Under the Street Magic errata, a Tweaking the Rules option allows adepts to gain 1 Power Point instead of a metamagic technique at initiation. There is also an optional rule in Street Magic that allows for metamagic techniques to be purchased directly (beyond the automatic metamagic techniquer gained with each intiation) for 15 Karma. Used together, this creates an interesting situation for adepts - IMO, adepts should always opt for the extra Power Point since they can always purchase metamagic techniques independently of initiation.

Has anyone played this out to see how well it works?

In SR3, didn't you get a Powerpoint AND a metamagical technique?

I don't really know - I only played 3rd for one session, and I wasn't playing an adept.

Yes, but keep in mind that in SR3, you gained a point of Magic when you initiated. In SR4, initiation and increasing your Magic are two separate things.


The optional rule would be great for adepts, since it would let them gain a point's worth of powers when they initiated, and another point's worth of powers when they actually raised their Magic rating to the new "maximum". They would still be stuck at a maximum rating equal to their Magic rating, but the adept could get a greater breadth of powers. I would probably be less enthusiastic about this option (mainly because of potential power creep), but even with Street Magic, adept metamagic options really suck compared to those of mages. One or two potentially decent ones, and the rest are all but useless.

Really? I haven't looked at the rules for initiation since SR3. Sounds like they nerfed it, though.

It does cost a bit more, but it's also more powerful, comparatively speaking, because of the hard caps on nearly everything else.

Yeah your magic used to go up automatically from initiation. Of course you could also lose magic from deadly wounds, using drugs, etc. So really, it kind of balances out. Harder to raise magic, and much more difficult to lose it.