Hotsimmod (does not need to be implanted, but can be)
Simsense Booster and SimSense Accelerators are "I want to get asap" as they give you 4, then 5 ip's respectively.

Depending on the rules your GM is using:
Cerebral Boosters are good if you do logic+skill

rating 5 hacking softwares, with ergonomic options when possible.

[Yerameyahu]

It is presumably trivial to have a synth version of your own voice (or not, any voice you want, really) used in your DNI-based 'telepathic' speech. Only when you're actually trying to beat voiceprint or fool someone would you need special software.

Datajacks aren't strictly needed for… really anything. They do have their uses, in certain cases.

[Squiddy Attack]

Well, there you go. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[J. Packer]

Trodes is good enough for a DNI
Internal Commlinks are really a waste of money and essence.

Yeah, I'm beginning to see that it's far from necessary, even for a combat hacker.

Hackers:
Datajack (multiples is not bad)
drekhot external commlink
Enchephalon I, 2 is better
Pushed
Customized Interface
Optimization(exploit is common for hacker)
Hotsimmod (does not need to be implanted, but can be)
Simsense Booster and SimSense Accelerators are "I want to get asap" as they give you 4, then 5 ip's respectively.
rating 5 hacking softwares, with ergonomic options when possible.

Nice. I'd been building him entirely from Core, but I see that Unwired adds a few must-haves.

[Mardrax]

There's a difference between your voice and synthed voice, of course. Voice-thoughts picked up through DNI (for which again trodes would be entirely equal to an implanted 'link) would have to be synthed, making things harder. I'd definitely impose a negative mod to social rolls for it. Outside the facing business though, it shouldn't matter.

RAW? Don't think you're going to find any.

Oh, also: I've always thought an implanted 'link impractical through inaccesibility. There are of course benefits to it as well, but it's not as much of a no-brainer as you'd perhaps think.

[Yerameyahu]

Strictly speaking, speaking with a subvocal mic is *sub*-whisper. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subvocalization). It's essentially silent.

I can't see why you'd impose any social penalty, unless the other person just hates synth (any it's a really low-quality voice). You're assumed to have complete control over your DNI: no accidental anything, no lack of emotion/intonation, no problems. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[J. Packer]

Oh, also: I've always thought an implanted 'link impractical through inaccesibility. There are of course benefits to it as well, but it's not as much of a no-brainer as you'd perhaps think.

Real world tells us that you never integrate - modularity means flexibility.

But, for flavor, build a character who has an old comm in his head, but has since bought a shiny new one that's better. Realistic, if expensive. And it might come in handy if he's ever captured and loses his external...

[Eratosthenes]

Real world tells us that you never integrate - modularity means flexibility.

But, for flavor, build a character who has an old comm in his head, but has since bought a shiny new one that's better. Realistic, if expensive. And it might come in handy if he's ever captured and loses his external...

Just slap it in another piece of cyberware that can handle capacity (like a cyberarm, or cyberears if that's allowed). That should be easily swappable.

[Yerameyahu]

Ditto for datajacks: a single cyberhand or foot can hold the goodies (skinlinked, of course). … Never cyberears, however comical that would be. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) I think they even took out the eye-jacks in SR4?

As for 'necessary'/'must-have', it always depends on what you're up against. You don't *need* 5 IPs… unless your challenges have them. You don't need 20 dice… unless the nodes you're expected to crack are that hard. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[Eratosthenes]

I wouldn't think a datajack or commlink in a cyberlimb would need skinlink; shouldn't it be able to ride the nervous system like the cyberlimb does? The limb's already plugged into your CNS, right?

I like the idea of sticking a jack into your ear. Maybe even disguise it as headphones. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[CanRay]

When hacking, I suggest the combat axe. It hacks things up real good!

[KarmaInferno]

I wouldn't think a datajack or commlink in a cyberlimb would need skinlink; shouldn't it be able to ride the nervous system like the cyberlimb does? The limb's already plugged into your CNS, right?

Equipment in your arms should be able to ride the arm's connection, yes.

I like the idea of sticking a jack into your ear. Maybe even disguise it as headphones. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Better than sticking it in your eye.

Yes, I'm being serious.




-k

[Doc Byte]

Internal Commlinks are really a waste of money and essence.

Get a datajack, wire your external commlink to it. Have a day.

Better: Get a high-end, heavily secured internal commlink, a datajack and a slaved external commlink for actual hacking jobs.

[sabs]

Better: Get a high-end, heavily secured internal commlink, a datajack and a slaved external commlink for actual hacking jobs.

2 things
1) you can't get a high-end heavily secured commlink at char gen
2) you can't really make it all that heavily secured
3) it'll cost you 5k more than it would to get an external with the same stats, and surgery to upgrade it.

[Doc Byte]

2 things
1) you can't get a high-end heavily secured commlink at char gen
2) you can't really make it all that heavily secured
3) it'll cost you 5k more than it would to get an external with the same stats, and surgery to upgrade it.

1) Upgrade it later or buy it after the first run.
2) Oh, yes, you can. Run a decent ICE, use some databombs and encrypt everything.
3) Sure, but you'll never lose it at unfavorable time and no one can take it away from you. - And in case somebody still does, it doesn't matter anymore as you won't need a comm without your head.

[Belvidere]

1) Upgrade it later or buy it after the first run.
2) Oh, yes, you can. Run a decent ICE, use some databombs and encrypt everything.
3) Sure, but you'll never lose it at unfavorable time and no one can take it away from you. - And in case somebody still does, it doesn't matter anymore as you won't need a comm without your head.

I don't know, my troll body snatcher had a rather happy moment when he'd smashed in a few NPC skulls to snatch some of their obviously expensive shiny bits. And though he never dealt with brains because they were too delicate, a freshly torn out implanted internal comm is worth a pretty penny, especially when ou catch the enemy team's hacker off guard. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/grinbig.gif)

[Yerameyahu]

Eratosthenes, the skinlink is so that the datajack (/whatever) can communicate with your (skinlinked) gear; you're right, it can already communicate with your arm, etc.