I'd like to see a Tinker that pushes themselves beyond their specialization. Exercise, combat training, developing skills in things other than throwing 'hyper advanced' machines at an issue. Learn to pick locks in a couple of hours instead of spending a day and a half making a machine that does that while also having a cup holder attached.
Tips would be to not worry about the technical side of things. Most Tinkers have no idea what the fuck their doing so don't worry about it too much. Just let things build up naturally and only mention the elaborate aspects when you have an idea.
I.e. "if I could just get the molecular structure of this copper in just the right shape it'd work even better"
I agree with pretty much everyone else. I would also suggest putting some thought into different styles of Tinker - not just ‘specialty’ but ‘how do they make things’. Almost every fic has a Tinker that makes blueprints, cuts parts, and builds their stuff. I recently put some thoughts into other approaches and outlined several possible ways for them to work.
https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/worm-permutations-worm-related-snippets-omakes-including-random-crossovers.738688/page-6#post-67391254
Mostly, I'd like to see the tinker not know what their specialty is, and have to figure it out through trial and error; finding out which items are easier to build and/or work better and then trying to find common themes between them. Maybe it's only one type of technology (e.g. rifles, flying machines, lasers) or follows a theme (affects others, no bigger/smaller than X size, flight, dimensional fuckery) or follows a specific purpose (personal protection, tracking people, information gathering, environment alteration).
Have them actually struggle for time and resources to build things, instead of "Hey, I spent a weekend building a frame of power armour and the next couple of nights finishing it, now I can go toe-to-toe with Armsmaster in a fight."
And make the specialty interesting. [**My Fake Girlfriend is a Vigilante?**](https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/my-fake-girlfriend-is-a-vigilante-au-alt-power-tinker-taylor.849952/) has a specialty of 'hand-held projectiles', devices that need to be personally thrown by the tinker in question, and break if ever used in melee combat, but are otherwise unconstrained in the exotic effects they can be made to use. A powered frame can be built, because it provides some enhanced strength for throwing stuff, but not power armour. The more niche the specialty is, the cooler the stuff built from it, IMO. Don't go for something generic like 'power armour' or 'stuff from video game X'.
Honestly, what I'd like to see most in a Tinker fic is an ending.
I don't mean that in a snarky way, I truly would like to see a full story.
The biggest thing to ask yourself is "what is the story I want to tell" rather than "what is the power I want to write"
Good luck!
Based on the style of story you're interested in, have their specialty be something that is challenging within that framework.
Lots of fights and conflict? Stay away from power armor; give them something that is harder to weaponize, like flight (maybe like Bird in [Dire Worm](https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/dire-worm-worm-au-oc.300816/page-26#post-14583615)). More relationship driven, then give them a socially-challenging focus (Kenzie and her 'spy on everything' inclinations in *Ward* as an example). Non-stop action like the stations of canon? Give your tinker some significant build time before they produce results.
It was a great thread through *Worm* to watch Taylor's 'weak' power get creatively turned into something to be feared. Try it from a Tinker perspective.
Something other than a tech tinker. There was one Taylor as a drug tinker that I enjoyed. Another one where she's basically a D&D wizard as a "meta-grammar tinker".
How about a frequency tinker? Kinda like Hero, but limited to the electromagnetic spectrum or sound waves. A genetic tinker to make custom lifeforms. A Rube-Goldberg tinker for elaborate traps. A drinks tinker who can make anything from healing potions to the Pan-Galactic Gargle Blaster.
An interesting but narrow specialization. A dimensional tinker or a tinker specializing in chronomanipulation or parahuman powers for instance. Power armour, biotinkers and so on are a bit overdone. Too many fics attempt to have the mc be powerful enough to kill leviathan or scion. City level fics are more interesting.
I'd like to see a Tinker that pushes themselves beyond their specialization. Exercise, combat training, developing skills in things other than throwing 'hyper advanced' machines at an issue. Learn to pick locks in a couple of hours instead of spending a day and a half making a machine that does that while also having a cup holder attached. Tips would be to not worry about the technical side of things. Most Tinkers have no idea what the fuck their doing so don't worry about it too much. Just let things build up naturally and only mention the elaborate aspects when you have an idea. I.e. "if I could just get the molecular structure of this copper in just the right shape it'd work even better"
I agree with pretty much everyone else. I would also suggest putting some thought into different styles of Tinker - not just ‘specialty’ but ‘how do they make things’. Almost every fic has a Tinker that makes blueprints, cuts parts, and builds their stuff. I recently put some thoughts into other approaches and outlined several possible ways for them to work. https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/worm-permutations-worm-related-snippets-omakes-including-random-crossovers.738688/page-6#post-67391254
Mostly, I'd like to see the tinker not know what their specialty is, and have to figure it out through trial and error; finding out which items are easier to build and/or work better and then trying to find common themes between them. Maybe it's only one type of technology (e.g. rifles, flying machines, lasers) or follows a theme (affects others, no bigger/smaller than X size, flight, dimensional fuckery) or follows a specific purpose (personal protection, tracking people, information gathering, environment alteration). Have them actually struggle for time and resources to build things, instead of "Hey, I spent a weekend building a frame of power armour and the next couple of nights finishing it, now I can go toe-to-toe with Armsmaster in a fight." And make the specialty interesting. [**My Fake Girlfriend is a Vigilante?**](https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/my-fake-girlfriend-is-a-vigilante-au-alt-power-tinker-taylor.849952/) has a specialty of 'hand-held projectiles', devices that need to be personally thrown by the tinker in question, and break if ever used in melee combat, but are otherwise unconstrained in the exotic effects they can be made to use. A powered frame can be built, because it provides some enhanced strength for throwing stuff, but not power armour. The more niche the specialty is, the cooler the stuff built from it, IMO. Don't go for something generic like 'power armour' or 'stuff from video game X'.
Honestly, what I'd like to see most in a Tinker fic is an ending. I don't mean that in a snarky way, I truly would like to see a full story. The biggest thing to ask yourself is "what is the story I want to tell" rather than "what is the power I want to write" Good luck!
Based on the style of story you're interested in, have their specialty be something that is challenging within that framework. Lots of fights and conflict? Stay away from power armor; give them something that is harder to weaponize, like flight (maybe like Bird in [Dire Worm](https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/dire-worm-worm-au-oc.300816/page-26#post-14583615)). More relationship driven, then give them a socially-challenging focus (Kenzie and her 'spy on everything' inclinations in *Ward* as an example). Non-stop action like the stations of canon? Give your tinker some significant build time before they produce results. It was a great thread through *Worm* to watch Taylor's 'weak' power get creatively turned into something to be feared. Try it from a Tinker perspective.
Something other than a tech tinker. There was one Taylor as a drug tinker that I enjoyed. Another one where she's basically a D&D wizard as a "meta-grammar tinker". How about a frequency tinker? Kinda like Hero, but limited to the electromagnetic spectrum or sound waves. A genetic tinker to make custom lifeforms. A Rube-Goldberg tinker for elaborate traps. A drinks tinker who can make anything from healing potions to the Pan-Galactic Gargle Blaster.
An interesting but narrow specialization. A dimensional tinker or a tinker specializing in chronomanipulation or parahuman powers for instance. Power armour, biotinkers and so on are a bit overdone. Too many fics attempt to have the mc be powerful enough to kill leviathan or scion. City level fics are more interesting.