Security inspections, investigations and how to lower them

Two separate systems can end a run. Inspections search your store and seize what they find. Investigations follow the evidence your illegal sales leave, whether or not anything is found. Keep contraband and hot stolen goods in a Smuggler’s Bay (inspectors never open it), keep the counter and display case clean, and stop selling illegal goods for a few nights whenever your suspected crimes pass 100. Each suspected crime fades by 20 a night while investigation progress is under 80.

Contraband levels

Level	Sale markup	If an inspector finds it	Examples
Low	+35%	Warning; you keep it	.22 and 10mm ammo, Service and Supply Desequencer chips, most keycards
Mid	+70%	Seized	AP ammo, Chemical Supplies (Restricted), the Desequencer, Security keycards
High	+100%	Seized, and a fine equal to everything found; arrest if you cannot pay	Phanta Pills, Nightmare Caps, Command keycards, Capped Neural Core
Critical	+150%	Arrest; the run ends	Command Desequencer chip, Uncapped Neural Core

An inspection is judged by the worst item found. Each item also costs Security reputation (2–5, at most 25 per inspection). A clean routine inspection gives +3 Security, but not if anything was hidden in a Smuggler’s Bay.

When inspectors come

Regular inspections start only when your suspected trafficking (contraband sales plus stolen goods) reaches 50:

Suspected trafficking	Days between inspections
Under 50	None
50–149	3–5
150–299	3–4
300–449	3
450–599	2–3
600–749	2
750 or more	1–2

Surprise inspections come on top: contraband in the display case brings an inspector that day, a Security customer who spots contraband on the counter searches on the spot, and the Crackdown event sends one. +60 Security reputation adds 2–4 days between visits; +100 stops inspections.

What they search

Everything except Smuggler’s Bays (Mini 3×3, standard 5×5, Modified 8×8), locked containers, and the 2×2 compartment behind the wall poster while the poster is down. The Lazy inspector skips the trash can. Stolen items are found with a chance equal to their Heat.

Inspectors and bribes

Normal, Shady and Lazy inspectors are equally likely. A Shady one can be bribed for 100 + 2 × day − 2 × Security reputation, between 40 and 400 credits. Bribes are tallied: every 250 credits paid adds 250 to Bribery of Security Personnel, and once that reaches 500 only normal inspectors come. Clemency (250, Wild’s Network) turns one arrest into a warning.

Stolen goods and Heat

Base value	Starting Heat
17 or less	Never stolen
18–49	25%
50–84	50%
85–139	75%
140 or more	100%

Heat falls by 18 a night (10–16 if the item is also contraband). At 0 the item is clean. A 100% item is safe after 6 nights, so buy cheap, cool it in a Smuggler’s Bay and sell it afterwards: a clean sale adds no evidence.

Investigations

Every illegal sale adds to a line on your Security Record:

Crime	Added per sale
Trafficking (Narcotics, Weapons, Access Cards, General)	The contraband’s sale price
Possession (Stolen Goods)	Sale price × Heat
Fraudulent Misrepresentation, Consumer Endangerment	Bad water past 2,500 ml; bad chemistry or ammo past 300 credits
Operating Without a License	50 + 20 per week when you refuse the business permit

Black Market buyers leave half the evidence and Revolution buyers a third. The Intimidating perk cuts all evidence by 33%; Blabbermouth adds 33%.

Total suspected crimes	Progress per night	Sentence at 100
Under 100	None	—
100–299	+2	Fine equal to the total
300–849	+6	Incarceration (run ends)
850–1,199	+9	Incarceration
1,200–1,499	+12	Incarceration
1,500–2,499	+20	Execution
2,500 or more	+33	Execution

Progress never falls by itself. +60 Security reputation halves it; −20 multiplies it by 1.2 and −60 by 1.5.

Lowering an investigation

1. Lay low: stop illegal sales. Under 80 progress every crime fades by 20 a night.
2. Wild’s Fixers (350, 25 a night): every crime drops 15% then 50 each night, even past 80. Fixers II and III remove 20% + 150 and 25% + 400.
3. Evidence Removal (500, 14-day cooldown, +100 each use) resets progress to 0 but keeps your crimes. Use it just before 100.
4. Pay a fine while the total is under 300: the record is wiped for 10 Security reputation.

Worked example. You sell 600 credits of Phanta to Black Market buyers: half evidence, 300 suspected. Progress climbs 6 a night. With Wild’s Fixers the 300 falls to 300 × 0.85 − 50 − 20 = 185 the first night and 87 the second, below the 100 threshold, so the investigation stops advancing. Without fixers, the normal fade of 20 a night takes eleven nights to bring 300 below 100.

Reporting and shooting

Customers on the Wanted board can be reported to Security for the reward on their poster; ten reports across all runs unlock Snitches Get Riches. Reporting a seller of stolen goods or contraband costs reputation with their faction (−8 the first time, rising by 2 to −20). Since 1.0.0.12 most story characters can be shot to end their storyline, and most of those shootings are treated as manslaughter. Augs are the exception you are expected to shoot; see Augs.