Whistleleaf City and The Scene, Pt. 03

Before we go deeper into the setting, let’s give the GM a tool for quick disposable NPCs.

Generic NPCs

To help the GM run the setting, I’ll provide generic stats for common combatant NPCs here. (Actual monsters should probably be more unique custom encounters, sourced or adapted from Horror, Monster Hunters 3: The Enemy, other books and articles of Pyramid.)

Sidebar: Personal Touch

To throw some additional flavor onto a given NPC of a type here, the GM may roll or choose additional Disadvantages (GM picks self control numbers) from the list below that THIS SPECIFIC non-player character has. Very few need more than 3 to make them memorable.

Roll 1d,1d.

1,1-2: Bad Temper

1,3: Paranoia

1,4-5: Overconfidence

1,6: Cowardice

2,1: Phobia (something common – fire, heights, drowning, etc.)

2,2-3: Gluttony

2,4-5: Greed

2,6: Vow (an honourable restriction like no explosives in combat, no sneak attacks, no weapons against unarmed enemies, etc.)

3,1: Easy to Read or Truthfulness

3,2-4: Addiction (stimulants or chain smoking)

3,5-6: Laziness

4,1-3: Curious

4,4: Short Attention Span

4,5: Compulsive Lying

4,6: Trademark

5,1: Klutz

5,2-3: Impulsiveness

5,4-5: Intolerance (sex, race, sexuality or foreigners)

5,6: Pyromania

6,1: Wounded

6,2-6: roll twice and combine results if not contradictory

Beat Patrolman

This is a generic cop on the ground, not a detective. They are usually the first to respond to 911 calls, two to a patrol car. (Police cruisers have stats as per TL 7 Sedans on B464 or Large Car on Action 6: Tricked-Out Rides page 3, with extra equipment like a shotgun and a first aid kit stored in the trunk or by the front passenger side.)

SWAT Officer

This is a generic heavily armed and armoured policeman on a Special Weapons and Tactics team, called in to resolve high-risk situations. An activated unit arriving on the scene in an armoured rescue vehicle will have 10-12 officers ready to rumble. (They often have Assaulter Shooting Style Perks such as Green Eyes and in-Style Techniques like Targeted Attack and Close-Quarters Battle, too. The officer in front will have a large shield out to foil frontal assaults. They are often backed up by snipers and militarised vehicles with a mounted water cannon or other riot control weaponry.) The national guard and professional mercenaries could also use this stat block as a basis, changing up the equipment loadout.

Security Guards

This is a generic private security personnel employed by a business to protect their property and staff. Depending on the true nature of the organisation they work for, the security guard may effectively work as a “hired goon” for shady interests.

Crook

This is a generic “black collar” criminal operating in the city. This NPC can be of several subtypes, focusing on this or that illegal activity. This NPC might be a burglar, a dealer, a con-artist, a hacker, a smuggler, a street thief or a thug. Their equipment depends on what they specialise in.

Cultist

This is a generic member of a secret (and probably malign) organisation operating in the occult underground. This NPC is probably aware of the truth about magic and monsters, but they are otherwise unimpressive. Higher-up cult members, including the leaders and head enforcers, should be built to be much more dangerous than this stat block. There are GURPS books that contain stat blocks you can use for this NPC already; the Cultist Thug on Monster Hunters 3: The Enemy page 31, the Cultist Thug on Horror: The Madness Dossier page 32, the Nameless Acolyte on Pyramid 3/103 page 11.

Man-in-Black

This is a generic but elite government agent working for a top secret anti-occult agency unknown to the public. They are technically operating outside of the law, but they are on a (disavowed) mission from the deep state to eliminate monsters, detain or eliminate occultists, confiscate unnatural assets and research all of the above. They have access to all sorts of illegal surveillance gear, and the expertise to use it all unconstitutionally.

Magician/Occultist

This is a starting point for an operative clued-in to The Scene, the generic bare bones of a NPC who either wields magic or knows enough of the hidden truth to be uniquely dangerous. For these stats, choose an appropriate subtype and add relevant Traits to it until you flesh out the NPC to your liking. Be especially careful to switch out Magery and related skills if you want a different magic system or Psionics in play (consider just using the Templates from Psis in case of psionics). This NPC may have additional equipment to go along with whatever skills you give them instead of the Magician package (for example, firearms and ammo if they have Guns).

TO BE CONTINUED