Fame
Cost: 4 to 16 Karma
Now if you can just get fortune and money you'll have the trifecta. The problem is you've got the element that is not particularly cherished in the shadows. Whether you're a former trid star, a local politician, a retired or injured sports star, or the latest up-and-coming rocker, your face is well known. It may be just the local community, a single nation or corp, or possibly the world that knows your ugly mug. No matter who they are or how many folks know your profile, being so recognisable has its pros and cons.
First, on the pro side. Fame offers benefits within certain social circles and additional income if the character also chooses the Day Job quality.
That may sound nice, but being well known is not a great way to get work in the shadows, and therefore causes problems on the darker side of life. Characters with this quality are more likely to be recognised by passers-by or others who see them during a run, which can be a problem. And remember that Fame often involves strings; one of the biggest is having a SIN. Characters who choose this quality must have the SINner (Layered) quality or a Rating 3 fake SIN.
Local Fame (4 Karma): City politics, hometown sports teams, and local news stations are some of the most common sources of local fame. Select a single sprawl at character creation to be the base of the character's fame. In the public eye of that sprawl, the character gains a 1-point increase to their Social Limit and a +1 dice pool modifier on all Social Skill tests to positively influence someone who knows of their fame.
The downside is that anyone from the chosen sprawl can identify famous characters with an Intuition + Logic (2) Test, so characters need to be careful about who sees them when they are on the job. The character's Public Awareness is increased by 2.
If the character has the Day Job quality, they multiply their income by 2.
National Fame (8 Karma National politics, championship sports teams, and the entertainment industry supply he bulk of nationally famous folks. At character creation, select a nation to be famous within and a sprawl of origin within that nation (it needs to be a place related to the character's story and the languages they speak - characters need at least four ranks in the native language of the country in which they are famous). In the selected sprawl, characters gain a 1-point increase to their Social Limit and a +2 dice pool modifier on all Social Skill tests to positively influence someone who knows of their fame. In the chosen nation, the character has a 2-point Social Limit increase and a +1 dice pool modifier as above.
Anyone from the character's home sprawl can identify the character with an Intuition + Logic (1) Test; people from the nation need to make an Intuition + Logic (2) Test. The character's Public Awareness is increased by 3.
If the character has the Day Job quality, they multiply their income by 4 and also increase their required workload by 10 percent.
Megacorporate Fame (12 Karma): Megacorporate sports teams, the international entertainment industry, and megacorporate politics bring corporate citizens into the spotlight. At character creation, choose a home megacorporation, home sprawl, and home nation where the character's fame originated and grew. In the character's megacorporation, they gain a 2-point Social Limit bonus and a +2 dice pool modifier on all Social Skill tests to positively influence someone who knows of their fame. In the nations and sprawl they came from, the Social Limit increase is 1 and the dice pool modifier is +1.
Citizens of their megacorporation and their home sprawl need only succeed at an Intuition + Logic (1) test to identify the character. Citizens of other megacorporations and their home nation can identify them with an Intuition + Logic (2) test. The character's Public Awareness is increased by 5.
If the character has the Day Job quality, they multiply their income by 6 and also require a 10 percent increase in workload.
Global Fame (16 Karma): This kind of fame is not easy to avoid. International blockbuster simstars, multi-platinum-selling music artists, megacorporate executices, and international political figures fit this kind of bill. Characters with this level of fame gain a 3-point increase to their Social Limit and a +3 dice pool modifier to all Social Skills tests to positively influence anyone who knows their identity. Identifying the character requires an Intuition + Logic (2) test or any rank in an appropriate Knowledge Skill.
If the character has the Day Job quality, they multiply their income by 10 and also require a 25 percent increase in workload. The character's Public Awareness is increased by 8.
Characters can create their own runner persona to try and hide their true identity, but it will involve a disguise or mask of some sort. Identifying the star becomes an Opposed Test with the initial Disguise + Intuittion [Mental] Test, setting the threshold to identify the character with a Perception + Intuition [Mental] Test.
RF 146-147