[FST_Gemstar]

Just thinking about technomancers per usual and had an idea of a "tactical technomancer", basically a technomancer with a focus in small unit tactics, uses a Pi-Tac, and perhaps uses a mix of drones and sprites to help gather tactical/mission/overwatch data for the team. Now - Pi-Tacs are explicitly wireless devices -- so are their bonuses to skill tests--advantagous boosts to perception, sneaking, and combat -- boostable with a machine sprite? Would this work for all members of a team?

I'm curious about mocking up a character concept, but wanted to see what folks thought about the rules application of machine sprites and pi-tacs.

[Marcus Gideon]

As much fun as that sounds, suddenly going from +1 Perception and combat dice, to +6's... the wording of Diagnostics is where it falls apart.

Core pg 257, Diagnostics

The Diagnostics power allows the sprite to evaluate the inner workings of an electronic device. The sprite can assist someone using or repairing the device with a Teamwork Test. The sprite makes a Simple Hardware + Level [Data Processing] test; if any hits are rolled, the character gets a +1 limit bonus, and each hit adds 1 die to the character’s dice pool to use or repair the item.

The reason why a Sprite can assist a Street Sam, is b/c they are actively using their cyber-arm, or their Smartgun.
Same goes for the Decker, who is actively using their Cyberdeck to perform Matrix actions.
But the Rigger isn't actively using their RCC in combat, what is actively being "used" is the drone they're remoted into. Which is why TMs can't just run a single Sprite on the RCC and hand out bonuses to the entire fleet of drones. You have to assign the Sprite to that individual drone for it to benefit.

So in the case of PI-Tac's, they aren't actively being "used" to provide those bonuses. They're gathering and disseminating data to the teammates, and the teammates working together through that data, amounts to dice bonuses. Knowing where your friends and enemies are, with sensory feed of the entire battlefield, equates to Perception and combat dice bonuses. The PI-Tac isn't "giving"  you those bonuses, it's just giving you data.

So no... I would not think a PI-Tac benefits from Diagnostics. Sorry =)

[FST_Gemstar]

Yeah, I'm just testing the limits of machine sprites and trying to make Pi-Tacs more cost effective. I can see how this could push across the boundaries of my generous interpetations.

Though I think a case can be made that a Pi-Tac is more intended to run as a singular device with multiple parts that integrates/disseminates useful data than an RCC/Drone PAN (which are distinct devices networked for security). Additionally, people use the the data from the pi-tacs for their bonuses. They sneak better because they know more about what's around the corner, they shoot better with more information about their weapon/target/atmospheric conditions, they perceive better because of the coordinated data, etc. A Machine sprite can just make the pi-tac data more user-friendly, more accurate, better organized, process quicker, etc. And don't forget, folks need the skill ratings in the test areas in order to benefit from the dice pool bonuses Diagnostics provides.

I will still post a concept in the character creation section to see how it turns out.

[Marcus Gideon]

Keep in mind, Pi-Tacs did have their costs adjusted in the errata. They're no longer quite so astronomical like they were in the first printing.

They are a single module you slot into some device (Commlink, Deck, RCC) which you then use to Slave all the team's gear, as well as all the drones you want contributing sensor data. Then all those sensors relay data back to the device, which cobbles it all together into a cohesive picture, and then shares that picture out for everyone to see.

Now, I could see where the Pi-Tac running better during the gather and share process would be more useful. But that's kinda what the higher grade Pi-Tac's are for. So a really generous GM could let you buy a Rating 1 Pi-Tac, and boost it's effects up to what a Rating 2 would provide. Maybe.

But it's just going to be TOO potent if you can use a single Sprite to give everyone on the team a +6 to Perception, as well as +6 to their individual combat skills. Why bother putting Sprites on their guns and gear, when you can use this one and be done with it. You'd be the Oprah of bonus dice... "you get a bonus, and you get a bonus, everybody gets a bonus!"

[FST_Gemstar]

Oprah, the Tactical Technomancer - I like the character name :-)

[Reaver]

Marcus pretty much sums it up best.

There is a little trick I use when thinking of things like this, and it goes:

"Would I want that used AGAINST my characters?"
After all, nothing stops the NPCs from doing exactly the same things.....

SR leaves us lots of wriggle room on purpose, just so we can get creative. But sometimes, that wriggle room can also lead to some wild, wacky, crazy ideas that, while they MAY work, leads us to dark, nasty places....

Is this some place your table is willing to go? (Considering that it's a fair asessment that elite corp teams use P-tacs...)