Pulp Figures and Rugged Adventures are primarily designed for a fictionalized historical setting we call the 'Pulp Era'. The pulps were entertainment magazines of the early 20th century and reached their peak of popularity in the period between the first and second world wars. The pulp magazine venue introduced tough guy detective stories with famed characters like Sam Spade and Philip Marlow, occult action/adventure stories from authors such as Robert E. Howard, the creator of Conan or Sax Rohmer of Dr. Fu Manchu fame. They also introduced the jungle fantasy adventures of Tarzan of the Apes. Within the pages of the pulps you might join an expedition into distant lands in search of a lost city. You might sail an airship through a polar gateway to a pre-historic world at the center of the earth. It was an action packed world of brave heroes standing alone against sinister villains plotting world conquest, tough dames, spies and even the occasional brilliant scientist with a newly invented rocket ship. It was a brightly coloured world of action packed, spine tingling adventure.

Our 'Pulp Era' is a fuzzy, fictional period from the Great War up to the early 30's. It's an approach I call 'Hollywood Historical'. If you saw the 'Indiana Jones' films then you should get the idea. Historical accuracy is not a priority. We are shooting for mood and flavour here; far-flung, two-gun adventure in seedy seaports, sinister spies and occult villains steeped in arcane lore, the smoke of desperate battle and grinning in the face of death.

In our world you might occasionally encounter lost tribes of ancient Egyptians or primitive Neanderthals, rocket packs and death rays. You will most certainly encounter military forces from around the world engaged in the timeless struggle for power among the fragmenting remnants of the Colonial empires. There are archaeologists searching desperately for arcane antiquities. There are tough guy, expatriate adventurers out for gold and trouble. There are warlords, aviators, dragon-ladies and thieves. There are intrepid officers commanding far-flung outposts and gentlemen explorers crossing trackless wastes in the name of honor. For the unlucky there are unspeakable horrors dredged up from the moldering tombs of the forgotten past.

While Pulp Figures and the Rugged Adventures game system are intended for the Pulp Era, those wishing to use this system for a regular historical, skirmish wargame will find this quite easy to do by simply disregarding the non-historical figures or game elements. Rugged Adventures is also quite usable in an earlier Colonial setting as it was from rules designed for the Colonial Period that these are derived. Victorian Science Fiction gamers will also be quite at ease with our system and many of our miniatures. Remember, many fantasy technologies found in Victorian Sci-Fi are standard issue in the Pulp Era.

About Rugged Adventures

Rugged Adventures presents a unique approach to table top miniatures gaming. It is a mixture of skirmish miniature wargaming and roleplaying. While must you command bodies of figures as in any miniature wargame you must also play at least one character represented by a miniature on the playing surface. This Player Represented Personality or PRP is required to act in accordance with a pre-determined character design, complete with special abilities, specific quirks, personal goals and a requirement for the gamer to take on all the characteristics they find attached to their particular miniature.

It is a light hearted approach to tabletop games with a strong emphasis on fun and story telling. The Rugged Adventures player is encouraged not to win the game but play the story. Often players are required by the GM to act up their actions or give an 'in character' verbal account of themselves. We want our players to laugh, shout, speak in funny voices and generally come away from a game having enjoyed themselves whether they won or lost.

Rugged Adventures is being co-authored by Kurt Hummitzsch, one of the authors of Charlie Company, the award winning game of squad level combat in Vietnam.

Click here to download a free pdf version of the Rugged Adventures rules!

If you have any questions or comments about the rules, please feel free to email Kurt.