I have some questions on rules that we have a hard time settling.

1) Any problems invisibility-casting on a vehicle or drone? Object resistance should not apply, since the target of the spell does not resist it, but the viewers of the target.

2) Improved invisibility and cameras: Is this a mater of object resistance (in which case you need force 4), or a matter of a spell resisted by the guy or program looking at the picture through the camera? I see the former as a matter of the spell being a binary "You see him, or you don't", the later being a matter of "You see a wavering outline/can notice places where the invisibility spell isn't perfect?" Since this is a physical spell, I would assume it is the later, and the onus (with a hefty negative) is on the person viewing through the camera.

3) Do reflex enhancements offer riggers any benefit when jumped into a drone? If they are using matrix initiative..

4) How visible in the astral plane is having a spell active? Being a
mage? Casual scan, or does it require a examine in depth? (might be
able to look these up).

5) How close does a spirit have to be to use its powers? How visible
are the powers when being used? How visible are spirits in the astral? is a spirit concealing me utterly useless if there is a mage on the opposing team? (My opinion: yes).

6) Hacking a comlink: As I understand it, a comlink is a persona. The PAN is the location that you can hack into, governed by the comlink. If an alert is raised, almos tevery PAN will alert the bearer of the comlink that 'hey, something is going on.'

7) Hacking doors: how often are doors connected to the matrix? Maglock doors? Just logs, or can you open them up too?

A door might be WiFi if it scans personel badges as they walk up to it. They also might be Wifi if they need to patch into the local security net but the owner didn't want to take the time and expense to run the hidden wires.

Except when the rules blatantly contradict themselves (like whether or not adepts get mentor spirits) or when they produce effects too unrealistic to be acceptable due to oversimplification.

That said, I agree. Don't bother trying to rationalize it. I guarantee that if they ever figure it out, whatever you've come up with is wrong.

using object resistance is the best for everybody... by the time the image gets recorded on disc or viewed by someone electronically, the effect needs to be set in stone, resisted or unresisted. Two people aren't going to look at a recorded image, and one person clearly see a metahuman and another see an empty hall; otherwise the data would be magically enchanted with the spell and we know that's just not true Spell resistance in this case needs to end at the camera recording the image.

Rules as Written, to affect an Object you need to meet or beat the treshold from the Object Resistance Table. Therefore, to cast Invisibility on an object, you need to achieve enough hits to meet or beat the treshold. However, hits, not net hits determine the effectiveness of the Invisibility spell.

Logically, you need to beat the Object Resistance treshold because non-living objects do not resist spells. Since the target of Invisibility does not resist the spell, the Object Resistance threshold should not apply.

As for the camera, the camera is the observer, not the people watching TV. Therefore if the caster gets enough hits to meet or beat the camera's threshold (which will 4 or higher), then the camera can't see the invisble target and thus cannot convey visual information about him.

Physical spells cast on non-living objects are never resisted (as in, they never roll Body or Willpower or any other relevant attribute or skill to reduce the hits/net hits on the spellcasting test.) However, the spellcasting attempt has to meet or exceed the THRESHOLD of the object before any effect is made. This means you have to get 3 hits on an improved invisibility test to fool a camera, and you have to get 4+ hits to cast powerbolt on a drone or vehicle.

The term for the Threshold you have to beat is called Object Resistance, but it's a bit of a misnomer, as the object never resists. It's merely how tough it is to get the desired effect on the non-living object due to how processed and 'unnatural' it is.

Simple in rules, convoluted in logic. Hence the "don't try to rationalize magic" approach.

Hmm, here's a related question. Does a corpse count as an object for such purposes? Say you want to conceal a corpse with invisibility, would any attached bioware or cyberware make the resistance threshold more difficult?

heh, sounds like what apple wants to make people think happens when you remove the ipod earbuds from a persons ears...

the downside is that spirits can shortcut via metaplanes in such a setup... Since teh are within is technically not warded...

Any GM who allows that deserves what he gets.

There are some ways to work around it without completely banning it, but unrestricted use of metaplanar shortcuts means that anyone capable of summoning high force spirits is a force to be reckoned with on a global scale.

If you don't want to ban it outright, perhaps restricting it to "spirits can go where they've been or where they're summoned" could work. another option would be that normal wards also block off the metaplanes to anyone not attuned to the ward. So the security mage can summon his buddies inside, but if a runner team wants spirits available they'll have to come in with them astrally or physically.

With the invisibility thing, I have one question.

If you normal invisibility cast, and you have someone within range of the effect, looking through a camera focused on the person. Do they see through the invisibility.

i.e. Hacker 1 has a shoulder mounted camera (for some recording reason or something), and has an AR window in his image display with a feed from the camera.
Mage A casts invisibility on himself and Hacker 1 fails to resist.
Does Mage A disappear from the AR window for Hacker 1 as well as his normal sight, since he is within range of the spell and failed to resist it.

It's still the camera observing and feeding the data to the rigger so Object resistance ... now if the Camera was Inhabited by a Spirit (ie, an Ally in a homunculus), it would be spellcasting hits versus spirit's hits .... which in turn wouldn't matter as the spirit is astral percieving and ignores the illusion.