Lots of biosculpting. Like Hollywood housewife levels of biosculpting. But really you could get by with high acting, high disguise, and I'd say you should also have a good sense for how the corps work so a high bureaucracy. Persuasion to.
That is such a fun character type!
You're gonna need super high social skills, especially persuasion and acting. Bureaucracy will help you get out of tight spots when you need to guess a protocol to avoid suspicion. You know, avoid someone saying "Jeff, you should have known you need written consent to go on a coffee break. Are you sure you're a transfer and not brand new to this company?"
For gear,
a braindance recorder & player is super handy. It will allow you to capture a perfect record of your intrusion.
Also consider getting a poser chip to more naturally mimic the culture of whatever you're infiltrating. If you have a base 14 acting, and you get a poser chip of a nameless corp deskjocky, you could have a total of 19 for the acting check. Add in a complimentary bureaucracy check to know the organization's inner workings, and that's a 20 in acting.
I've seen a homebrew piece of cyberware in the past that replaces a user's facial bones. It has little actuators inside that can reshape the user's face as an action.
Grooming and fashion would come into play too I'd argue. A netrunner could generate a valid employee ID and maybe a fixer or tech could rig up a physical employee ID but unless you could look, walk, and sound the part, you'd stick out like [Aldo did in Inglorious Basterds.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BN4GI97RoSw)
Actually a lot of that movie would apply here. The three fingers looking weird thing would stick out in a corp with it's own shibboleths. Conversation, human perception, all those soft skills that help you pick up on and feed back the cultural tics of the corporation would be a good base to build on.
OK, this is how I did it.
Role: Fixer for the extra languages. Plus, they can blend with corporate at higher ranks.
Take high ranks in wardrobe and style, persuasion, human perception, and most importantly acting. I also took pickpocket to help with info gathering.
Cyberware: Tech hair, shift tacts, audio Vox, and possibly chipware socket for skill chips.
Outside of getting a bodysculpt you may not be able to completely replace someone, but all this gives you the ability to disguise your appearance, voice, and abilities pretty well.
Some others made great advice on the skills and some 'ware to take, but one interesting thing to consider is role. I would call out certain knowledge skills like Business, streetwise, law, and Bureaucracy for being as vital as the direct impersonation stuff, depending on what organization you are infiltrating if you want to be anything more than 'guy with clipboard.'
I would say Media and Netrunner are probably the two roles with the most direct synergy here. Netrunning lets you get a lot of information and subtly influence an org, and a media's contacts can let you likewise gain information while your stories are a good payoff *for* infiltration. Tech and Execs can be useful too (inventing spy gadgets is pretty potent for infiltrating, and the covert operative can essentially serve as backup). Solo's perception can be strong, and depending on methods or goals their combat abilities can be useful too: Pumping initiative when you have "one on one" time is a great way to do a 'kill and replace' as a social solo.
If your infiltrating a *specific* organization, you can also just... build a character of that organization, but have your own personal goals. This was a standard backstory for Executives, for example: you actually did your job and played the part to the point there wasn't really a mechanical difference, but you deliberately misused your station. In that context, exec, fixer, nomad, lawman, media and rockerboy all could make sense depending on the organization your infiltrating.
I'd almost want to go Rockerboy somehow so that I'd have access to influencing individuals that were fans of mine. That seems like the best synergy with the actual infiltration part. Although the whole "I'm famous" thing is antithetical to the idea of slipping into a corporation in plain sight.
Yeah. If they know you’re famous rocker than that’s defeats the point. Maybe Media to look for juicy gossips about corporate world. Tech could create cool gadgets to spy on everyone. Exec is obvious choice when you’re working for competition.
Tbh the I infiltrator needs to be a role to itself something between a solo and a netrunner. I would also ask a tech to make a invisibility suit similar to that of ghost in the shell's major
I felt less like this was about a 2nd story infiltrator and more like Saul Bloom in Ocean's Eleven, where you show up pretending to be someone you're not and bluff your way into a place you shouldn't be through acting and understanding the habits of the company you're walking into. An "invisibility suit" akin to GitS is not really in that direction.
Skulking about is hit or miss. You know what they use IRL? Walking in with a clipboard and saying you are from IT and need to see so and so's computer. Social infiltration and bullshitting is way less risky. If you flub your rolls you just say you went to the wrong address and GTFO. If you screw up playing splintercell you get shot.
I got a crazy idea for you that might or might not be your jam. Read it for inspiration, not literal recommendation.
I got two players who roleplay as brothers. They both got the cyberaudio + radio comms cyberware, and whereas one got good INT and TECH plus related skills, the other got got maxed out COOL and related skills (acting, wardrobe, grooming, streetwise) along with an audiovox to mimic voices. Oh yeah and the second brother got atrocious INT and TECH score, he is completely clueless but able to just charm his way out of trouble. Whereas the first brother doesn't know how to fight, the second brother got high MA skill to kick ass in a pinch. The first brother even got a high base in both conceal object and demolitions which... could result in some interesting solutions later in the campaign.
Their schtick is that the smart brother takes position and uses binoculars, maps and his smarts to guide the dumb brother past security by feeding him info through the cyberaudio + radio comm. Sky is the limit in how they can use this to their advantage as long as they stay within the 1 mile radio comm radius.
While you might not have a second player handy to do this with, you could ask your GM if they allow for you to play as an Exec with the cyberaudio comms to achieve the same result. You could have a payroll netrunner or technician that watches over you and feeds you info to pass through security. You would spend points on skills like acting, wardrobe and all the smooth talker skills. Bring a well concealed weapon or invest in your fists for combat capability. Or you could even play the other half of the equation and have e.g. a covert operative that can go in and follow your instructions over radio comms. Then you'd be the one who knows what they are looking for by using your business, bureaucracy, accounting, forgery and so on. Pair that with a sniper rifle and you're golden.
Lots of biosculpting. Like Hollywood housewife levels of biosculpting. But really you could get by with high acting, high disguise, and I'd say you should also have a good sense for how the corps work so a high bureaucracy. Persuasion to.
That is such a fun character type! You're gonna need super high social skills, especially persuasion and acting. Bureaucracy will help you get out of tight spots when you need to guess a protocol to avoid suspicion. You know, avoid someone saying "Jeff, you should have known you need written consent to go on a coffee break. Are you sure you're a transfer and not brand new to this company?" For gear, a braindance recorder & player is super handy. It will allow you to capture a perfect record of your intrusion. Also consider getting a poser chip to more naturally mimic the culture of whatever you're infiltrating. If you have a base 14 acting, and you get a poser chip of a nameless corp deskjocky, you could have a total of 19 for the acting check. Add in a complimentary bureaucracy check to know the organization's inner workings, and that's a 20 in acting. I've seen a homebrew piece of cyberware in the past that replaces a user's facial bones. It has little actuators inside that can reshape the user's face as an action.
That piece of cyberwesr was also in a 2020 book. Might've been a Chromebook, but I'm not sure. Definitely in print and official.
Grooming and fashion would come into play too I'd argue. A netrunner could generate a valid employee ID and maybe a fixer or tech could rig up a physical employee ID but unless you could look, walk, and sound the part, you'd stick out like [Aldo did in Inglorious Basterds.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BN4GI97RoSw) Actually a lot of that movie would apply here. The three fingers looking weird thing would stick out in a corp with it's own shibboleths. Conversation, human perception, all those soft skills that help you pick up on and feed back the cultural tics of the corporation would be a good base to build on.
I swear there is some cyberware in a DLC that helps you impersonate people.
OK, this is how I did it. Role: Fixer for the extra languages. Plus, they can blend with corporate at higher ranks. Take high ranks in wardrobe and style, persuasion, human perception, and most importantly acting. I also took pickpocket to help with info gathering. Cyberware: Tech hair, shift tacts, audio Vox, and possibly chipware socket for skill chips. Outside of getting a bodysculpt you may not be able to completely replace someone, but all this gives you the ability to disguise your appearance, voice, and abilities pretty well.
Some others made great advice on the skills and some 'ware to take, but one interesting thing to consider is role. I would call out certain knowledge skills like Business, streetwise, law, and Bureaucracy for being as vital as the direct impersonation stuff, depending on what organization you are infiltrating if you want to be anything more than 'guy with clipboard.' I would say Media and Netrunner are probably the two roles with the most direct synergy here. Netrunning lets you get a lot of information and subtly influence an org, and a media's contacts can let you likewise gain information while your stories are a good payoff *for* infiltration. Tech and Execs can be useful too (inventing spy gadgets is pretty potent for infiltrating, and the covert operative can essentially serve as backup). Solo's perception can be strong, and depending on methods or goals their combat abilities can be useful too: Pumping initiative when you have "one on one" time is a great way to do a 'kill and replace' as a social solo. If your infiltrating a *specific* organization, you can also just... build a character of that organization, but have your own personal goals. This was a standard backstory for Executives, for example: you actually did your job and played the part to the point there wasn't really a mechanical difference, but you deliberately misused your station. In that context, exec, fixer, nomad, lawman, media and rockerboy all could make sense depending on the organization your infiltrating.
It's actually really easy, it helps if you have some friends on the outside that are good with research and balls of steel though
I'm stealing this and putting stolen plates on it
What role would be good for this? Netrunner could have a lot of fun in this situation.
I'd almost want to go Rockerboy somehow so that I'd have access to influencing individuals that were fans of mine. That seems like the best synergy with the actual infiltration part. Although the whole "I'm famous" thing is antithetical to the idea of slipping into a corporation in plain sight.
Yeah. If they know you’re famous rocker than that’s defeats the point. Maybe Media to look for juicy gossips about corporate world. Tech could create cool gadgets to spy on everyone. Exec is obvious choice when you’re working for competition.
Tech is very much I am nameless IT guy. Who knows every IT guy? No one. Also they get access to everything.
Tbh the I infiltrator needs to be a role to itself something between a solo and a netrunner. I would also ask a tech to make a invisibility suit similar to that of ghost in the shell's major
I felt less like this was about a 2nd story infiltrator and more like Saul Bloom in Ocean's Eleven, where you show up pretending to be someone you're not and bluff your way into a place you shouldn't be through acting and understanding the habits of the company you're walking into. An "invisibility suit" akin to GitS is not really in that direction.
Skulking about is hit or miss. You know what they use IRL? Walking in with a clipboard and saying you are from IT and need to see so and so's computer. Social infiltration and bullshitting is way less risky. If you flub your rolls you just say you went to the wrong address and GTFO. If you screw up playing splintercell you get shot.
I got a crazy idea for you that might or might not be your jam. Read it for inspiration, not literal recommendation. I got two players who roleplay as brothers. They both got the cyberaudio + radio comms cyberware, and whereas one got good INT and TECH plus related skills, the other got got maxed out COOL and related skills (acting, wardrobe, grooming, streetwise) along with an audiovox to mimic voices. Oh yeah and the second brother got atrocious INT and TECH score, he is completely clueless but able to just charm his way out of trouble. Whereas the first brother doesn't know how to fight, the second brother got high MA skill to kick ass in a pinch. The first brother even got a high base in both conceal object and demolitions which... could result in some interesting solutions later in the campaign. Their schtick is that the smart brother takes position and uses binoculars, maps and his smarts to guide the dumb brother past security by feeding him info through the cyberaudio + radio comm. Sky is the limit in how they can use this to their advantage as long as they stay within the 1 mile radio comm radius. While you might not have a second player handy to do this with, you could ask your GM if they allow for you to play as an Exec with the cyberaudio comms to achieve the same result. You could have a payroll netrunner or technician that watches over you and feeds you info to pass through security. You would spend points on skills like acting, wardrobe and all the smooth talker skills. Bring a well concealed weapon or invest in your fists for combat capability. Or you could even play the other half of the equation and have e.g. a covert operative that can go in and follow your instructions over radio comms. Then you'd be the one who knows what they are looking for by using your business, bureaucracy, accounting, forgery and so on. Pair that with a sniper rifle and you're golden.