Still playing with combat technomancers. This is Pin-Drop, a thought piece on optimizing defense. He is rules-dubious, as he combines Perceptive Defender, Diagnostics, and an Attention Co-Processor.
Perception Defender technically only adds the Perception SKILL rating to a full defense test, not necessarily the bonus dice you add to a perception test. However, as it is technically a worse kind of quality (adds a limit to defense tests) and costs more than the likes of Agile Defender (where having high agility also synergizes with a ton of important skills), I'm going to argue for sake of the build (not sure I am convinced myself) that because Perceptive Defender adds a limit to the Full defense test, it should also allow bonus dice. Basically, instead of being treated like a Full Defense test that replaces Willpower with Perception, it turns the test into a Perception test that adds Reaction.
Meta: C, Elf (Waki); Attributes: A; Resonance: B; Skills: E; Resources: D.
Karma Spent: 12 on metatype, 10 on Nuyen, 19 on Positive Qualities, 6 on skills, -25 on negative qualities = 3 remaining.
== Info ==
Street Name: Pin-Drop
Name: Unnamed Character
Movement: 18/36
Karma: 0
Street Cred: 0
Notoriety: 0
Public Awareness: 0
Elf (Wakyambi)
Composure: 7
Judge Intentions: 11
Lift/Carry: 5 (30 kg/20 kg)
Memory: 9
Nuyen: 0
== Priorities ==
Metatype: C(2) - Human, Dwarf, Elf, or Ork
Attributes: A(4) - 24 Attributes
Special: B(3) - Adept, Magician, or Technomancer
Skills: E(0) - 18 Skills/0 Skill Groups
Resources: D(1) - 50,000¥
== Attributes ==
BOD: 3
AGI: 6
REA: 5
STR: 2
CHA: 4
INT: 7
LOG: 4
WIL: 3
EDG: 3
RES: 5
== Derived Attributes ==
Essence: 5.10
Initiative: 12 + 1d6
Rigger Initiative: 12 + 1d6
Astral Initiative:
Matrix AR Initiative: 12 + 1d6
Matrix Cold Initiative: 7 + DP + 3d6
Matrix Hot Initiative: 7 + DP + 4d6
Physical Damage Track: 10
Stun Damage Track: 10
== Limits ==
Physical: 4
Mental: 8
Social: 6
Ballistic Mask [+1] (Only for intimidation, Must be visible)
Astral: 8
== Active Skills ==
Automatics : 6 [Machine Pistols] Pool: 12 (14)
Compiling : 4 Pool: 9
Computer : 1 Pool: 5
Etiquette : 1 Pool: 5
Perception : 6 Pool: 13
Registering : 6 [Machine] Pool: 11 (13)
Sneaking : 1 [Urban] Pool: 7 (9)
== Knowledge Skills ==
Area Knowledge: Seattle : 2 Pool: 11
Bars and Clubs : 2 Pool: 11
Border Crossing Tactics : 2 Pool: 11
Data Havens : 2 Pool: 11
English : 6 Pool: 15
Herbology : 2 Pool: 11
Math : 4 Pool: 10
Mercenary Procedures : 2 Pool: 11
Meta-variants : 1 Pool: 10
Shadow Community : 2 Pool: 11
Sprawl Life : 2 Pool: 11
Street Cons : 2 Pool: 11
Technomancers : 2 Pool: 11
Underworld : 2 Pool: 11
Zulu (Language) : N Pool: 0
== Contacts ==
; Taxi Driver (1, 3)
; Fixer (4, 2)
; Troll Street Dealer (1, 1)
== Qualities ==
Addiction (Mild) (Cram)
Addiction (Mild) (Psyche)
Celerity
Drug Tolerant
Elongated Limbs
Impassive
Jack of All Trades Master of None
Low-Light Vision
Perceptive Defender
Quick Healer
School of Hard Knocks
Technomancer
Weak Immune System
== Lifestyles ==
Low 1 months
== Cyberware/Bioware ==
Mnemonic Enhancer Rating 2
Narco
Partial Cyberskull
+Attention Coprocessor
+Math SPU
+Antennae
+Orientation System
== Armor ==
Armor Jacket 12
Ballistic Mask 2
+Gas Mask
== Weapons ==
Remington Suppressor
+Concealed Quick-Draw Holster
+Personalized Grip
+Smartgun System, Internal
+Sound Suppressor
Pool: 12 (14) Accuracy: 9 DV: 7P AP: -1 RC: 2
Survival Knife
Pool: 5 Accuracy: 5 DV: 4P AP: -1 RC: 2
Unarmed Attack
Pool: 5 Accuracy: 4 DV: 2S AP: - RC: 2
== Commlink ==
Living Persona (ATT: 4, SLZ: 7, DP: 4, FWL: 3)
MCT Blue Defender (ATT: 0, SLZ: 0, DP: 1, FWL: 5)
+Micro-Transceiver
+Subvocal Mic
+Sim Module
==Complex Forms==
Puppeteer
Resonance Veil
== Gear ==
Ammo: APDS (Machine Pistols) x10
Ammo: Regular Ammo (Machine Pistols) x50
Ammo: Stick-n-Shock (Machine Pistols) x30
Backpack (Cheap)
Biomonitor
Contacts Rating 1
+Smartlink
Cram x10
Fake SIN Rating 4
+Fake License (Weapon License) Rating 4
+Fake License (Concealed Carry Permit) Rating 4
+Fake License (Pharma License) Rating 4
Medkit Rating 3
Psyche x5
Slap Patch, Stim Patch Rating 3 x2
Survival Kit
Zen x5
Anatomy of a Defense Test:
Pin-Drop has Reaction 5/Intuition 7, making his regular Defense test 12, not shabby for a technomancer.
While not super optimized to run drugs, still plans to run Psyche/Cram + Narco when knowing he might see some action in a run. With them, his defense test goes up to 16. (He does still have some room for Nephritic Screens in the future).
I purposefully kept his Willpower lowish to dramatize full defense a a bit more. At full defense, with Perceptive Defender, Pin-Drop would add 6 more dice, to 22 defense with a limit (i'll break down his limits later). He also has Agility 6, so at this point, Agile Defender would have been the much stronger choice (same dice no limit).
However, he has an Attention Co-Processor, giving him a wireless +1 bonus to perception (and in this in case, defense), bringing his full defense pool to 23. We are on solid combat adept territory now.
Now if a machine sprite runs diagnostics on his attention co-processor, he can get even more of a bump. As a skill is in involved (perception) the highest bonus he could get is 6. This is possible with a Level 5 sprite (though unlikely). Let's say he gets that though, and now gets 29 dice on Full Defense (as well as a bonus 6 to perception tests).
29 Dice sounds amazing. The only other concepts I think that can reach such pools are defense optimized bio-adepts/bio-mysads (Combat Sense 5, Improved Reflexes 2, maxed Reaction/Intuition, agile defender + muscle toner, mentor spirit, etc.). The catch for Pin-Drop is his defense test is limited by his mental limit, potentially making having such a dicepool pointless.
Full Defense Limit:
With 29 potential defense dice, Pin-Drop will need a mental limit 10 to take advantage all of his hits most of the time. Higher would be even better, as there is some big potential with such a high dice pool.
Pin-Drop's natural mental limit is 6. Not bad, but not 10.
On Psyche and Cram + Narco, his Mental limit jumps to 9 (boosts to Logic and Intuition, plus a mental limit direct boost from Psyche). Getting better.
He is 'waring up a little anyway, so some Mnemonic Enhancers can bump up that limit two more to 11.
Yay, so passed 10. Now we add the limit bonus from Diagnostics (as it would have on if a teamwork test involves a limit), bringing it to 12.
But now, we see that Pin-Drop has Logic 4, giving him stable capacity of 4 for machine sprites. He needs one for his gun, and we originally planned to have 1 for his cyberskull/attention co-processor. But instead of hoping for that 6 hit diagnostics roll from a level 5 registered sprite (very unlikely). What is more likely is to have two or three sprites get 2-3 hits on each of their diagnostics roll. This will keep the diagnostics bonus dice to 6, but also increase the limit per teamwork test rules. So with two or three sprites instead of one running diagnostics, Pin-Drop can get his mental defense test limit to 13-14.
And to boot, the attention co-processor gives a limit bonus to Perception tests. If we include that bonus on this test, we can add another +1 to the limit.
So 29 full defense dice with a limit of 13-14 (or even 15) is doable for such a character, making him very difficult to hit (and difficult to surprise while we're at it).
Other Notes:
Initiative with Cram/Psyche + Narco is 16 +2D6. 75% chance of 3 passes, can't get much higher as a technomancer and is within combat specialist territory.
Shooting Dice is Agilty 6 + Weapon 6 + Spec 2 + Smartlink 1 + up to 6 Diagnostics for 21 total. Not out the park, but commendable combat specialist dice.
Max perception: Intuition 7 + Perception 6 + Psyche 2 + Diagnostics 6 + Attention Co-Processor 1 = 22. Tough to get one on Pin-Drop.
Summary:
Just a thought piece. I actually kind of liked how it turned out. It could be done pretty similarly with a regular Elf too with similar dice pools/stats (which I would probably do for an actual game). Now whether he would be allowed to play at a table (or my table) is a different story. I do feel like you can build a bio-adept that can hit similar defense/combat/perception pools with more static powers (Magic 5, Improved Reflexes 2, Combat Sense 5, Used Muscle Toner, Agile Defender, etc.)., and may exceed it with other qualities/drugs/foci/etc., with no on questioning the build. So I know Pin-Drop is not RAW, but going with a diagnostics enhanced skill (Attention Co-Processor and Perception and Perceptive Defender) seems less gamey than running diagnostics on Muscle Replacement (and Increasing full defense test pools with Agile Defender) or Reaction Enhancer (for increased regular defense pools).
