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Target ![]() Group: Members Posts: 5 Joined: 7-September 05 Member No.: 7,707 ![]() |
Hi there everyone, I am a bit new so please take everything I say with a grain of salt here until I acclimate to the "culture".
After having read the rules I have some opinions good and bad about the new system. The Bad 1) The shift to Attribute + Skill kind of rubs me the wrong way. It really moves away from what FASA was doing with its games at the time of 3rd ed. Something I really agree with. At no time should an attribute really overshadow skill. I think that a game mechanic that gives equal representation to an attrubute for a skill roll gives an unfair advantage to people who create characters with heavy emphasis on attributes at the cost of skills which are generally easier to increase with Karma. It just doesn't seem to mesh with the way things work for me. Shadowrun and Mechwarrior 3rd simply made it easier for you to increase skills if you had high likend attributes. This makes more sense to me since natural aptitude really just makes things easier to pick up instead of making you a savant. I can see two reasons for making this move. Firstly, when you are designing a system that requires the modification of dice pools, you have to have a fairly significant die pool to manipulate while still being able to provide realistic modifiers. You are left with either going with adding a lot of positive modifiers, having relatively high skill levels or going with a linked attribute score. I didn't like it in White Wolf and I don't like it here. In general I feel that Shadowrun has really taken a lot from the White Wolf book here and I am not sure I like it. 2) I really really really hate the loss of the "pool" system. Whether it be combat, casting, haking or control. I think that it was one of the things that really set Shadowrun apart from other systems. I felt that the combat pool had a significant factor in putting you in the drivers seat of the combat. Thinking ahead about dividing your pool amoungst mutliple actions, modifying your level of aggressiveness and generally making on the spot calls that made or broke a combat. I think that the combat system is a lot less dynamic without it. 3) Close combat does not allow for defenders to score hits. Once again, making the game a little less dynamic. Counterstriking and exploiting overextensions in attack are a good part of close combat. With the loss of this more "swirling melee" type simulation we are left with a very bland and ordinary combat system that is generally the same as any other in any system. Making things sort of videogamey. The Good 1) They really got creative with the setting upgrade. Some real nice work here in keeping up with the pace of technology. Although I think the AR system adds a bit of a challenge to the GM its pretty darn facinating. Although its a bit of a rip off from Cybergeneration's "trode" system. Being a Decker/Hacker isnt as much of a party encuberance as it used to be, which is basically the bane of a Cyberpunk game. I like the smooth integration of Rigging and computer use. Real nice. 2) The Technomancer is super sweet. Shadowrun is not totally a dual world where every aspect of life is touched and manipulated by magic. Mage deckers. They even alluded to it in 3rd ed. This really brings things full circle. 3) 4th edition gives us a more generalized and comprehensive look at magic. It gives the GM a broader set of generic rules for creating traditions. Spells seem more varied and spirit use is nicely unified between traditions, leaving things mostly separated by flavor and feel. Any Thoughts? |
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Lo-Fi Version | Time is now: 25th July 2025 - 02:46 PM |
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