[HOE] Re: Military Background

[Scott Hacker <smilingbandit2@yahoo.com>]

>>Maybe I should have said this about ten more times: 
The Soldier edge 
is
for people who were soldiers for 10 years or more, not
jsut anyone who
went through basic.<<

Woah, down boy!  :)
Forgive me, but looking back on my previous posts, I
have not articulated my main point well enough. 
Having looked back on the HOE main book as well as
Brainburners, I think that it's not unreasonable to
say that a good number of non-greenie Sykers DID see
enough combat to make them Soldiers (more than half in
my opinion, but that's just conjecture).    

Banshee Sykers-  Based on the description of the
Banshee war provided in Brainburners, I'd have to say
that 70+ percent of the Sykers involved would qualify
for Soldier.  Admittedly, the battle didn't last for
10 years, it was 8 years of intense, guerilla warfare.
 The narrator specifically mentions that "The sykers
who had survived...were battle-hardened warriors,
capable of killing a lizard with fists, bullets or
brainpower," and this was only 2 years into the
conflict.  Further, given the growing NA/SA tension
that was building on Earth during the Banshee
conflicts, I suspect that most countries would be
hesitant to commit any more of their limited Syker
resources to the cause.  Odds are, the first Sykers
off the jumpships did most of the fighting. YMMV, of
course.

Earth Sykers-  Earth Sykers lack the combat experience
of their Banshee brethren, but did see a lot of front
line action in the three years of the last war. 
However, Brainburners specifically mentions that
Sykers that remained on Earth during the Banshee war
were the strongest, most experienced ones, too
valuable to send off.  This leads me to think that
such Sykers would have been a part of one military
organization or another for quite some time, again
qualifying them for the Soldier edge. 

Perhaps I am a little too eager to use Background:
Soldier, but given the scale of the Last War, I'm of
the opinion that most folks in the Wasted West should
have some military training.  Certainly, making every
Joe Waster a demolitions expert or sniper is a bit
much, but most able-bodied folks would have fought,
and should have at least basic training skills.  Maybe
a 2 point edge that gives Shootin': Rifle 2, Survival:
Any 1, and Throwin': Balanced 1, with a much less
severe version of the Soldier Background Table.

=====
"I was a warped little boy.  Now I'm out to warp the youth of America."- Weird Al Yankovic
Remember, conformity is the mother of obscurity;
be true to yourself in everything you do.
Happy Roleplaying,
-The Smiling Bandit <Strikes Again!/Ha-Ha-Ha>

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