THE UNAUTHORIZED GURPS: X-FILES by Christopher Beiting (beiting@vax.ox.ac.uk) Please note that the following adaption is completely unofficial. Distribution can only be made on a shared basis. No compensation can be charged for it. GURPS is a copyright of Steve Jackson Games, Inc. The X- Files is copyright of Fox Broadcasting. Any directly cited FBI materials are assumed to be copyrighted by the FBI. No copyright infringement on any of these sources is intended by the author. All other material is Copyright (c) April, 1996, I hereby give consent to use this information in a manner consistent with normal role-playing practices, and give permission to reproduce this material, in whole or in part, as long as proper credit is given. SECTION TWO: THE CHARACTERS Most espionage agencies keep their training programs rather secret, however, since the FBI is more a police organization than an espionage one, the training program for FBI Special Agents is somewhat more open to public scrutiny, and thus, by extension, it is possible to provide a good template of what an FBI Agent should know. GURPS: X-Files Special Agents should be built on the standard 100 points, 150 points if the game is going to be a little more cinematic. An FBI Special Agent must be a citizen of the United States with no criminal record (polygraph tests may be required to verify this). Despite a historical bias towards hiring exclusively white males, the FBI is an equal opportunity employer, and as such actively recruits women and minorities. Thus, characters from these backgrounds are entirely appropriate. Special Agents must be between the ages of 23 and 37 when entering duty. They must hold at _least_ a bachelor's degree from an accredited four-year college or university. To simulate this, the player should select an appropriate collection of skills (possibly by selecting one skill to represent a major, one to represent a minor, a few to represent electives or outside interests, and Research and Writing). After recruitment, the prospective Agent undergoes a sixteen-week training program at the FBI Academy in Quantico, VA. Since the FBI places a great deal of importance of the physical abilities of its Special Agents, they are made to undergo quasi-military-style physical fitness training. Any Agent who does not meet the following _minimum_ characteristics will wash out of Quantico: ST- 9+ DX- 9+ IQ- 11+ HT- 10+ FBI agents are also taught at least a minimum in the following skills, and should have at least 1/2 point put in them: *Criminology (M/A) B60 *Law (M/A) B58 *Forensics (M/H) B61 *Research (M/H) B62 Interrogation (M/A) B66 Driving (P/A) B68 Intelligence Analysis (M/H) B66 Computer Ops (M/E) B58 Electronics Ops (Polygraph) (M/A) B58 and/or Detect Lies (M/H) B65 Electronics Ops (Listening Devices) (M/A) B58 Psychology (M/H) B62 History (FBI) (M/H) B61 Note that any skill listed above with a * must be taken at 12 or better. Furthermore, in connection with the Bureau's insistence on physical activity, FBI Special Agents are more combat-trained than the agents of most espionage or police agencies. An Agent also receives the following weapons and combat skills: *Guns (Pistol) (P/E) B51 Guns (Shotgun) (P/E) B51 Guns (Rifle) (P/E) B51 Guns (SMG) (P/E) B51 Judo (P/H) B51 or Police Hand-to Hand Martial Art MA97 These weapons skills are based on the following firearms used by the FBI: Remington 870 shotgun MP5 submachine gun M-16 assault rifle Smith and Wesson 1076 autopistol FBI FIREARMS TABLE Mal Dam SS Acc .5D Max Wt RoF Shots ST Rcl Rem. 870 cr 4d 12 5 25 150 8 3~ 5+1 12 -3 H&KMP5 cr 3d-1 10 8 160 1900 7.25 10* 30 10 -1 M-16 cr 5d 12 11 500 3800 8 12* 20+1 9 -1 S&W1076 cr 3d-1 10 2 150 1900 2.9 3~ 9+1 9 -2 It is also common these days for FBI Agents to possess a Kevlar vest, for use in tactical combat situations. Finally, all FBI agents carry a commission card bearing their name, signature, and photograph, along with a gold FBI badge in the shape of a shield surmounted by an eagle. These are to provide positive identification of the Agent in the field. The FBI Package --------------- Standard FBI Special Agents receive the following package of advantages and disadvantages. It does not count against the standard 40 point disadvantage limit. Note, however, that X-Files agents are _not_ standard Special Agents, so some modifications may be in order. Advantages: ----------- Patron, FBI- (+25) Legal Enforcement Powers- (+10) FBI Rank- (+5) Disadvantages: -------------- Duty, FBI- (-10) Sense of Duty, U.S. (-10) Quirks: ------- Dresses Conservatively (-1) Total: ------ +19 Explanation: Advantages: ---------- -Patron, FBI: the FBI counts as a very powerful organization, which appears on a roll of 9 or less. -Legal Enforcement Powers: these are total, across a whole nation. -FBI Rank: Rank is earned in the FBI according to the following scale, and is charged as Military Rank: 8 FBI Director 7 Deputy Director 6 Assistant Director 5 Deputy Assistant Director 4 Section Head, Special Agent in Charge, Legal Attache 3 Unit Head, Assistant SAC, Deputy Legal Attache 2 Squad Supervisor, Manager, Assistant Legal Attache 1 Special Agent 0 Clerical Worker, Lab Tech Any level of FBI rank is also worth a +1 reaction modifier to citizens and local police forces. Disadvantages: -------------- -Duty, FBI: the FBI requires a great deal from its Special Agents, up to and including risk to life. Furthermore, the FBI restricts much of the behavior of its agents, which is reflected in the cost. They can place obligations on a character on a quite often basis (12 or less). -Sense of Duty, U.S.: The FBI attempts to recruit intensely patriotic individuals. Note that GURPS: X-Files players are _not_ required to take this particular portion of the package; the agents who wind up in the X-Files division are often disaffected, or get that way after members of their "own" government disperse their evidence, interfere with their lives, or try and have them killed. Quirks: ------- -Dresses Conservatively. The old maxim "For an FBI agent, going undercover means taking off his tie" is still somewhat true even in this informal age. Again, GURPS: X-Files agents will have to decide how they dress, bearing in mind that sloppy appearance might give already-hostile higher-ups something more to focus upon. Unofficial Training and Useful Skills: -------------------------------------- The following Advantages, Disadvantages, and Skills may prove useful to or typical of the GURPS: X-Files player character, although they are not included in the basic FBI package Advantages: ----------- Alertness, Combat Reflexes, Common Sense, Danger Sense, Intuition, Strong Will, and Toughness can all be appropriate. Mulder seems to have had the cinematic Hard to Kill. FBI agents can develop Allies or Ally Groups in many places, even in the FBI; those in the X-Files unit may well need them to survive. Contacts from all walks of life are also useful. Particularly successful agents may develop a Reputation. Cultivating an Alternate Identity might be a _very_ useful thing for the Special Agent who has to "bend" a few rules over the course of an investigation. Disadvantages: -------------- Part of the Duty, FBI disadvantage is reflected in the fact that the FBI is always checking up on its agents, who are held to a higher standard of behavior than ordinary citizens. Disadvantages such as Berserk, Severe Delusions, or any crippling insanity are forbidden. Physical disadvantages which would impair one's performance as a Special Agent, (Blind, One Arm, etc.), are prohibited--players and referees should use their common sense here. Mental Disadvantages such as Addiction or Alcoholism must also be kept as Secrets, worth -10 for Alcoholism and up to -30 for Addiction, depending on the drug. The nature of FBI work may lead to Bad Temper, a policeman's Code of Honor, Honesty, Impulsiveness, Intolerance, Overconfidence, Reputation, or Sense of Duty (Other Agents). The nature of X-Files work may lead to Fanaticism, Paranoia, or Obsession. Skills: ------- Social skills, Acting, Area Knowledge (Washington, DC, or a particular city if one is affiliated to a Field Office), Disguise, Fast-Talk, Shadowing, and Streetwise may well be useful. Agents in the X-Files Unit might have a few esoteric skills, such as Occultism or Conspiracy Theory (specializing in UFOs--see p.I31). GURPS References A= GURPS Atomic Horror B= GURPS Basic Set I= GURPS Illuminati MA= GURPS Martial Arts, 2nd ed. SO= GURPS Special Ops