Great White Games/Pinnacle Entertainment Group

[Lord Stone]

The line between Wild Card and Extra is pretty wide. There is the Wild Die, three Wounds and several other situational benefits. But what if you want a character who is not a Wild Card to be just a bit better.

For example.. I want an NPC who is not big enough to be called a Wild Card not to be out after a single Wound. It is pretty easy to designate he has more than 1 Wound box, but this is not suggested by the rules as far as I know. Is there a 'correct' way to handle this?

[tigerguy786]

I've seen different books add "minions" to the list and (depending on the source) they have a wild die or they have extra wounds. Remember that technically as it stands Extras have 0 wounds. The first wound they take incapacitates them, whereas Wild Cards are incapacitated on the 4th. You could add 1 or 2 without shaking things up, it's just slightly more book keeping, but still generally FFF.

You could have:
Extra- Incapacitated on the first wound
Minion- incapacitated on the 2nd or 3rd wound
Wild Card- Incapacitated on the 4th wound

The question I've always had is where to draw the line on whether or not they get bennies. Should non Wild Cards ever get bennies? How much added difficulty do they represent?

Sidenote: I've actually also seen it done that an extra is taken out the first time they're shaken.
_________________
TIGER, tiger, burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

[Noshrok Grimskull]

I've added all sorts of different "in-betweens" to my games.

I had:

- Extra with Wild Die
- Extra with more Wounds
- Extra with Benny (or even 2 Bennies)
- Wild Card without Bennies
- Wild Card without Wild Die
- Wild Card without Wounds

It's all fun, though the Wild Card without Wounds tends to be more of a push-over than the others.
_________________
"If you think I'm crazy, you should see the people I'm locked up with." - Steamdriven

"This is my timey-wimey detector. Goes 'ding' when there's stuff." - The Doctor (Doctor Who)

[Enno]

[wort]

[VonDan]

If they are more then an extra but not the star that would make them a bit player
_________________
http://s61.photobucket.com/albums/h51/Vondan/

[JmOz01]

I have LT's in my game, basicaly extra's that get a wild die. Normaly they have a name, that is easily forgetable or just refered to by there rankk.

Basicly I use them for leaders of squads of extras and such...

[Lord Stone]

What this is about, for the most part, is those NPCs who have started to matter to the story, but who should not be Wild Cards. As mentioned, there should not be too many Wild Cards. My games tend to have more relevant, named NPCs than the amount of Wild Cards I want to have running around, but when they get into a battle, either against or alongside the players, I would like them to be able to pack just a little bit more punch than the average extra.

The option of spending bennies is there of course, but the fact that the bennie would do exactly the same for any other extra still doesn't feel right. And even more, if I want to use the GM bennies to give the players just that extra bit of challenge, this solution does not work for the cases of NPCs fighting alongside the heroes.

And finally... I find that sometimes the situation just calls for a less dual system, and sometimes I feel like 3 tiers would work better. For example, in a fight with a Wild Card commander, two or three strong lieutenants and a bunch of random goons, I would like the lieutenants to fall roughly in between the Wild Card and the Extras. And while Skills and Edges do account for quite a bit, those few extra Wounds make a drastic difference.

[Zadmar]

[kreider204]

There are settings that do just what the OP has in mind. I've cobbled together the following, more or less taken from this or that setting book and suggestions by forum dwellers:

Wild Cards: as per the normal Wild Card rules.
Lucky Henchmen: as per the normal Extra rules, but they also get to roll a Wild Die.
Tough Henchmen: as per the normal Extra rules, but they also get 1-3 wound levels.
Extras: as per the normal Extra rules.
Lackeys: as per the normal Extra rules, but their damage rolls may not Ace.
Mooks: as per Lackeys, and any shaken result that they suffer is treated as a wound (i.e., they can be taken out with one hit, whether it’s a success or raise).
_________________
"It only takes an extra second to be courteous."
- Constable Benton Fraser

[SavageGamerGirl]

I've occasionally used 'enhanced' Extras that can take 1 Wound, or which have a Wild Die, but not both.
_________________
'But I don't want to go among mad people,' Alice remarked.
'Oh, you can't help that,' said the Cat: 'we're all mad here.'
The Order of the Dice... OF DOOM!

[ValhallaGH]

[CitizenKeen]

[ValhallaGH]

[greyseerco]

What I have in my note book of fun:


Depending on how you want to build your encounters, Savage Worlds has their Extras and Wild Cards, but sometimes there is a desire or need to provide hordes of nameless foes or someone who is tougher than the average Extra, but not a full on Wild Card.

Mooks are non-standard type of character for Savage Worlds. They are the level below Extras. Mooks are the faceless cannon-fodder who get thrown at the heroes in combat. The simple followers of an apocalypse cult, the hordes of rad-roaches that come pouring out of a drainaige pipe, are just some examples of mooks.
Mooks are just like Extras, but with the following special rules:
• Every Trait is average (d6).
• They only possess four skills, and each skill is rated at d6.
• They have no edges and no hindrances.
• Mooks are never Shaken. If you equal or exceed their Toughness, they’re out of the fight.

Then there are the Extras (No Wounds, No Bennies, No Wild Die), representing your average beast and trouble maker.

Then there are troublesome Lieutenants. A Lieutenant is the main villain’s right hand man and is built like an extra, except they get to roll a wild die as well. (No Wounds, No Personal Bennies, and Get a Wild Die)

Then there are the foes that are hard to take down, but not as skilled or as lucky as a Wild Card, these are Henchmen, they are built like Extras but have three wounds. (3 Wounds, No Personal Bennies, and No Wild Die)

Lastly we have your Wild Cards (3 Wounds, 2 Bennies, Get a wild die) representing the players, main villain, and special monsters.

[Jonah Hex]

Something else I've added:

Master extras. These are generally used for most Extras the party interacts with as opposed to fight, such as craftsmen, town doctor, merchants, etc. Treated exactly as Extras except that they get a Wild Die for their professional skill(s) if they have any.

[fanchergw]

I frequently use what I call Henchmen. They are intended to fill that middle ground between Extras and Wild Cards. I've tried various configurations for Henchmen, but the one that works best for me is:
no Wounds
Wild Die
one personal benny

Gordon

[tigerguy786]

[Dylan S]

My only addition to these great suggestions is to consider giving your Lieutenant-grade extras a d4 Wild Die rather than a full d6. Sometimes I give The Main Villain a d8, too.

[Clint]

An easy way to have tougher Extras is just to give them Hardy.
_________________
Clint Black
Savage Worlds Core Rules Brand Manager

www.peginc.com