Personal Shield Technology

"The Vanguard Dynamics S-48 VIP Personal Shield is an essential practical accessory for any celebrity or politician who might find themselves under the gun!"

Societal Role of Personal Shields

Personal shields have revolutionized the landscape of modern warfare, particularly among elite Commando units. These portable defenses serve as the ultimate countermeasure against beam weaponry, safeguarding high-value operatives from precision strikes. As anti-assassination tools, personal shields have become indispensable for VIP protection and special operations, giving protection that can be combined with reinforced clothing to create unobtrusive defenses. Commandos rely on these shields to create temporary cover, maneuver through hostile terrain, and outmaneuver enemy forces. The iconic shimmer of hardlight has become synonymous with elite warriors, striking fear into the hearts of adversaries.

The Science of Hardlight Shields

Hardlight shields operate by projecting photons in between sheets of stasis fields, generating webs of microsingularities that 'freeze' the photons into a state known as hard light. This ablative barrier excels against beam weapons, dissipating directed energy through the stasis field. However, hard light proves less effective against projectile weapons, which can disrupt the photon matrix, and nearly useless against slow-moving, muscle-powered melee attacks, such as monomolecular blades. The microsingularities maintain the structural integrity of the hardlight, allowing it to absorb and redirect energy-based attacks. When overwhelmed, the shield's energy reserves are depleted, requiring recharge or replacement.

Game Statistics for Personal Shields

In game terms, personal shields are represented by two key statistics: DR (Damage Resistance) and Hardness. DR measures the shield's capacity to absorb beam weapon damage before requiring recharge. Hardness, listed in parentheses, applies to all damage types except slow-moving, muscle-powered melee attacks. Hardness acts as a damage divisor, reducing incoming damage. For solid projectile weapons, 1/100th of the DR is added to the hardness. For example, a Hardlight Buckler with DR 50 (5) can absorb 50 points of beam damage and provides a hardness of 5 against most attacks, but only 0.5 against gyrocs and smart guns. Understanding these statistics enables players to effectively utilize personal shields in combat, leveraging their strengths and mitigating their weaknesses.

Products

Bubble Emitter: This usually comes with two emitters, which each project an arching half-dome that connects in the center. The protection covers every direction but down when on the ground, though the bubble will complete if there is nothing underneath the character. Battery Class: D. $3,000.

Shield Bracelet: This is a self defense device, mainly for VIPs. It projects a circular shield around a yard across. Battery Class B. $1,500.

Hardlight Buckler: This is a shield emitter that is usually connected to a bracer or to the outside of combat armor. It projects a variable shield that can be a circular shield a yard across, or an oval shield 4-6 ft by 3-4 ft. Battery Class C. $1,800.

Testudo: This is a shield emitter typically worn on the back. It projects a shield when the user throws themselves on the ground (as part of a Dodge action, for instance.) It is more intense but also doesn't last as long as a Bubble Emitter. Battery Class C. $2,200.

Dropshield: This is a three foot long stick weighted on one end to ensure that it easily lands down and rolls with the emitters straight up. It fans a three yard across, one yard high shield for the user to kneel behind to use as cover. Battery Class B. $2,000.

Hardlight Doorjam: This is an extendable stick that folds down to 1 ft. long, and extends to up to 5 ft. If placed in an opening no bigger than 8x5, it will project a shield from a line of emitters on one side that fills the doorway. Battery Class B. $1,800.

Hardlight Cage: This device is a 1 foot-to-a-side cube. When dropped, it breaks apart into eight smaller cubes. Four spread themselves onto the floor and four float into the air using aerostat tubes and gravity pressors. When in position in an 8 square yard cube, it activates the shield. The cage lasts up to 8 hours before it runs out of batteries, which need to be replaced or recharged. The shimmer effect of the cage is focused differently, bending light passing through to conceal those inside from viewers outside but allowing them to see out. A number of them can be linked together to form a 'hardlight shack.' Battery Class: 8 class B batteries. $5,000.

Shield Drone: This specialized FM drone projects a shield 1 yard across. The standard model has a skill of Shield-12. It will activate automatically during combat (unless told not to) and will give the typical +1 passive bonus to its master's defense, actively blocking the first attack against its master every round unless given other instructions, such as "Block that guy!" in which case it will single-mindedly protect against attacks from the indicated opponent. Battery Class C. $7,500.

Bubble Helm: This device is of adjustable Size and can be worn either around the head like a headband or around the neck like a collar. When activated, it projects a spherical bubble of hardlight to protect the head specifically. While it does make everthing a bit blurry (Nearsighted Disadvantage) it does give Protected Sense (Vision) and obviously protects the head from beam weapons. If connected to an RI, SI, or AI, the helm may be set to activate automatically or in response to certain conditions. Battery Class B. $900.

Web Shielding: This close-in shield array looks like an LBV or similar canvas web, with small hardlight projectors at the connections. These webbings must be worn on the outside of clothing and armor to be fully effective, but they bounce a ray shield close to the surface of the skin between the projectors. Battery Class C. $2,000 for the torso and vitals, +$1,000 for each addtional limb covered. Will not cover the hands or feet.

Shield	DB	Cost	Weight	DR/HP	BC	LC	Notes
Bubble Emitter	-	$3,000	2	100(2)	D		all angles not blocked by the ground.
Shield Bracelet	2	$1,500	0.5	100(2)	B		1 angle
Hardlight Buckler	3	$1,800	1	120(2)	C		1 angle
Testudo	-	$2,200	2		C		5 angles
Drop Shield	-	$2,000	1	100(2)	B		Provides Low Cover
Hardlight Doorjam	-	$1,800	1	200(2)	B		10d6 burn to any physical object attempting to pass through.
Hardlight Cage	-	$5,000	8	300(4)	Bx8		Camouflaged from outside, 10d6 burn to any physical object attempting to pass through.
Shield Drone	4	$7,500	9	80(2)	C		Blocks on behalf of owner.
Bubble Helm	-	$900	0.5	80(2)	B		Bad Sight (Nearsighted) Protected Sense (Vision)
Web Shielding	-	$2000+$1000/additional limb	3+1/limb	50 (4)	C

Recharging a Shield

To recharge a battery, it must be turned off, and a battery of the noted class must be attached to the projector. Typically, this is integrated in the combatant's energy system but if it isn't then a dedicated battery must be used. A battery takes 1 minute for every 10 DR. As normal, larger batteries can expedite this, halving the length of time for each class higher than the class noted for that shield type.

Addons and Accessories

Custom modifiers can be added to hardlight shields. The two obvious ones involve improving the DR or the hardness of the shield itself. Other possible modifiers can be things like recharge speed and active camoflage.

Color: A shield may be modified to allow more of one sort of light through than others, effectively making the shield filter a color. This is can be an aesthetic choice, but it is often used to identify frends from enemies in a chaotic situation. This can be done with no additional cost.

DR increase: A simple increase for increasing the DR rating of a shield. $10/DR, with every 100 DR requiring a larger battery Size, and every 10 DR doubles the recharge time for the battery.

Hardness increase: Increasing the hardness of a shield doubles the cost for every +2 to the hardness.

Recharge Speed: To increase recharge speed, capacitors must be attached to each shield projector. For every five seconds shaved off of the recharge time, add 0.5x the cost.

Active Camoflage: Instead of hardlight, photons can be channeled around the user, creating active camoflage and rendering an individual nearly invisible. While invisible, the hardness rating of the shield is removed and the DR is halved, but the user has +10 to their stealth skill while standing still and a +5 while they're moving, and does not show up on any spectral sensors or recording devices. This modification can only be installed on shield systems that cover the entire body, such as bubble shields or web shielding that have full coverage. A shield with this mod requires one step higher battery and costs $25,000.