Part 5: EQUIPMENT

The following equipment is available to characters in the STAR FRONTIERS basic game. At the start of a character's first game, they will have a Standard Equipment Pack and 250 + d100 Credits, although starting funds may be adjusted by the refereader according to the game.


Standard Equipment Pack

The standard equipment pack contains many useful items, but does not include any weapons other than a single doze grenade. The entire pack costs 150Cr if purchased and masses 1kg. Items included in the standard equipment pack are explained below:


Chronograph/Communicator. This device looks like a large wristwatch, but it can do many things. It is a watch with a lighted face that can be used as a stopwatch; it is a mini-calculator; it is a radio/video communicator that can be used to talk with other characters up to 5 kilometers away. It can be used to summon the police or a rental skimmer, as well. The chronocom is the msot costly item inthe pack, 100Cr if purchased separately.

Coveralls. This is a highly durable, waterproof suit. It will keep the character warm in cool weather and cool in hot weather. It has large pockets on the hips, legs and chest, as well as several smaller pockets on the sleeves.

Doze Grenade. This is the only weapon in the standard equipment pack. See Damage: Doze Grenades for more information. The doze grenade costs 10Cr if purchased separately. 

First Aid Pak. This kit contains a spray bandage, an antiseptic spray and a spray hypodermic. The spray hypo does not use a needle, and is painless. It contains one dose of each of these two survival drugs:

STIMDOSE: A Stimdose injection gives a character 10 extra Stamina points for three hours. After three hours, the character loses the 10 Stamina points and must rest without moving for 24 hours. A Stimdose injection will not raise a character's current number of Stamina points above his original Stamina score. A Stimdose will not revive a character whose Stamina has been reduced to 0 or less. It wail revive a character who was knocked unconscious by a doze grenade, but will not restore 10 Stamina points to the character.

STAYDOSE: Staydose puts a character to sleep for 24 hours, slows down his heartbeat and breathing, and helps stop bleeding. If a character's Stamina has been reduced to O or less, a Staydose injection must be given in 10 turns and will keep the character alive until he is taken to a hospital.

ID Card. All characters carry an ID card. An ID card can be used only by its owner, because the computers which read ID cards also scan the character's thumbprint.

ID cards are commonly used as credit cards. When a character buys something, his ID card must be inserted into a computer. He places his thumb (or paw, or digit, or pseudopod) on a screen so the character can verify his identity, and then the money is deducted automatically from the character's bank account. This same process is used to pay for monorail rides and rented skimmers. Money can be deposited into an account without the card, but the card is needed to get money out.

Pocket Tool. This device is similar to a pocket knife, but it includes many small tools besides a pen-knife blade; a universal screwdriver, a small adjustable wrench, vice pliers, a hole puncher, an electromagnet, and a small flashlight that will shine up to 25 meters.
 

Other Miscellaneous Equipment

 Anti-Shock Implant This small surgically implanted device, attached to the spinal column or nerve bundle, makes a character immune to electrical stun attacks. The implant costs 2,000Cr including the operation, and requires one day in a medical facility.
 BackPack This carry-sack with shoulder straps will support up to 20kg in a 0.5 cubic meter space, which can expand up to 1 full cubic meter. Anything within those dimensions may fit inside. A backpack costs 10Cr
 First Aid Pack Refill This refill contains 3 stimdoses and 1 staydose, and costs 20Cr.
 Flashlight This illuminating device is the size of a pen, its beam will shine up to 100m and the battery will last for 200 hours. The flashlight costs 5Cr
 Freeze Field This device, powered by a standard 20SEU PowerPack, is used to preserve a character beyond the time limit of a staydose. The device uses 1SEU per hour and can be replaced at any time, however if the power reaches zero the character can not be revived and is considered dead. The Freeze Field will require a tune-up after each use, and costs 100Cr at any medical facility. A freeze field costs 1,200Cr and masses 4kg 
 Gas Mask This device, worn around the head (except for vrusk who wear it under their abdomens) will filter out any hazardous gas or emmissions, but will not work in a vacuum as it requires oxygen for the filters to work. A gas mask costs 30Cr
 Infra-Red Goggles allow a character to see heat images in total darkness. They can be used to spot living beings that are concealed by low-light foliage or darkness, but will not work in bright sunlight conditions. IR goggles cost 300Cr
 Infra-Red Jammer This device masks a character from any IR detection. It will operate off of a standard powerpack or beltpack, using 1SEU per minute. An IR jammer costs 500Cr and masses 1kg
 Magnigoggles These goggles will magnify visual images much like binoculars do, tripling the distance a character would otherwise normally see. Magnigoggles cost 200Cr
 Rope This 25 meter length of braided dura-plastic cord will support up to 500kg. A rope costs 2Cr and masses 1kg
 Scope reduces range by one rating, thus a long range shot would be treated as a medium range modifier. A scope costs 100Cr and masses 0.5kg
 Solvaway is a solvent used to dissolve tangler threads, it must be applied by someone other than the entangled person. One vial contains enough to treat one tangler grenade detonation. Each vial costs 10Cr
 Sungoggles are high quality sun protection. Yazirians must wear these inthe daytime or suffer a -15 penalty on all actions. Sungoggles cost 2Cr each
 Survival Rations This small package contains enough concentrated food and water purification tablets for one person for five days. One package of rations costs 2Cr
 

 Tool Kits: Several specialty tool kits are available for Technical & BioSocial PSA characters to enable them to perform their duties.
   >  Electronics ToolKit This toolkit allows for the PSA bonus to be applied when any Tech PSA character is working on a computer or robot. An electronics kit costs 500Cr and masses 10kg
   >  Environmnetal Kit This toolkit allows for the PSA bonus to be applied when any Tech PSA character is conducting any scientific data gathering such as soil samples, atmospheric testing, or other such environmental work. The kit costs 500Cr and masses 5kg
   >  Mechanics ToolKit This toolkit allows for the PSA bonus to be applied when any Tech PSA character is wroking on a vehicle or piece of machinery. A mechanics kit costs 500Cr and masses 12kg
   > Medical Kit using this kit, a BioSocial PSA character may effect +20STA toward healing (in addition to the temporary ten points allotted from a Stimdose), for up to 20 uses. The +20STA healing process may only be performed once per day per person, any further healing will need to be performed at a full medical facility such as a hospital or ship's medical lab. The kit costs 500Cr and masses 5kg
 Tornadium D-19 or "Kaboomite"  is the standard plastic explosive used by Frontier military personnel. A 50 gram charge will cause 5d10 damage in a 1 meter radius. Additional charges will cause an extra 5d10 per charge, and the blast radius will be 1 meter for every 100grams used. Only a PSA:Military character may use D-19. A single 50 gam charge costs 50Cr, 20 charges mass 1kg
 Variable Timer/Detonator These are used to detonate D-19, the timer may be set in increments of 1-60 seconds, minutes, or hours by any PSA:Military character. A VT Detonator costs 5Cr
 Water Pack this package contains eight 1 liter plastic bags of treated drinking water. The bags are resealable and the pack may be converted into a backpack for carrying purposes. One character will consume one liter per day during survival situations. The water pack costs 4Cr and masses 4kg

Weapons

Weapons usually are purchased by the character, but may also be assigned to characters at the start of a mission by their employers based on what sort of mission they are undertaking. All pistols have the same range, and all rifles have the same range. This is explained in the Combat section.


Energy Weapons
fire a beam of intense energy in a burst that lasts only a fraction of a second. Laser weapons are the most common sidearm on the frontier worlds, and are often called "blasters." Energy weapons in the basic game include Laser Pistols and Rifles, along with an ordinance grade Heavy Laser (see Ordinance below). A fourth weapon, the Stun Gun, operates on an electrical shock principle, and is only effective at shorter ranges. With the exception of the Heavy Laser, all utilize the standard 20 charge powerpack.



Energy Weapons List
WeaponDamageAmmo UseCostMass
Laser Pistol4d102 charges600Cr1kg
Laser Rifle6d102 charges800Cr3kg
Stun GunSTUN2 charges500Cr1kg
Heavy Laser12d104 charges4000Cr20kg


Gyrojet Weapons fire bullets that are actually small rockets. They do not have a Point Blank range because the rocket powered projectile needs some distance to accelerate to an effective speed. There are four types of gyrojet weapons in the Basic game: the Gyrojet Pistols & Rifles and two pieces of ordinance grade weaponry, the Grenade Rifle and the Rocket Launcher. Gyrojet clips for the pistols and rifles hold only 10 rounds because the bullets are large, and they are interchangeable between the rifle and pistol. Grenade Rifles use standard grenades fitted into a special rocket porpelled "bullet", and the Rocket Launcher uses a single large diameter rocket that needs to be manually loaded after each use. 

Gyrojet Weapons List
WeaponDamageAmmo UseCostMass
Gyrojet Pistol4d10+51 jet round200Cr1kg
Gyrojet Rifle6d10+51 jet round300Cr4kg
Grenade Riflegrenade1 bullet700Cr4kg
Rocket Launcher15d101 rocket5000Cr15kg

Projectile Weapons fire standard powder/case bullets. The hand-held grade types can be fired twice per combat turn or a full ten round burst that will cover up to 5 adjacent targets in a 5 meter area. The hand-held projectile weapons include the Automatic Pistols and Rifles, and a belt-fed Light Machine Gun. The ordinance piece is a Recoilless Rifle. The bulletclips contain 20 rounds and are interchangeable between pistols and rifles. The Light Machine Gun utilizes a 100 round belt. The Recoilless Rifle uses a large high power casing that must be manually loaded after each discharge


Projectile Weapons List
WeaponDamageAmmo UseCostMass
Automatic Pistol2d10 each or
5d10 burst
1 or 10 bullets200Cr2kg
Automatic Rifle3d10 each or
6d10 burst
1 or 10 bullets300Cr4kg
Lt. Machine Gun10d1010 bullets1000Cr10kg
Recoilless Rifle12d101 artillery round4000Cr20kg

Grenades are hand held "bombs" that can be set to detonate on impact or a six second timer. They are available in three types: Doze (sleep gas), Fragmentation (shrapnel), and Tangler (incapacitating web).

Grenades List
Grenade TypeDamageDefenseCostMass
DozeSleepSTA to avoid10Cr0.2kg
Fragmentation8d10RS for ½DMG20Cr0.2kg
TanglerEntanglementRS to avoid25Cr0.2kg


Melee Weapons
 Any hand held weapon used for close range melee combat is a melee weapon. This would include swords, knives, and clubbing weapons to name a few. Some special high tech melee weapons utilize a powerpack, and inflict extra damage. 



Artillery includes any heavy weapon which is fired on a bipod/tripod mount or shoulder fired. An assistant is often handy for reloading such weapons, and a -10 modifier is applied to any non-military PSA operator. Ammunition is typically unique to each weapon. The Heavy Laser, Rocket Launcher, and Recoilless Rifle from above are typical artillery weapons found in the Basic game.


Defenses
 There are two categories of defenses: body armor and defensive screens. Body armor is worn and will protect a character as long as it is durable, but will need to be replaced after so many uses. A screen is worn on the belt and powered by a separate power source that also attaches at the belt, and will absorb damage depending on remaining power. 
 Armor: there are two types of armor: skeinsuits and albedo suits. Skeinsuits are comprised of a dull ballistic material known as "skein-weave" which absorbs kinetic damage, while an albedo suit is a shiny reflective material generically known by its trade name "albedoline" which will deflect a laser beam.  
 Skeinsuits will absorb ½ damage from any projectile or gyrojet weapon attack, and will do so up to 10 times before the suit needs replacing. Albedo Suits will absorb the full damage from a laser attack and will do so five times before needing replacement.
 Defensive Screens: just like body armor, there are two types of defensive screens, Albedo Screens and Inertia Screens. Both use aspecial  50 charge powerpack, and upon activation the wearer will be coated by an energy field that surrounds his/her entire body at a 1cm away from the flesh. SInce it is so close to the wearer, any weapons that he/she is holding will be able to be used as the field simply will not extend far enough away to impede their use. Activation uses one charge, and constant use will further drain 1 charge every minute (10 six second turns).
 Like an albedo suit, the energy field of an Albedo Screen will absorb laser damage. Each hit drains 4 charges from the powerpack. An Inertia Screen works the same way as a skeinsuit, absorbing half damage from any ballistic attack at a rate of 2 charges per hit. Players must keep track of how much power remains as well as how long the screen is activated, as leaving a screen on for extended periods of time can drain the power supply before the defense is actually needed.

MONEY

Standard currency in STAR FRONTIERS games is the Credit, abbreviated Cr. Prices for common items appear in the lists above.