Firefly [System Game] [RP Heavy] [Interest Check]

[Muddy Waters]

I will gladly take any help that is given for character creation. I don't have the books, although I'm sure I can find pdf's online. 

[Crash]

Let me know which you choose.  I am good with whatever.

[Marie Reynolds]

I am good with Serenity. If that is the system we go with. I am familiar with it  if people need help.

[Malkavian]

Okay i am just a bit confused cause Firefly has distinctions and  choosing  3 types of archetypes. where as Serenity has  complications and Assets. Sorry for being  a bit befuddled, I am still waiting for the caffeine to kick in.

Characters in Firefly consist of Attributes (Physical, Social, Mental), Skills, Distinctions (background/personal traits), and Signature Assets (items/connections which they can personally benefit from the use of).

Characters in Serenity have Attributes, Skills, and Traits (Assets and Complications).

Seems like the GM is leaning towards Firefly out of the two, which works for me: whilst Serenity is arguably easier to learn, it's also more rigidly defined in how it runs things. Firefly, on the other hand, encourages players to engage with the narrative by creating Assets based on their circumstances to help build dice pools (spending a Plot Point to give themselves Conveniently Placed Crates d6 for example would help them in a shoot-out by providing strategic cover), as well as Complications to work against them (if the enemies had set-up ahead of time, planning to jump us, they might have the Ambushed d8 Complication which the GM gets to add to his dice pool against us).

In either situation, I'm happy to help people - both to create their characters and to learn the rules.

[Crash]

I have both books so I just need to know which one to go with and I can get going on the crunchy part of character creation.

[Marie Reynolds]

Wow, Our Gm is  a brave one. willing to  brave a system with no initiative mechanic and  it  leaves it all up to the gm's judgement for determining who goes first based on what fits the narrative of the combat. Brave gm  indeed.

[Malkavian]

Not really. Sure, the players could decide to only hand off to other players, but since the GMCs HAVE to take their turns before the round can end, it would just mean we face an onslaught of enemy actions which we couldn't immediately react to.

So yeah... Initiative allows for tactical planning, but can also backfire on those crews who believe they can just spam the GM's villains without pause.

(For those unaware, the mechanic in Firefly is thus: the GM chooses who acts first in combat based on circumstance. That individual - either a player for a PC, or the GM himself for the GMCs - then chooses who gets to act next. This continues until everyone has acted once, and you cannot hand the turn back to someone who has already gone.)

[Crash]

So for those more savvy with the system than I can you take a look sure I am not hosing myself system wise with what I have come up with?

Name: Maybelle “Mae” Park (Real Name: Bu Hwa Young)
Gender | Sexuality: Cis Female | Lesbian
Ship Role: Pilot
Plot Points: 0
Big Damn Hero Points: 0

Distinctions:
Ship’s Pilot: D8
The list of folk wanting to hire you is longer than your arm. You’re just that good.
- Gain 1 Plot Point when you roll a d4 instead of a d8.
- Born Behind the Wheel: Spend 1 PP to step up or double your ship’s Engines Attribute for your next roll.
- I’ve Never Tried That Before: If you replace your Fly or Operate Skill with a d4 for your next roll, gain a Big Damn Hero Die equal to that Skill’s normal die rating if your roll is successful.

Highlighted Skills: Fly, Notice, Operate

Trained Singer: D8
Your voice is one of the sweetest things in the ’Verse.
-Gain 1 Plot Point when you roll a d4 instead of a d8.

Highlighted Skills: Craft, Notice, Perform

Chatterbox: D8
A lot of folk are afraid of a little conversation but not you, you’ve got the gift of gab, see, and if people want to leave it up to you to carry the conversation, then that’s just fine by you, ‘cuz…
-Gain 1 Plot Point when you roll a d4 instead of a d8.

Highlighted Skills: Influence, Perform, Trick

Attributes

Mental	Physical	Social
D8	D8	D8

Skills:
Craft: D6
Drive: D6
Fly: D12 (Transports)
Influence: D6
Know (Alliance): D6
Notice: D8 (Ships Sensors)
Operate D6
Perform: D8 (Singing)
Shoot: D6
Trick: D6

Personality: Impulsive is an excellent word to describe Maybelle.  Her life has been defined by impulsive actions that have thus far panned out which hasn’t exactly help her turn away from rash emotional actions and embrace deep introspective thought.  Maybelle is also extremely happy.  She found her passion in a way most people don’t, and she wouldn’t want to be anywhere else than soaring thru the cold calm black of space.  Maybelle absolutely adores cute things.  The cockpit is filled with too cute plastic toys, posters of the latest core world pop bands and the occasional plushy.  If it’s adorable, Maybelle wants it. She can come off as a bit immature in her demeanor, but she is an expert pilot willing to push the limits of her ship just to see how far it can go.

Background: In the core worlds Maybelle Park is known as Bu Hwa Young, or more likely she is recognized as “WaWa” Bu.  She is the daughter of an entertainment empire and a child actress who was plastered all over Core World media.  She was adorable and cute and had a signature saying that people repeated all the time.  That was great when she was 10 years old but it kind of wears on a twenty year old woman that doesn’t want to be treated like she is six.  She rebelled as a teenager, breaking minor laws like intoxication in public and racing her Luxray-9000 Luxury flitter in public airspace.  She crashed more than one luxury vehicle in her desperate need to be seen as anything other than the perfect sitcom daughter.
At first the public turned on her. She was just another spoiled brat, addicted to sake and speed, but her parents had the best publicists Alliance money could buy and spun her youthful rebellion into something of a career revival.  The thought of spending the rest of her life as a character, a symbol of what others thought a young woman should be, horrified Maybell.  She had spent her childhood trying to live up to a fictional character everyone expected her to be.  She was damn sure not going to spend the best years of her adulthood the same way. 
Maybelle cashed in all her money, paid for the best false papers her money could buy and jumped the first ship headed to the Rim where hardly anyone had heard of WaWa Bu.  She spent a few years working on ships and leaning the ins and outs of space flight until she was able to schmooze a crew into taking her on as a pilot and she hasn’t looked back.  She is a recent addition to the captain’s crew, but has a reputation as a stellar pilot if you can put up with her eccentricities.

Signature Assets:

The Ship: D8
It’s not her ship, but Maybelle knows how to coax all kinds of fancy maneuvers out of this Series 3 Firefly class mid-bulk transport.

Reputation

| Alliance: D8 | Browncoats: D4 | Corporations: D8 | Criminals: D4

[Malkavian]

Looks good at a glance! Going to check it over properly when I sit out my book to get my own character drawn up.

[Crash]

Looks good at a glance! Going to check it over properly when I sit out my book to get my own character drawn up.

Excellent!

[greypsychman]

I don't have the firefly rules and can't find a pdf version at Drivethru rpg. Amazon only had a hard cover, which I don't really want.

Anyone have an idea where I can find a pdf?

[Marie Reynolds]

I do apologize but I am going to back out. I just  cant  come up with a concept  I am happy with.

[Muddy Waters]

I don't have the firefly rules and can't find a pdf version at Drivethru rpg. Amazon only had a hard cover, which I don't really want.

Anyone have an idea where I can find a pdf?

This is where I found some, hope they are the right ones.
https://sites.google.com/site/cortexjax/cortex

Edit: just realizing these are Serenity not Firelfy  derp!  Sorry my bad!

[Malkavian]

Skills:
Craft: D6
Drive: D6
Fly: D12 (Transports)
Influence: D6
Know (Alliance): D6
Notice: D8 (Ships Sensors)
Operate D6
Perform: D10 (Singing)
Shoot: D8
Sneak: D6
Trick: D6

After raising your Distinction skills from D4 to their new totals (D6, D8, or D10, depending on how many Distinctions a skill is listed on), you have 9 points to increase skills. Increasing any skills noted on your Distinctions costs 1 point per die step, but raising any skill NOT on your Distinctions costs 2 points per die step. Based on that, I think you might have spent 14 points rather than 9.

Based on the raises I believe you made after accounting for Distinction skill raises:

• Raising Drive from D4 to D6 would cost 2 points;
• Raising Fly from D6 to D12 would cost 3 points (Distinction skill, so costs 1 point per raise rather than 2);
• Raising Know from D4 to D6 would cost 2 points;
• Raising Perform from D8 to D10 would cost 1 point (Distinction skill);
• Raising Shoot from D4 to D8 would cost 4 points;
• Raising Sneak from D4 to D6 would cost 2 points.

The Ship: D8
It’s not her ship, but Maybelle knows how to coax all kinds of fancy maneuvers out of this Series 3 Firefly class mid-bulk transport.
-One With the Ship: When you engage in evasive maneuvers, spend 1 PP to step back a Complication related to the ship's engine or systems.

Looks like the Specialties/Signature Asset points were spent right, but your Signature Asset trigger would not be included: you'd need to unlock "One With the Ship" after playing through some Episodes and then cashing them in for Advancement.

I hope that helps!

Anyone have an idea where I can find a pdf?

Unable to help, unfortunately. My friend has the PDF, but my own copy is hardback.

[Malkavian]

Have a first draft completed for my character - details not set in stone just yet though (still need to finish the background and get it added to the sheet, and need to double-check it for any errors I might have missed).

As before, if anyone wants to link their character in with mine somehow, feel free to prod me and we can work something out.

I've noted below that the ship belongs to Sam, but this is only because no one yelled obscenities at me when I asked if that would be an issue for any folks here. Until someone speaks up to raise issue with it, I'll work on the assumption that she, like other certain Browncoats before her, bought a boat some time after the War and used it to escape Alliance control.

It's also worth noting that whilst I've listed the ship as a Firefly to fill out the sheet, we've not all discussed whether the ship IS a Firefly, or whether we want it to be something different. Personally, I'd be happy to keep it as a Firefly - because that ship is gorgeous and iconic, as well as very common place in the 'Verse - but won't object to a different kind of boat if someone wants to change it up. We've also not yet decided on a ship name, either.

(Side-Note: Yes, the background quote is taken from the deleted scenes of the show. Since this was never aired - and because it was powerful stuff - I asked the GM if I could use it to flavour Sam's own experience in the Battle of Serenity Valley. He's said yes, meaning that this quote now refers to Sam.)

Old Sheet

Samantha "Sam" Winters
Ship Role: Captain
Character Description: "She was my sergeant. Commanded thirty young grunts. Five days in, there were so many officers dead she commanded two-thousand. Kept us together, kept us fighting, kept us sane. By the time the fightin' was over, she had maybe four hundred still intact. I said the fightin' was over, but ya see they left us there - wounded and sick and near to mad as can still walk and talk; both sides left us there while they negotiated the peace. For a week. And we kept dyin'. When they finally sent in medships, she had about a hundred-and-fifty left - and of our original platoon, just me. Mercy, forgiveness, trust... those are things she left back there. What she has now is that ship - the ship and those on it."

Attributes

| Mental: D8 | Physical: D8 | Social: D8

Skills

| Craft: D4 | Drive: D4 | Fight: D8 | Fix: D4 | Fly: D6 | Focus: D10 | Influence: D12 (Leadership) | Know: D4 | Labour: D4 | Move: D6

| Notice: D6 | Operate: D4 | Perform: D4 | Shoot: D10 (Pistols) | Sneak: D6 | Survive: D6 | Throw: D4 | Treat: D4 | Trick: D4

Distinctions

Ship's Captain: D8 A natural leader, you’re responsible for the Crew and the ship you all fly in. -> Gain 1 Plot Point when you roll a D4 instead of a D8. -> Protect the Crew: When a Crewmember in the same scene as you acquires a Complication, spend 1 PP to take it away and step it back. -> Lead the Crew: When one of your crew directly follows one of your orders, spend 1 PP and give that Crewmember an Asset equal to your Influence die rating. Steady: D8 It takes a lot to throw you off-balance. -> Gain 1 Plot Point when you roll a D4 instead of a D8. -> Got It in One: Spend 1 PP to roll your Focus and add it to your total. -> Sea of Calm: Spend 1 PP to use a Complication as an Asset for one Action; step up the Complication afterward. Veteran of the Unification War: D8 It don’t matter which side you fight on, war leaves a mark on your heart n’ soul. -> Gain 1 Plot Point when you roll a D4 instead of a D8. -> Fightin’ Type: Spend 1 PP to step up or double your Shoot or Fight when you’re outnumbered. -> War Stories: When you create an Asset or take a Complication related to a wartime flashback, step it up.

Signature Assets

The Ship: D8 Sam has a close connection to her ship, a Series 3 Firefly class mid-bulk transport, and won’t allow just anybody to fly or fix her. -> Keep Flyin’: When negotiating a job for your Crew, spend 1 Plot Point to step back a social Complication. -> Peace in the Black: When you offer wisdom or philosophize with a Crewmember on Serenity as part of a recovery Action, step up or double Treat. Valley's Song: D6 This is Sam’s Moses Brothers Self-Defense Engine Frontier Model B handgun, the standard issue officer’s sidearm during the Unification War. She’s since modified it to suit her needs. -> Pointed Emphasis: When you threaten someone with your sidearm or conduct negotiations at gunpoint, spend 1 Plot Point to double Influence for the Action.

Reputation

| Alliance: D4 | Browncoats: D10 | Corporations: D4 | Criminals: D6

[Crash]

After raising your Distinction skills from D4 to their new totals (D6, D8, or D10, depending on how many Distinctions a skill is listed on), you have 9 points to increase skills. Increasing any skills noted on your Distinctions costs 1 point per die step, but raising any skill NOT on your Distinctions costs 2 points per die step. Based on that, I think you might have spent 14 points rather than 9.

Based on the raises I believe you made after accounting for Distinction skill raises:

• Raising Drive from D4 to D6 would cost 2 points;
• Raising Fly from D6 to D12 would cost 3 points (Distinction skill, so costs 1 point per raise rather than 2);
• Raising Know from D4 to D6 would cost 2 points;
• Raising Perform from D8 to D10 would cost 1 point (Distinction skill);
• Raising Shoot from D4 to D8 would cost 4 points;
• Raising Sneak from D4 to D6 would cost 2 points.

Looks like the Specialties/Signature Asset points were spent right, but your Signature Asset trigger would not be included: you'd need to unlock "One With the Ship" after playing through some Episodes and then cashing them in for Advancement.

I hope that helps!

Unable to help, unfortunately. My friend has the PDF, but my own copy is hardback.

Thanks.  I forgot the non-distinction skills being 2pts to get 1pt.

[Malkavian]

No worries!

Thrilled to see you've put the Triggers into Ship's Pilot - feeling safer already.

[Crash]

No worries!

Thrilled to see you've put the Triggers into Ship's Pilot - feeling safer already.

Fixed her points.  Yeah I wanted to be a very good pilot.  It leaves the other triggers for character development like a few episodes in....”Wow, she can sing!”

[Malkavian]

Be sure to belt out those tunes when you're giving us a Crazy Ivan, dong ma?

[Crash]

Be sure to belt out those tunes when you're giving us a Crazy Ivan, dong ma?

Lol!  And I am fine with a Firefly class ship.  The rules seem to make modifying the ship pretty easy to make it your own, which is pretty cool.

[Malkavian]

Lol!  And I am fine with a Firefly class ship.  The rules seem to make modifying the ship pretty easy to make it your own, which is pretty cool.

They do indeed! Though regardless of what we choose, I think we need to take the "Been Around The 'Verse" Distinction, not only to represent it's weathered being (it would have to have been scrap, near-scrap, or a steal for Sam to be able to afford it), but also because of this sexy-ass Trigger (which I'm sure the Pilot will appreciate):

Well-Loved: Crewmembers on board may share Plot Points with another Crewmember who’s operatin’ the ship.

[Crash]

Nice.

[Crash]

I don't have the firefly rules and can't find a pdf version at Drivethru rpg. Amazon only had a hard cover, which I don't really want.

Anyone have an idea where I can find a pdf?

You may be able to download it.  The pdf isnt for sale anymore but I think you can find it for free places.

[greypsychman]

Here is a draft I put together. I probably made some mistakes because I was unfamiliar with the rules. I used the Bounty hunter template.

Kyler “Ole” Olson
Ship Role: Mercenary
Character Description:
Appearance:     Kyler is 6’ 1” tall and weighs 220 pounds.  He has brown hair, bright blue eyes, and a beard.  There is a 3 inch long scar on the front of his right shoulder and a 5 inch long scar on his abdomen that runs diagonally from his right waistline to just below his sternum. These were wounds received in combat.

Personality: He tends to be slightly quiet when first met, however, after you get to know him he has quite a sense of humor.  He enjoys carousing and when he has had a few too many drinks will break into bawdy military songs.  Kyler values honor and lives by his personal code of honor (Never take advantage of another person/ be fair, Be respectful at all times, and Always help a lady in distress).

Attributes
| Mental: D8
| Physical: D10
| Social: D6

Skills
| Craft: D4
| Drive: D6 (horses)
| Fight: D8 (grappling)
| Fix: D4
| Fly: D4
| Focus: D4
| Influence: D6
| Know: D6
| Labour: D6
| Move: D6
| Notice: D6
| Operate: D4
| Perform: D4
| Shoot: D10 (Pistols)
| Sneak: D6
| Survive: D6
| Throw: D6
| Treat: D4
| Trick: D4

Distinctions
Veteran of the Unification War: D8
It don’t matter which side you fight on, war leaves a mark on your heart n’ soul.
-> Gain 1 Plot Point when you roll a D4 instead of a D8.
-> Fightin’ Type: Spend 1 PP to step up or double your Shoot or Fight when you’re outnumbered.
-> War Stories: When you create an Asset or take a Complication related to a wartime flashback, step it up.

Signature Assets
Whisper Firearm d8: You know a well-placed bullet to the head will always attract attention—no matter who you’re shootin’ at. That’s why you pack a quiet gun.

The Whisper Firearm has a built-in silencer that suppresses the sound of gunfire.
Why, it’s perfect for a bounty hunter like yourself

[Malkavian]

Not yet checked the Skills, but you should have three Distinctions, not one. These will determine what your initial Skill die types are before you spend your 9 points to raise them (it costs 1 point to raise a Skill listed on your Distinctions by one die type, and 2 points to raise a Skill not listed on your Distinctions by one die type).