Savage Musketeers

This is not a game about military rank. Officers and sergeants respect the opinions of all musketeers. There are no special edges for rank.

All musketeers begin with a lackey, a loyal and trusted (or maybe not) companion to their master. Lackeys are there to serve, not fight.

You create a lackey as a regular character, except they are Extras, receive four attribute points, and eight skill points (plus the five default skills). No lackey may ever have Fighting or Shooting higher than d6. They are a great way of ensuring the party has access to a wide range of skills, and also for providing Cooperative bonuses where appropriate.

A player should not create his own lackey. Another player character builds the lackey and plays him during the game. This allows for the Musketeer to interact with his servant in play without the player talking to himself.

Whether the Musketeer has any say in the character generation is up to the individual players—some may ask for a servant with a specific skill set, while others may be happy to take pot luck.

A lackey Advances like any other Extra (see Allies and Advancement in SWADE). A lackey who dies is not automatically replaced—the character must use an advance to earn a new lackey. Replaced lackeys begin with the same experience as their predecessor. Fortunately, most villains ignore lackeys who do not attack them. Unless a hero places his lackey in direct danger, villains will always target a player character over the lackey.

The lackey’s basic salary (typically a small sum) is assumed covered by whatever income his master has. Any bonus rewards must come from the Musketeer’s pocket. Typically, a lackey begins with the basic tools needed for his profession, a dagger, and appropriate clothing, though the lackey’s background may alter this.

A social duel is an exchange of jests, barbed comments, overt or sly insults, witty slander, and backhanded compliments. The social duel rules are intended for use in social occasions, such as balls and dances; they are not used in standard combat. A social duel takes time and requires an audience to witness the exchange.

Social dueling works much like the Social Conflict rules (SWADE p 143) except that Taunt is used instead of Persuasion.

Another character can provide a Support roll but, if the duel is lost, that supporting character suffers the same penalties as the character who initiates the social duel.

All from the Savage Worlds Adventure Edition Companion and SWADE Fantasy Companion except for those disallowed.

Black powder weapons are only available in settings where gunpowder exists and is commonly available. They are all Reload 2, so many black powder users preload several flintlocks and simply drop them after firing.

Explosives are simple devices. To create an explosion, one nserts a fuse in a cask or barrel of blackpowder, lights the fuse, and then runs. Defusing an explosive device requires only the fuse to be pulled out or extinguished, such as with water or stamping on it.