I'd like to discuss this topic with the narrow niche of Table Top GMs on the forum.
With the mindset of merging mechanics with story and character creation, I discovered this topic in this strange forum pertaining to ideas about skill sets. From that came my first draft of merging the character creation process with writing history and define which skills are important to a character.
We're getting into the rules heavy territory of rpgs, aka rules theory and stuff.
In this drafted system characters have a single slot for a skill set. A skill set is two or more skills that are related to each other under a profession. A profession is simply defined as a job or title of a character such as Knight, Carpenter, Doctor, etc. In an attempt to reflect real world skills simplistically while avoiding overbearing mechanics, the rp will use skills only if a player decides to use them or highlight them in the character.
A single skill in particular is named "profession: blah blah" where the profession is replaced with the title or job which frames the context of the skill's origin and how it can be used in the rp. Blah blah can be replaced by sub-title which covers more specific, basic knowledge relating to the skill, and implied activities involved with learning that skill. The key with a sub-title is explaining the origin of obtaining the skills, like a bulletin point of a character's history.
On the other hand once can highlight attributes and traits of the character, gained through other skills. These would be personality traits, physical traits like strength, activities that defined how a character looks like weight lifting. The list of options goes on but it should serve the purpose of honing in a character instead of broadening the implied knowledge and abilities.
The skill system doesn't account for weaknesses really, just things that would give a character reasonable ways to interact with the world they are used in. The example below is a generic NPC who'd I'd use for one that would reoccur. I might cut or edit that base for similar characters that are not important.
I am a Sir Cumference, Knight of Camelot and I have a large skill set allowing me to be a powerful ally for the party if the need ever arises. My story begins when I was recruited by the knights academy at the age of 16. Putting me through basic training, I thought It was torture of the utmost evil.
"Knight: Swordplay" was my first skill and taught me sparing with another person with a sword. However, using it outside of a sport has been difficult. It taught me how to wield my weapon, followed by how to apply it to the weaknesses of my enemy, and how to maintain my balance.
"Knight: Bestiary" was my second skill, allowing me to learn of many enemies of this land, however, not everything can be known by one man alone. But knowing a great many things of monsters helps me understand how I can best apply my other skills.
"Knight: Horse-Mount" was my third skill, which I learned through inspiration and discipline. I adore a noble steed in combat but also in the open fields. Learning to care for the creature turned out to be the main reason I was taught in the first place. One must care for one's horse.
Seemingly simple and effective for a Knight, I learned many more skills as my career demanded. One does not mold an adventure through theory, rather the adventure molds you through circumstance.
"Knight: Dungeon Guard" was an unexpected turn in my career. I was placed in the dungeons of the king's castle and made to walk the halls for years. I learned many things about prisoners and their habits. I also learned to keep myself distant from their begging, pleading, and manipulation. I also gained a great deal of knowledge pertaining to how the dungeons operate.
"Knight: Dungeon Warden" was also odd to me. When I was the eldest among the new recruits it was my turn to run the place. Having years of knowledge over the dungeon I learned to keep it efficient, not just secure. Also I began to learn management skills over other dungeon guards.
I'd nearly forgotten what a good nights rest felt like in those early years in my twenties. I'd never return to that time but I'm not sacrificing years of service for happiness of memory.
"Knight: Royal Guard" was a turn for the better. Unlike before, those of us in the royal guard were trust worthy for the safety of a single man and his family. We'd already gained the skills necessary for managing myself and others. Coordinating our efforts to keep the king safe become a duty worth more praise.
"Knight: Soldier" was a step down to say the least. Our kingdom was in war for a long period of time but I did not have the mind for battle nor the true skills of a sword master when the war began. One might remember Knight: Swordplay at a time like this, but truly Knight: Soldier better describes the art of killing those who would oppose your kingdom.
"Knight: Mounted-Soldier" falls under a similar circumstance. My basic training allowed me to learn at a quicker pace but also revitalized the understanding of a horse. Calming a mount in a loud outburst of combat proved that the lessons I learned as a young man would serve me, but this was certainly a skill of a Mounted Knight during battle.
"Knight: Patrol Guard" was a skill that I was glad to take. War tears a man apart, I was lucky to survive but cursed to have blood on my hands. This position in the kingdom was low-key and much needed since I was alone without the commoners to listen to. From this skill I learned what it meant to be an observer from afar.
"Knight: Patrol Leader" felt like a repeat in my life. I turned twenty-five that year and prayed that the years to follow would no be the same as those before. In any case, my skills in management proved effective even over time. Aside the loneliness of Patrol, I learned much more about my kingdom. The size of the castle was dwarfed compared to the lands owned by the king.
"Knight: Recruiter" showed me that discipline, honor, bravery, and time in the war turned me into someone else. The youth I once was changed into the man I am. I was inspired to serve my kingdom in a time of peace, however this era after the war shows me that new recruits know what war is and do not desire the fate of their fathers and brothers. This skill taught to persuade young men, not by tales of honor, but through the words people want to hear, often a bag of coins each week.
"Knight: Academy Instructor" refreshed my memory of my first interpretation of hell. I was wrong about that! Using my knowledge of combat as well as basics over swordplay, it was easy to describe and instruct new recruits. These young men would know the basics of swordplay, bestiary, and horse-mounts from me. I dare not get their hopes up in training them in the art of being a soldier, such a course requires the same hostility and paranoia of war time.
These being the skills related to my story as a whole, there were specifics that fail to define me.
In the academy swordplay was formal but the physical aptitude necessary required that I spend my own time working for a physique.
"Athletics: Weight Lifting" allowed me to hold a large sword more easily, as well as carry myself and anything I might need to bring on a trip.
"Athletics: Aerobics" was very much what I needed to support muscle. Just being bulky wasn't enough. Running, jogging, and swimming kept me from becoming a stone in a steam.
In the war time I learned practical skills which were a sore reminder of how stupid people could be.
"War-Time: Survivalist" sums up a great deal of things from the ingenuity of hiding from enemy scouts, the self discipline of lasting on a single portion over a day, and the identification of key resources from the wild. I would say I've learned a little about botany, however, I only recognize a few common plants that are edible or can be used to clean a wound.
"Personal: Self-Discipline" is something one learns the hard way. This skill has been reinforced by other skills and my history. Learning to deal with a scar, hold oneself back from vengeance, and running from an all night shift pays off. You become the loyal figure that others can look up to, a representation of one who is trust worthy and will follow through with promises.
This represents a total of 15 years of my life. Some skills were learned over a year while others were built parallel to others. The last of which has grown over the full process and is more or less a label for those meeting me for the first time. One should consider that if I were to learn these skills in a shorter amount of time then I'd be very much bad at them all, I'm not exactly a quick learner.
What do you think of a character built this way? Would you or do you use a similar method?
