Cred-Chip Datalanes
A change in the credchip hacking flow

For many, many years credchip hacking has worked as a bit of a race against time that really serves no one in the end. I would like the propose that the fundamental architecture changes around credchip hacking a few ways which I will breakdown below.

Hack the system

* The 'crack' verb be added to all credchips which allow a skilled jockey to unlock a credchip. Naturally, a maximum amount of chyen a hacked credchip can spend before "seizing" and becoming useless. This would be based on the quality of the hack.

Protect the victim but endorse the archetype

* Insurance. A guarantee that Withmore Savings Bank will cover 100% of any stolen transaction. Maybe this percentage is lowered, can only be used once a month, or is a corporate employee perk for all incorporated citizens. Regardless, the fundamental component here is that players don't endure a burden for buying into the cred-chip system and it instead becomes best practice to use a cred chip.

Heists at business locations

The addition of "CredChip Datalinks" that would-be added to all topside locations as de facto payment terminals. These would also be available to purchase and install at Red Sector locations if the private owner was so inclined. Datalinks would offer a means to be 'crack'd on premises by a decker but would trigger a script on employee NPC's and summon Judges/Gangers/Terra depending on the situation. This would create a heist situation with a timer running on the datalink terminal to be cracked. Once cracked, it would be possible to transfer a large sum to a personal credchip from the Datalink.

Ideally, people will pulling off credchip heists and organically trying to launder these stolen funds through their own purchases. This would create a risk/reward to their own locations datalink.

InfoSec. Datalink terminals would be able to be configured by skilled systems engineers to make them harder to hack. The effectiveness of these countermeasures would wear off over-time due to constant exploits being written.

All under the weekly cap

All of these payouts would run against the deckers weekly cap. This means a skilled decker could get a high payout and be the linchpin of many efforts but would be limited to one large-scale job a week. This would allow them to draw high premium and focus on jobs to their best ability yet organically result in less abuse.

Cybercrime Division

Two new jobs. One a CorpSec position for WSB that liaisons with the WJF to track cyber criminal misusing bank system. The second a Decker position which reviews transaction logs to identify and trace hackers of note.

Pickpocket Potential

With the rampant potential for pickpocket'ing synergy. A credchip implant that would be implanted into the hand for an added layer of security would be great.

This is a bit of a spiral of thoughts but please let me know yours on the topic.

I love most of this. All but the last part. I am unsure if it makes sense for a purchase of XXXXX credits to be able to partially nullify a skill one had invested months or years training up.

I get that it's frustrating to get dipped. But it's already a fairly high risk moderate reward path. At least weapon skins and holsters come with a downside to their use.

Maybe if chrome credits came with a downside?

I'm having a hard time coming up with a good one but maybe a higher than usual PDS and CPU load do that having one means you must sacrifice a couple of other more utilitarian pieces of chrome in your load out?

Or make up dinner in game reason about how the way the chip is tied in to the body slightly loweres agility and strength?

But sure what the answer is but if piece of gear is able to block a hard earned skill like this, I feel there should be a constant impact on performance like one gets with a sheath or holster.

And, in my opinion, both expanding the utility of a credchip and making them impossible to steal is an even greater blockage to dips than a weapon skins is.

I also want to point out that, even if a dip manages to steal a credchip they will either have to learn how to crack them out, more likely, hire someone to do it. Unspeakable credchip means less RP for tech gurus and deckers.

Yeah. I had considered that too. A weapon in a sling can be stolen still but the ways it can be stolen have been reduced and one skill designed too do such things if purely blocked. It would be similar with a chrome credchip.

Not saying don't do it. Just that using one, not just purchasing one, should have a downside like a sheath or holster. Just enough so characters have to ask, "is this skill blocker with the minor hit I take in combat?" Or similar.