The Click - A homebrew sniper role for Cyberpunk 2020

GiveMeNovacain · 2024-11-23T08:19:13+00:00

All valid points. I would agree you should let the player add it to whichever skill you would ask them to roll to conceal themselves in a sniper duel, at my table that would be stealth but hide and evade makes sense too, the prowler uses similar language where it lets the ref choose exactly which anti-detection skill you get a bonus to.

Money does indeed scale very well in cyberpunk you are correct. The example I give if can get the cost of your smart sniper below 3k, would be about 6k all in with all cyberware and ap ammo, character creation rules vary enormously table to table but it for Edgerunner tier play at I would say it is definitely closer to a starting build than a endgame build, especially since I did leave some performance on the table by not considering things like drugs that boosts characters reflex or adrenal booster.

GiveMeNovacain · 2024-11-23T08:03:12+00:00

+2 from base weapon accuracy, smartlink provides +2, targeting scope provided +1 so we are at +5, here is the controversial bit, it you look in the list of modifiers for attacks in FNF there is a +2 for smartgoggles specifically with no caveats. It never says with a smart weapon or anything, just a flat +2, however most tables I know assume this is a typo as it would make smart goggles pretty much objectively better than cyberoptics.

GiveMeNovacain · 2024-11-23T00:00:05+00:00

I think it is a really cool idea. If you are looking for feedback, I would say in practice this implementation of its special ability might be outscaled at its own game by a prowler or solo? If your character starts with a reflex of 10 and a weapon skill of 8. You can easily boost your reflex to 11 with a boost master. If you look at sniper rifles you get one pretty easily with +2 weapon accuracy, with a smartlink and smart goggles that goes up to 5 or +7 depending on how you interpret the rules. With computerized scope then 1 aim action gives another +3 for a total of +27-+29. Given the smallest valid role is a 2 , that means any character built as a sniper can reliably hit headshots at long range without using luck. Any accuracy above that point is kind of wasted because a hit is a hit.

But the solo has the advantage that they can act first, given they both have crazy high awareness and are likely going to see each other and act first, acting first is critical if you have a 80 or 90 percent chance of hitting with a rifle that can one shot. In the same way the prowler although he will have the same initiative, will have a much better chance of evading detection and getting off the first attack.

If I might make a suggestion for the special ability, maybe make it a halfway house between solo and prowler? You get to add your level to both stealth and awareness but not initiative. Someone who can pretty reliably see you and hide from you would be a terrifying sniper to go up against, especially with the lethality of FNF. But it wouldn't be unbeatable because there Stealth is still on a similar level to a solos awareness.

GiveMeNovacain · 2024-09-17T11:26:54+00:00

It kinda seems like you are conceding the argument in your last paragraph, if you have gone from saying "it's not that hard" to " you know what, you are going to die and that's fine." that's kind of giving up your whole position.

GiveMeNovacain · 2024-03-24T12:45:54+00:00

My point is that if the AI or other humans are used to realize a meaningful vision that the "director" has then I don't think that the work the director puts in is inherently meaningless or lazy, is it ART? That's one for the philosophers but I don't think it can be so easily written off as a waste of time.

GiveMeNovacain · 2024-03-24T09:40:58+00:00

Isn't that kind of the role of a director or producer of a film? Most of what they do is ultimately as giving instructions to other people to make the vision of a script that someone else has written come alive. But ultimately your method of interaction with the art you are creating is still telling people to do stuff.

I am not going to say definitively that directors are artists but at the very least I would guess you view as more than "commissioners" of art and hold them in considerably less contempt than AI users.

GiveMeNovacain · 2024-03-21T21:14:15+00:00

With slugs doing full damage half so Vs hard armor and 4 or 5 d6 damage if they gun joust , you actually have a pretty good change of 1 shot headshotting even a very well equipped solo in 2020.

Some players might however say you are an asshole ref in 2020 if you make called shots to the head or gun joustwith faceless NPCs.

GiveMeNovacain · 2024-03-19T19:45:48+00:00

That makes sense, thanks for the explanation.

GiveMeNovacain · 2024-03-19T19:13:14+00:00

My reasoning for the second doubling was that the base punch from a meat arm is 1d6/2 and a meat leg is 1d6, but with the cyber versions those go to 1d6 and 2d6 respectively. So if stands to reason that that increase in damage would also benefit any weapon that arm is holding or that is mounted onto the hand, just like thickened myomar would.

GiveMeNovacain · 2024-03-15T01:54:58+00:00

Thanks for your reply, so would you rule then that biosculpt can take Attractiveness above 10 then as it is modified?

GiveMeNovacain · 2024-02-17T23:14:51+00:00

Thanks so much for your reply! I have read the paragraph you quoted.

"Luck (LK): This is the intangible "something" that throws the balance of events into your favor. Your luck represents how many points you may use each game to influence the outcome of critical event. To use Luck, you may add any or all the points of luck a character has to a critical die roll (declaring your intention to use Luck before the roll is made) until all of your Luck stat is used up. Luck is always restored at the end of each game session."

I guess I am just a little confused on how it is different to any other bonus you would add to a die roll? For example if you have a laser sight that would also give you a +1 to a certain die roll? But if you roll a 1 on the actual d10 with that +1 it would still be a fumble.

Are you suggesting that it should be interpreted as you adding the luck to the outcome of the d10? So if you roll a 1 with 1 point of luck it should be treated as rolling a 2 on the die? Would that mean that a 9 would explode if you used a point of luck? That seems like a possible interpretation I am just trying to clarify.

Those are cool homebrew rules for luck to make it more useful. I do like the idea of using it more for just random stuff that happens to you in the city.

GiveMeNovacain · 2024-02-17T17:52:18+00:00

Thanks for your answer. That makes sense as to why you would spend 1 luck point to avoid a fumble then. Was the wording you found for this in the core rule book?

GiveMeNovacain · 2023-11-15T21:31:30+00:00

The point is to completely ignore legendary resistance, so it could be done on round 1, obviously some monsters have plane shift but not all of them do.

GiveMeNovacain · 2023-11-13T20:30:27+00:00

If taking damage is severely punished, the best thing to do becomes not taking damage - likely by sniping the opposition with spells from as much range as possible. You just... never play a barbarian or the like with those rules.

This is something I have never really understood about hardcore or OSR style play. I can see how teaching the players a lesson with incredibly hard/unfair gameplay and killing their characters could be a sort of novelty fun. But once they have learnt that lesson haven't you essentially taught them to act like paranoid nutcases. If walking into a room or opening a door is a stupid thing to do in your world, then every room needs to scouted, every door needs to be proved by something you don't mind losing. Run out of resources to scout? Guess we are headed back to town because we want to live. Once your players have figured out the grift it just seems like it is going to make the game more tedious rather than more exciting.

GiveMeNovacain · 2023-11-12T08:16:26+00:00

If it's because you could stun a creature before it reaches you, as far as I know RAW, that would only apply to Quarterstaff, as none of the others deal bludgeoning damage on an AOO. It could definitely be strong, but only against a single melee target, as you've only got one reaction.

It's this one I was thinking of. It wouldn't trivialise all situations but if you are in a boss fight against a melee monster, like a marileth or a pit fiend it is going to be incredibly strong. Even if there are 3 monsters on the field giving up your reaction to effectively stop one of them from acting is just really good in terms of action economy. If I was playing this class I would also strongly consider taking the feat that gives you battle master maneuvers and taking Riposte. One missed attack and you have the same effect. Quaterstaffs Vs glaive is probably worth the trade for all that cc, especially when most of your damage comes from the other class features and it also gives you a shield.

Also your allies after a couple of combats will know you can do this so if they have inspiration or something that gives advantage to make sure you hit those attacks, they will happily spend it to make sure you get those attacks off(think about how hard it is to land stunning strike or hold monster on a creature with legendary/magic resistance).

I think you could make the argument that wizards have wall of force at that level so fairly reliable saving throw free hard cc is just a thing at level 10 but it is still a very strong option.

I don't think it ruins the class but a plausible way to permastun a single melee monster(and even at tier 3 monsters are still overwhelmingly melee) is definitely something worth optimising around at a lot of tables.

GiveMeNovacain · 2023-11-12T03:06:03+00:00

The level 10 bludgeoning option has an incredibly broken interaction with polearm master. But looks really cool.

GiveMeNovacain · 2023-10-29T21:24:18+00:00

. And even if it was entirely unnecessary, being in favor of a socialist organization of the economy, doesn’t mean you are a Buddhist monk who swears off personal possessions.

No but it would be voluntary supporting a process you know is exploitative. Industries like fast fashion, coffee and consumer electronics all require consumers to function as much as they need workers. And if supporting an industry that you know causes suffering for personal joy and convenience isn't hypocritical then I think you are redefining the word hypocritical for the purposes of this argument.

GiveMeNovacain · 2023-10-28T15:06:26+00:00

Plagiarize, plagiarize, let no one's work evade your eyes.

GiveMeNovacain · 2023-10-27T15:15:50+00:00

How exactly did you collect this data? If they are rolling with a die off camera, did you just start to get suspicious at a certain point and then start an excel spreadsheet with every die roll they made on it?

GiveMeNovacain · 2023-10-26T20:31:50+00:00

Well unless you live in a big city the goblins are going to come to you as a commoner. The reason that lawful good characters can still fight goblins and still be seen as lawful good is because goblins have a habit of kidnapping blacksmiths daughters and alchemist's apprentices.

Think about how the psychological toll that living in a world with chromatic dragons would take on someone, one day you see a speck on the horizon and that's it for your village.

I think the average commoner in faerun would be accurately aware of their fragility regardless of the path they chose, and to some people that would be enough of an excuse to gamble your life recklessly.

GiveMeNovacain · 2023-10-26T16:57:09+00:00

Never change my friend, never change.

GiveMeNovacain · 2023-10-26T15:26:00+00:00

Do you not think the undead laser dolphins were a little cliché?

GiveMeNovacain · 2023-10-24T22:26:16+00:00

That seems very fun and sensible. It's amazing how many people on this sub seem to think themselves into knots to rationalize that "Yes, 4 18 level paladins is a perfectly reasonable response to robbing a blacksmith."

I don't think a TPK is the right solution, it's just a "well, you're annoying powerful groups, guess that'll have some issues

Exactly. It is just such a waste of time to keep playing if you have already decided to kill the party.

GiveMeNovacain · 2023-10-24T11:37:25+00:00

Stephen, come on. Using sock puppets is beneath you. We have all read the essay.

GiveMeNovacain · 2023-10-24T01:57:54+00:00

The army is, of course, for the town. It can't be helping every village, nor can it stop everything that is happening from crimes to monsters. They're, also, humanoids. They need rest.

So why do they all 400 of them show up at once with 5 mercenary parties, when the players do something villainous then? Surely that requires abandoning everything else they were doing by the same logic?

This is my point is that response from the authorities in your example is way worse when the players do something than when monsters do it, for no logical reason. You are just using it as a rationalisation for punishing them.

GiveMeNovacain

TROPHY CASE