Donate To The "Bail Out The Warden" Fund

Jim Ward, game designer and father of the gonzo post-apocalypse RPG genre (author/co-author of Metamorphosis Alpha and Gamma World), has been fighting a serious illness for some time now. Although he is in good spirits and still active in the community, his medical expenses are continuously on the increase as he deals with his condition.

Game designing stalwart Tim Kask has set up the "Bail Out the Warden" Fund which accepts donations toward Jim's medical expenses. I'd like to encourage all of my readers as well as fans of the genre Jim created to please make a donation by clicking the header image above. I have also placed a permanent donation button over there in the right-hand column. This blog wouldn't exist without Jim's mutated vision and warped sense of humorous adventure, so please take a sec and toss a few plasteel coins in the fund. Thank you.

Savage Menagerie: Flynoceros

No. Enc.: 0 (1d8)
Alignment: Neutral
Movement: Fly: 210' (70')
Armor Class: 4
Hit Dice: 7
Attacks: 1 (butt)
Damage: 3d6
Save: L4
Morale: 8
Hoard Class: None

The Flynoceros is a legless winged mutation of the common rhinoceros (MF rulebook, page 92). Just like its notorious cousin, a Flynoceros also has an ill temper and a willingness to charge and gore intruders. A Flynoceros attacks by swooping in at its full movement rate. If a PC is butted while a Flynoceros is at full speed, he will take double damage from the attack (6d6 hit points). All other butting attacks are only 3d6 hit points of damage.

Because it has no legs, a Flynoceros spends all of its time in flight, never landing. It feeds, drinks, sleeps, and even mates while in flight. It is assumed that the Flynoceros has an increased stamina mutation allowing it to remain in flight indefinitely. If one is "grounded" during combat or by accident, it will have difficulty righting itself to take flight again, succeeding on a 1 on a 1d4 roll. If a party stumbles across a grounded Flynoceros, there will probably be others in the air protecting their fallen herdmate.

Mutations: complete wing development, increased stamina

Why NaNoWriMo When You Can NaGaDeMon?

(NaNoWriMo logo shamelessly lifted and tweaked...)

As many of you know, November marks National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo. (I won't bore you with a lengthy explanation as I figure you either know about it, or can follow the previous link for details if you're not.) I've thrown my hat into the ring for the last 4 years, "winning" only once. (Got bored with my plot half-way through on two occasions, and just dropped the ball a third time.)

However, last year, I stumbled across another November-long writing blitzkrieg known as National Game Design Month, or NaGaDeMon. In 30 days, create, write, and play a game of your own creation, whether it's an RPG, board game, choose-your-own adventure book or whatever. For those folks who have a sourcebook or an adventure or other project peculating in the inner reaches of their brains, this is a great 30-day drive to getting that idea out and on paper.

I kinda missed the boat last year as I discovered NaGaDeMon shortly after NaNoWriMo 2010 launched. But I planned to revisit it in 2011. Upon first look, it seems that the NaGaDeMon site hasn't been updated since last year. So I'll take point this year and invite readers of The Savage AfterWorld to pick up the banner and run with it. Spread the word throughout the forums and blogs that November 2011 is the month of unbridled gaming creativity and construction. I challenge you to get that epic adventure module written and printed. Create that new gonzo western RPG and run a party through it. Whatever you've been mulling over creating, November is the month to make it a reality.

For those committed to NaNoWriMo, how's about becoming a NaNo Rebel and treat your NaGaDeMon project as your 50,000-word project? NaNo encourages participants to churn out a novel-length work of fiction, but NaNo Rebels take liberties with the established "rules" of the event and write what they want, when they want, how they want.

For me, November is MutFutWriMo as I have a handful of projects I plan to tackle and flesh out before the month is up. I may post updates as we go, but my goal is to have some exciting announcements by year's end.

So, you have 3 weeks to prepare before we launch. Time to get that Ennie-award-winning opus in the public eye. Or, at least, time to create that TPK dungeon grind to run your PCs through. Who's with me?

Notorious NPC: Mr. Moore

Mr. Moore
15th Level Android (Special)

STR: N/A --- INT: 18
DEX: N/A --- WIL: 15
CON: 20 --- CHA: 21
HPs: 200 --- AC: 1

Mutations: none

Somewhere in the remote western hills of the Mutant Future lives a god. Rumors abound of a gargantuan being a mile tall whose knowledge and wisdom is surpassed only by his height. Those who seek his advice are given enlightenment and guidance in these toxic times. Nomads and pilgrims wander the wastelands, searching for him. Those who have heard the tales know him by several names: Jorge, Dom, or Theo. But the stone giant prefers "Mr. Moore."

Simply put: Mr. Moore is Mount Rushmore come to life. Shortly before the Final Wars, a nearby military installation was working on a new version of its medical nanomite, trying to develop one that would assist with android and AI repair. The World-Ending Blast released these microscopic repair bots which later rained down upon the American icon. Recognizing the faces of the monument as humanoid but non-biological, they began work at "repairing" the unfunctional android. Over the centuries, they rebuilt and transformed the very granite structure of the monument into a silicon-based AI. About 5 years ago, Jorge (George Washington's head) blinked, looked about, and began to speak. Dom (Thomas Jefferson) and Theo (Theodore Roosevelt) became animated 4 and 2 years ago, respectively. Abraham Lincoln has yet to move at this time.

The three heads that make up Mr. Moore know nothing of the Mutant Future and what has become of the world. (Their knowledge base ends around the year 2050.) The nanomites bestowed a separate database and personality to each head: Jorge's knowledge base encompasses leadership and diplomacy, and he is viewed as the de facto "leader" of the trio. Dom's specialty is law and justice, and he is considered the intellectual of the group. Whereas Theo's focus is military science and strategy, and he is the tactician of the three. (In fact, the nanomites based their personalities on Ancient records and biographies of the three, and they will act and speak very much in a manner typically envisioned for each former U.S. leader.)

A medium-sized town of devout followers has formed at the foot of the mountain, and Mr. Moore is worshiped as an oracle and deity. Mr. Moore doesn't care one way or the other for the devotion, although he does feel it's his duty to watch over his "charges" in the valley below. He offers them advice and guidance on a myriad of subjects including agriculture, societal law, and combat strategy, among other fields. The town (known as "Black Hill") is beginning to thrive and prosper, although the townsfolk try to keep themselves isolated from the outside world lest others arrive to exploit Mr. Moore's benevolent guidance. (There are some fanatic villagers who whisper that the world will end the day that "Honestabe" comes to life. These doomsayers are feared by the townspeople as they are almost cult-like in their doomsday faith.)

Proving the rumors of Mr. Moore's existence as truth could be an adventure in itself. Once discovered, it is up to the Mutant Lord's discretion as to what the townspeople will do to the intruders. Will Mr. Moore charge the PCs will helping the village to prosper? Does Mr. Moore know more about the area before the Final Wars than he lets on? What will Honestabe say when he comes to life? Will he be as benevolent as his peers, or will his intentions be more sinister? And what of the doomsday cult lurking in the shadows? Many plot threads lead from the foothills of this living goliath...