/srg/ - Shadowrun General

>deltaware
what?
You do know that you can't transport deltaware? It's specifically said to be designed, produced and constructed at the time of the implantation, in a delta clinic, which are hidden and of which only 10 or so exist
And while Deltaware bioware exists it's also said that only standard bioware can be Used, so delta-grade Bioware is useless

5e matrix combat question. Do I need a mark on a device to view the files on it? What kind of action would it be to look/search through the files? They can't just be out there for anyone doing a matrix perception test to see, can they?

And when you do a "Matrix Search" action do you reduce the time it takes if you've got a high initiative(through hot-sim or whatever)? Like if I had a guaranteed 13 initiative thus giving me 2 initiative passes, would I cut the search time in half?

Is it possible/reasonable to play a decker that stays in a safe location instead of being with the group on location?

Honestly that just seems like even more of a stupid thing to keep 'ware players from bypassing the fuckretarded availability rules for 'ware

Do Adepts have to make a 20R check to take Improved Reflexes 3? Then why do Street Sams? I usually houserule it that delta is the manufacturing process used to get ware rather than customed for the person. Makes life easier that way.

>Do I need a mark on a device?
Your persona needs to access the device to look at the files, yes.
Matrix PER once you're inside. Using Hack on The Fly to get in gives you net hits/2 free matrix PER.

Not RAW you reduce the time in hot sim, but a sensible GM can reduce it. Also, use your Agent for Matrix Searches.

Unless you're playing a 1600 karma game the decker will stay in the van. AR decking is awesome but functionally impossible. Staying in the van in hot sim is how you are forced to operate given all the shit the game throws at you to hack a fucking stuffer shack.

>Do Adepts have to make a 20R check to take Improved Reflexes 3?
Does the Sammy need a check to get Standard WR3? No
Deltaware is for the endgame where you have exhausted the options of Alpha and Betaware, and need some other way to make place for more stuff
The Adept may take IR3 immediately. That's it. He may start big, but doesn't have the Variability of the sammy, that might put TONS of augs into himself

To be fair, I play 4e, where the Augment Prices weren't that high. If I were to run 5e I'd make ware cheaper

>Your persona needs to access the device to look at the files, yes.
What kind of action would that be, Control Device?

>Not RAW you reduce the time in hot sim, but a sensible GM can reduce it. Also, use your Agent for Matrix Searches.
Why should I use a Agent for matrix searches?

>Unless you're playing a 1600 karma game the decker will stay in the van. AR decking is awesome but functionally impossible. Staying in the van in hot sim is how you are forced to operate given all the shit the game throws at you to hack a fucking stuffer shack.
That's what I figured.

Sorry for all the questions, I really appreciate the help.

Tell me about insect spirits. During the Chicago thing, their appearance in the physical realm - Was that through possession, or manifestation?

I have an idea that the runners find some sort of bug filled facility, but I feel like it should have a mana barrier on it for containment. But a mana barrier stops things from being summoned, so it's a bit of a chicken and egg problem.

Is there anything non-implanted or magical that lets you change your voice in 5e? You have Mission Impossible face masks and smart wigs, but I don't see a way to change voice.

Voice Warper

Hard Targets, 187

Doesn't seem to help impersonate people from the description.

No. Once you have a mark on the device, your persona has access to the device. You get that via Hack on the Fly or Brute Force. Then once inside the device you need to use Matrix PER to see what sort of files are inside, and then depending on if your GM uses matrix rules RAW you need an additional matrix PER to read specific files.

You should use an agent for matrix searches because without it you will be occupied for possibly 3+ hours.

Inhabitation. They take over a body and either manifest as a sleeper agent who looks like a human, an abombination half-insect thing, or a true form insect spirit on this plane.

There's a big section about them in Street Grimoire. Starts at the bottom of page 93.

>Do Adepts have to make a 20R check to take Improved Reflexes 3?

Do Street Sams need to climb to mountaintops and meditate for a week with no food or water to achieve spiritual oneness with Allah to get their cybereyes? And then in a few months go on a metaplanar quest to punch out a spirit so they can get some enhancements for their cyberarm?

The "Impersonation" Skill?

>No. Once you have a mark on the device, your persona has access to the device.
Cool thanks.

>You should use an agent for matrix searches because without it you will be occupied for possibly 3+ hours.
Ah alright, so if I can spare the time I can do it myself otherwise let an agent handle it. I assume I should run as many agent programs as I can to get the best result? Also if you do that do you add the number of hits they get together for the final result or just get separate results?

Yes. I have to do that to find the friends in high places tier contact that gets me into the ware clinic and then hope my IDs clear their weapons-grade ID scanners so I don't have to shoot up the place.

Exactly what I needed. And horrifying. Thanks.

Yes. Agent spam is your friend. Spam agents religiously and then remind your GM that the hacking rules are ridiculous enough to force you to do it should he whine. IIRC its just individual results.

Alternatively, buy a decker contact with loyalty 6.

Alright one final question, can you use Edge to get extra dice on an extended test?

read the fucking book
Depends on the GM

What's the Mafia/Vory stance on in-family shadowrunning? Asking for the Made Man quality

>not getting access to high-end clinics as part of the payment for a run

If you're at the level where you need deltaware, and you aren't putting it in as a standard line in your contracts, your cyberskull is probably lead-lined. An adept NEEDS to do extra stuff to initiate beyond earning the karma in a run, a street sam just needs money and contacts he can make through running.

As in, members of the Mafia/Vory doing shadowrunning on the side? Superiors won't mind it, so long as it doesn't interfere with their shit and they might demand a cut of your pay.

Keep your mouth shut about this thing of ours, and be around when we need you to help with a situation now and then, and it's on you.

Yeah i'm asking since Yakuzas view shadowrunning as dishonorabru gaijin bullshit

Thanks!

The traditional Yakuza clans might discourage Shadowrunning among their Lieutenants, but as the runner said, only if you're some idiot who brags about it. Organized Crime cares about traditional until it gets in the way of good business.

I imagine the reformist Yakuza clans care less about that.

>cares about tradition until it gets in the way of good business

Depends on the organization. Some won't touch drugs yet aren't above using carbombs. Other's will chop your head off if your late, yet if you bring a present they will some how give you good boy points.

[spoilers] i talked with a lot of people in gangs, and its really hard to even get into a position where the gang will betray you because they are family. Yet they aren't above testing you. [/spoiler]

The Barrens (Or as they're called in Russia) District 5's are essentially Mega-City One tier. Everyone is left to their own device and the police have a minimalistic attitude toward crime. "Shoot first, don't ask questions."

Somewhere between the second two.

Security/Police don't go there unless there's damn good reason. It's entirely run by gangs (that fight for control.)

Runners visit there pretty commonly, as some corps have realized it's a good place to hide shady shit. Also sometimes they're doing work for the gangs.

Making a character for a 4e game. Is it better to go full Raiden and cut out all the fleshy bits or more subtle things like skeleton Lacing and muscles toners?

depends on what kind of character you want

Just curious if any of you guys had ever played Earthdawn, how was it?

I'm going for a big bad Street Sam, cybernetic superman. The kinda guy who laughs off small arms fire and can put his fist through a steel door.

Okay
first: Do you want to focus on
>being really good at resisting damage
>really good at avoiding damage
>really good at dealing damage
>a mix of those?

second: What kind of Chargen, what resources and what special rules? (E.g. BP 450 with being able to take betaware at chargen and Avail limit of 16)

Hey chummers, what does a drone need in terms of autosofts?
Does it need autosofts to operate sensors? Does it need autosofts to use ECM? Does it need autosofts to use equipment like Gecko Grips?

Autosofts represent the ability to use skills, iirc. Gecko grips just augment a drone's natural contact surface, so it wouldn't need anything extra at all to use them, though you may need to modify the pilot to know that it's capable of new movement with aid from the gecko grips. If you want to get technical, you could get an Autosoft for Gymnastics (Parkour) for a walker that has grips on its feet, like an Ares Cheetah.

Basically, you need 'softs for things like weapons, complex movement, and repair functions. For example, the Evo Proletarian, meant as a garage assistant, comes pre-packaged with a Rating 2 Skill Autosoft for Automotive Mechanic (and a tool kit to match) so it can aid in car repair tests, and autonomously make small repairs and adjustments without supervision.

Found the specific entries.

Check out SR5 Core page 269, and Rigger 5.0 page 127.

Hey, I've literally never played Shadowrun, but I'm interested in it an want to run a game for my friends. Which edition is the best to start with?

SR5

Check out the "How to GM" pdf in the pastebin, and read. If you're super nervous, find some actual play podcasts and give them a listen, to get a sense of how everyone else handles the phonebook of rules.

>find some actual play podcasts
Any suggestions?

Crit Squad is the easiest to listen to, with sound effects and ambiance, but they tend to skip over rules in favor of RP. The Arcology has more of a focus on lore and crunch.

Why is there no full body version of False Face in SR5?

>Homunculi are limited to a weight of forcex10kg
>Homunculi have high strength when cast with any effort
> Microwire is avail 4, 50 nuyen per 100m, you take 8p -8ap just for touching it.
> Should have an object resistance of 9 if looking at the table on pg 295

So the next thing im doing upcoming session is making a 5km microwire homunculus.
with a threshold of 4 to spot things that are micro, plus it still having some sneaking dice......

I described the barrens once as "halfway between Allepos current state and the popular perception of Detroit", so probably between one and two

My character grew up on real food, but Rat say to make due with what you have

Are there any active SR Discord servers?

So, I'm going to be running a 5e game using a version of the Ends of the Matrix conversion adapted for 5e, and I'm thinking of removing any VR bonuses to hacking (making all hacking be in AR), as I feel this is more thematic for the version of the SR world I'm running. Are there any foreseeable balance problems with this?

Hackers will have trouble keeping up with people in meatspace because they can't afford to boost initiative high (barring shenanigans with drugs).

This is problematic because it often takes a couple passes to get anything meaningful done in the matrix.

I'd suggest keeping hotsim and coldsim but fluffing it as AR+, they take a -4 and -6 on actions in meatspace for coldsim and hotsim, keep the biofeedback downsides, but also get the initiative boosts.

the -6 should be nasty enough to disincentivize going hotsim for physical speed.

>> Microwire is avail 4, 50 nuyen per 100m, you take 8p -8ap just for touching it.
No you do not. This shit isn't cheap monowire.

It's a Bad Idea™ to try to grab microwire while rappelling or hang from the stuff without the proper gloves, but it's not going to fuck you up for touching it in other ways.

Huh, hadn't realized they actually added monowire as a thing in chrome flesh, which gives this argument some merit.

However, i'd say a microwire of any decent amount of strength doing a grapple attack would be similar or worse than hanging off the thing.

Monowire and microwire have been two different things for multiple editions.

No matter how you swing it or what mental gymnastics you bring, you're trying to misapply a damage code that's intended for bypassing armour by cutting through someone's less armoured hands.

>slicing straight through the climber’s hands, inflicting 8P damage with an AP of –8.

Even monowire strung across an area is only 8P, by core 359 (page number will vary by printing) rules.

a 8 str microwire grapples someone with agi+unarmed.

It can lift strx15 times it's weight without making a test (pg 152)

Person is now hanging by microwire.

Now:
Does the initial grapple deal damage?
When the attacker struggles to escape?
When it uses a complex action to deal damage in grapple, does it still deal stun?
How much ap, if any, does it get for the damage in a grapple?

While you could make an argument for RAW, it counts as a standard unarmed grapple with no advantages whatsoever, that just doesn't square with the reality described by the microwire text.

Also, i'd rule that the monowire is still ap-8 due to it probably being one of the many editing oversights. because the alternative is monofilament wire traps only ever dealing stun damage.

What would you say that the minimal investment is for combat-secondary character whose primary weapon is melee? I'm workshopping a Troll Technomancer build, and giving them a baseball bat has some kind of appeal to me (and especially lets me put that base strength to good use). I know that Melee as a Complex Action makes melee costly from an action economy perspective versus just packing a taser, predator, or TMP, and per the 8-10-12 rule I should be throwing at least 8 dice base given troll reach advantages. But I'm tired with packing guns, so how do I make this shit work so that I can at least baseline contribute to combat, or smack a guard over the head and probably put them down?

If you can afford the Resonance loss, take the hit, get a cyberarm (and more if you can either somehow afford alpha grade or took biocompat) and do some minor Arm of Godding with it.

Keep a high rating Machine Sprite with at least three tasks on it compiled. One of those three tasks goes to sustaining Diagnostics for the run's duration (hopefully). One task goes to recompiling it when necessary. The last task is for emergency purposes if you need to Gremlins something or the like.

Okay, question from someone who doesn't know all that much about the setting, but likes the overall premise
Can cyberarms/hands feel?

Unless you're getting particularly crappy omega-grade ones, yeah.

They can feel. You could even (with a simrig) record the feelings and sell those to people interested in, say, knowing what it feels like to walk on hot coals.

And if you were not really enterprising, you could have taken that simrig, recorded once with your meat feet, once with a standard grade set, and then again with an alpha grade set.

Yeah.

Try:
Troll A
Technomancer A
Money C

Get an arm with an obvious cyberimplant weapon, max it's strength, leave agility at base because of avail reasons.

max edge.

Get the positive quality: revels in murder.
Use edge to push the limit when you attack, get it back when you put someone into overflow.

You roll
6 dice from skill
2 from specialization
3 from agility
6 from edge
Optional: 6 from diagnostics power.

for 17 (or 23) dice with exploding 6'es.
Deal 18p + net hits in damage.

Boost initiative via drugs (or edge if you really need it)
Do all hacking via compiled/registered crack sprites.

Has 60k nuyen, some karma, and 7 skill points left to flesh the char out.

Are the Shadowrun novels any good? Could I get some recommendations?

What kind of gun does your character, or characters, carry?
What mods?

A simple rotodrone with a Predator V or Superwarhawk, improved Sensors, and Gunnery and Perception specialties in the Predator and Active Sensor Attack (essentially).

It's surprisingly good against people that expect to be able to roll some defense dice against pistol fire.

>It can lift strx15 times it's weight without making a test (pg 152)
You might allow it; I wouldn't pass animating a 5km long strand of microwire and then saying it's 5km tall and can lift things to "waist" height of 2.5km. The only reasonable way to come at it, I believe, is by cross section of the microwire strand. Above that is Str*5kg, or lifting 40kg without a test.

Also ... this is a teamwork ritual spellcasting test against a force 8 spell with an OR9 object. Which means you probably get skill + skill + magic + edge in dice, but the microwire homunculus gets 25 dice to never become.

>with a threshold of 4 to spot things that are micro
Got that wrong, too. Even monowire is only threshold 3.

Changeling.

If you've never been caught on razorwire; It's not that dangerous. You can cut yourself if you are poorly dressed, but a fully armored character WOULD be able to walk through monowire;

It'd suck to do, but in good armor, wouldn't be super dangerous.

Hammerli 60s, a warhawk and a lemat.

They only have six dice and have yet to actually fire a shot.

I wouldn't lift people up 2.5 km, that would indeed be silly.

To get the force 8 homunculus, use the great ritual metamagic in street grimoir with 7 magic.

Cast homunculus at force 1 as great ritual.
Dicepool to beat is now only 10.

As for the threshold of 4, that depends. do you need the same threshold as spotting a monofilament wire pullen taut across a door?
(which is indeed 3).
Or do we use the perception threshold for spotting (p.136) which notes, threshold to spot "micro" things is 4. ("micro" as in "microwire"? you tell me)

Fr4gile, our elf infiltrator has gone on a run. he has 2 body, and his only armor is the chameleon suit.

Sp!der the corpslave has set up the exits of the building with monofilament wire traps that can be pulled taut when the alarm goes off. this has cost the corp around 10k to get enough wire, but it's worth the price to slice up runners in your web, he thinks.

When Fr4gile takes down a guard and his biomonitor sets off an alarm, he decides to make a run for it, he rols 14 dice on perception to notice the newly taut traps as he runs for the exit but he has no luck, and only gets 2 hits.

Fr4gile proceeds to run full speed into the monowire trap. he has to soak 8p with 11 dice, taking it as stun. He takes on average 4 stun damage. he exits the building at full speed, only slightly disoriented.

Sp!der wonders why he even bothered.......

Colt Manhunter, with the stock holo sight plus a suppressor and a custom grip.

Revolver with a supressor.......

House of the Sun is good, as are most of the Findley ones.

The Colt Manhunter is not a revolver.

Woops, was thinking of the warhawk for some reason.

I think there's a quote somewhere that the silencers and suppressors in 5e are actually noise-cancellation devices. Sort of like this thingy, but with more practical applications.
youtube.com/watch?v=Mv6sBuwzLhk

Also neatly steps around why you can have an integral gas-vent and silencer.

-----

Unrelated news, I need some people to test weird things with adept powers in this version of Chummer; mostly I'm looking for ways to break qi foci, mentor spirits and power costs, but just loading existing characters from the main version and confirming that they load properly in this will be great as well.

a.pomf.cat/pqiewh.zip

Can Cyberware Scanners be beaten?

Higher-grade implants, camouflaging illegal gimmiks as an upgrade to legal implants and not being aug'ed up to the gills help.

Alternatively, going bioware.

Doesn't the Cyberware scanner only need a single hit to spot the presence of cybernetics? As for Bioware, I'd love to but False Face is cyber and there's no False Front in 5e.

No, it needs to beat a threshold set by the cyberware's grade. Just beating the treshold reveals the presence of the cybernetics, it needs aditional hits to find the mods.

Let's say for instance you have alphaware cybereyes. The scanner would need two hits to find out you have cybereyes, but 3 or even 4 hits to detect that nasty smartlink inside them.

Ah. I think that won't be viable then, the character needs to be packed to the gills with Ware, and there's no way I can afford to beat scanners.A False Face even at Alphaware is 14R, Retinal Duplication is a distant dream at that point.

And yeah, I know an Adept can do the whole thing a lot more easily as long as they can get the Masking Metamagic and a houserule to Mimic that makes it not shit.

Multiple traps, bruv.

John, our corp wageslave, is wearing some armor because he thinks some shadowrunners might assasinate him. this 3 body 3 strength human is wearing berwick suit + argentum coat with gel padding (17 armor total)

The shadowrunners spend 10k setting up multiple monowire traps and the mage creates an elaborate illusion to scare the wageslave into running into all of them in succession (somehow....)

He takes 8s x5 times, soaking with 20 dice.

This elaborate trap, taking great effort, spending multiple thousand nuyen on the most advanced materials possible.....

Might have a chance of knocking john unconscious. but probably not.

>wageslave
>with Berwick and Agentum

If wageslaves in your game can drop ¥6,000+ on a custom-tailored suit and coat that are always 'near the height of fashion', we're playing very different games.

What's the most cyberware you've ever seen on a character?

I'm playing a campaign with effectively 1600 karma if you use a 'ware character to correct the imbalances of 'ware. We also removed the restrictions on 'ware. Naturally I took biocompatibility and cyber-singularity seeker

Let's see how it went.
>Full betaware limbs/torso, attachments I can recall off the top of my head
STR/AGI
cumulative Armor
>>Digitigrade Legs
>>Implanted Cyberdeck
>>Attention Coprocessor
>>Large Smuggling Compartment
>>Small Smuggling Compartment

More cyberware
>Bone Lacing 3
>Datajack
>Some other stuff
>Fiberoptic hair

and the Bioware
>Synaptic booster 3
>Reception Enhancer (whatever that doohickey is that lets you ignore the AR multitasking penalty)
>Cerebral Booster 2
>Pain Editor
>Platelet Factory
>Adapsin

There's something else I'm missing I think

I spent a solid 8 hours optimizing the 'ware money cost and essence costs, ~1.2M in 'ware, .5M deck, 0.1 essence, 100% mundane

Ends up being able to AR deck and do melee combat at the same time which has been my dream forever, worry about pissing off my GM with the armor tankery + pain editor though

do you guys have a discord or something like /5eg/ do?

It's been floated, but it's just not a good idea.

Would jury rigging a memory sword to a collapsible staff make a good scythe or, alternatively, polearm?

No, buy the collapsing Spear you fragger.