Meeker420
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Joined: Sun 07 Nov 2021, 01:15

TW2K Final - Specialty Review

Sun 07 Nov 2021, 02:05

In recap to the Alpha and Beta posts....

Some specialties were only found in the Archetype creation and some were only found in the Life Path, and finally there was a list of a few found in the primary list that could not be found in either character creation method.
It has been noted that during the character generation methods, that when an already chosen specialty is rolled, then instead of re-rolling, you have the option to choose ANY specialty of choice - which could then give access to the entire list - including the ones not listed in any of the creation methods.

But in review of what these Specialties.... like Reloader, Navigator and Forward Observer are all very useful and should be included in the military lists in some fashion. Particularly Reloader!

Diver... while very useful, and could easily fit in a 'Special Operations' list in regards to military units like the SEALs or SAR.

Archer and Pitcher are fun and can be very useful, but with the character creation option of potential choosing a specialty of choice, these could stay there... or could easily fit into a childhood background.

In comparison to older editions of TW2K with their extensive skill lists, the newer edition smaller list with a long list of specialties seem to be the answer and in order to keep clutter down, it was simpler to keep each career term with a list of 6 options, rather then random D6, D8, OR D10 tables for specialties to cover a wide variety of options per career.

One idea... given the idea in the life path, that a character would be potentially following multiple different career paths in the journey of creation. That the individual specialty tables all be reviewed and reorganized to allow more diverse options. I have noticed that some of the specialties seem to repeat themselves within a career area.

Reviewing Childhood table - the Brawler specialty repeats itself three times; Street Kid, Working Class and Military Family. I can understand the Street Kid learning how to Brawl, but compared to the other specialties it seems a little off for a Working Class and it definitely seems off for a Military Family if Martial Arts is offered as well.
Reviewing Police - Scout is repeated between Police Officer and SWAT, and it is a requirement for SWAT to serve on term as a Police Officer, so why offer Scout again? Why not something else?
Reviewing Crime - The Gang Member looks to be the violent type, but does he need Martial Arts AND Brawler? or even Melee - because if he ever gets busted, he can pick those specialties up in Prison!
A final possibility is to review the At War table - either by expanding it with choices or maybe adding another column to represent the civilian career in a non-combat environment, a non-warfront campaign setting - like survivors in a small town (Jericho). In this situation, the specialties that could have been picked up in those final years may not necessarily be 'survivor-driven'.

In my opinion of the newest rules, compared to older rule sets... the smaller skill list with a large list of specialties is a newer way to balance from the extensive list of skills used in older editions. It is set up to allow for a simpler way to determine skill usage in the game, speeding up the process with modifiers to the skill check due to actions taken. By comparing to the conversion list anything new and different that comes up in these forums or "at home" can be reviewed, connected to the appropriate current skill and maybe given a "termed specialty" for "in-game bonuses" a rather simple way to add in new material if needed.
In all honesty... I miss the bigger life path creation systems of the older editions... then again maybe I like a slightly more complicated character sheet with a lot of skills.. Besides that, I love everything that 4th edition has done, even the streamlined skills. But when I review the Life Path creation option, I feel it is still rather limited. Then again... this is just the initial release. There is plenty of time for additional sourcebook material and expansions, so between my own creativity, these forums and future products. This game will still be a lot of fun!

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