Contacts

## What are Contacts?

Contacts are specialized individuals that have a specific field that they have expertise in. These individuals can sometimes operate outside this field although it is extremely unlikely. Most commonly, a contact acts as a sort of 'middleman' to any purchasing of equipment that is outside the normal scope of rarity that a character may need. Contacts are **not** crafters and cannot supply any upgrades that a player crafter could normally do. Likewise, crafting PCs are not considered contacts and cannot provide a method of instantly acquiring equipment.

Contacts have two parts to them: loyalty and rarity.

Rarity denotes what that contact is capable of doing. For example, a rarity 9 contact is capable of getting items within rarity 9 or lower in their specific field. A Weapons contact cannot get Armor even if that armor falls within their rarity.

Loyalty represents how ready to service their client a contact is and does not denote their actual loyalty to said client. Loyalty as a mechanic is primarily used to see how often a contact will pick up a request from a character.

## How do I use a Contact?

To use a contact, you will need a GM present. Your contact may or may not be available during missions. Roll a flat 1d20. If the result is below your contact's Loyalty score, the contact is available. Contacts have constantly shifting contact methods that they only hand out to very select individuals. For this reason, contacts cannot be traded between characters controlled by players (and also for balancing reasons). Contacts cannot be sold, bought or traded for. A contact is instead only available as a mission reward. Once a contact is gained, however, the character has that contact until one of them dies or the contact severs ties with the character (if the character does something to harm that contact for example).

**No contact can produce or provide upgrades listed on the crafting tables. Only player characters are capable of providing these upgrades.**

## What will it cost?

The cost of a contact depends on what is being asked of them. If the item in question (or the favor needed) is dangerous to the contact, has a potential to harm them or similar then those contacts will need advance payment, may ask for favors in the near future or potentially even provide a mission for the character to go on but will not pay them in exchange for their services. Contacts never buy and sell things at market price. They are traders and must make their own profits in order to stay afloat themselves and provide for themselves and their families.

Likewise, it is entirely plausible in the event that a contact is communicating with a known criminal character (or if the contact is a criminal themselves) that they could potentially double cross the character if they stand to benefit from it. Such things could include a dead drop that turns into an ambush when the character arrives to do business, a false flag where the contact themselves ambushes the character (or characters) or even simply failing to uphold their end of the bargain. Good contacts will likely not do this as it would harm their business in the long run (other clients will eventually find out and thus take their business elsewhere). However, it is also not unheard of and contacts that are criminals themselves are more likely to do this if they think they can get away with it.

Contacts may request unspecified favors that will roughly equate to the item's value. Such favors are often missions and thus require more resources (Credits, time, etc.) from the character than normal. Favors are likely to be requested if the contact has a bulk deal that is worth quite a bit of money (and thus a very, very dangerous favor) or if the contact is dealing with a very dangerous item (dangerous legally) or if the contact has something that the character's skill set is favorable towards (IE; a combatant character being asked a favor to murder a ship full of Marines).

## Types of Contacts

### Armor

Armor contacts come in four varieties. Each one has a specialization that allows them to bring a certain rarity of armor to the dealing table. They provide equipment from the Armor and Attire page.

### Cybernetics

Cybernetics contacts do not have subtypes and only have a rarity attached to them. They provide items on the Cybernetics page.

### Medicine

Medicine contacts have one subtype other than a general medicine contact. They provide items from the drugs list in Medicine and Drugs.

### Technology

Technology contacts come in two varieties. Each one has a specialization that allows access to items of certain rarities. They provide equipment listed on the Technology page.

### Weapons

Weapon contacts come in multiple varieties. They provide equipment from the Weapons and Attachments page.

## Can I upgrade my Contacts?

Yes!

Missions can be done at GM discretion to upgrade the Loyalty, Rarity or in rare cases both, of a Contact. Doing so is a challenge that is based on the level of Loyalty/Rarity that the Contact will move to after the mission is completed. Typically, these missions will fall readily into a tier above the mission in which the Contact was obtained or the last tier the last mission to upgrade the Contact had the character perform.