I certainly wouldn't give a job such as gunner to an NPC with a program that automatically adjusts accuracy to prevent him for aimbotting, I'd want a player amped up on mountain dew that has crazy reflexes.
My wallet is dead already, no worries here.
But if I ever get 15 grand, I want it to be spent on the most internet spaceships possible.
Listen to me. I've been hanging out with you rich gamers too long.
Makes sense, I don't want to have to get 3 friends every time I want to fly a cutlass around.
Honestly, whether or not NPCs are a viable option will depend on how much skill compared to a person(and of course, aimbot) that they have.
The only thing that really needs upgrading is the GPU, although that will play SC at launch. The only reason to upgrade is if you want higher settings. What's your PSU?