Ultra-Tech, Skill Levels for Combat Android

[Dr. Whom]

Hi, been a while since I've been on here. Still, In my campaign, the characters are ArchAngels who have lost their angelic powers... It's a multi-world, multi-time/dimension, and multi-theology campaign… Still, their is a new god walking the earth killing all the old one, the Characters believe it to be "Al Gore" as they started out in World War One. Thus The former angels are going to the other mythologies, uniting them and relearning their divinity in the process... My problem is, what should the skill levels be for the combat Android in Ultra-Tech? Would it be 17 (AI Complexity +10) for a tech 9 version? Any help/ideas would be much appreciated.

[Sorenant]

There's no hard and fast rules but this is how I'd do it:
TL9 Combat Android has DX 13. I'd assume a combat AI would come with basic programming on how to use weapons, giving it skill level DX+0=13 on usual weapons for the setting (eg Guns or Beam Weapons). You could also load it with better dedicated programs to improve it, a Good program gives +1 and a Fine one gives +2. So an average TL9 Combat Android with a Good-quality program for its main combat skill would have SL-14. This doesn't count other bonus, which means the Android can skill receive bonus from HUD, for example.

Of course this might not be threatening enough if the PCs are high point total demigods, so you'd have to beef it up accordingly. For example, instead of a Combat Android with Dedicated AI it could be a Volitional AI that studies its enemies before attacking, granting it bonus like high Animal Handling skill (-1 to -2 to enemy Attack an Active Defense rolls). Or it might have Gunslinger advantage, which goes well with the high Acc of UT weaponry.

[ericthered]

Fourth Edition steadfastly doesn't give skills to robots.

I like to price robot skills as though they are software assisting with the skill. You can buy the robot their base attribute and +0, +1, or +2 to the skill. That's completely a house rule though, and its not designed to build PC's with.

I'd start out basic combat androids with DX+2 in their best skill, and either DX+1 or DX+0 in supporting skills (or IQ if appropriate). exceptional androids are, of course, exceptional, and I'd assign X points for them to buy skills as they please.

[Fred Brackin]

My idea is to "load" Skills into the android brain as if they were coming from the Skill Chips in the Cybernetics section. The android could switch between "chips" b switchign software rather than unplugging and plugging hardware but eh limits and costs per TL would be the same.

[Andreas]

If you want to go for what would be realistic, it would probably make sense to give them very high skills. A program which aims guns accurately is far easier to make than an AI. The AI might make misstakes in what it decides to target, but once it does target something, it would do so accurately. High enough to reach the mechanical accuracy limit on their guns would make sense.

Just based on the mechanics in UT (there are rules for how points in skill affect AI cost), it would probably also make sense to give them high skills.

Lower levels of skill are often choosen to make humans more competitive and combat less deadly, but that might not be much of a problem if the PCs are archangels.

[Rupert]

I give them whatever seems sensible for the level of threat they're supposed to be. As combat androids are going to be fairly expensive pieces of hardware, I'd assume decent skill levels - if they have low skills they are just expensive targets and you'd be better off fielding conscript sapients.

[Varyon]

Particularly considering ETS, a combat android could be justified as having just about any level of skill with ranged weapons, so really you just need to decide what level works best for your story. Note that based on Tactical Shooting, a skill level of 22+(2xAcc) will let it fire from the hip at the very limits of a weapon's inherent precision. Such a robot likely has a built in HUD, so using a HUD-linked weapon with a built-in rangefinder (or using the android's built-in rangefinder, which it likely has in the form of a Targeting Sense of some flavor) will mean a skill level of 18+Acc will let it reach the mechanical limits of the weapon with a single Aim maneuver (+Acc for 1 second of Aim, +1 for HUD, +3 for rangefinder).

A WWI-era rifle is going to lack a HUD link, and would probably have an Acc around 5. Skill 32 would let the android use it to its limits when firing from the hip, skill 24 would let the android use it to its limits when making an Aim maneuver first. An android inclined to Aim for a full 3 seconds before firing could slap an 8x scope on it and get away with skill 19 - 19+5(Acc)+2(Extra Aim)+3(Scope)+3(Rangefinder)=32, the weapon's maximum before speed, range, and size come into play.

[Black Leviathan]

For TL 9 Imagine the Boston Dymanic's robots with slightly better gyroscopes and more dexterous hands, so maybe DX 11. The complexity is going to be low, probably a 4 unless their whole torso is just a giant computer. 4 is respectable, gives your security bot an IQ 8 and sensors will bump that up a bit for perception checks. When security bot is working networked with a mainframe complexity Security AI that IQ is more like a 14.

A complexity 10 AI has about a 20 IQ and can buy mental skills through the roof. It would never take an action as clumsy as shooting an enemy when it can make others helpless with a rational argument for compliance.

A top notch gunnery program gives you a 15 skill. I don't expect police department or most armed security rental bots to have a skill higher than 13. The super expensive cutting edge security bots might have advance targetting tools for a +1 to the guns skill. To make matters worse bots will always confirm their target so they will always take an aim action, probably need to make a successful Per check to verify the target is an armed threat before firing. If there is an innocent civilian or friendly personnel in line of sight the bot won't fire unless it has a sure shot. So no pulling the trigger on a shot with a skill roll of less than 14 or so.

[AlexanderHowl]

I generally limit robots to a maximum skill level of Attribute plus Complexity, with the skill functioning as a program of (skill level/2, rounded up) Complexity. Thus, Physics-20 would be a Complexity 10 program and would require a minimum of a Complexity 10 system.

[Dr. Whom]

Thanks alot guys, I like Fred's idea on using the Chip slot further on in the book. at Tech level 9, it would give +4 to a single skill, tech 10's would have skills at +5, and 11's +7, 12's +10 around... with the weapons they'd be using... more than enough to be a threat to the characters...