Metal Slug Setting

Metal Slug. Sometimes you're fighting rebels and Mars People, sometimes you're helping rebels fight Mars People, sometimes the Mars People aren't too bad... eitherway, there is SOMETHING for you to shoot and blow up.

Metal Slug Setting is based on the Metal Slug system by Squash Monster. New rules presented here are by Stranger59. The goal is to present the Metal Slug universe, as a run and gun game where the players fight wave after wave of foe in dynamic battles.

The Basic Universe

Written by Amazing in case you're horribly deprived and have no idea what Metal Slug is.

The game series Metal Slug has a surprisingly complex backstory that not only doesn't matter to the game, but is actually never even mentioned in any of its incarnations. Instead of story scrolls, Metal Slug cabinets just run demos of the game blowing shit up.

This is not a bad thing.

The story is, General Donald Morden was a big guy in the Regular Army, but because it was corrupt as fuck the Army didn't bother stopping a bomb attack on Central Park that killed Morden's son. Understandably pissed, he leaves (and roughly half the army defects with him), and starts the Rebel Army. You are a l33t soldier in the Regular Army who now has to use fuckawesome tanks and planes and submarines and shit to fuck up Morden's army and stop this shit.

Long story short: KILL THINGS, BLOW THINGS UP. Also Martians.

It's everything you could ever want in a setting- lots of guns, crazy weapons, crazier vehicles, loads of grunts to kill, big explosions, and bigger bosses. So it was decided to make it into a game system.

Character creation

Metal Slug rookies still need to kill armies worth of foes.

Characters have the following traits:

• Gunner die (Gd): This die is added to the initial delivery die when using a gun of any sort. For simplicity sake, any nonmelee weapon. This includes grenades. The Gd is also used when providing cover fire.
• Beater die (Bd): This die is added to the initial delivery die when using any melee weapon.
• Dodge: This number is subtracted from the initial delivery roll of any enemy trying to attack you, for ranged or melee. Also used when taking a hit for an ally.
• Drive: This number is subtracted from the initial delivery roll of any enemy trying to attack you while you are controlling a moving vehicle, ranged or melee. Also used when taking a hit for an ally.
• Hit Points (HP): Represents your ability to take damage, handle fatigue and even luck. Decreases as you are successfully attacked, and you are dying upon reaching 0.
• Battle Points (BP): You are a step above the average person, the gods of the battlefield favor you. Using a BP can allow you to reroll one stage of delivery or payload on an attack, or let you roll on a Fate table.
• Friend Points (FP): You value your comrades in arms, and aid them with your actions, words and attitude. You can add FP to any roll you make to take a hit or provide cover fire for an ally (but only allies, not protected targets). You may spend a FP to give an ally a +1 to any roll. You may also use it to inspire a friend on in the face of death, represented by healing 1d10x10 of your ally’s hit points. You may only aid an ally with an FP once per turn, but you may aid as many allies each turn as you have FP.
• Talents: These add various bonuses and represent training and experience. Talents are gained after a completed mission, and your number of talents represents your rank.
• Rank: Represented by having a certain number of talents. Higher ranks allow new or advanced talents to be taken.

Characters start with the following stats:

• Gd: d4
• Bd: d4
• Dodge: 0
• Drive: 0
• HP: 600
• BP: 1 (rookie), 2 (soldier), 4 (veteran), 7 (super soldier)
• FP: 1 (rookie), 2 (soldier), 4 (veteran), 7 (super soldier)
• Talents: 10 (rookie), 15 (soldier), 20 (veteran), 30 (super soldier)
• Rank: Equal to talents chosen.
• Equipment: Flak Jacket, Pistol, Knife, 5 Grenades

Talents

Talents by Rank table

Talents are what set you apart from your comrades. Certain talents can only be taken at certain ranks, shown on the Talents by Rank table. Talents are as follows:

• Gunner Die upgrade: Each time taken moves Gd up on type: d6, d8, d10, d12 and d20
• Beater Die upgrade: Each time taken moves Bd up on type: d6, d8, d10, d12 and d20
• Dodge upgrade: Add +1 to your dodge score. Max +5
• Great Dodger: Add a dodge die to you Dodge score. Each rank moves the die type up: d4, d6, d8, d10, and d12.
• Drive uprgrade: Add +1 to your drive score. Max +5
• Great Driver: Add a dodge die to you drive score. Each rank moves the die type up: d4, d6, d8, d10, and d12. Only usable in vehicles that have the Super Mobile or Ultra Mobile traits.
• More hitpoints!: Each rank gives +200 HP to your total.
• Weapon Lover (specific weapon type): Add a +1 to initial delivery roll with any weapon in the type you chose.
• Ammo fiend: One rank gains you +25% ammo to any gun or ammo you find. A second rank gives you +50%
• Accurate strike: Ignore one point of armor on your target, per rank.
• True friend: Adds +1 to your FP total, max +5. This is in addition to the FP you gain at the named ranks.
• Hardy: Natural toughness and unyielding nature that acts as armor. Each rank gives you +5 armor.
• Combo Killer: Each target you kill this round gives you a bonus +1 payload die next round, max +5 with first rank, max +10 for second rank
• Spray Master: Each rank allows you to hit one more target with your attack when using a weapon that has the Rapid (R) quality.
• Special attack: You have a special melee attack. Construct it using Metal Slug System rules. Each rank allows you 200 pts.
• Close fighter: You keep your full Dodge score when avoiding a melee attack.
• Bodyguard: Remove 1 payload die per rank from the payload die total you divert from your target when you take the hit.
• Immortal: You have survived too many battles, and the story of your valor has made you a legend. If you meet a violent end, no matter how graphic and assured, you may return at some point allowed by your GM (at least by next session). You don’t have to return immediately, or at all, but it’s an option. Your character can not die permanently unless you want them to.
• Vicious Striker: In melee or close range, you ignore point of armor per rank.
• Fearless Charger: You can close in 2 increments. At rank 2, you no longer half your dodge score when closing in.
• Tactical Mover: Enemies don’t get free attacks at you when you are retreating. At rank 2, you can share this ability with one ally or protected target, if you are both retreating.

Combat

• Movement and Range: Encounters happen at different ranges, the same ranges your weapons have. Enemies will be grouped into combat groups, and they will be at a certain range in relation to you. You may close in or retreat to alter the encounter distance with one combat group per turn. If you close in, you half your dodge or drive score (rounding down), which ever is appropriate, until the end of your next turn. When you retreat, one random member of the enemy combat group can take a free attack at you, at the range you started your turn at. When dealing with two or more encounter groups, you can only be at intimate or close range with one group, and medium or long range with any number. If you charge into close or intimate range with one combat group, while in intimate or close range with a different group, you count as retreating from the second group. A character resolves their turn at the range they start out in the fight, and may attack before or after moving.

• Attacking: When you attack, you roll your Gd or Bd (whichever is appropriate) and add it to your initial delivery die for your weapon. You then subtract your target’s dodge result (their score + dodge die, if they have one). This is how many hits you get in, and you move on to the next stage, and roll that many of that die type. You continue rolling through the stages in this manner, until you roll your final payload dice. You subtract the target’s armor from this, and that much damage is dealt to your target’s hp. Note: You only factor in your target’s dodge on the initial deliver result, and armor on your final from your final payload result.

• Turn order: Foes at closer ranges handle combat first. That is, all intimate combat is handled, than close, than medium, and finally long. Enemies in the same range act in order of highest dodge or drive score (remember this can be affected by charging and other effects). Ties happen simultaneously.

Ally specific rules

• Take the hit: Used to take some of the fire directed at an ally other target you intend to protect. Roll your dodge normally, and take that many payload dice meant for your intended target.
• Cover fire: Forego your attack, add your Gd to an ally’s dodge against all foes til start of your next turn.
• Concentrated fire: Allies can concentrate their fire on one target. All delivery dice are rolled normally, as well as all payload dice save the final. Both final payload rolls are made at the same time, and all damage added together to act as a single attack.

New weapon qualities

Type: All weapons fall under Melee, Handgun, Long arm, Heavy, Grenade or Crazy (very specific weapons). Certain talents must have a weapon type specified, and bonuses from that talent only apply to weapons in that category.

Range: Represents how deep in the action you have to be to use the weapon. Ranges are Intimate (melee), Close (1-2 meters, just outside of Intimate), Medium (firefight distance), and Long (Sniper distance). For gaming purposes this is all left very abstract. A weapon may be used at it's range or less.

Mobility: For vehicles, shows how well you can get a vehicle through fire without it just plain taking hits.

• None: It’s stationary. Someone shots at it, they just get the maximum result on their initial delivery die each time.
• Crappy: It’s like your first car. It goes from A to B, on a good day. It is also for large or unwieldy vehicles that kinda move, but also are built to take a lot of hits. The driver can only add half their drive skill, except when using the vehicle to take a hit.
• Mobile: Normal combat ready vehicle. Driver uses full drive skill.
• Super Mobile: Slug class vehicles, able to react with amazing speed to threats. Driver gains +1 to drive.
• Ultra Mobile: Next to human level of movement. While beyond the tech level of Earth, anything is possible in the future or from advanced alien races. Driver gains +2 to drive.

Delivery:

• Melee (M): Must be in Intimate range to use. Opponent’s Dodge is halved (rounded down) when you attack. (+4 cost)
• Surprise(!): Enemy does not get their dodge die, if any, against this attack when first used in a fight. After that use, they still suffer a -1 to the result of their dodge die against this weapon (no further penalty to those without a dodge die). (+2 cost)
• Indirect (I): Cover only adds half (rounded down) it’s normal bonus to the target’s dodge. (+1 cost)
• Rapid (R): You can split your initial delivery roll in half (rounded down), and attack 2 targets. (+3 cost)

Payload:

• Delay: In round the attack is made, do not roll final payload. Instead set aside those dice. Anytime during the next round, you can roll those dice to deal the damage. This can be used in concentrated fire. (+4 cost)
• Tight Blast (T): A focused blast hits up to 3 targets in the same combat group. You may pick which 3, if there are more targets in the combat group. (+5)

Weapons of the Metal Slug world

Samples here my change, uploaded purely for playtesting purposes. These will be presented in a table when ready.

Pistol
Handgun, Medium 10/6/*/6

Knife
Melee, Intimate 12M/*/12

Heavy Machinegun
Long Arm, Medium 12R/10/*/10

Shotgun
Long Arm, Close 8/10/*/6/6T

Sword
Melee, Intimate 12M/*/10

Rocket Launcher
Heavy, Medium 20/6/*/4/20T

Bazooka
Heavy, Medium 20/*/20T

Long Shield
+10 cover

Flak Jacket
+2 Armor

Friends and Foes

Basic soldier, rank 5
Gd: d6 (1)
Bd: d4
Dodge: 4 (4)
Drive: 1 (1)
HP: 200 (-2)
Talents: Weapon Lover (Long arm) +1 (1)
Equipment: Pistol

Knife soldier, rank 12
Gd: d6 (1)
Bd: d6 (1)
Dodge: 5 (5)
Drive: 1 (1)
HP: 200 (-2)
Talents: Weapon Lover (melee) +5 (5), Close Fighter (1)
Equipment: Knife

Knife soldier Elite, rank 17
Gd: d6 (1)
Bd: d8 (2)
Dodge: 5 (5)
Drive: 1 (1)
HP:400 (-1)
Talents: Weapon Lover (melee) +5 (5), Close Fighter (1), Vicious Striker (1), Great Dodger d4 (1), Fearless Charger 1 (1)
Equipment: Knife

Bazooka soldier, rank 10 Gd: d6 (1)
Bd: d4
Dodge: 4 (4)
Drive: 2 (2)
HP: 200 (-2)
Talents: Weapon Lover (Heavy) +5 (5)
Equipment: Bazooka

Shield soldier, rank 20 Gd: d6 (1)
Bd: d8 (2)
Dodge: 5 (5)
Drive: 2 (2)
HP: 200 (-2)
Talents: Weapon Lover (Handgun) +3 (3), Weapon Lover (melee) +4 (4), Cover Fiend 5 (5)
Equipment: Pistol, Long Shield, Sword

Examples

Sample Super Soldier

• Gd: d12 (4)
• Bd: d6 (1)
• Dodge: 5 (5)
• Drive: 5 (5)
• HP: 1,800 (6)
• BP: 7 (0)
• FP: 9 (2)
• Talents: Great dodger +d6 (2), Great driver +d4 (1), Weapon Lover (Heavy) +3 (3), Combo Killer 1(+1)
• Rank: 30

Links

• Metal Slug System
• Metal Slug series wiki