(BAHT)
Sentient and otherwise

Sentient bots can be heroes. The extra crew slots on a heroes’ ship will be filled by nonsentient bots. The rules for sentient and nonsentient bots differ slightly as outlined below.

A bot as a hero has luck, skills and gains credits, experience, prestige, rank and special abilities just like organic characters. Character bots get built in equipment like nonsentient bots according to their profession. Bots cannot use cyberware or wear armor other than powered armor. Nonsentient bots in powered armor are broken only on a “6”.

Alien Ability: Mechanical

Character bots cannot be upgraded like nonsentient bots but they get one free upgrade per rank (this upgrade is completely free and happens automatically as soon as you rank up). This is in addition to the Special Ability characters normally get. Character bots suffer damage and can be healed just like organic characters. Character bots suffer one less point of damage per die they sustain. Note that effects that don’t deal dice of damage are not reduced. All bots are unaffected by drugs or toxins.

Each bot has a built-in blaster as well as one built- in according to their profession. These built-ins do not count against the bot’s Carry capacity. As an Engineering or Science action of 11, you can swap out a bot’s built-in item for another item that you have but any additional mass will count against the bot’s carry limit. This does not count as an “upgrade”.

• Marine-bot - Vibraknife
• Engineer-bot - ToolKit
• Pilot-bot - JetPack
• Sci-bot – MedKit (enemy Science Bots in the Bot Wars campaign have a vibraknife instead of a MedKit)

Nonsentient bots have no Hit Points, per se. They are broken when a personal damage die against them shows a 5 or 6 and are irrevocably destroyed if they are damaged with a roll of a 6 while or after being broken (in the same or subsequent attack). Apply the higher die first. For example, a bot suffering a 5,6 or 6,5 or 2,5,2 in one attack would be broken but not destroyed. A result of 6,6 would destroy a bot. Damage dice results of 1, 2, 3 or 4 do not damage bots. Bots cannot function when they are broken.

If a nonsentient bot is damaged by point based effects that don’t roll dice (other than a needler), roll a die and the bot is broken on a 5 or 6. If the amount of damage that would be dealt is more than 6, roll one damage die for the bot for each 6 points of damage (rounding up). Bots treat EMP and Stun effects as Stun. Bots are unaffected by gas, drugs and most needler effects.

Sentient Bots can only be healed in exactly the same way as non-bot characters with a Sick Bay, MedKit, etc.

(Science or Engineering skill vs. difficulty 11)

Success removes a damage marker from a non- sentient bot.

Enemy ships are normally manned by the species of a given mission. If there is more than one Life Support, Enemies may substitute a set of bots for 4 of the crew. The heroes’ ships are manned by the heroes with bots or freebooters (see Pirates of Trundlia¹⁾ page 8 ) filling in the extra crew slots as space allows. Personnel willing to join the U.R.E.F. are in short supply and cloning is expensive. You may make use of these robotic mechanical assistants (a.k.a. Bots) to take over the functions of what would normally be handled by an organic crew member.

Bots take up a Life Support slot just like a living character for required maintenance materials, recharge station, spare parts, etc. The standard (nonsentient) bot has one selected skill in which they are professional and a built-in blaster. They have a skill level of 3 in their profession and are entitled to a professional reroll. In all other skills, they have an effective skill level of 1. An ally bot doesn’t act unless commanded to act by a hero or ally. Any ally or hero may command a bot as a free action even out of turn.

Bots require Life Support to function just like other characters or they will breakdown (failing a life support check and suffering a 5 or 6 on the damage die.)

If you don’t want this to happen, give your bot a battery upgrade or have it carry an EVA. A non-sentient bot that is doubly broken by failed Life Support is not destroyed. It is deactivated and can be reactivated at a starbase.

This can be useful if you have a rescue mission and need to free up some crew slots. The powered down bots do not require Life Support.

A bot that is broken can be deactivated with a Science or Engineering check of 14. Deactivated Bots may only be reactivated at the end of the campaign turn.

(Science or Engineering skill vs. difficulty 11)

There is no limit to the number of different upgrades a bot can have except that it can only have each one a maximum of once. This action counts as an upgrade action and must be taken during the Upgrades portion of the campaign turn (see page 145). WristComps give a +1 bonus to this attempt if using Science skill and ToolKits give a +1 bonus to this attempt if using Engineering skill.

Any failed Upgrade attempt destroys the bot irrevocably. Player character bots cannot be upgraded in this way.