Eyeless Blond
Mar 27 2004, 11:19 PM
This is sort of a continuation of my combat medic character in
How to Rape your Soul. What I was wondering is, if I wanted to set up a medical/cyberware clinic as a starting character, what would be the best way to go about it? I've read through M&M pages 136-151, and through the relevant parts of the Core book about cyberware shops and the like, and I'm still confused about a number of things. What would the great gurus here recommend?
Overall, I'd say I'm willing to pay somewhere around 150k-200k
for the whole thing. What are the essential components to something like this? Do you need to buy a warehouse (permenant Low lifestyle) to put everything in, or does the cost of the clinic itself factor that in? Is it better to get a Rating 5 basic clinic or a Rating 3 alphaware clinic, or a Rating 1 betaware clinic? Do you need to buy a cyberware shop if you have a medical clinic already? Etc etc.
What skills, attributes, etc, other than eht obvious Biotech and Medicine/Chemistry/Biology skills, should be necessary for someone wanting to open up a black market hospitol?
Also, say I want to upgrade the clinic later with the cash I earn. What are the upgrade proceedures?
CardboardArmor
Mar 27 2004, 11:31 PM
Whoa whoa whoa...Okay, let's look at this piece by piece...
QUOTE |
Overall, I'd say I'm willing to pay somewhere around 150k-200k for the whole thing. |
Mind you, the prices quoted are base. That's not counting the bribes you need to pay out to get the medical equipment (I'm assuming your character doesn't have liscensing/permits?), the money you pay out for staff (you can't cut someone open by your lonesome), the money you pay out for supplies and meds (self-explainatory), and the money you pay to the local 'neighborhood interest group' (read: gang) to keep fraggers from breaking into your clinic with all its stuff.
I'd say a clinic was something to scimp and aspire to, otherwise you'd have a pretty shoddy jobby off the bat.
QUOTE |
Do you need to buy a warehouse (permenant Low lifestyle) to put everything in, or does the cost of the clinic itself factor that in? |
Depends on your GM, I would suppose. I'd think real estate was seperate from the other, more technical costs associated with starting up a clinic.
QUOTE |
Is it better to get a Rating 5 basic clinic or a Rating 3 alphaware clinic, or a Rating 1 betaware clinic? |
Ah, here we go. Before I even start...Betaware? That's a little...restricted/prohibited at start and would imply that you provide base Betaware-class or better inferior grade services at your clinic warehouse. A tempting target that clinic would be, then. This is purely speculation, you're on your own as for rating and such; go with what you want.
QUOTE |
Do you need to buy a cyberware shop if you have a medical clinic already? |
I would say so, yes. That's if you build the ware on site or want to have materials/facilities to repair ware on your clients. The medical clinic is just where you do the actual implant/extract.
QUOTE |
What skills, attributes, etc, other than eht obvious Biotech and Medicine/Chemistry/Biology skills, should be necessary for someone wanting to open up a black market hospitol? |
Electronics with a bent towards Cybernetics/Microcircuitry and believe it or not, Etiquette. You'll need a lot of things to get the clinic off the ground and keep it running, being able to deal with people helps facilitate this.
Eyeless Blond
Mar 28 2004, 01:29 AM
But *which* Electronics/Computers? The skills themselves, or the B/R skills? Which ones are the ones used in implanting/repairing 'ware?
mfb
Mar 28 2004, 01:35 AM
implantation falls under the surgery specialization of Biotech. as for repairing, obviously you'd need the B/R skill.
Capt. Dave
Mar 28 2004, 02:33 AM
QUOTE |
the money you pay out for supplies and meds |
These are included in the cost of a clinic. And the bribes and such are what S.I. is for. Still, you're going to have to shell out more than 200k for a decent clinic.
QUOTE |
Is it better to get a Rating 5 basic clinic or a Rating 3 alphaware clinic, or a Rating 1 betaware clinic? |
A clinic acts, besides its numerous other purposes, as a medkit equal to its rating. If you feel confident that 3 complementary dice are all you need to keep your chummers alive, then go alphaware. Beta clinics, as CardboardArmor said, aren't allowed in chargen, just as betaware isn't. Of course it's all up to your GM.
As for the rest, I'm with CardboardArmor
Eyeless Blond
Mar 28 2004, 05:14 AM
QUOTE (mfb) |
implantation falls under the surgery specialization of Biotech. as for repairing, obviously you'd need the B/R skill. |
So what are the cybernetics spec. of Cumpoter and the cybertech skill of Electronics used for then?
QUOTE (Capt. Dave) |
A clinic acts, besides its numerous other purposes, as a medkit equal to its rating. If you feel confident that 3 complementary dice are all you need to keep your chummers alive, then go alphaware. Beta clinics, as CardboardArmor said, aren't allowed in chargen, just as betaware isn't. Of course it's all up to your GM. |
Yeah, I kinda thought the betaware clinic was out.
But most of the "keeping alive" thing will be done by the rating 6 Savior Advanced medkit, which ironically is much better than a clinic in just about every way when doing trauma surgery and "keep alive" stuff.
The problem with a basic clinic is that you really can't treat guys with alphaware, which makes up a majority of the gear your average SR metalhead has. I'm not horribly worried about the rating of the clinic, though; my guy's already rolling more than 10 dice before complementary skills, and I paid for an L2 contact to get a good, loyal nurse to help with things (maybe get that -1 mod for another doctor with Biotech 4+?). So I *think* I'l be all right there, until and unless I start branching into beta/deltaware or cultured bioware. When I get to that point though I'll hope to be able to pay the ~440k
difference in price to upgrade to a rating 5 betaware clinic. Or am I wrong to think this?
Of course the thing to *aspire* to is the Delta-grade Rating 4 hospitol: 320 MILLION nuyen!
Panzergeist
Mar 28 2004, 05:41 AM
I'm glad to know that I'm not the only person looking to play a classical mad scientist. I'm currently working on the third version of an insane tech wiz character who will have chemsirty, biotech, and microtronics shops, and will be proficient in chemistry, demolitions, biotech, electronics, electronics BR, and possibly computer and computer BR. He'll make all sorts of wierd gadgets, like fake credsticks with bombs hidden in them, dartgun pens, and splash grenades. He'll be like Q from James Bond, only insane.
BitBasher
Mar 28 2004, 05:53 AM
QUOTE |
Yeah, I kinda thought the betaware clinic was out. But most of the "keeping alive" thing will be done by the rating 6 Savior Advanced medkit, which ironically is much better than a clinic in just about every way when doing trauma surgery and "keep alive" stuff.
|
Theres one huge reason a medkit is inferior, it cant spend karma to keep you alive if it rolls bad.
Beast of Revolutions
Mar 28 2004, 06:53 AM
I'm pretty sure you can't use a Savior for surgery. It does everything with chemicals and nanites. Basicaly, you just plug it into a person, and it automatically diagnoses them and injects chemicals and nanites into their bloodstream. It contains no tools for doing things on anything other than a microscopic scale, and since it's completely automated, it just rolls it's rating, rather than your biotech plus its rating as complementary dice. And therefore, as Basher noted, you can't use karma or task pool to augment tests with it since you aren't doing jack yourself. However, it makes the Savior great for self-healing, since you won't suffer the target number modifiers from having damage.
Eyeless Blond
Mar 28 2004, 07:42 AM
Well, reading the description (MM p. 95-96) it says the Savior uses all the standard rules for a medkit. If a Savior can't be used as Complimentary dice, then neither can a normal medkit.
You're right about the surgery part; naturally you can't do trauma surgery with a medkit! I more meant "keeping alive" in the sense of stabalizing the guy, or applying first aid. It's a trade-off, I guess: you can have a good trauma ward or a passable cyberware clinic, but not both without spending lots of cash.
blakkie
Mar 28 2004, 10:07 AM
I've alway wanted a Valkyre unit. Jack in a rigger with a skillwires 5+, a chipjack expert driver, and decent skillsofts and you'll handsdown better the surgery skills any sawbones street Doc your fixer can set you up with. A friend currently has my R3 so i can't quote actual price/avail, but unfortunately they are fairly seriously cash. That is why "[Successfully] hijack a Doc Wagon" continues to persist on my to-do list."
Siege
Mar 28 2004, 10:50 PM
All the nuts-and-bolts of playing a street doc haven't been mapped out as it hasn't, until now, been a major consideration.
If you look at the Street Doc and Paramedic templates under "Contacts" in the SRC, you'll need:
ActiveBiotech
Electronics
Computers
Computer B/R
Electronic B/R
Etiquette* and/or Negotiations
*Maybe the "Connected" perk for goodies
KnowledgeBiology
Chemistry
Medicine
Cybertechnology
Bioware (if you plan to offer that kind of service)
Since these are a lot of skills for any one person to have, a lot of legitimate hospitals will have teams of staff with specialists. Since you're working out of a back alley, patients can't be that picky.
Of course, with skillwires, it's all good.
Most importantly, you need to sit down with your GM and establish what rolls are needed for what actions beforehand.
Installing cyberware? Biotech only?
Repairing cyberware? Biotech + Computer B/R or Electornic B/R?
Plastic surgery? Biotech + Disguise?
What kinds of equipment do you need? Can I install wired reflexes in the back of a van?
And so on. As it has been noted before, the exact use of Electronics (Cyberware) versus Biotech (Cyberware) tends to be a little vague. Seek your GM's input before you design your concept.
[ Spoiler ]
I'd say: Electronics (Cybertechnolog) is a specialization used to diagnose problems with cyberware, as well as a comp bonus to implanting cyberware. Electronics B/R is used to actually fix problems found.
-Siege
Beast of Revolutions
Mar 28 2004, 11:06 PM
Hey, has anyone tried making an Inspector Gadget character?
Eyeless Blond
Mar 29 2004, 12:30 AM
QUOTE (Siege) |
All the nuts-and-bolts of playing a street doc haven't been mapped out as it hasn't, until now, been a major consideration. |
Heh. Glad to know that I'm being original.
But seriously, haven't any of you thought of how useful it would be to have your own cyberware/bioware hospitol, rather than having to outsource for it? I'd never like the idea of someone untrustworthy mucking around in my head while I'm unconscious. Even without all that, I'm surprised that noone has ever tried to make a big medic character, especially in campaigns that don't allow magic in them.
QUOTE |
Since these are a lot of skills for any one person to have, a lot of legitimate hospitals will have teams of staff with specialists. Since you're working out of a back alley, patients can't be that picky.
Of course, with skillwires, it's all good. |
Yeah, but good God they're expensive! Especially when the only real problem here is that the difference between the Computer/Electronics skills and their B/R skills are so poorly and arbitrarily defined that they could (and probably should) very easily be combined into two active skills and existing knowledge skills instead. It seems like such a waste of time inplanting skillwires just to *diagnose* cybertech problems, something that makes more sense as a knowledge skill anyway.
QUOTE (Beast of Revolutions) |
Hey, has anyone tried making an Inspector Gadget character? |
Hm. Telescoping arms/legs, a cyberskull with a multitool and cybereyes. Make sure to include several Flaws like Oblivious and True Believer(the Law)... this might be a good idea for a seperate thread, nwo that I think about it.
Centurion
Mar 29 2004, 01:19 AM
Don't forget the Otaku niece dependent and awakened pet dog.
blakkie
Mar 29 2004, 01:28 AM
EDIT: Formated the table. Damn TABs.
Bah, Skillwires aren't that bad. Here is a copy-paste of a PC i have spreadsheeted. If i ever figured out how to get a Valkyre, this is the doc i'd want working on me.
Note that you can save 50K
on the skillwires if you go with a set that can do 4 skill/5 specialty due to the memory size savings. Better yet, for only an extra 37,500:nuyen: and +.2 essense (you'd have to squeeze out that .2 elsewhere in this example) you can have those skillwires at 5/specialize 6. Specialized skill(6) activesofts are actually 3Mp smaller, and therefore 300:nuyen: cheaper than general skill(5) chips. Specialized is fine.
CODE |
Cyber Skillwires (5)......187,500...1.00 Chipjack (4 Slot).A...8,000...0.28 Datajack..........A...2,000...0.16 VCR (2)...........A.120,000...2.40 Math CPU (3)......A..22,000...0.16 Chipjack Expert Driver (5), 3 .....................75,000...0.30 Smartlink 2.......A...7,000...0.40 Chemical Analyser.A...5,000...0.16 Transducer........A...4,000...0.08 Router............A...2,000...0.06 ........total.......432,500...5.00 ....................remaining.1.00
Bioware Suprathyroid..........50,000...1.4 Synaptic Enhancer (1).75,000...1.0 Cerebral Booster (1)..50,000...0.4 Mnemonic Enhancer (3).45,000...0.6 .............total...220,000...3.4 .....................remaining.0.6
|
Costs for the chips are:
General(4) - 4800
Specialized(5) - 5000
General(5) - 7500
Specialized(6) - 7200
So on top of the 650,000:nuyen: for the Bio/Cyber an extra 100,000:nuyen: for chips 14 or so chips, and then some incidental equipment (likely about 1/4 million for all the portable shops needed), and your 'runner can return after a hard day in the sprawl of gunning people down into a MASH to piece his buddies AND his car/truck back together. The go home and from scratch build and programs a computer, before a latenight session of cooking up a few batches of explosives/corrosives/toxins for use the next day.
All this without spending a single build/karma point on skills. Further he got to use all his Combat Pool for defense because he was using his Task Pool for shooting.
blakkie
Mar 29 2004, 01:40 AM
BTW, assuming your are using a FirstAid Kit (12) and a Biotech, First Aid(6) specialized chip slotted into one of the 3 Expert Drivers, you are rolling 24 dice
to patch your buddy back together. Karma Pool? We don't need no stinking Karma Pool.
Beast of Revolutions
Mar 29 2004, 01:46 AM
First aid kits can only get up to rating 6. And they are rolled as complementary dice if yo use your own biotech skill. But yes, with a rating 6 biotech soft, chipjack expert driver, and a savior nanomedkit, you can do very well. Does anyone else think it's astronomically unfair that chipjack expert drivers provide a bonus that can't be duplicated by skills that a character actually knows?
blakkie
Mar 29 2004, 02:58 AM
QUOTE (Beast of Revolutions @ Mar 29 2004, 01:46 AM) |
First aid kits can only get up to rating 6. And they are rolled as complementary dice if yo use your own biotech skill. But yes, with a rating 6 biotech soft, chipjack expert driver, and a savior nanomedkit, you can do very well. Does anyone else think it's astronomically unfair that chipjack expert drivers provide a bonus that can't be duplicated by skills that a character actually knows? |
Sorry, i just saw someone mention a grade 12 Medkit earlier in the thread. *shrug* As for fair, well i don't know fair. I just know
powergaming poweroleplaying.
However expert driver do have drawbacks. You have to keep the chips jacked in the Expert Driver enabled jacks, so you lose some flexibility there. Also it is a Pool, so multiple pass during a turn eats through them fairly quickly for those tripped out 31+ Init cyber monkeys. Also riggers pretty much have to learn their Vehicle skills the old fashion way, because skillwires can't use the Control Pool. Which brings us to the meat of it, the Task Pool is often an -alternate- pool instead of a new one where there wasn't one before. Even moreso if you happen to use the optional rules for Athletics Pool and Social Pool.
EDIT: BTW you can say the same thing about VCRs. No VCR? No Control Pool!
Capt. Dave
Mar 29 2004, 03:31 AM
QUOTE (Beast of Revolutions) |
First aid kits can only get up to rating 6. |
They are available at a higher rating. I assume you are referring to M&M pg. 136 saying PCs can't have medical gear above rating 6. They can be gotten, it's just going to take some serious effort.
Siege
Mar 29 2004, 03:38 AM
QUOTE |
Skillwires, CEDs and skillchips. |
Hell yes they're nasty. And there's no real reason not to take and use them to death if you have the tech.
QUOTE |
Benefits of having your own Medic |
My character usually has Biotech just because it's too useful not to have. Couple that with the requisite tech skills and you have a pretty useful character on the fly -- but it takes a certain mindset to play a non-com in a combat-friendly world.
QUOTE |
Poorly defined skills |
Well, yes. But that's what makes it Shadowrun! Seriously though, there isn't a hard and fast canon ruling.
I'd still recommend talking to your GM and seeing what (s)he wants to do.
And "knowledge" skills are kinda mis-labeled considering all the things you can do with Chemistry which is a Knowledge skill.
And there have been entire threads devoted to the topic.
And my crew (along with several others) have just combined Electronics/Electronics B/R and Computer B/R since they're all more-or-less the same skill.
-Siege
BitBasher
Mar 29 2004, 03:42 AM
QUOTE |
They are available at a higher rating. I assume you are referring to M&M pg. 136 saying PCs can't have medical gear above rating 6. They can be gotten, it's just going to take some serious effort. |
I assume they are reffering to the fact that by the rules you cannot choose the rating of a medkit on a sliding scale. There are only 2 ratings of medkits sold IIRC, a basic medkit at rating 3 and an advanced medkit at rating, I think 6. That's it.
cykotek
Mar 29 2004, 03:43 AM
I'll make the comment that, if you follow the current errata, I believe expert drivers are limited to rating 3. (If I'm wrong, it's b/c I can't access the errata pages to double check right now). So, yes, they can provide a bonus that can't normally be duplicated. And give enough dice for one shot, one hack, one vehicle test a turn, if you want to put more than one die into a test from pool. And even for technical skills and such, a "normal user" can get an equal pool, with additional benefits, from cyber and bioware (encephalon and cerebral boosters). It's expensive, but as I said, you get more than just a pool out of it.
QUOTE |
My character usually has Biotech just because it's too useful not to have. |
What's really funny is when the only character in the entire group that has biotech is the sniper, habitually stationed over 1/2 a klick from the operation.
Capt. Dave
Mar 29 2004, 03:50 AM
QUOTE (BitBasher) |
I assume they are reffering to the fact that by the rules you cannot choose the rating of a medkit on a sliding scale. There are only 2 ratings of medkits sold IIRC, a basic medkit at rating 3 and an advanced medkit at rating, I think 6. That's it. |
M&M's medical gear section on pg. 138 gives the cost for medkits, clinics, and hospitals of varying ratings. You can make a rating 12 medkit, It's just not freely available to PCs. You'll have to design some way of getting one.
Eyeless Blond
Mar 29 2004, 05:16 AM
QUOTE (blakkie) |
CODE | Cyber Skillwires (5)......187,500...1.00 Chipjack (4 Slot).A...8,000...0.28 Datajack..........A...2,000...0.16 VCR (2)...........A.120,000...2.40 Math CPU (3)......A..22,000...0.16 Chipjack Expert Driver (5), 3 .....................75,000...0.30 Smartlink 2.......A...7,000...0.40 Chemical Analyser.A...5,000...0.16 Transducer........A...4,000...0.08 Router............A...2,000...0.06 ........total.......432,500...5.00 ....................remaining.1.00
Bioware Suprathyroid..........50,000...1.4 Synaptic Enhancer (1).75,000...1.0 Cerebral Booster (1)..50,000...0.4 Mnemonic Enhancer (3).45,000...0.6 .............total...220,000...3.4 .....................remaining.0.6
|
|
What's the Math SPU for? You don't really need hacking pool, and the SPU doesn't do anything else, does it?
Get some reflex recorders or a trauma dampener for that guy.
Might as well bring the bioware rate up to 4.00, or at least 3.90
Btw, you got the skillwires off the NSRG. That particular brand is 75MP, which means it can use exactly one general skill chip at a time. If you're using a bunch of specializations I'd suggest going for a 50, 100, or 150MP variety (125,000, 250,000, or 375,000
). Of course, you can't have all four cybernetics specializations loaded without 200MP skillwires, which comes out to exactly half a million
. Just for the wires.
That's why I was going on about skillwires not being worth it.
By the by, about the router and interconnectivity issues: do chipjacks have three free router ports like datajacks do, since they're "specialized type of [datajacks]" (p. 298 SR3) themselves? And, if so, do multislot chipjacks get three free router ports per jack, as, "Each chip slot acts as a seperate chipjack." (p. 21 M&M)?
blakkie
Mar 29 2004, 05:38 AM
Er, that character was initially intended to be a backup decker as well. He's not exactly what the thread is about, i was just pulling out a worksheet example i had handy. This is just off the top of my head, but i believe you also can use the SPU to do math calculations for skills that require stuff like that, such aiming parabolic tragetory weapons.
QUOTE |
Btw, you got the skillwires off the NSRG. That particular brand is 75MP, which means it can use exactly one general skill chip at a time. If you're using a bunch of specializations I'd suggest going for a 50, 100, or 150MP variety (125,000, 250,000, or 375,000 ). Of course, you can't have all four cybernetics specializations loaded without 200MP skillwires, which comes out to exactly half a million . Just for the wires. |
Er, that is not my understanding at all. The chips in those jacks count as inhead memory. So you can upload a standard skill into the wires (maybe, not super clear on that), then use another standard chip from the bank of 4 plus 3 skills each with their own Task Pool. In fact you HAVE to leave the chips in the Expert slots to get the Task Pools. Uploading them into headware negates the Task Pool for that given skill. I had intended for him to use that 4th non-Expert chipjack for R/W data chip for storing off or loading data collected. But at this point he doesn't have the ears or the voice simulater to use stuff like that.
The router i have in there because....well i haven't counted up the equipment, but at one point it was needed because of a number of seperate items i needed to talk to each other. It might not be required anymore.
Eyeless Blond
Mar 29 2004, 05:58 AM
QUOTE (blakkie) |
Er, that is not my understanding at all. The chips in those jacks count as inhead memory. So you can upload a standard skill into the wires (maybe, not super clear on that), then use another standard chip from the bank of 4 plus 3 skills each with their own Task Pool. |
Ah, I see the confusion. Check the description of skillwires again (p. 301 SR3, bottom of first column->second column). The "total MP" value of the skillwires isn't internal 'wire memory. If it worked that way you could get Rating 10, 0MP skillwires for free (well, other than the 2.0 Essance cost) and just buy 7-15 chipjack slots or something. The total MP is the total size of all the Activesofts you can use at one time, which is something entirely different.
blakkie
Mar 29 2004, 06:15 AM
0Mp? Now you are just being silly.
When was the last time you used Biotech and Assault Rifles at the -same- time? Never. Now if you were using an activesoft for a complementary skill along with an activesoft for the primary skill, then yes you'd have allocate room in the skillwires for both. But complementary skills are almost always knowledge skills, so that is handled by a knowsoft link (which a chipjack can function as).
P.S. Oh, that jogs my memory. I use to have an extra 100Mp of memory in this guy's head for storage of that 5th skillsoft, and for the Chemical Analyzer proggie. But i got rid of it because it was horribly essense hungry. At a cost an essense of Mp/300 for head memory it is much more essense efficent to use chipjacks and/or knowsoft links.
Austere Emancipator
Mar 29 2004, 06:18 AM
For whoever wanted a Valkyrie (shameless plug):
Ares M1455 AMTVBody: 7
Armor: 12 Vehicle
Cargo: 3
Handling: 4/4
AutoNav: 2
Sensor: 2
Seating: 2
Entry: 3d+1h+1x
Load: 5,117
Speed: 70
Accel.: 9
Sig.: 5
Fuel: M1455: 300l diesel
Econ.: M1455: 4km/l
Chassis: APC, Tracked
S.I.: 4.5
Avail.: 39/39d
Cost: 786,350
Ares M1452 Universal Carrier
This is the direct descendant of the United Defense M1108 Universal Carrier, which was not much more than a modified M113A3. The main advances are in the operational range of the vehicle and in the much smaller sensor signature in addition to the general development of electronic devices.
M1455 AMTV
A cross between SOTA ambulance and an APC, the M1455 allows treatment of casualties in the combat zone under the protection of armor. Within the large medical clinic that has basically been slapped on top of the M1452, up to 4 medics or doctors can work freely on a patient while another patient can be worked on in the Valkyrie module by a rigging doctor.
To make room for the medical gear and working space, the M1455 has been stripped of some sensors, one of the two fuel tanks and the power amplifiers of the M1452. It has extra armor to protect it in the combat zone, because it has to move carefully not to cause extra harm to the patients. Still, the operational weight of the M1455 is so much smaller than that of the M1452 that it's fuel economy has significantly improved, countering the effect of the smaller fuel load to a degree.
Other features: CMC (3), Electronic ports, Enviroseal (Gas), External cargo mounts (96CF), Life support (10 man-hours), Medical clinic (3, 1 patient + 4 crew), RAM (1, factored in), Rigger adaptation, Ring mount (Weapon not included), Smart materials (Factored in), Spotlight, Thermal baffles (1, factored in), Valkyrie module, Winch (10,000kg).
blakkie
Mar 29 2004, 06:25 AM
Lets see, 786,350 * 4.5 is...carry the zero.....er ya. The good news is that by the time i managed to roll a 39 to find one for sale my character will either have amassed the money, or be dead from old age.
Like i said, jacking one is right up there one my to get list. Thankyou for posting the background facts as to exactly why.
Eyeless Blond
Mar 29 2004, 07:34 AM
QUOTE (blakkie) |
When was the last time you used Biotech and Assault Rifles at the -same- time? Never. Now if you were using an activesoft for a complementary skill along with an activesoft for the primary skill, then yes you'd have allocate room in the skillwires for both. But complementary skills are almost always knowledge skills, so that is handled by a knowsoft link (which a chipjack can function as). |
Yeah, well, that's the problem, isn't it? Besides Biotech, there are up to four other skills that may or may not be necessary for cyberware implantation/repair: the Electronics and Computer skills and their B/R skills. How fast can you switch between them?
QUOTE |
P.S. Oh, that jogs my memory. I use to have an extra 100Mp of memory in this guy's head for storage of that 5th skillsoft, and for the Chemical Analyzer proggie. But i got rid of it because it was horribly essense hungry. At a cost an essense of Mp/300 for head memory it is much more essense efficent to use chipjacks and/or knowsoft links. |
Yeah, seriously. Or hook into a skillsoft jukebox (5 'soft ports & 200MP memory = 20,000Y) in your backpack.
I really don't understand why headware memory is so Essance-hungry. It's rather annoying and counter-intuitive; it's not like it's replacing any more of your brain or anything. If it were me I'd just make it a flat Essance cost for the power supply--say .1--and add .1 Essance for every 1000Mp over a certain limit, like 500 or so (Total Cost=(Mp-500)/10000 + .1; round up to nearest .01, minimum .1). But I guess that's just me.
blakkie
Mar 29 2004, 08:10 AM
QUOTE (Eyeless Blond) |
QUOTE (blakkie) | When was the last time you used Biotech and Assault Rifles at the -same- time? Never. Now if you were using an activesoft for a complementary skill along with an activesoft for the primary skill, then yes you'd have allocate room in the skillwires for both. But complementary skills are almost always knowledge skills, so that is handled by a knowsoft link (which a chipjack can function as). |
Yeah, well, that's the problem, isn't it? Besides Biotech, there are up to four other skills that may or may not be necessary for cyberware implantation/repair: the Electronics and Computer skills and their B/R skills. How fast can you switch between them?
|
Certainly switch as fast as i can change what tool i have in my hands. Sounds reasonable, no? Cyberware repair is definately seperate from implantation.
Further Complementary Skill are fully optional. So i'm limited to only 10 or 12 dice if i don't happen to have an appropriate complementary knowsoft chip. I think i can live with that, and if i can't then maybe i should just get on the phone to my fixer to find one. Or better yet for things like Human Anatomy, knowsofts are almost certainly legal goods. So i'll just jump on a tortorse and a Matrix mailorder house same-day ship one to me. What an excellent complementary skill that would make for Biotech, FirstAid or Biotech, Surgery. So now i'm back up to a total of 24 dice for that FirstAid check...until i can get my hands on some better-than-publicly-available Medkits.
Arz
Mar 29 2004, 08:32 PM
I think you are putting the bar too high on your character. You can get it all from the start. Your choices come down to two, the pro with no money, or the lovable hack. "Hi everybody it's Dr Nick!"...
The reason most people don't play a cyberdoc is simple. What are you gonna tell the player when you botch a roll and he dies, or worse loses a point of essence. Some times it's best to take out random chance and let the GM handle it.
Siege
Mar 29 2004, 11:11 PM
Well, it's the same chance he takes with an anonymous street doc.
Sometimes, that's the way the dice fall -- especially if your GM modifies the numbers for the type of street doc.
Of course, if the player finds out he died because you were installing a remote-controlled dedicated chipjack...
-Siege
blakkie
Mar 29 2004, 11:35 PM
QUOTE (Siege) |
Well, it's the same chance he takes with an anonymous street doc.
Sometimes, that's the way the dice fall -- especially if your GM modifies the numbers for the type of street doc.
Of course, if the player finds out he died because you were installing a remote-controlled dedicated chipjack...
-Siege |
LOL.
I will vouche for the fact that not all street docs are equal. We have prefered street docs, secondary street docs, and then drunken vets. You can tell by the sound of the die rolling behind the screen which one you have. Unfortunately at that point all you can do is put your face in your hands and pray nothing worse happens than your character dieing.
Eyeless Blond
Mar 30 2004, 02:29 AM
QUOTE (Siege) |
Well, it's the same chance he takes with an anonymous street doc.
Sometimes, that's the way the dice fall -- especially if your GM modifies the numbers for the type of street doc. |
You see why I think it would be a good idea then? Besides, I'm sure I can build a better, more reliable medic by putting one together as a character than relying on a contact or a random DocWagon employee, particularly if you use the rules in MM about rolling up doctors and hospitols..
QUOTE |
Of course, if the player finds out he died because you were installing a remote-controlled dedicated chipjack... |
Heeeey, this gives me an... interesting idea. Would it be possible to, say, install a dedicated chipjack, RAS override-disabled simrig, and a data filter, program the the chipjack to make people do things using the simrig, and wake up the next morning not knowing what happenned? Or would something besides a simrig be needed for this?
Or.. ooh, how about if I somehow installed a comm unit and some kind of rigger emulation in the simrig, and got a drone rigger to drive a whole mess of modified people around? My own private brain puppet army!
Siege
Mar 30 2004, 04:31 AM
Ideas have been bounced around like that quite a bit.
P-fix and BTL chips have been advanced as interesting means of developing subconscious commands and impulses, of programming assassins and so on.
One idea involved using a combination of personalized BTL and p-fix chips to create your very own (bodyguard, secretary, date, etc.).
Use a dedicated chipjack to provide alternate memories that override previous information and poof -- new person.
While it all looks good on paper, there is some question as to how well it would function in execution -- certainly nothing in the rules cover the idea.
-Siege
Eyeless Blond
Mar 30 2004, 06:06 AM
Ah, but I'm not talking about rewriting someone's memories. I'm talking about turning off a person's conscious mind and driving them like a drone; sort of like technological possession. And I'd perfer to not have it take up too much Essence, so it's less easy to detect. Got any ideas?
BitBasher
Mar 30 2004, 06:12 AM
You want a personafix chip in a dedicated chipjack and a datafilter.
CardboardArmor
Mar 30 2004, 06:17 AM
EB: I'd go with trying to hoc something using a skillwire system so you can interject movements when needed. RAS or not depending on whether you want them to still be able to move on their own while you're piggy-backing on them.