[X] My Assistant

[Modular Man]

Linguistic Power with Linguist, and get some trid-vids and watch them subbed. I came up with that particular idea and a friend of mine did this in game.

Jep, thank you. Already got all the necessary parts in place, I'll just need my character watch those subbed movies. Easy work as he only needs three hours of sleep (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)
This will be awesome. I already took two or three new languages rating 4 for zero Karma in the last month of downtime.
I think I will add in some "Movies" knowledge skill for 1 additional karma while I'm at it.

As for unusual gear, I've got a complete "MacGyver" list for my character, along with the "juryrigger" quality (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)
The strangest things in there being an aluminum bag of potato chips (salted), a couple one-use syringes, barbecue charcoal lighters, short metal tubes with a glass vial in it and a glass of salsa sauce (bolognese sauce will do, too). They'll never see anything coming (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)
Plus, of course, a ten foot pole/telescopic staff. Mine comes with gecko grip, reduced weight and maybe personalized grip.
Oh, and duct tape, but that's neither strange nor weird.

[kzt]

And then you can break into strongholds, kill cyberzombies, and take over the world! Oh wait, you can marginally speak some languages. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) That's what linguasofts are for, if it ever comes up.

Yeah, I think if someone really wants to know 13 languages it's OK. It's a dumb way to spend BPs, but it's not abusive. I'd be willing to give them more than 1 point each for free if they could articulate a reason for wanting that many languages.

[Grinchy McScroog...]

Yeah, I think if someone really wants to know 13 languages it's OK. It's a dumb way to spend BPs, but it's not abusive. I'd be willing to give them more than 1 point each for free if they could articulate a reason for wanting that many languages.

I could see myself taking that many languages if I had a very strong RP character concept that I was trying to fulfill. Of course, I would be discussing it with the GM first to make sure that it would fit with the campaign he had in mind. Off the top of my head, I am already building an archeologist/historian who would have that many languages, many of them dead ones. Could work very well in the Artifacts storyline. Just sayin'. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beret.gif)

[Yerameyahu]

Mhm, and encourage them to come up with good reasons to use some of them in play.

[pbangarth]

I could see myself taking that many languages if I had a very strong RP character concept that I was trying to fulfill. Of course, I would be discussing it with the GM first to make sure that it would fit with the campaign he had in mind. Off the top of my head, I am already building an archeologist/historian who would have that many languages, many of them dead ones. Could work very well in the Artifacts storyline. Just sayin'. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beret.gif)

My PC, Professor, in the Post or Die thread has both the Linguist Quality and the Linguistics adept power. He has travelled extensively and collected languages he used in his archaeological work.

As far as usefulness, yes, linguasofts are easy to get... for the common languages. But walking into a bar in Backwoods Shithole, Anywhere, buying a few drinks and getting to talk to people in their own dialect after a couple of hours can be handy, and mighty impressive to the locals.

[Yerameyahu]

It depends if you're running the shadows in such a boring place. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[Stahlseele]

i put some cybernetic blades into one of my troll fighters and gave him Origami as a knowledge skill. another was beer-related.
he used these in combination to first drink the beer from the can, then cut up the can into an aluminium square. he would then proceed to make little origami figurines out of the sheet, because:"i like them better this way, not as fragile as paper and easier to come by too"
a bit later i gave him wood working as a hobby knowledge skill too.

[ShadowDragon8685]

I've been told of a D&D game where the character had "Starship Enterprise" on his character sheet as equipment. The GM allowed him to think he'd gotten it over him until he tried to use it. Then he calmly pointed out he'd didn't have a communicator and went on with the game.

See, if that had been Shadowrun it would have come back to bite the GM in the ass, because they would find a way to make contact.

Probably the easiest would be spirits or ritual magic, but I wouldn't put it past runners with the Jury Rigger quality and enough legwork to come up with something I couldn't overrule without having a mutiny on my hands.

It's not hard to make contact with a starship in orbit which is actively searching for you. Arranging enough material on the ground to form the shape of Starfleet's emblem large enough to be visible from orbit with the naked eye is a task of manual labor, sure, but it can be done with time, equipment, or peons. Doing it so Mr. Data (you did not specify which Enterprise) could see it would be fairly trivial.

Or you could always use magic (if D&D; or Shadowrun,) or technology (Shadowrun.) I guarantee that broadcasting a repeating signal of "S.O.S. NCC 1701" will get their attention, and you could do that just as soon as the Marconi set had been invented.

[hobgoblin]

Just leaving this here:
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Subspace_communication

[Manunancy]

It's not hard to make contact with a starship in orbit which is actively searching for you. Arranging enough material on the ground to form the shape of Starfleet's emblem large enough to be visible from orbit with the naked eye is a task of manual labor, sure, but it can be done with time, equipment, or peons. Doing it so Mr. Data (you did not specify which Enterprise) could see it would be fairly trivial.

Or you could always use magic (if D&D; or Shadowrun,) or technology (Shadowrun.) I guarantee that broadcasting a repeating signal of "S.O.S. NCC 1701" will get their attention, and you could do that just as soon as the Marconi set had been invented.

It supposes the ship is orbiting he plane you're on - and if it's in another star system even radio won't do you much good...

[DamienKnight]

I once played in a game (so long ago can't even remember the name) in which one of the PCs had a State the Obvious skill. Every so often he'd cry "state the obvious!", make a roll and then follow it up with something like "there are two doors in this room" or "if her name's Laura she'll be a woman". At first I thought this was just a comedy throw-away 'skill', until the GM had him make a roll and then had him point out something crucial we'd all overlooked. I yoinked it for the troll in my next SR campaign.

Common Sense Positive Quality.

[KarmaInferno]

And then you can break into strongholds, kill cyberzombies, and take over the world! Oh wait, you can marginally speak some languages. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) That's what linguasofts are for, if it ever comes up.

It also works for all Knowledge skills.

Which many GMs do use on a regular basis.

Also, I said it was a min-max reason, not that it was an overpowering or broken reason. Someone who is willing to go to this level, though, is probably min-maxing everything else on their character just as hard.



-k

[StealthSigma]

Common Sense Positive Quality.

Which I cannot stand mostly because it's a player positive quality, not a character one. Why should I be spending 5 BP to cover my gaps of knowledge over stuff my character SHOULD know.

Stating the obvious is also a bit different anyway. It would be like, the GM is describing a compound, mentions that there's an unguarded gap in the wall and the players are all discussing the best way to get over/through/under the wall. That's not necessarily common sense.

[ShadowDragon8685]

I've just remembered that yesterday, I realized that one of my players - a Magician (primarily a summoner,) has no applicable Knowledge skills towards any form of sorcery-related phenomena.

Not necessarily weird, but a Stupid Player Trick nonetheless.

[Yerameyahu]

No, KarmaInferno, if they're minmaxing hard they're not wasting (a fair chunk of) BP on Linguist, Linguistics, and a bunch of level 1 languages. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) That's what I meant anyway.

[Dyspeptic]

There was once this SURGEd Gnome who took Striking Skin Pigmentation (Blue) and Vestigal Tail as his metagenetic negative qualities... and dressed completely in white.

[Aerospider]

There was once this SURGEd Gnome who took Striking Skin Pigmentation (Blue) and Vestigal Tail as his metagenetic negative qualities... and dressed completely in white.

Hmm ... Sammy Smurf.
Yeah, I'd watch that show.

[Nikoli]

Hmm ... Sammy Smurf.
Yeah, I'd watch that show.

"Smurf Straight. Smurf Ammo. And never, ever smurf a deal with a dragon."

Did he have one active skill? Smurfing 4 Specialization (Smurfing) +2

[Stahlseele]

A Querx!

[tisoz]

I've been told of a D&D game where the character had "Starship Enterprise" on his character sheet as equipment. The GM allowed him to think he'd gotten it over him until he tried to use it. Then he calmly pointed out he'd didn't have a communicator and went on with the game.

I think I'd have just told him Star Trek was only an imaginary story in that setting and that his "Starship Enterprise" was a limited edition scale model. Works even for SR.

[ShadowDragon8685]

I think I'd have just told him Star Trek was only an imaginary story in that setting and that his "Starship Enterprise" was a limited edition scale model. Works even for SR.

Hell, it works for any setting except Star Trek!


Oh wait.

[Yerameyahu]

Yup, they have models in Star Trek. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif) Poor delusional character!

[Jeremiah Kraye]

Brings back memories of running into the Enterprise in fallout.

[Stahlseele]

Well, into one of her Shuttles at least.

[Jeremiah Kraye]

Yeah, or the "mystical bar"? or the bad luck dog... I hated that dog.