Munchkin Ramblings:

By P161, SR3, an active focus is dual natured. Does that mean that a sustaining focus or similar which is also a suit of armor would provide armor against attacks made against a dual natured (surged, astrally percieving, or shapeshifter) character from the astral? Would it still work if you astrally projected?

I would think no. as long as the astrally percieveing charechter can get LOS on your REAL astral form, he should be able to traget it with spells... the Active Focus as dual natured is just to make it such that the focus can directly be attacked.

besides do you really want people destroying your Focus armor? it would be kinda expensive to keep repairing/remaking it...

-Mike R.

Yes, destroying/damaging focus armor is a risk here if the GM applies armor damaging rules and similar, but I think it would still work. It could be made far cheaper by making the armor a force 1 expendable spell focus which only costs an extra 1.5k and you don't need to bond it. Something could attack your armor, but hey: at-least they're not attacking you.

As normal melee rules are applied to astral combat, it really depends on what shape the dual-natured focus takes. As far as I know a dual-natured item has the same form on the astral as it does on the physical plane. The desciption of a dual-natured object is something that exists on both planes, and with all other examples of dual-natured things they take exactly the same shape on the astral as they do on the physical (shapeshifters, weapon foci, astrally percieving characters).

Player: Ok so, since my armor is also a focus, it is therefore astrally active and will protect me against astral damage.
GM: Sure it will.
Player: And since my other sustaining focus is a sword, I can use it as a weapon focus to attack astral opponents!
GM: Uh uh, sure it will.
Player: My other focus is an Ares Predator so...
GM: Soak a 20D please
Player: Why?!? What happened.
GM: I just dropped a piano on your munchkin head.

Sunday

Just because a piece of Armour is Dual Natured, does that mean it would provide armour in the Astral Plane? Might just look like heavy clothing that provides no bonus at all in regards to Armour (after all, Ballistic and Impact aren't the kind of damage Astral Combat does).

Sphynx

Well, for one P174 states that the nature of astral space precludes ranged weapons except for spells. If it didn't say that then I think I would allow a sustaining focus bullet to damage an astral being. (15k and 1 karma is an awful lot for a single bullet)

As for sphynx's objection to the damage type: Astral combat uses the melee combat rules. As the melee combat rules state that the damage is reduced by the character's impact armor rating, that would probably apply to astral combat.

Since I wouldn't want this type of munchkin thing in my game, I wouldn't make it effective. I might say that the nature of astral space allows an attacker to reach right through the aura of the focus to attack the munchkin, just like there is no movement penalty to such an attacker. Or I might say that the munchkin finds himself unable to move enough to counter attacks while encased in an active focus, and feels like the aura of the focus is squeezing the essence out of him as the aura tries to be whole and complete without the pollution of the munchkin within itself.

But I'd tell the munchkin, "Nice try, son, I like your thinking. Your character can attempt to perfect the technique. It'll probably take months or years of research, but you might get it working." Then, when the technique is published in SOTA:2068 or whatever I'll tell him he's perfected it.

Oh yes, I agree that it's munchkin (in the using non-canon rules to make character stronger sense) but it's an interesting idea. I'm tempted to create new focus type for the next game I run that just makes the focus a useful astral object.

On another note: If I made my Pocket Secretary a focus, could I take calls whilst astrally projecting?

So you've weaved orrichulum into your piece of armor and now it's some form a focus. I'd allow it. I wouldn't count it as armor for astral though, I'd rule it as partial cover (+2 against incoming attacks). Anything that missed you would hit the focus. Why would I allow this? Because it's clever and not too unbalancing. They need a custom focus to do this, which btw considering the processed nature of body armor, is a bitch and a half to make. Also, their focus is large enough that it can get damaged in the real world, which means that one nasty gun shot woud, and all that money you sank into getting that fancy focus armored vest is useless.

Same goes for a staff or sword which is also a focus, you can bat a spirit with it as much as you want, in my game that might garner you a +1 or +2 to the power of your melee attack and allow you a Reach bonus. Big deal, it still isn't even remotely as good as a weapon focus, but it's cheap and can do in a pinch.


Sides, this isn't as bad as a friend of mine who wanted an ally spirit that would manifest around the mage as a suit of "power armor" and protect him with immunity normal weapons.

I would say a focus in the form of armor does nothing because of the amount of orrichulum involved in it. In my game, weapon foci are so expensive and hard enough in astral space to cause damage because of the amount of orrichulum involved in the creation. Most other foci only have enough orrichulum to hold a spell or magical power. But, that's just the science I use.