Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

[James Gillen]

After some time, our group is once again going to do Pulp HERO, but this time I'm not the GM. Our friend Jason is running it at his sister's place with me, Don and Aaron (from the last game) also participating.

 

Jason is a little bit of a killer GM. He is also, shall I say, not politically correct. He did specify that characters who take Disads like "Woman" or "Minority" would be fully penalized for them. Of course, the fact that this is the Pulp era means that such Disads are feasible in game terms, and worth points. And since we were only allowed 25 points per Disadvantage category, we had to scrounge. So the results are consistent mainly in being oddball.

 

Me: Rich Man

I wanted to make the stereotype Jack of all Trades Two-Fisted Hero, but not only could I not come up with enough Disads, I couldn't get the personality concept to jell. So I stripped it to the core of the "Dilettante" package who would finance the group and use his influence for them. At the same time I wanted him to have just enough ability to survive adventuring, so he actually has Survival and Weapon Familiarities (from the various times Father took him on safari).

 

Now given that the character somewhat fits the anti-Semitic stereotype of the financier who uses his wealth, fast-talk and connections to get ahead, it was suggested that I make the character Jewish. I wasn't sure at first, but I embraced the concept, for three reasons:

1. It gives me an automatic reason to be Hunted by Nazis;

2. It allows for certain Social Disadvantages that cause the character to suffer a handicap in his social circle that he would not otherwise;

3. Most importantly, if my character concept is "Rich Man," then making the character Jewish means I can actually give him the surname "Richman."

 

Billie: Private Eye Doll

The GM's sister is making the group's Detective. She is the effective brains of the outfit (18 INT) and also is gorgeous enough to qualify for a Distinctive Feature, but acts primarily though her high Presence (her description is somewhere between Barbra Stanwyck and Hedy Lamarr). And for some reason her primary weapon is a submachine gun.

 

Of course being a female character in the 1930s creates automatic disadvantages. In addition to Social Limitation: Woman, she doesn't actually own her detective agency, and like "Remington Steele" had to hire a male front. In this case it's her idiot brother. Thus she has both a 14 or less DNPC and a clear motive to keep him around despite him being a Disadvantage. Looking around, Billie needed to find some more Disadvantages, so she took both the Alcoholic Dependency and the Physical Limitation "Frequent Blackouts." Still trying to complete the character, her husband looked over Social Limitations again and asked, "What about 'Dark Secret: Lesbian'?" Billie said, "Okay!"

 

Jim: Mad Rocket Scientist

Billie's husband Jim is making the Mad Scientist whose primary contribution to the group will be the points he spent for a massive Rocketship (Vehicle) not to mention the Base where he built it. We were discussing how this ship actually worked and Jim said, "It'll work with a small nuclear pile."

Jason said, "Your character has a nuclear pile in his basement, in 1934?"

I said, "Well, at least that explains why he's being Hunted by Nazis."

 

Jim also bought the full 10 points of Age Disadvantage, so the scientist has most of his stats at 10 or less but a 28 INT, making all his INT-based skills 15 or less. So he's really smart, really old, and has his own rocketship. He's basically Professor Farnsworth from Futurama.

 

Jim also said the character was going to be German. So I suggested naming him "Klankenhissen."

He may actually use that.

 

Don: Chinese Hood

Don is playing a Chinese criminal. With Martial Arts. This makes him an ethnic stereotype, but we really need a character with unarmed combat skill and a CV higher than 5. His criminal background also justifies giving him Disguise skill. Don was thinking that he might be able to mitigate the effect of his Social Limitation: Minority by disguising himself as a Caucasian. Then he would be "Secret Asian Man."

 

From what Don was describing Aaron was going to be either a Nosy Reporter or a Voodoo Priest. Knowing Aaron he's probably going to end up with a reporter who's also a Voodoo priest. Aaron seems to like off-the-wall concepts. In the game I ran, he was Cain. As in, Son of Adam, the Third Mortal, CAIN. The way he described it, the whole thing started over a girl.

 

JG

[shadowcat1313]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

neat ideas... there are never enough politically incorrect games out there. politically correct has always been a bad idea at the best of times. too often its nothing but a worthless excuse for censorship.

[James Gillen]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

neat ideas... there are never enough politically incorrect games out there.

 

I certainly think so.

 

jg

[bubba smith]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

After some time' date=' our group is once again going to do [i']Pulp HERO[/i], but this time I'm not the GM. Our friend Jason is running it at his sister's place with me, Don and Aaron (from the last game) also participating.

 

Jason is a little bit of a killer GM. He is also, shall I say, not politically correct. He did specify that characters who take Disads like "Woman" or "Minority" would be fully penalized for them. Of course, the fact that this is the Pulp era means that such Disads are feasible in game terms, and worth points. And since we were only allowed 25 points per Disadvantage category, we had to scrounge. So the results are consistent mainly in being oddball.

 

Me: Rich Man

I wanted to make the stereotype Jack of all Trades Two-Fisted Hero, but not only could I not come up with enough Disads, I couldn't get the personality concept to jell. So I stripped it to the core of the "Dilettante" package who would finance the group and use his influence for them. At the same time I wanted him to have just enough ability to survive adventuring, so he actually has Survival and Weapon Familiarities (from the various times Father took him on safari).

 

Now given that the character somewhat fits the anti-Semitic stereotype of the financier who uses his wealth, fast-talk and connections to get ahead, it was suggested that I make the character Jewish. I wasn't sure at first, but I embraced the concept, for three reasons:

1. It gives me an automatic reason to be Hunted by Nazis;

2. It allows for certain Social Disadvantages that cause the character to suffer a handicap in his social circle that he would not otherwise;

3. Most importantly, if my character concept is "Rich Man," then making the character Jewish means I can actually give him the surname "Richman."

 

Billie: Private Eye Doll

The GM's sister is making the group's Detective. She is the effective brains of the outfit (18 INT) and also is gorgeous enough to qualify for a Distinctive Feature, but acts primarily though her high Presence (her description is somewhere between Barbra Stanwyck and Hedy Lamarr). And for some reason her primary weapon is a submachine gun.

 

Of course being a female character in the 1930s creates automatic disadvantages. In addition to Social Limitation: Woman, she doesn't actually own her detective agency, and like "Remington Steele" had to hire a male front. In this case it's her idiot brother. Thus she has both a 14 or less DNPC and a clear motive to keep him around despite him being a Disadvantage. Looking around, Billie needed to find some more Disadvantages, so she took both the Alcoholic Dependency and the Physical Limitation "Frequent Blackouts." Still trying to complete the character, her husband looked over Social Limitations again and asked, "What about 'Dark Secret: Lesbian'?" Billie said, "Okay!"

 

Jim: Mad Rocket Scientist

Billie's husband Jim is making the Mad Scientist whose primary contribution to the group will be the points he spent for a massive Rocketship (Vehicle) not to mention the Base where he built it. We were discussing how this ship actually worked and Jim said, "It'll work with a small nuclear pile."

Jason said, "Your character has a nuclear pile in his basement, in 1934?"

I said, "Well, at least that explains why he's being Hunted by Nazis."

 

Jim also bought the full 10 points of Age Disadvantage, so the scientist has most of his stats at 10 or less but a 28 INT, making all his INT-based skills 15 or less. So he's really smart, really old, and has his own rocketship. He's basically Professor Farnsworth from Futurama.

 

Jim also said the character was going to be German. So I suggested naming him "Klankenhissen."

He may actually use that.

 

Don: Chinese Hood

Don is playing a Chinese criminal. With Martial Arts. This makes him an ethnic stereotype, but we really need a character with unarmed combat skill and a CV higher than 5. His criminal background also justifies giving him Disguise skill. Don was thinking that he might be able to mitigate the effect of his Social Limitation: Minority by disguising himself as a Caucasian. Then he would be "Secret Asian Man."

 

From what Don was describing Aaron was going to be either a Nosy Reporter or a Voodoo Priest. Knowing Aaron he's probably going to end up with a reporter who's also a Voodoo priest. Aaron seems to like off-the-wall concepts. In the game I ran, he was Cain. As in, Son of Adam, the Third Mortal, CAIN. The way he described it, the whole thing started over a girl.

 

JG

secret asian man? OUCH

as for the REMINGTON STEEL comparison i thought that in the shows storyline laura holt DID own the agency she just made up a male name to attract buisness?

[James Gillen]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

as for the REMINGTON STEEL comparison i thought that in the shows storyline laura holt DID own the agency she just made up a male name to attract buisness?

 

Well, it was a long time since I saw it. But yeah I think here the assumption is that Billie's PC couldn't actually get her own agency (in the 1930s) and so had to have her brother do it.

 

jg

[Nolgroth]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

Well, it was a long time since I saw it. But yeah I think here the assumption is that Billie's PC couldn't actually get her own agency (in the 1930s) and so had to have her brother do it.

 

jg

As the kind of GM that so loves to toy with the characters, Billie's brother would be such a slimeball over that one too. Or, he makes a perfect target for some sort of evil mystic to mind control. Ahhh. The fun I could have with that one.

[bubba smith]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

thanks guys

[Merovign]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

If there ever was a genre that was politically incorrect, it was pulp. Apart from expressely anti-PC fiction or maybe S&M fiction, I can't think of anything farther down that path.

 

The cool thing about it, is that PC is as much about enforcing stereotypes as it is about opposing them, so stepping away from it purposefully lets you explore options that might not have occurred to you otherwise. It's kind of Zen.

[Kristopher]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

Was the treatment of women really still that loathably Victorian by the 30s? Were, say, the female aviation pioneers really that exceptional for the era?

[James Gillen]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

Was the treatment of women really still that loathably Victorian by the 30s? Were' date=' say, the female aviation pioneers really that exceptional for the era?[/quote']

 

Well, the fact that they could be aviators was a big deal, but then flight was in it's infancy, so any aviator was a big deal.

 

jg

[James Gillen]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

After some goofing around and lateness we finally got to the first actual game tonight. I am Jonathan Richman, Billie is Virginia Armous, Jim is Professor von Hessen, and Don is Charlie Law.

 

Each character was given an invitation to attend a dinner held by a certain rich gentleman who had an offer fitting each character's "special talents." Each arrived separately. In this week's event, my character got laid by the maid (and then hypnotized by powers unknown), Don's character introduced himself at the dinner as a "professional ruffian," the lady detective experienced a psychic omen of bad news, and Jim tried selling his case for scientific funding to all the rich people at the event, leading to the second best line of the night: "Haven't you ever wanted a subatomic particle named after you?"

 

The best line was when Don and Billie were out-of-character comparing the concealed weapons they had on their bodies and Don said, "That's the really cool thing about playing in the Pulp Era. There's no such thing as metal detectors."

 

jg

[Manic Typist]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

Aaron seems to like off-the-wall concepts. In the game I ran, he was Cain. As in, Son of Adam, the Third Mortal, CAIN. The way he described it, the whole thing started over a girl.

 

JG

 

*Stops everything he's doing*

 

 

TELL ME THAT STORY. Now please!

[James Gillen]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

*Stops everything he's doing*

 

 

TELL ME THAT STORY. Now please!

 

He didn't really go into details.

 

jg

[James Gillen]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

Best dialogue of last game: After Virginia sees Professor von Hessen melt an iron lock with his experimental Ray Gun:

 

"Wait, I remember you were in the papers this month. Didn't one of your research assistants get killed in an accident?"

"Probably."

[sinanju]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

Best dialogue of last game: After Virginia sees Professor von Hessen melt an iron lock with his experimental Ray Gun:

 

"Wait, I remember you were in the papers this month. Didn't one of your research assistants get killed in an accident?"

"Probably."

 

(Futurama)

Farnsworth: "You'll be my new delivery crew!"

Frye: "What happened to the old crew?"

Farnsworth: "Oh...those poor bast--but that's not important right now!"

 

AND

 

Farnsworth (to new crew): "You'll be the captain, you'll be the delivery boy, and you'll be the foul-mouthed alcoholic--"

(He's interrupted by the return of the presumed dead crew.)

Farnsworth (whispers to new crew): "Check back in a week. Ten days at the outside."

[Markdoc]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

Was the treatment of women really still that loathably Victorian by the 30s? Were' date=' say, the female aviation pioneers really that exceptional for the era?[/quote']

 

Yes, and yes. It's why they (female aviators) were such a big deal. Remember women in the US didn't have the right to vote until 1920, could be jailed for using contraceptives up until the mid 1930s (men could not be), and single women were routinely refused bank loans and mortgages (making it impossible to start or run a business) into the 1960's: that was one of the issues specifically addressed in The Civil Rights Act of 1968 - and even then, it was enough of a problem that it had to be amended by the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988.

 

So a woman wanting to start her own (legal) business without some sort of male co-signer would be a very rare bird indeed in the 1930's. In 1936, Margaret Bourke-White - an internationally famous photographer, with a prestigious Time-Life position - was unable to lease a studio in New York without a male co-signer, even though she could prove she had a high income. As far as I know there were no laws against it - it just "wasn't done".

 

cheers, Mark

[st barbara]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

The "female detective" would be difficult if you are playing a strictly period game. However, after the great war I would think that it is possible that there may have been some leftover spies of the female sex around (ala Mata Hari). As a literary precedent the vengeance driven female criminal ("Domino Lady" is the template here, although I haven't read any of her stories) might also be viable. (Note. "Amazon" mentions a collection of "Domino Lady" stories being available, but although I have ordered a copy , it hasn't actually appeared yet. Title is "Domino Lady : Sex As A Weapon")

[James Gillen]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

(Futurama)

Farnsworth: "You'll be my new delivery crew!"

Frye: "What happened to the old crew?"

Farnsworth: "Oh...those poor bast--but that's not important right now!"

 

AND

 

Farnsworth (to new crew): "You'll be the captain, you'll be the delivery boy, and you'll be the foul-mouthed alcoholic--"

(He's interrupted by the return of the presumed dead crew.)

Farnsworth (whispers to new crew): "Check back in a week. Ten days at the outside."

 

Like I said, that's what this guy reminds me of.

 

jg

[James Gillen]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

So all the weirdness culminated last week when we went down into the mansion basement and had to save the maid from being sacrificed to some obscene fertility rite to an extradimensional horror. In the midst of all this, after we were being debriefed by authorities, we realized that the owner's creepy old grandmother and her manservant were nowhere to be seen. Having discovered the Who and the What, if not the Why, of the whole affair, Week 2 ended upon Professor von Hessen getting an emergency phone call from his assistant Harold, who told him some femme fatale spy had managed to con him and steal the Professor's rocketship. The fact that he HAD a rocketship was news to the PCs, if not to the government, which spent some time in Week 3 discussing the issue with the professor:

 

Agent: We have seen reports of this woman before. She's worked with the British, and the Russians.

Charlie Law: Why would she work with the Communists? They can't pay anything.

Agent: She'll work for whoever pays enough. She may also be working with the Nazis. As we understand it, Professor, you had some disagreements with them.

Von Hessen: Yes. I left Germany on bad terms.

Charlie: Napoleon was invading.

Von Hessen: (turning to my character) Care to join us?

Jonathan: Well, I just met everyone here, and I have to say, what's in it for me? I mean, as I understand it, we have to go up into the Cascade Mountains and track down a spy and a stolen rocketship? I mean that sounds like some kind of crazy science-fiction! Wait a minute, you're the guy with the Ray Gun. Never mind.

[James Gillen]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

The last couple of weeks we were investigating mysterious disappearances that occured immediately after an unidentified flying object entered Earth's atmosphere above Greenland to hit somewhere on Earth. The one young boy we found from the last site reported that the aliens who stole his family were petite blondes with blue skin, wearing tube-like stun weapons and silver bikinis (the bikini being another area of technology where the aliens were decades above Pulp Era Earth).

With help from some mysterious Government contacts we determined that the disappearances were spaced about 4 to 8 days apart, and had generally been following a straight path across the Earth, most recently spanning from California to Boston.

 

SO we packed up the Professor's rocketship with camping supplies and parked it in the rural New England area and set up experimental radar to pick up the UFO. After four days, sure enough there was a blip. We launched the ship, realizing that the UFO was substantially faster than us, and traced it to outside Nashville, where we discovered the ship was one of those giant spaceships supported by three pylons, substantially bigger than ours as well.

 

Realizing we would be outgunned, Professor von Hessen decided to disable the alien ship by doing a MOVE-THROUGH to knock it over, hoping that we would do enough damage to cause Knockback. We did, by a factor of 2 BODY. The half damage we took did 4 past the hull. Thus von Hessen leapt from Mad Scientist straight up to Bat$#!t Insane Scientist category.

 

The problem of course was that when the alien ship landed on its side, the entry hatch up at the side was pointing up toward the side, so the only way we could get in was by dropping down a rope. Charlie Law went in as scout, followed immediately by the Professor, who wanted to get his hands on as much of the alien tech as possible.

 

So Charlie found a holding cell where several Earthlings were kept unconscious, then went to an upper deck where there was a sign marked (conveniently in English) "BRIDGE." This was apparently the part hit by our ship, because it was totally wrecked and Charlie could see daylight through the walls. He also saw that one of the dead alien bikini girls was slumped over a panel with a blinking red light and a display going "28-27..."

 

Realizing he couldn't save the Professor (much less the unconscious civilians) in time, Charlie hauled von Hessen to the bridge to see if he could stop the clock. However, the Professor didn't actually have Demolitions Skill. The GM called on Jim (von Hessen) to roll Inventor as a Complementary Skill to Mechanics. So Jim, with his 15- INT Roll, rolled 9 on Inventor, getting a +3 to the main roll.

GM: "So roll the Mechanics, and don't fumble."

Jim: [rolls 18]

The timer goes from 20 to "3-2--"

GM: "Next week."

 

JG

[bubba smith]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

The last couple of weeks we were investigating mysterious disappearances that occured immediately after an unidentified flying object entered Earth's atmosphere above Greenland to hit somewhere on Earth. The one young boy we found from the last site reported that the aliens who stole his family were petite blondes with blue skin, wearing tube-like stun weapons and silver bikinis (the bikini being another area of technology where the aliens were decades above Pulp Era Earth).

With help from some mysterious Government contacts we determined that the disappearances were spaced about 4 to 8 days apart, and had generally been following a straight path across the Earth, most recently spanning from California to Boston.

 

SO we packed up the Professor's rocketship with camping supplies and parked it in the rural New England area and set up experimental radar to pick up the UFO. After four days, sure enough there was a blip. We launched the ship, realizing that the UFO was substantially faster than us, and traced it to outside Nashville, where we discovered the ship was one of those giant spaceships supported by three pylons, substantially bigger than ours as well.

 

Realizing we would be outgunned, Professor von Hessen decided to disable the alien ship by doing a MOVE-THROUGH to knock it over, hoping that we would do enough damage to cause Knockback. We did, by a factor of 2 BODY. The half damage we took did 4 past the hull. Thus von Hessen leapt from Mad Scientist straight up to Bat$#!t Insane Scientist category.

 

The problem of course was that when the alien ship landed on its side, the entry hatch up at the side was pointing up toward the side, so the only way we could get in was by dropping down a rope. Charlie Law went in as scout, followed immediately by the Professor, who wanted to get his hands on as much of the alien tech as possible.

 

So Charlie found a holding cell where several Earthlings were kept unconscious, then went to an upper deck where there was a sign marked (conveniently in English) "BRIDGE." This was apparently the part hit by our ship, because it was totally wrecked and Charlie could see daylight through the walls. He also saw that one of the dead alien bikini girls was slumped over a panel with a blinking red light and a display going "28-27..."

 

Realizing he couldn't save the Professor (much less the unconscious civilians) in time, Charlie hauled von Hessen to the bridge to see if he could stop the clock. However, the Professor didn't actually have Demolitions Skill. The GM called on Jim (von Hessen) to roll Inventor as a Complementary Skill to Mechanics. So Jim, with his 15- INT Roll, rolled 9 on Inventor, getting a +3 to the main roll.

GM: "So roll the Mechanics, and don't fumble."

Jim: [rolls 18]

The timer goes from 20 to "3-2--"

GM: "Next week."

 

JG

quick guys SCRAM[i'm not even playing in this game and i've gotten into it]

[Maelstrom]

Re: Our New Pulp HERO Game: Adventures in Political Incorrectness

 

*eating popcorn*

 

IT'S THE RED WIRE! THE RED ONE!