| From: | shadowrn@*********.com (Hahns Shin) |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Cyberware and Essence |
| Date: | Thu Apr 26 13:10:00 2001 |
the body
>costs Essence when "microsurgery and nanotechnology affect the
central
>nervous system." (We'll set aside the fact that much of the 'ware in
M&M
>doesn't follow that simple rule, for the present.) Does that mean, in
your
>opinions, that the greater the piece uses microsurgery and
nanotechnology to
>invade and modify the central nervous system, the higher the Essence
costs?
The general rule is the "bigger the cyberware, the bigger the Essence
cost". *grin* I'm sure you want a better explanation than that. The
forward of M&M states that Essence loss occurs when foreign material
is implanted in the body AND when the brain accepts this as part of
its own body. I imagine there are two types of high cyberware costs:
invasive somatic and invasive neural.
Invasive somatic cyberware is a highly invasive modification of the
body itself. A cyberlimb or bone lacing is a good example. Because you
are changing a massive part of the body and rewiring it to your brain
(everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, is innervated in the human body,
with few exceptions), the Essence cost is higher. This is why dermal
sheathing and other body implants cost so much Essence (The skin is a
major sensory organ). I have an explanation for bone lacing involving
the remodeling of bone (bone is constantly degrading and renewing... a
deficiency in this renewal causes osteoporosis. Bone lacing would
definitely inhibit this process and as a result would need constant
nanite/hormonal therapy), and I'm sure you can extend this analogy to
some other systems. Small bodyware (such as smartlinks, retractable
spurs, and cyberhands/feet) requires little rewiring and musculature
adaptation, so it costs little essence (not to mention that
somatotopically it is less than 2 cubic cm of brain matter to control
one hand). A bad analogy (and this is really bad, but I thought it was
humorous) is when you install a new card in your computer and you have
to load (old and buggy) drivers off of a CD... your computer sometimes
will not run as smoothly as it used to (though it may run better in a
certain aspect: graphics, sound, etc.).
Invasive neural cyberware fundamentally changes the way the brain
works on a central brain/spinal level (as opposed to somatic, which is
on the peripheral level). Wired reflexes and encephalon are the
prototype examples. The more complex the change and the rewiring, the
greater the Essence cost. Changing a sensory modality (eyes, ears,
etc.) apparently doesn't take up much essence (which would make sense
because all of the senses are associated with a discrete fraction of
the brain), but changing a central cortical process or
subcortical/cerebellar reflex apparently does (Wired Reflexes,
Move-by-Wire, Skillwires). This is probably due to the fact that the
cortices and cerebellum have HIGHLY redundant connections. Otherwise,
a blow to the head would knock out permanently, say, the ability to
stand up (which would be bad). It is said that there are more
cross-connections in the brain than stars and planets in the universe.
So where does this put data/chipjacks? Or Math SPUs for that matter? I
think that gamewise, you can count them as an "additional" sensory
modality, though it is the ability to send/receive data. It could
involve innervating the mesencephalon and diencephalon, a small area
of the brain that relays data traffic to and from the brain and the
spine (oversimplified, but it will work for now).
I think that most cyberware can fit under this model, though I also
think that the Essence cost numbers were initially made for game
balance and to ride the "Humanity loss" wave that was around in other
games like Cyberpunk 2020.
You are a brave man for trying to tinker with the Essence system... I
think it can be rewarding, but it may have some unforeseen
consequences for your players and your campaign. Good luck, and have
fun.
Hahns Shin, MS I
Budding cybersurgeon
