Robotic Appendage

Although most starships have one or more small manipulators for performing external repairs, some starships incorporate a much larger limb that can move cargo or even attack nearby threats. For some ships, this limb is an immense cybernetic pincer, while for others it’s a series of ports from which an operator can extend robotic tentacles. Some crews use other models, customized for their needs. An operator directs the appendage from within the starship using a specialized virtual reality helmet that enables the operator to “see” from the starship’s perspective using a series of cameras built into the appendage. The robotic appendage then moves in tandem with one of the operator’s arms (or similar limbs), allowing the operator to manipulate the appendage as if it were part of their body. If the starship has a virtual intelligence (page 34), the intelligence can also use these functions to manipulate the appendage.

A robotic appendage has an effective Strength score determined by the upgrade’s model, and it can lift items and objects weighing up to this Strength score × an amount of bulk based on the size of the starship’s base frame, as follows: Tiny = L bulk, Small = 1 bulk, Medium = 1 bulk, Large = 10 bulk, Huge = 100 bulk, and Gargantuan or larger = 1,000 bulk. Colossal and larger starships are theoretically able to support even larger limbs capable of moving hundreds of thousands of bulk, but the engineering requirements involved mean such systems are very rare.

During combat, the operator can use the robotic appendage to make melee attacks as a weapon with the unwieldy special property, dealing melee damage equal to the amount listed for its upgrade model (see the table below) plus the appendage’s Strength modifier. Use the operator’s base attack bonus and the upgrade’s Strength modifier for calculating the appendage’s attack bonus. A Tiny or Small starship’s robotic appendage can attack targets within 10 feet of the starship, whereas the melee reach for Medium and Large starship arms increases to 20 feet, and Huge or larger starships’ arms have a reach of 30 feet. A robotic appendage is ineffective in starship combat, as the intense velocities of combat would destroy the limb.