“Hey you! Yes, you ya Scaly Faced Drazi layabout! Get back here. I have some questions for ya!”
System Notes
Every role playing group needs a heavy, even when you are in a diplomacy and social oriented game like Babylon 5. Enter Stephen Biggs with the Soldier Class to straight up handle the primary combat requirements. The Soldier Class is what you expect – immediate combat focus with high Attack Bonus, high Hit Point progression (for Babylon 5), and limited skills. It may be a bit stereotypical an Ability Score load out, but Stephen’s Ability Scores are: Strength 15; Dexterity 16; Constitution 15; Intelligence 12; Wisdom 12; and Charisma 10. As a human, Stephen has an extra feat and extra skill points but few other benefits compared to the other species.
In the world of Babylon 5, most combat will be ranged and with guns like PPGs rather than melee, so Dexterity got the 16 over Strength which got a 15. A somewhat gruff and lower Charisma fighting type is almost a required trope at this point, so we will roll with that. With a limited number of skills available, I only maxed out Intimidate and Athletics before stretching a few skills into skills like Computer Use, Operations, and Technical skills to simulate his required work on the scanners as Security on board Bab5.
For feats, Point Blank Shot is nearly a no-brainer providing a bonus in short range firefights that are likely to break out on a space station. As far as the bonus feat for being human, I picked Improved Initiative because with the lower Hit Points, going first becomes even more important. For his Combat Training Class Ability, I went with Weapon Focus – PPG keeping the short range firefight potential at the forefront.
For Influence, Stephen starts out with only 1D4 in Earthforce, the Earth Alliance Military Influence and he rolls a 2. He’s not so hot in the chain of command.
Stephen is our first, and looks like only character who will have an apartment in Blue Sector where the Earthforce personnel is housed and also will definitely have access to some armor and an Earthforce Issue PPG.
Advancement Notes
Advancement in the d20/OGL system is a straightforward affair where saving throws, base attack bonuses, and skills all have improvements as the character levels. With only 2 skills maxed out, those are easy to keep at the top of the pack. The other abilities are spread around in a similar fashion to make sure that Stephen can back up or aid other people in non combat situations. For Class abilities, Stephen also received Coordinate Unit which provides bonuses to Soldiers if they are in a combat with other soldiers acting as a unit. Additionally, at Third Level, for a Combat Training Feat I chose Alertness while the normal Third Level feat is Lightning Reload so Stephen is never out of shots for long. Advancing Influence isn’t much with Earthforce at a 3 and Babylon 5 Local at a 1. There is a price to pay for being a combat character in a social game.
Character Notes
Stephen Biggs was always one of the bigger kids in class. He matured early and hit a good 6 feet tall by the time he was 14. While he was growing, Earth played a role in the Dilgar War. It was one of Earth Alliance’s first major forays into Interstellar power. Answering the call for help from the League of NonAligned Worlds, Earth committed forces to repel the Dilgar from their expansionist and atrocity laden path of conquest. It was the Earthforce that turned the tide and bolstered the League so they could push the Dilgar back to their home system of Omelos which was destroyed by a supernova in 2237. Stephen had grown big and strong while seeing ISN report on the valiant efforts of the Earthforce fleet and GROPOS. Stephen signed up for Earthforce.
Things didn’t turn out so well for Stephen once he finishes basic training. Despite being fully trained as a Ground Pounder, Stephen wasn’t immediately assigned to a squad that was going out of the solar system. He ended up in the Military Police, an MP who was doing security detail on Mars base … but that ended up suiting him just fine once the Earth-Minbari war broke out. He never had a hate for the boneheads (literally, have you seen them? They have these bony crests all around their head), but he was sure as sure terrified they were going to wipe humanity off the map as they rolled through battle after battle with the Earthforce Fleet. Stephen was sweating bullets as the most powerful military force in the galaxy was shredding Earthforce and getting closer and closer to Earth. Then the Battle of the Line take place in 2248 and the Minbari surrender.
Not wanting to get too caught up in the Free Mars crackdowns that were starting, Stephen transferred off Mars. He was terrified of the Minbari so he understood why Mars didn’t want to be part of that war and he couldn’t hold it against them. For the next 7 years, Stephen bounced from post to post and never did much to distinguish himself. When he heard that Babylon 5 was finally coming online, after the last four all vanished or were sabotaged, he laughed … until he heard about the Chief of Security. Michael Garibaldi was a lost cause that deserved a second chance. For all that he had his problems and failings, Garibaldi looked after his own on Europa, on Mars, on every place he was stationed. Maybe Babylon 5 would be the place Stephen finally put all those doubts behind him.
For all the high profile diplomatic visitors, Babylon 5 Security Duty is a lot like any other security duty. Stephen finds himself working the “border crossing” scanning and watching the new arrivals for any known wanted criminals or contraband. Sometimes, he gets caught up in investigating a crime from Downbelow, but mostly it’s run of the mill property crime with an occasional diplomatic duel. In Nakir’s, Stephen has friends. Friends he really took to liking, even if they are younger than he is. They are also looking up at the people calling shots and wondering how did they get there. Durvoon seems to share a similar outlook even if he is a bonehead, but a worker bonehead. It’s too bad he can’t have a beer.
The War of Shadows that is coming isn’t going to be what nearly breaks Stephen. He will stand up for what is right and overcome what has haunted him since the Earth-Minbari war, but it is when EarthGov slips into a fascist state. His loyalty is tested because Stephen was always part of the Earth Alliance. It was Earthforce that defined his impressionable years, and when Earthforce stops being something he can look up to, Stephen has to choose how to walk away from the only life he has ever known.
Nakir’s Zocalo Bar Happy Hour Drinking Society Here
Stephen Biggs Human Soldier Sheet
BABYLON 5 and all related characters and elements are trademarks of and © Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Copyright © 2006 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. The Babylon 5 2d Edition game is subject to the OGL and was published by Mongoose Publishing.
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