We've all seen them and we all want them, Fusion Cutters are the nastiest pieces of close quarters hardware this side of a lightsaber and cheaper than most blasters. There is no doubt that there is a mechanic somewhere buying these in bulk lots and churning out weapons built around them ... the question is, how does that work.

In normal use, a fusion cutter is an improvised melee weapon - it gets 1 threat automatically and breaks if the GM chooses to use 2 threat to do so. That makes it increadibly fragile - good for a swing or 2, but it's probably going to break before the end of the first fight. A good mechanic should be able to fix that - reinforcing the plasma guides, refining the burn pattern, etc. The following is a proposed means of weaponizing the fusion cutter into an attachment.

P lasma Jet

A weaponized form of a fusion cutter, this attachment creates a 40cm jet of fusion plas ma. A plasma jet is not a coherent energy blade like a lightsabers . This has several effects, but most importantly the blade can neither be parried by nor parry a lightsaber blade. Plasma Jets are not normally available on the open market, they are the workbench specials of mechanics (Mechanics<Hard>) and are custom made for a specific weapon.

It can be used in place of a lightsaber crystal in which case t he fusion jet is not affected by the Extended Hilt or Dual-Phase Modification attachments if present. The 2 step reduction in difficulty for a Jedi working on his own lightsaber does not apply to making a Plasma Jet . This attachment is most commonly put on a Lightsaber Pike – allowing the shaft to be used to parry the opposing weapon.

It can be added to a Ranged(Heavy) weapon as a bayonet, use the Melee skill when engaged with no penalties.

Finally, it can be added to a blunt melee weapon (stun baton, staff, truncheon, etc) as a second Melee profile.

Visually, the blade changes shape while in use – cuts cause the blade to stream out like a scimitar while thrusts shorten the blade only to have it extend to it's normal length when the hilt stops moving. This has no game effect but can provide narrative flavor.

If a Plasma Jet is “ Out of Ammo ” it cannot be reloaded during the encounter – there is no “ Extra Reload ” available.

Base Modifiers:

Installing a Plasma Jet adds a profile of: Damage 5, Crit 3, Breach 1 , Burn 3, Sunder, Vicious 3 .

Modification Options :

1 Reduce HP required by 1

Hard Points Required: 3
Cost: not available for sale – parts cost 250 (75 credits plus the cost of the fusion cutter being rebuilt)

In this setup, using the fusion cutter on a hilt would be a Lightsaber skill rather than melee as it is essentially a weightless energy blade.

Opinions?

We've all seen them and we all want them, Fusion Cutters are the nastiest pieces of close quarters hardware this side of a lightsaber and cheaper than most blasters. There is no doubt that there is a mechanic somewhere buying these in bulk lots and churning out weapons built around them ... the question is, how does that work.

In normal use, a fusion cutter is an improvised melee weapon - it gets 1 threat automatically and breaks if the GM chooses to use 2 threat to do so. That makes it increadibly fragile - good for a swing or 2, but it's probably going to break before the end of the first fight. A good mechanic should be able to fix that - reinforcing the plasma guides, refining the burn pattern, etc. The following is a proposed means of weaponizing the fusion cutter into an attachment.

P lasma Jet

A weaponized form of a fusion cutter, this attachment creates a 40cm jet of fusion plas ma. A plasma jet is not a coherent energy blade like a lightsabers . This has several effects, but most importantly the blade can neither be parried by nor parry a lightsaber blade. Plasma Jets are not normally available on the open market, they are the workbench specials of mechanics (Mechanics<Hard>) and are custom made for a specific weapon.

It can be used in place of a lightsaber crystal in which case t he fusion jet is not affected by the Extended Hilt or Dual-Phase Modification attachments if present. The 2 step reduction in difficulty for a Jedi working on his own lightsaber does not apply to making a Plasma Jet . This attachment is most commonly put on a Lightsaber Pike – allowing the shaft to be used to parry the opposing weapon.

It can be added to a Ranged(Heavy) weapon as a bayonet, use the Melee skill when engaged with no penalties.

Finally, it can be added to a blunt melee weapon (stun baton, staff, truncheon, etc) as a second Melee profile.

Visually, the blade changes shape while in use – cuts cause the blade to stream out like a scimitar while thrusts shorten the blade only to have it extend to it's normal length when the hilt stops moving. This has no game effect but can provide narrative flavor.

If a Plasma Jet is “ Out of Ammo ” it cannot be reloaded during the encounter – there is no “ Extra Reload ” available.

Base Modifiers:

Installing a Plasma Jet adds a profile of: Damage 5, Crit 3, Breach 1 , Burn 3, Sunder, Vicious 3 .

Modification Options :

1 Reduce HP required by 1

Hard Points Required: 3

Cost: not available for sale – parts cost 250 (75 credits plus the cost of the fusion cutter being rebuilt)

In this setup, using the fusion cutter on a hilt would be a Lightsaber skill rather than melee as it is essentially a weightless energy blade.

Opinions?

Totally broken.

It's too powerful, too easy to get, the rules are too complicated, it stacks too well with certain talents, and it seems to lack purpose other then "it's like a fusion cutter, but for weapons, and amazing."

I think you may want to take this one back the the drawing board.

Everything Ghostofman said.

If you look at the totality of any given weapon and think, "Why isn't everyone in the entire galaxy sporting one of these always?" you have an OP piece of gear on your hands.

Totally broken.

It's too powerful, too easy to get, the rules are too complicated, it stacks too well with certain talents, and it seems to lack purpose other then "it's like a fusion cutter, but for weapons, and amazing."

I think you may want to take this one back the the drawing board.

The problem is it's profile as a weapon is devastating from the start. It's 3 damage short of a fully tricked out Barab Ingot and it's only drawback is it's an "Improvised" weapon. That's why every forum has posts on how to handle it - and how to modify that away is the first question I was asked getting ready to start a game. Which goes to the purpose - it's already in game & it keeps coming up so a codified rule on how to handle it would be nice.

I added the restrictions on reloading & using it with lightsaber attachments to keep some drawback to using this. Dropping the Optional mod to reduce the HP requirement would reduce the number of possible weapons it will go with and that's one of the things I was debating. Declaring it a Restricted mod (like lightsabers, Morgukai staves, and the under barrel plasma projector) would also cut back on the usefulness. The only other thing I could think of to reduce it's effectiveness was to fall back on the "It's not like any other weapon" rules for lightsabers in EotE & AoR and make it a different skill.

As to easy to get, every mechanic with a toolkit has the base tool, and you can get them at every shop that sells repair gear if yours breaks. By making it a Hard Mechanics roll, an upgrade to the Average one needed to make the attachments for a bowcaster, I was hoping to reduce the casual manufacture. The high HP cost is also designed to minimize use - I think there are 2 melee weapons it will go on, and it takes a Blaster Carbine or Rifle to fit it as a bayonet.

I'm not sure what you mean by the rules are too complicated, I took the construction rules straight from the rules for making attachments for bowcasters. The shape changing nature of the blade and the inability to parry a lightsaber blade are narrative elements since there is no direct rules for parrying (other than the Parry/Deflect talents). The other lines just say what skill to use when you attach it to a weapon.

Game design isn't easy, so lets work though some points so you can see what we're talking about.

To open the Attachment has no focus, no purpose. It doesn't do anything other then take the Fusion Cutter stat block, shrink it, weaponize it, improve it, and that's it. Why? What was missing that this filled? What purpose was this attachment suppose to serve? Was it added to rifles to allow it to cut through... something? Why? Why did it need to be rifle mounted and not carried separately?

The problem is it's profile as a weapon is devastating from the start. It's 3 damage short of a fully tricked out Barab Ingot and it's only drawback is it's an "Improvised" weapon. That's why every forum has posts on how to handle it - and how to modify that away is the first question I was asked getting ready to start a game. Which goes to the purpose - it's already in game & it keeps coming up so a codified rule on how to handle it would be nice.

Not really..... While base numbers might be similar one is not the other, not by a long shot.

To begin, don't try to make "faithful recreations" of stuff. That's a recipe for failure. This is a game system you have to make things with that system in mind. Saying "The fusion cutter is like this so a weaponized version will clearly be that" is kinda like reading a wookieepedia article and trying to stat something out. It's always going to come out ridiculous because there's no way to go but up.

The Barnab ingot is pretty nice, but it's for a lightsaber, you cant' just look at the barnab ingot's stats and say "oh, these are the same because the damage numbers are the same." The Lightsaber is also a lightsaber. So it's smaller, more expensive, and gets all the wonderful benefits of lightsaberness (like all those sweet talents).

The Fusion cutter is big (Enc 2) not a weapon, so improvised AND no talents help it, and while yeah, it's an industrial tool, so you won't get arrested merely for possession, it's also a dangerous industrial tool, so you can't walk around with it everywhere. Try walking around with an acetylene torch sometime, you won't get many odd looks if you're down at a metal yard, but any remotely secure location will get you some questions.

Image: Sailor aboard the John C Stennis with an acetylene torch.

"I take this with me everywhere! Even to church, the bank, fancy dinner parties, and commercial airliners!" - No one ever.

Yeah the fusion cutter is nice, it's got some mean stats and some nice features, but it's not that great when you really run the numbers and compare it to actual weapons. If you hold the Fusion cutter up next to a Vibro-axe... the actual Axe has some really good qualities compared to the cutter even if Breach isn't one of them.

the inability to parry a lightsaber blade are narrative elements since there is no direct rules for parrying (other than the Parry/Deflect talents)

Here's a point Krieger was mentioning. You made something that can't be parried. So everyone who has to face a Jedi/Sith for the last 100 years had one of these?

If I'm a Jedi I'll carry a lightsaber and this. One in each hand, I'll Parry with my saber, and attack with this.

I'm not sure what you mean by the rules are too complicated, I took the construction rules straight from the rules for making attachments for bowcasters. The shape changing nature of the blade and the inability to parry a lightsaber blade are narrative elements since there is no direct rules for parrying (other than the Parry/Deflect talents). The other lines just say what skill to use when you attach it to a weapon.

What I mean is this:

It can be used in place of a lightsaber crystal in which case t he fusion jet is not affected by the Extended Hilt or Dual-Phase Modification attachments if present. The 2 step reduction in difficulty for a Jedi working on his own lightsaber does not apply to making a Plasma Jet . This attachment is most commonly put on a Lightsaber Pike – allowing the shaft to be used to parry the opposing weapon.

It can be added to a Ranged(Heavy) weapon as a bayonet, use the Melee skill when engaged with no penalties.

Finally, it can be added to a blunt melee weapon (stun baton, staff, truncheon, etc) as a second Melee profile.

Look at all those. There's nothing like that in the game right now. Rules in general need to be short, sweet and to the point. That's not just a this thing here suggestion, that's an across the board thing. Figure out what this is supposed to be and why and apply it to the location it needs to go and stop. When you get into "This can do this on this, but not with this, and it can do that with that, and it can't do this other thing, except when it totally can" you're in the weeds and it's time to go back and revise. Yes, I understand you're real-world logic here, I do, but this isn't the real world. You have to dial it in or it becomes unusable.

Also look at that last point.... wow. None of those weapons can actually take this Attachment. You need Tinkerer to make it work on one of them, and Intuitive improvements to make it work on the other two. When you get that specific, you've crossed a line.

I added the restrictions on reloading & using it with lightsaber attachments to keep some drawback to using this.

The ammo thing is interesting, it's just not very strong, Despairs don't turn up that often. And using it with lightsaber attachments... also rather limited in scope.

Dropping the Optional mod to reduce the HP requirement would reduce the number of possible weapons it will go with and that's one of the things I was debating.

You know that you must install the Attachment first, then you can make the mod, right? So the Attachment as is is limited to only weapons with 3HP.

And that's what I'm talking about. Take this thing back to the drawing board, figure out what purpose it's supposed to serve, why it came to be, how it can exist, and why everyone isn't walking around with one, then take a hatchet to it. If you did it right, when you come back you'll have a nice short streamlined item that makes sense.

You know that you must install the Attachment first, then you can make the mod, right? So the Attachment as is is limited to only weapons with 3HP.

Actually, I didn't interpret it that way but it makes sense.

To install a mod, the user selects an uninstalled

modification option from the attachment’s available

list. The character then spends 100 credits on com-

ponents and supplies, makes sure he has a tool kit,

spends a couple of hours at a workbench, and makes

a Hard Mechanics check.

If he succeeds, he successfully installs the mod on his

gear, and the item now benefits from the bonus provided

by the mod.

Here's a point Krieger was mentioning. You made something that can't be parried. So everyone who has to face a Jedi/Sith for the last 100 years had one of these?

It also can't parry anything. If you put it on a Lightsaber pike, you can use the shaft to parry & be parried, other than that, it's a jet of flame, you can't parry it because there's no resistance, same reason you can't parry with it. With no explicit rules on general parrying it was stated to be narrative not mechanical. The Parry trait shouldn't be effected since it doesn't actually require blocking the incoming weapon - otherwise you couldn't use a combat knife to take the Parry Incidental against a Lightsaber.

The Fusion cutter is big (Enc 2) not a weapon, so improvised AND no talents help it,

The flame projector is an Enc 6 item that's put under a barrel for 2 HP & Cumbersome +1 so that shouldn't be an issue. Under normal circumstances, improvised weapons use the melee skill.

If I understand your complaint against the rules that I wrote up, it's because the rules to allow the attachment to be used on multiple types of weapons instead of just one - also the source of your no focus complaint.

Allow me to cogitate.

Here's a point Krieger was mentioning. You made something that can't be parried. So everyone who has to face a Jedi/Sith for the last 100 years had one of these?

It also can't parry anything. If you put it on a Lightsaber pike, you can use the shaft to parry & be parried, other than that, it's a jet of flame, you can't parry it because there's no resistance, same reason you can't parry with it. With no explicit rules on general parrying it was stated to be narrative not mechanical. The Parry trait shouldn't be effected since it doesn't actually require blocking the incoming weapon - otherwise you couldn't use a combat knife to take the Parry Incidental against a Lightsaber.

Not being able to Parry with it is kinda a half/half. You're giving up the ability and you know it, no prob. Being able to bypass Parry is a kinda big deal though. I've paid for all these ranks and now somebody can just skip over it with a widget?

When making gear always think about what it'll be like to be on the receiving end as well as the giving.

If I understand your complaint against the rules that I wrote up, it's because the rules to allow the attachment to be used on multiple types of weapons instead of just one

No, there's plenty of Attachments that can be applied to different kinds of weapons, the issue is with how you carefully specify all the different kinds of weapons, and set various conditions. You don't want "All Blaster carbines except those with a fore grip" because it gets clunky and you end up with weird situations. Just keep it fast and short "All blaster carbines" if there's a problem or instability when you combine it with a fore grip, it means you need to figure out what, and fix it, not just make the rules more complicated.

The Fusion cutter is big (Enc 2) not a weapon, so improvised AND no talents help it,

The flame projector is an Enc 6 item that's put under a barrel for 2 HP & Cumbersome +1 so that shouldn't be an issue. Under normal circumstances, improvised weapons use the melee skill.

That's not the issue I'm pointing out. At Enc 2 you can't easily conceal a Fusion cutter in the way you can conceal an Enc 1 lightsaber with a barnab ingot, or a hold out blaster, or truncheon.

And the talents I was referring to were things like deflect, hawkbat swoop, superior Yingyag form XXII. That's the thing you have to think about when comparing to a lightsaber. Yeah fusion cutters or nice, but I can't use my Intelligence score as the base ability, deflect a blaster bolt with it, or do some fancy move.

Hey guys...so there's a saying, "Don't reinvent the wheel."

I think it applies here, because in searching for a way to make a weaponized plasma cutter, it helps to note that two such weapons already exist in this game.

Page 42 of Enter the Unknown details the G9-GP Pulse Drill, a Melee weapon that is Breachy, Cumbersome, and Inaccurate. It uses "variable-strength continuous beam plasma projectors to burn through earth, stone, metals, and nearly any organic or inorganic substance in [its] path." It acts like a lightsaber in that it doesn't add Brawn to its base 5 damage.

Page 98 of Suns of Fortune has the J-7B Beamdrill, which "can carve through virtually anything, including armor" using "intense pulses of plasma." It's a Melee weapon with a straight damage of 9, a much lower crit rating than the Pulse Drill, but a little more Cumbersome. It also has the Sunder quality! It shares the Pulse Drill's Breach and Inaccurate qualities.

You can check out the basic idea for stats here http://swrpg.viluppo.net/equipment/weapons/

But if you're looking for weaponized fusion cutters, I'd look in those books first. Especially the cost in credits

Munchkin.

Hey guys...so there's a saying, "Don't reinvent the wheel."

I think it applies here, because in searching for a way to make a weaponized plasma cutter, it helps to note that two such weapons already exist in this game.

Page 42 of Enter the Unknown details the G9-GP Pulse Drill, a Melee weapon that is Breachy, Cumbersome, and Inaccurate. It uses "variable-strength continuous beam plasma projectors to burn through earth, stone, metals, and nearly any organic or inorganic substance in [its] path." It acts like a lightsaber in that it doesn't add Brawn to its base 5 damage.

Page 98 of Suns of Fortune has the J-7B Beamdrill, which "can carve through virtually anything, including armor" using "intense pulses of plasma." It's a Melee weapon with a straight damage of 9, a much lower crit rating than the Pulse Drill, but a little more Cumbersome. It also has the Sunder quality! It shares the Pulse Drill's Breach and Inaccurate qualities.

You can check out the basic idea for stats here http://swrpg.viluppo.net/equipment/weapons/

But if you're looking for weaponized fusion cutters, I'd look in those books first. Especially the cost in credits

The problem is the whole thing started when the only question my Tech player asked was, "How do I convert this (a fusion cutter) into a real weapon?"

My thought was to convert it to a high HP attachment so it fit into the regular rules of the game - like the flame projector or a lightsaber crystal. Stylistically, I think it would work best added to a lightsaber hilt or lightsaber pike hilt. Whether that gets the lightsaber skill or melee is a toss up - it's a weightless plasma blade (very close to a lightsaber), but not coherent like a lightsaber. Alternately I would add it to a blunt shaft like a staff or truncheon, but as Ghostofman pointed out, there aren't any that could take it.

Adding it to the Ranged(Heavy) group as a bayonet was brought up by my players after the Merc was chewed up in a Blaster Rifle vs Vibroknife fight & we couldn't find any bayonets in the books we have (under-barrel missile launchers yes, but no bayonets).

I had completely forgotten about inaccurate and inferior as qualities - either of them would be a better balance than the out of ammo and excluding lightsaber attachments.