Skill: Games (Gurps)

Engurrand · 03-05-2012, 01:38 PM

The GCA program default when you add the "Games" skill to a character is the specialty "GURPS." Chuckle-worthy? Yes. But it also got me thinking. At least a few people on this forum have this skill, so, besides playing GURPS, how do you use it?

I'm looking for real life stories of how being a GURPS player has benefited you. Specific instances please! I don't want aphorisms about the value of escapism etc.

There are two kinds of answers:

1) Where knowledge of the GURPS system specifically (system mastery) has been of benefit.
2) Where in-game experiences (role-play) have informed and/or inspired real life decisions in beneficial ways.

Conversely, has your Games (GURPS) skill ever led you astray?

I think having this skill could be an interesting game mechanic, for particular kinds of games. We're just spitballing. But I also think it will be really fun to read these stories!

Gold & Appel Inc · 03-05-2012, 01:40 PM

The only place that GURPS is useful IRL, IMHO, is in the realm of introspection. Defining yourself in GURPS terms can let you go face-to-face with traits that will make you go, "Wait, does that really Disadvantage me?" and come out on the side of certainty with something resembling math.

Kromm · 03-05-2012, 01:45 PM

It has specifically kept me employed for 17 years.

Gold & Appel Inc · 03-05-2012, 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kromm

It has specifically kept me employed for 17 years.

Writing (and maybe Contacts) has kept you employed for 17 years; Hobby (GURPS) is just a prerequisite. ;]

PK · 03-05-2012, 03:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gold & Appel Inc

Writing (and maybe Contacts) has kept you employed for 17 years; Hobby (GURPS) is just a prerequisite. ;]

No, it'd be fair to say that the job of GURPS Line Editor has prerequisites of both Games (GURPS) and Writing, and that the monthly job roll is made against the lower of these two prerequisites. So both are important. (Contacts, not so much -- I wouldn't say that anyone at SJ Games counted as a Contact at the point in my life where I was offered this job.)

Engurrand · 03-05-2012, 02:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kromm

It has specifically kept me employed for 17 years.

And many more to come!

aesir23 · 03-05-2012, 01:48 PM

I was helping my girlfriend study for the GRE the other day, quizzing her on vocabulary words.

A few of the Kaplan flash cards were familiar to me only because of my RPG experience:

The two I can recall off the top of my head are "Augury" because of GURPS and "Abjure" because of AD&D. I think that I knew "Alacrity" because of an RPG too, but I can't remember which one.

(As you can see, she's still working through the A's, there are probably a great deal more.)

Rocket Man · 03-05-2012, 01:52 PM

It's helped me keep up my speed on long-distance walks sometimes. I know from the game roughly how far a human should be able to go in 25-30 minutes and if I catch myself lollygagging, I can pick up the pace a little.

(The average walking speeds, by the way, definitely pass the reality check based on my experience.)

Fwibos · 03-06-2012, 10:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aesir23

I was helping my girlfriend study for the GRE the other day, quizzing her on vocabulary words.

A few of the Kaplan flash cards were familiar to me only because of my RPG experience:

The two I can recall off the top of my head are "Augury" because of GURPS and "Abjure" because of AD&D. I think that I knew "Alacrity" because of an RPG too, but I can't remember which one.

(As you can see, she's still working through the A's, there are probably a great deal more.)

Alacrity, from the 2nd Ed MET rules for Vampire: The Masquerade?

Most of my vocab comes from role-playing games, and GURPS spring-boarded my love of the Sengoku period. (Yes, GURPS Japan was my first book.) I convinced my dad that they were HISTORY books.

PhoenixPaw · 03-07-2012, 03:01 AM

GURPS 3rd Edition Basic Set (fourth printing) is one of the main reasons my command of this (to me) foreign language is at the native level.

When I started fourth grade at the age of 10 I started learning English in school, but it was slow going. When I got hold of my first GURPS book (the basic set book) and I had a desire to improve my English.

As things stand today, I sometimes switch to speaking English to Swedish friends due to the fact that I find English a more comfortable language to express some ideas in compared to my (real) native tongue.

03-05-2012, 01:38 PM	#1
Engurrand Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Wormtooth Nation	Skill: Games (Gurps) The GCA program default when you add the "Games" skill to a character is the specialty "GURPS." Chuckle-worthy? Yes. But it also got me thinking. At least a few people on this forum have this skill, so, besides playing GURPS, how do you use it? I'm looking for real life stories of how being a GURPS player has benefited you. Specific instances please! I don't want aphorisms about the value of escapism etc. There are two kinds of answers: 1) Where knowledge of the GURPS system specifically (system mastery) has been of benefit. 2) Where in-game experiences (role-play) have informed and/or inspired real life decisions in beneficial ways. Conversely, has your Games (GURPS) skill ever led you astray? I think having this skill could be an interesting game mechanic, for particular kinds of games. We're just spitballing. But I also think it will be really fun to read these stories!

03-05-2012, 01:40 PM	#2
Gold & Appel Inc Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: One Mile Up	Re: Skill: Games (Gurps) The only place that GURPS is useful IRL, IMHO, is in the realm of introspection. Defining yourself in GURPS terms can let you go face-to-face with traits that will make you go, "Wait, does that really Disadvantage me?" and come out on the side of certainty with something resembling math.

03-05-2012, 01:45 PM	#3
Kromm *GURPS* Line Editor Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Montréal, Québec	Re: Skill: Games (Gurps) It has specifically kept me employed for 17 years. __________________ Sean "Dr. Kromm" Punch <kromm@sjgames.com> *GURPS* Line Editor, Steve Jackson Games My DreamWidth [Just *GURPS* News]

03-05-2012, 01:48 PM	#7
aesir23 Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Vermont	Re: Skill: Games (Gurps) I was helping my girlfriend study for the GRE the other day, quizzing her on vocabulary words. A few of the Kaplan flash cards were familiar to me only because of my RPG experience: The two I can recall off the top of my head are "Augury" because of GURPS and "Abjure" because of AD&D. I think that I knew "Alacrity" because of an RPG too, but I can't remember which one. (As you can see, she's still working through the A's, there are probably a great deal more.) __________________ My ongoing thread of GURPS versions of DC Comics characters.

03-05-2012, 01:52 PM	#8
Rocket Man Petitioner: Word of IN Filk Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Longmont, CO	Re: Skill: Games (Gurps) It's helped me keep up my speed on long-distance walks sometimes. I know from the game roughly how far a human should be able to go in 25-30 minutes and if I catch myself lollygagging, I can pick up the pace a little. (The average walking speeds, by the way, definitely pass the reality check based on my experience.) __________________ “It's not railroading if you offer the PCs tickets and they stampede to the box office, waving their money. Metaphorically speaking” --Elizabeth McCoy, In Nomine Line Editor Author: "What Doesn't Kill Me Makes Me Stronger"

03-07-2012, 03:01 AM	#10
PhoenixPaw Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Örebro, Sweden	Re: Skill: Games (Gurps) GURPS 3rd Edition Basic Set (fourth printing) is one of the main reasons my command of this (to me) foreign language is at the native level. When I started fourth grade at the age of 10 I started learning English in school, but it was slow going. When I got hold of my first GURPS book (the basic set book) and I had a desire to improve my English. As things stand today, I sometimes switch to speaking English to Swedish friends due to the fact that I find English a more comfortable language to express some ideas in compared to my (real) native tongue. __________________ This is not the signature you're looking for.