Notes on the Rules Upgrade

[boot]

The 1E D6 Star Wars game has three rule versions.

First.  There's the 1E Core rules, as described in the Core Rulebook.

Second.  There is the Rules Upgrade.  This was a four page set of additional rules that came with all 1E materials in the early days.  You can view those four pages HERE or EVEN HERE

Third.  There is the Rules Companion.  This book of supplemental rules came out during the 1E run, and once it did, the Rules Upgrade was no longer included with 1E purchases.  This supplement included and expanded upon the Rules Upgrade.









What this post is about is:



The Rules Upgrade

...from the perspective of a GM who loves vanilla 1E, Core Rulebook style.



(Refer to the Rules Upgrade via one of the links provided above.)



DIFFICULTY NUMBERS

Sure!  Use it!  But, it's not really a rule change, per se.  It's already in the 1E core rulebook but just not spelled out so clearly.  There are optional modifiers charts at the back of the book that suggest changing difficulty for this and that.  It's the same thing for the GM to modify difficulty for various reasons.



REVISED COMBAT SEQUENCE

From a pure 1E Core Rulebook perspective, this revised sequence is inferior to the original.  First, the sequence requires that Reaction skills are declared and rolled at the start of the round, before any actions are resolved.  This puts a straight jacket on the easy flow of actions in the very cinematic core rulebook combat sequence.  It focuses the game more on dice rolls and less on incredible Space Opera action as described by the GM.  In 1E Core, reaction rolls are never declared.  A character can use them to "react" to another character trying to harm him.  It's up to the player to use a reaction roll, and he doesn't have to decide until he's shot at--this is information that the attacker should not already know (as he does with this revised system).

Second, the revised combat sequence brings to the game the idea of Haste (which is elaborated upon in the Rules Companion).  I have never liked the Haste concept as I think it just brings some chunkiness to a swift and clean system, mucking up the works for no real gain.

Third--and I really dislike this--the revised combat system, the damage roll from a hit is separated from the action roll that achieved the hit.  This means that all actions in a segment take place, and if a blaster hit is scored on an enemy, the attacker must wait to roll damage after all characters in the combat round have rolled their actions.  Then, you go back to the attacker that scored a hit and roll damage.  So, if a character is hit, he still gets to perform his actions--all damage is rolled at the end of the sequence.  I find this very unwieldy in a game and proof that upgrade rules are not always better rules.

Fourth, under 1E Combat, if a character is hit, the minimum that will happen to him is that he is stunned.  That means that he will lose all his actions for the round if he has not yet acted.  The hidden benefit to this is that this simple rule makes complicated combats very easy.  The blaster bolts start flying, and early on, when people get hit, they can no longer act--thus the combat is streamlined.  The new Upgrade Rules, where damage is considered last in a segment, keeps complicated combats rather complicated--because all combatants still act, no matter what, in that combat segment.

NOTE:  That the Upgrade Rules also introduce two versions of Dodge:  The Combat Dodge and the Full Dodge.   The Combat Dodge is a roll of just the Dodge skill.  The Full Dodge is what a dodge is in the 1E Core rulebook:  You roll your Dodge and add it to the difficulty to hit you.  Again, I think this is unnecessary and just complicates a fast moving game.  

In 1E, the Dodge (called a Full Dodge in the upgraded sequence) is a powerful defense.  It is what keeps the heroes alive.  But, the 1E Core Dodge is only good for one segment.  As with all multiple skill use, it degrades every time it is used.  This, a player will have to balance that fact with skill use to keep his character safe.

And, the way it is used in 1E makes it not necessary to have to fiddle with Character Points (from 2E).  The Dodge is weakened with the other options in the Rules Upgrade, which creates the need for Character Points.  Simplicity is degraded, and the crunch feeds upon itself.  Rules beget more rules.  I prefer the quick, sleek fun of core 1E, unburdened by all this unnecessary extra.

More Complication:  Look at the combat example given in the Rules Upgrade.  It's just, flat-out, more complicated than that used in Core 1E.  And, for what gain?



COMBINED ACTIONS

This is an interesting rule.  It allows higher blaster attack values at the cost of lower damage rolls.  For example, if two Stormtroopers roll an attack a the same target, both roll 3D for the attack.  If a hit is scored, the blaster rifles do 5D damage.

This means that either trooper can roll a maximum of 18, and the damage potential for both hits is 5D twice.

With the combined action rule, you use the highest die code for the base then add +1 pip for every die code used in support.  In the above example, the roll would be 3D +3. Now, the maximum roll is 21, and the average roll is skewed up 3 points to 13.  Damage, though, is for the single weapon.  So the likelihood of hitting increases, but damage remains with a single weapon.

This seems like a good rule to add to a game, but I caution you.  This rule is very dangerous, and I would not use it.

First, consider that, in 1E, a character's main defense is his Dodge.  He rolls his Dodge skill and adds that to his difficulty.  Dodge is his armor--it keeps the character alive--it keeps the character from being hit and damaged.  The Combined Actions rule is just going to make it easier for your Heroes to get hit.  

Think about it.  Five stormtroopers round a corner and fire on your PC.  They each have Blaster 3D.  Your PC rolls his Dodge and gets a total of 20.  The PC cannot be hit this first segment (the PC is more vulnerable later in the round as his Dodge will degrade).  This keeps the BIG DAMN HERO ALIVE!!!!

Now, with Combined Actions, those five strormtroopers coordinate fire.  The attack roll becomes 3D + 12!  The average roll is 22!  The maximum roll is 30!  We've gone from no possible hit (against the 20 Dodge) to a likely hit!

Think of Luke Skywalker swinging across the Death Star chasm with Princess Leia on his hip and a squad of stormtroopers blasting away at him.  Which one of these scenarios better fits that heroic moment?  The 1E Core rulebook version, where five stormtroopers start blasting away at our hero, but our hero escapes unharmed (and rather heroically!).  Or, the second, combined fire version, where the hero is hit?

'Nuff said.  I suggest strongly that you do not use Combined Actions in your 1E game.



STARSHIP COMBAT

As with normal fire combat, the new version of Starship Combat just mucks up the works and complicates an already graceful, fast and fun system in the 1E Core Rulebook.  The changes mirror those in ground combat, and I think the Upgrade is not an improvement.

[boot]

Aug 19, 2018 10:29:18 GMT -6 boot said:

Think of Luke Skywalker swinging across the Death Star chasm with Princess Leia on his hip and a squad of stormtroopers blasting away at him.  Which one of these scenarios better fits that heroic moment?  The 1E Core rulebook version, where five stormtroopers start blasting away at our hero, but our hero escapes unharmed (and rather heroically!).  Or, the second, combined fire version, where the hero is hit?

Although I do not recommend using Combined Actions in your 1E based game, here are a few House Rule ideas to keep the rule in check.



COMMAND SKILL

Combined Fire must be directed by a commander.  A commander can be the best shot among his stormtrooper, yelling out commands to his fellow soldiers.  Or, the commander can be an officer directing fire.  Or, the commander can be a forward observer or communications operator or squad leader.  Whomever.  A commander must be in contact with his troops.

The number of people that can be combined for fire is limited to the commander's Command skill (or his  PER code if Command is not improved).

Thus, if a normal stormtrooper doesn't have Command, but has Perception 2D, then he can coordinate fire with himself and two other people.  An Imperial Naval Officer, with Command 4D+2, can use the combined fire rule with himself plus 4 others, or just 4 others (if commanding is considered a skill use subject to the multiple action rule).

This makes the command skill very useful.  As the multiple action rule kicks in, the commander loses his ability to effectively command as many troops.  But, a commander can always command 1 other trooper.



COMMAND ONLY

If you want to be even more restrictive, you can reserve the combined action rules for characters who have Command skill.  Those without the skill cannot use combined fire.  Those that have the skill operate as described above.



OFFICER BASE

The rule typically works by taking the highest shot from among the group and then modifying that shot by the others.  With this rule, the base attack is the Commander's Blaster skill (which may not be the highest Blaster skill among the group), if the commander is participating in the attack.  If the commander is just giving orders, then the highest shot (or that trooper designated by the commander) acts as the base skill.




ROLL COMMAND

Another method that could be used is to have the commander roll his Command skill (or PER).  He can command other to combine fire for every 5 points of the roll. 

Thus...

5+ Command 1

10+ Command 2

15+ Command 3

20+ Command 4

And so on....

[boot]

HANDLING MULTIPLE FOES IN 1E - THE HERO METHOD



You're running down the corridor, blaster rifle in your grip. Next to you is Chewie, keeping pace. The blast door before flashes open, and all of a sudden, you face 20 stormtroopers, fully armored and equipped, ready to come at you.

How do you handle this using the 1E rules?

First off, as GM, you're NOT going to roll 20 blaster shots at Han (Yeah, I know in the movie, they chased Han, but I need this to fit my example) to figure initiative. That would be a nightmare.

Go straight to the Declaration. "Han, Chewie? What are you going to do?"

"We're going to run as fast as we can in the opposite direction."

Again, I know that, in the movie, the troopers just chased the two. But, THESE troopers in THIS example are all going to raise their blaster rifles and fire at Han and Chewie.

To make it simple, I'll have 10 fire at Han and 10 fire at Chewie.



What about Initiative?

Use common sense. Han and Chewie are turning and running. The troopers are behind them. All troopers can get a shot as the pair run back down the hall.

So, all troopers fire first. Then Han and/or Chewie completes their movement.

In situations where logical initiative is not clear, simply allow the player to choose. Heroes have an edge. They're heroes.



Roll all those attacks?

Nope. You're going to use a house rule (that is suggested by the 1E core book) that is similar to but different than the Combined Actions rule--and this rule doesn't have the problems that the CA rule has.

Roll attacks normally, starting with the highest attack code, or, if all Blaster codes are the same, as is often the case with Stormtroopers, roll the closest attacker first.

You will keep rolling attacks until a trooper misses. And, once you have one miss, you consider that the rest of them miss. If you think about it, this is no more of a stretch with the rules than how the Combined Action rule works. If the first trooper misses, then all 10 end up missing.

"You're running down the corridor, heart pounding in your ears. Blaster bolts fly over your head and shoulders, exploding into the corridor walls, leaving smoking, burning divots."

If a trooper hits, then apply damage, but the rest of the shooters all miss (because the target is no longer where they aimed--the target is now writhing on the floor, collapsed from a stun, or worse).

[boot]

TOOTHLESS STORMTROOPERS?



Sometimes it is argued that stormtroopers are under-powered. I argue that they're not. They're exactly the strength that they should be.

In Galaxy Guide 1 - A New Hope, a typical stormtrooper has Blaster 3D, after adjustment for armor. And, this is typical of all base-line stormtroopers in the game.

Luke Skywalker, the HERO of all HEROES, has Dodge 6D. And Dodge, in 1E, is computed by the Dodge roll + Range number.

So...troopers do look toothless, yes?

Let's take a deeper look. And, as we do, remember that the Heroes in Star Wars (original trilogy) rarely, if ever, got hurt, even though all the combats that they encountered. Luke had his hand chopped off, but that's a special case. Darth Vader did the cutting. And, the two droids were both blasted once each. C-3PO was blasted to bits at Cloud City. R2D2 took a bad hit in space combat during Luke's trench run. The only character actually hurt in blaster combat was Leia, when she was grazed on the Moon of Endor.



First off, Luke, as stated above, is the GALAXY'S HOPE! He's not your typical PC. Let's first compare a starting character, Roark Garnet, from page 8 of the 1E core rulebook.

Roark has Dodge 4D+1.

Now, let's put Roark in Luke's position on the Death Star. He's got his synthrope grappled around some piping. A princess is clinging to his kneck and hip. And Roark is about to shove off, crossing the chasm.

Behind Roark, 4 stormtroopers have gotten the blast door open, and they are ready to fire at him. Just above his destination are 4 more troopers gunning for him. Other doors open to ledges around the circumference of the shaft: there are 2 there, 3 over there, and 2 more there. All 15 stormtroopers are going to fire at Roark and the princess has he swings.

The troopers all have effective 3D Blaster skills. Range is Short, requiring a 10+ attack roll. And, Roark will of course use his Dodge, which is now effectively 3D+1 because he's got to use his Climbing/Jumping skill in order to swing across the chasm.

In effect, Stormtroopers are firing 3D vs. 3D +11. Chances are, Roark is going to swing across unmolested.

Unless...the troopers roll very high and Roark rolls very low. The chance is low...but there is a chance. The troopers could get lucky and roll a 16. And, Roark could get un-lucky and roll a 4. And that means at least one of the troopers will hit, spelling disaster for our hero.

That small chance is how it should be with heroes.

With a different game--a grittier, more realistic game--I might be arguing something different. But, man! THIS IS STAR WARS! Where Heroes are BIGGER THAN LIFE!

That, to me, is how it should be in D6 Star Wars.

And, it's not like GMs don't have other options. In GG1, Death Star Troopers are mentioned. These guys are elites. Their Blaster skill is 5D+1.

Sometimes, taking two shots will get the Dodge defense low enough for an attack.

If troopers have time, they can aim. This adds +1D to their attack codes.

If a PC gets action happy, taking too many actions, this lowers his Dodge defense due to the multiple action penalty.

And, let's not forget that stormtroopers almost always outnumber PCs, giving the troopers a lot more "at bats" to score a home run.

[Starbeard]

The 'roll until they miss' rule is a good one. Depending on the situation I might either give a slight 'combined fire'-like bonus to the first couple of attacks, or more likely, split them into smaller groups and let each subgroup roll until they miss. So with 20 troopers against Han & Chewbacca, I'd have 10 firing at each character, say in groups of five who each get to shoot until they miss.

For the combined fire rule, I wonder if it can be salvaged as a mook-only rule. Imagine the opening scene of Star Wars, with stormtroopers & rebels everywhere, shooting up and down the corridor. We don't need to roll every shot, and rolling every shot until they miss seems like a poor way to handle squads firing at each other. But if each side got 1-3 shots in with combined fire, then that would take care of that action in only a few seconds and leave room to focus on the PCs. Of course, if any named characters were in that fight then they'd be immune to combined fire.

[boot]

Aug 26, 2018 9:47:31 GMT -6 Starbeard said:

For the combined fire rule, I wonder if it can be salvaged as a mook-only rule. Imagine the opening scene of Star Wars, with stormtroopers & rebels everywhere, shooting up and down the corridor. We don't need to roll every shot, and rolling every shot until they miss seems like a poor way to handle squads firing at each other. But if each side got 1-3 shots in with combined fire, then that would take care of that action in only a few seconds and leave room to focus on the PCs. Of course, if any named characters were in that fight then they'd be immune to combined fire.

I like the Combined Fire rule, too. It makes mass shooters easy to handle, as you say. But, I think it's just too dangerous to put into a game because it greatly increases the chances of a hit. And a single hit on a PC can be fatal, even if the damage is only a Stun. The PC drops to the ground. He probably drops what he has in his hands. And, he's got to start next round prone.

What if, instead of Combined Fire, the number of attacks is tied to the commander?

So, at the start of a scene with massed stormtroopers, the commander rolls his Command skill. If he rolls 5+, then the trooper with the highest Command code is used to hit while the rest of the troopers miss. If he rolls 10+, then two troopers attack. Three troopers attack if the Command roll is 15+, and so on.

For very large numbers of soldiers, you can split into groups. If you've got, say, 15 troopers, you could break them up into three groups of 5. Then, take each group separately, rolling for Commander to see how many of the five actually roll attacks. Do the same for each group.

That way, you've got multiple troopers firing, but you're not increasing their attack capability to overcome PC defense.

Plus, I like the importance it places on Command. A unit is only as good as its commander.

[Starbeard]

I agree, command should be a critical skill for group combat.

I like the idea of having it limit how many can fire at a time, it makes a nice compromise. With combined fire as it is, it's good for generic NPCs but too dangerous against PCs. The shoot until you miss optional rule has its own loophole: if you stop rolling after the first miss, but you also stop rolling after the first hit, then you only ever get one attack. The rule might as well say, 'Only the NPC with the highest skill or the best shot in the group gets to make an attack, all others are assumed to miss'—which kind of defeats the purpose of having groups, if one stormtrooper is just as dangerous as twenty. By that rule, the rebels on Endor were stupid to throw their hands up when reinforcements came, they should have just escaped or kept fighting.

Tying in the command skill puts it somewhere comfortably between the two extremes, I think.

[boot]

Aug 26, 2018 11:27:26 GMT -6 Starbeard said:

The shoot until you miss optional rule has its own loophole: if you stop rolling after the first miss, but you also stop rolling after the first hit, then you only ever get one attack.

What about treating attacks like an exploding die. You stop after the first miss, but if you hit, you keep going?

That was my original idea, but I changed it when I wrote the above.

This way, if a PC really is outgunned (in that most enemies hit), then he doesn't deserve to have most of them miss after the first hit.  Yet, if the highest or closest enemy doesn't hit, then the rest all miss.

That sounds like a good compromise, too.

[Starbeard]

I like it, that would be a good compromise, definitely. I'd like to play a few fights with both of your house rules and get a feel for how they differ. I think one of the strengths of 1e Star Wars is how easy it is to treat the different rules options as a toolkit for handling different situations.

We've now got 'combined fire', 'shots based on command skill', and 'shoot until you miss', all as options for groups shooting at an individual. Each has a different flavour, and different strengths and/or weaknesses. Knowing how each plays out with the dice would help the GM know which system to pull out of the toolkit during any given combat situation.

[boot]

Aug 26, 2018 23:46:55 GMT -6 Starbeard said:

I like it, that would be a good compromise, definitely. I'd like to play a few fights with both of your house rules and get a feel for how they differ. I think one of the strengths of 1e Star Wars is how easy it is to treat the different rules options as a toolkit for handling different situations.

Absolutely. The 1E Core Rulebook encourages this type of thing, too.

I don't have a SW game going right now, so if you try these in your game, please report how it goes. I'd love to read your comments.

We've now got 'combined fire', 'shots based on command skill', and 'shoot until you miss', all as options for groups shooting at an individual. Each has a different flavour, and different strengths and/or weaknesses. Knowing how each plays out with the dice would help the GM know which system to pull out of the toolkit during any given combat situation.

Except that I don't think I'd ever use Combined Fire for it's effect on PCs.

Can you imagine a Combined Fire rule in AD&D? You've got a strong, 8th level Fighter fighting 12 1 HD goblins. They all need a 20 to hit him. If we Combine Fire, all of a sudden, those 12 goblins are going to be a real threat to the Fighter where as, by the AD&D rules, the heroic fighter will wade through them (like the scene on the bridge at Helm's Deep where Aragorn and Gemli are just weeding through orcs like a lawnmower over medium grass).



EDIT:  I will say that there is an argument for the Combined Fire rule, though.  It's more of an argument in 2E than it is for 1E, but one could say that the Combined Fire rule gives stormtroopers a chance to hit veteran PCs who have raised Dodge so high that they can never be hit.  An Dodge averages 28.

I still argue not to use it, though.  The Dodge can still roll low, like 15, and the trooper's 3D attack is going to roll 16 or 18 some times--so, I hit will happen at some point.  The Dodge PC also hasn't put those points into other important skills.  So, it balances out.

[Starbeard]

I think you're right. The few times I tried combined fire, it was okay with 2 or 3 stormtroopers, but the first time the party wandered into a whole squad it was so obvious that they'd never make it out alive that we didn't even bother using the rule.

I still might try tinkering around with it a bit for generic background combat, stormtroopers vs rebel troopers, while the named characters are doing their own thing. Anyone who wants to shoot at a named character has to drop out of the background action and take a shot individually, or using the 'shoot until you miss' rule. I really like that one.

[boot]

The 2E Combined Fire rule, I don't really like it either: In 2E, The Combined Action rule is limited by the commander. A Commander can command a number of others equal to his Command skill or his PER, if Command isn't improved.

The example is a character with Command 8 D+2. He can command 8 others to Combine Fire.

Then, he must also roll his Command skill. If the commander is only leading and directing fire, then he uses his full skill of 8 D+2. IF the commander is going to be part of the combined fire people, he must roll his Command at -1D.

The roll is against a difficulty, and the difficulty is based on the difficulty of the task. So a squad of stormtroopers who train and always work well together might get a Very Easy or Easy difficulty for the command task.

If the Command roll succeeds, then the bonus to fire is 1D per three people being commanded (and +1 or +2 for the odd people). So, if there are 8 troopers, then the bonus is 2D+2.

Which makes a stormtrooper attack 5D+2 (which still supports the reason I don't use it).

As a player, I'd much rather have 8 attacks against me, each rolling 3D, rather than one shot at 5D+2.

[Starbeard]

Aug 27, 2018 17:31:54 GMT -6 boot said:

The 2E Combined Fire rule, I don't really like it either: In 2E, The Combined Action rule is limited by the commander. A Commander can command a number of others equal to his Command skill or his PER, if Command isn't improved.

The example is a character with Command 8 D+2. He can command 8 others to Combine Fire.

Then, he must also roll his Command skill. If the commander is only leading and directing fire, then he uses his full skill of 8 D+2. IF the commander is going to be part of the combined fire people, he must roll his Command at -1D.

The roll is against a difficulty, and the difficulty is based on the difficulty of the task. So a squad of stormtroopers who train and always work well together might get a Very Easy or Easy difficulty for the command task.

If the Command roll succeeds, then the bonus to fire is 1D per three people being commanded (and +1 or +2 for the odd people). So, if there are 8 troopers, then the bonus is 2D+2.

Which makes a stormtrooper attack 5D+2 (which still supports the reason I don't use it).

As a player, I'd much rather have 8 attacks against me, each rolling 3D, rather than one shot at 5D+2.

That got me curious, so I went back to Anydice to crunch the numbers.

Let's assume a medium range attack with a Difficulty of 15 to hit.

Using the 1e combined fire rules, I think the stormtrooper commander would get an attack of 3D+21, a guaranteed hit.
With the 2e combined fire rules, a single combined 5D+2 attack would have a 90% chance of hitting with Difficulty 15. That's still a pretty done deal.
With 8 individual attacks at 3D, there's only a 54% chance of landing 1 or 2 hits, 3 in a blue moon.


Now if we include the 2nd edition wild die:

A 5D+2 attack stays about the same, with a 90.38% chance of hitting instead of a 90.11% chance.
Eight 3D attacks now have a 63% chance of getting 1-3 hits, 4 in a blue moon.

Those wild dice rolls only include the possibility of exploding 6's—I can't figure out how to include the rule where a 1 on the wild die drops the wild die and the highest normal die—but my guess is that its overall effect would be that it simply cancels out the wild die bonus, more or less.


So it's pretty clear just how much of a difference combined fire makes in either edition of the rules. That's without dodging, but you can still see that a 1st edition character not even bothering to dodge still probably has as good (or maybe even better) a chance of avoiding a hit from 8 stormtroopers than a 2nd edition character making a Full Dodge against combined fire.

[boot]

That is a good argument against Combined Fire.

Let's take our example character from page 8 of the 1E Core book. Roark Garnet has Dodge 4D+1. He's got 12 stormtroopers firing at him. They each have Blaster 3D.

Roark gets lucky and rolls 20 on his Dodge.

It is impossible for the troopers, under 1E rules, to hit Roark...that segment.

The following round the troopers get smart. They can aim, and fire on round 3 at 4D, which makes things more interesting for Roark.

Or, they can take two shots at 2D each. Now, Roark will roll 4D+1 Dodge on segment 1 and then 3D+1 on Dodge segment 2. 2D vs. 3D+1 makes it more likely a hit happens. Remember, Roark rolls 3D+1, but 12 troopers roll 2D each.  Chances are good that Roark will be hit.

My point here is that even with a PC with high Dodge, there are ways the character will get hit.

The GM controls the Skill Points, and those are awarded only at the end of each adventure.  Thus, advancement is slow but steady.  If a PC gets up to, say, 7D+2 Dodge, then that's a character that has been played a long time, and all he's done is put points into his Dodge skill at the expense of other important skills like Blaster, Brawling, Starship Piloting, Starship Gunnery, and any special interest skill the player may have.

It looks very balanced, to me.  The Combined Fire rule is not needed to overcome high Dodge scores.

Remember, too, that the above example with Roark is an example where Roark only Dodges.  He's not making any actions.  If he does, like fire back at the stormtroopers, then his Dodge skill will go down due to the Multiple Action rule.  If Roark is running away, that's a -1D modifier, too.

In 1E, Dodges add to Range for difficulty, and the Dodge is good for all attacks during a segment.  But, the Dodge must be re-rolled each segment, if needed.

[Starbeard]

Aug 27, 2018 20:00:17 GMT -6 boot said:

The GM controls the Skill Points, and those are awarded only at the end of each adventure.  Thus, advancement is slow but steady.  If a PC gets up to, say, 7D+2 Dodge, then that's a character that has been played a long time, and all he's done is put points into his Dodge skill at the expense of other important skills like Blaster, Brawling, Starship Piloting, Starship Gunnery, and any special interest skill the player may have.

That's a good point. The way experience points work, for a character to max out a skill he'd have to focus on that to the exclusion of all else. A character who slammed dodged is only good at drawing fire (until the enemy gets smart enough to shoot at something they can hit). A character who slammed points into his blaster skill won't ever be able to shoot because he's constantly being hit and stunned. Same goes with the starship combat skills. The combat system rewards balanced characters, which already solves most problems with extreme outliers.