We can rebuild her. Faster. Stronger. Cattier?

[CanopusIV]

Looks pretty interesting. Probably a much easier way of doing it than my way :) Still, cybernetics can be fun :)

Oh, I'll make a cybernetics catgirl character, though it'll definitely be an MIM character.  Believe it or not, I'm really interested to see what you'll come up with :D

[CanopusIV]

Ok, I think I put together a viable candidate as a catgirl operative using cybernetic enhancements. 

A few liberties with the GM would have to be taken into consideration largely because the character has no way of paying for the almost 400,000 C-Bills it cost to equip said catgirl with replacement legs, ears, tail, and hands.  However, I made a compromise by paying the 'Equipped' trait to compensate.  Since she's an operative infiltrating Lyran society, she also got the Beauty Enhancement as well.  Numbers in parenthesis represent the bonus done by enhancements.

Lastly, I did luck out on the lifepath roll with 400 additional xp.  If need be, those points could be made up by reducing Reputation to represent her somewhat scandalous appearance with the people she knows, raising her Enemies to reflect political dealings gone badly, or reduction in Connections representing her relatively new appearance on the Lyran stage.  So without further ado....

Name: Agent Madison Angelis
Age: 21
Height: 5'6"
Weight: 150lbs
Hair: Strawberry-Blonde
Eyes: Green

Origin: Magistracy of Canopus
Early: Nobility (-10xp due to circumstances)
Late: Military School (+20xp due to circumstances)
Edu: Intelligence Operative Training (Basic, Covert Operations)  (+400xp due to circumstances)

ATTRIBUTES:

STR: 300 (500)
BOD: 400
RFL: 400
DEX: 500
INT: 400
WIL: 500
CHA: 600 (700)
EDG: 300


SKILLS:

Acting +4 (+5)
Acrobatics/Gymnastics +2 (+3)
Career/Soldier +2
Computers +2
Escape Artist +3
Interest/Cheerleading +2
Interest/Military History +2
Language/English +2
Language/German +2
Language/Greek +0
Leadership +2 (+3)
Martial Arts +1
MedTech +2
Melee Weapons +3 (+5 or +7 if enhancements stack)
Navigation/Ground +2
Negotiation +2 (+3)
Perception +3 (+4)
Protocol/Lyran Alliance +2
Protocol/Magistracy +3
Running +1
Small Arms +3
Streetwise/Lyran +1
Swimming +1
Technician/Cybernetic +1
Tracking/Urban +2


TRAITS:

Attractive 0
Compulsion/Magistracy Loyalty -100
Connections 300
Dark Secret/Spy -300
Enemy -200
Equipped 600
Gregarious 100
Glass Jaw -300
In-For-Life -300
Lost Limb (Legs, hands) -500
Prosthetic Replacement 500
Rank 300
Title 400
Wealth 100


Agent Madison Angelis was born in 3056 to a noble family on Gambilon.  The Angelis family had a long history serving with duty in the 3rd Canopian Light Horse.  The frontier of Canopian space limited her opportunities slightly (EDG -10), but Madison's childhood was relatively normal for someone in her location and position.  Using her family's good name and following their tradition, Madison went to Military School, but managed to secure a position with a prestigious school on Canopus IV (Connection +20).  Naturally outgoing and made of less sturdy stuff than her peers, Madison took an interest in gymnastics, the school's cheer squad, and the speech and debate clubs between her military training.

Disaster struck when she neared the end of her military schooling.  The Word of Blake had occupied Canopus and in the daring raid to rescue Hadji Doru, the school's cadets joined the Resistance and fought against the 42nd Shadow Division.  Unfortunately, it ended badly for Madison as her unit was cut to shreds in a holding action.  As a result, she lost both her legs to a grenade blast, and the Blakist firebombing burnt both her hands as she crawled to safety; barely locating a combat medic before she bled to death.  An Ebon Magistrate Operative recognized her family name in the field hospital, and upon learning of her condition, offered her a choice to join the Magistracy Intelligence Ministry.  She graciously accepted.  Soon after, she was whisked away to a secret base where her prosthetic limbs were applied (+400 Equipped) with her official training occurring soon after.   

Agent Angelis worked with the MIM for the duration of the Jihad before given her current posting on Donegal in Lyran space.  Madison easily slid into Lyran high society with her exotic feline appearance and disarming charisma.  Her aristocratic upbringing has served her well politicking among the Lyrans, and her little black book is full of valuable paramours and contacts.  Among the Lyrans, she is widely regarded as an eccentric, but gorgeous courtesan representing the best that the backwater Magistracy has to offer.  Her cybernetics are seen as 'a Magistracy eccentricity' that were added after being maimed in battle, and they are thus tolerated in her social sphere.  The reality however is that her cybernetic enhancements make her a dangerous assassin, a sublime information gatherer, and subtle manipulator of Lyran politics.

Her cybernetic enhancements include:

Two cybernetic, feline legs.
An enhanced, prosthetic tail.
Enhanced cybernetic cat ears (with radio and audio recorder)
Two cybernetic hands with retractable claws.

Madison still suffers from the trauma her body underwent, is fiercely loyal to the Magistracy who gave her her life back, and will be forever indebted to the MIM.  She works best as an elite infiltrator and uses her appearance and countenance to simultaneously win her friends while maintaining her lethality as a combat soldier.

[Maelwys]

Due to being under the weather, I'm probably not going to post the next part, simply because I don't really feel up to doing math :)

I did want to discuss the "Random Life events" chart. I've managed to roll decently on it, netting 300 points for the third stage (go go dice). And it seems incredibly powerful. Sure, I could've rolled a -300, which would actually work for this character, but I can't help but wonder if these random events don't work as well as they did in third.

[CanopusIV]

Due to being under the weather, I'm probably not going to post the next part, simply because I don't really feel up to doing math :)

I did want to discuss the "Random Life events" chart. I've managed to roll decently on it, netting 300 points for the third stage (go go dice). And it seems incredibly powerful. Sure, I could've rolled a -300, which would actually work for this character, but I can't help but wonder if these random events don't work as well as they did in third.

Awwww, feel better, hun.  Truth be told, I feel a little guilty when I get a roll that gives me a huge xp boost.  I rolled an 11 in Stage 3 which was a 12 with the modifier I had.  With the first character I built, the bonuses gave me about a +4% bonus to the character.  A few bad rolls could make a character unplayable pretty fast and it IS biased towards 'affluent' backgrounds.  Before if you spent an EDG point, you could reroll or add another die.  It's not ideal by far, but it does add that missing element that they took out.

[Maelwys]

Okay, I haven't really been able to do the optimizing steps, but its worth looking at the end of the third stage life path. Considering she's going to be MIM, Intelligence Operative Training with Basic Training and Covert Operations is a natural choice.

Attributes
STR: 200 (min 4)
BOD: 290 (Min 5)
REF: 215
DEX: 100
INT: 145 (Min 4)
WIL: 300 (Min 5)
CHA: 150
EDG: 150

Traits
Alternate ID: 50
Combat Sense: 80
Connections: 230 (Min +2)
Equipped: 110
Fit: 100
Gregarious: 50
Rank: 250
Reputation: -125
Toughness: 75
Wealth: 300

Compulsion/Paranoid: -20
Enemy: -40
Illiterate: -100
In For Life: -300

Skills
Language/Spanish: 20
Language/English: 20
Perception: 85
Protocol/MoC: 40
Streetwise/MoC: 90
Leadership: 25
Negotiation: 15
Running: 50
Career/Any: 30
Computers: 20
Escape Artist: 30
Stealth: 30
Tracking/Wilds: 40
Acting: 65
Martial Arts: 40
Melee Weapons: 35
MedTech: 55
Navigation/Ground: 40
Small Arms 50
Survival/Any: 40

So here we go. The end of the Life Paths. The 300 from the Events Roll really helps boost Equipped and Wealth, though they're still going to take some work. I picked up some more minimums, though thankfully the Intelligence School provides all the points needed for its Connections Minimum. Some pretty nice skills as well, though I realize that they're probably mostly at +1 or +2, though I'm rather impressed with Perception and Streetwise.

I'm also rather surprised that I managed to come out with so few negative traits. The ones I have are doozies mind you, but there aren't that many.

[CanopusIV]

Looks pretty good so far.  Maybe having the ultra lucky roll on the Life Events roll might help account for the rarity of catgirl cybernetics.  Meaning, only the luckiest or most suitable agents are the ones who get the upgrades.  I had the bonuses too, but I also ended up with a lot of bad traits at the end of creation.

Hope you're also feeling better

[Maelwys]

I may have messed one or two things up...going to have to recrunch some numbers.

So I was rereading some passages and...

Can I not buy off Illiterate, except for getting +4 in a language? No slipping in 100 points to buy it off during chargen (though admittedly, slipping in 100 points is probably enough to get your character to +4 in a language...)

[BirdofPrey]

I don't remember seeing anything that said you couldn't by it off (does it say somewhere you can't directly buy off negative traits?).  it just says that +4 in language eliminates it as if it were an opposing trait.

[Maelwys]

I don't remember seeing anything that said you couldn't by it off (does it say somewhere you can't directly buy off negative traits?).  it just says that +4 in language eliminates it as if it were an opposing trait.

Its one of those odd things. I had the sudden feeling that the only way you could buy off a negative trait was by effectively purchasing an opposing positive trait, but rereading the examples has one considering buying off a compulsion, so I guess you can just buy off negative traits.

Of course, thinking about it rationally, rather than buying off the trait you might as well just use the points to improve a language skill :)

[BirdofPrey]

It would make sense to have decent language skills (in multiple languages) considering this is supposed to be an Operative.

[Maelwys]

Would have, yeah. Annoyingly, the Back Woods and Adolescent Warfare paths pretty much ate into the secondary language skills :) We'll have to see how the points wind up.

[Maelwys]

So after some confused math, I think I figured out the stats for the character atleast. Gear to follow, and then after that, fleshing the character out.

Attributes
STR: 400
BOD: 500
REF: 400
DEX: 400
INT: 400
WIL: 500
CHA: 500
EDG: 300

Traits
Connections: +2
Equipped: +8
Rank: 2 (Enlisted)
Reputation: -2
Wealth: +10

Compulsion/Paranoid: -1
Enemy: -1
In For Life: -3
Lost Limb: -5

Skills
Language/Spanish: +0
Language/Mandarin: +0
Language/English: +4
Perception: +3
Protocol/MoC: +1
Streetwise/MoC: +3
Leadership: +0
Negotiation: +1
Running: +2
Career/Pleasure Circus: +0
Career/Spy +1
Computers: +0
Escape Artist: +1
Stealth: +1
Tracking/Wilds: +1
Acting: +2
Investigation: +0
Martial Arts: +2
Melee Weapons: +2
MedTech: +2
Navigation/Ground: +1
Small Arms: +2
Survival/Any: +1

As you can see, I dumped alot of points into English to ditch the Illiterate trait. I figured since I was buying it off, I might as well get the skill points. Is it just me, or does illiteracy really seem like it should be worth more points? I also added another language to show the Capellan influence on the Magistracy, as well as the Investigation skill, just to help her when she's poking around. The skill bonuses perhaps aren't the greatest, but for a starting, fresh out of the academy character, there's always room to grow.

The Wealth and the Equipped traits hurt my points. I'll freely admit that, though I think the character turned out alright, though there will be a few more changes as I work on the equipment. I would've liked to have picked up Gregarious and Fit, but it just wasn't in the cards this time around.

Thoughts/feelings? Gear will be next, that was the other big mistake I think I made (like assuming that eyes and ears came in pairs, instead of singles :) )

[CanopusIV]

I'm also fairly certain that any outfit that supplies you with cybernetics that cost more than some towns produce in a year would want to make sure you could read...

But no, if you have a language at +4 that's essentially 120 xp.  The ability to speak any language is 20xp, so you have in a way already paid out the illiteracy drawback.  I think the text also states that by that point you're using an advanced vocabulary so I would think it'd be safe to say you can read.

If I were the GM, I would allow for the language buying out the illiteracy myself.

[CanopusIV]

Well, with your wealth and equipped so high, I'd say you could personally afford them and wouldn't need the In For Life as it is.  As a GM, I wouldn't make the player pay the cost of the enhancements if they were working as an agent.  As it stands, you could have afforded them on your own which takes a significant chunk of points away from the advanced skills you'd need as an elite agent.

Still, you put together a great concept! 

[BirdofPrey]

A single lost limb at -5 eh?
You realize that's a single arm or leg right?

Also, your missing the Prosthesis trait(s) for the cybernetics.

[Tai Dai Cultist]

True.  Though I suppose finding someone who wants their legs chopped off so they can be a mermaid would be difficult, finding someone who would also remain loyal enough not to (pardon the phrase) walk off with the goods would also be a bit tricky too.  Well, there's a lot 750,000 C-Bills could buy too, but no, I get your point.  Still, it'd be too expensive for me to justify the cost.

I just got my copy yesterday.. the cosmetic augmentation stuff caught my eye, too.  Upon reading more closely, you're not actually *stuck* as a mermaid or centaur or whatever.  The cosmetic augmentation  implants hookups into you, which accept the cybernetic augmentations.  You become an omnihuman, of sorts :D  You can take off the fish half and resume use of your legs whenever you want.

And the catgirl secret agent can pop off her ears and tail whenever they're TOO ridiculous to wear, and be a good bit more subtle around neko-haters.

[Maelwys]

Well, with your wealth and equipped so high, I'd say you could personally afford them and wouldn't need the In For Life as it is.  As a GM, I wouldn't make the player pay the cost of the enhancements if they were working as an agent.  As it stands, you could have afforded them on your own which takes a significant chunk of points away from the advanced skills you'd need as an elite agent.

Still, you put together a great concept!

Thanks. I can definitely see the argument of not paying for the enhancements if you're part of the organization (in fact, I think the Companion mentions something sort of similar, but they also suggest making the character take both body AND willpower at 7+. Which just wasn't happening :) ). But even though I'm purchasing the cybernetics myself, the character concept is still working with the MIM/EM, so I think the In For Life still applies in this case.

Though that might be an interesting bonus to chargen to show the purchasing power that your In For Life might give you. Add your In For Life points to your Wealth and/or your Equipped trait to determine what you can purchase (well, add the positive value of your In For Life trait points...y'all know what I mean).

A single lost limb at -5 eh?
You realize that's a single arm or leg right?

Also, your missing the Prosthesis trait(s) for the cybernetics.

Yeah, I know. But honestly, I'm not sure you can make a character with multiple missing (large) limbs from the basic rules. Maybe if you get really unlucky with the optional Life Stage Event rolls, but even then... So I took a single one at -5 to show the concept more than to follow the rules completely. Maybe once I purchase the cybernetics I'll add in the traits.

As for missing the Prosthetics traits..true. But I'm sort of confused on that issue. Do I have to spend both money and XP on Prosthetics? Can I just decide to buy the Prosthetics, which will net me the trait?

[BirdofPrey]

I took the rules for implant/prosthetic to be just like the ones for vehicle.  You put XP into the trait and what you get out of it is based on the TP.  The costs are for if you are trying to acquire something in game during the campaign.

[Maelwys]

Sure, but the Vehicle Trait is for units that are too expensive (for the most part) for someone to purchase using the Wealth rules. If a PC can afford to purchase the items simply by using their starting resources, why shouldn't they be able to?

[CanopusIV]

The other tricky bit is that you can opt to have your vehicle to have malfunctions or performance issues to lower the cost.  A hovertank costs 100xp, another 200xp to own, which you could have a 'bad reputation' and you could get 100xp back.  Consequently, if you just wanted to purchase one, you'd have to have quite a high point value in wealth and equipped.

In a way, I think something similar should belong to cybernetics if you wish to start out with them, but the caveat being you're in someone else's control.  While it is possible to start with them, it doesn't make for powerful characters at the get-go.  Were it my game, I'd allow the PC to have cybernetics, but they'd have to pay the wealth and equipped traits.  If they were a part of an organization, I'd have them just pay the equipped trait to represent the equipment they have at their disposal, but have them include an In-For-Life with getting away rather tricky.

I get the impression that cybernetics are something you build up to or have entire story arcs to acquire them.  I think at its heart, it becomes a GM issue and largely up to how they interpret it.

[Maelwys]

Hard to believe that even with the 2 million from Wealth 10, when I finished the revised look at the cybernetics (remembering that I needed 2 eyes and 2 ears), the character was still 40,000 c-bills over the limit. Oops :)

Well, I don't suppose they all have to be Type 5 cybernetic implants, though its sort of a shame. On the other hand, dropping from a cybernetic eye to a Type 4 Bionic eye frees up 180,000. Was tempting to do a speech implant, but I decided to use it for other gear instead (I suppose if I really wanted to, I could drop one of the Ears to simply bionic instead, and use the saved money for a communications implant).  Interestingly, all of the recording/transmitting/communications implants are legality F. Not quite sure why. Unfortunately, the pheromone effuser is Legality F as well, with a WoB affiliation, putting it out of reach for a starting character.

With 8 points of Equipped, I'm able to (after the modification for a Periphery affiliation) buy equipment with ratings of up to E/F-F-F/F. Though even I have to admit, this sort of got silly after a while. Still, its a fun exercise :)

Myomer Replacement Arm
   Cosmetic Treatment
   Climbing Claws (Retractable)
   Laser
   Secondary Power Supply
Myomer Replacement Arm
   Cosmetic Treatment
   Climbing Claws (Retractable)
   Vibroblade
   Secondary Power Supply
Myomer Replacement Leg
   Cosmetic Treatment
   Climbing Claws (Retractable)
   Secondary Power Supply
   Holster
Myomer Replacement Leg
   Cosmetic Treatment
   Climbing Claws (Retractable)
   Secondary Power Supply
   Microcomputer
Cybernetic Eye (IR)
   Cosmetic Treatment
Type 4 Bionic Eye
   Cosmetic Treatment
Cybernetic Ear (Enhanced)
   Cosmetic Treatment
Cybernetic Ear (Enhanced)
   Cosmetic Treatment
Cosmetic Beauty Enhancement
Prosthetic Tail
Recorder Unit
Communications Unit

All this (assuming I haven't screwed up on the math somewhere) leaves the character with 165K+ c-bills, so I'm not too worried about not having cash for armor (appropriately modified), clothing, spy gear, weapons, and maybe even a pair of Glide Wings so there can be a Catgirl flying through the air of Hardcore. If I were playing this out as a normal character more than a thought experiment, I'd probably purchase a set of Type IV arms and legs (eyes and ears are stuck, too expensive to get a new set), so she could walk around with a little less attention.

In the next few days I'll try to put everything together and flesh out the background of the character and stick it up in one nice neat sheet :)

[BirdofPrey]

Not bad.

Still it seems so strange to me that you paid out of pocket.  I would think the parts would be owned by the employer/sponsor generally, but I can't really think of another way to do it aside from taking TP away from wealth and equiped and putting it into Implant/Prosthetic, but then it wouldn't go as far since Myomer prosthetics are 5TP a piece.

On a side note, it would be interesting if you put in some prosthetic leg MASC.  I am assuming since it's WOB the rating for you to aquire would be E/X-X-X/F due to you being of a different affiliation, so that crushes that idea.

[Maelwys]

Not bad.

Thanks. I forgot both playoff games were today, otherwise I might have gotten some work done on the character :)

Still it seems so strange to me that you paid out of pocket.  I would think the parts would be owned by the employer/sponsor generally, but I can't really think of another way to do it aside from taking TP away from wealth and equiped and putting it into Implant/Prosthetic, but then it wouldn't go as far since Myomer prosthetics are 5TP a piece.

Exactly. If I were just picking up a single augmentation then I'd probably go for the trait. But such an augmented character concept requires more than what the Trait system will provide. Which I think is a good thing. It gives you multiple ways of doing things, giving the system a bit more flexibility. Of course, going the Trait route has its own advantages. As far as I can tell, the trait doesn't care about Affiliation. So while some items are off-limits to me due to the rules of how equipment ratings interact with Affiliations, if I were using Trait points, those items wouldn't be off-limits.

And to be honest, the fluff of the character probably demands that those items belong to the MIM/EB, even though I've used Wealth to buy them. Its the only way it makes sense. The Wealth Trait is just the best (only)  way to actually get the items. I'm sort of reminded of Shadowrun, where characters can start out with hundreds of thousands of nuyen (or in 3rd, 1 million nuyen). This doesn't mean the character was a millionaire before they started everything, its just a way of measuring what they've managed to acquire up to that point.

On a side note, it would be interesting if you put in some prosthetic leg MASC.  I am assuming since it's WOB the rating for you to aquire would be E/X-X-X/F due to you being of a different affiliation, so that crushes that idea.

Yeah, quite a few of the WoB implants are just out of reach at chargen due to the way the Equipment Ratings change when interacting with Affiliations.  I did look at the prosthetic leg MASC, and found the same issue as the Pheromone Effuser and Boosted communication systems.

[CanopusIV]

You also took a much more cybernetic outfitting than the character I made.  I used the cybernetics to enhance what was already there, whereas you Maelwys created an entire entity from the ground up.  Heh, and whereas I was ok with the Beauty Enhancement, you wanted a pheromone effuser.

[BirdofPrey]

To be honest I wasn't expecting quite so much of a rebuild.  I was thinking more along the lines of a new pair of legs and some ears.

[CanopusIV]

To be honest I wasn't expecting quite so much of a rebuild.  I was thinking more along the lines of a new pair of legs and some ears.

Well, if nothing else Maelwys demonstrated the ability to do the great overhaul.  That character is probably more advanced in cybernetics than I'd ever want to have on a character I play. 

[BirdofPrey]

The average group wouldn't have that many cybernetics across all the PCs and any associated NPCs

[CanopusIV]

The average group wouldn't have that many cybernetics across all the PCs and any associated NPCs

Hahaha, probably not, no.  After the Companion though, I think I prefer the Mutant trait that gives you ears and a tail.  The benefits and drawbacks are described with no ambiguity and it's the closest thing I think you can get.  Though I think seeing a tail wouldn't be as shocking the more time you spend around it.

[Maelwys]

You also took a much more cybernetic outfitting than the character I made.  I used the cybernetics to enhance what was already there, whereas you Maelwys created an entire entity from the ground up.  Heh, and whereas I was ok with the Beauty Enhancement, you wanted a pheromone effuser.

To be honest I wasn't expecting quite so much of a rebuild.  I was thinking more along the lines of a new pair of legs and some ears.

*nod* I can definitely see why some people would think its a bit much. Though again, its more of a thought exercise than anything else. I'm not quite sure I'd ever go this far for a character (though it does have possibilities). I will admit that the Recorder, MicroComputer, Communications Unit, the Holster and 2 of the Secondary Power Supplies were added as an afterthought when I was fiddling around with money :)

And the character was based partially on the picture on page 188 of the Companion. Which means legs, arms, tail, ears, and technically a glidewing at some point. And what's the point of doing a catgirl if you don't get the catseyes? :)

Well, if nothing else Maelwys demonstrated the ability to do the great overhaul.  That character is probably more advanced in cybernetics than I'd ever want to have on a character I play. 

Its quite a few for BT, I'll grant you that. Probably be a pain in the ass to get healed/repaired if something seriously goes wrong.

One thing that does surprise me is that the CapCon cybernetics aren't CC/MoC.. I guess maybe that's because they were mostly limited to the Thuggees.

Hahaha, probably not, no.  After the Companion though, I think I prefer the Mutant trait that gives you ears and a tail.  The benefits and drawbacks are described with no ambiguity and it's the closest thing I think you can get.  Though I think seeing a tail wouldn't be as shocking the more time you spend around it.

Are the genetic traits explained anywhere? I know there's a separate trait for Mutants, but the Implant/Prosthetic trait has a few "Genetic Enhancements" mentioned (6E, 6X, 6S), but there isn't anything that really details them. I assume those are just up to the GM and player. Though I wonder at the difference between an Improved Genetic Enhancement and a Exotic one (Basic is just an existing trait).

[CanopusIV]

Page 53 of the Companion lists a range of mutation features.

The mutation at -3 lists "functional tail and mobile ears" which states that you need to have modified helmets and legwear, but you receive the Good Hearing trait for free.  You do suffer a -3 CHA modifier if someone sees your tail or a -1 if anyone sees your ears move.

I would think after awhile having a tail wouldn't be so shocking, nor would having ears be that unsettling.  Like a lot of the negative traits, they can be diminished in the proper setting as long as you play your character cautiously.

I did notice they had at +1 "Exotic, but pleasing skin hair and eye tones."  I guess that means you can recreate an Orion Slavegirl from Star Trek, but at 100xp, it has no difference than just boosting your charisma.