Improvement Points

Improvement Points
I M P R O V E D

DaiOni ACPA Full Conversion
DaiOni image © R.T.Games


DaiOni image © R.T.Games

While comparing notes with players and Game Masters, I've found that the concensus is that skill improvement in the standard CP2020 environment is too slow. The average successful skill use should hand out approx 2 IP, even if the skill was successfully used several times during a game. And since we usually play quite long games, the characters usually advance even more slowly than average compared to their amount of game experience.

To compensate for this we use a base x5 multiplier instead of x10 for determining the amount of IP required to gain a level of skill. (ex: level 5 skill requires 25IP to improve to level 6). Special Abilities cost x10, and secondary special abilities cost x15.

Skills with a multiplier are ridiculously hard to increase by standard rules. For example Ninjitsu requires 250IP to increase from level 5 to 6. That's about 80-100 game sessions. I convert multipliers into skill adders. A x2 multiplier becomes a +5IP requirement, and therefore a x5 multiplier becomes a +20IP requirement, which must be paid in addition to the usual level x 5 IP each time the skill is to be increased. (ex: ninjutsu from level 5 to 6 costs (5IP x lvl5 + 20) 45IP instead of 250. Still difficult to increase, but not obscene.)
Awarding IP

Goons, rappeling goons
Image © Target Games


Image © Target Games

Although we haven't actually changed the system for basic IP awards, quite often characters do something very important to the game that does not involve one of their skills. This is awarded with Float IP which are recorded elsewhere on the character sheet. Float IP are awarded almost exactly as normal skill IP, but are awarded for good thinking, saving the party, doing far more than your share, etc., using the chart from normal skill IP awards.

These Float IP can be spent to supplement the IP in any other skill to increase that skill.

In addition Float IP are also awarded much as Experience Points are in the World of Darkness games -

1 point - Showing up for the game
1 point - Completion of a subplot
1 point - Playing over 6 hour session
1 point - Completion of the main plot
1 point - Successful completion of main plot
1 point - Extreme Danger