The powertrain includes everything involved in making a vehicle move. Starting with the energy storage medium (fuel or batteries), the motor, the transmission, and the propulsion system right down to the wheels or wings (or whatever else makes it go).
Statlines that fall under Powertrainare Acceleration, Speed Interval, and Top Speed. Other non-statline items included are operational duration and alternate propulsion methods.
The Acceleration attribute of a stock vehicle applies equally to increasing speed and decreasing it safely.
Adding torque and improving braking power are advantageous enhancements for any vehicle in a pursuit or simply looking to win the quarter-mile street drag.
Each rank of improved acceleration added increases the Acceleration of the vehicle by 30 percent of the base value (rounding fractions up).
For example, adding one rank of Improved Acceleration to a Harley-Davidson Scorpion takes the Acceleration from 16 to 26 (16 x 0.3 = 4.8 rounds up to 5); this improved attribute applies equally to both stopping and accelerating.
Mod Slots: 1 per Rating
Rating: 1 - 2
Availability: 3
Cost: Rating x ¥15,000
Few modern vehicles still employ internal combustion, but “nitrous oxide” still carries a colloquial understanding among gearheads as a temporary acceleration booster, even if it’s actually a custom industrial capacitor.
These mods are invariably installed along with drag chutes or similar drastic braking options, meaning this temporary attribute increase can be applied to both stopping and accelerating. When triggered via Minor Action, nitro boost doubles the Acceleration of a vehicle for 1D6 rounds.
Vehicle tests made during this time convert one die to a Wild Die.
Mod Slots: 2
Rating: -
Availability: 3 (Illegal)
Cost: ¥5,000
The baseline operating time of a vehicle is six hours - that’s for everything from crawling microdrones to cargo airplanes. It doesn’t matter if it’s batteries powering electric motors, a biodiesel ICM turning a generator, or straight-up antique carbureted liquid fuel internal combustion (although it’s probably modified to burn a synthetic fuel blend). Increasing operational time means adding more energy storage or increasing the efficiency of the motor.
When a standard electric powered vehicle is connected to the GridGuide system, the operational time is effectively infinite.
GridLink is a standard feature on all modern vehicles that use GridGuide.
In the event that a vehicle does not have a factory GridLink unit, one can be easily installed with an aftermarket kit.
Mod Slots: -
Rating: -
Availability: 2
Cost: ¥500
This mod doesn’t really give any extended operating time, but it does let you run your vehicle off of just about anything organic that you can find around - the more energy dense, the better. A small plasma furnace is installed in the fuel system to render any hydrocarbons down to their constituent parts - mostly methane and ethane. Then, the vehicle’s internal combustion engine is modified to be able to run off the raw material output of the plasma torch. This allows nearly anything to be fed into the vehicle as fuel. A vehicle with an HFC engine can always be refueled as long as there is raw material around to be processed. For vehicles with a straight electric propulsion, a small ICE (internal combustion engine) is installed with this system and paired to a small generator.
Mod Slots: 2
Rating: -
Availability: 5
Cost: Body x ¥1,500
These are actually two different ways to achieve the exact same result: extending the operational time of a vehicle.
With this modification, the fuel consumption of a vehicle is optimized to use less, or the fuel capacity has been expanded with a larger tank of higher capacity batteries (or maybe both). Either way, each rank of this mod added to a vehicle increases the operational time of the vehicle by an additional 33 percent of the base value (normally, that’s an extra two hours).
Mods that use extra power also reduce this extra capacity at the same rate.
Mod Slots: 1 - 3
Rating: 1 - 3
Availability: 2
Cost: Rating x ¥6,000
This allows the vehicle to generate all the power it needs when it’s out in the sun under a clear sky. It can produce either electric or liquid fuel.
If the vehicle has an internal combustion engine, the suncell powers a converter that pulls CO2 and water vapor out of the air and converts it to a synthetic hydrocarbon liquid fuel.
Vehicles with a suncell system do not count any time operating under a bright sun against their operating time; only nighttime and cloudy conditions drain the fuel reserve. (This mod may use either Powertrain or Electronic mod slots)
Mod Slots: 1
Rating: -
Availability: 2
Cost: ¥9,500
The base method of propulsion is determined by the class of the chassis. Ground vehicles, boats, subs, choppers, LAVs and airplanes all start with different types of chassis. Of course, nothing says that a creative mechanic can’t take some liberties with the factory specs and make a vehicle move in ways it was never meant to.
By adding a system similar to gecko tape gloves on the motive portion of a vehicle, it can be made to literally climb walls. The larger and heavier the vehicle is, the more extensive the modifications become to make the system work, and it quickly reaches a point where it’s no longer effective. A wheeled, tracked, or walking vehicle with gecko tips can move on surfaces at angles that would otherwise be impossible, including vertically or upside-down. Flying vehicles can use the mod to land on a vertical or an upside-down surface, but not to move across it.
Size Class 1 Gecko Tips can hold up to 10kg of weight.
Mod Slots: -
Rating: 1
Availability: 3
Cost: ¥1,500
Size Class 2 Gecko Tips can hold up to 50kg of weight.
Mod Slots: 1
Rating: 2
Availability: 3
Cost: ¥3,000
Size Class 3 Gecko Tips can hold up to 200kg of weight.
Mod Slots: 2
Rating: 3
Availability: 3
Cost: ¥6,500
Size Class 4 Gecko Tips can hold up to 500kg of weight.
Mod Slots: 3
Rating: 4
Availability: 3
Cost: ¥9,000
Unless otherwise noted, a secondary propulsion system takes two combat turns to deploy and start the vehicle moving. Most systems also take the same amount of time to disengage and return a vehicle to its primary propulsion system. As these are secondary systems, they only have a fraction of the power and control of a primary propulsion system.
Alternate vehicle stats for Handling, Acceleration, Speed Interval, and Top Speed are listed for each entry. These apply while the secondary propulsion system is deployed regardless of the base stats of the vehicle.
Any mods that improve the base performance of the vehicle do not improve the secondary propulsion system unless they have been specifically added to it instead of the primary system.
Using sealed pressurized cabins with an internal air supply, waterproofed power plants, and ballast tanks to control its depth, this modification enables a vehicle to submerge and operate beneath the waves for a short period of time. Maximum operation time underwater is 30 minutes.
Handling (On/Off Road): 5
Acceleration: 5
Speed Interval: 10
Top Speed: 40
Mod Slots: 4
Availability: 6 (Legal)
Cost: Body x ¥3,000
Using waterproof construction and built-in buoyant chambers, this mod turns your vehicle into a boat, just not a very good one. Seaplanes and other aircraft also use pontoons to keep the air surfaces out of the water.
Handling (On/Off Road): 4
Acceleration: 10
Speed Interval: 15
Top Speed: 60
Mod Slots: 3
Availability: 3
Cost: Body x ¥1,000
The gliding system deploys several parachutes and uses a series of small thrusters to provide limited maneuverability while descending. The vehicle may move three meters forward for every one meter down. Better than a freefall to the ground, but not by a whole lot: “landing” counts as a crash at a speed of 20 meters per combat round. The glide package only takes one combat round to deploy.
Handling (On/Off Road): 5
Acceleration: 5
Speed Interval: 10
Top Speed: 60
Mod Slots: 2
Availability: 3
Cost: Body x ¥1,500
Combining self-expanding air curtains around the chassis and ducted thrust vectoring for maneuvering, this mod turns your vehicle into a hovercraft able to cross water or a soft ground like a marsh.
Handling (On/Off Road): 4
Acceleration: 10
Speed Interval: 15
Top Speed: 90
Mod Slots: 3
Availability: 6
Cost: Body x ¥3,000
This extreme modification installs a high-powered rocket propulsion system to allow the vehicle to make short jumps over intervening terrain or obstacles. A rocket booster does not affect the primary propulsion system while deployed and inactive. After deployment, it only takes a Minor Action to activate. Operation time for a rocket booster is three combat rounds before the fuel is depleted.
Handling (On/Off Road): 7
Acceleration: 100
Speed Interval: 50
Top Speed: 300
Mod Slots: 3
Availability: 8 (Illegal)
Cost: Body x ¥6,000
A rotary secondary propulsion system includes installing rotors on the top of the vehicle that can fold and partially retract themselves. Additionally, a tail fin with stabilizing rotor is constructed to also retract either into, beside, or underneath the vehicle. Although the system is functional—the vehicle can fly when it didn’t before—it handles like a barn with rotors.
Handling (On/Off Road): 5
Acceleration: 10
Speed Interval: 20
Top Speed: 120
Mod Slots: 4
Availability: 6 (Legal)
Cost: Body x ¥5,000
The tracked mode is the ultimate in conquering rough terrain.
Handling (On/Off Road): 4/2
Acceleration: 4
Speed Interval: 15
Top Speed: 60
Mod Slots: 2
Availability: 5
Cost: Body x ¥2,000
With enough thrust, even bricks can fly! With the best in modern gyro stabilization and maximizing ground effect, you can finally have a car that flies! It just won’t get very far off the ground.
Handling (On/Off Road): 4
Acceleration: 25
Speed Interval: 50
Top Speed: 300
Mod Slots: 5
Availability: 7 (Legal)
Cost: Body x ¥9,000
For truly exceptional or demanding terrain, some riggers install a walker system on their vehicles. A variable number of retractable mechanical legs (four to eight) can be added as needed.
Handling (On/Off Road): 3/3
Acceleration: 10
Speed Interval: 15
Top Speed: 30
Mod Slots: 4
Availability: 6
Cost: Body x ¥4,000
Actually, this system is already on almost every aircraft you have ever seen. It’s so common it’s considered standard. It’s less common on other things that don’t have wheels to start with, like a watercraft used for short land operations.
Handling (On/Off Road): 3/4
Acceleration: 10
Speed Interval: 15
Top Speed: 120
Mod Slots: 2
Availability: 3
Cost: Body x ¥1,000
Your vehicle can literally sprout wings! Retractable wings fold up into the roof, and thrust is provided by ducted turbofans.
Handling (On/Off Road): 5
Acceleration: 15
Speed Interval: 25
Top Speed: 150
Mod Slots: 4
Availability: 5 (Legal)
Cost: Body x ¥4,500
The baseline operating time of a vehicle is six hours - that’s for everything from crawling microdrones to cargo airplanes. It doesn’t matter if it’s batteries powering electric motors, a biodiesel ICM turning a generator, or straight-up antique carbureted liquid fuel internal combustion (although it’s probably modified to burn a synthetic fuel blend). Increasing operational time means adding more energy storage or increasing the efficiency of the motor.
The Speed Interval represents how vehicle handling degrades as speed increases. This instability can be improved with a wide array of techniques, such as improving the suspension on a ground vehicle or adding control surfaces on aircraft. Improved stability improves the control of a vehicle as it accelerates, counteracting the negative effects of high speed.
Each rank of improved stability reduces a vehicle’s Speed Interval penalty by one, allowing it to reach a higher speed before it begins to incur negative modifiers. Improved stability only offsets the negative modifiers created by increasing speed. It does not add any positive modifiers on its own.
Mod Slots: 2 x Rating
Rating: 1 - 3
Availability: 3
Cost: Rating x ¥7,000
Developed in professional motor racing circles, racing suspensions have trickled down into high-performance sports cars and some luxury vehicles. Much of the chassis must be customized to allow for the adaptive and sensitive system, but the end result is well worth the price.
Racing suspension limits the number of Speed Interval penalty dice that can be accrued to the vehicle’s Handling. Racing suspension is not compatible with improved stability or tuned suspension.
Mod Slots: 3
Rating: -
Availability: 6 (Legal)
Cost: ¥20,000
Most modern ground vehicles are designed to operate on smooth-surfaced roads while a few are designed to work well in any terrain. With a tuned suspension, a vehicle’s under chassis is modified, setting the suspension for a specific terrain, increasing the vehicle’s performance in that terrain and worsening the performance in other environments.
A tuned suspension halves Speed Interval modifiers (rounding up) in either on-road or off-road environments, depending on the setup.
While driving in the environment the vehicle was not tuned for, the pilot may not spend Edge.
Mod Slots: 1
Rating: -
Availability: 4
Cost: ¥12,000
The baseline operating time of a vehicle is six hours - that’s for everything from crawling microdrones to cargo airplanes. It doesn’t matter if it’s batteries powering electric motors, a biodiesel ICM turning a generator, or straight-up antique carbureted liquid fuel internal combustion (although it’s probably modified to burn a synthetic fuel blend). Increasing operational time means adding more energy storage or increasing the efficiency of the motor.
Increasing top speed is not just a matter of increasing raw power (but that helps). It has more to do with how that power is applied. This mod may be high-ratio transmission gears in a ground vehicle, afterburners on an aircraft, or a variable pitch prop and a low friction hull coating on watercraft. The end result is the same in all cases: a higher top speed. Each rating point of top speed increase adds 20 percent to the base Top Speed number. This means a Harley-Davidson Scorpion with a Top Speed of 200 becomes 280 after two ranks of top speed increase.
Mod Slots: 1 per Rating
Rating: 1 - 3
Availability: 3
Cost: Rating x ¥8,000
