Spes Magna Games

A new threat for Mutant Future:

Manesthoid
Alignment: Neutral
Movement: 150′ (50′), fly 180′ (60′)
Armor Class: 5
Hit Dice: 8
Attacks: 3 (2 claws/1 bite)
Damage: 2d4+6/2d4+6/1d6+3 plus poison
Save: L8
Morale: 10
Hoard Class: XVII
XP: 2,560

Mutations: Chameleon Epidermis; Unique (Combat Precognition, Ootheca, Sensory Adaptations)

The manesthoids are 12-foot-tall, highly intelligent, mutant praying mantises. By means of specialized cells in its chitin, a manesthoid can instantly alter the lucidness, appearance, and color of its exoskeleton. When stationary, a manesthoid can be nearly invisible. With its ability to rotate its head 180 degrees combined with its compound eyes and frequency-sensitive organs in its thorax, a manesthoid has keen senses. It is surprised only 1 in 8 times, and its hearing extends into frequencies inaudible to the human ear.

In combat, a manesthoid strikes with its hooked forelimbs and its powerful bite. The manesthoid’s saliva is a Class 9 poison (save or fall asleep for 2d4 rounds). Due to its combat precognition, it strikes with a +4 bonus to hit in combat, and its attacks inflict +3 points of damage per damage die. Once per combat round, roll 1d20. On a 10+, the manesthoid’s perceives enough of the future in sufficient time to take defensive action against one attack. The manesthoid takes one-half damage from the attack.

Against a helpless target, a female manesthoid extrudes an ootheca, which is a porous, adhesive material containing 1d8 manesthoid eggs. It takes the female 1d4 rounds to extrude the ootheca, and it sets to concrete-like hardness in another 1d4 rounds. The eggs hatch in 1d10 days, and the immature manesthoids consume the entrapped creature.

Tags: monsters, Mutant Future

I’ve been watching The Prisoner via Amazon Prime. I’m five episodes into the seventeen episode run. I vaguely recall watching an episode or two decades ago, but, if so, I don’t think I liked it. Not so now. It’s a fascinating examination of the conflict of two forms of tyranny: unrestrained individualism and collectivism, both of which lead to the dictatorship of relativism.

But this post isn’t about that. It’s about Mutant Future.

The Rover
Hit Dice: 15
Frame: Armature
Locomotion: Forced Air
Manipulators: Special Use Gripper
Armor: Ballistic Nylon (AC 5)
Sensors: Nerve Web
Mental Programming: Artificial Intelligence
Accessories: AV Transmitter, Inertial Inhibitor, Internal Storage Unit
Weaponry: paralytic cnidocytoids, sonic screamer

The Rover is an advanced construct of sorts that keeps people from leaving the Island on which the Village is located. The Rover appears to be an underinflated, spherical weather balloon. A sophisticated, nearly microscopic web of artificial neurons and sensors form a web between the layers of its highly flexible ballistic nylon body. The Rover’s forced air propulsion system is loud but effective with a top speed in excess of 120 miles per hour and capable of movement across water, terrain, and even limited flight. It attacks by means of a short-range sonic screamer (range 75 feet/150 feet) that acts like a stun pistol. The Rover closes for melee combat, ramming its target, which activates thousands of paralytic cnidocytoids. These artificial stinging cells deliver a load of Class 11 poison (saving throw versus poison to avoid paralysis for 2d6 rounds with movement halves for 1d6 with a successful saving throw). The Rover can absorb a human-sized target, storing the target in its internal storage unit for transport back to the Island.

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In other news, Spes Magna Games has a new 5E D&D product available for purchase at DriveThruRPG:

Dangerous Women presents Khatira Amrat, archer raised by fey knights, Kona Hættuleg, pirate queen of blades, and Menyw Beryglus, hell-touched outcast wizard. These strong women can challenge or assist your players’ characters as you see fit. Each NPC is CR 8, and with their special team actions, the whole is definitely greater than the sum of its parts.

Tags: 5E D&D, monsters, Mutant Future, Spes Magna Products

July is almost over. My experiment with self-employment since leaving my teaching position at a charter school in April (largely due to health reasons) has been a bit of mixed bag, but overall has been positive. I’m establishing myself as a tutor.

Most of my tutoring is via the Internet with students in China, but I also facilitate a combination writing/story gaming course in the Houston area. So far, I’ve worked with five students via Ludi Fabularum, and it’s been a blast. For years, I’ve facilitated a story game club when I taught in a school, and I’ve long thought combining teaching with gaming was a no-brainer. Of course, I’m not alone with this thought, nor did I think it first. Many talented and wonderful people have been using all sorts of games as teaching tools for centuries.

Speaking of roleplaying and teaching, you must check out the adventures of “Kelema the wolf girl”, the star of a delightful podcast hosted by DM Dad under the title Dungeons & Dragons Kidventures. It’s a lot like listening to an early 20th century radio play. DM Dad and his 4-year-old daughter provide the voices and action, and it’s a hoot. DM Dad’s descriptions are worthy of emulation, and include sound effects, voice acting, and the quick inclusion of details provided his daughter to help her become more a part of the story. Dungeons & Dragons Kidventures is part story time with a child and part roleplaying game session, and it’s got lots of heart and humor.

In other news, it’s Shark Week. To help you celebrate this annual feeding frenzy of science shows, I’ve released three Shallows & Sharks products, each for a different game system and featuring a half dozen shark-themed monsters.

* The 5E D&D Version includes the ixitakoth, a combination of the ixitxachitl and morkoth from the AD&D Monster Manual.

* The Mutant Future Version includes the electrifying shock shark.

* The Sword & Wizardy WhiteBox Version includes both exotic monsters as well as stats for more mundane sharks inspired by the 1981 first printing of the Dungeons & Dragons Expert Rulebook.

Each of the Shallows & Sharks PDFs currently sell for a mere $0.75 over at DriveThruRPG, and, of course, all three versions feature my take on the infamous sharknado.

Tags: 5E D&D, Mutant Future, Spes Magna Products, Swords & Wizardry, WhiteBox Adventures

Presenting the Snail Monster for both Mutant Future and the third edition of RuneQuest.

The dreaded snail monster is a monstrous mollusk, easily twice the size of an adult African elephant. It fleshy body is not especially resistant to harm (AC 7), but is covered with a viscous slime that acts as a Class 6 poison (6d6 damage but save for half). An attacker seeking to avoid contact with this toxic goo must either use a weapon or else attack the shell. The spiked shell (AC 3) lacks pain sensors, blood vessels, et cetera. Non-energy Attacks against the shell inflict only half damage. The shell is impervious to poison.

If provoked, the snail monster attacks twice per round, using some combination of its powerful bite, its blinding eye beams, or a project shellspike. The eye beams project out to 30 feet and blind for 1d4 rounds. A shellspike has a maximum range of 1,500 feet. Shellspikes regenerate with remarkable speed.

Alignment: Neutral
Movement: 45′ (15′)
Armor Class: 7 (3 for shell)
Hit Dice: 12
Attacks: 2 (bite and/or eye beams and/or shellspike)
Damage: 2d8 (bite), blindness (eye beams), 1d12 (shellspike)
Save: L6
Morale: 10
Hoard Class: None
XP: 4,400

Mutations: Dermal Poison Slime (Class 6), Gigantism, Optic Emissions (bright eyes), Spiked Shell

———

STR 8D6+32 (60)
CON 4D6+20 (34)
SIZ 6D6+24 (45)
INT 5
POW 2D6+6 (13)
DEX 2D6+3 (10)
Move 2
Hit Points 53
Fatigue 94

Hit Location (d20/Armor/Hit Points) Left Eye Stalk (1-2/3/9), Right Eye Stalk (3-4/3/9), Head (5-7/3/9), Upper Body (8-10/3/14), Lower Body (11-13/3/18), Shell (14-20/8/22)

Weapon (SR/Attack%/Damage)
Bite (9/45%/2D8+5d6
Eye Beam (6/75%/blindness)
Shellspike (6/35%/1d8+3d6)

Notes The snail monster may fire its eye beams or a shellspike and bite in the same round, against one or two opponents. The attacks take place 3 strike ranks apart. Creatures hitting the snail monster with a natural weapon (such as a claw or fist) somewhere other than the shell take dose of POT 10 poison. A target hit by the snail monster’s eye beams is blinded for 1d4 rounds. A shellspike as has the same range as a heavy crossbow (55/300).

Skills Listen 35%, Scan 65%

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In other news, there’s about a week left in the 25th Wedding Anniversary Spes Magna Games Sale.

In bigger news, I’m also, I hope, not much more than two or so weeks away from bringing The Four Color Hack to print-on-demand. I’m working on a final edit and adding some more content. I’m not sure how much the POD version will sell for, but it will include the PDF as part of the purchase, and I’m certainly planning to send out a discount code to people who’ve already purchased the PDF version. Stay tuned. The Four Color Hack will be the first POD Spes Magna Games publication ever.

Huzzah.

Tags: monsters, Mutant Future, RuneQuest, TFCH

Some of the time, I think I’m in the wrong line of work. I mean, I can write, maybe not well, but certainly well enough to, say, churn out a remake of 1981’s laughably bad Blood Beach. What that’s, you say? Who in their right mind would remark Blood Beach? Well, you’ll have to ask Alex Greenfield and Ben Powell that question. My guess is that they wrote the laughably bad The Sand for the money, which presumably means there’s money to be made writing horrible movies. I wonder if The Asylum is hiring?

Presenting the Sand Monster for both Mutant Future and AD&D.

Alignment: Neutral
Movement: 45′ (15′), burrow 30′ (10′), swim 120′ (40′)
Armor Class: 9
Hit Dice: 18
Attacks: 1 (tendrils) or 4 (tentacles)
Damage: Paralysis or 2d6
Save: L9
Morale: 9
Hoard Class: None
XP: 9,000

Mutations: Burrowing, Gigantism, Unique Sense (vibrations)

The sand monster is an enormous mutant jellyfish that has adapted to life underground as well as in the water. Predatory and voracious, the sand monster burrows under a beach, lurking a few feet beneath the sand. It then spreads out its tentacles and tendrils, covering a 45-foot radius. Then, it lurks out of sight, using its highly attuned ability to sense vibrations to target its prey, which it tries to ambush. It prefers to attack with its tendrils, dozens of slender extensions that are covered with stinging cells that deliver a Class 11 poison (failed save causes 2d6 rounds of paralysis while a successful save results in half movement for 1d6 rounds). Against a helpless target, these tendrils shred flesh, killing the helpless victim in 1 round. If the sand monster abandons its subsurface position, it attacks with its powerful tentacles. These supple limbs can reach up to 30 feet, and they are also covered with the same type of stinging cells found on the tendrils.

Frequency: Very rare
No. Appearing: 1
Armor Class: 9
Move: 3″//12″ (3″)
Hit Dice: 18
% in Lair: 85%
Treasure Type: Nil
No. of Attacks: 1 or 4
Damage/Attack: Paralysis or 2-12
Special Attacks: Paralyzation
Special Defenses: Nil
Magic Resistance: Standard
Intelligence: Non-
Alignment: Neutral
Size: L (15′ long with 30′ long tentacles)
Psionic Ability: Nil
Attack/Defens Modes: Nil
Level/XP Value: IX/6,550 + 25/hp

The sand monster is a strange sort of giant jellyfish adapted to life beneath the sands of beaches. This monster burrows a few feet beneath the sand and then spreads out, covering about a 45-foot radius. It senses vibrations within this radius and uses those vibrations to target its prey. The sand monster usually attacks with its tendrils, the sting of which force a saving throw against poison to avoid 2-12 rounds of paralysis. Even if the saving throw is successful, the victim is slowed for 1-6 rounds. If the sand monster leaves its hiding place beneath the sand, it attacks with four powerful tentacles, each of which can reach up to 30 feet. A tentacle inflicts 2-12 points of damage and also carries the same poison as the tendrils.

Tags: 1E AD&D, monsters, Mutant Future