Wandering Fighter

THE WANDERING FIGHTER A RULES AND SETTING SUPPLEMENT FOR THE GENESYS ROLEPLAYING GAME SYSTEM Keith Ryan Kappel CREDITS WRITING LAYOUT AND DESIGN Keith RyanKappel Ryan Brooks PLAYTESTERS INTERIOR ART The Dice Pool Images used under fair use Kaitlin “GM Kaitlin” Davies Martin “GM Flanno” Flanagan Ian “GM Hooly” Houlihan Michael “GM Huzz” Hurrell and Phil “GM Phil” Maeiwski Chris “Zertz” Hunt Chase “Gigerstreak” LeMaster Ryan “Anstrona” Brooks Like what you see here? Please support the author and get bonus content at the link below: www.patreon.com/krkappel The Wandering Fighter. Published by Keith Kappel, December, 2017. All material contained within this publication not already under ownership of separate parties is intellectual property of Keith Kappel (henceforth referred to as the “author”). GeneSys™ is the property of Fantasy Flight Games®. All rights reserved. This produced publication is in no way affiliated with Fantasy Flight Games®. Names, characters, places, and incidents portrayed in this publication either are the product of the authors’ imaginations or are used ficticiously. WANDERING FIGHTER SUPPLEMENT “I’ll beat him so bad, he’ll need a shoehorn to put his hat on.” –Muhammed Ali The standard combat rules in the Genesys Core Chapter 1: Wandering Fighter Rulebook cover combat in general in great depth, but some campaigns, settings, or character concepts might Setting have an intense focus on barehanded combatants. Game The Wandering Fighter Setting combines a number Masters running such games might desire additional of unarmed combat settings from movies and video guidance, talents, and rules to provide more strategic games. It is built for telling stories about the lone hero options for fighting without weapons. The following (and of course a few friends!), wandering the earth, in text provides guidance on running unarmed combat search of something. They might be seeking justice, campaigns with the Genesys Core Rulebook. The enlightenment, or a true challenge to their skills. Some tropes and mechanics of this setting make it best suited fighters might fly across the world to participate in to small parties of three or fewer PCs. big-money fights with thousands of fans, while others Settings that might benefit from this supplement might appear to be little more than drifters, walking include those evoking side-scrolling “brawler” or from dojo to dojo with little more than the clothes on tournament “fighter” games made famous from 80’s their back and their martial skills. and 90’s arcade games. It can also handle combat The Wandering Fighter Setting can take place sports settings, such as a campaign built around in any number of historical periods, the modern day, boxing, mixed martial arts, or grappling tournaments. or even a highly fictional cosmic future or inter- The colorful characters and over-the-top storylines dimensional nexus. The key element these specific of entertainment wrestling can also benefit from this sub-settings have in common is a focus on unarmed supplement. Likewise, these rules can also help with combat as the primary means of resolving problems settings that draw inspiration from martial arts films, and executing character arcs. The other factor is that birthed in the 70’s Hong Kong action movie scene. most of these fights, particularly climatic character- This supplement is divided into five chapters as arc resolving ones, happen one-on-one. The rest is follows: entirely variable. • Chapter One: The Wandering Fighter setting overview for Genesys Tropes • Chapter Two: New character options, including The Wandering Fighter setting covers a lot of ground careers, skills, and talents within video games, movies, sports, and entertainment • Chapter Three: New combat actions and maneuvers wrestling, each replete with their own themes and • Chapter Four: Setting-Specific gear tropes. The setting also covers a wide range of time. Campaigns using the Wandering Fighter Setting • Chapter Five: Optional New Rules might take place in real modern or historic settings, or entirely fictionalized or futuristic ones. What makes a campaign belong to the Wandering Fighter Setting is a near-exclusive focus on unarmed combat as a character concept for both PCs and NPCs. While some characters, particularly minions, might use weaponry from time to time, the superior skill of the unarmed hero is what ultimately proves strongest. The Wandering Fighter — 3 SAMPLE TRAINING SCENE ENCOUNTER The training scene encounter is designed to provide an opportunity to introduce and advance subplots in scenes via dramatic moments. These sorts of encounters are best for the beginning of a session, and might involve only one or two PCs and NPCs. Training scenes provide a very small amount of XP (2 to 5 XP based on performance), and typically involve only a few checks. Our hero is training with Joe, an older family friend that trained the hero’s mother (who is missing) during her days as a professional fighter. Joe wants to teach the hero to properly jab, and has tied the hero’s dominant arm behind their back. While watching the hero spar, Joe comments how much they remind him of their mother, technique wise. • Have the hero make a Hard ( ) Coordination check to follow Joe’s guidance and learn the proper technique. This is often done slow, so the hero’s muscles can learn the movement with good form before slowly speeding things up. After the check, Joe can comment on the form appropriately, comparing it to the mother’s, and then introduce a bit of important information related to the missing mother. • Convinced the hero is comfortable with the new movements, Joe puts pads over his hands and directs the hero to begin throwing the jab. Make a Hard ( ) Striking check to hit the pad several times with good form. Joe can comment on the performance appropriately, and then once again reveal more subplot critical information about the mother, perhaps background about a shady business partner during her fighting career days that our hero was unaware of. The hero might have questions at this time, resist answering them until the next check. Joe has begun to breathe hard and has grown more red-faced than usual. • The hero might grow frustrated with the awkward motion and new revelations about their mother. Have the hero make a Hard ( ) Discipline check to maintain their composure. They want answers about this mysterious business partner they’ve never heard of before. Joe seems prepared to answer, but suddenly a confused look crosses his face, and he drops to the ground. The PC is bound and unable to assist. If the check failed, the PC might have accidentally lost their temper, working Joe when he tried to sit down. Either way, Joe suffers a heart attack, and while he will likely survive, he is unable to answer any questions. This can set the hero on a path of trying to learn about this shady business partner, perhaps discovering a tournament they are holding on a remote island. The hero’s regular trainer, family friend, and last connection to their missing mother is now in the hospital, raising the stakes. Training related talents, training can also be used to advance The Wandering Fighter gets their skill through Spirituality. training. This might entail sanding an old man’s patio, A brief scene that entails a few checks at the demolishing a car with kicks, punching sides of beef start of a session is a great way to represent training, until ribs crack, or entering a contraption that forcibly as either a brief scene or a time-lapse montage. stretches a character into the splits. Of course, more Scenes are great for pulling in NPCs and introducing often, training could also entail working with a coach or continuing subplots in the campaign. Montages are in a gym. The training montage is common before a better for showing a fighter’s skills improving over big fight, or after a lost fight, but before a rematch. time, and good at conveying the advancement of a GMs should work with players on their longer-term subplot. character concepts, and see which talents or skill GMs should get creative with the design of ranks the players wish their PCs to purchase next. training encounters, connecting the skill checks to any This enables GMs to design training encounters new skill ranks or talents purchased with XP since the around the next major planned XP purchase. Stories previous session. Training encounters are also a great in the Wandering Fighter Setting often involve time to involve a supporting cast of NPCs. These learning a crucial new ability prior to participating characters can add a subplot to a campaign, or used to in a climactic battle. Beyond combat skill ranks and enhance the drama of the next fight. 4 — The Wandering Fighter SAMPLE TRAINING MONTAGE ENCOUNTER The training montage shows a longer passage of time than the near-real time scenes, from a few weeks to a few months. The primary purpose is to show the PC’s improved skills. Training montages typically provide more XP than scenes (10-20 XP based on performance), but are less common, often only once per adventure (which might be several sessions) as opposed to scenes, which might occur up to twice per session. A single montage might involve multiple PCs on different, but colliding or complimentary paths as they prepare for the fights ahead. Should this be the case, GMs should do a single check and moment of scene for each in turn, so all the early, middle and late montage moments feel like they are happening in chronological order. Training montages can also help develop a subplot. Continuing the example above, our hero’s trainer, Joe, has just suffered a heart attack.

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