Aliro said:
Thinking in d20 terms, complete the following sentence for me:
A modern special operations soldier is 1______, 2______, 3______, 4______, 5______, and 6______.
Use the following to fill in the blanks:
Strong - Str is main attribute; a soldier can do great feats of strength.
Fast - Dex is main attribute; uncanny dodge and evasion are important for survival.
Tough - Con is main attribute; the ability to shrug off damage and survive what others cannot is most important.
Smart - Int is main attribute; a thinking soldier is best, one who can exploit the weaknesses of others.
Dedicated - Wis is main attribute; intuition and awareness are most vital to a specop’s survival.
Charismatic - Cha is main attribute; leadership is most important, also a modern specop is almost a spy.
In other words, please list the attributes of a modern special forces soldier in order of importance. I'd like to hear a lot of different opinions on this. You can bring any resources to bear on this one. It can be in game terms or in Real Life® terms. Feel free to expand or elaborate on what you believe and why.
Cheers,
Aliro
Commando (Fast Hero 3/Strong Hero 4/Soldier 3): CR 10; Medium Humanoid (human), HD 7d8+3d10+20; hp 71; Mas 14; Init +6; Spd 35 ft.; Defense 26 (+2 Dex, +9 class, +5 light-duty vest), touch 21, flat-footed 24; BAB +8; Grap +10; Atk assault rifle +12/+7 ranged (2d8+2) or combat martial arts +10/+5 melee (1d4+4) or combat knife +10/+5 melee (1d4+4/19-20) or grenade +10 ranged; Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft.; SA weapon focus (assault rifle), weapon specialization (assault rifle); AL varies; SV Fort +7, Ref +7, Will +4; AP 5; Rep +1; Str 14, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 13, Cha 8.
Occupation: Military (class skills: Knowledge (tactics), Survival; bonus feat: Personal Firearms Proficiency)
Skills: Climb +2, Craft (structural) +3, Demolitions +4, Hide +8, Intimidate +0, Investigate +2, Jump +0, Knowledge (current events) +2, Knowledge (tactics) +9, Move Silently +6, Navigate +4, Profession +9, Sense Motive +2, Spot +4, Survival +14, Treat Injury +3, Tumble +0.
Languages: English (literate, native), Spanish (literate, spoken)
Feats: Advanced Firearms Proficiency, Armor Proficiency (light, medium), Athletic, Burst Fire, Combat Martial Arts, Endurance, Improved Initiative, Stealthy
Talents (Fast Hero): Improved Increased Speed, Increased Speed
Talents (Strong Hero): Improved Melee Smash, Melee Smash
Possessions: mastercraft (+1 hit) assault rifle with illuminator and infra-red scope, 8 magazines (30 rounds each), sidearm, 2 magazine (15 rounds each), 4 fragmentation grenade, fatigues, fatigue jacket, medical kit*, assorted gear, survival gear, combat knife.
* Even if he doesn't have Treat Injury, the combat medic would rather use his kit than the two the medic carries for himself.
That help you?
IMO Dex is obviously important; you have to be able to move quickly and silently, plus a good reaction time and the bonuses to to attack rolls are, of course, decent. Oh yeah, lots of specops train to jump out of airplanes; I
guess you need Tumble for this.
Con is important, since you must have good Endurance. IMO Tough doesn't work well for specops, but some people on this forum disagree. You do need the Endurance feat, however. IMO if you're going to climb a cliff (say the Climb DC is 20) then the Fort save to avoid exhaustion is also 20. Same for mental skills - making a bomb from scratch is mentally exhausting. Endurance gives you a +4 bonus to these checks.
Int is important, although in game terms you only need it for skill points or if you're an officer (for the Plan talent).
Wisdom is important, in the sense that you need to keep a cool head in combat (quick, is that shadowy blur friend or foe? this is a very important aspect of training) and for Listen and Spot, plus you don't want the enemy to Intimidate you, but IMO the Dedicated talents are only required for specialized applications. If you're a Demolitions expert, Cool Under Pressure is a great talent. Survival is also a very useful skill, and since it's based on Wisdom...
Charisma is important for some specops. Green Berets, for instance, integrate themselves into the population in diverse areas such as Latin America and the Middle East. You need to be able to make friends and if you have Disguise, all the better.
Strength is very important for counter-terrorist units (or anybody else who is likely to use urban warfare) because you will find yourself in melee in these circumstances. I gave the specop strength because they, well, tend to be strong, even though the average (I read this on a website somewhere so I don't know if I can trust it) is only about 160 pounds.
