> >Hmmm, interesting view. The augment is from being able to bring your
> >skill and knowledge to bear. So you aren't penalized for not having
> >the proper equipment except to not have the equipment.
>
>Yes, but only for an augment, and only because the opponent is using
>the same skill.
Something remarkably simple just occured to me. Probably others have seen it, so this may not be much of a revelation. If you have a skill like Spear Combat, and try to use it without a spear, you'll be penalized, right? I mean, I think that's going to typically be the case. If you use a spear, however, you get a bonus for the spear, right?
So you never, ever end up using the actual rating, do you? It's always either higher or lower, depending on how you're equipped. This seems strange to me.
If I'm using my cooking skill, should I get a bonus for my skillet? A penalty if I don't have one? If I'm carving, damned sure I'm going to get a penalty for not having a knife. Shoud I get a bonus for having a typical knife? I'm not talking about magical or otherwise exceptional equipment, just the standard stuff. If I try to forge a sword without a forge... not happening, right? Should I get a bonus for the forge? If it's unexceptional?
To take it to an absurd level, could I do acrobatics without the ground? Should I get bonuses for a standard chunk of ground? See where this is going?
I've been wanting a mechanical excuse to get rid of equipment bonuses for a while now. They really annoy me. Why does a player have to pay a HP to get a +1 speak eloquently charm, but the same player can get a +3 sword for free? It's just never made any sense to me.
The way I'm seeing it now, is the relative argument. That is, the one thing that was preventing me from going over to not using bonuses was that I agree that some things like some armors are superior to others. Some equipment is just better. And there should be an advantage to that.
The way I see it now, however, is that proper equipment just ensures that you can use your ability at the normal level. Just like the acrobat with the ground, the smith with his forge, the carver with his knife, etc, etc, "standard" equipment, that which you can get for no cost, just allows you to use your ability with no improv penalty. That's an excellent argument for needing it - Improv Mods tend to be larger than bonuses anyhow.
If your equipment has some benefit over somebody else's equipment, I can handle that with a situational bonus to the superior individual. But, generally, I will say that you don't have access to that equipment which would have gotten you a larger bonus - you have to aquire this using HP like any other equipment (magic). That is, it'll get a rating.
Make any sense? This is much simpler than using my "currency based" rules, which I've still never tried. It still has the problem of the GM having no guidelines as to when to offer more potent equipment. I mean, if it's as easy as going to the armorer's and selecting the +3 Armor, and paying one HP for it, I think we'll not be seeing the +1 armor ever, unless one institutes costing like for charms and fetishes.
But that's for another thread.
Mike
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