Microchips
Microchips and Nanoparasites are very unique items, capable of boosting the skills and efficiency of its user.
Microchips have to be 'installed' - which is to say that the user has to equip them as they would any other weapon or shield. They will then function throughout the whole battle, even when destroyed by enemy fire or replaced by any other shield or weapon in mid-battle.
There are four main categories of microchips, sorted by manufacturer. First are three categories of "standard" microchips:
- SYNDICATE Microchips
- DARKNET Microchips
- NARVIK Microchips
- Moebius Microchips
- Vritniht Microchips
How can you tell the difference?
Firstly, real microchips almost never have negative quality modifiers like "cracked", "old" and so on.
Secondly, fakes have small mistakes in their names, such as certain letters being replaced with numbers, or some letters being missing altogether.
Let's take a closer look at "standard" microchips:
SYNDICATE Microchips offer improvement of a single attribute, like speed or accuracy. That improvement is larger than any other microchip can offer, which is why their description will show triple pluses, like "+++SPEED".
DARKNET Microchips offer combined boosts, making them a better all-around improvement. For example, "Darknet BERSERK Chip ++SPEED ++MELEE DMG" offers a 20% boost to both Speed and Melee Damage.
NARVIK Microchips are the least expensive, but they work in a different way: They lower one attribute to raise another, meaning they "transfer" rather than "boost". For instnace, "Narvik's nanoParasite -ACC +MELEE DMG" reduces accuracy by 50% but raises melee damage by 50%.
Unique Microchips offer unique boosts. They bend the rules, providing great power to their owners on the battlefield. Some examples include:
Moebius Critical ++CRIT CHANCE (almost guaranteed critical hits on every attack)
Moebius Vampire ++RESTORE HEALTH ON ENEMY CRIT
Moebius Critical Damage ++CRIT DAMAGE
Vritniht Vanguard ++VANGUARD (The Vanguard skill works like armor, so this chip provides a form of stoneskin to its user)
Vritniht Undisputed +CRIT IMMUNITY (Immunity to critical hits and effects)
Be warned - Unique Moebius and Vritniht chips, as well as low-quality fake chips, can come with side effects that may dramatically increase the user´s rate of mutation while in use.
The CyberTech skill enhances microchip efficiency by 13% per skill point.
The 'official' item category type of a microchip is 'shield', and they can be used on the battlefield as such, but their primary function is to improve the user's abilities on the battlefield.