Some suggestions on my character. Options

[Trax]

I want to have a second character ready in the event my primary bites the dust, and with the stupid mistake I did in the last session, it's probably going to happen pretty soon. I made this one with the NSRCG, so I used the normal Troll race but will put in the proper Minotaur mods here.

Anything I should re-consider? I mainly went with bioware because I didn't want to turn him into just another chromed fighter, and it's easier to go through security without setting off every alarm in the joint.

Male, Minotaur
Body: 9 (10)
Quickness: 10
Strength: 11
Charisma: 3
Intelligence: 5
Willpower: 4

Essence: 5.60
Magic: 0
Reaction: 8
Initiative: 1d6+8
Combat dice: 9
Karma Pool: 1

Skills:
Car 2
Edged Weapons 5
Heavy Weapons 5
Athletics 3
Sub-Machine Guns 5
Stealth 3
Etiquette 3
Unarmed 3

Knowledge:
Biotech 4
Current Affairs 4
Underworld politics 4
Entertainment politics 4
Criminal orginizations 4

Language:
English 5
R/W English 2

Resources: 1,000,000

Lifestyle:
3 month Middle

Armour:
Secure Long Coat (Conc 10, 4/2)

Weapons:
Colt Cobra TZ-118 SMG TrMod:
(Conc 5, Ammo 32 clip, SA/BF/FA, Damage 6M, Smartlink-II)
Sound suppressor
Sling
Loaded w/32 EXex rounds
3 clips: 32 Normal rounds
2 Spare clip: 32 Exex rounds
1 Spare clip: 32 Gel rounds

Dikote Combat Axe: Conc 2, Reach 2, (Str+1)D

Ingram Valiant LMG TrMod:
(Conc -, Ammo belt/50 clip, BF/FA, Damage 7S Smartlink-II)
Hip Brace (1RC), Gas Vent II (2RC), Shock Pads (RC1)
Loaded w/50 Exex rounds clip
1 Spare clip: 50 Exex rounds
1 Spare clip: 50 Regular rounds

Racial/Cyberware:
Dermal Armour (+1 Bod)
Thermalgraphic Vision
Reach (+1)
(Alpha) Smartlink-II

Bioware:
Bio-Index 0.30
Essence Index 8.60

Enhanced Articulation
Grafted Muscle
Nictitating Membranes
Nano-auditory Rebuild
Muscle Augmentation 4
Muscle Toner 4
Nephretic screen
Toxin Extractor 3
Tracheal Filter 3
Genetic immunization
Environmental microadaption- Pollution
Augmented healing
Cellular repair



Gear:
Pocket Secretary
Wrist phone w/Flip-up screen
Micro-transceiver [3] w/ subvocal microphone
Face Mask, Ultrasound
Shades, 20x magnification

Vehicle:
GMC MPUV TrMod, Anti-theft system [6], electric shock system, morphing license plate, photovoltaic chameleon paint

Contacts:
Bartender Lvl 1
Decker lvl1
Mr. Johnson lvl2
Street Doc lvl2
Bouncer lvl1

Edges/Flaws: None

Nuyen still left over: 36,145

Notes:
Longer Heal +5 TN Heal
Lesser Immunity +5 Power

This post has been edited by Trax: Jan 11 2005, 12:45 AM

[toturi]

The problem is that by choosing Minotaur(or any other metavariant, for that matter) you are still going to draw a lot attention.

[RangerJoe]

Hoo boy.... I don't know that stealth (3) is going to cut it for hiding a minotaur. :-)

*clop clop clop* *shhhh!*

For a kick down the door type character, he could be fun, though.

[Trax]

I could always replace the stealth with some other skill, intimidation perhaps, or just take a point or so off another skill to bring it to 4.

Perhaps at some later date I could get Kid Stealth legs. Now there's something to make me look like a bigger freak.

[Crusher Bob]

You might want to change out pistols or SMGs for a few points of unarmed combat, otherwise you will be pretty easy to beat up if you don't have your axe in hand.
Also, you are spending two skill points in going from etiquette 3 to 4. You also don't have any athletics...

As for aving stealth eveyone needs to move quietly, even elephants and rhinos can do it (and elephants quite well, I might add).

Maybe change to :

Car 2
Edged Weapons 5
Heavy Weapons 5
Sub-Machine Guns 5
Unarmed Combat 3
Athletics 3
Stealth 3
Etiquette 3

Hmm, or:

Car 3
Edged Weapons 6
Heavy Weapons 6
Sub-Machine Guns 5
Athletics 3
Stealth 3
Etiquette 3

Also if you are going to be bioware heavy, consider throwing on a nephritic screen and some of the other small 'health mods' to reduce some of your healing/resistance penalties. You could get an air filter or blood filter with your .6 left of essence.

Where did your char learn his skills? There might be a few other skills you should have, based on your background.

[Trax]

Hmm, if I kick up resources to Priority A, I could afford those health mods, unless I save up to get them later.

I was thinking of him being an ex-pitfighter, he went with Bioware because it's less obvious than kitted out with cyberware, and his opponents will underestimate his abilities. However, he decided to leave the ring for bigger challenges, and more Nuyen.

I kicked up resources to A for a big boost in Nuyen to spend. I changed the skills to your first suggestion, got rid of the pistol gear and bought the following Bioware:

Nephretic screen, Toxin Extractor 3, and Tracheal Filter 3. I now have 0.60 left until I reach my max Bio Index.

I don't see anything that reduces my healing penalties except the stuff in the Genetech.

-genetic immunization
-environmental microadaption- Pollution
-augmented healing
-cellular repair

This leaves me with .3 left

This post has been edited by Trax: Jan 10 2005, 05:38 AM

[DocMortand]

Hmm if you do ex-pitfighter you probably would want your knowledge skills to be completely different - like Gladitorial Arenas, Underworld knowledges of your choice (probably Yak or Seoulpa?) such as Yakuza heirachy or Seoulpa factions. If you're more experimental (like that new Jet Li movie where he's an animal that escapes) then crime bosses.

Since you're heavy on bio, you need to have some biogenetic knowledges, or at the very least contacts (how did you get the bioware that you have?). And also knowledge of the corp/crime org that did/arranged the bio transimplant surgery. (Be specific if it's corp - check out the corp section in New Seattle for ideas)

There's some ideas from me - take/discard as you wish. :) I love working with bios and tweaking the non-essentials just as much as finding out who to have to stay alive.

[Trax]

Hmm, you're right. I'll change the knowledge skills and contacts. With the change to Priority A, I can buy a lot of contacts.

Thinking up bio's for my character's was never my strong point :|

[Trax]

New changes:
- Vehicle: electric shock system, morphin license plate, photovoltaic chameleon paint, anti-theft system [10] (instead of 6)
-Knowledge: replaced knowledge skills with Biotech, Underworld politics, criminal orginizations, and entertainment politics, but kept current affairs.

Contacts are now:
bartender lvl1
mr johnson lvl2
decker lvl2
street doc lvl2
bouncer lvl1

[Tarantula]

Small point, but you can't get anti-theft 10 at chargen, as the max rating of equipment allowed is 6.

[Trax]

You're right. I knew it, but boosted to 10 for some reason.

[FrostyNSO]

I'm not really too interested in giving advice on your character (there are plenty here who could do that better than I), but I would love to hear about this mistake you made that is going to likely kill your other character.

(GM constantly looking for ways to have fun with the PC's)

[Trax]

My team and I are in a garage, trying to clear a path for Villiers to get out, because outside is 3-4 squads of Renraku Samurai and a cyberzombie. The CZ starts forcing the door open, me and a few other throw some grenades at it. The Samurai had the same idea and threw theirs at the same time. Schrapnel flew everwhere but we all managed to avoid them thanks to being behind concrete pillars.

The CZ manages to open the door all the way and we see that it's holding two assault rifles. I ended up with the lowest rolls and my character (the weapon specialist) get hit for 9S damage, the damn had Anti-vehicular loaded and shredded the pillar I was hiding behind. One of my team mates gets an exellent rolls and blows away the CZ, but now the Renraku goons are coming down into the garage and 1-2 starts laying down suppresive fire before one of us could.
When it came back to my turn, I started doing some suppresive fire as well but I didn't pay attention to how many dice I had put down and ended up using all the remaining Combat dice that I had left. Granted, it meant that I didn't get hit but now I can't dodge.

I probably should've thrown a grenade instead, or just blind fire it behind the corner.

There's still about 3 rounds left before combat ends, and from what we know it's going to go out with a bang. We had a team mate outside in the van and he planted a bomb.

[Trax]

I also tend to make Monty Python/Discworld/the D&D skit jokes. The last time I threw a grenade, I quoted the Holy Hand Grenade scripture.

[Jrayjoker]

Ah, you ain't dead yet. You still have hand of God and rerolls to play with, right?

[Trax]

[Trax]

Yeah, I still have that.

[Traks]

[Trax]

I think that it's actually in SOTA '63. I'm currently searching the hive of scum and villainy that is the internet for anything about them.

Heh, i'm thinking the same thing about our names but I don't think there will be any problems.

[Crusher Bob]

Hmm? Elephants move quite quietly IRL...

[Crimson Jack]

Get with your GM and ask for some specially made hoof tabi socks. Something to pad your footfalls. That, or tailored boots. It can be done.

[Trax]

Minotaurs don't have hooves, Satyr's do.

[Striker]

Well, I feel I should chime in at this point, being the GM to this sad excuse for a shadowrunner team :P.

Their very first run was a little extra-easy homebrew I cooked up to give them a taste of the rules. I figured even Food Fight (ah...nostalgia) required a bit of rules background to pull off correctly.
The runners were hired to deal with a hostage situation. Three hostages...two corpers (middle management), one secretary. Six 'terrorists' (really just punks hopped up on various drugs. No cyber worth mentioning, some old Uzis, and a shaman who was well on the path to burnout). A lakeside bungalow.

It was a textbook lesson on how not to do it. The snake shaman tried to sneak up on the building but stepped on one of those annoying extra noisy twigs. To cover up his mistake, he went invisible.

The troll and the (jewish) ork saw the shaman vanish and panicked. Instead of lying low (there was ample cover around to hide in), they charged. Against a building holding several goons with fully automatic weapons. Who had cover.

The troll played the part of 'meat shield' perfectly and went down with several pounds of lead embedded in his armor and flesh. The ork smartened up and took cover.

Well, they finally did beat the thugs (with the help of the corp secretary who had a.) corporate security training and b.) a toxin injector in a cyberfinger), but it was a pretty close thing.

I thought, hey, I think they've learned it.

So the next thing I did was Food Fight.

It was a complete and utter disaster. Textbook TPK. I think the only survivor was the gunslinger adept who made a hasty getaway through the window. It wasn't that my rolls were too good, or the opposition too beefy (I had already toned them down a bit), it was the stupid mistakes the runners made. Like going out into the open and using all your combat pool on a single attack. Which missed because the other guy had taken cover. That character was cut down by automatic fire from three guns, one of which was an assault shotgun.

In disgust and desperation, I stopped that session and gave them another chance. They could remodel their characters, rethink their tactics and try the same scenario again next week.

And lo and behold!, they actually pulled it off on their second try.

Of course, that's when the real insanity started...

[Trax]

Shall we terrify them with other tales of our lunacy?

[Aku]

i have a feeling someone is trying to convert a d20 group...