First, the Disclaimer- There is no effort made here to depict the varying physical abilities of dogs, that is an entirely separate issue. Nor do I get into individual personality traits.� A given dog may be loyal, lazy, energetic, submissive, aggressive, obsessive, and will have its own peculiar set of likes and dislikes.� These rules encompass the dog's skills only, and other abilities should also be taken into account when selecting a dog, or using one in a game from either player or gamemaster point of view. For example, it is not hard to teach a tenacious little dachsund to hunt, but to send the poor creature scurrying after birds when its squat, low body was bred to pursue burrowing mammals will be futile and discouraging to owner and dog. Likewise, the tall, sleek and
powerful Borzoi can pursue and bring down a wolf, but it may not regard a rat as worthy prey. It is theoretically possible to teach a Chihuahua to be a Team Leader for a sled team, but why would you? And the stunts and tricks a Labrador performs would be visibly different from those executed by the Chihuahua.
Skill Points for dogs: A dog spends skill points just like humans do in 2300AD. But, they do not acquire them the same way.� A dog does not automatically acquire its skill points. It has chances to do so. For the first year of its life, the dog's chances are 3 months apart. In the second year they are four months apart, in the third and fourth six months apart, and from the Fifth year on the dog gets one chance a year. A five year old dog has therefore had 12 Chances to get skill points. Each time it gets a chance, it must roll succeed in a "learn" task, and the minimum roll on a D10
needed for the dog depends on the breed and on the skill being learned.
A dog being professionally trained or very actively trained by its owner gets TWO rolls, and if both succeed, can acquire TWO skill points at each chance. A professional can train a number of dogs at once, an owner can only train one dog- his or hers. A working dog actually performing its needed task on a routine basis also gets two rolls, but at least one must always be spent on the
task it is doing. Working dogs may train as a group- one farmer may have a few herding dogs, and all will gain the extra learn rolls.
A dog that acquires 4 skill points in one skill with one person training it will bond to that person, performing that task with a +1 bonus for that person and a -1 penalty for anyone else. Bonding is cumulative, if the dog gathers 8 points in one skill with only person training it the dog now has a
bonus/penalty in that skill of 2. A dog needs to collect at least one more skill point in that skill to break an old bond.
Purebreds: Check out your dog on the breed skill chart at the bottom to find the learn scores needed to roll on a D-10 to acquire a skill point in that area.
Cross bred dogs: identify the pure-bred stock. If the Dog Skill being rolled for differs between the two in "learn" score, average it. Example, a half-Border Collie/half Australian Cattle Dog retains the learn score of 2 for the Herding skill, as it was 2 for both parents. A half Border Collie/half
Borzoi has a learn score of 4 for the Herding Skill, as its herd them/chase them instincts collide.
Mutts of unknown heritage are of course unpredictable. The game master should randomly determine a number, at 1d6+1, for each skill the first time the dog is trained in that skill. The dog owner/trainer will NOT know the number until the first time the dog attempts to learn the skill. "Well, one thing's for sure, she don't got no bloodhound in her."
A person very skilled in the raising of dogs may be able to identify a mutt's natural tendencies through observation and testing rather than trial and error.
THE DOG SKILLS
Controlled Attack- (CON) A dog with this skill will attack on command, or more commonly, not attack on command. It will also give the dog a bonus to attack against humans or humanoids. From the dog's point of view, following the handler's command to attack or merely to wait is one task, actually attacking is another. If a dog obeys a command not to attack, it will instead watch the target carefully, staying ready to spring automatically, and thereby winning any initiative challenge it may face. Thus, obeying a command NOT to attack is Routine unless the dog is itself attacked, in which case it is Difficult.� Obeying a command TO attack is always routine.
Focus- (FOC) a dog with this skill has been trained to ignore distractions, such as noises, other animals, weather conditions, battlefield conditions, etc, that would otherwise interfere with the performance of a task. Ignoring a distraction becomes a task in itself at the discretion of the game master, or the skill can be used to offset penalties for distractions. Vital for military, police, or circus dogs.
Guide- (GUI) A dog with this skill can lead a sightless person, interpreting the world around it so as to avoid danger to its handler. Even for a dog, many of the tasks covered by this skill are more above "routine", and so a dog is normally trained young for this job, and not put to full time work until it has gained a few skill points. A dog with only a point or two in this skill will still know it's purpose is to lead a person away of danger, so this is a good "backup" skill for rescue dogs, the traditional roles of Saint Bernards and Newfoundlands. (Again, it bears in mind that we are not discussing physical attributes here. With both these breeds, the ability to endure abusive
conditions like cold water or winter blizzards makes them highly qualified as resuce dogs, even if it would be easier to teach the skills to a different dog)�
Hold (HOL)- A dog with this skill can attack to immobilize a person (or other creature) by seizing an arm or leg rather than attacking to injure. Of course, the act of seizing an arm or leg can itself cause injury, but the injury will not be as severe. Dogs attacking naturally instinctively attempt to seize the neck of the target if at all available. If possible, then, a dog will make a second task roll when attacking, the second task being "to direct the attack against a specific location, Difficult, instant." A dog using Hold skill will have a modifier to this roll, and will direct its attack against an arm or leg, depending on size. Note that small dogs will not typically attempt to seize the neck of a tall target.
Hunt Game (HUN) The dog with this skill has been trained to locate and respond to game animals. If the dog also uses the silent signal skill, it will respond to game animals by silently signaling it's human (pointing), then waiting for further orders. Otherwise, it will bark and run into the game, typically flushing the game from hiding, with the hopes that its human will use the
bang-thing to make the game dead. A dog with the Hunt Game skill is automatically assumed to have an equivalent Focus skill when needed for Hunting situations- it will not be afraid of the sound of the bang-thing, for example.� A swift chasing type dog like a Borzoi or Greyhound or Saluki may use this skill to chase down and catch game that is trying to elude it. Digging type
dogs like Dachsunds, Terriers, and Burrowvargs trained to Hunt will pursue the appropriate game animals by digging into their burrows where necessary.
Living With Humans (LIV) With this skill, the dog learns the basics of living with a pack of technologically advanced social bipeds. The skill covers such important things as How to tell the Humans to open the Door because its Bathroom or Walk Time, What is not to be Chewed On, ''Scent Rules" do not apply to Humans and NEVER in the house, Ignore the Cat, etc. A dog with no score in this skill is impossible to live with, will destroy property, and should be kept outdoors. A dog with a level of 0 is housebroken, and at level 1 he has learned that combination of sounds the humans use to identify him, his name, and will come when called. Gamemasters should not test this skill often; generally, once a month for young dogs, less for older ones, although added
rolls may be called for if the dog has to face a more complex home environment, such as one with toddlers scurrying about, or is under great stress, like being abandoned alone for a full day.
Locate and Signal- (LOC) A dog with this skill has been trained to find something, and then to alert humans, quickly and obviously. Typical objects the dog will be trained to find include explosives, drugs, drugs, buried people, and truffles. Note that the dog's abilities rely on a very keen sense of smell, and finding tasks that are Impossible for a human may well be Routine
for the dog. The difficulty of the task from the dog's point of view will depend on the quantity of the substance to be found, and the extent to which the scent has been masked- note, not overlaid with another scent, as dogs don't fall for that trick, but actually hidden. The dog will signal a find with fidgeting and excited barking.
Stunt (STU)- The dog with this skill has been taught to perform amusing and challenging (to a dog) antics of various types. This may include odd and special commands the owner wishes to teach the dog. Vital for performing dogs, or dogs used in the making of commercials. From the dog's point of view, the human has been trained to provide a tasty treat when the dog executes some specific challenging action.
Therapy (THR) The dog has been trained to be exceptionally gentle and offer emotional support to humans in distress, the elderly and infirm, young children, the retarded, etc. Such a dog is also considered to have an equivalent Focus skill with respect to distractions caused by its humans- that is, a thunderstorm may still send the dog under the bed, but children pulling its tail will not upset it.
Track Scent (TRK) A dog with this skill can identify a scent, then follow that scent to its source, or trace the route the source followed. The actual task conditions should take into account the strength of the scent, the age of the trail, and weather conditions, and scent masking obstacles cross- for example, it would be a task to re-acquire a scent trail on the far side of a brook, and
whether the task is easy, routine, or difficult, or worse, would depend on the strength and age of the trail..
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Team Leader (LDR) A dog with this skill is trained to act as lead dog for a sled team. Whenever the team needs to make some sort of task role, the lead dog's skill is tested. This skill may be used as a "determination check" skill when the team must cross a challenging obstacle or continue in the face of severe conditions.
Watchdog (WAT)- ALL dogs start with a skill of 1 here, but better trained watchdogs learn to be more aware of their environment, and are better able to screen out routine interruptions (passing cars) and more able to perceive actual threats (intruders). Unless a dog makes a silent signal task roll, it will give warning by barking.
BREED SKILL CHART
This selection of 50 dog types is by no means all inclusive, just representative! Note that when a breed is given a "free skill" it is skill LEVEL and not a skill point.
1) Affenpinscher HUN, LIV, WAT at 3+ LOC, at 4+ STU, TRK 5+ GUI, HRD at 8+
All other skills at 6+
2) Afghan Hound HUN 1 free (instinct) HUN 3+ Liv, SIL, at 4+ , STU, THR 5+
GUI 7+, all other skills 6+
3) Akita CON , WAT 2+, FOC, HUN 3+ GUI 6+, HRD, THR 7+ all other skills 5+
4) Australian Cattle Dog FOC 1 free (instinct) HRD, STU 2+, FOC, LIV 3+ TRK,
LOC 5+ THR 8+ All others 4+
5) Basset Hound FOC 2+, LIV, LOC, TRK, 3+ WAT 4+ GUI 7+, LDR, HRD 9+ All
others 5+
6) Beagle, LIV, TRK, LOC, at 3+, CON, HOL, STU, LDR at 8+, all others at 5+
(operation of primitive fixed wing fighter aircraft at 10+ for cartoon beagles
only)
7) Black and Tan Coonhound FOC, HUN, LIV, LOC, TRK 3+ , CON, SIL, WAT 4+
GUI, LDR 7+, HRD, STU 8+ All others 5+
8) Bloodhound TRK 1 free (instinct) TRK 2+ FOC, LOC, 3+ , HUN, LIV, WAT 4+
GUI, LDR 7+, HRD, STU 8+ All others 5+
9) Border Collie FOC 1 free (instinct) HRD, FOC, STU 2+, LIV, RET 3+ TRK,
LOC 6+ All others 4+
10) Borzoi HUN 1 free (instinct) HUN 3+ SIL, THR 4+ LIV 5+ all others 6+
11) Boxer HOL, WAT 2+ , CON, FOC 3+ RET, HUN, HRD, STU 5+ All other skills
4+
12) Canaan Dog FOC 2 free (instinct) LIV, THR 4+, all other skills 3+
13) Chihuahua LIV, STU at 4+, FOC at 8+, HRD at 9+ all others at 6+
14) Chinese Crested LIV, WAT 3+ LOC, SIL, TRK, 6+ HRD, HOL, LDR, 8+ All other
skills 5+
15) Cocker Spaniel HUN, 3+ LIV, WAT, 4+, LDR 6+, HRD 7+ all other skills
at 5+
16) Dachshund LIV 2+ , TRK, HUN, LOC, 4+, HOL 6+ LDR, HRD 9+ All others 5+
17) Dalmatian FOC, LIV 3+ GUI 5+ HRD, LDR 6+ all other skills 4+
18) Doberman CON 2+ FOC, HOL 3+ SIL, WAT 4+ HUN, LIV at 5+ LDR, THR 7+ HRD
8+ all others 6+
19) Dogo Argentino HOL 2+, FOC 3+ CON, TRK 4+ HUN, GUI, LIV, WAT, 5+
All other skills 6+
20) German Shepard all skills 3+
21) Great Dane LIV, THR 4+ All other skills 5+
22) Husky FOC, LDR 2+, LIV 4+, CON, HUN, TRK, at 7+ GUI, HRD at 8+ others
at 6+
23) Icelandsk Farehond HRD , FOC 3+, GUI, LDR, LIV, SIL, WAT, 4+, Other
skills at 5+ TRK, LOC 7+
24) Keeshond LIV 2+. FOC, THR, WAT 3+ CON 4+ All others 5+
25) Labrador Retriever FOC 2+, RET 3+ HRD, LOC, LDR, TRK, 6+, All other
skills 4+
26) Lowchen WAT 2+, HUN, LIV, 3+ LOC, STU 5+ HRD, LDR, 8+ All other skills
6+
27) Maltese WAT 2 free (instinct) WAT 2+ HUN, LOC, 4+ others 5+ HRD, LDR, 8+
28) Mastiff CON, HOL 2+, FOC 3+ , LIV 4+, HUN, GUI, THR, WAT, 5+ All
other skills 6+
29) New Guinea Singing Dog (I'm not kidding, they sing) HUN, WAT 3+ , LOC,
SIL, TRK 4+ LIV 5+ HRD, LDR
8+ All other skills 6+
30) Newfoundland WAT, CON at 2+ LIV, RET, SIL at 3+ GUI, FOC at 4+ LDR,
5+ all other skills at 6+
31) New Zealand Huntaway FOC, HRD 3+, LIV, 4+, CON, HOL WAT 7+ All other
skills at 5+
32) Old English Sheepdog FOC, HRD LIV, 3+ GUI, RET, WAT 4+ HUN, LOC,
TRK, 6+ STU 7+ All other skills at 5+
33) Otterhound HUN, WAT at 2+, RET, LIV at 3+ SIL, TRK at 4+ GUI, HRD, LDR
6+, All other skills 5+
34) Ovtcharka FOC, HRD LIV, WAT 3+ CON, GUI, RET 4+ HUN, LOC, STU 7+
All other skills at 5+
35) Pekingese WAT 2 free (instinct) WAT 2+ LOC, RET, 4+ , GUI, SIL, 7+
HRD, LDR, 8+ others 5+
36) Pointer HUN 2+ SIL 2+ FOC 3+ LIV, WAT, 4+ All others 5+
37) Poodle HRD 5+, all other skills at 3+
38) Portuguese Water Dog FOC, RET 3+ HUN, SIL, 5+ GUI, HRD, LDR, 6+, All other
skills 4+
39) Redbone Coonhound HUN 1 Free (instinct), TRK at 2+, FOC, HUN at 3+, LIV,
LOC, SIL WAT at 4+ HRD 8+ other skills at 5+
40) Rhodesian Ridgeback FOC, HUN, WAT, 3+ RET, SIL at 4+ CON, LIV, STU at
5+ All other skills at 6+
41) Rottweiler CON, FOC, HOL at 4+ LIV, WAT, at 5+ All others 6+
42) Sage Ashayeri (Central Asian dog) All Skills at 4+
43) Saint Bernard FOC, LOC3+ LIV, CON, LDR 5+ RET 6+HUN 7+ All others 4+
44) Samoyed FOC, LDR 2+, LIV 3+, HRD 4+. CON, HUN, LOC, TRK at 7+ others at
6+
45) Thai Ridgeback WAT. CON STU LIV All other skills 6+ HRD, LDR 8+
46) Tosa (Japanese mastiff) CON, HOL 2+, FOC, WAT 3+ , LIV 4+, HUN, GUI,
RET, SIL, 5+ All other skills 6+
47) Weimaraner HUN 1 Free (instinct) HUN, WAT 3+ LIV, RET 4+ SIL 7+ LDR,
HRD 8+ All other skills at 5+
48) Welsh Corgi WAT, STU at 2+ HRD 3+ CON, FOC, 4+ All other skills at
5+
49) Whippet HUN at 2+ WAT, STU at 3+ LIV, GUI SIL at 4+ at all other skills
at 5+
50) Yorkshire Terrier LIV 3+, WAT, RET 4+ STU, HUN 5+ CON 8+ HRD 9+ All
others 6+
The Burrowvarg:
This alien creature, native to Beta Canum Venaticorum, can be trained in a manner similar to a dog, has social pretenensions similar to a dog, domesticates readily, and so has fulfilled a dog "niche" to many humans living off Earth. They gather their skill points as dogs do, although after their 8th year they gain only one point every other year.
It should be remembered at all times, though, that this creature is not a dog� and does not think in strictly dog like manner. For example, while all dogs have WAT 1 and respond to threats by alerting their humans, the burrowvarg's natural pack acts more like a group of earth prairie dogs or merecats- the creature has WAT 2 but only when actively watching (which it will do when not
otherwise occupied, if a group is kept, one will be the designated watcher) and its response to a threat consists of a series of warning chirps followed by the burrovarg dashing for its hiding place. Burrovargs have not been domesticated nearly as long as dogs and there are four primary breeds:
Feral Burrovarg: WAT, SIL 3+, HUN, TRK, LOC 4+ LIV, RET, FOC, 5+ GUI, HRD,
LDR, 9+ All other skills 6+
Uthen Shortlegged Burrowvarg: WAT, SIL 3+, HUN, LIV, TRK, LOC 4+ LIV, RET,
FOC, STU , 5+ GUI, HRD, LDR, 9+ other skills 6+
Highlands Varg: WAT 2+, HUN, LIV, TRK, LOC 4+ , RET, FOC, SIL, STU , 5+
GUI, HRD, LDR, 8+ other skills 6+
Long eared Burrovarg: WAT 2+, LOC 3+, HUN, LIV, LOC 4+ RET, FOC, SIL, 5+
GUI, HRD, LDR, 8+ other skills 6+
Some sample NPC dogs:
1) Miss Biggles the 5 year old professionally trained show Poodle.
Pampered and trained all her life, Miss Biggles has accumulated 12 chances to learn skill points. Since she has had a professional trainer all her life, she can roll for two skill points at each chance. Being a Poodle, unless she� attempts Herding, she needs only a 3 or better to gain any skill point. So, Miss Biggles' owner decides a messy Poodle is a bad Poodle, and in the first
year of her life, Miss Biggles is taught Living with Humans, and Stunt, getting 4 rolls each. She gains 3 points towards LIV and 4 points to STU. Good Dog!
levels, and remembering that all dogs have WAT 1, we find that Miss Biggles has skills as
follows:
STU 5 LIV 3 WAT 1 FOC 0 Miss Biggles is a well behaved and brilliantly
performing show dog that does difficult tricks with ease, but is susceptible to
distractions!
2) Tinky, a 2 year old mutt of unkown parentage that is a pet to a working class urban family.
Tinky's family didn't know what they were getting into, but little Olga wanted a puppy and Tinky's whole litter was being offered up for free to good homes, so Olga's father brought Tinky home. Olga is a student, and is home a lot, and so she spent the first year actively training Tinky, first to housebreak her, and being an unknown mutt, Tinky had to roll to see what her learn score in
"living with Humans" would be. Tinky rolls a 3 on a d6 and adds one, so she needs 4 or better to learn LIV. She tries 4 rolls and makes 3 of them. Then Olga tries her pet on Retrieving. She rolls a D6 again and it comes up 5. �Plus one is a 6. Tinky doesn't have much retriever blood in her! Tinky Rolls for RET once and makes it, but doesn't press her luck further. Olga turns to
Therapy, so she can bring the dog to visit her aging great grand mother. �Another D6. A one! Plus one is two! This is something Tinky is good at. �Tinky has 3 rolls left in her first year and makes all of them! . Alas, in year two Olga has much more serious studies and cannot devote much time to Tinky behind walks and playing, so no more doubled learn rolls! In her 2nd year Tinky picks up 1 more skill point in LIV and one in THR.
So, our little house pet has scores of: LIV 2 THR 2 WAT 1 RET 0 Although young, Tinky is a well behaved and very gentle dog that likes to play fetch. �
3) Neefer the 4 year old Long Eared Burrovarg, a colonist's watchdog and vermin chaser.
Neefer has never been seriously trained and has gained only one roll for skills per chance. At four years old, Neefer has 11 chances. Neefer spends 4 on Living with Humans, and is successful twice, then spends 5 on Hunting, successful 4 times, and 2 on Watchdog, successful once. Neefer has skills of:
WAT 3 HUN 2 LIV 1
4) Blue, the 6 year old mixed hound living in Tanstaafl.
Blue has features of a Bloodhound and a Redbone Coonhound, and averages both,
having his own personal skill table of :
Blue: HUN 1 or TRK 1 free (instinct) (50% chance of each) TRK 2+ FOC 3+,
LOC, HUN 3.5+ LIV, WAT 4+ SIL 4.5 + GUI, LDR STU 6+, HRD, 8+ All others 5+
Blue's free skill is TRK. Blue is continuously active; on a rough colony world with those vile Kafers about, Blue is put to work as soon as possible as a watchdog. Therefore, Blue gets doubled rolls at each chance, but one roll of each chance must be spent on WAT. Out of thirteen rolls for WAT, Blue makes 9 of them. Of his other 13 rolls, 3 each are used on LIV, TRK, FOC, and SIL.
Blue picks up 2 skill points in Living with Humans, 3 in Tracking, 3 in Focus.
Needing a 4.5 in Silent Signal, the gamemaster makes an odd/even roll to see if
he will round up or down, and the result is up. Blue picks up only 1 point in Silent Signal. One roll left. Blue tries to pick up a point in LOC and succeeds. Blue's Owner will select something that Blue has been trained to sniff out.
Blue has scores like this: WAT 5 with a point left over. LIV 2 TRK 2 FOC 1 SIL 0 LOC 0. A well rounded colony watch dog, Blue is very alert to danger- Kafers won't slip by HIS sharp ears and especially his Bloodhoundnose! He can also track well, and will sometimes ignore things that would distract less focused dogs. Finally, he will attempt to signal his human silently, even
though he isn't very good at it and will often forget and bark instead, and he will try to find that thing his human seems to want him to find, although Blue tends to forget just what that thing is.
5) Champion Rodham Earl of Strathclyde, a 9 year old award winning Border Collie.
This working sheepdog has been born and bred to dominate the Sheep Herding Trials of Britain! Professionally trained and worked his whole life he gets double chances for all skill rolls. Of his impressive 32 skill rolls, 20 of them are spent learning the important art of Herding. Another 8 go to Focus, because a champion sheepdog must often work under distracting conditions.
Finally, 4 rolls will be made to acquire "Living with Humans". Missing his HRD roll only twice, Ch. Rodham EOS picks up 18 points. He picks up 7 points in Focus, and 4 with Living with Humans.
Here are Roddy's (That's the name he actually answers to) skills: HRD 6, with 2 points left over. FOC 4 with 1 point left over, LIV 2. Roddy's Herding score is impressive, and its backed up by his fierce determination: strongly devoted to his task, Roddy tends not to let distractions interfere with the important work of rounding up sheep. Let's have a go at those Sheep!