A Superstar is Born

Creating a wrestler for ARM-wrestling may seem very complex at first, because of the wide variety of options possible -- but in a sense, it is just the mental equivalent of snapping together a model out of building blocks. The important part is becoming familiar with the building blocks of characters that ARM provides.

The Talent Pool

All wrestlers in ARM are created (roughly) equal; no wrestler will be good at everything. The player "purchases" the wrestler's Attributes from a pool of 50 Talent points. Any Merits the wrestler may have are also purchased from this pool; in addition, wrestlers can add Flaws to provide extra Talent points. The Height and Weight the player chooses for his wrestler can either add or subtract from the Talent Pool.

Backgrounds

A wrestler's Background represents his pathway into wrestling; different backgrounds have slightly different effects on the wrestler's performance in the league. Some Backgrounds are "free", while others act as Merits or Flaws. A wrestler can combine two equally applicable Backgrounds, within reason, or change Backgrounds later in his career under the right circumstances.

Athlete

The wrestler is either a professional or "all-american" level collegiate athlete, in a non-combat sport (for combat sports, see "Prizefighter"). The wrestler must have a minimum of 10 STA. Prestige gains and losses are both doubled.

Import (-1 Talent)

The wrestler is a recent acquisition from a competing promotion; beginning Prestige is 200 instead of 100.

Hard Knocks

The wrestler comes from a long experience in mundane violence, such as a gang member, bouncer, prison guard, bounty hunter, etc. The wrestler may not take the "Injury Prone" Flaw, and must have a minimum TOU of 50. The wrestler's opponents receive a -1 to BRA attacks against the wrestler, and a +1 to TEC attacks.

Living Legend (-4 Talent)

The wrestler has a career so long and so fruitful that his name is etched in stone on the minds and hearts of wrestling audiences everywhere. Beginning Prestige is 400 rather than 100; he only loses 5% Prestige for each month of inactivity. The wrestler gains extra Contender Points during each cycle equal to 1 extra pinfall victory.

Protege (-1 Talent)

The wrestler has had the benefit of extensive prior training, either from a single mentor or a formal wrestling school. The penalty for improvising one class of maneuvers (either those of any attribute, or those within any Style) is reduced to -1.

Prizefighter

The wrestler comes from a combat sport other than professional wrestling, such as an organized martial arts circle, Greco-Roman wrestling, "ultimate fighting" and/or "shootfighting" leagues, etc. The wrestler's opponents receive a -2 penalty to attack him with techniques that coincide with his previous experience, and a +1 to attack him with other techniques.

Rookie (+1 Talent)

The wrestler is an absolute greenhorn, with lots of potential and little experience. The wrestler's opponents add 1 Edge point for the match.

Scrub (+2 Talent)

The wrestler is a promising talent who for some reason or another still has been wallowing in the preliminary division, and is just breaking out. Beginning Prestige is 50 instead of 100. If an opponent has more Edge points than he does, the difference is treated as an additional weardown penalty.

Stalwart

This is the "default" background, having no effects; it represents a typical "company man", someone who has been perpetually within the league or closely related federations. Most backgrounds eventually shift to Stalwart when the wrestler has "settled in".

Builds

A wrestler's possible Attributes are determined by his height and weight, and his choice of Maneuvers will probably also be made with these values in mind. Larger wrestlers tend to have less inherent talent overall, but will also need it less.

Weight

In the following charts, all weights are are in American pounds.
Cost refers to the adjustment to be made to the wrestler's Talent pool; it also is the value of that wrestler's Lift penalty. The amount in parentheses is the Talent adjustment for a female wrestler (Lift values are still taken from the left number).
WDB (Weight Damage Bonus) is the extra damage added to maneuvers due to the character's weight, when applicable.
Border indicates the maximum rating you can have at normal cost in the indicated Attribute(s); beyond this amount, each additional level of the indicated Attribute costs two points instead of one. Attributes without a Border listed have a Border of 60.

Heights

In the table below:
Cost is the cost in Talent points for that Height;
HDB (Height Damage Bonus) is the extra damage added to maneuvers due to height, when applicable;
MAX is added to the AGI Border taken from Weight;
Rope is the modifier to attempts to reach the ropes to break pinfall predicaments and/or submission holds.

Attributes

A wrestler's Attribute numbers measure his ability in seven important fields. Each of the 7 Attributes used in ARM is assigned a value between 5 and 16. In general, these values can be considered to represent the following levels:

Wrestlers begin with a rating of 5 in each Attribute before spending any Talent; the Talent cost for higher scores depends on the Border (see "Build" above) for that Attribute.

+--------+--------------------------------------------------+
| Border | 6   7   8   9   10   11   12   13   14   15   16 |
+--------+--------------------------------------------------+
|    5   | 2   4   6   8   10   12   14   --   --   --   -- |
|    6   | 1   3   5   7    9   11   13   15   --   --   -- |
|    7   | 1   2   4   6    8   10   12   14   --   --   -- |
|    8   | 1   2   3   5    7    9   11   13   15   --   -- |
|    9   | 1   2   3   4    6    8   10   12   14   --   -- |
|   10   | 1   2   3   4    5    7    9   11   13   15   -- |
|   11   | 1   2   3   4    5    6    8   10   12   14   -- |
|   12   | 1   2   3   4    5    6    7    9   11   13   15 |
|   13   | 1   2   3   4    5    6    7    8   10   12   14 |
+--------+--------------------------------------------------+

Certain situations may call for an "Attribute bonus". The standard bonus from any attribute is equal to its value divided by three, rounded up: +2 for 5-6, +3 for 7-9, +4 for 10-12, +5 for 13-15, and +6 for 16.

Strength (STR)

STR represents brute force and raw power. A wrestler's STR bonus is added to the damage of many maneuvers -- even a simple bodyslam can be remarkably effective from a powerhouse.

Technique (TEC)

TEC represents pure grappling ability -- a wrestler's skill with grabs, locks, leverage-based throws and/or takedowns, and pinfall traps. It also represents the wrestler's skill at countering or escaping these maneuvers.

Agility (AGI)

AGI represents quickness and talent at performing acrobatics and/or using aerial tactics (those involving flips, jumps, or leaps from the turnbuckles and ropes).

Brawling (BRA)

BRA represents talent for punching, kicking, and similar roughhousing; it includes both techniques using vicious maneuvers like hair-pulling, choking, and eye-gouging, and the sophisticated hand-to-hand maneuvers of the Oriental martial arts.

Savvy (SAV)

SAV represents wits, perceptiveness, and business sense. Wrestlers with high SAV are quick to think on their feet, and get caught off guard less by the unexpected.

Toughness (TOU)

TOU represents physical toughness and "intestinal fortitude"; it determines how much a given Maneuver will hurt the wrestler in the first place. TOU forms the base of a wrestler's Stun Track.

Stamina (STA)

STA represents resistance to pain and fatigue, a combination of physical conditioning and sheer willpower or "heart". STA determines the wrestler's Stun Track breaks, as well as how fast he recovers when resting.

The StunTrack

In ARM, as a wrestler is hit by an opponent's maneuvers, he will suffer from the effects of ever-increasing fatigue. This process is represented by his StunTrack.

To calculate the StunTrack, begin by multiplying the wrestler's TOU by 50; this is the last value on the StunTrack. Next, find (STA)% of that value; this is the first value on the StunTrack. The second value is equal to three times the first; the third value is equal to twice the second.

These numbers now represent the total damage required to move the wrestler, respectively, to Winded (1), Tired (2), Exhausted (3), and Incapacitated (4). Thus, a wrestler with both 10 TOU and STA has a StunTrack of: 50(1)/150(2)/300(3)/500(4); a wrestler with both TOU and STA of 16 has a StunTrack of: 128(1)/384(2)/768(3)/800(4).

Merits

Merits are special advantages a wrestler can have not represented by his attributes, maneuvers, and build, such as unusual wealth or exceptionally good looks.

Merits are self-contained and unique. There is no number or score connected to them -- one either possesses a given Merit or one does not. In essence, they are like special exceptions to the standard rules, tailoring the game mechanics to fit the wrestler's concept.

Every Merit has its own Talent cost (listed in parentheses after its name) and game effect. Simply pay the listed Talent cost to add a Merit to your wrestler. Wrestlers are in no way obligated to take any Merits.

Contacts (2)

The wrestler has friends in high places, or a similar bureaucratic edge. During any controversial situation requiring a die roll by an official, the wrestler can manipulate that roll by +/-4 points.

Double (1)

The wrestler looks strikingly similar to another character. The pair must each adopt this Merit. In addition, they must be within the same height and weight classes. A SAV roll at ½ the normal value must be made to tell them apart. If the pair acts as a tag team, they act as if they had the Blind Tag Trick without spending slots.

Fast Learner (3)

The wrestler is a quick study, who rapidly picks up techniques and improves his skills. The amount of time required to increase Attributes or purchase new Arsenal slots is reduced for this wrestler. Mikey Whipwreck and Alex Wright are Fast Learners.

Living Weapon (2)

For some reason, some part of the wrestler's body is tougher than expected -- e.g. the wrestler's arm has been surgically reinforced with steel pins. Attacks to that location subtract 1 point of damage (and do 1 point of damage to the attacker!); attacks using that location do +2 damage.

Miracle Man (2)

The wrestler recovers quicker from injuries (torn ligaments, sprained joints, broken limbs) that would keep him hospitalized and out of action. When taken out of commission due to severe injury, the wrestler will recover at double rate.

Package (4)

The wrestler knows his Finisher so well, he can modify it at will in the ring. Any variation on the Finisher is considered a Second Finish.

Rich (2)

The wrestler seems to have incredible financial resources of some type. Any expenses (except for Training) incurred against him or her are halved. These expenses include mandated payments to another character.

Rout (2)

The character can take some action to cause anyone in his immediate area (such as the ring) to scatter. This action takes all of the wrestler's current Action Points to perform. (Of course, if any opponents are distracted, they must roll a SAV roll to notice the fear-causing action). Note that if this Merit is used in the context of an actual match, it will draw a Referee Warning.

Scramble (1)

The character is quicker on his feet than his Agility would indicate (usually, this applies to a heavy wrestler who carries his weight well). He moves as if his AGI Attribute Bonus was 1 higher than its actual value (up to the maximum bonus of +6).

Second Finish (2)

The wrestler has more than one Finisher which he can use. This secondary finisher only recieves a +1 to its Maneuver Skill, but otherwise acts as a "real" finisher.

Two wrestlers can divide the cost of this Merit, paying 1 Talent apiece, to create a double team finish, such as a double DDT.

Set-Up Move (1)

The wrestler has a maneuver which he habitually uses to lead into his Finisher. This maneuver adds +1 to Maneuver Skill, and adds +1 damage. In addition, it receives a special "chaining" bonus -- the wrestler gains a +2 to perform his finisher immediately following the Set-Up.

Signature Move (1)

The wrestler is well-known for a special maneuver other than his finisher; signature maneuvers usually have their own special name, which sets them apart from just anybody using the move. The wrestler gets a +1 to Maneuver Skill, and adds +1 damage; each use adds a "spot bonus" of +2 Prestige automatically.

Slack (2)

For some reason, the wrestler is less likely to draw intervention from referees. When a wrestler with Slack takes an illegal action, the referee must make two successful rolls to respond to the action. If a wrestler performs an action that would automatically disqualify him, if one of the referee's rolls is successful, the wrestler receives a referee warning; if both are successful, he is disqualified; and if neither are successful, he gets away clean.

Special Weapon (3)

The wrestler has a weapon he can use semi-legally in the ring, such as a loaded glove, steel-toed boots, etc. This object will always pass any search made by referees (usually because the wrestler has an inarguable excuse for bringing it, like a medical pass). Referee checks continue to be made when he uses it; after the first successful check is made, subsequent checks will cause referee warnings to be issued; however, use of the weapon will not cause automatic disqualification.

Note that this differs from a normal foriegn object. Many wrestlers carry trademark paraphenilia with them to ringside, but typically they are expected to keep it outside of the ring -- a referee who sees him use it would disqualify him automatically rather than just issue a Warning.

Style (2)

The wrestler is considered a master of a certain type of maneuver. This is not so much a Merit as a class of Merits with very similar effects. The wrestler gains an additional +1 to any maneuver in his Style. Note that wrestlers may buy more than one style, if they wish, and of course are not required to buy any.

The available Styles are:

• Boxer: The wrestler is a master pugilist; the bonus applies to punching maneuvers of any kind. Boxers add +2 to the damage of punching maneuvers; opponents are -1 to hit the character with BRA maneuvers due to the wrestler's experience at blocking and ducking.
• High Flyer: The wrestler is adept at leaping from the ropes and/or turnbuckles, achieving impressive elevation when he does so. The Style applies to any Flying or Springboard maneuver; the wrestler doubles damage bonuses from altitude.
• Technician: The wrestler has a strong background in amateur-style wrestling, and gains the Style bonus to skill when using maneuvers derived from this background. He also gains a +1 bonus to escape from holds and pincounts.
• Mat Wrestler: The wrestler is skilled with quick-pin tactics such as small packages and reverse rollups. The wrestler gets the Style bonus whenever using an "automatic pin" maneuver, and opponents are at -1 to their attempts to break these pins.
• Martial Artist: The wrestler is adept at some form of organized martial art style, like Karate or Kung Fu. The wrestler recieves a Style skill bonus whenever utilizing a martial arts maneuver. He adds +1 to damage with these maneuvers.
• Daredevil: The wrestler is adept at jumping from in the ring to the floor (or aisle, or fan stands ... ). The character gets a bonus when executing a Suicide maneuver. In addition, he halves the damage he takes himself from these moves (including missed maneuvers).
• Submission Artist: The wrestler is adept at making opponents forfeit by placing them in painful holds. The wrestler recieves the Style bonus to skill when utilizing any submission maneuver, and opponents suffer a -1 penalty to break free of these holds.
• Suplex Machine: The wrestler is a master of the wide variety of Suplex maneuvers. The wrestler gets a bonus to any Suplex maneuver; in addition, the wrestler can learn two such maneuvers with only a single Arsenal slot.
• Streetfighter: The wrestler has an affinity for pure unscientific brawls. He gets a skill bonus when using any foreign object maneuver, or any BRA maneuver that does not qualify for Martial Artist or Boxer (Low Blow, Eye Rake, Choke, etc.).
• Teamwork: The wrestler has an affinity for tag team wrestling, especially double-team maneuvers. He gets a skill bonus when performing double-team maneuvers of any kind, as well as when attempting any kind of Tag maneuver. A pair of wrestlers can "split" the cost of this Merit, paying only 1 point apiece, but then only receieve the benefits when teamed with each other.

Tenacity (2)

The wrestler has reserves of will beyond his stamina, and is unusually resistant to submission holds. He makes two rolls when making submission checks, and uses the more favorable result.

Winning Appearance (1)

The wrestler is strikingly good looking. He increases all Heat awards by 10%.

Wrestling Heritage (2)

The wrestler is related to a famous wrestler, and thus his accomplishments have the air of legacy. He recieves extra contender points when rankings are calculated by the promoter, equivalent to one extra win by pinfall, and adds +3 to all Heat and Prestige awards for winning matches.

Flaws

Flaws are the opposite of Merits: special weaknesses or defects a wrestler possesses that make his career more challenging -- anything from an aggravated recurring injury to an overdeveloped sense of patriotism. When you add a Flaw to a wrestler, take the Talent bonus listed with the Flaw -- these are extra points you can spend on Attributes and Merits.

Bad Temper (+1)

The wrestler has a tendency to lose his cool when frustrated, and forget his training. The handler must define a "trigger" for this Flaw at creation time, subject to approval by the Promoter. When the flaw is triggered, the wrestler will only use BRA maneuvers for at least 5 rounds; he may not attempt pinfalls, and will follow the opponent to attack even if it means leaving the ring and being counted out. At the beginning of each round after the 5th, he may make a SAV check to resume "normal" wrestling.

Bond (+1)

The wrestler will not wrestle without another person at ringside, be it a tag team partner or manager. If he is forced (by presidential decision, for example) to do so, he makes all rolls at -2; if someone attempts to force his Bond away from ringside, he will risk losing the match to prevent this.

With the Promoter's permission, a wrestler can Bond to an object instead of a person.

Finisherless (+2)

For one reason or another, the wrestler really doesn't have just one maneuver he can call his "finisher".

Foreign (+1)

The wrestler is obviously from a nation other than the United States of America. As wrestling fans are typically patriotic towards the home of their favorite promotion, fan favorites with this Flaw earn less Prestige from each match (subtract 10% from all PRE awards). Rulebreakers receive one less Edge point to use during each match.

Glory Hound (+1)

The wrestler needs to be the center of attention at all times. Record an "Ego threshold" equal to twice the wrestler's SAV bonus. If any successful attack roll is not equal to or lower than this value, the wrestler wastes time posing for the crowd and/or mugging for the camera -- apply a -1 to his next attack.

Injury Prone (+2)

The wrestler, whether due to frailty, carelessness, or just bad luck, draws personal injuries like a magnet draws iron. Record an "Injury Threshold" equal to twice the wrestler's TOU bonus; any attack doing more damage than this requires an Injury check.

Mute (+1)

The wrestler does not speak for himself. This might be because the wrestler actually does not understand English (except for a few words like "No" and "One, Two, Three"), or perhaps the wrestler is just the strong and silent type. The wrestler is thus barred from making interviews and/or taped comments; if he had a manager, he can have the manager speak on his behalf, and earn half the usual Prestige bonus.

Nagging Injury (+2)

The wrestler has suffered a severe injury to one Target area which never healed completely. The area is considered to have one permanent Injury point.

Non-Wrestler (+4)

The character has little to no actual wrestling experience or training. He receives no Arsenal slots for STR, TEC, AGI, or BRA. He does still receive a training Arsenal.

Personality Quirk (+1)

The wrestler has some psychological deficiency that hampers his performance in the ring and/or his ability to deal in league business; these must be defined at character creation. Some examples might include:

• The wrestler has an overwhelming hatred of another character, slanting all his plans towards "getting" his nemesis;
• The wrestler is gullible and/or impulsive, and can be tricked into nearly anything;
• The character is blindly patriotic, instantly getting dragged into feuds with everyone who badmouths America;
• The wrestler is so proud of/confident in his Finisher that he refuses to win a match without using it.

When a wrestler is in a situation that is affected by his Personality Quirk (such as the target of a "vendetta" showing up at ringside during a match), he must make a SAV check or react irrationally upon his Quirk (if he failed the SAV check, the wrestler might abandon the opponent in the ring to attack the newcomer, for example). This is subject to Promoter arbitration.

A wrestler may take up to two Personality quirks, provided they do not overlap in any way. The Promoter may refuse to allow certain submitted quirks, either because he does not expect they will be very limiting, or because they do not fit the tone or style of the league.

Poor (+2)

The wrestler is perpetually short on cash for some reason, be it mismanagement of funds, prior debts, etc. All earned money is halved before being added to his total. The manager's cut, if any, is taken before this division.

Pure (+2)

The wrestler has a strong respect for the formal rules of wrestling, and will normally never break them. If he receives a Referee Warning for whatever reason, he puts himself "off his game" and recieves a -2 penalty to his next maneuver (this is in addition to the normal penalties, if any).

Ritual (+1)

The wrestler must perform some action before every match. During this time (at least 1 round's worth), attacks on the wrestler are considered unopposed. In addition, rulebreakers with this Flaw will not be able to make a ambush prior to a match (at least not under usual circumstances); fan favorites with this Flaw can be ambushed without using an Edge point.

If the character voluntarily does not perform his Ritual, he is considered "off his game", and takes a -1 to every action throughout the match (he can forgive himself for involuntarily missing it, such as if ambushed). Bret Hart had a Ritual of giving his sunglasses to a fan at ringside.

Signal (+1)

The wrestler has a certain action that he always takes which signals his finishing maneuver is coming. As such, the opponent has more time to prepare for it. The wrestler's Finisher is -1 to perform, and opponents can use the signal as an easy trigger for the use of Edge points.

Slow Learner (+3)

The wrestler isn't very good at picking up new techniques. He will need to spend more time during training to improve his attributes and learn new maneuvers. He also doubles penalties for improvising maneuvers.

Fame

Fame represents a wrestler's popularity with the fans; it is a composite value, drawn from Heat (the wrestler's "flavor of the month" status based on recent actions) and Prestige (the general impressiveness of the wrestler's career). These subjects are covered more in the Campaigning rules; for now, it is important only to note that your wrestler begins play with 100 Prestige points (unless he is an Import or Living Legend).

Edge Points

A wrestler receives a number of Edge points before each match equal to his Fame/100. These represent the effects of experience, adrenaline, "heart", and other intangibles on his performance. Use of Edge points is detailed in the combat rules; beginning wrestlers will usually have only 1 Edge point.

Maneuvers & Arsenals

Most ARM action is an exchange of Maneuvers -- anything from a simple Punch, a soaring Flying Splash, an intricate Figure Four Leglock, or an earthshaking Powerbomb. While wrestlers can attempt any maneuver they wish, they mostly rely on a relatively small group of moves: their Arsenals.

All wrestlers possess the following Maneuvers automatically: Bear Hug, Bodyslam, Dodge, Front Kick, Irish Whip, Slap, Punch, Side Headlock, Stomp, and Tag. They use these maneuvers without improvising.

In addition, every wrestler recieves an Arsenal corresponding to each of the Attributes STR, TEC, AGI, and BRA. Each Arsenal has a number of "slots" equal to ½ the Attribute that can be filled with maneuvers appropriate to that attribute (i.e., STR slots are filled with STR maneuvers, etc.).

Wrestlers also recieve a special Training Arsenal, with a number of slots in it equal to their SAV. Training slots can be used in one of three ways:

• They can be filled by Maneuvers of ANY class;
• They can be filled with Tricks (SAV-only maneuvers), such as 'Distract Ref';
• They can be used to improve Maneuvers; using 1 slot adds +1 to the wrestler's skill with a single maneuver.

Training to improve maneuvers has some special restrictions. First, no more than 4 extra slots can be spent on any maneuver. In addition, under no circumstances can a wrestler train his skill with a maneuver above 18. Thus, a STR 16 wrestler could spend a maximum of 3 slots on any STR maneuver -- one to initially gain it, one to raise it to 17 skill, and one more to raise it to 18.

Finally, make sure to choose a Finishing Maneuver for your wrestler. This can be any single Maneuver you like; it costs you no slots, and gains an automatic +2 skill bonus (as well as other benefits -- see "Finishing Maneuvers" in part 2). You may still Train your Finishing Maneuver further like any other Maneuver, adding up to 4 slots to a maximum skill of 18.