Great White Games/Pinnacle Entertainment Group

[billyj1138]

I anticipate running a 1925's supernatural horror themed campaign in the lieu of Hellboy or B.P.R.D. set in the past. I had initially thought of using the D20 Modern system but Savage Worlds just called to me.

I bought main and a few books and got cracking on my theme and ideas.

The problem I'm coming across, though, is that the group is supposed to be more exotic than just normal folk. Like B.P.R.D. some of the party will be creatures rather than human.

At the moment, two of them are giving me a bit of trouble in terms of mechanics and I thought I'd ask for some input. I really like the ideas and would really like to see them played.

One is an intelligent ape, I think the player wanted it to be a gadgeteer. How would I stat one out for playing? I thought about using the race creation rules, but I wasn't sure where to start with them.

The second is less exotic but more unique. It's an elf (easy enough) but the character has no natural arms, born without them, she instead has these magical gauntlets that hover through some unknown force at her side (and act as normal arms in terms of lifting, grabbing, etc., there's just no flesh and bone linking them to her shoulders). The gauntlets would grant her abilities (I thought about taking an arcane background and just considering the gauntlets as the source of the abilities and powers granted by it).

Can someone give me a hand with these?

[Virgobrown72]

For the ape, i'd use the half orc template. It makes him a little stronger than human characters, but isn't too far outside of game balance. As for the Elf girl. just use the elf template, but give a hindrance that shows her eliance on the gauntlets. Anything else is just AB's all day...
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"Anything smaller is just fiddly, and fiddly is not one of SvgW's three Fs..."

[warrenss2]

I agree with Virgobrown on the Ape being based off the half-Orc.

As for the Elf maid... since the gauntlets overcome her hindrance of having no arms, I'd just let it be a "special effect" or just for looks. She might be underestimated if she wasn't using her "hands" at the moment and looking like an armless elf. Maybe her hands are in her pockets at the time? I take it her "arms" don't work if the gauntlets are further away than arms length?

I'd have a blast with the Ape. "What a remarkably well trained animal!" "What circus is he from?" "Big monkey wanna banana?" Circuses trying to kidnap him, etc... Wonder what Lord Greystoke (Tarzan) would think of him?
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[Zadmar]

[Clash957]

I'm preparing a game similar to yours about the WWII Allies using monsters and other supernatural things to fight the Nazis in occupied Paris around 1940-41. I will be using the SPC to generate the vampires, werewolves, demons, and other stuff however. I’m not sure if you want your game to be at that level. This would make the powers the players have much easier to create. If just using the default Savage Worlds Core Rules then:

For the Ape, I like the Half-Orc or custom built race idea then build the powers on top of that. And for the armless Elf, I agree with the other posts, if it never interferes or becomes a compilation then it is simply a neat trapping for the character. Maybe take the Hindrance: Quirk because it isn't something you see everyday.

I would like to here more of what you have planned for your setting so that I might rip it off maybe making it the recent history for my setting. That is if you still intend on keeping it taking place in 1925.
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Playing: Deadlands Noir, Planescape via D&D 4th ed
Running: Nothing at the moment

[billyj1138]

Thanks all for the input, I greatly appreciate it!

Clash957, what specifically are you interested in?

I plan on starting it on April 20th =) Our first session will be spent making characters and a quick adventure.

The world is pretty much ours, but an alternate version where the boundary between reality and the supernatural is more malleable and susceptible to creatures leaking through. The party will be members of a group of supernatural agents who combat these invasions.

The first few games will be more or less stand alone missions. I plan on using Nazi's to a small degree (basically science and occult agents sowing the seeds of discourse in post WW1 America), ghosts and the undead, and demon cults.

The actual first adventure will revolve around the group being sent to investigate a serial killing where the victims appear to have been bitten by sharks. The police, baffled, reach out to various scientists for information, and the party's organization catches wind. They'll eventually find out that the attacks are actually being perpetrated by a small clan of goblins (I'm using the artistic design of the Paizo goblins for their general appearance, big wide mouths full of sharp pointy teeth) who come out under cover of night and snatch up people from the streets.

One thing I really want to try to enforce would be that the group needs to take captives and not always just kill everything. The organization would be government run, and would want specimens to dissect.

This may cause rifts between operatives and command, but I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

One thing I was really hoping to incorporate is something I really never got into in the past 25 years of game mastering, and that's using sound effectively. I'm planning on using music of the 20's when the group enters speakeasies, eerie piano music when applicable, carnival music for a few sessions that will take place around a circus and carnival, etc.

I've been looking for stuff with pops and hisses like you'd find with vinyl but in MP3 form, which gets a bit tricky, but hey, it's fun.

I've also compiled a bunch of images from that era for use of NPC dossiers and what have you.

[Clash957]

Mostly the background and origin of your supernatural agency is what I was looking to steal. My own game has the Bureau of Arcane Defense (B.A.D.) which was formed by secret presidential order under the Department of War called Project: Monster Mash. My thought is that B.A.D. was formed with the idea of capturing and recruiting 'Arcanes' for the purpose of fighting other Arcanes deemed too dangerous/unstable or already aligned with other foreign powers (such as the Nazis).

Depending on what you have, I could incorporate it as B.A.D.'s history. Although, I have already started the game, and the players have already entered Paris and joined the Resistance. I'm not even sure I should have the other B.A.D. members show up again until the end of the campaign.

What I am still working out are all the factions in Occupied Paris. I have a few ideas but haven't completely detailed them out. The Vampires run much like they a monarchy and forbidden to aid the war on either side, the Werewolves have had their packs either destroyed or forced to join the Nazis, the Ghosts are is open war in the spirit world of Paris, and few other ideas like the two major Resistances cells are infighting because one is communist and the other supports western ideas.
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Playing: Deadlands Noir, Planescape via D&D 4th ed
Running: Nothing at the moment

[kreider204]

Sounds similar to Suzerain Noir Knights - at the very least, it might be a good resource. I wrote a review here:

http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/15/15122.phtml
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"It only takes an extra second to be courteous."
- Constable Benton Fraser

[canology]

If you're still looking for music, here is a site that has dozens of mp3's of wax cylinder recordings from the late 1890's to the early 1920's. I listened to a few and they have that nice pop & crackle you are looking for!

http://www.cyberbee.com/edison/cylinder.html

[Snate56]

[billyj1138]

Tonight is officially the first night for my running Savage Worlds and my players first time playing it.

I plan on having them make characters tonight (they all came up with background ideas ahead of time) and I'm really excited to try things out.

Any recommendations for keeping it fast paced and light on crunch?

As it is everything feels streamlined already, but I figured I'd ask.

The character ideas for the group are as follows:

Marionette 1865 - an Austrian human sized magical construct resembling a giant marionette. Mute, carries matching Mauser's and Lugers, also twin knives.

Professor Solomon Silverback - an Ape with Arcane Background: Weird Science, wears a suit and bowler hat. Smart, speaks several languages.

Unnamed Werewolf - my slacker player hasn't come up with much yet. Figures.

Nikki - a french Flapper expat thief and acrobat.

Erroll Markham - a teenage boy who's archaeologist parents were killed on a dig by a mummy in Egypt. A spirit claiming to be Horus merged with his spirit and has been granting him abilities.

They work for the NST Neo-Supernatural Task-force. A secret subdivision of the Hoovers FBI.

The characters will be built tonight. If anyone has any input please feel free to share. We will also do a quick adventure to get used to the rules, the group will investigate a murder. Something simple.

[billyj1138]

Post Game:

I ran the group through a modified one sheet, the Mutator one. We first made characters and did a bit of an intro to them and then went right into it.

I'm pretty happy with how it went, there were a few stalls from not really knowing the system well but all in all it was a fun time.

I can't wait to start the real campaign.

Thanks for the assistance all.

Bill