cybernetic implants
house rule (replacement)
A character may only purchase and install a number of
Cybernetic enhancements equal to 1 plus his ranks in the Resilience skill.
standard rule
The standard rule that this alters is:
“A
character may only purchase and install a number of cybernetic enhancements and
replacements equal to his Brawn rating” – Force and Destiny Core Rulebook, pg
182.
result
Many characters will now have easier access to more
cybernetics at a lower investment cost, without sacrificing a relationship to
the physical characteristic, without changing the normal maximum cybernetics
allowed, and without being forced to invest in directions that may be far outside
the characters desired path or intent. Characters with high Brawn will be
required to also invest in Resilience if they are interested in high levels of
cybernetics.
reasoning
With the number of cybernetics a character can have tied to
Brawn rating, this forces many character types to increase their Brawn if they
want to do more than dabble in cybernetics. Unfortunately, increasing a
characteristic is often a huge investment and in this case, doing so may not be
in line with the rest of the character concept or desired direction.
Here is the description for Brawn:
“A character’s Brawn represents a blend of brute power,
strength, and overall toughness, as well as the ability to apply those
attributes as needed. Characters with a high Brawn are physically fit and
hardy, rarely get sick, and have strong constitutions. Brawn is used for a
number of physical skills, such as Athletics and Brawl. Brawn is also used to
determine a character’s starting wound threshold.” –FaD Core Rulebook, pg 24
Other
than being ‘hardy’ and having a ‘strong constitution’ this doesn’t much sound
like it would have anything to do with cybernetic enhancements. Next we will
review the description for the Resilience skill.
“The
galaxy doesn’t stop moving just because a character needs a break. To achieve
their objectives, characters must have the perseverance to overcome the most
challenging obstacles. These can include sleep deprivation, hideous climates,
and malnutrition. Characters might also ingest toxins, either inadvertently
when scavenging for food or due to the malicious actions of an infiltrator.
Resilience represents a character’s physical fortitude against all threats of
this sort. This skill reflects the body's ability to be pushed beyond
reasonable limits.” –
FaD Core Rulebook, pg 125.
The Resilience
skill clearly represents the ‘hardy’ and ‘strong constitution’ that the Brawn
description was talking about (makes sense as it is based on Brawn). Having a
limb replaced, or a micro-chip wired into your nervous system falls pretty
nicely into the category of physical traumas that are hard to endure like
‘hideous climates, malnutrition and toxins’. Finally, a character that has a
low Brawn, may still have a high Resilience skill, suggesting a toughness in
that character that goes beyond mere muscle and strength.
The one
arguable downside is that characters that already would have a high Brawn
rating will now also be required to invest in Resilience if they are interested
in large numbers of cybernetics. This, however, is not all that terrible as it
still makes sense from a game mechanics and role play perspective as well as
helping to level the playing field with other less Brawny characters.
As a result, it makes pretty good sense that the ability to accommodate more cybernetics be tied to the Resilience skill as opposed to the Brawn characteristic.
Making a Cyber Tech character and this would be a very good change.
ReplyDeleteThere's also the way that the Genesys Core Rules handle cybernetics (as well as the Android setting Book), in that each Cybernetic implant reduces your strain threshold by one. As Strain increases are a lot more common, it makes it easier for a player to install more cybernetics, and at the same time there's still a tradeoff for installing them.
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