IHMN: Some thoughts for the Beginner in Designing an Adventuring Company, Part 6 (Heroes from Real Life)

Teddy Roosevelt leads an expedition in an attempt to prevent the Witch King from finding the "Sphere of Destiny." 

One of the great things about In Her Majesty's Name is adding real, historical (or history as I wish it!) to the games. As a historian, (and a biased American) I have always been fascinated with Theodore Roosevelt, the youngest man ever to be President of the United States. (No, it was not JFK; JFK was the youngest elected; Roosevelt was younger when he became president after the assassination of President McKinley.)

 Teddy confronts his arch-nemesis, The Witch King of Sokur. Teddy stopped him from looting an ancient Roman outpost and lived to tell the tale.

So how do I do Teddy. His personality screams IHMN. Opinionated, outdoorsman, hunter, conservationist, all around do gooder and champion against evil. So I did some research and Teddy gets:

FV: 3. If you have every looked up the parodies of which President would when in an all out knife fight, Teddy is always at the top.

SV: 4. The man was a marksman and could hit a long range target.

Pluck +2. This was easy; he's Teddy Roosevelt.

Speed 0. Normal.

Talents: Marksman, Erudite Wit, Fearless, Fanatic, Tough (the man took an assassins bullet and still gave a speech 30 minutes later!). 

 

  Sir Hugues de Payens, the secret Grandmaster of the Knights Templars with Teddy Roosevelt.

To make it fun, to use the Erudite Wit talent, you have to use an actual Teddy Roosevelt quote:

 “When you're at the end of your rope, tie a knot and hold on.”

How about Wyatt Earp and some Wild West Heroes? So much has been written about Wyatt Earp that it is hard to separate fact from legend. Who cares? I'll go with the legend.

 Doc Holliday, Virgil Earp, Wyatt Earp and Morgan Earp (Brigade Miniatures based on the movie Tombstone)

 Virgil and Wyatt Earp

Name: U.S. Marshal Virgil Earp

Pluck: 3+

Leadership: +2

Speed: 0

Fighting Value: +2

Shooting Value: +4

Talents: Fearless, Lightning draw (pistol), Marksman (pistol)

Basic Equipment: 1 pistol

Armor: 9

Cost: 49

 Wyatt Earp

Name: U.S. Deputy Marshal Wyatt Earp

Pluck: 2+

Leadership: +2

Speed: 1

Fighting Value: +4

Shooting Value: +6

Talents: Fearless, Tough, Gunslinger, Lightning draw (pistols), Marksman (pistol), Duelist (pistol),  Impervious, Inspirational

Basic Equipment: 2 pistols

Armor: 9

Cost: 87

 Morgan Earp

Name: U.S. Deputy Marshal Morgan Earp Pluck: 4+

Leadership: 0

Speed: 0

Fighting Value: +2

Shooting Value: +2

Talents: Fearless

Basic Equipment: 1 pistol

Armor: 9

Cost: 25

  John Henry "Doc" Holliday

Name: U.S. Deputy Marshal Doc Holliday Pluck: 2+

Leadership: 0

Speed: 1

Fighting Value: +4

Shooting Value: +6

Talents: Fearless, Gunslinger, Lightning draw (pistols), Marksman (pistol), Duelist (Pistol), Medic, Impervious

Basic Equipment: 2 pistols, Shotgun

Armor: 9

Cost: 62

Another real character is Deputy Marshal Grant Johnson who was a Native American and outstanding lawmen. I've taken some liberties with the way he really looks but there is no mistaking this man on the tabletop:

 Grant Johnson

Name: U.S. Deputy Marshal Grant Johnson Pluck: +4

Leadership: 0

Speed: 1

Fighting Value: +1

Shooting Value: +2

Talents: Fearless, Hunter, Stealthy, Tough

Basic Equipment: Hunting Rifle, pistol, Fighting Knife

Armor: 9

Cost: 34

Next: Some Ideas about heroes from Fiction and movies.

 

IHMN: Some thoughts for the Beginner in Designing an Adventuring Company, Part 5 (Villians from Literature and Film)

"I am a doctor of philosophy from Edinburgh, a doctor of law from Christ's College, a doctor of medicine from Harvard. My friends, out of courtesy, call me 'Doctor'."

1. From Literature and Film: I was living under a rock somewhere and suddenly discovered Pulp Figures in 2019. When I saw the figure of the The Sinister Dr. Koo (PYG-6), I knew I had to do Fu Manchu. Who cares if he is from the Pulp era? It's my world!

When I started putting together the Fu Manchu Adventuring Company Honorable Son #1 (The Librarian) informed me that Fu Manchu's plots usually involved viruses (Covid 19?), bugs, poisons, etc. Hmmm . . . sounded kinda boring on the gaming table. So what I did was use Fu Manchu's intellect to devise steampunk type weapons, use mystical powers, traditional martial arts flunkies, and still invent some biological horrors. In fact, he devised the green mist that powers many of his creations.

 Weird Science: The Gong.

 "You've read about this: the torture of the gong: it never stops. Minute after minute, hour after hour, day after day. Seems harmless, doesn't it? Just a gong ringing. But the percussion and the repercussion of sound against your eardrums will soften and destroy them until the sound is magnified a thousand times. You can't move. You can't sleep. You will be frantic with thirst. You will be unspeakably foul. But here you will lie, day after day, until you tell me what I need to know."

 Shiny new toy syndrome. I saw this "glass spiders" advertised for the game Frostgrave. Nah nah! They are the mechanical arachnids of Fu Manchu powered by the green mist.

Who doesn't like giant robots with steam claws. Sure the accountant says they cost a lot, but they are fun in battle!

As an evil genius who wants the conquer the world, Fu Manchu had to be exceptional and above and beyond these other so called conquerors:

Name: Fu Manchu - The infamous villain of Master villainy!

Pluck: 2+

Leadership: +3

Speed: 1

Fighting Value: +4

Shooting Value: +2

Talents: Erudite Wit, Fanatic, Fearless, Inspirational, Intuitive, Martial Arts, Medic, Meticulous Planning, Engineer (the ability to develop weapons like the Green Mist and the Golden Mist), (Immortal for campaigns)

Mystical Powers: Up to 30 points of Mystical Powers

Basic Equipment: His evil genius (yep, he's the real deal)

Armor: The Fu Manchu Coat (Armor is 12 but 11 against Arc Weapons)

Cost: 121 (not counting Mystical Powers)

So what that he costs 121 points (not counting mystical powers); pony up and play a 350 point game!

 Fu Manchu's genetically enhanced Thunder Warriors.

 Fah Lo Suee

Fah Lo Suee, is a devious mastermind in her own right, frequently plotting to usurp her father's position in the Si-Fan and aiding his enemies both within and outside of the organization. Her real name is unknown; Fah Lo Suee was a childhood term of endearment. She was known for a time as Koreani after being brainwashed by her father (such a loving parent), but her memory was later restored. She is infamous for taking on false identities, like her father, among them Madame Ingomar, Queen Mamaloi and Mrs. van Roorden. Fah Lo Suee is hypnotically seductive, and possesses powers of hynopsis enhanced by the ruby eyes of the Golden Beetle and mimosa gas, as well as longevity, due to the Elixer Vitae. Her voice and movements command attention, and her eyes can entrance a man in moments.

Name: Fah Lo Suee 

Pluck: 3+ 

Leadership: +1

Speed: 2

Fighting Value: +4

Shooting Value: +1

Talents: Martial Arts, Meticulous Planning, Unearthly Beauty
Mystical Powers: Dragon Talons, Mesmerism
Basic Equipment: Poisoned Fighting Knife

Armor: Chained lined Qipao Dress (10) 

Cost: 86

 

Fah Lo Suee can also purchase the following talents: Antivenom, Master of Disguise, Immortal (Campaigns)

Fah Lo Suee Special Rule: Treacherous! Any company that Fah Lo Suee is a member of can be betrayed. If the Leader is removed from the game, she will immediately switch sides (that was her plan all along!) taking her tiger with her if the tiger is in the game. If she is with Fu Manchu and he is removed from the game her leadership increases to +2 and she takes over her father's company. If any leader in a company fails a pluck roll, Fah Lo Suee must also roll pluck; if she fails she switches sides along with her tiger if the tiger is in the game.

Game statistics for tigers can be found in Heroes, Villains and Fiends.

2. Strictly from film: The Mad Guru!  

The Mad Guru has reestablished the Thuggee, a murder cult that had been suppressed 50 years previously.

The Mad Guru and his adventuring company is actually based on two films: Gunga Din and Indiana Jones and the Cult of Doom. Before I designed the characters and the company, I went back and watch both films taking notes as I wanted to get the period feel and the motivation of the Mad Guru right.

 The Mad Guru's loyal, and quite deadly, body guard.

Eduardo Ciannelli portrays the Guru in the film Gunga Din (1939) as a dignified, intelligent, though murderous defender of the Indian people. Ciannelli was an Italian baritone and character actor with a long career in American films, mostly playing gangsters and criminals. The contrasts between the characters of the Guru, Gunga Din, and the Sergeants Three are a whole dissertation on the state of the British Raj - but that is a discussion for another day.

 Poisonous Cobras are fun in a game.

The Mad Guru is an Inspirational Leader but not a great fighter (he has to use a poisoned knife) but the fear he puts into the hearts of men is Terrifying. His Meticulous planning has been a thorn in the side of the British Raj. Speaking of the hearts of men, the Mad Guru does have Mystical Powers - most notably Heart Rending (and it is messy!). 

 In a bold move, SGT Cutter leaps from the top of the temple, successfully rolls Pluck to survive the jump, and engages the Mad Guru.

In a PG-13 heart wrenching scene, The Mad Guru uses his Mystical powers to rip out SGT Cutter's heart. Very messy.

Followers of The Mad Guru:

 

 Next: Heroes!

Haunted Subalterns

"Man can't feel comfy with a regiment that entertains ghosts on its establishment. It is against General Orders." - Rudyard Kipling

The Young British Soldier

When the 'arf-made recruity goes out to the East
'E acts like a babe an' 'e drinks like a beast,
An' 'e wonders because 'e is frequent deceased
Ere 'e's fit for to serve as a soldier.
Serve, serve, serve as a soldier,
Serve, serve, serve as a soldier,
Serve, serve, serve as a soldier,
So-oldier of the Queen!

Now all you recruities what's drafted to-day,
You shut up your rag-box an' 'ark to my lay,
An' I'll sing you a soldier as far as I may:
A soldier what's fit for a soldier.
Fit, fit, fit for a soldier . . .

First mind you steer clear o' the grog-sellers' huts,
For they sell you Fixed Bay'nets that rots out your guts --
Ay, drink that 'ud eat the live steel from your butts --
An' it's bad for the young British soldier.
Bad, bad, bad for the soldier . . .

When the cholera comes -- as it will past a doubt --
Keep out of the wet and don't go on the shout,
For the sickness gets in as the liquor dies out,
An' it crumples the young British soldier.
Crum-, crum-, crumples the soldier . . .

But the worst o' your foes is the sun over'ead:
You must wear your 'elmet for all that is said:
If 'e finds you uncovered 'e'll knock you down dead,
An' you'll die like a fool of a soldier.
Fool, fool, fool of a soldier . . .

If you're cast for fatigue by a sergeant unkind,
Don't grouse like a woman nor crack on nor blind;
Be handy and civil, and then you will find
That it's beer for the young British soldier.
Beer, beer, beer for the soldier . . .

Now, if you must marry, take care she is old --
A troop-sergeant's widow's the nicest I'm told,
For beauty won't help if your rations is cold,
Nor love ain't enough for a soldier.
'Nough, 'nough, 'nough for a soldier . . .

If the wife should go wrong with a comrade, be loath
To shoot when you catch 'em -- you'll swing, on my oath! --
Make 'im take 'er and keep 'er: that's Hell for them both,
An' you're shut o' the curse of a soldier.
Curse, curse, curse of a soldier . . .

When first under fire an' you're wishful to duck,
Don't look nor take 'eed at the man that is struck,
Be thankful you're livin', and trust to your luck
And march to your front like a soldier.
Front, front, front like a soldier . . .

When 'arf of your bullets fly wide in the ditch,
Don't call your Martini a cross-eyed old bitch;
She's human as you are -- you treat her as sich,
An' she'll fight for the young British soldier.
Fight, fight, fight for the soldier . . .

When shakin' their bustles like ladies so fine,
The guns o' the enemy wheel into line,
Shoot low at the limbers an' don't mind the shine,
For noise never startles the soldier.
Start-, start-, startles the soldier . . .

If your officer's dead and the sergeants look white,
Remember it's ruin to run from a fight:
So take open order, lie down, and sit tight,
And wait for supports like a soldier.
Wait, wait, wait like a soldier . . .

When you're wounded and left on Afghanistan's plains,
And the women come out to cut up what remains,
Jest roll to your rifle and blow out your brains
An' go to your Gawd like a soldier.
Go, go, go like a soldier,
Go, go, go like a soldier,
Go, go, go like a soldier,
So-oldier of the Queen!

IHMN: Some thoughts for the Beginner in Designing an Adventuring Company, Part 4 (Made-up Villians)

 I am the Crawling Chaos, the Nyarlathotep of legend, but most importantly I am the reborn Witch King of Sokur (BWAH HAH HAH!).

What's a great game of Adventure without villains? In our little corner of In Her Majesty's Name, the great villains that have caused the most problem are The Witch King of Sokur (BWAH HAH HAH) and Fu Manchu. One was completely made up by Honorable Son #5 (The Skirmisher), the other based on the books and movies (and a little creative imagination) about Fu Manchu (next post).

Now you may say, "What a minute, Fu Manchu is in the 20th Century!" So what? That's the beauty of the game - it's your world. I have moved characters and Adventuring Companies from the Pulp era through time travel, mystical gates, or just plain on ignoring that they are from another era. That's what we did with Fu Manchu. He lives in 1895. Remember - it's your world. 

 The Witch King of Sokur - both mounted and dismounted. Figures from Games Workshop.

Honorable Son #5 (The Skirmisher): When designing a great villain, you have to ask yourself, where did he come from and what is their motivation. For the Witch King of Sokur I decided he was an ancient, evil wizard king that has been brought back out of suspended animation by a loyal cult that has kept guard over his body. I decided his original empire was in African and that his opponents was the Island of Atlantis. Fast forward thousands of years he is now ready to start where he left off - conquering the world. Under the auspices of humanity, this sinister man reels in followers with his slick tongue and turn of a phrase.

 The Dice of Chance: A Mysterious Arcane object in the possesion of the Witch King that allows him a free re-roll for anything once per game.

Using the figure of my Nazgul as inspiration I gave him heavy, ancient armor, a cursed sword, arcane items that give me powers (my helmet provides me the Mystical Power of Mesmerism) and the most evil mystical powers I could get for 30 points. My favorites to use are Dragons Breath, Spitfire, Water Bullets and then I just fill in the points. Of course having a cursed sword doesn't hurt so the Witch King is an excellent swordsmen. Talents are Dreadful, Terrifying, and Leadership +2. His Fighting Value is +4 while his Shooting Value is +3. Needless to say his Pluck is 2+.

 Want to keep that person with the Arc Pistol out of the game: Use Dragon's Breath.  All of the evil wizards recommend it.

Since the Witch King uses a lot of points, my minions are expendable but numerous. Depending on whether we are playing a 250 point game or 350 point game I have to be careful in what I choose: another powerful bad guy (Yeti, Troll of The Destroyer), troglodytes and my Rugu-Rugu Guard.

The Destroyer of Men. Basically Muscle.

My troglodytes (Uruk Hai from The Lord of the Rings) have average fighting skills, a sword, a shield and an armor of 9; but, I can get a lot of them. My favorite tactic with them is to run (oh how I love those deductions for firing at a running target) and engage in fighting. They are cannon fodder, but numerous in overwhelming an enemy figure.  The Rugu-rugu have an armor of 7, a shoot value of 1 and cause enough of a nuisance that they cannot be ignored.

 Lord Greystoke outnumbered by Troglodytes.

 Shoot enough and you are bound to hit something.

 Nothing like the occasional hit to keep you opponent honest!

Me: Enough of my nemesis. Next time we will look at some villains from literature and movies.