Casting Shadows

In another century, I first came across the now cult film starring Jeffrey Falcon, Six-String Samurai and I loved how far it was willing to go physically and metaphorically. It didn’t change my life or anything, but it put a smile on my face and gave me something to talk about among people it did have a transformative effect on – especially the neo-rockabilly and psychobilly bands I have met here in Korea. Like Falcon, for a good chunk of their youth, they gave it their all and were met with a lukewarm reception by the public at large. You know the public at large, they are the ones who get to be taste makers but because they are at large, they can have none.

Recently, I managed to record a series of talks with Jason Connerley of the Nerd’s RPG Variety Cast Blog and Podcast about the film, and part of that included taking my BRP adaptation of it out for a spin like a beloved platter from the days when music mattered and love songs flattered.

Link to Nerd’s RPG Variety Cast Season 2: Episode 40 – Six-String Samurai with Runeslinger

Being a firm believer in BRP for all of the best decades of my time in gaming, it was very satisfying to fiddle with the characteristics, adapt things like Magic Points and Sanity to other purposes, and tune the skill list to a post-apocalyptic fever-dream of duels, chases, escapes, meaty metaphors, mass slaughter, taunts, cannibalism, threats of spinach monsters, and nihilistic introspection desperately seeking the light-hearted joviality of existentialism, wrapped up in the heroic urge to sacrifice all for those forced to come of age in a world unworthy of them. The system is already ready for anything the film had to throw at it. My tweaks were mostly in the manner of a useful GUI to tie the setting of the film to player decisions, characterizations, imagination, and the power of the spoken word.

I have ended up making two versions. A one-shot or short adventure version, and a campaign version.

The first, the one Jason and I used, is meant for short ventures like one-shots. It sets characters up to be candidates suitable to hear the call of the Werewolf over the cracking airwaves of the last radio station exhorting them to make their way to Lost Vegas and make their bid for the throne left behind by Elvis the King.

The second is based more on characters earlier in their lives and closer to the apocalyptic ending of America – more in touch with the old world and with much more of themselves to lose. The intention is still for the players to create characters in the same circumstances as Buddy in the film, but this version, meant for long-form play, dips into rocker and 50s hot rod culture to establish some baseling occupations for the selection of skills from a larger list which includes more knowledge from the pre-war days for the characters to risk. In the short-form version, the characters have already been stripped of most of this. 

Without getting into the rules of BRP, what the sheet provided above facilitates is for a group to skin the system to play in Buddy’s world of swords, guitars, and the slow march to Lost Vegas. SAN is replaced by CCCP, or Calm, Cool, & Collected Points, while Magic Points become WMD, or Warrior Mystique Points.

As CCCP declines, triggered by things which crack the characters’ facade of outer calm and sense of ultimate coolness, doubts and introspection begin to seep in through those cracks. Larger hits to the collected nature of these warriors can trigger more severe consequences, such as the loss of knowledge from the time before the Russian invasion. Science, crafts, and all manner of things to better the world have begun to fade away as the world moves on to its uncool end… well – unless a new King is crowned, of course.

WMD are the difference between Mook and Man. On a 1:1 rate they can be spent to inflict a consequence of any successful use of Martial Art on the target. This must fit the description and context of the moment, but can range from disarms and knockdowns, to knockouts, and end-of-fight moments where Mortal Kombat might advise you to “Finish Him.” If you want to know more, feel free to let me know in the comments or by leaving a voice message.

The rest is straight percentile rolls, description, genre-fidelity, a lop-sided sense of humor, a love of martial art and rock ‘n roll, and the drive to face death with a sneer, great hair, and a guitar in a gunny sack. Tree and railroad track optional.

If the trailer and faux music video from the soundtrack above have put you in the mood to watch the film it is available in full on YouTube by the distributor, and several other streaming services around the Internet. Once you have taken it in, I hope you will listen to my conversation with Jason about it, and/or investigate the short Actual Play recording we made of his character, Meat, making the Wastelands a little safer for the broken-hearted.