[Serenity RPG] River Tam's Power Levels

[Tetsubo]

I got my copy of the Serenity RPG this week from Amazon (two months late...). I've only given it a quick once over so far. The book has the stats of each of the films characters. Under the section on River Tam it states that the stats in the RPG are balanced against the other characters. Makes sense. But that implies that her stats in the movie are higher. How much higher? Just how much more powerful is River in the movie vs. the RPG?

 

[Ghostwind]

The RPG takes the road that River has a lot of her abilities still locked away inside. In the movie, you see her tap into those abilties, hence why she would be so much tougher to take on. In order to keep the game more balanced, I beleive the creators tried to give you a version of River from the television series rather than the movie.

 

[danzig138]

I beleive the creators tried to give you a version of River from the television series rather than the movie.

Which would have been fine if it was "Firefly: The Game", but since it's "Serenity", I'd have liked to see accurate stats.

 

[Ghostwind]

There are a lot of elements from the series in the book. The only reason it's not called Firefly the RPG is because of licensing issues. If they could have called it Firefly they would have. as it stands, they were able to insert a lot about the series in between the lines if you actually read the book, hence why the characters fit the series more and also the style of play. Don't like it? Do like anyone else does and change it to fit your campaign. That's the beauty of an RPG.

 

[Rhun]

I don't have the Serenity RPG game, but if River was stated out as she was in the movie, she would be far above the level of any of the other characters. Not only would she have incredible hand-to-hand and melee combat skills (hell, she singlehandedly slays a whole mass of Reavers in the movie), but her skills with firearms would be incredible high, too (per the TV series - War Stories, where she kills the three guards, and Objects in Space where they discuss it).

Then there would be her psychic powers added on top of that, whatever the full extent of those may be.

 

[Thanee]

Which would have been fine if it was "Firefly: The Game", but since it's "Serenity", I'd have liked to see accurate stats.

Serenity is the name of the first episode, where River is at her weakest point.

Bye
Thanee

 

[ragboy]

That sounds like balance run amok. River has some serious limitations as well, not the least of which is that most of the crew can't stand to be around her for more than a few minutes, and she has psychotic episodes... Sounds like they should have balanced the character internally, rather than externally...

 

[ValhallaGH]

That sounds like balance run amok. River has some serious limitations as well, not the least of which is that most of the crew can't stand to be around her for more than a few minutes, and she has psychotic episodes... Sounds like they should have balanced the character internally, rather than externally...

They did.
Take a look at her flaws/drawbacks/whateverthey'recalled,mybookisacrosstheroom. She already has all the flaws for being goram crazy when statted up at the same power level as the other characters. If she had her full potential, which includes the not being crazy, then she'd be about two or three times as powerful as the rest of the crew combined (read: 1d12+1d4 or higher in every skill).

As written, River Tam is powerful but no more powerful than the rest of the crew. At the begining of the film, this is an accurate depiction of River. At the end of the film, this is wildly inaccurate.
I understand their reasons for their choice and I believe I would have made the same one in their position.

 

[Tetsubo]

One of the Serenity RPG play testers contacted me. He said that a number of the testers argued against giving River stats at all. Rather they thought she should be used as a "plot point". If River needs to do something, she does it. She is just so much more powerful than the other characters.

 

[ragboy]

One of the Serenity RPG play testers contacted me. He said that a number of the testers argued against giving River stats at all. Rather they thought she should be used as a "plot point". If River needs to do something, she does it. She is just so much more powerful than the other characters.

That actually sounds like a better idea. Though (previous post), if she's statted up as accurate at the beginning of the film, the GM can work with that, and give her a kersplosion of power at some critical point in the campaign/adventure (with the kersplosion of power being the plot point, and not reproducible by the player of River). So, that's not so bad.