Future Items

[MedievalMan]

Alright posted a new version, I still need to add a few items to the general equipment list. If anyone has nay more ideas or suggestions on how stuff should work please feel free to share.

Anyway new version in first post.

[billiambabble]

Random thoughts ...
(a bit influenced by reading Tales of the Space Princess)

Holtzman Shield (from Dune)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holtzman_effect
A simplified version of this effective against bullets, rays and blasts- but can be penetrated by the "slow blade". -Which justifies special melee combat - or an "anti-shield" martial art.
-This reminds a little of Knights of the Old Republic where the presence of sword-like vibro-blades made sense in the presence of personal shields.

I had my own plans for a Star Wars campaign set in the old days of the Republic was going to have cult (called the Galgathans) who only used hand-to-hand weapons like laser-whips and vibro-axes, plus they would encase themselves in metal armour. This would meant lots of cool opportunities for the PC-Jedis to fight up close with lightsabers!

Depending upon your approach to sci-fantasy, shields might have anti-magical properties - but the restrict the wearer as much as the attacker.
(Also ... Psionic Shields and Psionic Attack focussing devices)

"Stim packs" - that reminds me of Star Frontiers

I was thinking the other day that I'd call laser-rifles "burners" (like "blasters", I guess)

Screamer and sonic weapons (vs. null-sound shields and ear plugs).
Ionizers - technology disrupters - EMP grenades which temporarily disable tech.

Neural jammers (nasty - like nerve gas).

Matter and gravity displacement weapons - effectively creates a tiny black hole where the target is. (Experimental, risky)

Holographic projection shield (Mirror Image spell)

Steampunk-Flash-Gordon:

Tessler lighting guns, 1d6, medium range
Sleep Ray Pistol
Poison-Steam-Knock-out-Gas
Deadly Powder Sprays - short range
Trance-inducing-strobe-dish (Save vs. spells "charm" and/or "sleep")

Atom-punk:
Vaporiser - Atomiser (limited charge - short range, extremely effective, immediate carbon-exchange conversion to ash) - like a phaser.
Rocket guns (?)

I never really understood needle pistols and gyrojet guns... clearly I was reading different books.

Remember that weapons with "a kick" in zero-g environments can be a bit of nightmare.

"Dirty" radiation and viral weapons -slow, long term poison style weapons- (outlawed) - possibly curable in very early stages.

Genetic resequencer - ray/spray - can heal, cause fast cancer, rapid mutations in target (experimental -shock factor)

Alien crystals - random, but massive effects.

Tactical goggles/helmets (+1 to rolls or initiative)

(I love the idea of monofiliment weapons!)

Cyberpunk - booster drugs, muscle enhancement - subdermal armour materials - mainly bonuses - as with magic rings etc. bonuses are based on environments.

Powered (Mech)-armour - Personal "Walker" Suits

Bio-mech (borg-like) - absorbs/attaches new weaponry to limbs - at a price...

Nano-repair technology - damage to equipment can be slowly repaired.

Coma-stasis/cryo suspension. Dead characters can be saved in an energy field or a pod or with a rapid cryo-injection and revived at a civilised medical facility within so many weeks.

Clone-bots - expensive skin-job replicants within personality limiters - with memory package upload allow the PC to pre-program the replica to perform a dangerous tasks but to respond within parameters. Maybe there's a live link as well - but the PC has to concentrate - making them vulnerable whilst controlling the remote body.
Treat as flesh golems?

[MedievalMan]

All excellent ideas. I already added a few things so what is available currently isn't necessarily whats current,

[billiambabble]

Cool, I'm liking what's already up there. I'm guessing it depends upon the style or type of future you're talking about. I find it difficult when talking about D&D-clones with future weapons without going a bit "pulpy" or "sword and planet" - I want reasons to keep the swords next to the rayguns. Also, I often think of the appendix in AD&D DMG which talks about converting D&D to Gamma World or Boot Hill and back again - this seemed insane and heretical at the time - but now I see mixing genres as a fairly liberating idea. Go for it, MM!

[MedievalMan]

I guess I am just approaching it from a Blackmoor prospective. High Tech exists, its just not common or well known.