Groundling Characters in Space (CSH)

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This section describes the features of groundling characters that would be useful in a SPELLJAMMER® campaign.
==Weapon Proficiencies==
In general, weapon proficiencies are equally useful in and out of wildspace. All weapons that work in a standard AD&D® game world also work in wildspace. Some of their effects are modified (particularly missile weapons, whose ranges are simplified in SPELLJAMMER campaign combat). In general, however, the rules for melee and missile combat in SPELLJAMMER campaigns are identical to the AD&D game rules, except as modified in any of the various SPELLJAMMER products.
==Secondary Skills==
Among the secondary skills that are available to characters (see Player's Handbook, Chapter 5), many could be useful in a spacefaring campaign. This section lists those secondary skills and provides a brief explanation of how they may be useful in space.
For a more complete discussion, see the associated proficiencies in the following section.
Armorer: Creating armor for spacefaring crews.
Bowyer/Fletcher: Making bows for offense and defense aboard spelljamming ships.
Navigator: Steering a course through knowledge of the planets and stars.
Sailor: Managing the rigging of a spelljamming vessel.
Shipwright: Constructing and repairing spelljamming vessels.
Trader/Barterer: Purchasing ship's supplies and acting as quartermaster.
Weaponsmith: Making weapons for spacefarers.
==Nonweapon Proficiencies==
Most AD&D 2nd Edition campaigns use nonweapon proficiencies to specify the learned skills of the PCs. As with secondary skills, many of these proficiencies are as useful in a SPELLJAMMER campaign as in a groundling campaign.
This section describes the standard AD&D nonweapon proficiencies that are of particular utility in a spacefaring setting. This list is not exhaustive and should not keep you and your players from finding creative uses for the proficiencies not listed.
Animal Lore. Despite the wildly varying environments of wildspace, the general understanding of animal behavior conferred with this proficiency is applicable to the creatures of space. A groundling who has never been to space, however, suffers a -2 penalty on all animal lore proficiency checks until he has had a chance to observe the fauna of wildspace and other planets. This penalty drops to — 1 after one month in space and disappears after two months.
Appraising. This proficiency allows a character to appraise valuables in terms of her own world's value standard, at least until the character has learned something of the trade goods of space. Thus, a Qualinesti elf from Krynn would place a much higher value on a cache of steel weapons than might a dwarf from Oerth, at least until the relative value of gold and steel were explained to the elf.
Rather than assigning a flat penalty to the proficiency roll, the DM should allow the character to evaluate the item appropriately to her current understanding, no matter how provincial. After a few months in space, however, the appraiser should understand that the value of an item varies from planet to planet (and sphere to sphere). Seasoned spacefaring appraisers can mentally juggle currencies and cultures with expertise.
Blacksmithing. Few ships carry forges for metal-working. Not only are such items heavy and of limited use, but a forge—like any other fire—cannot be safely operated in the phlogiston.
However, there is still some work for those who can turn metal into tools. Fixed bases (such as the Rock of Bral), ships that remain in a single sphere, and especially dwarven citadels operate forges where a blacksmith may ply his trade (although a nondwarf is unlikely to be permitted to work at a dwarven forge.)
A blacksmith may build a normal (nonspelljamming) forge in a suitable place, given the proper materials and enough time. A forge costs 1,000 gp in materials and takes two months to build. It requires the services of a stonemason for two weeks. Once built, a forge requires three tons of space and when operating consumes air as if it were eight people. For this reason, forges are found on only the largest vessels or on fixed bases.
If a forge is available, raw materials are not difficult to find. Iron ore is often found in asteroids and need not be brought up from a gravity well. A competent blacksmith should never lack for work, as there is an extensive demand for ship fittings and tools.
Blind-fighting. Because of the lack of underground catacombs or even simple night, this skill is not as useful in space as it is in a groundling environment. In wildspace, any exposed area is considered to be at least in starlight and possibly in daylight depending on the presence of fire bodies (see Lorebook of the Void, Chapter 2).
Bowyer/Fletcher. Weapons are sometimes scarce in space, particularly bows and arrows, which require actual trees for their manufacture. As wooden plants are rare in space, materials for bows and arrows must usually be brought up from the gravity wells. (There are rumors that the elven Imperial Fleet has cultured a plant that provides wood suitable for bows and arrows, a treelike species that can survive on the decks of ships in wildspace, but that rumor has not been confirmed.) Wood is also in demand for ship repair and many other uses, so a bowyer may have a hard time getting materials.
As a result, a bowyer can expect to sell his wares for three times the Player's Handbook price. Materials costs, however, consume 80% of that value, leaving only 20% as payment for the bowyer's services.
Carpentry. Given the shortage of wood, carpenters would seem to be of little use in space. Their efforts in ship repair, however, make them invaluable.
A carpenter usually works for a shipwright, repairing and manufacturing ships. As with the bowyer, the carpenter's primary problem is a lack of raw materials. Most shipyards and shipwrights maintain friendly relations with at least a few captains who visit other planets to trade for loads of lumber.
A carpenter is considered a "trained worker" if repairing a wooden ship (see the Concordance of Arcane Space, Chapter 4). However, a carpenter cannot repair ships unless under the direction of a shipwright (see Chapter 5, "New Nonweapon Proficiencies").
Cooking. Cooking is an art that is not common in space. Few spacefarers have access to the variety of spices and flavors that make cooking an attractive career. Moreover, no flame can be used during long phlogiston trips, so rations consist primarily of dried, salted foods not likely to appeal to a subtle palate.
Because of these restrictions, cooks are viewed as highly valuable aboard spacefaring vessels. Halflings (not kender) are especially sought after for their culinary skills, but anyone who can demonstrate solid competence in a ship's mess is treated well. More than one marooned spacefarer has bet his life on his ability to cook an adequate meal for a would-be rescuer.
Direction Sense. The innate sense of direction provided by this proficiency is of limited use in space. Since spacefaring vessels maintain their own gravity fields, it is difficult to detect ship maneuvers that change the direction of travel.
However, if the character can see the stars, or if the character is actually operating the helm, proficiency in direction sense operates normally. To reflect the benefit provided, give a +1 bonus to navigation (wildspace) proficiency checks (see Chapter 5, "New Nonweapon Proficiencies").
Disguise. Disguises are as likely to work in space as on the ground. Wherever there are large groups of people, a "look" or style represents the general member of society. For new spacefarers, it takes three turns of observation to establish the "look" in cultural centers such as the Rock of Bral or on planets; thereafter, the disguise proficiency works normally. This time must be spent the first time the character visits a new world or significantly different culture; thereafter, the character has established the "look" and can proceed normally.
Disguising oneself as a specific person, however, is no more difficult in space than on the ground, particularly if you have seen the individual to be impersonated.
Engineering. Engineering is useful in managing the construction of bases in space and constructing and maintaining the rigging and armament of ships. These skills are sufficiently similar to their groundling counterparts that a new spacefarer operates at no disadvantages when using this proficiency.
Etiquette. As with several other proficiencies, knowing proper etiquette requires a brief acclimatizing period to ensure correct behavior. A character who wishes to absorb the etiquette of a new culture (whether spacefaring or planetary) must make etiquette rolls each turn while in the culture. Until such a roll is successful, the character suffers a -5 penalty to etiquette proficiency checks due to a lack of familiarity with the proper courtesies and forms of address.
Healing. Magical healing is more limited in a SPELLJAMMER® campaign than in groundling settings because spacefaring priests are limited in the spells they can use. In the phlogiston, a priest may study only first and second-level spells. In many spheres, the priest's god has no foothold and her spells are similarly restricted, although certain spells (notably contact home power) can eliminate this restriction. If the priests' efforts are required on the spelljamming helm, she may be drained of all magical energy just when her shipmates need healing the most.
Among the problems this creates is a general decrease in the quality of healing. With priests limited to cure light wounds spells, experienced healers are more in demand in space than on the ground, where greater healing magic is available.
Healers operate with no penalty in space. Healers with herbalism proficiency must periodically refresh their stores of herbs in order to use the special abilities the combination of the two proficiencies provides (see the Player's Handbook, Chapter 5). As a rule, healing herbs are either depleted or decayed after six months in space and are therefore no longer useful. Heavy use (working as a healer after a major battle, for example) may deplete them more quickly, at the DM's discretion.
Jumping. Jumping in space is subject to all of the same limitations as on the ground (see the Player's Handbook, Chapter 5). A jumper may not jump farther than is stated in that proficiency.
However, within those ranges a jumper can leap beyond the bounds of an air envelope, particularly on a small vessel. If a jumper does so, he becomes an independent drifter with his own small air envelope (see the Concordance of Arcane Space, Chapter 1). Such an envelope contains enough fresh air to last 2-20 turns, assuming that the jumper set out from a fresh air envelope. If that air was already fouled or deadly, the air envelope around the character is in the same state.
A person who has leapt (or fallen) outside the air envelope of a vessel is drifting. A drifting character can move slowly by throwing equipment in the opposite direction. The maximum movement rate is 90 + per round (MV 3).
Riding, Airborne. Some few airborne creatures can be mounted and taken for short flights in space. They include dragons (of all types), dragonnes, giant eagles, griffons, hippogriffs, giant owls, pegasi, and rocs.
If a groundling has proficiency riding these airborne creatures in an atmosphere, that proficiency can also be used to ride them in space. However, there are several restrictions to their travel.
First, these creatures have no helm, so they cannot achieve spelljamming speeds. They are limited to tactical movement. They maintain their normal movement rate in standard AD&D® game combat but are limited to SR 1 for SPELLJAMMER® game combat.
Also, SPELLJAMMER game combat occurs at a much larger scale than standard AD&D game combat, making these creatures appear comparatively more maneuverable. Thus, flying creatures with standard maneuverability class A or B are considered to have SPELLJAMMER campaign maneuver-ability class A. Similarly, flying creatures with standard maneuverability class C, D, or E are considered to have SPELLJAMMER campaign maneuver-ability class B. (See the Concordance of Arcane Space, Chapter 4, "Tactical Movement" section.)
Terrestrial creatures with no greater than animal intelligence are instinctively averse to launching themselves into the Void. Also, the sensation of floating that comes from leaving the gravity plane of a ship is terrifying to them. Such a flying creature must make a morale check each time it is forced to fly outside of a gravity plane. If the morale check fails, a successful riding proficiency check must be made to convince the creature to enter space. If the proficiency check fails, the creature balks and refuses to fly.
Finally, no creature can fly indefinitely. Its air envelope will turn from fresh to fouled in 2-20 turns, and to deadly in 30 turns, unless refreshed at a larger air envelope.
Rope Use. Many spacefaring ships (especially human ships) have rope rigging. Characters with this proficiency can construct rigging, cargo nets, and other useful items without a proficiency check. They also add + 10 to climbing checks when using a rope and when scampering about the rigging of a ship.
Stonemasonry. While carpentry is a useful proficiency on wooden ships, stonemasonry is valuable on stone ships such as dwarven citadels. A stonemason can be used as a "trained worker" (per the Concordance of Arcane Space, Chapter 4) to repair breaches in stone hulls or to modify stone ships, but only under the direction of a shipwright (see Chapter 5, "New Nonweapon Proficiencies").
Weaponsmithing. Weapons are one of the few universal valuables in space. While an item considered a delicacy on one world may be swill on the next, weapons are always in demand.
With the exception of smoke powder weapons and some ship's armament, weapons in space are essentially identical to those used by groundlings. Thus, a groundling weaponsmith's skills are immediately applicable in space. However, any smith should note the dangers of operating a forge in the phlogiston and the rarity of forges in general (see the blacksmith proficiency).