2.X?

[Panther Al]

Originally Posted by Tegyrius

I see the design intent but I think the implementation could've been better. Part of the problem is that the end of character creation is still random, so with a series of bad rolls you're just locked into a succession of 1-point phases while watching your attributes creep lower and praying for the war to start...

- C.

That is so true. I saw it happen with one of my players, and went ahead and let him fail a roll automatically when is character hit retirement age.

In hindsight, I should have had a mechanism to cover volunteering for the war. Its 50/50: You take a hit on starting cash, but it maxes out your skills vs. age.

What I am thinking is this: A player can say: Next term is my war term. He doesn't get the double skills it normally allows, but he is still able to take a secondary skill, and one additional MOS skill. Promotions are as normal. Does this make sense, or is it pure crap?

[B.T.]

Originally Posted by Panther Al

What I am thinking is this: A player can say: Next term is my war term. He doesn't get the double skills it normally allows, but he is still able to take a secondary skill, and one additional MOS skill. Promotions are as normal. Does this make sense, or is it pure crap?

When I first ran an adventure to playtest the rules with my actual group, we had all PCs build with 3 terms. Those characters had been omitted after the test run. Every player had a chance to build a new PC. I let them choose:

1) Stick to the rules with a risk to play an old fart with low Agility and Strength or
2) build a character with 4 terms.

Now I would do it a little different: Just let the player decide, how old his PC should be and go for that.

After all, the players should be able, to identify with their characters.

In my group, the most players chose to have a character with 4 terms. The only player, who did it with the original rules (so not knowing, how old he would be) had a special idea in mind: He plays a former Marine Sniper, Gulf War veteran, who later on was a host of a TV cooking show, "Angel cooks", where he introduced the couisine of foreign countries to the TV audience. Therefore we changed the skills, he received during his Media career.

I think, you can build almost any character, if you do not stick to close to the character generation and let players play the characters, they want to. Although I strongly reject to build a bunch of über snake eaters. But thats my personal way and moving this OT.

One last thing: I let the background skills open in the beginning of charater generation and let the players decide on their background skills, when they know, how old the character is. It gives a chance, to flesh out the character more fitting. Someone, who was born in the 50ies would not have Computer skills from the first 17 years of his life.

[Legbreaker]

I tend to allow players to decide before they make the war roll if they want to purposely fail or take their chances. If they choose to end it then they get the same war term skills as normal (double for US regular troops, normal plus secondary activities for European draftees, etc).
It allows a player who knows they're going to loose stats due to age to pull out a bit early, maintaining their attributes, but sacrificing the chance of greater skill (and the possibility of maintaining their attributes anyway if they roll well).

With regards to background and secondary skills, if the player can justify why they should have say mechanic, then I'll probably allow it. Some skills though are just never going to be available outside formal training from the first or subsequent term lists - Nuclear warhead, or any type of heavy weapons for example.

[B.T.]

Originally Posted by Legbreaker

With regards to background and secondary skills, if the player can justify why they should have say mechanic, then I'll probably allow it. Some skills though are just never going to be available outside formal training from the first or subsequent term lists - Nuclear warhead, or any type of heavy weapons for example.

Yep!