AwakeMUD CE

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===== Khai's Cyberware/Bioware Musings =====
Just some thoughts on selecting 'ware to survive the shadows of Awakened Worlds CE.

==== Making Nuyen ====
Cyberware and bioware are not cheap. The three primary methods to generate nuyen are (1) autoruns, (2) paydata, and (3) selling loot. Payout for all of these can be increased with negotiation.
^'ware for negotiation              ^max bonus for mundanes ^for everybody else^
|biosculpting / tailored pheromones |+8 dice, -1 TN         |+4 dice           |

Strength allows a character to carry more loot. Those using strength-based melee weapons will also want more strength to make it more difficult for enemies to resist attacks. 
^'ware for cpool        ^max bonus          ^
|cyberarms + cyberlegs  |+6 str             |
|muscle augmentation IV |+4 str             |
|pheno alteration (str) |+1 str             |
|adrenal pump II        |+4 str (temporary) |
Note: Quickness limits the number of individual items you can carry in your inventory, but you can work around this by putting things into containers.

Alternatively, a drone with a mechanical arm can loot most things (but not cash or keys). Some drones have carrying capacity equivalent to 30 strength or more. They also aren't item count limited.
^'ware for drone use    ^
|vehicle control rig    |
|datajack               |

==== Combat Pool (cpool) ====
Cpool dice can be allocated to help you dodge ranged attacks, soak damage, and/or attack. Unlike canon SR3, cpool dice aren't depleted by actions in a combat turn, so you get all the dice, all the time (unless surprised). Base cpool is calculated from (quickness + intelligence + willpower)/2, rounded down.
^'ware for cpool        ^max bonus       ^effect on cpool   ^
|cyberarms + cyberlegs  |+6 qui          |+3                |
|tactical computer      |+4 cpool        |+4                |
|muscle toner IV        |+4 qui          |+2                |
|cerebral booster II    |+2 int          |+1                |
|suprathyroid gland     |+1 qui          |+0.5              |
|pheno alteration (qui) |+1 qui          |+0.5              |
|adrenal pump II        |+2 qui +2 will  |+2 (temporary)    |

==== Avoiding Melee Damage ====
Melee attacks can't be dodged. The only defense from melee attacks (other than soaking) is winning the opposed melee test. Cpool dice can be allocated to offense, meaning they're added to your ranged and melee combat rolls. So, also take a look at the above section on cpool.
^'ware for melee dice^
|enhanced articulation  |
|reflex recorder        |

==== Soaking Damage ====
In most cases, the damage you take from attacks is reduced by rolling your body against the power of the attack, where the power is also reduced by ballistic or impact armor. Cpool dice can be allocated to soak, meaning they're added to your body for this purpose, so also take a look at the above section on cpool. Most of your armor will come from worn armor, which is limited by your quickness, so the quickness 'ware listed for cpool do extra duty.
^'ware for armor    ^
|cyberlimbs         |
|dermal sheathing   |
|bone lacing        |
|orthoskin          |
NOTE: armor from 'ware do not count against worn armor vs quickness.\\
\\
^'ware for body         ^
|cyberlimbs             |
|dermal sheathing       |
|dermal plating         |
|bone lacing            |
|suprathyroid gland     |
|pheno alteration (bod) |
|calcitonin             |

==== Taking Damage ====
Being wounded gives you TN penalties, making it harder for you to succeed on actions and so more likely to die horribly.
^'ware to reduce wound TN penalties ^
|trauma damper                      |
|platelet factories                 |
|damage compensator                 |
|pain editor                        |
Typically, a damage compensator is not recommended with a trauma damper because the damper doesn't function unless the damage to be taken would cause you to exceed your compensator rating. But consider the combination of platelet factories, a trauma damper, and a rating 1 compensator. If you are undamaged and take a physical hit staged to Moderate (3 boxes), you will end up with no wound penalties (factories reduce the hit by 1 box, the damper moves 1 box to mental, and the 1 remaining box along with the 1 box of mental cause no penalties because of the compensator). A similar argument can be made for higher rating compensators against bigger hits. That said, while a rating 1 compensator has a low tradeoff vs damper effectiveness, higher ratings have correspondingly higher tradeoffs and the situations where they are ideal may be much less likely to occur.\\
NOTE: pain resistance from the adept power or drugs will offset penalties without disabling the trauma damper!
==== Resisting Knockdown ====
The knockdown test rolls your body and soak (from cpool) against a TN equal to the power of the attack (plus wound modifiers, etc). So, also take a look at the above sections on cpool and soaking damage. 
^'ware to reduce knockdown TN   ^
|balance tail                   |
|balance augmenter              |
|foot anchor                    |

==== Initiative ====
Any wounds you can inflict before the enemy can act penalizes their ability to do anything in return, assuming you don't outright knock them out or kill them. Initiative includes reaction, calculated as (quickness + intelligence)/2, round down. So, also take a look at the quickness and intelligence 'ware listed in the above section on cpool.
^'ware for initiative/reaction  ^
|boosted reflexes               |
|wired reflexes                 |
|move-by-wire                   |
|reaction enhancers             |
|synaptic accelerator           |
|suprathyroid gland             |
|enhanced articulation          |
NOTE: enemy spellcasting does not necessarily cause you to enter combat, meaning you may not automatically roll for initiative. Spellcasting can only target those in the same room. If you need to be in the same room and the spellcaster is aggressive, unless you are a particularly quick typer, it will probably be necessary to queue up entering the room immediately followed by an attack command in order to cause the initiative roll before the spellcaster can do any casting. Once in combat/initiative, spellcasting works like any other attack (one per pass, in order from highest to lowest intiative). Most MUD clients have some way to queue commands, or you can make an alias (see: HELP ALIAS). If the enemy spellcaster is using improved invisibility, you don't pass the spell resistance check, and you don't have astral perception, you will need to use ultrasound to detect them. If the spellcaster has friends in the same room that you can shoot from outside the room, do that first, as their deaths will increase the room's background count, which applies a TN penalty to spellcasting.

==== Surviving Magic ====
Landing an attack on the spellcaster before they can cast means either they can't cast (because you hit them hard enough that they're unconscious or mortally wounded) or they take wound penalties to casting. See the above section on initiative.\\
\\
An opposing spellcaster's TN for manabolt and stunbolt are set by your willpower. 
^'ware for willpower            ^
|adrenal pump                   |
|pain editor                    |
NOTE: the adrenal pump can cause significant damage when it wears off, and the pain editor when active disables the trauma damper.\\
\\
Ranged manipulation spells can be dodged. See the above section on increasing cpool.\\
\\
Half your impact armor, round down, is subtracted from a ranged manipulation spell's power. See the above listing on 'ware for armor.\\
\\
An opposing spellcaster's successes when casting an ignite spell is reduced by half your body, round down. Your body also serves as their TN for powerbolt. See the above listing on 'ware for body.

==== Drug Use ====
Drugs can provide a variety of temporary bonuses, including attributes, pain resistance, and initiative. But some drugs can deal damage to the user.
^'ware to resist drug damage^
|toxin extractor            |

==== Vision ====
Light and weather conditions inflict TN penalties to many actions. Where combat is concerned, this includes shooting, melee clashes, and dodge. All vision from cyberware is always considered artificial and so is generally worse than either (1) natural thermographic vision, or (2) natural lowlight vision + flashlight + thermographic shades. 

Natural thermographic vision is better by 1 TN in heavy rain, whereas natural lowlight vision + flashlight + thermographic shades is better by 1 TN in partial light.
^'ware providing natural lowlight vision^
|cat's eyes                             |
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