Having some trouble thinking of a way to do classes for a sci-fi variant of m20.
What I was thinking of was along these lines:
- You have a base class (soldier, scoundrel, scout, or scholar). These give you your base class functionality and choices for your character's abilities at every odd level.
- You have a focus (ace pilot, assassin, bounty hunter, elite soldier, gunslinger, and so forth). You choose a focus at second level; they give you a bonus at every even level.
As far as math goes:
- You have a base attack bonus, just like in Third Edition.
- You have Fortitude, Reflex, and Will saving throws; these are your appropriate stat (Str, Dex, or Int) plus your character level.
- The difficulty for almost any task in this game is 15. Attacking someone is one of the very few exceptions.
- All of your skills start at +1; humans gain a +1 bonus to all six skills.
- When you gain a level, your class skill automatically increases by +1. Two other skills (your choice) increase by +1 each.
As an example for character class:
Soldier
Hit Points at 1st level: 10 + Str
Hit Points at Additional Levels: 6 + Str
Class Skill: Physical (You gain a one-time +3 bonus to the Physical skill. This is a class bonus.)
Level | Base Attack Bonus | Class Features |
---|---|---|
1 | +1 | Combat Boost, Soldier Talent |
2 | +2 | Focus Ability |
3 | +3 | Soldier Talent |
4 | +4 | Focus Ability |
5 | +5 | Soldier Talent |
6 | +6 | Focus Ability |
7 | +7 | Soldier Talent |
8 | +8 | Focus Ability |
9 | +9 | Soldier Talent |
10 | +10 | Focus Ability |
Combat Boost
You gain a +1 bonus on attack rolls and weapon damage. This bonus increases by +1 at 4th, 7th, and 10th levels.
Soldier Talent
At 1st level and every odd level afterward (3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th) choose a soldier talent from the list below.
(SOLDIER TALENT LIST: FILL IN LATER. Soldier talents are typically related to combat tactics and getting the most out of fighting.)
Focus Ability
At 2nd level, choose a character focus. You gain its associated bonuses at every even level (2nd, 4th, 6th, 8th, 10th.)
Appropriate choices for a soldier's focus are Ace Pilot, Bounty Hunter, Elite Soldier, Gunslinger, or Saboteur, but, of course, you may choose from any of the focuses.
And as an example character focus:
Ace Pilot
Flavor text goes here; suffice it to say that soldiers with this focus might be ex-military, while scoundrels might be smugglers. Come up with examples for scouts and, I guess, scholars.
Level | Focus Ability |
---|---|
2 | Vehicle Defense +1 |
4 | Vehicle Defense +2 |
6 | Vehicle Defense +3 |
8 | Vehicle Defense +4 |
10 | Vehicle Defense +5 |
Vehicle Defense
You gain a bonus to the Piloting skill equal to half your character level. This is a focus bonus.
In addition, any space vessel you are piloting gains a Defense bonus equal to half your character level. This is a focus bonus.
Does this sound overly complicated to anyone?