Doing It For The Fame

FAME!

Stuck in your head yet? Excellent, let's proceed.

Every software company I've worked for has had to release a patch almost immediately after a product went live. Usually for something that seemed to work and wasn't given a second glance despite our gesturing at the bug tickets.

I seem to have kept this awful habit.

In this case, I'm talking about the XP system. I slapped down the original XP-for-gold numbers, added a few zeros to account for inflation, and moved on with the task at hand. This vague eye to detail generated a few issues. First, by second level you'd have 2 million dollars. That's enough to retire and be done. Secondly, it's also enough to buy everything in the book multiple times over, as spotted here:

Seems very excessive.

Now, I could adjust numbers and double check everything to make sure it all makes logical, numerical sense...or a could burn everything down, throw out XP-for-gold reasoning, and start over.

That seemed easier, so I went with that one.

Fame

The long and short of it is you get XP based on the type of job you perform. They come in four types: Minor, News Worthy, Headliner, and Media Frenzy.

Minor Jobs
This includes chasing off local drug dealers, retrieving stolen property, shaking down small businesses; you know, minor things. These are worth 100 XP.

News Worthy
This includes bringing down local gangs, disrupting a Yakuza job, break and entering zaibatsu remote sites. These are worth 250 XP.

Headliner
These involve snatch and grabs from megacorp research labs and disrupting operations region wide. These are worth 500 XP.

Media Frenzy
Disrupting zaibatsu operations continent wide and the like fall in this category. They're worth a hefty 1000 XP.

Essentially, the more security you face, the higher the value.

XP in this instance is a measure of the Fame you're generating by your actions. Get an old woman's antique Yamaha 20XX YZF-R1M back from a local Chad Boy chapter? The local community notices. Get hired by the Yakuza to burn down a Zen Security armory? The National News is gonna report on it. Also, Zen Security are gonna be very interested. Which brings me to the next point.

The higher your Fame, the more people will be after you. You know the points in Fallout 3 and New Vegas where mercenary groups start randomly attacking you based on your karma? That. It's that.

Running the Numbers

I made a chart

As you can see, the higher your level gets, the less the minor jobs are going to affect your Fame. This seems good to me; it drives you to bigger and better things. Or, more violent things. The betterness is up to you.

The Pros and Cons
Pros

• It sets apart the XP system from money. You'll still level up, but you won't need 2 Million dollars. 
• Still allows the Face ability "Street Cred" to work as written. 
• Want a faster play? Double the XP and shoot right through the levels. 
• Allows for bonus XP on out of the ordinary jobs. Run into cyberEnforcer at the bodega your shaking down buying a 40? +10 XP to the job. 

Cons

• I might have to reformat the XP section. 

I'm willing to make that sacrifice. For the game.

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The Things I Spend My Time On

I should be studying and doing school work. I've made this instead.

It is available here

Notable changes from previously published material

• So many spelling errors.
• Attribute bonuses are gone. No more to-hit and damage bonus from Strength. No more to-hit and Defense bonus from Dexterity.
• Augmented is now a full class. A real boy at last.
• Stun damage now only matters for Death and Dismemberment. “Losing a turn” is boring as shit.
• Some templates were missing starting skills. Apparently I just stopped typing in places. This should mostly be fixed.
• Grizzled Cop D got revamped.
• Hacker got a face lift.
• Inventory got adjusted to reflect lose of the Attribute bonuses.
• Weapon damage got raised by a dice value across the board.
• Implanted Harddrive is now HeadDrive. It's catchier and more marketable.
• Forget drones existed. Added some additional features.
• Programs got a renaming. The old names were flavorful, but perhaps esoteric. Sure I know what Charm12 is, but unless you’re a Norse nerd, you probably don’t know what it is off hand. I like what Luther at Archon’s Court did with his Tech programs. Tells you what it does up front.
• Dreaming Real and Loa AI classes not included in this go around, as they work slightly different, and need a larger overhaul. There are 2 new abilities affected by this absence, but what’s on this blog should still suffice in a pinch.
• Actually explained the differences between Contacts, Groupies, and Mercenaries.

And now to continue putting off studying.

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1d21 Hangover table

Why 1d21? I don't know. Maybe you're using those weird Zocchi dice. Maybe you're using a tarot deck for your homebrew heartbreaker where the GM uses the Major Arcana to determine the outcome. Ho ho ho, what a strangely specific example.

Either way, sometimes you go carousing, and sometimes it goes wrong; or at least, not according to plan.

Hangover Table
Sure, you've got a hangover, but what else?

Anything in brackets [] refers to the top card of the discard pile. 

1. You awaken with a salty and bitter taste in your mouth, and [value] new silver coins in your pocket. 
2. You awaken in the stocks, having been left there to sober up. A little bruised, but no worse for wear. 
3. A cow bell has been hung around your neck by a steel chain. The chain is too small to remove over your head, and you don't have the key to the lock. 
4. You awaken with a marriage ring on your finger, but no memory of who you married. 
5. You awaken in a strange room, with heavy pounding on the door. The people on the other side are very angrily demanding their money back. 
6. You awaken with a marriage ring on a finger. The finger isn't yours. 
7. Luckily, it only burns when you pass water. 
8. You awaken with a new tattoo on your: [swords] arm; [pentacles] leg; [cups] backside; [wands] face. It is [1-2] pretty sweet; [3-8] cringe and misspelled; [9-King] horribly offensive.
9. A letter is delivered to your room. It's from a local aristocrat and they have accepted your invitation to a duel. It is in [value] days. 
10. You don't remember exactly what you did, but by the Wanted posters lining the streets, you can guess it wasn't good. [swords] armed robbery; [pentacles] attempted pick pocketing; [cups] lewd acts; [wands] consorting with dark entities 
11. You back your way out of a blackout at the same time you're being dragged off a cart. "And stay out!" yell the guardsmen as they throw you out of the city. You are banned. 
12. You awaken in the muck of the Moat, wearing only your small clothes. All the other items you had on you are missing as well. 
13. You find in your pouch an invoice: "Sold: One (1) soul for one (1) beer." Your signature and an infernal symbol seal the contract. 
14. You awaken to the sounds of sobbing. There seems to be a nobleman hogtied and gagged on your floor. How strange. 
15. You awaken in an alley. [value] hobos around you seem to be wearing articles of your clothing/armor. But, you're wearing theirs, so, even trade? 
16. Why are you naked and wearing a fake bull's head? Why are you in a fine porcelain plate shop? Why does this shop have nothing but broken plates and smashed glass? Why are the shop keeper and constables so angry and yelling? Some things in life are mysteries. 
17. You back your way out of a blackout wrapped in warm snuggly robe standing in a candle lit room. It's nice. "The dark pact is complete," a deep baritone voice says, "Go forth, my brothers, and see that our lord's will be done." ...Wait, what?
18. You awaken next to a [even] High Priest [odd] High Priestess. They thank you for helping them break their vows, and showing them what it means to be happy.
19. Where the hells is your hand? Why can you feel it crawling?
20. You remember agreeing to a dare. It had something to do with a candle and flatulence. [swords] a city location is burnt down [pentacles] 3 adjacent locations are burnt down [cups] a city district is burnt down [wands] As cups and fire spirit is roaming the City, and the Wizards are pissed. 
21. Did you always have those circular puncture marks on your neck? I'm sure it'll be fiiiiiine. 

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