Month: September 2010

Pars Fortuna Preview – 12 Magic Armors

/ jstater / 4 Comments

For PARS FORTUNATM, I wanted to do something slightly different with magic items. To that end, I kept the concept of potions and scrolls (in a slightly tweaked format), but I decided to make all other magic items unique. I’ve used the treasure system in Swords and Wizardry quite a bit in producing my NODTM sandboxes, and so I knew that magic items in Swords and Wizardry are, by the rules, rare enough that unique magic items should work. After all, if the magic items in PARS FORTUNATM were not unique, it would have been pretty tricky to randomize them. Here, then, is the master magic item table, and the items in the Armor category.

TABLE 44: OTHER MAGIC ITEMS

1 Armor
2 Bauble
3 Cube
4 Raiment
5 Shield
6 Staff
7 Sword
8 Weapon – Melee
9 Weapon – Missile
10 Miscellaneous

Armor
Most magical armor carries an enchantment of +1 to +3. This bonus applies to the wearer’s AC, thus +1 light armor would give one a +3 bonus to AC rather than the usual +2 bonus. Magical armor resizes itself to fit its owner perfectly.

TABLE 45: MAGIC ARMOR

1 Hospitaler’s Helm
2 Ymbrym’s Bulwark
3 Champion’s Cuirass
4 Armor of Orth
5 Sollerets of ESP
6 Scales of Faduz
7 Hoden’s Mail
8 Crusader’s Breastplate
9 Gauntlets of Kriusaichon
10 Ruby Scales
11 Zena’s Robe of Spells
12 Emperor’s Armor

Armor of Orth: Orth was a kyssai scoundrel who have his life protecting a village from raiders. His armor was blessed by his heroism, and has long been lost by the champion of that forgotten village. Orth’s armor is a suit of leather armor (+1 light armor), the breastplate being stamped with a cornucopia. When the right fist is held aloft, the armor glows with light as bright as a torch. When the left fist is held aloft, the wearer and his comrades are immune to mind effects.

Champion’s Cuirass: Forged by the ilel and then lost during one of their many wars, this blue-steel cuirass is +1 medium armor and creates a 10-ft radius zone of magic resistance (10%) around the wearer.

Crusader’s Breastplate: This breastplate is washed in gold and has crimson leather straps. It counts as +2 medium armor and allows the wearer to control flames, making them brighter, snuffing them out, or causing them to leap at targets (treat as missile attack, 1d6 damage). The wearer gains a +2 bonus to save vs. fire.

Emperor’s Armor: This suit of plate armor is made of silvered steel, and the breastplate is marked with a noble crest of a hhai rampant. Owned by an ancient emperor of Vex, it was lost during the coup of the ilel, and it is prophesied that the person who will overthrow the ilel will come wearing this armor. Volzaar’s armor allows the wearer to fly (movement of 12), and the owner of the armor does not age. In daylight, it can be commanded to dazzle all in sight (saving throw allowed to negate the effect) once per day.

Gauntlets of Kriusaichon: These black boiled leather gauntlets allow the wearer to make a level drain attack with their touch. Treat this as a normal melee attack. Each time a level (or Hit Dice) is drained, the wearer permanently loses 1 point of charisma, their appearance becoming more ghoulish and unwholesome.

Hoden’s Mail: The famed olvugai adventurer Hoden wore this expansive coat of mail. The mail acts as +2 heavy armor and, on the wearer’s command, casts the spell Invulnerability.

Hospitaler’s Helm: This conical steel helm gives its wearer the ability to heal 2d6 points of damage with a touch once per day. The wearer, unfortunately, is struck with deafness while wearing the helm.

Mail of Ymbrym: Ymbrym was an olvugai smith of the highest order and arrogance. The coat of mail that reaches to the ankles and shines with an inner fire. It is +1 heavy armor and grants the wearer immunity to magical ranged attacks of level 1 to 3 (i.e. cantraps). Unfortunately, the wearer becomes an overbearing know-it-all while in the mail.

Ruby Scales: This +3 medium armor is composed of crimson-tinged scales of metal on a leather backing. On the chest, the armor is bejeweled with three perfect rubies that blaze with an inner fire. These rubies enable the wearer of the armor to cast three Maledictions. As Malediction is cast, a ruby loses its sheen. When all three have been cast, the armor disappears.

Scales of Faduz: Forged by the infamous osk smith Faduz, this +2 medium armor of lacquered black metal with gilded edges allows the owner to shape shift into the form of a beast. The chosen form cannot have more Hit Dice than the wearer of the armor. It has the side effect of making the wearer look more bestial.

Sollerets of ESP: Sollerets are, basically, armored shoes. This pair is made of steel and has long, pointed toes. The wearer of the sollerets gains the ability to read people’s minds, but each time this power is invoked, they develop a painful, ugly boil on their face. These boils effectively lower the wearer’s charisma by 2, and last for 1d6 days.

Zena’s Robe of Spells: Zena was a magician of olden times, claimed by all the magical races as one of their own. Her robe is made of thick leather, and acts as +3 light armor. Once per day, the wearer can cast any spell of a level equal to or lower than their Hit Dice.

Venatia – Seaxel, Nimroth and Walgirth

/ jstater

Six more encounters from Western Venatia.

Part One | Part Two | Part Three

0432. The river here meets strong, ancient rocks and divides into hundreds of little waterfalls, playful streams and pleasant pools before re-combining into the river that flows into [0333]. Ample evidence around these pools suggests that the area was once visited often by the ancient elves and gnomes – wooden gazebos so delicately carved that they could only have come from a fey hand, discarded goblets, tattered scarves of spider silk, etc. The area is now infested by giant water wasps, who perhaps caused the olden folk to quit the area in the first place. Encounters with water wasps occur with groups of 1d6 insects on a roll of 1-4 on 1d6.

| Giant Wasp: HD 4; AC 4 [15]; Atk 1 sting (1d4 + poison), bite (1d6); Move 1 (Swim 12, Fly 20); Save 13; CL/XP 6/400; Special: Paralyzing poison, larvae.

0433. Seaxel is a small farming village on the banks of the river. Its sister village and rival, Nimroth, is on the other bank in [0434]. The Seaxels and Nimroths are descended from the serfs who served the elven families of the same names, families that despised one another and competed in all things for the attention of the Emperor Finrix. Whether hunting, racing, poetry or war, the Seaxels and Nimroths were always out to best one another. The lords of the manors, who only took residence in them when the Emperor was summering in Amvianda, accompanied Finrix to his war in the west and were never heard from again. With the emperor gone and the great families gradually dispossessed, the serfs eventually came to rule them-selves, putting decisions to a vote or following the wise counsel of one or another elder. But even though they were rid of their masters, the old enmity has gone on unabated. The Seaxels raise gourds, grapes and fields of barley. The 15 soldiers of the village dress in old-fashioned mail hauberks and carry the tall, Norman-style shields of the old elven legions. They arm themselves with spears and thick daggers.

0439. Nimroth is a small village of woodsmen, lusty rascals with a mean streak when gold and silver are up for grabs. They loath the people of Seaxel (see 0433 above). Nimroth’s warriors wear leather armor and carry long bows and battle axes. They have the services of a healing woman called Hallya, a freckled woman of thirty-three summers.

0502. A misplaced foot might send a character (1 in 6 chance) through a 20-ft deep hole into ancient elfen catacombs. The catacombs are crudely fashioned, and in fact any dwarf will declare them to be the work of goblins, the usage by elfs coming sometime after they were first dug. Within the maze-like catacombs are dozens of bricked up alcoves containing the remains of elf and human legionnaires from Nomo. While three of the alcoves contain but a single elf corpse, the others are stacked high with human skulls. Apparently, the catacombs were a goblin redoubt taken with much loss of life. The three elf burials are as follows:

Walgirth, an elf baronet interred with his family armor (mail hauberk, winged nasal helm, Norman-style shield) and his long sword (+1 weapon, growls in the presence of goblins and forces the owner to pass a saving throw in the presence of goblins, hobgoblins and bugbears or attack until he or the goblins all lie dead). Walgirth’s alcove is trapped with a flurry of darts (2d6 damage, save for half).

Inidubrid, a warrior-maiden (possibly a paladin) interred in her gleaming plate armor (un-rusted) and her crescent shield bearing intertwined doves. Her spear is a +2 weapon and is lodged through her rib cage and can only be drawn from the stone by a chivalrous character. The spear is haunted by her spirit, and will scold the bearer of the spear with electrical shocks (1d6 damage) when they behave un-chivalrously. Despoilers of this tomb will be marked for destruction by servants of Law until they make penance at the temple of a high priest of Law.

Galaddus, captain of archers. Galaddus was a drinking man in life, and in death he still holds court with a dozen shades of his former comrades. Galaddus’ mouldering corpse, still wearing the remains of his ring armor, his yew longbow close at hand, sits atop a barrel of spirits, shadows flitting about him, their umbral goblets raised to receive a splash of “the wine of ages” from a dusty bottle. Visitors are invited to have a drink, or chased away if troublesome.

0531. The burnt remnants of a stockade lie here, about one mile east of the river. Broken hobgoblin arrows are plentiful, but not a single body remains in the place. The walls of the stockade are in good enough shape that, if the gate is repaired, it can provide a fairly safe camp.

0539. A tiny cave overlooking the river serves as the sepulcher of a small gnome child, perhaps a prince. The cave is natural save for a single circle on one wall that has been ground smooth and painted with loving portrait of the large-eyed child. A small, soapstone altar rests beneath this portrait, covered by the stubs of candles and dried flowers. There is no treasure here, and the body is well buried, but the sepulcher remains a holy spot and a refuge from evil. Characters of a wicked bent find themselves unwilling to enter into the place without first throwing themselves to their knees and shedding a tear of remorse.

Mystery Men! Update – The Occultists

/ jstater / 2 Comments

 

Ladies and gentlemen, we have backing. The project is now 109% funded with the addition of three more backers (for a total of 11): Jonathan Davis, Matthew Schmeer of Rended Press (who put us over the top!) and Andrew Kane. Thanks to everybody who has become a backer, and to everyone else thinking about it – dive right in. We have 15 days left, and the more funding the project gets, the more art I can commission for it. Don’t forget to check out the alpha document every so often to see my progress on the rules and setting – and feel free to chime in with your thoughts and suggestions.

Last update, I previewed the elementals who were up for a vote on who gets illustrated by our artist, Joel Carroll (that’s a sample of his work above) and included in the book as sample heroes. This time, we’ll wander into the world of the occult.

 

Danny “Paddy” Sullivan (yes, an Irish cop – they were breaking new ground with this strip), upon being killed in the line of duty, discovers that he is now an “earth-bound spirit”. Instead of sneaking into girls’ locker rooms, he takes the high road and fights evil (Prof. Evil, in fact).

 

What kind of internet nerd would I be without including at least one of Fletcher Hanks’ creations. Fantomah is a god-like being who protects the jungles of Africa. When she “gods-up” she turns blue and her face becomes a skull – nothing strange about that.

 

John Force has a magic coin that he uses as the Magic Agent to fight communism. Without his coin, he’s still a trained secret agent, with all the butt-kickery that involves.

 

An egyptian generald named Amron, he is accidentally revived by an incantation read by a bandit leader. Amron now fights injustice as the Phantom Sphinx with the help of sorcerous powers and a magic carpet.

 

A police scientist killed in an explosion, he discovers that as a ghost he can continue to fight crime. He eventually discovers Ghost Town and its famous residents like Captain Kidd, Robin Hood and Johnny Appleseed. The only person who can see or hear Sgt Spook is a teenage kid named Jerry. And yes, I know, not that different from the Duke of Darkness above, but I loved the art and the name and just had to include him in the competition.

Remember – no need to vote your favorite now, as the official ballot will be sent out when the project finally ends in October.

Venatia – Ubues and Allips

/ jstater / 3 Comments

Six more encounters from Western Venatia.

Part One | Part Two

0303. A clan of fourteen ubue dwell here herding ill-tempered sheep with onyx horns. The ubue dwell in a large, dry cavern, trapping the entrance with falling stones (save or 3d6 damage). The ubue sleep with their sheep in the main cavern, with a smaller, higher cavern serving as the lair of their chief, a robust figure of abject savagery called Kin-Toka-Rok. The ubue have visited the Gallery of Bones in [0308], losing two of their number there and re-sealing the cave.

Treasure: 1,600 sp, 1,350 gp, a brass locket worth 100 gp (hold a rolled up piece of paper with the word “ZAMAX” written in elven) and 2 casks of olive oil (12 gal., 100 lb each, worth 60 gp each).

| Ubue: HD 3; AC 6 [13]; Atk 3 slams (1d6); Move 9; Save 14; CL/XP 3/60; Special: Argue.

| Kin-Toka-Rok: HD 5; AC 5 [14]; Atk 3 slams (1d8); Move 9; Save 12; CL/XP 5/240; Special: Argue.

0308. The Gallery of Bones is a large, low-ceilinged cavern sealed by massive boulders. Centuries ago, when the legions of Nomo were marching into the Rooky Wood, they encountered a plague that there physics and priests could not counter. As company after company of men succumbed, their commander, Valbestos, made a decision. He gathered the afflicted in this cavern and sealed it with a landslide as he listened to the dying men screaming for mercy. The cavern is now filled with bones, old military equipment (shorts swords, darts, spears, shields, chainmail and leather armor) and four allips, the tormented, undead souls of the lead legionnaires.

| Allip: HD 4 (20, 20, 18, 16 hp); AC 5 [14]; Atk 1 strike (no damage, 1d4 points of wisdom lost); Move Fly 6; Save 13; CL/XP 7/600; Special: Drains wisdom, hypnosis.

0313. Ystam is a tiny village of trappers constructed atop a granite dun at the intersection of two rushing streams flanked by wolfberry bushes. The trappers have carved a rugged little stair from their village to the canyons below. The village is surrounded by a little stone wall patrolled by a garrison of elves from the tower of Elbernulph [0113]. The garrison numbers 20 elf warriors in chainmail and armed with claymores. The village is ruled by Elbernulph’s reeve Cirioch. The villagers are supported by a blue eyed armorer named Arthaa. Cirioch dwells in a short, stone tower attached to a more traditional wattle-and-daub, two-story cottage. His house is protected by ten skeletons that he controls using a gold medallion. The villagers live in little huts and are often visited by a druid called Talotam, who leads them in secret worship of Diana. The Chimereans demand the worship of Vulcanus of the Mailed Fist, the patron deity of Galardis. A work gang of Azer are presently constructing a fortified chapel of Vulcanus. The villagers resent the elves and the arrival of their “foreign” deity.

| Cirioch, Elf Lvl 2: HP 12/7; AC 4 [15]; Save 13/14; CL/XP 3/60; Special: Elven chainmail, two-handed sword, dagger, spellbook, medallion allows him to command undead.

0326. A carcolh dwells in a lofty cave in this hex, sending its tendrils far into the countryside in search of prey. The carcohl is described in more detail in NOD #4 or on the Land of Nod blog. Treasure is pushed to the fringes of the cave, the refuse of past meals.

Treasure: 310 ep, 430 gp, a little limestone idol of the arch-demon Furfur worth 165 gp, a brass urn worth 1,000 gp and dust of sneezing and choking in a leather pouch.

| Carcolh: HD 9 (49 hp); AC 4 [15]; Atk 1 or more tentacles (1d4 + grapple) or 1 bite (2d6); Move 9; Save 6; CL/XP 11/1700; Special: Tentacles, swallow whole.

0335. A waterfall of reddish water pours from a cliff into a wide, shallow pool. The pool is inhabited by a fossergrim, the spirit of the waterfall. Behind the waterfall is a large, conical cave that leads into a damp, slimy tunnel (saving throw to avoid falling and sliding down the tunnel). This tunnel empties into a muddy cave with two exits. The left-hand exit leads upward to a series of caverns that eventually open to the top of the cliff above, and show signs of having once been well traveled by animal caravans. The right-hand exit leads to a winding tunnel and the cavern of Harzh, a youngish green dragon just beginning to build her horde and roosting on three large, beryl eggs. Harzh can neither speak or cast spells.

Treasure: 2,820 gp, a large rock crystal worth 900 gp and 3 pounds of zedoary in a wooden box (worth 320 gp per pound).

| Harzh: HD 8 (32 hp); AC 2 [17]; Atk 2 claws (1d6), bite (2d10); Move 9 (Fly 24); Save 8; CL/XP 10/1400; Special: Breathes poison.

0346. A cove here holds a pool of water. A rusty iron door blocks access to another cavern holding the remains of Grindir, a pirate lord from Tremayne who passed away almost 80 years ago. The door is trapped but not locked, and is cold to the touch. If opened, three spears in a triangular formation springing up from the ground to skewer thieves. The skeleton of a thief lies before the door. The actual tomb holds the body of Grindir in a black, silk coat and still adorned with jewelry. The corpse and most of the cavern are covered in yellow mold. A moonstone worth 35 gp is lodged in the corpse’s eye socket.

Treasure: 2,000 sp, 640 ep, 640 gp and a turquoise worth 155 gp.

| Yellow Mold: HD n/a; AC n/a; Atk 1d6 damage + spore cloud; Move 0; Save n/a; CL/XP 3/60; Special: Poisonous spore cloud, killed by fire.

PARS FORTUNA Election ’10 Results

/ jstater / 2 Comments

A week ago I announced that I was going to commission a piece of monster art from Russ Nicholson. The question, of course, was which monster. I introduced these five candidates …

1. Fiend: A scaly demon carrying a barbed spear and sticking out a long, wavy tongue.

2. Meagle: Stunted piskie, looks like a cross between a hedgehog and gnome with bat wings; carry nets woven from human hair.

3. Nine: Humanoid otter with four beady eyes; carries a long knife and/or sling; quaff mystic beer; extremely quick.

4. Eight-Headed Creeper: Weird creatures with eight jabberwocky-ish heads on long necks, clawed feet, long arms with long, nimble fingers and large, bat-like wings.

5. Bounder: Giant bipedal grasshoppers wielding military forks and chakram.

And in the best democratic tradition put it up to a vote. It was a hard-fought contests, with two candidates, Eight-Headed Creeper and Meagle, leaping ahead in the polls and Bounder playing the role of third party spoiler. Well, the votes from comments and e-mails are in and tallied and the contest went to Eight-Headed Creeper. And to be honest, I’m kinda happy about that. The Creeper and me, we have a little history.

It had to be six or seven years ago. I was sitting in front of the computer, tapping away at the keys working on something RPG related, when my daughter scurried in to see what dad was up to. She had to be four or five at the time. I think at the time I was probably fooling around with converting lots of old monsters to a Castles and Crusades format (my system at the time), because she announced that she wanted to make up a monster. I suggested she start out with a drawing and she went to it, producing this little gem.

“Well, what is this monster called?”, I asked, and she thought about it for a minute and came back with “Eight Headed Creeper”.

“What does it do?”, I asked.

“It sneaks around and steals gold from people”

“What is is like? How does it behave?”

“It is scary, but it usually runs away from fights.”

So, I kept asking questions, and did my best to translate her Creeper into a monster, which is now going to show up in my own little RPG and is going to be illustrated by my favorite monster artist. Neat how things work out, isn’t it?

Oh, and my daughter thanks those who voted for her Creeper. If PARS FORTUNA sells well enough, the Meagle is next on my list for a monster commission.

—

Today I’m putting a little more work into Western Venatia, but I’m mostly working on the PARS FORTUNA dungeon I’m going to play test next weekend with friends. I’m about 50 magic items away from finishing the PAR-FOR rules, and I also just realized that I need to make a PAR-FOR character sheet. The Mystery Men! project has achieved funding (!!!) and I’ll post an update about that tomorrow.

Venatia – Cavemen and Blink Dogs

/ jstater

Here are six encounters for Western Venatia – hot off the presses – and the accompanying map.

0110. A crooked little stream flows from a high cave, forming a noisy little waterfall. The banks of the stream are bare of life because the stream is quite poisonous. The stream flows from a grotto, the walls and ceilings of which drip with poison. Well worn steps in the living stone protected by a large cave eel lead from the grotto to a little cavern, wherein dwells Eiois. Eiois is a bitter elven woman with eyes that stare like death and a once-pretty mouth whose corners have become down-turned. Eiois is a priestess of Eris, goddess of discord. Eiois worships at a jade altar that holds a crystal ball, through which she randomly curses powerful men in the region. She recently became infatuated with Fortunato, the Prince of Antigoon, and her fascination has caused her to plot against his enemies. She is now in a rage since the ball was stolen by a sneak thief (now deceased), who dropped his treasure in [0122].

Treasure: 2,000 sp, 230 gp, banded agate worth 900 gp and jasper worth 800 gp.

| Eiois, Cleric Lvl 6. HP 21; AC 9 [10]; Save 10 (8); CL/XP 8/800; Special: Spells (4th), rebuke undead. Threadbare silk gown, silver dagger, crooked wand that poisons with a touch. Eiois has an aquiline nose and noble bearing, deepy bitter.

0138. Vhalla is a small village of common farmers living in wattle & daub cottages surrounded by a bulwark of packed earth. Four wooden watch towers overlook the fields as far as the woods. The farmers are thickset, with nut-brown skin and aquiline noses. The men of Vhalla keep nimble forest cattle and grow cabbages and chanterelle mushrooms. They are an athletic people, holding games each summer to honor the gods, and are fine archers. Vhalla is ruled by the Lady Reana, who traces her line back to the elfs of old. Vhalla has the services of Ancho the Bowyer. The villages militia are armed with farm implements, and Reana employs four ogres from the mountains as her personal guard. In their off hours, the ogres challenge all comers to fights in a deep, brick pit near the village square and in sight of the gallows.
| Reana: HD 5 (19 hp); AC 3 [16] armored; Atk 1 sword (1d8); Move 12; Save 12; CL/XP 5/240. Elven chainmail, shield, longsword. Sharp featured but less so due to her girth, pallid skin, black hair and amber eyes. Precise mind, but a tad eccentric. Fancies herself a natural philosopher.

0147. A herd of 20 hippocampi graze the seaweed here. The leader of the herd is a stallion that once served as a paladin’s steed. Though his master is dead, the stallion still serves the cause of chivalry.

0233. One might find an ancient plaza here, now overgrown with saplings and ferns. In the center if the plaza is a large, malachite fountain decorated with tarnished brass hinds. The fountain is cracked and dry, and all that remains of the ruined town surrounding the fountain and plaza are crumbling foundations, a few shards of pottery and rusted utensils and tools. Should someone polish the brass sculptures and whisper a prayer to Diana, the fountain will come alive and a large falcon will soon appear in the sky, spiraling down until it lands on the edge of the fountain. This wise bird will answer a three questions (per Contact Other Plane) for the person who prayed.

0301. Cavemen of the lion clan live here in a large complex of caves. The 70 cavemen and their families are exceedingly primitive, arming themselves with clubs. Their lair contains a crude idol of a cave lion adorned with a cave lion pelt worth 150 gp. The cavemen are led by a boisterous man called Yok and his four brothers, Pudo, Kord, Gontor and Joro.

| Yok, Barbarian Lvl 5: HP 30; AC 7 [12]; Save 11; CL/XP 5/240; Wears a gold ring worth 1,000 gp given to him by Cadfani to seal a pact of friendship.

| Yok’s Brothers: HD 3 (17, 12, 8, 5); AC 7 [12]; Atk 1 club (1d6); Move 12; Save 14; CL/XP 3/60.

0339. A pack of 10 blink dogs hunts these woods. They detect the presence of intruders into their territory on a roll of 1-4 on 1d6, and will track intruders to make sure they mean no harm.

Update on All Things Nodian

/ jstater / 2 Comments

What a busy month! Here’s a quick update on what I’m up to …

First – I’m going to spend some time on Western Venatia tonight and should have a post – I’ve neglected this one the last couple of weeks because it won’t be published until December, but it’s high time I get some work done on it.

Second – NOD #5 looks to be on schedule for early October. Ibis, City of Sorcerers is 95% finished, and there will be the Illusionist, the Mystery Men article, Mines & Minerals and another level of the mega-ish-dungeon I started in NOD #4.

Third – Sales are pretty good this month (thank you everyone who purchased a magazine!), though I doubt they are good enough to win Lulu’s September sales contest. Apparently, you can now get 15% off your purchase with the code “FALLREAD305”. Check out the Lulu storefront or the Old School Renaissance storefront. I also have a CafePress storefront with a few t-shirts for sale.

Four – The Mystery Men! patronage project is proceeding along pretty well. It is now 80% funded with 19 days left to go. Two more Golden Age patrons or four more Silver Age patrons will do it, so if you’d like to be a backer go visit Kickstarter and sign up. If we can gather more than $210 dollars, we can order more art for the project, which will be distributed as a free PDF (and open game content) and as a low-cost softcover book via Lulu. You can view the alpha document to watch the progress on writing the rules (and feel free to send me suggestions).

Five – PARS FORTUNA is about 90% complete – I just need to finish up some magic item descriptions. I’m playtesting it next week and hope to publish it in November. If you haven’t voted for the monster you’d like to see Nicholas Russ illustrate for the book, visit this post and let your voice be heard.

And that’s all folks. One RPG and two more NODs for 2010, and then I can rest a bit.

Art is from Steve Bialik’s Samurai Wars, found via Super Punch. Check it out.

Mystery Men! Update – The Elementals

/ jstater / 5 Comments

 

The project now has eight backers, with Sean Wills of Bite the Bulette, Lou Goncey of the Purple Wurm and Scott Morrison of – well, I don’t know actually – Scott, if you have blog, let me know – throwing their hats into the ring as Golden Age patrons (well, Mr. Goncey actually pledged for no reward, but he still pledged at the Golden Age level. If that was a mistake and you want your reward Lou, let me know!)

The project is now 76% funded with 22 days to go – if you’re considering becoming a backer, check out the Kickstarter page HERE. Remember, the more money we gather, the more art we can afford and the better this project will look. I’ve also put some more work into the alpha document if you want to check it out.

Last update, I previewed the tough guys who were up for a vote on who gets illustrated by our artist, Joel Carroll (that’s a sample of his work above) and included in the book as sample heroes. This time, we’ll look at the elementals, heroes whose powers are based on natural forces – electricity, fire, water, etc.

 

Ray O’Light (a grand old Irish name if ever I heard one) is an electrical worker who gets zapped on the job. Luckily, a passing scientist saves his life and in the process endows him with electrical powers. Dig the translucent helmet!

 

Bob Blake discovers that being friends with a brilliant chemist can cause problems, as he is accidentally doused in a formula that Harry Thurston accidentally discovers (hmm – lots of accidents here). Donning aviator goggles and a handy pair of tights, Blake turns lemons into lemonade and becomes Hydroman.

 

Young Bob Sanders gets caught in a cyclone in his home town of Windy Gap and, obviously, comes out of the experience with super powers.

 

No, his powers don’t come from being smeared with radioactive vapo-rub. Vapo-Man is scientist Bradford Cole and was caught in a lab explosion caused by Nazi saboteurs (I hate those guys).

 

Carol Vance is orphaned by a forest fire, but given powers by the god of fire after he rescues her (so he’s not such a bad guy after all). Adopted by the Martin family, she puts her divine powers to work smashing Nazi spy rings and generally making the lives of criminals more interesting. Also – girl in a bathing suit with a flaming battleaxe!

Remember – no need to vote your favorite now, as the official ballot will be sent out when the project is funded. Thanks to everyone who has put money into the project so far!