Sub-Guns Skills

[JanMikal]

I thought about it, and I think I figured it out.

Melee combat/sport/art breakdowns are pretty obvious. Combat is when you're trying to actually do real damage to another person, sport is when you're competing without trying to actually HURT someone, and Art is...well, kata. The formal, beautiful styles that focus on aesthetics.

I had Guns (Combat) down, that's obvious, and Guns (Sport) is for Olympic target shooting, and so on. Competitive shooting. I wasn't sure what Guns (Art) would be, but I think I figured it out. Guns (Art) would be for movie stuntmen and actors who learn skill with a gun not to shoot well, but to LOOK good on film or television. We've all seen things on the screen that would get someone killed in a real firefight. So...none of the facets of Gun would work.

Beam Weapons - well, those probably break down into similar categories. Combat (shooting to kill or harm), sport (shooting to hit a target but not hurt anyone) and Art (which would be like Han Solo and such, looking good on camera with a blaster or laser pistol).

I'm thinking that the relevant skill would be Beam Weapons (Sport). He is technically shooting a Beam Weapon, so there's that. There are no negative health consequences to missing a shot or failing, so that is like Sport, but he's not trying to *look* good as he's doing it, which rules out Art.

So if he has Beam Weapons (Sport), he'd have a -3 to Beam Weapons (Combat). And, although I know that double-defaults are naughty, I think if he ever picked up a real pistol, I might apply the further -4 that you get from Beam Weapons (Type) to Guns (Similar Type).

So, even if he was really good at the game - say, Beam Pistol (Sport) -15 - he'd end up with a Guns (Pistol) - 8. Higher than the Guns default of 6 or 7 (assuming an average DX of 10 or 11) but only just.

It all seems pretty fair to me. He has an idea of how to point-and-pull, and maybe a vague clue of how to reload from watching movies and television (I would assume that someone that dedicated to shooting games would be an action-movie fan).

[AlexanderHowl]

Not really, Beam Weapons (Art) gives a -3 default for Beam Weapons, which actually means that it has some combat applications. I would give the character Games (FPS Video Games) at IQ+2 [4], have no default to Guns beyond the standard DX-4, and Delusion (My FPS video games skills translate to real life). You can look at Martial Arts (p. 53-54) on how combat related Delusion are dangerous to character. Depending on how common combat is in the campaign, it could be anything from a Minor Delusion that annoys professionals or a Severe Delusion that endangers the entire party.

[Phantasm]

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

Not really, Beam Weapons (Art) gives a -3 default for Beam Weapons, which actually means that it has some combat applications. I would give the character Games (FPS Video Games) at IQ+2 [4], have no default to Guns beyond the standard DX-4, and Delusion (My FPS video games skills translate to real life). You can look at Martial Arts (p. 53-54) on how combat related Delusion are dangerous to character. Depending on how common combat is in the campaign, it could be anything from a Minor Delusion that annoys professionals or a Severe Delusion that endangers the entire party.

This would depend on if he used the pistols in the arcade versions or the Xbox controllers on the console units, I think. The arcade pistols may have more applicable defaults than the Xbox controllers.

In the OP's case, he specified the character in question used the camera-pistols rather than the game controllers.

[AlexanderHowl]

It really shouldn't matter, there is nothing similar except the shape.

[copeab]

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

It really shouldn't matter, there is nothing similar except the shape.

And aiming. Perhaps acquiring the target if the game pistol has enough weight.

As for other skills needed to operate real guns, maybe they watch Forgotten Weapons ...

[whswhs]

I think this is probably best defined as Hobby Skill: Shooter Games or something like that. Of course it would be DX-based. It's not a Sport or Art skill because you aren't actually using a real firearm; you don't have any practice in handling recoil, reloading, routine gun maintenance, or feeling the actual weight of the firearm. I mean, it would be like buying Archery Sport if your arcade game involves making draw-and-loose gestures but you don't actually have the tension of a bow or the weight of an arrow.

[Pursuivant]

Originally Posted by JanMikal

I wasn't sure what Guns (Art) would be, but I think I figured it out. Guns (Art) would be for movie stuntmen and actors who learn skill with a gun not to shoot well, but to LOOK good on film or television.

That's a good analogy, but I think that there's a bit of Stage Combat skill there as well.

Guns (Art) presumably lets you do cool gun tricks like spinning a pistol with your finger or tossing your weapon from hand to hand. Come to think of it, it could also represent the various tricks that honor guards do with their weapons during "drill and ceremony" exercises.

For Combat Art (Beam Weapons) I could also see practitioners using low-powered weapons to create pretty light shows.

[copeab]

Looking back at the OP:

Why does he need an improved default with guns?

Why doesn't he just put 1 point into a Guns skill?

Is the campaign realistic or cinematic? In a realistic setting, trying such a default should get the character killed. In a cinematic campaign, it should have a good chance of working.

(IOW, I think the answer is campaign-dependent, not campaign-neutral)

[JanMikal]

Originally Posted by copeab

Looking back at the OP:

Why does he need an improved default with guns?

Why doesn't he just put 1 point into a Guns skill?

Is the campaign realistic or cinematic? In a realistic setting, trying such a default should get the character killed. In a cinematic campaign, it should have a good chance of working.

(IOW, I think the answer is campaign-dependent, not campaign-neutral)

The character concept is that he is a genuine 'slacker' type - he's not interested in firearms, just how many zombies he can kill on a arcade cabinet-style game with the light/camera pistol. He probably wouldn't be able to afford a real firearm, anyway. He's probably around 19 and likely works at the snack bar of a local arcade or game-room (around mid-90s here).

As far as why he needs an improved Guns default - well, the short answer to that is 'He doesn't', but I'd like the character to have SOME sort of useful party-utility skill. Games (Arcade Shooters) and Current Events (Technology) aren't much use when bullets start flying.

Also, it's his first character, and I want to let him make one that he has some familiarity with. He's never RPG'd before, and I think to let him make a Space Marine or a Intervention Service agent might be a reach, just until he gets familiar with the system. Additionally, I want a character that, for him, doesn't feel *completely* useless, and if he doesn't feel completely useless, he'll put himself in a dicey situation, and I'll be able to murder the character with little justification so he can make a better one when he gets more used to the system.

And my games tend to be a little more realistic, or at least psuedo-realism.

[copeab]

Originally Posted by JanMikal

And my games tend to be a little more realistic, or at least psuedo-realism.

It really sounds like you are running an action-oriented campaign, which given a realistic approach, makes slacker a rather poor character choice. He needs to either buy real combat skills or accept a non-combat role.