Hello

I need your help regarding the talent from the bounty hunter gadgeteer "Brace". It says it remove one black die added from environmental circumstances...

Page 212 Core rules is Environmental Effects. And we can find under this chapter the cover.

So I suppose this talent can cancel a black die for using cover ?

Your opinion?

This has been clarified by the developers and it's also in the talent's long description I think. It's not meant for cover. It's meant to be applied towards black dice you get because of detrimental environmental circumstances (shaky ground etc.), not towards those you get because of your opponent's beneficial environmental circumstances (cover etc.)

From the "FFG Developer Answered Questions" thread...

Brace

Question asked by FuriousGreg :

Can you use the Brace Maneuver to negate the Setback provided by Cover?

Answered by Sam Stewart :

NO.

Precise Aim is the talent you're looking for, if you want such a mechanic. It removes defense, which cover grants.

I would say that Brace could remove Setbacks from concealment, where there is nothing physically blocking your attack but something (darkness, fog, foliage, etc.) that makes it harder to aim.

But cover is something else, and I am in agreement with the folks above (and more importantly, the devs, apparently!) that cover is not negated by Brace.

"disruptive physical obstacles", things that are directly acting on the PC environmentally which are screwing up their check. Zero G, dirt blowing in their eyes, standing on moving vehicles, etc. Things blocking line of sight or just getting in the way don't cut it imo, that's passive, not disruptive. Seeing through smoke and darkness is what multi optic sights are for.

I think smoke, darkness and strong wind are all covered by this talent, it is environmental effects...

What is strange is that Zero G seems to grant bonus from Agility tests, but you says that it adds negative dice for shooting ? so what, should I had blue or black dice to combat checks in zero G ?

But they aren't disruptive, to me it needs to be something that is directly acting on the PC, not just around them. I think that's the reason for the rationale of why it doesn't apply to defense provided by armor and cover.

Zero G doesn't add Boost dice to Agility tests, just Coordination checks, and that's in weak gravity not zero G. Their examples are poor using zero G in Brace and then more or less ruling it out as useful in the environmental description. I'd say do what feels good and take the type of weapon into account in regards to whether it requires two hands or generates recoil.