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I've been brainstorming my through the development of an indie action-RPG type of game for the PC. I am still undecided about many things, such as whether this game will be real-time or turn-based, first-person or some other perspective, etc.
The premise is that in the near future, a space elevator built on a remote Pacific island nation (by a multi-national conglomerate) gets sabotaged by an unknown party.
The player, a member of the island's security agency on his first day of the job, is tasked with getting to the bottom of the mystery and finding a way to repair the elevator...but this must be done within thirty in-game days, otherwise a cargo craft returning from the Asteroid Belt will crash unguided into the elevator's orbital dock and destroy both vessels, losing billions of dollars worth of valuable mineral ores in the process and killing many people.
There are many factions who want to either control the elevator or destroy it. The conglomerate obviously wants it to stay, but there's a nationalist militia group on the island that wants it to go because it has led to the island being "invaded by foreigners". There's also a religious cult that wants to use the elevator to go to a "promised land" that they believe lies beyond the Earth's atmosphere.
Below I've outlined a set of skills that I think would be suitable for a game of this setting, story, and genre. I'd like to know what you guys think. What might be missing, what seems unnecessary, what needs to be expanded, and so on...
COMBAT SKILLS
"Long Guns" - This skill covers your abilities with any large firearm (large in this case being bigger than a pistol). This includes everything from SMGs and shotguns to the light machine gun and large-caliber rifles. These weapons have the advantage of great damage potential, at the cost of mobility and the lack of concealability (an important asset for many stealth missions).
"Sidearms" - Your character's ability to use any small firearms like pistols of all kinds and the micro-shotgun. These weapons are easily concealable and can carry respectable firepower without compromising your movement abilities, but in most cases they cannot provide the extreme damage output of their bigger cousins.
"Close-Quarters" - A skill that governs the player's proficiency with melee maneuvers, both with his bare hands and with his knife. This can mean doing a number of things to the enemy: disarming them, killing them, interrogating them, debilitating them, among other activities.
NON-COMBAT SKILLS:
"Medical" - Your effectiveness at using medical items to cure ailments, both on yourself and others. Sub-branches include "Hemo", "Ortho", and "Burns". This skill also allows the curing of poisons through antidotes, as well as extracting them for later use against an enemy.
"Signals" - This skill governs your ability to use SIGINT devices to engage in wireless communications, potentially gathering useful intel like the concentrations of enemies and other hazards or the locations of objectives. With enough skill, the player can decrypt secret transmissions and engage in other SIGINT activities.
"Bypass" - Your character's ability to hack into computer systems. This includes accessing mainframes, doors, and digitally-locked guns. This can be an important money-making skill, as unlocked guns sell for far more on the black market than do locked guns.
"Stealth" - The player's proficiency in a number of clandestine actions like quiet movement, stealing, planting items on people, assassinations, and passing as a member of the enemy force.
"Athletics" - The skill that concerns your running speed, ability to haul large inventory loads, and your character's overall physicality.
"Social" - Interpersonal abilities of all kinds, ranging from persuasion to intimidation and even deception.
I am leaning towards the Morrowind style of leveling up, where you increase a skill level by performing the action(s) associated with the skill.
