CYBORGS, CLONES AND BIO-ROIDS
Cyborgs of Appleseed
Cyborgs in the world of Appleseed are almost identical to the full body conversions of Cyberpunk 2020. The only real difference is the difference of humanity loss, in Appleseed it seems there is simply no such thing. For game purposes divide the cost of all cybernetics by four and it should come out pretty close while still keeping with necessary game mechanics. Cyborgs reproductive organs remain intact (if possible) so they are able to perform sexually and even have children. The outer shell of a cyborgs is coated in a thin membrane (skin) and is generally as sensitive as normal humans. Cyborgs can regulate their body temperatures but to protect the flesh parts that remain in the body the temperature is usually not set that high. The "skin" of a cyborg is made from the same technology as datafilm and the coating of the exo-skeletons of landmates. Only one cyborg in a hundred or so is said to be perfectly coordinated. Cyborgs are very susceptible to changes in temperature and levels of mass stress.
Appleseed cyborgs come in all shapes and sizes and all are customized. You will almost never see identical cyborgs and there really is no stock model body. For "borg" creation in your game simply use the rules provided in Chrome Book 2 with the humanity loss modifications mentioned above.
A word on personal cybernetics
Personal cybernetics on non "borg's" are geared towards the internal. The motto for cybernetics in relation to personal appearance in the world of Appleseed seems to be "all or nothing". Any of the cybernetics available in Cyberpunk 2020 are available in Appleseed but normal humans prefer to keep it to what's light and necessary, internal implants are common while artificial limbs and the like are usually only used in amputee cases.
Clones and bio-riods : rules to keep on living by
Clones and bio-riods in Appleseeed make up the majority of the population of Olympus. The following rules are meant to be fully compatible in your regular Cyberpunk 2020 game.
True humans can have a clone made of their body and then have their memories implanted into the new body. The cloned body can be as old or young as the person chooses and slight modifications can be made as well (body type, hair color, eye color, height, weight, etc).
The cost of a clone body is $100,000 (10 million eb for CP2020). And the cost for the memory transfer is $20,000 (2 million for CP2020). Once a person has been cloned and transferred he/she is considered a new human and is eligible for life extensions.
Bio-riods are clones with a plethora of mother genes, usually designer tailored for a specific purpose. Bio-riods were created by the founders of Olympus to be humanity's watch-dogs. But in reality many are so near human that they are indistinguishable. On the other hand bio-riods can always recognize other bio-riods and clones due to the fact they are all constructed from the same gene pool. Bio-riods are also empathetically linked to one another and if a large number of them die the rest will feel it (no one is sure whether this was planned or if it is merely a beneficial side-effect of the cloning process).
Bio-riods and clones must undergo regular maintenance treatments called "periodic longevity processing". If they are more than two days late they begin to suffer from anemia and lethargy (-1 to all rolls involving healing or endurance). They begin to sleep longer and as more time passes they begin to feel very ill (another -1 for each additional day). The biological systems of bio-riods are not able to recharge on their own as humans do and after they have missed their longevity treatment by two weeks nothing can be done and the person will die as their bodies become more and more degraded. Periodic longevity processing must be done once every six months and is free of charge (for CP2020 it carries a cost of 2000 eb per treatment).
In addition to having to undergo "periodic longevity processing" bio-riods and clones are also able to extend their life span through a process appropriately called "life extension". A life extension costs $150,000 (1.5 million eb for CP2020) and extends the life span by thirty years. Due to cellular degradation a person can only get about 5 life extensions before their cellular structure breaks down to an unsuitable level.
After they reach their bodies desired physical maturity, clones and bio-riods remain the same physical age until they reach the limit of their ability for life extensions, then they age as normal.
Clones and bio-riods can be genetically tailored before "birth" to virtually any specifications the designers have. Mixing animal and human genes is not unheard of nor is adding completely new abilities such as the ability to clone themselves (take Artemis-Alpeia for example) although normally they are simply designed for whatever jobs they will be performing, i.e. : enhanced strength and reflexes for combat bio-riods, enhanced memory and intelligence for communications personnel. The variations of bio-riods are vast, and while many can be ordinary people there are also more dangerous bio-riods walking the streets of the world. In short treat bio-riods as normal people only with longer life spans and occasionally they are smarter, faster and stronger too (and any other way you can think of too make them superior). Most bio-riods have been around for a long time and have gained a lot of experience.
Bio-riods make up 80% of Olympus's population so don't be afraid to let your characters choose them as PC's. Treat them as normal but give them superior abilities in regards to the characters roles, and most will start out with at least twice the experience of normal humans (although skills learned must be at 50% non-combat related).
The World of Appleseed|Chronology of Appleseed|Olympus|E-SWAT
Cyborgs, clones and bio-roids|Appleseed Terminology
