The physad power Quick Strike, I've been confused by it for years Options

[Wounded Ronin]

For years, I've had MITS. For years, I've flipped through the physad power section, laughing at how stupid and overpriced a lot of the powers, such as Nerve Strike, are.

One power, Quick Strike, totally confused me. It costs 3 power points, but seems to do nothing more than what you could do under normal circumstances with a delayed action.

[Adam]

If you use a Delayed Action to try and act first in the next initiative pass, you're still not guaranteed to act first. You're forced to go no sooner than the Combat Phase equal to the highest Initiative Score for that pass, and thus you'll need to make a test to determine if you go first or second [or third or fourth...], if there are more than 1 person in that first Combat Phase. Note that since the first tie-breaker is "Who has the highest initiative score in the first pass", the person who was originally at the top of the heap will likely win that test.

Also, if you delay into the next pass, that counts as your action for that pass. Or, at least, I believe it's supposed to, but the rules for that seem a little, ehm, murky.

[Tarantula]

How about acting first in the first pass of the combat? That seems pretty useful to me. Sure, you have wired 3, but I go first and kill you, so it was worthless. Something along those lines?

[Glyph]

Quick strike is devastating because Shadowrun combat tends to be quick and deadly. Combined with the improved ability power, it can result in someone who can take out several enemies before they even have a chance to react. It is more specialized than, say, improved reflexes: 2 (a more generally useful ability which also costs 3 points), but still worth the points for the combat edge that it provides.

[Club]

It's the 'unwounded' requirement that drops from useful ability to cool stunt, IMHO.

[Moon-Hawk]

It's kinda like it comes with a built-in geas. Try to use that argument to talk your GM into letting you get a 4 point version that works whether you're wounded or not.
Of course, at four points you might not be interested anymore, but it's a thought. You could always geas the power with something else to get the cost back to 3. :)

[Kanada Ten]

And think about it, you get to go first every pass in which you have an action, regardless of your actual ini score. Let's say, for the sake of it that we have three runners with scores of 21, 13, and 8 and that the Quick Strike Adept has the 13. On the first pass the adept goes first (13 before the 21 or 8) and on the second pass the adept goes first (3 before the 11)

[Demosthenes]

I think you only get to use it in one pass per combat turn...though I could be mistaken.

As to Geasa for it, there's always "only with my [insert favoured weapon here]".

[Kanada Ten]

Oops, you're right.

[Tarantula]

Demo, you're right. In Kanada's example he would go first in the first pass before the 21. Next pass through, 21 goes, then him, then 11, then 8, then 3, then 1. So he'd get second the first time through, unless of course, he killed the 21.

[Demosthenes]

It's still fun though...especially if you munchkinise your MP-wielding, quick-drawing, Full-auto-firing, centre-all-the-time-and-blow-the-s#!t-out-of-everyone Adept through the ceiling....

[Kanada Ten]

[Tarantula]

Err, I worded it badly, Order would go like this: Adept, Sammy, slowguy, sammy, adept, sammy.

[Wounded Ronin]

But it says "This power cannot be used during an Initiative Pass when the adept does not have an action".

So, like, if you already spent 3 power points on Quick Strike, at best you could get Improved Reflexes II if you burned all the rest of your power points.

And once you were there, you'd still be autopwned by a Wired III or Improved Reflexes III guy who gets to go ahead of you anyway before you have any actions.

[mfb]

eh? no you wouldn't. everybody acts in the first init pass. it's only in the later init passes where they'd get to act but you wouldn't.

[Wounded Ronin]

Ooohhh, so what the power is supposed to do is let you automatically act first while we're still cycling through everyone's action the first time, before we subtract 10 from the init scores and do it again.

Oooh, I get it. That was the source of my confusion. Somewhere along the line I had picked up the incorrect definition of "pass". (Yeah, I was doing init correctly, but I just didn't call a pass a pass.) Heh, wow, I learn so much about the rules on this board.

[mfb]

basically. only you don't have to use it in the first init pass; you can use it in any pass where you've got an action, so long as you haven't already used it this round.

[GrinderTheTroll]

Let's you throw down a 1st-pass ass whoopin' on that 6D+13 street sam who's probably gonna geek the mage first with only your 2D6+6 roll.

Useful IMO.

[Jrayjoker]

So basically since everyone gets to go at least once, the physad with this power can choose to go first in any pass, but does not gain any additional passes, right?

Can the physad declare he is using his quick strike at any time before or during the uberfast guys turn?

Example:

Uberfast: I am going to shoot the ninja looking guy.

Ninja looking guy: Hold on there Sparky, I use quickstrike to tag you and hopefully up your TNs.

Thoughts?

[Bigity]

But 3 points, only when unwounded useful?

[Jrayjoker]

If you can act before the fast guy wounds you, sure it matters. But, I think it should be a 1-2 point power due to its inherent limitations.

AKA I agree.

[Bigity]

Oh yea, definately useful. I just house-rule the injury limitation on it. Never had anyone take it at CG, but I have had a couple of initiated adepts use it.

[Jrayjoker]

I could see this being a better power if bought later as well.

[U_Fester]

[The White Dwarf]

The usefulness/power of this ability depends entierly on the other suite of abilites on the character using it and the situation at hand. Its not better or worse than IR2, which has the same cost, its just different. Theres times when going first is cool, and times when going often is cool. The unwounded part is just something you gotta keep in mind when building this ability in, ie make sure you can soak pretty well or work things so you dont get attacked much.