Hey All. Joined a new group. They need a Decker and they need a Face. My on hands experience with SR5 is limited. So question: Can I make an effect Decker/Face?
How would you do it?
It's possible, but as the two archetypes have no overlap, you'll have to cut corners. First I'll list the hurdles/difficulties of the build concept, then I'll offer solutions.
Decker as an archetype requires a lot; as such, it'll have to be the "primary" of the build. You'll be a decker first, face second. A secondary decker cannot be the main matrix specialist of his team, while a secondary face can still fill some key roles.
Hurdles- Decking requires LOG and INT, with WIL as an off-stat. Being a Face requires CHA, which is otherwise the common dumpstat for deckers.
- Essence counts as part of your Social Limit, so loading yourself up with combat augments is a no-no.
- Decking uses six different skills, in two skill groups. Social skills also have six different skills, in two skill groups.
Now, in order to handle all of those things there's some simple answers. The first is to sacrifice points elsewhere.
A normal decker can be competent in combat because of augmentations, putting moderate points into physical attributes. A social decker needs to spend even more on mentals, meaning they are usually very vulnerable in combat. While some defensive augments are still an option (bone lacing, orthoskin, etc) a face should avoid things like obvious cyberarms if they want to be able to blend in. Tailored Pheremones is
vital to this build, as it boosts your dice pools and your social limit. However, it doesn't work if you're making social rolls online-- Something a decker might end up doing surprisingly often. You have to be in person.
As for skills, on the decker side, you can skimp out on Software and Hardware (one point in Hardware is often all you need) and on the social side, the only absolutely needed skills will be Con, Etiquette, and Negotiation. If you have those, you can work as the team's Face, handling most things that are best defeated with words.
There's some "advanced techniques" that a social decker can accomplish-- Such as making
great use of the Profiler quality (
Data Trails, page 46) which was practically designed for such characters. In fact, I'd consider a specialization in Computer (Matrix Search) just for that ability. That, alongside a high (but probably not maxed) CHA and Tailored Pheremones can make you a formidable negotiator, leading your team to greater payouts every run.
