How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

My group has decided they want to play a game where they explore an alien planet. I still need to go over the rough details of what they want, but it looks like they will probably be playing the first wave / leaders of a near-future mission to a life-bearing planet, probably fairly earth-like. I'm probably going to invoke an alien McGuffin like the wormhole in Interstellar to get them there, but the planet itself should be fairly scientifically plausible and their equipment not much better than today's.

Given that it's going to cost quite a bit to get them to their destination, I guess the characters should be highly qualified. But what traits are appropriate for the top-100 or so volunteers for a mission like this? How many points should I give them?

I'm thinking of using Action 4: Specialists, but replacing the BAT with something like this:

Attributes: ST 10 [0]; DX 11 [20]; IQ 12 [40]; HT 11 [10].
Secondary Characteristics: Damage 1d-2/1d; BL 20 lbs.; HP 10 [0]; Will 11 [0]; Per 11 [0]; FP 11 [0]; Basic Speed 5.50 [0]; Basic Move 5 [0].
Advantages: 40 points from the BAT list.
Disadvantages: -15 points from the BAT list.
Skills: Free-Fall (A) DX-1 [1]-10; Research (A) IQ [2]-12; Spacer (E) IQ [1]-12; Vacc-Suit (A) DX [1]-10.

Re: How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

Navy Seals are around 300 points, but that includes things like rank and patron that your men may not being paying points for given the campaign premise.

Re: How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

I'm probably going to have Rank as a possible advantage; there will be some NPCs in the expedition and some possibility of support being sent from Earth. I picture it being about as hard to get to as Mars, with some kind of station in orbit around the new planet and supply rockets being launched every few months.

Re: How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

I think of something like 250+ points. There are reasons why they were chosen for such a mission

I've got a question: Why basic template has per 11 and will 11 for 0 points?

Re: How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

It depends a lot on the mission.

A 75 point medical researcher in good health could get a trip to the international space-station to run some experiments, but the people chose for a manned mission to mars will probably be exceptional athletes with multiple-PhDs and a ton of advanced and unique training (probably 350 point range).

Re: How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

Copy and Paste error; should be 12 for both.

Re: How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

NASA astronauts are... pretty impressive people. They're sort of like the high-point special forces characters in that they are always training to maintain high skill levels. So somewhere around 250-300 points seems reasonable.

One of my classmates from medical school graduated from the astronaut program a year ago. So he did four years at West Point, four years of medical school, a three year residency, served a few years in special operations medicine (including Ranger School, HALO, Combat Diver, and Command and General Staff College) and then to top it all off the astronaut candidate program is two years. The candidate program. After that they start real training.

Granted he's a doctor so it looks like a lot of schooling, but when you read the other bios they're just as packed. The pilots tend to be aeronautical engineers, the mission specialists are frighteningly competent scientists, etc., and then they are all intensively cross-trained.

Re: How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

The pilots tend to have extensive air combat training too. Even if it's no particular use to their current job.

The Skil levels can also be very high. Why id Armstrong get the pilot's assignment to Apollo 11? Because some people who were very well informed about the subject thought he was the pilot in (at least) the US. With multiple Specializations and very, very cool in emergency situations too.

Re: How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

If we are assuming a society where space travel is routine, many of the qualifications needed for astronauts will be obsolete. Equally there will be some things, like Diplomacy, Tactics: guerilla, etc(reflecting relations with natives), that modern Astronauts do not need(they do not need to say take me to your leader when the State Department already gave info on who was leading the other nation's party).

Re: How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

Here's the character generation page for a somewhat similar campaign I played in. It was expecting to study entire solar systems rather than one planet in detail, so you may need to tweak the skill lists a bit.

Re: How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

Could always throw in "I payed literally 50% of the mission costs on the condition I get to come along for the ride." So, lots of points into Wealth and business skills, plus a few points of astronaut boot camp, but very little that one would expect would actually be useful for a mission. Plus a disadvantage or two along the lines of Overconfident and Stubborn since nobody could convince him not to make the demand.

Re: How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

As I understand it from reading Chris Hadfield's books about commanding the ISS, everyone needs to be cross-trained on everything that can solve something that might go wrong and still be survivable. They don't all need to be professional doctors and dentists and drivers and dieticians (for example), but they need to know enough to keep the mission going if the professional is no longer able to act. If they don't, then the mission gets scrubbed.

Unless you're using wildcard skills, 300 points might not be enough for all the cross-training. I got the distinct impression that astronauts' skills are gained from training, not from defaults fro IQ and DX.

Re: How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

read "The Martian" the main character was the least qualified member of the mission team, he had multiple Masters Degrees in Botany and Mechanical Engineering (they left that part of the movie), like real astronauts he lacked any serious personalty defects, psychological problems or intellectual challenges and on Sol 1 no physical anomalies that would be considered a disadvantage. this cuts down the potential to pick up extra points from disadvantages forcing up the points total. unless you are going to give out a basic default package of adds for the campaign and charge 0 points for it you are looking at 200 points for the least qualified member of the team or for Ensign Nubie on the USS Endeavor.


from a more advanced star-faring civilization check out GURPS Space or any of the GURPS Traveller books dealing with the Scout Service.

Re: How many points for 'realistic' space explorers?
 

Indeed, the base astronaut template might be 300 points, and then you add 50-100 point specialist lenses on top of that...