There’s this famous post-apocalyptic movie called A Boy and His Dog. It was one of the influences for the original Fallout, among other things.
Well, you know me. I get bored. So I came up with A Boy and His Hog. It’s the origin story for a proto-ranger in a medieval fantasy campaign. As written, he could be dropped into almost any campaign at TL1 or higher, whether fantastic or not – changing his name (and maybe Survival specialty) could easily make him an ancient Greek, Roman or Egyptian with no trouble at all. And yes, I wrote up the Hog as a character so I could give him to The Boy as an Ally. Turns out dangerous animals make cheap Allies in GURPS. That’s good to know for certain campaigns.
His backstory is simple: wild orcs burned his farm and ate his family. If they’d done just one or the other he may have stayed home. Dead family and unburned farm means he’s taking over the family farm a little earlier than anticipated. A living family with a burned farm just means they need to rebuild. They and their neighbors probably have done so before. But both? Dude’s got nothing but the clothes on his back, what he could salvage from the ruins, and a burning hatred for wild orcs.
As for Hamish, he definitely smelled pork at the barbecue pit that day. After Angus assured him it was the orcs who threw Hamish’s family on the buffet table, Hamish was all-in too.
So here we have a Boy and His Hog wandering the forests of Kazkov out to rip off orc heads and use them as chamberpots.
As written, he has the makings of a decent ranger down the road. He’s already good with critters and can survive on his own, and he has the ability to track someone quietly through the woods. Angus may not be a purpose-built combatant, but he’s a solid support character who can take care of himself. He’ll not only help a party with non-combat skills, but he also won’t need a bodyguard other than Hamish.
If I was planning to play this guy as my PC or someone else used him and wanted ideas for developing him, here are some fairly obvious short-term ideas.
- He doesn’t have a bow, despite being a good shot. Acquiring one should be a short-term goal. It wouldn’t just be useful in making him a combatant, but also with hunting to feed himself and the rest of the party.
- With his light armor, he would benefit greatly from putting a few points into Shield skill and getting one of those too if the player decided to make him a combatant.
- Again, if the player wanted to make him more of a combatant, he may want to look into upgrading his axe to a shortsword or broadsword. He has an axe because it made sense he would use one as a tool and while hunting or chasing off predators and because axes are cheap and effective.
- Most importantly, increase his Stealth and Tracking skills, and perhaps add Forward Observer. He’s already sneaky and used to screwing around in the woods, so specializing in that aspect of his skill set just makes sense.
- Maybe get Hamish some barding while he’s at it. You know there’s someone crazy enough to figure out how to make such a thing.
Character Sheets:
Angus MacAngus, a Boy
150 Points
Orcs burned his farm and ate his family. Now he’s out for blood. He is, naturally, accompanied by his Hog Hamish.
ST 12 [20], DX 12 [40], IQ 11 [20], HT 12 [20]
Will 10; Per 11 [5]; Speed 6; Move 6; Dodge 9; BL 29; Damage 1d-1/1d+2
6’ 0”, # lbs (SM 0)
Advantages: Ally (Hamish, %, 15-) [3]; Animal Empathy [5]; Outdoorsman [10/level]
Perks: Alcohol Tolerance [1]
Disadvantages: Compulsive Behavior (Carousing) [-5]; Honesty (12) [-10]; Intolerance (Orcs) [-5]; Overconfidence [-5]; Pacifism (Cannot Harm Innocents) [-10]; Stubbornness [-5]; Wealth (Struggling) [-10]
Quirks: Broad-Minded [-1]; Favorite meal is pork chops and fish [-1]; Holds conversations with Hamish [-1]; Would rather be fishing [-1]
Skills: Animal Handling (Pigs) (A) IQ+2 [8]-13; Axe/Mace (A) DX+2 [8]-14; Bow (A) DX+2 [8]-14; Brawling (E) DX+2 [4]-14; Carousing (E) HT+1 [2]-13; Cooking (A) IQ+1 [4]-12; Farming/TL3 (A) IQ [2]-11; First Aid/TL3 (Human) (E) IQ+1 [3]-12; Fishing (E) Per+3 [4]-15; Hiking (A) HT+1 [4]-13; Knife (E) DX+2 [4]-14; Leatherworking (E) DX+1 [2]-13; Scrounging (E) Per+1 [2]-13; Stealth (A) DX [2]-12; Survival (Woodlands) (A) Per+3 [8]-15; Tracking (A) Per+2 [4]-14; Veterinary/TL3 (H) IQ+1 [8]-12.
Languages: Votic (Native/Broken) [-2]
Cultural Familiarities: Wolande [0]
Weapons:
- Axe (2d or 2d+1 cut, Reach 1, Parry 10U or 8U, ST 11 or 10†; $50, 4 lbs)
- Large Knife (1d cut or 1d-1 imp, Reach C, 1 or C, Parry 9, Acc 0, Range 10/18, RoF 1, T(1) shots, ST 6; $40, 1 lbs)
- 2 Small Knives (1d-1 cut or 1d-2 imp, Reach C, 1 or C, Parry 9, Acc 0, Range 6/12, RoF 1, T(1) shots, ST 5; $30 each, ½ lb each)
- Unarmed (Parry 10)
- Punch (1d-1 cr, Reach C, Skill 14)
- Kick (1d+1 cr, Reach C, 1, Skill 12)
- Bite (1d-1 cr, Reach C, Skill 14)
Armor: Boots (DR2 feet; $80, 3 lbs); Leather Jacket (DR1 arms & torso; $50, 4 lbs); Leather Pants (DR 1 legs, groin; $40, 3 lbs)
Equipment (Pouch): pouch ($10, neg wt), fishhooks & line ($50); personal basics ($5, 1 lb), $25 in assorted coins. Total weight 1 lb.
Equipment (Backpack): small backpack ($60, 3 lbs), blanket ($20, 4 lbs); waterskin ($10, 8.25 lbs). Total weight 15.25 lbs.
Hamish, his Hog
34 Points
The orcs et’ his family too. Yes, it was totally the orcs.
ST 18 (No Fine Manipulators, -40%; SM+1, -10%) [40], DX 12 [24], IQ 5 [-100], HT 14 [40]
Will 12 [35]; Per 12 [35]; Speed 6.5 []; Move 8 [10]; Dodge []; BL ; Damage 1d+2/3d
3’ 2” at the shoulder, 700 lbs (SM 1)
Advantages: Combat Reflexes [15]; Cutting Striker (Tusks) [7]; DR 2 (Tough Skin, -40%) [6]; Hooves [3]
Disadvantages: Bad Temper (9) [-15]; Intolerance (Orcs) [-5]; Quadruped [-35]; Wild Animal [-30]
Skills: Brawling (E) DX+2 [4]-14
Languages: Hog (Native) [0]
“Weapons:”
- Gore (2d cut, Reach C, 1, Skill 14, Parry 11)
- Kick (2d cr, Reach C, 1, Skill 12)