Post by reaperwolf on Nov 27, 2014 18:00:31 GMT -5
It occurs to me that in systems where you use an Attribute as the basis for a challenge roll, going from nil to +1 bonus is pretty significant. As it stands now, if you don't have an applicable skill you suffer a 1D penalty, usually rolling 4D vs. the Attribute which when you consider the average Attribute is an 10-11 and the average of 4D is 14 your chances are pretty poor. This means by spending 100 XP your character goes from having to roll 4D vs. an 11 to having to roll 3D vs. a 12, which is a huge shift in the probabilities.
I suggest implementing a zero-level skill mechanic. Every skill now has a rating from nil to +X. Nil indicates the character is completely unfamiliar with the skill, suffers a 1D penalty to the roll and probably shouldn't be allowed to attempt some skill checks. Just because your peasant has IQ 13 doesn't mean she should be trying unskilled Physiker or Lore skills. A zero-level in the skill indicates familiarity with little training and almost no practice but it's better than nothing and, best of all, you don't suffer the 1D penalty to the skill check.
Cost of a zero-level skill is cheap, I'm thinking 50 XP and only requires a little observation to acquire the skill. Another 50 XP and you've got +1 in the skill. Mechanically this is no different than what's presented in the Experience chapter of the HOW core rulebook.
Corollary to the above, I figure all characters should have some vocational skill at zero level for free. After all your character had a trade of some sort before answering the call to adventure. For most with urban backgrounds Crafting or Professional are good choices although a case for Streetwise can be made. Those with rural backgrounds, Farming is the obvious choice. For outdoorsy characters Survival or Hunting/Trapping are reasonable alternatives.
If a Referee is feeling particularly generous, each character could have a modest list of zero-level skills based upon culture, I suggest no more than 4-5 freebie zero-level skills.
I plan to reverse engineer character creation to address the issue of front-loading characters. As it stands now, characters are made using a simple distribution model for Attributes and Skills but this leads to characters who emphasize one or two Attribute/Skills over the others being further ahead than characters who generalize because of how XP are earned for successful dice rolls. Ideally the system you use to improve characters (with XP) can be used to build them in the first place. More on this in a later post.
Happy turkey-day!!
I suggest implementing a zero-level skill mechanic. Every skill now has a rating from nil to +X. Nil indicates the character is completely unfamiliar with the skill, suffers a 1D penalty to the roll and probably shouldn't be allowed to attempt some skill checks. Just because your peasant has IQ 13 doesn't mean she should be trying unskilled Physiker or Lore skills. A zero-level in the skill indicates familiarity with little training and almost no practice but it's better than nothing and, best of all, you don't suffer the 1D penalty to the skill check.
Cost of a zero-level skill is cheap, I'm thinking 50 XP and only requires a little observation to acquire the skill. Another 50 XP and you've got +1 in the skill. Mechanically this is no different than what's presented in the Experience chapter of the HOW core rulebook.
Corollary to the above, I figure all characters should have some vocational skill at zero level for free. After all your character had a trade of some sort before answering the call to adventure. For most with urban backgrounds Crafting or Professional are good choices although a case for Streetwise can be made. Those with rural backgrounds, Farming is the obvious choice. For outdoorsy characters Survival or Hunting/Trapping are reasonable alternatives.
If a Referee is feeling particularly generous, each character could have a modest list of zero-level skills based upon culture, I suggest no more than 4-5 freebie zero-level skills.
I plan to reverse engineer character creation to address the issue of front-loading characters. As it stands now, characters are made using a simple distribution model for Attributes and Skills but this leads to characters who emphasize one or two Attribute/Skills over the others being further ahead than characters who generalize because of how XP are earned for successful dice rolls. Ideally the system you use to improve characters (with XP) can be used to build them in the first place. More on this in a later post.
Happy turkey-day!!