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What to fill a cyber-leg with?

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Beta

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« on: <11-13-15/1517:42> »
An obvious full cyberleg has capacity of 20.  Assume that you are at standard character creation (so only up to rating 12), and have only a single cyber-leg* and so can't make use of things which need both legs (jacks for example).  What all do you stick into it?  Large smuggling compartment, cyber-holster, a couple of points of armor ... that still leaves room for a 2nd smuggling compartment with space to go.  Maybe stick some sort of blade or claw into it as a surprise (and couple with a kicking MA?)

Any other ideas?

* and assuming that you have character concept reasons for doing that.

On a related note: how big is a large smuggling compartment?  If you could in theory stick three of them in to a leg, they can't be too huge .... to me a bread box is something you can stick a few loaves of bread in, so the guidance in the book isn't useful.

And another question: the availability rating of armor or enhance strength/agility, does that add to the limb rating, or is it on its own?  (i.e. armor has a rating of five, which would make it impossible to put more than one point on a limb at character creation).  Armor was never a priority for me when looking at arms, but legs have so much spare capacity, it seems that armoring up would make sense, if allowed.

falar

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« Reply #1 on: <11-13-15/1530:50> »
Here's my general philosphy for a single cyberleg:
  • Either set it to match your physical attributes (so your calculations are easy) or max it out with customization/enhancement to AGI to increase your run speed. You'll have to average the agility of your legs, but it'll probably be worth it.
  • Take the maximum amount of armor you can get. It's encumbrance free and pretty cheap.
  • Attention Coprocessor for that sweet +1 Perception
  • Internal Air Tank so you don't have to carry a rebreather or gas mask
  • Large smuggling compartment to put an SMG or some grenades in
  • Foot Anchor, either to treat as a Cyberspur or to help with Recoil Compensation. If you do it as a spur, you'll want to max out your STR in the leg
  • If you have a Hard Nanohive, put it here

A bread box is a box the size of a single loaf of bread, generally to keep that loaf fresh. I could see two in most legs, with three being the outlier.

The things you load into the arm are all on their own for availability. So you can get Armor Enhancement II and Agility Enhancement III, even if you somehow had a Cyberarm with Availability 12 (Troll cyberlimb could probably do this).
« Last Edit: <11-13-15/1533:13> by falar »

kyoto kid

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« Reply #2 on: <11-13-15/1659:07> »
...how about an internal Cyber Holster like Robocop had?  Always though that was cool.

Freeze, or there will be...trouble.

Good place to stash a second comlink as well (the one that all the wireless ops of your 'ware and gear is linked to) which you can set to silent mode. Then carry around a cheapo one for "looks" that is always active.
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Rooks

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« Reply #3 on: <11-13-15/1712:37> »
...how about an internal Cyber Holster like Robocop had?  Always though that was cool.

Freeze, or there will be...trouble.

Good place to stash a second comlink as well (the one that all the wireless ops of your 'ware and gear is linked to) which you can set to silent mode. Then carry around a cheapo one for "looks" that is always active.
ya but then you cant wear pants shorts maybe

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« Reply #4 on: <11-13-15/1739:24> »
...how about an internal Cyber Holster like Robocop had?  Always though that was cool.

Freeze, or there will be...trouble.

Good place to stash a second comlink as well (the one that all the wireless ops of your 'ware and gear is linked to) which you can set to silent mode. Then carry around a cheapo one for "looks" that is always active.
ya but then you cant wear pants shorts maybe

Nah, I figure especially modifed pants where the pocket is open, and the seam below the socket can actually be popped open (velcro?  small and hidden snaps?) so you can easily pop the pant leg open enough to pull something out.  Won't be instant (that is what the cyberarm slide is for!), but still lets you get a heavier weapon out reasonably quickly.

And I'd forgotten that there are headware and bodyware options that can go in cyberlimbs --- shopping time!

Krindi

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« Reply #5 on: <11-14-15/1944:44> »
Sensor array with a nifty assortment of sensors.

ScytheKnight

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« Reply #6 on: <11-14-15/1954:43> »
It's a good spot for a Grenade Launcher, just take a knee and use it like a mortar.
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Poindexter

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« Reply #7 on: <11-14-15/2149:10> »
Take the maximum amount of armor you can get. It's encumbrance free and pretty cheap.

This here. Nothing will make you consistently happier that a few extra soak dice. I don't care WHAT kinda runner you are, you're gonna be making soak rolls sooner or later,
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Rooks

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« Reply #8 on: <11-14-15/2210:44> »
so agi and str are averaged but armor isnt?

Duellist_D

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« Reply #9 on: <11-14-15/2226:38> »
Yeah, its a bit strange but one of the few saving points for having multiple Cyberlimbs.

falar

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« Reply #10 on: <11-14-15/2228:19> »
so agi and str are averaged but armor isnt?

Armor never is. It's one of the abstractions that they made to make Fifth Edition more streamlined. You have one armor score and it's for everywhere. Yes, armor on your leg protects your torso. No, it doesn't make a ton of sense, but it makes it a lot more streamlined.

Agility and Strength are actually a bit more interesting. If you have a one-limb check and you use a single cyberlimb for that check, you're good and don't have to average. However, for a cyberleg, there aren't a lot of checks that could be logically taken to be single-legged. I'm actually not thinking of any at the moment ... other than possibly the mortar-knee idea of ScytheKnight, actually. In most cases, it's going to be something like Running or Gymnastics or Swimming, all of which are pretty obviously dual-leg actions. In the case that you have multiple limbs involved with different ratings, you average them and round in the way your GM tells you.

Poindexter

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« Reply #11 on: <11-14-15/2245:55> »
so agi and str are averaged but armor isnt?

Armor never is. It's one of the abstractions that they made to make Fifth Edition more streamlined. You have one armor score and it's for everywhere. Yes, armor on your leg protects your torso. No, it doesn't make a ton of sense, but it makes it a lot more streamlined.

I think of it like this, maybe it will help. Your armor rating is not ONLY a measure of the toughness and quality of your armor, but ALSO a measure of how much of your body is armored. A vest gives you less soak dice than an armor jacket not cause it's crappier material, but cause it covers less of your body. Armoring the leg gives your overall body more armor coverage, just as armoring the head with a helmet or the fore arms with those gurad things does, thus the extra soak dice.

I always imagine when someone does a lot of dmg against me or I have soaked very little of it, that the attack has found one of my unarmored places.

Hope that makes it seem a bit less abstract.
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« Reply #12 on: <11-14-15/2247:45> »
Yah, one point of armor automatically for having a limb, if I recall, plus whatever you add, plus the extra damage track box.  I think I saw someone argue that cyberlimbs are essential 'tank' purchases for that reason.

falar

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« Reply #13 on: <11-15-15/0825:24> »
Yah, one point of armor automatically for having a limb, if I recall, plus whatever you add, plus the extra damage track box.  I think I saw someone argue that cyberlimbs are essential 'tank' purchases for that reason.

As someone who made a character with a Centaur Liminal Body and two cyberarms, I cannot disagree with this assessment. Having 21 armor when you're naked as the day you walked out of the womb is a powerful place to be for a tank. Add on to that your normal armor and you can easily start racking up something like 40-50 soak dice.

Oh, and you're a horse.

gradivus

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« Reply #14 on: <11-15-15/1415:34> »
First of all, where are you guys coming up with the notion of a free armor with the cyberlimb purchase?

Second, unless you're using prime runner rules you can only get 2 armor per limb. Since each armor purchase has it's own availability, you could only use Restricted Gear to up one of them to 3.

So upgrading the 4 legs and 2 arms in the example above nets yoo 12 armor, or if you use Restricted Gear on one of them, 13.

LIMINAL BODY is a bit quirky...how many boxes   are added to  the physical damage track... you could argue it's one cyberlimb so it's one, or that the Centaur has for cyberlegs so it's 4, or that it replaces two legs so it's 2... and of course, like many other things, it isn't spelled out.
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