| From: | Sebastian Wiers m0ng005e@*****.com |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Some matrix queries |
| Date: | Wed, 25 Oct 2000 08:10:03 -0500 |
:upgrade, but the decker could not, why could the
:deckers opposition afford to upgrade? If being a top
:notch super decker is so costly, and being a top notch
:samurai is relatively cheap, what does that mean? It
:means the samurai faces more top notch samurai and the
:decker faces more folks who can't afford good
:programs. That makes the samurais job harder, and the
:deckers job easier.
:> -Mongoose
:
:Which is all very nice and logical, Mongoose, but
:unless you're the good ae, you're not playing the game
:for a hefty dose of realism - you're playing to have
:fun.
:
:How much fun is it when your teammates are improving,
:but you're being left behind in the SOTA dust because
:your toys are too expensive to upgrade? Hmmm?
Well, "Mongoose" the PC never upgraded any of his implants in the length
of a 2 year campaign. Sure, he managed to scrounge some nice guns and a
car, but that was about it- more of a hobby than an exorcise in staying
SOTA. I think the cheapest upgrades I wanted came to maybe 500,000 nuyen,
which very nearly was my entire liquid savings after the two years. In
fact, it was sort of a challenge trying to just break even as his best toys
got broken...
He was still PLENTY of fun to play, even though other characters in the
game were in fact upgrading foci and cyber when he could not. He didn't
NEED to upgrade, which was my point with the decker.
There's another point in there- expensive is not the same as
unobtainable. Stealing software (either with a gun or with bits) is a noble
goal for any decker.
:Btw, VR2 DID have one suggestion (kinda - which can
:easily be customised as necessary) for solving this
:problem. In downtime, let the decker go on a few,
:small paydata runs. If you want, you can even just
:roll computer skill tests. The decker skims off some
:paydata, sells it and keeps ALL the money, to be spent
:on improving his toys. Depending on how fast you want
:him to advance, you can adjust how much money he makes
:from these runs - AND you can use them as springboards
:for future adventures.
:
:====:Doc'
The Matrix also includes a paydata table, along with detailing what
sorts of files might serve as paydata.
-Mongoose
