Savage Worlds

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Savage Worlds
publication
Author (s) Shane Lacy Hensley
Original publisher Great White Games
Original publication 2003
original language English
German publisher Ulisses games since 2019

Prometheus Games (until 2017)

German publication 2009
World and system
genre universal
Game world universal
Basic system Great Rail Wars / Deadlands
cube W4, W6 , W8, W10 , W12, W20

Savage Worlds (German: "Wilde Welten") is a generic system for pen & paper role-playing and skirmish tabletop games, written by Shane Lacy Hensley (the creator of Deadlands ), published by Great White Games, a trademark of Pinnacle Entertainment Group (PEG).

The set of rules focuses on fast play and short preparation time for the game master and deliberately dispenses with detailed rules for all possible situations. The goal is to play cinematic adventures rather than the greatest possible realism.

The rules were developed from the Great Rail Wars rules, which in turn are related to the rule system used in Deadlands. In that sense, Savage Worlds is Deadlands' grandson.

The Savage Worlds basic rules book was first published in 2003, and the Revised Edition was printed in 2004. The latter contained a number of minor changes to the rules as well as incorporated errata. The changes compared to the first edition can be downloaded free of charge from the PEG website. In 2007 the Explorer's Edition appeared with slightly revised rules in the form and for the price of a paperback. In 2009 Prometheus Games released the Savage Worlds Gentleman's Edition, which contains the German rules. The current licensee is Ulisses Spiele , who published the Savage Worlds Adventure Edition as a current translation in 2019.

Savage Worlds won the Origin People's Choice Award in 2003 .

Characters

The characters in Savage Worlds are described by several characteristics ; these are divided into attributes and skills. The attributes are divided into: dexterity , intellect , willpower , strength and constitution . By default there are 15 skills that characters can choose from; This list can be expanded or reduced in the individual settings .

All properties are represented by a cube type - the more sides the cube has, the better this property is. The dice range from D4 to D12 ; the average value in humans is W6 in all attributes.

A character is also defined by a number of talents and handicaps . In addition, there are a number of derived values such as range of motion , parade , robustness or charisma . In some adventures, these derived values ​​are supplemented by additional values ​​specific to this adventure.

Character creation is based on a point allocation system. However, game masters are expressly encouraged to freely create non-player characters, depending on the requirements of the adventure and the campaign.

Player characters and important NPCs are so-called wild cards - this means that, in addition to the property die , they roll a D6, the wildcard die , for each property test and score the higher of the two dice as the result. Unimportant allies and enemies are summarized under the term extras . They don't get a wildcard die , so they are less competent than wildcards , and are also less tenacious, so they get knocked out quicker in combat situations. In addition, some talents can only be acquired by wild cards.

regulate

In general, the target value for each test is 4 (if the roll is greater than or equal to 4, the roll is considered successful). Exceptions are melee attacks that always against the parade are diced value of the opponent. For every 4 points above the success value, an "increase" is also achieved. Such an increase has different effects depending on the situation (for example, more damage in an attack or longer duration of spells).

If the highest possible value of the die is reached during a throw (a so-called ace ), the die is rolled again and the result is added to the first result (the maximum value depending on the size of the dice). This repeated rolling and adding ("exploding") can also take place several times in a row, if the highest possible value also falls when rolling again. Difficult situations can lead to modifiers. Instead of increasing the success value, the result of the dice is changed in Savage Worlds. The effect is the same, but the general target value of 4 remains unchanged. Modifiers always apply to the trait die and the wildcard die . This applies to both positive and negative modifiers.

In combat, the initiative (the order in which the characters act) is determined by poker cards; optional rules for the use of dice are mentioned in the rules.

One of the big differences between Savage Worlds and other systems is the emphasis on talents and handicaps for customizing characters, as opposed to the more common customization via a character's skills . The existing skills are very broad ( shooting includes everything from a bow to a grenade launcher to automatic firearms), specializations take place through the selection of the appropriate talents .

Additional or modified skills are listed in individual adventures ; a rule of thumb, however, is that each skill should be used at least once per evening - otherwise it has no place in the adventure. Since the areas of application of the skills are very broad, an adaptation of the adventure often only requires a correspondingly broad interpretation of the application possibilities and no independent, new skill .

Background knowledge of a character is dealt with via the general knowledge mechanism through a simple mind toss. Whether a character is eligible for a general knowledge check depends on their previous history and the assessment of the game master. For example, if a character spent a few years of their childhood in Russia but the campaign is set in South America, the character is not forced to take the Russian skill - but should they encounter a Russian NPC , they could use their general knowledge communicate with him anyway.

adventure

The following Savage Settings have currently been published by PEG:

  • Evernight : A scripted campaign in the dark fantasy genre
  • 50 Fathoms : A mix of pirate adventure and fantasy
  • Necessary Evil : Comic book superheroes and super villains fight a common enemy.
  • Rippers : Victorian horror
  • Low Life : Endtime RPG in a far, far distant future
  • Deadlands Reloaded : A mixture of the Wild West, zombies and horror stories
  • Pirates of the Spanish Main : Pirate Adventures in the Caribbean (in collaboration with WizKids Inc.)
  • Solomon Kane : Based on the short stories by Robert E. Howard
  • Slipstream : Science fiction in the style of the 30s
  • Space: 1889 - Red Sands : Adaptation of the classic steampunk role-playing game Space: 1889

In addition, the Weird Wars series includes :

  • Tour of Darkness : A Campaign in the Vietnam War
  • Necropolis : God's troops fight the undead on a strange planet

Also, there are a number of licensees working on different adventures:

  • Triple Ace Games
    • Daring Tales of Adventure : 16-part adventure series in the style of the Indiana Jones films
    • Daring Tales of Chivalery : Adventure in the Middle Ages in the same style
    • Daring Tales of the Space Lanes : science fiction adventure in the same style
    • Daring Tales of the Sprawl : cyperpunk adventure in the same style
    • Wonderland No More : Adventure in the wonderland created by Lewis Carroll
    • Hellfrost : Classic fantasy in a world close to a magical ice age
    • Necropolis 2350 : Extended new edition of PEG's Necropolis; military science fiction
    • Sundered Skies : A dark science fantasy world with flying ships and islands
  • Reality blurs
    • RunePunk : A mixture of steampunk and horror in an eternal city
    • Ravaged Earth : Pulp Adventure in an Alternate Timeline
    • Realms of Cthulhu : Call of Cthulhu -Adaption
  • MARS (Adamant Entertainment): Fantasy adventure on the red planet
  • Sherwood (Battlefield Press): Robin Hood fighting the Sheriff of Nottingham
  • Gaslight (Battlefield Press): Victorian steampunk adaptation
  • Winterweir (Phipps Gaming Studios): Fantasy world in the style of Elric von Melnibonés
  • Shaintar: Immortal Legends (Talisman Productions): Classic fantasy setting in the style of D&D

Prometheus Games

The German translation of the following settings is currently available from Prometheus Games:

  • Necropolis 2350
  • Sundered Skies
  • Light frost
  • Rippers
  • Rippers Resurrected
  • Deadlands Reloaded

Awards

Nominated for the shortlist of the German RPG 2014 in the accessories category with "Hellfrost: Rassilon"

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ German RPG Award. Retrieved June 14, 2016 .