So, I had an idea that I would like input on. Mostly I want to know if it is even possible.

We are going in to recover some property of the large and heavy variety. Obviously, no matter how stealthfully we enter, the guards are going to hear us leaving. My thought is this, could a technomancer compile and register a sprite with a heavy edit program, then have it hack into the guards commlinks and when the signal is given, switch them from AR to a VR that looks exactly like their current sorroundings, just minus the sight and sound of the team making off with the goods? I know it is iffy and there are lots that could go wrong, but could you pull someone from AR into VR?

I suppose if you hacked their systems you could switch on their VR, but that will only work if they have SIM modules, (unless there are some odd quirks for technomancers... I'm not up on those.) Once in VR they will likely still know something is up, because it would automatically put them in as their Personas, show them their program loads, and otherwise announce they are in a digital world. Also, in general interacting with VR is very much an active thing. They would be moving through willing it instead of by trying to walk. In short, they wouldn't fall for it. That doesn't even get to the part where they can almost automatically tell they are in a VR version of the world, or that their gear will vanish and be replaced with Icons for their programs. Basically this won't work unless you can somehow manage to get a Ultra Violet node running... and that's not going to happen. All other VR is just too obvious

If you don't mind altering them to something being up, you could also disable them by hacking their comms (to disable their ability to use them), dropping them into VR, and hitting them with a BTL program. Again this will require a Hot-SIM Module, and that isn't something in a standard guard package of software.

You might be better off using one of my favorite programs: The AR Negator program from Unwired. It automatically edits out "undesirable" input from a person's AR inputs. That includes sounds, smells, and vision (if they have inputs for them all.) As a Technomancer you could toss one together on the fly to fit your team, the objective, etc. The rest of us have to program them for what we want to filter... which takes longer. Because it's an AR program it will work as long as they have glasses and ear buds (likely.) It likely won't save you if you try to walk directly in front of them, but it will help muffle your activities from afar if you design it right.

Or do something a bit more standard and just set off a false/real alarm somewhere else to cover your escape. Fires work well for this, as do drones gone wild, etc.

As I understand the rules, everything in VR is quite appearantly virtual. Also, the appearance of matrix objects is determined by the programmer. This means that the appearance of the guard's commlink node is predeterminned. A hacker would probably be able to hack into it and alter it, but it would still be seen as virtual, even if you were able to somehow hack into their commlinks with a predetermined set of graphics. Only the legendary "ultraviolet" nodes look real, and nobody knows much about how they are formed. I'm almost totally sure that a simple commlink couldn't support an ultraviolet graphic setup, even if your hacker knew how to design one.

In any case, forcing the poor guards into VR mode is pretty brilliant. I'm not sure if it can actually be done so easily, but I think it may be done by spoofing the guard's commlink, and somehow locking the feed, removing the guard's ability to log off or jack out. If you manage this, the guards are most probably done for anyway, with the -6 penalty to real-world actions.

If you, by any chance, had access to an ultraviolent node (not likely, but possible), you could theoretically force-VR the guards, lure them into thinking they escape the VR by running into the UV node, then program each guard to appear inside the node at the same relative positions as in real life (maybe even reeling from a hacking attack). And then you could do what you suggested.

The guards are probably running in hidden mode, with at least some protection, so doing what you suggested won't be easy. Maybe they don't have simsense, so no full VR for them.

if you can actually get access to the com-link that controls a sim rig that the guard is hooked up to you can own them. Put them into VR and leave them paralyzed. Personally speaking I would only have my rig set up to only have a hardware switch to activate VR. To me that doesn't seem totally anal for people to not want the possibility of hackers activating there VR remotely but it's so cyberpunk I'd let it fly from time to time as a GM.

Also I second all the people saying that the fluff depicts untra-violet nodes as well beyond the means of a sprite and a comlink

Okay, so the virtual equivilant of a snap shot over the camera is out then. Oh well. However, I do like the notion of hitting them with VR just for the penalties, if I could find their nodes and manage to switch it. Of course I would have to use such a tactic sparingly, or the it will spread and one day I would be hit by it as well... that would suck. Thank you all for the help, I hadn't thought of the fact that they would all have been in their icon form. This shadowrunning buisness is hard work.

as someone else pointed out, this would ONLY work if the commlinks are equipped with sim modules, and if the guards are wearing trodes. no trodes, no VR, no matter what you do to their links. also it wouldn't help really, as they could just turn it off their first available action.

short of the TM echo Resonance Trodes, or knocking them unconscious and hooking them up to a VR system, there isn't any real decent way to force VR on people

Aצ I missing something ? Black IC can jam the connection open, and that's just a program.

What goes on in VR stays in VR...

It's already VR, not switching you to VR.

So send the command to have someone (probably not a typical guard as outlined above) dumped into VR, hot for a distinct preferance - sure they can leave in short order, even remove the trodes (-6 dice penalty on an action that is not rolled might call for a Will test or something), sadly some bastard (say, me) has loaded their comlink with black IC that has been order to murder-kill this guy as soon as he shows his meaty brain parts.

Sexy.

You can hack their commlinks, then if they have a DNI dump their into VR with your own hot sim module before black hammering them.

Better yet you spray them with nanopaste trodes - they've have trouble taking that stuff off

This seems like alot of work to kill a guy. People die pretty easy and bullets are cheap.

Now if we psycotropic up this Black IC to do terrible things to our foes brains aside from cooking them, now we is cooking with fossil fuel.

Then again there is something deeply and sickly appealing about the day shift coming in to find a pile of brain fried guards still at their posts.