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Mechanic Expert Rig Says: Your rig has the features of a computer of tier = half your level, and can add extra modules and countermeasures at the normal prices.
1. What is the price for percent based upgrades? An equivalent tier standalone computer?
2. Does the rig need increasing levels of miniaturization to handle the increasing bulk, or does it not have any bulk increase with tier as a normal computer would? At level 20, a tier 10 computer would be 100 bulk; 10 levels of miniaturization would be 320,000 credits to get to negligible bulk for an eye, brain, or maybe 9 levels for an arm install. Maybe 8 for an armor slot install.
3. Can upgrades like Range or Self Charging be applied to the expert rig?
4. Does the Expert rig need power? (See self charging) IE, if you are away from power for more than 24 hours do the computer functions of your expert rig cease to function?
5. Does the “Hardened” +8 bonus to saves vs “effects” include hacking (by someone else against the mechanic), or virus effects triggered by your own hacking with the expert rig? Feedback and Shock Grid come to mind.
6. IF Range is a valid upgrade module for an Expert Rig, can you have multiple Range modules for multiple devices simultaneously (connected, not actively controlling)?
7. Could a Mechanic have a controlled turret being actively controlled by the Expert Rig computer, attacking at a bonus of half-level (attack bonus is equal to tier of computer controlling it) while the mechanic takes his full set of actions independently?
I looked through all of the Rules posts, and have been keeping up with the SFS and advice forums, and have not found any of the above brought up... I was starting to think I had just consistently skipped over the relevant text!
I seriously doubt your custom rig would gain bulk. That would be ridiculous, as you pointed out.
But the rest are pretty heavy headscratchers. I had looked at how to upgrade the Expert Rig as a Computer and using the prices just doesn't make sense. If I buy the Security I upgrade to my Expert Rig when I'm at level 7, it would cost 312 credits. But if I do so just one level later, it would cost 1250 credits.
What?
Or would I need to pay the difference (938 credits) when leveling up from 7 to 8 or lose the Security 1 upgrade? I can see that making sense (getting upgrades to an eventual tier-10 computer for tier-3 prices is ridiculous), but that's not even remotely mentioned anywhere.
That's the issue with the Expert Rig being the only computer which automatically grows in tiers.
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My Starfinder Society mechanic just hit level 7, and most of these questions came up immediately.
My Custom Rig is in my datajack.
1. If I'm suddenly carting around 9 Bulk (3^2) in my head, that's a big deal. Moreso if it becomes 16 next level.
2. Do I now need to recharge my datajack, where I apparently didn't need to before?
3. I can add extra modules or countermeasures to my custom rig at "the normal prices." Great, but what happens when I level up and the Tier of my computer increases? Keep the upgrades, lose the upgrades, or forced to pay the difference in price?
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Here’s the way I’ve been interpreting these items so far. I think it’s a logical interpretation of computers and rigs that would hopefully work for society games.
Your rig “gains the features” of a computer half its level, and that wording is key. Bulk certainly isn’t a feature and power needs would be covered by the custom rig, a class feature that doesn’t require power. If it does require power, only the computer would need it but a self-charging module would give you enough power to ignore the need most of the time.
I’ll give this example for a comparison point. Your custom rig also acts as a mk 1 personal comm. unit. You can miniaturize a computer to reduce its bulk and install a computer into the comm. unit of the custom rig. My point is that you can already install a computer into your custom rig at level 1 if you pay for the bulk reduction. It seems silly to have to pay for bulk reduction on a class feature too, especially because you’d have to pay for it before you leveled up. If it’s in your brain and automatically gained bulk, your head would explode on level-up.
Leveling up is an issue that could use an errata in my mind. Armor can also have a comm. unit installed in it which can be upgraded to a computer so these questions extend to all classes. I only really see two ways of handling it.
1. You lose the benefit of the module until you pay the difference to level it up.
2. The module acts as the lower level tier until you pat the difference.
I don’t see any reason for a module that’s not a class feature to level up for free. I think modules that give a set benefit (Security Measures +4 DC to hack) would stop functioning while an AI (+2 Social Checks/Tier) would operate at the tier you paid for until upgraded.
The range modifier is a great addition, but it doesn’t extend the range of your rig, it only extends the range of your computer/comm. unit. You can do everything a normal computer could do at range, but your rig gives no benefits. You cannot use it as a tool kit at planetary range, nor can you control your drone or ship at that range. You can issue verbal commands to a drone or communicate with people on your ship though.