Secondary Skills Revamp

Sweeeeeeet

 

Forgot to mention:

If you didn't notice, all of the above secondary skills are now slightly cheaper (which is why everyone got some bonus XP)

Also, Natural Aptitude's cost has increased to 16, but it now caps at level 4 Gunnery instead of level 3. The end result should make it slightly more attractive than before and ideal for people who want to specialize early on in support skills.

 

PROPOSED UPDATES TO SKILLS: (newest changes in yellow)

Leadership/Training

• "Divided" effect increased to 4-6 turns (40-60 seconds in-game time) depending on severity of Leadership roll failure (instead of flat 3 turns)
  
• "Armed and Dangerous" event - Pick 1 (instead of 2): Fire Support Lvl 3 or +2XP (+1 Initiative removed)
• "Priority" = improves random mission selection (requires Dynamic Mission Generator)

Tech/Astech

• Astech replaces Tech; Tech moved to more appropriate Primary Skills list
• Astech lance skillcheck results will now take effect for events prior to a mission rather than after it (making it the same as all other skills)
  
• Skillcheck relabeled as "Support" since it better describes the intended role and, theoretically, a Tech could still make these skillchecks
• "Priority" ability removed (moved to Leadership)
• "Efficient" takes the place of "Priority" = improves map movement (requires Dynamic Mission Generator)
• "Rapid Repairs" = similar to the old "Priority Repairs" mechanic we used to use; gives a boost to Astech Repairs.
• "Quartermaster" will now be more strongly enforced
• repair facility bonus will now be more strongly enforced
• "Hack": a new "on-call" ability used during a mission
• "Salvager Savant": a new "on-call" ability that may be used ONCE PER CAMPAIGN CONTRACT (subject to further evaluation)
• I require the meeting with all Techs/Astechs to explain your role, the limit of your abilities, and things you will need to keep track of now.

Scrounge/Recon

• "Ambush" events will now go both ways; players can finally have the option to ambush OpFor
• an ambush will now feel more like an ambush; ambushing force can now deploy anywhere; BV bonus will be reduced to reflect this change
• the Ambush Table will be changed to incorporate Out of Cockpit combat
• "Enemy Intel" removed and replaced by "Recon Report"
• "Recon Report" ability = identify nearby targets on map (requires Dynamic Mission Generator)
  
• C-bill reward will be removed and replaced with the more appropriate "Target of Opportunity"; now you will need to work for your reward
• "Target of Opportunity" will allow players to unlock a bonus mission or secondary objective for additional rewards
  
• "Entrenched" will remain but will be tied in with player initiated ambushes
• 'counter "Divided" will remain, but reduce the number of turns (per level) rather than remove the effect entirely
• "Headhunter": a new "on-call" ability that will allow you to track down ejected pilots; put your bounty hunting skills to good use

Negotiation/Charm (subject to further evaluation)

• Lance Event Skillcheck: "They Owed Me One" = fast transport available for rapid redeployment (requires Dynamic Mission Generator)
• Lance Event Skillcheck: "Well Connected" = random reward that gives bonus to other skills
• Lance Event Skillcheck: +1/-1 modifier to Negotiation rolls during a mission
• Lance Event Skillcheck: "Morale Problems" = add a -1 Inititive penalty to lance
• Lance Effect Skillcheck: "Party Hound" = kept your lancemates up too late with your antics; +1 fatigue to lance (alternative: tie to map movement in a dynamic campaign)
  
• Negotiating surrender for disabled pilots will remain intact
• may influence contract negotiations

MedTech

• successful skillcheck reduces injuries after combat.
• more pending further development

Other Stuff

• Retest functionality of "Manuevering Ace" Ability (needs update)

 

the grindstone is officially ground.

skill events table updated and included on page 4 of the GM-Admin Master Rules 1.9

you can find it here:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/9ol0oi85vysjol9/4jNAk8Xuhe

current version is subject to further review, but now i need to get some sleep

 

now that i'm a bit more rested, here's a direct list of the new Lance Event Table (for those too lazy to look it up)



Suggestions? Questions? Comments? Please provide input. Working on this stuff can be a bit mind numbing and it helps me to have some fresh eyes look at it.

General Notes:

• abilities that require the Dynamic Mission Generator will not be implemented until i have said generator finished (that's my next big update)
• "on call" abilities such as the new "Hack" ability are not included here. most of them previously mentioned will be included in a separate chart
• note to self: forgot to add "Recon Report" description below chart
• note to self: rename "Thieves" to "Sabotage" and change description; "destroy heaviest owned non-standard equipment item (or standard item if none owned)
• note to self: change Ambush description; "deploy anywhere outside 18 hexes from location designated by GM, may deploy closer if not in LOS"

Leadership had only very minor alterations done:

• i decided to leave the +1 Inititiative on at the second highest tier since to get it you have to sacrifice the other two options
• the +1XP bonus was removed from "Well Supplied" tier as it made the jump in rewards from the tier below it too extreme
• Leadership has always been intended as the "swiss army knife" skill for killing things; selecting the bonuses based off the mission objectives you are faced with (hint: +1 Initiative is not always better over more firepower)
• one thing I forgot to add: I'm seriously considering making the Support BV based on a percentage rather than flat numbers. this should make some of Leadership's bonuses scale better with extreme weight classes

Astech (formerly Tech) is much more polished and easier to use now:

• it will give slight buffs to Astech repairs as well as affect reliability of your equipment.
• Astech repairs improve with your level in the skill. Level progression was posted earlier in this thread, but I have a new one coming with some minor changes to incorporate the Lance Event Table.
• "Nowhere to Run" tier has been toned waaaay down ("no repairs" was a widowmaker).
• the new positive/Negative quirks should definitely add some extra random spice to missions now. (remember that anything on the Lance Event Table only lasts for the duration of the turn)
• I decided to make Salvager Savant a normal event tied to very high skill rolls as it would make the most sense to only be available to highly skilled Astechs. the potential chance to use this more than once during a campaign is balanced by the fact that it will still be a fairly rare roll and also that the affected unit is still knocked out of combat for the duration of a contract/campaign (or one month... whichever comes first)

Scrounge; lots of changes. i think it makes way more sense now:

• for starters, you don't just magically get money anymore. "Target of Opportunity" will still allow for similar rewards as before, but now you need to work for it a bit; this should help add a bit more variety to missions.
• Ambush has been toned down significantly; no more crazy BV bonuses to enemy. I've decided to have BV bonuses be tied to another mechanic based on "mission difficulty" (this will make more sense with the dynamic mission generator implemented). You will now have a bit more (but still limited) control over how tough a fight you want. This should help less advanced players quite a bit. An enemy Ambush is still bad for your health, mind you, but now it just gives the enemy better control on where they deploy rather than a BV buff.
• I am very eager to see how "Exposed" will affect drops; setting a time limit on any mission is a classic way of improving difficulty (don't worry, it is scaled).
• "Weapons Cache" and "Thieves" should be very interesting for all you lostech/raretech hunters out there; these will be closely watched by me to make sure they don't break the game for us.

Negotiation is the only one I'm still somewhat uncertain about:

• Since this table is only intended to affect a single mission, the options I have for Negotiation are fairly limited. Negotiation has traditionally been more a reactionary skill. With the Lance Event Table, I attempted to turn Negitiation into a kind of "charismatic" or "morale" skill. I think it translated okay, but still needs some work. I am very open to suggestions here.

 

above post updated with new notes added

 

GM NOTE: check GM-Admin Master Rules for most recent updates:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/9ol0oi85vysjol9/4jNAk8Xuhe