Welcome! These forums will be deactivated by the end of this year. The conversation continues in a new morph over on Discord! Please join us there for a more active conversation and the occasional opportunity to ask developers questions directly! Go to the PS+ Discord Server.

Ambidextrous and Direction Sense Traits

11 posts / 0 new
Last post
branford branford's picture
Ambidextrous and Direction Sense Traits
Is the Ambidextrous and Direction Sense Traits (EP, p. 145-6) only available as ego traits? I would think they would be available as both ego and morph traits (or at least there should be some bio/cyberware to mimic ambidexterity).
Urthdigger Urthdigger's picture
Ambidexterity the way the
Ambidexterity the way the game utilizes it is less "can use left and right hands equally well" and more "can do different actions with each hand." This makes it more of a mental thing.
UnitOmega UnitOmega's picture
I Concur with Urth. The
I Concur with Urth. The ambidexterity trait can be taken multiple times, and applied to any manipulator limb (such as tentacles, prehensile feet or tails, extra cyberlimbs) as far as I know. It doesn't apply to the just ability to use either one limb or the other, but also the ability to split your focus and use both manipulators at the same time equally well. As such, it's not something you can engineer into a morph, because its some kind of conscious ability of the ego. As for Direction Sense, it's not a morph trait because it's an implant. The morph end of that ability is taken care of in Bioware, just like Eidetic Memory, Hyper Linguist and Math Boosts/Wiz
H-Rep: An EP Homebrew Blog http://ephrep.blogspot.com/
Darkening Kaos Darkening Kaos's picture
Direction Sense
......is a positive ego trait on p145, and I see it as the ego's ability to correctly interpret data coming from the ear, so that up, north, etc. tend to be known to the ego. This, of course, assumes that the morph is in a magnetic field with some form of ≥micro-gravity, otherwise it is somewhat pointless. As for Ambidextrous, the implication is that trait removes malus for off-hand activity, I doubt whether it allows you to perform different tasks unless you also have the multi-tasking trait/augment and have spare eyes so you can see what other limbs are doing. People who are naturally ambidextrous can use both hands to supplement the single task they are doing; i.e. they cannot paint a picture with one hand while a writing a story with the other.
Your definition of horror is meaningless to me....... I. Am. A Bay12'er.
ShadowDragon8685 ShadowDragon8685's picture
Darkening Kaos wrote:......is
Darkening Kaos wrote:
......is a positive ego trait on p145, and I see it as the ego's ability to correctly interpret data coming from the ear, so that up, north, etc. tend to be known to the ego. This, of course, assumes that the morph is in a magnetic field with some form of ≥micro-gravity, otherwise it is somewhat pointless.
That's like, the [i]exact opposite[/i] of how the ego version of Direction Sense would work. The [i]Morph[/i] version would work a little like that, if it were strictly biological, evolution-based, and operating in the environment for which it was designed - IE, birds' navigation techniques on the planet Earth. The implanted version does not need magnetic fields at all, and about the only way to fool it is to actually black the poor son-of-a-gun out. The [i]ego[/i] version, on the other hand, is the way some people just [i]know their way around.[/i] Part of this is training, a lot of it is instinct. Some people have zero talent for navigation; for example, James May, whose inability to locate anything further away than line-of-sight is legendary, and frequently the butt of his colleagues' jokes. At the other end of the spectrum, you have any bush-man ever, who's ever gone wandering into the wilderness without any direction-finding equipment and who wanders back several days/weeks/months/years later like it weren't any thang, at all times aware of where he is. It's basically dead reckoning: you ask someone "Where's X," and if they answer immediately (muse consultation not allowed,) they probably have Direction Sense.
Skype and AIM names: Exactly the same as my forum name. [url=http://tinyurl.com/mfcapss]My EP Character Questionnaire[/url] [url=http://tinyurl.com/lbpsb93]Thread for my Questionnaire[/url] [url=http://tinyurl.com/obu5adp]The Five Orange Pips[/url]
branford branford's picture
In light of the above, would
In light of the above, would a bio/cyber/nano implant that grants a morph ambidexterity be appropriate? If so, what type of implant should it be and what should it cost?
Urthdigger Urthdigger's picture
Possibly bio, and I would
Possibly bio, and I would place it at expensive solely for game balance reasons. Multiple limbs with ambidexterity and guns are kinda broken IMO. Especially when combined with speed.
branford branford's picture
Urthdigger wrote:Possibly bio
Urthdigger wrote:
Possibly bio, and I would place it at expensive solely for game balance reasons. Multiple limbs with ambidexterity and guns are kinda broken IMO. Especially when combined with speed.
I wouldn't be surprised if your rationale is precisely the reason why such an implant is not available in any of the books.
UnitOmega UnitOmega's picture
Expensive might be a little
Expensive might be a little much compared to the Trait's cost, but something like [High] [i]per limb[/i] might be appropriate. Also, multiple limbs+ambidexterity+melee is scary too. You only need one monofilament sword as your primary damage dealer, all the rest can be knives, and you get the same effect.
H-Rep: An EP Homebrew Blog http://ephrep.blogspot.com/
ThatWhichNeverWas ThatWhichNeverWas's picture
UnitOmega wrote:Expensive
UnitOmega wrote:
Expensive might be a little much compared to the Trait's cost, but something like [High] [i]per limb[/i] might be appropriate.
That isn't an effective restriction. If you wear predominately humanoid morphs, then you'll only ever need one in any case. Honestly, ambidexterity is strong enough that I'd be tempted to make it an [expensive], psychologically addictive nanodrug. The cost of the trait itself is largely irrelevant.
In the past we've had to compensate for weaknesses, finding quick solutions that only benefit a few. But what if we never need to feel weak or morally conflicted again?
Erulastant Erulastant's picture
A trait's cost is higher than
A trait's cost is higher than its cost in CP, because you are limited in the amount you can spend on traits. So while the trait might only cost 10 CP -> 10000 credits, the fact that taking it blocks you from taking other traits, like another level of Adaptability or Ego Plasticity would make it worth at least 20000 creds, ie an Expensive item. (Especially since credits and equipment are far easier to acquire in-game than rez)
You, too, were made by humans. The methods used were just cruder, imprecise. I guess that explains a lot.