Skill revision?

darren1 · Skill revision?

I've noticed a few skills seam to be getting used less and less in favour of other skills. For instance comms is used more and more in favour of engineering (I have basic engineering but in light of the past few events I'm considering learning comms, maybe it's because comms has the cards while engineering doesn't that it gets used more and therefore easy to ref).

Other skills are used very rarely if at all. In all of my six events I've yet to use my cyphers skill. Hacking seams to be used if it involves a computer and linguistics is used for language.

Is it time to revise the skill lists?

Maybe if a skill is dropped the player who had that skill will be offered an alternative that does the same job.

Just some thoughts.

Woody

As someone with both I do agree that comms seems to have taken over as the general skill of use for a lot of things.

The main reason for engineering I have seen is as a gateway skill as most alien tech has it as a pre req where as comms is less applicable in that sense

comedyofhate

you know I have been hammering on at plot writers since event two to write stuff to include cyphers. You and Verity and any one else who has taken cyphers have been give the wrong end of a very shitty stick.

I think event five six did. It had one encoded document.

Engineering is very much a build and repair skill. Still I got a player to use it last event. To turn off a an energy defence grid.

The problem at the moment is that there are probably to many people with engineering, hacking and comms. Due to that most skill based plot lines tend to be engineering hacking and comms. Which means there is less of that plot stuff to go around

Plot writers bewarned, justifbly annoyed players = players not coming back, equals no events.

sm0keyb

It's possible that Engineering is being underused because organisers struggle to create genuine engineering problems. The last "engineering" mission I went on was in fact a numerical problem. It could not have been solved using engineering methods.

I could help develop a set of cards. There was a set of codes used in event 4 I believe:
Engineering Cribsheet

EEF EARTH TECH
ETH MORE ADVANCED THAN EARTH
ERF EARTH EQUIVALENT
EGH PRE EARTH
ELK VASTLY MORE ADVANCED THAN EARTH
EOP SILICONE BASED TECH
EOO CRYSTAL TECH
ETV POWER GENERATION
EAS POWER RELAY
EQV TRANSFORMER, STEP UP
EEC TRANSFORMER, STEP DOWN
ERN TRANCEIVER
EMM INSULATING PROPERTIES
EKL DATA TRANSFER
EIJ HEAT SINK
EXB CONTROL CIRCUIT
EMC LIGHT SENSITIVE
EZS PRESSURE SENSITIVE
EEG TEMPERATURE SENSITIVE
EGJ PLASMA
EKJ WIRELESS CONNECTOR
EDO SUPPORT STRUCTURE
ESL FUSED
EIB SALVAGEABLE
EXY NOT SALVAGEABLE
EUW BATTLE DAMAGED
EPA BOMB DAMAGED

My own additional suggestions

EAT ANCIENT TECH, ONLY THE “BLESSED” (ANCIENT GENE) CAN USE
EPC POWER CONDUIT OR CABLE
EST SENSOR OR TRANSDUCER
EMR EMITTER OR RADIATOR
EBM BEYOND OUR UNDERSTANDING. MIGHT AS WELL BE MAGIC
ERA REPAIRABLE
EBR BEYOND REPAIR (WITH EIB, PARTS MIGHT BE USABLE)

Some of these need breaking down further but they could be used with a set of skill cards.

As I've offered a couple of times I could set up some physical engineering problems from a brief. No need for a ref. If you solve the problem, the Widget will work. If not, well you ain't going to be able to dial home!

Fenric

I know the plans at Event 10 have missions which have rather interesting skills combinations Smile

Olivia Chase

I had to 'What would X do' for Waterhouse for Cyphers at the last event, so the issue is that there isn't enough stuff out there for the cyphers to do as opposed to the comms and hacking. There's been alot of hot AI action going on..

If events are written that lean towards certain skills then more people will take them. I say leave the skills as they are for now and ensure enough missions are written that take advantage of those skills that have yet to have their time in the sun.

Harry Font

language skills are hardly ever used...

i think event 1 and 3 only

Fenric

Freeman's Japanese skills were in requirement quite a lot at 6 and 7

Woody

I know ciphers got used at one of the events Sam ran at Candleston because based on the system in use at the time with XMins per character Highway and I worked out that it would need about 4 people working on it for about 20 hours to translate. PRovided they did nothing else.

comedyofhate

That would be a bad example of ciphers being used. Actually i remember that now.

Yes I will have to introduce people to the world of one time codes. Easy use to. Easy to produce written documents in. Nigh on impossible to break for people without out the key*, and means that people with ciphers have a skill which is actually useful.

I will knock some up and show the other system refs this weekend. I use a much simpler version than the one time pad, which is insanely complicated.

*people with ciphers skill will of course be given keys!