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Star Frontiers Medic 01

Human medic working on an injured Vrusk

Biosocial (primary skill area) are the skills and training that involves the sciences, life and health. Outside the field of spaceship operations, this is one of the most complicated and in-demand sets of skills a person can learn.

Skills

There are three skill areas to the Biosocial PSA:

Environmental[]

Environmental deals with relationships between intelligent life and nature. An environmental specialist has training in astronomy, biology, botany, chemistry, ecology and geology. This skill covers the following sub-skills:

  • Analyze Ecosystems (30%, +10% per level) An ecosystem is the combination of all the plants and animals that make up the local environment, and their relationships to each other. If an ecosystem is upset or thrown out of balance, entire species can become extinct and whole regions devastated by floods, droughts or other natural disasters. One of the environmental specialist's jobs is to analyze local ecosystems and determine whether they are balanced and, if not, to determine what can be done to restore balance. An environmentalist must spend at least 200 hours studying the area to use this subskill.
  • Concealment (10%, +10% per level) is the art of hiding in natural cover. Once concealed there is an 80% chance the specialist will not be seen as long as he does not move or make noise.
  • Find Directions (50%, +10% per level) allows an environmental specialist to navigate without a compass or other aid. If the specialist makes a map or marks a trail (by cutting notches in trees or lining up rocks), his chance to find a direction on that path is increased 30%.
  • Make Tools/Weapons (100%, if material available) allows an environmental specialist to make tools and weapons out of stones, sticks, cords, and other natural materials. Only bows, axes, clubs, knives and spears can be made (sorry, Kirk-styled cannons). Only the spear can be balanced well enough to use as a thrown weapon. The referee may allow an environmentalist to improvise tools and weapons from wreckage and scrap parts.
  • Naming (100%) is one of the benefits of being an environmental specialist is that when he discovers a new plant, animal, mountain range, sea, etc., he is allowed to name the new discovery.
  • Stealth (20%, +10% per level) is the ability to move without being seen or heard. This ability is useful for stalking animals, but also can be used to sneak up on guards of follow suspects.
  • Survival (40%, +10% per level) gives a specialist a chance to do several things related to survival: find food or water (if any is available in the area), find or improvise shelter, and set or avoid traps. If a trap is set in a built-up area (city, farm community, etc.), there is a 50% chance it will be noticed. This subskill also lets the environmental specialist make a special Intuition check to predict natural disasters.
  • Tracking (30%, +10% per level) allows a specialist to follow a creature, person or machine by watching for its trail. This skill works only in the wilderness, not in settled areas. The specialist also can use this sub-skill to cover his own tracks.

Medical[]

Vrusk medic

Medical diagnose ailments, heal wounds, control infections, neutralize poisons, cure diseases, wake up unconscious individuals and prevent tissue deterioration. Someone that has Medical skill is called a medic. Medics need a Medkit to use their skill. If a patient is treated in a hospital or sick bay all Success Rates are increased 20%. If the patient is an animal or an unfamiliar alien, all Success Rates are reduced 20%. These two modifiers are cumulative, so the chance to perform major surgery on an unfamiliar alien at a hospital is normal. This skill covers the following sub-skills:

  • Activate Freeze Field (30%, +10% per level) places a body in stasis and preserves it until it can be revived. Only a medic can activate a freeze field correctly. A freeze field must be activated within two minutes (20 turns) after death, or the body can not be revived.
  • Control Infection (50%, +10% per level) requires a dose of Omnimycin. If the attempt fails, the omnimycin is used up and the infection is out of control. Infections are rated by their infection strength (S) and duration (D) (ex. S2/D6); infection strength causes that amount of damage every 10 hours, up to the duration.
  • Cure Disease (40%, +10% per level) requires a dose of Antibody Plus. If the attempt fails, the antibody plus has been used up and the disease has not been cured.
  • Diagnosis (60%, +10% per level) will outline the patient's general symptoms and will identify the ailment as a wound, a disease, a poison or an infection. Once the medic has a general diagnosis, he can use this subskill to get a specific diagnosis, so he can provide the right treatment.
  • First Aid (100%) is where the medic treats an injury with a Biocort (heal 10 points of wound damage) plus any appropriate items from the medkit (local anesthetics, plastiflesh spray, etc.). Biocort has no effect on poisons, infections or diseases.
  • Major Surgery (20%, +10% per level) can heal any amount of damage, but consumes a number of Biocort (For every 10 points of damage (round-up fraction) that is healed), and one dose of anesthetic. Major and minor surgery are effective only on wounds. They can not be used to heal damage from infections, diseases or poisons.
  • Minor Surgery (40%, +10% per level) can heal moderate injuries (up to 20 points of damage. This is in addition to the 10 points that can be healed with first aid). This also uses up a dose of Biocort (For every 10 points of damage (round-up fraction) that is healed), one dose of anesthetic.
  • Neutralize Toxin (30%, +10% per level) requires a dose of Antitox. Poisons are rated like infections, according to how much damage they cause and for how long; the code is: S#/T# (StAmina damage per turn)/(Number of turns), so a S5/T5 poison will deliver five points of damage each turn for five turns (25 total). If successful in the neutralization of the toxin, no further damage is sustained by the victim.

Psychosocial[]

Psychosocial gives a person an advantage when dealing with individuals or groups of intelligent beings. The skill can be used when dealing with any of the major races as well as any other intelligent species one could encounter. Vrusk have a natural talent for this field (+5% on all Psycho-Social skill, do to Comprehension), as Dralasites have a natural edge with empathy (+10% do to detect lies). (these modifiers apply only if they have Psycho-Social skill) This skill covers the following sub-skills:

  • Communication (40%, +10% per level) is used to communicate with a creature whose language the specialist does not speak or understand. If the specialist uses this sub-skill successfully, he can communicate using very simple messages (like two-word phrases).
  • Empathy (10%, +10% per level) allows the specialist to get a general impression of the mood and intentions of individuals or groups. In order to use this skill, the specialist must be able to see or hear the individual or group. The information that the specialist gains by using this skill is very vague and non-specific (like hostile, curious, cautious, helpful, neutral, etc).
  • Hypnosis (15%, +10% per level) maybe use to put someone an a berserk state (+10 modifier on all rolls to hit in melee for one hour), to be used as an anesthetic (ignore the wound modifier in combat for 1-10 hours), or to give a hypnotic suggestion. The hypnotist must be able to speak to the subject in a common language without a translator.
  • Persuasion (10%, +10% per level) lets the specialist try to convince a person or group to follow a reasonable course of action suggested by the specialist. The specialist must explain his plan to the group or person being persuaded. (us of a translator imposes a -10% modifier) There is a chance (the roll misses by 50 points or more) that the audience will get mad and might try to do something that is the opposite of what the specialist wanted.
  • Psycho-Pathology (30%, +10% per level) lets the specialist try to help people or creatures that are psychologically disturbed. Extreme fright, isolation, or even unusual air and food chemistry can seriously affect an explorer's mental condition. A psycho-pathologist can help characters recover their confidence or forget their traumatic experiences. The specialist also can determine what will reassure or frighten an alien or primitive.

Pay Grades

Daily Pay by Skill Level 1 2 3 4 5 6
Environmentalist 60 70 80 90 100 110
Medic 70 80 90 100 110 120
Psycho-Sociologist 80 90 100 110 120 130
Experience Point Costs
Primary 5 10 15 20 25 30
Secondary 10 20 30 40 50 60

Note: Daily pay is based on one's highest skill level. Each additional skill would only yield 10 credits per skill level. For example, a level 3 Roboticist/level 2 Sharpshooter/level 1 Medic would be paid 110 Cr/day (80+20+10=110). Wages maybe adjusted for hazard/combat pay bonuses, scarcity of talent, royalties, healthcare, or any other negotiated pay settlement.

Notes & Resources[]

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