[Thrass]

Everytime I made an Adept Charakter I felt like maybe a Mage Adept would be way better, now that I finally have aquired some new books I'm down to chargen again...
So my thoughts are:

Dwarf
Mage Adept (any Tradition that uses Logic for resist Drain)
The Magicians Way (favored powers: The Speakers Way)
Exceptional Attribute Logic
that's 5BP/10Karma above allowed max so either get rid of Exceptional Attribute or replace it with the Changeling Class 2, and maybe think of a Mentor Spirit

Magic 6(5) (-1Essence) Sack 1 Essence and get genetic improvement for willpower and Logic,Daradrenalin, ... what else would be a good Idea? (probably only buying genetic enhancement at build-time)
1 point in Adept Powers
Mind over Matter (Logic-->Agility) Geas [Meditate for 1hour each day] 0,75 points
Kinesics Geas [still need to think of something] 0,25 points
Since I have a Magic Attribute of 5 I should be able to get the Ways discount for 2 different Powers right?

Now wil and log are capped at 8 each meaning I can buy both up to 7. (Is this correct? or is the cap explicitely raised by Genetech after I buy Attributes?)
Cast Augment Logic&Willpower Force 3 into sustaining Foci.

Unnarmed 4 (Touch attacks or Martial Arts)
Spellcasting 4

Cast Death Touch at Force 10 (Magic Attribute *2):Spellcasting+Magic=8 => 2net hits without rolling means 12P damage (we don't want more hit's so don't bother rolling)
Unnarmed 4+10Logic+2Touch only attack=> 16 Dice to hit (net hits mean nothing I think? it's hit or don't)
Drain: 10/2 -2 +2 = 5 conveniently our Drain resist is 20 so we can simply ignore it (Do I calculate this correctly or do I need to halve the net hits too?)

That's the basic Idea of my Melee Dwarf... the rest would go into defense utility spells and some social skills to actually get something out of Kinesics.
I'll need some infos from my GM first (like Build Points or Karma and maybe we'll have restrictions on gear and stuff so I can't actually build the whole Character but I want to get the basic concept done.)

Now, are my assumptions about the Magic Points correct?
Is the touch attack enough to use Shock-Gloves at the same time? (not that I think we need it)
Are there Martial arts that would benefit the Dwarf?
Is there any 0.25 power that would benefit the Character more? (I think Kinesics is quite ok and the only one where we can squeeze out some dispense from the Way)
Is it way to Cost-Innefective because there is some optimized build XY out there already performing better?
Since we have such high "Agility" I'ld spend some points in pistols and carry a fubuki with SnS or a ruger Superwarhawk for Car stopping... but just for fun... after all it's a mage

[Glyph]

The rules explicitly state that attribute boosts from 'ware don't affect other aspects of character creation - cerebral boosters don't give you extra knowledge skills, for example.  Genetech to raise attribute maximums is a bit more of a grey area.  I have seen a lot of builds that do this, but you should ask your GM.

Note that the Force of the increase attribute spell has to equal or exceed the value of the attribute you are increasing.  Which means you can still do it with overcasting, but you won't be able to put them in Force: 3 sustaining foci, sorry.

Strictly by the wording of how mystic adepts work, that part of the character is kosher.  The only limitation to your mage side is your dice pools, not Drain or maximum spell force.  But the FAQ (which flatly contradicts the actual rules in the book) and a lot of players feel otherwise, so this is another thing to ask your GM about.

I doubt most GMs would let shock gloves stack with a touch spell, especially since they are impact-triggered, and don't even stack with normal punching damage.  You could stack things a lot more in SR3.  Still, it wouldn't hurt to ask - your GM might be lenient, or might house rule things so that such combos work.

Re-read the rules for buying hits - they are only meant for circumstances where failure is extremely unlikely, or where there is no risk.  So you can't really use them for spellcasting or Drain, unless the GM is hand-waving you taking out some lone security grunt.  Most of the time, you are better off rolling, anyways.

Also - and I consider this the most crucial weakness of the character - getting 2 hits does not give you 2 net hits.  Death touch is a resisted spell.  You roll your dice, then the target resists with Willpower, plus Edge (if spent) and counterspelling (if any).  And direct combat spells are kind of all-or-nothing, in that you need at least one net hit to do damage at all.  If you get 2 hits, and the target gets 3 hits, it doesn't mean that he soaks the base damage of 10 down to 9.  It means he takes no damage whatsoever.  And unfortunately, 8 dice is a comparatively low dice pool to make that kind of attack with.  Overcast touch spells are very effective, but you need a good dice pool for both your touch attack and your spellcasting attack to be any good with them.

[UmaroVI]

Glyph pointed out the big problem with this character.

You can make similar characters who work, though. Touch spells are not very good because they just introduce more points of failure for slightly less drain. You are better off using effects that stack bonus damage, like Element Aura, martial arts, etc.

While I originally made this character for comedy purposes you can see the idea here: Jedi Knight. I assumed Martial Arts were allowed, and I went somewhat more for comedy than effectiveness. He is playable and would probably be fun; although he's a bit of a one-trick pony, it is at least a very funny trick and the first time you cut a tank in half, it will be worth it.

Of note is that
1) Mystic adepts don't work if you use the FAQ over SR4A.
2) Heightened Concentration (from Digital Grimoire) might or might not be helpful, depending on how it actually works which is highly unclear.

Does it:
1. Only negate the penalty on the NEXT use? Ie, complex action HWAAAA Called Shot Penalty on my next shot?
2. Negate the penalty on all future uses, ie, complex action HWAAAA Called Shot Penalty, and then it negates the called shot penalty until it's set to something else?

A. Count "sustained spells" as one penalty of -2 per spell?
B. Count "sustained spells" as a distinct -2 penalty per spell?

1A and 1B make it crap. 2A makes it good, and worth dropping 1 combat sense and 1 IA Blades for, then learning Increase Reaction and sustaining one of your spells with HC. 2B makes it very good, and you probably want to also sustain Increase Intuition and Deflection. You might even drop some or all of the sustaining foci, take Psyche, and just sustain everything with Heightened Concentration. Ask your GM how it works.

Also, if you're willing to be even less subtle, make the cyberarm Bulky and add in Evo Kali, also get more Armor during gameplay. Alternatively, you can drop either 1 armor or 2 strength to have the Evo Kali optimization.

[Lethe]

2) Heightened Concentration (from Digital Grimoire) might or might not be helpful, depending on how it actually works which is highly unclear.

Does it:
1. Only negate the penalty on the NEXT use? Ie, complex action HWAAAA Called Shot Penalty on my next shot?
2. Negate the penalty on all future uses, ie, complex action HWAAAA Called Shot Penalty, and then it negates the called shot penalty until it's set to something else?

It says, you can ignore a distraction (could even argue about what qualifies as a distraction..) to a task (singular) at hand. So even if a Called Shot qualifies as a distraction, it would only be applicable for the next one.

[UmaroVI]

Dude, please do not derail the thread with that argument. It has been hashed out over and over and over. All that matters is how your GM rules it works.

[Thrass]

even if it doesn't work it is a valid idea input
let's talk about the character not some rules for some power...


Thanks for the input so far, it's back to the drawing board for me

[Lethe]

Dude, please do not derail the thread with that argument. It has been hashed out over and over and over. All that matters is how your GM rules it works.

Yeah, sorry for that. I just thought that the three paragraph essay about that matter, equaling half your post, deserved at least a little attention. After all you could have just linked here, where you copied it from.

[UmaroVI]

I was the one who posted that, so I figured I'd just recopy it rather than make people follow a link.