Equipment Availability

If someone is willing to pay good credits for it, there’s someone out there willing to sell it. However, depending on what the particular it is, finding that seller can prove to be less than easy. Most items in Savage Cyberpunk have a listed Availability, consisting of one or two letters that represent how common the item is and whether or not it’s legal to own. The first letter is the Availability rating, and the second is the Legality rating. Legal goods don’t have a Legality rating, and will only have an Availability rating listed.

When attempting to buy a piece of gear, you make an Availability test, which is a Streetwise test modified by the Availability and Legality ratings of the item. If you succeed, you find the item for sale and can have it delivered after a given amount of time (see Delivery Times, below). If you fail, you may try again after twice the amount of time for delivery. If you botch, you not only fail to find the item for sale, but attract unwanted attention, as determined by your GM.

For example, a pair of headphones is a common, legal item (Availability C), so you can just walk into your local Stuffer Shack and grab a pair off the shelf. A Colt N99 pistol is also common, but it’s a restricted item (Availability CR), so it’s easy enough to find one in the local gun shop, but can be tricky to get ahold of under the table (-2 to the Streetwise test if attempting to purchase through the black market). On the other hand, that Rockwell Avenger minigun you’ve been eyeing is both very rare and highly illegal (Availability VF), making it nearly impossible to get your hands on (-4 to the test for Very Rare, -4 for being a Forbidden item, for a whopping -8 to the Streetwise test).

Availability Test Modifiers and Delivery Times

 * Legality rating modifiers only apply to attempts to purchase anitem on the black market.
 * For every Raise on the Availability test, reduce the delivery time by one step.

Availability Ratings
Common (C): A Common item can be found nearly anywhere, and is easy to buy legally. Unless you're attempting to buy it through the black market (to avoid a data-trail, for instance), you don't need to roll a test to find the item.

Uncommon (U): Uncommon items might not be available at your favorite Stuffer Shack, but they're not particularly difficult to find. Uncommon items require an Availability test, but receive no penalty.

Rare (R): Rare items are hard to come by, and are typically only available through specialized retailers. Rare items require an Availability test at -2.

Very Rare (V): Very Rare items are supremely difficult to get hold of, and there's not likely to be many people offering them for sale, locally or at all. Very Rare items require an Availability test at -4.

Legality Ratings
Legal (N/A): Legal items are not regulated by the government. Anyone is allowed to purchase or own them, though certain items may not be legal to carry around with you (sure, a combat knife may be perfectly legal, but the local police won't appreciate you waltzing into the governor's office with it).

Restricted (R): Restricted items require a license to own, use, or carry. Character with a valid SIN may apply for a license for a fee of 10% of the item's cost, which allows them to legally purchase it. Some items, such as firearms, require a separate permit to carry around, which can be acquired for an additional fee of 5% of the item's cost. If you're buying legally, Restricted items do not receive an additional penalty to the Availability test. However, if you're wanting to purchase a Restricted item illegally, the Availability test incurs an additional -2 on top of any modifiers due to its Availability rating.

Forbidden (F): Forbidden items are not legally available for private citizens. A Forbidden item cannot be purchased through legal means, nor are there permits available to allow someone to own or carry a Forbidden item. Government or corporate agents may be issued such items, however, and are legally allowed to carry them while performing their duties, so don't expect the corpsec team to get picked up by Johnny Law for possession of Forbidden hardware.