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Stat + Skill system


badcat

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I found an obscure percentile rpg from the nineties that uses a fairly unique method (as far as I know) of combining stat plus skill to arrive at base percentages for final skill totals. Is anyone here interested in something like that? I don't know what all the options are in the new BRP book, but I do know that not everyone is happy with the usual BRP ways of doing it. This is not a BRP system (it is radically different in combat) but the skill system would be a good addition to a game for anyone who likes to have a system wherein the stats have more 'say' in the total skill percentage than in most every BRP variant I can think of. It's a really neat little variant, too; if anyone here wants to know more, holler.

Of course, some of you may already be aware of this game. 'Legend of Yore'. It had a very short run in the late nineties due a rather horrible binding job. My copy essentially disintegrated when I opened it the first time, so I took it to Kinkos and got a coil binding. It was worth the trouble just for the skill subsystem.

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Dredj, I know they are not rare, but this particular one could be used as a BRP houserule, specifically, easily. Which is why I am sharing it here.

OK, Trif, in a nutshell:

Roll up the stats as you normally do. In Legend, they are

Strength

Constitution

Agility

Willpower

Knowledge

Perception

Beauty

Legend uses 2D10 in order, add points to taste up to a total of 90. Very similar to standard BRP roll ups.

Then you might have;

STR 9

CON 10

AGI 11

WIL 22

KNO 18

PER 11

BTY 9

Next compare the scores with this chart:

2 5%

3-4 10%

5-6 15%

7-8 20%

9-10 25%

11-12 30%

13-14 35%

15-16 40%

17-18 45%

19-20 50%

21-22 55%

23-24 60%

etc., to a max of thirty

Then, add 5% per skill rank to the base score of the stat associated with the skill, and that is the beginning skill percentage. Most skills have 10 ranks.

I rolled this character up (stats above, skills below) to see how it worked, and wound up with the following background skills:

Native language 5 70%

Lying 1 60%

Play Instrument 1 35%

Cook 1 50%

Drink Alcohol 1 30%

Bargain 2 65%

Bribery 2 65%

This is a shopkeeper background. Then you add a bunch of professional skills, and after that a set of secondary skills (read 'miscellaneous skills' in Stormbringer or 'hobby skills' in CoC).

You could fit this into any BRP game, and I have a hunch the characters would be both more balanced and competent than in most BRP games extant. Also note that this would be a nearly seamless method to insert a full skill set in to RQ2, for instance set up for the special/critical levels (20/5%) already.

An option for game cannibals, like me.:D

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Then, add 5% per skill rank to the base score of the stat associated with the skill, and that is the beginning skill percentage. Most skills have 10 ranks.

I didn't get that bit. Skill ranks? What are they, were do you get them and how many, how do you use them etc. :P

SGL.

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That is it. Skill ranks are simply +5% per rank to the base. Each skill has a base cost in experience, and that cost times rank being purchased is the total cost per rank. Harder skills have higher base costs.

For example; Spell Casting has a base cost of 5, Cook has a base cost of 2. So they progress as;

Spell Casting: 5,10,15,20,25,30,35,40,45,50

Cook: 2,4,6,8,10,12,14,16,20

You fulfill any training requirements the GM asks for, pay the experience, and add 5% to the skill total.

In the example above, Cook is Knowledge based so 45 base plus one level. If the skill was not taken, default is base minus cost times 5, or 35% for this pc to 'cook' with no skill level.

There is a very comprehensive skill list with base cost, controlling stat, and descriptions. New pcs get a background, professional, and secondary skill list and total them. It's a basic 'life path' skill system. The base costs range from 2 to 5.

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Dredj, I know they are not rare, but this particular one could be used as a BRP houserule, specifically, easily. Which is why I am sharing it here.

Yeah, after I posted I realized you were probably talking about something that was a bit different. It does look like a very interesting system you found. I was actually wondering if there was something out there like you are describing. It's nice to know that stats can have more clout that they are generally afforded.

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I'm still a BRP fan, but I like skill systems that take 'native ability' into consideration where skills are concerned, myself. I think I am going to use this with my next game. Up until now, my go to skill system has been the old Stormbringer 1st ed. skill set, but I was never 100% satisfied with it. And downright unhappy with the CoC or Elric! skill sets even though those two games have consisted of 90% of my GMing career.

Legend of Yore is still available at Noble Knight for ten bucks, that makes it about 15 to 20 after it gets rebound. And you would have to. The glue binding is totally rotten, mine just simply disinegrated as soon as I opened it. That was a shock, because the book looked fine just laying there.

Other than skills the rules are...different. The author departed from a purely percentile ruleset after the skill section. However, there are many good ideas in the rest of the book. It really is a good resource all around for anyone who uses BRP in general. It has a very good magic section, with a logical way to integrate divine magic (not like RQ, more like a D&D style clerical magic by 'domain'), RQ2 style hit points, humanoid monsters as PCs, some other stuff. With all that, the combat system involves subtracting defense from attack and consulting a chart *wince*. I have no idea why. And the author thought it a good idea to include a couple or three other things to keep track of like endurance and 'pain'. It is an intriguing mix of old and new. But the good parts are very good.

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