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Matrix phenoMena . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
174
reSonance reaLM SearcHeS
Technomancers (and others) who visit the resonance realms have
the opportunity to work wonders they would never be able to do in the
normal Matrix. The resonance realms offer certain tricks and shortcuts
that might allow a character to ignore fundamental rules of Matrix topology,
bypass system security, or acquire inaccessible data. To make use
of these hacks, however, the technomancer must find the proper path
through the resonance realms, a process known as a resonance realm
search. This is the true challenge when visiting a resonance realm.
Harmonizing with the resonance
Accessing the resonance realms is no easy matter. Before a
technomancer even begins his search, he should take care of his
physical security. Trips to the
resonance realms may take extensive
amounts of time, so it
is always a good idea to choose
a safe place for your body or at
least leave it in the care of good
friends.
To start a resonance
realm search, a technomancer
must clear his thoughts, cut
off all active connections and
subscriptions, and immerse
himself in the virtual reality of
the Matrix. By concentrating
on the constant background
noise, harmonizing with its
frequencies, a submerged
technomancer can trace the
streams of Resonance back
to their source—the resonance
realms. This requires a
Resonance + Fading attribute
+ submersion grade (12, 1
hour) Extended Test. Once
a technomancer has located
this backdoor, he can begin
his journey to the resonance
reSonance reaLM:
The Shattered Haven
The first technomancers to enter the resonance
realms had heard from the otaku before them of a
fantastic digital city that arose from a vast river of
data, a place known as a sanctuary for visitors needing
respite from the resonance realm wilds. What
they found was not what they expected. The formerly
proud city of Haven was ruined and ablaze, its resident
sprites engaged in an ongoing civil war against their
dissonant brethren. The flow of information around
the digital spires was corrupted, dark and oily with
malignant data.
The sprites living in this place are willing to share
any knowledge they have that might be of use in combating
dissonance. As their digital structures slowly
succumb to entropy, they may seem to be fighting a
hopeless war, but they refuse to give up. The entropic
sprites they war against fully expect to claim this place
as their own, but they may also be willing to deal with
outsiders, especially if it furthers their own goals.
realms—but he must first pass the Event Horizon (p. 174).
At the gamemaster’s discretion, this initial effort of finding a
backdoor to the resonance realms may require the technomancer to
access a node (or nodes) that he doesn’t have permission to enter.
This may particularly be the case if the technomancer is seeking the
path to a particular resonance realm. Alternately, the trail may take
the technomancer to a resonance well, suggesting some possible linkage
between the wells and realms. Each resonance realm search takes
the technomancer by a different path. Some technomancers claim to
have accessed the resonance realms merely by immersing themselves
in the VR of a single, isolated node that was disconnected from the
rest of the Matrix.
event Horizon
Every time a technomancer enters a backdoor to the
resonance realms, he must first cross the Event Horizon. The appearance
of the Event Horizon changes based on the stream of the
technomancer, but it invariably appears as some sort of barrier or
obstacle that hinders his progress to the realms. Some call this the
Great Firewall, carefully guarding access to the realms, whereas
others consider it to be the Cipher, an intricate puzzle or code that
can only be solved with the proper key.
Whatever its true nature, the Event Horizon forces the
technomancer to come face-to-face with his own secrets, weaknesses,
and insecurities. Not only does the Event Horizon have
access to any information that has ever appeared on the Matrix,
but it also seems to tap into the technomancer’s own memories
and subconscious. This procedure may range from a review of
the digital records that testify to how the technomancer failed
to help a friend in need to forcing the technomancer to experience
the sensorium of someone he has killed. The purpose of
this test seems to be a review of
the technomancer’s “programming,”
to root out bugs, bad code,
and security flaws. In most cases,
Unwired
it is a wrenching emotional experience.
If the character cannot get
through the experience, then their
journey stops here.
If two or more submerged
technomancers undertake a resonance
realm search together, they
are privy to the experience through
which each of the others goes.
navigating the realms
Every resonance realm search
can be broken down into a series
of tasks that the technomancer
must complete in order to achieve
his goal. The gamemaster determines
the number and scope of
these tasks, but they should be
weighted in accordance with the
severity of the goal. Typically
these tasks relate to the goal and
the resonance realm(s) being
visited. For example, a search to erase data (see p. 175) could
require the technomancer to track down all instances of that
data, represented as fruit, hidden away in an expansive digital
forest. Likewise, a technomancer hoping to acquire a powerful
free sprite’s source code should face numerous obstacles and
challenges the sprite has placed before him. As a general guideline,
the rating of whatever is the target of the search can be
used to determine the number of tasks to be completed.
goals
The goal of a resonance realm search may differ from technomancer
to technomancer, but the following goals are the most
common. For developing additional goals, gamemaster can use
these as a guideline.
Enforce a Resonance Bond: A technomancer who possesses
a free sprite’s source code and wishes to force that free
sprite to enter into a resonance bond (see p. 160) may travel to
Simon Wentworth (order #1132857) 9