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Kromm · 10-02-2015, 12:57 PM

A tricky mission
A phone call to the experts
A walk in the park
— After-Action Haiku

GURPS Action does a solid job of rounding up the key archetypes of its namesake genre: the stealthy assassin and infiltrator, the cunning investigator and face man, the no-nonsense shooter and demolition man, and so on. Each role is writ large; for example, the medic doesn't just bandage the wounded, but also autopsies corpses, administers truth serums, and handles bio-weapons, while the wire rat is expected to be an expert at communications, security systems, surveillance, and everything else with a circuit board inside. Moreover, there's little overlap between templates – for instance, while anybody can power up a computer or drive a car, only the hacker can crack digital security and only the wheel man has much hope of winning a high-speed chase.

But what about the action hero who focuses on a single, narrow area – or on several unrelated ones? That's when you call in the specialists . . . or in this case, GURPS Action 4: Specialists.

This modular character-design system for the Action series offers an alternative to the chunky 250-point templates of GURPS Action 1: Heroes and GURPS Action 3: Furious Fists. It gives you the tools to equip your alter-ego with precisely the skill sets needed to fill a specialized role, allowing you to cover gaps in your team's capabilities or simply play somebody with an unusual past. And because abilities are added one 25-point chunk at a time, the same tools enable you to generate low-level NPCs for use as enemies, extras, or sidekicks – or to create low- or high-powered PCs for games that start before or long after the protagonists are A-list celebrities. You can even use these rules to "level up" the heroes of your existing campaign.

Like to think outside the box? Feel inspired by that oddball in your favorite movie? Just need a way to toss together interesting supporting characters on the fly? GURPS Action 4: Specialists is on your team!

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Store Link: http://www.warehouse23.com/products/SJG37-0331

10-02-2015, 12:57 PM
Kromm *GURPS* Line Editor Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Montréal, Québec	GURPS Action 4: Specialists A tricky mission A phone call to the experts A walk in the park — After-Action Haiku *GURPS Action* does a solid job of rounding up the key archetypes of its namesake genre: the stealthy assassin and infiltrator, the cunning investigator and face man, the no-nonsense shooter and demolition man, and so on. Each role is writ large; for example, the medic doesn't just bandage the wounded, but also autopsies corpses, administers truth serums, and handles bio-weapons, while the wire rat is expected to be an expert at communications, security systems, surveillance, and everything else with a circuit board inside. Moreover, there's little overlap between templates – for instance, while anybody can power up a computer or drive a car, only the hacker can crack digital security and only the wheel man has much hope of winning a high-speed chase. But what about the action hero who focuses on a single, narrow area – or on several unrelated ones? That's when you call in the specialists . . . or in this case, *GURPS Action 4: Specialists. This modular character-design system for the Action* series offers an alternative to the chunky 250-point templates of *GURPS Action 1: Heroes* and *GURPS Action 3: Furious Fists. It gives you the tools to equip your alter-ego with precisely the skill sets needed to fill a specialized role, allowing you to cover gaps in your team's capabilities or simply play somebody with an unusual past. And because abilities are added one 25-point chunk at a time, the same tools enable you to generate low-level NPCs for use as enemies, extras, or sidekicks – or to create low- or high-powered PCs for games that start before or long after the protagonists are A-list celebrities. You can even use these rules to "level up" the heroes of your existing* campaign. Like to think outside the box? Feel inspired by that oddball in your favorite movie? Just need a way to toss together interesting supporting characters on the fly? *GURPS Action 4: Specialists* is on your team! — Store Link: http://www.warehouse23.com/products/SJG37-0331 __________________ Sean "Dr. Kromm" Punch <kromm@sjgames.com> *GURPS* Line Editor, Steve Jackson Games My DreamWidth [Just *GURPS* News]