Top Secret (role-playing game)
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| Top Secret | |
 Top Secret logo (first edition) |
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| Designer | Merle M. Rasmussen (original edition) Douglas Niles (Top Secret/S.I.) |
|---|---|
| Publisher | TSR |
| Publication date | 1980 (1st ed) February 1981 (2nd ed) 1987 (Top Secret/S.I.) |
| Genre(s) | Spy fiction |
| System | Custom |
Top Secret is an espionage-themed role-playing game first published in 1980 by TSR, Inc.
Contents |
[edit] Top Secret (original edition)
The original version of Top Secret was designed by Merle M. Rasmussen[1], and allows players and gamemasters to build their own espionage story settings. The original boxed set of the game included a 64-page rule book and a sample adventure, "Operation: Sprechenhaltestelle." The game was developed over a period of two years by Rasmussen and TSR editor Allen Hammack.[1]
The Top Secret game is based exclusively on 10-sided dice. All character attributes and other statistics are percentiles; some scores are rolled, and some are derived from combinations of two or more other scores. Top Secret also features Areas of Knowledge, which function similarly to skills in more modern RPGs. Characters gain experience points and progress upward in level. Characters gained one attribute point for every hundred experience points in addition to going up in level. The levels had relatively limited in-game effects (most significantly, gained experience points were divided by the character's level).
Top Secret characters are employed in specific bureaus — Assassination, Confiscation, or Investigation — all in the structure of an unspecified espionage agency. Despite a character's primary vocation, he may be called on to perform any type of mission. The only in-game effect of a character's bureau is that he earns a 100-point experience bonus for mission objectives which fall within that bureau. An appendix in the rule book lists dozens of historical and fictional espionage organizations which could serve as employers or adversaries for missions.[1]
An expansion to the game, The Top Secret Companion introduced enhancements to many game components. It included additional character classes and missions, as well as new Areas of Knowledge and abilities. A revised combat system was introduced that speeded up and provided more variety to combat results. New equipment and weapons were introduced as well.[citation needed]
At TSR, an internal spy campaign game based on Top Secret resulted in a brief investigation by the FBI when notes from players in charge of the KGB, Mossad, and others were found by "civilians" unaware that it was a game.[citation needed]
[edit] Supplements
[edit] Information supplements
- Administrator's Screen and Mini-Module. Corey Koebernick (1982). (Includes Operation: Executive One) ISBN 0-935696-79-2
- TS007 - Top Secret Companion. Merle Rasmussen (1985). ISBN 0-88038-102-7
[edit] Mission modules
- TS001 - Operation: Sprechenhaltestelle. Merle Rasmussen (1980). ISBN 0-935696-17-2
- TS002 - Operation: Rapidstrike!. Mike Carr (1982). ISBN 0-935696-57-1
- TS003 - Lady In Distress. Mike Carr (1982). (This module's plot was agents parasailing to rescue a hijacked cruise ship. Eerily, the module's ship plans were based on the Achille Lauro, which was seized by PLO terrorists in 1985 and resulted in the murder of one passenger.)
- TS004 - Operation: Fastpass. Philip Taterczynski (1983). ISBN 0-88038-011-X
- TS005 - Operation: Orient Express. David Cook. ISBN 0-88038-041-1
- TS006 - Operation: Ace of Clubs. Merle Rasmussen (1984). ISBN 0-394-53464-6
- TS008 - Operation: Seventh Seal. Merle Rasmussen (1985). ISBN 0-88038-134-5
[edit] Modules published in Dragon magazine
- "The Missile Mission", Dragon no. 39. Mike Carr.
- "The Floating Island Mission", Dragon no. 48. Merle Rasmussen, James Thompson.
- "Mad Merc: The Alulu Island Mission", Dragon no. 56. Merle Rasmussen, James Thompson (1981).
- "Chinatown: The Jaded Temple", Dragon no. 62. Jerry Epperson (1982).
- "Wacko World", Dragon no. 79. Al Taylor.
- "Whiteout", Dragon no. 87. Merle Rasmussen (1984).
[edit] Modules published in Dungeon magazine
- "Operation: Fire Sale", Dungeon no. 26. John Terra.
[edit] Top Secret/S.I. edition
In 1987, TSR published Top Secret/S.I. ("Special Intelligence"), a revised edition designed by Douglas Niles. S.I. introduced a more structured gaming environment in which players worked as agents for secret intelligence agency ORION against its evil adversary, WEB. Later source books in the product line introduce both supernatural (Agent 13) and futuristic (F.R.E.E.Lancers) adventure settings. These settings introduced several recurring characters such as Sebastian Cord and Agent 13.
[edit] Combat system
Top Secret/S.I. uses a fast, simple combat system based on percentages. With as little as a single die roll, a player can know not only if a character was hit, but what part of the body was hit and the extent of damage.
Based on a character's stats, skills, bonuses and penalties, the gamemaster gives that character a certain percentage chance of hitting a given target. The player then rolls a percentile die; a result that is equal to or lower than the to-hit percentage succeeds. The hit location is determined by the 'ones' digit of the same roll, and hand-to-hand combat damage is determined by the 'tens' digit. Weapon damage ignores the 'tens' of the first roll, and requires a second roll based on the weapon's characteristics.
[edit] Character sheets
Character sheets in Top Secret/S.I. resemble agent dossiers, and are intended to provide quick and easy reference to all a player's stats and skills. They also provide a detailed map of the ten possible hit spots of a character's body, and a blank portrait area for drawing or attaching a depiction of the character.
[edit] Supplements
[edit] Box sets
- Top Secret/S.I.. Douglas Niles, Warren Spector (1987). ISBN 0-88038-407-7
- High Stakes Gamble. Douglas Niles, Bob Kern (1988). ISBN 0-88038-545-6
[edit] Accessory books
- TSAC1 - G4 File: Guns, Gadgets & Getaway Gear. Merle Rasmussen (1987). ISBN 0-88038-474-3
- TSAC2 - Agent 13 Source Book. Mark Acres (1988). ISBN 0-88038-478-6
- TSAC3 - Covert Operations Sourcebook. John Prados (1988). ISBN 0-88038-479-4
- TSAC4 - F.R.E.E. Lancers. Jeff Grubb (1988). ISBN 0-88038-565-0
- TSAC5 - Commando. David Cook (1988). ISBN 0-88038-594-4
- TSAC6 - Covert Operations Sourcebook Vol. 2. John Prados (1988). ISBN 0-88038-616-9
- TSAC7 - F.R.E.E. America. Scott Bowles (1989). ISBN 0-88038-725-4
[edit] Mission modules
- TS1 - Operation: Starfire. Tracy Hickman (1987). ISBN 0-88038-476-X
- TS2 - The Doomsday Drop. Tracy Hickman (1988). ISBN 0-88038-480-8
- TS3 - Orion Rising. (1988). ISBN 0-88038-575-8
- TS4 - Commando Brushfire Wars. ISBN 0-88038-708-4
- TSA1 - The Web. Caroline Spector (1990). ISBN 0-88038-820-X
- TSA2 - The Final Weapon. Ray Winninger (1990). ISBN 0-88038-855-2
- TSE1 - Web of Deceit. Bob Kern (1989). ISBN 0-88038-714-9
- TSE2 - Sting of the Spider. Bob Kern (1989). ISBN 0-88038-732-7
- TSE3 - Web Wars. Bob Kern (1989). ISBN 0-88038-765-3
[edit] Solo Operations Casebooks
- The Final Bug. Jean Blashfield (1988). ISBN 0-88038-553-7
- Foul Play at Fool's Summit. Troy Denning (1989). ISBN 0-88038-621-5 (Note: though this module has an ISBN, it was never actually released, as the Catacombs gamebook line was cancelled before its release.)
[edit] Novels
Five novels were published by TSR from various campaign settings from Top Secret/S.I. game.
- Agent 13: The Midnight Avenger #1: The Invisible Empire by Flint Dille and David Marconi. ISBN 0-88038-281-3
- Agent 13: The Midnight Avenger #2: The Serpentine Assassin Flint Dille and David Marconi. ISBN 0-88038-282-1
- Double Agent: Acolytes of Darkness/Web of Danger by Flint Dille and David Marconi/Aaron Allston ISBN 0-88038-550-2
- Double Agent: Royal Pain/The Hollow Earth Affair by Richard Merwin/Warren Spector ISBN 0-88038-551-0
- Double Agent: The Hard Sell/Glitch! by Richard Merwin/David Cook ISBN 0-88038-589-8
- F.R.E.E.Lancers by Mel Odom ISBN 0-78690-113-6
- F.R.E.E.Fall by Mel Odom ISBN 0-78690-493-3
[edit] Comics
Two graphic novels based on the Pulp era setting were published.
- Agent 13: The Midnight Avenger by Flint Dille, David Marconi, and Dan Spiegle ISBN 0-88038-581-2
- Agent 13: Acolytes of Darkness (loosely based on the novel)
TSR published eight issues of 13: Assassin comic that featured stories set in the Agent 13 campaign setting bringing the story to a more modern era (1990's). The first six issues had a back-up story set in the Top Secret/S.I. setting (ORION vs. WEB) which seemed to take place at the end of the agency's covert war. Each issue also contained a miniature game and some issues included character stats for the role-playing game.
[edit] Current Status
The Top Secret brand ceased production in 1992. TSR was purchased by Wizards of the Coast in 1997, which in turn was purchased by Hasbro in 1999.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Rasmussen, M. W. (1981). Top Secret Espionage Role Playing Game, second ed. Lake Geneva: TSR, Inc. ISBN 0-935696-16-4
