Ordinary People: Characters [0] to [-50]

[Mysterious Dark Lord v3.2]

Originally Posted by Gold & Appel Inc

Expert Skills seem a little excessive for this guy's needs. Unless he has an extremely comprehensive interest in the above topics and needs to be able to answer hard questions about the relevant History, Economics, etc, then an Average-difficulty Pro Skill would probably suffice for both. Considering his restricted diet I'd probably even allow Cooking (Op Spec: Preparing Fresh Meat For Immediate Raw Consumption) instead of Butcher since all he has to do is get it off the bone and to his mouth, not handle it safely in compliance with local statutes, package for sale, etc.

The Butcher one ... perhaps. He would have learned it "at his mama's knee", so to speak, and for maximum frshness, he would have to kill it at the table. More complicated than it sounds. But perhaps a specialized form of cooking could accommodate it.

As for the other Professional skill, I'm probably understating it. I've been a bookkeeper for about 18 years now and have had to work with the bloodless ghouls ... um, the friendly helpful IRS agents (*grit teeth*) on a few occasions. Their knowledge of even the most obscure statutes, precedents, and references would make Mr. Spock accuse them of anal-retentive obsession. That one stays.

[Mysterious Dark Lord v3.2]

Originally Posted by tbrock1031

I guess there's no butcher shop where he lives that's throwing away most of the blood. Or does he require human blood, and can't subsist on cattle and pig's blood?

Freshest possible is right from the spigot. Plus no chemical incompatibility issues.

Count Taxula! "Igor, I'm hungry! Let's go to Congress!"

"Vampire" is the friendliest thing I've heard IRS auditors called.

[Verjigorm]

A Country Boy Can Survive
Robert Heinkel[0pts]
ST 10 HP 13[6]
DX 10 Per 12[10]
IQ 10 Will 10
HT 10 FP 11

Basic Speed: 5.0 Basic Move 5 Dodge 8

No Hangover[1], Alcohol Tolerance[1],

Status -1[-5]; Poor[-15]; Fat[-3]; Alcoholism[-15]; Compulsive gambling [-5]; Delusion(Was a soldier in Iraq)[-5]; Distinctive Features(Thick beard and shaved head)[-1]; Code of Honor(hillbillies)[-5]

survival(Woodland)-14 [8]
Survival(Desert)-12 [2]
Survival(Mountains)-13[4]
Traps(tl?)-19 [2]
Fishing-12 [1]
Guns(Rifles)-12 [8]
Tactics-9 [2]
Carpentry-10 [1]
Farming-10 [1]
Hiking-11[4]9
Code of honor(hillbillies): Generosity(provide for friendly strangers), Protect the weak, Any fight should be "honorable" and declared at the onset of hostilities, Leave simply and frugally from the land(and respect/dislike those who do/do not).

Robert is a strange piece of work. He's tried a hand at helping on farms or building houses, but never seemed to stick to a job much longer than he could afford a decent gun, a tent and maybe a portable stove. Then he would haul off the mountains and forests of North Carolina and Georgia, where he would live by hunting and trapping.

Sometimes, when Robert is drinking(always atleast a 12 pack into encountering him, or half a bottle of whiskey/wine), he'll talk about being a former soldier. It's hard to get definite answers from him, and sometimes one almost thinks he must be a drunken man who blames the army for ruining his life. Sometimes he rambles about being a ranger, or a Recon Marine, or occasionally a special platoon of assassains.

What is remarkable about Robert is that he is capable of living in a lean-to on the Appalachian trail, trading animal meat and skins for extra ammo, propane canisters or stalking the deserts of nevada. He keeps sentimental items like hats, animal totems and the like in a few duffel bags. He is a good shot, and does have some tactical skill, which makes one question his stories. After-all, who uses claymores on deer?.

Robert could be found hitchhiking across the country, or perhaps working for a construction firm in a temporary manner. He always spends his money exactl the same: buy a few long-arms and survival equipment, then head out into the wilderness for as long as possible.

Robert may be an excellent guide to something, or he may be a strong-arm recruited for some nefarious purpose. While generally incapable of socializing with people, Robert isn't any less capable than anyone else, he just lacks training in social graces. Loner could be justified, but I liketo keep it a bit more bones-ish.

Regardless of who he's working for, Robert is ussually drinking. It may be a bottle of whiskey or a cooler full of beer, but Robert will always have some kind of alcohol with him, even if it means chosing less of something else. He will always make a deal for more alcohol, which often leads him to gambling his rifles or shotguns in exchange for alcohol.

Roert can seem like a drunken lout, especially if he's working as a farm laborer or journeyman carpenter. However, when he's "in country", he becomes a exceptionally competent.

[Mgellis]

Originally Posted by Verjigorm

A Country Boy Can Survive
Robert Heinkel[0pts]
ST 10 HP 13[6]
DX 10 Per 12[10]
IQ 10 Will 10
HT 10 FP 11

Basic Speed: 5.0 Basic Move 5 Dodge 8

No Hangover[1], Alcohol Tolerance[1],

Status -1[-5]; Poor[-15]; Fat[-3]; Alcoholism[-15]; Compulsive gambling [-5]; Delusion(Was a soldier in Iraq)[-5]; Distinctive Features(Thick beard and shaved head)[-1]; Code of Honor(hillbillies)[-5]

survival(Woodland)-14 [8]
Survival(Desert)-12 [2]
Survival(Mountains)-13[4]
Traps(tl?)-19 [2]
Fishing-12 [1]
Guns(Rifles)-12 [8]
Tactics-9 [2]
Carpentry-10 [1]
Farming-10 [1]
Hiking-11[4]9
Code of honor(hillbillies): Generosity(provide for friendly strangers), Protect the weak, Any fight should be "honorable" and declared at the onset of hostilities, Leave simply and frugally from the land(and respect/dislike those who do/do not).

Very interesting character. Minor quibble...generally, it should be Status -2 [-10] if someone is Poor [-15], because the income from Poor (x1/5 average) is not enough to support a Status -1 Cost of Living (x1/2 average).

Mark

[Figleaf23]

Originally Posted by tanniynim

Been lurking around for the past few months after I started playing 4e, and hadn't gotten to the point to where I couldn't resist posting to the extent that I'd go and register. But now that this thread is back up to the front page (been reading the whole thing for the past couple of days) I've got to contribute.

I don't like that alot of the characters are built on such low attributes, but it's personal preference. Here's one that I wrote yesterday just for the hell of it.

Viable in her job; No massive/unrealistic disadvantages; Cool, useful ability as a PC or NPC

Jennifer Gosswax - Precog Secretary
Jennifer coasts along in life and doesn't really aspire to much besides paying her bills, watching television, and the occasional night dancing out at the clubs, but she avoids drinking much because she always ends up with terrible hangovers. Her only artistic expression is her constant painting of landscapes- a habit she developed spending time with her now deceased father.
She is constantly beset by frequent migraines (a side effect of her precognitive ability and incurable) and insists on taking the stairs everywhere she goes. Her coworkers praise her for being so health conscious, but it is really her claustrophobia that encourages her to avoid the elevators. She often daydreams, and she is occasionally beset by realistic images that often come true, but Jennifer believes that it is just her overactive imagination and not true precognitive ability. However, she can't help taking the bus the next day after a dream of a car accident or hiding that knife in the break room that she is sure one of her coworkers is going to cut themselves on.

Total [-2] points

Attributes [-10]:
ST 9 [-10], DX 10 [0], IQ 10 [0], HT 10 [0]
HP 9 [0], Will 10 [0], Per 10 [0], FP 10 [0]
Speed 5 [0], Move 5 [0]

Languages [4]:
English (British) Native/Native [0]
Italian Accented/Accented [4]

Advantages [15]:
Precognition (Can't See Own Death -60%) [10]
Fit [5]

...

From the way you describe it, I would suggest that her precog has additional Limitations like Uncontrollable or Unreliable.

[Figleaf23]

Originally Posted by tanniynim

This one was actually pretty hard. I wanted to keep his disadvantages at [-50] or fewer ...

Technically, you have broken that limit because GURPS 4e counts reduced Attributes scores against the Disadvantage limit.

[Figleaf23]

Originally Posted by Rev. Pee Kitty

... Remember that anything worth negative points is a disadvantage, not just the stuff that happens to be in Chapter Three of the Basic Set.

I'm still curious about the rationale for that. If someone has high DX and sells back a level of Move, why is that considered against the limit?

[Figleaf23]

Originally Posted by jacobmuller

Máiré-Ainé Margaret McSorley [10]
Student, 4'8" 110lbs, Age 17
Nickname MAMS but not to her face
Attributes
ST 8 [-20]
DX 10 [0]
IQ 10 [0]
HT 10 [0]
Will 11 [5]
Per 11 [5]
HP 8 [0]
FP 10 [0]

Basic Speed 5
Basic Lift 13 lbs

Advantages
Striking ST+2 (legs only -40%) [6]
Attractive [4]
Fit [5]

Disadvantages
Wealth - Struggling [-10]
Annoying Laugh [-5]
Megalomaniac [-10]

Perks
Shotokan Karate Style [1]
Quirks
Believes she is destined for greatness [-1]
Careful [-1]
Congenial [-1]
Minor Addiction: Chocolate [-1]
Swears by various Saints [-1]

Skills
Acrobatics (DX/H) [4] 10
Computer Operations (IQ/E) [2] 11
First Aid (IQ/E) [1] 10
Hiking (Temperate Climate) (HT/E) [1] 10
Intimidation (Will/A) [2] 11
Irish Language [1] Broken speech
Karate (DX/H) [8] 11
Karate Art (DX/H) [1] 8
Leadership (IQ/H) [1] 8
Make-up TL# (IQ/E) [1] 10
Savoir Faire (Dojo) (IQ/E) [1] 10
Sex Appeal (HT/A) [2] 10
Sociology (IQ/H) [4] 10
Survival (Temperate Forest) (Per/A) [1] 10
Swim (HT/E) [1] 10

Techniques
Kicking H [3] 11
Background
MAMS parents are certain that the End is Nigh. Civilisation Will Fall, yada yada. They've expended a great deal of effort tutoring the Future Leader of Mankind. Meanwhile, MAMS has done well getting as far with her education as she has, considering how little time she has for studying. But then that's why she has Comp Ops, Sex Appeal and Intimidation: if you can't do it, get someone else to do it for you. The ends justify the means, after all ,She Who Will Lead deserves all she can get.

When you build her parents, make sure to include Delusion (Daughter is Highly Capable).

[Figleaf23]

Originally Posted by Verjigorm

A Country Boy Can Survive
Robert Heinkel[0pts]
ST 10 HP 13[6]
DX 10 Per 12[10]
IQ 10 Will 10
HT 10 FP 11

Basic Speed: 5.0 Basic Move 5 Dodge 8

No Hangover[1], Alcohol Tolerance[1],

Status -1[-5]; Poor[-15]; Fat[-3]; Alcoholism[-15]; Compulsive gambling [-5]; Delusion(Was a soldier in Iraq)[-5]; Distinctive Features(Thick beard and shaved head)[-1]; Code of Honor(hillbillies)[-5]

survival(Woodland)-14 [8]
Survival(Desert)-12 [2]
Survival(Mountains)-13[4]
Traps(tl?)-19 [2]
Fishing-12 [1]
Guns(Rifles)-12 [8]
Tactics-9 [2]
Carpentry-10 [1]
Farming-10 [1]
Hiking-11[4]9
Code of honor(hillbillies): Generosity(provide for friendly strangers), Protect the weak, Any fight should be "honorable" and declared at the onset of hostilities, Leave simply and frugally from the land(and respect/dislike those who do/do not).

Robert is a strange piece of work. He's tried a hand at helping on farms or building houses, but never seemed to stick to a job much longer than he could afford a decent gun, a tent and maybe a portable stove. Then he would haul off the mountains and forests of North Carolina and Georgia, where he would live by hunting and trapping.

Sometimes, when Robert is drinking(always atleast a 12 pack into encountering him, or half a bottle of whiskey/wine), he'll talk about being a former soldier. It's hard to get definite answers from him, and sometimes one almost thinks he must be a drunken man who blames the army for ruining his life. Sometimes he rambles about being a ranger, or a Recon Marine, or occasionally a special platoon of assassains.

What is remarkable about Robert is that he is capable of living in a lean-to on the Appalachian trail, trading animal meat and skins for extra ammo, propane canisters or stalking the deserts of nevada. He keeps sentimental items like hats, animal totems and the like in a few duffel bags. He is a good shot, and does have some tactical skill, which makes one question his stories. After-all, who uses claymores on deer?.

Robert could be found hitchhiking across the country, or perhaps working for a construction firm in a temporary manner. He always spends his money exactl the same: buy a few long-arms and survival equipment, then head out into the wilderness for as long as possible.

Robert may be an excellent guide to something, or he may be a strong-arm recruited for some nefarious purpose. While generally incapable of socializing with people, Robert isn't any less capable than anyone else, he just lacks training in social graces. Loner could be justified, but I liketo keep it a bit more bones-ish.

Regardless of who he's working for, Robert is ussually drinking. It may be a bottle of whiskey or a cooler full of beer, but Robert will always have some kind of alcohol with him, even if it means chosing less of something else. He will always make a deal for more alcohol, which often leads him to gambling his rifles or shotguns in exchange for alcohol.

Roert can seem like a drunken lout, especially if he's working as a farm laborer or journeyman carpenter. However, when he's "in country", he becomes a exceptionally competent.

He needs some level of Soldier skill and anything else he would have picked up in Basic Training.

[tanniynim]

Originally Posted by Figleaf23

From the way you describe it, I would suggest that her precog has additional Limitations like Uncontrollable or Unreliable.

Good point. Uncontrollable for sure. Maybe rarely unreliable. It certainly makes it work more like her description, and knocks down her point total a tiny bit more.