D20 Apocalypse Designers - Q&A Here

Owen K.C. Stephens · Jun 16, 2005

spidertrag said:
What can u tell me about the lobster aliens & why were lobsters chosen? (not 'doggen' them, just curious )

Any other critters in the book?

The "lobster" aliens are Spanthi, and I wrote them up for the Plague World setting. Spanthi originally appeared in a different form in a D&D game I ran ages ago (the players came up with the name as a shortening of "Spider-Ant-Thing), but they're an idea I've been toying with for a while.

As for why lobsters? Because lobsters, and for that matter crabs and shrimp, are just sea bugs. Bugs have been done to death as alien bad guys, but not mostly sea-bugs. I wanted something that rang a cord, but didn't seem to be an exact rip-off of any other "bug hunt" aliens. I'm overall very happy with the illustrations, which are both very alien and different from any others I can think of.

Any other questions about them?

Owen K.C. Stephens · Jun 16, 2005

DMH said:
Questions-
Why isn't there any rules (or additional rules) for mutant animals as PCs?

They were cut during development and editing. I presume either the developers felt my rules weren't up to snuff, or they had changed the mutation entry to the point the anmial section couldn't be used, or there was a space issue.

I bet you could just use Savage Species to make a baeline intelligent animal, and then use mutation rules from there.

Von Ether · Jun 17, 2005

OStephens said:
They were cut during development and editing. I presume either the developers felt my rules weren't up to snuff, or they had changed the mutation entry to the point the anmial section couldn't be used, or there was a space issue.

I bet you could just use Savage Species to make a baeline intelligent animal, and then use mutation rules from there.

Frankly for me, since the mutation rules have come out, mutant animals and the Moreau have become obsolete.

You can pretty much fake animal abilites with the mutations and add on some 0-level cosmetic mutations and you're good to go.

Henry · Jun 17, 2005

Owen,

Thanks for chiming in and dispelling confusion about the lobster-monsters.

Small request: Could I get someone to give me a better rundown of the whole Craft (Chemical and Pharmaceutical) thing that Eric Anondson and Andur alluded to? What can and can't be done with the skill that they were mentioning?

DMH · Jun 17, 2005

It basically states that both skills require labs and therefor of no use to PCs. What a bunch of bunk- chemistry (real stuff, not alchemy) went on for centuries before modern type labs showed up. I would retain them and keep control over what can and can not be created (cocaine, yes; plastic explosives, no).

buzz · Jun 17, 2005

DMH said:
It basically states that both skills require labs and therefor of no use to PCs. What a bunch of bunk- chemistry (real stuff, not alchemy) went on for centuries before modern type labs showed up. I would retain them and keep control over what can and can not be created (cocaine, yes; plastic explosives, no).

Maybe it's simply that it can't exist as defined in the d20M core book. Though it would make sense for it to be avaiable able to survivors living in a bastion of civilization, e.g., a domed city.

Maybe just a different name would be appropriate. Craft (Mixin').

wingsandsword · Jun 17, 2005

DMH said:
It basically states that both skills require labs and therefor of no use to PCs. What a bunch of bunk- chemistry (real stuff, not alchemy) went on for centuries before modern type labs showed up. I would retain them and keep control over what can and can not be created (cocaine, yes; plastic explosives, no).

Agree, if you can drive cars mad-max style, barter spare parts around, and scrounge things up from the ashes of civilization, you can piece together a rudimentary chemistry set. The effective Purchase DC (or whatever value) of a chemistry/pharmacy kit just went way up though. With the proper knowledge, making basic chemicals can be done with equipment and materials that are almost disturbingly easy to get. If you want a post-apocalypic genre source, Kyle Reese knew how to make explosives when he came back in The Terminator, he said he learned it as a kid growing up.

Synthesizing prozac is not very likely, culturing some crude pennicillin is a little more plausible.

Emiricol · Jun 17, 2005

Thomas5251212 said:
You know, Emiricol, you and others have pretty much managed to sell me on getting a copy of DW2, despite my irritation with the Water Clans. Just a question of getting the money together and seeing if I actually can find a physical copy anywhere (a .pdf that large is just more than I want to deal with).

Sadly, most places are out of stock even online. Might try ebay, or check the DW2 yahoo group for leads. The PDFs don't come as one big PDF, but as 3 smaller ones for easier reading, but it still isn't the same as hardcopy I know. I don't mind PDFs but it took me a long time to get used to them.

Another print run is coming, however, or so I am told.

Thomas5251212 · Jun 17, 2005

Emiricol said:
Sadly, most places are out of stock even online. Might try ebay, or check the DW2 yahoo group for leads. The PDFs don't come as one big PDF, but as 3 smaller ones for easier reading, but it still isn't the same as hardcopy I know. I don't mind PDFs but it took me a long time to get used to them.

Another print run is coming, however, or so I am told.

I don't mind .pdfs for smaller documents--I bought Elements of Magic for example--but I just find bigger ones cumbersome to work with.

I'm told Amazon may still have some copies. Of course by the time I get the funds together that may have changed.

Henry · Jun 17, 2005

wingsandsword said:
Agree, if you can drive cars mad-max style, barter spare parts around, and scrounge things up from the ashes of civilization, you can piece together a rudimentary chemistry set. The effective Purchase DC (or whatever value) of a chemistry/pharmacy kit just went way up though. With the proper knowledge, making basic chemicals can be done with equipment and materials that are almost disturbingly easy to get. If you want a post-apocalypic genre source, Kyle Reese knew how to make explosives when he came back in The Terminator, he said he learned it as a kid growing up.

Synthesizing prozac is not very likely, culturing some crude pennicillin is a little more plausible.

Not to mention Aspirin, Aqua Regia, Black Powder, Dynamite & crude pipe bombs, and crude flashpowders, not to mention a host of other things I'm sure I'm unaware of.

D20 Apocalypse Designers - Q&A Here

Owen K.C. Stephens

Adventurer

Owen K.C. Stephens

Adventurer

Von Ether

Legend

Henry

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DMH

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buzz

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wingsandsword

Legend

Emiricol

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Thomas5251212

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Henry

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