[Mirikon]

I've heard that it was conceived as an excuse to justify why everything, especially augmentations, is more expensive now. Seems like a lot of work for something that could be explained by inflation.

Inflation works as an excuse when it is a small change. Wired Reflexes, for example, went from 11k/32k/100kk to 39k/149k/217k between 4th and 5th. Which means that if this was due to 'inflation', that would be inflation of 200-400% in the course of a year or two (from beginning of Dragon Civil War to the new edition coming out). That is the kind of thing you see in global economic meltdowns, like the Great Depression.

[Ghost Rigger]

Global economic meltdown, huh? That would've been interesting to see.

[RowanTheFox]

A global economic meltdown is pretty much inevitable. The shadowrun economy runs on capitalism gone mad. Capitalism depends on constant economic growth, which is utterly unsustainable in the long run.

Anywho, I actually managed to bring FastJack back in my fanon. The gist of it is that he got snapped up by Aztech, who then fried all of his nanites (and other 'ware) with EMP, using a Stabilize spell followed by a Heal spell to make sure it didn't kill him. After that his overwritten mind was more or less a blank slate that they pumped full of skillsofts for their purposes (which were horrible and psychopathic of course), after replacing the fried 'ware.

He did, however, remember one name: FastJack. He started to wonder who that was, or if it was him. He would periodically slip his proverbial leash to find everything he could on this "FastJack". Over the years, he started to put the pieces together, using it to build a personafix for himself. He's got a lot of "blank spots", things he can't remember because he couldn't find any info on them on the matrix. For starters, he no longer remembers his real name, and a lot of his old skills are gone, save for the ones his Azzie handlers plugged into him.

How he got out is a story all it's own.

[Jack_Spade]

Most spells are terrible at targeting nanites for two reasons. First, they are too small to be seen individually or create a connection to them directly. Second, they are highly processed, and magic and tech do not blend well. Spells cast on a head case targeting the nanites, have their Drain increased by +2 at a minimum and may not work at all. Be creative, and make it tough—this virus is not fair.

Yeah, that's a typical quote of someone who doesn't know their own rules very well. There are half a dozen spells by now that do nothing else but interact with technology. Drain increase is a non-issue with reagents and fetish spells. The Shape (Element) spell is specific enough and allows to influence volumes of special materials. Not being able to see is a non-issue for the spell - otherwise targeting air or other gasses wouldn't be possible either. 
Silicon or whatever else nanites use for their processors would be the top choice.

[Sendaz]

The Shape (Element) spell is specific enough and allows to influence volumes of special materials. Not being able to see is a non-issue for the spell - otherwise targeting air or other gasses wouldn't be possible either. 

So true. 

When you Run with Mungo after he has had his Tuesday Taco Shack, having your mage able to cast Shape [Flatuance] is a downright necessity.

[Ghost Rigger]

What, you mean it's not more convenient to summon an air spirit and have it handle the situation?

[RowanTheFox]

What, you mean it's not more convenient to summon an air spirit and have it handle the situation?

Nothing will drive an air spirit toxic faster than Mungo's taco farts.

[Sendaz]

What, you mean it's not more convenient to summon an air spirit and have it handle the situation?

Nothing will drive an air spirit toxic faster than Mungo's taco farts.

Exactly.

Not to mention racking up that Spirit Index faster with that sort of job.

[RowanTheFox]

What, you mean it's not more convenient to summon an air spirit and have it handle the situation?

Nothing will drive an air spirit toxic faster than Mungo's taco farts.

Exactly.

Not to mention racking up that Spirit Index faster with that sort of job.

I gotta say that the atonement ritual afterwards will be fragging spectacular.

[Ghost Rigger]

That's all nonsense. Air spirits can conjure nauseatingly toxic gases at will (as per Noxious Breath) and don't need to breath, so I see no reason they'd take offense at a few gaseous hydrocarbons.

[RowanTheFox]

That's all nonsense. Air spirits can conjure nauseatingly toxic gases at will (as per Noxious Breath) and don't need to breath, so I see no reason they'd take offense at a few gaseous hydrocarbons.

They'd be offended because it's not their nauseatingly toxic gas. Air spirits are just as vulnerable to toxic waste as any other spirit, breathing or no breathing.

[Sendaz]

That's all nonsense. Air spirits can conjure nauseatingly toxic gases at will (as per Noxious Breath) and don't need to breath, so I see no reason they'd take offense at a few gaseous hydrocarbons.

Dude, they don't have to breath it.   We have seen Mungo's err.... discharges from the astral and I swear to Cougar that it left an astral haze in it's wake.
I don't know exactly what is wrong with the boy, but those bowels ain't normal.....maybe he has a Horror in there or something....

But if YOU want to put your summoned buddies through that, by all means feel free, but don't come crying back to us when nobody will return your summonings because they don't fancy being your personal air freshener for you.

[MDMann]

I think it's a Shedim that crawled up there and got trapped by Mungos cheesey aura or something.  It's definitely got a whiff of the dead about it. I swear there's ghouls who balk at assaulting that passage.

[Mirikon]

A global economic meltdown is pretty much inevitable. The shadowrun economy runs on capitalism gone mad. Capitalism depends on constant economic growth, which is utterly unsustainable in the long run.

I'll just point out that there have been two hard resets on the global economy in the Shadowrun timeline, and we're only 20 years after the last one.

[DeathStrobe]

Magic shouldn't be able to counter CFD.

The setting has WAY too much reliance on magic for all it's threats and cures. So it'd be nice if the new technological threat did not have a magical solution.

Magic fights magic. Resonance fights Resonance. It'd make more thematic sense that AIs and nanite would be able to cure the AI/nanite threat.

With Bugs and Shedim, magic is your best solution.

Back when it was Ex Pacis, you'd use your own Otaku.

When it was Deus, you had 2 other AIs there.

I'm just saying, you fight fire with fire.