> 1. How are people handling the balance between specific/general
> skills?
Generally, they're not handling it, they're arguing about it...
>I've found us using Scan Plains for Danger in our Prax
> setting as a substitute for almost all the old perception skills.
At first, when all abilities are low, the specific abilities are better, but eventually the generic abilities are better, since it's too expensive in HP to raise a whole load of specific abilities.
I treat this in two ways:
1) be quite specific over the generic abilities: Scan Plains for
Danger won't help if there's no danger, or you're not on a plain. At
best there will be a stiff Improv. Mod. This encourages specific
abilities OR a lot of HP spent to raise the generic one so the Improv
Mods don't hurt as much.
2) Stiff Improv Mods. I use multiples of -5, not -3, and I'm very
fond of -10.
In other words, I PREFER specific abilities, but I admit that, the fewer abilities you have, the faster they get raised, and the faster the character gets good.
> (Spot Rodent Under Desert Bush) that are rarely useful, and some
When that Capybara leaps at your throat, it's essential...
> broad skills that cover a wide range of things (did anybody out
there
> ever play the Ringworld game? Repair fixed everything but you
needed
> a specific branch of Organic Chemistry in other circumstances)
Play it? I wrote a damn big scenario for it... then Chaosium dropped the whole game...<grumble...>
> 2. My players expressed concern that during contests the lower dice
> roll wins if both players succeed.
This is also whay Augments cause so many arguments... it's fine when you have rotten abilities yourself, but rotten when you get better... I think it's meant to add to the 'challenge' (file under 'It's not a bug, it's a feature'). Overall, excepting Augments, it means you can challenge far superior opponents with more chance of success. You could say 'farthest under required roll wins' to advantage the higher skilled.
> 3. Does anyone have any more info on Animism in Prax? (Why do I get
> the feeling this has been asked every ten minutes for the last year
No, 15-20 at least. The Prax Pack mailing list has LOTS of info, much of it under non-disclosure. However, I'm sure one of them will chip in with some detail. Animism is to be substantially changed in HW 2nd edition.
Wulf
Powered by hypermail