I am in a discussion with my GM regarding my character's ability to do something even if a skill has not yet been purchased for that task.
Here is the question, before I get to the examples:
Is there something in the rules (that I missed, as I use Champions Complete and not the 6E1 or 6E2) which forbade actions by a character using their raw stats if an actual skill is listed in the book?
With that question in play, my point to him is this:
Quote
Lauren has an 18 Intelligence, so she is hell'a smart! Smarter than me, and definitely smarter than most of the cattle called the human race. She is Neil Degrass Tyson smart; build the A bomb smart.
This gives her a 13- Perception roll to figure out things most of us can't. There needs to be some leeway for a character that may not have the skill but could quite probably figure things out (or at least be cautious or inspired).
His stance is this:
Quote
This is going in the way the champions game mechanics. There are many other systems out there that skills just default to your IQ or INT. Unfortunately this is one of the game system it does not. So you could have an INT of 1,000 but if you don't have the skill you have no knowledge of it or at best you get the default of 8 or less.
Basically the ruling is that if the activity that wants to occur is covered by one of the skills listed in the book and my character does not have that skill, they are too ignorant to do it. Period. The GM says this is because the rules say as much.
For context, the above quotes were from a discussion I had with the GM about VPN. My character was at home and wanted to send an email to a blog in her hero identity. I could see the "evil GM" smile coming forth, as IP addresses are traceable, and I didn't think about that immediately, so I add that she uses a VPN. He then asked if she had any computer skills. I replied that she did not. he said then she doesn't know about VPNs. I responded with the fact that she was a PhD student in Physics, a teaching assistant, and it is likely the school uses VPN when instructors work from home, which then led into he intelligence quote above as another reason she might know and/or figure it out.
This, of course, led to the second quote.
Another example that rehashed the topic recently. Another character set up a corporation for the team. As the operations officer of the company, my character then informed the GM that she will ask for the Articles of Incorporation, and if the other PC didn't provide them, she would go to the County records Office and get a copy. The GM said that if the character didn't have the Bureaucratics skill, then the task would be impossible (my character wouldn't know to do it nor would she even know where to start).
Is there something in the rules (that I missed, as I use Champions Complete and not the 6E1 or 6E2) which forbade actions by a character using their raw stats if an actual skill is listed in the book?
Personally, I think someone with a mid-level INT score who is interested in doing something they know nothing about would be able to access the internet, but then again, that's being foolish and extrapolating my intelligence on the rest of humanity.
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greysword
Hi Steve,
I am in a discussion with my GM regarding my character's ability to do something even if a skill has not yet been purchased for that task.
Here is the question, before I get to the examples:
Is there something in the rules (that I missed, as I use Champions Complete and not the 6E1 or 6E2) which forbade actions by a character using their raw stats if an actual skill is listed in the book?
With that question in play, my point to him is this:
His stance is this:
Basically the ruling is that if the activity that wants to occur is covered by one of the skills listed in the book and my character does not have that skill, they are too ignorant to do it. Period. The GM says this is because the rules say as much.
For context, the above quotes were from a discussion I had with the GM about VPN. My character was at home and wanted to send an email to a blog in her hero identity. I could see the "evil GM" smile coming forth, as IP addresses are traceable, and I didn't think about that immediately, so I add that she uses a VPN. He then asked if she had any computer skills. I replied that she did not. he said then she doesn't know about VPNs. I responded with the fact that she was a PhD student in Physics, a teaching assistant, and it is likely the school uses VPN when instructors work from home, which then led into he intelligence quote above as another reason she might know and/or figure it out.
This, of course, led to the second quote.
Another example that rehashed the topic recently. Another character set up a corporation for the team. As the operations officer of the company, my character then informed the GM that she will ask for the Articles of Incorporation, and if the other PC didn't provide them, she would go to the County records Office and get a copy. The GM said that if the character didn't have the Bureaucratics skill, then the task would be impossible (my character wouldn't know to do it nor would she even know where to start).
Is there something in the rules (that I missed, as I use Champions Complete and not the 6E1 or 6E2) which forbade actions by a character using their raw stats if an actual skill is listed in the book?
Personally, I think someone with a mid-level INT score who is interested in doing something they know nothing about would be able to access the internet, but then again, that's being foolish and extrapolating my intelligence on the rest of humanity.
Thanks for your help!
- Chris
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