Resolute, Adventurer & Genius (or RAG) is Blue Hex’s first release. It is a “pulp” action-adventure game in the vein of Evil Hat’s Spirit of the Century, White Wolf’s Adventure! and Exile Game Studio’s Hollow Earth Expedition. RAG is based on the Wyrm System, first released in Warrior, Rogue & Mage, written by Michael Wolf of Stargazer Games.
Pulp Action and Adventure
Warrior, Rogue & Mage, the parent game of RAG, is a fantasy game complete with swords, magic spells and rules for nonhumans. Resolute, Adventurer & Genius takes its inspiration from the adventure stories of the early 20th century (especially the 1920s and 1930s) — heroic characters often possessed of abilities outside those of normal men and women. These characters defend humanity and fight against evil in a wide variety of ways, but always with the fundamental optimistic view that tomorrow can be better than today. Rocket packs, daredevil stunts, fists of iron and the power to “cloud men’s minds” are just a few iconic tricks of pulp heroes.
Characters in such stories often travel to or live in exotic locations far from everyday life. Fabled lands and strange hidden wonders abound. The highest mountain peaks, the thickest jungles, the remotest valleys, the clouds high above, and the depths of the ocean and the Earth itself are just some of the places these heroes go in their travels and quests.
What would a hero be without villains to fight, however? Cackling mad scientists. Driven, megalomaniacal warlords. Unfathomable warlocks possessed of uncanny powers. Abominable snowmen, diesel robots, yetis, and more! There’s always a new threat lurking, just waiting to put the heroes to the test.
RAG and The Wyrm System
The Wyrm system utilizes a fast, light core mechanic based on a single d6. Characters have three broad attributes based on genre archetypes rather than generic and bog-standard capability definitions. These attributes cover everything a character can do in the game and allow a GM to make quick rulings rather than relying on static rules. Characters are further defined by skills, which provide bonuses to appropriate tasks, and talents, which are special abilities.
Resolute, Adventurer & Genius uses an evolution of the Wyrm System that adds rules for vehicles and chases, including narrative range “bands”. Because of the different archetypes at the game’s heart, RAG calculates stats such as Hit Points and Defense a little differently from WR&M, but everything on the sheet will look immediately familiar to players and GMs of the parent game (and, we hope, any other Wyrm System game to come). Combat runs just about the same, with a couple minor tweaks to better represent the pulp action-adventure genre.
RAG makes use of the talent system to represent the fantastic abilities of pulp heroes and villains. Arcane, eldritch magics are possible, using a refinement of the narrative editing aspect of Fate points (which RAG calls Luck, instead). A particular talent can be interpreted multiple ways, such as an ability being granted by a device rather than an innate power; devices that are part of a character’s makeup in this manner are narratively protected and will never be permanently destroyed or taken away from a character for an extended period.
Available now!
RAG is available at DriveThruRPG as a free, 36-page PDF download.
