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SYNAPSE RUN — SKILLS AND SPECIALIZATIONS
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You earn XP by fighting. XP does nothing until you TRAIN
it into skills at a trainer — and your LEVEL is set by the
total XP you have trained. Untrained XP is wasted potential.
Every enemy pays the same XP whatever your level, and
contracts pay XP too. What gets harder is training: see
COST below.
WEAPON DISCIPLINES (Combat Training Instructor)
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Blades Batons, knives, machetes. Hits the hardest.
Firearms Sidearms, SMGs, shotguns. The most accurate.
Tech Arc gloves, coil whips, shock rigs. Bonus
damage against drones and other machines.
The more proficient you are in the discipline that matches
your weapon, the more you hit and the harder. Better
weapons need more proficiency.
SUPPORT SKILLS
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Conditioning More max HP as you improve; heavier armor
needs it.
(Combat Training Instructor)
Uplink Unlocks deeper MedLink healing sessions.
(Meridian Clinic — see HELP HEALING)
Hacking Crack terminals with ICE-breaker spikes.
(Juno, the Runner's Board — HELP HACKING)
Athletics Climb and grapple where exits don't go;
dodge and flee better.
(Combat Training Instructor — HELP CLIMBING)
Salvaging More salvage from wrecks, cheaper TUNE work.
(Kovac in the Commons, Riku in the Lower Ward)
Medtech Med kits: half a MedLink session you can
use anywhere, on you or your crew.
(Meridian Clinic — HELP MEDTECH)
Stealth Hostiles may look straight past you, and the
fights you start open with a clean strike.
(Juno, the Runner's Board)
Streetwise Better prices from vendors, buying and selling.
(Kovac in the Commons, Riku in the Lower Ward)
Level 20, the top, means mastering it all: your weapon
discipline and every support skill at their highest
proficiency. It's a long climb. On the way, choose which
skills to push first for how you run.
COST
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Each TRAIN is one session, and sessions cost more XP the
more proficient you are. TRAIN at a trainer shows your
progress and the price of the next session. Small fights stay
worth a session early on, but elite skills need tougher
prey. Spread your XP wide for a flexible runner, or focus
it to master one discipline and unlock its best gear.
PROFICIENCY
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Every skill climbs the same ladder:
untrained > rookie > street-tested > professional >
elite > legendary > icon > myth
(and, after a neural rewrite, apex: HELP REWRITE)
TRAIN fills a progress bar; a full bar sharpens the skill,
and every couple of bars you step up the ladder. SCORE
shows where you stand.
GEAR NEEDS PROFICIENCY
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Starter (tier 1) gear needs no training. Tier 2 weapons
need you street-tested in their discipline, tier 3
professional, tier 4 elite. Heavier armor needs the same
steps in Conditioning, one step earlier. If you aren't
ready: "You are not proficient enough at <skill> to use
this." LOOK at an item to see what it needs.
GEAR
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Tier 1 gear is sold in the Welcome District and Commons.
Tier 2 gear is sold by Riku in the Lower Ward and Kovac in
the Commons — it costs real credits and needs some
proficiency (weapons) or Conditioning (vest).
Tier 3 and 4 gear only drops from bosses: the Strikeworks
Enforcer and the MK4 Heavy. Bosses favor gear for your
main discipline. Common enemies occasionally drop basic
armor. See HELP SHOPPING.
CORE STATS (SCORE shows them; chrome raises them)
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BODY heavier hits, a little more HP, Power Strike
REFLEX aim and dodging, Aimed Shot
TECH Overload (the Tech special)
NEURAL a deeper energy reserve for specials
EDGE better odds when you FLEE
Arm chrome raises BODY, neural chrome NEURAL, ocular
chrome TECH and leg chrome EDGE. See HELP CYBERWARE.
PERKS
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Skills earn perks as you climb the ladder (most at
street-tested, professional, elite and legendary). Weapon
perks only work with that discipline's weapon in hand.
Blades Heavy Hands, Cleave, Executioner, Whirlwind
Firearms Steady Aim, Double Tap, Deadeye, Hair Trigger
Tech Overcharge, Arc Lock, System Crash, Cascade
Failure (machines lock up and come apart)
Conditioning Thick Skin, Second Wind, Iron Frame,
Unbreakable (hits hurt less; recover once a
fight when nearly down)
Uplink Rapid Recovery, Deep Rest, Neural Reboot
Hacking Backdoor, Clean Exit (no ICE burns), Spike
Recycler (spikes can survive), Root Access
Athletics Light Feet, Wall Runner, Freerunner,
Untouchable (flee and dodge better)
Salvaging Scrounger, Gearhead, Junk Genius, Master
Tinker (more salvage, cheaper TUNE)
Medtech Field Medic, Combat Medic (one small PATCH
mid-fight), Trauma Surgeon, Lifeline
Stealth Low Profile, Opening Strike (your first blow
crits), Shadow, Blindside (it never misses)
Streetwise Haggler, Fence, Connected, Kingpin (cheaper
buying, better selling)
SCORE lists the perks you have.
TRAINING CEILING
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Some levels need a story contract before you can train
past them. See HELP QUESTING.
WHERE TO TRAIN
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Combat Training Instructor (Training Floor, Welcome
District): Blades, Firearms, Tech, Conditioning, Athletics.
Sergeant Okafor (Runner's Board): the weapon disciplines
and Conditioning.
Meridian Clinic technician: Uplink, Medtech.
Juno (Runner's Board): Hacking, Stealth.
Kovac (Commons) and Riku (Lower Ward): Salvaging,
Streetwise.
Farther out, a few others teach what they know.
Type TRAIN near a trainer to see costs. Type SPECIALIZE
for advice on choosing a discipline.
DEATH
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Dying sets back every skill you've trained by one
session, and costs a tenth of your unspent XP. A skill
with an empty session bar drops a rank, which can cost
you a level. Runners at level 2 and below are
protected.
===========================================================Need a starting point? Read your first steps in Meridian.