Father Fletch
SOC-12
This is an idea I had for making the character background more detailed while keeping things at the same level of points overall.
Instead of rolling for assignment, survival, commission, promotion, decoration, cash bonus and xp bonus every 4 years have the players roll for every year.
When they fail a survival roll, make the result last only ¼ the time for things like imprisonment. Survival rolls only gain 1000xp per year. Given the nature of making survival rolls exactly and earning 1000 xp, either have them make only one per 4-year term or divide the total by 4.
If they receive a promotion at any time within a 4-year period, they cannot receive it again. This will keep the total ranks achieved at an equitable level. If cash or xp bonuses are received divide the results by 4. Decorations and awards can have their total xp divided by 4 or you could rule that they can only achieve one per 4-year term.
The reason and benefit for me as a GM of altering character generation this way is to allow younger characters that still have detailed backgrounds and age appropriate xp levels. I have a house rule that one cannot play a character more than 18 years older than the player. Maturity issue, waived on a case-by-case basis. This might be most useful for GM’s with younger players that really cannot play 45-year-old veteran merchants with any degree of believability.
Another reason is for those of you who simply want more details to flesh out the characters background history. It also allows those marines and starmen to have more detailed career backgrounds. I certainly remember all those Book 4 characters with 5 Combat service ribbons, an MCUF, and a couple of purple hearts after only two terms. Much harder to do in T20 with only one assignment per 4 years.
This also allows players to career hop quicker, making for younger multiclassed characters with great breadth but less depth.
Only grant mustering out benefits for 4-year terms served to completion. As GM you could allow the player to roll for benefits on the career table in which they spent the most time within a 4 year term, or simply allow them to choose one, but only one. I would also limit the number of times they roll for commission and promotion to only be once per 4-year term, regardless of the number of careers they enter. The usual xp, level, and prerequisites for multiclassing would still apply.
Remember that the main goal is to create character background detail while keeping the xp, cash, and material benefits the same.
Instead of rolling for assignment, survival, commission, promotion, decoration, cash bonus and xp bonus every 4 years have the players roll for every year.
When they fail a survival roll, make the result last only ¼ the time for things like imprisonment. Survival rolls only gain 1000xp per year. Given the nature of making survival rolls exactly and earning 1000 xp, either have them make only one per 4-year term or divide the total by 4.
If they receive a promotion at any time within a 4-year period, they cannot receive it again. This will keep the total ranks achieved at an equitable level. If cash or xp bonuses are received divide the results by 4. Decorations and awards can have their total xp divided by 4 or you could rule that they can only achieve one per 4-year term.
The reason and benefit for me as a GM of altering character generation this way is to allow younger characters that still have detailed backgrounds and age appropriate xp levels. I have a house rule that one cannot play a character more than 18 years older than the player. Maturity issue, waived on a case-by-case basis. This might be most useful for GM’s with younger players that really cannot play 45-year-old veteran merchants with any degree of believability.
Another reason is for those of you who simply want more details to flesh out the characters background history. It also allows those marines and starmen to have more detailed career backgrounds. I certainly remember all those Book 4 characters with 5 Combat service ribbons, an MCUF, and a couple of purple hearts after only two terms. Much harder to do in T20 with only one assignment per 4 years.
This also allows players to career hop quicker, making for younger multiclassed characters with great breadth but less depth.
Only grant mustering out benefits for 4-year terms served to completion. As GM you could allow the player to roll for benefits on the career table in which they spent the most time within a 4 year term, or simply allow them to choose one, but only one. I would also limit the number of times they roll for commission and promotion to only be once per 4-year term, regardless of the number of careers they enter. The usual xp, level, and prerequisites for multiclassing would still apply.
Remember that the main goal is to create character background detail while keeping the xp, cash, and material benefits the same.
