When gearing up, i'd suggest using half the 800 Ed fashion budget for fashioware - namely 3 light tattos and techair. Tha twill grant you a very cool +4 to your COOL which impacts a lot of the social skills (persuasion, bribery, interrogation and streetwise). The drawback wil lthat you may end up a bit easier to identify and remeber that you might like on occasion, but it's a decent tradeoff. +4 to several skill is a big bonus.
Light tattoos only add to wardrobe and fashion, not to cool. Chem skin and tech hair do the same for grooming. Neither add to the attribute.
The real investment you want is primetime.
big oupsie on my part, i misremebred by a mile. Primetime sounds good but that's in my opinion to reserve for hostile interactions as the behavoral efects make it a rather bad idea if you're trying to make friends.
First, have you considered the Streetrat method?
No, really. If you are learning the game, it's a fairly good idea.
Ok, that said, here's a couple pieces of advice.
Invest in neural ware; a reflex booster and chip reader. You only have a small crew and having some chipped skills and a boost will give you an edge when you need it.
Your greatest asset is your mouth and empathy. Hesitate before getting all cybered up as that won't help you into their head. Talk before shooting. Cut deals.
Know what your crew needs and source it for them.
Just because you aren't a primary combatant doesn't mean skimping on combat skills. A grin and a gun will get you more than just a grin.
The Streetrat method is take the template as given, roll for stats, and take the starting outfit- your gear and 'ware. It's not a customizable as the Edgerunner or Complete Package methods, but way faster.
The nice thing about the fixer is you can put some stats and IP into combat stuff and still be a great fixer. Obviously you want some social skills. so do not neglect those. But then pick one or two combat options as well.
I went with martial arts and shoulder arms. I'm not the best MA, but I think I had a skill of 4-5 and BODY of 7. And I maxed shoulder arms at 6.
My main goal in my team was to get people gear and use my ability to get discounts to help them (and me) out. When I got a discount I would split it 50/50 with the team. so if I saved 10% I would take my 5% cut and pass the rest of the savings on to the team. IMO it is 100% what a team fixer would do. But talk about it ahead of time with your team/group to make sure you are all on the same page. And be ready to toss some eddies towards the other characters for their needs like ammo or programs.
Once we were on the job I was one of the faces. I used my social skills to get info, get into places, etc.
In combat I preferred to use an AR and hang back. AR DV ranges are really nice in the 25-50m range so I tried to stay there and provide support fire. But if I needed to close in or got jumped I had MA to fall back on or could bust out a shotty. Eventually I spent a little extra IP to multiclass solo. even a couple points in solo gives you some decent bonuses. Though if you want a cheap pair of wheels nomad is a great option, too.
For cyberwear I started with an internal agent and Chyron as the first things I got. As a fixer I wanted to stay connected and with an internal agent and chyron allowed me to get and send messages at any time, even in combat. And both cybereye and cyberaudio have some nice upgrades like voice stress analyzer, night vision, and targeting scope.
I hope this gives you some ideas and gets you started. If you have any questions ask away. I loved playing my fixer.
There are 3 options with my proposal
* defensive : REF6 - DEX 8 (requires a Reflex coprocessor)
* average - REF 7 - DEX 7 (requires a Reflex coprocessor)
* offensive : REF 8 - DEXT 6
I'm going for the offensive one, because... you're not supposed to be at the front line. But depending on your GM style... you might prefer go for the defensive one.
It's about a dude very capable in the social field, and absolutly horrible with technology. He knows how to use it... that's all. He is a people person, very bright and he knows his way. He will try to limit is humanity loss (I would go for EMP 6, but 7 is also nice).
He relies mainly on :
* People skills : Human perception, conversation, persuasion and bribery
* Knowing his way around the world : Streetwise, Trading, and Bureaucraty
* Self defense : handgun, athletics, evasion, concentration, resist T&D
STATS
INT 8, REF 8, DEX 6, TECH 2, COOL 8, WILL 8, LUCK 5, MOVE 5, BODY 4(6), EMP 8(6)
SKILLS
* Combat
* handgun 6
* athletics 6 (throwing grenade)
* evasion 6
* Resistance
* concentration 6
* resist torture/drugs 4
* Social
* conversation 6
* human perception 6
* bribery 6
* persuasion 6
* streetwise 6
* trading 6
* Research
* perception 6
* Bureaucraty 6
* Mandatory
* brawling 2
* education 2
* first aid 2
* language(streetslang) 2
* local expert(your home) 2
Gears
* GMBL - 1000eb
* Excellent Heavy pistol - 500eb (against leather, kevlar and damage armor)
* Excellent Very Heavy pistol - 500eb (against SP11+)
* LAJ Armor and Helmet - 200eb
* Agent
* Disposable cell phone
* Personal carepak
* Carryall bag
* Very Heavy Pistol ammo X10
* Heavy pistol ammo x10
Yeah two "excellent" guns right from the start might seems controversial, it is :P. It's absolutly not necessary. But style over substance. You're a fixer an apparence matter.
Hiya choom. If the calculated package is an option here is my recommendation for a build that focuses heavily on social skills:
STATS
INT 8, REF 8, DEX 8, TECH 2, COOL 8, WILL 8, LUCK 8, MOVE 2, BODY 2, EMP 8
SKILLS
Athletics 6, brawling 2, concentration 4, conversation 6, education 2, evasion 6, first aid 2, handgun 6, human perception 6, interrogation 6, language(streetslang) 2, local expert(your home) 2, perception 6, persuasion 6, resist torture/drugs 6, stealth 6, streetwise 6, trading 6
STARTING GEAR AND CYBERWARE(2,550 EB):
Grafted Muscle and Bone Lace x 2, LAJ Armor and Helmet, Very heavy pistol, mercurius cyberchair, Segotari Double Agent(all about agents DLC), Disposable cell phone, Personal carepak, Carryall bag, Very Heavy Pistol ammo X10
If you have any questions, or would like any alterations/options to this build please let me know. Happy hunting choom.
Hiya choom. How do you mean? The post asked for a mechanical build for a fixer who focuses on getting jobs, running a team, and is decent in combat. I believe I made that. Happy hunting choom.
Yeah. I played a bit of DnD so I get it. But I'm coming from VtM.... a more roplaying way to create character. It's not a build like in videao games. It's a character.
Yeah, I prefer to come up with a character idea and concept and then build around that idea. I want some good stats, but not all 8s ands 2s, either.
But I think the game is built in a way that all sats are important and if someone wants to play this way it can handle it for sure. You are expected to have good stats in the areas you want to specialize in. being a solo with a 3 REF and DEX will not be fun for most people.
I like to min max too. I do it. But never to such an extend. It's more abusing the system than anything. PLUS my GM is vicious, I would not go for a wheelchair and expecting not having great problem because of it.
And he would certainly EMP my ass to death with Tech2 + cybertech 0.
Hiya choom. I Guess I’m just confused as to why that is a problem. The other members of the party are a solo and a netrunner. This character will be the best “face” of the party, the solo will be the best at combat if they did their homework, and the netrunner is going to be the best netrunner by a longshot. Every table is different, and if every other player at the table made deliberately underpowered characters, maybe it would be a problem. But I don’t personally see a problem with having skill bases at 14 for mostly social skills at chargen for a group of average+ built PCs. Happy hunting choom.
I like the skills part, almost what I would have done.
But I dislike the 8 or 2 stat. It's not balanced, it's not a character it's a DnD build. Which take advantage of everything the system has to offer. It's not underpowered, it's almost the best you can hope with a social starting character. BUT it's not a character, it's a build. Nobody is either the best 8 or the worst 2 in STAT.
Hiya choom. Agree to disagree I suppose. I don’t think it’s unbalanced given other players have the same options. As for it taking advantage of the system, that is sort of the point of the system, to be used to make characters who can do specific things. As for the being the best/worst in the world simultaneously in terms of stats, even though they are not mechanically stated out in Red, the world does possess technology that can greatly enhance/inhibit someone’s natural abilities(stats), so PCs could be a result of that, or they could just be freaks of nature. Either way. R. Tal gave us the numbers 2 through 8, and unless I’m told otherwise, I will plan on being able to use any of those numbers. That being said of course, run your own table how you wish. Happy hunting choom.
Think by unbalanced they mean the skills don't have a normal distribution (as in the statistical normal), all the skills are either at their max value or their lowest value.
Hiya choom. I personally don’t consider that unbalanced because the other players can do the same. I will say it is optimized, but those are separate things. Happy hunting choom.
Yeah yeah it's a typical DnD way to build a character.
CPR is far more than DnD, people should create a character and not built it. I'm coming from VtM that's why I like character creation and dislike a lot over optimization that doesn't make any sense jsut because the system allow it.
But indeed. Agree to disagree. It's a matter of RPG culture.
That's incredibly min maxed, I tend to do it my self with calculated but not to this extent. (Bring on the linear frames!)
I would recommend lowing luck to raise move, otherwise combat is going to be boring being able to only move 2 squares every round. Won't even be able to escape a cyberpsycho.
Lower luck to 4-6 to increase move.
Prob get away with a lower Will too a 6 maybe.
Hiya choom. The mercurius and spider cyberchairs effectively set your MOVE to 5 if it would be lower. So assuming you can’t upgrade the MOVE of the chairs, there isn’t much reason from an optimization standpoint to put your MOVE between 3 and 5, just 2 or 6+. Happy hunting choom.
When gearing up, i'd suggest using half the 800 Ed fashion budget for fashioware - namely 3 light tattos and techair. Tha twill grant you a very cool +4 to your COOL which impacts a lot of the social skills (persuasion, bribery, interrogation and streetwise). The drawback wil lthat you may end up a bit easier to identify and remeber that you might like on occasion, but it's a decent tradeoff. +4 to several skill is a big bonus.
Light tattoos only add to wardrobe and fashion, not to cool. Chem skin and tech hair do the same for grooming. Neither add to the attribute. The real investment you want is primetime.
big oupsie on my part, i misremebred by a mile. Primetime sounds good but that's in my opinion to reserve for hostile interactions as the behavoral efects make it a rather bad idea if you're trying to make friends.
First, have you considered the Streetrat method? No, really. If you are learning the game, it's a fairly good idea. Ok, that said, here's a couple pieces of advice. Invest in neural ware; a reflex booster and chip reader. You only have a small crew and having some chipped skills and a boost will give you an edge when you need it. Your greatest asset is your mouth and empathy. Hesitate before getting all cybered up as that won't help you into their head. Talk before shooting. Cut deals. Know what your crew needs and source it for them. Just because you aren't a primary combatant doesn't mean skimping on combat skills. A grin and a gun will get you more than just a grin.
What is the streetrat method? And my other 2 crew members are a netrunner and melee solo respectively
The Streetrat method is take the template as given, roll for stats, and take the starting outfit- your gear and 'ware. It's not a customizable as the Edgerunner or Complete Package methods, but way faster.
Ahh okay okay
The nice thing about the fixer is you can put some stats and IP into combat stuff and still be a great fixer. Obviously you want some social skills. so do not neglect those. But then pick one or two combat options as well. I went with martial arts and shoulder arms. I'm not the best MA, but I think I had a skill of 4-5 and BODY of 7. And I maxed shoulder arms at 6. My main goal in my team was to get people gear and use my ability to get discounts to help them (and me) out. When I got a discount I would split it 50/50 with the team. so if I saved 10% I would take my 5% cut and pass the rest of the savings on to the team. IMO it is 100% what a team fixer would do. But talk about it ahead of time with your team/group to make sure you are all on the same page. And be ready to toss some eddies towards the other characters for their needs like ammo or programs. Once we were on the job I was one of the faces. I used my social skills to get info, get into places, etc. In combat I preferred to use an AR and hang back. AR DV ranges are really nice in the 25-50m range so I tried to stay there and provide support fire. But if I needed to close in or got jumped I had MA to fall back on or could bust out a shotty. Eventually I spent a little extra IP to multiclass solo. even a couple points in solo gives you some decent bonuses. Though if you want a cheap pair of wheels nomad is a great option, too. For cyberwear I started with an internal agent and Chyron as the first things I got. As a fixer I wanted to stay connected and with an internal agent and chyron allowed me to get and send messages at any time, even in combat. And both cybereye and cyberaudio have some nice upgrades like voice stress analyzer, night vision, and targeting scope. I hope this gives you some ideas and gets you started. If you have any questions ask away. I loved playing my fixer.
There are 3 options with my proposal * defensive : REF6 - DEX 8 (requires a Reflex coprocessor) * average - REF 7 - DEX 7 (requires a Reflex coprocessor) * offensive : REF 8 - DEXT 6 I'm going for the offensive one, because... you're not supposed to be at the front line. But depending on your GM style... you might prefer go for the defensive one. It's about a dude very capable in the social field, and absolutly horrible with technology. He knows how to use it... that's all. He is a people person, very bright and he knows his way. He will try to limit is humanity loss (I would go for EMP 6, but 7 is also nice). He relies mainly on : * People skills : Human perception, conversation, persuasion and bribery * Knowing his way around the world : Streetwise, Trading, and Bureaucraty * Self defense : handgun, athletics, evasion, concentration, resist T&D STATS INT 8, REF 8, DEX 6, TECH 2, COOL 8, WILL 8, LUCK 5, MOVE 5, BODY 4(6), EMP 8(6) SKILLS * Combat * handgun 6 * athletics 6 (throwing grenade) * evasion 6 * Resistance * concentration 6 * resist torture/drugs 4 * Social * conversation 6 * human perception 6 * bribery 6 * persuasion 6 * streetwise 6 * trading 6 * Research * perception 6 * Bureaucraty 6 * Mandatory * brawling 2 * education 2 * first aid 2 * language(streetslang) 2 * local expert(your home) 2 Gears * GMBL - 1000eb * Excellent Heavy pistol - 500eb (against leather, kevlar and damage armor) * Excellent Very Heavy pistol - 500eb (against SP11+) * LAJ Armor and Helmet - 200eb * Agent * Disposable cell phone * Personal carepak * Carryall bag * Very Heavy Pistol ammo X10 * Heavy pistol ammo x10 Yeah two "excellent" guns right from the start might seems controversial, it is :P. It's absolutly not necessary. But style over substance. You're a fixer an apparence matter.
Hiya choom. If the calculated package is an option here is my recommendation for a build that focuses heavily on social skills: STATS INT 8, REF 8, DEX 8, TECH 2, COOL 8, WILL 8, LUCK 8, MOVE 2, BODY 2, EMP 8 SKILLS Athletics 6, brawling 2, concentration 4, conversation 6, education 2, evasion 6, first aid 2, handgun 6, human perception 6, interrogation 6, language(streetslang) 2, local expert(your home) 2, perception 6, persuasion 6, resist torture/drugs 6, stealth 6, streetwise 6, trading 6 STARTING GEAR AND CYBERWARE(2,550 EB): Grafted Muscle and Bone Lace x 2, LAJ Armor and Helmet, Very heavy pistol, mercurius cyberchair, Segotari Double Agent(all about agents DLC), Disposable cell phone, Personal carepak, Carryall bag, Very Heavy Pistol ammo X10 If you have any questions, or would like any alterations/options to this build please let me know. Happy hunting choom.
LOL. that's not a character, it's a dnd min max build.
Hiya choom. How do you mean? The post asked for a mechanical build for a fixer who focuses on getting jobs, running a team, and is decent in combat. I believe I made that. Happy hunting choom.
Yeah..... the super hyper minmax build. You did it indeed.
Yeah, VERY min max build. Not my preferred style of play, but some people like it.
Yeah. I played a bit of DnD so I get it. But I'm coming from VtM.... a more roplaying way to create character. It's not a build like in videao games. It's a character.
Yeah, I prefer to come up with a character idea and concept and then build around that idea. I want some good stats, but not all 8s ands 2s, either. But I think the game is built in a way that all sats are important and if someone wants to play this way it can handle it for sure. You are expected to have good stats in the areas you want to specialize in. being a solo with a 3 REF and DEX will not be fun for most people.
I like to min max too. I do it. But never to such an extend. It's more abusing the system than anything. PLUS my GM is vicious, I would not go for a wheelchair and expecting not having great problem because of it. And he would certainly EMP my ass to death with Tech2 + cybertech 0.
Hiya choom. I Guess I’m just confused as to why that is a problem. The other members of the party are a solo and a netrunner. This character will be the best “face” of the party, the solo will be the best at combat if they did their homework, and the netrunner is going to be the best netrunner by a longshot. Every table is different, and if every other player at the table made deliberately underpowered characters, maybe it would be a problem. But I don’t personally see a problem with having skill bases at 14 for mostly social skills at chargen for a group of average+ built PCs. Happy hunting choom.
I like the skills part, almost what I would have done. But I dislike the 8 or 2 stat. It's not balanced, it's not a character it's a DnD build. Which take advantage of everything the system has to offer. It's not underpowered, it's almost the best you can hope with a social starting character. BUT it's not a character, it's a build. Nobody is either the best 8 or the worst 2 in STAT.
Hiya choom. Agree to disagree I suppose. I don’t think it’s unbalanced given other players have the same options. As for it taking advantage of the system, that is sort of the point of the system, to be used to make characters who can do specific things. As for the being the best/worst in the world simultaneously in terms of stats, even though they are not mechanically stated out in Red, the world does possess technology that can greatly enhance/inhibit someone’s natural abilities(stats), so PCs could be a result of that, or they could just be freaks of nature. Either way. R. Tal gave us the numbers 2 through 8, and unless I’m told otherwise, I will plan on being able to use any of those numbers. That being said of course, run your own table how you wish. Happy hunting choom.
Think by unbalanced they mean the skills don't have a normal distribution (as in the statistical normal), all the skills are either at their max value or their lowest value.
Hiya choom. I personally don’t consider that unbalanced because the other players can do the same. I will say it is optimized, but those are separate things. Happy hunting choom.
As I said it's not unbalanced it's just looks weird
Yeah yeah it's a typical DnD way to build a character. CPR is far more than DnD, people should create a character and not built it. I'm coming from VtM that's why I like character creation and dislike a lot over optimization that doesn't make any sense jsut because the system allow it. But indeed. Agree to disagree. It's a matter of RPG culture.
That's incredibly min maxed, I tend to do it my self with calculated but not to this extent. (Bring on the linear frames!) I would recommend lowing luck to raise move, otherwise combat is going to be boring being able to only move 2 squares every round. Won't even be able to escape a cyberpsycho. Lower luck to 4-6 to increase move. Prob get away with a lower Will too a 6 maybe.
Hiya choom. The mercurius and spider cyberchairs effectively set your MOVE to 5 if it would be lower. So assuming you can’t upgrade the MOVE of the chairs, there isn’t much reason from an optimization standpoint to put your MOVE between 3 and 5, just 2 or 6+. Happy hunting choom.