When we published ‘Super Skyline Sagas’ for Savage Worlds, we did so for one reason: We wanted to give the Super Hero RPG Genre a killer app for Savage Worlds, because after playing several entries of the genre, we saw something special for good ol’ SWADE.
In this article series, we will show you three unique ways to just pair this book with your core Savage Worlds book, another that taps into the Super Powers Companion, and finally, a Soft GM approach to allow you and your friends to play super hero skirmish battles with a narrative campaign attached to it with a hint of wargaming.
All thanks to the rules found in the Super Skyline Sagas book. It would mean the world if you grabbed a copy -here- to help fund even more Savage Worlds supplements.
On with the show with our first campaign variant!
Pulp Heroes
Not all superhero (and adjacent) campaigns need to be all about amazing super powers, spandex-wearing muscle men, and world-shattering threats. The genre was born from Pulp sensibilities, and focusing on them with an eye toward the superhero genre can create a unique campaign when you combine the core SWADE experience with the Super Skyline Sagas. With just a few choices found in the core rulebook, you can make the City Campaign have the correct vibes and mechanical gumbo needed to recreate just that.
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| Well except this guy wears spandex too but you get my point. |
City Creation
While there isn’t any need for any changes, the standard city creation found in Super Skyline Sagas works fine here; make note of Equipment Stores. We recommend adding at least 3 somewhere in the city blocks: one for Gear, one for Weapons, and one for Vehicles. Perhaps describing them as some sort of ‘black market’ that both Wild Aces and the enemy factions can access to replenish their arsenal would give the ‘greyness’ needed for the Pulp vibe.
Finally, it is important for the Game Master to determine which pieces of equipment match the setting of the city, meaning if you are running a ‘golden age of comic books’ vigilante story, maybe save the laser guns for another game or justify it with Weird Science.
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| You can get creative with your Pulp City. |
Wild Ace Character Creation
From the player's side, this is as straightforward as it gets. Their group is composed of vigilantes (masked or not, associated with law enforcement or not) who are either tasked by someone else, hired as mercenaries, or have taken it upon themselves to clean their beloved city of the crime syndicates that are choking the life out of its citizens. No need to keep this complicated: Merely follow the standard SWADE character creation limiting to Humans, and we suggest that the Game Master pick which Arcane Backgrounds from the core rulebook are open for player characters. ‘Weird Science’ fits the pulpy feel, but if you wish to evoke something closer to the superhero genre, the ‘Gifted’ background can work here as well.
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| Keep'em simple! |
Creating a Faction
To evoke a city infested by crime syndicates, it is better to have multiple factions with a single Super Villain and three Lieutenants working for each of these villains. We recommend around three Crime Syndicates. Make them hostile to each other, meaning they are not opposed to running Ploys on a City Block where their rival syndicate is active.
Keep this in mind as Wild Aces investigate and attempt to stop Ploys happening. Make sure to add Extras from the local factions in those scenes as well, and do not be afraid to run three-way (or more!) combat situations.
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| Intrigue and in-fighting is the way to go. |
The rules for Super Skyline Sagas were made thinking of a Supers campaign, which means progression was left to Game Master discretion and the concept of procuring equipment was an afterthought, for it was assumed the superheroes would probably focus on using their mighty powers to face the Super Villains.
To properly get two-fisted pulp heroes, it is important to keep track of Wealth. To keep things simple and smooth, we recommend the rules found on page 145 of the SWADE core rulebook. We suggest the bounty for stopping a Ploy be a one-die-step increase to the Wealth die, two increases if they manage to take out a Lieutenant, and three increases if they are able to kill or capture a Super Villain, closing their syndicate for good.
At the start of every session, have a ‘Shopping Turn’ to allow Wild Aces to attempt to restock or purchase different arsenals. Keep track of whether a Syndicate is currently occupying a City Block with an ‘Equipment Store’ on it. Maybe this will require the Wild Aces to try to hide who they are to participate in business, and a firefight can occur in case they fail to sneak by. Use this as part of the ongoing narrative and metagame of the city.
The feeling this campaign must produce is one of the Wild Aces against the city, in the sense that either the government is corrupt and in the pockets of the Syndicates, or completely powerless to deal with the crime wave. It is the Wild Aces against the world!
To properly give credence to the idea that the Wild Aces are the movers and shakers of the city, allow them to hire Allies for the price of a d10 Wealth check. These Allies can be equipped and outfitted by the Wild Aces, but they cannot patrol or engage against the forces of a Syndicate alone. Use them as Extras on the Wild Aces' daring adventures, not as a mechanical solution to the ‘City Turn’ problem.
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| Catch those spies! |
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Next article, we are visiting a certain super hero video game/interactive story about dispatching heroes to stop all sort of nonsense in a living city. Stay tuned for next week!
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