I realized there is another pitch-perfect genre that the Blades in the Dark rule set would accommodate with a little adjustment.
Racing. Especially illegal criminally connected racing. Either with cars, or with spaceships, or pods, or whatever.
The character types would have to change, but you could have the “heist” replaced with the race. Flashbacks to making deals with other factions and racers, with elements of corruption (throwing the race, sabotaging someone else’s vehicle, seducing a rival, killing a key resource, bolstering a vehicle with an infusion of cash, etc.)
The race determines prestige, requires repairs, involves a payout, and affects rivalries. While there is a pilot (and maybe gunner, depending on the kind of racing we’re talking about) you can have a character offering big-picture guidance to grant advantages and disadvantages, and to handle flashbacks to working with other factions. You could have a fixer who might have acquired the stuff you need at this moment in the race, before it started. You could have the saboteur/face, who deals with other groups to disrupt their unity or their gear, so they falter during the race at a critical moment as needed. And of course the artist/mechanic with the custom vision and methodology to make the perfect racing machine–and get a battered one back out on the track.
So you have like the pit crew and management, and that’s the crew. They have vehicles that they maintain and grant advantages to through custom gear, and sponsorship they must maintain to stay solvent (whether that’s criminal oversight, advertising companies, or a combination, or decadent nobles dueling by proxy.)
So you have downtime actions, then everybody gets a single action before the race (for a little role playing with a mechanical or fictional bite) then you have the race. During the race, mental focus is an issue, as is skill, the machine being driven, and the relationship to other drivers. As well as atmospheric conditions or other race-track specific things to make each race deliver its own challenges.
Then have a deck of challenges (or a table) for each track type, and at intervals, reveal a complication that the team as a whole prepared for ahead of time. If their prep isn’t enough, then there’s bad things that happen to the racer (or someone behind the scenes, depending on the kind of challenge.)
This setup would work great for Chariot Racing in ancient Rome.
Why stop there? What about sports anime with drama downtime between games? That way too, each PC could have various roles on the team, depending on the sport, making it less about a single person winning. Tier/rep would be titles/league access, claims may be fan support, special tactics/plays, equipment/facilities, maybe endorsements or special legendary trainers, etc.
Adam Minnie Good point! You could even have identified key leadership positions that could build cohorts. Injuries would be an issue, as would Real Life(tm) relationships at home etc.
Yo Andrew there’s a really interesting Fast and the Furious illegal Street Racing vibe here. Let me know if you actually are interested in something like this more than an intellectual exercise. 🙂 Because that sounds kinda awesome.
Stras Acimovic Glad you like it! I can see the connection, but I’m not a racing fan or a sports fan, so I don’t think I’m the right one to run with it. It would be cool if someone else did, though. =)
My latest Leech is a hull repairman based on Vin Diesels char from fast and the Furious so … I’m a fan :p But I’m buried under stretch goals of my own. I do have some vehicle tech to share (in the form of ships) but I can’t tank yet another stretch goal these days. I can only play support for a bit.
I am 1000% on board for Fast and Furious Blades.
So Matthew – how do YOU feel about doing a hack 😉
But can you make the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs?
I had some downtime today and with my two actions (I’m all outta coin) was totally thinking about putting together some actions and playbooks based on this (just watched Tokyo Drift for about the tenth time last night). Want to check I’m not stepping on any toes here though.
Go for it!
Let us know if you need help or support!
Thanks! And I definitely will. At the very least, I’ll probably post the Actions list once I feel OK about it.
Ok, I’m going to just post this here for the time being so I don’t spam up the hacks and add-ons section just yet. Here is my first round of Actions
– Reflexes
BRAWL with an opponent in combat. Wrestle, fight, shoot, or even use your car as a weapon.
DRIFT through tight spaces, turns, or obstacles. Walk a thin line between control and disaster.
FINESSE your car through a challenging course or obstacles. Perform acts of physical dexterity.
PROWL about unseen or unnoticed. Stealthily traverse obstacles. Ambush with violence.
– Genius
BOOST your car through perfect shifting, cornering, or with nitrous oxide. Rapidly accelerate or close the distance.
HACK computers and cars. Hotwire a vehicle. Tune a vehicle’s computer. Write programs.
OVERHAUL an engine, suspension, or entire vehicle. Repair or perform maintenance on a car. Upgrade and augment a ride.
POSITION yourself or your car advantageously. Move into a place to pass or hold off an opponent.
– Persona
COMMAND obedience with your force of personality. Intimidate or make a threat. Lead an action with your teams or allies.
CONSORT with connections from your heritage, background, friends, or rivals. Engage socially.
JUDGE a location, situation, car, or person. See what is really going on. Gather information about opportunities.
FRONT with friends, rivals, or connections. Put on a show, brag, or boast. Deceive those around you (can also apply to a car).
There we go. Its a very alpha round, but I feel like I could start a game with those. I like where they are, but nothing there is set in stone.
Finesse is a little unclear when viewed against Position and Drift. The rest seem ok. Front probably doesn’t need the parens. Consort should definitely mention family (possibly in bold). Looks good for alpha.
Great! Thanks for the feedback. I’ll definitely try and parse that out a bit more.
I’m actually thinking I may just replace Finesse with WRECK. It actually works pretty well in the space.
Mark Cleveland Massengale