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Message no. 1
From: Tim Kerby <drekhead@***.NET>
Subject: Bioware answer
Date: Mon, 5 Oct 1998 17:18:00 -0400
Regarding a way to fix Bioware;

Maybe I'm just missing something, but it seems pretty easy to me.
Just give it an Essence rating, and treat it like cyberware. Because
it's natural, make the Essense costs lower. No Body Index stuff, no
double-whammy. Bioware=Biological Cyberware. Easy enough, right?

Seems too simple... What am I missing?

--

=================================================================
- Tim Kerby - |"Letter writing is the only
- drekhead@***.net - | device for combining
HTML to: drekhead@********.net | solitude and good company."
ICQ - UIN 2883757 | -Lord Byron
Message no. 2
From: Sean McCrohan <mccrohan@*****.OIT.GATECH.EDU>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Mon, 5 Oct 1998 17:23:46 -0400
Quoting Tim Kerby (drekhead@***.NET):
> Regarding a way to fix Bioware;
>
> Maybe I'm just missing something, but it seems pretty easy to me.
> Just give it an Essence rating, and treat it like cyberware. Because
> it's natural, make the Essense costs lower. No Body Index stuff, no
> double-whammy. Bioware=Biological Cyberware. Easy enough, right?
>
> Seems too simple... What am I missing?

Works for me, especially BECAUSE it's simple. Also because it eliminates
the issue of having to decide whether something is cyberware or bioware, when
you use both tactics in combination (New and Improved! Adrenalin Booster with
conscious cybernetic control!).
However, there is something about having Body affect the amount of
bioware you can implant that seems interesting. It'd be nice to keep that,
somehow, though it would make things more complex.

--Sean

--
Sean McCrohan (mccrohan@**.gatech.edu) | "He uses his folly as a stalking
Grad Student, Human-Computer Interaction | horse, and under the presentation
Georgia Institute of Technology | of that he shoots his wit."
http://www.lcc.gatech.edu/~smccrohan | _As You Like It_, Act 5 Sc 4
Message no. 3
From: Erik Jameson <erikj@****.COM>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Mon, 5 Oct 1998 18:57:30 -0400
At 05:18 PM 10/5/98 -0400, you wrote:

>Maybe I'm just missing something, but it seems pretty easy to me.
>Just give it an Essence rating, and treat it like cyberware. Because
>it's natural, make the Essense costs lower. No Body Index stuff, no
>double-whammy. Bioware=Biological Cyberware. Easy enough, right?
>
>Seems too simple... What am I missing?

It is too simple. But it works.

I've got an idea myself that retains much of what bioware once was/still
is, but alters the affects. Still hits the magically active with a whammy,
but in a different way and perhaps not as hard as Essence loss.

Still working it out though, letting it burble away in the back of my mind...

Erik J.


http://www.fortunecity.com/rivendell/dungeon/480/index.html
The Reality Check for a Fictional World
Message no. 4
From: "XaOs [David Goth]" <xaos@*****.NET>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 00:03:17 -0500
> Seems too simple... What am I missing?

Possibly that bioware is supposed to have a much lesser impact on your
system than cyberware? (Game mechanics don't necessarily back me up, but the
description of it hopefully does).



-XaOs-
xaos@*****.net
-David Goth-
Message no. 5
From: K in the Shadows <Ereskanti@***.COM>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 02:11:40 EDT
In a message dated 10/5/1998 4:18:49 PM US Eastern Standard Time,
drekhead@***.NET writes:

> Regarding a way to fix Bioware;
>
> Maybe I'm just missing something, but it seems pretty easy to me.
> Just give it an Essence rating, and treat it like cyberware. Because
> it's natural, make the Essense costs lower. No Body Index stuff, no
> double-whammy. Bioware=Biological Cyberware. Easy enough, right?
>
> Seems too simple... What am I missing?
>
Ah yes, one of the things I remember being bounced around. Literally turning
Bioware into "Bodyware" in a direct sense.

the only problem (if it is a problem at all), is that some of the Bioware as
it currently stands is in direct competition with the Cyberware (Augmented vs.
Replacement Muscles for instance).

But yeah Tim, I agree with ya.

-K
Message no. 6
From: Gurth <gurth@******.NL>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 12:32:09 +0200
According to Tim Kerby, at 17:18 on 5 Oct 98, the word on the street was...

> Regarding a way to fix Bioware;
>
> Maybe I'm just missing something, but it seems pretty easy to me.
> Just give it an Essence rating, and treat it like cyberware. Because
> it's natural, make the Essense costs lower. No Body Index stuff, no
> double-whammy. Bioware=Biological Cyberware. Easy enough, right?
>
> Seems too simple... What am I missing?

I feel this doesn't work, because then you're essentially making bioware
the same as cyberware, except perhaps for slightly different rules for
damage implementation and such, plus mainly the name of the beast. IMHO
the two have to remain separate things and not the same thing under a
different name, because then there's very little point in having one above
the other.

--
Gurth@******.nl - http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/index.html
Love don't live here anymore.
She had to move out when Cobain shot himself.
-> NERPS Project Leader * ShadowRN GridSec * Unofficial Shadowrun Guru <-
-> The Plastic Warriors Page: http://www.xs4all.nl/~gurth/plastic.html <-
-> The New Character Mortuary: http://www.electricferret.com/mortuary/ <-

GC3.1: GAT/! d-(dpu) s:- !a>? C+(++)@ U P L E? W(++) N o? K- w+ O V? PS+
PE Y PGP- t(+) 5++ X++ R+++>$ tv+(++) b++@ DI? D+ G(++) e h! !r(---) y?
Incubated into the First Church of the Sqooshy Ball, 21-05-1998
Message no. 7
From: Fixer <fixer@*******.TLH.FL.US>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 07:30:58 -0400
On Mon, 5 Oct 1998, Tim Kerby wrote:

->Regarding a way to fix Bioware;
->
->Maybe I'm just missing something, but it seems pretty easy to me.
->Just give it an Essence rating, and treat it like cyberware. Because
->it's natural, make the Essense costs lower. No Body Index stuff, no
->double-whammy. Bioware=Biological Cyberware. Easy enough, right?
->
->Seems too simple... What am I missing?

Synaptic Accelerator 1 + Suprathyroid gland = less than Wired 1 on
Cost and Essence (If memory serves, which it might not). It makes it
easier to Min/Max. Slight game balance issues. Runs contradictory to the
purpose of Bioware (which is something that people allergic to plastic can
actually get) in being not 'cyberware'.

Fixer --------------} The easy I do before breakfast,
the difficult I do all day long,
the impossible only during the week,
and miracles performed on an as-needed basis....

Now tell me, what was your problem?
Message no. 8
From: Tim Kerby <drekhead@***.NET>
Subject: Re: Bioware Answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 09:11:29 -0400
In a message dated 10/5/1998 4:18:49 PM US Eastern Standard Time,
drekhead@***.NET writes:

> Regarding a way to fix Bioware;
>
> Maybe I'm just missing something, but it seems pretty easy to me.
> Just give it an Essence rating, and treat it like cyberware.
> Because it's natural, make the Essense costs lower. No Body Index
> stuff, no double-whammy. Bioware=Biological Cyberware. Easy
> enough, right?
>
> Seems too simple... What am I missing?
>

Keith Henry wrote:

>the only problem (if it is a problem at all), is that some of the
>Bioware as it currently stands is in direct competition with the
>Cyberware (Augmented vs.Replacement Muscles for instance).

You can balance that by making the Bioware more essense friendly, but
cost more, and vice versa. Gives the player a choice, and it makes
sense. Cyberware is much more prevalent, and massed produced, so it
should be much more less expensive nuyen wise.

Fixer wrote:

>Synaptic Accelerator 1 + Suprathyroid gland = less than Wired 1 on
>Cost and Essence (If memory serves, which it might not). It makes
>it easier to Min/Max.

Not neccessarily. You have to have the nuyen. Bioware should be much
more expensive.

>Slight game balance issues. Runs contradictory to the purpose of
>Bioware (which is something that people allergic to plastic can
>actually get) in being not 'cyberware'.

That doesn't have to change at all. Bioware would still be a viable
option for those allergic to plastic or metal.

Gurth wrote:

>I feel this doesn't work, because then you're essentially making
>bioware the same as cyberware, except perhaps for slightly different
>rules for damage implementation and such, plus mainly the name of
>the beast. IMHO the two have to remain separate things and not the
>same thing under a different name, because then there's very little
>point in having one above the other.

Let me reiterate my points above:

1)Bioware is more essense friendly, but costs much more.
2)Cyberware is less expensive, but costs more essense.
3)Bioware is a viable option for characters with allergies.

Some other differences in the two:

4)Because it is not obvious, bioware should have reduced social
penalties, or non at all.
5)Bioware cannot be detected by most security devices.

This does seem to give an edge to Bioware, so let me offer the
following balance:

1)Bioware cannot be upgraded.

2)Bioware enhanced characters must take drugs and/or dietary
supplements to counter the effects of rejection. I don't have
specific rules, but perhaps base them on the SOTA rules.

--

=================================================================
- Tim Kerby - |"Letter writing is the only
- drekhead@***.net - | device for combining
HTML to: drekhead@********.net | solitude and good company."
ICQ - UIN 2883757 | -Lord Byron
Message no. 9
From: David Buehrer <dbuehrer@******.CARL.ORG>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 07:14:32 -0600
For the mere cost of a Thaum, Sean McCrohan wrote:
/
/ Quoting Tim Kerby (drekhead@***.NET):
/ > Regarding a way to fix Bioware;
/ >
/ > Maybe I'm just missing something, but it seems pretty easy to me.
/ > Just give it an Essence rating, and treat it like cyberware. Because
/ > it's natural, make the Essense costs lower. No Body Index stuff, no
/ > double-whammy. Bioware=Biological Cyberware. Easy enough, right?
/ >
/ > Seems too simple... What am I missing?
/
/ Works for me, especially BECAUSE it's simple. Also because it eliminates
/ the issue of having to decide whether something is cyberware or bioware, when
/ you use both tactics in combination (New and Improved! Adrenalin Booster with
/ conscious cybernetic control!).
/ However, there is something about having Body affect the amount of
/ bioware you can implant that seems interesting. It'd be nice to keep that,
/ somehow, though it would make things more complex.

Not a problem:

The Essence cost for Bioware equals the Bioessence-rating/Body.

So, if someone with a Body of 6 installs bioware with a
Bioessence-rating of 6 it costs them 1 point of Essence. If a person
with a Body of 3 installs the same bioware it would cost them 2 points
of Essence.

Now all you have to do is assign bio-ratings to existing bioware :)

-David
--
"Earn what you have been given."
--
email: dbuehrer@******.carl.org
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/1068/homepage.htm
Message no. 10
From: Tim Kerby <drekhead@***.NET>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 09:35:25 -0400
On 6 Oct 98, at 7:14, David Buehrer wrote:

> The Essence cost for Bioware equals the Bioessence-rating/Body.
>
> So, if someone with a Body of 6 installs bioware with a
> Bioessence-rating of 6 it costs them 1 point of Essence. If a person with
> a Body of 3 installs the same bioware it would cost them 2 points of
> Essence.
>
> Now all you have to do is assign bio-ratings to existing bioware :)

Sweet!

I like that much better than the rejection option I offered.
It makes sense on so many levels.

I think we're done, folks.

So come on FASA, let's work on finishing Man and Machine!

:)

--

=================================================================
- Tim Kerby - |"Letter writing is the only
- drekhead@***.net - | device for combining
HTML to: drekhead@********.net | solitude and good company."
ICQ - UIN 2883757 | -Lord Byron
Message no. 11
From: David Buehrer <dbuehrer@******.CARL.ORG>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 07:51:24 -0600
For the mere cost of a Thaum, Tim Kerby wrote:
/
/ On 6 Oct 98, at 7:14, David Buehrer wrote:
/
/ > The Essence cost for Bioware equals the Bioessence-rating/Body.
/ >
/ > So, if someone with a Body of 6 installs bioware with a
/ > Bioessence-rating of 6 it costs them 1 point of Essence. If a person with
/ > a Body of 3 installs the same bioware it would cost them 2 points of
/ > Essence.
/ >
/ > Now all you have to do is assign bio-ratings to existing bioware :)
/
/ Sweet!
/
/ I like that much better than the rejection option I offered.
/ It makes sense on so many levels.
/
/ I think we're done, folks.

Not quite :) I figured out a way to convert all of those Body Index
ratings.

Essence cost equals (Body Index * 4)/Body.

or

Essence cost equals (Body Index * 2)/Body.

I'm not sure which equation is realistic as I don't have Shadowtech
handy at work (I suspect the x2 would be the better choice <shrug>).

/ So come on FASA, let's work on finishing Man and Machine!
/
/ :)

<Tim Allen huffing/barking> ;)

BTW Tim, I emailed you directly with those Jumping rules, but it
bounced off your server. Please try emailing me directly again.

-David
--
"Earn what you have been given."
--
email: dbuehrer@******.carl.org
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/1068/homepage.htm
Message no. 12
From: Mongoose <evamarie@**********.NET>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 01:02:29 -0700
:Regarding a way to fix Bioware;
:
:Maybe I'm just missing something, but it seems pretty easy to me.
:Just give it an Essence rating, and treat it like cyberware. Because
:it's natural, make the Essense costs lower. No Body Index stuff, no
:double-whammy. Bioware=Biological Cyberware. Easy enough, right?
:
:Seems too simple... What am I missing?


For one thing, the fact that many existing character's ( already
butchered by the sr2-3 conversion ) would simply be DEAD, or at best,
cyberzombies. So lots of folks would ignore such a change, making it
pointless to print it. IMO. Also, essence is a pretty limiting ceiling,
compared to magic; mundanes really benefit from having another direction
to go, if you want to have powerful and or experienced characters in your
game. It allows expansion (and, unfortunately, starting creation) of a
mundane on par with initiation, again, IMO.

Mongoose
Message no. 13
From: Mongoose <evamarie@**********.NET>
Subject: Re: Bioware Answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 13:04:30 -0700
:> Maybe I'm just missing something, but it seems pretty easy to me.
:> Just give it an Essence rating, and treat it like cyberware.
:> Because it's natural, make the Essense costs lower. No Body Index
:> stuff, no double-whammy. Bioware=Biological Cyberware. Easy
:> enough, right?

:Let me reiterate my points above:
:
:1)Bioware is more essense friendly, but costs much more.
:2)Cyberware is less expensive, but costs more essense.

Well, aplha and other customware is (potentially) more essence
friendly (than normal cyber- it hgas trouble beating bioware) and costs
more. What is the difference? (Muscle replacement alpha and musclew aug
would have near identical cost, with aug adding to rection). Boosted 1
beta and synaptic 1 would have no real diffrence, but boosted would cost
more cash, and be sucky in many other ways.
Not that people shouldn't be allowed to get crappy tech, but if they
are basically different, there is some point to the existance of both. By
your suggestion, bioware would replace a lot of cutom cyber.

:3)Bioware is a viable option for characters with allergies.


I would also think some people could use cyber, but not bioware.
Ghouls already fall in that catagory, and in general, non-biologic (but
inert) materials should be easier to implant withoput immunologic
difficulty.

:Some other differences in the two:
:
:4)Because it is not obvious, bioware should have reduced social
:penalties, or non at all.
:5)Bioware cannot be detected by most security devices.
:
:This does seem to give an edge to Bioware, so let me offer the
:following balance:
:
:1)Bioware cannot be upgraded.
:
:2)Bioware enhanced characters must take drugs and/or dietary
:supplements to counter the effects of rejection. I don't have
:specific rules, but perhaps base them on the SOTA rules.


Both bioware and cyberware should have some upkeep cost. I dunno
about anti-rejection drugs; they tend to wipe out the immune system, not a
good thing for a runner. I could see bioware in genral requiring a lot
more doctors vistis, special dietary plans, etc.

Mongoose
Message no. 14
From: Mongoose <evamarie@**********.NET>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 13:07:01 -0700
:/ > Maybe I'm just missing something, but it seems pretty easy to me.
:/ > Just give it an Essence rating, and treat it like cyberware. Because
:/ > it's natural, make the Essense costs lower. No Body Index stuff, no
:/ > double-whammy. Bioware=Biological Cyberware. Easy enough, right?

<snip>
:/ However, there is something about having Body affect the amount
of
:/ bioware you can implant that seems interesting. It'd be nice to keep
that,
:/ somehow, though it would make things more complex.
:
:Not a problem:
:
:The Essence cost for Bioware equals the Bioessence-rating/Body.
:
:So, if someone with a Body of 6 installs bioware with a
:Bioessence-rating of 6 it costs them 1 point of Essence. If a person
:with a Body of 3 installs the same bioware it would cost them 2 points
:of Essence.


So, what if the person then raises body? Does the essence cost go
down, opening up an "essence slot"?

Mongoose
Message no. 15
From: David Buehrer <dbuehrer@******.CARL.ORG>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 13:24:44 -0600
For the mere cost of a Thaum, Mongoose wrote:
/
/ <snip>
/ :/ However, there is something about having Body affect the amount
/ of
/ :/ bioware you can implant that seems interesting. It'd be nice to keep
/ that,
/ :/ somehow, though it would make things more complex.
/ :
/ :Not a problem:
/ :
/ :The Essence cost for Bioware equals the Bioessence-rating/Body.
/ :
/ :So, if someone with a Body of 6 installs bioware with a
/ :Bioessence-rating of 6 it costs them 1 point of Essence. If a person
/ :with a Body of 3 installs the same bioware it would cost them 2 points
/ :of Essence.
/
/ So, what if the person then raises body? Does the essence cost go
/ down, opening up an "essence slot"?

Yes, if the person raises Body through karma. Use the character's
unenhanced (non-cybered, -biod Body) for the equation.

-David
--
"Earn what you have been given."
--
email: dbuehrer@******.carl.org
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/1068/homepage.htm
Message no. 16
From: Mongoose <evamarie@**********.NET>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 15:17:57 -0700
:/ :The Essence cost for Bioware equals the Bioessence-rating/Body.
:/ :
:/ :So, if someone with a Body of 6 installs bioware with a
:/ :Bioessence-rating of 6 it costs them 1 point of Essence. If a person
:/ :with a Body of 3 installs the same bioware it would cost them 2 points
:/ :of Essence.
:/
:/ So, what if the person then raises body? Does the essence cost go
:/ down, opening up an "essence slot"?
:
:Yes, if the person raises Body through karma. Use the character's
:unenhanced (non-cybered, -biod Body) for the equation.


And if their body dropped (from permanent effects of deadly damage, or
initiation ordeal), the essence cost would go up, maybe killing them. I
don't like essence costs that depend on "environmental" factors- to weird.

Mongoose
Message no. 17
From: David Buehrer <dbuehrer@******.CARL.ORG>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 14:30:07 -0600
For the mere cost of a Thaum, Mongoose wrote:
/
/ :/ :The Essence cost for Bioware equals the Bioessence-rating/Body.
/ :/ :
/ :/ :So, if someone with a Body of 6 installs bioware with a
/ :/ :Bioessence-rating of 6 it costs them 1 point of Essence. If a person
/ :/ :with a Body of 3 installs the same bioware it would cost them 2 points
/ :/ :of Essence.
/ :/
/ :/ So, what if the person then raises body? Does the essence cost go
/ :/ down, opening up an "essence slot"?
/ :
/ :Yes, if the person raises Body through karma. Use the character's
/ :unenhanced (non-cybered, -biod Body) for the equation.
/
/ And if their body dropped (from permanent effects of deadly damage, or
/ initiation ordeal), the essence cost would go up, maybe killing them. I
/ don't like essence costs that depend on "environmental" factors- to weird.

Well, the same holds true for the Body Index rules in Shadowtech :)
Tho I don't know if a character would die if their Body dropped while
they had their Body Index maxed out.

My equation is just a simple way to convert the Body Index ratings from
Shadowtech to an essence cost. I'm not advocating it (tho I like it :)
or trying to force it on anyone. It's just an idea.

-David
--
"Earn what you have been given."
--
email: dbuehrer@******.carl.org
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/1068/homepage.htm
Message no. 18
From: Sean McCrohan <mccrohan@*****.OIT.GATECH.EDU>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 18:03:29 -0400
Quoting David Buehrer (dbuehrer@******.CARL.ORG):
> / So, what if the person then raises body? Does the essence cost go
> / down, opening up an "essence slot"?
>
> Yes, if the person raises Body through karma. Use the character's
> unenhanced (non-cybered, -biod Body) for the equation.

I think it'd probably be less complicated to just base the cost
on current Body, and justify it as you will (maybe it's a matter of
your body adjusting better or worse to the new organ, or of how well
your body recovers from surgery, or something else that's immediate).
Less elegant, maybe, but it's easier than having to recalculate your
Essence whenever your Body changes. (Would a Reduce Body spell kick
the target's Essence below 0, if they had bioware, and kill them? Hmm...
you know, that question applies to bioware under the normal rules, too,
or near enough. Hmmm.)

--Sean

--
Sean McCrohan (mccrohan@**.gatech.edu) | "He uses his folly as a stalking
Grad Student, Human-Computer Interaction | horse, and under the presentation
Georgia Institute of Technology | of that he shoots his wit."
http://www.lcc.gatech.edu/~smccrohan | _As You Like It_, Act 5 Sc 4
Message no. 19
From: "D. Ghost" <dghost@****.COM>
Subject: Re: Bioware Answer
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 17:02:20 -0500
On Tue, 6 Oct 1998 09:11:29 -0400 Tim Kerby <drekhead@***.NET> writes:
>In a message dated 10/5/1998 4:18:49 PM US Eastern Standard Time,
>drekhead@***.NET writes:
>> Regarding a way to fix Bioware;
>>
>> Maybe I'm just missing something, but it seems pretty easy to me.
>> Just give it an Essence rating, and treat it like cyberware.
>> Because it's natural, make the Essense costs lower. No Body Index
>> stuff, no double-whammy. Bioware=Biological Cyberware. Easy
>> enough, right?
>>
>> Seems too simple... What am I missing?

>Keith Henry wrote:
>>the only problem (if it is a problem at all), is that some of the
>>Bioware as it currently stands is in direct competition with the
>>Cyberware (Augmented vs.Replacement Muscles for instance).

>You can balance that by making the Bioware more essense friendly, but
>cost more, and vice versa. Gives the player a choice, and it makes
>sense. Cyberware is much more prevalent, and massed produced, so it
>should be much more less expensive nuyen wise.
<SNIP>

One problem. Muscle Replacement and Muscle Aug do the same thing but
Muscle Aug does it better. Remember that Muscle Augmentaion's Quickness
boost CAN increase Reaction while Muscle Replacement's CAN'T.

If you want to balance thing out (IMO), the best way to do that is to
keep the Essence/Body Index Split and apply general penalties based on
your current Body Index.

Some Possibilities:
-Add Body Index to all medical target numbers.
-Add 1/2*Body Index to physical activites during great stress.
-Mages, instead of losing Magic Attribute Rating or Essence could apply
Body Index to the Target Numbers to use any magical skill. (This is, I
think, more leanent at first but more severe further down the road.)
-Have the Biosystem Overstress kick in once you exceed 1.5 (round up) the
natural stat.

I'm sure there are more but that's all I can think of. :)

--
D. Ghost
(aka Pixel, Tantrum, RuPixel)
"Long hair eliminates the need for barbers" -- Einstein

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Message no. 20
From: Bird_Man <bird_man@*********.COM>
Subject: Re: Bioware answer
Date: Wed, 7 Oct 1998 15:46:30 -0500
> -----Original Message-----
> <Snip>
> Regarding a way to fix Bioware;
>
> Maybe I'm just missing something, but it seems pretty easy to me.
> Just give it an Essence rating, and treat it like cyberware. Because
> it's natural, make the Essense costs lower. No Body Index stuff, no
> double-whammy. Bioware=Biological Cyberware. Easy enough, right?
>
> Seems too simple... What am I missing?
>
> --
Tim, the biggest problem I see with your idea is that, at most, a character
can have a 6 Essence.
That severely (IMO) limits the amount of nifty stuff a person can add to
their body before they
spontaneously die of soul poisoning (or whatever). Now, if you combine a
person's Will and Charisma
and call it Essence, then your idea works gangbusters (This works for me
because of the "average" ratings
adding up to a character's beginning Essence of 6). I ran a short sideline
campaign with Essence
figured the way I mention above, and things seemed to work out fine.

Ciao for Niao

Shawn Stroud

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Thwap!