This is the second of seven blog entries detailing the crew from the Serenity one-shot I ran at the weekend. Given that I intend to make use of the same characters for future one-shots, it seems wise to give some more thought to how the characters should be constructed, and perhaps make some adjustments. Additionally, of course, if the characters are useful to others, that is a plus.
Johner was actually the sixth and final character I drew up for the one-shot, and by that time I was frankly a little sick of the whole process. Creating characters for the Serenity RPG is actually reasonable fun, but creating six in sequence is rather less enjoyable. Especially since characters all start with a fairly large number of build points, giving a danger that they all end up looking much the same.
Fortunately, Johner was a nice easy one. The character is basically Jayne. Indeed, it appears that Joss Whedon was happy with the way that he played out, because the character really is basically Jayne. Therefore, when creating this character, I started with a copy of Jayne's stats, and then made some minor adjustments.
In play, this character worked pretty much as he should. I briefly considered adjusting a couple of the skill points, to add a specialisation in shutguns, but at length decided against - although Johner has a one-shot "thermos gun" that operates as a shotgun, this is basically a weapon of desperation, so it's not inappropriate that he should have to fall back on the general Guns skill to use it. The one change I think I will make, though, will be to drop the Rifles speciality by one step, in order to buy rudimentary skill in Influence - the better for his intimidatin' manner.
Johner: The Muscle
Attributes
Agility d6
Strength d10
Vitality d10
Alertness d6
Intelligence d4
Willpower d6
Life Points 18
Initiative d6+d6
Skills
Athletics d6
- Dodge d8
Covert d6
Discipline d4
Guns d6
- Assault Rifles d10
- Pistols d8
- Rifles d8
Heavy Weapons d4
Influence d2
Melee Weapons d4
Perception d4
Pilot d4
Ranged Weapons d6
Survival d4
Unarmed Combat d6
- Brawling d8
Weapons and Equipment
Pistol: Big guns are all well and good, but they can't be taken everywhere, and concealed weapons have their limitations. For that reason, Johner carries a pistol at his hip as often as he can.
Assault Rifle: But this is more like it! Most of the time, Johner leaves his favourite gun on Betty, but he always relishes opportunities to use it.
Thermos Gun: This is a little device Johner worked up in his spare time. It looks like a simple flask, even to the point of holding a hot drink. But with a twist and a pull, it opens out into a shotgun, good for a single shot in a tight spot.
In addition, Johner carries a number of knives about his person, and a comlink if and when he remembers.
Traits
Fightin' Type (major asset): Johner is always spoilin' for a fight.
Intimidatin' Manner (minor asset): Through sheer physical bulk, and a tendency to snarl, Johner is adept at browbeating others to his way of thinkin'.
Mean Left Hook (minor asset): He's a big guy. When he hits you, you know about it.
Tough as Nails (minor asset): Johner can take a lot of punishment. Something as trivial as a gunshot wound isn't going to slow him down.
Crude (minor complication): Johner mostly speaks with his fists. And when he does speak with his mouth, the effect is much the same.
Greedy (minor complication): Johner has been poor, and he's been rich. He much prefers the latter.
Roleplaying Notes
Johner was born on Higgin's Moon, and dragged up by a succession of 'uncles'. He spent two seasons farming mud, and as soon as opportunity permitted he jumped that rock. He hasn't looked back since.
Johner fought on both sides during the war in various mercenary units. Provided the money was good, he was happy to do whatever was required - and there was no shortage of work. In fact, peace is probably the worst thing that has ever happened to him.
Johner signed on with Betty early on, bringing to the table a significant talent for destruction, coupled with an almost complete lack of morals. Just about the only thing that causes him moral outrage is when he doesn't get paid enough for the job.
Johner is actually quite good with money. He has a secret bank account, into which he funnels most of his pay, and then he (naturally) pleads a poverty of ready money to the rest of the crew. The contents of his account are pleasingly high, but never quite pleasing enough - he's permanently one big score away from retirement. Though what he would do if he did retire, he couldn't say.
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