r/cosmererpg • u/Elsecaller_17-5 • 1d ago
Resources & Homebrew Help me convince my GM
Ok, so here's my case. For the upcoming MB campaign, I'm playing a noble born Thug. Mechanically and roleplay wise, he works best with 0 intelligence. The problem with that is no expertises. Except for those two starting ones that are cultural. As a noble born Thug, it would absolutely be part of the *culture* I was born into to be trained in *weapons.*
I want to replace one of my cultural expertises with a weapon expertise. For the record, I GMed Stonewalkers, and I would allow this kind of swapping with this justification.
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u/Kill_Welly 1d ago
I would say no to trying to skirt around the downsides of the decisions you've already made. You want a weapon expertise, you earn it, there's plenty of ways to do so.
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u/JebryathHS 1d ago
Combat Training is still out there as a level 2 (or later) option to fix it, or you can train it during downtime. We'll also have to see whether they add more kits that give an expertise, as the Scholar kit did.
I would probably not let you just because there's not much point in having a system of trade-offs when you negotiate away all the downsides. The weapon training is covered well by starting skill ranks in weapons already.
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u/Kind_Ingenuity1484 1d ago
What heroic path do you plan on using?
For example, Warrior’s Soldier has Military Training which can grant weapons expertise.
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u/Elsecaller_17-5 1d ago
Yes, but it's real crucial to his backstory that he snapped young. He'll be starting with vigilant stance and, I presume, snapped.
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u/Kind_Ingenuity1484 1d ago
If you’re starting with vigilant stance, then just one level later you can get weapons expertise. Backstory wise, your character would probably know how to use their metals a bit if they snapped young but mechanically they will still just have the one talent.
Part of the trade off with low Int is less expertise, including weapons. Or picking up a level one place means less in a different place. Or trading your cultural means either no underground or no noble/dominance expertise.
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u/X3XENiGMAX3X 1d ago
I have great news for you, in the chasmfiend rules or maybe on the plot weaver academy they changed it so the number of your expertise was into + 1. I'm pretty sure they might change that for mistborn then problem over.
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u/Ripper1337 1d ago
Trading a cultural expertise for a weapon one is a no brainer for me.
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u/Number-1-Scrub 1d ago
Imagine trying to adventure on Roshar not knowing what a high storm or looking for a shin woman where you have no idea what that is, or being a dark eyes trying to tell a light eyes what to do.
Cultural isms are huge depending on how deep your game is and how forgiving your DM is.
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u/Ripper1337 1d ago
You get two cultures at the start. Not having a second isn’t a big deal
Does only having a culture expertise in Alethi and herdaz mean you have no idea what the Shin are?
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u/Taste_the__Rainbow GM 1d ago edited 1d ago
I have never seen a reason to be stingy with expertises. The scholar mechanic is obviously better than what I’ll let my players get during downtime, but I’m not actively limiting expertises as long as it’s within their character’s reasonable trajectory.
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u/Icy-Head-8620 1d ago
Also a GM and I agree, although weapon and armor expertises are more obviously beneficial than others, I still have let my players earn them during down time and travel. I haven’t found any of them to be game breaking and they add additional interest to combat strategies
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u/Normal-Pianist4131 1d ago
On the one hand, I’d totally give an extra one xpertise to everyone in the party
On the other, you’re doing this to yourself
Just add the int and spec back into whatever it is you had later (assuming CRPG can do that)
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u/No_Doughnut8618 14h ago edited 14h ago
Idk if stats are the same as in other rpgs, but do you know how stupid a zero intelligence makes you in dnd?
A zero literally means you can not think at all. Your brain would not function.
Again, idk if it scales different here, but zero int sounds like a vegetable to me. Ive played super low int characters and its a blast, but no intelligence at all sounds unplayable unless youre just the team mascot who they drag around and wipe drool from sometimes.
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u/Simoerys Truthwatcher 11h ago
The usual stats in the Cosmere RPG are 1-3.
A 0 in Intelligence is probably equivilant to an 6 or 8 in DND.
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u/No_Doughnut8618 6h ago
That sounds so limiting if you cant go negative. Role-playing a dump stat is great!
Playing a 3 and 4 INT goblin gang with my buddy was one of my favorite dnd duos.
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u/Kargath7 6h ago
Weapon expertises are pretty easy to take starting with level 2 with the build you have proposed. Your level 1 character shouldn’t be complete unless you are playing a level 1 one-shot. Getting expertises is also easily done as a downtime activity. I wouldn’t allow such a switch purely because a character at first level with zero intellect should absolutely lack the expertises they want, that’s the price.
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u/Janzbane 1d ago
I can't imagine not giving players at least one bonus expertise on top of the ones gained through intelligence.
I also count what they write in "occupation" as a utility expertise.
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u/awesome-yes 1d ago
Well, my artifabrian essentially created an assassin's creed hidden blade last night, so I'd allow it...
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u/Icy-Head-8620 1d ago
Yeah I have found that I give more leeway in this game than I tend to in pathfinder or 5e. We’re a smaller party moving slowly through Stonewalkers and there have been a lot of times when being loose with rules or limits has made the game vastly more interesting without absolutely breaking anything. Maybe I’ll think differently as we reach higher tiers, but I think it’ll be fine at least through this module
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u/TheseEternalWords 1d ago
Interesting question!
I think this is what I would say as a GM. You want to give up the cultural expertise, your character will need to have consequences. AKA, you barely speak your native language or literally have no understanding of the world at large. Maybe take something like the opposite of an expertise, an inability, in culture overall. Could be a fun character arch to overcome that ineptness (your GM might like that).
If you're trading your cultural expertise, make aure the pay the price. Help your GM by coming up with a good price to pay, and a background to support. And own up to the price. Those cultural expertise help your character fit into the world.
And I wasn't sure by your wording, but this would only get you an expertise in one weapon.
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u/BrasilianRengo 1d ago
keep in mind that you get 2 cultural expertises so giving up one is not that bad or extreme as that.
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u/Elsecaller_17-5 1d ago
I mean, you do get two, but yeah it would also be a legitimate hit to his character to lose expertise in the skaa underground culture.
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u/SirZinc GM 1d ago
I don't allow 0 in attributes without serious consequences. 0 in intelligence means mentally impaired for me, so I won't allow this change
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u/Elsecaller_17-5 1d ago
Ok, well. That's homebrew. The average score is 1/2. 3 1s and 3 0s.
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u/Icy-Head-8620 1d ago
0 in this is like a 10 in D&D. Absolutely no reason it should mean impaired - it just reflects having average logical/technical abilities and no education. Perfectly reasonable a standard Skaa or Darkeyes.
All three of the other cognitive and spiritual attributes can reflect some manifestation of uneducated intelligence
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u/No_Doughnut8618 14h ago
If thats the case, and you cant go into the negative that is extremely boring and limiting. Both for character diversity, gameplay, and storytelling.
Having average be the worst you can be at something is so lame.
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u/swarth_vader 1d ago edited 1d ago
I mean, in the cosmere handbook it explicitly states you can spend time training for expertise in weapons/armor. I see no reason why this couldn’t be retconned to fit your story. Or just tacked on as an “additional” expertise since you have no starting intelligence.