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Message no. 1
From: Wordman wordman@*******.com
Subject: [Nerps] Idea for Stuff: Death chips
Date: Mon, 19 Apr 1999 23:30:20 -0400
After seeing the Matrix, I re-read the novella in the original Virtual
Realities. I started thinking about black IC, and came up with an idea. I'd
like to bounce it off the list as a potential idea for Stuff. If it is well
received, I'll take the time to do a write up.

Given: A cyberdeck, at its heart, is a glorified simsense player. (Granted,
it allows the user to both send and receive signals, but this is irrelevant
to this discussion.) It provides a decker a constant simsense signal,
controlled by events in the Matrix which surround the decker's persona.

Given: Black IC can kill the decker.

Assuming: Black IC kills a decker by convincing/re-coding the cyberdeck to
send lethal simsense signals to the decker's brain. For example, it might
(somehow) convince the decker that he is having a heart attack, which would
kill him. (This is hand-wavy voodoo, but it is as good an explanation of
black IC as any.)

Then: It should be possible to create a simsense chip that would reproduce
the same signals that black IC does. A normal player has safeties which
would prevent the effect, but if these were removed, the user would die.

Why would anyone do this? I'm thinking of it mostly as a means of
execution/assassination. More difficult to trace than a bullet in the head,
though obviously limited in both application and usage opportunity. You'd
pretty much have to have total control over the target to administer the
chip. Trickery might work, I suppose.

As far as the article goes, I'd give it a decker-posts-some-liberated-R-
and-D slant.

Comments?

Wordman
Message no. 2
From: Patrick Goodman remo@***.net
Subject: [Nerps] Idea for Stuff: Death chips
Date: Mon, 19 Apr 1999 22:55:33 -0500
>Then: It should be possible to create a simsense chip that would reproduce
>the same signals that black IC does. A normal player has safeties which
>would prevent the effect, but if these were removed, the user would die.
>
>
>Comments?

And you're writing this *when* exactly...? <looks at watch impatiently>

--
(>) Texas 2-Step
El Paso: Never surrender. Never forget. Never forgive.
Message no. 3
From: Oliver McDonald oliver@****.spydernet.com
Subject: [Nerps] Idea for Stuff: Death chips
Date: Mon, 19 Apr 1999 21:13:30 -0700 (PDT)
On Mon, 19 Apr 1999 23:30:20 -0400, Wordman wrote:

>Then: It should be possible to create a simsense chip that would reproduce
>the same signals that black IC does. A normal player has safeties which
>would prevent the effect, but if these were removed, the user would die.
>
>Why would anyone do this? I'm thinking of it mostly as a means of
>execution/assassination. More difficult to trace than a bullet in the head,
>though obviously limited in both application and usage opportunity. You'd
>pretty much have to have total control over the target to administer the
>chip. Trickery might work, I suppose.
>
>As far as the article goes, I'd give it a decker-posts-some-liberated-R-
>and-D slant.
>
>Comments?

Interesting idea. I would suspect that any player that has been modified to allow BTLs to

work to full effectiveness would do...

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Oliver McDonald - oliver@*********.com
http://web2.spydernet.com/oliver/shadowrun.html
---------------------------------------------------------------------

"We all enter this world in the same way: naked, screaming, and soaked in blood. But
if you live your life right, that kind of thing doesn't have to stop there."
Dana Gould.

Space. The Final Frontier. Let's not close it down.
Brought to you via CyberSpace, the recursive frontier.
Message no. 4
From: Gurth gurth@******.nl
Subject: [Nerps] Idea for Stuff: Death chips
Date: Tue, 20 Apr 1999 10:53:11 +0200
According to Wordman, at 23:30 on 19 Apr 99, the word on
the street was...

> Then: It should be possible to create a simsense chip that would reproduce
> the same signals that black IC does. A normal player has safeties which
> would prevent the effect, but if these were removed, the user would die.

Sounds plausible to me. I'm thinking a BTL deck would be able to do this,
as it has had the safety measures removed.

> Why would anyone do this? I'm thinking of it mostly as a means of
> execution/assassination. More difficult to trace than a bullet in the head,
> though obviously limited in both application and usage opportunity. You'd
> pretty much have to have total control over the target to administer the
> chip. Trickery might work, I suppose.

You could break into the target's house and replace simsense players with,
shall we say, "adjusted" ones. Could form the basis for a shadowrun -- Mr.
Johnson gives them a handful of cyberdecks and an address where they have
to swap them.

> As far as the article goes, I'd give it a decker-posts-some-liberated-R-
> and-D slant.
>
> Comments?

Go ahead with it, I say.

--
Gurth@******.nl - http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/index.html
Throwing fire at the sun
-> NERPS Project Leader * ShadowRN GridSec * Unofficial Shadowrun Guru <-
->The Plastic Warriors Page: http://shadowrun.html.com/plasticwarriors/<-
-> The New Character Mortuary: http://www.electricferret.com/mortuary/ <-

GC3.1: GAT/! d-(dpu) s:- !a>? C+(++)@ U P L E? W(++) N o? K- w+ O V? PS+
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Incubated into the First Church of the Sqooshy Ball, 21-05-1998
Message no. 5
From: Earl earl@********.es
Subject: [Nerps] Idea for Stuff: Death chips
Date: Tue, 20 Apr 1999 14:57:33 +0100
This was that killed that dwarf (Allenby?) in "One Stage Before"
(FASA, 1992). Am I wrong?
Message no. 6
From: Tony Rabiola rabiola@**.netcom.com
Subject: [Nerps] Idea for Stuff: Death chips
Date: Wed, 21 Apr 1999 03:17:39 -0500
>After seeing the Matrix, I re-read the novella in the original
Virtual
>Realities. I started thinking about black IC, and came up with an
idea. I'd
>like to bounce it off the list as a potential idea for Stuff. If it
is well
>received, I'll take the time to do a write up.


I like this lots! Love to see a full article on it...

Tony Rabiola
rabiola@**.netcom.com
Fourth and Sixth World Adept
(still working on the Fifth)
Proud owner BABY #972
Message no. 7
From: Bruce gyro@********.co.za
Subject: [Nerps] Idea for Stuff: Death chips
Date: Wed, 21 Apr 1999 13:13:17 +0200
-----Original Message-----
From: Wordman <wordman@*******.com>
To: NERPS <nerps@*********.org>
Date: 20 April 1999 05:39
Subject: [Nerps] Idea for Stuff: Death chips

<snippage of Death Chips idea>


>Comments?
>
>Wordman

I love this idea. Its on solid ground as far as the logic goes and
seems like exactly the kind of thing for STUFF. This of course brings
up ll kinds of other possibilities, like psychotropic ICE on a chip
etc...

Does anyone have any interest in Pfix chips that are described in
Underworld sourcebook? I have been inspired to write a piece on
them... unless you want to include it your article Wordman.....

-- BRUCE <gyro@********.co.za>

<hard@****>

Theres nothing like a netfight
Everything is True
Nothing is Forbidden
Message no. 8
From: Wordman wordman@*******.com
Subject: [Nerps] Idea for Stuff: Death chips
Date: Wed, 21 Apr 1999 23:29:15 -0400
"Earl" <earl@********.es> wrote:
> This was that killed that dwarf (Allenby?) in "One Stage Before"
> (FASA, 1992). Am I wrong?

Ooo, good catch, Earl. I've never even played that module, but there it is
right on page 33.

I might still write the article anyway, giving reference to this event.
Maybe I could give the chips a wider circulation, like maybe they are the
assisted suicide method of choice or something.

Wordman
Message no. 9
From: Wordman wordman@*******.com
Subject: [Nerps] Idea for Stuff: Death chips
Date: Wed, 21 Apr 1999 23:32:54 -0400
> Does anyone have any interest in Pfix chips that are described in
> Underworld sourcebook? I have been inspired to write a piece on
> them... unless you want to include it your article Wordman.....

It's all you, dude.

Wordman
Message no. 10
From: Earl earl@********.es
Subject: [Nerps] Idea for Stuff: Death chips
Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 16:24:56 +0200
>I might still write the article anyway, giving reference to this event.
>Maybe I could give the chips a wider circulation, like maybe they are the
>assisted suicide method of choice or something.
>
>Wordman


Yes, Wordman, I never intended to say the idea wasn't good, I think it could
be a good article, and I mentioned that as an idea.

>
>

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