Hacker Skeleton. Cost 324
An effort to create a basic hacker able to accompany a Shadowrun team in the flesh with modest cyberaugmentation to provide a boost to combat ability. Created using resources found in Shadowrun 4th Edition.
Attributes:
Strength +1 (2)
Agility +2 (3)
Body +2(3)
Reaction +2 (3)
Intuition +2 (3)
Logic +3 (4)
Willpower +3 (4)
Charisma +1 (2)
Total: 160
You can and likely should spend 40 points more. Your Strength and Charisma are low, getting only 1 point so if you default on a linked skill you won't be forced to use an edge dice. If you want your hacker to be charismatic or physicality strong, you can bump those attributes up. For combat power, "soft capping" agility, body or reaction by increasing them to 1 below max can be a good idea. Increasing Intuition will give you better senses. Dwarf, Troll or Orc hackers will be tougher and stronger then human, while Elf hackers will be more agile and charismatic.
Special Attribute:
Edge +2 (4)
Total: 20
Edge is luck and can help get you out of danger. Any non-human metatype will have less edge then a human.
Skills:
Cracking Skill Group: 4 or Hacking: 6, Electronic Warfare 2, Cybercombat 2
Electronics Skill Group: 3
Pistol: 3 or Longarms: 3 or Automatics: 3
Doge: 3
Perception: 3
Infiltration: 3
Total: 122
Taking Cracking as a skill group rather then breaking it up gives you a high general ability while instead taking the separate skills allows you to max out Hacking and if you may add specialties to increase your ability farther, at the cost of less flexibility.
The choice of what kind of firearm to be skilled in is left to the player to choose, with the following advice: Pistols are easy to conceal but aren't quite as powerful while longarms offer long range from sporting and sniper rifles and close combat via powerful shotguns. Automatics offer concealable options in Machine Pistols, as well as powerful and bulky assault rifles.
Doge allows a character to avoid attacks and can be very useful to survival in the sixth world. Few characters can afford to operate without perception to spot danger and infiltration is vital to stay safely in the shadows and avoid attention or unnecessary fights. I'd suggest picking up at least one rank in Etiquette, and possibly the Influence skill group. Otherwise, you can increase your skill or skill groups to 4 to improve specialized ability
Qualities:
None are critical, but you may wish to take Codeslinger positive quality to give you +2 to a single matrix action. Hack on the Fly is a popular choice, but you could take Control Device if you intended to remote control drones and other systems often, or Matrix Attack if you plan to make heavy use of cybercombat.
Gear:
Wired Reflexes Rating 2
Fairlight Caliban upgraded to Response, Signal, System and Firewall 5 with Novatech Navi, Trodes, Satellite Link, AR Gloves, Sim Module modified for Hot Sim and Skinlink
Programs, all at rating 5.
Analyze, Armor, Attack, Biofeedback Filter, Browse, Command, Decrypt, Defuse, ECCM , Edit , Encrypt , Exploit , Medic, Reality Filter, Scan, Sniffer, Spoof, Stealth
Total: 22
Your wired reflexes increase Reaction, boosting your defensive abilities, while at the same time granting you more initiative passes. This allows you to keep up in a firefight and to hack via AR safely, without going into full VR. Useful in a fight when you don't want to go limp and lay on the ground.
Your comlink is a massive investment with a simple aim to get it's attributes and programs at 5. Your programs give you a broad set of options for approaching matrix problems. This character is built using resources in the core book so if you have Unwired you may find several programs and options you would like to use. You will certainly want to buy a weapon and armor before you go on a run, I'd suggest a chameleon suit to enhance your stealth ability while offering moderate defense. As always, you will want to pick up licenses and a fake SIN, as well as at least 1 month of a lifestyle, a medkit and possibly some stim slap patches.
For more augmentation, muscle toner could be good to increase in the flesh offensive power, an old school datajack for the decker look as well as using knowledge softs and mentally controlling your comlink, or cyber eyes/ ears. In any case, you certainly want some kind of visual and audio link, from cyber implants or glasses and earbuds. You will likely want to pick up a maglock passkey and sequencer to make good use of your Hardware skill, allowing you to bypass physical security, as well as a Hardware tool kit.
Make sure to keep copies of those massively expensive programs backed up onto datachips hidden where you can get to them if you need them.
