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_ArthurDallas_
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Re: Rules, errata... (Gun jammed & Mental trauma & More)

Mon 29 Dec 2025, 06:30

Here, during our last session, I rolled critical injury 56 meaning a PC has lost his leg.

According to text, it's said that PC need surgery and prosthesis.

There is no problem for possible effects (I suppose they are the same as a natural arm or leg) but problem comes with cost. What is the cost of a prosthesis?

Any official clarification? If not, do you know a balanced houserule? Or do you have any suggestion for this?

Thanks in advance!
...

Decanox, that's an excellent topic for reflection. I'm throwing out some ideas, and it could indeed be a houserule. Several companies (those from Alien Earth, among others, if you want to add them to your "canon" universe; otherwise, you can stick with Weyland-Yutani and the others we know) have developed cyborg technology (humans enhanced with biomechatronic body parts), synthetic technology (fully artificial beings endowed with intelligence), and hybrid technology (synthetic bodies containing transferred human consciousness).

- The United States Colonial Marine Corps has developed its own cybernetics division and implants body parts for its personnel for free (according to certain criteria or with salary deductions). The biomechanical body parts are very basic, with no aesthetic appeal, and made of metal. Hands, arms, legs, feet.

- Black market: biomechanical body parts from the UPP or smaller companies. Metal body parts with no aesthetic appeal and hidden problems. Hand, arm, leg, foot for $25,000 each, including surgery.

- High-risk medical interventions in countries (or companies) with less advanced medical technology or less skilled personnel. Body parts with a human appearance on the outside and cyborg on the inside. Hand, arm, leg, foot for $100,000 each, including surgery.

- Highly successful civilian medical interventions in known worlds with highly skilled personnel. Expensive medical interventions for wealthy clients, utilizing the most reliable technologies and offering a near-guaranteed success rate. Body parts with a human appearance and a cyborg internal structure. Hand, arm, leg, foot for $500,000 each, including surgery.

- Special military or civilian medical interventions in high-level laboratories. Body parts with a human (or non-human) appearance and a cyborg internal structure. Additional skills can be added, such as superhuman strength, a bladed weapon, or a gun. Hand, arm, leg, foot for $1,000,000 each, including surgery.

It's still just a starting point,
Arthur.
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decanox
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Re: Rules, errata... (Gun jammed & Mental trauma & More)

Mon 29 Dec 2025, 10:54

Thanks for your answer Arthur!

Yes, it's a good starting point although options are a bit expensive for any common player. In fact, in my session player paid over 3.000 $ (all money he had!)... But should he have to pay more? Was It enough with 3.000 $? No idea... Medic NPC said that a prosthesis can be even more expensive and that he had to check the catalog (that is me, as GM, asking in forums).

Of course that is a point for future adventure seeds, favors, etc. But if PCs owe a lot of money for a prosthesis, situation can get a bit frustrating for them.
 
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aramis
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Re: Rules, errata... (Gun jammed & Mental trauma & More)

Mon 29 Dec 2025, 11:09

I've taken a cost as a functional limit to usefulness... the one time it mattered.
the higher of Agl or Str is X, with +1 X if conformal to normal shape.
Cost is $(10^X)
Lower rated limbs can be fitted; using the limb in a Str or Agl greater than the rating caps the attribute to the limit of the limb; if using more, add up to natural (or double the cap, if lower) tool dice (which work like standard tool dice from other d6YZE games) - reducing the rating on a 1, counting a success on a 6.
If reduced to 0, a limb ceases to function.

Synthetic Skins:
Cheap silicone: vaguely matching one's skin tone, clearly not human: +200
Good silicone: +$1000
Cheap Synthetic Flesh: +$5,000
Really good synthetic flesh (as good as Bishop or Ashe) +$25,000, 1 month lead time.
vat grown skin on synthetic matrix: +$125,000, 2 months lead time, only in core worlds.
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decanox
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Re: Rules, errata... (Gun jammed & Mental trauma & More)

Mon 29 Dec 2025, 14:03

I don't know if I understood you well... But I'll try with a small example:

So if a character has lost a hand, has STR 3, and wants that the new hand looks "normal" (not like a hook) It would be:

10x10x10x10= 10.000 $

Have I supposed right?

Then you can add synthetic skin adding any skin you have explained.
 
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Angelman
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Re: Rules, errata... (Gun jammed & Mental trauma & More)

Mon 29 Dec 2025, 14:22

I don't know if this is of any interest, but in my games I just assume that functional prosthetics are beyond the means of any PC. It never happens that PCs walk away with several thousands of moneys in reward after an Alien RPG scenario in our games, unless it is a end-of-campaign retirement situation.

Only a major patron (or medical insurance scheme with a major faction) can afford to pay for such prosthetics, and getting one sets a PC in crippling debt to said patron or faction.
"And the rain sets in,
it's the Angelman.
I'm deranged".
--David Bowie, I'm Deranged
 
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aramis
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Re: Rules, errata... (Gun jammed & Mental trauma & More)

Tue 30 Dec 2025, 08:25

I don't know if I understood you well... But I'll try with a small example:

So if a character has lost a hand, has STR 3, and wants that the new hand looks "normal" (not like a hook) It would be:

10x10x10x10= 10.000 $

Have I supposed right?

Then you can add synthetic skin adding any skin you have explained.
That's how I did it, yes. The PC wound up being able to only afford Str 3 with ugly metal... but they had Str 4, so it was still a nerf. So, when their left arm was involved, they were effectively Str 3, but for Stamina, still Str 4,
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_ArthurDallas_
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Re: Rules, errata... (Gun jammed & Mental trauma & More)

Tue 30 Dec 2025, 09:33

I don't know if I understood you well... But I'll try with a small example:

So if a character has lost a hand, has STR 3, and wants that the new hand looks "normal" (not like a hook) It would be:

10x10x10x10= 10.000 $

Have I supposed right?

Then you can add synthetic skin adding any skin you have explained.
That's how I did it, yes. The PC wound up being able to only afford Str 3 with ugly metal... but they had Str 4, so it was still a nerf. So, when their left arm was involved, they were effectively Str 3, but for Stamina, still Str 4,
...

I'm not sure I understand what you wrote, Aramis. When your player character lost an arm (or hand, leg, or foot), you removed some base attribute points (strength, agility, wits, empathy), and you gave the character a permanent -1 to strength (with the left arm). I understand the logic behind it, but messing with the base attributes is a huge move. In any case, I'm not going to touch that at my gaming table. To explain my answer, I'd say that if someone loses a lung, the other lung will compensate, and ultimately, there won't be a decrease in respiratory capacity. The human body adapts to the loss of a limb to compensate with the other limbs and maintain balance. I agree that losing two arms means you can no longer use a weapon, but do you completely lose your strength as an individual? I don't think so. At least, that's my opinion. But, you do raise an interesting question, though. What is the penalty for the loss of a member? A minus of -1 to -3 may be conceivable on certain performed activities, I would add a minus on skills but not on basic attributes. That remains my opinion.

Arthur.
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aramis
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Re: Rules, errata... (Gun jammed & Mental trauma & More)

Wed 31 Dec 2025, 02:10

I don't know if I understood you well... But I'll try with a small example:

So if a character has lost a hand, has STR 3, and wants that the new hand looks "normal" (not like a hook) It would be:

10x10x10x10= 10.000 $

Have I supposed right?

Then you can add synthetic skin adding any skin you have explained.
That's how I did it, yes. The PC wound up being able to only afford Str 3 with ugly metal... but they had Str 4, so it was still a nerf. So, when their left arm was involved, they were effectively Str 3, but for Stamina, still Str 4,
...

I'm not sure I understand what you wrote, Aramis. When your player character lost an arm (or hand, leg, or foot), you removed some base attribute points (strength, agility, wits, empathy), and you gave the character a permanent -1 to strength (with the left arm). I understand the logic behind it, but messing with the base attributes is a huge move. In any case, I'm not going to touch that at my gaming table. To explain my answer, I'd say that if someone loses a lung, the other lung will compensate, and ultimately, there won't be a decrease in respiratory capacity. The human body adapts to the loss of a limb to compensate with the other limbs and maintain balance. I agree that losing two arms means you can no longer use a weapon, but do you completely lose your strength as an individual? I don't think so. At least, that's my opinion. But, you do raise an interesting question, though. What is the penalty for the loss of a member? A minus of -1 to -3 may be conceivable on certain performed activities, I would add a minus on skills but not on basic attributes. That remains my opinion.

Arthur.
No, Arthur.
I put a limit only on tasks requiring the prosthesis - for Hits, and for resistance rolls, full value. For example, the guy with a rating 2 leg, say he's agil 3 and str 4, with only a cheap leg, can only safely use 2 of those Agil for movement, or 2 of those strength for stamina when running. He's got full for working at the lathe (legs not a major part of lathework), for welding (ibid), for staying awake, for weaving the new wire harness on the lander.... If he wants to push past the limits of the prosthesis, say, dancing to impress Miss Saffron, he's going to risk damaging the leg in the process - cue tool dice for the difference- he can use 1 or 2 to be near or full agility... but he cheaped out, didn't want it on a debt clause on his contract... If he's moving weapons into place with Heavy Machinery, that sounds like the legs matter, so takes the penalty of that third Str die is a tool die.

In other words, the cheapness of the leg is a semi-permanent complication on tasks needing the leg, but only on those tasks, and one that can be pushed past at the risk of breaking it.
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Smith & Wesson: the original point and click interface...
If you need me to re-explain something, just ask.
 
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_ArthurDallas_
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Re: Rules, errata... (Gun jammed & Mental trauma & More)

Wed 31 Dec 2025, 06:47


That's how I did it, yes. The PC wound up being able to only afford Str 3 with ugly metal... but they had Str 4, so it was still a nerf. So, when their left arm was involved, they were effectively Str 3, but for Stamina, still Str 4,
...

I'm not sure I understand what you wrote, Aramis. When your player character lost an arm (or hand, leg, or foot), you removed some base attribute points (strength, agility, wits, empathy), and you gave the character a permanent -1 to strength (with the left arm). I understand the logic behind it, but messing with the base attributes is a huge move. In any case, I'm not going to touch that at my gaming table. To explain my answer, I'd say that if someone loses a lung, the other lung will compensate, and ultimately, there won't be a decrease in respiratory capacity. The human body adapts to the loss of a limb to compensate with the other limbs and maintain balance. I agree that losing two arms means you can no longer use a weapon, but do you completely lose your strength as an individual? I don't think so. At least, that's my opinion. But, you do raise an interesting question, though. What is the penalty for the loss of a member? A minus of -1 to -3 may be conceivable on certain performed activities, I would add a minus on skills but not on basic attributes. That remains my opinion.

Arthur.
No, Arthur.
I put a limit only on tasks requiring the prosthesis - for Hits, and for resistance rolls, full value. For example, the guy with a rating 2 leg, say he's agil 3 and str 4, with only a cheap leg, can only safely use 2 of those Agil for movement, or 2 of those strength for stamina when running. He's got full for working at the lathe (legs not a major part of lathework), for welding (ibid), for staying awake, for weaving the new wire harness on the lander.... If he wants to push past the limits of the prosthesis, say, dancing to impress Miss Saffron, he's going to risk damaging the leg in the process - cue tool dice for the difference- he can use 1 or 2 to be near or full agility... but he cheaped out, didn't want it on a debt clause on his contract... If he's moving weapons into place with Heavy Machinery, that sounds like the legs matter, so takes the penalty of that third Str die is a tool die.

In other words, the cheapness of the leg is a semi-permanent complication on tasks needing the leg, but only on those tasks, and one that can be pushed past at the risk of breaking it.
...

Ah, okay, these are the consequences of a low-quality prosthesis, I understand.

Arthur.
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