Another 2 Kill Bots for The Resistance...

Two more bots for my Resistance setting, these will be in the pdf available in my download sidebar too.

RAPTER_BOTS / RAPTR200
Armor Class: 3 [16]
Hit Dice: 6
Attacks: Mini-Gun (1d6)
Special: Fly
Move: 24 (fly)
HDE/XP: 5/240
Created by the COMPOR Systems (Computer Overlords), the Raptor bots patrol the skies looking for signs of human life. They hunt primarily at night when their infra-red sight becomes a great asset. They are armed with a mini-gun capable of 12 shots before it needs to return to base for a reload.

TANK_BOTS / TNK100
Armor Class: 2 [17]
Hit Dice: 6
Attacks: Mega-Laser (3d6)
Special: None
Move: 9 (tracked vehicle)
HDE/XP: 7/600
Created by the COMPOR Systems (Computer Overlords), the Tankbots were early versions of human hunters. They are small tracked vehicles with a humanoid-like torso with a mega-laser for its right arm. These bots roam the wastes looking for their human prey, but have trouble navigating through rubble and rough terrain.

Two new bots for The Resistance

OK, a couple of new bots this morning to throw at the Resistance (or any S&W White Box party for that matter). Both have been added to the Monsters document in the download section (and I have removed the art for now).

HARVEST-BOT / HARV
Armor Class: 1 [19]
Hit Dice: 9
Attacks: Mega-Laser (4d6) or Fists (2d6)
Special: Cages
Move: 12
HDE/XP: 10/1400
Created by the COMPOR Systems (Computer Overlords), the giant 30 foot tall Harvest-Bot is used to collect human subjects for slave or test subjects by the COMPOR systems. This giant bot has a large mega-laser attached to its torso. This laser can only fire every other round (as it requires a round to charge). The sound of the charging laser sounds like a loud horn and is a dead give-away that it is about to fire. Fitted to both hips are cages that the bot uses to contain any humans it can grab. These cages will fit 20 humans comfortably, however the bot does not care much for comfort and will fill the cage until no more humans will fit (sometimes killing those stuck on the bottom of the pile). It is unknown what becomes of those taken captive by the Harvest-Bots, but it can't be good.


AQUA_BOTS / H2OB
Armor Class: 5 [14]
Hit Dice: 1
Attacks: Spike (1d6)
Special: None
Move: 12 (swim)
HDE/XP: 1/15
Created by the COMPOR Systems (Computer Overlords), the Aqua-bots patrol rivers, lakes, and oceans looking for human prey. These small sleek bots are fast swimmers, but cannot move on land. They attack by lunging head-long at prey with a large spike-like appendage.

Cykill-Bot

OK, so I feel compelled to churn out more of the cyborgs for The Resistance. Next up are the awesomely fast cykill-bots. I have an updated "monster" file in the download section.

CYKILL-BOT
Armor Class: 5 [14]
Hit Dice: 2
Attacks: Mini-Gun (1d6)
Special: None
Move: 24
HDE/XP: 2/30

Created by the COMPOR Systems (Computer Overlords), the cykill-bot was built onto a motorcycle frame. These fast kill-bots roams the wasteland bi-ways and hi-ways looking for their human prey. The Cykill-Bot has a Mini-Gun mounted on it's left side, which is capable of swiveling from the front to the rear to cover any firing arc needed.

Kill-Bot 100

Designed by the COMPOR Systems (Computer Overlords), this was the first humanoid looking Kill-Bot. Feel free to throw this in your next Swords & Wizardry white box adventure.

KILL-BOT 100 (KB100)
Armor Class: 3[16]
Hit Dice: 3
Attacks: Mini-gun (1d6) or Fists (1d6)
Special: None
Move: 9
HDE/XP: 3/60

Created by the COMPOR (Computer Overlords) systems, this cyborg was the first humanoid looking kill bot. It's right arm is actually a mini-gun (medium machine gun with 12 shot capacity). These cyborgs are slow but methodical. They hunt the ruins for their human targets.

A small pdf of this "monster" has been added to my download section.

The Resistance

Yesterday I watched Terminator Salvation, and while I was totally disappointed in the movie, there were some really cool elements in there. I will not go into any rants about the film, like how surely Skynet would have radar and would certainly be tracking any aircraft other than their own. No, I won't talk about the chance of walking away from not 1, but 2 helicopter crashes. (I know, it's a movie, but my suspension of disbelief can only carry me so far.) I like some realism in a gritty future apocalypse sprinkled with bits of fantasy.

Now there were some moments when I loved the movie, the entire scene in the ruins of L.A. with Reese were excellent. I also loved shots of the resistance fighters huddled around radios. This perked my interest back in my "The End" setting. I started working on that idea again, however instead of just a zombie apocalypse, why not support any kind of future calamity which pits men against some invader (dead or domestic).

So I have revamped my work on a Swords & Wizardry white box supplement and titled it "The Resistance". Characters can be one of three core classes, the Resistance Fighter, the Medic, and the Techno-Rat. You can plop these classes in the middle of any modern/futuristic setting overrun with bad guys. Be they evil machines, alien invaders, or a plague of zombies. The Resistance are small cells of guerrilla soldiers, fighting as insurgents against whatever foes you can throw at them.

I have written up a modern weapons document based heavily on the Best of Dragon Vol 1 article entitled "Sturmgeshutz and Sorcery". While this article was written as a world war II add on to D&D, it should work well enough with modern/futuristic rules. The biggest change for S&W is that to hit with a modern firearm is not based on AC, but on a base 8+ to hit. There are Situational Modifiers to this base that is explained in the document. Also, all classes can use firearms (though R.Fighters get a +1 bonus to hit and +2 to damage).

So, download the 2 documents (both are available under my "Downloads" section of the blog), and send some killer robots after your friends. If you can hear this, you are THE RESISTANCE.

Samurai Saturday May 16th

This week's IFC offering for Samurai Saturday is "Gates of Hell", another movie I have not watched. I have recorded this on my dvr in the past but never could sit through it. Not sure why - I mean it did win an Academy award for crying out loud... Anyway, here is the IFC synopsis:

Originally released as Jigokumen, Gate of Hell was one of the most popular Japanese imports of the 1954-55 American film season. Set in 12th-century feudal Japan, the film stars Kazuo Hasegawa as Moritoh, a samurai whose courage in defending his ruler is to be rewarded with anything he desires. He desires the beautiful, aristocratic Lady Kesa Machiko Kyo who happens to be already married to another samurai, Wataru (Isao Yamagata). Moritoh attempts to persuade Kesa to leave her husband but her devotion is unshakeable. The winner of two Academy Awards and a Cannes grand prize, Gate of Hell is perhaps the most dazzling example of Japanese color photography of the 1950s. The film was based on a well-known play by Kan Kikuchi.

Twilight 2000 & Sandbox Play

Forgive me while I ramble a bit about a favorite game of mine...

The first edition of Twilight:2000 has always been one of those games I come back to time and again. I remember buying this game with birthday money on my 16th bday, way back in '86. (Yikes). I took this game with me to Ft. Sill Oklahoma when I was in Marine Artillery school in the winter of 89 too. There is just something about this game that really sparks my imagination and my love of all things military (easy to say now that I am no longer in the military).

I dug out my old worn box the other day and have been going over it's old goodness again. I wonder what it would take to do an old retro-clone of this game? Not sure if it would be worth the trouble as the PDF's are available at DriveThru Rpg as well as the compilation that FFE released a few years ago.

Anyway, I was thinking today that this game could be the ultimate sandbox type campaign - if you want to stick with the theme of stragglers of the U.S. Army 5th division stranded in Europe. I always played a more structured military game in the past, where there were still chains of command and players were part of units - and I think most of the T2K mailing list on yahoo groups plays in the same style mostly.

Of course, my Marine past always makes me want to use the RDF sourcebook with the 1st MarDiv in Iran. (I was in Golf Battery 3rd Bn / 11 reg / 1st Mar Div from 88-92). I may have to dig up some google maps of Iran and do a little sandbox creation. I could always throw infected "zombies" loose on them too - something like Apocalypse Now meets 28 days Later. :)

I would probably stick with Poland though, as I like the story of the destruction of the 5th division and it makes it easier to add different ranks, nationalities, and specialties in the mix. That and we can drop the chain of command, so players are more free to do as they want. Just as the game intended. Sadly I never really played it that way - and I am looking at this game in a whole new (albeit old school) light.

So, I will be re-reading the rules in the next week or so and posting thoughts on the old system. I can remember there were plenty of things I thought were "wrong" with the game - just have to remember this was not a hard-simulation of ground combat.

Local Area for my Ruins & Ronin Games

I have worked up a small local area map to use for any Ruins & Ronin games I run (which are exactly 0 right now). I have not touched the rules in a week or two, and really need to get cracking. If anyone out there would like to submit some art for this project, just drop me a line at trampled.dwarf AT gmail.com.

Regional Notes

0504 Goma: Small castle town, ruled by Daimyo Juro Matsumura (aged 86). Town's population is just over 400 people. Goma sits upon the northwest boundary of the Western Reaches of the Sun Empire. This mountainous region is largely unexplored and home to many foul creatures.

0404 Kuzo: A small mining village a few miles southwest of Goma. It falls under the protection of the Matsumura clan. This area has been under increasing raids by bandits for the last few weeks.

0505 Izo: Izo is a small castle town ruled by the Kuzeki clan. It sits upon the Black River, and borders the Black swamp on the southeast. The Kuzeki clan oversees the protection of many of the villages along the Black river and into the rugged foothills.

0506 Bukai: This small farming village falls under the Kuzeki clan's protection.

0507 Ryoko: This is the capital city of the Western Reaches, though small by most standards, it is the only city in this region. Home to some 5,000 people, it boasts a moderate sized guard force. The regional magistrate is Daimyo Hiro Namura. There have been recent Wako (pirate) attacks on ships plying the tradeways between the Western Reaches and the distant land of Mu (the mainland kingdom).

0604 Huzo: Small quarry town, responsible for most of the building stones in the region. Under the protection of the Kuzeki clan.

0605: Black Swamp: This reed plain is covered in black, brackish water, with thick stands of cypress trees, and dark bamboo thickets. It is home to a variety of creatures and mostly shunned by most folk.

0607 Fugai: A fishing/farming town under the protection of the Namura clan. They have also been under recent Wako raids.

0608 Zudo: Another prominent fishing community under the Namura clan. They too have been subject to frequent Wako raids.

0804 Duko: A small town in the rough foothills, under the protection of the Mizuno clan.

0805 Azuko: A small castle town ruled by Clan Mizuno the current Daimyo is Mako Mizuno.

0905 Muzo: A small timber town, this town collects and trades most of the timber for the region. The town is under the protection of the Mizuno clan.

Samurai Saturday: May 2nd.

This week IFC is showing the first installment of 47 Ronin. A classic Japanese story, retold countless times. I have to be honest, I have never been able to sit through this movie. Here is the IFC Synopsis:
1941 | 111 min. | Director: Kenji Mizoguchi | TVPG
Produced over a two-year period, Kenji Mizoguchi's version of the oft-filmed Seika Mayama story The 47 Ronin was too big to be confined to a single film. Thus, it was released in two parts, each running between 105 and 115 minutes. The story begins in feudal Japan in December of 1701, when warrior leader Lord Asano is tricked into committing Hara-Kiri. Oishi, Asano's loyal clansman, holds the wicked Lord Kira responsible. 14 months after Arano's death, Oishi assembles 47 loyal Ronin (samurai) to exact vengeance. Director Mizoguchi abandoned his usual fascination with modern-day social problems in favor of epic patriotism (remember, the film was made while Japan was still winning World War II.