I’ve been thinking about the random character creation ideas I’ve been discussing, and I realize that I haven’t really laid out what the Traits and Skills are in enough detail to really have these make a lot of sense. True, I did discuss them some, way back in Column 5 and Column 8, but in the intervening years I’ve thought about how better to present and organize them, and so I thought this would be a good time to revisit them.

First, let me address some things conceptually. My Traits are not attempts to philosophically or scientifically categorize the realm of human experience and capability. That is, I think, an activity well beyond the scope of role-playing game design, if not the game designers ourselves. Skills and Traits are, in the Tarafore System, essentially skill groups. They’re measured on the same scale, and the only real difference between them is that everyone has all six of the Traits at some level, but not everyone has the Skills. That’s it.

For example, everyone can throw punches or grab a stick and swing it, so Prowess (the “to hit” for all kinds of hand to hand combat, including throwing things) is a Trait. Not everyone would even know how to make a gun go “bang,” much less hit anything with it, so Firearms (the “to hit” for, well, firearms, both handguns and longarms) is a Skill.

There are two main points behind all of this. The first is to quickly allow for a “broad strokes character creation,” just by statting up the starting six Traits and a couple of needed/related Skills. The second is to create a framework of broad Traits/Skills, narrower Specializations, and almost infinitely narrowing sub-specializations, allowing players who really want to fine-tune their characters to do so, at least under the Subjective Character Creation Process.

Niches

Further, I want a player to be able to define a functional niche for a character through the combination of one or two Traits and Skills. For example, to use terms borrowed from the TV show Leverage,

Hitter: Prowess, Strength (it’s all about hand to hand combat). Awareness is good, too, but not strictly necessary.

Grifter: Rogue, Subterfuge (con artistry, with a little sleight of hand thrown in) Etiquette’s good, too, since the Grifter has to be able to fit in anwhere.

Hacker: Hacking (it’s narrower, but the character will need additional, unrelated skills to make sure he isn’t useless away from the computer). A knowledge of Security Systems would be very appropriate for a heist game type hacker.

Thief [Catburglar]: Athletics, Awareness (climbing, physical infiltration and stealth). Subterfuge, or at least the Lockpicking Specialization, and a Knowledge Skill: Security Systems wouldn’t hurt.

Leaving Leverage behind, but sticking with the modern-day heist setting:

Shooter: Firearms (Gunfighting mainly), Athletics (for Dodging). Shooters are enforcers, gunslingers, and close-quarter battle specialists. They get in, shoot first, and shoot fast.

Snipers/Marksmen: Firearms (Marksmanship mainly), Awareness (for stealth and perception). They shoot from a distance, with great accuracy, often from concealment.

Wheelman: Drive, possibly Pilot. Repair(Automotive) would be good, as would Awareness, if only for the Perception specialization. The wheelman needs to be a decent lookout, too.

Mechanic: Repair, possibly Engineering and Knowledge(Security Systems), or even Demolitions

Medicine Man/Mad Scientist: Medicine, Herb Lore, Science & Engineering – this guy could be MacGuyver, a Mythbuster, or a High Medieval Poisoner, but he knows his stuff.

Gunner: somebody who blows things up in a big way. Think heavy weapons, firearms, and explosives.

The Six Traits (Everybody Has These)

Prowess (fighting hand to hand)

Strength (includes toughness, wrestling, lifting, etc. – it’s all forms of brawn)

Athletics (everything else physical: running, jumping, swimming, climbing, riding)

Awareness (noticing stuff, sneaking/hiding, etc.)

Willpower (resistance, mental toughness, force of personality)

Rogue (lying and seeing through others’ lies)

Skills

I’ve put the associated niche in parentheses.

Drive (Wheelman): This covers pretty much everything; boats, cars, cycles, heavy vehicles, etc.

Pilot (Wheelman): Jets, Prop Planes, Helicopters, Ultralights, Hang Gliders, you name it

Firearms (Shooter, Sniper): Handguns, Longarms, quick/close combat, accurate long-range shots

Archery (Archer, Sniper): Pretty much all ancient missile weapons, including weird ones

Etiquette (Grifter): Instantly blending in, getting along, fitting in, knowing what to say and how to get things done. Includes a degree of knowing people.

Heavy Weapons (Gunner): Vehicle Cannons, Medium and Heavy Machineguns, Indirect Fire/Mortars, Man-Portable Rockets, etc.

Medicine (Medicine Man): First Aid, Long-Term Care, Surgery, Diagnosis, Modern Pharmaceuticals

Herb Lore (Medicine Man): turning plants into medicine, turning plants into poison, even foraging plants.

Hacking (Hacker): Security, Programming, Hardware, Hacking. This is for hacker types. If you just use computers (or even program software) at work, that would be a Profession skill.

Repairs (Mechanic): Fixing anything: specializations by general type of thing fixed

Science and Engineering (Mad Scientist): Specializations by specialty: Chemistry, Biology, Physics, etc.

Subterfuge (Thief): picking locks, picking pockets, sleight of hand, etc.

Survival (Any, Really): navigating, finding food and water, making shelter. Specializations break out by AREA – Desert, Jungle, Swamp, Arctic, Urban, etc.

“Stand Alone Specializations”

These either exist within other Skills, but can be bought alone, OR are just too narrow to really “count” as a skill by themselves:

Demolitions: Blowing stuff up, Safely disposing of explosives

Etiquette Specialities (by type of group)

First Aid (from the Medicine skill)

Nautical/Seamanship: Basically Being Crew on a Sailing Vessel of the age (steam, sail, etc)

Professions, Trades, and Crafts: any form of skilled labor with limited “adventuring” use, like carpentry, computer programming (not hacking and security), teaching, etc.

Special Knowledge (varies by setting. “Security Systems” would be perfect for a heist game)

Science and Engineering Specialties

Survival Specialties (by area)

Any Specialization you and the GM can agree on

Summing Up

I hope this will help make the random character creation columns more understandable. I think, to be honest, that those columns will be of relatively little value unless I release at least a basic version of the Tarafore System for download somewhere. I will try to do that by the end of the year, and hopefully that will give a little more context to my further columns.