By Jerrod “Savage Daddy” Gunning http://www.sincitysavages.org This game references the Savage Worlds game system, available from Pinnacle Entertainment Group Group at www.peginc.com. Savage Worlds and all associated logos and trademarks are copyrights of Pinnacle Pi nnacle Entertainment Group. Used with permission. Pinnacle Entertainment group makes no representation or warranty as to the quality, viability, or suitability for purpose of this product. Version 1.0
TABLE OF CONTENTS Characters Chara cters ...................................................................................................................... 3 Heist Archetypes Archet ypes ........................................................................................................... 5
The Face ...................................................................................................................... 5 The Hacker ................................................................ .................................................. 5 The Mastermind Mastermi nd ........................................................................................................... 5 The Muscle .................................................................................................................. 5 The Thief ...................................................................................................................... 6 The Wheelman W heelman ................................................................ ............................................ 6 Edges ................................................................ .............................................................. 6
According to Plan............ .................. ............ ............ ............ ............. ............. ............ ............ ............ ............ ............ ............ ............ ............ ............ ........ .. 7 Cool Under Pressure ................................................................................................... 7 Digitial Digiti al Pimp ................................................................................................................. 7 Fast and Furious .......................................................................................................... 7 Get Some! .................................................................................................................... 8 My $h%t Al ways Works… Sometimes! ....................................................................... 8 Total Bad Assery As sery ......................................................................................................... 8 Improved Bad Assery A ssery .................................................................................................. 8 Threat Assessment Assessm ent ...................................................................................................... 8 Would I lie to You?....................................................................................................... 8 Hindrances Hindra nces ..................................................................................................................... 9
Achilles’ Heel (Major) ................................................................................................... 9 Glass Jaw (Major) ........................................................................................................ 9 Hot Head (Minor) ......................................................................................................... 9 Smart Ass (Major) ........................................................................................................ 9 Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion | Heist Roles
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Setting Rules ................................................................................................................ 10 Bennies ....................................................................................................................... 10
GM Bennies ............................................................................................................... 10 Heist Bennies ............................................................................................................. 10 New Rules..................................................................................................................... 11
Exploit Cards .............................................................................................................. 11 Flashbacks ................................................................................................................. 12 Recruits ...................................................................................................................... 12 Heist Setup ................................................................................................................... 13
Recruiting ................................................................................................................... 13 Heist Generator ......................................................................................................... 14 Heist interludes .......................................................................................................... 16 Heist Prelude ................................................................................................................ 17
Setup .......................................................................................................................... 17 Opposed Rolls ........................................................................................................... 17 Heist Assets ............................................................................................................... 18 Gear ........................................................................................................................... 18 Running the Heist ........................................................................................................ 19
Infiltration.................................................................................................................... 19 The Deed ................................................................................................................... 20 The Getaway .............................................................................................................. 20 Complications .............................................................................................................. 20
Game Master Complications ..................................................................................... 21 Aftermath ...................................................................................................................... 21
The Wrap-Up ............................................................................................................. 22 It All Comes Together ................................................................................................ 22
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Heist Roles | Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion
Welcome to Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion! Whether you want to run or play a one shot heist, or drop a heist session in your existing campaign, it is the goal of this Companion to make it easy to do by providing new Edges and Hindrances, and new rules built on familiar Savage Worlds mechanics.
CHARACTERS For the purpose of heists, all Wild Card heroes are career criminals. Their motivations vary, but they have agreed to work together. They start with the Code of Honor (Major) and Wanted (Major) Hindrances, but get no points for these Hindrances, nor do they count toward Hindrance totals. If you intend to run or play a heist in an established campaign setting, Code of Honor and Wanted become temporary hindrances for the duration of the heist.
CODE OF HONOR This Hindrance represents the cliché ‘honor among thieves’. Everyone gets a fair share, you never rat anyone out, and so on and so on. Characters in a fantasy setting, as an example, may all be members of the same thieves’ guild.
WANTED The Game Master and players decide what best fits the situation, but the Wanted Hindrance must involve law enforcement . Maybe your character escaped from prison, or jumped bail in another state. Perhaps you are under FBI surveillance.
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HEIST ROLES The Face: Grifter, Conman, and Swindler –– a rose by any other name. Fast-talk and
persuasion are your stock in trade. You could sell snow to an Eskimo. Half the time, those you swindle never realize it. The rest walk away believing they conned you. The Mastermind: You are the one with the plan, constantly working the angles and
staying one-step ahead of everyone. They all look to you as the de facto leader of the band, and count on you to plan, direct, and supervisor the heist from A to Z. The Muscle: You are the wrecking ball! Your only job is to knock down obstacles with
kung-fu moves or sheer brute force. The Thief : You excel at fitting in tight spaces, scaling walls, and disappearing into the
shadows in the blink of an eye. Two parts ninja and one part safecracker, there is no fortress you cannot breach or lock you cannot pick. The Wheelman: It does not matter if it travels on asphalt, water, or air. You were born
with gasoline in your veins and a need for high-speed maneuvers. The Hacker : If computers exist in the setting, you are the digital pimp. You break
encryption as easily as others fill out crossword puzzles. You code on the fl y, create digital forgeries, and scale firewalls with a single click of a mouse.
MAKING CHARACTERS The Heist Archetype below include one Advance, two points from Minor Hindrances applied to skill points, and a free Heist Edge. Pick a Heist Archetype, add any missing Hindrances, spend any remaining skill points, and apply three Advances to create your Seasoned Rank Heist Character. Give them a name and a backstory, but do not worry about starting funds or gear for now –– that’s all part of the Heist Setup (see the Heist Rules section). If you are running a heist in an existing setting with established characters find the key skills (highlighted in red) that fit most closely and add a Heist Edge.
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Heist Roles | Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion
HEIST ARCHETYPES THE FACE Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d8, Strength d6, Vigor d6 Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d6, Notice d6, Persuasion d10, Shooting d6,
Streetwise d6, Taunt d6 Charisma: +2; Pace: 6”; Parry: 5; Toughness: 5 Hindrances: Overconfident, two Minor Hindrances Edges: Attractive, Strong Willed Heist Edge: Would I Lie to You?
THE HACKER Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d10, Spirit d6, Strength d4, Vigor d6 Skills: Investigation d8, Knowledge (Computers) d10, Knowledge (Surveillance) d8,
Notice d8, Repair d8, Shooting d6, Streetwise d6 Charisma :–0; Pace:6”; Parry: 5; Toughness:5 Hindrances: Curious (Major), two Minor Hindrances Edges: McGyver, Mister Fix-It Heist Edge: Digital Pimp
THE MASTERMIND Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d10, Spirit d8, Strength d4, Vigor d6 Skills: Fighting d4, Investigation d10, Notice d10, Persuasion d6, Shooting d6,
Streetwise d8 Charisma :–0; Pace: 6; Parry: 4; Toughness: 4 Hindrances: Cautious (Major), Stubborn (Minor); + one Minor Hindrance Edges: Command, Connections Heist Edge: According to Plan
THE MUSCLE Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d6, Strength d10, Vigor d8 Skills: Fighting d10, Intimidation d6, Notice d6, +6 additional skill points Charisma :–0; Pace: 6; Parry: 7; Toughness: 7 Hindrances: Arrogant (Major), Hot Head (Minor), one Minor Hindrance Edges: Brawny, Sweep Heist Edge: Total Badassery Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion | Heist Archetypes
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THE THIEF Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d6, Strength d6, Vigor d6 Skills: Climbing d6, Fighting d6, Lockpicking d6, Notice d6, Stealth d8, Streetwise d6,
Taunt d6, Throwing d6 Charisma :–0; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 5 Hindrances: Curious (Major), Greedy (Minor), one Minor Hindrance Edges: Acrobat, Thief Heist Edge: Cool Under Pressure
THE WHEELMAN Attributes: Agility d10, Smarts d6, Spirit d6, Strength d6, Vigor d6 Skills: Driving d10, Fighting d6, Notice d8, Piloting d8, Repair d6 Charisma :–; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 5 Hindrances: Bad Luck (Major), two Minor Hindrances Edges: Ace, Quick Heist Edge: Fast and Furious
EDGES Some Edges are restricted or modified in Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion. New Edges, as well as Heist Edges are also available. Game Masters who want to run a Heist in an established campaign setting may choose to ignore restrictions to avoid contradictions (e.g., Arcane Background (Magic) in a fantasy setting). Restricted Edges: Arcane Backgrounds (all), Adept, Beast Master, Beast Bond,
Berserk, Champion, Élan, Followers, Gadgeteer, Holy/Unholy Warrior, Mentalist, Noble, No Mercy, Power Points, Power Surge, Rapid Recharge, Rich, Soul Drain, Woodsman, Wizard and Weird Edges. Modified Edges: Bruiser is available without the Brawler requirement. Mr. Fix-It is
available without the Arcane Background requirement. Rank requirements for Savage Worlds Deluxe Edges decrease by one-step (e.g., Seasoned equals Novice) 6
Edges | Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion
ACCORDING TO PLAN Requirements: Mastermind
What looks like a mishap to others is all part of the plan. When you roll a 1 on a Skill die (regardless of the Wild Die), it is considered a success with som e complication. You cannot spend Bennies to re-roll, but do earn a Benny you must give to another player character. I Meant to Do That: A Critical Failure (Snake Eyes) on a re-roll means you are stuck with the result, and earn a Heist Benny.
COOL UNDER PRESSURE Requirements: Thief, Wheelman
Any time your hero rolls a Critical Failure, he gets a free reroll at a +2 bonus. With a raise, he receives a Benny he must give to another player character.
DIGITIAL PIMP Requirements: Hacker
Once per session, per player character, you may spend a Benny and remind them of the cool piece of tech you created for them, or some modification you made to their equipment. It is pure technobabble (player describes and narrates), and there is no doubt that it is “just the thing” for the situation–– adding +d6 (acing) bonus to the roll.
FAST AND FURIOUS Requirements: Wheelman
You are a total badass behind the wheel. You halve penalties to Maneuvers (min –1) and share Bennies with anyone in a vehicle you control. Hold On: During a Chase, you may spend a Heist Benny to avoid a Complication or shift the outcome on the Critical Hits or Out of Control Table one level (up or down).
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GET SOME! Requirements: Muscle, Shooting d8+
The character may use the Aim maneuver, to treat Double Tap as Suppressive Fire.
MY $H%T ALWAYS WORKS… SOMETIMES! Anytime the character gets a Raise on a re-roll, he earns a marked Benny he may only use to re-roll Critical Failures (Snake Eyes) at a –2 penalty.
TOTAL BAD ASSERY Requirements: Muscle
When fighting bare handed, your hero ignores gang-up penalties and adds them as bonuses to Fighting and damage rolls (max +4).
IMPROVED BAD ASSERY Requirements: Total Bad Assery
Spend a Benny to substitute Strength for bonus damage die on an attack roll raise.
THREAT ASSESSMENT Requirements: Fighting d8+, Notice d8+
As a Free Action, you may spend a Benny and make a Notice roll to size up a foe. On a Raise, the Game Master reveals one Combat Edges the subject may have.
WOULD I LIE TO YOU? Requirements: Face
You may use Persuasion (plus Charisma bonus) as a Test of W ills or Trick opposed by an opponen t’s Smarts. On The Grift: Whenever your character is ‘actively’ engaged in a con, you may spend a Heist Benny to add your Charisma bonus to any Trait roll. 8
Edges | Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion
HINDRANCES All the Hindrances in Savage World Deluxe, as well as some new ones, are available in Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion (with the exception of Code of Honor, Doubting Thomas, and Wanted). Additionally, Big Mouth and Cautious are Major Hindrances.
ACHILLES’ HEEL (MAJOR) Your hero has a soft spot of some kind. It may be kittens, orphans, the opposite sex, or being called chicken. Whatever it is, he is completely sidetracked when confronted by this weakness. Other characters may leverage the weakness to manipulate your hero. A successful Persuasion or Smarts roll opposed by the hero’s Spirit at a –4 has
the same effect as the Puppet Power from Savage Worlds Deluxe.
GLASS JAW (MAJOR) Your hero can’t take a punch! A Shaken result from a melee attack requires a Vigor roll. Success has no further effect. Failure means he is Shaken a second time.
HOT HEAD (MINOR) Your hero carries a big chip on his shoulder and is easily provoked. No matter how he lashes out, he never backs down or lets it slide. Subtract –2 from all attempts to resist Taunt in a Test of Wills or Social Conflict.
SMART ASS (MAJOR) Your hero is very intelligent, and goes out of his way to make it clear to everyone. He cannot resist pointing out others’ flaws, failures, or shortcomings in the most brutal and
condescending manner. He suffers a –2 Charisma; and adds +2 to Taunt Test of Wills attacks, Smarts tricks, and Social Conflicts. Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion | Hindrances
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SETTING RULES Blood & Guts, Critical Failure, and Joker’s Wild are standard Setting Rules for a Heist,
as are some new ones detailed below.
BENNIES Benny rules remain relatively unchanged in Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion. There are, however, a few exceptions as detailed below.
GM BENNIES When it is appropriate to the story, the Game Master may offer one of his bennies to suggest a course of action based on the situation and a character ’s Hindrances. A Wild Card with the Arrogant Hindrance, for example, may be “compelled” to attack the big bad down with a head shot while others are successfully negotiating a cease-fire. This can put characters at significant risk, but it has the added benefit of depleting the number of Bennies the Game Master may use for his Wild Cards. Players may refuse by paying the Game Master a Benny (strengthening the position of his Wild Cards).
HEIST BENNIES In addition to the usual number of Bennies give to player character at the start of a session, player characters also receive two Heist Bennies. Heist Bennies allow players to draw Exploit Cards or narrate Flashbacks (see below). Player characters don’t earn Heist Bennies during game play, but may spend their usual Bennies in unique ways in exchange for a new Heist Benny as follows:
Spend a Benny instead of making a Trait roll to Succeed with a Complication. Spend a Benny before rolling to add a +2 bonus and forfeit the option to re-roll. Spend a Benny to suffer a Temporary Injury before attempting a Soak roll.
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Bennies | Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion
NEW RULES EXPLOIT CARDS Exploit cards represent unexpected opportunities players may use to their advantage. Whenever the Game Master draws a Club or fails an Opposed Trait test, players may spend a Heist Benny to draw a card from the action deck and compares it against the Exploit Table (see below).
EXPLOIT TABLE
Clubs—Distraction: Someone causes a scene; there is an unexpected
phone call or delivery, old rivals meet, etc.
Spades—Dumb Luck: An unlocked door, poorly installed security alarm,
sudden power outage, preoccupied guard, etc.
Hearts—Discernment: Detect a trap, spot a forgery, detect an ambush, etc.
Diamonds ––Destiny: Secret(s) revealed, reversal of fortune, etc.
Players with an Exploit Card interject a narrative description of an advantage that fits the current situation. All player characters add +d6 (acing) to one relevant Trait test for the encounter. When the advantage ends, the card returns to the deck for reshuffling. If the player characters are unable to provide a feasible narrative advantage for the current scene, they may use their Exploit Card as follows:
Tactical Advantage: Gain the benefits of the Tactician Edge for the rest of the
scene. Instead of Knowledge (Battle), the character makes a Common Knowledge (Smarts) +2 roll. Only one player character may use this option per scene.
Lucky Break: Spend a Benny to use the card as a Joker for the next round of initiative. The Joker’s Wild Setting rule applies, as well as stand ard Joker rules. Bank It: Place the card face down and place a Benny on top to indicate you intend
to use it in a future scene. When it is played, however, providing a narrative that describes the advantage is the only option available. Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion | Bennies
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FLASHBACKS Flashbacks are unnoticed narrative footnotes that change the mechanical outcome of an event, or foreshadow a narrative advantage to a future event. Anytime the Game Master wins an Opposed Trait test (including a Test of Wills) or draws a Joker in combat, all players may spend a Heist Benny to create a flashback. Foreshadowing involves writing a brief description of a flashback on a notecard and placing it facedown with a Heist Benny on top. If the opportunity presents itself, flip the card over and play it like a Savage Worlds Adventure Card. If the Game Master approves, he takes your Heist Benny and applies it to the story or a mechanic. If the Game Master rejects the flashback, you keep your Heist Benny and earn two additional Bennies for the attempt. E xample One : An Extra succeeds at an Agility trick (leaving you at a –2 Parry until your next action). You spend a Heist Benny and narrate a brief cut-away scene in which you explain how you only pretended to be distracted. This eliminates the penalty, and everyone proceeds as planned –– believing you are at a disadvantage.
E xample Two : In the same situation, you decide to foreshadow and write; “While [character] tried to distract me, I put a tracking beacon on him”. Later in the game, they lose you in a car chase. You flip the note over and say, “I know exactly where he is going because…”
RECRUITS Recruits in Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion fill available roles in the heist scenario as Allied Extras, with a few exceptions. They have 2 Wounds, do not earn Bennies during game play, and only add a Wild Die to Trait test re-rolls. Wild Cards may not share their Bennies with Recruits. Recruits start each session with one Benny added to a “Community Pool” and may share from it when needed.
Player characters are free to donate Bennies to the Community Pool before they are needed by a Recruit (not in the same round), and may not draw from the pool. 12
Bennies | Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion
HEIST SETUP Use the Making Characters section to create your character. You must have a Face, a Mastermind, and a Thief at a bare minimum to attempt a heist. If you do not have enough players to fill these three roles, then you must recruit (see below). There may only be one Mastermind player character in a group. No such restriction exists for other archetypes –– but a good rule of thumb is one of each. If you have three player characters to fulfill the minimum heist roles, you may still recruit up to one heist archetype (no Masterminds) per player character.
RECRUITING It is the Mastermind’s responsibility to assemble the team. This means that he or she is the only player character who may recruit heist archetypes. Other player characters may assist the Mastermind (see Cooperative Rolls) and make a Common Knowledge (Smarts) each round, and adds a +2 when recruiting their own heist archetype. Recruiting is a standard Dramatic Task per Savage Worlds core rules. It features the Streetwise skill with a standard –2 penalty each round. Complication (Clubs) doubles the penalty. Failing a complication roll allows the Game Master to select your recruit’s Hindrances. More than one failed complication roll means the recruit’s Hindrances are a secret and the Game Master must determine if the character is a friend or foe –– that’s right, you may unwittingly recruit an Arrogant FBI Agent or Bloodthirsty Mafia Hit Man! Netting five Successes means you successfully recruit the archetype (see Making Characters). Failure to net five successes means you cannot attempt to recruit that heist archetype again, and rumors about your heist begin to circulate. In addition, each failed recruiting attempt removes one card from the next Dramatic Tasks! Fail twice, for example, and you must net five successes with three cards or less! Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion | Bennies
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HEIST GENERATOR Roll 2d6 once on each table to generate the basic details of the heist. Some tables have more than one option. These are only suggestions. Feel free to pick the one that fits best with what you ’ve already rolled, or use them as inspiration. Each time you roll a 1 or a 6 record it as a Disadvantage or Advantage respectively (I’ll explain later). If you selected options instead of rolling, roll 1d6 per category to
determine Disadvantage or Advantage.
HEIST TYPE
Stealasmuchasyoucanasfastasyoucan.
:Stealsomethingandreplaceitwithaforgery.
Robsomeoneblind;andruinhisorherliveintheprocess. :Stealfromtherich;givetothepoor.Redistributethewealth!
:Kidnapsomeone,orstealsomethingtoransomback
HEIST LOCATION
:Museums;ArtGallery;Library CounterdisplaysorSecureVault :Bank;PaymentProcessingCenter;ArmoredCar :Mansion,LuxuryYacht;PrivateJet;etc.
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:CasinoVault;StockExchange;Treasury;CIAHQ;etc.
Bennies | Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion
HEIST TARGET
Former Ally; Rival
Political or Military Figure
Business; Corporation; etc. Criminal Organization; Mob Leader; etc.
Royalty; Celebrity
HEIST OBJECT
Stored Data; Blueprints; Hard Drive
Art; Historical Relic; Prototype
Rare Gems/Jewels; Cash Hostage for ransom
Bara Bonds; Stocks; Counterfeiting Plates
HEIST VALUE
$100 Billion
$500 Thousand
$10 Million $100 Million
$50 Billion
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HEIST INTERLUDES After creating (or recruiting) all of the necessary characters and generating the details of the heist, the Mastermind gathers the crew to meet and discuss the heist. This is an Interlude using Savage Worlds core rules with some exceptions. First, each player character draws a card and compares it to the Heist Interlude Table. The Game Master draws for each recruit. Then, everyone narrates the past few months leading up to this meeting.
HEIST INTERLUDE TABLE
Clubs—Tragedy: The character shared in a windfall, followed by an equally
devastating loss. Roll on the Injury Table or start the session with one l ess Benny, your choice.
Spades—Victory: A recent victory has garnered the attention of an influential
person. Gain the Connections Edge in the organization (Mob, the Feds, etc.).
Hearts—Love: The character recently discovered, or found someone they love e
dearly (a spouse, child, etc.) and believes he can win their undying affection and loyalty with his share of heist. Gain the Death Wish Hindrance (willing to die to make the heist a success) and start with one additional Benny.
Diamonds—Object: You came into possession of an item that is rare, extremely
well made, or acts as a good luck charm. Whatever it is (a gun, diary, tools, etc.) it adds +2 to a single Trait roll. If it is a charm, you get an additional Benny at the beginning of each session. If a charm is lost, you immediately lose a Benny. If the item is lost, it adds a –2 penalty to the relevant Trait roll. Everyone receives a Benny as usual per Savage Worlds Interludes rules.
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Bennies | Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion
HEIST PRELUDE Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion handles the first part of the heist as mini-game
based on Savage Worlds Mass Battle rules as a montage sequence that represents the research and planning phase of a typical heist.
SETUP The Game Master and Players both start with three tokens; I suggest using Bennies. Players add one token per Recruit and Advantage created using the Heist Generator. The Game Master adds one token per Wild Card player character and Disadvantage created using the Heist Generator. He also receives one token per failed recruiting attempt –– remember the part about rumors start to spread? Based on the specifics of the situation, the Game Masters may add additional tokens to his side for circumstances. This is generally no more than 2 tokens and accounts for things such as a state-of-the-art security system protecting a priceless gem, or extra security or personal body guards for mob bosses and such.
OPPOSED ROLLS Preludes last one round per Wild Card player character, and end when each player has taken a turn or one side runs out of tokens. Each round, both sides draw a card and apply the indicated modifier to opposed Trait rolls. Whichever side draws a Joker adds a token (Benny) to their pile and reshuffles. Card Suit Modifiers
Red suit; add +1 Red Joker; add +2
Black suit; add –1 Black Joker; add –2
The losing side loses one token per success and raise on each opposed roll. Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion | Bennies
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Wild Card characters take turns narrating a brief scene and make a Trait roll opposed by the Game Master’s generic Trait test (d6 Trait plus Wild Die). Players may use any
Trait that fits the narrative. Both sides should document the Trait and Situation of each successful roll on paper for use in determining assets (see below). Players may spend their tokens like Bennies to reroll a Trait test before the Game Master rolls. This is not an option for the Game Master. If the player succeeds with a Raise, he keeps the token. In the event of a failure, the tokens go to the Game Master.
HEIST ASSETS If the narrative supports it, and the players won the prelude, they have created some assets for the upcoming heist. A Mastermind character who won an Investigation roll, as an example, may have detailed blueprints. A Face character who won a Persuasion roll may have an “inside man” willing to do him a favor . A Hacker who won a successful
Knowledge (Computer) roll may have access to a live feed from security cameras. Players may only have one asset approved by the Game Master, and receive an additional starting Benny for them.
GEAR It is time for the Wild Card heroes to grab the gear needed to pull off the heist. This may include bribes, weapons, explosives, computers, a getaway car, and so on. Each Wild Card player character starts with $1,000 to purchase gear and equipment. Any remaining of funds are added to the group fund for the heist which consists of $5,000 per token remaining at the end of the Heist Prelude. If you lack the funds to get a necessary item for the heist, the Mastermind may spend a starting Benny to “call in a favor” for one item up to $250k. An item with Military listed as the cost may be obtained, with Game Master approval, for two starting Bennies.
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Bennies | Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion
RUNNING THE HEIST You have assembled the team, there is a foolproof plan, you have the gear, and you cased the joint. The Heist Setup and Prelude inform the majority of play. So you should have a good idea of what you need to run the heist. Game Masters may want to take a few moments to find maps or minis (if you use them) for the major scene of the heist, draw up some basic Extras for use as NPCs, and create at least one Wild Card NPC (e.g., The Police/Swat Captain, Hostage Negotiator, Head of Security, and so on) as the main antagonist. Much like a one-sheet adventure, heist scenario consists of three distinct phases that you may use as scenes: the Infiltrati on, Doing the Deed, and the “Getaway”. Of course, course, this is an oversimplification, but it provides a solid structure for running a heist scenario. How you choose to play these “scenes” varies depending on the details of the heist.
INFILTRATION This is all about how you get inside the location. If you intend to use “strong -armed” tactics, start the scene with the player characters
entering the building with guns drawn and make Intimation Test of Wills rolls. A more subtle approach may involve everyone but the Muscle pretending to be customers in the middle of a robbery. You might also consider an elaborate con between the Face and Branch Manager run with Social Conflict rules. If breaking and entering unnoticed is more your style, try a Dramatic Task featuring Stealth. Better yet, an Opposed Dramatic Task (Stealth vs Notice) with the first side to net 5 successes declared the winner. You get the idea.
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THE DEED This is the moment when you get what you came for. Cracking the safe, or switching the priceless diamond for a fake. Doing the Deed is the part of the story that should take the most time and present the biggest challenge. Don’t downplay the tension. Crank it up to eleven and put everything at risk. An easy
way to accomplish this is sandwiching a single Dramatic Task such as cracking a safe between complications (see below) and combat.
THE GETAWAY This usually involves the Savage Worlds Chase Rules. Depending on the situation and outcome, it could lead to multiple chases interspersed with combat starting during the Deed phase. It may start with a foot chase to the getaway vehicle, followed by a high-speed police pursuit, and back to a foot chase again.
COMPLICATIONS Up to this point, we have focused on the preparation and the intricacy of its execution, but the secret ingredient, the one thing that makes all heists movies and stories great, is the inevitable complications! Oversights and double crosses, poor timing and plain bad luck threaten to derail the whole thing. It’s time to introd uce complications. Rolling dice is fun and exciting, but it is usually a zero sum game –– you either win or lose. There are movements in a roleplaying game where the degree of success is far more important and interesting. Climatic scenes, usually the second act of a three-act story, are more interesting when success and failure are less certain than usual. With the exception of Damage and Critical Failure, anytime a player character fails a Trait roll he succeeds with a complication. Severity depends on the situation, but the player must provide a consequence for succeeding. If the Game Master approves, and the consequence is appropriate, the player receives a Benny. 20
Complications | Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion
For example, a Wild Card Thief fails her Lockpicking roll to open a door and succeeds with a consequence. She determines that: She breaks her tools in the door; adds a –2 to future attempts
She is surprised by a security guard inside; now he’s got the Drop on her–– or
She accidentally sets off an alarm
Each of the examples allows her to open the door, but creates another layer of risk and another challenge to overcome in the process. More importantly, it moves the story forward in an interesting and significant way.
GAME MASTER COMPLICATIONS Complications also arise in the midst of victory. Anytime a player character succeeds at a Trait test with a 1 on the Wild Die (regardless of the Trait Die), the Game Master earns a Heist Benny. Anytime a player character succeeds with Raise on a Trait test, the Game Master may spend a Heist Benny to introduce a Complication to that roll. Players may not spend Bennies to reroll, or receive a Benny for the Complication.
AFTERMATH All great heist films have plot twists. Characters die or are caught, or they do not get the loot. Forget about it –– it is all smoke and mirrors. Before credits roll, everyone in the audience finds out what really happened. During the Aftermath player characters take turns (usually in flashbacks) to explain why and how failures were not failures at all, but part of the ingenious plan all along! In many ways, this is similar to the Heist Prelude conducted earlier. Instead of tokens, each player draws and exploit card and the Game Master starts to review the heist starting with the Prelude and proceeding toward the Getaway. Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion | Complications
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THE WRAP-UP With the exception of the Mastermind, each player may interrupt the Game Master at an appropriate point to spend an exploit card as flashback. The narrative must conform to the exploit card condition by suit. If the Game Master approves, the player character makes a Trait roll using the a rchetype’s primary Attribute die and a +d6 (acing) bonus. Each player character’s roll adds +1 per Success and +d6 (acing) with one or more
raises to the Mastermind is pending roll. Regardless of the number of raises on the roll, it only adds a single +d6 as a Cooperative roll. Flashbacks do not have to undo perceived failures. Player characters may use them to add new narrative elements, or lay the foundation for other characters.
IT ALL COMES TOGETHER Once the Game Master finishes the wrap-up and the player characters have added to the narrative, it is time for the Mastermind to make a Smarts roll (with co-op bonuses) and finally narrate what actually happened based on his roll as follows: Failure: You got what you wanted, just not the way you imagined. The heist was a
disappointing success, but a success nonetheless. The narrative should focus on tying up loose ends: dead player characters escape d, there’s no evidence, so on and so on. Success: Everything went according to plan. The narrative focuses on undoing the
perceived failures of the heist: you knew the recruit was an undercover FBI agent; you put blanks in gun that killed your Face man, and so on, and so on. Raise: Parts of the plan you never discussed succeeded brilliantly. The narrative
focuses on wild imaginings: the heist got you $100 M for was a diversion for the real heist that earned everyone 500 times more, you framed the bank manager, the cops chased down a dummy car while you flew off in a helicopter, and so on and so on.
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Complications | Savage Daddy’s Heist Companion
