Racter

Racter is a character and crew member in Shadowrun: Hong Kong.

Background
A former robot engineer in his homeland of Russia, Racter became a shadowrunner years ago, operating across Europe and Asia. Notably in Berlin, Germany, Racter worked with Lucky Strike.

Racter's motivation for entering the life of shadowrunning is set on vengeance, when two colleagues stole a cybernetic project of his while he worked in Russia. Coincidentally, one of the player's potential runs involves breaking into the same megacorp research lab where Racter's colleagues have found work. Here, Racter has the opportunity to reclaim his robbed experiment, upgrading Koschei with self-repairing emergency backup. His colleagues are not in the lab at the time, which spoils Racter's plans for murderous revenge.

Koschei
Racter designed his drone Koschei himself and has steadily improved the design over the years. Unlike most drones, Koschei walks on four legs. Also unlike other drones, Koschei has melee attacks in addition to ranged attacks. The uniqueness of this drone is especially welcome if the player chooses to play as a Rigger. All of Racter's advancement choices upgrade Koschei in some way.

Racter names his drone after a Slavic folklore character, present in a number of folk tales. Koschei the Immortal or the Deathless is mainly a tale antagonist; represented by a horrendous thin old man, Koschei cannot be killed. To succeed, one must find and destroy his soul, which is sealed in an object which is stashed within another object and which in turn is also stored inside another and on and on. Racter tells of the parallel with his drone, which may be perfectly rebuilt every time upon destruction, as long as Racter holds its blueprints.

Interactions

 * Like Gaichu, Racter has to be invited before he's available for your runs. Speak with him at his spot in the safe boat to do so.
 * Also like Gaichu, Etiquette Academic will allow you to get the various references he makes throughout your conversations with him.
 * Once Misdirection has been accepted, Racter will refuse to talk to you further until the run has been done.
 * In dialogue, Racter may eventually reveal himself to be an assumed psychopath to the player.

Tips

 * Racter's forte is Koschei, and multiple buffs he may send at it (or any other drone) from a distance; on the other hand, Racter is a below average pistoleer (Ranged Combat 5, Pistol 4 in Shadows) who should be kept behind cover, many yards away from the melee.
 * Having said that, like Is0bel, Racter can use Smartlink weapons; you can give him a Smartlink pistol to replace his revolver.
 * You may also give him a second drone to replace the revolver, thus playing more to his strengths. However, note that his Drone Combat is only 5; conventional drones are likely to under-perform as compared to Koschei.