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Sample Toxins

The following are just a few of the chemical weapons that shadowrunners might encounter. Gamemasters should note that wind and other environmental conditions may disperse gaseous toxins when used outdoors.

CS/Tear Gas

Vector: Contact, Inhalation Speed: 1 Combat Turn Penetration: 0 Power: 8 Effect: Disorientation, Nausea, Stun Damage CS gas is an irritant that affects the eyes, skin, and mucus membranes, causing them to burn and water. It also stimulates a physiological panic response: increased heart rate, shortness of breath, and so forth. Washing thoroughly with soap and water can remove CS from the victim’s skin, thus ending the duration of the nausea prematurely. CS gas becomes inert after 2 minutes of contact with the air. Gamma-Scopolamine Vector: Injection Speed: Immediate Penetration: 0 Power: 12 Effect: Paralysis, Truth Serum (see description) This particularly nasty agent, derived from nightshade, is a neuromuscular blocking agent that paralyzes its target. It takes effect immediately, causing dizziness, pupil dilation, speech loss, delirium, and paralysis. The full effects last for about an hour. Once the primary effects wear off, the remaining residue in the victim’s system acts as a “truth serum” for another hour. Reduce the target’s Willpower by 3 (to a minimum of 1) for the remainder of the toxin’s effect. Narcoject Vector: Injection Speed: Immediate Penetration: 0 Power: 15 Effect: Stun Damage A common tranquilizer, narcoject is typically used with dart guns. It has no side effects. Nausea Gas Vector: Inhalation Speed: 3 Combat Turns Penetration: 0 Power: 9 Effect: Disorientation, Nausea Used as a riot control agent, this gas causes nausea and a crippling need to vomit. Nausea gas becomes inert after two minutes of contact with the air. Neuro-Stun Vector: Contact, Inhalation Speed: 1 Combat Turn Penetration: 0 (Neuro-Stun VIII and IX), –2 (Neuro- Stun X) Power: 15 Effect: Disorientation, Stun Damage Neuro-Stun is colorless and odorless. It’s the industry standard knockout gas for emergency containment situations and comes in various concentrations. Neuro-Stun VIII becomes inert after ten minutes of contact with air; Neuro-Stun IX and X become inert after one minute. Pepper Punch Vector: Contact, Inhalation Speed: 1 Combat Turn Penetration: 0 Power: 11 Effect: Nausea, Stun Damage Pepper punch is an irritant combining CS and oreocapsicum, the active ingredient in hot peppers, along with other chemicals. It is typically deployed as a liquid spray for personal defense and deterrence; this agent is often tagged with RFID tags or special dyes to identify victims later. Someone dosed with pepper punch feels an intense burning on any affected skin; this affect is even more pronounced if it gets in the eyes, nose, or mouth. Victims sprayed in the eyes have trouble seeing, and breathing becomes difficult. Seven-7 Vector: Contact, Inhalation Speed: 1 Combat Turn Penetration: –2 Power: 12 Effect: Physical Damage, Disorientation, Nausea This is another colorless and odorless gas, developed specifically to bypass chemical protection measures. In addition to Physical damage, Seven-7 causes cramping, nausea and double vision in victims. Seven-7 oxidizes and becomes inert after ten minutes of exposure to air.

Drugs

Bliss

Vector: Inhalation, Injection Speed: 1 Combat Turn Duration: (6—Body) hours, minimum 1 hour Addiction Type: Both Effect: –1 Reaction, +1 to all thresholds, –1 to all Limits, High Pain Tolerance 3 (p. 74) A tranquilizing narcotic, bliss is an opiate synthesized from poppy plants. It takes its name from the sensations its users feel. Players attempting to roleplay a bliss user may want to focus on the escapist angle, using the drug to block out the chaotic or unsatisfying world. Cram Vector: Ingestion, Inhalation Speed: 10 minutes Duration: (12—Body) hours, minimum 1 hour Addiction Type: Psychological Effect: +1 Reaction, +1D6 Initiative Dice Cram is an extremely popular stimulant. When this drug wears off, users crash and suffer 6 Stun damage (unresisted). Cram users appear hyper-alert, almost to the point of paranoia. They react quickly, often without thought, and they’re prone to irrational outbursts. Other common side effects are jitteriness and fidgeting. Deepweed Vector: Ingestion, Inhalation Speed: Immediate Duration: (6—Body) hours, minimum 1 hour Addiction Type: Physiological Effects: +1 Willpower, +1 Mental limit, –1 Physical limit, forces Awakened characters to astrally perceive Deepweed is a narcotic derived by Caribbean houngans from an Awakened form of kelp. It’s extremely enticing to the Awakened and is sometimes used to dose targets for possession. Deepweed forces any magically active user to astrally perceive, even if the user is an adept without the astral perception ability. Once its effects have worn off, deepweed users suffer a –1 to all dice pool modifiers and –1 to all limits for the same duration as the initial effect. There are dangers inherent in forced astral perception, such as attracting unwanted attention. Role-playing the effects of deepweed may mean portraying someone who seems not completely “present,” since they aren’t. Jazz Vector: Inhalation Speed: Immediate Duration: 10 x 1D6 minutes. Addiction Type: Both Effect: +1 Reaction, +1 Physical limit, +2D6 Initiative Dice Jazz is a stimulant designed to better the odds for run-of-the-mill law-enforcement officers who run up against augmented street samurai. It’s usually taken from a single-dose inhaler (or “popper”). When jazz wears off, the user crashes and is flooded with despondent and miserable emotions, suffering the effects of Disorientation (p. 409) for a duration equal to the duration of the initial effect. While cram makes people hyper and twitchy, jazz makes people jumpy and hyper as caffeinated two-yearolds. Role-playing a jazz user means turning it up a notch, portraying someone with too much energy to burn. Kamikaze Vector: Inhalation Speed: Immediate Duration: 10 x 1D6 minutes Addiction Type: Physiological Effect: +1 Body, +1 Agility, +2 Strength, +1 Willpower, +2 Physical limit, +2D6 Initiative Dice, High Pain Tolerance 3 (p. 74) Kamikaze is a tailored combat stimulant. When kamikaze wears off, the user crashes and suffers –1 Reaction, –1 Willpower, and –2 to all Limits for a duration equal to that of the initial effect. He also suffers 6 Stun damage (unresisted). The repeated use of kamikaze has a destructive effect on the user’s metabolism. Large doses can cause excitement, tremors, momentary euphoria, and dilated pupils. Excess doses (bordering on overdose level) cause anxiety, hallucinations, and uncontrolled muscular movements. Even higher dosages lead to death. Kamikaze users are near-crazed, filled with a feeling of imperviousness and invincibility, exhibiting almost no regard for their own well-being. They can be entertaining to watch, as long as you’re not in front of them. Long Haul Vector: Injection Speed: 10 minutes Duration: 4 days Addiction Type: Psychological Effect: Alleviates need for sleep A combination of synthesized hormones and other brain-regulating chemicals, long haul stimulates the brain and keeps the user awake, obviating the need for sleep. A character dosed on long haul can remain awake for four days—without incurring any modifiers from fatigue or weariness. After this time, however, the user immediately passes out and sleeps soundly for 8D6 hours. If the character is kept awake during this period, he suffers from disorientation (p. 409) as he is afflicted with hallucinations and an inability to concentrate. If a second dose of long haul is taken after the first has worn off, the character can stay awake an additional 1D6 ÷ 2 days. After that period, he suffers 10 Stun damage (unresisted) and must crash as detailed above. Long haul cannot keep a character awake past this point, no matter how many additional doses are administered. Nitro Vector: Inhalation Speed: 1 Combat Turn Duration: 10 x 1D6 minutes Addiction Type: Both Effect: +2 Strength, +2 Willpower, +2 Perception, +2 Physical limit, High Pain Tolerance 6 (p. 74) A dangerous combination of potent drugs favored by troll gangers, nitro is a powerful stimulant that can easily kill a user. After the drug’s effects wear off, the subject suffers –2 to all limits and takes 9 Stun damage (unresisted) for an equal duration. Nitro users feel infused with energy, suffer a diminished attention span, and talk incessantly (even to themselves). Novacoke Vector: Inhalation, Injection Speed: 1 Combat Turn Duration: (10—Body) hours, minimum of 1 hour Addiction Type: Both Effect: +1 Reaction, +1 Charisma, +1 Perception, +1 Social Limit, High Pain Tolerance 1 (p. 74) A stimulant derived from coca plants, novacoke is a highly addictive social drug. After the drug wears off, Charisma and Willpower are both reduced to 1, and all limits are at –1 for a duration equal to the duration of the initial effect. Psyche Vector: Ingestion Speed: 10 minutes Duration: (12—Body) hours, minimum of 1 hour Addiction Type: Psychological Effect: +1 Intuition, +1 Logic, +1 Mental limit This designer stimulant is especially prized by magicians and technomancers alike. In addition to the effects noted above, Awakened users also only suffer a –1 dice pool modifier for each sustained spell (rather than the standard –2). Psyche users are simultaneously hyper- aware and detached, easily absorbed by detail and obsessive about certain facts or problems. Zen Vector: Inhalation Speed: 5 minutes Duration: 10 x 1D6 minutes Addiction Type: Psychological Effect: –2 Reaction, +1 Willpower, –1 physical action dice pool modifier A psychedelic hallucinogen, zen is popular among those looking to escape reality or seeking trance-like states.

BTL Chips

Better-Than-Life chips are still enormously popular in spite of omnipresent wireless technology. Some dealers prefer a hands-on approach with their customers, and many BTL users are poor or just set in their ways. There are two playback formats. Dreamdeck chips require an old-fashioned simsense deck or module that has been modified with hot-sim to accommodate the higher- intensity BTL signal. The other format is the direct-input chip, which contains all the needed electronics to play it back when slotted into a skilljack or datajack. Both formats are designed to auto-erase themselves after a single use, so that the customer has to keep coming back for more. This one-shot, self-erasing feature can be bypassed with a Hardware + Logic (10, 1 hour) Extended Test. Dreamchips are standard simsense recordings modified to produce BTL output. These might be studio-produced sims that are doctored up, or street recordings that offer a personal, intense glimpse into someone’s life. Popular themes are heroic fantasies, recorded crimes, and pornography, with hardcore violence and snuff chips serving the most jaded appetites. Moodchips focus on the emotive track and intense emotional sensations. Themes run the gamut from euphoria to sexual urges to terror and hate. After the chip’s program has run its course, the user crashes, usually feeling the opposite emotion of the BTL for an hour or two. Moodchips are the most common BTLs on the street. The RAS override feature is frequently disabled so that users can move around freely under the influence of the chip. Personafix chips, also called p-fixes, are the strangest and most dangerous BTLs. A combination of simsense and skillsoft technology modifies the basic personality of the user, installing the mnemonic routines of certain behavior patterns. While under the chip’s influence, the user becomes a different person. Popular chips are based off of historical figures or pop culture icons. “Workers” in bunraku (“puppet”) sex parlors are fitted with personafix BTLs, sometimes combined with data filter cyberware to protect a client’s anonymity. The RAS override feature is frequently disabled so that users can move around freely under the influence of the chip. Tripchips are like moodchips, primarily producing sensory output, flooding the user with interesting and unusual sensations. These can be simple effects, or they can be advanced sensations such as simulating being underwater. The latest craze is deliberately induced synaesthesia with jacked-up sensory levels and the RAS override disabled, allowing users to experience their surroundings in an entirely new way.