From: daanders@nmsu.edu (Daniel P. Anderson)
Newsgroups: alt.games.whitewolf
Subject: Rotes of Techomancers
Date: 25 Mar 1995 05:00:35 GMT
Organization: New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM
NNTP-Posting-Host: verdi.nmsu.edu
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]

	These are a few rotes cooked up primarily for Technomancers, 
leaning heavily towards the Technocracy, but some of them may be useful 
to Virtual Adepts and Sons of Ether.  A lot of these lean very heavily 
towards the New World Order, but would be relevant to the other 
Conventions as well.

	Spy Beam (Correspondance 2, Time 2, any other spheres you want)

	This allows spies to monitor targets, ignoring barriers 
coincidentally (the old laser on the window trick, or the infinity 
transmitter hooked up to the phone, or "good thing they picked the suite 
with the bug in it!") and even allowing them to scroll forward and 
backward in time to monitor events that have happened (It's already in 
the CD-ROM, we've been taping this room for nine months) or events that 
might happen (statistical probability projection complete with spiffy 
graphics).  Other spheres make the read-outs more complete (Life, Matter, 
and Forces are particularly useful).
	Foci for this effect: Rifle microphone, infinity transmitter, 
laser-scope microphone, little sophisticated bugs, a van chock-full of 
complicated electronics and spies dressed up like waiters, or even a 
camcorder hidden in the closet.

	Data/Subject Compression (Forces 3, Matter 3, Life 4, Prime 2 
Correspondance 4)

	This sophisticated effect is useful for transmitting objects from 
one place to another.  You can either transform existing patterns into 
patterns of electronic information and store it on disks, or actually 
transmit it to other locations.  This is simply a sloppier, dirtier, and 
more annoyingly complex method of teleporting through a portal, but it 
also serves to make unwilling participants into readily transportable 
forms.  A reverse-type scenario allows you to travel to places through 
phone lines, modem hook-ups, and satellite dish reception.  
	[Three successes are required to transform an existing pattern 
into data, and the amount of successes needed to transmit them somewhere 
are based on distance.]
	Foci for this Effect: Super-sophisticated laser-scanner with 
molecular disassembly feature and telepod link-up (see the re-make of the 
Fly for an idea of this), supercomputer, an unsual looking phonebooth.

	Unified Thinking (Mind 4, Correspondance 2)

	Using this effect, large groups of operatives can be linked 
together.  In fact, they can even receive and transmit sensory data to 
and from one another, thus allowing individuals to receive advice from 
the group.  
	[Mind 4 is necessary to forge a semi-overriding link to several 
different subjects, though complete control is taken.  Correspondance 2 
allows sensations to be colocated so that perceptions for each team 
member can be stacked.  The ST should allow groups operating in this 
fashion something along the lines of a +2 dice to all alertness tests 
(provided at least one of the group can see it), +1 die on initiative, 
and the ability to pool suggestions and knowledge to quickly overcome 
simple problems.  It may be necessary for every member of the group to 
have Mind 1 in order to improve their ability to deal with multiple 
perceptions, but STs may rule that an implant like those of Iteration X's 
mages helps handle the effect.]
	Foci For this Effect: Headsets with audio-video linked to a 
command station, walkie-talkies, expert-system AI controller giving 
advice based on data from helmet cameras.

	Crowd Control (Mind 2)

	This effect can be used to pacify large groups of people and make 
them effectively ignore the activities of official looking people.  They 
go about their business and do their best not to notice what is going on 
elsewhere.  It is, in effect, Somebody Else's Problem.
	[Enough successes must be garnered to effect everyone in the 
vicinity, otherwise gawkers may still be attracted.  If enough successes 
are received, magickal effects can be considered to have no witnesses, 
and no one will be able to accurately describe anything that just 
happened.  Correspondance may be required to affect truly large areas.]
	Foci For this Effect: A crowd of men in black trenchcoats 
ordering people to go about their business, a subsonic aversion signal 
generator, big guys with guns, lots of yellow tape marked "Government 
Crime Scene: DO NOT CROSS".

	Marauder/Nephandi Early Warning Scan (Correspondance 2, Time 2, 
Entropy 1)

	This program scans data from thousands of sources, analyzing 
discrepencies typical of paradox generated by marauders, nephandi, or 
carless tradition magi.  This allows strike teams and squads of men with 
large weapons to be rapidly deployed for maximum effect.
	[Essentially, this is a justification for the Technocracy 
arriving quickly on the scene, fully-equipped to deal with any sort of 
problem.  Note that their information is frequently false, and they get a 
lot of false alarms, which may serve as hooks to get characters of any 
kind interested in what's going on.]
	Foci For This Effect: A supercomputer hooked into a vast network, 
lots of sweaty informants in phonebooths, entropy sensors scattered 
throughout a big city, someone watching the evening news.

	Deprogramming/Reprogramming (Mind 4, Entropy 5)

	This is an extensive process of torture, drug therapy, and VR 
indoctrination designed to strip away a victim's belief system and 
restructure it according to a more correct way of thinking.  The process 
takes days or weeks and is quite brutal.  
	[This is an extended contest between the subject and his 
reprogrammers.  Each day of reprogramming, the subject rolls a willpower 
test (difficulty 8) and the brainscrubbing crew rolls their Arete with a 
difficulty of 8.  Each week of captivity subtracts one cumulative die 
from the subject's tests.  A botch on a test by either side blows all 
their accumulated successes and they must start over.  The first ones to 
twenty-five successes win.  If the subject loses, his mind is shattered 
and can then be manipulated easily into accepting new things (There are 
five lights!).  If the subject wins, he is deemed too strong to be 
effectively deprogrammed and is probably just killed instead.]
	Foci for this Effect: Guys in white coats with rubber gloves and 
lots of needles and/or helmets full of rats, VR torture/information 
station, a big muscular guy with the rubber hoses, hot irons, textbooks 
on tax laws.

	Advanced Information Gathering (Forces 2, Entropy 1, Mind 1, 
Correspondance 2)
	
	This effect allows people to monitor a vast amount of information 
and sift it quickly and thoroughly for relevant data.  Newspapers can be 
fed into scanning machines that dump the data into a computer, circuits 
can listen in on radio and telephone conversations, informants supply 
information, etc.  The search parameters are proscribed, and the effect 
begins.  
	[Correspondance allows the search to be virtually worldwide, 
Entropy shifts you towards more relevant stuff, Mind allows quick search 
of multiple documents, and forces lets you listen to just about any kind 
of communication.  With Mind 3, this can include people's thoughts.  Each 
success on the test should be considered like a research roll, evaluating 
trends, triangulating on victims, etc.]
	Foci For the Effect: Newspaper clipping service, a trip to the 
local library, a CD-ROM network, a supercomputer hooked into 
telecommunications relays, bugs on communication satellites, sweaty guys in 
phone booths.