New foci for adepts Options

[Tbatu]

One thing i have noticed while playing my physical adept, is that after getting a weapon foci there is no other magical equipment that he can use. So I’m suggesting the follow rules for other foci based off of the Weapon Foci rules. These new Foci would be for Adepts only.

Current Rules:
- Each 0.5 Power Point of adept power Improved Ability adds a die to the pool for a Combat Skill.(p187).
- Each Force Point of a Weapon Foci adds a die to the pool for melee attacks(p191).
- A Weapon Foci costs 10,000¥ per Force Point(p340).
- You have to bond a Weapon Foci for [ (3+Reach) x Force ] karma(p191).
- So a Weapon Foci with a Reach of zero would be [ 3 x Force ] karma.

By interpolating from the above rules, it looks like 1 die added to an attack test costs 0.5 Power Point -or- 3 Karma when from a bonded a foci. So 1 adept Power Point would be 6 Karma in a foci. to make the math easier and to simulate that these kinds of items are rarer, make it 8 Karma per Power Point. Then any powers that can be bought at 0.25 levels are 2 Karma each. But keep the Force = 0.5 power points for availability and max bonding purposes.


Adept Power Foci (Adepts and Mystic Adepts only):
Bonding Cost: 4 x Force (Force = 0.5 Power Points)
Cash Cost: 10,000¥ x Force

Any foci powers would be cumulative with any powers purchased normally by the adept. They would be considered 1 power. But that means it would be capped at the normal power maximum of 1 level of the power for each point of magic of the adept(p187).

This would allow adepts to get magical equipment instead of having to just try to buy bigger guns and armor.

[Azralon]

Since SR3, I've mused over the idea of Power Foci giving adepts "non-native" powers. Since their Magic rating is treated as higher, if they bonded to a Power Focus and allocated those virtual Magic points to more adept powers, it might work for some abilities as long as their Focus is activated. As long as the paperwork didn't get all weird, anyway.

I haven't really given it much thought in SR4 until now.

[hahnsoo]

Infusion Foci do something similar, and these are described in SOTA:2064.

Note that bonding a weapon focus at character creation is typically MUCH cheaper than bonding it after character creation, because the BP cost is nearly negligable.

[blakkie]

I'd be inclined to allow an Adept to bond a Spellcasting focus for use in resisting Drain from Boost Attribute. However this dubious from a strict canon POV as Weapon foci refer to use by "an Awakened character", and all the others descriptions refer to "magicians" (which i guess Mystic Adepts fall into?), and Boost Attribute isn't really a use of Spellcasting.

[PlatonicPimp]

yeah, there are a lot more foci usable by adepts in SOTA-2064. I suggest looking there and Converting. (It's on my list to do soon anyway.) The simplest one is the one which gives an adept a specific Power for as long as it's bonded. I think the rest work on adept metamagics. (YAWN.)

But the weapon foci work for mages too, which, given the earlier concept of weapon focus as a version of improved ability (Combat), then we can theorize other skill boosting foci. Things that, when bonded, add to, say, running or gymnastics, or maybe infiltration. These would also be useable by mages.

Or perhaps enchanted armors. They might add their rating to all defensive tests by the character. These would include the opposed rolls on attacks for certain, but maybe also toxin resistance tests, or spell resistance test, any defensive action. No, on second thought, I think it should only be the opposed rolls on attacks. That's powerful enough. It could also just boost the armor rating of the armor, but that's boring and DnD-ish. Since adding dice to defense is a little more powerful than adding dice to offense (Given that the defense tests apply anytime you defend, no matter how, while the attack dice only count if you use the weapon), lets price that at twice the cost of a weapon focus of reach 1. (Tenatively. if anyone has a better idea on price, I'd be glad to hear it.)

Thtas my .02 :nuyen: