Many modern role-playing games contain a computer skill. Justin Achilles observed in the Vampire 20th Anniversary Edition design diary that the computer skill has changed in the past couple of decades. In the 20th century, the skill was about general computer know-how. How to set them up and get them to do what you want. It was a new technology and maintaining a computer was usually done by the same guys that also knew how to handle them.
Fast forward about 20 years. Everybody is using computer, smart phones and tablets. Hardly anyone, except specialist knows how to program or maintain them. Computers have become ubiquitous everyday items. There is no reason to call them out with a special skill anymore. Repairing them can be covered by the Craft skill, using them for gather information is covered by Research (or Investigation). The only remaining exciting use in a role-playing game remains Hacking.
There are two ways to cover this: if a game is all about hacking or it is at least a big part of the setting, create a skill for that. Don't call it Computer, be exciting and call it Hacking or Slicing. If the game is not about hacking, but one player still wants to be an expert hacker, give him a stunt that let's her perform as a computer hacker with a skill already present in the setting.
For my urban fantasy game, I will not include a hacking skill. If somebody wants to be able to accomplish digital intrusion, he can take a stunt based on the Burglary skill.
Showing posts with label Skills. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Skills. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Friday, January 18, 2013
Steampunk: The Skill List
Since the skill list also helps to define the genre, let's take a look at the skills for steampunk. Again, the default skill list will be our guide to the discussion.
The skills Athletics, Burglary, Contacts, Deceit, Empathy, Intimidation, Investigation, Notice, Physique, Rapport, Resources, Shooting, Stealth, Will are alright and will do for a steampunk setting. That leaves Crafts, Drive, Fighting and Lore to be discussed.
Crafts will be changed to Mechanics. This is a central skill of Steampunk as it will allow you to create and repair steampunk devices. The devices themselves will either be scene aspects or stunts. Aspects will be handy, when creating helpful devices on the fly or as part of the story. Stunts (or Extras) represent more permanent Steampunk gadgets you own.
The skill Drive could be used as is for steam carriages or horse carriages, but I'd rather not bloat the skill list with additional skills unless absolutely necessary. So I'll replace Drive with Ride to reflect that horses are still the prefered method of getting around. If your character ever needs to drive a steam carriage, he can either use mechanics or ride, depending on the whims of the gamemaster.
Fighting could simply be renamed to Fisticuffs to give a little period flavor to the skill list. Functions remain unchanged.
Lore will have to be split this time. Since I'd like to have magic separate from sciene, it makes sense to split Lore into a knowledge about science skill and a knowledge about magic skill. Since Steampunk is often about mad scientists and wonderous inventions, I am going for Science! as skill, instead of a more genteel Academics. Occultism or Occult fits the period as well. So the second skill derived from Lore will be Occultism. It does everything that the Lore skill does, but relates to magic. Also, if you don't want to have magic in your Steampunk, you can simply drop the Occultism skill.
The final Steampunk skill list looks like this:
The skills Athletics, Burglary, Contacts, Deceit, Empathy, Intimidation, Investigation, Notice, Physique, Rapport, Resources, Shooting, Stealth, Will are alright and will do for a steampunk setting. That leaves Crafts, Drive, Fighting and Lore to be discussed.
Crafts will be changed to Mechanics. This is a central skill of Steampunk as it will allow you to create and repair steampunk devices. The devices themselves will either be scene aspects or stunts. Aspects will be handy, when creating helpful devices on the fly or as part of the story. Stunts (or Extras) represent more permanent Steampunk gadgets you own.
The skill Drive could be used as is for steam carriages or horse carriages, but I'd rather not bloat the skill list with additional skills unless absolutely necessary. So I'll replace Drive with Ride to reflect that horses are still the prefered method of getting around. If your character ever needs to drive a steam carriage, he can either use mechanics or ride, depending on the whims of the gamemaster.
Fighting could simply be renamed to Fisticuffs to give a little period flavor to the skill list. Functions remain unchanged.
Lore will have to be split this time. Since I'd like to have magic separate from sciene, it makes sense to split Lore into a knowledge about science skill and a knowledge about magic skill. Since Steampunk is often about mad scientists and wonderous inventions, I am going for Science! as skill, instead of a more genteel Academics. Occultism or Occult fits the period as well. So the second skill derived from Lore will be Occultism. It does everything that the Lore skill does, but relates to magic. Also, if you don't want to have magic in your Steampunk, you can simply drop the Occultism skill.
The final Steampunk skill list looks like this:
- Athletics
- Burglary
- Contacts
- Deceit
- Empathy
- Fisticuffs
- Intimidation
- Investigation
- Mechanics
- Notice
- Occultism
- Physique
- Rapport
- Resources
- Ride
- Science!
- Shooting
- Stealth
- Will
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Urban Fantasy: The Skill List
The game about high school teenagers slowly discovering their supernatural heritage and the obligations that come with it needs skills (apart from also needing a catchy name, but that's another story). The list given in FATE Core serves as a starting point, but I feel that the skill names should reflect the setting (and I don't like some of the skill names).
The names and skills that work are Athletics, Burglary, Crafts, Drive, Empathy, Fighting, Notice, Physique, Shooting, Stealth and Will.
But some of the other names and skills don't work quite so well. Let's take a look at Contacts, Deceit, Intimidation, Investigation, Lore, Rapport and Resources. They all sound very adult and high-minded. I want something more juvenile that sounds like teenagers would do it.
Contacts: I don't think that teenagers would have contacts. High school seems to be about being popular and popularity seems to decide if other students do you favors. So I would call that skill "Popularity" and otherwise leave it as it is.
Deceit: Sounds very adult and also includes the ability to project false personas. Something I don't see teenagers doing. So I would go with "Lying" instead of Deceit.
Initimidation: Again, I don't see teenagers as intimidating some one. At school you are usually "Bullying" people.
Investigation and Lore: Both skills usually tie together somehow in a modern setting with supernatural elements. In much of the source material investigation usually involves hitting the books (be it in Gilles' library, old diaries in the Salvatore household or reading werewolf hunter files on a tablet PC). Then there are people in the know. They just know from personal experience and study about the supernatural. Also, since this is high school, academic achievement and knowledge about science is present in the setting. But is that important enough to the story that I need a skill for that? One last issue that plays into Investigation and Lore is the presence of computers. In many games that is still considered a separate skill. But in the end, computers are on the verge of becoming ubiquitous tools that anyone can handle without much knowledge. Simply start the app. That is what I am going to do:
Investigation gains an emphasis on research in the library or online. It really doesn't matter where you get your knowledge. It is important that you how to search for clues and how to execute your searches. Thus Investigation becomes "Research". The skill can be used to overcome obstacles and create advantages, but no attacks and defenses. I could see both happening with preparation, so they'd be the province of stunts.
Lore is a bit more difficult. It could be split into a mundane skill called Academics or Science and a supernatural skill called Lore or Occult or Mysteries. But I am not going to do that. The game is about the slow discovery of supernatural abilities. Therefore there will be no skill (except Research) that allows a player to bypass the process of discovery through play. They simply won't know. They have to experience the supernatural. I still would like to measure academic achievement though and generally obscure (but practical) knowledge like Willow and Danny being knowledgable hackers, or Lydia being able to brew a pyrophric cocktail. Or simply having a skill that can be rolled to determine the success on an exam. I am thinking "Geek" here. The skill can be used to overcome obstacles and create advantages. Various special applications can be modelled by stunts.
Rapport: I simply don't like the name of that skill. If you are being nice to someone to get what you want, you simply turn on your charm. So Rapport gets renamed to "Charm".
Resources: Adults have resources, teenagers usually have allowances. So that's what I am going to call the skill: "Allowance". Still someone with a Great (+4) Allowance will probably rather drive a Porsche than a Rabbit to school.
The final skill list for an urban fantasy game set at a high school than looks like this:
The names and skills that work are Athletics, Burglary, Crafts, Drive, Empathy, Fighting, Notice, Physique, Shooting, Stealth and Will.
But some of the other names and skills don't work quite so well. Let's take a look at Contacts, Deceit, Intimidation, Investigation, Lore, Rapport and Resources. They all sound very adult and high-minded. I want something more juvenile that sounds like teenagers would do it.
Contacts: I don't think that teenagers would have contacts. High school seems to be about being popular and popularity seems to decide if other students do you favors. So I would call that skill "Popularity" and otherwise leave it as it is.
Deceit: Sounds very adult and also includes the ability to project false personas. Something I don't see teenagers doing. So I would go with "Lying" instead of Deceit.
Initimidation: Again, I don't see teenagers as intimidating some one. At school you are usually "Bullying" people.
Investigation and Lore: Both skills usually tie together somehow in a modern setting with supernatural elements. In much of the source material investigation usually involves hitting the books (be it in Gilles' library, old diaries in the Salvatore household or reading werewolf hunter files on a tablet PC). Then there are people in the know. They just know from personal experience and study about the supernatural. Also, since this is high school, academic achievement and knowledge about science is present in the setting. But is that important enough to the story that I need a skill for that? One last issue that plays into Investigation and Lore is the presence of computers. In many games that is still considered a separate skill. But in the end, computers are on the verge of becoming ubiquitous tools that anyone can handle without much knowledge. Simply start the app. That is what I am going to do:
Investigation gains an emphasis on research in the library or online. It really doesn't matter where you get your knowledge. It is important that you how to search for clues and how to execute your searches. Thus Investigation becomes "Research". The skill can be used to overcome obstacles and create advantages, but no attacks and defenses. I could see both happening with preparation, so they'd be the province of stunts.
Lore is a bit more difficult. It could be split into a mundane skill called Academics or Science and a supernatural skill called Lore or Occult or Mysteries. But I am not going to do that. The game is about the slow discovery of supernatural abilities. Therefore there will be no skill (except Research) that allows a player to bypass the process of discovery through play. They simply won't know. They have to experience the supernatural. I still would like to measure academic achievement though and generally obscure (but practical) knowledge like Willow and Danny being knowledgable hackers, or Lydia being able to brew a pyrophric cocktail. Or simply having a skill that can be rolled to determine the success on an exam. I am thinking "Geek" here. The skill can be used to overcome obstacles and create advantages. Various special applications can be modelled by stunts.
Rapport: I simply don't like the name of that skill. If you are being nice to someone to get what you want, you simply turn on your charm. So Rapport gets renamed to "Charm".
Resources: Adults have resources, teenagers usually have allowances. So that's what I am going to call the skill: "Allowance". Still someone with a Great (+4) Allowance will probably rather drive a Porsche than a Rabbit to school.
The final skill list for an urban fantasy game set at a high school than looks like this:
- Allowance
- Athletics
- Bullying
- Burglary
- Charm
- Crafts
- Drive
- Empathy
- Fighting
- Geek
- Lying
- Notice
- Physique
- Popularity
- Research
- Shooting
- Stealth
- Will