[Backstory] So I was bored in class and wishing I could play fonline, so I decided to think about more multipurpose builds when it dawned on me that I couldn't even remember half the skills available due to uselessness. And then I remembered a compliment I received from a moderator on a suggestion about fusing some skills together. The gears started turning and by next block I had made a very rough draft of a possible alternative skill section. [/Backstory]
NOTE: Stats would remain the same in this system, however they would affect skills differently in some cases.
Combat Skills:*
Light Weapons: the classification for any weapon that is not heavy or energy based. it would contain all entries under small guns and the lighter melee weapons such as knives & spears. perhaps frag grenades should also be placed here or perhaps they should remain independent...
Heavy Weapons: the classification for any of the weapons that are not light or energy based (with possible exception of gatling). it would contain the current big guns items and also include the more brutish melee weapons, namely the sledge family and the louisville slugger. perhaps contains incendiary grenades or perhaps they should remain independent.
Energy Weapons: the classification of all energy based weapons, both ranged and melee. if grenades are not independent then the plasma and pulse grenades would be placed here.
Non-Combat Skills:*
Medicine: first aid and doctor, used both in the field and at the med terminal.
Technology: science rebranded all shiny and new, deals with the creation of energy weapons and their accessories and the interaction with Pre-War artifacts.
Mechanic: an upgraded version of repair that deals both with the restoration and manufacture of all mechanical weapons. used to craft both light and heavy weapons, although the professions would remain separate.
Burgler: all the troll skills rolled into one loathsome package, contains the functions of lockpick, sneak, traps, and (unfortunately) steal. feel free to tack a nice cooldown onto this one.
* I separate the skills this way solely to display them effectively, not to say that the skills must be divided into those groups if used.
Notes on Combat Skills: I decided that it would best to include melee weapons in the other categories so they are used by more the a few players on a regular basis. You will also notice that there is no mention of melee and little of throwing, I will explain why in Independent Skills.
Independent Skills: I felt that some skills shouldn't require an investable skill category but should instead be based off one's stats and increase in effectiveness as the player advances in level. The theory behind this is that they would require no special training and would advance in effectiveness over time keeping innate capabilities in mind. Unarmed would be the primary example of this, an equation would be made determining how many skill points the skill increases by each level.
A quick example formula would be:
UNARMED=(LEVEL)*[6(STRENGTH)/10+4(ENDURANCE)10+4(AGILITY)10]+6
Plugging in my build:
21*[6(6)/10+4(1)/10+4(10)/10]+6=21*[36/10+4/10+40/10]+6=21*[8]+6=174
Certainly an improvement over the typical melee skill of a small guns crafter & user.
Other skills using this system would be throwing (although the crafting of grenades would fall into their classification's profession), barter/speech, outdoorsman, and gambling.
Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions?