[Rift_0f_Bladz]

Did you take any martial arts yet? Also, your lack of social or disguise skills kinda frightens me. For a super PINK game he would work, otherwise when seen, he will stand out like a sore thumb.

[Tarislar]

Wow, just wow.

CRB p320 A weapon focus always has, unsurprisingly, the form of a melee weapon. It adds magical power to the melee attacks you make with it. When used in physical combat, it gives you its Force as a dice pool bonus on your melee Attack Test. You still rely on your Physical Attributes and skills in combat; the weapon focus merely makes you more effective.

CRB p423 Melee weapon chart, last line:
Shock gloves Physical — 8S(e) –5 6R 550¥

Hard Targets p179 under weapons:
PLASTEEL TOE BOOTS
ACC DV AP REACH AVAIL COST
[Phys] (Str+1)P — — 2 200¥


Since shock gloves and plasteel toe boots are melee weapons they can be foci since weapon foci are unsurprisingly melee weapons.

You can even take a pistol melee harden it or not as you please, make it into a weapon foci because guess what, you can use it as an improvised MELEE weapon (clubs in this case).

Not to nitpick, but,  Gloves & Boots are clothing, not Weapons.

How does the magic change the taser battery to make that shock more effective against elementals?

Kicking someone w/ boots is still kicking them. 
Its an Unarmed Strike, sure, its slightly harder than your average cowboy boots, but I still don't consider it a "Weapon".
A 2x4 can be an improvised weapon too, but do we have any magic construction lumber wielders out there?

For a long time it was a big debate if you could have cyber-foci.  Then finally in 3rd edition we got a canon NPC with a Spur-Focus.
We also got a 4E NPC that has a Monowhip-Foci
I've certainly seen debates on this board about trying to turn Bone Lacing or Minotaur Horns into Foci & those get shot down even though they have a Melee Damage Code too.
I've yet to see anyone for sure confirm that you can actually turn clothing into Weapon Foci.

Its an area that is open for debate to say the least.  That's all I'm saying.

[halflingmage]

Wow, just wow.

CRB p320 A weapon focus always has, unsurprisingly, the form of a melee weapon. It adds magical power to the melee attacks you make with it. When used in physical combat, it gives you its Force as a dice pool bonus on your melee Attack Test. You still rely on your Physical Attributes and skills in combat; the weapon focus merely makes you more effective.

CRB p423 Melee weapon chart, last line:
Shock gloves Physical — 8S(e) –5 6R 550¥

Hard Targets p179 under weapons:
PLASTEEL TOE BOOTS
ACC DV AP REACH AVAIL COST
[Phys] (Str+1)P — — 2 200¥


Since shock gloves and plasteel toe boots are melee weapons they can be foci since weapon foci are unsurprisingly melee weapons.

You can even take a pistol melee harden it or not as you please, make it into a weapon foci because guess what, you can use it as an improvised MELEE weapon (clubs in this case).

Not to nitpick, but,  Gloves & Boots are clothing, not Weapons.

How does the magic change the taser battery to make that shock more effective against elementals?

Kicking someone w/ boots is still kicking them. 
Its an Unarmed Strike, sure, its slightly harder than your average cowboy boots, but I still don't consider it a "Weapon".
A 2x4 can be an improvised weapon too, but do we have any magic construction lumber wielders out there?

For a long time it was a big debate if you could have cyber-foci.  Then finally in 3rd edition we got a canon NPC with a Spur-Focus.
We also got a 4E NPC that has a Monowhip-Foci
I've certainly seen debates on this board about trying to turn Bone Lacing or Minotaur Horns into Foci & those get shot down even though they have a Melee Damage Code too.
I've yet to see anyone for sure confirm that you can actually turn clothing into Weapon Foci.

Its an area that is open for debate to say the least.  That's all I'm saying.

I don't see it as remotely open to debate.  Knucks  and shock gloves are described as weapons, they have all the mechanical details a weapon has in the game, they are described in a detail under a heading called "other melee weapons".  their stats and costs are given in a giant table called "MELEE WEAPONS'.  Please list one thing a sword has that a pair of knucks does not that makes it more of a weapon.

As for the 2x4, why could you not enchant one?  If you can enchant a sharp piece of metal you should be able to enchant a blunt piece of wood.  Damn it, now i have to go build a physical adept with the street name "Hacksaw Jim". 

[All4BigGuns]

Damn it, now i have to go build a physical adept with the street name "Hacksaw Jim".

Have him wield a Weapon Focus Monofilament Chainsaw.

[Reaver]

Damn it, now i have to go build a physical adept with the street name "Hacksaw Jim".

Have him wield a Weapon Focus Monofilament Chainsaw.

No, that's his troll brother. Chainsaw Charlie.

[Rift_0f_Bladz]

2x4 aka club, kinda like a crowbar is a club that is also good at opening things (hence price increase) Those are a few of the tings that I would not use improvised weapon table for (yes both can be turned into weapon foci as well). As with anything under melee weapons table. Heavy technological weapon most likely will have to be done during character gen to keep some of the mechanical headaches away.

[All4BigGuns]

Talking about Weapon Focus 2x4 boards is making me want to make a high Force Sustaining Focus corporate building...

[Rift_0f_Bladz]

What do you think S-K Corporate Office Building is for Lofwyr?

[ProfessorCirno]

I thought I'd briefly return to this for two reasons.

1) Hobbes mentioned the real key to adepts is their super accuracy lets them do called shots.  Except...that takes your free action.  You know, the one you're using to run.  So that doesn't work.  However...

2) There's a way to make an unarmed attack as a simple+free action.  It's...it's kind of a dumb one.  But it works.  With kip-up, you spring out from prone and make an attack in one move as a simple action.  As a free action, you can throw yourself prone.  This means!  That the real key to unarmed fighting...

...Is BREAKDANCE FIGHTING!

That's right, constantly throw yourself at the ground, then spin on your head to kick them and land back on your feet!

( Or just make melee a simple action already, good lord )

[Rooks]

or take perfect time (now Im thinking of ninja turtles when they spin around on their shell)

[FractalMachine]

Hi, I am a returning player to 5E (the last time I played was 2E)

Just rounding out my first 5E character, an adept. I noticed these comments and just wanted to confirm that Enhancements can be taken at chargen and Adept's Way don't count towards positive qualities limit in char gen?

And as you may not know Adept ways do not contribute to max positive quality limit during chargen.

I'm actually with Cirno here, I didn't notice the whole Enhancements section by virtue of glossing over the initiation section.  color me surprised.  That said, what is the policy for Enhancements at Chargen?  I know Initiation is usually limited.

[Dinendae]

2) There's a way to make an unarmed attack as a simple+free action.  It's...it's kind of a dumb one.  But it works.  With kip-up, you spring out from prone and make an attack in one move as a simple action.  As a free action, you can throw yourself prone.  This means!  That the real key to unarmed fighting...

...Is BREAKDANCE FIGHTING!

I believe the correct name is "capoeira." 

[The Wyrm Ouroboros]

The trick to all this is the same one for making any sort of 'sub-par' - and I use those quote marks deliberately - character:

Talk To The GM.

If you're in a campaign that is a high-octane ammo-fuelled explosion of violence, where in one run you use more ammunition than the USMC and SEAL 6 combined do in an entire year, where when you get down to it you're defeating your opponents through the sheer fucking coolness of your Pink Mohawk - then yeah, a kung fu fighter is probably not the best character choice.  If, on the other hand, you're going to be in a quiet, restrained, 'we're going to go into the office building at the start of daytime shift, look like we belong there for two hours, and once BitBoy infiltrates the network hub we'll take out the CFO's guards and escort him to his car for the exfiltration' sort of campaign, then a guy who can wear nothing but a well-fitted business suit into an elevator filled with SMG-toting guards and be the only conscious one to emerge a minute later, adjusting his cuffs, then that's the campaign to play The Puncherator in.

Are certain implants highly efficient, compared to magic?  Sure.  And to be honest, IMO you should if you can take advantage of that.  If your character's profile is one where that's a bad thing, though, then go with your character concept.  It is, again IMO, the job of your GM to pit you against balanced opposition, and to give your character a chance to shine.

EDIT: Man, I'm just screwing my tags up all over the place today ...

[Rift_0f_Bladz]

The trick to all this is the same one for making any sort of 'sub-par' - and I use those quote marks deliberately - character:

Talk To The GM.

[/u][/b]

If you're in a campaign that is a high-octane ammo-fuelled explosion of violence, where in one run you use more ammunition than the USMC and SEAL 6 combined do in an entire year, where when you get down to it you're defeating your opponents through the sheer fucking coolness of your Pink Mohawk - then yeah, a kung fu fighter is probably not the best character choice.  If, on the other hand, you're going to be in a quiet, restrained, 'we're going to go into the office building at the start of daytime shift, look like we belong there for two hours, and once BitBoy infiltrates the network hub we'll take out the CFO's guards and escort him to his car for the exfiltration' sort of campaign, then a guy who can wear nothing but a well-fitted business suit into an elevator filled with SMG-toting guards and be the only conscious one to emerge a minute later, adjusting his cuffs, then that's the campaign to play The Puncherator in.

Are certain implants highly efficient, compared to magic?  Sure.  And to be honest, IMO you should if you can take advantage of that.  If your character's profile is one where that's a bad thing, though, then go with your character concept.  It is, again IMO, the job of your GM to pit you against balanced opposition, and to give your character a chance to shine.

Yup, this +1 billion. Even in Super Pink Mohawk games, melee can work wonders, but they are usually more inline with Cloud/Sephiroth. And there is a reason for this and why metahumanity invented and started using weapons besides our first and feet, they work more efficiently 90% of the time.

[Glyph]

Some concepts aren't that great in a black trenchcoat game either, though.  Melee is a niche role (slightly less of one in the confines of an office complex, but still....).  If it is a game of subtle infiltration, being effective unarmed can be good, but the punching adept will need to have more than "hitting people in the face" in his repertoire.  I agree with the "Talk to your GM" advice, but the unaugmented punching adept's problem (assuming punching is his main schtick and he is limited in other areas) is power level.  He would probably fit in fine with a pink mohawk game where everyone is playing quirky but suboptimal characters, but be lost in a black trenchcoat game where he doesn't have the social or sneaking skills to keep up with the rest of the team.