Manuals Monstrous

So what's your favorite monster book?

I like the the original AD&D Monster Manual. Besides nostalgia, it has an amateurish sort of charm for me. The much maligned Fiend Folio is good, too. Despite the lackluster nature of some of its critters (but be fair, the Monster Manual has its share of duds, too) the art lends it a darker, more weird fiction feel I appreciate.

My favorite bestiaries though, have the right combination of interesting creatures and evocative art. I even like ones for games I don't typically play if it contents are inspiring and the the artwork is good.

The various iterations of the Talislanta monster compendium are cool in this regard. The creatures are often interesting, and there's that P.D. Breeding-Black art. We never got a full Jorune monster manual, which is a shame, particularly if Miles Teves had illustrated it.

My favorite currently is probably the Malleus Monstrorum for Call of Cthulhu. It isn't the sort of thing that I steal a lot from for other games, but its just about a pitch-perfect presentation for the material. Instead of going with the typical cool illustration of a tentacled horror coming at you, it uses historical art work, vintage photos, and other pieces of "found art"--many of which are clever forgeries or manipulations. It can become a little "Where's Waldo" for the creature/entity, but that adds to the "realism" of the proceedings. It mimics exactly the "horror slowly unfolds and changes your world" ambience that Call of Cthulhu should have. Some highlights: the photo of the de Loys ape as a member of the Martenese family, a poster for the silent movie Der König in Gelb (by Fritz Lang, no less!), and the suggestiveness of the antique ink bottle photo next to the the Formless Spawn entry.

That trick wouldn't work for every monster manual, or for every game, but I wish every one would put that level of thought into it.

The Red Menace

No outside force, not even magical threats, seem to strike as much fear into the populace of the City and its world, as the so-called Reds. These agents of a technologically advanced underground civilization seek to transform the world in their society's image, wiping out free thought and individuality in the name of their perverse vision of equality and unity. Despite their aims, their tireless machinations often dupe innocent citizens and draw them to their cause.

The origins of the Red menace lie with an Old Worlder named Carisdall, who returned after being presumed lost at sea with a strange story of a hidden island civilization where private property was forbidden, and everyone worked for the good of the society as a whole. The rest of his life, Carisdall tried in vain to relocate his utopia. He also wrote a manifesto describing the islander's philosophy which he termed "Communalitarianism." His work found adherents, and spawned small-scale experimental communities and political parties in several countries.

The real danger came when Carisdall's philosophy began to infect the subterranean remnants of an underground civilization. Sometime during the upheaval of the Great War, the degenerate remnant of an advanced, subterranean civilization experienced a violent revolution based on these ideas. The idle, and intellectually diminished ruling class was slaughtered by the more bestial workers. The former workers sought to realize Carisdall's utopia, but in a "scientifically perfected" manner that would have likely horrified the man who inspired them. The workers began to alter themselves into different functional groups to better serve society. Then, using the thought-broadcasting machines of their ancestors, they began to subtlely influence the minds of unsuspecting surface-dwellers.

The Reds (so-called because of their fondness for symbols colored a deep red) seek to transform the whole world into their sterile ordered society with the egalitarianism of the ant hill. To this end, they subvert humans to their cause--either through bribery, deception, or mind-control. There are those evil humans join the Reds, cynically hoping to enrich themselves as long possible before inevitable Red transformation. Some humans under the influence of Red thought-machines become more carnal and depraved, before finally entering into emotionally vacant, automaton-like state that is the Red's end goal.

Symbol: A red clenched fist or a red five-pointed star.

Special Benefits: Reds see magic as the product of decadent superstition, and disbelieve it entirely. This disbelief provides them with a degree of magical resistance, as it does their human stooges in more advanced stages of Red mental conversion (+2 to saving throws vs. spells or direct magical effects). Human in earlier stages are sometimes given technological devices by their masters that duplicate the same effect. Agents might also be loaned other technological advanced items as well, though these will always be parcelled out in a limited, efficient fashion.

The Saragossa Manuscript

Last Friday, Amazon delivered me the 1965 Polish film The Saragossa Manuscript directed by Wojciech Has. The film comes well-recommended, having been praised by the likes of David Lynch, Martin Scorsese, and Neil Gaiman. Jerry Garcia supposedly helped supply funds to get a full cut of the film restored. Having not finished the film yet I can't give my own full review, but so far I've been impressed by some of the imagery, and the unusual use of music--sometimes its usual (if quirky) sixties film score, but it has touches of primitive electronica experimentalism reminscient of some sci-fi scores of the era.

I went looking for the film because of its source material, the novel The Manuscript Found in Saragossa by Count Jan Potocki (1761-1815). The book bears some resemblance to works like the Arabian Nights or the Decameron. It's a fantasy (at least in part) describing the experiences and stories related to a young Walloon officer in the Sierra Morenas of Spain in 1739. It includes gypsies, cabbalists, Sapphic sister Moorish princesses, and hints at secret history. The stories are nested like Matryoshka dolls, with narrators of some stories showing up as characters in others. Neil Gaiman, a fan of the work, has called it "a labyrinth inside of a maze." It combines elements of the gothic and picaresque with eroticism and humor.

The book itself has an interesting history. It's so convoluted in fact that Potocki's authorship was at times doubted. The novel was written in French, and over an extended period in several stages. The first few "days" were published in 1805 in French. Later, the entire manuscript was translated and published in Polish, but then the original complete manuscript was lost, and had to be "back translated" into French for a complete French version. Wikipedia suggests that scholars now think their were two versions: an unfinished one from 1804, published in 1885, and a rewritten, tonal different complete 1810 version. Only the first of these versions has appeared in English.

Potocki himself is an interesting and character. He was served as a military officer, and was also for a time of novice of the Knights of Malta. He travelled and wrote scholarly studies on linguistics and ethnography. In 1790, he was among the first to fly in a hot air balloon. He also committed suicide by shooting himself in the head. Allegedly, this was done with a silver bullet he fashioned himself and had had blessed by a chaplain!

Anyway the novel is well worth your time. I'll keep you posted on the film, but I'm anticipating good things.

Random Immigrant Urban Encounter Table

Any major city, like the City, is likely to be something of a melting pot.  Here are ten random encounters with immigrants of various ethnicities/nationalities, from Ealderde, the Old World. 

Roll 1d10:

01 Doppelkinnian Butcher - Heavy set man with an outrageously over-sized moustache (waxed at the ends), and thinning hair. For some reason, his artificial left eye is bright blue.  His real one is brown. His large, heavy-knuckled hands always have the faint stain of blood. All he sees and hears gets reported to the Mob, and from there to infernal Syndicate capo Dis Pater.

02 Graustarkian Police Man - Ruddy faced with a bulbous nose like ground-beef. Pay him well, and he'll look the other way. Don't pay him, and he'll look for a reason to crack your head. Despite his accent, don't ever mistake him for a Dawsbergener.

03 Ixanian Dissident Scientist - Thin, bespectacled, chain-smoking man, with a twitchy mouth and nervous eyes. His fastidious suit is hopelessly out of date. He's a bit paranoid--anyone could be a Red agent or an Anarchist fanatic trying to get the secret. What secret? Well, how does he know he can trust you? At some point in the near future, his dead body will be found in the Eldritch River.

04 Karlovan Laundress - Aged, stooped, and bundled in a shawl. She sings to herself constantly in the old tongue--songs bawdy and profane, if anyone understood them. She has a chronic, wet cough which should worry her employers, but doesn't. She knows a few hexes that can make things difficult for those who cross her.

05 Uqbarish Taxi Driver - Oh, the stories he could tell--and will. He'll regale you with fascinating tales of the old country, if you can pick the gold from the dross of his broken Common.  Don't listen!  His homeland doesn't exist in this world (at least not yet), but the more people who come to believe in it through his enchanting anecdotes, the more likely it is to manifest in reality--and like a cancer begin remaking the world around it.

06 Trysteran Pimp - Sleepy-eyed, perpetually smells of alcohol, but a sharp dresser. He always carries a stiletto (since the incident that gave him the still-visible scar on his left cheek) and knows how to use it. He's also got a pistol (souvenir from the War) in his sock drawer.  Has a strange fear of mirrors, and a habit of stroking a rather sinister looking icon of a saint no one is able to recognize.

07 Scirieli Prostitute - Works for the Trysteran Pimp. Beautiful, and brunette, with green eyes that might hold centuries worth of boredom. In the old country she was chosen as a young girl to serve the cult of the old and dread goddess the church father's have tried hard to stamp out, but the peasants stubbornly cling to in secret. She's got a knife, too. An ornate, ancient blade you will not see unless you too are chosen. And by then it's too late.

08 Servian Newsboy - Born in the City and sounds like it, though he parents know not a word of Common. Manages to hear a lot without ever being noticed, and shows up almost like magic at pivotal moments, often to complicate matters. Wields a mean slingshot.

09 Luthan Anarchist - A tall, thin man with long spider-like fingers. Carries a Cerebus-headed cane he fondles like a lover.  His accent is thick, and he tends to mumble, so one can ever be sure they heard him correctly. He has enough explosive secreted on his person to whip up at least a small bomb on very short notice. No one in this decadent City is sufficiently dedicated to the revolutionary cause. He'd see it all go up in flames, if he could.

10 Poitêmien Occultist - Once handsome, but now bald, and growing paunchy. His penetrating gaze is half his mystique. The other half is the shabby, libertine air he tries to cultivate. Does seances for old money, and looks for magical artifacts in the markets of poorer parts of town. He seems to be seeking something specific...

Fear the Living Totem!

The strange creatures called "Living Totems" are sometimes found in the lands far to the west of the City, and perhaps in other worlds as well. They appear in the form of monumental carvings common to certain cultures, particularly certain tribes of the natives of the City's Strange New World. They are not, however, animated statues, but instead alien beings which have a form similar to such carvings.

# Enc.: 1
Alignment: Chaotic (Neutral or Evil)
Movement: 120' (40')
AC: 6
HD: 8

Attacks: 1 (fist)

Damage: 2d8

Save As: F8

Morale: 10

Living totems spend long periods of time in torpor or slumber, appearing as normal totem carvings, but awaken at intervals to terrorize available humans, or declare their tyranny over whatever. After a few weeks of such behavior, they typically fall into inactivity again. Living totems take a -1 to initiative due to their ungainliness. They take no damage from penetrating weapons (like arrows), only half damage from bludgeoning or cutting weapons. Fire-based attacks, however, cause an additional point of damage per damage die rolled, and flaming weapons do one point additional damage (or 1 point if they are of a class which would otherwise do none). They also suffer a -1 penalty to saving throws against fire-based attacks.

In the "real world" (or a reasonable facsimile) living totems could reasonably found in the lands occupied by the indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest, or in the lands of the Maori or Ainu. 

This monster is inspired by the Atlas/Marvel comics Old West menace that first encountered the Rawhide Kid in issue 22 (June 1961) of his title.

Warlord Wednesday: Holocaust

Let's re-enter the lost world with another installment of my issue by issue examination of DC Comic's Warlord, the earlier installments of which can be found here...

"Holocaust"

Warlord (vol. 1) #15 (October-November 1978)

Written and Pencilled by Mike Grell; Inked by Joe Rubenstein

Synopsis: Morgan, Machiste, and Mariah are travelling through the forest of Ebondar, nearing the end of their journey to Shamballah. Morgan climbs a tree to see if he can find out how close they are. From the high branches, he sees glittering Shamballah not too far off in the distance--where his mate Tara awaits.

While Morgan dreams of being reunited with his wife, Mariah doesn't share his excitement at the nearness of the journey's end. Machiste knows that she's in love with Morgan, and knows as well as she that that's futile. Machiste hints at his feelings for her. Mariah appreciates his concern, but either doesn't grasp his meaning, or is too caught up in her own unrequited feelings to truly respond.

Meanwhile, Morgan has a branch shot out from under him by a energy blast from the city. Morgan's descent is quicker than he intended, but he manages to keep himself from falling to his death. The three hear voices approaching through the forest, and Morgan, fearing a war party, suggests they hide up in the trees. From that vantage point they see not a war party, but refugees.

The three descend to find out what's happened. They're told that a demon now dwells in Shamballah and wrecks destruction. The king himself has perished. Morgan asks after Tara, and finds that she still lives. She remains in the city, never having given up hope that the Warlord would come to the rescue. With that news, Morgan races into the city to do just that, with Machiste and Mariah trying to keep up.

They find Tara in the palace. She cries as she tells Morgan of how she waited for him to return, and how she never gave up hope. And then she decks him. She accuses him of doing his best to forget her, since he's showed up in the company of a "red-haired hussy." Mariah takes offense at that, and runs forward to defend her self--sword drawn.

Tara meets Mariah's blade with her own, and...Catfight! It goes on for a bit, before Morgan intervenes, pushing Mariah aside somewhat roughly, and declaring his undying love for Tara. As he and Tara embrace, Mariah, heartbroken, flees the room. Morgan is nonplussed.  Machiste calls him a fool before running after Mariah. Morgan suddenly realizes what he's been too blind to see this whole time, but doesn't have much time to reflect as bolts of energy rip through the palace floor.

Morgan suggests they leave, but Tara says there's a reason why they can't go. The attack over for the moment, she takes him to an adjacent room and shows him their infant son! As the grandson of the king, he is heir to the thrown of Shamballah. The city's now-scattered people will rally around him when the crisis is over. But first they have to survive--which is far from assured, as energy bolts begin flying again.

As the energy seems to be coming from the city itself, Morgan asks Tara to lead him to the lower levels. The two leave their son in the care of a servant, and search out a way below. After passing through the lowest levels of the palace and into a natural cavern with an underground river, they enter a thoroughly man-made underground complex--one full of a massive computer core like the one they saw at the subshuttle station, though this one is grander.

Suddenly, lasers began firing and the two seek cover. As they hang precariously from a piece of equipment, Morgan realizes that the use of lasers, which deflect harmlessly off the shiny metal equipment, is intentional. Mad laughter sounds through the structure. Morgan realizes its the computer running the complex that's trying to kill them. It's gone mad from the centuries of isolation.

Morgan and Tara desperately search for a way to escape. They stumble upon the main power center, where the energy of the Skartarian sun serves to power the main reactor. The two climb into the shaft and find a giant parabolic mirror which focuses the sun's rays into a concentrated beam. Thinking quickly, Morgan and Tara redirect the beam to cut into the wall of the cavern. It burns an opening in the rock to the underground river, which then pours down the shaft and destroys the computer.

Even knowing it had to be done, Morgan regrets the loss of the knowledge, and what it might have meant for Skartaris. Heading back to the palace, the two discuss what to name their sun, and decide on Joshua, naming him for Morgan's father.

Back in the palace, they find all the danger has yet to pass. There's been an attack, and Joshua is missing. The servant blames it on a demon. Morgan and Tara rush up a high tower. At its top, they see the devil-priest Deimos astride a winged creature, carrying away their son!

Things to Notice:

• Tara slugs Morgan in a scene that is to be repeated several times of the course of the series.
• Joshua Morgan makes his first appearance.

Where It Comes From:
Travis Morgan's return to his wife (and child) after a long absence is no doubt inspired by the usual travails of Edgar Rice Burroughs's heroes--prototypically John Carter in Gods of Mars. The loss of Joshua in this issue performs the same function as the cliffhanger ending of Gods of Mars where Carter loses his beloved Dejah Thoris again.

As mentioned in my commentary on issue #5, the Atlantean computer core seems visually inspired by Forbidden Planet. The "insane" computer may go back to the pulp era, but certainly shows up in several original Star Trek episodes ("The Ultimate Computer", "Return of the Archons", etc.), but of course the most famous insane computer is probably 2001's HAL 9000.

The Other Avatar

Before Cameron's blockbuster, there was Avatar: The Last Airbender, an award-winning Asian-flavored, fantasy cartoon on Nickelodeon.  It ran for 3 seasons between 2005-2008, and is soon to be a live-action motion picture. Avatar was one of the best things to come out of American animation in some time--a bona fide fantasy epic in a well-realized world.

The titular last airbender is Aang, a young boy who is the last survivor of the Air Nomads (think Tibetian monks--with flying, six-legged bison mounts), frozen Captain America-style in ice. Aang is found by two young members of the South Polar Water Tribe (Inuit, perhaps)--the last survivors of their people, as well. The three embark on a quest across the world to help Aang fulfill his destiny. Aang is the latest incarnation of the avatar, the bridge between the Spirit World and mankind--the only human able to master all four elements.

While the writing and characterization on Avatar set it apart from most kids' cartoons, perhaps its freshest trait is the amount of world-building that went into it. Each of the four primary cultures centered around one of the classical elements--Air Nomads, Water Tribe, Fire Nation, and Earth Kingdom--have their own distinctive styles of clothing, architecture, and martial arts based around the use ("bending") or their element. These are drawn mostly from East Asian models, though there are Native American influences among the Water Tribe, and some minor cultures within several lands. There is a coherency uncommon in genre TV for adults, much less children's animation. The recently published artbook for the animated series not only highlights the detail that went into costuming and character design, but also reveals how they employed an instructor of martial arts to help develop the distinct styles of each elemental culture, and an expert in Chinese calligraphy to design all the written documents that appear in the series.

Avatar's strongly categorized world and evocative visuals make it good inspiration for gaming. Bob over at Vargold gave us Barbarians of Lemuria stats for Sokka, one of the main characters, and I've seen Mutants & Mastermind stats, as well. It's too bad there hasn't been any official rpg, though, perhaps one aimed at younger audiences.

M. Night Shyamalan's live action The Last Airbender is coming in July. While the trailers certainly look visually exciting, I have some concerns about the casting, and question whether Shyamalan was right for the material. Still, the animated series will be out there, no matter what, and well worth checking out.