Tracker Session Zero

Meh. I have now tried three times to record a video of this process, but each time something has gone wrong, and I ended up having to start all over. I am going to chalk that up to a learning experience, and go back to the way I usually do this - sorry you don’t have any video to watch.

Anyhow, I feel like making an ant and taking him on some adventures. I’ve been doing some Army Ant writing, and I have some ideas for things to do with that IP (ooh, look at me. I have an IP).

When I was ten, my first three GI Joe action figures were Flash, Breaker, and Stalker. I didn’t like Flash too much, because the whole sci-fi thing didn’t fit with GI Joe to me. I didn’t want my GI Joe getting into my Star Wars. Breaker was kind of boring, because he was a communications officer. Stalker was cool. He was the team leader. He had camo.

As you might have noticed, some of my Army Ants are inspired by some GI Joes, but I’ve never built my homage to Stalker. Time to fix that. I like that history ties Stalker and Snake Eyes, and that both Tracker and Zak are black ants - gives them a bit of kinship.

I ended up in the hospital for a few days this weekend (I'm doing much better now), and ended up channel surfing (which I never do). This gave me a chance to watch the History of the Navy Seals on A+E (as well as some wrestling documentaries), so it was an entertaining day. That also inspired me in this direction.

While the rules state that you start at level 2, I’m going to start Tracker here at level 3, so that he can survive solo for a bit. This gives him the following: 

Level 3 

100 Mission Points

D8 Action Die

I have 30 points to distribute among traits. I’m going to make him a Ranger, which means he has to have at least D8 Spirit (and he’ll get +1 edge with Spirit checks)... I don’t want to go less than D6 anywhere, because he’s solo, and I don’t want any glaring holes. I’m going to lean heavily into Spirit (since he’s going to have to sneak past a lot of foes to survive on his own), and I’ll lean towards Reflex over Body (small and fast is his game)...

Body D6

Mind D6

Reflex D8

Spirit D10

The character I made for the core rules has very different Traits, even though they are both Rangers. This makes me feel good - you could put together a team of Rangers and have them be versatile. 

As far as skills, he has 8 points (since his action die is D8), and must have Nature +1 and Stealth +1. Random thought - Nature should include swimming. If I’m trying to swim against a current, I would roll Might + Nature to do it. I sense some house rules (or GM guidance) coming up…

Going through the list, I also like Aim, First Aid, and Infiltrate for him. All are needed on some level. Aim is important for everyone, but first aid/infiltrate are secondary to my character. I go back and forth between Aim or Stealth for the +3, but end up with Aim - the higher die and automatic +1 edge give me a lot of power already in Stealth without the extra +1 point allocation, but that +1 aim might be really important. 

Tracker, Ant Ranger

Level 3 (Action Die D8) 100 XP

BODY D6 | MIND D6 | REFLEX D8 | SPIRIT D10

+1 Edge SPIRIT Checks

Aim +3 | First Aid +1 | Infiltrate +1 | Nature +1 | Stealth +2

As far as rank, I roll D6+0 and get 1. He started as an A-1 Private. He got an automatic bump in rank at level 3, but he might have advanced during level 2. He would roll D6+2 after each mission, and he’d have completed an average of 7 missions (since a typical mission grants 10 MP). I’ll roll D6+2 seven times and see what happens…

5+2=7. He moved to A-2 after his second mission.

3+2=5. Nothing.

3+2=5. Nothing.

6+2=8. Moved to A-3 after his fifth mission.

5+2=7. Nothing.

1+2=3. Nothing.

5+2=7. Nothing.

Upon turning level 3: 5+3=8. He gets to move to Corporal, 2nd Lieutenant, or Petty Warrant Officer. The reality is that with his lower Mind, he’s unlikely to get higher results, and staying as an enlisted soldier is going to be his best bet. Besides, the character he is based on is a sergeant, so I kind of have to go that route… A-4 Corporal he is!

This gives him 30 Clout (from being level 3) +15 (from his rank), for a total of 45. He starts with a basic kit (free). I’ve decided to add a weapon to the game, so I’m having him take an AM-3A spitfire rifle, with more damage but compact range:

AM-3A Spitfire Rifle

(20 Clout | D6+1 | Range 20)

This powerful, short-range weapon was designed for use in tunnels.

This is 20 clout, leaving him with 25 to go. I really want him to have a silencer (6 clout; 19 left). He’s got camouflage fatigues (4 clout; 15 left), and I’ll get 2 field grenades (2 clout), 2 smoke grenades (2 clout), 6 aid kits (6 clout). He now has 5 clout left. I go with binoculars (4 clout), and use the extra clout point to get another field grenade. 

Standard Issue Gear

AM-3A Spitfire Rifle + Silencer

Camouflage Fatigues

3 Field Grenades

2 Smoke Grenades

6 Aid Kits

Binoculars

I now have to work out my other stats, based on what I’ve done so far:

3 Actions Per Round (from being level 3)

Defense: 7 (half of his Reflex is 4 + his level of 3)

Armor: 0 (because he's not wearing anything)

Grit: 18 (because of D6 Body x level)

Move: 3 (everyone starts here)

Moxy: 3 (from his level)

My actual setup as I'm working (along with my Hellfire Club gift pack from Christmas I haven't used - and my camoflage lanyard):