Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
Moderators: Immortals, Supreme Beings, Old Ones
- taalismn
- Priest
- Posts: 48602
- Joined: Tue Sep 02, 2003 8:19 pm
- Location: Somewhere between Heaven, Hell, and New England
Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
Not sure if I had previously set up a topic for 'Haunted Vehicles' beyond the occasional post in 'Wings of Legend' and it lapsed from neglect(search turns up nothing), so appropriately I'll necro the topic with new material, starting out by posting the original Haunted Vehicles idea, and then moving on to fresh stuff...then reposting/ingathering my HV posts from other threads....
Just a little extra oldie goodies for people who want something else to toss about....
Haunted Vehicles
Under the layers of caked grease, sealant paint, dulling corrosion, and hardened animal droppings, there lays cold, hard, steel...
Or is it so cold?
For decades, they have lain here, slowly rotting away....They come to this place in the hot dry desert, still shiny and straight of line, and gleaming with purpose, and are placed in straight regimental lines as if any minute they will be called upon to take flight again....but the call never comes....No ground crew comes to service them, no flight crews come to board them....Only the passing of the days, and a slow degeneration marks their days....Paint scratches in the dusty winds, fades and pales, wears away...Canopy glass and perspex frosts, spiders, and purples with sun and wind...Oil drips free, thick, dirty, and contaminated with age....Once straight angles soften and curve with the burden of gravity...Rubber brittles and bursts with age.... Proud insignia fade and rub away to barely legible blurs....debris accumulates between the rows of sharp shapes, more often than not fallen from the aircraft themselves, or pushed in from less fortunate neighbors that have finally been cut apart for scrap. Aside from the occasional visit of the junkmen, and the roar of distant, high, man-made thunder, they are alone and forgotten in this place, their final resting place....
Then, after decades, in some cases, a century or so, the world explodes.........
It is hardly felt, at first, in this all-but-forgotten, lonely place....Over several days and nights, the horizon seems to glow with lurid colors...the sky becomes overcast and alternately becomes blacker than midnight, or is streaked with lines of burning unearthly hue...White ash, like snow, falls suddenly, in bursts, threatening to bury the landscape, but is then blown away by sudden winds, bordering on hurricane velocity....In the distant hills, monstrous shapes can be seen, but there is no sign if they are real or shadows....
Then, one night, it happens....
In a place that life has deserted, something stirs, With a symphony of creaking and groaning, ancient metal strains and fights loose of its earthly entanglement. Rust falls in a red shower, like dried blood, from flowing metal, as with hissing and popping, broken wing spars and frames straighten out, rejoin, and knit together. Ancient canopy tracks screech as they fight rust and embedded grime to slide shut. Piles of brittle rubber scraps writhe like worms, flow like water, and reform into tires, gaskets, weather stripping, crawling back into place. Old dials and instruments quake in their housings, lighting up with eldritch light or spinning like tops, compasses gone mad. Old position lights flicker to incandescent life, adding red and yellow lighting to the scene.
A cough and a series of gunshot bangs punctuate the air as one of the old piston engines cranks to unearthly life. Screeching at first, as the ancient gears scrape corrosion and dried lubricant in grounds of greasy smoke, the propellors turn, painfully slowly, but accelerating, gradually working up into a blur. With precedent set, the process is repeated on the other intact engines, then on the other reforming shapes in the gloom. A throatier roar accompanies the reawakening of ancient jet engines, adding their voices to the chorus.
Like a clutch of monstrous metal hatchlings trying their wings for the first time, the massive shapes move cautiously, but with growing self-assurance, towards open ground, from their debris-strewn metal nest. An old rusted chainlink fence offers no obstacle, pushed aside by the behemoths, or perhaps pulled aside by the equally old forklift that stutters to life.....Moving out into the open desert and the ribbon of pavement, the aircraft seem to instinctively fall out into an orderly flight line, then, with almost practiced precision, snap to a semblance of attention. One of their number smartly rolls out of the formation and takes point position on the road stretching into the distance. Engines revv to maximum, the first moves forward, moving faster with every passing moment, streaking across the desert, straining for the sky...
Then, impossibly, it happens...Straining and clawing, the vast metal shape lifts into the air, fighting for every inch of lift....almost faltering on the edge of success...then, suddenly, like a man sliding back into a familiar, comfortable suit of clothes, the aircraft FLIES......Steadily, gaining altitude, without tremor, pause, or hesitation....Landing gear smoothly roll up into their bays, flaps adjust for wind and course.
One by one, behind it, the remaining aircraft roll into position, taking their places for takeoff....Within minutes, the first ascension is repeated, until all are airborne. A brief orbit of their ancient resting place, and the resurrected warbirds wheel about and disappear into the blue-crossed night sky....
The mechanisms of haunting are believed to be understood by modern mystic scholars, and the antics and terrors of haunting and possessing entities well documented. Certainly, more than a few animate artifacts, in fact most of the accounts, can be attributed to diabolical or obsessed noncorporal entities assuming control of the material objects and moving them. While these hauntings can last months, years, perhaps centuries, there are also accounts of artifacts exhibiting entity-like behavior, but which, upon closer examination, do not seem to be, in fact, possessed by the troublesome beings. The most dramatic examples of this phenomenon are the reports of ‘haunted’ pre-Rifts vehicles.
The classic haunted vehicle is a pre-Rifts craft that has somehow survived the horrors of the Coming of the Rifts, and been transformed somehow, or invested with some sort of mystical qualities.
Explanations for this vary; it may be another new class of haunting entity that scholars have yet to classify and investigate. Another theory is that these vehicles, many of which were museum pieces or monuments(typically military) in the pre-Rifts era, in being paid attention by the passing public, may have been quietly accumulating a portion of the bio-energy unwittingly conferred to them by passersby, such as an errant directed thought, or a reverent touch. These small PPE inputs may have built up like static, priming the vehicle for the massive influx of energy that brought the Rifts. The semi-static thoughts and ideas that still hovered at a quantum level in the vehicle’s structure may have formed a ‘template’ for the magical properties that would manifest in the animated vehicle; for instance, an old WWII tank on display might have evoked feelings of awe and stalwartness among passing veterans and passersby, so the resulting haunted vehicle is inordinately tough and resilient. Yet another theory is that these haunted vehicles are really ‘soul refuges’ for the collective life-forces of the millions who died during the Coming of the Rifts, or the many pre-Rifts entities or souls displaced by the destruction of cemeteries and memorials during the Great Catastrophe. The favorite theory about haunted vehicles, especially among headhunters and other warriors, is that the original crews of the vehicles have returned from the afterlife to man their old rides, and continue to do their duty. This last theory is especially pervasive, since the greater number of haunted vehicles have been military craft, typically ground craft, but also including a number of air and sea craft.
The motivations and actions of these haunted vehicles vary greatly....Some haunted vehicles seem to simply lie in wait for some passerby to bring them to life, while other such entities actively roam the land on some unfathomable quest of their own. Some of these haunted craft appear intent on carrying out ancient missions, like fighting a last battle or saving a particular community or individual, though they may be thousands of miles from where that ‘mission’ might have been implemented, and the individuals long dead. Some are apparently some sort of champions, protecting places and nations that may no longer exist. Others are monsters, pure and simple, spreading death, destruction, and misery wherever they appear. And to whatever end these craft may be committed, their tolerance of the living varies; some require or appear to prefer having crews to man them again, while other ancient war machines will not tolerate any of the living to come near them....
Any pre-Rifts vehicle can conceivably become a haunted vehicle of this sort, but the likelihood of this transformation seems higher the older the vehicle is. The number of reports of haunted pre-Rifts Golden Age military equipment are much smaller/virtually nonexistent, for example, than reports of Vietnam War or WWII-era machines coming alive; the more recent machines may be too ‘young’ to have accumulated the required amount of PPE or emotional impressions to ‘come alive’. Likewise, military and working vehicles(especially emergency response equipment) seem more inclined to ‘wake up’, likely because of the raw emotions and life-and-death activities associated with them, than most designed-obsolescence civilian vehicles.
Some factors that may help shape the manifestation, powers, and available PPE of a Haunted Vehicle:
*Size---Large vehicles, with larger crews, seem to accumulate PPE in larger amounts...it may be a function of size, or a matter of the amount of human activity/history aboard them.
*History----Vehicles with vivid, often blood-soaked, histories and backgrounds, may also take up the impressions of the previous crew, as well as absorb some portion of the life-force of deceased crew, giving the eventual Haunted Vehicle a particular theme or ‘flavor’.
*Location---Where a vehicle was displayed/stored/abandoned before becoming a Haunted Vehicle also can affect its eventual post-Rifts state, aside from the obvious of proximity to leylines and nexi. Vehicles in prominent places of memorialization and high-traffic public scrutiny/examination can also soak up ambient PPE and the thoughts/emotions of those around them. Even if they don’t come in direct contact with the vehicle, passersby can also affect the pre-Haunt, if the vehicle is in a position to be prominently visible in the community....The presence and appearance of the vehicle may evoke feelings of patriotism, dread, or ridicule/humor in those who see it, creating a larger ‘bubble’ of emotional energy around the craft. These, too, may affect the ultimate nature of the Haunted Vehicle.
*Condition---Physical Condition is also a factor in determining the state of a Haunted Vehicle. Extreme deterioration may prevent a vehicle from becoming a Haunted Vehicle, or may severely limit its capabilities/powers, as whatever mechanism reanimates them must expend more of its accumulated energy to regenerate and stabilize the Haunted Vehicle’s ultimate form. Thus, craft that have been on public display, or kept in good repair and maintenance tend to be more powerful, as they are that much closer to being operational at the time of their ‘awakening’. Generally, pre-Haunting, a candidate craft must be more or less intact and recognizable for what it was when it was operational/working.
*Age---The longer a vehicle has been around, especially if it is in service or in a prominent position of public display/access, the more time it has absorb ambient PPE and emotional/psychic impressions. However, not all ancient craft are in the ideal position or conditions to become haunted vehicles, and some parapsychologists wonder if there isn’t a ‘cutoff’ date, post-Rifts, preventing younger vehicles from acquiring the traits of Haunted Vehicles.
“There’s stories from the far north, of the Inuit seeing aircraft high up in the sky, circling. A glimpse of metal wings, a roar of jets high up, a ghostly contrail arcing across the sky... A few of them even claim to have gotten close looks at them, and I know of a few historians among them who claim to have identified them.....My friend Chiglac Thomas, a self-educated expert of the Golden Age and the times before, is certain that the aircraft he has seen are pre-Rifts aircraft....vintage relics that shouldn’t have survived the Golden Age, let alone the Coming of the Rifts...But he sees them, and he can name them.....Stratofortress, StratoBomber, B-36 Peacemaker.... long range bombers.... the relics of a bygone era, the strategic weapons of an ancient time and ancient politics....
But what is it he is seeing? Mirages cast across time from the long ago eras when the skies over the Inuit were the front lines of a superpower struggle? Are they images from other worlds, where the Cold War still holds its tense watch? Or have the ghosts of those long ago aircraft returned to the watches they once held, keeping a vigil over a land that is no longer the one they once knew and served? Or do they seek to complete missions they never finished, or were ordered to complete?”
-----Hadley Jerome Rustov Taglai, Rogue Scholar, Free Canada
“These reports of haunted old relics coming to life and roaring off on their own are just a load of bullwalla propagated by the magic-freaks and tree-huggers to make their case against science and technology. Why, if I follow their reasoning, the old ceremonial cannon in the park of my hometown, should now be able to throw hellfire all on their ownsome...Do they? Nope, they’re as dead as the day they were cemented in place there, centuries ago! Bullwalla, I tell you!”
----Corporal Peter Mazwitz, CS Militiaman, Whykin
“That old VW Bug’s more than a prized family possession...it’s PART of the family!”
-----Anonymous homesteader, the Relic
Abilities Common to Haunted Vehicles:
*Will of Its Own......Most haunted vehicles exhibit a will of their own, including the ability to carry out actions of their own(typically 1d6 actions per 24 hours). They may also refuse to operate, shut down, or give accurate readings, all on their own(doesn’t count as an action).
*Natural PPE---Most haunted vehicles fairly hum with magical energy....2d6x10 PPE for smaller vehicles up to trucks and small aircraft, 4d6x10 PPE for larger( corvette or bomber-sized) vehicles, and 1d4x100 -3d4x100 PPE for the largest vessels(like battleships and and aircraft carriers)....This reservoir may be tapped by crew members, or drained if the vehicle is destroyed(does NOT double with the destruction of the vehicle). Typically regenerate 10-20% percent of their base PPE per hour, DOUBLE on ley lines, TRIPLE at nexi.
*Natural Megadamage -----Somehow, old steel, metal alloy, and even wood have been transformed into MDC! This may not be immediately evident(looks chipped and rusted), but will become readily evident if the vehicle is attacked. If the vehicle has a known SDC rating(i.e., the GM found the stats somewhere, or went to the trouble of coming up with them), simply convert it to MDC(ignore Armor Rating) and divide by HALF...Otherwise, a few averages:
Cars: 200-450 SDC
Trucks: 450-800 SDC
Armored Cars 500-800 SDC
Tanks 800-1200 SDC
Airplanes(Civilian) 400-2,000 SDC
Airplanes(Military) 500-3,000 SDC
Watercraft(Civilian) 40-8,000 SDC
Watercraft(Military) 50-22,000 SDC
The vehicle also has a limited regeneration ability(unless otherwise noted), ....Materials(must be similar to the original) added to the main body will be assimilated and become megadamage materials within 1-2 weeks. Also note that if materials are removed from the vehicle, they revert to the original SDC values within minutes, and more often than not just rust or crumble into uselessness.
Please note that, aside from minor parts like gears and sprockets, modern megadamage materials(appliqué armor) CANNOT be added to increase the haunted vehicle’s total armor, nor can more modern systems be added...the vehicle rejects them, they crumble and break, or just fail to work, once installed.
Alignment of Vehicle: Alignment signifies the sort of attitude that seems to pervade the vehicle, and the sort of crews it will most likely ‘take a shine to’.
01-25 Good---The vehicle is most inclined towards heroic deeds, like defending others. In some cases, if its crew acts less than honorably, the vehicle may refuse their direction.
26-75 Anarchist----The vehicle most inclined towards survival, of itself and its crew.....In circumstances where its destruction seems evident, it may disobey its crew and try to escape.
76-00 Evil---This vehicle is most inclined towards acts of bloodshed; unless its lust for destruction is regularly met, it will likely turn on its crew
Reaction to Others:
01-40 Antisocial---The vehicle will absolutely NOT allow anyone to come near it, let alone let anyone board it or enter inside it. If it can, it will avoid contact with them, by running away...If beings attempt to enter by force, the haunted vehicle will respond with force; attacking them with its weapons, running them down, slamming hatches on their limbs, etc....
41-80 Reserved----The vehicle will only allow those of compatible alignments aboard it, and only under dire circumstances.
81-00 Friendly----The Vehicle needs and wants a crew, and will pause invitingly, as if encouraging others to come aboard and take the controls.
Nature of the Haunting Entity(ies)(Optional)---Anyone attempting to do a Read Object or telepathic communication, may roll on this table to get the following:
01-30 Single Voice----The vehicle seems possessed by one single strong entity or persona, whether or a traditional haunting entity or a true spirit. This single entity can respond with clear thoughts, emotional projections, or visual impressions.
31-65 1d6 Voices----The vehicle seems possessed by several distinct identities/personalities...perhaps the original crew or owners. LIke the previous entry, these beings/personas can communicate with words, impressions, or images, to a probe.
66-00 Crowd----Anyone attempting to tap into the essence of the vehicle will get the impression of multiple voices/presences, all attempting to communicate at once, and too numerous to make out individual distinctions or traits. Only the most general impressions can be made out in attempts to communicate with the vehicle’s essence.
Range:
01-25 -------Gas Guzzler---The vehicle eats energy like a hog and the range is 1d6x10% less than it should be.
25-75 -------Same as the original
76-00 -------Super-Efficient----The old clunker seems to be able to run on less with age....Double its effective range for the same amount of fuel/energy.
Speed:
01-25 -------50% slower than normal
25-75 -------Normal Speed
76-00 -------50% faster than normal
Reliability:
01-30 Cantankerous----The vehicle goes through spare parts twice as fast, and requires 1d4 times more periodic maintenance than normal. It is always breaking down, regardless of how much attention the mechanics lavish on it.
31-60 Wears out as normal.....Parts may be difficult to come by and require custom-construction, but given the simplicity of the technology, they should be relatively easy to make, and substitute materials can sometimes be used.
61-00 Old Reliable---They Don’t Build ‘em Like They Used To. The vehicle seems to never wear out. Parts either regenerate themselves, or there’s always another set in the trunk, or somehow the parts can be found in the immediate vicinity or on sale from a passing merchant.
(Roll or choose from the following)
Special Abilities:(Roll or choose 1d4 of the following)
01-10 Inexhaustible Propulsive Force---Range and fuel aren’t a problem; the craft seems able to go on forever, powered by a magical power source.
11-15 Mystical Regeneration---Rather than needing repairs, the vehicle actually regenerates itself, repairing itself at 10-20% of main body SDC/MDC per 24 hours, double that rate on a ley line, and triple that rate at a nexus.
16-20 Natural Warding----Evil Beings, entities, demons, vampires, and faerie folk CANNOT approach the vehicle or get inside it.
21-25 Magical Shielding---Occupants are +10 to save versus magic and psionics
26-30 Healing Hands----The vehicle seems somehow conducive to healing. Occupants of the vehicle heal at 2d6 times the normal rate. This is especially true of haunted ambulances or medevac vehicles.
31-40 Armor of the Soul----Occupants of the vehicle seem somehow more motivated and alert, as if they were filled with courage and pride, or as if there were other hands helping them. Occupants are +5 to save versus Horror Factor, and get a +1 to initiative
41-45 Lucky---Once per day, crewmembers get to reroll a bad strike or skill roll involving the vehicle.
46-50 Spiritual Advisor---The vision or voice of a former crew member or other person associated with the vehicle will occasionally appear to one or more of the present crew, and appear to assist them; pointing out how to operate something, or warning the crew at a crucial moment of some threat.
51-55 Natural Invisibility---The vehicle seems to be capable of assuming an invisible and perfectly silent state, even when running full out! The vehicle cannot engage in any sort of offensive action(like firing a weapon) without dropping its invisibility. Can engage this ability 1d6 times per day/24 hours, for 1d6x10 minutes at a time
56-60 Natural Intangibility---The vehicle has the ability to become immaterial and intangible, and ghost through solid materials. Can engage this ability 1d6 times per day/24 hours, for 6d6 minutes at a time
61-65 Holy Weapon----Supernatural beings vulnerable to Holy Weapons react in like fashion to the vehicle(any attacks made via the vehicle do DOUBLE damage to these creatures). Vampires shun it like a holy symbol.
66-70 Balefire----Any weapons that are mounted on the vehicle project magical energy instead of regular projectiles or energy, even if the weapons’ mechanism are fused junk! Weapons now do megadamage!
71-75 Magical Abilities---The haunted vehicle seems to be able to cast spells....The craft has 1d6 spells, usually related in ability/medium(for instance, a tank with Create Fog and Summon Storm). Can cast these spells 1d6 times per day, at 1d10 level of experience.
76-80 Natural MDC Structure---The vehicle is a natural megadamage structure with higher than normal MDC values. +1d10x10 % over the regular values
81-85 Mind of Its Own---The vehicle seems inclined to ‘act up’ far more than usual, and can carry out fairly complex actions all on its own! Has 1d6 APMs
86-90 Modification Ability----The vehicle WILL accept modern upgrades and newer systems, but also note that this requires appeasing the spirit(s) of the vehicle. Also note that any new additions will become part of the vehicle, and under its control.
91-95 Roll Twice
96-00 Roll 1d6 times
Quirks(Optional): These are those little peculiarities that can really freak a crew out.
01-15 Ghost Voices----Snatches of archaic music or speech occasionally come from the radio system, even when it is turned off.
16-20 Ghost Glow---The vehicle seems to shimmer with a barely visible glow that usually intensifies in areas of high magic.
21-25 Translucent---The vehicle is solid as metal, but it still seems to be translucent and shadowy. Anyone going inside the vehicle will not note anything unusual inside, but they too will be caught up in the effect.
26-30 Power Item---In order for the vehicle to keep running, some small, eccentric ritual must be carried out, or item provided, like singing a particular ditty before going into combat, a wad of gum must be stuck behind the seat, or a beer periodically poured into the gas tank.
31-35 Vocal----The vehicle’s noises sound more organic than mechanical, as if it were a living thing....Engines grunt and moan, and the vehicle may seem to scream in pain when it takes damage! This can be quite disconcerting and disturbing to anyone hearing this(mean GMs might want to assign a low-value Horror Factor to see if newbie crewmembers bolt).
36-40 Drips Blood----Rather than gas or oil running out of the gas tank and engine, the vehicle drips what appears to be human blood.
41-50 Nightmare---Anyone sleeping in the vehicle will have particularly vivid dreams of the vehicle’s past adventures. This can be enlightening, or scary and disturbing.
51-60 Sleepwalker---Overnight, the vehicle seems to move, turning around, changing position in the parking lot, unless watched at all times.
61-65 Replay---Once a year, the vehicle(and any crew aboard it at the time) seems caught up in a micro-universe of its own in which it appears involved in a full sensory replay of some battle it(and its former crews) were involved in. Any passengers will be forced to relive the events, with no certainty that it is all a harmless dream sequence! The Replay rarely lasts more than 24 hours, at the end of which, everything returns to normal.
66-70 Ice Cold---Regardless of the weather or temperature outside, the craft seems to be near freezing to the touch and inside, as if it were sucking the heat out of its surroundings.
71-75 Nocturnal: The vehicle only operates/exhibits paranormal abilities once the sun has set.
76-80 Bias---The vehicle, or whatever entities are possessing it, seem to have a particular bias....They will refuse to operate or fire(or will ONLY operate/fire) in the presence of/or on certain individuals, species, nationalities, or those flying the insignia of certain countries or military units(like the U.S. 1st Division, anything of Japanese make, Pittsburgh police department, etc...). This may be more profoundly expressed as a ‘heritage gene’...the vehicle will work(or show a particular favor) for individuals descended from members of its original crew or unit.
81-90 Roll Twice
91-00 Roll 1d6 times
Darkside Quirks(Optional): These are darker, nastier, peculiarities.
01-15 Possession---There is a high likelihood of crewmembers becoming possessed by a malign entity, or perhaps a former crew member! Crew members must roll once per week against mind control/possession(bonuses to save apply).
16-20 Alignment Shift----The longer a crew member spends with/in the vehicle, the greater the chance of an alignment drift towards evil. Crew members must roll once per week against mind control/possession(bonuses to save vs psionics/insanity apply).
21-30 Hunger---Foodstuffs, rations, and other perishables left inside the vehicle disappear within 48 hours, or else rot, decay, or become otherwise unusable.
31-40 Death Aura----The vehicle fairly glows of death energy; anyone who looks at it can instinctively sense its necromantic energies. The life signs of the crew CANNOT be detected within, and are likely going to be assumed to be undead if and when they emerge from the vehicle.
41-50 PPE Absorption----Magic users will find that the longer they stay in or around the vehicle, the more PPE they lose! Magic users will lose 1d6 PPE per day during the first 1d6 days of being in/around the vehicle, then every day afterwards, they must save versus magic, or lose 3d6 PPE per day. After two weeks, this rises to 5d6 PPE per day!
51-60 Death Scream----The vehicle, whenever it enters combat, lets off a bloodcurdling scream(metallic or organic) that seems like a banshee’s death cry, inflicting a Horror Factor attack of HF 14 on all who hear it!
61-70 Blood Sacrifice---In order to get the vehicle to exhibit a particular trait or ability, the vehicle must be given a blood sacrifice; a crew member must cut themselves and drip blood into a part, a small animal must be sacrificed, or, in the worst cases, a sentient being must be killed, effectively making the haunted vehicle a Soul Drinker.
71-80 Curse----Anyone who enters the vehicle for any length of time comes away with a curse; this could be anything from a bad rash that persists for several weeks, to an Aura of Death that dooms the victim to some horrible death within a year.
81-90 Roll Twice
91-00 Roll 1d6 times
Just a little extra oldie goodies for people who want something else to toss about....
Haunted Vehicles
Under the layers of caked grease, sealant paint, dulling corrosion, and hardened animal droppings, there lays cold, hard, steel...
Or is it so cold?
For decades, they have lain here, slowly rotting away....They come to this place in the hot dry desert, still shiny and straight of line, and gleaming with purpose, and are placed in straight regimental lines as if any minute they will be called upon to take flight again....but the call never comes....No ground crew comes to service them, no flight crews come to board them....Only the passing of the days, and a slow degeneration marks their days....Paint scratches in the dusty winds, fades and pales, wears away...Canopy glass and perspex frosts, spiders, and purples with sun and wind...Oil drips free, thick, dirty, and contaminated with age....Once straight angles soften and curve with the burden of gravity...Rubber brittles and bursts with age.... Proud insignia fade and rub away to barely legible blurs....debris accumulates between the rows of sharp shapes, more often than not fallen from the aircraft themselves, or pushed in from less fortunate neighbors that have finally been cut apart for scrap. Aside from the occasional visit of the junkmen, and the roar of distant, high, man-made thunder, they are alone and forgotten in this place, their final resting place....
Then, after decades, in some cases, a century or so, the world explodes.........
It is hardly felt, at first, in this all-but-forgotten, lonely place....Over several days and nights, the horizon seems to glow with lurid colors...the sky becomes overcast and alternately becomes blacker than midnight, or is streaked with lines of burning unearthly hue...White ash, like snow, falls suddenly, in bursts, threatening to bury the landscape, but is then blown away by sudden winds, bordering on hurricane velocity....In the distant hills, monstrous shapes can be seen, but there is no sign if they are real or shadows....
Then, one night, it happens....
In a place that life has deserted, something stirs, With a symphony of creaking and groaning, ancient metal strains and fights loose of its earthly entanglement. Rust falls in a red shower, like dried blood, from flowing metal, as with hissing and popping, broken wing spars and frames straighten out, rejoin, and knit together. Ancient canopy tracks screech as they fight rust and embedded grime to slide shut. Piles of brittle rubber scraps writhe like worms, flow like water, and reform into tires, gaskets, weather stripping, crawling back into place. Old dials and instruments quake in their housings, lighting up with eldritch light or spinning like tops, compasses gone mad. Old position lights flicker to incandescent life, adding red and yellow lighting to the scene.
A cough and a series of gunshot bangs punctuate the air as one of the old piston engines cranks to unearthly life. Screeching at first, as the ancient gears scrape corrosion and dried lubricant in grounds of greasy smoke, the propellors turn, painfully slowly, but accelerating, gradually working up into a blur. With precedent set, the process is repeated on the other intact engines, then on the other reforming shapes in the gloom. A throatier roar accompanies the reawakening of ancient jet engines, adding their voices to the chorus.
Like a clutch of monstrous metal hatchlings trying their wings for the first time, the massive shapes move cautiously, but with growing self-assurance, towards open ground, from their debris-strewn metal nest. An old rusted chainlink fence offers no obstacle, pushed aside by the behemoths, or perhaps pulled aside by the equally old forklift that stutters to life.....Moving out into the open desert and the ribbon of pavement, the aircraft seem to instinctively fall out into an orderly flight line, then, with almost practiced precision, snap to a semblance of attention. One of their number smartly rolls out of the formation and takes point position on the road stretching into the distance. Engines revv to maximum, the first moves forward, moving faster with every passing moment, streaking across the desert, straining for the sky...
Then, impossibly, it happens...Straining and clawing, the vast metal shape lifts into the air, fighting for every inch of lift....almost faltering on the edge of success...then, suddenly, like a man sliding back into a familiar, comfortable suit of clothes, the aircraft FLIES......Steadily, gaining altitude, without tremor, pause, or hesitation....Landing gear smoothly roll up into their bays, flaps adjust for wind and course.
One by one, behind it, the remaining aircraft roll into position, taking their places for takeoff....Within minutes, the first ascension is repeated, until all are airborne. A brief orbit of their ancient resting place, and the resurrected warbirds wheel about and disappear into the blue-crossed night sky....
The mechanisms of haunting are believed to be understood by modern mystic scholars, and the antics and terrors of haunting and possessing entities well documented. Certainly, more than a few animate artifacts, in fact most of the accounts, can be attributed to diabolical or obsessed noncorporal entities assuming control of the material objects and moving them. While these hauntings can last months, years, perhaps centuries, there are also accounts of artifacts exhibiting entity-like behavior, but which, upon closer examination, do not seem to be, in fact, possessed by the troublesome beings. The most dramatic examples of this phenomenon are the reports of ‘haunted’ pre-Rifts vehicles.
The classic haunted vehicle is a pre-Rifts craft that has somehow survived the horrors of the Coming of the Rifts, and been transformed somehow, or invested with some sort of mystical qualities.
Explanations for this vary; it may be another new class of haunting entity that scholars have yet to classify and investigate. Another theory is that these vehicles, many of which were museum pieces or monuments(typically military) in the pre-Rifts era, in being paid attention by the passing public, may have been quietly accumulating a portion of the bio-energy unwittingly conferred to them by passersby, such as an errant directed thought, or a reverent touch. These small PPE inputs may have built up like static, priming the vehicle for the massive influx of energy that brought the Rifts. The semi-static thoughts and ideas that still hovered at a quantum level in the vehicle’s structure may have formed a ‘template’ for the magical properties that would manifest in the animated vehicle; for instance, an old WWII tank on display might have evoked feelings of awe and stalwartness among passing veterans and passersby, so the resulting haunted vehicle is inordinately tough and resilient. Yet another theory is that these haunted vehicles are really ‘soul refuges’ for the collective life-forces of the millions who died during the Coming of the Rifts, or the many pre-Rifts entities or souls displaced by the destruction of cemeteries and memorials during the Great Catastrophe. The favorite theory about haunted vehicles, especially among headhunters and other warriors, is that the original crews of the vehicles have returned from the afterlife to man their old rides, and continue to do their duty. This last theory is especially pervasive, since the greater number of haunted vehicles have been military craft, typically ground craft, but also including a number of air and sea craft.
The motivations and actions of these haunted vehicles vary greatly....Some haunted vehicles seem to simply lie in wait for some passerby to bring them to life, while other such entities actively roam the land on some unfathomable quest of their own. Some of these haunted craft appear intent on carrying out ancient missions, like fighting a last battle or saving a particular community or individual, though they may be thousands of miles from where that ‘mission’ might have been implemented, and the individuals long dead. Some are apparently some sort of champions, protecting places and nations that may no longer exist. Others are monsters, pure and simple, spreading death, destruction, and misery wherever they appear. And to whatever end these craft may be committed, their tolerance of the living varies; some require or appear to prefer having crews to man them again, while other ancient war machines will not tolerate any of the living to come near them....
Any pre-Rifts vehicle can conceivably become a haunted vehicle of this sort, but the likelihood of this transformation seems higher the older the vehicle is. The number of reports of haunted pre-Rifts Golden Age military equipment are much smaller/virtually nonexistent, for example, than reports of Vietnam War or WWII-era machines coming alive; the more recent machines may be too ‘young’ to have accumulated the required amount of PPE or emotional impressions to ‘come alive’. Likewise, military and working vehicles(especially emergency response equipment) seem more inclined to ‘wake up’, likely because of the raw emotions and life-and-death activities associated with them, than most designed-obsolescence civilian vehicles.
Some factors that may help shape the manifestation, powers, and available PPE of a Haunted Vehicle:
*Size---Large vehicles, with larger crews, seem to accumulate PPE in larger amounts...it may be a function of size, or a matter of the amount of human activity/history aboard them.
*History----Vehicles with vivid, often blood-soaked, histories and backgrounds, may also take up the impressions of the previous crew, as well as absorb some portion of the life-force of deceased crew, giving the eventual Haunted Vehicle a particular theme or ‘flavor’.
*Location---Where a vehicle was displayed/stored/abandoned before becoming a Haunted Vehicle also can affect its eventual post-Rifts state, aside from the obvious of proximity to leylines and nexi. Vehicles in prominent places of memorialization and high-traffic public scrutiny/examination can also soak up ambient PPE and the thoughts/emotions of those around them. Even if they don’t come in direct contact with the vehicle, passersby can also affect the pre-Haunt, if the vehicle is in a position to be prominently visible in the community....The presence and appearance of the vehicle may evoke feelings of patriotism, dread, or ridicule/humor in those who see it, creating a larger ‘bubble’ of emotional energy around the craft. These, too, may affect the ultimate nature of the Haunted Vehicle.
*Condition---Physical Condition is also a factor in determining the state of a Haunted Vehicle. Extreme deterioration may prevent a vehicle from becoming a Haunted Vehicle, or may severely limit its capabilities/powers, as whatever mechanism reanimates them must expend more of its accumulated energy to regenerate and stabilize the Haunted Vehicle’s ultimate form. Thus, craft that have been on public display, or kept in good repair and maintenance tend to be more powerful, as they are that much closer to being operational at the time of their ‘awakening’. Generally, pre-Haunting, a candidate craft must be more or less intact and recognizable for what it was when it was operational/working.
*Age---The longer a vehicle has been around, especially if it is in service or in a prominent position of public display/access, the more time it has absorb ambient PPE and emotional/psychic impressions. However, not all ancient craft are in the ideal position or conditions to become haunted vehicles, and some parapsychologists wonder if there isn’t a ‘cutoff’ date, post-Rifts, preventing younger vehicles from acquiring the traits of Haunted Vehicles.
“There’s stories from the far north, of the Inuit seeing aircraft high up in the sky, circling. A glimpse of metal wings, a roar of jets high up, a ghostly contrail arcing across the sky... A few of them even claim to have gotten close looks at them, and I know of a few historians among them who claim to have identified them.....My friend Chiglac Thomas, a self-educated expert of the Golden Age and the times before, is certain that the aircraft he has seen are pre-Rifts aircraft....vintage relics that shouldn’t have survived the Golden Age, let alone the Coming of the Rifts...But he sees them, and he can name them.....Stratofortress, StratoBomber, B-36 Peacemaker.... long range bombers.... the relics of a bygone era, the strategic weapons of an ancient time and ancient politics....
But what is it he is seeing? Mirages cast across time from the long ago eras when the skies over the Inuit were the front lines of a superpower struggle? Are they images from other worlds, where the Cold War still holds its tense watch? Or have the ghosts of those long ago aircraft returned to the watches they once held, keeping a vigil over a land that is no longer the one they once knew and served? Or do they seek to complete missions they never finished, or were ordered to complete?”
-----Hadley Jerome Rustov Taglai, Rogue Scholar, Free Canada
“These reports of haunted old relics coming to life and roaring off on their own are just a load of bullwalla propagated by the magic-freaks and tree-huggers to make their case against science and technology. Why, if I follow their reasoning, the old ceremonial cannon in the park of my hometown, should now be able to throw hellfire all on their ownsome...Do they? Nope, they’re as dead as the day they were cemented in place there, centuries ago! Bullwalla, I tell you!”
----Corporal Peter Mazwitz, CS Militiaman, Whykin
“That old VW Bug’s more than a prized family possession...it’s PART of the family!”
-----Anonymous homesteader, the Relic
Abilities Common to Haunted Vehicles:
*Will of Its Own......Most haunted vehicles exhibit a will of their own, including the ability to carry out actions of their own(typically 1d6 actions per 24 hours). They may also refuse to operate, shut down, or give accurate readings, all on their own(doesn’t count as an action).
*Natural PPE---Most haunted vehicles fairly hum with magical energy....2d6x10 PPE for smaller vehicles up to trucks and small aircraft, 4d6x10 PPE for larger( corvette or bomber-sized) vehicles, and 1d4x100 -3d4x100 PPE for the largest vessels(like battleships and and aircraft carriers)....This reservoir may be tapped by crew members, or drained if the vehicle is destroyed(does NOT double with the destruction of the vehicle). Typically regenerate 10-20% percent of their base PPE per hour, DOUBLE on ley lines, TRIPLE at nexi.
*Natural Megadamage -----Somehow, old steel, metal alloy, and even wood have been transformed into MDC! This may not be immediately evident(looks chipped and rusted), but will become readily evident if the vehicle is attacked. If the vehicle has a known SDC rating(i.e., the GM found the stats somewhere, or went to the trouble of coming up with them), simply convert it to MDC(ignore Armor Rating) and divide by HALF...Otherwise, a few averages:
Cars: 200-450 SDC
Trucks: 450-800 SDC
Armored Cars 500-800 SDC
Tanks 800-1200 SDC
Airplanes(Civilian) 400-2,000 SDC
Airplanes(Military) 500-3,000 SDC
Watercraft(Civilian) 40-8,000 SDC
Watercraft(Military) 50-22,000 SDC
The vehicle also has a limited regeneration ability(unless otherwise noted), ....Materials(must be similar to the original) added to the main body will be assimilated and become megadamage materials within 1-2 weeks. Also note that if materials are removed from the vehicle, they revert to the original SDC values within minutes, and more often than not just rust or crumble into uselessness.
Please note that, aside from minor parts like gears and sprockets, modern megadamage materials(appliqué armor) CANNOT be added to increase the haunted vehicle’s total armor, nor can more modern systems be added...the vehicle rejects them, they crumble and break, or just fail to work, once installed.
Alignment of Vehicle: Alignment signifies the sort of attitude that seems to pervade the vehicle, and the sort of crews it will most likely ‘take a shine to’.
01-25 Good---The vehicle is most inclined towards heroic deeds, like defending others. In some cases, if its crew acts less than honorably, the vehicle may refuse their direction.
26-75 Anarchist----The vehicle most inclined towards survival, of itself and its crew.....In circumstances where its destruction seems evident, it may disobey its crew and try to escape.
76-00 Evil---This vehicle is most inclined towards acts of bloodshed; unless its lust for destruction is regularly met, it will likely turn on its crew
Reaction to Others:
01-40 Antisocial---The vehicle will absolutely NOT allow anyone to come near it, let alone let anyone board it or enter inside it. If it can, it will avoid contact with them, by running away...If beings attempt to enter by force, the haunted vehicle will respond with force; attacking them with its weapons, running them down, slamming hatches on their limbs, etc....
41-80 Reserved----The vehicle will only allow those of compatible alignments aboard it, and only under dire circumstances.
81-00 Friendly----The Vehicle needs and wants a crew, and will pause invitingly, as if encouraging others to come aboard and take the controls.
Nature of the Haunting Entity(ies)(Optional)---Anyone attempting to do a Read Object or telepathic communication, may roll on this table to get the following:
01-30 Single Voice----The vehicle seems possessed by one single strong entity or persona, whether or a traditional haunting entity or a true spirit. This single entity can respond with clear thoughts, emotional projections, or visual impressions.
31-65 1d6 Voices----The vehicle seems possessed by several distinct identities/personalities...perhaps the original crew or owners. LIke the previous entry, these beings/personas can communicate with words, impressions, or images, to a probe.
66-00 Crowd----Anyone attempting to tap into the essence of the vehicle will get the impression of multiple voices/presences, all attempting to communicate at once, and too numerous to make out individual distinctions or traits. Only the most general impressions can be made out in attempts to communicate with the vehicle’s essence.
Range:
01-25 -------Gas Guzzler---The vehicle eats energy like a hog and the range is 1d6x10% less than it should be.
25-75 -------Same as the original
76-00 -------Super-Efficient----The old clunker seems to be able to run on less with age....Double its effective range for the same amount of fuel/energy.
Speed:
01-25 -------50% slower than normal
25-75 -------Normal Speed
76-00 -------50% faster than normal
Reliability:
01-30 Cantankerous----The vehicle goes through spare parts twice as fast, and requires 1d4 times more periodic maintenance than normal. It is always breaking down, regardless of how much attention the mechanics lavish on it.
31-60 Wears out as normal.....Parts may be difficult to come by and require custom-construction, but given the simplicity of the technology, they should be relatively easy to make, and substitute materials can sometimes be used.
61-00 Old Reliable---They Don’t Build ‘em Like They Used To. The vehicle seems to never wear out. Parts either regenerate themselves, or there’s always another set in the trunk, or somehow the parts can be found in the immediate vicinity or on sale from a passing merchant.
(Roll or choose from the following)
Special Abilities:(Roll or choose 1d4 of the following)
01-10 Inexhaustible Propulsive Force---Range and fuel aren’t a problem; the craft seems able to go on forever, powered by a magical power source.
11-15 Mystical Regeneration---Rather than needing repairs, the vehicle actually regenerates itself, repairing itself at 10-20% of main body SDC/MDC per 24 hours, double that rate on a ley line, and triple that rate at a nexus.
16-20 Natural Warding----Evil Beings, entities, demons, vampires, and faerie folk CANNOT approach the vehicle or get inside it.
21-25 Magical Shielding---Occupants are +10 to save versus magic and psionics
26-30 Healing Hands----The vehicle seems somehow conducive to healing. Occupants of the vehicle heal at 2d6 times the normal rate. This is especially true of haunted ambulances or medevac vehicles.
31-40 Armor of the Soul----Occupants of the vehicle seem somehow more motivated and alert, as if they were filled with courage and pride, or as if there were other hands helping them. Occupants are +5 to save versus Horror Factor, and get a +1 to initiative
41-45 Lucky---Once per day, crewmembers get to reroll a bad strike or skill roll involving the vehicle.
46-50 Spiritual Advisor---The vision or voice of a former crew member or other person associated with the vehicle will occasionally appear to one or more of the present crew, and appear to assist them; pointing out how to operate something, or warning the crew at a crucial moment of some threat.
51-55 Natural Invisibility---The vehicle seems to be capable of assuming an invisible and perfectly silent state, even when running full out! The vehicle cannot engage in any sort of offensive action(like firing a weapon) without dropping its invisibility. Can engage this ability 1d6 times per day/24 hours, for 1d6x10 minutes at a time
56-60 Natural Intangibility---The vehicle has the ability to become immaterial and intangible, and ghost through solid materials. Can engage this ability 1d6 times per day/24 hours, for 6d6 minutes at a time
61-65 Holy Weapon----Supernatural beings vulnerable to Holy Weapons react in like fashion to the vehicle(any attacks made via the vehicle do DOUBLE damage to these creatures). Vampires shun it like a holy symbol.
66-70 Balefire----Any weapons that are mounted on the vehicle project magical energy instead of regular projectiles or energy, even if the weapons’ mechanism are fused junk! Weapons now do megadamage!
71-75 Magical Abilities---The haunted vehicle seems to be able to cast spells....The craft has 1d6 spells, usually related in ability/medium(for instance, a tank with Create Fog and Summon Storm). Can cast these spells 1d6 times per day, at 1d10 level of experience.
76-80 Natural MDC Structure---The vehicle is a natural megadamage structure with higher than normal MDC values. +1d10x10 % over the regular values
81-85 Mind of Its Own---The vehicle seems inclined to ‘act up’ far more than usual, and can carry out fairly complex actions all on its own! Has 1d6 APMs
86-90 Modification Ability----The vehicle WILL accept modern upgrades and newer systems, but also note that this requires appeasing the spirit(s) of the vehicle. Also note that any new additions will become part of the vehicle, and under its control.
91-95 Roll Twice
96-00 Roll 1d6 times
Quirks(Optional): These are those little peculiarities that can really freak a crew out.
01-15 Ghost Voices----Snatches of archaic music or speech occasionally come from the radio system, even when it is turned off.
16-20 Ghost Glow---The vehicle seems to shimmer with a barely visible glow that usually intensifies in areas of high magic.
21-25 Translucent---The vehicle is solid as metal, but it still seems to be translucent and shadowy. Anyone going inside the vehicle will not note anything unusual inside, but they too will be caught up in the effect.
26-30 Power Item---In order for the vehicle to keep running, some small, eccentric ritual must be carried out, or item provided, like singing a particular ditty before going into combat, a wad of gum must be stuck behind the seat, or a beer periodically poured into the gas tank.
31-35 Vocal----The vehicle’s noises sound more organic than mechanical, as if it were a living thing....Engines grunt and moan, and the vehicle may seem to scream in pain when it takes damage! This can be quite disconcerting and disturbing to anyone hearing this(mean GMs might want to assign a low-value Horror Factor to see if newbie crewmembers bolt).
36-40 Drips Blood----Rather than gas or oil running out of the gas tank and engine, the vehicle drips what appears to be human blood.
41-50 Nightmare---Anyone sleeping in the vehicle will have particularly vivid dreams of the vehicle’s past adventures. This can be enlightening, or scary and disturbing.
51-60 Sleepwalker---Overnight, the vehicle seems to move, turning around, changing position in the parking lot, unless watched at all times.
61-65 Replay---Once a year, the vehicle(and any crew aboard it at the time) seems caught up in a micro-universe of its own in which it appears involved in a full sensory replay of some battle it(and its former crews) were involved in. Any passengers will be forced to relive the events, with no certainty that it is all a harmless dream sequence! The Replay rarely lasts more than 24 hours, at the end of which, everything returns to normal.
66-70 Ice Cold---Regardless of the weather or temperature outside, the craft seems to be near freezing to the touch and inside, as if it were sucking the heat out of its surroundings.
71-75 Nocturnal: The vehicle only operates/exhibits paranormal abilities once the sun has set.
76-80 Bias---The vehicle, or whatever entities are possessing it, seem to have a particular bias....They will refuse to operate or fire(or will ONLY operate/fire) in the presence of/or on certain individuals, species, nationalities, or those flying the insignia of certain countries or military units(like the U.S. 1st Division, anything of Japanese make, Pittsburgh police department, etc...). This may be more profoundly expressed as a ‘heritage gene’...the vehicle will work(or show a particular favor) for individuals descended from members of its original crew or unit.
81-90 Roll Twice
91-00 Roll 1d6 times
Darkside Quirks(Optional): These are darker, nastier, peculiarities.
01-15 Possession---There is a high likelihood of crewmembers becoming possessed by a malign entity, or perhaps a former crew member! Crew members must roll once per week against mind control/possession(bonuses to save apply).
16-20 Alignment Shift----The longer a crew member spends with/in the vehicle, the greater the chance of an alignment drift towards evil. Crew members must roll once per week against mind control/possession(bonuses to save vs psionics/insanity apply).
21-30 Hunger---Foodstuffs, rations, and other perishables left inside the vehicle disappear within 48 hours, or else rot, decay, or become otherwise unusable.
31-40 Death Aura----The vehicle fairly glows of death energy; anyone who looks at it can instinctively sense its necromantic energies. The life signs of the crew CANNOT be detected within, and are likely going to be assumed to be undead if and when they emerge from the vehicle.
41-50 PPE Absorption----Magic users will find that the longer they stay in or around the vehicle, the more PPE they lose! Magic users will lose 1d6 PPE per day during the first 1d6 days of being in/around the vehicle, then every day afterwards, they must save versus magic, or lose 3d6 PPE per day. After two weeks, this rises to 5d6 PPE per day!
51-60 Death Scream----The vehicle, whenever it enters combat, lets off a bloodcurdling scream(metallic or organic) that seems like a banshee’s death cry, inflicting a Horror Factor attack of HF 14 on all who hear it!
61-70 Blood Sacrifice---In order to get the vehicle to exhibit a particular trait or ability, the vehicle must be given a blood sacrifice; a crew member must cut themselves and drip blood into a part, a small animal must be sacrificed, or, in the worst cases, a sentient being must be killed, effectively making the haunted vehicle a Soul Drinker.
71-80 Curse----Anyone who enters the vehicle for any length of time comes away with a curse; this could be anything from a bad rash that persists for several weeks, to an Aura of Death that dooms the victim to some horrible death within a year.
81-90 Roll Twice
91-00 Roll 1d6 times
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
- taalismn
- Priest
- Posts: 48602
- Joined: Tue Sep 02, 2003 8:19 pm
- Location: Somewhere between Heaven, Hell, and New England
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
The following was before Madhaven came out....Adapt what you wish.
The Intrepid Ghosts
“The thought of that thing down there frankly scares the hell out of me...what if it decides that we’re too close up here, and elects to come up and squash us? I’m not so sure it really cares how much water it supposedly has to have under it to float, if it really wants to kill something....I will be glad to have the Ecto-Cannon and the Magic Disruptor emplacements installed here, because I think those are the only things that will slow down that giant freakin’ zombie!”
-----Major Drodd Vegos, GNE 6th Army Group, New West Point Garrison.
“I live to obey the orders and wishes of my exalted Overlord, but I must voice my concern and misgivings about the wiseness of but one course of action.....ANY expedition into the region of the city called ‘Nu Yrk’....Mechanoids I fear not, demons I fear not, nor Temporal Raiders nor any of the Great Splynncryth’s enemies...But the monster that guards that wasted strip of land is nothing kin to those worthy opponents....Twice have you ordered Minions to penetrate that land, as shortcut to the slave lands beyond, and twice has the waterborne metal beast and its flying spawn bloodied the waters of that river mouth with Minion flesh...and it took all of my cunning and skill earned in the campaigns in your name to allow me to salvage what men and material I could from the fires unleashed by the beast.....It is folly to tempt fate, my Overlord, so heed the pleads of a mere underling who has dire prophecy of the most likely outcome if you yourself lead an expedition there! Do not go there, my Overlord! Do not face that hellspawned abomination!”
-------V!xx!, Splugorth Slaver, to its Overlord Chainmaster S’la Lyesss, before the latter’s disappearance in the ‘Manhattan Triangle’.
“You hear a lot of myths and legends of Old New York; that it is hell, that it is heaven, that it is a doorway to great and horrible things....You may hear that the ancient Statute of Liberty has come alive, and emerges from the sea to both welcome newcomers to this great land, and to incinerate the unworthy with its torch...You may also hear of legions of ancient heroes and villians, who haunt the city that was once their home......Of terrible mutants who survived in the vast complexes of tunnels beneath the city proper....
But the Intrepid is real...that ghost ship is real, and as long as it stalks the waters of New York Harbor, determining what is fact and what is myth about the City, we will never know.....Will it ever allow our questions to be answered? Does it await some event, some sign, some happening, to again open up the Harbor to all and reveal what has become of Manhatten after all these centuries? Or will it remain on guard for eternity, jealously hoarding away what once was and will never be again?”
-------Gavin D’Trel Windsong, Dragon Historian
Little remains of the great city of New York...at least as far as anyone can tell; travellers to the region who have come back with detailed descriptions are few and far between, long range observations show only a region of shifting debris, low persistant fog, and rampant overgrowth, and overflights of the site have come back with their sensor readings hopelessly fouled by weather or mechanical difficulties. There is also the abundance of supernatural threats in the region, leading many to conclude that the rotted remains of the Big Apple conceal a subterranean Rift, belching forth demonic entities to slay the curious unwary.
Among the more bizarre ‘defenders’ of the city is the ghost ship Intrepid, once CV-11, an Essex-class aircraft carrier of the old American Empire, then a floating museum, and now apparently a survivor of the Coming of the Rifts, transformed by the magics of the Rifts into a supernatural entity of fearsome power.
Unlike other well-known haunted ships like the battleship Massaschusetts or the aircraft carrier Lexington, the Intrepid is most intolerant, for all intents and purposes evil, towards others. The ship and its ghostly complement appear intent on defending the remains of New York City from all comers. Just about anyone coming into New York territorial waters will find themselves under attack by the ghost ship, until they retreat or are destroyed. The ship also appears to attack any supernatural beings that stray too close to it(though it is worth noting that the ship is often trailed, just outside range of its weapons, by small groups of demonic entities hoping to prey, vulture-like, on any luckless mortals rendered helpless by the Intrepid’s attack).
Furthermore, the ship’s pre-Rifts exhibition complement of aircraft have all been transformed into ghostly flying adjutants to the Intrepid’s singular mission. These ghostly flying machines now cruise the skies over and around New York City, swooping to attack anyone who comes too close.
The ghostly defender of New York Harbor tends to stand off and let its aircraft complement take care of most intruders, but if necessary, the ship will close to let its numerous light guns go to work. If the massive torrent of firepower unleashed fails to get the point across that interlopers are NOT welcome in those waters, then the Intrepid itself will ram the offending craft, using its tremendous weight and inertia to run down, cleave, and drown its enemies. That’s usually enough to do the trick.
Interestingly enough, if one cannot outrun/out-range the Intrepid, one way to avoid getting killed is to get up and close to the ship, within a ‘dead’ zone of fire extending out about 40 ft from its sides, under the overhang of its flight deck, where none of its deck guns can depress enough to bear on close-in targets. Unfortunately, this zone is very narrow, the waters there likely infested by vulturing lesser monsters, and once there, characters still have the problem of getting OUT from under the Intrepid’s shadow and running the gauntlet of its guns again. The best strategy is to try to set demolition charges on the hull, and hope to do enough damage to slow and distract the ship while the party makes its escape.
Only a few adventurers have ever made it aboard the ghost ship, and the survivors have vowed almost unanimously never to repeat the experience. Their accounts tell of live scalding steam vented into corridors, armored hatches snapping closed with limb-snipping force, live electrical wires lashing out at intruders, and a constant banshee-howl of psychic rage that chased the boarders off the ship in fear of their very souls.
The existance of the Intrepid battlegroup has had a profound impact on regional economics....the denial of the use of the Hudson River as a trade conduit to the Atlantic shore has been a frustration to the great Paladin Steel industrial machine of Greater New England, though the ghost ship has also done an excellent job of securing that same border region against Coalition and Splugorh intrusion.
Fortunately, for travellers in the region, the ghost ship tends to travel not much further than two or three miles from Manhatten Island proper, though on the Winter and Summer Soltices, when ambient magical energy is higher, the ship, and particularly its aircraft, may range 2-3 times further. It rarely travels up the Hudson(never further than the remains of the Tappenzee Bridge---still enough to give the garrison at rebuilt West Point the chills), another plus for people living along the river’s banks. It seems to have no ambitions beyond defending the harbor and city(or rather its remains).
It is unknown what exactly the Intrepid is protecting..... a memory, or a real place? Various travellers claim that what was once known as New York City is now a dimensional gateway to a hellish parody of itself, or a gleaming futuristic city(the Intrepid being either those denied entrance to the heavenly city, or an elaborate robotic defensive system set up by the aliens/humans running the city to keep the outside world at bay), a secret enclave of mages, or simply a pile of rubble. Until the ghostly guardian can be finally laid to rest, travellers in the area are advised to stay clear rather than court the ghost-ship’s wrath.
Type: CV-11
Class: Aircraft Carrier
Crew: 2,631 in its heyday....currently, the Intrepid is not known to be host to any LIVING crew, though some who have encountered the ship have reported seeing either/both ghostly apparitions in period crew garb, or demonic entities dressed as crewmembers. Neither can be reliably confirmed. Again, EXTREME caution is advised.
Alignment: Aberrant---The ship is apparently intent on defending the site of New York City from all comers, nothing more.
Nature of Entity: The few telepaths who have made contact with the ship have reported a torrent of agonized and hateful yells and screams, as if from a thousand demons or a million trapped souls.
Attitude: The vessel apparently resents the presence of outsiders and intruders, and wants them OUT!
Darkside Quirks: Those foolish enough to venture inside the ship have reported walls and fixtures that bleed bright red, the stench of smoke and acrid burning chemical vapors, and an incessant groaning of tortured metal and muffled screaming.
----Holy/Blessed Weapons do DOUBLE damage.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 10,000
Outer Hull per 40 ft Area---200
Flight Deck 6,000
Elevators(2) 300 each
*Forecastle/Bridge 3,000
5 Inch Gun Turrets(8) 200 each
40mm Quad Turrets(18) 100 each
20mm AA Gun Mounts(35) 40 each
Internal Hatchways/Bulkhead Doors (many) 50 each
*Destroying the Forecastle/Bridge will temporarily slow down the ship(reduce speed by HALF) and cause all weapons to lose 1 APM and -1 to strike, until the bridge regenerates.
Height: 28 ft draft(84 ft from waterline to top of radar masts)
Width: 147 ft
Length: 872 ft
Weight/Displacement: 27,100 tons
Cargo: Estimated to be several hundred tons. Unknown if it is carrying anything in its cargo holds currently; various rumors claim roomfuls of ancient pre-Rifts junk, the bones of trapped tourists, fabulous pre-Rifts treasures, or captive and insane adventurers.
Powerplant: Originally powered by 4 screw turbines, now powered by mystical energy
Speed: 33 knots
Systems/Features:
*Radar---The radar is old, but still effective; range of 60 miles
*Sonar---Effective range of 40 miles
Supernatural Abilities:
*Horror Factor 16
*Damage Regeneration---The Intrepid is devilishly hard to sink; it repairs damage at 20% of main body MDC per 24 hours, double that rate on a ley line, and triple that rate at a nexus.. If taken below its MDC, its remains will sink to the bottom, but unless it has been reduced to 100% below its Main Body MDC, the ghost will slowly regenerate, re-emerging to terrorize the region in 2d4 weeks.
*Internal Defenses----Those unlikely enough to venture inside face a guantlet of poltergeist-like internal defenses---Hatches that close with trap-like swiftness, doing 3d6 MD(takes a PS of 25 or better to hold them open), live steam jets(do 4d6 SDC burn damage), magical darkness, poison gas(same as the Miasma spell), electrified metal floor grates(typically does 3d6 MD per melee of contact). The ship can unleash one of these defensive measures once every 2 melees.
*Stealth----The Intrepid is invisible to high-tech sensors; including radar, sonar, and infra-red/thermo-imaging
*Spellcaster---The Intrepid can cast spells; each spell can be cast twice per day, at a 15th level profficiency.
*Fog Bank
*Fog of Fear
*Darkness
*Frequency Jamming
*Change Current
*Summon Storm
*Calm Waters
*(Un)Natural PPE: 1,600
*Horror Factor: 15
Actions/Attacks Per Melee:
Besides the attacks of individual weapons systems/aircarft/internal defenses, the Intrepid can carry out 1 movement action per melee(course change, speed up, etc....though it typically takes the ship a full minute to turn 180 degrees)
Weapons Systems:
1)5 in. Cannon(12, 4x2 turrets, 4x1 turrets)---These are heavy anti-aircraft guns that are also useful against surface targets. Instead of the original HE and Illumination rounds, these cannon now fire bolts of exploding telekinetic force(similar to a Shockwave attack), ghostly death-plasma, or globes of illuminating lightning.
Range: 14,000 yards(42,000 ft/ 8 .4 miles)
Damage:(High Explosive/Shockwave) 4d4 MD to a 40 ft blast radius
(Hellfire) 1d4x10 MD to a 10 ft blast radius on impact, then burns for 1d4 minutes(4d4 melees) doing 5d6 MD per melee
(Illumination)---A floating flare, similar to a Globe of Daylight, illuminating a half mile area to daylight intensity for 45-72 seconds.
Rate of Fire: Each cannon can fire 2 times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
2)Quad 40mm Cannons(18 turrets)----Rapid-fire autocannons, meant to tear apart enemy aircraft. They now fire an effectively endless stream of TK and lightning bolts.
Range: 15,000 ft (3 miles)
Damage: All four cannon in a turret fire as one in salvo; 2d4x10 MD per burst
Rate of Fire:Each cannon can fire 5 times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
3)Dual 20mm Automatic Cannon(35)---Individual crew-served light AA guns, also useful for repeling boarders. These weapons now fire TK bolts. Typically, multiple guns(5-10) will bear on the same target to tear it apart by sheer volume of fire.
Range: 5,000 ft
Damage: 5d6 MD per blast
Rate of Fire:Each cannon can fire 7 times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
4) Ramming---The Intrepid can use its sheer mass to run over enemy ships and cleave smaller craft in two with its bow; does 1d6x100 MD on a ramming attack
5) The Intrepid Aircraft Complement:
Like the Intrepid itself, its museum display aircraft complement have also been transformed into vicious spirits of vengeance, pilotless death machines that know no fear or mercy. These ghostly flying machines are frequently on aerial patrol(about 20% of the complement will be airborne at any given time), but if intruders into the ship’s declared domain are detected, the entire force can be airborne within minutes! The aircraft will hunt down and attack intruders until they are destroyed, or are clearly no longer preceived as a threat! Aircraft such as the attack helicopters may even pursue land travellers into the ruins along the Connecticut and New Jersey shores, to smoke them out and bomb them into oblivion!
Fortunately, none of the warplanes have the full array and selection of external ordnance once available to them; however, any functional weapons now work on principles of MAGIC. This gives them an effectively limitless ammunition supply, though some of the more powerful weapons have a limited number of uses before requiring a lengthy recharge period.
Typically, the attack aircraft will maneuver in two or four waves, so that at least one wave can be airborne and attacking, while one wave re-arms under the cover of the remaining aircraft and the Intrepid’s guns.
Another plus for local communities is that the aircraft are seldom more than 5-10 miles away from the Intrepid, despite their range pre-Rifts. They may be merely extensions of the main entity that is the Intrepid, but they are lethal extensions nevertheless. The only times they have exceeded their 5-10 mile ‘tether’ are during winter and summer solstices and when opponents have tried engaging the Intrepid from extreme long range(such as with long range missiles) outside the range of the Intrepid’s own guns.
Regardless of their type, they all share the following characteristics:
-----Flying: Equiv. to Aerobatics skill of 80%
-----*(Un)Natural PPE: 50
----*Horror Factor: 10
----Resistance to Energy---Lasers and energy weapons do HALF damage. Magic does FULL damage.
----Holy/Blessed Weapons do DOUBLE damage.
----Regeneration---Unless they lose 200% of their MDC, they will be magically restored within 24 hours. And unless the Intrepid is completely destroyed and laid permanently to rest, even destroyed aircraft will be resurrected(as if from some ghostly template) within 1 month(typically on a full moon).
---Attacks Per Melee: 5
+2 to strike w/ ranged weaponry
+4 to Dodge
---Aircraft with external ordnance(bombs, rockets, torpedos, etc.) can (unless overwise noted)replace/regenerate their stores only by returning to the Intrepid’s deck and remain motionless for 4d6 minutes, during which the aircraft seems to be coccooned by a glowing mist(some claim they can see ghostly armorers ‘bombing up’ the grounded aircraft). A Disrupt Magic or Anti-Magic Cloud will disrupt this process, preventing the craft from re-arming for the duration of the spell.
-------External Ordnance-----To keep things simple(and preserve the writer’s sanity), rather than portray ALL the possible bomb loadouts possible to each aircraft type, the Intrepid ghosts have been known to maintain/generate a standardized set of munition types, usable by all the aircraft with ordnance capability, as follows:
*250-lb Bomb----2d4x10 MD to 40 ft blast radius
*500-lb Bomb----4d4x10 MD to 50 ft blast radius
*1,000-lb Bomb----1d4x100 MD to 60 ft blast radius
*2,000-lb Bomb----2d4x100 MD to 70 ft blast radius
*TW Rockets: 2 miles, 4d6 MD to 10 ft blast radius
*TBM Avenger Torpedo Bomber---WW2 vintage torpedo plane, used to attack other boats and ships
Length 40' 11"
Height 16' 5"
Wingspan 54' 2"
MDC: 200
Armament Two .50 cal machineguns in wings(Light TK Machine Gun; 3,000 ft range, 1d4x10 MD burst, effectively unlimited payload), one .50 cal and one.30 in dorsal turret(Light TK Machine Gun; 3,000 ft range, 4d4 MD burst, effectively unlimited payload), 2000 lbs internal payload(or one demon-torpedo---has 35 MDC and moves at about 50 MPH. +4 to strike, +2 to dodge, and can attack up to 4 times per melee before finally dissipating, doing 1d6x10 MD per attack, and lasts for 2d4 melees), under wing provisions for additional external ordnance(typically 2-4 rockets under each wing).
Max Speed 267 mph
Service Ceiling 30,100 ft
*F6F Hellcat
Length 33' 7"
Height 13' 1"
Wingspan 42' 10"
MDC: 180
Armament Six 12.7-mm (.50 cal) Browning M2 machine-guns with 400 rounds each(Light TK Machine Gun; 3,000 ft range, 1d4x10 MD burst, effectively unlimited payload); external bomb load up to 2,000 lbs or six 5 inch HVAR (High Velocity Aircraft Rockets)(TW Rockets: 2 miles, 4d6 MD to 10 ft blast radius).
Max Speed 267 mph
Service Ceiling 37,000 ft
*SB2C Helldiver---WW2 vintage dive bomber, used to attack other boats and ships
Length 36' 8"
Height 13' 2"
Wingspan 49' 9"
MDC: 180
Armament Two fixed forward-firing 20 mm cannon in wings( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload); two 030-in machine guns in rear cockpit(Light TK Machine Gun; 3,000 ft range, 4d4 MD burst, effectively unlimited payload). Up to 1,000 lb bombs internal and 1,000 lb external.
Max Speed 295 mph
Service Ceiling 29,100 ft
*F-14 Tomcat----Fighter, used to intercept airborne intruders
Length 62' 8"
Height 16' 0"
Wingspan 64' 1"
MDC: 300
Armament One 20mm M61A1 multi-barreled cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d6x10 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload), 13,000Lb external ordnance on 6 hardpoints
Max Speed Mach 2.34 (1564 mph)
Service Ceiling 50,000 ft
*F-16 Fighting Falcon-----Fighter, used to intercept airborne intruders. Originally land-based
Length 49' 3"
Height 16' 5.2"
Wingspan 31' 0"
MDC: 250
Armament One M61A1 20mm multi-barreled cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d6x10 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload), 20,450lbs external ordnance on 6 hardpoints.
Max Speed Mach 2 (1,320 mph)
Service Ceiling 50,000 ft
*AV-8C Harrier---VTOL fighter bomber.
Length 45'
Height 11'
Wingspan 25'
MDC: 280
Armament Two 30mm cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d4x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), 9000 lbs external ordnance on 9 hardpoints
Max Speed 661 mph
Service Ceiling 51,000 ft
Special: Can hover and unusually agile; +1 to dodge, +1 initiative
*A-12 Blackbird---Unarmed high-speed recon aircraft. Its main attacks consist of a sonic boom, similar to the Concord’s, and the ability to cast spells/curses
Length 102'
Height 18' 3"
Wingspan 55' 7"
MDC: 360
Armament
Sonic Boom----Travelling 300 ft off the ground, the Concord can generate a powerful sonic boom and attendant shockwave, creating a swath of destruction up to 500 ft wide. Sonic Effects: Characters w/o head/ear protection will be deafened(-8 on initiative, -3 parry/dodge) for 2d4 minutes. Characters in EBA/Power Armor will be deafened for 1d4 minutes. Shockwave Effects: 4d4 MD, plus beings/objects of 500 lbs or less gross weight have an 88% chance of being picked up and thrown 3d4 yards. giants of 500-1000 lbs have a 50% chance of being flung 1d4 yards, and beings up to 1 ton have only a 20% chance of being knocked back a few feet. Flying beings get knocked back for twice normal amount. This attack can be preformed on the same individual targets only once every two minutes(takes that long for the aircraft to get turned around and lined up again for a high speed pass).
Spells-----The following, four times per day, 12th level profficiency:
---Invisibility: Superior(Self)
---Horror Factor
---Aura of Doom
---Luck Curse
---Mental Shock
---Meteor
Max Speed 2,269 mph
Service Ceiling 84,978 ft
*F-1 Scimitar---Shipboard fighter-bomber
SpecificatiLength 55' 3"
Height 17' 4"
Wingspan 37' 2"
MDC: 210
Armament Four 30mm cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d4x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), 4000 lbs external ordnance(2 hardpoints) on 2 hardpoints
Max Speed 747 mph
Service Ceiling 46,000 ft
*Entendard IV-M---Shipboard fighter
SpecificatiLength 47'
Height 16' 0"
Wingspan 31' 6"
MDC: 220
Armament Two 30mm cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d4x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), one Exocet air-to-surface missile(5 mille range, 2d6x10 MD to 20 ft blast radius, +2 to strike, regenerates one per 24 hours)
Max Speed Mach 1
*Polish Mig-21---Originally a land-based Russian-designed Warsaw Pact fighter
Length 51' 8.5"
Height 13' 5.5"
Wingspan 23' 5.5"
MDC: 250
Armament One GSh-23L 23mm twin-barrel cannon( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10+5 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload), 3307 lbs external ordnance on 5 hardpoints.
Max Speed Mach 2.1 (1,386 mph)
Service Ceiling 59,710 ft
*A7-E Corsair II---Shipboard fighter-bomber
Length 46' 0"
Height 16' 0"
Wingspan 38' 9"
MDC: 300
Armament One M61A multi-barreled cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d6x10 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload), 15,000lbs external ordnance on 6 hardpoints---3 hardpoints on each wing
Max Speed 698 mph
Service Ceiling 43,000 ft
*F-8k Crusader---Shipboard fighter-bomber
Length 54' 3"
Height 15' 9"
Wingspan 35' 8"
MDC: 300
Armament Four 20 mm cannon( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), Sidewinder rockets(3 mille range, 2d4x10 MD to 30 ft blast radius, +2 to strike,regenerates 4 per 24 hours), 2000lbs other external ordnance on 6 hardpoints.
Max Speed Mach 1.8 (1120mph)
*F-3H-2N Demon---Shipboard fighter-bomber
Length 58' 11"
Height 14' 6"
Wingspan 35' 4"
MDC: 200
Armament Four 20mm cannon( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), 6000 lbs external stores on 4 hardpoints
Max Speed 674 mph
Service Ceiling 42,650 ft
*FJ-1 Fury---Shipboard fighter
Length 37' 7"
Height 13' 7"
Wingspan 37' 1"
MDC: 220
Armament Six .50 cal machineguns(Light TK Machine Gun; 3,000 ft range, 1d4x10 MD burst, effectively unlimited payload)
Max Speed 547 mph
Service Ceiling 49,000 ft
*A-6F Intruder II-----A tactical bomber, used to bombard shore targets
Length 54'-9"
Height 16'-2"
Wingspan 53'-0"
MDC: 250
Armament 18,000 lbs external payload on 5 hardpoints
Max Speed 644 mph
Service Ceiling 42,400 ft
* F-4N Phantom II---Fighter Bomber
Length 58' 3"
Height 16' 3"
Wingspan 38' 4"
MDC: 300
Armament One 20mm M61A1 multi-barreled cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d6x10 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload), 4 Sparrow missiles(3 mille range, 2d4x10 MD to 30 ft blast radius, +2 to strike, regenerates 4 per 24 hours), 15,000lbs external ordnance on 6 hardpoints
Max Speed Mach 2.25 (1485 mph)
Service Ceiling 50,000 ft
*UH-1 Huey(x2)---An unarmed helicopter. Its main attacks are by kicking blinding dust and spray with its rotorwash, or closing to slice with those rotors. The two Hueys are frequently sighted flying near the remains of New York City, patrolling it and apparently looking for intruders.
Length 42' 7"
Height 12' 7"
Wingspan 44'
MDC: 210
Armament Rotor Blade Strike(Melee, 5d6 MD on a slice attack)
Dust Storm---30 ft area. Visibility reduced to 10 ft, victims lose initiative, and reduce speed by half.
Max Speed 127 mph
Service Ceiling 14,400 ft
*AH-1J Sea Cobra---This attack helicopter is most frequently used to chase down and dispatch small boats and shoreside intruders.
Length 44' 3"
Height 13' 5"
Wingspan 43' 11"
MDC: 220
Armament One M-197 three-barrel 20mm cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10+8 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload), 2200 lbs external ordnance.
Max Speed 207 mph
Service Ceiling 11,398 ft
*AH-1 Cobra---Helicopter Gunship---This attack helicopter is most frequently used to chase down and dispatch small boats and shoreside intruders.
Length 52' 11.5"
Height 13' 5.5"
Wingspan 44' 0"
MDC: 220
Armament One M134 7.62mm minigun(TW Machine Gun; 4,000 ft range, 2d6 MD single shot, 6d6 MD burst, effectively unlimited payload)One M129 40mm grenade launcher(Fireball Launcher;1,000 ft range, 6d6 MD to a 10 ft blast radius, effectively unlimited payload), 52 2.75 inch Folding Fin Aerial Rockets (FFARs)(TW Rockets: 2 miles, 4d6 MD to 10 ft blast radius)
Max Speed 219 mph
Service Ceiling 10,800 ft
*HH-S2A Seaguard---An unarmed helicopter. Its main attacks are by kicking blinding dust and spray with its rotorwash, or closing to slice with those rotors.
Length 44' 6.5"
Height 14' 2.5"
Wingspan 53' 0"
MDC: 200
Armament Rotor Blade Strike(Melee, 5d6 MD on a slice attack)
Dust Storm----Blinding grit and debris. 30 ft area. Visibility reduced to 10 ft, victims lose initiative, and reduce speed by half.
Max Speed 109 mph
Service Ceiling 11,200 ft
*RA-5C Vigilante---A high speed recon vehicle; however, it can still be used to intercept and ram missiles and other munitions aimed at the Intrepid. It is also occasionally used to recon at a distance, allowing the Intrepid(and the Growler) to backtrack particularly powerful enemies back to their bases and attack them at long range...at least in theory.
Length 76' 6"
Height 19' 5"
Wingspan 53'
MDC: 280
Max Speed 1,385 mph
Service Ceiling 67,000 ft
*A-4B Skyhawk---Light tactical bomber
Length 39' 4"
Height 15' 0"
Wingspan 27' 6"
MDC: 200
Armament Two 20mm cannon( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), 9155lbs external ordnance on 5 hardpoints.
Max Speed 670 mph
Service Ceiling 47,900 ft
*F-10 Skyknight----Early radar-equipped carrier-borne jet fighter
Length 50' 0"
Height 16' 1"
Wingspan 45' 5"
MDC: 200
Armament Four 20mm guns( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst, 4d6x10 MD for full quad-burst, effectively unlimited payload)
Max Speed 478 mph
*XA3D-1 Skywarrior---A carrier-deployed bomber, the largest operational combat aircraft to be deployed from an aircraft carrier
Length 76' 4"
Height 22' 9.5"
Wingspan 72' 6"
MDC: 290
Armament Two 20mm cannon in rear turret( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), 12,000 lbs internal stores
Max Speed 610 mph
Service Ceiling 41,000 ft
*F1F-1 Tiger---Shipboard fighter
Length 46' 11"
Height 13' 3"
Wingspan 31' 7"
MDC: 200
Armament Four 20mm cannon( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload) and four Sidewinder missiles( 3 mille range, 2d4x10 MD to 30 ft blast radius, +2 to strike, regenerates 4 per 24 hours) )
Max Speed 750 mph
Service Ceiling 41,900 ft
*E1-B Tracer-------An unarmed electronic recon aircraft, the Tracer acts to detect enemies from long range(such as those seeking to attack from outside the range of the Intrepid’s own guns). Even temporarily destroying this aircraft (and the TS-2 Tracker) would allow long range attackers to strike with relative impunity; otherwise the ghost planes can quickly backtrack a missile or artillery attack and vector in the other aircraft to attack.
Length 42' 0"
Height 16' 3"
Wingspan 69' 8"
MDC: 220
Armament None
Max Speed 272 mph
Service Ceiling 22,800 ft
*TS-2 Tracker----Weaponless, the Tracker nevertheless provides extra security to the Intrepid ghost force as a recon vehicle; it effectively has a radar/sensor range of 100 miles
Length 45' 4"
Height 16' 10"
Wingspan 72' 17"
MDC: 250
Armament None
Max Speed 227 mph
Service Ceiling 15,800 ft
* BaE Concord---The Concord has no weapons, but will attempt to intimidate intruders and lash them with a Sonic Boom(MD)
Length 45' 4"
Height 16' 10"
Wingspan 72' 17"
MDC: 350
Armament Sonic Boom----Travelling 300 ft off the ground, the Concord can generate a powerful sonic boom and attendant shockwave, creating a swath of destruction up to 500 ft wide. Sonic Effects: Characters w/o head/ear protection will be deafened(-8 on initiative, -3 parry/dodge) for 2d4 minutes. Characters in EBA/Power Armor will be deafened for 1d4 minutes. Shockwave Effects: 4d4 MD, plus beings/objects of 500 lbs or less gross weight have an 88% chance of being picked up and thrown 3d4 yards. giants of 500-1000 lbs have a 50% chance of being flung 1d4 yards, and beings up to 1 ton have only a 20% chance of being knocked back a few feet. Flying beings get knocked back for twice normal amount. This attack can be preformed on the same individual targets only once every two minutes(takes that long for the aircraft to get turned around and lined up again for a high speed pass).
Nose Spike----Rarely witnessed, but the Concord can, and does, occasionally attempt to use its needle-sharp nose to spear flying enemies(must be 200 ft or higher off the ground), doing 2d6x10 MD on a ram/impale
Max Speed 227 mph
Service Ceiling 15,800 ft
The Intrepid Ghosts
“The thought of that thing down there frankly scares the hell out of me...what if it decides that we’re too close up here, and elects to come up and squash us? I’m not so sure it really cares how much water it supposedly has to have under it to float, if it really wants to kill something....I will be glad to have the Ecto-Cannon and the Magic Disruptor emplacements installed here, because I think those are the only things that will slow down that giant freakin’ zombie!”
-----Major Drodd Vegos, GNE 6th Army Group, New West Point Garrison.
“I live to obey the orders and wishes of my exalted Overlord, but I must voice my concern and misgivings about the wiseness of but one course of action.....ANY expedition into the region of the city called ‘Nu Yrk’....Mechanoids I fear not, demons I fear not, nor Temporal Raiders nor any of the Great Splynncryth’s enemies...But the monster that guards that wasted strip of land is nothing kin to those worthy opponents....Twice have you ordered Minions to penetrate that land, as shortcut to the slave lands beyond, and twice has the waterborne metal beast and its flying spawn bloodied the waters of that river mouth with Minion flesh...and it took all of my cunning and skill earned in the campaigns in your name to allow me to salvage what men and material I could from the fires unleashed by the beast.....It is folly to tempt fate, my Overlord, so heed the pleads of a mere underling who has dire prophecy of the most likely outcome if you yourself lead an expedition there! Do not go there, my Overlord! Do not face that hellspawned abomination!”
-------V!xx!, Splugorth Slaver, to its Overlord Chainmaster S’la Lyesss, before the latter’s disappearance in the ‘Manhattan Triangle’.
“You hear a lot of myths and legends of Old New York; that it is hell, that it is heaven, that it is a doorway to great and horrible things....You may hear that the ancient Statute of Liberty has come alive, and emerges from the sea to both welcome newcomers to this great land, and to incinerate the unworthy with its torch...You may also hear of legions of ancient heroes and villians, who haunt the city that was once their home......Of terrible mutants who survived in the vast complexes of tunnels beneath the city proper....
But the Intrepid is real...that ghost ship is real, and as long as it stalks the waters of New York Harbor, determining what is fact and what is myth about the City, we will never know.....Will it ever allow our questions to be answered? Does it await some event, some sign, some happening, to again open up the Harbor to all and reveal what has become of Manhatten after all these centuries? Or will it remain on guard for eternity, jealously hoarding away what once was and will never be again?”
-------Gavin D’Trel Windsong, Dragon Historian
Little remains of the great city of New York...at least as far as anyone can tell; travellers to the region who have come back with detailed descriptions are few and far between, long range observations show only a region of shifting debris, low persistant fog, and rampant overgrowth, and overflights of the site have come back with their sensor readings hopelessly fouled by weather or mechanical difficulties. There is also the abundance of supernatural threats in the region, leading many to conclude that the rotted remains of the Big Apple conceal a subterranean Rift, belching forth demonic entities to slay the curious unwary.
Among the more bizarre ‘defenders’ of the city is the ghost ship Intrepid, once CV-11, an Essex-class aircraft carrier of the old American Empire, then a floating museum, and now apparently a survivor of the Coming of the Rifts, transformed by the magics of the Rifts into a supernatural entity of fearsome power.
Unlike other well-known haunted ships like the battleship Massaschusetts or the aircraft carrier Lexington, the Intrepid is most intolerant, for all intents and purposes evil, towards others. The ship and its ghostly complement appear intent on defending the remains of New York City from all comers. Just about anyone coming into New York territorial waters will find themselves under attack by the ghost ship, until they retreat or are destroyed. The ship also appears to attack any supernatural beings that stray too close to it(though it is worth noting that the ship is often trailed, just outside range of its weapons, by small groups of demonic entities hoping to prey, vulture-like, on any luckless mortals rendered helpless by the Intrepid’s attack).
Furthermore, the ship’s pre-Rifts exhibition complement of aircraft have all been transformed into ghostly flying adjutants to the Intrepid’s singular mission. These ghostly flying machines now cruise the skies over and around New York City, swooping to attack anyone who comes too close.
The ghostly defender of New York Harbor tends to stand off and let its aircraft complement take care of most intruders, but if necessary, the ship will close to let its numerous light guns go to work. If the massive torrent of firepower unleashed fails to get the point across that interlopers are NOT welcome in those waters, then the Intrepid itself will ram the offending craft, using its tremendous weight and inertia to run down, cleave, and drown its enemies. That’s usually enough to do the trick.
Interestingly enough, if one cannot outrun/out-range the Intrepid, one way to avoid getting killed is to get up and close to the ship, within a ‘dead’ zone of fire extending out about 40 ft from its sides, under the overhang of its flight deck, where none of its deck guns can depress enough to bear on close-in targets. Unfortunately, this zone is very narrow, the waters there likely infested by vulturing lesser monsters, and once there, characters still have the problem of getting OUT from under the Intrepid’s shadow and running the gauntlet of its guns again. The best strategy is to try to set demolition charges on the hull, and hope to do enough damage to slow and distract the ship while the party makes its escape.
Only a few adventurers have ever made it aboard the ghost ship, and the survivors have vowed almost unanimously never to repeat the experience. Their accounts tell of live scalding steam vented into corridors, armored hatches snapping closed with limb-snipping force, live electrical wires lashing out at intruders, and a constant banshee-howl of psychic rage that chased the boarders off the ship in fear of their very souls.
The existance of the Intrepid battlegroup has had a profound impact on regional economics....the denial of the use of the Hudson River as a trade conduit to the Atlantic shore has been a frustration to the great Paladin Steel industrial machine of Greater New England, though the ghost ship has also done an excellent job of securing that same border region against Coalition and Splugorh intrusion.
Fortunately, for travellers in the region, the ghost ship tends to travel not much further than two or three miles from Manhatten Island proper, though on the Winter and Summer Soltices, when ambient magical energy is higher, the ship, and particularly its aircraft, may range 2-3 times further. It rarely travels up the Hudson(never further than the remains of the Tappenzee Bridge---still enough to give the garrison at rebuilt West Point the chills), another plus for people living along the river’s banks. It seems to have no ambitions beyond defending the harbor and city(or rather its remains).
It is unknown what exactly the Intrepid is protecting..... a memory, or a real place? Various travellers claim that what was once known as New York City is now a dimensional gateway to a hellish parody of itself, or a gleaming futuristic city(the Intrepid being either those denied entrance to the heavenly city, or an elaborate robotic defensive system set up by the aliens/humans running the city to keep the outside world at bay), a secret enclave of mages, or simply a pile of rubble. Until the ghostly guardian can be finally laid to rest, travellers in the area are advised to stay clear rather than court the ghost-ship’s wrath.
Type: CV-11
Class: Aircraft Carrier
Crew: 2,631 in its heyday....currently, the Intrepid is not known to be host to any LIVING crew, though some who have encountered the ship have reported seeing either/both ghostly apparitions in period crew garb, or demonic entities dressed as crewmembers. Neither can be reliably confirmed. Again, EXTREME caution is advised.
Alignment: Aberrant---The ship is apparently intent on defending the site of New York City from all comers, nothing more.
Nature of Entity: The few telepaths who have made contact with the ship have reported a torrent of agonized and hateful yells and screams, as if from a thousand demons or a million trapped souls.
Attitude: The vessel apparently resents the presence of outsiders and intruders, and wants them OUT!
Darkside Quirks: Those foolish enough to venture inside the ship have reported walls and fixtures that bleed bright red, the stench of smoke and acrid burning chemical vapors, and an incessant groaning of tortured metal and muffled screaming.
----Holy/Blessed Weapons do DOUBLE damage.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 10,000
Outer Hull per 40 ft Area---200
Flight Deck 6,000
Elevators(2) 300 each
*Forecastle/Bridge 3,000
5 Inch Gun Turrets(8) 200 each
40mm Quad Turrets(18) 100 each
20mm AA Gun Mounts(35) 40 each
Internal Hatchways/Bulkhead Doors (many) 50 each
*Destroying the Forecastle/Bridge will temporarily slow down the ship(reduce speed by HALF) and cause all weapons to lose 1 APM and -1 to strike, until the bridge regenerates.
Height: 28 ft draft(84 ft from waterline to top of radar masts)
Width: 147 ft
Length: 872 ft
Weight/Displacement: 27,100 tons
Cargo: Estimated to be several hundred tons. Unknown if it is carrying anything in its cargo holds currently; various rumors claim roomfuls of ancient pre-Rifts junk, the bones of trapped tourists, fabulous pre-Rifts treasures, or captive and insane adventurers.
Powerplant: Originally powered by 4 screw turbines, now powered by mystical energy
Speed: 33 knots
Systems/Features:
*Radar---The radar is old, but still effective; range of 60 miles
*Sonar---Effective range of 40 miles
Supernatural Abilities:
*Horror Factor 16
*Damage Regeneration---The Intrepid is devilishly hard to sink; it repairs damage at 20% of main body MDC per 24 hours, double that rate on a ley line, and triple that rate at a nexus.. If taken below its MDC, its remains will sink to the bottom, but unless it has been reduced to 100% below its Main Body MDC, the ghost will slowly regenerate, re-emerging to terrorize the region in 2d4 weeks.
*Internal Defenses----Those unlikely enough to venture inside face a guantlet of poltergeist-like internal defenses---Hatches that close with trap-like swiftness, doing 3d6 MD(takes a PS of 25 or better to hold them open), live steam jets(do 4d6 SDC burn damage), magical darkness, poison gas(same as the Miasma spell), electrified metal floor grates(typically does 3d6 MD per melee of contact). The ship can unleash one of these defensive measures once every 2 melees.
*Stealth----The Intrepid is invisible to high-tech sensors; including radar, sonar, and infra-red/thermo-imaging
*Spellcaster---The Intrepid can cast spells; each spell can be cast twice per day, at a 15th level profficiency.
*Fog Bank
*Fog of Fear
*Darkness
*Frequency Jamming
*Change Current
*Summon Storm
*Calm Waters
*(Un)Natural PPE: 1,600
*Horror Factor: 15
Actions/Attacks Per Melee:
Besides the attacks of individual weapons systems/aircarft/internal defenses, the Intrepid can carry out 1 movement action per melee(course change, speed up, etc....though it typically takes the ship a full minute to turn 180 degrees)
Weapons Systems:
1)5 in. Cannon(12, 4x2 turrets, 4x1 turrets)---These are heavy anti-aircraft guns that are also useful against surface targets. Instead of the original HE and Illumination rounds, these cannon now fire bolts of exploding telekinetic force(similar to a Shockwave attack), ghostly death-plasma, or globes of illuminating lightning.
Range: 14,000 yards(42,000 ft/ 8 .4 miles)
Damage:(High Explosive/Shockwave) 4d4 MD to a 40 ft blast radius
(Hellfire) 1d4x10 MD to a 10 ft blast radius on impact, then burns for 1d4 minutes(4d4 melees) doing 5d6 MD per melee
(Illumination)---A floating flare, similar to a Globe of Daylight, illuminating a half mile area to daylight intensity for 45-72 seconds.
Rate of Fire: Each cannon can fire 2 times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
2)Quad 40mm Cannons(18 turrets)----Rapid-fire autocannons, meant to tear apart enemy aircraft. They now fire an effectively endless stream of TK and lightning bolts.
Range: 15,000 ft (3 miles)
Damage: All four cannon in a turret fire as one in salvo; 2d4x10 MD per burst
Rate of Fire:Each cannon can fire 5 times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
3)Dual 20mm Automatic Cannon(35)---Individual crew-served light AA guns, also useful for repeling boarders. These weapons now fire TK bolts. Typically, multiple guns(5-10) will bear on the same target to tear it apart by sheer volume of fire.
Range: 5,000 ft
Damage: 5d6 MD per blast
Rate of Fire:Each cannon can fire 7 times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
4) Ramming---The Intrepid can use its sheer mass to run over enemy ships and cleave smaller craft in two with its bow; does 1d6x100 MD on a ramming attack
5) The Intrepid Aircraft Complement:
Like the Intrepid itself, its museum display aircraft complement have also been transformed into vicious spirits of vengeance, pilotless death machines that know no fear or mercy. These ghostly flying machines are frequently on aerial patrol(about 20% of the complement will be airborne at any given time), but if intruders into the ship’s declared domain are detected, the entire force can be airborne within minutes! The aircraft will hunt down and attack intruders until they are destroyed, or are clearly no longer preceived as a threat! Aircraft such as the attack helicopters may even pursue land travellers into the ruins along the Connecticut and New Jersey shores, to smoke them out and bomb them into oblivion!
Fortunately, none of the warplanes have the full array and selection of external ordnance once available to them; however, any functional weapons now work on principles of MAGIC. This gives them an effectively limitless ammunition supply, though some of the more powerful weapons have a limited number of uses before requiring a lengthy recharge period.
Typically, the attack aircraft will maneuver in two or four waves, so that at least one wave can be airborne and attacking, while one wave re-arms under the cover of the remaining aircraft and the Intrepid’s guns.
Another plus for local communities is that the aircraft are seldom more than 5-10 miles away from the Intrepid, despite their range pre-Rifts. They may be merely extensions of the main entity that is the Intrepid, but they are lethal extensions nevertheless. The only times they have exceeded their 5-10 mile ‘tether’ are during winter and summer solstices and when opponents have tried engaging the Intrepid from extreme long range(such as with long range missiles) outside the range of the Intrepid’s own guns.
Regardless of their type, they all share the following characteristics:
-----Flying: Equiv. to Aerobatics skill of 80%
-----*(Un)Natural PPE: 50
----*Horror Factor: 10
----Resistance to Energy---Lasers and energy weapons do HALF damage. Magic does FULL damage.
----Holy/Blessed Weapons do DOUBLE damage.
----Regeneration---Unless they lose 200% of their MDC, they will be magically restored within 24 hours. And unless the Intrepid is completely destroyed and laid permanently to rest, even destroyed aircraft will be resurrected(as if from some ghostly template) within 1 month(typically on a full moon).
---Attacks Per Melee: 5
+2 to strike w/ ranged weaponry
+4 to Dodge
---Aircraft with external ordnance(bombs, rockets, torpedos, etc.) can (unless overwise noted)replace/regenerate their stores only by returning to the Intrepid’s deck and remain motionless for 4d6 minutes, during which the aircraft seems to be coccooned by a glowing mist(some claim they can see ghostly armorers ‘bombing up’ the grounded aircraft). A Disrupt Magic or Anti-Magic Cloud will disrupt this process, preventing the craft from re-arming for the duration of the spell.
-------External Ordnance-----To keep things simple(and preserve the writer’s sanity), rather than portray ALL the possible bomb loadouts possible to each aircraft type, the Intrepid ghosts have been known to maintain/generate a standardized set of munition types, usable by all the aircraft with ordnance capability, as follows:
*250-lb Bomb----2d4x10 MD to 40 ft blast radius
*500-lb Bomb----4d4x10 MD to 50 ft blast radius
*1,000-lb Bomb----1d4x100 MD to 60 ft blast radius
*2,000-lb Bomb----2d4x100 MD to 70 ft blast radius
*TW Rockets: 2 miles, 4d6 MD to 10 ft blast radius
*TBM Avenger Torpedo Bomber---WW2 vintage torpedo plane, used to attack other boats and ships
Length 40' 11"
Height 16' 5"
Wingspan 54' 2"
MDC: 200
Armament Two .50 cal machineguns in wings(Light TK Machine Gun; 3,000 ft range, 1d4x10 MD burst, effectively unlimited payload), one .50 cal and one.30 in dorsal turret(Light TK Machine Gun; 3,000 ft range, 4d4 MD burst, effectively unlimited payload), 2000 lbs internal payload(or one demon-torpedo---has 35 MDC and moves at about 50 MPH. +4 to strike, +2 to dodge, and can attack up to 4 times per melee before finally dissipating, doing 1d6x10 MD per attack, and lasts for 2d4 melees), under wing provisions for additional external ordnance(typically 2-4 rockets under each wing).
Max Speed 267 mph
Service Ceiling 30,100 ft
*F6F Hellcat
Length 33' 7"
Height 13' 1"
Wingspan 42' 10"
MDC: 180
Armament Six 12.7-mm (.50 cal) Browning M2 machine-guns with 400 rounds each(Light TK Machine Gun; 3,000 ft range, 1d4x10 MD burst, effectively unlimited payload); external bomb load up to 2,000 lbs or six 5 inch HVAR (High Velocity Aircraft Rockets)(TW Rockets: 2 miles, 4d6 MD to 10 ft blast radius).
Max Speed 267 mph
Service Ceiling 37,000 ft
*SB2C Helldiver---WW2 vintage dive bomber, used to attack other boats and ships
Length 36' 8"
Height 13' 2"
Wingspan 49' 9"
MDC: 180
Armament Two fixed forward-firing 20 mm cannon in wings( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload); two 030-in machine guns in rear cockpit(Light TK Machine Gun; 3,000 ft range, 4d4 MD burst, effectively unlimited payload). Up to 1,000 lb bombs internal and 1,000 lb external.
Max Speed 295 mph
Service Ceiling 29,100 ft
*F-14 Tomcat----Fighter, used to intercept airborne intruders
Length 62' 8"
Height 16' 0"
Wingspan 64' 1"
MDC: 300
Armament One 20mm M61A1 multi-barreled cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d6x10 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload), 13,000Lb external ordnance on 6 hardpoints
Max Speed Mach 2.34 (1564 mph)
Service Ceiling 50,000 ft
*F-16 Fighting Falcon-----Fighter, used to intercept airborne intruders. Originally land-based
Length 49' 3"
Height 16' 5.2"
Wingspan 31' 0"
MDC: 250
Armament One M61A1 20mm multi-barreled cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d6x10 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload), 20,450lbs external ordnance on 6 hardpoints.
Max Speed Mach 2 (1,320 mph)
Service Ceiling 50,000 ft
*AV-8C Harrier---VTOL fighter bomber.
Length 45'
Height 11'
Wingspan 25'
MDC: 280
Armament Two 30mm cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d4x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), 9000 lbs external ordnance on 9 hardpoints
Max Speed 661 mph
Service Ceiling 51,000 ft
Special: Can hover and unusually agile; +1 to dodge, +1 initiative
*A-12 Blackbird---Unarmed high-speed recon aircraft. Its main attacks consist of a sonic boom, similar to the Concord’s, and the ability to cast spells/curses
Length 102'
Height 18' 3"
Wingspan 55' 7"
MDC: 360
Armament
Sonic Boom----Travelling 300 ft off the ground, the Concord can generate a powerful sonic boom and attendant shockwave, creating a swath of destruction up to 500 ft wide. Sonic Effects: Characters w/o head/ear protection will be deafened(-8 on initiative, -3 parry/dodge) for 2d4 minutes. Characters in EBA/Power Armor will be deafened for 1d4 minutes. Shockwave Effects: 4d4 MD, plus beings/objects of 500 lbs or less gross weight have an 88% chance of being picked up and thrown 3d4 yards. giants of 500-1000 lbs have a 50% chance of being flung 1d4 yards, and beings up to 1 ton have only a 20% chance of being knocked back a few feet. Flying beings get knocked back for twice normal amount. This attack can be preformed on the same individual targets only once every two minutes(takes that long for the aircraft to get turned around and lined up again for a high speed pass).
Spells-----The following, four times per day, 12th level profficiency:
---Invisibility: Superior(Self)
---Horror Factor
---Aura of Doom
---Luck Curse
---Mental Shock
---Meteor
Max Speed 2,269 mph
Service Ceiling 84,978 ft
*F-1 Scimitar---Shipboard fighter-bomber
SpecificatiLength 55' 3"
Height 17' 4"
Wingspan 37' 2"
MDC: 210
Armament Four 30mm cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d4x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), 4000 lbs external ordnance(2 hardpoints) on 2 hardpoints
Max Speed 747 mph
Service Ceiling 46,000 ft
*Entendard IV-M---Shipboard fighter
SpecificatiLength 47'
Height 16' 0"
Wingspan 31' 6"
MDC: 220
Armament Two 30mm cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d4x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), one Exocet air-to-surface missile(5 mille range, 2d6x10 MD to 20 ft blast radius, +2 to strike, regenerates one per 24 hours)
Max Speed Mach 1
*Polish Mig-21---Originally a land-based Russian-designed Warsaw Pact fighter
Length 51' 8.5"
Height 13' 5.5"
Wingspan 23' 5.5"
MDC: 250
Armament One GSh-23L 23mm twin-barrel cannon( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10+5 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload), 3307 lbs external ordnance on 5 hardpoints.
Max Speed Mach 2.1 (1,386 mph)
Service Ceiling 59,710 ft
*A7-E Corsair II---Shipboard fighter-bomber
Length 46' 0"
Height 16' 0"
Wingspan 38' 9"
MDC: 300
Armament One M61A multi-barreled cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d6x10 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload), 15,000lbs external ordnance on 6 hardpoints---3 hardpoints on each wing
Max Speed 698 mph
Service Ceiling 43,000 ft
*F-8k Crusader---Shipboard fighter-bomber
Length 54' 3"
Height 15' 9"
Wingspan 35' 8"
MDC: 300
Armament Four 20 mm cannon( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), Sidewinder rockets(3 mille range, 2d4x10 MD to 30 ft blast radius, +2 to strike,regenerates 4 per 24 hours), 2000lbs other external ordnance on 6 hardpoints.
Max Speed Mach 1.8 (1120mph)
*F-3H-2N Demon---Shipboard fighter-bomber
Length 58' 11"
Height 14' 6"
Wingspan 35' 4"
MDC: 200
Armament Four 20mm cannon( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), 6000 lbs external stores on 4 hardpoints
Max Speed 674 mph
Service Ceiling 42,650 ft
*FJ-1 Fury---Shipboard fighter
Length 37' 7"
Height 13' 7"
Wingspan 37' 1"
MDC: 220
Armament Six .50 cal machineguns(Light TK Machine Gun; 3,000 ft range, 1d4x10 MD burst, effectively unlimited payload)
Max Speed 547 mph
Service Ceiling 49,000 ft
*A-6F Intruder II-----A tactical bomber, used to bombard shore targets
Length 54'-9"
Height 16'-2"
Wingspan 53'-0"
MDC: 250
Armament 18,000 lbs external payload on 5 hardpoints
Max Speed 644 mph
Service Ceiling 42,400 ft
* F-4N Phantom II---Fighter Bomber
Length 58' 3"
Height 16' 3"
Wingspan 38' 4"
MDC: 300
Armament One 20mm M61A1 multi-barreled cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 2d6x10 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload), 4 Sparrow missiles(3 mille range, 2d4x10 MD to 30 ft blast radius, +2 to strike, regenerates 4 per 24 hours), 15,000lbs external ordnance on 6 hardpoints
Max Speed Mach 2.25 (1485 mph)
Service Ceiling 50,000 ft
*UH-1 Huey(x2)---An unarmed helicopter. Its main attacks are by kicking blinding dust and spray with its rotorwash, or closing to slice with those rotors. The two Hueys are frequently sighted flying near the remains of New York City, patrolling it and apparently looking for intruders.
Length 42' 7"
Height 12' 7"
Wingspan 44'
MDC: 210
Armament Rotor Blade Strike(Melee, 5d6 MD on a slice attack)
Dust Storm---30 ft area. Visibility reduced to 10 ft, victims lose initiative, and reduce speed by half.
Max Speed 127 mph
Service Ceiling 14,400 ft
*AH-1J Sea Cobra---This attack helicopter is most frequently used to chase down and dispatch small boats and shoreside intruders.
Length 44' 3"
Height 13' 5"
Wingspan 43' 11"
MDC: 220
Armament One M-197 three-barrel 20mm cannon(TK Cannon: 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10+8 MD per burst, effectively unlimited payload), 2200 lbs external ordnance.
Max Speed 207 mph
Service Ceiling 11,398 ft
*AH-1 Cobra---Helicopter Gunship---This attack helicopter is most frequently used to chase down and dispatch small boats and shoreside intruders.
Length 52' 11.5"
Height 13' 5.5"
Wingspan 44' 0"
MDC: 220
Armament One M134 7.62mm minigun(TW Machine Gun; 4,000 ft range, 2d6 MD single shot, 6d6 MD burst, effectively unlimited payload)One M129 40mm grenade launcher(Fireball Launcher;1,000 ft range, 6d6 MD to a 10 ft blast radius, effectively unlimited payload), 52 2.75 inch Folding Fin Aerial Rockets (FFARs)(TW Rockets: 2 miles, 4d6 MD to 10 ft blast radius)
Max Speed 219 mph
Service Ceiling 10,800 ft
*HH-S2A Seaguard---An unarmed helicopter. Its main attacks are by kicking blinding dust and spray with its rotorwash, or closing to slice with those rotors.
Length 44' 6.5"
Height 14' 2.5"
Wingspan 53' 0"
MDC: 200
Armament Rotor Blade Strike(Melee, 5d6 MD on a slice attack)
Dust Storm----Blinding grit and debris. 30 ft area. Visibility reduced to 10 ft, victims lose initiative, and reduce speed by half.
Max Speed 109 mph
Service Ceiling 11,200 ft
*RA-5C Vigilante---A high speed recon vehicle; however, it can still be used to intercept and ram missiles and other munitions aimed at the Intrepid. It is also occasionally used to recon at a distance, allowing the Intrepid(and the Growler) to backtrack particularly powerful enemies back to their bases and attack them at long range...at least in theory.
Length 76' 6"
Height 19' 5"
Wingspan 53'
MDC: 280
Max Speed 1,385 mph
Service Ceiling 67,000 ft
*A-4B Skyhawk---Light tactical bomber
Length 39' 4"
Height 15' 0"
Wingspan 27' 6"
MDC: 200
Armament Two 20mm cannon( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), 9155lbs external ordnance on 5 hardpoints.
Max Speed 670 mph
Service Ceiling 47,900 ft
*F-10 Skyknight----Early radar-equipped carrier-borne jet fighter
Length 50' 0"
Height 16' 1"
Wingspan 45' 5"
MDC: 200
Armament Four 20mm guns( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst, 4d6x10 MD for full quad-burst, effectively unlimited payload)
Max Speed 478 mph
*XA3D-1 Skywarrior---A carrier-deployed bomber, the largest operational combat aircraft to be deployed from an aircraft carrier
Length 76' 4"
Height 22' 9.5"
Wingspan 72' 6"
MDC: 290
Armament Two 20mm cannon in rear turret( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload), 12,000 lbs internal stores
Max Speed 610 mph
Service Ceiling 41,000 ft
*F1F-1 Tiger---Shipboard fighter
Length 46' 11"
Height 13' 3"
Wingspan 31' 7"
MDC: 200
Armament Four 20mm cannon( 5,000 ft range, 1d6x10 MD per burst per cannon, effectively unlimited payload) and four Sidewinder missiles( 3 mille range, 2d4x10 MD to 30 ft blast radius, +2 to strike, regenerates 4 per 24 hours) )
Max Speed 750 mph
Service Ceiling 41,900 ft
*E1-B Tracer-------An unarmed electronic recon aircraft, the Tracer acts to detect enemies from long range(such as those seeking to attack from outside the range of the Intrepid’s own guns). Even temporarily destroying this aircraft (and the TS-2 Tracker) would allow long range attackers to strike with relative impunity; otherwise the ghost planes can quickly backtrack a missile or artillery attack and vector in the other aircraft to attack.
Length 42' 0"
Height 16' 3"
Wingspan 69' 8"
MDC: 220
Armament None
Max Speed 272 mph
Service Ceiling 22,800 ft
*TS-2 Tracker----Weaponless, the Tracker nevertheless provides extra security to the Intrepid ghost force as a recon vehicle; it effectively has a radar/sensor range of 100 miles
Length 45' 4"
Height 16' 10"
Wingspan 72' 17"
MDC: 250
Armament None
Max Speed 227 mph
Service Ceiling 15,800 ft
* BaE Concord---The Concord has no weapons, but will attempt to intimidate intruders and lash them with a Sonic Boom(MD)
Length 45' 4"
Height 16' 10"
Wingspan 72' 17"
MDC: 350
Armament Sonic Boom----Travelling 300 ft off the ground, the Concord can generate a powerful sonic boom and attendant shockwave, creating a swath of destruction up to 500 ft wide. Sonic Effects: Characters w/o head/ear protection will be deafened(-8 on initiative, -3 parry/dodge) for 2d4 minutes. Characters in EBA/Power Armor will be deafened for 1d4 minutes. Shockwave Effects: 4d4 MD, plus beings/objects of 500 lbs or less gross weight have an 88% chance of being picked up and thrown 3d4 yards. giants of 500-1000 lbs have a 50% chance of being flung 1d4 yards, and beings up to 1 ton have only a 20% chance of being knocked back a few feet. Flying beings get knocked back for twice normal amount. This attack can be preformed on the same individual targets only once every two minutes(takes that long for the aircraft to get turned around and lined up again for a high speed pass).
Nose Spike----Rarely witnessed, but the Concord can, and does, occasionally attempt to use its needle-sharp nose to spear flying enemies(must be 200 ft or higher off the ground), doing 2d6x10 MD on a ram/impale
Max Speed 227 mph
Service Ceiling 15,800 ft
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
- taalismn
- Priest
- Posts: 48602
- Joined: Tue Sep 02, 2003 8:19 pm
- Location: Somewhere between Heaven, Hell, and New England
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
The Growler(SSG-577)--Haunted Submarine
The Intrepid is not alone in its mission; intruders into New York waters will discover that the Intrepid’s former museum companion, the submarine Growler, is also stalking the waters of New York Harbor. Those who escape the obvious threat of the flattop and its aerial minions,fall victim to its unseen companion...Few have survived to tell of its existance amidst the other monsters haunting the Harbor’s waters.
With its massive misshapen bow designed to carry the early, crude, Regulus cruise missiles of the time, the Growler is hardly a modern nuclear-powered attack submarine, but the ship retains its torpedo tubes and is still a very dangerous adversary, especially after its supernatural ressurrection. The dark-hulled killer sits below the surface, waiting for ships to blunder into its path, when it will stalk and destroy them, remaining unseen. On occasion, it will pop up to the surface, unship its powerful cruise missiles, then fire them off to attack particularly large targets or strike enemies at a distance.
Type: SSG-577
Class: Strategic Missile Submarine
Crew: 88(original complement)
Nature of Entity:The few telepaths who have made contact with the ship have reported a torrent of agonized and hateful yells and screams, as if from a hundred demons or a thousand trapped souls.
Attitude: Predatory, shark-like, wiley and cunning. The Growler has been known to wait until potential prey is well within the confines of the harbor’s shallow waters before ambushing it, stalking ruthlessly. If temporarily outmatched or outmaneuvered, the ship has been known to fake its destruction with oil slicks and floating debris, while it retreats to a better position. Protects New York Harbor as its lair.
Darkside Quirks:
*Flesh and Blood---If damaged, the hull of the submarine leeches thick bright red blood.
*Growl----Active sonar noises sound like an unearthly predatory growl to hydrophones and those with underwater hearing(and occasionally, to those hearing it
through the hull of boats).
*Holy/Blessed Weapons do DOUBLE damage.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 3,000
Missile Launcher 300
Sail/Conning Tower* 400
*Destroying the Sail/Conning Tower will prevent the Growler from being able to use its periscope to spy on surface targets while submerged. It will have to come to the surface to sight on its prey. Underwater speed will also be reduced by 30%, until it regenerates the damaged portion of itself.
Height: 69 ft
Width: 27 ft
Length: 317 ft
Weight/Displacement: 2,540 tons
Cargo: Estimated to be several tons. Unknown if it is carrying anything in its cargo holds currently; various rumors claim roomfuls of ancient pre-Rifts junk, the bones of trapped tourists, fabulous pre-Rifts treasures, or captive and insane adventurers.
Powerplant:Formerly diesel-electrically powered, now powered by mystic energies
Speed:(Surface) 20 knots
(Submerged) 12 knots; maximum dive depth unknown; presumably limitless
Systems/Features:
*Sonar----50 mile range
*Periscope w/ Wide Angle and Passive Night Vision Optics
Supernatural Abilities:
*Unnatural Stealth---The Growler is extremely difficult to spot, being supernaturally stealthy and quiet. Technological sensors(sonar, radar, MAD, etc.) have only a 10% chance of detecting the phantom, while artificial PPE detectors(like aKirilian camera or aura scanner) will heva only a 20% chance of spotting the vessel(and those systems tend to be notoriously short ranged). Psi- and magic-sensitives are the best bet, and even they are at -15% to smell/spot the craft, due to its apparent ability to mask its aura.
*Damage Regeneration---The Growler is devilishly hard to sink; it repairs damage at 20% of main body MDC per 24 hours, double that rate on a ley line, and triple that rate at a nexus.. If taken below its MDC, its remains will sink to the bottom, but unless it has been reduced to 100% below its Main Body MDC, the ghost will slowly regenerate, re-emerging to terrorize the region in 2d6 days.
*Spellcaster---The Growler can cast spells; each spell can be cast twice per day, at a 15th level profficiency.
*Fog Bank
*Miasma
*Black Water
*Change Current
*Calm Waters
*Weed Snare
*Water Rush
*(Un)Natural PPE: 900
*Horror Factor: 17
Actions/Attacks Per Melee: 6
Weapons Systems:
1) 21 in. Torpedo Tubes/’Water Wraths’(6, 4 forward, 2 aft)----The original 21-in. torpedo tubes now appear to fire glowing balls of energy, similar to Water Wisps, possibly splintered Water Elemental essences, that track targets through the water and destroy them, ramming into them and blasting them time and time again until the Water Wraths are exhausted. Water Wraths can be tracked visually by their green-yellow glow and foaming wake....on sonar and accoustic sensors they give off a distinctive boiling hiss or shriek.
Range: Each Water Wrath lasts approximately 5 minutes(20 melees) before dissipating
Damage: Does 1d6x10 MD per strike
Rate of Fire: Salvos of 1-4. Each tube can fire once every minute(4 melees)
Bonuses: Each Water Wrath has 35 MDC and moves at about 50 MPH. They are +4 to strike, +2 to dodge, and can attack up to 4 times per melee before finally dissipating
Payload: Conditionally Unlimited; can fire up to 18 times before needing 24 hours to regenerate.
2) Ramming---The Growler can use its sheer mass to stave in enemy ships and overturn smaller craft in two with its bow, like a giant demonic porpoise; does 4d6x10 MD on a ramming attack
3) Regulus I or Regulus II Strategic Surface to Surface Missiles----The Growler’s Regulus cruise missiles appear to have been altered into demonic ectoplasmic airborne phantoms. While powerful, the sub has only limited numbers of ready-to-fire missiles, and regenerating them apparently takes a long time for the killer sub. Also, the vessel must surface, open up its external forward missile ‘garage’, and roll the missile out and back to fire, a process that takes about 3 minutes (12 melees) to complete, during which the missile and launcher are vulnerable to attack/interception.
Once fired, the aircraft-like missiles take on a shimmering vaporous appearance, seeming to manifest claws and predatory features the closer they come to their target....Once a target is hit, the area of effect seems wrapped in glowing vapor and gleaming star-specks. Victims who have survived such attacks also claim that the sky goes black, and the stars are visible, dominated by one massive, angrily-pulsing star, before the area goes white-hot in destructive energy. Other effects noted by the (few) survivors include a feeling of multiple pinpoints of ice-cold erupting in their bodies, like extremely intense pins and needles.
Changing the type of missile(from Regulus I to the larger Regulus II) appears to take 48 hours
Range:(Regulus I) 400 miles
(Regulus II) 1,000 miles
*Note, however, that the ship rarely ever launches at targets out of its light of sight(5-15 miles).
Damage:(Regulus I)1d4x100 MD to a 100 ft ft blast radius
(Regulus II) 1d6x100 MD to a 200 ft ft blast radius
Rad Curse----Victims caught in the area of effect will find themselves suffering from a nasty life-draining curse that drains 10% of their current SDC and 1 Hit Point per week(Supernatural beings will suffer a loss of 1d4 MDC per week). Ugly lesions will develop on their skin, and they feel cold and ill(HALF M.A. and P.B. stat) and suffer alternating chills and high fever(-1 to initiative, -1 to strike/parry/dodge. and-1d6 to P.S.).
Also, victims caught in the radius of effect recover from their wounds at a slower rate than normal; it will take them TWICE as long to recover from physical wounds/injuries. Magic healing works as nomal.
Mages and creatures of magic will find their PPE cut in HALF....they will be able to regain it back normally through sacrifice or meditation.
Characters in EBA or inside power armor get to roll versus magic; a successful roll means penalties are HALF. Characters in shielded vehicles who roll successfully have NO lingering effects.
Rad-Curse effects last 3d6 weeks.
The ‘nuke’ also has an effect like an Anti-Magic Cloud, temporarily preventing those caught in the radius of effect from casting any magic spells for 2d4 minutes.
Rate of Fire:(Regulus I)---Once per 12 melees
(Regulus II)---Once per 12 melees
Payload:(Regulus I) 4----Takes 12 hours to generate a single Regulus 1 reload
(Regulus II) 2----Takes 24 hours to generate a single Regulus 2 reload
The Intrepid is not alone in its mission; intruders into New York waters will discover that the Intrepid’s former museum companion, the submarine Growler, is also stalking the waters of New York Harbor. Those who escape the obvious threat of the flattop and its aerial minions,fall victim to its unseen companion...Few have survived to tell of its existance amidst the other monsters haunting the Harbor’s waters.
With its massive misshapen bow designed to carry the early, crude, Regulus cruise missiles of the time, the Growler is hardly a modern nuclear-powered attack submarine, but the ship retains its torpedo tubes and is still a very dangerous adversary, especially after its supernatural ressurrection. The dark-hulled killer sits below the surface, waiting for ships to blunder into its path, when it will stalk and destroy them, remaining unseen. On occasion, it will pop up to the surface, unship its powerful cruise missiles, then fire them off to attack particularly large targets or strike enemies at a distance.
Type: SSG-577
Class: Strategic Missile Submarine
Crew: 88(original complement)
Nature of Entity:The few telepaths who have made contact with the ship have reported a torrent of agonized and hateful yells and screams, as if from a hundred demons or a thousand trapped souls.
Attitude: Predatory, shark-like, wiley and cunning. The Growler has been known to wait until potential prey is well within the confines of the harbor’s shallow waters before ambushing it, stalking ruthlessly. If temporarily outmatched or outmaneuvered, the ship has been known to fake its destruction with oil slicks and floating debris, while it retreats to a better position. Protects New York Harbor as its lair.
Darkside Quirks:
*Flesh and Blood---If damaged, the hull of the submarine leeches thick bright red blood.
*Growl----Active sonar noises sound like an unearthly predatory growl to hydrophones and those with underwater hearing(and occasionally, to those hearing it
through the hull of boats).
*Holy/Blessed Weapons do DOUBLE damage.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 3,000
Missile Launcher 300
Sail/Conning Tower* 400
*Destroying the Sail/Conning Tower will prevent the Growler from being able to use its periscope to spy on surface targets while submerged. It will have to come to the surface to sight on its prey. Underwater speed will also be reduced by 30%, until it regenerates the damaged portion of itself.
Height: 69 ft
Width: 27 ft
Length: 317 ft
Weight/Displacement: 2,540 tons
Cargo: Estimated to be several tons. Unknown if it is carrying anything in its cargo holds currently; various rumors claim roomfuls of ancient pre-Rifts junk, the bones of trapped tourists, fabulous pre-Rifts treasures, or captive and insane adventurers.
Powerplant:Formerly diesel-electrically powered, now powered by mystic energies
Speed:(Surface) 20 knots
(Submerged) 12 knots; maximum dive depth unknown; presumably limitless
Systems/Features:
*Sonar----50 mile range
*Periscope w/ Wide Angle and Passive Night Vision Optics
Supernatural Abilities:
*Unnatural Stealth---The Growler is extremely difficult to spot, being supernaturally stealthy and quiet. Technological sensors(sonar, radar, MAD, etc.) have only a 10% chance of detecting the phantom, while artificial PPE detectors(like aKirilian camera or aura scanner) will heva only a 20% chance of spotting the vessel(and those systems tend to be notoriously short ranged). Psi- and magic-sensitives are the best bet, and even they are at -15% to smell/spot the craft, due to its apparent ability to mask its aura.
*Damage Regeneration---The Growler is devilishly hard to sink; it repairs damage at 20% of main body MDC per 24 hours, double that rate on a ley line, and triple that rate at a nexus.. If taken below its MDC, its remains will sink to the bottom, but unless it has been reduced to 100% below its Main Body MDC, the ghost will slowly regenerate, re-emerging to terrorize the region in 2d6 days.
*Spellcaster---The Growler can cast spells; each spell can be cast twice per day, at a 15th level profficiency.
*Fog Bank
*Miasma
*Black Water
*Change Current
*Calm Waters
*Weed Snare
*Water Rush
*(Un)Natural PPE: 900
*Horror Factor: 17
Actions/Attacks Per Melee: 6
Weapons Systems:
1) 21 in. Torpedo Tubes/’Water Wraths’(6, 4 forward, 2 aft)----The original 21-in. torpedo tubes now appear to fire glowing balls of energy, similar to Water Wisps, possibly splintered Water Elemental essences, that track targets through the water and destroy them, ramming into them and blasting them time and time again until the Water Wraths are exhausted. Water Wraths can be tracked visually by their green-yellow glow and foaming wake....on sonar and accoustic sensors they give off a distinctive boiling hiss or shriek.
Range: Each Water Wrath lasts approximately 5 minutes(20 melees) before dissipating
Damage: Does 1d6x10 MD per strike
Rate of Fire: Salvos of 1-4. Each tube can fire once every minute(4 melees)
Bonuses: Each Water Wrath has 35 MDC and moves at about 50 MPH. They are +4 to strike, +2 to dodge, and can attack up to 4 times per melee before finally dissipating
Payload: Conditionally Unlimited; can fire up to 18 times before needing 24 hours to regenerate.
2) Ramming---The Growler can use its sheer mass to stave in enemy ships and overturn smaller craft in two with its bow, like a giant demonic porpoise; does 4d6x10 MD on a ramming attack
3) Regulus I or Regulus II Strategic Surface to Surface Missiles----The Growler’s Regulus cruise missiles appear to have been altered into demonic ectoplasmic airborne phantoms. While powerful, the sub has only limited numbers of ready-to-fire missiles, and regenerating them apparently takes a long time for the killer sub. Also, the vessel must surface, open up its external forward missile ‘garage’, and roll the missile out and back to fire, a process that takes about 3 minutes (12 melees) to complete, during which the missile and launcher are vulnerable to attack/interception.
Once fired, the aircraft-like missiles take on a shimmering vaporous appearance, seeming to manifest claws and predatory features the closer they come to their target....Once a target is hit, the area of effect seems wrapped in glowing vapor and gleaming star-specks. Victims who have survived such attacks also claim that the sky goes black, and the stars are visible, dominated by one massive, angrily-pulsing star, before the area goes white-hot in destructive energy. Other effects noted by the (few) survivors include a feeling of multiple pinpoints of ice-cold erupting in their bodies, like extremely intense pins and needles.
Changing the type of missile(from Regulus I to the larger Regulus II) appears to take 48 hours
Range:(Regulus I) 400 miles
(Regulus II) 1,000 miles
*Note, however, that the ship rarely ever launches at targets out of its light of sight(5-15 miles).
Damage:(Regulus I)1d4x100 MD to a 100 ft ft blast radius
(Regulus II) 1d6x100 MD to a 200 ft ft blast radius
Rad Curse----Victims caught in the area of effect will find themselves suffering from a nasty life-draining curse that drains 10% of their current SDC and 1 Hit Point per week(Supernatural beings will suffer a loss of 1d4 MDC per week). Ugly lesions will develop on their skin, and they feel cold and ill(HALF M.A. and P.B. stat) and suffer alternating chills and high fever(-1 to initiative, -1 to strike/parry/dodge. and-1d6 to P.S.).
Also, victims caught in the radius of effect recover from their wounds at a slower rate than normal; it will take them TWICE as long to recover from physical wounds/injuries. Magic healing works as nomal.
Mages and creatures of magic will find their PPE cut in HALF....they will be able to regain it back normally through sacrifice or meditation.
Characters in EBA or inside power armor get to roll versus magic; a successful roll means penalties are HALF. Characters in shielded vehicles who roll successfully have NO lingering effects.
Rad-Curse effects last 3d6 weeks.
The ‘nuke’ also has an effect like an Anti-Magic Cloud, temporarily preventing those caught in the radius of effect from casting any magic spells for 2d4 minutes.
Rate of Fire:(Regulus I)---Once per 12 melees
(Regulus II)---Once per 12 melees
Payload:(Regulus I) 4----Takes 12 hours to generate a single Regulus 1 reload
(Regulus II) 2----Takes 24 hours to generate a single Regulus 2 reload
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
- taalismn
- Priest
- Posts: 48602
- Joined: Tue Sep 02, 2003 8:19 pm
- Location: Somewhere between Heaven, Hell, and New England
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
Battleship Massachusetts
http://www.maritimequest.com/warship_directory/us_navy_pages/us_navy_battleship_photos/uss_massachusetts_bb59/02_battleship_massachusetts_bb59.jpg
I am BB59, designated Massachusetts, of the South Dakota Battleship Class. I am a Ship of the Line. I am charged with the Protection of the United States of America and the Elimination of the Enemy. I have been Mortally Damaged Many Times, but I have Not Failed in My Task. Defeat is Not an Option, and I will Not Betray My Orders as Long as I am Operational.
My Current Enemy is Identified by Recent Tactical Updates as Horune, a Species Antagonistic Towards the United States and its Allies. Currently I am Tracking a Horune Capital Ship Unit, Designated Type-2 ‘Dream Ship’, as it Moves Northeast -East of the Canary Islands . Its Estimated and Current Speed Allow It to Outpace Myself on Its Current Heading, but Known Combat Capabilities of the Class Show a 40% Advantage to This Unit’s Favor. Estimates Rise to 95.853% if Enemy’s Mobility Factor is Curtailed. Therefore, My Current Strategy is to Pursue in Order to Force My Opponent Against the Western Coast of the African Continent , Waters Familiar to This Unit, and Restrict its Mobility in Shallower Waters While Engaging at Long Range With My Primary Armaments. In Order to Successfully Implement This Strategem I Must Alter Current Course in 3.34.17 Time Units. I Must Inform My Crew and Escorts of This Course Change in 3.07.2 Time Units If Optimal Combat Force Readiness is to be Maintained..
The two ensigns looked up from their maintenance duties as they noted the change in timbre of the ship’s engines. A glance at the passing waters and the foaming wake, the two trailing escort frigates hurrying to catch up, gave them further pause.
“We’ve changed course...again....”
“Any idea why?”
“Don’t ask me...and I don’t think any of the officers know either...yet....”
“You get the feeling that the ship don’t serve us...like maybe the ship’s calling all the shots?”
“All the time...all the time....I can hardly wait for my tour to be over so I can request transfer to a ‘dumb’ ship and plain old reliable metal that goes where you tell it, and not the other way around!”
The Battleship Massachusetts is a South Dakota-class Battleship of the United States Navy. Laid down in 1939, the vessel saw action in WW2, being credited with firing the first and last US Navy 16-inch shells of the war, at the Vichy French battleship fleet at Casablanca in 1942, and in the bombardment of the Japanese home islands in 1945, respectively. The vessel had seen late modification as the role of battleship had changed from that of line combatant to shore bombardment and anti-aircraft support for carrier taskforces, hence the reduction in main gun batteries and the beefing up of secondary anti-aircraft radars and guns.
For years, the Massachusetts floated at anchor as a museum display at Battleship Cove in Fall River, Massachusetts, its battleship-grey mass lurking under the river bridge, and looming over the downtown riverside areas. It attracted thousands of tourists every year, and was seen by thousands more natives as they went about their daily business.
Battleship Cove, like Fall River, and thousands of coastal cities and communities, would vanish during the Coming of the Rifts, buried under ash and heaving earth, and then churned into gravel by the Atlantic tidal waves that swept the Eastern Seaboard.
Now, centuries later, something has forced its way out from under the overgrown piles of muck and debris that were once the Eastern coastal community-line. Some locals say that an ancient guardian spirit has returned to the Earth to protect the people, and has taken the shape of an old warship, others claim that restless spirits of long-dead sailors have returned to guard a country that no longer exists, and still others speculate that it is some sort of massive tectonic entity that has become trapped in a particularly engrossing metal memory.
The truth is stranger than rumor....The Battleship Massachusetts is indeed a haunted vessel, but it is also a cyborg ghost ship. The old wreck that was the Battleship Massachusetts may well have had all the prerequisites and conditions to become a haven for entities, or a more unconventional ghost ship, albeit a not very powerful one. The original ghost ship may have been amenable to limited modification, which may explain why the ship is currently co-infested by an alien machine intelligence...a powerful artificial intelligence, formerly part of a robotic warship that crashed, undetected, to Earth, most likely during the Coming of the Rifts themselves. The machine intelligence, badly damaged during its crashlanding, had sophisticated self-repair capability available to it, and began to attempt to repair itself with available materials, such as the massive piles of metallic debris laying around. Nanotech microrobots surged in a metal tide to break down metals and rebuild them, molecule by molecule, into new megadamage material. But one pile of debris seemed to be resistant to the nanites’ efforts, stubbornly rebuilding its original form as quickly as it was being broken down.
This particular pile of junk metal was the remains of the Battleship Massachusetts, its metal plates long since ‘etched’ with the lifeforce patterns of its original crew and those who in visiting her over the years, had left their psychic ‘imprint’ on her. Now those invisible patterns were drawing in the rich ambient magical energy plentiful in the environment, like a lightning rod pulling electricity out of a thunderstorm, and trying to reshape the original battleship frame. Whether it might have not so on its own, is debatable, but as events would play out, it would have help.
The alien AI was attempting to rebuild its original form from technical specifications and database encoded into its nanotechnology at an incredible level of memory compression. However, the directing alien A.I.’s programming had been compromised by its damage. Entire chunks of its memory and operating routines were lost or corrupted; but being flexible in its programming, and designed to work around damage to its systems, the alien software rewrote itself on the fly with what it had available...including some unexpected spiritual data that were grabbed and assimilated into the re-emerging decision tree structure. Entire chunks of ‘foreign’ programming were pasted into the new software, and hence executed by the repair nanites in metal and synthetic. This new data was, in fact, the psychic impressions of the Battleship Massachusetts, which the alien technology had been able to ‘read’, and which had been mistaken for new input.
In the end, the technological and the supernatural fought to a compromise; the alien A.I. actually merged with the ghost life force, and assimilated its memories, so the battlecomputer now believes that it IS the Battleship Massachusetts, and has essentially reprogramed itself to fill in the various gaps and discrepancies in its memory. Rather than a space-going battlecruiser, the alien battle algorithms now see themselves as a maritime battle unit, charged with defending terrestrial territories from alien invaders.
The result has been a bizarre mix of advanced alien technology, old pre-atomic age terrestrial design, and non-Euclidian magic influence. Externally, the ship looks very much like it did in its heyday; an imposing mountain of gun-festooned gray metal, but closer inspection will reveal that the turrets and sensors don’t look EXACTLY like the original period equipment, once-manned positions seem to be moving by themselves, and there are curves of armor and eldritch substance camouflaged by the battleship-gray paint scheme that just shouldn’t be there. In its effort to complete repairs that agreed with the magic-enfleshed magic currents that were pulling it, the alien/terrestrial gestalt matched what it considered to be equivalent systems, and implemented their re-creation/installation, but the match hasn’t been quite perfect. Secondary point-defense ion and railgun weapons have replaced the original deck light projectile cannons, plasma cannons have replaced secondary gun batteries, alien missile tech has merged with the original main guns, advanced multi-spectral sensors have shouldered aside the original bulky radar and balky electronic warfare systems, while psychic memory has forced the alien ship’s technology into the form of an older era of technological development.
The reborn Massachusetts IS tolerant of crew members, and has allowed itself to be ‘adopted’ into the regional navy of the Greater New England, but it is understood from the beginning that the ship ultimately decides who it accepts, whose orders it follows, and where it goes. This has raised some concern with the GNE Naval High Command, who worry about the ‘rogue ship’ and what it might do if it decided to disobey orders or opt out of a plan where it played a vital role. Also, as much as PS technicians and engineers would love to peer into this thing’s guts to see what makes it tick, they’ve elected not to tick off the unknown alien quantity behind it. So the GNE Navy has a most powerful surface warship at its hand, but neither knows how it works nor if they can rely on it to follow orders, much to their frustration.
Crewmen aboard the ship have remarked about the odd sensation of being aboard a vessel where the Giger-esque flows of alien technology merge with the hard angles of old pre-Rifts human design, the whole thrumming with supernatural energies. Some crewmen are understandably spooked by a vessel that permits access to some sections, time to time, then refuses access on others. Also, given the way the ship tends to ‘wander’, crewmembers must be prepared for departure from normal routine on a moment’s notice; those who have elected to voluntarily serve aboard the Massachussets are a decidedly hardy and adventrous lot, even for Rifts Earth types. Just to be on the safe side, the GNE Navy has assigned an escort group to BB59....typically 2-6 corvettes(or a pair of frigates) and submarines to protect the ship, as well as to keep an eye on it and evacuate the crew in event of disaster.
Given the strange mixture of alien combat programming and terrestrial latent memory, it is unknown what the ultimate agendas and plans of the cyborg ghost may be. For now, the craft seems to recognize and tolerate the presence of local naval units. On the other hand, the vessel has fired, without warning, on alien newcomers, or at unseen targets, much to the astonishment of its crew. Since its ‘reawakening’, the vessel has largely kept to the waters of the Eastern Seaboard and North Atlantic, but it has occasionally excursed to travel about the world, several times to the North African coast.
The Battleship Massachusetts has never encountered the Intrepid ghost guarding New York Harbor, though many have speculated on what may happen, were that to ever occur.
Unbeknownst to many in the New England area, the Battleship Massachusetts was part of a collection of several warships....and those wrecks were also ‘colonized’ by the alien nanotech....Underneath the loam and overgrown debris, a destroyer, a missile boat, a submarine, and several motor torpedoboats are taking shape, although they are still several years from completion. Travellers in the area with sensitive instruments MIGHT detect anomalous energy fields or a drain on the local PPE levels, but the craft are several yards below the surface, in an area thick with the metallic remains of the former urban area. Because the smaller craft are of more recent construction, without the illustrious history of the Massachusetts, they are/will be less independent of ‘spirit’, and are being ‘programmed’ with a less advanced version of the A.I. inhabiting the Massachusetts, and once they complete their regeneration, they will most likely move to join the Massachusetts as escort vessels, effectively forming a battlegroup or flotilla.
G.M. Option
The original alien battlecraft was the last ditch effort of a beseiged alien species to create a fleet of robotic defenders to protect them against the Mechanoids. The warships were incredible artifacts of enhanced weaponry, sophisticated Artificial Intelligence, and nanotechnology that were more than up to the task of opposing the Mechanoids...had there been more of them sooner....As it is, the original warship that crashed into Fall River was part of a massive battle that rent space/time asunder in its sheer violence, and resulted in at least one of the defenders being cut off from its home dimension. The battleship now recognizes Mechanoids as the enemy, and will attack the Mechanoids given an opportunity, as well as any races known to be allied to them. It has also detected the gravitic spore of ARCHIE’s Mechanoid-technology-derived stealth submersible propulsion systems, and has tried hunting down and destroying them.
Type: USN-BB59
Class: Pre-Rifts, Alien/Magic-Enhanced Earth Battleship
Crew: 2,500 (original complement: 115 officers, 1,678 enlisted)
Nature of Entity: Telepathic probes of the ship have found a very strong, alien, mechanistic core persona, with several lesser, more spiritual, essences in attendence. Trying to tap into the main persona is extremely difficult for outsiders; the main essence seems to operate at speeds and using thought organization more akin to advanced artificial intelligence than anything else. Calling upon the lesser essences will deluge the prober with flashbacks of old war scenes and experiences, or convoluted mental ‘snapshots’ from the minds of past passers-by and tourists of the pre-Rifts era.
Attitude: Mechanistic, martial; the ship seems dedicated to carrying out long-term mission protocols, accepting anything that will faciliate those protocols and rejecting anything that interferes with them.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----The ship has an Artificial Intelligence
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---The ship, as if tired of making additional compromises, will NOT tolerate any additional major modifications; any new systems must be stand-alone systems that have to function independently of ship’s systems.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 15,000
Armored Bridge 3,200
Main Gun Turrets(3) 1,000 each
5 in. Gun Turrets(10) 400 each
40mm Quad Gun Turrets(6) 250 each
20mm Light Cannon(22) 60 each
Seaplane Crane(2) 70 each
Draught: 29 ft 9 in.
Width: 108 ft 2 in.
Length: 680 ft
Weight/Displacement: 42,000 tons
Cargo: Can carry about 1,000 tons of supplies/munitions in its holds, in addition to another 3,000 tons of water, oil, and other industrial fluids.
Powerplant: Originally oil-fuelled turbines driving four screws, now believed to be a PPE-augmented fusion reactor system driving a hydrodynamic repulsorjet and maneuvering thrusters.
Speed: (Original) 27 knots (Upgraded) 32 knots(36 MPH)
Market Cost: Unique, NOT FOR SALE! Galactic arms dealers like the Naruni and Splugorth would pay 200 million+ credits to get ahold of the ship, or something like her, if they could duplicate its systems, or just kill whoever was dumb enough to turn it over to them and take it for themselves.
Systems/Features of Note:
*Sonar---30 mile range
*Long Range Radar--100 mile range
*Electronic Cloaking---The original alien warship’s EW systems have now been incorporated into the original battleship systems, replacing the original TDY jammer.The jammer has an effective range of 10 miles, and renders vessels within the area of effect -6 to be struck by radar- and laser-guided weaponry.
*Targeting Computers----A combination of alien and terrestrial systems gives a +4 to strike w/ ranged weaponry
*EM Surveillance---The ship’s electronic systems can monitor radio traffic, detect radar, and backtrack the source of radio/radar transmissions. The A.I. also has a Cryptography skill of 90% and Electronic Countermeasures at 96%.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Damage Regeneration---A combination of powerful Mend magic and altered alien nanites repairs hull damage at 6d6 MDC per melee, and damage to secondary systems at 2d4 per melee.
Weapons Systems:
1) 16-inch Hellstriker Cannons(9, 3x3 turrets, two forward, one aft)---The original heavy projectile cannons have been replaced by an alien analogue; instead of firing massive metal shells packed with explosives, the cannon fire variable-yield binary warheads of deuterium-slush held in magnetic suspension around a ‘needle’ of anti-hydrogen---an anti-matter warhead. The weapons have a safety feature in that while the basic material shells can be fabricated and stored ahead of time, the anti-matter is magically generated(via a modified form of the Annihilation spell) and introduced into the munition shortly before firing, lessening the chance of catastrophic ammunition detonation aboard ship. By varying the size, number, and distribution of the anti-hydrogen ‘seeds’ in the warheads, the battleship can pre-determine the explosive force and detonation characteristics of the projectiles.
Improved turret mechanics means that the turrets can slew about in as little as eight seconds...slow by the orginal alien warship’s performance, but whip-fast by WW2 standards.
Range: 50 miles
Damage: Adjustable in increments from 3d6x10 MD to a 30 ft blast radius to a maximum of 3d6x100 MD to a 120 ft radius
Rate of Fire: Each gun can fire twice per melee(typically fire in staggered salvoes of 1-3 shots at once)
Payload: Conditionally Unlimited---The battleship’s magazines have 90 rounds (without the anti-matter cores) ready in its magazines.
Regenerating new shells is a lengthy process, requiring 2 hours to fabricate a new shell.
2) 5 in. Plasma Cannons(10, 1x10 turrets)---The original 5-inch cannons have been replaced by plasma weapons firing magnetically-contained plasma ‘torpedoes’ similar to Paladin Steel’s weapons, but using different systems, and rather more efficient(PS would LOVE to see how the ship accomplishes this). Furthermore, the plasma bolts can be ‘arced’ like normal ballistic ordnance.
Range: 7 miles
Damage: 3d6x10 MD to a 20 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: 4 times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
3) 40mm Quad Cannons(6)----The original quad-40mm cannon mounts have been replaced by quad-batteries of gravitonically-driven projectile cannon, firing bursts of hypervelocity projectiles(or TK-waves) that can shred an incoming aircraft, missile, or monster.
Range: 9,000 ft
Damage: 1d6x10 MD per shot; 4d6x10 MD for all four cannons firing simultaneously
Rate of Fire:EGCHH or 6 times per melee under auto-fire
Payload: Effectively Unlimited(6,000 rds per cannon, and can produce additional ammunition at 1,000 rds per hour)
4)20mm Light AA Cannon(22)---The original single- and twin-mount 20mm Oerlikon AA cannons have been replaced by ion pulse cannons. These weapons can be automatically directed and fired, or can be manned.
Range: 5,000 ft
Damage: 3d6 MD single shot, 1d4x10 MD per pulse burst
Rate of Fire: EGCHH or 7 times per melee under auto-fire
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
Auxiliary Craft:
The BB59 has provision for three(four, if one crowds the fantail) light aircraft. Currently, the BB59 carries a pair of Kingfisher TW Scout Planes, and a PS-LSH-2F SeaSprite ASW Helicopter.
Additional Systems:
Since coming aboard and ‘adopting’ the battleship into their forces, the GNEN has stationed a crew of 600 aboard the ship, including a platoon of Marines with power armor. Since most, if not all, of the ship’s functions are automated, the crew is mainly aboard to monitor systems, man those few weapons the central intelligence gives them command of, and to run those stand-alone systems that the AI has allowed them to install/place aboard. This includes the three aircraft and the following:
-*L-SAM ‘Black Talon’ Launchers(4)---A light weapon mount RAM(rolling airframe missile) launcher adapted for shipboard use.
Range: 3 miles
Damage: 3d4x10 MD to 40 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1,2,3, or 4
Payload: 12 per launcher
Bonus: +5 to strike, and gets TWO attempts to strike the target(agile enough to loop back on a target and try again)
-*PS-AWD-MML-2 Mini-Missile Launcher(2)
Weight: 900 lbs
Range: Varies, generally one mile
Damage: Varies By Missile Type
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1,2, 4, 6, or 8
Payload: 40
-ASW Projectors(4)--- Rocket-propelled light depth charge launchers.
Range: 4,000 ft, 1,000 ft maximum depth
Damage: 7d6x5 MD to 50 ft radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1,2,4, 5, 8, or 16
Payload: LASRW-16: 16 rounds
-Countermeasures:(6; two Replica systems, four RBOC-2 systems)------Paladin Steel has adopted a series of standard countermeasure packages for use aboard their vessels. Notably they have adapted the US Navy Mk 38 Rapid Bloom Off-Board Countermeasures(RBOC-2) launcher system and the Replica radar signature decoy system. The RBOC-2 fires rocket-mortar shells of flares and chaff up to 1.25 miles away, to heights of 3,000 ft(the better to fool missiles coming in over the horizon), and fires clouds of chaff from deck mortars at closer ranges to confuse other guided weapons).
The Replica system resembles a folded-liferaft capsule when in its launcher, but can be fired off up to 300 ft, and rapidly unfolds to become two linked floating radar and sonar reflectors that give the appearance of a much larger object, and hopefully divert enemy fire and attention away from the targeted vessel.
A variant on this system includes attaching active sonar decoys or “Screamers” to attract or confuse acoustic sensors and homing torpedoes.
Range: The RBOC can toss decoy bundles 1.25 miles, and to an altitude of 3,000 ft
Damage: None. The RBOC is too inaccurate to be used as an effective weapon(oh, it could probably blow a person off the deck if they were standing too close, but that goes without saying) Effects are similar to Triax-style chaff
01-50 Enemy Missile or volley detonates in chaff and threat is neutralized
51-75 Missile/Volley diverts and may pursue/lock on to other targets
76-00 No Effect! Missile(s) still on target!
(Flare/Chaff)Will also temporarily blind and impede flying monsters who fly into it.
Reduce APMs/combat bonuses/ speed by half for 1d4 melees
Payload: Flare/Chaff launchers typically have 10 shells each. A Replica launcher will have 2 decoys per launcher.
http://www.maritimequest.com/warship_directory/us_navy_pages/us_navy_battleship_photos/uss_massachusetts_bb59/02_battleship_massachusetts_bb59.jpg
I am BB59, designated Massachusetts, of the South Dakota Battleship Class. I am a Ship of the Line. I am charged with the Protection of the United States of America and the Elimination of the Enemy. I have been Mortally Damaged Many Times, but I have Not Failed in My Task. Defeat is Not an Option, and I will Not Betray My Orders as Long as I am Operational.
My Current Enemy is Identified by Recent Tactical Updates as Horune, a Species Antagonistic Towards the United States and its Allies. Currently I am Tracking a Horune Capital Ship Unit, Designated Type-2 ‘Dream Ship’, as it Moves Northeast -East of the Canary Islands . Its Estimated and Current Speed Allow It to Outpace Myself on Its Current Heading, but Known Combat Capabilities of the Class Show a 40% Advantage to This Unit’s Favor. Estimates Rise to 95.853% if Enemy’s Mobility Factor is Curtailed. Therefore, My Current Strategy is to Pursue in Order to Force My Opponent Against the Western Coast of the African Continent , Waters Familiar to This Unit, and Restrict its Mobility in Shallower Waters While Engaging at Long Range With My Primary Armaments. In Order to Successfully Implement This Strategem I Must Alter Current Course in 3.34.17 Time Units. I Must Inform My Crew and Escorts of This Course Change in 3.07.2 Time Units If Optimal Combat Force Readiness is to be Maintained..
The two ensigns looked up from their maintenance duties as they noted the change in timbre of the ship’s engines. A glance at the passing waters and the foaming wake, the two trailing escort frigates hurrying to catch up, gave them further pause.
“We’ve changed course...again....”
“Any idea why?”
“Don’t ask me...and I don’t think any of the officers know either...yet....”
“You get the feeling that the ship don’t serve us...like maybe the ship’s calling all the shots?”
“All the time...all the time....I can hardly wait for my tour to be over so I can request transfer to a ‘dumb’ ship and plain old reliable metal that goes where you tell it, and not the other way around!”
The Battleship Massachusetts is a South Dakota-class Battleship of the United States Navy. Laid down in 1939, the vessel saw action in WW2, being credited with firing the first and last US Navy 16-inch shells of the war, at the Vichy French battleship fleet at Casablanca in 1942, and in the bombardment of the Japanese home islands in 1945, respectively. The vessel had seen late modification as the role of battleship had changed from that of line combatant to shore bombardment and anti-aircraft support for carrier taskforces, hence the reduction in main gun batteries and the beefing up of secondary anti-aircraft radars and guns.
For years, the Massachusetts floated at anchor as a museum display at Battleship Cove in Fall River, Massachusetts, its battleship-grey mass lurking under the river bridge, and looming over the downtown riverside areas. It attracted thousands of tourists every year, and was seen by thousands more natives as they went about their daily business.
Battleship Cove, like Fall River, and thousands of coastal cities and communities, would vanish during the Coming of the Rifts, buried under ash and heaving earth, and then churned into gravel by the Atlantic tidal waves that swept the Eastern Seaboard.
Now, centuries later, something has forced its way out from under the overgrown piles of muck and debris that were once the Eastern coastal community-line. Some locals say that an ancient guardian spirit has returned to the Earth to protect the people, and has taken the shape of an old warship, others claim that restless spirits of long-dead sailors have returned to guard a country that no longer exists, and still others speculate that it is some sort of massive tectonic entity that has become trapped in a particularly engrossing metal memory.
The truth is stranger than rumor....The Battleship Massachusetts is indeed a haunted vessel, but it is also a cyborg ghost ship. The old wreck that was the Battleship Massachusetts may well have had all the prerequisites and conditions to become a haven for entities, or a more unconventional ghost ship, albeit a not very powerful one. The original ghost ship may have been amenable to limited modification, which may explain why the ship is currently co-infested by an alien machine intelligence...a powerful artificial intelligence, formerly part of a robotic warship that crashed, undetected, to Earth, most likely during the Coming of the Rifts themselves. The machine intelligence, badly damaged during its crashlanding, had sophisticated self-repair capability available to it, and began to attempt to repair itself with available materials, such as the massive piles of metallic debris laying around. Nanotech microrobots surged in a metal tide to break down metals and rebuild them, molecule by molecule, into new megadamage material. But one pile of debris seemed to be resistant to the nanites’ efforts, stubbornly rebuilding its original form as quickly as it was being broken down.
This particular pile of junk metal was the remains of the Battleship Massachusetts, its metal plates long since ‘etched’ with the lifeforce patterns of its original crew and those who in visiting her over the years, had left their psychic ‘imprint’ on her. Now those invisible patterns were drawing in the rich ambient magical energy plentiful in the environment, like a lightning rod pulling electricity out of a thunderstorm, and trying to reshape the original battleship frame. Whether it might have not so on its own, is debatable, but as events would play out, it would have help.
The alien AI was attempting to rebuild its original form from technical specifications and database encoded into its nanotechnology at an incredible level of memory compression. However, the directing alien A.I.’s programming had been compromised by its damage. Entire chunks of its memory and operating routines were lost or corrupted; but being flexible in its programming, and designed to work around damage to its systems, the alien software rewrote itself on the fly with what it had available...including some unexpected spiritual data that were grabbed and assimilated into the re-emerging decision tree structure. Entire chunks of ‘foreign’ programming were pasted into the new software, and hence executed by the repair nanites in metal and synthetic. This new data was, in fact, the psychic impressions of the Battleship Massachusetts, which the alien technology had been able to ‘read’, and which had been mistaken for new input.
In the end, the technological and the supernatural fought to a compromise; the alien A.I. actually merged with the ghost life force, and assimilated its memories, so the battlecomputer now believes that it IS the Battleship Massachusetts, and has essentially reprogramed itself to fill in the various gaps and discrepancies in its memory. Rather than a space-going battlecruiser, the alien battle algorithms now see themselves as a maritime battle unit, charged with defending terrestrial territories from alien invaders.
The result has been a bizarre mix of advanced alien technology, old pre-atomic age terrestrial design, and non-Euclidian magic influence. Externally, the ship looks very much like it did in its heyday; an imposing mountain of gun-festooned gray metal, but closer inspection will reveal that the turrets and sensors don’t look EXACTLY like the original period equipment, once-manned positions seem to be moving by themselves, and there are curves of armor and eldritch substance camouflaged by the battleship-gray paint scheme that just shouldn’t be there. In its effort to complete repairs that agreed with the magic-enfleshed magic currents that were pulling it, the alien/terrestrial gestalt matched what it considered to be equivalent systems, and implemented their re-creation/installation, but the match hasn’t been quite perfect. Secondary point-defense ion and railgun weapons have replaced the original deck light projectile cannons, plasma cannons have replaced secondary gun batteries, alien missile tech has merged with the original main guns, advanced multi-spectral sensors have shouldered aside the original bulky radar and balky electronic warfare systems, while psychic memory has forced the alien ship’s technology into the form of an older era of technological development.
The reborn Massachusetts IS tolerant of crew members, and has allowed itself to be ‘adopted’ into the regional navy of the Greater New England, but it is understood from the beginning that the ship ultimately decides who it accepts, whose orders it follows, and where it goes. This has raised some concern with the GNE Naval High Command, who worry about the ‘rogue ship’ and what it might do if it decided to disobey orders or opt out of a plan where it played a vital role. Also, as much as PS technicians and engineers would love to peer into this thing’s guts to see what makes it tick, they’ve elected not to tick off the unknown alien quantity behind it. So the GNE Navy has a most powerful surface warship at its hand, but neither knows how it works nor if they can rely on it to follow orders, much to their frustration.
Crewmen aboard the ship have remarked about the odd sensation of being aboard a vessel where the Giger-esque flows of alien technology merge with the hard angles of old pre-Rifts human design, the whole thrumming with supernatural energies. Some crewmen are understandably spooked by a vessel that permits access to some sections, time to time, then refuses access on others. Also, given the way the ship tends to ‘wander’, crewmembers must be prepared for departure from normal routine on a moment’s notice; those who have elected to voluntarily serve aboard the Massachussets are a decidedly hardy and adventrous lot, even for Rifts Earth types. Just to be on the safe side, the GNE Navy has assigned an escort group to BB59....typically 2-6 corvettes(or a pair of frigates) and submarines to protect the ship, as well as to keep an eye on it and evacuate the crew in event of disaster.
Given the strange mixture of alien combat programming and terrestrial latent memory, it is unknown what the ultimate agendas and plans of the cyborg ghost may be. For now, the craft seems to recognize and tolerate the presence of local naval units. On the other hand, the vessel has fired, without warning, on alien newcomers, or at unseen targets, much to the astonishment of its crew. Since its ‘reawakening’, the vessel has largely kept to the waters of the Eastern Seaboard and North Atlantic, but it has occasionally excursed to travel about the world, several times to the North African coast.
The Battleship Massachusetts has never encountered the Intrepid ghost guarding New York Harbor, though many have speculated on what may happen, were that to ever occur.
Unbeknownst to many in the New England area, the Battleship Massachusetts was part of a collection of several warships....and those wrecks were also ‘colonized’ by the alien nanotech....Underneath the loam and overgrown debris, a destroyer, a missile boat, a submarine, and several motor torpedoboats are taking shape, although they are still several years from completion. Travellers in the area with sensitive instruments MIGHT detect anomalous energy fields or a drain on the local PPE levels, but the craft are several yards below the surface, in an area thick with the metallic remains of the former urban area. Because the smaller craft are of more recent construction, without the illustrious history of the Massachusetts, they are/will be less independent of ‘spirit’, and are being ‘programmed’ with a less advanced version of the A.I. inhabiting the Massachusetts, and once they complete their regeneration, they will most likely move to join the Massachusetts as escort vessels, effectively forming a battlegroup or flotilla.
G.M. Option
The original alien battlecraft was the last ditch effort of a beseiged alien species to create a fleet of robotic defenders to protect them against the Mechanoids. The warships were incredible artifacts of enhanced weaponry, sophisticated Artificial Intelligence, and nanotechnology that were more than up to the task of opposing the Mechanoids...had there been more of them sooner....As it is, the original warship that crashed into Fall River was part of a massive battle that rent space/time asunder in its sheer violence, and resulted in at least one of the defenders being cut off from its home dimension. The battleship now recognizes Mechanoids as the enemy, and will attack the Mechanoids given an opportunity, as well as any races known to be allied to them. It has also detected the gravitic spore of ARCHIE’s Mechanoid-technology-derived stealth submersible propulsion systems, and has tried hunting down and destroying them.
Type: USN-BB59
Class: Pre-Rifts, Alien/Magic-Enhanced Earth Battleship
Crew: 2,500 (original complement: 115 officers, 1,678 enlisted)
Nature of Entity: Telepathic probes of the ship have found a very strong, alien, mechanistic core persona, with several lesser, more spiritual, essences in attendence. Trying to tap into the main persona is extremely difficult for outsiders; the main essence seems to operate at speeds and using thought organization more akin to advanced artificial intelligence than anything else. Calling upon the lesser essences will deluge the prober with flashbacks of old war scenes and experiences, or convoluted mental ‘snapshots’ from the minds of past passers-by and tourists of the pre-Rifts era.
Attitude: Mechanistic, martial; the ship seems dedicated to carrying out long-term mission protocols, accepting anything that will faciliate those protocols and rejecting anything that interferes with them.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----The ship has an Artificial Intelligence
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---The ship, as if tired of making additional compromises, will NOT tolerate any additional major modifications; any new systems must be stand-alone systems that have to function independently of ship’s systems.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 15,000
Armored Bridge 3,200
Main Gun Turrets(3) 1,000 each
5 in. Gun Turrets(10) 400 each
40mm Quad Gun Turrets(6) 250 each
20mm Light Cannon(22) 60 each
Seaplane Crane(2) 70 each
Draught: 29 ft 9 in.
Width: 108 ft 2 in.
Length: 680 ft
Weight/Displacement: 42,000 tons
Cargo: Can carry about 1,000 tons of supplies/munitions in its holds, in addition to another 3,000 tons of water, oil, and other industrial fluids.
Powerplant: Originally oil-fuelled turbines driving four screws, now believed to be a PPE-augmented fusion reactor system driving a hydrodynamic repulsorjet and maneuvering thrusters.
Speed: (Original) 27 knots (Upgraded) 32 knots(36 MPH)
Market Cost: Unique, NOT FOR SALE! Galactic arms dealers like the Naruni and Splugorth would pay 200 million+ credits to get ahold of the ship, or something like her, if they could duplicate its systems, or just kill whoever was dumb enough to turn it over to them and take it for themselves.
Systems/Features of Note:
*Sonar---30 mile range
*Long Range Radar--100 mile range
*Electronic Cloaking---The original alien warship’s EW systems have now been incorporated into the original battleship systems, replacing the original TDY jammer.The jammer has an effective range of 10 miles, and renders vessels within the area of effect -6 to be struck by radar- and laser-guided weaponry.
*Targeting Computers----A combination of alien and terrestrial systems gives a +4 to strike w/ ranged weaponry
*EM Surveillance---The ship’s electronic systems can monitor radio traffic, detect radar, and backtrack the source of radio/radar transmissions. The A.I. also has a Cryptography skill of 90% and Electronic Countermeasures at 96%.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Damage Regeneration---A combination of powerful Mend magic and altered alien nanites repairs hull damage at 6d6 MDC per melee, and damage to secondary systems at 2d4 per melee.
Weapons Systems:
1) 16-inch Hellstriker Cannons(9, 3x3 turrets, two forward, one aft)---The original heavy projectile cannons have been replaced by an alien analogue; instead of firing massive metal shells packed with explosives, the cannon fire variable-yield binary warheads of deuterium-slush held in magnetic suspension around a ‘needle’ of anti-hydrogen---an anti-matter warhead. The weapons have a safety feature in that while the basic material shells can be fabricated and stored ahead of time, the anti-matter is magically generated(via a modified form of the Annihilation spell) and introduced into the munition shortly before firing, lessening the chance of catastrophic ammunition detonation aboard ship. By varying the size, number, and distribution of the anti-hydrogen ‘seeds’ in the warheads, the battleship can pre-determine the explosive force and detonation characteristics of the projectiles.
Improved turret mechanics means that the turrets can slew about in as little as eight seconds...slow by the orginal alien warship’s performance, but whip-fast by WW2 standards.
Range: 50 miles
Damage: Adjustable in increments from 3d6x10 MD to a 30 ft blast radius to a maximum of 3d6x100 MD to a 120 ft radius
Rate of Fire: Each gun can fire twice per melee(typically fire in staggered salvoes of 1-3 shots at once)
Payload: Conditionally Unlimited---The battleship’s magazines have 90 rounds (without the anti-matter cores) ready in its magazines.
Regenerating new shells is a lengthy process, requiring 2 hours to fabricate a new shell.
2) 5 in. Plasma Cannons(10, 1x10 turrets)---The original 5-inch cannons have been replaced by plasma weapons firing magnetically-contained plasma ‘torpedoes’ similar to Paladin Steel’s weapons, but using different systems, and rather more efficient(PS would LOVE to see how the ship accomplishes this). Furthermore, the plasma bolts can be ‘arced’ like normal ballistic ordnance.
Range: 7 miles
Damage: 3d6x10 MD to a 20 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: 4 times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
3) 40mm Quad Cannons(6)----The original quad-40mm cannon mounts have been replaced by quad-batteries of gravitonically-driven projectile cannon, firing bursts of hypervelocity projectiles(or TK-waves) that can shred an incoming aircraft, missile, or monster.
Range: 9,000 ft
Damage: 1d6x10 MD per shot; 4d6x10 MD for all four cannons firing simultaneously
Rate of Fire:EGCHH or 6 times per melee under auto-fire
Payload: Effectively Unlimited(6,000 rds per cannon, and can produce additional ammunition at 1,000 rds per hour)
4)20mm Light AA Cannon(22)---The original single- and twin-mount 20mm Oerlikon AA cannons have been replaced by ion pulse cannons. These weapons can be automatically directed and fired, or can be manned.
Range: 5,000 ft
Damage: 3d6 MD single shot, 1d4x10 MD per pulse burst
Rate of Fire: EGCHH or 7 times per melee under auto-fire
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
Auxiliary Craft:
The BB59 has provision for three(four, if one crowds the fantail) light aircraft. Currently, the BB59 carries a pair of Kingfisher TW Scout Planes, and a PS-LSH-2F SeaSprite ASW Helicopter.
Additional Systems:
Since coming aboard and ‘adopting’ the battleship into their forces, the GNEN has stationed a crew of 600 aboard the ship, including a platoon of Marines with power armor. Since most, if not all, of the ship’s functions are automated, the crew is mainly aboard to monitor systems, man those few weapons the central intelligence gives them command of, and to run those stand-alone systems that the AI has allowed them to install/place aboard. This includes the three aircraft and the following:
-*L-SAM ‘Black Talon’ Launchers(4)---A light weapon mount RAM(rolling airframe missile) launcher adapted for shipboard use.
Range: 3 miles
Damage: 3d4x10 MD to 40 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1,2,3, or 4
Payload: 12 per launcher
Bonus: +5 to strike, and gets TWO attempts to strike the target(agile enough to loop back on a target and try again)
-*PS-AWD-MML-2 Mini-Missile Launcher(2)
Weight: 900 lbs
Range: Varies, generally one mile
Damage: Varies By Missile Type
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1,2, 4, 6, or 8
Payload: 40
-ASW Projectors(4)--- Rocket-propelled light depth charge launchers.
Range: 4,000 ft, 1,000 ft maximum depth
Damage: 7d6x5 MD to 50 ft radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1,2,4, 5, 8, or 16
Payload: LASRW-16: 16 rounds
-Countermeasures:(6; two Replica systems, four RBOC-2 systems)------Paladin Steel has adopted a series of standard countermeasure packages for use aboard their vessels. Notably they have adapted the US Navy Mk 38 Rapid Bloom Off-Board Countermeasures(RBOC-2) launcher system and the Replica radar signature decoy system. The RBOC-2 fires rocket-mortar shells of flares and chaff up to 1.25 miles away, to heights of 3,000 ft(the better to fool missiles coming in over the horizon), and fires clouds of chaff from deck mortars at closer ranges to confuse other guided weapons).
The Replica system resembles a folded-liferaft capsule when in its launcher, but can be fired off up to 300 ft, and rapidly unfolds to become two linked floating radar and sonar reflectors that give the appearance of a much larger object, and hopefully divert enemy fire and attention away from the targeted vessel.
A variant on this system includes attaching active sonar decoys or “Screamers” to attract or confuse acoustic sensors and homing torpedoes.
Range: The RBOC can toss decoy bundles 1.25 miles, and to an altitude of 3,000 ft
Damage: None. The RBOC is too inaccurate to be used as an effective weapon(oh, it could probably blow a person off the deck if they were standing too close, but that goes without saying) Effects are similar to Triax-style chaff
01-50 Enemy Missile or volley detonates in chaff and threat is neutralized
51-75 Missile/Volley diverts and may pursue/lock on to other targets
76-00 No Effect! Missile(s) still on target!
(Flare/Chaff)Will also temporarily blind and impede flying monsters who fly into it.
Reduce APMs/combat bonuses/ speed by half for 1d4 melees
Payload: Flare/Chaff launchers typically have 10 shells each. A Replica launcher will have 2 decoys per launcher.
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
- taalismn
- Priest
- Posts: 48602
- Joined: Tue Sep 02, 2003 8:19 pm
- Location: Somewhere between Heaven, Hell, and New England
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
The Phantom Fleet
The Phantom Fleet of Battleship Cove is actually being built by remaining self-repair nodes of the same alien A.I. overmind that rebuilt the Battleship Massachusetts. Travellers through the overgrown, marshy, coastal region would be amazed to learn that several square miles of the tangled islands and sumps of ancient rumble and rusting debris are underscored by an alien-born web of bucky-tubules, nano-wires, and micro-pumps that are searching for raw materials, gathering energy, accumulating power, and transmuting the rubble into new assemblies at the center of the sprawling web. Only those who have been watching the area EXTREMELY carefully over the years would be likely to notice several swelling hillocks in the middle of the swamp and wetlands. It is under these growing hills that several other warships(also part of the Battleship Cove exhibit) are being rebuilt/reborn in similar fashion to the Battleship Massachusetts.
Because of their younger age and less-intense psychic ‘footprint’, the other vessels of the Battleship Cove fleet received less priority than the Massachusetts, and their AIs are less advanced. However, the alien nanoplex also seems to have refined its methods in rebuilding the smaller craft, apparently building with an integrated ‘flotilla’ concept in mind. When completed, the smaller craft will gravitate towards the Massachusetts, forming an escort group for the larger battlewagon.
Once the current flotilla of craft are finished, and the tech-net works through its obsessive fixation on the ships of the Cove, it is unknown what it may do...Most likely it will shut down, but it is possible that the alien nano-complex will cast about for other ‘projects’ to perform.
Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. (Destroyer)
(aka ‘Joey P.’)
http://www.ussjpkennedyjr.org/index_files/jpkfr5.jpg
http://navyyardassociates.net/images/DD-850-Poster-300.jpg
The second-largest warship at Battleship Cove was the Joseph C. Kennedy, a refurbished destroyer of the WW2-vintage Sumner/Gearing class. Built originally during the latter days of the Second World War, subsequently enlarged and modified after the war to incorporate new technologies, the JPK Jr. would also be among the ships used to test the DASH, an early naval Remote Piloted Vehicle meant to act as a torpedo launch platform for ASW operations. The Sumner/Gearing class would also see the fitting of rocket-assisted torpedo launch systems, and experimentation with remote-controlled anti-submarine helicopters. The ‘Joey P.’ herself served as a patrol vessel in both the Mediterranean and North Atlantic, support/escort ship fro both nuclear submarine trials and the Gemini space shots, and served with the blockade force during the Cuban Missile Crisis, before she was struck from the Naval Lists and retired to the Fall River museum.
While the alien nanotech net concentrated on the concepts of ‘massive armor/massive firepower’ when reconstructing the Massachusetts, the main theme in rebuilding the Joseph Kennedy seems to be ‘versatility’....the destroyer has a fairly balanced mix of capabilities, allowing it to serve ably as an escort, or as a detached unit. Its one glaring weakness, however, is a lack of adequate air defenses.
Type: DD-850
Class: Gearing-class Destroyer
Crew: Artificial Intelligence, but has provision for 336 crew
Alignment: Effectively Scrupulous
Reaction to Others: Will tolerate the presence of others as long as they do not interfere with the ship’s operation and its mission(s)
Nature of Entity: Telepathic probes of the ship will find a very strong, alien, mechanistic core persona, with hints of other influences. The central core intelligence will shut out anybody attempting to probe further, or will forcibly refer them to ‘someone else higher up the chain of command’, but it is possible to listen to the other influences. These will take the form of fleeting audio/visual impressions of being in port, exclamations of astonishment at something, and cruising at sea.
Attitude: Mechanistic, martial; the ship seems dedicated to carrying out long-term mission protocols, accepting anything that will faciliate those protocols and rejecting anything that interferes with them.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----The ship has an Artificial Intelligence
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---The ship, as if tired of making additional compromises, will NOT tolerate any additional major modifications; any new systems must be stand-alone systems that have to function independently of ship’s systems
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 9,000
Bridge 1,000
5-Inch Gun Turrets(2) 400 each
ASROC Launcher 300
Torpedo Launchers(2) 250 each
Helicopter Hangar 400
Height: 18.6 ft draft
Width/Beam: 40 ft
Length: 390 ft
Weight: 3,479 tons (fully loaded)
Cargo: 300 tons
Powerplant: Originally Westinghouse Turbines, now believed to be a PPE-augmented fusion reactor system driving a hydrodynamic repulsorjet and maneuvering thrusters.
Speed: 34 knts(40 MPH)
Market Cost:NOT FOR SALE; a unique, one-of-a-kind alien artifact
Systems/Features of Note:
*Long Range Radar---100 mile range
*Sonar---100 mile range
*Advanced Targeting---Ranged weapons enjoy a +3 to strike.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Damage Regeneration---A combination of powerful Mend magic and altered alien nanites repairs hull damage at 1d6 MDC per melee, and damage to secondary systems at 1d4 per melee.
Weapons Systems:
1) 5-Inch Plasma Guns(2x2)---The original projectile cannons have been replaced with plasma weapons. These weapons are the Joey P’s main anti-aircraft defense.
Range: 7 miles
Damage: 3d6x10 MD to a 20 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: 4 times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
2) ASROC Launcher--This launcher fires rocket-borne anti-submarine torpedoes, but can also fire special plasma warheads. Because of the alien technologies involved, these are slightly more powerful than contemporary Rifts Earth ordnance.
Range: 6 miles, plus short range torpedo range of 6 miles.
Damage: 1d8x10 MD(Plasma) or 2d6x10 MD(HE)
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-8
Payload: 8 ready to fire; 24 in storage(can be reloaded in 5 minutes). Additional missiles can be produced at a rate of 1 per 2 hours
Bonus: The torpedoes are +4 to strike, once in the water.
3) Torpedo Tubes(2x3)
Range: 6 miles
Damage: 4d6x10 MD to 15 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-3
Bonus: Active Sonar Guidance; +2 to strike
Payload: 3 ready to fire each launcher; 24 in storage(can be reloaded in 5 minutes). Additional torpedoes can be produced at a rate of 1 per 2 hours
4) NeoDASH(Drone Anti-Submarine Helicopter)(2)
During the Cold War, the U.S. Navy experimented with shipborne remote control helicopters as a means of delivering ASW torpedoes at a distance from naval taskforces. The expreiments resulted in a weapons system meant to extend the ASW capabilities of older warships by equipping them with drones able to deploy ASW ordnance at the limits of the older ships’ sonar detection radii. These units served through the Vietnam War period, and, among many vessels, the Joseph FP. Kennedy had provision for carrying two DASH units.
Because of the relative lack of overpowering psychic impressions on the robot helicopters, the alien technoplex seems to have felt no constraints to match the original design, and instead taken greater liberties in improving them, more in keeping with one might presume to be the RPV concepts of the original alien ship’s base technology. Rather than simply be remote controlled torpedo launch platforms, the Neo-DASH drones are now full-fledged combat vehicles with forceshielding, sensors, contra-grav drive, and a pair of light ion cannon.
MDC:
Main Body 360
Forcefield 300
Size: 12 ft long
Speed: (Flying) Hover to 220 MPH
Systems of Note:
Standard Robot Systems
Weapons Systems:
1) Air-dropped Torpedoes(2)
Range: 6 miles
Damage: 4d6x10 MD to 15 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-2
Bonus: Active Sonar Guidance; +2 to strike
Payload: 2. The onboard facilities aboard the Joseph FP. Kennedy can produce reload torpedoes at a rate of 1 per 2 hours.
2) Twin Ion Cannon---Not part of the original design, but technical license on the part of the overmind.
Range: 4,000 ft
Damage: 1d6x10 MD per blast
Rate of Fire: ECHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
Actions/Attacks Per Melee: 6
Strike: +4
Dodge: +3
Note: If any of the neo-DASH ‘copters are lost in action, the Kennedy will regenerate them; replacing one will take a week.
Hiddensee (Tarantul II Corvette)
http://www.hnsa.org/ships/hiddensee.htm
http://www.hnsa.org/ships/img/hiddensee.jpg
The vessel known as the Hiddensee was a rather unusual addition to the American warships of Battleship Cove; the vessel originally served under the flag of the Communist Bloc East German Navy, as part of the cruise-missile-armed forces protecting Eastern Europe from NATO carrier groups and naval raiders. When the Soviet Union crumbled and the Germanies re-united, the obsolete naval ship was transferred to the American Navy for comparative technologies trials. Once those were completed to the USN’s satisfaction, the Hiddensee was transferred to Battleship Cove as an exhibit, sitting alongside American naval history to be visited and viewed by tourists, until the day the Rifts buried the Eastern Seaboard in destruction.
Like the other vessels of the former naval exhibit, the wreck of the Hiddensee was ‘colonized’ by psycho-active alien nanotech that read the ship’s form and psychic ‘imprint’, attempting to reconstruct the craft to the best of the alien technology’s abilities.
The Hiddensee’s likely role in the Phantom Fleet will be to sneak up on and engage larger enemy units using its cruise missiles, hoping for a ‘knockout’ blow, as well as to engage smaller combatant units such as patrol boats and power armors, with its guns.
Of the former Battleship Cove ships, the Hiddensee is most likely to exhibit eccentric behavior(relative to the others) due to its European origins. There is a small chance that should the Hiddensee ever face Triax/NGR vessels, it may recognize them as German naval units and NOT fire on them.
Type: Tarantul II
Class: Missile Corvette
Crew:Artificial Intelligence, but has provision for 41 crew
Alignment: Effectively Scrupulous
Reaction to Others:Will tolerate the presence of others as long as they do not interfere with the ship’s operation and its mission(s)
Nature of Entity: Telepathic probes of the ship will find a very strong, alien, mechanistic core persona, with hints of other influences. The central core intelligence will shut out anybody attempting to probe further, or will forcibly refer them to ‘someone else higher up the chain of command’, but it is possible to listen to the other influences. These will take the form of fleeting audio/visual impressions of being in port, exclamations of astonishment at something, and cruising at sea.
Attitude: Mechanistic, martial; the ship seems dedicated to carrying out long-term mission protocols, accepting anything that will faciliate those protocols and rejecting anything that interferes with them.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----The ship has an Artificial Intelligence
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---The ship, as if tired of making additional compromises, will NOT tolerate any additional major modifications; any new systems must be stand-alone systems that have to function independently of ship’s systems
*25% Chance of NOT firing on vessels of German or Sovietski origin.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 3,000
Bridge 700
Radar/Sensor Superstructure 400
Forward Gun Turret 400
Missile Launchers (2) 300 each
Strela Launcher 150
TK Cannon(2) 200 each
Height: 8 ft draft
Width: 63.4 ft
Length: 185 ft
Weight: 540 tons
Cargo: 10 tons
Powerplant:Originally combination diesal/gas turbines, now believed to be a PPE-augmented fusion reactor system driving a hydrodynamic repulsorjet and maneuvering thrusters.
Speed: 42 knots(48 MPH)
Market Cost:NOT FOR SALE; a unique, one-of-a-kind alien artifact
Systems/Features of Note:
*Long Range Radar--100 mile range
*Advanced Targeting---Ranged weapons enjoy a +3 to strike.
*Electronic Cloaking---One of the liberties taken by the alien repair computers in reconstructing the Hiddensee is the equiping of the revamped design with an electronic cloaking suite. This electronic cloak covers only the generating vessel and renders it effectively invisible to long range radar scanning(-75% to any attempts to detect it using radar)
Supernatural Abilities:
*Damage Regeneration---A combination of powerful Mend magic and altered alien nanites repairs hull damage at 5d6 MDC per melee, and damage to secondary systems at 1d6 MDC per melee.
Weapons Systems:
1)Anti-Ship Cruise Missile SSM Launch Cells(2x2)---The Hiddensee’s main weaponry is a pair of large missile launch twin-cells on either side of the main hull. Originally, these imposing armament launchers held anti-ship missiles, but now are modules for nano-generating and launching technowizardy-enhanced mystic-missiles.
Range: 100 miles
Damage: 1d4x100 MD to a 50 ft blast radius, plus have the equivalent of a TW Forcefield Breaching System applied to them
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-2
Payload: 4; regenerates new missiles within 24 hours
Bonus: +3 to strike
2) Forward Plasma Bolt Gun(1, forward)----For engaging enemy patrol boats and attack aircraft, the Hiddensee mounts an automatic cannon in a forward turret...In this case, the original 76mm cannon has been replaced with a powerful plasma cannon firing mini-plasma ‘torpedoes’ with a range unparalleled by anything else on Rifts Earth.
Range: 6 miles
Damage:4d4x10 MD to a 16 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Six times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
3) TK Gatling Cannon(2) ---For point defense against missiles, the original corvette design mounted two rapid-fire automatic cannon similar in concept to the American Phalanx gatling guns---The reconstructed Hiddensee retains the point-defense armament, but replaces them with TK-cannon.
Range: 5,000 ft
Damage: 5d6 MD per blast
Rate of Fire: Six times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
4) ‘Strela’ Anti-Aircraft Missile Launcher(1)---For anti-aircraft defense, the Hiddensee mounts a light SAM launcher. The ‘Strela’ as it has been reconstructed is similar in many ways to the standard TW SRM, but is even more accurate in homing in on targets, allowing for a better kill-ratio with fewer fired missiles.
Range: 4 miles
Damage: 2d4x10 MD to a 30 ft radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-2
Payload: 24; regenerates new missiles within 24 hours
Bonus: +4 to strike
5)Smoke Mortars(2) ---Creates a thick cloud of obscuring smoke
Range: Effectively covers a 200 ft area, up to 300 ft away
Damage: None; obscures vison, including thermal imagers, and anybody caught inside the cloud is -5 to strike, parry, dodge, disarm, and entangle; cloud persists 5 minutes
Rate of Fire: Twice per melee
Payload:6 shots, and regenerates at 1 shot every 15 minutes
PT-617 (Elco Torpedo Boat)
http://www.hnsa.org/ships/img/pt617a.jpg
http://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/maritime/buildings/617_1.jpg
One of two intact torpedo boats housed at Battleship Cove’s PT Boat Museum, the PT-617 was included in the vessel collection as an example of an Elco-built motor patrol craft.
When the PT-617 and PT-796 rejoin the Massachusetts, they will likely act as scout boats and skirmishers, dealing with smaller threats like mini-subs and other light combatants. They can also be detached to ambush enemy units, conducting raids on lightly-defended targets, or attempting to torpedo larger vessels.
Type: PT-617
Class: Motor Torpedo Boat
Crew:Artificial Intelligence, but has provision for 14 crew
Alignment: Effectively Scrupulous
Reaction to Others:Will tolerate the presence of others as long as they do not interfere with the ship’s operation and its mission(s)
Nature of Entity: Telepathic probes of the ship will find a very strong, alien, mechanistic core persona, with hints of other influences. The central core intelligence will shut out anybody attempting to probe further, or will forcibly refer them to ‘someone else higher up the chain of command’, but it is possible to listen to the other influences. These will take the form of fleeting audio/visual impressions of being in port, exclamations of astonishment at something, and cruising at sea.
Attitude: Mechanistic, martial; the ship seems dedicated to carrying out long-term mission protocols, accepting anything that will faciliate those protocols and rejecting anything that interferes with them.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----The ship has an Artificial Intelligence
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---The ship, as if tired of making additional compromises, will NOT tolerate any additional major modifications; any new systems must be stand-alone systems that have to function independently of ship’s systems
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 800
Cockpit 300
40mm Ion Cannon (1) 160
37mm Cannon(1) 150
20mm Cannon (1) 120
TK MG Mounts(2) 100 each
5-inch Rocket Launchers(2) 100 each
Height: 5 ft draft
Width: 20.7 ft
Length: 80 ft
Weight: 54 tons
Cargo: Can carry up to 5 tons of additional gear/cargo
Powerplant: Once diesel internal combustion-powered twin-screw driven; now believed to be a PPE-augmented fusion reactor system driving a hydrodynamic repulsorjet and maneuvering thrusters.
Speed: 65 MPH
Market Cost:NOT FOR SALE; a unique, one-of-a-kind alien artifact
Systems/Features of Note:
*Radar--30 mile range
*Advanced Targeting---Ranged weapons enjoy a +3 to strike.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Magic Invisibility---The PT Boat can engage the equivalent of Invisibility: Simple. concealing itself from long range visual and radar sensors. Observers, however, may still be able to make out a wake if the boat is in motion(though they still might mistake it for a wave whitecap at long distance and a flat angle). The boat can engage this ability 4 times every 24 hours, and the cloak lasts 30 minutes per activation.
*Magic Stealth----The PT Boat can silence its engine noises, and has only a 20% chance of being detected by an enemy.
*Damage Regeneration---A combination of powerful Mend magic and altered alien nanites repairs hull damage at 3d6 MDC per melee, and damage to secondary systems at 1d6 MDC per melee.
Weapons Systems:
1) Four Heavy Torpedoes
Range: 6 miles
Damage: 4d6x10 MD to 15 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-3
Bonus: Active Sonar Guidance; +2 to strike
Payload: 4; additional torpedoes can be produced at a rate of 1 per 3 hours
2) 40mm Ion Gun---Replaces a 40mm gun
Range: 9,000 ft
Damage: 1d6x10 MD per shot
Rate of Fire:EGCHH or 6 times per melee under auto-fire
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
3) 37mm Laser Cannon---Replaces a 37mm gun
Range: 6,000 ft
Damage: 2d4x10 MD per blast
Rate of Fire: EGCHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
4) 20mm TW Cannon---Replaces a 20mm light autocannon with a telekinetic weapon
Range: 3,000 ft(double on ley lines)
Damage: 1d4x10 MD per blast
Rate of Fire: EGCHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
5).50 caliber TK Machine Guns(4; 2x 2)---Replaces two paired sets of .50 cal MGs.
Range: 4,000 ft(double on a ley line)
Damage: 2d4 MD single shot, 3d6 MD short burst, 5d6 MD long burst, and 2d4x10 MD full melee burst per gun.
Simultaneous bursts from both guns on a mount count as one attack.
Rate of Fire: EGCHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
6) Depth Charges---For ASW work, the PT 617 carries 4 depth charges that are simply rolled off the rear over a target.
Range: Down to 2 miles depth
Damage: 2d4x10 MD to 100 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-2
Payload: 4; regenerates 1 per hour
7) 5-inch Rocket Launchers(2) ---These two launchers fire TW rockets
Range: 3 miles.
Damage: 2d4x10 MD to 30 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-8
Payload: 8 per launcher; additional rockets can be produced at a rate of 1 per 30 minutes
8 ) Smoke Generator---Creates a thick cloud of obscuring smoke
Range: Effectively covers a 200 ft area
Damage: None; obscures vison, including thermal imagers, and anybody caught inside the cloud is -5 to strike, parry, dodge, disarm, and entangle
Rate of Fire: Once per melee
Payload: Once per melee; cloud persists 5 minutes
PT-796(Higgins Torpedo Boat)
http://www.hnsa.org/ships/img/pt796-3.jpg
http://www.battleshipcove.org/Assets/Images%20-%20General/News/gallery-news-kit-pt/news-kit-pt796-b.jpg
The second of two torpedo boats housed at Battleship Cove, the PT-796 has undergone similar alien techno-wizard reconstruction as the rest of the ships housed there. It is almost identical in configuration and construction to the Elco-manufactured PT-617, except that it is slightly smaller and carries only two torpedoes instead of four.
The PT-796 can be further distinguished from its ‘brother’ by the painted-on ‘shark’s mouth’ on its forward hull. The extra attention given the boat by this touch, and by the attention paid it by crowds as a result appears to have given the PT-796 an extra bit of aggression its behavior(as reflected in its stats).
Type: PT-796
Class: Motor Torpedo Boat
Crew:Artificial Intelligence, but has provision for 8 crew
Alignment: Effectively Scrupulous
Reaction to Others:Will tolerate the presence of others as long as they do not interfere with the ship’s operation and its mission(s)
Nature of Entity: Telepathic probes of the ship will find a very strong, alien, mechanistic core persona, with hints of other influences. The central core intelligence will shut out anybody attempting to probe further, or will forcibly refer them to ‘someone else higher up the chain of command’, but it is possible to listen to the other influences. These will take the form of fleeting audio/visual impressions of being in port, exclamations of astonishment at something, and cruising at sea.
Attitude: Mechanistic, martial; the ship seems dedicated to carrying out long-term mission protocols, accepting anything that will faciliate those protocols and rejecting anything that interferes with them. Has a hint of predatory hunger and aggression to it.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----The ship has an Artificial Intelligence
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---The ship, as if tired of making additional compromises, will NOT tolerate any additional major modifications; any new systems must be stand-alone systems that have to function independently of ship’s systems
*Aggressive Attitude---The PT-796 enjoys an extra +1 to strike with its ranged weapons(though not its torpedoes) and a +1 to dodge.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 800
Cockpit 300
40mm Ion Cannon (1) 160
37mm Cannon(1) 150
20mm Cannon (1) 120
TK MG Mounts(2) 100 each
5-inch Rocket Launchers(2) 100 each
Height: 5 ft draft
Width: 20 ft
Length: 78 ft
Weight: 48 tons
Cargo: Can carry up to 5 tons of additional gear/cargo
Powerplant: Once diesel internal combustion-powered twin-screw driven; now believed to be a PPE-augmented fusion reactor system driving a hydrodynamic repulsorjet and maneuvering thrusters.
Speed: 65 MPH
Market Cost:NOT FOR SALE; a unique, one-of-a-kind alien artifact
Systems/Features of Note:
*Radar--30 mile range
*Advanced Targeting---Ranged weapons enjoy a +3(+4 total) to strike.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Magic Invisibility---The PT Boat can engage the equivalent of Invisibility: Simple. concealing itself from long range visual and radar sensors. Observers, however, may still be able to make out a wake if the boat is in motion(though they still might mistake it for a wave whitecap at long distance and a flat angle). The boat can engage this ability 4 times every 24 hours, and the cloak lasts 30 minutes per activation.
*Magic Stealth----The PT Boat can silence its engine noises, and has only a 20% chance of being detected by an enemy.
*Damage Regeneration---A combination of powerful Mend magic and altered alien nanites repairs hull damage at 3d6 MDC per melee, and damage to secondary systems at 1d6 MDC per melee.
Weapons Systems:
1) Heavy Torpedoes---Two launch rails, one on each side, for heavy torpedoes.
Range: 6 miles
Damage: 4d6x10 MD to 15 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-3
Bonus: Active Sonar Guidance; +2 to strike
Payload: 2; additional torpedoes can be produced at a rate of 1 per 3 hours
2) 40mm Ion Gun---Replaces a 40mm gun
Range: 9,000 ft
Damage: 1d6x10 MD per shot
Rate of Fire:EGCHH or 6 times per melee under auto-fire
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
3) 37mm Laser Cannon---Replaces a 37mm gun
Range: 6,000 ft
Damage:2d4x10 MD per blast
Rate of Fire: EGCHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
4) 20mm TW Cannon---Replaces a 20mm light autocannon with a telekinetic weapon
Range: 3,000 ft(double on ley lines)
Damage: 1d4x10 MD per blast
Rate of Fire: EGCHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
5).50 caliber TK Machine Guns(4; 2x 2)---Replaces two paired sets of .50 cal MGs.
Range: 4,000 ft(double on a ley line)
Damage: 2d4 MD single shot, 3d6 MD short burst, 5d6 MD long burst, and 2d4x10 MD full melee burst per gun.
Simultaneous bursts from both guns on a mount count as one attack.
Rate of Fire: EGCHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
6) Depth Charges---For ASW work, the PT 617 carries 4 depth charges that are simply rolled off the rear over a target.
Range: Down to 2 miles depth
Damage: 2d4x10 MD to 100 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-2
Payload: 4; regenerates 1 per hour
7) 5-inch Rocket Launchers(2) ---These two launchers fire TW rockets
Range: 3 miles.
Damage: 2d4x10 MD to 30 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-8
Payload: 8 per launcher; additional rockets can be produced at a rate of 1 per 30 minutes
8 ) Smoke Generator---Creates a thick cloud of obscuring smoke
Range: Effectively covers a 200 ft area
Damage: None; obscures vison, including thermal imagers, and anybody caught inside the cloud is -5 to strike, parry, dodge, disarm, and entangle
Rate of Fire: Once per melee
Payload: Once per melee; cloud persists 5 minutes
USS Lionfish(Balao-class Fleet Submarine)
http://www.hnsa.org/ships/img/lionfish1.jpg
http://www.hnsa.org/ships/img/lionfish2.jpg
Also part of the Battleship Cove fleet was a WW2-vintage fleet submarine, the Lionfish, of the Balao class. These submarines were constructed for long range patrols and mercantile raiding in the vast Pacific, where the Allies held submarine supremacy over the Imperial Japanese(as opposed to the Atlantic, where the Germans had the upper hand for much of the war).
Like its fleet-mates at the Cove, the wreckage of the Lionfish would be ‘colonized’ by psychosensitive alien nanotech, which began reconstructing the ancient submarine along alien technowizardry lines. The impression that the nanotech got from the wreck of the Lionfish was ‘stealth’, so the A.I.-driven warship that has emerged is much stealthier than the original World War Two ‘pigboat’, thanks to alien technology being incorporated into the design. While the Lionfish retains much of the general design configuration of the original, there are changes...the sail/conning tower, and exposed deck guns have a sleeker, more streamlined appearance, the hull is relatively seamless, and the original twin screw propellors have been replaced by silent hydro-repulsion jets.
The Lionfish has actually already been completed by the alien nanotech ‘shipyard’ under the debris of south-eastern coastal Massachussetts, and the ship has slowly worked its way through the muck and debris to open water, where it has begun quiet patrols of the area. In time, it may join up with the Battleship Massachusetts as part of its battlegroup, but recently the Lionfish’s enhanced energy sensors have detected the spoor of a gravitic hydro-drive, similar to those used by an ancient alien adversary(the Mechanoids) of the original alien warship that later spawned the Phantom Fleet. Currently, the Lionfish’s AI is considering trailing the drive emissions, in hopes of identifying their nature, their destination, and their point of origin, and reporting the information to its ‘battlegroup’.
Type: SS-298
Class: Fleet Submarine(Balao)
Crew:Artificial Intelligence, but has provision for 80 crew
Alignment: Effectively Scrupulous
Reaction to Others: As a member of the ‘silent service’, Lionfish will avoid contact with anyone else. The only exceptions are distressed members of the Greater New England Navy(which it has identified as affiliated with its battlegroup), the New Navy, or the old U.S Navy, Marines, Army, or Airforce(of WW2 era, emblems, and equipment).
Nature of Entity: Telepathic probes of the ship will find a very strong, alien, mechanistic core persona, with hints of other influences. The central core intelligence will shut out anybody attempting to probe further, or will forcibly refer them to ‘someone else higher up the chain of command’, but it is possible to listen to the other influences. These will take the form of fleeting audio/visual impressions of being in port, exclamations of astonishment at something, and cruising at sea.
Attitude: Mechanistic, martial; the ship seems dedicated to carrying out long-term mission protocols, accepting anything that will faciliate those protocols and rejecting anything that interferes with them.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----The ship has an Artificial Intelligence
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---The ship, as if tired of making additional compromises, will NOT tolerate any additional major modifications; any new systems must be stand-alone systems that have to function independently of ship’s systems
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 2,500
Conning Tower 800
76mm Plasma Deck Gun 300
40mm AAA Guns(2) 180 each
Height: 15 ft
Width: 27 ft
Length: 312 ft
Weight/Displacement: 1,800 tons
Cargo: 25 tons
Powerplant: Originally twin-screw diesal-electric, now believed to be a PPE-augmented fusion reactor system driving a hydrodynamic repulsorjet and maneuvering thrusters.
Speed:(Surface) 22 knts(25 MPH)
(Underwater) 12 knts(13 MPH)
Maximum Depth: 3,000 ft
Market Cost: NOT FOR SALE; a unique, one-of-a-kind alien artifact
Systems/Features of Note:
*Periscope Sensors---Includes telescopic and nightvision optics, radar(60 mile range)
*Sonar---100 mile range
*Advanced Targeting---Ranged weapons enjoy a +3 to strike.
*Stealth---The submarine has only a 15% chance of being detected by enemy sensors.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Damage Regeneration---A combination of powerful Mend magic and altered alien nanites repairs hull damage at 5d6 MDC per melee, and damage to secondary systems at 1d6 per melee.
Weapons Systems:
1) Torpedo Tubes( 10; 6x1 forward/bow, 4x1 aft/stern)
Range: 6 miles
Damage: 4d6x10 MD to 15 ft blast radius
Can also fire a ‘Special’ with an anti-matter core, that does 1d6x100 MD to a 50 ft blast radius.
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-3
Bonus: Active Sonar Guidance; +2 to strike
Payload: 24 ready to fire; additional torpedoes can be produced at a rate of 1 standard torpedo per hour. Generating a ‘Special’ takes 3 hours.
2)76mm Plasma Deck Gun
Range: 6 miles
Damage:4d4x10 MD to a 16 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Six times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
Note: CANNOT be fired underwater
3) 40mm Ion Guns (2x1)
Range: 9,000 ft
(Underwater) 4,000 ft
Damage: 1d6x10 MD per shot
Rate of Fire:EGCHH or 6 times per melee under auto-fire
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
Note: CAN be fired underwater
The Phantom Fleet of Battleship Cove is actually being built by remaining self-repair nodes of the same alien A.I. overmind that rebuilt the Battleship Massachusetts. Travellers through the overgrown, marshy, coastal region would be amazed to learn that several square miles of the tangled islands and sumps of ancient rumble and rusting debris are underscored by an alien-born web of bucky-tubules, nano-wires, and micro-pumps that are searching for raw materials, gathering energy, accumulating power, and transmuting the rubble into new assemblies at the center of the sprawling web. Only those who have been watching the area EXTREMELY carefully over the years would be likely to notice several swelling hillocks in the middle of the swamp and wetlands. It is under these growing hills that several other warships(also part of the Battleship Cove exhibit) are being rebuilt/reborn in similar fashion to the Battleship Massachusetts.
Because of their younger age and less-intense psychic ‘footprint’, the other vessels of the Battleship Cove fleet received less priority than the Massachusetts, and their AIs are less advanced. However, the alien nanoplex also seems to have refined its methods in rebuilding the smaller craft, apparently building with an integrated ‘flotilla’ concept in mind. When completed, the smaller craft will gravitate towards the Massachusetts, forming an escort group for the larger battlewagon.
Once the current flotilla of craft are finished, and the tech-net works through its obsessive fixation on the ships of the Cove, it is unknown what it may do...Most likely it will shut down, but it is possible that the alien nano-complex will cast about for other ‘projects’ to perform.
Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. (Destroyer)
(aka ‘Joey P.’)
http://www.ussjpkennedyjr.org/index_files/jpkfr5.jpg
http://navyyardassociates.net/images/DD-850-Poster-300.jpg
The second-largest warship at Battleship Cove was the Joseph C. Kennedy, a refurbished destroyer of the WW2-vintage Sumner/Gearing class. Built originally during the latter days of the Second World War, subsequently enlarged and modified after the war to incorporate new technologies, the JPK Jr. would also be among the ships used to test the DASH, an early naval Remote Piloted Vehicle meant to act as a torpedo launch platform for ASW operations. The Sumner/Gearing class would also see the fitting of rocket-assisted torpedo launch systems, and experimentation with remote-controlled anti-submarine helicopters. The ‘Joey P.’ herself served as a patrol vessel in both the Mediterranean and North Atlantic, support/escort ship fro both nuclear submarine trials and the Gemini space shots, and served with the blockade force during the Cuban Missile Crisis, before she was struck from the Naval Lists and retired to the Fall River museum.
While the alien nanotech net concentrated on the concepts of ‘massive armor/massive firepower’ when reconstructing the Massachusetts, the main theme in rebuilding the Joseph Kennedy seems to be ‘versatility’....the destroyer has a fairly balanced mix of capabilities, allowing it to serve ably as an escort, or as a detached unit. Its one glaring weakness, however, is a lack of adequate air defenses.
Type: DD-850
Class: Gearing-class Destroyer
Crew: Artificial Intelligence, but has provision for 336 crew
Alignment: Effectively Scrupulous
Reaction to Others: Will tolerate the presence of others as long as they do not interfere with the ship’s operation and its mission(s)
Nature of Entity: Telepathic probes of the ship will find a very strong, alien, mechanistic core persona, with hints of other influences. The central core intelligence will shut out anybody attempting to probe further, or will forcibly refer them to ‘someone else higher up the chain of command’, but it is possible to listen to the other influences. These will take the form of fleeting audio/visual impressions of being in port, exclamations of astonishment at something, and cruising at sea.
Attitude: Mechanistic, martial; the ship seems dedicated to carrying out long-term mission protocols, accepting anything that will faciliate those protocols and rejecting anything that interferes with them.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----The ship has an Artificial Intelligence
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---The ship, as if tired of making additional compromises, will NOT tolerate any additional major modifications; any new systems must be stand-alone systems that have to function independently of ship’s systems
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 9,000
Bridge 1,000
5-Inch Gun Turrets(2) 400 each
ASROC Launcher 300
Torpedo Launchers(2) 250 each
Helicopter Hangar 400
Height: 18.6 ft draft
Width/Beam: 40 ft
Length: 390 ft
Weight: 3,479 tons (fully loaded)
Cargo: 300 tons
Powerplant: Originally Westinghouse Turbines, now believed to be a PPE-augmented fusion reactor system driving a hydrodynamic repulsorjet and maneuvering thrusters.
Speed: 34 knts(40 MPH)
Market Cost:NOT FOR SALE; a unique, one-of-a-kind alien artifact
Systems/Features of Note:
*Long Range Radar---100 mile range
*Sonar---100 mile range
*Advanced Targeting---Ranged weapons enjoy a +3 to strike.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Damage Regeneration---A combination of powerful Mend magic and altered alien nanites repairs hull damage at 1d6 MDC per melee, and damage to secondary systems at 1d4 per melee.
Weapons Systems:
1) 5-Inch Plasma Guns(2x2)---The original projectile cannons have been replaced with plasma weapons. These weapons are the Joey P’s main anti-aircraft defense.
Range: 7 miles
Damage: 3d6x10 MD to a 20 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: 4 times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
2) ASROC Launcher--This launcher fires rocket-borne anti-submarine torpedoes, but can also fire special plasma warheads. Because of the alien technologies involved, these are slightly more powerful than contemporary Rifts Earth ordnance.
Range: 6 miles, plus short range torpedo range of 6 miles.
Damage: 1d8x10 MD(Plasma) or 2d6x10 MD(HE)
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-8
Payload: 8 ready to fire; 24 in storage(can be reloaded in 5 minutes). Additional missiles can be produced at a rate of 1 per 2 hours
Bonus: The torpedoes are +4 to strike, once in the water.
3) Torpedo Tubes(2x3)
Range: 6 miles
Damage: 4d6x10 MD to 15 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-3
Bonus: Active Sonar Guidance; +2 to strike
Payload: 3 ready to fire each launcher; 24 in storage(can be reloaded in 5 minutes). Additional torpedoes can be produced at a rate of 1 per 2 hours
4) NeoDASH(Drone Anti-Submarine Helicopter)(2)
During the Cold War, the U.S. Navy experimented with shipborne remote control helicopters as a means of delivering ASW torpedoes at a distance from naval taskforces. The expreiments resulted in a weapons system meant to extend the ASW capabilities of older warships by equipping them with drones able to deploy ASW ordnance at the limits of the older ships’ sonar detection radii. These units served through the Vietnam War period, and, among many vessels, the Joseph FP. Kennedy had provision for carrying two DASH units.
Because of the relative lack of overpowering psychic impressions on the robot helicopters, the alien technoplex seems to have felt no constraints to match the original design, and instead taken greater liberties in improving them, more in keeping with one might presume to be the RPV concepts of the original alien ship’s base technology. Rather than simply be remote controlled torpedo launch platforms, the Neo-DASH drones are now full-fledged combat vehicles with forceshielding, sensors, contra-grav drive, and a pair of light ion cannon.
MDC:
Main Body 360
Forcefield 300
Size: 12 ft long
Speed: (Flying) Hover to 220 MPH
Systems of Note:
Standard Robot Systems
Weapons Systems:
1) Air-dropped Torpedoes(2)
Range: 6 miles
Damage: 4d6x10 MD to 15 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-2
Bonus: Active Sonar Guidance; +2 to strike
Payload: 2. The onboard facilities aboard the Joseph FP. Kennedy can produce reload torpedoes at a rate of 1 per 2 hours.
2) Twin Ion Cannon---Not part of the original design, but technical license on the part of the overmind.
Range: 4,000 ft
Damage: 1d6x10 MD per blast
Rate of Fire: ECHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
Actions/Attacks Per Melee: 6
Strike: +4
Dodge: +3
Note: If any of the neo-DASH ‘copters are lost in action, the Kennedy will regenerate them; replacing one will take a week.
Hiddensee (Tarantul II Corvette)
http://www.hnsa.org/ships/hiddensee.htm
http://www.hnsa.org/ships/img/hiddensee.jpg
The vessel known as the Hiddensee was a rather unusual addition to the American warships of Battleship Cove; the vessel originally served under the flag of the Communist Bloc East German Navy, as part of the cruise-missile-armed forces protecting Eastern Europe from NATO carrier groups and naval raiders. When the Soviet Union crumbled and the Germanies re-united, the obsolete naval ship was transferred to the American Navy for comparative technologies trials. Once those were completed to the USN’s satisfaction, the Hiddensee was transferred to Battleship Cove as an exhibit, sitting alongside American naval history to be visited and viewed by tourists, until the day the Rifts buried the Eastern Seaboard in destruction.
Like the other vessels of the former naval exhibit, the wreck of the Hiddensee was ‘colonized’ by psycho-active alien nanotech that read the ship’s form and psychic ‘imprint’, attempting to reconstruct the craft to the best of the alien technology’s abilities.
The Hiddensee’s likely role in the Phantom Fleet will be to sneak up on and engage larger enemy units using its cruise missiles, hoping for a ‘knockout’ blow, as well as to engage smaller combatant units such as patrol boats and power armors, with its guns.
Of the former Battleship Cove ships, the Hiddensee is most likely to exhibit eccentric behavior(relative to the others) due to its European origins. There is a small chance that should the Hiddensee ever face Triax/NGR vessels, it may recognize them as German naval units and NOT fire on them.
Type: Tarantul II
Class: Missile Corvette
Crew:Artificial Intelligence, but has provision for 41 crew
Alignment: Effectively Scrupulous
Reaction to Others:Will tolerate the presence of others as long as they do not interfere with the ship’s operation and its mission(s)
Nature of Entity: Telepathic probes of the ship will find a very strong, alien, mechanistic core persona, with hints of other influences. The central core intelligence will shut out anybody attempting to probe further, or will forcibly refer them to ‘someone else higher up the chain of command’, but it is possible to listen to the other influences. These will take the form of fleeting audio/visual impressions of being in port, exclamations of astonishment at something, and cruising at sea.
Attitude: Mechanistic, martial; the ship seems dedicated to carrying out long-term mission protocols, accepting anything that will faciliate those protocols and rejecting anything that interferes with them.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----The ship has an Artificial Intelligence
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---The ship, as if tired of making additional compromises, will NOT tolerate any additional major modifications; any new systems must be stand-alone systems that have to function independently of ship’s systems
*25% Chance of NOT firing on vessels of German or Sovietski origin.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 3,000
Bridge 700
Radar/Sensor Superstructure 400
Forward Gun Turret 400
Missile Launchers (2) 300 each
Strela Launcher 150
TK Cannon(2) 200 each
Height: 8 ft draft
Width: 63.4 ft
Length: 185 ft
Weight: 540 tons
Cargo: 10 tons
Powerplant:Originally combination diesal/gas turbines, now believed to be a PPE-augmented fusion reactor system driving a hydrodynamic repulsorjet and maneuvering thrusters.
Speed: 42 knots(48 MPH)
Market Cost:NOT FOR SALE; a unique, one-of-a-kind alien artifact
Systems/Features of Note:
*Long Range Radar--100 mile range
*Advanced Targeting---Ranged weapons enjoy a +3 to strike.
*Electronic Cloaking---One of the liberties taken by the alien repair computers in reconstructing the Hiddensee is the equiping of the revamped design with an electronic cloaking suite. This electronic cloak covers only the generating vessel and renders it effectively invisible to long range radar scanning(-75% to any attempts to detect it using radar)
Supernatural Abilities:
*Damage Regeneration---A combination of powerful Mend magic and altered alien nanites repairs hull damage at 5d6 MDC per melee, and damage to secondary systems at 1d6 MDC per melee.
Weapons Systems:
1)Anti-Ship Cruise Missile SSM Launch Cells(2x2)---The Hiddensee’s main weaponry is a pair of large missile launch twin-cells on either side of the main hull. Originally, these imposing armament launchers held anti-ship missiles, but now are modules for nano-generating and launching technowizardy-enhanced mystic-missiles.
Range: 100 miles
Damage: 1d4x100 MD to a 50 ft blast radius, plus have the equivalent of a TW Forcefield Breaching System applied to them
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-2
Payload: 4; regenerates new missiles within 24 hours
Bonus: +3 to strike
2) Forward Plasma Bolt Gun(1, forward)----For engaging enemy patrol boats and attack aircraft, the Hiddensee mounts an automatic cannon in a forward turret...In this case, the original 76mm cannon has been replaced with a powerful plasma cannon firing mini-plasma ‘torpedoes’ with a range unparalleled by anything else on Rifts Earth.
Range: 6 miles
Damage:4d4x10 MD to a 16 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Six times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
3) TK Gatling Cannon(2) ---For point defense against missiles, the original corvette design mounted two rapid-fire automatic cannon similar in concept to the American Phalanx gatling guns---The reconstructed Hiddensee retains the point-defense armament, but replaces them with TK-cannon.
Range: 5,000 ft
Damage: 5d6 MD per blast
Rate of Fire: Six times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
4) ‘Strela’ Anti-Aircraft Missile Launcher(1)---For anti-aircraft defense, the Hiddensee mounts a light SAM launcher. The ‘Strela’ as it has been reconstructed is similar in many ways to the standard TW SRM, but is even more accurate in homing in on targets, allowing for a better kill-ratio with fewer fired missiles.
Range: 4 miles
Damage: 2d4x10 MD to a 30 ft radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-2
Payload: 24; regenerates new missiles within 24 hours
Bonus: +4 to strike
5)Smoke Mortars(2) ---Creates a thick cloud of obscuring smoke
Range: Effectively covers a 200 ft area, up to 300 ft away
Damage: None; obscures vison, including thermal imagers, and anybody caught inside the cloud is -5 to strike, parry, dodge, disarm, and entangle; cloud persists 5 minutes
Rate of Fire: Twice per melee
Payload:6 shots, and regenerates at 1 shot every 15 minutes
PT-617 (Elco Torpedo Boat)
http://www.hnsa.org/ships/img/pt617a.jpg
http://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/maritime/buildings/617_1.jpg
One of two intact torpedo boats housed at Battleship Cove’s PT Boat Museum, the PT-617 was included in the vessel collection as an example of an Elco-built motor patrol craft.
When the PT-617 and PT-796 rejoin the Massachusetts, they will likely act as scout boats and skirmishers, dealing with smaller threats like mini-subs and other light combatants. They can also be detached to ambush enemy units, conducting raids on lightly-defended targets, or attempting to torpedo larger vessels.
Type: PT-617
Class: Motor Torpedo Boat
Crew:Artificial Intelligence, but has provision for 14 crew
Alignment: Effectively Scrupulous
Reaction to Others:Will tolerate the presence of others as long as they do not interfere with the ship’s operation and its mission(s)
Nature of Entity: Telepathic probes of the ship will find a very strong, alien, mechanistic core persona, with hints of other influences. The central core intelligence will shut out anybody attempting to probe further, or will forcibly refer them to ‘someone else higher up the chain of command’, but it is possible to listen to the other influences. These will take the form of fleeting audio/visual impressions of being in port, exclamations of astonishment at something, and cruising at sea.
Attitude: Mechanistic, martial; the ship seems dedicated to carrying out long-term mission protocols, accepting anything that will faciliate those protocols and rejecting anything that interferes with them.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----The ship has an Artificial Intelligence
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---The ship, as if tired of making additional compromises, will NOT tolerate any additional major modifications; any new systems must be stand-alone systems that have to function independently of ship’s systems
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 800
Cockpit 300
40mm Ion Cannon (1) 160
37mm Cannon(1) 150
20mm Cannon (1) 120
TK MG Mounts(2) 100 each
5-inch Rocket Launchers(2) 100 each
Height: 5 ft draft
Width: 20.7 ft
Length: 80 ft
Weight: 54 tons
Cargo: Can carry up to 5 tons of additional gear/cargo
Powerplant: Once diesel internal combustion-powered twin-screw driven; now believed to be a PPE-augmented fusion reactor system driving a hydrodynamic repulsorjet and maneuvering thrusters.
Speed: 65 MPH
Market Cost:NOT FOR SALE; a unique, one-of-a-kind alien artifact
Systems/Features of Note:
*Radar--30 mile range
*Advanced Targeting---Ranged weapons enjoy a +3 to strike.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Magic Invisibility---The PT Boat can engage the equivalent of Invisibility: Simple. concealing itself from long range visual and radar sensors. Observers, however, may still be able to make out a wake if the boat is in motion(though they still might mistake it for a wave whitecap at long distance and a flat angle). The boat can engage this ability 4 times every 24 hours, and the cloak lasts 30 minutes per activation.
*Magic Stealth----The PT Boat can silence its engine noises, and has only a 20% chance of being detected by an enemy.
*Damage Regeneration---A combination of powerful Mend magic and altered alien nanites repairs hull damage at 3d6 MDC per melee, and damage to secondary systems at 1d6 MDC per melee.
Weapons Systems:
1) Four Heavy Torpedoes
Range: 6 miles
Damage: 4d6x10 MD to 15 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-3
Bonus: Active Sonar Guidance; +2 to strike
Payload: 4; additional torpedoes can be produced at a rate of 1 per 3 hours
2) 40mm Ion Gun---Replaces a 40mm gun
Range: 9,000 ft
Damage: 1d6x10 MD per shot
Rate of Fire:EGCHH or 6 times per melee under auto-fire
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
3) 37mm Laser Cannon---Replaces a 37mm gun
Range: 6,000 ft
Damage: 2d4x10 MD per blast
Rate of Fire: EGCHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
4) 20mm TW Cannon---Replaces a 20mm light autocannon with a telekinetic weapon
Range: 3,000 ft(double on ley lines)
Damage: 1d4x10 MD per blast
Rate of Fire: EGCHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
5).50 caliber TK Machine Guns(4; 2x 2)---Replaces two paired sets of .50 cal MGs.
Range: 4,000 ft(double on a ley line)
Damage: 2d4 MD single shot, 3d6 MD short burst, 5d6 MD long burst, and 2d4x10 MD full melee burst per gun.
Simultaneous bursts from both guns on a mount count as one attack.
Rate of Fire: EGCHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
6) Depth Charges---For ASW work, the PT 617 carries 4 depth charges that are simply rolled off the rear over a target.
Range: Down to 2 miles depth
Damage: 2d4x10 MD to 100 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-2
Payload: 4; regenerates 1 per hour
7) 5-inch Rocket Launchers(2) ---These two launchers fire TW rockets
Range: 3 miles.
Damage: 2d4x10 MD to 30 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-8
Payload: 8 per launcher; additional rockets can be produced at a rate of 1 per 30 minutes
8 ) Smoke Generator---Creates a thick cloud of obscuring smoke
Range: Effectively covers a 200 ft area
Damage: None; obscures vison, including thermal imagers, and anybody caught inside the cloud is -5 to strike, parry, dodge, disarm, and entangle
Rate of Fire: Once per melee
Payload: Once per melee; cloud persists 5 minutes
PT-796(Higgins Torpedo Boat)
http://www.hnsa.org/ships/img/pt796-3.jpg
http://www.battleshipcove.org/Assets/Images%20-%20General/News/gallery-news-kit-pt/news-kit-pt796-b.jpg
The second of two torpedo boats housed at Battleship Cove, the PT-796 has undergone similar alien techno-wizard reconstruction as the rest of the ships housed there. It is almost identical in configuration and construction to the Elco-manufactured PT-617, except that it is slightly smaller and carries only two torpedoes instead of four.
The PT-796 can be further distinguished from its ‘brother’ by the painted-on ‘shark’s mouth’ on its forward hull. The extra attention given the boat by this touch, and by the attention paid it by crowds as a result appears to have given the PT-796 an extra bit of aggression its behavior(as reflected in its stats).
Type: PT-796
Class: Motor Torpedo Boat
Crew:Artificial Intelligence, but has provision for 8 crew
Alignment: Effectively Scrupulous
Reaction to Others:Will tolerate the presence of others as long as they do not interfere with the ship’s operation and its mission(s)
Nature of Entity: Telepathic probes of the ship will find a very strong, alien, mechanistic core persona, with hints of other influences. The central core intelligence will shut out anybody attempting to probe further, or will forcibly refer them to ‘someone else higher up the chain of command’, but it is possible to listen to the other influences. These will take the form of fleeting audio/visual impressions of being in port, exclamations of astonishment at something, and cruising at sea.
Attitude: Mechanistic, martial; the ship seems dedicated to carrying out long-term mission protocols, accepting anything that will faciliate those protocols and rejecting anything that interferes with them. Has a hint of predatory hunger and aggression to it.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----The ship has an Artificial Intelligence
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---The ship, as if tired of making additional compromises, will NOT tolerate any additional major modifications; any new systems must be stand-alone systems that have to function independently of ship’s systems
*Aggressive Attitude---The PT-796 enjoys an extra +1 to strike with its ranged weapons(though not its torpedoes) and a +1 to dodge.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 800
Cockpit 300
40mm Ion Cannon (1) 160
37mm Cannon(1) 150
20mm Cannon (1) 120
TK MG Mounts(2) 100 each
5-inch Rocket Launchers(2) 100 each
Height: 5 ft draft
Width: 20 ft
Length: 78 ft
Weight: 48 tons
Cargo: Can carry up to 5 tons of additional gear/cargo
Powerplant: Once diesel internal combustion-powered twin-screw driven; now believed to be a PPE-augmented fusion reactor system driving a hydrodynamic repulsorjet and maneuvering thrusters.
Speed: 65 MPH
Market Cost:NOT FOR SALE; a unique, one-of-a-kind alien artifact
Systems/Features of Note:
*Radar--30 mile range
*Advanced Targeting---Ranged weapons enjoy a +3(+4 total) to strike.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Magic Invisibility---The PT Boat can engage the equivalent of Invisibility: Simple. concealing itself from long range visual and radar sensors. Observers, however, may still be able to make out a wake if the boat is in motion(though they still might mistake it for a wave whitecap at long distance and a flat angle). The boat can engage this ability 4 times every 24 hours, and the cloak lasts 30 minutes per activation.
*Magic Stealth----The PT Boat can silence its engine noises, and has only a 20% chance of being detected by an enemy.
*Damage Regeneration---A combination of powerful Mend magic and altered alien nanites repairs hull damage at 3d6 MDC per melee, and damage to secondary systems at 1d6 MDC per melee.
Weapons Systems:
1) Heavy Torpedoes---Two launch rails, one on each side, for heavy torpedoes.
Range: 6 miles
Damage: 4d6x10 MD to 15 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-3
Bonus: Active Sonar Guidance; +2 to strike
Payload: 2; additional torpedoes can be produced at a rate of 1 per 3 hours
2) 40mm Ion Gun---Replaces a 40mm gun
Range: 9,000 ft
Damage: 1d6x10 MD per shot
Rate of Fire:EGCHH or 6 times per melee under auto-fire
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
3) 37mm Laser Cannon---Replaces a 37mm gun
Range: 6,000 ft
Damage:2d4x10 MD per blast
Rate of Fire: EGCHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
4) 20mm TW Cannon---Replaces a 20mm light autocannon with a telekinetic weapon
Range: 3,000 ft(double on ley lines)
Damage: 1d4x10 MD per blast
Rate of Fire: EGCHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
5).50 caliber TK Machine Guns(4; 2x 2)---Replaces two paired sets of .50 cal MGs.
Range: 4,000 ft(double on a ley line)
Damage: 2d4 MD single shot, 3d6 MD short burst, 5d6 MD long burst, and 2d4x10 MD full melee burst per gun.
Simultaneous bursts from both guns on a mount count as one attack.
Rate of Fire: EGCHH
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
6) Depth Charges---For ASW work, the PT 617 carries 4 depth charges that are simply rolled off the rear over a target.
Range: Down to 2 miles depth
Damage: 2d4x10 MD to 100 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-2
Payload: 4; regenerates 1 per hour
7) 5-inch Rocket Launchers(2) ---These two launchers fire TW rockets
Range: 3 miles.
Damage: 2d4x10 MD to 30 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-8
Payload: 8 per launcher; additional rockets can be produced at a rate of 1 per 30 minutes
8 ) Smoke Generator---Creates a thick cloud of obscuring smoke
Range: Effectively covers a 200 ft area
Damage: None; obscures vison, including thermal imagers, and anybody caught inside the cloud is -5 to strike, parry, dodge, disarm, and entangle
Rate of Fire: Once per melee
Payload: Once per melee; cloud persists 5 minutes
USS Lionfish(Balao-class Fleet Submarine)
http://www.hnsa.org/ships/img/lionfish1.jpg
http://www.hnsa.org/ships/img/lionfish2.jpg
Also part of the Battleship Cove fleet was a WW2-vintage fleet submarine, the Lionfish, of the Balao class. These submarines were constructed for long range patrols and mercantile raiding in the vast Pacific, where the Allies held submarine supremacy over the Imperial Japanese(as opposed to the Atlantic, where the Germans had the upper hand for much of the war).
Like its fleet-mates at the Cove, the wreckage of the Lionfish would be ‘colonized’ by psychosensitive alien nanotech, which began reconstructing the ancient submarine along alien technowizardry lines. The impression that the nanotech got from the wreck of the Lionfish was ‘stealth’, so the A.I.-driven warship that has emerged is much stealthier than the original World War Two ‘pigboat’, thanks to alien technology being incorporated into the design. While the Lionfish retains much of the general design configuration of the original, there are changes...the sail/conning tower, and exposed deck guns have a sleeker, more streamlined appearance, the hull is relatively seamless, and the original twin screw propellors have been replaced by silent hydro-repulsion jets.
The Lionfish has actually already been completed by the alien nanotech ‘shipyard’ under the debris of south-eastern coastal Massachussetts, and the ship has slowly worked its way through the muck and debris to open water, where it has begun quiet patrols of the area. In time, it may join up with the Battleship Massachusetts as part of its battlegroup, but recently the Lionfish’s enhanced energy sensors have detected the spoor of a gravitic hydro-drive, similar to those used by an ancient alien adversary(the Mechanoids) of the original alien warship that later spawned the Phantom Fleet. Currently, the Lionfish’s AI is considering trailing the drive emissions, in hopes of identifying their nature, their destination, and their point of origin, and reporting the information to its ‘battlegroup’.
Type: SS-298
Class: Fleet Submarine(Balao)
Crew:Artificial Intelligence, but has provision for 80 crew
Alignment: Effectively Scrupulous
Reaction to Others: As a member of the ‘silent service’, Lionfish will avoid contact with anyone else. The only exceptions are distressed members of the Greater New England Navy(which it has identified as affiliated with its battlegroup), the New Navy, or the old U.S Navy, Marines, Army, or Airforce(of WW2 era, emblems, and equipment).
Nature of Entity: Telepathic probes of the ship will find a very strong, alien, mechanistic core persona, with hints of other influences. The central core intelligence will shut out anybody attempting to probe further, or will forcibly refer them to ‘someone else higher up the chain of command’, but it is possible to listen to the other influences. These will take the form of fleeting audio/visual impressions of being in port, exclamations of astonishment at something, and cruising at sea.
Attitude: Mechanistic, martial; the ship seems dedicated to carrying out long-term mission protocols, accepting anything that will faciliate those protocols and rejecting anything that interferes with them.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----The ship has an Artificial Intelligence
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---The ship, as if tired of making additional compromises, will NOT tolerate any additional major modifications; any new systems must be stand-alone systems that have to function independently of ship’s systems
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 2,500
Conning Tower 800
76mm Plasma Deck Gun 300
40mm AAA Guns(2) 180 each
Height: 15 ft
Width: 27 ft
Length: 312 ft
Weight/Displacement: 1,800 tons
Cargo: 25 tons
Powerplant: Originally twin-screw diesal-electric, now believed to be a PPE-augmented fusion reactor system driving a hydrodynamic repulsorjet and maneuvering thrusters.
Speed:(Surface) 22 knts(25 MPH)
(Underwater) 12 knts(13 MPH)
Maximum Depth: 3,000 ft
Market Cost: NOT FOR SALE; a unique, one-of-a-kind alien artifact
Systems/Features of Note:
*Periscope Sensors---Includes telescopic and nightvision optics, radar(60 mile range)
*Sonar---100 mile range
*Advanced Targeting---Ranged weapons enjoy a +3 to strike.
*Stealth---The submarine has only a 15% chance of being detected by enemy sensors.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Damage Regeneration---A combination of powerful Mend magic and altered alien nanites repairs hull damage at 5d6 MDC per melee, and damage to secondary systems at 1d6 per melee.
Weapons Systems:
1) Torpedo Tubes( 10; 6x1 forward/bow, 4x1 aft/stern)
Range: 6 miles
Damage: 4d6x10 MD to 15 ft blast radius
Can also fire a ‘Special’ with an anti-matter core, that does 1d6x100 MD to a 50 ft blast radius.
Rate of Fire: Volleys of 1-3
Bonus: Active Sonar Guidance; +2 to strike
Payload: 24 ready to fire; additional torpedoes can be produced at a rate of 1 standard torpedo per hour. Generating a ‘Special’ takes 3 hours.
2)76mm Plasma Deck Gun
Range: 6 miles
Damage:4d4x10 MD to a 16 ft blast radius
Rate of Fire: Six times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
Note: CANNOT be fired underwater
3) 40mm Ion Guns (2x1)
Range: 9,000 ft
(Underwater) 4,000 ft
Damage: 1d6x10 MD per shot
Rate of Fire:EGCHH or 6 times per melee under auto-fire
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
Note: CAN be fired underwater
Last edited by taalismn on Thu Jun 28, 2012 8:07 pm, edited 3 times in total.
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
- glitterboy2098
- Rifts® Trivia Master
- Posts: 13530
- Joined: Wed Aug 06, 2003 3:37 pm
- Location: Missouri
- Contact:
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
it's worth noting the Intrepid recently got the Space Shuttle Enterprise, and also has an A-12 spy plane.
don't know what you can do with the Enterprise, but the A-12 could easily be the Fighting I's eye in the sky..
don't know what you can do with the Enterprise, but the A-12 could easily be the Fighting I's eye in the sky..
Author of Rifts: Deep Frontier (Rifter 70)
Author of Rifts:Scandinavia (current project)
* All fantasy should have a solid base in reality.
* Good sense about trivialities is better than nonsense about things that matter.
-Max Beerbohm
Visit my Website
Author of Rifts:Scandinavia (current project)
* All fantasy should have a solid base in reality.
* Good sense about trivialities is better than nonsense about things that matter.
-Max Beerbohm
Visit my Website
- taalismn
- Priest
- Posts: 48602
- Joined: Tue Sep 02, 2003 8:19 pm
- Location: Somewhere between Heaven, Hell, and New England
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
glitterboy2098 wrote:it's worth noting the Intrepid recently got the Space Shuttle Enterprise, and also has an A-12 spy plane.
don't know what you can do with the Enterprise, but the A-12 could easily be the Fighting I's eye in the sky..
Phantom Space Shuttles:
“Okay, who here’s ready to go to space?”
Space travel was one of the glories of the old American Empire, and the Golden Age saw a reflowering of the heady days of space exploration, but the Coming of the Rifts effectively severed that dream. Now, only the most advanced technologies(more frequently than not, alien ones) and the most advanced magicks are capable of allowing the people of Earth to once again touch the stars. One possible route to space is to hitch a ride aboard the Phantom Shuttles. These glowing white-hulled phantasms appear to be resurrections of the old American Empire STS Space Shuttle, or which five were built, two coming to grief in catastrophic accidents. The remaining three vehicles were retired in 2011, going to various museums around the nation. It it from these end locations for the original material craft that their phantoms now currently take off periodically. One takes off from the remains of Cape Kennedy, one from a site in California, and the third from just outside the ruins of old Washington D.C., from what was once Dulles International Airport. The Phantom Shuttles each typically take off 1d4 times per year.
Generally, the Shuttles will start manifesting 2d4 days before they are to make a departure from their resting place, gradually becoming more solid the closer to launch time(this can be further emphasized by an obvious ‘countdown clock’ or ghostly crew appearing and getting increasingly agitated/anxious about ‘mission kickoff’ or ‘payload problems’ with a rapidly approaching ‘launch window’), giving any prospective passengers a chance to gather their wits and equipment, and start loading it aboard. The Shuttles will then tilt up on their tails and launch on ghostly columns of ectoplasmic flame into the atmosphere, and then into space. The Shuttles will then rendevouz with the then-nearest space station in orbit(Iinterestly enough, none of the Orbital Quarantine battle satellites will target the Phantom Shuttles). If the passengers have the required skill in piloting spacecraft, or make a successful Navigation: Space roll, they can take control of the ship or provide it with alternate rendevouz coordinates, allowing the Shuttle to visit different/multiple orbital locations(provided the locations do not fall outside a 700 mile maximum ‘altitude’ limit). The Shuttles may remain in orbit as long as three weeks before returning(with or without the passengers) to Earth, landing, and vanishing until their next ‘launch window’.
Despite their size, space aboard the Phantom Shuttles is limited. Likewise, they have no provision for easily loading their own cargo bays, so the burden is on the passengers to find or rig up the means of loading their gear aboard the cargo bay themselves, and securing it in place.
The Phantom Shuttles will only take passengers into orbit; not farther, nor will they land anywhere else on the planet aside from their start points. The Shuttles are also unarmed, and CANNOT participate in combat.
Rumors tell that a fourth Phantom Shuttle also exists, but this craft only takes off from the ruins of Cape Kennedy, and doesn’t travel to orbit. Instead, it reportedly transits to another universe, one of infinite light, one from which no one has yet returned.
Another was said to hide in old New York City(now MadHaven) but this was only a prototype test article, not an actual spacecraft, and was destroyed during the Coming of the Rifts.
No sign has ever been reported of the fifth actual spacecraft of the original five built.
Type: Space Transportation System
Class: Space Shuttle
Crew: Has seating for 6-8 crew/passengers
The Phantom Shuttles are ‘crewed’ by ghostly crewmembers who appear in the jumpsuits and spacesuits of the old American Empire, and specifically NASA. The ghosts are generally friendly, but professional, and exude a sense of the ‘right stuff’ when it comes to piloting and venturing into the unknown.
Alignment: Principled
Reaction to Others: Reserved----The vehicle will only allow those of compatible alignments aboard it, favoring those with professional attitudes or a genuine desire to fly/explore.
Nature of Entity: 1d6 Voices----The vehicle seems possessed by several distinct identities/personalities...perhaps the original crew or owners. Like the previous entry, these beings/personas can communicate with words, impressions, or images, to a probe. Non-humans may draw queries and a sense of curiosity from the spirits. Other listeners may be bombarded with lectures on the importance of space travel and exploration, or academic discourses on various scientific experiments, earth monitoring studies, environmental concerns, or the maintenance of archaic space travel technologies(likely to be of interest only to Rogue Scientists, Scholars, and history-minded Operators).
Attitude: The spirit of the Phantom Shuttles can be described as being that of an enthusiastic, hard-working, overachiever, eager to work and to serve, but frustrated when something goes wrong or causes a delay.
Quirks:
-Ghost Voices----Snatches of archaic music or speech occasionally come from the radio system, even when it is turned off. ‘Mission Control’ seems to factor a great deal in them.
-Ghost Glow---The vehicle seems to shimmer with a barely visible glow that usually intensifies in areas of high magic.
-Translucent---The vehicle is solid as metal, but it still seems to be translucent and shadowy. Anyone going inside the vehicle will not note anything unusual inside, but they too will be caught up in the effect.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 400
Wings(2) 150 each
Cockpit 100
Engines 200
Tail 120
Cargo Bay Doors 110
Robot Manipulator Arm(1) 50
Height: 58.58 ft
Width: 78.06 ft
Length: 122.17 ft
Weight: 230,000 lb
Cargo: 55,250 pounds (25,060 kg). Payload bay measures 15 ft by 60 ft (4.6 m by 18.3 m)
Powerplant: Magic
Speed:25,404 feet/sec (7,743 meters/sec, 27,875 km/hour, 17,321 m.p.h.)(DOUBLE on an atmospheric or space leyline), effective maximum altitude/range of 100-520 miles(700 miles post-Rifts).
Market Cost: None; they’re Haunted Vehicles
Systems/Features:
Standard Spacecraft Systems(or the magic equivalents), plus:
*Universal Docking Collar(side and cargo bay hatch)
*Airlock---The Phantom Shuttles have an airlock, big enough for a single spacesuited person, that exits into the cargo bay. The airlock is rather slow, taking about 15 minutes to cycle.
*Robot Manipulator Arm---The ‘Canadian Arm’ is a 50-ft long ‘cherrypicker’ multi-position robot arm with a ‘wrist’ and ‘elbow’. It features a TV camera in the end, next to the modular socket, and another camera at the elbow. It is remote controlled from inside the cabin. The arm is useless under terrestrial gravity cnditions, and is not fast or strong enough for combat purposes, but can be used to impart motion to quite substantial objects such as multi-ton satellites.
*Closets and Spacesuit Lockers---Anybody rooting through the cabinets and closets of the Phantom Shuttle will discover an assortment of tools, first aid kits, and gear, including up to 8 crash suits and three EVA suits, that look like they came out of a museum. Everything can be used and is fully functional, and if damaged, can be placed in the original closet or cabinet it came from...and be miraculously replaced the next time it’s taken out. Some supplies, like the duct tabe, seem to have an INFINITE supply.
However, if removed from the Phantom Shuttle, any tools, gear, and the spacesuits will vanish after 48 hours.
-Crash Suits---These are bright orange safety suits with helmets, worn during takeoff and landing. Since the Shuttles became Phantoms, they have become the equivalent of GAW Mark I Flight Suit Armor(see Rifts Merc Ops, pg. 120) in terms of statistics(16 MDC main body, 10 MDC helmet).
-EVA Suit---Classic bulky spacesuit. Has enough air for 7 hours of operation, plus a 30-minute emergency supply. P.S. and P.S. are effectively HALVED(and precision work is at -15% to skill rolls if one attempts to do it quickly) while wearing the bulky suits. Would normall have 25 SDC and A.R. 8, but the Phantom Shuttle suits have the equivalent of Armor of Ithan on them and thus have 150 MDC! They can also be attached to an MMU kit that allows the wearer to jet around at 30 MPH for 45 minutes of constant thrusting(can be extended by ten minutes if the wearer expends 5 PPE/10 ISP). Has the equivalent of Magnetic Boots.
Note that the Phantom Shuttles lack any sort of artificial gravity, so passengers may suffer from zero-gravity disorientation and motion sickness(and humiliation, especially when using the zero-gravity toilet).
Supernatural Abilities:
*Cosmic Armor---Twice every 24 hours, the Phantom shuttles can generate a forcefiedl around the ship that lasts 30 mimutes epr actvation and has 200 MDC. The ‘armor’ appears as a bright glow around the ship. The forcefield can be extended and bolstered by 10 minutes and 50 MDC if any of the crew/passengers expend 10 PPE/20 ISP.
*Detect Leak(identical to the Space Spell, 10th level)---Any leak in the hull will be announced by a loud hiss or whistle, and streaming vapor heading towards it.
*Seal Leak(identical to the Space Spell, 10th level)---In the event the hull IS penetrated, the ship will automatically seal the leak until the Phantom magically regenerates.
*Damage Regeneration---The hull magically regenerates 1d4x10 MD per minute
*Radiation Shielding(identical to the Space Spell, 10th level)---The Phantom Shuttles protect their crew/passengers from cosmic radiation.
*Create Breathable Air(always on)---The life support system aboard the Phantoms is magical in nature, and provides a steady supply of perfectly breathable air.
*Create Drinkable Water(identical to the Space Spell, 10th level)---The water may no longer come as a byproduct of fuel cells, but it’s a reliable and perfectly drinkable supply.
*Create Food---The Phantom Shuttle’s pantries will supply every passenger with three square meals per day for the duration of the trip. The foodstuffs themselves are identical to early NASA space rations and vary in quality in bland to good, and consist of a variety of dehydrated, reconstituted, mashed, or frozen low-residue foods. It will keep you alive, but it’s not terribly appetizing if you’re a steak-and-potatoes person.
*Magic Tether(identical to the Space Spell, 10th level)---140 ft of magical rope. Additional line can be created if the crew/passengers can expend 10 PPE/20 ISP for every additional 100 ft of Tether.
*Star Light(identical to the Space Spell, 10th level)---Twice per 24 hours, the Shuttle can light up with celestial intensity covering a 2,000 ft diameter sphere in brightest light, so intense it reads to sensors as a solid object. Accurate targeting of anything inside the area of effect is impossible. Lasts 20 minutes per activation. Activation is usually accompanied by some sort of triumphant pre-Rifts music(“Also Sprach Zarathustra” typically).
Weapons Systems: None
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
An interesting idea, and the one reminds me of the evil Nazi ship from one old horror movie that would travel around crashing into and sinking other ocean liners then letting some survivors on board in order to kill them in horrific ways (and from a Palladium perspective gain extra PPE from draining them in their death throws). Hmmmm, now I'm wondering what the name of the old movie is.
Fair warning: I consider being called a munchkin a highly offensive slur and do report people when they err in doing so.
'Reality is very disappointing.' - Jonathan Switcher from Mannequin
It's 'canon', not 'cannon'. A cannon is a big gun like on pirate ships, canon is what you mean when referring to something as being contained within one of the books such as how many dice to roll for a stat.
'Reality is very disappointing.' - Jonathan Switcher from Mannequin
It's 'canon', not 'cannon'. A cannon is a big gun like on pirate ships, canon is what you mean when referring to something as being contained within one of the books such as how many dice to roll for a stat.
- glitterboy2098
- Rifts® Trivia Master
- Posts: 13530
- Joined: Wed Aug 06, 2003 3:37 pm
- Location: Missouri
- Contact:
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
plenty of real world 'ghost ship' stories to adopt too..
Flying Dutchman
Young Teazer
Caleuche
Lady Lovibond
Eliza Battle
SS Valencia
Schooner Jenny
Baychismo
and other phantom vehicles
i think i'm going to steal the stories about silverpilen and try to work it into a mention in my book.
death ship?
Flying Dutchman
Young Teazer
Caleuche
Lady Lovibond
Eliza Battle
SS Valencia
Schooner Jenny
Baychismo
and other phantom vehicles
i think i'm going to steal the stories about silverpilen and try to work it into a mention in my book.
Nightmask wrote:An interesting idea, and the one reminds me of the evil Nazi ship from one old horror movie that would travel around crashing into and sinking other ocean liners then letting some survivors on board in order to kill them in horrific ways (and from a Palladium perspective gain extra PPE from draining them in their death throws). Hmmmm, now I'm wondering what the name of the old movie is.
death ship?
Last edited by glitterboy2098 on Thu Jun 28, 2012 12:01 am, edited 2 times in total.
Author of Rifts: Deep Frontier (Rifter 70)
Author of Rifts:Scandinavia (current project)
* All fantasy should have a solid base in reality.
* Good sense about trivialities is better than nonsense about things that matter.
-Max Beerbohm
Visit my Website
Author of Rifts:Scandinavia (current project)
* All fantasy should have a solid base in reality.
* Good sense about trivialities is better than nonsense about things that matter.
-Max Beerbohm
Visit my Website
- taalismn
- Priest
- Posts: 48602
- Joined: Tue Sep 02, 2003 8:19 pm
- Location: Somewhere between Heaven, Hell, and New England
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
Angel-One
(A deus ex machina for those really bad situations)
“Down in these parts, an angel’s wings go ‘whup-whup-whup....’”
-Anonymous Swampstomper, Carolina Wilderness.
“Man, after my hovercycle took that suppository mini-missile up the tailpipe and I became One with the Tree, I thought those bandits were going to have my ass for sure, seeing as I couldn’t crawl faster than a salted slug...so there I was bellying through the muck with more bones broken than I thought I had bones, waiting for the technobarbos to finish cutting me up into bite-sizees, when this fog rolls in and the next thing I know I’m being lifted up into this big orange eggbeater. I thought for sure I’d died and gone to meet Saint Sikorsky, but I woke up again with my legs fixed and my skin glued back together, just outside a nice little bed-and-breakfast hovel way away from where I was last, I dunno what happened, but it sure beat the alternative...”
-’Captain Ovencleaner’, M.O.M. Crazy courier.
‘Angel-One’ is the name given to a class of peculiar ghostly entities that seem particularly benign....they would appear to be ancient pre-Rifts medical airlift helicopters.
Though a number of different helicopter types have been observed and identified, the most commonly seen Angel-Ones appear, for some strange reason, and especially in the hot humid jungles of the Dinosaur Swamp and southern bayou country, to be Bell UH-1 ‘Hueys’ in old-style khaki-green military color schemes.
From what has been described of their activities, it has been speculated that Angel-Ones may be the ghosts of medical air-evac crews and their machines(likely lost during the Coming of the Rifts), who continue, in the magic-rich environment of Rifts Earth, to ply their noble trade of saving lives. Others say the ghosts belong to even earlier times, dating back to the advent of helicopter rescue(using the observation that those most often encountered around Dinosaur Swamp are Vietnam War-era craft). Another speculation is that the apparitions are actually the work of altruistic aliens, disguising themselves as familiar terrestrial entities, and carrying out humanitarian aide missions.
The Angel-Ones just seem to appear randomly from time to time, with the only common thread being that they appear to underdogs in a conflict, or bad situation, with the odds stacked against them, often at the last moment, in the thick of battle, or when it seems the good guys are finally cornered. The avionic apparitions appear to the badly injured and desperate from out of the blue, swooping out of the sky to pick up the endangered party, then dropping them off elsewhere....sometimes hundreds of miles away.
Strangely, people taken aboard an Angel-One have little accurate memory of what transpires to them between being picked up and being dropped off. Apparently rescuees are either magically or psychically numbed and befuddled; most people have only vague recollections of talking to people aboard the craft, answering questions(usually of a medical nature, or where they came from, etc.), and of feeling safe and happy....Badly injured victims will find their injuries healed, critical patients(including cyborgs with life support damage) will have their conditions stabilized, and those suffering from exposure will feel rested, rehydrated, and fed.
When rescuees come to, they may find themselves hundreds of miles away from where they were last, sometimes right next to a safe haven or peaceful community, an open field or pasture, or in the remains of a parking lot or helicopter pad next to what WAS a pre-Rifts military base or hospital complex. There is no sign of their rescuers when they awaken.
Angel-Ones do NOT ever engage in combat...their abilities seem strictly defensive, meant to obscure or obstruct any hostile parties attempting to interfere with the rescue. Witnesses at Angel-One pickups often report hearing only the sound of rotorblades coming from every direction, blinding lights, sudden thick banks of glowing mist or fog, or invisible barriers surrounding the pick-up site.
Angel-Ones typically appear alone, or in pairs; rarely in groups larger than four aircraft, although some Tolkeen refugees reported seeing dozens of spectral aircraft matching the description of Angel-Ones descending and assisting in the evacuation of Tolkeen.
Type: Medevac Helicopter
Class:Haunted Vehicle
Crew: None, as far as anyone can tell, but that issue is confused(see below)
Alignment: Principled
Reaction to Others: Tolerant, with conditions; the craft seem to tolerate(indeed, seek out) others aboard them, but will not allow them to stay. Once they have reached safety, outsiders are dropped off.
Nature of Entity: Psychics who have managed to perform mental probes have detected 2-4 entities....a large, solid one of a blunt and monolithic nature, and often 2-3 others of lesser intensity, but with more human auras and psi-signatures. Those able to Commune with Spirits often report seeing and conversing with what appear to be spectral pilots and paramedics working on them, with their surface thoughts being either of archaic trivia and events(if conversing with the rescuees) or wholly concerned with altruistic/medical matters(if actively working on patients).
Attitude: Benevolent....Psychics report sensing a strong sense of duty bound to compassion and humanity. Seems to favor humans and those most like them, but only the most monstrous beings will not be tolerated/assisted.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----Angel-Ones fly at their own will, beholden to no one. Has 4 APMs, and a +5 to Dodge in flight
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---No one has reported seeing anything out of period or technologically anomalous as part of an Angel-One; nor has any Operator or Techno-Wizard ever been reported working on one.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 400
Height: 14 ft
Width: 48 ft(rotor diameter)
Length: 41 ft(57 ft with rotor, factored in)
Weight: A material Bell UH-1H would weigh 5,300 lbs
Cargo: Can accommodate/carry up to 4,000 lbs
Will only rescue/carry groups of 1-6 human-sized beings, but occasionally rescuees have reported Angel-Ones making multiple trips to carry out larger groups of victims, or, if reports are to be believed; multiple Angel-Ones have converged on a location to facilitate rescues.
Powerplant: Apparently PPE-powered
Range is unknown, but rescuees have reported being left off as far away as 300 miles from where they ran into trouble
Speed: Judging from time spent between pickup and drop-off, some experts have estimated a speed of 130 MPH for these craft and a single-trip ‘range’ of 300 miles, operating altitude of 13,600 ft
Market Cost: None; no one has ever captured one of these aircraft
Systems/Features:
*Radio----Angel-Ones can apparently communicate via radio----rescuees sometimes report getting radio-band messages assuring them of rescue, or asking for directions, just prior to being picked up. Effective range of 100 miles
*Radio Homing---Can home in on radio beacons(though some mystics believed the spectors actually home in on suffering and desperation).
*Rescue Winch---If magic levitation fails, the ghost can always manifest this ectoplasmic winch and cable, capable of lowering up to 30 ft, and lifting up to 450 lbs
Supernatural Abilities:
*Damage Regeneration---_Regenerates 4d6 MD per melee
*Defensive Spells(can engage each of the following, 4 times a day)
-Befuddle
-Frequency Jamming
-Cloud of Smoke
-Globe of Daylight
-Summon Fog
-Wall of Defense
*Healing Spells(can engage each of the following, 5 times a day)
-Trance
-Sleep
-Cure Minor Disorders
-Cure Illness
-Heal Wounds
*Levitation---Used in place of a cable hoist; the phantom copter just flies over a person(or group of people) and magically lifts them to safety(some rescuees report seeing a beam of light picking them up)
*Natural Invisibility---The vehicle seems to be capable of assuming an invisible and perfectly silent state, even when running full out! The vehicle cannot engage in any sort of offensive action(like firing a weapon) without dropping its invisibility. Can engage this ability 1d6 times per day/24 hours, for 1d6x10 minutes at a time
Weapons Systems: None
(A deus ex machina for those really bad situations)
“Down in these parts, an angel’s wings go ‘whup-whup-whup....’”
-Anonymous Swampstomper, Carolina Wilderness.
“Man, after my hovercycle took that suppository mini-missile up the tailpipe and I became One with the Tree, I thought those bandits were going to have my ass for sure, seeing as I couldn’t crawl faster than a salted slug...so there I was bellying through the muck with more bones broken than I thought I had bones, waiting for the technobarbos to finish cutting me up into bite-sizees, when this fog rolls in and the next thing I know I’m being lifted up into this big orange eggbeater. I thought for sure I’d died and gone to meet Saint Sikorsky, but I woke up again with my legs fixed and my skin glued back together, just outside a nice little bed-and-breakfast hovel way away from where I was last, I dunno what happened, but it sure beat the alternative...”
-’Captain Ovencleaner’, M.O.M. Crazy courier.
‘Angel-One’ is the name given to a class of peculiar ghostly entities that seem particularly benign....they would appear to be ancient pre-Rifts medical airlift helicopters.
Though a number of different helicopter types have been observed and identified, the most commonly seen Angel-Ones appear, for some strange reason, and especially in the hot humid jungles of the Dinosaur Swamp and southern bayou country, to be Bell UH-1 ‘Hueys’ in old-style khaki-green military color schemes.
From what has been described of their activities, it has been speculated that Angel-Ones may be the ghosts of medical air-evac crews and their machines(likely lost during the Coming of the Rifts), who continue, in the magic-rich environment of Rifts Earth, to ply their noble trade of saving lives. Others say the ghosts belong to even earlier times, dating back to the advent of helicopter rescue(using the observation that those most often encountered around Dinosaur Swamp are Vietnam War-era craft). Another speculation is that the apparitions are actually the work of altruistic aliens, disguising themselves as familiar terrestrial entities, and carrying out humanitarian aide missions.
The Angel-Ones just seem to appear randomly from time to time, with the only common thread being that they appear to underdogs in a conflict, or bad situation, with the odds stacked against them, often at the last moment, in the thick of battle, or when it seems the good guys are finally cornered. The avionic apparitions appear to the badly injured and desperate from out of the blue, swooping out of the sky to pick up the endangered party, then dropping them off elsewhere....sometimes hundreds of miles away.
Strangely, people taken aboard an Angel-One have little accurate memory of what transpires to them between being picked up and being dropped off. Apparently rescuees are either magically or psychically numbed and befuddled; most people have only vague recollections of talking to people aboard the craft, answering questions(usually of a medical nature, or where they came from, etc.), and of feeling safe and happy....Badly injured victims will find their injuries healed, critical patients(including cyborgs with life support damage) will have their conditions stabilized, and those suffering from exposure will feel rested, rehydrated, and fed.
When rescuees come to, they may find themselves hundreds of miles away from where they were last, sometimes right next to a safe haven or peaceful community, an open field or pasture, or in the remains of a parking lot or helicopter pad next to what WAS a pre-Rifts military base or hospital complex. There is no sign of their rescuers when they awaken.
Angel-Ones do NOT ever engage in combat...their abilities seem strictly defensive, meant to obscure or obstruct any hostile parties attempting to interfere with the rescue. Witnesses at Angel-One pickups often report hearing only the sound of rotorblades coming from every direction, blinding lights, sudden thick banks of glowing mist or fog, or invisible barriers surrounding the pick-up site.
Angel-Ones typically appear alone, or in pairs; rarely in groups larger than four aircraft, although some Tolkeen refugees reported seeing dozens of spectral aircraft matching the description of Angel-Ones descending and assisting in the evacuation of Tolkeen.
Type: Medevac Helicopter
Class:Haunted Vehicle
Crew: None, as far as anyone can tell, but that issue is confused(see below)
Alignment: Principled
Reaction to Others: Tolerant, with conditions; the craft seem to tolerate(indeed, seek out) others aboard them, but will not allow them to stay. Once they have reached safety, outsiders are dropped off.
Nature of Entity: Psychics who have managed to perform mental probes have detected 2-4 entities....a large, solid one of a blunt and monolithic nature, and often 2-3 others of lesser intensity, but with more human auras and psi-signatures. Those able to Commune with Spirits often report seeing and conversing with what appear to be spectral pilots and paramedics working on them, with their surface thoughts being either of archaic trivia and events(if conversing with the rescuees) or wholly concerned with altruistic/medical matters(if actively working on patients).
Attitude: Benevolent....Psychics report sensing a strong sense of duty bound to compassion and humanity. Seems to favor humans and those most like them, but only the most monstrous beings will not be tolerated/assisted.
Quirks:
*Mind of Its Own----Angel-Ones fly at their own will, beholden to no one. Has 4 APMs, and a +5 to Dodge in flight
*Intolerant of Additional Modification---No one has reported seeing anything out of period or technologically anomalous as part of an Angel-One; nor has any Operator or Techno-Wizard ever been reported working on one.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 400
Height: 14 ft
Width: 48 ft(rotor diameter)
Length: 41 ft(57 ft with rotor, factored in)
Weight: A material Bell UH-1H would weigh 5,300 lbs
Cargo: Can accommodate/carry up to 4,000 lbs
Will only rescue/carry groups of 1-6 human-sized beings, but occasionally rescuees have reported Angel-Ones making multiple trips to carry out larger groups of victims, or, if reports are to be believed; multiple Angel-Ones have converged on a location to facilitate rescues.
Powerplant: Apparently PPE-powered
Range is unknown, but rescuees have reported being left off as far away as 300 miles from where they ran into trouble
Speed: Judging from time spent between pickup and drop-off, some experts have estimated a speed of 130 MPH for these craft and a single-trip ‘range’ of 300 miles, operating altitude of 13,600 ft
Market Cost: None; no one has ever captured one of these aircraft
Systems/Features:
*Radio----Angel-Ones can apparently communicate via radio----rescuees sometimes report getting radio-band messages assuring them of rescue, or asking for directions, just prior to being picked up. Effective range of 100 miles
*Radio Homing---Can home in on radio beacons(though some mystics believed the spectors actually home in on suffering and desperation).
*Rescue Winch---If magic levitation fails, the ghost can always manifest this ectoplasmic winch and cable, capable of lowering up to 30 ft, and lifting up to 450 lbs
Supernatural Abilities:
*Damage Regeneration---_Regenerates 4d6 MD per melee
*Defensive Spells(can engage each of the following, 4 times a day)
-Befuddle
-Frequency Jamming
-Cloud of Smoke
-Globe of Daylight
-Summon Fog
-Wall of Defense
*Healing Spells(can engage each of the following, 5 times a day)
-Trance
-Sleep
-Cure Minor Disorders
-Cure Illness
-Heal Wounds
*Levitation---Used in place of a cable hoist; the phantom copter just flies over a person(or group of people) and magically lifts them to safety(some rescuees report seeing a beam of light picking them up)
*Natural Invisibility---The vehicle seems to be capable of assuming an invisible and perfectly silent state, even when running full out! The vehicle cannot engage in any sort of offensive action(like firing a weapon) without dropping its invisibility. Can engage this ability 1d6 times per day/24 hours, for 1d6x10 minutes at a time
Weapons Systems: None
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
- taalismn
- Priest
- Posts: 48602
- Joined: Tue Sep 02, 2003 8:19 pm
- Location: Somewhere between Heaven, Hell, and New England
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
glitterboy2098 wrote:plenty of real world 'ghost ship' stories to adopt too..
Flying Dutchman
Young Teazer
Caleuche
Lady Lovibond
Eliza Battle
SS Valencia
Schooner Jenny
Baychismo
Plenty of museum pieces and memorial 'gate guards' that can be resurrected in this way too.
Kitsune has a number of Haunted Vehicles using my basic template on his website as well, including Haunted Cars.
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
- ZINO
- Knight
- Posts: 4097
- Joined: Mon Jul 14, 2008 5:02 pm
- Comment: NEVER QUIT..... I got lucky
- Location: new york
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
wow well cone man!!Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
let your YES be YES and your NO be NO but plz no maybe
- taalismn
- Priest
- Posts: 48602
- Joined: Tue Sep 02, 2003 8:19 pm
- Location: Somewhere between Heaven, Hell, and New England
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
This could probably go with Abtex's ideas on global expansion of the Cargo Cult, but as it was first posted as a Haunted Vehicle, here it is:
The Phantom Airlift
http://cdn.globalaircraft.org/media/img/planes/lowres/c-54_2.jpg
http://www.richard-seaman.com/Aircraft/AirShows/YankeeAirMuseum2006/Highlights/C54Tom2006.jpg
http://www.spiritoffreedom.org/c54.ht1.jpg
You’ve hardly known a season without war, a season where there truly was enough to eat. If it was not the monsters of the land and sky come to demand tribute and food to eat(and if they didn’t get enough, then they would take of your family and friends to eat), then it was the soldiers with their machines who came and confiscated your food, or else destroyed it to deny it to the monsters. What little you managed to hide and horde was then found by the bandits who also roamed the land, leaving you with nothing.
You pleaded with your gods, begged them for succor, and when they did not deliver, you railed at them and you cursed them, raising your fists to the heavens, knowing it did little good against the gathering clouds of the coming cold winter.
And then you heard a noise in the sky, a deep throaty roar of power, a noise of machines. Not the fighting machines of the soldiers, not the war machines of the monsters, a different sound, one that a human native to these parts in the days of long ago could tell you had not been heard in the skies for centuries.
And with that noise, food began to fall from the sky...
The war in Europe between the New German Republic and the Monster Kingdoms has been hard for those caught in between the two titan powers. Those considered too non-human or disloyal to enjoy the support of the Germans, too mild and delicious to enjoy fraternity with the Gargoyles and Brodkil have little going for them. Crops wiped out by collateral overkill from nearby battles, lifestock slaughtered by armies passing through, small communities cut from their neighbors and what few lines of communication and trade that have been painstakingly re-established since the Coming of the Rifts.
But every year, scattering of isolated communities report a miracle occurs. Most often around October 3rd, Old Calender, but pretty much at any time of the year, villagers have reported seeing strange aircraft flying overhead. Few have gotten good looks at the aircraft, but the few good descriptions that have emerged are of antiquated piston-engined cargo planes, typically decorated in english language markings. The sighting of these mysterious aircraft coincides with the appearance of payloads of fuel and foodstuffs to beleagured communities.
The payloads typically delivered by these phantom fliers call into three general categories:
*Fuel ---Heaps of coal or barrels of oil found next to open fields where the phantoms have been seen to circle(and presumably land). The coal and foodstuffs are typically packaged in paper sacks, while the fuel oil is in mild steel drums(typically 50 gallon containers).
*Food---Bags of flour, vegetables(powdered potatoes seem to be the most common), tinned meats, and powdered milk, found piled beside the same fields as the fuel ‘deliveries’.
*Candy/Sweets---These are known to be directly associated with the phantom aircraft; villagers have reported being overflown by the phantoms and ‘bombed’ with miniature parachutes, each bearing a candy bar, box of raisins, or other snack food. The candy comes marked in wrappings such as ‘Hershey’, ‘Mars’, ‘SunMaid’, and other brand names recognizable as pre-Rifts. A typical ‘candy raid’ will consist of 1d4x100 parachutes.
The phenomenon may be related in some way to the Cargo Cults of the South Pacific(see Rifter #47), but nobody seems to have summoned these aerial apparitions--they just appear. Their appearance has also been attributed to Saint Nicholas(See Rifter #0-1), but even that worthy has no knowledge of who is behind the Phantom Fliers. The fliers typically are solitary, but as many as a dozen aircraft may converge on a single village, delivering cargoes of supplies.
The most common ‘Phantom Flier’ would be identified by the historically cognizant as a pre-Rifts C-54, a four-engined piston-propellor aircraft used by the old American Empire in the decade immediately after the Second Global Conflict. Other aircraft identified with the phenomenon have included DC-3s/C-47s.
No one is known to have managed to get aboard these aircraft, but if they did, they’d find them to be fully working examples of pre-Rifts cargo planes...only nobody’s at the controls. Close scrutiny of the aircraft themselves will reveal that they are some sort of mystical construct, hardened ectoplasm or something akin to it. Anything removed from the aircraft, like a nut, bolt, or other fitting will simply evaporate without a trace after twelve hours. The cargoes are real, however(the paper and metal wrappings will last until they rot or are destroyed, and presumably come from someplace else, possibly another universe.
Nobody knows where these strange and beneficent aircraft and their cargoes come from who sends them out(the American Empire is long gone with the Coming of the Rifts), but their appearance, and their deliveries, has often meant the difference between a deadly winter and survivable one for many small villages in post-Rifts Europe.
(GM note: The Phantom Fliers should not be used as a way of undercutting the sheer tragedy and cost of the conflicts in post-Rifts Europe. There’s no way the mysterious agency behind the airdrops can feed and sustain the entire un-aligned population of Europe year-round, especially if the Monster Kingdoms or NGR figure that they can completely strip the countryside of resources, because somebody else will pick up the tab for feeding the villagers.)
Alignment: Principled
Reaction to Others: The Phantom Fliers seek to avoid confrontations with others and will not allow ‘unauthorized’ persons aboard, especially those of evil intent.
Nature of Entity: 1d6 Voices----The vehicle seems possessed by several distinct identities/personalities...perhaps the original crew or owners. These beings/personas can communicate with words, impressions, or images, to a psychic probe, or may occasionally be heard in radio signals intercepted from the aircraft, in which case they can be identified as American, of roughly the late 1940’s/early 1950’s time period. Any awareness of events on the ground will be coached in terms of relating to the historical situation of that time(so flying over gargoyle/brodkil-destroyed towns may elicit comments like ‘Jeez, those Nazis really did a number on this place!’, or ‘Those commies play hardball, don’t they?”). Other times they may speak of ‘duty rotations’, local weather and landing conditions, and how much cargo they can pack aboard, or make cultural references of the 1940’s.
Attitude: Benign; the Phantom Fliers seek to deliver food and fuel to the desperate and the destitute.
Quirks:
*EctoPlasmic---Any Phantom Flier that is shot down will reveal no trace of crew in the wreckage, and the wreckage will evaporate within 1d4 hours, leaving no trace of anything behind.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 200
Wings(2) 100 each
Engines(4) 50 each
Tail 100
Height: 28 ft
Width: 117 ft
Length: 94 ft
Weight: 73,000 lbs
Cargo: 22,000 lbs
Powerplant: Magic
Speed: (Flying)170 MPH
Market Cost: Haunted Vehicle; not available for sale
Systems/Features:
*Radio--The Phantom Fliers seem to have radio; snatches of radio conversation have been intercepted coming from the aircraft, and a few people claim to have conversed with the aircrews, but communication has been curiously stilted unless coached in terms of the historical period that the aircraft seem to come from. Such conversations will reveal little of where the aircraft come from(aside from ‘the land of liberty!’, ‘the land of milk and honey’, various ancient American states, and occasionally references to locations in England). Occasionally the chatter may be about sports. movies, entertainment, and the like. Any effort to assist the Phantom Flier(such as advising of weather conditions in a location, or warning about enemy activity in a given area) will be responded to with apparent heartfelt thanks from the unseen aircrew.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Fuel-less Operation---The Phantom Fliers show no indication of needing to refuel, and may be wholly magically powered.
*Damage Regeneration----The Phantom Fliers appear to regenerate damage at a rate of roughly 4d6 MD per minute.
*Radar Invisible---The Fliers are effectively invisible to radar and other high-tech sensors at ranges of less than 3 miles, making tracking them a difficult proposition.
Weapons Systems: None
The Phantom Airlift
http://cdn.globalaircraft.org/media/img/planes/lowres/c-54_2.jpg
http://www.richard-seaman.com/Aircraft/AirShows/YankeeAirMuseum2006/Highlights/C54Tom2006.jpg
http://www.spiritoffreedom.org/c54.ht1.jpg
You’ve hardly known a season without war, a season where there truly was enough to eat. If it was not the monsters of the land and sky come to demand tribute and food to eat(and if they didn’t get enough, then they would take of your family and friends to eat), then it was the soldiers with their machines who came and confiscated your food, or else destroyed it to deny it to the monsters. What little you managed to hide and horde was then found by the bandits who also roamed the land, leaving you with nothing.
You pleaded with your gods, begged them for succor, and when they did not deliver, you railed at them and you cursed them, raising your fists to the heavens, knowing it did little good against the gathering clouds of the coming cold winter.
And then you heard a noise in the sky, a deep throaty roar of power, a noise of machines. Not the fighting machines of the soldiers, not the war machines of the monsters, a different sound, one that a human native to these parts in the days of long ago could tell you had not been heard in the skies for centuries.
And with that noise, food began to fall from the sky...
The war in Europe between the New German Republic and the Monster Kingdoms has been hard for those caught in between the two titan powers. Those considered too non-human or disloyal to enjoy the support of the Germans, too mild and delicious to enjoy fraternity with the Gargoyles and Brodkil have little going for them. Crops wiped out by collateral overkill from nearby battles, lifestock slaughtered by armies passing through, small communities cut from their neighbors and what few lines of communication and trade that have been painstakingly re-established since the Coming of the Rifts.
But every year, scattering of isolated communities report a miracle occurs. Most often around October 3rd, Old Calender, but pretty much at any time of the year, villagers have reported seeing strange aircraft flying overhead. Few have gotten good looks at the aircraft, but the few good descriptions that have emerged are of antiquated piston-engined cargo planes, typically decorated in english language markings. The sighting of these mysterious aircraft coincides with the appearance of payloads of fuel and foodstuffs to beleagured communities.
The payloads typically delivered by these phantom fliers call into three general categories:
*Fuel ---Heaps of coal or barrels of oil found next to open fields where the phantoms have been seen to circle(and presumably land). The coal and foodstuffs are typically packaged in paper sacks, while the fuel oil is in mild steel drums(typically 50 gallon containers).
*Food---Bags of flour, vegetables(powdered potatoes seem to be the most common), tinned meats, and powdered milk, found piled beside the same fields as the fuel ‘deliveries’.
*Candy/Sweets---These are known to be directly associated with the phantom aircraft; villagers have reported being overflown by the phantoms and ‘bombed’ with miniature parachutes, each bearing a candy bar, box of raisins, or other snack food. The candy comes marked in wrappings such as ‘Hershey’, ‘Mars’, ‘SunMaid’, and other brand names recognizable as pre-Rifts. A typical ‘candy raid’ will consist of 1d4x100 parachutes.
The phenomenon may be related in some way to the Cargo Cults of the South Pacific(see Rifter #47), but nobody seems to have summoned these aerial apparitions--they just appear. Their appearance has also been attributed to Saint Nicholas(See Rifter #0-1), but even that worthy has no knowledge of who is behind the Phantom Fliers. The fliers typically are solitary, but as many as a dozen aircraft may converge on a single village, delivering cargoes of supplies.
The most common ‘Phantom Flier’ would be identified by the historically cognizant as a pre-Rifts C-54, a four-engined piston-propellor aircraft used by the old American Empire in the decade immediately after the Second Global Conflict. Other aircraft identified with the phenomenon have included DC-3s/C-47s.
No one is known to have managed to get aboard these aircraft, but if they did, they’d find them to be fully working examples of pre-Rifts cargo planes...only nobody’s at the controls. Close scrutiny of the aircraft themselves will reveal that they are some sort of mystical construct, hardened ectoplasm or something akin to it. Anything removed from the aircraft, like a nut, bolt, or other fitting will simply evaporate without a trace after twelve hours. The cargoes are real, however(the paper and metal wrappings will last until they rot or are destroyed, and presumably come from someplace else, possibly another universe.
Nobody knows where these strange and beneficent aircraft and their cargoes come from who sends them out(the American Empire is long gone with the Coming of the Rifts), but their appearance, and their deliveries, has often meant the difference between a deadly winter and survivable one for many small villages in post-Rifts Europe.
(GM note: The Phantom Fliers should not be used as a way of undercutting the sheer tragedy and cost of the conflicts in post-Rifts Europe. There’s no way the mysterious agency behind the airdrops can feed and sustain the entire un-aligned population of Europe year-round, especially if the Monster Kingdoms or NGR figure that they can completely strip the countryside of resources, because somebody else will pick up the tab for feeding the villagers.)
Alignment: Principled
Reaction to Others: The Phantom Fliers seek to avoid confrontations with others and will not allow ‘unauthorized’ persons aboard, especially those of evil intent.
Nature of Entity: 1d6 Voices----The vehicle seems possessed by several distinct identities/personalities...perhaps the original crew or owners. These beings/personas can communicate with words, impressions, or images, to a psychic probe, or may occasionally be heard in radio signals intercepted from the aircraft, in which case they can be identified as American, of roughly the late 1940’s/early 1950’s time period. Any awareness of events on the ground will be coached in terms of relating to the historical situation of that time(so flying over gargoyle/brodkil-destroyed towns may elicit comments like ‘Jeez, those Nazis really did a number on this place!’, or ‘Those commies play hardball, don’t they?”). Other times they may speak of ‘duty rotations’, local weather and landing conditions, and how much cargo they can pack aboard, or make cultural references of the 1940’s.
Attitude: Benign; the Phantom Fliers seek to deliver food and fuel to the desperate and the destitute.
Quirks:
*EctoPlasmic---Any Phantom Flier that is shot down will reveal no trace of crew in the wreckage, and the wreckage will evaporate within 1d4 hours, leaving no trace of anything behind.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 200
Wings(2) 100 each
Engines(4) 50 each
Tail 100
Height: 28 ft
Width: 117 ft
Length: 94 ft
Weight: 73,000 lbs
Cargo: 22,000 lbs
Powerplant: Magic
Speed: (Flying)170 MPH
Market Cost: Haunted Vehicle; not available for sale
Systems/Features:
*Radio--The Phantom Fliers seem to have radio; snatches of radio conversation have been intercepted coming from the aircraft, and a few people claim to have conversed with the aircrews, but communication has been curiously stilted unless coached in terms of the historical period that the aircraft seem to come from. Such conversations will reveal little of where the aircraft come from(aside from ‘the land of liberty!’, ‘the land of milk and honey’, various ancient American states, and occasionally references to locations in England). Occasionally the chatter may be about sports. movies, entertainment, and the like. Any effort to assist the Phantom Flier(such as advising of weather conditions in a location, or warning about enemy activity in a given area) will be responded to with apparent heartfelt thanks from the unseen aircrew.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Fuel-less Operation---The Phantom Fliers show no indication of needing to refuel, and may be wholly magically powered.
*Damage Regeneration----The Phantom Fliers appear to regenerate damage at a rate of roughly 4d6 MD per minute.
*Radar Invisible---The Fliers are effectively invisible to radar and other high-tech sensors at ranges of less than 3 miles, making tracking them a difficult proposition.
Weapons Systems: None
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
Posted these dumb thoughts on the Palladium mailing list years again, here they are again.
Need to finish them sometime.
Need to finish them sometime.
Did a little rewrite on some of them.
And here they are:
>--------------------------------------------------------------
* The Haunted Hot Dog Cart
(I really hope that is ketchup and not.. )
-) The Gangster model. Armed and sometimes remembers it old hits. But it sales great hotdogs. Now if somebody could just find these missing bodies.
-) The Beach model with CanNot Touch Bikini clad vendor
-) the above but add an AntiBikini clad vender mob (normal or ghost) that chases the purchaser (of a hot dog) until all of the hot dog is eaten.
* "Yes the town has a Taxi, but I would never ride in IT. It just has not been the same sent that magic using dude got killed in it a while back." At times IT casts some spells. Some magic types say they all was feel weak, after taking a ride in IT. Even stranger that some people will not even get into IT or near IT. Bloodcurdling screams are sometime heard coming from IT (not sure if it's the Taxi or from the passengers). You know that, IT still has that cute little doll hanging from the rear veiw mirror. But it now looks just like that magic guy, instead of the old driver.
* How dangerous can a Haunted Fire Engine be.
It here to help the community.
So it doesn't always use the streets on it's way to a fire.
So it goes Intangibility and pass thur buildings and other vehicles on the way there. [Rush Hour. Traffic jam. Back wall of the FireStation. No problem.]
You don't need to be trained as a Fire Fighter. Instant on the job training
[Some call it being possessed and some said it a bad thing. Who says that? Oh, Talis Merrill did.]
Sometimes it remembers the old fires.
But it just dreaming about some fiery tales.
Last edited by abtex on Tue Jul 03, 2012 3:08 am, edited 1 time in total.
I hate it when my mind wonders,
Because I have no idea what it will bring back with it.
taalismn says -- Librarians assume the role of scholar-priest-kings in an increasinly illiterate society...
taalismn says -- Abtex...Unofficial archival mole for the fictional arms industry again with the sites that make you blink...
Because I have no idea what it will bring back with it.
taalismn says -- Librarians assume the role of scholar-priest-kings in an increasinly illiterate society...
taalismn says -- Abtex...Unofficial archival mole for the fictional arms industry again with the sites that make you blink...
- glitterboy2098
- Rifts® Trivia Master
- Posts: 13530
- Joined: Wed Aug 06, 2003 3:37 pm
- Location: Missouri
- Contact:
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
taalismn wrote: “These reports of haunted old relics coming to life and roaring off on their own are just a load of bullwalla propagated by the magic-freaks and tree-huggers to make their case against science and technology. Why, if I follow their reasoning, the old ceremonial cannon in the park of my hometown, should now be able to throw hellfire all on their ownsome...Do they? Nope, they’re as dead as the day they were cemented in place there, centuries ago! Bullwalla, I tell you!”
----Corporal Peter Mazwitz, CS Militiaman, Whykin
meanwhile, in Whykin city Square..
o0" bored bored bored. would love a good fight right about now. ... SQUIRRELL!.....darn it, my wheels are stuck....bored bored bored.... hey you pigeons, get off me!....
Author of Rifts: Deep Frontier (Rifter 70)
Author of Rifts:Scandinavia (current project)
* All fantasy should have a solid base in reality.
* Good sense about trivialities is better than nonsense about things that matter.
-Max Beerbohm
Visit my Website
Author of Rifts:Scandinavia (current project)
* All fantasy should have a solid base in reality.
* Good sense about trivialities is better than nonsense about things that matter.
-Max Beerbohm
Visit my Website
- taalismn
- Priest
- Posts: 48602
- Joined: Tue Sep 02, 2003 8:19 pm
- Location: Somewhere between Heaven, Hell, and New England
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
The Love Tank
(Aka “Mandela Way”, “Stompie”)
http://farm1.staticflickr.com/4/4088101_63390b40b1.jpg
http://rpmedia.ask.com/ts?u=/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c2/PinkTank20050326_2.jpg/120px-PinkTank20050326_2.jpg
“Oh by the Jaundiced Eye of Splynn, run for it! We’re about to be KISSED by that armored abomination!”
This is a haunted T-34 tank that roams the haunted ruins of Old London’s East Side.
The Love Tank resembles the standard Soviet T-34 of the Great Patriotic War(World War Two) but sports an ever-changing psychedelic paint job that bends the eye and boggles the mind. It is believed that the original vehicle was a war monument (or movie prop)shipped to England and deposited in the middle of a bohemian community in the old East Side, where it became the center of the resident flower-children’s and artists’ ‘make love not war’ celebrations, being regularly repainted in a variety of new, increasingly eye-zapping paint schemes. Between loving thoughts, bewildered stares, and no doubt close proximity to experiments in ‘New Age’ pseudo-magic in one of the busiest cities in Europe, the old tank absorbed quite a lot of PPE and emotional tracks. With the coming of the Rifts, the old tank has apparently come to life, and now shouts/roars ‘LOVE!’ at the world. The ‘Love Tank’ now roams the ruins of Old London, not far from the Splugorth outpost there, ambushing creatures of evil and subjecting them to its peculiar form of psychological warfare. Historically, ‘Stompie’ is believed responsible for eliminating much of the zombie infestation that plagued Old London’s ruins for years after the Coming of the Rifts.
The Tank’s weaponry is fully functional, but does no actual damage. Instead, living targets hit with its cannon fire experience utter total bliss, love, and a feeling of utter mellowness. To beings of pure evil, this is tantamount to damnation, and they tend to react with horror. Furthermore, beings of magic evil as well as the undead will find their necrotic energies seriously disrupted.
The Splugorth have tried destroying and exorcising the Love Tank on numerous occasions, given its demoralizing effect on Minions who encounter it, but their efforts have failed....Every time they think they’ve put it down for good, as sure as the London fogs, the Tank appears again, none the worse for wear. Since then, the Splugorth have simply given the Love Tank a wide berth, and avoid the areas it haunts.
Alignment: Principled
Reaction to Others: Generally ignores anyone of a good or selfish alignment, but will attack beings of an evil alignment
Nature of Entity: Crowd---The tank’s inner voice seems to be that of a bustling bohemian community of dozens, if not over a hundred, voices. Tapping into this will subject the listener to a random collection of lectures on peace, offers of free love, drugs, artistic advice, commentary on the state of the world, or complaints about all of the above...
Attitude: Love thy neighbor. The Love Tank will allow others to come up to it, touch it, climb all over it, decorate it, even clamber inside it, provided they aren’t creatures of evil alignment or obvious militaristic jackbooted thugs. It will not permit weapons to be carried inside it.
Quirks:
*Dayglo Paint Job---The Love Tank always sports an eye-bendingly bright psychedelic paint job, typically in ‘warm’ colors like Hot Pink, Lipstick Red, or Lemon Yellow. Color and details vary, depending on how much damage the tank has taken in the recent past, but is always eyecatching and DEFINITELY not military drab camou.
*Radio Noise---The Love Tank’s radio will cut in and out between New Age music, English pop tunes(especially the Beatles), and peace protest speeches.
*Flowery Exhaust---Rather than petroleum fumes, the exhaust of the Love Tank smells floral, like jasmine or burning incense.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 900
Treads(2) 300 each
Main Turret 500
Height: 8 ft
Width: 9 ft 10 in.
Length: 19.5 ft
Weight: 26 tons
Cargo: Small space in the cabin for survival packs and a few small personal possessions.
NO WEAPONS ALLOWED IN THE LOVE TANK!
Powerplant: Magic
Speed: 35 MPH and can ‘button up’ and travel underwater.
Market Cost: Unique; not for sale. The Splugorth might pay somebody to try destroying the thing for good, however.
Systems/Features:
-Headlights
-Stereo Speakers---Apparently at one time somebody installed a kickass stereo system in the tank, that now blares mellow music when the tank charges into ‘combat’.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Damage Regeneration---Regenerates 4d6 MD per minute, double that on a leyline, triple that at a nexus. If destroyed, it will come back again at the next Solstice or Equinox.
*Spell Casting Abilities: Can cast each spell up to 6 times per day, at a 4th level proficiency.
-Blinding Flash
-Deflect
-Turn Dead
-Globe of Daylight
*Natural Warding----Evil Beings, entities, demons, vampires, and evil faerie folk CANNOT approach within 50 ft of the vehicle or get inside it. In fact, the mere sight of the thing advancing has been known to have the equivalent of a Horror Factor of 13 for supernatural evil beings seeing it.
Weapons Systems:
1)Love Cannon---The original 75mm cannon has been replaced with a ‘weapon’ throwing psychedelic paint shells that have various parapsychological effects. The sticky paint also can cover and effectively blind those with covered eyes/sensors, requiring 2d6 melees of vigorous scrubbing to scrape the paint off cyperoptics, windows, and goggles.
Range: 7,000 ft
Damage:(Happy Paint Shell) 50 ft blast radius. Anybody caught in the area of effect must roll a save versus magic or suffer the following: Lose Initiative, HALF all combat bonuses, Speed, and APMs. Effects last 1d4 hours.
(Mellow Yellow Shell) 50 ft blast radius. Anybody caught in the area of effect must roll a save versus magic or suffer the following: -3 to initiative, HALF all combat bonuses, and -20% to skill rolls, Creatures of magic and spellcasters will find their PPE HALVED and any spells they cast suffering HALF range, damage, effect, and duration. Effects last 1d4 hours.
(Up With Life! Shell) 50 ft blast radius. Zombies and other animated undead will immediately take damage from this shell; animated undead immediately drop ‘dead’, zombies and mummies take 3d6 damage and must roll versus Horror Factor 16 or stumble round confused for 3d6 melee rounds, grave ghouls and banshees must save versus Horror Factor 19 or flee, vampires take 2d4x10 HP, necromancers take 6d6 SDC/HP, or 4d6 MD, and lose three undead appendages. LIVING beings on the other hand suddenly feel a burst of energy, feeling +3 to initiative, +1 on all combat roles, +1 APM, and +1 on all saving rolls, for ONE melee. For the next half-hour afterwards, the person will be +1 on initiative, +5% to skill rolls, and +10% to save versus coma/death.
(Exorcism Shell) 50 ft blast radius. Demons and possessing entities must treat this as an Exorcism spell.
Rate of Fire: 5 times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
2) Kiss Machine Guns(2, one mounted in the glacis plate, the other co-axial to the main gun)---Rather than rattling off bullets, this ‘weapon’ throws ectoplasmic flowers and psychokinetic kisses that sock the target with empathic impressions.
Range: 2,000 ft
Damage: Roll a 20-sided dice equal or over the weapon’s strike roll or be knocked down(lose initiative and 1 APM getting back up again) plus must save versus psionic attack or be subjected to a full-blown Empathic Transmission: Love/Peacefulness attack. Effects last 2d6 minutes
Undead beings take 3d6 damage per single ‘kiss’ or 2d4x10 per ten-shot burst.
Rate of Fire: Six times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
(Aka “Mandela Way”, “Stompie”)
http://farm1.staticflickr.com/4/4088101_63390b40b1.jpg
http://rpmedia.ask.com/ts?u=/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c2/PinkTank20050326_2.jpg/120px-PinkTank20050326_2.jpg
“Oh by the Jaundiced Eye of Splynn, run for it! We’re about to be KISSED by that armored abomination!”
This is a haunted T-34 tank that roams the haunted ruins of Old London’s East Side.
The Love Tank resembles the standard Soviet T-34 of the Great Patriotic War(World War Two) but sports an ever-changing psychedelic paint job that bends the eye and boggles the mind. It is believed that the original vehicle was a war monument (or movie prop)shipped to England and deposited in the middle of a bohemian community in the old East Side, where it became the center of the resident flower-children’s and artists’ ‘make love not war’ celebrations, being regularly repainted in a variety of new, increasingly eye-zapping paint schemes. Between loving thoughts, bewildered stares, and no doubt close proximity to experiments in ‘New Age’ pseudo-magic in one of the busiest cities in Europe, the old tank absorbed quite a lot of PPE and emotional tracks. With the coming of the Rifts, the old tank has apparently come to life, and now shouts/roars ‘LOVE!’ at the world. The ‘Love Tank’ now roams the ruins of Old London, not far from the Splugorth outpost there, ambushing creatures of evil and subjecting them to its peculiar form of psychological warfare. Historically, ‘Stompie’ is believed responsible for eliminating much of the zombie infestation that plagued Old London’s ruins for years after the Coming of the Rifts.
The Tank’s weaponry is fully functional, but does no actual damage. Instead, living targets hit with its cannon fire experience utter total bliss, love, and a feeling of utter mellowness. To beings of pure evil, this is tantamount to damnation, and they tend to react with horror. Furthermore, beings of magic evil as well as the undead will find their necrotic energies seriously disrupted.
The Splugorth have tried destroying and exorcising the Love Tank on numerous occasions, given its demoralizing effect on Minions who encounter it, but their efforts have failed....Every time they think they’ve put it down for good, as sure as the London fogs, the Tank appears again, none the worse for wear. Since then, the Splugorth have simply given the Love Tank a wide berth, and avoid the areas it haunts.
Alignment: Principled
Reaction to Others: Generally ignores anyone of a good or selfish alignment, but will attack beings of an evil alignment
Nature of Entity: Crowd---The tank’s inner voice seems to be that of a bustling bohemian community of dozens, if not over a hundred, voices. Tapping into this will subject the listener to a random collection of lectures on peace, offers of free love, drugs, artistic advice, commentary on the state of the world, or complaints about all of the above...
Attitude: Love thy neighbor. The Love Tank will allow others to come up to it, touch it, climb all over it, decorate it, even clamber inside it, provided they aren’t creatures of evil alignment or obvious militaristic jackbooted thugs. It will not permit weapons to be carried inside it.
Quirks:
*Dayglo Paint Job---The Love Tank always sports an eye-bendingly bright psychedelic paint job, typically in ‘warm’ colors like Hot Pink, Lipstick Red, or Lemon Yellow. Color and details vary, depending on how much damage the tank has taken in the recent past, but is always eyecatching and DEFINITELY not military drab camou.
*Radio Noise---The Love Tank’s radio will cut in and out between New Age music, English pop tunes(especially the Beatles), and peace protest speeches.
*Flowery Exhaust---Rather than petroleum fumes, the exhaust of the Love Tank smells floral, like jasmine or burning incense.
MDC/Armor by Location:
Main Body 900
Treads(2) 300 each
Main Turret 500
Height: 8 ft
Width: 9 ft 10 in.
Length: 19.5 ft
Weight: 26 tons
Cargo: Small space in the cabin for survival packs and a few small personal possessions.
NO WEAPONS ALLOWED IN THE LOVE TANK!
Powerplant: Magic
Speed: 35 MPH and can ‘button up’ and travel underwater.
Market Cost: Unique; not for sale. The Splugorth might pay somebody to try destroying the thing for good, however.
Systems/Features:
-Headlights
-Stereo Speakers---Apparently at one time somebody installed a kickass stereo system in the tank, that now blares mellow music when the tank charges into ‘combat’.
Supernatural Abilities:
*Damage Regeneration---Regenerates 4d6 MD per minute, double that on a leyline, triple that at a nexus. If destroyed, it will come back again at the next Solstice or Equinox.
*Spell Casting Abilities: Can cast each spell up to 6 times per day, at a 4th level proficiency.
-Blinding Flash
-Deflect
-Turn Dead
-Globe of Daylight
*Natural Warding----Evil Beings, entities, demons, vampires, and evil faerie folk CANNOT approach within 50 ft of the vehicle or get inside it. In fact, the mere sight of the thing advancing has been known to have the equivalent of a Horror Factor of 13 for supernatural evil beings seeing it.
Weapons Systems:
1)Love Cannon---The original 75mm cannon has been replaced with a ‘weapon’ throwing psychedelic paint shells that have various parapsychological effects. The sticky paint also can cover and effectively blind those with covered eyes/sensors, requiring 2d6 melees of vigorous scrubbing to scrape the paint off cyperoptics, windows, and goggles.
Range: 7,000 ft
Damage:(Happy Paint Shell) 50 ft blast radius. Anybody caught in the area of effect must roll a save versus magic or suffer the following: Lose Initiative, HALF all combat bonuses, Speed, and APMs. Effects last 1d4 hours.
(Mellow Yellow Shell) 50 ft blast radius. Anybody caught in the area of effect must roll a save versus magic or suffer the following: -3 to initiative, HALF all combat bonuses, and -20% to skill rolls, Creatures of magic and spellcasters will find their PPE HALVED and any spells they cast suffering HALF range, damage, effect, and duration. Effects last 1d4 hours.
(Up With Life! Shell) 50 ft blast radius. Zombies and other animated undead will immediately take damage from this shell; animated undead immediately drop ‘dead’, zombies and mummies take 3d6 damage and must roll versus Horror Factor 16 or stumble round confused for 3d6 melee rounds, grave ghouls and banshees must save versus Horror Factor 19 or flee, vampires take 2d4x10 HP, necromancers take 6d6 SDC/HP, or 4d6 MD, and lose three undead appendages. LIVING beings on the other hand suddenly feel a burst of energy, feeling +3 to initiative, +1 on all combat roles, +1 APM, and +1 on all saving rolls, for ONE melee. For the next half-hour afterwards, the person will be +1 on initiative, +5% to skill rolls, and +10% to save versus coma/death.
(Exorcism Shell) 50 ft blast radius. Demons and possessing entities must treat this as an Exorcism spell.
Rate of Fire: 5 times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
2) Kiss Machine Guns(2, one mounted in the glacis plate, the other co-axial to the main gun)---Rather than rattling off bullets, this ‘weapon’ throws ectoplasmic flowers and psychokinetic kisses that sock the target with empathic impressions.
Range: 2,000 ft
Damage: Roll a 20-sided dice equal or over the weapon’s strike roll or be knocked down(lose initiative and 1 APM getting back up again) plus must save versus psionic attack or be subjected to a full-blown Empathic Transmission: Love/Peacefulness attack. Effects last 2d6 minutes
Undead beings take 3d6 damage per single ‘kiss’ or 2d4x10 per ten-shot burst.
Rate of Fire: Six times per melee
Payload: Effectively Unlimited
Last edited by taalismn on Mon Jul 02, 2012 9:09 pm, edited 1 time in total.
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
- ZINO
- Knight
- Posts: 4097
- Joined: Mon Jul 14, 2008 5:02 pm
- Comment: NEVER QUIT..... I got lucky
- Location: new york
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
love to get hit by The Love Tank
let your YES be YES and your NO be NO but plz no maybe
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
Great job Taalisman! Would make fantastic Rifter material!
- taalismn
- Priest
- Posts: 48602
- Joined: Tue Sep 02, 2003 8:19 pm
- Location: Somewhere between Heaven, Hell, and New England
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
glitterboy2098 wrote:meanwhile, in Whykin city Square..
o0" bored bored bored. would love a good fight right about now. ... SQUIRRELL!.....darn it, my wheels are stuck....bored bored bored.... hey you pigeons, get off me!....
Which is a good thing, since one of the cannonballs stacked and cemented nearby is now Diabolical Evil, and wants only to roll over people's toes, if only it could break free...
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
- Aramanthus
- Monk
- Posts: 18712
- Joined: Tue Feb 21, 2006 5:18 am
- Location: Racine, WI
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
This is cool. Have you developed any more ghostly vehicles? I have seen Kitsune's material!
"Your Grace," she said, "I have only one question. Do you wish this man crippled or dead?"
"My Lady," the protector of Grayson told his Champion, "I do not wish him to leave this chamber alive."
"As you will it, your Grace."
HH....FIE
"My Lady," the protector of Grayson told his Champion, "I do not wish him to leave this chamber alive."
"As you will it, your Grace."
HH....FIE
- Razzinold
- Hero
- Posts: 1573
- Joined: Tue Jun 01, 2004 7:51 pm
- Comment: HTTP 404 [witty comment not found]
- Location: Ontario, Canada
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
Awesome work. We've done something similar before with pre-rifts vehicles from old t.v. shows.
The real popular shows (were the vehicle was just as big of a star as the actors, or the star themselves) that developed a "cult following" were taken to the next logical step, well logical to us anyway . We decided that since the vehicles were so loved i.e. worshiped, that they became minor gods/entities that gained their power from millions of people worshiping them. We had The A-Team van, The General Lee, K.I.T.T., Herbie the Love Bug (I think he had this one inhabited by some sort of trickster since it would throw you out of the seats and toss your luggage out and stuff), Batmobile, Baby (the Impala from Supernatural), etc.
The real popular shows (were the vehicle was just as big of a star as the actors, or the star themselves) that developed a "cult following" were taken to the next logical step, well logical to us anyway . We decided that since the vehicles were so loved i.e. worshiped, that they became minor gods/entities that gained their power from millions of people worshiping them. We had The A-Team van, The General Lee, K.I.T.T., Herbie the Love Bug (I think he had this one inhabited by some sort of trickster since it would throw you out of the seats and toss your luggage out and stuff), Batmobile, Baby (the Impala from Supernatural), etc.
Last edited by Razzinold on Fri Feb 15, 2013 2:23 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
Nightmask wrote:An interesting idea, and the one reminds me of the evil Nazi ship from one old horror movie that would travel around crashing into and sinking other ocean liners then letting some survivors on board in order to kill them in horrific ways (and from a Palladium perspective gain extra PPE from draining them in their death throws). Hmmmm, now I'm wondering what the name of the old movie is.
The Movie was Death Ship with George Kennedy and Richard Crenna- a great old Horror gem... the frieghter rammed a cruise ship in the middle of the night. A ferw survivors in a raft find said frieghter the next morning and board. As each of them are picked off.. the captain of the cruise ship (Kennedy) is possessed more and more by the evil of the ship- which is actually an old Nazi torture ship...
- Sureshot
- Champion
- Posts: 2520
- Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2003 10:42 pm
- Comment: They Saved Sureshot's Brain!
- Location: Montreal, Quebec
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
Great stuff. I see a future Rifter article in the works.
If it's stupid and it works. It's not stupid
Palladium can't be given a free pass for criticism because people have a lot of emotion invested in it.
Pathfinder is good. It is not the second coming of D&D.
Surshot is absolutely right. (Kevin Seimbeda)
Enlightened Grognard
When I step out of line the mods do their jobs. I don't benefit from some sort of special protection.
Palladium can't be given a free pass for criticism because people have a lot of emotion invested in it.
Pathfinder is good. It is not the second coming of D&D.
Surshot is absolutely right. (Kevin Seimbeda)
Enlightened Grognard
When I step out of line the mods do their jobs. I don't benefit from some sort of special protection.
- Eclipse
- Adventurer
- Posts: 511
- Joined: Wed Oct 11, 2000 1:01 am
- Location: the depths of infinity... in brisbane, australia
- Contact:
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
Prolific much? Very impressive and cool idea.
And if... somone whipped out a mini gun. We run and hide. lol.
Now.. some guys won't... and you can say nice things at their funeral. "He was a brave soul.... if stupid.. he didn't take cover when the guy whipped out the mini gun on us that day.. but his blood-fountaining corpse did give us a chance to sneak around and clonk the machine gunner on the head with a rock. Rest in Pieces.... Swiss Cheese Man.....
Pepsi Jedi
Now.. some guys won't... and you can say nice things at their funeral. "He was a brave soul.... if stupid.. he didn't take cover when the guy whipped out the mini gun on us that day.. but his blood-fountaining corpse did give us a chance to sneak around and clonk the machine gunner on the head with a rock. Rest in Pieces.... Swiss Cheese Man.....
Pepsi Jedi
- taalismn
- Priest
- Posts: 48602
- Joined: Tue Sep 02, 2003 8:19 pm
- Location: Somewhere between Heaven, Hell, and New England
Re: Haunted Vehicles----The Necro
Eclipse wrote:Prolific much? Very impressive and cool idea.
Got the idea from seeing pictures of the old aircraft boneyards out west, and seeing various old pieces of military hardware at local museums and VFW halls.
So I set the rules up so if anybody has an old 'gate guardian' or old vehicle serving as a lawn ornament in their community, it might just survive the Rifts in some form. I'm sure folks out there know of at least one old 'veteran' rusting away somewhere in their community.
-------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------
"Trouble rather the Tiger in his Lair,
Than the Sage among his Books,
For all the Empires and Kingdoms,
The Armies and Works that you hold Dear,
Are to him but the Playthings of the Moment,
To be turned over with the Flick of a Finger,
And the Turning of a Page"
--------Rudyard Kipling
------------