[PJ]

I think all costs are good as is (nuyen and Essence).

With 5th having the theme of 'what price', everything is great.  Do I want maximum possible Reaction (at cost of Essence; Wired+RE), or slightly more expensive but Essence friendly (Synaptic), or greater average Initiative range plus free skillwires at cost of being spastic (M-b-W)?

With 4th edition rules being what they were (augmented max = 1.5x Attribute), M-b-W Became the go to piece, period.  Now, depending on your build, each of the top 3 Reaction/Initiative boosters is viable (IMO).

I think if you drop cybered Essence costs, it tips the balance of favor.  If anything, I'd drop nuyen costs (for Wired and/or M-b-W) and leave Essence.

[Hobbes]

Wired 2 + Reaction Enhancers 3 is the only way to get +5 Reaction. 

If you're trying to buff Reaction, and if you're a combat character you probably are, Wired + Reaction Enhancers are the best Reaction and initiative buff you can get.  And you can get Wired 2/Reaction 3 as a starting character.  Any other combo available to a starting character has less Reaction.  That has to have a high cost somewhere, or it becomes the default selection for everyone.  And then "Why Synaptic Booster, Why Synaptic Accelerator, Why Boosted Reflexes..."  becomes the question. 

As the numbers sit right now, each one of those systems has a niche.

As I said, houserule away.  But crank out 6 Essence worth of 'ware for 3 different Samurai.  One with Wired, one with Synaptic Accelerator, one with Synaptic Booster.  I've been fiddling with these since Chrome Flesh dropped, the final results are pretty close.  *shrug*

[Rooks]

or go physical adept take improved reflexes 3 and still have stuff left over for other stuff

[Finn]

Wired 2 + Reaction Enhancers 3 is the only way to get +5 Reaction.....And you can get Wired 2/Reaction 3 as a starting character.

Reaction Enhancers 3 is Availability 15R. You can't get that at CharGen unless you use the Restricted Gear quality or build a Prime Runner. Both of which break or throw off calibration of the base game balance, which when you start doing math isn't really balanced at all when you compare Magic to Bioware to Cyberware.

Anyhow new topic to quit Hijacking!  http://forums.shadowruntabletop.com/index.php?topic=21515.0

[Kincaid]

Used RE 3 is a pretty common sight on chargen sheets.

[Sendaz]

Horrible thought.

Ever wonder where that Used Ware comes from?

I mean sure, the majority should be from regular recycling going on, especially with the lower end stuff because it is assumed it gets replaced with better as funds allow.

But who switches out their RE 3? 
Yes some is recovered from folk dying, but are there really that many folk with the best version still getting gakked that readily that its so available? 
Remember while the PCs may be juggling numbers in chargen to get it early, most folk using it probably build up to it and those folk should be surviving a bit better.

What if that Used RE 3 is intentionally designed to be defective?  Works fine 99% of the time under normal circumstances.

Then when it detects that are you are in a real crunch situation, maybe through a hidden biomonitor or similar, it cuts out leaving you hanging at a critical moment...
(like the Killswitch in Mysterious Implants from sr4 runner companion)

Then to add insult to injury, once it detects your being flatlined, it turns it's wireless to ON and lets Tamanous to come on over for a pickup?

A quick cleanup and retuning and it's ready for the next PC stooge for implanting.

So always be sure to check it's WareFax™ history and don't get a Cyber-Lemon.

[Finn]

Used RE 3 is a pretty common sight on chargen sheets.

Used Cyber/Bio is Gross!   

But Yes, I'm Guilty of using it all the time.

[Bulshock]

With the appearance of Omegaware in Chrome Flesh, I fully expect that most 'Used' Reaction Enhancers are actually knock offs of Standard.

[Whiskeyjack]

I think all costs are good as is (nuyen and Essence).

With 5th having the theme of 'what price', everything is great.  Do I want maximum possible Reaction (at cost of Essence; Wired+RE), or slightly more expensive but Essence friendly (Synaptic), or greater average Initiative range plus free skillwires at cost of being spastic (M-b-W)?

I like that Sams aren't basically done with all growth ever after chargen, unlike 4th.

But the fact is, they probably are in some ways, because the changes to Essence cost were nothing short of insane, and functionally replacing most of your ware with higher-grade ware isn't feasible given the cost and normal payouts, and the normal life of a game.

The game is still Magicrun even though magic got a nerf. Chrome didn't really need much of a nerf, but it still got one. Magic is still clearly out ahead.

[Sengir]

With 4th edition rules being what they were (augmented max = 1.5x Attribute), M-b-W Became the go to piece, period.  Now, depending on your build, each of the top 3 Reaction/Initiative boosters is viable (IMO).

MBW was the best reflex enhancement for mundanes, but since characters did not start out as millionaires it was like an epic-level skill: Best choice there is, but only available after a long time