Blaze of Glory |
What I have a problem with are wuss Amberites -- the proper flavor of an Amber game, in my opinion, requires that the characters think large, act heroically, and go balls-out for what they want. -- Sarah Bear |
Bleys's Elite Guard are his personal elite fighting force. Twenty or so trusted men and women, they are capable fighters, able to take care of themselves in any situation, examples to the rest of his troops. They are used for missions both covert and over, leading the troops into battle, and standing by his side in the thick of the fighting. They take on every challenge with skill, wit, bravery, and style.
The characters are extraordinary shadow dwellers from one of Bleys's personal shadows. They are limited to that single shadow, but it's a strange and fun place.
Character Creation
The rules are just a minor tweak on the Amber rules. The characters are
built on 200 points, split into seven stats: Warfare, Strength,
Endurance, Seamanship, Aviation, Disguise, and Tech Skill. There are no
powers, metaphyiscal or magical. There was one 20-point skill:
technology expert -- The guy who can keep the planes flying and the
cannons firing, as well as hack together cutting edge devices using a
minimum of time and tools -- but it got changed into the Tech Skill
state. If you can come up with another skill that seems to fit in the
environment, I'm willing to deal.
| Stat | Warfare | Strength | Endurance | Seamanship | Aviation | Disguise | Tech |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Max | 170 | 65 | 73 | 60 | 104 | 90 | 53 |
| Mean | 94.9 | 25.9 | 38.5 | 15.3 | 16.3 | 17.5 | 18 |
| Median | 98.5 | 25 | 39 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
For the skill stats (the last four), the points roughly correspond to the following scale. Five points is basic competency in the skill -- being able to control a plane in normal midair conditions (aviation), or being able to change your oil (tech skill). Ten points is solid compentency -- being able to takeoff and land (aviation), or portray a convincing fake persona (disguise). Twenty points is superior -- able to reliably navigate around the world in all sorts of weather conditions (seamanship), or make innovative new inventions (tech skill). Thirty points is world class. Above that -- who knows?
One optional but fun thing is the creation of an arch-enemy. That one foe who has dogged your tracks for years, and has it personally in for you. I attempt to work these NPCs into the game.
Many thanks to Chris Kindred for providing a lot of inspiration for this, not to mention listening to my ideas and providing many better suggestions.