From: Phil Pugliese <xxxxxx@yahoo.com>
To: James Catchpole - jlcatchpole at googlemail. com <xxxxxx@simplelists.com>
Sent: Friday, June 5, 2020, 04:56:43 PM MST
Subject: Re: [TML] Yokel Noble

The way I thought (rationalized?) about it, was deciding that the basic CT system was producing average GI Joe's while the advanced was for the real superstars.
So, whatcha' wanna' be (play)?  An ordinary peon or 'THE BIG MAN'(tm)?  ;-P


On Friday, June 5, 2020, 01:06:39 AM MST, James Catchpole - jlcatchpole at googlemail. com <xxxxxx@simplelists.com> wrote:


If you accept that original CT is describing well-rounded characters, using a system that was continued in Citizens of the Imperium and was the only one in The Traveller Book, then what do you call publishing a second system alongside it that starts by roughly doubling the number of skills per term and gets worse with each book? And at the same time introduces new uber skills in the alternate system as well?

The later versions balanced up the character generation system and introduced task systems that watered down the effectiveness of the skills (no double DMs for skills, difficulties that ramped up fast), resulting in an expectation that characters would have a lot of skills.

What the original needed was more explanation on how tasks were resolved and how skills fitted in, what it got was a new character generation system that totally overshadowed the original.

On Fri, 5 Jun 2020 00:16 , <xxxxxx@gmail.com> wrote:


On Thu, Jun 4, 2020 at 12:40 PM James Catchpole - jlcatchpole at googlemail.com (via tml list) <xxxxxx@simplelists.com> wrote:


Those early extended careers all seemed like an exercise in munchkism to me.


Not to be contrary, but I don't know why it would seem like munchkinism necessarily.

Our group never saw a skill level higher than 3. Most of the time, we saw characters take 3-5 terms and have a skill at 3, two or three skills at 2, and the rest 1s. That wasn't beyond anything in the original game, it just gave people breadth which (IMO still) did not equal what the real world players could accomplish.

For instance, me below at age 38 with 23 skill levels and about 20 0 level.

Thomas Barclay (676AA5-6)
Computer Programmer/Contractor. Graduate of two tech college terms, half term at Uni, half term in Army Reserve.


Computer-3, Mathematics-2, Commo-2, Chemistry-1, Physics-1, History-1, Electronics-2, Sport(Softball)-1, Mechanical-1, Linguistics-1 (English, French, bits of Russian, Latin, Spanish, Gaelic), Handgun-1,  Recon-0, Stealth-1, Gambling-0, Instruction-0, JackOT-0, Small Watercraft-1, Small Blade-0, Tactics-1, Swimming-1, SCUBA-0, Soft Marial Arts (Aikido)-1, Wheeled Vehicle-1, Biology-0, Admin-1, Genetics-0, Combat Rifleman-0, Cudgel-0, Large Blade-0, Medical-0, Robot Ops-0, Survival(afloat)-0, Survival(temperate)-0, Physics-0, Geology-0, Liaison-0, Steward-0, Negotiation-0.



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