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Posted by: Tanegar Aug 5 2011, 10:48 PM

https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AhE9UGQsIOoSdGoweklwSHJvT0RVbEFXYXZnNThzMlE&hl=en_US#gid=0

Real name and alias TBD. The concept here is a young street samurai who was being trained by a more experienced partner, possibly even a prime runner. One of the mentor's enemies finally caught up with the pair, and the mentor held him off while the student escaped. Now the enemy is hunting Junior, too, wanting to wipe out the mentor's legacy.

I'm well aware that several, if not many of the choices I've made here are suboptimal: Firearms group rather than Automatics, Muscle Replacement over its bioware equivalents, etc. These are deliberate. I tried to think what a prime runner would "realistically" (for a given value of reality) teach an apprentice. He would want his pupil to be able to handle himself in a broad range of situations, and I tried to reflect that with a broad and varied skill base. He can fight, to a degree; talk, to a degree; handle technical work, to a degree. I realize he's not hellaciously dangerous in combat nor dazzlingly effective out of it. Again, this is deliberate. I think he would work well in a lower-powered game, or as a junior member of a medium-sized team.

Posted by: UmaroVI Aug 6 2011, 12:37 AM

You have Gymnastics and Unarmed; you don't get anything for knowing Dodge too.

Athletics 3, spare essence, and no Synthacardium?
Perception 3, spare essence, and no Attention Coprocessor?

You are in general spending a lot of points on skills, but you would be better off lowering the skill ratings, and getting stuff that boosts ALL your skills. For example, lower all your Logic-linked skills that are currently 2 or higher by 1, and get PuSHeD. You have the essence to spare, and 6 karma for +1 to all logic skills when you have so many is a steal. Same for all your Intuition-linked skills and Qualia.

Likewise, remember that Edge doesn't count towards the half points on attributes cap since it is a Special Attribute. Save 30 karma by dropping close combat and firearms to 2, then spend 25 karma to bump your Agility up by 1; 5 karma less and you are just as good. If you're going to have that wide a variety of skills, you should definitely spend 375 on your base attributes (right now you are spending 375 counting Edge I think).

You appear to have a lot of skills that you lack the gear to use. I'm not going to QQ about Firearms since you can't buy most of the fun Longarms at chargen, but you should probably own a wider selection of guns. I would also think about dropping Throwing for Heavy Weapons; it's much more useful (grab the ArmTech MGL-6 pistol-sized grenade launcher and get Airburst on it, it's far better than throwing grenades). Other things: you have a bunch of computer related skills but don't seem to have ANY commlink, let alone one with the programs you need to use it, you have Locksmith but no autopicker, and Pilot Ground Vehicle but no vehicle.

Posted by: Tanegar Aug 6 2011, 12:55 AM

Page reference, please. I know you can add Gymnastics on full defense, but where does it say you can use Gymnastics on a regular defense roll?

Also, I deliberately stayed away from the more exotic augmentations. Geneware, nanotech, etc., just don't seem to fit the concept. I tried to tie the gear together thematically as stuff that a street sam might reasonably have in a "panic bag:" when your identity and safehouse are compromised and you have to burn it and run, this is the stuff you take with you.

OK, you got me on this one. I meant to buy all those things, but forgot. Time to shuffle some points around...

Posted by: UmaroVI Aug 6 2011, 01:11 AM

You can't, but you can add either Dodge or Unarmed (or a Weapon skill for a weapon you have) to your melee defense roll. So your "passive" defense is Reaction for ranged, and Reaction +[Dodge/Unarmed/weapon skill for a weapon you have] for melee. Then Full Defense can add Gymnastics or Dodge to defenses. So Dodge is 1 skill that does double duty, but if you already wanted Gymnastics and also Unarmed, Dodge isn't really helpful - and Gymnastics is easier to augment, to boot.

If you don't want to get Geneware, that's cool, but Attention Processor and Synthacardium are both common, cheap, and low-availability things that lots of people get.

Posted by: Blitz66 Aug 6 2011, 01:24 AM

It's the future, chummer. Swapping out your meat for chrome is so last decade; replacing your meat with better meat is in, in, IN!

Posted by: UmaroVI Aug 6 2011, 01:39 AM

Attention Coprocessor is Cyberware, not Bioware. That part is chrome, and "last decade" would explain why it's so cheap, actually.

Posted by: Blitz66 Aug 6 2011, 01:45 AM

... That's what I get for trying to talk Shadowrun and do other stuff at the same time. I assume the OP is wanting to avoid bioware, and I miss the fact that one of the pieces in question has the word "processor" in it. D'oh!

Posted by: Tanegar Aug 6 2011, 01:48 AM

OK, dropped Dodge and downgraded the muscle replacement and cybereyes from alpha to standard. This saved enough karma/nuyen to pick up a basic commlink, a motorcycle, Attention Coprocessor 3, Synthacardium 3, an Autopicker 6 and a miniwelder. I started out wanting a GMC Bulldog, as the more-or-less "standard" shadowrunner's vehicle, but I couldn't swing the expense and I think the Mirage fits the scenario better anyway: Junior's fleeing for his life, and the bike is faster, more maneuverable, and easier to hide than a Bulldog.

Posted by: PeteThe1 Aug 6 2011, 02:37 AM

The mentor would tell the guy to buy the cheap cyber now, not 'be patient, get the good stuff later' given how permanent it all is?

Looks like a good guy to have watching your back though. Sounds interesting as a person as well. I shall call him Robin.

Posted by: Tanegar Aug 6 2011, 02:45 AM

Thank Cthulhu for the rules about Essence holes: you can upgrade without becoming a cyberzombie.