I've got the set-up for a run for a group of 4 new runners (in the 10-12 karma range) and I need some security ideas.
The short version: a biotech researcher has died near the end of a project that's had him in Seattle. His research assistant is going to wrap up the project and carry all the information in a data lock back to his home office in Germany in 17 days (he secures the data in his data lock every night for various reasons). The team has been hired to do the following:
Primary Objective:
1) Either kidnap the assistant and deliver him, or extract the data lock hardware and deliver it (cracking the lock is not in the scope of the run). Pay: 30,000
Optional Bonus Objectives:
2) Find and steal copies of the research diaries/notes, then trash the originals. Bonus: 10,000
3) Infiltrate the research lab and steal the relevant research samples. Bonus: 10,000 -- Alternately, torch the lab and the samples. Bonus: 5,000
Completely Alternate Objective Path:
1) Steal the notes (trash the copies), kill the assistant and steal the data lock hardware, steal the samples, destroy the lab, and make it all look like some sort of horrible accident or other tragedy that doesn't look like shadowrunners did it. Total: 75,000
---
I don't want to make the 30,000 too terribly easy, but easy enough to make it a hard decision on how to approach the primary objective with respect to the bonus objectives and the alternate win condition.
So what I'm looking for is security ideas.
The research project is of minor to moderate importance, so the target isn't in protective custody. I'm thinking a bodyguard detail that follows him wherever he wants to go, which is primarily to restaurants, bars, nightclubs, shops, et cetera. His activities will be limited to the part of Renton that's close to Bellevue and Downtown Seattle -- the lab will be nearby his housing (moderate-ish lifestyle condo?). The bodyguard detail is there as much to keep him from running off with semi-expensive data as they are to keep him safe.
So my questions are:
1) How big a security detail should this guy have? I was thinking at least 3 modestly effective bodyguards to handle him in public -- an intimidating bruiser (ork/troll?), a reasonably competent mage, and maybe a tactical/security guy that keeps an eye on exit routes, potential set-ups, and handles counter-espionage. Infiltrating the condo would involve the in-house security for the building/complex as well as potentially the local police (Knight Errant).
2) What's reasonable security for a research lab of questionable importance? It's not a hidden facility, nor is it very large, so I'm thinking a light complement of standard dudes-in-security-armor, again with local police being a consideration. Six to twelve guards on the day shift (when the lab is active) spread out over the building -- similar at night, when all the workers are home? Magic-wise, an in-house mage, or just a spirit patrol? I'm also thinking of throwing a rigger into the mix of security at the lab, on-site and handling a couple mobile camera drones and one for light combat. Matrix-wise, an off-site decker who'll be paged if someone punches into the host?
Note: I don't want to make any part of this too hard -- the difficult part would be reaching for the larger payout and trying not to screw any of it up, since the team would effectively have to find a way to hit all their goals without ever drawing any outside attention, and eliminate anyone who could expose the run.
The team consists of 1 decker, 2 magicians (one hermetic, one shaman), and an infiltrator/specialist.
Thoughts?
Full Version: Extraction Run
The security seems like overkill and not very effective at the same time.
1. Overkill in that the corps want to do things cheaply and it doesn't seem cost effective to have 3 bodyguards (which if they're working in shifts, probably actually means 5 or 6) to protect every scientist working on every minor project. Especially if one of them is a mage. From a bottom line perspective, a cranial bomb seems preferable for both making sure he doesn't try to run away and making sure no one else gets a hold of the data. I imagine that they probably have a secure closed circuit back-up of the data somewhere at there facility in case they want to use it. If they're worried about him being kidnapped or attacked, 3 physical bodyguards are expensive and can't really do anything that a drone guard or two can't and these can be supplemented by stationary assistance. Or he could even just have an agent tracking him in the matrix and watching him on the corp camera feeds to call for help if shit goes down. If they're worried about magical attack, some haven lilies around the guy's apartment complex and a mana-dector on his person to act as a notice of magical activity seem more likely, with maybe some biofiber in his vehicle or around his lab.
I know you're concerned about magic, because you've got two mages, but there are lots of mundane/mana-tech ways to protect against magic which are cheap and effective, whereas littering the place with mages gets a little suspicious.
But most of my suggestions turn kidnapping him into less combat focused and more footwork and planning. They'll have to find ways to disable the agent from calling for help or to avoid background count. Know his schedule or shadow him to wait until it's a good time to grab him and then be prepared (hopefully have done the leg work to know it's there) to neutralize the cranial bomb. If you want it to turn into a shoot-out the current set-up will work fine.
2. Same note, drones and stationary defenses cheaper than people. Maybe 3 or 4 physical security guards, but mostly at the front desk and overseeing the scanners. Yeah, maybe spirit patrols or just warding/biofiber with alarms that notify an offsite mage that can send a spirit if needed. Remember 1-way glass and cameras can be a mages worst enemy, without line of sight all the defenses last longer.
1. Overkill in that the corps want to do things cheaply and it doesn't seem cost effective to have 3 bodyguards (which if they're working in shifts, probably actually means 5 or 6) to protect every scientist working on every minor project. Especially if one of them is a mage. From a bottom line perspective, a cranial bomb seems preferable for both making sure he doesn't try to run away and making sure no one else gets a hold of the data. I imagine that they probably have a secure closed circuit back-up of the data somewhere at there facility in case they want to use it. If they're worried about him being kidnapped or attacked, 3 physical bodyguards are expensive and can't really do anything that a drone guard or two can't and these can be supplemented by stationary assistance. Or he could even just have an agent tracking him in the matrix and watching him on the corp camera feeds to call for help if shit goes down. If they're worried about magical attack, some haven lilies around the guy's apartment complex and a mana-dector on his person to act as a notice of magical activity seem more likely, with maybe some biofiber in his vehicle or around his lab.
I know you're concerned about magic, because you've got two mages, but there are lots of mundane/mana-tech ways to protect against magic which are cheap and effective, whereas littering the place with mages gets a little suspicious.
But most of my suggestions turn kidnapping him into less combat focused and more footwork and planning. They'll have to find ways to disable the agent from calling for help or to avoid background count. Know his schedule or shadow him to wait until it's a good time to grab him and then be prepared (hopefully have done the leg work to know it's there) to neutralize the cranial bomb. If you want it to turn into a shoot-out the current set-up will work fine.
2. Same note, drones and stationary defenses cheaper than people. Maybe 3 or 4 physical security guards, but mostly at the front desk and overseeing the scanners. Yeah, maybe spirit patrols or just warding/biofiber with alarms that notify an offsite mage that can send a spirit if needed. Remember 1-way glass and cameras can be a mages worst enemy, without line of sight all the defenses last longer.
QUOTE (thorya @ Oct 2 2013, 09:17 AM) 
The security seems like overkill and not very effective at the same time.
1. Overkill in that the corps want to do things cheaply and it doesn't seem cost effective to have 3 bodyguards (which if they're working in shifts, probably actually means 5 or 6) to protect every scientist working on every minor project. Especially if one of them is a mage. From a bottom line perspective, a cranial bomb seems preferable for both making sure he doesn't try to run away and making sure no one else gets a hold of the data. I imagine that they probably have a secure closed circuit back-up of the data somewhere at there facility in case they want to use it. If they're worried about him being kidnapped or attacked, 3 physical bodyguards are expensive and can't really do anything that a drone guard or two can't and these can be supplemented by stationary assistance. Or he could even just have an agent tracking him in the matrix and watching him on the corp camera feeds to call for help if shit goes down. If they're worried about magical attack, some haven lilies around the guy's apartment complex and a mana-dector on his person to act as a notice of magical activity seem more likely, with maybe some biofiber in his vehicle or around his lab.
I know you're concerned about magic, because you've got two mages, but there are lots of mundane/mana-tech ways to protect against magic which are cheap and effective, whereas littering the place with mages gets a little suspicious.
But most of my suggestions turn kidnapping him into less combat focused and more footwork and planning. They'll have to find ways to disable the agent from calling for help or to avoid background count. Know his schedule or shadow him to wait until it's a good time to grab him and then be prepared (hopefully have done the leg work to know it's there) to neutralize the cranial bomb. If you want it to turn into a shoot-out the current set-up will work fine.
2. Same note, drones and stationary defenses cheaper than people. Maybe 3 or 4 physical security guards, but mostly at the front desk and overseeing the scanners. Yeah, maybe spirit patrols or just warding/biofiber with alarms that notify an offsite mage that can send a spirit if needed. Remember 1-way glass and cameras can be a mages worst enemy, without line of sight all the defenses last longer.
1. Overkill in that the corps want to do things cheaply and it doesn't seem cost effective to have 3 bodyguards (which if they're working in shifts, probably actually means 5 or 6) to protect every scientist working on every minor project. Especially if one of them is a mage. From a bottom line perspective, a cranial bomb seems preferable for both making sure he doesn't try to run away and making sure no one else gets a hold of the data. I imagine that they probably have a secure closed circuit back-up of the data somewhere at there facility in case they want to use it. If they're worried about him being kidnapped or attacked, 3 physical bodyguards are expensive and can't really do anything that a drone guard or two can't and these can be supplemented by stationary assistance. Or he could even just have an agent tracking him in the matrix and watching him on the corp camera feeds to call for help if shit goes down. If they're worried about magical attack, some haven lilies around the guy's apartment complex and a mana-dector on his person to act as a notice of magical activity seem more likely, with maybe some biofiber in his vehicle or around his lab.
I know you're concerned about magic, because you've got two mages, but there are lots of mundane/mana-tech ways to protect against magic which are cheap and effective, whereas littering the place with mages gets a little suspicious.
But most of my suggestions turn kidnapping him into less combat focused and more footwork and planning. They'll have to find ways to disable the agent from calling for help or to avoid background count. Know his schedule or shadow him to wait until it's a good time to grab him and then be prepared (hopefully have done the leg work to know it's there) to neutralize the cranial bomb. If you want it to turn into a shoot-out the current set-up will work fine.
2. Same note, drones and stationary defenses cheaper than people. Maybe 3 or 4 physical security guards, but mostly at the front desk and overseeing the scanners. Yeah, maybe spirit patrols or just warding/biofiber with alarms that notify an offsite mage that can send a spirit if needed. Remember 1-way glass and cameras can be a mages worst enemy, without line of sight all the defenses last longer.
I was looking to not go the cranial bomb route, partly for plot reasons (this method of data transfer is a revision to the original plan, since the lead scientist croaked, and the corp can't arrange a new bomb installation and keep their schedule, hence the bodyguards as a stop-gap), and partly because I don't think the team has the resources to effectively neutralize it.
If I have the bodyguards sitting on him, it'd just be the few (no multiple shifts) so they'd be sort of live-in security. Granting one guy (the tactical one) a sleep regulator would make covering multiple shifts very simple, since in the day-to-day it'd be unlikely he'd need more than one at a time.
Looking at it, 3 guards for a two-week stint is probably cheaper than a kink bomb, and definitely cheaper than a microbomb, anyway.
Note that the data lock mule is a cheaper (and safer) alternative to round-the-clock matrix security. A remote decker during working hours, with removal of the secure data to a data lock means you don't have to over-secure the matrix host, especially with the site losing any importance once the project closes out.
What I'm most concerned about is the ability of one of the mages to use Influence to end things too fast. Having immediately available magic defense sitting on the target seems like a great idea, to at least make this require opportunity and subtlety.
Unless the data is actually important to the corp in question, security isn't going to be very tight, given how I read your description. IMO the on-site security will consist of maybe two average guards on location at all times and some drones, if things go wrong. The site will likely have a capable Spider looking in on the matrix security in the building, and he will also have the option of jumping into the drones if needed. The site might have a couple of wards and a patroling spirit or two of low to medium power, but I'm not even sure that's a given. You'll probably have a combination of quality alarm systems and locking systems, as well as some decent sensors, especially in the high sensitive areas. Also, I'd expect a fairly speedy response time from KE, if the alarm goes off.
Your lead scientist is probably "bugged" and under remote matrix surveillance for the next 17 days, but it's doubtful that he's got any bodyguards hanging about, unless the data and his knowledge is at least somewhat important, or unless the corp is expecting an extraction attempt.
Mages are not common, at least not as I read the setting. So having an on-site mage at a non-critical research facility is IMO not very likely.
Basically, security in the place is not going to be all that tight. The main defense strategy will IMO be to detect and slow down anyone that breaks in, and then wait for a security response team/KE to arrive on site and hopefully deal with the intruders. If something untowards seem to happen to the scientist, a recovery team will likely be sent to investigate and possibly retrieve him. Surveillance of him more likely consist of drones, video, and audio surveillance. If he seems to be going off the reservation, action can be taken based on the situation.
IMO the challenge for the players should really consist mainly of NOT setting off the alarms, and getting in and out of the place, without tripping the alarm. As for extracting the scientist, the real trick would be to do it without alerting the corp, and getting caught by the team sent to get the scientist back.
If the players are smart about it, they can enter and exit the lab without having to fight at all, but if they trip the alarms, they will have to choose between either trying to push ahead and risk having to fight KE to get out, or alternatively abort the run. Same thing with the scientist. If they can neutralize the devices that are tracking him, then they can probably get away with him cleanly. But if the alarm trips, of if they don't deal with all of the stuff that's tracking him, then they'll end up in a fight with the people coming to take him back.
My 2c. Hope you can use it for something.
Your lead scientist is probably "bugged" and under remote matrix surveillance for the next 17 days, but it's doubtful that he's got any bodyguards hanging about, unless the data and his knowledge is at least somewhat important, or unless the corp is expecting an extraction attempt.
Mages are not common, at least not as I read the setting. So having an on-site mage at a non-critical research facility is IMO not very likely.
Basically, security in the place is not going to be all that tight. The main defense strategy will IMO be to detect and slow down anyone that breaks in, and then wait for a security response team/KE to arrive on site and hopefully deal with the intruders. If something untowards seem to happen to the scientist, a recovery team will likely be sent to investigate and possibly retrieve him. Surveillance of him more likely consist of drones, video, and audio surveillance. If he seems to be going off the reservation, action can be taken based on the situation.
IMO the challenge for the players should really consist mainly of NOT setting off the alarms, and getting in and out of the place, without tripping the alarm. As for extracting the scientist, the real trick would be to do it without alerting the corp, and getting caught by the team sent to get the scientist back.
If the players are smart about it, they can enter and exit the lab without having to fight at all, but if they trip the alarms, they will have to choose between either trying to push ahead and risk having to fight KE to get out, or alternatively abort the run. Same thing with the scientist. If they can neutralize the devices that are tracking him, then they can probably get away with him cleanly. But if the alarm trips, of if they don't deal with all of the stuff that's tracking him, then they'll end up in a fight with the people coming to take him back.
My 2c. Hope you can use it for something.
I've got a list of mundane defenses from magic, if you want it. I've posted it before, but it's SR4 so some of the gear used to implement them aren't in SR5 yet.
There is a reason why commercial alarms are usually silent alarms. It's so the cops can show up and catch the thieves. So if the alarm goes off the players probably won't notice until KE has enough people on site to start clearing the building while maintaining a perimeter or when the players come out and find KE surrounding the place waiting for the SWAT team to start clearing. (If the players are deep enough in the system to know an alarm has been issued they are probably deep enough to keep the alarm from being issued.)
The project data is going to be backed up, most likely to the corp HQ. There really isn't any reason to not do that other then plot. It's not like corps haven't lost data before and have kind of figured out that this is a problem.
If the guy is important enough to have multiple bodyguards he's very important. Which means he's also going to be covered by spirits and armed drones and isn't going to be going out to restaurants or clubs for the next 2.5 weeks, he's going to go from his corporate residence to his work site via armed and armored vehicles escorted by drones flying cover.
Labs and such are difficult to burn. The buildings are concrete and steel and have smoke alarms, sprinklers etc. My person favorite anti-runner fire protection system is a CO2 total flooding system. Hope you have a sealed suit with air supply if you set that puppy off.
The project data is going to be backed up, most likely to the corp HQ. There really isn't any reason to not do that other then plot. It's not like corps haven't lost data before and have kind of figured out that this is a problem.
If the guy is important enough to have multiple bodyguards he's very important. Which means he's also going to be covered by spirits and armed drones and isn't going to be going out to restaurants or clubs for the next 2.5 weeks, he's going to go from his corporate residence to his work site via armed and armored vehicles escorted by drones flying cover.
Labs and such are difficult to burn. The buildings are concrete and steel and have smoke alarms, sprinklers etc. My person favorite anti-runner fire protection system is a CO2 total flooding system. Hope you have a sealed suit with air supply if you set that puppy off.
QUOTE (thorya @ Oct 2 2013, 06:10 PM)
I've got a list of mundane defenses from magic, if you want it. I've posted it before, but it's SR4 so some of the gear used to implement them aren't in SR5 yet.
I would like the list if you could post it please.
Thank you.
QUOTE (kzt @ Oct 2 2013, 11:03 PM)
The project data is going to be backed up, most likely to the corp HQ. There really isn't any reason to not do that other then plot. It's not like corps haven't lost data before and have kind of figured out that this is a problem.
If the guy is important enough to have multiple bodyguards he's very important. Which means he's also going to be covered by spirits and armed drones and isn't going to be going out to restaurants or clubs for the next 2.5 weeks, he's going to go from his corporate residence to his work site via armed and armored vehicles escorted by drones flying cover.
If the guy is important enough to have multiple bodyguards he's very important. Which means he's also going to be covered by spirits and armed drones and isn't going to be going out to restaurants or clubs for the next 2.5 weeks, he's going to go from his corporate residence to his work site via armed and armored vehicles escorted by drones flying cover.
The short version is that the corp doesn't trust their matrix security very far because they haven't invested a lot in the new matrix tech. They're very small, and the site is a lease, not an own, with rental security. The project had to be run locally in Seattle instead of near the HQ for reasons outside the scope of the run. Pulling the data off the matrix and carting it to the HQ where it can be stored on physical media in a secure location is a less-than-ideal alternative to having beefy matrix security, but it's what they have to work with.
The 'bodyguards' are literally the only in-house security assigned to the site, so they're pulling the triple duty of managing site security, providing direct security for the data, and preventing any untimely defections of the staff. They were also part of the detail assigned to protect the doctor who died, who was really important, but is now dead and somewhat less important.
The target isn't a AA or AAA. It's a small corporation situated halfway around the world from the site. Armored vehicles and matrix lockdowns aren't especially viable options, nor are corporate-run HTR teams in stealth t-birds. There's no supporting corporate infrastructure for them to rely on. Their options involve rental security, police, and very few boots on the ground.
Further, all that stuff above doesn't matter. I'm not looking for suggestions on how to plug security holes, or what a smart corp with good security ideas would do. I'm intentionally building this to be an interesting and potentially challenging run with a lot of security holes with some loose plot reasoning, not an exercise in realism. All I'm considering is how much is too much, and how little is too little.
QUOTE
Labs and such are difficult to burn. The buildings are concrete and steel and have smoke alarms, sprinklers etc. My person favorite anti-runner fire protection system is a CO2 total flooding system. Hope you have a sealed suit with air supply if you set that puppy off.
I don't mean literally set on fire. 'Sufficiently destroyed' works.
Quick question, but given it's SR5, why wouldn't the corp in question just brick the guy's datalock as soon as it looks like he might be extracted?
Good old wireless everywhere matrix means that's pretty damn simple, on the scale of one corp decker who only bothers to log in if alarms go off.
Good old wireless everywhere matrix means that's pretty damn simple, on the scale of one corp decker who only bothers to log in if alarms go off.
QUOTE (binarywraith @ Oct 3 2013, 01:43 AM)
Quick question, but given it's SR5, why wouldn't the corp in question just brick the guy's datalock as soon as it looks like he might be extracted?
Good old wireless everywhere matrix means that's pretty damn simple, on the scale of one corp decker who only bothers to log in if alarms go off.
Good old wireless everywhere matrix means that's pretty damn simple, on the scale of one corp decker who only bothers to log in if alarms go off.
Data locks are only accessible by universal data cable.
QUOTE (Epicedion @ Oct 3 2013, 12:46 AM)
Data locks are only accessible by universal data cable.
Yet nothing else is set up like that.
Gotta love consistency in worldbuilding.
QUOTE (binarywraith @ Oct 3 2013, 01:06 AM)
Yet nothing else is set up like that.
Gotta love consistency in worldbuilding.
Gotta love consistency in worldbuilding.
Plenty of things are only available via direct connection -- credsticks, datachips, and literally any piece of gear you want to use but not bad enough to get the wireless bonus. You can literally plug a wire from a smartgun into a hole in your face and use its onboard camera to shoot around a corner without ever turning on the wireless.
QUOTE (NeVeRLiFt @ Oct 2 2013, 11:24 PM)
I would like the list if you could post it please.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Okay:
[ Spoiler ]
Epicedion if you're looking to make this challenging, a more complete explanation of where your players are at might help. You've got a decker, 2 mages, and an infiltration/weapons specialist. What sort of spells does the group have? How competent is the decker? Do they have any social skills? Are they likely to try a lot of legwork or just magic/blast their way in and out?
From your first post it seemed like you expected a brute force method, with either manipulation spells used extensively to get their way or elimination of the security around the scientist and at the corporate site to grab what they want. Is that not the case?
QUOTE (thorya @ Oct 3 2013, 09:30 AM)
Epicedion if you're looking to make this challenging, a more complete explanation of where your players are at might help. You've got a decker, 2 mages, and an infiltration/weapons specialist. What sort of spells does the group have? How competent is the decker? Do they have any social skills? Are they likely to try a lot of legwork or just magic/blast their way in and out?
From your first post it seemed like you expected a brute force method, with either manipulation spells used extensively to get their way or elimination of the security around the scientist and at the corporate site to grab what they want. Is that not the case?
From your first post it seemed like you expected a brute force method, with either manipulation spells used extensively to get their way or elimination of the security around the scientist and at the corporate site to grab what they want. Is that not the case?
I'm honestly not sure what I expect out of these guys. Sometimes they go mirrorshades, sometimes they grenade everything in sight and high-five.
The team:
Human Tortoise Shaman: makes a plan and sticks to it, even if common sense says otherwise. Good spellcaster (~11 dice) and decent summoner (~10 dice). Largely relies on utility spells -- armor, heal, barrier. Doesn't like mucking about in astral space. Backup shotgunner. Also the team's negotiator, but only marginally useful as a face.
Human Hermetic Mage: paranormal investigator. Decent spellcaster (~11 dice) and counterspeller, hates spirits (and spirits hate him). Prefers more subtle spells like Trid Phantasm and Influence, or recon with Clairvoyance, but can rock a lightning bolt. Relies heavily on his Ruger Super Warhawk in combat, but isn't that great with it (~8 dice). Surprisingly tank-like.
Human Sniper/Infiltrator: good at breaking physical security, sneaking, perception, and shooting (all in the 9-12 dice range). Generally prepared for the role of sniper overwatch, since he can manage to get in and out of good positions without much help. Also the fastest member of the team with good Reaction and Intuition, as well as Wired Reflexes.
Elf Combat Decker: decent at hacking (~12 dice), full program suite, decent deck. A little spindly, but good enough with an Ingram Smartgun to provide extra fire support. Addresses combat weaknesses with a few augmentations -- muscle augmentation and wired reflexes -- to keep himself in the game.
As always it comes down to Security Vs. User Convenience.
The best security in the world is only as good as the user buy in.
Too much security and the users will find ways to circumvent it.
Be too draconian and it will be hard to recruit the best even with hardship pay.
Even the security personal are vulnerable to it since so much of their job is pure routine.
As a GM you can get a lot of play from this, since most runs depend on the slack between the Corp security procedures and reality.
It is easy to keep top notch security in a super secure and isolated Zero Zone research lab where the talent lives on site, but not if the "Talent" live normal lives outside of the office.
Of course the more you can isolate your "talent" in to Corporate Enclaves, the easier security is.
If everything is provided by the corporation, then there is no reason for the "talent" to leave the enclave.
Less contact with outside influences and the engrained Corporate Culture makes it easier to in force basic security measures.
And so much harder for outside "interest" to even observe the talent and the security procedures if everyone they come in contact with is a Corp employee.
A good part of the run can be finding where the gaps are in security.
And because they are against regulations, they always provide a good way to add a little excitement to the run.
Bob always takes a 20 minute smoke break instead of the 10 minutes one provided by corporate policy, but his supervisor "had" to run a report down to HR (he has a thing for the well stacked HR secretary), and he didn't want to get caught goofing off so he went back on patrol 8 minutes early...
The best security in the world is only as good as the user buy in.
Too much security and the users will find ways to circumvent it.
Be too draconian and it will be hard to recruit the best even with hardship pay.
Even the security personal are vulnerable to it since so much of their job is pure routine.
As a GM you can get a lot of play from this, since most runs depend on the slack between the Corp security procedures and reality.
It is easy to keep top notch security in a super secure and isolated Zero Zone research lab where the talent lives on site, but not if the "Talent" live normal lives outside of the office.
Of course the more you can isolate your "talent" in to Corporate Enclaves, the easier security is.
If everything is provided by the corporation, then there is no reason for the "talent" to leave the enclave.
Less contact with outside influences and the engrained Corporate Culture makes it easier to in force basic security measures.
And so much harder for outside "interest" to even observe the talent and the security procedures if everyone they come in contact with is a Corp employee.
A good part of the run can be finding where the gaps are in security.
And because they are against regulations, they always provide a good way to add a little excitement to the run.
Bob always takes a 20 minute smoke break instead of the 10 minutes one provided by corporate policy, but his supervisor "had" to run a report down to HR (he has a thing for the well stacked HR secretary), and he didn't want to get caught goofing off so he went back on patrol 8 minutes early...
Tactical guard: A leader to boost the other two guards' dice pools. A darn good shot. Hardly needs any sleep so is usually on duty.
Heavy guard: Also competent at spotting setups. More that just intimidating, but really tough and trained to take a bullet if necessary, maybe a night owl so handles the night shift.
Magical guard: Specializes in magical defense and defensive magic. Counterspelling, Dispelling, etc, protective rituals, heal, barrier, etc. One or two bound spirits. Also doubles to boost the researcher's Logic for better researching, so handles the day shift. Has plenty of wards set up. An astral badass.
If the players do their legwork, they may discover that the researcher enjoys the nightlife a little too much.
Heavy guard: Also competent at spotting setups. More that just intimidating, but really tough and trained to take a bullet if necessary, maybe a night owl so handles the night shift.
Magical guard: Specializes in magical defense and defensive magic. Counterspelling, Dispelling, etc, protective rituals, heal, barrier, etc. One or two bound spirits. Also doubles to boost the researcher's Logic for better researching, so handles the day shift. Has plenty of wards set up. An astral badass.
If the players do their legwork, they may discover that the researcher enjoys the nightlife a little too much.
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