After a long wait, the PDF version of the English translation of the Blacksad RPG is finally available for supporters. Now you can hunt down criminals in the style of the comics and try to make ends meet. We’ll see what to expect in this noir role-playing game.
The world:
The Blacksad RPG is based on the comics for the character of the same name. Blacksad is a World War II veteran and now makes his way as a private investigator. He’s also a black cat because this version of our world is home to anthropomorphic animals The animals are often portrayed in a very stereotypical way, for example dogs and foxes often embody police officers and reptiles belong more to the underworld. Blacksad is set in the 1950s in America. Socio-political issues and problems such as racial segregation are dealt with; for example, there are some animals with white fur or feathers that consider themselves to be a superior breed.
It is assumed that the players play characters typical of Film Noir, such as investigators, criminals, journalists or reporters. The connections between characters and NPCs are very important in the Blacksad RPG.
The game:
In the Blacksad RPG, characters are created relatively freely, as there are no classes. In addition to the four characteristics of fortitude, reflexes, willpower and intellect, associated traits are distributed. The player determines how high these traits are, with the maximum being determined by the value of the characteristic. There are some example traits, but otherwise you are completely free to choose or invent suitable traits. Milestones give brief descriptions of the character and their past, as well as the complication. These are reminiscent of aspects from FATE and can be invoked (see below).
In a test, you roll at least six dice. You use six-sided dice, whereby three different types of D6 come to play (preferably different in colour). The number of action dice (black dice are used in the rules) corresponds to the value of the characteristic used and is then filled up to six dice with complementary dice (white dice). The action dice reflect the character’s abilities and give the character a success with a four, five or six, the complementary dice reflect external influences, luck, etc. and generate a success with a six, but with a one you get a failure that eliminates one success. In some situations, tension dice (red) are used, especially if the character acts against his own beliefs or morals. Here a four or five generate one success, a six equals two successes, and a one equals one failure. If a test is more difficult, the gm gives you basic failures you have to overcome.
If you use aspects (such as milestones) you can re-roll dice. To do this, you have to spend a point of drive, the meta-resource of each character. With drive, you can also withstand adverse circumstances or temptations. Traits also let you manipulate dice. If a trait fits a situation, its value can be added to the results of the dice and thus potentially make die a success.
If two people act against each other, this is called a challenge and the winner is the one who generates more successes on his test. Characters have a fixed initiative and fights are dealt with according to the principle of challenges. A character’s defence is used as failures for the opponent. If a character is not aware of an attack, then the defence is zero, which I find very interesting, especially with ambushes and guns. Damage is first deducted from your resistance, which regenerates quickly. Damage received must also be compared with the character’s endurance. If the damage is at least twice as high as the endurance, then your state of health drops by one level. The state of health is much more difficult to restore and brings basic failures to all actions with it.
Noir stories are often associated with moral choices, the decline of values, and the decline of people. All of these elements have their own mechanics in the Blacksad RPG. The number of points of conscience represents the moral integrity. If a character acts against his beliefs, these can be challenged with a test; here the tension dice come into play. If a tension die shows a one or a six, the character loses one point of conscience in total. If the value of conscience drops to zero, then the character becomes an NPC and possibly even an antagonist. Characters with a low conscience value can win instinct points for this, which can ensure particularly impressive moments.
The Blacksad RPG also provides very catchy rules for car chases, which work over distance categories. The winner of a challenge can increase or decrease the distance by one category. The system sounds good because it gets by with very little and still makes exciting chases possible.
The book:
The Blacksad RPG is 160 pages, full color, and available in English, French and Spanish. There are many illustrations from the comics that present the world of Blacksad. In some places, I find the layout confusing or difficult to read. In the book, you get descriptions ofmany places typical to the Noir genre with suitable NPCs and the iconic characters from the comics also get stats. At the end there are several cases (adventures) to get to know the game.
Who might be interested in the Blacksad RPG:
- Players and game masters who want to experience film noir-style adventures
- People who like simple rules
- Players who like quite free character generation
Who might not be interested in the Blacksad RPG:
- Players and game masters who are not interested in anthropomorphic animals
- People who want complex and tactical combat
- Players who want to play shining heroes
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