Character creation - am I doing it right?

Hakkonen

Banded Mongoose
I want to make sure I understand the character creation rules. I've never played Traveller, I got a ton of PDFs (and, hopefully soon, some physical books) from backing the Great Rift Kickstarter. I think my notation is pretty clear, but please don't hesitate to ask.

I started by rolling 2d6, six times, and assigning those numbers to the six attributes:
3
8
10
8
10
6

STR 6 (+0)
DEX 8 (+0)
END 8 (+0)
INT 10 (+1)
EDU 10 (+1) (+1 graduation)
SOC 3 (-1) (+1 graduation w/ honors) (+1 Personal Development)
So, she's in average physical shape, but smart and well-educated; she's also a little rough around the edges, socially. She probably doesn't get invited to high tea very often. ;)

Background Skills
Drive 0
Electronics 0
Mechanic 0
Streetwise 0
She gets four background skills. I decided she (the character's name is Hannah Cooper, if you're curious) came from a working-class family in which both her parents are technicians.

Age 18
Pre-Career Education: Military Academy (Navy)
Entry: INT 9+ (9)
Event: 7 (Life Event)
Life Event: 5 (Improved Relationship - gain 1 Ally)
Service Skills:
Pilot 0
Vacc Suit 0
Athletics 0
Gunner 0
Mechanic 0 (1?)
Gun Combat 0
Graduation: INT 8+ (+1 END 8+) (11 - with honors!)
Hannah squeaks past the entrance exams to her homeworld's naval academy, but applies herself in her courses and graduates with honors. Her future seems bright! My first question is this: does the Mechanic 0 she gains from basic training stack with her background skill, giving her Mechanic 1?

Age 22
Term 1: Navy Career (Line/Crew)
Qualification: INT 6+ (Automatic success - military academy)
Commission: SOC 8+ (Automatic success - graduation w/ honors)
Rank: Ensign (bonus: Melee (blade) 1)
Survival: INT 5+ (9)
Event: 11 (CO takes an interest... - Tactics (naval) 1)
Advancement: EDU 7+ (12 - promotion to Sublieutenant)
Skills & Training: Advanced Education (6 - Admin 1)
Skills & Training (extra roll from Advancement): Line/Crew (1 - Electronics 1)
Entering His Majesty's Navy as Ensign Cooper; her performance at the academy guarantees her a commission. Hannah is clearly a bright spark, impressing her CO and earning a promotion.

Age 26
Term 2: Navy Career (Line/Crew)
Rank: Sublieutenant (bonus: Leadership 1)
Survival: INT 5+ (9)
Event: 4 (Special assignment - DM+1 to one Benefit roll)
Advancement: EDU 7+ (8 - promotion to Lieutenant)
Skills & Training: Personal Development (6 - SOC +1)
Skills & Training (extra roll from Advancement): Officer (4 - Melee (blade) 2)
I decide that Sublieutenant Cooper is one of the ship's computer-systems officers; her special assignment is overseeing an upgrade of the ship's tactical software. She sticks the landing, and is promoted again. She also seems to be a member of the ship's fencing club. O.o

Age 30
Term 3: Navy Career (Line/Crew)
Rank: Lieutenant (no bonus)
Survival: INT 5+ (4 - Mishap!)
Mishap: 4 (Blamed for accident - gain 1 Enemy, keep Benefit roll)
Disaster! I haven't worked out the nature of the accident, but obviously it wasn't really Lt. Cooper's fault. Another officer, a snot-nosed scion of the aristocracy no doubt, tried to blame her for his own catastrophic lapse in judgment.

Mustering Out (3 rolls + 2 Benefit rolls from Rank)
Cash: 1 - Cr1,000
Benefits: 2 (+1 - Term 2 Event) - Two Ship Shares
Cash: 5 - Cr20,000
Benefits: 5 - TAS Membership
Benefits: 3 - Two Ship Shares
Hannah did pretty well for herself over her eight years of service; she leaves the Navy with a decent chunk of change in her pocket, plus a lifetime membership in the Travellers' Aid Society, and enough credit and other assets that she could make a decent down payment on a ship of her own.

Skills:
Drive 0
Electronics 1 (Computers)
Mechanic 1
Streetwise 0
Pilot 0
Vacc Suit 0
Athletics 0
Gunner 0
Gun Combat 0
Admin 1
Melee (blade) 2
Tactics (naval) 1
Did I miss anything?
 
Looks pretty good.

Hakkonen said:
My first question is this: does the Mechanic 0 she gains from basic training stack with her background skill, giving her Mechanic 1?

No, if you get a skill at a specific level you get it at that level, if you have the skill already at that level or higher you don't gain anything.
 
Two things.

In term 4, you still get a skill roll even though you had a mishap. (Technically the skill roll comes before the survival roll)

Also, if I'm remembering correctly (away from books right now...) you would need to do an aging roll after the 4th term.
 
It looks like you've forgotten one benefit of graduation. Because she is entering the same career as the academy, three service skills become level 1.

Also, in the first year of a new career, you don't get a skill roll but do basic training instead. However, I find that rule a little confusing when it comes to military academy, as you do the basic training there. So, in my game, I do the same as you've done and allow a skill roll.

Oh, and welcome to Traveller! :D

Dan
 
In the "Military Academy" section on p.15, it says, "Skills: Gain all Service Skills of the military career the academy is tied to at level 0, as with basic training." I took that to mean that basic training is part of the academy curriculum.
 
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