I'm not sure Root Access is something you're supposed to generally be able to do. Rather I think it's something you do either on computers well below your grade, or at higher levels when you're hopped up on party buffs or such.
-I guess if the system had a password you could discover it and get a +5, or if it had a physical security key you could find it and get another +5. But this means that a computer with extra security precautions such as a password/physical key is inherently less secure than one without them.
Keep in mind, if it doesn't have password/physical key, then either nobody else can access it without hacking in, or there's no need to hack in at all. There are cases where either is desirable, of course, but it's generally not the case.
In some cases, the GM might approve one or more aid another attempts. A team of low-level hackers might be able to get root access. But yes, working alone means you need to get a token and password. With a little training and some uninterrupted time, you can get root access with just one of those. Eventually, you can make do without either.
To be honest, I'm not sure, I just remember someone mentioning that as being a use of it back when root access was first announced. It's possible that there may not even be any buffs yet, I don't actually know.
That said, it's still possible to do everything Root Access would let you do without beating that DC+20. It's just... you have to make checks to do it. All Root Access does is remove the need to make additional checks, which IMO is perfectly reasonable thing to expect you to have a few more levels to be able to do.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Aid Another, Identify spell (to get passwords), high grade datajack, racial bonuses (Lashunta), themeless bonus, and (for a Technomancer) the Probability Projection Spell are the ways I can think of to boost hacking.
Keep in mind at level one you're a complete novice who just happens to have a particular gift or focus on this skill. It's not unreasonable for some things to be out of reach.
Another thing that has shown up in the AP is a keycard that gives you a bonus to Computer checks against a particular system.
So maybe it is intended that you don't normally get unauthorized root access to even basic computers without doing some legwork or being higher level.
The most optimized character/hacker at lvl 1 that I can see is:
Operative- Hacker
Skill focus- computers (from hacker type)
Int:18
Insight bonus +1 from operative (which does not stack with skill focus so does nothing) for a total of:
+11 (+3 (insight from skill focus) +4 (int bonus) +3 (class skill) +1 (rank)
As a side note, remember that mechanics can get that same bonus at level 1 with the same stats and the skill focus feat is free from Exocortex if you want. Mechanics can be some seriously good hackers as well.
For homebrew I'm likely to go with a sliding scale for the difficulty of root access, because it's really relative to the security posture of the system, as all tier 1 computers are not created equal. I'll likely go with "beat by 10" for most basic non-governmental or non-megacorp systems, which will get the "beat by 20" rating.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
This is the only game system that I've seen that actually somewhat mirrors reality in terms of time and difficulty.
It's not like the TV shows when someone tacks on a keyboard for five seconds and cheerfully announces that they just hacked the FBI, CIA, the First National Bank, and your mom's social media account.