Melee focused troll adept? Options

[tim]

Ive been thinking of making a melee only troll, usually i go for really specialized characters, and i was wondering if anyone could offer any advice. Anything like using cyber/bioware in combination with magic or just using magic, im not sure if its worth it because of essence loss. Any help would be much appreciated, thanks guys.

Oh, i nearly forgot, this is shadowrun 4th ed. None of my group has the anniversary ed so....

[Stahlseele]

Muscle-Aug, Muscle-Toner.
Killing Hands. Maybe some Bone-Work.
Then add in the usual Close-Combat Adept-Powers.
Critical Strike, maybe Elemental-Strike too.

[Glyph]

Melee adepts definitely fit into the "really specialized characters" mold.

Bioware is definitely worth it, because melee adepts have lots of powers to buy, and the two most expensive areas to improve with power points are initiative increases and attribute increases. My usual recommendations would be synaptic booster: 2, muscle augmentation: 2, muscle toner: 2, and reflex recorders for unarmed combat, and either dodge/gymnastics or a ranged skill.

If you soft-max Magic, you will have 3 points left. My usual recommendations would be killing hands, critical strike: 3, improved ability: unarmed combat: 2, and penetrating strike: 3.

Lots of other ways you can do it, though. Other people like bone density augmentation and/or elemental strike. Combat sense and counterstrike can also be a killer combo.

[etherial]

I had fun today with a Strength 11 Troll with Distance Strike. I punched the lights out of a woman we were robbing in a prep run while I was still inside the van, and later responded to a bodyguard going full auto with a roundhouse kick to the face.

[Wiggles Von Beer...]

I was screwing around with a troll melee adept, and this is what I came up with.

B: 5
A: 4
R: 4
S: 9

C: 3
I: 4
L: 2
W: 5

Ess: 5.1
Edge: 4
Init: 8/1
Magic: 6

Qualities:
Adept (5)
Restricted Gear 1 (5)
Martial Arts 2 (10) (2 levels Muay Thai or Boxing, +2 DV)

Unarmed Combat 6
Perception 4
Influence Group 1
Heavy Weapons 3

Cyber/Bio:
Bone Density Aug 3 (+3 DV)

Adept Powers:
Killing Hands
Critical Strike 6 (+6 DV)
Elemental Strike (Metal, +2 DV, +2 AP)
Improved Combat Ability (Unarmed) 4
Strength Boost 1
Agility Boost 1

He's raw, and I whipped him up in the character generator. He ends up with no contacts and barely any cash left over after buying a set of mil-spec armor with restricted gear. If he rolls well on boosts, he's looking at rolling 17 dice for unarmed (7 agility + 6 unarmed + 4 Improved Combat Ability) with a base damage of 13 ( Critical Strike 6 + Bone Density Aug 3 +Metal Strike + Martial Arts) plus his strength. His initiative sucks, but that's what combat drugs are for.

Bear in mind that I haven't taken encumbrance rules into account. It would also probably be more efficient to soft max his magic and initiate so that you can free up 25 BP for skills and contacts. I didn't make the character with the mindset of growing him, though.

[Medicineman]

Improved Combat Ability (Unarmed) 4
only Lvl 3 possible (Skill of 6 x1,5 =9 Max)
If Your'e making a Melee Fighter ,make shure to reach you're Enemy !
Athleticgroup and especially Gymnastics is important and Initaitive Passes ! You should either take synaptic Booster or Ki Power improved Reflexes.(I'd prefer Bioware)

His initiative sucks, but that's what combat drugs are for.
Okayyyh, thats an alternative

with an alternative Dance
Medicineman

[Generico]

Melee and stealth = Hazelnut Butter and Jelly

A bit unusual but still awesome.

[Glyph]

Improved Combat Ability (Unarmed) 4
only Lvl 3 possible (Skill of 6 x1,5 =9 Max)
Medicineman

Also, the bioware will decrease Magic, which will decrease the rating that critical strike can be taken at. Bone density augmentation: 3 only gives +2 to DV. I don't know where he's getting those stats for elemental/metal strike from.

[Medicineman]

Melee and stealth = Hazelnut Butter and Jelly

A bit unusual but still awesome.

Not unusual at all ,but a logical Combination.
Don't be seen until its too late,sneak up to your enemy and finish him close-Up.
IIRC it's an advise from the Arsenal

with an unseen Dance
Medicineman

[WalksWithWiFi]

I see that guy getting shot....a lot
stealth couldn't hurt

[tim]

thanks for all the advice guys, i think hes going to be a pretty good build.

I dont really know if this is off from what i was looking for, and i think id have to scrap being an adept, but i was reading through augmentation and found something called cyberzombies, would anyone happen to be able to shed a little light on the subject?

also, sorry for any errors or bad punctuation and general me being terrible at spelling, just woke up. but today has brought bacon, which is always a good thing. yay!

[etherial]

thanks for all the advice guys, i think hes going to be a pretty good build.

I dont really know if this is off from what i was looking for, and i think id have to scrap being an adept, but i was reading through augmentation and found something called cyberzombies, would anyone happen to be able to shed a little light on the subject?

Cyberzombies are people who have been murdered by having their Essence ripped out, have 7-10 Essence of 'ware installed, then raised by forbidden magics to be the slaves of the people who mutilated them.

[tim]

well....that actually sounds like it could make a campaign fairly interesting, any sort of limits to how far this can take you? do you become like the equivalent of a demi god or something(power wise)?

[Delarn]

Essence 5.1
Magic 6 ???

[zeborazor]

Well you become insane as a cyber-zombie. I'm sure your group will love that.

[tim]

but theyre already insane. seriously, theyll just blow up pedestrians for fun. foam explosive enemas for free....

[zeborazor]

Explosive enemas?! Ouch.

Anyway, you will become more insane and you need monthly treatments and crap to keep the cancer at bay. Everytime you get new piece of ware you have to undergo the operation again as well.

[tim]

why not just load every on in the first surgery? get all the ware you could need

[Stahlseele]

Because it gets harder to do the more into negative essence you go.
let's say you need 10 hits for a -2 Essence Cyberzombie. You would probably need something like 30 Hits for a -6 Essence-Cyberzombie.
And the Drain for the Necromancers is horrible as well. But they usually kill one or two little girls to handle that.

[Wiggles Von Beer...]

Also, the bioware will decrease Magic, which will decrease the rating that critical strike can be taken at. Bone density augmentation: 3 only gives +2 to DV. I don't know where he's getting those stats for elemental/metal strike from.

Like I said, I threw this guy together in the character generator. That's where the +3 DV for bone density augmentation came from [Edit: Just checked SR4A, and you're right]. As far as adept powers go, I'm not sure if the maximum rating you can take is your purchased Magic attribute, or your effective one. As for the elemental strike thing, it's Page 164 in Street Magic.

Metal
The Metal elemental effect damages the target with small metallic (iron) fragments and shrapnel. This attack is similar to flechette ammunition: increase the DV by +2, but the attacker suffers a +2 AP penalty against Impact armor. Metal damage attacks are resisted with Impact armor. As a secondary effect, Metal damage may shred some easily cut materials like cheap fabric.

[Tymeaus Jalynsfe...]

Like I said, I threw this guy together in the character generator. That's where the +3 DV for bone density augmentation came from [Edit: Just checked SR4A, and you're right]. As far as adept powers go, I'm not sure if the maximum rating you can take is your purchased Magic attribute, or your effective one. As for the elemental strike thing, it's Page 164 in Street Magic.

Effective Rating...

Keep the Faith

[Glyph]

There is no "effective" Magic rating. If you take 'ware, it drops, period. My personal opinion about elemental strike (given its cost) is that it only adds the secondary effects, but that seems to be the minority opinion.

As far as making an augmented close combatant, rather than an adept, it's certainly doable. They used to be a distant second as pure melee specialists. But when you combine some of the new 'ware from Augmentation with the Restricted Gear and/or Born Rich qualities from Runner's Companion, you can create some pretty tough characters.

Becoming a cyberzombie is kind of an ultimate goal, rather than a starting point, though. And it has some heavy drawbacks. The most serious one, for a PC, is that it generally involves indebting yourself to some nasty people, whom you need to keep your body functioning. Who cares how badass you are, if you're just some NPC's bitch?

[Tymeaus Jalynsfe...]

There is no "effective" Magic rating. If you take 'ware, it drops, period.

At which point it is no longer the original rating and is now the effective rating... but of course, that is semantics...
Not trying to start a fight here... just using the terminology used by Wiggles

Keep the Faith

[Wiggles Von Beer...]

Then I'll head on over to Daisybox's SR4 Chargen thread and leave some feedback.

[Cardul]

Somwhere I made a Troll Adept where I went Synamptic Booster 2, and for powers went: Killing Hands, Distance Strike, Wall Running, Agility Boost, and some others...It was amusing when I tested the character in a fight, and used Wall Running ro run along the SIDE of the truck the group was in to distance strike the guy on the motorcycle shooting
at us, then got onto the roof of the truck(OK, so it was actually a semi...)