[Poindexter]

i cant seem to find the errata that i assume exists for this weapon.

It seems to be identical to the regular sword, but more expensive and less accurate.

[JimmyCrisis]

I prefer to just scratch out "katana" and write "monosword" next to it in the rulebook.

[Ryo]

Monosword has AP -3 instead of AP -2, so it's actually just a less expensive, less accurate Katana. But Katana and Monosword are both +6 on the concealment table, so just pay the extra 100 nuyen for the +2 accuracy. There's no reason for the monosword to exist with those stats.

Another weird one are the Cougar Fineblades. The short is just a shittier Combat Knife, and the long is a shittier Sword. Short has the same Accuracy, Same Reach, Same Damage, 2 worse AP, worse Avail and 50 nuyen more expensive than the Combat Knife. Long has the same Accuracy, worse Reach, Same Damage, 1 worse AP, worse Avail and 100 nuyen more expensive than the Sword. Again, no reason for these weapons to exist. They're inherently inferior to other options and add nothing to the game.

[JimmyCrisis]

The melee weapons are all messed up.  They need to be redone.  There should be no weapon that is so good it's the only real choice.  And the price differences as a balancing factor is a joke.  Adepts with an E in resources might struggle to own a katana.  Nobody else would notice, if melee was an important part of their character.

[Ryo]

There really needs to be a way to increase the Accuracy of melee weapons, since everyone always slaps a Smartgun on their guns. Might diminish the obvious superiority of the Katana if there was a way to increase the Combat Axe above Accuracy 4.

[reyjinn]

Doesn't personalized grip increase Acc by 1? Granted that can be used on guns as well, afaik.

[Ryo]

Doesn't personalized grip increase Acc by 1? Granted that can be used on guns as well, afaik.

Personalized Grip is in Sail Away, Sweet Sister and didn't even have a price listed. I kind of doubt it's a rules legal upgrade, in all honesty. Not gonna see them in Missions, for example.

Personalized Grip was a given in 4th when it added +1 dice to melee and 1 recoil comp to guns. As an Accuracy booster, when those are so rare, every player would automatically add one to every weapon they buy.

[MijRai]

It does, but it's in Sail Away, Sweet Sister, so folks miss it, not to mention the lack of price...

And it's not like you can just go buy a personalized grip, Ryo.  That's more along the lines of a custom job, which isn't something you can just order.

[Ryo]

It does, but it's in Sail Away, Sweet Sister, so folks miss it, not to mention the lack of price...

And it's not like you can just go buy a personalized grip, Ryo.  That's more along the lines of a custom job, which isn't something you can just order.

No matter what hoops you had to jump through, it'd be worth it, especially for melee weapons that have no other ways of increasing accuracy. Worst case scenario it has an obscene price like double weapon cost, and requires a Logic + Armorer or Intuition + Artisan roll to make. And it'd still be worth getting on every weapon you pick up, especially if you're throwing the type of dice pools that tend to cap out your limits.

[MijRai]

Yes, it's worth it, but it doesn't always mean you are going to drop everything and go get that immediately, or that it's always available. 

[Ryo]

Yes, it's worth it, but it doesn't always mean you are going to drop everything and go get that immediately, or that it's always available.

If its availability is below 12, it'd be gotten at character creation for every weapon bought there, guaranteed. You'd be stupid not to, just like with smartlinks. If its above 12 for some insane reason, it would be on the list as the first upgrade anyone invests in, and would be sought out as included on any new weapons they purchase in the future.

If they introduce it in a real book, I think they should keep with the spirit of 4th and make it +1 Recoil Comp for guns and +1 Accuracy for melee weapons, since melee weapons have no means of increasing accuracy. Then it's basically just the melee equivalent of a laser sight. Everyone will take one, but everyone already takes smartguns for guns, so its not like that matters much.

[MijRai]

You're making the assumption that everyone tries to optimize their characters.  What if it doesn't make sense that the character would get a personalized grip for any of their weapons?  So yeah, I would suggest you not call people stupid for making their characters in a different fashion than you. 

[voydangel]

I personally think they just need to completely revamp all the melee weapons from all the 5e books and make them make sense. There are far too many weapons that are functionally useless due to certain other weapons being way too good. Like the katana, for the most obvious example. But it's not just blades.

We also, as noted, need some sort of cheap, ubiquitous way to increase accuracy a little for melee weapons as an "answer" to the smartlink for guns. I think a relatively good candidate is a custom grip that should give +1 accuracy and have avail 10 and cost about 750¥.

Although if the weapons were designed and balanced properly, it might alleviate the need for the accuracy and change the need for the grip into something more "late game" oriented; in which case it could give a larger bonus (to accuracy and or dice pool) but cost significantly more.

imho.

[JimmyCrisis]

It would be easy enough to houserule all melee weapons using your physical limit.  They probably should, anyway.

While a pistol will have its own inherent accuracy limits, melee is much more about the wielder of the weapon.

[reyjinn]

It would be easy enough to houserule all melee weapons using your physical limit.  They probably should, anyway.

While a pistol will have its own inherent accuracy limits, melee is much more about the wielder of the weapon.

Phys lim ~9 troll/whatever, with a STR+3 DV weapon and enough dice to hit his limit would be very very powerful