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Ah, Violence, My Old Friend...
RPGs have evolved considerably over the past few decades. A session consisting of nothing but character development through social interaction is far more common than it used to be, and the backdrop of a war can signal espionage and intrigue as much as it can violence.
But let's face it. Kicking ass and taking names will always be at the heart of gaming. There's a visceral thrill in cleaving one's enemy in two on a virtual battlefield -- nothing else really helps blow off the stress from that pesky day job, now does it?
In steps GURPS Martial Arts, the definitive book on beating people up in GURPS. And I do mean definitive. Originally slated for 240 pages, it was announced that there was just too much cool stuff to cut, so it came out 16 pages heavier -- none of it fluff. But I'm getting ahead of myself...
Just What IS a Martial Art?
Seriously. You're probably thinking of black belts and staff-slinging monks, but the term "martial arts" encompasses so much more than that! The knight on a battlefield... the Mamluk bowman upon his horse... the iklwa-wielding Zulu... these are all fine examples of martial artists. And that's why I was gratified that GURPS Martial Arts went to great lengths to dispel the notion that only fencers and unarmed Asians received "true" training in a formal system of combative arts.
Actually, it dispels a lot of notions. Did you know that most ninja were members of the samurai clan? In fact, shuriken were known as a samurai weapon more than anything, used for their surprise value. I honestly did not know that until reading this book. The first chapter, History has an entire section on Myths and Misconceptions, debunking everything from "Smashing boards = Combat effectiveness" to "No, really, black belts have to register their hands as weapons!"
In addition to the debunking, History opens up with a detailed timeline of key historical moments for martial arts, and then dedicates a long section to various locations (Asia, Europe and the Middle East, Africa, and the New World) and the people, events, and situations that influenced the fighting styles which developed in each place. It really opened my eyes to the potential of running "Asian martial arts" games in India or Burma instead of the standard China or Japan.
Less Talking, More Hitting!
The second chapter, Characters, is all about building a martial artist PC. The first chunk is about a dozen character templates (expected ones, like Assassin and Contender, plus the unexpected, like Stuntman and Movie Star) for turning a concept into a quick-n-easy PC. The three sample characters who keep showing up during chapter vignettes are statted up as well -- a masked Mexican wrestler, a tomboy medieval master of weapons, and a fish-out-of-water traveling female wuxia monk. Useful or important traits take up the rest of the chapter, with plenty of notes on how certain skills interact with certain advantages. Characters has a few new crunchy bits, including four new cinematic skills (Hypnotic Hands, Lizard Climb*, Precognitive Parry, and Sensitivity) and several new perks (which are discussed below, with Styles.)
Chapter Three, Techniques has over a hundred new combat moves, from Entangle (using a kusari or whip to snare someone) to Piledriver (picking someone up, inverting them, and slamming their head into the ground). Most (like Entangle) are realistic techniques, while some (like Piledriver) are cinematic ones, which just means that in a realistic game, PCs can attempt it, but can't spend points to improve it. It's made clear that these techniques are combat options first, things to spend points on second -- anyone with Brawling or Wrestling can pull off a Knee Drop, and then they have the option of putting points into it to become great at it.
Rules are included for two new (optional) classes of technique. Targeted Attacks (TAs) allow you to partially buy off hit location penalties for a certain attack. Each combo is a different TA -- learning TA (Broadsword Thrust/Face) gives you no advantage when thrusting a broadsword toward the vitals. Combinations essentially let you buy off the penalties for a Rapid Strike, but only when using the specified attacks in the specified order. So you could learn Combination (Broadsword Thrust/Face + Brawling Kick/Leg) and buy off the extra -6 penalty. The downside is that Combinations cost more than normal techniques, they don't work as well when used repeatedly, and your opponent gets a big bonus to stop the rest of it if he defends against the first attack. Still, they're totally worth the extra attack in a normal game.
If you don't see the technique you want, never fear! The end of the chapter has the complete technique design system that the authors used to keep everything believable and balanced. Just by following the simple instructions, the GM can make either a realistic or a totally cinematic technique that fits the needed mold. (See this forum thread for an example of the design system in action.)
Even more crunchy than that chapter, though, is the next one: Combat. This chapter introduces many, many different rules and options for GURPS combats, from the new maneuvers Committed Attack and Defensive Attack (halfway between an Attack and either an All-Out Attack or All-Out Defense, respectively) to new combat options like holding your blade in a Reversed Grip, or making a Tip Slash, or doing a Shin Kick, or grappling with less than two hands, and so on. These options are sort of similar to the Techniques in the previous chapter, but instead of having a default penalty which one can buy off, they have other effects (which can't be avoided.) The two can be combined! For example, you could launch a Spinning Kick technique and decide to throw it as a Shin Kick. You could use the Counterattack technique while holding your sword in a Defensive Grip. You get the idea.
All of these combat rules are optional, of course. While most of them are pretty universal, there are a few that will only appeal to certain campaign, or to certain gaming groups. Hardcore simulationists will love rules like A Matter of Inches (where your weapon's weight and length affect combat significantly), swashbucklers will love Acrobatic Movement (everything from banister sliding to vaulting), Legolas-wannabes will love Quick-Shooting Bows (yes, now you can fire 60 arrows a minute), and GMs sick of uber-defenders will love Limiting Dodges (something for the "you can't dodge a bullet!" crowd.)
In addition to combat options, there are many rules clarifications, addressing some FAQs that either have popped up or are likely to with these new rule. The chapter concludes with quite a few words on running realistic combats versus cinematic ones, and then a few pages on injury, including new hit locations like the jaw, nose, veins, etc. Now, in a gritty game, it's possible to cause someone serious, lasting back injury from a good hit to the spine, making techniques like Neck Snap truly frightening.
I Know Kung Fu
First, a warning. Here's where you GURPS grognards are going to get confused: Styles. Please do your best to unremember what you know before reading on. Otherwise, I assure you that your preconceptions will have you filling in nonexistent blanks with old assumptions.
Over one hundred formal "schools" of training are represented as styles in Chapter Five. For example, Capoeira, Hwa Rang Do, Longsword Fighting, and Pankration are all styles. Some styles are grouped together -- for example, Karate is a term which encompasses many different styles, from Shotokan to Kyokushin. Similarly, Knightly Armed Combat is the heading of a section that describes three very different forms of combat, representing how training changed to cope with evolving plate armor and infantry tactics.
Each style includes details on the history and legends of the style, including who founded it and when and/or the mythic legends that grew up around it. The fighting style itself is described, with special attention to the tactics used in actual combat. Most styles also have notes on how to adapt the style when using it in a cinematic game as opposed to realistic one. In short, the information given is enough to give anyone a very good idea of what the style is about, whether it fits their character, and what the best way is to roleplay that style -- e.g., while there are no rules preventing someone from using Muay Thai training to make Defensive Attacks to an opponent's arm, it's made clear that aggressive strikes to the legs and head are far more common.
After the descriptive text, a block of stats show you what traits you should take to build a serious practitioner of that style. The first thing you take is a new perk, "Style Familiarity". (Less serious martial artists who just want some self-defense training can skip Style Familiarity, at the cost of losing its benefits.) This perk removes some cultural penalties, gives some small social advantages, justifies you raising your style's techniques without explicitly training, and lets you buy extra Style Perks. The style then has a list of required skills; if you don't know these, then you don't know the style. For example, training in Furusiyya, the combat horsemanship style of the Muslim Mamluks, requires one to know the skills Bow, Broadsword, Riding (Horse), and Spear. The style therefore has a "style cost" of 5 points, since that's the minimum you have to spend -- on the Style Familiarity and the required skills -- to call yourself fully trained in Furusiyya. Nothing else is required, though some optional stuff to buy follows...
After required skills, each style has a list of techniques, separated into realistic and cinematic. These serve as a list of recommended moves. For example, La Canne de Combat lists Disarming and Feint as its techniques. That doesn't mean that those are the only moves a cane fighter can try, just that they're common tactics. As for any technique, a player who enjoys using a particular one can put points (or time) into it to raise it. The book recommends raising one or maybe two techniques per skill as "signature moves"; doing so is often the most effective way to build a strong fighter. (Raising more than this is usually a waste of points, since you're better off just raising the skill itself.)
You also have the option of purchasing Style Perks. Each perk grants you a minor benefit which is better represented as a "you have it or you don't" ability rather than a technique. For example, Kajunkenbo masters can buy the perks Neck Control and Special Exercises (DR 1 with the Tough Skin limitation). The former gives a bonus to hit when you've grappled the upper body, and the latter is basically a tiny Unusual Background justifying an advantage that's normally not available for normal humans. (One still pays full price for the DR itself, of course.)
Each style has a list of suggested cinematic skills as well, such as Power Blow, Light Walk, or Lizard Climb. These are never a requirement to learning the style, even in a cinematic game. Instead, it's a list of the "super powers" that best fit the style's flavor. Wushu artists have skills that let them float around in the air, run up bamboo stalks, and do amazing unarmed damage, while Quarterstaff fighters have skills that let their staff knock back, knock out, or cave in the chest of an opponent.
After the style block, the authors usually list some "optional traits", which are the advantages, disadvantages, and skills that might make sense for a practitioner to have, but aren't actually part of the style. Again, it adds up to good character building advice. I picked up this book knowing nothing about Hoplomachia, but after reading its entry, I feel confident that I can not only build a believable Greek mercenary, but can know how he'd defend himself in a fight.
And in case you're wondering, there is no "Ninjutsu" style in the book. There is, however, Taijutsu, which was more-or-less the martial arts style favored by the ninja. The chapter concludes with a handful of fictional styles, including the wonderful Orcish martial art, Smasha. You can read the full writeup of Smasha, along with Freefighting and Kendo, as free samples on the official product page.
Accessories Not Included
Chapter Six, Weapons and Equipment lists hundreds of weapons from all over the world. From the Ahlspiess, a unique German spear, to the Zweihander, a huge German sword, this chapter gives the rules and stats for each one. Most of them map onto existing weapons with little changes (e.g., the Daab is a small Thai sword, usually used in pairs, which is treated exactly like a Shortsword for game purposes), but about a third of the list have their own entries on the six-page Weapon Tables.
There are a few dozen weapon illustrations as well, mostly of the exotic or unusual ones. However, instead of cutting eight pages of content for an old-school "weapons gallery" section, the editors used weapon illustrations as the incidental art throughout the book. (For those who don't know, this refers to the small pictures sprinkled throughout a book to break up the text flow.) These are cross referenced on the weapons list for easy lookup. It's a great way to save space without losing any content that I'd like to see used more often. Every illustration is very clear and expertly done.
Sideboxes feature rules for combining weapons (including adding accessories), addressing the quality of weapons (there are new rules for how well balanced a weapon is, along with meta-rules for adjusting various qualities levels independently), concealing weapons within other items (including within other weapons!), improvised weapons (read it for yourself here), and what sort of skills you use when "misusing" weapons (e.g., using one hand instead of two, or throwing a melee weapon.) The chapter wraps up with a small section on training equipment and armor.
As usual with most GURPS books, the final chapter is Campaigns. It's fitting that Chapter One (History) and this chapter sandwich the entire book, since they're full of information and advice (respectively) to help the GM plan his martial arts game. Chapter Seven chapter basically addresses the questions a GM needs to answer when setting up a campaign. Where does the game fall between "cinematic" and "realistic"? (Realistic versus cinematic characters are discussed, along with nine different gradients and combinations between the two extremes.) Where and when will the game take place? (Several places and times are suggested, from Ancient Greece to Science Fiction.) What will the theme be? (A nice juicy List O' Plots is provided, including the Quest for the Master, which can be read here.)
The book closes with a simple glossary (so that's what a ricasso is!) and bibliography. Par for the course from Steve Jackson Games, GURPS Martial Arts is very well-indexed. I've referenced it several times, including while writing this, and have never once had difficulty finding a thing.
Hot Fist-on-Face Action Waiting for You
Checking the wordcount up there, you probably think I've covered everything inside GURPS Martial Arts, but I've only scratched the surface. (Okay, it's been a really deep scratch, but still...) The authors have sprinkled sections, intros, and sideboxes throughout the text with information on everything from giving a Noogie to how untrained fighters react in combat to how to pluralize "ninja". Every question I've ever had come up in a combat situation is answered in Chapter Four, along with ideas that my players had never even thought of (e.g., "Kiss the Wall", where you grab someone's head and slam it into a nearby surface.) Not a single column-inch of space was wasted in this book.
But more than that, the amount of sheer research done by the authors is impressive. Much has been said about the time spent by the two not only reading books, but interviewing several martial artists, watching poorly dubbed chop-socky films, and even verifying several rules by reality-testing them. So let me just say that it shows. GURPS Martial Arts offers plenty of cinematic wuxia moves next to the serious, realistic stuff -- but the most important thing is that each is clearly labeled as such. A GM running a gritty campaign set in historical Burma can pick up this book and use its realistic rules without fear of "urban legend stuff sneaking in the back door", and vice-versa for someone running an epic wuxia game. That makes this truly a universal supplement.
The Ratings
I take the following into account for Style grades:
Layout: As mentioned above, this is a rare book in that the layout itself grabbed my attention and impressed me. The use of artwork and sideboxes to convey information is top notch. Nothing is unnecessarily repeated across sections. All related info is either grouped together or expertly cross-referenced. The editor even added large dots between template options for ease of use, something which I hope will be continued in future books. 5.0
Text: Not once did I come across a confusing sentence or a paragraph that I couldn't follow. The rules were clear, the flavor text was witty and very appropriate to each chapter, and the pull-quotes were either informative or amusing. All gaming books should be written this clearly. 5.0
Art: Very good by GURPS standards, which is to say merely "good" compared to many systems. The weapon illustrations, as mentioned, are top notch and used expertly, easily worth a 5.0. The non-incidental art (such as on the splash page or in large boxes) is still the same "Photoshop over Poser" that GURPS seems to be saddled with, but it is always appropriate to the text at hand, which bumps it to a 4.0. As the former is much more prevalent (and important) than the latter, I'll split the difference as 70/30. 4.7.
Overall Style: 4.9
I take content alone into account for Substance grades:
Content: I'm sure it is no surprise at this point when I say that GURPS Martial Arts far exceeded my expectations for content. The amount of sheet detail and information included in every section and sub-section of this book is amazing, but never overwhelming. Whether creating a martial artist or a martial arts campaign, every possible tool one could need has been rolled into this package, all in a manner that makes it easy to read, easy to use, and easy to reference in the middle of a game. 5.0
Overall Substance: 5.0
I'd like to point out that this marks my first time ever giving a product a full 5/5 rating. There's always been something holding the product back, but not this time.
GURPS Martial Arts is an amazing book. I recommend it wholeheartedly for anyone running a GURPS game. I even recommend it for anyone running martial arts games in other systems (for the GM, not the players), for the wealth of information to be found on everything from history to tactics to personalities. I don't believe anyone who picks this up will be disappointed.
-- Reverend Pee Kitty [www.mygurps.com]
