Water Bob
2015-08-30, 10:35 PM
Hello fellow game obsess-ees!
I've got something that I want to put up for discussion as I think about it for my game. I'm always interested in the thoughts of other gamers and GMs.
We play the Conan RPG, which is based on (and not exactly like) 3.5 d20. This means that there is not a lot of sorcery in the game world--so, I'm not really interested in responses that consider that angle. But, from a purely melee combat point of view, maybe you can help me think about this.
Tonight, I rolled up a new character for the campaign with a new player coming into the game. The player is a long-time roleplayer with d20 3.5 experience from long ago, but he's never played our game--Mongoose's Conan RPG.
He rolled up a Soldier. This class is akin (though quite different than) the D&D Fighter (warrior, whatever).
One of the class skills for this class is Knowledge (Warfare).
And, the player asked me, "How can I use it in a game?"
Well, it's never come up in any of my Conan games. In fact, this being my second Conan campaign, I've never had anyone play a Soldier character before. I was not prepared for the question. I answered that the skill would be used for questions that pop up in the game about Warfare. Obviously, right?
He wanted to know if there were any tangible benefits to make a Knowledge (Warfare) check. I told him no, but I also told him to let me think on this a bit.
Remember, my game doesn't have a lot of sorcery/magic. That means there's no Bless Spells, no Protection From Evil Spells, no Armor spells, and so on. But, what the game does have is more mundane uses for skills that can sometimes translate into a tangible benefit in the game. For example, if a character makes a Craft check and uses a whetstone, then the character can increase his Critical Threat range with the weapon by one up until his first successful attack.
Something I've added to the game, thinking that an Army travels on its stomach, is a Profession (Cooking) check. A character must spend coin on spices and carry cooking utensils, but if he makes his check when he makes the meal, all who eat it can get a +1 modifier to any single attack, save, or skill check for the next 4 hours. It's a simple +1 morale modifier used on only one throw--a simple thing--but is fun in our group.
Along the same lines, I'm wondering about Knowledge (Warfare). Now, the skill is used in one of the supplementary books that focuses on large scale battles and Mercenaries. The skill is mainly used to identify monsters. And, that's about it.
I am knocking around the idea of making the skill kind of a Tactics skill where the character can make a check, say, once per combat, where, if successful, a +1 modifier is available in a pool for any allied character within earshot to use. It would be a single +1 modifier, "given" to a single character, anytime during the combat (as long as the Soldier is conscious and can give such commands), and the modifier can be used on any skill check, attack, or save made by the character who receives it. Or, the Soldier can use it himself.
I'm thinking the check itself would be a Standard Action. The Soldier has to take in the battlefield, think, and bark the command.
What are your thoughts on that?
Think it's a good idea?
Or, should I leave the skill alone?
I've got something that I want to put up for discussion as I think about it for my game. I'm always interested in the thoughts of other gamers and GMs.
We play the Conan RPG, which is based on (and not exactly like) 3.5 d20. This means that there is not a lot of sorcery in the game world--so, I'm not really interested in responses that consider that angle. But, from a purely melee combat point of view, maybe you can help me think about this.
Tonight, I rolled up a new character for the campaign with a new player coming into the game. The player is a long-time roleplayer with d20 3.5 experience from long ago, but he's never played our game--Mongoose's Conan RPG.
He rolled up a Soldier. This class is akin (though quite different than) the D&D Fighter (warrior, whatever).
One of the class skills for this class is Knowledge (Warfare).
And, the player asked me, "How can I use it in a game?"
Well, it's never come up in any of my Conan games. In fact, this being my second Conan campaign, I've never had anyone play a Soldier character before. I was not prepared for the question. I answered that the skill would be used for questions that pop up in the game about Warfare. Obviously, right?
He wanted to know if there were any tangible benefits to make a Knowledge (Warfare) check. I told him no, but I also told him to let me think on this a bit.
Remember, my game doesn't have a lot of sorcery/magic. That means there's no Bless Spells, no Protection From Evil Spells, no Armor spells, and so on. But, what the game does have is more mundane uses for skills that can sometimes translate into a tangible benefit in the game. For example, if a character makes a Craft check and uses a whetstone, then the character can increase his Critical Threat range with the weapon by one up until his first successful attack.
Something I've added to the game, thinking that an Army travels on its stomach, is a Profession (Cooking) check. A character must spend coin on spices and carry cooking utensils, but if he makes his check when he makes the meal, all who eat it can get a +1 modifier to any single attack, save, or skill check for the next 4 hours. It's a simple +1 morale modifier used on only one throw--a simple thing--but is fun in our group.
Along the same lines, I'm wondering about Knowledge (Warfare). Now, the skill is used in one of the supplementary books that focuses on large scale battles and Mercenaries. The skill is mainly used to identify monsters. And, that's about it.
I am knocking around the idea of making the skill kind of a Tactics skill where the character can make a check, say, once per combat, where, if successful, a +1 modifier is available in a pool for any allied character within earshot to use. It would be a single +1 modifier, "given" to a single character, anytime during the combat (as long as the Soldier is conscious and can give such commands), and the modifier can be used on any skill check, attack, or save made by the character who receives it. Or, the Soldier can use it himself.
I'm thinking the check itself would be a Standard Action. The Soldier has to take in the battlefield, think, and bark the command.
What are your thoughts on that?
Think it's a good idea?
Or, should I leave the skill alone?