the Driver has lost their "thing"

In 1st ed, the Driver was a badass behind the wheel of a vehicle and outside was subpar in stats and weaker in effectiveness.

In 2nd ed, the Driver seems to be Cool, but that's about it. Especially since a lot of playbooks can potentially start with vehicles now, there seems to be no incentive for playing the Driver except that they can possibly build a fleet of vehicles.

Every playbook has a THING, a gimmick that makes them special. The Angel has their kit, the Brainer is a psychic, the Chopper has a gang, etc. What does the Driver have that the other playbooks don't? I can't see it. The Driver has been neutered.

(I'm asking almost the same question over here, in case anyone stumbles on this at a later time and they're no longer on the same page: http://apocalypse-world.com/forums/index.php?topic=9058.0)

I hated the Driver playbook before. Now it's one of my favorite. So... disagree. :)

Sorry Paul, if I had seen that thread I wouldn't have posted this. Even in that thread, I'm not seeing a lot of reasons for what makes the Driver so special from the rules themselves.
"The Driver is mobile"
"The Driver is a loner"
"The Driver makes the world larger"
These are unique perspectives based on what people played, not how the playbook is written. I've got a Driver in one of my current games and he has literally never left the town he started in and he has spent all his time putting down roots and making a name for himself, so literally every single thing people define Drivers as in that thread is refuted by this one player (who has also never played AW before and so he's not coming to the game with baggage or preconceptions of *how* he's supposed to play a Driver). Yet, he is also kind of shafted because the other players (a Brainer, a Hocus, a News, a Maestro d' and a Savvyhead) all have their "things" that make them special. Starting with a vehicle didn't even make the Driver in this game special because both my Brainer and Savvyhead asked to start with vehicles, and now the Hocus has even managed to acquire a bus for his family.

I'm tempted to just give the Driver combat driver for free since that's the most driver-y move, and he's managed to avoid taking it simply because he hasn't gone anywhere.

I hated the Driver playbook before. Now it's one of my favorite. So... disagree. :)

Convince me that the new Driver is better Ebok. Personal preference doesn't carry any weight with me.

I saw the words "skinner effectiveness" and just rolled right past that topic. Oh well.  :-\

The playbook is whatever you make it. Before, the Driver was a handicapped cheat. Things were too easy behind the wheel, and there was nothing once he stepped outside the car. Sorry man, the basis of your argument is that the driver class EVER added anything major to the game, and really that just isn't so. None of his moves expanded the world, none of his shit had any influence unless the MC made it so it did. Gunlugger takes a motorcycle and the driver's as dead as the next guy.

So... No. I dont think I need to persuade anyone.

The Drivers moves now let him be whoever he wants to be. It lets the player decide how they wanna roll, and if that's locale, then so be it. Reputation, Escape, Big ass toys; It's fucking awesome. Driver decided he wants some heavy fucking machinery to do construction work around town, deciding he's part of say a savvy heads agarage and they're do big things here. Fuck yeah, it's what I've got to say. No savvy head? Meh, still all the same, just pick up your own workshop through the moves and do it that way.

You wanna have combat driver? It's badass. Really damn powerful in the right circumstances without fucking up the balance of your stats, or demanding the driver be some handicapped dude anywhere else.

The Maelstrom can be anything, but yet we still manage to make it cool. Why's it so hard to do that with a guy that can fly in any vehicle he wants? Nothing wrong with telling the gunlugger looking at a plane he's got no fucking idea how to move it, land it, whatever. Got a driver? Well shit, that could open up worlds of opportunity. You wanna make a guy that can drive anything awesome, present opportunities to do it. You don't? Still one of the top 3 playbooks for me, precisely because it doesnt carry so much conceptual baggage, and you can do fucking anything with it.

You think cars and trucks or whatever are all over, so what makes a driver's special? Simple, he's got choices the others dont. He gets what he wants, the rest only get what shit is already falling apart here. Also, he got all the best moves out of Operator, and that is damned cool too.

Sorry, further comments in the other thread since it was there first.