Rifts-Tomorrow Squadron

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Go ahead and post here with your alias. We will get started with a combat training soon.

Dot.

Never rolled my Credits:

Cash: 4d6 ⇒ (4, 3, 4, 3) = 14 1400 UC.

Credits in gear: 2d4 ⇒ (3, 4) = 73500 credits

GM ST - I was thinking maybe you could pit us against some number of Power Armors, like the NG-X9 SAMSON for the mock combat? That would minimize your having to come up with dozens of stats for individual combatants.

What info do you want in our "headers"? I've found that Parry and Toughness are essential during combat, and I've created something I call RATN ("Ranged Attack Target Number"), which is usually 4, but with all the special abilities our PCs have, it's easier to state your RATN as 6 rather than trying to remember that the PC is "-2 to ranged attacks".

Parry and Toughness (Armor) seem important to have. Any automatic defenses or defensive edges.

It would also be great if people put the text of their edges in their profiles so they are easy to reference.

As for opponents, I was planning on a big robot of some sort and some power armor. I'm not going to mess with magic or psionics yet.

Reportin' for duty!

I will have my character sheet up soonish!

What does the Cyber-Knight Medium Armor mean when it says "Notes: Healing and relief"?

Does it give me access to those powers or something?

Sheet is otherwise mostly done BTW...just have no idea what to buy since everything seems to be out of my price range.

Storm Dragon - yes, it provides you access, but you must spend your own ISP to activate them.

Abe - yeah, prices in RIFTS are gonzo nuts. I hope we will be getting big payments for each job so we can upgrade our equipment.

Gauis - yours is a complicated build, please forgive me if I've missed something important in your description.

Your base Toughness is 7, not 6, so while in your armor you have 17(6). You might want to include that in your "header" for when you're out of your vehicle.

The cyber "Range Data Systems" says it requires the cyber Optics package, which you don't have. You add that its "ignore 2 points of Ranged penalties" also "stacks with Robot armor and Helmet targeting for a further -2 {-6 total}". The robot armor doesn't reduce ranged penalties.

You have 11 points in Attributes. I see no bonuses in Robot Vehicle Ace, 1 point from an Advancement, 1 point from Hindrance Points (I think), 1 point from Cyber-Agility, and 1 point from Cyber-Strength (altho you note that it gives STR+2, but that means just +1 die type). With the initial 5, that's 9. If I'm understanding your notation correctly, you put your other 2 Hindrance points into Filthy Rich. Where did the other 2 points come from?

How do you add a non Paizo character slot here? Do you just grab another pathfinder one and use it for your online record?

Alrighty! King Hot Trash here, I changed the name some so I could reuse an alias that has been sitting there for awhile. I am ready to go!

How do you add a non Paizo character slot here? Do you just grab another pathfinder one and use it for your online record?

Go to your Account Settings and create a new alias. You don't need to create a Society Character, just an alias. Then you have to sort of repurpose the lines for different things in the alias.

Gauis - yours is a complicated build, please forgive me if I've missed something important in your description.

Your base Toughness is 7, not 6, so while in your armor you have 17(6). You might want to include that in your "header" for when you're out of your vehicle.

The cyber "Range Data Systems" says it requires the cyber Optics package, which you don't have. You add that its "ignore 2 points of Ranged penalties" also "stacks with Robot armor and Helmet targeting for a further -2 {-6 total}". The robot armor doesn't reduce ranged penalties.

You have 11 points in Attributes. I see no bonuses in Robot Vehicle Ace, 1 point from an Advancement, 1 point from Hindrance Points (I think), 1 point from Cyber-Agility, and 1 point from Cyber-Strength (altho you note that it gives STR+2, but that means just +1 die type). With the initial 5, that's 9. If I'm understanding your notation correctly, you put your other 2 Hindrance points into Filthy Rich. Where did the other 2 points come from?

1) Toughness updated.

3) Yeah, some of the cyber got confusing swapping it into SWADE, but it all makes sense.
Okay, I see what you mean. I thought the second prereq for RDS was EDS. I see it's actually OP. Switched.
Looking at my Cyber I see I don't actually have enough RDS results to get it. (I got it twice, which means I get both prereqs.) I'll just drop my Str and Agi buys to buy that instead. I lose a point of strength but then I can afford binocs. I call it a win.
I see now they replaced Wired Skill Port with Vehicle Interface. No complaints.

2) It's been said of Only War, the 40K RPG that "you don't play it, you litigate it." I think of that saying in times like these. Bottom of page 109, in small print. Behind the bookshelf. Under the fridge. Behind the 2-year old lasagna. "Robot Vehicle Standard Features: ECC,
MDC Armor, Nuclear-Powered, STS."

Surprise 4) Great JAbba the Hutt I just noticed they took away the "Robot Jock gets one less roll" thing. I get another Hero Journey any table roll. Lets go with, oh something different. Education.
Education!: 1d20 ⇒ 3

Healing. nice.

Also never rolled for starting $$$

Gear an' stuffz: 2d4 ⇒ (3, 3) = 6

Hey GM & ZenFox, does the Dirty Rotten Stinky Filthy Rich edge supersede the starting Money? I'm of a mind that it doesn't, as the edge itself needs intrinsic value, but usually it says "3x starting funds" which is not followed here because the economy in RIFTS is more art than science. If I still get it:

like dice to dollahs: 4d6 ⇒ (6, 5, 2, 3) = 16

Joseph Martin 681 wrote:

How do you add a non Paizo character slot here? Do you just grab another pathfinder one and use it for your online record?

Go to your Account Settings and create a new alias. You don't need to create a Society Character, just an alias. Then you have to sort of repurpose the lines for different things in the alias.

Thanks! I learned something new today. :)

This character is really surprising me, in that, the more I develope him, the more he really takes form and becomes real.

When I started out, the only thing I wanted to do was pilot a big robot, and shoot big guns. But as I worked on him, it just came naturally that he started to branch out and become more multi-talented. I like that. I get to have him at least take an interest in things outside of combat.

So too, akin to good character development, some goals came to light. I'd like to talk about them because GMST is a good GM, and I think he likes to have a full play experience, and knowing the direction that the character wants to go is part of that.

I) Short term.

An easy short-term goal, and this is a theme, is that of upgrades. Like, he wants a better sidearm. He knows that outside of the Mech he's a bit squishy, and finding a better gun to carry with him is on that list. It wasn't a problem back in the Inner Sphere, but here, as things develop, it might be an issue.

II) Medium.

Two medium-range goals are that of upgrading his mech (I intentionally didn't take a Titan just because I wanted something to work for) and of developing ties to this world.

This is where the multi-facet comes in. It evolved naturally that he was not just proficient at Repair, but quite good at it. This is natural for a MechWarrior, since the LostTech is so...lost...that you need to care for what you have.
In the same vein, even if he stumbled upon the smoking ruins of a Titan, I believe that in time he could restore it.

As far as ties, it seems like he'd want to develop personal relationships with locals. Friends, maybe even a wife and children. Having something to fight for means having something to lose.

III) Long range.

I mentioned this in chargen but it seems the right place to mention it here. He's convinced that if he could break out of atmo, he could contact someone. He's not sure who, but it seems like he needs to try.

Eventually, he'd like to get some kind of space craft and see exactly what it is that is a barrier to the stars. For him and his people Jump-travel is a reality, and he'd like to see the people of -this- earth have a chance at that.

Again, that's not going to happen any time soon, if ever, but it's nice to have there to flavor the play.

Statting up the second option for my apprentise. A war orphan prodigy.

Hey GM & ZenFox, does the Dirty Rotten Stinky Filthy Rich edge supersede the starting Money? I'm of a mind that it doesn't, as the edge itself needs intrinsic value, but usually it says "3x starting funds"

The SWADE Edges say "N times starting funds", but the RIFTS version says you start with a "total" of N credits and so many rolls on the tables, so I would assume the N credits replaces the RIFTS standard "N*dice starting funds". But that's just an interpretation, GM ST can decide what to do. I checked the PEG forum, and found no definitive answer on this.

So, now you have 10 points in Attributes, but you didn't drop Strength like you said you would, so if you do that would make it 9 points.

But even if you recently dropped STR and AGI to buy something else, where did those 2 points originally come from, since you originally had 11 points of Attributes but only 9 points worth declared in your build? Or did I miss something?

If you really had only 9 points declared, you can't just move 2 of the 11 Attribute points to something else, because they never existed.

My reading is that each "rich" edge subsumes the ones below it rather than being additive, but I'm open to arguments that I'm wrong.

Reminding everyone that I'm learning here.

In the base rules, yes, that's true. But it says that explicitly by using mutiplicative language, -and-, in the SWADE version, it even includes a continuous salary.

The RIFTS version doesn't do that. I think the word 'total' is superfluous. That is, it just means it to point at the value. It could just as easily used the word 'sum' or 'amount' or 'value'.
So too, by replacing the starting amount, the game is actually penalizing the edge. It doesn't equal 25K. It equals it -minus- the starting value, which could be as much as $2400. That a deduction of 10%. No other feat does this where you have to give up something, a something that everyone else gets, when you take it.

Lastly, for every other feat that replaces something, it says it plainly. Like, they say that when you make a Combat Cyborg the upgrades "uses all of a character’s personal Strain ever." and that "’Borgs cannot be healed or treated with medicine when they are hurt. Instead they must be repaired." Okay, here's a new thing that replaces the old thing and it says that in no uncertain terms.

It seems, to me, that if they meant it subsume something, that would be said definitively.

IMHO. YMMV.

I agree with Gauis (Is it meant to be Gaius? Or would it be pronounced Gow-is, as opposed to the Roman Guy-us?). While the use of the word Total might be confusing, I believe it refers to the total amount provided by the Edge. It does not replace anything outside the edge itself or it would say so. The random money provided is rather useless on the scale of costs in Rifts anyway, so the answer is somewhat trivial either way.

Gauis - you still have 10 points in Attributes, but only 9 declared sources of points (again, unless I've missed something else you changed in your build - I haven't gone over it in-depth since I first looked at it).

Also never rolled for starting $$$

[dice=Gear an' stuffz]2d4

Hey GM & ZenFox, does the Dirty Rotten Stinky Filthy Rich edge supersede the starting Money? I'm of a mind that it doesn't, as the edge itself needs intrinsic value, but usually it says "3x starting funds" which is not followed here because the economy in RIFTS is more art than science. If I still get it:

[dice=like dice to dollahs]4d6

Let's go with the Edge being additive. I don't see that unbalancing anything. The starting wealth is so minor that keeping it isn't going to change much.

My default assumption her is that everyone is being supportive of everyone else, that we are working to do our best with the rules, and that everyone understands that I am a new Savage World GM.

The word of the day is Grace. All of us are giving Grace to each other and especially to me as we and I navigate this new (to me) system. Just a reminder that if that isn't where you are, this isn't the campaign for you. I'm not calling anyone out, I just want to make sure we are all on the same page.

That said, everyone please post in Gameplay with your character alias so that you will appear on the character page of the campaign. Let's wrap up building characters this week and get started with a sim combat on Sunday.

No worries. We'll take it easy on you and this group seems to be supportive so far. I have a good feeling about this.

Of course,that could be because no one took a Crazy...

Hey - Jethro Tull is my all-time favorite rock band! Cool!

I was super tempted to play a Crazy and it is still a back-up idea. I promise I won't be a bad Crazy. I'm a good Crazy.

Elf Rock! :)

Heh. last face to face con I made I played in a one off game. I grabbed the Juicer, Jodi Black from Peginc grabbed the Crazy and well, it was a crazy game and the baddies didn't stand a chance. I did get to throw a charged up Cyber Knight at the major Demon. Worked like a charm. :)

I was also tempted to try the Crazy for something a little different.

GM ST - have you considered how to "deal" initiative cards in a PbP? I know some GM's use on-line card-dealing websites (but I don't know where any of them are), but in the game I'm running I just have a physical deck of cards at home, and the players trust that I'm accurately reporting the results of the deals. FWIW, as a player I'm fine with that too.

I was planning to use a website, This one.But maybe a physical deck is a better idea. I almost never post except when I'm at home, so keeping a deck on my painting desk would be fine.

Thanks for your patience, everyone. I'm looking through your profiles and trying to make sure I understand your builds. We will get going soon.

You keep your computer on a painting desk? Aren't those usually at an angle? Doesn't it...slide? (I'm hardly one to talk as I use a giant folding table because I find most desks to be artificially constraining. I'm against drawers and a big advocate of bookcases. If I can't see something, how do I know it exists...or hasn't been thrown away? =)

I mostly post from a laptop sitting on a sofa, but I have a desktop sitting on a standing desk in an L-configuration with my painting station desk and some quick access gaming stuff.

Okay, serious question: What do you do with your other elbow? I've tried that laptop-on-a-couch thing (It looks so comfy in all those commercials!) and I just...I don't know what to do with my arms. One arm goes on an armrest. Okay, got that. And the other? Usually I try some next-level feng shui (Whoa, I spelled that right on the first try!!) pillow stacking on the other arm, but it just never does quite rise to the same level of comfort as just sitting at a desk.

Life is Hard. ^_^

I work on my couch, and I guess I've just gotten used to it. it helps that a throw pillow plus a cat is usually enough to make up the difference.

Setting up this practice combat, I'm thinking you need to note any edges that affect initiative in your short form stats.

Ok, I've gathered stats for a Coalition UAR-1 Enforcer (Big Battle bot) and some Skelebots and put them together in a link in the short campaign description at the top of the page.

Also put together a tactical map. For this exercise, you can put yourself anywhere within 4 squares of the edge of the map. Feel free to look at the stats so you can check my understanding of what is going on.

I'll work on an initiative draw and get things started tomorrow afternoon/evening.

Just to point out, GM, because it was something I had to get used to with SWADE: Since the Enforcer is size 7, it is Large, and as such gets +1 Wound.

Two things - which one is the Enforcer?

How do we get our Pazio icons into this document?

I usually just snip it from the screen and paste into the drawing. I can do it if anyone has trouble.

The Enforcer is the bigger one up on the outcropping south of the bridge

Skelebots are on the bridge.

Ok, it took some trial and error, but I got a movable image of the right size in the map.

I have so far failed to track down a viable deck of cards with two jokers, which is a silly reason to be stalled. A couple of tough days at work at setting me back. I apologize. I'll try to get us Wednesday afternoon.

I have run Savage Worlds games over ROll20 before, and it solves both our issues handily; easy access to a map and a card drawing system.

Tell me more, Storm Dragon. I have a Roll20 account but know literally nothing about it. I use Fantasy Grounds for my weekly face to face game, but that is not always on.

It's fairly simple to use; you set up a game, invite everyone to it (the first thing you see on making a new game is a link), and then upload (second tab) or draw whatever map and tokens you want; you can drag and drop form the sidebar and resize at will. If you assign everyone a character sheet (third tab) they can upload their own tokens and drag them onto the map easily.

For cards you go to the sixth tab, click "show" on the playing card deck there, hover over it, and hit "deal". You can deal to offline players. You can even open a turn order (third form the bottom on the left sidebar), add every character's token to it (just mass select and left click to add) and hit "deal cards to turn order", then mash the settings button on the turn order popout and hit "By Card/Suit" in the sorting options (it even says "For Savage Worlds and other card based games" on it). It'll automatically sort every character added into their proper turn order

GM, do you want a picture of me on the field...or a much cooler picture of an awesome battlemech on the field?

Checking in. Have had a hell of a time getting logged in. Had to change browsers.

Crap, this means I'll probably have to do the same for my 4 day weekend at home...

everyone is saying to clear cookies for paizo to log in

Alright, I am all set up on the tactical map. I am imagining that I'm starting prone on that ridge; try to give myself some good cover.