| In the year 2060, the matrix isn't just a playground for deckers. Just about everyone - save a few, rare, phobic individuals - uses the matrix for information searches, shopping, keeping in touch, and even socializing & entertainment. In previous editions of the Shadowrun game, non-decker characters have felt discouraged about using the matrix, but this should no longer persist. And yet it does. I believe this is because most players not playing a decker avoid reading the matrix rules because they don't know what it is that a non-decker can do in the matrix. This article covers those things that anyone with a connection - be it trode or jack - does, and what characters can do to really help a decker in much the same way that characters work to help their street samurai or rigger in combat. |
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There are two ways to go about getting the information you need from the Matrix. The first is via Matrix Contacts, using etiquette much like you would use Street Etiquette to find out information on the street. In addition to normal NPC Matrix contacts, characters can also take data havens and underground archives such as Shadowland, The Nexus (Denver), The Helix (Europe) and others. These data havens represent large groups o fMatrix Personalities (much like #shadowrun on irc.dumpshock.com), so characters recieve a -2 target number modifier on Etiquette (Matrix) tests made for searches through such contacts. That in itself behooves most characters who know how to flip open a phone to pick up Shadowland as a contact. There's a downside to all this online goodness however. Because you're talking to such a large group of people there's an additional 2d6 to the Wrong Party test that someone working against you will notice a character's search. Matrix legwork is fast, only taking 2d6 hours (divided by extra successes). Omae, more often than not that's the time right there it takes to ride into and out of the sprawl if you live in some parts of the barrens.
The second way is via the Computer skill and search programs. We do this today whenever we get on Google, yahoo or www.ask.com using publicly available search engines, and any character can do this in the game defaulting from Intelligence. In the game this is performed by conducting a Locate File operation using a browse utility. Public browse utilities are available at any terminal and have a rating of 1-2. More powerful public browse utilities are available for a subscription fee of Rating x 50nY per month and have a Rating anywhere from 2-4.
There are two factors in conducting a search of this type, search area and Info type. The search area can be a specific database/archive - useful when a character knows that a specific piece of information is likely to be contained in a specific database, such as a datahaven or the Library of Congress. A general matrix search is just a search of multiple databases, correlating and assembling portions of data like putting together pieces of a puzzle. The information type includes three types of information - simple, standard, and detailed.
There's no better way to get gear and goods both legally and illicitly in the world of Shadowrun than via the Matrix. Instead of going to the mall and getting shot up by gangers or taken down by Lonestar you can get goods at home just by jacking in. Delivery services rely on armored vans like the Bulldog Stepvan to ensure your goods get to your doorstep fast and secure. Afraid to give out your real address for delivery? Delivery trucks will deliver your goods anywhere you want them to. Try giving them the address of a bar or diner and just show up when the van is scheduled to deliver. Delivery companies keep tabs on all of their vehicles via cellular matrix link, making package tracking a cinch. The company website gives customers up to the minute tracking information and delivery times that are usually only a minute or two off, all in the name of corporate efficiency & customer care. And keep in mind that legal purchases don't use street index.
Shadow goods are purchased by locating sellers via Etiquette or the Matrix specialization of Etiquette in much the same way as shopping for information. Find a seller, set up a meet and a third party client can be used to place the cash for the transaction in escrow upon successful exchange of the items for a paltry 1% transaction fee. These vendors require confirmation on a successful exchange by both parties for the cash to be released. If confirmation is not recieved by both parties, the cash remains in escrow and the agent collects the interest. The number of licensed agents offer these services is a good indicator of how often clients get fragged in the shadows.
For the hardcore covert shopper, there are two ways to do things. One is setting up a fake identity that permits legal purchase of said item. With no real identity to trace and the right qualifications on the fake, this is the way to go. The other is a direct hack on the item manufacturer's matrix site. A good hack shuttles the package from the factory it was built at to your doorstep with none the wiser. A bad one brings lonestar.
Face it chummer, you pick up a phone or send an email and you're using the Matrix. Why be a schmoe and let others take advantage of your communications when a few easy steps in the Matrix assures your security. Like the home computer users of the late 20th century who didn't know squat about network security, what you don't know in 2060 about telecommunications can frag you.
Access Frames
Access Frames, or A-Frames as they're abreviated, are the virtual vehicles of the Matrix. Essentially a dumb
frame loaded with Deception and other utilities useful for accessing different hosts, they facilitate movement
throughout the Matrix, come in a variety of styles from stealthy to armed & armored, and frequently are
sculped in the forms of vehicles. Here are three common varieties used by deckers.
Tron Bike: A fast and sleek A-Frame loaded with SOTA Deception, Cloak and Camo for evading IC and enemy deckers. Bikes include only limited amounts of Armor utility for their own protection and do not protect their riders at all, so a supplementary Armor Utility is a must for deckers using Tron-Bikes as getaway A-Frames.
Cloakship: A-Frame of choice for the stealthy, Cloakships dispense with the theatrics for SOTA Deception and Sleeze, along with minimal Camo & armor. Visually these resemble winged, hoverbikes of various kinds.
Hovertank: A-Frame of the combat ready, and often for low-end security deckers, these A-Frames come loaded with Armor and Attack utilities. With only a decent level of Deception, they're not as fast as other A-Frames, but they can take alot more punishment.
Rogue-Leader's X-Wing: Reminiscent of a turn of the century sci-fi spaceship, this sharp-nosed, x-wing craft is Rogue-Leader's A-Frame of choice.
Macavity's Hovership:
The Amurgsval Group has an excellent mainframe system here:
http://www.amurgsval.org/shadowrun/mainframes.html
Satellite Uplinks
Matrix introduced us to the idea of Satellite Uplink Antennas. Antennas don't just come in one variety,
they exist in everything from the lighter-sized ones in satphones to the huge radio dish at Arecebo,
Mexico. There are two factors that influence bandwidth and transmission rates: The dish size, and the
power output. You can get the same bandwidth and transmission by hooking up a small dish to a large
power supply, and a large dish will run with much less 'juice' than a smaller one for better economy.
For our purposes we lump both together as a dish rating. The I/O speed is equal to the Dish Rating x
100 and the Bandwidth = Dish Rating x 10.
Portable Dish sizes range from a rating 1 cigarette lighter-sized Satphone antenna with a power supply the size of a pack of cigarettes to the umbrella sized Rating 5 Dish with a heavy, vehicle grade battery.
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