Skill Techs
This is the 1000th post on the blog!
You thought I would give you some juicy information now, did you? Well how wrong you were. I’m only writing this post to tease with no actual or even determined information, more like giving you a shape of things to come.
Every skill will soon be divided into skill techniques which will be categorized into three different categories. As earlier mentioned you’ll have to remember and try to remember most of what every skill does and only use the checklist when unsure, if you browse through your pages every time and if you need pages for everything it will be a hell of a lot of pages. I will in the beginning have some summarized short version available so you can get the hang of it.
The categories of the skill techniques are; Active, Passive and Intuitive. Most skills have at least two of these categories covered. Active techniques are techniques which you will use in a more active sense. You must say that you do it, and they often cost capacity of some sort and actions sometimes. It’s not something you just “happen” to do. Passive techniques are bonuses automatically added to your base value while rolling just by having the skill, a good example of this is the previous way Weapon Skills have worked. Intuitive techniques are active techniques that “kick in” in certain moments, but require a roll to function; a good example of this is Intuition.
Another change you will have to expect is that almost everything will drain your stamina. Doing nothing will drain stamina if you aren’t charging, and every action is always +1 in stamina if nothing less is stated. This means that resting and recovering stamina will be vital for everyone during difficult battles. This will bring in what I did with Erion, mixed energy techniques. That uses a certain amount of stamina plus something else. Focus for instance will drain MC for most of its uses while meditate will drain AC.
As earlier mentioned in this post all skills will have at least two techniques. Some will have as many as 10 and others as few as 3. What more is that your level will be more important with your skill. Some techniques require a certain level, which you MUST have a certain level in your skill even if you have maxed the property in which its based on. Some techniques in the skills are techniques you can do without the skill, but it often means that you have to roll, or have a much lower hit rate. It could be as big a difference as you only have your PRO level instead for your PRO plus your level in the skill. I don’t think I need to tell you that it’s quite a difference.
Another thing that you’ll be able to expect soon is nestled techniques and more technical groups. With nestled this time I mean special kind of techniques that are combined with mixing techniques together in a chain. This is actually a come-back on the chain-system which I introduced but never used properly back in the days when Areina was in the group, I think. The difference in this from how it is that what I’m talking about now is nestling techniques from different skills together. There will be a few like these, and hopefully there will be more in time.
Technical groups are about that I’m splitting up the techniques you buy in more categories. Right now we have “Weapon Techniques” and “General Techniques” but am now aiming to have; General Techniques, Weapon Techniques, Magic Techniques1 and “Meditation Techniques”. These techniques might resemble the base techniques somewhat sometimes, but they will be different and must be bought. Many techniques will also be an automatic success with use with a set value of difficulty.
The reason behind all this, as I might have explained is to put more value behind the skills and also give them more use. You DO NOT NEED all skills. Primary skills are one thing but even there you don’t need all skills if you just feel that you “need” it just in case.
Another really important thing to mention is that some skill techniques may be learned as regular techniques in-game. This is due to the fact that sometimes it’s possible to practice one certain thing that people with the skill already know/can without learning the skill. This will, of course, not be as efficient as having the skill but it will work and it will also take up one of your technique-spaces.
This brings me to another point, I’ve changed the formula and also applied new rules for languages, knowledge and techniques. You will no longer be able to just “fill” your knowledge in game or even when you create your character. The number of languages, knowledge and techniques will be limited to your amount in a certain property. Age, in came will help somewhat with rising this limit, and the only way to be able to speak as many languages as there is room on the sheet is due to a VERY big X or being old. Age brings power. And yeah, I will most likely add some new languages too, by the way. Not to mention that all the specialties have gain a new unique to the speciality lore. That though requires that you’ve been schooled properly. So “wilders” of any speciality will not obtain the lore. In some cases “quitters” that doesn’t fulfil the full educational period of their speciality will also loose the speciality lore.
Well, minor changes is made otherwise. If you have any suggestions, questions, or things you want to point out for change now is the time. The full length of the changes with the skill-techniques as well as the speciality changes will be presented at a rule forum before Land of War starts in January.
Best Regards,
Herid Fel
Connected to the skill with the same name ↩
Been a bit inactive here during the downtime, but a few comments.
I don’t really see any big difference between passive and intuitive techniques. From what I can understand it gives you the ability make rolls when others would not be able to. But is that really enough for a new category, or have I missed something? But, since you can usually still make the roll without intuition this line of reasoning doesn’t really make sense. Care to clarify?
The draining of stamina is something that has been discussed before, and hopefully it will work out. It adds something more to battles.
About the skill techs in general, I don’t really know if it is such a good idea to formalize it. But it could work out. Might be enough to have a list with examples of stuff that can be done, but since the list is not exclusive. When it comes to the “nested techniques” (I think you mean that instead of “nestled”), why not call them combined techniques? From what I can understand it describes them more accurately.
Otherwise looks good.
Passive skill techniques is automatic bonuses that only improves something you already can do even without the skill, it only makes you better.
Intuitive skill techniques are thing you cannot do, and does not need to “use” as an active skill technique. One without the skill, will not be able to do this so you must have the skill. But in the same way you don’t need to say “I do this now” it’s more or less an passive active ability.
I think they are a category in itself but I could also just be exaggerating too. But still, my vision of the whole thing is that Intuitive things are more… special than passive since it only adds a small bonus to your already present skill. Or what do you say?
Yes, but as much of my ideas right now, I’m trying to get to that point now. Many things have been left out lately and I’m trying to adjust so that my original goal can be reached.
Well, I think it’s a good idea even though I know precisely what you mean. If I do too much formalities to everything it will be hard to do anything without having everything and it will be much to keep track on. But that’s also one point with passive skill-techniques. Most passive Skill Techs is possible to do without the skill (not all, but it should give you a general idea at least). And thus this will be a list for you to look at too. But even so, when you do it (informally) it needs a cost. Thus its good to give a general idea of the cost and also show you a benefit of having a skill to boost the technique and thus become more skilled in certain areas and give the skills more appeal and weight.
Well, maybe you could call it Combined Techniques yes, most likely they will be called simply Chains or Chain Techniques in the end. But note that it’s not the simple combination techniques where you combine techniques as usual, but this is cross-combining techs from different skills. Thus something more than just combined techniques is preferable.
Well it seems like you will take this up a notch in difficulty to keep track of things hehe, but im pretty sure it will work out fine when you have used the new skill-techniques abit.
I had one question though, will this affect handcraft skills aswell? I mean will you have certain things that will be impossible to create/shape unless you have a certain level.
Other than that it looks like it can bring some more depth to skills but also make it more fun to use.
Yes, it will apply to those as well. I can only think of three types of skill this won’t apply to.
Speak, Read and Write and Lores.