Savage Worlds House Rules

Wounds

No Wild Card can ever take more than one Wound of damage at a time, no matter how high the damage roll actually is. Therefore, a Wild Card who is not shaken who takes 558 damage on a single attack roll will only be reduced to being Shaken and having 1 Wound (-1). Heroes (and Villains) simply don’t go down with one lucky shot.

Leftover Bennies

Any and all unspent Bennies automatically convert to 1 SAVAGE POINT. 5 Savage Points automatically convert to 1 extra Experience Point.

Character Creation

We’re building heroes, not laymen. The following changes help towards that…

-Trait Points: You begin play with 1 extra Attribute Point (for a total of 6 instead of 5).

-Skill Points: You begin play with 20 Skill Points instead of 15.

-Edges: All Wild Cards begin play with one free Background Edge.   

-Skill Changes: Some skills are just redundant, and a few have been mashed together so that you don’t go insane wasting Skill Points on Skills that are very similar. Some skills also now have a choice between which attribute they are linked to. A list of all Savage Worlds Skills changes are listed below.

Athletics (Strength or Agility)
This new skill mashes together swimming, climbing, and covers pretty much anything physically challenging that your character might be called upon to do, like vault over an endless pit, dive out of the way of an oncoming boulder, or other physically taxing things.

Navigation (Agility)
This new skill mashes together Boating, Driving and Piloting, and covers anything you ride that is not a living creature (that is covered by riding). Higher ratings in this Skill grant you the ability to pilot more complex vehicles.

Primal (Spirit)
This new skill acts as a social skill made towards wild beasts and animals. With Primal, you can judge the emotional state of an animal and even train and domesticate one given time and resources to do so. Your Charisma modifier affects Primal rolls. This skill only works against natural beasts and animals, and you can't go around taming monsters or the like.

Fighting (Strength or Agility)
This all-important skill is now linked to either your Strength or Agility, since both Traits can aid nicely when it comes time to smash something.

Intimidation (Spirit or Strength)
If you're big and mean, you tend to scare people. Also, treat negative Charisma gained from the ugly and bloodthirsty Hindrances as a bonus when rolling to intimidate someone, and treat positive Charisma gained from the Attractive or Charismatic Edges as a negative modifier. Pretty and charming people rarely come off threatening.

Streetwise (Smarts)
Having Notice and Streetwise allows you to track people in cities with a Notice roll.

Survival (Spirit or Smarts)
I never liked that this skill was linked to Smarts, mainly because there are several primitive beings and species (Goblins, Orcs, etc) that aren't very brainy, but must get along in the wild using cunning and instinct as opposed to brainpower. Having Notice and Survival allows you to track people in the wild with a Notice roll.

Healing (Smarts or Spirit)
I find healers to be of two particular schools: The super smart "I went to medical school" sort, and the hearth-wisdom sort, who use herbal remedies and more holistic manners of healing to mend the body. Depending on what Trait you use for your healing depends on your particular "School" of study.

Agility Skills
Lockpicking
Riding
Shooting
Stealth
Throwing

Smarts Skills
Notice
Gambling
Investigation
Knowledge
Repair
Spellcasting
Mad Science

Spirit Skills
Persuasion
Taunt
Faith

Special Rippers Rule: Factions

If you wish to be part of a Faction, you gain a free Faction Edge at Character creation. However, you also pick up your Faction Weakness, as detailed below.

Masked Crusaders: Masked vigilantes aren’t exactly socially acceptable (neither are they deputized agents of the law), and you gain the Wanted (Major) Hindrance as a result. If you are ever apprehended by the law, surely you will hang! Once you reach Seasoned rank, the local authorities are convinced that you are on their side, and this Hindrance is reduced to Wanted (Major). Once you reach Heroic Rank, the Hindrance is removed altogether.

Old Worlders: You don’t really fit in with civilized society due to your backwards superstitions and beliefs, and suffer a -1 Charisma Penalty when dealing with those who don’t come from your…quaint little part of the world.

Rosicrucians: Your inherent link and attraction to magical energies makes you particularly vulnerable to any spellcasting made against you. Any magical attack made against you enjoys a +1 bonus.

Slayers: Spending so much of your time hounding creatures of the night has made you nocturnal, and you suffer a -1 penalty to all applicable rolls made before noon. You can spend a Benny to overcome this weakness for 1 hour.

Order of St. George: Your order and Faith demand that you uphold a strict level of conduct befitting of a holy agent. This gives you the Code of Honor (Major) Hindrance. You must strictly adhere to the dogma of your Faith in order to keep your holy power and status. Acting beneath these strict rules robs you of your ability to cast spells until you atone for your sins. Minor infractions may only require a day of prayer and contemplation, but major infractions may penalize you actual Experience Points!

Witch Hunters: Fanaticism is your stock and trade, and minions of Evil deserve no quarter! You gain the Vengeful (Major) Hindrance, and don’t take prisoners when it comes to those who are truly evil. Petty thieves and the like don’t raise your ire, but those who work for infernal or truly evil Masters deserve nothing but the sword!

Frazer’s Fighters (Rippers Companion): Home? You have no home. An insatiable wanderlust consumes the intrepid men and women of this Faction, and you find it incredibly difficult to settle down in one local for long. You must travel for at least one week out of every month or gain a level of Fatigue. This level can only be removed by a week’s worth of travel per level of Fatigue induced. No, you cannot freaking DIE in this fashion…duh.