Cassius Carlin

They say that when you need to find something that doesn't want to be found, the first man with whom you should speak is Cassius Carlin. A portly man in his early 30s, Cassius dresses himself in nondescript, semi-formal attire. You'd never look twice at the man unless you knew to find him. And that is how Cassius prefers it to be.

A gambler by trade, Cassius Carlin supplements his income with petty cons and information brokering. His information is top notch, and if he doesn't know exactly what you need, theres a good bet he can tell you where to look next. In truth, he's a very likable when he wants to be, affable, gregarious, and generally pleasant – all good traits when you haunt the local gambling houses listening in on peoples conversations and watching the movers and shakers of the regional underworld. However, don't cross the man – his good nature turns deadly sour when he uncovers a liar, manipulator, or cheat. His reputation relies upon honest, solid deals in the back room and and straight skill at the card table. Don't mess with a man's livelihood.

He keeps a small derringer in the top of his hat and a larger pistol in his jacket. His large walking stick is weighted and reinforced, and Cassius doesn't hide that it is, in truth, more of a heavy cudgel. While not a fighter by trade, Cassius nonetheless knows how to handle himself and will not be pushed around. Most folks know to keep Cassius close... but not too close. He pretty well stays neutral in regional affairs, and more than one faction in a squabble has come seeking information from him. So long as the money is good, he'll stick around and sell to all sides. But if it gets too hot, well, Cassius Carlin knows how to find the local train depot and get the hell out of town.

Cassius Carlin (WC)

Race: Human
Gender: Male
Rank: Veteran (40 XP)

Attributes
Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit d8, Strength d6, Vigor d6

Skills
Fighting d6, Gambling d10, Guts d6, Intimidation d6, Notice d6, Persuasion d8, Riding d6, Shooting d6, Streetwise d8, Taunt d8

Derived Stats
Pace: 5+1d4
Charisma: 2
Parry: 5
Toughness: 6 (Base 5, Obese 1)

Edges
Luck, Charismatic, Connections

Hindrances
Obese (m), Wanted – Petty Cons (m), Vengeful (M)

Gear
Playing Cards, Marked Playing Cards, Dice, Loaded Dice, Derringer (2d6+1 AP1; 5/10/20; RoF 1), Pistol (2d6+1 AP1; 12/24/48; RoF 1), Cudgel/Walking Stick (STR+d4), Large Traveling Bag, Assorted Foodstuffs, about $1000 for gambling, bribes, and information payoffs.

An Aside...

Hey folks,

I just wanted to make a few comments here before posting some new characters. I've been enjoying mucking about with some character builds and back-story, and I am certainly feeling the itch to play a game. Even if it is just a big miniatures battle, I'd be a happy guy.

Anyway...

Now that a quintet of novice fantasy characters has been posted, I've decided to modernize a bit and post a couple of characters suitable for dropping into Western or Pulp games as NPCs. These characters will all be built normally (with appropriate XP listed), but will vary in rank. I am keeping them all to vanilla Savage Worlds, instead of using any setting material. In part, this is so I can keep the character generic enough it can be dropped into any appropriate campaign. The other reason is because the only setting book I have access to is Deadlands Reloaded, and I would eventually like to post a handful of characters specific to that setting -- characters that could exist only in the Wierd West.

I am planning, ultimately, to group characters by genre and setting type. Right now there are just the five fantasy characters posted:

So where am I going from here? After posting a few characters designed for Pulp, Western, or even Victorian settings, I am hoping to move forward into Modern Action, and then Science Fiction. After that? Perhaps some new monsters or character races. Maybe even a one-sheet to use some of the material in the blog. We'll see.

Hutchins the Archer

Hutchins had a childhood dream. He wanted to be a Hero.

Unfortunately, as Hutchins learned quickly enough, Heroes get hurt. They get cut. They bleed. They die. And as quickly as he'd begun training with a blade, he gave it up. No Sir, the Heroes life was not the right choice after all. Better to stand far... FAR... away from a fight and launch an arrow or three. If the fighting gets too close, well, thats what running away is for. Indeed, Hutchins found himself to be proficient at both shooting AND fleeing. Coupled with a nose for scenting out danger, Hutchins was far from heroic material. Hutchins is a natural born coward.

Now, please don't think that makes Hutchins a bad person. He's affable enough and his cowardice doesn't usually affect others too badly. See, Hutchins is a man with ideas. Thats right, ideas. He figures he can still manage to find a Hero's payoff without all the Hero's risk. Its just a matter of finding the angle, right? And the key to that angle seems to be hiding among more sturdy folk, letting the folk who want to fight – who get off on fighting – do what they do best. See, no problems there. Hutchins will just hang back, take a shot when the opportunity presents itself, and let the cash roll in. If things get hairy, well, he'll do what he does best and run his buns off.

Hutchins is an Archer for hire, and tends to take jobs where there are lots of wide open spaces. No dungeon delving for Hutchins, no Sir. Keep to the wide open spaces, thats his motto. More space to shoot. More space to run away. Space is good. Goooooood.

Hutchins the Archer (WC)

Race: Human
Gender: Male
Rank: Novice

Attributes
Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d6, Strength d6, Vigor d6

Skills
Climbing d6, Fighting d4, Healing d6, Notice d6, Shooting d8, Stealth d8, Streetwise d6

Derived Stats
Pace: 8+1d10
Charisma: 0
Parry: 4
Toughness: 5

Edges
Danger Sense, Fleet Footed

Hindrances
Greedy (m), Phobia – Enclosed Spaces (m), Yellow (M)

Gear
Bow (Damage 2d6; 12/24/48; RoF 1), Short Sword (STR+1d6), Quiver with 20 Arrows, 15 Coins

Galloran

Born the only son of village schoolteachers, Galloran was raised with a love of learning. Always bookish and kind of pudgy, he none the less showed a willingness to engage in hard work and daily chores. When the gift of magic manifested, Galloran's parents were ecstatic... until the reality of their situation set in. Too poor to get the boy formal training, they managed to acquire what books and information they could. Through second hand grimoires and the odd lesson gleaned from passers by, Galloran was largely self taught. He furthered his study by traveling where he could, using the resources of other libraries to answer question after question. Even as a young man, Galloran retained his short stature and quickly learned to defend himself against all but the most skilled of bullies. He toughened up immensely, and learned not to be pressured by others who would sway him.

But Galloran developed a bit of a chip on his shoulder. He saw plainly those other magic wielders born to privilege enough to afford more formal training. He noted how much easier their studies became within the constraints of a structured environment. Galloran seethed at their coddled lifestyle and little social cliques.

Perhaps it was just a bad day (though in truth part of Galloran wanted it to happen) when a cluster of these young wizards pushed past him arrogantly. Galloran demanded an apology, but recieved a snide, mocking comment instead. Galloran demanded a wizard's duel. Once the laughter subsided from his peers, the other wizard agreed haughtily.

He simply could have walked away, any offense subsiding in short time. Instead, Galloran forcibly escalated the matter. The dual was fought, and in truth both casters were fairly evenly matched in magical abilities. But Galloran had one advantage -- some measure of experience growing up in the real world. As flurries of eldritch energies were launched and deflected until both caster panted near exhaustion, Galloran did the unexpected. After deflecting a final bolt from his opponent, Galloran closed the distance and struck him hard across the head with walking stick. The young wizard dropped to the ground, unconscious and twitching, even as Galloran laughed and walked away. Magic doesn't solve everything.

In the weeks that have followed since defeating a schooled wizard, Galloran's ego has grown, and so has his own estimation of his abilities. Now Galloran is poised to travel to a new locale, one in which a powerful Magus once had a library of over a hundred volumes. But the journey will be long, and who knows what he will find along the way.

Galloran (WC)

Race: Human
Gender: Male
Rank: Novice

Attributes
Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit d6, Strength d4, Vigor d8

Skills
Fighting d6, Intimidate d4, Investigate d6, Knowledge(Magic) d8, Notice d6, Persuasion d6, Spellcasting d8

Derived Stats
Pace: 6+1d6
Charisma: 0
Parry: 5
Toughness: 6 (Base 6, Small -1, Armor +1)

Edges
Arcane Background (Magic), Wizard

Powers
Bolt, Deflection, Obscure

Hindrances
Small (M), Quirk - Needlessly attempts to prove his superiority over formally educated wizards (m), Enemy - Rival Wizard that Galloran defeated in a duel (m)

Gear
Leather Armor (Armor +1), Club (Brass Topped Walking Stick; STR+d4), Magical Supplies, Fine Clothing, 240 Coins

Notes
Galloran is a fairly direct wizard build with no real surprises. He's just a basic example of a usable wizard who is capable of surviving from Novice rank, despite his Small hindrance.

Gardiff the Lost

Gardiff always was a little dim – the last to understand the moral of a story, the last to learn to tie his shoes. He couldn't fix a cart or plow. He never did learn his letters or how to write his own name. But what Gardiff did learn, he learned well. A strong sense of right and wrong, for example, always has colored Gardiff’s perception of the world. A good thing, too, since even as Gardiff’s mind lagged behind his fellows, his body grew to dwarf theirs. Standing a hair under seven feet tall and well over 300 lbs, Gardiff is a physical monster among men.

Think what you wish of young Gardiff, he was not so stupid he couldn’t recognize what few talents and advantages he held. Easily enough he could have bullied the people around him. Instead, his strong moral compass led him in the other direction. Gardiff became a protector, helping those persons weaker than he against those would prey upon them. In a way, he forged a symbiotic relationship with his peers; where he kept them from harm, they looked out for him when faced with persons who would dupe or manipulate him.

Gardiff and his friends grew to adulthood, in time joining their home town militia. Trained to fight with blade and fist, it appeared that Gardiff had found his place in the world. He threw himself into his studies with impassioned fervor, diligently absorbing each lesson his swordmasters presented. But near the end of his training, Gardiff’s world collapsed. Alongside his friends, Gardiff had been camped in the hills just outside of town. They never saw their attackers as arrows tore through the thin tent-cloth and sank deeply into unsuspecting flesh. Gardiff awoke two days later in cabin of the town’s healer, his wounds bound in thin gauze. He was the sole survivor.

Gardiff lost his place in the world, namely a place alongside his friends. Now, Gardiff has found no other choice but to leave his homeland and all of its tumultuous memories. He is disheartened, a little broken inside, but he knows he must find a new way in the world.

Gardiff the Lost (WC)

Race: Human
Gender: Male
Rank: Novice

Attributes
Agility d6 Smarts d4 Spirit d4 Strength d10 Vigor d10

Skills
Fighting d8, Intimidate d6, Notice d4, Persuasion d4, Riding d6, Swimming d6, Throwing d6

Derived Stats
Pace 6+1d6
Charisma 0
Parry 5 (Base 6, Great Sword -1)
Toughness 9 (Base 7, Toughness 1, Armor 1)

Edges
Brawny

Hindrances
All-Thumbs(m), Illiterate(m), Heroic (M)

Gear
Two Handed Sword (STR+1d10, Parry -1, 2H), Leather Armor (Armor+1), Backpack

Notes
A picture is forthcoming.

Arlin Greyrunes

For as long as he can remember, Arlin has been marked by two, gray runes on his inner forearms. His parents, when they were alive, told him only that the runes appeared there one day when he was barely a toddler. Arlin suspected they were hiding something from him, and from time to time would inquire anew. But the answer was always the same.

He and his parents, fur trappers both, moved around a lot, never living in a large community and never remaining for more than a year or two. As Arlin's thirteenth birthday approached, he noticed his mother's increasing nervousness. She would break down in tears when she suspected Arlin did not notice her watching him.

They had been living on the shores of a large, forested lake for just about a year. When the stranger came, Arlin was down by the lakeside gathering fresh water as he did many mornings. A full head taller than Arlin's father, yet seeming impossibly slight, the man was swathed in a heavy gray cloak. Menace rolled off the strange figure as he pushed open the front door and stepped inside.

First came the choked scream of Arlin's mother – a shrill cry that stopped too abruptly. Next was the heavy crash of Arlin's father smashing backward through the door and landing sprawled upon the ground. The Stranger strode through the splintered doorway, knelt down over Arlin's father, and plunged his finger tips into the man's eyes.

The Stranger followed Arlin through the forest for over an hour. Arlin hid as best he could, but the Stranger seemed somehow to know all the boy's secret hideaways; it was like he knew what Arlin's own father had known. When the chase came to an end, the Stranger found him hidden in the high branches of a tree. Arms of liquid darkness stretched up and encircled him, dragged him down from his vantage, and held him at eye level with the gray cloaked figure. He had no face, just a black gauze mask wrapped loosely around his head.

Arlin remembers very little of what happened next, the frenetic blur of action as he struggled fruitlessly to fight the slayer of his parents. Most of it was lost to the pain as his forearms burned as though seared by acid. The Stranger recoiled even as tendrils of darkness lashed out from beneath his cloak and wrapped around Arlin's neck. Dragged down to the lake, Arlin was held beneath the chill waters until oblivion swallowed him whole.

He awoke on the far lake shore, wet and battered, but alive. In the ten years since, Arlin has taken the name Grayrunes, though he keeps the runes themselves covered up. No longer a helpless little boy, he's learned how to handle himself in a fight. He's picked up a little bit here and there about who the Stranger was, but has found precious little about the Grey Runes or why he is still even alive.

Arlin Grayrunes (WC)

Race: Human
Gender: Male
Rank: Novice (5 XP)

Attributes
Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d6, Strength d6, Vigor d8

Skills
Climbing d6, Fighting d8, Investigation d4, Knowledge (Dark Cults) d4, Notice d6, Stealth d6, Survival d6, Tracking d6

Derived Stats
Pace: 6+1d6
Parry: 6
Charisma: 0
Toughness: 7 (Base 6, Armor 1)

Edges
Two Fisted, Nerves of Steel

Hindrances
Enemy – Those who are hunting the Gray Runes (m), Vengeful (m), Vow – Uncover the Secret of the Gray Runes he bears (M)

Gear
Axe (STR+d6), Swort Sword (STR+d6), Dagger (STR+d4), Leather Armor (Armor +1), 25 Coins

Notes
Character has 5 XP to represent some of the time spent in training

Paradys Rathburn

Acerbic and possessed of a mouth even fouler than her temper, Paradys Rathburn is a young investigator for hire. Her natural curiosity made this an obvious career path, though she retains few repeat clients. If not for her poor social skills and predisposition to seeing the law as flexible, even malleable, she might have made an excellent constable. Instead, she walks a fine line between citizen and criminal, with neither side being particularly quick to claim her as their own.

Of average appearance and build, she blends well into the city crowds. She dresses plainly, for function over style, and does little to draw undue attention to herself. However, when backed into a corner, Paradys Rathburn has demonstrated time and again that she is a competent combatant with both her rapier and her tongue.

Paradys Rathburn (WC)

Race: Human
Gender: Female
Rank: Novice

Attributes:
Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit d6, Strength d6, Vigor d6

Skills:
Fighting d6, Investigation d8, Knowledge (Law) d4, Lockpicking d6, Notice d8, Stealth d6, Streetwise d6, Taunt d6

Derived Stats:
Pace: 6+1d6
Parry: 5 (6 w/ Rapier)
Charisma: -2
Toughness: 6 (Base 5; Armor 1)

Edges:
Alertness

Hindrances:
Mean (m), Quirk – Foul Mouthed (m), Curious (M)

Gear:
Leather Coat (Armor +1), Rapier (STR+1d4; +1 Parry), Lockpicks, 100 Coins

Notes:
Paradys Rathburn is a both an attempt to build a hard boiled detective at the start of her career, and an attempt to do so for a fantasy setting. Relatively inexperienced, she is clever and canny, holding the promise of greater things to come. At this stage, she is her own worst enemy, quick to offend and even quicker to place herself in situations way over her head.

She is a character well suited for an urban setting, probably a port city. Her foul mouth and mean spirit could mean she grew up as a wharf rat – one of the many poor youth that clamor among the docks, forming gangs or shipping to sea at too early an age. Her parents likely were sailors, gone for long periods of time which left young Paradys an orphan of circumstance if not by fact. The only thing her parents ever gave her was her colorful vocabulary and the harsh lesson that she can only rely on herself in this world. As Paradys became a young woman, she grew callous and disconnected from others, the differences from her peers growing more and more pronounced. And yet, she watched them, studied them, and learned their patterns, habits, where they go, and how to hurt them.

Of course, this is all speculation. Paradys Rathburn certainly is not telling anyone what really happened.

And So It Begins...

Although I took my time in doing so, I have acquired the Savage Worlds Explorer's Edition from an online vendor. I had hoped to start this blog over a year ago, but between my own procrastination and learning that a new edition of the Savage Worlds rules was being published, waiting seemed the best option. But now the wait is over, and I introduce to you:
A Bunch of Savages.

What is This?

A Bunch of Savages is a blog as well as a resource, focusing on material for the current rules edition of the Savage Worlds RPG. While the bulk of the material for this site will be in the form of Characters, new game material may appear intermittently. Additional game material is likely to be in the form of Edges and Hindrances, however this site may also include new rules, house rules, magic rules, adventures, one-sheets, and even the odd, rambling musing on the part of this blog's author.

Who am I?

I have been Game Mastering Savage Worlds off and on for a couple years now, though I've been around the RPG world for a quarter century. In truth, I enjoy Savage Worlds as a rules light option for those games in which my favored system (The Hero System) can be too cumbersome. In no way does this mean I feel Savage Worlds takes a back seat, just that I am very much of the opinion that no single system is the perfect fit for all games. Savage Worlds, in my estimation, works incredibly well for games of high-adventure and over the top action -- indeed, one of my players likens it to a near flawless representation of 1980s action films.

Where is the Stuff?

Material will be appearing on this site as time permits. There is no way I am going to delude myself into thinking I can keep a regular schedule of input to the blog. However, I'm hoping to have something to post at least once per week...