I created my first Otaku character using the an alternate set of rules found here, http://lists.dumpshock.com/pipermail/shado...605/033017.html, and I managed to make a fairly effective and useful otaku. However, having recently acquired a copy of Matrix and looking over the rules I'm rather confused. Maybe I'm misunderstanding something about the Otaku rules, but it seems like either a character would be forced to put all their points into chanells to be even mildly effective, leaving practically nothing for non matrix skills. Also looking for the advancement rules it seems like a huge penatly that otaku are forced to pay for submersion to increase their Living Persona attributes. Could something please explain what I'm misunderstanding, or perhaps even make an effective otaku using the rules in Matrix to show me how it is done?

Part of what makes an Otaku an Otaku is that they have very few non-computer related skills. If you want to make an otaku "versatile" then your going to have to skimp on some of the channels. Just like making a decker more versatile means spending some of your A or B resources on stuff other than decks.

You COULD make a decker with a good assault rifles skill, wired 2, a cyberarm with gyromount and 2 points of dermal plating, but that's money you didn't spend on great programs or a something else fun.

In the end Otaku are just the "Adept" decker. Just like what a Phys-Ad does with his magic a street sam does with his resources, an Otaku fills what a Decker does with his skills allotment what a Decker does with resources.

If you want a Tiny Matrix God, you make an otaku, if you want a flexible character that fits well with your groups campaign... make a decker... cus otaku, by their very definition are very focused characters.

That's why he said you could make a DECKER, not you could make an OTAKU.

The Abstruse One

Also don't forget that under the normal rules you do gain some extra points to spend in your Channels (Int x1.5 i think like languages) and with that and the amount of skills points/ BP's you should be able to get your Channels to their starting max's with little difficulty

As far as submersion goes... Submersion is pretty much the same as Initiation is to a mage. If you want to improve your Magic, you have to Initiate. If you want to improve your living persona, you pretty much have to Submerge.

An otaku *can* raise their living persona by raising their attributes, which may not be cost effective; certain bioware can do the trick as well. They have more options for raising their abilites than a mage does, which is nice.

As previously stated, Otaku are intended to be specialists. They´re actively rewarded for minimizing their physical attributes, and they have five extra skills to buy up. That being said, the reason they´re like that is because in the Matrix, they just tend to eat things. A starting Otaku can, depending on what is allowable in the game, start with an MPCP of 9 or 10, and can hit Fairlight levels quite rapidly.

~J, fighting the good fight in the Yucatan

The DF of a starting Otaku that's been created properly is a 10 or even 11, while deckers have to go to Masking mode to get to a 9.

However, get immersion as soon as possible and the first thing you get is the ICCM Biofeedback Monitor equivilent. Makes rolling against IC so much nicer when you're rolling 9-10 dice (Will) instead of just 1 (Body).

The Abstruse One

bah. Submersion is the next thing to being useless, given the massive karma costs of doing it. once you get Switch and one other (depending on what direction you want to take your otaku), you're better off just dumping points into your Channels and Computer skill.

Neurofilter first, then Switch, then Info Sortilege (best Otaku-nly thing in the game, if you ask me. I'd pay twice as much Karma for it with anyone else), or maybe Traceroute. Ghosting's good too, I suppose.

There's no way you can get a DF that high at chargen. Complex Forms are capped at rating 6, aren't they? Decker programs certainly are. er, isn't that right? Anyway, unless you're using the NSRCG's error-filled rules for creating an Otaku, there's no way to get any single Mental Attribute higher than 9, and that's only by using the Bonus Attribute Point edge to go over the Racial Limit. Hmm. Actually, you could probably get away with it by making an Elf, but it'd still be tough.

Also, one thing starting deckers typically have an advantage in is their Hacking Pool, which is typically higher than a starting Otaku because of implants (up to +5 Pool mods).

true. that can be remedied in a run or two, however--11k for a Math SPU-3 isn't a whole lot. and since otaku have higher mental stats and MPCP than starting deckers, they surpass deckers quickly in the hp area.

Ghosting, Neural Fliter and Info-Sortilage and Maybe Daemon summoning. no more then that thanks.

Eyeless blond, if you want to munch off your face you can get all you mental stats to 10 at character gen (Granted the rules are a little grey)



And your complex from are limited to your programming which is why Otaku are so good at what they do (granted not much else)

Computer/ Programming 7/9 +1 to the rating cos your a cyberadept