Investigator Perks

[OfnarHalibut]

My investigators, a mixed crowd of experienced players and relative newcomers, are insisting that they should be allowed perks that give them a reward other than replenished sanity. I dont mind giving them bonuses, because they are cautious players who do some very interesting and sometimes valiant things, but I dont want to give them too much. Im looking for some input on what kind of perks to give them, and also how you feel about a system of perks in general.

Here's the list that I have so far:

Birthday perk: If your character survives one year of game time, you have the option to roll 2D6 sanity bonus (the equivalent of mastering a skill), or you receive ten skill points to be placed where you like.

Dead Eye: If you kill an unusually large number of monsters in one game day, you receive a confidence boost, +1D3 Sanity, or two points added to a weapons skill of your choosing.

Bookworm: After careful research (lasting a whole game day or more), you receive one automatic successful library use role in the next scenario.

Guardian Angel: This one was designed for a specific player of mine. Having missed many luck rolls that landed three consecutive characters dead, she now has the ability to receive a luck roll that may (or may not) save her character in a life or death situation. This is a one-time-only perk.

War Monger: Should a character kill a monster in an exceptionally violent way, they are exempt from sanity loss for the next three combat rounds.

These are a few examples. Does anyone have any other ideas, or adjustments to the perks that Ive all ready made?

[SanitariumPr]

Birthday perk: If your character survives one year of game time, you have the option to roll 2D6 sanity bonus (the equivalent of mastering a skill), or you receive ten skill points to be placed where you like.

I don't really know giving some sanity back because they survive a year is kinda.. well at least would not work in my runs considering that you might end up spending months and months travelling / studying mythos books and so on.. and you can always depend on Doctors and therapy with sanity.. ( were playing 1890 / 1920 games ). Skill points on the other hand I am giving the possibility considering that if the players just improve some thing in their downtime - depending on the time and effort and possibility.

Dead Eye: If you kill an unusually large number of monsters in one game day, you receive a confidence boost, +1D3 Sanity, or two points added to a weapons skill of your choosing.

I like the idea, I will copy that part and part - f.e. Horde of deep ones dead will not cost anymore ( on that session or close time sessions ) sanity and they will get their "morale" boost in sanity but I would not go that far that I give em more skill points in guns because they can upgrade that possibly in downtime.

Bookworm: After careful research (lasting a whole game day or more), you receive one automatic successful library use role in the next scenario.

I don't know... this one is kinda hard because it could happen some day that they go wander around and "Oh lookie here Necronomi... "

Guardian Angel: This one was designed for a specific player of mine. Having missed many luck rolls that landed three consecutive characters dead, she now has the ability to receive a luck roll that may (or may not) save her character in a life or death situation. This is a one-time-only perk.

We are using kind of this thing in our games, all players have one "Ace in the sleeve" which is total 110% certainty to surive on death related situation if they are able to tell how/why they would survive. But this is only once per character and it can be used on other character also so f.e. If Simon here gets shot in the head with rifle from a long distance ( and has now "Ace in the sleeve" - Martin can use his "Ace in the sleeve" and the bullet did not splatter Simons brains in the wall but just barely missed the target making Simon lose HP and drop on the floor.

War Monger: Should a character kill a monster in an exceptionally violent way, they are exempt from sanity loss for the next three combat rounds.

Could work "Thinks about hammer and small hand axe and murdering rampage in the middle of Deep One horde* I might even give him no sanity rolls at all and no rolls if he loses half of his HP but let him go make a "go for it" and if he drops -10 he's done.

[Emrys]

Birthday perk: If your character survives one year of game time, you have the option to roll 2D6 sanity bonus (the equivalent of mastering a skill), or you receive ten skill points to be placed where you like.

If a character's survived a year of game time then they should have had ample opportunities to increase skills through play or during downtime (using BRP's training rules if necessary). 2d6 is potentially an awful lot of Sanity to regain if a character's lost as much as seems to be usual.

Dead Eye: If you kill an unusually large number of monsters in one game day, you receive a confidence boost, +1D3 Sanity, or two points added to a weapons skill of your choosing.

Again, the character should have got a "tick" in at least one weapon skill. I give my players +1 in a skill if they roll 01 and then make an Idea% roll (to realise why they succeeded so well) or if they roll 00 and then make a hard Idea% roll (to realise why they failed so spectacularly). The rulebook says:

(O)nce an investigator has lost as many Sanity points for seeing a particular sort of monster as the maximum possible for the monster, he or she should not lose more Sanity points for a reasonable interval. "Reasonable interval" nay be a game day, or a game week, or the duration of an adventure.

If the investigator's defeated a large number of monsters I might be persuaded to extend the "reasonable interval" slightly or give them a -1 to the Sanity loss from future encounters with that creature. If they've defeated the monsters they might (should?) be entitled to recover SAN as part of the scenario's rewards anyway.

Bookworm: After careful research (lasting a whole game day or more), you receive one automatic successful library use roll in the next scenario.

This doesn't make sense to me - how would a player know what subject to research? It might be more appropriate for an investigator who spends a long time in a library to gain a contact at that library who may be able to provide a small (+10%? +20%?) boost to any future rolls made there as long as the contact is available.

Guardian Angel: This one was designed for a specific player of mine. Having missed many luck rolls that landed three consecutive characters dead, she now has the ability to receive a luck roll that may (or may not) save her character in a life or death situation. This is a one-time-only perk.

I've given each my players "reroll cards". They can either cash in these cards before making a roll to get a normal success or can cash in the card to re-roll a failed dice roll. Each character can have up to 3 of these cards at any one time (I hand one out for each session they attend and, in theory, for any brilliant ideas or roleplaying, so as long as they only fail one critical roll per session they'll be ok. I don't recall players only failing one critical roll in a session, though, so the cards are of limited use in practice).

War Monger: Should a character kill a monster in an exceptionally violent way, they are exempt from sanity loss for the next three combat rounds.

This just sounds wrong to me - that sort of behaviour would be more likely to occur as a result of losing Sanity. Encouraging warmongery just doesn't feel Call of Cthuluish to me. Besides, I'd be more likely to make any investigator witnessing an exceptionally violent death - even that of a monster - make a SAN roll than give any immunity to SAN loss, however brief that immunity may last.

These are a few examples. Does anyone have any other ideas, or adjustments to the perks that Ive all ready made?

I tend to think gaining contacts are useful perks (and give the keeper new ways to introduce investigators to the next scenario - players may be more willing to come to a librarian's aid, for example, if failing to do so means they'll lose their bonus to Library Use rolls). A friendly face at a library or in the police force can be a godsend at times.

[Mechanicum]

I wonder if there could be perks connected to player professions. Say, for example, parapsychologist get a +10 bonus to their base score for occultism or something.

[Tigger_MK4]

I wonder if there could be perks connected to player professions. Say, for example, parapsychologist get a +10 bonus to their base score for occultism or something.

Errr...that what your professional skills are for spending on. No need to give them skill bonuses.

To the op....hmmm... (he says in a dubious tone).

Perks : useful maybe for pulp games, but I'd strongly resist any idea to turn professions into character classes, or start replicating d&d style feats in the coc system. One of BRP/COCs biggest assets is that it doesnt use them...it doesnt need them !

Perks resulting from rpging is another matter, but i think you're thinking along too much game mechanistic lines. ...how about stuff that is more based on the connections they made in character.

How about perk - concerned citizen: police will allow you to look at their records without hassle....or perk - occult connections, you know whos who in thw occult underworld...

These are more in keeping with the COC aesthetic to my mind (purely imo of course) than d&d style feats/perks that youve mentioned

Of course,if youre running a strongly pulp game, thats a different matter.

[blackstone]

Said "perks" IMO are going against the spirit of the game.

If they want perks, play Call of Duty MW3.

[Mulciber]

Said "perks" IMO are going against the spirit of the game.

Have to agree, sounds like a dreadful idea for CoC.

[Noble]

Not a fan of the perk idea, but if it works for you and your guys go with it.

The yearly sanity really don't work for me, it cheapens the experience of having a player under a psychologist or in a nut house for a year, it's always easy to lose sanity, but it should be a real struggle to regain it.

[The_Tatterdemalion_King]

Maybe you could make some perk trees that end with them turning into Ghouls, Deep Ones or Proto-Shoggoths; or reveal that they were amnesiac Yithians all along.

[Uuklay]

Maybe you could make some perk trees that end with them turning into Ghouls, Deep Ones or Proto-Shoggoths; or reveal that they were amnesiac Yithians all along.

I'm not sure if you were joking, but that actually sounds like a very fun idea. My players are the kinds of people who really enjoy "perks" and "feats" as well. Perhaps I could construct perk trees that they do not get to see...

[JonHook]

Slightly related to this are the new Character Traits introduced in the new Cthulhu by Gaslight. The Keepers at the Miskatonic University Podcast feel that these Character Traits are a hint at some of the things we may see in the new CoC 7th edition. The traits in that book, (as well as some of the disadvantages), can have an effect on the character's skills or some other flavor bonus to the character.

Anyone else seen the traits in the new Gaslight book? What do you think?

[The_Tatterdemalion_King]

Slightly related to this are the new Character Traits introduced in the new Cthulhu by Gaslight. The Keepers at the Miskatonic University Podcast feel that these Character Traits are a hint at some of the things we may see in the new CoC 7th edition.

Why not just play GURPS then?

[Daylen]

Nope, do the opposite.

Birthday perk: If your character survives one year of game time, you have the option to roll 2D6 sanity penalty for seeing too many things that should not be and having too much time to contemplate the unthinkable.

Dead Eye: If you kill an unusually large number of monsters in one game day, you receive two points added to a weapons skill of your choosing and 2D20 sanity penalty.

Bookworm: After careful research (lasting a whole game day or more), you receive one automatic successful library use role in the next scenario and a 1d100 sanity penalty for reading and gaining a glimmer of understanding of that which can not be.

Guardian Angel: Have many chars ready to play.

War Monger: Should a character kill a monster in an exceptionally violent way, they are exempt from sanity loss for the next three combat rounds, but take a permanent insanity of the GM's choice

Anything else is just making CoC into DnD.

[OfnarHalibut]

War Monger: Should a character kill a monster in an exceptionally violent way, they are exempt from sanity loss for the next three combat rounds, but take a permanent insanity of the GM's choice

You know, I kind of like that one. I was thinking about things that don't necessarily end in the players favor.

[Zarozinia]

Anyone else seen the traits in the new Gaslight book? What do you think?

I'm not sure about the idea of perks, which make me think of wholly positive bonuses for investigators, but I do rather like the traits from Gaslight. I just used them for the first time this weekend in my Masks of Nyarlathotep campaign. We had two new investigators join the party (they're dropping like flies in Kenya!), and I let them roll up a trait each, and, since my players seemed to really like the results I let the existing characters roll as well!

I can't remember what everyone off the top of my head, but the ones I do remember were that we discovered our two-fisted journalist from the London Scoop is actually a natural horseman (gaining a whopping +70% to ride!), our hideously scarred intelligence agent is a ladies man (a gain in APP and persuade, but given his starting APP was 3 it's not made much difference!), our American doctor is made of sterner stuff (reduced SAN losses for seeing corpses) and our field researcher has a (currently ill-defined) dark ancestory.

I'm not sure I would necessarily use traits in a more purist game, but they seem to fit my fairly pulpy Masks campaign rather well. Some of the other traits look like they might be a little overly powerful (adding lots of skill points or increased stats or magical potential), and personally I would have preferred to see a few more disadvantageous ones, but overall I think they add flavour to investigators rather than being a way of making characters into the kind of superheroes that populate other RPGs.

Even with the addition of traits I think CoC investigators remain suitably fragile, and I think the gleefulness with which my players embrace that fragility is the best defence against 'power gaming' regardless of such tweaks to the rules. I think my players enjoy the traits as a way of 'finding out' about odd characteristics for their investigators rather than as a means of gaining advantages.

I'm going to reserve judgement and see how traits work out in my current campaign before I decide whether to use them in future games, but they've certainly proved popular with my players!