I created a page for my previous Savage Worlds Mass Effect posts, cleaned up and with most of the redundancies and errors removed. As I get more feedback (or, as I call it, "Validate me, you bastards!"), I'll fix problems, and hopefully keep a change log.
http://rpgcrank.blogspot.com/p/savage-worlds-mass-effect.html
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Tuesday, March 25, 2014
Savage Worlds Mass Effect: Gear
Most Savage Worlds Mass Effect gear is similar to modern and futuristic gear in the Savage Worlds Explorer's Edition, pages 48-56. Many things function differently, but have similar statistics.
Monday, March 24, 2014
Savage Worlds Mass Effect: Powers
For those wondering, I will eventually compile these into a single document, edited into something a lot clearer. First, a basic overview of the two Arcane Backgrounds, then considering the individual powers.
Tech v. Biotics
While there's an obvious in-universe reason for the difference between the two, Tech and Biotics share many of the same powers. What's the differences?
1) Tech is not unique. Everyone can take the Tech skill, even without the Arcane Background. Tech represents the advanced technology of the Mass Effect Universe, and most people have a passing familiarity with it. The Arcane Background, however, represents a real flair with tech, being able to manipulate devices to share power pools and enact unique powers without necessarily having a device that does exactly that. With Tech, ANYONE can try to hack a computer with their omni-tool, use an acid-thrower weapon, create barriers with a portable barrier emitter, or activate the shields on their armor; someone with the Arcane Background might be able to use a Mind Reading power to simply learn executive level-passwords, or use their omni-tool to throw bolts of acid, create barriers, or create shields on armor that doesn't have it. The Arcane Background is Flexibility with tech, and the ability to learn new tricks.
2) Biotics have a bit of extra power. Though most biotics prefer to keep their slow replacing, natural points for emergencies, they can all make use of bio-amps for a pool of freely usable power points. While 500 credits isn't cheap, it's affordable to a lot of people and biotics find those 10 points to be enough for most uses. If someone has both Arcane Backgrounds, they can use Power Points from other objects to recharge their Bio-Amps; recharging a bio-amp from another device requires an action and a successful Tech check.
Tech v. Biotics
While there's an obvious in-universe reason for the difference between the two, Tech and Biotics share many of the same powers. What's the differences?
1) Tech is not unique. Everyone can take the Tech skill, even without the Arcane Background. Tech represents the advanced technology of the Mass Effect Universe, and most people have a passing familiarity with it. The Arcane Background, however, represents a real flair with tech, being able to manipulate devices to share power pools and enact unique powers without necessarily having a device that does exactly that. With Tech, ANYONE can try to hack a computer with their omni-tool, use an acid-thrower weapon, create barriers with a portable barrier emitter, or activate the shields on their armor; someone with the Arcane Background might be able to use a Mind Reading power to simply learn executive level-passwords, or use their omni-tool to throw bolts of acid, create barriers, or create shields on armor that doesn't have it. The Arcane Background is Flexibility with tech, and the ability to learn new tricks.
2) Biotics have a bit of extra power. Though most biotics prefer to keep their slow replacing, natural points for emergencies, they can all make use of bio-amps for a pool of freely usable power points. While 500 credits isn't cheap, it's affordable to a lot of people and biotics find those 10 points to be enough for most uses. If someone has both Arcane Backgrounds, they can use Power Points from other objects to recharge their Bio-Amps; recharging a bio-amp from another device requires an action and a successful Tech check.
Monday, March 17, 2014
Edges and Hindrances in SW Mass Effect
We're looking at beginning a SW Mass Effect game, soon, and so I've been looking at a few Edges and Hindrances for what they might mean in the ME universe.
Now, one thing I should make clear; anyone, whether they have the Arcane Background: Tech or not, may learn and use the Tech skill. However, that is ONLY to use powers built into devices; you can use Tech to turn on shields in your military-grade armor (i.e. Activate the Armor Power built in). If you have the Arcane Background, you can use your learned Armor power to create shields whenever you have an omni-tool. Without the background, you can learn no powers, only use the ones already there. Civilian omni-tools only include the Healing and Speak Language powers, allowing them to dispense medi-gel and translate most common languages.
Now, one thing I should make clear; anyone, whether they have the Arcane Background: Tech or not, may learn and use the Tech skill. However, that is ONLY to use powers built into devices; you can use Tech to turn on shields in your military-grade armor (i.e. Activate the Armor Power built in). If you have the Arcane Background, you can use your learned Armor power to create shields whenever you have an omni-tool. Without the background, you can learn no powers, only use the ones already there. Civilian omni-tools only include the Healing and Speak Language powers, allowing them to dispense medi-gel and translate most common languages.
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
GM's Day
This is something I wrote in 2009 for GMs Day. As GMs Day rolls around (on March 4th of each year), remember to thank the people who make your fun possible; GMs, designers (both professional and homebrew), and the players who aren't dicks.
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
Force Rules and "Wise Teacher" rules
Ok, so you may recall my Force Point rules from earlier, as well as the after-action.
One thing I am definitely doing away with on reflection? The idea that your Dark Side score innately adds to your Use the Force Checks. It worked well in d6 (where I got the idea from), but I think the "free force point whenever you're willing to embrace the Dark Side" is a much more effective lure. Thinking on it, however, I do have a slight change to make.
If you succumb to the Dark Side, things switch around. Instead of 1 red chip and 3 (or 4, with the feat) Blue, you will gain 3 (or 4; just take that as a given, now) reds and 1 blue. Spending a blue? That lowers your DS score by 1. But you can have as many of those as you want, provided it's in the service of the light side of the Force. If your side "switches" during a game, you don't "reset" until the next game... so if you go Dark, you can delve REALLY deep into the Dark but, likewise, it's possible to expunge a lot of Dark Side points at a heroically appropriate moment.
I'll post that on the Giant; there's likely some problems that need checking on my idea.
One thing I am definitely doing away with on reflection? The idea that your Dark Side score innately adds to your Use the Force Checks. It worked well in d6 (where I got the idea from), but I think the "free force point whenever you're willing to embrace the Dark Side" is a much more effective lure. Thinking on it, however, I do have a slight change to make.
If you succumb to the Dark Side, things switch around. Instead of 1 red chip and 3 (or 4, with the feat) Blue, you will gain 3 (or 4; just take that as a given, now) reds and 1 blue. Spending a blue? That lowers your DS score by 1. But you can have as many of those as you want, provided it's in the service of the light side of the Force. If your side "switches" during a game, you don't "reset" until the next game... so if you go Dark, you can delve REALLY deep into the Dark but, likewise, it's possible to expunge a lot of Dark Side points at a heroically appropriate moment.
I'll post that on the Giant; there's likely some problems that need checking on my idea.
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Several Sessions Ago...
Oh, boy, we've had a busy month with a lot of playing, leading to me getting way behind on session logs.
Soon after our time at Falcon Tower, we decided to head west to check out the pregnant woman's story of a den of orcs (and also wanting to investigate rumors of kobolds who robbed some miners). We headed west down the road, but found only a long-abandoned camp of kobolds. We briefly met with the "witch", Valdershenk, who told us that she knew the kobolds well enough, but that orcs were always trouble. She also gave us a bit of a potion, that most of us survived pretty well. We headed further west, past the river that marks the county border and into the mountains.
It was a fairly difficult trek, especially with the number of greenhorn travelers we had along. Being the strongest swimmer, Sevlan tended to lead our way across rivers, while the rest of the party would follow on a rope he carried, or ride a log downstream. There were some rough bits, but we made it to a small, protected cove beneath the cliffs, where we figured our lady must have come from.
Quite frankly, this is one impressive trek for her. She climbed down a sheer cliff, hundreds of feet tall, crossed two rivers, and walked down the road, all while heavily pregnant, with inadequate clothes and no shoes. We suspected that her captors were up near the top of the cliff, but we couldn't make it up safely, so we decided to head back to town and circle around. On the way back, we met Valdershenk again, still strolling happily through unsettled lands; she informed us that she had some cures and such at her hut near the old Has road, which we promised to keep in mind.
Since we were planning on heading back west, we talked to our friend, Captain Reymond, the captain of the guard at the Palisade, asking if he had anything that needed to be run out to the towers to the southwest... figured we'd get pay and the short-term use of a mule out of the bargain, and continue our good relationship with the captain. Before we headed out to Karpar peak, we retired to some rooms we'd rented in the keep itself... while cheaper to stay at the hostel in Quarrytown, I also worried about security, especially when we start picking up money (aaaaaaannnny day now, I swear). However, we got attacked by giant rats. Huge rats. Rats the size of medium-sized dogs. Ava, our priest of the Bear, got bit and fell ill. Since Balan was unable to cure her disease, and the disease wasn't fatal or contagious (so long as she didn't bite anyone), we chose to keep adventuring, figuring it would clear up and a few days on the road would give her time to heal. Then, we were going to go into the sewer to wipe out the rats.
We started to run supplies down to the tower, and Sevlen noticed someone picking one of our pockets. We caught him and presented him with a proposal: He could adventure with us, or we'd turn him into the guard. He was enthused by the prospect; he was Amnet, and his family was tradesmen, but died soon after arriving at the Keep. He'd been on his own ever since, stealing bits and, while never quite joining the Ravens, he was occasionally dependent upon their charity. We got him some armor and he came along with us on the supply run.
The supply run was... interesting. The Karpar tower is rumored to be haunted, so Grimwulf was interested in investigating it in his position as a dedicant on the Eternal Lantern. When we got there, we learned it wasn't so much "haunted" as "rumored to be a lousy duty station so those assigned there could party." Good food, good drink, even a prostitute out there. We partied with the Karpar guard, and they offered us a chance to join a "secret society", though they weren't clear about the nature of it.
After a good night (and looking west, since we're still worried about orcs out there), we headed back to the keep with an Ava whose symptoms were getting worse. Determined to exterminate the rats, we headed down below. We knew of several entrances to the keep sewers, but started with one well away from the privies. The first was a small complex, draining directly to the river below, but with one-way doors that we couldn't get open... but rats could. Heading to the lower bailey sewers, we found a vast complex... what seemed to be the remains of the old keep. We found a kennel, a jail (with evidence that someone named "Dirk" was executed by someone known as "Sir Trigger"), some storage and a great hall. The hall, Fredi told us had giant tapestries, some of them quite valuable, but all of them quite old and delicate. Exploring further, we found evidence of the rooms of several of Sir Trigger's "fingers", including Dirk, the Pointer Finger... who seems to have been the one executed. We thoroughly mapped the area, with Amnet (that thief we caught) finding a few traps, and Ava getting further diseased. This second one was more severe, but would clear up just fine... provided she went to spend a few months in the desert. Ava chose to leave us, then, heading south to the arid lands and her health.
After a couple weeks of training, and thoroughly exploring that remnant of the old keep, we decided to tell some of the authorities about it. And for this, we were torn. Did we tell the Earl, responsible for the keep and arguably the one who could inherit the treasures below? Or did we tell the Prefect, responsible for the protection of the keep, who would surely like to know about the passage between the lower and middle baileys? In the end, we chose to tell Greytar, the mage who was present for the last keep, and a possible friend of Sir Trigger. We kept some information from him, however... like the library below. Sevlen'd finally pieced out the Orcish writing in the diary we'd taken from the Orc priest, and had learned a different history of the keep... one that included Sir Trigger, the Grel Wizard, who had attacked the keep before he helped rebuild it. We weren't sure of Greytar's actual loyalties, but bribed him with a bottle of valuable wine to set up a meeting with the prefect and the Earl (figuring that telling them both at the same time would avoid appearances of favoritism, though Greytar clearly favored the Earl).
The Prefect react with bluster and anger to news of a complex beneath the keep, and the Earl with cautious optimism to word of artistic treasures below. We shared this discussion, and promised to spend more time mapping the deeps.
Soon after our time at Falcon Tower, we decided to head west to check out the pregnant woman's story of a den of orcs (and also wanting to investigate rumors of kobolds who robbed some miners). We headed west down the road, but found only a long-abandoned camp of kobolds. We briefly met with the "witch", Valdershenk, who told us that she knew the kobolds well enough, but that orcs were always trouble. She also gave us a bit of a potion, that most of us survived pretty well. We headed further west, past the river that marks the county border and into the mountains.
It was a fairly difficult trek, especially with the number of greenhorn travelers we had along. Being the strongest swimmer, Sevlan tended to lead our way across rivers, while the rest of the party would follow on a rope he carried, or ride a log downstream. There were some rough bits, but we made it to a small, protected cove beneath the cliffs, where we figured our lady must have come from.
Quite frankly, this is one impressive trek for her. She climbed down a sheer cliff, hundreds of feet tall, crossed two rivers, and walked down the road, all while heavily pregnant, with inadequate clothes and no shoes. We suspected that her captors were up near the top of the cliff, but we couldn't make it up safely, so we decided to head back to town and circle around. On the way back, we met Valdershenk again, still strolling happily through unsettled lands; she informed us that she had some cures and such at her hut near the old Has road, which we promised to keep in mind.
Since we were planning on heading back west, we talked to our friend, Captain Reymond, the captain of the guard at the Palisade, asking if he had anything that needed to be run out to the towers to the southwest... figured we'd get pay and the short-term use of a mule out of the bargain, and continue our good relationship with the captain. Before we headed out to Karpar peak, we retired to some rooms we'd rented in the keep itself... while cheaper to stay at the hostel in Quarrytown, I also worried about security, especially when we start picking up money (aaaaaaannnny day now, I swear). However, we got attacked by giant rats. Huge rats. Rats the size of medium-sized dogs. Ava, our priest of the Bear, got bit and fell ill. Since Balan was unable to cure her disease, and the disease wasn't fatal or contagious (so long as she didn't bite anyone), we chose to keep adventuring, figuring it would clear up and a few days on the road would give her time to heal. Then, we were going to go into the sewer to wipe out the rats.
We started to run supplies down to the tower, and Sevlen noticed someone picking one of our pockets. We caught him and presented him with a proposal: He could adventure with us, or we'd turn him into the guard. He was enthused by the prospect; he was Amnet, and his family was tradesmen, but died soon after arriving at the Keep. He'd been on his own ever since, stealing bits and, while never quite joining the Ravens, he was occasionally dependent upon their charity. We got him some armor and he came along with us on the supply run.
The supply run was... interesting. The Karpar tower is rumored to be haunted, so Grimwulf was interested in investigating it in his position as a dedicant on the Eternal Lantern. When we got there, we learned it wasn't so much "haunted" as "rumored to be a lousy duty station so those assigned there could party." Good food, good drink, even a prostitute out there. We partied with the Karpar guard, and they offered us a chance to join a "secret society", though they weren't clear about the nature of it.
After a good night (and looking west, since we're still worried about orcs out there), we headed back to the keep with an Ava whose symptoms were getting worse. Determined to exterminate the rats, we headed down below. We knew of several entrances to the keep sewers, but started with one well away from the privies. The first was a small complex, draining directly to the river below, but with one-way doors that we couldn't get open... but rats could. Heading to the lower bailey sewers, we found a vast complex... what seemed to be the remains of the old keep. We found a kennel, a jail (with evidence that someone named "Dirk" was executed by someone known as "Sir Trigger"), some storage and a great hall. The hall, Fredi told us had giant tapestries, some of them quite valuable, but all of them quite old and delicate. Exploring further, we found evidence of the rooms of several of Sir Trigger's "fingers", including Dirk, the Pointer Finger... who seems to have been the one executed. We thoroughly mapped the area, with Amnet (that thief we caught) finding a few traps, and Ava getting further diseased. This second one was more severe, but would clear up just fine... provided she went to spend a few months in the desert. Ava chose to leave us, then, heading south to the arid lands and her health.
After a couple weeks of training, and thoroughly exploring that remnant of the old keep, we decided to tell some of the authorities about it. And for this, we were torn. Did we tell the Earl, responsible for the keep and arguably the one who could inherit the treasures below? Or did we tell the Prefect, responsible for the protection of the keep, who would surely like to know about the passage between the lower and middle baileys? In the end, we chose to tell Greytar, the mage who was present for the last keep, and a possible friend of Sir Trigger. We kept some information from him, however... like the library below. Sevlen'd finally pieced out the Orcish writing in the diary we'd taken from the Orc priest, and had learned a different history of the keep... one that included Sir Trigger, the Grel Wizard, who had attacked the keep before he helped rebuild it. We weren't sure of Greytar's actual loyalties, but bribed him with a bottle of valuable wine to set up a meeting with the prefect and the Earl (figuring that telling them both at the same time would avoid appearances of favoritism, though Greytar clearly favored the Earl).
The Prefect react with bluster and anger to news of a complex beneath the keep, and the Earl with cautious optimism to word of artistic treasures below. We shared this discussion, and promised to spend more time mapping the deeps.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)