when background go in conflict with rules

[Waylander.]

Hello fellow GM, do you sometimes changes the rules in the book to favorize the background of the player ?

I give you an example.

one of my player, my girlfriend exactly, play an expert japanese informatician...who is obliged to work for the Yakusas. In the 1st edition of B5 I created her character as an 1st level agent...since it was the closer I thought. Now we will play B52E and I update and change the characters. Since we have not played regularly, they are 2nd level characters. I decide to make her character a most logical choice by creating a worker (white collar) 1/agent 1....her character has been doing martial arts in her prime youth, so I wanted to add the Martial arts feat....but, she has not BAB +1 and her 1st levels feats are already selected (dodge and data access)... I have several solution IF i want to be faithful to her background :

- give martial arts as a free bonus feat
- give martial marts but the player will have to repay it with her next feat gained
- switch gaming system buut I do not want to, I am not good at system meddling and it was the reason we do not play much with fist edition. A fact some of my players like to remind me

What are your tricks ?

 

[Chernobyl]

would have kept as an agent and switch classes at the next level.
conversion would have been a little easier that way.
Chern

 

[Waylander.]

would have kept as an agent and switch classes at the next level.

thanks for your answer, you are the first. Can you explain further what you would have done ?

conversion would have been a little easier that way.
Chern

background conversion ?

since this topic is also for that, do you adapt the rule for your players ?

 

[Chobbly]

and her 1st levels feats are already selected (dodge and data access)...

Faënril, just a quick question, why Dodge? If you waived the prerequisite for Martial Arts (not ideal, I know) and swapped out Dodge for Martial Arts that could be a solution. You could then not allow the player to use the benefits of martial arts until the prerequisities were met (training up the black belt, or something similar).

I did do some feats for Aikido and Judo the once - if you think they would be helpful I can dig them out and PM them over.


Chobbly

 

[Waylander.]

Faënril, just a quick question, why Dodge?

because her character is agile and swift.

If you waived the prerequisite for Martial Arts (not ideal, I know) and swapped out Dodge for Martial Arts that could be a solution. You could then not allow the player to use the benefits of martial arts until the prerequisities were met (training up the black belt, or something similar).

good idea.

I did do some feats for Aikido and Judo the once - if you think they would be helpful I can dig them out and PM them over.


Chobbly

thank you

 

[mthomason]

With any RPG (or wargame) I always treat the rules as a set of guidelines to help me simulate the "physics" of the universe. When the rules don't properly cover something I need to exist in my universe, I declare the rules as wrong and tweak them.

 

[lastbesthope]

Indeed,

Rememebr in any RPG you are running, you are above the gods, but in a B5 RPG, even the GM must answer to Ivanova :lol:

LBH

 

[ShadowScout]

With any RPG (or wargame) I always treat the rules as a set of guidelines to help me simulate the "physics" of the universe. When the rules don't properly cover something I need to exist in my universe, I declare the rules as wrong and tweak them.

Exactly!

Remember this - whenever GM and rules disagree, GM decision wins. (Don't like it? Find another GM! Of course, GM's are allowed to change their minds - and players are allowed to try and convince GMs to change their minds... but not during gameplay!)

In this instance I would allow her PC the MA feat, but demand her to repay it with her next feat - sort of a "feat loan".

Of course, I never have these problems, since flexibility in character generation was what drove me to play GURPS in the first place...

 

[B_Steele]

Also, grab her a copy of Signs and Portents 12...as I have an entire article of Martial Arts in Bab5 in it.

Mind you, it might need a little tweaking for 2nd Ed...but at first glance it seems all green.

-Bry

ps- I give everyone in my Bab5 games an additional 'Background' feat if they write me a little essay on their character.

 

[Chobbly]

ps- I give everyone in my Bab5 games an additional 'Background' feat if they write me a little essay on their character.

Agree totally with this one - As a player, I can't stand playing a character whose history consists of less words than the prospective character's IQ. 8) Any player who puts effort into their characters can give the GM a real gold-mine to be exploited later on.

At the end of the day, whichever approach you choose (new feat, drop prerequisities, whatever) it is your game.


Chobbly