Solomon Kane (Savage Worlds)

Tomorrow we get together to make characters for a Solomon Kane campaign. This'll be my first experience with the Savage Worlds game system. And, not counting a three-session playtest session of a Trail of Cthulhu supplement, the first non-D&D RPG I've played in something like eight years... :o

Anyone care to offer any comments or thoughts on the SW system? Anything I should be watching out for going into it, or any "traps" to avoid when making the character? (I'm not looking for optimization tips; just any bugs in the system, or anything that's likely to be fiddly enough to drag down my enjoyment of a new game.)
 

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our group play a lot of SW, and are in the 6th session of playing the SK plot point campaign

1. make sure you know how damage, shaken, soak rolls etc work, and it still confuses us a bit and what being a 'wild card' means to a bad guy!

2. ganging up is good

3. grenades in SK have caused no end of fun n frolics

4 Swarms, let me know your version of how they work!

5. Healing. Is quite hard, especially if your healer is hurt!

6. when creating a character whether its SK, deadlands, pirates, pulp etc in SW, you never feel as they you have just enough points to exactly make your concept.

7. Not really a spolier, but in SK there are some horrid things out there, so make sure everyone has at least something in 'guts'.

I really like the way the SK plot-point campaign works.

Most of all have F,F,F
 
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Scarcity of healing could quickly lead to death by small wounds. Make sure that at least two characters take healing skills (healing is possible only within an hour of taking a wound).

A single lucky roll can take down anyone, and ganging up is a very effective tactic - therefore it is advisable in the face of greater opponent numbers to try to use ranged attacks first. Also, as most "extras" (supporting characters) require only two whacks to take down (and only one of them needs to be physical), it is a good idea to work in pairs (the manual contains great example on how a good distraction paves way to physical conclusion of a conflict).

Apart from this, Great White Games site contains a lot of helpful material, among them absolutely indispensable primer on combat - while it may seem trivial to someone used to roleplaying, I have found out that many d20 players tend to try silly heroics... and Savage Worlds system isn't forgiving.

----

My apologies for making the suggestions combat-oriented. My experiences indicate that this most difficult part of switching to Savage Worlds.

Otherwise, you should be fine. Freeform and openended character of the system does not invalidate bizarre concepts, so unless you construct a total wimp, you should do fine... Hmm, don't save bennies. You may want to hold on to one to keep from dying in combat situations, but otherwise spend them.

Regards,
Ruemere
 

I would make sure to download and print out the Combat Survival Giude (for the DM and each player. It makes fights much easier to run and more dynamic.

Download Link:
http://www.peginc.com/Downloads/SWEX/Combat%20Survival%20Guide.pdf

If you want to use an Adventure Deck, get the Solomon Kane specific cards:
http://www.peginc.com/Downloads/Solomonkane/AdDeckKane.pdf

Finally: If you like your DM information on a neat screen inlay:
http://www.peginc.com/Downloads/Solomonkane/Screens.pdf


Edit: Ninja'd ...
 
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our group play a lot of SW, and are in the 6th session of playing the SK plot point campaign

1. make sure you know how damage, shaken, soak rolls etc work, and it still confuses us a bit and what being a 'wild card' means to a bad guy!

2. ganging up is good

3. grenades in SK have caused no end of fun n frolics

4 Swarms, let me know your version of how they work!

5. Healing. Is quite hard, especially if your healer is hurt!

6. when creating a character whether its SK, deadlands, pirates, pulp etc in SW, you never feel as they you have just enough points to exactly make your concept.

7. Not really a spolier, but in SK there are some horrid things out there, so make sure everyone has at least something in 'guts'.

I really like the way the SK plot-point campaign works.

Most of all have F,F,F

1. Shaken is for me also a bit difficult to remember. But it should be: If you are shaken, decide at the beginning of the round, whether you want to roll willpower or spend a benny (i hope this is the term in English rules too). The benny immediately gets rid of the shaken state and you can act normally. If you decide to roll: Success means shaken vanishes after our action. Improved success (also don't know the English term, it's a success with 4+ over DC) let's the shaken vanish immediately and you can act normally this turn (as if having spent a benny). Damage is really easy: Roll damage, add up all dice and bonuses. Subtract the damage reduction of the target (incl. bonus from constitution and armor etc.). If the result is larger than 0, you do damage. 0 to 3 means the target is shaken. 4 to 7 mens shaken and one wound. 8 to 11 two wounds and so on.

A bad guy wild card gets the d6 wild die and dies after having taken three wound instead of on the first wound. That's it. My estimation ist: One wild card is as good as three non-wild cards in combat (assuming to have the same stats).

2. yep, yep, yep. If you just manage to "inflict" a shaken on the enemy, that might have vanished before you may fire again. So, if he is shaken, take him down!

5. There as mentioned afore, the healing skill is vital. You really need two guys in the group to have the skill (second one as backup) and they should have at least d6, maybe one evene d8 or some other bonus. One healing attempt takes 10 mins and you can heals, as said, only one hour after the wound has been taken. So you have 6 tries per character that has the skill (unskilled with 1d4-2-wounds, even with the wild card d6 doesn't help a lot). If the healer has wounds, this also affects the roll, so healing then really is hard.

SW also has a relatively low power level at start. Especially with talents. You never have enough at the start.

You should have some constitution, because it directly works as "damage reduction" or you need a really heavy armor, which might be a problem when having a low strength. In my campaign no player has less than d6 con, even the scientist. In ranged combat dive for cover! The +2 makes a large difference, especially in the beginning when everyone only has ranged combat d6. He will need a 6 to hit and has most likely no other bonuses to his roll, jsut the d6 (or two of them, if he is a wildcard).

A build hint (althoug you didn't ask for it :) ): Static bonusses to skills are seldom found and help a lot, I think. that's why I think charisma might be a problem. With talents you may have +6 charisma, which adds up on ANY roll for social skills. So you have an automated success and a good chance of an increased success (just roll a 2 with two dice).

All in all I think the system has no real bugs. It is fast to learn, absolutely straight foreward and easy to handle. I, as a GM, love it. But in our campaign we only have ranged combat and that seems a little boring to me. Tricks and mindduells help with hitting opponents, but it only makes sense when having enemies that are hard to hit, I think. But I guess if it involves melee, it will be a lot better. There are also many talents for that.

I don't know the SK campaign, so if there if there are any supplemental rules that override the original ones, my hints may not be valid anymore.
 

A few things to add on top of all the other good advice.

This game grew out of a Wild West (well, Weird West) game. So if someone is shooting at you, GET BEHIND COVER! The target number to hit you is 4. It does not matter how Agile you are, what armor you are wearing, etc. The number to hit you out in the open is 4. The average Extra has a 50/50 chance of hitting you if you are just standing out in the open.

You can take your action anytime during your movement. So you can hang behind cover and pop up to shoot, then drop back down behind cover.

Ham up your hindrances. It gets you more Bennies and really helps you get into character. Do not be afraid to whine or nominate other PCs to get a Bennie for their actions. Bennies are the currency of risk in this game (vs. hit points in other games).

Finally, have fun!
 

Echoing what everyone else has said, the big thing to be aware of is the lethality of combat - it's easy for you to get taken down by a lucky hit. Be a bit aware of that - or, be really aggressive, heroic, prepare to have lots of success followed by sudden, immediate failure! And death.

It's an awesome and simple system, IMO, that can lead to a lot of fun. I'd advise taking plenty of skills at low levels during character creation - you can improve them later more easily than you can start new ones. And if you can plan out to get one of the "Big" edges (with multiple prereqs) then it's going to be worth it.

Enjoy, and let us know how it went!
 

Echoing what everyone else has said, the big thing to be aware of is the lethality of combat - it's easy for you to get taken down by a lucky hit. Be a bit aware of that - or, be really aggressive, heroic, prepare to have lots of success followed by sudden, immediate failure! And death.

It's an awesome and simple system, IMO, that can lead to a lot of fun. I'd advise taking plenty of skills at low levels during character creation - you can improve them later more easily than you can start new ones. And if you can plan out to get one of the "Big" edges (with multiple prereqs) then it's going to be worth it.

Enjoy, and let us know how it went!

This is pretty much what I was going to say.

Also, don't be too stingy with the bennies. Your players are going to try to earn those bennies however they can, because the uses are so helpful. Pay attention to what their hinderances and edges are and make sure they get rewarded for using those hinderances or edges. (ie. someone with Code of Honor running back in to save a person trapped in the fire after hearing the pleas for help. )
 

Also, don't be too stingy with the bennies. Your players are going to try to earn those bennies however they can, because the uses are so helpful. Pay attention to what their hinderances and edges are and make sure they get rewarded for using those hinderances or edges. (ie. someone with Code of Honor running back in to save a person trapped in the fire after hearing the pleas for help. )

Well, I'm playing in the game, not running it, so this isn't really applicable to me. Appreciate the thought, though. :)
 

Well...

After character creation, we only got about an hour of playing in, so I’m not prepared to comment on the system just yet. But I think it’s going to be a great campaign. Everyone seems to have a grasp of, and appreciation for, the source material. We’re focusing on genre and capturing the feel of Howard’s Kane stories (minus the overt racism ;)) rather than historical accuracy.

I'm playing Rukma Kadam, an Indian mystic. He was once part of a cult who called upon Ravanna and had congress with rakshasa (Indian demons), setting them against their enemies. By the time everything went wrong (as of course it would), and the demons turned on their own community, it was too late for Rukma to do anything about them. The rakshasas and the bulk of the cult was eventually defeated by a “wandering Puritan swordsman” whose name Rukma never heard. (Cough, cough.) Since then, Rukma has wandered Europe and Asia, seeking out and destroying supernatural evil as a means of karmic atonement for his prior actions. He is currently traveling as the manservant/bodyguard of a woman named Isabella (my wife’s character), as this allows him free passage in parts of Europe where he would otherwise not be welcome.

It’ll be interesting to see how he interacts with the French musketeer and the Jesuit priest who are the other two PCs in the campaign. And for all that I’ve only played him for an hour so far, I’m loving this character. In point of fact, I think I may see his transformation from an RPG character to a short story protagonist somewhere in the future...

My only complaint is that we’re only meeting biweekly, so I have to wait fourteen days to play again. :p

Really appreciate everyone's thoughts and suggestions. :)
 

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