Sunday, January 25, 2015

The Cop. A new Class for Mythos and Mayhem (OSR)

I wanted a class for player's to play a cop, police inspector, G-Man, etc. To have abilities tied to their authority and kick some ass. I also wanted to distinguish police inspectors from the Sherlock Holmes inspired Detective class.

The Cop
Officers of the Law. From the simple patrol Cop to Inspectors to Federal Agents your job is the same: catch the bad guys and lock them away with hard evidence and determination. You are skilled at interrogation and information gathering and can hold your own in a fight.
Hit Die Type 1d6+2
Save As Fighting-man
Hit +1 per level
Prime Attribute (5% xp bonus) Cha 13+
You may be a simple beat Cop, a Police Detective or even FBI, but

Class Abilities
Badge
The Cop has authority and can use it. He can arrest anyone who has committed a crime or who he suspects of committing a crime and, with due process, hold them for trial. Once per day per level, he can attempt to use his authority to intimidate one person. If the victim fails a Saving Throw, he will obey the order given by the Cop, be it drop his gun, come with the Cop, etc. The victim will never do anything irrational, such as shooting himself or his friends. There is a  cumulative penalty of -1 to the Saving Throw for every three levels of Cop.

Official Channels
Through informants and official channels, the Cop is often in the know on important information, both locally and abroad. Such pertinent information may include who a shady looking guy on the street may be, who’s the local fence, or if the tough guy who just walked into the bar is a wanted felon. With a successful Charisma check the Cop may ask one favor of a contact such as a favor from a city official, a friendly crook to check on some information, etc. The favor will be things not generally available to the average policeman. The contact will not endanger himself or his employment and may negotiate a payment or favor in return if the request by the Cop is difficult or unpleasant.

Steely Gaze
The Cop can intimidate a number of creatures with HD equal to his level. The creatures must be able to see the Cop stare to be affected. The creatures are allowed a Saving Throw to avoid this effect The creatures are allowed a Saving Throw to avoid this effect with a cumulative penalty of -1 for every three levels of Cop. . Those that fail suffer a –2 to all attacks on the Cop. Many will flee; only the most determined will stay and fight. This ability can be used 1 per day per 2 levels of the Cop.

EDIT: One of my player's played this one tonight as a Treasury Agent after his primary character got shredded by a mutant sea serpent summoned by a group of Deep Ones and Hillbilly Hybrids. 

I knew something was missing but I couldn't decide what. The class needs a tweak, a couple of abilities to make it more fun and archetypal of the bootleg busting Fed of the twenties.
Then it hit me. It seems like they should be sneaky fellows breaking in for the bust. It seemed like a lot of the cops in films knew how to pick lock as part of their pre-police skillset or picked it up by necessity. 

And so: Stopping just after character creation I added Pick Locks and Hear Noise to round it out. 
It feels more satisfying and the player seemed to enjoy the added abilities.

Hear Noise
The Cop has honed his senses to here noise others might miss. This is an invaluable skill when raiding a hideout or listening for information in a smokey bar, etc. His chance to hear noise is 3 in 6 at first level increasting to 4 in 6 at 3rd level, 5 in 6 at 7th level, and 6 in 6 at 10th level. To use this ability he must stop all activity and concentrate.

Open Locks

Sometimes the Cop has to get in places he shouldn't be. Some locks are diffucult and may require a penalty to the open roll.  The base chance for success is modified by a Dex bonus. Superior tools may grant a small bonus just as inferior tools may incur a small penalty.

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1 comment:

  1. Added Open Locks and Hear Noise after a good playtest to round this class out.

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