[Banshee]

the post is up ... https://www.shadowrunsixthworld.com/2019/07/the-matrix-in-sr6/

[Shinobi Killfist]

I’m curious to see how this is substantively different from marks. If I have to gains access to a network then gain access to the pan or whatever it’s just marks under a different name.

[FastJack]

I’m curious to see how this is substantively different from marks. If I have to gains access to a network then gain access to the pan or whatever it’s just marks under a different name.

I don't think you'll have to gain access to the network first. The way it sounds to me is that there's the hosts (corp's network) and PANs (for hacking the individual). I don't think you need to move from one to the other to gain access.

[Stainless Steel Devil Rat]

I’m curious to see how this is substantively different from marks. If I have to gains access to a network then gain access to the pan or whatever it’s just marks under a different name.

Access levels are indeed kind of "marks by another name" but the difference is more things can be done with the equivalent of 0 marks.

[Banshee]

Yep, access levels are very much an analog similar to marks... but they are a bit more easier to use and hopefully people find them more intuitive but also when compared to the matrix actions also not as restricted as marks were

[Moonshine Fox]

I'm hoping techno's are done right by this time, with a robust ruleset so I can build one my way, and not be forced into a 'pet' archetype to be effective. They got treated so poorly in 5th and not corrected till almost the end. Here's hoping.

[Iron Serpent Prince]

I’m curious to see how this is substantively different from marks. If I have to gains access to a network then gain access to the pan or whatever it’s just marks under a different name.

That was my first reaction as well.

Then it was the claim that 6e unified the game clock.  I had to reread the article to notice it doesn't make that claim, but is written in a fashion that allows the reader to make that conclusion.

Other than that what stood out to me was the cyberjack.

We were introduced to the concept earlier, and it seemed acceptable.  With further details, I'm questioning it.

• "Significant Essence cost."  By itself, this is innocuous enough.  Unless you are considering making a Rigger / Decker hybrid.  Is it significant like a Control Rig?  I hope not.  With luck, the Control Rig will function like a cyberjack.
• Contains the Data Processing and Firewall attributes.  When I first read that I took it to mean it was the only piece of gear that had DP and FW.  I had to reread it to see that isn't what the article claims.  Then I remembered the comm in the Rigger dossier didn't have a DP listed (might be device rating) and had a specific Firewall of 0.
• It is still looking like a car thief is going to have to carry a Deck.  Hopefully that will be addressed better in the vehicle rules.  Unless the Core Rules carry over the Attack/Sleaze workarounds of Data Trails, it may be some time before a Rigger can hijack a ride. 

I am not sure the article sold the Sixth World version of the Matrix very well.  Then again, I'm likely over-critical of this section of the rules.  I'd be curious to see what a more typical Shadowrun player - as well as a non SR player - takes from the article.

[PiXeL01]

So of I’m reading this correctly you don’t need access levels to each device, only the network it’s on.
That cuts a lot of rolls as before marks only moved up in the structure, not down.

[Banshee]

So of I’m reading this correctly you don’t need access levels to each device, only the network it’s on.
That cuts a lot of rolls as before marks only moved up in the structure, not down.

Yep .. you are correct sir .. proper access to the network itself is all you need with no need to track individual devices as long as they share a network

[Banshee]

I’m curious to see how this is substantively different from marks. If I have to gains access to a network then gain access to the pan or whatever it’s just marks under a different name.

That was my first reaction as well.

Then it was the claim that 6e unified the game clock.  I had to reread the article to notice it doesn't make that claim, but is written in a fashion that allows the reader to make that conclusion.

Other than that what stood out to me was the cyberjack.

We were introduced to the concept earlier, and it seemed acceptable.  With further details, I'm questioning it.

• "Significant Essence cost."  By itself, this is innocuous enough.  Unless you are considering making a Rigger / Decker hybrid.  Is it significant like a Control Rig?  I hope not.  With luck, the Control Rig will function like a cyberjack.
• Contains the Data Processing and Firewall attributes.  When I first read that I took it to mean it was the only piece of gear that had DP and FW.  I had to reread it to see that isn't what the article claims.  Then I remembered the comm in the Rigger dossier didn't have a DP listed (might be device rating) and had a specific Firewall of 0.
• It is still looking like a car thief is going to have to carry a Deck.  Hopefully that will be addressed better in the vehicle rules.  Unless the Core Rules carry over the Attack/Sleaze workarounds of Data Trails, it may be some time before a Rigger can hijack a ride. 

I am not sure the article sold the Sixth World version of the Matrix very well.  Then again, I'm likely over-critical of this section of the rules.  I'd be curious to see what a more typical Shadowrun player - as well as a non SR player - takes from the article.

Well to he honest we didn't address car theft in the CRB at all but we laid the base line for there to be no need of a deck to do any such thing

[BeCareful]

Okay, this stuff looks generally good to me.

Yeah, I like planning things out ahead and picking my battles, but this stuff means, if a van pulls up and people jump out of it with guns in their hands, I'll be able to do stuff right away that isn't just a return fire. I'm also happy to hear that the necessary equipment is no longer nearly unattainable, as well as the improved user-friendliness.

[Michael Chandra]

I need to reread the Matrix section to make sure it was a legal move, but my brother tapped a commcall to Snoop on the other end so he could tap the next call. And another Snoop he did he then immediately rerouted the outgoing  call to 911. I'm not even sure of all the actions you'd need in SR5 for that. Felt much more fluent this time 'round.

[Typhus]

Well, the Matrix sounds functional again.  Yay.

At the moment, though, I really, really dislike the cyberjack notion, and maybe even hate it.  Playtesters have revealed that this cyberjack is in the ballpark of 2-3 points of essence, which really bothers me.  The idea that suddenly after 5 editions and 30 years of enhancing the same technology, you have to get a partial skull and spinal replacement just to hack properly just doesn't feel right or make any sense.  It also has now been stated to have been done solely to solve for a hypothetical mechanical or balance issue, when I see no problem with just dropping the cost in general in what we had. That feels like design overtly disrupting a well established game world continuity to satisfy a "you" problem, not allow a "me" benefit.  I'm hoping this device can be houseruled out without breaking the whole system or making the book effectively useless to players.  I get that you can forego it and then apparently be a sucky decker, but that's a choice I also don't like.  It doesn't make any sense that it not being in your body makes you less good (especially when the software and hardware isn't doing the actions, its only your own skill dice, as was just confirmed in the post) or that VR protocols are suddenly need you to sacrifice half your soul to work right.  It feels like an insane and illogical tradeoff.  MAYBE if you added in five other meat world bennies to it, like a perception and or init boost, or built-in AR vision or something, and it might make some sense to me to go for. But you've only described it as basically implanting half a cyberdeck because you felt a need to balance things as that way instead of some other way.  I can't get behind that logic, and the history of the tech doesn't seem to support it either.  If I can upgrade either aspect, I can upgrade it whether it's in my skull or in a box, and that's always been true.  All the deckers in the shadowverse just decided let's rip half our spines and skulls just to be able to start at the new baseline? The whole point of being able to jack in was to be able to jack OUT when you needed to, yank the plug, and don't die when your deck fries.  It's why headware cyberdecks never caught on.  Now, I guess you'll just have to fry if you hit that black IC?  There better be a lot more to this crazy soul-sucking device we now have to have.  Otherwise, boo.  Just boo.

Maybe new players won't care, but it lands in the major minus column for me with only this teaser review to go on.  Sorry to those who struggled to create it, but that component is a thumbs way down.  FWIW, to stave off the inevitable rejoinders of 'you just hate what's different', no.  I don't care that it's different, i care that it's a major change that appears to make no sense on paper as described so far, and seems to upend the gameworld continuity, only implemented solely for meta reasons.  Unifying the game clock, simplifying processes, those are major changes too, but I find them completely all to the good.  This part, not so much.

And no, it's not a deal-breaker for me buying into 6E (its one piece of gear after all, hopefully I can just tell players it goes in the box instead of in the skull), but it's an eye-roller for me.  I'd love to be able to axe it.  I already have to work out a mechanic for putting meaningful armor back in the game and work out how to incorporate strength into melee, maybe even address how to do abstracted vehicle movement rules for chases, and now I will probably want to extricate cyberjacks too.   

Last bit of ranting here: This piecemeal teaser review process is driving me up the wall too.  I'll hear three things I like and then wham, a big one I can't stand and makes no sense to me gets revealed, all without the ability to see it for myself and take it all in with context and get a *proper* first impression. The Bad Thing may not be that bad, but I have no way to see that, and now I'll be irritated over it for how many more weeks?  The way half this stuff is being teased out is driving me nuts. Just stop or release the dang book already.  I hope CGL never does a release reveal this way again.  It's crazy-making. 

[Michael Chandra]

Playtesters have revealed that this cyberjack is in the ballpark of 2-3 points of essence, which really bothers me.

It really depends on the rating/quality you're going for. There's a large variety.

More importantly, Cyberjacks taking 2 of the Attributes allows more customization options for Deckers, since you can get a cheap deck and expensive jack, or the other way around. And they're by far superior to Commlinks stat-wise now.

[Iron Serpent Prince]

I need to reread the Matrix section to make sure it was a legal move, but my brother tapped a commcall to Snoop on the other end so he could tap the next call. And another Snoop he did he then immediately rerouted the outgoing  call to 911. I'm not even sure of all the actions you'd need in SR5 for that. Felt much more fluent this time 'round.

For 5e?  That's easy.  Snoop, Core page 242.

Unless the receiver was in 100 meters, you would likely need a Matrix Perception to actually "see" the receiver (see sidebar on page 242), then repeat.  There wasn't anything really legal about rerouting commcalls though.  Maybe Garbage In, Garbage Out (Data Trails, page 178).

Now, depending on whether or not Reckless Hacking was involved, you might need to gain MARKs at each new target.  With a persons digital safety deposit box getting it's door ripped off (commlinks having their Firewall removed, or at least significantly reduced) I'm not sure it would be a fair apples to apples comparison to compare the editions anymore.  Apply the same security shred to 5e, and Hackers lives get a whole lot easier.