Question on Agent Programs for Computers

[District268]

I’m a bit confused how agent programs work. It states in the core rulebook that they have a computer skill equal to their rating. Dose this mean that they are restricted to performing computer related tasks? Alternatively, can they also run expert systems like an intellect program?

 

[locarno24]

From the description of Agents:

Agent programs have a Computer skill equal to their rating, and can carry out tasks assigned to them with a modicum of intelligence. For example, an agent program might be commanded to hack into an enemy computer system and steal a particular data file. They are effectively specialised combinations of Computer Expert and Intellect programs.

Essentially, they are only for computer related tasks.

They can support an Intellect program - one of the (legal) uses for Agents is database management, so a particularly complex Intellect running an Expert system probably consists in part of a number of lower level Agents in the background combing a database of relevant knowledge for things to support the Intellect's decision-making.