The modern cinematic thriller seems like simple-minded entertainment but is hardly simple. Centuries of adventure stories proved the timelessness of its key motives: honor, loyalty, and revenge. Many of its essential plots and archetypes originated in 1920s and ’30s pulps. Its visual style borrows from the gangster flicks, war movies, and Westerns of the ’30s, ’40s, and ’50s. Its edginess owes a debt to ’60s and ’70s directors, who took great risks with graphic violence, raw language, and controversial but highly influential exploitation films. And the fancy guns and gadgets snuck in from Cold War spy fiction. Action Heroes provides character-design guidelines for the sorts of lead roles common in action films and television series made and set in the 1990s and 2000s. As befits their origins, these men of action are more complex than their screen portrayal suggests. The ambition of Action Heroes is to bring that depth to the game without doing violence to the genre (violence should happen in play!).

Most important, action heroes engage in nonstop thrills. This doesn’t always mean fighting: creeping through jungle, chasing bad guys, defusing bombs, crash-landing planes, saving the President, hacking computers, disposing of evidence… that’s action, too. Thus, Action Heroes focuses on abilities useful in risky situations (described in Action Exploits). Realistic but less-exciting skills mostly just get a nod. Next, cinematic heroes usually work alone – or perhaps with a partner, a sidekick, or specialists who get little screen time. This doesn’t work in an RPG unless you’re running a single-player campaign. Action Heroes assumes a more typical four- to six-gamer group. It divvies up heroic competencies and elevates traditional “bit parts” (e.g., geeky technical experts) to leading roles. Thus, all the thrilling stuff that needs doing will get done, but the PCs must pull together to do it; think Ocean’s Eleven, Ronin, or Sneakers.

Finally, skills and actions – not paychecks – define heroes. Soldier, spy, cop… it doesn’t matter. In action movies, they all get into dicey situations, do what they feel is the Right Thing, and have skills to match. A detective might do things that military and intelligence organizations handle in real life, but if he shoots straight, drives fast, takes down bad guys, and stays true to his values, he’s still a “good cop.” Thus, Action Hero character templates sort heroes by specialty, not by job – although there are also “lenses” for specific backgrounds. This makes it much easier to run a team game.

Be warned that Action Heroes isn’t about real-world intelligence, police, and military personnel. Realistically, even heroic cops don’t carry on like John McClane in Die Hard, spies can’t afford to behave like James Bond, and soldiers aren’t trained to act like John Rambo. And the fact that the same rules also let you create super-crooks isn’t a suggestion that real-world government agencies are corrupt – it’s just an admission that in the movies, “super-crook” vs. “super-spy” is mostly an issue of whose guards you’re eluding and what safe you’re cracking. Use Action in serious games at your own risk!

bad guy: Anybody who opposes a hero. He might be a legitimate ambassador, law officer, banker, etc. That isn’t important! What matters is that he’s on the wrong side.

boss: The lead bad guy – usually either incredibly competent or an utter wimp hiding behind henchmen.

cannon fodder: A lesser bad guy whose only job is to fight or otherwise obstruct a hero so that the boss can execute evil plans . . . or the hero.

crew: A group of heroes. Most often used in caper stories.

henchman: A bad guy midway in importance between cannon fodder and boss. A henchman often has a full name (unlike fodder, who are all “Hey you!” or “Louie!”) and a trademark weapon, and sometimes leads fodder.

hero: One of the protagonists in an action story, whether or not he’s a nice guy. The title character of the movie Léon is an assassin – but still the hero (the cop, Stansfield, is the bad guy).

mook: See cannon fodder.

squad: A group of heroes. Most often used in military and police campaigns.

team: A group of heroes.

The easiest way to make sure you have all the bits and pieces you need to fill your role without treading on another player’s toes is to start with a character template. To use a template, simply pay its point cost, select any options it leaves open, and write down the abilities this gives you. To customize your PC, spend any additional points from quirks or personal disadvantages on whatever you like (subject to GM approval). See How to Use Character Templates (p. B258) for details.

The Basic Set suggests 200-300 points for the “leading roles in movies,” so these templates go right down the middle and assume a 250-point campaign. The GM is free to vary power level either way, but should know that fewer points won’t make Action more realistic! These guidelines are for larger-than-life heroes, defined more by quality than by quantity.

Since players familiar with action movies will naturally tend to create one-man-army PCs, defeating the purpose of a team, the GM is strongly encouraged to make templates mandatory. This runs contrary to advice elsewhere in GURPS, but it’s for a good cause. Disadvantages are always suggestions, though; players may substitute their own choices. Even if the GM lets players create PCs from scratch, the templates should be required reading so that there isn’t too much overlap, and so that key competencies are covered. The Action Heroes’ Cheat Sheet gives further advice for those who prefer not to use templates.

Each template requires the player to define his hero’s background by choosing one of the 20-point lenses below. Any template can have any lens, but the GM is free to require an explanation that squares with action realism (not reality!). For instance, an assassin might have the law enforcement lens if he’s a maverick ex-cop out to avenge a murdered partner. Each template’s customization notes elaborate on what the standard lenses imply for that character type.

Lenses have two components that work as follows:

Skills: Because attributes and advantages vary by template, lens skills note relative levels (like “DX+2” and “IQ-1”), not absolute ones. Remember to add any advantage bonuses! If a skill appears on your lens and your template, you may combine the points assigned to it and buy a higher level. You never have to spend the whole 20 points on skills; you’re welcome to save points for the lens’ social advantages.

Social Traits: These traits are additional options for using the template’s advantage and disadvantage allowances, not part of what lens cost buys – although you’re free to use leftover points from lens skills to acquire social advantages. The social traits on the intelligence, law enforcement, military, and security lenses are for active agents, officers, and servicemen; see Pulling Rank for effects. If the team belongs to a military unit, police force, etc., the GM may make some of these advantages mandatory.

You’re a criminal or an ex-criminal. This lens is for a crook who’s a believable hero, even if he isn’t nice; e.g., a hacker, a casino robber, or even a principled hit man. Psycho killers and terrorists rarely make good heroes.

Skills: Streetwise (A) IQ [2]. • Another 18 points chosen from Brawling, Forced Entry, or Guns (Pistol), all (E) DX+1 [2]; Filch or Stealth, both (A) DX [2]; Savoir-Faire (Mafia) (E) IQ+1 [2]; Gambling or Holdout, both (A) IQ [2]; Carousing (E) HT+1 [2]; Intimidation (A) Will [2]; Urban Survival (A) Per [2]; 2 more points in any lens skill to raise it by one level; or 6 more points to raise it by two.

Social Traits: Crooks of all kinds may spend some of their template’s advantage points (or leftover lens points) on Contact (Fence, fixer, smuggler, etc.; Appropriate skill at 12, 15, or 18; 9 or less; Somewhat Reliable) [1, 2, or 3] and/or Contact Group (Gang, mob, etc.; Skill-12, 15, or 18; 9 or less; Somewhat Reliable) [5, 10, or 15].

You’re an active or retired spy, or a “sleeper.” Not all spies work for governments. In the movies, corporate spooks are common, and nongovernmental organizations – notably the U.N. – have secret agencies.

Skills: 20 points chosen from Filch or Stealth, both (A) DX [2]; Area Knowledge (any) or Current Affairs (any), both (E) IQ+1 [2]; Holdout, Interrogation, Photography, Propaganda, Research, Shadowing, or Smuggling, all (A) IQ [2]; Brainwashing, Cryptography, Forgery, Intelligence Analysis, or Psychology, all (H) IQ-1 [2]; Observation or Search, both (A) Per [2]; 2 more points in any lens skill to raise it by one level; or 6 more points to raise it by two.

Social Traits: Officially sanctioned spies must take their template’s Duty and may spend some of its advantage points (or leftover lens points) on Intelligence Rank 0-4 [5/level].

You’re a cop (detective, marshal, etc.), retired cop, or private investigator. The latter two have no official clout, but several templates offer useful Contact Groups.

Skills: Law (Police) (H) IQ [4]. • Another 16 points chosen from Forced Entry, Guns (Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun, or Submachine Gun), or Liquid Projector (Sprayer), all (E) DX+1 [2]; Riding (Horse), Shortsword, or Tonfa, all (A) DX [2]; First Aid or Savoir-Faire (Police), both (E) IQ+1 [2]; Administration, Animal Handling (Dog), Criminology, Interrogation, or Streetwise, all (A) IQ [2]; Accounting, Forensics, or Tactics, all (H) IQ-1 [2]; Observation or Search, both (A) Per IQ [2]; 2 more points in any lens skill to raise it by one level; or 6 more points to raise it by two.

Social Traits: Active law officers must take their template’s Duty, and may spend some of its advantage points (or left-over lens points) on Legal Enforcement Powers (Local or Federal) [5 or 10] and Police Rank 0-4 [5/level].

You have experience as a guerrilla, militiaman, reservist, regular soldier, or special operator. This need not reflect your current status, which is often “mercenary” in the movies.

Skills: Soldier (A) IQ [2]. Another 18 points chosen from Gunner (any), Guns (any), Knife, or Parachuting, all (E) DX+1 [2]; NBC Suit, Spear, or Throwing, all (A) DX [2]; Camouflage, First Aid, Gesture, Savoir-Faire (Military), Seamanship, or Submariner, all (E) IQ+1 [2]; Artillery (any), Forward Observer, Leadership, or Scuba, all IQ (A) [2]; Strategy or Tactics, both (H) IQ-1 [2]; Swimming (E) HT+1 [2]; Hiking (A) HT [2]; Skiing (H) HT-1 [2]; Survival (any) (A) Per [2]; 2 more points in any lens skill to raise it by one level; or 6 more points to raise it by two.

Social Traits: Active-duty personnel must take their template’s Duty and may spend some of its advantage points (or left-over lens points) on Military Rank 0-4 [5/level].

You’re a professional counterspy (if so, this background is to “intelligence” as “law enforcement” is to “criminal”), bodyguard, or secret policeman.

Skills: 20 points chosen from Fast-Draw (Pistol) or Guns (Pistol or Submachine Gun), both (E) DX+1 [2]; First Aid or Savoir-Faire (High Society or Servant), both (E) IQ+1 [2]; Administration, Criminology, Hazardous Materials (any), Holdout, or Interrogation, all (A) IQ [2]; Brainwashing, Cryptography, Intelligence Analysis, Psychology, or Tactics, all (H) IQ-1 [2]; Body Language, Observation, or Search, all (A) Per [2]; 2 more points in any lens skill to raise it by one level; or 6 more points to raise it by two.

Social Traits: Government agents must take their template’s Duty, and may spend some of its advantage points (or left-over lens points) on Legal Enforcement Powers (Federal or Secret Service) [10 or 15] and Security Rank 0-4 [5/level].

If the GM requires templates but wants to allow more latitude in character creation, he can make lenses optional. Since each template allocates 20 points for a background, this yields additional points for customization. The GM will probably want the players of heroes who don’t hail from one of the above career paths to choose a specific calling and back it with points, as in these examples:

Academic: Split 4-8 points among Research, Teaching, and Writing, and use the other 12-16 to be great at some IQ/H skill. For a truly cinematic “prof,” just buy +1 IQ!

Athlete: Put 20 points into ST, HT, Fit, etc.

Journalist: Select the intelligence lens, but replace Brainwashing, Cryptography, and Forgery with Public Speaking and/or Writing.

Martial-Arts Master: Spend 20 points on a fighting style from GURPS Martial Arts.

Rich Adventurer: Invest 20 points in Status and/or Wealth.

Survivalist: Buy 20 points’ worth of Guns and outdoor skills (Camouflage, Hiking, Survival, Tracking, etc.).

The GM should decide what templates and lenses fit the campaign he’s planning, and let the players know before char- acter creation. Suggestions:

Brotherhood in Blue: The PCs are big-city cops dealing with mobsters, gangs, serial killers, etc. Detectives are investigators, undercover detectives are face men, SWAT officers are shooters, and bomb-squad technicians are demolition men. In a high-tech game, hackers and wire rats handle surveillance. The driver of the SWAT van or chopper might be a wheel man, and an EMT could be a medic, but NPCs often fill these roles. Few forces have full-time assassins, cleaners, or infiltrators aboard. Nearly every cop will have the law enforcement lens or the security lens.

Caper: The PCs are crafty crooks who plan elaborate heists that take many game sessions to execute. Ideally, they want a face man, an investigator (for casing their mark), a wheel man, a wire rat, and several infiltrators. A hacker is vital for high-tech crime, while a demolition man is indispensable for safe-cracking. Crews like this traditionally avoid messy violence, so assassins, cleaners, and shooters aren’t welcome, and a medic is often superfluous. Backgrounds are mostly criminal, unless someone is a mole or a disgruntled former agent.

Commandos: The PCs belong to an elite military squad that executes clandestine ops in enemy territory. Such a unit wouldn’t be without shooters, a demolition man, a medic, and a wire rat (to handle communications). Many have an investigator in the form of an intelligence officer. A dedicated sniper could be an assassin or an ace shooter. Cleaners and infiltrators are only likely if seconded from an intelligence agency, and face men and hackers are nearly always behind-the-scenes spooks (and often NPCs). If there’s a wheel man, he’ll be an NPC pilot, only present during insertions and extractions. The dominant lens is military.

Mercs: The PCs are hired guns. Squads that are paramilitary in character will follow the guidelines for commandos. Cinematic “A-teams” sometimes do tough domestic jobs, though, and need to be subtler. A typical lineup consists of demolition men, shooters, and wheel men, led by a face man. Information-gathering – by hackers, infiltrators, investigators, and/or wire rats – might be among the services offered. A cleaner and a medic are essential if the group is illegal! Background lenses are often military but occasionally criminal.

Spy vs. Spy: The PCs are super-spies – real Bond types (or Powers types, in a silly game). All templates are valuable, but cinematic secret agents are mostly assassins, face men, infiltrators, and investigators, supported by hackers, wheel men, and wire rats. In theory, demolition men and shooters aren’t subtle enough; in practice, movies are full of such “spies,” often backed by a cleaner. Medic is probably the least-fun role here. Most spies have the intelligence lens; counterspies have the security lens.

Task Force: The PCs are pulled together from several government services – possibly from multiple nations – to staff some ultra-black organization that crosses jurisdictions. This is closer to many spy movies than is true spy vs. spy. All templates are useful, and the challenge is to do the best you can with what you’ve got; even a squad of cleaners and medics could be amusing (and engage in some gruesome assassinations). Any lens but criminal is as likely as the next.

Troubleshooters: The PCs are a company of former agents, cops, and soldiers who hire out their skills. They solve subtle problems, such as corporate security, and work as detectives and bodyguards. They need a face man and some investigators above all, plus shooters, wheel men, and possibly a medic if they’re bodyguards. Well-funded groups might have vans full of electronics manned by hackers and wire rats. “Officially,” they don’t employ assassins, cleaners, demolition men (unless they disarm bombs), and infiltrators. Any lens could work; criminal is hard on background checks, while security looks best on a résumé.

Vigilante Justice: The PCs are taking back the streets from pimps, dealers, and other scum. The typical vigilante is either a straightforward shooter or a self-righteous assassin or cleaner. Those who seek evidence before acting would be investigators if they mostly respect the law, infiltrators otherwise. If the group tries to garner neighborhood support, involve the media, etc., a face man is helpful. For a sizeable group, a wheel man is likely. Technical support roles – demolition man, hacker, medic, and wire rat – are rarer. Angry civilians effectively have the criminal lens (!), but disgruntled cops (law enforcement) are as likely.

War Against Terror: The PCs are an antiterrorist squad, battling fanatics at home. They need investigators and shooters, and a demolition man to take care of the inevitable bombs. On a large team, a hacker, an infiltrator, and/or a wire rat could greatly help with investigations. Medic and wheel man are necessary but less-exciting roles, perhaps best left to NPCs. A face man is optional unless the brass need lots of convincing. Assassins and cleaners lower the team to the enemy’s level – use with caution. Backgrounds are normally law enforcement, military, and/or security.

These templates portray smart people; several assign IQ 14-15. This might seem to contradict common wisdom that action heroes are dim-witted louts who solve problems with bullets. But consider: If McClane from Die Hard or Ryback from Under Siege were average Joes, how did they foil entire gangs who had excellent equipment, leadership, and planning? Violence and luck play roles, but the fact is, action heroes are the center of their world and simply better. Few are “rocket scientists,” but there are many other options for roleplaying high IQ:

Audacious: A truth of cinematic realism is that if the plan is too crazy to work, it will work precisely because it’s crazy. Genius and insanity…

Driven: The hero might have an average or even slow mental “cruising speed” but a very high “redline,” and out-perform others when motivated by desperation.

Geeky: Some heroes are rocket scientists! Hackers, medics, and wire rats in particular are “smart” in the stereotypically bookish math-and-science sense.

Sensible: The hero is careful, and more adept at avoiding foolish solutions than at concocting brilliant ones. His intelligence is a profound lack of stupidity.

Wily: Smart action heroes might not be deep thinkers but creative ones – the archetypal fox rather than the wise owl – and always a step ahead.

Worldly: Experience counts. Someone with a vast repertoire of tried-and-true solutions can frequently outwit people who are trying to be creative.

The rifle is the first weapon you learn how to use, because it lets you keep your distance from the client. The closer you get to being a pro, the closer you can get to the client. The knife, for example, is the last thing you learn. – Léon, Léon

You might be a hit man, a spy with a license to kill, or a sniper with a uniform and a serial number. Whatever your background, your specialty is quick, silent death. Where the demolition man might demolish a city block “just to be sure,” and the shooter would dive right in, guns blazing, you take pride in precision. On a squad, you’re the one the mooks don’t see, covering your allies from a stealthy perch.

Attributes: ST 11 [10]; DX 16 [120]; IQ 12 [40]; HT 11 [10].

Secondary Characteristics: Damage 1d-1/1d+1; BL 24 lbs.; HP 11 [0]; Will 12 [0]; Per 12 [0]; FP 11 [0]; Basic Speed 7.00 [5]; Basic Move 7 [0].

Advantages: Craftiness 4 [20] and Luck [15]. A further 25 points chosen from among lens advantages, ST +1 or +2 [10 or 20], DX +1 [20], IQ +1 [20], HT +1 or +2 [10 or 20], Per +1 to +5 [5/level], Basic Speed +1 [20], Absolute Timing [2], Combat Reflexes [15], Danger Sense [15], Daredevil [15], Gizmos 1-3 [5/gizmo], Gunslinger [25], Gun Perks [1/perk], Honest Face [1], Night Vision 1-9 [1/level], Peripheral Vision [15], Serendipity 1 [15], Signature Gear [Varies], Wild Talent 1 [20], Zeroed [10], or replace Luck [15] with Extraordinary Luck [30] for 15 points.

Disadvantages: Callous [-5]. -25 points chosen from among Code of Honor (“Stay bought”) [-5], Duty (Agency, mob, service, or similar; Extremely Hazardous; 9, 12, or 15 or less) [-10, -15, or -20], Fanaticism (Employer, nation, or service) [-15], Greed [-15*], Intolerance (Rival nation or other large group) [-5], Obsession (Assassinate a particular target) [-5*], Secret (Professional killer) [-20], Sense of Duty (Team) [-5], or Social Stigma (Criminal Record) [-5]. Another -20 points chosen from among the previous traits or Bloodlust [-10*], Insomniac [-10 or -15], Loner [-5*], Nightmares [-5*], No Sense of Humor [-10], Odious Personal Habits [-5 to -15], Overconfidence [-5*], Paranoia [-10], Post-Combat Shakes [-5*], Selfish [-5*], or Trademark [-5 to -15].

Primary Skills: Camouflage (E) IQ+4 [1]-16†; Guns (Rifle) (E) DX+2 [4]-18; Holdout (A) IQ+4 [2]-16†; Shadowing (A) IQ+4 [2]-16†; and Stealth (A) DX+4 [2]-20†. Five of Guns (Pistol, Shotgun, or Submachine Gun) (E) DX+1 [1]-17, bought from Guns (Rifle) default; or Crossbow, Fast-Draw (Knife or Pistol), Garrote, Knife, or Liquid Projector (Squirt Gun), all (E) DX [1]-16.

Secondary Skills: One of Boxing (A) DX [2]-16, Brawling (A) DX+1 [2]-17, or Karate (H) DX-1 [2]-15. Either Judo (H) DX-1 [2]-15 or Wrestling (A) DX [2]-16. Five of Armoury (Small Arms), Electronics Operation (Security), or Smuggling, all (A) IQ [2]-12; Acting or Disguise, both (A) IQ+4 [2]-16†; Poisons (H) IQ-1 [2]-11; Observation or Tracking, both (A) Per [2]-12; or 2 points to raise one of those skills or an unarmed skill by a level. Four of Forced Entry or Jumping, both (E) DX [1]-16; Climbing or Driving (Automobile or Motorcycle), both (A) DX-1 [1]-15; Acrobatics (H) DX-2 [1]-14; or 1 point to raise one of those skills by a level.

Background Skills: Choose a 20-point lens (above). Computer Operation (E) IQ [1]-12. Multiplied for self-control number.

† Includes +4 for Craftiness.

A cinematic assassin is nearly always a deadly sniper – his major choices concern his modus operandi the rest of the time. To strike from afar, he’ll want several Guns skills, possibly Crossbow, Armoury (for expensive rifles), and Observation (for spotting). For close-range ambush, Garrote, Knife, and Fast-Draw are valuable – as are Acting and Disguise. Other “weapons” include speeding cars (Driving) and overdoses (Poisons).

Background skills are crucial, too:

Criminal: For the mob hit man or faceless hireling, survival demands high levels of Intimidation, Savoir-Faire (Mafia), and Streetwise.

Intelligence: A shadowy “wet work” specialist knows targets and locations (Area Knowledge and Current Affairs), and likely has a sideline in Interrogation. A flamboyant secret agent prefers classic “spy skills” – Cryptography, Intelligence Analysis, etc. Either might have unusual skills; e.g., Liquid Projector, for cyanide-spraying cigarette lighters.

Law Enforcement: An ex-cop, out for revenge, or a particularly cold-blooded SWAT sniper. Either should know such standard police skills as Criminology, Law, and Savoir-Faire (Police).

Military: This generally means a sniper, with keen Observation, training at stealthy insertion (Parachuting, Scuba, Skiing, etc.), and exceptional Tactics.

Security: A sharpshooter wants as much Body Language and Tactics as he can afford. A “black bag” man who illegally eliminates suspected terrorists needs Criminology and Intelligence Analysis. Either should improve Observation.

Now, you’ve got a corpse in a car, minus a head, in a garage. Take me to it. – The Wolf, Pulp Fiction

You make evidence – prints, casings, blood, bodies, and all – disappear. You might clean for the mob or tidy up behind ultra-black government operators, but what you do for the team is crucial: make it look like they weren’t there, and when that’s impossible, make sure that nobody can discover the truth. Some call the assassin (above) a “cleaner,” but your art isn’t killing. Of course, not every “corpse” is dead yet, and an eyewitness is the most damning evidence.

Attributes: ST 11 [10]; DX 14 [80]; IQ 14 [80]; HT 11 [10].

Secondary Characteristics: Damage 1d-1/1d+1; BL 24 lbs.; HP 11 [0]; Will 14 [0]; Per 14 [0]; FP 11 [0]; Basic Speed 6.00 [-5]; Basic Move 6 [0].

Advantages: Luck [15] and Unfazeable [15]. A further 30 points chosen from among lens advantages (above), ST +1 to +3 [10/level], DX +1 [20], IQ +1 [20], HT +1 to +3 [10/level], Will +1 to +6 [5/level], Per +1 to +6 [5/level], Acute Senses (any) [2/level], Contact Group (Junkyard, port authority, snakeheads, etc.; Skill-12, 15, or 18; 9 or less; Somewhat Reliable) [5, 10, or 15], Craftiness 1-4 [5/level], Danger Sense [15], Daredevil [15], Gizmos 1-3 [5/gizmo], Gun Perks [1/perk], Honest Face [1], Serendipity 1-2 [15/level], Signature Gear [Varies], Smooth Operator 1-2 [15/level], Wild Talent 1 [20], Zeroed [10], or replace Luck [15] with Extraordinary Luck [30] for 15 points.

Disadvantages: Callous [-5]. -20 points chosen from among Code of Honor (“Stay bought”) [-5], Duty (Agency, mob, service, or similar; Extremely Hazardous; 9, 12, or 15 or less) [-10, -15, or -20], Fanaticism (Employer, nation, or service) [-15], Greed [-15*], Intolerance (Rival nation or other large group) [-5], Secret (Accessory to many crimes) [-20], or Sense of Duty (Team) [-5]. Another -20 points chosen from among the previous traits or Compulsive Behavior (Cleaning)† [-5*], Insomniac [-10 or -15], Loner [-5*], Nightmares [-5*], No Sense of Humor [-10], Odious Personal Habits [-5 to -15], Overconfidence [-5*], Paranoia [-10], Pyromania [-5*], Selfish [-5*], or Stubbornness [-5].

Primary Skills: Driving (Automobile or Heavy Wheeled) and Stealth, both (A) DX [2]-14; Camouflage and Housekeeping, both (E) IQ+1 [2]-15; Holdout and Smuggling, both (A) IQ+1 [4]-15; and Search and Tracking, both (A) Per+1 [4]-15.

Secondary Skills: One of Boxing (A) DX [2]-14, Brawling (A) DX+1 [2]-15, or Karate (H) DX-1 [2]-13. Either Judo (H) DX-1 [2]-13 or Wrestling (A) DX [2]-14. Guns (Pistol) (E) DX+1 [2]-15. Nine of Fast-Draw (Knife or Pistol), Guns (any other), or Knife, all (E) DX [1]-14; Acting, Animal Handling (Dogs or Pigs), Disguise, Electronics Operation (Media), Explosives (Demolition or Fireworks), Fast-Talk, Freight Handling, or Hazardous Materials (Biological or Chemical), all (A) IQ-1 [1]-13; Chemistry, Forensics, or Forgery, all (H) IQ-2 [1]-12; or 1 point to raise one of those skills by a level.

Background Skills: Choose a 20-point lens. Computer Operation (E) IQ [1]-14.

* Multiplied for self-control number; see p. B120.

† Failed self-control roll means you must try to dispose of any evidence. If enemies are beating down the door, you might resort to acid, fire, or other extreme measures.

The cleaner decides how he eliminates evidence. Trucking it off and dumping it with associates requires Driving (Heavy Wheeled), Freight Handling, and Hazardous Materials, plus a Contact Group. A successful skill roll by the Contact Group means the goods are incinerated, dumped overboard, or otherwise truly gone. A cleaner might use Animal Handling to feed bodies to animals; Chemistry to dissolve organic matter in acid; Explosives (Fireworks) for convenient fires; Acting, Disguise, and Fast-Talk to pose as the coroner; Electronics Operation (Media) to doctor security videotapes; and/or Forgery to fake death certificates.

Other considerations:

Criminal: A mob cleaner needs Streetwise for payoffs and Urban Survival to locate convenient Dumpsters and goal-posts. Savoir-Faire (Mafia) is vital – the profession is built on connections.

Intelligence: Spies often make live people vanish. Such “hostile extractions” demand Observation and Shadowing, usually followed by Brainwashing or Interrogation. Cover-ups are also common; learn Propaganda for that.

Law Enforcement: A crooked cop makes a frighteningly efficient cleaner – he can operate even after the evidence is found! He uses Administration and Law (Police) to alter crime-scene reports, and Savoir-Faire (Police) to finagle access to the evidence locker.

Military: Commandos might bring along someone specifically to hide their activities. Secondary skills like Explosives, Guns, and Knife are likely. Lens skills will be whatever the unit teaches all members.

Security: Cinematic security agencies cover up illegal killings and kidnappings of enemies of the state with red tape – an abuse of Administration. Hazardous Materials specialties can dispose of WMD materials found during operations.

You want broke, blind, or bedlam? – Basher Tarr, Ocean’s Eleven

Setting bombs is an excellent way to learn how to defuse them, while disarming them means thinking like a bomber. Thus, “demolition man” describes explosive ordnance disposal technicians, combat engineers, and mad bombers. All require a steady hand and familiarity with explosives, arson, and sabotage. The differences amount to “How crazy are you?” and “Who pays for your work?” If you belong to a team, you get the fun jobs of clearing booby traps ahead and leaving nasty surprises behind.

Attributes: ST 11 [10]; DX 13 [60]; IQ 14 [80]; HT 12 [20].

Secondary Characteristics: Damage 1d-1/1d+1; BL 24 lbs.; HP 11 [0]; Will 14 [0]; Per 14 [0]; FP 12 [0]; Basic Speed 6.00 [-5]; Basic Move 6 [0].

Advantages: Enhanced Dodge 3 (Dive for Cover) [15] and Luck [15]. A further 30 points chosen from among lens advantages, ST +1 to +3 [10/level], DX +1 [20], IQ +1 [20], HT +1 to +3 [10/level], Per +1 to +6 [5/level], Basic Speed +1 [20], Basic Move +1 to +3 [5/level], Absolute Timing [2], Artificer 1-3 [10/level], Combat Reflexes [15], Danger Sense [15], Daredevil [15], Gizmos 1-3 [5/gizmo], Gun Perks [1/perk], Hard to Kill [2/level], High Manual Dexterity 1-4 [5/level], Rapid Healing [5] or Very Rapid Healing [15], Serendipity 1-2 [15/level], Shtick (Can strike a flame anywhere) [1], Signature Gear [Varies], Unfazeable [15], Wild Talent 1 [20], or replace Luck [15] with Extraordinary Luck [30] for 15 points.

Disadvantages: -20 points chosen from among Duty (Agency, mob, service, or similar; Extremely Hazardous; 9, 12, or 15 or less) [-10, -15, or -20], Fanaticism (Employer, nation, or service) [-15], Greed† [-15*], Honesty† [-10*], Intolerance (Rival nation or other large group) [-5], Secret (Bomb-making nutcase)† [-20], Sense of Duty (Team) [-5], or Social Stigma (Criminal Record)† [-5]. Another -10 points chosen from among those traits or Curious [-5*], Delusion (“Explosives are safe around me!”) [-5], Flashbacks [-5 or -10], Hard of Hearing [-10], Missing Digit [-2 or -5], Phobia (Loud Noises) [-10*], Post-Combat Shakes [-5*], Pyromania [-5*], Trademark (Bomb design/deployment) [-5 or -10], or Wounded [-5]. A further -15 points chosen from either of the previous lists or Callous [-5], Impulsiveness [-10*], Oblivious [-5], Odious Personal Habits [-5 to -15], On the Edge [-15*], Overconfidence [-5*], Stubbornness [-5], or Trickster [-15*].

Primary Skills: One Explosives specialty:

1. Explosives (Demolition) (A) IQ+6 [24]-20. Defaults: Explosives (Underwater Demolition) (A) IQ+4 [0]-18, Explosives (Explosive Ordnance Disposal, Fireworks, and Nuclear Ordnance Disposal) (A) IQ+2 [0]-16, and Engineer (Combat) (H) IQ [0]-14.

2. Explosives (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) (A) IQ+6 [24]-20. Defaults: Explosives (Nuclear Ordnance Dis- posal) (A) IQ+4 [0]-18, and Explosives (Demolition, Fireworks, and Underwater Demolition) (A) IQ+2 [0]-16.

Secondary Skills: One of Boxing (A) DX [2]-13, Brawling (A) DX+1 [2]-14, or Karate (H) DX-1 [2]-12. Either Judo (H) DX-1 [2]-12 or Wrestling (A) DX [2]-13. Guns (Grenade Launcher, LAW, Pistol, or Shotgun) and Guns (second choice), both (E) DX+1 [2]-14. Four of Architecture, Armoury (Heavy Weapons), Artillery (any), Lockpicking, Machinist, Mechanic (Automobile), Scuba, or Traps, all (A) IQ [2]-14; Chemistry, Engineer (Combat), or Expert Skill (Military Science), all (H) IQ-1 [2]-13; or 2 points to raise one of those skills or a combat skill by a level. Four of Stealth or Throwing, both (A) DX [2]-13; Smuggling (A) IQ [2]-14; Swimming (E) HT+1 [2]-13; Running (A) HT [2]-12; Scrounging (E) Per+1 [2]-15; Search (A) Per [2]-14; or 2 points to raise one of those skills or a combat skill by a level.

Background Skills: Choose a 20-point lens. Computer Operation (E) IQ [1]-14 and Driving (Automobile or Heavy Wheeled) (A) DX-1 [1]-12.

* Multiplied for self-control number; see p. B120.

† Honesty typically precludes Greed, Secret, and Social Stigma in this role.

The big question is “Which Explosives specialty?” The answer depends heavily on background:

Criminal: Crooks favor Explosives (Demolition). Bombers use secondary skills like Architecture and Mechanic to situate explosives effectively, and Smuggling to conceal them. Safecrackers need Lockpicking and Traps. Both benefit from Forced Entry, Filch, Holdout, and similar background skills.

Intelligence: Spies use skills identical to those of criminal bomb-makers. Area Knowledge, Interrogation, Observation, and Research can locate suitable targets.

Law Enforcement: Bomb-squad technicians need Explosives (EOD), Search, and Traps. Criminology is useful for out-guessing bombers, while Expert Skill (Military Science) and Forensics can reveal where the explosives came from.

Military: Soldiers might follow either path, acquiring Armoury, Artillery, and Guns (Grenade Launcher or LAW) along the way. Pooling secondary and background points can give formidable levels of Scuba and Swimming (for underwater demolition), Throwing (for grenades!), etc.

Security: As law enforcement, but focused on antiterrorism. Dirty bombs and nerve gas demand Hazardous Materials skills.

I just don’t understand it. I lie, I cheat, I steal, and I just don’t get any respect! – Faceman, The A-Team (Episode 65)

Every crew needs a “social engineer” – they just don’t know it yet! You’ll convince them, though, because that’s your gift. Whether it’s fast-talking the guards at the gate or setting up the long con, you’re a pro at getting close to the mark and into his confidence. Your biggest asset is a devious mind, but you also possess cat-like grace and disarming good looks. Your chief weakness is that even your closest associates can’t quite bring themselves to trust you.

Attributes: ST 10 [0]; DX 13 [60]; IQ 15 [100]; HT 11 [10].

Secondary Characteristics: Damage 1d-2/1d; BL 20 lbs.; HP 10 [0]; Will 15 [0]; Per 15 [0]; FP 11 [0]; Basic Speed 6.00 [0]; Basic Move 6 [0].

Advantages: Attractive [4]; Honest Face [1]; Luck [15]; and Smooth Operator 2 [30]. A further 30 points chosen from among lens advantages, ST +1 to +3 [10/level], DX +1 [20], IQ +1 [20], HT +1 to +3 [10/level], Alcohol Tolerance [1], Business Acumen 1-3 [10/level], Charisma 1-6 [5/level], Contact Group (Corporation, local black market, quartermaster, etc.; Skill-12, 15, or 18; 9 or less; Somewhat Reliable) [5, 10, or 15], Cultural Adaptability [10], Daredevil [15], Fashion Sense [5], Gun Perks [1/perk], Language Talent [10], Languages (any) [2-6/language], No Hangover [1], Rapier Wit [5], Sensitive [5] or Empathy [15], Serendipity 1-2 [15/level], Signature Gear [Varies], Smooth Operator 3-4 [15/level], Voice [10], Wild Talent 1 [20], improve Appearance to Handsome [12] for 8 points or Very Handsome [16] for 12 points, or replace Luck [15] with Extraordinary Luck [30] for 15 points.

Disadvantages: -15 points chosen from among Duty (Agency, mob, service, or similar; 9, 12, or 15 or less) [-5, -10, or -15], Greed [-15*], Secret (Past scams) [-5 or -10], Sense of Duty (Team) [-5], Social Stigma (Criminal Record) [-5], or Trickster [-15*]. Another -15 points chosen from among those traits or Chummy [-5] or Gregarious [-10], Compulsive Carousing [-5*], Compulsive Gambling [-5*], Compulsive Lying [-15*], or Lecherousness [-15*]. A further -20 points chosen from either of the previous lists or Curious [-5*], Impulsiveness [-10*], Jealousy [-10], Kleptomania [-15*], Overconfidence [-5*], Selfish [-5*], or Trademark [-5 to -15].

Primary Skills: Savoir-Faire (High Society, Mafia, Military, or Police) (E) IQ+2 [1]-17†; Acting, Fast-Talk, Leadership, and Public Speaking, all (A) IQ+1 [1]-16†; Merchant (A) IQ-1 [1]-14; Diplomacy (H) IQ [1]-15†; Carousing (E) HT+2 [1]-13†; Sex Appeal (A) HT+2 [1]-13†‡; Intimidation (A) Will+1 [1]-16†; and Detect Lies (H) Per [1]-15†.

Secondary Skills: One of Boxing (A) DX [2]-13, Brawling (A) DX+1 [2]-14, or Karate (H) DX-1 [2]-12. Either Judo (H) DX-1 [2]-12 or Wrestling (A) DX [2]-13. Guns (Pistol) (E) DX+1 [2]-14 and Holdout (A) IQ-1 [1]-14. Ten of Fast-Draw (Pistol) (E) DX [1]-13; Dancing, Filch, or Stealth, all (A) DX-1 [1]-12; Pickpocket or Sleight of Hand, both (H) DX-2 [1]-11; Savoir-Faire (any) (E) IQ+2 [1]-17†; Administration, Connoisseur (any), Disguise, Electronics Operation (Media), Gambling, Interrogation, Propaganda, or Smuggling, all (A) IQ-1 [1]-14; Counterfeiting, Forgery, or Psychology, all (H) IQ-2 [1]-13; Body Language (A) Per-1 [1]-14; or 1 point to raise one of those skills or any primary skill by a level.

Background Skills: Choose a 20-point lens. Computer Operation (E) IQ [1]-15 and Driving (Automobile or Motorcycle) (A) DX-1 [1]-12.

* Multiplied for self-control number; see p. B120.

† Includes +2 for Smooth Operator.

‡ Includes +1 for Attractive.

Face men thrive in any social situation, but most have specialties: falsifying records (Administration, Counterfeiting, Electronics Operation, and Forgery), impersonation (Disguise, plus more Acting and Fast-Talk), living large (Connoisseur, Dancing, and Gambling), “psy-ops” (Interrogation, Propaganda, Psychology, and high Detect Lies), stolen goods (Smuggling and increased Merchant), theft (Filch, Pickpocket, Sleight of Hand, and Stealth), etc. Background puts a further spin on things:

Criminal: A crook has background skill points in Carousing, Intimidation, Savoir-Faire (Mafia), and/or Streetwise – all of which benefit from Smooth Operator!

Intelligence: Some spies use social manipulation to get near objectives; they’ll want Area Knowledge of exotic destinations, Photography (for miniaturized cameras), and Search (for rifling through handbags and discarded clothing). Others are psychological warriors with scary Brainwashing, Interrogation, and Propaganda skills.

Law Enforcement: Undercover detectives and cinematic vice cops need Streetwise (which gets the Smooth Operator bonus), Accounting (for quick peeks at the books), and/or Criminology (to out-think the opposition).

Military: Military face men are well-versed in Leadership, Savoir-Faire, and Tactics. Likeable officers also know Strategy, while well-connected NPCs improve Soldier skill.

Security: Some agencies employ spokesmen to defuse diplomatic bombs; e.g., when a spy is deported. Most hail from the side of the company that teaches Administration and Intelligence Analysis.

Gabriel: DOD d-base, 128-bit RSA encryption. Whattaya think? Impossible?

Stanley: Nothing’s impossible.

– Swordfish

Banks and utilities, streetlights and air-traffic control, communications and security systems… everything runs on computers. If you’re legit, your beat is huge and you face rivals halfway around the globe. If you aren’t, you’re betting your laptop against million-dollar opposition. On a team, you validate false ID for the face man, kill alarms ahead of the infiltrator, pull records for the investigator, and work geek-to-geek with the wire rat.

Attributes: ST 10 [0]; DX 12 [40]; IQ 15 [100]; HT 11 [10].

Secondary Characteristics: Damage 1d-2/1d; BL 20 lbs.; HP 10 [0]; Will 15 [0]; Per 13 [-10]; FP 11 [0]; Basic Speed 6.00 [5]; Basic Move 6 [0].

Advantages: Born to Be Wired 4 [20]; Luck [15]; and Quick Gadgeteer (H4xx0r, -50%) [25]. A further 30 points chosen from among lens advantages, ST +1 to +3 [10/level], DX +1 [20], IQ +1 [20], HT +1 to +3 [10/level], Absolute Timing [2], Artificer 1-3 [10/level], Business Acumen 1-3 [10/level], Contact Group (Online associates; Skill-12, 15, or 18; 9 or less; Somewhat Reliable) [5, 10, or 15], Daredevil [15], Eidetic Memory [5] or Photographic Memory [10], Gizmos 1-3 [5/gizmo], Intuition [15], Mathematical Ability 1-3 [10/level], Pitiable [5], Serendipity 1-2 [15/level], Signature Gear [Varies], Wild Talent 1 [20], Zeroed [10], or replace Luck [15] with Extraordinary Luck [30] for 15 points.

Disadvantages: -15 points chosen from among Duty (Agency, mob, service, or similar; 9, 12, or 15 or less) [-5, -10, or -15], Greed† [-15*], Obsession (Hack a specific target)† [-5*], Secret (Past hacks) [-5 or -10], Sense of Duty (Team) [-5], or Social Stigma (Criminal Record or Minor) [-5]. Another -10 points chosen from among those traits or Curious [-5*], Delusion (“The real world works just like the Internet!”) [-5], Clueless [-10], Gullibility [-10*], Honesty† [-10*], Loner [-5*], Oblivious [-5], Shyness [-5 or -10], or Trademark (Particular hack or “calling card”) [-5 or -10]. A further -15 points chosen from either of the previous lists or Bad Temper [-10*], Cowardice [-10*], Easy to Read [-10], Impulsiveness [-10*], Jealousy [-10], Klutz [-5] or Total Klutz [-15], Laziness [-10], Overconfidence [-5*], Post-Combat Shakes [-5*], Slow Riser [-5], Squeamish [-10*], Stubbornness [-5], Trickster [-15*], Unfit [-5] or Very Unfit [-15], or one of Overweight [-1], Fat [-3], Very Fat [-5], or Skinny [-5].

Primary Skills: Computer Operation (E) IQ+4 [1]-19‡; Electronics Repair (Computers) (A) IQ+3 [1]-18‡; Computer Programming, Cryptography, and Expert Skill (Computer Security), all (H) IQ+2 [1]-17‡; and Computer Hacking (VH) IQ+3 [4]-18‡.

Secondary Skills: Guns (Pistol) (E) DX [1]-12. Six of Stealth (A) DX+1 [4]-13; Cartography, Electronics Operation (Communications, Media, Security, Sensors, or Surveillance), Research, Speed-Reading, Teaching, or Writing, all (A) IQ+1 [4]-16; Accounting, Forgery, or Intelligence Analysis, all (H) IQ [4]-15; or Scrounging (E) Per+2 [4]-15.

Background Skills: Choose a 20-point lens (pp. 4-5). Bicycling (E) DX [1]-12 or Driving (Automobile or Motorcycle) (A) DX-1 [1]-11.

* Multiplied for self-control number; see p. B120.

† Honesty is for “white hats” and security experts, and normally precludes Greed and Obsession as motivations (but not Secret or Social Stigma!).

‡ Includes +4 for Born to Be Wired.

Cinematic hackers have a specialized skill set, but there’s still some flexibility. Those in grittier stories use “realistic” techniques: faking ID in order to gain physical access to the mainframe (Forgery), Dumpster-diving for passwords on Post-it notes (Scrounging), poring over manuals (Speed-Reading), etc. In more fanciful movies, they do tricks like create fancy 3D maps of the objective (Cartography), reprogram security systems (Electronics Operation (Security)), and turn traffic-monitoring systems into spy-cams (Electronics Operation (Surveillance)).

Variations include:

Criminal: This is most hackers! Even the lovable kid – that’s what Social Stigma (Minor) and Bicycling are for – might have Streetwise, Gambling (to win at online poker), and Urban Survival (to locate Dumpsters for diving).

Intelligence: High-tech spies generally crank up Cryptography, Intelligence Analysis, and Research. Those that spread disinformation often know Propaganda, too.

Law Enforcement: Realistic computer-crimes investigators mostly aren’t hackers, but those in the movies are frequently “reformed” criminals. These routinely ignore physical police skills in favor of Administration, Accounting, and similar cerebral stuff.

Military: Cinematic elite units often include a skinny guy with a rifle and an olive-drab laptop. Everybody else has to bleed and die to get him to some secure objective. His best military skills are more likely to be Forward Observer and Strategy than Guns and Hiking.

Security: An expert in computer security is as likely as one in physical security. Most of the notes for law enforcers apply, but use background skill points to buy even higher levels of Cryptography – and likely Criminology, for computer-assisted profiling.

I came in from the roof. I dropped twenty floors down on a McNeal descender. – Virginia Baker, Entrapment

You’re adept at getting into places that nobody else can get into and taking things that everybody else wants – preferably sans explosions and gunshots. If all goes well, the first person to discover your handiwork is the ambassador who can’t find his briefcase the next morning, or the watchman who realizes the Rembrandt is gone after it’s hanging in your condo by Central Park. When working with a crew, your priority is to go in ahead and open the door.

Attributes: ST 10 [0]; DX 15 [100]; IQ 13 [60]; HT 11 [10].

Secondary Characteristics: Damage 1d-2/1d; BL 20 lbs.; HP 10 [0]; Will 13 [0]; Per 13 [0]; FP 11 [0]; Basic Speed 7.00 [10]; Basic Move 7 [0].

Advantages: Flexibility [5]; Luck [15]; and Perfect Balance [15]. A further 25 points chosen from among lens advantages (pp. 4-5), ST +1 or +2 [10 or 20], DX +1 [20], IQ +1 [20], HT +1 or +2 [10 or 20], Per +1 to +5 [5/level], Basic Move +1 to +3 [5/level], Absolute Direction [5] or 3D Spatial Sense [10], Absolute Timing [2], Acute Senses (any) [2/level], Breath-Holding [2/level], Catfall [10], Combat Reflexes [15], Craftiness 1-4 [5/level], Danger Sense [15], Daredevil [15], Enhanced Dodge 1 [15], Fit [5] or Very Fit [15], Gizmos 1-3 [5/gizmo], Gun Perks [1/perk], High Manual Dexterity 1-4 [5/level], Night Vision 1-9 [1/level], Peripheral Vision [15], Serendipity 1 [15], Signature Gear [Varies], Wild Talent 1 [20], Zeroed [10], improve Flexibility [5] to Double-Jointed [15] for 10 points, or replace Luck [15] with Extraordinary Luck [30] for 15 points.

Disadvantages: Loner (12) [-5] -20 points chosen from among Duty (Agency, mob, service, or similar; Extremely Hazardous; 9, 12, or 15 or less) [-10, -15, or -20], Greed [-15*], Kleptomania [-15*], Obsession (Steal a particular item) [-5*], Secret (Past crimes) [-5 or -10], Sense of Duty (Team) [-5], Social Stigma (Criminal Record) [-5], or Trickster [-15*]. Another -25 points chosen from among the previous traits or Cowardice [-10*], Curious [-5*], Impulsiveness [-10*], Jealousy [-10], Overconfidence [-5*], Selfish [-5*], Shyness [-5 or -10], Skinny [-5], Stubbornness [-5], Trademark [-5 to -15], or worsen Loner from (12) [-5] to (9) [-7] for -2 points or to (6) [-10] for -5 points.

Primary Skills: Forced Entry and Jumping, both (E) DX [1]-15; Stealth (A) DX [2]-15; Climbing (A) DX+3 [1]-18†‡; Escape (H) DX+1 [1]-16†; Acrobatics (H) DX [2]-15‡; and Electronics Operation (Security), Lockpicking, and Traps, all (A) IQ+1 [4]-14.

Secondary Skills: One of Boxing (A) DX [2]-15, Brawling (A) DX+1 [2]-16, or Karate (H) DX-1 [2]-14. Either Judo (H) DX-1 [2]-14 or Wrestling (A) DX [2]-15. Guns (Pistol) (E) DX [1]-15. Four of Parachuting (E) DX+1 [2]-16; Driving (Automobile or Motorcycle), Piloting (Glider), or Submarine (Free-Flooding Sub), all (A) DX [2]-15; Scuba (A) IQ [2]-13; Swimming (E) HT+1 [2]-12; Running (A) HT [2]-11; or 2 points to raise one of those skills or Acrobatics, Stealth, or an unarmed skill by a level. Six of Knot-Tying (E) DX [1]-15; Filch or Throwing, both (A) DX-1 [1]-14; Camouflage or Gesture, both (E) IQ [1]-13; Animal Handling (Dogs), Architecture, Cartography, Connoisseur (any), Electronics Repair (Security), or Holdout, all (A) IQ-1 [1]-12; Observation or Search, both (A) Per-1 [1]-12; or 1 point to raise one of those skills or Climbing, Forced Entry, or Jumping by a level.

Background Skills: Choose a 20-point lens (pp. 4-5). Computer Operation (E) IQ [1]-13.

* Multiplied for self-control number; see p. B120.

† Includes +3 for Flexibility.

‡ Includes +1 for Perfect Balance.

Secondary and background skill choices here vary greatly by motivation:

Criminal: Cat burglars steal to get rich before they’re too old for tight black catsuits. Most possess commonly taught secondary skills: Driving, Holdout, Running, Search, etc. Background points buy more Forced Entry and Stealth, plus enough Savoir-Faire (Mafia) and Streetwise to score tools and move loot.

Intelligence: Agents who photograph missiles and steal plans learn “technical” secondary skills – Cartography, Piloting, Scuba, Submarine, etc. The background skills Observation, Photography, and Search are crucial for intelligence-gathering.

Law Enforcement: Some cinematic cops-turned-PIs employ illegal entry as their chief investigative technique. Likely secondary skills are Animal Handling, Driving, Filch, and Search. Fitting background skills include Criminology and a respectable level of Guns.

Military: Because commandos frequently infiltrate hot zones, they should pool secondary and background points to buy high levels of Camouflage, Parachuting, Scuba, and Swimming, plus more and better combat skills.

Security: The classic infiltrator role here is the secret policeman who finds or plants evidence where needed. Secondary points go toward Holdout, higher Forced Entry and Stealth, and unarmed skills. Background skills always include Criminology and combat training.

This is the resume of a professional mercenary! You got the world’s biggest drug dealer on his way here. What, do you need a slide rule to figure it out? Or maybe another body in a zipper bag before you start asking questions? – Det. Lt. John McClane, Die Hard 2

It’s crucial to know where you’re headed, when the opposition intends to move, what you (or they) are grabbing, who you’re shooting at, and why. Hitting the wrong mark can be embarrassing – or fatal. You might not be as slick as the face man, a computer wizard like the hacker, or the equal of the wire rat at surveillance, but you still get the facts, and can coordinate these experts and analyze their results.

Attributes: ST 10 [0]; DX 13 [60]; IQ 15 [100]; HT 11 [10].

Secondary Characteristics: Damage 1d-2/1d; BL 20 lbs.; HP 10 [0]; Will 15 [0]; Per 17 [10]; FP 11 [0]; Basic Speed 6.00 [0]; Basic Move 6 [0].

Advantages: Intuition [15] and Luck [15]. A further 30 points chosen from among lens advantages (pp. 4-5), ST +1 to +3 [10/level], DX +1 [20], IQ +1 [20], HT +1 to +3 [10/level], Per +1 or +3 [5/level], Acute Senses (any) [2/level], Contact Group (Investigative agency or police department; Skill-12, 15, or 18; 9 or less; Somewhat Reliable) [5, 10, or 15], Cultural Familiarity [1/culture], Danger Sense [15], Daredevil [15], Gun Perks [1/perk], Honest Face [1], Languages (any) [2-6/language], Sensitive [5] or Empathy [15], Serendipity 1-2 [15/level], Signature Gear [Varies], Smooth Operator 1-2 [15/level], Wild Talent 1 [20], or replace Luck [15] with Extraordinary Luck [30] for 15 points.

Disadvantages: -25 points chosen from among Curious [-5*], Duty (Agency, mob, service, or similar; 9, 12, or 15 or less) [-5, -10, or -15], Greed† [-15*], Honesty† [-10*], Obsession (Solve a particular case) [-5*], Secret (Past crimes – or cover-ups) [-5 or -10], Sense of Duty (Team) [-5], or Social Stigma (Criminal Record)† [-5]. Another -25 points chosen from among the previous traits or Alcoholism [-15], Bad Temper [-10*], Chummy [-5] or Gregarious [-10], Guilt Complex [-5], Insomniac [-10 or -15], Nightmares [-5*], Overconfidence [-5*], Paranoia [-10], Stubbornness [-5], Truthfulness [-5*], Workaholic [-5], or one of Overweight [-1], Fat [-3], or Very Fat [-5].

Primary Skills: Intelligence Analysis (H) IQ+1 [8]-16. Six of Criminology, Electronics Operation (Surveillance), Interrogation, Photography, Research, Shadowing, or Speed-Reading, all (A) IQ [2]-15; Body Language, Lip Reading, Observation, Search, or Tracking, all (A) Per [2]-17; or Detect Lies (H) Per-1 [2]-16.

Secondary Skills: One of Boxing (A) DX [2]-13, Brawling (A) DX+1 [2]-14, or Karate (H) DX-1 [2]-12. Either Judo (H) DX-1 [2]-12 or Wrestling (A) DX [2]-13. Guns (Pistol) (E) DX+1 [2]-14 and Holdout (A) IQ-1 [1]-14. Three of Administration (A) IQ [2]-15; Accounting, Cryptography, Expert Skill (Military Science), Forensics, or Psychology, all (H) IQ-1 [2]-14; or another primary skill choice. Three of Forced Entry (E) DX+1 [2]-14; Stealth (A) DX [2]-13; Area Knowledge (any), Computer Operation, or Current Affairs (any), all (E) IQ+1 [2]-16; Writing (A) IQ [2]-15; Diplomacy (H) IQ-1 [2]-14; or 2 points to raise a combat skill by a level.

Background Skills: Choose a 20-point lens (pp. 4-5). Driving (Automobile or Motorcycle) (A) DX-1 [1]-12.

* Multiplied for self-control number; see p. B120.

† Honesty is for legitimate lawmen, and normally precludes Greed and Social Stigma (but not the Secret!).

Investigators have significant latitude in primary skills. Their many strategies include document searches (Research and Speed-Reading), physical searches (Criminology and Search), pursuit (Shadowing and Tracking), “reading” people (Body Language and Lip Reading), shakedowns (Detect Lies and Interrogation), and surveillance (Electronics Operation, Observation, and Photography) – pick a few favorites. Secondary skills cover everything from checking the news (Current Affairs) and the ’net (Computer Operation) to forensic accounting (Accounting), lab analysis (Forensics), and other exotica.

Criminal: Every crew needs someone to case objectives – typically via surveillance – and formulate plans. Major background skills are Streetwise (for “word on the street”), plus Filch, Forced Entry, and Stealth for testing security, grabbing keys, etc.

Intelligence: Like real spies, cinematic ones often utilize dogged research and tedious surveillance. Background training consists of many Area Knowledge and Current Affairs specialties, plus additional points plowed into primary and secondary areas.

Law Enforcement: The detective (private or police) might use any strategy! A decent Law (Police) skill is crucial to ensure evidence is admissible in court. Combat skills are vital when hunting dangerous crooks.

Military: Intelligence officers interrogate prisoners (Interrogation) and search enemy positions (Search). Lens skills are whatever the unit teaches all members.

Security: Counterspies use every means to locate spies. Background points should boost primary and secondary choices and buy the combat skills that every cinematic agent needs.

Ten-four, we’re transmitting EKG. We’re sending you a strip. Vitals to follow. Pulse is 160, the victim is in extreme pain, Rampart. V-fib! – Paramedic John Gage, Emergency

Firefights, explosions, and car crashes mean injuries – and when the hurt comes down, you’re ready with the dressings and defibrillator paddles. You might be a military field medic, an urban EMT, a first-rate physician, or a third-rate vet who stitches up mobsters for cash. Whatever your credentials, you find uses for your medical expertise even when nobody has been shot: captives need drugging, allies need antidotes, and an action hero’s world is full of scorpion stings, snakebites, and terrorist bioweapons.

Attributes: ST 10 [0]; DX 12 [40]; IQ 15 [100]; HT 12 [20].

Secondary Characteristics: Damage 1d-2/1d; BL 20 lbs.; HP 10 [0]; Will 15 [0]; Per 15 [0]; FP 12 [0]; Basic Speed 6.00 [0]; Basic Move 6 [0].

Advantages: Healer 4 [40]; Higher Purpose (“Medic!”) [5]; and Luck [15]. A further 30 points chosen from among lens advantages (pp. 4-5), ST +1 to +3 [10/level], DX +1 [20], IQ +1 [20], HT +1 to +3 [10/level], Combat Reflexes [15], Contact Group (Clinic, hospital, etc.; Skill-12, 15, or 18; 9 or less; Somewhat Reliable) [5, 10, or 15], Daredevil [15], Fearlessness [2/level] or Unfazeable [15], Gizmos 1-3 [5/gizmo], High Manual Dexterity 1-4 [5/level], Resistant to Disease (+3) or (+8) [3 or 5], Resistant to Poison (+3) [5], Sensitive [5] or Empathy [15], Serendipity 1-2 [15/level], Signature Gear [Varies], Wild Talent 1 [20], or replace Luck [15] with Extraordinary Luck [30] for 15 points.

Disadvantages: -20 points chosen from among Duty (Agency, mob, service, or similar; 9, 12, or 15 or less) [-5, -10, or -15], Greed [-15*], Honesty [-10*], Secret (Used or sold drugs, negligence, etc.) [-5, -10, or -20], Sense of Duty (Team) [-5], or Social Stigma (License Revoked) [-5]. Another -15 points chosen from among those traits or Charitable [-15*], Chummy [-5] or Gregarious [-10], Code of Honor (Hippocratic Oath) [-5], Delusion (“I’m God when I’m your doctor!”) [-5], Guilt Complex [-5], Selfish [-5*] or Selfless [-5*], or Vow (Refuse no request for medical aid) [-10]. A further -15 points chosen from either of the previous lists or Alcoholism [-15], Curious [-5*], Insomniac [-10 or -15], Nightmares [-5*], Overconfidence [-5*], Post-Combat Shakes [-5*], Stubbornness [-5], Truthfulness [-5*], or Workaholic [-5].

Primary Skills: Diagnosis, Pharmacy (Synthetic), and Psychology, all (H) IQ+2 [1]-17†; Physician (H) IQ+5 [8]-20†; and Surgery (VH) IQ+1 [1]-16†.

Secondary Skills: Either Judo (H) DX-1 [2]-11 or Wrestling (A) DX [2]-12. Guns (Pistol) (E) DX [1]-12. Four of Fast-Draw (Medical Gear) or Knife, both (E) DX+1 [2]-13; NBC Suit (A) DX [2]-12; Hazardous Materials (Biological), Research, Teaching, or Writing, all (A) IQ [2]-15; Chemistry, Expert Skill (Epidemiology), Forensics, Naturalist, or Poisons, all (H) IQ-1 [2]-14; or 2 points to raise one of those skills or a grappling skill by a level. Three of Driving (Automobile or Heavy Wheeled), Piloting (Helicopter), or Stealth, all (A) DX [2]-12; Administration or Interrogation, both (A) IQ [2]-15; Diplomacy (H) IQ-1 [2]-14; Scrounging (E) Per+1 [2]-16; or 2 points to raise one of those skills by a level.

Background Skills: Choose a 20-point lens. Computer Operation (E) IQ [1]-15.

* Multiplied for self-control number.

† Includes +4 for Healer.

Extreme Physician skill is necessary to simulate action-movie realism. With decent gear (+1 or +2 to skill), the medic can accept the -10 for instant use described in Time Spent and thus patch people up during a gunfight!

This suggests a talented professional; however, action heroes are rarely bookish researchers. A better archetype is the bush doctor (Knife, Naturalist, Piloting, and Scrounging): adept at working whatever’s at hand and treating venomous bites. Another is the cinematic epidemiologist (Expert Skill (Epidemiology), Hazardous Materials, Interrogation, and NBC Suit), who enters hot zones, identifies plagues, and confronts the miscreants who unleashed them. Background is equally important:

Criminal: A violent crew might include a back-alley doc. Good Filch and Streetwise let him steal or buy equipment – and other skills may suggest how he lost his license (Carousing or Gambling).

Intelligence: The hands that heal can also torture and administer truth serums. Lens skills of importance are Brainwashing, Interrogation, and improved Psychology.

Law Enforcement: Many an action-hero EMT is functionally a cop and a doctor. Crucial training includes combat skills – and often a remarkable level of Forensics.

Military: In military games, PC survival depends on somebody with Surgery being right there to stabilize mortal wounds. Corpsmen have their unit’s usual background skills – especially combat skills.

Security: The notes for the intelligence lens apply. Medics are also assets on a team of bodyguards, where they’ll need Body Language, Observation, and combat skills.

National sports pistol champion at age 10. Recruited by the army. Sounds like black ops got him and trained him. – Hertz, Shoot ’Em Up

It wouldn’t be an action story if the floor wasn’t covered with spent brass eventually – and while the entire squad shoots when the chips are down, you’re a true gunslinger. You’ll tackle a whole building full of mooks, if need be… you’re that good.

The assassin scores higher with the sniper rifle and the demolition man does better with explosive weaponry, but you’re not choosy. If it shoots, you can and will use it.

Attributes: ST 11 [10]; DX 16 [120]; IQ 11 [20]; HT 12 [20].

Secondary Characteristics: Damage 1d-1/1d+1; BL 24 lbs.; HP 11 [0]; Will 11 [0]; Per 12 [5]; FP 12 [0]; Basic Speed 7.00 [0]; Basic Move 7 [0].

Advantages: Gunslinger [25] and Luck [15]. A further 30 points chosen from among lens advantages (pp. 4-5), ST +1 to +3 [10/level], DX +1 [20], IQ +1 [20], HT +1 to +3 [10/level], Per +1 to +6 [5/level], Basic Speed +1 [20], Basic Move +1 to +3 [5/level], Acute Vision [2/level], Ambidexter- ity [5], Combat Reflexes [15], Daredevil [15], Enhanced Dodge 1-2 [15/level], Fearlessness [2/level], Fit [5] or Very Fit [15], Gizmos 1-3 [5/gizmo], Gun Perks [1/perk], Hard to Kill [2/level], Hard to Subdue [2/level], High Pain Threshold [10], Peripheral Vision [15], Rapid Healing [5] or Very Rapid Healing [15], Serendipity 1-2 [15/level], Signature Gear [Varies], Wild Talent 1 [20], or replace Luck [15] with Extraordinary Luck [30] for 15 points.

Disadvantages: -20 points chosen from among Code of Honor (“Stay bought”) [-5] or (Soldier’s) [-10], Duty (Agency, mob, service, or similar; Extremely Hazardous; 9, 12, or 15 or less) [-10, -15, or -20], Fanaticism (Employer, nation, or service) [-15], Greed [-15*], Intolerance (Rival nation or other large group) [-5], Sense of Duty (Team) [-5] or (Nation) [-10], or Social Stigma (Criminal Record) [-5]. Another -10 points chosen from among those traits or Bad Temper [-10*], Berserk [-10*], Bloodlust [-10*], Bully [-10*], or Honesty [-10*]. A further -20 points chosen from either of the previous lists or Callous [-5], Flashbacks [-5 or -10], Impulsiveness [-10*], Odious Personal Habits [-5 to -15], On the Edge [-15*], Overconfidence [-5*], Paranoia [-10], Stub- bornness [-5], or Wounded [-5].

Primary Skills: Fast-Draw (Ammo), Forced Entry, and Jumping, all (E) DX [1]-16; and Acrobatics (H) DX [4]-16. Guns (Pistol, Shotgun, or Submachine Gun) (E) DX+2 [4]-18. Seven of Guns (Light Machine Gun, Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun, or Submachine Gun) (E) DX+1 [1]-17, bought from default to first Guns specialty; Crossbow, Fast-Draw (Long Arm or Pistol), Gunner (Cannon or Machine Gun), Guns (Grenade Launcher or LAW), Liquid Projector (Flamethrower or Sprayer), all (E) DX [1]-16; or Throwing (A) DX-1 [1]-15.

Secondary Skills: One of Boxing (A) DX [2]-16, Brawling (A) DX+1 [2]-17, or Karate (H) DX-1 [2]-15. Either Judo (H) DX-1 [2]-15 or Wrestling (A) DX [2]-16. Driving (Automo- bile or Motorcycle) and Stealth, both (A) DX-1 [1]-15; Armoury (Heavy Weapons or Small Arms) and Holdout, both (A) IQ+1 [4]-12; and Running (A) HT [2]-12.

Background Skills: Choose a 20-point lens (pp. 4-5). Computer Operation (E) IQ [1]-11.

* Multiplied for self-control number.

Choose your weapons! First, select a primary Guns skill. Options are Pistol, Shotgun, and SMG because most action games visit the city, where heavier firepower slaughters more bystanders than bad guys. The GM might permit Guns (Rifle) if there’s no assassin to upstage, or Guns (LMG) in a military game.

Background affects remaining choices:

Criminal: Gangsters favor common, easily replaced weapons. Top skills are Guns (Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun, and SMG), Fast-Draw, and Liquid Projector (Sprayer) for pepper spray. Archetypal background skills are Brawling and Intimidation.

Intelligence: Most trigger-happy “spies” are ex-military muscle. They’re encouraged to favor weapons that can be concealed and/or silenced, wielded with Guns (Pistol, Rifle, and SMG), Fast-Draw, and occasionally Crossbow or Liquid Projector. Lens skills such as Smuggling and Holdout help hide hardware, and Area Knowledge often explains why a gunman was retained.

Law Enforcement: A SWAT man. He’ll want Guns (Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun, and SMG), Guns (Grenade Launcher), and Throwing. Instead of using background points for more combat skills, buy decent levels of Observation and Tactics.

Military: Every soldier shoots, but the “heavy weapons man” knows some of Guns (Grenade Launcher, LAW, and LMG), Gunner (Cannon and Machine Gun), and Liquid Projector (Flamethrower). In the movies, he’s deadly with Knife and Spear (bayonets), trained at Tactics, and familiar with really heavy weapons – Artillery.

Security: Bodyguards lean toward concealable firepower – Guns (Pistol, Shotgun, and SMG), Fast-Draw, and Liquid Projector (Sprayer). Choice lens skills are Body Language (“Gun!”), First Aid, Holdout and Observation.

Transportation is a precise business. – Frank Martin, The Transporter

As E.B. White said, “Everything in life is somewhere else, and you get there in a car.” Sometimes you get there in a van, a chopper, or a rigid inflatable boat, but that maxim is a golden rule for action heroes. Whether you’re a lone transporter who moves high-value cargoes for a fee, or a chauffeur for gangsters, soldiers, or dignitaries, your stock in trade is the ride. You customize the vehicle, choose the routes, and sit behind the controls.

Attributes: ST 10 [0]; DX 14 [80]; IQ 13 [60]; HT 12 [20].

Secondary Characteristics: Damage 1d-2/1d; BL 20 lbs.; HP 10 [0]; Will 13 [0]; Per 14 [5]; FP 12 [0]; Basic Speed 7.00 [10]; Basic Move 6 [-5].

Advantages: Absolute Direction [5]; Driver’s Reflexes 4 [20]; Higher Purpose (Deliver the package) [5]; and Luck [15]. A further 30 points chosen from among lens advantages (pp. 4-5), ST +1 to +3 [10/level], DX +1 [20], IQ +1 [20], HT +1 to +3 [10/level], Per +1 to +6 [5/level], Basic Speed +1 [20], Acute Vision [2/level], Alcohol Tolerance [1], Artificer 1- 3 [10/level], Combat Reflexes [15], Danger Sense [15], Dare- devil [15], Enhanced Dodge 1-3 (Vehicular) [5 or 10/level], Fearlessness [2/level], Gizmos 1-3 [5/gizmo], Gun Perks [1/perk], Hard to Kill [2/level], Night Vision 1-9 [1/level], Peripheral Vision [15], Serendipity 1-2 [15/level], Signature Gear [Varies], Wild Talent 1 [20], improve Absolute Direc- tion [5] to 3D Spatial Sense [10] for 5 points, or replace Luck [15] with Extraordinary Luck [30] for 15 points.

Disadvantages: -20 points chosen from among Duty (Agency, mob, service, or similar; Extremely Hazardous; 9, 12, or 15 or less) [-10, -15, or -20], Greed [-15*], Honesty [-10*], Sense of Duty (Team) [-5], or Social Stigma (Criminal Record) [-5]. • Another -10 points chosen from among those traits or vehicle-related Compulsive Behavior (Modification, speed- ing, etc.) [-5*], Delusions (e.g., “I’m immortal in my car!”) [-5], Odious Personal Habits (e.g., “Nobody touches my ride!”) [-5 or -10], or Phobias (e.g., Leaving vehicle) [-10*]. • A further -15 points chosen from either of the previous lists or Bad Temper [-10*], Impulsiveness [-10*], Jealousy [-10], On the Edge [-15*], Overconfidence [-5*], or Stub- bornness [-5].

Primary Skills: Three of Boating (Motorboat), Driving (Auto- mobile, Heavy Wheeled, or Motorcycle), Piloting (Glider, Helicopter, Light Airplane, or Ultralight), or Submarine (Free-Flooding Sub), all (A) DX+4 [2]-18†. • Four of Artillery (Bombs, Guided Missile, or Torpedoes), Electron- ics Operation (Communications or Sensors), Freight Han- dling, or Mechanic (any), all (A) IQ [2]-13; Navigation (Air, Land, or Sea) (A) IQ+3 [2]-16‡; or 2 points to raise one of those skills by a level.

Secondary Skills: One of Boxing (A) DX [2]-14, Brawling (A) DX+1 [2]-15, or Karate (H) DX-1 [2]-13. • Either Judo (H) DX-1 [2]-13 or Wrestling (A) DX [2]-14. • Three of Gunner (Cannon, Machine Gun, or Rockets) or Guns (Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun, or Submachine Gun), all (E) DX+1 [2]-15. • Five of Parachuting (E) DX [1]-14; Stealth (A) DX-1 [1]-13; Area Knowledge (any) (E) IQ [1]-13; Cartography, Connoisseur (Cars), Machinist, Shadowing, or Smuggling, all (A) IQ-1 [1]-12; Scrounging (E) Per [1]-14; or 1 point to raise one of those skills by a level or buy any primary skill at one level lower.

Background Skills: Choose a 20-point lens. Com- puter Operation (E) IQ [1]-13.

* Multiplied for self-control number; see p. B120.

† Includes +4 for Driver’s Reflexes.

‡ Includes +3 for Absolute Direction.

Wheel men have many choices. Most want Driving and Mechanic – but some stories feature teams that travel by boat or plane, or vehicles fitted with fancy gadgets. Further considerations:

Criminal: Getaway drivers and “transporters” learn Driving, Freight Handling, and Navigation (Land); use personal weapons; and master Area Knowledge and Smuggling. Their top background skill is Urban Survival – to know where not to drive!

Intelligence: Spies occasionally need exotica like Submarine and Piloting (Glider), but mostly Driving. They’re adept at Electronics Operation, and know Artillery and Gunner for spy-car weapons! Pooling secondary and background points allows superior Shadowing and Smuggling.

Law Enforcement: Cops favor Driving specialties for the department’s motorcycles, cars, and vans, and/or Piloting for the chopper. Area Knowledge, Electronics Operation (Communications), and Shadowing are useful. Background points buy Observation (for stakeouts) and raise Guns to levels suitable for high-speed battles.

Military: Anything’s possible, but helicopter pilots enjoy a special place in action movies. Artillery, Electronics Operation, and Gunner– and Parachuting, for pilots – are common. Popular lens skills are Seamanship or Submariner to crew big vehicles, and Camouflage for when the squad disembarks to continue on foot.

Security: Most bodyguard teams include a chauffeur with Driving, Mechanic for reviving shot-up rides, and Area Knowledge and Navigation (Land) to pick routes. Savoir-Faire (Servant) and First Aid may be mandatory.

Okay, boss, this LTX-71 concealable mike is part of the same system that NASA used when they faked the Apollo Moon landings. – Mother, Sneakers

You’re the crew’s ears and eyes. Cameras, mikes, tracking beacons, wiretaps, lasers bounced off windows, optical fibers under doors… no act of electronic privacy invasion is too small. Small is good, actually, because it’s harder to see. When there’s nothing on CCTV, you entertain yourself rigging remote detonators for the demolition man, running cable for the hacker, and cutting power for the infiltrator. You’re truly a hotshot with the soldering gun.

Attributes: ST 10 [0]; DX 12 [40]; IQ 15 [100]; HT 11 [10].

Secondary Characteristics: Damage 1d-2/1d; BL 20 lbs.; HP 10 [0]; Will 15 [0]; Per 16 [5]; FP 11 [0]; Basic Speed 6.00 [5]; Basic Move 6 [0].

Advantages: Circuit Sense 4 [20]; Gizmos 1 [5]; Luck [15]; and Quick Gadgeteer (Solder and Duct Tape, -50%) [25]. • A fur- ther 30 points chosen from among lens advantages (pp. 4- 5), ST +1 to +3 [10/level], DX +1 [20], IQ +1 [20], HT +1 to +3 [10/level], Acute Hearing [2/level], Artificer 1-3 [10/level], Daredevil [15], Gizmos 2+ [5/gizmo], High Manual Dexter- ity 1-4 [5/level], Mathematical Ability 1-3 [10/level], Serend- ipity 1-2 [15/level], Signature Gear [Varies], Wild Talent 1 [20], or replace Luck [15] with Extraordinary Luck [30] for 15 points.

Disadvantages: -20 points chosen from among Duty (Agency, mob, service, or similar; 9, 12, or 15 or less) [-5, -10, or -15], Greed† [-15*], Honesty† [-10*], Secret (Illegal wire- taps, etc.) [-5 or -10], Sense of Duty (Team) [-5], or Social Stigma (Criminal Record)† [-5]. • Another -10 points cho- sen from among those traits or Curious [-5*], Clueless [-10], Delusion (“They are listening!”) [-5], Odious Per- sonal Habit (Nosy) [-5], Oblivious [-5], Trademark (Device or wiring scheme) [-5 or -10], or Workaholic [-5]. • A fur- ther -20 points chosen from either of the previous lists or Bad Temper [-10*], Cowardice [-10*], Impulsiveness [-10*], Overconfidence [-5*], Paranoia [-10], Post-Combat Shakes [-5*], Shyness [-5 or -10], Skinny [-5], Stubborn- ness [-5], or Trickster [-15*].

Primary Skills: Electrician, Electronics Operation (Communi- cations, Security, and Surveillance), and Electronics Repair (Communications, Security, and Surveillance), all (A) IQ+3 [1]-18‡. • Four of Electronics Operation (Media or Sensors) or Electronics Repair (Computers, Media, or Sensors), both (A) IQ+3 [1]-18‡; or 1 point to raise any primary skill by a level.

Secondary Skills: One of Boxing (A) DX [2]-12, Brawling (A) DX+1 [2]-13, or Karate (H) DX-1 [2]-11. • Either Judo (H) DX-1 [2]-11 or Wrestling (A) DX [2]-12. • Guns (Pistol) (E) DX [1]-12. • Computer Operation (E) IQ [1]-15. • Seven of Fast-Draw (Gizmo) or Forced Entry, both (E) DX [1]-12; Stealth (A) DX-1 [1]-11; Camouflage (E) IQ [1]-15; Holdout, Photography, Smuggling, or Traps all (A) IQ-1 [1]-14; Scrounging (E) Per [1]-16; Body Language, Lip Reading, Observation, or Search, all (A) Per-1 [1]-15; or 1 point to raise one of those skills by a level or buy a remaining pri- mary skill.

Background Skills: Choose a 20-point lens. • Driving (Automobile or Heavy Wheeled) (A) DX-1 [1]-11.

* Multiplied for self-control number.

† Honesty is for lawmen, and normally precludes Greed or Social Stigma (but not the Secret!).

‡ Includes +4 for Circuit Sense.

Customizing a wire rat means choosing primary specialties and secondary skills that complement some forte. For instance, a surveillance man boosts Surveillance specialties, learns Media specialties for tweaking recordings, and supplements this with Camouflage and Smuggling for concealing bugs, Photography for cameras, and Body Language, Lip Reading, and Observation to understand what he’s seeing. The cinematic geek, however, adds Media and Sensors specialties to primary skills, and learns Fast-Draw and Holdout for gizmos, Scrounging for finding parts, and Traps for digital surprises.

Likely background options:

Criminal: An expert at cutting power and defeating alarms requires Electrician skill and Security specialties at high levels to work quickly, plus physical lens skills: Filch, Forced Entry, Stealth, etc.

Intelligence: Spies are frequently surveillance experts. Combining secondary and background points allows high levels of Holdout (for “wiring” people) and Smuggling (for concealing vehicular tracking beacons). Shadowing – for prowling around in the surveillance van – is common.

Law Enforcement: Wiretap experts resemble spies, but SWAT teams also deploy wire rats in the field to scout criminal hideouts before raids. This activity calls for Stealth, and for background skills like Guns and Tactics.

Military: The squad “comms” expert has Communications specialties for radios, plus Sensors specialties for thermograph and radar. Background points go into effective Guns skills – and Forward Observer turns a radio into a deadly weapon.

Security: The intelligence and law enforcement notes apply, but security agents often specialize in countersurveillance, and train Search to high levels for finding bugs.

These templates offer Luck as a “mandatory” advantage. Players who find Daredevil or Serendipity a better match for their roleplaying style are welcome to spend the 15 points there instead. The point is that an action hero won’t last long unless he enjoys some brand of regular good fortune!

Also in the name of PC survival, the GM should seriously consider permitting Influencing Success Rolls and Flesh Wounds. If he does, players are advised to save some or all of the five points obtained from quirks as “unspent points” for use with those rules.

Gun-toting heroes often have a number of flashy perks. Below, an asterisk (*) indicates a cinematic perk for which Gunslinger is a prerequisite. Perks with a † require specialization by skill (usually a Guns spe- cialty) or by weapon, as noted. Akimbo*†: You’re not restricted by having two hands full of weapons. You can open doors, reload, and so forth without putting anything down. This doesn’t help you fight using a weapon in either hand. You must specialize by skill, most often Guns (Pistol). 1 point. Off-Hand Weapon Training†: You’ve practiced enough that you can ignore the -4 for using the “off” hand (see p. B14) with a particular one-handed skill. The -4 for a Dual-Weapon Attack (p. B417) still applies. This perk completely replaces the Off-Hand Weapon Training technique (p. B232). 1 point. One-Armed Bandit*†: You can operate a lever- or pump-action long arm one-handed and without chang- ing your grip. The gun’s RoF becomes 1. Roll against the appropriate Guns specialty before each shot. Fail- ure wastes your turn; treat it as a Do Nothing maneu- ver. Critical failure means you drop your weapon! 1 point. Pistol-Fist*†: You can roll against Guns (Pistol) to pistol-whip people (treat as a punch with brass knuck- les) and Guns/2 + 3 to parry melee attacks. 1 point. Weapon Bond†: You own a weapon that’s uniquely suited to you, and get +1 to effective skill when using it. This has nothing to do with quality – you’re just used to your weapon. If you lose the weapon, you lose this perk! You may start play with a bond to any weapon you’ve bought with cash or as Signature Gear, most often a gun. 1 point.

ACTION-MOVIE ADVANTAGES Some advantages work differently or come in new varieties in action campaigns. Enhanced Dodge see p. B51 Enhanced Dodge costs 15 points/level because you can dodge any number of times and require no equipment to do so. Versions that work only once per turn, or that require expen- sive gear (like a BMW 750i E38), are cheaper: Enhanced Dodge (Dive for Cover): You get an extra +1 to Dodge when you dive for cover (p. B377) to escape an explo- sion. 5 points/level. Enhanced Dodge (Vehicular): You have +1 to vehicular Dodge (p. B375). You may take this for a particular vehicle- operation skill (5 points/level) or for all vehicles (10 points/level). Gunslinger see p. B58 In action games, the Gunslinger advantage gives these extra benefits: • While you can’t add your gun’s Acc bonus when you Move and Attack, you can ignore its Bulk penalty and any extra penalties the GM assesses for jumping or acrobatics on foot. You ignore Bulk even while leaping between rooftops and div- ing through windows! • Also ignore the rules for Bulk in close combat (p. B391). You don’t get your Acc bonus in close, but never suffer a Bulk penalty there. • When firing a gun with RoF 2-4, you can spread your shots between targets without using Spraying Fire (p. B409). Each attack is at -3 against two targets, -6 against three, or -9 against four. • Halve all Fast-Draw (Ammo) penalties. You can easily reload while moving, crouching behind cover, etc. Higher Purpose see p. B59 The medic and wheel man templates offer Higher Purpose advantages: Higher Purpose (Deliver the package): In an action scene, you get +1 to all success rolls made to ferry an important cargo or passenger: vehicular skill and Dodge rolls, Mechanic rolls to repair breakdowns, HT rolls to remain conscious at the wheel, etc. Higher Purpose (“Medic!”): In an action scene, you get +1 to all success rolls made to aid injured allies: Dodge and movement skill rolls to reach them under fire, HT rolls to stay conscious on your way there, medical skill rolls to patch them up, etc. Quick Gadgeteer see p. B57 Cinematic hackers and wire rats buy this advantage with Accessibility limitations. In all cases, the hero can use Time Spent (p. B346) to further reduce the listed times. He can try a roll at -10 to perform a task instantly – often with a swift kick! H4xx0r: You don’t truly invent, but you can improvise solutions to computer-related problems. Minor tasks take 10 minutes and a skill roll: Computer Operation to link any two computers, however dated or incompatible; Computer Pro- gramming to reprogram any robot, missile, or similar machine using its built-in keypad; Cryptography to design a completely new cipher (normally takes a day); or Electronics Repair (Computers) to fix any computer that hasn’t been utterly destroyed. Creating something from parts takes an hour and a skill roll – use Computer Programming to adapt any program to do a similar task (e.g., transform Quake into targeting software), or Electronics Repair to assemble a com- puter good enough to avoid equipment penalties, provided you have electronics to cannibalize. Writing a program from noth- ing takes you a night (12 hours, for the literal-minded) and a Computer Programming roll, and yields software that does whatever the plot calls for (subject to GM permission). -50%. Solder and Duct Tape: You’re an ace with electrical and elec- tronic devices other than computers. Ordinary repairs (e.g., fix- ing a cell phone dropped in water) or improvising a device from appropriate parts (e.g., a bug from a cell phone – or almost anything, if you have access to a fully stocked shop) takes 10 minutes and a roll against the most relevant Electron- ics Repair specialty. Extraordinary repairs (e.g., fixing a phone crushed by a car) and improvising from inappropriate parts (e.g., a bug from a calculator) work identically, but take an hour. -50%. Talent see p. B89 A few new Talents suit action heroes. These are shamelessly contrived to fit action roles and thus unlikely to be balanced in realistic campaigns! Born to Be Wired: Computer Hacking, Computer Operation, Computer Programming, Cryptography, Electronics Repair (Computers), and Expert Skill (Computer Security). Reaction bonus: hackers; people buying stock in your dot-com. 5 points/level. Circuit Sense: Electrician, Electronics Operation, Electron- ics Repair, and – in games that use them – Engineer (Electrical and Electronics). Reaction bonus: anyone you use your skills for. 5 points/level. Craftiness: Acting, Camouflage, Disguise, Holdout, Shadow- ing, and Stealth. Reaction bonus: none! 5 points/level. Driver’s Reflexes: Boating, Driving, Piloting, and Submarine. Reaction bonus: passengers; gamblers betting on you at the Grand Prix. 5 points/level.

Disadvantage Limit

It isn’t fun to saddle heroes with endless problems in over-the-top action games. Disadvantages serve mostly to give the PCs obstacles that they can overcome in order to look good. For instance, most real-life people find Lecherousness offensive, but in action movies, it’s almost endearing – and when the hero overcomes his problem, the action is that much more dramatic. The GM should consider using the following optional rule: Ham Clause: The player can voluntarily inflict one of his PC’s disadvantages on him during a pivotal action scene (chase, gunfight, etc.), where this would make sense. In the absence of specific effects, all success rolls during that scene are at -1 per -5 points (or fraction thereof) of disadvantages. The GM should then consider the problem roleplayed for the session, ignoring its usual game mechanics. For instance, in a gunfight at the mall, the player of a hero with Lecherousness (12) [-15] could declare, “I’ll bet there’s a hottie in the crowd. I’m going to show off!” and fight the battle at -3. After that, the GM should give him the benefit of the doubt when the attrac- tive police sergeant shows up . . . Since disadvantages can be controlled like this – and shouldn’t burden true action heroes much in any event – they effectively increase campaign power level. As such, the GM should impose a limit. A suggestion is -50 points of dis- advantages and reduced attributes or secondary character- istics, regardless of power level, plus -5 points in quirks.

There are certain things that it’s hard to imagine an action hero being unable to do, but that require skills in GURPS. To avoid embarrassing situations where a slick operator is reduced to default rolls, be sure to put at least a point into each of the following: • Computer Operation: In movies made and set in the 1990s and 2000s, only heroes whose shtick is “rabid techno- phobe” can’t use computers. In particular, this is the skill to use for a simple web search; save Research for serious cyber-stalking. • Driving: Many real-life urbanites do without wheels, but no action hero would be caught without the ability to drive. The typical specialty is one of Automobile, Heavy Wheeled, or Motorcycle. • Guns (Pistol): While not all action is fighting, even the mousiest hackers and wire rats can fire handguns well enough to justify a point in this skill. • Stealth: When the team sneaks around as a group, it can only do so as well as its least-stealthy member.

The GM is advised to limit Incompetence (p. B164) to the above skills (for Driving and Guns, this punishes every specialty!) and the primary skills on a hero’s template.

SPECIALTIES Many high-tech skills require specialization (p. B169). The GM is welcome to ignore specialties to simplify the game – but it’s generally wise to enforce them in order to give each team member his own niche. However, a few skills need only a small subset of their usual specialties in an action game: Animal Handling: The Dogs specialty is useful around guard, police, and sniffer dogs. Few other specialties matter (although Pigs is handy for disposing of corpses). Armoury: Typical action heroes mainly need the Heavy Weapons and Small Arms specialties. Boating: Zodiacs and other small landing craft often appear in action movies, and call for the Motorboat specialty. Other specialties are primarily hobby skills. Driving: Automobile (cars), Heavy Wheeled (trucks), and Motorcycle (bikes) are the specialties of major importance. Electronics Operation: Common action-movie specialties are Communications (for radios), Media (for manipulating photos and recordings), Security (for alarms), Sensors (for radars, thermographs, etc.), and Surveillance (for wiretaps, miniature cameras, etc.). Electronics Repair: As Electronics Operation, but add the Computers specialty. Engineer: Only the Combat specialty sees regular use in the field. Expert Skill: Hackers need Computer Security to defeat rivals. Medics likely to face terrorist bioweapons require Epidemiology. Nonmilitary heroes who want to recognize military weapons and vehicles should learn Military Science. Law: The Police specialty – to avoid procedural errors during arrests and searches – is the sole area of importance to PCs (as opposed to NPC lawyers). Mechanic: The specialties corresponding to the Boating, Driving, Piloting, and Submarine skills named here are most relevant. Piloting: Glider, Helicopter, Light Airplane, and Ultralight are the usual specialties for small aircraft. A pilotmight want High-Performance Airplane on the off chance that someone leaves a jet fighter sitting around, Tomorrow Never Dies-style. Riding: Only the Horse and Camel specialties are com- monly available in modern settings. Submarine: The Free-Flooding Sub specialty is needed to handle the large “swimmer delivery vehicles” used by naval commandos (small ones use Scuba). FAMILIARITY Simply ignore Familiarity (p. B169) in an action game. In the movies, every action hero knows how to shoot just about every gun within his specialties, drive any car he hops into, and so on. DEFAULTS Defaults between skills are a complication best ignored in an action game. However, since experts at Driving, Explosives, Gunner, Guns, and Piloting tend to know multiple specialties of those skills, defaults between those are worth using! For instance, the Light Machine Gun (LMG), Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun, and Submachine Gun (SMG) specialties of Guns all default to each other at -2. Action heroes generally improve one to a high level and raise the others from default (p. B173). Example: Victor has Guns (Pistol) at DX+3, for 8 points. This gives him all the other common Guns specialties at DX+1 – the 2-point level – for “free.” If he decides to learn Guns (Rifle) and Guns (SMG) at DX+3, too, he can save 2 points on each and buy that level for 6 points per skill. The templates on pp. 7-16 already consider inter-specialty defaults, where applicable.

The skill table (pp. 20-22) and templates (pp. 7-16) include only a subset of the skills in the Basic Set. That’s still lots of skills! The GM who’s just learning GURPS or running the game for new players, or who finds it tedious to match skills to tasks and doesn’t have Action 2: Exploits for advice, may want to simplify. One way to do this is with wildcard skills (p. B175). Below is a wildcard skill for each template. Find the wild- card skill that matches the template, remove the ordinary skills

it covers and their supporting Talents (Born to Be Wired, Cir- cuit Sense, Craftiness, Driver’s Reflexes, Healer, and Smooth Operator) from the template, and spend the points originally assigned to those things on as much of the wildcard skill as they’ll buy. Use leftover points however you like! Assassin! (DX). Replaces Fast-Draw (Knife and Pistol), Garrote, Knife, and Stealth. Doesn’t stand in for ranged weapon skills in general, but for aimed or surprise shots out of combat, the assassin can roll against the higher of this skill or his combat skill with any ranged weapon. Make an IQ-based roll for Acting, Camouflage, Disguise, Holdout, Poisons, Shad- owing, or Smuggling, or a Per-based roll for Tracking. Cleaner! (IQ). Replaces Camouflage, Freight Handling, Holdout, Housekeeping, and Smuggling – and also Animal Handling, Chemistry, Electronics Operation, Explosives, Forgery, and Hazardous Materials whenever the objective is to doctor evidence, dispose of it, or create fake records legitimiz- ing it. Make a Per-based roll for Search or Tracking, or a DX- based roll for Stealth. Demolition Man! (IQ). Replaces Engineer (Combat), Explosives (any), and Traps; Architecture and Mechanic when planting bombs in buildings and vehicles, respectively; Armoury (any), Artillery (any), and Expert Skill (Military Sci- ence) when dealing with explosive weapons; Chemistry to man- ufacture explosives; and Smuggling to hide bombs. Make a Per-based roll for Search to find a hidden bomb. Make a DX- based roll to attack with Guns (Grenade Launcher and LAW), or to chuck hand grenades with Throwing. Face Man! (IQ). Replaces Acting, Diplomacy, Fast-Talk, Gambling, Leadership, Merchant, Propaganda, Public Speak- ing, and Savoir-Faire – and Administration and Psychology for the purpose of social manipulation. Make a DX-based roll for Dancing, a HT-based roll for Carousing or Sex Appeal, a Will- based roll for Intimidation, or a Per-based roll for Body Lan- guage or Detect Lies. Hacker! (IQ). Replaces Computer Hacking, Computer Operation, Computer Programming, Cryptography, Electron- ics Repair (Computers), and Expert Skill (Computer Security). Can also stand in for Accounting, Cartography, Forgery, Research, or Speed-Reading when creating, seeking, reading, or altering digital files via computer – but not when working with printed or written records! Infiltrator! (DX). Replaces Acrobatics, Climbing, Escape, Filch, Forced Entry, Jumping, and Stealth – and Knot-Tying and Throwing for climbing lines and grapnels. Make an IQ- based roll for Camouflage, Electronics Operation (Security), or Lockpicking, or to exploit Architecture or Cartography to plan a robbery. Make Per-based rolls to use Traps to detect security devices and IQ-based rolls to disarm them – but never to set traps. Investigator! (IQ). Replaces Criminology, Electronics Operation (Surveillance), Forensics, Intelligence Analysis, Interrogation, Photography, Research, and Shadowing; Accounting and Speed-Reading when the objective is to spot irregularities in records; and Computer Operation when accessing DMV records, fingerprint libraries, Interpol data- bases, etc. Make a Per-based roll for Body Language, Detect Lies, Lip Reading, Observation, Search, or Tracking. Medic! (IQ). Replaces Diagnosis, Expert Skill (Epidemiol- ogy), Hazardous Materials (Biological), Pharmacy, Physician, Poisons, Psychology, Surgery – and also Chemistry when dealing with drugs, Forensics when conducting an autopsy, and Naturalist to know what toxin or venom is afflicting someone. Shooter! (DX). Replaces all Crossbow, Gunner, Guns, and Liquid Projector skills, plus associated Fast-Draw specialties. Also covers any use of Acrobatics, Jumping, or Stealth to move around in a gunfight, counts as Brawling when slugging some- one with a pistol, works as Forced Entry when shooting locks and doors, and stands in for Throwing when hurling a hand grenade or an empty handgun at enemies (or a loaded weapon to an ally!). Make an IQ-based roll for Armoury to get a gun working again. Wheel Man! (DX). Replaces Boating, Driving, Piloting, and Submarine specialties for vehicles small enough for one per- son to operate; any Gunner skill needed to fire built-in weapons on such rides; and Parachuting to bail out. Make an IQ-based roll for Artillery (any) or Electronics Operation (any) for vehicular systems, Freight Handling to pack a vehicle, Mechanic to make repairs, Navigation to plot a course, or Shadowing to follow someone in a vehicle. Wire Rat! (IQ). Replaces Electrician and all Electronics Operation and Electronics Repair specialties, and any use of Camouflage, Holdout, Smuggling, or Traps to hide an elec- tronic device such as an alarm, beacon, or bug. Make a Per- based roll for Search or Traps when the objective is to find such a gizmo, and for any use of Scrounging to locate parts.

==== WHEN NOT TO USE WILDCARD SKILLS ====

While complex, skill diversity is often appropriate. Lone action heroes need to be broadly capable, but stories about teams stress the depth of individual expertise to justify the large crew. Plots turn on each colleague being trained at diverse technical tasks that the others can’t do. Moreover, skill distinctions are key characterization ele- ments in action stories where multiple heroes fill similar roles. Consider three detectives: a thinker who focuses on criminol- ogy and research, a techie who stalks suspects using micro- phones and cameras, and a spokeswoman who grills people and watches their reactions. If they’re all meant to be skilled investigators – not an investigator, a wire rat, and a face woman – then it’s vital not to gloss over their differences. Thus, the GM is advised not to use wildcard skills for crews of more than three PCs and/or teams where everyone has a similar role.

Action heroes frequently work for intelligence, law-enforce- ment, military, or security services. Normally, either all or none of them will be active operators, although they might not all serve the same master; details depend on the campaign. Employees of such organizations can buy social advantages (see Lenses, pp. 4-5) that entitle them to ask their employers for assistance. To get help, the person asking must be in good standing with his organization – that is, he has to have and honor a Duty to his employer at the “9 or less” level or above, and hold Rank. Rank 0 counts! It costs 0 points, but it isn’t the same as no Rank. Somebody with no Rank has no Duty . . . and no chance of receiving aid. The chance on 3d of getting assistance, the Assistance Roll (AR), depends on Rank; see the Assistance Table. If several PCs with the same boss need help, roll once for the person of high- est Rank, adding 1/5 of the total Rank of the others (rounded down) to his Rank. For instance, a Rank 3 spy, two Rank 2 agents, and a Rank 1 operative would roll as if their Rank were 3 + (2 + 2 + 1)/5 = 4. If an NPC preauthorized aid for the mission, use his Rank (usually 5+) instead. In this case, the GM may fake the roll. It might be crucial to the plot that help arrives – or that a double- crossing NPC hangs the heroes out to dry!

Assistance Table Rank 0* 12345†6†7†8† Assistance Roll 35791011121314 * Heroes with Intelligence or Military Rank must have a Duty to claim Rank 0+; those with Police or Security Rank require Duty and Legal Enforcement Powers. † Starting PCs can’t buy Rank 5+ but can be promoted there in play (GM’s option).

MODIFIERS Odds of assistance are low for junior operators – even in a sizeable team – but an AR is a success roll, subject to Luck and Buying Success (p. B347). Several bonuses may apply, too. Of course, there may be penalties, and if modified AR falls below 3, there’s no chance of success! • Person requesting aid has Smooth Operator: +Talent.* • Person requesting aid makes Administration skill roll: +2 for critical success, +1 for success, -1 for failure, or -2 for criti- cal failure.* • Previous requests by team this adventure: -1 per AR after first. • Request especially appropriate to situation: +1 to +5.† • Request especially inappropriate to situation: -1 to -10, and failure by 10+ or critical failure means disciplinary action.† •Specific modifiers: See Sample Assistance (below) for modifiers that apply instead of or as well as those for appropriateness. * Administration works only in situations with paperwork; Smooth Operator, only in person. Neither applies when requesting help over the phone or radio! † The GM judges what’s appropriate or inappropriate. A wounded Military Rank 0 soldier might get +5 when shouting for medevac, while even a Rank 8 general would have -10 to request a nuclear strike “just because.” SAMPLE ASSISTANCE The players should limit their requests to things that suit action-movie realism – and the GM should occasionally reward cooperation by awarding +1 to +5 to the AR, or by fudg- ing the roll and having help just show up, if that would be more fun. Beyond what’s reasonable, though, is what’s possible. This list isn’t exhaustive, but it’s a good start: Aerial Surveillance: Helicopter arrives in 1d+10 minutes, or 1d hours outside city. Crew report what they see in real time over the radio. Backup: NPCs at most equal to the PCs in number arrive qui- etly in 1d+10 minutes, or in 1d hours outside the city. They have a few relevant skills – Driving, First Aid, Guns, etc. – at level 10-15 (1d+9), and carry handguns. Bailout: Heroes arrested by police while following orders or who have 15-point Legal Enforcement Powers can “get out of jail free” with a successful AR. Results take 10 min- utes in home jurisdiction but 3d hours in another (friendly) jurisdiction. Base Access: Permission to enter a military base other than the soldiers’ post. Roll at the gate, at +5 unless it’s a secret base or one for a service different from the heroes’. Cash: Collected in person or comes by courier in one day. Maximum $100 at Rank 0, $300 at Rank 1, $1,000 at Rank 2, $3,000 at Rank 3, $10,000 at Rank 4, $30,000 at Rank 5, $100,000 at Rank 6, $300,000 at Rank 7, or $1,000,000 at Rank 8. Multiply by 10 if it’s for show and will be returned.

Disappearance: “Authorization” to make an illegal arrest. The PCs must do the dirty work – this just guarantees that they’ll get a holding cell and no legal trouble. AR is at -5 if target isn’t a known terrorist. Takes at least 1d hours to set up. Facilities: Access to the best-quality computer, lab, machine shop, etc., where the heroes can use appropriate skills at +4. This is only possible in person, in home territory, for facili- ties that make sense (e.g., cops can access an auto garage but not code-breaking supercomputers). False ID: A temporary identity (p. B31), ready in one day. Files: Dossiers, manuals, maps, etc. Collect in person, take electronic delivery in 1d minutes, or wait a day for a courier. Fire Support: Air or artillery strike, starting 1d minutes after the call unless preplanned. AR is at -5 outside a combat zone or -10 in friendly territory! Forensics: Autopsy, crime-scene analysis, DNA test, etc., con- ducted on request. Report comes in a day, electronically or by courier. Insertion/Extraction: Clandestine drop or pickup via helicop- ter, sub, etc. Time varies from 1d+10 minutes for loitering support to a day or more if called in cold. Medevac: Ambulance for urban operators or chopper for sol- diers. Typically arrives in 1d+10 minutes, but may take 1d hours or worse in remote areas. AR is at +5 to +10 under legitimate circumstances. Records Search: An appropriate database search – DMV for a city cop, Interpol for a federal agent, etc. Collect it in per- son, take electronic delivery in 1d minutes, or wait a day for a courier. Replacement Gear: Anything standard-issue for organization and mission. Collect it in person or wait a day for a courier (or 1d days for a big item like a vehicle). Military personnel (only) can get an airdrop in the field in just 1d hours. Safe House: A structure outside friendly territory, unknown to the opposition, checked for bugs, and stocked with food and medical supplies. It takes a phone call to get the address. The building might be 3d miles away in town, or in the nearest big city if the heroes are in the countryside. SWAT: As backup (above), but with body armor and rifles, and not quiet. AR is at -5 if made “just because,” +5 if the brass sent the heroes into a dangerous situation. Technical Means: Communications intercepts for a specific target, plaintext of a code broken on a supercomputer, satel- lite recon of a specific locale, etc. AR is often at -1 to -5. Success means the data arrive electronically or by courier in a day. Real-time drone surveillance takes only 1d hours to set up if available. Transportation: Ordinary commercial transportation relevant to mission. Can usually be arranged almost in real time over the phone! Warrant: A legal warrant to search premises, plant wiretaps (-5 to AR if the target isn’t a known criminal or terrorist), etc. Arrangements take 1d hours at day but 1d+8 hours at night (fewer judges!). Availability by Service Intelligence: Cash (to buy information); facilities; false ID; files (dossiers on enemy spies, maps, etc.); insertion/extraction; replacement gear; safe house; technical means; transportation. Law Enforcement: Aerial surveillance; backup; bailout; cash (for bribes); facilities; files (case report, criminal jacket, etc.); forensics; medevac; records search; replacement gear; SWAT; transportation; warrant. Military: Base access; files (maps, technical manuals, etc.); facilities; fire support; insertion/extraction; medevac; replace- ment gear; technical means; transportation. Security: Aerial surveillance; backup; bailout; disappear- ance (requires 15-point Legal Enforcement Powers); facilities; files (dossiers on terrorists); forensics; medevac; records search; replacement gear; SWAT; transportation; warrant.

RESULTS OF SUCCESS If the heroes requested information (files, forensics, records search, etc.), treat their organization as though it were a Con- tact Group (p. B44) with effective skill 18, and make a skill roll. Success means the PCs get what they need. Reliability is “Somewhat Reliable” – if the skill roll fails, those at home base draw a blank. On a skill roll of 18, someone decides that the request was above the PCs’ clearance or pay grade! Instead of aid, their service’s equivalent of Internal Affairs or CID shows up to complicate the adventure. If the heroes asked for anything more substantial (backup, cash, transportation, etc.), their employer serves as a Patron (p. B72). Treat it as a “powerful organization” in all cases – the CIA or USMC might outclass the LAPD, but individuals and squads can at most reach one or two steps up the chain of command.

This advantage’s benefits apply when the user is in his jurisdiction (one city or county for 5 points, a nation for 10 or 15 points) and conducting himself properly (showing his badge, demanding surrender before shooting, etc.). In the movies, this lets heroes get away with many things that would land most people – even card-carrying spies and sol- diers – in hot water. Simply flashing his badge and deliver- ing a canned speech gives him +3 to all reaction or Influence rolls made to order ordinary citizens to step aside, hand over a vehicle, tell him which way the bad guy went, etc. Other authorities won’t hassle him when he pulls a concealed weapon or when the bad guy he’s fighting falls three stories onto a noodle cart; in fact, he gets the same +3 to convince them to help! None of this requires an Assistance Roll. Benefits of the 15-point version over the 10-point one are that it lets the agent engineer a bailout regardless of what he was arrested for, arrange for people to disappear, and request access to sinister facilities like brainwashing chambers. These things do require an AR. He can conduct searches and plant bugs without making an AR for a war- rant, however. Again, none of this has much to do with real life. It’s just how things work in the movies!

Action heroes love their stuff. GURPS High-Tech is the cat- alog of modern-day kit (including lots of guns) – serious action fans will want that book. Below is a summary of key items. It’s useful even to gamers who own the Basic Set and High-Tech, because it pre-calculates, simplifies, and/or updates numerous stats. Tech Level: GURPS Action apes movies set in the 1990s and 2000s, so it assumes TL8 gear and skills. While TL8 starts in 1980, many of its iconic gadgets weren’t available in the 80s. Still, the equipment list is probably suitable for technothriller games set in the 80s, since such stories feature cutting-edge gadgetry. The GM may make electronics like cell phones and targeting lasers 50% to 100% heavier in early TL8 campaigns. Batteries: Tracking detailed power usage isn’t much fun in an action game. Assume that the heroes start each excursion from HQ with fresh batteries – and that most noncombat gadg- ets have adapters for mains current. Battery failure is a com- mon plot device, though, so durations appear for hardware that runs down batteries quickly. A team willing to buy and carry $3 and 1 lb. of spare cells per team member per day away from base can avoid this fate.

GURPS Action assumes that heroes don’t normally buy gear with starting money. They can live in whatever style they like “off the clock” – watch three cop movies and you’ll see three officers at the same pay grade living in a shotgun shack, a houseboat, and a fancy condo, all of whom never- theless have virtually the same equipment. Watch a mili- tary action movie and you won’t even see the soldiers’ home lives! Thus, most PCs shouldn’t take Wealth (p. B25) other than Average. Instead, there are other options. Budgets In most action games, the heroes draw their gear from their organization – it isn’t theirs, but their employer’s. Even criminals follow this rule; the equipment (no doubt the avails of crime) belongs to the crew, and personal kit is off-limits because it’s easily traced. Thus, most teams have a budget. The GM sets this figure, but here’s a suggestion: Starting Budget: $20,000 ¥ (number of PCs on team). Replacement Budget: $4,000 ¥ (number of PCs on team). Starting budget buys the crew’s initial gear. If the heroes hold Rank, everyone creates a “wish list” but the team member of highest Rank makes the final call. If there’s no leader or no Rank, the GM should let each PC spend an equal share – but everyone should set aside something to pool for major expenses, notably vehicles. Replacement budget becomes available at the start of the second and later adventures. It’s used to replenish ammunition, replace destroyed vehicles, and acquire spe- cialized tools to meet new challenges. Spending it works the same way. Budgets aren’t cash but the nominal value of the squad’s hardware. Holding a fraction for later, discretionary use is fine – but this represents departmental pull, a note with Guido the Fence, etc., not money. Signature Gear Heroes may pay 1 point per $10,000 in Signature Gear (p. B85). This stuff is personal – usually distinctive hardware such as Ferraris and very fine .50-caliber rifles. It comes with the standard promise from the GM that you won’t often be without it, plus one of these guarantees: • If you’re a private citizen (criminal, mercenary, PI, etc.), your foes can’t trace it, in the tradition of cinematic gangsters with extraordinary firearms and cars that would be instantly recognizable in reality. • If you belong to an organization, your bosses won’t hassle you about non-issue gear. (Harry Callahan’s .44 Magnum probably wasn’t department-issue!) Personal Wealth Those who don’t belong to a team – true independents who bankroll their own operations – do buy gear out of pocket and can take Wealth as usual. They’re at no disad- vantage against other PCs: starting money is $20,000 in a modern-day game, the same as the default budget, for 0 points. Heroes on a team with a budget who insist on buying personal gear should be allowed to do so. However, the guarantees of Signature Gear are then reversed: • Privately owned gear is traceable. If you keep it after using it for espionage, a heist, etc., you acquire a Trade- mark for which you receive no points. Anyone investigat- ing you gets +2 to skill. If they catch up with you, and what you did is illegal, the evidence may convict you. • If you belong to an organization, your bosses will has- sle you for using non-issue gear. Assistance Rolls are at -2 because you’re a troublemaker. If you’re a cop, you suffer -2 to Law (Police) rolls made to keep your police work admissible in court. If caught with the gear, your options are confiscation or resignation. Pocket Money In any campaign, ignore salaries and cost of living, and assume that each PC has $2,000/month for bribes, donuts, etc., should it matter. Players who want to take above-aver- age Wealth to improve this may do so. S

Heroes can obtain most reusable equipment (not single-use items like explosives!) with several modifiers – all “stackable” except as noted, but not all available for every gadget. Each modifier notes a “cost factor” (CF). To find final cost, multiply list cost by (1 + total CF); e.g., a cutting-edge (+1 CF), rugged (+1 CF) camera is 1 + 1 + 1 = 3 times cost. Weight effects mul- tiply together; e.g., that camera has 0.8 times weight. Cutting-Edge: Made of the latest materials. Multiply weight by 2/3. Any item: +1 CF. Disguised: The item resembles something else of similar shape; e.g., handcuffs that look like a chunky bracelet. Discov- ering the hidden function requires a Search roll. Any item: +4 CF. Fine-Quality*: Gives +2 to operation skill, or adds +2 to existing modifier. If quality affects weight, ¥20 weight. Any item but labs or tool kits (their bonus depends on size): +19 CF. Good-Quality*: Gives +1 to operation skill, or adds +1 to existing modifier. If quality affects weight, ¥5 weight. Any item but labs or tool kits: +4 CF. Rugged: Shockproof and waterproof, giving +2 to rolls to avoid breakage, water damage, etc. Multiply weight by 1.2. Any item: +1 CF. Styled: Hand-tooled, gold-plated, etc. Gives a reaction or Influence roll bonus if the item is the focus of the action. Any item: +1 bonus for +1 CF, +2 for +4 CF, and +3 for +9 CF. * Good- and fine-quality are mutually exclusive. ARSON AND DEMOLITION Explosives gear requires Explosives (Demolition). To multi- ply explosives damage by N, use (N ¥ N) times as much; e.g., to quadruple the damage for dynamite, use 16 sticks. Anybody can commit arson, but roll vs. Explosives to avoid unintended disasters. Blasting Caps. Needed to trigger explosives! Choose fuse (requires fire) or electrical wire (requires exploder, remote, or timer). Each does 1d-2 cr ex by itself. Six: $10, 0.25 lb. Cigarette Lighter. $10, neg. Dynamite. 80% nitro. Does 9d+1 cr ex damage. Stick: $5, 0.5 lb. Exploder. Can detonate up to 50 blasting caps wired to it. $50, 0.75 lb. Extrudable Explosive. For squeezing into a door’s seams and locks. Detonation does 7d cr ex, and inflicts the maximum 42 points on the door! Tube: $10, 0.3 lb. Gasoline. Gallon: $3, 6 lbs. Plastique. Detected at -8 by dogs, chemical sensors, etc. Does 5d¥3 cr ex damage. Self-adhesive block: $40, 1.25 lb. Remote. Matched transmitter-receiver pair can detonate blasting cap at 5 miles. $50, 1 lb. Thermite. Burns hot enough to cut steel. Does 3d burn/sec- ond to anything touching it, treating all DR as semi-ablative! Burns for 25 seconds. Application: $40, 1 lb. Timer. Electronic clock can detonate blasting cap at speci- fied time. $25, 0.5 lb. BURGLAR’S TOOLS Heroes use this gear for stealthy break-ins, although much of it also has legitimate applications. Less-stealthy operators should also see Tools (p. 30). Circle Cutter. Suction cup-mounted blade removes a perfect circle of glass (window, display case, etc.) on a Forced Entry-6 roll. Failure breaks glass noisily. $140, 1 lb.

Drill, Cordless. For drilling holes for endoscopes and pin- head mikes. Does 1d+2(2) pi++ per second (per 5 seconds if being stealthy). Runs for 30 minutes. $50, 2 lbs. Files, Diamond. Carbide teeth can quietly cut a hasp, pad- lock, etc., in (DR + HP)/2 minutes. Set: $35, 1 lb. Hydraulic Door Opener. Hand-pumped jack silently forces doors. Each use (takes 3 seconds) inflicts 10d cr damage on the door. $1,500, 9 lbs. Lockpicks. Basic equipment for Lockpicking. Quality affects weight. $50, 0.1 lb. Lockpicks, Electronic. Basic equipment for Electronics Operation (Security) to defeat electronic locks and security sys- tems. $1,500, 3 lbs. Search Endoscope. Passed through a hole in a safe or a door, this lets the user view the lock mechanism: +2 to Lockpicking. $1,500, 2 lbs. Stethoscope, Electronic. Basic equipment for Lockpicking when cracking safes. $300, 0.4 lb. Wire Cutters. Do 2d(2) cut to cables, barbed wire, etc. $30, 2 lbs. COMBAT ACCESSORIES Sights and scopes cannot be made higher-quality to raise Acc or skill bonus. Holsters and slings are improvable; the bonus aids Fast-Draw or Holdout (never both). Earmuffs. Give Protected Hearing. $100, 1 lb. Gas Mask. Gives Filter Lungs, Immunity to Eye/Nose Irri- tants, and DR 2 on the eyes and face – but also No Sense of Smell/Taste and No Peripheral Vision. $250, 2 lbs. Goggles, Tactical. Give Nictitating Membrane 5. $100, neg.

Holster, Belt. For pistols. $25, 0.5 lb. Holster, Shoulder. For pistols. Enables Holdout, but gives -1 to Fast-Draw. $50, 1 lb. Holster, Sleeve. Spring-loaded gizmo delivers a pistol of Bulk 0 or -1 on a Fast-Draw (Pistol) roll. Entire combo has only -2 to Holdout. $500, 0.5 lb. Holster, Undercover. Conceals a pistol: +1 to Holdout, -1 to Fast-Draw. $125, 1 lb. Load-Bearing Vest. Carries 20 lbs. of small articles. Readying an item takes a Ready maneuver – or is a free action with a suitable Fast-Draw roll. Quality bonuses affect DX and Fast- Draw rolls to reach items. $30, 2 lbs. (add $150, 3 lbs. for built- in flotation: +6 to Swimming rolls to avoid drowning). Scope, Thermal Imaging. Gives +2 Acc and Infravision. Runs for 2 hours. $10,000, 1 lb. Scopes. Give +1 to +5 Acc after aiming for seconds equal to bonus. Also gather light (remove -1 from darkness penalties) but interfere with quick shots (-1 to Bulk). $150 per +1 Acc (max. +5), 1 lb. Sight, Night. Adds Night Vision 7 to the benefits of another scope or sight. $1,500, 1 lb. Sight, Reflex. “Red dot” sight gives +1 to Guns out to 300 yards and negates up to -3 in darkness penalties. Not cumula- tive with targeting laser! $550, 0.25 lb. Silencers. Give -1 to -4 to hear the gun fire, but also -1 to Bulk. $250 per -1 to Hearing (max. -4), 1 lb. (pistol or SMG) or 1.5 lbs. (most rifles); silencer for a .50 rifle gives -2 to Bulk and is $400 per -1, 5 lbs. Tactical Lights. Small: Any gun; 25-yard beam for 2 hours. $100, 0.25 lb. Large: Any gun but pistol; 100-yard beam for 2 hours. $200, 0.5 lb. Tactical Sling. Drop your shoulder arm without losing it! Retrieve it with a Ready maneuver or a Fast-Draw (Long Arm) roll at +1. Can also be used to brace during Aim, for the usual +1. $50, 2 lbs. Targeting Lasers. Give +1 to Guns out to a certain range. Sidearm: 150 yards. $150, 0.25 lb. Long Arm: 750 yards. $750, 0.5 lb. COMMUNICATORS Make an Electronics Operation (Communications) roll if there’s reason to doubt that the signal will get through. Laser Comm. Tight-beam infrared communicator can’t be intercepted by radio! 1-mile range. Runs for 4 hours. $1,000, 0.75 lb. Phone, Cell. Higher-quality versions don’t improve skill but can have one built-in gadget (camera, GPS, PDA, etc.) per full $100 added value. Runs for 6 hours. $100, 0.5 lb. Phone, Satellite. Global range. Runs for 4 hours. $1,000, 1 lb. Radio, Backpack. 35-mile range. Runs for 30 hours. $2,000, 8 lbs. Radio, Compact. 2-mile range. Runs for 10 hours. $50, 0.25 lb. Radio, Handset. 5-mile range. Runs for 10 hours. $250, 0.5 lb. Communicator Options One special modification is available for communicators: Secure: The signal is encrypted for security. Any communi- cator: +1 CF. As well, any communicator can have a hands-free headset: Headset, Concealable. Wireless! $300, 0.5 lb. Headset, Tactical. Voice-activated and gives Protected Hear- ing, but obvious. $200, 1 lb. COMPUTERS Desktop. With speakers, mike, webcam, modem, etc. Com- plexity 3. $1,500, 17 lbs. Notebook. With wireless. -1 to skill for long tasks. Complex- ity 3. Runs for 5 hours. $2,100, 2.5 lbs. PDA. -2 to skill for long tasks. Complexity 1. Runs for 5 hours. $100, 0.1 lb. CRIMINAL TRICKERY Counterfeiting/Forgery Kit. Camera, embossers, high-resolu- tion printer and scanner, plastic card printer, strip encoder, and a crate of stationery are basic equipment for either skill – and this doesn’t include the computer! $12,000, 100 lbs. Disguise Kit. Basic equipment for Disguise. Quality affects weight. $200, 10 lbs. Industrial Cleanser. Roll vs. Housekeeping to remove biolog- ical evidence. Enough to clean up behind one killing: $5, 1 lb. Jammer. Neutralizes bugs, radio communicators, and remote detonators. To use these devices, anyone in range must win a Quick Contest of Electronics Operation – usually Com- munications – with the jammer’s operator. 2-mile range. $5,000, 25 lbs. Voice Modulator. Alters user’s voice, making it sound like almost anything (but not anyone in particular). $350, 1 lb. INSERTION/EXTRACTION AIDS Climbing Kit. Harness, ascender, descender, fasteners, and 100 yards of 3/8” rope. Quality bonuses affect Climbing. $400, 26 lbs. Grapnel. Non-sparking and padded for stealth! Throw to ST¥2 yards using Throwing. Supports 600 lbs. $40, 3 lbs. Ladder, Portable. A 30’ ladder with hooks. No Climbing roll required, once attached. Fits in a pack. $100, 5 lbs. Parachutes. Use Parachuting skill. Wearer descends at 5 yards/second. Mini: Opens after 40 yards; supports 150 lbs. $1,000, 8 lbs. Ram-Air: State-of-the-art military chute, capable of maneuvering. Opens after 80 yards; supports 400 lbs. $3,500, 25 lbs. Rappelling Kit. For descents only! Harness, carabiner, descender, and 33 yards of 1/4” rope in a belt pouch. Quality bonuses affect Climbing. $150, 3 lbs. Rope, 1/4”. Supports 500 lbs. Per 10 yards: $30, 0.6 lb. Rope, 3/8”. Supports 650 lbs. Per 10 yards: $25, 1.6 lbs.

Scuba Gear. Basic equipment for Scuba: wetsuit (DR 1), mask, fins, belt, 90-minute tank, regulator, etc. $1,500, 45 lbs. (add $1,000, 1 lb. for ultrasonic communicator with 3,000-yard underwater range that runs for 4 hours). Suction Cups. Let a climber who weighs up to 200 lbs. with gear use Climbing on a smooth, vertical surface (like a sky- scraper) with no -3 to skill. Set: $240, 9 lbs. Winch. Portable, one-man hoist reels rope in or out at 3 yards/second. Fuel cartridge ($100, 2 lbs.) powers an ascent of 200 yards. Capacity is 300 lbs. $8,000, 7 lbs. LABS AND SCIENTIFIC GEAR Geiger Counter. Useful for finding terrorist nukes! Runs for 10 hours. $400, 0.5 lb. Lab, Field. Gives +1 to one skill: Chemistry, Forensics, etc. $15,000, 200 lbs. Lab, Mobile. As field lab, but +2 to chosen skill. $75,000, 2,000 lbs. Lab, Suitcase. Basic equipment for one skill: Chemistry, Forensics, etc. $3,000, 20 lbs. LAW ENFORCEMENT AND SECURITY All “detectors” require Electronics Operation (Security) to use. Bug Detector. Detects the presence of transmitters and mikes, and can pinpoint them by winning a Quick Contest vs. the Electronics Operation (Surveillance) skill of the person who hid the bug. Quality affects weight. $500, 1 lb. Chemical Detector, Portable. Can sense chemical weapons, drugs, or explosives at 1’. Runs for 12 hours. $60,000, 6 lbs. Evidence Collection Kit. Basic equipment for collecting evi- dence (bullets, prints, etc.) at a crime scene. $150, 10 lbs. Flex Cuffs. DR 1, HP 2. -1 to Escape. Bundle of 10: $5, 0.25 lb. Handcuffs. DR 4, HP 6. -5 to Escape. $50, 0.5 lb. Metal Detector Wand. Gives +1 to find metal items with Explosives (EOD), Search, and Traps – cumulative with other bonuses – and negates bonus of undercover clothing. Runs for 10 hours. $250, 1 lb. Spike Strip. Single-use car barrier punctures the tires of a car driving over it, deflating them (-4 to Handling, halve Top Speed) in five seconds. Per yard: $100, 1 lb. Truth Serum. Make a Physician roll to administer. After 30 seconds, the subject must make a HT-1 roll or have -2 to Will and self-control rolls for (20 - HT)/2 minutes. Dose: $10, neg. LIGHT SOURCES Flare, Hand. Illuminates 5-yard radius for 30 minutes. An excellent fire-starter! $5, 1 lb. Flare, Signal. Disposable launcher shoots bright flare to 70 yards. Roll vs. Traps to rig it as a “trip flare.” $15, 0.1 lb. Flashlights. Heavy: 10-yard beam for 50 hours. $20, 1 lb. Mini: 5-yard beam for 10 hours. $10, 0.25 lb. Glow Stick. Chemical light illuminates 2-yard radius for 12 hours. $2, 0.1 lb. Lantern, Electric. Illuminates 5-yard radius for 20 hours. $30, 3 lbs. LUGGAGE Attaché Case. Holds 20 lbs. of small and/or flat things. $20, 2 lbs. Backpack, Small. Holds 50 lbs. of gear. Quality bonuses off- set Stealth penalties for encumbrance. $120, 1.5 lbs. Drag Bag. Protects one sniper rifle, accessories, and ammo while climbing, sneaking, etc. When opened, serves as a mat for sniping. Often given the camouflage modifiers available for clothing (p. 31). $250, 4 lbs. MEDICAL EQUIPMENT Antitoxin Kit. Gives +4 to HT rolls vs. a specific, common poison. Dose: $10, 0.5 lb. Body Bag. $5, 2.5 lbs. One rated for safely removing a plague corpse (or a body you don’t want dogs to track) is $100, 5 lbs. Crash Kit. Counts as basic equipment for Physician and improvised equipment (-5) for Surgery, and gives +2 to First Aid. $200, 10 lbs. Defibrillator. Gives +3 to resuscitation rolls (p. B425); e.g., when stabilizing a mortal wound fails (p. B424). As an impro- vised weapon, treat as a stun gun that allows a HT-4 roll. Freshly charged, it has 20 “shots.” $10,000, 15 lbs. First Aid Kit. Basic equipment for First Aid. Quality affects weight. $10, 1 lb. Surgical Kit. Basic equipment for Surgery (gets +2 for TL; see p. B424). $300, 15 lbs. OPTICS This gear requires no special skill, but Observation yields more information. All of these items grant vision-related traits while used. Binoculars. Civilian: Telescopic Vision 3. $150, 3 lbs. Mili- tary: Glint-free coating. Telescopic Vision 4. $800, 3.5 lbs. Night-Vision: Night Vision 9, Telescopic Vision 4, and Color- blindness. Run for 20 hours. $6,000, 3 lbs. Thermal-Imaging: Infravision, Telescopic Vision 3, and Colorblindness. Run for 4 hours. $7,000, 3 lbs. Goggles, Night Vision. Hands-free. Give Night Vision 9 – but also Colorblindness, No Depth Perception, and No Peripheral Vision. Run for 20 hours. $3,500, 1.5 lbs. Goggles, Thermal-Imaging. Hands-free. Give Infravision and Telescopic Vision 2 – but also Colorblindness, No Depth Per- ception, and No Peripheral Vision. Run for 2 hours. $13,000, 1.5 lbs. Spotting Scope. Glint-free coating. With small tripod. Gives Telescopic Vision 5. $300, 10 lbs. PERSONAL ACCESSORIES Business Cards. Per 100: $1, neg. Compass. Gives +1 to Navigation. $25, neg. GPS Receiver. Gives +3 to Navigation. $100, 0.25 lb. Multi-Tool. “Leatherman” or similar belt tool counts as improvised gear (-5) for most repairs. $50, 0.5 lb. Space Pen. Can write anywhere, even underwater. $25, neg. Sunglasses. Look awesome, and give Protected Vision vs. bright ordinary light and DR 1 over the eyes. $10, neg. (ballis- tic ones with DR 4 are $35, neg.).

Whistle. For signaling. $5, neg. Wristwatch. High-quality versions don’t improve skills but can have one built-in gadget (compass, camera, GPS, etc.) per full $100 added value. $25, neg. SPY AND SURVEILLANCE GADGETS Proper use of this gear to record useful intelligence – as opposed to record a TV show or whatever – requires Electron- ics Operation (Surveillance). Audio Recorder, Digital. Holdout +1. Runs for 12 hours. $100, 0.25 lb. Camcorders, Digital. These can record indefinitely when linked to a computer with external power. Full-Sized: Gives Night Vision 3, Telescopic Vision 2. Runs for 1 hour. $500, 1 lb. Miniature: No vision advantages, but Holdout +2. Runs for 1 hour. $200, 0.25 lb. Cameras, Digital. Full-Sized: Basic equipment for Photogra- phy. Runs for 10 hours. Quality affects weight, and fine cam- era is a digital SLR that can accept a telephoto lens (Telescopic Vision 5, $500, 8.5 lbs.). $75, 0.5 lb. Miniature: Can take high- quality stills of documents. Holdout +1. $500, 0.1 lb. Cellular Monitoring System. Monitors up to four cell phones at once, logging, jamming, and/or tracing their calls. In heavy case: $20,000, 7 lbs. Computer Monitoring System. Reads video displays from radio emissions. In the city, effective range is 100 yards. Requires a Complexity 3 computer. $5,000, 6 lbs. Mike, Laser. Eavesdrops through glass. 900-yard range. $5,000, 2 lbs. Mike, Shotgun. With headphones. Gives Parabolic Hearing 3. Runs for 10 hours. $800, 3 lbs. Scanner Pen. Resembles a pen. Scans a page in 4 seconds. Stores 100 pages in memory. $150, 0.1 lb. Surveillance Endoscope. A yard-long fiber optic for stealth- ily peering under doors, around corners, etc. Spotting the pro- truding tube requires a Vision-5 roll. $4,500, 2 lbs. Thru-Wall Radar. Can see through wood, brick, or gypsum 1’ thick and spot things 20 yards beyond. Range is less than 1’ through concrete. Runs for 3 hours. $30,000, 10 lbs. TV Set, Mini. A 7” flat-panel, used as a spare monitor by hackers and wire rats. Runs for 4 hours. $100, 2 lbs. Video Recorder, Digital. Good or fine model can be linked to a Complexity 3 computer for media manipulation with Elec- tronics Operation (Media). $200, 10 lbs. Wire Rat Kit. Heavy case has a 40-channel audiovisual trans- ceiver (controls 40 bugs, trackers, etc., and can feed signals to computers and recorders) in one half and enough gear enough for a serious surveillance job packed in the other: 10 audio bugs (SM -13, 1/2-mile range, 1 month endurance), 10 contact mikes (SM -11, self-adhesive, 1 week endurance), 2 generic transmit- ters (makes any attached camera, mike, etc., a bug, 1/2-mile range, 4 hours endurance), 2 headphone sets, 10 keyboard bugs (transmit by phone or Internet), 2 microphones (full-sized), 10 phone taps, 10 pinhead mikes (SM -16, 8-yard cable manipu- lated with DX-based roll), 4 spike mikes (give Parabolic Hear- ing 4 into adjacent room when driven into wall), 5 tracking beacons (25-mile range, 1 month endurance), and 10 video bugs (SM -9, 2-mile range, 1 week endurance). $10,000, 40 lbs. TOOLS These are heavier tools. Some are intended for repairs; oth- ers are used to attack doors, locks, etc., with Forced Entry. See Burglar’s Tools (pp. 26-27) for stealthier break-in gear. Bolt Cutters. For cutting padlocks and chains. Light: 8d(2) cut. $30, 15 lbs. Heavy: 12d(2) cut. $50, 30 lbs. Chainsaw. Carbide teeth do swing+1d cut per second. $300, 13 lbs. Crowbar, 3’. Treat as a small mace in combat, at -1 to skill. $20, 3 lbs. Cutting Torches. Full-Sized: 1d+3(2) burn per second, $75, 7 lbs. (gas bottle good for 30 seconds: $50, 5 lbs.). Pocket: 1d-2 burn per second, $25, neg. (gas bottle good for 20 minutes: $1, neg.). Duct Tape. As a restraint: ST-3 or Escape roll to break free. 60-yard roll: $1, 2 lbs. Fire Axe. Gives +1 to Forced Entry. Treat as a great axe in combat. $100, 8 lbs. Go-Bar. Gives +1 to Forced Entry. Treat as a maul in com- bat, at -2 to skill. $175, 17 lbs. Hacksaw. Carbide blade does sw-2(2) cut per second to bars, chains, and cables. $10, 2 lbs. Hand Ram. Miniature battering ram does sw+3d+1 cr every three seconds. Not useful as a weapon. $150, 35 lbs. Shovel, Folding. Treat as an axe in combat, at -2 to skill. Holdout -4. $10, 3 lbs. Sledgehammer. Treat as a maul in combat, at -2 to skill. $10, 15 lbs. Tool Kit, Mini. Belt-sized and simplistic: -2 to skill. For Armoury, Electrician, Explosives, Machinist, or Mechanic: $200, 4 lbs. For Electronics Repair: $400, 2 lbs. Tool Kit, Portable. Basic equipment for one of Armoury, Electrician, Explosives, Machinist, or Mechanic: $600, 20 lbs. For Electronics Repair: $1,200, 10 lbs. Tool Kit, Shop. As portable kit, but +2 to skill. For Armoury, etc.: $15,000, 2,000 lbs. For Electronics Repair: $30,000, 500 lbs.

Any TL0-8 armor from pp. B283-285 or GURPS High-Tech might exist in an action campaign, but action heroes usually either go without armor or wear TL7-8 protection. The Armor Table summarizes the most common garb, using the notation explained on p. B282. Several modifiers exist for armor and clothing. These have “cost factors” (CF) that affect cost as explained for tools and gadgets (p. 26). Camouflage*: Helps the wearer hide in one specific setting (desert, urban night, etc.), giving a Camouflage bonus but also -1 to reactions in most nonmilitary settings. Armor or clothing: +1 for +0 CF, +2 for +1 CF, +3 for +2 CF. Disguised: Armor that wouldn’t normally resemble ordinary clothing can be tailored so that it does. Discovering the truth requires a Search roll. Armor: +4 CF. Styled*: The most common clothing enhancement! Gives a reaction or Influence roll bonus whenever the GM feels that being well-dressed would count. Clothing: +1 bonus for +1 CF, +2 for +4 CF, and +3 for +9 CF. Undercover: Helps the wearer conceal weapons, giving a Holdout bonus. Armor or clothing: +1 bonus for +4 CF, +2 for +19 CF. * Camouflage and styled are mutually exclusive.

Clothing and Armor Table Armor Location DR Cost Weight Notes Boots, Reinforced feet 3/2 $75 3 [1, 2] Clothing, Formal all 0 $240 2 [1] Clothing, High-Fashion all 0 $3,000 1-4 [1] Clothing, Ordinary all 0 $120 2 [1] Coat, Long arms, legs, torso 0 $50 5 [1, 3] Coat, Long Leather arms, legs, torso 1* $250 10 [1, 3] Collar, Reinforced neck 2 $10 0.5 [1] Cup, Athletic groin 2/1F $20 neg. [1, 4] Gloves, Sap hands 2* $60 1 [1, 5] Gloves, Shooting hands 1* $50 0.5 [1] Hat, Leather skull 1* $60 0.5 [1] Helmet, Ballistic skull 12 $250 3 + Visor eyes, face 10 +$200 +1.4 [6] Helmet, Motorcycle head 6/3 $200 3 [1, 4] + Visor eyes, face 1 +$50 +0.5 [1] Jacket, Leather arms, torso 1* $50 4 [1] Leggings, Ballistic legs 12/5F* $400 8 [7] NBC Suit full suit 1* $150 3.5 [8] Pants, Leather legs, groin 1* $40 4 [1] Shoes feet 1* $40 2 [1] Shoes, Climbing feet 1* $80 1 [1, 9] Sleeves, Ballistic arms 8/2* $200 5 [7] Vest, Advanced torso 35/5* $4,600 17 [1, 10] Vest, Assault torso, groin 12/5* $900 8 [7] + Trauma Plates torso +23 +$600 +8 Vest, Concealable torso 12/5* $1,000 2 [1, 7]

Notes [1] Concealable under clothing, or is clothing. Items without this note draw suspi- cion unless you’re doing your job in the army, on a SWAT team, etc.: -2 to reactions! [2] Use higher DR only vs. attacks to underside of foot. Give +1 to kicking damage. [3] Gives +4 to Holdout. [4] Use higher DR vs. crushing attacks, lower DR vs. all other damage types. [5] Weighted. Give +1 to punching damage and Bad Grip 1. [6] Gives Protected Vision. [7] Use higher DR vs. piercing and cutting attacks, lower DR vs. all other damage types. [8] Requires NBC Suit skill. Worn with a gas mask, gives Sealed. Suit’s DR applies only vs. burning or corrosion damage. [9] Rubber soles give +1 to Climbing and Stealth. [10] Use lower DR versus crushing attacks only.

Any TL0-8 weapon from pp. B271-281, GURPS High-Tech, or GURPS Martial Arts is possible – but with the exception of knives and batons, TL7-8 guns dominate. Below are tables con- taining popular choices, using the notation from pp. B268-271. Customization modifiers exist for weapons, too. These have “cost factors” (CF) that alter cost according to the rules for tools and gadgets (p. 26). Disguised: The weapon resembles any innocent item that could conceal it; e.g., a knife built into a belt buckle. Finding the hidden weapon requires a Search roll. Any weapon: +4 CF. Fine*: Gives any firearm with base Acc 2 or better another +1 Acc. Guns: +1 CF. Styled: Pearl grips, gold plating, etc. Gives a reaction or Influence roll bonus in scenes where it’s the center of attention. Any weapon: +1 bonus for +1 CF, +2 for +4 CF, and +3 for +9 CF. Very Fine*: Gives any firearm with base Acc 4 or better another +2 Acc. Guns: +4 CF. * Fine and very fine are mutually exclusive.

Firearms Table Weapon Damage Acc Range Weight RoF Shots ST Bulk Rcl Cost Notes GUNS (GRENADE LAUNCHER) (DX-4 or most other Guns at -4) Grenade Launcher, 40mm 6d+2 [2d] cr ex 1 30/440 6.3/0.5 1 1(3) 8† -4 2 $1,550/$10 [1] GUNS (PISTOL) (DX-4 or most other Guns at -2) Auto Backup Pistol, .40 2d+1 pi+ 1 140/1,600 1.9/0.4 3 6+1(3) 8 -1 2 $720/$2($37) Auto Pistol, .40 2d+2 pi+ 2 160/1,800 2.3/0.6 3 13+1(3) 9 -2 2 $770/$4($32) Auto Pistol, .45 2d pi+ 2 175/1,700 2.4/0.8 3 13+1(3) 10 -2 3 $600/$7($32) Auto Pistol, .50AE 4d pi+ 2 220/2,500 4.6/0.6 3 7+1(3) 12 -4 4 $1,250/$8($45) Auto Pistol, 9mm 2d+2 pi 2 160/1,800 1.9/0.6 3 17+1(3) 8 -2 2 $600/$5($32) Revolver, .357M 3d pi 2 190/2,100 2.9/0.3 3 6(6) 10 -2 3 $850/$3($10) Revolver, .38 2d pi 2 110/1,200 2/0.3 3 6(6) 9 -2 2 $500/$2($10) Revolver, .44M 3d+2 pi+ 2 210/2,300 3.1/0.4 3 6(6) 11 -3 4 $770/$4($10) Snub Revolver, .38 2d-1 pi 1 90/1,000 1.2/0.27 3 5(6) 9 -1 2 $350/$2($10) Taser 1d-3 pi- 0 7 1.1/0.25 1 2(6) 7 -2 2 $400/$40 [2] follow-up HT-5(0.5) aff GUNS (RIFLE) (DX-4 or most other Guns at -2) Assault Carbine, 5.56mm 4d+2 pi 4 750/2,900 7.3/1 15 30+1(3) 9† -4 2 $950/$15($34) Assault Rifle, 5.56mm 5d pi 5 800/3,500 8.9/1 13 30+1(3) 8† -5 2 $850/$15($34) Sniper Rifle, .50 6d¥2 pi+ 6+3 1,700/6,500 35/4.4 1 10+1(3) 13B† -7 3 $7,775/$44($38) Sniper Rifle, 7.62mm 7d pi 5+3 1,000/4,200 15/1 1 10+1(3) 11B† -6 3 $2,350/$9($50) GUNS (SHOTGUN) (DX-4 or most other Guns at -2) Auto Shotgun, 12G 1d+1 pi 3 40/800 8.2/0.8 3¥9 7+1(2i) 10† -5 1/4 $1,000/$4 [3] Compact Pump Shotgun, 12G 1d+1 pi 2 40/800 6.7/0.4 2¥9 4+1(2i) 12† -3 1/6 $400/$2 [3] Pump Shotgun, 12G 1d+1 pi 3 40/800 8.3/0.8 2¥9 7+1(2i) 10† -5 1/5 $400/$4 [3] GUNS (SMG) (DX-4 or most other Guns at -2) Compact SMG, 9mm 2d+2 pi 2 160/1,800 3.8/1 15 30+1(3) 8† -2 2 $1,200/$9($34) SMG, .45 2d+1 pi+ 3 160/1,700 6.5/1.6 10 25+1(3) 8† -4 2 $900/$13($36) SMG, 9mm 3d-1 pi 4 170/1,900 6/1.2 13 30+1(3) 8† -4 2 $1,500/$9($29) LIQUID PROJECTOR (SPRAYER) (DX-4 or other Liquid Projector-4) Pepper Spray Special – 2 0.1 1 20 3 -1 – $10 [4] Notes [1] First Range is minimum range, not 1/2D. [2] Victim must roll HT-5 or be stunned while trigger is depressed and for (20 - HT) seconds afterward. He can then roll HT-5 to recover. [3] Shotguns can fire slugs with Damage 5d pi++, +1 to Acc, Range 100/1,200, RoF without the multiplier (RoF 2 or 3), and Rcl after the slash (Rcl 4, 5, or 6). [4] Victim must make two HT-4 rolls: one to resist coughing (p. B428), another to resist blindness (p. B124). Both endure for minutes equal to margin of failure.

FIREARMS The Firearms Table adjusts many Basic Set weapons to reflect High-Tech. It excludes heavy weapons other than a grenade launcher; such hardware rarely suits the urban set- tings of most action campaigns. When needed, see p. B281. Weight give the weight of one full reload after the slash. For pistols, rifles, and SMGs, this includes the ammo and a maga- zine/speedloader. Cost gives the cost of a full reload after the slash, in round dollars. Cost of a magazine/speedloader appears in parenthe- ses, for guns that accept such (see above). Shots lists reload times in parentheses. This assumes a mag- azine/speedloader where available. Fast-Draw (Ammo) reduces times by a third: 6 to 4, 3 to 2, etc. SPECIAL AMMO Action heroes love custom ammo! These options have “cost factors” (CF) like those for tools and gadgets (p. 26); apply these to reload costs. Armor-Piercing*: Add armor divisor (2) but change damage type: pi++ to pi+, pi+ to pi, and pi to pi- (no effect on pi-). Any pistol, rifle, or SMG: +1 CF. Extra-Powerful†: Add +1 to damage per three dice or frac- tion thereof. Add 10% to Range and ST (minimum +1 ST). Any pistol, rifle, or SMG: +1 CF. Hollow-Point*: Change damage type from pi- to pi, pi to pi+, or pi+ to pi++ (no effect on pi++), but add armor divisor (0.5). Any pistol, rifle, or SMG: +0 CF. Match-Grade†: If weapon has Acc 4 or better, adds another +1 Acc. Any pistol or sniper rifle: +1 CF. * Armor-piercing and hollow-point are mutually exclusive. † Extra-powerful and match-grade are mutually exclusive. HAND GRENADES These are smaller, lighter grenades than those on p. B277 – ideal for urban operators. Pulling the pin is a Ready maneuver. The fuse starts when the arming handle is released (a free action). The throw uses Throwing.

Concussion. 4-second fuse. Inflicts 5d cr ex. $30, 0.3 lb. Fragmentation. 4-second fuse. Inflicts 3d-1 [2d] cr ex. $25, 0.4 lb. Smoke. 2-second fuse. Fills 7-yard radius with smoke for 50 seconds. $35, 1 lb. Stun. 2-second fuse. Everyone in 10-yard radius must roll HT-5, at +5 for each of Protected Hearing and Protected Vision, or be stunned. Roll HT-5 to recover each turn. $30, 0.5 lb.

MELEE WEAPONS All TL8 blades are fine. To avoid confusion with other GURPS books, the resulting +1 damage isn’t included on the Melee Weapons Table – be sure to add it!

Melee Weapons Table Weapon Damage Reach Parry Cost Weight ST Holdout Notes BRAWLING or DX Brass Knuckles thr cr C 0 $10 0.25 – -1 [1] Stun Gun HT-3(0.5) aff C No $25 0.5 2 -1 [2] Tonfa thr cr C 0 $40 1.5 – -3 [1] KNIFE (DX-4, Main-Gauche-3, or Shortsword-3) Combat Knife sw-2 cut C, 1 -1 $40 1 6 -2 or thr imp C -1 – – 6 Kukri sw-1 cut C, 1 0 $50 1.5 7 -3 or thr-1 imp C 0 – – 7 Push Knife thr imp C -1 $30 0.5 5 -1 [3] Switchblade sw-3 cut C, 1 No $30 0.5 5 0 or thr-1 imp C No – – 5 Tactical Folding Knife sw-3 cut C, 1 -1 $30 0.5 5 0 or thr-1 imp C -1 – – 5 SHORTSWORD (DX-5, Broadsword-2, Jitte/Sai-3, Knife-4, Saber-4, Smallsword-4, or Tonfa-3) Expandable Baton sw cr 1 0 $60 2 6 -1 or thr cr 1 0 – – 6 Police Baton sw cr 1 0 $20 1 6 -2 or thr cr 1 0 – – 6 TONFA (DX-5 or Shortsword-3) Tonfa sw cr 1 0 $40 1.5 7 -3 [3] or thr cr C, 1 0 – – 7 Notes [1] Receives Brawling or Karate damage bonuses. [2] Victim must roll HT-3 or be stunned for as long as weapon is in contact plus (20 - HT) seconds longer. He can then roll vs. HT-3 to recover. [3] Use Brawling or Karate parry if better than weapon parry.

Action heroes love to drive, and most TL6-8 vehicles from pp. B464-465 and GURPS High-Tech are appropriate. Below is a short selection, described according to pp. B462-463. Cus- tomization options are available, with “cost factors” (CF) that work exactly like those for tools and gadgets (p. 26): Attractive: Custom paint job, velvet-glove interior, etc., gives a reaction or Influence roll bonus in scenes where the vehicle is the center of attention: +1 for +1 CF, +2 for +2 CF, and +3 for +3 CF. Rugged Design: Gives a HT bonus: +1 for +1 CF, +2 for +4 CF. Superior Handling: Gives a Handling bonus: +1 for +1 CF or +2 for +4 CF. USED VEHICLES Second-hand vehicles are cheap but often defective. Buy a vehicle from the Vehicle Table and apply the desired options. Then for every 10% knocked off final price (max. 60% off), roll 2d on this table in front of the GM: 2-3 – Bad Engine: Engine dies (effectively disabled) for 3d sec- onds on any failed control roll. Reroll for unpowered vehi- cles or repeated results. 4 – Unresponsive: -1 to Handling.* 5-6 – Mistreated: -1 to HT.* 7 – No problem! 8-9 – Short “Legs”: -10% Range.* 10 – Wobbly: -1 to SR.* 11 – Slow: -10% Top Speed.* 12 – Unsafe: No note or “c” (Combustible) on HT becomes “f” (Flammable), “f” becomes “x” (Explosive). Reroll after this reaches “x” (“f,” if unpowered).* * Multiple occurrences are cumulative! Example: Vince wants a flashy car! He goes for a sports car (base $85,000) with +3 for looks (+3 CF) and +2 to Handling (+4 CF), for a net Handling of +3. Such a car is $680,000 – the price of a high-end Ferrari. Vince lacks 68 points for Signature Gear, so he buys at 60% off, making the price $272,000 and risking six table rolls. He gets two 7s (no problems) but also a 3, two 9s, and a 10, meaning a failure-prone engine, 20% less range (becomes 400 miles), and -1 to SR (for a net SR 3).

Vehicle Table Vehicle ST/HP Hnd/SR HT Move LWt. Load SM Occ. DR Range Cost Locations BOATING (MOTORBOAT) Inflatable Boat 20 +2/2 11 2/12 0.6 0.5 +1 1+4 2 100 $2K O Speedboat 50 +1/3 11f 3/20 2 1 +2 1+9 3 200 $18K O DRIVING (AUTOMOBILE) HMMWV 72 0/5 11 3/33 4.1 1 +3 2+2 8 300 $70K G4WX Luxury Car 57 0/4 11f 3/57* 2.1 0.6 +3 1+4 5 500 $30K G4W Sports Car 57 +1/4 10f 5/75* 1.8 0.3 +3 1+3 4 500 $85K G4W SUV 68 -1/4 11f 3/50 4 1.5 +3 1+4 5 400 $45K G4W Van 68 -1/4 11f 2/45* 3.5 1 +4 1+7 4 650 $25K g4W DRIVING (MOTORCYCLE) Heavy Bike 36 +1/2 10f 6/40* 0.6 0.22 0 1+1 4 210 $15K E2W Sports Bike 30 +2/2 11f 8/64 0.5 0.23 0 1+1 4 250 $18K E2W PILOTING (GLIDER) Hang-Glider 16† +3/2 10c 0/25 0.13 0.1 +1 1 1 – $4K EWi PILOTING (HELICOPTER) Light Helicopter 53 +2/2 10f 2/65 2.4 0.7 +4 1+5 3 300 $500K GH3W SCUBA Dive Torpedo 20 +2/2 10 1/2 0.19 0.13 0 1 4 4 $5.5K E

An action movie is first and foremost a showcase for the heroes’ astonishing abilities. There might be calm before the storm, emotional interludes, and slice-of-life moments, but we’re holding our breath for the stunts and pyrotechnics – for the exploits. Without high-speed car chases, fights of all descrip- tions, and races against the clock to disarm bombs, hack com- puters, crack safes, and so on, action movies would seem stupid. Often they are stupid, but excitement forgives a lot! Consequently, GURPS Action 2: Exploits cuts to the thrills and ignores inconvenient realities. It’s a collection of simple rules for resolving classic action situations without worrying much about minor details like human nature . . . or physics. If it’s possible on the silver screen – and especially on the blue screen – that’s good enough. Players should be aware that the exploits described here are tailored to heroes created using GURPS Action 1: Heroes. While Exploits is by no means worthless on its own, it often invokes assumptions and concepts from Heroes. Think of it as a sequel! Since a major goal of Exploits is to show how to use the PCs’ abilities, the important skills, advantages, and even disadvantages for each situation appear in boldface. For the GM, Exploits is a guide to setting up action scenes to challenge the heroes. Its rules aren’t the “official” GURPS take on anything except over-the-top action. Feel free to use them in a serious police procedural or a wilderness-of-mirrors spy campaign – but unless your cops can fire two guns while leaping through the air, and your spies can save the world and be back in time for tea, you might find these rules extreme.

Many feats described in Exploits use a few simple rules designed to make the game run more smoothly and encourage teamwork. Unlike a lot of other rules in Action, these ones aren’t especially extreme and wouldn’t be inappropriate for other kinds of games. They would probably come in handy in any episodic GURPS campaign where heroes foil villains through skillful heroics.

A simple-but-effective way to challenge the heroes is to use skill penalties. Many tasks in the Basic Set and Exploits rec- ommend a wide variety of penalties to cover less-than-ideal conditions, exceptionally tough opposition, etc. Looking up and assessing these penalties can be time-consuming, however. When the team is poised to blow the vault door or raid the vil- lain’s mansion, it’s boring and frustrating for things to grind to a halt while the GM consults rules and tallies modifiers. As an alternative to detailed modifiers, the GM can set a sin- gle difficulty – the Basic Abstract Difficulty (BAD) – that covers all aspects of a particular phase of the adventure. This is sim- ply a penalty from 0 to -10 that replaces detailed situational modifiers. The only other modifiers that apply are those that the PCs bring into the picture: bonuses for equipment, penal- ties for disadvantages, etc. Example: The heroes are infiltrating a secret base. The GM feels it should be tough, so he assigns a BAD of -5. Rolls to climb walls, pick locks, disarm alarms, and so forth are thus at -5 instead of taking detailed modifiers for things like security- system quality and the compound being situated in an icy wasteland. If the squad brings fine equipment that gives +2 to skill, though, then that modifier still applies. The GM can revert to detailed modifiers whenever he wants, such as for important special cases, random occur- rences that aren’t tied to the adventure, or events that would genuinely benefit from a dramatic pause. The goal of BAD is to estimate an adventure’s challenge level and save time when details matter less than flow – not to supplant the GM’s judgment.

The GM can pick whatever BAD “feels right.” When rating how challenging specific opposition is, though, he might opt to calculate it as follows: Rate the adversaries’ basic point value as an Enemy (p. B135), divide by 4, and drop fractions. Example 1: Early in an adventure, the heroes are tracking down a corrupt detective. An ordinary cop is a -5-point Enemy, for a BAD of -1. Rolls to gather evidence against him, search his home, and so forth are thus at -1, representing his connec- tions and attention to security. Example 2: Later, the team has to take on the rotten cop’s entire department! That’s a -20-point Enemy, so BAD is -5. This affects rolls to evade security at the station, talk a neutral NPC into helping out, and so on. It represents the fact that there are lots of cops, with good gear and significant social clout.

As the above examples suggest, BAD need not remain fixed for the entire adventure. Part of the action-movie formula is that challenges mount as the plot unfolds: the closer the heroes get to the boss, the worse BAD gets. The PCs can also worsen BAD without the bad guys’ help! Exploits offers many rules for avoiding ill-advised violence, hid- ing corpses and evidence, and so forth. If the heroes ignore these and blast through the adventure, leaving a trail of blood and burning wrecks, then the GM may dial up BAD to reflect the authorities or the team’s own bosses making their life harder. However, BAD doesn’t always get worse. If the crew scores a coup – e.g., steals files containing the names of the corrupt cops and the technical specs for the station’s security system – then the next part of the adventure might be easier. This is a fit- ting reward for a clever plan or a timely critical success.

BAD GUYS The PCs will often meet their opponents in Quick Con- tests. Every +1 to their rivals’ skill is +1 to the bad guys’ mar- gin of success – which has the same effect as giving the heroes -1, just like incrementing BAD by -1. Thus, when the squad faces henchmen (not mere mooks) directly, the GM may wish to increase the NPCs’ skill instead of applying BAD to the heroes’ skill. At the GM’s option, henchmen without character sheets have an effective skill of 10 + absolute value of BAD: 11 at -1, 12 at -2, and so on. As with all BAD things, this is abstract. Actual skill, equipment quality, extra time, and anything else that might matter is all rolled into one handy number.

The GM shouldn’t use BAD in combat (pp. 36-39) or chases (pp. 31-35). The goal of BAD is to abstract things like enemy planning, security systems, and social connections – not battle- field or road conditions, never mind the PCs’ tactical options. It’s fine to use BAD to rate a henchman’s skills in one of these situations, however.

In action stories, there’s no such thing as too much talent. Whenever it makes sense, the GM may allow one skill to aid another. The assisting skill is the complementary skill while the skill actually needed for the task is the master skill. To encourage teamwork, the person using the complemen- tary skill doesn’t have to be the one using the master skill, unless splitting up these rolls would make no sense, even in an action story. For instance, an infiltrator using Stealth to sneak through a door might benefit from a face man using Fast-Talk to distract guards. In that example, Fast-Talk would be comple- mentary to Stealth. To use a complementary skill, simply roll against it. The result gives a modifier to the master skill: +2 for critical success, +1 for success, -1 for failure, or -2 for critical failure. This modifier is cumulative with others, such as equipment bonuses and BAD. Unless explicitly noted, though, the complementary skill roll isn’t subject to BAD. Its purpose is to empower the heroes to offset the bad guys’ numbers and teamwork – which BAD abstracts – using their own. Thus, applying BAD twice would rarely be fair! Many specific tasks in Exploits name complementary skills. Players are encouraged to suggest others. If the GM agrees, a master skill might sometimes be able to benefit from several complementary skills! A skill can never serve as complemen- tary skill and master skill at the same time, however.

These next two rules apply to group efforts, when the entire team gets only a single success roll or other attempt at an action.

GOT YOU COVERED In a situation where everyone must look out for himself but some heroes lack a vital skill, skilled PCs can sometimes cover for unskilled ones. When making a single roll for the entire team, start with the group’s best skill level, add a bonus equal to the number of people who know the skill (no defaults!), and subtract a penalty equal to group size. Most uses of Soldier work this way, making it possible for a military squad to “carry” a few civilians.

PULLING YOUR WEIGHT For things like Forced Entry, the GM must first decide how many sets of hands can contribute; e.g., two heroes could probably operate a small ram, while four could carry a stretcher. If combining ST for a ST roll or to cause damage (e.g., with that ram), use the highest ST plus 1/5 the total of the other ST scores (round up). If working together to lift a weight, add together everybody’s Basic Lift.

Certain tasks kick off every action adventure, or come up repeatedly no matter what the crew is doing. Not all of these will apply in every campaign, however. For instance, vigilantes only rarely bother with The Job (below), while only soldiers and SWAT men use Formations (p. 00) religiously.

An action adventure begins with the GM simply giving the heroes a motivation to undertake a mission, such as:

• Orders. Police or security officers are charged with an investigation or protection duty. Soldiers or spies get a target to strike. Organized criminals are assigned a “job” by their boss. Freelancers are hired.

• Serendipity. Lawmen witness a crime. Thieves get wind of something valuable to steal. Anyone might witness a random “interesting” event that draws them in.

• Wrongs. Enemies attack or cheat the heroes or their loved ones, making vengeance their primary motive.

This need not have anything to do with the GM’s plot! It might be an excuse to put the PCs in a situation where they can be pulled into the story’s real events. Once that happens, though, it’s time to give the players the opportunity to make plans and acquire needed gear for their characters.

Bullets, Beans, and Batteries

The GM decides whether action heroes must worry about ammo, batteries, and so forth. Movies use these things as dramatic devices. They never run out until the plot calls for it . . . and then even the best-prepared com- mando can do nothing to prevent it. As a compromise, tally the cost of five full reloads – including speedloader or magazine cost, where applicable – for all of the team’s guns. Subtract this from the squad’s budget at the start of the adventure. Likewise, add the weight of five reloads to each hero’s encumbrance. Then ignore detailed ammo tracking until one of the following happens: • The squad is cut off, whether by cops surrounding the bank they’re robbing or enemy soldiers surrounding them in the jungle. At that point, everybody has five reloads left, and has to count bullets. • A PC objects to the encumbrance and decides to ditch some ammo. From that point on, he has just the 0-4 reloads that he didn’t drop. • A PC is captured. He then has no ammo or weapons! This never applies to explosives – rockets, grenades, sticks of dynamite, etc. – which should always be tracked. For batteries, use the rules in Action 1: Heroes. Power lasts for a day. After that, every $3 and 1 lb. of spare cells carried per team member gives one extra day of power. After that, nothing that requires power will work, except for basics such as digital watches.

THE JOB The GM should always have at least one adventure ready. He doesn’t have to expose it immediately, though! The heroes might have to work for it – although a squad with an employer can skip the first two options below and move right to a briefing. Finding a Client: A freelance crew can advertise for work. Each week, one PC can use Propaganda to shill the team’s serv- ices. The GM rolls in secret. Success brings one of the adven- tures the GM has prepared. For each week without a bite, the GM should withhold $500 of the usual $2,000 in pocket money and make BAD a step worse on the eventual adventure. Clients who approach desperate men have unpleasant jobs in mind! Critical failure also finds a client, but one who doesn’t intend to or can’t afford to pay; the heroes will receive no replacement budget at the start of their next adventure. Opportunity Knocks: Once a week, each PC can try one of Current Affairs (for want ads and other overtly legitimate opportunities), Savoir-Faire (any specialty, for general social contacts of the appropriate variety), or Streetwise (for decid- edly unsavory offers). The GM rolls in secret. This works much like finding a client, but with an upside and a downside: Failure doesn’t signal desperation, so it doesn’t affect BAD, but critical failure finds a dangerous job or client that – in addition to not paying – will lead the heroes into an ambush or a double-cross. Briefing: Once a full-time squad has its orders, or free- lancers find or are approached by a client, it’s time for a brief- ing. This might be a formal lecture at HQ, dinner with Don Formaggio, or three sentences gasped by a mysterious man dying in the heroes’ arms. This gives the crew their initial tar- get – or at least a trail to follow. If the speaker is holding back information, a successful Detect Lies roll will reveal this. See Social Engineering (pp. 15-17) for ways to learn what isn’t being said and Gathering Intelligence (pp. 11-14) for all kinds of ways to spy on the boss. Digging: If the crew settles on a freelance job that wouldn’t logically come with a briefing (no client involved, client van- ished or died, etc.), they’ll have to use Gathering Intelligence (pp. 11-14) and/or Social Engineering (pp. 15-17) to get a clear picture of the job. ASSEMBLING KIT Once the team has its initial goal, it’s time to acquire any gear they think they’ll need to achieve it. They might have to repeat this phase several times, whether to get the tools neces- sary to defeat new challenges or to replace lost items. Acquiring gear is generally a matter of the team spending its starting or replacement budget as desired, perhaps reserv- ing some for future expenses. However, there are a few special cases. Below, “item” means a single reusable article (rifle, vehi- cle, etc.) or a set of expendable ones (e.g., bullets or a box of grenades).

Black Market: Action plots often turn on the heroes – even legitimate cops and troops – requiring an item so “black” that they must go outside usual channels. The GM should always treat military gear this way for criminal or freelance PCs! Roll against the group’s best Streetwise skill, or that of an under- world Contact. The GM may apply BAD to this roll, or “appro- priateness” penalties like those for Assistance Rolls. Any success finds the item, which comes out of the budget at its usual price. Failure is just that, and repeated attempts are impossible; the local market doesn’t have the goods. Critical failure means crim- inal PCs are ambushed by other crooks or the police, while legit- imate operators face Rank loss or even dismissal.

Gadgeteering: A wire rat with Quick Gadgeteer can impro- vise one electronic gadget worth up to $200 by making a suc- cessful roll against the relevant Electronics Repair specialty. He can assemble more gear during the adventure, given time and parts, but this initial roll is a freebie. Any failure simply means he gets nothing. Requisitions: Teams that work for agencies can try Assis- tance Rolls for gear, files, or even cash before the adventure starts in earnest. This is most likely to succeed with high Rank, Smooth Operator, and/or a complementary Administration roll. Remember that each attempt gives a cumulative -1 AR penalty on the adventure! Scrounging: Each PC may try one Scrounging roll per adventure. Success means he finds one item of standard gear worth up to $200 without depleting the budget. Critical success (ordinary success, with Serendipity) yields a more valuable item of the GM’s choice – possibly even a cheap vehicle! Sim- ply ignore failures, even critical ones. TARGETS AND LOCATIONS Once the group has a job and is outfitted for it – and again whenever they deal with an intermediate phase of the adven- ture and discover that there’s more to it than they thought – they’ll need to decide who, what, and/or where their objective is. If the squad received a detailed briefing, or was hired by someone with a specific plan in mind, that decision is already made. All they have to do is board the helicopter, start casing the bank, visit the location marked on the map, shoot the first victim on their list, or whatever. However, a crew that received only a vague briefing or no briefing at all will need to take a stab at where to start. In movies, this often involves a montage during which the heroes pore over maps, make phone calls, and so on, followed by a brainstorming session to share ideas. Take note: If the adventure has a time limit, this is when the clock starts ticking! Each day, the squad makes a single roll at 8 or less to rep- resent the day’s efforts. If the enemy is working against them even at this stage, apply BAD. However, each hero can attempt a complementary skill roll against one of the follow- ing for that day: • Area Knowledge, if knowing where to look matters and the team has reason to suspect a general target area. • Computer Operation to find something online. Espe- cially in recent movies, it’s almost as if any target of interest will have a website! • Current Affairs to check the news. • Research to dig in records or books. • Savoir-Faire or Streetwise to “make a few phone calls.” Cinematic heroes always seem to have a few friends who can help. Where a skill might be applicable, the decision is the GM’s. The GM may also permit other skills – the goal is to involve the whole crew! Apply complementary skill modifiers for every- body’s contribution and then make the daily roll. Success suggests a valid starting location. Critical success turns up something a little closer to the adventure’s final goal than the GM originally planned; if he had a series of challenges prepared, perhaps the heroes get to skip the first one. Ordinary failure has no special downside other than advancing the calendar by a day – although if the group’s goal is something like stopping terrorist bombers, rescuing a kid- napped child, or stealing a painting before the Renoir exhibit leaves town, even that could be costly! Critical failure means that trouble finds the heroes; e.g., police discover that they’re planning a heist, or rival agents locate them. If the GM feels generous, dealing with this trouble might point the squad to their starting target, or at least leave behind someone to interrogate. TRAVEL If the initial clues – or the briefing – point the team to a location that isn’t where they are, and the squad’s employer or client doesn’t simply drop them off there, then getting to the first interesting location can be part of the heroes’ adventures.

At the Wheel: If the PCs control their own vehicle, the GM should assess whatever travel time he deems fair – and note that it’s unfair not to leave the heroes sufficient time to com- plete their adventure, unless “showing up too late” is part of the story. The driver must roll against Driving, Boating, Pilot- ing, Submarine, etc., as applicable. Optionally, one squad member can try to assist by making a complementary skill roll against a suitable Area Knowledge skill (for shortcuts), and he or someone else can also try a complementary roll against the relevant Navigation specialty (to plot an efficient route). Then the driver rolls. Every point of success on his roll knocks 5% off travel time, to a minimum of 50%; every point of failure adds 5%, with no upper limit. Back-Seat Drivers: Travel aboard a vehicle controlled by an NPC works as above, except that a random NPC typically has skill 1d+9 (10-15). The PCs may be able to make complemen- tary Area Knowledge and/or Navigation rolls to help. Aboard a large ship or sub, the team can opt to try a complementary Seamanship or Submariner roll instead – but this is subject to Got You Covered (p. 5), so it’s wise only if everybody knows the ropes! Commercial Travel: The heroes can do little to influence commercial air, bus, rail, or ship travel. The cost must come out of their budget if their boss or client isn’t paying and the crew can’t make the necessary Assistance Roll. The GM should spice up long trips with events aboard the vehicle (e.g., snakes on a plane). Hoofing It: Military action movies make a big deal out of hiking, so when the squad actually has to walk where it’s going, it’s worth the trouble to set a distance in miles and work out travel time from the heroes’ speed. Assume that speed in miles per hour is the group’s lowestMove/2, adjusted as usual for ter- rain, weather, and roads (see p. B351). However, an inspiring leader can set the pace, carry his pals’ gear, and harangue them about their socks. Make just one Hiking roll for the team, modified according to Got You Covered (p. 5). Success adds a flat 20% to hiking speed. Fragile: Whenever the group travels with or ships delicate gear – notably electronics – roll against the team’s best Freight Handling skill for the packing job. Failure means a broken item; critical failure means disaster befalls all the gear of one teammate. Roll randomly for both. Those who don’t trust their partners can roll separately for their kit. Anything to Declare, Sir? When the group travels with or ships illegal gear – mainly weapons – and there’s a chance of inspection, roll as for fragile gear, but against Smuggling. Here, any failure means an encounter with unfriendly author- ities. The PCs can make an Assistance Roll for bailout, attempt bribery (p. 15), or even fight or sneak away. However, in any situation but a critical success on an AR or a bribery roll, the gear is confiscated even if its owner walks. Spies can often req- uisition gear on arrival, but not all action heroes are spies.

When the crew finally arrives at the adventure’s first “inter- esting” location, tactical concerns – such as who carries what, while partnered with whom – become important. Dealing with such matters is the focus of most of Exploits, but certain situ- ations arise often enough that the players should decide in advance how the team tackles them. The SOP Rule: If the players want to change any of the things discussed here – what communicators or lights they’re using, who’s on point, their degree of stealth, etc. – they must tell the GM! Otherwise, they’re following whatever procedure they used last time. However, the kind GM may permit a group Soldier or Tactics roll, subject to Got You Covered (p. 5), and on a success let the players change plans retroactively because their characters would have known what to do. COMMUNICATIONS No matter how fast and loose the GM plays with other gear, the players must declare what communicators they’re carrying, if only so the GM knows who can contact whom, and whether the bad guys can eavesdrop. Like Attracts Like: Normally, only like systems can commu- nicate – phones (cell, land, or satellite) with other phones, radios with other radios, etc. – unless the group makes an Assistance Roll to set up a “patch” between systems (usually trivial – roll at +5). A wire rat can use Quick Gadgeteer to patch in the field; this requires a successful Electronics Oper- ation (Communications) roll. Static: If there’s any doubt as to whether a message gets out – thanks to enemy action, sunspots, etc. – the player of the person sending the message should write down what he wants to say and hand the note to the GM, who will then secretly roll against the sender’s Electronics Operation (Communications) skill. Success means the GM passes along the message. Failure means he says nothing. Critical failure means a dangerously garbled message. If bad guys are actively interfering using high-tech gear, apply BAD; ordinary failure gives them valuable informa- tion, while critical failure lets them introduce a false message! Tactical Networks: If everybody is using a real-time commu- nicator to stay in touch, and there’s reason to suspect difficulty, roll as above but for the whole group, subject to Got You Cov- ered (p. 5). Once the network “goes down” (any failure), it’s tra- ditional in the movies for it to stay down. Please Set Phones to “Vibrate”: A common disaster in mod- ern moves is the ringing cell phone or crackling radio that betrays the hero’s presence. If any roll above critically fails, the GM may have the message not get through, as for a normal failure, and decide that the victim accidentally flipped a switch, unplugged his headset, etc. When he next tries Camouflage, Shadowing, or Stealth, an unwanted, unexpected call auto- matically gives him away!

Dropping a Dime: A hero might be without a phone or a radio for many reasons: dead battery, escaping prison, and so on. Finding a working payphone in the city is automatic when time doesn’t matter – but in a hurry, make an Urban Survival roll once per minute of frantic searching until you succeed. A use of Serendipity always turns up a phone (or some sap whose phone you can commandeer), and can even put you next to a payphone just as someone tries to call you!

The Cell Phone Problem

One problem facing the GM of a TL8 action campaign is cheap, reliable, high-tech communicators – notably mobile phones. Plots that rely on isolation simply fail when the heroes can summon help or share clues by pushing a button. With clever planning, though, it’s possible to work around this without straining willing suspension of disbelief. “Track His Cell!” Cell phones are easily tracked; see Bugs, Beacons, and Wires (pp. 12-13). Against high-tech bad guys, carrying one is a serious liability. Letting the players know this can often solve the problem! Blackout: No communicator works well through thick walls. Road tunnels and basements block ordinary cell phones. More than a thin layer of metal stops any radio – as does a deliberately shielded room. Heavy electrical equipment can effectively jam communications. But Will It Blend? Communicators are fragile. Dropping, soaking, or bashing one will do it in. And the GM can always let the player decide whether it’s his PC or his PC’s cell phone that stops an enemy bullet . . . The System Is Down: Cell phones don’t work without a network – in extremely poor countries, 1,000 miles from civilization, etc. Even in areas with coverage, a traveler’s phone may be of the wrong type. Neither affects satellite phones, but cellular and satellite service alike can experi- ence “accounting errors,” especially if enemy hackers are at work!

FORMATIONS The players should agree on formations for operations on foot: single-file through a door, a loose line in the jungle, and so on. Even a crew that operates entirely in built-up areas may do this, possibly specifying that certain team members are across the street, a block ahead, etc. In all cases, note who’s in front (“on point”), which is likely to change depending on whether the squad is sneaking (where an assassin or an infil- trator is best) or kicking in doors (a job for a shooter!). Similar guidelines apply when traveling in vehicles. Indi- cate who’s in what vehicle, and seated where. If there’s more than one vehicle, decide on a standard convoy order. When it becomes important to know who can speak to whom, who can see by what light sources, whose weapons cover what arcs of fire, who’s in front when trouble hits, and so on, the GM will use the current order. LIGHT When moving at night, the squad will be blind unless they bring night-vision gear or light sources. Each player should specify his PCs’ usual light. Tactical lights on guns are hands- free and almost ubiquitous among action heroes. Other options force the wielder to operate one-handed. Any light eliminates darkness penalties to combat and vision for anyone who can see what’s in its radius or beam. With a directional beam, the light’s wielder decides where the beam points. Some stats for common lights: Match or Lighter: 1-yard radius.* Glow Stick: 2-yard radius. Hand Flare or Electric Lantern: 5-yard radius. Mini Flashlight: 5-yard beam 1 yard wide. Heavy Flashlight: 10-yard beam 1 yard wide. Small Tactical Light: 25-yard beam 1 yard wide. Large Tactical Light: 100-yard beam 1 yard wide. * Blows out if the carrier attempts any DX-based roll (ath- letics, attack, defense, etc.), unless he can make a DX-4 roll. Relighting a lighter takes a second; a new match takes two seconds. A backlit digital display – common on cell phones and GPS units – will light a 1 yard ¥ 1 yard area in front of the user well enough to see at -3. SUBTLETY Except in the craziest movies, action heroes don’t scream and brandish guns all the time. Gangsters lurk in alleys, com- mandos stalk through undergrowth, detectives and spies keep their pistols under jackets, and so forth. The GM should ask each player to describe his PC’s “stealth mode,” and note the relevant skills and equipment modifiers. This will prevent arguments like whether the shooter had his machine gun under a trench coat! When the shoe is on the other foot and the bad guys are being sneaky, simply use the boldface skills for the opposition and have the heroes make the indicated detection rolls. Basic Stealth: When moving through wilderness, deserted factories, secret bases, and so on, roll against Stealth to be sneaky. A successful uncontested roll is all that’s needed not to stand out to casual observers. If there are sentries, however, you must win a Quick Contest against their Hearing if you’re behind something (climbing shoes give you +1), the better of Hearing or Vision if you’re merely in the shadows, or Electron- ics Operation (Sensors) if they’re using radar or the like. You can’t sneak with a light source . . . which is why cinematic assassins and infiltrators favor night-vision gear. Camouflage: Staying put behind something is an effective form of stealth, but there must be some concealment in the area. If there is, anybody looking for you must win a Quick Contest of Vision or Observation skill vs. your Camouflage skill – and you get +1 to +3 for clothing with the camouflage feature, provided it matches the setting. For hidden gear, roll a similar Contest using the Camouflage skill of whoever deployed the camouflage.

Concealed Carry: Roll just once against Holdout for all gear, at the modifier for the bulkiest item plus another -1 per item with a Holdout penalty (even -1) you try to hide at the same time. For guns, use Bulk, modified for holster type and quality; for body armor, use DR if rigid or DR/3 (round up) if flexible; and for other gear, use the listed modifier. Apply the +1 or +2 for undercover clothing, and/or +4 for a long coat, at the very end. This roll becomes a Quick Contest against Search for an enemy actively looking for weapons, and you must win not to arouse suspicions. Man in the Crowd: In a crowded urban situation – such as at a nightclub or on a city street – it’s possible to hide in the multitude. Simply make a successful Shadowing roll not to stand out. If security personnel are watching the crowd, though, you must win a Quick Contest against them, and they may use the better of Vision, Observation, or Per-based Street- wise. Treat reaction bonuses for styled clothing as a penalty to your roll! Search the Trunk! When driving around with suspicious items in a vehicle, roll once against Smuggling for everything, at a bonus equal to vehicle SM and with only half the usual Bulk or Holdout penalty, dropping fractions, for the bulkiest item. Thus, it’s fairly easy to stash even a heavy sniper rifle (Bulk -7, halved to -3) in a car (SM +3). Treat this as a Quick Contest vs. Search if security personnel are actively checking vehicles – and then you must win. Silent Communication: Gesture can stealthily communi- cate a simple concept – “two guards,” “move in,” etc. The player writes down his intended meaning, the GM rolls in secret, and success means the GM tells everyone the message. Failure, or an attempt to relate anything complex (e.g., “Ishida-san is here with six ninja”), means the GM says nothing. Critical failure means he lies. Communicators with headsets are also stealthy; see Communications (pp. 8-9) for rules. Tailing: To follow someone, you must win a Quick Contest of Shadowing vs. Vision (or Observation, if higher). A tie or a loss by 5 or less means you lose him. A worse loss means you’re seen – which often results in a chase (pp. 31-35)! Also use these rules when tailing someone in a vehicle, but your roll is against the lower of Driving or Shadowing, and you’re at -2 if your quarry is on foot (he can duck into crowds and doorways – you can’t!).

Go-To Skills

When action is all that matters and the GM doesn’t want to consult even the quick rules in Exploits, “When in doubt, roll and shout” is excellent advice (see p. B497). The players paid points for their PCs’ skills, though, so it’s fairest if the roll uses a skill. Some suggestions: Criminology: The generic police skill. On a success, the GM might give a “free” clue, point out suspi- cious behavior, or otherwise do whatever it takes to get a stalled cops-and-robbers story moving. Observation: The broad “notice stuff” skill. If the PCs are keeping an eye out for trouble, it’s safe to assume that Observation will spot suspicious behavior and sneaking bad guys. Search: The basic “look for stuff” skill. Use it whenever the players want to know if they find anything on a body or in a car, a room, or even an entire building. Soldier: The general military skill. Reduce all boring tasks – like filling sandbags – to a Soldier roll. Also use it for routine patrols (apply Got You Covered, p. 5), with failure meaning a skirmish and critical failure meaning an ambush. Streetwise: The consummate criminal skill. Success can take care of “gangster stuff” like finding fellow crooks, realizing that a gang war is about to break out, and making a bribe. Failure is a good excuse for a random chase or fight! Urban Survival: The ultimate urban skill. Use it to locate Dumpsters for stashing corpses and scoring computer manuals; to find manholes, hydrants, payphones, etc.; and to know what areas are too rickety for walking or driving.

STAYING ALERT Counting heads, spotting obvious dangers like barbed-wire fences, and so on requires no special roll. For interesting details – e.g., the enemy has a machine gun or the fence is electrified – the GM rolls once against the crew’s best Observation skill to see whether they notice. This becomes a Quick Contest vs. Stealth or Camouflage for hidden sentries; see Subtlety (pp. 9-10). Security Systems (pp. 21-22) and Traps (pp. 22-23) describe other important detection rules.

General procedure only goes so far. Each target or location that’s important to the story should offer opportunities for dif- ferent team members to show off their tradecraft. This section is organized so that it roughly follows the “four As” of the typ- ical action plot: 1. Assess: Most groups start by gathering information (Gathering Intelligence, pp. 11-14) and asking questions (Social Engineering, pp. 15-17) about their next objective. 2. Analyze: The team uses the information gathered in the previous step to formulate a plan (Planning, p. 17). 3. Act: The squad puts the plan into action. This often involves raiding a secure area (Getting In, p. 18-23), taking something (Grabbing the Goods, pp. 23-24), and/or destroying something (Destruction, pp. 24-25) – or preventing such out- comes (Providing Security, pp. 27-30). 4. Avoid: Covert operators hide the evidence (Deception, pp. 26-29) and leave the scene (Getting Away, p. 27) afterward. These steps may occur in any order, though. Deception (4) is often critical to making a raid (3) or an interview (1) work. Gathering intelligence (1) usually requires a plan (2) based on earlier intelligence – and possibly a break-in (3) to grab secret files before making the next plan for the next action. And so on. Complications arising at any stage can and probably should lead to Ultra-Violence (pp. 31-39).

The GM should create a list of critical facts or clues for each plot development, with notes on means by which the PCs can discover them. Any success roll that depends on that informa- tion – e.g., an Interrogation roll to confront a mook with enough proof that he cracks and reveals the next plot develop- ment, or an Assistance Roll to convince the Company to authorize armed intervention – might suffer an overwhelming penalty: BAD, double BAD, or worse. Each success at the fact- finding activities below or under Social Engineering (pp. 15-17) serves as a complementary skill roll whose bonus erodes the penalty. The heroes can always skip steps, but without enough particulars, it won’t be easy to take things to the next level! The GM should make most intelligence-gathering rolls in secret. He might decide that critical success – or even ordinary success, on a daring task – advances the plot immediately. On the other hand, critical failures traditionally mean detection: Bad guys attack or chase the heroes if they’re present, or get a free chance to pass along disinformation to or glean valuable clues about snoops who are operating remotely. For tips on roleplaying intelligence gathering, see How to Game Fact-Finding (p. 17). PHYSICAL SEARCHES Searching for physical clues is the kind of hands-on infor- mation gathering that action heroes enjoy! Cops look for evi- dence, crooks toss apartments, security officers tear apart terrorist hideouts, soldiers search captured positions, and spies get into everything. The GM decides what, if any, physical intelligence is in each area. If there are clues and the players are about to miss them, the GM should make a secret IQ roll for anyone with Intuition. Success gives the feeling that there’s something important here – but not what it is! If the players decide to search an area, they must state what skills their PCs are using (see below for suggestions). The GM then rolls secretly. Those with Serendipity can opt to use it here; this will reveal one clue at random if there are any, but the use is “spent” regardless. When examining abandoned facilities, corpses, lab sam- ples, etc., there’s little risk of interference; failure means a missed clue, while critical failure means a false lead. If the heroes used Getting In (pp. 18-23) to make a covert search, though, the GM may read critical failure as bad guys showing up, triggering a chase or combat! Corpses: To determine any cause of death unobvious enough to rate as a clue, the roll is against Diagnosis, with Surgery as a complementary skill.

Deduction: At a crime scene, a success on Criminology will deduce enough about what the crooks were doing to reveal a clue; critical success might hint at the criminals’ organization or identity. In a military or espionage situation, Intelligence Analysis can work the same way. Evidence Collection: Collecting hair, prints, etc., requires an evidence collection kit and a Forensics roll. Failure means an important sample is missed. Critical failure means something contaminates the samples, which may give a false clue. Lab Forensics: Analyzing collected samples for clues requires a forensics lab and a second Forensics roll. Any success finds both real clues present in good samples and false clues lurking in bad ones – but only a critical success distinguishes between them. Failure misses all clues. Critical failure reveals a false clue caused by contamination at the lab as well as any bad clues resulting from careless collection, but never real clues! Hardware: If the investigators’ quarry left behind explosives or weapons, a success against Expert Skill (Military Science) will deduce the intended use if that’s something unusual like “attack an armored vehicle here downtown” and not just “hurt people.” It can also deduce where military-grade hardware came from (“The Iraqis are arming these guys.”). Hidden Items: Finding something that has been deliberately concealed in a room or a vehicle, or on a corpse, requires a Search roll. Where the Holdout or Smuggling skill of the per- son who hid it is known, the searcher must win a Quick Con- test against that skill; otherwise, just apply BAD to an uncontested roll. Trails: A successful Tracking roll can discover how many people were present and where someone who left the area went, either of which might qualify as important. AUDIO SURVEILLANCE Spying on conversations is a classic investigative tool. You don’t need bugs (p. 13) or intercepts (p. 14) for this, although other technologies can be helpful. It’s useful to bring along an audio recorder to capture the exchange. This can use its inter- nal mike or any of the special mikes below. Listening: Successful use of Camouflage, Shadowing, or Stealth (see Subtlety, pp. 9-10) will get you within 4 yards – close enough to try a Hearing roll at -2. Add -1 per doubling of distance past that. A shotgun mike divides effective distance by 8, which is especially useful because your target’s Sense rolls in Quick Contests to notice you will suffer range penalties (p. B550). Contact Mike: This item from the wire rat kit works from the far side of a door, wall, or window. To listen in, make an Electronics Operation (Surveillance) roll at a penalty equal to barrier (DR + HP)/5, rounded down. Critical failure breaks the mike but doesn’t give you away. Laser Mike: If your target is behind a window, you can use this tool to listen in from up to 900 yards off. A successful Elec- tronics Operation (Surveillance) roll picks up the conversa- tion. Failure means your angle is wrong and you can’t listen in. Critical failure means you or the laser beam is seen – although if you’re half a mile away, you’ll at least have a head start. Pinhead Mike: This widget from the wire rat kit demands a DX-based Electronics Operation (Surveillance) roll to snake under doors and through ducts. Failure means it’s stuck and lost; critical failure means it’s detected. Spike Mike: Another tool from the wire rat kit, this calls for a DX-based Electronics Operation (Surveillance) roll to push through a wall. Failure breaks it; critical failure means detection. Stethoscope: This common doctor’s tool works identically to a contact mike (above), except that critical failure means your subject hears you scratching around! VISUAL SURVEILLANCE You don’t need a video bug (p. 13) to watch people, but high-tech gear helps. Watching: Success at Camouflage, Shadowing, or Stealth (see Subtlety, pp. 9-10) lets you watch someone unnoticed. Make a Vision roll at standard range penalties (p. B550), but with +2 per level of Telescopic Vision of your optics; e.g., you have -10 to spy on people from 100 yards, but a spotting scope (Telescopic Vision 5) would cancel this. Your target has the same range penalty on rolls in the Quick Contest to notice you – but he, too, can use optics! Photography: Using a digital camera or a camcorder for sur- veillance works just like watching, above. The roll is against Vision, as usual, if you’re using the viewfinder as a scope, but against Photography if you want clear images for evidence or alteration. In either case, only the camera’s Telescopic Vision matters. When taking pictures, roll once for the whole session, with any failure meaning inconclusive imagery and critical failure meaning someone spots you. Endoscope: A surveillance endoscope lets you see under doors, through tiny holes in walls, etc. Make a successful DX- based Electronics Operation (Surveillance) roll to do this. Failure means the ’scope gets stuck and broken; critical failure means it’s detected. What Can I See? When the heroes watch from afar or exam- ine video, the GM should roll secretly against their highest Observation skill to decide whether they spotted useful clues. This includes things like seeing the boss enter his code sequence on a keypad lock. To “read” people – e.g., to deduce who the boss is or spot the unhappy mook who might be brib- able – the roll is against Body Language. And within 7 yards, doubled per level of Telescopic Vision that optics provide, Lip Reading is possible to learn what’s being said (e.g., pass- words). Apply BAD to all such rolls: Good-quality mooks and henchmen shield keypads, don’t salute incognito officers, hud- dle when speaking, etc. BUGS, BEACONS, AND WIRES Planting any bug or beacon from the wire rat kit demands an Electronics Operation (Surveillance) roll. The GM rolls secretly. Failure means it doesn’t work; critical failure means it will be found and possibly used to deliver disinformation. Once the gizmo is in place, it transmits to its listed range without the wire rat needing to stick around and risk being seen. Concealing Bugs: A device’s small size is usually enough to evade detection, but you can always declare that you’re hiding it. When those who might notice the gadget look for it, they must win a Quick Contest vs. your Camouflage skill if you hid it outdoors, Smuggling if you stashed it in a room or a vehi- cle, or Holdout if it’s a “wire” carried by a person.

Audio Bug: This gizmo captures conversations as if your ear were at its location; use the rules for listening under Audio Sur- veillance (p. 12). The wire rat kit’s transceiver receives the sig- nal, which can be sent to an audio recorder or a computer for recording. Conventional Mike: Any electronic microphone can be left in place and made to work like an audio bug by attaching a generic transmitter from the wire rat kit. Setting this up cor- rectly requires a separate Electronics Operation (Communi- cations) roll. Any failure means there’s no signal. Keyboard Bug: This captures computer input (e.g., pass- words). It uses the computer’s phone or Internet connection to transmit information to the spy’s computer. Setting up the receiving computer calls for a Computer Operation roll, with any failure meaning no data is received. Video Bug: This miniature camera functions as a remote eyeball at its location; use the rules for watching under Visual Surveillance (p. 12). The wire rat kit’s transceiver receives the signal, which is usually recorded using a computer or a video recorder. Conventional Camera: Any digital camera can be left in place and turned into a video bug by attaching a generic trans- mitter from the wire rat kit. This calls for an Electronics Operation (Communications) roll to set up properly, with failure meaning no feed. Tracking Beacon: If using the audiovisual transceiver alone, you must drive around and make another Electronics Opera- tion (Surveillance) roll to triangulate the beacon’s location. Most wire rats plug in a computer, which lets them visually track the target via GPS on a successful Computer Operation roll – all without leaving home. Cell Phone Beacon: A wire rat with a cellular monitoring sys- tem can track a specific cell phone as if it were a GPS tracking beacon; this requires an Electronics Operation (Surveil- lance) roll. Successfully hacking the phone company (see Hacking, below) makes this possible without monitoring gear!

High-Tech Challenges

A realistic treatment of technological skullduggery would fill chapters and bore gamers who aren’t playing hackers or wire rats. These guidelines are designed to make such exploits work like in the movies: fast, risky, and unrealistic. Hacking To hack a computer system, the hacker needs a line in. In thrillers, systems are often conveniently online, allowing the hacker to use his Internet connection of choice. Top- secret systems are isolated, requiring a break-in (see Get- ting In, pp. 18-23) to either access the console or rig a link with an Electronics Operation (Communications) roll. Hacking is a Quick Contest of skills: the hacker’s Com- puter Hacking against the Expert Skill (Computer Secu- rity) of the target system’s administrator. That individual typically has skill equal to 10 + absolute value of BAD. Meanwhile, the hacker suffers BAD as a penalty. Thus, a BAD of even -4 means even odds for a skill-18 hacker (14 vs. 14), while BAD -10 is almost insurmountable (8 vs. 20). Fortunately, the hacker can claim numerous bonuses – all cumulative. Add his computer’s Complexity: +3 for a typical system, but up to +8 if he makes an Assistance Roll to gain access to a supercomputer. Treat successes at plant- ing keyboard bugs (above) or engaging in computer moni- toring (p. 14), Dumpster-Diving (p. 14), and/or Social Engineering (pp. 15-17) as complementary skill rolls to weasel manuals and passwords. And both Computer Pro- gramming and Expert Skill (Computer Security) act as complementary skills if the hacker writes his own code. Each attempt takes an hour; apply Time Spent (p. B346) penalties if working faster. The hacker must win to access the system. Loss by 5 or less permits repeated attempts at a cumulative -1. Greater loss means detection, bringing whatever consequences the plot requires: disinformation, virus, ninja . . . Once “inside” a system, the hacker can use Computer Operation to steal or alter data (like identity databases), Electronics Operation (Communications) to spy on communications the system manages, Electronics Oper- ation (Security) to neutralize computerized security, Electronics Operation (Surveillance) to hijack com- puter-controlled cameras, etc. Code-Cracking Action heroes frequently can’t read a computer file or decipher a broadcast without cracking encryption. In real life, this is slow if not functionally impossible without a “key” (computer file, disk, microchip, etc.). This has led to two types of ciphers in movies: Breakable: Typical of everyday computers and tele- phones. The code-cracker requires a computer and a day, and must roll against Cryptography. Ordinary computers aren’t up to the challenge – roll at -2 per Complexity level below 5 (an Assistance Roll for facilities bypasses this). The hacker can work faster, taking Time Spent (p. B346) penalties. Unbreakable: Plot devices, like top-secret government systems. To deal with these, suborn a key-holder using Social Engineering (pp. 15-17), or pilfer the key by Getting In (pp. 18-23) and Grabbing the Goods (pp. 23-24). Hacking (above) is an option for a digital key. Repurposing Modifying gadgetry requires Quick Gadgeteer and fol- lows the rules in Action 1: Heroes. Captured technology with security measures is subject to BAD. The +2 for a full- sized shop or the +4 for facilities available on an Assistance Roll can help a lot!

INTERCEPTS An intercept differs from a bug (pp. 12-13) in that nothing is planted in the surveillance area. The spy captures signals using a remote receiver or by splicing into a nearby phone line. To gain access to utility lines or loiter in an area without arousing suspicions, either be sneaky (Subtlety, pp. 9-10) or look like you belong there (Impersonation, p. 27). If you’re several blocks away, anyone on the lookout will have standard range penalties (p. B550) in Quick Contests to spot you. Cellular Monitoring: Intercepting cell-phone traffic requires a cellular monitoring system and a successful Electronics Operation (Surveillance) roll. Failure costs 1d minutes but allows repeated attempts. Critical failure means the target hears something that draws attention to the intercept! There’s no fixed range; being on the same cellular network is good enough. Computer Monitoring: Indirectly reading a computer dis- play in real time calls for a computer monitoring system and a successful Electronics Operation (Surveillance) roll. Failure wastes 1d minutes. Critical failure reads the wrong machine – conceivably one hundreds of yards away! Thus, the GM always rolls in secret. Effective range is 100 yards in built-up areas, but 300+ yards in open areas (-1 per 100 yards past that). Radio Intercept: Eavesdropping on ordinary radio signals requires a backpack-sized or larger radio and a successful Electronics Operation (Communications) roll. Failure uses the same rules as cellular monitoring. Range is that of your set (35 miles or more). Wiretap: This requires a wire rat kit, access to exterior or building phone lines (or the phone company’s central office), and an Electronics Operation (Surveillance) roll. Failure uses the same rules as cellular monitoring. Range is irrelevant! Encryption: Encryption doesn’t affect intercepts but pre- vents real-time deciphering. Unless you find, build, or steal a matched receiver, you must record the signal and use Code- Cracking (p. 13). DUMPSTER-DIVING Every hacker (and street person) knows that people discard the most amazing things. After locating a likely surveillance target (see Targets and Locations, p. 7), roll against Urban Sur- vival to learn where its denizens pile their garbage, unless that’s obvious. Use Subtlety (pp. 9-10) to avoid being seen and Getting In (pp. 18-23) to deal with fences, etc. The GM then secretly rolls against the searcher’s Scroung- ing skill, applying BAD to reflect the fact that challenging opponents often shred and burn discarded records. This gen- erally serves as a complementary skill roll for a task like Hacking (p. 13); successes find useful intelligence (+1 or +2), while failures find confusingly incomplete info (-1 or -2). The GM may also opt to describe specific items found on suc- cesses (e.g., someone’s photo) or assess nasty consequence for failures (e.g., big rats or broken glass do 1 point of injury to a hand). FILES AND RECORDS Formal records often hold the best information. You’ll need legitimate access, a sneak peek via Subtlety (pp. 9-10) or Social Engineering (pp. 15-17), or a copy stolen through Hacking (p. 13) or Grabbing the Goods (pp. 23-24). Then roll as indicated. Research: Searching blueprints, databases, files, maps, and so forth calls for 1d hours and a Research roll. This is subject to BAD when researching a secretive individual or group. Quality modifiers also apply. Ordinary public or online libraries and databases give no modifier. Large university and government archives, and big government and corporate data- bases, give +1. Make this +2 for famous libraries like the Bodleian or the New York Public, or +3 for the Library of Con- gress – secrets are often hidden there in the movies, so it must be true! Top secret NSA files and the like either give +4 or can- cel BAD, whichever is better. As part of a plot, the GM may rule that a massive collection is poorly catalogued, which multi- plies the time required by a factor found by looking up the quality bonus under Time Spent (p. B346); e.g., +2 means four times as long, or 4d hours. Forensic Accounting: Take 3d hours and make an Account- ing roll to audit ledgers, financial records, etc. Anything dis- closed to the public is subject to BAD (rival actuaries can cook the books). Stolen private info isn’t – BAD already affected the roll to grab it – but may be encrypted. If the adventure’s objec- tive is to obtain such information to prove a crime, success may convince the brass to authorize a raid or other action immediately. The Obvious: A few bad guys are dumb enough to advertise. If so, a basic Computer Operation roll for websites or a Cur- rent Affairs roll for daily news will suffice – and BAD doesn’t apply, because the whole point is that the enemy is incompe- tent! This takes 1d minutes. Quick Searches: When locating a bomb, working from files that must be returned in a hurry, etc., the above times are too slow. Haste is possible using the penalties under Time Spent (p. B346), and it’s often helpful to attempt a roll against Car- tography for maps or blueprints, Computer Operation for hypertext or databases, or Speed-Reading for text or num- bers. Halve the margin of success or failure, drop fractions, and add it to the haste penalty on your information-gathering roll. This can’t give a net bonus. When skimming like this, crit- ical success and success on the information-gathering roll work as usual, but the GM will treat any failure as a critical failure – and critical failures, as disasters (“You spill your latté into the computer.”)

These tasks often work as complementary skill rolls that whittle away at penalties to rolls to precipitate major plot breakthroughs, much like the feats listed under Gathering Intel- ligence (pp. 11-14). They can also achieve important goals of their own; e.g., distracting or deceiving a guard. Either way, the GM rolls in secret when the objective is to obtain information. There are two common ways to improve your odds with these activities. Bribery In the movies, everybody has a price. The base bribe is a C- note ($100), which gives +1 to one social engineering attempt against someone of average means. Bigger is better: $500 buys +2, $2,000 nets +3, and $10,000 grants +4. Multiply the bribes needed for these bonuses by the mark’s Wealth factor: 1/5 for Poor, 1/2 for Struggling, 1 for Average, 2 for Comfortable, 5 for Wealthy, 20 for Very Wealthy, 100 for Filthy Rich, and then another ¥10 per Multimillionaire level. Thus, +3 against a crime boss with Multimillionaire 1 costs $2 million. A bribe less than the amount required for +1 – or an inap- propriate bribe – is insulting. Treat the ensuing social engineer- ing attempt as a failure. Success against the applicable Savoir-Faire specialty (see Fitting In, p. 16) will warn you if you’re about to do this. If you’re sure that bribery is appropri- ate, tossing in something extra never hurts. If the bribe is illegal, make a Streetwise roll. Failure means you lose the money but get no bonus. Critical failure means a chase, combat, robbery, or sting operation! Making an Impression Numerous skills are complementary to social engineering attempts, including Administration when dealing with bureaucrats, Carousing at a club or a party, Dancing as a prel- ude to Sex Appeal, Gambling at a casino, and Merchant if money is changing hands. Connoisseur can aid both Sex Appeal and transactions, if the specialty would impress your mark. Sex Appeal itself can complement other skills. You can claim a bonus for several skills if they’re all applicable. CONTACTS AND CONTACT GROUPS Contacts and Contact Groups can provide information (only), much as if you went out and got it yourself. You must first succeed at an appearance roll for a connection the GM agrees would know something relevant. Then roll against your associate’s social engineering skill instead of yours. This yields the usual results for that skill. Only bribes can help this roll. WORD ON THE STREET If you have a lead, you can ask around casually to discover more. This uses a suitable Current Affairs specialty for legit- imate info, or Streetwise for underworld tips. Either can benefit from bribery (at no Wealth multiplier) and/or a complementary Carousing roll, which represent the expense and effort of informal socializing. Critical failure on the latter roll customarily means an impromptu barroom brawl! MANIPULATION Slick heroes – especially face men – like to play mind games with people. Below, roll a Quick Contest of skill against the mark’s Will. Mooks and henchmen alike have an effective Will of 10 + absolute value of BAD, reflecting their respect for (or fear of) their superiors. Victory acquires the information, dis- tracts a mook, etc. To finagle active aid requires victory by 5+. When these Contests act as complementary skill rolls, vic- tory by 0-4 counts as a success (+1) and victory by 5+ counts as a critical success (+2). Any loss, however, gives a penalty equal to the margin of loss! Diplomacy: Diplomacy can convince neutral (not hostile) NPCs to share information, or defuse a situation turned bad by failure at another roll. Victory by 5+ can gain minor aid from a neutral party – or negotiate the release of hostages. Bribery helps in situations where “peace offerings” or cash tips are apropos. Administration and Streetwise act as complemen- tary skills when dealing with officials and crooks, respectively. Fast-Talk: Fast-Talk can distract a guard while friends sneak past, or con some mook into letting you glimpse sensi- tive info. Victory by 5+ can convince a guard to admit you, or trick an NPC into giving you files, a key, etc. Bribery isn’t effec- tive – the whole point is that this doesn’t look like a scam. Administration complements this roll vs. officious types, Gambling aids confidence scams, and Sex Appeal helps if the goal is distraction. Public Speaking: Public Speaking can stir up a crowd of neutral folk enough that the noise and shoving screen suspi- cious activities. Roll against effective Will 12. The full margin of victory is the penalty to rolls to observe or follow the squad – and a victory by 5+ means an actual riot! Calming a riot also requires victory by 5+. Bribery works when causing trouble; just scatter enough cash to bribe everyone. Few skills comple- ment these feats, but face men may employ Carousing or Dancing to help rouse partiers – or to turn a riot into less-vio- lent activity. Savoir-Faire: Each Savoir-Faire specialty works like Diplo- macy when dealing with its target group, or like Fast-Talk if the goal is to convince someone that you belong to that group. Savoir-Faire (High Society) is almost the only way to talk one’s way past an Indomitable butler or maître d’, while Savoir-Faire (Servant) can induce the high-and-mighty to overlook you. Bribery is fine when posing as a higher-up and tipping a lower-down; otherwise, it always insults. See Fitting In (p. 16) for complementary skills. Sex Appeal: Sex Appeal can distract, convince the doorman at the club to let you in, etc. Victory by 5+ can convince some- one to leave his post to appreciate your charms up close, set up a Pickpocket attempt, or even get clothes on the floor for the investigator to search or the wire rat to bug. Bribery insults unless your target is a “pro” who expects to be paid for the encounter. Carousing, Connoisseur, Dancing, and Gambling all have cinematic precedent as complementary skills.

Fitting In

Action movies aren’t known for their realistic treatment of human interaction, but generally, cops get along with fellow cops, soldiers with other soldiers, and so on. This can affect social engineering. Cop Land: The Savoir-Faire skill for dealing with police and security officers is Savoir-Faire (Police). This can act as a complementary skill for any social feat for which it isn’t already the master skill – but Law (Police) comple- ments social engineering when you’re a cop dealing with a judge or a DA. Corps and Cubes: Administration is the universal com- plementary skill in a corporate environment – but use Mer- chant around sales and marketing staff. High and Tight: The Savoir-Faire specialty for military settings is Savoir-Faire (Military). When that isn’t the master skill, it can complement social engineering attempts with other skills. Scumbags: When dealing with organized crime, Savoir- Faire (Mafia) serves as the master skill when a social engineering task requires Savoir-Faire, and as a comple- mentary skill otherwise. When dealing with street crooks, Streetwise replaces Savoir-Faire as a master or comple- mentary skill, and Intimidation is the complementary skill whenever Streetwise isn’t. The Big Desk: As a master skill, use Savoir-Faire (High Society) on “generic rich folk,” crime lords encountered in polite settings, and anybody whose job brings Status 2+ – including executives, civic officials, and Rank 5+ military or police officers met socially. However, only use it as a complementary skill if the target isn’t of a type who would be susceptible to the other skills above.

INTERVIEWS Interviewing a friendly or neutral individual to learn what he knows is an uncontested Interrogation roll. This isn’t a hostile attempt to squeeze out information – the roll is to channel the discussion productively. If bad guys reached the interviewee first and made threats, BAD applies (the GM can instead treat this as a Quick Contest against the thug’s Intimidation skill, if known). A Psychology roll is complementary; success also reveals whether the subject was menaced. In the movies, bribery helps, too, but peeling off $100 bills will insult most honest citizens – buy a meal or bring a gift instead. MAKING THEM TALK A hostile individual won’t volunteer information when asked. He must be put on the spot. The GM rolls for interroga- tions and shakedowns in secret, keeping any resulting comple- mentary skill modifier to himself. Bribery (of GM or NPC) is rarely useful! Interrogation: Respectable interrogators isolate the subject, make him uncomfortable, and maintain the pressure until he cracks. Handle the session – not each question – as a Quick Contest: Interrogation, penalized by BAD, against Will (or unmodified skill vs. effective Will figured from BAD, for NPCs without character sheets). If this is a generic information- gathering attempt early in an adventure, BAD should be low (0 to -3) and the outcome gives a complementary skill modifier for later feats: loss by 5+ counts as critical failure (-2); loss by 1-4, as failure (-1); victory by 0-4, as success (+1); and victory by 5+, as critical success (+2). If the interrogation is the gate- way to the story’s next chapter, BAD should be high (-4 to -10) – possibly doubled, for high-ranking henchmen – so that over- coming it practically demands complementary skill bonuses for previously gathered information. Victory, however, reveals a major new plot development. Good Cop, Bad Cop: Two interrogators – one antagonistic, one sympathetic – can cooperate. Each must roll against Act- ing or Psychology. Both rolls are complementary skill rolls. Polygraph: Security agents may be called upon to give a polygraph or “lie detector” test as part of interrogation. Their employer provides the equipment; make an Assistance Roll if it’s needed but absent. The GM rolls a secret Quick Contest of the operator’s Electronics Operation (Security) vs. the sub- ject’s Will. Treat the full margin of victory or loss as a bonus or penalty to Interrogation. The interrogator need not be the operator. Truth Serum: While Action 1: Heroes lists a price for “truth serum,” anybody but a secret agent will likely have to impro- vise; this requires a Pharmacy roll (defaults to IQ-6) and access to a dispensary. Administration calls for a Physician roll (defaults to IQ-7). The serum works in about 30 seconds, sapping 1d FP from the subject and forcing a HT-1 roll, with failure meaning he has -2 to Will during the interrogation. Interrogators without suitable skills can roll at default, but fail- ure on either skill roll above renders the subject unconscious before he can talk (or worse, in reality – but this is an action movie). Shakedown: The streets handle things differently. Throw your mark against the wall, stick a gun in his mouth, and tell him to talk. Handle this as interrogation, except that the oper- ative skill is Intimidation and critical failure on the roll means a violent response. If you have the upper hand when things go bad, your only option is “waste him,” which is messy and means you’ll never learn what he knew (if this was crucial, the GM may assess a -2 complementary skill modifier). Torture: Some movie “heroes” use this villainous method. Cinematic consensus seems to be that torture makes people talk, but they might say anything! Torture can give up to +6 to Interrogation – assume that Knife, Surgery, Wrestling, and quite a few other skills are complementary, and cap the total bonus at +6. Details of how each skill works are left to the imagination. Liar, Liar: Unlike most complementary skill penalties, those resulting from botched interrogation can be erased. After grilling someone, any member of the crew can ask to try Detect Lies. The GM will roll a secret Quick Contest against the best of the subject’s IQ, Acting, or Fast-Talk (if unknown, use 10 + absolute value of BAD). Victory erases any penalty.

A tie has no effect. Loss casts doubt on the truth or confirms a lie: Adjust the modifier by -1! Brainwashing: Action heroes rarely do this – it’s villainous and takes too long – but brainwashed NPCs are common. Some are hostile when they shouldn’t be, others follow the bad guys’ cause (BAD applies to the team’s social engineering rolls), and still oth- ers simply can’t recall something vital. It’s possible to “break” such conditioning with the Brainwashing skill. This is a Quick Con- test against the brainwasher’s skill. Each attempt takes a day. The deprogrammer can keep trying until he succeeds, but if he ever critically fails, the subject has a cinematic seizure and won’t be useful any more.

How to Game Fact-Finding

The reason for asking questions, bugging phones, and stealing data might be to accumulate enough complementary skill bonuses to act suc- cessfully, but that doesn’t mean the GM should drone, “You got a success at Dumpster-diving, so take +1 on Computer Hacking. You win – you’re in. Now try Computer Operation to steal data. Critical success! The team gets another +2 for clues.” That’s boring, boring, boring. The players should describe their efforts dramatically. The GM can encourage this with a small skill bonus or even an extra character point. Then the GM ought to present the results movie-style, using really bad rolls (or plans) as excuses for chases and fights!

So far, everything has been about discovery – where the ter- rorists hid the bomb, how tough the casino vault is, etc. These activities (and any associated violence!) occupy half or more of some action movies. As explained under Gathering Intelligence (pp. 11-14) and amplified in Social Engineering (pp. 15-17), the goal is to score enough complementary skill bonuses – let’s call the sum the Accumulated Complementary Total (ACT) – to off- set the huge penalty on rolls to initiate the adventure’s next act. This penalty might be BAD, 2¥ BAD, or worse. The pivotal skill roll can vary. There might be several cycles of fact-finding followed by different rolls, each involving pro- gressively higher BAD offset by more ACT. THE BIG PICTURE To grasp the situation well enough even to try to plan the mis- sion, job, or operation, one team member must use Intelligence Analysis or its default (IQ-6). Lawmen out to foil crooks can opt to try Criminology. This secret roll – made by the GM – is sub- ject to ACT and BAD or some multiple, as discussed above. Success puts together the puzzle and reveals what the group needs to do next; critical success gives +2 to the planning roll (below). Any failure means the squad doesn’t even know where to go, and must score another +1 to ACT before making a repeated attempt. Critical failure means they discover this by reaching a bogus conclusion that leads to a worthless plan and a pointless fight! PERMISSION TO ACT Lawmen, soldiers, and even spies have rules. The GM may require an Assistance Roll – either as well as the skill roll above (if the boss expects a complete analysis) or instead of it (if the brass prefer to assess the evidence themselves) – at exactly the same modifiers. Success lets the PCs move on to planning. Failure means they need another +1 to ACT to retry. They can act anyway – cinematic mavericks always act – but they’ll face automatic failure on any future AR for the mission, Rank loss, or termination . . . THE MISSION PLAN Action-movie planning ranges from “Synchronize watches!” to an entire montage of equipping, mapping, rehearsing, etc. It’s only possible if the “big picture” roll succeeded or critically failed – and on a critical failure, the planning roll is meaning- less, as the only possible outcome is random ultra-violence! To make a plan, one party member should roll against a suitable skill: Architecture if infiltrating a building, Leader- ship or Strategy if commanding an NPC force, Streetwise if hitting a rival gang, Tactics if the group will be fighting, etc. Details are up to the GM, who should keep an open mind. Modifiers: ACT and BAD modifiers that applied to the “big picture” roll; +2 if that roll critically succeeded; complemen- tary skill bonuses for any applicable planning skill above that isn’t the master skill; complementary skill bonus for Cartogra- phy (in the movies, fancy 3D maps make any mission better!). Read the planning roll as a complementary skill roll. The GM will apply the modifier directly to the BAD of the part of the adventure covered by the plan; e.g., if the mission had BAD -5, critical failure would mean a disastrous plan that makes BAD -7! Leave the plan itself abstract; whatever heroic tasks the PCs perform on the mission are “part of the plan.” THE TRAINING SEQUENCE Grand plans in action movies often involve heroes (espe- cially commandos) quickly teaching NPC cannon fodder how to impersonate bad guys, fight back against evil drug lords, and so on. This is rarely shown in detail; instead, there’s a montage that ends when the training does. Each PC who wants to teach a skill must have that skill and make a Teaching roll, at -9 for a day, -7 for a weekend, 0 for a week, or +2 for a month. Any success temporarily grants his students the equivalent of 1 point in the skill, which they can use to help out on the upcoming mission (only). Any failure means the students learn nothing. Multiple heroes can teach the same cannon fodder different skills at the same time.

Getting into – or out of – a secure location can accompany the tasks under Gathering Intelligence (pp. 11-14), be the high- light of a raid or a heist (see Grabbing the Goods, pp. 23-24), or be a goal in itself (as in a prison break). In all cases, a hero with Danger Sense gets a secret Perception roll before being eaten by guard dogs, fried by an electric fence, etc. Suc- cess warns him that he’ll be in danger if he continues – but not what the danger is! SURVEILLANCE AND PATROLS The top threat to would-be sneaks trying to enter a secure area isn’t alarms or deadly exotica like mines – it’s being spot- ted. In the movies, tripping an alarm just gets the bad guys looking for you; being seen means they’ve found you. If the crew can’t silence them in one second of violence, a chase or a fight ensues, making further stealth impossible! To evade detection by patrols, roll the Quick Contests under Subtlety (pp. 9-10). Remember that BAD rates the enemy leader’s effective skill (e.g., BAD -4 is effective skill 10 + 4 = 14), accounting for night-vision gear, patrol density, etc. Having a good plan for dealing with this mitigates BAD (see The Mission Plan, p. 17) – and once on-site, the squad can use Observation as a complementary skill, noting the patrol schedule and thus eroding BAD even further for this one application. Cameras: Security cameras may cover every corner and have lights or night vision, but there are rarely enough guards to watch all those screens. Keeping to the shadows or darting past while the cameras are panned away is a standard Stealth attempt, except that the guards use the better of Vision or Elec- tronics Operation (Security). If a hacker has already overcome BAD to hack into and control networked cameras (see Hacking, p. 13), ignore BAD and the Quick Contest, and make a simple Stealth roll to walk into any area that’s watched by cameras alone. Any failure means being seen. Guard Animals: If guard animals are present (GM decides), these account for -2 of BAD for patrol and surveillance pur- poses. Dealing with the beasts can partly erase this: Animal Handling becomes a complementary skill for the sole purpose of the rolls under Subtlety (pp. 9-10). If the animals lack han- dlers, any success on Animal Handling allows an unmodified, uncontested Stealth roll to walk past (the animals are dis- tracted, bribed with food, etc.), while failure means the usual Contest takes place – and critical failure means the animals attack and any guards notice the commotion! INSERTION Isolation is such an effective security measure that the first part of getting in is likely to be getting on-site! If an “interest- ing” location is accessible using a large vehicle with a single controller, or on foot, use Travel (pp. 7-8). The rules below are for when each hero must operate – or at least wear – his own insertion equipment. To make this a team effort instead of leaving the hacker and face man behind on dives and jumps, use Got You Cov- ered (p. 5) when the team attempts such an insertion. This is unrealistic but true to cinema: The gruff ex-Ranger makes sure that his geeky sidekick arrives in one piece. For all insertions, even those on foot, Subtlety (pp. 9-10) is often needed! Parachutes: Make a Parachuting roll to jump out of a per- fectly good airplane. Any failure means the least-skilled squad member experiences a disaster. Consider trained skill and defaults (DX-4) – and on a tie, there’s a collision that affects everybody at that skill level. Failure costs 1d HP of general bruising. Critical failure, or ordinary failure if the victim had an overloaded chute, means a fall from the full jump height; see Falls (p. 19). (A jump from below a chute’s minimum jump height counts as a critical failure for everybody dumb enough to try.) It takes 2 seconds to get out of the harness after landing. Gliders: Use Piloting (Glider) for hang-glider infiltration. This works like parachute insertion, except that critical failure means the least-skilled aviator falls out of his glider in the course of taking damage. The craft crashes dramatically, pre- venting any attempt at stealth. Boats: The operative skill for inflatable boats (“Zodiacs”) and speedboats is Boating (Powerboat). On a failure, roll 1d: 1-3 means subtlety is impossible; 4-6 indicates that somebody’s gear (choose randomly) falls overboard and is lost. Critical fail- ure sends the least-skilled person overboard (determine this as for parachuting); this foils stealth, costs him his gear, and requires him to roll against Swimming to avoid losing 1 FP (1d FP on a critical failure). Divers: The Scuba skill covers insertions using scuba gear or dive torpedoes. Any failure means the squad loses the ele- ment of surprise; the bad guys hear motors or spot bubbles. Critical failure also means the least-skilled diver suffers an accident involving propellers or Big Fish; the victim may try a Swimming roll as a “saving throw,” with success meaning a mere 1 HP of injury but failure costing 1d HP.

CLIMBING Climbing is one of the infiltrator’s top methods for break- ing into secure installations. Many valuable objectives are protected chiefly by being 40 stories up a steel-and-glass tower. When the lower floors are rotten with sensors and guards, a line tossed from the next roof over is often the sim- plest solution!

Except for the roll to toss a line, these rolls take a penalty equal to encumbrance, and a critical failure means a fall (see Falls, boxed text). Tossing Lines: Throwing a grapnel to snag a parapet, flagstaff, or other anchor within ST¥2 yards requires a Throwing roll. Ranged combat penal- ties don’t apply, unless doing this in combat. Failure just means you must try again. Critical failure alerts the bad guys by smashing a window, pulling down the flagpole, etc. Balancing: Roll Acrobatics to tra- verse something narrow, at -2 if it’s taut or rigid (a ledge) or -5 if it’s slack (an ordinary rope). A pole helps balance – add +2 for a 6’ pole, +3 for a 10’ pole. Failure means a fall, but allows a DX roll to catch something and try a pull-up (see below) to get back on. Critical failure (or failure on a DX roll to catch yourself) means a fall from the height of the crossing. Heroes with Perfect Balance don’t have to roll! Climbing: Assume that most climbs require one Climbing roll per story at -3 (or no penalty with suction cups) if scaling the side of a building, or one roll per 10 stories at only -2 (which can be offset by quality bonuses for climbing gear) for a rope straight up. Failure and critical failure work as for

balancing.

Leg Up: A friend can boost you to reach a high area. He makes a ST roll while you roll Acrobatics at -2. If you both succeed, you can reach anything up to the sum of your heights and try a pull-up to get yourself up there. Failure by either of you lets you retry, but your partner must pay 1 FP per repeated attempt. On any critical failure, you collapse in a pile and each take 1d-3 HP of injury (DR doesn’t protect). Rappelling: You can drop at 12 feet (about a story) per sec- ond with a climbing kit or a rappelling kit. The whole trip requires just one Climbing roll at -1, which can be offset by equipment quality bonuses. Failure means your gear fouls and you get stuck halfway down; options are to climb back up the rope, wait for help, or sever the line and fall. Critical failure means a fall from halfway down. Swinging: If you can affix a line to an overhead anchor (toss a grapnel, climb up and tie a rope to a flagpole, etc.), you can swing across a gap. The rope’s effective length is the smaller of its true length and the distance from anchor to ground. You can swing a distance of up to 3/4 of that length from a vertical rope, or 1.5 times that length if it starts 45° off-vertical. Make an Acrobatics roll at the range penalty for that distance (p. B550). Failure allows you to retry. Critical failure means a fall from your current height. PARKOUR Agile action heroes – especially assassins and infiltrators – often use athletics instead of ropes to access difficult areas. Many of these tricks are also valuable in chases (pp. 31-35). All of the rolls below take a penalty equal to encumbrance. Where failure indicates a fall, see Falls (boxed text, above). Diving: An Acrobatics roll at -4 lets you dive through a nar- row opening – past the blades of a giant ventilation fan, under a closing garage door, between red-hot pipes, etc. Failure means you end up stuck halfway through, which may hurt! Critical failure adds 1d-3 HP of injury (DR doesn’t protect). Jumping: If an obstacle is small enough for anyone to hur- dle, any action hero can do so with a simple DX roll. If it’s wide, it calls for someone with the Jumping skill, who can run and jump up to skill/2 yards. In either case, success gets you across in one piece. Failure allows a DX roll to catch the far side (no consolation if jumping subway tracks when the train is com- ing!) and try a pull-up. Critical failure – or failure on the last- ditch DX roll – means you end up in or on whatever you were leaping over. If that’s a sheer drop, you take falling damage! Pull-Up: Make a ST-based Climbing roll to pull yourself up onto anything you can reach: your height plus 1.5’. On a fail- ure, you hang there and may retry, paying 1 FP per repeated attempt. Critical failure means a strained arm (crippled for 30 minutes) and a fall – bad, if you’re trying to recover from another failed stunt. Running Climb: If two obstacles are within a couple of yards, you can run at one and kick off back and forth between them to gain additional height before a pull-up. Use the better of Acrobatics or Jumping, at -4 to gain Basic Move/4 yards or -6 to gain Basic Move/2 yards (round up). Failure means a fall from that height; critical failure means maximum falling damage! Skidding: To cross an oil-slicked garage or similar, make a DX or DX-based Skiing roll at the combat penalty for bad foot- ing – usually -2. You may kneel or go prone as a free action. Success lets you zip along at full Move the first second, halved (round down) per second afterward until Move is less than 1, which means you stop. Failure means you fall over if standing, or stop cold otherwise. Critical failure adds 1d-3 HP of injury (DR doesn’t protect). If you dove or fell on something seriously slippery, roll DX-4 to stand up again! Sliding: Roll against DX or Acrobatics – at -2 if seated or -8 if standing – to “surf” down the metal divider between escala- tors, a sloped awning, or anything similar. If you have a per- sonal conveyance designed for zipping down slopes (skateboard, skis, etc.), you may roll against its operation skill instead, and the modifier is only -2 (the surface is less-than- ideal). In all cases, you travel at Move 5 and can go until you reach the bottom, but you must roll every turn. Failure means you slip off to one side; if there’s a safe place to land, you end up standing there. Critical failure – or any failure when there’s a vertical drop to either side – means you fall.

Spinning: You can spin to face any direction at the end of a full-out run by making an Acrobatics or DX-based Running roll at -2. Failure means you end up facing a random direction; roll 1d. Critical failure means you fall over. To spin after diving, skidding, or sliding, make the usual roll for that stunt instead, but at an extra -2. Squeezing: Roll against Escape to wiggle through a narrow crack, like a door pushed open with a security chain in place. Success gets you to the other side. Failure means you won’t fit, and can’t retry. Critical failure means you’re stuck and must be rescued.

Falls Failure at many feats under Insertion (p. 18), Climbing (pp. 18-19), and Park- our (below) results in a big helping of crushing damage. Ignore the math on p. B431 and use the table below. Roll 12d for falls from above 100 yards – they’re “terminal” in several senses! Distance Damage Distance Damage Distance Damage 1 yard 1d 15 yards 3d+2 45 yards 6d 2 yards 1d+1 20 yards 4d 50 yards 6d+2 3 yards 1d+2 25 yards 4d+2 60 yards 7d 4 yards 2d-1 30 yards 5d 70 yards 7d+2 5 yards 2d 35 yards 5d+2 80 yards 8d+1 10 yards 3d 40 yards 6d-1 100 yards 9d+1

FENCES Nearly all secure installations have fences. Aerial insertion is rarely a practical way around these – the area inside most fences is watched (see Surveil- lance and Patrols, p. 18), and a parachute or a glider will be seen. Usually, heroes must deal with a fence more directly. To circumvent a fence, go over or through it (any fence lousy enough to go under is background color, not a serious obsta- cle). Attempting either gives any guards one extra chance to spot the intruders, who must win a Quick Contest of Stealth vs. the sentries’ Vision to remain undetected. Climbing Fences: Clambering over a fence calls for a Climb- ing roll. Apply BAD to skill to reflect tall or outward-sloping fences. Failure means just that, but each repeated attempt gives any guards another chance to spot you. Critical failure means you fall off: 1d-3 HP of injury (DR doesn’t protect) and somebody notices you for sure! Cutting Fences: Bolt cutters can make short work of a fence; there’s little chance of failure. Quality fences take longer to cut, though. Time in minutes is the absolute value of BAD, mini- mum one minute. Success with Forced Entry halves this time; any failure doesn’t. Don’t apply BAD to this roll – it’s already accounted for. Reroll Stealth every two full minutes. Types of Fences Security fences may have one or more special features: Razor Wire: Make an additional DX or Escape roll, applying BAD. Failure means the barbs inflict 1d-3 cutting damage and snag you. You must then break free from ST 8 to get across. Each failure means another 1d-3 and an additional opportunity for the guards to spot you (or hear you cursing). To avoid these effects, toss something over it or cut it with bolt cutters! Electric: Each attempt to climb the fence inflicts 3d burning damage. This is a good reason not to fail and have to retry – and to avoid getting snagged on razor wire. Bolt cutters have insulated handles but require a Forced Entry roll here (still halving time); failure means 3d damage, while critical failure causes 6d. To disarm the fence, roll vs. Electrician, applying BAD; you must have a tool kit. Failure means it’s still live, crit- ical failure also does 3d damage, and repeated attempts give the guards additional chances to see you. Smart: The fence has sensors that detect and locate attempts to cut or climb it. To neutralize a section, roll vs. Electronics Operation (Security), applying BAD; you must have electronic lockpicks. Any failure means you’re busted, exactly as if you had set off a security system (pp. 21-22)!

LOCKS

Once an intruder is past any fences and has eluded any guards, he can silently defeat most doors by picking locks. The locks below come in many security grades. The GM can use BAD or assign a given lock any modifier from +5 (cheap door- knob lock) to -10 (fancy multi-key lock on a nuclear sub). Mechanical Locks: Picking a standard lock requires a Lock- picking roll, at -5 with a multi-tool or similar gadget, no mod- ifier for proper picks, or +1 or +2 for good or fine tools. The GM decides whether the lock requires a key from one side or both – a major concern when the infiltrator goes in the back way and wants to let the crew in, or when he breaks a window and reaches for the lock (see Glass, p. 21). Failure allows repeated attempts at a cumulative -1. Critical failure snaps off the pick in the lock; the tools used give -1 from now on and the team must resort to force to open the door. Electronic Locks: These use numeric keypads or key cards. The infiltrator must have electronic lockpicks or Electronics Repair (Security) tools, but rolls against Lockpicking – not Electronics Repair. Failure allows repeated attempts at a cumulative -1. Critical failure short-circuits the tools perma- nently. Cutting power (see Sabotage, p. 25) will open most civil- ian systems but cause those on prisons, secret bases, etc., to clamp shut, at which point force is the only option. Biometric Locks: These require biometric input such as fin- gerprints, retinal scans, or voiceprints. If you can gain access to one and have electronic lockpicks, you can bypass it with an Electronics Operation (Security) roll. Failure and critical failure work as for standard electronic locks. A bypass isn’t pos- sible if, as is common, guards are watching the costly machine! Secret agents with access to a legitimate user or a database can try an Assistance Roll to requisition special gloves for finger- prints, contact lenses for retina prints, and so on; these give an automatic, unsuspicious success. Anybody can attempt Elec- tronics Operation (Media) to engineer a voice recording (obtained through bugs or intercepts) for voiceprints; the GM rolls secretly, with any success meaning the lock opens and any failure meaning it doesn’t.

Safecracking

Use the rules under Locks (p. 20) to open safe and vault locks, with these changes: • Base time per attempt is an hour, not a minute. • Basic equipment for defeating mechanical locks is a stethoscope (not lockpicks). Any bonuses come from its quality. A search endoscope gives an extra +2, but requires drilling through DR first. Electronic locks require the usual gear. • Such locks are always high-security (-5 to -10), regardless of BAD, and there may be several. Alternatively, wreck the thing using the rules under Doors (pp. 20-21). Note that a safe or vault’s DR always pro- tects its lock, too. Some typical DR and HP values: Container DR HP Document Safe 20 19 Business Safe* 120 73 Local Bank Vault* 400 127 Major Bank Vault* 800 345 * Often rigged with alarms that must be dealt with first; see Security Systems (pp. 21-22).

Barrier BAD-ness While BAD affects many tasks, the rules for doors and glass ignore it. This is because visual style trumps common sense in action cinema. Of course a BAD 0 machine shop has big, chunky things with piles of HP, and of course that BAD -10 secret lab has delicate glass walls. Remember that guard, lock, and security system quality depends on BAD, though. Tackling even the flimsiest door in a clumsy or noisy way is far riskier when BAD is severe!

DOORS Soldiers, SWAT teams, and thugs don’t fiddle with locks – they remove obstacles! These tasks automatically negate Stealth except where noted; everyone in the area gets an uncontested Hearing roll to detect each attempt. The GM decides whether anyone is present. The squad can attempt Audio Surveillance (p. 12) or Visual Surveillance (p. 12) to learn this before wailing on the door. Bashing: You can destroy the door itself with a fire axe, go- bar, ram, etc. Forget attack rolls! Just roll the listed damage or that of the equivalent melee weapon (see tool’s stats). Add +2, or +1 per die, for All-Out Attack (Strong) – and another +1 per die with Forced Entry at DX+1, or +2 per die at DX+2. The GM subtracts DR, multiplies by 1.5 if using a cutting attack, and reduces the target’s HP until it reaches 0 and allows entry.

Blasting: Use the rules for Blowing Stuff Up (pp. 24-25). Explosives just sitting there roll damage as usual. Explo- sives packed in contact with the door inflict maximumdam- age. Subtract DR and apply penetrating damage to HP. At 0 HP, the door is mangled to the point where an unmodified Forced Entry roll can pry it open; at -HP, it’s annihilated! Forcing: A less-extreme option is to apply force to over- power the door’s attachments, rather than destroy the entire door. Roll a Quick Contest: ST against the lock or hinge’s HP. Add +2 to ST for a crowbar, fire axe, or go-bar, and +1 for Forced Entry at DX+1 or +2 at DX+2 – or alternatively, use a vehicle’s ST to pull or push the door – but also apply a ST penalty equal to the hardware’s DR. You must win to open the door. Repeated attempts have a cumulative -1 and cost 1 FP apiece (except with a vehicle!). For a chained door, victory busts the lock; you can then roll again to overcome the chain’s DR and HP, sever the now-exposed chain, or squeeze in (see Parkour, pp. 19-20). Prying: To pry apart a security grille or a prison door, use the rules for forcing. Severing: Exposed chains, grilles, hasps, and padlocks can be cut rather than bashed, blasted, forced, or pried. Handle this like bashing with a cutting tool, with one exception: Bolt cutters and files (not hacksaws, torches, etc.) allow Stealth; roll against the lower of Forced Entry or Stealth to be sneaky.

Attached Hardware DR and HP Unexposed chains, hasps, hinges, and locks can only be forced; exposed ones can also be bashed, blasted, or severed. You can use a drill or thermite to expose armored locks or hinges enough to blast them. For a drill, roll vs. Forced Entry; failure means you’re heard, and critical failure also breaks the drill. Thermite uses Explosives (any), Machinist, or Mechanic (any); failure means an obvious fire or fire alarm, and critical failure also inflicts 3d burning damage on the user! Hardware Construction DR HP Examples Weak 3 6 Bedroom door. Standard 6 11 Suburban front door. Tough 11 22 Commercial security door. Extra-Tough 22 44 Institutional security door. Door and Gate DR and HP The door itself can always be bashed or blasted. Wood/plastic doors have ablative DR (p. B46); other doors don’t. Door Construction Wood/ Metal- Plastic Faced Metal DR HP DR HP DR HP Household Interior 1 18 N/A N/A N/A N/A Household Exterior 1 23 4 23 4 28 Security 2 2930293047 Blast N/A N/A N/A N/A 70* 60* * At minimum! Grille and Bar DR and HP Security grilles, prison bars, and so on can be bashed, blasted, or severed. Cheap ones lack reinforcing cross-mem- bers, and can be pried. The stats below are per bar; defeating one bar lets a Skinny person pass, two lets most people squeeze by, and three admits Fat or Very Fat individuals. Add an extra bar for heroes with more than Light encumbrance! Grille Construction DR HP Ornamental (wire, soft iron, etc.) 3 6 Home or Cheap Commercial Security 6 11 Commercial Security, Biker Fortress 11 22 Teller’s Cage (bank, Vegas, etc.) 17 33 Prison Cell or Heavy Teller’s Cage 22 44 GLASS If a locked door has a small window in or next to it, you can cut or smash the glass, reach in, and simply unlatch the lock – unless the lock has keyholes on both sides (GM’s decision). A large window is as good as a door. And sometimes, valuable art or a secret prototype is in a glass case. Glass is often rigged with security sensors (p. 22), which are their own problem. Regular Glass: In the movies, ordinary glass always breaks conveniently. Hit it with Brawling, shoot it with Guns, or make a Forced Entry roll (at +1 for a crowbar, fire axe, go-bar, etc.). Success breaks the glass. Failure lets you retry – although each attempt gives nearby enemies a Hearing roll to notice! Critical failure means you are heard and take 1d cutting dam- age unless your implement of destruction was ranged. Security Glass: Other glass seems to be nearly indestructi- ble. The hero throws a few heavy objects at it, watches them bounce off, and then tries something else (probably a big gun). Treat such panes as interior, exterior, or even security doors, and follow the standard rules for defeating doors. Glass-Cutting: An infiltrator with a circle cutter can try a Forced Entry roll at -6 to cut a perfect circle out of any glass. Success bypasses the window silently – no Hearing rolls for guards. Failure by 6 or less breaks the window noisily. Greater failure means the window is intact, a horrible scratching noise alerts guards, and the cutter is dulled and of no further use on this job. SECURITY SYSTEMS High-value targets are inevitably behind high-tech security systems. Triggering any such system notifies guards or author- ities, bringing thugs, rent-a-cops, police, or troops. It may also sound sirens, activate floodlights, lock doors, drop grilles, or arm dangerous traps – see Locks (p. 20), Doors (pp. 20-21), and Traps (pp. 22-23).

Detection: Spotting a security sensor requires a Vision-5, Observation, or Per-based Traps roll, with Acute Vision bonuses and darkness penalties. Action heroes are always on the alert – the GM rolls secretly against the team’s best skill (separately for each group, when split up) to see if they notice each device before triggering it. This roll is subject to BAD if the sensor is concealed (but it’s often left visible as a deterrent), and at -5 when fleeing or rushed. Discovery may also require special equipment; e.g., night-vision gear to see infrared laser beams. Any failure means setting off the alarm. Don’t bother rolling if earlier information-gathering efforts or the team’s bosses provided a schematic showing where everything is . . . provided the info is accurate, of course. Disarming: Disabling a mechanical device or a simple elec- tric circuit calls for a Traps roll. Eliminating an electronic sys- tem requires an Electronics Operation (Security) roll if the controls are accessible. If all that’s available is a sensor hous- ing, the burglar needs electronic lockpicks or Electronics Repair (Security) tools, must roll against Electronics Repair (Security) to crack the housing, and then has to make an Elec- tronics Operation (Security) roll – and this bypasses the local sensor, not the whole system. Apply BAD to all of these tasks. The GM rolls secretly. Failure triggers the alarm, but the infil- trator will be aware of his mistake; critical failure looks like success until it’s too late! .50-caliber Remote Control: Silver-screen heroes routinely wreck security hardware – often with gunfire. This should work in action games! However, sensors are tiny (SM -10 or below) and/or tough (DR 12+), calling for a skilled assassin or shooter with a good weapon. Pull the Plug: Cutting the power (see Sabotage, p. 25) might work, if the target relies on outside power (GM’s decision). Disarm Security Network? (Y/N): A viable alternative when facing a computerized system is Hacking (p. 13). Rearming: By making the roll to disarm again, it’s possible to reactivate a disarmed system (not a destroyed one!) after the squad has passed. Sensor Types Security systems in thrillers often use several distinct tech- nologies. These shouldn’t be left abstract – movies lovingly depict the heroes’ clever workarounds for each one. A simple Electronics Operation (Security), Electronics Repair (Security), or Traps roll will identify any hardware found on-site or in a schematic. Laser Beams: A screen of lasers, either infrared (invisible to the naked eye but not to night-vision gear) or visible-light (which can be revealed by dust or aerosol spray). The trigger is breaking a beam. Switching off the lasers requires access to controls, cutting power, or hacking. Limber heroes can instead avoid them – if they can see them (or memorize their location with Eidetic Memory). Roll against the lower of Acrobatics or Stealth to cross a protected area, applying BAD to reflect extra-dense or moving beams. Any failure sets off the alarm! Motion Detectors: “Microwave fences” and ultrasonic sen- sors can detect movement over large areas. Like lasers, these can be shut off or avoided, if known about. To sneak past, win a Quick Contest of Stealth vs. the Electronics Operation (Security) skill of the guards or monitoring computers, which of course increases with BAD. While doing so, walking speed can’t exceed Move 1/2. Proximity Sensors: These can be rigged to a single item (e.g., a painting) or deployed over an area as an invisible “fence,” detecting physical contact or human presence within 5 yards, respectively. To defeat these, switch them off at the console, cut power, or hack the system – local detection and disarming won’t work, and simple stealth is ineffective. Alternatively, learn where they are and avoid them. Seismic Detectors: Buried vibration sensors are impossible to see and impractical to tamper with – mostly, you have to know they’re there. If you do, a simple Stealth roll, modified for BAD, lets you cross the protected zone at Move 1 without being detected. Switches: Fences (p. 20), locks (p. 20), doors (pp. 20-21), glass (p. 21), traps (below), the housing of fancier sensors, and even ordinary floors may be hooked into a security grid via pressure or anti-tamper switches. These are triggered by any attempt to cut the fence, pick the lock, force the door, etc. – dis- arm them first! Use the standard security-systems rules. One special consideration is that switches may be wireless and sus- ceptible to a jammer. TRAPS Harmful traps are forbidden in most places. Action movies aren’t one of those places. The GM should make the detection rolls noted here in secret, using the squad’s best skill. Avoiding a known device in the open is automatic. One that covers an entrance or other chokepoint must be neutralized, however.

Contact Poisons: Chemicals that kill on contact are popular with cinematic assassins. Spotting them requires a Per-based Chemistry or Poisons roll. Acute Vision adds if the toxin is visible; otherwise, Acute Taste and Smell helps to sniff it out. These rolls often have penalties! Make a Hazardous Materials roll to remove the stuff; any failure means it splatters on some- one. Victims could suffer anything from a flat 4d toxic damage to the nasty effects noted for nerve gas on p. B439. Explosive Booby Traps and Mines: Make a Per-based Traps or Explosives (EOD) roll to notice these; a Soldier roll at -5 will do in a pinch. Disarming such a trap requires a standard IQ- based Explosives (EOD) roll – and anti-tamper devices give a penalty equal to BAD. Failure to detect or disarm such a trap means getting blown up! Traps rigged from grenades and explo- sives inflict standard damage for those things; mines deliver hurt in the 6d¥2 [4d] cr ex range. See Explosions (pp. B414-415). Remote-Controlled Weapons: Secret agents run into these all the time. Real systems are mounted high up (e.g., on a tower) to maximize coverage, and work only if a security sys- tem has alerted the human operators. Cinematic ones could lurk anywhere and operate under computer control. They’re detected like other security systems, but “defeating” them involves not being seen (roll vs. Stealth, applying BAD) or destroying them (SM -2, DR 35, HP 8). A remote weapon’s effective skill is 10 + absolute value of BAD. It does the usual damage for that kind of gun. Tripwire Weapons: Make a Per-based Traps roll to find these, using BAD to reflect thin wires, clever placement, etc. Treat a known trap as a mechanical security system that can be dis- armed with Traps – or with Armoury, if the weapon itself is in reach. Failure to detect and disarm the trap means being shot for the gun’s usual damage. A trip flare is basically a signal flare rigged this way, intended to alert sentries; defeating one requires a Soldier roll or an Explosives (EOD or Fireworks) roll at +4.

For burglaries, snatching the goods is automatic . . . after climbing the walls, cutting the fences, eluding the dog patrols, avoiding the mines, picking the locks, deactivating the motion sensors, and cracking the safe. Even so, there can be complica- tions. And not every snatch-and-grab job involves a break-in to grab a portable, inanimate objective. FINDING THE MACGUFFIN The Renoir, incriminating evidence, or whatever doesn’t have to be sitting out in the open. If it isn’t, use the applicable rules under Physical Searches (pp. 11-12). Apply BAD if the object was hidden deliberately. Each such task attempted in a place where you’re not supposed to be also requires a Stealth roll to avoid alerting guards, if any. GRAND THEFT AUTO Stealing a vehicle isn’t as complex as breaking into a secret base or a bank. However, snatching a vehicle – such as a pro- totype tank or a crime lord’s yacht loaded with heroin – may be the main objective of a raid. And any convenient ride will suf- fice when fleeing a clandestine op! Breaking In: Getting into a vehicle calls for the Forced Entry and Lockpicking rolls explained under Locks (p. 20), Doors (pp. 20-21), and Glass (p. 21); BAD won’t apply unless your target is a top-secret combat vehicle, spy car, etc. Disarm- ing an alarm requires tools and a roll against Electronics Repair (Security) or suitable Mechanic skill – and BAD does apply if the vehicle belongs to canny bad guys rather than to some unlucky citizen. Disabling a vehicle-tracking system calls for tools and an Electronics Repair (Security) roll. Failures on rolls for security devices sound an alarm and/or alert the owner. Hotwiring: Unlocking a key ignition to start a vehicle requires a second Lockpicking attempt, as difficult as the one to break in. Starting a vehicle by directly tampering with its innards requires an IQ-based roll against the relevant vehicle- operation skill (Driving, Piloting, etc.) or Mechanic specialty; BAD applies for fighting and spy vehicles, and a failure is liable to shut down the vehicle for good – or trigger interesting defenses. LIFTS AND PULLS Some thefts happen in plain sight. These might be goals in their own right, an early step of a larger operation (e.g., getting a needed key or ID card), or a closing element in a complex plan like breaking in, posing as a guard, and pickpocketing the boss’ PDA. In all cases, don’t apply BAD to the skill roll – the challenge comes from the victim or observer’s skills. If these aren’t known, assume 10, but add the absolute value of BAD for gen- uine bad guys. Distractions are very useful; any flamboyant skill (Fast-Talk, Sex Appeal, etc.) counts as complementary and gives twice the usual bonus for success. Lift: To snatch something off a desk, out of a rubbish bin, or similar as you casually walk past, you must win a Quick Con- test of Filch vs. the better of any watcher’s Vision or Observa- tion skill. A tie or a loss alerts the observer, whose reaction depends on his motives – a chase or combat is likely. Use the same rules when subtly dropping an item for someone else. Pull: To grab something off someone you bump into, you must win a Quick Contest of Pickpocket vs. the better of his Perception or Streetwise skill, or an alert third party’s Observa- tion skill. A tie or a loss means you’re made; the victim may grab you, an observer may alert the victim, etc. Use the same rules when planting something on someone. Switcharoo: If you’ve already succeeded at a Holdout attempt (see Subtlety, pp. 9-10) to stash something small, you can swap it for another item of similar size and appearance. Roll as for a lift, but use Sleight of Hand. This also works for obvious-but-innocuous items, like briefcases.

LIVE CAPTURE In principle, grabbing a person is like any other theft – that is, until you run into real, live people. If you can reach your mark by using Getting In (pp. 18-23) to bypass his security and Sub- tlety (pp. 9-10) to get close, you can try to subdue him without combat. This doesn’t always work, and there are other options. Binding: If the target is pinned, asleep, or unconscious, handcuff or tie him. The GM will make a secret Knot-Tying roll for you if you use rope; any failure means the victim may be able to escape. Alternatively, you can grapple him, or trick him into lowering his guard by winning a Quick Contest of Fast-Talk against his IQ, and then cuff him in one slick move by winning a Quick Contest of Judo or Wrestling against the higher of his DX or best grappling skill. If any of this fails, things will get noisy! Subdual: You can grab or knock out your victim. A success- ful stun-gun attack, or a grapple using Judo or Wrestling, is quiet enough not to draw attention; clubs, fists, and Tasers, or failed or repeated “stealthy” attacks, aren’t. Any sentries nearby get Hearing rolls to catch on. A grappled or stunned victim can be drugged; this requires a Physician roll to do safely and effectively. The GM rolls secretly; failure means the victim wakes up at an inconvenient time, and critical failure indicates an overdose (see Overdose, Poisoning, and Venom, p. 41). Threats: If you suddenly appear, armed, inside your victim’s security, you can roll a Quick Contest of Intimidation vs. his Will to convince him to come quietly. Victory means he does. A tie means he refuses to budge – the jig isn’t up yet, but you’re probably going to have to resort to something noisy. Loss means he shouts for help and the jig is up, if there’s anybody around to hear.

Not every mission is a raid to arrest bad guys, steal dia- monds, or spy on enemies. The ultimate goal might be to elim- inate a threat or deny a valuable resource to the foe. This is a common objective of realistic military operations and cine- matic police and espionage assignments. A blaze or an explosion is also an effective distraction. Any act of destruction might justify erasing -1 or -2 from BAD for all later feats that would logically be easier if most of the mooks are busy stomping out flames or freaking out over a blast. This won’t affect lockpicking, computer hacking, or other tasks that don’t interact with mooks. Remember that property damage is an action-movie tradi- tion. There doesn’t have to be a good reason for it! ARSON Anybody can set a fire, but to destroy evidence, distract bad guys, or render the target unsalvageable, make an Explo- sives (Demolition or Fireworks) roll (defaults to IQ-5). Roll at -4 if you have only ordinary combustibles; no modifier for a genuine accelerant, like gasoline (at least a gallon); and +4 for thermite, ethylene oxide, and similar scary substances remembered from the movies. Apply BAD if the target has a fire-suppression system or is designed to resist fires (e.g., mili- tary fuel dump) – such measures should be comparable in quality to the target’s other security. Failure means the fire doesn’t do the trick; repeated attempts are possible if you’re willing to hang around, watch the fire burn out, and restart it while mooks are trying to extinguish it. Critical failure means you catch fire: 3d HP of injury before you douse the flames. BLOWING STUFF UP Explosives are the fastest way to demolish things. It takes about (DR + HP)/3 dice of damage to render something use- less until repaired, or (DR + 2¥HP)/3 dice to obliterate it for- ever (drop fractions). For security barriers, find DR and HP under Doors (pp. 20-21); for vehicles, consult the Vehicle Table (see Action 1: Heroes, p. 34) Example: A blast door with DR 70, HP 60 calls for (70 + 60)/3 = 130/3 = 43d to blow open, or (70 + 2¥60)/3 = 190/3 = 63d to blow away. To convert dice to a number of standard explosive charges from Heroes, estimate the nearest whole multiple of 9 for dynamite (9d+1) or 15 for plastique (5d¥3), and multiply this by itself. Example: 43d is about 5 ¥ 9 or 3 ¥ 15, so it takes 5 ¥ 5 = 25 dynamite sticks or 3 ¥ 3 = 9 plastique blocks to open a blast door. If the GM prefers exact math, he’s advised to do it in advance – not during play – for anything the heroes have to demolish. He shouldn’t require skill rolls to learn how many charges are needed, but simple tell the player of any PC who has Engineer (Combat) or Explosives (Demolition). Other considerations: Explosives Disasters: Explosives are deadly, but in the movies, clumsy demo men mostly just singe their eyebrows and dignity. When failure on the tasks below spells an “explo- sives disaster,” use the Cinematic Explosions rule (see Cine- matic Combat Rules, p. 38) for the demo man, any assistants, and those covering them. Preparing and Using Explosives: Anybody can place charges previously rigged with blasting caps or a timer, or push the but- ton on an exploder or a remote. To prepare these things for use calls for an Explosives (Demolition) roll. The GM rolls in secret. Failure means no kaboom; critical failure means an explosives disaster. Home-Cooked Explosives: At the GM’s option, it may suit the plot for ingredients to blow things up to be sitting around. Make a Scrounging roll (or use Serendipity) to find them. Roll against Chemistry to formulate explosives. This takes 12 hours, but heroes can invoke Time Spent (p. B346) – even chemistry works faster on film! Any success fabricates enough explosives to do the job. Failure wastes the materials. Critical failures are explosives disasters.

Tamping: A demo man with tools can roll against Explo- sives (Demolition) to tamp his charges carefully. Success halves the number of charges needed, rounding up; e.g., merely 13 sticks o’ dynamite or 5 blocks of plastique for that darned blast door. Failure means the explosion doesn’t do its job. Try again! Critical failure means an explosives disaster. Tamping calls for drilling and pounding on things. It’s never fast or stealthy – save it for when you have all night in a deserted area. Strategic Placement: Alternatively, the demo man can roll against Architecture for a building, Engineer (Combat) for a fortification, or Mechanic for a vehicle to place his charges so that they blow key structural elements. Success and failure on this roll work as for tamping, but the surrounding circum- stances differ in several ways. On the upside, strategic place- ment can be quick and stealthy – just slap the charges down on the critical hardware. The downside is that this isn’t possible from outside, and indeed requires full access to vital areas: a building’s basement, a vehicle’s interior, etc. You can’t use both tamping and strategic placement; choose one or the other. Artillery: If heavy weapons are available, standard attack rolls against the appropriate Artillery or Gunner skill can be used to blow away an obstacle. To rig explosive shells as dem- olition charges, roll against Armoury (Heavy Weapons) – any failure means an explosives disaster – and then use these like any other charges. To work out how many shells you need, divide dice required by the weapon’s damage dice instead of 9 or 15 for dynamite or plastique. Buildings: Bridges, buildings, shore batteries, and other large structures require more explosives than a squad can carry. The heroes must instead neutralize security and rig explosives found on-site, or make an Assistance Roll to request delivery of lots of explosives. Make an Explosives (Demoli- tion) roll for the fuse. Alternatively, the GM can pick an arbi- trary number of charges needed to blow the target and require several strategic placement rolls as the crew moves through the area, dealing with mooks and security measures. SABOTAGE It’s sometimes important to disable complex systems with- out flames and explosions – really! The general rule is that someone with the necessary tools (-5 without) and skills to fix something can also break it. Failure merely gives enemies another chance to notice; check Stealth as usual. Critical fail- ure also breaks the tools and may endanger the saboteur. See below for examples. In all cases, if the goal is not to disable the item but to have it function as a trap (e.g., an elevator that plunges down the shaft when ridden, or brakes that fail at high speed), apply another -2. A complementary Traps roll can help offset this. Big Machines: For general machinery like compressors and elevators, someone with Machinist and suitable tools can disable the mechanism with a skill roll. Only use BAD if the target is something like a secure, private elevator. Critical fail- ure causes a horrible accident that deals the saboteur at least 3d damage; e.g., falling into a hammer mill. Computers: Use Electronics Repair (Computers) to ruin hardware or Computer Hacking to sabotage software. Only roll for subtle damage – anybody can rip out a hard drive. Cutting Power: To shut down electric fences, electrical alarms, electronic locks, and so on by cutting mains access requires an Electrician roll. Critical failure results in a shock: 3d burning. Possible complications are Area Knowledge rolls to find the right junction, Climbing rolls to reach it, and BAD on any of these rolls if the enemy took pains to isolate the power supply. Vehicles: Use the appropriate Mechanic specialty. Only apply BAD for spy cars, jet fighters, and other high-value rides. Weapons: Use the relevant Armoury specialty. For heavy weapons (e.g., artillery and tank guns) BAD often applies – access is monitored, the hardware is robust, and good-quality weaponry is tamper-resistant. Critical failure discharges one shot or explodes it in the breech, injuring the saboteur. SETTING TRAPS Assassins and commandos, especially, like to leave surprises for mooks. The player should describe the desired effects of the trap, and what gear or found items he intends to build it from. The GM then makes a secret Traps roll. Success means a func- tional trap. Failure means a dud. Critical failure means the trap affects the would-be trapper! Some special considerations: Concealing Traps: Untrained victims are unlikely to spot a trap, but you can hide it from cannier foes – just declare that you’re hiding it. Seekers must win a Quick Contest of their detection skill vs. your Camouflage skill for an outdoor trap, or Smuggling for an indoor or vehicular one. Explosives and Incendiaries: These things require the stan- dard rolls to prepare before you can use them as traps; see Blowing Stuff Up (pp. 24-25). For bombs triggered by turning on a machine, Electronics Repair or Mechanic for the machine is complementary to the Traps roll but not required. Flares and Grenades: A signal flare can be set to fire when someone trips a wire – a useful warning! Grenades can be rigged to blow when tripped; in movies, they explode without delay. Either is a simple, common trap: Traps is at +4, and Sol- dier will suffice. Sabotaged Machinery: Cars, elevators, and so on can be turned into traps by making a sabotage roll at -2. Traps skill is complementary but not required. See Sabotage (above). Zap! Treat wiring a metallic object to electrical lines as sab- otage. Roll Electrician at -2; Traps is complementary, as usual. Anybody who touches the wired object takes 3d burning damage – or 6d, for industrial mains.

Obscuring the truth about a deed, an object, or a person might be preparation for a job (often alongside Social Engi- neering, pp. 15-17), the whole point of an operation, or an aspect of the cleanup after clandestine criminal, espionage, or military activity. CLEANING The most important kind of deception on an actual opera- tion is cleaning up behind the squad. These tasks are the cleaner’s department. Disposing of Corpses: Corpses can be burned using Arson (p. 24); carried off-site and surreptitiously buried or tossed in the river with a Stealth roll; dissolved in acid (perhaps conve- niently available due to Serendipity) with a Chemistry roll; fed to pigs or dogs, if you have access to them, with a suitable Animal Handling roll; handed over to criminal Contacts; or stashed using Camouflage outdoors or Smuggling indoors. Failure means that something linking corpse and killer remains. Critical failure means being caught in the act! I Don’t Do Windows: Housekeeping, of all skills, is most valuable. It covers getting stains out, picking up clutter, and removing smudges – like bloodstains, spent cartridges, and fin- gerprints! If the squad is undetected, these are free actions; the cleaner works as the group moves. If they did something noisy, though, they’ll have to use Stealth to hide if anybody comes to check out the scene while they’re cleaning it – and if there was any bloodshed, industrial cleanser is required. Afterward, rivals who try Physical Searches (pp. 11-12) must win a Quick Con- test vs. the cleaner’s Housekeeping to find useful clues. Planting False Evidence: To leave a false clue requires suitable materials (cartridges, blood, whatever) and the Forensics skill. When rivals use Physical Searches (pp. 11-12) to seek clues, the Forensics roll to analyze evidence becomes a Quick Contest. The other party must win or be deceived. See Lifts and Pulls (p. 23) to learn how to leave evidence on people or in plain sight. COVER-UPS “Clandestine” doesn’t always mean “subtle.” When 23 sus- pected terrorists turn up dead or the Mona Lisa goes missing, it’s hard to keep it secret for long. But a cover-up can divert suspicion. Orchestrating a cover-up requires extensive media access – usually via an Assistance Roll – and a Propaganda roll. Apply BAD to reflect counter-propaganda; this is nearly always -10 against a sovereign state or a national agency. Electronics Operation (Media) (for doctored media), Public Speaking (for speeches), and Writing (for speechwriting and written articles) are all complementary. This is collectively a long action that takes days or weeks, as suits the plot. If those doing the cover-up or their agents are trying to con- vince the world that they didn’t commit the clandestine act of which they’re accused, success casts enough doubt that enemy fact-finding efforts are at -2, or -4 on a critical success. Failure has no effect. Critical failure spills the beans; PCs will face Rank loss or termination. Those working for victims of high-profile skullduggery can also spin what they know, where they’re looking, whom they suspect, etc. Success or critical success here erases -2 or -4, respectively, of the BAD that investigators face on the case, as the opposition won’t be as wary. Failure has no effect. Critical failure gives the investigators an extra -4! FAKE ID False identity is incredibly useful to infiltrators and social engineers. It eliminates the need to use Fast-Talk, Stealth, and so on to sneak into secure areas. Just show your pass and walk in! There are two steps to establishing a false identity. Both are subject to the BAD one would face trying to infiltrate the locale or organization involved. The GM always rolls secretly. Any failure means the identity token won’t pass, which may get you detained temporarily. Any critical failure means it will provoke arrest, attack, or another serious response. Faking Tokens: Creating fake cards or badges requires a counterfeiting/forgery kit and a computer – although when fak- ing old or low-security tokens, or altering purloined ones, the contents of a typical office desk will do, albeit at -5 to skill. These tasks call for a Forgery roll. Certain tokens can’t be faked without special materials, which must be procured through an Assistance Roll, social engineering, or burglary. Validating Tokens: To ensure that the token corresponds to a real person on the right lists, databases, etc., use Falsifying Records (below) for physical records and Hacking (p. 13) for digital ones. FALSIFYING RECORDS Fake records are useful whenever the opposition is relying on reports, tapes, and so forth instead of direct observation. The GM rolls secretly for these tasks. Success yields a convinc- ing sham. Failure means the attempt is obvious. Critical failure also gives the opposition a clue about the forger! These tasks aren’t subject to BAD. That modifier does affect any social engineering or theft needed to gain access to the records or sneak in with fakes, though. Somebody will have to do this – doctored surveillance tapes aren’t useful unless they’re where the real ones should be. Electrons: Doctoring electronic media calls for a digital recorder, a computer, and an Electronics Operation (Media) roll. Success can completely fool anyone relying solely on sur- veillance systems, or produce “disturbing evidence” that lets the skill roll count as complementary to a social engineering attempt. Paper: Altering documents requires a counterfeiting/forgery kit, a computer, and a Forgery roll – or a Counterfeiting roll, for bonds, stocks, etc. In some cases the roll is against the lower of the above skill or another: Accounting for ledgers, Admin- istration for other complex forms, or Law (Police) for crime- scene reports. Possible benefits of success include membership in an organization, drawing police suspicion, and averting police suspicion.

FOOLING POLYGRAPHS There are tricks for this – and these seem to work in action movies! When subjected to a polygraph test (see Making Them Talk, pp. 16-17), you may substitute a HT-based Fast-Talk roll for Will in the Quick Contest. This doesn’t represent talking, but your ability to control involuntary responses that accom- pany lying; Smooth Operator helps but Voice doesn’t. If you have Compulsive Lying, your interrogators automatically suf- fer -5 to machine-aided Interrogation. If you’re Unfazeable, you simply win! IMPERSONATION Impersonation can be as potent as false ID (p. 26) for bypassing security. These tasks can also complement social engineering; e.g., a spy posing as a cop to interview people. The rolls below don’t suffer BAD, but most become Quick Contests against an effective Perception or Observation skill of 10 + absolute value of BAD when attempting to deceive guards, infiltrate organized crime, etc. Hiding Your Face: Looking like nobody in particular, but not yourself, can keep you from being recognized when the heat is on – or on a surveillance tape. Roll vs. Disguise, at +1 with a dis- guise kit. This becomes a Quick Contest if the observer knows what you look like. Success (victory) means you aren’t recogniz- able: -2 to investigations of deeds you perform while disguised. Generic Impersonation: To pose as a general class of person, all you absolutely need is the ability to come up with convinc- ing lies; roll against Fast-Talk. To impersonate a uniformed individual – chef, cop, etc. – you need only the uniform, although you must use Fast-Talk if spoken to, or Acting or a suitable Savoir-Faire specialty (see Fitting In, p. 16) to walk through a high-security checkpoint, crowded locker room full of your supposed peers, or other risky area without slipping up. Such attempts become Quick Contests when actively watched or directly challenged. Success (victory) lets you go wherever someone you look like could go, and attempt the things they normally do. Specific Impersonation: To pose as someone specific, roll vs. the lower of Disguise or Acting, at -5 if you have no disguise kit. This becomes a Quick Contest when dealing with anyone who knows that person. Success (victory) lets you live that per- son’s life – to a point. If you must give a password you don’t know, strip naked, etc., roll again at -5 to fabricate a convinc- ing ruse! PSY-OPS Psychological warfare is mostly too cerebral for action games, but some movie heroes exploit doubt as a weapon, so the players may wish to do the same. Roll a Quick Contest against the mooks’ Will. Use Brainwashing to give a prisoner erroneous ideas about the squad to carry back to his mates when released; Propaganda when delivering confusing radio broadcasts, text messages, or what have you; and Psychology to use voices, timing, and so on to mislead the enemy about team strength and tactics. Victory by 0-4 erodes BAD by -1 when dealing with those mooks; victory by 5+ removes -2. Loss stiffens their resolve: Add -1 to BAD – or -2 for loss by 5+.

There are several ways to leave the scene of clandestine activ- ity. You can, of course, kick out the doors, burn rubber, and gen- erally make a noisy getaway. This nearly always means a chase (pp. 31-35)! Alternatively, try one or more of the following tricks. Sneak Out: Apply the rules under Getting In (pp. 18-23) to get around anything blocking your exit – but don’t roll for locks, alarms, and so on that you’ve already defeated. If you make all the necessary rolls, congratulations! You’re back in the outside world. Blend In: After sneaking out – or before sneaking out, if you wait for a shift change, you’re raiding the back room of a

gangland nightclub, there’s a convoy of trucks leaving the

secret base, etc. – you can blend in and get lost. Roll against Dancing at the crowded club, Driving in a captured vehicle, Savoir-Faire (High Society) if slipping down to the ambas- sador’s ball after stealing his files, and Shadowing for other throngs. Use Stealth to stow away on a mook’s vehicle. In all cases, apply BAD if guards are keeping watch. Success means a clean escape. Failure . . . doesn’t. Smuggling: If you’ve taken something, also roll for Holdout when trying to blend in on foot. Typical items (and skill modi- fiers) are microchips and thumb drives (+4); letters (+2); films (+1); audio cassettes, floppy disks, and optical disks (0); and file folders and data tapes (-1). To move large items (nukes, statues, etc.) that can’t be carried without a vehicle, use Smug- gling instead – but first roll vs. Freight Handling to load your cargo quickly, with failure meaning you’re noticed! See Subtlety (pp. 9-10) for more on Holdout and Smuggling.

Any squad – especially cops, security men, and soldiers – may be providing security instead of breaching it. To handle this, look up the rules for what the bad guys are trying to do, have them use the boldface skills normally meant for PCs, and have the team use whatever skills oppose these. Turn any uncontested roll that requires BAD when heroes make it into a Quick Contest against the group’s relevant skill. If the skill isn’t obvious, use the most fitting skill under Go-To Skills (p. 10). Particular examples appear below.

WATCHES The most basic security task is keeping watch. This can arise even when the squad isn’t on security duty; e.g., when camped in hostile territory. Whenever the crew posts sentries or guards, the players must state who’s watching and in what order. Only the skills of those on watch affect rolls made dur- ing that watch. Regardless of whether there’s actually a threat, the GM should roll secretly against the best Perception or Observa- tion score for each watch. Modifiers for darkness, fog, and so forth apply unless the sentries have suitable gear (e.g., night- vision goggles). If there’s something there, success – or victory, against foes using Stealth – locates it and prevents surprise. Otherwise, the squad is mentally stunned when trouble hits: Everyone must make one IQ roll per turn, at +1 per turn after the first and +6 for Combat Reflexes, and can only react on the turn after succeeding. Alarms and Flares: If the bad guys trigger an alarm (see Security Systems, pp. 21-22), a boisterous trap (see Traps, pp. 22-23), or similar, everybody is automatically alerted! They must still roll as explained above – or, if they prefer another method, as noted for that task – to locate the threat. Camouflaged Positions: Hidden guards are a weaker deter- rent to casual trouble but more likely to get the jump on the determined kind. Roll a Quick Contest: the enemy’s Vision vs. the squad’s Camouflage, using Got You Covered (p. 5). Victory means the team gets a second chance to detect the enemy if they fail the first time. The bad guys walk right past the guards without seeing them! Cool Commando Stuff: In the movies, being a highly trained soldier helps at this sort of thing. Roll a Quick Contest between the two sides. Either can choose to use Soldier, modified for Got You Covered (p. 5), or its best Tactics. The victor gets +1 to all rolls above (to spot or not be spotted, and to recover); vic- tory by 5+ gives +2. BODYGUARD DUTY Realistic bodyguards watch for trouble and avoid danger- ous places. So do cinematic ones – in theory. In practice, the focus is more on looking mean in shades, black suit, and ear- piece, and shooting bad guys. Ventilating scumbags before they get a shot off is still an art, though! These tasks are about hands-on protection of the client, but all of Providing Security (pp. 27-30) is a bodyguard’s job. Spotting Trouble: Spotting somebody acting suspiciously – or a rooftop sniper – takes an Observation roll. Range penal- ties (p. B550) apply, plus an extra -2 to notice anyone higher than you. If the suspect is using Camouflage, Shadowing, or Stealth, this becomes a Quick Contest; see Subtlety (pp. 9-10). The GM rolls secretly. To notice somebody who’s about to draw a weapon, signaling an accomplice, etc., use Body Language instead. Any success (victory) lets you out-react the attackers. You can’t see bombs in a trash cans and the like – that’s why you sweep areas in advance – but Danger Sense can help. The Tackle: If your client is stunned, wounded, or otherwise unable to react, you can bear him to the ground, behind a car door, etc. This calls for a DX, Judo, or Wrestling roll, and takes a turn. Success means you’re both on the ground, in the car, behind cover, etc., with you (and your armor!) between your client and the shooter. Failure leaves you both standing in the open. Critical failure means you fall down, leaving the client standing! Get Down, Sir! You can opt to ask your client to get to cover on his own, so you can use your turn to shoot back, rescue someone else, etc. Make a Savoir-Faire (Servant) roll to get him moving. (The GM may waive this for tough clients, like police chiefs.) Success means he listens. Failure means he hes- itates for a turn. Critical failure means he does something rash; e.g., takes out a gun you didn’t know about and returns fire! Bodyguard Tactics: When assassins strike a prepared body- guard squad, good tactics can turn the tables. Roll a Quick Contest of Tactics between attackers and guards; both sides use Got You Covered (p. 5). The winning side gets +1 to rolls to dodge, hide, and take cover in the event that a shootout occurs; victory by 5+ gives +2. BOMB DISPOSAL “Explosive ordnance disposal” (EOD) involves several tasks. Repeated attempts are allowed – right up until the bomb explodes. Mad bombers love timers! Some tasks are Quick Contest against the bomber because conflict is dramatic. If the GM prefers, he can make these sim- ple success rolls. In that case (only), BAD applies. The quality of the EOD man’s Explosives (EOD) tool kit modifies all of these rolls. Improvised tools – e.g., multi-tool and chewing gum – give -5, but are common in action movies. Thus, the GM should try to avoid excessive penalties from other sources. Finding Bombs: Make a Search roll to find a bomb. You must win a Quick Contest against the bomber’s Camouflage or Smuggling skill to locate a concealed device. On a successful Electronics Operation (Security) roll, a metal detector gives you +1 and bypasses concealment, making the attempt an uncontested Search roll again. A search endoscope gives +3 on a visual search, while a stethoscope gives +1 if the device makes noise. If a bomb is suspected (e.g., the mad bomber says it’s there!), Architecture and Mechanic are complementary when searching buildings and vehicles, respectively. All bonuses are cumulative. The GM rolls in secret, and each attempt burns a minute. Defusing Bombs: To disarm a bomb, win a Quick Contest of Explosives (EOD) against the Explosives skill used to set it. Tricky devices with anti-tamper precautions and multiple trig- gers give penalties – typically -1 per feature. Defusing takes around 5 minutes in the movies, but the EOD man must often work faster. Apply Time Spent (p. B346), meaning that with 30 or fewer seconds left on the timer, the roll is at -10 and no repeated attempt is possible! Regardless of the Contest out- come, only a critical failure detonates the bomb, and then the Cinematic Explosions rule applies; see Cinematic Combat Rules (p. 38). Dirty Tricks: A bomb with “trap” triggers simply gives a penalty to the roll to defuse it. However, if the bomb is physi- cally protected by a trap – like razor blades in hard-to-see places or a transmitter that warns the villain that somebody is han- dling his bomb – this calls for a separate Per-based Traps roll to detect and then a separate Traps roll to disarm. This takes an extra minute! Repeated attempts are possible if failure doesn’t set off the bomb or otherwise incapacitate the EOD man.

WMD

Terrorists, dictators, and mad scientists sometimes flaunt weapons of mass destruction (WMD). These rules treat WMD as plot devices – heroes inevitably disarm them in time or witness them destroying a visible-but-isolated locale for dramatic effect. Thus, abstract penalties for haste replace an explicit time scale and Time Spent (p. B346). Know Thy Enemy: Having insufficient details about WMD gives -2 to rolls to detect or disarm them. A success- ful Expert Skill (Military Science) roll cancels this. To avoid -2 on cleanup rolls for biological or chemical weapons, success at Expert Skill (Epidemiology) or Chemistry, respectively, is needed. Detection: Sweeps for WMD involve Geiger counters, chemical detectors, etc. Roll against Electronics Opera- tion (Security) to locate the WMD. Failures allow repeated attempts – but if the device is armed and count- ing down, each failure gives -1 for haste on rolls to disarm. Critical failure makes the penalty -1d. Protective Gear: Anyone tampering with WMD or enter- ing an area where one was triggered needs protective equipment: an NBC suit and a gas mask, or even a “space- suit” with supplied air (use scuba gear stats). Roll against NBC Suit to employ such protection. Failure means a scare – something that forces the user to bail out (wasting time: another -1 to disarm) or accept exposure. Critical fail- ure means exposure! Disarming: Defusing WMD uses Bomb Disposal (p. 28) with skills other than Explosives (EOD). For an explosive device that scatters pathogens, poison, or radioactive mate- rials, use the lower of Explosives (EOD) and the appropri- ate Hazardous Materials specialty. For a sprayer or a pump, roll against the lower of Armoury (Heavy Weapons) and the relevant Hazardous Materials skill. A nuclear explosive calls for Explosives (Nuclear Ordnance Disposal). Apply any accumulated haste modifiers. Fail- ures allow repeated attempts at a cumulative -1 for haste. On a critical failure, roll again; anything but a second crit- ical failure counts as ordinary failure. A second critical fail- ure really does mean The End – a good time for Buying Success (p. B347). Cleanup: Disposing of dismantled WMD or cleaning a site where WMD were used calls for a suitable Hazardous Materials roll. Failure leaves behind nasty stuff. Critical failure means exposure! Effects of Exposure: Realistically, exposure kills – WMD aren’t weapons of mass inconvenience – but slaying heroes isn’t fun. Exposed PCs instead get a “mild case,” and lurch around with 1 FP and 1 HP left (use current FP or HP, if worse), and -5 to all success rolls. Recovery isn’t possible until a cure arrives; see Medic! (pp. 40-41). The GM may assess other effects.

CHECKPOINT SECURITY The most common real-world security tasks involve guard- ing entryways, airport and border checkpoints, and so on, observing who and what tries to pass through. For general crowd-watching, use the rules for spotting trouble under Body- guard Duty (p. 28). Some other important cases: Dogs: Hollywood depicts dogs as expert bomb and drug detectors. A dog handler can find such contraband by winning a Quick Contest of Animal Handling vs. Holdout or Smug- gling. Animal Handling rolls can also direct dogs to track or attack a specific bad guy. Repeated attempts are allowed, but each failure gives the enemy one more turn to shoot, run, etc. Critical failure means the dogs freak out, attacking bystanders, raiding a hotdog stand and wolfing down the spoils, etc. Identity Verification: Whenever somebody who isn’t sup- posed to be somewhere tries to sneak past, the GM should roll a Quick Contest of the squad’s highest Perception or Observa- tion against the bad guy’s operative skill: Acting, Disguise, or Fast-Talk if he’s trying Impersonation (p. 27), Forgery if he’s passing false ID, etc. Victory spots the ploy. Checking faces, prints, and so on against computer records requires a simple Electronics Operation (Security) roll; success finds people who aren’t in the database (or who are flagged as trouble). Roll once per watch – not per person. Pat-Downs: Searching people for hidden items is a Quick Contest of Search against Holdout. The searcher gets +1 per minute of searching, to a maximum of +5 after five minutes (a full body-cavity search). With a metal detector, an Electron- ics Operation (Security) roll gives another +1 (handheld model) to +3 (stationary installation) and eliminates Holdout bonuses for special clothing. Fancy millimeter-wave radar gives +3, negates clothing bonuses, and provides some idea of what was detected. Searches: Looking through luggage or vehicles works much like a pat-down, except that the Quick Contest is Search vs. Smuggling, and metal detectors aren’t useful on vehicles, which are mostly metal. Large X-ray machines, if available, give +3 to screen packages and baggage on a successful Elec- tronics Operation (Security) roll; the latest, greatest CT scan- ners give +4. Chemical sensors find bombs and drugs on a successful Electronics Operation (Security) roll. ELECTRONIC SECURITY When the heroes operate high-tech security gear to thwart spies and hackers, use the master rule for security tasks: The bad guys employ the boldface skills listed for their deeds, while the PCs roll against the skills that oppose these. Some special cases: Area Surveillance: Manning a security console requires Electronics Operation (Security) for cameras, alarms, etc., and Electronics Operation (Sensors) for things like radar or anti-diver sonar. These normally oppose Stealth attempts to avoid detection, but contest enemy Electronics Operation rolls when dealing with jammers.

Computer Security: Use Hacking (p. 13), but now the shoe is on the other foot and the squad rolls against Expert Skill (Computer Security). To boot out a hacker who’s already “in,” roll a Quick Contest of Computer Hacking each time he tries something (alter data, intercept communications, etc.). Victory kicks him out. Any other result lets him act unmolested; you can’t retry until he attempts something else. This isn’t realistic – it’s simply how hacker movies work! Countersurveillance: Attempts to use high-tech gizmos to look for people trying to watch you with high-tech gear are treated as a single Quick Contest. Anybody using simple optics or microphones rolls against Observation, while people with gear that calls for Electronics Operation (Surveillance) employ that. Each side uses its highest skill and best equip- ment bonus. Ignore range penalties; they’re the same for every- body. The winners detect the losers first, giving them time to perform one complex task before being noticed themselves: “ready weapons and shoot,” “alert everyone about the enemy’s location,” etc. Victory by 5+ means not being noticed – the win- ners could stalk right up to their opponents’ position without the enemy catching on. Electronic Counter-Countermeasures: If the bad guys are jamming communications, see Communications (pp. 8-9). When both sides have potent transmitters and are locked in an electronic duel, roll a Quick Contest of Electronics Operation (Communications) instead. The winner may choose either to control the channel (enemy intercepts simply fail) or to play along and inject false messages. Finding a Bug: To sweep for beacons, bugs, or similar devices, tell the GM, who rolls secretly. A gizmo in plain sight requires a roll against Vision or Observation, whichever is higher, modified by SM. For a hidden gadget, this becomes a Quick Contest of Search against your rival’s Camouflage, Holdout, or Smuggling, and you still take SM penalties. With a bug detector, you merely have to win a Quick Contest of Elec- tronics Operation (Security) against your opponent’s Elec- tronics Operation (Surveillance); none of the rest matters. In all cases, claim the maximum +5 under Time Spent (p. B346) when you have no time limit. If you find a bug, it’s up to you whether you disable it, plant it somewhere else, or pass along false information.

Security Tools

Heroes on security detail frequently operate expensive tools owned by their employer. This is usually a plot device or the result of an Assistance Roll. Below are stats for times when the team must buy or carry such gear. These gadgets make great challenges when the heroes are the infiltrators! For NPC operators, assume that equipment effects are abstracted into effective skill of 10 + absolute value of BAD. Alternatively, ignore BAD, assign skill levels, and have the NPCs operate the gear as described. Devices that use “external power” can be thwarted by cutting the power; see Sabotage (p. 25). Countersniper System: This black box uses sensitive microphones to detect speeding bullets. It can pinpoint a gunman’s exact location instantly! If the sniper employs a silencer, detection isn’t automatic; roll against 10, adjusted for the silencer’s Hearing penalty. Runs for 10 hours. $10,000, 30 lbs. CT Scanner: A state-of-the-art package-screening sys- tem. It gives +4 to Search – +6 vs. explosives – on a success- ful Electronics Operation (Security) roll. See Checkpoint Security (p. 29). External power. $2,000,000, 6 tons. Electromagnetic Car Stopper: Hidden under pavement in a high-security area, this installation attacks automobile electronics with an electromagnetic pulse. Roll HT-8 for the vehicle. Failure means it’s knocked out for seconds equal to margin of failure. External power. $10,000. Hydrophone: A sensitive underwater microphone for coastal security. Make an Electronics Operation (Sen- sors) roll to discover divers, mini-subs, etc. It automatically detects ultrasonic communicators! External power. $5,000, 200 lbs. Millimeter-Wave Camera: This gizmo can “see” through light cover: clothing, foliage, etc. A successful Electronics Operation (Security) roll gives +4 to Search against tar- gets within 10 yards. See Checkpoint Security (p. 29). Exter- nal power. $100,000, 50 lbs. Polygraph: A “lie detector” consists of several sensors worn by the subject, plugged into a box that must be con- nected to a Complexity 3+ computer. Operation requires an Electronics Operation (Security) roll, giving a variable modifier to Interrogation rolls; see Making Them Talk (pp. 16-17). Runs for 8 hours. $1,500, 1 lb. Portal Metal Detector: On a successful Electronics Operation (Security) roll, this doorframe-like machine gives +3 to Search against anyone walking through it. See Checkpoint Security (p. 29). External power. $5,000, 50 lbs. Radio Direction Finder: A large scanner for intercepting and pinpointing radio signals. To locate a specific radio within 200 miles, even a tactical headset, the user must win a Quick Contest of Electronics Operation (Communica- tions) with the transmitter’s operator. External power. $75,000, 100 lbs. Shielded Room: This metal-lined room has soundproof- ing, anti-surveillance glass, filtered outlets, etc. It gives -5 to electronic intelligence-gathering attempts of any kind. Cost is $50 per square foot of walls, ceilings, and floors. Tactical Radar: A tripod-mounted radar that can spot moving targets within 6 miles and classify them (“animal,” “man,” etc.) within 1,000 yards, even in fog or darkness. This requires an Electronics Operation (Sensors) roll, becoming a Quick Contest vs. Stealth against alerted intruders. External power. $50,000, 15 lbs. X-Ray Machine: This package-screening device gives +3 to Search – +4 vs. metallic items – on a successful Elec- tronics Operation (Security) roll. See Checkpoint Security (p. 29). External power. $50,000, 1,000 lbs.

So far, we’ve presented many ways to handle indirect and unopposed violence done by heroes to bad guys or vice versa: smashing doors, blowing things up, etc. However, violent con- tests are the soul of action cinema. Every previous rule sets the scene for this, offering opportunities to bring on the throbbing soundtrack and bone-crunching sound effects. This sort of vio- lence takes two main forms: chases and combat. FIGHT OR FLIGHT When heroes and bad guys meet on bad terms, what hap- pens next depends on who wants to do what: • If both parties wish to back down or flee, there’s no encounter. Wimps . . . • If one party wants to get away, ask the other if they wish to pursue. If so, there’s a chase. If not, there’s no chase – but there might be combat if the party that isn’t leaving the scene chooses to shoot at their fleeing rivals! • If neither party wants to leave, direct interaction occurs: combat, interrogation, robbery, etc. Chases and combat aren’t exclusive! The chase rules sup- port combat during a chase, and the GM is free to end a chase if both sides decide to stop running and start shooting. Simi- larly, if somebody bolts from a fight, the GM can switch over to the chase rules.

A chase occurs when heroes and bad guys meet and one side wants to leave – to fetch help, not get killed, whatever. On level ground without cover, assume that the faster party flees or overtakes the slower one. The system that follows is for footraces across rooftops, car chases in dense traffic, etc., where speed doesn’t guarantee victory. This should be most chases in an Action campaign! Remember: BAD never modifies rolls made in chases, although it can determine NPC skill; see BAD Ideas (p. 5). QUARRY AND PURSUER These rules assume two parties (but see Multi-Party Chases, p. 34). The person or vehicle trying to flee is the quarry. The one chasing is the pursuer. ROUNDS Chases take place in abstract rounds. A round is “time enough for both sides to try something cool.” It has no specific duration – because in action cinema, camera effects and edit- ing bend time. Use these guidelines to measure “chase time” against outside time: • Each round allows an ally or an enemy who isn’t involved in the chase to perform one task that takes at most a minute. For instance, a crew could lead guards on a three-round chase while their infiltrator (1) picks a lock, (2) negotiates laser beams, and (3) finds a hidden safe. He couldn’t crack a safe – that takes an hour! This allows more to happen during an action scene than the second-by-second combat rules in the Basic Set permit.

• If the chase diverts the heroes from a time-critical task (e.g., disarming a bomb) or is necessary to attempt such a task (e.g., the bomb is hidden on a truck that the team has to chase down), assume that after the chase, the task suffers a generic haste penalty of -1d, no matter how long the chase runs.

Range Band Table Distance, too, is abstract in a chase. It uses five range bands: Range Band Starting Range* Range Penalty* Description* Close 0-5 yards 0 to -2 Can touch rival, at least some of the time. Short 6-20 yards -3 to -6 Can talk to enemy, or toss things at him. Medium 21-100 yards -7 to -10 Can only shout at rival; need a gun to attack him. Long 101-500 yards -11 to -14 Opponent is out of earshot, at scoped rifle range. Extreme 501+ yards -15 or worse Rival difficult or impossible to see or shoot. * Use distances in yards, range penalties, and descriptions only to settle the chase’s starting range band; e.g., if spotted doing computer monitoring at 100 yards, the chase begins at Medium range. If the exact range is unknown, use the text description to assign starting range based on what initiated the chase; e.g., pickpocketing requires a touch, so chasing a pickpocket starts at Close range.

CHASE SEQUENCE Each round, follow this sequence: 1. Quarry chooses a chase maneuver (below). 2. Pursuer chooses a chase maneuver. 3. Pursuer resolves any attacks or skill rolls for his maneuver. 4. Quarry resolves any attacks or skill rolls for his maneuver. 5. If neither side wipes out badly or is too damaged to con- tinue, roll a Quick Contest of Chase Rolls (p. 34). 6. Adjust the range band for the Contest outcome and start the next round. CHASE MANEUVERS Each side must select one chase maneuver per round. The quarry picks and declares his maneuver. Then the pursuer chooses his maneuver in response. In poor visibility, the GM may have both decide blindly. Each maneuver indicates who can use it, and has one to three notes: Conditions: Special conditions required to enable the maneu- ver. “Suitable scenery or Lucky Break” indicates a maneuver that only works if the surroundings support it. If the GM didn’t describe the scene that way – e.g., you want a ramp on a city street – you can either invoke Serendipity or spend a character point (a variation on Player Guidance, p. B347) for a Lucky Break that allows the maneuver. Describe it! (“As luck would have it, a City Works crew left some planks over a sewer pipe.”) Actions: Attacks or success rolls to resolve before making Chase Rolls. Chase Rolls: Modifier to your Chase Roll – and occasionally your rival’s – for this round, along with any special Chase Roll results. Some maneuvers are “static”; see Static Maneuvers (pp. 34-35). Attack Pursuer or Quarry Stop and make a careful ranged attack. Actions: Everyone on your side with a ranged weapon may roll an attack, adding his weapon Acc; see Attacks (p. 35). Chase Rolls: Static maneuver. Disembark/Embark Pursuer or Quarry Leave or enter a vehicle. Leaving is valuable when pursued by a faster vehicle and there’s a nearby building to dash into. If your pursuer doesn’t pick Disembark/Embark, too, then you can perform a Mobility Escape (pp. 32-33) next round. Entering lets you take control of the boarded vehicle next round. This is nice when being chased on foot and you find a car! When you change modes of transportation this way, use the skills and stats for your new mode next round. Conditions: Must be in a vehicle to leave one, or have access to a vehicle to board one; the latter requires suitable scenery or Lucky Break. Actions: Make a vehicle control roll to start a vehicle (or hotwire it, p. 23); if you fail, you can try this maneuver again next round. Passengers can attack with ranged weapons; see Attacks (p. 35). Chase Rolls: Static maneuver. Emergency Action Pursuer or Quarry Regain control after a wipeout. Conditions: If you experienced a close call last round, you must do this (or Stop); otherwise, you can’t choose this maneu- ver. See Wipeouts (p. 35). Chase Rolls: -5. Force Pursuer or Quarry Attempt to force an enemy vehicle off the road. Conditions: Round starts at Close range and you’re in a vehicle that could strike your rival’s (no boats forcing motor- bikes off the road!). Actions: Roll against vehicle operation skill to hit. Target may attempt a vehicular dodge. If you hit, your target must make a vehicle control roll at -1/+1 per 5 full points by which your vehicle’s ST is higher/lower than his vehicle’s ST; e.g., if you have a HMMWV (ST 72) and he’s in a sports car (ST 57), he rolls at -3. Failure sends him to Wipeouts (p. 35). Passengers can attack with ranged weapons; see Attacks (p. 35). Chase Rolls: -2. Hide Quarry Attempt to duck out of sight of pursuer in a cluttered area – dash through a door and hide next to it, make several tight turns in a maze of alleyways, etc. Conditions: Round starts at Medium range or greater; suit- able scenery or Lucky Break. Chase Rolls: -10 at Medium range, -5 at Long range, or +0 at Extreme Range. On foot, you must make your Chase Roll against Stealth. If you win the Quick Contest of Chase Rolls, then your foe shoots right past! You may opt either to escape, ending the chase, or to pull out behind your rival at Close, Short, or Medium range, making you the pursuer next round. If you don’t win, your pursuer is automatically at Close range! Mobility Escape Quarry Escape pursuit by going where your pursuer cannot; e.g., evade a car by taking a boat out to sea or a motorbike down a narrow alley. Conditions: Either a mismatched chase (e.g., air vs. land vehicle) or suitable scenery or Lucky Break. A Lucky Break can enable a Mobility Escape even if your opponent is equally mobile; e.g., in a foot chase, you could board the subway and flee your pursuer.

Stunt Escape Quarry Escape pursuit with a flashy move; e.g., drop from an over- pass onto a truck during a foot chase, or take a car down an alleyway on two wheels. Conditions: Suitable scenery or Lucky Break. Actions: Execute a Stunt exactly as usual, but declare that you’re using the scenery or Lucky Break specifically to escape. Chase Rolls: +1 to your Chase Roll per -2 on your Stunt roll. If your pursuer responds with Stunt at the same penalty or worse, he receives his Stunt bonus; if he has superior mobility and responds with Mobility Pursuit, he gets +5. Either way, the Quick Contest of Chase Rolls proceeds normally. If he picks any other maneuver, however, treat it as static even if it nor- mally isn’t, on this and all future rounds.

Passenger Actions A vehicle’s operator chooses its maneuver, possibly after consulting with his crew. Each passenger aboard can take one of these actions during the round: Attack: If the vehicle operator took a suitable maneu- ver, a passenger can attack; see Attacks (p. 35). Board: If the round starts at Close range, a passenger can try to board an enemy vehicle! Roll a Quick Contest of Acrobatics or Jumping vs. the opposing driver’s vehi- cle skill. Each contestant adds his vehicle’s speed bonus. If the passenger wins, he leaps aboard the enemy vehicle and can continue to attack those on board as if at Close range – a distraction that gives the enemy driver -2 to Chase Rolls. If he ties, or loses by 1-4, he stays on his own vehicle. If he loses by 5+, he falls out, is run over as if the target vehicle had done a Ram on him (or falls, if he jumped from an aircraft), and is out of the chase. Seize Control: If a vehicle’s operator is down due to injury, a passenger can take over the controls to continue the chase. He must take Emergency Action next round (instead of Stop); after that, he can participate normally. He can also try this after boarding a hostile vehicle. If the driver, or a passenger who wishes to seize control from a subdued driver, opposes him, roll a Quick Contest of DX, Judo, or Wrestling each round. The winner controls the vehicle, but at -5 due to the ongoing struggle. Other Tasks: A passenger can try any noncombat task possible for someone outside the chase: disarm a bomb, treat an injured ally, etc. This is at -2 if the vehicle deliv- ers or receives a Force or a Ram, or -5 if the driver tries Emergency Action, Reverse, Stunt, or Stunt Escape.

Multi-Party Chases The chase rules are one-on-one to keep things simple and fun; involving several participants per side leads to a hairy tactical combat. But movies feature swarms of motorbikes, security convoys battling multiple terrorist Jeeps, etc. To handle this, run things exactly like a one-on-one chase and have only each side’s leader – chosen by the GM for NPCs, elected by the players for PCs – select maneu- vers and make Chase Rolls. His results in the Contest affect his entire side. If a side chooses Force or Ram, each attacker must select one target, and may opt not to attack anyone. If a side chooses a maneuver that allows attacks, each person must target a specific enemy. Passengers who try to board enemy vehicles must pick particular destinations. Each participant makes his own control rolls if he makes or receives a Ram, or suffers a Force. He also makes his own Stunt rolls at the penalty his leader chose. All damage he receives is his alone. If any of this spells a wipeout, only he wipes out; allies aren’t affected. If the leader is out of the chase, that side must pick a new one! Mobility Escape and Mobility Pursuit are especially tricky with mixed groups (e.g., helicopter, boat, and sub- marine). The least-painful approach is to say that equally mobile parties break off on their own chase, while the rest are left behind in the original, and both advance at the same pace. Three-Way Chases It’s also possible for one party to pursue another, who’s pursuing a third. This gets messy, too, but the GM can fudge it as two largely unrelated chases: one between the front and middle participants, and another between the middle and rear ones. Each round, the front participant picks a quarry maneuver and the rear one selects a pursuer maneuver. The middleman must either favor escape and select a quarry maneuver or emphasize pursuit and pick a pur- suer maneuver. If he opts for pursuit, treat his maneuver with respect to his pursuer as Move. If he prefers escape, his maneuver with respect to his quarry is Move. Roll the two chases separately, with only the modifiers for that chase and any generic ones (e.g., for injury). The results for the front and rear participants are obvious. For the middleman, both apply. Where they conflict, use the worst. The GM decides what’s “worst” (and will have to make many similar judgment calls!).

CHASE ROLLS After all subsidiary rolls, attacks, defenses, damage, and wipeouts are resolved, each party rolls against the skill govern- ing his mode of travel: Bicycling, Boating, Driving, Piloting, Riding, Running, Skiing, Submarine, Swimming, etc. This roll is always DX-based. Pedestrians without Running can use DX. For vehicles, only the operator’s skill matters. Opposing skills need not match – you can chase a bicycle with a helicop- ter or a speedboat by driving alongside a canal. Chase maneuvers, driver injury, or distraction might mod- ify Chase Rolls, but these modifiers nearly always apply: Complementary Skills: You may roll against either Area Knowledge for the location of the chase (to exploit short- cuts, scenery, etc.) or Urban Survival if you’re in a built-up area (to predict dangers and traffic). You never have to roll, but if you do, you get the usual bonus or penalty. Use the best skill of those aboard a vehicle. Handling: Those operating vehicles add their vehicle’s Han- dling stat. Higher Purpose (Deliver the Package): When you’re trying to deliver goods or a person safely, this advantage gives +1. Speed Bonus: Except during a static maneuver (see below), each side gets a bonus based on Top Speed. Use the “Size” column of the table on p. B550: +2 for a Move 5 man, +3 for a speedy Move 6-7 person, +4 for a vehicle capable of 20 mph, +5 for 30 mph, +6 for 40 mph, +7 for 60 mph, +8 for 100 mph, +9 for 140 mph, +10 for 200 mph, and so on. For in-between values, use the lower bonus. Chase Rolls meet in a Quick Contest. The outcome sets the range band at the start of the next round: Victory by 0-4: No change. Victory by 5-9: Winner may shift range band by one step in either direction. Victory by 10+: Winner may shift range band by two steps either way. Thus, fast vehicles will quickly elude or overtake slower ones, or pedestrians, but this isn’t automatic. Skilled heroes can often trump faster but less-canny rivals. Escape If the quarry can shift range beyond Extreme, he escapes, ending the chase! Static Maneuvers Stopping for any reason is a static maneuver. Attack and Disembark/Embark are always static. Any maneuver is static if your rival succeeds at Mobility Escape or Stunt Escape – and once he does, all your future maneuvers are static, too, regardless of what maneuver he takes, unless you can change mobility or pull a Stunt to keep up.

A static maneuver means you get no speed bonus on your Chase Roll. If your rival picks a non-static maneuver, he gets an extra range shift no matter who wins the Contest – that is, three if he wins by 10+, two if he wins by 5-9, or one otherwise. If you both perform static maneuvers, range doesn’t change that round. ATTACKS Only Attack, Disembark/Embark, Force, Move and Attack, and Ram allow attacks. During other maneuvers, either your target isn’t in sight or your movement is too wild to allow a shot. If your maneuver allows an attack, you get one attack roll. This reflects the best shot that presented itself during the round. In games that don’t track ammo, everybody might still be blaz- ing away the whole time – just like in the movies! Modifiers: Movement: During an Disembark/Embark, Force, Move and Attack, or Ram, a pedestrian or a vehicle operator suffers the worst of -2 or his weapon’s Bulk with ranged attacks. Passengers aboard a vehicle have only -1. Range: 0 if the round started at Close range, -3 at Short range, -7 at Medium range, -11 at Long range, or -15 at Extreme range. Target: Vehicle SM if shooting a vehicle; no modifier if shoot- ing a pedestrian or an exposed rider; -3 if shooting at a vehi- cle’s vital areas, such as engines or wheels, or through windows at a vehicle’s crew. Gunslingers: Heroes with Gunslinger can shoot during any maneuver but Hide! They only suffer range and target penal- ties. During Disembark/Embark, Force, Move and Attack, or Ram, they add weapon Acc. During Attack, they add Acc+1. DEFENSES The operator of a vehicle targeted by Force, Ram, or a weapon attack can defend with a vehicular dodge at (control skill/2) + Handling, rounded down. Always add Enhanced Dodge (Vehicular) to this roll! A rider, passenger, or pedestrian can try to dodge any attack on him. Against a melee attack made during a Move and Attack at Close range, he can opt to parry. Either is at -2 when seated. DAMAGE One way to win a chase is to damage your rival to the point where he can’t continue. Damage to People: A vehicle operator who’s injured has the usual -1 to -4 for shock, or -4 if stunned, on his next Chase Roll. If a human falls unconscious or dies, though, he can no longer act; if he’s the sole pedestrian or vehicle operator on his side, he loses the chase and must go to Wipeouts (below). Vehicular Damage: A vehicle at 0 or fewer HP must make the HT rolls indicated on pp. B483-484, reading “second” as “round.” A vehicle that suffers HP/3, rounded up, to vital areas (deliberately left abstract here!) must roll as if at 0 HP or its true injury level, whichever is worse. Failure takes the vehicle out of the chase and sends it to Wipeouts (below). WIPEOUTS Wipeouts are crashes, skids, trips, etc. There are two sorts: Close Call: If the target of a Force, either side in a Ram, or someone who botches a Reverse, Stunt, or Stunt Escape fails the relevant roll by his vehicle’s Stability Rating (SR) or less – or gets a regular failure, on foot – he just has a scare. He par- ticipates in the Quick Contest of Chase Rolls as usual this round. Next round, he must select Emergency Action or Stop, or suffer a wreck. His opponent will know this! Wreck: Failure by more than SR on the above rolls – critical failure, on foot – spells disaster. So does not following a close call with Emergency Action or Stop. And so does incapacitat- ing a vehicle operator with nobody to take over, or taking out a vehicle or a pedestrian. If any of that happens, that pedes- trian or vehicle performs an instant Stop and is out of the chase. Worse, that participant collides with something, taking thrust damage for his or its ST, adding speed bonus per die. Anyone in a vehicle during a wreck suffers only 1d plus speed bonus as injury. So if an HMMWV with ST 72 (thrust 8d) and Move 33 (speed bonus +7) crashes, it takes 8d+56 and those aboard lose 1d+7 HP. Collateral Damage Foot, plane, and boat chases mostly involve only inter- ested parties. But what would a cinematic car chase be with- out parked vehicles, property, and citizens getting splashed everywhere? On crowded streets, each wipeout of any kind causes a ran- dom accident. If the quarry causes an accident, his pursuer has -(1d-1) – that’s 0 to -5 – on his next Chase Roll, due to the chaos. The downside is that property is trashed and people are injured (but rarely killed, at least in tamer movies). Accidents give heroes who answer to legitimate bosses a penalty to Assis- tance Rolls for the remainder of the adventure, while free- lancers get extra BAD to reflect the fact that the authorities will be seeking them. Either is -1 for one accident, -2 for two, -3 for four, and another -1 per doubling. If a face man jumps out immediately to bribe or sweet-talk victims, or a medic stays behind to treat them, the GM shouldn’t count that accident.

Once you’ve chased down the bad guys, it’s time to shoot and beat them. The Basic Set combat rules will do for most purposes, but some shortcuts can make for smoother battles . . . and a few new options especially suit action gaming. SHOOTING MADE EASY Gunplay works best when everybody can roll and shout. Flatly ignoring modifiers to simplify shootouts is unfair, though – skill should count, and offsetting penalties is the whole point of high skill. The key is to avoid unnecessary mod- ifiers while keeping fun ones. In general, keep modifiers for cover (-2 in most cases where you can see the target), darkness (-1 to -9), gear (like the target- ing lasers and scopes in Action 1: Heroes), hit location (pp. B398-400), maneuvers (particularly Aim, All-Out Attack, and Move and Attack), and size (SM). Remember to add Acc or ignore Bulk for heroes with Gunslinger. And use the simplified rules below. Simplified Range The Size and Speed/Range Table (p. B550) is dandy for sur- veillance and observation, but clunky in a raging battle, espe- cially when not using a map. Instead, use the range bands defined for chases; see Range Band Table (p. 31) and Attacks (p. 35). To quickly set an encounter’s range, use Close (no range penalty, but Bulk applies if either side is punching or grap- pling) in a melee, Short (-3) for a pistol shootout, Medium (-7) for a shotgun or SMG fight, Long (-11) for a rifle engagement, and Extreme (-15) for sniping. Simplified Rapid Fire A gunman whose firearm has RoF 2+ can fire multiple shots. If he has several targets, he can opt to divide his shots among them. Decide on the number of bullets allocated to each target, assess standard ranged combat modifiers for each tar- get, and then apply the following in each case: Number of Shots at Target: 0 for 2-4 shots, +1 for 5-8 shots, +2 for 9-12 shots, +3 for 13-16 shots, +4 for 17-24 shots, +5 for 25-49 shots, or +6 for 50-99 shots. Total Number of Targets: If the weapon has RoF 2-4, there’s -6 on all attacks when shooting two targets, -12 when shoot- ing three, or -18 when shooting four; halve these penalties for heroes with Gunslinger. If the weapon has RoF 5+ (it’s full-automatic), there’s no special penalty – and simply ignore realistic concerns like arcs of fire and shots lost between targets! Shotguns: A RoF 2¥9 shotgun can blast 18 pellets at one tar- get (+4 for number of pellets), or 9 at each of two (each attack has +2 for number of pellets but -6 for two targets). A RoF 3¥9 shotgun can fire 27 pellets at one target (+5 for number of pellets), 9 at one and 18 at another (+2 and +4 for number of pellets, but -6 for two targets), or 9 at each of three (+2 for number of pellets but -12 for three targets). Resolving Hits: Next, roll to hit each target. Success means that target is hit by one bullet (or pellet), plus one extra bullet per full multiple of weapon Rcl by which the roll was made, to a maximum of the number of bullets fired at that target. Dou- ble Rcl for a RoF 5+ weapon sprayed across multiple targets. Example: Success by 4 with a Rcl 2 pistol means three hits: one for success and two for making the roll by twice Rcl. If spraying a RoF 5+ SMG at several targets, Rcl 2 would be treated as Rcl 4, and success by 4 would only be enough for one extra hit (two in all). Damage: For 1-3 hits, roll damage normally. For 4+ hits, it’s quicker not to roll. Use average damage for the weapon (3.5 per die, plus any modifier), subtract DR, multiply by number of hits, and drop fractions. To save time, note average damage for RoF 4+ guns on character sheets! Example: Shotgun pellets do 1d+1 and average 3.5 + 1 = 4.5 points, so DR 2 would leave 4.5 - 2 = 2.5 points, and 9 pellets would inflict 9 ¥ 2.5 = 22.5 points, which would round to 22. Shooting Two Guns Shooting two one-handed guns uses the same rules as shooting one gun. Treat each hand as attacking separately. While shooting two guns, all attacks have an extra -4 unless the shooter improves the Dual-Weapon Attack technique. To buy off the whole -4 costs 5 points, so the GM may treat this technique as an all-or-nothing 5-point advantage for each Guns skill. Off-hand attacks have a further -4. A shooter can eliminate this by buying either the Off-Hand Weapon Training perk for his Guns skill or full Ambidexterity. Leading the Target Dodges against gunfire represent the effect of target move- ment on the shooter’s aim. This keeps action heroes alive but is annoying when shooting mooks. High-skill heroes can mitigate this by predicting their mark’s movement and placing shots just so. Apply all other ranged combat modifiers to skill first. If effective skill is 12+, the shooter can give his target -1 to Dodge per -2 he accepts on the shot. He cannot reduce effective skill below 10 this way. CRACKING SKULLS Melee lacks multiple shots, range penalties, and so on, which makes it simple enough to use the Basic Set as written. But a few classic unarmed moves aren’t covered there: Guns as Melee Weapons: Roll against Brawling or DX to slug someone with a pistol or an SMG – or against Guns, with the Pistol-Fist perk. Damage is thrust-1 crushing, plus the absolute value of Bulk; e.g., a pistol with Bulk -2 does thr+1 crushing. Striking end-on with the butt of a longer weapon uses Spear or Staff (default DX-5) and inflicts thr+2 crushing. Holding such a long arm by the barrel and swinging it like a baseball bat requires Two-Handed Axe/Mace (default DX-5) and does sw+3 crushing. Pistols and SMGs have Reach C; longer weapons, Reach 1.

Shoving People into Stuff: To hold somebody’s face to a table saw, force his head into a rolling mill, etc., grapple him as usual. If he fails to break free, then on later turns, roll a Quick Contest. Each of you uses the highest of ST, DX, Judo, Sumo Wrestling, or Wrestling. If you win, he goes where you want him to go (for simplicity’s sake, assume that big machines do 3d damage). If he wins, he gets his margin of victory as a bonus to break free on his next turn. A tie means nothing happens. Shoving Stuff into People: To shove or kick an object into somebody on its far side, roll a standard Boxing, Brawling, or Karate punch or kick at an extra -4. Your foe may defend nor- mally. Such a punch or kick does its usual damage, at +1 if the object is big and hard, like a car door or a frozen steer. Smashing People into Walls: If you’ve grappled somebody, you can hold onto him and ram him into a wall, car door, or other hard object within a yard. This isn’t a fancy Judo throw! To do this, roll against DX, Brawling, Sumo Wrestling, or Wrestling. You can even target specific body parts; apply stan- dard hit location penalties. Your opponent may either dodge or parry with a free hand. If you succeed, you inflict thrust+1 crushing, plus any skill bonus (treat ST bonuses for Sumo Wrestling or Wrestling as damage bonuses). FLASHY FIGHTING In a real fight, it’s wise to take cover, move cautiously, and not over-commit. Not in the movies! Your first dodge after any of the following stunts counts as your Acrobatic Dodge (p. B375) for the turn, regardless of whether you actually used Acrobatics, giving +2 to Dodge if the trick succeeded but -2 if it failed. Acrobatic Evade: You may substitute Acrobatics for DX when evading (p. B368) on a Move maneuver, tumbling between your foe’s legs, rolling over his shoulder, etc. Acrobatic Guard: You can declare that you’re acrobatically avoiding one opponent and doing nothing else. Roll a Quick Contest of Acrobatics vs. his best melee skill. If you win, he’ll have a penalty equal to your margin of victory on his roll to hit you with melee attacks on his next turn. Otherwise, you waste your turn. Regardless, you still get your usual active defenses. Acrobatic Stand: If you’re lying down, you can jump to your feet using one Change Posture maneuver instead of two by making an Acrobatics roll at -6 plus encumbrance penalties. Failure means you end up sitting; critical failure means you fall face-down! Athletics in Combat: The feats under Parkour (pp. 19-20) and even Climbing (pp. 18-19) can be part of any Move or Move and Attack maneuver, if scenery permits (you can use Serendipity or spend a character point to ensure this, just as in a chase). During a Move and Attack, they count as the “Move” portion, and both your attack roll and the roll for the stunt take an extra -2. Heroes with Gunslinger ignore this -2 on firearms attacks! Tumbling: During a Move maneuver, you may try to cart- wheel or roll at full Move. Make an unmodified Acrobatics roll. Success means that anyone who tries to shoot you has an extra -2. Failure means you travel half your Move but enjoy no special benefits. Critical failure means you fall down and go nowhere! SNEAKY FIGHTING Assassins, especially, often prefer to be less flashy in com- bat. Below are several rules that emulate the way stealth works on film – which has little to do with reality. Death from the Shadows: When combat starts, anyone may try a Stealth roll to duck behind cover or into shadows. Modifiers: A basic -5; encumbrance penalties; +5 if team is ambushing, no modifier in a stand-up fight, or -5 if squad is ambushed; and -5 if there’s no cover or shadow. Success lets him attack his nearest foe (GM chooses) from behind; critical success lets him get at any enemy. Treat range as Close. The victim gets no defense. Attacking reveals the attacker’s presence for the rest of the battle (but see Disappear- ing, below). A use of Serendipity or a character point can find cover anywhere (no -5) or let the sneak choose his victim. Disappearing: A really stealthy hero can vanish during com- bat! He must take a Move maneuver to reach concealment – if only briefly. Then he attempts the Stealth roll above, but at a basic -10 and without ambush modifiers. Failure means he’s spotted and still in the fight. Success lets him escape and “van- ish” for as many turns as he likes. If he reappears, he can be up to Move yards away per turn of absence, in any location he could reach by running – or via Parkour (pp. 19-20) or Climb- ing (pp. 18-19), if he makes all the rolls. Hidden Weapons: To conceal a weapon for surprise use, roll Holdout. Add the Bulk penalty of a gun or the Holdout penalty of a melee weapon, along with any modifier for your holster. Success means the first strike with that weapon will be hard to see coming: -2 to target’s defense. Ensuing attacks won’t sur- prise anyone. Playing Dead: This is a free action at any time: Fall down, drop your weapon, and stop moving. Whenever the GM thinks an enemy may decide to make sure you’re dead, he’ll roll a secret Quick Contest: Act- ing vs. the higher of the enemy’s IQ or Perception. You’re at +1 at half HP, +2 at 0 HP, +3 at -HP, +4 at -3¥HP, and +5 at -4¥HP. If you win, you’re overlooked. Sniping: A sniper can help allies in combat by taking shots at his regular spot in the combat sequence. If he succeeded at Stealth, his first victim gets no defense. Then roll a new Quick Contest of Stealth vs. the enemy side’s best Perception. Victory means the gunman isn’t seen and his next shot allows no defense. And so on. If he loses a Contest, he’s spotted – but if he has an elevated position, Dodge is at -2 against his shots. Another advantage of elevation is that people don’t get in his way unless they’re in close combat with his mark, and even that gives only -2. EXTRA EFFORT RULES Extra Effort in Combat (p. B357) truly fits action battles. Each of the following uses costs 1 FP. A hero may try as many as he wishes on a given turn, if he has enough FP.

Feverish Defense: Get +2 to a single active defense roll. Heroic Charge: Move any distance up to full Move in order to attack, ignoring the usual Bulk penalty and other bad effects of a Move and Attack maneuver. Heroes with Gunslinger can already ignore Bulk when they run and gun, so this option lets them to add Acc (half Acc, for long arms) just as if they were making an Attack maneuver! Multi-Task: Take a turn in combat while simultaneously doing a simple noncombat task (dousing lights, starting car, etc.) – or even a complex task, if it’s performed as an “instant” action at -10 to skill, as described in Time Spent (p. B346). Near Thing: Undo the effects of a failed DX roll to stay standing, avert a fall when climbing in combat, or catch a weapon dropped due to a critical miss (not enemy action). Rapid Reload: Reload instantly and without error – even between shots! Second Wind: Each FP spent heals 1 HP! This isn’t as effec- tive as Flesh Wounds (p. B417 and below), but it doesn’t cost character points. Shake It Off: Undo the effects of a single failed HT roll to avoid knockdown or unconsciousness. The hero feels woozy (the lost FP), but stays standing. CINEMATIC COMBAT RULES Action movies are all about fighting, so some players will insist on piles of optional rules – including those from Tactical Combat (pp. B384-392), GURPS High-Tech, and GURPS Mar- tial Arts. That’s fine! But the GM may also wish to implement a few rules from p. B417 to simplify combat: Bulletproof Nudity: In addition to its usual benefits, this rule gives heroes +1 to break free when naked or in skin-tight cloth- ing, increasing to +2 if sweaty (at least 1 FP lost to exertion) or +3 if oiled (don’t ask). Cannon Fodder: A more shaded version of this rule suits the action-movie bad-guy hierarchy. Bad guys do defend. However, mooks are defeated if injured at all – even a 1-HP gut punch will do. Henchmen are overcome at 0 HP or below. Bosses always fight to negative HP and try repeated HT rolls. Exchange the henchman and boss rules when the boss’ scary bodyguard is intended as the big combat challenge while the boss is a wimp. Defeated baddies who aren’t killed or knocked out cower, play dead, flee, or surrender. Cinematic Explosions: Use this rule for all explosions – not just those in combat, but also disasters when setting or defus- ing explosives. If the GM prefers grittier action, and wants something between “minor knockback damage” and “every- body dies,” he can give victims a Dodge roll at +3, to dive for cover; Enhanced Dodge (Dive for Cover) helps. Only critical success results in knockback alone, as on p. B417. Success adds 1d cutting damage from fragments. Failure means the explosion does its usual damage, but can at worst reduce the victim to 0 HP – or to -HP, on a critical failure. Failures while working on explosives directly count as critical failures. Cinematic Knockback: Heroes can use this rule to shove around objects, too. Any hit with a gun can push a lever or similar. Beefier objects, like oil drums, call for at least 8 points of damage. Flesh Wounds: Heroes who spend a character point to reduce an injury to 1 HP can also invoke Second Wind (above), spend 1 FP, and walk away complete unscathed. Infinite Ammunition: See Bullets, Beans, and Batteries (p. 7) for a toned-down version of this rule. Melee Etiquette: A group of heroes should face an equal num- ber of mooks in melee. When the heroes drop one, another immediately steps in, until there are no more mooks left. TV Action Violence: Treat this as an extra-effort option whenever the distinction matters. New Cinematic Combat Rules You can never have too many cinematic options! Dumb Mooks: Heroes can try all manner of complex moves to show off, but having mooks do this doubles the time needed to play out a battle. Therefore, mooks simply stand out in the open and shoot at full RoF in gunfights, and avoid fancy options such as Deceptive Attack, Dual-Weapon Attack, Feint, Rapid Strike, and combat techniques in melee. Bosses and henchmen, however, can try anything the heroes could try. Fast Reloads: Reloading takes the usual amount of time if the enemy can see you. If you’re already behind concealment, reloading any gun takes one Ready maneuver. If you take a Move maneuver to reach concealment, you can either Ready next turn or make a Fast-Draw (Ammo) roll at the end of your movement and start next turn with a loaded weapon. Flawless Firearms: Guns don’t require maintenance, have Malfunction numbers, jam or overheat, suffer when thrown or used to pummel people, or endanger the heroes with hot brass or deadly backblast. They just work! However, a hero can spend 2 character points to inflict such an outcome on a mook who fails an attack roll to hit him or his vehicle: the mook’s gun jams, his LAW’s backblast takes out a carload of other mooks, etc. Gun Control Law: If the heroes don’t have firearms, mooks won’t use guns except to threaten them. When the thugs attack, they’ll use bare hands or melee weapons. “Name” adversaries – a crack sniper hired to kill the team, the boss’ bodyguard, etc. – may use firearms, but won’t defend against attacks intended to disarm them. The GM can apply this on a PC-by-PC basis, so that heroes who choose melee meet only bad guys with melee weapons, while the crew’s gunmen are valid targets for mooks with guns. If the heroes shoot a mook who isn’t using a gun, this rule no longer applies. Mook Marksmanship: If the Gun Control Law is broken, the bad guys won’t hit with their first shot (or shots, if using rapid fire). Nearby props get trashed instead. The GM may extend this protection for multiple turns if all the PCs are using Flashy Fighting (p. 37) to escape rather than to fight back. Super-Silencers: Real silencers turn a deafening bang into a merely loud one that still gives a substantial bonus to Hearing rolls. In the movies, even the heaviest rifle makes a muffled cough when silenced. There’s no noise at all unless you have a line of sight. In that case, make a basic Hearing roll with the penalty listed for a silencer. Unarmed Etiquette: Melee weapons can’t parry unarmed attacks. This applies to PCs and NPCs alike. Against unarmed foes, it may be necessary to drop weapons to survive – a weapon in either hand leaves only dodges against kicks and punches!

BANTER Action heroes never shut up in combat – an actor has to earn his pay, after all. But it sometimes serves a purpose. Below, Psychology works like an Influence skill, because in the movies, skilled police psychologists and negotiators are good at this stuff! Drawing Aggression: You can use Fast-Talk or Psychology to unleash taunts and jibes calculated to draw an opponent’s aggression. Take a Concentrate maneuver and roll a Quick Contest of skill against the higher of the enemy’s IQ or Will. If you win, that foe comes after you, changing targets if neces- sary. A tie does nothing. If you lose, he targets a hurt or other- wise vulnerable team member just to spite you! Win, lose, or tie, if you roll a critical success, your mark also makes an All- Out Attack on his next turn. Uttering Threats: You can try Intimidation or Psychology to discourage an enemy, provided that he’s neither Indomitable nor Unfazeable. This works at -5 once combat has begun – but a gun gives you a bonus equal to the absolute value of its Bulk (e.g., +4 for a .50AE hand-cannon), and you get +1 if you light up your rival with a targeting laser. Then roll as for drawing aggression. Victory by 5 or more means he flees the fight. If you win by 1-4, your opponent hesitates, taking that many All- Out Defense maneuvers, but doesn’t leave. If you tie or lose, he comes after you! This trick only works while the team allows enemies to run away unscathed. Shooting one in the back dooms this option to failure for the rest of the encounter. USING YOUR HEAD The wounded partner in the finale of a buddy movie, or the leader of a squad in a war movie, is always ready with advice for his allies. There are several options here, all of which require at least one Do Nothing maneuver. All overlook the fact that this person is actually doing something. This lets bullet- riddled heroes contribute even when trying not to pass out! Analysis: You can take a turn and ask the GM to roll Tactics for you. Success means he’ll reveal the enemy’s broad plan – if there is one – beyond “They’re trying to kill us!” For instance, “They’re guarding that chopper,” “They’re maneuvering us away from that control panel,” or “They’re stalling until the bomb goes off.” Failure means he lies. Encouragement: A successful Leadership roll removes -1 in disadvantage penalties claimed under the Ham Clause (see Action 1: Heroes) by anyone on your side. Critical success negates up to -2. These effects last until your next turn, but you can roll and shout for as many turns as you like. Failure, or several people trying this at once, gives no benefit (but no penalty). Spotting: You can observe a target for a friend. Choose one companion to aid. On his turn, he can listen to your shouts – or ignore you! If he listens, roll against Observation and treat it as a complementary skill roll for his attack rolls this turn. Reroll each turn. If multiple people try to advise him, he chooses whose advice to take, and only that person may roll. STANDOFFS Action-movie fights often start with a standoff. In a stand- off between two gunmen in combat, resolve the situation using the turn sequence (p. B363). The faster gunman takes his turn first, shooting if his weapon is ready or he can Fast-Draw it, or taking a Ready maneuver otherwise. Then the slower gun- fighter acts. And so on. If combat hasn’t started, use these rules: 1. Neither fighter has a ready weapon. • One knows Fast-Draw, the other doesn’t. The shootist with Fast-Draw rolls against skill. Success lets him shoot first. Fail- ure means the situation unfolds as a standoff between fighters who don’t know Fast-Draw. Critical failure means he drops his gun or shoots himself, and his foe fires first! • Both or neither knows Fast-Draw. Roll a Quick Contest. Use Fast-Draw if both gunmen have it, Guns if neither does (or if one does, but failed; see above). Regardless of the skill used, apply all Fast-Draw modifiers. Give -1 to the shootist with the worst Bulk and +4 to anyone who already had his hand on his gun. The winner fires first. In a tie, they shoot simultaneously! 2. One fighter has a ready weapon. • His opponent knows Fast-Draw. Roll a Quick Contest. The ready gunman uses Guns, at +1 if he has Combat Reflexes. The unready one uses Fast-Draw, modified as for a Quick Contest of Fast-Draw (above), but with an extra -10! The win- ner shoots first. In a tie, the ready shooter fires first. • His opponent lacks Fast-Draw. The ready gunman shoots first. Action movies make a big deal out of the hero winning the draw under grossly unequal terms. This is one place where lots of modifiers are justified! Optional Modifiers: -4 if grappled; -4 for the off hand; -4 if crawling or lying down, -2 if crouching, kneeling, or sitting, or hanging upside down; -1 from a shoulder or concealment hol- ster, or -2 if the weapon is in a pocket. SPECIAL COMBAT SITUATIONS Death on Wheels (Skis, Fins, etc.): When fighting while para- chuting, skiing, diving, etc., use the lower of your actual com- bat skill and your DX-based level with the relevant mobility skill: Parachuting, Scuba, Skiing, etc. In addition, if you’re skiing faster than you could run, or parachuting, your only option when attacking is Move and Attack. This gives gunmen a penalty: the worse of -2 or their weapon’s Bulk. Those with Gunslinger always roll against Guns and never take penalties for Move and Attack. Flipping a Weapon to Your Hand: Normally, readying a weapon from the ground takes two Ready maneuvers. You can try a showy Ready maneuver that lets you flip the weapon to your hand while standing. Roll against DX or Fast-Draw at -5. Failure means you don’t grasp the weapon and waste your turn clutching at air. Critical failure means you knock the weapon 1d yards away in a random direction. Underwater Shooting: Realistically, it’s unwise to shoot a firearm underwater, and mostly ineffective. In the movies, it seems to work reasonably well if both parties are in the water. The bullets move slowly, leaving cool trails that give the target +1 to Dodge, but do full damage. However, when shooting into water, bullets rarely do much – treat hits as misses and critical hits as regular hits.

The heroes should eventually prevail – the genre requires it – but victory need not be painless. Rallying from near- defeat to save the day is a time-honored tradition. And those in an Action campaign, unlike loner movie heroes, work with a whole team of professionals whose skills can make short work of misfortune.

Most disasters involve getting beaten, stabbed, shot, and blown up. This is where the medic earns his pay. To simulate the way cinematic medics can patch up allies even as the bullets fly, rolls for treatment can invoke Time Spent (p. B346) to allow “instant” use at -10. Don’t forget that all med- ical tasks in action scenes get +1 for Higher Purpose (“Medic!”). In all cases, the medic must have the necessary medical gear – and nothing else – in hand, and be able to touch the patient. When attempting instant use, he still has to take a Con- centrate maneuver. (Thus, it takes a second, which is still “instant” next to minutes or hours!) Repeated attempts aren’t allowed, except as noted. First Aid: In a TL8 action setting, first aid takes 10 minutes and requires a successful First Aid or Physician roll. There’s no modifier with a first aid kit, but a crash kit gives +2. Success heals 1d HP; critical success restores 6 HP. Failure has no ben- efit; critical failure costs 2 HP. Mortal Wounds: Lethal injuries that would kill anyone else seem to cause at worst a mortal wound to an action hero. When a PC rolls against HT to avoid death, he may add Hard to Kill if he has it, and only failure against modified HT means collapse (normally, if Hard to Kill makes the difference, the victim collapses). Moreover, any failure by any amount – even critical failure – merely indicates a mortal wound (p. B423). This obeys the usual rules. To stabilize the victim, a medic can take an hour and roll vs. Surgery. Modifiers: -5 if all he has is a crash kit, but no modifier for a proper surgical kit; -2 at -3¥HP or worse or -4 at -4¥HP or worse; -2, cumulative, per repeated attempt; -5 if the victim failed his original HT roll by more than 2 (that is, his mortal wound would have killed a random NPC). Success saves the patient’s life and lets him start healing naturally – he never loses HT or acquires disadvantages. Fail- ures allow repeated attempts, at the penalty above. If the patient dies, try resuscitation. Resuscitation: Cinematic medics can revive almost anybody the plot requires to live. When someone important – PC or major NPC – dies for any reason, a medic can pound on his chest, inject adrenaline, and otherwise go nuts. This takes a minute and requires a First Aid or Physician roll. A defibrillator gives +3. (In reality, someone who has bled dry won’t benefit from a zap – but this isn’t reality!) Success lets stabilization attempts resume. Bleeding: Ignore Bleeding (p. B420) in an action game. Peo- ple bleed – lots – and talk about how bad it is, but that’s the director showing you how bad they’re hurt, not its own prob- lem. If the GM feels that bleeding is vital to a scene, one minute and a First Aid or Physician roll will solve the problem. OUTBREAK! An important medic role in some action stories is identifying and treating dire plagues engineered by terrorists and mad sci- entists. As depicted on the silver screen, this requires four rolls: • Diagnosis to deduce that the victims don’t have some common ailment. • Expert Skill (Epidemiology) to identify the disease. • Pharmacy to concoct a stopgap treatment to keep the patients alive. • Physician to administer the treatment. These rolls take 1d hours each and must be made in order. Penalties frequently apply. Success is needed to advance to the next step, but repeated attempts are allowed. Each failure means dead NPCs. Once all four rolls have succeeded, the survivors will remain stable until the real cure comes. This is researched “on screen” in disaster movies, but rarely in action films. The heroes might have to make an Assistance Roll to request a cure, though! Heroes must roll against Hazardous Materials (Biologi- cal) to transport samples to scientists working on the cure, and NBC Suit when around victims. Any failure means exposure. Exposed PCs and stable-but-uncured NPCs are alive but in bad shape. See WMD (p. 29) for suggested effects.

OVERDOSE, POISONING, AND VENOM Cinematic poison should inflict 1d to 6d fatigue or toxic damage and then get out of the picture. However, some plots call for someone – like a vital witness – to be slowly dying of poison. Things then work much as for disease, but with fewer steps: • Diagnosis to determine that it is poisoning, and not flu, sunstroke, etc. • Poisons to identify the specific poison. • Physician to administer the treatment, at +4 with the correct antitoxin kit. These rolls take a minute apiece and must be attempted in order. Success is required to start the next step, but repeated attempts are allowed. Each failure means more damage – another 1d to 6d, depending on deadliness. Penalties often apply. Several skills are complementary here, though: Chemistry for industrial chemicals, Expert Skill (Military Science) for weapons, Naturalist for animal venom or toxic plants, Pharmacy for medical drugs, and Streetwise for street drugs. The team can try all of these. Mod- ifiers are cumulative for all skills that apply.

Action heroes are destined to win. This fate is often termed “script immunity”: Victory is ultimately assured because the script says so. Scripting isn’t fun in an RPG, but “lucky breaks” can provide the benefits of script immu- nity without the script. There are many ways to engineer such situations. Lucky Advantages Every template in Action 1: Heroes includes Luck, and offers Daredevil and Serendipity. Each can pull the heroes’ fat out of the fire, but in different ways. Daredevil: This only works during physical risk-taking. Given how skilled most action heroes are at such deeds, +1 to skill rarely saves the day; the true benefit is the ability to reroll critical failures. However, not all unfortunate out- comes are critical failures! Optionally, when a single roll by anyone – damage, critical hit result, etc. – would kill the hero, the GM can backtrack to the fatal roll and reroll it, even if it isn’t the daredevil’s success roll. Luck: This general-purpose lifesaver is easy to “use up” in an action scene. The GM may opt to let a PC who’s between uses “push his luck.” This gives an immediate extra use without resetting the clock. The catch is that the hero now has one episode of Unluckiness (p. B160) com- ing, and can’t invoke Luck again – regularly or by pushing it – until this hoses him! Serendipity: In addition to lucking into clues, convenient scenery, items, etc., a hero with this trait can invoke it as a safety net when things go pear-shaped. He doesn’t reroll. Instead, he receives a fortuitous opportunity to make a dif- ferent roll to avoid disaster. For instance, if critical failure at Forced Entry brings guards, Serendipity might let the burglar duck behind a hitherto unnoticed curtain, allowing a “saving throw” against Stealth. Buying Lucky Breaks The GM should always allow Influencing Success Rolls (p. B347). He controls how often it’s possible through the number of points he awards! Some advice: Buying Success: The Basic Set recommends forbidding purchase of critical successes in combat, but it suits the genre to permit them against mooks (not henchmen or bosses). Flawless Firearms (p. 38) even lets a hero spend 2 points to “curse” a bumbling mook! Player Guidance: It’s unfair to take 2 points from a PC to “set the scene” if – to capitalize on the situation – he must attempt a success roll that could fail and waste his points. Therefore, when the player specifies an adjustment to the world that merely lets him try something, it costs only 1 point.

Sometimes, it’s a machine – not a teammate – that needs fix- ing. This requires a tool kit matched to the relevant repair skill. A shop gives +2; a portable kit, no modifier; a mini kit, -2; and a pocket multi-tool, -5. Ignore item HP except when vehicles are being banged up in chases. Just assume that cinematic hardware has three states (and convert vehicle HP to the appropriate one after a chase): Functional – The item is above 0 HP and operating. No need for repairs! Broken – The item has 0 or fewer HP, but is above -HP; has missing parts; or is simply “ancient,” “short-circuited,” “wet,” etc. To jury-rig it, the repairman must roll against a suitable specialty of Armoury for weapons, Electronics Repair for electronics, or Mechanic for vehicles – or use Electrician for power tools or ordinary appliances, or Machinist for hand tools. This takes the lower of 30 min- utes or the time left until the next action scene, but Quick Gadgeteer allows instant repairs by rolling at -10. Any dam- age will re-break a jury-rigged item. Repairs carried out between adventures are real, permanent repairs.

Destroyed – The item is at -HP or worse. It’s dead, Jim. You can’t fix it! Two special repairs often feature in action stories: Get the Lights On! Restoring power to a building or a large vehicle requires suitable tools and an Electrician roll. Critical failure means a shock: 3d burning. Much as when cutting the power (p. 25), Area Knowledge or Climb- ing may be needed to find hookups or shinny up power polls, respectively. MacGyver the MacGuffin: Some plots call for a broken device to be irreparable sans some replacement part. Getting the needed materials requires either a Scrounging roll at -5 in a place with lots of junk, or an Assistance Roll for facilities. Then roll against Machinist for a weapon or a vehicle, or the correct Electronics Repair specialty for electronics; time is as for repairs. The GM rolls secretly. Success assembles the part, failure wastes materials (roll again for those before a repeated attempt is possible), and critical failure creates a faulty part that will destroy the target machine if installed. With the part in hand, repairs proceed as usual; the GM will make a secret Per-based repair skill roll for the repairman to see if he notices a faulty part in time.

A final common setback in action stories is capture. This is usually the result of being knocked out in a chase or a fight, so it won’t come up very often – PCs can invoke Flesh Wounds (p. 38), Second Wind (p. 38), and Shake It Off (p. 38) to avoid it. Still, heroes might come along at gunpoint when these options aren’t enough, a hostage will die if they don’t, they’re tricked, or they need a cunning way to enter the Secret Base! ESCAPING RESTRAINTS The first thing heroes need to do to escape is break free of cuffs, ropes, etc. Behind the Back: Hands are usually tied or cuffed behind the back. This means you can’t use your arms and are at -1 to DX otherwise. You can use your fingertips back there, but you’re working blind: -10! Success at Acrobatics or Escape lets you slip your arms around to the front, unless you’re tied to a chair or similar; note that this is obvious. Once your hands are in front, you’re at only -1 with fine manual tasks and no penalty at all in general, but must always use both hands together. Bonds: Actually escaping from ropes is a Quick Contest of Escape vs. your captor’s Knot-Tying skill (often default: DX-4). Cuffs: Escaping from handcuffs requires an Escape roll at -5. Flex Cuffs: These require an Escape roll at only -1. Straitjacket: This prevents you from using arms or hands! You can only lumber around at -1 to DX. Escape is at -10. Exotic Restraints: Secret labs, asylums, and the like may have separate leather belts or metal clamps for each limb, even the head. These sorts of things are only limited by the bad guys’ imagination. Apply BAD to Escape. Now You Made Me Angry! You can try sheer strength to escape. Simply substitute ST for Escape. Success causes the restraint to fail. Succeed or fail, though, you take thrust-3 cut- ting damage – minimum 1 point – to both arms if your wrists were bound or cuffed, or thrust-1 fatigue damage if you were bodily tied or straitjacketed. Repeated Attempts: Failures allow repeated attempts, but at a cumulative -1. Critical failures mean you’re so tangled up that you can’t escape. Hope you have friends! ESCAPING PRISONS Escaping from a locked room – be it a meat locker or a prison cell – is a matter of defeating locks, doors, etc. Use the rules under Getting In (pp. 18-23), plus the following: Got a Light? Heroes love to trick guards into opening doors, looking the wrong way, etc. Many skills might work: Acting to fake a heart attack, Sex-Appeal to talk a guard into opening the door to “chat,” Stealth to hide so the guards think you’ve escaped, etc. Allies can make complementary rolls; e.g., Acting could complement a Fast-Talk roll about that “heart attack.” Roll a Quick Contest: skill vs. the guards’ effective Will of 10 + absolute value of BAD (this reflects their training). Vic- tory creates an opportunity to ambush the guards in hand-to- hand combat. No Tools: Defeating locks and hinges requires tools. Gizmos can reveal hidden tools. Scrounging, modified by BAD – or using Serendipity – can turn up an improvised tool that allows use of the relevant burglary skill at -5. Where’s the Keyhole? Lockpicking might work – but if you’re in a padlocked meat locker or a modern prison, there’s no lock accessible! If you find or improvise a tool, be sure it’s one that can attack bars or hinges (see Doors, pp. 20-21).

Every rule so far has been directed at GM and players alike. This is because while the GM keeps plot secrets and rolls dice secretly, the players should always know what their odds are. The ultimate outcome of an action story is pre- dictable, after all: The heroes will win, like in the movies. This is a key difference between action gaming and genres such as fantasy and horror, where challenges are often confusing, weird, and unknowable. Still, a few considerations matter more to GMs than to play- ers – mainly those related to campaign planning. Players are welcome to keep reading, but what follows has little to do with heroic skill use.

Action 1: Heroes mentions nine campaign types and rec- ommends a good mix of PCs for each. Just as important, though, are the tasks that the GM sets. Anything in Exploits could show up in any kind of game, but some challenges are especially appropriate. Brotherhood in Blue: A cinematic police squad is a well-oiled machine (Teamwork!, p. 5) with top-notch tactics (Squad SOP, pp. 8-10) and training (Providing Security, pp. 27-30). Adventures open with clue-seeking (Gathering Intelligence, pp. 11-14) and interrogation (Making Them Talk, pp. 16-17). This soon segues into Chases (pp. 31-35) and Combat (pp. 36-39), frequently initi- ated by an attempt to breach a criminal hideout (Doors, pp. 20- 21) to make an arrest (Live Capture, p. 24). An urban flavor is likely, typified by feats like those under Word on the Street (p. 15), Parkour (pp. 19-20), and Grand Theft Auto (p. 23). Caper: The crew must first locate “work” (The Job, p. 6) and learn everything about it (Targets and Locations, p. 7). Planning (p. 17) is mandatory, often in several stages involving Gathering Intelligence (pp. 11-14), Social Engineering (pp. 15-17), Lifts and Pulls (p. 23), and Deception (pp. 26-28). Then the focus moves to Getting In (pp. 18-23) and Safecracking (p. 22) – usually with digital mayhem (High-Tech Challenges, p. 13) running in paral- lel. A successful caper ends with Getting Away (p. 27); a close call, with Chases (pp. 31-35) and Combat (pp. 36-39); and a fiasco, in arrest (Captured!, p. 42). Commandos: Cinematic special operators always pull together, making extensive use of Complementary Skills (p. 5), Teamwork! (p. 5), Squad SOP (pp. 8-10), Planning (p. 17), and Watches (p. 28). Missions involve getting in (Insertion, p. 18), performing a task, and exfiltrating (Getting Away, p. 27). The classic goal is to demolish something (Blowing Stuff Up, pp. 24- 25). Shooting (Combat, pp. 36-39), evasion (Surveillance and Patrols, p. 18), nasty surprises (Setting Traps, p. 25), and mind games (Psy-Ops, p. 27) are de rigueur – as are avoiding traps (Traps, pp. 22-23), patching injuries (Medic!, pp. 40-41), and jury-rigging gear (Repairs, pp. 41-42). Mercs: Mercenaries operate much like commandos, but must dedicate time to finding work (The Job, p. 6) and acquir- ing military hardware (Assembling Kit, pp. 6-7). Those in action movies and TV series are less subtle than elite troops – their adventures consist of wall-to-wall Destruction (pp. 24-25), Chases (pp. 31-35), and Combat (pp. 36-39). Mercs rarely enjoy the sort of official backing that enables Assistance Rolls, so they must finagle outside assistance through smooth talking (Social Engineering, pp. 15-17) and outright ruses (Deception, pp. 26-28), and patch up injured personnel (Medic!, pp. 40-41) and damaged equipment (Repairs, pp. 41-42) themselves. Spy vs. Spy: Secret agents visit exotic hotspots (Travel, pp. 7- 8), deliver wit and charm (Social Engineering, pp. 15-17), and drive sporty cars (Chases, pp. 31-35). They also engage in actual espionage (Gathering Intelligence, pp. 11-14), often mixed with technological intrigue (High-Tech Challenges, p. 13) and risky infiltration (Getting In, pp. 18-23). Deception (pp. 26- 28) is common during and after operations, and ideally ends in a daring exit (Getting Away, p. 27). Failure means the heroes are detained until the enemy reveals his plan; then they escape (Captured!, p. 42). If the PCs are counterspies, see Providing Security (pp. 27-30). Task Force: The tasks important to each member of a multi- agency team will depend on individual capabilities. For instance, a black-ops team could include an FBI Special Agent, a Green Beret, and a CIA officer, and these heroes might tackle challenges typical of Brotherhood in Blue, Commandos, and Spy vs. Spy campaigns, respectively. Regular use of Comple- mentary Skills (p. 5), Teamwork! (p. 5), Squad SOP (pp. 8-10), and Planning (p. 17) can engage the entire group despite radi- cal differences in training. And of course everybody can partic- ipate in Chases (pp. 31-35) and Combat (pp. 36-39), so these should be common.

Troubleshooters: Private “men in black” are usually hired to conduct investigations (Gathering Intelligence, pp. 11-14) and provide protection (Providing Security, pp. 27-30). They might have a full-time employer or pick up a new contract at the start of each adventure (The Job, p. 6). The players decide just how far they’re willing to go for cash! Driving (Chases, pp. 31-35) and shooting (Combat, pp. 36-39) are routine occurrences dur- ing cinematic bodyguard duty – and some clients expect hirelings to do whatever it takes to steal back their property (Getting In, pp. 18-23) or cover up their criminal indiscretions (Deception, pp. 26-28). Vigilante Justice: This campaign only loosely follows the structure recommended by Exploits. Cinematic vigilantes tra- ditionally patrol the streets (Targets and Locations, p. 7) look- ing for trouble, and then skip directly to Chases (pp. 31-35), Combat (pp. 36-39), and acts of Destruction (pp. 24-25) when they find it. Word on the Street (p. 15), Parkour (pp. 19-20), and Grand Theft Auto (p. 23) all feature regularly in urban settings. “Intelligence gathering” rarely goes beyond snatching some dirtbag (Live Capture, p. 24) and convincing him to squeal (Making Them Talk, pp. 16-17), while “subtlety” only matters after the fact (Cleaning, p. 26). War Against Terror: Missions involve finding terrorists (Gathering Intelligence, pp. 11-14), neutralizing them (Combat, pp. 36-39), and protecting citizens (Providing Security, pp. 27- 30). Some terrorists have WMD (p. 29) – often horrible biolog- ical weapons (Outbreak!, p. 40). If these are in play, the heroes may dispense with niceties and capture enemies (Live Capture, p. 24), forcibly extract clues (Making Them Talk, pp. 16-17), and then bury the bodies (Cleaning, p. 26) and the operation (Cover-Ups, p. 26). To heighten the contrast between genuine bad guys and good-but-tough guys, movies often play up the latter’s need for Permission to Act (p. 17).

A few rules slow game play, render PCs less-than-heroic, or simply clash with “action realism.” The GM should use these only when they’re truly needed. This will make them suitably dramatic when they do come up!

10. Tactical Combat: Keep distances and positions abstract in combat. This makes it possible to fudge action scenes: heroes can reach cover when necessary, bad guys can escape when the plot requires it, etc. Save maps for situations like martial-arts duels between heroes and scary henchmen.

9. Regular Contests: Rolling over and over until somebody fails gets boring. Save this technique for climactic struggles where each Contest the hero rolls buys his associates time to rescue another hostage, plant another explosive charge, etc.

8. Fatigue: Extra effort costs FP, and poison or failure at some tasks can inflict fatigue damage, but docking FP for hiking, staying up late, and so on is needless bookkeeping. Ignore it except when the heroes’ endurance is what makes the scene dramatic.

7. Fright Checks: These should occur rarely, and only for nasty stuff like flayed corpses – never for the supernatural. Then make the penalties severe enough that only the cleaner with Unfazeable is likely to be functional, giving him the spotlight at a dramatic juncture.

6. Tech Level: Action assumes a mix of modern and slightly outdated hardware as seen in movies, and that the heroes’ skills are tailored to match. Only assess TL penalties when the MacGuffin is a cutting-edge gadget. Then give the heroes from -1 to -5 to operate it.

5. Improvement Through Study and Time Use Sheets: Filling out forms between adventures is boring. If the heroes must learn new tricks between adventures, just give the players some extra points to spend on pre-approved skills.

4. Control Rating and Legality: Action heroes don’t worry about licenses and per- mits for gear. Save CR and LC for times when the players show so little regard for life and the law that the campaign is drifting from heroic to horrific. Then use these rules to justify a crackdown by the PCs’ bosses or the authorities.

3. Cost of Living and Economics: The budget system in Action Heroes replaces these rules. Such details add nothing to an action game.

2. Crippling Injury: The heroes can maim foes, but don’t return the favor. Few things wreck an action campaign more surely than a blind shooter or a one-legged infiltrator.

1. Magic, Psionics, and Other Planes of Existence: Action gaming is set in the real world. There’s no place for the paranormal. If you must involve such things, warn your players ahead of time.

The GM should let the PCs try an Assistance Roll (AR) whenever they wish, if they can call home base. Since the AR isn’t especially high for a group of Rank 0-4 heroes, and as there are penalties for repeated attempts and inappropriate requests, overuse or abuse is difficult. Some notes:

Aerial Surveillance: Success here counts as a successful complementary skill roll for Targets and Locations, and as success at any kind of Visual Surveillance that would make sense from an aircraft.

Bailout: The PCs can try this anytime their deeds get them into legal trouble – notably when caught smuggling.

– and as a valid alternative to escape (Cap- tured!, p. 42) when being held by legitimate authorities. Cash: This can be requested as part of Assembling Kit (pp. 6-7). For the purposes of Bribery (p. 15) of an NPC who doesn’t demand actual cash, success can arrange string- pulling that counts as 10 times the usual amount the heroes could request (exactly as if acquiring cash for show). Cover-Up (p. 26): This is a single AR, even when it logically involves a combination of bailouts, disappearances, false ID, and technical means. Facilities: This AR can request supercomputers that give major benefits for Hacking (p. 13) and Code-Cracking (p. 13); machine shops good for +4 to Repurposing (p. 13) and Repairs (pp. 41-42); and even the resources needed to cure plagues (Outbreak!, p. 40). False ID: Success here bypasses the need for the tasks under Fake ID (p. 26). Files and Records Search: These forms of assistance can substitute for success at the tasks under Files and Records (p. 14) in situations where the PCs’ employer would have access to the files or records. Fire Support: The heroes can use this as an alternative to Destruction (pp. 24-25) against inanimate targets, after sneak- ing close enough to call in fire. Alternatively, they can blast one group of NPCs; assume that artillery is 100% lethal against mooks, simplifying the problem to any henchmen or boss present. Either use requires a Forward Observer roll to be effective. Forensics: This can call in the professionals and grant ben- efits identical to success at the Forensics skill rolls under Physical Searches (pp. 11-12). Insertion/Extraction: Success here can bypass a roll for Insertion (p. 18) or Getting Away (p. 27) by arranging for an NPC pilot to show up in a helicopter, VTOL aircraft, mini-sub, or similar costly vehicle. Medevac: Success here can acquire a cure for a PC who’s incapacitated by WMD (p. 29) or call in a medic who can per- form the tasks under Medic! (pp. 40-41) – if the victim can hang on for long enough! Replacement Gear: Heroes can request gear as part of Assembling Kit (pp. 6-7) at the start of an adventure. If the mis- sion requires it, “standard issue” might include explosives (Blowing Stuff Up, pp. 24-25), gee-whiz gadgetry like retina- print contact lenses (Locks, p. 20), polygraphs (Making Them Talk, pp. 16-17), etc. Technical Means: Success at this AR counts as success at just about anything under Gathering Intelligence (pp. 11-14), or can secure a patch between communications networks (Com- munications, pp. 8-9). Transportation: This sets up commercial travel for the PCs or for fragile or illicit gear. Roll twice for both. See Travel (pp. 7-8) for further details.

A hero with a Duty should be affected by it, but because most adventures happen “on duty,” this tends to get lost in the action. To keep things interesting, secretly roll for each PC at the adventure’s start. If the dice indicate the Duty comes up, take the player of that PC aside and give him an extra responsibility. This need not be negative! Plenty of good things still require an added degree of accountability.

Here are some examples:

• Carry, look after, and use costly special gear – or risky experimental gear (especially in a secret-agent campaign!).
• Go out of the way to secure an item or a clue related to a future adventure.
• Go out of the way to take out a subsidiary target via assassination, demolition, etc.
• Serve as a bodyguard for a fragile NPC expert, member of the boss’ family, etc.
• Stay close to another PC who previously used unauthorized gear, didn’t fulfill his Duty, or otherwise attracted the chief’s attention.

Failure at this task means being dealt out of the replacement budget at the start of the next adventure, -2 to Assistance Rolls on that adventure, or even losing a level of Rank!

The GM should bear in mind the basic rule of action-movie bad guys: They’re targets. The boss might be a clever recurring villain, but it’s unwise to lavish too much attention on mooks and henchmen. Below are suggestions for quickly assessing NPC stats.

When it comes to equipping NPCs, the GM should remember that guns kill people. A mook horde with skill 10 is liable to slaughter the PCs if given full-automatic weapons and concussion grenades, while an assassin henchman with skill 20 can only accomplish so much with a knife. Unless the heroes have heavy body armor, then, casual encounters should either involve primarily melee weapons and handguns, or use Cinematic Combat Rules such as Bulletproof Nudity, Cinematic Explosions, Flesh Wounds, Gun Control Law, Mook Marksmanship, and TV Action Violence.

Mooks don’t need complete character sheets. Most look like this:

ST 10; DX 10; IQ 10; HT 10.

Damage 1d-2/1d; BL 20 lbs.; HP 10; Will 10; Per 10; FP 10.

Basic Speed 5.00; Basic Move 5; Dodge 8; Parry 8.

SM 0; 5’3”-6’1”; 115-175 lbs.

Advantages/Disadvantages: No advantages unless the adventure calls for something like tough mooks with High Pain Threshold. Disadvantages typically consist of Duty plus some mental problems, like Bully.

Skills: One to three scenario-relevant skills at level 10-15 (roll 1d+9, if variety matters); e.g., Brawling-12, Driving (Automobile)-10, and Guns (Pistol)-14.

Unusual mooks can have out-of-the-ordinary scores – perhaps menacing thugs might roll 1d+10 for ST, while pencil-necked technicians have ST 9 but IQ 11-12. Details other than combat skill levels rarely matter; notably, HP and HT aren’t relevant when using the Cannon Fodder rule.

There are two types of henchmen:

Mook Leaders: Build patrol leaders and other senior mooks like their underlings, but with +1 or +2 to attributes and skills. For noncombat skills, follow the advice under BAD Guys and make minimum effective skill 10 + absolute value of BAD. If this raises skill, the difference comes from situational bonuses for knowing the territory, possessing good gear, and so on, and won’t apply if the henchman is taken prisoner, encountered at home, etc.

Named Henchmen: Build crack hit men, sub-bosses, and other major threats just like PCs, using Action Hero templates. In a hurry? Print out the template and take a Hi-Liter to the desired choices!

Heroes may also face “special” opponents that are more than mooks but not henchmen in the above sense. Trained dogs are classic, but unhinged bosses might favor other guard beasts (e.g., sharks), and high-tech thrillers occasionally verge on sci-fi, featuring security robots, mooks in prototype battlesuits, sharks with lasers, etc. See Other Enemies for more ideas.

Bosses are worth designing as individuals. They can range from 50-point wimps – no doubt with scary henchmen as bodyguards – to challenging opponents built on Action Hero templates with an extra 50-100 points!

Bad guys with Animal Handling (Dogs) can set the hounds on heroes. These stats describe a monstrous guard dog. Dogs sometimes improve effective NPC skill, too; see Surveillance and Patrols for ideas.

ST: 9 HP: 9 Speed: 6.00

DX: 12 Will: 10 Move: 10

IQ: 4 Per: 12 Weight: 90 lbs.

HT: 12 FP: 12 SM: 0

Dodge: 9 Parry: N/A DR: 0

Bite (14): 1d-2 cutting.

Traits: Chummy; Discriminatory Smell; Domestic Animal; Quadruped; Sharp Teeth.

Skills: Brawling-14; Tracking-13.

Notes: Tracking dogs have Tracking-15. Police dogs have Wrestling-14 (+2 to effective ST for grabbing gun hands).

Real armed robots are remotely controlled. Movie denizens are autonomous! This one resembles a tiny tank. It’s dumb, a lousy shot, and coldly persistent.

ST: 26 HP: 26 Speed: 5.00

DX: 8 Will: 6 Move: 10

IQ: 6 Per: 12 Weight: 300 lbs.

HT: 12 FP: N/A SM: 0

Dodge: 8 Parry: N/A DR: 8-25

Gun (8): Per firearm.

Traits: Accessories (Computer, plus Bullhorn, Siren, and/or Spotlight); AI; Automaton; Doesn’t Breathe; Electrical; Indomitable; Infravision; Machine; No Legs (Tracked); No Manipulators; No Sense of Smell/Taste; Parabolic Hearing 2; Telecommunication (Radio); Tele- scopic Vision 2; Weapon Mount; Unfazeable.

Skills: Guns-8.

Notes: Capabilities vary from DR 8 and a shotgun to DR 25 and a machine gun.

An Action campaign should focus on, well, action. But action heroes often tidy up loose ends before the credits roll – especially if there’s a sequel! Since campaigns tend to be episodic, with many sequels, the GM might want to lend some thought to this.

In general, after-action activity should be brief and to-the-point – in game terms, a few lines of banter and a skill roll. Some example rolls:

• Cartography to create a map of the area where the action took place.
• Law (Police) to ensure that evidence or an arrest is admissible – with a penalty of at least -1 per gross violation of rights, unnecessary death, or similar deed perpetrated by the PCs.
• Suitable Savoir-Faire skill (see Fitting In) to convince the boss all went well.
• Streetwise to sell stolen goods after a heist.
• Writing for a report (intelligence, military, or police).

The GM can have one teammate roll for everybody, or have each PC make his own roll – possibly against different skills. Effects are entirely up to the GM, but here are a few suggestions:

Critical Success – Next adventure, the crew gets double its usual replacement budget. Alternatively, if they belong to an organization with Rank and that allows Assistance Rolls, roll 1d: 1-5 means +2 to all AR next adventure; 6 means promotion (+1 Rank for free).

Success – No special effect.

Failure – Next adventure, the team gets half its usual replacement budget. Alternatively, if they belong to an organization with Rank and that allows AR, they get -2 to all AR next adventure.

Critical Failure – Next adventure, the squad gets no replacement budget. Alternatively, if they belong to an organization with Rank and that allows AR, roll 1d: 1-5 means no AR are allowed next adventure; 6 means demotion (-1 Rank), and Rank 0 personnel are dismissed, starting a freelance maverick campaign!

Movie heroes are generalists by necessity: Most are loners. The templates in Action Heroes assume a campaign with four or more PCs, however, and so portray specialists in order to guarantee everybody spotlight time. To make this work, each adventure must offer every hero chances to shine.

If the squad includes a specialist, the GM should include events that demand his unique skills. If the team lacks such a member, the GM can gloss over those moments rather than annoy the players with situations that the PCs can’t handle. No action movie would have an all-shooter squad foiled by a lock for want of an infiltrator – they’d shoot the lock or find a key nearby, or their over-confident foes simply wouldn’t lock the door!

Some suggestions:

Assassin: The assassin needs targets – preferably Bad People who deserve killing. To show off his knack for stalking, this prey should be too well-protected for demo men or shooters to hit. It’s fine to dim his spotlight in pitched battles, as long as this lets him strike from surprise. Because he’s stealthy and nimble, he’s the ideal backup infiltrator when he has no enemies to waste.

Cleaner: A cleaner has several specialty skills that let him alter evidence, so be sure to enforce the ramifications of failing to clean up. If leaving clues might be the crew’s undoing, the cleaner’s art will be in regular demand! His other gift is uncanny calm; at least once per adventure, give him the opportunity to defeat a polygraph, disregard horrors that stun teammates, etc.

Demolition Man: Cinematic demo men try to solve every problem via judicious use of explosives! Subtler allies may object, so other challenges are welcome – notably using technical skills to defeat bombs, locks, and traps, and to repair weapons and vehicles. Every adventure needs some fireworks, though, from a distracting squib to a blown bridge.

Face Man: When there’s significant PC-NPC interaction, the face man needs no help – he’ll dominate the spotlight. Action campaigns often have the opposite problem, though, so have a few NPCs talk rather than attack! Don’t relegate the face man to information gathering, either; he should get to talk his way past or distract bad guys in the field.

Hacker: Integrate the hacker into physical exploits by taking Hollywood’s lead: Put the world online and let the hacker be the group’s eyes and ears, deactivate security for the infiltrator, validate the cleaner’s false credentials on the fly, switch traffic lights for the wheel man, etc. Since he’s sitting alone in his sanctum, it’s traditional for him to need rescuing on occasion!

Infiltrator: Many obstacles demand the infiltrator’s skills; he’ll have lots to do. When stealth is lost, his agility lets him more than account for himself in a chase or a fight. The challenge is to balance his loner tendencies against being a team player. Make it clear that he needs his teammates: the wire rat to kill high-tech security, the shooter to cover his back, etc.

Investigator: The investigator can monopolize a game with a lot of intelligence gathering. A more common issue, though, is the GM dispensing free clues and making him redundant. Don’t! Also ensure that he can act in later phases of the adventure: spotting for the assassin, using his prodigious perception and intuition to pick courses of action, and so on.

Medic: A medic can feel like a fifth wheel until an ally has no FP or character points left for damage-mitigating cinematic rules, and croaks “Medic!” Then he’s God. So have the mission tap his other skills. He’s the only hero likely to be able to conduct an autopsy, deal with many varieties of WMD, sedate a prisoner, or administer truth serum.

Shooter: All action plots ultimately come down to gun-play. The challenge is to come up with ways to make the shooter matter the rest of the time. Fortunately, his skills and agility let him back up the assassin, infiltrator, and wheel man with aplomb, and crack marksmanship can deal with that camera the wire rat can’t get at.

Wheel Man: A wheel man is only as far from the spotlight as the next chase. Extended action sequences often unfold indoors, though, far from the nearest ride. Remember the wheel man’s knack for maps and directions in situations like this – and note that a trained mechanic, freight handler, or smuggler is valuable when the goal is sabotage or theft.

Wire Rat: The high-tech gizmos found in modern action stories shouldn’t “just work.” Give the wire rat opportunities to use and abuse electronics skillfully, and plenty of chances to repair or repurpose gear. The wire rat need not be a geek back at HQ, either – he might walk in front, sweeping the team’s path for digital dangers.

The end!