Breaking down sciences and technical skills

[redwalker]

I'm considering modifying Traveller skill rules for a new campaign.

Rather than the standard cascade, I was thinking of starting from the hierarchy in Wikipedia for pure sciences. Engineering would be a sticky wicket, and technical skills would be stickier still. Going from Mech and Elec to a variety of skills promises to be an involved, detailed exercise.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_academic_disciplines

Also, if this gets off the ground, there will be very different rules for graduate school in the sciences and even in medicine.

Odds for it getting off the ground are unknown.

 

[aramis]

I think you are unlikely to find it workable in play if you go past the first layer...

YMMV.

 

[Pickles]

The trend among most new gamers as well as those long in the tooth is for reducing the number of skills. I'm not sure what benefits you would gain from your proposed system.

 

[redwalker]

Originally posted by the Bromgrev:
The trend among most new gamers as well as those long in the tooth is for reducing the number of skills. I'm not sure what benefits you would gain from your proposed system.

I'm having a hard time motivating myself to come up with campaigns and recruit players for more of the same space opera. I need some harder sci-fi and tech to get the juices flowing.

The problem is I also need players who feel the same way.

Like I said, this kind of proposition is hard to even get off the ground.

A stop-gap is the ruleset found in Challenge #29
... that allows scientists who get into grad school to pick a major at level 3 and a minor at 1, then add a level to each if they roll honors.

The hard sciences in that article are Astronomy, Chemistry, Geology, Cryonics, Mathematics, Physics, Meteorology.

Somehow randomly rolling a scientist who gets stuck with Cryonics skill makes me want more from Traveller. Possibly I should try the T5 preview rules...

 

[redwalker]

On reflection, it's not that I need to have a huge cascade of possible skills. If anything, I need to reduce the number of skills (e.g. collapsing Communications skill into Computer, Elec, and Physics).

BUT I do need a huge list of examples that I can hand to my players to show them (e.g.) which skills would be needed to bounce a radio signal off the walls of a canyon and hit a satellite.

 

[redwalker]

On reflection, it's not that I need to have a huge cascade of possible skills. If anything, I need to reduce the number of skills (e.g. collapsing Communications skill into Computer, Elec, and Physics).

BUT I do need a huge list of examples that I can hand to my players to show them (e.g.) which skills would be needed to bounce a radio signal off the walls of a canyon and hit a satellite.

 

[GypsyComet]

On reflection, it's not that I need to have a huge cascade of possible skills. If anything, I need to reduce the number of skills (e.g. collapsing Communications skill into Computer, Elec, and Physics).

BUT I do need a huge list of examples that I can hand to my players to show them (e.g.) which skills would be needed to bounce a radio signal off the walls of a canyon and hit a satellite.

It is a mistake to view Traveller skills as mutually exclusive. Someone with Commo effectively has a little Comp, Elec, and Physics, just as someone with Cryonics has a little Engineering, Medical, Electronics, and Chemistry. Engineering, for that matter, is situational combination of Electronics, Mechanics, Chemistry, Cryonics, Gravitics, Gunnery, and Physics (and arguably some Diplomacy). The skillset is a flowing continuum.

 

[Fritz_Brown]

Gypsy, I have retained that in my muck-about with the CT/MT system. There are a lot of notes about "Could be used as Basketweaving at a disadvantage." I have broken out Engineering and Mechanics into cascades, though. (And, placed a few regular skills under them.) There are only 6 under each, though, and they are broad.

 

[Pickles]

Though I could never get into GURPS as a system, there were many innovative bits I liked. Skill defaulting was one of them. Fritz's take is also how I view Traveller skills, as non-mutually exclusive.

 

[redwalker]

Though I could never get into GURPS as a system, there were many innovative bits I liked. Skill defaulting was one of them. Fritz's take is also how I view Traveller skills, as non-mutually exclusive.

I guess my experiences haven't convinced me of that any way of handling skills is particularly good for me in all circumstances.

Much as I love Classic Traveller, its rules for skills strike me as a somewhat weak point. When I was running it regularly, I always tried to tinker ... and I never attained satisfaction.