Blending mini-classes to build your perfect PC

Back in the Dim Ages, there were two ways to look at characters: they were either classed or skill-based. Character classes are archetypes with set skills and abilities; as they increase their experience, classed characters either improve their existing abilities or "unlock" new ones. Skill-based characters are free-form, allowing the player to choose skills and abilities through some point system; as they increase their experience, skill-based characters gain more points, which they can apply to new or existing skills.

Whole RPG systems were built around this division, and many wars were fought. Proponents of classed characters said that they were easy to generate, had well-defined roles, and could be differentiated through good roleplaying. Fans of skill-based characters said that they provided better flexibility, were more realistic, and could mimic any archetype desired.

Good points all round, but most systems still go with one or the other. Except Chimera, which provides a new approach that applies the best advantages of both.

Character Kits

A character kit is an archetypical skill set, not an archetypical character. Kits represent a set of related abilities—less than a class, but more than a single skill. Think of each kit as a full discipline that gives a character an array of abilities focused on a discrete field. For example, a Fighter kit contains a handful of skills and traits aimed at melee combat; a Burglar kit provides some burglar-related talents; an Academic kit imparts research skill and knowledge in chosen areas.

Each kit contains also contains a unique ability (i.e., only those with the kit possess this special ability). While characters could obtain the component skills individually (e.g., Fight, Burgle, or Knowledge), those with the kit get the benefit of an extra ability that's closed off to everyone else.

So let's say you want a character like Dar in Beastmaster (sorry—my only excuse was that "V" was on TV earlier, so Marc Singer is top of mind). Dar can fight, sneak around, and he has animal companions. But in the parlance of common fantasy classes, he fights too well to be a thief, sneaks around too well to be a fighter, isn't quite a ranger, and is more than a barbarian. In short, no one class really describes him well. Conversely, in a skill-based system, you'd have to represent all these abilities as individual skills; assuming you're up to cataloging them all, you may not have enough points to really craft the character you want.

But you could use a few well-chosen character kits to do Dar justice: Fighter, Scout, and Beastmaster come to mind. This frees you from the constraints inherent to classes, while saving you the hassle of creating the character piecemeal, skill-by-skill. You get the flexibility of skill-based with the convenience of class-based, but you don't have to worry about class-based limitations. You can also supplement the kits with individual skills and traits, just to fully customise the character.

You can also represent character races with kits. After all, races are typified by special characteristics and unique abilities. As a bonus, this provides some incentive to create human sub-types (which seem to be missing from the race lists of most fantasy and sci-fi systems).

Advancement

Each kit has a set cost (which is based on the number of skills and traits it contains). To determine your advancement rate, add up the cost of each kit—the sum is the number of adventure sessions you have to complete before you get what's called a character improvement. In Chimera, a session is four hours of real-world time (so if you play eight hours a week, that's equal to two sessions). Most kits cost between one and three points; if you figure an average of three kits per character, it works out to one improvement every six sessions, or 24 hours worth of play. If that seems too long (or too frequent), the GM can always redefine the length of a session.

Character improvements can be spent to improve your current skills and traits or get new ones; you can also buy a new character kit, simulating your character's ability to acquire new disciplines as he gains experience. Because your kits represent specialised ability, kit skills and traits are improved faster than non-kit abilities. So, while getting more kits will slow down your advancement, over time, you'll be a solid expert in your kit-related talents. The benefit is that players can apply as many (or as few) kits as they like, so they get to decide if their characters advance by quality or quantity.

Example Kits

The following kits are from the Chimera Core Rules. The descriptions below are generalities, so you could customise them with skills and traits (or feats or whatever your system uses) to suit your game. Keep in mind that this is a generic list—specific settings are bound to have more specific kits.

• Academic - Provides scholarly and research abilities
• Ace - Provides exceptional skill at operating vehicles
• Beast Master - Imparts a deep connection to animals and the ability to communicate with them
• Burglar - Contains basic stealth and burglary ability
• Cleric - This kit is for vested members of a religious hierarchy
• Craftsman - Provides skill in a specific manufacturing trade (i.e., any profession that produces a material good)
• Fighter - Fighters are adept at mêlée combat
• Gunslinger - This kit imparts quick draw and fancy shooting with hand-held missile weapons
• Healer - Provides basic healing ability
• Horseman - Provides basic ability to handle and ride any sort of mount
• Mad Scientist - This kit allows characters to wield powers as pseudo-science (esoteric, yet scientifically quantified, forces of nature)
• Mentalist - This kit allows characters to wield powers as psionics (mental or psychic abilities)
• Noble - Nobles are members of the campaign’s aristocracy or ruling class
• Outdoorsman - Provides basic wilderness skills
• Pit Fighter - This kit is for professional mêlée combatants
• Priest - This kit allows characters to wield powers as divine miracles (powers obtained from a deity for exceptional piety)
• Scout - This kit is for trackers and pathfinders
• Shooter - Provides basic ranged fighting ability
• Sniper - Allows for sharpshooting and marksmanship
• Statesman - For community leaders, either in government, civic organizations, or official agencies
• Thug - Brutes who excel at intimidation and strong-arm tactics
• Wizard - This kit allows characters to wield powers as magic spells (powers obtained through study of ancient and arcane lore)