Esoteric Enterprises: Maintenance and Preservation

I'm thinking of doing EE again. Something more contained, both in scope and player power level. The characters are city workers who descend into the underworld to fix mechanical problems. 

Everyone uses a variant of the Criminal class. That means their survivability improves but nobody gets better at combat or uses the game's casting systems (which would take a lot of complicated houserules to fix). Characters can still roll translation to cast from scrolls. Permanent injuries are serious since the Doctor can't just staple a new limb on (though there should be a Mad Surgeon in the underworld who can do it). 

 

Every Criminal I've seen in EE maxed out their Stealth, Perception and Charm skills so they basically couldn't fail, and I have to think about how I'm going to handle that. I found it removed a lot of the danger from the underworld, and while I could run the game differently (people that can't be negotiated with, monsters with extrasensory perception) I'd rather identify a mechanical solution than just count on myself "doing it right this time". Maybe move to d20 roll-under vs ability scores? In that case maybe ditch skill points entirely, and just let players raise ability scores directly when they level.

XP is gained by completing jobs. Jobs require the players to descend into the underworld, find a specific location (or locations) and solve some issue

1. Leaking pipes
2. Electrical break
3. Clogged drain
4. Survey unmapped area
5. Change batteries
6. Read meters
7. Place sensors
8. Rescue mission
9. Lay cables
10. Set traps
11. Destroy dangerous structures
12. Take samples

Completing a job gives you one XP. You need to complete jobs equal to your current level to reach the next one. One job gets you from level 1 to level 2, then you need to complete two MORE jobs to reach level 3, etc. Trying a job and failing gives you half XP.

 

One thing I didn't do last time that I want to do this time: multiple z levels. The dungeon generator has an approximate progression of mundane areas on lower die results to exotic areas on high results. We can place the more exotic areas on a lower "floor" of the overall megadungeon. Maybe jobs placed on lower floors have bigger XP rewards?

The simplified mechanics (only one class, no caster schools, no "domain level play", no resource levels or fractional division of quest rewards) make it easier to onboard new players, but I also have to think about how I recruit. An open table format can result in a consistent cadre of regulars (Coal City Blues) or 100 percent player turnover (Cow Town). I'm going to draw the maps myself rather than make the players do it (which didn't work at all in the previous runs) so transferring knowledge isn't a big deal.