Whereupon we discuss the nature of punk, violence, rebellion, sex, and music.  And character actions.

This is my current work station.



Between drawing, writing two comic scripts (for fun), another D&D game, being a parent, husband, and firefighter, I have a rather full schedule.  That being said, I really want to do this thing.  Patience is going to be key.  Especially since I'm going to learn by doing and I haven't run a game in a looooong time.

A few random thoughts.

At the beginning, I'd like to not have any Netrunners.  We can handle that off camera via NPCs.  Going forward, sure, but if we want to get off the ground with momentum, that's one less rule structure not to have to master out the gate.

What's your general sense of how to use humanity?  The system really needs it, but I have a hard time taking a Solo with an empathy of 4 and saying you only get 40 points of cyberware before you're bonker balls, but a Rockerboy with and Empathy of 9 can go full borg.  Thoughts for ways to compensate/adjust? Or is it all about therapy?

Let me know what you guys think!

If we're sharing workspaces, here's mine.  I didn't tidy up just for you guys - the cleanliness is accidental from earlier this morning.



I'll preface this by saying that my ability to commit to a PbP is still very low.  Every time I think about it, it sounds like work rather than fun.  I've been fitting in my own writing and other stuff where I can over the past few months, and the ability to do that on my own schedule without external pressure has been very refreshing.

Having said that - I think CP Red is one of those settings in which the group needs some idea for campaign direction before building individual PCs.  Twilight: 2000 has an implied purpose for the PCs to be together and a long-term agenda for them to pursue; CP Red does not.  The inherent opposition in which some of the archetypes find themselves is evidence of that.  So before "who are we playing?" I think we should kick around "what kind of story are we telling?"

Current plan is for an initial run of track, extract, and secure a kidnapped victim from a gang.  We could go from the direction of the characters being an existing team or drawn together by a Fence for the mission without know each other.  I think Media characters might be kind of hard to set in at first.  But we can make it work with enough planning.

Yeah, Netrunner as NPC is always good.  The new rules even allow a Corp to take one as a minion...

This is my Netrunner... Notice anything different about him?...  He doesn't even speak English!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FoYC_8cutb0

Since I temporarily moved back into my mother’s house my workspace is my old bedroom. The other day Toto’s  ‘Africa’ came on the radio. I felt like I was back in the 1980’s. The only thing missing were some Molly Ringwald posters.

Don’t get me wrong, my desk isn’t usually that much of a disaster, my backpack threw up on it while migrating projects.

Back to an earlier question:



I'm not sure this is a bug; it may, in fact, be a feature, and it's a central conceit of the setting as well as a game balance function.  If that Rockerboy goes FBC, even with maximum therapy, he'll still lose 2 max Humanity for each cyber component and 4 for each piece of borgware.  That, in turn, will still drop his EMP.  While many of the social skills run on COOL, a Rockerboy with shitty Human Perception and Conversation will lose his edge in a lot of offstage activities.

Also note that cyber isn't the only thing that'll drop Humanity.  Check out the mental trauma rules on p. 231.  EMP shouldn't be a dump stat for any PC in this world, and not just because it lets you replace more meat with metal.  Higher EMP means you're less prone to "dissociative mental problems" or "psycho-pathological/schizophrenic illnesses," as the game puts it, regardless of your profession/role.  The rules only get into detail on cyberpsychosis but that's far from the only thing that can go wrong with the headmeats.  The Solo with EMP 4 is the guy who never should have gotten past the recruiter and the psych interview to be a soldier/cop in the first place because he's more likely to break from the job, even if he keeps his body at factory spec.

(Don't get me started on how damn near every single person still alive in T2k should have some degree of PTSD.)
This message was last edited by the player at 12:15, Mon 23 Nov 2020.

I appreciate that perspective.  I also haven't made it that far into the meat of cybernetics yet, just trying to get a hold on other people's thoughts.

And yeah, if there ever was a system where characters need a psychological trauma system, T2k fits the bill.

I think my favorite psychological trauma system in any game is the one in Unknown Armies because it's multidimensional:

https://1d4chan.org/wiki/Unkno...#The_Character_Sheet

In reply to Tegyrius (msg # 10):

The downside is that a system would require some ability to actually RP the results. In my experience most T2K players are just there for the gunfights. Character development of any description isn't that common.

I don't feel familiar enough with the rules to offer anything substantial here. Looking at the templates (pg 117) the Rockerboy template only lists four items which gives it the lowest HL of all of the templates. Maybe there's scope for a penalty based on actual number of augments? Like after four or five the penalty doubles? So that way the rockerboy catches up with the solo more quickly if he gets more augments? Just thinking aloud really...

I guess that means you're going to be overly-critical of my pitch for a British aristocracy SBS officer Solo/Exec/Rockerboy.

In reply to Tegyrius (msg # 13):

To be fair, with a few tweaks, you probably just described Prince Harry...

... I ... dammit ...

I haven't looked too closely at the Humanity rules; I figured they're mostly there to keep players from building full terminator cyborg type PCs. A character with beaucoup cybernetic enhancements would be pretty OP, no? In other words, I assumed the mechanic was mostly munchkin-proofing.

Rescuing a kidnapping victim sounds fun. Cyberpunk seems like it lends itself well to caper and heist scenarios too, for future consideration. I'm down for whatever.

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This message was last edited by the player at 04:54, Mon 23 Nov 2020.

Still plugging through and collecting notes.

A few more thoughts:

Due to the constraints of PbP and pacing, I’m considering starting the PCs a bit more powerful.  Maybe allowing role abilities at 5 instead of 4 and a few more attribute/skill points.  Nothing drastic, just a bit more equipment and character capabilities.  The idea being that the PCs haven’t just arrived on the edge, but have spent a little time working there.  A few more pieces of cyberware, etc...

It’s looking like the PCs are going to be members of a team put together to deal with a kidnapping.  Would you guys prefer knowing each other with history or the getting to know you approach?

What kind of characters are you interested in?  Not just role, but decent humans in a bad situation, or morally flexible individuals getting paid for work that they excel at?

Are there aspects of the world you’d really like to touch on?

That's cool with me. I'm totally new to this system, so I'll be learning as I go. Which degree of customization would you like us to use during chargen?



I prefer the getting to know you approach because it will probably help me get a better handle on my own PC. I also think that the IC relationships we develop will be more genuine.



I don't think I'd enjoy playing a full on bad guy. My PCs are always essentially heroic, even if they occasionally slip up.

Can we play two PCs? Either way, I'd like to call dibs on med-tech (see msg #2).

link to a message in another game



I want it all! ;)

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This message was last edited by the player at 21:47, Tue 24 Nov 2020.

I’m gonna say one character initially.  The idea of trying to navigate combat with up to 8 PCs sounds a bit daunting.

I’m fine with starting at something higher than entry level (like Rae, I’ll be finding my way around the system as I go).

Generally speaking I prefer the getting to know you approach. It feels more natural, lets the PC’s get to know each other in a realistic way rather than having to think ‘would my PC know this about X’s PC?’ That said, if we can work out details I’m not against some sort of shared background (it has worked well for me in the past) if anyone wants to do it (although to be fair at this point I don’t have anything firm in mind for a PC yet, so difficult for me to thrash out any sort of detail.

I tend to prefer PC’s who fall more within the morally flexible spectrum, particularly in this genre (or at least as I understand this genre). As noted, I don’t have anything set in stone yet. Some back of the envelope stuff

1. Solo, Aged 30’s. German national (I haven’t read the background fully but I think Germany is still a thing?). Veteran of various corporate black ops style shenanigans in Europe. Currently earning a (meagre) living as a cage fighter in one of the less salubrious parts of the City.

2. Former Law Enforcement (could now be Lawman or Solo). Aged 30’s. Got kicked off the force for some as yet undetermined misdemeanour which they may or may not have actually committed. Now making a living in the private sector. May or may not have been a former member of the Psycho Squad (I have some concerns that this concept may be a little cliched)

3. Fixer, aged late 20’s. Russian national. Former SovOil Corporate type (might have been an Exec?) Got found out skimming from the Company accounts and bailed out of Moscow before the Oligarchs could demonstrate their displeasure. Now makes a living as a Fixer in Night City. Has a price on their head (in roubles)

Right now I’m leaning towards 3 as I tend to prefer playing Face characters and my attempts to stray out of that particular comfort zone have not always ended well. But as I said, I’m not set in stone (although I can categorically rule out playing a Rockerboy or Tech. If I knew the genre a bit better I might think about a Nomad but for now I think that might be stretching my comfort zone).

Disclaimers about PbP burnout still apply, but:



I'd be fine with this.  I will suggest that, rather than increasing cyber, increase the starting cash allocation and let people buy what makes sense for their characters - cyber, kit, lifestyle, whatever.  Because this game shares continuity with CP2020, most of the gear from the Chromebooks should still be around in some form or another.



I'm good either way.  Having history does require more work up front, but the payoff is a reason for the group to stay together after the first arc.



I don't do well playing absolute amoral murderhobos, but for a setting like this, paladins are rare.



Surprise us.  :)

Understood. With only four PCs- and given the mission- I assume combat skills are going to be taking on an added importance.

Hey, the PDF version came with an editable char-sheet PDF but I can't get it to save it once it's filled out. Google is no help. Do any of y'all know if/how it's possible to save after completion?

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This message was last edited by the player at 00:53, Wed 25 Nov 2020.

Cash seems like a good option.  I’ll allow therapy to be purchased as well, for those so inclined, along with the assumption it works.  I’ll try and get some creation guidelines up tomorrow.

As far as build methods go, the figure the Complete method with cash for gear, etc... but if you would prefer to roll, that’s fine with.  I’ll let you know how many attribute and skill points will be available with the guidelines.

Weird.  I'm seeing the same issue on my Mac.  Must be a bad setting in the PDF.  I have the full version of Acrobat on my work machine and will try to find a fix over the holiday break.

I like morally flexible types, perhaps driven to that through circumstance.

Abilities at 5 is nice.  I think if the goal is not to have massive firefights, some of the roles should consider how they might use their Role Abilities without adding to that burden (Exec's should steer clear of body guards and operatives and just have supporting types, perhaps?  Lawmen shouldn't call for backup?).  Anyway, moving on...

For what we're trying to do and looking at everyone's interest so far, I like Tech, Solo, or Nomad, in roughly that order.
This message was last edited by the player at 10:23, Wed 25 Nov 2020.

It should surprise no one that I have a couple of concepts stuck in my head.

The first is a Nomad from a pack with Highrider ties.  They used to fly deltas out of an old USAF base in the Rockies, but something went wrong a few years ago.  Now the survivors are earthbound and trying to rebuild.  The PC is one of the younger generation.  He grew up on stories of spaceflight and his personal dream is to become one of the Deltajocks who takes the family out into the black again.  To make that happen, though, they'll need not just a fat stack of eurodollars, but a fat list of people who owe them favors.  So he's in the City to do his part to help that effort.  Mechanically, Nomad role, primarily focused as a driver/pilot with secondary combat and social/business capabilities.

The second is a Solo.  He's an older guy, probably pushing fifty, staving off the effects of age and a hard-lived life with whatever medicine the street can offer.  He was a corporate operative back during the Fourth Corporate War and eventually reached his breaking point with the amount of collateral damage he was being asked to dish out.  He's avoided major cyber replacement as much as possible, preferring to stick with low-impact modifications that are less detectable and less alienating - he's lost too many comrades to cyberpsychosis and doesn't want to go down that road himself.  Where too many younger Solos go for ostentatious chrome and cryo max fashion, his style is more subdued.  It makes him less optimized for mass murder, but it broadens the array of social environments in which he can operate.  Mechanically, a gunman with a secondary social focus (possibly a wingman and close protection for Dave's Face).

Back when I was contemplating trying to run a CP-style PbP or write some fiction, I came up with a similar PC concept, except mine quit the homicide unit because he got sick of the brass allowing guilty prominent corpos to literally get away with murder. His new career was private investigator.

Is there a way to create a detective Lawman in the CPR rules? I assume one could do so simply by tweaking skills but I'm kind of surprised it's not already a template. IMHO PI would be a perfect role for the noir setting of CP.

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This message was lightly edited by the player at 15:43, Wed 25 Nov 2020.

A fixer role could easily be an undercover detective, IMHO.  You aren't so much calling for backup, as you are working the street.

Good call.

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Campaign info thread updated with a character gen framework.  Let me know your thoughts.

Now I kind of want to try to make a Fixer/(former Lawman) Private Dick PC build work. But Dave's got dibs, so not if he decides to run with his former law enforcement PC concept. And I still like my Medtech PC concept too, but it's dropping into second place. Drat.

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This message was last edited by the player at 17:16, Wed 25 Nov 2020.

I recommend a medic be part of the group.  Bullets hurt in this system.

OK. There're like 4x as many skills that would apply to a PI than there are for a medic, so for a first ever CP PC, it's probably best that I keep it simple and gen up a Medtech. That's the plan.

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You could always multi-class that 5th Ability point into Fixer.  That wouldn't complicate anything at all... ;)

So, if I want to buy cyberware that adds up to 60HL, I'll need at least 7 EMP to avoid cyberpsychosis right off the bat?

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Yup.  Or buy therapy

In reply to Data Source (msg # 36):

Thanks. I just found non-cyberware gear that'll do the same jobs for less EB and HP loss, so that gives me some more wiggle room.

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Do characters still get the separate 800eb stipend for fashion/fashionware (p. 105)?

Sure.  Characters should have nice things.

Ok, here's where I'm at:


Alexander Cruz
aka ‘Lube Job’
aka ‘Cruz Control’
aka Al Crews

Bodysculpted Puerto Rican chop shop owner.  Ex-U.S. Navy Electronics Technician (Nuclear Power).

Alexander Cruz grew up in the Aldecaldo camp in Heywood.  From a young age, he was more interested in girls, guns, gadgets, and grease than bugs-in-your-teeth rides across the hellscape of ‘merica.  At sixteen he took the ASVABs and scored high enough to be offered a huge signing bonus for a six year stint in the U.S. Navy's Submarine Electronics/Computer Field.  Alex couldn’t see past the dollar signs and signed up not fully understanding that he was committing to spending most of those six years in a tin-tube, deep in the ocean.  Unwilling to pay back his recruitment bonus, he toughed it out, earned his dolphins, then promised himself he’d spend the rest of his life on land after EAOSing.

Returning to Night City, he hoped to find work as a reactor operator, but 'Nuclear' wasn't exactly a popular word in Night City.  Despite his honorable discharge from the military, few could look past his Aldecaldo heritage or the burning rubber Aldecaldo light tattoo on his right forearm.  So Alex crashed with his cousin, with whom he soon partnered with to open a garage in a forlorn Heywood Industrial warehouse.  After a slow start, business picked up when word got around that Cruz & Cousin was more than happy to indulge in illicit activities, including chopping, VIN forgery, and illegal combat mods.

For skills, I'm going to stick with the exact same skills granted by the Tech Street Rat template, with Physics as the Science selection.  That should easily balance skills with background.  I figure that should cover all the key bases for the role. For attributes, I'm going with 6 in every stat, with 2 point bumps to REF, TECH, and 1 point each to INT and COOL.

Haven't decided on the remaining 9 pts - I'll probably select them after you guys have a better idea of your skills, to avoid duplicating efforts.  Given a small the party size and how many skills CP has, it's best not to double up too much, IMHO.

Cyber and gear will mostly track with the defaults in the templates as well.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:03, Thu 26 Nov 2020.

I exported it as a PDF on my MacBook and it seems to have worked OK.

ETA. This may be stating the obvious, but once you save it you can't go back and amend it, so it's no good for saving a partly done one to complete later.
This message was last edited by the player at 11:43, Thu 26 Nov 2020.

So for my Maker Role Ability, I'm planning to put 5 points in Field Expertise and 5 points in Upgrade Expertise specialities.

Upgrade has a few cool options:

Improves an item in one of the following ways. An item can only benefit from 1 upgrade granted by this specialty.

• Lower the Humanity Loss of non-borgware cyberware by 1d6 if its typical humanity loss would be 2d6 or greater.
• Grant a typically non-concealable one- handed weapon the ability to be concealed.
• Increase an Average Quality Weapon to an Excellent Quality Weapon.
• Increase an item's SP by 1, but only if it had any to begin with.
• Upgrade a vehicle with an upgrade that only requires a Nomad Role Ability Rank of 1.

There are a few other things it can do, but these are the coolest from my POV.

So if there's some cyber you want, but don't need right off the bat, think about holding off on it for later, when it can be given a proper 'Lube Job', to make it better, stronger, faster (and most importantly, take less HC)... Likewise, there's maybe no need to buy an excellent weapon, if we find some time to take a hack at upgrading a standard weapon.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:30, Thu 26 Nov 2020.

Kenji's skills are going to be almost exclusively medical and ranged combat.

Speaking of which, First Aid and Paramedic are two different skills but have very similar descriptions (and P costs 2x). I'm not sure I can parse the difference. P sounds a bit beefier, so I should probably invest in that; should I also buy some First Aid, or is it redundant?

First Aid isn't listed as a MedTech skill in either the Streetrat or Edgerunner lists so that pretty much answers my question.

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This message was last edited by the player at 19:13, Thu 26 Nov 2020.

Data Source, what are the chances of the campaign leaving the city for any length of time. Trying to decide if I should spend any SP on Wilderness Survival (it makes sense for Kentucky's background, but I don't want to waste SP).

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I’m not planning on any wilderness activities for the foreseeable future.

In reply to Rae (msg # 43):

First Aid is one the skills everyone has to take.  So MedTech Street Rat has it at 2, then Paramedic at level 6 (Page 86.).

In reply to Spartan (msg # 46):

Ah, yes- seen and forgotten. Thanks for reminding me. Since they left FA at 2, I'm going to leave it be and invest in 6 or 7 PM (a bit costly as it's a 2x cost skill, but yeah).

Assuming either Teg or Dave is going to play a Solo with Tactics? Again, the skill makes sense for an ex-SOF combat medic, but Spartan's point about intra-party skill redundancies is well-taken.

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I can entertain myself in several ways, so I'll defer to Dave's preference.

So already I've got some issues with Melee in this edition:

1) Taking a knife to a fight - ok, you've got a knife, baseball bat, whatever and want to go to work on the homies - fine, you need Melee skill, you do damage based on melee weapon size/type, and Armor only counts for half.  Kewl.

2) Mad squabbles - guy looks at your input wrong and you start throwing punches, Brawling gets used, you do damage based on body type (7-10 body = 3d6) and armor counts for the full amount.  Seems reasonable.

3) Strike First, Strike Hard, No Mercy - Also damaged based on body type and armor counts for half - No problems here, now we know why everybody was Kung Fu fighting.

Where it gets weird is Big Knucks.  I wants me some Big Knucks.  And I want mad squabbles (bumping up Brawling).  Should be a good combo right?  Nope - Big Knucks are some sort of melee weapon, so you need the Melee skill, and even then they only do 2d6 damage... but with a BOD 7, do you do 3d6 base to Brawling...  Now I have to do math to see if 2d6 and half armor is better than 3d6 and full armor.. why?

I don't understand why Big Knucks don't just give you some extra Brawling damage.  <sigh>
This message was last edited by the player at 09:52, Sat 28 Nov 2020.

I'll try and get something sorted out over the weekend. (I'm still trying to get my head round the mechanics - it's not an area of RP'ing I enjoy...)

That is weird. Could it be 2d6 on top of the base brawling damage? I mean, it prolly doesn't state that (or you would have found it), but that would make sense, no?

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We can always house-rule it.  It's not like we're in an organized play environment.

Also, they're still releasing errata - two drops (and updates to the PDF) already.  Latest PDF is v1.2.3.

I’d probably lean more towards a 1d6 bonus.  A decent body score and 2d6 bonus and your punches are as effective as a shotgun

somethingsomethinggunshowmeme.jpg

I think I’m going to steal Teg’s individual character intros from Grey Cell.  Give us a chance to work on finding some individual character voices prior to jumping in.  I’m still a ways out on full start, but maybe as characters come in we can work on getting back into the flow.

In reply to Data Source (msg # 55):

I think that’s a jolly good idea.

In reply to Tegyrius (msg # 52):

Thanks.  I updated mine earlier. Hopefully there will be more.

@Dave, is there anything we can do to help you get more comfortable with the system or setting?

In reply to Tegyrius (msg # 58):

My primary challenge is lack of time. Time to get my head round a character concept, time to digest the mechanics and then convert that concept into the various stat blocks. Given this is a Group 0 thread I'll expand more elsewhere.

I checked "Heaven" a few days ago and no one's posted a CBPR char-sheet yet.

I was waiting for my hard copy of the rules to arrive before finalizing stats & gear, but since it's currently still MIA (last tracking update was 11/25) and the seller doesn't have to respond to me until 12/8 (I bought it from Noble Knight through E-Bay because their site said SOLD OUT- go figure), I'll try to bite the bullet and use the PDF to wrap char-gen up this weekend.

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That seems suspicious.  I always buy direct from Noble Knight's site and they usually ship within 48 hours.

It's Noble Knight, and they shipped on time. I've been corresponding with them re the delay. It's the USPS that have boobed things up; the tracking info confirms this.

My theory is that NK reserves sets aside a couple of items and posts them on E-bay so as to maintain a virtual storefront there. That's why they were selling a rulebook on E-bay when their own online store stock said Sold Out. I reckon there'd be a way to cross-reference stock between the same platforms, though, so I could be wrong.

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Ahhhh.  Roger that.

Option 1

Lucius Herrera - "Hornet"

Not so long ago, the Velásquez pack was a big name around the Nomad fires.  Based out of an old US Air Force base in Idaho, they flew three deltas, touching the Black and trading with the Highriders.  Then some bad shit went down.  Exactly what is a subject of rumor - betrayal, sabotage, internal strife, crossing the wrong megacorp, breaking some esoteric Highrider taboo - and the Velásquez pack fell from grace - literally.  Night Mail and Falconer are scars on mountainsides and no one's seen their third ship in years.

Now the Velásquez survivors are earthbound like the rest of their Nomad kin, scraping for whatever scraps are left in the time of the Red.  The pack elders keep to the High Roads, staying on the move.  The younger members - hungry, eager, and expendable - are the Velásquez agents in the cities.

Hornet is one such scion.  Born before the pack's fall but coming of age after it, he was supposed to be one of the next generation of Velásquez Deltajocks.  Rebuilding the pack's fortunes is more than a duty for him.  It's the road to the future that was yanked out from under him.  He grew up on his parents' stories of the Black and he's not content to remain down here in the ruins of humanity's past.

Key skills: Drive Land Vehicle +15, Persuasion +11, Streetwise +11

Cyber: Neural link; interface plugs (wrists)

Key equipment: Roadbike w/ enhanced interface plug integration; excellent-quality SMG (antique H&K MP7A4)

Option 2

Garrett McAfee - "Fencer"

Fencer was born in Night City at the turn of the millennium.  One of the first generation of the city's street kids, he grew up in the shadow and firelight of corporate conflicts, running with a neighborhood gang whose power struggles replicated those of the high towers in microcosm.  In his late teens, he came to the attention of a corporate talent scout.  He signed on with a small security corporation, Taggart Precision Kinetics, just in time to become a footsoldier in the Fourth Corporate War.

Subcontracts and mutual aid agreements make for strange strategic maneuvers.  Fencer was in Europe, deployed on a covert executive protection op, on 20 August 2023.  TPK's headquarters vanished in the Nuke and the ripples of the DataKrash did for the company's offsite backups.  Operating under a false identity maintained by a TPK subsidiary, Fencer became homeless, jobless, and nationless overnight.

The chaos of the 4th Corp War's aftermath left plenty of opportunities, even for a guy who didn't exist.  Fencer rebuilt; clawed his way up from conscript-level cannon-fodder contracts; spent most of two decades as a deniable asset and ornamental smart meat weapon system for an endless succession of employers across Europe.  Last year, after the messy end of a messy affair, the Continent was no longer a hospitable place.  After bribing and shooting his way out, Fencer came home to Night City to see what was left of his old hometown.

Key skills: Handgun +15; Perception +14; Tactics +14

Cyber: Neural link; subdermal grip; enhanced antibodies; Sandevistan speedware; scratchers

Key equipment: Excellent heavy pistol w/ smartgun link
This message was last edited by the player at 19:34, Sun 20 Dec 2020.

I promise I'll have something done by tomorrow.

In reply to Dave (msg # 66):

No hurry Dave.  I’m at the farm this weekend and have a pretty long project list.

Teg: any word on the new blood?

Spartan, by any chance, can Lube Job install weapons attachments at a discount?

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I presume he can install weapon attachments, but in the rules as written, I couldn't find anything about discount.  Maybe Keys can provide some guidance?  The cost of the attachments probably include installation, so maybe there's some nominal discount for Lube Job to do it?

Having never played CP before, how important are weapon damage dice? Is it like D&D where more is almost always better, or T2k where the difference between an MP5 and a G3 doesn't have as much of an impact on whether the target is going down?

I'm trying to sort weapons. My PC has military experience so it makes sense for him to have the Shoulder Arms skill, but would a medic really lug around an AR in addition to all his other gear? Would a heavy SMG make more sense? Just trying to figure out skill and weapons budgets and I don't want to make a big mistake on way or the other.

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Damage dice are very important in punching through body armor.  However, because we may be operating in areas where law enforcement is still vigorously active, longarms should come along only when we're planning for a gunfight.  I'd say you should have options for covert and overt mission profiles.

GM's opinion may vary, of course.

My take is more usually equals better.  All hits ablate armor at the same rate as long as they penetrate, but more left over is helpful.  It’s more about balancing the different hit numbers at various ranges that you need to account for.  That 5d6 assault rifle isn’t going to do you much good in CQB compared to a low damage pistol or small AMG.

And to Teg’s point, carrying a long arm does project a certain something about your intentions...

Thanks, guys. So I'm thinking I will invest SP in pistols and shoulder arms, but probably start off the game with an SMG instead of an AR (and hope to acquire the latter later on). Does that sound about right? I just don't want to dump SP in SA if he'll never use it, know what I mean?

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I mean, that's why Cruz is packing a Mr. Studd...

Okay,

I’m back at home and back on shift.  Can we set a tentative goal of characters done by Sunday?

In the meantime I’ll work on some intro threads as characters come in and we’ll aim for a slow take off the week after?

I know we’ve got the holidays and perhaps more disruptive, Cyberpunk 2077 dropping so I’m not in a big hurry, but it would probably be good to start generating some momentum.  I know it would be for me.  Thoughts?

In reply to Data Source (msg # 76):

I think I can get Kentucky ready by Sunday. I pre-ordered CP2077 for XBox 1 back in March but I'm pretty sure I've got the willpower to hold off long enough to put the time in here.

Can I get an answer to the question I posted in #74?

@Teg: Would you like my opinion on which one of your PC concepts you should choose for Ch. 1? If not, it's cool. I don't want to be a busybody, that's why I'm asking first.

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This message was last edited by the player at 22:16, Tue 08 Dec 2020.

Oh yeah, sorry!

Yes, balancing the two is probably wise.  There will come a day for the shoulder arms skill.

Yeah, I'll get something done by Sunday.

I think your proposed course of action is appropriate.  Start with an SMG, plus sidearm if you're so inclined, and pick up an assault rifle later when funding and need coincide.



Yes, please.  That's why I threw them out there.  I can go with either one, or come up with something else fairly quickly, depending on group opinions.  This is a familiar genre and setting for me and I'm comfortable with the base system, so I want to ensure everyone else has something they'll be happy with before I lock in on a team niche.

My two cents is that we've got a nomad (El-Lube-O'), so a Solo would give us more skill coverage/less overlap. I like the background too (they're both cool in that regard, so that's a push).

-

El Lubricado is socially/culturally a Nomad but I think he's mechanically built in the Tech role.  Does that change your opinion?

Good point. It could. Do we know what role Dave's planning on going with?

The most important factor, IMHO, is that you play a PC that you really want to get to know and tell stories with.

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This message was last edited by the player at 04:17, Wed 09 Dec 2020.

Teg, if you’re still on the fence, my vote would be peace through superior firepower.  Or the Solo.

Teg, is your friend going to be joining us?

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Unfortunately, no.  He just joined a new Roll20/Discord campaign of something else and he's full up on commitments.

Great PC prologue's, Keys. Kentucky's already in quite a pickle but I can dig it. Giving his next move some thought.

-

I’d say don’t overthink it.  View it as a chance to be cool.

Option 3

Martin Lowell - "Whisper"

Whisper, like many of his generation, grew up on Night City's streets, staring up not at the stars but at the lights of the megacorp towers.  Both were equally out of reach.  But the stars have to interface with the dirt to make business happen, and Whisper was a regular in the clubs where the informal deals were made.  He orbited their periphery, doing odd favors and hoping for his big break.

That break came one bad night in the Third Eye.  An exec decided to settle a problem kinetically and Whisper was in the right place at the right time to stop two bullets and make it look intentional afterward.  The suit he saved didn't feel particularly indebted.  The suit's assigned bodyguard, on the other hand, was very grateful - her boss had ditched her to go slumming, but that wouldn't have saved her job if he'd bled out under the drum set of Night City's third-best Samurai cover band.  So she got Whisper patched up, took him under her wing, and taught him a few things.

One of the more critical lessons was marketing.  Whisper needed a niche if he was going to be more than another disposable hero.  That niche, he decided, would be subtlety.  Razorboys with fuck-off-big guns and enough ostentatious chrome to shit out a motorcycle get noticed, but a lot of people need their problems solved in way that won't be noticed.  There's more money and cred to be made with a rep for discretion than one for putting hair on the walls.  And some of the best marketing is a satisfied customer who tells his friends - or his boss - about the guy who took care of an issue quietly...

I just realized that I'm playing a medtech in a game GM'ed by a real-life life-saver. I hope my convincing bullshit generator goes up to 11. ;)

@All: What makes more sense for a SOF medic to get implanted in the service, Kerenzikov or Sandevistan?

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This message was last edited by the player at 05:18, Mon 21 Dec 2020.

Basic Tech is listed as a MedTech skill in the templates but I can't think of a good reason to spend any SP on it when A) we've already got a very skilled tech on the team B) Cybertech is a separate Medtech skill. Thoughts?

Also, SOF medic: Kerenzikov or Sandevistan?

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I always think of the guys with Kerenzikov as being “always on” and as a consequence kind of twitchy.  Like a professional can spot the guys that are wired with it because they kind of have to throttle back their responses to the world.  That being said, that’s probably what a SOF guy would pack.  Never know when you might get hit, might not have time to spin up.

As far as basic tech...
Eh...more specialized skills are probably more valuable.

In reply to Data Source (msg # 93):

Thanks x2.

If you have time, would you mind scanning Kentucky's skills, make sure nothing's wasted (i.e. overspent) or uselessly low?

Also, would one inject benzodiazepine into the jugular vein, carotid artery, neither? I guess jugular 'cause you'd want it to go to the heart to get cycled throughout the body, but maybe an artery to the brain would be better?

-

That's part of why I spent 40% of Whisper's starting funds on therapy.  After having his whole nervous system rebuilt, he had to re-learn how to move like a normal person again avoid freaking out the neighbors.

In reply to Rae (msg # 94):

Pretty much everything goes into a vein.  Arteries are under such high pressure that if you poke a hole in one, blood tends to jet out.  I’ve seen IV in peripheral arteries (like in the elbow) push back against an IV drip set and start to fill the IV bag with blood when one of our guys messed up and hit an artery instead of a vein on a difficult stick.  So you nailed that one.

In reply to Tegyrius (msg # 95):

Love it!

What's the specific use case for IO?  I know it's a thing (and apparently painful as fuck) but I'm not sure when you'd want to use it.

In reply to Data Source (msg # 96):

Phew! Hey, anytime I screw up something medical-related, don't hesitate to correct me.

-

In reply to Tegyrius (msg # 98):

In reference to the IO system (which for the uninitiated is an IV we place directly into a long bone like the head of the humerus or tibia via a small drill) gets used when we have to pour a ton of fluid or meds into a patient in a rapid manner.  Apparently the bone marrow channel in the center of the bone allows for rapid absorption.  We use it almost exclusively in full arrest situations where our patient is essentially dead except for CPR in progress.

The military has spring-loaded versions of the system that can punch directly into the sternum for the same effect and uses it for massive blood loss situations.

The drill itself doesn't actually hurt that much, what hurts is the fluid being pushed into the bone and it's not an easy push.  I usually wrap the IV bag with a blood pressure cuff and inflate it to about six billion mm/hg. For a conscious patient (and really, come on, needle IVs aren't that hard unless you're dealing with a land manatee who has shit for veins), we would drill in, then inject 50mg of lidocaine to numb the site before we get carried away with medications.

@Rae:  No worries, I can read between the lines and issue gentle corrections.  I'll take the treatment in the spirit it is intended.

Rae:

Your skills look good.  Two of your languages (street and either spanish or japanese) should be level 4 for free.  You might want to rearrange just a bit to get your evasion to 6, but that's just a preference.

In reply to Data Source (msg # 100):

My first paramedic partner stuck everyone with 14G when she was starting IVs.  It was like 16/18/20 didn't exist.  She'd only reach for something smaller for pediatric patients.  85 pound nursing home resident - 14 gauge large bore IV.  15 year old 10-50 PI victim - 14 gauge large bore IV.  She'd get them too.  It was amazing.

Interosseous was just coming into wide spread use when I got out.  Haven't had one computer spit or bleed on me.. not once... ;)  So thanks for staying on the front lines - Street Warrior!
This message was last edited by the player at 19:13, Mon 21 Dec 2020.

Hopefully I'll get a few more posts up today, but I've got some running around to get done prior to my wife and I celebrating our 15th anniversary tonight.  I'll try to crack a bit on the Text2k stuff as well.

In reply to Data Source (msg # 101):

Thanks. Will do.

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In reply to Data Source (msg # 103):

Congrats!

benzodiazepine works just fine for seizure, too.

In reply to Data Source (msg # 106):

Perfect. I've taken the liberty of assuming that Kenji doesn't rate Mr. Handsy as a serious threat. Perhaps that was a bit presumptuous. If I need to roll a Perception check or something, please let me know.

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You’re good.  I’m not rolling anything at this point anyway.

Do any of the PCs have a personal vehicle? Have y'all decided where in the city your PC lives ATM?

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This message was last edited by the player at 01:12, Mon 28 Dec 2020.

Also, when is this campaign set? Time of the Red? 2077? Somewhere in between?

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2045,
Time of the Red

Okay,

That post in Martin's thread concludes my introductions (although if Teg wants to post handing PomPom cash and not a bar, I'm down to read/write my part).  I'm on the road tomorrow and headed up to the farm.  I'll have my computer with me and I plan on getting the first real post up for Chapter 1 in the next day or two.  If you want to keep going on the intros, please feel free.  I'll answer any questions in character or we can exchange a bit more dialog if you feel like it.

In reply to Data Source (msg # 112):

Sounds good. You may have mentioned this before, but how long a trip is from your home to your farm?

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It’s about a 5 hour drive weather/traffic depending.  Luckily we’ve got road warriors for kids who don’t mind sitting in the car.  The Nintendo Switches may have something to do with that though...

I'm good with proceeding to the main story.

Just shoveled the driveway after 5" of snow, so my tiny Tyrannosaurus arms are very tired.  Don't want to type a lot today.

Cool.

Did Whisper scrape the, let’s call it 300eb, necessary to become a member of Conrad’s?

Much as he'd like to put his money where his mouth is (heh), he doesn't have the remaining funds for it after his starting equipment purchases.

Fair enough.

Literally, I mean.  140eb remaining.

Couple more questions, in a addition to the outstanding ones re vehicles and residences: Assuming Armorjack can be incorporated into civilian clothing (like a jacket)? Or is CP body armor much like contemporary stuff?

Also, been thinking a bit more about Kerenzikov v. Sandevistan for Kenji. Although it makes sense that a SOF soldier would be "on" all the time, I imagine being overly twitchy could be a major detriment to a combat medic. For that reason, I think something that was default "off" (i.e. Sandevistan) would be a better fit. Make sense, or am I wrong?

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This message was last edited by the player at 22:14, Sat 02 Jan 2021.

Based on what we see in the CP2020 Chromebooks, I think so - and to a certain extent, certain fashion branches have evolved to blur the line between "armored" and "looks armored."  My take is that anything up to SP11 armor (the max for no penalties) can be incorporated into street clothing.  Above that, it becomes obvious - which, in a setting where the ol' ultraviolence is closer to the surface, is not always the same as socially unacceptable.



I interpret the higher HL of Kerenzikov as having more severe in-universe warning labels about the dangers of cyberpsychosis.  It's going to generate a greater divergence from what we would consider "neurotypical."  However, Sandevistan's big limitation for a soldier is the one-minute activation time with the subsequent one-hour cooldown.  That feels like a liability in the sustained firefights that would be more common for a military user than for a Night City street user.

Ultimately, despite Sandevistan seeming more appropriate for a street user, I went with Kerenzikov for Martin because of the always-on effect.  Having to spin up Sandevistan with an inhaler or subvocal command is appropriate for someone who plans to be the one initiating combat a lot, but he doesn't have that luxury.  This viewpoint was influenced by his mentor, who, as an executive protection specialist, usually operated in defensive/reactive mode.

In reply to K. Takanori (msg # 120):

FWIW, if you want to try one and switch to the other if it doesn’t work, I’m cool with that.  We’re all kinda experimenting here.

In reply to Data Source (msg # 122):

I trust you guys' CPU knowledge. I was just imagining someone with live reflex boosters trying to close off an artery and it wasn't pretty.

In another uncanny case of synchronicity, I'd never seen/heard "Charcutiere" until last night, when Michelle produced one for dinner.

Me: "Ooh. This looks good. Tapas?"

Her: "It's called Charcutiere."

-

This message was deleted by the player at 05:24, Sun 03 Jan 2021.

Sunday's are my Monday's, so I'll try to work something up today, but no promises.  We are crashing on an interagency 'let's close the gate now that all the horses are out,' initiative.

In the spirit of keeping you guys informed and not spending time on a false lead, I pulled the salary amount from Pg 381, typical job 1,000eb.  I agree that this amount seems a little low for the style of gig you're looking at, so we can negotiate the amount higher if you would like.

In summary to the last few posts you have:

-A possible Maelstrom grab in a New Inquisition controlled area.  Daphne disappeared off the grid leaving behind a dead boyfriend
-Father a VP with Militech
-No contact with the father from the kidnappers
-Reasonable cyberware on the victim, but nothing reported as outlandish
-A netrunner working to obtain better surveillance footage + profile of the boyfriend
-Flesh peddlers not working in the vicinity of the grab

Additional pieces you would know as residents of NC:
-While this area is New Inquisition, the area several blocks south is Maelstrom territory
-Maelstrom and New Inquisition members have been increasing the ferocity of their "interactions" lately

Let me know if you need anything else.

Makes sense. I wasn't read up on salaries/fees. 3k does seem a bit low, though, all things considered. Would you rather just retcon it to a slightly higher number and I can edit out Kenji's pay question, or would you rather play it out IC? Either way is cool with me.

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Let’s handle IC with the tacit agreement that Jasper will not be pissed off about the situation as you all approach it professionally.  That way you have some freedom to be cool.

Which I guess begs the question, what do you guys think the going rate for kidnap recovery is in world?

For me, the disconnect was between the gig's pay and our starting living conditions:



That's 1,800eb/month, implying that we semi-regularly have been pulling in enough to meet that and our other expenses.

However, I just dove a little deeper.  In the absence of fixer gigs, our weekly income is in the tables on pp. 382-385.  With our Rank 5 role abilities, our average would be 217eb/week for Kentucky and Whisper and 200eb/week for Lube.  Monthly (assuming a four-week month), that comes out to 868eb and 800eb, respectively.  So each month, each of us would need to be picking up one typical job (1keb) or two easy jobs (500eb each) just to make ends meet - more in months with bad rolls.

With that in mind, 1k each doesn't actually seem entirely off-base.  One of the tenets of the fiction is that edgerunners (indeed, most people) exist perpetually on the edge of financial disaster.  What we might want to do, however, is negotiate for expenses.

And loot the bodies.

(ETA: Also, we are getting netrunner support for this, which is probably coming out of the total outlay.)
This message was last edited by the player at 19:03, Sun 03 Jan 2021.

I guess Kenji's argument for a slightly higher fee (1500-2000 each) would be that this is not just a simple extraction mission, being that we have to find the target first.  Extraction + investigation = higher fee.

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Have I mentioned that this is the reason I like gaming with you guys?

Collaborative problem solving!!

Jasper will agree to 1500eb with reimbursement for reasonable expenses related to the job (medical, bribes, etc...).

If Spartan doesn’t want to cover that in his post, I’ll get an IC up tomorrow with the relevant info.
This message was lightly edited by the GM at 22:32, Sun 03 Jan 2021.

I'm not sure what to do next, so I just threw something out there. There's most likely a better way to start, so don't feel obligated to go along with Kenji's suggestion.

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Just a short one to keep momentum up.  I'm almost done with this A/DCM stuff, so hopefully more and better posting this weekend!

No worries.  This gives me enough to plan ahead a bit.  I’ll aim for a new post tomorrow.

Quick question: do you guys want to designate a point of contact character that handles the comms with your support team or do you want to assume that comms go to the group at large?

In reply to Data Source (msg # 137):

In this format, I think feeding coms to all PCs is preferable, so that all of us have the opportunity to engage directly. It eliminates the need for a middleman, which speeds things up (especially in PbP).

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This message was last edited by the player at 21:10, Thu 07 Jan 2021.

In reply to K. Takanori (msg # 138):

Cool by me.

I Googled the Inquisitors to see if I could learn more about them and there's not much out there. The other gangs of CP2077 have really well-established aesthetics. What do y'all imagine the Inquisitors' look is? Militant Amish? Spanish inquisition (robes and broad-brimmed hats)? Other?

Also, how do they make money? They hate cyber, but are they moralistic otherwise? I'm guessing not but maybe you guys know more than I do.

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CPRed makes them kind of a joke.  The gang section takes about how dangerous they are, then the encounter tables have them screaming stuff like “death to the chrome demon!” as they attack with swords.  I figure protection rackets and selling body parts of the people they “liberate” from cybernetic slavery.  Which means they have to be pretty proficient at taking down folks with serious chrome.  Otherwise, doormats.

General appearance of priestly inspired garb sporting patches of loosely based religious symbols.  Armor with priest collars, lots of crucifixes, and a lot of bad attitude.  They can’t be dumb. They just can’t be and expect to survive.

Just taking the temperature here:

Everybody okay so far?
Seriously, no pressure and no hard feelings if you would prefer not to continue.  I’ll run Rae alone if need be.  I’m having fun, but I understand if you’re not feeling it.  Or just don’t have bandwidth.

Mea culpa.  I forgot Rae had posted and I was waiting for him to post because I'd previously suggested that Takanori take the lead on the investigation.

In reply to M. Lowell (msg # 143):

No problem. Y'all know my activity profile pretty well by now. If I haven't posted within 48 hours of the last post- without forewarning- send the cavalry 'cause something's wrong. ;)

I'll hold off on replying to Whisper until Spartan has had a chance to post.

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This message was last edited by the player at 23:10, Sun 10 Jan 2021.

Sorry for the delay, when my DCMship ended we were also crashing on a Cabinet level visit.  But that got scrubbed for what must be obvious reasons...

In any event, this is exactly the kind of role in the party I see for Cruz - holding down the fort, keeping the car running, being the guy hanging back with the shotgun.
This message was last edited by the player at 10:00, Mon 11 Jan 2021.

Ah yes, what is CP without prostitution...

LOL, Anders. Brilliant.

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Rae, it's still your show.  You want Whisper to assist or stand back?

In reply to M. Lowell (msg # 148):

Let's see if Father Leo responds to reason. If Kenji ends up having to throat punch him, consider the act an unspoken request for immediate assistance.

-

Roger that.

Edit:  I'm also going to give Cruz the option to update Kenji with some of the new data prior to responding for the Inquisitors.  It's a little loosey/goosey with time, but it should help keep us moving.

To save some back and forth on Viceroy's data dump, she will be able to provide a back track of the smoker to a warehouse with no feeds.  The van returned to the same warehouse, but no visuals exist for the crew entering or exiting the building.  Her best guess would be that the site is used specifically to throw off electronic pursuit.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:16, Mon 18 Jan 2021.

Kenji said quite a lot on my last IC so for flow and continuity's sake, Father Leo should probably say something before Kenji speaks again.

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Cool, I'll get something up during mid-morning my time inshallah... ;)

In reply to K. Takanori (msg # 152):

I’ll get it put up

In reply to Data Source (msg # 154):

Thanks. Wasn't trying to rush you- just wasn't quite picking up what you were laying down in OOC #151.

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No worries!  Hopefully all of that makes sense!

Who has the best stealth?  :)

Looks like Kenji at +14.

Martin has a disposable cell phone, too, which he will donate to the cause (expenses!) for tagging the second van.

Let me know your game plan and I’ll start generating the post.

Whisper and Kenji will crouch for stealth, then start putting Maelstrom goons in sleeper holds and stashing them in dumpsters.  Lube will hack the cameras.

Ooh fun.  Does he have the Suicide hack?  That works way better than it should.

In reply to M. Lowell (msg # 160):

Ha ha.

There're two goons near the vans. There're also civies around. I don't have anything more creative than mingle in with the crowd and wait for a window to apply the makeshift trackers. Or one us distracts the goons somehow (chit-chat, finder bender, drive-by, ?), while the other two (of us) apply the trackers.

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This message was last edited by the player at 21:25, Sat 23 Jan 2021.

Are we rolling with Whisper and Kenji placing devices and Cruz creating a diversion?

That works for me.  I think Cruz has both the lowest stealth capability and the best toolkit for creating a diversion.

Yeah, I'm trying to think of fun things to do with a road flare that won't get me shot.

In reply to A. Cruz (msg # 165):

Maybe burnouts or donuts in the street?

Or another Mr. Stud demo?

;)

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Good idea.

excuse_me_while_i_whip_this_out.jpg

Rolling a 1 is terrible in this system.

After finishing CP2077's main story quest, I've been tooling around Night City completing all of the crime-in-progress thingies. Today, in Wellsprings, I came upon a Valentinos crew looting a downed Trauma Team AV. Coincidentally, Kentucky cleaned up and went solo after his TT team was ambushed by gangers. And I thought I was being pretty original.

-

Re comms, Kenji has a radio earpiece. I assume that since this is the future, he also has some kind of fancy voice activated mic embedded somewhere (IIRC seeing anything like that in the CPR gear lists). Do you guys have radios too, internal or external? I'm just trying to figure out if we need to send texts or whatever, or if we can essentially communicate simply by willing it.

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Whisper has an internal radio.



I've been assuming that implant radio = direct neural interface, so he doesn't actually have to speak out loud to transmit.

Hoping to get a post up tonight.  Drove home from the farm and then did taxes.
Is there a text emoji for gun to the head?

Lol

-

Some of Cruz's ideas are 02:20 am got up to take a leak and checked RPOL ideas, so just keep that in mind before you readily agree to anything.

They make sense to me.

So, we kind of have to wait and see how the van thing pans out, look for evidence that our target is being held somewhere else. If we find some, then we should probably do area recon at the new site. If we don't, then we assume she's in the Molt? Is that how y'all are reading things too?

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That's my interpretation, yeah.  And with two of our faces known to at least a couple of the Maelstrom goons, we probably shouldn't hang around the neighborhood too obvious-like.

Just confirming the game plan:
1) exfil to a safe distance
2) monitor van situation
3) recon new site should the target vehicles move

How long would you like me to wait for movement?

I'm not sure how long it would be prudent to wait. In hostage situations, time is often of the essence. But we need to be sure where she is before we attempt to execute the rescue so it's a trade-off.

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I think we're not gonna do a raid or an infiltration while the club is active.  Too many bystanders/witnesses.  So that kind of dictates that we'll wait until the club closes (and, in the meantime, get some rest in shifts somewhere secure).  Does that work or do you guys have other legwork ideas?

Good point. I concur.

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If this were the 80's and just us and the badguys were on the only ones armed, then the classic gunfight in the club while loud music rages and bystander's flee could be cool.

But it ain't and everyone's packing pistols in calibers the 80's only dreamed off and even the bystanders and just a 0.1 shy of going cyberpsycho, so yeah, prolly should wait.

Okay,
I've set you a waiting point and left it open if you want to RP a little bit or have more questions you want answered.  If you don't, just let me know and I'll bounce the action along to preserve momentum.  No worries either way.

Nothing to see here.

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This message was last edited by the player at 04:00, Tue 09 Feb 2021.

Response in the other place.  :)

I don't often break the fourth wall, but I always do before knowingly trying to explain IC how fire works to a professional firefighter.

In reply to A. Cruz (msg # 186):

hahahaha

Just to be clear, you can enter the fourth floor without passing the shrine.  If you want to go up to five, it's rat skulls and blood for the win.

I was originally going to pantomime out my response, but I presumed it would be poor form to be the tech guy who didn't have kewl comms like you guys.

That was good for a laugh on what has been a very bullshit-filled day.  Thanks for that.

apologies guys.

I will be posting tomorrow.  The city decided that today would be an amazing friday to go bonker-balls and I'm tapped at the moment.

Yes.  Yes they do.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:15, Sun 14 Feb 2021.

I figured they did, but Martin isn't enough of a techie to make an authoritative statement.

Just wanted to make sure Cruz has the info he needs to comment.

I presumed that since Techs don't have lock pick as a selection in the Street Rat template (but do have electronic security system), they probably deal with them without picking them per se.  Drill them out with ye olde toolhand perhaps?  <shrug>

Why pick the lock when you can take the whole door out of its frame?

That taser is like Cruz's cyberware - he didn't buy it just for show.  Also, after seeing that fucked up shrine one level up, he's got a bad feeling that getting thrown off the building is the best out come if this guy catches 'little shit'.

On a autobiographical side note, when I was about 15, some friends and I were tied up and robbed by a machete-wielding man on a volcano in Ecuador. I thought I was going to die. Obviously, we got away.

I wish a good Samaritan had been on hand to Tase that a-hole.

-

In reply to K. Takanori (msg # 197):

Well that's fucked up.

Wish somebody would have been there for you and your friends as well.

In reply to Data Source (msg # 198):

Thanks. I can laugh about it now but, at the time, I thought i was a goner.

-
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 21:37, Wed 17 Feb 2021.

Damn, that's fucked up.  Remind me to avoid that volcano*!

*I really haven't been anywhere in central/south America except for a destination wedding in Cancun, so it's all drug dealers and machete wielders in my mind anyway... which I know is stupid.

This was back in '88 or so. It was pretty safe then, overall. A buddy and I hitchhiked pretty regularly at 13 (I'm mortified thinking about it now), and my brother and I took taxis home from school everyday for a year-and-a-half or so, all without incident. Ransom kidnappings weren't really a thing yet, I guess. But there was a lot of anti-Yanqui sentiment there (mostly manifested in political graffiti). I remember at least two bomb threat evacs at my international (re American) high school. And petty crime was pretty common. One of our rental homes was broken into and robbed. And then there was the dramatic, dragged-out mugging I mentioned. Quito is a lot different now, in ways both good and bad. I haven't been back, but I have an old friend who returns once a twice a year. It's a beautiful country.

I undeleted a post (#98) that includes a question for y'all.

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This message was last edited by the player at 22:05, Fri 19 Feb 2021.

I'm not trying to game the system, so if this is out of bounds, let me know. If we decide to infiltrate the pagoda, it would be good to have some heavier firepower on hand than a couple of pistols and Cruz's shotgun. A fixer of Black Jasper's standing would be able to supply us with heavier weapons (submachine guns and/or assault rifles), no?

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I think that he would, but the question becomes how to play balance that exchange.  And it’s a conversation I’m willing to have.

From my point of view, CP assumes that the characters use their own weapons/gear in conducting the jobs they take on.  Whether that’s realistic (or fair) is up for debate.  So if Jasper did provide equipment, I’m thinking it would have to be loaner gear with a potential financial downside for loss/damage.  The flip side of that is it is in Jasper’s interest to have you complete the task.  In the real world he’s not going to say: “sorry about your kiddo, my guys couldn’t afford the right guns even though I have access to the gear they needed and wouldn’t give it to them for reasons.”

I guess the real question is - do encounters scale, or, it is what it is...?

*cough*scale*cough*

That all makes sense. Kenji has his own subgun, so he prolly doesn't really need heavier firepower for this op, but I thought the matter was worth bringing up.

A "you break it, you buy it" policy makes sense, but I do get how it would still undermine game parameters, so if all of Jasper's heavy iron is being used by other crews, getting serviced, or in Police lockup until a bribe is made to the right party, etc., I'll understand.

Now, what about helmets? Helmets seem very un-cyberpunk to me, but if it's a choice between taking a round in the dome or not, the latter is obviously preferable. I couldn't bring myself to buy a helmet, so, if everybody else has one, that's one piece of loaner gear that Kenji would need until he can buy his own.

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For now, let's assume that you are going forward with the guns you have. For future ops, we can work some kind of loaner system out. If you need a helmet, feel free to drop one in your gear.  We'll consider it on loan from Jasper.

Martin has a helmet, but I envision it as a full-face motorcycle helmet rather than something overtly tactical.

I'm good with proceeding with current armament, especially as we have meta intel that encounters will scale (meaning the GM won't punish us too hard for using out starting equipment).  Longer-term, suppressed+smartlinked is a goal, but that can wait.

@Keys - for non-smartlinked weapons, is there any user authorization, or can we reasonably assume that battlefield pickups will be usable (subject to the previous owner's attention to maintenance)?
This message was last edited by the player at 01:31, Thu 25 Feb 2021.

Sweet sweet Skinweave has got me covered.

In reply to M. Lowell (msg # 208):

I'm going to go with Smart Weapons are reprogrammable but not immediately operational.  Cruz might need a minute or two to update the options.  Presumably these would function in a way that if you lost your weapon in a scuffle, some Scav couldn't pick it up and shoot you with it right away.

In reply to Data Source (msg # 210):

I like that ruling, as it spotlights Cruz's role ability and it prevents us getting shot with our own Smart Weapons.

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I like that. I'll have to pick one up at some point. Hopefully Kenji doesn't take a bullet, bat, machete, brick, etc. to the head before then.

Should we ask Royce to show us the way through the garage to the Listener compound?

-

Is it ok that Kentucky's got his sub gun? I was going to post IC about him returning to the rental to gear up but you beat me to the punch (not complaining).

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It’s all good.  I’m trying to find the balance on advancing, character agency, and momentum

Travel day.  Post coming tonight or tomorrow.

I noticed that tactical lights aren't listed as Weapon Attachments in the rulebook. Is it OK if Kentucky attaches his flashlight to his sub-gun? Everything's Picatinnied these days so I reckon 2040 wouldn't be all that different, but I don't make the rules so, what say you?

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Even without Pic rails, you can always go old school SAS: hose clamps and duct tape.

In reply to K. Takanori (msg # 216):

Sure, no worries.

I think you're going a great job.

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This message was last edited by the player at 23:06, Sat 27 Feb 2021.

My favorite part of collaborative RP'ing is the novel ideas that my fellow players come up with.

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https://gizmodo.com/scientists...d-tattoos-1846379012

All right, you guys got some heavy advantages on that sequence from the ambush position.  That and Teg managed to pull two 10's in a row on his grab attack, so I threw a critical hit in for good measure.  I gave Rae two called shots to the head that ignored armor, but that won't be nearly so easy in active combat (I know you're only supposed to get one, but come on, let's have it be cool).

Nicely done so far.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:01, Tue 02 Mar 2021.

Not to quibble, but did my damage on that (free) crit include the bonus from my Combat Awareness stack?  This is my first combat in the system too; still trying to get a feel for how the moving pieces support the fiction.

No worries:

So yeah, I looked at your options of a hand strike vs a throw that bypasses armor and then actually rolled hand damage to see what would do better for you.  The throw does damage equal to the body stat vs 2d6 for a hand strike.  Technically you would have to do a grab first, which is what I rolled the dice for but figured striking from ambush would allow you to complete the whole attack prior to the initiative roll coming.

The throw inflicted 7 points, the critical added +5 and stacked with the +5 from your Combat Awareness for a total of 17 points of damage.

At least that's my reading of how it went down.  It only took about fifteen minutes to figure that one attack out. ;)

Thanks for unpacking that.  The sad fact here is that because of his heavy investment in social skills and therapy to offset HL, Whisper isn't actually optimized for combat in skills or gear.  That may have been an error... we'll see.

Spartan, your mastery of the double-entendre is truly impressive. Sadly, my workplace is now blocking RPoL as a porn site.

;)

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This message was last edited by the player at 00:53, Thu 04 Mar 2021.

In reply to K. Takanori (msg # 226):

No way.. Just after that post?

In reply to A. Cruz (msg # 227):

Kidding, man. That's what I thought the symbol below indicated.

;)

It's all good, AFAIK. Sorry if I alarmed you.

But in all seriousness, that was the best "the other PCs get to do cool stuff while my PC stands guard" post I can recall ever reading.

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This message was last edited by the player at 04:43, Thu 04 Mar 2021.

Teg, is the Beretta Consigliere a weapon from OG CP lore, or something of your own creation? Google turned up bupkis.

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In reply to K. Takanori (msg # 228):

Ah, sorry.  That's what happens when I read and post before having my coffee.  My IC post is what happens when I read and post after having my bourbon.  :P

It’s my own invention, same as the branded cyberware on Whisper’s sheet. No stat differences, just flavor. I figured that since hypercommercialism is one of cyberpunk’s themes, branding matters. :)

In reply to M. Lowell (msg # 231):

Cool. I like it.

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NP. Have you considered Irish Coffee?

What current or sci-fi shotgun does Cruz's scattergun look like?

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Yeah, so what I purchased 'by the book' was a Standard Weapon Quality Shotgun, then added an extended mag.  That moves it from a 4 round tube to what is most likely and 8 rd tube.

But the exemplar for a standard quality shotgun is:

Arasaka "Rapid Assault", which is like a 30-rd autoshotgun and not at all similar to the 'Standard' stats.

https://cyberpunk.fandom.com/w...close-quarters%20use.

So really, who the fucks knows.  I liked the earlier rules of 'Old guns never die' and I'd always buy an older but badass weapon (Steyr Aug, etc.), then use the savings to pimp it with some stuff (smart gun it, etc.).  Anyway, I imagine it as a 590 or 870 with a folding stock and extended magazine.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:11, Thu 04 Mar 2021.

For info, there is a rear entrance of the tent.  The stairway is approximately fifty feet from the back door.  Other options include the air shaft about two hundred feet away or the ramp the Listeners are arriving from.

I'm not discounting implant hardware, but are any of the incoming Listeners obviously armed or armored?



As a total aside, since getting an AUG, I find myself enjoying my ARs much less for anything but suppressed shooting.  The AUG is heavier than any AR I own, but the balance is wonderful and the manual of arms is no more complicated than AR or AK.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:09, Sat 06 Mar 2021.

In reply to M. Lowell (msg # 236):

Nobody is carrying a handheld.  I’d say you can see a few knives and maybe a pistol or two, all holstered.

Looking for a quick point of clarification:

Are you going to hit the Listeners as they enter the tent or before?

I'm thinking before.  Hitting them 10 meters away from the tent puts as target numbers of 13 to 15 for all our weapons.

Okay, with Rae’s permission I’ll have Kenji reposition as part of my post once Spartan kicks in (no rush dude).

In reply to Data Source (msg # 240):

That's cool. I edited his last turn to move him towards the tent entrance.

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This message was last edited by the player at 16:22, Sat 06 Mar 2021.

Not a lot of time to post, but firing incendiary shells into some cybered-up fools!

For those keeping score, Kenji beat his hit number by 5 on the autofire check, then rolled 12 on the 2d6 damage indicating a critical hit.  Because the target number was beat by 5, he did 60 points of damage, +5 for the crit, -10 for the Light Armor jack remaining after ablating the shot gun.  That's 55 points of damage to a 20 HP goon.

Chunky salsa ensues.

Nice! Great action post, BTW.

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thanks!

updated with soundtrack at top


Pretty sure this band took their name from my nickname in college.

Or not.

Just noticed the FL Listener is mentioned twice. Was Whisper's target actually the FR?

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In reply to K. Takanori (msg # 246):

good catch,
I'll update

as what I hope is the final edit, I neglected Teg's bonus damage from his class ability.  That has been rectified and the target did take some damage, though not enough to seriously wound.

Okay, confession time.

I messed up Kenji's autofire blast in the first round because I (ahem) forgot that there was an autofire skill.  Seriously?  I get it, I guess, the attack is devastating.  I'm going to let last round's attack stand, and modify to the original rule for this round based on the most beneficial target for Kenji to engage.  In this case, one of the guys in the back.

The skill should be used: Autofire + Ref + d10 to a DV based on range, in this case 13/15 depending on target.   Damage is 2d6 x the degree of success.

New systems!  Balls!

I figured he was using bullets made from Mr. Studds or some crazy shit like that.

Well even without the Autofire skill, Kenji managed to throw 30 points of damage into his next target.

Also, I held Martin at the +5 damage stage.  I'm keeping the initiative order for the duration of an encounter.  At least at this point.  The book also states that changing the assigned Combat Awareness costs an action.  I figured you'd rather shoot than rearrange your bonuses.

Edit:  If my posting rate is too fast, please let me know.  I have a daily writing routine and I've dropped CP into part of that so I'm used to producing.  We can slow down if you guys need it.
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:32, Sun 07 Mar 2021.

That works.  I'd missed the requirement for an action to reset bonuses.  That is mildly annoying.

@Rae:  direction is fine, but your spacing is off.  The Listener is roughly 1m from your position. You can move back far enough to engage at the 7m range if you want.  You have initiative, you’ll just be pulling back farther into the tent.

In reply to Data Source (msg # 253):

Edited.

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I only took two skills at +7 and Dodge has been totally worth it!

Dear 11 other people hooked this this fuckery...

In reply to A. Cruz (msg # 256):

Yeah, I'm been thinking about what to do about the surplus 11. Feels extra mercenary just to just leave 'em, but we don't have the resources to help them all. Trauma Team doesn't do pro bono, so that's prolly out. I'm thinking we call NCPD on a burner and report the chop-shop after we exfil. Whether they'll do anything about it...

Or if anyone knows a media, maybe give 'em a call, let 'em do a piece, cause a big stir, then maybe NCPD will do something. But that might take a day or two, and that's prolly too long for the 11 extras. There are other Listeners out there still (I'm thinking about the Molt, if not up above in the pagoda).

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This message was last edited by the player at 17:08, Fri 12 Mar 2021.

Here's where we're at:

Cruz threw a 21 on his cybertech roll, Daphne will be extracted in 1 min.

Let's assume it takes 2 min for Black Jasper to get back to Martin on who (if anyone) to grab.

That leaves you guys a minimum of 1 min for further extractions.  Cruz can extract 1 mind on a 20, with each additional simultaneous extraction adding 3 to the target number.  Each extraction roll takes 1 min.  A failure indicates no extractions during that minute.

Additional time also increases the risk of an organized response from above.

Make sense?

Let me know how you'd like to proceed.

Cool!  Could I use Field Expertise to boost one or more of those?

Your familiarity with technology in the field makes you a valuable asset on any job, especially when something breaks down at just the wrong moment. Add your Rank in this Specialty to any Basic Tech, Cybertech, Electronics/Security Tech, Weaponstech, Land, Sea, or Air Vehicle Tech Skill Check you make for any Non-Maker Specialty purpose.

That might help us get someone else free.  Who is dressed the nicest and has the highest end Tats (or is Aldacadero or has a veteran tat?).

No one we extract from a brain-loop is likely to be capable of self-rescuing.  We're going to have to guide/herd/carry Daphne out; likewise for anyone else we extract.

Also, some of the Listeners survived long enough to get a message out via headware radio, so we have to assume their friends are on the way.

Theoretically, Kenji could pump the corpo on the floor full of stims to get her back on her feet.  She's the most likely to be a high-value bonus target, and marginally more likely to be capable of orienting and getting herself moving once she's awake.

At a quick check, do any of the victims have smartgun induction pads in their hands?  Those might be the ones we prioritize if we want to gamble on getting more shooters online.

New handle: Lube Job Batch Job?

In reply to A. Cruz (msg # 259):

Sure, I'll allow it, Cruz is basically making it up as he's going along at this point with the system anyway. Retroactively applying that to Daphne's roll means you can wake up two additional folks in your initial work. If you want to IC post that he's looking for high value "targets" and what he's searching for, how he's doing the job, etc... I'll gin up some potential folks in the background and fill in the details in a GM post.

Awesome, thanks!  I'll probably get to that tomorrow though... I just spent 3 hours playing D&D with my Warsaw crew and need to help my better half with a few things this evening.

No worries.  That gives me some plot development time anyways.

So, we're looking at possibly four extracts (Daphne, +2 sleepers, and the slightly less unconscious Corpo Kenji can presumably stim awake)?

Pros:
It's chaotic good
It could mean mo' money

Cons:
It'll slow us down
We're going to have more people to protect if/when the Listeners catch up

Re Smartgun induction pads, if you (Teg) have Whisper ask Kentucky to check IC we prolly have time to do that before Keys has to write the next turn. Or would you prefer him try to revive the corpo first? Or should he focus on Daphne?

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This message was last edited by the player at 17:54, Sat 13 Mar 2021.

It's an ugly ethical decision (and genre-appropriate!), but Daphne is the contract and the priority.

Bear in mind that Whisper does a lot of bodyguard work, so I am comfortable (both IC and OOC) having him cover the rear while the other PCs extract as many victims as possible.  It's just that without having a better read on what condition these people will be in when they surface, I don't know how many "as many as possible" is.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:50, Sat 13 Mar 2021.

Too bad Kentucky quit the stims and combat drugs... If you were holding we'd have a party with new friends.

I believe in you.

Welcome to the party Dave!

Aka Monica.

Hey, Dave!

I can't find any mention of suppressors in the rules. They're not listed in the weapons accessories tables.

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Here's what the game site says about it:

Welcome, Dave!  Glad you're joining us.  :)

Thanks fellas, glad to have finally made it!

Cool - nice surprise!

So I've got a shotgun Monica can use if I transition to the VHP.  Does she have skill with those?  I've also got a taser that uses Pistol skill I think.

I'll be posting tomorrow noonish here in the Midwest.

The vivisectionist and his assistant zeroed in the tent + four dead bangers delivering Del Rey = two pistols recovered. At least one or two of the other bad guys were likely strapped as well. There's probably more iron close at hand.

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In reply to A. Cruz (msg # 275):

Sorry, I was swamped with work yesterday (professional and academic)

Pistol would be better - she has Handgun Skill but no Shoulder Weapons.

Lets say there's a Heavy Pistol with two extra mags mixed in with the debris from the medicine cabinet that Teg redecorated the room with.

Was that a subtle homage to the 1999 movie Bringing out the Dead starting Nicholas Cage and Ving Rhames?  Oh yes.  Yes it was...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OI6fExTQSFo

In reply to A. Cruz (msg # 280):

Quite possibly the most realistic movie to portray the paramedic (or paramagic) experience.

For those who require information:

Ji-Hoon is alive, but unconscious.  Or comatose.  It's a crap shoot really.

Emil is seizing, but starting to come down. Maybe 30 more seconds until he self stabilizes.

Pandora is moving slowly, probably 2/3 speed at the moment.  Daphne more like 1/2.  Someone would have to carry Ji-Hoon.  Plan your paydays appropriately.

Clearly Cruz is getting too distracted from all the naked chicks around...

There's a rolling stretcher here somewhere right?  Should we clear that and stack it up with Emil and Ji-Hoon?

In reply to A. Cruz (msg # 283):

Plenty of 'em

We could, but with the slope of the ramps, it's prolly a two-handed job.

I want to try and rescue as many of these poor saps as we can, but we'll prolly need every available shooter momentarily.

I keep running the numbers- people who need assistance v. able-bodied hands not occupied with weapons- but no ideal scenario comes up. Anyone else got an idea?

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This message was last edited by the player at 00:15, Fri 19 Mar 2021.

In reply to K. Takanori (msg # 285):

Blast a hole in the wall and exfil via the garbage chute that leads to the trash compactor?

Oh, wait...

Dave,

Do you mind posted Monica up in the PC thread?  We can still work out the details, but it helps me to have all the PCs in one spot.

Thanks!

In reply to Data Source (msg # 287):

Yeah, will do. Probably be Saturday though - I find these days by the time I get to Friday night my creative energy has drained away and needs to be recharged...

Same here.

@All: If we manage to get all or most the HVTs out of the compound, we'll need to call Black Jasper and ask for pickup. I doubt we'll be able to squeeze more than 6 people into the compact rental. I assume BJ's got access to an SUV or some such and a driver.

-

Could we call an Uber? Or hail a cab? Might be quicker than waiting? And I'm going to be honest I find a certain dark comedy in the thought of a motley crew sitting in an uber with a 'nothing to see here' expression. Daphne and the really jacked up cases could go in the rental.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:57, Fri 19 Mar 2021.

You guys have roughly 10 seconds in game before combat starts.

In reply to Data Source (msg # 291):

Before recent turn posts (IC/OOC), I was thinking that Kenji would pause when he reaches the foot of the ramp to wait for those behind (sort of reverse-bounding overwatch)- maybe even leave Daphne with Pandora there and then rushing back to assist with foiling the pursuit. Anyhow, he won't know any particulars about the Listener reaction force until someone who does tells him. I'll hold off on posting IC so as to avoid metagaming.

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This message was last edited by the player at 20:51, Fri 19 Mar 2021.

In a bit of a retcon, Monica can hear the approaching Listeners courtesy of cybernetic enhancement as well.

We do have roughly 1.3 functional Nomads with us.  Not to stereotype, but someone should be able to acquire us a larger ride.

In reply to M. Lowell (msg # 294):

Good point, but how many functional vehicles are we liable to find in this particular neighborhood?

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Some assembly required.

Understand that Kenji's action will take longer than ten second but the idea is to be in position to support Whisper by the beginning of the next turn/round.

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This is totally out-of-context knowledge for the other PCs right now, but Whisper does actually have both anti-dazzle and level dampers for this exact tactic.

In reply to M. Lowell (msg # 298):

Yeah, that's a pretty expensive setup, both cost wise and HL, but it can be worth it to roll out flashbangs with impunity.

The other setup I like, from older editions, which is a bit cheaper on both fronts is nasal filters plus Kiroshi Optishields, with CS/Teargas as the go-to.

https://milspecmonkey.com/stor...ng-em-all-large.html

Kenji has neither anti-dazzle nor level dampers but that's why God gave us eyelids and fingers (nature's earplugs), no?

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This message was last edited by the player at 18:34, Sat 20 Mar 2021.

Round synopsis:

Daphne and Pandora are twenty feet from defilade.

Monica and Cruz continued to move the evacuees forward to defilade, arriving at the end of next round if they continue.

Martin got an ambush round for being prepped, then the normal pace of action engaged.

Two Listeners are flashbanged.  You have two to deal with at the moment, the Heavy was not able to Evade Martin's second shots due to the flashbang going off at his feet even though he shrugged off the effects.  You should get something out of a crit.

As a side, do you guys like having an OOC round synopsis to clear up any confusion or does it reduce the fiction flavor?

In reply to Data Source (msg # 303):

I appreciate the synopsis. And good turn, BTW. Martin fired the second pair of shots, no? It kind of reads like Kentucky did.

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Martin, yup.

Cleaned it up a bit.

It's good for clarity.  No negative impact on the fiction; it's more infrastructure for plotting my next actions.

With one action and a successful roll, I can temporarily return something to perfect condition.

The bar has been set MedTech!

:P
This message was last edited by the player at 11:26, Sun 21 Mar 2021.

"Is that why they call him 'Lube Job?'"

"... yes.  Yes, it is."

LOL. You just ninja'd my IC post.

It's all good!

I feel outdone on Spartan’s sarcasm.  Clearly he needs more dangerous opponents.

Great minds.  :)

So Teg, I'm thinking I'd like to try out the Suppressive fire mechanic (so that we can delta) but I don't want to dictate anyone else's actions so I'm running it by you first. Thumbs up, or do you have your own plans?

-

Much as I was hoping to pick up a couple of free assault rifles, I think leaving is a fine idea right now.

How quickly could I disassemble a guard rail on the stretcher with the toolhand and use it to jam the P3 stairwell door?

In reply to A. Cruz (msg # 315):

Let’s say 3 rounds.
One to disassemble, one to get there, one to jam

Hmm.. might be better to just keep moving and shoot anyone who comes though...

If you guys knew how many hours I spend playing Cold Waters, all this sub shit would make sense.

Whisper and Kentucky are now behind the second pillar, 35m from the Listeners, 15m from defilade.

Cruz et all... are 10 meters from the door, 15 from the fans.

Looking at the autofire situation, the Heavy beat Whisper's roll by 9 then rolled a whopping 11 on 5d6.  That would still inflict 99 points of damage, leaving Martin chunks all over the garage even with armor.  Two things come into play here:

1) narrative fiat that I'm not going to hamburger a character in the first firefight and...

2) A second reading reveals assault rifles only have 25 rounds so he should have been on single shot anyway.  That leaves us with 11 points of damage from a single bullet strike.

Suppression fire works pretty well if people aren't packing large amounts of WIL + Concentration.

@ Rae:

With the fire and movement rules written the way they are, I had Kentucky run on his last turn after the suppressive fire.  At least in the OOC, looks like I left that out of the IC thread.

I'll update the IC threat to reflect if you want can change if you'd like, but you can also come up with a new action for your next turn if you want.

In reply to Data Source (msg # 320):

Ok, thanks. I'll mod K's turn post a bit.

Done.

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This message was last edited by the player at 01:10, Wed 24 Mar 2021.

Yeah, the Autofire rules seem like pretty high risk-reward in this system. So much so, that I've considered shifting some SP (only with GM permission, of course) to autofire to increase Kentucky's odds of scoring hits with it (and increasing suppressive fire effectiveness too). Then again, it costs x2, so do I really want to reduce another skill by 2 to add 1 more to autofire? I can't decide, and it might be moot anyway.

As I understand the CPR autofire mechanic, essentially, you make only one roll to hit with each autofire burst (which uses both actions and expends 10 rounds). If that roll's successful, damage could be quite high. If it's not, you've just wasted 10 rounds with nothing to show for it.

It's definitely faster and simpler than v2.2 and, as a GM, I think I'd appreciate that. At the same time, it's prolly less realistic. In T2k, you have to roll for each shot in an auto burst, and then look at the PC's STR score to determine how many to-hit rolls to deduct based on recoil rules. That's a bit of a hassle for a GM. With v2.2, the shooter has better odds of registering at least one or two hits from a ten round burst. That's prolly not that realistic either (e.g. as a Ref, I don't think I ever rolled a long burst at anything under extreme range that registered 0 hits). Then there's the beaten ground rules. Objects behind your targets (i.e. in the line of fire) have a chance to get hit by through rounds. That's pretty realistic (in concept, at least).

In CPR, if you miss with your first shot, you automatically miss with the other nine. That's prolly not very realistic. There's also no danger to objects behind the target, as far as I can tell (i.e. no beaten ground rules). That's not at all realistic. I
 mean, can you imagine if a SWAT member didn't have to worry about what will happen if he/she opens up full auto at a hostage taker in a crowded city bus?!?

So yeah, I can't decide if I like CPR's autofire rules vis-a-vis v 2.2's T2k version.

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This message was last edited by the player at 01:38, Thu 25 Mar 2021.

CPRed makes several design choices that strike me as misplaced abstraction.  The elimination of hit locations also seems off for this genre.

I was trying to figure out if we could make it to the fans, but MOVE x2 only gets Cruz 10 meters.  So I don't see any other options that shooting our way out of this.

Dave, I know you’re pretty task saturated, which is no problem.

Are you cool if I just have Monica blast away with her pistol at targets of opportunity?

In reply to Data Source (msg # 325):

Yeah, that's absolutely cool man, go for it.

Anyone surprised to learn I've been doing autofire wrong?  Not me!

Okay, so way it is supposed to work is you make your roll and calculate the amount you beat your DV or opponent's evasion roll by.  Then you roll a flat 2d6 for damage.  Doesn't matter if it's SMG or Assault rifle.  Then you multiply that by the margin of success up to the Autofire limit of the weapon (SMG 3, Assault Rifle 5).

So this round Kenji beats the Heavy's dodge by 4.  That's a margin of success of 3.  On 2d6, he rolled a 9, resulting in 9x3 = 27 points of damage.  If he had ended up with a margin of success of 7, he still could only have used the x3 multiple.

That's still fairly brutal, but not nearly as bad as what I hit Whisper with last round.  An assault rifle tops out at 60 points of damage, but the scaling is weird because a 5d6 single round can suddenly get reduced to 2d6 if the margin of success is only 1.

Clearly we'll have to do some thinking around this one.

Onto the round breakdown:

The Heavy is Out of Commission.  Reinforcements are coming down the ramp, but by moving the next round, Kenji and Martin will be out of their LOS before they can be brought under fire.

Downstairs, our heroes have gotten an ambush round.  The two surviving Listeners will be in the initiative que the next round.  Pandora will arrive at the fans, Monica and Cruz are protecting the gurney.  Monica could forgo an attack and move the gurney, or engage targets.  Cruz would have to spend his action standing up to move.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:04, Fri 26 Mar 2021.

I'd be fine with us working up house-rule mods to the autofire rules that we can all live with.

Clarification question about the situation at the lower stairwell. 2/4 of the Listeners were zeroed, the remaining 2 are on fire, correct?

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In reply to K. Takanori (msg # 328):

One is on fire, one has avoided damage

Also,

@Spartan:  I didn't have Cruz spend his luck on the damage roll.  You got decent results (including one 23 point critical that splattered said target) and it looks like the system doesn't allow for luck to be spent on damage.  Or at least it only mentions spending luck as part of skill rolls.

I'll add this into the que for discussions after this mission and we can discuss Luck as a damage bonus.

Keys, I know it's subject to opposed rolls, so there're no guarantees, but would it buy any additional time if Kenji laid down a relatively successful burst of suppressive fire when the pursuit from above appears? If so, it might be worthwhile to try. If not, there's no point.

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This message was last edited by the player at 00:18, Fri 26 Mar 2021.

In reply to K. Takanori (msg # 331):

Might buy you a round or two.  The distance is kinda far, 40m or so, but If you want to give them something to think about you can.

Thx. I have another clarification question (sorry): The reinforcements coming down the ramp is a third group (descending from P1)? It's not the three survivors (woman, meat shield, and unscathed thug) from the P2 stairwell?

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This message was last edited by the player at 00:58, Fri 26 Mar 2021.

Back on autofire issues, am I reading this correctly that there's no real burst fire - only 10-round autofire dumps?  Put that on the list for stuff we may want to look at after this mission, too.

In reply to K. Takanori (msg # 333):

Yep, new group.  Unknown number.

And we need a burst fire option.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:58, Fri 26 Mar 2021.

Heading downstairs to grab the 2020 book and see how autofire worked 25 years ago...

Okay.  For reference, 3-round burst was a +3 to hit, with 1d3 rounds connecting on success.

Full auto applied +1 per 10 rounds fired at close range but a -1 penalty at longer ranges.  Number of rounds hitting the target was equal to margin of success, up to weapon's rate of fire.  If you hosed it across multiple targets, divide ROF by number of targets before making any rolls.

Neither case specified whether damage and armor were rolled and applied separately for each round.  However, the section on armor explicitly applies the armor separately per round.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:06, Fri 26 Mar 2021.