"ACPA?! Are you sure this is an ACPA?"
Jackie looked shocked the mont he heard Oliver's words—because everyone knew what an ACPA was.
ACPA, or Assisted Combat Personnel Armor, was essentially wearable armor with the firepower and durability of an armored vehicle—even a tank.
In simple terms, it was a power suit—a full-body exoskeleton designed for extre combat scenarios.
"I'm positive, Jackie." Oliver crossed his arms. "Sixth Street has three riot control ACPAs stashed away. But after Arasaka and Militech signed that ceasefire agreent, ACPAs were officially banned from Night City. And now, I find ACPA intel in a scav hideout? That's weird as hell."
"Banned from appearing publicly?" Karl furrowed his brows.
"But I've seen chs next to NCPD roadblocks, fully ard to the teeth. Aren't those ACPAs?"
"Nah, those are just enhanced exoskeletons with ACPA-grade weapon platforms," Oliver explained.
"A true ACPA is on a completely different level. Armor, firepower, and pilot safety—it crushes everything we've seen. Imagine a walking tank, one that can plow through anything in its way."
Karl ran a hand through his hair, thinking.
"If power armor is that strong, why are corps so focused on cyberware instead? Wouldn't ACPAs be better for war?"
"Damn, Karl. You really are a rich kid, huh?"
Jackie chuckled and answered before Oliver could.
"Cyberware's about keeping corpo dogs alive. They can replace hearts, lungs, whatever, and still look human. But if you stick 'em inside a power suit, have a machine control their body, and keep 'em alive with nutrient paste, they just beco a walking tin can."
Karl suddenly felt like certain stories about fearless cha pilots were getting roasted.
"And that's not even the biggest issue."
Oliver chid in.
"The G-force inside an ACPA is insane. A regular atbag wouldn't survive the strain. If anything, you need cyberware to even pilot one properly."
"So it's not one or the other," Karl muttered, finally getting it.
ACPA and cyberware weren't rivals—they were two halves of the sa equation.
Like a spear and its tal tip—only when combined did they beco truly lethal.
With this question answered, a new one arose.
"But now that I think about it—if Arasaka and Militech have banned ACPAs in Night City, aren't they worried that a corp, or even a gang like Sixth Street, might secretly stockpile ACPAs and launch an attack on their VIPs?"
Oliver took it upon himself to explain.
"Look, ACPAs are strong, but they're not invincible against cyberware. Do you know how much a good ACPA costs, Karl? Take the Sixth Street gang's light riot control ACPAs—even those are cheap at around 1.4 million eddies per unit. But do you know how much it costs to take one down on the battlefield?"
"Cost?"
"Yeah, because for corps, lives don't an shit—money does. I heard from so Sixth Street veterans who fought in wars. They said that whether it's a light, dium, or even heavy ACPA, you can take one out with a few soldiers equipped with Sandevistans and tech weapons. And how much does it cost to replace those soldiers?"
[Sandevistan]: A cyberware implant that temporarily boosts muscle reflexes to their absolute limit, effectively making everything around the user slow down.
So killing a high-value ACPA only requires a few cybered-up veterans willing to die for it...
Karl finally understood.
"So... it's a matter of cost efficiency?"
"Yeah, exactly. Corps only care about their bottom line."
Now that he understood the cost vs. combat efficiency, Karl didn't even bother asking what would happen if a Sandevistan-equipped soldier piloted an ACPA.
From what Oliver had explained, ACPA pilots already needed extensive cyberware enhancents to withstand the imnse G-forces while operating one. If soone stacked a Sandevistan on top of that?
They'd probably go full cyberpsycho before even finishing their first mission.
Even the average gang rat on the street knew what happens when you overload yourself with cyberware.
—
The ACPA discussion had gone on long enough.
Karl checked the client's ssage—the vehicle would arrive in one minute.
It was ti to haul the target downstairs.
Before leaving, Karl copied all the ACPA-related files from the scavenger's computer—then shot the terminal to pieces.
"We can talk more over food and drinks later. Let's finish the job first."
Finding ACPA schematics in a scav hideout was definitely strange, but without more intel, it was just a curiosity—not sothing they could act on.
"Fine. At least it gives us sothing to talk about later," Jackie said, glancing around the room full of severed cyberware.
"But before that..."
His eyes narrowed at the pile of stolen implants scattered everywhere.
"I should probably call the NCPD."
"If there were more bodies here, I'd definitely be having nightmares tonight."
Jackie grinned, clearly joking.
A forr Valentino like him wasn't scared of a few corpses.
Hearing Jackie's decision, Oliver raised an eyebrow.
"Calling the NCPD? What, so they can confiscate all this cyberware and then sell it to ripperdocs on the black market?"
Despite his cynicism, Oliver still dialed the number.
Because at the end of the day, even if the NCPD was corrupt,
They were still better than the scavs.
...If only by a little.
Reviews
All reviews (0)