Of all the rules in wfrp v3, only one set of them really bugs me. Talent socketing. For whatever reason, I cannot wrap my head around how to look at this mechanic in a roleplaying light. I can envision stances as a combination of demeanor and style. The dice allow a high level of improv during gameplay.

I have thought about both dropping them completely or just throwing out the socketing portion of this system. But, this seems to either diminish the characters or enhance them more than I would like.

Can anyone enlighten me as to another way to look at it? How do you make sense of talent socketing in your games from a roleplaying perspective.

I think of them as just a more specialized for of a stance/demeanor. It's a mere maneuver to switch them out, scarcely a penalty at all.

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Say I am Focus ing more on looking around with my Keen Eyes , I are not as Focus ed on thinking inwardly and being Contemplative . A mere maneuver, a bit of conscious thought and I can switch modes to really think through what I'm doing rather than gaping about. But what's that coming over the ridge? I could look up and study it with my Keen Eyes , but with the sound of that bellow, I think it would be better not to see it just yet. In fact, it would be better not to think too hard about what it is. Time to be ready, time to Focus on not soiling my trousers... time to be Unshakable .

As a general rule of thumb, Tactic ally speaking, I would Charge in first and ask questions later. But now I see that Minotaur topping the ridge. I think I might just hold my ground for a bit and look for somewhere to ambush it rather than look for the straightest line to engage it. Hey, that's right, we have a fellow that fancies himself an archer. Where'd he get off to. Might be Tactic ally sound to back him up and Lead by Example .

"Hey, pansy archer fellow, shoot the big guy. No no no, you're doing it all wrong! Do it like this... just pretend my axe is a bow and... yes! You got him! Good thing I was assisting you as a great example."

You didn't kill it though, and that is pretty big. Best I let him come to me. I've fought large foes before. Now how did that fight go... let's see, dodging and weaving Tactic s worked best, that and aiming for the fleshy area below the knee. Well, The Bigger They Are ... or so they say.

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That fight was amazing! The people here love me! I am no longer a mere Boatman. Now, I am more! I have a taste for blood and there are bad guys in the world that need to be caught. From henceforth, I will dedicate myself to learning the ways of a Bounty Hunter. But being a good bounty hunter isn't about what I see, or what I think about, it's not about having guts. It's about making people think you have guts. It's about arguing the right price. I was a great boatman, but if I want to be a great bounty hunter, I need to change the way I think, change the way I look. I need to manage my Reputation , now. I need to show Confidence . If the client doesn't think I can get the job done, I'm just wasting his time and mine.

Perhaps in time, I can Focus on the past, but if I want to grow and develop in this new calling, I can't fall back on old crutches. In time, my skills may be so Advanced that I can bring all of my training together at once... but for now, I march on.

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But, in the mean time, this group of fellows seem like a good lot to team up with. These Glory Hounds can teach me how to hold myself so the client will respect me, teach me how to be Reputable . And in return, I can lend them some smarts. I can Focus on teaching them some of my tricks. The future holds wealth and land and prestige if we all work together. Someday, we will be Immortalized in Stories for what we accomplish together!

Well explained! I see it the same way.

Also keep in mind how easy you can switch talents. It's just a matter of not being able to multitask, I guess...

Beautiful! I always thought of talent socketing in a similar way, that's why I never thought about getting rid of it (as a lot of people do). But nevertheless, your post is an enlightenment. FFG should consider using your examples in the next clarified rules book!

That example was BRILLANT! I demand a sticky in the rules section !

That was a very funny and also very good explanation. It's how I see it with the exception of losing access to talents developed when you switch careers.

That just doesn't seem natural to me, even when explained as above. I'm trying to come up with a house rule that will not make players 'forget' talents for the duration of a career, but put them in such a frame of mind that it takes more effort to use an old talent.

I'm currently thinking of allowing them to gain one stress and one fatigue to socket a talent in the 'wrong' slot, to show that (as with the examples above) they've moved on in their new career and are out of the habit of thinking tactically / keeping up their reputation / staying focused. But that doesn't mean they've completely forgotten something.

Final thing is that I see reputation talents not solely, or even mainly as just reputations, per se. Rather, I see them as knacks and talents that earn them a reputation. So a 'rich' reputation doesn't just mean that the character is rich (he clearly wouldn't be if he'd just been robbed of everything he owns), but that he has a knack of budgeting well, spending wisely, accumulating money and doing good deals; all of which mean that he has developed a reputation for being rich.

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I consider it a "card shuffling" rule that is an unnecessary time-waster and clutter-maker. Our group has never looked back and my players thanked me. The game doesn't break without it. The powers aren't any less/more useful. If you still want to use party sheets, do so with a maneuver.

2e WFRP and D&D have feats/talents that are always on. Suddenly in 3eWFRP you forget how to multitask.

jh

Thank you for that explanation. That is the first well thought out explanation that I have seen that really brings it all together. I understand why many folks dont use them, now I understand how to visual their use with RAW. Well done.

Emirikol said:

Most people who claim to be able to be multi-tasking are just doing two things, half as well

Having said, I hope some of the more advanced careers will address this issue in part by having 3, 4 or even 5 talent slots.

I like the way it's done. It adds a certain amount of characterful yet thoughtful computation to how you play.

Plus that explanation was amazing. Someone stick that man's face on a self help book.

Emirikol said:

This is not true. You can still multitask, but you have to spend a manouvre or suffer stress to do so. In most situations where this is the case -- in encounter mode -- I find it very plausible, that you have special "powers", but to tap these powers in the heat of battle or a fast paced social encounter can just be exhausting or trying. So that's why there are recharge ratings on talents and that's why you have to spend a manouvre to change talents (or suffer stress). You are still able to multitask, but in a more challenging, and I'd say realistic way.