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Eyeless Blond
Every once in awhile someone tries to post up aj topic based around what you generally carry on a run. Usually these topic end up, IMO, with ridiculous laundry lists of gear, more than you can usually fit into a duffel bag, with supplementary lists that frequently won't fit in a car, let alone on someone trying to travel light and not be stick out too much.

So, let's try something different. Let's say you have... 2kg to work with, plus clothing. 2 "SR standard" kilograms, which is really more like 2 pounds. What do you carry? We'll even make this a little easier and say you're not planning on a run, but just normal street use.
Smiley
Monofilament whip and tons of patches. If there's any weight left... knives.
Fresno Bob
A pistol.
FrostyNSO
Cellphone and a credstick

By using that cellphone and credstick, I can come accross whatever I need. Plus i don't have any heat for the cops to sweat me about.
Eyeless Blond
I guess I'll put mine in too, just to get things started. Other than the psec, this is stuff I usually carry around with me IRL, so I assume most runners would carry around at least the equivalent:

Psec (DNI-enabled if the char has a datajack)
Watch (Not needed if you've got a math SPU)
Ballpoint pen
Small multitool or swiss armmy knife
"Real" wallet (front pocket) with ID and ~50 bucks in small bills (A runner probably wouldn't have the ID, but a little cash is always important to have around.)
"Fake" wallet (back pocket) with scraps of paper (fun with pickpocketers! smile.gif)

I also carry around a monocular, but that's because I'm just shy of legally blind and I need it to read fast food menus and street signs and stuff. Mine's expensive, but you can get something cheap like a golf scope pretty easily. I could imagine this being useful for lots of people without vision mag cyberware, and for a mage this kind of thing would be invaluable.

Keep it coming guys.
Morgannah
I guess part of it would depend on which "streets" the character was visiting. wink.gif

Most of my characters would stick to the basics:

Hardliner gloves (Or shock gloves, in Morganna's case)
Pager-10, cell phone (depending on preference)
Pocketknife or combat knife (depending on the neighborhood)
Possibly a sidearm (again, depending on the neighborhood)
Cash and credsticks, though only for one ID at a time
Low light/thermo goggles (as shades, naturally)

My mage (Morg) also tended to carry around a lot of expendable anchoring foci when we had those things houseruled. *sighs* Those were the days....
mfb
hm. i've actually done this, with my main character--got drugged and kidnapped from a picnic in his own damn backyard, ended up in Charlotte, NC with nothing but the clothes on his back. he's a combat adept, though, and his buddy--a sam--got dragged along with him. we did pretty well, i think.

if i had to do it again... shock gloves. the white troll supremacists we woke up to weren't fun to take down.
Critias
I had a good time. Shock gloves would'a been nice, but we obviously didn't need them.
The White Dwarf
Never bothered to add up the listed weights, as theyre useless when you can just toss this stuff in your pockets in real life without problems. Anyhow, heres the list of stuff Id just be carrying on me for walkin around or getting groceries or something else mundane in character.

Hold-Out (never be unarmed, small enough to always carry, and yes its useful)
P-Sec (DNI adapted if appropriate)
Multi-Tool
Lighter
Flash-Pak
Hardliner Gloves (if skilled in unarmed)
Credstick (either certified or fake, type and balance depends on character/situation)

Also be safe to assume Im wearing some kinda generic jeans and a shirt, good pair of sneakers, probably have shades or a jacket/trench. None of it super armored but probably at least securetech type stuff, depends on the character really. Form Fitting for day wear is not assumed unless I have some reason to state otherwise in character.
toturi
Armour (Rapid Transit or just SecureTech)
Credstick (with a SIN)
Cellphone
nick012000
Eh. I always play a million nuyen character, so I've always got the following:

Melee Weapon (if no cyber weapons)
Gun (probably rifle of some description)
Form Fitting Armor, full body suit
Mortimer Greatcoat line coat
Armante Ancien Line scarf
Rapid Transit hemet

If I had to pick one thing out of the lot, however, I'd go with the gun. My gaming group's general strategy for SR is "Kill them all before they react". Works pretty dang well, too. Last run we killed a vampire blood mage (and his two vampire minions), and the run before that we killed a level 4 initiate (and his street sam guards). Oh, and when that run started, our karma was in the mid-upper teens.
Edward
My standard cary is

1 light pistol
Several anchoring foci (no weight worth noting)
Dozens of cornels of true elements (expendable spell foci, no weight worth noting)
Pocket sectary
Credsticks (at lest 2 certified)

Maybe some armour

For a job worth trouble
Med kit
Power focus (staff)
1 heavy pistol
1 clip for heavy pistol

I think that stays below 2kg, the staff may be to heavy

Arcology runs tend to get a bit heavy, I think I will be going in with a levitate spell on my backpack. 30kg of ammunition on a mage????

some characters is would play would have a lot of trouble, the rigger for example, even if you don’t include his drones the deck ways 5kg+

Edward
Eyeless Blond
Is anchoring really any good at all? I can't for the life of me figure out what they do for you that a sustainning focus doesn't. You still have to resist Drain; the thing's active even when the spell's not; etc etc. The only thing I can see them helping with is the Detect Bullet/Bullet Barrier combo and its ilk but even that's not really very useful.

(Edit): The low-light and thermo shades I really like, and the lighter. Good ideas. Anyting else?
nezumi
Utility knife
duct tape
cell phone
two credsticks (probably both faked)
GM permitting, I'd probably prefer steel toed boots over hardliner gloves. It seems they'd have the same effect, but would raise a lot less suspicion
Bubble gum
Cool shades.
wagnern

Armor:
second skin
Futura suit

Weapons:
Brace of pistols
Telescoping staff

Equiptment:
Wrist phone watch thing
Wallet with credstick
A couple nutra or granola bars to apease the super-thyroid and the symbiotes.

If we have to go uber light , I drop one of the pistols and the staff. If we are going heavy I will take a couple spare clips. I want to get a set of extended clips, some form fitting body armor, and a secure vest for when we need to go uber heavy.
Dawnshadow
Umm... normal street use is kindof odd with the Street Sam.

Street Sam:
Armour. Usually vest with plates, securetech long coat.
Some certified cred sticks.
ID.
2 concealed, quickdraw holsters with his pistols. (which adds up to something like 10 SR kg.. they're big, but legal) If he can't carry them, they're in the bike. Nice secure compartment.

MW Adept:
armour.
Power focus, two sustaining foci. (negligable weight).
Daggers (2).
Some cred, not much.
Cellphone
wagnern
QUOTE (FrostyNSO)
Cellphone and a credstick

By using that cellphone and credstick, I can come accross whatever I need. Plus i don't have any heat for the cops to sweat me about.

So you find yourself jumped by some random thugs, you just dial up Aries and have them deliver a preditor, a box of ammo, and a secure vest to you?
Edward
My GM house ruled anchoring so it is useful, if you don’t have such replace with sustaining foci.

Edward
The White Dwarf
I love the people constantly wearing form fitting and hauling large firearms 24/7. Like they never take it off or dont mind the inconvienance of needing to keep a rifle under a coat while trying to get milk off the rack at the local stuffershack. No wait, actually its absurd.

Its one thing to be ultra paranoid during a high intensity setup for a run, wearing form fitting while you case the target or soemthing. But even SR's dont wear formfitting between jobs to go grocery shopping. Let alone carry rifle sized weapons around. Or dozens of foci stuffed in a pocket.

Its a little off topic I know, but think about it. Which one of you would happily put on a wetsuit every morning after the shower and then wear it around all day. A heavy-weave shirt and pants, and a leather jacket or something okay I can see that. It makes sense youd wear something. But form fitting and a plated vest everytime you leave the house is kinda stretching it. A large firearm is definatly stretching it. Its just not practical, even for SRs. Too much work, too much exposure. On a run is one thing, casually strolling about 'off hours' is another.
Smiley
QUOTE (The White Dwarf)
But even SR's dont wear formfitting between jobs to go grocery shopping. Let alone carry rifle sized weapons around. Or dozens of foci stuffed in a pocket.

Well, since most of the people here do just that and they're SRs, I submit that SRs do, in fact, wear form-fitting to the store and carry large weapons and foci.

It's a dangerous business, after all.
Eyeless Blond
And, if you're living in the Z-zones or similar, which are closer to Iraq's streets today than Americas, that kind of thing would be appropriate; in fact it'd be a bit of a faux pas to *not* have a bit of obvious armor and/or weaponry sticking out. If you're browsing the shops downtown, or worse, heading to the Needle for lunch with a client it wouldn't be.

The weapons and armor and such do have their places, but it's much more important to define those places than some other equipment. What I'm really looking for are a few good items to have *everywhere*, whether you're running in the Barrens or schmoosing in high society or anything in between. And we've been seeing some good ideas so far; keep 'em up.
Edward
Wether you wear armour in your day to day life depends on where you live.

Timothy carter for example lived in an a very bad part of town, there where a fiew blocks controlled tightly buy the mafia, to whom he payed a lot of nuyen for protection (between rent protection illegal matrix access and the fact that they owned the local shop I think they where getting 90% of my lifestyle payments). Having payed that he was quite safe within those few blocks but if he was going further than the corner store then armour and some vehicle mounted guns where a necessity of survival.

Another character lived in Redmond (the bad part) he was an athlete’s way adept he would walk down the street with a goodly amount of armour and a hocky stick (weapon) as well as 24 (6 dicoated 12 high density plastic) darts. He carried these things in case he met somebody that didn’t know him (or wanted to prove how buff they where) a samy was in a similar situation, he carried 2 SMGs and a heavy pistol to the grocery store, only the pistol was concealed.

when the cops refuse to enter your suburb you go to the grocery store armed.

All you really need regardless of where you are is a pocket sectary, it incorporates all the important things anybody needs to be able to run a small business on the go and it is appropriate in almost any situation (keep it out of sight if your worried about thieves) everything else depends on the character.

Edward
Crimsondude 2.0
QUOTE (Eyeless Blond)
And, if you're living in the Z-zones or similar, which are closer to Iraq's streets today than Americas, that kind of thing would be appropriate; in fact it'd be a bit of a faux pas to *not* have a bit of obvious armor and/or weaponry sticking out. If you're browsing the shops downtown, or worse, heading to the Needle for lunch with a client it wouldn't be.

Yes, but on the flipside of that coin if you look like you can afford to own armor, you look like you afford to have that armor and everything down to your tube socks stripped off your corpse.
Edward
There are 2 types of people that don’t get robed in the barons

Those that don’t look like they have anything worth the effort

And those that look like it will be too much effort to be worth it.

Edward
Charon
QUOTE (Edward @ May 18 2005, 04:32 PM)
And those that look like it will be too much effort to be worth it.

It takes a lot of hardware to look like you are immune to a bullet in the back of the head or a slit throat in your sleep.

As far as I'm concerned, it's not who you are that protects you from random assault in the barrens, it's who you hang with. Unless you are a known member of a strong gang or mob, it is my opinion that the heavier armed you appear, the more likely that someone will decide to take you out and stripe you down.

---

My list?

One weapon of personal defense of whatever kind is appropriate to your skill set (a discreet HP like the browning max-power is most common)

Some way to communicate, usually cell phone.

Discreet and confortable armor.

Bus/metro pass. A few hundred of cash, a good fake ID.
SpasticTeapot
My PC currently has:
Heavy pistol in concealed holster. (He's a pistol-adept, so he rarely carries anything else.)
Pocket Secretary (Palm OS, of course)
Multi-tool (Essentially a swiss-army knife built into a pair of insulated pliers.)
Fake wallet (ten nuyen plus two empty credsticks)
Securetech armor jacket under an old-fashioned blue trenchcoat.
Cell phone.

If he can afford it, I'm getting:
Monowire, or a monowire whip.
An armored trenchcoat to supplement his jacket.
The White Dwarf
It may be fine if you live in a z-zone, but I tend to think of most successful runners as being able to afford *not* living there. Wearing armor is fine, carrying pistols and the like is fine. But assuming formfitting and rifle sized guns, in that list of "things to take everywhere no matter what" that you were looking for is absurd. Since the thread was clearly indicated as such, Im left to assume the lists people post are for that case, which makes them equally absurd. A formfitting shirt underneath a securetech trench with a heavy pistol concealed, okay, a formfit fullsuit under an armord jacket with a shotgun stuffed inside, not okay. Think about how many people you walk past on the way to the store in an urban setting, like a mall. Someone will notice eventually, a runner would have to consider steath and staying under the radar as some kind of priority here. No ones going to rat out a little armor or a handgun in the contemporary SR setting, but layred armors and a shotgun is gonna make ppl edgey.
Deamon_Knight
I think living in Z-zones (Or at least having a regular hideout there) makes allot of sense; esp if you don't have a SIN and are trying to stay off the Star's Radar. Sure, the protection racket is a bitch, but you don't have to worry about Cops or not being to carry on life cause you are SINless. The Big Brother gear usually doesn't work there and the Law won't come after you unless its worth calling in the Metroplex guard. And if thats the case, you have bigger problems already.
Wounded Ronin
Nothing from the eq. lists.

Seconhand overcoat.
Incredible BO.
Several bottles of bacardi 151.
Wadded up scream sheets.
Lighter.

Perfect bum disguise for investigation on the street, with molotovs as a last ditch self defense thing if the chips are down.

By not carrying any weapons, it's real hard for people to get suspicious of you. It's not like they can frisk you and find a pistol....they frisk you and find liquor, and you're a bum, so what are they going to do?
Wounded Ronin
QUOTE (The White Dwarf)
I love the people constantly wearing form fitting and hauling large firearms 24/7. Like they never take it off or dont mind the inconvienance of needing to keep a rifle under a coat while trying to get milk off the rack at the local stuffershack. No wait, actually its absurd.

Its one thing to be ultra paranoid during a high intensity setup for a run, wearing form fitting while you case the target or soemthing. But even SR's dont wear formfitting between jobs to go grocery shopping. Let alone carry rifle sized weapons around. Or dozens of foci stuffed in a pocket.

Its a little off topic I know, but think about it. Which one of you would happily put on a wetsuit every morning after the shower and then wear it around all day. A heavy-weave shirt and pants, and a leather jacket or something okay I can see that. It makes sense youd wear something. But form fitting and a plated vest everytime you leave the house is kinda stretching it. A large firearm is definatly stretching it. Its just not practical, even for SRs. Too much work, too much exposure. On a run is one thing, casually strolling about 'off hours' is another.

Oh my god, funny story. Once when I was GMing I had the PCs get attacked by surprise when they were in someone's apartment.

So this one player was flipping out and giving me this really long explanation of how his character *always* wears armor, even at home, blah blah blah.

I don't remember what the outcome was, but I remember I was pretty disgusted at the time.

So, anyway, I agree that this whole wearing armor thing while going to the store is incredibly lame. People should just relax and accept the fact that sometimes they'll have to be vulnerable.

Man, if I had bigger balls as a GM, I'd totally derail any given campaign any time someone went out to buy milk with too much armor. Like, they'd get frisked by the cops and the whole thing would devolve into some kind of terminal firefight, and that would be the end of the campaign. That would teach people to carry around too many weapons with them.

Hmm, maybe I *should* do that next time.
Smiley
QUOTE (Wounded Ronin @ May 18 2005, 08:59 PM)
People should just relax and accept the fact that sometimes they'll have to be vulnerable.

I disagree. As long as you're not putting full security armor on and toting your panther cannon just to go check the mail, wearing a bit of armor everywhere you go can be a good idea and literally a lifesaver. Just some form-fitting and maybe throw on a lined coat. Obviously, carrying around an assault rifle at all times is a bit ridiculous, but some shock gloves and a monowhip can make all the difference between life and death. Like I said, it's a dangerous profession. Good to be prepared.
Wounded Ronin
Hmm, well, the rules aren't totally clear about what is okay and what isn't, or else we wouldn't be having this discussion. So, a question:

Is this correct? If a PC decides to carry, say, a Predator with him, everyone who sees him on the street gets to roll INT vs. the concealability of the Predator, and if they succeed they will notice it?

The reason I ask is that if you interpret the rules this way carrying any kind of threatening object in crowded places should theoretically get the Star to come arrest you.

Or, is there some other mechanic for this?
hyzmarca
QUOTE (Wounded Ronin)
Hmm, well, the rules aren't totally clear about what is okay and what isn't, or else we wouldn't be having this discussion. So, a question:

Is this correct? If a PC decides to carry, say, a Predator with him, everyone who sees him on the street gets to roll INT vs. the concealability of the Predator, and if they succeed they will notice it?

The reason I ask is that if you interpret the rules this way carrying any kind of threatening object in crowded places should theoretically get the Star to come arrest you.

Or, is there some other mechanic for this?

That's what the book says. Also, the TN is halved for searches.

There's little problem for someone going to the Stuffer Shack wearing an obscene amount of layered armor because everything lighter than Security armor is completely legal. It would be conspicious, yes. However, if someone calls the Star the Star will ask if the character has brandished a weapon, robbed, killed, or done something else illegal and then say to call back when he does. Assualt rifles are a different matter.

Personally, I have a jacket that I wear everwhere I go. It is not unreasonable for a runner to have a favorite jacket that he wears everywhere. If that jacket just happens to have armored plates in it then there is nothing wrong with that. Posh high-society clubs may turn him away but they'd do that for anyone not wearing tres chic.
Earthwalker
QUOTE
Is this correct?  If a PC decides to carry, say, a Predator with him, everyone who sees him on the street gets to roll INT vs. the concealability of the Predator, and if they succeed they will notice it?

The reason I ask is that if you interpret the rules this way carrying any kind of threatening object in crowded places should theoretically get the Star to come arrest you.


As a player the concealment rules seemed a little off to me at first. If I had a predator in a concealable holster it was conceal 6. So about every other person on the street would spot I had it. 3 perception dice looking for a 6. So on average about every other person would get one success.

This isn’t how it works tho, as there is a perception success table somewhere. It works something like

1 success you have something hidden under your jacket
2 success you have some kind of weapon under your jacket
3 success you have a pistol under your jacket
4 or more successes you have a ares predator under your jacket.

So the average person on the street might know you have something under your jacket but prolly doesn’t think much of it. Not till they get 2 successes. Of course that’s the way we used to play it.
Critias
(a) Hundreds of thousands of people wear a handgun with them everywhere they go, every day (and that's just the liscenced CCW holders, the ones that are documented). It's very easy, really, to conceal a handgun on yourself in normal clothing. It's likely even easier in 2060whatever, because it's expected in most parts of town, because it's perfectly normal for people to wear capes and robes and whatever else they feel like half the time, and because concealable holsters are fairly cheap. It's not uncommon or unreasonable in the slightest to think that a Shadowrunner, especially an experienced and firearm-oriented one, has a gun on him at all times. It's not going to always be an assault rifle, but then you know that -- not a single person posted to this thread with "I always have an assault rifle on me."

(b) Armor is totally legal, and disgustingly common, in any sort of Cyberpunk'ish setting. Armored Clothing is the default, not unarmored, in most parts of town -- and that's Joe Citizen, not a professional criminal that does know people might be getting paid to kill him right that very second. Form fit is, by all appearances, as light, comfortable, and unobstrusive a form of armor as any character can purchase, hands down. Why shouldn't a character wear his thunderwear if he wants to? Or a beaten up old favorite armored jacket? Or his stylish leather duster with trauma plates hidden in it?

Am I saying everyone needs a combat shotgun, sniper rifle, and mil-spec armor for a trip to the Stuffer Shack? No. Am I saying it's not unreasonable for them to have Morissey handgun in a concealed holster beneath their Lined Coat? Yes. Get over yourselves.
hyzmarca
I just looked at the success table.

1 something is there

2 Something is there and the perciever suspects what general type of thing it is.

3 Something is there and the perciever knows what type of thing it is and suspects its exact nature.

4 The perciever knows what it is but can get no further specifics without more information or direct examination.

Oddly, that table applies to tasting a pastrami sandwitch just as much as it applies to seeing a gun.

The average (INT 3) person cannot determine what type of meat is on the sandwich he is eating with certainty. This is something Wendigos can take advantage of.

On the other hand, in the paranoid world of SR, two successes will tell someone all they need to know about that thing under your jacket.
Adarael
Lightest eqipment list I've ever seen a character go on a run with?

A broom.

No, seriously. He was a nearly-total bioware street sam, back in Shadowrun 2nd edition. He was in Camp Hope, in the module Double Exposure. He didn't wanna try to sneak anything in, so he brought nothing in. Not even armor. The broom he got from one of the other people inside the camp.

And also... A predator in a conceal holster is concealability 8, not six. If you're wearing a long coat, as so many runners seem wont to do, you add 50% on to that. So it becomes conceal 12. Which are both significantly harder to get 2 successes on, if you're an int 3 goon.
nezumi
While I agree armor should be pretty pervasive, there's a difference between wearing your 1/1 armor clothes while heading on down to the stuffer shack in your local B-zone, and wearing jacket and helmet while sitting on the can.

I can't imagine anyone wearing more than 1/1 while sleeping in your bed (yay for kevlar boxers). That's why you have armored doors and alarms, remember? There is a middle ground somewhere, but it's not in the 'my FFBA has been grafted to my skin' camp.
Smiley
I'm honestly not seeing the problem with FFBA being a second skin at all times. It's light, it's discreet, it doesn't count towards combat pool penalties.

(Hee hee... thunderwear...)
Gambitt
QUOTE (nezumi)


I can't imagine anyone wearing more than 1/1 while sleeping in your bed (yay for kevlar boxers). That's why you have armored doors and alarms, remember? There is a middle ground somewhere, but it's not in the 'my FFBA has been grafted to my skin' camp.

Just have kevlar lined bedding spin.gif

I think carring a concealed pistol around is fine... the tricky part comes when you go clubbing in town, or go to meet a johnson. I always find it a much tougher decision to carry a firearm or not in those kinds of situations where i may get frisked.

For the original question:
Pistol, pocket sec, duct tape/plastic binders, swiss army knife and some cash/credit
Earthwalker
I can see a character that wakes up, and the first thing he does is put on his FFBA then normal clothing and gets ready for the day.
I think the perma FFBA thing gets silly once you have finished for the day and are back home relaxing. Surly you would take off your normal cloths and ffba and put on some sweats and sit watching trid.

So either way when a character is attacked in his home they may or may not have on armour I aren’t that worried about it as there are reasons either way.

To answer the original post.

A cred stick (fake ID)
A cheap suit
And Form fitting body armour

And if I there’s weight left for it a pistol.
Luke Hardison
The only time I leave the house without a heavy pistol (I like my .40 Tarus most of the time) in a holster on the small of my back is if I'm going to the gym, swimming, or headed in to work (since the building in which I work is off limits). In those situations, I drop the holster in a backpack and carry that with me when I can, leave it in the car when I can't. It's not paranoia, it's preparedness. If you could predict when you'll be attacked, you would just avoid those situations. That's real life, and I don't live a life in the shadows. It's patently unreasonable for a GM to expect his characters to make themselves vulnerable because he wants them to be so. I'll bold that so everyone can see it. You are playing characters who are typically violent criminals. Yes, make them deal with the mundane consequences of concealing weapons. You always have to bend at the knees and keep your back straight (if you choose belt holsters, the most common type). You pretty much always have to wear a belt, which means clothing with belt loops. You have to untuck your over shirt (usually wearing a shirt that you would not put on otherwise) or wear a jacket that covers your waist. These things don't affect your game much; they should fade into the background and become part of the atmosphere of your game. Believe me, it's not common for anyone to look at me in the grocery store for long enough to check me for a weapon, much less actually discern a lump under my shirt. The conceal rules in SR *suck* for an average, untrained person spotting a weapon - they will spot it about 100 times more often than they should, barring a slip up on the part of the concealer.

As for my character, FFBA and an (armored) motorcycle jacket, long coat, or suit (I like Armante line myself) are pretty standard, along with a heavy pistol and extendable baton. That's pretty much my minimum going to the store or a restraunt. I like to carry a multi-tool and pocket knife, too, plus some cigarettes and a lighter, all without game stats. Add in my Pocket Sec., also. I'd say that's the minimum. It's very common to add in a lot of extras: forearm guards, usually a backup pistol, taser, shock glove. If I'm actually expecting trouble, then SMG or machine pistol for suppressive fire and some flash and IR smoke grenades. On the job, I prefer to wear camo and assault vests, even though it's rarely an option. It's still my favorite ...
Clyde
Dikoted Ares Viper Slivergun form Ally Spirit. . . (weighs 2kg) Good for personal defense, taking on a run, makes for a great conversation starter ("excuse me, but do you think it's possible to have sex with this?")

Of course, if you've got one of those you don't need much else smile.gif

I'd say P-Sec and a Light Pistol for every day wear. I'd pass on armor for shopping etc, because having only 2 points doesn't really help you against real firepower anyway. Might as well not tempt yourself into fighting when you ought to be ducking smile.gif
nezumi
Luke, you talking IC or not about carrying gun everywhere? If you're a cop, I can imagine having one available, but carrying a handgun into church? On a date? There are many times it's either not feasible (imagine a woman trying to hide her Ares predator while wearing a skimpy, skin tight dress), not advisable (visiting your buddy whose staying in the slammer) or just inappropriate (going to worship at the Cathedral of St. Dymphna).

There's also a big difference between sleeping with an armor jacket on the chair and a handgun under the pillow and sleeping while wearing said jacket and handgun. I can't imagine running around all day the first thing you'll want to do is sit back in the same, stinky, sweaty FFBA you've been wearing all day and watch the trid. At absolute minimum, you're going to have a few dozen of the things so you can put something clean on for a change. More likely, you'll have it available while you wear something where your sweat will actually evaporate (maybe the half suit?)
Edward
Full body form fit is highly concealable (you don’t have to wear the hood)

Also almost all personal armour is legal in SR. so there is no legal problem wearing it to the shops (provided the shops don’t have a dress code) weapons bigger than pistols however are not worth the risk.

A question that should be asked of any character is where do you feal safe. In these places you would not carry armour and weapons, however for some characters ‘nowhere’ is a valid answer. Perhaps however there should be a disadvantage to this, how about +5% to healing times if you are not somewhere you feal safe (dure to stress).

Edward
Luke Hardison
QUOTE (nezumi)
Luke, you talking IC or not about carrying gun everywhere? If you're a cop, I can imagine having one available, but carrying a handgun into church? On a date? There are many times it's either not feasible (imagine a woman trying to hide her Ares predator while wearing a skimpy, skin tight dress), not advisable (visiting your buddy whose staying in the slammer) or just inappropriate (going to worship at the Cathedral of St. Dymphna).

There's also a big difference between sleeping with an armor jacket on the chair and a handgun under the pillow and sleeping while wearing said jacket and handgun. I can't imagine running around all day the first thing you'll want to do is sit back in the same, stinky, sweaty FFBA you've been wearing all day and watch the trid. At absolute minimum, you're going to have a few dozen of the things so you can put something clean on for a change. More likely, you'll have it available while you wear something where your sweat will actually evaporate (maybe the half suit?)

I was afraid I blended RL and IC too closely in that one. For the most part, my first paragraph is RL and the second is IC.

For clarification, as far as taking a weapon everywhere - yes, that is real life. I'm no cop, just an average Joe. The weapon stays in the car when I go to church, but only because my church meets in the gym of an elementary school (physical buildings of schools are off-limits areas for permit-holders in Texas). Churches aren't safer by some mysterious force, as Terry W. Tarzmann proved by killing seven people at his own church in New Berlin, Wisconsin before turning the gun on himself. Were there people in that church like me, who carry safely, daily, everywhere but the place where they needed it that day? Who knows? (I'll stop there - I don't want to derail the thread into a personal-protection argument of some kind)

It stays in the car while I work, for the same reason (I work at a building that is 30.06, i.e., off limits by virtue of signage). It stays in the car when I visit my wife at work, because she works at a middle school. I can't imagine leaving my weapon at home to go out, or leaving it off my person for any reason other than to comply with the law. Going on a date? I would hope any reasonable and sane girl I would *have* dated (married now, thanks) would have been happy to have an armed escort everywhere we go. I know my wife appreicates the fact that I make sacrifices for her safety.

With proper equipment, it's pretty easy to carry my .38 revolver (which is a lot smaller than my EDC auto) in shorts and a t-shirt. The options for that carry aren't nearly as fast as a belt holster, but they certainly get the job done; clearing a below-the-belt holster is a lot faster than running back to your car) As I've said, I choose the places where I carry in public on my person carefully, but I do that for compliance with the law; if I was a criminal, I would probably limit those 'off limits' areas to places that actually enforce their policy with metal detectors or searches.

Food for thought: in the state of Texas, approximately one out of every 500 people that you see on the street in a given day are legally carrying a concealed handgun. You pass a lot more than 500 people at your average mall. How many did you see that were armed?
Edward
Although I believe you when you say that it is easy to conceal a gun (however very difficult to conceal it from a competent pat search, another issue with eth SR rules is that an average guard on an average day will only find ½ of conceal 6 weapons, that is a heavy pistol.)

The statistics you quoted.

You say 1 in 500 people in texes legally carry a concealed weapon. I am curious if that number is based on the number of licenses issued or a survey of how often those with licenses actually carry the gun to the mall.

Also what precautions do you have to take to prevent theft of your gun from your car, in Australia those that can get a license to have a gun would need a very large and expensive save on there vehicle if they where going to leave it in a parking lot.

Edward
Krazy
personally, I've always got my leatherman, and zippo, and have needed one or both many times. I carry my cell while on call which is pretty much all the time. if I lived in a sixth world type setting, I'd probly add a sup-compact 9mm, to that as well. but living in canada makes that a bit harder. and yes, my wallet is secondary, if I'm going somewhere I take it but otherwise it stays at home. but most of my clothes have at least some utility as well. I pretty much always wear BDU pants, my belt buckle is pretty heavy, and SWAT combats are good for running away in!
I can't see how FFBA can be more comfortable than say, a good pair of b-ball shoes, an you wouldn't wear those all day, and the sit down to dinner with them still on. this stuff is tough enough to be bullet resistant, I don't see how it can breathe that well.

nezumi, ever see a woman in a dress without a purse of some sort? I havn't that often, and a usp supcompact fits in a realy small cluch. (ever see those swimsuit adds in shooting mags..... Damn!)
Rev
There are also lots of modifiers to perception tests. The straight test against concealability should really only occur when somone actually looks at you (eg a guard looking at each person entering a building). Most people walking around on the street will have something like +2 for being distracted by whatever else they are doing. They only see the gun if they happen to be looking in the right spot when it peaks out or makes a suspicious lump.
KarmaInferno
Hmm... my current SR character?

Clothes. That's all.

Then again, we aren't counting weapons or equipment that's integral to the cyber-body, are we?

biggrin.gif


-karma
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