Author Archives: the venomous pao

Pulp BoL Bestiary: The Blood Tiger Of Boruna Kal

Wherein your humble scribe presents a couple of pulpy characters and a deadly foe done up in Barbarians of Lemuria/Dicey Tales style.

“So tell me why we’re here again, Doc,” O’Meara shouted over the roar of the rain that beat heavily on the thick vegetation just outside of the small outcropping that sheltered the doctor and his retinue.

“My patient, Abigail Plume, suffers from an advanced case of Jakarta Plague,” Doctor Shaw replied. “Her father, the newspaper baron Arthur Prescott Plume, has funded this expedition because my research has uncovered evidence that there is a variety of Neomarica gracilis that grows only here on Boruna Kal that contains a compound that I might be able to use to save Miss…”

“Did you see that?” O’Meara asked abruptly, taking the pipe from his mouth and squinting into the deluge. The other crewmen of the Joan de Geneville could tell their first mate was clearly agitated.

“See what?” replied the physician, annoyed by the interruption of his exposition.

“Out there. In the jungle. Something… big… just streaked by us.”

“Nonsense. The largest native fauna on Boruna Kal is a relative of Tamandua tetradactyla, which typically only measures two to three feet in len…”

A deafening roar cut off Shaw’s nascent lecture, as an enormous cat-like beast burst through the tree line, its coat a deep crimson lined with black and a malign intelligence reflected in its amber eyes. Before O’Meara could level his rifle the tiger was upon them, a blurred mass of claws and fangs. Its first strike knocked the sailor back into the stone wall, the lit pipe dropping into the damp leaves.

Chris O’Meara / Lifeblood 13 / Hero Points 5
Attributes: Strength 3 Agility 1 Mind 1 Appeal -1
Combat Abilities: Brawl 3 Melee 0 Ranged 0 Defense 1
Careers: Sailor 2, Mechanic 1, Soldier 1, Merchant 0
Boons: Born Sailor, Fist-Fighter
Flaws: Superstitious
Languages: English, Italian, Spanish, Irish Gaelic
Equipment: M1 Garand (D6+2)

Dr. Ryan Shawn, MD / Lifeblood 10 / Hero Points 5
Attributes: Strength 0 Agility 0 Mind 3 Appeal 1
Combat Abilities: Brawl 0 Melee 0 Ranged 1 Defense 3
Careers: Physician 3, Researcher 1, Socialite 0, Academic 0
Boons: Great Wealth, Well-Dressed, Natural Leader
Flaws: City Boy, Vain
Languages: English, Latin, French, German, Greek, Italian
Equipment: .32 Revolver (D6-1)

The Blood Tiger Of Boruna Kal / Lifeblood 25
Attributes: Strength 3 Agility 3 Mind 0
Combat Abilities: Defense 3 Protection 2 (tough hide)
Attack with bite +4; d6+3
Attack with 2 claws, +3 each; d6+1
(Attack with all three attacks at +2 each)

The Blood Tiger of Boruna Kal is tremendously large, twice again the size of the largest (non-extinct) big cat known to man. The Blood Tiger is a fearless combatant and is known to swim long distances, visiting different islands in the South Pacific in search of prey. The animal is profoundly averse to fire and will flee from any blaze larger than a torch or small campfire.

Digital Aardvark!

Cerebus

As if in answer to my silent prayers, formulated by unuttered for the first time this very week, Cerebus is now starting to be released on Comixolgy. It’s just the first two issues of the High Society story arc so far (though the first ish is free), but one presumes there’s much more to come.

I never managed to read much Cerebus back in the day and I’ve always wanted to rectify that. But I’ve got so very little room left on my shelves that I’ve avoided buying any of the phonebook compilations. Hence my hope that this classic series would see digital release someday. Sometimes the universe hears your thoughts and does something with them.

So if you’re all into the idea of digital comics (whether viewed on a desktop/laptop or some kind of tablety device) and are also interested in reading the adventures of the earth pig, rejoice along with me.

What Fresh Pao Is This?

Well howdy there, anyone who still happens to have Strange Stones in their RSS readers! Yeah. I know. Long time, no blog. I just haven’t had anything I felt compelled to share. But I have been gaming some, at least:

  • The year-plus Call of Cthulhu campaign I was playing in just went on hiatus after, well, more than a year.
  • The Dungeon Crawl Classics game I started up with some friends has made it through three sessions and the fourth is going to happen, just a little delayed because of work schedules and new babies and such amongst the crew.
  • Another guy I know is talking about starting up a 1st edition AD&D campaign that I’m leaning towards playing in.
  • Oh, and I got to play in a session of Mythic Iceland (BRP) that was pretty cool.

And since it’s now October I find my mind turning to:

  • The Chill/Ghostbusters thing I always want to run around Halloween but never do (and probably won’t again this year)
  • The Thanksgiving game I’ve run the past few years with my oldest of gamer buddies (but probably won’t this year due to some logistical stuff)
  • The half-dozen or more games I want to run, kinda sorta (but probably never will, for assorted reasons ranging from lack of player interest to lack of time in anyone’s schedule and beyond)

But hey, I’m gaming at least semi-regularly and that’s a good thing.

In Other News
The Sword’s new album comes out in just two weeks. And the advance tracks I’ve heard have been tasty. So that’s exciting.

And speaking of music, I’ve been playing a lot of bass lately (I’ve been playing bass almost as long as I’ve been gaming), having taken up with an absurdist jazz punk art noise rock ensemble here in Austin. We’ve even, in spite of the expected limitations of the genre, had a couple of actual gigs and there are at least a couple of additional shows on the horizon. And some recording that should actually lead to some kind of released album of some sort. So that’s a thing or two.

What Now?
Well, I’m not going to shut the blog down or anything. There’s stuff here that people keep finding and enjoying (the mighty G-Man’s BoL adventures, if nothing else). And really, who knows when inspiration will strike and I’ll have to start posting like mad again or risk burning up from the inside? So there’s not really an answer to the question I’m afraid. I just decided I should poke my head in and say hello, yes, I’m fine, thank you, how are you? So I did.

Cheers,
tvp

p.s. I’ve been trying to read a lot more of the Appendix N classics lately, too. Poul Anderson’s The Broken Sword is on my table right now. Just beneath it in the stack you’ll find Clark Ashton Smith, the smattering of Lovecraft I’ve never read, Beowulf, the recent non-Conan REH compilations, Vance, Moorcock, and more. Yay, books!

Echo Chamber News Flash: Starships & Spacemen Crowdfunding

In case you’ve missed it elsewhere…

Carry Out Missions in the Final Frontier!

The IndieGoGo project to fund the Starships & Spacemen Second Edition rule book is now live!

Starships & Spacemen was first released back in 1978, only the second science fiction RPG ever to be released.

This second edition of the classic game is compatible with Labyrinth Lord and Mutant Future. The best elements of the first edition have been kept–the classes and subclasses, the excellent starship rules, and the space adventuring rules. Classes, races, and abilities have been made more in line with Labyrinth Lord.

This second edition has elements that let you customize the style of play whether you prefer an “original series” feel, a “next generation” feel, or something in between.

You won’t be bogged down by an over-complicated and detailed galaxy. That’s one of the difficulties sometimes when trying to play in an established licensed universe. With Starships & Spacemen get just enough information to get going, and plenty of advice for designing your galaxy. Galactic space will be yours to customize.

Much like in Labyrinth Lord, in Starships & Spacemen you design your milieu. This is adventuring in space, not History 101!

Pledging at any level gives you access to the playtest draft and the playtest forums!

Because we all need something else to spend money on, right?

More News On The Forthcoming Album By The Sword

The Sword, whom you’re probably sick of me mentioning, are headed into the studio later in June to begin work on a new album. Apparently it’s to be titled Apocryphon and will be produced/engineered by J. Robbins. The cover will feature art by award-winning comic artist J.H. Williams III (notably Promethea & Batwoman, but lots of others).

The album will be released early this fall and a worldwide tour, starting in October, will follow. One can only presume, Maxwell Luther, that the DFW area will get a visit this time around 🙂

Shameless eBay Auction Plug: Vintage RuneQuest Stuff

Well, I’m at it again. I’ve got three auctions up at eBay for some vintage RuneQuest stuff that’s generally in quite good shape. Take a look if you’re interested in such things:

These auctions all wind down on Saturday afternoon, so there’s plenty of time to weigh your interest in ’em.

In other news, I have once again found myself in a gaming funk, though I’ll admit that the new Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG has piqued my interest. It’s just too bad that I’m pretty sure most of my players won’t be similarly interested in it. But that’s ok. I’ll eventually grow weary of thinking about games that won’t get played and revert my attention to those that might.

Mini Six Character: Brother Gregorius Moghan O’Seachnasaigh

Wherein your humble scribe presents an NPC for Anglia – the 100 Years War/Dark Fairy Tale England setting that occupied his fancy for a while, and is threatening to again. This character was built using straight the Mini Six rules, but if this ever winds up going anywhere I’m quite sure I’ll be building out a system that’s slightly more involved than Mini Six (but less so than full-on Open D6) from the various parts I have on hand. But that’s a topic for another day.

Countless messengers died to insure that word reached the Archbishop of Baile Átha Cliath that all was not right with the continental Church. Ever since the ascension of Pope Lucius IV – after the tragic (and suspicious) death of Pope Urban VI in 1378 – many questionable actions and decisions had come from the heart of Lucania. When the local Master of the Chandler’s Guild reported, in 1379, that orders from the continental Church’s representatives called for a drop of goat’s blood be added to each candle as it was being poured, the Archibishop began making his plans. And when news of the Gaulish invasion of Albion (at the urgings of Pope Lucius) arrived, that plan went into action. Stout-hearted monks from all corners of Hibernia were dispatched, in discreet numbers, to Albion and the continent. These pure souls were commanded to do what they could to uncover whatever dark secrets were driving this decidedly unchristian behavior and to assist those who resisted the disquieting papal decrees.

Brother Gregorius Moghan O’Seachnasaigh
Itinerant monk from an unnamed Hibernian monastery
Might 2D+2 Agility 2D+1 Wit 3D Charm 4D
Skills: Shillelagh 3D, Stealth 2D+2, Dodge 2D+2, History 3D+1, Language: Latin 3D+1, Magic 4D, Persuasion 4D+2, Diplomacy 4D+1, Streetwise 4D+1
Perks: Sorcerer
Complications: Personal Code (Servant of the Church)
Gear: Shillelagh 2D+1
Static: Dodge 8, Block 8, Parry 9
Strength Damage: 1D
Body Points: 27
Armor: Leather (2)
Spells: Bless, Heal

The Sword Announce A Mini-Tour For The Summer

Hey folks. In keeping with my voluntary role as nerdblog PR flak for The Sword, I thought I should note that they’ve just announced a mini-tour for the summer. The dates are:

June 17 – Houston – Fitzgerald’s (w/ Red Fang & Honky)
June 18 – New Orleans – House of Blues (w/ Red Fang & Honky)
June 19 – Atlanta – The Masquerade (w/ Red Fang & Kyng)
June 20 – Raleigh – King’s Barcade (w/ Red Fang & Kyng)
June 21 – Baltimore – Sonar (w/ Red Fang & Kyng)
June 22 – West Chester, PA – The Note (w/ Red Fang & Kyng)
June 23 – Atlantic City – Orion Festival

So if you happen to live in one of those lucky cities and want to get your face rocked off with some serious metal that appeals to the geek crowd, keep your eyes open for ticket sales to begin.

And just to tempt you a bit more, here’s the teaser for their newly-released single, Hammer of Heaven…

Echo Chamber News Flash: Pulp BRP On The Way

ASTOUNDING ADVENTURES Front CoverChaosium just won’t stop with the awesome. They’ve now officially announced Astounding Adventures!, a 30s/40s pulp supplement for BRP. Dayum!

My favorite game of all time was Justice, Inc. the standalone, pre-unified Hero System box set for the pulp genre. Easily my most successful and longest-running campaign (as a GM) was a Justice, Inc. game featuring a couple of recurring characters and a rotating cast of extras. It was the right level of pulpy goodness without being too derivative of the classics of the genre.

Unfortunately, Hero has long since become too complicated for my lifestyle and gaming tastes. But BRP, as I’ve mentioned more than once, hits the sweet spot between fast & dirty enough for me as a GM and crunchy and complex enough for the folks I game with most regularly. So maybe it’s time to dust off my notes.

I’m not seeing a projected release date other than “2012” so I’m not going to start getting too worked up just yet. But I’m pretty confident I’ll be dropping my cash on this once it’s out. And hey, if nothing else, that’s a pretty sweet cover they’ve put together for this thing.