Well, it's been kind of a slow day for me. Nothin' much for me to do, and staring at the tile ceiling gets boring after a while, so in a fit of restlessness, I started to wonder, "Hey, me, how likely is it that people in the barrens of Seattle or in the lawless ruins of Chicago have to make their own weaponry? I somehow doubt that every band of thugs can get their hands on good ol' fashioned sports equipment to bust peoples heads in. 'sides, if there's one area people are endlessly (and depressingly) creative in, its ways to bash their fellows heads in!" Realizing this, I thanked myself for the creative task to focus my attention on, and proceeded to stat out some stuff that low level gangers, the SINless population, or even Shadowrunners may need to use in desperate straits. Well, more desperate ones then usual, anyways.
So as this is my first time statting things up for you guys, don't expect to be amazed or awed by this stuff. It's ment mostly for the random no-name shmucks you folks'll be murdering for various types of jobs that involve squalid living conditions and filthy trashpiles. You know, most of 'em. Feel free to add other ways to ruin someone's day if you like. Ghost knows there's plenty of them.
-----Barrens Melee Weaponry-----
Barrens Axe
Using a footlong length of metal or wood, 4 six inch strips of metal, and a knife or half a sawblade, the Barrens Axe has found widespread use within Seattle’s Redmond barrens, due to the relative ease of making it with cheap or scavenged materials. Utilized by numerous gangs infesting Redmond, as well as the squatters and general population, it’s a regular sight in the numerous acts of mayhem flooding the Knight Errant call centers. Built in varying levels of quality, the best ones are made from cooking knives or saw blades welded onto a foot-long length of gas pipe, but numerous varieties exist, with handles ranging from wooden broom handles to tree branches, and blades created from glass, metal from wrecked cars, and sharpened rocks. A particularly memorable Halloweener gang leutendant had one made from a broken katana scavenged from a battle with the Seattle Yakuza, with the scabbard used as a handle.
Blades
Reach 1
Damage: (STR/2+2)P. Increase or decrease based on Quality.
Armor Penitration: -
Availibility: 3 for the weapon, - for building materials.
Cost: 40 for low quality, 60 for mid, 80 for high.
Descriptive Qualities:
Low: Shoddly made, uses old car metal or sharpened street signs for a blade, handle made from a tree branch or wooden table leg, blade nailed or tied onto handle.
Mid: Decent, blade made from a kitchen knife or sawblade, handle made from a broomstick or rifle barrel, blade bolted onto handle.
High: Well crafted, uses a butcher knife, survival kinfe or even a broken sword blade, handle made from a metal pipe, a length of rebar, or a baseball bat, blade welded onto handle.
Special: due to the weapon’s construction and weight, it cannot be used as a thrown weapon, although certain gangs can make throwing versions. Simply add balanced to the weapon description and add 20 nuyen to the cost of the weapon. However, standard Barrens Axes cannot be retrofitted to become balanced.
Concrete Mace
With a pipe or length of rebar, a wide mouth bottle, and enough concrete, a makeshift mace can be created at exeptionally low cost. While not quite as popular as the Barrens Axe among the local gangs, it can be modified further for better armor penetration by sticking nails, screws, and various other sharp implements before the concrete hardens, which is useful as well for intimidation value. Certain go-gangs have even created a pipe bomb version, designed to penitrate vehicular armor for cargo raids on tractor trailors.
(Standard/Spiked)
Clubs
Reach 1
Damage: (STR/2+2)
Armor Penitration: -
Availibility: 2 for the weapon, - for materials.
Cost: 30 nuyen. 40 nuyen for ones with an AP of 1.
(Explosive Version)
Clubs
Reach 1
Damage: (STR/2+2). Secondary explosion: Use IED damage.
Armor Penitration: -1 for the hit, halved by armor for the explosives.
Availibility: 4 for the weapon, 2 for the ammunition used as the explosive material.
Cost: 70 for explosive maces.
Millwall Brick
A Millwall Brick is an improvised weapon made out of a manipulated newspaper folded four or five times and then folded in half again. With more and more sheets stacked and folded inside, the implement becomes harder, and some people also soak the brick in water to add weight or tape the ends together. While actual newspapers are increasingly rare in the sixth world, a few neo-anarchist enclaves may have printed news as a way to get information out to interested people, as well as colleges and third world countries.
Clubs
Reach 0
Damage: (STR/2+1)
Armor Penitration: -
Availibility: About the same as an actual college newspaper would be in the sixth world.
Concealibility: -2
Cost: FREE!
