So, at work today I had an idea for a specialized hacker/rigger, a guy who deals in information warfare. His schtick is omniscience, and denying the enemy the same. I'm thinking full senseware (cybereyes and 'ears, with all the trimmings), plus a raft of sensor platforms, plus small surveillance drones (Fly-Spies and the like). I don't know how much hacking he'd need; he would prefer to rely on his own sensors and surveillance rather than subverting others' networks. Of course, he'd run the highest grade of tacnet possible. Skillwires? What else should I be looking at?

Eletronic Warfare Skill for Jamming-on-the-fly and real jammers.
And you do want Hacking, so you get access to all of a buildings internal and external sensors.

If you're willing to hybridize into magic, the Detection School is a great way of getting information about your surroundings. Clairaudience, Clairvoyance, et cetera, are amazing powers to have access to, and they're hard to detect.

~Umi

Begin by taking a look at the Cyberlogician Suite in Augmentation.
That was where I started when I built my IW specialist.

I've been working around the idea of a sensor collar for my character...
I guess I'll use a case-modded drone just to have a system that can also interpret and categorise the input.

A pack of multi-sensor mini- or microdrones might come in very handy. The "Flying Eye" from "Spy Games" is possibly a good pick for that.

I kept seeing you say this word, and always thought you had just made it up.

I ask forgiveness for violating the Gold standard of DS char-building. I´m going to suggest a MysAd investing into Astral Perception, Multitasking, and the Perceptive quality. One point of implants should provide a datajack, some senseware, and some increased AGI/LOG to skimp on the natural values. Gear would have to include spy drones and good software.

Multitasking would be used to enter the information gained from spells and agents into a tactical network real-time.

What chargen system do you use? How many points?

... I love my Cyberlogician. What an awesome character. He is a blast to play, even if he is mostly retired nowadays.
And My Cyberlogician Cyber Suite is way cooler than what is listed, though it took me long enough to get it.

No Worries... An Adept or Mysad would be a pretty interesting build. The one thing I always wanted for my Cyberlogician was 2 Free actions (Multitasking), though I usually just gave up one of my Simple actions (to update Information real-time), as Perception rolls are Simple. Oh well... That said, I was heavily invested in Recon Drones. Probably had about 100 or so (if not more) by the time I retired him.

(Pixie) Mystic Adept + Attuned E-dog

Mystic Adept has access to all the Metamagics and abilities an adept and a magician has access to - Enhanced Perception adept ability, Divination Metamagic, etc with the exception of Astral Projection . Having an E-pet gives you an edge in the Matrix. A sustained Extended Mindnet means you could use your Matrix signals for disinformation and you'd have the option to run electronically silent.

A 2 feet tall pixie riding her Dogasaurus Rex.

*Facepalm*

While the concept is... novel... it's a little more pink mohawk than I normally go for. Thanks, though.

Well, we are playing an ED-crossover campaign. Be prepared to enter a love-hate relationship with my players

(Not only the mohawk is pink at that point, not usually our style. But I have to steal that idea anyway. Thanks.)

Wouldn't that be a Pornomancer with a lot of contacts creating misinformation?

...

Oh, wait, that'd be HumInt, never mind.

Pardon me, but where is the Multitasking power/quality? I can't seem to find it.

Multi-Tasking
Cost: .5
Multi-tasking grants the ability to simultaneously process
information from multiple senses. For example, an adept with
this power could read data off multiple vid-screens and simultaneously
hold a conference call over his commlink or hold
a conversation while watching the trid, providing full attention
to each. In game terms, Observe in Detail (p. 136, SR4)
counts as a Free Action for the character. The adept is also
hard to distract (for instance, they would suffer no modifiers
in a crowded nightclub or an AR spam zone). Additionally, an
adept with Multi-tasking gains two Free Actions per Initiative
Pass when not directly involved in combat.
pg. 178 Street Magic

Move-by-Wire system is great. It's like Wired Reflexes plus Reaction Enhancers plus Skillwires all in one.
I never buy any skillwire programs at character creation. With wireless you can download a set of skillwires in matter of seconds if you need them. They are horribly expensive to buy at character creation, especially in 20A.

There's a TM echo that does the same thing, if that's more your cup of tea.

And in other news, Clockwork officially demands coffee and soykaff from now on.

Clockwork takes issues with everyone and their aunt although

Still a bit curious how much Hobgoblin attitude is genetic, but I guess that is one of those things that will stay in the wind