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Electronical, Radio-guided warfare for riggers
by Menard Steve (menars@JSP.UMONTREAL.CA)
OK, here it is. A complete discussion of riggers, remote-control, Vehicle Control Rigs and everything else.
The rigger interface
The first time I read FASA’s rules concerning the rigger I was confused. It looked like an afterthought if you ask me. And some small details were (some of those still are) missing. I filled them in with rules based on logic and my own (incomplete) knowledge.
In many ways the rigger interface is very similar to that of the decker. Both experience a simulated reality directly through artificial senses. But where exactly does a Riggers perception begins and end? Somewhat tougher, neh? Well in my opinion general purpose rigger control only overlay information (speed, gas, rear-view) in the rigger’s field-of-view, leaving most of the actual controls manually operated. That mode is also enough to mentally control any weapons system connected in the rig.
Full cybernetic control is achieved when the rigger completely sublimates his/her senses with those of the sensors provided by the vehicle. That does require that vehicle to have at least a basic sensor package. When in this state the rigger receives much-reduces panalties (if not bonuses) to perception because most sensors package out-class human/metahuman perception.
The VCR
Unlike a decker, the rigger has the most important hardware in his head. That is the ASIST gear is not in a deck, but rather in the riggers head. For that reason in order to interface with a rigger system you MUST have a VCR. Just plugging in the datajack won’t do you much good since the system “talks” in VCR protocols, which a jack itself can do a damn thing about.
Remote-Control Decks
RCD are an endless source of questions. How do they work? How much do they cost? Etc … Again I made up rules to clear up this clutter.
The basic rigger deck is like an oversized joystick with all kinds of buttons, switches, even screens. Its rather like driving a toy plane. There is NO cybernetic connection here, and anybody with the appropriate skill can use it. Those deck comes with “slots” in which you can fit frequency cartridges. These cartridges contain information about the receiving drone (or vehicle). That includes radio frequency (or whatever replaced those) and encryption protocol. That is 2 drones could use the same frequency but not interfere with each other because the messages are encrypted differently. Note that this encryption IS NOT a security encription and has no ratings. It is used solely to increse the number of frequencies available. A rigger decks rating determines the number of cartridges it can house.
Cybercontrol rigger decks are similar to ordinary decks, but instead of reading from control and outputting to screens, it talks to a VCR. The same cartridges are used in the same way, and are in fact inter-changeable. Of course vehicles used with this kind of decks MUST have some sort of sensor capability.
ECM and ECCM
Now, you’ll ask can a rigger take control of another rigger’s vehicles? The simple answer is no. Well, not really no but simply improbable. To take control of a vehicle you must have a cartridge with the appropriate info. Assuming you have that, you could send and receive info from the opponent’s vehicle. Who has control? Both. Who wins in a contest? Neither. A vehicles remote gear is configured is such a way that if conflicting directive arrives simultaneously, it would default to autopilot and execute the last valid instruction. Note also that physical control (turning the wheel) will ALWAYS take precedence over a remote command.
Can you protect your vehicle? Yes, by two ways. First do not tell anyone anything about your remote’s frequencies and protocols. Second put on ECM on your transmissions. I should guess that the cost would comparable to that of a car (see Rigger Black Book p.126-127).
Can you crack somebody else’s control? Might be feasable. First, if you do not the other guys specs you’d need a scanning tool that would also try to find the correct encryption (that would requires a test using a Special Skill with a target number of 6 (8 for military/restricted vehicles) with a base time of 5 minutes. Successes go toward reducing time. If the other vehicle has ECM you also have to make a success test against he opponents ECM using you ECCM rating (if you have none, you can’t break through). The price for the scanning equipment would be around 200,000 nuyen.
As a last note, you can’t control a vehicle not equiped for remote-control!