Contacts Rules

Contacts Rules

Contact Nature

 * On the Neon Jungle LC, contacts are considered Setting Elements, not a part of your character. They exist for everybody, and they can be affected by everybody. This means that occasionally, a change to your contact that you did not initiate can occur. You reap both the benefits and the drawbacks of this.
 * Each contact on the server is managed by the creator of that contact; all mechanical changes to a contact must be recognized by an admin prior to being implemented. You are responsible for posting an image of the contact's entry from the chummer Relationships tab in the #contacts channel once it has been approved by an admin or the Review Team. Include the Contact Notes section as well, with a short summary of how the contact should be appear and be played. The creator of a contact can approve or deny any request to acquire that contact by another player for any in-character conditions that do not represent an acquisition tax.
 * Players are permitted to create contacts in two ways. First, in character creation using the normal contact creation rules; the Review Team is responsible for ensuring the contact is adapted to the server setting correctly and approving it. Second, with admin permission, which is granted only using the Create Contact portion of this system (whether you are a GM or just a player).

Contact Design

 * On the Neon Jungle LC, contacts are designed to fit into your chummer5 Relationships tab. Each contact has the following traits.
 * Name: self explanatory. It can be an alias, or both real and fake names.
 * Location/Reach: This box is used for the Reach of the contact. It can be a Seattle District, a major organization (megacorporation, syndicate, government), a minor organization type (tribes, bonds, street gangs), a nonmaterial plane (Matrix, Astral, metaplane, realm), or a discrete geographical area outside Seattle (West Europe, East Asia, the Carib League). Contacts may also use the Reach "Shadows" which refers to the loose affiliations between fixers and shadowrunners. The Reach of a contact describes where the contact's influence and resources are centered. Acting outside of this incurs a penalty, if the contact agrees at all.
 * Contact Job: This field defines the contact's service types available; the field can contain any actual role an NPC might have in the setting. All requests can be considered Professional, Practical, or Personal in relation to this job's expected routine as determined by your GM. Particularly vague jobs will have a hard time using the Professional option.
 * Contact Type: This field defines the contact's specialty, and can be Swag, Networking, Legwork, Support, Shadow Services, and Personal Favors. They get a sizeable bonus when attempting to perform a request that lines up with their specialty.
 * Connection: This field defines both the contact's personal effectiveness and ability to harness connections to organize larger enterprises. Range 1-6 reflects skill and clout with the contact's natural reach; every point above 6 reflects a stable connection providing backing from a major setting element (+1), direct control over a portion of a major setting element (+2), or complete control over a major setting element (+3). Friends in High Places requires special help with the Review Team to appropriately build and place the contact in the setting.
 * Loyalty: This field defines the contact's relationship to the runner, per RAW. It is used to determine how much risk a contact will accept to aid or protect the runner and how frequently they will offer assistance.
 * Contact Notes: This popup textbox is for explaining how the contact should appear and be played in-character. It is also used to track significant Reach expansions approved by the Review or Admin teams.

Acquiring Contacts

 * Character Creation contact rules are per the Core Rulebook.
 * Contacts with a Connection of 6 or less can be created in career by any player for XP equal to the sum of the desired Connection Rating and each level below it. These contacts are subject to approval by an admin, requested in the #contacts channel. The Loyalty of that contact may be as high as 3, and costs XP in the same fashion. This rule may also be used to improve any existing contact your character has, with approval.
 * Contacts may also be offered as a bonus or a run reward portion for a successful job. Your GM will tell you how much, if any, XP the contact will cost for the offered ratings.
 * Players may buy contacts from the Starting Contacts list (max connection of 6), which consists of existing contacts the server or players make available to all players; these can be bought with either your Character Creation Contact Points and karma, or your career mode Contact creation cost. You may also receive direct permission to acquire a contact in this way from the player who manages that contact.

Contact Upgrades

 * Increases in Connection or Loyalty, up to Connection 6 Loyalty 3, may be made 1 point at a time for N XP, where N is the next rating. This action should be posted in the #contacts channel for tracking.
 * Increases in Loyalty over Rating 3 are granted only when a runner takes an extreme risk for a contact; this occurs only if that contact offers a run against a major setting threat or if the contact's life is in serious danger. This can occur organically in play, with the increase granted with approval from the admin team, or it can be part of a Personal Run made specifically for that purpose.
 * Increases in Connection over Rating 6 are granted only when the contact gains influence over a major setting element (AAA, nation, leyline, etc). Again, this can occur organically during play, or part of a Personal Run made specifically for that purpose. This influence is measured by how much control it represents, and if lost, the increase in Connection is lost. This influence is considered to add to the contact's Reach, making it doubly effective.

Legwork

 * Provides information and clues for a job
 * Develops run background and motivations
 * Potentially willing to barter information for information

Networking

 * Gets you in contact with who you need to know
 * Agent to the (shadow!) stars
 * Just because he puts you in touch doesn’t mean they have to be happy

Swag

 * Loves to buy and sell goods. The following swag categories are not available from all contact job types. If you would like to change the access levels listed here, or request a contact that deviates from the listed access levels, ask in #house-ruling channel on the server. Each gear item belongs to exactly one swag category, which is used to determine the dice pool for contacts attempting to acquire it. Gear items can be purchased together in a bundle if they are all aspects of one purchase. Valid bundles include an item and all of the modifications and accessories it will be equipped with as well as bulk purchases of the same item or bundle. To determine the swag category of a bundle, use every swag category of items in the bundle (so a suit of full-body armor with a sensor array and built-in miniwelder would be Armor / Weapons / Electronics categories). When a contact rolls for bundles, use their lowest pool applicable to any of the categories to roll for the bundle.
 * Armor: This category applies to every outfit and armor modification in the game, but not gear from other categories that can be installed in armor. Professional access from Armorers.
 * Practical access from Supply Sergeants, Bodyguards, Mr. Johnson, and Beat Cops.
 * Weaponry: This category applies to weapon or tool in the game with a listed Damage Value, as well as the modifications, accessories, and ammunition for those things, but not explosives larger than a grenade or explosive supplies. Professional access from Supply Sergeants.
 * Practical access from Armorers, Smugglers, Beat Cops, and Mechanics.
 * Vehicles and drones: Professional access from Mechanics.
 * Practical access from Taxi Drivers, Smugglers, Pirates, Go-Gangers, Coyotes, and Parasecurity Experts.
 * Electronics: This category applies to all sensor gear, Matrix gear, and Breaking & Entering supplies that do not have a Damage Value. Professional access from Spiders.
 * Practical access from Armorers, Corporate Scientists, Fixers, and ID Manufacturers.
 * Magical Goods: This category applies to all gear created using Artificing or Alchemy. Professional access from Talismongers and Talisleggers.
 * Practical access from Antiquities Dealers, Hermetic Academics, and Mercenary Alchemists.
 * Chemicals: This category applies to all toxins, drugs, and medical supplies. Professional access from Drug Dealers and Chemists.
 * Practical access from Street Docs, Corporate Scientists, Go-Gangers, Beat Cops, and Mercenary Alchemists.
 * Demolitions: This category applies to explosive supplies and explosive devices larger than a grenade. Professional access from Smugglers.
 * Practical access from Supply Sergeants, Radicals, and Mechanics.
 * Augmentations: This category applies to all bioware, cyberware, geneware, and nanoware for metahumans. Professional access from Corporate Scientists.
 * Practical access from Street Docs and Tamanous Members.
 * Critters: This category applies to all critters, critter augmentations, and critter armor or accessories. Professional access from Parasecurity Experts.
 * Practical access from Coyotes, Corporate Scientists, and Antiquites & Oddities Dealers.
 * Fake SINs/Licenses: This category specifically applies to Fake SINs and the licenses for them. Professional access from Forgers and ID Manufacturers.
 * Practical access from Fixers, Spiders, and Coyotes.

Shadow Services
Specific services such as weapon and vehicle repair, medical care, teaching spells, training skills, loaning specialized equipment
 * Forgery (all disposable fakes, including temporary fake SINs)
 * Safe House
 * Medical Care
 * Spell Teaching
 * Mechanic
 * Forensics
 * Legal Services
 * Ritual Spellcasting
 * Teamwork (by skill group)

Support
Less exact services, such as crashing on a couch, someone picking up your car, watching a Dependant, etc. If it doesn’t involve breaking the law or risking violence, it’s likely fair game for a Support contact. Support Contacts are generally not NPCs directly involved in the shadows (Family, Day Job co-workers, civilian friends, legal merchants, ect.)

Personal Favors
These contacts like to do things that have nothing to do with their day-to-day. They receive a bonus to Personal requests.

Request Resolution

 * Classify PPP
 * Professional is directly in line with the job's production or service. e.g. medical care from a street doc or smuggling from a smuggler. Dice Pool base is 9+Connection. If a contact has a generic Archetype like Manager, Merchant, or Leader, the contact gets this dice pool only for Networking requests within their Reach.
 * Practical is for tangential requests that utilize the job's resources in an imperfect way. e.g. merchants questioning their clients or talent scout setting an ambush. Dice Pool base is 9. If a contact has a generic Archetype like Manager, Merchant, or Leader, the contact gets this dice pool only for nonswag requests that involve job duties of their subordinates, for swag requests for gear Availability under 13, and for swag requests for gear branded within their Reach.
 * Personal is for requests that have no founding on a job. e.g. asking an artificer to go into a live-fire situation. Dice Pool base is 6.
 * Check Reach compatibility with the request. If Reach is incompatible, the contact either refuses the request or the dice pool is reduced by 40% (GM judgment).
 * Requests directly involving personnel or territories within the described Reach are compatible.
 * Swag Requests for Availability 20+ gear manufactured solely by a Major Setting Element are considered incompatible unless that Major Setting Element is within the Reach.
 * Swag Requests in-session are considered incompatible unless the runners are able to meet the contact somewhere within their Reach.
 * Swag Requests in downtime are considered compatible unless they trigger the prior two checks.
 * Check Type. Requests that fall under the preferred type have their dice pool increased by (Connection Squared / 6).
 * Determine Threshold/Opposition
 * Availability tests are an opposed roll against the Availability.
 * Requests for Skilled Aid are an opposed roll against desired Skill Pool x 2 (x3 if dangerous)
 * Requests for information or props use the Matrix Search table applied to the Reach of the contact.
 * Requests for the contact to perform skilled tasks themselves are done normally, using the determined dice pool (capped to 12 or Connx3, whichever is greater)
 * Check Loyalty. Contacts will only provide aid Loyalty times per month; if you need further aid, the contact will make a Loyalty x 2 vs Connection test to decide to help. Contacts with 1 or 2 Loyalty will not risk any danger or nuyen to aid you. Contacts with 3 or 4 Loyalty will make calculated risks, but will lose Loyalty if it backfires. Contacts with 5+ Loyalty will take extreme risks if necessary and trust you implicitly; if it becomes apparent that you have betrayed them without a timely rescue, they may become Enemies.

Contacts will use the below dice pools for their abilities