Savage Lunch

During lunch today I was flipping through my Savage Worlds rulebook.  I really dig this game.  Today I noticed how short the Edge development trees are compared to D&D Feat progressions.  Heck, even calling them trees is not exactly justified.  Usually it's just one Edge followed by a slightly improved version.  It's not that I am against planning the development of a PC.  My plan for spending advances on my PC Rondoo goes out to 50xp or so.  Rather, I don't like the way in D&D that you can find yourself wanting a Feat and saying to yourself "If I had only known six levels ago I would have done things so differently!"

I am really starting to think that I can make Savage Worlds work for a jaw-jacking original series Star Trek game.  With sci-fi games I always get continuity jitters.  What if the PCs point out some factoid that totally hoses my plot?  Not the end of the world, but when it happens it can put me off my game.  Enter my newest idea:  Continuity Bennies.  The bennies themselves work just like ordinary bennies.  What is different is the addition of new ways the bennies can be gained and/or lost:

1. Catch a continuity glitch OUT OF CHARACTER, gain a bennie.
2. Point out a continuity glitch IN CHARACTER, lose a bennie.
3. Explain, in character, why a continuity glitch isn't 'really' a glitch, gain a bennie.

Basically, rather than trying to curb fanboy enthusiasm my method enforces maintaining the in-game reality in the face of GM continuity blunders.  Rather than freak out when a glitch is caught, I can go into a game knowing that glitches will be handled in the manner of the Marvel No-Prize.  In other words, let the fanboys catch the bugs but encourage them to do the work of writing the patch.  Please understand that my use of the word "continuity" in this context only refers to continuity as established within my game.  I don't give a rat's ass what happened in episode 52, in my game Talosians have 2 genders.  Or whatever.

This idea could be pushed even further by giving out bennies for player-introduced complications.  You could give out bennies for players who circumvent some of the more common problems in running Trek games.  Examples:

• "I'm sorry, Captain.  Subspace ionic interference prevents me from contacting Starfleet for back-up."  Give the Communications officer a bennie.
• "The creature's brain is too alien for my mind probe to be effective."  Give the Vulcan a bennie.
• "Bridge to landing party.  Klingon vessels in system.  Are unable to beam you back or send help."  Give the bridge officer a bennie.  Heck, give him two if bringing the Klingons into the scenario was his idea.

Admittedly, the second idea is riskier.  But imagine my joy as I sit behind the screen watching the players sabotage their own PCs mission!