[Thundarr Thursday] Savage Menagerie: Oceanbrood

No. Enc.: 1 (1d2)

Alignment: Neutral
Movement: 120' (40'); Swimming: 120' (40')
Armor Class: 5

Hit Dice: 10
Attacks: 3 (claw/claw/bite)
Damage: 3d10/3d10/3d6
Save: L5
Morale: 12
Hoard Class: None

The Oceanbrood are an offshoot of the Lobstrosity species (MF rulebook, pg. 81), although they are ten-times larger, more aggressive, and infinitely more dangerous. An Oceanbrood is 20' to 40' long and protected by a flexible outer shell. They are often found in or near large bodies of water. They are as quick in the water as they are on the ground, able to swim at its normal land movement rate.

An Oceanbrood's claws are diamond-hard and razor-sharp. Its claws have been known to pierce and cut through a ship's steel bulkhead! These claws do 3d10 hit points of damage to an unlucky victim. If a single claw attack of an Oceanbrood does more than 20 points of damage at one time, the PC should roll vs. death or they will have a limb severed by the knife-edged claw. A second save vs. death should then be rolled, otherwise the claw severed the PC's head or cut them in half, killing them instantly. The Oceanbrood will also bite an opponent with its mouth of pointed teeth, doing 3d6 hit points of damage.

Although it has very limited intelligence, an Oceanbrood can be trained to obey very simple commands if it is caught when young and trained as it grows. The river pirate Capt. Kordon was able to train an Oceanbrood to come when she blew a high-pitched whistle and to attack when she pointed to a victim. They cannot be trained to do anything more substantial.

Mutations: none

NOTE: This creature was inspired by the episode "Treasure of the Moks" from the Ruby Spears post-apocalyptic cartoon series "Thundarr the Barbarian." Stay tuned each week for Thundarr Thursday!

The Post-Apocalyptic Forums Now Open For Discussion

Just stumbled across a new forum for all things "end-of-the-world-ish." The Post-Apocalyptic Forums invites and encourages discussion on all forms of cataclysmic destruction. End-of-the-world books, movies, and TV shows are discussed right next to helpful survival tips to help you weather The End Times. Helpful links and news items could also be of use to Mutant Lords looking to spice up their campaigns. I've added a link over in my Smoldering Sites section or you could click one of the links above.

Return To The Colony August 2010

Discovery Channel's groundbreaking post-apocalyptic reality show The Colony returns for Season 2 in August 2010. Ten new episodes of the show have been ordered.

For those who missed Season 1 last year, The Colony is a controlled experiment to see if 10 volunteers can survive inside a simulated post-apocalyptic environment for two months. A gritty, urban warehouse in downtown Los Angeles served as the setting for Season 1. In Season 2, we've been told that the series goes to the next level of disaster reality, on location in the South. (Rumor has it that Season 2 is being filmed in a devastated post-Katrina area of Louisiana.)

Here's a link to The Colony's Discovery Channel page. No info on Season 2 has been posted yet, but here's a link to the press release closing out the casting call for Season 2 as well as some basic info on the new season.

Savage Menagerie: Armored Dillo

No. Enc.: 1d4
Alignment: Neutral
Movement: 120' (40') Rolling: 240' (80')
Armor Class: 2
Hit Dice: 9
Attacks: 2/1 (claw/claw or crushing roll)
Damage: 1d12/1d12 or 2d12
Save: L5
Morale: 11
Hoard Class: VII

The Armored Dillo is a large (7' tall) bipedal mutant with a thick natural armor plating and long iron-like claws. Because of its size, strength, and armor, it's sometimes referred to as a "rolling tank."

The Dillo's natural armor mutation bestows upon it a fairly high armor class rating, making it very difficult to injure. Its claws (natural weapons) are mostly used for digging the burrows in which it lives, as well as digging up the grubs and roots it eats as its main source of food. However, these claws can be used by the Dillo in combat, doing 1d12 damage for each that hits.

The Dillo moves as fast as any other biped, but it has another mode of travel. The Dillo can tuck itself into ball and roll along the ground at twice its normal rate of speed - as if it had the quickness mutation. While in this form, the Dillo can travel uphill at its increased rate of speed without slowing down. It can also determine the best path to take, as it is not "blinded" when travelling in this manner. (It's as if it has some kind of "radar sense" when in ball form which allows it to effectively "see" the terrain and obstacles.) When in its ball form, the Dillo can also use this as a form of attack. It can ram into a PC with a crushing roll attack, doing 2d12 points of damage with the collision.

Dillos are found in desert and arid terrain. They are slightly above most other animals in intelligence, able to problem-solve and use tools (along the same levels as chimps and dolphins). Dillos will normally avoid any kind of confrontation, but will wade into combat without hesitation if threatened of angered.

Mutations: natural armor, natural weaponry, quickness (special form)