Drive STR or DEX?

[MasterGwydion]

I know that you can use any stat with any skill depending on the situation, but are there rules anywhere for penalties for not having a high enough stat? I became curious when I noticed this in the AoCS1, page 64.


What is "considerable strength"? What is the penalty for having less than this amorphous "considerable strength"?

 

[Limpin Legin]

What is "considerable strength"?

Strength that is either i) Worthy of consideration; or ii) to a large extent.

What is the penalty for having less than this amorphous "considerable strength"?

High chance that: catapulted off the bike; slide down a mountainside; find your PC stuck in a gully; don't make it to the other side; turned on it's side; severely buckled out of shape.

 

[MasterGwydion]

Strength that is either i) Worthy of consideration; or ii) to a large extent.

High chance that: catapulted off the bike; slide down a mountainside; find your PC stuck in a gully; don't make it to the other side; turned on it's side; severely buckled out of shape.

So, where is the rule for that?

 

[Limpin Legin]

So, where is the rule for that?

I didn't answer that bit of your question.

Since you do ask, I'd say it is situation dependent, as you already stated. The Description loads the odds in favour of "considerable strength", which should prompt a referee to consider what happens if PC/NPC doesn't "have enough stat."

Possible suggestions on what to do depend on situation. If Traveller just wants to drive bike off a forecourt and onto a flat motorway, then I'd say let them. Maybe even let them do a bit more daring stuff if the situation is low-grav.

For steep slopes, I see no RAW. Traveller Careers has the idea of Qualifying Characteristics. That is the nearest to a parallel rule mechanic. You could evolve your own referee arbitrated characteristic check, that parallels Characteristic Qualification, when the terrain demands it. Set the TN so that only STR greater than 12 succeeds with a roll of 8+. Or something like that. Failure to "qualify" means the Traveller fails to surmount the obstacle/terrain in some disastrous way. This would be my drift with that sort of text description

I don't know about you, but I like the way I can take this description and 'mold it' like clay into a role-play context. Not treat it as A.N.Other hard-and-fast d6 yardstick. User comments about this will be welcome.

 

[Condottiere]

No power steering.

 

[MasterGwydion]

I didn't answer that bit of your question.

Since you do ask, I'd say it is situation dependent, as you already stated. The Description loads the odds in favour of "considerable strength", which should prompt a referee to consider what happens if PC/NPC doesn't "have enough stat."

Possible suggestions on what to do depend on situation. If Traveller just wants to drive bike off a forecourt and onto a flat motorway, then I'd say let them. Maybe even let them do a bit more daring stuff if the situation is low-grav.

For steep slopes, I see no RAW. Traveller Careers has the idea of Qualifying Characteristics. That is the nearest to a parallel rule mechanic. You could evolve your own referee arbitrated characteristic check, that parallels Characteristic Qualification, when the terrain demands it. Set the TN so that only STR greater than 12 succeeds with a roll of 8+. Or something like that. Failure to "qualify" means the Traveller fails to surmount the obstacle/terrain in some disastrous way. This would be my drift with that sort of text description

I don't know about you, but I like the way I can take this description and 'mold it' like clay into a role-play context. Not treat it as A.N.Other hard-and-fast d6 yardstick. User comments about this will be welcome.

I appreciate the response. I was hoping that you had seen a rule that I had not. lol

 

[Arkathan]

Adapt this:
CRB'22 pg 79

Very Bulky: Some weapons are designed only for the
strongest combatants. A Traveller using a Very Bulky
weapon must have STR 12 or higher to use it without
penalty. Otherwise, all attack rolls will have a negative DM
equal to the difference between their STR DM and +2.

 

[Limpin Legin]

Adapt this:
CRB'22 pg 79

Very Bulky: Some weapons are designed only for the
strongest combatants. A Traveller using a Very Bulky
weapon must have STR 12 or higher to use it without
penalty. Otherwise, all attack rolls will have a negative DM
equal to the difference between their STR DM and +2.

That is another good example of a Characteristic Qualification

 

[MasterGwydion]

Adapt this:
CRB'22 pg 79

Very Bulky: Some weapons are designed only for the
strongest combatants. A Traveller using a Very Bulky
weapon must have STR 12 or higher to use it without
penalty. Otherwise, all attack rolls will have a negative DM
equal to the difference between their STR DM and +2.

Nice! Good call! I will use this method in the future. Thank you!

 

[rinku]

That one or the lesser penalty Bulky. Both would make sense depending just how hard you want to make the thing to steer.

 

[Arkathan]

That one or the lesser penalty Bulky. Both would make sense depending just how hard you want to make the thing to steer.

Since:
It is an Aslan bike;
Average Aslan STR is a 9 (+1); and
The Aslan writeup says considerable strength is needed,
I went straight for Very Bulky.