I have been running Shadowrun on and off for 3 years now and it just dawned on me that i have no idea how to deal with the legal issues surrounding illegal cyberware or bioware. My question is does anyone have any suggestions as to how Lone star would deal with illegal cyber/bio ware (short of cutting off their arm).

I dont have my books with me at the moment but ill repost with an example in alittle bit. any help or suggestions would be great.

my assumption is that they would do some minor surgery to disable the cyberware. in the case of structural 'ware (bone lacing, etc), they might inject cutter nanites to destroy it completely.

I seem to remember a FASA SR adventure (maybe Harlequin?) where cyberware toting sams had to wear some sort of hand-cuff that disabled cyberware while they where worn or they required some Willpower Test to overcome them.

As a guess, I'd probably use something like that for simplicity sake.

EDIT - I am not sure how you could disable Bioware without causing some more major problems since it's grown material rather than implanted devices. Maybe some sort of medication would help diminish it's ability to function.

so apparently today my brain isn't exactly working all that great. i was checking on the legal codes and id say 75% of the cyberware in the main book is either legal or you can "purchase" a permit for it, or its really hard to spot (like recording intstruments).

As much as id love to inject cutter nanites into a couple of my former players. Is there any other suggestions that are a little less um.... dramatic?

Example: The character "Joe the gunbunny" with his built in smart link gets busted by Lone star (1st of all he should not get caught , but say he does) with the legal code of 5p-N and a suggested fine of 5k/3 yrs in jail. do they have any thing to disable it without cutting off his arm , i know they have plugs for datajacks, do they have similar things for various bits of cybertech?

Forgive the ignorance on my part , its been awhile since i ran a game and im trying to refresh everything before the upcoming campaign , one of the characters is full of cyber tech and i was just checking to see if anyone here had any info that would help.

thanks grinder, i think they reference something like that in the lonestar section of new seattle.

I could see how it'd be possible to perform surgery that cut off the cyber from the neural system, therefore reducing the implant to a unusuable chunk of metal. Cheaper than surgery to completely remove it.

yeah. if the runner's got a smartlink, it means he's probably willing to shoot people. the cop, if he's smart, will recognize that continuing to blackmail the runners for having a smartlink will soon make his life cheaper than the continued costs.

the important point here, is that if the star is disableing your cyber, your basicly in jail for the rest of the game or worse. its not worth worrying about, because if it happens then you need a new character.

theres a number of things LS cant disable, such as boosted reflexes, bone lacing, and dermal sheaths.

if the star has you in custody, 3 things can happen. 1, they give you a run. 2, your friends get you out or you escape, or 3, your character is removed from play. (dead may be better at this point).

the only thing you can expect the star to do in a short time, is restrain you and plug your jacks. if you have retractable bits, i would think they could just put metal gloves on you to prevent their use.

remember, that if you have a datajack or chipjack then they can plug you into a RAS override. +8 diff perception and all actions can make escape difficult. especialy in close combat with a shock-baton weilding officer.

I believe there is a fluff section in M&M that talks about using nanobots to connect the ware to the user's nervous system on a cellular level. Most things the cops would be nervous about (WR, SG, Spurs) would require that DNI to work so it would stand to reason that a similar nanobot could be used to disable the ware. Otherwise the implantation of simple triggers (similar to a reflex trigger) that only the cops can activate would be pretty non-invasive, and surgical removal would leave an essence hole.

As mentioned data filters and jack stoppers would take care of most headware/dataware. Passive implants like bone lacing probably aren't of great concern to them.

Bioware OTOH is bigger problem. My guess would be the use of drugs to counter any effects they have, or (insert evil GM laugh) the injection of talored antibodies to stimulate the user's immune system to attack/reject/destroy the implant. Nanites also seem like a reasonable option.

Another cool option would be to use those nanites that carry a dose of toxin and respond to some stimuli. The stimuli could be the activation of cyberware....

more ideas:

- jack stoppers with escher's loops

- they could plug you into a VR "prison" host and feed you through tubes for the rest of your life (ala Teulisch's RAS OR suggestion), but then it would probably be easier/more cost effective for them to just give you the death penalty or "make you disappear"...

- implant a small device into the brain that shocks the sh*t outta the guy if he tries to activate cyberware.

SOTA 64 goes into some detail about what happens when shadowrunners get arrested. To summarize: don't get arrested.

If you fail in that regard, those with cyber will generally have it deactivated (snip snip a few important wires here and there).

Bioware is undetectable save by intensive medical examination unless it involves the implanting of a wholly new organ, such as a chemical gland (MM page 60). These examinations are expensive - and LS, as a corp, is all about keeping unnecessary costs down - so its entirely possible that those with bioware might manage to go through the incarceration process without anyone noticing their implants. If, however, an X-Ray scan shows that you have a few extra organs, they might decide its worthwhile to go ahead with the medical examination to see if youve got anything else.

Dirty does not necessarily mean stupid. Anyone with a Smartlink probably has it for a reason.

thanks for all the ideas, especially the favors owed to LS , that could lead to some interesting runs/data collection.

oh and it sounds like i need to snag a copy of SOTA 64

yeah, SOTA64 is pretty good. you should also look into finding a copy of the old Lone Star sb.

More like the "jolt alert" with increased output

something just occured to me.
M&M p. 127, cybersystem damage, electrical damage

i dont think it would be too hard for a tool to be made that can selectively disable all cyber in an area with electricity. just add grounding strips in teh right places so as not to electrocute the subject. and fry the cyberware. all they take is stun damage, and their ware is disabled. may be too dangerous for the torso/head, but it will work well on the arms and legs and any weapons in them

A form of medically induced coma might be a possibility. Or some setup involving a sim-rig and IVs. Regardless of your tox filters and the like, if you're hooked up to something they can figure out the right dosage to keep you out....they have to if you ever plan to go get surgery anyway.

I also imagine they won't immediately snip you, if they can just non-permanently disable you. One you might be an asset. Two, you might be an asset of they guys that hold the LS contracts, such as the UCAS. Ooops, LS accidentally fragged an FBI officer just cause they wanted to shut down the guys cyber while he was still unconscious.

Old fashioned (but updated) shackles would probably work just as well too. Heh, anyone remember Face-Off with Nick Cage/John Travolta? That jail with the emag floor. Everyone has to shuffle around, and lockdown ups the mags.

now the question about that would be , would the character use his augmented body score to resist that stun damage or would you use his base body, given that his body was enhanced by the cyberware.