The Vehicles - Shield Systems skill involves the ability to maintain and operate the energy shields that protect various types of vehicles, from small personal transports to massive capital ships. A skilled operator knows how to allocate power to the shields to maximize their effectiveness and duration, as well as how to adjust the frequency and modulation to counter different types of attacks.
A master of this skill can anticipate and quickly respond to incoming threats, manipulating the shield systems to absorb or deflect damage from enemy weapons. They can also troubleshoot and repair damaged shields under pressure, keeping the vehicle and its occupants protected and safe. In the face of overwhelming firepower, a skilled shield operator can be the difference between a successful mission and a catastrophic defeat.
Each shield operation will have a difficulty rating based on incoming damage intensity, shield power available, system complexity, and tactical situation. The more overwhelming the firepower and degraded the shields, the higher the difficulty.
When you attempt to modulate shields, allocate power, deflect incoming fire, maintain shield integrity, or restore failing shields, you will make a Vehicles - Shield Systems skill check against the task's difficulty rating. The GM may apply Boons or Banes based on factors such as shield generator condition, available power, damage already sustained, or type of incoming weapons.
Rather than spending skill points to move up skill levels, you may instead spend skill points to purchase any of the following tricks.
Cost: 2 Skill points
Requires: Tactical Training
Frequency: Once per Lockdown
Effect: You can temporarily overclock your shields. Once per operation, you can divert power to double shield strength for 3 rounds. During this boost, shields absorb twice normal damage before failing. After the boost ends, shields need 1 round to recycle before returning to normal strength. Perfect for surviving alpha strikes or breakthrough attempts.
Cost: 2 Skill points
Requires: Tactical Training
Frequency: Once per Lockdown
Effect: You can optimize shield frequency against specific weapons. Once per operation, when you identify the primary threat type (lasers, missiles, kinetic), you gain a +1d6 Boon to shield effectiveness against that weapon type. Your frequency modulation makes shields much more effective against the chosen threat for the rest of the operation.
Cost: 2 Skill points
Requires: Tactical Training
Frequency: Once per Lockdown
Effect: You can restore failing shields in emergencies. Once per operation, when shields drop below 25% or fail entirely, you can emergency-restore them to 50% strength through rapid power rerouting and emergency protocols. This one-time restoration can save the ship when shields collapse at a critical moment.
Cost: 6 Skill points
Requires: Expert Training
Frequency: Once per Op
Effect: Your shield management adapts to changing threats. Once per rest, during combat, you gain a +1d8 Boon to all shield operations and can switch shield configurations as a free action (instead of once per turn). Your adaptive shield management keeps protection optimal against whatever enemies throw at you.
Cost: 6 Skill points
Requires: Expert Training
Frequency: Once per Op
Effect: You can restore shields faster than normal. Once per rest, shields regenerate at double normal rate for 5 rounds. This rapid regeneration can restore shields to full strength during brief lulls in combat, preparing for the next assault. If shields are already recharging, this accelerates the process dramatically.
Cost: 6 Skill points
Requires: Expert Training
Frequency: Once per Op
Effect: You can reflect enemy attacks back at them. Once per rest, when an energy weapon hits your shields, you gain a +1d8 Boon to reflect the attack back at the attacker. The reflected shot deals half the original damage to the enemy ship. Your precise shield modulation turns their weapons against them.
Cost: 10 Skill points
Requires: Master Training
Frequency: Once per Mission
Effect: Your shields become nearly impenetrable. For one combat encounter, shields cannot fail - they absorb all incoming damage up to triple their normal capacity before showing strain. Even overwhelming firepower that should destroy shields only drains them slowly. For this battle, your shields are a nearly impenetrable fortress.
Cost: 10 Skill points
Requires: Master Training
Frequency: Once per Mission
Effect: You can extend shields to protect nearby allies. Once per mission, you expand your shield envelope to cover all allied ships within Close range. For 5 rounds, your shields protect the entire formation. All ships benefit from your shield strength and your expert modulation. You're protecting the fleet.
Cost: 10 Skill points
Requires: Master Training
Frequency: Once per Mission
Effect: Your shield management becomes flawless. For one mission, shields automatically adapt to all threats (no configuration needed), regenerate continuously (10% per round), and cannot be penetrated by any attack short of superweapons. Your perfect shield operation creates an invulnerable defense. Nothing gets through.
Each shield configuration grants a stacking Boon when activated for its designed purpose:
Boons apply when:
Shield configurations provide practical advantages:
GM Note: Configurations optimized for one threat type may be suboptimal against others.
Shield configurations require periodic updates:
Lieutenant "Fortress" Kim designs tactical shield configurations: