Remodeler

[GuardianTempest]

Homebrew Class: Remodeler

Characteristics: Wisdom, Strength, Constitution
Skills: Athletics, Brawl, Common Lore, Crafts, Drive, Perception, Tech-Use, Weaponry
Sword Schools: Broken Home, Stone Dragon
Magic Schools: Reinforcement
Bonus for Completion: +1 to all building, repairing and remodeling tests

Homeowner
Level: 1
Prerequisites: Crafts 1, Holdings 1
Feats:
Foresight
Home Remodel
*Homeowner's Oath
Jack of All Trades
Improvisational Warrior
Skill Focus (Crafts)
*Armor Proficiency (Light)

DIY Remodeler
Level: 2
Prerequisites: Crafts 2, Holdings 2, Foresight, Home Remodel
Feats:
Hammerspace
Home Remodel
Personally Involved
*Upgraded (Common)
Things to Consider
*Sound Constitution
*Weapon Proficiency (Basic)

Professional Remodeler
Level: 3
Prerequisites: Crafts 3, Holdings 3, Things to Consider, Personally Involved
Feats:
Craftsmaster
Hasty Job
Home Remodel
*Protocol
*Skill Focus (Crafts)
Structural Engineering

Architect
Level: 4
Prerequisites: Crafts 4, Holdings 4, Craftsmaster, Structural Engineering
Feats:
Dirty Hands
Home Remodel
Improvisational Master
*Upgraded (Common)
*Tested
Safety Hazard
Time is Money

Civil Engineer
Level: 5
Prerequisites: Crafts 5, Holdings 5, Hasty Job, Time is Money
Feats:
Home Remodel
Rapid Prototyping
Specialized Tools
Where the Heart Is
*Armor Proficiency (Any)
*Weapon Proficiency (Any)

UNIQUE FEATS

Craftsmaster
You may reroll Crafts tests as long as you have an applicable specialty. You can only do so once per item or occasion.

Dirty Hands
Due to the satisfaction of getting your hands dirty, you never take penalties to Tests from Fatigue.

Hammerspace
You are never without your trusty hammer. Even when bathing or naked. Unless something specifically disarms you of your Hammer, you can always call on its use as a Hand Weapon dealing I damage. This Hand Weapon can be wielded with two hands to add +1k1 to its damage.

Hasty Job
The character forges an item quickly – but pays the price. Choose any one item with a rarity of Rare or lower, the character creates this item from scratch by rolling Crafts against the TN to acquire it in a Wealth test. The process takes one scene as it requires special preparations. Any item created using Hasty Job falls apart at the end of the scene in which it is first used.

Home Remodel
You get the most out of your remodeling budget by opting to do the project yourself. You increase the value of one of your Holdings by 1, up to a maximum of 5.

Homeowner's Oath
You have sworn to do remodeling projects yourselves to save some money and get the most out of your remodeling budget. You may not let anyone other than yourself attempt to repair, resupply, or upgrade your Holdings unless you are directly assisting them. As long as you abide by your oath, Holdings dots gained from feats do not need to be supported by other Backgrounds.

Personally Involved
Like many homeowners, you enjoy being personally involved in a project. Gain a free raise to any Crafts or Tech-Use Tests made on you and your allies' Backgrounds.

Rapid Prototyping (Rigger)
You may, using parts and scrap on-hand, jury-rig a vehicle of Uncommon rarity or lower with a drive rating no higher than 5. If the parts available are entirely unsuitable, you may perform a Tech-Use test with a TN appropriate to the jury-rigging difficulty to fabricate the needed components. This vehicle has one flaw which does not provide VP. The time required for assembly is a number of hours equal to half the constructed vehicle’s size.

Safety Hazard
Injuries you inflict can be relatively minor but can also be very serious or even fatal. Whenever you keep exploding damage dice, you may spend a Hero Point treat one of them as if it rolled 0 and deal a point of Critical Damage.

Specialized Tools
A true professional never lets their tools sit in the attic collecting dust. Similar to Hammerspace, you are always considered to have the necessary tools to attempt any Skill Test.

Structural Engineering
You aren't always aware of unforeseen problems...until you’re opening up walls and pulling up flooring, that is. Once per session you may use your expertise to roll Crafts in place of a single Wisdom-based skill Test, describing your actions as you would a 1-die stunt.

Things to Consider
You can use free raises from Foresight on any skill test, not just an Intelligence test.

Time is Money
You wisely remember that if you don't have the time to do the project right, hire professionals who will. Once per session, you can spend a Hero Point to replace a single skill test with Contacts + Wealth.

Where the Heart Is
Wherever you go, you set aside a little extra, at least 10%, for where you came from. You count as being inside every console, module, or cockpit (e.g. Holodeck, Diplomatic Quarters, Orgone Antenna) you own that grants bonuses to tests, regardless of your actual location.

[GuardianTempest]

Okay, this class is gonna need some explanation. You see, back in the old Zetaboards forum, there was a spambot named SallyWilliams who posted a thread about home remodeling. Replies then hilariously treated the spam as if it was a dyslexic amateur's attempt at making homebrew and, well, this class was born in a different thread. Although the spam thread is now deleted (and with Zetaboard hijacked by Tapatalk), I managed to recover her original quote from a different location as spambots don't diversify their messages.

More and more homeowners are opting to do remodeling projects themselves. One big reason for this is to save some money and get the most out of their remodeling budget. But another reason is that many homeowners enjoy the satisfaction of getting their hands dirty and being personally involved in the improvement of their homes. Whatever your reasons for wanting to tackle a DIY remodel, here are some things you’ll want to think about first.

Safety

Many homeowners have been injured while attempting to do remodeling work on their own. Injuries can be relatively minor but can also be very serious or even fatal. A good rule of thumb is to avoid doing any work yourself if professionals who specialize in that work are required to have a license. If you do want to tackle it yourself, make sure you follow all directions and safety procedures and that you know how to safely use all of the equipment required for the job.

Time

Homeowners would be wise to remember that time is money. Ask yourself if the amount of time that it will take you to do a given project is worth the savings in money. If you’re hoping to get a project done before the holidays, ask yourself if it’s feasible to make that deadline working by yourself. Rushing a project will result in cut corners and shoddy work so if you don’t have the time to do the project right, hire professionals who will.

Cost

Though cost is usually one of the main reasons homeowners cite for wanting to do a remodel themselves, it can also be one of the main reasons they shouldn’t. If a project will require a lot of specialized tools that will sit in the attic collecting dust afterwards, it may be more cost effective to hire a professional who already has the tools. If mistakes can be costly and will need to be fixed by professionals, you’re better off hiring a professional to begin with.

Interior Decorating and Remodeling News brought to you by ezbaseboardheatercovers

There's also some more spamposts for inspiration (like the source for Structural Engineering) but I can't find them. Also, I reworded some feats from the original thread. I definitely need some help rewording Hasty Job.

EDIT: I found the other half of the inspiration

If there’s one thing that every home remodeling project has in common, it’s that it tends to cost more than you plan for. That’s because in every remodeling project there are hidden costs and unforeseen setbacks that force you to go over your budget. Remodeling experts recommend setting aside a little extra, at least 10% more than you expect the remodel to cost, so that you’re prepared for anything. Here are four of the most common hidden remodeling costs.

Behind the walls and beneath the floors

The most common unforeseen remodeling expenses tend to involve the plumbing and electrical systems. Because you don’t typically become aware of these kinds of problems until you’re opening up walls and pulling up flooring, it’s hard to plan for. Other problems that might be lurking behind the walls and under the floors are mod, termites, and other pests. If you do uncover these sorts of problems, there’s nothing else you can do about but get them fixed.

Structural issues

If your remodeling project involves tearing down walls, you may learn after beginning the project that a wall is load bearing. In this case, a structural engineer will have to come in and make changes in order to allow you to tear down that wall. If there isn’t room in your budget for that, you might consider alternatives such as inserting a pass-through rather than tearing the wall down altogether.

Appliances that need extra support

If you’re planning on having an industrial fridge or commercial range hood installed in your kitchen, keep in mind that these large appliances weigh a lot more than standard appliances. A structural engineer may need to strengthen the floor beneath where the fridge will go. A commercial range hood will take up storage space and may require upgrades to your ventilation system.

Shortcuts on previous remodeling projects

You may discover during the course of a remodel that the home’s previous owners weren’t exactly forward-thinking when they did some remodeling of their own. If they’ve cut corners, it’s best to just take care of it rather than let the problems continue for another generation. If you’ve left room in your budget for these sorts of nasty surprises, you should be able to complete your project despite the setbacks.

[Nightwalker]

Regarding "Hasty Job", it could possibly be reworded something along the following lines...
The character forges an item quickly – but pays the price. Choose any one Common quality item with a rarity of Rare or lower, and which is not made out of special materials; the character creates this item from scratch by working for one scene. Any item created using Hasty Job falls apart at the end of the scene in which it is first used.

As an aside: there's no mention of any test being required to use the Hasty Job feat (e.g. Crafts check equal to Wealth Test TN). I suppose that such a test is probably not needed for balance reasons since the character has Crafts 4 by this point and the opportunity cost of spending a whole scene working on an item is a significant limiting factor, but just checking that this is rules as intended?

[GuardianTempest]

I'd like to think so. Do note I just ported this class, someone else made it.

[GuardianTempest]

Hasty Job now needs a (relatively) easy Crafts test to make.

Original version was:
The character forges an item quickly – but pays the price; such an item may not be made of any special material, as they take special preparations. Instead, the character creates a serviceable item within a single scene. This item is Common quality and cannot have a greater rarity than Rare. The item falls apart at the end of the scene it is used in.

[Kwak]

Thanks for keeping this class alive! It's one dear to my heart and one that I'm planning to use a lot in the near future.

That said, its age really shows. Here's some changes I want to propose:



Things that need fixed/reworded for basic balance & consistency

• Change Home Remodel to "You get the most out of your remodeling budget by opting to do the project yourself. You increase the value of one of your Holdings by 1, up to a maximum of 5. Holdings dots from this feat do not need support from additional Backgrounds." (Prevents manifesting a Spelljammer or inventing Holdings 6)
• Change Things to Consider to "You can use free raises from Foresight on any skill Test, not just an Intelligence test." (Prevents use on unintended tests like Focus Power or Wealth Tests)
• Change Structural Engineering to "You aren't always aware of unforeseen problems...until you’re opening up walls and pulling up flooring, that is. Once per session you may use your expertise to roll Crafts in place of a single Wisdom-based skill Test, describing your actions as you would a 1-die Skill Test." (Kitsune, Oligarch, etc. don't require description, and SM rulings on 2-die stunts vary. 1 die is much more consistent)
• Swap Safety Hazard to Level 4, and Hasty Job to Level 3. (Hasty Job isn't that different from what classes like Insurgent & Alchemist get, while Safety Hazard is a much more unique combat advantage and should not be available so soon)
  
• Change Safety Hazard to "Injuries you inflict can be relatively minor but can also be very serious or even fatal. When one of your damage dice would normally explode, you may spend a Hero Point to deal 1 point of Critical Damage instead of keeping the die adding damage from the die. (No need to keep a different die to replace the existing one)
  
• Include Rapid Prototyping in the feat list, along with a link to Rigger: "You may, using parts and scrap on-hand, jury-rig a vehicle of Uncommon rarity or lower with a drive rating no higher than 5. If the parts available are entirely unsuitable, you may perform a Tech-Use test with a TN appropriate to the jury-rigging difficulty to fabricate the needed components. This vehicle has one flaw which does not provide VP. The time required for assembly is a number of hours equal to half the constructed vehicle’s size."
  
• Remove Forgeless Forging entirely. (Does nothing Specialized Tools doesn't already do, barring very specific circumstances and very strict SMs. Bushranger should have it replaced with something else, perhaps Hasty Job or Specialized Tools).

Things that I would personally do if I made this in 2024:

• Swap Transmutation for Reinforcement (I don't want a core school that allows for too many substitutions for a skillmonkey class, and unlike Transmutation every Reinforcement spell fits the theme.)
• Replace half the Skill Focus (Crafts) with Upgraded (Common) or a new Cipher-only Upgraded feat. (Cyphers, esp. Katastrofi/Protasia/Panzerkampf, fit the class perfectly.)
• Remove this line from Home Remodel: "Holdings dots from this feat do not need support from additional Backgrounds." Instead, make a new optional feat at level 1 called Homeowner's Oath: "You make a solemn vow to save some money and get the most out of your remodeling budget. You may not let anyone other than yourself attempt to repair, resupply, or upgrade your Holdings unless you are directly assisting them. As long as you abide by your oath, Holdings dots gained from feats do not need to be supported by other Backgrounds." (Gives a serious drawback to the most controversial part of the class - especially rough for Spelljammer owners who will need to either be their own Chief Engineer or use Command actions on the Chief Engineer whenever there's repairs.)
• New Feat for Level 5: Where the Heart Is. "Wherever you go, you set aside a little extra, at least 10%, for where you came from. You count as being inside every console, module, or cockpit (e.g. Holodeck, Diplomatic Quarters, Orgone Antenna) you own that grants bonuses to tests, regardless of your actual location." (A capstone that rewards building use over other, less-thematic versions of Holdings)
• Move Weapon Proficiency (Basic) to Level 2, or replace it with Weapon Focus (Improvised) or something. (If it weren't for Hammerspace I wouldn't have bothered giving them this to begin with. Even then their focus should be on the Broken Home weapons.)
• Change Time is Money to "You wisely remember that if you don't have the time to do the project right, hire professionals who will. Once per session, you can spend a Hero Point to replace a single Skill Test with Contacts + Wealth." (Stands a better chance of actually exceeding regular Roll + Keep odds - which it should, for the price of a Hero Point.)

[GuardianTempest]

Alright. The only thing I didn't add is the Extracurricular Cypher Study as I don't want to require a system that is entirely opt-in (and not every playergroup uses).