[PAH] Gear and Mutations...

[Jkeown]

Gear
So in last night's Gamma HERO game, the gang loved the idea of scraping together parts to build their own gear, rather than saving up cash to buy it. I introduced the idea of "Spares" bits of equipment, not named parts, just "Electronic Spares" and "Mechanical Spares." These bits were found using Steve's Scavenging rules in PAH. My idea was that a "Spare" was equal to one active point toward building a focus.

After two hours, they wanted to know what bits they were finding. That, I knew, would lead to my having to have deep knowledge of stuff I know nothing about. Still, they insisted we have some way of scraping stuff together to make equipment.

We all love World of Warcraft in these parts (Indianapolis) and using the tradecraft system from that game, I think I've got a method of using the PC's Electronics, Mechanics, Armorsmith, Weaponsmith, various Sciences and Professions in a Tradeskill system. Is there any interest in seeing this system?

Hint: There are rules for Duct Tape.


Mutations
Characters in this new Gamma HERO game can save up experience points in a pool, converting them to Darwins that they can spent as Real Points on Mutations they'd like to have. If exposed to mutagens, they can spend their Darwins, or take their chances with the Mutation tables.

[ghost-angel]

New and interesting takes on the rules, and how to mutilate the rules to spec are always welcome.

[input.jack]

Tell us! Tell us!

[Jkeown]

Okay... How's this?

Good Scrounge!

During their exploration of Gamma Terra, our heroes will encounter articles of the Age of the Ancients, to which dramatic "selective entropy" has been applied. That is, in the interest of fun, after 800 years, rubber tires are still good, and steel tubing has just a spot of rust. Settings that take place closer to the "Big Oops" might not need such suspension of decay, but it's part and parcel of the Gamma World mindset.

As they collect these bits, they can apply their skills: Electronics, Mechanics, Armorsmith, Weaponsmith and any science they feel applies to the process of cobbling together completed items to trade or use themselves. At each stage of assembly, they record the "Margin of Success" of each roll. Various factors go into success, such as availability of tools, and whether you are working out in the wild, or in a "Shop" or "Lab."

The Total Margin of Success is compared here:

0 Very Poor Quality
1-5 Poor Quality
6-10 Average
10-20 Good
21+ Excellent

After assembly, an item is ready for trade or use during adventures.

Leafy McPlantsalot, a Mutant Shrub with a martial outlook, is assembling a Submachine Gun using the Good Scrounge system. He has Weaponsmith 12-, Mechanics 13- and a Gunsmith Shop consisting of cobbled gear he's found here and there. The Shop gives him +1 to his rolls when he's working there. Looking at the list of "Schematics" Leafy needs a Metal Tube, a Trigger Assembly, an Autofire Assembly and a Grip.

The Trigger and Autofire Assemblies breakdown further. Trigger Assembly requires 2 springs and 1 scrap metal. The Autofire Assembly requires 1 spring, and 2 scrap metal. Assuming he has all the parts, a roll is required each time he joins 2 or more parts together.

He puts together the Trigger Assembly. Rolling against Weaponsmith (Firearms) 13-, he gets a 9. This is 5 points of success.

He combines parts to make the Autofire Assembly, Again, Weaponsmith comes into play. He rolls a 13. Margin of success is 1, as he rolled right on his skill.

Now, Leafy can assemble the completed weapon. This step assumes that all the bits are going on in a single step. So, the Metal Tube, Trigger, Autofire and Grip all count as one skill roll against Weaponsmith. He gets a 12. Margin of Success is 2.

Total margin of success is 5. He checks the chart. 8 points of success is a "Average Quality" item. It's got an Activation Roll of 11-, no mods to OCV or RMod (PAH, pg 62)

If he'd used Duct Tape during any phase of construction, he would have +1 to any rolls. The stuff is amazing.

I'm working on a list of Parts, Assemblies, and Finished Gear, but it's a huge list, and I'm not sure of the final level of detail. I want to keep the number of rolls to a minimum, so that not everyone is walking around with "Excellent" weapons and flying "Average" airplanes. Margin of Success can build up fast when you have 5 or more rolls to make.

Here's a partial list of Gear...

Assault Rifle
2x Metal Tube, 1x Trigger Assembly, 1x Autofire Assembly, 1x Grip

SMG
1x Metal Tube, 1x Trigger Assembly, 1x Autofire Assembly, 1x Grip

Geiger Counter
1x Receiver, 1x Emitter

Gas Mask
2x Lenses, 1x Filter, 2x Cloth

Chain Gun
3x Metal Tube, 1x Motor, 1x Metal tank, 1x Trigger Assembly, 1x Autofire Assembly, 1x Grip

Grenade
1x Metal Tube, 1x Sulpher, 1x Chemicals

Torch
1x Wood, 1x Cloth

Flashlight
2x batteries, 1x Bulb, 1x Metal Tube

Thoughts?

[Steve Long]

Thoughts?

My Mage with 375/375 Weaponsmith and Electronics pwns ur noob toons. :eg:

[Jkeown]

I'm a casual player... the instances are not designed for casuals... um... My connection is so laggy! Engineers need to be nerfed ZOMG.

[ghost-angel]

Sweet system.

Looks like it would take a good bit of work to fully set up all the various things you can construct.

But all that lead up work would so totally be worth it for a really cool PAH experience.

[Jkeown]

Perhaps a bit daunting. When I first proposed it, the PCs protested, thinking it might be too huge to pull off.

There is no middle ground, I figure. I'm going to keep the Schematics simple, one for each type of weapon. Frex: the Shotgun Schematic will build a generic boomstick. If they want a specific model... they'll have to find it intact or buy it from a trader.

Either that, or they pry it from somebody's cold, dead hands. I'll set up a document with more complete schematics, in the meanwhile, if anyone has suggestions for some, I'll include them.

Should probably post a parts list first, huh?

[Jkeown]

Anyway, stuff can be looted from various things and critters in the game world. For example, looting a Robot might yield 3 Electronics and 3 mechanical spares (or you could just fix the Robot after you bust him up).

Loot tables would be broad enough to handle, say, any number of possible results, think of how much tubing and scrap metal you'd get after an assault on an Oil Refinery... But someone's PDA is not going to yield but 1 electronics spare.

Even then, fail your Scavenging Roll and you get nothing... Number of spares would be dictated by how big the object is, what kind by what type of item, and some are just lying around. One man's trash, etc....

Item----------------------Requires
Autofire Assembly---------1x Spring, 2 x Scrap Metal
Ball Joint------------------Scrap Metal
Battery-------------------Chemicals
Bio-Gel-------------------1x Chemicals, 2x Bacteria
Bolts---------------------1x Scrap Metal
Bronze Sheet-------------1x Copper, 1x Tin
Bronze Tube--------------Sheet Metal
Carbon-------------------1xwood
Ceramics-----------------1x Ore, 1x Glass
Chemicals----------------Ore
Circulating Pump----------2x Scrap Metal, 1x Motor
Clockwork----------------2x Springs, 1 x Sheet Metal or 1x Scrap Metal
Cloth Rags----------------N/A
Cloth Strips---------------2x Cloth Rags
Coolant Assembly---------2x Tubing, 1x Chemicals, 1x Circulating Pump
Coolant Fan---------------1 x Sheet Metal/1 x Scrap Metal
Copper Sheet--------------Ore
Copper Tube---------------1x Copper Sheet
Copper Wiring--------------1x Copper Sheet
Display Device-------------1x Copper Wiring, 1x Glass Sheet, 1x Emitter
Dry Cell--------------------1x Copper Wire, 1x Chemicals
Duct Tape-----------------1x Cloth, 1x Chemicals
Duralloy Sheet-------------1x Ore, 2x Chemicals
Emitter--------------------1x Copper Wire, 1x Chemicals
Fiber Optic Cable-----------1x Pastics
Fuel Cell-------------------1x Chemicals
Gas Bottle-----------------2x Glass
Gears Large----------------2x Scrap Metal
Gears, Small----------------1x Scrap Metal
Hard Disk-------------------1x Copper Wire, 1x IO Board
Heat Sink -------------------1x Scrap Metal
Incendium-------------------3x Chemicals, Sulpher
Interface Device-------------1x Copper Wire, 1x Mechanical Widget
Internal Combustion Engine----4x Iron Bar, 3x Copper Wire, 1x Rubber Tubing
IO Board----------------------2x Circuit Board, 1x Copper Wire
IR Optics---------------------2x Diodes, 1x Lens
Iron -------------------------Ore
Iron Sights-------------------1x Scrap Metal
Keyboard---------------------1x Copper Wire, 2x Plastics
Leather Straps----------------1x Hide
Limestone---------------------Ore
Media Player------------------1x Emitter, 1x Memory Device
Memory Board-----------------2x Circuit board, 1x IO Board
Memory Device----------------1x Memory Board
Metal Tank--------------------2x Scrap Metal
Mutagen X---------------------2x Chemicals, 4x Bacteria
Nuclear Cell--------------------1x Radiactive Goo, 1x Glass Jar, 1x Scrap Metal
Nuts---------------------------1x Scrap Metal
Optics-------------------------1x Lens, 1x Diode
Plastic tank--------------------2x Plastic
Radioactive Goo-----------------1x Chemicals, 1x Radiation Source
Receiver-----------------------1x Copper Wire, 1x IO Board
Rifle Stock---------------------1x Wood
Rubber Tire---------------------1x Plastics
Rubber Tubing------------------1x Plastics
Scrap Metal---------------------n/a
Screws-------------------------1x Scrap Metal
Servo--------------------------1x Motor, 1x Rubber Tubing
Sheet Metal--------------------1x Ore
Solid Tire-----------------------3x Plastics
Springs-------------------------1 Scrap Metal
Steel Tube----------------------2x Steel
Sulpher-------------------------Ore
Tire----------------------------2x Plastics
Toxin 9-------------------------3x Chemicals
Transmitter---------------------1x Copper Wire, 1x Circuit Board
Trigger Assembly----------------1x Clockwork, 1x Scrap Metal
Universal Joint------------------1x Scrap Metal
UV Optics-----------------------2x Diodes, 1x Lens
Washers------------------------1x Scrap Metal
Wheel--------------------------1x Scrap Metal

[AmadanNaBriona]

Sweet system going here.

So...a musket might be a Trigger Assembley, a Rife Stock, A metal Tube and an Ore (flint, ya know)
hmmm...powder. I see Carbon (1xwood) and Sulpher (Ore), but no Saltpeter

Which requires 1x Poo

(More seriously nightsoil & other high nitrate sources like guano are prolly gonna be a resource)

[Jkeown]

I should add that... Thanks!

[BobGreenwade]

This kind of thing would have been great to have in the PAH book IMO. OTOH what you have could be expanded into a really wonderful DH article. :thumbup:

(Pardon all the abbreviations BTW.) ;)

[Jkeown]

This kind of thing would have been great to have in the PAH book IMO. OTOH what you have could be expanded into a really wonderful DH article. :thumbup:

(Pardon all the abbreviations BTW.) ;)

I've begun work on expanding it to a full DH article. I'm going to provide a mix of items, from simply useful, to rather Wahoo. My games tend toward the bizzare.

[lensman]

Great addition, I plan on introducing this in my Gamma HERO game.

I put the list above on a xls spreadsheet which I have attached

Rep'd

EDIT: My only addition to this would be a column for applicable skill

[BobGreenwade]

I've begun work on expanding it to a full DH article. I'm going to provide a mix of items, from simply useful, to rather Wahoo. My games tend toward the bizzare.

Bizarre Wahoo is the best kind of gaming there is. :D

[Jkeown]

Great addition, I plan on introducing this in my Gamma HERO game.

I put the list above on a xls spreadsheet which I have attached

Rep'd

EDIT: My only addition to this would be a column for applicable skill

I started mine in Excel, with columns for Assemblies, Needed Components, Skill, and Shop Type (Forge, Gunsmithy, Chemlab, etc)

It's coming along nicely, one item is a spare brain that remembers stuff, so you don't have to.

[Burrito Boy]

*cough* Bump. *cough, cough*

I checked the contents list for Digital Hero and didn't find an article about this system. So I was wondering if you posted a full version of it anywhere, Jkeown.

[Jkeown]

*cough* Bump. *cough, cough*

I checked the contents list for Digital Hero and didn't find an article about this system. So I was wondering if you posted a full version of it anywhere, Jkeown.


Not yet. My upcoming game 238 to Yuma will definately use this system. I might be able to overhaul it and post it before then.

[Burrito Boy]

Awesome! Thanks. :thumbup: