[Corgano]

Hi guys

I friend of mine recently had an idea for an elven mage capable of transforming himself into a gorilla. He suggested that such a mage could then leave agility, reaction and strength at 2/1/1 for the elven form. And during runs he would simply change shape to a gorilla (sustained by a sustaining foci for as long as he wants) in order to have good physical stats. And since the shapechange spell boosts the attributes of the animal the mage changes into, he would end up with a mage who has Body 9-10, Agility 7-8, Reaction 8-9 and Strength 8-9  plus his normal mental attributes as a Elf (Intuition 5, Charisma 8, Logic 5 and Willpower 5.

The advantages are imho obvious. And to further increase the effectiveness of this concept, the mage could buy some custom made gear (like gorilla size armor) to make him even thougher. 

My question to you guys is:
Is he missing something important? Or is this concept really that effective and without any significant downside?

[blackangel]

The average body of the gorilla should not permit him this trick

[Corgano]

The average body of the gorilla should not permit him this trick

The average body of a gorilla is 6. If he (as an Elf) has body 4, he would be within the +/-2 points of difference in body that are permitted by the spell shapechange.

[blackangel]

I always use his current attribute not the average of his race. It could be a misunderstanding of my part.

But you always have, let him pass threw a barrier, background count, dispell... And he would be at a huge pain

Another advantage is that he would be difficult to recognise 

[Thrass]

The average body of a gorilla is 6. If he (as an Elf) has body 4, he would be within the +/-2 points of difference in body that are permitted by the spell shapechange.

I always use his current attribute not the average of his race. It could be a misunderstanding of my part.

Exactly as Corgano said If he has a body of 4, it would be ok.
So 2/1/1 wouldn't work, but 4/1/1 would...

Is he missing something important?

If he has a Body of 4 as you said earlier it'ld be ok, if he has a body of 2 like you mentioned even earlier, then you are missing a spel requirement for Gorilla.

He could as easily use a Shape Change Human spell (average of 3 for alle Attributes afair) and get away with a 1/1/1/1 build getting 3/3/3/3 + net hits for physical stats.

[Corgano]

The average body of a gorilla is 6. If he (as an Elf) has body 4, he would be within the +/-2 points of difference in body that are permitted by the spell shapechange.

I always use his current attribute not the average of his race. It could be a misunderstanding of my part.

Exactly as Corgano said If he has a body of 4, it would be ok.
So 2/1/1 wouldn't work, but 4/1/1 would...

By 2/1/1 I meant Agility 2, Reaction 1, Strength 1.  Of course body has to be at least 4 in order to shapechange into a gorilla.

And as for shapechanging into a human: I haven't even thought about that...  His physical attributes would be a bit lower compared to the gorilla, but the upside would be that he would be much less conspicuous and that he could use regular gear and armor.

Somehow it doesn't seem ... fair to avoid the only real downside magicians have (low physical attributes) that easily, by simply casting (and sustaining) a single spell. 

[Thrass]

If you run around combating on the physical plane that enemy mage can easily disrupt your focus from astral sppace and then you're running around with probably negative amounts of agility due to agility 1 and encumbrance...
At the same time your focus with improved reflexes goes down.
And your Reaction to dodge enemy attacks goes down to 1.

Foci are an attack vector where you suddenly find yourself wide open and against mundane enemies mages are already at an advantage so it doesn't differ that much it's just a different approach to kick ass.

[Mithlas]

And as for shapechanging into a human: I haven't even thought about that...

Phantasm or Mask would be cheaper for a physical disguise, and Shapechange doesn't allow you to turn yourself into another metatype. I know that given that it can supposedly change in into an animal you might think, but the spell description seems clear:

Shapechange transforms a voluntary subject into a normal (non-paranormal) critter, though the subject retains human consciousness.
...
Critter form works like the Shapechange spell, but only allows the subject to change into a specific non-paranormal animal.

Animals only, no squishy human wizards Shapechanging themselves into burly trolls. At least that's my reading - if all it took was a basic magic spell, then shapeshifters would be almost mundane.

That being said, a shapeshifter gorilla with an elf or human form and Magician quality would probably be a nasty opponent. If there's eagle and leopard shapeshifters, I see no reason why not gorillas.

[Corgano]

Shapechange doesn't allow you to turn yourself into another metatype. I know that given that it can supposedly change in into an animal you might think, but the spell description seems clear:

Shapechange transforms a voluntary subject into a normal (non-paranormal) critter, though the subject retains human consciousness.
...
Critter form works like the Shapechange spell, but only allows the subject to change into a specific non-paranormal animal.

Animals only, no squishy human wizards Shapechanging themselves into burly trolls. At least that's my reading - if all it took was a basic magic spell, then shapeshifters would be almost mundane.

It seems that not everyone agrees with your assessment:  http://forums.shadowrun4.com/index.php?topic=9032.msg160132#msg160132

Imho it should be possible to transform into a human with this spell, but not into any other metahuman species, since they are all paranormal. Humans on the other hand are not.

@ Thrass:
Where can I find the rules for attacks on active foci? I've searched for them but couldn't find any rules about attacking or destroying an active focus

[Thrass]

Uh I'm actually not that firm on the rules...
I'll try see which book and page it is and then come back at you.

And Yes Human is kinda the only non animal option for shapechange.
It is also officially mentioned in the FAQ, that humans work.

[Thrass]

When activated, foci have an astral form and will accompany an astral-
ly projecting magician to which they are bound.

Disrupted spells immediately
end and disrupted foci deactivate.

Spells cast on astral objects like mana barriers or active foci are
resisted with Force.

So you can attack it from the astral plane, and if it becomes disrupted it deactivates.
Though I haven't yet found where it says that you can basically disrupt the focus with a mana spell from the astral plane.

[Corgano]

Ok, thanks a lot for your help.