Steve Jackson Games Forums - View Single Post - Changing techniques to just 1pt leveled perks

Mailanka · 12-18-2015, 01:55 PM

If we're discussing removing Hard techniques as a concept, I'm all for it.

Hard Techniques create, first of all, an unnecessary complication. Techniques are, themselves, a complication atop skills, and they have to additional complications: the associated penalty (Counter Attack is Weapon-6, while Feint is Weapon+0), AND also the skill level. But what does the latter add?

Well, it mostly adds extra investment. You're effectively paying a 1 point UB cost, then you can carry on increasing your technique for 1 point per level, but that means to get the most out of that UB cost, you need to buy as much technique as possible. Counter Attack-5 costs 2 and is a worse investment of your points than Counter Attack -0 for 7. This makes Hard techniques a dubious proposition, and techniques were already dubious to begin with, so I don't think that helps things. Worse, there are quite a few hard techniques that are simply a -1 to skill by default. Is that worth 2 points for the (max) +1? Very dubious.

I vastly prefer to houserule techniques to just average, all of them. One point buys you +1 to a technique, period. No muss, no fuss.

12-18-2015, 01:55 PM	#24
Mailanka Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Eindhoven, the Netherlands	Re: Changing techniques to just 1pt leveled perks If we're discussing removing Hard techniques as a concept, I'm all for it. Hard Techniques create, first of all, an unnecessary complication. Techniques are, themselves, a complication atop skills, and they have to additional complications: the associated penalty (Counter Attack is Weapon-6, while Feint is Weapon+0), AND also the skill level. But what does the latter add? Well, it mostly adds extra investment. You're effectively paying a 1 point UB cost, then you can carry on increasing your technique for 1 point per level, but that means to get the most out of that UB cost, you need to buy as much technique as possible. Counter Attack-5 costs 2 and is a worse investment of your points than Counter Attack -0 for 7. This makes Hard techniques a dubious proposition, and techniques were already dubious to begin with, so I don't think that helps things. Worse, there are quite a few hard techniques that are simply a -1 to skill by default. Is that worth 2 points for the (max) +1? Very dubious. I vastly prefer to houserule techniques to just average, all of them. One point buys you +1 to a technique, period. No muss, no fuss. __________________ My Blog: Mailanka's Musing. Currently Playing: Psi-Wars, a step-by-step exploration of building your own Space Opera setting, inspired by Star Wars.