General Shadowrun Questions III: Ya like that, Chummer?

[LibraryOgre]

Also a way to become target priority number one.

Sufficient explosives means you don't need to worry about targeting.

Is there any guidance for how long it takes to manufacture different types of ammo? I know there are gun design rules, which presumably include fabrication times. Anything for ammo?

Not that I know of; I also know you're usually a 2e guy, but it might come up in later editions.

Personally, with a facility? I'd say 1-3 days to check any specs you have, then you can pretty easily run out a few thousand rounds in a day.

[Lord Torath]

Not that I know of; I also know you're usually a 2e guy, but it might come up in later editions.

Personally, with a facility? I'd say 1-3 days to check any specs you have, then you can pretty easily run out a few thousand rounds in a day.

Looking at 3E Arsenal, you get ten rounds in the base availability time. So it takes 24 hours (I'd change this to 10 hours, or one day of labor) to get 10 rounds. Of standard ammo. Yeah, no. I don't mind using the availability number as the target number for making the ammo, but 10 rounds a day is pretty ridiculous. Maybe if you're just using an ammo kit. An ammunition shop should permit at least 100 a day.

So here's what I'm thinking:

Cost: half list-price
Target Number: Availability Target. -1 for Shop. -2 for Facility
Set-up time: 1 day of work per day of availability. This means it will take 2 weeks to set up for APDS ammo.

If you fail your test, the first day's batch will be ruined. This includes the cost of materials, plus cleaning your fouled equipment. Spend half the base set-up time to re-calibrate. If you botch (half or more dice are 1s) you don't know there's a problem until you're in the middle of a run. Or at the range.
Once you are set up, you can create 20/200/2000 rounds a day of standard ammo (kit/shop/facility). For other ammo, divide the result by the availability in days for the ammo type. That means you can get 1333 explosive or flechette rounds per 10-hour work day, or 1000 stun/gel rounds, or 666 assault cannon rounds, or 142 APDS rounds per day.

Once you are set up for a type of ammo, you can pump out ammo for the cost of materials without further tests until you re-tool for a different type of ammo or equipment.

That strikes me as pretty reasonable. Still need to work out missiles & grenades, though. Probably shouldn't take as long to set up a kit as it does for a facility or shop, though. Maybe 1/10 x Availability for kit and 1/2 x availability for the shop.

[druid91]

Also a way to become target priority number one.

As posited by our local androgynous elf wizard.

[Fable Wright]

As posited by our local androgynous elf wizard.

Note the asymptotic relationship—there will always be problems that explosions can't solve short of an infinitely powerful explosion.

[DigoDragon]

Note the asymptotic relationship—there will always be problems that explosions can't solve short of an infinitely powerful explosion.

Well, once you have a sufficiently big bang, all the problems in your universe cease to be. :3

[Lord Torath]

Can Detection spells work through solid objects? Can Detect Enemies, for example, detect enemies on the other side of a windowless door or wall?

Edit:
Found it. In 2E anyway (SRII Rulebook p152), you add the barrier rating of the obstruction to the target number to see if the target(s) of the spell can be detected.

[Akisa]

Well, once you have a sufficiently big bang, all the problems in your universe cease to be. :3

Wait didn't the big enough bang created the root to all problems? Was that just a negative over flow?

[Ignimortis]

Wait didn't the big enough bang created the root to all problems? Was that just a negative over flow?

Nah, just a multiplication by -1. Another sufficiently big bang would solve the issue.

[weckar]

So, apologies if this has come up before, but is it known if there's any major tech/lore advancements for the new edition?

[Delta]

Since the new edition starts off pretty much exactly where the old stopped, in 2080, not really.

[weckar]

So...
2060-2070 = 3rd ed
2070-2075 = 4th ed
2075-2080 = 5th ed
2080- ??? = 6th ed

Okay, thanks. Guess I should catch up on 2076-2080, then, though. We never got much further than the Boston Quarantine.

[Delta]

Yeah there's quite a bit happening after that, monad scientists created some really weird **** for Evo before most of them packed up and left for deep space (but honestly, I'm not sure how much of that you want to actually include in your game, anti-grav grenades, reactionless spaceships and stuff aren't really what Shadowrun should be about for me)

[weckar]

Since I am waiting on my pre-order of the core book (UK edition), I don't know yet where that puts the focus for the setting.

I'm sure some of the classic stories could still be adapted for newer players, if it came to that.

[Lord Torath]

Are there any Invisibility spells that work on the astral plane?

[druid91]

Are there any Invisibility spells that work on the astral plane?

I want to say there was something called Manascaping?

[Lord Torath]

Can insect spirits see in the dark? There's a hive the runners are going to be exploring, and it seems like the bugs would need some source of light.

Actually, I think they are dual-natured, right? Which means they can always see astral space, which is lit by living things, so yes, they can see in the dark. More or less, anyway.

[LibraryOgre]

Are there any Invisibility spells that work on the astral plane?

Not to my knowledge, though I did some work back in the 3e days about various ways of stealthing in the Astral... things like using other signatures as cover, or masking to hide your signature some. I can't link to it conveniently because I'm at work, though; editors-wastebasket.org/nexx/ MIGHT still get you there.

[Eurus]

It depends on how exactly you interpret the limitations of the Manascape spell, but that's probably the best astral stealth trick you're going to find. It might let you cover up your aura with "background", or it might just let you disguise yourself as something tiny and non-magical. How exactly this would shake out if you're currently sustaining invisibility is a question a GM would have to answer, but then, this is Shadowrun, so that's not unusual.

For what it's worth, I don't consider this especially busted since you're adding an extra sustained spell to your burden and it's only protecting you from very specific things. You're still going to have trouble with drones and cameras (object resistance is a pain), with wards and barriers, with Fluorescing Astral Bacteria and any critter that can sniff you out, and potentially with sonar and vibration detecting stuff.

I'm assuming you're talking about 5e, anyway.

[Lord Torath]

I typically play 2nd Edition, but I was curious about astral invisibility in any edition.

Thanks for the replies!

[DigoDragon]

Can insect spirits see in the dark? There's a hive the runners are going to be exploring, and it seems like the bugs would need some source of light.

Actually, I think they are dual-natured, right? Which means they can always see astral space, which is lit by living things, so yes, they can see in the dark. More or less, anyway.

I'm pretty sure insect spirits are dual-natured like other spirits. The way I ran them is as you described; they always see astral and thus, all living things, both crunchy and chewy alike. This also helped the party a little by giving the mages a bright beacon to warn them something nasty was lurking nearby. Because when I ran Shadowrun, insect spirits were at minimum, the mini-boss monster of the run.

[Lord Torath]

2E Question: Can I benefit from Smartlink on a gun drone if I don't have a Vehicle Control Rig?

The Street Sammy may inherit some drones. He's got Smartlink installed, and the gun drones have it as well. If he's data-jacked into the Remote Control (like you can data-jack into your car), can he use his smart-link through the drones?

[LibraryOgre]

2E Question: Can I benefit from Smartlink on a gun drone if I don't have a Vehicle Control Rig?

The Street Sammy may inherit some drones. He's got Smartlink installed, and the gun drones have it as well. If he's data-jacked into the Remote Control (like you can data-jack into your car), can he use his smart-link through the drones?

My gut is to say no. IIRC, jacking into the Remote Control is "I can tell the remote control what to do with my mind", while a VCR is "I can tell the drone what to do as if it were my body."

Were Vehicle Control DECKS ever a thing? It really seems like an external deck that could do the RAS override would've been a good thing to create.

[Lord Torath]

My gut is to say no. IIRC, jacking into the Remote Control is "I can tell the remote control what to do with my mind", while a VCR is "I can tell the drone what to do as if it were my body."

Were Vehicle Control DECKS ever a thing? It really seems like an external deck that could do the RAS override would've been a good thing to create.

Well, Rigger 2 introduced "interference" between datajacks and VCRs. If you had both, they both worked less effectively. Why FASA felt this was necessary, I have no idea. Already a rigger/decker is going to be spreading their resources much thinner than a "single-class" rigger or decker.

Edit to add:

Not sure if I've asked this before, but can an astral wizard "manifest" their astral form in the real world so they can cast spells at non-astral targets while away from their body?

[Delta]

Not sure if I've asked this before, but can an astral wizard "manifest" their astral form in the real world so they can cast spells at non-astral targets while away from their body?

Hard no. That was never possible in any edition. Back in the day of SR1/2, a projecting mage could "ground" a spell with a physical component (like Fireball) on anything active in astral space, like a dual natured entity or even just an active focus, and the physical component would manifest at that spot in meatspace, but that idea's been killed over 20 years ago in SR3 since it just wasn't a feasible concept if you even try to think of the consequences for a second.

[comicshorse]

No to casting spells I believe they can, with some effort, appear enough to speak with people in meat space. Certainly people did it in some of the Shadowrun novels and I'm sure my old group allowed it but that may have been a House Rule. (Currently away from my books so can't check)

[Dimers]

I believe they can, with some effort, appear enough to speak with people in meat space.

That's true for 4e, at least. "Manifesting", not to be confused with spirits' "Materialization". It's dangerous -- they can get hit with mana effects from physical creatures but can't hit back.

[druid91]

Hard no. That was never possible in any edition. Back in the day of SR1/2, a projecting mage could "ground" a spell with a physical component (like Fireball) on anything active in astral space, like a dual natured entity or even just an active focus, and the physical component would manifest at that spot in meatspace, but that idea's been killed over 20 years ago in SR3 since it just wasn't a feasible concept if you even try to think of the consequences for a second.

Eh. Not really. Just hard to do. Any Spirit with both Manifestation and the Endowment power could allow a mage to Manifest their Astral form into a physical body just like a spirit. Not to mention you could get the same through a spirit pact.

At least in 4e.

[LibraryOgre]

Time for a Crazy Shadowrun Idea! Not even sure if it works anymore!

One I've had kicking around for a while, now (I *think* since the first Grimoire?), is a method of high-speed transport of goods, but one that requires a Free Spirit.

See, Free Spirits have the Astral Gateway power... they can make a gate to the Astral through which mundane people and objects can pass through. Using this, you can put pretty much ANYTHING into the Astral, transport it at Astral speeds to wherever you wanted it, and the open another Astral Gateway and pull it out.

[Lord Torath]

Sorry, Mark, but no.

At least in 1E & 2E, the Astral Gateway power allows the Free Spirit to allow anyone, magical or mundane, to astrally project without essence loss. That means their body stays put, but their spirit travels to the astral plane, and possibly to metaplanes beyond the astral. So no physical transportation. Not sure if they changed the Astral Gateway power in later editions, though.

Regarding targeting spells, what does a "voluntary target" mean? For example, the 2E Detect Life spell requires voluntary subjects, and detects all life within range. How does that work? I'm sure the magician doesn't need to shout "I'm casting a spell to detect life! Say "yes" if you're okay with being detected!" Do you assume everyone is voluntary unless they specify otherwise? If so, could you just state "I refuse to accept any spells targeting me that I don;t know about?" In which case, everyone would do it, and Detect Life and similar spells would be completely useless.

Or are they saying you cast the spell on a single voluntary subject, and that subject then gains the ability to detect life. Actually, now that I think about it more, that makes a bit more sense. I keep thinking spells have a range of "Caster" and then the range applies to how far they can detect stuff. Need to get through my head that it doesn't mean that.

New question: Anyone know what a "two-phase laser system" for home defense is? the 2E adventure "One Stage Before" has one in one of the locations, but no where do they define what it is or how it works. Unless I've just missed it, which is certainly possible.

[comicshorse]

New question: Anyone know what a "two-phase laser system" for home defense is? the 2E adventure "One Stage Before" has one in one of the locations, but no where do they define what it is or how it works. Unless I've just missed it, which is certainly possible.

There's no damage code for the system to inflict so I presume they aren't offensive lasers. I'd guess they are trip beams that will sound the alarm unless deflected/turned off/ avoided

Or are they saying you cast the spell on a single voluntary subject, and that subject then gains the ability to detect life. Actually, now that I think about it more, that makes a bit more sense. I keep thinking spells have a range of "Caster" and then the range applies to how far they can detect stuff. Need to get through my head that it doesn't mean that.

I think that must be it otherwise the 'Detect Enemies' spell has to have the enemies voluntarily agree to be detected