Basic weapons., Gang arsenals Options

[Arethusa]

Huskarl axes. I imagine a replica, today, couldn't possibly run you more than four or five hundred, and that's still pretty pricey.

Re trauma patches: only a stupid GM won't just change the price. It was a pretty obvious oversight, but the game's more than full of them. It's really nothing new.

[Clyde]

What about gang armor? In SR3 it sure seems suicidal to run around in just a leather jacket. I'd probably give mine armor vests (probably pretty battered) and maybe vests w/plates for serious encounters.

Really well funded gangs in my campaigns have access to cyberware to go with their tricked out SMGs and assault rifles.

[Arethusa]

Personally, I wouldn't be inclined to give them armor, and when I did, just simple vests. Because of its cost and its expendable nature, and because there is a certain social stigma attached to it in that world, it's just not the kind of thing you see in common use with gangs. I'd save armor for the professionals.

[Kanada Ten]

I tend to agree. However, armored clothing can be stylish in some areas, and most gangs will have things like Armored Jackets that they save for rumbles against gun wielding zombi.

Additionally, there is a style of game that I enjoy where gangers carry knives and ninja are everywhere. Then it's a chainsaw in the trunk and machine pistols for the turf wars.

[Arethusa]

I'll admit, I can see ridiculously oversized FuBu and Ecko Unlimited armored jackets in the 2060s. And I am nauseated.

[Edward]

The idea of a reach 2 combat axe is amusing to say the least. Maybe in the hands of a troll. I don’t know.

Obviously the larger gangs like the Halloweenrs tend to get the occasional corporate gratuity including heavier weapons and deal in chemicals chips fencing and such like to fund themselves. I am really wanting info on the small time gangs.

What mechanics are ther for Molotovs, fertilizer bombs, explosives made in a backyard laboratory the anarchists handbook calls for (barley counts as a kit).

Edward

[Arethusa]

Edward, the Huskarl (or Huscarl or Housecarl or Housecard, depending on whom you ask) axe was gigantic and used to devastating effect. It can exist. Not much of a personal weapon, but it's still possible.

[DrJest]

Was the Huskarl the decksweeper used for boarding actions, or am I thinking of a different axe?

[toturi]

[Crusher Bob]

IIRC, they are probably talking about 'Saxon Housecarls' (spelling may vary. Who were the elite warriors of England during the Norman (French) Conquest ~1066.

IIRC they were usually equipped with heavy axes with around 3-4 feet of haft.

[Arethusa]

[Crusher Bob]

And they shot bolts of lightning from their eyes, and balls of fire from their asses. That's why they got conquered by the French.

[Toptomcat]

An example of a Reach 2 axe might be a Haliberd.

[Just Jonny]

I think most people would categorize a halberd as a polearm. But it does have an ax on it.

[DrJest]

[Catsnightmare]

[Austere Emancipa...]

It's a pretty moot point, since Pole Arms in SR refers both to all rigid melee weapons with a Reach of 2 or more (ie. everything wielded with the Pole Arms skill) as well as the particular weapon type which is a sub-group of that. Not only are Combat Axes used with the Pole Arms skill, but the definition of the weapon Pole Arms in SR3 says they often feature an axe-like blade. So call them whatever you want.

[nezumi]

I think a major question here is how big of a gang? If this is a group of toughs who happen to live on the same block, we're dealing with preds, knives, maybe an SMG or a shotgun. If it's a mid-sized gang, there'll be a wider variety of SMGs and Shotguns especially, and maybe a few more heavy pistol. Remember though, the goal isn't accuracy, it's intimidation and total damage value. Rapid fire and shotgun spread are very good, so they'll be popular. The fact that the pred looks vicious is going to make it a big favorite, but with cyber so unusual, pred 2's and 3's aren't going to be nearly as common. With the big gangs (like in Lone Wolf), we see plenty of SMGs, assault rifles, explosives, grenades, just about everything you can think of. Maybe an occaisional mage, or perhaps even a rifle or two for the one guy who isn't so stoned out of his brains he can actually shoot straight.

Non-deadly weapons are going to be very unusual - no intimidation value. Big, stupid melee weapons like axes are going to be very unusual - Easy to get caught with them, distinctive (so the star can track you down), hard to sell, and severely limited by the users skill (or lack thereof), although a few distinctive characters might have them. Concealable melee weapons, or weapons that can be disguised as non-weapons (chains, for instance), will be standard issue. With guns, the ease with which one can get (or lose) a weapon is important. Also, intimidation factor is HUGE, most of what gangs do is show off for each other. Looking badder is better than being badder. The ability to point and click is also very important, most gangers aren't trained, heck, they're barely even literate, so the less skill necessary, the better.

[Tanka]

[Austere Emancipa...]

[Apathy]

This has come up before:

Ganger Stats

I think that might have been for a fairly high-powered game, though.

[Arethusa]

[Austere Emancipa...]

Except that USD could have been exchanged to UCD at any fathomable rate. For example, at the time of introduction of the current version of the UCD, one USD could have bought you a hundred billion UCD (hyperdeflation, I don't think that has ever happened), or you could have needed a hundred billion USD to get one UCD (hyperinflation, more common than you'd think).

The canonical base exchange rate between UCD and NUY is 4:1, CAD to NUY is 3:1. They can be found here. The rules on how they shift are delightfully broken. I'd link a thread from the old forums where someone totally broke the economy with them in a few months or years, making trillions in the process. However, the Jive forum Search command, being true to form, cannot find a single message in the Shadowrun forum with the word "rate" in it.

This post has been edited by Austere Emancipator: Nov 12 2004, 04:19 PM

[Herald of Verjig...]

UCAS probably decided to switch to a value almost the same as Canada's before the merger, it would keep the northernerns from complaining about the change and give the rest an illusion of a pay increase.

Therefore, to properly gague infalation, it must be based of the modern Canadian dollar instead of the modern US dollar. So, how many bluebills does it take to buy a box of cheap Chinese import ammo?

[Austere Emancipa...]