More Solid!
I was going to post feats tonight, but as I went over them I realized that another mechanic was coming together and I would do well to define it.
Mechanic: Tools Of The Man/Men Of The People
The predominant conflict of ideologies in the blaxploitation genre, and therefore in Solid!, is that between The People and The Man. Many effects will have different properties when applied towards Men Of The People than when applied towards Tools Of The Man.
A character's Allegiances are the primary determining factor in whether he is a Tool Of The Man, a Man Of The People, or neither. Many Allegiances can place a character in one camp or the other. Some example Allegiances to The Man would include the Federal government, the police force, major corporations, the Mafia, or the National Republican Caucus. Example Allegiances to The People would include the Black Power movement, a street gang, the residents of a neighborhood, or the American Communist Party.
It is possible for a character to have Allegiance directly to The Man or The People; this is much more common in the case of allegiance to The People than to The Man. It is also possible for a character to have Allegiance to groups on both sides. In such a case, whichever is first on his prioritized list determines his status as a Tool Of The Man or Man Of The People. It is also possible for a character to be neither. While it is most often assumed within the blaxploitation genre that heroes will be Men Of The People and villains will be Tools Of The Man, there are frequent exceptions.
Whenever a Reputation check is made, the reaction of the person making the check to the person whose Reputation is in question is modified by -1 for each Allegiance that person possesses which is opposed to the check-maker's ideology. There is no corresponding bonus for matched ideologies.
Example: Police Detective Cooper Black's Allegiances are "Justice For All", "His Family", and "The Detroit Police Department". The GM decides that "Justice For All" is a People allegiance, "His Family" is neutral, and "Detroit Police Department" is a Man allegiance. Cooper is a Man Of The People at heart, but will probably face conflict between his allegiances at some point in the story. Since he has Allegiances on both sides, his Reputation suffers in interaction with both Tools Of The Man and Men Of The People. It's not easy to walk the line.
Mechanic: Tools Of The Man/Men Of The People
The predominant conflict of ideologies in the blaxploitation genre, and therefore in Solid!, is that between The People and The Man. Many effects will have different properties when applied towards Men Of The People than when applied towards Tools Of The Man.
A character's Allegiances are the primary determining factor in whether he is a Tool Of The Man, a Man Of The People, or neither. Many Allegiances can place a character in one camp or the other. Some example Allegiances to The Man would include the Federal government, the police force, major corporations, the Mafia, or the National Republican Caucus. Example Allegiances to The People would include the Black Power movement, a street gang, the residents of a neighborhood, or the American Communist Party.
It is possible for a character to have Allegiance directly to The Man or The People; this is much more common in the case of allegiance to The People than to The Man. It is also possible for a character to have Allegiance to groups on both sides. In such a case, whichever is first on his prioritized list determines his status as a Tool Of The Man or Man Of The People. It is also possible for a character to be neither. While it is most often assumed within the blaxploitation genre that heroes will be Men Of The People and villains will be Tools Of The Man, there are frequent exceptions.
Whenever a Reputation check is made, the reaction of the person making the check to the person whose Reputation is in question is modified by -1 for each Allegiance that person possesses which is opposed to the check-maker's ideology. There is no corresponding bonus for matched ideologies.
Example: Police Detective Cooper Black's Allegiances are "Justice For All", "His Family", and "The Detroit Police Department". The GM decides that "Justice For All" is a People allegiance, "His Family" is neutral, and "Detroit Police Department" is a Man allegiance. Cooper is a Man Of The People at heart, but will probably face conflict between his allegiances at some point in the story. Since he has Allegiances on both sides, his Reputation suffers in interaction with both Tools Of The Man and Men Of The People. It's not easy to walk the line.