The title says it all.

I haven't yet ordered MAN & MACHINE, or any of the other Sourcebooks which you folks have so kindly recommended, but I'd like to know:

I've seen various NON-canonical ways of reducing magic loss in Adepts, Shamans, and Mages ("Clonal Bioware", for example: I think that's a holdover from SR2-- genetically engineered tissue taken from a magically active character, altered using a combination of medical science and magic, and then reimplanted, resulting in little or no magic loss), but is there a canonical way of doing so?

Specially-tailored nanites, perhaps?

Just curious.

Thanks again for the help.

--Foreigner

No, there isn't.

Cultured Bioware reduces the the Bio Index impact of a piece of Bioware to three quarters, while increasing the Availability by 2 and multiplying the cost by 4. That's about as good as you can get, and most neural Bioware (Trauma Damper, Mneumonic Enhancers, etc.) are already cultured. Beta/Delta Cyberware reduces Essence loss for the cyber part. Note that you can pack 2 whole points of Bio Index per point of Magic Loss under the Man and Machine rules errata. The formula is:

Magic Loss = Essence Loss from cyberware + Bio Index divided by 2

Also note that drastic surgery that does Deadly damage can cause even more Magic loss.

Oh, well, it was a good thought while it lasted.....

Thanks.

--Foreigner

<deleted double post>

Honestly, you can cram a lot of Bioware into 2 points of Body Index. That's a Trauma Damper, Cultured Enhanced Articulation, Pain Editor, and Cultured Tailored Pheremones, with a little bit left over. Or a Synaptic Accelerator Level 2, Trauma Damper, and Enhanced Articulation.

The only way to further reduce bio index gain that I can think of is the Bio Index Reduction, positive option, in the surgery rules section of M&M.
It does require 4 successes to get it, without other positive options, (+1 threshold) but it reduces the bio index of the implant by 5%.

There is a similar one for cyberware, Essence Reduction, which does the same thing (5% reduction of essence cost), but is even harder.

I thought that, "no Cultured at chargen" was a commonly used houserule?

it's a suggestion in the FAQ.

No Cultured at Chargen is a Canon recommendation much like it is recommended that GMs carefully consider allowing Aptitude. Errata

Allowing Cultured at Chargen subject to availability is a common houserule.

Yeah. I forgot about that, it's a rule we abide by in my game, so it's one I just take for granted. The reason they suggest you disallow cultured bioware at chargen is because it requires a beta clinic to implant it--and starting runners don't have access to betaware.

EDIT: Found this in the FAQ--"If you want an official call, then the answer is that all basic bioware with an Availability of 8 or less is available at character creation. Cultured bioware and nanoware are not, since they require the equivalent of a beta-clinic to implant."

It's still a suggestion, mind you, but it's worth considering

Sandoval Smith:

I know this is off-topic, but I HAVE to say it.

I *LOVE* your .sig.

--Foreigner

I thought DocWagon had beta clinics. So where is the erratta not allowing characters to start with a DocWagon contract?

If they don't want to allow cultured bioware, especially the cultured bioware that is only available as cultured, at chargen, then just raise the fraggin availability so that cultured winds up being 9.

The FAQ (not even erratta) suggestion (not even call) to disallow cultured bioware based on needing a beta clinic (but allowing that access via DocWagon) is a pansy @$$ a call. If some rule lawyer tried pulling the similar crap, who would listen to them? I would not listen to them.

I allow Cultured Bioware at chargen because I have yet to have anyone really go all out munchkin with it, or use it in a way that makes a game unduly difficult.

As for the DocWagon angle, they have beta clinics, but the primary relation between them and most people is as an emergency health care service provider, not a bioware implantation service.

Foreigner: thank you. It's a line I took from the review for "The Mangler" over atCold Fusion Movie Reviews