Does the “Appropriate Weapons” category include such weapon skills as Brawling, Boxing, Martial Arts, and Throwing?
Or is it designed to allow for individual weapon skills like Bow, Crossbow, Cudgel, Javelin, Knives, Mace, Spear, Staff, and Sword?
Another issue that has come up in regards to Appropriate Weapons is the lack of skill points to cover a variety of weapon skills.
Are we to assume that the Appropriate Weapons skill opens all of the Appropriate Weapons at their root for a single skill points (doubtful) or scrimp on other skills to cover the cost of the extra weapons? (probably)
The issue, of course, is that it doesn’t allow for the skill points needed if you have more than one Appropriate Weapon such as Spear and Knives, Axe and Hammer, Staff and Dagger, orJavelin, Spear, and Dagger.
Should we assume that those extra points must be pulled from other needed skills?
Or should extra skill points be allocated to cover the costs of the extra Appropriate Weapons at a rate of +1 per Appropriate Weapon added beyond the first?
(three weapons skills accessed through Appropriate Weapons would gain +2 character points)
The way we ran it was Appropriate weapons were weapons that seemed common for your job. Maybe a guard will have a cudgel, but a soldier would definitely have a sword or axe.
As for the points we said it only allowed for one of the weapons so you have to choose which one you want to go for.
Hi all,
My interpretation is that you can select as many weapons as you like, I suggest 2 weapons a Primary and Secondary weapon, but you have to buy them separately. If appropriate Weapons is a required skill then you must open the Primary weapon skill.
Eg Foot Soldier would be Spear and Axe or Knives.
Simon
Appropriate Weapons does not grant bonus skill points. If you have lots of appropriate weapons, that means you naturally have the opportunity to train and learn with many weapons in these lifepaths, so you don’t need to spend your very limited general skill points on them. Whether you actually took the opportunity to train and learn is up to you - allocate points from your normal pool of lifepath skill points if you did take the opportunity. But opportunity cost means you didn’t have time for something else if you took the time to learn Javelin, Spear, and Dagger.
Mechanically, to be clear, if you have just the following lifepath:
Born Fighter
0 General, 3 Lifepath
Appropriate Weapons, Intimidation, Conspicuous, Drinking
you may choose to open Javelin, Spear, and Dagger, but you will be left with 0 skill points.
And yes, if you reckon that Boxing or Throwing are warranted, I reckon you should allow players access; I don’t think I’d allow Brawling, because it’s not quite a skill you’re expected to train in for your job. However, I’d probably severely limit their availability: Desperate Killer can have “Throwing”, in X setting, Knight of a Holy Military Order can have access to “Open Palm Rebuke” (Which is Boxing).
If a Guard can learn Boxing, there’s no reason for them to have Brawling on their skill list. Remember that Boxing is extremely specialised skill of a relatively small group; keep it limited. As with any of the appropriate weapons skills, the test should be “In my setting, would it be appropriate if every member of X group did, in fact, have X weapon?”. If it fits a specific PC guard to use a sword instead of every guard, get them to spend general points, or take the duellist LP, in order to warrant the extra attention.
Getting multiple Appropriate Weapons skills is its own reward, don’t give extra skill points; especially because any canny player will end up FORKing the extra skills in.
If you count up, most of the LPs with “Appropriate Weapons” have an extra skill point. But it’s a shorthand to avoid having to add a bunch of specific skills to the individual lifepaths.
Appropriate Weapons lets you include any or all weapons skills that you want in your lifepath skills list. You still open and raise them all separately.
You’re free to choose otherwise for your game, of course, but I wouldn’t include Boxing, Brawling, or Martial Arts (they are quite explicitly not about weapons, appropriate or otherwise). I probably wouldn’t include Throwing either unless it’s truly a core martial skill for a lifepath. There are types of warriors who rely heavily on throwing things… but those things are almost certainly javelins, which have their own skill. Or if you have ninjas running around, you’d probably want a specific Shuriken skill.
Particular character burn is about a sect of warrior monks.
Basically poor, devout individuals who learn to make the most of what their creator has given them in body, mind, and spirit to serve and protect themselves and others.
The “closest to concept” lifepaths I’ve come up with are: Born Peasant, (Soldier) Apprentice, (Village) Acolyte, (Religious) Military Order (25 Yrs. 26 Res. +2M./+2P., 3 Gen. 17 Skill. 8 Traits)
This does make for an Exhausted, Tonsured, Disciplined, character with 5 extra trait points to spend and interesting lifepath traits to spend them on like Back-Breaking Labor or enough to invest in other traits like Hands of Iron (4 pts).
If Martial Arts isn’t allowable as an Appropriate Weapons skill, it then must be purchased with General points. Same thing with Throwing, Brawling, and Boxing skills.
I thought that the Appropriate Weapons category was more like a “filll in the blank” weapon skill, but I had to get clarification on it.
Thanks to everyone for your thoughts on this, and if anyone else has a better way to burn a monk, PLEASE let me know!