From: [f--h--e] at [kpc.com] Reply-To: [f--h--e] at [kpc.com] Errors-To: [flashlife request] at [kpc.com] Subject: Flashlife V3 #7 To: [f--h--e] at [kpc.com] From: Carl Rigney (moderator) <[flashlife request] at [kpc.com]> Flashlife Sat, 13 Jun, 1992 Volume 3 : Issue 7 Today's topics: Organic Ware (Andrew Pearlman) Re: Organic Ware (Carl Rigney) Homicide Convictions and Black IC Load (Joonas) Character Generation (Matthew Zeher) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 31 May 92 23:41:22 EDT From: Andrew Pearlman <[a--ar--a] at [magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu]> Subject: Organic Ware Something I've been looking at recently is what I call Organic Ware. Simply put, it involves taking your own cell material, replicating a clone of it, then putting it through the most intensive training possible. i.e. get someone with a 3 body, 3 quickness, and 2 Strength, and improve them to an olympic athlete level with surgery. This of course would require a vatjob surgery, but would not be cyberware. So, here is what it is capable of: It may only improve a stat to 5. Karma may not be spent on buying up *any* physical stats after getting organic ware. 1 Drastic Invasive is incurred for each +3 stats. Magic may not be used to speed healing. The surgery may be simultaneous. Cost is 150,000 per +1 stat. Essence cost is .1/+1 stat(minor adjustments, new nerve connections, brain produces wrong chemical balances, etc...) Note on karma: Any karma spent on physical stats is wasted and human max goes down to 5 in the physical attributes. i.e. if you had a 6, it drops to 5. If you had raised strength from 2 to 3, then get organic ware to take it to 5, it would cost 450,000. Finally, if an organ is destroyed that is not on the head(eyes, ears, etc...) it costs double to replace it. <<<>>> -------------------------- Date: Sun, 31 May 92 21:02:57 -0700 From: [c d r] at [kpc.com] (Carl Rigney) Subject: Re: Organic Ware Interesting concept, but if you've got sufficient control of genetic structure to succeed in cloning, I'd suspect you'd be able to turn on the appropriate muscle growth stimulants in the person - like steroids without the workouts. Seems to me that'd be far, far easier than doing full-body muscle transplants. You'd also have to transplant heart & lungs to keep up with the muscles. It might make an interesting scenario if one of these olympic sacrificial goats escaped, though... -------------------------- Date: Tue, 2 Jun 92 10:57:18 EET DST From: [j--on--s] at [jytko.jyu.fi] (Joonas) Subject: Homicide Convictions and Black IC Load a) What are the usual convictions for homicide in Seattle? b) What is the load rating for Black IC? [Please send answers directly to user, who can summarize to the List. --CDR] -------------------------- Date: Mon, 8 Jun 92 19:32:54 EDT From: Matthew Zeher <[z--h--r] at [cs.odu.edu]> Subject: Character Generation [Please take a moment to run submissions through a spelling checker; also please format it in block paragraphs each separated by a line, so I don't have to reformat. Thanks. --CDR] Ok inlue of the fact that the shadowrun character generation system has a few MINOR problems. I have come up with an alternate system that is easily expandable and scaleable. My reason for doing this is was at first to make additions to the system that would allow for characters to take disadvantages. For those of you who have played gurps you know what this means for the others I'll explain, gurps allows you to create a character with disadvantages that show up in some way during play, whether it be just plain bad luck or a really persistant enimy from your past. It has been my experience that these disadvantages added to the personality traits of the characters involved in the game and thereby madethe game much more enjoyable. They make ROLE playing much easier on the characters. Anyway the disadvantages are sold sort of, meaning that you get more points the more disadvantages you take. More points mean a more powerful character, its a give and take setup. To add the disadvantages to the game I needed a way to convert the Shadowrun(tm) character generation system into a point based system. While doing so it occured to me that I could FIX a lot of the other problems with character generation system at the same time, as well as add some new things too. It didn't take to long to flesh out the details into something that seems rather playable. I have tested this system somewhat but have decided to submit to the people who read flashlite in order to correct any problems that might result in game unbalance (this seems to be the major problem when adding things to SR or any other game for that matter!). Although this system does add yet another teir of complexity to a game that is complex enough already, it really only comes into play in the character creation. After that it really adds no further forms of complexity. The disadvantage part is optional as well as is most of the other stuff, basically its up to the GM to decide what he/she wants in his/her game. Enough with how and whys. Converting to a point based system for character generation allows the GM to SCALE to power of starting of players in SR. I have decided on a rather mediocure value of 350 pts to start. This seems to be an average Shadowrunner in par with original rules. Shadowrunners created with 350 pts come out about the same as most of the achetypes listed. Maybe a little weaker. If you want stronger starting characters just increase the number of points the characters can have, if you want weaker decrease the value. That simple. Now what do these points mean? Well the points can by certain things that characters need. For example 5 of these points buys the character 1 point of attribute that he/she may distribute among his/her character's attributes. It's very simple. The following is a table that shows each thing the charcter can *BUY* with the effective cost in points (the same points discussed above from now on for sanitys sake we will refer to them as character points): CHARACTER PART CHARCTER POINT COST 1 point of attribute 5 1 point of skill 4 1 spell point 3 3500 NY(new yen) 1 Metihuman Status 50 Adept status 75 Full Magician status 120 I have also put maximums on the number of attribute points, skill points, spell points and new yen a starting character may have. The following is a table listing the point type and its maximum. POINT TYPE MAXIMUM STARTING NUMBER attribute points 30 skill points 50 spell points 65 New Yen 1000000 300000* * - the value of new yen depends on class if the character has some sort of magical aptitude adept or otherwise then the value is 300000 else it is the value listed first. The following are a list of other things character points may buy. (Contacts are not listed. The rules for contacts is as it was with the original rules the charcters spend NY not character points for contacts.): - 25 pts - the player may increase one attribute's racial maximum by one point. For example a starting human who spends 25 pts here can increase lets say there body by one, giving them an effective racial maximum body of 7. - 25 pts - the player may increase the starting maximum (6 normally ) skill level for a particular skill by one point. This is for the base skill, concentrations and specializations are increased with this logically. For example starting player may when he pays 25 pts obtain lets say a ranged weapon skill of 7 (instead of the maximum of six). If they have a sepcialization in lets say vindicator miniguns, then the specializaition could be a total of 9!!! (course ranged weapons would drop to 6). - 10 pts - the player may increase a particular point types maximum by 1 point allowing him/her greater than the maximum number of points to start with. New Yen maximum is increased by 35000. - 10 pts - the player may bond any magiacal items they have purchased. But just one item per 10 pts spent. Thats it thats the system, not very complex I think. Although it should theoretically eliminate the problem with metihumans (well at least in my campaign no one wants to start as metihuman ). As well as the problem of magicains starting off with to much new yen. Please send questions, comments, general concerns to: [z--h--r] at [cs.odu.edu] -------------------------- End of Flashlife **************************