Genetics Field of Study


Biohacker


I really have a lot of issues with this Field of Study.
First, I find it far more powerful than its competitors. Giving Energy Vulnerability is very strong, +50% damage for everyone as long as your party uses the same type of energy weapon. It's better than most Breakthroughs. Giving Blindsense is also incredible.
Second, with a Studious Biohacker, you can also reduce the target resistance to the same type of energy, for a -15/25 to one energy resistance. And both Counteragents interact weirdly. If I face a creature with 5 energy resistance, can I reduce it's resistance and then make it vulnerable to energy? If I face a creature with energy immunity, can I remove it's immunity and then reduce it's resistance?

I really think this Field of Study should be reworked, at least the Counteragent, for something far less broken.


SuperBidi wrote:

I really have a lot of issues with this Field of Study.

First, I find it far more powerful than its competitors. Giving Energy Vulnerability is very strong, +50% damage for everyone as long as your party uses the same type of energy weapon. It's better than most Breakthroughs. Giving Blindsense is also incredible.
Second, with a Studious Biohacker, you can also reduce the target resistance to the same type of energy, for a -15/25 to one energy resistance. And both Counteragents interact weirdly. If I face a creature with 5 energy resistance, can I reduce it's resistance and then make it vulnerable to energy? If I face a creature with energy immunity, can I remove it's immunity and then reduce it's resistance?

I really think this Field of Study should be reworked, at least the Counteragent, for something far less broken.

It's a poison effect, the whole party has to coordinate with the biohacker on a single energy damage, and if he misses once or twice everybody will be really mad.


The Ragi wrote:
It's a poison effect

Like many of the Biohacker abilities. The rare non poison effects abilities are quite lame (- 2 to Fortitude saves... unless I have a specific combo, I won't consider taking it).

The Ragi wrote:
the whole party has to coordinate with the biohacker on a single energy damage

Nothing hard.

The Ragi wrote:
and if he misses once or twice everybody will be really mad.

Why? You can still shoot the creature without specific bonuses. And unless your Biohacker player really screws, you won't blame him for having bad luck, it happens to everyone.

Like it is, Genetics will be a no brainer for Biohackers. Especially ranged ones.


SuperBidi wrote:


The Ragi wrote:
the whole party has to coordinate with the biohacker on a single energy damage
Nothing hard.

Let's say the whole party is invested in eletric damage, since the technomancer has some good damage spells with that element. Then you run into a creature with immunity to eletric damage - now everybody is dependent on the biohacker nerfing the target, or attacking it with their secondary weapons.

And if the creature immune to eletric damage is also immune to poison...

SuperBidi wrote:
The Ragi wrote:
and if he misses once or twice everybody will be really mad.
Why? You can still shoot the creature without specific bonuses. And unless your Biohacker player really screws, you won't blame him for having bad luck, it happens to everyone.

Regular energy weapons, sure, they can fire away - but the money shot, the technomancer spell combo'd with the genetics counteragent can be a problem.

First, the caster has to delay if he's not already after the biohacker in initiative order. Then, he actually has to wait for that injection to land - missed one time, okay, shoot him with his toy gun this round, wait for the better opportunity; missed again, alright, this is ridiculous, just ignores the biohacker and casts away.


The Ragi wrote:


Let's say the whole party is invested in eletric damage, since the technomancer has some good damage spells with that element.

Let's say the whole party of 5 characters is invested in electric damage.

Whatever the creature, the Biohacker will attack it with genetics counteragent reducing the creature electricity resistance.

If the party faces a non resistant creature, and the Biohacker hits, it gives 50% damage to 4 characters on a single opponent during multiple rounds. It's a boss killer. Broken.

If the monster is resistant to electricity, if the Biohacker hits, it allows everyone to use their most damaging weapons without having to think or make a Knowledge check (or ask about resistances/immunities). Very strong.

If the monster is immune to electricity, the Biohacker allows everyone to bypass the monster immunity and deal damage even if they missed their knowledge check. And I don't even speak about the fire elemental standing in the middle of a lava pool which suddenly takes a whole load of damage. Broken.

If the Biohacker doesn't hit, he does nothing, like for all the other Fields of Study.

The only case where you can't use Genetics is if the monster is poison immune. But it's also the case for Neurochemistry and Toxicology, and Pharmacology doesn't work on enemies immune to mind-affecting and Enzymology on fatigue immune ennemies. And the remaining ones are giving the Off-Target condition (which is among the worst conditions) or a -2 to Fortitude saves, which is clearly extremely situational and weak. So, it doesn't look like a very big drawback, as most of the interesting counteragents are also poisons.

So, you can use Genetics without thinking much or succeeding at a Knowledge check, there are some cases where it's completely broken, and it's at least strong in most cases where good counteragents work. I do think it's a good definition of a broken ability.

And I also find the Restorative to be quite good. It's extremely situational, but Blindsense is quite strong. Appart from Toxicology, all the other good Restoratives are also situationals.


SuperBidi wrote:

Let's say the whole party of 5 characters is invested in electric damage.

Whatever the creature, the Biohacker will attack it with genetics counteragent reducing the creature electricity resistance.

If the party faces a non resistant creature, and the Biohacker hits, it gives 50% damage to 4 characters on a single opponent during multiple rounds. It's a boss killer. Broken.

If the monster is resistant to electricity, if the Biohacker hits, it allows everyone to use their most damaging weapons without having to think or make a Knowledge check (or ask about resistances/immunities). Very strong.

Yep, there's a lot going on "if the biohacker hits". In actual play this might be way more frustrating than on paper. Although, if it lands on the first round, it'd be an amazing moment.

It might be a boss killer strategy, but if said boss has immunity to poison and the energy the group specialized, it becomes a TPK strategy.

SuperBidi wrote:
And I don't even speak about the fire elemental standing in the middle of a lava pool which suddenly takes a whole load of damage. Broken.

Actually, elementals are immune to poison... so this fire elemental might be a killer boss if the party specialized in fire damage /heh

SuperBidi wrote:
If the Biohacker doesn't hit, he does nothing, like for all the other Fields of Study.

Other counteragents aren't that demanding from the rest of the party, though.

SuperBidi wrote:
The only case where you can't use Genetics is if the monster is poison immune. But it's also the case for Neurochemistry and Toxicology, and Pharmacology doesn't work on enemies immune to mind-affecting and Enzymology on fatigue immune ennemies. And the remaining ones are giving the Off-Target condition (which is among the worst conditions) or a -2 to Fortitude saves, which is clearly extremely situational and weak. So, it doesn't look like a very big drawback, as most of the interesting counteragents are also poisons.

But nobody will organize a party based off those effects, maybe a nice partnership if some other character is dependent on save or suck/die spells or effects.

This strategy probably also won't work on SFS games, with the randomness of players and parties.

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