Scouting (skill)
The Scouting skill:
- Helps you get better odds in encounters.
- Reduces chances of arrival encounters.
- Reduces chances of getting road encounters during travels.
- Increases chances of a gates encounter when scouting, which in turn means zero chance of a return encounter.
While the scouting skill is a major factor there are other things that can affect your odds of getting a good "scouting roll" such as:
- Number of vehicles in the squad.
- Pirate activity.
- The car the scout is in (speed, stealth (small size) and its off-road capability could make a good "Scout car")[1]
- Scout distance (longer is better).
- Good or bad luck!
The enemy CR in encounters is based on your own CR and is usually at least 1.5x your CR, which means they can bring more cars and more guns, the scout skill reduces that by a bit.
Due to the number of other, semi-random factors involved it's hard to determine the exact effect scouting skill has, but the difference between 20, 100, and 200 is noticeable.
Vehicle Suitability
As noted above, the vehicle the Scout is in has an effect on the effectiveness of the scout.
The most important considerations for a Scout vehicle should be:
- Small size
- Fast
- Good Off-Road capability
From Sam (Developer):
The car that is used as the Scout in a particular squad is the one with the best scout rating. A car's scout rating is a combination of the scouting skill of its occupants and of its own inherent suitability for this role. So yes, put your best scout in a Buggy (or, next best, a Dustup) for Maximus Scoutimus.
Training
Scout skill can be increased quickly by traveling from town to town and escaping encounters.
Scout skill can also be increased by going on scouts. The farther from town you travel in a scout the more points you stand to gain. Note: Increased scout distance also means better odds (as opposed to fighting the first enemies you see) but also adds increased risk of a return.
Important: Only the highest skilled character in a particular squad gains any skill increase from encounters.
Specialisms
Scouting currently has only one specialism.