Hey I'm new here, and have a very unusual idea for my first ever character in a ShadowRun (is it ShadowRun or "Shadow Run?") setting, I'm literally starting with almost nothing, the character still has their SIN, and if things go the way I plan, their first adventure will be running out of their home (the son or daughter of a corporate bigwig) for their lives. Living a sheltered life, the person has almost no street level contacts no idea of how to do anything they need to get done, and maybe a few rumors of where to start. (While he should have a bunch of corp contacts and maybe some high-priced/special gear to reflect his/her privileged upbringing.)

Needless to say I don't plan for them to live long, but I figure if the player doesn't know jack about the system, it would be fun to play a character who doesn't know jack about 'running either.

The GM has graciously allowed me to run a solo campaign before putting me in the deep end with the other characters. (to allow the character a chance to get his skills up to par, and generally learn the ways of the world, before being brought into the group.)

The general outline is character and friend are snooping around find something that "Corp X" who their families work for doesn't want them to know. A few days later Friend disappears and my character finds out their being used for some sort of experimentation. Not wanting to be next on the vanishing act, they decide to run... and when someone runs... where do they turn to, but the Shadows?

In any case, down to the questions at hand.

The game already has a Hacker and a Shaman in it, since I'm planning on running a street Samurai elsewhere, with the same story, I'm thinking of going for a techomancer, and since the group already has a hacker, I was looking at rigging as a specialty, to me it doesn't seem to hard to imagine a kid with everything going for them, and a techomancer ability to build/make their own drones ect. The question I have is this... Would a techomancer need any kind of cyberware to run/control the drones, or can they treat them like any other matrix object and just run them with their techomancer powers...

the way I see it is if a techomancer can live in the Matrix without a deck/Comlink what have you, why would they need one to control a Drone... after all, one is a machine world, and the other is a machine itself, I see the drones as "Islands" in the "sea" of the matrix, if one can get into one without gear, one should be able to get into the other...am I right?

Second question: The main reason I think rigging would be a good idea is, well, it's a way to protect themselves and later, the other two characters. Shamans don't seem the type to be front line combatants and neither do hackers... but with a rigger, they could pull out a small robotic force to take the heat off the other two and generally act as shields. Is this a good idea? or does it amount to little more than tossing ants at a rhino?

I don't want to do a techomancer if it requires to much cyberware because that screws up with the techo-magical ability...but what do you all think.


Thanks again for your input.

You don't need any cyberwear to run drones. Heck, you don't need a commlink as a techno. Look at machine spites using diagnostics and with targeting/clearsight and maneuver autosofts. Once you have one in a drone you own it, as you can't spoof traffic to a spite. Try to start the game with some good sized ones registered.

Technos seem to kind kind of suck as GP hackers, but seem to excel as riggers.

It's usually written as Shadowrun. No need to capitalize the R.

I'd be careful about playing a TM. They're a tough archetype to learn the system with, and pretty finicky mechanics wise. Marrying that with a drone rigger adds another really difficult archetype. Drones are irritable beasts, especially if you're trying to manage a few at a time all going in different directions. As for your other questions. You don't need any cyber at all to play a TM. You're correct in your assumption that they treat drones like any other matrix object.

Onto the second question, drones can be very potent combatants, a steel lynx can really dish out the hurt depending on how you arm it. In my experience however they tend to operate better as support units, aerial drones can provide many more sets of eyes watching a scene, microdrones can scout in and out of all but the most secure facilities with ease, and even a small lightly armed drone can provide a hell of a distraction or convince your opponents that they're outflanked/gunned or surrounded when they aren't. That's where running a drone rigger becomes a challenge though. Playing to your drones strengths and weaknesses is a lot more difficult than it seems. The real nice combat drones cost a mint and so when you loose one to Frank the security hacker or Joe the gangbanger who gets a lucky swinging a lead pipe at the thing, it hurts. Drones need to be viewed as expendable. They're rarely as tough as a PC, and never as tough as a combat dedicated PC so don't count on them to be terribly survivable.

If I might offer a suggestion for your consideration. The Archtype I often suggest that players try first when they play is either a Street Sam or a Face. You've already said you'd rather not play a Sam but some of my favorite characters have been faces. They make great generalists since really the only requirement is putting points into Cha and various ettiquitte skills and spending a few BP's on contacts. After that if you pop a set of wired reflexes in, add a few points to pistols and you're a perfectly serviceable gunslinger too. A face would also mesh nicely with your idea of a corp brat. He'd have a fairly extensive network of contacts within whatever corp daddy works for.

Anyhow, that was a bit more rambling than I'd intended. Hopefully it helps.