Spes Magna Games

Next up in the AD&D Monster Manual are two apes: the gorilla and the carnivorous ape. I’m adding a third: the psionic gorilla. Why? Because Gorilla Grodd. As usual for Savage Wednesday, all three creatures are designed using Savage Worlds Deluxe Explorer’s Edition. Speaking of psionic gorillas, here’s a Grodd-like villain for Pathfinder and the dreaded Brainiape for Pete C. Spahn’s excellent WWII: Operation WhiteBox.

Nota Bene: Those previous links are affiliate links. If you click and buy, I get a few pennies.

Gorilla

The typical ape is found only in lonely tropical forest regions. It is non-aggressive and shy, but if threatened or cornered will fight fiercely.

Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6 (A), Spirit d6, Strength d8, Vigor d8
Skills: Climbing d8, Fighting d4, Notice d6
Pace: 6
Parry: 4
Toughness: 6
Special Abilities:

Pummeling: STR+d4. If the gorilla gets a raise, it +2 to its damage total by grabbing and rending its target.

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Carnivorous Ape

The carnivorous ape is a larger, stronger and very aggressive relative of the gorilla. This beast has fair intelligence (IQ 70+) and is very cunning. It hungers particularly for human flesh.

Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6 (A), Spirit d8, Strength d10, Vigor d10
Skills: Climbing d10, Fighting d8, Notice d8
Pace: 6
Parry: 6
Toughness: 8
Special Abilities:

Claws: STR+d4. If the carnivorous ape gets a raise, it +2 to its damage total by grabbing and rending its target.

Keen Senses: The carnivorous ape has keen senses of sight, hearing, and smell. It gets a +2 to Notice rolls when applicable.

Size +1: The carnivorous ape stands more than 7 feet tall and is quite broad across the chest and shoulders.

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Psionic Gorilla

Psionic gorillas are a race of intelligent, scientific apes often found in only the remotest of places, often living under the protection of some sort of screening device. Psionic gorillas often combine traits of savagery and sophistication, animalism and education.

Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d10, Spirit d8, Strength d8, Vigor d8
Skills: Climbing d6, Fighting d4, Knowledge (Science) d6, Psionics d10, Notice d10
Pace: 6
Parry: 4
Toughness: 6
Special Abilities:

Claws: STR+d4. If the psionic gorilla gets a raise, it +2 to its damage total by grabbing and rending its target.

Equipment: The psionic gorilla understands technology, and may make use of tools, weapons, and armor. It often has access to a combination of medieval and futuristic technology.

Psionics: The psionic gorilla has the Bolt, Mind Reading, and Telekinesis powers. It has 20 Power Points.

Tags: monsters, Savage Wednesday, Savage Worlds

Way back in 1980, TSR Hobbies Inc. published one of the better AD&D modules ever written, namely Expedition to the Barrier Peaks. I’ve both participated in this classic as a player and a DM. Most recently, I modified the module for use with the excellent Stars Without Number.

The module is full of great encounters. The hordes of vegepygmies. The deranged physical fitness android yelling motivational phrases. “You’ll never make the team THAT way!” The pack of doppelgangers. The intellect devourer. The mind flayer! The mutant horrors of the botanical gardens. Without an overarching script or plot, the consequences of the expedition are wide open. I remember one group decimated by radiation sickness and forced to retreat. Another group looted technological treasures and departed, intending but failing to return. For a time, the boxing/wrestling android joined a party as an NPC. One group I knew of took the time to create a new magic-user spell by means of which the party’s wizard merged his mind with the computer system, in effect gaining control over the entire “dungeon” complex.

Expedition to the Barrier Peaks reflects very well the gonzo, kitchen-sink style of Greyhawk. So-called purists snarking about “No guns in my campaign!” are welcome to run their game however they want, but AD&D always included at least the possibility of incongruent technologies and cultures. It’s built into the Dungeon Master’s Guide, which hints the possibility of AD&D, Gamma World, and Boot Hill all being part of a shared multiverse. Knights and cowboys versus mutants and desperadoes in The Valley of Gwangi? Yes, please!

(Nota Bene: The links to games in the previous paragraphs are affiliate links. You click and buy, I get a bit of money.)

Powered armor looks like a suit of unusual plate armor. The joints appear to be finely, if somewhat strangely, articulated and an oily, black, leather-like material may be seen at major joints. The armor appears to have been worked to create the illusion of a heavily muscled man. The great helm is unusual in that it has no openings, only a broad glass plate in the front with a piece of glass above this. There are strange plates and tubing at various points and large metal bosses seem to be placed randomly on the suit. On the back of the left hand is a rectangular metal box. From this comes a short projecting rod tipped with a cone-shaped red crystal or jewel. It would seem there must be a man inside, for the armor stands erect although unmoving (Expedition to the Barrier Peak, page 25).

Powered Armor
Armor Class: 20
Stealth: Disadvantage
Weight: 130 lbs.

“The powered armor is opened by pressing two separate buttons concealed in the rear of the helmet beneath its lip. Pressing both buttons at the same time will pop open a seal down the middle of the back of the armor. A person may then climb into the armor, feet first, double over and slip his or her head and arms into the suit. Then, by arching his or her back, the armor will reseal itself. The release catches may be reached while wearing the armor, but it will take” an action “to operate.”

While wearing the armor, the person inside has a speed of 20 feet. The wearer’s jump distance is tripled, and the wearer is treated as if he or she has a 19 Strength for purposes of jumping, grappling, and lifting and carrying. The armor has a “laser pistol built into the right arm” above the hand. The laser pistol fires when the “chin lever” is depressed. The laser pistol is a ranged weapon that has a range of 30/120 feet. It inflicts 2d8 points of fire damage. The laser pistol will not fire more than 2 times in a round.

The suit provides protection from the environment. “The powered armor is completely sealed and will withstand vacuum or pressure equal to 1,000 feet of water. Air system provides oxygen for 8 hours of continuous use, recharging at 1 hour per hour of non-use. No gases or viral contaminants can enter the suit.”

The powered armor has a force field that absorbs “50 hit points damage before shutting down, restored at 1 hit point per round”. Without the force field, “damage sustained is taken by the armor itself.” The armor has 50 hit points. “When the armor reaches 0” hit points, “it is non-functional in all systems. Damage accruing beyond this point goes to the person inside.”

“The anti-grav system in the armor allows the wearer to become weightless and float upwards or downwards” with a speed of 20 feet. “The wearer can carry carry up to 500 additional pounds of weight when so doing. Anti-grav will function for” 1 hour, or 30 minutes “if carrying additional weight, of continuous operation. For each round of operation, it must recharge” for 10 minutes. “When power is down to” 10 minutes of operation, “the suit will issue a low pinging sound, and a small orange panel will light up; pinging will recur every round thereafter, and the panel light will flash during the last round of operation before the power fails.”

“The armor will immediately fall, but a small reserve charge will prevent injury to the wearer, although the powered armor itself will sustain damage equal” to the damage inflicted by the fall.

“Powered armor has built-in atmosphere with a readout panel above the vision area; it also has built-in language translators.” Treat this as tongues. “Hearing in the armor” is augmented. The wearer has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks related to hearing. The armor also has “infrared visual sensors” that grant darkvision out to 120 feet.

“The wearer of the suit does not become fatigued as normal. Continuous operation for periods as long as 8 hours is possible. Powered armor does not use power discs. It is only rechargeable at specialized terminals.”

Tags: 5E D&D, magic items, Tuesday Terror

So, got off to a late start with posts this week. Say, “La vee.” “La vee.”

Continuing with my slow romp through the AD&D Monster Manual, I left behind the anhkheg for another giant arthropod. Yes, that’s right. The giant ant. Giant ants are scary. They’re fast, hard to hurt, and often encountered in large numbers. Among those large numbers? Giant warrior ants that will sting you (probably) to death. Oddly (to me), Savage Worlds Deluxe Explorer’s Edition doesn’t have giant ants already statted.

(Even more oddly, there are no gorillas or killer apes, but that’s a later post. Also, nota bene: Those previous two links are affiliate links. If you click and buy, I get a few pennies.)

And so, without further ado:

Giant Ant

Giant ants are, well, ants that are really big. Giant warrior ants are even bigger and have a venomous sting. Giants ants are territorial aggressive. It is doubtful that any of them would make a good pet.

Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4 (A), Spirit d6, Strength d8, Vigor d6
Skills: Climbing d6, Fighting d4, Notice d6
Charisma: —
Pace: 9
Parry: 4
Toughness: 6 (2)
Special Abilities:

Armor: +2.

Bite: STR+d6.

Pheromones: The giant ant communicates via pheromones. It can convey simple messages (“Danger!” or “Attack!”, for example) as well as lay down a trail for other giant ants to follow. The giant ant gets a +4 bonus to Notice rolls when detecting pheromones.

Size -1: The giant ant reaches lengths of about a yard.

Wall Walker: The giant ant can walk on vertical surfaces at Pace 9.

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Giant Warrior Ant

Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4 (A), Spirit d8, Strength d10, Vigor d8
Skills: Climbing d6, Fighting d6, Notice d6
Charisma: —
Pace: 9
Parry: 5
Toughness: 7 (2)
Special Abilities:

Armor: +2.

Bite: STR+d4. If the giant warrior ant hits with its bite, it may sting without the multi-action penalty.

Sting: STR+d4 plus Venomous Poison.

Pheromones: The giant warrior ant communicates via pheromones. It can convey simple messages (“Danger!” or “Attack!”, for example) as well as lay down a trail for other giant ants to follow. The giant warrior ant gets a +4 bonus to Notice rolls when detecting pheromones.

Size -1: The giant warrior ant reaches lengths of about a four feet.

Wall Walker: The giant ant can walk on vertical surfaces at Pace 9.

Tags: monsters, Savage Wednesday, Savage Worlds

I started watching season one of Cleverman on Netflix. I’m two episodes in, and it’s pretty good. Australian history and mythology blend with science-fiction, dystopia, and a bit of horror. Central to the story are the Hairypeople (or Hairies), a non-human humanoid people who entered the “real world” from the Dreaming on what is called Emergence Day.

The Hairies are drawn from Australian mythology, such as from the Gamilaraay and Bundjalung peoples. Stronger and faster than humans, heavy facial and body hair cover Hairies, who also have thick, almost talon-like fingernails as well as brightly colored eyes. A Hairy is sufficiently human in appearance to pass as human with shaving, nail-trimming, and the wearing of tinted contact lenses.

Of course, watching the first two episodes this week reminded me of Chaosium’s Terror Australis for Call of Cthulhu. So, with that in mind, here are the Hairyfolk. (N.B. Those previous two links are affiliate links.)

Hairypeople (Lesser Independent Race)

STR 3d6+6 (16-17)
CON 3d6+3 (13-14)
SIZ 2d6+6 (13)
INT 2d6+6 (13)
POW 3d6+3 (13-14)
DEX 3d6+6 (16-17)
APP 3d6 (10-11)
Hit Points 15-16
Move 10

Weapon (Attack %, Damage)
Fist/Punch (50%, 1d3+1d4)
Kick (25%, 1d6+1d4)
Nails (35%, 1d4+1d4)

Armor 1 point of skin and hair
Spells Hairyfolk with a POW of 14 or more will know spells at the discretion of the Keeper. At least 1d4 spells will be known by such exceptional Hairyfolk.
Skills Climb 55%, Hide 25%, Jump 40%, Listen 35%, Sing 25%, Sneak 25%, Spot Hidden 35%, Swim 55%, Throw 30%, Track 35%
SAN None

Tags: Call of Cthulhu, horror, monsters

Okay, let’s be upfront. Today’s Tuesday Terror is not a terror, unless you’re evil or, worse yet, an evil cat. Mighty Mouse was created by Paul Terry to parody Superman. Mighty Mouse’s original name was Super Mouse, and he first appeared in an animated story titled The Mouse of Tomorrow. Super Mouse became Mighty Mouse in 1944, about two years after his creation, and he became an opera-singing hero in 1945, in part due to the widespread popularity of Mario Lanza.

Mr. Trouble never hangs around, when he hears this Mighty sound, “Here I come to save the day!” That means that Mighty Mouse is on the way! Yes, sir, when there is a wrong to right, Mighty Mouse will join the fight! On the sea or on the land, he’s got the situation well in hand! We know that when there’s danger, we’ll never despair; because, we know that when there’s danger he is there, on the land on the sea in the air. We’re not worrying at all. We just listen for his call, “Here I come to save the day!” That means that Mighty Mouse is on the way. When there is a wrong to right, Mighty Mouse will joint the fight. “Here I come to save the day!” That means that Mighty Mouse is on the way!

Mighty Mouse
Tiny humanoid (mouse), neutral good

Armor Class 19 (natural armor)
Hit Points 170 (20d4+120)
Speed 40 ft., fly 90 ft. (hover)

STR 20 (+5), DEX 20 (+5), CON 23 (+6), INT 11 (+0), WIS 16 (+3), CHA 18 (+4)

Saving Throws STR +10, DEX +10, CON +11, WIS +8
Skills Athletics +10, Insight +8, Intimidation +9, Investigation +5, Perception +8
Damage Resistances acid, force, necrotic, psychic, radiant; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from magical attacks
Damage Immunities cold, fire, lightning, poison, thunder; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks
Senses darkvision 120 ft., passive Perception 18
Languages Common
Challenge 15 (13,000 XP)

Flyby. Mighty Mouse doesn’t provoke opportunity attacks when he flies out of an enemy’s reach.

Flying Charge. If Mighty Mouse flies at least 20 feet straight toward a creature and then hits with a slam attack on the same turn, that target takes an extra 7 (2d6) bludgeoning damage. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 18 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone.

Super-Senses. Mighty Mouse has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks related to sight and hearing. As a bonus action, his sense of sight works like a ring of x-ray vision with no danger of exhaustion.

Super-Strength. Mighty Mouse is treated as Gargantuan for purposes of using the Attack action to grapple or shove a creature. Mighty Mouse’s lifting and carrying capacities are equal to his Strength score multiplied by 120. Mighty Mouse deals double damage to objects and structures.

Actions

Multiattack. Mighty Mouse makes four attacks using his Slam, Cape Contrail, and/or Whirlwind attacks.

Slam. Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d6+5) bludgeoning damage.

Cape Contrail. Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: The target is grappled (escape DC 18). Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained. It remains grappled for 1 minute or until it escapes the grapple. Mighty Mouse does not need to maintain the grapple.

Whirlwind. Mighty Mouse flies at least 40 feet in a circle to create a 5-foot-radius, 30-foot-tall cylinder of swirling air magically forms on the point around which he flies. The whirlwind lasts until the end of Mighty Mouse’s next turn. Any creature but Mighty Mouse that enters the whirlwind must succeed on a DC 18 Strength saving throw or be restrained by it. A creature can use its action to free a creature restrained by the whirlwind, including itself, by succeeding on a DC 18 Strength check. If the check succeeds, the creature is no longer restrained and moves to the nearest space outside the whirlwind.

Tags: 5E D&D, NPCs, Tuesday Terror