Spes Magna Games

In the picture, we see Thérèse of Lisieux in costume as Joan of Arc. The photograph dates from early 1895, about two years before Thérèse’s death from tuberculosis at the age of 24. Her sainthood was declared in May 1925 by Pius IX. Thérèse is the patron saint of aviators, florists, and those who suffer illnesses. Along with Francis Xavier, Thérèse is the patron of missions, and she and Joan are co-patrons of France. John Paul II declared Thérèse a Doctor of the Church in 1997, an honor Thérèse shares with three other women and about 30 men, an impressive accomplishment for such a young lady. Thérèse had a special fondness for Joan of Arc. You can read more about Thérèse at this site.

“But now,” [Jesus] said, “take your money and a traveler’s bag. And if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one!” (The Gospel According to St. Luke 22:36)

Bellatrix

Background & Origin: Emmanuelle Paquet, orphan and raised in a convent school by Discalced Carmelites, received an exceptional education growing up, to include a most unusual course of rigorous training in swordsmanship by Sister Joaquina de Olot, who had been a skilled athlete before taking vows. Emmanuelle also embraced an ethos focused on the works of mercy. After completing her schooling, Emmanuelle left the convent, taking on a position as a music tutor and earning additional monies as a secretary for a law office. In the latter position, Emmanuelle saw first-hand the effects of crime and poverty on people, especially on women and children.

The plight of several families at the hands of Hugo Mesrine, an extortionist and racketeer, greatly disturbed Emmanuelle. The young lady donned a costume and armed herself with sword and shield. Over a period of several days, Emmanuelle brought the fight to Mesrine and his criminal cohorts. She protected those families, disrupted Mesrine’s operations, and gathered evidence against Mesrine. The Parisian press exploded with sensational stories of a mysterious female vigilante. One journalist, picking up on the religious motifs of Emmanuelle’s costume and exploits, dubbed her Bellatrix, and the name stuck. In the end, Mesrine’s operations were crippled, and Mesrine himself found himself facing a date with Madame Guillotine. The Parisian underworld was shaken to its roots, and the people of Paris largely embraced Bellatrix as their protectress.

Motivation: To serve God and fight evil!

Qualities: Master [+6] Swordswoman, Master [+6] Gadget: Shield, Expert [+4] Athlete, Good [+2] Classical Education, Good [+2] Contacts with the Press, Good [+2] Criminology, Good [+2] Devotion to St. Joan of Arc, Good [+2] Hero of the People, Good [+2] Polyglot, Poor [-2] Ability to Compromise

Powers: None

Stunts: Expert [+4] Ricochet Shield Throw (Gadget: Shield Spin-Off, 1 HP)

Hero Point Pool: 5/10

Tags: Catholic, NPCs, Truth & Justice

Every now and then, I hit these annoying funks during which I manage to accomplish little other than go to work, do family stuff, and eat and sleep. I certainly can’t seem to muster the energy and ethusiasm for my writing projects, which is my lame excuse for not having finished The Four Color Hack, releasing another Dangerous Place, et cetera. I’d love to say I’m getting back on track, but I’m not sure that’s accurate. Of course, I can just take Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s advice, modified a bit. Bonhoeffer’s words were something to the effect of, “Those who believe, do; those who do, believe.” In other words, stop sitting around wallowing in whatever it is I’m wallowing in and do something. From action comes conviction.

The other day, I was doing some image searches and came across pics of Hip Flask, a comic book character of which I’d not heard before. Check him out. Of course, I thought that his look would make a great character for Atomic Sock Monkey‘s Trust & Justice.

Here’s Jake Kiboko, another hero made using T&J:

Background & Origin: Jacob Kiboko, university student and emigrant from Embu, Kenya, now a naturalized U.S. citizen, worked as a safari guide during his summers, showing tourists the wildlife of his native country. During one such safari, a chemical spill at a plant upstream from Kiboko’s campsite dumped mutagenic substances into the river. A pod of hippos caught in the effluence became enraged and charged through the campsite. Kiboko was gored by a hippo while pushing a tourist out of the angry beast’s path. Kiboko was seriously injured and nearly died. After his lengthy recovery, Kiboko returned to the U.S., intending to resume his studies. Gradually, however, he noticed changes. He put on weight. He grew in height. His very bone and muscle structure changed from day to day, accelerating as the process became more advanced. In short, Kiboko transformed into a humanoid hippo. He has since taken some time off from being a student in order to figure out how to live his life in his new form.

Motivation: The city is my territory, and I’m territorial.

Qualities: Expert [+4] Private Detective, Good [+2] Almost a Zoologist, Good [+2] Boxing, Good [+2] Jovial Personality, Poor [-2] 8-Feet Tall & 1,500 Pounds

Powers: Good [+2] Semi-Aquatic, Good [+2] Super-Strength, Good [+2] Thick Skin

Stunts: Expert [+4] Block the Way (Thick Skin Spin-Off, 4 Hero Points); Average [+0] Charge! (Super-Strength Spin-Off, 1 Hero Point)

Vulnerability: Intense solar radiation

Hero Point Pool: 5/10

Tags: NPCs, Truth & Justice

Have I mentioned recently how much I like Peter C. Spahn’s WWII: Operation WhiteBox? Also, here are some friendly NPCs who might help your commandos

American Ace

Armor Class: 7 [12] (Dex and combat training)
Hit Dice: 3
Total Hit Bonus: +3
Attacks: Weapon or fist
Saving Throw: 16
Special: Ace pilot
Movement: 12
HDE/XP: 3/60

Perry Webb, the American Ace, is one of many costumed operatives active during World War II who were recruited into the United States military. Perry is a skilled mining engineer and an exceptional pilot. He brags that he can fly anything with wings, and there is little cause to doubt this boast. Perry gains a +1 bonus to-hit with aircraft weaponry, and any aircraft he pilots gains a +1 to Armor Class. When he makes a strafing run, there is a 2 in 6 chance (4 in 6 for vehicles) that any character caught in the path of fire is struck by 0-3 rounds.

Ka-Zar the Great

Armor Class: 5 [14] (superhuman agility)
Hit Dice: 5
Total Hit Bonus: +8
Attacks: Weapon (+3 damage)
Saving Throw: 16
Special: Speak with animals, superhuman strength and agility
Movement: 15
HDE/XP: 6/400

David Rand is the son of British parents, John and Constance Rand, born to them in 1918 in South Africa. When he was a three-year-old, his family went a trip from Johannesburg to Cairo to visit David’s grandfather; however, they crash landed in the Belgian Congo. As John fruitlessly attempted to flag planes, David developed a bond to many of the jungle’s native animals, befriending some of them, such as Zar the Lion, who watched over this family after David rescued the lion from quicksand. Soon after, his mother died of jungle fever and was laid to rest. David grew up into adolescence with his father, learning how to survive in the jungle, as well as how to read and write. David’s life changed forever the day that Paul de Kraft, a jewel hunter, entered the region searching for jewels along the river. Paul murdered John Rand, and would have done the same to David if it had not been for the intervention of Zar, who slew two of de Kraft’s minions. De Kraft escaped. Orphaned, David was adopted as Zar’s pride and rechristened Ka-Zar.

Ka-Zar is a staunch enemy of the Nazi regime. When he learned that Nazi forces were landing in Italian-controlled Ethiopia, he led an army of animals and destroyed a Nazi airport, ruining the plot to bomb British settlements in Egypt. He and his animal army next attacked a train controlled by the Italian Fascists. Finding an Italian military camp outside of Kenya, Ka-Zar learned that they plotted to attack a British outpost. With the aid of his animal army, Ka-Zar flooded the camp by destroying a dam.

Due to ingesting a magic potion, Ka-Zar has superhuman strength and agility, which explains his AC and to hit bonus. Ka-Zar can lift about fives times his body weight.

Tags: NPCs, WWII: OWB

And now, more gonzo ideas for WWII: Operation WhiteBox by Pete C. Spahn.

Brainiape

Armor Class: 5 [14] (heavy hide and Dex)
Hit Dice: 6
Total Hit Bonus: +6
Attacks: Weapon or fist
Saving Throw: 13
Special: Telekinesis (120 lbs), telepathy (60 ft.)
Movement: 12
HDE/XP: 7/600

Today, it is almost universally believed that Adolf Hitler commited suicide in May 1945, but this is only part of the truth. Alerted by the gunshots, Nazi doctors managed to get to Hitler’s body before he died. They placed him in a state of suspended animation using Nazi superscience while they moved him in secret away from Berlin to special labs in Tanganyika, which had been part of Deutsch-Ostafrika until the early 1920s. There Nazi superscientists removed Hitler’s brain to repair the damage done by the bullet. Unfortunately, organ failure in Hitler’s body made returning the brain to its original place problematic, and so the superscientists transplanted Hitler’s brain into the body of a fierce mountain gorilla. Years of physical therapy and further surgeries followed as Hitler’s brain grew stronger and gradually adapted to its new home.

By the mid 1950s, Adolf Hitler was ready to resume his role as Führer. What’s more, work on the time machine had been completed. Adolf Hitler entered the chrono-capsule and was displaced back to early 1941. Hitler’s goal was to convince his earlier self to put off invading the U.S.S.R. until after Great Britain had fallen. Unforeseen complications with the time travel matrix, however, damaged Hitler’s memory. Now known as Brainiape, Hitler has forgotten who he is and his mission to avert his eventual suicide, although his dreams are haunted by strange images like memories that lead Brainiape to believe that he and Hitler share some fateful future. Brainiape serves the Nazis as an agent of terror.

Armless Tiger Man

Armor Class: 6 [13] (martial arts training and Dex)
Hit Dice: 3
Total Hit Bonus: +3
Attacks: Bite or kick
Saving Throw: 16
Special: Demolitions, prehensile toes
Movement: 15
HDE/XP: 4/120

Eric Hertz worked in a mechanical laboratory in Munich, Germany. One day his arms were caught in a machine and were amputated. Surviving the experience and given reading material on how to operate day-to-day using his mouth and feet, Hertz developed a hatred of all machines and began honing his skills and working himself to his peak physical level.

Recruited by the Nazis, Hertz’s teeth were filed into steel-hard fangs via surgery and special treatments with radioactive calcium. His feet were surgically modified to become exceptionally agile. As a result, Hertz’s toes almost have the same dexterity as human hands. He was extensively training in unarmed combat, and his feet and fangs are deadly weapons. As Armless Tiger Man, Hertz is an assassin, cannibal, and saboteur.

Tags: NPCs, WWII: OWB

If you still haven’t purchased your copy of WWII: Operation WhiteBox by Pete C. Spahn, you need to hurry up. Seriously. Do you want the Axis to win? I think not!

Since I’m not a big fan of historical accuracy in games, even games based on history, I think the niftiest parts of OWB are the mini-settings. Why fight normal Nazis when you can match wits and trade bullets with Nazi cyborgs, occultists, and space aliens. When you purchase your copy of OWB, don’t read through the book in the order its words are written. Skip ahead to the mini-setting section and gape in astonished awe at Nazi superscience, Nazi occult, and Nazis in space.

Speaking of Nazi superscience…

Nazi War Wheel

Armor Class: 2 [17]
Hit Points: 66 (HD 11)
Movement: 12
Attack: Flamethrower (x2), Heavy Tank Gun (x6)
Modifications: Communications, Firing Ports (x4), Reinforced Hull (x3)

The War Wheel was invented by Professor Merson, who defected to the Nazis, although it was widely believed he was abducted. The War Wheel went into action in May 1940. Its interior compartments remain level due to highly advanced gyroscopes.

Brain Drain

Armor Class: 4 [15] (advanced materials and Dex)
Hit Dice: 4
Total Hit Bonus: +4
Attacks: Weapon or robot fist
Saving Throw: 15
Special: Mind control
Movement: 12
HDE/XP: 5/240

Brain Drain’s real name is Werner Schmidt. He is a Nazi scientist who was injured during the crash of an alien vessel. Unable to save his body, Nazi doctors transplanted Schmidt’s brain into a advanced robotic body based in part on alien technology. Free from the limitations of a human body, Schmidt developed the ability to telepathically control minds.

Tags: NPCs, WWII: OWB