So...Vargr in the "Mongoose" Third Imperium...

[Cleon the Mad]

It always seemed bizarre to me to have social standing as a stat. After all, it's not something intrinsic to a character (unlike their strength or intelligence or constitution or whatever).

Stats IMO shouldn't be something that go up or down depending on where you are or who you are talking to. Most other games I can think of have a separate "reputation" or "social standing/charisma/rank" mechanic.

I can agree to a point, but in a way I always found Education to be an odd stat also. For instance, someone can have an Education of 7, let's call that a high school graduate. Yet also then have multiple skill points in one or more sciences, maybe have medic up to 3 (and thus have the skill level of a physician if not the certification) and so forth. Yet someone with an Education of 12, a level I'd assume would mean they have at least one PhD might not have any skills that indicate any sort of obvious degree major(s) for said PhD. I suppose an EDU of 7 does mean they can't use the advanced table(s) for each career, but for most careers an EDU of 8 unlocks that. To me one's education would be represented in one's skill points and how they are allocated.

Anyway, odd or not, abstract or not the rules more or less work. For me, some of the appeal of Traveller in most of it's incarnations are it's quirks that manage to work regardless.

 

[Shiloh]

Can a character's Charisma be rolled, really?

I realize that in some systems it needs to be defined for the sake of skill calculations and all that, but how do you really express a character's personality like that in any other way but role playing it out?

It depends how much you want your players' characters to be able to surpass the players' own, real world ability. I'd dispute that "charisma" can be reflected in "skills" like Leader, Persuade, Carouse and the like, since someone we'd think of as "charismatic" would be better, ab initio, at all of those things than someone who we'd regard as a repellent non-entity.

Like Roleplaying someone cleverer than you, roleplaying someone with better basic socialisation is very difficult, if not impossible, so if someone wants to play the arch-negotiator, and couldn't persuade a person of negotiable affection to transact some business at any price, you need a stat-skill game mechanic to provide a framework to hang your description of how the negotiations go...

The one thing about Social Standing in Traveller that I never understood was, how do other people tell? Does everyone walk around checking each other's UPPs or something? If you had a SS of 5, but have lots of money, why couldn't you just say you were a Count and live at that level?

Yes, you could stand in as a Count. Most people would never know you were an imposter, but as soon as you start using your position for advantage, you run the risk of "real" nobles detecting that you have never moved in the "proper" circles: "Oh, you went to Regina University in 998? The business school? What a small Universe! Have you kept in touch with Buffy and Eneri? [vacuous, expectant smile]" as well as non-nobles angling to see proof (your patent) of your status. I don't imagine the 3I powers-that-be take very kindly to fraudulent impersonation of nobility. A good conman could maintain such a facade for a while, but if you stay anywhere for very long, you run an increasing risk of detection.

The general public can tell you're a noble by your bearing and behaviour; the habit of command and authority (aka bossiness and arrogance; it's all about viewpoint...) is difficult to hide. Officials can tell you're a noble by your Patent. Nobles can tell you're a noble by who you know.