Trying to make a HK PC droid

Does this starting PC sound right to you guys?

Obligation +20

(+5xp, +1000 credits, +2500 credits)

species: droid

Career: Bounty Hunter

Career skills: Athletics, Brawl, Perception, Ranged Heavy, Vigilance

Specialization: Assassin

Specialization skills: Ranged Heavy, Skulduggery, Stealth

Characteristics:

Brawn 3

Agility 4

Intellect 3 2

Cunning 1 2

Wisdom 1

Presence 1

Wounds 13

Strain 11

Soak 6

Equipment expenditure (500 base+1000+2500=4000)

Heavy Blaster Rifle 1500

Built in Laminate Armor 2500

total = 4000

obligation of +20 assumes gm approval of ignoring obligation increase rule or a 2 player group.

Any changes i should make?

This is for a complete functioning undamaged HK unit with minimal factory programming, a yard stick.

please only comment on weather or not this fits the lore and if it doesn't why.

please do not try to cheapen it to make it more playable as a starting character.

Max Obligation taken at the beginning is dependent on group size, so that may need to be adjusted.

Yeah unless you're starting at 30 or more Obligation, you can't take +30 Obligation for all those perks.

In a group of 4, for example, the suggested starting Obligation is 10 per player. This means that (if the suggestion is implemented by the GM) each player would be able to take a maximum of +10 Obligation (for 10 XP, 2500 credits, or 5 XP & 1000 credits). If every player did this, it would bring the party's obligation to 80. No one in legitimate government or businesses would want to deal with you, but you'd start out with considerable notoriety in criminal underworld. Take from that what you will

Note that if a group's total obligation reaches 100+, they are no longer able to spend XP until the total Obligation is reduced to less than 100. So unless your HK is playing with one other player, starting with 60 Obligation for one PC is a good way to seriously gimp the rest of the group.

However, if you're just playing with 1-2 others and the GM wants to house rule that certain player characters start off with way more obligation (and all the players are okay with that), that might be fine. But I wouldn't do away with the "Additional Obligation cannot exceed your original starting obligation" cap or the 100 Obligation = no XP expenditure for the group. Those rules are in place for good reasons.

all my groups ignore the rule "extra obligation may not exceed starting obligation"

we regularly have +15 obligation with a starting obligation of 5-10.

you just as a group need to remember the other rule:

when the groups total obligation is above 100 you may not spend experience points.

therefor you may need to finish the first 4 weeks of playing without spending xp.

in the end it's up to the gm and the group to decide.

i just feel this is the only way to properly represent a HK droid, as they are suppose to soak up damage and dish it out quite harshly, so the 4k in equipment is a must.

if you were forced to take less obligation you could drop intelligence to 2 and up cunning to 2 saving you 10 obligation

We had our character-building session last night and one player built an HK with 15 Obligation total, +5 extra on top of 10 base.

HK-6 aka Six

Br 2 Ag 4 In 1 Cu 2 Wi 2 Pr 1

Athletics 1

Perception 1

Skulduggery 1

Stealth 2

Brawl 1

Melee 1

Ranged (Heavy) 2

Blaster Rifle (Ranged [Heavy]

Armored Clothing

Comlink

I accidentally gave the characters 1000c to start instead of 500c, but otherwise it's pretty straightforward.

i just feel this is the only way to properly represent a HK droid, as they are suppose to soak up damage and dish it out quite harshly, so the 4k in equipment is a must.

If You want him to soak a lot, give him laminate for 2500. Give him heavy rifle damaged beyond repair in his last fight for free. He can work for his rifle later.

Cut some stat and You can have him at +10 obligation easily..

I would move your starting Intellect to Cunning. Going by HK-47, he never struck me as an intellectual, and while he had above-average Intelligence, that was under a very different ruleset, where Intelligence decided how many skill points you had, and affected different things.

He was cunning, there is no doubt, and his skills (Skulduggery, etc) would no doubt be dependant on Cunning rather than Intellect (Knowledge skills, Medicine, Astrogation, Mechanics, etc).

Apart from that, I think it looks pretty solid.

If you would want to save in on Obligation, there's no solid rationale why he'd have Laminate Armour or a Heavy Blaster, IMO. The basic HK unit seems rather bare-bones, and the weaponry is hand-held, and can (and will) always be lost or replaced.

all my groups ignore the rule "extra obligation may not exceed starting obligation"

we regularly have +15 obligation with a starting obligation of 5-10.

you just as a group need to remember the other rule:

when the groups total obligation is above 100 you may not spend experience points.

therefor you may need to finish the first 4 weeks of playing without spending xp.

in the end it's up to the gm and the group to decide.

i just feel this is the only way to properly represent a HK droid, as they are suppose to soak up damage and dish it out quite harshly, so the 4k in equipment is a must.

if you were forced to take less obligation you could drop intelligence to 2 and up cunning to 2 saving you 10 obligation

Keep in mind that you can easily have a starting PC as an HK droid without being fully geared by considering the following:

1) It's been damaged, so it doesn't move as well (lowered stats) or soak up as much damage as it used to (ruined laminate coating).

2) It had a partial or total memory wipe, clearing the majority of its acquired skills and memories. And yes, there are supposedly partial wipes, mainly when a memory wipe is occurring and is interrupted before completion. You could also claim that it's a faulty memory core that needs to be replaced.

3) Whatever weapon it had before is gone now, and it will use the first thing it can acquire to kill meatbags, even if it is just a corkgun.

Two reasons why I mention this:

First, HK-47 was badly damaged and had to be rebuilt. Yes, he was reasonably powerful, but nowhere NEAR the level he was prior to this event. Other HK units have similar issues as well, so this should be kept in consideration.

Second, as Fgdsfg mentioned, the basic units are rather bare-bones until they can acquire equipment. Most assassin droids aren't pulled from the belt fully armed and armored, especially if there's a government agency keeping them from being too well armored. . .

As for the statline:

HK was reasonably smart, but he was sly. He knew of various ways to outwit people, sneak around, and ambush. Cunning should surely be more than 1.

From memory, HK wasn't exactly the strongest type of droid. Yes, he could haul more than a weak meatbag, but he wasn't as strong as a wookie. I'd say drop the Brawn to a 2 instead and dump those XP into something more fitting. I mention this because we don't see HK hauling around missile launchers, but rather a rifle, and few rifles are worse than Cumbersome 2. Those that are can be easily tweaked with a harness until the droid gets the repairs or upgrades needed to be better.

Also remember that droids can get SIX Cybernetic Implants. HK droids as we see them may technically already have similar upgrades, so who's to say that your droid has them already? You could save Obligation and credits right now to pick up other things and eventually buy those upgrades when they are fitting to do so.

Just my two cents.

he needs brawn 3 for the heavy blaster rifle.

ill edit the original post to show more cunning.

he needs brawn 3 for the heavy blaster rifle.

ill edit the original post to show more cunning.

Again, you don't really need the Heavy Blaster Rifle at the get-go; those XP you save on Brawn can go to the skill, which can mean far more than a single weapon, and the credits can go to something else that's fitting for the character.

Also remember that there are some VERY cheap attachments, like a weapon sling for 100 credits, that reduce the Cumbersome rating by 1. This means you can use that particular Heavy Blaster Rifle without a penalty as long as you have that sling.

The 3 Brawn will also allow him to make use of the E-11s, which I would think would be an HK's ideal weapon, provided that your playing with Enter the Unknown of Course.

Extreme Range, high damage, Good crit, good number of hardpoints. Accurate and Pierce built into special weapon characteristics without having to spend Mods to get them. It's the marque Sniper Rifle of the moment.

he needs brawn 3 for the heavy blaster rifle.

ill edit the original post to show more cunning.

Again, you don't really need the Heavy Blaster Rifle at the get-go; those XP you save on Brawn can go to the skill, which can mean far more than a single weapon, and the credits can go to something else that's fitting for the character.

Also remember that there are some VERY cheap attachments, like a weapon sling for 100 credits, that reduce the Cumbersome rating by 1. This means you can use that particular Heavy Blaster Rifle without a penalty as long as you have that sling.

Exclamation: No a HK droid must have brawn 3!

Explanation: The creators of the HK units had a particular role they needed to be filled, a sturdy robot who could lay waste to multiple meatbags with a heavy blaster, while a HK droid can be outfitted with a multitude of weaponry, they were inherently designed for a particular loadout, all HK units have a sturdy frame capable of taking mass damage. They also must be capable of carrying the large weapons they need to be efficient killing machines.

Elaboration: While you meatbags may find a damaged HK unit who is underperforming, the aim of this thread is to say what a HK unit who had just come off the assembly line, with only basic programing and little experience would look like. i apologize if you thought i needed reasons to make it weaker, i merely desire to present a fully functioning basic HK unit that is "new" to the world or has had its programing reset. A Yard stick if you will.

Elaboration: While you meatbags may find a damaged HK unit who is underperforming, the aim of this thread is to say what a HK unit who had just come off the assembly line, with only basic programing and little experience would look like.

Based on the costs involved, it may not be possible to have a PC version of a brand new HK, fresh from the factory. Unless you want to modify some of the RAW, or your concept, or alter the balance between PCs at creation.

I would suggest building the model that you want as an NPC, and let any PC who wants to play one determine their own compromises.

yeah tacked that on the end in my edit, i want a yard stick, if a player wants a lower intelligence or brawn due to damage thats fine, but i want a base stat line and programming list, if they differ and make a HK-51 who has been reprogrammed as a medic, thats fine, but i think some popular models deserve a yard stick for their stat line and abilities.

Elaboration: While you meatbags may find a damaged HK unit who is underperforming, the aim of this thread is to say what a HK unit who had just come off the assembly line, with only basic programing and little experience would look like.

Based on the costs involved, it may not be possible to have a PC version of a brand new HK, fresh from the factory. Unless you want to modify some of the RAW, or your concept, or alter the balance between PCs at creation.

I would suggest building the model that you want as an NPC, and let any PC who wants to play one determine their own compromises.

This.

Honestly, the problem with speccing things for PC use seems like a good idea, you'll run into far too many roadblocks and debates. Would the canon resource have high stats, massive skills, or a selection of talents from four individual specializations? In the terms of an HK, all of these are possible.

EotE has been more of a "yes, but. . ." rather than a "YES!" system. It is possible to make things, but you aren't going to have it exactly ideal at character creation.

Additionally, most droids do have certain skills and capabilities already programmed in, so making a droid, especially an assassin droid, sans skills seems rather odd.

yeah tacked that on the end in my edit, i want a yard stick, if a player wants a lower intelligence or brawn due to damage thats fine, but i want a base stat line and programming list, if they differ and make a HK-51 who has been reprogrammed as a medic, thats fine, but i think some popular models deserve a yard stick for their stat line and abilities.

There is no reason you can't be a down on your luck HK, but if you insist you have to be an elite killing machine right out of the gate, just get the GM to give you more XP to start with, don't abuse the obligation system for it.

yeah tacked that on the end in my edit, i want a yard stick, if a player wants a lower intelligence or brawn due to damage thats fine, but i want a base stat line and programming list, if they differ and make a HK-51 who has been reprogrammed as a medic, thats fine, but i think some popular models deserve a yard stick for their stat line and abilities.

And for an NPC, you can make one exactly the way you want it. Does the Assassin Droid in the Core Rules not equate to an HK? Are they based on the IG series?

Additionally, most droids do have certain skills and capabilities already programmed in, so making a droid, especially an assassin droid, sans skills seems rather odd.

Owner modification, defective unit, battle damage, re-purposed unit.

Luke is a Jedi, that doesn't mean he started the first movie with a light saber and able to yank star destroyers out of orbit.

Luke is an organic meatbag

a droid is superior to an organic, they don't leak water everywhere when you stab them and they are built for a purpose and are given from factory the capability to do said purpose, that isn't to say that the software and hardware can't be upgraded as technology improves, but a droid is at it's core capable.

You can drop the armor for padded. A lot less money for the same soak. The only big difference is the hard points which you don't need at first anyway. Once you have some more money you can upgrade to laminate armor with attachments.

you are not wrong, however, again the idea is that a base unit comprises of xyz, and i believe canon wise all HK units have the equivalent of laminate, weather they are HK-47's, HK-51's or HK-666's.

if you were forced to do a HK on a budget, i agree that padded is probably an ideal swap out.

or alternatively like others have said, say you are damaged drop 10 obligation and take no armor, get it later.

i'm just trying to make a HK unit yard stick, to say this is what your droid should be based on canon, if it isn't this then give a reason why in your character details.

Luke is an organic meatbag

a droid is superior to an organic, they don't leak water everywhere when you stab them and they are built for a purpose and are given from factory the capability to do said purpose, that isn't to say that the software and hardware can't be upgraded as technology improves, but a droid is at it's core capable.

Um...okay.

hahaha

edited the first post because this seems to be going on a tangent to what i'm after, i want to know does it match the lore of a HK not how i can make it an effective starting character with explanations for sub par stats.

hahaha

edited the first post because this seems to be going on a tangent to what i'm after, i want to know does it match the lore of a HK not how i can make it an effective starting character with explanations for sub par stats.

The point is you can't make a full fledged jedi knight with full powers and lightsaber either. Your politco can't be the emperor with a death star and a fleet of ships either. Not with starting budget.

If you really really gotta have your blaster because you'll cry and moan and ***** and make the game unpleasant for everyone if you don't get it, then talk to your GM.

you are not wrong, however, again the idea is that a base unit comprises of xyz, and i believe canon wise all HK units have the equivalent of laminate, weather they are HK-47's, HK-51's or HK-666's.

if you were forced to do a HK on a budget, i agree that padded is probably an ideal swap out.

or alternatively like others have said, say you are damaged drop 10 obligation and take no armor, get it later.

i'm just trying to make a HK unit yard stick, to say this is what your droid should be based on canon, if it isn't this then give a reason why in your character details.

I don't see that as being the case at all.

The HK units were designed so that they could "blend in" with protocol droids like C-3PO.

I could see an HK droid with very low soak, or armored Chassis at all.