Simplified Lores and Languages

[adambeyoncelowe]

Lores and Languages strike me as Skills that are either ignored (advance 1% and leave it) or are an XP tax for completing a Career. Instead, it struck me that you could handle these as broader Skills instead.

Option 1: Profession and Native Skills

Everyone receives the Skills Profession (Career) and Native (Species).

Profession (Career) goes up in +5% increments when you reach each Career level, with a bonus +5% when you complete the Career (+25% max). Use it with Int to cover all Lores and Languages listed in your Careers list.

Native (Species) likewise goes up in +5% increments with each phase of life (childhood, adolescence, adulthood, middle age, elderly). It covers all Lores and Languages in your Species list. Again, this is used with Int and gives a max of +25%.

You could, if you really wanted to keep it simple, do the same for Etiquette (raising it in line with Profession).

Option 2: Linguistics and Wisdom

This option keys rolls off two new Skills whch are advanced as usual: Linguistics (Int) and Wisdom (Int).

Linguistics is the basis for great speeches and debates, and also powerful writing it you have the Read/Write Talent. It's also rolled if you need to work with languages you already know, beyond simple conversation.

Wisdom is your worldly knowledge, whether learned formally or informally. If you're testing the limit of what someone knows, use this. It can also be rolled for simple memory tests.

Languages and Lores themselves are free and conferred by rank or background. Anyone with a Language can speak it. Anyone with a Lore has an interest in that field of knowledge. When a Language or Lore is tested, roll Linguistics or Wisdom to see how well they apply it to the current situation.

This has the benefit of letting one Skill cover all Lores and one Skill cover all Languages. No more sinking XP into multiple of each. But neither are entirely free (there are still two scores to buy up), and they're not as expensive as buying each Lore or Language as a Talent.

As a bonus, you might give +1SL to tests where you have a lot of training (Career Level 3+) or you might cap SLs at IntB + Career Level so that more experienced characters do better than those who are less experienced.

Any thoughts? How do you handle Lores and Languages?

[Orin J.]

i always leave lores as an abstract. each field of knowledge is applicable to a lot of things If you know how to apply it and i'm happy to give bonuses to people that have an interesting argument to justify their idea and make the roll. at the same time they're a great tool for the GM to drag players into trouble. knowing they have a lore is both a fun way to lure a player into a situation where they're framed (or actually guilty) of a crime someone else led them into as an innocent well-paying job, or a way to feed them clues to get them back on track when they normally shouldn't be able to.

as for languages, i tend to ignore them. terribly handled in 4th, i have no idea what they were trying to do. you know it or don't and then i move on before someone starts asking to spend points on it.

[adambeyoncelowe]

i always leave lores as an abstract. each field of knowledge is applicable to a lot of things If you know how to apply it and i'm happy to give bonuses to people that have an interesting argument to justify their idea and make the roll. at the same time they're a great tool for the GM to drag players into trouble. knowing they have a lore is both a fun way to lure a player into a situation where they're framed (or actually guilty) of a crime someone else led them into as an innocent well-paying job, or a way to feed them clues to get them back on track when they normally shouldn't be able to.

as for languages, i tend to ignore them. terribly handled in 4th, i have no idea what they were trying to do. you know it or don't and then i move on before someone starts asking to spend points on it.

All great points. Totally agree.