Lives in Savage Zanzibar

Ewart Scott Grogan, explorer circa 1900

As part of Savage Zanzibar (a name I’m using now but did not use when I was working on the project), I created a selection of pre-generated characters. This was not due to the intrinsic linking of the characters to the plot (my usual reason for pre-gens in home game) but due to ease of use for the players (my usual reason for pre-gens at a con).

Here are the basics for those pre-gens. Be forewarned, I am by no means an expert with Savage Worlds, so there may be errors.

Adventurer
Experience: 20 Seasoned
Agility: d8; Smarts: d6; Spirit: d4; Strength: d6; Vigour: d6
Skills: Fighting d8; Guts d6; Notice d4; Shooting d8; Survival d8; Tracking d6
Pace: 2m; Parry: d8; Toughness: d6; Charisma -1
Hindrance: All Thumbs; Habit (choose 1 minor); Self-Image (choose)
Edge: Ambidextrous; Danger Sense; Two-Fisted
Equipment: Wilkins Navy Revolver (4/8/16, 2d6+2, 5 shots); Wilkins Percussion Revolver (4/8/16, 2d6-1, 5 shots); Springfield .52 Breechloading Rifle (5/10/20, 2d8, 1 shot); Bowie knife (Str+2); sundry other equipment
Resource: Royal Geographic Society – the character is well-known to the members and those interested in the Royal Geographic Society and can request information or minor assistance

Dilettante
Experience: 20 Seasoned
Agility: d6; Smarts: d8; Spirit: d6; Strength: d4; Vigour: d6
Skills: Fighting d8; Gambling d10; Persuasion d8+2; Riding d6; Shooting d4; Taunt d8+2
Pace: 2m; Parry: d8+1; Toughness: d6
Hindrance: Clueless; Disowned; Greedy (minor)
Edge: Block; Boxing; Fight Dirty; Witty
Equipment: Able & Sons Percussion Dueling Pistols (pair, 4/7/13, 2d6+2, 1 shot); silver and metal-shod walking stick with sword (Str+2); sundry other equipment
Resource: High Society – the character has contacts in the upper class and can request information or minor assistance
Note: when unarmed, Fighting d8, Parry d8+1, damage d4+4

Investigator
Experience: 20 Seasoned
Agility: d6; Smarts: d8; Spirit: d6; Strength: d4; Vigour: d6
Skills: Fighting d6; Guts d6; Investigation d8+2; Notice d8+4; Persuasion d6; Shooting d4+2; Stealth d4; Streetwise d8+2
Pace: 2m; Parry: d6; Toughness: d6
Hindrance: Heroic
Edge: Alertness; Investigator; Keen Eyes
Equipment: Charleston & Co. Percussion Pepperbox (3/6/12, 2d6-1, 5 shots); baton (Str+2); notebook and pencil; sundry other equipment
Resource: Police Contact – the character has a contact within the police and can request minor assistance

Military Doctor
Experience: 20 Seasoned
Agility: d6; Smarts: d10; Spirit: d6; Strength: d4; Vigour: d6
Skills: Fighting d8; Gambling d8; Healing d10+4; Knowledge (medicine) d8+2; Persuasion d6; Shooting d6
Pace: 1.5m; Parry: d8; Toughness: d6
Hindrance: Lame; Loyal; Pacifist (minor)
Edge: Healer; Level-Headed; Skilled (Healing, Knowledge [medicine])
Equipment: Barnes Percussion Pistol (concealable, 3/6/12, 2d6+1, 1 shot); metal-headed walking stick (Str+3); medical kit in a doctor’s bag; sundry other equipment
Resource: Medical Licence – the character can legally practise medicine and has access to other medical practitioners with which to consult or refer

Occultist
Experience: 20 Seasoned
Agility: d4; Smarts: d8; Spirit: d10; Strength: d4; Vigour: d6
Skills: Fighting d4; Guts d10; Investigation d6+2; Knowledge (occult) d8; Notice d8; Persuasion d10+2
Pace: 2m; Parry: d8; Toughness: d6
Hindrance: Anemic; Cautious; Curious
Edge: Inquisitive; Luck; Smart Defence
Equipment: Barnes Percussion Pistol (concealable, 3/6/12, 2d6+1, 1 shot); walking stick (Str+2); sundry other equipment
Resource: Occult Contacts – the character is well known within occult circles and can request information or minor assistance

Sailor
Experience: 20 Seasoned
Agility: d10; Smarts: d4; Spirit: d4; Strength: d6; Vigour: d8
Skills: Boating d8; Climbing d6+2; Fighting d6; Gambling d6; Intimidation d6; Shooting d6; Swimming d6+2; Throwing d6
Pace: 2m; Parry: d6+1; Toughness: d8
Hindrance: Big Mouth; Loyal
Edge: Acrobat, Athletic
Equipment: Barnes Horseman’s Pistol (4/8/16, 2d6+2, 1 shot); long knife (damage d6+2); sundry other equipment
Resource: Merchant Guild – the character has contacts in the among the merchants and independent captains and can request information or minor assistance

Smuggler
Experience: 20 Seasoned
Agility: d8; Smarts: d4; Spirit: d8; Strength: d6; Vigour: d6
Skills: Boating d8; Climbing d6; Fighting d8; Guts d6; Intimidation d8; Swimming d8; Shooting d6-2
Pace: 2m; Parry: d6; Toughness: d6+1
Hindrance: One Eye; Illiterate;
Edge: Brawny, Deceitful
Equipment: Barnes Percussion Pistol (concealable, 3/6/12, 2d6+1, 1 shot); long knife (damage d6+2); patch over eye; sundry other equipment
Resource: The Docks – the character has contacts in the among the sailors and dockside merchants and can request information or minor assistance

Soldier of Fortune
Experience: 20 Seasoned
Agility: d10; Smarts: d4; Spirit: d6; Strength: d6; Vigour: d6
Skills Fighting d10; Guts d6; Intimidation d6; Notice d4; Shooting d12
Pace: 2m; Parry: d10; Toughness: d6
Hindrance: Code of Honour, Doubting Thomas, Quirk (choose one minor quirk)
Edge: Marksman, Quick, Quick Draw, Trademark Weapon (Wilkins Navy Revolver)
Equipment: Wilkins Navy Revolver (+1 Shooting, 4/8/16, 2d6+2, 5 shots); Springfield .52 Breechloading Rifle (5/10/20, 2d8, 1 shot); Bowie knife (Str+2); sundry other equipment
Resource: Armoury – per session, d8 to have a specific weapon or armament; can make a shooting check to negotiate over prices of armaments

Thief
Experience: 20 Seasoned
Agility: d8; Smarts: d6; Spirit: d6; Strength: d6; Vigour: d6
Skills: Climb d6+2; Fighting d6; Lockpick d8+2; Notice d6+2; Shooting d6; Stealth d8+2; Streetwise d6
Pace: 2m; Parry: d6; Toughness: d6
Hindrance: Enemy (minor-who?); Vengeance (minor); Wanted (major – where and why?)
Edge: Alertness; Light Fingers; Quick; Thief
Equipment: Barnes Percussion Pistol (concealable, 3/6/12, 2d6+1, 1 shot); flick knife (Str+1); lockpicks; sundry other equipment
Resource: Underworld – the character has contacts in the criminal underworld and can request information or minor assistance

Savage Zanzibar

Let’s take a break about talking about Pandora Excess. Going through my old work getting nostalgic for some projects for other publishers that turned into total clusterfucks and led to nothing, I found a folder for a Savage Worlds Victorian alt-history/steampunk (I guess any steampunk is alt-history . . .) set in a Zanzibar colonized and administered by the Germans (due to an accelerated German colonization effort kicked off due to German Unification happening at the time of the German Confederation).

The reason I had chosen Zanzibar was due to its connections with the exploration of East Africa, and the work coincided with my reading Sir Richard Francis Burton’s First Footsteps in East Africa. I chose to have it run by the Germans as a very strong signal that this was not the history we know. While some might be aware of Germany’s late entry into the colonization of Africa, the mention of Prussian Zanzibar did the trick of shocking my players into a recognition that this place was very differentâ„¢.

The plan was to have a couple of adventures immersing the PCs in a supernatural plot in Zanzibar, which would lead them onto the continent and get them involved in the exploration of East Africa. Two inspirations for the atmospherics for this part of the game would be the movies Mountains of the Moon and the Ghost and the Darkness.

This never happened. The playtest ran for two sessions, introducing the players to alt-Zanzibar and got them involved in the Zanzibar underworld and had a single encounter with something that was very wrong.

Very, very wrong.

I’m going to post some of the resources I was using, including the pre-generated characters, in the coming days. That will give you a nice break from my Borderlands obsession.

You can find more information on the amazing Sir Richard Francis Burton at Wikipedia.

You can find find his book First Footsteps in East Africa at Project Gutenberg.

You can find more information on Mountains of the Moon at Wikipedia and IMDB.

You can find more information on the Ghost and the Darkness at Wikipedia and IMDB.