I've looked, and not found an answer. Someone here will point out the obvious references I missed, I'm sure.

1) I'm building a troll PC (in SR4 but the issue applies in general I think) who is kind of 'Viking' minded in an abstract, not too historically accurate way. I would like him to use a weapon like an axe or a hammer one-handed. I can't find such a weapon. There is a mace, and a combat axe which is described as two-handed. I suppose one could just call a hammer a mace, but that requires a GM's fiat. Also, it may be possible for a troll to operate a combat axe one handed, but GM fiat again.

Does some source have this described?

2) Is it described anywhere that a troll can use a ballistic shield one-handedly?

3) Axes can be thrown. It's a whole sport nowadays. If a one-handed axe exists in the game, what would the combat stats be for throwing it? How about a hammer? (Yeah, yeah. Thor references abound. Sure, tie a hammer to a boomerang. )

EDIT: As soon as I said out loud I can't find something, the section in Arsenal about two-handed weapons used by trolls appeared in front of me. *sigh*

I don't recall this in the rules anywhere, but I'd just wing it and say yes. Trolls are big and strong, so those seem reasonable to me. Unless you've designed a troll with STR 3 for some reason...

Yeah. This guy will have BOD 9 and STR 9, so I figure he will be able to swing it. So to speak.

++++++++++

As an aside, often the thought has been that you don't try to shoot the 'tank' dead, you just addle his brains with a Stunbolt. 'Cause what troll 'tank' has a high enough WIL to resist one of those?

This guy will have a WIL of 7 (yup, that's why his BOD and STR are not maxed) and the Adept Power 'Spell Resistance (6)'. And a strong desire to stay awake long enough to cleave that wiz in half.

I've considered calling him "Granite" or "Target", but as the Viking theme started sinking in, I shifted to "Rag'N'Rock".

Well, you could just call him "Sponge," as he's going to be the bullet and spell sponge.

Well, it doesn't necessarily apply to other editions "in general":

1. Shadowrun SR1 to SR3 had the Centurion Laser Crescent Axe that was a one-handed (reach 1) weapon and its artwork is perfectly in line with real world one-hand axes from the Viking era. The "Laser" part could safely be ignored by simply treating the axe not having the laser thereby dropping the damage vom [STR] S down to [STR] M (the same explicitly happened when the actual laser axe's laser got miss-aligned) ... which is the same damage as an equally one-handed Tomahawk axe of american indian variety. Now while SR4 seemingly lacks the Crescent Axe (at least in Arsenal) but still has the Tomahawk there's litte GM's fiat to simply use the Tomahawk stats while describing it as looking like a one-handed Viking axe
2. As far as a Troll wielding a normally two-handed reach 2 (Wallacher) Combat Axe with just one hand? Take a look at page 161 of Arsenal:
   
   QUOTE ("p.161 @ Arsenal,Using Two-Handed Melee Weapons; last paragraph")
   Trolls can wield such two-handed weapons in a single hand
   more easily, suffering only a –1 dice pool modifier and a –1 to DV.

What exactly makes you think that a ballistic shield requires two-handed usage in SR4? In case I missed a rule there simply apply the same rule as with single-handedly wielding a two-handed weapon as per the previous point.



Well, considering that the two-handed combat axe drops from STR/2 + 4 in melee to STR/2 + 3 when used as improvised throwing weapon (Arsenal, p. 20) it's not much of a stretch to reduce the Tomahawk's STR/2 + 2 in melee down to STR/2 + 1 when thrown (and this also happens to be the official damage code for a Boomerang, nice "coincidence").



And it also includes pretty much everything else you need

Very helpful, thanks. And I appreciate the sting of sarcasm as a way to remind me to RTFM a little more carefully.

Just to make me feel better, the text in the description of the Tomahawk in Arsenal (p. 16) discusses throwing the weapon and allows for the same damage as in melee!

I was really disappointed to find out that the improvised throwing weapons table in [i]Arsenal[/] does not include hammers, even though the improvised melee weapons table does

I feel your pain, Sengir.

Actually, though, I've moved away from the Viking theme for this fellow. I now see him as a former hockey player, a goalie (hence the proposed street name, "Goalie"), who got into one too many fights and was dropped from the team ( the Barrie Bruisers of the Ontario Jr. A Troll League). Drifting, at loose ends, he is approached by Bear, who sees the defender mentality and the undeveloped Adept magic in Goalie coming together.

I'm having the magic enhancing his ability to resist attacks on Wilpower, as that is often the target for 'tank' characters.

Now I have to figure out how to make a goalie stick into a battle axe. Titanium blade, maybe? Almost sounds like a B horror movie, doesn't it?

A bladed hockey stick can reasonably well be compared to certain polearms rather than a battle axe



"Almost"? The "Jason V." vibes are way too strong

*chuckle*

Yeah. That.

Seeing as he was a hockey player, I have to give him the ability to skate. I don't think a Knowledge Skill will do it, so I created an Active Skill Skating, associated with STR as are some other Athletics Group skills. I've given him a specialization in Ice Skating, but I assume roller blades fit in under the general Skill.

Which rings a bell from way back. Weren't there some cyberware skates in an earlier edition one could add to the legs to allow faster movement? And would roller blades be usable in that regard on the wonderfully smooth streets of Settle/City X?

Imagine the sight of a BOD 9 troll in armour and the ballistic mask from War! skating towards you with a combat axe (painted to look like a hockey stick) raised and ready to strike.

Definitely pink mohawk.

They do still exist in SR4 as Cyberlimb Accessory in Augmentation. The associated rules for Walking and Running Speeds can be utilized for normal Inline Skates (if I haven't missed non-cyber skates somewhere).



Well, that'll depend on the part of the City or which building you're in ... and to a certain extend highlights the actual advantage of Cyber Skates as limb accessories: The are retractable => Consider obvious cyber feet or obvious/synthetic lower legs (to have enough capacity) with cyber skates.

Your revised character inspired total recall of Sub-Zero from the classic 'The Running Man'.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093894/charac...ef_=tt_mv_close