ZeroSpace 4e EN:Equipment

Contents

Characters use equipment to make their efforts more successful. As characters have Power Level, equipment has Equipment Level. Equipment is rated by its effectiveness and complexity, from Equipment Level 1 to Equipment Level 5. Simple or multipurpose equipment, such as a Swiss army knife, generally has an Equipment Level of 1. Ordinary equipment, such as a reasonably complete box of tools, has an Equipment Level of 3. Special-purpose or very high quality equipment, such as a complete surgical theatre, has an Equipment Level of 5. When the character attempts a task, the character may add their Equipment Level to their Action Value, but only up to their skill level.

There is no character point cost associated with ordinary equipment and vehicles. However, there may be legal or financial obstacles to obtaining such equipment, even if it's relatively commonplace. All equipment requires periodic maintenance, but this usually happens when it is convenient for the character.

Armor

The Damage Resistance (DR) provided by armor is equal to its Equipment Level +3. For example, Equipment Level 2 armor grants 5 points of Damage Resistance (2 + 3 = 5). If the character has more than one source of Damage Resistance, only the highest value applies.

Table: Armor

Name	Level	DR	Cost	Notes
Starship Uniform	1	4	--	Encrypted Radio
Light Tactical	1	4	1,600 Cr	Encrypted Radio, Night Vision
Heavy Tactical	2	5	2,000 Cr	Encrypted Radio, Night Vision
Light Assault	3	6	4,000 Cr	Encrypted Radio, Night Vision
Heavy Assault	4	7	8,000 Cr	Encrypted Radio, Night Vision
Peacekeeper	5	8	16,000 Cr	Encrypted Radio, Night Vision

Armor does not normally provide Alteration Resistance or Mental Resistance. However, it is common for armor to integrate one or more field kits (see below), communications gear, environmental adaptation, and so on. The effective Power Level of a piece of equipment is its Equipment Level.

Table: Armor Enhancements

Name	Cost	Notes
Environmental	300 Cr	Environmental Immunity
Extreme Cold Environmental	600 Cr	Environmental Immunity, Cold Immunity
Extreme Heat Environmental	600 Cr	Environmental Immunity, Heat Immunity
Field Kit	Varies	see Field Kits, below
Grav Boots	300 Cr	Clinging
Sentry Suite	300 Cr	Ambient Awareness
Strength Augmentation	1,200 Cr	Strike, Super Lifting
Thrusters	600 Cr	Flight
Toxic Environmental	1,500 Cr	Environmental Immunity, Alteration Resistance

Shields

The character receives a Damage Resistance (DR) bonus equal to the Equipment Level of their energy shield. If the character has more than one Damage Resistance bonus, only the highest value applies. Shields do not normally provide Alteration Resistance or Mental Resistance.

Expert Tip: If the first attack penetrates your energy shield, run away.

Energy shields lose effectiveness as they withstand attacks. The shield grants its full Damage Resistance (DR) bonus against the first successful attack in a scene. The second attack in a scene, the shield grants one less than its full DR bonus. This continues until the DR bonus granted by the energy shield is reduced to zero. The energy shield will be restored to full effectiveness after the fight is over, when the shield coils have had a chance to recharge.

Table: Shields

Name	Level	DR Bonus	Cost
Safety	1	1	400 Cr
Light Tactical	1	1	800 Cr
Heavy Tactical	2	2	1,600 Cr
Light Assault	3	3	2,000 Cr
Heavy Assault	4	4	4,000 Cr
Peacekeeper	5	5	8,000 Cr

It is uncommon for energy shields to have further enhancements, but it is possible. The effective Power Level of a piece of equipment is its Equipment Level.

Table: Shield Enhancements

Name	Cost	Notes
Environmental	600 Cr	Environmental Immunity
Riot Charge	1,200 Cr	Damaging Aura

Hand-to-hand Weapons

Hand-to-hand weapons are typically useful up to a distance of one meter, and they affect a single target. Making a hand-to-hand attack requires a successful Brawn + Hand-to-hand Combat roll against 8 + Brawn + Hand-to-hand Combat of the target. When making a weapon attack roll, the character may add their Equipment Level to their Action Value, but only up to their skill level.

If the attacker's roll succeeds, the player rolls for damage based on the Equipment Level of the weapon (1d6 + Equipment Level). A successful attack reduces the target's current Health. The target's resistance Damage Resistance is deducted from the points of damage.

Table: Hand-to-hand Weapons

Name	Level	Damage	Cost
Simple Weapon	1	1d6 + 1	--
Light Tactical Blade/Club	2	1d6 + 2	40 Cr
Heavy Tactical Blade/Club	3	1d6 + 3	120 Cr
Light Assault Blade/Club	4	1d6 + 4	400 Cr
Heavy Assault Blade/Club	5	1d6 + 5	1,200 Cr

There are a bewildering number of weapon enhancements; a few are listed below. The effective Power Level of a weapon is its Equipment Level.

Table: Hand-to-hand weapon enhancements

Name	Cost	Notes
ATP Suppressor	2,400 Cr	Brawn Drain
Impact Flash	1,200 Cr	Dazzle
Monomolecular Edge	4,800 Cr	Weapon is a Piercing Attack; illegal

Psiblades

Psiblades (also known as laser swords, star blades, sun swords, and so on) are hand-to-hand weapons which project a beam of energy approximately 9mm in diameter and from 50 cm to 150 cm long. When deactivated, a psiblade appears as a cylinder 25 to 30 cm long. A psistaff is two psiblades attached at their bases. When deactivated, a psistaff appears as a cylinder 30 to 60 cm long (shorter psistaves typically extend in length to 50-60 cm when activated). Because psiblades are usually handcrafted by the wielder, no two are alike. They may be ornate works of art or unadorned tools.

Psiblades are dangerous to those without the power of Danger Sense. If a character without Danger Sense fails an attack roll with a psiblade or psistaff, they strike themselves with the blade, and must roll damage as usual.

A psilance is a psiblade on a long spear-like handle. Psilances are less maneuverable than psiblades and psistaves, and much less concealable, but are safer to wield. A character without Danger Sense who fails an attack roll with a psilance does not hit themselves with it.

The energy blade of a psiblade is a piercing attack.

Table: Psiblades

Name	Level	Damage	Notes
Psiblade	5	1d6 + 5	Weapon is a Piercing Attack; legality varies
Psistaff	5	1d6 + 5	Weapon is a Piercing Attack; legality varies
Psilance	5	1d6 + 5	Weapon is a Piercing Attack; legality varies

The energy blade of a psiblade is white when the weapon is first constructed, but it gradually changes hue based on the temperament of the user. Once this color is established, after a hundred hours or so of use, it does not change thereafter, even if the user or their temperament does.

Table: Psiblade colors

Color	Temperament
Red	In a positive light, red indicates a healthy ego: someone powerful, sensual, passionate, and energetic. In a negative light, red indicates anger, an unforgiving nature, or anxiety.
Orange	In a positive light, orange indicates productivity and creativity: someone sociable, detail oriented, and courageous. In a negative light, it can indicate stress and addictions.
Yellow	Indicates optimism, and easy-going nature, inspiration, and intelligence.
Green	Indicates balance, growth, and a willingness to change. It is a strong indication of a love of people, animals, and nature.
Turquoise	Indicates a sensitive, compassionate nature, that of a healer or a counselor.
Blue	Indicates calm and focus. It is a strong indication of clarity, truthfulness, and an intuitive nature.
Indigo	Indicates a wielder of deep feeling, someone of profound intuition and sensitivity.
Violet	Indicates a sensitive nature and greater than average psychic potential. May also indicate an artistic temperament.
Lavender	Indicates a wielder of great vision and imagination.

Ranged Weapons

Making a ranged attack requires a successful Agility + Ranged Combat roll against 8 + Agility + Ranged Combat of the target. A successful attack reduces the target's current Health. Damage Resistance is effective against a ranged weapon. The target takes the points of damage which exceed their Damage Resistance.

Modern energy weapons usually have a "stun" setting. It is safe to assume that a weapon has such a setting, even if the user never enables it.

When making a weapon attack roll, the character may add their Equipment Level to their Action Value, but only up to their skill level. A weapon's damage is equal to 1d6 + its Equipment Level.

Someone attacking a target beyond a weapon's intended range incurs a -3 AV penalty on their attack.

Short range weapons, like pistols and other sidearms,

• are most useful up to a distance of 10 meters
• are moderately difficult to find with a search (DV 12)

Medium range weapons, like shotguns and carbines

• are most useful up to a distance of 30 meters
• are easy to find with a search: anyone with Investigation will find the item with a routine search

Long range weapons, like rifles and heavier long arms

• are most useful up to a distance of 100 meters
• can't be effectively concealed on a typical person or within a typical personal vehicle: anyone who looks will find the item

Table: Ranged Weapons

Name	Level	Damage	Range	Cost
Utility Sidearm	1	1d6 + 1	Short	200 Cr
Utility Carbine	1	1d6 + 1	Medium	300 Cr
Utility Long Arm	1	1d6 + 1	Long	400 Cr
Light Tactical Sidearm	2	1d6 + 2	Short	400 Cr
Light Tactical Carbine	2	1d6 + 2	Medium	600 Cr
Light Tactical Long Arm	2	1d6 + 2	Long	800 Cr
Heavy Tactical Sidearm	3	1d6 + 3	Short	1,200 Cr
Heavy Tactical Carbine	3	1d6 + 3	Medium	1,600 Cr
Heavy Tactical Long Arm	3	1d6 + 3	Long	2,000 Cr
Light Assault Sidearm	4	1d6 + 4	Short	4,000 Cr
Light Assault Carbine	4	1d6 + 4	Medium	6,000 Cr
Light Assault Long Arm	4	1d6 + 4	Long	8,000 Cr
Heavy Assault Sidearm	5	1d6 + 5	Short	12,000 Cr
Heavy Assault Carbine	5	1d6 + 5	Medium	16,000 Cr
Heavy Assault Long Arm	5	1d6 + 5	Long	20,000 Cr

There are a bewildering number of weapon enhancements; a few are listed below. The effective Power Level of a weapon is its Equipment Level.

Table: Ranged weapon enhancements

Name	Cost	Notes
Bio Safety Lock	600 Cr	The person who sets the lock has Personal Immunity
Freeze Gun	1,200 Cr	A successful attack inflicts Hold in addition to stunning damage
Quantum Collimator	4,800 Cr	Weapon beam/burst is a Piercing Attack; illegal
Spectrum Shifter	2,400 Cr	Weapon beam/burst is Invisibile to standard sensors; illegal
Subharmonic Paralyzer	1,200 Cr	A successful attack inflicts Hold in addition to normal damage

Field Kits

Field kits are standard equipment for starship crews in most of known space. A field kit typically takes the form of a few gadgets worn on the belt, shoulder, or thigh, along with a larger gadget, typically worn on a strap (always cross-body, for security). However, each field kit is tailored to the crew member's specialty (medical, tactical, scientific, etc.) and personal preferences. Some typical field kits are:

• Computing
• Engineering
• Investigation
• Medical
• Piloting
• Science
• Warfare

When the character attempts a task, the character may add their Equipment Level to their Action Value, but only up to their skill level. The Equipment Level of a standard field kit is typically equal to the Class of the starship it came from (maximum 5).

Table: Field Kits

Name	Level	Cost
Field Kit, Level 1	1	300 Cr
Field Kit, Level 2	2	600 Cr
Field Kit, Level 3	3	1,200 Cr
Field Kit, Level 4	4	2,400 Cr
Field Kit, Level 5	5	4,800 Cr

In the Panglossian Era, field kits were less bulky. They typically took the form of a narrow "mobile" attached to the crew member's forearm or equivalent appendage. In use, the kit projected a holographic display around the crew member's head, above the character's hand, or what have you.

Vehicles

A character with special vehicles should usually buy them with the Vehicles gift. However, any character with the appropriate background could conceivably own and drive ordinary vehicles. As with weapons, ordinary vehicles are unreliable and require periodic maintenance.

Vehicle weaponry is more powerful than the weapons carried by individuals, but not as powerful as the weapons mounted on starships. If a vehicle weapon is brought to bear against an individual, the damage roll is increased by 6. Conversely, if a vehicle weapon is brought to bear against a starship, the damage roll is decreased by 6 (minimum 0). Vehicle weapons are useful up to a distance of 1 kilometer or more. Someone attacking a target beyond a weapon's standard range incurs a -3 AV penalty on their attack.