MATRIX PERCEPTION( Complex Check)
The Matrix has a lot of stuff in it. Cars, blenders, light switches, advertising RFIDs, hosts, and everything wireless and/or electronic. You need to be able to find your target in the galaxy of icons before you can start affecting it; finding an icon this way is called spotting it. Lucky for you, the Matrix is very helpful in finding things for you. You can automatically spot the icons of devices that are not running silently within 100 meters of your physical location. No matter where you are in the Matrix, your commlink or deck (or your living persona) only has its own antenna for wireless signals, so this distance is measured from your physical location no matter where you are in the Matrix. Beyond this distance, you need to make a Matrix Perception Test to find a specific icon. For all intents and purposes, there is no “physical” distance to any host in the Matrix. You can always spot a host from anywhere on the planet without a test, assuming the host isn’t running silent.
You can always keep track of your marks, so you can spot an icon you have a mark on without a test, no matter the distance.
It they are not trying to hide it's a Complex (int) Computer Use( data) + any search program bonus + any detection mods vs 15. If target is running any cloak or programs meant to block detection then add that level or bonus to the DC 15 for the DC you need. If you get 1 hit you spot the target.
SPOTTING DURATION
Once you’ve spotted an icon in the Matrix, you continue to spot it even if it initiates silent running. There are two ways you can lose an icon. If the icon successfully uses a Hide action against you, you lose it and need to try to spot it again. If the target reboots or jacks out, you also lose the icon.
RUNNING SILENT
You can switch your commlink, deck, other device, or persona (including your living persona, technomancers) to silent running. This reduces your traffic
to and from the Matrix, but it doesn’t stop it entirely. Running silent makes it easier to avoid detection, but harder to use the Matrix as a whole.
Switching to silent running is a Move Action. Running silent imposes a –2 modifier to all of your Matrix actions due to the processing power needed to cover your tracks.
If you’re trying to find an icon that’s running silent (or if you’re running silent and someone’s looking for you), the first thing you need to do is have some idea that a
hidden icon is out there. You can do this with a hit from a Matrix Perception Test; asking if there are icons running silently in the vicinity (either in the same host or within 100 meters) can be a piece of information you learn with a hit. Once you know a silent running icon is in the vicinity, the next step is to actually find it. This is done through an
Opposed Complex Computer Use(Data) check + Scanner program + System with DC equal to Target Computer Use (Data) effective bonus(rank and all bonuses)+ Firewall + Cloak Programs. See Complex Skill Checks
NOTICING HACKERS
An icon or host might detect you if you perform an Attack action on it. The exact way they can detect you depends on what you’re doing to it.
If you succeed with an Attack action, your target becomes aware that it is under attack by another icon, but it doesn’t automatically spot you. It will most likely actively search for you on its next action, every round you attack it gets to add a +1 to detect you. It rolls a Computer Use (Data) Vs attackers Computer Use (data) Rank + Firewall + Cloak program. Once spotting you it can start to respond. See
Alert Levels
Somes to points below:
1. Should go without saying but this works just the Perception skill except only in the Matrix. This means a single matrix perception check will reveal all hidden networks and/or icons in the vicinity just like walking into an ambush situation and making a perception check to see the ninjas about to jump you.
2 Running Silent is network based and not device based, so you set your PAN to silent mode and then it and all of its connected devices are concealed behind the master device. Please note that running silent does not require you actually have a cloak running, but it sure does help to have one if you want to remain hidden.
3. You do NOT have to make a matrix perception check just to see public icons that are not running silent or hidden in some fashion. Anything more than 1 net hit not only sees the hidden icon, but also provides extra information. (Also see Hosts for detecting icons inside a Host.)
4. You do use matrix perception on a public icon if you want to observe it in detail to learn more about it. This is generally an unopposed test with each hit providing a single piece of information.
5. Matrix Perception and Technomancers - the 5 hits required to see a technomancer is to see that they are a technomancer, just detecting them as another icon on the matrix is a normal perception check as determined by the circumstances. However to know that they are a technomancer and just not another decker requires you to observe in detail and score at least 5 hits.
