New idea for Bioware Implant : Limbic Manipulator,

There is an area in the human brain called the Limbic system.. This includes the Amygdala, the Cingulate Gyrus, the Fornix, the Hippocampus, the Hypothalamus, the Olfactory Cortex, and the Thalamus. All of these systems together combine to control a human's Emotions, Emotional Responses, Hormonal Secretions, Mood, Motivation, and Pain and Pleasure Sensations.

What if there was deveoped an implant called the Limbic Manipulator which was a vat grown series of neural pathways that could interact with all the systems of the Limbic.

Ways it could be used :

* Complete removal of fear.
* Change Pain into a pleasurable sesation.
* Create anger or other emotions.
* Removal of any moral conscience.

If this implant could be activated by a player character, it could be used to completely numb their emotions before a run. Allowing them to never feel fear, anger, remorse, pity, etc... Their intelligence, skills and memory would be uneffected.

Such a device would have major consequences as the player character would quickly learn to turn on the device rather then face unwanted emotions (sadness, fear, etc).. These character would quickly loose themselves unless restricted in the implants use. (say only usable for an hour every day, divided however the player chooses).

Any ideas on "game" usage of such an implant, and what other effects you could think of it having?

This sounds very familiar. I think there was a drug like this in one of the SR novels.

There is something cyberware called an invoked memory stimulator.

It is child's play compared to this bioware.

All the IMS does is monitor the character for certain biosigns and then activate the memory region of the brain (usually a pleasurable memory). It is used to keep cyberzombies anchored in their mostly-dead bodies.

The IMS might touch on the Limbic system.. but this bioware would give a character almost complete control over it (which would be decided at the time it was implanted).

Sounds more like an advanced pain editor on/off switch.

Actually sounds like something you'd implant on an unwilling or unknowing subject with some sort of remote trigger, or possibly circumstantial trigger. Possibly to control criminals - by editing out hate emotions, or create assasins - editing in hate emotions. Possibly also some Pavlovian deterrent or incentive to individuals for various actions...

Since you have several systems at play there, I'd imagine it'd be a whole family of bioware mods that could come into play, each one doing one or more of the above bullets. Maybe make it like cybereyes, where the basic 'limbic system control' biomod is a decent cost, with fractional increases for the rest.

I'd say the more intrusive ones - morality dampening, etc. - should have serious in-game effects, but since SR doesn't really have a 'sanity index' like Call of Cthulhu you'd have to make it up yourself, or have characters only enter into it if they want the role-playing potential.

Sounds like cyberware, because you'd need an interface of some sort...

Or, it's just a variable, internal p-fix BTL processer... I think they call that a simrig... which has the added function of output.