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Stuff on 3 X 5 cards Leave a comment

What follows is the typed content of 15 3X5 cards that I found among my old papers. It is obvious
that they are a sort of design outline for a superhero game roughly based on Tunnels and Trolls. This
may have developed into the actual Power Trip rules. There are similarities.

At this stage in my life I don’t remember why or even when I wrote these cards. Based on the type of
card I used, which was the tearable scrap cards that Phoenix Public Library gave to the catalogers
(and I was a book cataloger then) in the mid to late 70s and early 80s, I estimate that I did all this
outline work long before I actually created the Power Trip rules.

There are no illustrations on the orignal cards, but I ran a kind of write-your-own superhero game in
my fanzine TnT for a while, and players sent illustrations of their own characters as well as popular
superheroes and villains of the time. I found one of those original illustrations, and I will insert it
here, just to make this document look beer. There is really no causal connection between the illo
below and the text.

–Ken St. Andre

July 17, 2012

(hps://superpowertrip.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/galatea.jpg)
A robotic woman superhero.

Super Hero Game Design


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Super Hero Game Design on 3 X 5 Cards

Super Hero Origin

1. Born
2. Accidental
3. Created
4. Outsider
5. Advanced training
6. Normal person

Powers stem from

1. Genetics
2. Gizmos—super science
3. Quirks
4. Alien laws—physics—magic
5. Training
6. Courage

1. Natural mutants (triples on a)


2. Self-made (advanced skills)
3. Scientific (gizmos)
4. Accidental (quirks)
5. Outsiders (alien abilities)
6. Normal people

Characters may increase powers in play.

Super aributes = 18 + 3D6, triples add & roll again. ST/CN = separate rolls for ST & CN both based
on 18

1. STR/CON
2. IQ
3. DEX
4. CHR
5. SP
6. Health/Regeneration
7. Gizmos
8. Quirks—Heightened senses
9. Advanced training

10. Choice of 1-9 + extra roll

Character Card

ST IQ LK CN DX CH SP/R HL

HT WT Age Sex Kin

Money

Skills

Physical Knowledge
Genetic superiority
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Genetic superiority

1. STR > CON


2. IQ > Psi > Gizmos > Training
3. LK > Psi > Accidental
4. CN > Toughness > Regeneration
5. DX > Acrobatics >Training
6. CHR > Psi > Quirks
7. SP > Quirks > Training

Quirks

1. Infravision (night visison)


2. Telescopic vision
3. Microscopic vision
4. X-ray vision
5. Heat vision
6. Stun vision
7. Superkeen hearing
8. Sonar hearing
9. Eidetic memory
10. 10. Double-jointed
11. 11. Elasticity

12. Shapeshifting

1. 13. Pigmentation control

14. Light emission

15. Noise control

16. Temperature control

1. 1. Flame
2. 17. Traction (walk on walls, ceiling, etc.)

18. Metabolic control

1. 19. Death/Trance
2. 20. Electric Discharge
3. 21. Toxic Touch
4. 22. Invisibility
5. 23. Amphibian power (Breathe water)
6. 24. Immunity (Poisons)
7. 25. Temp. control (Ice)
8. 26. Feathered skin
9. 27. Hyperpilosity
10. 28. Scaly skin
11. 29. Immunity (Radioactivity)
12. 30. Radio senses (antenna)
13. 31. Math calculation
14. 32. Extra fingers
15. 33. Extra arms (2)
16. 34. Hooves
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16. 34. Hooves


17. 35. Tentacles
18. 36. Robotic body
19. 37. Gigantic size/mass
20. 38. Minor size/mass
21. 39. Density control
22. 40. Buoyancy (flight)

41. Wings (flight)

42. Horns

1. 43. Fangs & claws


2. 44. 360 degree vision—eyes in back of head
3. 45. Bionic limbs

46. Mimicry (Sound)

1. 47. Odor control/keen sense of smell

48. Hyperkeen taste

1. 49. Personal wealth


2. 50. Delicate sense of touch

Generation Rules

1. If STR is super, CON will be super too.


2. If CON is super, but not STR, then character will have some special power.
3. If IQ is super, but not greater than 20 then character will have a Psi power.
4. If IQ is greater than 20 then character will have super-scientific powers. 1 special device per point
over 20.
5. If Luck is super, character may roll for special mutant powers.
6. If Health is super, character can regenerate and/or shapeshift
7. Only STR, CON, DEX, & Speed get multipliers.
8. Any triple indicates super aribute + roll again & add.

Scientific Skills

1. Electronics
2. Scientific detection
3. Questioning
4. Computer science
5. Forgery
6. Foreign language
7. Cryptography
8. Engineering
9. Anthropology

10. Geology

11. Biology

12. Medicine

13. Venomology
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13. Venomology

14. Chemistry

15. Physics (Optics)

16. Law

17. Architecture

18. Dead language

19. Astronomy

20. Deduction

Combat Skills

Basic Combat = 1 fpr everu 5 adds om DEX + 1 for every 5 points of skill in specific combat skills.
Minimum value is one. To be used when using an unfamiliar weapon or learning a new skill.

Combat Skills Unarmed

1. Fre form combat


2. Boxing
3. Wrestling
4. Savate
5. Martial art (specify)

Armed

1. Knives
2. Swords
3. Archery
4. Spears

10. Exotic weapon (specify)

Firearms

1. Small caliber pistols


2. Large caliber pistols
3. Small caliber rifle
4. Large caliber rifle
5. Shotgun
6. Automatic handgun
7. Automatic rifle
8. Mortars (Bazookas)
9. Small cannon

10. Large cannon

11. Mobile weapon (specify)

12. Ray weapon (specify)

13. Flamethrower
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13. Flamethrower

Combat Skills

1. Acrobatics
2. Oriental martial arts
3. Boxing
4. Wrestling
5. Evasive acton
6. Firearms (pistols)
7. Firearms (rifles)
8. Firearms (automatic weapons)
9. Firearms (cannons)

10. Archery

11. Swordsmanship

12. Exotic weapons

13. Savate

14. Swimming & diving

15. Running (Track)

16. Throwing (Aim + Power)

17. Brawling

18. Explosives

19. Trick & speed driving

20. Rope tricks

Super Powers, External

1. Invented by self or friend.


2. Equipment belongs to government agency or other large organization
3. Equipment provided by alien beings
4. Equipment found—unknown source
5. Equipment came in the mail—unknown source
6. Equipment taken from other superhero or villain

Super Powers, Inherent

1. Born with them, Mutant


2. Born with them, Alien
3. Development of a skill
4. Exposure to unknown radiation, Mutant
5. Exposure to strange chemicals, Mutant
6. Exposure to unknown drugs—transcendance

Stealth Skills

1. Lockpicking
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1. Lockpicking
2. Safecracking
3. Pocketpicking
4. Sleight of hand
5. Move quietly
6. Hide/Find object (Camouflage)
7. Set/Detect amush/trap
8. Electronic surveillance
9. Alibi

10. Climb with devices

(Names)

Kohadk

Ak Cin

S-cuk

Wawhia

Ban Dak

Pisin Mo’o

Pi O’oik

Ali Jeg

Ge Oidag

Topawa

Womuli

Culik

Wan Kiwulik

__________________________________________

If you always wanted to design your own superhero game, or if you actually did so, or if you just
want to say something about the lists I’ve thrown at you up above, please go ahead and leave a
comment.

–end

Posted July 17, 2012 by atroll in Ken St. Andre, Power Trip (roleplaying game), science fiction,
superheroes, Uncategorized

The Very Beginning of Power Trip Leave a comment


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Way back in 1983 I had an idea for turning Tunnels & Trolls into a superhero rpg. It was always
inspired by the comics, so why not try to actually make a comic book game. This is the very first
thing I wrote up for it.

T & T Variant Game Proposal for Super Heroes

I propose a full-length T & T variant to be equal in size to MSPE or WEB, to deal with the comic book
world of superheroes.

The character generation system will be compatible with T & T and its variants. The combat system
will be compatible with T & T, etc.

The tentative name for this game is POWER TRIP. I wish to reserve the right to be the principal
writer and designer of such a game if Flying Buffalo should decide to produce it.

Super-powered beings would fall into 3 basic classes:

1. Mutants. Humans with super powers inherent in their bodies. This may take the form of enhanced
aributes and/or bodily changes.

2. Self-made heroes. Humans with unusual scientific devices and/or training that give them greater-
than-human abilities.

3. Outsiders. Beings that come not from the world of humanity at all. Aliens, beings from other
dimensions, robots, beasts, etc.

Although a wide variety of super powers will be possible within the rules of the game, there will be
no equivalent of Superman (Kal-El), the Hulk, the mighty Thor, or Doctor Strange–characters who all
have apparently no limits to their capabilities.

Characters would be generated randomly as they are in T & T. Super powers would be granted
whenever a triple was rolled for an aribute. (I have an elaborate scheme for this.) If no triples were
rolled for any aributes, characters could still be super-powered by using either Gizmos, Quirks, or
Advanced Training to gain their powers.

Character generation and combat are the heart of the game. The rest is just charts and dice, lists and
advice. Both GM controlled scenarios and solitaire adventures could be wrien to use the POWER
TRIP rules. The game could be finished before Christmas if the go-ahead was given soon. Before I
start writing I would like a contract similar to the one I have for T & T.

–Ken St. Andre

I don’t know if I ever actually showed this to Rick Loomis at Flying Buffalo or not, but no contract
was ever offered, and no version of Power Trip was ever produced for Flying Buffalo.

However, I do have the first 2 chapters of the proposed rulebook that I did back at that time. These
later developed into the Power Trip game that Outlaw Press eventually published. I will begin
puing that material online tomorrow.

(Sorry, there was no art for this material when I originally wrote it, and there is no art now.)

to be continued.

Posted June 11, 2012 by atroll in Uncategorized

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Rayguns in Roleplaying Leave a comment

Rayguns in Fantasy Role-Playing Systems

c.1982 by Ken St. Andre

(hps://superpowertrip.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/raku_raygun_12.jpg)

Zzzzaaappp! The blaster shot took a chunk out of the building near my head. A second later I
jumped into the open and sprayed a beam of coruscating emerald energy through the hasturtrees.
One of the assassins just had time to scream before his severed limbs dropped to the ground. I did a
dive and roll to get out of the street, and looked around for other foes, but no one seemed to be
shooting at me anymore. A good thing, too—that was the last charge in my gun. …

No, I don’t intend to regale you with my adventures in the Clone Wars—I just wanted a bit of
atmosphere to introduce my topic. And my topic is rayguns. These handy lile (sometimes not so
lile) implements of destruction are one of the oldest gadgets in science fiction. And since superhero
comics are practically pure science fiction, the ever ubiquitous raygun has been lending its flash and
dazzle to that scene also since 1929.

When one thinks of science fiction two images come immediately to mind—the rocket ship and the
ray gun. When one thinks of superheroes it’s almost the same, the first thing you think of is the flashy
costume, and the second is the ray gun. There are now at least ten major science fiction role-playing
games and about five superhero games. Do any of them make any systematic aempt to define all
types of rayguns so that gamers can use or build the weapons of their choice? I think not. (I could be

wrong—I haven’t read all


https://superpowertrip.wordpress.com/ the latest supplements to Traveller, and Space Opera, and I haven’t looked
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wrong—I haven’t read all the latest supplements to Traveller, and Space Opera, and I haven’t looked
at Universe at all. I know that Champions, Superhero 2044, Villains and Vigilantes, and Superworld
don’t cover the problem.)

What I intend to do in this article is present a gaming aid (charts and dice—hooray!) that will enable
any gamer to create ray weapons for use in any superhero or space role-playing game. I warn you
now that this Raygun Matrix has been especially developed for the T & T variant superhero game
that I’m currently working on, but it should be easily adaptable to almost any system. To use the
Raygun Matrix you will need a 10-sided die (hereafter called D10) and some paper to record the
description of the weapon. To use the Raygun Matrix simple roll the D10 once for each column on the
table. Seconds later you will have a complete description of a new weapon. There are some 30,000
individual varieties of ray weapon that can be generated by this table—with a lile imagination and
window-dressing on the part of the players who use the weapons, there should never be a
duplication.

If the table seems self-explanatory, you can quit reading. For those who still have questions, stick
with me a lile longer while I define some symbols and lay down some definitions to explain what
the table means. I’ll also talk about Range and Charge, which you don’t see listed on the table.

Raygun Matrix

Roll Type Color Power Form Output


1. Stunner* White 1D4 Pistol Pulse
2. Lethal* Red 1D6 Pistol Pulse
3. Special effects Orange 1D8 Rifle Pulse
4. Heat beam (cuer) Blue 1D10 Powerpack rifle Pulse
5. Heat beam Olive 1D20 Cannon Beam
(disintegrator)
6. Imploder Violet 1D100 Device Beam
7. Disorienter* Purple 10 hits Device Beam
8. Electrical shocker *! Yellow 100 hits Projector Beam
9. Heat beam (burner) Emerald 1000 hits Wand Both
10. Multi-purpose Black X Tripod mounted Both
gun
Starting with column 1—Type. The asterisk symbol (*) is used to mean that this type of weapon
works only against living things. Stun rays for example, bounce harmlessly off walls, and could even
be stopped by as lile as two or three layers of clothing. Weapons listed without the asterisk do
damage to physical objects also when the ray strikes. If the weapon is of low power, the damage will
not be enough to notice—if the weapon has high power it may disintegrate doors and walls, burn up
forests, etc. The exclamation point (!) indicates that the weapon will disrupt the operation of any
electrical system that it strikes. (Example: A shocker is fired and the beam strikes a computer across
the room. There would be a tremendous electrical surge within the machine that would burn out
some circuits and jumble the data in memory as all magnetic elements change charge.)

Now a few words about the weapon types. A stunner is a weapon that is designed to knock out
living beings (especially carbon-based, oxygen-breathing lifeforms such as humans). They can kill,
but must deliver 10 times as much power to kill as to stun. They stun by delivering enough energy in

terms of hits of damage to


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terms of hits of damage to equal or exceed the victim’s hit point rating or constitution. Stunner
damage is cumulative, but it wears off quickly if not continuously applied. On the other hand, the
Lethal weapon is your basic death-ray. When a lethal weapon hits, it does crippling damage
immediately. When hits from it equal or exceed the character victim’s hit point rating or Constitution,
the character dies.

The special effects weapon needs some explanation. It has been put on the chart especially to cover all
those weapons with unusual effects such as shrinking the object struck, or turning the target
invisible. When this comes up, the player may be as creative as he/she wishes (only once per weapon,
please). This is carte blanche for magic.

The heat beam (cuer) is the equivalent of today’s modern industrial and surgical lasers. They cut
very precise holes in whatever they hit within range. The heat beam (disintegrator) works on a
different principal. They convey so much heat energy to the molecules and atoms of the object struck,
that the valence bonds are broken and the object literally flies into pieces, usually gaseous. The heat
beam (burner) isn’t quite as powerful. It can’t cut holes, and it can’t explode, but it can rapidly raise
the temperature of the struck object to its combustion point if such is below 1000 degrees Centigrade.

The imploder weapon strengthens the strong and weak nuclear forces acting within atoms to cause
rapid and violent condensation of the object struck. I have a weak stomach and will not describe
what would happen if such a ray struck human flesh, but remember, only the part of the body
actually struck by the ray would diminish in size.

The disorienter cannot be directly fatal. It works by adding spurious input to nerve cells within the
body and the brain. Under the effect of a disorienter ray, the character would have no accurate
representation of reality—he might hear colors and smell pressure. It should be fun describing the
effects of a disorienter to players in a game.

The electrical shocker is ideal for stopping any object that uses electrical current. That includes
human and animal bodies, which use tiny electrical currents to carry nerve messages. The shocker is
actually a lightning bolt projector, and will require its user to be very well insulated.

Multi-purpose means just what it says. If you roll this result on the chart, you will gain a weapon that
is good for more than one of the above functions. Roll twice more on the Type column. Any multi-
purpose roll is worth two more rolls, but if you should get a weapon with more than 3 possible
modes of application, give us a break, please and stop with three.

The Color column should need no explanation. A roll of 4, for example, on this table would give you
a blue ray. If you don’t like my colors, feel free to replace them with anything you prefer.

The Power column shows how much energy in terms of hit points the weapons can put out. Let me
emphasize that this is a separate roll from the ones that produced your type of weapon and color of
ray. Most of the power outputs are fairly low. This was done deliberately in order to give characters
some kind of chance to survive after being hit with a ray. However, it is unlikely that anyone short of
Superman or the Incredible Hulk could survive a thousand hits at a time.

The X at the boom of the Power column indicates a multiplier. If the X comes up, roll 2D6 (doubles
add and roll again) to get a multiplier. Then roll again on the chart to determine which power is
multiplied. (Example: I have created a Death ray with a black beam. Rolling a 10 under power, I note
that I get a multiplier. I roll 2D6 and get a 7. Then I roll the D10 again, geing a 1. My death ray has a
power of 7D4. If the X comes up more than once in a row, just roll up a new multiplier and add it to
the first one.

Most of the things in the


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Most of the things in the Form column are self-explanatory. Remember that rayguns should tend to
be large and garish in design unless your character has some particular need for secrecy. A Device is
a Raygun that is camouflaged to resemble something else such as a pen, mask, mirror, armband,
dagger, etc. A Projector is any raygun that looks like a light-projecting device such as a flashlight,
searchlight, x-ray machine, etc.

Under Output there are two basic options; pulse and beam. A pulse is a burst of energy that lasts for
½ second or some other insignificant length of time. A beam is a continuous flow of energy for as
long as desired. Damage is calculated as the initial damage done in the first second times the number
of seconds under the beam. Both means the weapon can be used in either mode as desired.

There are two more important topics to discuss: Charge and Range. Charge is the measure of how
many shots the gun can put out before being exhausted. Range is the distance the ray will travel
before losing enough energy to become harmless.

Every raygun will have a charge. For Pulse weapons the charge number equals the number of shots
the gun has before it needs recharging. For Beam weapons the charge number equals the number of
seconds the gun may be fired continuously before it needs recharging. To determine the charge for a
gun when creating it, roll 2D6. (Doubles add and roll over.) The creator or owner of a weapon will
know how to recharge it. Recharging always takes as many minutes as the charge number. Guns with
a Powerpack have 100 times the regular charge number. Ray cannons have 1000 times the regular
charge number, but require a constant supply of new energy. Projectors need not worry about charge
—the charge is inherent in the material of the projector—but the charge number will be used to
determine the number of hours the projector will last in use (continuous or sporadic) until it burns
out.

All rayguns have range and that is a function of their power. Range equals the number of faces on the
die (or the number of absolute hits such as 1000) times the number of dice or other multiplier times
ten in meters. For example: the deathray created earlier that has 7D4 worth of power would have an
effective range of 280 meters.

If a raygun’s range is exceeded, the power in terms of hits delivered falls off exponentially by powers
of two. See table below.

Distance in Range Power Delivered in Hits


0-1 R 1xH
1-2 R ½xH
2-3 R ¼xH
3-4 R 1/8 x H
4-5 R 1/16 x H
Etc. Etc.
R = range, H = number of hits rolled.

Quit calculating the range of a weapon when the maximum amount of damage it could do is less
than 5 points. Only the very weakest of foes and objects are going to suffer from less than 5 hits of
damage.

The only topic left to discuss is how to determine whether the raygun user can hit what he or she is
aiming at. This is going to depend on the system being used. In a Tunnels and Trolls like system the
ability to hit would depend on making a Dexterity saving roll. In Traveller, it would require a base

roll of 8 or higher on 2D6


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roll of 8 or higher on 2D6 after accounting for variables that might modify the shot. You players
should know your own systems best and how to determine when a missile weapon hits (Rays are
basically missiles even if the missile in question is the lowly photon).

That finishes the explanation of the different types of rayguns. I’d like to say a few words about how
and when to use the raygun table. It has been pointed out to me that in a consistent universe, rayguns
will tend to be standardized for greater efficiency in manufacture and repair. That is undoubtedly
true. Let us assume that police forces in the 23rd century use a multi-beam weapon that can either
stun or kill. After choosing those two types of rays off the table, the GM would go through the rest of
it and determine that the stun beam was white and had a power of 1D10 while the lethal beam was
purple and had a power of 100 hits. There is no point in rolling for the form of the raygun because the
pistol form is desired, and no point in rolling for output because a pulse is desired. Rolling 2D6 we
get a 7 for the charge of the weapon. The stun beam has an effective range of 100 meters, while the
lethal beam has a range of 1000 meters (different ranges because of different types of rays). Now, the
weapon is created. Rather than go through this whole procedure every time I wish to arm a
policeman, I just give them all the same weapon.

In the world of the 1980s where microcomputers are common, there are already several hundred
different varieties. There is no standardization. In the world of the 2080s I expect the same thing to
happen. There will be as many different types of rayguns as there are companies manufacturing
them.

It has also been suggested that the laws of physics would determine the color of the ray. All heat ray
weapons might have red beams, for example. This is, I think, a false generalization. Color in a beam
of light depends on either the color of the source, or the color of the last translucent object that the
beam of light passed through. Thus, to produce a blue ray, all one has to do is pass that ray through a
blue lens before projecting it. The same is true for every color but black, and black beams could be
accounted for by imagining that the projected ray dampens all reflected light from the space through
which it passes.

Lastly, one might discover that the random table might produce vastly incongruous objects, like a ray
cannon that only does 1D4 worth of damage, or a flashlight that can do 1000 hits. True, it might. If
such a result comes up the GM and players could do one of two things: (1) accept it (that ray cannon
was really a lousy design, a prototype that didn’t work out too well—that flashlight was sheer genius,
etc.), or (2) modify it. A ray cannon with a powerpack giving it 7000 shots at a rate of once a second
can do an awful lot of damage even at 1D4 per shot.

And remember, although the table has been set up to be used randomly, it doesn’t have to be used in
that fashion. The GM wanting to design a new raygun could use the table as a guide and choose what
was desired in order to design new ray weapons. By GM fiat they could then become standard
weapons for whole gangs of supervillains or races of alien BEMs.

Now armed with ray weapons that can either fry a buerfly or blast big holes in the universe, go
forth and conquer!

Transcribed and with illustrations chosen by James St. Andre, June 12, 2012.

Posted June 10, 2012 by atroll in Uncategorized

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