[X] My Assistant

[Makki]

I have an Infiltrator Adept with >20 dice on Infiltration. He has all tools to bypass any kind of security and avoids combat by all means necessary (totem rat).
Since I saved a lot of cash during our campaign, he'll start squeeze in some beta- and deltaware soon for times when background count hits him heavy.

Since our group varies and there are usually spots to fill, I was thinking of getting some skillwires. Now there's the option of getting them as cyberware (obviously delta) or I could learn the new magical version from Spy Games:

Demara
Cost: 0.5
This power allows the adept the use
of an untrained skill, without the penalty,
after watching an instruction trideo of
one or more subjects actively performing
the skill. Requires one hour of careful
observation, after which the adept can
use that skill at rating 1. The effect lasts
the adept’s Magic rating in hours. Demara
doesn’t include restricted skills nor remove
the requirement of tools or software. It
also has no effect on the Karma of obtaining
the skill in character advancement.

what do you think?

[Yerameyahu]

Cheap, weak. :/ It's a pretty big tradeoff, but you get what you pay for. With this one, you save lots of Essence, Magic, PP, and Cash.

[Elfenlied]

If you want magical skillwires, play a mystic adept with a tradition that has both Task and Guardian spirits. Demara looks pretty lackluster, IMO.

As for regular skillwires, SR4A updated the cost to a nigh unplayable amount, unless you're pirating the skillsofts or get vastly more money than karma.

[Yerameyahu]

The problem is that it's a fair price. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) It does depend on the karma/cash ratio, but last time I checked it was a good deal for the standard 2500:1 ratio.

[Elfenlied]

The problem is that it's a fair price. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) It does depend on the karma/cash ratio, but last time I checked it was a good deal for the standard 2500:1 ratio.

I don't think so. Skillsofts at rating 1-2 cost the same as the actual skill, using that ratio, while still having the drawbacks of skillwires. At rating 4, you've saved 6 Karma, but again, you can't specialize, and R4 Skillwires aren't even available at Chargen without another quality, and the skillwire+expert system costs means you're not coming out ahead unless you use more than 3 R4 Skillsofts at a time.

[Makki]

guys. read topic and post. I am an awakened. so I do have cash, but not karma. this is not a discussion about the cash/karma worthiness of skillwires! This is not a chargen discussion!

[Elfenlied]

If you've got large amounts of disposable cash, or a steady income of such, by all means, go skillwires.

[Yerameyahu]

It's certainly a complex tradeoff. It depends on how much value you (arbitrarily) place on multiple simultaneous skills (can be swapped with a Free action), on the opportunity cost of not spending your karma elsewhere, the value of saved karma, the value of getting something at chargen, how much Edge you have/use, how important specialization is, etc.

I agree that skillwires aren't *better*, and they shouldn't be.

Leave us alone, Makki, we're talking. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nyahnyah.gif) Hehe. I already answered your question: you'd be crazy to waste Magic/Essence recklessly, but 'Demara' (wtf?) is weaksauce. Awakened are precisely the people who have more cash than karma, as you said, so that's a point for wires. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) If you can afford the Essence hit, it's not the worst idea.

[Hida Tsuzua]

Considering that you're awakened and planning on buying beta and deltaware, it sounds like your character has way more cash than they know what to do with. Therefore the crazy high cost of sctivesofts isn't that bad. Rating 4 skillsoft with Personalization and Pluscode 3 is 46,000Y and effectively gets you nearly any skill at 4 with a +1 bonus and you can run up to 8 of them at once.

Demura is "free" but takes time and duration which also limits how many "skills" you can have up. It also only gives you rating of 1 in that skill. Its major advantage is that you can "learn" incredibly obscure non-defaultable active skills that you would never buy in a million years such as Basketweaving for the one time you have to build a basket for a free spirit or something. In addition, the .5 PP cost may or may not be that big to you depending on capped out you are on useful adept powers and you have .5 PP laying around and you were debating buying Melanin Control just to be silly.

If you can pirate programs, skillwires becomes a way better deal. Assuming you can't pirate personalization, it's 4300Y up front and 1000Y a month for an activesoft 4 + Pluscode 3. It'll take about 42 months before buying was a better deal than piracy. You can also get skillsofts "on demand" as well weirdly with many of the same restrictions as Demura (you gotta watch trideo to learn with Demura, you can't just watch someone in real life).

I recommended skillwires. Their biggest downside is cost, but that doesn't matter since you're rich and/or a pirate. They can get you up to 4 more dice than Demura. If you know what skills you can to get and keep on using them over and over again, then skillwires is easier to have at the ready at all times since you can just leave that skill loaded 24/7) and you don't have to watch a hour long youtube video 2-3 times a day.

However depending on your game and character, there are some arguments for Demura. If you find yourself needing to know Basketweaving and then Foosball and then something else completely random, I can definitely see the advantage of Demura. In addition, if you really do have .5 PP laying around and have no clue what to do with it (which is a sad but common fate of adepts), then I can see grabbing Demura. Outside of that, skillwires are likely your best bet.

[Makki]

Hida just gave me a thought. I should probably get both (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nyahnyah.gif)
thx for the input so far. I have to talk to the group about piracy

[Irion]

Whats your magic attribute?
If it is less than 5, skillwires are the way to go.
More than 5, well it depends if it is such a good idea...

[Neraph]

IAs for regular skillwires, SR4A updated the cost to a nigh unplayable amount, unless you're pirating the skillsofts or get vastly more money than karma.

*cough cough* freeware! *cough*