Quote:
Originally Posted by weswood
Or is it like T2k, where those particular set of skills is required for that profession, but that profession isn't limited to those skills- ie, a rifleman who happens to know how to hotwire a car?
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It's closet to this. It's a collection of suggested attribute levels, advantages, disadvantages and skills (and their levels) for a particular profession. Templates are mainly for new players, who might be overwhelmed by all the choices available to them. Templates (those that are well-done) also make sure a player doesn't accidentally overlook a vital skill a character should have.
Here's a (somewhat cinematic) Marine Raider template I did for a WWII adventure (it uses a slightly non-standard format):
Template Cost: 95
ST 11 [10]; DX 13 [30]; IQ 12 [20]; HT 11 [10]
Advantages: Fit [5]; Rank 1 [5]; 20 more points in national advantages
Disadvantages: Extremely Hazardous Duty [-20]; -20 more points in national disadvantages
Skills: Administration-11 [1]; Brawling-13 [1]; Boating-11 [0.5]; Camouflage-12 [1]; Climbing-12 [1]; Demolition-11 [1]; Elect Ops (Commo)-10 [0.5]; First Aid-11 [0.5]; Forward Observer-11 [1]; Gunner (MG)-14* [1]; Guns (Light Auto)-15* [1]; Guns (Rifle)-15* [1]; Hiking-10 [1]; Jumping-12 [0.5]; Knife-13 [1]; Leadership-12 [2]; Navigation-10 [0.5]; Orienteering-12 [2]; Savoir-Faire (Military)-12 [1]; Soldier-14 [6]; Spear-12 [1]; Stealth-13 [2]; Survival (Island)-11 [1]; Swimming-12 [0.5]; Tactics-12 [4]; Throwing-11 [1]; Traps-11 [1]
* Includes +2 for IQ 12
EDIT: I need to clarify that there are racial and professional templates. With racial templates, you generally *do* have to take all the parts of the package. Also, professional templates offer no point break over not using the template; racial templates (at least in 3e) could provide a small point discount compared to buying everything separately.