Scenery (Action)

Heroic Action Role-Play

Action is an dramatic game, and dramatic action requires exiting scenery. Scenery can be used to great effect to turn what could be a dull slug-fest into an exiting action scene. It can also add complications and dangers all of its own, usually making the hero's job that much harder.

Scenic Rules and Hints

Home Ground Advantage

Natives to a terrain are usually less fazed by its dangers. Generally, natives of the scene where the action takes place treat all stunts interacting with local scenery as Routine. As long as they are skilled enough, such actions no longer require dice rolls. This lets the GM focus on the heroes and their struggles against unfamiliar environments. Sometimes, the heroes can have this kind of home-ground advantage usually in scenes putting heroic natives against colonialists, and there are also numerous schticks and powers that make these rolls routine.

Spectacular Sets Exist to be Blow Up

Scenery in Action is rather fragile and easy to blow up. This is intentional. Never be afraid to have scenery break down in spectacular ways, either while the heroes are in harm's way or just after the climax, forcing them to make a quick getaway.

Types of Scenes

Scenery can be of many kinds; wilderness terrain, cities and built-up areas, dense crowds, highways, large moving vehicles such as ships or trains, and so on. Only your imagination sets the limit.

Many of the types of scenery described here are link to other rules; the roadway scenery link to the chase rules and so on. This chapter is more a list of ideas and a collection of links than a set of rules.