Shadowrun Fifth Edition Core Rulebook (p. 417) implies that only things with no Availability rating can be acquired through legitimate means, while anything with an Availability rating must be acquired as black market goods[1]. There doesn't appear to be anything in between, and this doesn't make a lick of sense.
Shadowrun effectively has three classes of legality:
- Legal items have no letter attached to the Availability rating, or no Availability at all. These items are readily available, though it might take some time to find a location with the item in stock.
- Restricted items have an
Rin the Availability rating. They are available for legitimate purchase, as long as the buyer has an appropriate license (or a good fake[2] attached to a fake SIN[3]. - Forbidden items, indicated by an
Fin the Availability rating are not legal for an individual to own. They are generally restricted to megacorporate employees or government agents, with superiors who exercise control over when and how they're used.
Shopping apps like Clothes Horse, Caveat Emptour, and Guns Near Me provide pricing breakdowns and user reviews for comparison shopping purposes. Shopsofts[4] self-update regularly to stay current. Shopsofts corresponding to each type of Gear Contact exist. When making a legitimate purchase with the aid of a shopsoft, the character receives a +3 die pool bonus and a +1 bonus to the relevant limit.
As indicated above, whether or not the purchase in question is attached to a System Identification Number is an important factor in how it's acquired. A character trying to track down an item makes an Extended TestShadowrun Fifth Edition Core Rulebook (p. 48) with a Threshold equal to the items' Availability and an Interval from the Delivery Times table.
against Socialize+Intuition
References
- ↑ Shadowrun Fifth Edition Core Rulebook (p. 418)
- ↑ Shadowrun Fifth Edition Core Rulebook (p. 443)
- ↑ Shadowrun Fifth Edition Core Rulebook (p. 367)
- ↑ Shadowrun Fifth Edition Core Rulebook (p. 441)