Gadgets made a little simpler
Or: "Jesus Christ, it's a Gadget! Get in the car!"
To sum up:
* Gadgets can have almost any power a PC can have.
* Gadgets that are mystical are actually Artifacts.
* Gadgets are often cheaper than just buying the power for the character directly.
* Gadgets break. Sometimes they can be repaired, and other times they have to be replaced completely.
* For any Gadget the PCs get, some villains somewhere get something more powerful.
* In addition to costing Hero Points, Gadgets also cost money -- hope you have the Wealth to afford parts!
* NPCs generally won't pay for PC gadgets.
A Gadget's Abilities always __substitute__ for the user's Abilities, and sometimes it'll have Attributes that substitute for the user's Attributes. They will never, however, add to the user's Abilities or Attributes.
This is why Skin Armor for Body Armor is kind of a pain in the ass.
Most of the Gadgets in the world will have a Reliability Number ("R#") measuring how frequently the Gadget jams, breaks down, divides by zero, or otherwise fails to function. Lower numbers are more reliable than higher numbers, but lower Reliability Numbers are also part of more expensive Gadgets.
The first prototype of a brand-new Gadget idea will almost always have a Reliability Number of at least 3.
Any time a gadget is used to perform a Dice Action, if the roll comes up equal to the Reliability Number or less than it, the Gadget's Ability breaks down, and the Action is immediately cancelled. Meanwhile, the first time that someone uses a particular Gadget to perform an Automatic Action each day, the player must first roll two dice to see if the Gadget busts. Each Automatic Ability must be checked once per day; if it succeeds, the Gadget is fine for that Ability for the rest of the game day.
Gadgets that fail their Reliability Checks have the Ability reduced to 0 APs until it can be repaired. (see Repairing Your Stuff .)
If the Gadget has its name printed in title case, it can be taken away from its user during combat. A Gadget whose name is printed in all capitals cannot be taken away from its user during combat, and is therefore more expensive. Shoving the Gadget into one's pants, boots, or undershirt does not magically turn it into an all-caps Gadget.
Gadgets take damage just like people -- in fact, there's a Combat Maneuver specifically for attacking the Gadget instead of the user, if the Gadget is the kind that can be taken away in combat. When most inanimate and nonmoving objects are targeted by an attack, the OV/RV of the effort is equal to the object's Body/Body, and the AV/EV is equal to the attacker's Str/Str or APs of Power.
Gadgets, however, are a lot more fragile due to their moving parts. The OV is 0 if they aren't being moved around by the Character, or the Dex or Skill level of the user who's got hold of them (or is throwing them, or steering them, or whatever).
Generally speaking, 1 RAP of damage is enough to knock a hole in the object that is large enough to walk or climb through, if the object was large enough in the first place for such a hole to be made. Having that big a hole doesn't necessarily make the Gadget quit working, either. (Note: there's an advantage, "Hardened Defenses", that can be purchased during Gadget creation that negates this entire "1 RAP = bigass hole" rule.)
A Gadget that has its Current Body Condition reduced to zero or below will no longer function; it must be Repaired in order to resume functioning. If the Gadget gets its Current Body Condition reduced to a negative absolute value of its original Body, it's destroyed beyond any chance of repair. While all gadgets have a Body stat, and are therefore vulnerable to physical damage, only Gadgets that have a Mind stat are vulnerable to Mental damage, and only Gadgets that have a Spirit stat are vulnerable to Mystic damage (and then the latter are probably Artifacts).
The Gadget Rules
* Can R'ms'y fix it* Laboratories
* Making the Damn Thing
* Omni-Gadgets
* Teamwork is the Answer
* Too busted to Repair
* Upgrades and Fine-Tuning
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