Anybody ever play an Ogre T-man?

[thorr-kan]

I'm thinking of a free ogre T-man from Manoa's armed forces. What OCC to use?
Maybe just T-man from Atlantis or just a vagabond with tattoos.

[Nekira Sudacne]

If he's an Orge T-Man, then T-Man is the only OCC available.

Think of it like saying "I'm thinking of playing an Human Shifter. what OCC to use? Maybe A vagabond with magic?". The question doesn't make sense.

If you're playing an Orge T-Man, then T-Man (or Maxi-Man) is the O.C.C. You can't pick two at once that way.

[Hotrod]

I think "T-man" is referring to a tattooed class in general, not the specific class from Atlantis.
+The most obvious option is a Monster Hunter; though the fluff implies that this is a class for True Atlanteans, it is open to humans, ogres and Chiang-Ku. This class is native to Manoa.
-The Undead Slayer doesn't seem to be an option; in Atlantis, I see no mention of anyone but True Atlanteans having that O.C.C.
-The Sunaj Assassin would also be unavailable, as that's exclusive to a single clan of True Atlanteans.
+If the character is an escaped slave from Atlantis, then the T-man, T-Monster Man, or Maxi-Man could be a viable choice, as could the T-archer.
+You could also make an ogre character of just about any class and just give the character tattoos.
-The new tattooed classes in Secrets of the Atlanteans are exclusive to True Atlanteans. It includes the Monster Hunter in that list, which is inconsistent with South America 1's description.

It may be that the Splugorth escaped slave classes are your only canonical option.

[thorr-kan]

I think "T-man" is referring to a tattooed class in general, not the specific class from Atlantis.

Yeah, Atlantis has the following note, p93: "Note: The term "Tattooed Men" refers to all mystic warriors empowered by magic tattoos, whether they be male or female, ogre or human." Which I internalized 30 years ago (Good Lord, has it been that long?!) as anybody powered by tattoos.

+The most obvious option is a Monster Hunter; though the fluff implies that this is a class for True Atlanteans, it is open to humans, ogres and Chiang-Ku. This class is native to Manoa.

I missed that reference to classes in SA1, but it's right there. An option, but Monster Hunter wasn't quite the vibe I was looking for.

-The Undead Slayer doesn't seem to be an option; in Atlantis, I see no mention of anyone but True Atlanteans having that O.C.C.
-The Sunaj Assassin would also be unavailable, as that's exclusive to a single clan of True Atlanteans.
+If the character is an escaped slave from Atlantis, then the T-man, T-Monster Man, or Maxi-Man could be a viable choice, as could the T-archer.

Those I remembered, but escaped slave is overdone. Maybe as a model for the character, if not actually an escaped slave.

+You could also make an ogre character of just about any class and just give the character tattoos.

That's probably the most direct route. Just make give him vagabond skills, T-Man tattoos, and advance him as a T-Man.

-The new tattooed classes in Secrets of the Atlanteans are exclusive to True Atlanteans. It includes the Monster Hunter in that list, which is inconsistent with South America 1's description.

That's what I remembered; the inconsistency does not surprise me.

It may be that the Splugorth escaped slave classes are your only canonical option.

Yeah, but see above. Been done to death, and besides, why would Manoa trust him?

On the other hand, Atlantis has the rules for taking a former class and converting him to a T-Man. I could just combine that with the Manoan armed forces training and ignore the "escaped slave" part. It would just be somebody who's decided to enlist and make this his new calling.

On the gripping hand, if I go that route, what former OCC to take? Vagabond is the generic choice, but saddle tramp or saloon bum would be funny.

[Nekira Sudacne]

Could go Operator and have his Flaming Weapon be a comically oversized MDC wrench!

[thorr-kan]

Could go Operator and have his Flaming Weapon be a comically oversized MDC wrench!

"I tested high in mechanical aptitude (duh!), and now I provide combat mecha battlefield repairs."

"While under fire."

An MDC mechanic...is an interesting character idea. Well played!

ETA: An ogre can't be a psionic operator...but he's twice human height; he can actually *reach* things on robots and power armor. Note to self: remember to take climbing as a secondary skill...

[ShadowLogan]

That's probably the most direct route. Just make give him vagabond skills, T-Man tattoos, and advance him as a T-Man.

Actually if you go the Vegabond (or another OCC) Route you will be restricted in the number of M-Tats you can receive. You can receive up to 6 M-tats and not have to change to one of the Tattoo Man OCC (pg86 WB2) but you will not be MDC and from a skill perspective would actually be bad for the character if they have 6+ as they now have to change classes and per WB2 pg94 (under OCC Skills) those skills all become frozen (they do get 5 new skills which advance) so it might make more sense from a skill perspective to pick a T-man OCC as they would have advancing skills.

Then the question really comes down to the T-Man OCC you want to go with. Of the available OCCs, WB2 (and WB21) do provide racial breakdowns of the T-man class:
-T-Monster Men (26% Ogre Males)
-T-Archer (18% Ogre Males)
-Maxi-men (15% Male Ogre, 3% Female?)
-T-Man (5% Ogre Male)
-T-Monster Hunter (WB6 p101 under racial restriction, is available but doesn't list a breakdown, but is limited to one power block IINM, sorry I don't have SotA)

Really there shouldn't be any reason that Manoa/Atlaneans couldn't duplicate any of these (exception is the Archer as those tats are exclusive to Splurgorth IIRC).

I missed that reference to classes in SA1, but it's right there. An option, but Monster Hunter wasn't quite the vibe I was looking for.

What type of "vibe" are you looking for. The vibe of each class is based on their skill and/or tattoo selection. If you are looking for a vegabond type then go with one of the WB2 classes for a skills (and just pick skills to emulate that).

[Nekira Sudacne]

Could go Operator and have his Flaming Weapon be a comically oversized MDC wrench!

"I tested high in mechanical aptitude (duh!), and now I provide combat mecha battlefield repairs."

"While under fire."

An MDC mechanic...is an interesting character idea. Well played!

ETA: An ogre can't be a psionic operator...but he's twice human height; he can actually *reach* things on robots and power armor. Note to self: remember to take climbing as a secondary skill...

The Psionics are Optional though, and it does say any D-bee race can be one. he can be an Operator, just not a psychic one.

[Hotrod]

I’m having trouble getting the concept of this character. Ogre is born in Manoa(fine), becomes an operator (not a great fit since Ogres are supposed to be terrible craftsmen, but not illegal), joins the military (plausible, militaries like having mechanics), and gets lots of magic tattoos (which don’t really have anything to do with fixing technology).

These elements are a weird combination that calls for an background explaining why and how this character is who and what he or she is. It could also be useful to know why you want to make this specific combination, and how you see such a character fitting into a group.

[Curbludgeon]

Manoa is more known for their technowizardry than conventional technology. An Ogre T-Man washout(maybe 2-3 tattoos) bought from the Splugorth, who escaped slavery, found Manoa, studied to become a TW, and proved themself enough to get a couple more tattoos wouldn't be the most fancypants character pitch that I've heard.

[Hotrod]

Manoa is more known for their technowizardry than conventional technology. An Ogre T-Man washout(maybe 2-3 tattoos) bought from the Splugorth, who escaped slavery, found Manoa, studied to become a TW, and proved themself enough to get a couple more tattoos wouldn't be the most fancypants character pitch that I've heard.

TWs are all major psionics, and Ogres can't have psionics, but otherwise, that seems plausible to me.

[ShadowLogan]

Manoa is more known for their technowizardry than conventional technology. An Ogre T-Man washout(maybe 2-3 tattoos) bought from the Splugorth, who escaped slavery, found Manoa, studied to become a TW, and proved themself enough to get a couple more tattoos wouldn't be the most fancypants character pitch that I've heard.

TWs are all major psionics, and Ogres can't have psionics, but otherwise, that seems plausible to me.

Yes and No. Depending on where you look Ogres can or can not have psionics. AFAIK the Race isn't revisited in Rifts proper.

In PF2E (pg306, I have 5th printing 2004) Ogres can not have psionics.

In Rifts Conversion Book 1 Revised (pg103, 1st 'revised' 2002) Ogres are listed as having standard (as human) psionics.

Now I realize precedent is for the more recent book (so PF2E), but there is a "loose" justification that can come down to the group's library or used to allow regional sub-variant(s) to allow both races in play (technically there are small changes made to the Ogre's attributes between the two books that are not easily put down as "conversion" related).

[narcissus]

In Rifts Conversion Book 1 Revised (pg103, 1st 'revised' 2002) Ogres are listed as having standard (as human) psionics.

Now I realize precedent is for the more recent book (so PF2E)...

PDF Edition - October 2017 also says "Standard, about the same as humans." Sure, it's a reprint of the 2002 edition, but it's more recent if you want to justify it that way

[Incriptus]

Korut aka Rex is a runaway from Atlantis. His native world was one with Dinosaurs, and he was a Dinosaur hunter before being captured and forced into slavery. He worked the Dinosaur Swamp before he was freed during a confrontation with local mercenaries. You'll notice some skills with an * next to it, that was the GM & I cheating in some Dinosaur Swamp specific skills.

Name: Korut (Rex)
Level: 1 T Monster Man

Hit Points: 30
SDC: 87
MDC: 120
PPE: 136

IQ: 15
ME: 15
MA: 09
PS: 30
PP: 15
PE: 26
PB: 14
SPD: 23

Skills:
WP: Blunt
Gobblely: 98
Lore Monsters: 45
Lore Dinosaurs*: 45
Boxing:
Wrestling
Dragoneese: 68
American: 68
Prowl: 47
Imitate Voices & Sounds: 60/50
Wilderness Survival: 45
Track and Trap Dinosaurs*: 40/50
Hunting
WP: Heavy Energy
WP: Knife
WP: Targeting
WP: Quick Draw
HTH: Assassin

WP: Whip
WP: Sword
Cook: 50/60
Staking*
Detect Ambush: 50
Horsemanship Exotic: 40/30

Skin & Prepare Animal Hides: 40
Preserve Food: 35
Land Navigation: 40
Outdoorsmanship
Physical Labor
Forced March

Powers:
Racial: Night Vision(40 ft, Total Darkness)

Tattoos:
Simple Weapon: Skinning Knife (2 PPE)
Magic Weapon: Hercules Club: Dripping Blood & Covered in Flames Coiled by a Serpent (25 PPE)
Animal: Skunk (10 PPE) *Used to mark locations/Targets
Animal: Buffalo (30 PPE) *Used for Dinosaur Bait
Animal: Canine: Small Dog (15 PPE) *Used as a guard dog
Monster: Tyrannosaurus Rex (50 PPE) *Signature Monster
Monster: Sarcosuchus (50 PPE) *Water Ways
Monster: Titan Raptor (40 PPE) *Tight Spaces
Monster: Leather Wing (50 PPE) *Flight
Power: Heart Pierced by Wooden Stake (15 PPE)
Power: Magic Armor (25 PPE)
Power: Chain with Broken Link (30 PPE) *Strength to Wrestle Dinosaurs
Power: Heart in Two Pieces (30 PPE) *Draining Strength of Dinosaurs
**As a runaway slave the GM has allowed 3 additional tattoos**
Power: Heart with Tiny Wings (10 PPE) *Running
Power: Shark (20 PPE) *Swimming
Power: Skull Coiled with Thorns (40 PPE) *Mostly cause I wanted to be able to heal myself!

Trust Intimidate:
Damage: +15
Strike: +2
Parry: +2
Dodge: +2
Save vs Coma:
Save vs Magic: +8
Save vs Poison: +6
Save vs Horror: +8
RPFI: +2
Pull:
Attacks Per Melee: 4
Initiative
Autododge:

Insanities
10 – No Insanity
83 – 38 – Obsession: Specific Item
65 – Phobia: Elder and Ancient Dragons

[Mlp7029]

I would suggest a hunting dog with an 85% Tracking by smell.

[thorr-kan]

What type of "vibe" are you looking for. The vibe of each class is based on their skill and/or tattoo selection. If you are looking for a vegabond type then go with one of the WB2 classes for a skills (and just pick skills to emulate that).

Based on misremembering Monster Hunters as Atlantean-only, I was thinking they still might empower non-Atlanteans as normal T-Man. But:
A. Monster Hunters aren't Atlantean-only.
B. Non-Atlantean T-Man OCCs are a Spluggy thing.

So...not the character I was thinking of.

[Borast]

Manoa is more known for their technowizardry than conventional technology. An Ogre T-Man washout(maybe 2-3 tattoos) bought from the Splugorth, who escaped slavery, found Manoa, studied to become a TW, and proved themself enough to get a couple more tattoos wouldn't be the most fancypants character pitch that I've heard.

TWs are all major psionics, and Ogres can't have psionics, but otherwise, that seems plausible to me.

Even bigger issue...a TW has to be able to cast/manipulate magic.
The presence of the 4th(?) tat' eliminates his ability to do so.
The tattoos would have him in the unfortunate position of KNOWING how to fix TW equipment, but unable to do so.

Unless the Ogre was a demigod with magic powers equivalent to his character level, AND tattoos... (But in this case, even if they are inate, the tats would likely make it more diffucult - double cost? - to use spells.) (Or, had spent a week pinned to Yggdrasill with a rune weapon.)

I had a character like that in PF... An Ogre (his uncle was training him to be a shaman - he can feel the flow of PPE when a spell is being cast) Gladiator whom was freed by his last master, and was beginning training as a spell caster.

[Nekira Sudacne]

Manoa is more known for their technowizardry than conventional technology. An Ogre T-Man washout(maybe 2-3 tattoos) bought from the Splugorth, who escaped slavery, found Manoa, studied to become a TW, and proved themself enough to get a couple more tattoos wouldn't be the most fancypants character pitch that I've heard.

TWs are all major psionics, and Ogres can't have psionics, but otherwise, that seems plausible to me.

Even bigger issue...a TW has to be able to cast/manipulate magic.
The presence of the 4th(?) tat' eliminates his ability to do so.
The tattoos would have him in the unfortunate position of KNOWING how to fix TW equipment, but unable to do so.

Unless the Ogre was a demigod with magic powers equivalent to his character level, AND tattoos... (But in this case, even if they are inate, the tats would likely make it more diffucult - double cost? - to use spells.) (Or, had spent a week pinned to Yggdrasill with a rune weapon.)

I had a character like that in PF... An Ogre (his uncle was training him to be a shaman - he can feel the flow of PPE when a spell is being cast) Gladiator whom was freed by his last master, and was beginning training as a spell caster.

7th tattoo.

And being a demigod wouldn't help you. Even if you take the Magic option, getting 7 or more tattoos would still destroy all spellcasting ability.

[RockJock]

There is an example in Secrets of a character getting more than 6 tats and not switching OCC....the Cyber Knight. I'm not saying it makes sense to apply it to all classes, and examples, but it is out there.

I try to make judgement calls that fit my table. If I have a Trapper who gets tats I might let him stay a Trapper instead of becoming a T-Man. Same with say a Rogue Scholar, especially if it happened against their will. Same goes for Borgs. I'm probably not going to let a Gunslinger tat or borg up....