Character Creation

Here is a link to the PDF for Holler: An Appalachian Apocalypse for Savage Worlds. Please use this responsibly. I kindly ask that no one share this link with those outside of the game.


Race
Humans are the only playable species in Holler. Human characters start play with a bonus Edge of their choice. They must still meet all requirements for that Edge.


Attributes
Characters start with a free d4 in each of the five attributes: Agility, Smarts, Spirit, Strength, and Vigor.

You have 5 points to increase your attributes. Raising a d4 to a d6, for example, costs 1 point. You’re free to spend these points however you like. No attribute may ever be raised above a d12, unless the character's Race states otherwise.


Hindrances
Hindrances are listed in SWADE, starting on page 22. Select up to four points of Hindrances. Major Hindrances are worth 2 points, and Minor are worth 1 point. Hindrance points may be spent on the following:

For 2 points worth of Hindrances you can:
• Raise an attribute one die type, or
• Choose an Edge

For 1 point worth of Hindrances you can:
• Gain another skill point
• Take one Uncommon item from the Holler Gear tables (see Holler, Chapter 2)

New Hindrances: New, setting-specific Hindrances are described starting on page 12 of Holler.


Skills
Skills are described in SWADE, starting on page 29. Characters start with a free d4 in each of the following Core Skills: Athletics, Common Knowledge, Notice, Persuasion, and Stealth.

You have 12 points to put into these or any other skills. Each die type costs 1 point (starting at d4) as long as the skill is equal to or less than the attribute it’s linked to. If you exceed the linked attribute, the cost becomes 2 points per die type.

Skill Maximums: Skills may not be increased above d12 during character creation.

Language: Everyone starts with a free d8 in Language (English).

New Skills: Several new skills, not found in SWADE, have been introduced for this game. These include Distilling (Smarts), Folklore (Smarts), and Folk Magic (Smarts).

Defunct Skills: The skill list in Holler is significantly reduced. The following skills are not available to your characters: Academics, Boating, Electronics, Focus, Hacking, Piloting, Psionics, Research, Spellcasting, and Weird Science.


Edges
Edges are described in the SWADE, starting on page 37. They may be purchased with Hindrance points. An Edge costs 2 Hindrance points.

New Edges: New, setting-specific Edges are described starting on page 13 of Holler.

Banned Edges: Rich and Filthy Rich are banned. Also, none of the Arcane Backgrounds in SWADE are available to player characters; they've been replaced by new ones.


Derived Stats
Pace: Standard Pace is 6" (12 yards/meters), but this may be modified by Edges and/or Hindrances. In Savage Worlds, 1" equals 2 yards/meters.

Parry: 2 plus half of Fighting. For example, a character with Fighting d8 would have a Parry of 6.

Size: Default Size is 0, unless modified by Edges or Hindrances. Cannot be less than -1 or more than 3.

Toughness: 2 plus half of Vigor, plus Armor and Size bonus (if any). Armor is noted next to Toughness in parentheses.


Starting Gear
Each character begins with a few sets of ragged but serviceable clothes, as well as six Common and/or Uncommon items from the Gear tables in Chapter 2 of Holler (starting on page 19). A single Hindrance point may be sacrificed to get a Scarce item of choice, in addition to the other starting items.

You may also select your gear from the SWADE core book, so long as the items would exist in Holler and make sense for the time period. If you choose to take any equipment from the core book, just run it by me first. The items must still have the equivalent of Common or Uncommon availability in Holler.

Each character is assumed to live in a rustic little hovel with wooden floors, no electricity, and no running water (you use a nearby river, well, or the rain for potable water). The home is likely only a single room, or perhaps a few small rooms, and has very basic furnishings. Most families in Holler rely on subsistence farming to help feed themselves, and so they have a garden and probably some livestock. There is no access to radios or telephones.


Grudge & Goal
Each character selects a Grudge and a Goal.

Your Grudge is what drives you to fight and resist the Big Boys. Often, this is some form of wrong that was perpetrated against the character, his loved ones, or his home.

Your Goal represents what the character ultimately wishes to accomplish to settle her Grudge. The more specific and personal the better.

Sample Character: Coot Jenkins


"Go help yer mama shuck some corn. I'm a-fixin' to visit the still tonight."

Ol’ Coot Jenkins is a moonshiner based out of a secluded corner of the Great Craggy Mountains. Years ago, he and his brothers ran a large and fairly successful bootlegging operation that serviced many of the nearby villages. They even managed to run bottles out of Holler and to the City. That was, until the Big Boys and their henchmen learned of the whereabouts of Coot's distillery. The day they came to shut the distillery down, Coot had been out hunting. He returned to find that all of his hootch and equipment had been confiscated, and his brothers arrested.

Since the termination of his illegal distillery, Coot has jury-rigged some makeshift stills from a series of rusted barrels. It isn't as fancy as his previous set-up, but it gets the job done. It allows him to keep working on his concoctions, while also providing for his brothers' families. He continues to run 'shine to the various mountain communities, but does so with an abundance of caution. Ornery and hard-bitten even for the likes of Holler, Coot nurses a powerful grudge against the outsiders who stole his livelihood and took away his siblings. He'd love nothing more than to spring his brothers from the Folsom Penal Colony and take down the Big Boys' own operations in Holler.

Coot is an old-timer through and through. He's wrinkled and gray-haired but also deceptively spry for his age. He sports a long, unkempt beard, bushy eyebrows, and shoulder-length hair that hasn't seen a pair of scissors in years. His weatherworn skin and calloused hands allude to a hard life spent outdoors, and his brown eyes are set in a constant leer of suspicion. Like most residents of Holler, Coot only owns a few bits of clothes. He usually wears the same basic outfit: plain gray pants, a brown work shirt, scuffed boots, and ragged wide brim hat. He smells strongly of tobacco, and, not surprisingly, alcohol.

Height: 5 feet, 8 inches (172.72 cm)
Weight: 151 lbs. (68.5 kg)
Age: 61
Sex: Male
Rank: Novice
Power Points: 15

Grudge: The Big Boys shut down his distillery and arrested his brothers.
Goal: Free his brothers and permanently shut down one of the Big Boy's operations in Holler as retribution.

AttributesHindrances
Elderly (Major)
Illterate (Minor)
Mean (Minor)

Edges
Arcane Background (Moonshiner)
Don't Get 'im Riled!
Luck

Powers
Blast
Boost Trait
Relief

Gear
A few sets of ragged but serviceable clothes
Likker
Hatchet (Str+d4 damage)
Rope (20 yards)
Agility d8
Smarts d6
Spirit d6
Strength d4
Vigor d6

Derived Stats
Pace: 5" (-1 from Elderly Hindrance)
Parry: 5
Size: 0
Toughness: 5

Skills
Athletics d6
Common Knowledge d4
Notice d6
Persuasion d4
Stealth d6
Language: English d8
Distilling d8
Repair d6
Fighting d6
Folklore d4

My guy fits perfectly within the Curious Youth example:

Curious Youth: The Curious Youth’s hope and optimism have not yet been extinguished. He questions everything—the Big Boys’ power, the submissiveness of the workers, where the demons came from, and how they can be sent back. He constantly seeks adventure, and rushes headlong into any mystery—yearning, perhaps naively, for a better world.

He'll be an intelligent youth. One of his older ancient relatives, maybe long deceased had been an avid reader, back when there was a decent school and a library. Books were collected and saved and then later hidden from the Big Boys. These books are how my character educated himself. Is it okay for me to make these assumptions?

Yeah that totally works. Sounds good

Submitted my sheet. I don't mind changing the avatar if we all want to have similarly themed avatars.

in the Grimm fairy tale of Jack and the giant bean stalk, the name of the little boy is called Jack Spriggins.
In this re-imagining of him, he witnessed his dad getting killed by a huge humanoid figure so that he and his mamma would escape. His mamma told him not to speak of it to any1 as they would think them strange or cursed or something. So he aint talking about it - his dad went out one day and never came back. But Jack has vowed to find one of these giant folk and slay them.
They live on a meagre farm where his mamma does most of the work and he helps out as much as he can (20 hours / week at bare minimum as per his hidrance). Occasionally family will visit or neighbours to help out with the heavy duty stuff as they have taken pity on them.

a couple questions. I think I'd like my character to be able to play the fiddle if that's ok. But is a fiddle an uncommon item (like a banjo) or a rare item (like a guitar)?

Also, if we use a Hindrance point to get an uncommon item, does that count as one of our three items?

I believe it does.

That said, I don't particularly like how gear is handled in the setting. I understand that the game wants to keep you from starting too well equipped, but I think it's too difficult to get certain items. I'm going to revisit the gear rules today and get back to everyone.

Cool. I understand we are supposed to be every day salt of the earth people, not vigilantes or anything, so I
m not trying to get any armor or a bi-plane or anything