ESSENTIAL skills for various settings

[IrishRover]

I've been thinking, trying to figure out what skills are effectively essential for a modern American to have. It seems that Driving is the only skill that every American either should have a point put into, or an explanation as to why he or she doesn't have any points into it. Same thing in much of modern Europe.

I'm wondering what skills people might think are vital for everyday life for various settings. It seems to me that thre are very few skills that almost all members of any particular society need to have.

[trooper6]

I don't even think that driving is essential. There are really big differences depending on where you live. Where I lived in Germany, no one drove. Most people had licenses...but not everyone. Public transportation was that good. Likewise, I knew people in the San Francisco Bay Area where I grew up who couldn't drive...because public transportation was that good.

What were essential skills when living in the Shasta mountains were different than the essential skills when living in New York City. Rural? Urban? Suburban?

That said. When I'm GM'ing. The skills I make my players take goes something like this:

Me: You need Area Knowledge for wherever you grew up. And some skills to represent how you made a living.

[Crakkerjakk]

Area Knowledge and probably Housekeeping unless they're a slob or raised filthy rich. But definitely Area Knowledge of somewhere.

[Kromm]

I'd dispute the universality of Driving or the need to explain its absence. I don't drive and I've never held a driver's license. I have no medical reason for it (I'm not blind, prone to blackouts, or anything like that), no philosophical reason for it (I don't especially like cars, but that isn't why I don't own one), no economic reason for it (I suppose I could afford a cheap one), and no background reason for it (I grew up in a perfectly ordinary small city with merely so-so public transportation). It just happened that way. And it happened that way for several people I knew, too . . . I think that drivers simply tend to overlook those of us who don't get in their way.

As for skills for the modern West:

• Area Knowledge of where you live, unless you never go anywhere and just spend all your time in the basement.
• One of Carousing, Connoisseur (any), Games (any), Hobby Skill (any), [Edit: Musical Instrument (any), Singing,] or Sports (any), unless you truly do nothing but watch paint dry (probably down in that basement).
• Computer Operation . . . yeah, at this point, between ATMs, smart phones, and even DVD players, everybody is using a computer interface of some kind almost daily, even if they don't regard it as a "computer" per se. Most people, though, can use a computer per se. Especially in the basement.
• Current Affairs of some sort, unless you want to be a complete dud in conversation and have people see you as the freak who lives in that basement I keep mentioning.
• Housekeeping, unless you're either filthy rich (and have "people" for that) or just plain filthy (and have no social life down there in the basement).

As my tongue-in-cheek commentary suggests, lacking more than one or two of these items would likely get you marked as a weirdo by most people, and missing three or more would probably suggest an exceptionally abnormal psychology. The guy who is wearing poorly looked-after clothes (no Housekeeping), walking around like he's lost (no Area Knowledge), and unable to make the ATM/automated grocery checkout/automated airport check-in work (no Computer Operation), and who, when approached by bank/shop/airport security, shows that he neither knows about recent Bad News that's led to heightened security (no Current Affairs) nor can make small-talk (none of those "interest" skills I mentioned), will be ushered into a small office if he makes any wrong move, no matter how good a person he is. Whereas a well-dressed person who breezes through everything with confidence and seems "with it" when asked a few questions by security personnel probably won't draw any suspicion at all, no matter how bad a person he is. That's modern survival in a nutshell.

Put a geeky way, if you're running on default for these mostly IQ/E skills -- which is IQ-4 -- then you'll be assumed to have an IQ that's four points lower than it really is, because people expect everyone to have these skills at IQ level, at least. Some people will assume that's because you have IQ 6 or thereabouts, and are mentally challenged. The rest will assume that's because you have from -2 to -5 to IQ due to the drunk, euphoria, or hallucinating afflictions (pp. B428-429), mostly likely as a result of substance abuse. Neither is likely to be good for reactions.

[Kawaii_Koneko]

Originally Posted by Kromm

As for skills for the modern West: Hobby Skill (any) unless you truly do nothing but watch paint dry (probably down in that basement).

watching paint dry is a vaild hobby skill i mean you know what brands dry in what ways how extra coats effect the drying what the drying differance with a latex and acrylic or oil based! brb need to give myslef paint drying as an IQ hobby skill or is it an expert skill hrmmmmm ^^;;

[copeab]

Originally Posted by IrishRover

I'm wondering what skills people might think are vital for everyday life for various settings. It seems to me that thre are very few skills that almost all members of any particular society need to have.

For most campaigns I've run, Guns (Pistol), Stealth, First Aid and Occultism are pretty handy.

[copeab]

Originally Posted by Kromm

One of Carousing, Connoisseur (any), Games (any), Hobby Skill (any), or Sports (any), unless you truly do nothing but watch paint dry (probably down in that basement)

I'd add Musical Instrument to that list. Piano or Guitar for most people, but band instruments are very likely. Singing is probably less common, but belongs in there.

[Kyle Aaron]

Originally Posted by Kromm

I think that drivers simply tend to overlook those of us who don't get in their way.

I'd say they look down on them, rather than overlook them. I say that as a person who only got his license this year at 36. The difference before and after was remarkable, it really made me think of the "Incompetent" Quirk in GURPS, where you're looked down on if missing some supposedly vital skill of the culture.

I didn't think there was a difference either, then I got my license and saw that there was. This is of course entirely cultural, and will be different in different places; but in Australia, it's certainly true that anyone over about 21 who doesn't have their driver's license is assumed to be chronically impoverished, to have had their license but lost it for some reason, or to be generally a useless deadbeat with no prospects.

It's made zero difference in real and practical terms, but a lot of difference in social status sorts of terms.

So for modern Australia, I'd add "Drive" to your list.

[kidbrock9]

If you are going to force your players to waste skill points on skills like housekeeping (when is that skill EVER going to be useful in game?), then I suggest you give it to them for free. Then, if the player wants a slob character, he can buy that as a quirk. Otherwise, you are essentially lowering an adventurer's point value.

The OP did mention he wanted defaults for various settings. It seems like this aspect of his request is not getting a great deal of attention.

That being said, I agree that most modern settings will have a majority of people with both Area knowledge and Computer operation.

For fantasy settings, it seems a little more difficult. Perhaps just Area Knowledge and something they could use to make a living. This could be an actual professional skill, a weapon skill, magic, or a performance skill.

As for the driving debate: most naysayers have been non-Americans. I do agree with the OP that in America, a player should have either: Driving, or an explanation why they don't drive (bad eyesight, economic reasons, ecological beliefs, religous beliefs, or copious public transportation are all valid).

[LynGrey]

Originally Posted by Kromm

just spend all your time in the basement.... probably down in that basement.... Especially in the basement....who lives in that basement I keep mentioning....and have no social life down there in the basement.

Kromm... got some beef with basement dwellers? Made me chuckle alittle, but i DEFINITLY agree with Computer Operation, when my grandmother and my 4 y/o neice are communicating through E-mails... you definitly know that computer operation is a solid foundation of modern life.

There are very very very few things i can think of now that are purly spring/lever interface or mechanical machines.