comStar Firewall alert - PhaseThrough

technoMancers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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finding and Joining a network
While joining a technomancer network neither requires a test
nor costs karma, actually finding the group can be tricky. Due to
the small fraction of technomancers within a population, and the
sheer number of networks that exist in the Matrix, technomancer
networks are comparatively rare and hard to find. Players and
gamemasters are encouraged to play out the technomancer’s search
for these groups during the game, letting the technomancer’s character
draw on his contacts and virtual tracking abilities to assemble
clues to the location of the network.
Temporary party networks are easier to find and require a
Resonance + Data Search (8, 1 day) Extended Test, if an appropriate
party is currently set up or is being formed (gamemaster’s discretion).
SaMpLe networkS
Here are some sample networks for players or gamemasters
to use or adapt for their own games.
the cooperative
Purpose: The Cooperative is a technomancer network that
works together out of mutual interest. While each technomancer
uses the group and the group’s combined knowledge of technomancer
“arts” for his own purposes, the network also stands
up as a collective against the enemies of technomancers, acting
against and punishing corporate and governmental organizations
that persecute the Emerged.
Members: 7 (all technomancers of different streams)
Strictures: Dues, Privacy
Resources/Dues: Middle. Dues are 600 nuyen per month,
which are used to maintain and expand online resources, including
unlimited storage capacity for its members plus more-than-sufficient
privacy in terms of network security and protection of the
members’ data vaults. Some money is used for “deniable assets”
(shadowrunners) when they are needed; on these occasions, one of
the group members takes the virtual role of a Mr. Johnson avatar.
Description and Customs: The Cooperative (also known as
Co-op) is a technomancer network that was already founded before
the witch-hunts began shortly after the Crash, by three former hackers
known as Cortex, Wizbyte, and Slashdot who met when they
were trying to understand what was happening to them. Coming
to the conclusion that they could achieve more by cooperating and
pooling their knowledge about their abilities, they were among the
first technomancer networks to be formed. During the Emergence
of technomancers, they used their abilities and their network’s
resources against corporate machinations, recruiting promising
members in their fight against technomancer enemies and hiring
shadowrunners to protect technomancers or commit sabotage.
Although witch-hunts have declined since then, the Cooperative
has not forgotten the corporations’ methods that turned the public
against technomancers, resulting in the deaths of several. Those
corporations and institutions with reputations for technomancer
experimentation (like MCT or NeoNET) have become frequent
targets of Cooperative action and hacks, sending out sprites against
their nexi or cursing their nodes from the resonance realm.
kivanet
Purpose: The KivaNet advocates the integration of technomancers
into tribal society and has dedicated itself to act as a
platform for open exchange and communication between technomancers
and normal Matrix users via the Matrix.
Members: 130 (~10 technomancers, mainly technoshamans)
Strictures: Attendance, Belief, Limited Membership (NAN
citizens), Service
Resources/Dues: Luxury, no dues (fully sponsored). The
network possesses a plethora of nodes and has access to a resonance
well (Rating 5) that is deeply entrenched and safeguarded
in the Kiva network.
Patron: Pueblo Corporate Council
Description and Customs: Created by the Pueblo Corporate
Council on the advice of various shamanic interests in the autumn
of 2070, the KivaNet is a network of virtual nodes called “kivas”
(holy places) that work toward a common goal, the acceptance of
technomancers within global society. Supported by the PCC, the
KivaNet works to establish communication among technomancers
and between the tribal communities of the PCC (and those of the
NAN who want to participate). While the KivaNet is open to nontechnomancers,
it has a core group of, mostly, technoshamans, who
take care of the kiva nodes, teach newly Emerged technomancers,
and moderate or participate in open forums or discussion groups
to educate the public. Most technoshamans follow some sort of
paragon and are interested in understanding and communication
with the entities and ideas they are aligned with, using the network’s
resonance well as gateways to the resonance realms to commune
with their paragon or explore different resonance realms.
the walking people
Purpose: Also called “Routers” or Digital Gypsies by some
people, the Walking People is a former otaku tribe, originally from
London, that scattered all over Europe in the wake of Crash 2.0 but
has reformed virtually as a network during the events in 2070.
Members: 24 (13 technomancers)
Strictures: Dues, Fraternity
Resources/Dues: Low. Members contribute 50 nuyen annually.
The network possesses few central nodes for meetings, mainly
in the UK.
Description and Customs: Originating from the Smoke,
the Routers disbanded during Crash 2.0 due to the losses (net
destruction, deaths, loss of abilities and the tribe’s resources) the
tribe had to face. While some members remained in loose contact
with each other, most members adopted a nomadic lifestyle and
left the United Kingdom for a better future, struggling for survival
in a fast-changing world in barren areas of Europe’s major
metroplexes like Berlin, Amsterdam, Warsaw, or GeMiTo. While
the faint associations that still existed began to crumble over the
years that followed, the events of 2070 led to a reformation of the
tribe, albeit only in the digital world. When some members who
had stayed in London resurrected the tribe’s former node, both
technomancers and non-technomancers began visiting the system
again, renewing the old familiarities and growing into a more
modern version of the former tribe. Since then the Walking People
have been loosely working together to help each other survive in
their new geographical homes, forming a connected network that
spans Europe. While the technomancers mainly take care of the
tribe’s digital needs, the “mundanes,” hackers, electronics specialists,
and tech-wizards often take care of worldly needs and act as
the technomancers’ protectors.
Unwired
Simon Wentworth (order #1132857) 9