Howdy folks
I haven't posted here often, but i do check this place out quite a bit.
I've created this thread to talk about the benefits of how WEG ran their SW RPG vice the SWG system that is in place. I'll admit, there are a lot of similarities, and this is a good thing imho. However, there are differences that would keep SWG from being the best MMORPG ever made.
Ok, lets begin (warning, should be a long post)
First things first, classes. SWG keeps this flexible and allows multiclassing, this is good no doubt. However, with the WEG paper RPG of Star Wars (WEG = West End Games) they used classes even more loosely. All a class was in WEG was a starter template. What I mean is, by picking your race and starter "class" you started with certain items, skillsw/ skill levelsand cash amounts. For example (for those that have the books, no I'm not quoting the book) a Politician might have lots of fancy clothes, lots of contacts,a protocol droid, really good cash but might be lacking in the combat department. He/she mighthave great diplomacy and people skills but might not be that good in a fire fight. A Fighter Pilot would start with an R2 unit, a flight suit, a blaster, a small amount of credits and maybe that's it. Sure he might not have the education of the Politician, but he certainly has the skills to protect said politician. Then you throw a young jedi in there. Sure he's got his robes, a couple of force powers, enough credits to buy a bantha burger or two, but he's got his work cut out for him. His skills might be a mix of the previous two, but he does have a way to go before he/she can truly consider themselves a Jedi.
Still with me? So far we've set up three seperate classes. Now, where do we go from here? In SWG, you could learn X number of classes or a mix there of, as long as the skills points were within the 250 point limit. If you ran out you cashed in one skill for another. In WEG, there was no limit to the skills you could learn, and if you had the patience to do so, could learn every skill in the game. Now, some (if not all of you) are saying that's ridiculous, but first give me the opportunity to explain how you get said skills. To do so I would also have to explain how the skill system works.
In WEG, certain "Classes" (from here on in I'll call them templates) had certain skills to start off with. This was good. The skill level was shown by how many D6 (6 sided dice, just like in your monopoly set) you got to roll for that skill. For example having a skill of 4D Blaster Pistol was better than 2D. This meant you rolled 4 dice instead of 2, thereby having a much better chance of getting a higher number. So lets say we start off with 4D blaster pistols. Hold that thought for now.
Now to explain the skill point system. In WEG there was no experience points per se. You didn't get exp for killing a mob. You didn't stand around a yard and kill womprats for the sake of killing womprats (like some of our AFK players like to do). Instead you did missions or tasks for people. This usually involved infiltration, espionage, combat, diplomacy, tech skills, etc or a mix of all the skills combined. You recieved said mission and had certain objectives that had to be met (deliver X item, keep Y alive, kill Z, don't get caught, get plans to Project A) and if the objectives were met, then you recieved skill points. To put it into perspective, if you did a missions and had gotten 6 skill points, the GM was being generous. The point of this paragraph was to show that you got rewarded for actually doing something other than shooting random yard trash.
So, back to our person with 4D blasters. He/she (say he for now) is a bounty hunter. They want their blaster pistols skill higher. So they want to increase their skill higher than 4D. Well, what happens? Simple, they take the skill points they've earned and use them to increase the skill level. Each skill level starts out with a dice (4D in this example). If they raised it up one level, it became 4D +1. Raise it again it's 4D +2. Raise it a third time and it's now 5D. To raise a skill, it costs however many current D there are in skill points. So, to go from 4D to 4D+1 it cost 4 skill points. To go from 4D + 1 to 4D +2, another 4. From 4D +2 to 5D another 4. Then to go from 5D to 5D+1 it would cost 5 skill points.
How we doing now? So far so good? Ok, now some of you are thinking, is that all the points that are needed? Well, remember what I said about those missions. 6 points was usually the result of an overly generous GM. Was there other uses for skill points? You betcha.
We have attributes in this game, but for now, due to the extreme distance between the SWG and WEG systems, I'll leave out how in WEG you could permanently increase stats (to a certain limit) by spending skill points (lots and LOTS of skill points I might add).
The other way to spend them was to use them to sorta "buff" your roll. Lets go back to our bounty hunter. He had 5 points to start with. He used 4 points to increase his skill from 4D to 4D+1, leaving him with 1 point left. Feeling all mighty and powerful, he goes out to hunt. He comes across a person in heavy armor. Concerned he won't hit him, he decides to use his remaining 1 skill point to buff his roll. What this does is allow him to add 1D per skill point on that roll, and on that roll only. After that shot is made, good or bad, the point is gone. So, to retrack: Mr Bounty hunter increased his skill and has 1 point left. He finds a target and decides to fire, but uses his remaining point to aid the attack. So, instead of rolling 4D+1, he'd roll 5D+1, but just for that one shot.
Now, what happens when our bounty hunter wants to learn a new skill? For example, he discovers he's force sensitive (Yay! a cost of 25 skill points.....yep, ouch). He now wants to learn the ways of the Jedi. First off he has to find a training (same as SWG). So he's found his trainer, and he wants to learn Lightsaber combat so he doesn't turn himself into sushi. People might be saying "Whoa! But Jedi can't be Bounty Hunters", but remember I'm saying get rid of the classes and just keep the skills, with no limitation on what skills you can learn. To get back to mr Force Sensitive, for him to learn his skill from the teacher, it is going to cost him double the skill points to learn the skill starting off, which would be 1D. So he spends 2 points. Then it's 1 point for 1D+1, another 1 for 1D + 2, and a third for 2D. Then 2 for 2D + 1, etc etc. As you can see, these processes eat up skill points like crazy. Could a person learn every skill in the game? Quite possible. Would they have the patience to do so? Wow, that's a good question, you're talking years of work here. This system encourages people to stay within their template, but if they want another skill bad enough, they are not limited in how they get it, other than how hard they are willing to work for it.
See? Useful eh? Benefit of this? You'd see a LOT less AFK grinding and people actually playing the game. You'd also see people customize their character even further, but would be aware that if they go crazy on the skills, it will take take them forever to get to a decent level, allowing them to think harder on their current skill set. The skill points are given as a result of proper content, not just be shooting random wild life.
Another topic that drives me crazy is the armor. Armor is nice, and though applicable in some situations, I'm sorry Composite armor just takes away from the over all feel of the Star Wars universe. This is where skill enhancement (like dodge for instance) can be enhanced with skill points, there by decreasing the need for armor. (IE: one person rolls 4D to blast person a with a blaster pistol, person a rolls 4D + 2 for dodge and beats the original number, thereby making the dodge and recieving no damage. Can armorbe worn? Sure it can, but it functions as an augment to the character, not a crutch. It also may increase things like your body attribute, but might decrease things like dexterity which would then affect their ability to dodge damage.
There is more that could be said, but I'll leave this at this for now. If you ever get the chance to sit down with some Star Wars West End Games 2nd Edition books, by all means read it and enjoy it, you'll see what I'm talking about here. There is some MAJORLY awesome content in that RP. Any comments?
Aski
Warrant Officer I
"Pit Viper"
DiVAS
Deadly Viper Assassin Squad
TKM, Master Swordsman, Master Brawler
Ex Master Artisan, Ex Master Marksman, Ex Master Carbineer
Novice Medic
"Lead, follow or get the hell outta my way!"
