The Crinoverse 2 (End of Part 2)

[Kreuzritter]

Aliens Unlimited: Galaxy Guide

Asteropids - huge tarantuala-like monsters covered in a rocklike exoskeleton, Asteropods sustain themselves by consuming metals. usually within asteroids (feilds of which being their common habitat), but frequently 'sniff out' and prey upon nearby starships, satellites or space stations, trvelling across space on solar sails woven from their silicon-based 'silk'. Cybertronian ships understandably have a kill on sight order in the event of Asteropid contact and avoid them like the plague otherwise. no expedition to determine wether Asteropids are related the equally dangerous metal-eating vermin known as Scraplets has ever returned...

Bontu - massive, reptillian animals the size of an african elephant, Bontus are bred and sold throughout the galaxy as beasts of burden and livestock

Bwadenn - an amphibian race, the Bwadeen homeworld and much of its exodus fleet was destroyed by the Atorian Empire, and since joining the Lor Republic after settling a new home, have strongly pushed for war upon the Atori and to end their tyranny once and for all

Gammorites - aggressive creatures of firey solar plasma, either unwilling or incapable of communication with other life forms, Gammorites share a wolflike pack mentality, travelling in groups and attacking any life form that gets too close en masse. as for origins, Lor Scientists suspect the creatures are an evolutionary precursor to the Bhlaze, who are deeply offended by this theory. Equally plausible is that they are the creations of either Pyron or So-Larr The Living Sun

Gari-Goma - literally meaning "ghost in the machine", Gari-Gomas are defined by Lor Science as any insubstantial entity that is only able to possess electronics and machines. perhaps the most infamous Gari Goma of recent memory is the former Decepticon Air commander Starscream, who survived not only the loss of his very Spark, but dissolution when the alspark fragment that sustained him was taken away and made part of the Matrix. Starscream's ghost was last seen on the planet Mobius, after being accidently stranded there by the Avengers.

Gorgons - a curious vampiric life form, the Gorgons are somehow exclusively female, sustaining themselves via the tentacled appandages they have in place of hair, which drain the blood of their victims much like a leech does. this feeding process also causes a narcotic and euphoric reaction, and thus Gorgon 'venom' is a highly prized drug on the black market. Gorgons are also low level shapeshifters able to alter their general appearance, and mentally dominate others

Hereteshi - monstrous technorganic predators, Hereteshi are the fearsome mounts and hunting beasts of the dreaded Riathenors

Kaech Ne Tobru - the native people of the mineral-rich desert world of Pherridax, the Kaech Ne Tobru made a name for themselves as both a people and sorcerors when they overthrew a major unobtainium mining operation,, the technology of which they have since reverse engineered to teach themselves space travel, and to plead their case amongst the Lor Republic's own senate for reperations

krakyt - powerful, agressive and prolific insectoids who live for battle, the Krakyt are found throughout the galaxy as laborers, soldeiers or mercenaries, the latter of which having a cultural beleif to support the underdog in the conflicts they enter

Mull Tiaii Fassinae - very tall, multi-eyed reptillian humanoids more commonly referred to as Mulls, the Mull Tiaii Fassinae once ruled a massive and cruel star empire before they were defeated in the early days of the Lor Republic (one of their defining military victories, in fact), and have since become one of the Lor's most dedicated member races, vowing evil such as their must never again rise unopposed

Perola - incredibly tall humanoids (ranging from 6 -12 feet in height claiming to represent the ultimate in racial harmony, the Perola have attained an advanced state of peace and co-operation perhaps unheard of since the destruction of the Mithrans. the Perola abhor violence and have declared their territory neutral, but gladly help and guide those who ask for their aid. that said, they do not share their advanced technologies for fear others would create weapons of war and destruction, with the exception of that of explicityly life-saving nature, which is used under strict Pelora supervision

Robians native to the forest-world Mogomian, Robians are a race of furry, catlike simian humanoids. relatively new to the galactic community, the Robians are in the process of getting Mogomian recognized as one of the galaxy's more idyllic vacation spots

Toke Tuul - a race of powerful cyclopean psionists, the Toke Tuul are an advanced civilization whose talents made them prized diplomats and advisors amongst those without their own telepathic powers, positions of trust and power that were too tempting for the normally noble Toke Tuul to not abuse, much like leaving small children to watch over a candy store. this unwitting spiral of corruption and moral decay, punctuated by terrible scandals came to a head when it was revealed several Toke Tuul had willingly co-operated with the Sith Lord Palpatine's rise to power and the near destroyed the Lor Republic, foolishly thing they could control him. in the decades since Palpatines downfall, the Toke Tull have done everything in their power to make amends, undo their mistakes, and regain the galaxy's trust and good faith in themselves, their checkered past horrifying them into cleaning up their act

Toogarth - a cruel brutal and warlike race of massive reptiles, the Toogarth are a clear demonstration on the necessity for noninterference protocols amongst starfaring races. When a naive yet advanced race of explorers offered the toogarth their hand in freindship and shared their tech, The toogarth slaughtered the entire expedition, took their stuff and used it to begin a campaign of war and piracy upon neighboring worlds starting with that of their "benefactors" (simultaneuosly, the leading mortality in toogarth changed from 'death by predator' to 'death by shotgun'). Today, the toogarth empire is a powerful force of raiders and mercenaries who have risen to power amongst the Stellar Khanate, kept in check both by lacking any technology beyond what they've stolen/taken from their conquests, and that their own lust for violence means that the toogarth Pirate lords fight each other as often as their enemies

Void Whales - long thought to be creatures of myth, Void Whales are quite real. they resemble earth whales in both manner and appearance, albiet covered in rocklike bone spurs and are on average the size of capital ships, Void Whales are normally docile and unless attacked, starships can even pass amongst their numbers relatively unmolested (rather like travelling through an asteroid feild). once attacked however, Void whales are dangerous opponents, being able to manipulate gravimetric energies as easily as breathing. this same ability allows the void whales to travel across the gulf of space as easily as any starship.

[Kreuzritter]

Okay, I just watched the last few of Spoony's counter monkey videos, and I think that my next game will be a DnD style fantasy game, once I wrap up Avengers and Invasion that is.

dang, and I was looking forward to your avengers academy game.

[kenseido]

Okay, I just watched the last few of Spoony's counter monkey videos, and I think that my next game will be a DnD style fantasy game, once I wrap up Avengers and Invasion that is.

dang, and I was looking forward to your avengers academy game.

Ditto. But a break might be in order.

[SilvercatMoonpaw]

Okay, I just watched the last few of Spoony's counter monkey videos, and I think that my next game will be a DnD style fantasy game, once I wrap up Avengers and Invasion that is.

How solidly D&D-style are we talking?

[Yeoman]

]

Okay, I just watched the last few of Spoony's counter monkey videos, and I think that my next game will be a DnD style fantasy game, once I wrap up Avengers and Invasion that is.

Well, if you need to hurry up getting Charli back to finish off that dangling plot thread, feel free.

Okay, I just watched the last few of Spoony's counter monkey videos, and I think that my next game will be a DnD style fantasy game, once I wrap up Avengers and Invasion that is.

dang, and I was looking forward to your avengers academy game.

Same here. I had a character concept saved for it too.

How solidly D&D-style are we talking?

Yeah, we actually talking playing D&D/Pathfinder (Which I'm also cool with), or just using the flavor setting in M&M?

[SilvercatMoonpaw]

Yeah, we actually talking playing D&D/Pathfinder (Which I'm also cool with), or just using the flavor setting in M&M?

I was more wondering about the setting.

[Yeoman]

Blackhawks

The original Blackhawk was an ace pilot in World War II, leading a hand picked force of elite pilots, of multiple nationalities on the side of the allies. They Operated out of their secret base on Blackhawk Island.

After the war the group stayed together. While technically acting as mercenaries, the group only accepted assignments that they felt were on the side of right, only taking money to help keep the island provided, their planes in good repair and fueled. They often helped out the world's metahuman population during times of crisis, providing air support and transportation when needed.

Over time, members of the group left, or retired, others came and went, and eventually, even Blackhawk himself retired, eventually passing on the title to a worthy successor in the late 60's, the team operating in much the same fashion, as they had before. Their crowning moment came during the Terminus Invasions, where the Blackhawks tireless efforts to keep Europe free of Omega's forces allowed Blackhawk island to be recognized as it's own tiny nation state.

And life continued until 1999 when an alien ship of then unknown origin crashed into the island. It was decided to that, with the help of the money the Blackhawks had built up, and countless favors owned by the Metahuman community, to retrofit the ship, allowing the Blackhawks the freedom to easily deploy quickly over the entire world.

The project took nearly a decade to complete, a small city growing up around the ship with the manpower needed to repair and refit a ship large enough to nearly cover the island itself. In 2009, the ship was completed and christened the SDF-1 Macross.

However, at the initiation ceremony, the island was attacked by an expeditionary force of the Zentradi, a race of giant warriors, who believed the ship to be a trap set by their ancient racial enemies. In a desperate attempt to get the ship away, and lure the Zentradi away from the civilians on the island, the ship attempted to use it's fold drive while hovering above the island.

While theoretically tested, the Blackhawks had never intended to use the fold system, meaning to use the ship around the planet, where it's conventional systems would allow them to easily operate. As such, the fold system encompassed the entire island, destroying the drive in the process, and leaving them stranded in deep space.

Fortunately, most of the civilians survived in the island's emergency bunkers, built back during World War II, and they were able to bring them over to the ship, salvaging many of the buildings and reconstructing much of the city inside the immense ship. Refilling their ranks, piloting advanced transformable planes gleaned from alien technology, the Blackhawks now seek to find their way back home.

Notable Crew:

Roy Fokker: Currently bearer of the mantle of Blackhawk, he is the seventh man to do so. He leads the Macross' first line of defense, the Blackhawk squadron.

Zinda Blake, Lady Blackhawk: Last surviving member of the original group, Zinda ended up stuck in the present after a time travel mishap in the fifties. She acts as Roy's second in command, though many wish the two of them didn't share a zest for life that leaves the squad in more trouble than if one of them were more responsible.

Rick Hunter: One of the Blackhawks newer members, Rick was the son of the owner of the flying circus Roy belonged to before joining the military. He was visiting Roy on the day of the attack.

Max Sterling: Another of the new recruits. Max has a talent for flight such that even a good decade younger than the seniour members, he can outfly anyone else in the unit. Something that has caused him to gain the attention of Milia Fallyna, one of the Zentradi's ace pilots.

Captain Bruno J Gloval: Commander of the Macross. While Roy has overall authority as Blackhawk, the ship's situation, and Cloval's command of the ship itself, means he has nearly as much authority, and, in certain situation, greater.

Ozma Lee: One of the few older Blackhawks to survive the Zentradi attack. Ozma is, if anything, a better pilot that Roy, but he'd be the first to admit Roy's greater sense of strategy and charisma make him the better leader.

Alto Saotome: Another of the new recruits.

[Crinos]

Well, nothing is set in stone yet, I still want to do a 10 adventure season for the Final Avenegers thing, and of course finish off the scythe of Chronos subplot. Though I may have to save the Trigon returns subplot for Avengers Academy, in any case I'm just thinking out loud atm.

[Arthur Eld]

Speaking of other potential Crinoverse games, I've been considering running a Vanguard game where the players are one of the Mission Teams, not tied to any one country. So there'd be a mix of combat and intrigue.

Like ASoI&F, with less sex and needless descriptions of food.

[Kreuzritter]

and when Truckin Titans wraps up, I was thinking of running a "[CITY NAME HERE]" Sentinels game, since its abundantly clear my players would run roughshod over "tutles go hollywood" (shame, i was gonna try to work the Utrom Shredder into things)

the sentinels team they'd be joining would be the Crusaders from the Villains & Vigilantes adventure Crisis at Crusader Citadel

speaking of, I've almost finished writing up the bad guys from Most Wanted 1, but somebody else is going to have to handle Most Wanted 2, because i don't have that one, nor "Supercrooks & criminals"

I do have Most want 3 though, so I can promise y'all a writeup of Armada, The Boat That Walks Like A Man!

[SilvercatMoonpaw]

Hey, I think Crinos would run a great fantasy game. It's just that I really like Crinoverse game because they allow for such a great variety of characters and backstories, so going from that to very standard D&D fantasy would be a huge letdown.

[Kreuzritter]

well, a suggestion I PM'd crinos was the notion that there could be an arc in the avengers academy game of dropping a few rookie supers into a fantasy world and give them the quest to get home

[Kreuzritter]

Villains & Vigilantes: Most Wanted

Bandit - Champion Race car driver Bonn "The Bandit" Andromarkin lost his competitive edge after a terrible accident forced him into temporary retirement while he underwent experimental bionic therapy to regain the use of his legs. Desperate to get his edge back, he used his wealth to upgrade his bionic leg braces and crash suit so that he could become a superfast supervillain, making up for his lack of 'speed tricks' with a pair of high accuracy wrist blasters.

Beekeeper - Lee Sancez was a Mexican boxer turned Actor whose career was ruined after he was caught with several bags of cocaine and unregistered firearms, destroying his career, and soon found himself as a security guard for an ARGENT research centre, where he eventually stole a bioelectric suit that could allow him to fly, shoot blasts of electricity, and control insects

Boogeyman - a brilliant Optomologist, Jack O'leary's life changed forever when a prototype surgical chemical laser overloaded and exploded, dousing him with burning chemicals which destroyed his face and left him with powers over light and flame. A vain man, Jack was driven mad, and becae the halloween themed Boogeyman

Buzzard - a corrupt narcotics detective, Vinny cooper confiscated some supervillain equipment when his underlings (just as corrupt as him) busted up a Bluff lab, most notably a personal flight harness. now, as the Buzzard, vinny picks the bones of the police and underworld alike all the easier

Crossfire - a professional mercenary with a fondness for the crossbow, Christina Friday's hand was destroyed while on mission in Africa, to wich she simply tied her preferred weapon to the stump so she could complete her mission. Since then, she's upgraded to a more high tech crossbow-hand prothetic, and operates worldwide as a pitiless and relentless assassin, and is frequently hired as the Sagittarius of zodiac themed supercriminal teamsa

Dragonhand - Daniel Han was a cheap shanghai thug who lucked into stealing a Dragon's tooth necklace from an old alchemist's curio shop (after beating the old man half to death), which granted him superhuman martial arts ability but at the cost of drinking human blood once a day to fuel his powers

Ebony Angel - forensic scientist Erica Knight's life came crashing down when her brother was murdered by the Buzzard's hired goons, and when she tried to dig up evidence on their bss in revenge, she was given a lethal overdose of bluff, which not only awoke her latent psionic powers, but left her incredibly paranoid,unable to trust any authority figures. now as the Ebony Angel, she's a lawless anarchist, tearing down what she regards as a hopelessly incurable corruption that is the status quo

Jaws - A sharklike young metaman, Jaws is a creature after his namesake, having lived amongst man-eating sharks for as long as he can remember... that is, until he was caught and studied in a lab before he managed to escape into the seaand began his reign of terror along the coast

Leo - President Doctor Leopold Linus III is an african metaman of herculean stregth and toughness, who rose from being a mere soldier to President for life.. until his rule was overthrown by The Radical and his country was swallowed up by Lugendu. Since then, Leo has been trying to find allies in the criminal underworld to retake his country, and is often in the company of zodiac themed gangs

Madame Frigia - a brilliant biologist with a specialty in cryogenics, Francine Curry was a women who seemingly had it all, then lost it, and after one bad day just snapped, designing a suit to manipulate extreme cold to begin a life of crime and take revenge on all her enemies, people she KNEW had slighted her or were responsible for all the bad that had happeed to her

Marutukku - Theology student Scott Parkerton is no more. not after he came upon a copy of the Book of Vile Darkness and read it cover to cover, turning him into a loyal vassal of the Great Old Ones, who weilds profane magics in their name, and shares the overwhelming arrogance of his terrible masters

Mirage Meryl Jordan is a woman whose life was destroyed by POroject Icarus, who used her in experiments using drugs to activate and control metaman powers, in her case, to create illusions so lifelike that they could leave lasting psychosomatic harm and injury, which she demonstrated upon her tormentors with gusto. addicted to the drug and needing it to keep her powers from overwhelming her, Mirage works for several drug kingpins in the hope they can recreate it

Mother Superior - an archeologt, Margaret Mary Stevenson claims she was chosen by god himself to take up the mantle and mission of the great Crusaders to stamp out the wickedness of the world, donning the scared armor, sheild and armament surely left to her by her predecessors. So self righteuous in her cause', mother superior is just as hypocritical as the crusaders themselves, looting and pillaging in order to support her crusade. and to this day, the mere thought of this bargainer brings a smile to Mr. Hoppy's face.

Motivator - an unimaginably brilliant, cruel and powerful Telepath, the Motivator is an alternate reality version of Caitlin "Mindbender" White, who fled to Earth-409 after her universe was ravaged by Tyrannon the Conqueror. Much like Mindbender, Motivator is incredibly curious about the nature of metamen, and has been doing her own diabolical 'research' into origin events. She's also smart enough to recognize one of them has got to go, and she'd rather it be mindbender than herself

Mountain Man - Angus Mcallum was never the nicest of men, even by the standards of the American wilderness of 1779. and he only got worse after he came across an omlevex meteor that turned the ornery mountain man into a mighty man-mountain. soon after trappedin a stateof suspended animation, the Mountain Man awoke into the modern day, and he DOES NOT like what he sees, particularly the destruction of his beloved wilderness and forests

Mystico - a powerful voudoun sorceror, Mandrake hayes rsisted the temptations of his power to become a doctor and healer in Vibora bay, until his best freind Reg was wroongfully accused and shot dead by the police. turning to the bottle in despair, Hayes brought reg back as a zombie through subconscious will alone, and when zombies start following you around, you can pretty much kiss your career goodbye. Hayes, Or Mystico as he's come to be called, has since turned to supercrime to support his habits of drugs and drinking, and also out of boredom

Nightmare an albino who suffered a lifetime of abuse and fear, Nigel Williamson went completely mad the day he became a fear gestalt, able to manipulate darkness, drive people to abslute terror, cast illusions of their greatest fears and teleport (to be as memorable yet fleeting as your worst nightmares). the only remaining humanity to Nigel is his love of movies, and as such is a huge fan of the Silver Scream, and a frequent partner in crime of Scream Queen

Od - a street punk and urban tagger, Omar Drekman was thrown under the bus by his fellow gangbangers when they locked him in the back of the truck they'd failed to steal, leaving him for the cops. Unfortunately, said truck was carrying several unsecured and leaking drums of toxic waste, not only turning omar into a hideously deformed creature of superhuman size and strength, but the power to shape matter and broadcast illusions befitting his now warped aesthetic tastes and mad artistic genius

Psiphon - a horribly deformed Joker-ace whose head is warped by an oversized brain, Cyril Wembler discovered after his yuppie parents abandoned him that he could drain the mental energies of others, learning not only their secrets, but after being picked up by Mind Inc./PSI, that he could also steal the psionic powers of other telepaths as well.

Samhain - an immortal, superstrong brute, Samhain was the result of a Pact coven's experiments to create their own Slasher rather than to petition Hades. assuch, Samhain lacks the obssessive need to hunt and kill, but on the downside, is the seemingly loyal enforcer of whichever dark wizard he's been loaned out to. that said, Samhain has some elements of personality, sometimes murdering his would be masters than obeying their orders

Shadowjack - Jack Shelton was a theoretical physics grad student whose experiments in 'light trapping' tore open a portal into the Schattenwelt itself, enabling him to become a living shadow himself at will (but requiing his original , amulet-sized device as a focus). now called Shadowjack, he's gleefully taken to a life of crime, slowly being driven mad by his powers

Simon Shrew, The Assassin Extraordinaire - the assumed name of a renegade AEGIS deep cover operative and master of disguise, before becoming a mercenary spy and assassin. his major failing however is that he is incredibly manic, unable to resist toying with his targets via impromtu deathtraps and 'near accidents' before finally moving in for the ill while disguised as one of their closest freinds

Snow Man - blind from birth, Sidney Harris's lifetime of resentment over his handicap led him to steal first a set of experimental sonar 'goggles' which allow him to 'see', followed moments later by experimental cryogenics tech, which he used to become the Australian supercrook, Snow Man

Spyder - an unpopular college professor, Daryl gardner suffered a psychotic break when his campus was hit during the Freshmen Terror event, and he became aspider-powered Ace. this. combined with his bitterness and surprising skill for martial arts, led him to be recruited into Gene Nation

Stigmata - another product of Project Icarus, John Harker was dying of a terminal illness when he was offered the chance to become a full conversion cyborg, his brain transplanted into a robot body. unfortunately, the sight of seeing his fearsome, draconic gargoyle chassis drove him completely insane, to the point where after killing his benefactors and escaping, now beleives himself to be vampire

Tank Gunner - Leo McAlister was 5th generation military, and a complete washout, who not only failed miltary academy, but couldn't even handle the responsibilities of being a lowly private. Snapping from the strain, Leo broke out as a soldier Gestalt, being able to summon to hand not only a knife, pistol, grenade or assault rifle, but a phantom tank which responds to his mental commands. sensing some use in this moron, he was quickly snatched up by the Sons of the Serpent

Tengu - Kagesuki Tashimi was a theif and smuggler who had the misfortune to unintentionally steal from the Black Hand in the middle of a job, when he found the secret scroll hidden within the priceless tengu statue he was transporting, which upon being read gave him the wings and magic of the tengus themselves, but burned awy in his hands. seeking safety, he's fled to america and made the jump to supercrime

Trickshot - Roy Alexander was a carny with too much skill and too much greed, using his trick shooting skills as a stickup artist and bank robber until he got caught, and was recruited by the International crime league who gave him his costume and trick bullets, and broke up before he had to swear any loyalty to a particular boss. now as Trickshot, he continues his life of carnivals and crime across the american southwest

Vibron & Vindicator - Jeff Mathers was a comic book geek whose breakout left him with superstrength and a mastery of vibration. Madge Eagleton was a professional Mercenerary until her incompetant employers exposed her to the wild card virus which left her with superhuman speed but ravaged her health. not long after, she met up with the newly dubbed Vibron as he was becoming a supervillain (heroics being too much like work), and the two hit it off, with him giving her the supranym vindicator, and stealing a laser pistol for her

[SilvercatMoonpaw]

well, a suggestion I PM'd crinos was the notion that there could be an arc in the avengers academy game of dropping a few rookie supers into a fantasy world and give them the quest to get home

No no, I want him to run the genre he wants to run. I just think "standard D&D fantasy" could be expanded the way the Crinoverse is so that the "race" and "class" choices are a lot more varied than D&D usually has them.

[Crinos]

Well, it would definitely be more fast and loose than traditional DnD, but some elements would be there.

See, DnD is how I got interested in role playing to begin with. My brother introduced me to 2nd edition, and I used to love buying all the old monstrous compendiums (I has the Monster Manual, all 5 annuals, the Mystara appendix, the three Plansescape Appendix's, the Three Ravenloft Appendixes, and probably some more I am forgetting. I was in the process of rebuilding my collection in PDF form when WOTC made the stupid decision to forbade sales of their products in electronic format. But I digress.) But while I loved the monsters of the setting, I never cared much for things like how the magic system or combat worked. I mean like, you would never use magic in an actual fantasy setting like you do in DnD, where you have to memorize spells and you forget them as you cast them, or now monsters can only use spell like powers a certain number of times a day.

So while I would have elements of DnD, such as certain character races and classes, it would be a lot more freeform.