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Similar to the idea behind Vengeance, in
HKAT! players create characters who are actors starring in these
films. Each adventure the Director (referee) creates is a new movie,
and your PC actors will star in different roles every time you play.
So there are no character “classes” as such in HKAT!; you
determine basic ability scores for your character, but his skills,
strengths, and weaknesses will vary from game to game as he assumes
different roles in various films. For players who like a little
variety in their gaming without having to roll up sixteen
characters, it’s a novel idea.
You’re the brains, he’s the
muscle, and I’m just cool.
HKAT! PCs have six ability scores: Skill,
Muscle, Speed, Toughness, Brains, Cool, and Chi. These
represent your actor’s “real life” skills, and therefore remain the
same throughout your character’s career, no matter what role your
actor plays in a particular film. Each score is determined by
rolling 1d10, and adding ten, for scores between 11-20.
The abilities are pretty straightforward. Skill is general combat
effectiveness, Muscle is physical strength, and Speed is your
agility and quickness. Toughness is being able to take a hit or
survive injury, Brains is your IQ and cleverness, and Cool measures
the extent of your steely nerves and how suave you are. Chi
indicates how spiritual (or lucky) you are.
“Don’t
you know first aid?”
“No, not today.”
As mentioned, HKAT! PCs will have different skills, called
specialties, depending on what role they’re playing in each
adventure. Each actor adds their Chi and Brains scores to get a
total between 22-40. This total is then divided up as the player
likes between three general areas: Mental, Physical,
and Social. When your actor gets a new role, the referee will
tell you which specialties you have for that adventure, such as
parachuting, sports, computers, law, etc. Each specialty falls under
one of these three categories above. Players then allocate from 1 to
5 points from their total in that general area to each specific
specialty in that area.
For example, my actor Bruce Leon has a
Social score of 15. For this adventure I’m playing a con man, so the
Director gives me the Social specialties of “Begging”, “Fast Talk”,
“Gambling”, and “Seduction”. I then divide up my 15 Social points
amongst the four specialties however I’d like.
There are scads of specialties in the basic rulebook, and promises
of more in future HKAT! accessories. Interestingly, players
don't need to choose "combat" as a specialty in the game. Since this
is HK cinema, it’s assumed that everyone all the time can kick
serious ass using bare hands or any available weapon. (Think Jackie
Chan, and read the next section.)
”Ah, I recognize
that as the Watusi Stance from the Bumblebee Style.” – Mr. Suzuki
Since all PCs know some form of martial arts, the
designers helpfully list several real kung fu styles in their combat
section, although Directors or players may easily invent their own.
Each PC chooses from amongst twelve combat maneuvers to possess in
their arsenal, and assigns them points, just like we did with
specialties. Useful martial moves are things like punch, kick, nerve
strike, dodge, grapple, and feint. Techniques do set amounts of
damage. For instance, Sweeps do damage equal to three times your
Muscle score plus knock down your opponent if they fail a Skill
roll, while a Punch does twice your Muscles with no further effect.
(Well, maybe a bloody nose…)
A nice selection of melee weapons is included for those who like to
whomp on people with such things as staves, nunchuks, steel chains,
pool cues, or chainsaws. (Yes, chainsaws.)
Firearms are handled generically; guns are given
damage rating by caliber instead of by specific guns. The range runs
from Small Caliber Pistol (.22’s and .32’s) to Infantry Support
Machine Gun (.50 caliber belt-fed monsters). As in the movies, guns
don’t run out of ammo unless you roll very poorly, in which case you
need to spend time reloading. Theoretically, with good rolls your PC
may go through a whole adventure without stopping to reload!
Rat-a-tat tat, baby!
The resolution system for any action in HKAT! is blessedly
simple, if nothing new. The Director assigns a
Difficulty Number for whatever action a PC wants to
perform, and the player rolls a d20 and adds it to the ability most
relevant to the task. A Simple difficulty is “10”, like finding a
pistol dropped into a Dumpster. An Extreme difficulty is “35”, such
as landing a helicopter whose tail has just been blown off by a
rocket... and you’re not a pilot.
”I ain’t got
time to bleed.” – J. Ventura
Damage is taken on a two-level mechanic in HKAT!
Form damage is based on
Toughness, representing your dude’s ability to take a bullet in the
spleen and keep on goin’. Focus
damage is based on Chi, and represents your fighting spirit and
morale. When characters get injured, they divide the damage up
between their two levels however they’d like. So your character can
be bloody, bruised, and broken but in a good mood, or he could be
only slightly tousled but utterly without the will to continue
battling.
Your PC doesn’t die until both levels reach maximum damage, but Form
damage accumulated reduces your Speed and Skill ratings, and Focus
damage reduces your Cool and restricts your use of specialties.
Reducing Cool is dangerous because your Cool score allows you to
recover some damage after each turn of combat. Lose your cool, pal,
and you’re gonna get beaten and stay beaten.
”I loved you in Master Ninja
Terminator of Death III!”
Actors in HKAT! have Star Power. These
are points gained like XP during sessions. At the beginning of each
game, the Director tells the players which roles there are in the
adventure script for their actors to play. Players then bid Star
Power points to get the role they want for that game. If two people
at the table wanna play the super spy character, they’ll have to
spend Star Power to snag the role. Whoever bids highest (i.e., has
the most popularity and fan base) gets that starring role. The lower
bidders must choose other roles offered for that game.
Star Power points are awarded at the end of each session, and can be
used in the next game or saved until a later time, but they have
uses during a game as well. Spending Star Power will allow players
to re-write the script. Is your character unarmed when the villain
points an AK-47 in your direction? Spend Power to conveniently find
a gun lying on the ground near a fallen henchman! You can also
reduce damage or reduce difficulty numbers using Power, and raise
ability scores or increase specialty ranks.
”Taaa DA!”
Spells are handled generously in this game. Players may design magic
spells for roles set in ancient China, a la the Crouching Tiger,
Hidden Dragon period. Super duper martial arts abilities, such
as the flying and dancing in treetops in said film, may be designed
using the spell system as well. Individual spells are crafted by
determining how big their effects on the game are (Minor, Moderate,
or Major), whom they effect (yourself, inanimate objects, other
living people), and what hexagram from the ancient Chinese
divination book I Ching they’re based off of. The system is
thoroughly set out in the rulebook, and allows for all manner of
magic scrolls, spells and potions to be created.
The mechanic of basing spells off of I Ching symbols is
simply a game gimmick, and has no real value, but it’s kinda’ neat
anyway. For example, the symbol tui represents interaction,
persuasion, and pleasure. So creating a spell that made a stranger
react favorably towards you might be based on the tui
hexagram.
So What Else?
A good chunk of the rulebook (pages 53 -145) is
devoted to several sample scenarios, referee advice, nifty character
sheets, and a slew of history about China, HK cinema, and even a
cool-ass Cantonese/ English dictionary! The author has pages and
pages of suggestions and plot synopses for Hong Kong action movies
to watch to put you in the mood to play Hong Kong Action Theater!
(Including one called, I kid you not, Dirty Ho.) The whole
book is softcover, with black and white photos and illustrations
inside in abundance. The retail price tag was $20, but since it’s
out of print, you can usually find it for much less wherever you buy
used books. I got it for a good deal off eBay, and there are usually
a few copies up for auction there.
The GOOD
Fast, simple system. There’s nothing that can’t be
resolved with the toss of a d20, and all the mechanics and tone
allow for more storytelling and movie action and less rules-lawyering
and mathematics. The Director can wing entire adventures off the top
of his head and feel right at home. (Of course, this may draw more
experienced players to the game, while newbies to role playing may
be a bit baffled by the freedom at first.)
I’m also biased because I love the action-adventure genre, and this
game fills that niche sweetly.
The NEUTRAL
While I appreciate the author’s enjoyment of HK
cinema that is the basis for this rpg, I don’t know that I need
25 freakin’ pages of recommended movies. If I’m paying
for a game system, I’d like game materials. If I need movie reviews,
I can find those elsewhere.
I’m also not a fan of the “PC as actor” background. Extreme
Vengeance has this underlying theme also, but the characters in
Vengeance are simply to be portrayed in an action star’s
mind-set. HKAT! goes beyond the mindset and makes PCs actual
actors. Don’t get me wrong; I can see a certain charm in having
different specialties from adventure to adventure as you assume
different roles, but personally, I’d guess role players out there
who like this constant change are in the minority. (But what the
hell do I know? I’m not a game designer. I’m a kobold, dammit!) This
facet of the game system might not appeal to those of you who prefer
to have PCs with more static skill selections, but with progression
in those skills from adventure to adventure.
Those of you who on the other hand like rampant change and
broadening your PC horizons without re-rolling a new PC each game
will find this system refreshing.
The EVIL
The whole gimmick of players having to outspend
others with Star Power to “buy” certain roles in a game is a bit
hostile to me. Why not just let players play the characters they
actually want to play? I mean, I’m not gonna be too
interested in playing a session where I’m forced to assume the
persona of some dude I have no interest in running, just because Bob
outbid me for the “Cranky Kung Fu Master” role. Most rpg’s are
enjoyable because players design an alter ego they’d like to be in
that imaginary universe. Limiting that choice seems
counterproductive to the very spirit of role-playing.
Anyway, I like this game. The rulebook’s complete
and thorough, and the system resolution mechanics are smooth and
simple. The emphasis is on the action, and the pace should be brisk
and violent. This is actually a nice middle ground between the
flavorful Feng Shui and farcical Extreme Vengeance
role playing games, and I would strongly recommend HKAT! over
the latter. (And I would even go so far, if prodded, as to recommend
Action Theater’s combat turn mechanics over Shui’s.)
And so, my little chung lam ma lau, grab your hand cannon and
limber up those side kicks! There’re some Triad thugs across the
street hassling Mr. Chen in his noodle emporium, and I've been
waiting for a chance to try out my Swirling Windmill Kick of the
Furious Monkey Style!
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