MOVIE-DERIVED CHARACTER ADAPTATIONS
DETECTIVE SERGEANT MARTIN RIGGS
Val CHA Cost Roll Notes 15 STR 5 12- Lift 200 kg; 3d6 HTH Damage [3] 17 DEX 21 12- OCV: 6/DCV: 6 16 CON 12 12- 10 BODY 0 11- 13 INT 3 12- PER Roll 12-/13- 13 EGO 6 12- ECV: 4 18 PRE 8 13- PRE Attack: 3 1/2d6 16 COM 3 12- 7 PD 4 Total: 7 PD (0 rPD) 5 ED 2 Total: 5 ED (0 rED) 4 SPD 13 Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12 6 REC 0 32 END 0 26 STUN 0 Total Characteristic Cost: 77 Movement: Running: 12"/24" Leaping: 3"/6" Swimming: 2"/4" Cost Powers & Skills 5 A Psycho Nut Cop...: +10 PRE; Only to defend against PRE Attacks (-1) Martial Arts: Tai Chi and All That Killer Stuff Maneuver OCV DCV Notes 4 Choke Hold -2 +0 Grab One Limb; 2 1/2d6 NND 4 Killing Strike -2 +0 HKA 1 1/2d6 5 Killing Throw -2 +0 HKA 1 1/2d6 , Target Falls 4 Martial Block +2 +2 Block, Abort 4 Martial Disarm -1 +1 Disarm; 30 STR to Disarm 4 Martial Dodge -- +5 Dodge, Affects All Attacks, Abort 4 Martial Escape +0 +0 35 STR vs. Grabs 4 Martial Strike +0 +2 6d6 Strike 3 Martial Throw +0 +1 4d6 +v/5, Target Falls 4 Stooge Fu -1 -1 Flash 5d6 4 +1 HTH Damage Classes (already added in) 3 Weapon Element: Blades, Clubs, Default Element (Empty Hand), Polearms and Spears 12 Chases Cars On Foot: Running +6" (12" total), END 1 2 Observant: +1 PER with Sight Group Perks 2 Fringe Benefit: Local Police Powers 2 Fringe Benefit: Police sergeant Talents 3 Lightning Reflexes: +2 DEX to act first with All Actions 5 Bad-@#$ Soldier: Resistance (5 points) Skills 24 I Suppose We Have To Register You as A Lethal Weapon: +4 with HTH and Ranged Combat 8 +4 OCV with Rapid Fire 8 +4 OCV with Sweep 10 Penalty Skill Levels: +5 vs. Hit Location modifiers with small arms 10 Penalty Skill Levels: +5 vs. Range Modifier with small arms 3 Undercover Work: Acting 13- 3 Breakfall 12- 3 Climbing 12- 3 Combat Driving 12- 3 Concealment 12- 3 Contortionist 12- 3 Undercover Work: Conversation 13- 3 Criminology 12- 3 Deduction 12- 5 Defense Maneuver I-II 3 Demolitions 12- 3 Fast Draw (Small Arms) 12- 3 Interrogation 13- 2 KS: The Law Enforcement World 11- 4 KS: The Military/Terrorist/Mercenary World 13- 2 KS: Criminal Law and Procedure 11- 2 PS: Police Officer 11- 5 Rapid Attack (HTH) 5 Rapid Attack (Ranged) 3 Stealth 12- 3 Streetwise 13- 3 Tactics 12- 2 TF: Common Motorized Ground Vehicles 6 WF: Small Arms, Blades, General Purpose/Heavy Machine Guns, Grenade Launchers, Shoulder-Fired Weapons Total Powers & Skill Cost: 216 Total Cost: 293 125+ Disadvantages 25 Hunted: Current Major Villain 11- (Mo Pow, NCI, Harshly Punish) 15 Hunted: LAPD 14- (Mo Pow, NCI, Limited Geographical Area, Watching) 0 Normal Characteristic Maxima 25 Psychological Limitation: Has A Death Wish/ Extreme Risk Taker (Very Common, Total) 10 Psychological Limitation: Irreverent (Common, Moderate) 10 Reputation: "You ever meet anyone you didn't kill?", 14-, Known Only To Fellow Officers 15 Reputation: Either suicidal or trying to draw a psycho pension., 14- (Extreme; Known Only To Fellow Officers) 0 Rivalry: Professional, Police Psychologist, Rival is Less Powerful, Seek to Outdo, Embarrass, or Humiliate Rival, Rival Aware of Rivalry 68 Worked in the Phoenix Project In 'Nam Bonus 293 Total Disadvantage Points
Background/History: Detective Sergeant Martin Riggs appears in all of the films in the Lethal Weapon series, This write-up is based on the first film and small parts of the second. I am kind of an action movie purist, and I feel that the quality of the series went down rapidly. I only own the first film on DVD, and I don't even acknowledge the last two. In the first film Riggs is a very dark, scary SOB. Later in the series he becomes sort of a self-parody as the tone of the films moves more and more toward comedy.
Martin Riggs is a veteran LAPD officer working in the Narcotics Bureau at the start of the film. His backstory involves a youth spent as a highly trained special forces soldier during the Vietnam War. He was assigned to the Phoenix Project, a unit tasked with political assassinations. As a result, Riggs retains most of the skill set that he would have needed to be successful as a covert operator.
His wife dies prior to the first film, and as a result he spirals into a deep depression. He begins to take incredible risks at work, as he feels that there is nothing much to live for. His behavior draws scrutiny from his bosses and his coworkers, and he is eventually partnered with Roger Murtaugh, a stable family man. In standard buddy cop style, they start off hating each other, but eventually bond under extreme duress. The original Lethal Weapon is probably the best buddy cop film ever made. It is certainly the model many imitators strive to emulate.
Personality/Motivation: Riggs is the template for the modern archetype of the cop on the edge who does not play by the rules. He takes extreme risks in pursuit of the bad guys, leaving a trail of dead bodies and collateral damage in his wake. He also has a tendency to joke inappropriately and push everyone's buttons, even when his life is on the line. He routinely does things that would get any real police officer fired or imprisoned. His death wish makes him a very frightening opponent, as it often seems like he does not recognize when he should give up. In combat he is utterly fearless.
Quote: “I do it real good you know. When I was nineteen, I did a guy in Laos from 1000 yards out. A rifle shot in high wind. Maybe eight or even ten guys in the world could've made that shot. It's the only thing I was ever good at.”
Powers/Tactics: Martin Riggs is a cinematic super cop. He is an almost supernaturally skilled gunfighter and sniper. Whether he is armed or unarmed, he can readily dispatch an entire room full of skilled opponents by himself. He is depicted as being on the edge of superhuman ability. The case could be made for giving him a SPD of 5 and a DEX of 20 in the right kind of campaign, but I went with Lightning Reflexes and Rapid Attack instead. There are some other skills that could be inferred from his special forces days, but I felt that it was appropriate to trade them out for more law enforcement oriented skills, as he had been working as a cop for a while.
Campaign Use: Martin Riggs would probably work best as an NPC or PC in a Dark Champions game with a heavily cinematic style. He could also work as an NPC cop in a Champions game. He is a match for agent level characters as written. He is not anything like a real police officer, and would probably overshadow PCs in all but higher-powered heroic games.
Appearance: Riggs is a very good-looking, athletic Caucasian male. He is in his late 30s at the start of the first film. Mel Gibson plays the character.
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