The Gunslinger from 'Westworld' (1974)

“Draw”

 F: Gd (10)
A: Ex (20)
S: Gd (10)
E: In (40)
R: Typ (06)
I: Gd (10)
P: Typ (06)

Health: 80
Karma: 32
Resources: N/A
Popularity: N/A

Talents:
As a robot, the gunslinger has the talents appropriate to whatever role it is given. When all of the Delos Corporation theme parks went berserk, the Gunslinger was loaded with the following talents:

Firearms
Quick Draw (+1 to Initiative)
Horsemanship
Brawling
Knowledge: West World area.
Knowledge: Culture of the West
Intimidation


Powers:
Robotic Construct

The gunslinger is a robot, constructed by Delos Corporation and made to behave and act as human as possible in a specific role. The Gunslinger’s role is that of the ‘black hat’, or bad guy, a role that the Gunslinger has been locked in since the malfunction within the Delos Corporation’s theme parks. As a robot, the Gunslinger is immune to disease or toxins, but can be burned by acids and the like. The Robot’s construction allows it to take damage and remain operating. Normally, the Gunslinger’s stats are reduced when encountering guests, in order to allow them to be able to ‘best’ it. The Gunslinger’s stats under the reduction are as follows:

F: Typ (06)
A: Typ (06)
S: Typ (06)
E: Typ (06)
R: Typ (06)
I: Gd (10)
P: Typ (06)

Health: 24
Karma: 26

While in safe mode, the Gunslinger will lose fights and apparently be killed, recycled for the next day to repeat its process all over again. Once the errors begin in the theme park, the Gunslinger is no longer considered in safe mode, and has its full range of abilities appropriate for both its role and its construction.

The Gunslinger is constructed of a Gd (10) material and is considered to have some resistance to true damage at around Typ (06). The Gunslinger usually uses traditional optics, but has a full range of infra-red sensors which provide it with thermal imaging at Gd (10).

The Gunslinger will follow its program and pursue its ‘target’ with unexpected zeal, selecting the ‘dude’ which last bested it. As part of the system-wide error within Delos Corporation, the Gunslinger will ignore Delos Corporation protocols and will continue its pursuit until either destroyed or successful in killing its prey.


The Gunslinger is equipped with standard .45 pistols, six shots which do normal shooting damage. In the hands of the Gunslinger, the pistols add an additional +1 to initiative when the Gunslinger is facing down other robots in West World or when the Delos protocols are removed.

Contacts:
The Gunslinger has no contacts.

Limitations:

• Robotic Construct The Gunslinger is a robot and as such, is limited by its programmed role. The Gunslinger has no originality and will follow the role in which it has been given to the letter. In addition, the Gunslinger cannot be reasoned with, its purpose is to provide the bad guy to the park’s visitors.
• Limited Power Source Like all Delos constructs, the Gunslinger has a limited immediate power source, but has a backup system which operates in critical conditions. There is no stated time how long one of the Delos robots can operate, but it is assumed at least a day before requiring recharging.
• The Delos Protocols Each Delos robot is programmed to serve human hosts and cannot harm them, ranging from the actual human-like robots to the animal constructs. All constructs in the Delos parks must follow the protocols, normally.
• Delos infection At some point, a series of errors begin to happen within Roman World, spreading across the grids until all of the constructs and systems are in chaos. When this occurs, the robots are freed from the initial constraints and react differently, as all Delos protocols are effectively rendered void. In some cases, like the Gunslinger, the robots are locked into their roles and will pursue any activity associated with their roles.
• Technology Limitation The Gunslinger is limited in its thermal vision to heat sources. As such, a greater heat source will ‘blind’ the Gunslinger and prevent it from detecting human body heat. The Gunslinger is considered to be at -2cs when attempting to discern human heat signatures if in the same area as a larger heat source. It should be noted however that if the Gunslinger can see normally, it will not use its thermal vision as a primary detection ability.
• Unusual Looks During the events of the Delos crisis the gunslinger has its face burned away by acid. As such, the robotic nature of the Gunslinger is much more evident and it suffers a -1cs for concealment. The Gunslinger will not react to its appearance, as it is limited by programming.

The Gray Gorillas from 'Congo'

Ugly gorillas. Ugly. Go away.

Although the movie version of Congo was mostly awful, the Michael Crichton novel was outstanding and unique. The gray gorillas, bred for intelligence, ruthlessness, and strength were ideal guardians and enforcers for the ancient city of Zinj. Despite the destruction and loss of the city to the gorillas, the codes and training that were established continued well into the 20th century.

Why the gray gorillas?

First and foremost, I am looking more at the novel, which is probably one of my all-time favorites and definitely my second favorite Crichton novel. I just like the concept and was disappointed with the 1995 film adaptation. I also believe that the gray gorilla concept is a great thing to throw at street level heroes and could adapt well in a variety of situations.



Gray Gorillas

Typical Gray Gorilla

F: Ex (20)
A: Gd (10)
S: Ex (20)
E: Gd (10)
R: Pr (04)
I: Gd (10)
P: Typ (06)

Health: 60
Karma: 20
Popularity: 0
Resources: N/A

Talents:
The gray gorillas have rudimentary skills due to their breeding and instruction. It is assumed that they have the following 'skills'

• Hunting/Gathering
• Animal Training - Gray Gorillas*
• Area Knowledge: Zinj
• Blunt Weapons - Simple

Powers:
Bred Gorilla Species: The gray gorillas of Zinj have been interbred with other apes (and possibly humans) to produce the gray gorillas who act as both protectors and enforcers to the city. As such, the gray gorillas are slightly larger, more humanoid, and more intelligent than a standard large ape. In addition, the gorillas of Zinj have the following natural abilities:

• Stealth: The gray gorillas have a dusky gray coloration which makes them nearly invisible in darkness and difficult to spot amid the jungle foliage. Combined with their natural predator senses and the harsh training from the ancient taskmasters of Zinj, the gorillas have the effect of Ex (20) stealth within the jungle and around Zinj
• Natural Aggression: the gorillas of Zinj are naturally more aggressive than other large apes, as such, they gain a +1 to their initiative score, as well as a +1cs to damage after taking more than 50% health.
• Dark Vision: The gorilla of Zinj are unhindered in the dark, and can see with Gd (10) dark-vision, limited to normal night-time conditions. They cannot see in manufactured darkness or similar abilities/shadows.
• Psychological Advantage: The gorillas of Zinj have adapted their attacks to probe enemy lines and to attack weakened areas. As part of this, the Zinj gorillas do not leave their dead when possible, which combined with the nocturnal assault makes them downright scary. If first encountering a Zinj Gorilla, an opponent must make a Psyche FEAT at Gd (10) intensity or suffer a -1cs reaction bonus during the course of the combat. This is because of the psychological effect on individuals from the tactics. (See notes for additional details).

Contacts:
None

Limitations:
The gorilla of Zinj have the following limitations due to their nature:

• Nocturnal: Unlike most apes, the gorillas of zinj are primarily nocturnal, bred and trained for darkness. While the gray gorillas can operate in daytime, they prefer not to, suffering a -1cs to all F, A, and I actions while in bright daylight.
• Unusual Looks: The gray gorillas of Zinj are an entirely new species which are unusual to say the least. The gorillas suffer a -1cs reaction bonus when fully seen and are considered 'hideous' in appearance.
• Training*: The gorillas of Zinj were trained to use lethal force in all dealings under cruel punishment. Although the city of Zinj has long since disappeared into legend, the training has been continued and passed from gray gorilla to gray gorilla out of instinct. The training also includes several key phrases which are used within the novel to prevent them from attacking. Still, the training enforces strict behavior control, which a gray gorilla would need to make a -4cs Psyche FEAT to resist. Although incapable of understanding the context of the training, the gorillas of Zinj still remember the specifics.
• Location Limited: The gray gorillas of Zinj are found only around the lost city, and are not encountered anywhere else. The gorillas are region bound, and do not migrate or function easily in new environments.

Notes: While I attempted to maintain a version of the gray gorillas more towards the novel, there are enough moments where the 1995 movie did get the gorillas right not to include some of the representative behaviors and appearances. The 'sneak attack' ability I feel is important to address, as it is stressed by Crichton in the book at different points, and was clearly designed to unnerve any would-be attackers by making the gorillas seem like ghosts. I think that it's clear that the training was advanced enough to take the impact of the sneak attack into account.

Finally, I wanted to address the higher FASERIP. Comparative to a standard ape, a gorilla of Zinj is simply superior physically and mentally. The specifics were addressed in the novel and the very unnerving concept of human-ape copulation was suggested. Regardless of the reasons, it's clear that the gorillas are more a threat than a standard Ape per the Judges Book.