Alternate Edge Refreshment, Now with more calories! Options

[Eugene]

So I was looking through the rules today and (re)discovered that when you use a point of Edge, it's just gone, until the GM decides to refresh the pool. Which is how I -thought- that it worked, until I played lots of SR4 at Origins, in which the following rule was used:

- use a point of Edge? Great! You might just keep it, too. How?
- Here's how. Make a Edge test. As long as you make a Threshold equal to the # of
times you've tried to keep your point of Edge, you keep it. Otherwise you lose it
and the Threshold counter restarts.

Made the game a tiny bit slower, but was an interesting way to cinematize play during tough runs. Thoughts?

[James McMurray]

I don't like it. I prefer edge being a more tightly controlled commodity. It also exaggerates the strength of having a high edge, making it beefier than it already is.

If the GM wants faster edge refresh he should just speed up edge refresh, rather than making high edge "refresh" faster than low edge.

[Brahm]

[Shrike30]

If a PC does something really badass/cool, and either succeeds, or fails in a way that's still badass/cool, I usually refresh a point of Edge for him. This generally encourages people to spend Edge a little more to do niftier stunts (as they feel they might get it back). After all, it's that Edge they've got over the competition that makes them real cyberpunks :P

[the_dunner]

[Scarlet Spider]

Adding this here from my developing "SR4 Rules Handout" for my games, mostly because I don't want to clutter things with a new topic just for me. Feel free to comment and add other views.

· Achievement of Character Goal – Each character should have 2 to 4 defined goals written down to accomplish, as worked out between the GM and the Player. These goals are designed to advance plot and help give Characters screen time, and are at GM approval.
· Achievement of Group Goal – The character group as a whole should have 2 to 3 goals defined with the GM as desired Plot to resolve. All members should be able to agree on these goals, and should be working towards them when possible.

I just came up with these as clarification/refinement of the suggestions in the Core rules, and also because I try to keep my players thinking about what they can keep doing in my games rather than just waiting for me to point them in certain directions (bloody D&D).

[Muspellsheimr]

As pointed out, Edge is already good - almost to good. What this does is even further exaggerates the importance of a high Edge attribute - a very bad thing.

In most games I have played in, Edge refreshes fully at the beginning of each game session. I prefer refreshing at a rate of 1 per (in-game) day - assuming the character has been able to rest.

[MaxMahem]

As other have said, I give out a point of edge for a player taking a cool/dramatic action that advances his personal story, or the plot in some way. I generally don't give out edge points for critical success in defiance of the odds. The success alone is enough reward in those cases, IMO.

[Scarlet Spider]

As pointed out, Edge is already good - almost to good. What this does is even further exaggerates the importance of a high Edge attribute - a very bad thing.

In most games I have played in, Edge refreshes fully at the beginning of each game session. I prefer refreshing at a rate of 1 per (in-game) day - assuming the character has been able to rest.

Ahh, see, I've not been doing full refresh at the begining of sessions. At most, players refresh half of spent Edge at the end of each Adventure in my games.

[Muspellsheimr]

I was addressing the original post, not yours.

[Ravor]

Personally I go with the idea that Edge refreshes during downtime, while preparing for a gig the Runners simply aren't able to get into the right mindset to refresh their Edge.

Also I don't allow Ice-Cold-Pros to have a high Edge, the reason that the Shadows are Pink Mohawk is that they have the moxy to tell the universe to go frag itself and pull off stunts that simply should not be possible in my low dicepool campaign. (Yes, spending Edge is basically the Sixth World version of Earthdawn's Karma Twisting or whatever the ability was called.)

[Blade]

I don't really see the point of the rules proposed in the opening post: characters with lots of Edge have even more Edge and character with a low Edge still have the same amount...

Personally, I houseruled Edge that way:
* I use the optional rule that character roll their remaining Edge instead of the full Edge pool, but add the possibility of rolling the whole pool with possible side effects (that's called "pushing your luck").
* Edge recharges progressively, point by point.
* The various ways to recharge Edge are:
- Being unlucky (rolling a critical glitch with a lot of dice, failing an important dice roll against all odds)
- Doing something extraordinary
- A good rest (a good night's sleep or a day off) with no worries
- Completing an objective (a personal objective or a mission objective) or solving one of your problems
- Helping someone, especially if you don't get anything out of it (makes you feel good/brings good karma...)
- Partying, enjoying yourself, having fun...

[Cabral]

There was a similar rule during the last SR4 Tournament I went to. However, I'm not sure if Edge refreshed each day of the tournament. I accomplished some impressive things with edge and never ran out. I don't know if they continued the rule in later tourneys.

In a convention tourney, this makes a little more sense; there is less GM/Player style awareness so this reduces the chance of wasting edge on red herrings/side details.