TEXT: SQUAD CREATION  
  The directions that follow are useful for creating your squad step by step, however if you 
  want to randomly generate your squad in part or in whole jump to Appendix A for methods to 
  do that. 
  1.
  Choose your squad's ​Patron Faction​. The faction will determine what bonus 
  supplies you get for completing missions (see Reward section), and guide what goal 
  your faction is working on (see Faction Goals section). The possible options are: 
  ○
  Autocracy ​(+1 Materiel, +1 Trust with the Employer at Mission Reward) 
  ○
  Corporatocracy​ (+2 Materiel at Mission Reward) 
  ○
  Democracy​ (+1 Materiel, +1 Personnel​ ​at Mission Reward) 
  ○
  Independent​ (+2 Rep without a Supply roll at Mission Reward) 
  ○
  Oligarchy​ (+1 Personnel, +1 Trust with the Employer at Mission Reward) 
  ○
  Theocracy​ (+2 Personnel​ ​at Mission Reward) 
  Note that while the squad’s Patron Faction does not necessarily own the squad, it 
  does expect them to follow its orders and work towards its interests. Additionally the 
  Independent faction is purposefully more challenging than other patron factions. This 
  is to represent the challenge of working against the established systems, the 
  structures that support them, and acting ​without​ those same supports. 
  2.
  Set your ​Relationship​ with each Faction to 0. They don’t know or care the Squad is 
  until they’ve performed some missions for or against them. Set your Trust with each 
  Faction to 0 for the same reason. 
  3.
  Create a NPC who is the ​Direct Superior​ of the squad. This is someone that the GM 
  can often use to assign the squad missions, and who the squad will have a 
  connection to whether for good or ill. One Squad is friendly with the Direct Superior 
  so take +1 Status with them and describe the connection. Another Squad dislikes the 
  Direct Superior; take -1 Status with them and describe the issue. See Direct Superior 
  for suggestions. 
  4.
  Choose a ​goal for your Patron Faction​. Things to consider in this decision are the 
  amount of politics, combat, and brutality everyone wants, as well as themes they 
  might want to explore. Independent squads skip this step. See the Faction Goals 
  section for more details. The possible options are: 
  ○
  Assault the Foe 
  ○
  Divided They Fall 
  ○
  Golden Streets 
  
  ○
  Hearts and Minds 
  ○
  Hostile Takeover 
  ○
  Intelligence Coup 
  ○
  Manufacture Heroes 
  ○
  Secure the Borders 
  5.
  Choose a ​Squad Playbook​. This will determine the nature of most of your missions 
  and some common training everyone in the squad has.  
  6.
  Choose an ​initial reputation​ and ​Forward Operating Base​ (FOB). When you 
  reinforce your reputation on a mission the squad marks 1xp. Your starting FOB will 
  be small and unimpressive. See Squad Reputation for suggestions. 
  7.
  Create your immediate Region or choose one from the Regions listed in the Izya 
  setting. This is the area surrounding your FOB. All it needs is a rating of 0-4 for 
  Wealth, Might, Technology, and Crime. Write the ratings on the squad’s Claim Map. 
  8.
  Choose a ​Squad Ability​. This is a special trick everyone in the squad can call upon.  
  9.
  Choose ​two Upgrades​. These are tools, personnel, and facilities the squad can use. 
  Each squad playbook has two pre-selected upgrades (for example Profiteers always 
  have Resolve Training and Secure FOB) and the squad also gets to choose two 
  more from the squad playbook or the general squad upgrades. A squad helped you 
  get the upgrades; take +1 Status with them. Another squad was denied those 
  upgrades because you have them; take -1 Status with them. Each of these squads 
  can be from the same faction as the players’ squad and/or from a different faction. 
  10. Name your squad​. This might be your official designation or it might be a group call 
  sign. Other squads and factions will know you by this name. 
  DIRECT SUPERIOR 
  The squad’s ​Direct Superior​ is the NPC that they will probably be interacting with the most. 
  This person will be higher rank than the pilots, give them orders, and assign them missions. 
  They should have a title suitable to the faction they belong to, and a brief description of their 
  appearance and personality. If the PCs lack a patron faction and are Independent their 
  superior might be from another squad, a mysterious source, or someone else with unofficial 
  authority over the pilots. 
  Ultimately the purpose of the direct superior is not to boss around the pilots. They are there 
  as a direct representative of the squad’s patron faction, to embody the link between the 
  patron and the squad, and as a way for the GM to provide missions to the players. They 
  should rarely be the focus of the narrative but almost always be a narrative tool for the GM. 
  
   
  EXAMPLE DIRECT SUPERIORS 
  ●
  Carberry, a shady and cruel fixer. 
  ●
  Scratch, a cheerful and energetic Proxy. 
  ●
  Project Lead Walker, an ambitious and hard working manager. 
  ●
  Executive Assistant McEvoy, a Stressed and organized worker. 
  ●
  Captain Martinez, a weary and grumpy officer. 
  ●
  Quartermaster Hawkins, a sentimental and thoughtful trooper. 
  ●
  Bishop Acampora, a patient and caring member of the clergy. 
  ●
  Confessor Tebbel, an inquisitive and meticulous theologian. 
  ●
  Councillor Swan, a hard hearted and calculating bureaucrat. 
  ●
  Alderperson Drake, a fiery and passionate politician. 
  ●
  Virtue de Quidt, an experienced and crafty noble. 
  ●
  Margrave Takeyuki, a paranoid and meek leader. 
  SQUAD REPUTATION 
  The squad’s reputation is the idea that immediately springs to mind when a potential 
  employer thinks about them. It should be a word or phrase that the squad either already 
  embodies or strives for, but does not directly speak to their competence. “Skilled” is a bad 
  reputation, try “Daring” instead. By living up to their reputation the squad gets to mark XP at 
  the end of the session. 
   
  EXAMPLE SQUAD REPUTATIONS 
  ●
  Ambitious 
  ●
  Amoral 
  ●
  Brutal 
  ●
  Daring 
  ●
  Destructive 
  ●
  Honorable 
  ●
  Professional 
  ●
  Savvy 
  ●
  Subtle 
  ●
  Strange 
  FACTION GOALS 
  A faction’s goal is the current strategic objective that they are trying to fulfill on their path of 
  dominance in The War. The players and GM discuss which faction goal makes sense for 
  their patron faction to have at the start of the game. Things to consider in this decision are 
  the amount of politics, combat, and brutality everyone wants, as well as themes they might 
  
  want to explore. Each goal is represented by a 4 Tick Clock. Squads add Ticks by taking 
  actions, usually during missions, that work towards the goal. When the Clock fills all squads 
  patronized by the faction receive specialist training giving them a unique benefit. The players 
  and GM then consider the current situation of The War and select a new and different goal 
  as each goal can only be completed once. 
  The list of goals for a faction to have follows: 
   
  ●
  Assault the Foe​: Soften up a specific enemy held region in preparation for capture. 
  This can be done by brazenly attacking that region, cutting that area off from 
  reinforcements, gaining intel about the district’s weak points, etc. 
  ○
  Benefit: Vengeful​. Your squad’s righteous anger empowers their actions. 
  When making an Action Roll against a squad that employs any player’s Rival, 
  take improved Effect. 
  ●
  Divided They Fall​: Manipulate the enemy’s plans. This can be done by planting false 
  orders and intelligence, disrupting communications, pitting enemies against each 
  other, etc. 
  ○
  Benefit: 4D Chess​. You and your faction’s agents synergize to pull off 
  incredible feats of manipulation. Once per mission a pilot can manipulate an 
  active Clock. Describe how you manipulated the situation to your liking. The 
  pilot may spend up to 3 Stress to move that many ticks into any other Clocks. 
  If the Clock being emptied has a negative outcome when filled, then the ticks 
  must be transferred only to Clocks that also have a negative outcome. If the 
  Clock being emptied has a positive outcome when filled, then the ticks must 
  be transferred only to Clocks that also have a positive outcome. 
  ●
  Golden Streets​: Improve the supply situation of the patron faction. This can be done 
  by improving the Wealth rating of controlled regions, giving supplies to your patron 
  faction, refusing supply rolls from your patron, etc. 
  ○
  Benefit: Beggars Can Be Choosers​. The squad knows how to beg, barter, 
  and steal for more supplies when they really want to. If each pilot that 
  participated in the mission spends 1 Stress the mission’s supply roll is rolled 
  again and the squad gets the higher result. This can be chosen after the initial 
  roll is made. This does not apply to the Bureaucrat’s Cook The Books ability. 
  ●
  Hearts and Minds​: Change the popular opinion of a faction in a manner that benefits 
  your patron faction. This can be done by protecting the populace from marauders in 
  
  your patron’s name, publicizing the corruption of an enemy faction, shifting musical 
  tastes in support of your patron, etc. 
  ○
  Benefit: Recruitment Drive​. The people have seen the glory of your faction 
  and want to be a part of it. Cohorts now cost 1 squad upgrade instead of 2, as 
  the populace flock to recruitment centers. 
  ●
  Hostile Takeover​: Deny the enemy supplies. This can be done by blockading 
  imports, destroying infrastructure, turning enemy supply sources to working for your 
  patron faction, etc. 
  ○
  Benefit: Level The Playing Field​. You’ve worked hard to deny the enemy 
  what it needs to continue The War, and your efforts have begun to wear down 
  their squads. Choose a faction. All of the squads belonging to that faction 
  permanently lose 1 hold going from Strong to Weak at their current tier, or 
  Weak to Strong but at a lower tier (Weak tier 1 squads become strong tier 
  zero squads). 
  ●
  Intelligence Coup​: Steal valuable information from the enemy. This can be done by 
  acquiring VIPs, retrieving actionable intel, stealing technological advances, etc. 
  ○
  Benefit: Big Brother​. Between advances in technology and an extensive spy 
  network you can get the answers you want. Once per session a pilot may 
  spend 2 Stress to ask the GM a question. The GM must answer honestly. 
  This does not provide improved Effect, improved Position, or additional dice. 
  ●
  Manufacture Heroes​: Act against a specific squad at least 2 tiers higher than the 
  players’ squad. This can be done by attacking regions controlled by that squad, 
  denying that squad mission objectives, luring that squad into acting irrationally, etc. 
  ○
  Benefit: Poster Child​. Now that you’re heroes, your faction needs to keep 
  you alive without removing you from the action. A pilot can push themself for 
  only 1 Stress a number of times per session equal to their squad’s tier 
  (minimum 1) by revealing how another squad belonging to their patron faction 
  assisted them. 
  ●
  Secure the Borders​: Take proactive measures to protect the patron faction. This can 
  be done by removing enemy agents acting within the patron faction, weakening 
  neighbouring regions, constructing defenses, etc.  
  ○
  Benefit: Nano Laminate Armor​. Molecule thin layers of ceramic-alloy 
  composite are electro magnetically bonded to each other to create armor that 
  is half the weight of standard vehicle armor but maintains the same durability. 
  
  Each vehicle can have one NLA declared. Functions as normal armor but is 
  Load 1. 
  When a Faction’s goal is fulfilled every squad that currently has it as their patron gains the 
  appropriate benefit. When a faction other than the pilots’ patron completes a goal, describe 
  to the players the sweeping changes they hear about that are caused by the goal’s 
  completion. Look to the goal’s benefit for inspiration as to the changes that occur. 
  Remember that the fictional positioning of the game alters the position and effect of player 
  rolls. 
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Blades in the Dark (PbtA) [multi]/Forged in the Dark (Games built from BitD)/Beam Saber - V0.51/Sheets & Others/Beam Saber - SQUAD CREATION V0.51.pdf