OtherSpace: Millennium Soldier Sheet

=Introduction= Soldiers are a common start-type for many characters, although most belong to the main military forces, a lot of characters have some military training in their past. For many combat-oriented characters, it's a good common start-point, whatever the direction you wish to take later. We'll track the early career of Saul, the Solan Soldier.

=Sheet List=

Chargen Sheet
< Saul, a Male Solan Soldier > Total SP: 100 Current SP: 1 Energy: 1820 Minutes: 560 HP: 100%/100% Attribute Points: 0 Respecs: 0 RP Points: 0 ---< Attributes >---< Value: 2000 >--- Intelligence: Mediocre                 Perception:   Fair Constitution: Good                     Dexterity:    Great Willpower:   Mediocre                  Charisma:     Fair Strength:    Good                      Psi:          Non-existent (Scale: -3) ---< Skills >--< Value: 81000 >--- Poor Armor                        Mediocre Melee Combat Mediocre Athletics                      Superb Terran Standard Mediocre Energy Pistol                Mediocre Throwing Mediocre Energy Rifle                 Mediocre Unarmed Combat Fair Marksmanship Principles ---< Gifts, Faults, and Quirks >---< Value: 35000 >--- Weapon Expert                          Resistance To Harsh Environment --< Skill System 3.00 >---

This sheet is chosen by +trainer/raise in the newbie trainer room. Saul is specialising in energy weapons because as a marine, he can be expected to be deployed in any number of theatres, including space. He has the basic combat skills required, including training in hand-to-hand combat and some basic armor training, enough to handle some of the lighter armors such as kevlar without too much difficulty. Military training also involves a lot of physical exercise, represent in his athletics ability. He has some of the theoretical aspects of using his weapons down a little better than his practical ability and it won't take him much longer (8 SP) to put that theory into practise. Saul has two gifts, Weapon Expert because of his training and Resistance to Harsh Enviroment inherent to all Solans.

203 SP Sheet
< Saul, a Male Solan Soldier > Total SP: 203 Current SP: 0 Energy: 1820 Minutes: 560 HP: 100%/100% Attribute Points: 0 Respecs: 0 RP Points: 0 ---< Attributes >---< Value: 2000 >--- Intelligence: Mediocre                 Perception:   Great Constitution: Good                     Dexterity:    Fair Willpower:   Mediocre                  Charisma:     Fair Strength:    Good                      Psi:          Non-existent (Scale: -3) ---< Skills >-< Value: 114000 >--- Fair Armor                            Fair Melee Combat Fair Athletics                      Superb Terran Standard Fair Energy Pistol                    Fair Throwing Fair Energy Rifle                     Fair Unarmed Combat Fair Marksmanship Principles      Mediocre Zero-G Manuevers ---< Gifts, Faults, and Quirks >---< Value: 35000 >--- Weapon Expert                          Resistance To Harsh Environment --< Skill System 3.00 >---

Saul is still a fairly general soldier at this point in his career, but with some combat experience under his belt by now and a bit more practical experience, mainly there's been consolodation of his base skills. An addition has been some Zero-G training, definitely of practical use for boarding ships. Zero-G can be replaced with many other skills depending on how you see the character developing. To be the squad medic: First Aid, Point-man: Stealth, Explosives Specialist: Demolitions you get the idea.

304 SP Sheet
-< Saul, a Male Solan Soldier > Total SP: 304 Current SP: 0 Energy: 1820 Minutes: 560 HP: 100%/100% Attribute Points: 0 Respecs: 0 RP Points: 0 ---< Attributes >---< Value: 2000 >--- Intelligence: Mediocre                 Perception:   Great Constitution: Good                     Dexterity:    Fair Willpower:   Mediocre                  Charisma:     Fair Strength:    Good                      Psi:          Non-existent (Scale: -3) ---< Skills >-< Value: 174000 >--- Fair Armor                            Fair Melee Combat Fair Athletics                      Superb Terran Standard Good Energy Automatic Rifle           Fair Throwing Good Energy Pistol                    Fair Unarmed Combat Good Energy Rifle                     Fair Wordcraft Good Marksmanship Principles          Fair Zero-G Manuevers ---< Gifts, Faults, and Quirks >---< Value: 35000 >--- Resistance To Harsh Environment       Weapon Expert --< Skill System 3.00 >---

With a lot more practical time in the field and a promotion, Saul's one of the better men in his squad. He's since had time with the automatic rifle and due to his know-how with his other energy-weapons it didn't take him long to become familiar with it. That wordcraft skill which he started raising just after we left him at 200 is his leadership and ability to inspire those around him, and it's been honed by the responsabilities of that last promotion.

What Now?
By 300 SP, Saul's had time to get his core skills to a good level. He has room to grow in almost any direction, including specialising, raising his marksmanship and energy weapon skills to a higher level. He can take on more general skills such as Survival Training or Stealth. Or become a heavy weapons specialist, bringing that skill into into his group, with heavy weapons though he'd probably want a better armor skill. He could join a Special Forces Team, perhaps specialising in Stealth and Sniper Rifle. Or become a Mercenary, living from paycheck to paycheck and Gambling to make up the difference. From this point, Saul can go in almost any direction, he could even retire, brush up his leadership skills and get into Politics.

Core Skills
The core skills for a soldier include:
 * 1) Marksmanship/Melee Combat at Fair - These are prerequisite skills to eventually gain access to ranged weapon skills and melee skills.
 * 2) Armor at Fair - This is a prerequisite skill to using heavier armors than leather. Every two levels in Armor offsets the penalty in using armor.
 * 3) Rifle/Automatic Rifle/Pistol - These skills are the bread and butter of being a soldier, most of you are paid to be able to use these weapons against the enemy.
 * 4) Unarmed combat at Fair - The ability to mix it up with your fists, unarmed can represent simple brawling ability at low levels, and if raised higher can represent martial arts skills.
 * 5) Throwing at Fair - I'm hesitant to add this to the core skills, however if you want to use grenades, definitely a good choice.
 * 6) Athletics at Fair - You won't find many fat soldiers, and with their physical training and constant exercise soldiers are physically a cut above most of us.

What about Projectile Weapons?
No reason why not! In fact nine times out of ten, a projectile weapon is better than an energy weapon. Most ground forces will have been trained in the use of projectile weaponry, and if that's the background you're looking for for your soldier, best to replace energy weaponry with projectile. The downside is that one time in ten. When your marine is jetting around in interstellar space or boarding a non-pressurised ship or fighting the Battle of Makemake on that dwarf planet. Projectile weapons don't work, they need an atmosphere.

A warning against combat monsters
You /could/ heavily specialise in JUST the combat skills, however that won't lead to a balanced character and a lot of the support skills (like Athletics or Stealth) will prove fundamental to the long term survival of your character.

Gifts, Faults and Quirks and Cybernetics
Soldiers can be further specialised with gifts faults and quirks, or improve their bodies with cybernetics. Improved Strength/Constitution/Dex are common for soldiers, fanaticism is another. For a great roleplay hook you might want to add some of that mental scarring that's added up over the years, perhaps as a phobia manifesting as nightmares, or even combat paralysis. Perhaps they've had some part of their body replaced, a cybernetic arm, leg or even cybernetic claws for when hand-to-hand gets down and dirty.