[Savage Worlds] What Toolkits are worth getting?

I'm thinking about taking the plunge into Savage Worlds. I've very interested in the Solomon Kane book as well as the Pirates of the Spanish Main. I was thinking of a pirates/horror/Victorian/swashbuckling mash-up.

So aside from the rulebook and setting books, what other supplements would be worthwhile, specifically the toolkits? Here's a few I was looking at:

Horror GM's Toolkit
Horror Bestiary Toolkit
Pulp Gear Toolkit
Pulp GM's Toolkit
Fantasy Bestiary Toolkit
Fantasy Gear Toolkit
Fantasy World Builder Toolkit

So far since you mention Solomon Kane and Pirates of the Spanish Main, I would say you don't need any supplements, or even the core book (SW explorer edition $9.99 print or pdf)... as the core rules are included with those settings.

If you become interested in the other settings then the core rulebook becomes necessary. As far as toolkits go, the bestiaries are valuable, lest you craft all your critters from scratch. I also love the Horror and Pulp kits as my interests go in those directions.

I am still waiting on a feudal Japan or generic Asian toolkit (fantasy or not) to fill another of my interest niches.

Good Afternoon:

Personally, I would suggest the following, assuming a general pseudohistoric or fantasy bent to your games:

Horror Bestiary Toolkit
Fantasy Bestiary Toolkit
Fantasy Gear Toolkit
Fantasy World Builder Toolkit

If you also like running Pulp games, the following are also good:

Horror GM's Toolkit
Pulp Gear Toolkit
Pulp GM's Toolkit

Generally, though, I use the four I listed above. I'm not saying that the Pulp stuff or the Horror GM's Toolkit are not good. Far from it, they're great. But I just don't use them very much.

Now, the Sci-Fi toolkits are also filled with awesomeness, but that's because I like sci-fi games, too.

Also, if you haven't already, you should consider picking up the free Savage Beasts PDF, a fan-created bestiary that I've found incredibly useful. You can download it here:
http://www.zombienirvana.com/savage/SavageBeasts.pdf

Hope This Helps,
Flynn

I pretty much concur with Flynn on the toolkits, although I like the Horror GM's toolkit a lot, and use elements from it quite a bit. And if you're going to do a Horror/Victorian game, I think you'd use it quite a bit. The writeup about ABs in the Fantasy Worldbuilder kit is invaluable, IMO - I've gotten huge mileage out of it. And I'd start with Butch Curry's Bestiary (Flynn linked above) first, and then see about the other Bestiaries (depending on your budget - if you have extra disposable income, just get them all and call it a day).


In addition to those already listed, you might consider looking at the Ripper's Players Guide. It has all the settings rules and add-ons for Rippers, a very Victorian/Horror/Swashbuckling kind of setting. Its got some interesting add-on rules that would add a lot of flavor, including the Status rules.

SavageRobby said:

In addition to those already listed, you might consider looking at the Ripper's Players Guide. It has all the settings rules and add-ons for Rippers, a very Victorian/Horror/Swashbuckling kind of setting. Its got some interesting add-on rules that would add a lot of flavor, including the Status rules.

Click to expand...

Ditto. I really liked this one as well.