MC Frontalot - Mutants and Masterminds 3E

Like many of my friends, I love the father of nerdcore hip-hop, MC Frontalot. I found a picture of "steam punk" Iron Man armor and it reminded me of Frontalot. This gave me the idea to include Front in my Mutants and Masterminds game.

MC Frontalot - PL 8

Strength 5, Stamina 6, Agility 2, Dexterity 2, Fighting 4, Intellect 8, Awareness 2, Presence 4

Advantages
Beginner's Luck, Eidetic Memory, Fascinate (Expertise), Improvised Tools, Inventor, Jack-of-all-trades, Skill Mastery: Expertise: Music, Taunt

Skills
Close Combat: Unarmed 2 (+6), Deception 4 (+8), Expertise: Music 6 (+14), Expertise: Popular Culture 4 (+12), Perception 4 (+6), Persuasion 8 (+12), Ranged Combat: Braggadacio Mark IV Power Suit 7 (+9), Technology 6 (+14)

Powers
Braggadacio Mark IV Power Suit (Removable)
Enhanced Ability: Enhanced Stamina 4 (+4 STA)
Enhanced Ability: Enhanced Strength 3 (+3 STR)
Enhanced Trait: Enhanced Trait 4 (Traits: Parry +2 (+6), Dodge +2 (+7))
Power-lifting: Power-lifting 5 (+5 STR for lifting)
Protection: Protection 2 (+2 Toughness)
Repulsor Ray: Blast 5 (DC 20; Accurate: +2)
Flight: Flight 5 (Alternate; Speed: 60 miles/hour, 900 feet/round)

Offense
Initiative +2
Grab, +4 (DC Spec 15)
Repulsor Ray: Blast 5, +11 (DC 20)
Throw, +2 (DC 20)
Unarmed, +6 (DC 20)

Complications
Fame: Geeks love Frontalot. He also has a cult following among younger heroes.
Reputation: Some older and more traditional heroes view Frontalot as a show boat and believe he's wasting his potential.

Languages
English

Defense
Dodge 7/5, Parry 6/4, Fortitude 8, Toughness 8, Will 6

Power Points
Abilities 52 + Powers 30 + Advantages 8 + Skills 21 (41 ranks) + Defenses 9 = 120

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Background:

Damien Hess (aka MC Frontalot), is the father Nerdcore and Metacore (not to be confused with Metalcore) hip-hop.

Front was the first to start dropping rhymes about capes and has a cult following, especially among younger heroes. Being mentioned in a Frontalot song is considered a badge of honor to some. Still there are those in the superhero community that believe Damien is wasting his talents and should focus more on fighting the good fight and less on his career.

In addition to being a hip-hop master, Frontalot is also a world class inventor. He has been known to unleash his nerd on crime in his Braggadacio Mark IV Power Suit. While he's not in the same league as someheroes, Damien is more than capable of handling street-level threats.

And here's a sample of Frontalot's music for those of you not familiar with him. Warning some language not appropriate for work.

New Buffy Creature - Loveland Frog Men

One of my pet projects is to run a Buffy game set in a fictionalized version of my hometown of Portsmouth, Ohio. There are quite a few ghost and cryptid stories surounding Southern Ohio and Northern Kentucky. While the game is at least two months away, I've decided to go ahead and stat up some of the creatures and spirits from the area. First up we have the Loveland Frog Men. I decided they needed to have a demon name and I decided to go with my favorite frog creature, the D&D's gripli.

Name: Gripli (Loveland Frog Men)
Motivation: Swim, remain hidden
Critter Type: Aquatic Demon
Attributes: Str 4, Dex 6, Con 5, Int 3, Per 3, Will 2
Ability Scores: Muscle 14, Combat 16, Brains 12
Life Points: 46
Drama Points: 3
Special Abilities: Amphibious, Attractiveness -5,
Swimming

Maneuvers
Name Score Damage Notes
Dodge 16 N Defense action
Jump Kick 16 18 Bash
Spear 16 15 Slash/Stab
Wand 16 35 Electricity

Gripli are an ancient race of peaceful aquatic demons. They are known to populate the Ohio River and the various rivers and tributaries that branch from it. They are more likely known by their “cryptid” name, Loveland Frog Men. There have been three recorded incidents of these demons interacting with modern society, all around the city of Loveland, Ohio. Gripli wield “Lightning Wands,” remnant technology from the gripli’s elder demon creators. Normally peaceful, gripli quickly form warbands when news of their ancient enemies, the Deep Ones reach their ears.

For more speculation about the creatures check out American Monsters – Loveland Frog Men

Red Dead Redemption - Nigel West Dickens

For your pleasure, I introduce you to Nigel West Dickens. Mr. West Dickens is a tonics peddler and gentleman. He's also a wonderful npc to add to any western unisystem game.


Mr. Nigel West Dickens
Type: Norm

Strength 1 Intelligence 4
Dexterity 2 Perception 2
Constitution 2 Willpower 3
Life Points 34 Speed 6

Endurance Points 23 Essence Pool 14

Qualities: Hard to Kill 4, Photographic Memory, Resistance (Poison) 2

Drawbacks: Honorable 1, Adversary (Former Customers) 2

Skills: Acting 2, Cheating 1, Craft (Tonics)5 , Demolitions 1, Dodge 2, Driving (Wagon) 2, Gambling 1, Guns (Handguns) 1, Haggling 2, Humanities (Literature) 2, Humanities (Philosophy) 2, Language (Latin) 1, Riding (Horse) 1, Science (Chemistry) 2, Science (Biology) 1, Smooth Talk 2

Gear: Horse, Wagon, Derringer, Various Tonics, Zombie Bait (5 Vials)*

*Zombie must make a Difficult (9) Willpower test or be distracted by bait for 2d6 turns.

Background

Guest Stars - Big Bad Wolf's Derek and Sam

Big Bad Wolf is by no means a great werewolf movie. The effects are cheesey and the werewolf looks Buffy tv series lame. He was evil and had a lot of bad one lines though, so he did entertain me. What made me like the movie was the two main protagonists, Derek (the akward college kid) and Sam (the cute tomboy-ish obvious love interest). The cinematic unisystem write-ups below contain a few spoilers from the ending are based what I pictured happening after the movie.


Name: Derek Cowley
Motivation: Protect Sam and control the beast inside
Critter Type: Werewolf
Attributes: Str 2/6, Dex 4/6, Con 2/4, Int 2, Per 4, Will 2
Ability Scores: Muscle 10/18 , Combat 13/15, Brains 10
Life Points: 41/65 Drama Points: 5
Special Abilities/Qualities: Hard to Kill 5, Good Luck 1
Drawbacks: Werewolf, Misfit, Honorable 1, Love
Maneuvers
Name Score Damage Notes
Bite 18 12 Slash/Stab
Claw 18 12 Slash/Stab
Dodge 10 None Defense Action
Grapple 10/18 None Resisted by Dodge


Name: Sam Marche
Motivation: Help Derek find a cure
Critter Type: Human
Attributes: Str 2, Dex 2, Con 3, Int 2, Per 3, Will 4
Ability Scores: Muscle 10, Combat 13, Brains 13
Life Points: 45 Drama Points: 10
Special Abilities/Qualities: Hard to Kill 5, Nerves of Steel, Attractive 1
Drawbacks: Misfit, Love, Honorable 1
Maneuvers
Name Score Damage Notes
Dodge 13 None Full Defense
Pistol 13 12 Silver Bullets
Wrench 13 6 Bash

Guest Stars - Not Your Typical Bigfoot Movie's Dallas and Wayne

Dallas and Wayne are a couple of "celebrities" from my hometown of Portsmouth, Ohio. They are the stars of the documentary Not Your Typical Bigfoot Movie. It's an entertaining movie and an instant view on Netflix. The flick is really about these two men and is a pretty good glimpse what it's like live in rural Applachian Ohio.

I keep throwing around ideas of setting a cinematic unisystem game in a fictionalized version of my hometown. There are quite a few ghost and monster stories around southern Ohio and northern Kentucky. I also want to know that the quicksheets below are for the fictionalized versions of Dallas and Wayne.



Name: Dallas Gilbert
Motivation: Prove Bigfoot’s existence, be a better friend
Critter Type: Human
Attributes: Str 1, Dex 2, Con 2, Int 2, Per 3, Will 3
Ability Scores: Muscle 8, Combat 10, Brains 12
Life Points: 31 Drama Points: 5
Special Abilities/Qualities: Hard to Kill 3, Contacts (Bigfoot Hunters) 1, Occult Library (Minimal) 1, Sorcery 1
Drawbacks: Resources (Hurting) -4
Maneuvers
Name Score Damage Notes
Dodge 10 None Full Defense
Spell 12 Varies By Spell


Name: Wayne Burton
Motivation: Prove Bigfoot’s existence, redeem his name
Critter Type: Human
Attributes: Str 2, Dex 2, Con 3, Int 2, Per 4, Will 2
Ability Scores: Muscle 10, Combat 12, Brains 13
Life Points: 41 Drama Points: 5
Special Abilities/Qualities: Hard to Kill 5, Contacts (Bigfoot Hunters and Backwoods Occultists) 2, Natural Toughness, Photographic Memory
Drawbacks: Resources (Below Average) -2, Love
Maneuvers
Name Score Damage Notes
Dodge 12 None Full Defense
Baseball Bat 12 8 Bash

Dracula - Mutants and Masterminds 3E

Despite the oversaturation of vampires in movies and books recently, I still love them. I plan on using some of them in my Mutants and Mastermind games and decided to stat up the King of Vampires himself.

Tim Brannan's Mutants and Masterminds 2E post was my main inspiration, though this isn't a direct 2E to 3E conversion of his write-up. Also, I haven't actually tested this yet, so he may not work quite the way I think he does.





Dracula - PL 13

Strength 8, Stamina -, Agility 5, Dexterity 5, Fighting 10, Intellect 2, Awareness 4, Presence 7

Advantages
Animal Empathy, Artificer, Assessment, Attractive 2, Benefit, Wealth 3 (millionare), Chokehold, Connected, Daze (Deception), Diehard, Fascinate (Deception), Fast Grab, Hide in Plain Sight, Improved Grab, Improved Hold, Improved Initiative, Instant Up, Jack-of-all-trades, Languages 2, Minion 6, Ritualist

Skills
Acrobatics 6 (+11), Close Combat: Unarmed 5 (+15), Deception 13 (+20), Expertise: History 8 (+10), Expertise: Magic 5 (+7), Expertise: Tactics 5 (+7), Expertise: Theology and Philosophy 8 (+10), Insight 5 (+9), Intimidation 8 (+15), Investigation 8 (+10), Perception 6 (+10), Persuasion 13 (+20), Sleight of Hand 5 (+10), Stealth 10 (+15), Treatment 3 (+5)

Powers
Fortitude of the Dragon Immunity: Immunity 30 (Linked; Fortitude Effects)
Impervious Defense: Impervious Toughness 14
Protection: Protection 14 (Linked; +14 Toughness)
I am Eternal Immortality: Immortality 1 (Linked; Return after 2 weeks; Unreliable (roll))
Immunity: Immunity 1 (Linked; Aging)
Like a Spider: Movement 1 (mystic, Wall-crawling 1: -1 speed rank)
Look Into My Eyes: Mind Control 7 (mystic, DC 17; Sense-dependent: Visual)
King of Vampires: Mind Control 10 (Alternate; DC 20; Limited: Only affects Vampires, Fades)
Mist Form (Activation: Standard Action)
Concealment: Concealment 0
Flight: Flight 0 (Speed: 2 miles/hour, 30 feet/round)
Immunity: Immunity 0
Insubstantial: Insubstantial 0 (Incorporeal)
Suffocation: Suffocation 0 (DC 10)
Swarm of Bats (Activation: Standard Action)
Flight: Flight 0 (Speed: 2 miles/hour, 30 feet/round)
Immunity: Immunity 0
Insubstantial: Insubstantial 0 (Incorporeal)
Movement: Movement 0
Vampire's Kiss Regeneration: Regeneration 10 (Linked; Every 1 round)
Weaken: Progressive Weaken 10 (Linked; mystic, Affects: Constitution, Resisted by: Fortitude, DC 20; Progressive, Increased Duration 3: continuous)
Weather Control: Environment 3 (mystic, Cold, Impede Movement (1 rank), Visibility (-5), Radius: 120 feet)

Offense
Initiative +9
Grab, +10 (DC Spec 18)
King of Vampires: Mind Control 10 (DC Will 20)
Look Into My Eyes: Mind Control 7 (DC Will 17)
Throw, +5 (DC 23)
Unarmed, +10 (DC 23)
Weaken: Progressive Weaken 10, +10 (DC Fort 20)

Complications
Addiction - Blood: Dracula must feed constantly. For every week he doesn't feed, he loses one point of INT, as his mind becomes more feral. Once fed, Dracula's INT is instantly restored.
Enemy: Dracula has many enemies, including most heroes that know of his existence and the decendants of Abraham Van Helsing and his band of fearless vampire killers.
Power Loss: While not destroyed, Dracula loses all of his powers (with the exception of Protection) when exposed to direct sunlight.
Weakness: Dracula is the King of Vampires, and suffers many of the weaknesses of his people. Dracula is weakened when in the presence of garlic. Mirror's reveal his true nature. In addition, he can be repelled by holy items and holy weapons ignore his Impervious Toughness.

Languages
English, Latin, Romanian

Defense
Dodge 12, Parry 12, Fortitude Immune, Toughness 14, Will 10

Power Points
Abilities 72 + Powers 162 + Advantages 29 + Skills 54 (108 ranks) + Defenses 15 = 332


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Conan of Cimmeria

I'm working on a homebrew setting for an upcoming Basic D&D game. I'm using different modules and homebrew things to populate it. One of the npc's that will serve as a foil to the party (and potentially a replacement or fill-in pc) is going to be my amalagam of Conan. My inspiration for the build came from this post on B/X Blackrazor's blog.



Conan of Cimmeria
Alignment: Neutral
Class: Thief (Sharper)
Level: 6

AC: 4 (Leather, Dex, RoP +1)
HP: 38

Str: 16 (+2 hit, dmg, opening doors)
Int: 9 (Reads/Writes Common, Neutral)
Wis: 9
Dex: 17 (+2 hit missile, +1 Initiative)
Con: 18 (+3 HP/die)
Cha: 16 (+1 reaction)

Poison: 11
Magic Wand: 12
Paralysis: 10
Dragon Breath: 13
Spells: 12

Special Skills: Open Locks 45, Remove Traps 40, Pick Pockets 45, Move Silently 45, Climb Sheer Surfaces 92, Hide in Shadows 36, Hear Noise 1-3, Read Languages 80, “Striking Unnoticed” (+4 to hit, damage X2)

Attacks: Short Sword (+2, 1d6+2)

Equipment: Leather Armor, Short Sword, Ring of Protection +1, Bag of Holding

History/Background: Conan is a Cimmerian, northern barbarians from across the Bloodsalt Wastes. Born on the battlefield, even at a young age, his prowess was obvious. As a teenager, he left his tribe and became a wandering mercenary, bandit, and pirate.

Recently Conan has left his homeland and passed through the Bloodsalt and settled in the Borderlands. Here he preys primarily on the humanoids, though a few border fortifications and settlements have been his victims as well.

Tactics: Those that have seen Conan fight (and lived to tell the tale) compare him to a silent predator. He moves with the grace of a panther and strikes with the speed of cobra.

Roleplaying Notes: Conan is not an evil man, just an opportunistic and sometimes self-serving one. He possesses a barbaric code of honor and is extremely loyal to those that have proven themselves friends. He has a sly wit and is quite charming, despite his brutish frame.

Old School

I started playing 2nd Edition D&D in the mid-90's. I was in 3rd grade and my new best friend, Chad Stump, told me about this awesome game that his brother was teaching him to play, D&D. Well we started by looking through the books and playing D&D with our action figures. Soon though, we were rolling dice and saving princesses (because that's what heroes do). Since that time I'm branched out. I played 3.0/3.5, Pathfinder, and 4th Edition. I've branched out and played other systems (Unisystem and Call of Cthulhu being two of my favorites).

I wasn't around when brave heroes first entered the Caves of Chaos or took the fight to the Slave Lords. I was four or five when 2nd came out. I always see these OSR (think I'm using the right abreviation) debates on blogs and I don't understand them. Play what you like and let others play what they like.

Still there is a part of me that is a bit nostalgic for the simpler D&D times when I was a kid. I know you can't go back (and Hell I never was even there in this case), but I've recently stated picking up some Basic D&D and 1st Edition stuff. I get most of it at Half-Price Books (there are 5 in and around Columbus Ohio) and haven't paid more than six bucks for any of it.

This is the pride of my collection:



I've also picked up these books:
Fantastic Treasures II (Role Aids)
Expedition to the Barrier Peaks
In the Dungeons of the Slave Lords
Greyhawk Adventures
Castle Greyhawk (the tongue in cheek Castle adventure, I picked it up just for the name and I did get a few laughs I suppose)

I also have d-Infinity issues 0-2. These multiplatform game supplements are fantastic. They have Labyrinth Lord/Mutant Future material (which can be used with Basic D&D), Pathfinder, 3.5, 4th Edition, and other gaming material. If you haven't checked d-Infinity out, do it now.

Guest Stars - Lesbian Vampire Killers

While I know it's a bad movie, I'm a big fan of the British vampire flick, Lesbian Vampire Killers (released on DVD as Vampire Killers in the US). The movie centers around a couple of friends, Jimmy and Fletch, who go backpacking in the English country side to help Jimmy get over his ex. They stumble onto a town that is connected to one of Jimmy's ancestors, a curse, and of course Lesbian Vampires.

The movie is goofy as are the effects, but I really like this movie. In my game (that by gods I'm going to run one day), the trio continue their hunting. Lotte and Jimmy get married and Lotte joins the Watchers. I've attched pdf quicksheets I've statted up of the trio (and the Sword Daeldo).

Jimmy (and the Sword of Daeldo)

Lotte

Fletch