GURPS Martial Arts - Home

These benefits apply when using any weapon covered by
your advantage – whether in melee or ranged combat, and
whether defending against melee attacks or using the Parry
Missile Weapons skill (p. B212) against missiles – as long it’s
capable of what you wish to attempt.
Wild Talent
see p. B99
This ability is especially suitable for individuals who’ve
achieved “harmony with the Tao” – the putative goal of
many Chinese martial arts. A warrior can use this advantage
to attempt unmastered techniques at full skill instead of at a
default penalty, if he knows the underlying skill. A martial
artist who also has Trained by a Master or Weapon Master
can even attempt unknown cinematic skills. If your Wild
Talent only works for these two purposes, add the -20% limitation
“Focused, Martial Arts.”
Extra Hit Points
The GM may let martial artists with appropriate
Style Perks increase Hit Points by up to 100% instead
of the usual 30%. Hulking TV wrestlers, heavyweight
boxers, and massive sumotori traditionally enjoy this
benefit. Such giants should use the Build Table
(p. B18) to find weight from HP instead of ST. Use the
“Overweight” column for HP up to 130% of ST, the
“Fat” column for HP up to 150% of ST, and the “Very
Fat” column for HP up to 200% of ST.
Extra HP can also represent an unrealistic
damage-taking capacity for ordinary-sized people; see
Cinematic Injury (p. 139). In that case, anyone might
be able to buy lots of HP. Hit points in excess of ST
don’t affect the weight of such characters, or increase
the damage they take or inflict in falls and slams.
Remember that major wounds, crippling, and
death all depend on thresholds calculated from HP.
Those with 20+ HP also benefit from High HP and
Shock (p. B419) and High HP and Healing (p. B424).
PERKS
Three new types of perks are important in Martial Arts
games. All can be gained in play. Each perk costs a point.
For more on perks, see pp. B100-101.
Style Familiarity
Style Familiarity means you’ve studied and/or practiced
a martial-arts style. You must pay a point for familiarity
with any style you know. (Exception: The “Self-Defense”
lens, p. 145, lets you ignore this requirement . . . but you
won’t enjoy the allowances below.) Its effects are as follows:
• You can acquire the style’s Style Perks, learn its cinematic
skills (provided you have Trained by a Master or
Weapon Master), improve its techniques whenever you
have the points, and buy abilities listed among its
“Optional Traits” – even ones that are generally off-limits to
PCs, if the GM agrees. Style Familiarity acts as an Unusual
Background that gives you access to these things. See
Components of a Style (pp. 141-143).
• You’re familiar with the style’s culture and don’t suffer
the -3 for lack of Cultural Familiarity when using such
skills as Connoisseur (Weapons), Games, Savoir-Faire
(Dojo), or Teaching to interact with co-stylists.
• In most settings, you have the equivalent of a 1-point
Claim to Hospitality (p. B41) with a school or instructor.
• If your opponent has studied one or more styles and
you have Style Familiarity with them all, you may reduce
the defense penalty from his feints and Deceptive Attacks
by -1. You’re aware of his styles’ tricks and tactics! If the
technique he uses with Deceptive Attack or to follow a feint
isn’t an orthodox part of any of his styles, ignore this effect.
In some campaigns, the GM may let you learn Style
Familiarity for styles so secret that they lack style descriptions.
For these, ignore the rules above and use Shout It
Out! (p. 132).
Style Perks
Style Perks are minor advantages or rules exemptions
for veteran warriors. The best way to learn them is to study
a martial art, as most styles offer them as advanced training.
Anyone may buy one Style Perk per 20 points in combat
skills. A martial artist who has Style Familiarity may
further buy one of that style’s perks per 10 points he has in
its techniques and required skills; see Components of a
Style (pp. 141-143). For example, 40 points in style abilities
would allow two general perks plus four style-specific ones.
Those with Style Familiarity for multiple styles and the
minimum investment in each style (see Combining Styles,
pp. 147-148) may count points in skills and techniques as
part of each style that shares them.
Below, an asterisk (*) indicates a cinematic perk that
requires Trained by a Master or Weapon Master. Perks with
a † require specialization by skill, technique, weapon, etc.,
as noted. A style may offer a more restricted perk, but it
still costs a point. The Style Perks for specific styles appear
in Chapter 5 – and if they aren’t listed here, they aren’t
available to non-stylists.
Armor Familiarity†
You’re accustomed to fighting in armor. You may ignore
-1 in encumbrance penalties to attack or parry with Judo,
Karate, or a fencing skill. You have no penalty at Light
encumbrance, -1 at Medium, and so on. You must specialize
by skill: Armor Familiarity (Judo), Armor Familiarity
(Rapier), etc. The GM may permit multiple levels to negate
greater encumbrance. Each level is an additional Style
Perk.
Biting Mastery
You’ve learned a highly developed body of effective bites
for use in close quarters. You may use Karate skill to attack
with a bite and add the Karate damage bonus to biting
damage. Styles for fanged nonhumans often have this
perk!
CHARACTERS 49