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From:	Christopher Church <cchurch@*******.SCRI.FSU.EDU>
Subject:	Physical Adepts- A Joke?
Date:	Sat, 10 Sep 1994 18:48:58 18000

Message no. 1 What is the general perception of physical adepts out there?
Are they really perceived as all but worthless? Is this including the
abilities added in the Grimoire II? I've played one, and he worked
out OK. Definitely not a street sam.
Does a physical adept have to train to gain his abilities
starting out? Whether it was correct or not, my character was a
physical adept known only as the Kid. He was a homeless boy that
lived in southside Atlanta, and had adopted an area of a few blocks
that he protected from the local gangs, etc. The community would
often leave gifts in the alleys in thanks, usually food, etc. that he
would accept.
But the question was whether he had to have an instructor, or
could these talents develop "naturally?" We eventually compromised,
and he had a mentor for a while that taught him. Our GM ruled that
Adepts were similar to Star Wars Jedi Knights, in that the potential
was always there in some, but that some degree of instruction was
still necessary.

--
"In the immortal words of Socrates-- 'I drank what?'"
-Chris Knight (Real Genius)

From:	MILLIKEN DAMION A <u9467882@***.EDU.AU>
Subject:	Re: Physical Adepts- A Joke?
Date:	Sun, 11 Sep 1994 16:33:52 +1000

Message no. 2 Chris writes:

> What is the general perception of physical adepts out there?
> Are they really perceived as all but worthless?

I rather like phys adepts. Compared to a sammie, a phys adept can just keep
going and going and going. No essense to worry about, the capacity to
initiate and gain more abilities, the capacity to actually be healed
magically. While they mightn't be quite as good as a sammie to start off,
they can sure get that way.

> Does a physical adept have to train to gain his abilities
> starting out?

I would say you get them without training. The same way some people are
stronger than others, taller, have different abilites, a phys adept has
natural capabilites above the norm. No real training neccessary to use them.
If I am amazingly strong, I learn naturally how to handle it, same as if I
have unusual vision, or hearing, it is part of me, so I know how to cope
with it.

> But the question was whether he had to have an instructor, or
> could these talents develop "naturally?" We eventually compromised,
> and he had a mentor for a while that taught him. Our GM ruled that
> Adepts were similar to Star Wars Jedi Knights, in that the potential
> was always there in some, but that some degree of instruction was
> still necessary.

I might want to rule that if a phys adept was initiated, and spent the magic
point on new abilities that training to learn how to use them was required.

--
Damion Milliken University of Wollongong e-mail: u9467882@***.edu.au

(GEEK CODE 2.1) GE -d+(d) H s++:-- !g p? !au a18 w+ v(?) C+(++) US++ P? L !3 E?
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e+ u@ h* f(+) !r n--(----) !y+

From:	Matt <mosbun@******.CC.PURDUE.EDU>
Subject:	Re: Physical Adepts- A Joke?
Date:	Sun, 11 Sep 1994 08:59:18 -0500

Message no. 3 > What is the general perception of physical adepts out there?
>Are they really perceived as all but worthless? Is this including the
>abilities added in the Grimoire II? I've played one, and he worked
>out OK. Definitely not a street sam.

Personally, the Physical Adept is my favorite character. Admittedly, most
of them have no business going toe-to-toe with a Street Sam, but going
toe-to-back with them is another story altogether.

Matt

From:	"Jason Carter, Nightstalker" <CARTER@***.EDU>
Subject:	Re: Physical Adepts- A Joke?
Date:	Sun, 11 Sep 1994 12:15:35 -0700

Message no. 4 Chris Church asked:

> What is the general perception of physical adepts out there?
>Are they really perceived as all but worthless? Is this including the
>abilities added in the Grimoire II? I've played one, and he worked
>out OK. Definitely not a street sam.

Physical adepts are not sams. In some ways they are way more effective, but
in others they are less. The major differences are that sammis are faster
while physical adepts are more skilled and easily healed via magic.

> Does a physical adept have to train to gain his abilities
>starting out? Whether it was correct or not, my character was a
>physical adept known only as the Kid. He was a homeless boy that
>lived in southside Atlanta, and had adopted an area of a few blocks
>that he protected from the local gangs, etc. The community would
>often leave gifts in the alleys in thanks, usually food, etc. that he
>would accept.

Training is not at all necessary for physical adepts. Unlike mages or shamans,
their are not skills needed to be a physical adept. While some adepts are
martial artist trained by masters in small dojo's in rural Japan, some are
street kids who just happen to be really athletic and stealthy. To these
it would come as quite a shock to learn that they are magically active.

*******************************************************************************
* See Ya in Shadows * * "Trust No One." *
* Jason J Carter * Carter@***.EDU * The late Deep Throat *
* The Nightstalker * * The X-Files *
*******************************************************************************

From:	John Moeller <John.Moeller@*.CC.UTAH.EDU>
Subject:	Re: Physical Adepts- A Joke?
Date:	Sun, 11 Sep 1994 22:32:51 -0600

Message no. 5 [ in reply to CK/CC ]

I think that they are actually useful. No, they don't have the kind of
speed a sammie does, but they can usually hit the target better as a
result of their ability to improve skills magically. I.e., whereas a
skillchip _replaces_ a skill pool, the power _adds_ to it.

John IV aka John Moeller <John.Moeller@*.cc.utah.edu>
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Geek Code 2.1
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b+ D- B--- e+>+++ u--(+) h->++ f+ r---(*) n-(---) !y+

From:	Gareth Owen <glowen1@*****.NHS.GOV.UK>
Subject:	Re: Physical Adepts- A Joke?
Date:	Mon, 12 Sep 1994 18:48:30 +0100

Message no. 6 > What is the general perception of physical adepts out there?
> Are they really perceived as all but worthless? Is this including the
> abilities added in the Grimoire II? I've played one, and he worked
> out OK. Definitely not a street sam.

I just rolled up a physad (instead of a samurai), so I hope they're
as effective in combat. He's for a game set in the UK, where guns
are going to be a lot rarer, so I'm hoping his high skills and ability
to use virtually any weapon he picks up will be useful. He doesn't
have any guns to start with (but a big collection of sharp pointy things).
as I wanted to startfrom the bottom gear/wealth wise.

The ones in a police SR game I ran a while back were effective.

The only straight duel between a samurai and a physad was won by the
samurai, but the samurai was experienced and the physad was a starting
character that wasn't as good as he should have been.

Don't forget that physads can buy extra dice for firearms, they don't
have to be close combat merchants - say a starting physad takes everything
in extra firearms dice, with his combat pool he's got 18 dice to
shoot something, he can't match a samurai for speed, but he's total
sniper death from the shadows.

Or he can buy +3 dice reaction (or should that be reflexes?), so he's
fast, any samurai that can match him for speed, won't have much else
in the way of cyber.

> Does a physical adept have to train to gain his abilities
> starting out? Whether it was correct or not, my character was a

I say it depends on the characters rational/background etc.
One of the physads in a game I run won't believe that she's a
magic user at all. I think how you use magic depends a lot on
individual psychology.

GLO

--
Gareth Owen | Mail: glowen1@*****.nhs.gov.uk

From:	DAVID M GIRARDOT <dmg5@***.CC.LEHIGH.EDU>
Subject:	Re: Physical Adepts- A Joke?
Date:	Tue, 13 Sep 1994 17:44:12 -0400

Message no. 7 Another item to consider in PhysAds favor is that, because their abilities
are 'natural' they are a whole lot more difficult to detect. Most cyber-
ware Sammies tote is high-grade illegal, and they will have a hard time
passing checkpoints and the like. PhysAd powers can only be detected
by magical (and more rare and expensive) means...

-- David

---David M Girardot-----dmg5@***.cc.lehigh.edu---dmg@**.com---dmg5@******.edu-
------- "It is a foolish constituency of little mimes. " ---------------------
( Finger for Geek Code and other info. )

From:	Electron Dancer <C598706@*******.BITNET>
Subject:	Re: Physical Adepts- A Joke?
Date:	Thu, 15 Sep 1994 13:30:12 CDT

Message no. 8 Had a player with a mage a while back who laughed at PhysAds, right up until
the day he met one in combat. He was levitated with Imp. Invis., and just
sorta floated up to the PhysAd, telling all the Sammies to stay back, that
"this one is mine...be back in seconds". He cast a PowerBall (I think) at
the PhysAd, who (thanks to the +4 TN mod on the mage) didn't take any damage
from it, went astral percepting, and slammed that mage up side the head with
Killing Hands-S. The mage (player is a real idiot) says "I'm still alive..
and I won't miss this time!". He missed all right, the PA didn't, and the
mage was listed as DOA at Seattle General. Awww...

--Trondo-->

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