Stephane

This sounds correct, 20 to 30 extra rounds, meaning two magazine for most decent calibers, 3 if you've gone for the big bores, 8 shot 12 caseless handguns.

Packing more mean you clearly expect serious trouble and this spell "illegal business" unless you're some kind of licensed bodyguard around an exposed person.

I've made some net researchs on real life flyers and I've got the following figures :

Birds (feathered wings)

Condor : wingspan 2.5 to 3 meters, weight up to 12 kg

Pelican : wingspan up to 3 meters, weight up to 10 kg

Swan : wingspan 2 to 2.5 m, weight up to 20 kilograms

Bat

Flying fox (largest bat) : wingspan 1.5 meters, weight 1 kg

Flying dinosaurs (smooth leather-like wings, close to a bat's)

Pteranodon : wingspan 6 to 8 meters, estimated weight up to 25 kg

Hanggliders / Ultralights

Wingspan 8 to 10 meters, weight 25 to 30 kg, add pilot and around 10 kg of harness and other outfit

Ultralights add approximatively 10 to 15 kg of motor, seat, landing gear... and a top speed of about 100 mph

Very small airplanes

Wingspan 9 meters, weight 100 kg. Those figures are based on a very small single-seater of the wood-and-cloth kind, powered by a 15 hp motor

Surgically I think it would be simpler and faster to graft a biological construct made from vat-grown, nanotech strengthened tissues than to work on the "natural" bones and lengthen them (say 1 cm a day, this still takes around 5 weeks). Also four meters sound a bit short if you expect more than slowing a fall.

This still requires a major reworking of the shoulder and torso structures to anchor very strong muscles if you want "real" flight and not gliding (at least outside of an orbital installation).

Balance in air will be terrible, with the legs stretching all out of the wings. A real-life bat has his wings extending back to the ankles and very small and week legs, so that the center of the wings is approximatively at the center of mass of the body ! Birds (or a plane) have less "deep" wings, but their body is extended in front of the wings for balance. I strongly doubt you can do more than flap a bit upward or glide down at a fast rate, unless you drastically reduce the legs of the altered human.

AFAIK yes, they kept their design philosophy in all the line, so the smallest models in .45 or .40 can take all the magazines in the proper caliber.

From a tactical/combat viewpoint it's an interesting feature (but not a necessity) that can affect the choices of a potential user.

Since this feature exist in RL weapon (the Glocks are the most generalized application, but "false compacts" like the 92F-C or reduced-size 1911 derivatives can generally take the full-size stuff), it can probably be found in several lines in Cyberpunk.

Magazines compatibility may reduce a bit magazines sales, but the common parts also reduce the production costs.

I think the subject is now well covered, so I suggest creating a separate thread if we want to dwelwe further into this.

That sound fine. As a player I try to define 3 armor/weapon/ammo/other stuff of note combos for my PCs : everyday life, work and "s##t hit the fan" heavy-duty times, and as a GM I strongly suggest my players to do so, and I assume they are in the "adequate" outfit unless stated otherwise.

AFAIK the smallest 9 mm Glock (Model 26) can take the Glock-17 magazine and shoot reliably (same magazine well width and angle, same ramp, same magazine latch...). You can evel use the 33 rounds magazine of the 18 (but the grip and balancve are probably poor) !

Sure, the longer magazine will protrude at the bottom of the grip, but concealment is no longer an issue if the pistol is in hand and shooting, so I don't think having full-size spare magazines for a compact backup is really a problem as long as you've a short magazine inserted when carrying the gun, and it can be particularly interesting if they are the normal magazines of the main weapon (like a Glock 17/26 combo with 18 rounds mags - standard for Model 17 - as spares)

That's precisely why I wrote "from the same line and caliber". Take the Glocks, you can use the 9 mm 30-round magazine into the smallest 9 mm model, even if the reverse is not true, the longer grip preventing insertion the short magazines into the full size models.

Also using two pistols from the same line means they're likely to operate the same, which is good from a training viewpoint, and reduce the possiblity of confusions like "did I move the  safety up or down on this one ?" under stress (read combat) conditions.

For big melee weapons (swords, axes, chainsaw...) I'd simply quote "Listen Up" : "Carrying one of these long, bulky, or otherwise impossible to conceal things is a tacit statement you're going to use it.". This also apply to tonfa - unless you're uniformed security (or posing as such).

Most of my characters settle for a decent handgun, backed up by some martial art and/or concealable melee weapon like a knife. If they're Solo's, they add a smaller backup handgun, if possible in the same line and caliber as the main weapon, so they can share their magazines.

Note on the Shadowrun rules : in the 3rd edition they altered them, making the sequence the following :

Highest init 1st action

2nd highest init 1st action

[...]

Lowest init 1st action

Highest init 2nd action (if available)

2nd highest 2nd action

etc until everyone ran out of actions, meaning rushing on a gunman from more than two meters is likely to grant you a point blank shot before you can hit him, definitely not fun if it's a full auto weapon.

This makes sense, but the two models are likely to coexist, because some activities (like oil refining, steel production, water processing, car manufacturing...) requires massive and long-term investments only plausible with the more conventionnal corporate model. Sure, you can integrate a new model of computer in your kitchen, but someone must have paid several billion dollars to build that 0.05 micrometer microchip factory producing the core components of your dream !

The suggested model is complementary, with the flexibility and reactivity to exploit small marketing segments if dealing with material goods (they can't compete with mass-production for cheap, basic goods), providing external expertise (in R&D, management, marketing...) - kinda like temporary work but without employment agency - or dealing in "immaterial" products.

Even if I accpeted ETE in my games I think such a choice for boosters is dubious whem you can get an AK-80 (same damage, more range, better ROF and readily available ammo in all funny flavors) for much less money, and not much extra weight and size.

And it can go full auto, allowing those "cool" drive-by, innocent bystanders mowing and other destructive actions  boosters are likely to be fond of.

The idea is interesting, but many points need major adjustment before being usable and even remotely plausible :

- when those FBC/IA are supposedly created ? From your post it's probably around 2005/2008. If 2020 technology cannot allow an autonomous IA-drive FBC I strongly doubt this could have been done so early

- even if this could have been done, the "poor guy" will quickly find some hole in his cover story, particularly if he does not "know" he's a 'borg. A cut while cooking and "But, you don't bleed ?" "I took some bad hits in SouthAm so they patched me, honey" - yeah, right. Even if knowing he's FBC but any decent  exam (like routine upkeep, you know, things like refilling the life support systems) will find some rather funny things inside.

- use an AI/borg combo as a 'key', make only three of them, and then let them loose in a country falling into pieces This sound impratical to the extreme (not to mention hideously expensive).

This sound a bit excessive (you're in the damage range of a multi-kg lump of C-6 !). Also the HEP load has no blast radius.

I would have make the result into something like :

- 4/2/1D6 incendiary in 2 m radius (bigger load increasing the radius, but no more burning material to spread)

- 10D6 HEP damage to a target directly hit, unless he specified he used the explosive and added some scrap metal for frag effect, this would change to 10D6 frag effect/6m radius

- flashbang damage and radius increased 50%

- stench effect unmodified, or even reduced (smelling compound destroyed by the heat of explosion and incendiary load)

Considering the pace of CP games, aging is rarely a problem for most player characters. Accute lead poisoning is a much more common death cause than old age.

If you've the money, you can expect to reach 80/90 years in good condition (at least medically) - nanosurgeon and designer drugs can do wonders - and more if you go for a FBC with longevity module. More than enough to wait for new breakthrough in medical science to go even longer...

Looks like those Corporate sharks can be there for a loong time...

This sounds a bit abusive. I've heard of skilled operators firing .50 machineguns one bullet at a time while on full auto, and the Glock 18 can be fired in 3/4 rounds bursts even if it has no burst limitation, just don't be too slow to release the rigger.

Personnaly I use ROF/skill level as a quick estimation of the "granularity" of your bursts, as greater experience with the weapon allow more control. For exemple skill 3/ROF 30 allow you to let go 10, 20 or 30 bullets, while skill 6 will allow 5/10/15/20/25 or 30.

Sounds more Manga/Bubblegum Crisis than CP to me, but it's a matter of taste...

This sounds a bit abusive. You can settle for a "simple" case of flea infestation. A friend of mine caught some in a hotel, and then spend two weeks washing all his clothes at the highest possible temperature, spreading flea-killer on them, in his bed, in his house, and even in his car to be sure !

And how will your teammates (or your girlfriend if you've one - not too likely for those gun-nuts characters) react then they realize *you* brought them those nasty little beasts ?

You may take a hint from GURPS.

Burst are broken down in smaller bullet groups, with cumulative recoil penalties, and you roll to hit for each group.

translated to CP, you may take the 3-round burst as a base (+1 to hit), then roll for each successive group of 3 bullets with a penalty, maybe -1 for low-caliber, -2 for medium, -3 for big, with proper bracing reducing the modifier and "improper" (hip-firing, folded stock...) increasing it. This way the first bullets hit the same, burst fire or not, and the last bullets could miss a barn door if you empty the clip of your 7.62 AR.

Please note it's something I've just thought quickly, with no reference to GURPS rules and no play test. But keep in mind this can quickly become extremely lethal with a skilled shooter (or unsuspecting target).

Also it's a bit dice-intensive and time consuming. The official CP rules are not perfect, but they're fast and simple... Draw the line where you like 8)

Diesel fuel doesn't ignite under pressure ! Compressing air by decreasing it's volume also increase it's temperature, and the fuel is ignited by being sprayed in tiny drops into it.

Quote

But I guess if you build up the pressure to get the diesel-fuel igniting, perhaps you could rather use this pressure to propel the bullet in the first place .

Adding chemical energy in the system (by burning a fuel) gives you more energy. That's the way the motor of your car operates 8), some of the energy is used to compress (and heat) the air in the other cylinders, and the rest moves the car.

As a side note, this mode of operation can be applied to other flammable products than diesel fuel. I think vegetable oils can be used this way, and can be produced much easier than by refining crude oil.

Such a gun still requires very thight fittings and is mechanically complex as you can't draw the compressed air from a tank (it won't be hot enough to ignite the fuel), you need to compress it at the moment of shooting, and then inject your fuel (not to mention inserting a bullet in the barrel).

This mean it probably can't be "self-operated" like today's cartridge repeaters, and need an external power source. This can be the operator manually cocking a spring - single-shot only. If you want autofire, you may turn a crank like a maunal gattling gun, or possibly use a compressed air tank, or even a steam engine !

Myomars, hydraulics or more conventionals motor/gear assembly can all be declined in a controlled-length actuator. The trick is not the actuator, but the joints in the frame, making them hollowed out to make room for the pilot's limb while having enough motion freedom to be usable and being structurally strong enough to resist is not a trivial task... With interface technology it's far simpler to "insert" the pilot in an armored shell in the torso of the suit, has he didn't need to move to operate it.

Gyroscopes only provides you a direction reference ("this end up"). Sure, they can detect you begin to fall forward or backward, but they don't tell the unit how to move it's limbs to regain balance, and walking (or climbing stairs !) is trickier.

Large electronic neural networks may be a solution, if we can learn them how to walk and run

With spectrum-spreading and frequency hoping technologies you need to broadcast at high power level on a very broad band, meaning *your* transmissions are also useless, definitely not a combat ideal on a high-tech battlefield. Also such a powerful radio source is relatively easy to locate, and a prime target for a HARM missile variant homing on radio, not radar.

That's precisely why fulminates have been used as primer in firearms since cap'n ball 8), a sharp strike on a very small amount reliably trigger an explosion powerful enough to ignite the powder load. Just be careful when preparing it...

There are three points where today's technology is lacking for ACPA :

- power supply

- actuators

- controls

The current direction in powering military vehicules seems to be electrical motors, with electricity generated by an optimized internal combustion engine, and to evolve the design toward fuel cells or whatever effective fuel->electricity converter will be developped, so power generation could be solved quickly on paper. But adding 50 kg of engine and battery on a humanoid design without altering it's balance too much is trickier than to a Hummer !

For me from Maximum Metal. The suits are expensives, with the money for a "basic" suit you can outfit an infantry squad with good armor and support weapons ! Also upkeep is likely to be expensive as the mecanical structure is really complex, intertwined with actuators, electronics and weaponry and encased in an armored shell reducing accessibility.

Moving in the suit may be simple, but learning it's trength and weakness (things like "if I run here I'll scrap my head on a concrete ceiling" or "I'd better slow down *now* or inertia will take me through the window..."), and getting used to the multiple sensory hardware and variety of weaponry takes some time, and time is money.

Sure, they may be available, but their use won't be generalized if they're not needed. You don't send a tank when a Hummer and four grunt can do the job, so you won't send ACPAs if "basic" infantry is enough.

As often, it's a balance between security/cost/intrusiveness. Full-face image recognition is not foolproof, and with 2020 technology you can devise cybersystems (or improved latex masks) against this. It's not in the books probably because the technology was not spoken about when they were written !

Such a system is good for public-access area, or for urban security grid - the police can then track a wanted criminal easily as soon as he goes into a monitored area and trigger an arrest... Don't work too well with posergangs (camouflage through number)

Just a note on this :

I don't thing a method involving deliberately exposing *yourself* for at least several minutes to something potent and pervasive enough to transfer a lethal dosage in the target in less than five seconds will be very popular, even if the research department tell you that the antitox is 100% reliable (or you've a right cyberhand...)

Several reasons I can think against this :

1) the coil and capacitor are still going to take room and weight. Upping a grenade from 500 grams to 700 doesn't sound like much, but when you throw it it makes a very real difference, and increasing it's size would makes handling difficult.

2) to generate the EMP properly you need controlled shockwaves form the explosive, meaning a very specific geometry and I'm not sure this is compatible with homogenous dispersion of a frag sleeve.

3) the capacitor need to be loaded before use. This mean the EMP part of the thing has a limited "service life" when the "classical" frag grenade can be stored for years and work as a brand new one.

4) From the link provided by Jackie the EMP radius is going to be very small (they talked of 360 kg - or even 900 kg - aircraft bomb, approx. a thousands times heavier than a hand grenade and with a better casing/filling weight and volume ratio), particularly considering that most military cyberware will be hardened. If you can put a frag that close to them, they're in trouble even without the bells and whistles.

As I undertand it, the process of implanting the neural processor (as described in the "official" rules is this :

1) first, the device is physically implanted on the spine

2) nanites lays a massive network of microscopic wires in you brain and probably spinal cord, connecting them to individual neurons and to the processor - yes it's invasive, but you didn't feel a thing - could probably go with optical fibers with transducers at the ends (more EMP-proof)

3) there is probably a period of self-adjustment as the processor "learns" your brain topography - where is this specific wire connected ?

4) once this is done, the neural processor provide a "standardized" interface between your nervous system and whatever you want to connect to it.

This allow a neural implant to have neural activity translated into something in understand, and then to transmit "ordres", firing bunch of neurones to trigger determined responses.

This way a cyberdeck (for exemple) can translate the activity in the motion centers of the brain into interface commands (and overrides the impulsions to the muscles, preventing you from jerking on your chair), and use the net infos to generate a five-sense illusion in your brain, overrriding your "normal" sensory inputs.

This can make an interface plug a wonderful interrogation tool, you can generate a lot of stimuli (painful or wonderfully good), monitor brain activity to detect lies or idea associations, and even montior physiology to pause before killing the subject... A user-controlled data lock on your plugs suddenly sounds like a good idea...