The Soldier OCC expanded

[JuliusCreed]

I've been thinking about the Soldier OCC and all of the possibilities it holds. I've heard arguments for and against them being playable when compared to other Men of Arms OCC's such as the Knight, Ranger, Palladin, Longbowman, etc., and have decided to expand on this much underestimated OCC by creating several expanded OCC's of the Soldier. You could say that I'm basically creating specialty MOS classes for the Soldier.
I'm pretty sure a lot of you will look at a few of them as watered down versions of other OCC's, for example, there are plans in the works for a Military Scout OCC which is essentially a Ranger OCC based on a Soldier template, but a few of them may actually be a bit more viable, like the Field Medic OCC which will have expanded access to Medical skills that the standard Soldier OCC doesn't have.
As with any other OCC's I or anyone else creates here, they are optional for use and are being posted here as something to add a little extra color to your games. Use or lose as you see fit.

Field Medic (a Soldier OCC variant)
Effectively a Soldier trained in the healing arts, the Field Medic is a Soldier trained in the art of combat, but his particular specialty is in the care and treatment of those wounded in battle. He receives expanded training in medical skills not normally available to his more combat oriented brothers-in-arms, but due to this training his knowledge of other areas of soldiering tend to be lacking a bit. Nevertheless, he is still a capable fighter and can be a godsend in the field after a battle.
Salaries for a Field Medic generally tend to be about 50% higher than a typical Soldier and up to 100% more for officers. They also receive the same basic advantages as Soldiers, such as basic equipment, job security and so on. (see "The advantages of being a soldier" PFRPG pg 81)
Any type of armor can be worn by a Field Medic (he is a Man of Arms) and usually leans toward the heavier types with a strong preference for Chain and Double Mail for maximum mobility
Alignments: Any, but as an OCC that generally tends to save lives as much as fight, most Medics tend to be of Good alignment.
Attribute Requirements: IQ:10, PS:8, PE:8. Due to the specialized nature of their medical training a Field Medic tends to need a higher IQ than a typical Soldier. As a Medic they also have slightly less demanding physical requirements.
OCC Bonuses: +2 to pull punch and +1 to save vs Horror factor at levels 1, 3, 5, 7, 10, and 13.
OCC Skills
Climb/Scale Walls (+5%)
Forced March
Languages: Native tongue at 98% and 2 of choice (+10%)
Literacy: One of choice (+10%)
Military Etiquette (+20%)
Biology (+15%)
First Aid (+20%)
WP: Shield
WP: One of choice
Hand to Hand: Basic: May be changed to Expert at the cost of 2 "other" skills or martial Arts or Assassin (if Evil) at the cost of 3 "other" skills
OCC Related Skills: Select two additional skills from the categories of Military, Medical, or Science and 6 other skills of choice at level one, plus select one additional skill at levels 3, 6, 9, and 12. All new skills start at first level proficiency.
Communications: Sign Language ONLY
Domestic: Any
Espionage: Any except Sniper
Horsemanship: General or Exotic ONLY
Medical: Any (+10%)
Military: Any (+10%) (Interrogation Techniques gets a bonus of +15%)
Physical: Any except Acrobatics or Gymnastics
Rogue: Use/Recognize Poison ONLY (+10%)
Science: Any (+10%)
Scholar/Technical: Any (+5%)
Weapon Proficiencies: Any except Siege Weapons
Wilderness: Carpentry, Identify Plants/Fruits, Land Navigation, Preserve Food, Wilderness Survival ONLY
Secondary Skills: The character also gets to select 4 secondary skills from the previous list at level one and two additional skills at levels 4, 8, and 12. These are additional areas of knowledge that do not get the advantage of the bonus listed. All new skills start at first level proficiency and are limited as previously noted (any, only, none)
Starting Equipment: Identical to the Soldier OCC plus a Field Medic Kit, basically a pack with several tools and items needed for field medicine including bandages, compresses, needles and thread for stitching wounds, a scalpel and various tinctures and medicines for pain, fever, cramps, etc. Please note that compared to any modern day field medic kits this is an extremely primitive set of gear. However it is effective for any minor medical needs and treatments as well as setting bones, suturing minor cuts and bandaging of most wounds to stop blood loss.
Armor: Starts with a suit of Studded Leather (AR: 13, SDC: 38) or Chain Mail (AR: 14, SDC: 44)
Weapons: Starts with a small shield, a dagger or knife, and one weapon of choice. All are basic SDC weapons of good quality. Field Medics also start with a superior quality knife or dagger, (+3 to damage) often used as an improvised scalpel.
Money: The character starts with 200 in gold. Additional money will come from salary and/or hazard pay.
Notes on Field Medics buying additional weapons and equipment: Identical to the Soldier OCC (see PFRPG pg 83)

[JuliusCreed]

Military Scout (a Soldier OCC variant)
Not all Soldiers are front line combat troops. Some are found behind the enemy lines performing reconnaisance and gathering intelligence on enemy troop locations, strengths and weaknesses and performing minor skirmishes against the enemy to hinder their movements and cause chaos among them, weakening the enemy before they even have a chance to engage the main military force. These actions fall squarely on the shoulders of the MIlitary Scout.
Effectively a combination of the Soldier and Ranger OCC's, the Military Scout is a tough as nails survivor given the daunting task of finding out the enemies weaknesses and exploiting them to the advantage of his army as well as reporting this vital information to his superiors so they may take full advantage of these weaknesses on the main field of battle. They are intelligent and hardy men of arms, capable of living off the land and far behind enemy lines, specializing in stealth, subterfuge and guerilla tactics. They are also given the dangerous task of running point for smaller military units, scouting ahead for enemy troops, traps and trouble that could befall his unit. Should he falter in his duties, it could spell doom for his unit and possibly bring a sad end to an entire battle.
Salaries for a Military Scout are about equal to a regular Soldier, but are often 25-50% higher with a high possibility of hazard pay nearly anytime they are performing their duties. Officers can easilly command at least twice the regular pay and hazard pay.
Armor for a Military Scout can be any type, but Light Armors such as Studded leather is preferred for its better stealth qualities. A Scout may don heavier armor for serious combat situations, but even then Chain and Double Mail is preferred to allow for better mobility. Generally, a Scout will only fight to escape and hide from the enemy in order to continue his mission or report back to his superiors.
Special Note: Unlike the Ranger OCC, the Military Scout cannot take the longbow as a weapon proficiency. He is limited to short bows and crossbows with the standard Archery skill.
Alignments: Any
Attribute Requirements: IQ:8, PS: 9, PE: 11
OCC Bonuses: +2 to save vs Horror Factor
OCC Skills
Climb/Scale Walls (+10%)
Forced March
Languages: Native Tongue at 98% and one of choice (+10%)
Land Navigation (+15%)
Military Etiquette (+15%)
Prowl (+10%)
Wilderness Survival (+15%)
WP: Small Shield
WP: 2 of choice
Hand to Hand: Basic; may be changed to Expert at the cost of one "other" skill, or Martial Arts or Assassin (if Evil) at the cost of 2 "other" skills.
OCC Related Skills: Select 2 additional skills from the catagories of either Espionage or Wilderness, and 6 other skills of choice, plus one additional skill at levels 3, 6, 9, and 12. All new skills start at first level proficiency.
Communications: Sign Language ONLY
Domestic: Any
Espionage: Any (+5%) (Detect Ambush, Detect Concealment/Traps and Intelligence get a bonus of +15%)
Horsemanship: General or Exotic ONLY (+5%)
Medical: First Aid and Holistic Medicine ONLY (+5%)
Military: Any (+5%) (Camoflauge, Heraldry, and Surveillance get a bonus of +15%)
Physical: Any except Acrobatics
Rogue: Use/Recognize Poison ONLY
Science: Astronomy/Navigation and Math ONLY (+5%)
Scholar/Technical: Any (+5%) (General Repair and Lore skills get a bonus of +10%)
Weapon Proficiencies: Any
Wilderness: Any (+5%)
Secondary Skills: The character also gets to select 4 secondary skills from the previous list at level one and 2 additional skills at levels 4, 8, and 12. These are additional areas of knowledge that do not get the advantage of the bonus listed. All secondary skills start at first level proficiencyand are limited as previously indicated (any, only, none)
Starting Equipment: Identical to the Ranger OCC (PFRPG pg 90-91) plus a uniform
Armor: Starts with Studded Leather (AR: 13, SDC: 38)
Weapons: Starts with a small shield, a dagger and 2 weapons of choice. All are basic SDC weapons of good quality.
Money: The character starts with 150 in gold. Additional money will come from salary and hazard pay.
Special Notes regarding soldiers and purchasing additional weapons and equipment & weapons: Identical to the Soldier OCC (see PFRPG pg 83)

[avenger314]

I like these ideas; they're cool. I do agree that the soldier is a bit underpowered compared to most OCCs, particularly the men-at-arms. Looking strictly at the numbers, the mercenary is significantly more viable than the soldier is. These house rules will make it more viable. May I suggest something like a phalanx? A soldier who effectively benefits best in a team, alongside one of his bretheren. He might gain bonuses to strike and parry if he's within melee range of an ally.

I'm really coming to like this system, warts and all. It has charm.

Jim

[The Dark Elf]

Yeh nice. My brother rolled up a soldier who was a medic by picking all the appropriate skills.

[JuliusCreed]

I like these ideas; they're cool. I do agree that the soldier is a bit underpowered compared to most OCCs, particularly the men-at-arms. Looking strictly at the numbers, the mercenary is significantly more viable than the soldier is. These house rules will make it more viable. May I suggest something like a phalanx? A soldier who effectively benefits best in a team, alongside one of his bretheren. He might gain bonuses to strike and parry if he's within melee range of an ally.

I'm really coming to like this system, warts and all. It has charm.

Jim

Duly noted and taken into consideration. I'll see what I can come up with. Until then, here's another to consider.

Cavalry Soldier
Most people believe that Knights and/or Palladins usually make up the bulk of an army's cavalry component. In actuality, they do not. Knights and Palladins generally make up the bulk of an army's commanders. The bulk of their cavalry is comprised of the Cavalry Soldier, a fierce and determined warrior on horseback that, while not as extensively trained as a Knight or Palladin, is still a fierce opponent in mounted combat.
The Cavalry Soldier is generally broken down into 2 basic types; Light cavalry, which generally act as mounted scouts and specialize in hit and run combat, and Heavy Cavalry, essentially a half-step down from being an actual Knight in shining armor in terms of combat ability and orientation. As a player character, the Cavalry Soldier has the option of being either one as the situation, and his superiors, demand. If he is needed for Light Cavalry duty to skirmish enemy flanks, he will be issued the appropriate gear and weapons. If he is later needed for a full Heavy Cavalry charge from the front lines, he can be "refitted" with heavier arms and armor and ride headlong into battle.
Salary of a Cavalry Soldier is often 50% lower than regular Cavalry pay. These are not Cavalry Officers, like the Knights, but regular grunt Cavalry. Hazard pay is common among them, however, as they are often seen as a greater threat by the enemy and thus usually heavilly targeted.
Armor for the Cavalry Soldier is a flexible thing, being able to switch back and forth between light and heavy armor as the particular mission calls. Most seem to have a preferrance for Double Mail and Scale Mail granting them excellent protection and good mobility. Light Cavalry is usually issued Leather or Chain Mail, while Heavy Cavalry is most often seen in Scale, Splint or Plate.
Alignments: Any
Attribute Requirements: IQ: 8, PS: 8, PE: 9, PP: 10
OCC Skills
Climb/Scale Walls (+5%)
Forced March
Horsemanship: Basic; may be changed to Horsemanship: Knight at the cost of one "other" skill
Land Navigation (+10%)
Languages: Native tongue at 98% and one of choice (+10%)
Military Etiquette (+20%)
WP: Shield
WP: Spear
WP: 2 of choice
Hand to Hand: Basic; may be changed to Expert at the cost of one "other" skill or Martial Arts or Assassin at the cost of 2 "other" skills.
OCC Related Skills: Select 2 additional skills from the categories of Military or Scholar/Technical and 5 other skills of choice at level one, plus an additional one skill at levels 3, 6, 9, and 12. All new skills start at first level proficiency.
Communications: Sign language ONLY (+5%)
Domestic: Any
Espionage: Any except Sniper (+5%)
Horsemanship: Exotic ONLY
Medical: First Aid ONLY (+5%)
Military: Any (+10%)
Physical: Any except Acrobatics and Gymnastics
Rogue: None
Science: Math ONLY (+5%)
Scholar/Technical: Any (+5%)
Weapon Proficiencies: Any
Wilderness: Wilderness Survival Only
Secondary Skills: The character also selects 4 secondary skills from the previous list at first level and an additional 2 skills at levels 4, 8, and 12. These are additional areas of knowledge that do not get the advantage of the bonus listed. All new skills start at first level proficiency and are limited as previously indicated (any, only, none)
Starting Equipment: Identical to the Soldier OCC (PFRPG pg 83) plus a good quality riding horse. The horse will have 2d6+30 SDC and 6d6 HP with a running speed of 33, value: 1d4x1000 gold
Armor: Stars with either a suit of Chain Mail (AR 14, SDC 44) or Studded Leather (AR: 13, SDC: 38), player's choice
Weapons: Starts with a small shield, a dagger, a long spear, and 2 weapons of choice. All are good quality SDC weapons.
Money:The character starts off with 150 in gold. Additional money will come from salary and hazard bay.
Notes on Soldiers buying additonal weapons and equioment: Identical to Knight OCC

[JuliusCreed]

Hey, dude!

I noticed none of your variants have the skill Heraldry. (In fact I was surprised the original Soldier OCC doesn't have it either.) I guess soldiers are there to do as their told, and it's not necessary for them to know who they're doing it to...

However, I would think it would be vital for the scout to know who the 800 guys with horses and swords are coming over the ridge. I mean should traps be set, or should they be ready to receive reinforcments? (Wow! Talk about a high pressure skill check! Don't get this one wrong dude... )

Heraldry is available to any and all Soldiers as a Military skill. Though you do have a valid point about the Scout needing it. Noted and editted. Though it should be noted that most soldiers without the Heraldry skill are still capable of identifying the Coat of Arms they fight under. Anything that doesn't match what they know is suspect until proven otherwise by the higher command. So, yeah, doing as you're told rather than worry about who you're doing it to is pretty standard for most soldiers. Been there, done that.

[Cinos]

While the Cavalrymen and Medic seem fine, I bring up a case of needless overlap with the scout; Tell me how it differs with a Ranger who has selected a similar skill-set to show military background.

[JuliusCreed]

While the Cavalrymen and Medic seem fine, I bring up a case of needless overlap with the scout; Tell me how it differs with a Ranger who has selected a similar skill-set to show military background.

As I said in the first post, most of these will seem pretty unneccessary, basically being watered-down versions of other OCC's such as the Scout being a low-powered Ranger. For all intents, the Cavalryman is a watered-down Knight! The main differences between the overlaps is a particular focus on the basic Soldier OCC as a base and using a crossover skill set from another OCC that the base Soldier could specialize in to create a specific military based OCC. For example, every one of the variants have the OCC skills Climb/Scale Walls, Forced March, Military Etiquette, WP: Shields, and Hand to Hand; Basic. This is pretty much "basic training" to establish the baseline soldier. The OCC skills are then modified to more reflect a particular specialty within his military training, like extra Language and Literacy skills and First Aid with a heavy bonus for the Field Medic while the Cavalry Soldier gets Horsemanship at a Knight proficiency, Land Navigation skills and specific training in a poor man's lance. (ie WP: Spear) The Military Scout follows the same lines as the rest, but goes more in a Ranger's direction with Wilderness Survival skills and several heavy bonuses on particular skills geared toward reconaissance.
Overall, there's nothing stopping you from making a Ranger with a similar, if not identical, skill set. All I'm doing is putting down my version of what the military would do if they actively trained people as a sort of Ranger offshoot trained for military purposes. After all. most military organizations aren't worried so much about whether or not their Scouts can track, kill and skin a deer so much as whether or not they can see where the enemy ambush is laid or gather intelligence on an enemy force. Sure, a Ranger could do it if he has the appropriate skills. But if you look closely, a Military Scout can do it better!
Basically, the Military Scout is not a Ranger! He is a Soldier who was trained with a particular set of skills in mind that are reminiscent of some of the skills a Ranger has, but few enough of them for him to be considered less a Ranger and more a Spy, yet still retain elements of all 3.

[Cinos]

Well there IS a tangible difference between the Knight and your Cav OCC, which is why I approve and like it (That being the family skills), and the field medic is actually it's own entity, no class in the game currently overlaps it (which is bizzare in retrospect). Sadly I think I left my copies of the PF core book else where so I can't reference the Soldier at the moment. Why is the Cav started at Basic for a trained soldier (same for the Scout, Medic I can see it)? If the reply is "That's what soldiers start at", then I simply add more to my list of annoyances with cannon games Shouldn't a trained scout either know Prowl or have access to a bonus to it? Why can't a wilderness scout trained to help support a unit to live off the land and travel light take Holistic Med as Related (Along with Biology / Botany)? It's well within the boundaries of their job. Why can't any of them select additional Language or Literacy skills as Related? Why is Carpentry related for a Cavalrymen?

Takes a breath between nit-picking details.

Well that seems like all I can find at a glance

[Prysus]

Greetings and Salutations. I'd like to comment on the cavalry option a bit. I'll note now while I'll point out a few issues I have with it, do not take this as discouragement. This is merely to point out a few thoughts you may not have considered. If someone caught these things with something I wrote, I would like them to point them out to me. I give this as a general disclaimer because I know some people have thin skin, and I assure you this isn't meant negatively.

First I'll say that I personally don't know if the variants are needed, but I'm not opposed to them either. I glanced at the Field Medic, and a part of me isn't entirely happy with how they came out. I think my general issue is that they come off a little too good, and would overlap with the healer (if they ever print it). Yet, they need to be that good to be effective and I can honestly say I can't think of any way to do it better. So I won't try to offer any advice on that one. Anyways, I kind of sidetracked myself. Back to the Cavalry ...

Most people believe that Knights and/or Palladins usually make up the bulk of an army's cavalry component. In actuality, they do not. Knights and Palladins generally make up the bulk of an army's commanders. The bulk of their cavalry is comprised of the Cavalry Soldier, a fierce and determined warrior on horseback that, while not as extensively trained as a Knight or Palladin, is still a fierce opponent in mounted combat.

There are a couple of issues I have with this section. First, Palladins don't usually make up much of the military at all. They are typically knight-errants and wander the lands. This isn't that they can't be part of a military, but that they'll rarely make up a big part. So people, in general, shouldn't have that misconception in the first place.

Second, by Palladium, cavalry are "usually knights, nobles & officers." Squires are probably thrown in there too (along with the knights). This can be found on page 81 (Soldier write-up). So while there are likely some others, those probably aren't the "bulk" (at least not by Palladium standard, not that I object to anyone changing things for their games).

Salary of a Cavalry Soldier is often 50% higher than a regular Soldier, even for officers, but hazard pay is common among them as they are often seen as a greater threat by the enemy and thus usually heavilly targeted. hazard pay for Cavalry Soldiers is often higher than normal.

Well, if you look at page 81 (Soldier write-up) of the Palladium Fantasy main book, you'll see the listed pay for cavalry. Unless your take on it is that pay is only for the Knights, Nobles, and Officers (though here you say including officers). Again, changing this for your take is fine, but my goal here is to inform for accuracy/consistency in case you hadn't noticed this section before.

Attribute Requirements: IQ: 7, PS: 10, PE: 10, PP: 10

I don't object to this per say, but you do realize that this is almost the same requirements for a knight, correct? Except for the P.P. attribute, you might as well just make the knight with those requirements. Nobles and Squires both have lower requirements. The end decision is yours, but again, I just want you informed of what is there. Personally, I'd consider lowering these requirements to make this selection more worthwhile (in my opinion).

OCC Skills
Horsemanship: Knight

Not sure I entirely agree with this skill. While I understand the purpose, let's go back to the PF Main Book. This is the same skill and proficiency as a knight. Other classes that make up the cavalry are Nobles and Squires, so let's look at them too. Nobles have Horsemanship: General (no bonus), and Squires have Horsemanship: Knight "but has no special knight skills or bonuses" (not entirely sure what that means, but it's definitely an added restriction). Squires have knight training, and are considered just below a knight. Making an ordinary Soldier cavalry equal to (or even superior) feels off to me. My personal opinion is to give them maybe Horesmanship: General, with a +5% bonus or something (which is the bonus they get as a Related skill, but in this case it would just be standard). Maybe a special new Horsemanship skill (like Horsemanship: Cavalry) that's a step in between the General/Knight categories, but I'm not really fond of this idea either (just providing options for you to consider).

I like these ideas; they're cool. I do agree that the soldier is a bit underpowered compared to most OCCs, particularly the men-at-arms. Looking strictly at the numbers, the mercenary is significantly more viable than the soldier is. These house rules will make it more viable. May I suggest something like a phalanx? A soldier who effectively benefits best in a team, alongside one of his bretheren. He might gain bonuses to strike and parry if he's within melee range of an ally.

I'm really coming to like this system, warts and all. It has charm.

Jim

Duly noted and taken into consideration. I'll see what I can come up with.

For note: I'm actually working on something like that (the Phalanx) myself for another project. It won't be part of the average soldier though (it'll be related to the Soldier O.C.C. with just a bit more of a restriction). Though by all means, others are free to work on it. We'll see how that project goes before I state more on it. Don't take that as discouragement. Please continue and I'd love to see what you come up with*. I encourage others to continue working on the project. This is just FYI for those curious.


* - Actually, while I'd love to see what you come up with, I probably won't look at it. I'm trying to get mine published and if I look at yours it would cause legal issues, but I would love to see what you come up with otherwise and I'm sure others will appreciate anything you come up with too. This is just saying that others have had that idea and want to see it happen as well.

Why can't any of them select additional Language or Literacy skills as Related?

Actually, they can. Language and Literacy also fall under Scholar/Technical skills, and every O.C.C. in the book should have access to those. Thank you for your time and patience, please have a nice day. Farewell and safe journeys for now.

[JuliusCreed]

First and foremost, thanks for the input! Your opinions and insight have been welcomed ever since I posted the Zealot, old friend!
Now, on to the business....

Why is the Cav started at Basic for a trained soldier (same for the Scout, Medic I can see it)? If the reply is "That's what soldiers start at", then I simply add more to my list of annoyances with cannon games

Sadly, I'm gonna have to annoy ya here, pardner! The Soldier does indeed start with HtH Basic, and the variants I am posting here are pretty much just variants of a basic Soldier. I really can't stress enough that particular point. These are all just basic run of the mill Soldiers with slightly varied skill sets to reflect a different area of military training.

Shouldn't a trained scout either know Prowl or have access to a bonus to it?

I suppose he probably should. Noted and appropriately editted!

Why can't a wilderness scout trained to help support a unit to live off the land and travel light take Holistic Med as Related (Along with Biology / Botany)? It's well within the boundaries of their job.

I suppose they probably can, for the most part. However, I see Botany as too "bookish" for a Scout to be trained in. Hence, the availability of the Wilderness skill Identify Plants/Fruits. As for Biology, again, it seems a little too scholarly for a rough and tumble Scout to learn about, so I'm gonna say no on that one. However, Holistic Medicine has been added. It does make sense.

Why can't any of them select additional Language or Literacy skills as Related?

Languages and Literacy are also available as Scholar/Tech skills.

Why is Carpentry related for a Cavalrymen?

It isn't. (at least not anymore )

Takes a breath between nit-picking details.

Well that seems like all I can find at a glance

Thanks for looking! I greatly appreciate the help!

[Cinos]

Sadly, I'm gonna have to annoy ya here, pardner! The Soldier does indeed start with HtH Basic, and the variants I am posting here are pretty much just variants of a basic Soldier. I really can't stress enough that particular point. These are all just basic run of the mill Soldiers with slightly varied skill sets to reflect a different area of military training.

Face palm. WHY IS SOMEONE WHO LIVES BY COMBAT ONLY GIVEN BASIC??? /nerdrage. I some times space these things since all my classes have -long- since changed, including drastic redesigns of skills. If soldier starts with basic by cannon, they would be too (Sadly). I would still suggest changing all four (soldier + these three) to expert as a starting point. I also forgot ID Plants was a separate skill yet (a change in streamlining). I'd also suggest adding some special abilities, but that's more my thing, and it also requires the class they are based off getting something similar as well, and then you're in a whole different game then just making new OCC, so I wouldn't expect that.

[JuliusCreed]

[justify]Greetings and Salutations. I'd like to comment on the cavalry option a bit. I'll note now while I'll point out a few issues I have with it, do not take this as discouragement. This is merely to point out a few thoughts you may not have considered. If someone caught these things with something I wrote, I would like them to point them out to me. I give this as a general disclaimer because I know some people have thin skin, and I assure you this isn't meant negatively.

No worries!

First I'll say that I personally don't know if the variants are needed, but I'm not opposed to them either. I glanced at the Field Medic, and a part of me isn't entirely happy with how they came out. I think my general issue is that they come off a little too good, and would overlap with the healer (if they ever print it). Yet, they need to be that good to be effective and I can honestly say I can't think of any way to do it better. So I won't try to offer any advice on that one. Anyways, I kind of sidetracked myself. Back to the Cavalry ...

Well you seem to like them so far... I'll go with that.

Most people believe that Knights and/or Palladins usually make up the bulk of an army's cavalry component. In actuality, they do not. Knights and Palladins generally make up the bulk of an army's commanders. The bulk of their cavalry is comprised of the Cavalry Soldier, a fierce and determined warrior on horseback that, while not as extensively trained as a Knight or Palladin, is still a fierce opponent in mounted combat.

There are a couple of issues I have with this section. First, Palladins don't usually make up much of the military at all. They are typically knight-errants and wander the lands. This isn't that they can't be part of a military, but that they'll rarely make up a big part. So people, in general, shouldn't have that misconception in the first place.

Duly noted. Just as a small point, with me seeing Knights and Palladins as commanders/officers in the military, that usually goes to say that there are fewer of them making up any part of the military body than your average soldier. Thus, while I made the Cav Soldier to comprise a relatively larger bulk of the cavalry, there would still be quite a few Knights and/or Palladins to command/lead them.

Second, by Palladium, cavalry are "usually knights, nobles & officers." Squires are probably thrown in there too (along with the knights). This can be found on page 81 (Soldier write-up). So while there are likely some others, those probably aren't the "bulk" (at least not by Palladium standard, not that I object to anyone changing things for their games).

I see what you mean. All I can say is that the Cav Soldier was created as a means of bolstering the ranks of an army. While, traditionally, cavalry was usually knights, nobles and officers (and probably squires, too) I don't see many armies sending nothing but theur officers, knights and nobility out on a charge into enemy lines. Logistically, it makes more sense to train regular soldiers in advanced horemanship techniques, arm them and send them out under the command of a few of the officers. Thus, the regular Cavalry Soldier is born!

Salary of a Cavalry Soldier is often 50% higher than a regular Soldier, even for officers, but hazard pay is common among them as they are often seen as a greater threat by the enemy and thus usually heavilly targeted. hazard pay for Cavalry Soldiers is often higher than normal.

Well, if you look at page 81 (Soldier write-up) of the Palladium Fantasy main book, you'll see the listed pay for cavalry. Unless your take on it is that pay is only for the Knights, Nobles, and Officers (though here you say including officers). Again, changing this for your take is fine, but my goal here is to inform for accuracy/consistency in case you hadn't noticed this section before.

You know, I actually did not see that. Let the beatings begin!

Attribute Requirements: IQ: 7, PS: 10, PE: 10, PP: 10

I don't object to this per say, but you do realize that this is almost the same requirements for a knight, correct? Except for the P.P. attribute, you might as well just make the knight with those requirements. Nobles and Squires both have lower requirements. The end decision is yours, but again, I just want you informed of what is there. Personally, I'd consider lowering these requirements to make this selection more worthwhile (in my opinion).

Noted and appropriately editted.

OCC Skills
Horsemanship: Knight

Not sure I entirely agree with this skill. While I understand the purpose, let's go back to the PF Main Book. This is the same skill and proficiency as a knight. Other classes that make up the cavalry are Nobles and Squires, so let's look at them too. Nobles have Horsemanship: General (no bonus), and Squires have Horsemanship: Knight "but has no special knight skills or bonuses" (not entirely sure what that means, but it's definitely an added restriction). Squires have knight training, and are considered just below a knight. Making an ordinary Soldier cavalry equal to (or even superior) feels off to me. My personal opinion is to give them maybe Horesmanship: General, with a +5% bonus or something (which is the bonus they get as a Related skill, but in this case it would just be standard). Maybe a special new Horsemanship skill (like Horsemanship: Cavalry) that's a step in between the General/Knight categories, but I'm not really fond of this idea either (just providing options for you to consider).

Rather averse to creating a new Horsemanship skill myself. What I believe the "special knight skills and bonuses" refer to are the Knight skills of the Way of the Horse and Way of the Lance. Don't quote me though, I'm just as in the dark about them as you are. I actually gave the Cav Soldier Horsemanship: Knight to set him a little above other Soldier variants in a way fitting to the concept behind him in the forst place. Just like I did with the Medic having an expanded Medical skill selection. Standard Soldiers only get First Aid, so a Medic is gonna need more than just that to reflect his extensive training in his field of expertise. Same with the Cav Soldier. Cav rides horses. Cav Soldiers need a better Horsemanship skill.

I like these ideas; they're cool. I do agree that the soldier is a bit underpowered compared to most OCCs, particularly the men-at-arms. Looking strictly at the numbers, the mercenary is significantly more viable than the soldier is. These house rules will make it more viable. May I suggest something like a phalanx? A soldier who effectively benefits best in a team, alongside one of his bretheren. He might gain bonuses to strike and parry if he's within melee range of an ally.

I'm really coming to like this system, warts and all. It has charm.

Jim

Duly noted and taken into consideration. I'll see what I can come up with.

For note: I'm actually working on something like that (the Phalanx) myself for another project. It won't be part of the average soldier though (it'll be related to the Soldier O.C.C. with just a bit more of a restriction). Though by all means, others are free to work on it. We'll see how that project goes before I state more on it. Don't take that as discouragement. Please continue and I'd love to see what you come up with*. I encourage others to continue working on the project. This is just FYI for those curious.


* - Actually, while I'd love to see what you come up with, I probably won't look at it. I'm trying to get mine published and if I look at yours it would cause legal issues, but I would love to see what you come up with otherwise and I'm sure others will appreciate anything you come up with too. This is just saying that others have had that idea and want to see it happen as well.

Well, the Phalanx idea is still bouncing around. Still trying to figure out some form of distinction between Phalanx and Soldier that I can run with to make a workable variant.

Thanks again for all the input, old friend! Rest assured no offense was taken by anything and I hope I addressed your concerns satisfactorily. Keep an eye out on this thread in the future too! There's more to come!

[JuliusCreed]

Sadly, I'm gonna have to annoy ya here, pardner! The Soldier does indeed start with HtH Basic, and the variants I am posting here are pretty much just variants of a basic Soldier. I really can't stress enough that particular point. These are all just basic run of the mill Soldiers with slightly varied skill sets to reflect a different area of military training.

Face palm. WHY IS SOMEONE WHO LIVES BY COMBAT ONLY GIVEN BASIC??? /nerdrage. I some times space these things since all my classes have -long- since changed, including drastic redesigns of skills. If soldier starts with basic by cannon, they would be too (Sadly). I would still suggest changing all four (soldier + these three) to expert as a starting point. I also forgot ID Plants was a separate skill yet (a change in streamlining). I'd also suggest adding some special abilities, but that's more my thing, and it also requires the class they are based off getting something similar as well, and then you're in a whole different game then just making new OCC, so I wouldn't expect that.

*wipes the sweat from my brow with a relieved sigh*
Whew! That's good! Having enough of a time with my brain running a mile a millisecond with just these variants alone! Already got ideas in my head for Combat Engineers, Air Cav, Intel... even the Marines for chrissakes!

[avenger314]

A thought for Phalanx OCC:
WP spear, WP sword, WP shield, + x of choice.

To balance it a bit: Make it more expensive to take upgraded HTH than for the soldier. They could start with basic, spend 2 for Expert, or 3 for MA. However, they get the following (cumulative) bonuses:

+X to parry with a Shield.
+X to Strike and Parry when within melee distance of an ally.
+Z to Strike and Parry when within melee distance of an allied Phalanx OCC, where Z>X.
+X to save vs. fear (not supernatural bonus, more like a huge part of their training and discipline involves being able to hold the line).

More specialized than the Soldier OCC, but more rewards when that specialization comes into play.

[Cinos]

*wipes the sweat from my brow with a relieved sigh*
Whew! That's good! Having enough of a time with my brain running a mile a millisecond with just these variants alone! Already got ideas in my head for Combat Engineers, Air Cav, Intel... even the Marines for chrissakes!

Well, you ever want to see my iteration of the game as a whole, just let me know Isn't there a Marines class already? As an aside, I'm not sure they're that common place in a world dominated by land combat. Engineers would be cool though since like the medic, that's something not really touched by other classes.

[JuliusCreed]

*wipes the sweat from my brow with a relieved sigh*
Whew! That's good! Having enough of a time with my brain running a mile a millisecond with just these variants alone! Already got ideas in my head for Combat Engineers, Air Cav, Intel... even the Marines for chrissakes!

Well, you ever want to see my iteration of the game as a whole, just let me know Isn't there a Marines class already? As an aside, I'm not sure they're that common place in a world dominated by land combat. Engineers would be cool though since like the medic, that's something not really touched by other classes.

Dunno about the existance of Marines in Pally Fanty. Maybe in Western Empires or one of those other books I don't have yet. If anyone can help a GM out here....?
As for the Combat Engineer, I've got it right here....

Combat Engineer
One of the unsung heroes of any battlefield, the Combat Engineer fills a vital role. His job is essentially to turn the battlefield itself against the enemy. From the construction of fortifications in the field to laying traps and obstacles to damage and hinder enemy formations. This is also combined with the fact that they are absolutely indispensible when laying siege to enemy fortifications with the construction and operation of Siege Weapons, undermining castle walls and setting up counter-measures against enemy attempts at disrupting the siege. The Engineer's job on any battlefield is as vital as it is daunting.
Combat Engineers tend to be a bit lacking in actual combat skills, often being found at the rear echelons conducting any number of tasks from coordinating mining efforts to constructing and/or operating a variety of siege armaments. If an Engineer is found on the front lines, it is often during the final stages of a coordinated siege effort against a firmly entrenched enemy and he will most likely have dozens, if not hundreds of combat ready troops at his back ready to charge forward at his signal.
Salaries for this highly specialized Soldier are often 50% higher than normal, often double that in some cases, especially if the Engineer in question is one of the subterranean races like a Dwarf or Kobold.
Engineers tend to prefer the lighter types of armor, favoring Leather and Chain Mail for most activities. When entering a combat situation, most Engineers, if given time to prepare, will often upgrade to a heavier form of protection, favoring Plate and Chain or even Full Plate armor.
Alignments: Any
Attribute Requirements: IQ: 9, PS:8, PE: 11
OCC Skills
Climb/Scale Walls (+5%)
Forced March
Mathematics; Basic (+20%)
Carpentry (+10%)
Masonry (+20%)
Language: Native tongue at 98% plus 1 of choice (+10%)
Literacy: 1 of choice (+10%)
Military Etiquette (+20%)
WP: Shield
WP: Siege Weapons with an additional +1 to Strike at levels 1, 10, and 15 (Note: These special bonuses may also be used in determining critical strikes against targetted fortifications such as castle walls, gates, etc.)
WP: 1 of choice
Hand to Hand: Basic; may be changed to Expert at the cost of 2 "other" skills or Martial Arts or Assassin (if Evil) at the cost of 3 "other" skills.
OCC Related Skills: Select 2 additional skills from the categories of Military or Espionage and 6 other skills of choice at level one, plus one additional skill at level 3, 6, 9, and 12. All new skills start at first level proficiency.
Communications: Sign Language ONLY
Domestic: Any
Espionage: Any except Sniper (+5%) (Detect Concealment/Traps gets a bonus of +15%)
Horsemanship: General and Exotic ONLY
Medical: First Aid ONLY (+5%)
Military: Any (+10%) (Field Armorer and Recognize Weapon Quality get a bonus of +15%)
Physical: Any except Acrobatics and Gymnastics
Rogue: Locate Secret Compartments/Doors ONLY (+10%)
Science: Archaeology and Advanced Math ONLY (+5%)
Scholar/Technical: Any (General Repair and Rope Works get a bonus of +10%)
Weapon Proficiencies: Any
Wilderness: Boat Building (+5%) and Wilderness Survival ONLY
Secondary Skills: The character also selects 4 secondarty skills from the previous list at first level and an additional 2 skills at levels 4, 8, and 12. These are additional areas of knowledge and do not get the advantage of the bonus listed. All new skills start at first level proficiency and are limited as previously indicated (any, only, none)
Starting Equipment: Identical to the Soldier OCC (PFRPG pg 83)
Armor: Starts with a suit of Studded Leather (AR:13 SDC:38)
Weapons: Starts with a small shield, a dagger, and 1 weapon of choice
Money: Starts with 200 in gold. Additional money will come from salary and hazard pay.
Notes on Soldiers buying additional weapons & equipment: Identical to Soldier OCC
Special Notes: My own personal experience with actual Combat Engineers is sorely limited. This is reflected mostly by a painful lack of starting equipment with this particular variant. The only remedy I can offer for this is to have whatever tools of the trade that are needed issued to your Engineers as they need them. This would most likely include a wide range of various tools and materials needed for whatever task is at hand.

[Prysus]

Dunno about the existance of Marines in Pally Fanty. Maybe in Western Empires or one of those other books I don't have yet. If anyone can help a GM out here....?

Greetings and Salutations. Well, the elite fighters would actually be your knights/palladins (maybe even your Mercenaries). With that said, in the Western Empire book they have the Jannisary. The Jannisary (which is specific to the Western Empire region) is said to be the equivalent of the Navy SEAL/Army Ranger (I think I have those two references right).

And while this doesn't give a detailed descriptions this list could be useful as a general tool: http://www.prysus.com/pf_occ

As for Cinos' problem of the Soldier having Hand to Hand: Basic only, while this is only my opinion I would like to say I have absolutely no problem with this fact. Let me explain. First, Soldiers are the guys who get enlisted, but probably have minimal training. Enough to fight, but these aren't the cream of the crop. These guys might only be enlisted for 2 years (some have longer terms). Take this peasant whose never fought a day in his life, give him some basic combat training so he's useful in larger numbers, and don't dedicate years to this guy's training who, after you've completed this exhaustive training, may just leave after. Basic seems appropriate to me for a Soldier.

Now, what does bug me, is that nearly every O.C.C. in the book gets basic! How is it that EVERY peasant, farmer, merchant, mind mage (views their talents as the end all be all of power), warlock (born to be one), witch (random person who makes a pact with a demon) all have hand to hand basic? And that's far from an exhaustive list. The problem isn't that Soldiers have basic (in my opinion), but that everyone gets basic became standard (which it shouldn't be) and many of those can even get hand to hand: martial arts/palladin (the elite, the best fighters in the world) so easily! I mean a freaking Mind Mage needs to spend only two Related skills?! Yes, I know that's two skills, and I can see that ... for a Men of Arms. But a Mind Mage?! And sorry, guess this is getting kind of sidetracked here. I have a tendency to do that. Anyways, just wanted to chime in with the information I had. Thank you for your time and patience, please have a nice day. Farewell and safe journeys for now.


Edit:: Actually, for the purpose of JuliusCreed's project, he may also find this list useful: http://www.prysus.com/pf_skills

[Cinos]

Cream of the crop would be Martial Arts / Assassin to me, while basic is closer to self defense. Also, the Soldier OCC is your job in life. Anyone with the class would be a lifer in the military, a peasant army would be the Peasant OCC with a WP or two (Or lumberjack / miner / whatever).

As to the Engineer class, Needs Teamster from Eastern Territory as Primary or a high bonus Related. Not getting far hauling Siege ammo without that. I'd also give a minor class bonus such as +Damage with Siege weapons to set them apart from a Soldier with selected support skills, but that's just me. As to the Marine, if it's not a figment of my imagination, it'll be in High Seas.

[JuliusCreed]

Cream of the crop would be Martial Arts / Assassin to me, while basic is closer to self defense. Also, the Soldier OCC is your job in life. Anyone with the class would be a lifer in the military, a peasant army would be the Peasant OCC with a WP or two (Or lumberjack / miner / whatever).

As to the Engineer class, Needs Teamster from Eastern Territory as Primary or a high bonus Related. Not getting far hauling Siege ammo without that. I'd also give a minor class bonus such as +Damage with Siege weapons to set them apart from a Soldier with selected support skills, but that's just me. As to the Marine, if it's not a figment of my imagination, it'll be in High Seas.

Sadly, I do not have Eastern Territory, but it is on my list of books to get. Until I do get it, consider the Teamster skill a part of the OCC.
As for the damage bonus to Siege Weapons, I was actually considering a Strike bonus for the OCC for siege weapons when using them against fortified structures with a successful Masonry or Carpentry skill roll on said structures. An Engineer's skills in locating the inherrent weaknesses of such things would give him a bit of insight in exactly where to aim the weapons, kinda like in "Kingdom of Heaven" when they started bombarding one particular section of a wall of the city because it was structurally weaker than the rest of it.
Not sure if the Marine is in High Seas (don't have that one either ) But I remember the Pirate and Sailor OCC's being in it from when I had a copy of 1st ed. Never looked through the 2nd ed of High Seas, so I'll give it a definite maybe.

[JuliusCreed]

Military Scout (a Soldier OCC variant)
Not all Soldiers are front line combat troops. Some are found behind the enemy lines performing reconnaisance and gathering intelligence on enemy troop locations, strengths and weaknesses and performing minor skirmishes against the enemy to hinder their movements and cause chaos among them, weakening the enemy before they even have a chance to engage the main military force. These actions fall squarely on the shoulders of the MIlitary Scout. )

I s this a special forces soldier or a normal grunt who also does scout duty?
If spec forces i think the ranger-assassin would be fine
If not , then he should be equipped and trained etc according his normal role in the unit(nothing to say that a ressourceful commander or soldier would´ve a bit special gear for special missions in his camp, but you don´t want to carry a second set of armour around)

The Military Scout is not spec forces, so yes, that would fall to Ranger or Assassin OCC's. The Military Scout is a grunt type soldier with a skill set specifically geared toward filling the role of a scout for the accomplishment of similar missions that don't neccessarily require the attention of a spec forces type character. As it says in the OCC desc, one of their primary roles is also running point for small scale units. While the Army could call a Green Beret or a Ranger to fill this role, more often than not it's just a regular Soldier with a little extra training/experience in doing it. This is the slot the Military Scout OCC fills.

Cavalry Soldier

Light and heavy cav are specialiced roles, which need different training and equipment.


light cav acts a scout, messengers, mounted skirmishers, raiders...
Heavy cav a assault, the heavy hammers, bot fight very different

As with he Military Scout, the cav Soldier is not trained to replace any particular role on the battlefield. They are a regular Soldier with extra training in a particular field. True Light or Heavy Cavalry roles are usually filled by Knights (and to a lesser extent, the Palladin) They receive extensive training in the weapons, armor, and tactics of these roles. The Cav Soldier gets the Cliffs Notes version of both styles of training and gets tasked to either role as needed. Hence the distinct lack of truly specialized training in the actual Cavalry role as compared top just a basic, broad understanding.

[pblackcrow]

Awesome.

[JuliusCreed]

Awesome.

Thank you!

[JuliusCreed]

Cinos, you may be thinking of the Mariner OCC

As distingushed from the sailor, the mariner is a character who is trained primarily in the technology of sefaring, from navigation to ship design to naval tactics and stragety. In other words, the mariner is a naval officer, a navigator or a captain, who has what it takes to command a ship, and steer it safely across the dangerous seas...

So from what I can see, there is NO Marine OCC? Hmmmmmm... anyone else got a take on this cause the wheels be a-turnin'...

[Cinos]

Cinos, you may be thinking of the Mariner OCC

As distingushed from the sailor, the mariner is a character who is trained primarily in the technology of sefaring, from navigation to ship design to naval tactics and stragety. In other words, the mariner is a naval officer, a navigator or a captain, who has what it takes to command a ship, and steer it safely across the dangerous seas...

So from what I can see, there is NO Marine OCC? Hmmmmmm... anyone else got a take on this cause the wheels be a-turnin'...

It might be, books arn't here at the moment, other then the one I'm building from (Western Empire that is). And not I, I take a minimalist approach with classes, preferring fewer, more flexible classes, then a few dozen ones with slight changes between them. Not knocking' it mind you, but I put my redundancy else where

[JuliusCreed]

To heck with it. Until someone gets me proof of the existance of the Marine OCC, I'm putting it right here. Hang me if I step on any toes here and my apologies ahead of time if I do so. So without further delay here they are; the few, the proud....

The Marine (a Soldier OCC variant)
Trained to fight in virtually any environment, usually under the worst possible conditions, and often against impossible odds, the Marine is a Soldier without peer. Equalling, if not exceeding, Knights in combat ability and having physical requirements akin to becoming a Palladin, a Marine is one tough hombre. Marines are often used to spearhead many ground battles in difficult terrain areas where cavalry units are often hindered, such as coastal/beachhead assaults, mountain raids and stealth missions through deep swamplands. They are often tasked as a hardline trooper at the forefront of the battle lines, hammering his way through the enemy while creating an openning in the enemy lines for his comrades to exploit. All done with a fierce determination that borders on obsessive disorder.
Highly disciplined and dedicated to his life in the military, it is rare to see a Marine retire from the military at a young age, barring forced retirement due to grievous injury. Even then, these fiercly disciplined warriors will look back on their days on the battlefield fondly and may even try getting back onto them, depending on how severe his handicap. If it's something a peg leg and a hook hand will fix up, he'll get it done if he can and happily charge back onto the killing fields. This, of course, leads to the Marine's only true handicap. Beyond the realm of being one of the most dangerous fighters to exist, he really isn't capable of much else. Marines are often lost and disoriented when it comes to how to behave outside of a military society. His life has always been one of a combat trained killer and without that environment, the Marine can become withdrawn, moody and sullen, just itching for an excuse to see some action. There have been many stories of Marines, retired from service due to extreme injury or age, taking their own lives because of their inability to cope with a non-combat world, or going on a rampage and getting themselves killed by town guards and militia because they just snap under the pressure of peace. Luckily, this is not the norm, just some of the more extreme possibilities.
salaries for the Marine are about equal to that of a regular Soldier. However, hazard pay is often 50%-100% higher for a Marine and gets paid more frequently. (generally, a Marine's routine life is considered quite hazardous) Marine Officers are about the same.
As Men of Arms, Marines are proficient in the use of all types of armor. While most OCC's usually have a particular preference in armor types, like Rangers, Assassins and Thieves typically leaning toward lighter types while Mercenaries, Knights and Palladins go for the heavy stuff, Marines usually like to keep their options open, wearing whatever armor they deem neccessary for the situation. Missions calling for lightweight protection will see him in Studded Leather or even Chain or Double Mail. Front line spearhead missions would see him donning Scale, Splint or full Plate for maximum protection while covert infiltrations would see him wearing Leather, Cloth or even no armor at all!
Alignments: Any, but most (75%+) tend to be very disciplined and honorable Soldiers with Principled, Scrupulous and Aberrant alignments.
Attribute requirements: IQ:7, PS:12, PP:10, PE:12
OCC Bonuses: +2 roll with punch, +1 initiative, +2 vs Horror Factor +1 at levels 3, 6, 9, 12, and 15, +20 SDC
OCC Skills
Climb/Scale Walls (+10%)
Forced March
Language: Native at 98% plus 2 of choice (+10%)
Military Etiquette (+30%)
Body Building/Weightlifting
Sailing (+10%)
Shipwreck Survival (+15%)
Swimming (+10%)
Wilderness Survival (+15%)
WP: Shield
WP: 3 of choice
Hand to Hand: Expert; may be changed to Martial Arts or Assassin (if Evil) at the cost of 1 "other" skill
OCC Related Skills: Select 2 skills from the categories of Espionage and/or Military and 5 other skills of choice at level one, plus select 1 additional skill at levels 3, 6, 10, and 13. All new skills start at first level proficiency.
Communications: Sign Language ONLY
Domestic: Cook, Fishing and Sew ONLY
Espionage: Any (+15%)
Horsemanship: General and Exotic ONLY
Medical: First Aid ONLY (+5%)
Military: Any (+20%)
Physical: Any (+5% where applicable)
Rogue: Any except Card Shark and Ventriloquism
Science: Math ONLY
Scholar/Technical: Any (+10% to General Repair and Rope Works, +5% to Language, Literacy and Lore: Demon/Monster ONLY)
Weapon Proficiency: Any
Wilderness: Any (+10% to Dowsing and Land Navigation ONLY)
Secondary Skills: The character also gets to select 3 skills from the previous list at level one and one additional at levels 4, 8, and 12. These are additional areas of knowledge that do not get the additional bonus listed. All new skills start at first level proficiency and are limited as previously indicated (any, only, none)
Starting Equipment: Identical to the Soldier OCC
Armor: Starts with a suit of Chain Mail (AR: 14, SDC: 44) or Studded Leather (AR: 13, SDC: 38)
Weapons: Starts with a small shield, a knife or dagger, and 2 weapons of choice. All are basic SDC weapons of very good quality. Also starts with one superior quality weapon (kobold or dwarven made) With either a +1 bonus to parry and strike or a +3 to damage. (player's choice)
Money: The character starts with 180 in gold. Additional money will come from salary and hazard pay.
Also see notes on Soldiers buying additional weapons and equipment (PFRPG pg 83)

Well, there he is kids! How we doing so far?
And for any actual Marines out there, I just want to say that the descriptive text is by NO MEANS a wholly accurate description of any real Marines anywhere! My stepfather, the only real father I ever really knew, was a Marine. From what I knew of him, he was a very kind and loving man with a big heart and very strong values. I also know that he suffered horribly from rather bad bouts of PTSD from serving 2 tours in the 'Nam. These were some pretty rough times for the family, but we all perservered and managed to keep a relatively stable home life with an environment of trust and love. Rest in Peace, Dad. I love you.

[Cinos]

You do know Marines are amphibious assault soldiers? I mean no offense if it's intended to be a tribute. I will say you've got to be a lunatic to be a Marine in that context, more so in fantasy (hey let's put you in a job that requires a huge skill-set, covering both land warfare and how to sail, both jobs by themselves). Most will be expected to help sailing (because if you can help with sailing, that's one less job to fill, since you don't need to be fighting at the same time as your sailing, and everyone needs to be cross trained a bit so when combat happens and you take losses, you don't get marooned unable to sail without replacements). Fishing should get a bonus (It's likely their core survival skill). There is also a Shipwreck Survival skill in High Seas that should either come with class, or be a high bonus related. Rope works and or sailing should be Primary in addition.

Focused bonus to Save vs Fear if you treat it differently then other HF saves (like morale). If HF is your core mechanic for that, then it's fine as is. +1 to Save vs Disease / Poison seems appropriate to me off hand (you ether died to it already on your first ship out, or you're tough to it). Dowsing also needs to be added to their +10% bonus list. More so in Palladium, if your Vanguard has no fresh water, they're dead.

In a note; It is mostly the US view that Marines are the 'go to elite', despite the term being a very specific thing. Since that is how they've evolved in our military since WWI, one of the biggest growing pains in the Corp was the Korean War into 'Nam where it became the turning point from a traditional naval to GI Bridge into a more focused general Vanguard used for a wider range of operations and a greater role in paving the way for the GI anywhere, and as a spearhead for US ground action (Which was the original intent, landing on a beach to pave the way for the bulk of the GI, though it was more focused on the literal beach landing and holding). Just has caused the original meaning of the word in America to be a bit off, I'd suggest the US Armed Services change the official name, but I'm fairly sure a legion of Marines (My brother among them) would beg to differ

[JuliusCreed]

I am fully aware that the Marines are traditionally an amphibious assault trooper, but I'm looking more at their modern day counterparts (yes, from the U.S. military) The role of the modern Marine has expanded greatly over the past decades, evolving from storming the beaches of Normandy on D-Day to running black bag operations in countries I've never even heard of. I hear of Marines filling their traditional roles on ships, crawling through swamps on covert missions, driving tanks across the deserts, flying choppers over jungle canopies and even piloting fighter jets through hostile skies. The Marine of the modern world has become a truly universal soldier over the years. And that is essentially the essence I am trying to capture with the Marine OCC here.
To Cinos; I didn't really intend for this to be a tribute to Marines when I started. It does seem to have possibly turned into one though Having done some time with the Army myself, I know way too many Marine jokes, but there is always going to be a certain level of respect toward them. I've seen what they can do and it impresses me. These guys got more intestinal fortitude than any 5 people I can think of off the top of my head. To the Marines, I can only say "Much respec' yo!"
To sword-dancer; I am personally totally unaware of any form of historic marine beyond what I know of our own U.S. Marine Corps, and even that is horribly limited to my own short encounters with them and whatever I see and/or read on occassion about them. I do feel, however that the Marines are indeed an elite level of soldier when compared to many other soldiers in any form of the military. Yes, there are many out there that can be considered better than a Marine in overall ability; Army Green Berets, Rangers and Delta, Navy SEALs, Air Force Pilot Recovery and others from foreign military forces such as British Special Air Corp, Russian Spetsnaz, Israeli MOSSAD and any number of others that I've heard of. (and most likely even more I don't know about) But even with all of the Special Forces type soldiers out there, the popular opinion of many is that the Marines either rank right up there with them, or at least come very close to it. I, personally, fall into the former category and have designed the Marine OCC to reflect that. I'm not saying it's a great representation of what could be a PF Marine, much less an acurrate portrayal of a historic fantasy style Marine. I just put out what feels right to me.
To everyone; thanks for all your input, critiques, observations, advice, compliments, comments, suggestions and even just taking the time to look at what I've got here! I'll keep turning more in as they come to me and look forward to more help from the community here!

[Cinos]

I am fully aware that the Marines are traditionally an amphibious assault trooper, but I'm looking more at their modern day counterparts (yes, from the U.S. military)

So long as you know what your aiming for. Though I think the I.Q 7 is a joke

"There is also a Shipwreck Survival skill in High Seas that should either come with class, or be a high bonus related. Rope works and or sailing should be Primary in addition. Dowsing also needs to be added to their +10% bonus list."

Remains a suggestion.

[JuliusCreed]

I am fully aware that the Marines are traditionally an amphibious assault trooper, but I'm looking more at their modern day counterparts (yes, from the U.S. military)

So long as you know what your aiming for. Though I think the I.Q 7 is a joke

"There is also a Shipwreck Survival skill in High Seas that should either come with class, or be a high bonus related. Rope works and or sailing should be Primary in addition. Dowsing also needs to be added to their +10% bonus list."

Remains a suggestion.

Was just getting the editting done, brah! Just got it finished!

[JuliusCreed]

Been a while since I came up with anything new on this thread and the idea just popped in there. Let's see where this goes...

Military Sniper (A variant of the Soldier OCC)
The unseen killers of the battlefield, Snipers are trained as heavilly in the arts of stealth as they are in combat. Essentially, they are military Assassins, tasked with infiltrating far behind enemy lines for the express purpose of killing key enemy targets, such as high ranking leaders, generals, mages and so on, as well as commiting other acts of espionage and/or sabotage. While the standard Assassin OCC fills this role nicely, many military organizations have taken to training their own corp of sanctioned troops for these tasks rather than associate with what is usually considered a criminal sect, thus tarnishing their own image.
Weapons training for the Military Sniper is very extensive. The term "sniper" usually brings to mind a person armed with some form of long range weapon, silently picking off targets from a safe distance. While this is essentially true of the Military Sniper OCC, they are also extensively trained in melee combat for when a target proves too difficult to eliminate at range.
As a Man of Arms, any type of armor may be worn without penalty. However, the typical missions for the Sniper usually demand stealth and silence, thus the lighter armors are preferred over any others. Anything heavier than Chain Mail is often viewed as a death sentence by these silent killers.
Pay for the Military Sniper is usually the same as a standard Soldier OCC, but hazard pay is typically 50-100% higher depending on the difficulty of the mission.
Special Note: The Military Sniper OCC is allowed to take the Long Bow as a seperate Archery WP like the Ranger and Longbowman. However, he does not get the Way of the Bow abilities of the Longbowman (ie Superior Bowmanship and Dodge Parry Arrows PFRPG pgs 83-84) AND the Long Bow WP counts as 2 skill choices.
Alignments: Any
Attribute Requirements: IQ:8 PP:12
OCC Bonuses: +2 Roll with Punch, +1 Initiative, +1 Save vs Horror Factor at level 1 +1 at levels 3, 6, 9, and 12
OCC Skills
Climb/Scale Walls (+10%)
Forced March
Language: Native at 98% plus 2 of choice (+10%)
Military Etiquette (+20%)
Camoflauge (+15%)
Prowl (+15%)
Land Navigation (+15%)
Sniper
Surveillance (+10%)
Wilderness Survival (+15%)
WP: Archery
WP: 3 of choice
Hand to Hand: Expert; May be changed to either Martial Arts or Assassin (if Evil) at a cost of 1 "other' skill
OCC Related Skills: Select 2 skills from the categories of Espionage and/or Military and 4 "other" skills of choice at level one plus select 1 additional skill at levels 3, 6, 9, and 12. All new skills start at first level proficiency.
Communications: Sign Language ONLY (+10%)
Domestic: Any
Espionage: Any (+10%)
Horsemanship: General or Exotic ONLY
Medical: First aid ONLY (+5%)
Military: Any (+10%)
Physical: Any except Gymnastics
Rogue: Any (+5%)
Science: Math ONLY
Scholar/Technical: Any (+10% for Languages and Literacy ONLY)
Weapon Proficiencies: Any
Wilderness: Any
Secondary Skills: The character also gets to select 4 skills from the previous list at level one and one additional skill at levels 4, 8 and 12. These are additional areas of knowledge that do not get the additional bonus listed. All new skills start at first level proficiency and are limited as previously indicated (any, only, none)
Starting Equipment: Identical to the Soldier OCC
Armor: starts with a suit of Studded Leather (AR:13 SDC:38)
Weapons: Starts with a small shield, a dagger of knife and 2 weapons of choice. All are basic SDC weapons of good quality. Also starts with one superior quality weapon of choice (Kobold or Dwarven made) with either a +1 bonus to Strike and Parry or a +3 bonus to Damage (player's choice)
Money: The character starts with 180 in gold. Additional money will come from salary and hazard pay
Also see notes on Soldiers buying additional weapons and equipment (PFRPG pg 83)

Now there's only ONE real issue I have with my own creation here and I'd appreciate any feedback; the alignment restriction. Should a Military Sniper, essentially a military sanctioned Assassin, be allowed to be a Good alignment. I find myself wondering about this because usually this OCC is one tasked with eliminating military targets. Assassins are restricted from being a Good or even Unprincipled alignment due to their willingness to take innocent lives. I am at least allowing this version of an Assassin/Soldier to be Unprincipled, but is it enough? The only real difference between an Unprincipled Sniper and an Evil Assassin that I can see is the Sniper is stuck with taking HtH:MA rather than HtH:Assassin because he isn't Evil. Balancing this is the fact that an Anarchist Sniper may take either one considering that the Assassin OCC can be Anarchist with HtH:Assassin. Any thoughts on this?

[Cinos]

Sniper class focused on clean kills and evasion and issued training with Shields, and no innate bonus to Strike? Otherwise seems a tad heavy on the skills, a good helping of Primary skills with 8 Related skills? Might just be lack of sleep (and books) though.

As to the alignment, I already lifted all of them aside from Priests classes. I'm fine with assassins being "good" so long as they remain within their alignment in their actions (which is to say a Principled assassin class would be forced to fight fair and negate most of their class skills, but they can just as easily be a former assassin turning over a new life). I can see Scrupled Military snipers in active duty in a greater good light (killing a single commander to cause a route and ending a battle saving lives on both sides), or former snipers given up the life.

[novatomato]

It looks like you're trying to merge Assassin and Longbowman, I would think it would be best to separate those into two individual sub-classes. The one you have currently looks more of an infiltration and sabotage specialist, while the 'sniper' idea you have should be drawn up again entirely as a Sharp Shooter.
I seriously would suggest changing the W.P's to W.P. Targetting or Archery, with two of choice for the Sharp Shooter and maybe even allow them the use of the Longbow.
I would also say that an 'assassin' type character should have the Surveillance skill as an OCC skill.

[bigbobsr6000]

JuliusCreed, Thanks for your work here. I was a Combat Engineer in the U.S. Army. Really liked that one.

[Reagren Wright]

Very neat stuff Julius . I only wish I was seeing them in a Rifter because I think they are good
enough to see print. I'd considered doing a revision and submitting them.

[JuliusCreed]

Wow! Thanks for the feedback everybody.It's been a great help. To adress the responses;

To Cinos; your thoughts on him being a bit skill heavy made sense, so the telated skills have been cut back a bit. This is also partly due to some revisions of the OCC Skills as well. Also, Shield WP has been changed to Archery to reflect the primary nature of the Sniper class.

To novatomato; actually that's a pretty accurate assessment of what I was trying to do with this. It's an OCCI've been trying to put together for some time now and just finally had a pretty solid idea of how to do it. The idea of a Longbowman combined with the skills of an Assassin has always been a favorite of mine and an Assassin armedwith just a shortbow never seems to fully fit the bill. As for your suggestion on the WP change, it has been noted and appropriately editted. Archery has been made standard, but I'm leaving Targetting as an available option in the related and secondary choices. The extra 3 OCC Skill WP choices help leave the options open enough for it to be a viable option.

To bigbob; Glad you liked it! Much respect, bro! Hooah!

To Revan: Actually it wasn't an oversight. I left the WP' deliberately vague to allow a person to customize their character's weapon skills to their own tastes as they see fit. That and the OCC Skill section, as Cinos had noted earlier, was getting rather heavy. But, after seeing all the responses so far about actually making a Sniper a sniper, it has been noted and editted.

To Reagren; Thanks a lot! And as often as I've considered submitting much of my work for consideration of the staff at PB for the Rifter, I just can't bring myself to do it. I figure if my ideas are good enough for the average gamer, why should they have to pay for them? I do this for the love of the game and hope to enrich my fellow gamers' worlds with little glimpses and snippets from my own.

On the alignment issue I had; Thanks everyone for your hepl on the subject. Available alignments for the Sniper OCChave been apprpriately editted.

Again, thanks to all for your input, compliments and critiques. It's because of people like you that the things I do are so good!

[novatomato]

I still want to see an Infiltrator/Saboteur/Spy subclass.

[The Dark Elf]

I still want to see an Infiltrator/Saboteur/Spy subclass.

Check out the SPY OCC in Yin Sloth

[JuliusCreed]

I still want to see an Infiltrator/Saboteur/Spy subclass.

Check out the SPY OCC in Yin Sloth

Seconded. Or check out the Military Scout variant closer to the top of the thread. That's about as close as I can get to an infiltrator/saboteur/spy without actually going canon.

[Hotrod]

My comments:

First off, I really like the specialist take on the Soldier OCC. You've clearly put some time and thought into this.

General comment on hand-to-hand: I 100% agree with having basic as the default. Most soldiers do NOT fight, or even train, most of the time. They guard stuff, patrol, clean stuff, dig latrines, walk long distances, et cetera. Frankly, I don't think most OCCs besides adventurers and men at arms should have any hand to hand skill at all, but that's a side-argument.

The medic/healer Soldier: You might consider including a few minor psionic healing powers. Not enough to make him on par with a psi-healer, mind melter,or priest... just enough to make him more than a Soldier who knows how to apply a turniquet, splint a break, and stitch a wound. Also, consider re-thinking the +3 to damage knife; if it's a scalpel-like knife, I'd go with silver (anti-microbial, less likely to infect a patient), and I'd have it do very little damage (1-4); such an implement is not for making big holes in people in a single swipe/thrust.

The Scout: If you are going for a balance between a soldier and a ranger, you might consider thinking and flavoring the text of this to be more of a skirmisher/light infantry role. Scout duty is only part of what he does, and he usually does it in support of his army/castle and in uniform; not as a behind-enemy-lines spy. He has a proper role in the order of battle as a skirmisher, starting out in front, harassing the enemy, and preventing the enemy skirmishers from doing the same.

The Combat Engineer: First off, no 'Combat' is necessary. The original definition of engineer is in the military sense; one who makes engines of war, or a sapper, is an engineer. Semantics aside, this was an excellent inclusion. I don't recall if there's a skill for cartography (map making) or surveying. If not, you might want to mention it in the description.

Cavalry: I echo earlier opinions that regular Horsemanship should be the rule for a regular cavalryman. Horsemanship: knight implies a depth and scope of horsemanship training spanning many years. Perhaps it would be appropriate to allow horsemanship to be upgraded along the same lines as hand to hand by using up a secondary skill selection? That would allow for a more elite kind of horseman who grew up working closely with horses.

The Marine: It seems inappropriate for a soldier who fights at sea to be considered on par with a Paladin or Assasin in the context of a medieval-style military. The OCC as written would be appropriate as an elite force in a navy-dominated culture, such as Byzantium. You seem heavily influenced by professional, elite marine units of western countries. Ancient and medieval marines were quite often regular Soldiers who happened to be serving on ships, and received no particularly special training, equipment, or recognition. Their regular routines were more focused on guarding key areas on the ship, enforcing discipline, quelling riots among conscript sailers and galley slaves, and other duties that don't involve sailor skills.

Sniper: For some reason, this one doesn't seem like it fits in the context of medieval soldiering. All you really need is an assasin OCC with your descriptive text, and you're good. Incidentally, there is a trilogy of books out there (Assasin's Apprentice, Assasin's Quest, Royal Assasin) that explore the moral dilemma you raise, and I think theanswer is yes, it IS possible to be a good killer (though not a principled one), just not a good killer-for-hire (how assasins are portrayed in the book).

Other suggestions for soldier specializations:
Herald: Not just the announcer/standard bearer of the lord, these soldiers are responsible for sending and receiving signals across the battlefield by flag or horn.
Musician: Soldier-musicians in old times were used to inspire, coordinate movements, and assist the wounded.
Wagon-driver: Armies live and die by their supply lines. Some soldiers must specialize in getting the right stuff to the right place at the right time.

[JuliusCreed]

My comments:

First off, I really like the specialist take on the Soldier OCC. You've clearly put some time and thought into this.

Thanks! While I really didn't strain anything creating these, I certainly do take pride in my work. If it makes other players happy, I'm happy.

General comment on hand-to-hand: I 100% agree with having basic as the default. Most soldiers do NOT fight, or even train, most of the time. They guard stuff, patrol, clean stuff, dig latrines, walk long distances, et cetera. Frankly, I don't think most OCCs besides adventurers and men at arms should have any hand to hand skill at all, but that's a side-argument.

Indeed... I leave those debates to others. Dead horses and all that...

The medic/healer Soldier: You might consider including a few minor psionic healing powers. Not enough to make him on par with a psi-healer, mind melter,or priest... just enough to make him more than a Soldier who knows how to apply a turniquet, splint a break, and stitch a wound. Also, consider re-thinking the +3 to damage knife; if it's a scalpel-like knife, I'd go with silver (anti-microbial, less likely to infect a patient), and I'd have it do very little damage (1-4); such an implement is not for making big holes in people in a single swipe/thrust.

While Psi-powers would be a big time help for the Field Medic, making them a standard part of the OCC seems to start delving into the realms of the PCC and that's not what I'm shooting for here. Most Soldiers, and people in general are non psionic to begin with. If you really want your Field Medic to have minor healing psionics, by all means give them to him, or roll on the Determining Psionics table in the character creation. As for the knife, I did consider a slightly more delicate scalpel like thing, though a silver blade hadn't crossed my mind. But then I figured this is a medieval army and the basic idea turned to field expedience. If the medic has the time, he can pull a scalpel from his pack and get to work. But, if he's gotta cut someone open now screw the scalpel, pull a really sharp blade and get to work before the man dies.

The Scout: If you are going for a balance between a soldier and a ranger, you might consider thinking and flavoring the text of this to be more of a skirmisher/light infantry role. Scout duty is only part of what he does, and he usually does it in support of his army/castle and in uniform; not as a behind-enemy-lines spy. He has a proper role in the order of battle as a skirmisher, starting out in front, harassing the enemy, and preventing the enemy skirmishers from doing the same.

Duly noted. I'll see what i can come up with.

The Combat Engineer: First off, no 'Combat' is necessary. The original definition of engineer is in the military sense; one who makes engines of war, or a sapper, is an engineer. Semantics aside, this was an excellent inclusion. I don't recall if there's a skill for cartography (map making) or surveying. If not, you might want to mention it in the description.

No skills for cartography or surveying in the main book, though others have mentioned their presence in other volumes not currently in my possession. They are, of course, available for selection if you have those books.

Cavalry: I echo earlier opinions that regular Horsemanship should be the rule for a regular cavalryman. Horsemanship: knight implies a depth and scope of horsemanship training spanning many years. Perhaps it would be appropriate to allow horsemanship to be upgraded along the same lines as hand to hand by using up a secondary skill selection? That would allow for a more elite kind of horseman who grew up working closely with horses.

Now there's an idea I like... Noted and appropriately editted. Thanks!

The Marine: It seems inappropriate for a soldier who fights at sea to be considered on par with a Paladin or Assasin in the context of a medieval-style military. The OCC as written would be appropriate as an elite force in a navy-dominated culture, such as Byzantium. You seem heavily influenced by professional, elite marine units of western countries. Ancient and medieval marines were quite often regular Soldiers who happened to be serving on ships, and received no particularly special training, equipment, or recognition. Their regular routines were more focused on guarding key areas on the ship, enforcing discipline, quelling riots among conscript sailers and galley slaves, and other duties that don't involve sailor skills.

Guilty as charged! As noted in other posts about the Marine, yes, they are, as written, very heavilly influenced by the modern western counterparts. That was pretty much the idea I was going for with them in the first place.

Sniper: For some reason, this one doesn't seem like it fits in the context of medieval soldiering. All you really need is an assasin OCC with your descriptive text, and you're good. Incidentally, there is a trilogy of books out there (Assasin's Apprentice, Assasin's Quest, Royal Assasin) that explore the moral dilemma you raise, and I think theanswer is yes, it IS possible to be a good killer (though not a principled one), just not a good killer-for-hire (how assasins are portrayed in the book).

While the Assassin would work, there is a singular advantage the Sniper has over them, that being the availability of the WP Long Bow. In a case like that, you could then say make a Longbowman with HtH Assassin. But then you'd lose the inherrent skills and skill bonuses the Sniper possesses from the Assassin basis. Finally you could make a Ranger to replace one, but where the Ranger specializes particularly in woodland survival and hunting, the Sniper cares less for hunting game and more for hunting men which is reflected in the available skills and bonuses as well. The basic idea for him was to combine a Ranger and an Assassin to create a long distance killer/hunter of men. I like to think i did pretty good with it. Oh and thanks for the references... I'll definitely look into reading them.

Other suggestions for soldier specializations:
Herald: Not just the announcer/standard bearer of the lord, these soldiers are responsible for sending and receiving signals across the battlefield by flag or horn.
Musician: Soldier-musicians in old times were used to inspire, coordinate movements, and assist the wounded.
Wagon-driver: Armies live and die by their supply lines. Some soldiers must specialize in getting the right stuff to the right place at the right time.

Interesting. I'll have to look into those and see what i can come up with... stay tuned!

Thanks for the compliments and suggestions and I hope your concerns were appropriately addressed.
Good luck and great gaming!

[Aramanthus]

I like this thread. It is a very cool one the expands the soldier. And open options for players to play.

[Omega6]

I just thought I would point out that almost any skill can be learned by any character outside of their "skill list".

The skills the character starts with and the skills that are learned as they level are, of course, restricted to the skill list provided by the O.C.C.

Palladium has always had "higher education" included, although it is often over-looked. It is in the fantasy and modern settings, but I haven't seen anything about it in Rifts.

So, for example the college in Old Timiro (Old Ones 58-59) will teach you various skills in exchange for money and time. I mention this due to the dispute about Horsemanship: Knight. That skill is available to anyone (of an acceptable race to Timiro) with 15,000 gold and three years to burn (Cavalry School is certainly viable).

Also of note is the Fencing Academy in Nira (Old Ones 108). I know I have seen more references like this, but I don't have the time to locate them all.

[pblackcrow]

Small question...um, do you have anything for a town militia? Trained and also untrained?

[JuliusCreed]

Small question...um, do you have anything for a town militia? Trained and also untrained?

Interesting idea, crow. Not as yet, but you can consider it in the works at the moment.

[pblackcrow]

Small question...um, do you have anything for a town militia? Trained and also untrained?

Interesting idea, crow. Not as yet, but you can consider it in the works at the moment.

Awesome, thanks mate.

[JuliusCreed]

At the request of our own pblackcrow....

Militia Trooper
Militia Troopers are a a type of Soldier often found in small to medium independant towns and villages scattered across the Palladium world. These places rarely have a population large or rich enough to form and train proper Soldiers, so a Militia is often formed from the local populace and trained as best as they can be, often by retired adventurers, wandering mercenaries, or even actual Soldiers from a neighboring kingdom or city that actually maintains a proper military force. Compared to proper armies, a town's Militia force is, at best, competent amateurs that are good at following orders, and at worst, bumbling fools that serve as little better than cannon fodder against any kind of organized fighting force. Typically, a Militia Trooper is an ordinary person that, when called to action, takes up arms in the defense of his home and people. (think along the lines of a primitive National Guard force) When not defending their town or village, a Militia trooper often has a legitimate job within his community, be it a farmer, innkeeper, blacksmith, stablehand or whatever. Unless they are under attack, these brave men and women can be found at their regular jobs, serving their community as they normally would in their chosen profession. They are also capable of serving as an unofficial police force for their town or village, often forming posses (some might say 'lynch mobs') to hunt down those that have commited crimes within their borders and bring them to justice.
Combat training for a Militia Trooper is often poor at best, training in rudimentary styles of hand to hand combat and simple weapons. Advanced training is possible, but difficult to come by, much less maintain active training in due to the part-time nature of their work as Soldiers. Weapons training is often limited to commonly available items such as Spears, Tridents (ie: Pitchforks) and Clubs. Militia forces often actively recruit the town's blacksmith in order to bolster weapon supplies with a selection of Short swords and knives as well as some of the lighter armors such as Studded Leather and Chain Mail. However, if the town has no blacksmith available, the Militia is often woefully ill-equipped unless a larger city is nearby.
Pay for Militia Troopers is often considerably lower than that of an actual Soldier of equivalent experience, between 25-75% lower than standard Soldier pay rates based on the size and prosperity of the village/town the Militia is based in. This is at least offset by the fact that a Militia Trooper usually has a regular job that he does when not on active duty. Hazard pay is often not available to a Militia Trooper either and for the same reasons stated beforehand. If hazard pay is made available to a Militia Trooper, it is usually about 50% less than standard for regular Soldiers.
Occupational Skills
The Militia Trooper is a part-time Soldier and has a job he performs in his community when not filling his role in the town's Militia. As such, all Militia Troopers may roll a percentile or pick from the following table to determine what his 'real world' occupation is and select a total of 5 skills related to that occupation from the categories provided with each one. These skills are in addition to the characters OCC Skills and receive a +10% bonus where applicable.
01-15%: Merchant: The militia trooper runs some form of business within his community, buying and/or selling items, running an inn or tavern and so on. Skill selections are made from the categories of Scholar/Technical and/or Domestic.
16-40%: Farmer: The Militia Trooper works the land of his village/town, tending crops, herding animals and other related duties. Skill selections may be made from the Wilderness and/or Physical categories, but no more than 3 Physical skills may be taken. The character may also select the Botany skill, but at the cost of 2 of these special skills.
41-60%: Laborer: A common worker, doing anything from lugging crates to building fences to digging ditches. If it's a general form of work, this Militia Trooper does it for a living. Skill selections are made from the categories of Communications, Domestic, Physical, Rogue, and/or Wilderness, but no more than 2 skills may be selected from any of the categories provided.
61-70%: Street Tough: For lack of a better description, this is what can be considered the worst of the lot among Militia Troopers. This is the brash bully who is often unemployed or an aspiring thief looking for an excuse to hurt or take advantage of people. Skill selections are made from the Rogue and/or Weapon Proficiency categories, but this character is limited to Selfish or Evil alignments only.
71-80%: Healer: A valuable addition to any Militia force, this Trooper is the town's doctor and often serves as a field medic when called to duty. Skill selections are made from the Medical and/or Science categories, but the Medical Doctor skill counts as 2 selections.
81-90%: Full Time Militia: whether a retired soldier/adventurer or just someone who has no other occupation within his community, this character is a full-time Militia Trooper and often considered an officer in the town's Militia. Skill selections are made from the Espionage and/or Military categories and the character's Hand to Hand skill is automatically upgraded to Expert proficiency. (must still spend "other" skills to upgrade any further)
91-100%: Noble: The militia trooper is a part of the town's/village's ruling class, a mayor, lesser noble, lord or even a child of the ruling class. Skill selections are made from the Military and/or Scholar/Technical categories. Often this Militia Trooper is an officer in the militia, but not always.

Alignment: Except as noted in the Street Tough Occupational Skills option above, a Militia Trooper may be of any alignment.
Attribute Requirements: PS and PE of 8 or higher
OCC Bonuses: +1 to roll with punch/fall impact and +1 to save vs Horror Factor at levels 1, 4, 10 and 12
OCC Skills:
Athletics
Climb/Scale Walls (+5%)
Languages: Native tongue at 98% plus one of choice (+10%)
Military Etiquette (+10%)
WP Shield
WP: Select one from either WP Spear, Forked Weapons/Trident, or Blunt, plus one of choice
Hand to Hand: Basic
Hand to Hand Basic may be changed to Hand to Hand: Expert at the cost of one "other" skill (unless character is Full Time Militia as noted above) or to Martial Arts at the cost of 3 "other" skills. (Hand to Hand: Assassin is NOT available to the Militia Trooper)
OCC Related Skills: Select a total of six other skills at level one plus one additional skill at levels 3, 6, 9, and 12. All new skills start at first level proficiency.
Communications: Any except Cryptography (+5%)
Domestic: Any (+10%)
Espionage: None
Horsemanship: General and Exotic ONLY
Medical: Brewing and first aid ONLY (+5%)
Military: None
Physical: Any except Acrobatics and Gymnastics
Rogue: Any
Science: Basic and Advanced Math ONLY (+5%)
Scholar/Technical: Any (+5%)
Weapon Proficiencies: Any
Wilderness: Any
Secondary Skills: The character also selects four secondary skills from the previous list at level one and two additional skills at levels 3, 6 and 9. These are additional areas of knowledge that do not get the advantage of the listed bonuses and are limited (any, some, none) as previously noted. All new skills start at first level proficiency.
Starting Equipment: Identical to the Peasant OCC (PFRPG pg 99) plus the character is also gainfully employed according to the roll/choice made on the Occupational Skills table above. Players and GM's should work together to determine what all the character may have available from his/her business/job.
Armor: Starts with a suit of Hard Leather Armor (AR:11 SDC:30)
Weapons: Starts with a Dagger, a Small Wooden Shield, and 2 other weapons of choice. All are basic SDC weapons of fair to good quality.
Money: Starts with 100 in gold. As gainfully employed characters, the characters business or job also brings in a rough salary of 1d6x100 gold per month after expenses (roll every month the character remains employed) Please note that if the character runs his own business he has a responsibility for its upkeep and maintenance or his/her business will FAIL! Players and GM's are encouraged to work out the details of the business a character may run. If the character is just another worker, he has a responsibility to that job and must show up for work or get fired! Unemployed characters may remain in a town's Militia, but the only pay they will receive is whatever pay they are given as a member of the Militia which, as previously stated above, is a lot less than a regular Soldier. Full Time Militia members (either rolled or chosen from the table above or other Militia Troopers that become unemployed) generally receive about 50% standard Soldier pay.

There we go folks, the latest addition to the many ranks of Soldier OCC's. Comments, compliments, complaints and/or suggestions, as always, are welcomed.

[pblackcrow]

Thanks a lot!!!

[JuliusCreed]

Thanks a lot!!!

Glad to be of service old friend. Suggestions are always welcomed!

[Hotrod]

Nice take on the part-time soldier. Few requirements, lots of flexibility. My thoughts:

1. Your description seems to be slightly condescending, like how a Spartan peer of yore would describe most part timers. I would consider taking a militia a bit more seriously as a viable military threat. Ancient Sparta's army and society were destroyed by yeomen of Thebes who spent most of their lives farming in Boeotia. I would revise your flavor text to reflect the reality that most feudal societies cannot support large standing armies, and therefore tend to draft militia to provide the bulk of their forces.

2. I really like the whole 'second job' skillset. I would trim a couple of skills from the standard list (see next paragraph) and add them to this one. I would also consider giving the player the option to pick any combination of skills that would be necessary for a common profession. You might consider taking away the automatic upgrade to expert for the full timer; even the regular soldier starts with basic.

3. OCC Skills: Basically, unless it is an absolute must for all militia work, I'd cut it from the OCC skill list.
Climb/Scale walls would be appropriate for, say, a mountain community, but not for an across-the-board OCC skill.
Learning a second language of choice as part of standard militia training doesn't fit for this.

Overall, I really liked it.