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REAL AMERICAN H.E.R.O.ES

WritingLoren Dean, Alex Flagg

ADDitiOnAL WritingJon Andersen, Ian Homeyard, R.M. Kuras, Mark Newman, Jørgen

Sætermo, Hannu Vilppula, David Wu

COver ArtOctographics

eDiting AnD grAphiC DesignPatrick Kapera

DeDiCAtiOnAlex Flagg dedicates this product in loving memory of Mary Mey,

whose gift of Snake Eyes and Short Fuze 28 years ago started him down the path of geekery

Special thanks also to the Gencon playtest team who taught us that when betting on a knife fight between a Marine and a walrus, always put your money on the walrus

spyCrAft CreAteD by pAtriCk kAperA AnD kevin WiLsOn

pLAytestersWalter Christensen, Nathan Devonshyre, Charles Etheridge-Nunn,

Robert Harris, Lisa Murray, Jason Olsan, Andrew M. Popowich, Unit 13 (Alex Flagg, Kevin Ripka, Jimmy Taylor, and Tyler Johnson), and our guests at the GenCon 2009 Play with the Designers event (Chris Alemendinger, Steve Almendinger, Nicholas Allen, Michael Allport, Chris Cowles, Aaron D. Fleming, Jim Fortsas, Jerry Ham, Brock Jaworski, Ron Kaufman Jr., Alan D. Kohler, Ryan Webster, and David Wells)

intrODUCtiOn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

the fACtiOns Of reAL AmeriCAn h .e .r .O .es . . . . . . . . 3

WeLCOme tO h .e .r .O . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

the rise Of n .m .e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

frienDs Or fOes? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Morrigna Corporation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Shirobikou Ninja Clan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12The Wreckers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

bUiLDing yOUr h .e .r .O . . . . . . . . . . . 15Talents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Specialties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Commandant (Master Class) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17Overlord (Master Class). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Unarmed Combat Feats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Covert Feats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Style Feats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Tradecraft Feats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19The Armory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21Allegiance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24Rank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

rUnning A reAL AmeriCAn h .e .r .O .es CAmpAign . . . . . . . . . . . 26

h .e .r .O . OperAtives . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

n .m .e . Agents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

mOrrignA AssOCiAtes . . . . . . . . . 41

shirObikOU CLAnmAtes . . . . . . . . 43

WreCker trAsh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

siDebArsTimeline: Prominent H.E.R.O. Operations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–5Timeline: N.M.E. Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Recommended Specialties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Recommended Classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

tAbLesTable 1: The Commandant. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Table 2: The Overlord . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Table 3: Vehicles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22Table 4: Weapons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Table 5: Reputation and Net Worth in Real American H.E.R.O.es . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Table 6: Rank Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Table 7: Chain of Command. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Table 8: Diabolical Plot Generator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27Table 9: McGuffin of the Week Generator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

OgL/OgC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

CRAFTY GAMES PRODUCT 20214

Spycraft and all related marks are ™ and © 2009 Alderac Entertainment Group, Inc.

and used under license. All rights reserved.

All characters, names, places, and text herein is copyrighted by Crafty Games.

Reproduction without Crafty Games’ express permission is expressly forbidden,

except for the purpose of reviews and when permission to photocopy is clearly stated.

The mention of or reference to any company or product in this release is not a

challenge to the trademark or copyright concerned.

This release may use governments, intelligence agencies, and political figures

as settings, characters, and themes. All such uses are intended for

entertainment purposes only.

WWW .CrAfty-gAmes .COm

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REAL AMERICAN H.E.R.O.ES

strUCtUreNational Military Exports is the largest non-state military power in

the world. Headquartered on the man-made gulf island of Agonistia, its legions number nearly a quarter million — a force larger than that of many developed countries — and it owns trillions of dollars in top-of-the-line military hardware. Beyond its own ranks is a global network of terrorist groups, insurgent movements, and spies provid-ing logistical and military support for its ultimate goal: the destruction of America and conquest of the world.

Employment with N.M.E. is a trying and life-changing experience. Recruits almost always emerge from violent trades — e.g. former soldiers, guerilla fighters, gang members, third-world mercenaries, corrupt police officers, and like-minded killers. Many are lured by promises of wealth but just as many arrive with a deep-seated disgust at the state of the world and a will to take up arms to upset the order. Newcomers are subjected to a brutal combination of military training, small unit tactics, and mental indoctrination that not only hones their combat lethality but bends their will to N.M.E.’s cause and its leader’s impulsive directives.

Those who survive the ordeal join the ranks of the organization’s foot soldiers, called “blueshirts” for the distinctive blue-urban camo comprising their uniform. Blueshirts are the backbone of N.M.E.’s legions and the frontline in its reckless frontal assaults. They’re regu-larly exposed to highly experimental equipment and a wide variety of other hazards but those who live long enough to become genuine vet-erans graduate to the specialized B.A.N.E. corps, where they learn one of many specialized battlefield roles (see page 39). The most talented among them join the Red Nemesis Brigade, N.M.E.’s special operations wing, which forms the bulk of its leadership (see page 41).

At the head of this globe-spanning network sits the Arch-Enemy, supreme commander and founder of National Military Exports, who dictates the organization’s every action with an iron fist backed by immense personal charisma and more than a little clinical psychosis. Under his rule, N.M.E. operates much like a feudal kingdom: his orders are never to be questioned and his decrees are to be obeyed to the letter (and often, to the death). Motives or grand strategy are above everyone else’s pay grade; any who question the Arch-Enemy, his tactics, or the direction of the organization are unceremoniously shot, beaten, drowned, flayed, boiled, burned, jettisoned from high-speed suborbital spacecraft, or worse. Somehow, despite this, N.M.E. continues to thrive and conquer.

OperAtiOnsN.M.E. is ruthlessly efficient and highly effective, relying foremost on

blitzkrieg strategy and overwhelming force. At every turn, N.M.E. lever-ages its massive human, financial, and technological resources to crush its foes. It can blithely send wave after wave of blueshirts to attack a defended position, drop hundreds of bombs on a defiant capital city, or casually employ a particle ray weapon to vaporize a small town. What it lacks in subtlety, it makes up for in redundancy — a lesson many N.M.E. commanders have learned the hard way over the years.

Still, N.M.E. understands the value of covert operations. Red Nemesis initiatives supply independent revolutionary and terrorist groups with funding and weapons, engineer emerging economies to seize their wealth, and plant agents provocateur in burgeoning, unstable governments — anything to threaten stability and prosperity around the world. These operations are often used to soften a target ahead of a frontal assault.

1979: N.M.E. achieves complete control of Spring Green, Wisconsin, the site of its first corporate headquarters. With the city’s entire population enlisted in its dreaded Red Nemesis Brigade, Spring Green becomes the largest terrorist training camp in the Americas. N.M.E. also dispatches operatives into major law firms, corporations, and banks throughout the world.

1982: On the run from H.E.R.O. N.M.E. hijacks a Russian nuclear submarine and scuttles it at an atoll 500 nautical miles off the gulf coast of Mexico. H.E.R.O. quickly destroys the submarine — just as the Arch-Enemy predicted — and the resulting explo-sion sparks a massive volcanic eruption that forms a new island the Arch-Enemy christens “Agonistia.” N.M.E. lawyers promptly win U.N. recognition of the territory as an independent nation.

1984: N.M.E. calibrates orbital mind control lasers to broad-cast violence-inducing messages, encouraging a slew of modern day anarchist cells across the world. Only the soothing sounds of Kenny G and Michael Bolton save America from total chaos.

1985: Using an experimental Morrigna drilling machine, N.M.E. carves out a massive sinkhole under Fort Knox in the hopes rob-bing it from below. When the bottom falls out, however, it’s H.E.R.O. and not the gold that tumbles into the villains’ laps.

1987: Having infiltrated Wall Street at all levels, N.M.E. betrayers unleash panic in the stock market. Black Monday is the largest one-day drop in American stock market history, yet the economy survives.

1989: Sensing the imminent financial crisis in the Soviet Union, N.M.E. agents in the Kremlin accelerate the collapse of Gorbachev’s government. In the ensuing chaos, Red Nemesis Brigadiers buy vast swaths of Soviet state holdings and peddle nuclear materials through the growing Russian black market.

1991: N.M.E. mad scientist Dr. Penumbra and a host of Red Nemesis infiltrators slip subliminal messages into the news networks’ coverage of Operation: Desert Storm, hoping to brainwash the American public. With H.E.R.O. deployed for an advanced strike against Iraq’s NBE stocks, its reserve corps is called into action. Operatives Shortwave and Perfect Ten create counter “news” programming that breaks Penumbra’s hold on the populace’s minds in three days, all without drawing the public’s attention to the incident.

1993: N.M.E. agent Booby-Trap leads B.A.N.E.s and Star B.A.N.E.s to sabotage the north polar ice cap with a combination of deadly pollution and a hijacked anti-missile satellite. If suc-cessful, the plot would drown coastal cities around the world, but H.E.R.O. thwarts the plan in a vicious high-atmosphere and sea battle, devastating N.M.E.s operations for years to come.

2001: N.M.E. amasses the largest terrorist network the world has ever known. Its mission: to draw H.E.R.O. out in the open and publicly turn global governments against the United States.

2004: Red Nemesis Brigadiers plant yellow cake uranium in the quiet Central African country of Sierra Verde and tip the press through operatives in the U.S. government. A quick reaction force strikes the Sierra Verde capital, sparking inter-national outrage.

TIMELINE: N.M.E. PLOTS

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REAL AMERICAN H.E.R.O.ES

ALLegiAnCeIn a campaign featuring the Allegiance quality (see page 26), every

character must choose an Allegiance during character creation. A character’s Allegiance must be available in the current setting. There are six Allegiances in Real American H.E.R.O.es — five for prominent factions, plus Neutral.

H.E.R.O.: America’s elite fighting force combats all foes, particu-larly N.M.E. and other terrorists.

N.M.E.: National Military Exports, the world’s largest private military contractor and terrorist support network, aspires to pin the world under the heel of its leader, the Arch-Enemy.

Morrigna Corporation: A secretive arms manufacturing conglom-erate, the Morrigna Corporation colludes with terrorists and rogue states to spread war and increase its bottom line.

Shirobikou Ninja Clan: This ancient ninja guild answers to its vindictive leader, White Shadow.

The Wreckers: Punks and thugs to a man, these nomadic bikers tear through the heartland, waging a private war to break American society.

fACtiOn vs . ALLegiAnCeA character’s Faction is the group to which he belongs, but not

necessarily the group to which he prescribes (that’s his Allegiance). This distinction allows for characters whose mindsets don’t entirely sync up with those of their superiors, as well as full-blown subversives like double agents and moles.

A character may choose any Faction and any Allegiance, though he may only have one of each at any time. The Game Control must approve every character’s chosen Allegiance, however, as he might want everyone to work for and support the same Faction, or have another strategy. He may wish to avoid (or encourage!) the complica-tion of multiple loyalties in the game.

A character belonging to a Faction gains benefits and suffers draw-backs as described on page 389 of the Spycraft 2.0 Rulebook, while a character with an Allegiance other than Neutral gains access to exclusive character options. A non-Neutral Allegiance may also leave a character vulnerable to various abilities and other effects.

Belonging to a Faction does not imply associated Allegiance benefits, or vice-versa. A character belonging to the H.E.R.O. Faction and possessing the Shirobikou Allegiance may not, for instance, gain levels in the Commandant master class. Likewise, the same character may not benefit from the Shirobikou organization package.

Freelance characters deserve special attention. A Freelance char-acter has no Faction but may choose any Allegiance. This does not represent loyalty or duty. Rather, it may indicate shared beliefs or values, or a past relationship. The latter is especially useful if the character chooses Allegiance-only character options which he might have gained during his time with the group. Once again, the details are left to the player to define and the GC to approve.

Special Note: Even a character possessing the Flawless Identity feat may still possess only one Allegiance. A character’s alternate and cover identities may claim loyalty to any organization, but a character’s true Allegiance is where his heart lies, and dedication of that magnitude cannot be shared or easily shifted.

ALLegiAnCe ObJeCtivesUnless a character is on a personal mission, his objectives are

generally those of his Faction. Characters of each Allegiance may receive additional objectives, generally in secondary mission brief-ings or through similarly discreet means. Allegiance objectives may or may not align with those built into the main mission, but unless the GC wishes to introduce inter-party conflict, he should make sure none of the Allegiance objectives directly contradict each other or the mission’s primary objectives.

Allegiance objectives grant XP rewards just like standard mission objectives. When an Allegiance objective is accomplished, each character possessing the appropriate Allegiance gains 100% of its XP reward and each character possessing the Neutral Allegiance gains 50% of its XP reward (rounded down). Thus, even characters lacking dedication to a specific Faction are motivated to help their teammates achieve their goals.

It isn’t necessary to provide private objectives for characters of every Allegiance in every mission. It’s probably enough to cover half of them during each outing, and to vary the Allegiances that receive private objectives from mission to mission.

gLeAning ALLegiAnCeSome NPCs wear their Faction choice on their sleeves (sometimes

literally, in the case of many uniformed organizations). Allegiance, however, is often far more difficult to determine. Mechanically, guess-ing another character’s Allegiance may involve any of the following options.

• Accurately guessing a character’s Allegiance requires a success-ful Sense Motive/Detect Lie check.

• Forcing a character to reveal his Allegiance requires a successful Intimidate/Coercion check. Alternately, a Victory Advantage in an interrogation Conflict can yield the same result.

• The cold read ability may be used to determine a character’s Allegiance. This consumes 3 questions, though the target may spend 1 action die to cancel the ability use, in which case the questions are considered to be unasked.

ChAnging ALLegiAnCeAt any time, for his own reasons, a character may forsake his cur-

rent Allegiance, replacing it with Neutral or the Allegiance of another Faction. He immediately suffers the following effects.

• The character gains no Reputation or Net Worth for the current mission (or his next mission if he makes his choice between missions). This penalty is ignored if the character changes Allegiance as a result of a Rival Approach (which may target either a character’s Faction or Allegiance, or both).

• The character gains only 1/2 his standard XP reward for the current mission, or 1/2 his standard XP reward for his next mission if he makes his choice between missions (in either case, rounded down). This penalty is ignored if the character changes his Allegiance as a result of a Rival Approach (which may target either a character’s Faction or Allegiance, or both).

A character may voluntarily switch Allegiances once, and only once. Thereafter, he must retain his new Allegiance for the duration of his career.

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REAL AMERICAN H.E.R.O.ES

Goal: The plot’s ultimate goal, which may or may not be revealed to the team at the mission’s outset (generally, the later it’s revealed in the mission, the better).

Method: The action the organization takes to initiate the plot. McGuffins are often used, exploited, or discovered in the process (see below).

Target: The individual or group the plot targets, as victim or scapegoat.

the mCgUffin generAtOrMany diabolical plots also involve an exceedingly dangerous

weapon or threat to truth, justice, and the American way — a type of McGuffin. A military fantasy McGuffin can be scientific, mystical, psychic, or even alien in nature — the more exotic and mysterious, the better.

McGuffins typically have no rules, instead powering the story and demonstrating the consequences of failure. The heroes may witness a McGuffin destroy a city, teleport a bank full of gold away in an instant, or infect an important NPC with a fatal virus. What’s most important is that the McGuffin propels the plot, becoming an objec-tive or target for capture, rescue, or destruction over the course of a mission or season.

To quickly generate your next McGuffin, roll 1d20 up to four times and consult table 9: The McGuffin of the Week Generator (see below). Like the Diabolical Plot Generator, this won’t provide rules but rather fast and dirty inspiration for your latest military fantasy epic.

Device: The McGuffin’s appearance, housing, or trigger.Effect: The McGuffin’s (perhaps alleged) impact once triggered. Weakness: The McGuffin’s (occasionally known) vulnerability. Location: The McGuffin’s position (which is typically very hard to

access).

h .e .r .O . OperAtives

ArChAngeLCivilian Name: Kincade, MichaelBirthplace: Cambridge, Mass.Primary Specialty: Para-RescueSecondary Spec: Combat RescueMilitary Grade: O-3 (Captain)Bio: Archangel enlisted with the

U.S. Air Force at age 18 but used every moment of his downtime to complete a Bachelor’s Degree in Emergency Medicine, waving that and his sterling service record to leverage a position with OCS. He was commissioned as a Combat Rescue Officer and led a small unit of six Airmen as part of Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC). Nicknamed “The Seraphim,” Michael’s unit specialized in life-threatening missions deep in hostile or unknown territories, usually to recover injured or lost soldiers, and downed pilots.

In 2003, Archangel was awarded the Air Force Cross, Defense Superior Service Medal, and Aerial Achievement Medal for the rescue of a wounded State Department official. This action also earned him a slot on the H.E.R.O. roster. Now General Brimstone keeps Archangel on tap for bad situations that get worse, especially when H.E.R.O. operatives have been captured.

Archangel’s job is getting people out of a fight, not getting into fights himself, and he uses his advanced SERE training to limit expo-sure to hostile forces. This isn’t to say he can’t drop a target, but he certainly prefers not to have to. A dedicated workaholic, Archangel eschews personal relationships, and doesn’t argue the point.

Quote: “Let’s get these boys home.”

Result Device Effect Weakness Location

1 Giant rocket Plague Poorly hidden Andes peaks2 Mysterious briefcase Mind control Reluctant henchmen Ocean floor3 Enormous cannon Gravity manipulation Secret password Surface of the moon4 Human host Weather control Televised location Flying aircraft carrier5 Double agent Teleportation Partially complete Volcano6 Glowing vial Physical mutation Antidote Remote island7 Local water supply EM pulse Immobile South Pole8 Satellite Earthquake Isolated “Innocent” small town9 Secret formula Eternal night Known by locals Space station10 Radio broadcast Paralytic terror Civilian contractors Big city11 Poisonous gas Nuclear apocalypse Commonly malfunctions Underground lair12 Radio antenna Nanotech swarm Usable only by 1 person Dead body 13 Mystical ritual Resurrection Not yet understood Tiny jungle village14 Massive drill Limitless knowledge Needs catalyst Dense jungle15 Crystal idol Planetary axis reversal Sympathetic foil Luxury yacht16 Consumer electronic device Cloning Unstable technology War zone17 Biblical relic Instant death Radioactive Public transportation18 Strange alien item Nightmares Causes madness H.E.R.O. headquarters19 Stealth balloon Insanity Fragile Washington D.C.20 Handheld weapon Disintegration Dangerous location Character’s mind

TAbLE �: MCGuffIN Of THE WEEk GENERATOR