I am curious what other GMs think of using Force Lightning with cybenetic limbs. The rules seem to permit this but logic would point to no, you can't do this thing with robot arms. I have my own ideas on this matter but I would like your thoughts on this subject. Thanks in advance.

A proper grounding scheme should be a basic part of electronics design. If it doesnt short out a normal arm, it shouldnt effect a cybernetic one.

On the other hand, that seems like a great result for a despair

This is Star Wars, not science. Why should it not be possible?

3 hours ago, korjik said:

A proper grounding scheme should be a basic part of electronics design. If it doesnt short out a normal arm, it shouldnt effect a cybernetic one.

On the other hand, that seems like a great result for a despair

^ this.

And there's no reason it *has* to be fired out of your hands. Make a breath-blast or eye beams out of it. (Be ready for 'Darkseid' puns in the latter case, though.)

15 minutes ago, Garran said:

And there's no reason it *has* to be fired out of your hands. Make a breath-blast or eye beams out of it. (Be ready for 'Darkseid' puns in the latter case, though.)

Yeah, you should definitely have an eye on it

The Force is so closely associated with life and biology that I don't think it fits thematically.

Just put a taser into your robo-arm.

I never once subscribed to the publication that "Vader doesn't use Force Lightning because cybernetics", "Force Lightning destroys cybernetics", or even that unleash is true lightning. I always viewed it as passion made physical . I may be in the minority on this matter though. So in my games I handle the OPs conundrum by ignoring it completely and writing it off as a nonissue.

"No Force lightning because of cyberarms" feels absurd as I type it. People are worried that magic electricity will short circuit robot limbs but not worried that bolts of energy with the heat of the surface of the sun will cook your arms like a roast in a crock pot? I know this rationale is floating out there in the Legends non-universe but it's just one contract writer's explanation as to why Vader didn't have electricity powers and why Sidious and Tyrannus did.

If you want a plausible, in-universe explanation for Vader's lack of force lightning, it may very well be that Palpatine chose not to share that ability with him. Anakin Skywalker was already incredibly powerful in the Force by the time he was corrupted. Teaching Vader to shoot lighting bolts could be one ability too far and make him a threat to the Emperor. Remember, Vader was the Emperor's attack dog, not his successor.

Plus, the Emperor may have decided to play 'what else can I get this fool to believe'

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Force_lightning/Legends in the Force-Lightning Users section, boom. Case closed.

2 hours ago, Yaccarus said:

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Force_lightning/Legends in the Force-Lightning Users section, boom. Case closed.

I'm unsure what you are trying to state here. Rather than responding with a "Let me google that for you", would you mind stating explicitly your point?

“Force lightning required a living conduit for the energy to be channeled; thus Darth Vader, despite being an immensely powerful Sith Lord, was never able to properly employ this ability, as any attempt to generate it carried the risk of shorting out his life support systems.” I think that’s about as clear of an answer as there is to this question.

I'm curious, would that mean that if he only had cybernetic limbs he would be able to use it then, based on that quote? Because that quote points to life-support being the reason he can't survive it.

9 minutes ago, GroggyGolem said:

I'm curious, would that mean that if he only had cybernetic limbs he would be able to use it then, based on that quote? Because that quote points to life-support being the reason he can't survive it.

That goes back to what I said in my first post. If you think that the people who can make space ships the size of moons cant properly surge protect a life support system or a cyber arm, then say that force lightning cant be used. If you dont like that, then say it can be used. Any actual argument here simply boils down to 'My technobabble is better then your technobabble!'

Its your game, so do what you like, and what any one else thinks outside your gaming group is irrelevant.

Oh I was just curious is all. Like I said in the OP I have my own ideas, I wanted to hear from the community of GMs on this.

I don't know man... that strikes me as a bit...

by that same logic, he shouldn't be able to do much of any of the force things we see him do at all, because cyber.

But that's Darth... not your player. That's what this is really about, right?

From my perspective, as both a GM and a player, unless something is specifically prohibited up front, I should be able to do just about anything that I spend in-game resources to do - that means money, xp, etc...

So if your player has this amazing vision of his character with 2 cyberarms tossing around force lightning, and he works towards that for however long it takes, and spends the in game cash for the arms, and spends the in game xp for the force powers, and gets all dark-side, and makes it work, and then you (the GM who went there with him the whole way) either short out his arms or just say it doesn't work... that's not cool at all. That kind of thing would make me leave the table and not come back.

Now, if you want to be consistent, and say that in-body-tech messes with the force, even though there's nothing in the rules that says that, that's your thing. Your table, your rules... but just do that. Put a hard cap on how many force points you can get, and you're done.

Let the player decide how to play his character... you've got enough to do as the GM.

3 hours ago, Yaccarus said:

“Force lightning required a living conduit for the energy to be channeled; thus Darth Vader, despite being an immensely powerful Sith Lord, was never able to properly employ this ability, as any attempt to generate it carried the risk of shorting out his life support systems.” I think that’s about as clear of an answer as there is to this question.

2 hours ago, GroggyGolem said:

I'm curious, would that mean that if he only had cybernetic limbs he would be able to use it then, based on that quote? Because that quote points to life-support being the reason he can't survive it.

I think the fact that it is in the Legends section of the Wookieepedia tells us all we need to know about that line of reasoning.

Me and my players decided to rule this as "no" just because the thought it doesn't feel right. The exception we made is ion-shielded cybernetics.

Just a thought

Channeling the force lighting down ones own living flesh sounds like a crutch to me. The force doesn't just live inside living beings, but is also the energy that surrounds them. So why not direct that energy to start outside of their own body?

Even if one chose to use themselves like a lighting rod, if they were controlling that energy, why wouldn't they be able to have it dance along a cybernetic limb without actually affecting it?

I'd never block a players force power he bought just because he lost an arm in a saber duel, or because he wants to play a cyborg. Also, Unleash can be flavored as ANY sort of energy attack fuelled by raw dark emotion. A character I was playing was planned to eventually create blasts of intense cold with Unleash if she were to fall to the dark side.

At the end of the day, if the rules don't say that a player can't do something, let them do it. I struggle to think of an example where this could be a problem other than contradicting some text that's been relegated to "Legends" status.

2 hours ago, Concise Locket said:

At the end of the day, if the rules don't say that a player can't do something, let them do it. I struggle to think of an example where this could be a problem other than contradicting some text that's been relegated to "Legends" status.

And even that bit (Vader and life support) boiled down to fanwankery and ham-fisted backfilling about why Vader, ostensibly one of the most powerful Force users in the saga, never used said ability. All when the real answer was "George hadn't thought of it until RotJ, and decided it'd be a cool trump card for the Emperor to have to give weight to Yoda's warning about not underestimating the guy's power."

If it were me, I think I'd allow the use of Force lightning with cybernetics, In My Star Wars Universe (IMSWU).

I don't think the Force is bound by electrical constraints.

I think it's entirely possible that Vader was unable to use Force Lightning due to his cybernetics, but that doesn't mean it has to hold true for all cybernetics. On the contrary: It has been noted several times that Vader's systems are clunky and painful to him, exactly as the Emperor wanted them to be. And since they comprise his life support, he can't exactly switch them out on the fly either. So get some arms that are not from the bargain bin and you're set.