Are shadowrunners fat?, Fat men in black leathers with katanas = t3h pwn Options

[Kerris]

Oi, leave Tyrone alone, he can move when he has to!

It was a funny angle.

But yeah, I could see some slightly overweight runners of any variety. And depending on the quality of their 'ware, they could likely weigh even more because of it. Also, it's been my experience that soy is a huge joke in many games...

"soyfles"
"soysage"
"soyrup"
"soyflakes"
"soyburger"
"soydog"

I've heard all of these in my sessions. Also, isn't there something about soy making women go all crazy-like... maybe it doesn't mix well with estrogen, or maybe it increases estrogen production or something?

[Larme]

High physical scores are common with many shadowrunners, which contraindicates obesity.

It's not directly addressed in canon, but one might suppose that in the technologically advanced setting, affordable and effective weight loss treatments are available over the counter.

Shadowrunners aren't poor, and this contraindicates obesity. I'm going to start another thread on this topic of shadowrunner economics.

Mais non. Though fat people are usually unfit, they are not always. Case in point: sumo wrestlers. Those guys are athletes, they train their bodies full time. Also, as has been mentioned, strongmen can be very fat, while also being able to break you in half. Fatness and fitness are not mutually exclusive. It just happens that most fat people are not fit. But someone can easily have a high body and strength while being fat. You can exercise plenty, as long as you also eat a ton you will be fat without being terribly unhealthy. It might not make much sense for fat guys to have high agility, but strength and body are no problem. You'd think that high body = high health = not fat. But the idea that thin = healthy and fat = unhealthy is flat out wrong, so that doesn't hold up. In most cases it does, but it's not a law of nature.

[Shiloh]

Mais non. Though fat people are usually unfit, they are not always. Case in point: sumo wrestlers. Those guys are athletes, they train their bodies full time. Also, as has been mentioned, strongmen can be very fat, while also being able to break you in half. Fatness and fitness are not mutually exclusive. It just happens that most fat people are not fit. But someone can easily have a high body and strength while being fat. You can exercise plenty, as long as you also eat a ton you will be fat without being terribly unhealthy. It might not make much sense for fat guys to have high agility, but strength and body are no problem. You'd think that high body = high health = not fat. But the idea that thin = healthy and fat = unhealthy is flat out wrong, so that doesn't hold up. In most cases it does, but it's not a law of nature.

Define fit.

Usually, fit means has good aerobic endurance. Most sumotori probably couldn't maintain a run for more than a minute, even if they're lightning fast in the dojo's ring and could snap you like a twig.

When you're training a lot aerobically, it's difficult to stay fat. You can stay slightly porky (look at international Rugby front row players - they're *pretty* fit, and some are mighty strong, but their lighter packmates keep going for longer (it's not unusual to have the entire front row replaced for the last quarter of the game) and get through more work, usually, and the really fat prop is less common these days at top level where endurance is more important.

Edit: Sumotori don't do any aerobic training, once they're past young apprentice level. They train in strength, then they rest. They sleep as much as cats do, or so the mythology says... endedit.

There will always be exceptions, but a fit fat man is very rare indeed, and wouldn't have the aerobic endurance of a fit lean person. Drop 'em in a survival environment and the advantage changes hands... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[PlatonicPimp]

...until the fat man deals with starvation better due to his stores of fat.

[vladski]

Define fit.

Usually, fit means has good aerobic endurance. Most sumotori probably couldn't maintain a run for more than a minute, even if they're lightning fast in the dojo's ring and could snap you like a twig.

When you're training a lot aerobically, it's difficult to stay fat. You can stay slightly porky (look at international Rugby front row players - they're *pretty* fit, and some are mighty strong, but their lighter packmates keep going for longer (it's not unusual to have the entire front row replaced for the last quarter of the game) and get through more work, usually, and the really fat prop is less common these days at top level where endurance is more important.

Edit: Sumotori don't do any aerobic training, once they're past young apprentice level. They train in strength, then they rest. They sleep as much as cats do, or so the mythology says... endedit.

There will always be exceptions, but a fit fat man is very rare indeed, and wouldn't have the aerobic endurance of a fit lean person. Drop 'em in a survival environment and the advantage changes hands... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

I don't disagree that a truly fat person typically has less aerobic stamina, but there are TONS (pardon the pun) of exceptions. Just look at American/Canadian football players (not soccer), especially the front linemen. There you have huge guys, often packing probably a good 60-100 pounds of fat on over their muscle. And believe me, these guys have a lot of stamina and can definitely run. They spend tremendous amounts of time practicing on the field and during their down time doing strength training (and eating). There's no two ways around it, a big street sammy can certainly be packing quite a few pounds of fat.

Vlad

[Wounded Ronin]

@Wounded Ronin: If we ever meet, we should definitely play a SR game set in a low-budget action movie. Something with Dolph Lundgren, Richard Harrison, a blond girl with a shower scene and a black friend who'll get killed to save them, directed by Godfrey Ho with a story involving ninjas and cyborgs.

Well, I'm honored. And that would indeed be the ideal SR scenario.

[nezumi]

I've heard all of these in my sessions. Also, isn't there something about soy making women go all crazy-like... maybe it doesn't mix well with estrogen, or maybe it increases estrogen production or something?

Women are already crazy, the soy wouldn't seriously bother them.

However, soy is a great source of phyto-aestrogen, basically a plant analog to estrogen. It's more of a problem with men, especially boys, since estrogen is a female sex hormone. Too much estrogen for young boys and pregnant women may (studies are still inconclusive) lead to a reduction in the boys particularly manly assets, and may also lead to an earlier onset of puberty for young girls.


I've played several fat shadowrunners. Generally though, I assume that Body, Strength and Quickness indicate whether a guy is buff or just fat. Deckers, riggers and, perhaps surprisingly, mages, are more likely to be a li'l chubby. That said, as runners get out of the streets and acquire karma, I rarely see any with a Body score of less than 3, and therefore I assume most people have run off that chub.

[PlatonicPimp]

OK, see, If I saw a character with high body, and low agility and strength, I'd think "Fat".

[Drogos]

:pointsup: Me too (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[Chrysalis]

OK, see, If I saw a character with high body, and low agility and strength, I'd think "Fat".

How about a dwarf or troll?

[Ed_209a]

How about a dwarf or troll?

High/low for the metatype. Whether they put 1, 3, 5 or whatever in their stat before the metatype adjustments.

A BOD 6/STR 6 Troll is just as much of a wimp as a BOD 1/STR 1 Human.

[nezumi]

Body is the default for athletics. You can't very well run the mile when you're 200lbs. overweight. Now that isn't saying you're not BIG, but a high body indicates you have toned muscles and your cardiovascular system is in reasonably good shape.

[hyzmarca]

http://holychampion1.deviantart.com/art/Fat-Samurai-52382934

[PlatonicPimp]

Linked stat for climbing, running, swimming: strength.
Linked stat for gymnastics: agilty.
Skills which link to body: diving, parachuting for some ungodly reason.

Or are you using sr3, nez? I don't have that book anymore.

[Larme]

Shadowrun stats are pretty abstract. Body represents two things that aren't related: your general health, and your ability to survive damage. Someone could be healthy without being tough, and someone could be tough without being that healthy. A high Body could be explained either way, yet system-wise, your high Body stat would say that you're both. Sometimes you just have to ignore the system so that it lets you play the character you want. I'm not going to let one number on a sheet tell me "if you are healthy, you must also be big and tough." I'll play it how I want, because the numbers can't push me around when it comes to roleplaying. Obviously they set limits, but when they're arbitrary limits on how you can merely describe yourself, they're out the window.

[kanislatrans]

I remember reading something about modified tapeworms somewhere. ( but then I may have imagined that as I have quit smoking and can't really think too clearly yet (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wobble.gif) )

If I didn't imagine it I think it would be pretty common. just implant the parasite and pig out . let the bug eat all the extra stuff.

Hey, wait a minute... I have just figured out the teams next run.... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/devil.gif)

Oh yes, my pretties...kill my cockroach shaman in two passes will you? BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAAAHA!!!!!HA!! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/spin.gif)

*kanis runs off to google land to see if tapeworms can be worked like insect spirits (IMG:style_emoticons/default/devil.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/devil.gif) *

[PlatonicPimp]

Body is also applied as a negative dice pool modifier to avoid setting off pressure pads. this implies it has something to do with weight. It is also the stat that determines if you are "large" or 'huge" for being shot at purposes. This implies it has something to do with size, though it is odd because that means I can have a "large" dwarf.

[CanRay]

A 'Runner's weight probably shifts with his fortunes. After a big run, and lots of partying, there'll be a bit of weight gain, followed by weight loss after a few missed meals and lean times.

[Sweaty Hippo]

For the guys who think that fat= high body, you would have obese people being able to soak up bullets better than scrawny guys. However, I don't think that either would be good at resisting pain from bullets breaking the skin.

[hyzmarca]

Proof that obese people can soak damage very well.

[shuya]

I usually ignore the idea of soy. It's like eating pills and driving around in flying cars.

you are clearly not a compulsive food label reader. they put that crap in everything already.

Actually I actually run it that despite tasting and looking like crap soy is actually good for you, and dirt cheap.

non-fermented soy products are actually pretty bad for people. phytic acid, phytoestrogens, non-absorbable b12 analogs, trypsin inhibitors, etc... which makes sense why it would be in everything in a dystopian future. it's just the end result of the consumer "race to the bottom" that is poisoning both people and the planet today. soy is the new fluoride.

[nezumi]

Or are you using sr3, nez? I don't have that book anymore.

Ah, you clearly play SR1! Good fellow.

(Yes, I play SR3, the one, true game, disregarding the two preceding it.)

[PlatonicPimp]

I DO still have my sr1 book.

Ah, defaulting tree, how I miss you.

[paws2sky]

I DO still have my sr1 book.
Ah, defaulting tree, how I miss you.

I dug my SR1 book out a month or so ago to mine it for ideas. Its not holding up well to the new-found use though. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/frown.gif)

The less said about the skill web, the better. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/spin.gif)

[nezumi]

Something fans of SR3 and SR4 can agree on - SR1, for all of its flaws, was a beautiful game... *sniff*