View source for Engineer

{{Skill}}{{/TL}}{{Specialty}}

{{IQ/Hard}}

''Defaults:'' Special.

''Prerequisites:'' [[Mathematics|Mathematics (Applied)]] at [[TL5]]+, plus others as noted.

This is the ability to design and build technological devices and systems. A successful roll lets you design a new system, diagnose a glitch, identify the purpose of a strange device, or improvise a gadget to solve a problem. Time required for each attempt is up to the GM.

Note that engineers are ''designers'' and ''inventors''; they are not necessarily skilled at the routine operation or maintenance of the things they design! For instance, [[Engineer]] (Small Arms) lets you design a new assault rifle, but you need [[Armoury]] skill to maintain it and [[Guns]] skill to shoot it.

You ''must'' specialize. Possible fields include:

:''Artillery:'' Designing whatever passes for artillery at your [[TL]], from trebuchets to smart missiles. ''Default:'' {{Armoury (Heavy Weapons)-6}}.

:''Civil:'' Planning highways, aqueducts, buildings, etc. ''Default:'' {{Architecture-6}}.

:''Clockwork:'' Designing wind-up gadgetry – watches, mechanical men, and the like. ''Default:'' {{Mechanic (Clockwork)-6}}.

:''Combat:'' Building or removing fortifications, trenches, etc. ''Default:'' {{Explosives (Demolition)-6}}.

:''Electrical:'' Designing electrical systems, such as power cells and transmission lines. ''Default:'' {{Electrician-6}}.

:''Electronics:'' Designing and building electronic apparatus, from computers to starship sensor arrays. (The specific technologies involved – vacuum tubes, transistors, photonics, etc. – will depend on the tech level.) ''Default:'' {{Electronics Repair (any)-6}}.

:''Materials:'' Concocting new structural materials.  Prerequisites: Chemistry or Metallurgy. ''Defaults:'' {{Chemistry-6}} or {{Metallurgy-6}}.

:''Microtechnology:'' Designing micromachines. ''Default:'' {{Mechanic (Micromachines)-6}}.

:''Mining:'' Designing underground structures. ''Defaults:'' {{Explosives (Demolition)-6}} or {{Geology (any)-6}}.

''Nanotechnology:'' Designing nanomachines. ''Default:'' {{Mechanic (Nanomachines)-6}}.

:''Parachronic:'' Designing apparatus for crossing dimensions or timelines. Prerequisite: Physics. ''Default:'' {{Electronics Operation (Parachronic)-6}}, but there is no default if your society has not discovered dimensional
travel.

:''Psychotronics:'' Designing psionic technology, such as telepathic shields and amplifiers. ''Default:'' {{Electronics Operation (Psychotronics)-6}}, but there is no default for individuals from backgrounds where psionics do not exist.

:''Robotics:'' Designing robotics and cybernetics. ''Default:'' {{Mechanic (Robotics)-6}}.

:''Small Arms:'' Designing personal firearms, such as guns and portable rocket launchers. ''Default:'' {{Armoury (Small Arms)-6}}.

:''Temporal:'' Designing time machines. Prerequisite: Physics. ''Default:'' {{Electronics Operation (Temporal)-6}}, but there is no default for individuals from backgrounds without time travel!

:''Vehicle Type:'' Designing a single, broad class of vehicle. Examples include Engineer (Automobiles), Engineer (Ships), and Engineer (Starships). ''Default:'' {{Mechanic (same vehicle type)-6}}.

Engineer specialties normally default to one another at -4; however, the GM is free to rule that in his campaign, there is no default between exotic specialties (Nanotechnology, Parachronic, Psychotronics, etc.) and more mundane ones (Civil, Combat, Mining, etc.).

''Modifiers:'' [[Equipment modifiers]]. Up to +5 to build a gadget if you can give the GM a good description of what you want it to do.