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Tagline: Fast! Furious! Fun!
Let’s get a few things out of the way.
1) This is a review of Savage Worlds: Explorer’s Edition, not the settings such as Deadlands: Reloaded, Weird Wars or Sundered Skies that use these rules.
2) I’m an old-school gamer who isn’t a huge fan of miniatures, so my perception could well be biased. You’ve been warned.
This review is based on the following
1) Reading the book from cover to cover
2) Simple statistical analysis of the resolution mechanic
3) Creation of two sample characters – one human for typical fantasy, one troll for future cyberpunk. (Both were previous characters in other games.)
The book is full color on better than average paper. The text layout is two columns per page with the artwork mixed in. The art follows the page layout well enough that it adds to the overall presentation rather than breaking it up. The artwork varies and, while one or two pieces jumped out at me, most are simply there to create a mood. Given that mood creation appears to have been the intent, it is well done.
Introduction
The Introduction sets the pace by telling you up front that this is “… a merger of the best ideas in roleplaying and miniature battles.” It goes on to enumerate some of its better qualities such as being useful for any genre and being very easy to use. I’ll come back to these points at the end of my review.
One thing that should be mentioned before leaving the Introduction – because it really doesn’t fit elsewhere – is scale. This rule-set was designed for table-top miniature battles and it shows. There is constant mention of templates: vehicle turning templates; small medium and large cone templates; small, medium and large blast templates. All distances, movement rates and weapon ranges are given in inches. This will require some thought if your game primarily exists in the minds of your players. In case you are wondering, the default scale is set at 1 inch = 2 yards (6 feet, 1.83 meters).
Chapter 1: Character Creation
Race is up first and of course humans are the ubiquitous race gaining a free Edge for simply breathing. However, no other races are detailed but, to be fair, this book only covers the rules not a given setting.
Traits are up next. Traits are divided into Attributes and Skills all of which are rated in die types starting at d4 (underdeveloped attribute, beginner’s skill) and maxing out at d12 (maximum human capacity, master’s skill).
The five Attributes are:
• Agility (quickness, hand-eye-coordination, etc.)
• Smarts (memory, common sense, intelligence)
• Spirit (willpower, stick-to-it-ness)
• Strength (physical power, carrying capacity)
• Vigor (overall health, how well one heals)
There are derived Traits that act like pseudo-attributes. They are:
• Pace (how far a character can move in one round)
• Parry (how hard the character is to hit)
• Toughness (the character’s per hit damage threshold)
• Charisma (normally zero, used as a modifier in social interactions)
There are 24 skills in the core rules that cover a wide range of possible uses. For example Shooting covers bows through blasters while Fighting covers fisticuffs through flaming swords. All skills are linked to a specific attribute and the link serves as a soft cap on the skill: once the skill’s rank exceeds that of the attribute, it costs twice as much to increase the skill’s die type.
The Smarts Trait is used for common sense issues. In any situation where the character might/should know something, a common sense roll is called for. Success means the character knows the information while failure could be either a lack of knowledge or a mental slip. This limits the number of background details while supporting Fast! Furious! Fun!™ (FFF). However, each instance of the actual Knowledge skill represents an expert level of knowledge leading to the possibility of multiple Knowledge (X) skills. This seems to run counter to the FFF goal; therefore, GMs and Players alike should use this skill with care.
The use of Taunt as an independent skill seems off to me. Couldn’t this have been an option under Fighting or better yet, Intimidation?
Hindrances and Edges are ways to round out your character. While this type of mechanic is used in several games, it is often put off to the side. Here it is as much a part of who and what your character is as her Attributes.
Hindrances are divided into major and minor based on how much of a hindrance (no pun intended) they are to the character. As an example of a Minor Hindrance, let’s look at Delusion (Minor) – the character believes impossible things that can affect her life from time to time. “The whole world is nothing more than a big game and free will is an illusion. We are all controlled by outside forces for their amusement and diversion.” This is not a direct quote of the Hindrance but rather a possible application from the character’s point of view.
Edges are basically all major in nature when compared to Hindrances. Edges are divided into the following categories:
• Background (only available at character creation)
• Combat (what it says on the tin)
• Leadership (used mostly for followers and allies)
• Power (“magic”)
• Professional (careers such as Thief or Gadgeteer, typically acquired over time)
• Social (also what it says on the tin)
• Weird (small benefits from the supernatural side of the street)
• Wild Card (powerful but you need to draw a Joker during combat)
• Legendary (crème-de-la-crème, must have a character Rank of Legendary)
Now is a good time to discuss Advancement. Unless the GM starts the game at a higher Rank, all characters are considered Novices. Ranks represent the approximate power level of the PCs: Novice -> Seasoned -> Veteran -> Heroic -> Legendary. It should be noted that some Edges and Powers are tied to the character Rank and can’t be taken at a lower Rank. Each gaming session nets the PCs between 1 and 3 experience points. Advances are gained every 5 experience points (and Rank increases every 20). Each Advance allows the player to buy a new Edge, remove a Hindrance, and increase one or more Skills or an Attribute.
Chapter 1 is a bit long but adequately organized. The layout of information caused me more than one question; however, after re-reading the chapter I was stumped on how to make it any smoother than it already is.
Chapter 2: Gear
I was impressed at the relative amount of gear (and information on its use) available in the base rules. With what is available, you could conceivably cover any time period from general fantasy through a future space opera. My only nit-pick is that the orientation of the gear tables is inconsistent – the tables are printed down the page, sideways to the left and sideways to the right.
Chapter 3: Game Rules
This section doesn’t quite come soon enough and probably should be before Gear. Nevertheless, it answers the questions that piled up in Chapters 1 & 2. Task resolution is simple and familiar. The Trait die is rolled, relevant modifiers are added and the total is compared to a Target Number (TN). The TN can be a flat 4, opposed, or situation dependent.
Based on this, having a higher Trait die would seem to be of paramount importance; however, we must also consider the Wild Card effect. PCs and important NPCs are Wild Cards. Wild Cards get to roll a d6 in addition to the normal die type for every Trait test and take the result of the Wild Die if it is higher than the Trait die. This dramatically improves the chances of success. (See Statistical Analysis for more information.)
Dice can Ace (on the highest result, they add their value and can be rolled again) and/or the dice may result in a Raise (Raise = TN+4) which leads to more spectacular results. However, fate can be fickle. If a Wild Card rolls snake eyes on the dice (both the Trait and the Wild Die show ones) then the Wild Card has to deal with a critical failure determined by the GM.
Let’s not forget Bennies (No, seriously, the rules call them “Bennies.”) which allow the players to bend the rules a bit and shine the spotlight on their character for a while. Three Bennies is the norm but Hindrances and Edges can alter that.
Chapter 4: Arcane Backgrounds
Arcane is the catch-all term for anything that might be termed “magic,” including any sufficiently advanced technology. Arcane Powers are divided into five sub-categories that all basically use the same rules. They are Magic, Miracles, Psionics, Super-powers and Weird Science. Each provides a certain number of Power Points which are spent to use a given Power and regained over time. Each category has a limited number of starting Powers and each comes with a 25th skill for controlling the selected Powers.
The trappings of a given Power differ both in terms of the user as well as the category of the Power but NOT in the mechanics. One wizard might require a feather to use the Fly Power while another might be lifted by gale force winds. Both are casting a spell, which uses the Spellcasting skill and both are spending Power Points to use Fly. In another example, a priest might be surrounded by holy light if using the Armor Power while his counterpart might activate his personal force field. They would use the Faith and Weird Science skills respectively.
Super-powers operate a little bit differently in that each Power has its own skill. While this makes Super-powers more expensive to maintain, the character receives double the amount of Power Points at the outset. Weird Science operates differently still. The Power Points are used by the technology which can take a multitude of forms. The aforementioned Armor Power could be built into a force field generator belt while the Bolt Power (the staple ranged Power attack) could be built into a gun.
Trappings don’t normally change how a Power operates; however, there are circumstances where the trappings can matter. The Bolt Power wielded by the mind of a Psionic could bypass his opponents Parry (with GM permission) but might only work on things with a complex mind. (This would leave our Psionic up the proverbial creek if the zombie hordes are attacking.)
Chapter 5: Situational Rules
The sections covered are as follows:
• Mounted Combat
• Allies
• Fear
• Fatigue (bumps, bruises, and some hazards)
• Hazards (cold, fire, hunger, etc.)
• Vehicle Movement (includes tactical movement)
• Vehicle Attacks (how to handle ship-to-ship or car-to-helicopter battles)
• Chases (more cinematic/abstract approach to movement)
• Mass Battles (designed for ground troops)
Please note that situational does not equal optional. You may not have players drowning on a regular basis; however, you’ll need rules for it when it happens. Also being able to layer Fear rules onto an existing setting, not just the horror genre, is a nice touch.
Chapter 6: Game Mastering
Most games have a chapter on GMing these days. This one is barely adequate and drops to sub-par in places. There is little to no advice for new or modified Powers, Edges or Hindrances. The section entitled Creating Worlds is only two pages long with only half a page for creating races. The lack of any real detail came to light as I was creating trolls for one of my sample characters. One bright spot came in a sub-section entitled Converted Settings which deals with – oddly enough – the conversion of other settings to Savage Worlds. It was this section that gave me valuable advice which in turn made it easier to make my sample characters given that they come from two different game systems. This section leads me to believe the whole chapter could have been much more than it is.
Chapter 7: Villains & Monsters
The chapter opens with a listing of all the various qualities that NPCs can have such as Aquatic and Weakness. A good variety is maintained making the rules flexible enough for most kinds of enemies. There are 36 NPCs included; however, this contains quite a bit of rehash as well: ancient versus new vampires, riding versus war horses, and four kinds of elementals. While the intent of this section is clearly to show how the qualities can be used, it doesn’t reach high enough to be of much use as a tutorial.
Bonus: The Wreck of the Solarah
The book ends with a two-page sample adventure containing good mental visuals and some stats for the antagonists. Unfortunately, the overall effect is more adventure hook than adventure.
Statistical Analysis
With the Wild Die in tow, Wild Cards (PCs and the nastier of the NPCs) have a much better chance at success. I did a very simple analysis which assumed that neither Snake Eyes nor Aces were being counted. Additionally, I ignored those few cases where a one on the Trait die means failure regardless of the Wild Die.
Therefore, with a Target Number (TN) of 4 – the base difficulty – a Wild Card has between a 63% and 88% chance of success depending on the Trait die rolled. With a TN of 2, the chance increases to between 96% and 99%. However, a TN of 6 drops the success rate to between 17% and 65%.
Wrap-up
Here’s my verdict on what I saw as the core claims of Savage Worlds: Explorer’s Edition. As for being useful for any genre, I would say yes with a caveat. The game is designed to move fast and furiously – just like the tag line says. However, slowing down actually hurts this rule-set as it gives you time to think about what isn’t being simulated. If you pour on the speed, then yes, Savage Worlds could be used for any genre. Regarding the ease of use, I would say yes, again with a caveat. Book keeping is minimized because the GM simply declares which things are important, what modifiers are needed and in general is expected to act like a dictator. Choose your GM with care.
So, who will like this game? Any group playing a minis game that feels the rules they are currently using are too slow or cumbersome will like it. Any RP group who pulls out the minis often enough will find themselves with a fast and loose set of rules that does the minis side justice while not skimping too much on the Roleplaying side. The last group that will like these rules is the group that is tired of more complex rule-sets but not willing to go over to a more narration-based rule-set.
So, who won’t like this game? Obviously, any group that wants or needs everything spelled out won’t be happy with these rules. Additionally, any group that is happy with large amounts of detail and more complex rules won’t see the need to change.
Personal Thoughts
I was surprised that a game designed for minis play could work so well for straightforward mini-less Roleplaying. While it didn’t convert me outright to Savage Worlds it has intrigued me enough that I’ll definitely check out the defined settings using these rules.
Style: 4
Substance: 4
These rules are not for everyone but they are perfect for some.
