GURPS GENRE GUIDE Most genres have several sub-genres. Assume that all recommendations and suggestions from the main genre also apply to its sub-genres. These recommendations assume you are using the GURPS 4th Edition Rules and only suggest 3rd Edition books for background material, genre advice, and inspiration. Pyramid articles list the volume and issue divided by a slash e.g. (3/5) indicates volume 3, issue 5. Pyramid Volume 2 isn’t divided into issues and is simply indicated with a ‘2’. BoP1 and BoP2 are Best of Pyramid Volume 1 and 2, respectively. The material presented here is my original creation, intended for use with the GURPS system from Steve Jackson Games. This material is not official and is not endorsed by Steve Jackson Games. GURPS is a registered trademark of Steve Jackson Games, and the art here is copyrighted by Steve Jackson Games. All rights are reserved by SJ Games. This material is used here in accordance with the SJ Games online policy. ILLUSTRATOR CREDITS Page 1: Brandon Moore Page 4 Page 7 Page 2 Page 5 Page 8 Page 3 Page 5 Page 9 ACTION Fast-paced excitement, with plenty of chases and probably some explosions. Inspirational fiction: Dirty Harry, James Bond, and Jason Bourne films. Required books: Basic Set. Recommended books: Action 1-2, High-Tech. Suggested books: Action 3-6, Martial Arts, Power-Ups 5. Recommended Pyramid articles: Alternate Guns Specialties and Techniques (3/65), Colorless Green Ideas Sleep Furiously (3/44), Survivable Guns (3/44). Suggested Pyramid articles: Chase Cards (3/23), Hot Rides! (3/40), I’ve Got a Great Idea (3/53), Monster Hunter Firepower at the Movies (3/31), Opus Longa, Pugna Brevis (3/120), The Football (3/112). Recommended optional rules: Chases (Action 2), Falls (Action 2), Simplified Range (Action 2). Beefcake Blockbuster 1980s action movie style, featuring heavily muscled cops and ex-military men. Inspirational fiction: Commando, Die Hard, Lethal Weapon, Rambo. Recommended books: Gun-Fu. Suggested books: Action 7, Power-Ups 7. Suggested Pyramid articles: Horde Ninja (3/70), The Compleat Jumpsuit (3/67), The Thrill of the Chase (3/112). Recommended optional rules: Cannon Fodder (Basic Set), Cinematic Explosions (Basic Set), Cinematic Knockback (Basic Set), Cross-Trained (Gun-Fu), Dumb Mooks (Action 2), Flesh Wounds (Basic Set), Flimsy Cover (Gun-Fu), Infinite Ammunition (Basic Set). Suggested optional rules: Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy (Martial Arts). Choppy Socky Focused on unarmed combat, either tournaments or street-fighting criminals. Inspirational fiction: Enter the Dragon, Kung-Fu Hustle, The Karate Kid. Suggested books: Martial Arts: Technical Grappling. Suggested Pyramid articles: A New Take on Grappling (3/34), Coming to Grips With Realism (3/61), Delayed Gratification (3/52), Horde Ninja (3/70), Takedown Sequences (3/61). Recommended optional rules: Melee Etiquette (Basic Set), TV Action Violence (Basic Set). Suggested optional rules: Cannon Fodder (Basic Set), Unarmed Etiquette (Martial Arts). Cl!ffha"#ers Two-fisted action in the early 20th century. Inspirational fiction: Doc Savage, Indiana Jones. Recommended books: Cliffhangers (3rd Edition), High-Tech: Pulp Guns 1-2. Suggested books: Power-Ups 7. Recommended optional rules: Cannon Fodder (Basic Set), Flesh Wounds (Basic Set), Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy (Martial Arts), TV Action Violence (Basic Set). D!saster! A natural or man-made hazard provides the main threat. Suggested books: Disasters: Hurricane, Disasters: Meltdown and Fallout, Underground Adventures, Y2K (3rd Edition). Recommended Pyramid articles: GURPS Fathom Five (3/26). Suggested Pyramid articles: Things Fall Apart (3/40). %eist Daring criminals try to get away with their loot. Inspirational fiction: Heat, Public Enemies. Suggested books: Social Engineering, Social Engineering: Keeping in Contact. Suggested Pyramid articles: Dealing with the Law (3/53), Fortunately, I Saw This Coming (4/53), Safes and How to Open Them (3/47), The Civil Arts in GURPS (3/54), The Thrill of the Chase (3/112). %ero!c Bloodshed Modern gangsters and hit-men settle things with stylized gunplay. Inspirational fiction: Hard Boiled, John Wick, Leon: the Professional, Shoot ʼEm Up. Recommended books: Gun-Fu. Suggested Pyramid articles: The Thrill of the Chase (3/112). Recommended optional rules: Bullet Time (Martial Arts), Cannon Fodder (Basic Set), Cinematic Knockback (Basic Set), Cross-Trained (Gun-Fu), Dumb Mooks (Action 2), Flimsy Cover (Gun- Fu), Infinite Ammunition (Basic Set), Pants-Positive Safety (Gun-Fu), The Contest of Wills (Martial Arts). Tactical Operatio"s Elite soldiers, law enforcement, and intelligence agents battle gangsters, guerrillas, and terrorists with realistic tactics and dangers. Inspirational fiction: American Sniper, Black Hawk Down. Recommended books: Tactical Shooting. Suggested books: Cops (3rd Edition), Covert Ops (3rd Edition), SEALs in Vietnam, Special Ops (3rd Edition), SWAT (3rd Edition). Suggested Pyramid articles: Black Gemini (3/112), Dodge This (3/57), Hell on Wheels (3/53), Marine Protector and Dolphin (3/93), On Target (3/77), Realistic Injury, Expanded (3/100), Tigerphobia (3/67). Suggested optional rules: Bleeding (Basic Set), Realistic Injury (Martial Arts). DETECTI'E DRAMA Investigation of crimes, by professional or amateur sleuths, often in historical settings. Inspirational fiction: Phillip Marlowe, Poirot, Miss. Marple, Sherlock Holmes. Required books: Basic Set or Lite. Recommended books: High-Tech, Mysteries. Suggested books: Cliffhangers (3rd Edition), Cops (3rd Edition), Social Engineering, Social Engineering: Keeping in Contact. Recommended Pyramid articles: Colorless Green Ideas Sleep Furiously (3/44). Suggested Pyramid articles: Adventurous Occupations: Journalist (2), Human, Flawed (3/42), Penguin Dreams (3/59). )ANTASY Magical adventures in other worlds. Inspirational fiction: Lord of the Rings, Lyonesse. Required books: Basic Set. Recommended books: Fantasy, Low-Tech, Magic, Thaumatology. Suggested books: Dragons, Low-Tech Companion 2, Martial Arts, Powers, Religion (3rd Edition), Spirits (3rd Edition), Vehicles: Transports of Fantasy. Recommended Pyramid articles: Art of Prophecy (3/38), Blessed Be (3/78), Cursed Thou Art (3/78), Languages, Culture, and the Common Tongue (3/16), Spirits in Everyday Life (3/41), The Material Difference (3/66). Suggested Pyramid articles: A Killing Breath (3/33), Al-Phasmaq, the City of Ships (3/116), Ars Metallica (3/68), Codex Duello (3/91), Eight Artifacts (3/82), Festivals of the Unknown (3/58), Glass Magic and the Speculari (3/114), Instruments of Enchantment (3/82), It’s Pure Chemistry! (3/28), Low-Tech Armor Design (3/52), Magnum Opus (3/109), Names Have Power (3/114), Signs and Portents (2), Ten Tweaks to Customize Combat (3/34), The Big Box Magic Store (2), The Teramancers (3/109), The Thaumaturgy of Metallurgy (3/91), The Village Green (3/95). Dark )a"tasy Gloomy stories which combine fantasy and horror elements. Inspirational fiction: The Black Company, Zothique. Recommended books: Horror. Suggested books: Banestorm: Abydos, Locations: Hellsgate, Magic: Death Spells, Myth (3rd Edition), Undead (3rd Edition), Zombies, Zombies: Day One. Suggested Pyramid articles: Altus Brat (3/81), Bell, Book, and Candle (3/81), Cruel and Unusual (3/9), Dark Alchemy (3/91), How Very Tempting (3/67), Indian Ghouls (3/92), May the Shadows Guide You (3/47), Necromantic Tools (3/1), Safe as Houses (3/58), The Bottomless Pit (1/7, BoP2), The Children of the Coming Darkness (3/41), The Gryndel Menace (3/80), The Sin Eaters (3/19), The Tome of the Black Island (3/91). Recommended optional rules: Power Corrupts (Horror). DUNGEON )ANTASY This pastiche of Dungeons and Dragons comes in two varieties. Players new to GURPS are recommended to start with the Dungeon Fantasy Roleplaying Game, which includes only the rules needed. If you want to expand from there, material from the main GURPS Dungeon Fantasy line is easily integrated into existing campaigns. DUNGEON )ANTASY ROLEPLAYING GAME Required books: Adventurers, Exploits, Monsters, Spells. Recommended books: Magic Items, Monsters 2, Traps. Suggested books: Companion 2, Magic Items 2, Dungeon: Against the Rat-Men. Recommended Pyramid articles: Quick Equipment Kits (3/106). Suggested Pyramid articles: Deathtraps (3/106), Five Easy Pieces (3/113), Grave of the Pirate Queen (3/98), Heroic Background Generator (3/104), Istvan’s Hole (3/118), It’s an Encounter! (3/118), It’s a Quest! (3/104), Monster Modding (3/108), More Mythic & Magical Monsters (3/108), The Hand of the Demon (3/108), The Mage Hunter (3/109), The Monstrous Monstorum (3/98), The Shield-Bearer (3/118), The Undead Hunter (3/122), The Wrestler (3/111), Undead, Undead Everywhere (3/106), You All Meet at an Inn (3/98). GURPS DUNGEON )ANTASY Required books: Basic Set, Dungeon Fantasy 1-2, Magic. Recommended books: Dungeon Fantasy 3, 5, 7, 8, & 15-18, Dungeon Fantasy Monsters 1-4, Low-Tech. Suggested books: Dungeon Fantasy 4, 6, 9-14, & 19-21, Dungeon Fantasy Adventures 1-3, Dungeon Fantasy Denizens: Barbarians, Dungeon Fantasy Denizens: Swashbucklers, Dungeon Fantasy Encounters 1-3, Dungeon Fantasy Treasures 1-4, Magical Styles: Dungeon Magic, Pyramid Dungeon Collection, Thaumatology, Thaumatology: Magical Styles. Recommended Pyramid articles: Wizardry, Refined (3/60). Suggested Pyramid articles: All Wet (3/113), Auras of Power (3/19), Chevaliers and Commanders (3/122), Clerics of Order and Chaos (3/77), Cultists of the Elder Gods (3/43), Dark