Rulings/All

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Banned Awakened Content

Banned Items

  • Foci over F10 (excluding GMs with thematics permission)
  • Power and weapon foci over F7 (excluding GMs with thematics permission)
  • Crucible (FA 193)

Banned Qualities

Positive Qualities

  • Apt Pupil (FA 32)
  • Archivist (FA 32)
  • Blood Crystal qualities (FA 132) are restricted to NPCs only
  • Dark Ally (FA 35)
  • Elemental Focus (HT 191)
  • Illusionist (FA 37)
  • Puppet Master (FA 39)
  • Stalwart Ally (FA 42)

Negative Qualities

  • Wildcard Chimera (DTR 163-164)

Banned Spells

Everything involving blood, insect, shadow and toxic magic is restricted to NPCs.

The following spells are banned:

  • Calling
  • Convert Blood to Ichor
  • Convince
  • Growth
  • Inflict Disease
  • Multiply Food
  • Rot
  • Pollution and Radiation spells, adept powers etc.
  • Shape [Material]
  • Turn to Goo
  • Petrify
  • False Impression
  • Manascape
  • Augury and Sortilege

Banned Alchemical Preps

  • Lightning Blade (FA 199)
  • Drain-Away (FA 195)
  • Laminate (FA 196)

Banned Adept Powers for PCs

  • Plague Cloud
  • Pollution and Radiation spell, adept powers etc.

Banned Mentor Spirits for PCs

  • Planar Entity
  • Doom
  • Pollution
  • Disease
  • Mutation

Banned Traditions

  • Draconic Tradition (FA 76) - it is only permitted for the use by claimed drakes taught by a great dragon and serving them, which makes it de facto banned on ShadowHaven.
  • Tarot (FA 91)
  • Hybrid traditions (FA 101)
  • All custom traditions

Banned Metamagics

  • Paradigm Shift: Insect Shaman (FA 43)
  • Paradigm Shift: Toxic (FA 44)
  • Spirit Expansion: Shedim (FA 44)
  • Predator Feast (FA 131)
  • Soul Tether (FA 131)
  • Spiritual Sacrifice (FA 131)
  • Tarot Summoning (FA 45)
  • Quickening (CRB 326)
  • Sacrifice (SG 90)

Banned Arts

  • Geomancy (SG 143)

Banned Mechanics

  • Fettering (SG 192)
  • Updated raw reagents (FA 188)
  • Refined reagents uses (FA 188)
    • SG uses still allowed
  • Radical reagent uses (FA 188)
    • SG uses still allowed
  • Spirit leashing (FA 182)


Banned Matrix Content

Banned Matrix Actions

  • Haywire (KC 38)
  • Intervene (KC 39)
  • Masquerade (KC 39)

Banned Emerged Content

Banned Complex Forms

  • Host Emulator (KC 94) (including by GMs)
  • Pinch (KC 95) (including by GMs)
  • Resonance Cache (KC 95) (including by GMs)
  • Search History (KC 95) (including by GMs)

Dissonant Ban

  • Dissonant streams, powers, echos, forms etc. are for NPCs only

Banned Echos

  • Draining Spike (KC 101) (including by GMs)
  • Mind over Machine (CRB 258)

Banned Mechanics

  • All content relating to submersion groups, tribes and flash tribes

Banned Items

  • The MOS (KC 58) is not permitted until it is evaluated in light of our custom deck rules.
  • Fuchi Cyber-N Series (KC 60)
  • Fuchi Cyber-EX Series (KC 60)
  • Surplus and Refurbished Pi-Tacs (KC 73)
  • Micro-Dish Transmitter (KC 74)
  • Co-Pilot programs (KC 71)

Banned Qualities

Positive Qualities

  • Groveler (KC 96) (including by GMs)
  • Team Player (KC 97)
    • This quality was written under the assumption that Matrix actions cannot be teamworked. Notably, teamwork CAN be done with Matrix actions. Matrix actions may be teamworked given the following:
      • Everyone involved is inside the same host or on the same grid.
      • Everyone has the required number of marks.
      • Overwatch Score is applied to all participants based on the opposing hits.
      • Only the leader gets the benefit.

Negative Qualities

  • Code of Honor: Black Hat (KC 99)
  • Echo Chamber (KC 78)
  • Information Auctioneer (KC 78)
  • Lazy Fingers (KC 79)
  • Resonant Burnout (KC 99)
  • Well, Actually... (KC 79)


Banned Combat Content

Banned Items

  • Hardened Mil-Spec Armor (RG 66)
  • Krime Calliope (KK 19)
  • Krime Ripper (KK 20)
  • Krime Carpet (KK 21)

Banned Cyberware/Bioware

  • One Shot Dart Gun (CF 91)

Banned Ammo & Grenades

  • Zapper Rounds (KC 48) (including by GMs)
  • Fuzzy rounds (KC 50) (including by GMs)
  • E0-E0 rounds (KC 51) (including by GMs)
  • COS Grenades (KC 54) (including by GMs)
  • Douser grenades (KC 55) (including by GMs)
  • DumDum grenades (KC 56) (including by GMs)
  • MCT/Winchester-Howe Hornet Direct-Fire Mini-Grenades (SL 132) (including by GMs)
  • Painade (CA 135)
  • The Krime Crackle Fin-Stabilized HEAT Slugs (KK 25)
  • The Krime Splash Self-Defense Ammunition (KK 26)
  • The Krime Party (KK 27)

Banned Qualities

Positive Qualities

  • Revels in Murder (CF 56)

Negative Qualities

Banned Miscellaneous Content

Banned Items

  • Military/Future Weapons are banned with the exception of the Aztechnology-Dassault Blood Hawk Mk 1, the Vulcan Systems "Hotdrop" Rapid-Egress Jetpack System and the Maker Mags.
  • Renfield (SASS 32)

Banned Cyberware/Bioware

  • Immunization (CF 164)
  • Gradual Release Chemical Glands
  • All Gammaware
  • All Omegaware

Banned Qualities

Positive Qualities

  • Better to be Feared than Loved (CF 54)
  • Friends in High Places (RF 147)
  • Human Lifespan (TCT 188) - Having a human lifespan can be done for free as a fluff decision.
  • Massive Network (NF 177)
  • Networker (NF 177)
  • Observant (SL 127): It's assumed to be automatically possessed by all characters.

Negative Qualities

  • Amnesia: Neural Deletion & Surface Loss (RF 152)
  • Borrowed Time (RF 153)
  • Consummate Professional (AP 17)
  • Dead Emotion (CF 57)
  • Dead SIN (BTB 162)
  • Earther (RG 169)
  • Every Man For Himself (SL 181)
  • Escaped Custody (KC 99)
  • Hung Out to Dry (RF 155)
  • In Debt (RF 156)
  • Neoteny (RF 121) - It's banned for play on ShadowHaven unless the character is a gnome. Gnome neoteny does not make the gnome appear childlike.
  • One of Them (CF 58)
  • Pregnant (BB 12)
  • So Jacked Up (CF 59)
  • Stay Out Of My Way (SL 127)
  • Stolen Gear (NF 177)
  • This Is Your Last Chance (SL 129)
  • Tough and Targeted (CF 59)
  • 'Ware Intolerance (KC 100)

Banned Mechnics

  • Pharmaceutical Drug Grade (CF 190)
  • Customizing Drugs (CF 190-192)
  • Performance and downtime money methods (NF 60-61)
  • Forcing another character to take chemicals with no penetration or power during combat is not allowed on the Haven (including by GMs).
  • Group Resources (DT 43)

Banned Lifestyle Options

  • Hotel California (RF 226)
  • Shared Advanced Lifestyles (HT 140)



Altered Awakened Content and Rulings

  • To prevent truly ridiculous damage codes, the Elemental Aura spell, the Energy Aura critter power, and the Elemental Body adept power do not stack on ShadowHaven.
  • Physical changes brought about by magic, such as a loup-garou taking Digitigrade Legs, lose all mechanical benefits when the character no longer has a Magic score - however, any visual effects remain. In the example, a loup-garou's legs would still appear digitigrade, but no longer provide a movement speed bonus.

Awakened Archetypes

Apprentice

  • An apprentice can only select UMT spirits (Fire, Air, Earth, Water, Man, Beast, Guardian, Task, Plant, Guidance).
  • An apprentice has access to Summoning, Binding, Disenchanting, Spellcasting, Ritual Spellcasting and Counterspelling. However, Summoning, Binding, Spellcasting and Ritual Spellcasting are restricted to their one spirit type and one spell type (unless the apprentice in question takes Chain Breaker, which works at normal).
  • Apprentices have access to Assensing and Astral Combat.

Aspected Conjurer

  • Aspected conjurers receive +1 service from spirits whenever they successfully summon a spirit. This stacks with similar effects (such as the Boar mentor and Shaman Tuxedo).
  • Since they are barred from learning Ritual Spellcasting, aspected conjurers may learn the Summon Great Form ritual. Additionally, they may use their ranks in Summoning when performing the Summon Great Form Ritual instead of their ranks in Ritual Spellcasting. This still requires initiation into the Invocation art as normal.

Aspected Free Spells

  • Aspected magicians are granted free spells, based on their priority selection.
Priority Aspected Sorcerers and Aspected Enchanters Enchanters Apprentices
B 8 NA 4
C 6 8 3
D 4 NA 2

Aware

  • An Aware can take metamagics/enhancements/focused Awakened as an aspected magician.

Elementalist

  • Aspected magicians, full magicians and mystic adepts may be elementalists. You must choose to be an elementalist at chargen.
  • Elementalists may reduce the drain for a spell they cast or for a spirit they summon by 3 up to Magic/2 (rounded up) times per day. This does not take an action.

Explorer

  • An explorer can take metamagics/enhancements/focused Awakened as an aspected magician.

Hedge Witch/Wizard

  • Aspected magicians, full magicians and mystic adepts may become hedge witches/wizards. You must choose to be a hedge witch/wizard at chargen.
  • Hedge witches/wizards may reduce the drain for a spell they cast or for a spirit they summon by 3 up to Magic/2 (rounded up) times per day. This does not take an action.

Mystic Adept

  • Mystic adepts must choose one of the three magical groups (Enchanting, Sorcery, Conjuring) which they will lose access to. Losing Sorcery effectively disables Adept Spell and Barehanded Adept.
  • Per CRB 69, mystic adepts do not gain the ability to astrally perceive without purchasing the adept power to do so. The table in FA does not supersede this.
  • Mystic adepts are held to the restrictions on their metamagics. This means that they can, by default, only take metamagics from the Undecided Way.
    • In order to take metamagics outside of this, they must take another Way.
  • In order to access metamagics such as Channeling or Centering, or any other "magician" metamagic, they have to follow the Magician's Way, which permits them to take any non-adept metamagic they qualify for.

Null Wizard

  • Aspected magicians, full magicians and mystic adepts may be null wizards. You must choose to be a null wizard at chargen.
  • The Summoning skill is added to the list of skills they cannot take.
  • A null wizard receives bonus dice to resist magic, like how the Spell Resistance adept power works, at a rating equal to Initiate Grade.

Seer

  • Aware, explorers, aspected magicians, full magicians, adepts (with Astral Perception) and mystic adepts (with Astral Perception) may be seers. You cannot use any skill from the Conjuring, Enchanting or Sorcery skill groups (anything linked to Magic as an attribute). You must choose to be a seer at chargen.

Spellcasting

  • Ritual formulae have the availability and cost of Combat spell formulae.
  • Drain and damage resistance tests are not penalized by sustaining penalties.
  • Each fetish is limited to a single spell. In other words, you must have a separate fetish for each limited spell.
  • Any PCs as well as any non-grunt NPCs the GM deems fit, are excepted from the normal penalty to resist ongoing mental Manipulation spells. All grunts are affected.
  • You cannot teamwork Spellcasting.
  • Casting an indirect, touch range combat spell is a touch unarmed attack (receiving the usual +2 dice pool bonus as well as succeeding on a tie) versus normal melee defense, followed by a Spellcasting + Magic test as appropriate for the spell as part of the same action. There is no defense test against the Spellcasting test, but you still receive normal damage resistance (soak) against the spell. Casting a touch spell of any other category is a touch unarmed attack in the same fashion, followed by the normal Spellcasting + Magic test versus the spell's appropriate resistance roll. Typically, a touch unarmed attack is a complex action and thus the whole spellcasting is a complex action in the above cases. In cases where the GM has ruled that you already have contact, you may recklessly cast if you desire, but remember that you can only make one offensive action per action phase without splitting your pool through the multiple attacks free action.
  • You may not combine a touch spell with another unarmed attack.
  • In terms of using the grapple hand cyberware with touch spells, you can only do so with a fully rewound one.
  • Only Spellcasting and Ritual Spellcasting can make use of fetishes and limited spells.
  • Indirect spells apply a cumulative defense penalty if you're targeted more than once in a single combat pass.

Counterspelling

  • Counterspelling turns indirect AoE spells into a threshold 3 opposed test against the number of counterspelling dice spent. In effect, you roll your counterspelling dice against the Spellcasting test, with each of your hits reducing their hits by one. This reduces their damage, introduces the potential to scatter where it may not have existed before. If you cause them to get zero hits, you prevent the spell from going off at all, though the caster still suffers appropriate drain.
    • If multiple individuals with Spell Defense dice are in the AoE, the highest dicepool will be used for the test.
    • A common misconception is that Spell Defense grants bonus dice to a soak roll against Area combat spells. It does not, it only reduces hits for scatter as described above which can reduce the over all DV by reducing net hits.
    • This opposed roll also applies if the spell has no associated opposed roll with it. Examples of these kinds of spells include Mana Barrier and Mana Static (if target is in range of the effect).
    • If a person with Spell Defense is in the AoE of a spell, they are considered to be targeted by it.
  • The Arcane Bodyguard quality is a self-protection restriction on how many spell defense dice you can use on yourself, based per combat turn.

Direct Elemental Spells

  • While direct spells ignore armor for the purposes of dealing damage, the elemental effects still suffer the full resistance of armor.

Looking Glass

  • The Looking Glass spell permits UV light through just the same as regular light and thus sunlight passing through would trigger sunlight allergies.
  • Laser weapons are capable of firing through Looking Glass-affected material. Incidentally, this is why Firewatch uses lasers.
  • The looking glass spell affects things traditionally considered light, so visible, infrared and ultraviolet light.

Levitate

  • When casting Levitate, one treats it as a full stop. That is to say, they immediately take the damage of any distance they have already fallen, if appropriate. You may choose to cast it at any point during the falling distance you are passing through for that turn. In no case will you take damage from falling that exceeds 200 DV, matching with falling normally - as the most you can fall in a combat turn is 200 meters. (This is not to be exploited.)
  • Whether the frame of reference of Levitate on a given target is the Gaiasphere or the vehicle they are in is subject to game master discretion. This does not have to be consistent at a table, however, if asked, they must answer honestly. "Dropping any fiat on someone's head is subject to GM fiat."

Mindlink/Net

  • For the purposes of Mindlink and Mindnet, only metahumans and metasapients (including shapeshifters) may both be considered subjects and willing.

Manabind/Net

  • Mana Bind and Mana Net are defended against by Willpower + Charisma for the initial defense. This is an assumption made from the text and thus is an extended interpretation of the rules, rather than strict RAW.

Imbue and Attune Item Rituals

  • The second printing of SG is used to determine force. Notably, instead of performing the ritual at force = the dice the object has for resistance, roll the object's object resistance first. Then you must perform the ritual at a force equal to the number of hits the object got.
  • Imbued item effects do not require a focus to be active and are not shut down by background counts.
  • Berserk trait can be applied on any weapon so long as it meets the prerequisites (attuned or focus). If the trait activates, the following changes occur:
    • The Berserk item's wielder has no regard for personal safety.
    • The item prevents them from doing actions or interrupts that would prevent them from being more offensive. Examples of this are full defense, parrying, blocking and using movement to retreat further away from the enemy, but this isn't an exhaustive list. **The GM has final say on what would hinder your offensive options.
    • The wielder must continue fighting until all enemies they are aware of have been incapacitated or killed.
    • Berserk can only be imbued into either attuned items or weapon foci. No other type of focus is eligible.
    • Berserk only gives its bonus to physical melee attacks and astral combat attacks. Cyberdecks and RCCs only get the benefit if you go smacking people with the deck itself.

Spell Blades

  • Spellblades use the "Spellblade" skill specialization which may be applied to either Clubs or Blades (or both). Note the normal rules on skill specializations.
  • DV of the blade is equal to force.
  • AP is equal to the hits of the Spellcasting roll.
  • Both Manablade and Powerblade are affected by armor.
  • Manablade is uniquely a mana spell that has to go through armor.
  • Manablade cannot be parried and it cannot be parried with.
  • When using Manablade on the astral, the attack roll is Astral Combat + Willpower [Force]. The base DV is force. As with all astral combat, you may choose to do physical or stun.
  • You can utilize all martial arts that would be legal with a reach 1 weapon using Blades or Clubs with Powerblade. You can utilize only those martial arts explicitly permitted by your GM with Manablade.
  • Spell blades may not be used with the Magic Fingers spell.

[Sense] Cryptesthesia

  • [Sense] Cryptesthesia works only on eyeware and earware not granting bonus dice and without a rating.

Shapechange and Critter Form

  • The Shapechange and Critter Form spells use the current Body score, including all augmentations to it. You can only become a mundane animal, not a paracritter or a technocritter.
  • The Shapechange and Critter Form spells subsume ware, but do not eject it. You cannot generally benefit from ware while under the effects of Shapechange or Critter Form, but it remains a part of you for when the spell ends.
  • The Shapechange and Critter Form spells do not automatically grant Flight skill ranks. If you have either spell, you are able to take ranks in the Flight skill with karma. Alternatively, you can use the average of all "Athletics" skill group as a substitute. Having 1 rank of any athletic skill provides 1 rank of Flight due to rounding, but getting a 2nd rank is harder.
  • When an Infected character uses Shapechange or Critter Form spells the following applies:
    • Any mana-type critter power carries over, no physical powers do.
    • You do not inherit the augmentations to your stats from the infection. If you have an augmented body score from the infection that score is used to calculate the max and min size of creature you can change into.
    • You do not inherit any movement multiplier.
    • You do retain the additional initiative die if applicable.

Spell Targeting

  • Environmental modifiers affect all spells targeted through LoS.

Detox

  • When used on drugs, force must equal or exceed the addiction rating of the drug.
  • Detox will remove the crash effects of drugs.
  • Detox will not remove or mitigate the unresisted crash damage of drugs.

[Element] Aura

  • [Element] Aura spells do not have AP on the primary damage. Secondary effects may have AP as described by the effect.

Fix

  • The Fix spell functions in a similar manner to the Heal spell, but for objects. The stipulation that an object can only be affected by Fix once applies to any one source of damage; in other words, each time the object is damaged, there is a new "wound" that may be "healed" with the Fix spell. Per our houserule, a repair job to heal all remaining boxes of damage on a vehicle is 5% of the vehicle's cost; this cost does not change, regardless of how many boxes are left.

Mana Barrier

  • For the purpose of astral tracking, rituals etc., just the highest force of Mana Barrier applies its penalty. As such, nesting weak barriers to benefit from a Matryoshka doll effect doesn't work.
  • The force of the spell determines the size and limit (when not using reagents). It has a structure and armor rating of 1 per hit on the casting. This is an exception to force = structure and armor rating rule.
  • When attempting to sleaze through or during an astral intersection use force x2.

Flame Burst

  • On the first pass of each combat turn that Flame Burst is sustained, the caster uses a complex action to designate a direction in which the flames will travel. The flames spew forth along this line in the shape of a cone with a length of (force) meters and a diameter of (force) meters at its furthest point. If the caster is unwilling or unable to use an action to designate the line of fire on their first action phase of the turn, their opportunity for the turn is forfeit. Flame Burst otherwise works as described.

Mana Static

  • Mana Static applies a separate special stacking BGC in its area. Characters are under the effects of all relevant BGCs in their area; apply them sequentially in any order.

Blood Puppet (GM-Only)

  • The damage only occurs once: when the character resists the spell.

Whisper of Bones

  • Requires the Necromancy art.

Mind Control and Reduced Attributes

  • In the case of Control Thoughts and its AoE version, you can no longer affect subjects with any modified mental attribute(s)s of 0. The target is stupefied and cannot carry your orders out.
  • Control Actions and its AoE version are unaffected by any modified mental attribute(s) of 0 - the organism(s) you affect still move as you puppeteer them.

Analyze Device

Analyze Device no longer grants uncapped bonuses equal to net hits. Instead it is treated as follows:

  • Each net hit from the Spellcasting test adds to your dice pool on using, repairing or understanding the device (up to a maximum equal to the spell's force).
  • Reagents can allow you to achieve more hits on your Spellcasting tests. This does not allow the dice pool bonus to exceed force. Otherwise, the spell functions as before.

Negative Health Spells

The following spells have the (NEGATIVE) tag added to them.

  • Decrease [ATTRIBUTE]
  • Decrease Inherent Limits
  • Decrease Reflexes
  • Dehydrate

Alchemy

  • A Command prep may only be activated by the alchemist who created it.
  • A lynchpin requires an item with no extant aura. As a result, cyberlimb components (even those paid for with capacity), which possess the aura of the person they are installed in, do not qualify to become lynchpins.
  • Magical compounds may be used by mundanes.
  • The mentors mask is visible when you make an alchemical preparation. It's also visible in the physical vicinity of the effect for the duration of the effect. The enchanter's mask does not appear on their person when the prep is activated, however. Per our current ruling on mentor's mask and sustained spells, spells sustained may be detected with Numinous Perception if the sorcerer who cast them has a mentor's mask. This occurs in the vicinity of the target on which the spell is sustained, as this is where the magic effect happens.
  • Witness My Hate may be applied to Combat alchemical preparations.
  • A command prep may have its variables chosen when activated, all other types of preps must have the choices made during creation.
  • Substantially changing a liquid preparation causes it to lose its magic. Mixing preparations together causes them to both lose their magic.
  • [Element] Grenade cannot be taken as an alchemical preparation.
  • Capsule rounds fired from a gun may not be used as alchemical preparations.
  • Only one command preparation can be activated per Combat Pass using a Simple Action. All other trigger types have no limit.

Bullets and Alchemy

  • As HT 194 mentions, musket bullets being able to be used as alchemical preps at a 50% failure rate, this remains the case. If you want to roll the dice on your preps, go have fun with that. Capsule rounds (and the liquid inside) cannot be used effectively as alchemical preparations just like any other firearms ammunition other than musket bullets.

Downtime Alchemy

Downtime Alchemy

Summoning and Spirits

  • Watchers, homunculi and spirits have a minimum attribute at summoning or creation of 1 in each attribute they possess.

Rules on Summoning Above One's Magic (Oversummoning)

  • When summoning a Spirit of Force 7+, after resisting drain as normal take unresisted drain equal to (Force of spirit - your Magic) x 1.5.
  • This counts as drain damage for all purposes, including for healing and recovery. Except for the Mentor’s Mask drain reduction.
  • Remember that only one edge may be spent per action, so you may either edge the summoning OR the drain resist (but not both).
  • Characters with the Dedicated Conjurer quality may add 1 to their Magic rating before interacting with the oversummoning houserules.
  • Characters with Spirit Whisperer calculate over summoning drain based on the original force of the spirit summoned not the final version
  • Oversummoning an elemental reduces the unresisted oversummoning drain by 2.

Downtime Binding

Downtime Binding

Edge

The summoner/creator may use their own edge for their spirits and other creation (watchers etc.). If desired, they may even burn edge for them.

Possession and Channeling

  • Cyberlimbs are considered active for the purposes of Possession.
  • Unwilling sapient living targets may not be possessed unless they are prepared vessels.
  • Spirits utilizing the Possession power may only move in the ways that their host entity could ordinarily move.
  • The alteration to physical stats by Channeling and Possession are limited by the augmented max of +4.
  • Channeling is normally only used with spirits that are being summoned as part of the Channeling, there are two exceptions:
    • You may bind a channeled spirit for long term use.
    • You may create your ally spirt as a channeling style spirit instead of a possession or materialization style spirit if you possess the channeling metamagic when summoning your ally.
  • When using the Great Form Possession metamagic, you are not channeling the spirit - you are summoning it and it is possessing you. It does require Channeling as a prerequisite, but that does not make the possession into channeling.
  • Traditions other than Vodou may use Great Form Possession, even if they don't have normal access to loa/orisha.
  • As all the Channeling entry has to say on the matter is that the magician can use the powers of the spirit for the cost of a service, using powers that are ordinarily passive costs a single service, but no action, to take effect for an entire combat turn.
  • When the spirit is in control, the spirit’s skills and mental and special attributes are used. When the summoner is in control, the summoner’s skills and mental and special attributes are used. In either case the lower values of the two are used to defend against Mana Spells or Powers, and damage is applied to both.
  • While the summoner is in control of the dual-natured entity that results from channeling, they will also have access to their foci.

Banishing

  • Bound spirits no longer receive a bonus equal to their summoner's Magic against Banishing, instead receiving a flat +4.

Blind People and Spirits

  • A blind individual may or may not be able to see a spirit or mage who is manifesting. It likely depends on the source of their blindness, and whether or not they have a visual cortex. However, they would still be capable in any case of detecting them through other means, such as sound. Cybereyes can see them as usual.

Spirit Index

  • Gaining spirit index due to disrupting a spirit typically only triggers for the person who delivers the final blow, however, at a GM's discretion, they may award it to other integral combatants.

Spell Sustaining

  • In order to pass off a spell to a spirit to be sustained, the spirit must be within line of sight and closer than remote service range. In order to continue sustaining a spell of any variety on their summoner or any other target, they must remain closer than remote service range of that target, though line of sight is not an ongoing requirement.

Aid Alchemy/Sorcery

  • Aid Alchemy/Sorcery requires the spirit to be on the same plane as the summoner, closer than remote service range and within LoS.

Ally Spirits

  • Ally spirits are distinct from ordinary spirits and may not be made great form.
  • An ally spirit may not be both a ritual participant and support the ritual via Aid Sorcery. While Aid Sorcery does not have an action cost per se, it is still an act other than Ritual Spellcasting.
  • Raising the Force of an Ally spirit through a Ritual of Change now only costs 8 karma per increased Force instead of 16.
  • Allies can gain knowledge skills through a Ritual of Change. They use the summoner's CDP.
    • Ally spirit knowledge skills have to be raised normally, they don't become (force) ranks immediately.

Smart Corrosives vs Spirits

  • Smart corrosives cannot be applied to a materialized spirit.

Flesh Forms

  • Inhabitation bonuses for flesh forms are the same as if the spirit was possessing the body now.

Beast Spirits

  • Beast spirits have skill ranks in Exotic Ranged Weapon equal to force.
  • The Natural Weapon power of Beast Spirits has a damage code of (Force x 2) DV and AP of -(Force).
  • Beasts spirits gain Pounce as an optional power. Pounce, regardless of source, requires a charge in a straight line. No running in circles to build up speed or doing squiggly lines.

Man Spirits

  • Great form spirits of man now have Counterspelling skill equal to force.

Wild Spirits

  • Wild summoning is the act of beckoning a wild spirit while in its domain in order to bargain with it. On the Shadowhaven this follows the rules in "Forbidden Arcana", with the following changes:
  • The test for the first method of summoning has been changed to "This is an Opposed Test using Summoning + Magic [Magician's Magic] vs. the Wild Spirit’s Force, requiring a number of hits equal to (Half the Spirit’s Force)" [round up].
  • Additionally, for the second method, the skill of Arcana is added to Con, Etiquette, Negotiation, Performance, and intimidation. [Arcana can use Logic or Charisma.]
  • The maximum force for a wild spirit is 7.
  • The Force cannot be chosen; you must find one’s domain first and then summon at that Force (for summoning with Magic + Summoning).
  • For catching one’s attention you must find one present.
  • As the cost isn’t from the Summoning, there is no drain, and Oversummoning Rules do not apply. The cost is instead in the bargain with the Wild Spirit (see below):
    • Dealing with Wild Spirits (FA 177).
    • RAW: You exchange a service for a service. The table is provided on FA 178.
    • Successfully dealing with the spirit gives you 1 service as if it were bound at the appropriate favor level.
  • Types of Wild Spirits can be seen on p. 179-181 of "Forbidden Arcana".
  • Dive Attack: +1 DV for every 10 meters, to a maximum of Force added DV. Note that the user of Dive Attack takes damage equal to the added DV, as noted elsewhere on these rules.

Possession Homunculi

  • Now you can bring a possession homunculus with you! Works with either a summoned or bound spirit of the same force from a possession tradition, these are essentially humanoid vessels for your spirits to possess and do stuff with. A homunculus cannot be modified from the original force they were created at without destroying the homunculus (therefore upgrade rules do not apply). Additionally, a homunculus may only be possessed by a spirit with equal force to itself. Homunculi cannot wear armor. All homunculi need a roll to craft them, which can be done either by the player or a contact (contacts roll their active check + any relevant aspects). All mental attributes are the same as that of the possessing spirit. Homunculi may not have a Force greater than 10.
  • Plasteel homunculus:
    • Cost: 2500¥/force, plus you or a contact must succeed in an Industrial Mechanic + Logic (force, 1 week) [Mental] extended test. This requires a shop.
    • BOD: F+6 AGI: F-1 REA: F-1 STR: F+6.
    • Skills: as spirit.
    • Powers: as spirit plus Armor (8) and Natural Weapon (Fists: (F+7)P DV, 0 AP).
  • Stone homunculus:
    • Cost: 1000¥/force, plus you or a contact must succeed in an Artisan + Intuition (force, 1 week) [Mental] extended test.
    • Body: F+4 Agility: F-3 Reaction: F Strength: F+4.
    • Skills: as spirit.
    • Powers: as spirit, plus Armor (6) and Natural Weapon (Fists: (F+5)P DV, 0 AP).
  • Wickerman:
    • Cost: 100¥/force, plus you or a contact must succeed in an Artisan + Intuition (force, 1 day) [Mental] extended test.
    • Body: F+2 Agility: F+1 Reaction: F+1 Strength: F+2.
    • Skills: as spirit.
    • Powers: as spirit.
    • Weaknesses: Allergy (Fire, Severe).
    • Notes: gains +1 reach.

Adepts

  • You make apply a spec for "Ritual Casting" to skills that work with adept rituals.
  • Adepts with the Astral Perception power may be seers.
  • Activating an adept power creates an astral signature equal to 4 times the total power point cost of the power.
  • The council may approve swapping Adept Ways. The cost will be determined case by case.

Purity Buff

  • Physical adepts who maintain a non-variable 6 essence and possess no augmentations with an essence cost have their starting power points total increased to Magic*1.5, rounded up. For clarity's sake, this disallows infected and prototype transhumans.

Social Powers and the Matrix

  • Cool Resolve, Authoritative Tone and Improved Ability on social skills apply to commlink/trideo calls, but do not apply to written, typed, recorded or otherwise non-real-time tests against a target.

Barrage

  • The Barrage enhancement for adepts does not function with grenades or other explosives.

Killing Hands

  • If a grapple hand is being used by an adept with Killing Hands, you may choose between stun and physical damage if using it as a weapon.

Mystic Aptitude

  • When used, it replaces, rather than augments, the attribute it affects. This means that it is not subject to augmented maximum, however, the final attribute score while this power is in use is not affected by any other augmentation or effect that would affect that attribute.

Elemental Body

  • The Elemental Body adept power replaces your unarmed DV, rather than adding to it.
  • The damage from the Elemental Body applies to someone grappling you or to you grappling someone, but not to both at the same time. The only power compatible with it is Killing Hands.

Rapid Draw

  • Does not permit a free action attack. Instead, it allows you to ready one weapon per pass without expending an action.

Nerve Strike

  • Nerve Strike is not a touch attack and may be not be substituted, included with or otherwise altered by a touch attack or the touch-only attack rules. You do still contact your opponent in the same fashion as any other unarmed attack.
  • Nerve Strike applies its penalty evenly to all limbs and the body. Apply the malus to each of your five "limbs" and then choose the action you wish to perform. Compute the appropriate average for the action being used. If your new average is greater than zero perform the action using the adjusted values, if the average is 0 or less you are unable to take that action. Not that this may mean that in some cases portions of your body may be paralyzed while others are not. Assume that you are compensating for your bad limb(s) with the others involved. Under no circumstance will Nerve Strike apply to specific limbs only.
  • You may perform a Nerve Strike with melee weapons. Melee weapons are considered to have reach 0 when using Nerve Strike. Reach from your character (such as through being a troll or having the Elongated Limbs SURGE quality) still applies. Consider it as smacking the nerve center with the handle/grip of the weapon instead of with the business end.

Heightened Concern

  • Heightened Concern allows one to take a Complex action to ignore a single penalty from the relevant table (CRB 176) on a single future, near-concurrent action, assuming that penalty does not exceed half their Magic score. Negating any penalties not on this table requires explicit GM approval.

Magic Sense

  • Treat the Magic Sense adept power as one you activate with a complex action, deactivated with a free action. When activated, it behaves equivalently to a sustained spell, but does not impose a -2 sustaining penalty. Roll Spellcasting + Magic as normal upon activation, with the GM rolling the opposing tests as they come up. You may default on this test. You may be punished for repeatable deactivating and re-activating this power in order to attain a higher number of successes, please don't do this.

Elemental Weapon

  • Elemental Weapon (Water) functions as follows. The weapon has no effect on condition monitors. The DV substitutes for force, the area around the target within DV/2 meters becomes slippery for 10 minutes. Unshielded targets have to make their test. What constitutes an unshielded device is subject to GM fiat.

Smashing Blow

  • The Smashing Blow power can apply to attacks made with spurs.
  • The base DV for Smashing Blow is the DV of the attack not including net hits.
  • An adept's damage with the State of Purity power active qualify as their base damage for determining DV against structures when using Smashing Blow.
  • Smashing Blow does not work against vehicles.

Body Sculpt

  • The activation time of this power is 1 minute, meaning you have to focus on using the power for 1 minute before it begins to take effect. Once the activation time has passed, the changes begin to take hold, finishing after 1 hour has passed.

Empathic Healing

  • For the purpose of the Empathic Healing power, the wounds are "as-is". Any limitations or restrictions on these wounds carry over exactly as if the same wound had been inflicted on the adept. If the injury has already been treated with First Aid or the Heal spell, it continues to be considered as such. You can, however, transfer some, but not all of the boxes, and then use the First Aid skill on both characters. Additionally, after transfer, the wounds are automatically considered magical in nature and may not be healed via the Regeneration power.

Adept Spell

  • Adept Spell cannot benefit from a fetish as you learn the spell intuitively from the power.
  • Adept Spell may be taken on a Qi Focus. Once selected, the spell it grants access to may only be changed with the destruction of the focus by an NPC or with Thematics approval and the loss of the focus.

Adept Accident

  • Adept Accident uses your opponent's hits to calculate drain and has a minimum drain value of 2.
  • It must happen within the combat turn that it was activated on (so 3 seconds if outside of combat).
  • The results are up to GM, but should generally be related to the environment (tripping, catching clothes onto a sharp piece of metal, etc.).
  • It doesn't affect any actual test or dice roll. The results (such as going prone from tripping) may prevent intended actions (like charging).
  • The lethality of the environment it's used in (e. g. there's a pool of acid) might make the results fatal, but they're not fatal in a vacuum.

Motion Sense

  • Motion Sense requires the same type of action as the observe in detail action.

Enthralling Performance

  • Enthralling Performance may be used with Unarmed Combat when done for showmanship purposes. Real fights do not count, but a sparring match is possible as long as there is 0 threat to either combatant (there is some level of GM fiat here). To do so, roll Charisma + Unarmed Combat [Social].

Penetrating Strike

  • Works with any Unarmed Weapon from Natural Weapons to melee cyberimplants. However, if the weapon has existing AP, Penetrating Strike acts as a replacement to that value instead of stacking.

Focused Archery

  • Focused Archery now applies to both bows and arrows. Treat your effective Strength as +1 per rank.

Traditions

Traditionalist Traditions

  • You can choose if you follow a tradition as a traditionalist or as a non-traditionalist (unless noted below). This determines if the traditionalist rules of the tradition apply to you.
  • If you take a traditionalist or other special path, it is a Paradigm Shift to leave said path.

Ancestor Shamans

  • You receive the Channeling metamagic at Initiate Grade 5 instead of 2.

Black Mage (Traditional)

  • You do not receive Animal Familiar for free.
  • You do not receive Dark Ally for free.
  • You do not receive Calling for free.
  • "Personal Demons" spirts summoned do not automatically gain the Fear and the Natural Weaponry power. They still gain the Flight skill, and may still select Fear as an optional power if it is an available optional power for the spirit type.

Buddhists

  • The rule forbidding traditionalist Buddhists from using reagents only applies to replacing the limits in Counterspelling, Banishing, Spellcasting and Summoning.

Druids

  • Druidic traditionalists are the only people who can create sacred circles at this time.

Elder God Magic

  • Traditionalist is NPC-only (Non-Traditionalists ignore the text under "Elder God Mage Rules" and do not worship the Horrors)

Islamic Alchemist

  • The requirement to take Fixation as the first metamagic choice and Advanced Alchemy as the third metamagic choice remains unchanged. However, the second and fourth metamagic choices are no longer locked and may be used to select anything else that is appropriate (with the caveat that the second metamagic cannot be used to select Advanced Alchemy).

Norse

  • Godi/Runemaster: Durable Preparations means that the time until Potency starts fading is changed to Potency x3 hours rather than the standard x2 and then an additional doubling. This does not stack with the Durable Preparations quality.
  • Cunning Woman: Can only be taken by a magician, mystic adept or aspected spellcaster.
  • The Berserker Temper power gained by traditionalist version of the Norse tradition is not in effect on ShadowHaven.

Path of Pariah

  • Pariahs are allowed to pick a drain stat out of Charisma, Intuition or Logic. For their second initiation, disregard the requirement to take the Opposition metamagic.

Planar Magic

  • Traditionalist is NPC-only. (Non-Traditionalists ignore the text under "Planar Mage Rules")

Romani

  • Must be a traditionalist. (Referring to the rules under "Romani Mage Rules")

Necro Magic

  • This tradition is unbanned with the following alterations:
    • Necro Summoning requires access to the Conjuring group.
    • Necro Summoning requires you to be of the Necro Magic tradition
    • If you are an aspected summoner, the summoning skill may be substituted for ritual spellcasting for the purpose of Necro Summoning.
    • The first necro summoning ritual is provided for free.
    • The necro summoning rituals gained at each IG are given to the necro mage in addition to the metamagic/art they wish to take, and may not be bought separately with karma or learned by any other tradition.
    • For the purposes of over-summoning, only the final force of the spirit matters. Be careful with high force rituals and the Greater Ritual metamagic.
    • Necro Spirits summoned via ritual can not be bound in the traditional method. The Reckless Necro Conjuring metamagic produces necro spirits that can be bound and turned into great forms.
    • Necro spirits always lose at minimum 1 week of their duration per run. This time can be higher if the in-game run takes longer (this means multiple weeks can be spent in a single run).
    • Suitable contacts can get you non-Forbidden animal carcasses (Gear; threshold 3) and relatively intact human corpses (Gear; threshold 4). You can always find dead trees, ashes and lifeless dirt.
    • Necro spirits and reckless necro spirits cannot go into possession homunculi. Their possession power always requires a specific vessel as detailed by their spirit type.
    • Downtime Necro Summoning (the ritual version) is not allowed. If you have a suitable vessel, you can use the Reckless Necro Conjuring metamagic and bind a spirit in downtime.
    • Must follow the rules under Necro Mage Rules
  • Additional Notes and Clarifications:
    • The ability to summon corpse spirits, as analogous to spirits of man, qualifies practitioners for the Necromancy art.
    • While this tradition is unbanned, remember that reanimating dead bodies is very much illegal in most countries, including Seattle.
    • Ally spirits cannot perform the Necro Summoning ritual, because they can't summon other spirits.
    • There is no requirement to take ritual spellcasting or one of the summoning rituals in chargen.
    • Excluding Spectral Warden, Ritual spell casting is required to summon Necro Spirits until IG6 when Reckless Necro Conjuring can be learned.

Mentor Spirits

Spider (Alt)

  • Alternate Spider gives one rank of Hang Time (SG 171) and one rank of Spirit Claw (SG 174) instead of the listed benefits.

Oracle

  • Adepts, magicians, aspected magicians and mystic adepts following Oracle both may and must take the Divination art and the Divining Metamagic for the next initiation if they do not already possess it. As usual, the Divining Metamagic is highly dependent on factors that are not actually within the GM's control, and we encourage you to be cautious even in the face of a seemingly definitive answer. The future is, after all, very tricky.

Guanyin

  • Is permitted for use on ShadowHaven, but it must be included as a listed quality on your wiki and be appropriately tagged with Template:Guanyin Caution at the top of the page. This quality's downside will impact your ability to participate in runs.

Metamagics

Reflection

  • Declaring spell defense to add your ranks in Counterspelling to resist a spell is what Reflection replaces. If you fail the Reflection test, you can still resist the spell with your normal attributes as if you didn't declare spell defense at all.
  • Using the Reflection metamagic prevents the use of other special defensive options such counterspelling ect but not an actual defense test.

Ally Spirit Summoning

  • In order to summon an ally spirit, you must have a formula (which can be made by rolling out Arcana or by a run to go on a metaplanar quest for it). You must then perform the ritual, with a force equal to the force of the ally you are trying to summon. Lacking a timespan, assume it takes 1 hour per point of force. After you successfully complete the ritual, you must summon the spirit, rolling the normal rolls for such. Spirit Whisperer does not come into play, for sanity's sake. Then, finally, you must bind the spirit (or give up and try again another day).
  • It is not possible to substitute the final part of getting an ally spirit (conjuring and binding the ally spirit) to instead undertake a metaplaner quest (initiation run).
  • In order to alter a spirit, you must acquire the new formula or alter the old one, as detailed in the book. Then, you must perform the Ritual of Change at the force of the ally spirit (the desired force, if upgrading it). You must then bind the spirit again, though you do not have to summon it. Upon successful completion, you may spend the karma to induce any changes you designed into the formula. If you fail, you suffer drain and lose the resources expended, but do not lost the karma you would have spent and may try again.
  • If your spirit's loyalty minus your Astral Reputation is less than 2, it tries to break free as described under "Losing an Ally", whenever it is presented with a chance.
  • An ally spirit gains the form based on your tradition. Possession traditions have Possession allies, Materialization traditions have Materialization allies and Inhabitation traditions have Inhabitation allies.

Cleansing

  • Once again affects an area (including for allies and enemies), as it did in previous editions. The size of the area is GM fiat.
  • May be used by aspected conjurers (using Banishing in place of Counterspelling) and by aspected enchanters (using Disenchanting in place of Counterspelling). This only applies to aspected magicians (including enchanters), so mystic adepts who cannot use Sorcery still cannot make use of Cleansing.
  • Adepts (not mysads), explorers and Aware may use Cleansing with Magic + IG (+ force of the power focus if they have one). Those that have Harmonious Defense may add their Willpower to it. As an adept, you need to have Magician's Way to pick up Cleansing in the first place.

Enhanced Mist Form

  • Enhanced Mist Form now gives you movement of 10 m/turn + 2 m/turn per IG.

Extended Masking

  • Extended Masking can also mask critter powers in a way comparable to sustained spells.

Flux

  • The following are clarifications of Flux interactions.
    • A prep made while in Flux doesn't not have your normal aura, it instead has your Fluxed signature when activated. Due to the prep's signature being in Flux, it's treated the same as tracking a signature of a spell cast while in Flux.
    • If one enters Flux while Channeling, the spirit leaves one's body and returns to the metaplanes.
    • If one is Possessed, but not Channeling, they cannot access their own abilities. Thus, they would not be able to enter Flux.
    • While in Flux, enchanting gloves cease to function as they are bound to your aura.

Great Form Possession

  • If a character does not have access to Binding, such as with the Chain Breaker mastery quality, they may skip the Summon Great Form ritual and go directly from the Channeling metamagic to Great Form Possession metamagic.

Harmonious Defense

  • You must be able to perceive the astral, such as via being a dual-natured creature or having the Astral Perception adept power.
  • Harmonious Defense requires and forces one to be perceiving astrally and trumps Dual-Natured Defender - thus, they cannot both be active at the same time.
  • A bound Astral Perception qi focus is sufficient to qualify for Harmonious Defense.
  • Harmonious Defense does not affect Alchemy.
  • Harmonious Defense spell defense dice are a separate pool from Counterspelling ranks and Shielding.
  • A mystic adept may only use one of their sources of spell defense dice per combat turn, either Harmonious Defense OR Counterspelling (+ Shielding).

Harmonious Reflection

  • Harmonious Reflection requires the user to be astrally perceiving similarly to the Reflect Spell metamagic.

Noble Sacrifice

  • Must have line of sight to allies to work.
  • For the purpose of Regeneration and other forms of magical healing, Noble Sacrifice counts as magical damage. In addition, if the damage carried some sort of restriction on how it can be healed or resisted, then that carries over as well.
  • Adepts and Mystic Adepts may take Noble Sacrifice as if it were part of the Undecided Way.

Supernatural Prowess

  • Supernatural Prowess does apply strictly to actions and thus does not affect reflexive tests such as damage resistance or defense.

Divining

  • In order to divine a subject the initiate must first be able to assense the subject, or possess a viable material link. They then enter a mild trance which reveals flashes of what the future might hold. The diviner must use the "arcana + logic + IG" skill test to interpret these flashes, see the table "Divination Table" on SG PG 125 for difficulty examples. While in this trance, which lasts for 1 minute, the initiate takes a -2 on all actions due to the distraction. Subsequent uses on the same target increase the threshold by 1 per attempt.
  • Initiates entering the Divination art must first take Divining before any other metamagic in the art.
  • Substituting a material link with a Sympathetic Link increases the interpretation threshold by +1, a Symbolic Link by +2

Critter Powers

Immunity to Normal Weapons

  • Immunity to Normal Weapons does not apply to biofeedback damage.
  • Immunity to Normal Weapons no longer counts as hardened armor, merely regular armor, against melee weapons or unarmed attacks.

Immunity to Pathogens

  • If a given Disease does not, after Penetration, get past the Hardened Armor that Immunity provides, it does not build up with repeated exposure like most diseases do.
    • Example: A +12 to Disease Resistance and 6 Automatic Hit level of Immunity to Pathogens would completely render a character immune to Power 5, Penetration 1 disease no matter how long they remain exposed to it.

UV and Sunlight Allergy Critter Power Interaction

  • All active abilities of sunlight allergic critters can be disabled with strong UV arrays, but these are explicitly not portable due to their size and power requirements. Expect to see them in corporate lobbies and secure facilities at the GM's discretion.
  • Spotlights on vehicles and UV flashlight attachments on weapons can only disable Mist Form.

Dive Attack

  • When taking the Dive Attack action, you also take damage equal to the number of meters fallen, as appropriate. This rule applies to GMs as well.

Paralyzing Howl

  • Paralyzing Howl has its text replaced with the following:
    • Type: P
    • Action: Complex
    • Range: Special
    • Duration: Special
    • The critter makes an Opposed Test using its Magic + Charisma against the target’s Intuition + Willpower. The critter's hits are reduced by 1 for every (Magic) meters away it is from the target. The rating of any area-effect sound-dampening devices, personal sound-dampening devices (such as cyberware), or hits scored by Hush or Silence spells, is added to the target’s Opposed Test. If the target wins, he suffers no ill effects. If the critter wins, the target’s Reaction or Agility (attacker's choice) is reduced by 1 for every net hit the creature scores; a reduction in Reaction affects the target’s Initiative and Initiative Score. This effect lasts for (Magic + net hits) Combat Turns. If either Agility or Reaction drop to zero, the target is paralyzed for (Magic + net hits) minutes and can take no actions except to breathe. After either effect ends, the target’s Reaction and Agility each return at the rate of 1 point per minute.

Movement

  • The Movement power adds or subtracts force from the Agility or Speed attributes for the sole purposes of determining movement rate, rather than serving as a multiplier or divisor. The minimum Agility or Speed score is 0, but even with a score of 0 for determining movement rate, a character is still able to move at a walking rate of 1 meter and a running rate of 2 meters. Additionally, the clause about only functioning in terrain the creature controls is stricken out, allowing it to function without having to juggle interpretations of what your spirit controls.
  • The Movement power does not function on vehicles and drones.

Regeneration

  • Biofeedback, being damage directly to the brainpan, cannot be healed by regeneration.
  • Damage from drugs may not be healed until the character crashes from the drug and is no longer on said drug.

Energy Aura

  • The AP of an attack augmented with Energy Aura replaces any existing AP.

Essence Drain

  • Has he following line adjusted: "A critter that drains Essence can pump their stolen life force into other attributes, including Magic, with a simple action. Every point of Essence spent may temporarily boost one Physical or Mental attribute, or Magic, by +1" is now "A critter that drains Essence can pump their stolen life force into other attributes, not including Magic or Edge, with a simple action. Every point of Essence spent may temporarily boost one physical or mental attribute by +1."

Downtime Essence Drain

Downtime Essence Drain

Non-Elemental Engulf

  • The Engulf power of a plant spirit deals stun damage as the victim is entwined in vines, branches or thorns. Furthermore, the Engulf power of a guidance spirit deals stun damage as the victim is assailed by horrifying visions.

Mist Form

  • The volume of mist from the Mist Form power should be roughly equal to the volume of the creature using the power and incompressible in total volume - no squeezing into a storage compartment or a bottle.
  • Bonded foci and basic clothing go with the caster. Basic clothing may include armor up to 12, but does not include accessories.
  • You may continue sustaining any previously sustained spells. You may not cast any new spells or use any other active powers while in mist form.

Animal Control

  • Critters resist the Animal Control power with Logic + Willpower (+ Magic if applicable).

Compulsion

  • Compulsion only has the affected character take a single action, then they are free of the effect - and they know they were mind-controlled.

Accident

  • It must happen within the combat turn that it was activated on (so 3 seconds if outside of combat).
  • The results are up to GM, but should generally be related to the environment (tripping, catching clothes onto a sharp piece of metal, etc.).
  • It doesn't affect any actual test or dice roll. The results (such as going prone from tripping) may prevent intended actions (like charging).
  • The lethality of the environment it's used in (e. g. there's a pool of acid) might make the results fatal, but they're not fatal in a vacuum.

Qualities

  • For qualities, the Mechanics Division defines a "magician" as including aspected magicians - they, in turn, include traditional aspects (sorcerers, conjurers, enchanters), but also FA expanded aspects like apprentices. Adepts and mystic adepts are currently excluded from this category. As far as Aware and explorers are concerned, they qualify for qualities and metamagics when two requirements are met at the same time:
    • A: magicians or aspected magicians qualify for it.
    • B: when the quality or metamagic in question doesn't require any of skills they don't have (Magic-linked active skills for Aware and explorers) or abilities they lack (such as astral projection Aware do not possess).

Dedicated Qualities and Mysads

  • Mysads must select sorcery as as an available skill group to take Dedicated Conjurer.
  • Mysads must select conjuring as an available skill group to take Dedicated Spellslinger.

Adept Healer

  • Adept Healer does not function on drain damage.
  • Damage transferred by this ability counts as drain and as such cannot be transferred by further instances of this power or healed by anything other than rest.

Alchemical Armorer

  • Alchemical Armorer is required to learn the Alter Ballistics (FA 51) preparation. You learn the Alter Ballistics preparation automatically for no additional karma upon learning the quality per RAW. It has no other effect other than providing you with the knowledge of how to make the preparation.

Alchemical Bombmaker

  • Alchemical Bombmaker is limited to a number of increases in drain equal to your Alchemy skill rating divided by 4, rounded down: once at rating 4, twice at rating 8, three times at rating 12.
  • Can only be used with combat spell preparations.

Animal Familiar

  • Animal Familiar requires you to purchase the animal as normal, then perform the Animal Handling + Charisma [Social] (12, 1 week) test as outlined in Attune Animal, to function. If purchased at chargen, it is assumed you already succeeded this test.
  • The Animal Familiar quality only works with completely mundane animals. That is to say, non-Awakened, non-Emerged animals.

Arcane Bodyguard

  • Round the dice you can use on yourself up.
  • The limit on how many dice you can use on yourself is for the entire combat turn, not per resisted spell. The limit does not apply when other characters are also resisting the spell with your spell defense dice.

Arcane Improviser

  • Requires 4 spells (not preps) from each category, excluding rituals.
  • Does not allow you to perform rituals you don't know, nor does it allow you to make preparations that you do not know, or fulfill requirements related to knowing spells.
  • The 1/week limitation is altered to 1/run for ease/simplicity of book-keeping.
  • You must meet all the prerequisites to cast the spell or otherwise be able to learn the spell (meaning no banned spells and no spells that you wouldn't be able to take otherwise).

Astral Bouncer

  • This only identifies the following positive qualities: Home Ground (Astral Acclimation), Spirit Champion, Spirit Whisperer, Spirit Affinity, Mentor Spirit, Witness My Hate, Astral Chameleon, Elemental Focus, Focused Concentration, all Adept Ways, Magic Resistance, Arcane Arrester, Astral Hazing and all mastery qualities.
  • This only identifies the following negative qualities: Astral beacon, Code of Honor: Harmony with Nature: The Shaman's Code, Spirit Bane, Spirit Pariah, Reduced (Astral Sight).
  • In addition to an Initiate Grade and adept powers, Astral Bouncer determines a certain Metamagic from an Initiate Grade, not an initiate power.
  • Edge cannot be determined.
  • Physical and mental attributes can not be determined.
  • It is up to GM discretion which aspects get revealed.

Astral Hazing

  • Astral Hazing is a minimum penalty on magical actions the character suffers. If this penalty is greater than the BGC of the area the character is in, use 3. If the penalty of BGC in the area is greater, use the BGC of the area. Do note that this prevents a character with Astral Hazing from ever gaining limit bonuses due to an aspected BGC.

Barehanded Adept

  • For touch-range spells gained through the Barehanded Adept quality, you calculate drain as normal, then double it after all other considerations, including minimum drain and Reckless Spellcasting. This effectively doubles your minimum drain.
  • This does not work with a spell learned with the Adept Spell power.
  • These spells does not work on yourself. Further, the target must be attacked.
  • This only works with touch combat spells and touch health spells tagged "Negative".

Chain Breaker

    • New spirit types are restricted to UMT spirits (Fire, Air, Earth, Water, Man, Beast, Guardian, Task, Plant, Guidance).

Chosen Follower

  • The following options are removed from the list of benefits: "Learn two spells or rituals" & "Improve a magical active skill from rank 1 to rank 3."

Death Dealer

  • Mystic Adepts receive both benefits of Death Dealer, however, they may only purchase the first rank. It only applies to Sorcery skills (Spellcasting and Ritual Spellcasting with the Prodigal Spell ritual), not to alchemical preparations.
  • Note that the maximum bonus from this quality to melee damage is +1, regardless of the rating of the quality, as per RAW.

Dedicated Conjurer

  • New spirit types are restricted to UMT spirits (Fire, Air, Earth, Water, Man, Beast, Guardian, Task, Plant, Guidance).
  • A dedicated conjurer can summon a spirit with the force one higher than their Magic without taking oversummoning drain.

Dual-Natured Defender

  • Dual-Natured Defender takes a free action to activate and a free action to deactivate.
  • Dual-Natured Defender only functions on your innate dual-natured quality, such as that from being infected. Any other sources of dual-natured, such as channeling a spirit or being in an astral rift, are unaffected and do not qualify you for the quality.
  • The duration of having this quality active rounds up to the next minute for purposes of determining how long it can be used for before losing magic, essentially making it so that it is always used in one-minute chunks.
  • Rather than simply cease astral perception, Dual-Natured Defender temporarily causes you not to count as a dual-natured being while active.

Durable Preparations

  • Durable Preparations stacks with Practiced Alchemist, effectively changing the duration before a prep begins to degrade to (Potency x 6) hours.

Elemental Master

  • Elemental Master only works with the natural elements; air, earth, fire or water. Electricity is not a valid choice.
  • Elemental Master does not apply to damage received from drain.

Mentor's Mask

  • Mentor's mask is visible while casting a spell, using an active adept power or any other active use of magic. It is not be visible for having passive adept powers or for sustaining spells.
  • Mystic adepts, if they take a mentor's mask, get the type of mask bonus dependent on the bonus they receive from their mentor spirit (for example, if they took the adept bonus from their mentor spirit, they get the adept mask, and if they took the magician bonus from their mentor spirit, they get the magician mask). The negative effect of a mentor's mask applies to all aspects of their magic usage (both their adept powers, and magician abilities).
  • The choice to have a mentor's mask is made when a character acquires a mentor spirit. If they later switch mentor spirits, they get to make the choice again. If, for any reason, they lose their mentor spirit, they no longer have the advantage, or disadvantage, of a mentor's mask.
  • You may obtain or remove your mentor's mask by paying 20 karma without "losing" your mentor. (Effectively buying off the mentor, then buying it again.)
  • There is no way to hide a mentor's mask, there is no way to hide it.
  • Mentor’s Mask only activates when you actively use an adept power, not when you sustain the effects of one. List of adept powers which trigger mentor's mask

Missile Deflector

  • Missile Deflector requires a successful Missile Parry interrupt, followed by the Counterstrike adept power interrupt, for a total of -10 initiative to use. Rather than the normal effects of the Counterstrike adept power, when this ability is used, it allows you to make a normal simple action thrown weapon attack against any valid target, with all appropriate modifiers, using the object you have caught.

Pacifist Adept

  • The Notoriety restriction on Pacifist Adept is removed due to the possibility of gaining Notoriety via peaceful means such as refusing to do a job when you realize it involves murder or similar. Limits cannot be reduced below 1.

Revenant Adept

  • If used, note the date used on your character’s wiki page along with a link to the run where it was used on.
  • Revenant Adept works until it’s cleared all the damage that Regeneration can clear, you died or the run ends. This means that having one box of drain does not allow you to have Regeneration indefinitely.
  • Revenant Adept does not take an action, even a reaction, to trigger. It can be used while unconscious or in physical overflow. This can be done in reaction to an attack and the user does not need to be aware, in character, to do this.

Spell Jammer

  • Spell Jammer is not affected by Mana Barriers, but is affected by background counts.

Spirit Hunter

  • Spirit Hunter cancels any sustained powers and prevents the use of any active powers, with the exception of Materialization.

Skinwalker

  • The pelt for a mundane creature costs 50% of the price of purchasing the critter itself and has an availability equal to that of the critter. Prices and availabilities can be found at Animal Availability.

Spectral Warden

  • Binding replaces summoning for the initial summoning tests made by a Spectral Warden, but they must bind the spirit immediately after summoning, the spirit cannot be used for any other purposes before they are bound.

Sprawl Tamer

  • Sprawl Tamer interacts additively with our existing house rules (it effectively adds another +1 modifier to the number of tricks a critter can learn).
  • Mundanes may take Sprawl Tamer.

Vexcraft

  • Suppress focus is a Simple Action and can be used from either the astral or physical, if you have line of sight on an active focus.
  • Grounding focus is a Complex Action and can be used from either the astral or physical, but requires both the focus to be eligible to target and the owner to be eligible to target. This means you can only use this ability to damage a dual-natured or purely astral target, if you yourself are astral, for example.
  • Counterspelling does not apply to the defense test, but power foci do, as does the force of any mana-barriers between the caster and the defender.

Worship Leader

  • The GM has final say on if enough people can be gathered. Regarding group contacts, organized crime groups and gangs tend not to worship. One must have the Rank quality in any religious order.

Witness My Hate

  • Witness My Hate is permissible for mystic adepts with or without the Magician's Way.

Other

Assensing

  • Smoke and other solid aerosolized solid particulates partially block line of sight on the astral plane and thus incur a penalty to Assensing tests. Use the Environmental Modifiers table when dealing with them (but not rain) with the following adjustment: when the target of your assensing is a living being and the solid aerosolized particulate is made of non-living matter, reduce the penalties by one step.
  • Assensing can reveal the class of magical subject with 2 net hits. This is determined to include paracritters as well as those classes given as examples on the assensing table SR5 pg. 313. Specifically, this pertains to shifters, infected, drakes, and naga. The GM may require a further knowledge roll to determine the type of paracritter.
    • Example: 2 hits on Assensing would reveal a drake or ghoul as a paracritter, but relevant parazoology, dragon or infected knowledge skills are required to identify the type. Which is to say you can ID a drake as a paracritter but unless you've studied drakes you can't tell if it's a sea or western.
    • Example: Infected all ping as "a paracritter" but knowledge: Infected lets you combine visual tells with what you're assensing to determine it is in fact a ghoul.

Astral Actions

  • Assensing + Intuition [Astral] against Sneaking + Agility [Physical] (if the sneaker is dual-natured or only on the meat) or Sneaking + Logic [Astral] (if the sneaker is wholly astral) is the test for stealth on the astral.
  • A creature with the Natural Weapons critter power may use them against astral targets per their rules whenever they are dual-natured from any source. They do not need to be permanently dual-natured.

Auras and Signatures

  • Items worn by an individual are almost always considered to be within their aura and are able to be perceived through when using astral perception.
  • Biofiber pockets are a detectible aura, however, they generally do not extend outside of the clothing they are within unless someone sticks their head into your pants. This means they are pretty difficult to detect. It will, however, still mask foci within from being seen from outside them. Protection, unless someone is sticking their head into your pants.
  • Astral signatures may not be described to another mage. Alas, the intricacies of a sixth sense are even trickier than, say, describing the color red to someone. This holds equally true to summoned spirits through the spirit-summoner link (a very low-bandwidth link, incidentally), making the quicksilver camera the only way to spread astral signatures around.
  • The following actions leave your astral signature behind:
    • Casting a spell.
    • Activating an alchemical preparation.
    • Activating a focus.
    • Using an adept or critter power.
    • Summoning a spirit.
  • The following actions explicitly do not leave your astral signature behind:
    • Carrying a sustained spell away from where it was cast.
    • Carrying a sustained effect from an alchemical preparation away from where it was activated.
    • Using an active focus.
    • Sustaining a critter power and moving away from where it was activated.
    • Having an active adept power.
    • The act of astral projection itself, as distinct from any powers that grant the ability to do so.
    • The act of astral perception itself, as distinct from any powers that grant the ability to do so.
  • The "Search" critter power is a physical power and cannot be used to locate the aura of a person. It tracks the physical appearance of a person only.
  • Astral tracking explicitly works on astral signatures, not auras. As a result you can try and trace someone by a spell they cast but can't locate a person just by knowing their aura.
  • What an aura looks like can be shared via Mindlink and Mindnet spells, as well as the Sense Link power (SG 198) that an ally spirit has. A normal spirit-summoner link is too weak to function for this purpose. Flashback systems and other technological memory extraction does not work due to the magical senses involved with perceiving them.
  • One exception to this rule is quicksilver cameras. Note the quicksilver photographs' own difficulties.

Background Counts

  • Background counts only apply their penalty and benefit to skill tests.

Burned Out

  • You are completely burned out when you have 0 current Magic post gen. Temporary reductions do not count for this.

Magical Compounds

  • Creating a compound:
    • Creating a compound by a player is done as any other alchemical preparation: roll Alchemy + Magic [Force] vs force. Net hits become the potency of the magical compound. Drain is equal to force + 1. Make a note as to the exact force and potency of any magical compounds created. Advanced Alchemy is required. To buy the exotic ingredient for the compound pay the normal price and use the availability of the compound.
  • Buying a compound:
    • A player may buy magical compounds from their contacts instead of making them themselves. However, not all contacts can get the same quality of magical compounds. In order to determine the potency and force of the magical compound they can procure for you, add half of your loyalty with the contact (rounded up) to their connection, to a maximum of 6: any magical compound they procure for you have that value for both potency and force. Make a note as to the exact force and potency of any magical compounds purchased.
  • Using a compound:
    • The following changes are introduced to the SG information on compounds:
      • Potency and force are not reduced due to lost essence.
      • The user does not suffer drain when using the compounds; the creator of the compound has already taken the drain.
      • Active effects are not negated if the user has less magic than the force of the compound.
    • The following are unchanged:
      • When using a magical compound that grants a power or spell, the user takes a -2 sustaining penalty.
      • Aftereffects last for the entire original duration, as determined by potency (potency x10 minutes), even if the effect is dispelled early.

FAB 3

  • Please refer to the rules in 4th edition's Street Magic for FAB III mechanics.

Foci

  • The maximum rating of power and weapon foci is 7, for both players and GMs.
  • The maximum rating for all other foci is 10, for players and GMs.
  • You cannot apply a weapon focus to yourself. While a focus has your signature, it does not have your aura. Therefore, artificing foci yourself does not get around the previous restrictions on valid foci. Bioware, similarly, cannot be turned into foci. The exception are melee bioweapons other than striking calluses or bone modifications.
  • All non-weapon foci may be made into tattoos via tattoo magic. Note that doing so may not always be beneficial.
  • The custom foci rules are in effect exactly as written. Additionally, it is expected that the player inform their GMs when they have such a focus. The GM may decide when the mentor is displeased, the focus turning off (any time you succeed the composure check to resist the disadvantage of the mentor and don't give in to the compulsion at minimum), and when it may be turned back on.
  • Focus addiction is rolled for any time a focus is activated and the total force of all active foci is greater than your Magic score. The roll for this addiction is psychological.
  • Spell foci and spirit foci no longer have specific types (such as Combat, Spirit of Man, Fire Spirit, etc.); instead:
    • Banishing foci apply to all Banishing tests.
    • Binding foci apply to all Binding tests.
    • Counterspelling foci apply to all spell defense and Dispelling tests.
    • Ritual Spellcasting foci apply to all Ritual Spellcasting tests.
    • Spellcasting foci apply to all Spellcasting tests.
    • Summoning foci apply to all Summoning tests.
  • Power foci do not act as an increase to the Magic attribute, but as an increase to dice pool in all Magic linked tests.
  • Additionally, banishing foci are changed such that they give limit and dice equal to their rating, instead of just limit.
  • Refined radical reagents of various sources may be used to reduce the price of foci they are made into when using a contact.
  • Qi foci continue to provide their full benefit until they are deactivated fully. For powers with levels, such as Improved Ability, reducing the force due to background count does not incrementally reduce the effect of the qi focus.

Magical Lodge

  • Lodges have no background count.

Object Resistance Table

  • For all tests involving OR, use the object resistance table. This includes, among others, physical illusions, the Analyze Device spell and artificing.

Astral Gateways and Physical Objects

  • Astral rifts, gateways and other such creations are split into a few categories.
    • "Astral" and "Metaplanar" are two separate concepts.
      • Astral means (evtl. forced) astral projection
      • Metaplanar means physical travel directly to a metaplane
    • "Gateway," "Portal" and "Rift" are different things in function as well.
      • Gateway = Temporary passage (by ritual or critter power)
      • Portal = Some physical construct that allows passage
      • Rift = Natural phenomenon
  • Some free spirits are capable of creating an astral gateway to their plane of origin but only very few can open portals that allow physical travel.
  • The Astral Gateway power of a great form spirit creates a gateway and thus means astral projection even with mundanes to the metaplane of the spirit's native plane. However, they cannot use any physical abilities and must follow all the rules of astral projection as Awakened would. This naturally makes things hazardous for a mundane.
  • A portal to a metaplane is rarer. In these cases, physical rules can apply and you can take gear with you.

Wards

  • Fooling Wards
Passing Basic Wards
Attempt Failure Attempt Success
Attack Ward Not Alerted Alerted
Mag+Cha[Astral] vs Fx2 Alerted Not Alerted
Flux-Int+Mag+IG vs Fx2 Not Alerted Not Alerted
Passing Alarm Wards
Attempt Failure Attempt Success
Attack Ward Not Alerted Alerted
Mag+Cha[Astral] vs Fx2 Alerted Alerted
Flux-Int+Mag+IG vs Fx2 Not Alerted Not Alerted

Numinous Perception

  • Numinous perception is not a discrete sense – it is like unaugmented human smell. If you can detect the source of a successful numinous perception check (such as that wizard over there casting the spell) with another sense (such as sight), you may pinpoint the sensation to that wizard, knowing that he cast a spell. If you cannot detect the source of a numinous perception check with another sense, you merely get a sense of unease, that magic is afoot, but you cannot, for example, tell that there is an invisible man about to pull down your pants or that there is a sorceress casting acid spells at the wall three stories up. Only that magic is afoot.
  • Numinous Perception is effective against sustained spells.
  • For adepts who do not have a mentor's mask, their powers, with the sole exceptions of Adept Spell and Adept Accident, do not trigger Numinous Perception. Note that this does not necessarily mean that they are not obvious either during or immediately after their effects. If the adept has mentor's mask, use RAW.
  • Adept Spell triggers Numinous Perception as usual for Spellcasting.
  • Adept Accident triggers Numinous Perception at a threshold of 6-Adept's Magic score.
  • Critter powers can be perceived with Numinous Perception, in the same manner as magic spells. The force is equal to the magic of the originating critter. In the absence of a Magic score or effective Magic score, utilize essence instead.

Reagents

  • Harvesting reagents is only permissible at-table, in-run.
  • Reagents override the BGC limit boost from aspected BGCs.


Altered Matrix Content and Rulings

Dual-Natured Entities

  • Dual-natured entities have no special difficulties interacting with the Matrix.
  • Spirits are not capable of entering AR or VR.
  • While in VR, one cannot activate astral perception or astrally project, just like no other magic-dependent ability like spells can be used. If one is permanently dual-natured for whatever reason, while in VR they do not have access to their astral sight, though they are still active on the plane.

Accessories

  • Commlinks can receive program carriers and other cyberdeck modules, but only through the device mod rules.
  • The satellite link is applied by effectively merging the range brackets above 100 km into the 10-100 km bracket.
  • Data taps may send and receive data wirelessly. Consider a data tap to have a device rating of 1 for the purposes of noise. A data tap slaved to your PAN benefits from your noise reduction.

Programs and Apps

  • The noise generated by Smoke and Mirrors can be canceled out by noise reduction. The noise generated by Smoke and Mirrors explicitly does not apply to any actions taken against you except for the trace icon action. At no point does noise reduction or Smoke and Mirrors indicate that noise reduction also reduces Sleaze rating.
  • One cannot benefit from multiple instances of the same program on a device.
  • Market Scan has no effect on ShadowHaven at this time.
  • The Sneak program protects the technomancer from the location effect of GOD converging on their sprites.
  • Virtual Machine can only be run on cyberdecks and RCCs. It cannot be put onto a commlink or other device by any means.
  • RCCs may run a number of cyberprograms equal to the rating. In addition, they have slots times rating which must be split between sharing and noise reduction. Sharing slots may only run autosofts. Cyberprogram slots may only run cyberprograms.
  • The Door Gunner tac-app is permitted for use with the following adjustments.
    • While linked to a pi-tac system running the door gunner tac app you may operate weapons linked to a vehicle that is currently piloted by another member of the pi-tac system provided the following is true. The weapon has a smart-gun system, you have a smart-link system, you are in VR, and the weapon is connected to you wirelessly or via direct connection. While firing the weapon you may use your choice of AGI or LOG + the weapon skill appropriate the fire the weapon (Gunnery if mounted). If the weapon you are using is attacked specifically you will take biofeedback damage as if jumped into the vehicle. If second character is also jumped into the vehicle to pilot it, they take the same amount of biofeedback damage. The weapon can not be actively used by another member of the pi-tac network for the remainder of the turn.
  • Cry Wolf costs the same as a normal hacking program and have the same availability, except that it is forbidden.
    • When someone running Cry Wolf would normally be struck by convergence, they instead are alerted and convergence will strike again in 1D6 combat turns. This second convergence may not be averted with Cry Wolf. After convergence is delayed, the Cry Wolf program is deleted irrevocably.
    • Technomancers may take Cry Wolf as a Resonance Program echo. In their case, Cry Wolf is not deleted, but they are unable to benefit from its effects for 24 hours after it triggers.
  • Mobile CNC tac-app will have its effect replaced with a 6 bonus dice, allocated as desired amongst people connected to the PI-Tac's network for Navigation tests and Combat Maneuvers. It also provides 2 noise reduction.
  • Shield Wall tac-app has its effect replaced with +3 Firewall to any linked device for the purposes of defending against any Attack action or any Matrix or Resonance action that could cause Matrix damage.

Agents

  • Agents must be paid for in full in addition to the cost of the program carrier module if they are to be on a program carrier. This is in direct and intentional contravention of the module's text indicating the program is free and included with the module. Additionally, the availability for the program carrier is the higher of the base availability for the program carrier or the program on the carrier, including any Restricted or Forbidden codes as part of the program. An agent may only run on a device that is capable of running a persona. Commlinks, RCCs and cyberdecks are the only devices natively capable of running personas. Other devices may be modded to have the capacity to run a persona, but it is unlikely that they are also able to run a Program Carrier at that point, as you are limited to one oddmod on a given device. Device Rating is not typically used for opposition rolls to Matrix perception when running silent. The test is Logic + Sleaze. If there is an agent running on a device, the agent would roll the Logic + Sleaze defense using their own Logic and the device's Sleaze, if applicable.
  • The agent coming with the Nixdorf cannot be upgraded to increase its rating. However, you may upgrade their cosmetic and personality software at any time to suit your thematic needs at no cost.
  • Agents are able to perform any Matrix action which uses Computer, Hacking or Cybercombat - as long as it does not require any knowledge of the real world. Any action taken by the agent adds to its own overwatch score. Any damage sustained by the agent or convergence occurs on the device the agent is running on. Agents act on their own initiative and need to be given instructions.

Hosts

  • The Bloodhound IC is a combination of Probe and Track IC. When it attempts to mark you treat it as if it were a Probe IC, so the roll is against Intuition + Firewall. After it has 2 marks, it attempts to Trace, so the roll is against Willpower + Sleaze.
  • A persona running no programs hit by Crash IC does not have any programs to crash and thus does not suffer the drawbacks of such. A technomancer with the Resonance Program echo who has a program they are running through this echo crashed by any source may reactivate that program in the same manner as any other persona - that is to say, generally after rebooting their persona.

Odd-Modding

  • It is not possible to decrease an attribute to zero using the device modification rules.

Qualities

Note on Kill Code Qualities

Except where noted, all qualities listed from KC 96-100 are permitted for any Matrix PC, not just technomancers. This also applies to the positive and negative qualities on KC 76-79.

  • Based on prevailing custom, the time savings portion of the Analytical Mind quality applies to the Matrix Search action.
  • Code of Honor: Like a Boss does not impede Foundation runs.
  • Codeslinger (Control Device) only applies its bonus dice when rolling Electronic Warfare + Intuition [Sleaze] against Intuition + Firewall.
  • Otaku to Technomancer - your character need not have been an otaku in their backstory: (ie. they do not need either have a datajack, an essence hole of at least 0.1, or thematically appropriate reason they underwent Revitalization therapy (at the discretion of the Chargen reviewer)). If your character does not fit this narrative, having this quality means your character was taught by a former otaku at some point, transferring old knowledge of the Deep Resonance from otaku to technomancer. It may be acquired after chargen in this manner. This does not require a run or otaku contact; simply pay the karma cost (10 at chargen, 20 postgen).
  • Sprites do not benefit or interact with a character's Paragon quality. The benefit of 01 allows technomancers to perform matrix actions as if they had one more mark than they have as long as they have at least one mark on the icon, but this does not increase damage dealt due to marks. For the sake of reckless hacking, the technomancer is considered to have the extra mark for the sake of penalty calculation. A technomancer with 3 marks cannot be considered to have 4 by this benefit.
  • For Gearhead, after pushing the vehicle, you may not push it again until you've had some time to get the vehicle back to a garage and work on the engine. This is tracked on a vehicle-by-vehicle basis.
  • AVRSE applies a -4 penalty to all actions taken while in VR, regardless of location. VR is how you get your brain fried, chummer.
  • Better on the Net is only permitted for technomancers and only affect their living persona.
  • Brittle negative quality (KC 99) is permitted for technomancers and only affects their living persona.
  • Big Baby functions as written, except that the penalty is -1 to all actions and will always fade when you next would regain edge.
  • The Data Hog negative quality is permitted only for technomancers. Deckers are encouraged to examine "Wanted By GOD" instead, from DT.
  • Discombobulated instead applies a -2 penalty to all actions when acting outside of VR.
  • Frostbite is only permitted in abilities for which the character has at least 4 ranks. It also may not be applied to any skill in the Tasking group.
  • Hi-Rez does not permit a character possessing the quality to make a Matrix Perception test to detect hidden icons as a free action.
  • Hold the Door provides a stacking, cumulative +2 bonus to the Data Spike action when targeting Persona or IC. The bonus is gained upon filling a persona or IC's Matrix condition with a Data Spike or Brute Force. This bonus is retained until the character takes a simple or complex action other than Data Spike or until a Data Spike action is taken that does not fill the condition monitor of a Persona or IC.
  • Instinctive Hack is permitted for use on the ShadowHaven, however, the user may not gain any benefits from teamwork from either sprites or agents for this action. The user also does not get any free actions to shift deck attributes or swap programs before this action. It is made as a sudden reflexive action.
  • Know Your Limit is permitted only for technomancers.
  • Natural Hacker is permitted only for technomancers.
  • One With The Matrix only exists at the 8 karma level. The 2 and 10 karma versions are not permitted for use on ShadowHaven in any capacity.
  • Resonant Discordance, despite being mastery quality, does not require a Magic score. It may be taken by any technomancer who has submerged at least once, by paying the appropriate karma cost.
  • Silence Is Golden functionally provides 2 noise reduction to all devices and personas within a 10 meter radius of the character with the quality.
  • Sprite Combustion is permitted only for technomancers with at least 6 combined ranks in Compiling and Registering.

Gear

Booster Clouds

  • Rather than a spray can, they come in an inhaler. They affect only one person for 3 combat turns. They are not affected by wind and must be triggered physically by the person benefiting from them.
  • They do not stack with themselves (only the greatest bonus to a single action applies).
  • Disregard the "Custom Case" entry.

Booster Chips

  • "Armor Defeating" will apply to Attack, "Slick WIlly" to Sleaze, "Data Dynamo" to Data Processing, and "Fortified" to Firewall. They have no impact on one's mental attributes.
  • The damage is resisted with Body alone and is treated as Fading for the purposes of healing.

Destiny Blade

  • Note that +1 limit for tests using Cybercombat is not the same as +1 to Attack when using Cybercombat and should not be treated as such.

EVO Sublime

  • Disregard the requirement that it be implanted.

Horizon Flow commlink

  • Provides +2 limit and +1 die on any Matrix Search tests performed using the commlink.

Kitbashed Sleeper

  • As usual for a technomancer using a device, they do not benefit from their living persona's attributes, though they can still use Resonance actions per its rules.
  • The number of irreparable Matrix boxes must be tracked on your character's wiki page after each run. The deck is still irreparably broken and unusable after its natural condition monitor is filled by irreparable fading damage, so this is not a deck that is recommended without an acknowledgement of its ultimately consumable nature.

Saeder-Krupp Last Chance Link

  • Disregard irritation if worn by a PC.

Security Decks

  • The Encryption program is not factored into the attribute array.

Shadow Warrior

  • The bonus to the limit on Sleaze tests does not alter the actual Sleaze attribute.

Tactical Program Dongle

  • Provides an additional slot for a tac-app, and makes changing tac-apps a free action. It costs 200 nuyen. A PI-Tac may only have one dongle attached.

Mercury-Alpha Battlefield Signal Booster

  • Can only be used in one mode at a time; switching modes is a Simple Action.
  • In passive mode, provides 4 Noise Reduction against all noise and doubles effective range (AR Matrix overlays and automatic Matrix perception occurs at 200m instead of 100m)
  • In active mode, provides +2 dice pool bonus on EWAR tests.
  • Linked Pi-TAC units can distribute the +2 bonus to assist other operators without a teamwork Test, this requires a Simple Action.
    • The bonus is a teamwork bonus for all intents and purposes but does not require the user to possess the teamwork able skill.
    • Magic and Resonance actions can't be teamworked this way, obviously.

Wuxing Frequency Commlink

  • Note that the rules for identifying technomancers are general rules, usable by anyone, and that the bonuses of the commlink only apply if the sole questions asked related to whether personas are actually technomancers.

Matrix Actions

  • Invited marks do not travel up the stream like marks gained via hack on the fly/brute force do.
  • Matrix search is not an extended test. Within a host, it may be run as an extended test with short duration, such as to find a file, but to glean information off the Matrix in general, it follows its normal rules.
  • There are no "decryption keys". In order to use the edit file action on a file, you must first bypass any protection it has. If you are the owner of a file, it does not have to roll any defense dice against your crack file action, however, you still need to have an Attack attribute. GMs, please note the impact this has on the Matrix ecosystem.
  • You cannot send a file with a data bomb.
  • Confuse pilot is a Data Processing action.
  • Drones qualify as allies for the purposes of tag, I am the firewall and calibrate.
  • You may use the Natural Hacker quality for the control device action for remote operation. However, you must select a single skill this will apply to (such as Gunnery or Pilot: Groundcraft). You will still need the relevant skill in question and you do not benefit from any Intuition-linked or Logic-linked skill bonuses.
  • You may use the Go Big or Go Home quality on the erase marks action.
  • Probe encryption is a custom Matrix action as follows:
    • Action: Special (two minutes)
    • Requires: 3 marks
    • You may spend two minutes attempting to quietly break a file's encryption, at the end rolling Hacking + Logic [Sleaze] vs Protection rating x2 to see if you succeed. If you do the encryption is removed without alerting the file's owner.
  • Reckless hacking functions as written, except that glitches and critical glitches function at the discretion of the GM (as usual), and any action which is performed while recklessly hacking builds Overwatch Score and is considered illegal, even if it normally would not. Reckless hacking may only performed for opposed actions. A reckless Data Processing or Firewall action, whether successful or not, alerts the owner of the device akin to a failed Attack action, though it does not grant a mark, cause any damage or give away your location. It may never substitute for ownership or for a number of marks greater than 3.
  • Calibration functions as written, except that it will be a complex action. For clarity's sake, "One per persona" means that you require a mark on the persona of each person you are attempting to perform the action on, you may perform it on a number of personas up to your data processing score, and their initiative (meat or Matrix) will increase by 1 point for every 2 full hits you receive on your test. The bonus initiative goes away at the end of the combat turn. Calibration and Leadership function similarly. A character can only benefit from a single source providing calibration or Leadership tests in a given combat turn, and a character providing calibration or Leadership tests may not benefit from any Calibration or Leadership tests.
  • Denial of Service functions as follows: with a simple action, make a Cybercombat + Logic [Attack] vs. Willpower + Firewall opposed test, targetting a device you have at least one mark on. The net hits on this test are applied as a dice pool malus to any actions performed using that device until the start of the next combat turn. If performed multiple times on the same device, only the greatest penalty applies. This action is not subject to the normal rules about making multiple attacks. If you wish, you can spend two simple actions in the same action phase to perform it twice with your full dice pool, or spend a simple action to perform denial of service and another simple action to perform a different attack.
  • I am the firewall functions as follows: as a complex action on your turn, perform a Computer + Intuition [Data Processing] test. The hits on this test are bonus dice on defense tests performed by all teammates from whom you are receiving an AR feed. The bonus dice last until the end of the next initiative pass, and apply to any physical defense tests. You may receive an AR feed from a number of teammates not exceeding your Data Processing attribute. You must share a feed with your decker. Under assumed competence, we will assume you are almost always sharing unless you state otherwise, as long as you have a device capable of giving an image feed. If you are not sharing a feed, to do so, use the send message action to send a decker your feed, which they can accept with no action. This requires some form of primary sensory input on their person, typically a camera (or cybereyes). You must have a primary sense link to receive the benefits. This can be accomplished with either image link, sound link or a sim module connected with a DNI. You may also perform this action as an interrupt action, costing 5 initiative and affecting only one teammate from whom you are receiving a feed for the same duration. Since this requires a conception of how the real world works, this action may not be undertaken by agents or sprites.
  • Popup functions as written, except that the penalty applies until the end of the combat turn and may target any persona with some form of sensory enhancement, including smartlink or DNI, which is not in VR. One must still be able to see the persona, which typically (but not always) requires wireless to be on.
  • Squelch functions as written. It prevents all use of the send message Matrix action. It does not prohibit any other Matrix action.
  • Subvert Infrastructure functions as written. The target of the Matrix action is the host you have the mark on and to which the devices being controlled are slaved. Simple devices are to be most non-drone, non-vehicle devices with a DR of 1, with GM discretion making the final call on any given device. A device controlled by subvert infrastructure will make a single action (free, simple or complex) that it is capable of and that is not an attack per combat turn, as ordered by the person performing the action.
  • Watchdog functions as written. The mark placed by this does flow up to the master of the device, however, the special option and effects of the Watchdog action against the target marked do not.
  • Reboot Device
    • May be used on your own devices without a test.
    • May target devices that are personas.
  • Format Device may target devices that are personas.
  • Jam Signals
    • May target devices that are personas.
      • May be used by Technomancers (the point of origin is their brain).

Altered Emerged Content and Rulings

Priority

  • There is a priority table change (CRB 65) for technomancers. Change the number of Complex Forms in each row as follows:
    • Priority A: Increase from 5 complex forms to 7 complex forms.
    • Priority B: Increase from 2 complex forms to 4 complex forms.
    • Priority C: Increase from 1 complex forms to 3 complex forms.
  • In the Magic or Resonance column in the priority table (CRB 65) for technomancers, change the number and type of skills in each row as follows:
    • Priority A: Change from "two rating 5 Resonance skills" to "three rating 5 skills from Resonance, Electronics or Cracking skill groups".
    • Priority B: Change from "two rating 4 Resonance skills" to "three rating 4 skills from Resonance, Electronics or Cracking skill groups".
    • Priority C: Change from "none" to "three rating 2 skills from Resonance, Electronics or Cracking skill groups".
  • The cost for submersions is 10+(submersion grade x 3) karma.

Complex Forms

  • Technomancers at chargen have a limit of 2x Resonance known complex forms.
  • Technomancers after chargen have no limit on number of known complex forms.
  • The fading for complex forms is adjusted with the official errata for CRB and with a flat -3 from printed values for DT. Thus, as examples, the correct fading for Puppeteer is L+1 and the correct fading for Derezz is L-1. Chummer has incorporated this errata. Fading values in any other book are unchanged. Remember that, per RAW, fading can never be lower than 2.
  • Any changes to the attribute altered by an Infusion complex form causes the complex form to drop immediately.
  • The Pulse Storm complex form should be treated as sustained.
  • The Editor complex form may used instead of the Crack File action to examine the contents of a secured file if they possess the Curiosity Killed the Cat negative quality.
  • Editor can bypass both data bombs and encryption, but since it's a Permanent duration Complex Form, it has to be sustained for (Level) Combat Turns before the effects take place.
  • Technomancers lack a Matrix condition monitor and therefore are not valid targets for the Redundancy complex form.
  • The FAQ complex form gives you the sort of information the spell Analyze Device (CRB 285) would provide. More detail will give more technical, more precise answers. Make a Software + Resonance [Level] test; you must get at least one hit or the test fails. Then, you are given information which you can interpret with a Computer + Intuition + (Level/2, round up) [Level] test.
  • Overdrive is permitted, however, the final rating of any piece of cyberware is limited at one rating above the maximum normal, naturally installable rating, or at twice the current rating, whichever is lower. Thus, a set of Rating 2 or Rating 3 Wired Reflexes would be capped at Rating 4, while a set of Rating 1 Wired Reflexes would be capped at Rating 2.
  • LOTO is permitted with the following modifications: LOTO can only target wireless on devices.
  • Hyperthreading is permitted, however, one cannot thread the same complex form multiple times in the same hyperthread. All tests are resolved using the pre-hyper thread statistics. Most notably, this means that Diffusion of Matrix Attribute in a Hyperthread does not impact defenses against any complex form in that same Hyperthread.
  • Bootleg Program is permitted. The defending party may elect to not roll their defense, making the test unopposed.
  • Mirrored Persona is permitted, but rather than the written text, it has Target: Self, Duration: Sustained, Fade Value: Level -2 and automatically negates the next failed defense test against a Matrix action other than Matrix Perception targeting the sustaining technomancer.

Echos

  • Skinlink allows a direct connection between yourself and any of your cyberware as well as anything else you touch. This qualifies for connecting a smartlink to a smart gun you are holding.
  • If you establish a clinch or grapple or can directly touch a device or a piece of cyberware, you may attempt a direct connection hack with the Skinlink echo. Touching specific pieces of cyberware such as limbs or eyes requires making an unarmed (touch) attack with the location-specific called shot mechanics. The Matrix action you take is only rolled on a success in the same manner as a touch spell. The cyberware must be touched directly for this to work; internal cyberware may not be targeted this way. Single devices such as drones or vehicles require you first to establish a clinch with one action, after which you may take a Matrix action assuming the clinch is still in place.
  • The MMRI echo may benefit from control rig optimization, but not from control rig boosters.
  • Aegis echo is permitted. The boxes are healed 24 hours after the most recent "Aegis" box was filled, and may not be healed by any other means.
  • Neural Synergy echo is permitted as-is, except that it's subject to the augmented maximum rules.
  • Predictive Analytics echo permitted, but does not stack with any other source of initiative dice.
  • Van Der Waals Effect echo is permitted. Rather than as written, treat it as a Magnetic System (CF 84) implanted separately in each of the character's limbs, as well as both front and back of their torso. The Mechanics Team would also like to remind people at this time that this is not what the Van Der Waals Effect is, does or resembles.
  • Will of the Resonance echo is permitted as-is, except that it's subject to the augmented maximum rules.

Downtime Registering and Binding

Downtime Registering

Sprites

  • Machine sprites do not inhabit electronics, mechanically speaking. The cannot use devices to perform matrix actions as they cannot run their persona through a device. They are their own persona.
  • Technomancers can use their edge for their sprites. If desired, they may even burn edge for their sprites.
  • Sprites have Matrix mental attributes equal to their level.
  • Diagnostics will not function on devices which have an entity jumped in.
  • A deck with a persona run through it is still a valid target for Diagnostics.
  • Diagnostics on an RCC will not add dice to the tests performed by drones sharing autosofts from that RCC.
  • Gremlins may be targeted at a device, even if that device has someone jumped in.
  • Diagnostics can be used with skillwires per the RAW conditions. They must be wireless-on for the sprite to connect with them, and the bonus dice of the teamwork test cannot exceed the skillwires' rating. Diagnostics cannot be used to aid Software tests used for Resonance actions in this manner, though it can be used to aid mundane uses of Software.
  • A sprite can use Diagnostics on cyberware. In order for this to work, the cyberware must be wireless on, and the sprite is visible in both AR and VR on the device (unless it's running silent, in which case it takes a -2 on the teamwork test and can be spotted normally) and can be subject to the Matrix or Resonance actions of other personas. In order for a piece of cyberware with a sprite using Diagnostics on it to benefit a roll, the cyberware must be actively related to the roll. Cyberlimbs can have Diagnostics performed on them to benefit both repair and whatever they were optimized for, but not for other actions. In general, cyberware may have Diagnostics apply to any repair rolls, but when using the item apply the bonus narrowly. The GM in question has final say on whether or not a particular piece of cyberware can benefit from diagnostics for a particular action. As a teamwork test, a character is limited in the number of bonus dice they can take from Diagnostics to their ranks in the skill for skills (or the level of the sprite if that is lower). For attribute-only tests the only limiter is the level of the sprite. Additionally, a character may only benefit from one Diagnostics on any given roll. A service may be spent to apply Diagnostics to a different skill.
  • The Bodyguard sprite power is permitted, but requires the sprite using it to be actively on the Matrix in the same "location" as you – the same grid or host. When used, it will stop a single Attack action targetting the compiling technomancer's persona. The sprite must have 10 initiative on the clock, must have at least 1 task left and is irreparably destroyed with no chance of resistance. Activating this is not an action on the part of the technomancer and does not require awareness of the incoming attack IC.
  • The Shield sprite power is permitted, but the redirected damage is unresisted, and cannot be healed by any means. Additionally, the sprite must be of at least the same level as the effect causing the fading, if relevant.
  • Enhance optional sprite power may be taken and used by any sprite who qualifies, not just companion sprites. It still uses tasks.

Paragons

  • A paragon's favor may be lost in the course of a run. Typically, this happens due to the written cause in each paragon, though a GM has discretion for other, related things to cause loss of favor. If this occurs, it is lost until the end of the run, unless the GM wishes to offer and opportunity to regain it at their sole discretion. Favor is automatically regained at the start of the next run. While favor is lost, the technomancer loses the advantages offered by their paragon, but still suffers the disadvantages.
  • A technomancer may choose and change paragons freely during downtime, including "no paragon", but may not change them during a run. The sole exception is that if they follow no paragon, and have not for the entire run, they may gain one mid-run given 5 minutes alone in VR.
  • The Archivist paragon's advantage gives a +1 dice pool bonus and +1 limit bonus on Matrix search actions, rather than the listed bonuses.
  • Daedalus paragon's advantage gives +1 die on Hardware tests and +1 limit to Pilot [x-craft] skill tests – specifically, tests which roll an attribute and a Pilot skill together. It does not increase the limit for purposes other than the number of hits one can keep on these tests.
  • The advantage granted by the IC paragon does not apply in any fashion against or in relation to IC.

Cyberadept Daemon

  • A submerged cyberadept may install up to (submersion grade/2, round up) essence points of cyberware without losing any Resonance.
    • Example: Default is a technomancer who has submerged once and has the cyberadept stream, but they have not installed any cyberware yet. They may install up to 1 Essence of cyberware without losing any Resonance, thanks to their submersion grade of 1 and their daemon. Once they hit submersion grade 3, they are able to install up to 2 Essence of cyberware without any further loss.
  • Each point of Essence lost due to cyberware in excess of the above will reduce Resonance, including partial points. If submersion grade later increases to include this exceeding value in the daemon's coverage, that Resonance is restored immediately.
    • Example: Default couldn't wait, so they installed 1.2 Essence of cyberware before reaching submersion grade 3. They lost 1 Resonance as a result. They later attain submersion grade 3, however, and their cyberware allotment increases to 2, immediately returning the 1 Resonance they lost before.
  • A cyberadept who submerges for the first time or a submerged technomancer who buys the cyberadept stream immediately regains (submersion grade/2, round up) Resonance lost due to cyberware from before the acquisition.
    • Example: Cyberknight began playing with 3 points of Resonance lost due to cyberware and later submerged once. They buy the cyberadept stream for 20 karma, and when they do, they immediately regain 1 Resonance.
  • Any portion of essence lost to sources other than cyberware cannot be recovered with the cyberadept daemon under any circumstances. This includes partial points; any Resonance loss that might be recovered must be lost to cyberware and nothing else.
    • Example: Cyberknight has 1.5 essence lost due to cyberware and 0.2 essence lost due to bioware. They are submersion grade 3, so they would normally recover 2 Resonance; however, that 0.2 lost due to bioware reduces it to 1 because the second point of Resonance lost was not lost to cyberware and nothing else.
    • Example: Default has 1.8 Essence loss due to cyberware which is safely ignored thanks to being submersion grade 3. They want to install 0.2 essence of bioware. While this wouldn't result in another full point of essence loss, it doesn't interact with the cyberadept daemon well. When they install it, they lose 1 Resonance that cannot be reclaimed.

Machinist Stream

  • Machinist Technomancers may no longer purchase Autosofts as echoes. Instead, Machinist Technomancers may purchase Autosofts for 2 karma. These 'Resonant Autosofts' will have rating = to the lower of 6 and the character's Resonance when run. A Machinist may run up to CHA 'Resonant Autosofts' at once, and may swap an unrun 'Resonant Autosoft' with a running one as a Simple Action.

Technoshaman Daemon

  • The RAW technoshaman daemon is not permitted. Instead, registering a sprite costs 2 hours less (to a minimum of 1).


Altered Combat Content and Rulings

Combat Actions

  • The free action in conjunction with the attack action for a called shot does not reset the take aim bonus.
  • Barring the use of the multiple attack free action, you cannot take a second offensive action towards another character during your pass. This includes throwing grenades, shooting guns, casting "offensive" spells (recklessly or otherwise), spitting in their cheerios, spiking their tea with arsenic or anything else that can in any way, shape, or form be construed as a physical or mental attack. You may as an exception use a free action to cast disparaging remarks at their mother if you so choose. Final say in this is left up to the GM.
  • You cannot shoot the same person with two different guns on the same pass, even if you split your dice pools.
  • Pouncing Dragon is its own special complex action. Utilizing it as part of a subdual action is not possible as a result.
  • In order to exit a subduing combat as the subduer, one must take a free action. If one has a free action available, they may do this at any time, the same as most other free actions - it need not be on their turn. However, the previously subdued party is free, since they are still in contact at that point, to take an interrupt action to attempt to subue their opponent. This is a -5 initiative interrupt action. They may also attempt a reversal, assuming they possess the appropriate training. There is no interrupt action needed to release a subduing combat, so your original question possesses an invalid supposition.
  • All normal combat modifiers apply to the clinch action as if it were a normal attack.
  • You may only make one clinch attempt per pass.
  • Mixed/Small Unit tactics cannot be performed by a single person.
  • You may declare that you are taking one or multiple ranged and melee attacks in the same pass, provided you are in range of all the attacks. Doing so takes your lowest pool and splits it by the number of attacks made.
  • No attack actions can ever be considered a free action. The Rapid Draw power allows you to ready a weapon once per pass without spending an action. Additionally, you may now quick draw any weapon that is properly holstered and the threshold for doing so is reduced by 1.
  • Reach counts on the astral.

Called Shots

  • You cannot make a called shot with spellcasting of any variety (spells, rituals, alchemical preparations).
  • Bull's Eye Burst does not provide any defense penalty regardless of how many bullets are fired.
  • Shredded Flesh does not require physical damage to trigger. Stun damage is sufficient.
  • Knock Down uses the strength of the attacker, even in cases where damage on the attack would normally be set by some other value, such as fixed-DV weapons or spellblades.
  • At this time, one cannot call a shot using a touch attack.
  • Damage from Called Shot: Vitals cannot be regenerated through the Regeneration critter power.
  • Sharpshooter only applies to ranged attacks and does not apply to melee called shots.
  • As the spider silk gland is not included in the restrictions of Called Shot: Entanglement, it is not a valid combination.
  • When applying a called shot with a DV limit, first calculate the DV normally, then apply soak. If the resulting damage is greater than the DV limit reduce that DV to the limit. Any mention of "Original DV" applies to the DV before soak.
  • Up the Ante is considered to be a collection of called shots which all require a free action to take. This doubles the DV limit for any location called shot made with an assault cannon. For example: Up the Ante: Sternum.
  • Location specific called shots
    • All net hits now add damage as well as allow you to select status effects for the target to resist. If the target fully resists all damage, they do not need to resist any status effects as normal.

Multiple Attacks

  • If attacking with different ranged and melee weapons with different dice pools, take the lowest dice pool of the set and split that among the attacks.
    • Example: Overkill, a Nartaki, has had it with Johnsons screwing him over. The Johnson turns away with the prototype, without paying the team. This causes Overkill to draw a Barrens Special, A Knife, A Club, and A Laser Pistol. OVerkills knows how to use the Barrens Special, A Knife, A Club. They have 22 dice in those pools. But the laser pistol was more drawn in rage, and he only has 7 dice to fire it. Due to this, they divide their 7 laser pistol dice into their other 3 attacks.

Initiative Stacking

The following is a description of initiative stacking lockouts. In any case where something states that it does not stack, it will not stack even if other sources state they do. In essence, if any source states it does not stack with something else affecting you, you do not get the benefit of the non-stacking source.

Edge

  • Edge to seize the initiative or blitz functions with any other use of edge, even if that source states that it does not stack. It always works. Blitz, of course, does not permit you to roll more than 5D6 initiative dice. These also work on the astral and the Matrix.

Qualities

  • The seize effect from Adrenaline Surge only functions on the meat (and consequently AR matrix initiative).
  • The initiative from Pain Is Gain applies only to Matrix initiative.
  • The initiative from Lightning Reflexes does not stack with any drugs, adept powers, spells, cyberware, bioware or generware. The defense die stacks normally. Lightning Reflexes uniquely work on the astral, but not Matrix VR.
  • The initiative from Poor Self-Control (Thrill-Seeker) stacks with all other sources.

Spells

  • The Increase Reflexes spell does not stack with drugs, other spells, adept powers, cyberware, bioware or geneware.
  • The Vampiric Speed spell does not stack with drugs, other spells, adept powers, cyberware, bioware or geneware.

Adept Powers

  • The Adrenaline Boost power stacks with drugs, but not with spells, other adept powers, cyberware, bioware or geneware.
  • The Improved Reflexes power does not stack with drugs, spells, other adept powers, cyberware, bioware or geneware.

Other Magic

  • The initiative bonus from Channeling does not stack with drugs, spells, adept powers, cyberware, bioware or geneware.

Cyberware

  • Wired reflexes stacks with drugs, but not with spells, adept powers, other cyberware, bioware or geneware.
  • Move-by-wire systems do not stack with drugs, spells, adept powers, other cyberware, bioware or geneware. The sole exception is Accelerator, which stacks with it normally. Note the downsides for Accelerator.

Bioware

  • Synaptic boosters do not stack with drugs, spells, adept powers, cyberware, other bioware or geneware. The sole exception is Accelerator, which stacks with it normally. Note the downsides for Accelerator.
  • Boosted reflexes stack with drugs. They do not stack with spells, adept powers, cyberware, other bioware or geneware.

Geneware

  • Synaptic acceleration stacks with drugs. It does not stack with spells, adept powers, cyberware, other bioware or geneware.
  • Reaction optimization does not stack with drugs, spells, adept powers, cyberware, other bioware or geneware.
  • As a reminder, drugs do not stack with themselves. However, you can receive a benefit to the same attribute multiple times, as long as it is from different drugs.

Echos

  • Predictive Analytics do not stack with any other source of initiative dice.

Surprise

  • All surprised characters must make a surprise test, rolling Reaction + Intuition (3).
  • Characters who have been alerted in some way receive a +3 dice pool modifier on this test.
  • Characters who plan an ambush and delay their actions and wait for the arrival of their targets receive a +6 dice pool modifier.
  • Ambushing characters are automatically not surprised by the characters they are ambushing if they have full awareness their targets movement and actions (Watching in open terrain, via fly spy, etc).
    • In this situation, you still roll surprise, but cannot fail the test by rolling under the threshold for surprise.

Final Notes

  • Astral initiative is not affected by any bonuses to initiative, except where explicitly stated.
  • Matrix VR initiative is not affected by any bonuses to initiative, except for those that reference biofeedback, Matrix initiative, hotsim or coldsim.
  • Matrix and rigging AR initiative is treated as meat initiative. It does not benefit from things that specify matrix initiative, hotsim or coldsim.
  • Additional base dice, like those possessed by all shapeshifters and certain HMHVV infected, are just that – base dice. They functionally stack with everything.

Combat Defense

  • The run for your life interrupt action works against missiles, rockets and grenade launchers, in addition to indirect combat spells, explosive throwing weapon attacks and any other area of effect attack that they are aware of. It is worth noting that one is generally not going to be aware of direct combat spells, or non-combat spells, to the degree necessary to flee them.
  • Perceptive Defender applies any bonuses that are non-specific Perception bonuses. (Example: Synch applies, vision enhancement doesn't.)
  • Weapon specs generally apply, but may, at GM discretion, not apply to defensive interrupts. Specs in the interrupt (block, parry, dodge) will always apply.
  • Dodge does not work on the astral.
  • Parry and block work on the astral, but only with weapon foci. They add your Astral Combat skill to the defense roll.
  • Full defense works on the astral.
  • The DV for the comparison to determine if a character has been pinned does include the net hits on the defense test. The armor value for the above test includes only the armor of base armor pieces, not accessories, cyberware, magic, bioware or any other forms of armor. The defender's armor value is modified by AP of the weapon as long as that AP is not from electrical weapons. Note that attempting to pin your opponent with explosive weapons is unlikely to be a very fruitful endeavor as explosive bolts or arrows explode on impact, leaving nothing behind to pin with. As the comparison between DV and armor is not a process that has hits, the net hits part refers to the net hits of the original attack test.
  • Chemical seal remains effective unless the armor is rendered useless. Generally, this means that if the armor is still worn and providing armor benefits, chemical seal still applies. This abstraction is in place to avoid attempting to determine how bullet riddled or cut you are. An exception to this is that any melee attacks with edged weapons which cause physical damage bypass a chemical seal and apply the toxin for that attack only. Further attacks must cause physical damage to apply it again.
  • Suppressive fire and physical area attacks resolve as they would normally: without defense tests.
  • Suppressive fire only applies the dice pool penalty to characters in cover they do not take damage while in cover
    • Passengers are always considered to be in good cover.
  • Shotgun blasts allow for defense tests, applying the defense test modifiers.
  • Passengers do not get to dodge a ramming vehicle.
  • All attacks affecting passengers, if they allow for armor, add the vehicle’s armor to passenger’s soak tests. This rule applies only to attacks that originate from outside the vehicle.
  • Dodge and full defense is a permitted combination, including taking both with an interrupt action simultaneously for a total of -15.
  • Dodge is ranks only. No Agility is applied, however, the physical limit is applied. It is a valid spec for Gymnastics and applies when taking the dodge interrupt action and the preemptive dodge action.
  • If you are berserking, you may not use the full defense action.
  • A wall or other structure or barrier that is hit by a cold attack would have to make an armor test. However, a hole is only made if the structure is damaged, not the armor.

Armor

  • The AP of an attack influences the dice pool of the armor tests to avoid elemental side-effects.
  • Ace of Diamonds gives a Concealability of -2, instead of the listed +2.
  • The Restrictive gear quality is always applied if wearing the armor, even when not benefiting from the armor.
  • CCOBs can accept armor mods, but armor mods which add to soak only apply to things protected by the CCOB's armor.
  • Critter body armor has a capacity equal to the armor rating that it has.
  • The Urban Explorer Daedalus (SL 47) cannot be worn with any other base armor. The parachute immediately fails if encumbered by any armor accessories.
    • The Urban Explorer Daedalus's parachute may be bought seperately in backpack form for the time being. Rules for its use should be tied to Body + Freefall if dice are involved, but are up to GM fiat at this time.
  • A hazmat suit is damaged by receiving physical damage from a penetrative or slashing source.
  • Concealability stacking: concealability from multiple pieces of armor does not stack with other pieces of armor. It will, however, stack with a concealed pocket or a concealed holster. Note the singular articles there.
  • The Ares bug stomper armor is compatible only with its own custom designed helmet. No other +armor accessories can be used with with this armor.
    • The custom helmet has 6 capacity for vision and audio mods, adds +2 to the armor value of bug stomper armor, costs 5000¥ and allows the armor to be chemsealable - the armor can be chemsealed as long as the helmet is attached.
    • Bug Stomper Armor does not provide Hardened Armor. At all.

Armor Accessories

  • Armor accessory encumbrance is determined by average, full body Strength.
    • The amount of armor gained from worn armor accessories is not limited by your strength attribute
  • Cloaks are considered an armor accessory with zero armor bonus. You may benefit from exactly one and will receive the benefit of any armor modifications installed into it.
  • Snakemesh socks only apply to soak through Called Shot: Legs.
  • The PPP vitals cannot be used with "heavy armor" defined as base armors having armor rating 13 or more. (like what’s described by the Hang Time adept power on p. 171 of "Street Grimoire"). It will stack with any base armor of Rating 12 or lower and explicitly does not stack with Armor Vest or Armor Jacket.
  • The PPP Arms/Legs/Vitals stack with Forearm Guards.
  • The Ares Briefcase shield is non-ferrous and not affected by MAD scanners. It does not provide shielding to items within it.
  • The EVO/Yamatetsu Naval Technologies Rampart Portable Ballistic Emplacement is permitted with the following changes:
    • Remove the "hardened" tag. This means when it is used as a ballistic shield, it applies +10 regular armor as an armor accessory, with no effects from Hardened Armor. The Rampart does not expand with sufficient force to harm anyone. While expanded, it has Structure 10, Armor 10 and is treated as being 10 cm for the purposes of barrier rules. While deployed, this barrier can be used as good cover. If damaged enough to penetrate while deployed, it becomes useless while collapsed, and may not re-extend. While useless, it provides no armor bonus, but still uses the original armor value for the purpose of calculating encumbrance. It may be repaired with an Armorer + Logic [Mental] (12, 30 minutes) extended test or by a contact with the same.

Armor Modifications

  • Armor mods may be applied to any base armor piece or accessory, subject to normal capacity rules. When possessing multiple instances of a rated armor mod, only the highest rated instance will apply to any situation. Additionally, one can only benefit from armor mods installed into pieces of armor one is benefiting from, or installed into cloaks. Thus, armor mods installed into (for example) a second skin underneath an armor jacket will not benefit you.
  • YNT softweave and gel packs may only be added to base armor pieces (armor that has a base armor value). Gel packs increase the base armor value.
  • A rating 6 medkit can be added to armor, though it only functions for the wearer.
  • Transfer of non-availability-altering armor modifications from base armor to base armor will be permitted.
  • Charges of a pulse weave suit act in the same manner as a flash-pak.
  • AR Enhanced creations of your own are permitted only on-table at GM discretion and aren't carried off the table on which they were created.
  • Shock frills used to attack require a dedicated unarmed attack, but it does not need to be a clinch or grapple.
    • Shock frills trigger defensively when clinched or grappled, as well as against unarmed attacks.
    • Shock frills deal 8S(e) AP -5, and have an accuracy of [Physical].
  • The grey mana integration armor modification (BTB 156) is permitted on ShadowHaven with the following changes:
    • Rather than requiring a chemical seal for ratings 4 to 6, ratings 4 to 6 may only be installed on armor that can take a chemical seal, and provide their benefits only when a theoretical equipped seal could be activated, that is to say, while wearing the entire suit of armor, including helmet. If not wearing the helmet, they provide the benefits of a rating 3 system.
    • When targeted by a beneficial or other targeted magical effect (including AoE), grey mana integration opposes the Spellcasting roll with its rating in dice, reducing the hits on the test as appropriate.
    • Grey mana does not penalize passive uses of magic (such as Improved Ability Negotiation) if the target is wearing it. Active uses of magic, such as Enthralling Performance, are still penalized.
    • The penalties for Awakened wearing grey mana integration and grey mana tattoos apply any time a background count would penalize them. Treat it as a localized, stacking, inacclimacable background count.
    • While grey mana integration is obvious, they are not definitively identifiable without labwork. While a police or security officer who notices them may be suspicious, an Astral Perception test is insufficient to arrest, only question.
  • Chemical Seal ("Chemseal") may be applied to the following armors, with varying requirements:
    • Can take Chemseal with no stipulations: Ares Arctic Forces (RG 77), Evo Armadillo Armored Spacesuit (RG 82), MCT EE Suit (RG 83), Security Space Suit (RG 81), Space Suit (RG 81), Survival Bubble (RG 83), Desert Suit (RG 75), Ares Victory Big Game Hunter (RG 64), Chameleon Suit (CRB 437)
    • Can take Chemseal, replacing Chemical Protection: Evo HEL Suit (RG 81)
    • Can take Chemseal, when combined with the corresponding helmet: Bunker Gear (RG 69), FBA (CRB 437), Hardened Mil-Spec Armor (RG 66), Riot Control Armor (RG 69), Security Armor (RG 67), SWAT Armor (RG 70), Urban Explorer Daedalus (SL 48), Urban Explorer Jumpsuit (CRB 437)
    • Can take Chemseal, when combined with a Full Face Mask (RG 79) or Enclosed Breathing Helmet (RG 79): Arctic Diver Suit (RG 80), Diving Armor (RG 80), Dry Suit (RG 79)



Custom Armor Mods
  • Internal Heating Armor Modification
    • The following custom Armor Modification are available for purchase:
      • Internal Heating Rating 1-6
      • Cost: 500 nuyen/Rating
      • 1 Modification Slot/Rating
      • Availability: 6
    • Description: Add up to 5 degrees + 5 degrees per Rating to the temperature your character is in to determine the effects of the Cold-Blooded Metagenetic Negative Quality. Requires Insulation of the same Rating to be effective.
    • At Rating 1 you'd have an effective +10C, and at Rating 6 an effective +35C.

Martial Arts

  • Knucklebreaker overrides the normal option of the Killing Hands adept power to select damage.
  • The Elemental Strike adept power still applies normally to damage dealt by attacks modified by the Knucklebreaker technique.
  • Iaijutsu permits drawing as a simple action upon successful completion of a quick draw test, then attacking as another simple at your discretion. It does not grant an attack as part of the quick draw test.
  • Martial Arts specializations in the Unarmed Combat skill or other combat skills will apply to only attacks utilizing techniques.
  • Kick Attack applies in any case where all of the following are true:
    • It is sensible for reach to be applied.
    • Where the Unarmed Combat skill is used.
    • Where one is able to use their feet in order to kick their opponent.
    • When the possessor both has the technique and desires to apply it.
    • It does not apply to attacks made with weapons not involving kicks. Thus, the knucks or shock gloves on your hands do not get the reach bonus to attacks in any circumstances. Notably, it will now apply to the Nerve Strike adept power.
  • A weapon focus bonus may apply to attacks made using the Two-Weapon Style Attack martial technique. Only a single focus may add to a dice pool for any given test.
  • Grasping Vines are accessible by the Cowboy Way and Whip Fighting in addition to the techniques already listed within these styles.
  • The Gun Kata martial art can use machine pistols.
  • Neither Mana Strike nor Mana Choke may be utilized by mundanes using Lucky Move.
  • When using unarmed weapons aside from bare hands or natural weapons, you may use either Counterstrike or Riposte at your preference.
  • La Verdadera Destreza's Multiple Opponent Defense gives the Friends in Melee bonus.
  • You cannot use One Trick Pony to learn Mana Strike.
  • You cannot use One Trick Pony to learn Mana Choke.
  • Mana Choke:
    • Requires you to have subdued your opponent.
    • Damage is resisted as drain. Body + Willpower for adepts and mundanes, Willpower + drain attribute for magicians and mystic adepts. This damage cannot be healed by anything other than rest.

Technique Stacking

  • Martial Arts techniques (including actions) may be taken twice to increase the benefit from 1 to 2 unless stated otherwise.
  • In accordance with RG pg 128, these stacking techniques must come from different Martial Arts.

Weapons

  • Cyberimplanted firearms roll with the skill associated with the base weapon and do not require an Exotic Ranged Weapon skill.
  • Explosives without a drop-off do not cause the chunky salsa rules resolution.
  • The damage and AP from multiple simultaneous explosions is computed as per RAW except that the DV of explosions beyond the second are halved again for each additional explosion. So the first explosion causes full damage, the the next causes half, the following half again, etc. until you reach zero (note: round down). Each explosion improves the best AP by 1 for every additional explosion.

Accessories

  • Melee weapons may have the ceramic/plasteel components modification.
  • Extra belts may be represented by the spare clip gun accessory or the gear item of the same name.
  • Only one gyromount applies to a particular gun.
  • For revolvers only, consider the ammo skip system to be slotless.
  • Improved range finder does not stack with magnification of any kind, whether or not it is on the weapon.
  • The smartgun must be wireless on in order to receive the wireless bonus. Directly connecting to a wireless off smartgun provides all the benefits of a smartlink except the wireless only dice bonus.
  • All purchased clips, standard and extended alike, for the weapon, can be assumed to be of the proper size.
  • When purchasing an explosive magazine, you may purchase a grenade for free and add a note to it that it deals half damage.
  • The Krime Happiness is permitted, to mass jubilation. Thanks to patented Troll Tough™ belt technology, the belt cannot be cut during a runaway firing situation (unless the GM deems fit, such as if cutting it would be to your disadvantage), but after the first full combat turn of nonstop fire, one may drop it. This won't stop it from firing, but will render its fire ineffective at anything other than collateral damage (GM discretion.) It will continue to fire on its own at a rate of 1 complex full auto per combat turn until it runs out of ammo.
  • The Krime pack is permitted, except it acts as a rating 2 area jammer and has no effect on Device rating. If the noise created by the KRIME pack, modified by noise reduction, is greater than the device rating of an affected object, and it is capable of doing so, the audio on the device is overwritten and it begins screaming "KRIME!" at maximum allowable volume. The device otherwise functions as it would inside a normal jammer.
    • Additionally, if tied to a glitched Krime Happiness, patented Troll Tough™ fibers will keep the Happiness tethered to your person until you manage to remove the backpack (3 complex actions) or it ceases firing. This is not likely to be a happy experience. As per the Krime Happiness, the Troll Tough™ fibers are mercurial and capricious and are only tough when a glitch or similar has occurred, and only for as long as the GM deems fit to inconvenience you.
  • The Narcoject Dazzler caps at a Blinding Glare for unprotected eyes and never inflicts blindness of any kind. It targets a cone centered on your last target shot at, or whoever you declare you are pointing your gun at if you did not shoot on your most recent action phase. The cone is 10 meters wide and 100 meters long. The penalty will apply to anyone within the cone looking at the dazzler, with line of sight, and not actively trying to avert their eyes. While within the cone, the only way to act against one bearing the Dazzler (or anyone broadly in their direction) is to suffer the glare penalties or to take the Blind Fire penalty.
Weapon Modification Clarifications

In order to benefit from a Stock slot modification, a weapon must be wielded in two hands. This can be done even with one handed weapons, such as SMGs.

Motorized Folding stock listed price is the same for the standard Simple Action stock. Activating the motor wirelessly is a Free Action.

  • Melee and Thrown – melee and thrown weapons (except for grenades) may not take any modifications except for a grip modification, "Custom Look", "Overclocked", "Sling", "Tracker", "Weapon Commlink", " Plasteel/Ceramic Components" and "Weapon Personality". They can make use of holsters, if the weapon is appropriately sized. Grenades may not take any modifications whatsoever.
  • Tasers – Tasers have access to the Top, Side and Internal slots by default. They are one-handed.
  • Holdouts – Holdouts cannot take any modifications that require slots. They are one handed.
  • Pistols – Light, Heavy, and Machine Pistols have access to Top, Barrel, Side and Internal slots by default. They are one-handed.
    • Revolvers – in addition to the above, they may take ammo skip.
  • Submachine Guns – SMGs have access to the Top, Side, Barrel, Stock and Internal slots by default. They are one-handed.
  • Carbines, ARs, Sporting Rifles, Snipers, Shotguns, MGs – Carbines, Assault Rifles, Sporting Rifles, Sniper Rifles, Shotguns and all categories of Machine Guns have access to all slots by default. They are two-handed.
  • ACs and Launchers – Assault Cannons, Grenade Launchers, Rocket Launchers and Missile Launchers have access to the Top, Side, Underbarrel, Stock and Internal slots by default. They are two-handed.
  • Flamethrowers, including Flame Bracers, cannot take any modifications that require slots. They are two-handed.
  • Crossbows – Light, Medium and Heavy crossbows have access to the Top, Side, Stock and Internal slots. They cannot take Electronic Firing. They are two-handed.
    • The Ranger Sliver Pistol Crossbow has access to the Top, Side and Internal slots. It cannot take Electronic Firing. The Ranger Sliver Pistol Crossbow is one-handed and has a concealability modifier of +0.
  • Bows – Bows, including the Krime Trollbow and the Dynamic Tension Bow, are obligate two-handed weapons. They cannot be fired in one hand by taking a penalty. The Krime Trollbow and Dynamic Tension Bow as well as Compound Bows can take an Internal Smartgun System and a grip modification, as well as a probably superfluous laser sight. Traditional bows can take a grip modification, a probably superfluous laser sight, and their own special breakdown system detail on p. 197 of "Hard Targets". Bows have access to top slots as well.
    • The Winchester Airbow has the same slots as detailed in RAW. It is two-handed and has a concealability of +6.
    • PEPS – the Narcoject PEP has the same slots as detailed in RAW. It is one-handed and has a concealability of +0.
  • Excluded Individual Ranged Weapons – any weapon in the following list cannot take any modifications except for grips.
    • Any weapon which has a paid essence or capacity cost, typically cyberweapons and bioweapons, are incapable of taking any modifications, grips included, except for those specifically called out in RAW.
    • The Tiffani Elegance Shooting Bracers. They are treated as one-handed at concealability +0 for spotting it, though they retain the RAW modifier to discern the true function. They cannot benefit even from grips, but cannot be disarmed by called shots or similar effects.
    • The SA Retiarus Net Gun (Basic and XL). They are treated as two-handed at concealability +6.
    • The Mortimer of London "Trafalgar" Gun Cane and Knockoff Gun Cane. They are treated as one-handed.
    • Bolas (Regular and Monofilament). Bolas are one-handed and have a concealability of +4. Additionally, bolas cannot take grips.
    • Blowguns. Blowguns are one handed and have a concealability of +2.
    • The Ares Giantslayer Slingshot. Slingshots are obligate two-handed weapons (you cannot take a penalty to wield them in one hand, due to their nature) with a concealability of +0.
    • The Micro Flare Launcher. Micro Flare Launchers are typically one-handed weapons with a concealability of -2.
    • The Modified Spray Pen and the Pepper Punch Pen may only take grips.
  • Pistol-sized Individual Ranged Weapons – any weapon in the following list has access to the Top and Internal slots by default. They are one-handed and count as pistol-sized with a concealability of +0. Unless otherwise indicated, they cannot take Electronic Firing.
    • The Parashield Dart Pistol, the Ares Redline Laser Pistol, the FN-AAL Gyrojet Pistol (in addition to the above, the Gyrojet pistol has access to the Barrel slot and Electronic Firing, but not Suppressors), The Narcoject Gas Gun, the Narcoject Trackstopper, the Narcoject Dazzler (this only applies to the standalone version, not the weapon modification version).
  • Submachine Gun-sized Individual Ranged Weapons - Any weapon in the following list has access to the Top, Side, Stock, and Internal slots by default. They are one-handed and count as SMG-sized with a concealability of +4. Unless otherwise indicated, they cannot take Electronic Firing.
    • The Ares Lancer MP Laser, Ares Screech Sonic Rifle, Grapple guns (regular and tactical).
  • Carbine/Assault Rifle-sized Individual Ranged Weapons – any weapon in the following list has access to the Top, Side, Underbarrel, Stock, and Internal slots by default. They are two-handed and count as rifle-sized with a concealability of +6 Unless otherwise indicated, they cannot take Electronic Firing.
    • The Ares S-III Super Squirt, the Fichetti Pain Inducer, the Aquadyne Shark-XS Harpoon Gun, the Standard Harpoon Gun, the Ares Armatus (Laser Shotgun).
  • Sniper-sized Individual Ranged Weapons – any weapon in the following list has access to the Top, Side, Underbarrel, Stock, and Internal slots by default. They are two-handed and count as rifle-sized with a concealability of +8. Unless otherwise indicated, they cannot take Electronic Firing.
    • The Parashield Dart Rifle, The Ares Archon Heavy MP Laser, the Ares Thunderstruck Gauss Rifle.
  • Weapons with multiple forms (i.e. HK XM30) share the Body, Stock, Top, Side and Grip slots across their forms. Those mods need to be added separately for each form, but only paid for once. Barrel and Magazine mods differ from form to form and need to be bought as normal.

Assault Rifles

  • The Ultimax Rain Forest carbine uses the Missions Errata, rather than the original GH3 stats.
  • The Onotari HL-13 (SL 38) uses Automatics rather than Firearms for its configuration roll.

Blades

  • The Aztechnology Blood Drinker Combat Axe has a reach of 0.
  • The Collapsible Scythe uses the Blades skill and falls under the "Polearms" specialization.
  • The Horizon-Flynn Defense-com Commlink Knife requires a Perception + Intuition [Mental] (3) test to identify that it is a weapons.
  • The Renraku Red Samurai Katana (SL 132) is permitted, however, PC possession incurs the Wanted negative quality automatically, with a bounty of 50000¥. This may be bought off with 20 karma, 40000¥ or any combination thereof (2000¥ to 1 karma) combined with handing over the intact weapon. Discarding or breaking the weapon will cause you to retain the bounty until your death.

Bows and Crossbows

  • The Krime Trollbow used the stats from the book, correcting for the erroneous "reach" entry on the table for the ranged components. The stats are reproduced as follows:
    • It uses Archery to fire, with an accuracy of 4, DV of (rating + 2) physical and AP of -(rating/4) for the ranged component.
    • The melee component uses the Blades skill, with an accuracy of 3, a reach of 1, a DV of (Strength + 1) physical and an AP of -1.
    • It may be used to overdraw up to rating 12. Additionally, one is free to buy arrows up to rating 12 for use with it.
  • The light, medium and heavy crossbows have +5, +6 and +7 concealability, respectively.

Clubs

  • The Fluid motion mace disregards the penalties listed outside their statblock, for simplicity's sake. This means that it has no minimum Strength requirement to avoid penalties.
  • In the event an osmium mace is made a weapon focus, your Charisma determines its variable stats in astral space.

Exotic Melee Weapons

  • In the specific case of the Krime stun lance, one may substitute one's Clubs pool at a -4 penalty to make attacks. One may not benefit from any specialization in Clubs when doing so.
  • Monofilament whips may not be used with the Sweep technique unless explicitly permitted by the GM at their sole prerogative. They may never be used with the Called Shot: Entanglement.
  • The shock ram deals (Strength + 2 + net hits)P DV -3 AP to the target, then an additional 12S(e) soaked separately. It can be turned on or off as a free action if the ram is wireless on. It has a single charge and takes 10 seconds to recharge when plugged into a power source.
  • The Narcoject Trackstopper is permitted, but with some hefty changes. It will apply the listed agility penalty as RAW to any actions, using full body average for the purposes of incapacitation. Only the highest single penalty from a roll will apply, but that penalty will remain in place until all foam has been cleared from your body.
    • In addition to allowing the foam to dissipate on its own or using the special solvent, you may also attack the foam, which has 4 condition monitor boxes for each application you have successfully been struck by. Non-melee attacks will be considered penetrative for the purposes of the barrier rules. Even if your limbs are incapacitated by foam applications, you may still attack the foam with unarmed attacks, using an agility score of 1. This is likely to go poorly for you unless you are trained in unarmed, but c’est la vie.
    • Being incapacitated by the foam does not preclude defense tests, though it may well make Agile Defender less desirable.
    • The ammo capacity is 6(m), with a full reload of 6 shots taking up about a third of the backpack mechanism. Despite allusions to it, a single shot may not be split across multiple targets.
    • It can also be used to barricade doors or entries. A single application of foam can block off about one square meter, vertically, of hallway. If used against a swinging door, it will prevent that door from swinging into the foam, though bashing attacks against the door will strike the foam (and its soak values) before carrying through into the door... assuming you're clever enough to turn the doorknob when you bash into it.

Exotic Ranged Weapons

  • The atomizer has an accuracy of 3 and concealability of +0. It uses the skill Non-Ballistic Firearms with a range array of 0.1/0.25/0.5/1 meters. The atomizer takes a complex action to reload, and requires a simple action to fire.
    • The preparation used with an atomizer triggers on a valid target after firing (i.e., a living aura, similar to a contact prep).
    • The atomizer itself functions as the lynchpin for breaking sustained spells (i.e., if the atomizer is broken, the spell will drop).
    • An atomizer cannot take accessories or modifications.
  • The Ares Screech sonic rifle affects targets who are deaf or who have cyberears off normally.
  • The Ares Screech sonic rifle cannot be used for called shots.
  • The Ares Screech sonic rifle can take an external power source instead of a clip.
  • The Narcoject PEP are permitted as is, but it is a matter of official record that the explanation of "It shoots lasers to plasmatize your skin, then explodes that plasma" is marketing bullshit. How does it work? No clue, but not like that.
  • The microwave gun is modified as follows:
    • The cost is reduced from 1000000¥ to 100000¥.
    • The microwave gun halves the armor of whatever it is attacking and always does physical damage.
      • This means that even if the target had 100 armor (cut to 50), any damage that slips past is physical.
      • This reduction happens before the damage resistance occurs.

Flame Throwers

  • Flamethrowers can take internal smart guns and advanced safety systems.
  • The Flametosser may use Non-Ballistic Firearm Skill.
  • Flamethrowers do not get choke settings. On flechette suppressive fire, they receive no bonus width, although it counts as enhanced suppression.
  • The Halloweener Barbeque Lighter is a one-handed weapon connected to a backpack tank. The Shiawase Arms Incinerator and the Shiawase Blazer are two-handed.

Grenade/Rocket/Missile Launchers

  • The Aztechnology Striker is destroyed upon firing. It is not reusable in any sense of the word.
  • Missiles do not have a "sensor rating" as described in CRB 435. They may be aquired as availability as +4 and cost +500¥ with respect to the base rocket.
  • Armtech MGL-12 is Single Shot instead of semi auto.
  • The Wuxing-Armstech PTL-02 is permitted, but note that it only functions underwater.
  • Grenade, rocket and missile launchers are fired one of two ways:
    • At a point in space, using a simple action rolling Heavy Weapons + Agility [Accuracy] (3) (or a complex action using the appropriate Gunnery test if mounted)
    • At an enemy target, using a simple action rolling Heavy Weapons + Agility [Accuracy] (or a complex action rolling the appropriate Gunnery test if mounted) opposed by the enemy's defense test
    • In either of these modes, the attacker fires a single munition downrange. If the attack fails to hit the threshold or misses the target, immediately roll a scatter test.
    • The Mitsubishi Yakusoku MRL has specific rules which override this. In burst-fire mode, a character uses a simple action to fire the weapon, chooses two targets (a point in space, an enemy target or one of each) and splits their dice pool amongst these two targets. Ignore the text about "self-guided systems".
    • If a direct attacks with a launcher is taken roll the attack versus the defense test normally. Run for your life is not allowed for the target, but is allowed for those nearby. Net hits do not add to the damage.

Misses, scatter and glitches will follow the rules on motion sensor triggers.

Heavy Weapons

  • For Strength requirements of heavy weapons, use the full-body average, excluding the head.

Krime Katalog

  • The KRIME Vester is classified as a holdout pistol.
  • The KRIME Heater is classified as a light pistol.
  • The KRIME Varmint Stocked Pistol is a heavy pistol. It has -RC without the stock and 1 RC with the stock.
  • The KRIME Chatter is classified as a machine pistol.
  • The KRIME Tradition is classified as an SMG.
  • Krime Saint Nicholas Carbine is classified as a carbine, the concealment of the weapon is changed to -2 if a character is wearing any armor or cloak with a concealment modifier.
  • The AKM-97 when used as a carbine has its RC is changed to 0(1). When used as an assault rifle, it has a RC of 1.
  • The Krime Ditch Combination Gun's rifle component is a sporting rifle.
  • The Krime Stopper-II is classified as a shotgun.
  • The Krime Junior Carbine is classified as a carbine.
  • The Krime Soldier is classified as a sniper rifle.
  • The Krime KAR-97-H is classified as an LMG.
  • The Krime Monster is classified as an MMG.
  • The Krime Confederate has its availability changed to 20F on ShadowHaven.
  • The Krime T-Shirt Cannon may be fired with Longarms, Automatics or Heavy Weapons.
  • The Krime Escalation is classified as a rocket launcher, fires rockets and you may perform Matrix Perception tests with it.
  • The Krime Penetrators buckshot shells use flechette rules.
  • The Krime Runner may not be equipped with a grenade.

Lasers

  • The Ares Lancer is SMG sized for the purposes of cyberimplanting. Note that you need an external clip port in order to load it, as it is not an (m) type weapon.
  • The Repeating Laser (LCD 209) costs 100,000 ¥.
  • The Ares Armatus uses the Laser Weapon skill.
  • Laser Weapons are adjusted as follows:
    • Redline: +3DV : ACC 9 / DV 8 / AP -10 / SA
    • Lancer: +3DV : ACC 7 / DV 10 / AP -10 / SA,BF
    • Armatus: +6DV : ACC 6 / DV 12 / AP -5 / SA,BF
    • Archon: +5DV : ACC 7 / DV 15 / AP -10 / SA, only consumes 3 charges per shot
    • Repeating Laser: +4DV : ACC 7 / DV 11 / AP -8 / SA,BF,FA
  • Peak Discharge Packs have their capacity increased to:
    • Clip: 15
    • Satchel: 30
    • Backpack: 90

Longarms

  • The Krime Whammy acts as listed. Additionally, it is able to take a complex action in order to both fire the shotgun and swing the hammer at a single barrier target with a single action, though both attacks are rolled and resolved separately. This may only be used against static barriers, a la Smashing Blow.

Pistols and Machine Pistols

  • The Shiawase Puzzler is not immune or resistant to MAD scanners, however, even recognizing its separate components as a weapon requires the same test whether one is using a MAD scanner or not.
  • The PPSK-4 Collapsible machine pistol and the PSK-3 Collapsible heavy pistol have a concealability modifier of -6 when collapsed.
  • The Ranger Sliver pistol has a concealability of +0.
  • All uses of the Barrens Special should conform to the printed statblock.
  • The Horizon-Flynn Defense Commlink Holdout and Taser requires a Perception + Intuition [Mental] (3) test to identify that they are weapons.
  • The Morrissey Alta is restricted, not forbidden.
  • The Nemesis Arms Praetorian has an accuracy of 4(5), not 4(6).

Tusks and Horns

  • Orks and trolls may attack with their natural weapons (tusks for both and horns for trolls) with +2 accuracy.

Underbarrel Weapons

  • Underbarrel weapons are considered to possess all the modifications of the main weapon with the exception of its barrel slot mods UNLESS the modification wouldn't work with the UB weapon. UB weapons are unable to accept any additional mods.
  • Underbarrel grenade launches may take the airburst modification as an exception to the above rule.
  • The underbarrel bola launcher has accuracy 4, 1(m) and the SS firing mode.
  • The underbarrel chainsaw mounts a specific (non-custom) chainsaw and uses its attributes.
  • The underbarrel flamethrower uses a specific existing (non-custom) flamethrower and uses its attributes.
  • The underbarrel grapple gun functions as a normal, non-tactical grapple gun.
  • The underbarrel grenade launcher will have an accuracy of 3, 6(c) ammo capacity and the SS firing mode.

Throwing Weapons

  • Each throwing attack with wireless-on throwing knives or shuriken gains +1 die, pre-split, for each wireless-on throwing knife or shuriken you have thrown at that target in this combat turn.
  • The Urban Tribe tomahawk used in melee has the same stats except for reach 0. It uses the Blades skill.

One-Handing Two-Handed Weapons

  • Characters, when using two-handed weapons (defined below) with one hand, will take penalties.
  • Two-Handed weapons:
    • All assault cannons
    • All assault rifles
    • The following Blades:
      • Combat Axe
      • Claymore
      • Collapsible Scythe
      • Cougar Collapsible Spear
      • Katana (Exception: takes -1 DV rather than -2 DV for one-handed use, other penalties as normal)
      • Krime Bill
      • Krime Reaver
      • Nodachi
      • Polearm
      • Renraku Red Samurai Katana (Exception: takes -1 DV rather than -2 DV for one-handed use, other penalties as normal)
    • All bows**
    • All carbines
    • All crossbows except for the Ranger Sliver Pistol Crossbow (though reloading still takes a free hand)
    • The following Clubs:
      • Fluid-Motion Mace
      • Nemesis Arms Maul Stun Staff
      • Osmium Mace
      • Pitchfork
      • Staff
      • Telescoping Staff
    • The following Exotic Melee Weapons:
      • Ash Arms Chainsaw
      • Ash Arms Monofilament Chainsaw
      • All battering rams**
      • Monofilament Chainsaw
    • The following Flamethrowers:
      • Shiawase Arms Incinerator
      • Shiawase Blazer
    • All grenade launchers
    • All heavy machine guns**
    • The following lasers:
      • Ares Archon Heavy MP Laser
    • All light machine guns
    • All medium machine guns
    • All missile launchers
    • All shotguns with the exception of the Krime Stopper-II (any variant)
    • Any Krime Stopper-II (or variant) with an under barrel attachment
    • All Sniper rifles
    • All sporting rifles
  • All ranged weapons on this list, when wielded with one hand, suffer the following penalties:
    • -2 die pool penalty unless you are a troll(or Sasquatch) (in which case only a -1 die pool penalty).
    • Considered to have already fired 6 bullets after recoil has been reset (see progressive recoil, CRB 175).
  • All melee weapons on this list, when wielded with one hand, suffer the following penalties:
    • -2 dice pool penalty unless you are a troll(or Sasquatch) (in which case only a -1 dice pool penalty).
    • -2 DV penalty EXCEPT for the katana and the Renraku Red Samurai Katana, which only take a -1 DV penalty.
    • Battering rams, bows, heavy machine guns and sniper rifles cannot be used one-handed, unless braced against something (GM fiat here).

Ammunition

  • You cannot buy hits to handload your own ammunition. However, remember that you can buy it.
  • Handload ammunition retains the availability of the ammo it is duplicating.
  • Explosive and ex-explosive rounds are non-penetrative rounds, thus do not penetrate barriers.
  • Seeker shafts use the rating of the arrow and their bonus stacs with the smartlink bonus.
  • DMSO can be added to the Narcoject gas gun.
  • Looper rounds are permitted, but rather than using the text written, refer to the following: Looper rounds are available for 200¥ for every 10 rounds, and have an availability of 12R. When they strike a valid device – a sensor, a visual device, or an audio device – they loop the last five seconds over again for the next minute. They are programmed to account for things such as clocks, but crowds or complex changes of scene will reveal the deception. Physical examination of the device will note the round attached and direct Matrix examination with Matrix Perception will note the effects after they have run their course. In order to affect worn gear, a called shot at -6 is necessary. They have a maximum accuracy of 2, require 1 net hit to attach, deal no damage of any kind and may not be used against any device paid for with essence.
  • ArrowLink is permitted. The existing types, cost and availability, rules for attaching and removing the arrow or cord remain in place. However, instead of ignoring noise, the ArrowLink provides a direct connection through touchlink technology to the target struck. Targeting a device the size of a normal security camera requires a called shot at -4, while targeting anything meaningfully larger is resolved as a normal attack. Objects carried by a person or drone are permitted to use the defense test of the person or drone carrying them. They are available for bows, trollbows, pistol crossbows, mounted crossbows, and light/medium/heavy crossbows. In order to benefit from the direct connection, one must plug a device into the cord at the firer's end and they can not provide any connection to a targeted device paid for by essence (devices on the firer's end may be paid for with essence, if desired).
    • Arrowlink has the option to provide a wireless connection to the device it hits. The wireless connection does not count as a direct connection (and thus is subject to noise) and may be accessed by everyone. The direct connection with the cable is still only accessible by the attacker.

Gyrojet Ammunition

  • Ammo types: the Gyrojet pistol has two types of ammo. The full statline will be provided below. One of these is fabricated but identical to what is listed in Hero Lab.
    • Gyrojet ammo - +0 DV, +0 AP. 12F availability. 80¥/10 rounds.
    • Gyrojet SnS - -2S(e), -5 AP. 14R availability. 160¥/10 rounds.

Flechettes

  • Weapons with flechette as part of their damage code default can only fire flechette rounds. This does not include SnS flechettes.
  • SnS flechettes can only be loaded into shotguns.

Maker Mags

  • Cannot be used to make Depleted Uranium rounds, to reduce Thematics team migraines. The extended magazine is treated as the +2 concealability version from Hard Targets. Maker grenades are not permitted. It is worth noting that you may, as usual, purchase multiple of an item with a single availability roll, increasing the delivery time based on the total cost of the purchase.

Rockets

  • All missile/rocket launchers can fire rockets or missiles. Missiles gain the additional benefit:
    • A user may make an active targeting test as a simple action:
      • Vehicle-mounted launchers roll Gunnery + Agility/Logic [Mental OR Sensor Rating].
      • Metahuman/critter carried launchers roll Heavy Weapons + Logic [Mental].
    • The user gets a modifier on this test based on the Signature Table.
      • Metahuman/critter targets roll Sneaking + Agility [Physical].
      • Rigged vehicle/drone targets roll Sneaking + Reaction/Intuition [Handling].
      • Autonomous vehicle/drone targets roll Pilot + [Model] Evasion [Handling].
    • If the active targeting test succeeds, net hits on this test act as a defense penalty when making the next direct fire at that target. Note that the target may not run for their life unless the missile misses. This active targeting bonus only lasts for one attack.
    • If, for some reason, an active targeting test succeeds and is not used in the same pass, the target may spend a simple action to evade detection: reroll the active targeting test. If the target succeeds, net hits on their test reduce the defense penalty from active targeting (to a minimum of 0).
    • Missiles have no other benefit aside from damage. They do not have their own sensor rating.


Altered Miscellaneous and Rulings

Skills and Attributes

  • Skills are linked to the attribute being used with them in a given test.
  • Currently attribute-linked refers to the attribute currently in use with the skill. This is a departure from RAW.

Street Cred

  • Street cred goes by the text, with the table assumed to be a misprint - it provides a limit increase, but no dice increase.

Metatypes and Co.

  • Metavariants are not their parent metatype and cannot take qualities or ware restricted to them as a general rule. If there is an explicit exception, it remains in place.
  • Shifters may shift with deltaware cyberware, even if it isn't purely internal, without it being automatically rejected.

Mundane-Only Content

  • Characters who have acquired a Magic or Resonance rating and continue to have any bonuses from the source which gave it do not qualify for mundane-only qualities, ascensions or other options. Characters who previously had it and no longer currently have any benefits from the source of that rating, aside from knowledge skills, may qualify for mundane-only options, however. This means that non-dual-natured infected do not qualify for mundane-only options, but a formerly awakened or emerged character who has burned out completely (zero magic and zero resonance) would.

Mundane Ascension

  • Mundane characters may undertake a story building ordeal much like Awakened/Emerged characters do. Ascensions have an eight week cooldown. Make up to 5 selections (including multiple copies of the same). Each selection replaces 1 RVP normally gained from the run. Purchasing high availability items falls under the purview of Thematics.
  • 5 karma towards a skill, skill group or martial art.
  • 20000¥ towards non-ware. You may bank this across multiple ascensions.
  • 6 karma towards qualities at post-gen price.
  • 4 karma towards edge.
  • 10000¥ towards ware. You may bank this across multiple ascensions.
  • +20 Faction Rep.

Additional Prototype Materials

  • It was even harder getting cutting-edge prototypes from that corporate facility a second time, but you managed to do it twice now. Furthermore, you've applied your own creative brand of ingenuity to upgrade your custom weapon with the parts. The quality Additional Prototype Materials can be taken after you have purchased the quality Prototype Materials. It allows you to further enhance the weapon you have applied the benefits of Secondary Special Modifications to. All rules for Special Modifications are in affect for these qualities.

Secondary Special Modifications

  • There might be one other like it, but both weapons are yours, and you've put just as much R&D into it as your other favorite toy. Other folks spend time polishing their spell slinging or expanding their other special skills, but you've got more faith in your gear than any fancy tricks others might use. Whether it was through some inspired mechanical genius or the unauthorized borrowing of some secret prototype, you have turned your other favorite weapon into the best jury-rigged version around. The quality Secondary Special Modifications can be taken after you have purchased the quality Special Modifications. It allows you to enhance an additional weapon you have not applied the benefits of Special Modifications to. All rules for Special Modifications are in affect for these qualities.

Delivery Time

  • Delivery times are based off of the cost of the total cost of all items bought, not just the cost of a single item.

Better Than Bad’s New Uses for Karma and Street Cred

  • The "New Uses for Karma and Street Cred" are in effect, except where noted below.
  • The rules for purchasing additional Loyalty and Connection with contacts are not in effect, superseded by our own Contact Rules.
  • The uses for Reputation Score are not in effect as Reputation Score is not a game concept that exists. If the writer's intent was Faction Rep, as Mechanics Team suspects, this is also superseded by our own rules.

Lifestyle

  • Your lifestyle costs are due in full every 4 runs, rather than being tied to the passage of time.
    • Optionally, you may choose to pay 25% of the full costs each run if you prefer.
      • Of note is that Chummer may not calculate this correctly with modifications to the lifestyle cost, such as a DocWagon subscription, as by default setting it up to only pay 25% your lifestyle cost will only discount your base lifestyle.
  • Runners may share residences, but when it comes to lifestyle costs every runner must pay the full 100% of their lifestyle costs. Lifestyles are not simply just an apartment - they factor many other things into it as well from food, entertainment and other essentials. So while we allow people to room with other runners you will receive no discount.

Traveler Lifestyle

When you pay rent or at character generation, roll on the traveler lifestyle table below to see what options your traveler lifestyle gets. If you have an idea for this table, feel free to send it to Leadership.

SINner, Trust Fund Interactions
- Ork/Human/Elf Dwarf Troll
Street 0 0 0
Squatter 500 600 1000
Low 2000 2400 4000
Medium 5000 6000 10000
High 10000 12000 20000
Luxury 100000 120000 200000

Trust Fund should only cover up to that amount on the table above for each lifestyle/metatype. Secondly, SINner taxes should not be covered by Trust Fund.

Cost Reduction

  • For luxury, high, medium, low and squatter lifestyles, street cred or karma may be exchanged to reduce the base lifestyle cost to the next lowest level. The reduction cost is to be paid in any combination of street cred and/or karma in a one to one thousand nuyen rate. Costs can never be reduced further than 1 level. No other lifestyles may be reduced in cost and only the base lifestyle cost is reduced. Any taxes are applied to the adjusted base cost. Trust Fund lifestyles cannot be reduced in this way.

AR Fashion

AR Fashion can be assumed to be part of your lifestyle at the following levels (or paid for separately at the listed prices): Casual is included in a low lifestyle, Business in medium, Formal in high and Designer in luxury.

CarnivoreGold

  • There are no limits on what may be translated, though the threshold may vary. The threshold should not exceed 8 in any case.

DocWagon

  • Resuscitation does not replace the requirement to burn edge in order to invoke Not Dead Yet.

Subliminal Subacoustics

  • Emotions that fit are GM discretion and their decision is final.

Vocal Tension Lie Detection

  • Vocal Tension Lie Detection may, at GM discretion, add to the Con resist roll.
  • It always applies to judge intentions rolls to determine if someone is lying.

Workshop/Facility

  • Workshops and facilities do not require a commercial lifestyle.

Ware

  • Assume that additional costs (lifestyle costs etc.) are not multiplied by ware grade.
  • Custom cybergun availabilities are affected by the grade of the arm they are implanted in.
  • Partial cyberlimbs may be upgraded to fuller limbs in accordance with the upgrade rules. Existing limb components must be present in the new fuller limb. This process can not be used to remove or change modifications that were present in the existing limb.
  • The bonus from the spider eyes implant does not stack with multiple sets.
  • A cybergland not installed in conjunction with an implanted cyberweapon may apply toxins to melee weapons using a complex action. A complex action is also what is required to apply a held toxin to a held melee weapon. In any case, a dose of toxin applied to a melee weapon is expended on a successful attack with that weapon.
  • Cyberglands may only be used to offensively deploy toxins with explicit GM fiat and should generally only be usable in this fashion against helpless or unaware targets.
  • A character with the Shiva Arms quality still uses 2 arms, 2 legs and the torso for the purposes of encumbrance calculations and limits for knockdown. Attribute scores and limits for specific actions remain in the realm of GM fiat for these characters.
  • You cannot add mods to bioweapons.
  • The Biocompatibility quality affects the grade multiplier, Adapsin affects the final essence cost afterwards. Thus, Biocompatibility comes in effect first and affects the grade modified essence cost, then the final number is affected by Adapsin.
  • Body augmentations for the purpose of resisting damage from bone density augmentation or bone lacing are not restricted by augmented maximums.
  • Characters with the Regeneration power can take geneware via getting access to deltaware clinics, via runs at Thematics approval.

Deltaware Access

  • Awakened and those with Regeneration may not purchase deltaware except as part of rewards given for a specific run.
  • The chance for an Awakened or Emerged character to purchase deltaware may be given as a Run Reward for Semi-Prime or Prime runs. This takes up 15 RVP and must be approved by a member of the Thematics Team.
  • For awakened or emerged PCs with the Regeneration critter power, this takes up 30 RVP and must be approved by a member of the Thematics Team.
  • Cosmetic ware that would cost 0 Essence by house rules does not require a run reward for deltaware access even for Awakened or characters with Regeneration. To be clear, this is an exception to the above rules and the only exception.

Tailored Greyware

  • Tailored greyware is a higher grade version of greyware. The Brothers Grey Auction House, after the success of greyware, have gone about improving on the selling points of their modified cyberware. Tailored greyware is cheaper than deltaware, more readily available than betaware and costs less essence than betaware too. It's a cut above the regular greyware, but still keeps the same sleek but old-school look (with some improvements); it uses as few off-the-shelf parts as possible and is custom tuned to the recipient in order to better integrate with their body. It's got the following characteristics:
    • 1.7x the nuyen cost of standard grade cyberware.
    • 0.65x the essence cost of standard grade cyberware.
    • Adds 2 to the availability of the cyberware (for example, availability 8 becomes 10).
    • Not available at chargen.
    • Otherwise, it follows the normal greyware rules.

Cosmetic and Therapeutic Ware

  • Purely "cosmetic or therapeutic" pieces of ware (cyberware or bioware) cost no essence ever (and never have in-universe).
  • At chargen, there is no nuyen cost for purely "cosmetic or therapeutic" pieces of ware. After chargen, they will have their nuyen prices as listed in the books.
  • When using any of these, your character is still recognizable as you – just you with cat ears or whatever.
  • Healing time for between runs is assumed to be done before the next run starts (as is all other 'ware upgrades). Healing time during a run is handled as taking 0-3 physical and stun boxes (GM fiat based on how extensive the augmentation is), with surgery taking as much time as the GM says it does.
  • Biosculpting to look less like an infected and to not be recognizable as yourself is an exception to the above and still costs essence (and nuyen if done during chargen).
    • "Cosmetic and therapeutic" pieces of ware is defined as any piece of ware which has no mechanical benefit, exists solely to buy off negative qualities (the karma cost still needs to be paid) or are therapeutic (such as limb replacements).

Geneware

  • Shifters may take geneware freely and continue to shift. As it is not an implant, the Shift power does not expel it, cause any damage or loss of the geneware.
  • All metatypes and metavariants can take all genetic treatments. Shifters and metasapients may take any geneware that is not part of phenotype adjustment. For transgenic alterations, shifters apply them equally to both forms. Infected may take any geneware appropriate for their type.

GreyWare

  • Greyware is permitted for any cyberware, however, any cyberware that would not ordinarily be obvious becomes obvious (skin protrusions, vents, whatever you wish to fluff it as within reason), and no cyberware may have any wireless functionality to speak of. For example, a greyware smartlink can still provide a bonus to accuracy if you plug into your gun, however, it can never provide bonus dice. Any wireless bonuses are similarly denied, and a greyware implanted commlink is not going to be able to make commcalls... you be the judge of how useful that may be.
  • Direct connections do not grant wireless bonuses. You forfeit the entire bonus, not just the connectivity.

Adapsin

  • Adapsin works retroactively and works as a multiplicative modifier. Multiply the final essence cost of the ware by 0.9 after including other modifiers based on grade and the presence or lack thereof of Biocompatibility.

Antenna Grill

  • Requires implanted cyberdeck/commlink or a living persona.
  • Can only be taken by characters with tusks (orks, trolls, people with implanted tusks, etc.).

Auto-Injector

  • Slap patches may not be placed into auto-injectors.

Bilateral Coordination Coprocessor

  • The bilateral coordination coprocessor reduces penalties by 2 for any given action, including for any allowed number of Shiva arm pairs. If you are only using one non-primary hand, this will typically be sufficient. However, if you are using multiple, the GM may apply the penalty multiple times, at their discretion. We suggest they only do this in cases where multiple limbs are required to coordinate to a higher degree than firing a weapon - for example performing brain surgery.
  • The limit increase of multiple coprocessors stacks. No wireless bonus granting extra dice on a test stacks with the bonus from the same item, unless explicitly stated to do so.

Bone Lacing

  • Bone Lacing stacks with cyberlimbs.

Chemical Glands

  • Permitted drugs for use in chemical glands are:
    • All drugs in CRB (BTLs, as noted below, are excepted)
    • All drugs in CF, with the following exceptions: Cereprax, Hurlg, K-10, Nightwatch, NoPaint, Sober Time and Soothsayer
    • All drugs in "Boston Lockdown" with the following exception: Numb
  • No magical compounds, Awakened drugs or BTLs are allowed for use with the glands.
  • No contact vector-only drugs are allowed for use with the glands.

Cyberlimbs and Cyberlimb Mods

  • Strength and Agility customization and enhancement should be applied to the coremost (that is to say, the part closest to the torso - the uppermost part) part of any modular limbs a character has, and will automatically flow down through any parts possessed.
  • Theoretically, any non-magical, non-Resonance skill may be taken as a cyberlimb optimization. However, no skill used over the Matrix or otherwise used remotely, no social skill apart from Performance and Etiquette, no skill used on the astral or against a target on the astral, or using the Resonance, may benefit from a cyberlimb optimization. Generally, a limb must be at least tangentially used to benefit, but this should be interpreted very broadly.
  • Cyberlimb optimization when applied to something with accuracy will increase that items accuracy.
  • Cyberhands do not play into calculations for attacks. For the time being, lower arms count as averaging halfway with the meat limb.
  • Cyberhand drone stats are: Handling 5 Speed 1G Acceleration 1 Body 1(1) Armor 1 Pilot 2 Sensor 1 Avail 8.
    • The drone can wear gecko gloves and make use of them for climbing.
  • The Liminal Body: Centaur ware only gives capacity in the legs.
  • Cyberlimbs limit armor to:
    • 1 for hands and feet
    • 2 for partial limbs and partial skulls
    • 3 for full limbs and full skulls

Modular Cyberlimbs

  • Modular connectors between flesh and limb work in one of two ways - either you purchase a connector and place it in your flesh, allowing you to change out any appropriately-sized limb, or you purchase a modular limb and can swap it out without the use of a connector, but only with other modular limbs. Essentially, you pay in capacity or essence. In either case, your essence will adjust, leaving essence holes as appropriate, to any changes in your limbs. A connector does not place a limb into its capacity, so it still costs essence to have an arm attached to a connector.
  • When using modular cyber limbs, only the limb component with the highest armor is calculated.

Datajack Plus

  • The datajack plus does not grant program slots to a technomancer's living persona. It still grants the noise reduction.
  • Only functions when connected to a deck or RCC, it does not include any free programs and it cannot run an agent or Virtual Machine. Functionally, it increases the program slots of the deck or RCC by its rating.

Digigrade

  • Digigrade legs cost both essence and capacity. The increased essence cost is affected by 'ware grade as usual. It adds to the essence cost of the leg for the purposes of reductions.

EARRS

  • The -10 penalty applies to all non-Matrix, non-Resonance actions.
  • Vehicle actions taken through the jumped-in device are considered Matrix actions for the purposes of EARRS. A user who is jumped into a drone or vehicle is able to operate it as they normally would, though they retain normal control of their body; actions taken by their body suffer the normal -10 penalty. You cannot perceive or project astrally, or use any other magical actions, while in VR with EARRS.

Grapple Hand/Gun

  • 30 meters of microwire may be stored with an implanted grapple gun for use with the gun.
  • The grapple hand may be used as a weapon using grapple gun stats for DV and accuracy. If one has cyberimplant weapons which deal physical damage, we would suggest a GM permit the DV to change to physical instead of stun with no further alterations, but it is ultimately up to GM fiat.

Grey Mana Tattoos

Grey mana tattoos follow the same rules as the grey mana armor modification. While grey mana tattoos are obvious on the astral, they are not definitively identifiable without labwork. While a police or security officer who notices them may be suspicious, an Astral Perception test is insufficient to arrest, only question.

MCT Biolink

  • Provides DNI and a wireless connection as per a datajack, but has no capacity to direct connect to devices. It may be turned on and off as desired with a Complex Action.

Mnemonic Enhancers

  • Mnemonic enhancers cannot affect skills gained through knowsofts.

Nanites

  • Soft nanite systems include the nanites they support for free. In Chummer, you may select the 'free' button when purchasing the initial nanites for your system.
  • Hard nanite systems include rating different configurations for free. In Chummer, you may select the 'free' button when purchasing the rating different nanites that your hard nanite system supports. Note that only one at a time is active. For example, if you have a rating 3 hard nanohive, you may have it support control rig booster, anti-rad and nanite hunter nanites (but only one at a time).
  • In either case, damage still degrades your active nanites. For every 3 boxes of physical damage you suffer degrade your active nanite systems by 1. Nanite systems are considered fully replenished at the start of the next run.
  • The restocking cost for Hard Nanohives can be ignored.

Narco

  • Narco reduces the total damage suffered during a dose of Buffout due to its effects by two. It is not a reduction for each instance of damage, however. Instead of taking 3 damage, you would take 1, but instead of taking 9 damage, you would take 7.
  • Narco does not affect situational or specific bonuses to attributes, such as bonuses to Logic-linked skills or bonuses to Strength for lift and carry or grappling damage.

Sharkskin

  • To gain the benefits of sharkskin, you must be striking with an area of your body that has exposed skin. A good rule of thumb is that if the armor can take a chemical seal (like FBA), there is not enough exposed skin to gain the benefits of sharkskin.

Skilljack/wires

  • Skilljacks - essence becomes 0.1 regardless of rating. Currently it is 0.1 essence times rating. Cost goes to 1000¥ times rating. Currently it is 10x that amount.
  • Skillwires - essence becomes 0.1 times rating. Current it is 0.2 essence times rating.
  • Skills from active hardwires or any form of skillwires do not come with you onto the astral.

Skimmers

  • Assume "significant extra weight" for the purposes of skimmers (CF 88) to mean anything more than roughly 2 kg/point of Body above and beyond FBA + reasonable weaponry. You can still have your combat axe or sniper rifle and FBA, but if you try carrying a ballistic shield things might get a bit hairy. Anything that needs a lift and carry test is, of course, right out.

Skin Modifications

  • For the sake of accepting skin modifications, the user should have a meaningful amount of skin left, at least two natural limbs. Torso counts as 2 limbs, head counts as 1, partial limbs count as half.
  • Smartskin cannot go over cyberlimbs.

Skin Toner

  • Treat skin toner as a ruthenium polymer coating at rating 4 rather than a rating 4 chameleon suit.

Smuggling Compartments etc.

  • A smuggling compartment can hold concealability -1 or lower. If broken down, it can hold concealability 0 or lower.
  • A skin pocket functions as above.
  • A large smuggling compartment can store concealability +1 or lower. If broken down, it can store concealability +2 or lower.
  • A cyberarm slide can store a taser, a hold-out pistol or a light pistol. It can store nothing else.
  • A cyber holster can store items with a concealibility of 0 or lower.
  • An assault rifle with a sawn-off barrel or shotgun with a sawn-off barrel may be stored across two large smuggling compartments if it is broken down, again taking the vast majority of the space. No larger firearm may be stored in such compartments.
  • Concealability as a kludge for storage space is not additive in any sense, but if you're storing an item that caps out your concealability, you likely do not have much more space. Please use a little common sense here and don't take advantage.
  • A large smuggling compartment in a cyberlimb may only hold a rating 1 or rating 2 vault of ages. Note that it is probably not safe to place contact trigger preparations inside one's own limbs, as they would be triggered by doing so.
  • In order to take a horn compartment, one must have a horn.

Striking Calluses

  • Striking calluses give their benefit to natural weaponry with a base reach of at least 0. (For example, trolls get +1 reach but if a troll had a bite attack, normally reach -1, this would not benefit that.)
  • Striking calluses apply to attacks with the Killing Hands adept power which use physical stats to determine DV, but not to attacks with cyberweapons.

Suprathyroid Gland

  • The suprathyroid gland stacks with muscle augmentation and muscle toner.

Tails

  • Both the balance tail cyberware (CF 82, 85) and the tail bioware (CF 115, 117), which actually does mention weapons attached to the top, lack not only capacity for modifications, but also the attributes required to form dice pools and damage values. As such, neither will accept functional weapons.
  • The bioware tail follows the same mechanics as the cyberware tail.

Tetrachromatic Vision

  • Tetrachromatic vision is not compatible with cybereyes.

Improved Synthskin

  • Improved synthskin no longer increases in capacity cost. Regardless of rating, it only takes one point to fit in a synthetic cyberlimb.

Internal Router

  • All gear and ware that's directly connected goes offline but maintains wireless boosts if they don't need external server support (subscriptions etc.)
  • Arrowlink and data cable hooking into your Data Jack does not work since the internal router network is completely sealed from external influence.
    • Skinlink grappling is an exception to this, grappling Technomancers with skinlink can hack ware connected to the internal router.

Additional Eye mount

  • Each Additional Eye Mount system can support a single rating 1 cyber eye (bought separately). This eye is capable of installing any mods that fit within a normal R1 cybereye basic system. This single cybereye can be purchased separately for 50% of the normal cybereye cost. In the event the player also owns a full cyber eye basic system, the additional eye mount instead installs an additional cyber eye that matches the existing cyber eye suite. When visible the owner of additional eye mounts suffers a FREAK penalty as described in the Freaks side bar in RF Page 123

Gear

Burner SINs

  • Players may buy burner SINs and associated licenses at the same availability, but with 20% of the cost. These SINs expire after 1 week and may not leave the session they were bought in. They may have rating 1 through 6.
Item Name Availability Nuyen
Burner Fake SIN (Rating 1-6) (Rating*3)F Rating*500 nuyen
Burner Fake License (Rating 1-6) (Rating*3)F Rating*40 nuyen

Gas Mask

  • Gasmasks count as a respirator at rating 6 when active for purposes of resisting toxins, in addition to providing immunity to inhalation vector toxins while it still has air. Note that when resisting a toxin with multiple vectors, all applicable resistances apply.

Ghost Box

  • The ghost box does not function like the spell Trid Phantasm, it gives merely a sense of unease and a floater-like affect in the eye. The most using this device will give is social modifiers.

Faceless

  • Double the cost and availability of the base item (thus, it is rating * 4F and rating * 1000¥). The modifications for generic and specific faces remain as written. It exists from rating 1 to 6. It applies the normal effects against any and all devices of a rating less than or equal to its own with no roll necessary, but does not function against devices paid for with essence or devices with a rating higher than the faceless rating. Generic face versions may function as plain Faceless. Specific face versions may function as generic or specific face. The specific face version may be changed with 10 minutes work by anyone with ranks in Computer or Software. As an additional note, these are subject to the upgrade rules for rating, as well as base->generic face->specific face. This also means they can be purchased even when their availability is above 20, though the necessary rolls to do so must still be made.

Laced Lipstick

  • While laced lipstick itself does not protect you, the acquisition of an appropriate protective method - a plastic or wax coating, for example - is assumed to be a part of lifestyle for anyone who is not literally a squatter.

Pi-Tacs and Accessories

  • Door Gunner: if you are on a Pi-Tac team of any rating, you may fire weapons on a vehicle-controlled by another member of your team, assuming it has a smartlink and is wirelessly connected to you. You must use the Gunnery skill to operate the weapon, though you may use your choice of Agility or Logic. You must be in VR. In either case, you only take biofeedback damage if the weapon you are using is attacked specifically. The weapon cannot be actively used by another member of your team at the same time.
  • Pi-Tacs can be connected to living personas.

Real SINs

  • A corporate SIN - or any other real SIN - is assumed to come with licenses for any R-rated gear you possess. This is true for the jurisdiction which issued the SIN, as well as the jurisdiction in which you reside. For the typically runner on ShadowHaven, this means their issuing body and the UCAS. Note that a license from an outside body does not automatically permit you to use an item. No jurisdiction will permit you to have an item they consider forbidden simply because you have a license for it from somewhere else where it is considered R. Notably, the written availabiltiy codes assume UCAS law, which applies to all of Seattle, except certain extraterritorial places. As a general rule, they can also be applied elsewhere in the absence of specific Thematics justification otherwise.

Scanners

  • When detecting a gun hidden inside a cyberware smuggling compartment or cyberarm slide/holster, both MAD and millimeter wave scanners may detect it as normal. If the weapon is resistant or immune to MAD scanners, the MAD scanner loses dice (from its pool equal to its rating) or cannot roll as appropriate.
  • Cyberimplanted weapons are MAD-immune, but may still be detected by a millimeter wave scanner as normal.
  • MAD scanners do not care about Palming or similar effects or intervening material. They can map things inside other things as long as the things being mapped are ferrous.
  • Olfactory sensors may be used to detect the presence of tailored pheromones.

Shaman Tuxedo

  • The price is modified to 16000¥.
  • The availability is modified to 16.
  • The shaman tuxedo must be something that makes your status as a mage extremely obvious, including your tradition.
  • You must continue to wear the shaman tuxedo for as long as you have the summoned spirit. Removing any part of the shaman tuxedo while you have a currently summoned spirit summoned with the shaman tuxedo will cause them to instantly lose all remaining services.
  • The shaman tuxedo only works for spirits appropriate for your tradition. Any spirits outside of your normal tradition are not an option, even if you have a quality like Chain Breaker which makes them an option for summoning (e.g., a hermetic mage may not have a shaman tuxedo to provide its bonus for task spirits).

Tailored Perfume/Cologne

The use of these are permitted, but only one application can be used effectively. If an additional, unique tailored perfumes/colognes are applied while another is still active, all effects from all tailored perfumes/colognes are negated. Additional applications of the same perfume or cologne do not have any effect.

Vault of Ages

  • A Vault of ages can hold (rating x 2) preparations, each of which can have a maximum force of (rating x 2).
  • Vaults of ages have a maximum rating of 5.
  • A Vault of ages has the size dependent on rating as defined by the following table:
Rating General Size
1 Belt Pouch
2 Satchel
3 Backpack
4 Duffel Bag
5 Minifridge/Safe (Vehicle Portable)

Vulcan Systems "Hotdrop" Rapid-Egress Jetpack System

  • Instead of using the existing statblock or vehicle rules at all, use the rules below.
    • While wearing the Vulcan Systems "Hotdrop" Rapid-Egress Jetpack System, you may spend a complex action to move up to 50 meters in any direction, as long as you are attempting to both launch from and land on solid ground. Make a Freefall + Body [Physical] (3) test, and scatter from your intended target (3-hits)D6 meters. Direction is determined as usual. This action does not use up any of your own movement speed.
    • Additionally, it may be used as a free action to arrest a fall of greater than 25 meters, negating all falling damage. You must be aware of your impending impact.
    • In either case, you may only spend a single action to fire the Vulcan Systems "Hotdrop" Rapid-Egress Jetpack System per combat turn, and may not "combine" actions. You may move or arrest your fall, not both.
    • Using it as a complex action takes on point of fuel, while using it as a free action takes two point. It has twenty points of fuel. Refueling it takes one uninterrupted minute to swap out the propane-tank sized fuel tank, but doesn't require you to remove the Vulcan Systems "Hotdrop" Rapid-Egress Jetpack System.
    • It cannot be used while encumbered, has no wireless functionality and is extremely loud and bright in use. Subtlety is not an option.
    • On a glitch to activate the jetpack, the jetpack will fire, but the harness will fail, causing your jetpack to go flying without you. Hope you did not need that.
    • On a critical glitch to activate the jetpack, the GM should roll scatter (or choose a direction). You move 50 meters in that direction at a great rate of knots. If you strike something that would stop you, take physical damage equal to the distance remaining to be traveled at AP-4. If you do not strike anything, you end up prone, but unhurt.
    • The Vulcan Systems "Hotdrop" Rapid-Egress Jetpack System costs 50000¥ and has an availability of 18F. Refuels cost 250¥ and have an availability of 16F.

Critters

Note: The bulk of critter powers are ruled on the Awakened page.

  • Critters have their own edge pool they may use following all normal rules. In addition, you are permitted to spend edge or burn edge on the behalf of your animals, including the use of Not Dead Yet.

Animal Availability

Animal lifestyle cost

  • Relating to the table See Here regarding animal Availability, you may raise the cost of your lifestyle by 10% per step your animal's free maintenance is above your current lifestyle.
  • For example, if you have an animal requiring a Luxury lifestyle in a Medium lifestyle, raise the cost of your lifestyle by 20% to cover the cost of your animal.

Critter Training

  • All animals are able to learn Logic x2 tricks, with domesticated animals able to learn Logic x3.
  • Assume animals purchased at gen have a number of tricks learned equal to the PC's Animal Handling skill ranks, prior to any bonus ranks from adept powers or bioware. This does not allow them to exceed their normal limit on number of tricks. Skill improvements count as a trick per.
  • Critter training time is removed.
  • Technocritters, being almost impossible to train, remain in use as NPCs only. While it's possible, but extremely difficult, to train a technocritter to the same degree as a normal animal, it is virtually impossible to train them to use any of their Resonance or Matrix abilities in any fashion, a fact GMs are encouraged to keep in mind when using these.

Domestic

  • If an animal does not possess the Domesticated quality as part of its normal statblock, you cannot just add that onto the statblock. You cannot purchase animals with any modifiers based on previous treatment.

Flying

  • A bird may not exceed its normal flying speed. If a GM wishes to allow a bird to dive faster, they may at their sole discretion allow the bird to move at double its normal running rate if moving straight downward, though the falling bird should not exceed the normal falling rate.

Warforms and Chimeras

  • Warforms cost 10 times as much as a normal animal, plus an additional 20000¥. Both values are multiplicative with chimeric modifiers.
  • Chimeric modification grants one of the enhanced senses per modification.

Critters and Owner Investments

  • A critter's owner may spend karma to do the following:
    • Rebuy burnt points of Edge, up to the critter's starting Edge.
    • Buy off negative qualities.
    • Buy the following positive qualities:
      • Astral Chameleon
      • Catlike
      • Guts
      • High Pain Tolerance
      • Magic Resistance
      • Natural Athlete
      • Outdoorsman
      • Resistance To Pathogens/Toxins
      • Tough as Nails (Stun/Physical)
      • Toughness
      • Water Sprite
      • Will to Live

Note that karma for these comes out of the owner's available karma.

Biotech, Drugs and Toxins

  • When crashed from a drug, you are no longer on that drug.
  • We ignore the speedballing rules.
  • Smart corrosives must be purchased pre-programmed.
  • As a general rule drugs that are intended to counteract toxins should apply before the toxins if both take effect on the same turn end. The order of the interractions are left to the decision of the GM.
  • Nonmechanical impacts of drugs such as anti-depressants and etc. do not need to be represented on the sheet. You can assume they are a part of your lifestyle, though that might be a little tricky if you're a squatter.
  • If you have an internal air tank or are using a gas mask of some variety, you are fine vs inhalation vector toxins for the duration of air you have in your tank. Otherwise you cannot hold your breath meaningfully to resist such toxins.
  • Contact vector drugs and toxins may not be injected for effect. As a result, DMSO does not allow things to become injectable.
  • Magical Compounds from Chrome Flesh count as drugs and as such cannot be used offensively.

Healing

  • Damage from drugs may not be healed until the character crashes from the drug and is no longer on said drug.
  • Use the higher of the medkit's rating and your skill (First Aid or Medicine) when determining how many boxes you may heal.
  • Wireless medkits may provide their rating as a dice pool bonus to the Medicine skill.
  • A medkit operating autonomously through its wireless bonus is not capable of leading a teamwork test.

BTL and Drug Stacking

  • BTLs do not stack with drugs. They cause drug interactions with drugs, overdose with drugs and are affected by narco like drugs.
  • Drugs with the same name overlap (you cannot take Kamikaze twice to get twice the benefits). Drugs with different names stack (you can take Zen and Red Mescaline to get +2 Willpower before factoring in Narco). In either case overdose applies.

Immunity to Toxins

  • Drugs are not toxins in a mechanical sense and are not subject to immunity to toxins.

Addiction Rules

  • Each time you take an addictive substance, you immediately make an addiction test.
    • For psychologically addicting drugs, the test is LOG + WIL + (11 - drug's effective addiction rating) + (other modifiers).
    • For physiologically addicting drugs, the test will be BOD + WIL + (11 - drug's effective addiction rating) + (other modifiers).
    • For drugs that are "Both", the test is the worse of your two dice pools for the above.
  • If you fail the test, you immediately suffer the effects of a failed addiction test. As it is not an action, you may not Smackdown the test.
  • Only permanent bonuses to attributes such as those from infected, from ware (e.g. cerebral booster) or those from the quality Cyber-Singularity Seeker can be used for the test. Temporary bonuses to attributes such as those from spells, drugs or ware that can be turned on and off cannot be used for the test.
  • In order to buy off the Addiction Negative Quality, you must remain off of the drug for (Addiction Rating)/2 runs, rounded up.

Stat Changes

  • All substances found in BB should be treated as having a speed of "Immediate".
  • Deepweed has an addiction rating of 4 and an addiction threshold of 2.
  • Snuff does not provide Pain Resistance 1. Instead it gives High Pain Tolerance 1.
  • Blight is modified thus:
    • Vector: Contact, Injection
    • Speed: Special*
    • Penetration: 0
    • Power: 12
    • Effect: a spirit exposed to this toxin must immediately make the toxin resistance test. If it fails, it immediately loses its Immunity to Normal Weapons power for (12 - spirit's force, min 1 hour).
  • Legal psychchips may treat psychological disorders of up to 7 karma value. Illegal psychchips may treat psychological disorders of up to 15 karma value. In either case, remember that it counts as a drug for purposes of the drug interactions table. If the user develops an addiction and stops using the chips as a result, increase the level of the negative quality one step if possible.
  • Dopadrine suppresses berserk effects for its duration. It does not cancel them. If Dopadrine is active when K-10 ends, you do not need to make an Edge roll.
  • Assume Slab to possess all benefits of Reaper at no additional cost or availability.
  • Neostigmine counters toxin-induced paralysis. It does nothing against Nerve Strike.
  • Psyche does reduce the sustaining penalty of complex forms.
  • Woad Berserk lasts as long as Bear shaman berserk effect does; it can easily wear off sooner than the drug itself. You can go berserk multiple times during 1 dose of Woad as a result. It only gives +2 Agility during the effect. You can choose not to resist berserk at all, effectively getting 0 hits on the Charisma + Willpower roll to reduce its duration.
  • Zone is modified thus:
    • Availability: 8
    • Price: 80¥/dose

Qualities

  • It is not possible to buy multiple instances of the same quality, unless specifically stated. This also applies to Sensei and Codeslinger.
  • In order to utilize a "free" quality, one must still meet all requirements of the quality. This does not apply if the source of the free quality explicitly states that you do not have to meet the requirements.

Gear Discounts

  • Made Man and Black Market Pipeline do not stack with each other, however, both stack individually with Dealer Connection. The stacking is calculated additively - thus, when both apply, you receive a 20% discount.
  • Black Market Pipeline may be attached to public contacts. Only people possessing the quality may benefit from the quality.

Qualities affecting Training

  • Dependents qualities remove all references to training time. All other impacts are in effect.
  • The Sensei quality has the following changes.
    • If the Sensei is a skill sensei, the karma cost for increases in the selected skill will be reduced by 3.
    • If the Sensei is a skill group sensei, the karma cost for increases individual skills in the group in the selected skill group will be reduced by 1. The whole group can be improved at a cost reduction of 3.
    • If this reduced the cost for a new rank to zero, you may increase the skill to the rank instantly, for free. This applies even in cases where other qualities interact with this house rule.
    • Sensei does not require a contact. The "Sensei" NPC may be a contact already on your sheet, but may also be a described but non-contact NPC. The quality does *not* grant a free contact.
  • Day Job qualities follow the table below, increasing the karma cost for attributes, skills, martial arts and specializations.
Day Job Karma Cost modifier
Fame: None/Local National/Megacorp Global
Day Job 1 1 1.5 (Every odd numbered increase is +2 instead of +1) 2
Day Job 2 2 2.5 (Every odd numbered increase is +3 instead of +2) 3
Day Job 3 3 3.5 (Every odd numbered increase is +4 instead of +3) 4

Addiction

  • You must stay off the drug for (addiction rating)/2 runs to buy off the quality.
  • Some addictions are better suited with the Dependents quality and thus we recommend its use instead for alcohol, cigarettes, coffee, video games etc. Speak to your Chargen Minion to see if the Dependents or Addiction quality applies.

Ambidextrous

  • A nartaki or anyone else with the Shiva Arms quality requires an instance of Ambidextrous for each additional arm in order to avoid penalties with said arm.

Allergy (Sunlight)

  • Chemical seal does not have any particular effect on sunlight. However, most armor that is capable of providing chemical seal will by its nature reduce sunlight allergies by two steps when worn fully. Radiation protection has nothing to do with it, referring to alpha and beta radiation, not electromagnetic radiation.

Biocompatibility

  • Due to negative gameplay interactions, biocompatibility is not going to be restricted to at-gen only. However, one must still go through the normal approval process for it.

Bilingual

  • This quality can be taken post gen.

Brand Loyalty

  • Brand Loyalty is restricted to gear (not including foci or ware).
  • Brand Loyalty at the Manufacturer level does apply to gear the brand does not make.
  • Brand Loyalty may be taken at the Product level for generic items. In that case it will only apply to that specific type of weapon. For Example: Brand Loyalty (Product) "Sword" will only apply to the item class of "Sword" while all other Blades weapons suffer the malus.

Blandness

  • An oni or nartaki may take the Bland quality, but it will only work in groups of other oni or nartaki.

Black Forest Native

  • You do not require this quality to be from the Black Forest.

Candle in the Darkness

  • Candle In The Darkness no longer provides +2 Loyalty. Instead, it provides a +2 dicepool modifier to contact dice pools and tests to determine if the contact is available. See Contact Rules for details.

College Education

  • This quality is incompatible with the Uneducated quality (CRB 87).

Computer Illiterate

  • So long as the PC has a story of how they use the electronics while not being able to understand them, a PC may have the Computer Illiterate quality and still be a Haven runner. This can range from your fixer handling these tasks to just paying a street decker 50 nuyen to send a message.

Corporate Loyalist

  • Corporate Loyalist is permitted only with a genuine corporate limited or full SIN. Upon loss of the SIN, you lose the quality.

Corporate Pariah

  • Corporate Pariah is permitted, but only with a current (7 karma version) or past (10 karma version) corp SIN from an AAA corporation. Records on File is required for the 10 point version. It is not actually required for your character to have had the Corporate SINner negative quality, merely that they have had it in their fluff at some point in the past.

Community Connection

  • Can only be taken by orks/trolls and metavariants of those.

Cyber-Snob

  • Cyber-Snob is altered to allow alphaware as the minimum grade so that it may be taken at charge.

Flashbacks

  • In order for Flashbacks to trigger again, the situation must be different in some quantifiable way. Additionally, this should only trigger once per scene at most, barring some extended time between triggers at GM discretion.

Gifted Healer

  • Replace the benefits of Gifted Healer with the following:
    • Reduce penalties for First Aid and Medicine by 2 (CRB 205-208) and for the Heal spell by 2 from any source other than BGC.

Hobo with a Shotgun

  • Hobo with a Shotgun does not permit you to stay in a bolthole willingly.

Incomplete Deprogramming

  • Personalities from Persona Fix and Incomplete Deprogramming take precedence as follows: Persona Fix > Incomplete Deprogramming > Baseline Personality.

Location Attunement

  • Location Attunement is permitted. After a month, the quality's benefits are lost, not quality itself, negating the need to repurchase it.

Nasty Trog

  • Can only be taken by orks/trolls and metavariants of those.

Observant

  • Observant is assumed to be possessed by all characters, free of charge, changing observe in detail from a simple action to a free action. There is no need to notate this on your sheet. That's not a joke, we are serious. The game works better that way.

Practice Practice Practice

  • The Practice Practice Practice quality only applies to the physical, mental, social and astral limit.

Prototype Materials

  • This quality can only be taken once and does not require a run reward. It cannot be taken at character generation.
  • You do not need to buy another level of Special Modifications. That is included in the quality.

Prototype Transhuman

  • This quality may allow you to take Used bioware to represent an inefficient prototype.
  • Geneware may NOT be placed inside of the free essence point.
  • While you can replace the ware provided by Prototype Transhuman, you cannot upgrade it, and the essence is not refunded.
  • Regeneration, regardless of source, doesn't push Prototype Transhuman ware out. Otherwise it follows all normal bioware rules.

Redliner

  • The penalty for Redliner caps at 4 limbs considered.

Restricted Gear

  • Does not permit to buy items you would otherwise not be able to buy, except for the availability change.

Shoot First, Don't Ask Questions

Shoot First, Don't Ask Questions applies regardless of which initiative type was rolled as long as a surprise test was made. Roll Data Processing + Intuition for surprise tests on the Matrix in VR.

SINner

  • Instead of a tax on nuyen earned, the SINner quality acts as an increase to lifestyle costs, similar to Dependents (CRB 80).

Special Modifications

  • Only characters without a Magic or Resonance score may take the quality.
  • This quality functions as written except with the following caveats: a character may shift the benefits of Special Modifications to a new weapon at the end of any given run, regardless of whether or not the weapon was lost or destroyed. When doing so, one may change the benefits granted by the quality freely, even without changing the weapon they are applied to. It does not require any payment of lifestyle or similar. If a character has any ranks, they may change the fluff of the weapon within relatively close reason without expending a "slot", but this cannot alter the concealability, apparent legality, or other mechanical attributes of the weapon. If a weapon does not deal elemental damage natively, it cannot be altered to deal elemental damage, however, if it does natively deal elemental damage of one type, one may spend one "slot" to change that type permanently to another type from the following list: electricity, acid, fire, water, cold. For spec mods specify that acid damage does not persist, applying damage and elemental effects for one round only. For simplicity, this does not alter the ammunition requirements. Hang a lampshade on it, if necessary. Disregard the entire last paragraph of the quality.
  • This quality may be used to augment cyberweapons.
    • Cyberweapons may not have their reach increased, however.
  • When used to increase the AP of a weapon, Special Modifications does not count as base AP for purposes of the Bull's Eye Burst called shot.

SURGE

  • Each quality grants an amount of Metagentic Quality space (both positive and negative) equal to the cost of the quality (10, 15 and 30).
  • The qualities are no longer random. You must select them.
  • Some metagenetic qualities are limited to various levels, see below:
    • Positive metagenetic qualities limited to SURGE III: Arcane Arrester, Bone Spikes, Dermal Alteration (Granite Shell), Glamour, Magic Sense, Metagenetic Improvement (Attribute), Nasty Vibe, Shiva Arms
    • Positive metagenetic qualities limited to SURGE II or SURGE III: Dermal Alteration (Blubber, Rhino Hide), Elongated Limbs, Functional Tail (Balance, Paddle, Prehensile, Thagomizer), Proboscis, Thorns
    • Negative metagenetic qualities limited to SURGE III: Astral Hazing, Critter Spook, Mood Hair, Third Eye
    • Negative metagenetic qualities limited to SURGE II or SURGE III: Bioluminescence, Cephalopod Skull, Feathers, Scales, Vestigial Tail
  • The Striking Skin Pigmentation quality is incompatible with the Dermal Alteration quality.
  • Bioluminescence works with either hair modifications or skin modifications, but not with both at the same time.

Symbiosis

  • In order to make the first test to change attunement location, a character with Symbiosis must have lived in a single place for a season - that is to say, 3 months, for simplicity's sake. Thereafter, each test is after 1 month, as stated.

Technical School Education

  • It's incompatible with the Uneducated quality (CRB 87).

Thagomizer Tail and Venom

  • The thagomizer tail can be used with the natural Venom quality. Ignore the fangs requirement for the latter.

Trog Traitor

  • Can only be taken by orks/trolls and metavariants of those.

Trust Fund

  • Trust Fund provides a base lifestyle of the appropriate type altered only by positive and negative qualities, metatype/variant and any ware one may have. The lifestyle may be altered, however, if the final cost of the lifestyle is higher than the base as provided above, one must pay the difference. If the final cost is lower, one does not receive the difference.
  • The Corporate Limited SIN quality can be used to get Trust Fund.
  • Trust Fund and Hard Luck are incompatible.

Uneducated

  • This quality is incompatible with the College Education (RF 145) or the Technical School Education (RF 150) qualities.

Wanted

  • Collection of bounties on other character will follow all of the rules for PvP on the Haven. Notably, collecting bounties on teammates during the course of a run is disallowed.
  • Should a GM organize a private run against a character with wanted where NPC runners would otherwise be used, PC runners may join on that run. The GM should get the informed consent of all players involved and thematics department approval given the often tense and unfair nature of PvP in Shadowrun 5E.
  • The impact of the wanted quality should be limited to the character in question.
  • GMs are highly encouraged to use the wanted quality to complicate runs, as with all negative qualities.
  • Contacts will not aid in the collection of bounties on wanted characters except in extreme, rare situations.
  • Rules for burning edge will be kept in mind when handling the wanted quality.
  • Players may appeal to the thematics team or council should they feel the awarding of wanted during the course of a run was unwarranted.

Samurai Way Qualities

In order to qualify for a Samurai Way quality, the character must:

  • Have strictly less than 3 essence
  • Not already have 2 Samurai Ways
  • Be mundane, a technomancer, an explorer or an Aware
  • WotS = Way of the Samurai (4th edition book)

These qualities cost 10 karma at character generation and double as normal once the character is in career mode.


Bodyguard (WOTS 10)

  • Prerequisites: Charisma and Intuition must total at least 7, Pistols skill must be at least 3, Perception skill must be at least 3.
  • Advantage: Characters with this quality receive a +2 die pool bonus to Perception checks and choose one of the following: either ready weapon or take aim may become a free action. (Mechanics Note: Free actions never reset recoil, only simple actions that are not shooting your gun.)

Merc (WOTS 10)

  • Prerequisites: At least 4 ranks among the following skill groups: [Athletics, Close Combat, Firearms, Outdoors] OR 14 total ranks among any skills from the following skill groups and skills: [Athletics, Close Combat, Firearms, Outdoors, Pilot Groundcraft, Pilot Aircraft, Pilot Aerospace, Pilot Walker].
  • Advantage: Choose one contact and one of the following types of merchandise [weapons, vehicles, armor]. Characters with this quality receive a 10% discount when buying the appropriate merchandise from that contact, and receive a +3 die pool modifier when negotiating to sell/fence those goods. In addition, characters with this quality only suffer a -1 penalty on ranged combat for attacker running and increase by 1 any bonus they received on ranged defense tests for cover (partial cover provides a +3, good cover provides a +5).

Panzer (WOTS 10)

  • Prerequisites: Must have a modified Body score (for damage soaking purposes) of 5 or higher. The character must have any two of the following implants: dermal plating, orthoskin, bone density Augmentation, Bone Lacing (Plastic), Bone Lacing (dluminum), bone lacing (titanium), Cybertorso with armor, or one cyberlimb with armor.
  • Advantage: Characters with this quality receive a +2 die pool modifier to resist fear and intimidation, including magically induced fear from spells or critter powers, or they may substitute their augmented Body attribute for Charisma when calculating their Intimidation dice pool. In addition, they may ignore two boxes of damage when calculating wound modifiers (which cannot be combined with the Pain Resistance adept power, pain editor bioware or damage compensator bioware), or receive a +1 die pool modifier to Body when making damage resistance tests.

Razorboy (WOTS 10)

  • Prerequisites: Must have any of the following implants: cybereyes basic system, infrasonic generator, obvious full arm, obvious full leg, obvious torso, obvious skull.
  • Advantage: Characters with this quality may add +2 dice to Intimidation checks or +1 DV with cyberimplant weapons and bioweapons (melee only for both). In addition, they receive a +1 rating modifier to any Street knowledge skills they possess.

Ronin (WOTS 11)

  • Prerequisites: Willpower and Intuition must total at least 7. Must maintain Street Cred equal to or greater than Notoriety.
  • Advantage: Characters with this quality reduce the essence cost of cyberware or bioware (not geneware) by 10%. The character may not also discount that type of implant with Biocompatibility. In addition, they may choose one of the following: +1 DV with Blades, Clubs, Unarmed and Exotic Melee Weapons, or when they have a blade, club, unarmed weapon, or exotic melee weapon equipped and are not surprised, +2 to Reaction tests to defend themselves from combat, indirect Combat spells and so forth. Reaction-linked skill tests, initiative and surprise tests are not affected by this quality. A ronin must burn Street Cred to reduce Notoriety should the character's Notoriety ever be higher than 1. This quality is incompatible with Bad Rep.

Sharpshooter (WOTS 11)

  • Prerequisites: Must have any two of the following implants: smartlink, vision magnification, any reflex recorder for a ranged combat skill, Tremor reducer, attention coprocessor, laser range finder.
  • Advantage: Characters with this quality are not required to half their Willpower when calculating how many take aim actions they may perform with a ranged weapon. This will most likely be commonly applied to Longarms, but it is applicable to any ranged weapon. Alternatively, the character can take a -2 reduction to all range category penalties. This quality also grants a +1 die pool bonus to Sneaking or a +1 die pool bonus single ranged weapon skill of the player's choice. Additionally, for each take aim action the character takes they receive a -1AP modifier on their next applicable shot against that target.

Street Ninja (WOTS 11)

  • Prerequisites: Must have a Sneaking skill of at least 4. The character must have two of the following implants: cybereyes basic system, cyberimplant weapon, enhanced articulation, synthacardium, reflex recorder (Sneaking), radar sensor.
  • Advantage: In the first pass of any combat where you force your opponents to roll surprise tests, reduce the called shot penalty of any called shot to -4. Alternatively, you can take +3 dice to surprise tests. In addition, they gain either +1 dice to Sneaking tests or +1 dice to Throwing Weapons or a melee skill of the player's choice (Blades, Clubs, Exotic Melee Weapon, Unarmed Combat). Additionally, you may take a -2/4/6 die pool penalty on your Surprise test to give all enemies a -1/2/3 die pool penalty. Multiple street ninjas may combine this penalty, but the penalty may never exceed -3.

Skills

Linked Attribute

  • When called for, the 'linked attribute' is the attribute you are currently rolling as part of a skill test. By way of example, Logic linked tests are any tests where you roll Logic combined with Skill ranks, so Edit File (Computer + Logic) is a Logic linked test whereas Matrix Perception (Computer + Intuition) is not.

Disguise

  • When you create your camouflage with the skill, roll Disguise + Intuition [Mental]. The camouflage Disguise test functions as a persistent teamwork test for your Sneaking tests as long as you are in the terrain type where it applies. This bonus does not stack with ruthenium polymer coating, chameleon skin or any other piece of gear that alters your appearance in such a way.

Diving

  • In a case where you have infinite leisure, are free to take your time ascending to a significant degree and go slower than is at all necessary, you may ignore the diving table results. They are for ascending promptly, at the maximum safe speed.
  • If you make a Diving test and you fail, you do suffer all missed threshold results. Penalties to actions stack. Damage suffered is soaked separately. Ignore any results that call for a kraken attack.

Gunnery

  • Gunnery is both a vehicle and combat skill.

Leadership

  • A character may only receive Leadership bonuses from a single individual making tests at any given time. They should also not view the individual as an inferior or a subordinate, though viewing them as a "sole superior" or themselves as entirely subordinate is not necessary to receive benefits. A person providing Leadership bonuses to other individuals may not receive them themselves, even from another source.
  • Rally stacks with itself to provide multiple increases to initiative if successfully used multiple times.
  • Direct may only be used in situations that use or should use initiative time; this includes, but is not limited to, silent host dives, car chases and combat. There must be some sort of time pressure, taking an action that the character using Direct could potentially use to do something else.

Specializations

These additional specializations may be used in addition to any specialisations listed in the book. No other specializations are legal to take. Please contact the mechanics team in the channel if you want to add a specialization to the list, or have it approved by your chargen minion if the character is not approved yet.

  • Arcana: Totem Form
  • Clubs: Improvised Weapons
  • Electronic Warfare: by target type (Devices, Grids, IC, Personas, Sprites, etc.)
  • Gymnastics: Dodge
  • Hardware: Jack Out
  • Software: Data Bombs or by individual complex form
  • Unarmed: Touch