John Ryder, The Hitcher from 'The Hitcher' (1986)

 “I want you to stop me”

John Ryder



“John Ryder”



F: Rm (30)
A: Ex (20))
S: Gd (10)
E: Rm (30)
R: Gd (10)
I: Rm (30)
P: Rm (30)

Health: 90-
Karma: 70
Resources: Apparently Pr (4)
Popularity: 0* (See Below)

Talents:
John Ryder has a number of talents, some of which we see displayed directly

• Human Nature
• Firearms
• Area Knowledge: Texas
• Improvisational Weaponry
• Auto-mechanics
• Repair/Tinker

These were just the skills demonstrated in the movie, but Hauer’s performance suggested that Ryder was far more skilled and knowledgeable that original considered.

Powers:
A true remorseless killer:
Unlike the supernatural killers that often-haunted theaters in the 1980s, John Ryder was a human whose purposes were not so clear and felt nothing from his actions – except maybe through the pursuit of his intended victim or the desire for his own demise (as suggested through various movie critics). John Ryder is the mysterious stranger whose presence is warned about but never heeded and who is able to create incredible acts of violence and death. John Ryder has no real powers, but the power-like effects he displays include:

• Above Average FASERIP: Ryder seems to be in better shape to do what he does and has a quality about him that seems superhuman but isn’t. Ryder’s FASERIP reflects someone who is very capable and very intelligent bent on a single purpose or direction.
• Opportunity: Ryder is often given opportunity to act or set up staged moments that are significant (Such as the twin semi sequence). As such, Ryder seems to be able to be in the right spot at the right time – Judges may spend Karma on Ryder’s behalf whenever a situation warrants even after a dice roll or resolution if it places Ryder in better opportunity to inflict fear or promote his goal – usually to pursue a single target throughout the event.
• Casual Murder: Ryder feels no remorse, grief, or guilt for his actions and in fact gains double the award for killing as a villain when he is successful. Ryder’s goals while murky are usually murderous and he is awarded accordingly.
• Plot Invisibility: For whatever reason, Ryder’s activities seem not to be known by law enforcement until actively drawn in by Ryder himself (The Semi-Truck incident). As such, Ryder’s activities are largely ignored as not occurring or not tied to him directly – Ryder is considered to have ‘0’ popularity until he himself draws people into his actions.

Contacts:
Ryder has no contacts and operates alone – Ryder relies on no one nor calls anyone friend.

Limitations:
John Ryder’s limitations are based more in the subtle aspects of his purpose than in direct weaknesses, usually:

• Singular Purpose: Ryder seems obsessed with having his selected prey saying four words: I want to die. Ryder is obsessed with pushing his target to that point, killing anyone who gets in the way or has connection to his prey until those words are uttered. Although Ryder will kill others, his goals always comes back to his single target and he will stop at nothing to gain those words said and meant. It is also suggested by critics and fans of the film Ryder is also equally hoping that the target will kill him.
• Mass Murderer: Ryder is a mass murderer who will stop at nothing to achieve his goal and will kill multiple individuals to that end. In addition, Ryder will torture and main anyone who gets in his way without mercy.

Originally published on 5th October 2020

Penny Dreadful - Do you believe there is a demimonde?

 

Debuting in 2014, Penny Dreadful  represented a different sort of show and was a dark contrast to how horror and period shows were done to that point. Gritty and full of references to the gothic horror that spawned it, Penny Dreadful re-imagined both the characters that were drawn from classic literature as well as the well-known folklore around such creatures. To say it was probably my favorite show of the last several decades would be an understatement. I've attempted to capture the elements of the characters in these write-ups and have a few more down the road.

Ethan Chandler (Played by Josh Harnett) - An American gunfighter hiding a deadly secret

Frankenstein's Monster (Played by Rory Kinnear) - the first creation of Dr. Frankenstein 

Sir Malcolm Murray  (Played by Timothy Dalton) - An famed explorer and man of means

Vanessa Ives  (Played by Eva Green) - A family friend of Sir Malcolm's daughter, witch, and psychic.

Dr. Victor Frankenstein (Played by Harry Treadaway) - A physician and scientist obsessed with death.

Sembene (Played by Danny Sapani) - A mysterious figure and ally of the group tied to Sir Malcolm.

Dorian Gray (Played by Reeve Carney) - A youthful immortal who is ageless and sins without regret.

Lily Frankenstein (Played by Billie Piper) - The reanimated Brona Croft - powerful and dangerous

The Ghost and the Darkness from 'The Ghost and the Darkness' (1996)

 They are not lions, they are the Ghost and the Darkness”


The Ghost and the Darkness (movie version)




F: Rm (30)
A: Gd (10)
S: Gd (10)
E: Rm(30)
R: Pr (04)
I: Rm (30)
P: Typ (06)

Health: 80
Karma: 40
Resources: N/A
Popularity: -40 (In Tsavo), -10 (Worldwide)

Talents:
The lions have no talents.

Powers:
The man-eating lions of Tsavo are not typical lions, having killed upwards of 100+ men during their reign of terror. Unlike reality, the Ghost and the Darkness displayed unusual qualities and characteristics that added additional pseudo-like powers to the lions:


More than Lions:

• Increased FASERIP: Unlike regular lions, the Ghost and the Darkness are much more exceptional, being able to rudimentary reason, understand their prey, and avoid traps that would normally be lethal. In addition, the Ghost and the Darkness have greater endurance and intuition, able to continue at full power/ability even when wounded or hampered. The Ghost and the Darkness also seem capable of recognizing their opponents and distinguishing between human prey.
• Stealth: The Ghost and the Darkness have a degree of stealth, capable of avoiding skilled lion hunters and/or targets until the moment of attack. The stealth of the lions is good enough to prevent others from determining that there were actually two lions at the time, and are able to mostly conceal their tracks and trails for some time. As such, the lions are considered to have Gd (10) stealth powers.
• Karma Use: The Ghost and the Darkness are not typical lions in the fact they can spend Karma for effects. As example, The Ghost and the Darkness will always spend karma right before an attack to maximize their stealth efforts. In addition, the Ghost and the Darkness seem to have events occur around them that are unconscious but are beneficial to them: When a hunter as them in their sights, the gun may misfire or efforts to locate them may cause a small rock-slide or any event. This can be done with an expenditure of 100 Karma by the Judge to benefit the Lions in some way.
• Karma Gain: The Ghost and the Darkness gain +15 karma for every kill that they make, which is stored in a karma pool in which they spend from when attacking, defending, or in the process of their unique expenditure (as mentioned above).
• Ambient Fear Level: While the Ghost and the Darkness are active, an ambient effect of fear seems to descend in the area. First, for each week the Ghost and the Darkness are active, anyone with Psyches of Typ (06) or less are affected. This affect forces a Psyche FEAT for any action or activity in the affected area. Success of a Yellow or better means that the individual may proceed normally. A Green success means that the subject may suffer a -1cs to activities, and a failure means that the fear has taken hold and the subject is more willing to flee the area/become hostile and suffers a -2cs to activities that occur within the area. In addition, should the Ghost or the Darkness be seen, the effect goes to Gd (10) intensity and the lions gain +5 karma for every incident.
• Natural Weaponry: claws: The Ghost and the Darkness do Gd (10) damage with their claws, halving effective body armor on the edged table. In addition, The Ghost and the Darkness can attempt an opposed strength check to drag an opponent to the ground or away.

Contacts:
The Ghost and the Darkness have no natural contacts.

Limitations:
The Ghost and the Darkness are considered great examples of lions, but are nothing more than lions…mostly.

Updates IV - August 2020

 Hey All

Just a quick update on what's happening. I'm in the process of finalizing the last image clean-up on the old write-ups, I've got maybe less than 15 left but I'm going over all the former posts and making sure the images are in place.


I'm working on three stages of updates to this site:

1. I'm working to ensure all write-ups are here and have good images.

2. I've been going over each write-up to correct spelling (I posted a number of them from 1st drafts - so now editing - sorry 'bout that), correcting and updating some write-ups based on newer information (Some will probably see completely new write-ups or I've looked at things and need to make changes), and updating the Labels - which is what I usually use to navigate the site.

3. Finally, new write-ups.  It's been a while since I did any new write-ups, but I have been trying to get back to build some new ones. I'm going to post a few more than I did last year for Halloween over at Classic Marvel Forever in October, but I'm also looking to do a few write-ups in a variety of different areas - I did the first real write-ups on Marvel: The Lost Generation and a few here and there -but I'm looking to do a few more on characters I've found interesting that don't get a lot of love or that I wanted to take a crack at. These write-ups include:

• Tarzan
• Moondragon
• The Darkhold and Cthon
• The Anti-Life Equation from DCeased
• Man-Bat
• Atari Force

And a few more I've written up but never posted. I had hoped last year would allow me to get back in to the habit, but I've been caught up with other things.


The Unofficial Marvel Project has been releasing tons of new netbooks, I'm always impressed with the people who work on the write-ups. This isn't bad for a game that last saw publication in 1994. 

Finally, I wanted to take a moment and promote my own game, Defenders International, which is set in my own Metahero setting. I've been running the main campaign since 1986 - but I've run dozens of other groups in the setting. I' m running games right now online using Rolld20 and Discord, and I'm working to start a new campaign for anyone interested. More on that as we get further along - mainly I'm celebrating 35 years of running DI in January 2021 - So I'll be posting more here and on my FB group for DI.


Thanks for visiting! If you have a suggestion or have an idea for a write-up, drop a line!

The Cigarette Smoking Man (CSM) from 'The X-Files'

'Extraordinary men are always most tempted by the most ordinary things.'

The Cigarette Smoking Man, The Smoking Man,

F: Ex (20)
A:Gd (10)
S: Typ (06)
E: Ex (20)
R: Gd (10)
I: Rm (30)
P: Am (50)

Health: 56
Karma: 90
Popularity: 0* (See Below)
Resources: Gd (10) (Personal), Mn (75) (accessible)

Talents:
The CSM has many, many skills in years of service to the government and the shadowy conspiracy

• Military
• Covert Operations
• Bureaucracy
• Firearms
• Detective/Espionage
• Crime*
• Knowledge: Conspiracies
• Knowledge: Literature
• Knowledge: Philosophy
• Knowledge: Pilot
• Knowledge: Edged Weapons (knives)
• Advanced Intelligence Gathering Methods
• First Aid
• Knowledge: Human Nature
• Law Enforcement*

Powers:

• Indomitable Will: The CSM has a will which simply astounds: He cannot be intimidated, he cannot be swayed, and he can ignore certain things simply out of principal and his position within the conspiracies. For the purposes of the game, the CSM can substitute his Psyche score for any Psyche or Intuition effect FEAT he has to make. This does not mean the CSM can avoid damage or significant physical effects, it means simply that he cannot be affected, made afraid, or other game effects dealing with willpower or emotional control without having the ability to roll on the higher column. This ability explains how the CSM is able to effectively deal with various effects he's under. It is clearly stated by Chris Carter that the CSM is immune to fear of death in any way shape or form (cited from various sources). Even when facing his own death, the CSM seemed 'eh' about it.
• Ghost in the Machine: Outside of a select few, there are no records of the CSM anywhere (which explains his popularity score). The Lone Gunmen were only able to produce a record they *thought* was accurate on the CSM, which was contradicted by evidence later on. The CSM has the authority to operate, but no one really knows who he is or what his purpose is.

Contacts:
At different points throughout his, the CSM has had unparalleled access and support from the Federal government and the conspiracies (specifically the Syndicate) within. The CSM has access at different points in the series to Mn (75) resources (The whole Federal level), and will always ensure the Buffalo Bills will never go to the Super Bowl and win.

Limitations:

• Overconfident: The CSM is extraordinarily overconfident, which has been his failing at different points.
• Enemies: The CSM has a multitude of enemies, ranging from Mulder and Scully to other high-connected members within the Syndicate.
• Obsession: The CSM is seemingly obsessed with keeping all details of his life private, except when writing.
• Obsession: Fox Mulder: The CSM is obsessed with Fox Mulder at different points due to a private connection.
• Trademark: The CSM is usually seen smoking, specifically Morley cigarettes (Hence his name).

The Strigoi from 'The Strain' and the infection rules.

Infection:

Initial Stage: The Strigoi begin as an infection from a helminth (capillary worm) from either direct infection or by wounding from a Strigoi's stinger. Upon a successful Yellow Fighting FEAT, the Strigoi can infect a victim, requiring a Red Endurance FEAT vs. Rm (30) intensity to resist. Once the infection has taken place, a mutagenic change begins within the victim, transforming them into a Strigoi themselves.

Secondary Stage: Over the course of the next 48 hours (depending on the speed of the infection and other situations, usually an opposed Psyche FEAT vs Am (50) intensity), the individual begins to change. A 3' long barbed proboscis develops, ended with a powerful stinger which is used in the feeding process. The skin of the victim begins to lose all pigmentation, body hair, and secondary sexual organs. In addition, the victim's ears become shorter and more pointed, and the victim's nose either falls off or recedes. The newly created Strigoi will flock to the master Strigoi, having very little coordination or agility, seemingly almost clumsy in their ability to attack or move. During the secondary stage, the newly created Strigoi will hunt in packs and will have very little in common with the person they were, save for seeking out their family members and close associates in order to infect.

Third Stage: Between the first 48 hours and three months, the Strigoi gain better control over themselves and become more efficient hunters. The Strigoi's Agility, Strength, and Endurance is greatly increased, able to scale buildings and move with faster than human speed. The Strigoi are considered 'matured' at this stage, and are often encountered in packs of between six to ten at any given encounter.

Stage One Stage Two Stage Three
F: No Change - 1cs +1cs
A: No Change - 2cs +1cs
S: No Change +1cs +1cs
E: - 2cs +1cs + 2cs
R: No Change - 2cs No Change
I: - 1cs - 1cs +1cs
P: - 1cs - 2cs - 2cs

Minimum Ability can reach: Fe (2)
Maximum Ability can reach: In (40)

Health: Depends on Stage
Karma: Stage 1: Standard, Stage 2: 0 Stage 3: 0
Popularity: 0/ -10/-20
Resources: N/A for the most part, although those placed within high points of society have access to their resources.

Talents:
Depending on their creation, the Strigoi will have their normal talents albeit some of them will be unable to be utilized (See Limitations).

Powers:
Strigori Vampire: All strigoi gain superhuman abilities upon their conversion beginning at stage 1, and have the following abilities:

• Immortality: In essence, the strigoi are immortal, capable of existing for thousands of years under the right conditions.The only proven way to kill strigoi are: Decapitation or severing the spinal cord, silver weaponry, sunlight, or extreme violence.
• Proboscis: Each strigoi has a 3' proboscis with stinger, used in both feeding and infection. The strigoi can attack opponents within the same area, infecting individuals with a successful FEAT (See above). The stinger does Ex (20) edged damage, halving effective body armor.
• Bio-Vampirism*: The strigoi are vampires, requiring fresh blood to survive, and are able to heal and recover endurance while feeding. The strigoi must use their stinger to feed.
• Talons: Beginning in stage 2, the Strigoi develop large talons on their hands and feet which aid them in attacking and locomotion. Strigoi can shred opponents with their talons, doing up to Rm (30) edged damage. In addition, the Strigoi can use their talons to climb sheer surfaces (Ex (20) spider-climb).
• Hyper Leaping: Beginning in stage 3, the strigoi can leap greater distances with Ex (20) ability
• Hyper Movement: Strigoi are slightly faster than humans, able to move three areas a round.
• Enhanced Senses: Strigoi have incredible senses, able to see a potential victim's heat signature, hear heartbeats from a fair distance, and discern carbon dioxide from breathing. These superior senses begin during stage 1 at gd (10) and can grow to Rm (30) by stage 3.
• Telepathy: Beginning stage 1, strigoi can begin to read thoughts of victims with gd (10) intensity, growing to Rm (30) by stage 3. The telepathy allows the strigoi to apparently 'speak' to individuals (See Limitations) by mimicking speech.
• Hive-Mind: All strigoi are connected to the ancients, with various factions being connected to one of the seven ancients. These ancient masters have complete control over their strigoi, and are aware of their every action, able to directly control each member. The strigoi share this hive mind at Mn (75) ability, unable or unwilling to act against their master/creator.
• Telelocation: Loved Ones: Each strigoi seems able to find their loved ones - family, closest friends, and/or associates with Rm (30) ability. The strigoi seek to infect their loved ones first - thus spreading the infection and master's control.

Contacts:
The strigoi no longer have the human contacts they had in life, although they could fake it before being revealed. All strigoi are connected to their master.

Limitations:
All strigoi have the following limitations:

• Hideous Appearance: Strigoi suffer a -2cs reaction bonus when first encountered, and a -1cs reaction bonus each time after that.
• Lethal Vulnerability: UV Light: Strigoi are extremely vulnerable to sunlight and concentrated UV light, suffering a +2cs damage to rank (Un (100) max) as well as a -2cs to Endurance ranks each round exposed.
• Fatal Vulnerability: Silver: Silver does an additional +2cs damage, followed by a -2cs to Endurance each round damage is inflicted.
• Revelation: Silver: Silver reveals a strigoi's presence by vibrating in the presence of them. In addition, if a strigoi is seen in a silver mirror, they seem 'distorted' or vibrating at high speed.
• Silent: Strigoi cannot normally speak, as their stinger prevents it.
• Interconnected to their Master: The strigoi are connected to their master, and must obey him/her/it without question. Should the Master perish, the strigoi perish (no Endurance FEAT, each strigoi begin the dying process).
• Unable to cross running water: For some reason, strigoi cannot willing cross running water. Whether this is a weakness or a psychological limitation, it is never fully explained.

Death from 'Final Destination'

 

Death is an invisible, relentless force that seeks revenge against those who evade its plans. Normally death is never felt nor is it encountered directly as entity or issue…but…. when those who are appointed to die through serious accidents or similar activities evade death (even unknowingly), death will become a remorseless force dedicated to rectifying the situation.

There are key situations with Death that occur to draw its ‘ire’:

Premonition: usually someone amid a large catastrophic accident has a psychic flash of the events that are about to transpire. These events follow a specific pattern and are usually most horrific. Victims of the events are shown to die in specific order – Either how they are arranged, proximity of themselves to the accident, or even the actual order of death with the last victim always being the person who had the premonition first.

Mechanically, the Judge has the players roll a Psyche FEAT secretly. These FEATS are arranged in order of success and rank. The highest actual roll followed by the highest rank determines the order in which Death had planned to take the characters. The person with the lowest roll has a flash/vision which lasts upwards of three minutes of a situation in which everyone dies…be it through natural or freak disaster. Should the character with the vision convince the people around him to leave or avoid the upcoming event, Death begins to ‘hunt’ the character along the established order.

Death Hunt: after 24 – 96 hours, Death begins to hunt the victims. No presence of Death is immediately detectable, save for perhaps a shadow or movement from the corner of the eye. Each victim must be aware of what is happening, but once aware they may make Intuition FEATS to spot situations in which Death may utilize or be encountered. Death will follow its list and attempt to set up situations which are gruesome and violent, murdering along that list until all victims that have ‘escaped’ it are dead. Death does not outwardly attack – instead what it does is create situations that will lead to fatal accidents by affecting the physical environment, unseen of course. Such things include opening a valve of compressed gas while working near flames, causing a lasik laser to malfunction, remove safeties from weapons, cause a freak garbage disposal accident, and weaken the restraints on parallel bars due a gymnastics event, and a sudden hit and run by a city bus among others. Each death is usually set up to be violent and extreme as revenge.

When Death moves on a character, the Judge makes a roll vs. Death against the character’s Endurance. If the Judge gains a success, the Judge waits for opportune moments to make the Character make a roll vs. Death against their Endurance Rank’s intensity with no Karma allowed. Should the character fail, they will encounter a situation which will be fairly normal, but immediately go into the dying process with the type of event being the manner of death (Slashing/Energy/Etc). The Judge is free to use whatever they wish to describe or enhance the scene.

The Rules of Death: Death must follow the rules as they are established – Although no one outside of a lone ME seems to know them immediately. Death must follow the order that was established in the accident, although Death is creative to interpret how to follow it. For instance, in the first Final Destination, Death followed the list according to seating arrangement. Should someone be able to ‘skip’ the order, Death skips them for a period of time. Another rule is that Death cannot take someone who is giving life, such as one with child. Death also does not kill those who are not ‘on the list’ (at least on the first few films). William Bludworth, owner of the Bludworth Mortuary seems to understand these rules and often cryptically offers the doomed victims the basics, but always informs them of the inevitability of death. It is fan-theorized that Bludworth is some sort of assistant to Death, but there is no proof of this.

As of the final film (and only the films…not the novel or anything else), there are no survivors still alive who have avoided Death. Perhaps that will change….

Old Chief Wood'nhead from 'Creepshow 2' (1987)

You’re not alive man! You can’t be alive!

  Old Chief Wood'nhead

Construct/Animated Statue

Old Chief Wood'nhead is an animated hardened wood statue with unusual properties. As such, the Old Chief is constructed of apparently Gd (10) material hardened wood.  The Chief has existed for over a hundred years with some wear, but when the owners of the shop that the Chief is part of are murdered, the Chief animates and seeks those responsible. The chief is considered at that moment to have Ex (20) body armor, and is immune to most forms of standard damage (As seen when attacked with firearms and the like.). The Chief moves at Pr (04) speed, and is considered to have the following FASE for the purposes of combat:

F: Ex (20)

A: Pr (04)

S:  Ex(20)

E: Rm (30)

Health: 74

The Chief also is not technically alive, and is considered immune to toxins, poisons, and diseases. Normal effects that would affect living creatures do not have any effect on the Chief. In addition, as the chief is considered an animated object Exorcism or similar abilities to control spirits or undead may not affect the chief as it is technically more of a golem. The Chief can be damaged and destroyed, but requires a complete destruction of its form. In addition, the Chief cannot be stunned through any conventional means.

The Chief also possesses a keen drive to find those responsible for its owner’s death, and will not stop until appropriate punishment is met.

The Chief is armed with the weapons which are part of it, specifically and most notably a large knife which is made of the same material as the Chief and halves effective body armor and material strength effectiveness. 

Limitations:

• Unusual Appearance: The Chief is made of hardened wood which cannot be hidden or concealed.
• Single-Minded Purpose: The Chief’s only purpose is to gain revenge for the death of its owners. It has no other purpose or goals and does not communicate.