CT Only: Player Career Choice

[aramis]

Automation running amuck shows up quite a bit.

2001 A Space Odyssey:


WarGames:


RoboCop:


I, Robot:


Eagle Eye:

While I'm not pulling quotes, several other good Sci-Fi examples exist...

Star Trek TOS, I, Mudd, The Ultimate Computer, , The Apple, Return of the Archons, What Are Little Girls Made Of?

Space: Above and Beyond - there are two enemy groups - the Chigs, and the AI's. The AI's are, for shooting convenience, very human looking. And they rebelled against the humans.

 

[Ulsyus]

I am not a fan of using mis-jumps either, as that means that the players are being tossed into a situation which they have not prepared for in advance. The object of the game is for the players to have fun and enjoy it.

And being tossed into a situation for which one is not entirely prepared doesn't happen all the time? I'd contend that players, and PCs, are uniquely prepared for the unexpected, situations requiring problem solving which can be explored in the comfort of the gaming environment. Fun might also be a subjective thing...

While I'm not pulling quotes, several other good Sci-Fi examples exist....

Don't forget Blade Runner/Do Androids Dream... A great example of the devices not working as planned!

 

[Timerover51]

And being tossed into a situation for which one is not entirely prepared doesn't happen all the time? I'd contend that players, and PCs, are uniquely prepared for the unexpected, situations requiring problem solving which can be explored in the comfort of the gaming environment. Fun might also be a subjective thing...

On May 22, 1976, I was on a picnic with my former platoon at Ft. Richardson, Alaska, playing baseball and having a great time. On May 23, 1976, I woke up with a left foot that looked like a purple balloon and was extremely painful, sufficient that I could not put weight on it. That was a Sunday. On sick call Monday morning, the Ft. Richardson health clinic took one look and immediately sent me to the Elmendorf Air Force Base hospital with a suspected case of phlebitis. May 23rd was also my ninth month anniversary of being married. Phlebitis test the next day showed nothing amiss. On June 14th, 1976, I began to have discomfort and discoloration in my right foot, and by June 21, 1976, my right foot resembled my left foot. On June 23rd, Dr. Richard Gaston at the Elmendorf AFB Hospital made a diagnosis of Erythomelalgia, with no real good outlook. I spent my first anniversary at Madigan Army Hospital at Fort Lewis, Washington, get a lumbar nerve block in my lower back in an attempt to relieve the problem. I flew to Ft. Lewis, strapped in a stretcher, in the back of a C-141. I have spent three days flying from Elmendorf AFB to Andrews AFB outside of Washington, D. C. strapped to a stretcher. I have spent ten months in essentially a hospital bed until an off-the-wall medication that should not have worked did work, and I was able to walk a bit again. I was placed on the temporary retired list for disability in July of 1978, at the ripe old age of 26, being permanently retired in September of 1980. I have also had to bury my first-born son, who birthday was December 16, 1984. This makes Christmas Time to be a bit bittersweet.

I am all to well aware from my background of how unexpected things can occur. I have been dealing with that most of my life. That is why I will not tolerate it in a game, which is in theory, recreation. I guess you can take the view that a "real man" would simply "suck" all of that up and ignore it. If that is your viewpoint, then feel free to view me a not a 'real man".

Also, how many of you enjoy dealing with 'run amok" computers are your work? Do you jump and down for joy at having to deal with the unexpected? If you do not, why not? Or is it only fun when someone else has to deal with it? My wife has to deal with them all of the time at work. She emphatically DOES NOT enjoy the experience, and I spend a lot of time listening to the problems. No, it is not fun for me knowing that she is having major problems, as it wears her down a lot. This does mean a lot of nice dinners to try and compensate for the work problems.

 

[GypsyComet]

My wife has to deal with them all of the time at work.

I am reminded of two things here:

A gaming couple I played a lot with back in the 80s included a very hands-on guy with a physical job, and his accountant wife. He loved the crunchy systems with lots of numbers, while she really wanted to not look at numbers while playing, or at least not have to do a lot of in-game number crunching.

More recently, in the endless stream of Twitter post pics being passed around like a meme whirlwind, came the rather curmudgeonly (paraphrased) "I get paid to be friendly and polite to people for hours at a time, but for some reason my relatives expect that for free."

As for the original question: No. My usual group is a motley bunch with very different backgrounds. PC career diversity isn't a problem.

 

[Leitz]

On May 22, 1976, I was on a picnic with my former platoon at Ft. Richardson, Alaska

That makes you old.

That is why I will not tolerate it in a game, which is in theory, recreation. I guess you can take the view that a "real man" would simply "suck" all of that up and ignore it.

Yes and no. I work with the players on the story, and there are some incidents in the story that really really stink. Or appear to. atpollard can chime in if he wants.

What I've started doing is setting the stage OOC. I'll even send spoilers over if it's going to be very bad. In return I get a player that knows it's not the end of the world even if it seems so, and they can contribute to the story in character. They still get the depth without the personal trauma.

That's the goal, anyway.

I've hit enough crap in life myself, I don't game for it.

 

[Timerover51]

That makes you old.

I believe that I am one of the oldest members of the forum, but it appears that I am younger than Marc by 4 years. What does that make him?

 

[Ex_Pendable]

For a classic Star Trek game, I saw a gm yelling at a player because his engineer character didn't have any transporter skills. The GM felt that the transporter skill was implied as necessary but hadn't told the player that was something he wanted in his engineers.

What I see as probably the closest show to my style of playing Traveller as the "tramp spacer" mentioned in the opening post is the short-lived series "Firefly".

In the episode, Out of Gas, we see how some of the current crew winds up joining the ship. Mal and Zoe were rebel soldiers who decide to buy a ship together. But instead of taking the ship the salesman was showing them, Mal decides to buy the old Firefly ship, whose condition Zoe describes as a "death trap".

They interview a pilot, Wash, whose has the skills clearly and seems to have join the crew just to get closer to Zoe.

Kaylee really loves engines and knows her stuff, being able to quickly fix the engine that their then mechanic had told the captain couldn't be repaired.

Jayne is enticed away from the bandits that boarded the ship with the promise of his own private quarters, as he was sick of hot bunking.


Diverse backgrounds are fine, but at the same time, they have to fit the needs of the ship. You need a pilot, you need an engineer, you need a captain, etc.

Getting a lot of soldiers applying for positions? As long as you communicate to your players the sort of skills you're looking for, where they came from doesn't really matter as long as they have the skills you need. An Army Quartermaster can be the ship's Cargo Master. A marine medic can be the ship's doctor.

But if you're getting a dozen applicants for the same slot, you have to explain you're only picking the one whose best suited for the position, and by the way, we still need a pilot. There has to be both communication and some give and take.

And if you still wind up with empty slots, well, as I said before, replace with some NPC hirelings that must be paid regularly and before your player characters get paid, and will quit the crew if conditions get bad. This may encourage one of your players to write up a new character to take the open slot - even if you have to create the opening.

 

[ShawnDriscoll]

I never ask players what skills their characters have. And I never tell players that their characters need to have such-and-such skills for a game session. I don't believe in "balanced parties", or "parties" period. I want random characters chargened and brought to the game.

The only thing I'll ask from the players before starting any game is what kind of style/mood/theme are they looking for from the game. Then I'll match things up with whatever favorite movie the players agree would set a good tone for the session.

The players then do whatever they want. I'm just a referee. I don't ever tell players what their characters are doing or saying or thinking or feeling, etc. The players can decide those things for themselves.

 

[kilemall]

While I'm not pulling quotes, several other good Sci-Fi examples exist...

Star Trek TOS, I, Mudd, The Ultimate Computer, , The Apple, Return of the Archons, What Are Little Girls Made Of?

Space: Above and Beyond - there are two enemy groups - the Chigs, and the AI's. The AI's are, for shooting convenience, very human looking. And they rebelled against the humans.

On Space Above and Beyond, don't forget the Tanks, the organic replacement for the AIs.

 

[Ulsyus]

And if you still wind up with empty slots, well, as I said before, replace with some NPC hirelings that must be paid regularly and before your player characters get paid, and will quit the crew if conditions get bad. This may encourage one of your players to write up a new character to take the open slot - even if you have to create the opening.

My last group crewed a subsidised merchant. They picked up an NPC passenger on a lower-tech world. Think Oliver Reed's Athos from the '73 Three Musketeers. He was lively, entertaining, and engaging with the other passengers and over a couple of jumps entertained them with stories, fencing lessons, and other enjoyable pastimes. He taught himself to use a modern firearm, which was handy as he, like Athos, was a top shot with a black powder pistol. He came in handy dockside a couple of times, and when he ran out of money for passage, they hired him on as a "cargo master".

That was a really enjoyable time collaborating with the players on the fate of an NPC who came to fill a gap in the crew roster, helping out with a number of tasks that their skills didn't quite cover.

 

[whartung]

Also, how many of you enjoy dealing with 'run amok" computers are your work? Do you jump and down for joy at having to deal with the unexpected? If you do not, why not?

Depends on the situation, doesn't it?

Sometimes you can laugh at this stuff, sometimes you can't. Some people are better able at coping with this stuff than others.

From a game point of view, whether its a computer running amok or a flange gasket rupturing, there is always something out of the control of the players, DESPITE their best preparations, that throws a wrench in to their works and sends a plan off the rails.

I shan't recollect the week I spent in the hospital following an appendicitis beyond simply detailing that trust me, that wasn't in the plans at all. One day I was buying a ladder to swap out a fire detector battery, next day I'm in surgery and bed ridden for a week due to fever.

Thankfully that happened at home, and not during some week long trek in the Sierras.

 

[coliver988]

Depends on the situation, doesn't it?

Sometimes you can laugh at this stuff, sometimes you can't. Some people are better able at coping with this stuff than others.

From a game point of view, whether its a computer running amok or a flange gasket rupturing, there is always something out of the control of the players, DESPITE their best preparations, that throws a wrench in to their works and sends a plan off the rails.

I shan't recollect the week I spent in the hospital following an appendicitis beyond simply detailing that trust me, that wasn't in the plans at all. One day I was buying a ladder to swap out a fire detector battery, next day I'm in surgery and bed ridden for a week due to fever.

Thankfully that happened at home, and not during some week long trek in the Sierras.

I had my appendicitis but apparently heal fast and fortunately no fever - out of the hospital 12 hours after surgery, took 1 day off, worked from home the next, and managed to get to the office 3 days after surgery. Now, getting up out of my seat was slower...

But back to how players react differently - it also depends on how much of it is under your control, or you have no bearing or responsibility for the incident so another gets the brunt of the effects. I know at work when something goes amok and it is not my fault and I can't do anything about it, I remain calm. If it is my fault, and/or my responsibility...lets just say you do not want me when bad things happen as I sadly do not react well under pressure. My characters, on the other hand, can maintain a calm demeanor most of the time. Sometimes even play up the comic effect.

 

[Ulsyus]

My characters, on the other hand, can maintain a calm demeanor most of the time. Sometimes even play up the comic effect.

Years ago when we played 2300 AD we used Coolness Under Fire for tests to remain calm, as such, when the characters were in a firefight. It was a really useful skill in that regard. Though it didn't mean that every veteran was always in control, they were far more likely to be than the Engineer who was out of his depth in those situations.

Having typed that, you could use the character's primary skill for dealing with the task as a modifier for staying calm: the more they understand the situation and the more chance they have to influence it, the more they could keep their stuff all together. What stat would you use though - a constant one or the stat associated normally with that task?

 

[kilemall]

Years ago when we played 2300 AD we used Coolness Under Fire for tests to remain calm, as such, when the characters were in a firefight. It was a really useful skill in that regard. Though it didn't mean that every veteran was always in control, they were far more likely to be than the Engineer who was out of his depth in those situations.

Having typed that, you could use the character's primary skill for dealing with the task as a modifier for staying calm: the more they understand the situation and the more chance they have to influence it, the more they could keep their stuff all together. What stat would you use though - a constant one or the stat associated normally with that task?

An excellent point- Mr. CUF might find a high SOC event to be far more terrifying because he doesn't have the SOC background or Liaison skill.

A barbarian without even Admin-0 might find an encounter with the local bureaucracy tougher then a Blatbeast.

 

[khadaji2002]

An excellent point- Mr. CUF might find a high SOC event to be far more terrifying because he doesn't have the SOC background or Liaison skill.

A barbarian without even Admin-0 might find an encounter with the local bureaucracy tougher then a Blatbeast.

This is an intriguing idea. Knee-jerk reaction to the last two posts has me thinking that when under stress and trying to accomplish a task you roll a check to see if you keep your focus on the job at hand. The check modifier matches the skill modifier you're working with. So an engineer trying to keep his cool while repairing the jump drive during ship combat may very well have a positive bonus to his focus roll (as he knows exactly what needs to be done and has years of training working on this drive), that same engineer facing a boarding party amidships might be facing a stiff negative penalty to stay focused and fight or run to a safe location. (In the latter case I would work with the player to determine the character's action if the roll failed, such as fleeing in a random direction or freezing as his mind tries to sort through options).

Very interesting idea. I'll have to find a setting to test if that adds to the role-playing experience or just adds another unwanted roll to combat.

 

[Timerover51]

This is an intriguing idea. Knee-jerk reaction to the last two posts has me thinking that when under stress and trying to accomplish a task you roll a check to see if you keep your focus on the job at hand. The check modifier matches the skill modifier you're working with. So an engineer trying to keep his cool while repairing the jump drive during ship combat may very well have a positive bonus to his focus roll (as he knows exactly what needs to be done and has years of training working on this drive), that same engineer facing a boarding party amidships might be facing a stiff negative penalty to stay focused and fight or run to a safe location. (In the latter case I would work with the player to determine the character's action if the roll failed, such as fleeing in a random direction or freezing as his mind tries to sort through options).

Very interesting idea. I'll have to find a setting to test if that adds to the role-playing experience or just adds another unwanted roll to combat.

I vote another "unwanted die roll in combat." I am not a fan of reaction rolls. I let the human player figure out what they are doing, not the die roll.

How would you handle it if the die roll says "stay and fight" when the actual human player wants to find a safe place to stay out of the way of bullets and assorted other incoming stuff?

 

[Supplement Four]

I love reaction rolls....sometimes.

Rolling reaction enforces the idea with players that you, as Ref, are impartial. You rolled the reaction of the NPC and not made up what you wanted.

That's said, I don't always use the reaction chart.

 

[khadaji2002]

I vote another "unwanted die roll in combat." I am not a fan of reaction rolls. I let the human player figure out what they are doing, not the die roll.

How would you handle it if the die roll says "stay and fight" when the actual human player wants to find a safe place to stay out of the way of bullets and assorted other incoming stuff?

I would not make a player's character stay and fight. The flip side of that is the player is sitting at a table enjoying a game. The character is in the middle of a very stressful situation. How do we handle that difference? Again, I'm not sure this would enhance the game which is why I will look for a likely time to try this in a game and see how it works. If it adds to the game I'll run with it, and if it just bogs things down I'll jettison it. I personally believe it's worth the attempt.

ymmv

 

[Supplement Four]

I would not make a player's character stay and fight.

I wouldn't either. Reaction rolls and morale rolls are for NPCs only.

I miss games without reaction rolls. My current Conan RPG game, based on 3.5E d20, doesn't have a reaction roll. The game has a Diplomacy skill and a way of dicing the change in an NPC's attitude, but the GM must first select a starting attitude for the NPC.

I really like random rolling, with modifiers for such and such, the attitudes of NPCs. I find that fun. Kind of a way a GM plays the game.

 

[khadaji2002]

I wasn't referring to a reaction roll as in "You like this person" or "You feel violently hostile to this person". I was referring to "Coolness Under Fire" that some game systems have used in the past. I like the idea of expanding that idea to situations other than straight combat. That's what I've been talking about.