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Message: <blockquote data-quote="77IM" data-source="post: 7578381" data-attributes="member: 12377">I like this a lot. I haven't read the whole thing very carefully but here is some initial feedback.Some things seem way off balance. For example: - I really like the effect of Wired Reflexes, but it seems a little bit weak for the cost. I'd have gone with something more like the rogue's Cunning Action. - Holy crap, the troll is overpowered. I know that trolls are overpowered in the official RPG, but I don't think that's something you need to carry over into D&D. The scale of the abilities is much different. You could feasibly reduce their Str to +4 and Con to +2, and reduce their Natural Armor bonus to +1, and they'd still be an amazing race, even with the ability penalties. - Likewise, with all the other stuff they get, I don't think orcs need a +1 to AC that stacks with armor. - The elf's +1 to spell attacks and save DCs is probably overpowered, especially since it's going to stack with their +2 Cha. I might reduce that to +1 Cha, or find some other way to represent their magical aptitude. The +1 bonus on spell attacks is probably OK since attack-roll spells tend not to be very impressive. But the +1 to save DCs is huge because very few things can increase save DC. - The humans get to pick proficiency in a skill or tool -- but most skills are VASTLY more useful than most tools. Now maybe you might do things like decking, rigging, vehicles, surgical equipment, etc. as tools, making certain tool proficiencies comparable to skills. But if you stick with the 5E model of "tons of mostly-useless tools, instruments, and kits, plus super-useful thieves' tools," having to pick between a skill and tool is an obvious choice to some and a trap option to others.Other things that jumped out at me: - I like the Drain mechanic using dice. But I don't like that you take drain from casting a normal spell. I think spell slots can represent the normal sort of "drain" (which is stun damage in SR). Otherwise, you make spellcasting much slower, because you have to make a Wis save for every spell cast. WORSE, the magicians don't really have enough hit points to absorb this cost routinely. Maybe if Shaman had a d10 hit die it would make sense to use hit points as a resource this way. Or, maybe the Drain damage, which can't be healed by magic, completely goes away on a short rest, before you spend hit dice -- so it's kind of a "reverse temporary hit points." Speaking of which, I think the 5-minute short rest would fit better into Shadowrun game play, because there are times during a run when you might have a 5-minute breather, but maybe not an hour. - I don't like that the fighter's Runner Archetypes are available at level 1, but you can still take Champion at level 3. Just eliminate Champion; it's unnecessary. Or, move the other archetypes up to level 3. A huge advantage of NOT picking your archetype at level 1 is that you have a couple of levels to play your character before deciding your archetype. I do really like the three archetypes you picked; in particular, making Street Samurai and Weapons Master two different subclasses of the same fighter chassis solves a really tricky conceptual problem with Shadowrun character archetypes. (Specifically, things like Mage, Shaman, Decker, Rigger, Adept, etc. tend to have very clear and discrete niches, but chromed-up Street Samurai vs. gun-lugging orc Mercenary kind of exist on a continuum.) - I think shaman works better as a Wis-based class. That messes up several other design elements (for example, the use of Wis save for avoiding Drain would make shamans less Drain-prone, and the Troll's ability score penalties no longer discourage shamanism), but, from the novel's I've read and the video games, it seems that there are a lot of shamans who are really not very charismatic. - I'm not too keen on adding Essence as a seventh ability score. That seems like another thing carried over from the SR game mechanics, rather than the setting lore. I'd rather see Essence as its own weird thing and just stick to the "rule of 6," or else just rely on ability score penalties. (Actually making cyberware just cost Charisma directly is a simple and thematically appropriate approach.) - I find it weird that any character can buy cyberware, but it's listed under the Street Samurai archetype. I guess that's easy enough to reorganize once you've got more of your ideas down. But it's also weird that the Street Samurai gets so much subclass power from spending cash. That's fine I guess UNLESS you use the priority system to get a mountain of nuyen. Then it could really introduce a large discrepancy between Street Samurais. I think what I would do, is move the fighter archetypes up to 3rd level, and when you pick Street Samurai, you get a bunch of ¥ that can only be spent on cyberware (somebody owes you a favor, and some dermal plating "fell off the back of a truck...").</blockquote>

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