How do you guys handle how your group spends Karma. Their seem to be a good amount of rules on this and I was just wondering how many play RAW and how many use house rules and what not.

-Josh

The reason i ask is because right now im not requiring any training or any of that nonsense, i just players spend the karma, so far it doesn't seem to be a problem.

-Josh

I call it on a case by case basis. If the hacker, who spends all of his time hacking, hacks as part of every mission, hacks vending machines to get candybars, and hacks his toilet to flush because pulling the level "wouldn't be his style," and he wants to raise his Hacking skill, I'd go ahead and let that just happen.

If the same guy, lacking any prior physical ability, and hasn't left his couch in ten years, other than to visit the aformentioned toilet, and he suddenly wants to be able to break down doors with his awesome might, probably gonna make him do a few pushups before that happens.

I generally speaking require some small amount of downtime to increase attributes/skills, usually only a day or two, assuming that the character has been training for a while and the training has just finally payed off. I require justification and additional downtime if the character is doing something major(initiating, buying off a neg quality, purchasing a positive quality) or if they are getting an unrealistic advancement(character going from no skill in blades to 3 in one go.) The idea is that in most cases, the karma, and the time spent getting the karma are the real cost.

I have my players go through training. It helps keep them money hungry.

Training is required for most things. However, if what is being advanced has been used recently & significantly during play, it is generally assumed to have been trained enough for advancement.

Further, characters are allowed to spend Karma on a single advancement per game session (including Complex Forms & Spells). Things such as Quickened spells are not restricted by this.

I require training in brand new skills, but usually allow skills that have been used during the course of a session or two to be enhanced without training. My rationale has always been that getting the basics down often requires a mentor of some kind, but for many practical applications of those basics, you can enhance your own skills on your own. I do not require any form of training to enhance attributes; I don't even remember if the rules specify training of them, but if they do, I don't use those rules.

The group I'm currently in has a "You earned those points, spend them by the rules however you wish." policy.