The Fat Little Nothing

/ jstater / 4 Comments

Cosmic heroes don’t come any more blase’ than Herbie Popnecker. Dismissed as a “fat little nothing” by his father, Pincus, Herbie’s lifelong addiction to seemingly mystic lollipops has made him easily one of the most powerful entities in the universe. Galactus – Ha! Superman – Don’t make him laugh! (Well, he wouldn’t laugh, of course, but don’t even try). Herbie always seems to sleeping, and even when awake he’s half asleep. That probably makes him a powerful dreamer, in the vein of Randolph Carter, who either inhabits his own world of dreams or is able to impose his fancies on the world around him.

Image from Silver Age Comics

Space Princess: Pick Your Species

/ jstater / 3 Comments

Here’s where species (not races – that hasn’t been the right word for about a century now) currently stand in Space Princess.

—

Human
Human characters have no special bonuses or penalties, but they do begin the game with one extra Destiny Token to help them get out of dangerous situations intact. Humans begin with a standard Defense Rating of 10 and a standard Movement Rate of 40.

Android or Gynoid
Androids are sentient robots that generally resemble males, while gynoids are sentient robots that generally resemble females. Of course, your android character can look however you like – it need not even be humanoid in configuration, although such a shape could influence how it interacts with the environment in the game (i.e. it is unable to climb a wall because it has no arms or legs, etc). Androids are immune to mental domination, fear and poison. Androids have a standard Defense Rating of 12 and a standard Movement Rate of 40.

Alien
Aliens come in a variety of different shapes and sizes. You can either invent your own alien species on the spot, or your Referee might provide you with a selection. Aliens have a standard Defense Rating of 10 and a standard Movement Rate of 40, unless otherwise stated below. Aliens are built as follows:

1. Choose Kingdom: Crustacean, Fungus, Humanoid, Insect, Mammal, Mollusk, Plant, Reptile or Silicon-Based.

Crustaceans: Crustacean aliens have a thick carapace that grants them a standard Defense Rating of 12. The player can choose to give them pincers in place of normal hands. These pincers make it difficult for them to handle ray guns (-2 to hit) and perform acts of fine manual dexterity (-10%).

Fungoids: Fungoids have thick skin and their lack of internal organs makes them resistance to damage, giving them a standard Defense Rating of 12. They are immune to poisons not designed to kill fungus (i.e. fungicides) and their alien intellects give them a +10% bonus to resist mental domination and fear.

Humanoid: Humanoid aliens look like human beings with slight physical differences – pointed ears, red skin, six fingers on each hand or four toes on each foot. Humanoid aliens enjoy a +2 bonus to one ability score (chosen by the player), but suffer a -2 penalty to another ability score (chosen by the Referee).

Insects: Insect aliens have chitin that provides a standard Defense Rating of 11. Their powerful mandibles add +1 to their damage when engaged in unarmed combat.

Mammals: Non-humanoid mammals might resemble other members of the mammal kingdom, from dogs to cats to elephants and gazelles. They have thick fur or skin that gives them a Defense Rating of 11 and their natural weaponry (claws, fangs, antlers) add +1 to their damage when engaged in unarmed combat.

Mollusks: Mollusk aliens that can leave the water are usually covered with a mucus membrane that makes them difficult to grapple in combat (-2 to the attempt). Their tentacle-like limbs make them expert grapplers (+2 to the attempt).

Plants: Plant aliens have the same general benefits as Fungoids.

Reptilians: Reptilian aliens have a standard Defense Rating of 11 due to their scaly hides. If deprived of warmth, they become sluggish and their Movement Rate is cut in half. A reptilian’s natural weapons (fangs, claws) grant it a +1 bonus to damage when engaged in unarmed combat.

Silicon-Based: Silicon-based life forms are essentially living rocks. Like androids, they might take almost any form the player can imagine, with the same consequences. Silicon life are immune to all poisons and seemingly require no sustenance to stay alive. They have a standard Defense Rating of 12, but their standard Movement is reduced to 20.

2. Choose One Special Ability: You can add an additional special ability by permanently spending one Destiny Token.

Ability Bonus: The alien can improve one ability score by +2.

Bulk: The alien is especially bulky and heavy, making it difficult to knock over in combat.

Climbing: The alien can climb walls and ceilings as easily as it walks on a flat surface.

ESP: The alien can attempt to read another’s mind by making physical contact. The alien must make a Mentality saving throw to make contact, and the target can make a mentality saving throw to resist. The ESP reads the surface thoughts of the target. Attempting to access deeply personal secrets permits the target to make a second saving throw to resist.

Hearing: The alien has hearing well beyond that of human beings.

Infra-Vision: The alien can see in the dark via infra-red radiation – in essence, it sees body heat.

Leap: The alien can leap up to 20 feet in any direction.

Mind Control: Whether by hypnotic eyes, intoxicating spores or simple brain waves, the alien can attempt to impose its will on others. The target of the mind control can make a Mentality saving throw to negate the effect. The mind control makes the victim believe the alien is a good and trusted friend. The alien cannot use the mind control to order the person to kill themselves, and orders that seriously counter the target’s personal beliefs (like having them attack a loved one or betray a very valued cause) allow them a second saving throw to shake off the control.

Multiple Arms: Multiple arms allows the alien to hold more objects than normal and to make one additional attack during combat.

Multiple Legs: Multiple legs increases the alien’s Movement Rate by +5.

Stunning Grasp: The alien can stun others with their touch. They must make a normal, unarmed attack in combat to make contact. The victim suffers normal unarmed damage and must pass a Mentality saving throw or fall unconscious for one combat round.

Deviant Friday – janaschi edition

/ jstater / 1 Comment

Say what you might about Magic: The Gathering, but it certainly keeps artists busy. One of those artists is janaschi, who does some really nice color work – pretty women in the anime/elven vein – a fantasy artist I would put in the Todd Lockwood school.

Short gallery today – check it out. Later – Space Princess aliens and maybe tonight one of the most powerful super heroes ever conceived given Mystery Men! stats.

MtG: Leonin Skyhunter

 

 

MtG: Sheoldred, Whispering One

 

 

eggs

 

 

conhon entry 2.0

 

 

giftart

 

 

over30.000hits Oo

 

 

Magic in 1800

/ jstater / 7 Comments

My last 1800 post sparked some discussion (okay, two comments) about magic. Here are my thoughts …

Regarding replacing magic because the setting is more ripe for science – I originally thought about going the science route. It was done in Northern Crown and I’ve certainly mixed science with fantasy in other projects, but for this one I wanted to go the pure magic route. Why? First and foremost, I think the “steampunk” concept tends to completely take over a setting and game. I didn’t want to do that with 1800. I wanted the game to focus on wilderness exploration, which (point number two) leaves science types without the use of a workshop or spare parts, and thus forces us to really stretch the imagination to fit him in. Of course, one can also just use magic and call it science, but that wasn’t a satisfying option for me.

Finally, science and non-human powered machinery as we know it today is really just at its beginnings in 1800 – you’ve had a manned flight in balloon across the English Channel and some demonstrations of steam engines, but steam power hasn’t come to dominate the imagination and landscape just yet. Magic, superstition and pseudo-science, on the other hand, are still alive and well. Consider that the medical training Lewis received for his and Clark’s western exploration involved lots of bleeding and laxatives that were 50% mercury (and that mercury in the explorers’ droppings has apparently helped historians track the Corps of Discovery’s progress across the continent), the presence of esoteric groups like the Freemasons, Rosicrucians, Illuminati and the Invisible College (well, the Royal Society, by this time), and, most importantly, the existence of Native American medicine men and shamans.

This, along with my desire to include fantasy-style monsters in the “Mysterious Interior of America” seemed to make old-style magicians, powered down a bit for the setting, the way to go. Of course, somebody running an 1800 campaign could remove the magic or even introduce a more science-intensive class (perhaps the Mechanician) as they like. Once I publish something, you can house rule it to death for all I care!

So, what will the Magician class look like in the game. My initial sketch has it looking something like this (all subject to change, of course) …

Magician
Magicians are men and women who have learned through long study and practice to work magic – breaking the laws of nature and delving into the secret knowledge of the supernatural through the use of special formulas of words, movements and materials. Magicians come in many different varieties, from the intellectual European tradition typified by the likes of John Dee, Isaac Newton and Benjamin Franklin to the servants of the Abrahamic God and the workers of folk magic, be they Dutch hexenmeisters, witches from Naumkeag or Native American medicine men.

Skills: Decipher Code (Knowledge), Identify Plants (Knowledge), Predict Weather (Knowledge), Translate Language (Knowledge), Work Magic (Knowledge)

Choosing a tradition determines one’s spell powers. To work magic, a magician has a percentage chance equal to their skill bonus + knowledge score – the difficulty of the magic (see below). Failure always has a consequence, and they can potentially be dire.

Missionaries, Friars and Soldiers of God
Cantraps: Calm Emotions, Chant, Cure Light Wounds, Protection from Evil (10’ Radius)
Spells (-25%): Divination, Flame Strike, Heal, Holy Smite
Rituals (-50%): Control Water, Control Weather, Earthquake, Holy Word
Master Ritual (-90%): Summon Angel

Alchemists, Philosophers and Freemasons
Cantraps: Dispel Magic, Divination, ESP, Invisibility
Spells (-25%): Break Enchantment, Fly, Hold Monster, Lightning Bolt
Rituals (-50%): Astral Projection, Legend Lore, Repulsion, Shapechange
Master Ritual (-90%): Summon Elemental

Witches, Hexenmeisters, Hoodoo Men, Medicine Men and Granny Women
Cantraps: Calm Animals, Divination, Plant Growth, Wind Wall
Spells (-25%): Commune with Nature, Control Winds, Fly, Summon Animal
Rituals (-50%): Control Weather, Shapechange, Summon Monster [i.e. creatures from folklore and mythology], Whirlwind
Master Ritual (-90%): Summon Spirit [White Buffalo, Rainbow Serpent, Thunderbird – maybe something different for the European folk magic practitioners]

There would also be an NPC category dedicated to Black Magic. The spell descriptions would  include an idea of the material components required. Cantraps could be cast in a round, spells maybe in 2 successive rounds, rituals in 3 and the master ritual over 4. Obviously, we don’t want master magicians pulling angels and elementals out of their hats very often.

That should give you an idea of where my mind is on this subject at the moment. I’ll probably fool with the spell lists some more.

Final bonus – the map continues to shape up. I’ve filled in the Yucatan and some of the islands of the Caribbean and added a few settlements, mostly in the Deep South and in the area of Maine. When all of the settlements are done, I’ll be able to focus on drawing rivers and coasts.

Mu-Pan Eastern Encounter VI

/ jstater / 1 Comment

4415. Cloud Giant: A lanky giantess has made her home here atop a cloud that covers the entire hex and appears each day at sunset. The sunbeams shining through the cloud crystalize and allow one to climb to the top of the cloud, where the giantess, Dalun, has her castle. Dalun has skin like a desert sunset during a sandstorm and eyes as blue as the sky. She dwells with her seven children in her castle, which is filled with her sculptures, many of which can be animated by her voice. She does not seek the company of others, and has a cruel streak when dealing with unwanted visitors.

4440. Master of Constellations: There is a tall tower of golden bricks that dominates the landscape here. The tower seems to be the sources of a thick, clammy mist that fills the hex. Folk walking through the mist feel as though they are being watched and sometimes touched.

The tower belongs to Tagab, a tall, studious shugenja who goes by the moniker “Master of Constellations”. Tagab is an astrologer and diviner who lures the distraught and desperate to his tower to read their fortunes. Those he finds pleasing or fascinating (he’s quite eccentric and often takes a strange fancy to people) he makes his prisoner, holding them in one of the many rooms of his tower.

Tagab has as a staff of (nearly) unseen servants that appear as floating star sapphires. His tower is guarded by the mist – actually a monster that congeals from the mist and appears as a great, blubbery shape with dozens of beady eyes. The creature is covered in wriggling, hair-like tendrils and a luminous gray slime.

| Mist Monster: HD 12 (46 hp); AC 9 [10]; Atk 1 bite (1d8); Move 18; Save 3; CL/XP 12/2000; Special: Surprised on roll of 1 on 1d8, immune to cold, slime (save vs. charm monster).

1800 – American Empires

/ jstater / 12 Comments

I swear I wasn’t looking for another project. It’s just that I’m a history guy – majored in it in college – and this idea has just worked it’s way into my imagination. 1800 is a pretty interesting time in American history – even an alternate history – and couched as it is between the Revolutionary War and the Civil War it gets less attention that it probably should.

So, what is 1800 – American Empires going to be? At its heart, a homage to old school RPGs and the greatest school video game ever conceived – The Oregon Trail.

Simple RPG based around wilderness exploration, so old school logistics looms large (i.e. how much gunpowder should you pack for a 6 months – 2 year foray into the wilderness?)

Four classes – scout (man vs. nature), soldier (man vs. man), venturer (does the caller and mapper) and magician (with three “traditions” – free mason, missionary and shaman/witch, each with their own small list of usable spells). I’m going to go with the Space Princess concept here of three-tiered classes based on what you want to play rather than “start and level 1 and work your way up”. If you start young (a lieutenant, for example), you begin with more luck. If you start old (a colonel), you begin with no luck and have to rely on skill. Major discoveries and acts of heroism can earn anyone luck.

Rules for exploration and combat – wilderness exploration rules adapted from an early issue of NOD, combat from old versions of “the original fantasy RPG”

A few set hex encounters (major settlements, mostly) + a BIG set of random exploration tables based on the different environments. That way, every campaign will present a different American interior, complete with what you would expect (Native American settlements, herds of buffalo, droughts and blizzards, new rivers, diseases and mishaps), things our forefathers thought they might discover (Welsh indians, cities of gold, mammoths, a Northwest Passage) and things they never imagined (griffons and storm giants in the Rocky Mountains, bulettes on the Great Plains).

A big list of monsters, including many from Native American folklore and some of the “fearsome critters” of lumberjack folklore. I’ll probably also throw in some stats for actual and fictional personalities of the time – Daniel Boone, Natty Bumppo, Johnny Appleseed and Black Hawk, for example.

Settlement rules – what we in the old school would call “domain rules” – establishing forts, attracting settlers, defending the fort from other proto-Empires. Mass combat rules will probably be adapted from Swords and Wizardry to keep them simple.

So, that’s the basic idea. An old school RPG that swaps out the mega-dungeon for a mega-wilderness, with enough heft that one could spin it into other directions – maybe a spy mission in New Spain, fighting night hags in Salem or helping in the Free Mason’s conspiracy to actually unite the independent states of America into a single nation.

Captains Courageous

/ jstater

Let’s be honest, of the huge crop of patriotic heroes created after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Simon and Kirby’s Captain America was the best. But when Cap is busy – and it sounds like he’s going to be busy on the silver screen in a couple weeks – one of these heroes could probably stand in and save the world for democracy in his stead.

Captain Freedom (Super Hero)
Created by Arthur Cazanueva and Franklin Flagg, 1941

Don Wright is the publisher of the Daily Bulletin in Central City IL. He decides to put on a costume to help the downtrodden and oppressed, and eventually falls into the business of thwarting Axis saboteurs. His sidekicks are four children known as the Young Defenders: Lefty, Slim, Whitey and Joanie, all newsboys for the Daily Bulletin.
Captain Freedom often teamed up with Black Cat and Shock Gibson, including in the defense of Los Angeles from a Japanese invasion force.

LVL ADV 15 | STR 6 | DEX 5 | CON 5 | INT 5 | WIL 4 | CHA 8 | HP 75 | DC 15 | ATK +12 | SPD 2

POWERS | None

GEAR | Costume (Light Armor)

Conqueror (Super Hero)
Created by Bill Everett, 1941

Pilot Dan Lyons crash landed near the Rocky Mountains near the laboratory of James Norton, a reclusive scientist. Norton revives Lyons with his Cosmic Ray Lamp, which also enhances his physical and mental abilities. Norton convinces young Lyons to fight the Axis on their own turf, which he does.

LVL ADV 9 | STR 9 | DEX 9 | CON 9 | INT 9 | WIL 9 | CHA 9 | HP 54 | DC 12 | ATK +7 | SPD 2

POWERS | Super Abilities (All) +6

GEAR | Revolver, Knife

Man of War (Super Hero)
Created by Paul Gustavson, 1941

Man of War is the son of the god of war, Mars, who decides to send his son to help the warlike Germans during World War II. But Mars miscalculates the rotation of the Earth (math was never his strong suit), and his son ends up in Dayton, Ohio. The boy rejects his father’s ways and instead fights with the Allies. He is equipped with the Flaming Sword of Mars that can cut through anything. His power are derived from rays that shine down from the planets; lead blocks those rays and robs him of his powers.

LVL ADV 11 | STR 13 | DEX 8 | CON 10 | INT 3 | WIL 3 | CHA 3 | HP 77 | DC 16 | ATK +9 | SPD 2

POWERS | Invulnerability II, Super Constitution +7, Super Dexterity +5, Super Strength +10

GEAR | Sword [Energy Blade, Potent Attack]

Miss America (Epic Hero)
Created by Elmer Wexler, 1941

Joan Dale falls asleep visiting the Statue of Liberty and dreams of all the good they could do with her powers. She awakes with magic powers, which she uses to fight criminals and the Axis.

LVL ADV 13 | STR 3 | DEX 3 | CON 3 | INT 3 | WIL 3 | CHA 3 | HP 52 | DC 10 | ATK +10 | SPD 2

POWERS | Create Object, Energy Bolt, Polymorph Anything, Shrink

GEAR | Costume

Unknown Soldier (Super Hero)
Creator unknown, 1941

The Unknown Soldier appears like a bolt out of the blue to fight for freedom and democracy.

LVL ADV 5 | STR 6 | DEX 6 | CON 6 | INT 3 | WIL 3 | CHA 3 | HP 25 | DC 16 | ATK +4 | SPD 2

POWERS | Fly, Invulnerability I, Super Constitution +3, Super Dexterity +3, Super Strength +3, Whirlwind (1/day)

GEAR | Nitro-Gun [Energy Blast]

War Eagle (Super Hero)
Created by Alan Mandel, 1942

Bill Reed was a victim of infantile paralysis, but he becomes determined to build his upper body strength. He succeeds, but his lack of mobility really crimps his style with the ladies. He begins a new regimen to unlock the secret of winged flight, and finally to defeat his paralysis by practicing jumping and landing. A wealthy man, he decides to devote his life to fighting crime and destroying the Nazi threat.

LVL ADV 15 | STR 6 | DEX 4 | CON 5 | INT 3 | WIL 3 | CHA 10 | HP 75 | DC 11 | ATK +12 | SPD 2

POWERS | Super Constitution +2, Super Dexterity +1, Super Strength +3

GEAR | Costume, Wings [Fly]

Yankee Doodle Jones (Super Hero)
Created by Lou Fine, 1941

Yankee Doodle Jones is a Frankenstein monster, created from the bodies of three crippled American veterans by a mysterious scientists using a secret fluid. After the scientist is killed by Nazi agents, Jones and the scientist’s son, who injects himself with the fluid, fight back. The scientist dies, but not before he urges to two to become super heroes. They have teamed up with Yankee Boy and Johnny Rebel.

LVL ADV 12 | STR 9 | DEX 9 | CON 9 | INT 3 | WIL 3 | CHA 3 | HP 72 | DC 16 | ATK +9 | SPD 4

POWERS | Invulnerability I, Super Constitution +6, Super Dexterity +6, Super Speed +2, Super Strength +6

GEAR | Costume

Mu-Pan Eastern Encounter V

/ jstater

Two more entries on our whirlwind tour of eastern Mu-Pan …

4330. Abbey of the Bodhisattva Joodoj: An abbey dedicated to Joodoj, the bodhisattva of vegetation and fertility, has been constructed here at the head of a wooded valley cultivated by the fourteen nuns of the abbey and their abbess, Baatai. The valley’s has terraced fields growing the five sacred grains and rutabagas.

Baatai is the abbess of the monastery. She is a plump woman of sixty winters with high cheekbones and vibrant green eyes. Cynical and taciturn, she does not welcome strangers to the monastery, though she will provide hungry strangers with boxes of steamed rice and vegetables and skins of water and then send them on their way.

She and her priestesses wear green robes and wear their hair in thick braids that they pile atop their heads like coiled snakes.

| Baatai, Wushen Lvl 9: HP 38; AC 9 [10]; Save 6; CL/XP 10/1400; Special: Spells (5th), turn undead, special move, special move, elemental spirits. Equipment, prayer beads.

4348. Weasel Shrine: In a gaudy shrine of brass and pine painted bright red there lives a giant weasel. The weasel commands a flight of twenty flying monkeys to forces travelers to visit his shrine and pay a tribute of foodstuffs and gold. The weasel is actually a disguised dragon, Yardoc, a huge, young wyrm that looks like a 20 ft long, one ton serpentine toad colored a brilliant scarlet. A massive boulder located about 90 yards north of the shrine in a hollow hides the dragon’s treasure in a pit. It consists of 290 pp, 4,530 gp, 440 sp and a coat of fox skins worth 100 gp that makes on immune to illusions.

| Yardoc: HD 11 (11 hp); AC -2 [21]; Atk 2 claws (1d4), bite (1d6) and tail whip (1d6); Move 10 (F10); Save 4; CL/XP 15/2900; Special: Breathes a giant wad of goo that hardens on the skin and reduces movement by 3 and AC by 1 with each hit, the goo is dissolved by alcohol, surrounded by a thick fog (as fog cloud) that forces those who breath it to save vs. disease.

| Flying Monkey: HD 2+1; AC 6 [13]; Atk 2 claws (1d3) and bite (1d4); Move 9 (F18); Save 16; CL/XP 3/60; Special: If both claw attacks, the monkey can grasp and lift the person, rising 10 feet in altitude per round.

Altered States of America – Basic Map Finished

/ jstater / 3 Comments

So, I got about 30% finished on this and then started all over – found a better method of translating the map into hexes. At this point, I need to fill in the ecosystems of Canada and Mexico, draw in the coasts, islands, lakes and rivers, maybe draw in some old trails, add in volcanoes (dormant and active) and then drop in all the settlements. So, you know – almost there.

After all of this work on the map (which if nothing else will aid me in producing maps for my Hex Crawl Chronicles for Frog God Games – on sale now!), I’ll probably try to turn it into a game/campaign similar to the Space Princess project. Might call it “1800”, “American Empires”, or “Corps of Discovery”. Don’t know yet.

In the meantime, enjoy the scaled down map …