[d20Modern] Creating new Occupations

[jaults]

    I have been looking over the Occupations in d20M. I'd like to create new ones to fit in my campaign (a science fiction, spacefaring setting ) but I'm not really sure how they are balanced. In particular, would something like Pilot be balanced with the ones like Athlete and Technician? Can anyone offer suggestions?

Thanks,
    Jason

 

[Sagan Darkside]

I am interested in this question as well- the occupations seem very odd to me.

Some offer feats, while those that don't might give an extra +1 wealth bonus. Others are just bare bones. I don't see the reasoning behind it.

SD

 

[Crothian]

There is no realy formula to them, you just build them to be around the same power level as the ones given.

 

[jaults]

There is no realy formula to them, you just build them to be around the same power level as the ones given.

    Well, I guess that's my problem. How do I determine "the same power level?" It is acknowledged that some feats are better than others. Some skills are used more than others. In D&D, for instance, I have never seen Innuendo usedwhile Listen is used in nearly every game. If I make a Pilot occupation and give it a selection of skills and feats, what can I use to determine that those feats and skills are approixmately the same as the already pulished ones? And how does Wealth bonus and Reputation bonus figure in?

Thanks,
    Jason

 

[Crothian]

Guestimation, and a lot of opinions. I say come up with an occupation, post it, and ask people for advice.

 

[2WS-Steve]

I've sort of standardized the Occupation packages; each Occupation receives three skill picks. I then give the occupation a short list of skills and it can use one skill pick to choose one skill from the list as a permanent class skill. I then offer two Occupational Feats and allow characters to spend two of their Occupational skill picks to pick up one of the two feats. For balance I then just fiddle with the Wealth bonus and perhaps reputation based on how useful the available skills and feats are.

I love the Occupations; I include a bunch of them in the Second World Sourcebook and allow players in my fantasy-side campaign to pick fantasy versions of them.

 

[Mistwell]

Personally I would love to see an occupation with Concentration as a skill. It's very difficult to get to the Daredevil advanced class without playing a Tough character, unless such an occupation exists. I am concerned, however, that this was intentional, and that some skills are not meant to be listed in an occupation. I may ask Charles Ryan if this is the case.

 

[2WS-Steve]

Personally I would love to see an occupation with Concentration as a skill. It's very difficult to get to the Daredevil advanced class without playing a Tough character, unless such an occupation exists. I am concerned, however, that this was intentional, and that some skills are not meant to be listed in an occupation. I may ask Charles Ryan if this is the case.

I wouldn't see where it would be a problem. Every character that gets a serious benefit from Concentration has it as a class skill anyway and offering it to others just lets them play cool Zen race-car drivers. The only skills I'd keep a a careful watch on are the ones that are useful to everyone but limited to classes dedicated to significant non-combat abilities, like Spot, Listen, and Search.

 

[Mistwell]

I wouldn't see where it would be a problem. Every character that gets a serious benefit from Concentration has it as a class skill anyway and offering it to others just lets them play cool Zen race-car drivers. The only skills I'd keep a a careful watch on are the ones that are useful to everyone but limited to classes dedicated to significant non-combat abilities, like Spot, Listen, and Search.

Yes well "every character" is just one character, the Tough hero. A few advanced classes get it as a class skill, but I am focused on the basic classes. And by the way, just about every class gets a benefit from Concentration, now. In fact, it benefits all those other skills you just mentioned - spot, listen, and search.

I wish the Daredevil were really a "zen race car driver". However, if you read the Daredevil carefully, you will find this is not the case. Daredevil really isn't a driving and/or piloting class, despite the handy picture of a motorcycle next to it. I think it should have been, but it isn't. It's much more of the "Daredevil - Man without fear" class than "Evil Kenival - Stunt Driver" class.

 

[Mistwell]

From Charles Ryan:

Q: I was wondering if there are any guidelines people can offer (and hopefully Charles Ryan) for creating new occupations. For example, none of the listed occupations have "concentration" as a skill. Is there some reason for this, or just happenstance? Is there a formula/rule-of-thumb for creating occupations that weighs the value of skills, feats, wealth, and reputation?

A: There's no design reason why Concentration isn't offered by any existing occupation; if you created an occupation that included Concentration, that would be fine.

Balancing occupations is complex. In general, the factors include:

* Age prerequisite.

* Number of permanent skills/skill bonuses (generally 1 or 2).

* Number of skill choices (generally 5 - 10).

* Number of bonus feats (generally 0 or 1).

* Number of feat choices (generally 1 - 4).
* Reputation bonus (generally 0 to +1).

* Wealth bonus (generally +1 to +6).

The number of class skills, bonus feats, and the Wealth bonus are the main factors; they shouldn't all be high. The number of class choices, feat choices, and Reputation are lesser balancing factors, along with age prerequisites.