Poll: That S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Someone: Fallout Gender Psychology project

Recommended Videos

Imp_Emissary

Mages Rule, and Dragons Fly!
Legacy
May 2, 2011
2,315
1
43
Country
United States
That S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Someone.

This is a survey that will be part of a college Psychology of Gender project I am working on. Please note that if you are less than 18 years of age that you are not allowed to participate as I can?t ethically use your data as part of my research. As this is for a Gender Psychology class part of the survey will ask for your sex, gender, as well as the sex & gender of your ideal partner. Rest assured that all the gathered information will be confidential and you won?t be asked for any personal information beyond your sex, gender, and the sex & gender of your ideal partner.

You will be asked to use the S.P.E.C.I.A.L system to rate the attributes you would desire of your idea romantic partner. This will be done by dividing a given number of points into each S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attribute (7 in total). You?ll also be asked to rank each S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stat in terms of how important they are to you in order of most important to least important. Each letter of the S.P.E.C.I.A.L. system represents a characteristic of your ideal partner. They are Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck. Before you begin spending your points please go over the instructions of how spending you points works. Also, the instructions will include explanations on what each S.P.E.C.I.A.L. specifically means about your partner.

Also, please send me the survey through private message after you fill it out, so I can keep the information confidential.
As mentioned before, each letter in S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stands for a different attribute of your ideal partner. The more points you put into the attribute, the stronger the person will be in that area.

Strength: As you can guess those with a high strength, are strong. They?ll also be sportier, possibly playing a physical sport as a hobby (or even professionally). They?ll also be more capable of manual labor and other tasks that are physically taxing. People with higher strength stats may also have a more athletic physical appearance. (note: a high strength stat doesn?t guarantee that the person will be healthy or fast if their endurance/agility is low). Those with high strength can also be physically imposing and more likely to be able to protect others from physical danger (note: high strength doesn?t mean the person is violent).

Perception: Perception relates to an individual?s 5 senses (sight, smell, touch, hearing, tasting). Those with high perception will have better situational awareness than those with lower perception. For example, they?ll be more adept at reading people?s facial expressions, listening to the details of a conversation, and generally have greater attention to detail. One downside is that they well be much harder to surprise if their perception is high, as it will be very hard to hide anything from them. Those with high perception not only can tell when something is wrong, but are also good at finding the solution. (note: can still be slow to react if they?re agility is low)

Endurance: High Endurance relates to an individual?s stamina and health. Some people might be very strong, but still get tired quickly. People with high endurance can keep up a demanding physical task all for long periods of time. They are also more likely to be healthy people. Someone with very high endurance won?t be invulnerable to getting hurt or sick, but they can heal faster than those with low endurance, and fall ill far less often.

Charisma: A fancy way to say how much people like you. Looking pretty or handsome doesn?t necessarily mean you?ll have high charisma. This trait is also about a person?s personality. After all, while a lot of charismatic people have good looks, some very good looking people can also be the most boring or insufferable ones to be social with, so looking hot doesn?t mean you?ll have the highest charisma. People with high charisma are the life of the party. The type of person you just have to like. They?re outgoing, social, and can get along with almost anyone. They can get good deals when bartering, convince people to do what they want, and even talk people down during dangerous situations.

Intelligence: This trait represents an individual?s overall intelligence. Those with high intelligence are more likely to be educated and have interesting things to talk about (note: that some people with high intelligence can still be boring/oblivious if their Charisma/Perception is low). Being high in intelligent doesn?t mean that all mental activity will be easy for you. Some tasks that deal with social interactions or a task that requires you to be aware of your surroundings may still be hard if you?re other traits are low. However, Intelligence isn?t just about school smarts, but also creative thinking and problem solving. Those with high intelligence can be great artists, doctors, or teachers. They can also specialize in other jobs that require a lot of knowledge. A person with high intelligence will be the most likely person who knows just what to say or do in any given situation. Though, they themselves may not be up to the task.

Agility: Those with high agility have quick reflexes and great balance. They are the gymnasts, dancers, and some of the world?s most exciting physical entertainers. They may not be the most physically imposing individuals but can perform the most amazing acrobatics (note: their physical capabilities can still be limited by strength and endurance). They are often the fastest, the least likely to fall down, and generally just the least clumsy or accident prone of all people (note: can still be clumsy if their perception is very low).

Luck: People with lots of points in luck are (can you guess?) very lucky. This may translate to things going their way even if they aren?t say the smartest, strongest, fastest, or most likeable people. People with high luck tent to win or succeed at things a lot even when the odds seem against them based on their other traits. In extreme cases, these are people who ended up on top by way of luck. Maybe they won the lottery, were born into a prestigious family, discovered something amazing by accident, or just happened to be lucky in love and found someone who makes up for their short comings (note: only the REALLY lucky gain fortunes through just luck and little effort. This can cost them in other aspects of their lives/traits). In short, high luck can help things to go your way, but it doesn?t mean you?ll always be so fortunate.

First, fill in the blank spaces asking for your sex and your gender, then the spaces for the sex and gender of your partner. Then, now that you know what each S.P.E.C.I.A.L. means, it?s time to tell you how to create your ideal partner. Each of the seven S.P.E.C.I.A.L. traits start at 1 point each. At the end, all traits must have at least one point. You can have the stat go up to ten points in total.
Here is an example:

What you start with: Strength:1_____________After you're done: Strength:2
Perception:1________________________________________Perception:4
Endurance:1__________________________________________Endurance:2
Charisma:1___________________________________________Charisma:6
Intelligence:1_______________________________________Intelligence:10
Agility:1____________________________________________Agility:3
Luck:1_______________________________________________Luck:1
After you're done, the total points should add up to 28.

To recap, traits can be no lower than 1 and can be no higher than 10. All traits start out with one point. You have 21 points to divide among the S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stats.
After that, you will be asked to rank the traits. Simply list them in order, from most important to least important.
For example: Charisma, Strength, Intelligence, Agility, Luck, Perception, Endurance.
After that, please feel free to explain why you put the points you did in your top three highest S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stats, and why you ranked the stats in the order you chose.

The S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Survey:

What is your sex:
What is your gender:
What is the sex of your IDEAL partner:
What is the gender of your IDEAL partner:


(Keep in mind: this is your IDEAL partner, not the person you?re with right now. If those people are the same person for you, congratulations!)

S.P.E.C.I.A.L.

Strength:

Perception:

Endurance:

Charisma:

Intelligence:

Agility:

Luck:

Order of the 7 S.P.E.C.I.A.L. traits in order of most important to least important:

Comments about why you put points into your top 3 highest stats, and why you ranked the S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stats in the order you chose:

End of Survey/

Anyway, after you've filled out the survey, please also answer the poll question as it relates the the survey. Then explain why you picked the trait you picked based on either the survey or as it relates to the Fallout games.
If you have any question, please sent me a message and I'll answer to the best of my ability.

Thank you, and have a good time.
 

FalloutJack

Bah weep grah nah neep ninny bom
Nov 20, 2008
15,489
0
0
Imp Emissary said:
As I have addressed with the OP that a reply-less topic for a longterm survey may not survive the first page for long, I've been asked to deliver the following discussion value:

So then, guys and gals, why'd you pick the attributes you did? Personally, I've always felt that being intelligent and perceptive is of paramount importance. Also helps if that person is more charming and likeable. That's the short version of what I had in my entry.
 

Godhead

Dib dib dib, dob dob dob.
May 25, 2009
1,692
0
0
Intelligence is important in every facet of what you do, and I don't want to relate more to a rock than my soulmate, so charisma is pretty important as well. It also seems that it's a bad idea to min-max in real life so I did my best to avoid that.
 

1981

New member
May 28, 2015
217
0
0

What is your sex: female
What is your gender: female
What is the sex of your IDEAL partner: male
What is the gender of your IDEAL partner: any

Strength: 1
Perception: 4
Endurance: 5
Charisma: 6
Intelligence: 10
Agility: 1
Luck: 1

Order: Intelligence, Charisma, Endurance, Perception, Agility, Strength, Luck
Comments: Intelligent and charismatic people are generally easier to get along with. I'm physically active so it would be nice if my partner was too.

BTW, Endurance is missing from the blank SPECIAL list.
 

Imp_Emissary

Mages Rule, and Dragons Fly!
Legacy
May 2, 2011
2,315
1
43
Country
United States
1981 said:
What is your sex: female
What is your gender: female
What is the sex of your IDEAL partner: male
What is the gender of your IDEAL partner: any

Strength: 1
Perception: 3
Endurance: 3
Charisma: 5
Intelligence: 7
Agility: 1
Luck: 1

Order: Intelligence, Charisma, Endurance
Comments: Intelligent and charismatic people are generally easier to get along with. I'm physically active so it would be nice if my partner was too.
BTW, Endurance is missing from the blank SPECIAL list.
Thanks for telling me. Clearly my perception could be higher. xD

Also, in your "Order" could you include the other S.P.E.C.I.A.L.s? I need more than your top three.

Thanks again!

Edit: Also, your S.P.E.C.I.A.L.s are a bit low. You have a total of 21 points but each start with one, so the end total should be 28. So you can spend 7 more points to what you put so far.
Sorry. It's hard to make this clear in writing.
Wish I could use the game's mechanics to do it. Makes it a lot simpler.
 

FPLOON

Your #1 Source for the Dino Porn
Jul 10, 2013
12,531
0
0
The one thing I learned from this survey is that I don't hold Strength or Luck that highly in an ideal partner... However, I do feel that a balance of Perception, Endurance, Intelligence, and Agility would be a big part of my ideal partner... Too bad Charisma ends up being left in this lone middle ground between a group with the "highest number" and the group with the "lowest number" upon reflection...

Other than that, at least my ideal is not one of those "jack of all trades, but a master of none" types... Those people seem more like friends, at best...
 

Skatologist

Choke On Your Nazi Cookies
Jan 25, 2014
628
0
21
What the hell, I'll try this out.

My sex: male, presumably

My gender: man

My ideal partner's sex: any

My ideal partner's gender: woman

Strength: 4

Perception: 4

Endurance: 4

Charisma: 2

Intelligence: 9

Agility: 4

Luck: 1

Intelligence, Perception, Endurance, Agility, Stength, Charisma, Luck

Of course if given more SPECIAL points, I'd boost some of these a bit higher for an ideal partner.

Also, might I ask what number for a SPECIAL stat is considered average? The baseline of 1 or the numbers 4/5 that coincide with Fallout 3 and New Vegas' description of those rankings of SPECIAL? My and other people's answers might change depending on which it is.

EDIT: And to clarify, my data is under the assumption that 4/5 is the average for people and not the baseline of 1
 

crimson5pheonix

It took 6 months to read my title.
Legacy
Jun 6, 2008
36,678
3,877
118
Strength: 3
Perception: 4
Endurance: 4
Charisma: 6
Intelligence: 4
Agility: 3
Luck: 4

Order: Charisma, Luck, Intelligence, Endurance, Perception, Agility, Strength

Reasons: If you're going to like someone they should probably be likable! After that a well balanced person is in my opinion more interesting. Somebody with a wide variety of experiences and with the ability to try new things. Somebody who's fairly self sufficient. There is no one stat that helps with this. Also, it's better to be lucky than good.
 

Imp_Emissary

Mages Rule, and Dragons Fly!
Legacy
May 2, 2011
2,315
1
43
Country
United States
Skatologist said:
What the hell, I'll try this out.

My sex: male, presumably

My gender: man

My ideal partner's sex: any

My ideal partner's gender: woman

Strength: 4

Perception: 4

Endurance: 4

Charisma: 2

Intelligence: 9

Agility: 4

Luck: 1

Intelligence, Perception, Endurance, Agility, Stength, Charisma, Luck

Of course if given more SPECIAL points, I'd boost some of these a bit higher for an ideal partner.

Also, might I ask what number for a SPECIAL stat is considered average? The baseline of 1 or the numbers 4/5 that coincide with Fallout 3 and New Vegas' description of those rankings of SPECIAL? My and other people's answers might change depending on which it is.

EDIT: And to clarify, my data is under the assumption that 4/5 is the average for people and not the baseline of 1
Thanks very much for participating!

To answer your question, there isn't really a set average for the S.P.E.C.I.A.L.s. Not one that I've set anyway. What's average will mostly come down to what you (and other) participants think. The scores given will have their own meaning to each person that gives them (the difference between a 7 and a 6 ins't exactly distinct). Comments help to explain such reasoning.

However, if I were pressed to answer, I'd say that 4 or 5 is probably average as that's around the middle of the 1-10 scale.
That said, a participant's reason supersedes my when it comes to the meaning of their score.
 

1981

New member
May 28, 2015
217
0
0
I fixed my reply (this one [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.885190-Poll-That-S-P-E-C-I-A-L-Someone-Fallout-Gender-Psychology-project#22345275]).

Skatologist said:
Also, might I ask what number for a SPECIAL stat is considered average? The baseline of 1 or the numbers 4/5 that coincide with Fallout 3 and New Vegas' description of those rankings of SPECIAL? My and other people's answers might change depending on which it is.
I went with the assumption that 1 is average, 22 is the best a human can get and -20 is a total lack of that attribute.
 

B5Alpha

New member
Oct 4, 2012
48
0
0
What is your sex: male
What is your gender: male
What is the sex of your IDEAL partner: female
What is the gender of your IDEAL partner: female

(Keep in mind: this is your IDEAL partner, not the person you're with right now. If those people are the same person for you, congratulations!)

S.P.E.C.I.A.L.

Strength: 2

Perception: 6

Endurance: 4

Charisma: 5

Intelligence: 7

Agility: 3

Luck: 1

Order of the 7 S.P.E.C.I.A.L. traits in order of most important to least important: They all have different values, so it should be pretty easy to tell.

Comments about why you put points into your top 3 highest stats, and why you ranked the S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stats in the order you chose:
Intelligence brings about more meaningful and engaging conversation, and charisma means I don't have to put all the effort into initiating conversation. Perception is high enough for her to tell when something is wrong, but not high enough to guess my thinking.
 

Skatologist

Choke On Your Nazi Cookies
Jan 25, 2014
628
0
21
Crap, forgot the reasoning for top 3 choice thing, didn't I?

Anyways... I'm a pretty intelligent myself if how I score on intelligence testing is to be believed, and I never imagined being with anyone who was severely less intelligent than myself because I'd feel we'd be too fundamentally different to be compatible. I'd also not be unwilling to have a partner who was much more intelligent (or stronger, more agile, etc.) than myself because I don't happen to be a very jealous person, nor do I feel the need to be the more dominant partner in the relationship.

The reason I place perception next is because of the synergy it has with intelligence (more or less being an extension of it based on the description) and how beneficial it would be of having both those SPECIAL stats high enough to have a partner that was a bona fide problem solver.

Endurance comes next due to the description indicating the benefits of my partner having good health so that our relationship can be long and pleasant.

Agility and Strength as physical attributes are good to have, but definitely not to be more valued than what I placed above them.

Charisma is low due to the same reason Intelligence is so high, commonality. I'd still be fine with someone a little more charismatic than I am, and still hold it as valuable trait, but I can't see myself with someone so popular and well liked. Whether it is due to the differences I'd have with my partner based on our personalities or if deep down I feel this gnawing sense of inadequacy to someone well liked, I can't see myself who could even remotely be described as a social butterfly.

And luck is just a useless stat you dump into if you when you're satisfied with all your other stats, so that's why it's at the bottom.
 

BloatedGuppy

New member
Feb 3, 2010
9,572
0
0
Imp Emissary said:
That S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Someone.
The S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Survey:

What is your sex: Male
What is your gender: Male
What is the sex of your IDEAL partner: Female
What is the gender of your IDEAL partner: Female


S.P.E.C.I.A.L.
Strength: 4

Perception: 2

Endurance: 5

Charisma: 5

Intelligence: 5

Agility: 2

Luck: 5

Order of the 7 S.P.E.C.I.A.L. traits in order of most important to least important:

Comments about why you put points into your top 3 highest stats, and why you ranked the S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stats in the order you chose:
Intelligence/Charisma at #1, given these two together would indicate force of personality. Both likability and ability to carry on a conversation. Tempting to set it higher, but there were important stats elsewhere that needed attention.

Luck/Endurance at #2, these taken together to indicate someone's general level of physical health, longevity, and ability to avoid an endless train of life kicking them up the ass. Assuming this is real life, LUCK IS NOT A DUMP STAT, PEOPLE. Do you fancy cancer at age 30? Dead in a car crash? No? Maybe put some points in Luck.

Strength at #3, given you've indicated strength to be the purest indicator of physical fitness, and combined in some way with endurance this is literally the only metric we're given for physical appearance (as you indicated Charisma is not applicable there).
 

Imp_Emissary

Mages Rule, and Dragons Fly!
Legacy
May 2, 2011
2,315
1
43
Country
United States
BloatedGuppy said:
Imp Emissary said:
That S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Someone.
The S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Survey:
What is your sex: Male
What is your gender: Male
What is the sex of your IDEAL partner: Female
What is the gender of your IDEAL partner: Female


S.P.E.C.I.A.L.
Strength: 4

Perception: 2

Endurance: 5

Charisma: 5

Intelligence: 5

Agility: 2

Luck: 5

Order of the 7 S.P.E.C.I.A.L. traits in order of most important to least important:

Comments about why you put points into your top 3 highest stats, and why you ranked the S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stats in the order you chose:
Intelligence/Charisma at #1, given these two together would indicate force of personality. Both likability and ability to carry on a conversation. Tempting to set it higher, but there were important stats elsewhere that needed attention.

Luck/Endurance at #2, these taken together to indicate someone's general level of physical health, longevity, and ability to avoid an endless train of life kicking them up the ass. Assuming this is real life, LUCK IS NOT A DUMP STAT, PEOPLE. Do you fancy cancer at age 30? Dead in a car crash? No? Maybe put some points in Luck.

Strength at #3, given you've indicated strength to be the purest indicator of physical fitness, and combined in some way with endurance this is literally the only metric we're given for physical appearance (as you indicated Charisma is not applicable there).
Thanks for participating! Just wanted to ask you to Edit into your post an ordered list of the 7 S.P.C.I.A.L.s from most to least important. I ask because you have a few that are scored the same so I can't just guess based on the numbers.

, a high Strength alone isn't the end all of physical fitness. As mentioned in the explanations, you can be real strong, but still clumsy (if agility is low), or unhealthy/unable to endure lots of activity (if endurance is low).

As for physical attractiveness, since this is your ideal partner it's best to assume that you're attracted to them, and build the put points into traits based on the kind of person you'd be attracted to. For examples: Like them ripped? Put points into strength.
Like them agile? Put points into Agility. Like them to be able to go all day and all night? Put points into endurance.
Physical health is divided among these three in this way. Strength is about resisting physical damage, agility is about avoiding damage, and endurance is about how much a person can go through without succumbing to it.

As for charisma, as the explanation noted being hot won't assure you lots of points in charisma, but it will get you some.
Intelligence, perception, and luck can also factor into a person's attractiveness as it relates to the kind of person you'd want to be with.

All that said, as I mentioned before, your own interpretations of of the S.P.E.C.I.A.L.s and what the points measure up to is more important than mine. That's why I asked for comments about how you scored your ideal partner. The explanations I gave serve as a foundation, but in the end the participants are the ones making the final judgement call.

Your reason for picking the points you picked are more helpful in showing what you're specifically looking for than just the points themselves. So thanks again for being so forthcoming with the info.
Have a special day!
=w= b
 

BloatedGuppy

New member
Feb 3, 2010
9,572
0
0
Imp Emissary said:
Thanks for participating! Just wanted to ask you to Edit into your post an ordered list of the 7 S.P.C.I.A.L.s from most to least important. I ask because you have a few that are scored the same so I can't just guess based on the numbers.

All that said, as I mentioned before, your own interpretations of of the S.P.E.C.I.A.L.s and what the points measure up to is more important than mine. That's why I asked for comments about how you scored your ideal partner. The explanations I gave serve as a foundation, but in the end the participants are the ones making the final judgement call.

Your reason for picking the points you picked are more helpful in showing what you're specifically looking for than just the points themselves. So thanks again for being so forthcoming with the info.
That's a bit problematic, particularly with something like "Luck", which isn't really something you can look for in a partner, but rather a measure of how kindly the universe treats them. But very well, I'll make some slight adjustments based on that.

INT - 6
CHA - 6
LCK - 5
END - 5
STR - 2
AGI - 2
PER - 2

In that order. Be helpful to have a guide in terms of what a "1" means as compared to a "10". Like, is a 1 STR person a willowy, waifish girl? Or a noodle-armed weakling who can barely function? Is a 5 "average"? If so, our 28 points result in a below average human across the board. Etc, etc.
 

dyre

New member
Mar 30, 2011
2,178
0
0
Uh, I didn't major in a science field, but I did take a couple courses in psychology, and I'm pretty sure this is a violation of all kinds of research standards. Non-randomized pool of candidates on a specific website [footnote]with a definite liberal and pro-LGBTQ slant in its userbase. Not that this is a bad thing, but it definitely makes the results useless if you want to apply them to a larger population[/footnote] who are allowed to read other people's responses before replying? That...doesn't seem like something that would pass peer review.

Also, I think you need to define what 1 and 7 mean. How weak/stupid/etc. is 1, and how strong/smart/etc. is 7? Does a 7 in luck mean you're born to the Royal Family? And it's worth noting that the SPECIAL system was designed for a post-apocalyptic survival/combat game, and is biased towards physical traits, while the real world is biased towards mental traits.

Anyway...
straight male seeking straight female

SPECIAL:
Int 7
Cha 7
Lck 7
Agi 2
End 2
Per 2
Str 1

I guess that means I'm looking for a genius supermodel who happens to be the heiress to a major business empire?
 

BloatedGuppy

New member
Feb 3, 2010
9,572
0
0
dyre said:
Anyway...
straight male seeking straight female

SPECIAL:
Int 7
Cha 7
Lck 7
Agi 2
End 2
Per 2
Str 1

I guess that means I'm looking for a genius supermodel who happens to be the heiress to a major business empire?
With only 1's and 2's for physical attributes she won't even be able to stand up! You'll have to roll her around, like a dung beetle!
 

dyre

New member
Mar 30, 2011
2,178
0
0
BloatedGuppy said:
dyre said:
Anyway...
straight male seeking straight female

SPECIAL:
Int 7
Cha 7
Lck 7
Agi 2
End 2
Per 2
Str 1

I guess that means I'm looking for a genius supermodel who happens to be the heiress to a major business empire?
With only 1's and 2's for physical attributes she won't even be able to stand up! You'll have to roll her around, like a dung beetle!
Don't be absurd! Carry weight is 150 + (Str x 10), so she'll be able to carry around 160 pounds of gear while running at a full sprint. And with 2 Endurance, she'll be able to shrug off several pistol rounds to the face without breaking a sweat!
 

BloatedGuppy

New member
Feb 3, 2010
9,572
0
0
dyre said:
Don't be absurd! Carry weight is 150 + (Str x 10), so she'll be able to carry around 160 pounds of gear while running at a full sprint. And with 2 Endurance, she'll be able to shrug off several pistol rounds to the face without breaking a sweat!
150 lbs is barely enough to cover all the light bulbs and wonder glues you're going to need her to carry. She'll have nothing left over for locomotion. She's radroach food.
 

Imp_Emissary

Mages Rule, and Dragons Fly!
Legacy
May 2, 2011
2,315
1
43
Country
United States
dyre said:
BloatedGuppy said:
First off, love the back and forth you two got going. Well done. =w= b

Second, as you have similar questions/concerns, I'll answer both of you through private message.