Alternative Ageing rules: relinquishing skill levels to save decline in health characteristics?

Back to the topic... yeah, I don't mind this idea. Although I'd be most inclined to see the higher level skills degrade first. Or have a floor (definitely no skill gets lost - they'll always be zero or better). And maybe the current skill in training should be preserved - allow players that one way of choosing to stay a renowned expert in one field, or at least until actual INT and EDU loss forces them to lose their last remaining marbles...
 
The manufacturing standards have likely improved in 70 years, even if the underlying weapon is the same. Even if it's just the alloys used and the shift from blue collar workers at lathes to robot factories. (Note, I don't actually know if the current assault rifles are really still made the same way they were in the 50's or not. It was more of an observation about manufacturing progress in general).
Yes, the M4 is a better weapon than the M-16 in a variety of ways, but not an entire TL different.
 
You career may not be spent on your home world (e.g. Navy or Merchants), what if you are Drifter or Scout? Too many judgement calls for my liking.

We already have a mechanism for high TL/Soc people to avoid aging in anagathics. It would make more sense to just make then entirely legal and spend benefits to avoid aging rolls. But I am not sure what problem we are trying to fix.
 
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You career may not be spent on your home world (e.g. Navy or Merchants), what if you are Drifter or Scout? Too many judgement calls for my liking.

We already have a mechanism for high TL/Soc people to avoid aging in anagathics. It would make more sense to just make then entirely legal and spend benefits to avoid aging rolls. But I am not sure what problem we are trying to fix.
Anagathics kill you. Better care due to TL does not.
 
Lower life expectancy in low tech times and places has a lot more to do with everyday dangers than any pure ageing factor. Lots of medieval guys lived to a ripe old age, mostly because they got lucky with childhood disease and had safe indoor jobs. If you made it to age 18 your were likely to make it to 40, and no one would be overly surprised if you made it to 60. At least in MGT2e you don't actually die if a stat drops to 0. You die if a stat drops to 0 and you can't afford the medical cost to save you. It's that post 70 stage where medical science keeps the withered old geezers breathing... on very low stats. You want better? Anargathics and enhancements. Up to and including brain in a jar and clone bodies.

Perhaps apply TL as if it were a characteristic to get a modifier to the term survival roll for characters that start and stay planetbound? TL2 gets a -3, TL9 gets a +1 and so on? That'll sort em out. (also makes sense from higher tech planets farming out all the actual dangerous stuff to automation...)
 
Faith works wonders, without modern medical care.

Also, lack of pensions ensured continued exercise regime.

Possibly, lack of pollution, when not mining, or in dense urban congestion.
 
Wonders such as "I wonder why Brother Simon caught the plague and died?"

The rise of the automobile actually improved the air quality of formerly horse powered streets...
Not hurt by electric cars being a popular choice in the early days.
 
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God needed his book keeping talents, to keep track of new immigrants.

As regards equine byproducts, organic fertilizer.
 
Medically speaking, in the Sixth Millenia, we probably have nanobots going around policing our cells, and deporting radical elements.

Maybe, someone should come out with Advanced Traveller, and update character generation, as well as technological development.
In 2300 AD (also using Traveller rules), ageing rolls start at age 50 rather than age 34 due to advanced technology.
 
In 2300 AD (also using Traveller rules), ageing rolls start at age 50 rather than age 34 due to advanced technology.
I think that's mostly their alternative to Anargathics.

CT tables probably were too brutal. Mongoose isn't that bad. Term 4 you need to roll 5+ to avoid any effect, term 5 you need 6+, term 6, 7+. But missing those rolls by up to three only results in -1 reductions. You can often offset them by working out on the personal development table and characters that start with beefy physical stats can cope, especially those with stats just under a bonus threshold such as 8 or 11. End 8 or End 6? Dex 11 or Dex 9? You can soak off a bit without it mattering much.

My five term Merchant/Pirate managed both ageing rolls just fine with average rolls and hasn't seen any reduction at 38. Her Str 8 and Dex 11 mean she can likely last well into her 50's before it affects her task rolls, and frankly if she somehow lasts until her 60's and her performance starts falling off as a result, that's realistic at any tech level.

But at the end of the day it's just a stick to encourage players to not push their luck too far.
 
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I am not really seeing aging as an issue. I was mass producing fast grown clones (12x) for a clone army (started just after the 4th Frontier war) delivered at age 18 in 1086. They were rolling at -2 and started rolling at age 26.

The game is set in 1114 and at 46 and after 6 terms and 5 aging rolls I was expecting them to be pretty decrepit, but they all made it having lost at most 3 stat points (one didn't fail a single roll). As they were all being built from the same template it might as well be a good one (9+d3) and they are still much better than the average 7 across the board pleb.
 
Prior career natural selection tends to bump up the stat average, though. At least it does in Iron Man mode ;)
Benefit tables tend to give us non-physical stats above the nominal average of 7 too.
 
The difference might be whether you achieved that with a hundred sit ups a day, or anabolic steroids, for the physical ones.

While education can be widened, raw intelligence would need something artificial.
 
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