Alternate Decking Rules v 0.9 — ROUGH DRAFT

by Wordman (lward@husc.harvard.edu)

This post deals (now that it’s finally somewhat done) with making decking a viable role-playing option for player characters in Shadowrun. I’d like to state at the outset that (mainly for the benefit of any Secret Service agents reading this) this is not a hacking manual. It has very little to do with real life, although it does borrow lessons from general computing issues of today.

Some of the ideas contained within are not incredibly well articulated, so my apologies.

Also, naturally, much of this is inspired and/or stolen from the SR rules and Virtual Realities, so credit where credit is due to them.

At this point, this is a rough draft, so permission is hereby .denied. to redistribute this document to other computer networks or reprint it in any way (except for playtesting purposes). I’ll make this free access/transmit/ duplicate when it is done.

Lastly, the Y symbol is used for the nuyen symbol.

PHILOSOPHY

In creating these rules, the an attempt was made to fix the following problems or fulfill the following goals. This list is what I think the Matrix should be. If you don’t agree with these statements, you probably won’t like this post.

1. The Matrix was not created to be a playground for deckers. The Matrix was built to do legitimate work. The normal SR system is designed the other way around, where the work done by a computer and its users are tangetial to the paydata that deckers can find inside the system.

2. No human being in their right mind would design or use a computer system that made the user do so much work, or arrange features of a computer so inconvieniently. If I want to print, I should just say “print”, not move into the correct I/O node and coerse the printer connected there to do my bidding. Even in 1993, you only barely see the architecture of a system. This is for a reason: making computer hardware architechture explicit unnesseccesarily confuses users.

3. Non-combat actions should be pure role-playing. Other Shadowrun situations are this way. In astral space, you don’t roll dice unless you’re fighting.
   When you walk into a bar, you don’t roll dice unless you are fighting. Sure, maybe you have to make some etiquette rolls or one or two skill rolls, but other than that, it’s all narrative. A Matrix run should be handled just like when one character goes off alone to meet a contact. The Matrix is meant to take the machine out of computing; lots of die rolling defeats this aim.

4. Matrix combat should have the same mechanics as other Shadowrun combat systems, specifically meelee and astral combat. SR2 finally brought astral combat into the same system as melee combat. These rules aim to do the same with Matrix combat. It should be fast (well, as fast as other SR combat, anyway), easy to remember, and consistant.

5. A small percentage of computer users are cyberdeck users. The Matrix is perfectly interfaceable without the need for virtual reality playback. In fact, very few users really have a legitimate need for virtual reality interface. Also, many can’t afford a virtual reality interface. Along the same line, a cyberdeck isn’t neseccarily a cost effective use of funds (although this varies significantly from corp to corp). This is touched on later.

6. A very small percentage of cyberdeck users are deckers.

7. Sleaze is a dumb idea. The concept of sleazing is inherently non-sensical and will not be used in these rules. This seems like a minor change, but when sleaze is removed, nearly 70% of standard Shadowrun decking rules can be scrapped. You no longer have to hide from the computer system, you just have to convince it that you’re supposed to be there. This puts an end to execution tests, the node color system, and so on. Since you don’t have to surrestipiouly steal processor cycles from the computer (it knows you’re – or at least somebody – is there, since you can’t just slip past security anymore) you can perform any task to which you have access. (It’s a bit more complicated than this, and will be covered in more detail below).

8. Given a choice between reality and speed, speed is generally favored in these rules. My aim is to have a very few, very solid mechanics that won’t bog you down, but won’t break either. As an example, I like the idea of Load from Virtual Realities, but in practice, it becomes to hard to keep track of.
   What ends up happening is that the GM uses the Load Ratings as more of a theorertical concept to guide judgment calls. I’ve ditched the load system, but GM’s should probably keep the idea of Load in the back of their heads when, for example, deciding whether or not to use Blaster(D) instead of Killer(M) IC in a system, or figuring out how blatant a decker is being.

9. Terminology from the standard Shadowrun rules as been kept mostly intact to avoid confusion. If anything, some of it now makes more sense. Most of the basic infrastructure of decking, like building decks, programming, etc remains unchanged. These rules assume you know the lingo and the standard rules.
   These rules should be laid over the existing rules, replacing the old sections while keeping intact the ones which are not addressed.

10. Virtual reality is still reality. Any situtation that would require an attribute or perception check in reality should require an attribute or perception check in the Matrix.

11. Programs which function better than other programs that attempt to do the same thing (i.e. a high rated Attack utility as opposed to a low rated one) are not necessarily bigger than the inferior programs. In fact, often they are smaller. In these rules, the size of a utility is not linked as tightly to rating as in standard SR.

DEFINITIONS AND ANALOGS

To make these rules easier to use, I’ve mostly used rules that are already somewhere in the Shadowrun system. To do this, a few parellels need to be drawn between Matrix rules and normal SR rules. The old Matrix jargon will be used, and most of it means the same as always, but is defined a bit differently. The following entries define various terms, and attempt to parellel them with ideas and mechanics already in place in standard SR.

A few things need to be said first and will be expanded upon later. One thing to keep in mind is that dice rarely get used in the Matrix under these rules.
Next, combat has been made nearly exactly like melee combat.

Persona Programs

These are much more important in these rules. Your persona programs define traits in the Matrix that are analogous to Attributes in the real world. Just as you might make an Intelligence test in the real world, you might need to make a Sensors test in the Matrix. Three of the persona programs are the same: Bod, Sensors and Evasion. These are the counterparts of the real world Attributes Body, Intelligence (the perceptions portions of it anyway) and Quickness. The exact same conditions that would require a Quickness test in the real world should require an Evasion test in the Matrix.
The last of the standard Matrix rules persona programs, Masking, is chucked from these rules, as other rules changes (e.g. the removal of Sleaze) made it mostly meaningless. In its place is Integrity, a mesure of how well a deck can repair damage (i.e. reroute functionality through scrambled/burned out pathways, as well as unscramble them). Integrity is functionally synonymous with Willpower. (This is a somewhat strange parellel. It is meant as a measure of the .deck’s. ability to keep perfoming in adverse conditions.
Since you are your deck, this is what is mostly relevent. Your meatbody may be working just great, but if the deck is inferior or damaged, you’ll be sluggish; your deck is the weak link in the chain.)

Bod is used just like Body, as a measure of how well you can resist damage. It determines the number of dice you get for damage resistance tests.

Senors are your eyes, your ears, your touch and the decks ability to turn such data into something your mind can deal with. These rating contributes to hacking pool and provide dice for perception tests.

Integrity is the ability of a deck to keep functioning in under damage, to deal with odd input and to repair itself. This contributes to hacking pool and provide dice for certain crash tests.

Evasion is the ability of the deck to turn mental impulses into motion through the Matrix. It is also a measure of how well the deck can avoid examination by other Matrix objects. It contributes to hacking pool, reaction, and provides dice for speed related tests.

MPCP

This is just like regular SR. Since the total persona ratings of a deck can’t be more than three times the MPCP, this serves a bit like a racial maximum.

Hacking Pool

In standard SR, hacking pool is based on skill and speed. It is a measure of how fast you can do things well. It’s closest cousin is Magic Pool. In these rules, however, hacking pool is used really only for one thing: augmenting combat tests. As such, in these rules, hacking pool can be though of more as a Matrix version of the Combat Pool. It is, in fact, determined exactly like the Combat Pool, using the Matrix analogs of Attributes. Hacking pool is equal to (Sensors + Integrity + Evasion)/2, rounded down. It is augmented only by items which are specifically mentioned as adding to the hacking pool. This is a rather radical departure from standard SR for three reasons: 1) your skill plays no part in the size of your pool, 2) your reaction plays no part in the size of the pool, and 3) the number of dice in the pool is significantly less than normal.

I have a feeling these three factors might bother people a bit. I offer the following counter arguments. 1)In this system, you roll skill dice as your base combat dice, as well as for other tests, so your skill does play into the Matrix. 2) Your reaction affects initiative, which affects how many actions you recieve in a turn, and therefore how often your pool refreshes. Thus the higher the reaction, the more opportunities you get to use the pool. 3) The lower number of dice is slighly more in line with the threat rating system used by IC. It is also fairly tight, meaning that the range of possible hacking pools is fairly limited, which lessens oppontunity for exploitation of pools (and the power imbalance of the standard Matrix rules).

Computer Skill

Computer skill is the ability to both formally program as well as to alter the Matrix on the fly. It provides the basic number of dice for combat and the few other times when you need to make skill checks in the Matrix. In combat, computer skill reflects the abillity to use combat utilities to full effect, subconciously analyse an opposing construct’s tactics and so on. As such, it works just like unarmed combat skill during melee in the real world.

Progam Rating

This is as normal SR. During combat, the rating of an attack program acts as its power rating.

Hardening

During combat, this acts as impact armor, subtracting its rating from the power of the attack.

Intelligence

The real Attribute of intelligence still plays its normal role in calculating reaction. While Sensors provides the perceptive portions of these Matrix mechanics, pure analytically ability is still the domain of intelligence.

Reaction

While the mind of the user plays its part in the mental portion of reaction, the physical portion of reaction is purely a function of the deck, since the deck provides physical reality to the user. Reaction is equal to the average of Intelligence of the decker and the Evasion rating of the deck, rounded down.

Response

As in SR rules, Response increases in a deck act like Wired Reflexes, adding both one die to an initiative roll and two points to reaction for each level of increase.

IC Rating

All IC is now a contained in constructs. Even just a single peice of IC is contained in a construct. In order to create consistant rules, but still give IC construct designers lattitude, the concept of IC Rating has been devided into a few numbers instead of one. The main number is a Construct Rating. The number is much like a spirits force, and is used to most IC tests. When in doubt, use the Construct Rating. The IC inside a construct has its own rating as well. This is now much more limited than in standard SR. This rating is only used when a construct uses a particular peice of IC to do something. The ability of the IC to perform that task is the IC rating. Use the IC rating only when the IC actively does something. As an example, when a Construct attacks, use the Attack IC’s Rating for the number of dice and the power of the attack. Resisting damage is not the Attack Utilities job, so when resisting damage, use the Construct Rating instead.

Matrix Term -- purpose						Analog
MPCP -- Limits persona ratings					racial max
Persona programs								Attributes
  Bod -- # dice  for damage resistance				Body
  Sensors -- part of pool, # dice for perception tests	Intelligence
  Integrity -- part of pool						Willpower
  Evasion -- part of pool, part of reaction			Quickness
Hacking Pool (Sensors + Integrity + Evasion)/2			Combat Pool
Computer Skill (in combat)						Combat skill
Program Rating (in combat)						Power rating
Hardening -- T# reduction in damage resistance			Impact Armor
Intellegence (the "real" Attribute) -- part of reaction	Intelligence
Reaction (Intelligence + Evasion)/2					Reaction
Response: +2/lvl to reaction., +1die /lvl to initiative	Wired
		no pool bonus						Reflexes

COMBAT

Combat is pretty simple; it’s just like standard Shadowrun unarmed combat rules. The only real difference is that the same modifiers (most notably reach) don’t neccessarily apply. No matter what an attack utilty and its effect .look. like, it’s still just melee combat. Visually, a battle can look like a rabbit with a tac-nuke cannon shooting at an ameoba spraying a fire hose; mechanically, its just like melee combat.

Initiative

Initiative is handled just like normal melee combat, everyone gets 1d6.
Deckers may get more due to Response Increase and/or a Reality Filter. Wired Reflexes, Synaptic Accelerators etc. give no extra dice. These dice are rolled, summed, then added to the deckers Matrix Reaction ((Intelligence + Evasion)/2). This reaction score may be modified by +2 for each level of Response Increase.

Deckers running under pure cybernetic command get an extra initiative dice; however, this can be painful (see below).

Deckers using a combination of cybernetic command and keyboard handle initiatve normally.

Deckers running on only keyboard commands halve their Reaction, and get no Reaction bonus from Response Increase, but do get extra dice from Response Increase.

In addition to these adjustments to initiative, deckers get adjustments depending on how they access their deck:

	Method	Adjustment to Reaction
	'Trode Net				-4
	Level 1 datajack			-2
	Level 2 datajack			-1
	Level 3 datajack			 0
	Level 4 datajack			+1

Terminal users (tortises) halve their reaction to a minimum of 1 and can get no extra dice.

IC adds its Construct Rating to 1d6, then adds twice its threat rating, for its initiative.

Combat turns proceed as normal, with 10 clicks between each Action Phase. Pools refresh at the beginning of each Action.

Matrix Combat Test

The following process details the steps in Matrix Combat, and is referred to in shorthand as a Matrix Combat Test.

1. Make Attacker’s Test - Roll the attacker’s base combat skill dice, augmented by dice from Hacking Pool, against a target number of 4, modified as appropriate. For persona, “base combat skill dice” are Computer skill dice. For IC constructs, base combat skill dice are the Rating of the IC used to attack. Also, IC uses a Threat Pool in lieu of a Hacking Pool. Note that the number of Pool dice used to augment the test cannot exceed the number of natural skill dice.
   Count successes.

2. Make Defender’s Test - Roll the defender’s base combat skill dice, augmented by dice from Hacking Pool, against a target number of 4, modified as appropriate. The dice used and restrictions are the same as the previoud step. Count successes.

3. Compare the Successes - The persona or construct who rolls the most successes hits his, her or its opponent. A tie goes in favor of the attacker.

4. Determine damage - The character who hit can increase the Damage Level of his attack by one level for every two full successes he rolls above his opponent’s success total.

5. Resist Damage - Roll the hit character’s Bod dice against a target number equal to the Power of the attack, minus the Hardening of the deck. For every two successes rolled, the damage level is decreased by one level. The Power of a persona’s attack is equal to the Rating of the attack program used. The Power of an attack from an IC Construct is the rating of the attack IC used. An IC Construct uses its Construct rating instead of Bod to resist damage.

If the power of an attack is reduced to zero, the attack does no damage.

Deckers running under pure cybernetic command have an additional problem here. Being so tightly connected with their deck, if it takes damage, they might also. If the deck takes damage, the decker must resist stun damage using Willpower dice againt the power of the attack the damaged the deck (minus Hardening). The base damage of the attack is the level of the wound that the deck actually took (not what it had to resist).

As in normal melee, one can choose not to counterattck, or may be unable to do so (for example, if the decker has no Attck utility). As always, do the Matrix Combat Test normally and treat the unactive party as acheiving no successes.

A Summary:

Opposed test:
	#dice: Computer skill + pool -or-
		IC rating + threat
	Target: 4
	Compare successes: winner stages up with net successes
	Resist: Bod -or-
		  IC Rating + threat
	Target: Attack Program rating
		  IC rating

Modifiers to Combat

Very little modifies Matrix combat. Position, being prone and so on don’t mean anything, because this system is just a mechanical representation of what is happening; visually, anything goes. For the same reason, Reach has no meaning either. The table below details some of the only modifiers to Matrix combat. The maximum number of friends/enemies in combat might be different depending on environment. For example, if there is no gravity, GMs may want to make the modifiers -6/+6, as constructs can attack from the up/down direction as well.

• -1 per friend character has in melee (max -4)
• +1 per per friend opponent has in melee (max +4)
• var node-wide effects, like Smoke
• var Deck damage
• var Decker mental wounds
• 0 Decker physical wounds
• +2 IC has shifting or hardened defence

Attacking Attributes

There are some utilities and some IC that specifically attack Attributes, that is, they attack Persona Programs directly. The resolution of such an attack is as normal apart from the damage caused by the Attribute Attacking utility/IC. Instead of using the net successes to stage damage to the deck, the rating of the attribute being attacked is reduced by the number of net successes, minus the successes of the damage resistance roll. The number of dice used for the damage resistance roll are equal to the attribute being attacked. The target number is the Power of the attack, minus deck Hardening.

Examples

The players in these examples are Gina, Elmo, and Bob. They have stats as follows:

Gina – decker archetypes (SRII, pg 51)

Computer Skill: 6
MPCP: 6 (Fuchi Cyber-4)
Bod: 5
Evasion: 4
Integrity: 4
Sensors: 5
Response: 1 (Note: Published archetype has 2, which is illegal for MPCP 6)
Hardening: 3
Intelligence: 6
Matrix Reaction: 5 + 2 (response increase)
Initiative Dice: 1 + 1 (response increase) + 1 (pure cyber command)
Hacking Pool: 6
Willpower: 4
Level 3 datajack
Pure cybernetic command
Attack: 6 (Medium staging)

Elmo – another decker

Computer Skill: 6
MPCP: 8 (Fuchi Cyber-6)
Bod: 6
Evasion: 6
Integrity: 6
Sensors: 6
Response: 2
Hardening: 4
Intelligence: 6
Matrix Reaction: 6 + 4 (response increase) + 1 (Level 4 datajack)
Initiatie dice: 1 + 2 (response increase)
Hacking Pool: 9
Level 4 datajack
Restrict: 6
Attack: 4 (Deadly staging)

Bob the IC construct

Construct Rating: 6
Threat Pool: 5
Killer: 6

Initiative

Gina rolls three dice and adds the result to 7. (For example, she rolls 3,5,6 for a total of 14, plus 7. She will be able to move on 21,11 and 1.) Bob the IC rolls just one die, but adds 16 (Bob’s rating plus twice his threat). (For example, Bob rolls 3, plus 16. Bob will move on 19 and 9.)

Bob attacks Gina

Bob rolls 10 dice (Attack IC Rating + Threat) against a target of 4. Bob gets 1,1,3,3,4,4,4,4,5,5 for 6 successes. Gina rolls 12 dice (Computer skill plus an equal number from her Hacking Pool) against 4. She gets 1,3,3,4,4,4,5,5,7, 7,8,13 for 9 successes. Gina gets three net successes on Bob. She increases the potential damage to Serious (base of Medium + two successes, the third success is dropped). Bob resists, rolling 11 dice (Construct Rating + threat) against the power of Gina’s attack (Attack Program rating), which is 6. He rolls two sixes and drops the damage to a medium wound. Since Gina is running under pure cybernetic command, she must now resist a 2M stun wound with 4 dice (Willpower). She rolls three successes, taking a Light stun wound.

Elmo attacks Gina with his Attack Program.

Elmo rolls 12 dice (Computer skill plus an equal number from his Hacking Pool – note that his attack roll is limited by his skill rather than his pool) against 4. He rolls 1,2,2,4,4,4,4,4,5,5,7,9 for 9 successes. Gina rolls 12 dice (Computer skill plus an equal number from her Hacking Pool) against 4.
She gets 1,1,2,2,3,3,4,5,5,5,10,10 for 6 successes. Elmo hits Gina with 3 net successes. The potential damage is Deadly (base of Deadly + 3 successes = Deadly, as you can’t ever do more than deadly damage). Gina resist, rolling 5 dice (her Bod) against a target of 2 (Elmo’s Attack rating, minus Gina’s hardening = 1, but 2 is the lowest target in SR. Had Elmo’s attack program been Rating 3, it would have done no damage.) She rolls 5 successes, staging down to a Medium wound.

Elmo attacks Gina with his Restrict Program instead.

Elmo rolls 12 dice (Computer skill plus an equal number from his Hacking Pool) against 4. He rolls 1,2,2,4,4,4,4,4,5,5,7,9 for 9 successes. Gina rolls 12 dice (Computer skill plus an equal number from her Hacking Pool) against 4.
She gets 1,1,2,2,3,3,4,5,5,5,10,10 for 6 successes. Elmo hits Gina with 3 net successes. Up to here, the combat is the same; however, now it changes. Gina rolls 4 dice (Evasion rating, since Restrict attacks sensors) against a target of 3 (the Blind program’s rating, minus Gina’s Hardening). She rolls two successes, lowering the net successes to one. This one success reduced Gina’s Evasion rating by one to 4. This in turn, happens to lower her Reaction by 1.
It has the potential to reduce her pool as well, but it turns out not to, as recalculating it with her new Evasion rating still yeilds 6. She must jack out and restart her deck to restore her evasion. Had Gina won this Matrix Combat Test, she would have done damage to Elmo normally, with her Attack program.

Advantages of IC and Persona

IC and Persona have different advantages. For example, IC tends to have very high reaction scores, but only one die for initiative. This means that the range of initiative values an IC construct can achieve is narrow, but high. Persona, in contrast usually have a wide range of possible initiative scores, but the low end is much lower than most IC will achieve; however, both the high end and the median tend to be higher than IC.

IC also gets to use pool in resisting damage, but Persona do not.
Persona get to use Hardening, however, and IC does not.

MATRIX

The Matrix was created for one reason, to get work done. It was not created as a playground for deckers, but for corporations and governments. It exists for one reason: to provide a medium and a method for storing and retrieving information to those authorised to access it. This statement carries with it a few implications:

1. The Matrix must be standard. It requires well defined file formats for data. Pictures should all be stored the same way throughout the Matrix. Video should have a standard. Text should have a standard. A standard data- exchange protocol must exist as well. All Matrix systems should be able to access and use any data which is on the matrix.

2. The Matrix should be non-standard. Different companies have different needs, so the Matrix should not require a given interface or given appearance.
   While there should be a default look to the matrix, it should be customizable in a way that all Matrix users can view the custom look without extra hardware or software.

3. The Matrix should be secure. Information is only power if you can control it. All facets of Matrix design should keep security in mind.

4. The Matrix should be expandable. All facets of the Matrix should be designed such that they can take advantage of technological advances without having to redefine systems software, hardware and applications. This also means that the data standards mentioned above should be far reaching in scope, and capable of being much more than current technology might need.

The Need For Virtual Reality Interface

A virtual reality interface is not required to use the Matrix. The Matrix can be navigated by any point and click type interface, or even a command line interface; many packages are on the market for just this purpose. For many users, these non VR environments are more than adiquate. In fact, over half over the users of the Matrix do not use virtual reality. Some corporations do not feel that the benefits of VR outweigh the cost of desiging and burning persona chips for a large segment of its employees. Just as many feel that such an expenditure is justified. Generally, people who have a real need for the power of a VR interface fit into one of the following categories:

1. Programmers: Matrix programming is so far separated from the hardware of the Matrix, that it is litterally impossible for anyone to directly program Matrix hardware. Even hardware designers require expert systems to assist in the design process. Although it is possible to program in a non-VR environent, it is very time consuming. Working in threespace is much easier.

2. Engineers: Whether its bridges or molecules, most of what happens in the real world is three dimensional. Designing and testing of three dimensional objects is much better accomplised in a three dimensional environment. Also, much Matrix design software allows working at variable scales, which allows the engineer to see, for example, how a bridge would fit into the traffic pattern of the city as well as how many bolts are needed at a specific beam crossing.

3. Teachers: A broad category filled by anyone who needs to simulate reality in three dimensions to an audience, these users need to demonstrate and experience how particles interact, fighters move, tank cockpits feel, wallpaper alters a room and so on. This type of application is usually seen in military simulators, university science clasess, police reconstructions, and real-estate.

4. Number-crunchers: Any mathemetician or high power accountant may need to work with multi-dimensional data. Just as a series of two dimensional spreadsheets can simulate three dimensions, a series of three demensional spreadsheets can simulate four. A seires of four-dimensional spreadsheets (3d spreadsheets that alters over time) can simulate five. A variety of extremely clever tools for expressing multi-dimensional data in threespace have been developed for the Matrix.

5. Artists: Very few artists need VR, but those that do are usually archetects, sculptors or multi-media designers. Icon sculpting is a very profitable artistic skill, provided the artist is talented in both technical and artisitic areas.

6. Retreivers: By far the largest group of VR users, retreivers are those who spend most of thier time legally accessing, moving, analysing, locating, collating and creating data. While this does not require VR, anyone who does it for a living is likely to use a cyberdeck. Corporate retreivers are almost always Matrix able.

7. Deckers: Easily the smallest group of VR users, deckers are those who penetrate computer security and steal the information of others. True decking requires a cyberdeck, as any other medium is simply not fast enough. The difference between deckers and reteivers is both a question of legality and of skill. Retreivers generally use comercial applications to utilize information to which they have legal access. Deckers generally use custom utilities, personally tweaked and/or programmed, to acquire date to which they have no legal ownership.

ACCESSING THE MATRIX

This is done as per normal SR rules (SRII pg162). LTGs and RTGs are still around, but you don’t need to beat security to pass through them.
Remember that the Matrix is also the telephone system, phone calls can get through with no problem to create a communications channel between the caller and the reciever. They have to. No phone system would last in the modern world where every call had to pass through several customs inpectors.
Consequently, since the connection of cyberdeck to SAN is basically a high bandwidth phone call, there is no problem getting through RTGs or LTGs.

Getting through SANs on the other hand is another story; getting a connection will let you talk with their system, but the system doesn’t have to let you in. There is a large difference between connecting with a SAN and just a normal phone. In many ways the phone couldn’t care less about how the connecion was made, just that it is open and working. A SAN is more particular about what is connecting to it. It expects some form of Matrix awareness (that is, a device which speaks in the standard protocols of the Matrix, such as a deck) in whatever is connecting to it and if it can’t find such, it will terminate the connection. A deck provides a such an awareness and allows the SAN to see the persona as a persona and the decker to see the SAN as a SAN.

To connect to a SAN, you need its LTG number. You dial it and you’re there. Without the number you can’t make a connect and therefore can’t get in. You can, however, move inside the Matrix and view the icons therein from as close as you want. You can cruise around, chat with strangers and so forth. When you are doing this, you are basically inside the contruct of an LTG (see the section below on Matrix Geography for more). No matter what though, it is impossible to actually enter a SAN (an icon in the LTG) without making dialing its LTG number (and this means knowing that LTG number).

The basic departure from SRII here is that you don’t need to worry about security ratings for RTGs and LTGs for the most part.

SECURITY RATINGS

Computer systems themselves no longer have security ratings. Computers are built to be easy to use and obeidiant to authorized humans. You don’t have to cajole a computer into letting you download a file – you just tell it to and it does. The key here is the word authorized. In order to use a computer as a tool, you need to get permission from the computer to let you use it. The computer must trust you.

IC Security Rating

To insure that only authorized users get on, computers rely on intrusion countermeasures, or IC. IC is always found in IC Constructs. Each construct has a rating and a threat rating. The level of the threat rating is intended to be a reflection of the system’s general security level as the old color system used to do. While each IC construct has its own threat rating, such threat ratings are typically about the same for all constructs in a given system, although they are not required to be. The following chart suggests some typical threat ratings.

	Security Level					Typical Threat Rating
	  None							   0
	  Low							   2
	  Medium						   4
	  High							   5
	  Very High						   6
	  Black							   8

Computer Security

In order to use a computer, the computer has to know you are there. It can’t (and won’t) give precious CPU cycles to invisible objects. This has two far reaching consequenses: 1) icons must be detectible (“visible” in some way) in order to interect with the Matrix, and 2) Sleaze programs are no longer allowed. The second of these means that only someone giving a correct password (or at least one that the computer percieves as correct) is allowed access to a machine. A valid password is usually attached to computer account set up for a specific individual. When a specific account name/password is entered, the user may access the system. Note that this means the the user is assumed to be the person for who the account was created. Many utilities exist in 2050 to defeat password security (see Utilities below) by a variety of clever schemes. Some of these schemes allow a user to masquerade as the owner of one of these accounts, so decking does leave a trail of sorts.

It is not entirely this simple, however. Computer systems, especially large ones, must guarentee that resources (processing time) is given to where it is needed most. Systems usually have various levels of allowed use. For example, some accounts are set up that only allow a user to use e-mail and very small portion of storage. Others might allow full services and a medium sized storage portion, but prevent access to certain files or applications.
There might be a few accounts that give the user of it access to specially software maintainence routines, or perhaps the ability to call and stop alerts. Another might be a super user account, which lets the user to anything from e-mail to change passwords to shut down the system. The levels of such an access hierarchy are usually called user levels or access levels.

The Universal Matrix Standard access level heiracrhy is described to the following table. Each level contains the services of levels below it, but the listed storage is not cumulative. Most sites use the UMS access system, but not all levels of it. Some systems alter what can be done at each level, especially the storage constraints. In any system, ten is always a super-user, the highest level of access. (This seems like an arbitrtary restriction, but this number comes up in the game mechanics).

Level						Meaning
  1		Electronic mail. 10Mp storage.
  2		Other communications features, like news feeds, dial in access and
			local transfer.  50Mp storage.
  3		File transfer to/from other machines on the Matrix. 100Mp
  4		Can run minor mainframe utilies like encyrption and compression. 
			Can install and execute local applications. 200Mp storage.
  5		Can program using mainframe environments available. 500Mp storage.
  6		Can monitor (read only) who is using processor time and why.
			700Mp storage.
  7		Can access certain maintenance systems, like printer queues and 
			modem pools. Can change passwords of accounts under level
			five. Can read other read the e-mail of users of lower level
			as well as monitor them and disconnect them. 1000Mp storage.
  8		Can install, execute and alter system wide services and
			applications. Can alter default storage allotments system
			wide or by user. 2000Mp storage.
  9		Can controll any hardware or system conected to the mainframe,
			such as cameras, evironmental control, elevators, and so
			forth.  Can shut down system.  Can sound and cancel passive
			and active alerts in the system. As much storage as needed.
 10		Super user.  Can create and delete accounts at any security level,
			including level 10.  Can alter default icons of system
			constructs. As much storage as needed.

File Security

A bit more need be said about files. Files are basically secure against anyone of a lower or equal access level, unless you choose to make them otherwise. Files can be encrypted to guard against prying by those of higher levels, but such encryption can usually be broken. The UMS uses a system similar to the ancient one used by an old operating system called UNiX. This system allows you to give permission to read and write a file you created to three separate groups: yourself, your group and everyone. These permissions work independantly. Your group is a specified group of accounts that share a common goal, for example, all the workers on a specific project might be formed into a group. A user can belong to many groups, but a file can only belong to one at a time (or none). A group must be set up by person with an access level of 7 or more. Note that groups can be set up to create files with a higher access level than normal so that other users can read the group’s files. This doesn’t change the access levels of the members of the group, but they still read the files created by their group.

Basically, files have four numbers and a group code associated with them, indicating who can access them. These four numbers come in pairs. One pair is for the group to which the file belongs and the other is for everyone else. As you might expect, the permissions for people in the file’s group override the other set of permissions if the person looking at the file is in the file’s group. The first number in the pair indicates the minimum level of system access needed to read the file. The second number indicates the minimum level of system access needed to write (alter) the file. The onwer of a file can always read and write to that file. The maximum permission level is 9, as super-users (level 10) can read and change any file, even each others. The owner of the file can only set the read permissions as high as his or her own level. The write permissions can be set at any level up to and including 9. These numbers are usually written like this:

 1569 DckProj	Filename
 ||||    |         +----- The name of the file
 ||||    +--------------- The group to which the file belongs
 |||+-------------------- System-wide write permission level
 ||+--------------------- System-wide read permission level
 |+---------------------- Group-wide write permission level
 +----------------------- Group-wide read permission level

Because of the way this system works, often all the files of a project will belong to the same person, the person with the highest system access in the group. That way, if a file needs to be made more secure, this person can set the permissions to his level.

Transmission Security

One last facet of security in use are one-way data lines. These are very reliable optic fibers that transmit data in one direction only. They are a pain for deckers, because deckers cannot move through them, in any direction. The way a VR interface works is by a constant communication between the devices which comprise the virtual reality. Were a decker to enter a one way line, data from his deck would reach down the line, but no feedback (and thus no picture, sound, or any data at all) would reach the deck, making the decker immobile and useless.

This is the large flaw of one-way lines in general as well: that you can’t use them for communication. For example, in a usual data exchange, the sender waits to send the data until the receiver says “OK, I’m ready”. Then the sender sends it and waits until the receiver says “Thanks, I got it”.
This can get a lot more complicated when things like error checking and so forth get thrown in. The point is that with one-way lines, the sender just has to dump his data into the channel and hope the reciever got it. The sender has no way of verifiying that the receiver got it.

A possible way around this problem is to have two one-way lines connecting two devices, one going in and one out. Unfortunately for the system owners, this is effectively a two way line and offers nothing in the way of security (usually). However, and effective variant is to make the out line a very slow connection, intended only to send short verification signals.
While a decker can still treat this as a two-way connection, response time through it is extremely reduced.

MATRIX GEOGRAPHY

All Matrix objects have an appearance. They must interact with the Matrix in some way, and therefore are detectible from the Matrix. As the purpose of the Matrxi is to provide a useful, intuitive interface to a myriad of data, users, systems and programs, the visual aspect of a Matrix object is of prime import; to most users, the interface is the object.

An important aspect of the Matrix which is inaditquately addressed by standard SR rules is —that an object which can be globally accessed by the users of a system need not have a global appearance. Datastores are a good example of this. All users in a system can share a datastore, even though they might all have their own segments of it. Visually, the datastore might look like a large filing room, where everyone goes to retrieve and store files. Or, it might appear to each user that the segment of the datastore he uses is his alone and there is no other storage on the system. Or, each user might have an individual window onto the whole datastore. This last setup is the most common, as it allows convienent user access, as well as easy system management.

As for range, this has been simplified. If you are in one static, nothing in another static can detect you. Within a given static, you can detect anything in your line of sight and anything in your line of sight can see you, just like life. Sensors of all matrix objects are 360 degrees.—-

The following section decribes the categories of objects in the Matrix, what they can do, and how they look doing it.

Statics

Statics are Matrix constructions that do not move. Almost all statics are Matrix objects which are meant to be dwealt within. Each static contains Static Constants. A Static Constant is some feature of the environment of a Static, such as apparent gravity or lighting level, or a law which applies to objects in the staic, such as “all objects may float”. By default, statics inherit constants from whatever contains them. Constants are universal throughout a Static. Statics are made on the hardware level, and cannot be canged on the fly (although, statics which alter over time can be built into hardware, such as a light level Constant that mimics night and day, or an apparent temperature that changes with the seasons). Most people don’t change default Constants. Usually, only sculpted systems have altered constants.

Statics mostly come in the following flavors, starting with the “biggest”:

Regional Telecommunication Grid (RTG)

You never really see an RTG. An RTG, visually, is a collection of adjacent LTGs (see below). You can see from inside one LTG into another, an this is due to being inside the RTG to which they are both connected. You cannot see from one RTG to another; each RTG has its own infinite horizon.
When calling another RTG, the visual which connects them depends on your software. The Universal Matrix Standard is just to teleport you to the place you are calling. Some other packages create a Quantum Leap-like doorway into the destination RTG.

RTGs are one of the few places where one-way data lines are almost effective, although RTGs don’t actually use them. RTGs connect to LTGs and to each other with standard two-way lines. Your phone is hooked by a two-way line to the LTG. When you dial a number, the LTG sends your number and the number you are calling fifty times to a special one-way SAN in the phone company’s computer system. The fifty repetions are scanned for the most common repeitions (this basically nullifies any transmission errors). The system figures out the path it needs to take to connect your call, creates a daemon (see below) to do the work and dispatches the daemon from a different SAN (a two-way one) to your phone and it creates the connection. All this takes about an eye-blink and prevents the easy way of finding unlisted LTG numbers.

This method, however, is not flawless in its goal to protect unlisted numbers. First, the daemon follows a preset path, which means that if you can find the path of the daemon, you can emulate a daemon and make the connection yourself. This is easier said than done, as phone daemons move just slower than light, so hanging out around the Fuchi Star and mugging on the way in isn’t possible: they’re way too fast. (And remember, you can’t set up some kind of trap, as that would involve altering the Fuchi SAN, which you can’t do without a connection to it.) Also, you can enter the phone company SAN where the daemon left, again if you can find the number. Neither of these methods is easy, but they are not impossible either.

	Constants in the UMS RTG are:
	o A 3 dimensional space of constant scale distinct directions.
	o A flat, planar layout consisting of adjacent LTGs.
	o Where no LTG exists is an infinite plain.
	o No gravity, but a force much like it which slows objects in motion
		along their direction of motion at 10m/sec/sec.
	o An inpenitrable floor, an infinite sky
	o A light source which is not visible in the sky, but creates
		shadows and iluminates surfaces as if it were posistioned
		in the center of the RTG, 1000km from the floor.
	o A 25 degree C. temperature.
	o Locomotion can be created without visible means.
	o The visual size of a static is proportional to its computing power
	o The visual size of a persona is porportional to its real world size
	o The visual size of a non-persona dynamic is designer defined.

Local Telecomunication Grid (LTG)

LTGs are, visually speaking, what most people think about when they picture the Matrix: an neon grid, studded with glowing three dimensional shapes large and small. LTGs are basically exactly like RTGs, except while RTGs connect to other RTGs externally, and LTGs internally, LTGs connect to RTGs externally and phones, SANs and I/O ports internally. UMS LTGs have no Contants of their own, inheriting them all from RTGs.

Systems

Systems are a very generic category which describes the virtuall terrain inside any computer hooked to the Matrix. Instead of being a collection of CPUs, SPUs, DS, and other nodes, a system is now one collective entity. This entity is analogous to a building (or perhaps a city, depending on design and size) where each room has a purpose. Systems should be mapped out just as a normal coporate installation would be, with (perhaps) cubicles for each employee (or perhaps full offices, as there are no space constraints in the Matirx). The design of a system dictates how its users relate to and use it.
It can be very generic or very specific. The UMS default system is a large room with a room with a desk for every registered user of that system, all off a very long hall. When the user logs on, he or she is sitting at the desk, with a personal datastore taking the form of a file drawer of the desk. The room, (an equivilant of the users root directory) is effective, but considered boring by most users. Generally system designs are customized (and in fact may allow some degree of personal customization by each user).

From the outside, a System is of a scale proportional to its processing power, and generally has a custom icon. Even the smallest business, if they can afford a System, can afford to customize that systems external appearance. A UMS Sytem, rare as they are, are featureless, non-reflective white cubes.

The important thing to remember here is that there is generaly no representation of the hardware underlying the system visually apparent. You don’t see the CPU or the way data gets routed. This would be too confusing and unnneccessarily wasteful of rendering CPU time. The computer is always waiting for commands. How these commands are issued is a function of your persona (see below).

Systems may have roving IC or dormant IC awaiting alert.

Systems generally have their own constants (a common one being standard office lighting and gravity). Appearance is usually the most drastic of these constants. Many systems may have vastly different reality systems built into them. Note that the SR concept of Sculpted Systems is here replaced with a System static that uses many constants. Any constant which is not defined is inherited from the LTG to which the System connects. If a system connects to more than one LTG (a very possible occurance) and conflicting constants must be resolved by defining a like constant for the System.

System Access Node (SAN)

SANs connect systems with LTGs and other systems. SANs nearly always contain IC, usually some of the toughest in the system. You do not generally see a SAN from the outside, as it is incorporated into the icon of the System it is a part of. To get into a SAN, you must complete a connection into it using its LTG number.

Once inside, SANs generally provide a context for the user to experience the system. For example, if the system looked like a castle, the SAN would likely contain imagery of the surrounding countryside, as well as (most importantly) the drawbridge and gate through which the castle was entered.
The IC might be a knight or monster or what have you. A UMS SAN gives the impression of being inside a hollow white cube, with a tunnel leading into the System.

SANs inherit constants from the System to which they connect; however, often SANs hold constants which provide smooth transition from LTG constants to their system constants, such as a slow imposition of gravity or light.

Input/Output device (I/O)

Inside a system, any device that can communicate with the outside world is an input/output device. These might include a dumb terminal, a printer, a camera, a lock and so on. The appearance of these varies widely depending on taste and what the device is. For example, a system might display a collection of I/O devices as a panel of controls indicating the devices status. A lock might have a status light indicating it is locked as well as a button or keypad that would allow locking or unlocking of the lock. On the other hand, a panel with the same appearance might be a single I/O node connecting to a single computer which controlled security.

I/O devices are always visible from the outside. Some I/O devices can also be entered and controlled from within. For example, a printer might desplay various controls on the outside, while on the inside, there might be a screen to view what was being printed and more controlls to alter performance.
I/O devices can be completely controlled by anyone with a high enough acces level (level 7 in UMS systems) both internally and externally (from within its System but not inside its icon) to the I/O devices icon.

A UMS I/O device looks like a non-reflective, featureless red cube, a foot on a side; it cannot be entered. Usually, device manufacturers create default icons for I/O devices.

The most important constant an I/O device static has is if it can be virtually entered or not. If it can, it may have a few constants which operate only inside of it, such as light level.

The hardware to which I/O devices connect is not designed for cyberdeck connection. Matrix connections are used to connect cyberdecks to a System or LTG; however, it is a pretty trivial task to interface a deck to a port built to handle an I/O device, given the right cables and skill (Electronics(3) test). Not all such ports can handle a full speed matrix connection, however, so some degradation in performance should be expected (a reduction in reaction anywhere from -1 to -10).

Matrix Connection (MC)

An MC is seen mostly in an LTG, but is often seen in Systems as well.
It represents a physically connection to which a cyberdeck or other Matrix aware computer can be connected. Like SANs, a connection must be made to an MC in order to affect it. Such a connection can be made by using the correct LTG number, or by tracing a live connection back to its source. Note that in both cases, the connection must be active and actually have a cyberdeck connected to it to be useful. Also note that making a connection to a cyberdeck directly connected to a System, from inside that System itself, is a trivial task, as MC is usually hardwired to the system. (For this reason, many Systems just use normal I/O imagery instead of MCs for such a purpose).

A UMS MC is the default icon of the cyberdeck connected to it if there is one, or a grey tetrahedron if there isn’t. All cyberdecks come with a default icon of a white tetrahedron, and few are changed.

MCs usually are not sophisticated enough to have their own constants.

Cyberdecks

As well as serving as a connection to and interpreter of the Matrix, a cyberdeck is also a virtual space. Most cyberdeck functions are accessed by and/or incorporated into persona actions or props, but more fine tuning and internal diagnostics can be accomplished inside the “room” of the cyberdeck.
This function is especially useful when using a cyberdeck when it is not connected to the matrix (as when programming or examining files, for example).

Cyberdeck iconograhy can be viewed only from the inside. On the outside, all one sees is an MC (or perhaps an I/O port). A UMS cyberdeck is the inside of a 4-meter tall white tetrahedron, with displays of the deck’s datastore, loaded utilities, hardware configuration, condition and so forth.
This appearance is almost often changed.

Cyberdecks Constants are designed into the MPCP chip, so depend on the individual user. An constant undefined will be inherited from the LTG or System to which the deck (through an MC or I/O port) is connected.

Telephones (TP)

Phones are the most common icon in the Matrix, and are also the smallest. Phones, like SANs and MCs, cannot be accessed unless a connection is made to them, either through dialing thier assigned LTG number or tracing back a live connection. Unlike SANs and MCs, however, it is possible to find the LTG number of a phone icon from the icon itself, using a utility that the phone company created for just such a purpose. (Ownership of such a utility by non-phone company personell is, of course, illegal.)

Phone icons cannot generally be altered, and appear as blue cubes, one centimeter on a side.

Phones have no constants.

Datastores

Datastores are, visually speaking, usually a part of the system interface and not statics in their own right. Any connection to a datastore allows access to the entire store (although certain files may be unreadable, depending on access level). For example, a decker who managed to finagle level 6 access finds the datastore interface (say the desk drawer mentioned above) of a level one access user. The decker can view the entire datastore and read any files of level 6 access or lower. Note, however, that he only has access to the physical device that the level one user is connected to.
He’ll have to find another inlet to a different device. (On the other hand, perhaps the system administrator created an interface that allows every user to connect to multiple devices).

There is no default icon for datastore, as you never actually see them.
What you see is an interface to them provided by the system. The system can make such an interface any way it likes.

Dynamics

Dynamics, as thier name alludes to, are Matrix constructs that can move.
Dynamics do not have constants of their own, but rather are acted upon by constants of the statics within which they dwell. Some dynamics take the shape of immoble objects (for example, an attack utility which looks like a katana), but may be moved by something else. Dynamics usually fit into one of the following categories:

Persona

This dynamic is the standard representation of a human or metahuman acessing the matrix. The UMS persona is a grey stick figure of a human.
Generally, only persona driven by cybernetic interface have enough power to override the default icon at an acceptible level of performance, although a handful of high-end terminals can as well. Persona icons are hard-coded into the MPCP of the cyberdeck, and cannot therefore be changed. Persona icons can be anything, but must be human sized in relation to the Matrix give or take a meter or so.

Persona generally have interfaces to the cyberdeck’s datastore and other cyberdeck functions. For example, a diagnostic panel might be built into a cyberknights forearm, or even optics. Often a datastore will be a bag or satchel or some other such “carrying” motif.

Apart from telling the decker what the Matrix looks like, the cyberdeck is also reponsible for telling the Matrix what the persona looks like. This takes processor time, so the higher the rating of the decks MPCP, the better the persona’s icon will look.

Constructs

Constructs refer to any collection of apparently autonomous software put into a free-roaming form. Usually, this means IC, but also refers to program frames. There are no scale limits on Construct icon size. Not dependant on hardware as much as persona, constructs can also change icons, although this reduces their effectiveness by using more processing. Constructs are mentioned in more detail in the IC section.

IC in and of itself does not show up in the Matrix; it must be wrapped into a construct framework, even if it is the only software in the construct.

Finding what the UMS defalt Construct icon is requires digging deep into the UMS Manual of Style, as no one uses the default, which is a yellow octohedron. More often, Constructs appear as dragons or warriors and so on.
Matrix security companies market IC with defalt imagery.

Daemons

Daemons are much like Constructs, except they exist to serve persona, applications, statics and constructs. Daemons, unlike Constructs, cannot effect other Matrix objects, only send and receive messages or data to or from them. They are basically embodiments of automatic system function. If a problem develops with a task, say a printer runs out of paper, the I/O port controlling the printer creates and dispatches a daemon to alert someone (usually the persona currently trying to print) that the printer needs refilling.

Many daemons are much more important than others, and as you might therefore expect, some daemons are more intelligent and more visually sophisticated than others. A UMS daemon is a 250cm white cube, while a custom Librarian daemon might have graphics more in line with a persona.

Applications

Applications make the Matrix work. They do the real work of turning raw data into useful information and provide the medium for using the Matrix to turn ideas into reality. An Application is any software which creates or manipulates data in a user-guided way. Most applications are designed for multiple simultaneous users. Applications are usually resident in system storage, although some small apps (a word-processor, for example) might be stored inside terminal or cyberdeck storage. Applications vary widely in form and function. Some applications might creata a room in which their function (Pigeonhole, a freeform multi-relational database works like this). Others might provide controls or some other interface to any user who runs it (Hermes, an text-only electonic mail system, gives any user who envokes it a small datapad which allows compostion and various options). Some might use both, or neither. In any case, what applications a system uses in a large part defines how the system is designed. By the same token however, any commercially viable application will let you easily alter its graphics and interfaces to more seamlessly integrate with your system.

Applications can be launched by a variety of methods. Some may always be running and mearly require you to go into the room in which they are running. Others might be launched by a hand gesture or spoken word. Others might use a prop. The UMS way of launching an application is to use a utility (see below) called Menu to list the current available applications and allow the persona to pick one. A System will probably have its own default, generally tightly inerfaced with the users datastore.

Utilties

In many ways, especially visually, the lines between what software is a utility and what is an application are blurred. A generic definition is that a utility is any software the main purpose of which is to alter a specific segment of the Matrix in a very specific way, while general purpose tools are applications. A program which compresses files is a utility, a program which creates, edits, alters and prints files is an application. Utilties are usually made to directly alter matrix structures, especially constructs, persona and files. Utilities take much less storage space than applications, and almost always take the shape of tools of some kind, like a sword or a screwdriver.

A UMS utility is a green cube, 10cm on a side.

INTRUSION COUNTERMEASURES

Not much has changed with IC. Each peice of IC still has a rating which works just like the old one and generally all mechanics involving IC uses this rating. In this respect, IC works much like spirits in astral space do.
Under these rules, IC also uses a Threat Pool. As mentioned above, this pool is a reflection of how tough the IC (and therefore the System in which it resides) is. Every test IC makes uses all the dice in its threat pool.

IC comes in constructs. Each construct has a Construct Rating. This rating represents how well the IC can see, move, and resist damage, as well as control itself and IC it contains. It can be thought of as a controller program framme wrapped around IC. A construct can contain multiple peices of IC, and each peice can have its own rating; however, there is only one threat rating for the entire construct. The Construct Rating sets a few limits on what IC the Construct can contain, the most important being that a Construct cannot control IC which has a higher rating than the Construct Rating. The other limit that the sum of the IC ratings in a construct may not exceed five times the Construct Rating. This limit is seldom, if ever reached, as that much IC would likely reduce the Constructs overall performance.

IC does not normally attack legitimate users, which means that as long as you don’t do anything to make IC think you don’t belong somewhere, it won’t bug you. One would think that once you fool the System into thinking that you have an account with it, you’d be home free. This is not entirely true. For one thing, the system monitor’s use, so heavy use of a system might get you a visit from some IC which will ask you to confirm your identity. Secondly, if your persona is see doing something that it shouldn’t be doing by another persona, they might alert security, just like a citezen might call the cops or a security might pull the alarm. In such a situation, having a legitimate ID is counterproductive. Once security knows the ID, they can kick you off the system (if they’re nice) or (if they’re not) they can send IC out to find you specifically. This can become quite a cat and mouse game, as there are many techniques to dodge such a search, as well as many ways to defeat them.

In generall, any attempt to trick or usurp IC that is not combat is an opposed success test of the following form:

	Decker: Number dice:	Utility rating + computer skill
				 Target:	IC Rating or Construct Rating
	IC:	  	Number dice:	Rating + threat
				 Target:	Decker computer skill

Successes are compared and the highest wins. Ties go to IC. This is called a Standard Matrix Test. The important thing about this test to remember is that it shouldn’t be used very much. Generally it will only be used with a Deception vs. Access check. No more rolling to see if you can read a file or get a node to do what you want it to. Unless things turn to combat, it should never come up. [Note that this system has the same problem as other SR mechanics: it’s smooth until combat hits, then it takes a while. That is more or less its intent, to speed all non-combat portions of Matrix running.] Note that in some opposed tests (those of deception programs, for example) the number of net successes matters.

White IC

White IC is mostly harmless, but it can yell alot. Some White IC can be Deceived. In such cases the IC will both declare a passive alert and possibly take some other action. Alerts cannot be jammed. Any white IC which is crashed through combat and not surpressed will cause an active alert on the next turn.

Access

The most common form of IC around, Access’s basic purpose is to prevent entry to all but legitimate users. Access generally looks like a door, or perhaps a doorman or some other barrier to entry. Access is found only in SANs and comes in a few generic flavors:

Rude Access: This access is the most common for small systems. If given an incorrect password or an unsuccessful deception is made on it, it closes the connection. Anti-theatric, but effective. Usually, Rude IC will give wait until three incorrect attempts are made before hanging up, but will only tolerate one failed deception attempt.

Screaming Access: This acts just like Rude, unless an unsuccessful attempt is made to deceive it. In such a case, it will immediately call a passive alert and direct any IC against the illegal decker. The decker is basically pointed out by the Access IC until the decker destroys the Access or leaves the System. (Note mobile IC constructs can pursue the decker out of a System).

Tag Access: Tag access acts like Rude access, but if it accepts a password, it will give the user a token of some kind–a flag or brooch, for example–which indicates to portions of a system that the user is authorized (and at what level) to be in the system. Any user without the token gets attacked by IC or dumped. Like Rude Access, an incorrect of unsucessful deception will have their connection closed.

Homer Access: More insidious, this IC acts like Tag access, but it allows an unsuccessful deception attempt through, giving it a token which looks like other tokens, but marks the decker as Homer IC (see below) does, as well as tracking his movements. What the system does with the decker varies: some will wait to see what the decker was after, some will trace the decker’s connection, some will send combat IC after it immediately. Note that if a decker investigates the token carefully, he might notice that it is different.
Note however, that any token, real or not will get examined contantly by the System, so very little can be inferred from such a pool, unless compared to another token. Examining another token is one of those things that will draw the attention of anyone watching.

Barrier

Barrier IC is a wall impermiable to dynamics. Barrier iconography are walls, gates, etc. Barrier comes in two varieties:

Drawbrige: A reference to use, not image, a drawbrigde is a barrier which is controlled by software, and can be raised by security personell, and, in some systems, IC Constructs. The flaw to this sort of security is that if the decker has high enough access level to be considered “security”, they can control the barrier as well. Being software controlled, however, this type of barrier has the benefeit of allowing automatic, System control of the barrier.
For example, as soon as anything calls an alert, the system can raise barriers by itself.

Empasse: This barrier cannot be raised or lowered by anyone inside the Matrix.
Controlled by hardware, this barrier must be activated by an operator from outside the Matrix. It cannot be passed by any Matrix object, and cannot be raised or lowered automatically by the System. This sort of barrier can only be defeated by combat.

Morph

If a Construct wants to change its icon, it needs to contain Morph IC.
The rating of Morph IC is representative of the complexity of the graphics, as well as the speed with which the IC can change. The times that the graphics will be changing is as follows:

	Rating		Time
	  1		the next 4 full turns (after the current one)
	  2		the next 3 full turns
	  3		the next 2 full turns
	  4		the next full turn
	  5		the next full Action Phase (after the current one)
	  6		the end of the current Action Phase
	  7		instant

> Icon now in software, so reduces reaction. How do you get the icon?
Decker comments to put other icons into hardware.

> Icon choice of real icon should be small penalty to reaction if non-human shape for speed delay of translation of simsence.

Probe

Probe IC is usually active only during an alert, when it interrogates everything it sees for its user ID and password. Basically, it is a mobile Access and comes in the same flavors.

Scanner

This IC is used solely as a trigger for grey/black IC, and works in combination with the token access system described above in the Access entry.
This white IC is usually deployed throughout the system (perhaps like security cameras inside an installation) and check each user for the token. If it cannot find it, it will trigger the non-white IC in its construct (or any nearby) to fulfill its task.

Scramble

Not to be confused with encryption of files, Scramble IC does not exist in these rules. Since you cannot read files you do not have high enough access level or permission to read, every file you .can. read is therefore a legal file. However, files might be encrypted, preventing viewing until they are decrypted.

Grey IC

As in standard SR decking, Grey IC needs a trigger to work. This trigger can come from four sources: white IC, security, or an alert. Grey IC does not perform white IC functions, but is often in the same Construct as white IC is. When active, Grey IC (usually) relys on white IC to mark targets. Often the white IC which called an alert is marking the target when the Grey gets there. Other times, Grey relies on Probe IC to find targets.
An exception to this is that Grey IC will always know that a target marked with a homer (see below) is a target.

Acid

Acid is a combat IC, and attacks like any other piece of combat IC (see Combat); however is attacks a cyberdeck’s Bod attribute. See the Combat section for more information on this type of attack.

Binder

Binder is combat IC that attacks Evasion.

Blaster

Blaster is standard combat IC, which acts in every respect like Killer IC; however, if Blaster crashes the deck, it tries to burn the decks MPCP chips in the same turn. The Blaster makes an Unresisted Success Test using IC Rating dice against a target number equal to the deck’s MPCP. Each success perminantly reduces the deck’s MPCP by one.

Decay

Decay is combat IC that attacks Integrity.

Homer

Homer IC is the bane of a decker’s existance. The basic purpose of Homer IC is to attach to a decker and let the System know that the decker is an intruder. It can do this silently or loudly. Either way, any grey or black IC which sees a persona with a homer on will attack that persona.

Homer IC was constructed to counteract a standard decker ploy: when a decker triggers an alert, the system usually hunts him down by tracing the account he is using. If the decker starts using a different account instead, the system will lose him. The system can combat this ploy in one of two ways.
If it began a Trace of the decker’s connection before the decker switches accounts, if the Trace gets successfully completed, the system can track back to the decker no matter what account he is using. The other way is to mark the decker with homer before he changes accounts.

Almost any IC can install a homer (see Access IC above, for example).
No test needs to be made, but the IC needs to have a reason. For example, Killer IC might install a homer on a successful attack. Any IC that sounds an alert might install a homer as well.

Homers devide their ratings into two functions: stealth and tenacity.
Stealth is the abilitity of the homer to remain undetected. Tecnacity is the ability of the homer to remain attached to the decker. The rating of the homer is distributed in any way between these two functions. For example, a rating 9 homer might have a 7 stealth and a 2 tenacity. Detecting a homer requires an opposed success test of the users Sensors against the homer’s stealth; in order to make this test, the decker must state that she is actively looking for the homer. In order to remove the homer, it must be located, then removed by an opposed success test between the deckers computer skill and the homer’s tenacity rating.

Jammer

Jammer is combat IC that attacks Sensors.

Killer

Killer is standard combat IC. It has a base damage of Light. This base can be increased, but at significant cost. In addition, increasing the staging takes more control by the construct’s control programming. To reflect this, Killer IC with Medium base damage counts twice its rating against the maximum amount of IC a construct can hold (see above). Serious base damage costs 3.5 times and deadly costs six. GM’s should be aware that cost will be the limiting factor in a corps decision to use one sort of IC or another.

Trace

Trace IC locks onto a decker’s Persona, the traces back through it to find the decker’s point of origin in real space. When this happens part of the construct containing the IC breaks off or other wise gets loose and runs back the way the decker came. This effect must always be visible.

Traces makes an Unresisted Success Test using the IC rating against the deck’s Evasion Rating. The base time needed to trace the connection is 10 turns devided by the number of successes. If the test fails, the IC does not lock on, but can try again on its next action.

To defeat the trace, the decker needs to either jack out or confuse the Construct that launched the Trace. This construct is still controlling the trace, so crashing it through combat or sucessfully running a relocate on it will defeat the Trace.

Trace comes in a variety of flavors. All work the same except for what they do when they complete the trace.

Trace and Burn: Once the trace is done, this IC will try to burn the deck’s MPCP, just like Blaster IC does. The blaster IC manifests at one-half the IC Rating of the Trace and attacks at the decker’s entry point into the Matrix. The decker can only be defended by another persona also at that location, or a program frame. The decker’s location will also be reported.

Trace and Disconnect: After reporting the decker’s real world location, the IC will sever the connection to the system from when the trace was triggered.
The decker will still be in the Matrix, but will get kicked out of the system he was in.

Trace and Dump: After reporting the decker’s location, the decker gets dumped from the Matrix.

Trace and Report: This IC just reports, then goes dormant.

Black IC

Black IC functions like Killer IC in all respects, until it scores a hit. At that point, instead of doing damage to the deck, it starts to work on damaging the decker. The decker can try to hang tough, hang loose, or jack out.

Hang Tough

The decker attempts to resist the damage and continue to fight. The IC makes a resisted success test agaist the Body of the decker (not the Bod of the deck). The decker may resist by rolling Body dice against a target number equal to the IC Rating of the IC minus the Hardening of the deck (all other defence is useless). Each net success the Black IC gets over the decker causes one box of physical damage to the decker. Zero net successes mean no damage. If the decker wins, there is no damage, but he is still in the clutches of the IC, and the IC can try to do damage to him again automatically on its next Action. Note that Black IC can be set to do mental damage instead of physical. In this case, substitute Willpower for Body in all tests.

Hang Loose

The decker attempts to suck up the damage, and try to get out of the clutches of the IC. The IC rolls damage as in Hang Tough, but this time in the damage is unresisted. Sacrificing his body, the decker tries to get out from the clutches of the IC. He rolls Evasion dice against the IC Rating.
One success will detatch the IC, meaning that the Black IC will have to roll a successful attack on the decker before it can start to do damage.

Jack Out

The decker makes and Unresisted Willpower Test, with the IC Rating of the Black IC as a target number. If he succeeds, he’s out; however he must resist 4M stun damage, and also suffers the effects of dump shock. If the decker fails, the black IC still has a hold of him, and rolls damage as in hang tough, but the decker cannot resist it.

IC Options

IC can come with various options. These options increase the complexity of the IC, and therefore make the construct controller work harder. To reflect this, options increase the effective IC rating for the purpose of how much it contributes to filling up a construct. The effective rating increases mentioned below do not carry over into other uses of IC Rating. The rating increases also do not play into the rule that a Construct cannot contain IC of an IC Rating greater than the Construct Rating. The effective ratings below only add to the calculation of total IC Ratings in a construct. Constructs can hold a total amount of IC Rating equal to five times their Construct Rating.

Naturally, some of these options will not apply to certain types of IC.

Area Effect

An option for any combat IC, it allows the IC to attack multiple targets simultaneously. Multiply the IC Rating by the maximum number of targets the IC can attack for an effective rating. The IC still only rolls once for an attack, but results must be resisted by all targets the IC attacks. Area Effect is incompatible with the Penetration option. Sheild programs are twice as effective against an area of effect attack.

One shot

The IC can be used only once, then needs to be reloaded. The reloading takes a Complex Action for the IC. Use one-quarter the IC Rating for effective rating.

Penetration

A combat option, Penetration cuts through Shield programs, making them half-effective (round-down). They also ignore a number of levels of Hardening equal to one-quarter of the rating (round-down). Use three times the IC Rating for effective rating.

Tar Baby

An option for all IC. If a utilty used against IC with this option fails, the utility crashes and must be reloaded from storage. Examples of this include when a Deception utility fails to fool Access IC, an Attack utility fails to damage a Construct, etc. The IC sounds an active alert as well. Use twice the rating for effective rating.

Tar Pit

Just like Tar Baby, but after it crashes the utility, it corrupts all copies of the utility in storage. This corruption can be fixed by a successful Integrity check against the IC Rating; however, such a repair takes a complex action. Use three times the IC Rating as the effective rating.

Some options are construct wide, effecting all IC in the construct.

Defense

Constructs have three possibilities for defense: normal, shifting and hardened. One of these choices must be made and cannot be altered. There is no cost for normal defence, but both Hardened and Shifting cost an equivilant of 10 IC Rating. Hardened and Shifting defense both give a +2 target number to any attacks made against the Construct; however, certain attack options can change this, as the following table shows:

	Defense		Attack		Mod to attacker's roll
	Normal		Area Effect			+0
	Normal		Penetration			+0
	Normal		Normal			+0
	Hardened		Area Effect			+4
	Hardened		Penetration			-1
	Hardened		Normal			+2
	Shifting		Area Effect			-1
	Shifting		Penetration			+4
	Shifting		Normal			+2

Expert System

An Expert System makes IC much smarter. It tends to understand strategy and tactics. Expert Systems come in levels 1,2 and 3. Expert systems allow all IC inside the construct to perform much better, adding the level of the System to the IC Rating of all IC in the construct, as well as the threat pool of the construct itself for all tests. Also, all IC is basically just much more intelligent. The space cost of this option is 13 times the level.

IC supression

Any time a decker crashes an IC construct, the fact that the construct no longer responds to calls from the system will cause an active alert. The decker needs to intercept codes which check on the crashed construct and respond to them with an “I’m OK” type message. To reflect this, the decker allocates one die from his hacking pool to each construct crashed. This is usually used as a stopgap measure.

What the decker really needs to do is write a small program that will do this work for him. There are some risks to this. First, it takes time, which deckers do not usually have at premium. Secondly, any programs run will have the name of the account the decker is using on them. If too many of these are run, the decker might get a visit from a system administrator.

To do this the decker makes a Computer skill test against the Construct rating of the node he crashed (complex constructs require more complex programming to emulate). No pool dice may be used; however, it is assumed that the decker will be using some pool dice to supress the IC while he is coding. The base time is a number of simple actions (taken at any time) equal to twice the rating of the constuct, divided by the number of successes.

This frame will automatically fool any Matrix static of dynamic looking at it or communicating with it, with the possible excecption of humans (and perhaps expert IC).

It is possible to carry around some pre-made programs which make this task easier. See the Scarecrow utility below.

UTILITIES

Many things remain the same with utilities. They have a rating indicative of their ability to do their job. They must be loaded into active memory in order to be used. Only one copy of any given utility can be loaded into memory at one time. When the utility is loaded, it manifests in its prescribed way. For example, when an attack utility is loaded, a gun icon might appear in the user’s hand (or belt, or whatever). Remember that all Matrix objects are detectible by sensors, so the utility must manifest in some way.

Utility Size

The size of utilities is no longer a function of Rating. Better utilities are often better because they are based on a more clever method of doing the task (this method is called an “algorithm”). Usually, the clever method takes the same amount of coding as the dumb method, sometimes less.
Because of this fact, the size of utilities is now based mostly on which algorithm they use. Generally, when you use a better algorithm, you get a quantum jump in performance with no size increase. In the following, algorithms will be given names, but not descriptions. (This is solely because I’d have to make up real algorithms for tasks on systems which do not yet exist. Although I do have a Computer Science degree, this is way beyond me. Sorry.) The main reason I’m giving names to algorithms is one of atmosphere. You can have deckers arguing algorthms by name, and you can also give an approximation of a utility’s ability in a professional wayae “It’s about twice as fast as the Velarde-Ward algorithm” not “Rating 9”.

Of course, utilities can also be better due to a more thourough set of rules or more complete interaction with data or rudimentary intelligence. Such techniques require more coding and will increase the size of the utility. Generally, using these sort of techniques will give you linear increase in ability (Rating) with a geometric increase in size.

Another departure from SR is that there are no generic utilities that you can just buy off the rack. All utilities are custom, and if you buy them, you most often buy them directly from the programmer or her broker. A dekcer buying an Attack utility should like a samurai buying a weapon. The samurai dosen’t say “I’ll buy Gun”. Rather, he’ll say “I’ll buy that 10mm Colt Manhunter smartgun with an integral gas vent.” In the same way, a decker should say “I’m using Bob Brilliant’s phased-plasma rifle attack utility”, not “I’m using my attack utility, rating 8”.

Running Utilities

There is no longer an execution test. The premise of the execution test in the first place was to see if you could steal some processor time to run some stuff. This assumed that the computer didn’t know you were there, which was possible only becuase of Sleaze. Sleaze has been removed from the rules, which means that if you are in a computer system, the computer thinks you are an authorized user. Therefore, you do not have to steal processor time, you can just use it. The only roll you might need to make is for effectiveness.

The catch is that you have to be authorised to use it. You need to have an access level of at least four to run a utility. It is a good idea to have a higher access level, though, because the higher the level, the more things you can run without arousing suspicion (see Getting Caught below).

Listed below are some utilities. Each entry (e.g. Attack) is a general category of utilities. Following a description of general use are a few examples. Listed with each example is size, rating, algorithm, writer, and icon. Price is also listed, but is generally whatever the market will bear.

Analyze

An Analyze program can give you quatitative information about Matrix objects. Any object at all can be analyzed. The number of successes from a Standard Matrix Test determines how much information is gained. If the object being analyzed does not have a rating, ther Standard Matrix Test is unopposed.

Analyze Test Table

Successes	Result
  -3		3rd-Level information, but all of it is entirely inaccurate.
  -2		2nd-Level information, but all of it is entirely inaccurate.
  -1		Basic information, but all of it is entirely inaccurate.
   0		No information given. Failure reported.
   1		Basic information: Rating of construct. Type and rating of highest 
			level IC in a construct.
   2		2nd-Level information: Rating and threat of consruct. Type and 
			rating of two highest rated IC in construct.
   3		3rd-Level information: All information about a construct

Goggles
Rating: 1-10
Size:  3-300Mp (Rating^2)x3
Algorithm: UMS Analyze
Writer: Berr-Hause
Price: 200-200,000Y
Availability: Always
Street Index: 1.0
Legality: Legal
Icon: Goggles of increasing sophisitcation.

Probing Fingers
Rating: 4
Size:  48Mp
Algorithm: UMS Analyze
Writer: Gilded Chip
Price: 9,600Y
Availability: 3/3 days
Street Index: 1.0
Legality: Legal
Icon: Glowing hands.  Light extends to the object analzed.

Chrome Stones
Rating: 7
Size:  147Mp
Algorithm: UMS Analyze
Writer: Zach Dat
Price: 49,000Y
Availability: 4/4 days
Street Index: 1.0
Legality: Legal
Icon: Seven high-tech rocks painted with Japanese-style characters. Toss the 
stones and the pattern of how they land reveals the info.

Armor

When run, armor adds its rating to the Bod of the deck. Armor utilities degrade every time the decker is attacked. If placed into a frame, the rating becomes the Bod of the frame. Refreshing the rating of this program requires restarting the deck. No test is needed to use this utility.

Guardian
Rating: 1-10
Size:  3-300Mp (Rating^2)x3
Algorithm: Fuchi Guardian
Writer: Fuchi
Price: 300-300,000Y
Availability: 6/4 days
Street Index: 1.5
Legality: 5P-CD
Icon: UMS Standard, a suit of translucent armor that surrounds your persona. 
As it degrades, it begins to chip and fall away.

Defender
Rating: 9,10,11
Size:  155,165,185
Algorithm: Fuchi Defender
Writer: Fuchi
Price: 125,000Y, 350,000Y, 400,000Y
Availability: 8/8 days
Street Index: 2.5
Legality: 4P-CD
Icon: Much like the Guardian model, but it is reactive armor, trying to parry 
blows that hit it.

The Big Beef
Rating: 3
Size:  12Mp
Algorithm: Steroid Hell
Writer: MikeyBoy
Price: 32,000Y
Availability: 2/4 days
Street Index: 1.0
Legality: 7P-CD
Icon: Makes your persona buff and tough looking. You deflate as it generates.

Armor Skin
Rating: 6,7,8
Size:  48,75,108,147
Algorithm: Ricochet
Writer: Horizon Software
Price: 70,000Y, 90,000Y, 120,000Y, 160,000Y
Availability: 8/8 days
Street Index: 2.5
Legality: 4P-CD
Icon: Gives the skin an armor plated appearance.  Attacks made which get 
completely resisted ricochet wildly. Can be set to any metallic color, and 
fades as it degrades.

WRITER’S NOTE: The rest of the utilities need to be fleshed out like those above. I’m working on it.

Attack

Standard Matrix combat utility. See Combat above for use.

Blind

A combat utility which attacks Sensors.

Browse

Browse scans the contents of datastores. The decker must specify the subject matter of his search. The better the program, the more complex the search parameters can be. This requires no test to use, but it cannot browse files to which the decker does not have read access.

Compressor

Compression programs are built to make data take up less space in storage. These utilities make files smaller, although sometimes it is useful to view them as making effective storage bigger instead. No test is needed to use this utility.

Controller

Controller is the program that allows deckers control over dumb frames they have created. The maximum number of dumb frames the decker can control is euqual to one-half the Controller rating, rounded down. Smart frames do not require a controller. No test is needed to use this utility.

Deception

Deception programs defeat password schemes. There are many varieties of deception programs. Each has its drawbacks. Generally, the best way into a system is to know a real password.

	Counterfeit codes (BIG)
	Password scans (depend on screwups)
	Monitor
	BYPASS encryption and feed encrypted data

Decrypt

Decrypt decodes encrypted files. It will work on any encrypted file that uses a coding key (see Encrypt below). One success from is all that is needed to decrypt the file. Use a Standard Matrix Test, against the rating of the encryption.

	decode file
	finds key

Encrypt

Encryption utilities take normal files and make them unreadable. In order to read them, they need to be decrypted. Decryption can be done using the same utility used to encrypt the file, provided the key used to encrypt the file is used to decrypt it. No test is needed to use this utility.

	Public key
	Coding key
	One-way

Evaluate

Evaluate is an expert system that scans datastores for any data that may be of value on the open market. Markets changes quickly, however, so the utility degrades by 1 point every two weeks. One success is needed on a Standard Matrix Test (made against the datastore, which has no rating, so the test is unopposed) to tell the decker how many valuable files are present, their size, and a best guess as to market value.

There are three problems with Evaulate utilities, however. First, they can only read files which the decker has access to read. Second, they can never read encrypted files. Third, it is quite possible that it might pass over valuable data as uninteresting due to lack of information. For example, a file might be a recent picture of a corp exec and her daughter. To most people (and therefore to the Evaluate program) this might be worthless, but perhaps the girl’s father would pay a lot for the picture for some reason known only to him.

Hog

Hog is combat utility. Instead of doing damage, however, multiply the net sucesses scored in a Matrix Combat test by 5. This number is the amount of active memory the Hog program takes up per turn in the opponents deck. The Hog will grow into unused memory first, then that used by the largest utility, then the next largest and so on. When any of a utilities memory is occupied, the utility crashes. Up until this happens, the Hog can remain hidden by making one success on an Unopposed Success Test against the MPCP of the deck. If the decker actively looks for the Hog, this test is Opposed.

The decker can purge the Hog by getting one success on it in a Matrix Combat Test. Crashed programs must be reloaded. Hog will not effect storage.

Insinuation

Insinuation is a combat utility which attacks a decks Integrety.

Mask

One of the problems in decking is that while the computer might think you are the person whose account you are using, your icon will be your own. This utility will discover the icon of the person you are impersonating and wrap you in it. This requires an Unopposed Standard Matrix test against a target number equal to the access level of the account being used. Multiply the successes by 2 to find the target number needed to peirce the Mask. To peirce the mask, one success is needed from a standard perception (Sensors) test.

Medic

A medic program repairs damage to a deck. An Unopposed Standard Matrix Test is made with a target number based on the severity of damage. Light wounds need a target of 4, Moderate a target of 5, and Severe a target of 6. Each success repairs one box of damage. The program degrades by one each time it is used during a given run. It can be restored by loading a fresh copy in from storage.

Menu

Menu is an informational utility that lists the applications and services available in the current system. Any of the items on the list can be invoked by the menu. The menu utility is most users interface of choice for launching applications and mail services.

Menu utilities vary wildly, ranging from very simple systems to very complex. Higher rated menu utilities have some intelligence and can automate certain tasks. No test is needed to use this utility.

Mirrors

When run, mirrors adds its rating to the Evasion of the deck. Mirror utilities degrade at a rate of 1 point per turn after being triggered. If placed into a frame, the rating becomes the Evasion of the frame. The rating of this program can be restored by loading a fresh copy active memory. No test is needed to use this utility.

Posion

Poison is a combat utility which attacks Bod.

Preservation

When run, preservation adds its rating to the Integrity of the deck. Preservation utilities degrade at a rate of 1 point per turn after being triggered. If placed into a frame, the rating becomes the Integrity of the frame. The rating of this program can be restored by loading a fresh copy active memory. No test is needed to use this utility.

Promote

Promote utilities increase the access level of the account a decker is logged into. This means that the decker must already have decieved her way past security. Promote utilities work by exploiting bugs in system software and IC, and this leads to some large problems with using them.

First, bugs can get fixed. When a manufacturer finds out about a bug that can be exploited by a promote program, it fixes the bug, and may just put a trap into it, like calling an active alert any time someone tries to exploit the old hole. Generally, once a manufacturer knows about a bug, the fix to it is widely distributed in 24 hours.

This leads to the second problem, which is that promote programs are not advertised, because by advertising, the manufacturer might find out and the hole will be closed. Finding these bugs in not easy, and once deckers find them, they tend to keep them secret.

Thirdly, promote utilities work in set ways, always bringing the user to a specified access level. This level is usually super-user, so this isn’t usually a problem. Some promote utilities do not alter access level at all, and instead increase only file-access level.

Fourthly, because they exploit bugs in system software, a given promote utility will only work on a given system. For example, one promote utility might make you a super-user on any Fuchi system, but will do nothing on a system from MCT. Similarly, it might work on any manufacturer’s system, as long as that system uses the RouteMail e-mail system.

No test is needed to use this utility. If the bug is there to be exploited, it works, otherwise nothing happens, unless a trap has been set on the bug.

Proteus

A proteus utility monitors the decker’s communication connection, continually rerouting it and evading inquisitive constructs. This prevents the decker from ever getting dumped against her will and adds the rating of the proteus utility to any attempts to trace the decker (Trace IC, for example). The drawback is that this activity has a 1 in 36 chance (rolling two dice and having ones come up on both) of being detected. If it is seen, the proteus utility crashes, the system the decker is in goes on passive alert, and the phone company can gets an alert to investigate the line the decker is using.
No test is needed to use this utility.

Linewinder

Relocate

Much safer than a Proteus utility is relocate. It defeats Trace IC by winning a Standard Matrix Test against it. Failure results in no effect, but the decker can try again at +2 to her target number. If successful, the Trace will slip into an infinite loop thinking its still tracking the decker.

Restore

Restore programs fix damage done to persona programs by combat utilities or IC such as poison, acid, etc. The decker makes an Unresisted Standard Matrix Test against a target number equal to the original rating of the persona program. The persona rating is repaired by one point per success, but can never go above its original rating.

Restrict

Restrict is a combat utility that attacks the Evasion rating of a deck.

Scarecrow

A scarecrow is a utility that acts as a framework for emulating IC. When IC crashes, a construct must be set up which pretends it its the crashed IC, or else the system knows that the IC has crashed and sounds an alert (see IC Surpression above). A scarecrow makes this easier by containing a basic framework to support such a construct. When doing the test to program such a constuct, subtract the rating of the scarecrow from the the target number.

Scanner

When run, scanner adds its rating to the Sensors of the deck. Scanner utilities degrade at a rate of 1 point per turn after being triggered. If placed into a frame, the rating becomes the Sensors of the frame. The rating of this program can be restored by loading a fresh copy active memory. No test is needed to use this utility.

Shield

Shields act as auxilary armor. The program automatically stops a number of wounds equal to its rating. It degrades by one point each time it stops damage. The rating can be restored by loading a fresh copy into active memory. No test is needed to use this utility.

Sift

Normally, a decker can skim a number of Mp of data equal to his Intelligence Rating multiplied by 5Mp per turn. A sift utility can increase this speed by a given multiplier. This multiplier is used as a target number for a perception (intelligence rather than sensors) test to notice relevant data.

Multiplier by algorithm

Slow

As the name implies, slow will slow down any Matrix dynamic, such as IC or a persona. The initiative of the target is reduced by a number of points equal to the number of net successes from a Standard Matrix Test. If initiative reaches 0, the dynamic stops frozen for that turn. Frozen IC cannot trigger alarms or other IC, nor can it respond to system inquiry.

Smoke

A smoke program simulates a burst of high-volume system activity, confusion perception around the decker. The rating of the smoke program is added to every target number needed by anything around the decker, including the decker’s own tests. The program degrades by one point per turn. The program can only be restored by restarting the deck. No test is needed to use this utility.

Smoke programs are dangerous, because the act of using one has a 1 in 6 chance (higher on some systems) of causing a passive alert due to the sudden increase of system use from a single user.

Zap

Zap is an unusually combat utility, which works only on IC. It works as normal but in a subtle way, trying to find loopholes in an opponent rather than blasting it away. If it crashes IC, the IC does not actually crash, but rather becomes docile, reporting that everything is OK, while neither attacking nor moving. This kind of crashed IC does not need to be supressed. Expert IC can recover from this kind of crashing.

APPLICATIONS

Applications are the mainstay of the Matrix industry. When information is power, programs which store, anaylize, present, create, edit, distribute and display information are crucial.

All applications listed here can be considered commercially available to anyone with enough money to buy them. They are all legal.

Mainframe Applications

Mainframe applications are those applications which are so large and complicated, they require the power of mainframe computers to run. They are large, fast, powerful, expensive, and usually mult-user. Often companies buy mainframes solely to run a particular application.

Accountable

• Size: 1,500Mp
• Cost: 1,000,000Y + 500Y/user
• Creator: Mitsuhama Computer Technologies
• Function: Full featured, multi-user accounting package aimed at medium to large companies. Includes tools which allow simultaneous accounting across differing legal and tax systems and superior report generation. Can analyse spending across entire companies and suggest ways of minimizing waste. Look: When envoked by a user, Accountable relies on the somewhat passae technique of a floating menu. This menu, worked by touch, voice or even sight, controls the opening of desired data-sets and data windows. Data entry is done with a keypad created for that purpose.

HardCopy

• Size: 900Mp
• Cost: 500,000Y
• Creator: Honto Prepress Corporation (a subsidiary of Renraku Computer Systems) Function: HardCopy started out as a program called Surf, a data organization, storage and retreival tool built around the idea of “current” information. Although other database systems surpassed Surf in raw power, Surf became popular among news agencies who, with the combination of data coming in from everywhere at once and hourly deadlines, needed speed of organization over completeness and accuracy. Realising they had a niche market, Reraku wrapped a page-layout package around Surf’s shell and added tools which optimised it for print and trideo media. Used by literally every major news service, HardCopy is the result.
• Look: Hard copy is its own room. A user begins using Hard copy by walking into the room. The room has a large central area where the data of the day congregates. In a ring along the walls of the room are desks looking inward into this data storm. Each desk is a page-layout station.

Interlok

• Size: 1,200Mp
• Cost: 755,000Y
• Creator: Virtual Reality Software
• Function: Interlok is a monitor and planner for real-world security systems hooked to the Matrix, as well as internal Matrix monitoring. Although the systems will work just fine without Interlok, the program makes monitoring and troublehooting easier, especially during initial setup.
• Look: Interlok standard iconography is a control room with screens set up to view input from security cameras and other devices. Because it is a security tool, however, Interlok is highly customisable.

Palm

• Size: 2,345Mp
• Cost: 2,575,000Y (Unlimited users)
• Creator: Fuchi Matrixware
• Function: The last word in Matrix news readers, Palm is on nearly every machine large enough to hold it in the world. Along with providing fully customized news service, Palm contains fast data searching tools.
• Look: Palm is always running, continually updating. When a user calls apon Palm, a small, floating metal box appears with a handprint and several control keys on it. The decker can hit the keys for control or she can place her palm against the handprint and run purely cybernetically. The news will be displayed in a floating frame. Any data transfer to or from the cyberdeck to the news system, is conducted by touching the palm plate.

Perspective

• Size: 7,880Mp
• Cost: 8,255,500Y
• Creator: Spearhead Software (believed to be a subsidiary of Aztechnology)
• Function: Perspective is a general programmable reality simulator. Anything from particle physics to traffic patterns to tank piloting can be set up and lived inside. Perspective uses an easy to understand scripting language and comes with a wide variety of pre-defined objects and feilds. A big strength of Perspective is that it allows on-the-fly switching of how detailed the simulation of reality is (in other words, how much computer time is spent on a given event, whether or not calculations are computed for each bolt in the bridge when hit by lightening, etc.)
• Look: From a run-time standpoint, Perspective looks like whatever it has been programmed to be. When scripting Perspective simulations, Perspective has its own room. Various tools float about, controlled by one of four interface techniques. The room is featureless, allowing the user to build a world from nothing.

Pigeonhole

• Size: 3,234Mp
• Cost: 3,450,000Y
• Creator: Pueblo Corporate Council
• Function: Pigeonhole is a programable, multi-user, freeform, multi-relational database builder. It features the fastest sorting, storing, searching, cross- referencing and retrieval algorithms on the market. It’s programming shell has been described as powerful, but arcane by Matrix standards; however, normal users do not need to know how to program it. Pigeonhole’s data analysis package is adiquate, but inferior to others on the market.
• Look: Pigeonhole has a large virtual room containing the databases created by those which program it. Users can access the database, but most use a remote interface of some kind. A very competitive market for third party personal interfaces to Pigeonhole has been going strong for many years. Often, a System’s entire archetectural scheme is based on how it’s users use Pigeonhole. Often, an interface to Pigeonhole is built into a users “home” office or location.

RouteMail

• Size: 850Mp
• Cost: 900,000Y + 1,000Y/user
• Creator: Datacom (a subsidiary of Fuchi Industrial Electronics)
• Function: RouteMail is one of many popular mail servers on the market. All mail applications follow MatrixMail standards but are differentiated by interface, customability, speed and so on. Fuchi is a popular choice because it is easy to handle. It is simple enough for small Systems, but powerful and versitile enough even for very large Systems.
• Look: There are two basic types of interface for RouteMailaeone for a system administrator and one for normal users. Both come in highly diverse packaging. Some systems use picturephones which ring when you get mail, others use a floating window style, and some even use daemons which look like pages or town criers.

Studio

• Size: 3,700Mp for application, 77,800Mp for supporting libraries
• Cost: 4,500,000Y
• Creator: Blast (a subsidiary of Yamatetsu Corporation)
• Function: Studio exists for Matrix artists, primarily icon sculptors. Studio is a three-dimensional design studio for visual and audio information. Tools range from the classical (paintbrush, hammer and chisel) to the fictional (narrow-beam disintegrator and universal solvent). Studio knows enough about reality to allow reasonable duplication of real world art creation (scultping marble, for example) but can ignore all aspects of reality if desired. Studio is the tool of choice for any professional who uses the Matrix to create raw art, save perhaps those who work in real-time trideo.
• Look: An art studio of malleable dimension and acousitcal properties. An assistant (daemon) responds to all requests for tools, materials and environmental changes.

Synthesis

• Size: 3,850Mp for app + 123,340Mp for supporting libraries
• Cost: 2,500,000Y + 500Y/user
• Creator: Tablelands Software
• Function: Synthesis is quite simply the Matrix programming application. It is so well entrenched that it no longer has any real competition (the last compeditor, Bricks, was pulled out of production by Fuchi when they finally switched to Synthesis). Experts feel Synthesis will remain the promenant programing environment for Matrix tools and applications until technology changes radically. Synthesis comes with a huge library of Matrix objects which can be used and built upon.
• Look: When envoked, Synthesis creates a white sphere with scaffolding around it. The sphere is the utility or application which is being created, and the scaffolding is Synthesis itself. Programmers hang off the scaffolding or dive into the sphere, depending on the task. Often, structures grow from the scaffolding, such as meeting rooms and so on where programmers plan programming strategy, leave messages for each other, etc.

Windfall

• Size: 10,450Mp
• Cost: 14,560,300Y
• Creator: Virtual Reality Software
• Function: Windfall is an financial anaylisis expert system. It gathers data on current market conditions and makes forcasts based on conclusions it reaches. It will report recommendations for users to invest in, or it can do the investing autonomously. Given large sums of money to work with, Windfall recomendations acheive a return on investment from 2 to 7%. When left to invest itself, the ROI is from 4 to 12%. With smaller sums, Windfall can do even better, but on average loses money more often than it makes any.
• Look: The Windfall application itself is a large cube of marble. This cube usually gets tucked away somewhere in the System, as it is not really meant to be interacted with directly. Instead, Windfall uses very sophisticated daemons to interact with users. Often these daemons appear as human advisors, but their icons are very easily customised.

Personal Applications

Personal applications are those which will run on a personal computer or cyberdeck. These will run on mainframes too, naturally. Often a mainframe copy of a personal application is maintained, allowing all mainframe users to use the application as if it were there own; however, due to licencing fees and so on, just as often a personal application must be run from the employee’s terminal or cyberdeck.

Personal applications usually have two modes, a VR mode and a two- dimensional mode (usually called “two-dim” or “too dim”). Cyberdecks are required to use the programs VR mode, which usually features more convienent tools. Generally, personal programs are built with one mode or the other in mind, and the other mode often gets short-changed.

Chain

• Size: 200Mp + 400Mp storage for libraries
• Cost: 250Y
• Creator: Linkman Enterprises (a subsidiary of Fuchi Industrial Electronics)
• Function: Chain is a programming environment which manages to balance screen interface (for desktop computers) and vitrual interface (for cyberdecks) reasonably well. Although not the best environment for coding under either interface, Chain’s ability to switch hit and it’s low price make it a popular choice.
• Look: Graphics are kept to a minimum for the screen version, but Chain’s virtual environment creates floating tools and a subject icon within the virtual space of the deck.

Congeal

• Size: 400Mp
• Cost: 700Y
• Creator: Shiawase Software (a division of Shiawase Corporation)
• Function: Congeal is arguable this most popular integrated personal software package on the market. Containing a suite of reasonably powerful integrated tools, including a word processor, spread-sheet, data base, illustration package and idea generator, Congeal is mostly made for desktop machines. Congeal also contains rudimentary video editing ability and built in data compression.
• Look: While it has a virtual interface, Congeal is basically a recreation of the look and feel of the desktop version; however, a few tools deliver higher quality in the virtual version, most notably the voice and handwriting recognition.

Gutenburg

• Size: 300Mp
• Cost: 550Y
• Creator: Yamatetsu Corporation
• Function: Gutenburg is the pinnicle of personal word processing. Built to both create output and accept voice and keyboard input in multiple languages, it can be highly personalised and includes an engine which learns a users habits and can anticipate actions. The virtual version allows both handwriting recognition and can interpret sign language. Gutenburg is also the first personal application to recognize high-level cognitive thoughts (like language, as oppopsed to reflexive, motor-control thoughts), although composing prose by pure thought is not yet fast enough to be a serious option.
• Look: Gutenburg harkens back to early days by using a menu driven interface. The virtual version is only slightly more interesting, allowing you to move text with a familiar reach in and grab it feel.

WRITER’s NOTE: At this point, all I have is notes. This stuff will be fleshed out later on.

Pace IV – Personal financing.

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• Cost:
• Creator: Stellar Mixture Software
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Servant – House interface to lights, security, etc.

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• Creator: MCT
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StudioMicro – watered down version of Studio

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• Creator: Blast (a subsidiary of Yamatetsu Corporation)
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Portable Applications

Applications which are created to be used by personal electronics - such as pocket secretaries - portable applications are small, cheap, specific and cannot be used on cyberdecks or mainframes. Data files still follow Matrix guidelines however and can therefore be moved to the Matrix and used by mainframe and personal applications and utilities. By the same token, files from the Matrix can be moved to a portable device and used by portable applications.

Balance – financial transaction tracker

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ContactPlus III – contacts database

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Looking Glass – data reading util supporting all types of data

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Mimic – voice/writing to text

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Annoying the System
	Some systems (read: if the GM wants to mess with it) care about Load.
	What happens when some IC sees other IC getting crushed.
	Too many tasks.
	Wrong icon.
Matrix Services
	Mail
	News
	DataSearch
	Banking
Locations in the net
	Shopping club
	Vacation sites (beach etc Japanese)
	Virtual Meetings
	Nightclubs
	Sex meeting places and bordellos.
	Japanese Karioki bars for after work manditory carousing
	Wedding Gift Net
	SeaqSource -- Seattle public databae (Corp book, Renraku)
Typical Systems
	hotels.
	UMS
	Reasearch
	Bank
	Small store
What is paydata?
	CHECK SHADOWFILES
	Private Keys
Frontiers
	Tought recognition (rather than reflex/motive actions)
	AI
	Cellular Matrix connections
	Better scent tech
	Cheaper headware decks.
	More diverse Expert systems