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These are two new O.C.C.s that I want to incorporate into a campaign of mine; I tossed them together in the past hour or two. If you want to read a bit more about some of my ideas for this campaign you can view them in the Nightbane forum under the “Timeline (Issues With Technology)” thread. Basically, this is going to be a pre Dark Day campaign set in the 1930s to 1940s; think Indiana Jones except darker. I am posting this thread in both the Nightbane and Beyond the Supernatural forums since the O.C.C.s will fit into both games.

Let me know what you think of these O.C.C.s; any fixes or suggestions you might have are more than welcome. There are also two new skills that I created; their descriptions are included at the end of this post.


The Adventurous Professor O.C.C. (1900-1950)
For Nightbane and Beyond the Supernatural


The Adventurous Archaeology Professor O.C.C.

The Adventurous Archaeology Professor O.C.C. is not your typical college professor; engulfed in his or her work he or she takes the idea of “dedication” to a new level. This Professor specializes in the study of past cultures, history, and the acquisition of knowledge; he or she protects the evidence of past civilizations religiously, which at times can get the professor into trouble. This fanatic approach to the protection of knowledge and artifacts leads the professor to accept that which is not necessarily accepted in normal society; dabbling in disciplines that go beyond the natural, he or she may acquire extensive knowledge of the occult and supernatural throughout his or her journeys. This level of enlightenment or curiosity sometimes leads to the professor being seen as quirky or “just not right” to the typical citizen. On the opposite end of the spectrum, some professors are suave and confident, allowing them to cover the effects of the things they have seen and accomplished along their expeditions.
The professor is commonly a research professor within the halls of academia; typically the professor will have few classes, as his endeavors abroad keep him detained from teaching his discipline to the college students. The professor’s studies are usually funded by the college as long as he or she attains the college fame and renown through acquisition of the fore-mentioned artifacts and composition of theses based on his or her exploits.

Attribute Requirements: I.Q. 15; a high M.E. and M.A. is recommended but not required.

O.C.C. Skills:
Anthropology (+40%)
Archaeology (+45%)
Botany (+25%)
Read/Write/Speak Native Language (98%)
Mathematics Basic (+25%)
One additional language of choice (+30%)
Lore (specific culture) (+25%) (new skill, see below)
Lore (specific culture) (+25%) (new skill, see below)

Hand to Hand combat can be selected as an “other” skill as follows: Basic counts as one skill selection, Expert as two, Martial Arts as three, and Assassin counts as four skill selections.

O.C.C. Related Skills: Select 16 “other” skills, but at least two must be selected from technical and two from science. Plus select 2 additional skills at level 2, 6, 9, and 12. All new skills start at level one proficiency.
Communications: Any (+5%)
Domestic: Any (+10%)
Espionage: Any
Mechanical: Any (+5% to automotive mechanics)
Medical: Any, except M.D.
Military: None
Physical: Any, except wrestling, gymnastics, and acrobatics
Pilot: Any (+5%), except Jet Aircraft, Jet Fighters, Jet Packs, and Tanks and APCs
Pilot Related: Any, except Weapon Systems
Rogue: Any, except Computer Hacking
Science: Any (+10%)
Technical: Any (+20%), except Computer Operation and Computer Programing
W.P.: Any, except W.P. Sub-Machingun and W.P. Heavy
Wilderness: Any (+5%)

Secondary Skills: The character also gets to select four secondary skills from the previous list. These are additional areas of knowledge that do not get the advantage of the bonus listed in parenthesis (). All secondary skills start at the base skill level. Also, skills are limited to (any, only, none) as previously indicated in the list.

Standard Equipment: The professor will typically have a private office or work area at his or her college of employment. He or she will also either rent and apartment or own a small house nearby. At one of these locations he or she will have a small library used for research on the various cultures and artifacts that he or she has acquired through adventuring. He or she will also have at least one weapon applicable to a proficiency acquired, but no more than five such weapons. “Knowledge and subterfuge is better than force, but sometimes people just get in the way” is a common philosophy among the adventurous professor. The professor will also have 2d4x1000 in other belongings beyond the standard clothing, furniture, and vehicle. The vehicle the professor has will be a simple common vehicle that is relatively inexpensive and in mild disrepair. The Adventurous Archaeologist Professor will also have 1d4x5 rare artifacts applicable to any of the skills that this professor has (with the GM’s approval).

Money: The Adventurous Archaeologist Professor will have 5d6x1000+2000 in cash in a savings and/or checking account or stashed in his or her residence. This money can be spent after the beginning of the campaign.




The Adventurous Linguist Professor O.C.C.

Much like the Archaeologist above, the Adventurous Linguist Professor is a fanatic of his or her discipline. These two professors share nearly all of the characteristics listed above and work quite well together on their expeditions. The main difference is that this professor specialized in the languages of specific cultures and the deciphering of previously unknown language or particularly difficult languages. This professors interest in a culture can, and often does, go beyond an interest in its language; at times a Linguist Professor will chose one particular culture to specialize in and know nearly everything about it’s origins, ethics, and timeline.

Attribute Requirements: I.Q. 15; a high M.E. and M.A. is recommended but not required.

O.C.C. Skills:
Research: (+30%)
Decipher Text: (+25%) (new skill, see below)
Read/Write/Speak Native Language (98%)
Mathematics Basic (+25%)
Four additional languages of choice (+40%)
Writing (+25%)

Hand to Hand combat can be selected as an “other” skill as follows: Basic counts as one skill selection, Expert as two, Martial Arts as three, and Assassin counts as four skill selections.

O.C.C. Related Skills: Select 14 “other” skills, but at least two must be selected from technical and four from science (two of which must be a Language or Lore skill). Plus select 2 additional skills at level 2, 6, 9, and 12. All new skills start at level one proficiency.
Communications: Any (+5%)
Domestic: Any (+10%)
Espionage: Any
Mechanical: Any (+5% to automotive mechanics)
Medical: Any, except M.D.
Military: None
Physical: Any, except wrestling, gymnastics, and acrobatics
Pilot: Any (+5%), except Jet Aircraft, Jet Fighters, Jet Packs, and Tanks and APCs
Pilot Related: Any, except Weapon Systems
Rogue: Any, except Computer Hacking
Science: Any (+10%)
Technical: Any (+20%), except Computer Operation and Computer Programing
W.P.: Any, except W.P. Sub-Machingun and W.P. Heavy
Wilderness: Any (+5%)

Secondary Skills: The character also gets to select two secondary skills from the previous list. These are additional areas of knowledge that do not get the advantage of the bonus listed in parenthesis (). All secondary skills start at the base skill level. Also, skills are limited to (any, only, none) as previously indicated in the list.

Standard Equipment: Same as the Adventurous Archaeology Professor with the exception of the 1d4x5 rare artifacts. The Linguist Professor will also have an extensive personal library in his or her office and at his or her domicile.

Money: Same as the Adventurous Archaeology Professor.



New Technical Skills

Decipher Text (New): This skill allows the character to ability to be able to decipher ancient languages of civilizations from ages long since past; it can also be used to decipher languages of the current age if the character does not have that specific language among his or her skills. Once a character has deciphered a language he or she can take that language as one of his or her skill selections when he or she is allowed at a later level. Base Skill: 25% +5% per level of experience. Requires: Literacy.

Lore – Specific Culture (New): Much like all the other Lore skills in the Palladium system this skill gives your character the general knowledge of a specific culture including its hierarchy, culture, customs, and architecture. This skill pertains to both present and past cultures. Lore – Specific Culture can be used in conjunction with Archaeology or Anthropology to gain a 10% bonus to the Lore skill check depending on the relevance to the situation. Base Skill: 40% +5 per level of experience.

They look good looks like the only thing they are missing is experance charts.

IQ 15 seems pretty high, i mean as far as an OCC restriction. Doesn't it?

Doh! I knew I would forget something. I was contemplating using the Rogue Scholar experience chart; that is the O.C.C. that I used as guidelines for my O.C.C.s so perhaps that would be suitable.

Yeah I was toying with dropping it to 14, but I don't think I would want to go any lower than that; reason being is that these are the professionals in their area of study and it takes quite a bit to get your P.H.D. in a discipline, especially if you are learning 4 languages plus your own (5 total).

Does that sound reasonable, or on the other end, unreasonable?

Thanks for the input guys.

It sounds fair to me make the player drop a high stat on I.Q. instead of a physical one.

Interesting work, Mindwyr.

Hi,

the double-posting makes it harder to follow the discussion...just wanted to say I added a note concerning Lore-Customes & Culture in the other thread...

cheers, V