Re: [BNW] Sneak Weak?

["Steve Crow" <crow_steve@hotmail.com>]

>My group was talking about the Sneak PP. One of the players was thinking
>about playing one, but it seemed under-powered to her/us.
>

Well first of all, you expect "balance" in power packages.  Heh.  ;)

Our observation is that any package without combat abilities is 
"under-powered."  It kinda depends on how combat-intensive your campaign is.

Unfortunately, given that your characters are (typically, although not 
always) on-the-run, underground resistance types at this time, a certain 
degree of combat is expected.

The problem with Stealth and Sneak, and or basing adventures on it, is that 
there is no...well, "drama" to it.  An adventure that ends with:

"Okay, I make my +10 sneak roll, get by the guard, hack the files (maybe 
dramatically spending a delta point or two), get the vital information the 
Defiance needs, and leave."

Granted, your other combat-type characters may be doing dramatic things 
(fighting to distract most of the base guards in this example, for 
instance).  The problem is that that is...well, more dramatic.  With 
Sneak/Stealth, you either do it or you don't.  Not much "drama" there.

Stealth and adventures built primarly around it just don't have 
the...dramatic impetus, shall we say?  ;)  There's no variation.  Either you 
make the Stealth roll(s), or you don't.

What BNW (and most RPGs, IMO) need is a "dramatic resolution system" of some 
sort.  See the old Torg/Masterbook rule for such a system.  Or grab a deck 
from such a game if you can and incorporate it.

Basically, non-combat situations of a dramatic nature manifested as a 
breakdown of action steps (A-B-C-D) that you needed to complete.  The cards 
had random (or near random) listings of the various steps.  One card might 
say A - B.  Or A - C - D.  Or B - D.  Or whatever.  You had to resolve the 
steps in order, so if the card you got didn't have the step you needed, you 
were screwed and would have to wait.

There were also three types of "danger/hazardous" steps that might come up.

Each card represented a round, so the Guide would determine how much time 
you got to complete the situation.  So if you had 10 rounds, you'd only have 
10 cards to go through.  If you didn't beat the "countdown", the bomb would 
go off/the guards woudl arrive/the HQ would shut down/whatever.

(I have the rules at home, and am going by memory.  This pretty well sums it 
up.)

This makes non-combat skills more "dramatic."  Unfortunately, as with most 
RPGs, BNW devotes more time and rules to making combat "dramatic"  then it 
does to make non-combat skills similar.

So if you wanted to make Sneak use "dramatic," you might make it steps A and 
B of a four-step "dramatic resolution."  Step C then might be 
Computer/Hacking or Lockpicking, or Demolitions, or whatever.

Ditto for Genius, another somewhat "un-dramatic" Power Package.

>I tried comparing him to the Gunner:
>
>They both have +5 to one skill that is used a lot (shooting or stealth)
>
>But then the Gunner gets a second +5 to init. (very useful)
>and the sneak gets nightvision, which comes with a penalty vs. bright
>light AND can be imitated with tech. (nightvision goggles).
>

And a Gunner can get AP bullets pretty cheaply (a lot more cheaply than the 
Kevlar Vest an opponent has that they render useless!).

>Another thing to consider is that stealth is an opposed roll that is, for
>the most part, made once per encounter. Shooting on the other hand is a
>"straight" roll that is used multiple times in a single round.
>
>Given these facts it seems like the sneak is under powered. We were
>thinking about adding the +5 bonus to shadowing as well to balance it out
>more, any thougts?
>

One wonders if Invisiblity might be a power package, and if so, would it be 
a Delta or an Alpha package?  It would have to have some pretty serious 
Quirks (by the laws of physics, you should be blind while using it since 
your eyeballs are invisible, for instance) to make it "delta-class" without 
making it better than Sneak.

*shrug* I think the idea of "balance" is pretty much an irrelevant one.  One 
suspects the catch here is to make Sneaking more important and/or dramatic.

You could also just let a Sneak substitute Stealth for Shadowing, I 
suppose...

---

Steve Crow

"Worm Can Opener Extraordinare"

Check out my website at:  http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Stargate/4991/

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