[Koshnek]

Hi. I'm in the central time zone, and I can post most days. I work Saturday and I usually go out that night, so I may not post much on that night. This game looks like it could be fun so I'm interested :-).

I'd like to play a Mystic Adept of the Chaos tradition. He was a late bloomer, so he spent time doing wagework. When he came into his powers, Ares discovered that he was both a natural and powerful.  He passed the training and tests they put him through, and he was able to join Firewatch.  He would be laid back and not too serious, but he always gets the job done though. He's not by the book, and he doesn't like all the rules and regulations of Ares and Fireatch, but he does enjoy his cozy corp life. Therefore, he does give it his best shot when its time to be serious. He was dealt a decent hand, and it keeps getting better so he's definitely the optimisitc type. He'd have a lot of skill with astral perception. He has basic training with firearms, but he is better with longarms. His spell casting is good, but his counterspelling is better. I see him as a bit of a fast talker, so he has the acting group too.

I see him as an astral investigator/fast talker/magical protection.

[Ryo]

So to summarize, the characters currently suggested are as follows:

Ericen: Dwarven Combat Mage. Harsh and sarcastic.
Scawire: Decker/Mage. Nice guy.
Poindexter: No Archetype specified. Straight up asshole.
Novocrane: Animal handler/mimicry adept. Might be a compulsive liar.
Zweiblumen: Shooter/gun nut. Has Aspergers.
Ravensoracle: Weapons specialist. Workaholic pessimist.
Koshnek: Mystic Adept Chaos Magician. Laid back and anti-establishment.

Ericen PMed me the character, but hasn't actually posted anything here yet.

So how would your various character concepts interact? There are some interesting concepts here to be sure, but nothing functions in a vacuum. I'm currently leaning towards Scawire, if not as part of the link than at least as a third participant. I might have to hand out some kind of bonus for the non-linked player, since the linked guys are having all the fun.

Also, are people more in favor of sticking with Ares, or bailing on them? If the decision is made to bail, then the third player is likely on the outside, and the first IC mission will be the one where you guys are plotting to escape.

It's also worth mentioning that as former members of Firewatch, you guys would have had access to all of Ares' more interesting toys, like laser weapons, so you can consider a few exotic weapon profs if you want.

[Ravensoracle]

I'll call my proposed character "The Detective" for now until I come up with something better. The Detective is the stone the other is grounded to. He is by the book good guy but he's seen so much horror that the world can dish out that he's grown numb to it. When he joined the academy, he was the naive rookie that thought he could make some sort of difference. But most of that has been washed away by the blood of the victims in the cases he's responded to.

 Being able to delve into his memories may be a bit of a shock for his partner. He's seen some pretty sick drek in his line of work and there is a dark core buried somewhere in the recesses of his mind that wants to be let out to  delve some "true" payback to some of the sickos. If he is part of the link, his partner may rely on him to hold up against the horrors they see. But the partner may be afraid that the Detective might just be on the brink of becoming the monster they fight.

The link may be a way for the partner to help suppress the rage hidden inside. Or it may be the trigger that lets it all out.

If they want to bail on Ares then the Detective will try to be the voice of reason. He'll want to be loyal. Unless there is just something that ruins that trust and loyalty. There just has to be a crack in his resolve.

[Zweiblumen]

Waffe is absolutely brilliant, but he can't handle social situations at all (has the uncouth neg trait), and just doesn't understand this whole social contract thing.  Having worked for years designing weapons for Ares it became an obsession for him, and he had to perfect their use as well.  Someone noticed how good he was, and word got around to Firewatch.  Someone had the smart idea of recruiting him so he could see his inventions actually used in the field.  This suited both him and Ares well as he was able to iterate on things even faster now.  He's not so much by-the-book or anti-establishment, he's more "what makes the most sense" type.  As such, he could be convinced to leave Ares, but he probably wouldn't have any particular cause to.  This Link would absolutely fascinate him, especially if he was able to start using it to build new things.  Having another voice in his head could be absolutely maddening to him though.  I could see using the link to try and cure him of his aspergers, giving him access to someone else's thoughts would either enlighten him and allow him to make the mental leap from simply racing with his own thougths to making time for others.  Or, he could drive the other side batty with his million mile an hour thought process.

I can see him meshing with pretty much all of the proposed characters in various interesting ways.
Ericen: Archtype - we'd be heavy combat; Personality - two non-filtered fighters, don't see a lot of "healing" going on here, but they'd work well together as Ericen's character's harshness really wouldn't bother Waffe
Scawire: Archtype - I think this would work the best; astral/matrix overwatch with physical combat well covered; Personality - Could see Scawire's character being a balance for Waffe, and helping him make that "emotional" leap.
Poindexter: Archtype - ??; Personality - this would get dark fast, it's unlikely Waffe would see any particular benefit in any kind of personality shift here.
Novocrane: Archtype - again, combat heavy, but complimentary; Personality - This would be the harshest, I don't think Waffe would put up with a liar for long, especially when he *knew* they were lying.
Ravensoracle: Archtype - Uber combat heavy, seems actually redundant; Personality - I think this would be rather interesting, it seems that "The Detective" has the work ethic that Waffe would respect, but the darkness would be an interesting layer on top of the social issues
Koshnek: Archtype - Another reasonably good combat match; Personality - This would be another balancer for Waffe, the laid-back vs. high-strung and anti-establishment vs. blase

As for staying or leaving Ares, Waffe would probably lean towards staying.  Things are good for him, but could be manipulated or convinced without too much dificulty to leave.

[Scawire]

I will wait to see what way the group leans towards, leave or stay, then I will fill out my contacts.

I'm thinking if we stay I will go for a fellow Ares Corp member, and if we go for leaving the Corp an outside contact that will have contacts to help the team hide in the shadows. Depending on what the two linked guys want to do will decide if I change my Knowledge skills and also will decide what my contacts will be.

I think being the two linked corp worker's wing man would be fun, I might not be in on all the mental jokes but I should be able to help them deal with matrix and magical problems.....
.....Well I hope I can help. (  day one brain fried in the matrix . OPPS  )

[Koshnek]

Hmm. As far as leaving Ares goes, My guy wouldn't be too keen on it before the explosion. He worked as a wage slave after his parents, so he's not a fan of the Man. At the time, however, he didn't have any means to work the shadows, so he was stuck with Ares. I'm not too familiar with previous editions, so I don't know how late awakening can happen. I think 19-20 would be the target I'd like. That gives him a year or two making wages like his parents before him and hating his life before awakening.

Then he gains his magic. It comes intuitively, and with some help from Ares he becomes good. Ares lifted him up and helped him develop the power he has now, and he also has a sweet thing going now.  He has to wear the man's clothes, but as long as he completes the mission and doesn't get too out of line, he's riding the Gravy train now. Plus, everyone at Ares respects firewatch. Its fun to be the good guy who saves the day, ya know?

Then they blew him up and faked his death. If the opposite end of the mind link is compelling, he would consider leaving. He doesn't like the Man, but he appreciates what Ares has done for him even if it was as much in their interest if not more. He would have to believe that Ares is going to exploit them too. He would be equally dissatisfied if it became apparent that he would be stuck in secret facilities for the rest of his life. If either or both were true, he would be ok with bailing. If someone talks up the shadows enough that could help. Like about sticking it to the man, or how you can be truly free. All the good you can do from the shadows. Etc. He's good either way depending on the other player and the circumstances presented.

I think someone more by the book would be good for him especially if they stick with Ares. He wouldn't like the constant reminders to shape up, but it would help keep himself in check. The high-strung type would be interesting match up too. I don't think of my character as "lazy," but he would find the laziest way to complete a task. Cut a corner, ignore a rule. Or just come up with something simple that makes a lot of sense that might not be readily apparent. He wouldn't give 100% effort to adequately complete a task that could be accomplished equally well by giving 85%.

He's laid back, but not a pushover, so if someone were constantly trying to take advantage of him that would put him at odds with that character. He keeps an open mind and entertains new concepts, so he would do well with another awakened if their skill sets were compatible. I believe he would be able to accept any of the listed characters as his partner before and after the accident.

I have only played around with his creation a limited amount because I tend to spend a lot of time developing my characters. I haven't named him yet. I can answer any questions about him y'all might have though.

[Scawire]

Stix would be a bit of a push over being the nice guy. He would give ideas to the group, but would let the other two play leader. If the game goes and no one takes the lead Stix would step up, but being the nice guy he is ok with being pushed around a bit.

When it comes to the two magic users, if there one of the two other players there could be discussions going back and forth about magic theory and other things the two have in common. Also it would give the group a high level of defense against magical things

Poindexters straight up asshole will mostly have Stix trying to be nice but not doing alot to stop Poindexter Unless Stix can drop a hint here and there that maybe the better thing to do is to be nice.

With the shooter they will add extra firepower to the team, both being well driven might help with them being able to take the leader roll and then direct Stix on task.

With the animal handler mimicry adept that lies all the time it might be fun to see how his character plays out. All his lies might rub Stix at time but being  nice guy Stix will most likely not get in his face about it, but again like Poindexters asshole he might want to drop hints about it but mainly with those two he will be rolling his eyes and thinking what he can throw into the situation to give it a "nicer" feeling.

As for more rewards there was one thing I have always thought to ask my GMs but keep getting side tracked on. When Players get Karma you almost never see them put it into Knowledge skills. One thing that would be cool would be maybe give the standard Karma then give the group X karma that must be spent on Knowledge skills. Then give the unlinked player a bit more of this Knowledge skill karma to play around with.

[Koshnek]

In a game I'm in, our GM actually gave us 25 karma (not skill points, actual karma points) to be spent only on Interest knowledge. It was fun because it let us flesh out our characters a bit without being afraid of not having useful knowledge. It's a rule I'm in favor of :-).

[Ravensoracle]

I've been playing around with some points and have added a little twist to the character. I added some rigging skill. It cost me a bit of social skills but it lets him fill the driver roll a bit. Mainly though the rigging allows the Detective to use sensors and use drones as remote weapons platforms. I have always liked the idea of a remote sniper pulling of some amazing shots when he is not anywhere close to the gun for easier egress.


Edit: Here is the character so far. I need to fix the priorities but Chummer doesn't let me use that particular layout.

== Info ==
Street Name: Detective
Name: Unnamed Character
Movement: 14/28
Karma: 0
Street Cred: 0
Notoriety: 0
Public Awareness: 0
Ork
Composure: 8
Judge Intentions: 8
Lift/Carry: 9 (75 kg/50 kg)
Memory: 13
Nuyen: -289500

== Priorities ==
Metatype: C - Human, Dwarf, Elf, or Ork {B Priority}
Attributes: B - 20 Attributes
Special: E - Mundane
Skills: A - 46 Skills/10 Skill Groups
Resources: D - 150,000¥ {A Priority}

== Attributes ==
BOD: 4
AGI: 5 (7)
REA: 4 (6)
STR: 4 (5)
CHA: 4
INT: 4
LOG: 4 (6)
WIL: 4
EDG: 1

== Derived Attributes ==
Essence:                   1.60
Initiative:                10 + 3d6
Rigger Initiative:         10 + 3d6
Astral Initiative:         
Matrix AR Initiative:      10 + 3d6
Matrix Cold Initiative:    4 + DP + 3d6
Matrix Hot Initiative:     4 + DP + 4d6
Physical Damage Track:     10
Stun Damage Track:         10

== Limits ==
Physical:                  7
Mental:                    10
Social:                    5
Astral:                    10

== Active Skills ==
Aeronautics Mechanic       : 1                      Pool: 7
Animal Handling            : 0                      Pool: 3
Archery                    : 0                      Pool: 6
Armorer                    : 1                      Pool: 7
Automatics                 : 6                      Pool: 13
Automotive Mechanic        : 1                      Pool: 7
Biotechnology              : 1                      Pool: 7
Blades                     : 1                      Pool: 8
Chemistry                  : 1                      Pool: 7
Clubs                      : 1                      Pool: 8
Computer                   : 1                      Pool: 7
Con                        : 1                      Pool: 5
Cybercombat                : 1                      Pool: 7
Cybertechnology            : 1                      Pool: 7
Demolitions                : 2                      Pool: 8
Disguise                   : 0                      Pool: 3
Diving                     : 0                      Pool: 3
Electronic Warfare         : 1                      Pool: 7
Escape Artist              : 1                      Pool: 8
Etiquette                  : 4                      Pool: 8
First Aid                  : 1                      Pool: 7
Forgery                    : 1                      Pool: 7
Free-Fall                  : 1                      Pool: 5
Gunnery                    : 6                      Pool: 13
Gymnastics                 : 3                      Pool: 10
Hacking                    : 1                      Pool: 7
Hardware                   : 3                      Pool: 9
Heavy Weapons              : 4                      Pool: 11
Impersonation              : 1                      Pool: 5
Industrial Mechanic        : 1                      Pool: 7
Instruction                : 1                      Pool: 5
Intimidation               : 1                      Pool: 5
Leadership                 : 4                      Pool: 8
Locksmith                  : 2                      Pool: 9
Longarms                   : 6                      Pool: 13
Medicine                   : 1                      Pool: 7
Nautical Mechanic          : 1                      Pool: 7
Navigation                 : 0                      Pool: 3
Negotiation                : 4                      Pool: 8
Palming                    : 2 [Pickpocket]         Pool: 9 (11)
Perception                 : 6                      Pool: 10
Performance                : 1                      Pool: 5
Pilot Aircraft             : 1                      Pool: 7
Pilot Ground Craft         : 4                      Pool: 10
Pilot Walker               : 1                      Pool: 7
Pilot Watercraft           : 0                      Pool: 5
Pistols                    : 6                      Pool: 13
Running                    : 0                      Pool: 4
Sneaking                   : 6 [Urban]              Pool: 13 (15)
Software                   : 1                      Pool: 7
Survival                   : 3 [Urban]              Pool: 7 (9)
Swimming                   : 0                      Pool: 4
Throwing Weapons           : 1                      Pool: 8
Tracking                   : 0                      Pool: 3
Unarmed Combat             : 5                      Pool: 12

== Knowledge Skills ==
Forensics                  : 5                      Pool: 14

== Qualities ==
Agile Defender
Analytical Mind
Insomnia (Basic)
Low-Light Vision
SINner (Corporate) (Ares)

== Cyberware/Bioware ==
Bone Density Augmentation Rating 2
Cerebral Booster Rating 2
Control Rig Rating 1
Mnemonic Enhancer Rating 3
Muscle Augmentation Rating 1
Muscle Toner Rating 2
Sleep Regulator
Synaptic Booster Rating 2

== Weapons ==
Unarmed Attack
   Pool: 12   Accuracy: 7   DV: 6P   AP: -   RC: 2

== Commlink ==
Maersk Spider (ATT: 0, SLZ: 0, DP: 4, FWL: 5)

[Ryo]

Gunnery is a pretty solid choice for a weapon skill, since it can function for any weapon you can mount to a drone, including the exotics that you normally never get to use. Even applies to melee weapons, considering the Ares Duelist has sword mounts. Want to shoot a flamethrower or a sonic screech gun? Net launcher? Chainsaw? Get gunnery and a weapon mount and go to town.

as for the Interest knowledge skill points, it sounds interesting. I'll consider it.

[Ryo]

@Raven:

Yeah, chummer doesn't allow custom priority arrays as far as I'm aware. You just have to check the 'ignore creation rules' box and exceed everything and you'll be fine.

I assume you're an Ork, so at Priority B, you should have Edge 5.

Remember, you can go above 6 in a skill if you want. And wow, you took a little bit of everything.

What the heck is a Maersk Spider?

[Ravensoracle]

Yeah I'm an ork at priority B. I just cut and pasted from chummer so it isn't exact with everything. Like money shuold be 500K and it just allowed me 150K. Hence the negative total on the nuyen. If I get accepted I'll give you a better sheet. This was just a quick glance.

This character was originally designed for fourth ed when Move-by-wire was the name of the speed game. So I took some skills to represent his varied and generalist skill-set. He can be more specialized if I need the higher pools but I like the idea of a guy that has a wide variety of decent skills in such a limited number team. 

 The Spider is a RCC for a rigger.

[Ryo]

The Spider is a RCC for a rigger.

Aha, that explains it. The output labeled it as a Commlink so I was confused.

[Zweiblumen]

Would we still have our contacts given we are "dead"?  Especially if we are staying within Ares, I'd think when they erased our past that would eliminate things like "Lifestyle" and "Contacts."

Also, you said we could have skills higher than 6, how much higher?  I didn't see any reference to that anywhere else.

[Ryo]

Any contacts you had with your Corporate SIN, so people who knew your real name, would think you are dead. However, if you had a street presence, or a fake SIN, anybody who were contacts that knew you by those names just think you disappeared for a few months, which isn't exactly uncommon in the shadows. Likewise, any lifestyle you had attached to a Fake SIN has either been sitting empty for a couple months while automated payments kept it in your name, or you missed a rent payment and you lost it. You still have a lifestyle with Ares, since you are still alive, you're just living in a secret facility.

As for skill limits, that was covered in my first post.

Character Creation will use the Prime Runner rules on page 64.
You both have the Corporate SIN negative quality with Ares for 25 karma. Following the Prime Runner rules, you have 15 karma worth of negatives you can still take.
If you are mundane, your Priority array is AABBE
If you have Magic or Resonance, your Priority array is AABCC. You can be initiated/submerged at creation. If you want to be a technomancer, please note that I will heavily house rule how technomancers work to be less awful. For example, I give Technomancers the ability to form PANs, and Direct Connect to any device they touch. Most echoes are also heavily modified.
You can take Skills and Skill Groups up to 9 at creation, 10 with Aptitude.
As long as you remain active members of Ares, gear manufactured by Ares that is Forbidden is instead Restricted for you.
For Ares gear, the Maximum Availability you can get is 20.