Organizations (Action)

Heroic Action Role-Play

These rules cover businesses, guilds, ninja clans, and other organizations a player in Action might want to lead or be a part of. It is quite abstract but gives a framework to role-play around. Players should feel free to ignore these rules and just play happy-go-lucky adventurers, using the contacts gained from skills to define their role in the world instead of the more formal rules here.

Organization Setup

The following is used to describe a characters position withing an organization, as well as the organization itself.

Power and Description

The organiozation itself has Power; rating the might of organization as a whole. This is the maximum Rank anyone in the organization can have.

The organization also needs a goal and purpose and should have a description, describing what it does, how it does it, and why. It needs a leader, and it should be noted if its a branch of a larger organization.

Rank and Job

An position in an organization has three traits, Rank, Skill, and Attribute. Rank is the position of the character within the organization. Skill and attribute is what traits the character uses to advance in the organization and is taken from the normal range of character skills and attributes.

Rank generally starts at a value equal to the character's score in the attribute of the organization if the character is young and unestablished, at a rating equal to highest skill rating of established in the field, and at a value equal to skill + half their attribute if the character is at the apex of his career.

Job Examples

Here is a table with typical positions within an organization based on different combinations of skill and attribute. Naturally, this will vary with the genre; a spy ring is not the same in high fantasy as it is in cyberpunk. The descriptions are only suggestions and pointers, you can go outside the examples. Nor need an organization be only one thing; it is possible for two characters to be a member of the same large organization and use different skills because they are in different careers within that organization.

Skill	Body	Mind	Reflexes
Charm	Retail	Personal Services	Spy ring
Create	Manufacturing Repair Shop	Design Invention	Mechanics Locksmithing
Impress	Foreman Strongman	Management Vocalist	Public Relations Instrumentalist
Know	Exploration	Scholarship	Medicine
Maneuver	Athletic Sports	Dance	Acrobatic Sports
Melee	Thuggery	Fencing School	Ninja Clan
Ride	Hauler	Logistics	Racing
Shoot	Military	Shooting Academy	Assassin Ring
Spot	Security	Detective	Private Eye

Advancement Checks

You can make an advancement check once per adventure, about every three or so play sessions, when there is a suitable spot of downtime. And advancement check is a skill roll using the skill noted for the organization, the difficulty is the Rank. If this skill check succeeds, Rank increases by one point plus an additional point for every ten points of Outcome. If the skill check fails but negative Outcome is less than the attribute of the organization, work proceeds as normal. If the roll fails and the negative Outcome is equal or greater than the attribute, there is a Setback and Rank is reduced by three. If you are the leader of an organization and it suffers a setback, the Power of the organization is reduced by two. A setback can often serve as an adventure hook.

The advancement check is modified depending on the situation at hand. These modifiers are typical, and the GM can easily invent more of his own, possibly to foreshadow future events. Use only the first applicable modification on the table, ignoring any below. If the modifier is a penalty, you must attempt an advancement check. Fortune spent on advancement rolls come from normal play sessions.

Situation	Modifier
Organization suffered a setback in the adventure	-5
Organization gained a boon or fulfilled an objective in the adventure	+5
The adventure was a failure or the character was at odds with the organization	-2
Organization was involved in the adventure	+2

Rank can never exceed the Power of the organization. If you are a member of several organization, you can still only make one Advancement Check per adventure, unless you suffer a penalty on the advancement check in whch case you must roll.

Other Uses of Advancement Checks

A successful advancement check can be used in other ways than to advance your rank. If an organization is important to the story, a GM will often make adventures about who controls it and how to change it, and let important changes in the organization be determined in play rather than with random die rolls.

• Assume Control: If you have Rank equal to the Power of the organization you can become the leader of the organization.
• Expand the Organization: Increase the Power of the organization by one. If you are not the leader, you must succeed in a roll of Rank vs. Power to succeed at this.
• Altering the Agenda: You can try and change the goals of the organization. This requires a successful Rank check against the Power of the organization, with modifiers depending on how drastic and tradition-breaking the change is.
• Career Change: You can gain a position in another organization related to the one you are in now, such as moving from a branch office to a central office, from a guild into city administration, or from a union into a political position. Depending on the relationship between the organizations, you starting Rank in the new organization might be lower, especially if you decide to change your Rank in the old organization.
• Competition: You try to sabotage another career. The target suffers a -5 penalty on the next Advancement Check and you gain a +5 bonus on your next Advancement Check.

Multiple Characters and Organizations

Several characters can be in the same organization, each using different skills and attributes as long as they make sense for their role and for the organization as a whole.

• Several characters can be competing members of the same large organization. They essentially work independently, each advancing separately in their own branch or department. Each rolls separately for advancement and have their own Rank.
• Several characters can be in the same organization, with one of them the group leader (either the leader of a smaller organization or the liaison with the rest of a large one) the others playing subordinates. Each subordinate can make a skill roll against the Rank of the leader. If the roll succeeds, the Outcome is added as a bonus to the leader's roll. If the roll fails, there is no effect. The leaders uses any bonus gained from subordinates and makes his own advancement roll. Subordinates are at whatever rank the leader assigns them, up to one category below the leader.
• Several characters can be equal partners in an organization, sharing the rank value. Each makes advancement rolls normally, affecting the rank value they have in common. This will make for a very shaky, changeable organization.
• One character can be a member of several organizations. You can only attempt to advance in one organization with each advancement roll, unless penalties force you to roll for several.

The Meaning of Rank and Power

The impact of an organization, or the characters rank in an organization, depends on the rank.

Rank/Power	Clout	Social Class
1-4	None	Destitute
5-9	None	Poor
10-15	10	Middle class
16-20	100	Well off
21-25	1,000	Affluent
26-30	10,000	Rich
31-35	100,000	Magnate
36-40	1,000,000	Mogul

Clout is a measure of how many people are involved with you and affected by you in your profession. They need not be subordinates; depending on what you do they can be fans, peons, subordinates, clients, regular customers, or otherwise people you interact with regularly trough your organization.

Social Class gives an indication of the relative wealth and prestige you gain from the organization; what this actually means depends on the setting. Being a Mogul in a glamor spy game and a gritty game of rebelling peasants is not the same thing and has very different perks, but both place you at the top.

Using Organizations

The Rank works much like the contacts element of a skill. Working through the chain of command of a formal organization, you have more authority over your contacts than usual, bust frivolously spending organization resources will penalize future advancement rolls. A more informal hierarchy gives favors rather than executes orders.

An organization has a focus that tells you what it can do; police can investigate, harass, and lend equipment, a retail chain can provide gear and money, a research lab can provide very specialized equipment and knowledge.

Schticks. Limitations, and Powers

Schticks

• Self-Made: Your Rank starts at least equal to your skill. Whenever your Rank is less than your skill and you make a successful Advancement Check, your Rank increases three points instead of one.
• Silver Spoon: Your wealth is two categories higher than indicated byyour Rank. You are always at least rich even if your Rank indicates less.
• Vision: Your clout is two categories higher than indicated by your Rank.
• Blue Blood: Your Rank is always at least equal to your Impress, but until you actually advance this does nothing for your economic situation.

Limitations

• Poor: You are always Poor, regardless of your Rank.

Powers

Powers have no direct effect on the organization rules. While the description and goals of an organization is certainly affected by powers, they have no direct effect on the organization rules.