[Jack_Spade]

By RAW the gasmask is a pretty useless item. It may make you immune to inhalation vector toxins, but there is only one (nausea gas) that relies exclusively on inhalation. In every other situation (safe for wearing a chemical sealed full body armor) you are better served with a lvl 6 respirator that provides you with 6 dice for your resistance test.

In effect that makes an outright immunity worse than a resistance bonus.

How do you handle that? Ignore that the Gasmask exists? Give 6 resistance bonus dice like a maxed respirator? Require chemical protection armor mod together with gasmask/respirator and only count the lowest bonus?

[Lucean]

How can Immunity be worse than +6 resistance dice?
If Neurostun comes into contact with your skin, it is applied as contact vector, so the respirator won't help.
In fact, because of so many toxins having multiple ways to affect you, the respirator seems more useless, because the gasmask can supply you with air.

[Michael Chandra]

It boils down to "how do dual-vector contact+inhalation toxins work". A matter of debate without official clarification. Do you grab the best, the worst, do you average? It rather depends on the GM. I'd go with best or average myself. (Average of immunity and dice translating to a Power reduction.)

Mind you, under the worst scenario the respirator is ALSO useless, since you lack any resistance versus the contact part.

[farothel]

This has not much to do with the rules, but a respirator is still possible to wear in a city environment (a lot of people do because of the air polution).  If you walk in downtown Seattle with a gasmask, people (and especially KE) will be asking more questions than you can/want to answer.

[8-bit]

This has not much to do with the rules, but a respirator is still possible to wear in a city environment (a lot of people do because of the air polution).  If you walk in downtown Seattle with a gasmask, people (and especially KE) will be asking more questions than you can/want to answer.

Really? They are both completely legal and easy to pick up at your local Stuffer Shack or what have you. It's not a bad idea to wear a Gas Mask through some of the more polluted areas in town.

Granted, I will give you the Downtown Seattle part, that will most certainly draw attention. So will a respirator IMO. A Gas Mask more so.

[Csjarrat]

Always worth covering your bases with some chem protection on your armour. Gives resistance to contact vector that way too

[firebug]

I think Aaron said in the FAQ thread a while ago that if something provides a bonus against or immunity against one vector, it provides it to the whole thing.  His word is not god, but a lot of what he's said had become errata.

From what I've heard of stuff like tear gas, this makes sense.  You can't just hold your breath against tear gas, but a gas mask prevents it from coming into contact with any mucus membranes in addition to preventing you from breathing it, so it doesn't effect you.  Is that right?

[jim1701]

I think Aaron said in the FAQ thread a while ago that if something provides a bonus against or immunity against one vector, it provides it to the whole thing.  His word is not god, but a lot of what he's said had become errata.

From what I've heard of stuff like tear gas, this makes sense.  You can't just hold your breath against tear gas, but a gas mask prevents it from coming into contact with any mucus membranes in addition to preventing you from breathing it, so it doesn't effect you.  Is that right?

I don't know if they still do it but anyone who went through Army basic at through the 80's can tell you exactly what it is like (at least for CS gas.)  For me the effect on skin was minimal, the effect on eyes was about the same as getting some smoke from the BBQ in the face but the affect on the lungs was pretty extreme.  For me it was sucking in a lungful of water.  In reality the effect on a given person can vary considerably from person to person. 

[JackVII]

I don't know if they still do it but anyone who went through Army basic at through the 80's can tell you exactly what it is like (at least for CS gas.)  For me the effect on skin was minimal, the effect on eyes was about the same as getting some smoke from the BBQ in the face but the affect on the lungs was pretty extreme.  For me it was sucking in a lungful of water.  In reality the effect on a given person can vary considerably from person to person.

They were still doing it in the late 90s. I'm pretty sure they're still doing it now. My experience was similar. The skin contact wasn't really much more than an annoying tingle, although I would bet it might get worse over time. For me, the eyes was a pretty searing pain. Like you, the inhalation took the cake. I saw a few people vomit and a lot of people had, uh, CONSIDERABLE mucus generation once they cleared the chamber.

One of the games I play in developed a house rule that splits the DV and Effects among the vectors if there are multiple. For instance, if someone gets hit with CS gas, then they are taking 4DV & Nausea from Inhalation + 4DV & Disorientation from the Contact. If you're wearing a gas mask, you don't have to worry about the former, just resist the latter. Otherwise, you roll against each with the appropriate protection. It does make toxins somewhat less of a threat, but usually only if you're well prepared or have high BOD + WIL attributes.

[Michael Chandra]

I think Aaron said in the FAQ thread a while ago that if something provides a bonus against or immunity against one vector, it provides it to the whole thing.  His word is not god, but a lot of what he's said had become errata.

Actually I think he said it's up to the GM.

[Shaidar]

I had a similar experience to those already mentioned.

It also might be a factor that SR 4 & 5 Gas Masks are "Air Replacement devices" while modern day Gas Masks are Filter type devices more akin to SR's Respirator in function.

Gas Mask: This air-supplied respirator completely covers the user’s face and provides immunity to inhalation-vector toxins (Toxins, p. 254). It comes with a 1-hour clean air supply, and can be attached to larger air tanks. It cannot be combined with a regular respirator.

Gas mask: This air-supplied re-breather completely covers your face and gives you immunity to inhalation-vector toxin attacks (Toxins, Drugs, and BTLs, p. 408). It comes with a one-hour clean-air supply (replacements cost 40 nuyen) and can be attached to larger air tanks. It cannot be combined with a regular respirator.
Wireless: The gas mask analyzes and gives you information about the surrounding air that you’re not breathing.

[Xenon]

SR5 Gas Mask are more like 2014 full masks used for diving....

[Xenon]

This is how I picture a SR5 Respirator

[8-bit]

Neither is exactly subtle, but they are both common and accepted in a society that is overrun with polluted cities ...

[Namikaze]

I always encourage my players to get gas masks and micro-tranceivers in their ballistic masks.  Anything beyond that is entirely up to them, but those two things are crucial on almost every run.