Swiss Army Knife

[Dexion]

Yes you right for someone good in Karate or Brawling and with the right perk it's a good weapon !
In one of the last episode of Macgyver's reboot, he uses the punch awl to break the glass door of a lab after his friend Jack shot the door with his gun several times. Besides, I wonder how to simulate this in terms of GURPS?

[Anaraxes]

Originally Posted by Dexion

break the glass door of a lab after his friend Jack shot the door with his gun several times. Besides, I wonder how to simulate this in terms of GURPS?

Sounds like use of the Forced Entry skill to me.

The "Macgyvering" flavor comes from allowing positive improvised equipment modifiers even when they're not particularly realistic, and similarly rewarding the player's attempt at what at least seems like a clever plan, even if it's not all that clever or wouldn't work in reality. Those are TDMs, some of which come from use of supporting skills.

The All-Out Cinematic Macgyver just has the wildcard skill "Solve Problems!". If you stop calling for all the (many) other GURPS skills and just roll Gadgeteering for everything, you've changed it from a skill into a wildcard, or perhaps even a superpower.

[jason taylor]

Originally Posted by Dexion

Yes you right for someone good in Karate or Brawling and with the right perk it's a good weapon !
In one of the last episode of Macgyver's reboot, he uses the punch awl to break the glass door of a lab after his friend Jack shot the door with his gun several times. Besides, I wonder how to simulate this in terms of GURPS?

Some multitools actually come with a purposed glassbreaker including ones typically carried by police and this is actually something that might be useful for urban survival needs(such as breaking into a car or building to capture a miscreant or rescue someone trapped). A normal person won't need the former purpose but might possibly need the latter for himself or someone else.

The Victorinox Rescue Tool is a model wanted for that and come to think of it it might be well enough for anyone to carry around should they be able to afford it.

[jason taylor]

By the way, what do you think would be a good selection of tools in a knife made for a future starship crewman?

[safisher]

Originally Posted by Dexion

The Rangergrip 79 that I own has all the profile of the huntsman with the characteristics of the tactic folding which is in the book Action page 33.

Agreed. The big modern SAK with a liner lock are no better or worse than any other large locking Case or Buck pocketknife. Many a man has been stabbed to death with one of those. A 1/3 pound knife with a 4" blade is certainly a small knife in GURPS terms, and certainly potentially deadly, and especially useful in a fight if it has the one hand opening feature (like the tactical knife in High-Tech). It's handy to have all the other doodads that the SAK comes with, too.

Smaller pocketknives are at best just a bonus to punching damage, maybe. Someone mentioned using the awl as a push dagger -- not a good a idea. It doesn't lock, and will fold up and possibly cut your finger off if you hit hard enough. This is the same problem with putting your car key between your knuckles and hitting someone with it, since you can just easily drive the back between your fingers and cripple your hand!

[safisher]

Originally Posted by jason taylor

By the way, what do you think would be a good selection of tools in a knife made for a future starship crewman?

The SAK knife is now surpassed in sheer utility by the Leatherman-style multi-tools. You get all the SAK stuff, plus a nice of pliers. I suspect that some of the higher end Leatherman tools, like the Surge, Charge, or MUTT would be handy, assuming you can use a hand tool to repair anything at all on a futuristic starship. Can pocket knife or a pair of pliers cut things on the ship? If so, then crew will want to do so. If the ship uses fasteners you can attack with hand tools (screws, nut and bolts) then you'll want to carry a fastener with you. I think future materials will make these tiny tools lighter and stronger. A sufficiently futuristic one might have smart materials in its tools, allowing it to morph into all types of tools with just a push of a button. It would act as a mini-toolkit at that point. See the Universal Mini-Tool in UT. From one of my Traveller campaigns:

Universal Tool, TL10. Cr1,000, 0. 5 lbs.
This is a palm-sized tool made from a solid block of memory metal which folds, extends, and changes shapes and purposes on demand. It provides a -2 (quality) equipment modifier for any repair skill and counts as at least improvised equipment (-5 quality) for most any technological tasks. For routine tasks, the GM might allow it to stand-in for a mini-tool kit; it can become a screwdriver, ratchet, knife, scraper, scissors or shears, pry bar, small hatchet, small hammer, etc. Each transformation takes 2 seconds, and can be selected from a menu on the handle, or via an app on a hand comp; this selection process can take anywhere from one Ready maneuver if selecting from a short list of common tools, to 2d seconds if hunting for
a specific, rarely-used fastener head. The universal tool creates superfine blades (2) by default. Its internal B cell lasts 100 hours. When it runs out of power it can no longer change shapes -- it is stuck in the form it was in when the power conked out!

[jason taylor]

Originally Posted by abe ray

What about a ultra-tech Swiss Army knife?

assuming it can't morph(which kind of takes the point from the exercise) some options:

Large Knife
Small Knife
Wire Cutting Scissors
Bottle Opener
Screwdriver
Sonic Probe
Sparker(for wielding microfoil see Freelance Traveller)
Miniature Radscanner
Com
Taser or similar shock weapon.
Dataholder
Touchscreen Pen
Key Ring/fastener
Detachable Weaving Needle

Wire cutters would be relevant to a spacer's needs as would be the com, sonic probe and sparker. The needle is on the assumption that the spacer will do some of his clothing repair although perhaps that need is superseded. The radscanner would definitely be needed around ship. As for the taser, it is always nice to have one around port.

[scc]

I've got what I think is a genuine one in front of me right now, and I'd say you couldn't use the knife blade for stabbing someone, the point looks the be made wrong.

[malloyd]

Originally Posted by safisher

This is the same problem with putting your car key between your knuckles and hitting someone with it, since you can just easily drive the back between your fingers and cripple your hand!

Once probably. The modern ones come with a big hunk of plastic on the back for the microchip that probably offers you some protection from that.

Small hard objects no longer than your finger shouldn't be better than Claws, but if Sharp Claws or Talons are allowed to convert damage to cutting or impaling, it really ought to be possible with a pocket knife sized object too. Arguably Claws *shouldn't* allow that, but if cats get to do cutting damage, an inch long metal blade should too.

[acrosome]

Originally Posted by safisher

Smaller pocketknives are at best just a bonus to punching damage, maybe. Someone mentioned using the awl as a push dagger -- not a good a idea. It doesn't lock, and will fold up and possibly cut your finger off if you hit hard enough. This is the same problem with putting your car key between your knuckles and hitting someone with it, since you can just easily drive the back between your fingers and cripple your hand!

Not really- there's a back to it. And you must acknowledge that something is better than nothing, in a desperate situation.

With the awl you have the body of the knife and, yes, it does't lock but the awl will probably be halfway inside the target before it can fold over your fingers. Even then you might break a phalanx, but it shouldn't "cut your finger off". The real problem is that the awl simply isn't long enough to injure anything except an eye maybe.

With the keys you have the ring and all the other keys, your car fob, that widget Aunt Gertrude gave you, etc. as a back. Also, it's worth noting that this is usually a defense technique taught to women and, all sexism aside, they tend not to hit as hard and thus are less likely to injure themselves severely, beyond some minor lacerations on the fingers. The big advantage to the key trick is 1) surprise, and more importantly 2) marking the attacker, and maybe getting a DNA sample. But if a cop who is investigating sees those key claw marks on your face, well, that's probable cause to look a little more closely. Once he's clawed (or sliced with knife) a smart attacker aborts, or at least limits himself to a beating since he's already guilty of assault and battery anyway. Unfortunately, of course, they're not all smart...