Gamma World
Frank organized a Gamma World adventure this weekend, and we had a blast. We got to choose whether we were city dwellers with greater Alpha Tech hell-bent on ensuring order or whether we’d rely on more mutations as members of an outcast tribe on the edge of the world with the goal of reclaiming our mother elder from a band of kidnappers. We chose the latter, falling back on the classic underdog hero’s role. This seems fitting for an introduction to a new system…
I ended up a radioactive swarm comprised of rodents that once were lab rats. The shared sentience assumed the name of “Doctor Radkowski”, one of the doctors killed in the blast from the Great Mistake. Over the course of the session, they devoiced the “d” in “rad” to a “t”, as only a punning rat swarm could do. They sang arias, tossed grenades, and swarmed over all the guard bots and mutated plant beasts that they could. Other characters in the party included a radioactive punk rock timecop, an electrified giant spotter with a dual nature and delusions of grandeur, and a shadowy, largely amorphous being that called itself “The Hamburgler”, named for a term it found on a discarded fast food wrapper.
All signs pointed to the kidnappers hailing from the city, including the paths dragged into the sand. The trail grew warmer, and we had to find a pass into the city. We posed as arms dealers and learned of a widow who held a position in town. Soon we were fighting off robotic sentinels and animated plants. In all, we had a blast.
The system is interesting in that it is very similar to 4e DnD, only the character skills are limited, and the bonuses stack on a per-level basis, rather than every-other-level. The generic gamma world is very tongue-in-cheek, necessary for such an otherwise gritty setting. The system leaves a lot to the storyteller to fill in, which leaves lots of room for role playing. Don’t let the tongue-in-cheekness fool you; it’s plenty deadly out there with 20-something hit points and 3d6 and 4d6 damage in the air.
The box set comes with a printed battlemap geared toward the near future setting. Frank used it well, creating some nice verbal terrain out of the cryogenic capsules in the center of the room.
Another thing I liked about the system is that the character sheet isn’t even geared for leveling very far; the post-apocalyptic setting is perfect for one-off and short, multi-session story arcs. This is about the attention span of most of us these days, especially if a gamer has to miss a session every now and again.
Finally, the randomness of the character generation is something to aspire to as a game designer. How does it work that not making choices at the beginning is more fun than choosing my own starting gear? Because it’s challenging. It’s what makes the post-apocalyptic world pop.
Back to another GM thing that Frank did well — the building of Alpha and Omega Tech decks based on which side we chose to play. This made this kind of decision important to the story, a welcome element in any role playing game. Even in a one-off, it’s nice to see the effects of your choices as a player.
In this last image, I was the brown wafer of a disc under the red d6 (I was bloodied at the time). When you play, here are a few final thoughts: don’t forget to use Second Wind once you’re bloodied, always use your Alpha Tech powers (they go away after encounters — trade or gift them if necessary), and don’t get too stuck to the notion of “classes” (ranger, etc.) or “roles” (striker, etc.); if you play it right, everyone has a chance to defend, strike, control, and lead over the course of a single Gamma World session.
Have fun with Gamma World; I highly recommend it from the bottom of my six-valved, mutant heart.
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