Gunga Din and "The Sergeant's Three"
Shhhh. Don't tell anyone. Most people think I'm this jock and military guy but I'm secretly a nerd and geek! But the geeks get the girls! Okay, enough editorializing. On with the show.
As mentioned earlier, I grew up on ERB, Haggard, Kipling, Asimov, Robert Howard, Lovecraft, Jules Verne, comic books and pulp. With In Her Majesty's Name I can bring the heroes of my youth on to the gaming table. But how to do it? Research (re-read those books) and research (yes I watched Gunga Din (1938) twice and took notes).
Captain John Carter is a freaking force of nature on Barsoom! How do you use this character without destroying the play balance?
Another thing you need to do is to establish the baseline. One of the greatest things that happened to me with this game is when I made a typo when I published my blog about the an Adventuring company of German Imperial Marines and Schutztruppe. Craig Cartmell, one of the authors of IHMN noticed a typo and that I had given the German Imperial Marines a Shooting Value of 6. Talk about your steely-eyed killers. Your average, Western trained soldier (to include the Japanese) only have a Shooting Value of 2. As a comparison, Allen Quartermain, probably the greatest shot in the British Empire has a Shooting Value of +5 (Heroes, Villains and Fiends). By checking the rules and supplements, the books can give you a pretty good idea of exceptional characters with their stats, talents and mystical powers.
Quartermain and friend. See Heroes, Villains and Fiends.
The beauty of the Shooting Values, Fighting Values, and especially the Talents and Mystical Powers is what really allows you to design your favorite character from Literature and Movies.
One of my favorite books is True Grit and I have enjoyed both film versions: One you have John Wayne! and the other movie is closer to the book. After reading the book again (taking notes) and watching both movies I decided to use the recent movie version as an addition to my U.S. Marshal Adventuring Company:
Rooster Cogburn: Pretty bold talk for a one-eyed fat man.
When he’s not staggeringly drunk, Cogburn’s good at what he does, but
he’s lost the calling and in fact seems to have lost respect for human
life. In the Coen brothers noir Western ‘True Grit’, Jeff Bridges’ plays
Rooster Cogburn as an amiable mess of a character; a flawed U.S. deputy
marshal, but someone you can rely on and would want by your side in
times of trouble.
Name: U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn
Pluck: 2+
Leadership: +1 (Figure using the Leadership bonus must roll pluck)
Speed: 0
Fighting Value: +3
Shooting Value: +6 (a 6 may seem pretty high but Quartermain is a long range shooter and Cogburn is up close and personal using two pistols. It seemed appropriate with the Gunslinger Talent to split two targets with a Shooting Value of +6. Remember, it's my universe!)
Talents: True Grit (Fearless, Tough and a Fanatic!), Gunslinger,
Lightning draw (pistols), Marksman (pistol), Erudite Wit, Impervious
(too drunk!)
Basic Equipment: 2 pistols, Bowie (Fighting) Knife
Armor: 9
Cost: 70
Two notes on Rooster Cogburn: I made a special rule for Leadership, that based on his personality and often inebriated state, if anyone would use his Leadership, they would have to roll for Pluck. Also the talent of True Grit is not the Mystical Power of True Grit from the rules, but one I made up since the book and movies is True Grit.
Next: The Characters that I made up and from Literature and Movies for your use! Also upcoming will be time travel, Adventuring companies I have used from IHMN, Adventuring Companies I have designed, and where the adventures take place in my corner of 1895.
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