Creating a Plot Point Campaign Series I Would Love To Play

So if you have been keeping up with the blog, especially early on, you know I enjoy military style games. Unfortunately I will likely never get to play one of these types of games, which is fine. I however will be creating a campaign for Savage Worlds that would be my most favorite game ever. Ever. I don't have a plot line drawn out yet, but I know the concept.

I want to create an experience that will make the group of players manage life (as much as a civilian would know) as a Tier One operator. Not every mission would be "balls to the wall" gun fights, but many would be stealth oriented, tense chases in trucks in Afghanistan's desert or the streets of an Iraqi city. Narrate through training and planning. Include brief spaces of home life. Invest the players into their characters so when I throw them into situations where they are fighting for their lives they want their player to survive. I've seen my group get very involved and attached to their imaginary characters derived from just a sheet of paper, arbitrary numbers, and their imaginations.

I want the campaign to be realistic, weight will be important, as will planning what they need and keeping track of it. Book keeping will be important, but not so much it will slow things down. Combat will be gritty and very dangerous, the amateurs they fight will be unpredictable; if they fight well trained gunmen, they will use tactics. Fanatics will be different as well. If they mess up and get in a gunfight with a band of Taliban way off in the mountains, they had better be ready for a fight. I'll be using the fate chip rules from Deadlands too.

I'm going for maximum intensity, they kind of game that makes the player scared at each close call, sad if they're friend gets hurt or dies. I've played these games, they are the best ones around. The emotional pull is why I play  roleplaying games anyway.


So who would they play? I've decided on that. Due to the lack of information, and they being my "favorite" special forces unit (in much a way one would have a favorite sports team I suppose), would be the US Army's CAG (i.e.1st SFOD-D, Delta Force, ACE, Task Force Green, "The Unit" etc). The secrecy of the unit (not ever being officially mentioned) allows me some play with what they could bring to the fight. Hearing rumors I can tell you what kind of kit they wear, often the types of weapons they use and all that. But thats all rumor and hearsay, mostly.

For missions that require it, most use either low profile or medium plate carriers (Crye Precision and Paraclete are popular brands I hear), battle belts, Crye Precision Gen 3 uniforms (in multicam), and a helmet (either a Crye Precision Airframe Helmet or MICH 2002), and high quality boots. The Glock 17 is reportedly replacing custom 1911's, and many carry HK416 rifles as they are more reliable than the M4A1, allegedly. It is also rumored that CAG operators bring 2 primary weapons with them in case one malfunctions or they have a different environment to fight in.

Training for Delta is vague, it is allegedly about a year, and it stresses good shooting and speed. They seem to also be trained in driving offensively and defensively, improvised bomb creation, counter sniping, plane clearing, and a host of other thing you'd find on the wikipedia page.

So character creation? Well I'll tell you that its reported that 75% of Delta comes from the Army Rangers with the others coming from Army Special Forces or the 82nd Airborne. Most are already NCOs, it may be a requirement actually, and have to be in their mid-20s (the average age is rumored to be the mid-30s for these soldiers). So the characters will start at Legendary, at least 100 XP. There will also be high minimum requirements on most Attributes and combat and stealth skills, and likely a couple edges as well to represent their training. Werid Wars II and Weird Wars: Tour of Darkness will be needed, as will be my free Savage Modern Gear .pdf. Setting Rules will be in play, definitely "Gritty Damage" and "Critical Failures" from the core book.

As for the story it will likely start sometime in the last few years and progress to a fictional future as the series (hopefully) goes on. Until then..!