No, but you'll ace many tests without needing to spend that 1 point
Would I now? I'd feel a lot more confident about that if rigging offered a more tangible, concrete benefit like, I don't know, reducing the number of hits I needed to succeed in the first place. Is that just too much to ask?
As for the Street Samurai, initiative has never been a core part of their credo. A street samurai is defined by three core things......Sam's evolved from razor guys by adding the third quality, 3) A code of honor, like the ancient warrior of their namesake. This is why even back in first edition, and every edition since, mercenaries are a different archetype then sam's, despite being virtually identical mechanically.
Of the many wrong things you have said, this one is the most wrong. Molly Millions, the OG streetsam, didn't have a code of honor, and IIRC neither did Hatchetman. The difference between a merc and a streetsam samurai is that the former works in a military or paramilitary context, while the latter is the odd job Jack of violence. Codes of honor have nothing to do with it; some mercenaries do have them, and some street samurai don't have them.
sighStreet Samurai descriptionsShadowrun Wiki (https://shadowrun.fandom.com/wiki/Street_Samurai)A street samurai (also street sam, sammie, or razor boy/girl) is an archetypal shadowrunner who specializes in physical combat. They are often heavily augmented with cyberware and/or bioware to enhance their combat prowess and carry a variety of weapons to deal with any threat their groups encounter. Because of their reliance on some form of the -ware, they are distinguished from the rarer magic wielding close combat runners, who are known as (physical) adepts.
Street samurai often come from military, paramilitary, or corporate security backgrounds, but a street gang's culture of violence breeds street samurai of its own. Any situation that involves violence or overcoming physical defenses, such as assassination or sabotage, greatly benefits from a street samurai's presence, though they are not known for subtlety.
Street samurai are rarely social creatures. Their role as muscle leaves little room for social development. Their heavy augmentation causes others to experience an uncanny valley effect when interacting with them. They often adopt codes of honor, from simply not killing bystanders to more complex codes like bushido, as a way of holding on to the humanity that they are gradually exchanging for cyberware or bioware.
Shadowrun 3rd edition core rule bookThe Street Samurai is more then an urban predator or partial cyborg, he is a freelance operative who follows a strict code of street honor. He is as learned in the ways of the traditional samurai warrior as he is in the practice of security procedures. The samurai tries to stay one step ahead of the dishonorable scum in the sprawl by upgrading his body with cyberware, always walking the line of insanity as he loses more and more flesh to the surgeon's knife.
He sells his skills, training, and cyberware for profit, but he is not an amoral killer and will refuse jobs that he considers dishonorable. His experience and leadership qualities often place him in charge of shadowrunner groups and operations, as he is perceptive in detailing mission plans and objectives. His cyberware enhancements give him an edge on the competition; those who underestimate him as a lowly street punk soon regret such a lethal mistake.
Shadowrun 4th edition core rule bookPart man, part machine, all dangerous— sometimes it’s hard to tell where the Street Samurai’s meat body ends and her cybered enhancements begin. Tough, strong, frighteningly fast, and trained in the arts of combat and tactics, she’s a hyper-efficient killing machine who can handle just about any situation she gets into. Whether former military, former corp, or former something-she-won’t-discuss, these days she’s a freelance street operative who prides herself on her strict sense of honor. She is as learned in the ways of the samurai warrior as she is in the practice of security procedures, and she prides herself on always remaining one step ahead of the dishonorable street scum who seek vainly to best her.
Shadowrun 5th edition core rule bookHe’s where he began: out on the streets and alleys. Growing up looking for an edge, he found a job, and then he found another. And he made every nuyen stretch. Then, piece by piece, he put in new implants until he reached his goal: street samurai. Not just any razor guy, but something more. Not some wise guy, or augmented thug or merc. He earned his honor by his work and learned from generations of noble warriors of old, giving him a soul, the spirit of bushido. Now he runs shadows with his team.
Hatchetman's code of honor isn't laid out anywhere that I know of and I don't think his player is still around, but he was a samurai of old training so it's safe to assume he had one.
Molly Millions is not a street samurai as street samurai are a Shadowrun creation, and she is a creation of our genre father, William Gibson. Specifically she was created for his Sprawl trilogy of books that I highly recommend people go and read.
