I personally think that it's ridiculous that some-one with cyberware that allows them to relay messages to their body faster actually allows them to think and interpret data faster. I wouldn't count meat IP bonuses towards hacking actions.

The fastest way to hack is in hot VR with a simsense booster and simsense accelerator. That's 5 IPs. It represents that people are slower when they're still operating in the meat.

However, I don't let a 4 IP sammy use 4 IPs for hacking actions. For me your AR is based purely on matrix initiative. eg. [houserule=
1 IP: AR w/ No matrixware
2 IP: AR with Simsense Booster / AR with Simsense accelerator
3 IP: AR with Simsense booster + Simsense accelerator]

And that's where I'd cut AR off. To get that 4th and 5th IP you need to go hot.

However, the problem with this rule is that running in AR based only on the relevant matrixware means that you're likely to have your physical IPs different to your matrix IPs.

The solution is to have every matrix action hindered if they're lower than the physical reaction. I'd use DP modifiers for this. If you have 1 meat IP, and 3 matrix IPs and you're running in AR, then in one IP, you can take any phsical or matrix action you desire. However, in the 2nd IP you'd suffer a -1 DP Modifier. In the 3rd, you'd suffer a -2 DP Mod. This represents that if your meat reflexes aren't up to scratch, then things in the real world distract you.

I like this solution, because it means that hackers can now take advantage of AR and its coolness, but if they're slow in the meat, then they lose a few of their hacking DPs. Also, Sams can't utilize their wired nervous system to think quicker, as their matrix actions are limited by their lack of matrixware. Of course, a Samurai can easily pick up a Simsense Accelerator modification and then they've got 2 matrix IPs to use.

PS. If you like and understand these houserules, but you don't want to nerf your hacker/sam too much. Then make his penalty similar to the hacker, in that going over his matrix initiative in actions will incur a DP penalty on those actions, not rule them out.

Example. Samurai has 3 Meat IPs and a commlink with a Sim Accelerator. He takes his third action and incurs a -2 DP penalty, because it exceeds his Matrix IPs. If our Samurai has 4 IPs, he can't use that 4th IP (assuming he's taken all matrix actions in this combat), because AR Matrix IPs are capped at 3.

(-2 rather than 1 because I still feel that meat hacking on your wired reflexes (or move-by-wire, even sillier) is silly and broken. You of course can just use 1
PPS. Yes, I do understand how the Booster and Accelerators work, but I've just houseruled them into AR as well.
PPPS. That wasn't too convoluted, was it?

How about limiting the IPs spend on AR hacking per round to half hacking skill, rounded up?

Or, you know, you could go with the optional rule in unwired that says only 1 IP per round can be an AR action, regardless of your meat initiative.

just pointing out, the simsense accelerator only does anything if you're in hot sim. cold sim and AR don't get anything out of it.

I propose this as a balance, so that AR, one of the coolest parts of SR4 isn't completely nerfed just because wired reflexes allows you to exploit it, while still allowing those who want to use AR at decent speeds to do so, and giving hackers (and hack-sams) more bang for their matrixware.

Because, you know, that rule punishes everyone.


An elegant solution, except that AR hackers with Simsense Boosters still have 1 AR IP, regardless of hacking skill. I admire it for it's simplicity though. Also, attributes and ware should really be the only thing that determine speed. It would be like having an armorer with a skill of 1 have 4 times the intervals as an armorer with 4 (On top of the fact that this effectively happens anyway.)

The problem I see is that, in order to use those extra IPs, you've got to be able to think at least as fast as your physical IPs. This means that you should get all of your physical IPs in AR. Hacking is really only limited by the speed at which commands can be entered properly, the same as how the limit to the speed at which commands get executed on modern computers is primarily limited to how fast the user can type them or use the GUI, in VR it's limited by how fast the user can think them. Computers operate so fast compared to human reaction speed, which is why automation and expansive, encompassing logic feature heavily in computing.

If you want to houserule this way for balance purposes, go ahead. I personally see it as the player expending large quantities of resources (money or essence) for safety instead of going for the better and more dangerous options.

Of course hacking is limited by the speed you can input commands. However, I don't see why having cybernetic conduits that allow your muscles to respond faster to neural impulses should also allow you to input and interpret data faster, which is what you would do in hacking, unless of course you're using a keyboard to operate, in which case I'll flatten that to 1 IP anyway. Really.

I'd argue (against canon) that for all intents and purposes, AR is just VR with your eyes open, and that both are controlled by similar mental impulses and interpreted by the brain through ASIST technology, hence, a Simsense Booster/Accelerator will work (though not to the same effect) in AR.

It is a good point that even with this rule, a player who uses it may still opt for cold sim AR (which will be capped at 3, as long as you have a booster/accelerator - but is still pretty good.), and it's true it is safer, but the equivalent Hot SIM decker will be getting 5 IP's and +2 DP.

I know this conversation has been had before, but I see Unwired's new unprecedented 5th IP as a chance to actually broaden the IP gap between actual hot sim hackers and AR hackers. The immunity to matrix damage is an advantage enough without being able to get equal IPs to a hot sim hacker.

Reaction time, it's smaller when you've got wired or hot Sim.

To expand on that, a lot of human reflex is preprogramming to undergo a sequence of actions when encountering a set of stimuli. Experienced computer users zombie through most of the things that they do entirely on reflex, I'm not thinking about where each key I'm pressing is and I don't actually think about correcting mistakes. The subtasks of typing all happen automatically whilst I think of what I'm going to write next, I'm reacting reflexively to a changing environment and faster reflexes will allow me to type faster. Hackingwise, wired reflexes will jack up your perception speed and drop your reaction time, the commands are reflexive reactions to the environment and will be as affected by the meat IP enhancement as sucker punching someone. As an aside, I'd not restrict the IPs of people for using a keyboard; they get to use their meat IPs just the same as a if they were using a DNI.

At least, that's the way I see it.

I have definitely overused "reflexes" and "reactions" in that paragraph.

The cost of achieving 4 IPs under AR hacking is 19 850 nuyen and 4.5 essence (before grades) more than achieving 5 under hot sim (and you still don't get that neat +2 DP), and 35 000 nuyen more than achieving 3 IPs under cold sim. The various different aspects of each makes them all a valid choice; cold sim is legal without licences (and I doubt that you can get a wired reflexes licence for "computer use" purposes), hot sim is the best, AR is the safest option. Still, nobody is going to go for a wired 3 hacker when you could take that wired 3 and become a killing machine.

I kind of like this rule, though it was kind of convoluted initially so I had to reread it a few times.

My group at the moment has voted to use the book rule tweak to limit meat speeds to 1 IP, but there was enough grumbling from one hacker/sammie that the group might go for this kind of in between version that still favors hackers, but could leave an expensive option for 80K to give a safe AR parttime hacker a chance and give hacker a chance to still be useful while dodging about.

The other option of just -1 DP per meat IP to AR hacking I kind of like too. Makes it possible to safely hack through AR for speed freaks, but widens the gap between AR and Cold Sim and give hot sim a good +3-5 bonus over meat dice.

All in all, I'm a fan of anything that brings hacking back to hackers. My biggest disappointment with SR4 was how hacking suddenly became a practical hobby class.