From:	ROBERSON@***.EDU
Subject:	TurboMage Plus cxfisiietc
Date:	Mon, 1 Feb 93 23:33:40 CET

Bioware should definitely reduce a Mage's Magic score, both for
game balance and for reasons in the Shadowrun definition of how magic
works.
If a Mage were allowed to take Bioware without losing Magic, the
wide variety of options presented in Shadowtech make it possible to create
an effective Samurai-Mage. What party needs a fighter when Copperfield the
Mage can kill anyone with either his spells, firepower, or sheer Munchkin
verve? Mages have their place, and a powerful one it is; they don't need
bioware to replace what spell locks and quickenings can already do.
Secondly, I believe that only people with magically active genes
(not just metagenes) are the only ones who can wield magic. There powers are
woven directly into their DNA. Cyberware reduces the Magic score because part
of the Mage's body, containing that DNA is physically removed from the
spellcaster, giving him less mana-friendly material with which to manipulate
magic. Bioware, while biological, does the same thing; if you replace a mage's
kidney with a mundane kidney, the mage just lost a significant portion of his
magic-wielding body. It's the same rationale behind the greater difficulty
modern hi-tech medicine has when treating mages for wounds or illness.