[Finstersang]

Disclaimer: In my first Post-Kill Code House Rule post, I stated that I will mostly post stuff that a. isn´t meant to fundamentally change everything about the Matrix gameplay and b. is not supposed to have some kind of "The official rules are terrible, this is so much better!"-Vibe. This one is kinda borderlining here, because it affects something that is, IMO still not explained very well and (provided that I interpreted the rules correctly) quite counterintuitive and too restrictive. Oh, and it also introduces two new keyords, which allows for some perks to tinker around with it.

Detection Range
There it is, our first new keyword. What does it mean? It´s that arbitrary radius of 100 Meters* mentioned in the Core Rules in which you automatically detect any Icon that´s not running silently. It´s also the range in which you can try to determine if hidden Icons are nearby. And (this is not RAW, but silently assumed by many players) it is the range in which you really don´t need to trace an icon, because you already have a good idea on its phsysical location by looking at the AR overlay. Henceforth, these 100 Meters shall be named Detection Range.

The Center of your Detection Range, your Viewport, is the device your persona is running on. It sometimes may look like your Persona is  wandering around the Matrix when doing stuff, but this as just a visual Metaphor: So far, the only way to move the center of your detection range or POV is to move this device.  (Note that all of this is already quite contested: https://forums.shadowruntabletop.com/index.php?topic=28037.msg505938;topicseen#msg505938 If I´m getting this wrong, I´m happy about any corrections or annotations, especially when supported by rules texts or other kind of authority )

Now that we defined the problem space: Let´s change that! I think it would be good idea to let Matrix users actually "wander" around the Matrix, tapping in on new location by shifting their Viewport to other places. The following Action is kinda inspired by Watchdogs (love it or hate it), where you can "jump" from device to device after hacking them.

Complex Action: Shift/Multiply Viewport
Target: Device. Needs 3 Marks on the Target.
You shift or multiply your Viewport to another device to percieve the Matrix as if your Persona was running on it. If it is a device you own (or have the permission of the owner), no test is needed, only the Marks. Else, you have to succeed in a Electronic Warfare + Logic [Data Processing] VS Intuition + Firewall Test. You can use the new viewport until you leave the Matrix or until you shift to another device. Note that you can´t use this on a device that is running another persona. I you choose to multiply your viewport, you can monitor as many viewports as you like. However, you incur a -2 Dice Pool Modificator per additional viewport after the first to all your Actions because of the distraction. Note that you can´t use this Action inside a host and that you automatically shift back to your original viewport if the target enters a host or leaves the Matrix. Also note that the shifted viewport doesn´t affect noise, tracing attempts or, in fact, anything else beyond what you can percieve in the Matrix.

Example 1: Paranoid Polly is waking up in the middle of the night, dead certain that there´s a Mitsuhama Kill Team just outside of her appartment. While she hastily gears up, she decides that she needs Matrix support and calls up her friend H0ward the Hacker. Polly may be paranoid, but she trusts H0ward, so she also invites him for 3 Marks and gives him all the permissions needed to help her out of this mess. H0ward uses the Marks to shift his Viewport to Pollys commlink. He can now spot all the devices in a 100 Meter radius around her that are not running silently. However, IF there really was a Kill Team, they will probably have their equipment running silently, so H0ward uses Matrix Perception to determine if there are PANs running silently in Pollys detection range. He finds nothing, and grumpily tells Polly to go to sleep again.

Example 2: Later, H0ward is out an on run and tries to get a better view on the digital Infrastrukture of a small Horizon outlet. Scanning his way through all the wireless devices inside the building would be tedious, but what if he can use a spy? In a little Cafe 200 Meters down the street, he managed to hack the commlink of an unsuspecting Horizon employee on a break for 3 Marks. Now he returns to work. H0ward rolls Electronic Warfare + Logic [Data Processing] against Intuition + Firewall of the employee to shift his viewport to the marked Commlink. He suceeds, and as the employee approaches the building, H0ward starts to map out the wireless devices inside the building.

*ACKCHYUALLY it´s not that arbitrary: It´s also the range after which the first noise penalties emerge 

[Finstersang]

Now the fun thing about Keywords is that you can use them to quickly come up with new Perks to make the game more interesting. A few suggestions:

Complex Form: Greyout
Target: Device or Persona. Sustained. Fading: Level - 2
Make a Software+Resonance [Level] VS Data Processing + Intuition - Test. If you succeed, the targets Detection Range is divided by 1+Net Hits. When the Form takes effect, the target also loses track of all icons that are not inside the reduced Detection Range, unless the target has a Mark on them.

Echo: Enhanced Detection Range
Increases the Detection Range of your Living Persona by 25 Meters * Submersion Grade. Note that this also affects other devices if you shift your Viewport to them.

Echo: Multi-Tabbing
You have learned to multiply your attention and observe up to Submersion Grade/2 (round up) additional Viewports at the same time without incuring the -2 penalty.

Positive Qualitiy: Close-Combat-Hacker (12 Karma)
You prefer to get close to the devices you want to hack into. You recieve a +1 Dice Pool Modifier for Stealth and Attack Actions against Devices in your Detection Range. However, this only works with your own Detection Range, meaning that you can´t use alternate viewports to recieve this bonus.

[Beta]

I like all of this.  Whether or not it is either RAW or RAI it is clear and self-consistent.

Just one question,in your examples, in both cases wouldn't the commlinks have already been used for their owners' personas, and so not eligible?  Or am I misunderstanding something?

[Finstersang]

Oh, you´re right. Hmmm, why did I even... 

You know what, let´s scrap that restriction! You are not meant to occupy the device when shifting your viewport, like an AI could do. It´s more like watching over someone´s shoulder

My reason for the restriction was to prevent weird interactions with hosts, so I added another sentence to clarify things.

[Iron Serpent Prince]

I like this, even if it is "wrong" from a RAW/RAI standpoint.

It is clear, it has a visceral quality - in that it is easy to visualize, and it adds an element of "cool" to electronically gaining access to a site.

I do have a couple of nitpicking points, but let me be clear - these are just nitpicking.

First, on the Shift Viewport Action, you do not state that it ends if the target Jacks Out.  Yeah, that is kind of implied...  It never hurts to be absolutely clear though.

Second, The Multi-Tabbing Echo...  I don't like that the action is Techno only.
Here is my proposal:
Everyone can keep multiple Viewports running at the same time - if they choose.  Each additional* Viewport adds a -2 die pool penalty to any Perception related tasks.
The Reception Enhancer bioware negates this penalty, as does the Multi-Tabbing Echo.

*For consistency, this might have to be "If a character is maintaining more than one Viewport."  That just doesn't "feel" right to me though.

[Finstersang]

Thanks for the feedback!

Multiple "viewports" as an option for everyone seems reasonable. Instead of "Shift Viewport", the Action could be named "Shift/Multiply Viewport". Would be bit like 4th Edition, where Deckers and Technos could multiply their Personas to be at different spots at once. I´ll see if I can change the description. For now, I just added the "...until target logs off"- restriction   

I´m actually still not sure if I interpreted the Core Rules correctly here. It might be RAI that you can freely (and not just metaphorically) "move" your Persona in the Matrix, like a Mage can move his/her Astral Form

What would change then? There would be some situations where you wouldn´t have to use Trace Icon anymore if you have a good guess where your target might be, since you could just instantly travel there with you Persona and make a Matrix Perception test to confirm your suspicion. Not a bad thing, it might speed some tasks up a bit. In Cybercombat, the fighters will either run silently (which means they will need to use Matrix Perception anyway) or will automatically spot each other after the first Attack. As long as Tracing attempts and Noise Calculations still use the Device, there´s hardly any room for abuse here.

Anyway, I´d still think that at least the Detection Range should be keyworded and could use some perks that modify it 

[Iron Serpent Prince]

I´m actually still not sure if I interpreted the Core Rules correctly here. It might be RAI that you can freely (and not just metaphorically) "move" your Persona in the Matrix, like a Mage can move his/her Astral Form

I can't offer any help here.  Like I have said, I've been looking for some reference to get an idea of what RAI is.

As for what changes if the Persona actually travels the Matrix?  You hit upon the things I'm looking for.
In the absence of any clarification, your house rule does a good job of defining things from the no-Matrix-travel side of things.  It isn't too restrictive and actually opens up new possibilities.

To put it in perspective, I'm going under the assumption the Persona travels.  No particular reason, other than it fits more with what I think the typical player coming to the table would assume.
Even from that perspective, I could adapt to your house rule without any sour feelings.

I'll try and come up with some additions, if I can.

[Beta]

I do feel the persona traveling thing could be different with AR and VR. 

[Iron Serpent Prince]

I work up some Cyberdeck modules to kind of offset your Techno creations.

Cyberdeck Modules

Clarion Optics
This module uses multiple co-subprocessors to expand the Detection Radius of the host device.

Rules
Rating 1-10
Each point of Rating increases the Detection Radius of the device it is installed in by 10 meters.
Availability:  (3 x Rating)
Cost:  (Rating x ¥700)

Detective
This module will redirect power from the Matrix interpreters to the detection subprocessors.

Rules
Can only be hardwired into a device.
Rating 1-10
The module has a variable setting from 0 up to the purchased rating.  The setting can be hard set at installation, if desired.  If it isn’t hard set, it takes a Simple Action to change the setting, although the new setting will not take effect until the end of the next Combat Turn.
Each point of setting will reduce the Detection Radius by 10% and provide a +1 die pool modifier to any Matrix Perception tests.
Special Note:  If the Detection Radius drops below 50 meters, the device looses any automatic spotting ability inside a Host.
Availability:  (4 + (2 x Rating))
Cost:  ¥2000 + (Rating x ¥500)



Also, I'll add that I'd like to expand this house rule a bit.  I've always felt that Icons should have one of two keywords.  Visible and Hidden.  These are different than Silent or not in the fact that these are subjective.  What I mean is what is Visible to my character doesn't have to be Visible to your character even if we occupy the same space.  Whereas Silent or not is objective in the fact it is the same for all characters.

The most obvious use for this would be to clean up existing rules, I admit.  Barring that, they could be used to inspire new ideas as well.

[Finstersang]

I like these, especially Farsight (although I don´t get the name. Isn´t it quite the opposite?  ). I always thaught about Perks that enhance the Detection Range, but voluntarily reducing it for a "closer look" is another nice and intuitive idea. A bit like a Magnifying glass    If you add a constriction like "works only on the Grid, and only on things inside your detection radius", you don´t have to care about host interaction here.

I updated the Shift Viewport Action to allow for Multiple Viewports and changed the Multitabbing Echo accordingly. This also has the benefit that most about it remains usefull even if the alternative Interpretation for Persona Location - that you can actually "project" your Persona away from you physical location on the Grid, similar to an astral form - turns out to be true.

I´ve got to say, this alternatve way of handling Matrix Travel really starts to grow on me. It´s really intuitive, in part because of the parallels to astral travel, and it´s not that much of a gamebreaker as I thought. Locating things in the Matrix becomes a bit easier, but that´s not really a bad thing IMO.

[Iron Serpent Prince]

Well...

My intention with Farsight was more of a telescope, and less of a magnifying glass.  Reduce ability to "see" around you to have a better chance of finding your target Icon outside of your Detection Range.  But you are right.  It can be turned on an Icon within Detection Range as well.

I'll rename it "Detective." 

And the Host special note is because there isn't any range inside a Host.  I didn't want s hacker running a Rating 10 Farsight Detective module to not have any penalty inside a Host.