| From: | James Lindsay <jlindsay@******.CA> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Optional character generation systems |
| Date: | Mon, 23 Feb 1998 03:52:40 GMT |
> Mon goose wrote:
>
> / On a different note, I'm very suprised that FASA has never put a
> / increasing cost on higher stts, etc at character creation, IE a 6
> / costing more than twice what a 3 does. This was very well done in
> / "Earthdawns" character Gen system. Something like using the 100 point
> / build system (probably with more points), but with things like
> / attributes, skills, and spells costing thier SQUARE of thier rating, or
> / some other progressive amount.
>
> That would be most excellent. Any chance you've figured out how to
> do it? :)
CORPS handles this rather well, using-- as you say-- the square of the stat
level you are trying to obtain (or the difference between it and the one
previous, for purposes of increasing stats during gameplay-- skills, magic,
and tech would follow a similar route).
Level Cost to Cost to
Buy Raise by 1
(L) (L^2) (Lx2)+1
===========================
1 1 3
2 4 5
3 9 7
4 16 9
5 25 11
6 36 13
7 49 15
8 64 17
9 81 19
10 100 21
11 etc. etc.
eg: To raise a stat or skill from 4 to 5 during gameplay would cost the
equivalent of 9 points (just slightly more that the cost to raise
skills/stats using the current SR rules).
Players would then start with approximately 250 points to spend (spending
no more than 150 on either skills, stats, magic, etc). A revised tech
chart would need to be created. As an option, magic spells could be
"improved" just like skills, instead of being "re-learned" at a higher
level. Of course, all this only makes sense to you if you are familiar
with the SR Companion rules for character generation.
Another nice character development system-- although it has it's share of
"nay-sayers"-- is the one used in Traveller. In it, characters begin at a
certain age and improve their pregame stats and skills in 4 year chunks
(Traveller uses a random method but nothing would stop you from picking the
improvements yourself). Along the way would be random events that could
possibly change your character's destiny during the generation process,
prior to actually starting gameplay. This type of system works well to
mimic natural improvement over the course of a character's natural lifetime
(up to the point of being introduced into the campaign), rather than the
*sudden* manifestation of a 36 year-old Merc with nothing but combat
skills.
Such a system for Shadowrun might even begin with characters generating
base stats at age 15, along with certain default skills (languages,
hobbies, education, maybe a bit of athletics/climbing, etc.). The
characters would then receive 25 points per year of pregame time, up to age
25. After that, points would be given out at a rate of only 10 per year
(to represent the increasing difficulty of improving one's self when you
get older). To prevent munchkins from developing super-powerful 80
year-old combat monsters, characters would begin to make random checks for
stat or skill degradation (eg: Wayne Gretzky isn't as fast or agile as he
used to be). As an alternative, being "Young" could constitute a very
expensive Flaw, while characters over the age of 25 would have to spend a
lot of their points on an "Old & Wise" Edge.
I just whipped this up in the last ten minutes so please excuse any glaring
errors. If anyone wants to run with this idea, please keep me informed :)
James W. Lindsay Vancouver, British Columbia
"http://www.prosperoimaging.com/ground_zero";
ICQ: 7521644 (Sharkey)
Mano au mano, the "Professor"
would kick MacGyver's ass.
