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Here Be Tygers House Rules

 

I have a slightly different method for resolving Hard Dice. The Hard Dice in a pool are rolled and all of the Hard Dice set to the Height of the highest die in the Hard Dice pool. Hard Dice still represent guaranteed success at the expense of flexibility, i.e. they get the job done, but the character has no control over how they do it. All available Hard Dice must be rolled; the player cannot voluntarily drop Hard Dice. Hard Dice are still dropped first when dice are removed from a pool due to multiple actions, etc.

Example: A 3hd pool is rolled, with a result of 2, 5 and 8; the dice are therefore all set to 8 for a 3x8 result.

 

 

 

The ability of HyperBody to breach Armor has been removed and must now be purchased as the Penetrating Extra.

A HyperCoordination of 7 is needed to dodge perceived gunfire, but only if it is not Spray. The character also needs a HyperSense of 7 to be able to dodge Sprays and unperceived attacks.

 

 

 

The Contest of Wills has been changed to a single blind bid. You jot down your bid, the GM does the same, and they are revealed simultaneously. The highest bid wins, ties go to the defender. The participants both lose the Will that they have bid, but the victor gets one Will point back.

If the GM needs a guideline for how much Will an NPC would risk, use the following formula: The Will bid equals 10 - Number of known enemy talents or Cool stat (whichever is lower) + one for each time his effort fails (as long as his Will holds out).

Example: Der Vexierspiegel is trying to use his reality distorting Talent to maim Steeplejack. Der Vexierspiegel has a Cool of 3, and is facing three known Talents. So he'll bid 3 Will on his effort. Steeplejack isn't keen on having his topography altered, and bids 3 of his remaining 4 Will. The player jots down a figure, locks eyes with the GM, and flips his scrap of paper over. A Tie, and since ties go to the defender, Steeplejack is unaffected by Der Vexierspiegel’s Talent and receives the 1 Will point due to the victor.

 

 

 

I have a problem with Heavy Armor’s effect of making whatever it is protecting harder to hit rather than absorbing or deflecting damage. As written, Heavy Armor is more akin to Sidestep and other gobbling Talents, which doesn’t make much sense for non-Talent objects such as tanks. Here is the armor system that I use:

Armor is now divided into three types: Light, Medium and Heavy, and consists of two attributes: Defense and Hardness. Defense indicates how much damage the armor can absorb. Hardness is an indication of how easily it can be Penetrated.

Light Armor absorbs 2 Shock per level.

Medium Armor reduces all Shock to 1 point and converts 1 Killing to 1 Shock per level.

Heavy Armor cancels all Shock and absorbs 1 Killing per level.

If an attack has a Penetrating level greater than the Armor’s Hardness level, the Armor provides no protection at all.

If an attack has a Penetrating level less than or equal to the Hardness level, then the Defense level is temporarily reduced by the Penetration level. Attacks that incorporate Penetrating with an explosive/corrosive/melting attack permanently reduce the Hardness of non-Talent Armor by the Penetrating level.

Armor only protects against physical effects, not environmental effects (pressure, cold, poison, gas, disease) or mental attacks.

A standard helmet is MAR 2/2, which means that a rifle bullet to the head will still incapacitate (Width + 2 KS = 3S + 2K for a minimal success).

This means that the Armor Talent has changed as follows:

 

You have a power that protects you from physical attacks, making it harder to damage you. Armor is rated on two factors: Hardness and Defense. Hardness indicates how easy it is to breach the Armor with Penetrating weapons, while the Defense indicates the amount of protection afforded.

For each level purchased, Armor provides one Hardness level and one Defense level according to its type:

Light (3 per Level)        Each Light Armor level absorbs 2 points of Shock, but offers no protection against Killing damage.

Medium (5 per Level)  Medium Armor reduces all Shock to 1 point and converts an amount of Killing equal to the Level to Shock.

Heavy (7 per Level)      Heavy Armor cancels all Shock and absorbs its level in Killing damage.

Against a non-Penetrating attack, the Armor provides its Defense against the damage inflicted. If the Armor is hit by an attack that has a Penetrating level higher than the Hardness, then the Armor is completely ignored and the Defense does apply. Against attacks with a Penetrating level equal to or less than the Hardness, the Armor provides a Defense equal to the rating less the Penetration level.

Attacks     The same force that grants you Armor inflicts 1 point of Shock damage per Level back on your attacker to a maximum of the Killing damage inflicted, as long as the incoming attack is hand-to-hand.

Defends    The Armor absorbs damage.

Robust      Your Armor doesn’t fail until you’re knocked unconscious or killed.

Useful       Your Armor can do more than stop incoming attacks; it can block any incoming physical damage.

 

Extras

Focus (+5 per Level): You can “focus” Armor points, by moving points around from hit location to hit location. For example, you could take 1 point of Armor from your arm and add it to your torso, so that you had 2 points there. A movement takes 1 round.

Hardened (+2 per Level): Your Armor is more resistant to Penetration. Add an extra rating for each level of Armor. This extra may be taken multiple times. This Extra may not be taken in conjunction with the Resilient Extra.

Resilient (+2 per Level): Your Armor is tougher than normal. Add an extra Defense rating for each level of Armor. This extra may be taken multiple times. This Extra may not be taken in conjunction with the Hardened Extra.

 

Flaws

Ablative (-1 per Level): Your power is permanently reduced by Penetration, Area and Spray attacks. When your Armor is gone, you may spend Will to restore it at a one to one value.

Bulky (-2 per Level): Your Armor, for whatever reason, is just plain heavy. The Width of all your physical actions are reduced by 1 (this does not prevent success if you score a Width 2, but your action is counted as if its speed was Width 1), and your running and jumping scores are calculated as if your Body were much lower than usual. Subtract your Armor level from your Body score to determine movement values only.

Will Drain (-1 per Level): The power eats Will at the cost of 1 point each combat round that it absorbs damage.

 

 

 

The Will points gained for defeating an enemy Talent is his Base Will divided by 2.

 

 

 

Mines and unseen snipers cause a Cool + Mental Stability check. Failure does not cause Will loss, but the character will either freeze or panic for 5 - Cool rounds. A number of Will points equal to the duration (or a portion thereof) may be spent to overcome this.

 

 

 

Running (or driving) in an evasive pattern requires a Coordination + Dodge/Driving roll. The speed of the character or vehicle is halved regardless of success or failure. Success lowers the dice pool of the attackers by 1d. Evasive maneuvers are ineffective against Spray and Area attacks.

 

 

 

A hit of width of 3+ does normal damage, and automatically gets an effect off the Grisly Realistic Physical Trauma list.

Having a hit location filled with Killing damage is not instantly fatal unless the Killing damage goes into the red by Body x 2. Otherwise, the character lives for Body minutes and can spend a Will point per minute thereafter. Spending a single Will point will also keep him conscious while he dies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have a problem with the loosely defined Skills in Godlike. I know it’s meant to be nice and flexible and the concept worked well in Unknown Armies, but in a game where the primary focus is on the military, it feels out of place. So here is my take on a revised skill structure.

 

Skill Points

Each character receives 15 Skill Points which may be spent on any Skills, subject to the character concept and the GM’s approval. For each point of Brains over 2, an extra Skill Point is gained, which may only be spent on Brains Skills.

 

Skill Levels

A Skill’s maximum natural level is equal to its base stat. A Skill may be raised to a maximum of one higher than the base stat at double the normal cost and the expenditure of a Base Will point, representing the hard work and force of will required to push beyond the character’s physical limits.

 

Buying Up a Statistic

At character generation, a single Statistic may be raised by one point, at the cost of 5 Skill Points. This may only be done once.

 

Skill Groups, Types and Relationships

Skills that are listed with a [Type] designation require that a specific sub-type of that Skill must be chosen. For example, the Small Arms skill requires that a sub-type of Pistol, Rifle or Submachine gun must be chosen. These sub-types are often related to each other, such that a character that has one sub-type of a Skill may be similarly proficient in other sub-types of the same Skill. For example, a character with Small Arms [Rifle] may have a reasonable chance of using a submachine gun. The degree of proficiency is determined by the Skill’s Relationship.

Tight related sub-types may be used as if the sub-type were 1d, but only if the Skill is 2d or more. For example, Small Arms [Rifle] 3d enables a Pistol to be fired at 1d. If the Skill is only 1d, the related sub-type may still be used at 0d, i.e. no penalty is assessed.

Loose related sub-types may be used at 0d, i.e. there is no penalty for not knowing the sub-type. This still enables characters to roll a Stat for something that they may not ordinarily be able to attempt by virtue of not possessing the sub-type. For example, a Weapon [Bayonet] 2d enables a character to use a sword at 0d.

Referee’s Discretion (RD) related sub-types may be substituted depending on the circumstances, at the Referee’s discretion and with whatever penalty he dictates.

 

Specialties

The character may opt to declare a single specialty for a Skill, at the cost of 1 Skill Point. Only one specialty may ever be chosen for a Skill. If a successful use of the Skill falls within the specialty, the roll may be influenced in one of two ways. The player may either make a 1 pip Height shift or a +1 Width shift for purposes of determining the time taken for a non-combat task. Note that a successful roll must be made before any adjustment of the result can be made; a specialty can never adjust the dice to produce a success.

In some cases, such as a Moving Target specialty, the Referee may instead allow that a penalty is waived. A specialty only ever applies to the character using the skill.

Example. Sgt. Wallace has Small Arms [Rifle] and a specialty of Called Shot. Using the standard rules for called shots he aims at the bottle of T-stof in Das Rätsel’s right hand, and sets his target die to 5 (right hand). He gets 2x4 which would normally hit the left arm, but for his Called Shot specialty which enables him to raise the Height by 1 to 2x5, and hit the bottle squarely. Wallace could also have lowered the pips by one making the roll 2x3.

Example: Pvt. Neville has Mechanics [Tracked] with a specialty of Repair. When his tank breaks down, he pulls out his tools, sets to work and manages a 3x5 success. Normally it would take 2 hours (5 minus the width of 3) to repair the tank, but thanks to his specialty, Neville is able to do the job in 1 hour.

Example: Cpl. Tomkins is standing guard when a Brandenburger unit attempts to sneak into the camp. The commandos manage a Height of 2x7 for their Stealth roll and Tomkins has only rolled 2x6 for his Sight check. Fortunately, it’s after dark and Tomkins’ Sight Skill has the Night specialty; he is thus able to shift the Height of his success to 2x7, spot the intruders and raise the alarm.

 

Free Skills

All characters receive a number of dice in Language (native language) equal to their Brains. If the character’s native country has multiple languages that are taught to children as a matter of course, then he receives all the languages, e.g. Canadians receive English and French, the Swiss would receive German and French, etc. To facilitate communication, all characters receive a minimum of one die in the campaign language (usually English) for free.

If the character has completed schooling (to the equivalent of high school), he receives 1 die of Education; if he has a tertiary education, he receives a number of dice in Education equal to his Brains.

The Referee may assign the character a number of dice equal to his Brains in a single skill relevant to his pre-war profession, e.g. a bookkeeper may receive Business [Accounting], a carpenter may receive Craft [Carpentry], a petty criminal may get Filch, and so on. The dice limit of the governing Stat still applies; thus a criminal with Coordination 2 and Brains 3, will only receive Filch 2. The Referee should apply common sense when assigning a background skill; the intent is to provide the character with a little flavor, not give them a leg-up on min-maxing.

 

Example: William Price (Brains 2) was born and raised in Kent. He completed high school and managed the family dairy farm before the war. He receives Language [English] 2d, Education 1d and Craft [Farming] 2d (or alternatively, since Bill is a dairy farmer: Craft [Farming] 1d and Medicine [Veterinary] 1d) as his background skills.

 

Skill Packages

If the character is in the military, then he receives the Basic Training package, and may optionally purchase a Military Package that represents his function within the military. Only one Military Package may ever be purchased. The first time the Package is purchased, it costs 2 Skill Points and the Package structure must be followed.

Example: Bill joins up and is assigned to 4^th Armoured Brigade of 7^th Armoured Division in Libya. He receives 1d in Bayonet, Brawl, Dodge, Endurance, First Aid, Small Arms [Rifle] and Throw by completing Basic Training. He is assigned to a armoured reconnaissance troop, so Bill’s player takes the Armour/Motorised Package, costing him 2 Skill Points. The Package structure dictates that he must take Drive, with a choice of Tracked or Wheeled, and Heavy Weapons, with a choice of Cannon or Machinegun. The player envisions Bill in Humber armoured cars and so chooses Drive [Wheeled] and Heavy Weapons [Machinegun], and Bill receives 1d in each. The Package then offers 1d in two Skills from a list. The player chooses Navigate [Land] and Mechanics [Wheeled]. Bill has thus received four Skills for the price of two.

The same Package may be purchased a second time for the cost of 3 Skill Points; this allows any combination of 1d Skills contained within the Package to be selected. A Package can not be purchased more than twice.

Example: The player then decides to take purchase the package for Bill a second time; this time it costs him 3 Skill Points and he may choose 1d in any four Skills listed in the Package. Bill’s player selects Heavy Weapons [Machinegun], Heavy Weapons [Cannon], Communication [Radio] and Small Arms {Submachine gun].

 

Command Packages

Military characters may choose to purchase a Command Package. A Command Package may only be purchased once and costs Will points rather than Skill Points. Buying the package confers the rank and Skill structure and puts the character in a position of both authority and responsibility.

 

 

 

1d     Weapon [Bayonet], Brawl, Dodge, Endurance, First Aid, Small Arms [Rifle], Throw

 

 

1d     Leadership, Tactics [type]

1d     Choose two: Business [Administration], Cryptography, Education, Intimidation, Language [type], Small Arms [Pistol]

 

 

1d     Intimidation, Leadership

1d     Choose two: Weapon [Bayonet], Brawl, Communication [Radio], Dodge, Endurance, First Aid, Heavy Weapons [Anti-Tank, Machinegun], Small Arms [Submachine gun], Tactics [type]

 

 

1d     Endurance, Small Arms [Rifle]

1d     Choose two: Athletics, Weapon [Bayonet], Brawl, Dodge, Small Arms [Submachine gun], Survival [terrain], Throw

 

 

2d     Heavy Weapons [Anti-tank, Cannon, Flamethrower, Machinegun]

1d     Choose two: Endurance, Mortar, Small Arms [Rifle, Submachine gun], Tactics [Land], Throw

 

 

1d     Navigate [Land], Stealth

1d     Choose two: Athletics, Communications [Radio], Driving [Motorcycle, Tracked, Wheeled], Forward Observer, Hearing, Riding, Sight, Swimming, Survival [terrain]

 

 

1d     Drive [Tracked, Wheeled], Heavy Weapons [Cannon, Machinegun]

1d     Choose two: Communication [Radio], Drive [Tracked, Wheeled], Heavy Weapons [Cannon, Machinegun], Mechanics [Tracked, Wheeled], Navigate [Land], Small Arms [Submachine gun]

 

 

1d     Crewman [Artillery], Mortar, Navigate [Land]

1d     Choose two: Communications [Radio], Driving [Tracked, Wheeled], Explosives [Demolitions], Forward Observer, Heavy Weapons [Cannon]

 

 

1d     Small Arms [Rifle], Stealth

1d     Choose two: Engineering (Camouflage), Navigate [Land], Sight, Survival [terrain], Tactics [Land]

 

2d     Parachuting

1d     Choose two: Athletics, Endurance, Navigate [Land], Small Arms [Submachine gun], Survival [terrain]

 

 

1d     Navigate [Land], Small Arms [Submachine gun]

1d     Choose two: Athletics, Endurance, Explosives [Demolitions], Heavy Weapons [Machinegun], Parachuting, Stealth, Survival [terrain], Throw

 

 

1d     Engineering, Explosives [any]

1d     Choose two: Communications [Radio, Telephony], Electronics, Explosives [any], Mechanics [Tracked, Wheeled]

 

 

1d     Communications [any], Cryptography, Electronics

1d     Choose one: Forward Observer, Language [any], Navigate [any]

 

 

1d     First Aid, Mental Stability (Carnage)

1d     Choose two: Athletics, Dodge, Health, First Aid, Medicine [Physician], Mental Stability

 

 

1d     Small Arms [Rifle], Swimming

1d     Choose two: Athletics, Bayonet, Brawl, Endurance, Heavy Weapons [Machinegun], Navigate [any], Survival [terrain]

 

 

1d     Boating [any], Crewman [any navy], Swimming

1d     Choose two: Communications [Radio], Crewman [Artillery], Heavy Weapons [Cannon, Machinegun], Navigate [Sea/Air], Survival [Sea], Tactics [Sea]

 

 

2d     Piloting [Fighter]

1d     Navigate [Sea/Air]

1d     Choose one: Communications [Radio], Mechanics [Aircraft], Parachuting, Sight

 

 

1d     Crewman [Bomber], Heavy Weapons [Machinegun], Parachuting

1d     Choose two: Communications [Radio], Electronics, Explosives [Bombs], Mechanics [Aircraft], Navigate [Sea/Air], Piloting [Heavy Aircraft], Sight

 

 

 

Athletics

Specialties: Climb, Jump, Run

Brawl

Specialties: Block, Boxing, Called Shot, Club, Dirty, Wrestling

Endurance

Specialties: Alcohol, Carry, Cold, Heat, Hiking, Lift

Health

Specialties: Disease, Healing, Infections

Scuba

Specialties: Depth, Night

Sports [Type] - Loose

Baseball, Cricket, Football, Rugby, etc.

Specialties: Defense, History, Offense, Strategy

Swimming

Specialties: Depth, Distance, Holding Breath, Speed

Weapon [Type] - Loose

Axe, Bayonet, Garrote, Mace, Spear, Sword, etc.

Specialties: Called Shot, Parry

 

 

Boating [Type] -   Loose

Motor, Sail

Specialties: Evasion, Particular Sub-type, Speed

Bow [Type] - Loose

Crossbow, Longbow

Specialties: Called Shot, Moving Target

Dodge

Specialties: Cover, Hand-to-Hand

Driving [Type] - Loose

Tracked, Motorcycle, Wheeled

Specialties: Evasion, Particular Sub-type, Speed

Filch

Specialties: Pickpocket, Shoplifting, Slight of Hand

Heavy Weapons [Type] - RD

Anti-Tank, Cannon, Flamethrower, Machinegun

Specialties: Called Shot, Moving Target

Parachuting

Specialties: Low-Altitude, Night

Piloting [Type] - Tight

Fighter, Glider, Heavy Aircraft

Specialties: Dogfight, Evasion, Particular Sub-type, Speed

Riding

Specialties: Camel, Horse

Security

Specialties: Car Theft, Forced Entry, Lockpicking, Safecracking

Small Arms [Type] - Tight

Pistol, Rifle, Submachine gun

Specialties: Called Shot, Moving Target

Stealth

Specialties: Night, Particular Terrain, Quiet, Unseen

Throw

Specialties: Grenade, Knife, Sling

 

 

Hearing

Specialties: Particular Terrain, Mechanical Sounds, Night, Voices

Search

Specialties: Specific Terrain

Sight

Specialties: Long Distance, Particular Terrain, Night

Smell

Specialties: Cordite, Decay, Particular Odor

Taste

Specialties: Particular Foods, Wine

Touch

Specialties: Particular Substances

 

 

Area Knowledge [Type]

England, Germany, Libya, etc.

Specialties: Sub-Area, Particular Aspect

Business [Type] - Loose

Accounting, Administration, Economics, Finance

Specialties: Research, Theory, Particular Field

Cryptography

Specialties: Codebreaking, Theory, Particular Code

Communication [Type] - Tight

Radio, Telephony

Specialties: Jamming, Operation

Craft [Type] - RD

Carpentry, Cooking, Farming, Leatherworking, Masonry, etc.

Specialties: Particular Style

Culture [Type] - RD

Arabic, French, German, etc.

Specialties: Art, Food, Music, etc.

Education

Specialties: Geography, History, Latin, Math, Science, The Classics, Trivia

Electronics

Specialties: Radar, Radios

Engineering

Specialties: Camouflage, Defensive, Demolitions

Explosives [Type] - Tight

Bombs, Demolitions, Mines

Specialties: Bridges, Buildings, Mine Detection, Mine Laying, Mine Removal

First Aid

Specialties: Bleeding, Blunt Trauma, Diseases/Infections, Fractures

Forensics

Specialties: Ballistics, Blood Analysis, Fingerprinting

Forward Observer

Specialties: Artillery, Counter Fire, Mortar

Games [Type] - Tight

Board Games, Cards, Gambling

Specialties: Blackjack, Cheating, Chess, Go, Poker, etc.

Language [Type] - RD

English, French, German, Sign Language, etc.

Specialties: Spoken, Written

Law [Type] - Loose

Civil, Criminal, International, Military, Specific Country

Specialties: Defense, Prosecution

Mechanics [Type] - Tight

Aircraft, Tracked, Wheeled

Specialties: Invention, Maintenance, Repair

Medicine [Type] - RD

Pharmacy, Physician, Psychology, Veterinary

Specialties: Care, Diseases, Surgery, Toxicology

Mortar

Specialties: Indirect, Moving Target, Obscured

Navigate [Type] - Tight

Land, Sea/Air

Specialties: Cartography, Particular Terrain

Science [Type] - RD

Archaeology, Astronomy, Mathematics, Physics, Paleontology, Chemistry, Biology, Geology, etc.

Specialties: Research, Theory, Particular Field

Social Science [Type] - RD

Anthropology, History, Linguistics, Literature, Philosophy, Politics, Sociology, Theology

Specialties: Research, Theory, Particular Field

Survival [Type] - Tight

Arctic, Desert, Jungle, Sea, Urban, Woodlands

Specialties: Food, Shelter, Tracking, Trapping

Tactics [Type] - Tight

Air, Land, Sea

Specialties: Ambushes, Defensive, Offensive

 

 

Crewman

Artillery, Bomber, Destroyer, Submarine

Diplomacy

Specialties: Bribery, Compromise, Negotiation, Threats

Intimidation

Specialties: Physical, Mental

Leadership

Specialties: By Example, Inspire

Seduction

Specialties: Same Gender

 

 

Art [Type] - RD

Architecture, Dance, Drawing, Instrument, Acting, Poetry, Photography, Sculpture, Singing, Writing, etc.

Specialties: Theory, Particular Style

Disguise

Specialties: Gender Change, Impromptu

Forgery

Specialties: Counterfeiting, Official Papers, Travel Documents

Lie

Specialties: Propaganda

Mental Stability

Specialty: Artillery, Carnage, Fire, Mines, Pain, Tanks, Under Fire