More info on 'inspect'ing a weapon

I propose that 'inspect'ing a weapon should tell you what weapon skill you need in order to use it effectively. Further, depending on your expertise in that relevant skill, it could then tell you which stats you need to be invested in to use it effectively, with more stats revealed the more skilled you are in that weapon.

Example:

inspect katana

You think you'd need to be versed in long blades to use this effectively.

Your unpracticed eye lends you no idea how you'd need to train your body to use it well.

Your practice with long blades tells you that you'd need a good sense of technical intelligence to use it well.

Your extensive long blades knowledge tells you that you'd need a good sense of technical intelligence and some luck to use it well.

Your expertise in long blades tells you that you'd need a good sense of technical intelligence, some luck, and a decent amount of strength to use it well.

Your utter mastery of long blades tells you that you'd need a good sense of technical intelligence, some luck, a decent amount of strength, and a good sense of coordination to use it well.

As per your level of experience, depending on how many stats are needed to use the weapon well.

By Metekillot at May 24, 2018 3:12 AM

I really think this'd actually decrease the RP as most of the information that you can learn comes from other players. You can also basically do it once because once you know how combat works, that opportunity is gone.

The reason that it's obscure is that so you RP with other players/PCs who already know what they're doing, pay them, befriend them, and have them mentor you and teach you how it all works. I think just making this a mechanic would effectively get rid of RP, which I don't wanna see happening.

By Rangerkrauser at May 24, 2018 3:16 AM

I'm of the opinion that it would make players feel less unhappy about erroneously investing in stats that they wrongly assumed or were given bad info on as improving their performance in a desired weapon.

By Metekillot at May 24, 2018 3:22 AM

It's really IC if you're given bad info. You ask a chummer and they tell you to invest in X stat while it's actually Y stat? Learn about it, go confront them and ask them why they told you to focus on the wrong thing. More RP.

For those that fuck up their stats at the start, the archetypes on the site give a basic outline on what you should focus on anyway. If you wanna be a fighter and use a katana but put all your starting UE into charisma, obviously it won't work that well. Plus, starting UE doesn't matter that much at all and you can basically build your character the same, only that it'll take you some time longer.

By Rangerkrauser at May 24, 2018 3:24 AM

I disagree with this.

By Revex at May 24, 2018 3:32 AM

More competent characters means people are more sure in the risks they take and are more willing to go out and mix things up in the world.

By Metekillot at May 24, 2018 3:35 AM

Use common sense as a player to determine what weapons need what. A pistol probably needs pistol. A blade longer than 25 centimeters needs long blades.

By Revex at May 24, 2018 3:37 AM

But competency isn't just combat skill. You can achieve what this mechanic would do through RP and I maintain it's better that way - becoming competent through RPing with others is far better than just having it spoonfed to you by the game.

By Rangerkrauser at May 24, 2018 3:38 AM

Well, I would say that the Archetypes are good but not perfect. Take Street Samurai as an example. But they will get you started and hold you over until you can seek IC info. And I always find it best to check multiple sources. Talk to a few different characters and a mix of PC and NPCs. See what you can find out and what common ground they have. And consider the source.

By Grey0 at May 24, 2018 3:41 AM

Of course they aren't perfect - they aren't supposed to be. They're just a good starting point if you know nothing about stats and skills and need a starting point in chargen. The rest should be found IC and you should perfect it through RPing and finding out about it ICly.

By Rangerkrauser at May 24, 2018 3:43 AM

I can honestly say in 14 years I’ve never felt that something like that was needed. Especially for being a risk taker. Being more confident in your abilities may help you take the risk, but is it a risk at that point or a calculated move with what you know you have little if any chance to fail at (which is also ok) ?

If you can’t figure out what you need to be good at guns or ninja swords over a few weeks then you might want to try something else for a bit.

By Grizzly666 at May 24, 2018 5:06 AM

Not every player is able to seek out an (N)PC master to be gifted the esoteric, secret knowledge of 'how to be better at using a weapon'. There's something to be said about having someone have to go train with someone better to improve, sure, but there's absolutely nothing wrong with someone being able to use the skills they have in order to learn what they need to do in order to be able to better utilise that skill.

Just because YOU didn't think it was needed to """""""""""spooonfeed""""""""""" knowledge on the stats and skills to use a weapon doesn't mean it wouldn't be extremely helpful to new players. What's more, I don't really think your opinion is quite so valid, being a former GM and with the code knowledge that comes with that. I'm also former GM, and that experience has led me to see that many, many, many players don't know the proper stats to utilise their skills, and without some nudging from either GMs or players, they'll end up mediocre in those skills with absolutely no good reason, simply because they don't understand the constantly opaque skill system.

Sure, some of the skills are common sense, but I've had personal experience with weapons with absolutely nonsensical stat requirements to use them correctly. And this doesn't speak for those poor soul players who play during off-peak times when the server is low or no population of old players or GMs for these said players to seek out and be trained in how to use their weapon properly. I see absolutely nothing wrong with having a constantly milling mass of low-to-middle tier players who are just able to examine their weapons in order to know how to use it (skill level withstanding). What's wrong with that?

By Metekillot at May 25, 2018 10:12 PM

Huh.

I mean, do you have to have been a GM or played for a long time to figure out pumping UE into the weapon skill or stats that would directly relate to (IE not charisma) of the weapon you are using will make you better at it?

As far as anything else, then you would recall there used to be no archtype pages or guides. You were told to just figure it out. Just seems like un-needed clutter. But hey, my opinion is invalid.

By Grizzly666 at May 25, 2018 10:21 PM

Don't be a diva about it. I'm just very steeped in my belief that players having easier access to helpful information is nothing but helpful.

By Metekillot at May 25, 2018 10:22 PM

Don't be so offended about your idea thread man. It's okay. Have a good night.

By Grizzly666 at May 25, 2018 10:25 PM

I like this suggestion. Much like in real life, if you learn the technique of something, i.e., a martial art, you also know you need to get fast, strong, etc. The thing is that there are so few stats and so many skills that almost every combat skill uses the same 3 stats for performance. So it's not a bad idea but it's not really going to add any gameplay experience if you can apply some common sense when trying to invest UE.

By villa at May 25, 2018 10:28 PM

I've been gunning for something like this since I started playing.

Now I wonder just how awful and inefficient my char build is.

By Kuzco at May 26, 2018 12:28 AM

-	BubbleKangaroo	5m
-	Rillem	12s
-	Phexion	3s
-	Sivartas	43s	Burning bridges as i run past.
-	AdamBlue9000	3s	Rolling 526d6 damage against both of us.
-	Zulfi	49m
-	Emily	10m	Next thing you know, they'll take my thoughts away
a	Kard	8h
-	Bruhlicious	1s	Deine Mutter stinkt nach Erbrochenem und Bier.
-	Baguette	1m	waow
-	zxq	14m
-	Wonderland	36s
-	Hivemind	1s
a	Mench	23h	Doing a bit of everything.
And 29 more hiding and/or disguised

More info on 'inspect'ing a weapon Reward skill investment, make combat less obscure

More info on 'inspect'ing a weapon
Reward skill investment, make combat less obscure