Shadowrun
Shadowrun Missions Living Campaign => Living Campaign Discussion => Topic started by: Bull on <10-06-14/2201:25>
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Some questions deserve answers, but they're things that either don't really warrant cluttering the already huge Missions FAQ with, or they're things that aren't really 100% finalized yet, as official answers really depend on Jason and the Powers That Be, but i don't feel they impact Missions enough to put temporary answers into the FAQ.
This is a collection of them. My replies are inline with each post, in red bolded text.
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Elemental Aura (SG p. 115)
The spell only specifies the increase in damage and refers to an armor penetration "appropriate for each attack".
Since there is no general definition of the AP of elemental attacks and the table from CRB p. 171 seems to only aim at the test for catching fire, the spell needs a clearer definition.
It would seem to be appropriate to set the AP-value at F/2 to be in line with the adept power Elemental Body (SG p. 170) and while looking at it, I think a clarification that the spell doesn't affect the equipment of the recipient would help a lot
Thanks in advance for considering it.
This is something that probably needs clarification for Street Grimoire itself. I would assume it would work similar to Elemental Body.
-Bull
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Q: The [Element] Grenade spell from Shadow Spells is in itself not an Area spell but a Touch spell, and uses a separate roll with threshold 3 to put it in the right place. Does this mean that, unlike Indirect Area spells, the first 3 hits on the spell itself still add to damage?
(If so, it does more damage but the downside is you either need to reckless spellcast it or it won't explode in the same Action Phase, allowing people to run away from it.)
Yes.
-Bull
Q: Regarding [Element] Aura, does the AP granted by the spell add to the AP of your Melee Attacks, or does the highest of the two count?
Umm... Higher of the two? Temporary Missions answer until it gets an official clarification via a Street grimoire errata/FAQ.
-Bull
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How does one decide what tasks are appropriate for a spirit within a given tradition (Street Grimoire 41)? For example, what can a Buddhist Earth spirit do that's Health related?
Ummm.. Health stuff? Spells in the healing category (if they can cast any), and, umm,... Giving backrubs? Applying sunscreen? Checking your prostate?
Err... yeah. Dunno. Ask your doctor? :)
-Bull
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Q: Can a player make a Spirit Possess a Drone/Car? What buffs exactly would this require (e.g. Body buffs, Armor, etc), and what kind of actions would the Spirit be able to do as solely mechanical functions (e.g. movement, attacking, cannot use sensors)?
I'm going to need more clarification here as to what you're talking about. But I'm thinking very, very little. Spirits and machines do not mix well.
-Bull
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For the Adept Ways, is the cost to gain one after creation 20 karma or 40 karma?
I'm adding in a Retcon rule. It's 20 if done as a Retcon, it's 40 if done later on. Retcons can be done before your first game session after a new book becomes "Missions Legal" (or, in the case of Street Grimoire, before your next game session after v1.3 of the FAQ drops).
-Bull
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Can you downgrade a Simple Action to a Free Action?
I'm not entirely certain I understand the question.
If you're asking if you can sacrifice a Simple Action to take an extra Free Action? Sure, why not.
If you're asking if you can turn an Action that Requires a Simple Action into a Free action? Usually not, running Hot Sim or Wirelessly does change a few specific actions this way. But generally, no.
-Bull
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Does the typical +1 Street Cred awarded at the end of a Mission replace the karma/10 rule on page 372, or do they stack?
Yes, why wouldn't it? It's possible to gain Street Cred in this manner under the normal rules anyway.
-Bull
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There seems to be some dispute over which of the following weapon types are allowed in a Standard Weapon Mount; is it possible to get a clarification on this?
Assault Rifles
Sniper Rifles
Shotguns
Light Machine Guns
Medium Machine Guns
Heavy Machine Guns
The contention is this part of the text:
"Standard weapon mounts may hold any assault rifle or smaller-sized weapon and 250 rounds of ammo."
I'm baffled by this one. What, are people trying to argue bullet size, or ammo capacity, or physical size of the weapon or something? That's just pedantic, if so. SR's weapons categories are pretty straightforward, IMO. And it's by category, not by weapon.
So Machine Guns, Cannons, and Missile launchers are all heavy Weapons.
-Bull
Furthermore, what happens when you put a non-belt fed weapon into a weapon mount? Does it's reloading mechanism change to belt feed if it isn't already? If not, how does the weapon mount reload?
It's hand waved. Don;t overthink these things. It does what it does.
-Bull
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Q: Core notes a knocked-out spirit is disrupted and all services it owes are lost. (p302, second paragraph.) Street Grimoire notes they cannot return for a while and they still count against their conjurer's limit unless released (p192, third paragraph of the Disruption section).
Does this mean only non-bound spirits have all their services lost, thus allowing you to immediately re-summon, and with a bound spirit you keep all services but can simply forget about calling on them for 3~4 weeks? Or does the SG section completely override the Core note about services, requiring you to first release a disrupted unbound Spirit before you can summon a new one?
SR5's applies to Unbound spirits. SG's applies to Bound Spirits.
-Bull
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Q: Since Shapechange and Critter Form (SG p118) allow you to increase the Base Attributes Ratings, at a rate of 1 increase to 1 stat of your choice per net hit, this would not count as Augmented due to the modifying of the Base Rating, correct?
Maybe? I think I need more context here.
-Bull
Q: Does Possession (SG p197) add to the base attributes or does it count as augmenting? Does the greater-than check take Augmentations in mind? If so, what happens if these Augmentations come after, does the increase from Possession shut down? (Irrelevant for Missions, but the first question would also apply to Inhabitation.)
Possession adds to base attributes and completely ignores Augmentations (They are not used). Maybe kinda sorta? Def one for the official errata.
-Bull
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Q Is it intended for normal Armor having different rules than Barriers and Hardened Armor?
p. 168 has Physical Damage of an attack converted to Stun Damage, if the modified DV is less than the Armor Rating - so equal means Physical
Barriers (p. 197) and Hardened Armor (unambigious in the German Book) need the modified DV to surpass the Armor to be able to cause damage.
Yes, this is intentional. They are two totally different types of protection.
-Bull
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Q The Forearm Guards from R&G p. 73 have a capacity of 3 and the flavor text mentions storage capacity e.g. "popping out blades". Can you implement Cyberspurs (which have capacity 3) or other cyberweapons for use into them?
I'm going to say yes. Because that pretty much turns them into the old forearm snap-blades from the old... Street Sammy's Catalog, IIRC, which were pretty much just cyberspurs sans cyber. Which I just noticed have vanished from the game. Considering Bull rocked a set of those in his early days, I may have to rectify this oversight at some point.
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I have a question related to the Shapeshifting and Critter [Form] spells from SG p. 118:
Do either or both of these spells give the target access to the critter's listed skills and/or powers? The spell explicitly covers physical and mental stats but does not address skills or powers directly. The spell description does state "Shapechange transforms a voluntary subject into a normal (non-paranormal) critter, though the subject retains human consciousness."
So as an example the description of a dog on page 402 of the core book list if as having the skills Intimidation, Perception (Smell), Running, Tracking and Unarmed Combat and the powers Enhanced Senses (Hearing, Smell) and Natural Weapon (claw/bite.) If I cast Shapeshift on myself to turn myself into a dog would I gain the above listed skills and/or powers?
Additional comments on the topic can be found in this thread (http://forums.shadowruntabletop.com/index.php?topic=18628.0).
No. You're just a human shaped like that. Your skills and abilities don't change, though you may not be able to use some of those skills due to a lack of opposeable thumb (or fingers in general).
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Q: Does a weapon on a mount have any changes made to the weapon's default firing mode(s), ammunition capacity, or reload mechanisms?
The book is frustratingly vague on this, and it has lead to a LOT of discussion on the forums about how to handle a mounted weapon, specifically in regards to reloading and ammunition capacity. All the book states is that a Normal Weapon Mount has a 250-round capacity, and a Heavy Weapon Mount has a 500-round capacity.
My read is that the gun is permanently modified to just be fed ammo directly from teh ammo bin in the drone/vehicle. thus it no longer has it's normal ammo capacity. No other changes are made to the gun though (unless you make them yourself). So a Panther Assault Cannon mounted on a vehicle may have a 500 round ammo capacity now, it is still only a Single Shot weapon, so only fires once per action.
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Q: Regarding Background Count and Qi Foci: Does the original Force determine the level of the Adept Power, or the Force inside the Background Count? If the latter, is the power level rounded up or down?
For example: A Force 4 Astral Perception Qi Focus is inside a rating 2 Background Count. The Force is reduced to 2 as a result. Is Astral Perception now impossible since it requires 4 Force, or does the Focus still work just fine?
Second example: A Force 4 Combat Sense 2 Qi Focus is inside a rating 2 Background Count. Does it provide Combat Sense 1 now, its full Combat Sense 2, or is it entirely shut down because it cannot provide its intended bonus?
Unfortunately, it's the Force inside the BGC. if a power can be reduced in level, it will. Otehrwise, it's "switched off" until you leave BGC goes away.
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Q: Is Flameburst (Shadowspells p. 16) right as a Direct Combat spell?
The description makes it feel more intuitive as Indirect spell, as it damages everything in its path, while direct spells have to be targeted.
Play it as written for now. Post up in the official errata forum though, because yeah, it sounds like it should be Indirect.
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Q: Does Penetrating Strike (SG p. 173) work together with Bone Lacings, Bone Density Augmentations?
The mentioned augmentations directly affect the damage of unarmed strikes. The problem lies in the text of the power to "project an unarmed attack a short distance forward", which could be viewed as entirely magical in nature. If the argument of "being paid for with essence" counts, the augmentations could be potentially used with it Penetrating Strike.
I don't see why not.
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Q:
Gun H(e)aven 3 reintroduced Metal Storm weapons to SR5 with the Shiawase Monsoon on p. 13.
Will there be more of them like the Yamaha Sakura Fubuki and will they again receive special rules for their firing modes?
For comparison, they were only able to fire narrow bursts in SR4 (so maybe Aimed Burst/Brain Blaster from R&G p. 119) and used different recoil (counted as single bullet).
You would have to ask Jason. That's above my paygrade. I personally found those guns a PITA, but... <shrug> No one actually cares what I think :)
Q:
Follow-up for Aimed Burst and Brain Blaster from R&G p. 119
The way these Actions are written, they are strictly inferior options to the standard options.
Aimed Burst is a variant for Burst Fire weapons. You gain +1 DV, the defender doesn't lose 2 dice on his defense test and you need a Complex Action to fire the same three bullets instead of a Simple Action.
Brain Blaster is a variant for Full Auto weapons. You gain +2 DV, the defender doesn't lose 5 dice on his defense test and you need a Complex Action to fire the same six bullets instead of a Simple Action.
In addition to making the action economy worse, you introduced the optional rule RG6 on p. 110 where the attack gains +1 DV for every two dice the defense pool would be reduced below zero. So it's effectively the same ratio as above, but without the need to adjust your action economy.
Was this intended? (I don't hope that you nerf RG6, but instead make the other options better :) )
Not everything has to be a 1:1 balanced ration. I'm actually in favor of the idea that the bigger you go, the worse your ratio gets. Keeps things sane.
As for RG6... Keep in mind that has a special requirement that it needs to reduce the defense pool below zero to get that bonus. So it's not something you can guarantee, whereas the other are.
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Question: Does a weapon mounted in a standard or heavy weapon mount gain the ability to use belt-fed ammunition?
If the answer to the above is no, follow-up question: How does a drone reload weapons that require an Agility score (filling a clip, filling a belt or drum, internal magazine, or cylinder)?
According to pages 461 and 462, weapon mounts may hold up to 250 and 500 rounds of ammunition/belt-fed ammunition for standard and heavy mounts respectively, but no mention is made of how or if a weapon is modified when mounted. The contention mostly revolves around whether or not a weapon without a belt-fed ammunition option has access to all 250/500 rounds of ammunition without the need to reload. A clarification on this would be greatly appreciated.
Answered above, but to reiterate, the reload mechanism is completely replaced. And smack people who are nitpicking stuff. Seriously. Just go play the game and have fun. :)
Question: What attribute or reference is used to determine the physical attributes of a vehicle or drone?
Several attributes are clarified according to page 199, but there is still some uncertainty around Strength in particular, and potentially Agility and Body depending on how particular one reads the rule.
The assumption is that Body = Body, Pilot = Reaction (and all mental attributes), and Handling = Reaction, but no reference is made towards Strength. The latter is important for determining Unarmed Combat damage value for metahuman drones such as the Ares Dualist, as well as for determining physical limits where knockdown is concerned and for lifting capabilities.
A simple confirmation of what is used for each physical attribute would be highly appreciated.
No clue. Honestly, I have none. I'm not sure there's anything that would track across and make sense. This is a Jason question.
Question: Which, if any, non-Armor Value modifiers provided by armor items stack?
For example, if a character wears a Berwick Suit (Custom Fit) and an Argentum Coat (Custom Fit (Stack)), does the modifiers stack making the Social Limit and Social Tests dice pool increase by 2 and Concealability increaste to -5, or does only the highest single modifier apply?
What about if the items are not Custom Fit; take an Armanté Suit and a Synergist Business Line Longcoat; would the social limit be increased by 3 (combined total) or 2 (highest single modifier)?
Question stems from this discussion. (http://forums.shadowruntabletop.com/index.php?topic=19477)
If it's a Stack item, combine it. If not, take the highest.
Question: What counts as limbs for the purposes of averaging cyberlimb attributes?
I haven't been able to find a clear answer to this; specifically, does both torso and head/skull count as limbs for the purposes of averaging "attributes involved in a task"?
Limbs count as limbs. :)
Seriously, where do you guys get these questions. Head and Torso are not, nor have they ever been considered ":Limbs" by anyone, ever.
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Free spirits are not allowed, per the FAQ. What about ally spirits?
If they're not disallowed, then the opposite must be true!
However, tehy're NOT going to be happy hanging out in Chicago, and are going to always be taking a hit to tehir Force. keep that in mind if you dare to summon one. You're absically going to get Grumpy Cat as an ally spirit.
(And I apologize, I'm getting a little punchy answering all of these. :))
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A host (heh) of Matrix questions for you.
1. How is Overwatch Score handled if teamwork is used on an illegal Matrix Action?
Is OS shared between the members equally, divided amongst them, or assigned only to the leader?
Hopefully this will be covered by Datatrails, but... I don't think you divide it, and everyone who's tehre digitally gets dinged. So if you wrack up 20 OS, everyone gets 20 OS while they're in there.
2. If two or more hackers successfully teamwork test a Hack on the Fly or Brute Force action to gain one mark on an icon, who gains a mark?
In other words, is it the leader of the teamwork test that gains a mark, or all of the members in the group.
Raid Leader by default, but I'd say it could be assigned to anyone in the raid party. Or they can roll Need or Greed.
3. What happens if a hacker or technomancer enters a host and then runs an agent program or calls a sprite?
Since Agents and Sprites are autonomous, would they appear outside the host and have to hack their way in, or could they appear directly inside the host.
They spontaneously explode.
Ok, yeah, getting REALLY punchy... :)
I honestly have no clue. Another that I hope that Datatrails clarifies. For now, lets say that it appears with them.
4. How should Patrol IC be handled in Missions play?
There is a lot of contention on this as the rules are extremely vague regarding the behaviour of Patrol IC; this thread has pages of good discussion on it, http://forums.shadowruntabletop.com/index.php?topic=19239.0
Treat it like a security guard in the Matrix. GM's perogative. :)
5. How are Matrix Actions handled if you have a direct connection between your deck and another device, but you don't have a connection to the Matrix (high noise, faraday cage, etc)?
In essence, can you still use Matrix Actions when you don't have a connection to the Matrix for some reason.
Sure, why not. I would assume you could.
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I hope this is the right place.
"Will Bullets & Bandages be re-considered for Missions Play?"
Never say never. because that hope, that spark that gets kept alive? It's so much fun to crush out after it's kindled for a long, long while... ;)
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The question came up at our table regarding the application of Street Cred. Per page 372, and reiterated in here (http://forums.shadowruntabletop.com/index.php?topic=13378.msg247123#msg247123) by Bull, it should be applied as an increase to your Social Limit, but not to your dice pool.
However, the TABLE on page 140, repeated again on 475, and collected on the GM Screen show that Street Cred is applicable as a Dice Pool Modifier.
Page 372 doesn't necessarily negate this outright, leading players to believe that it is both applicable as a modifier AND a limit increase/decrease. Discussions elsewhere on the topic are vague as well.
While most GMs have probably dealt with this satisfactorily in their home games, etc, I wonder if we can have a clarification added to the Missions FAQ for Street Cred and it's applicability as a limit booster and/or a dice pool modifier.
Thanks!
Good catch. I was mostly just going by the text on the one page. This is an Errata/FAQ issue for the main book, so is a Jason question. I think the stuff in the various tables are holdovers from SR4. As such, I assume that th text is correct. However, until that gets errata'd, I don;t see why not. However, it needs a cap, since Street Cred ratings can quickly get out of hand. So like SR4, cap it at your Charisma score.
At some point I think I need to calrify exactly how those stats effect missions, because they should.
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Question regarding the adept power Eidetic Sense Memory from Shadow Spells page 23, which should be Missions legal as of 2014-10-25; what does this power actually do?
Unlike Photographic Memory, which gives a +2 dice pool modifier to all Memory tests, Eidetic Sense Memory has more of a fluff description (i.e. "memories can be recalled at will") than a mechanical impact. Does it allow the adept to recall sensory input without a test? If yes, wouldn't this make the Photographic Memory quality (p76 SR5) and/or Three Dimensional Memory adept power (p175 SG) somewhat redundant?
Similar but 3 slightly different functions.
Photog Memory allows you to recall information that you've seen or heard or read, but it's something you have to have actually paid attention to. So using this to remember a crime scene would give you a good overview of the room, but you wouldn't know what the note sitting on the desk said unless you had actually walked over and read it. All you could remember is that there was a note. This is visual only.
Eidetic Memory gives you all senses, but is similar to Photog Memory otherwise. So same scene, you would remember the paper but not what was written on it. You could also remember there was a hint of cologne in the air and that there was a wailing baby coming from down the hall. You would also know what the carpet tasted like if you licked it, and how grainy the wallpaper was if you ran your hand over it.
And finally 3-D Memory gives you a perfect Three Dimensional Snapshot of a space you took some time to memorize, without having to actually read every line and detail. You just pull it all in. So you would know exactly what that note said, using the same crime scene. You can also go back and study the scene again to see if you missed anything the first time that your conscious brain did not recall, but your unconscious brain picked up. So with Photographic memory if you needed 6 hits ona perception test to notice a drop of blood on the floor, but only got 5 hits, you could never recall it. But with 3-D memory, if you do a recall and go through the scene a second time, and this time get 6 hits, you spot the blood. IT also records sensations (you know how you felt... Cold, scared, whatever), but doesn't record other senses. So you would not Recall sounds or smells, and since you can't interact with it you can't touch or taste anything.
All three are useful, though Photog Memory is a lesser version of both of those (but isn't magical either). 3-D and Edietic compliment each other nicely though.
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Previous rulings have stated that the specializations of Unarmed Combat are replaced with the rules found in Run & Gun. Just to confirm, does this mean there is no longer a Cyber Implant specialization?
Hrmm, that got overlooked. I always forget it's an unarmed and not a Blades specialization myself. This will need clarified. For now, assume it's an allowed spec.
How do magic licenses work? Specifically, do you need a separate license for combat spells (as a category) or one for each combat spell. Page 367 notes you need a license for "Spell Weapon" which is defined as "knowledge and use of a single combat spell." Does this mean as long as you know at least one combat spell you need to register yourself as a spell weapon or does it mean that for every combat spell you need, you need an additional license?
I generally assume it's like a Carry Permit for firearms. You have to register each of your spells, but it's a single permit to cover all of them.
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More Tomorrow.
-Bull
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I'll join the others in thanking you for your efforts, Bull. I really do hope your work isn't too thankless, and if it is, well, here's another huge appreciation of everything you do. Cheers!
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Ok, all done. Extraneous posts weeded out. I'll keep this pinned for a while so folks can reference it. Missions FAQ will be out by the 20th, no promises that it will be earlier, and I'm not willing to commit to saying what is and isn't allowed until it's all final, because stuff. :) So don't bother asking. Anyway, locking this down. New FAQ Request thread is up. if you have followups to comments in this trhead, break them out into a new thread.
Thanks, and have fun!