Lists of Mongo Update: The Dailies

I have begun reading the first of the Flash Gordon daily comic strips, and as I progress, I shall be adding to the Lists of Mongo as new subjects make their first appearance (such as the porcon, the horrosaur, and the cat-horse, all of which first appear in the dailies of May 1940).

Thinking about how I wish to organize the lists with the addition of material from another (albeit parallel) source, I originally planned to keep the Sundays and dailies in two separate lists, but I decided it would be easier for everyone if I integrated them and simply added (D) to those subjects that originated in the dailies. This prevents duplication and enables me to easily check chronology.

Savage News: Fantasy Companion

The updated Fantasy Companion for Savage Worlds Adventure Edition is now being crowdfunded via Pinnacle Entertainment Group's own site. You can pledge through 26 April 2022. Click on the link for details.

Savage Worlds Thought of the Day 2022-03-13

Of all the role-playing systems currently in publication, I think SWADE is probably the best fit for the Barsoom/Mars stories of Edgar Rice Burroughs. Savage Worlds is perfect for swords & planet pulp adventure, and the Barsoom stories are the epitome of the genre. (Note: I do not call them "John Carter stories" because Burroughs did not make John Carter the central protagonist of every story set on Barsoom.) We may never see an official SWADE version of The Savage World of John Carter or The Savage World of Barsoom or whatever it might have been entitled, but there's nothing to stop us from running our own unofficial versions for our own tables. And I just might do it.

Savage News: Savage Worlds PDFs on Sale

The PDF of the Savage Worlds Adventure Edition is now 30% off list price at DriveThruRPG.com as part of the GM's Day sale. This is the perfect time to buy a copy (especially if you are a player). The sale lasts through 13 March. Click here for details. (It appears most, if not all, Pinnacle Entertainment products are part of this sale including The Savage World of Flash Gordon.)

Flash Gordon Inspiration: The First Animated Series (Season 1)

"Blasting off on a desperate mission to save Earth from the evil plottings of the tyrannical space lord, Ming the Merciless, Dr. Hans Zarkov and Dale Arden have joined me, Flash Gordon, on a fantastic journey into worlds where peril and adventure await us."

In 1979, Flash Gordon returned to life as an animated television series by Filmation starring the voice talents of:

• Robert Ridgely as Flash Gordon, Prince Barin, et al;
• Alan Oppenheimer as Ming the Merciless, Dr. Hans Zarkov, et al;
• Diane Pershing as Dale Arden, Queen Azura, Queen Desira, and Queen Undina;
• Allan Melvin as Thun, King Vultan, et al; and
• Melendy Britt as Princess Aura, Queen Fria, and Liza.

According to a Wikipedia article on the subject,

The original project was produced as a made-for-television feature film. When NBC saw the finished work, it was decided to turn the work into an animated TV series. The change in format resulted in the story being significantly expanded with a subplot of Ming secretly giving military technology to Hitler being dropped, as well as being set in the present day rather than during World War II. When the series was canceled after its 2nd season, the original footage was reassembled with the original soundtrack, including the final role of Ted Cassidy, and aired on primetime in 1982 as a TV movie, Flash Gordon: The Greatest Adventure of All.

According to some IMDb trivia,

Dino De Laurentiis became a "ghost" producer on the series when Filmation developed monetary problems completing the animation involving the use of computers to create the spaceship animation, one of the first uses of computers in traditional animation. Since DeLaurentis was seeking the rights for the use of the Flash Gordon property for a live action film, and Filmation held the rights for all filmed media for the Flash Gordon characters, Filmation and DeLaurentis came to a deal. In exchange for the funding to complete the animation on the series, DeLaurentis would get the live action film rights to Flash Gordon while Filmation would retain the rights to animated projects featuring Flash Gordon.

Flash Gordon, the animated series, was first broadcast on American television in 1979 when I was ten years old, and I was instantly a fan. I had watched the movie serials on Matinee at the Bijou, so I was familiar with the format: the continuing story with cliffhanger endings and episode recaps. The animated series simultaneously adapted both the early years of the comic strip and the movie serials whilst adding its own unique spin. To my ten-year-old self, the animated series was, for a time, the crown jewel of the Saturday morning cartoon lineup, and it fired my imagination. Decades later, with unlimited access to the series via the DVD set, I can see that it isn't the monument of near perfection I remembered it being, but I shan't belabor the point. Suffice it to say that if you watch it at weekly intervals, as originally intended, the experience will be more pleasant and the flaws somewhat less apparent.

Despite its flaws, I think Season 1 of the animated series can still provide inspiration for one's Savage World of Flash Gordon game (or any Flash Gordon role-playing endeavor for that matter). The interesting thing about the various iterations of Flash Gordon is that none of them are identical. Each version takes certain liberties and emphasizes different aspects of the original comic strip. Any of them can be mixed or matched to suit your own vision of what Flash Gordon role-playing ought to be.

As for Season 2, well, that's another chapter. Tune in next time...

Random Ray Gun Generator (Roll All Dice)

[The following is a revision of my earlier random ray gun generator incorporating the Roll All Dice method using the standard dice (d4, d6, d8, d10, d12, and d20).]

These tables may be used to generate the focus, range, audibility, beam, color, and type of ray produced by any ray gun or ray attack. Certain colors may be more appropriate for certain types of rays and may be rerolled or designated as desired. For increased randomness, a d3 may be substituted for focus, range, and/or audibility.

Random Ray Gun Generator
(Roll All Dice)

Focus

Roll 1d4

1. Narrow
2. Adjustible
3. Adjustible
4. Wide

Range

Roll 1d6

1. Short
2. Medium
3. Medium
4. Medium
5. Long
6. Long

Audibility

Roll 1d8

1. Low (30 dB)
2. Low (60 dB)
3. Normal (75 dB)
4. Normal (80 dB)
5. Normal (85 dB)
6. Normal (90 dB)
7. High (120 dB)
8. High (140 dB)

Beam

Roll 1d10

1. Arc
2. Bolt
3. Bubble
4. Continuous
5. Flash
6. Flickering
7. Fluctuating
8. Pulsed
9. Ringed
10. Wave

Color

Roll 1d12

1. Red
2. Orange
3. Yellow
4. Green
5. Blue
6. Violet
7. Purple
8. Copper
9. Silver
10. Gold
11. Polychromatic
12. Invisible

Type

Roll 1d20

1. Amnesia ray
2. Blinding ray
3. Death ray
4. Dissolvo ray
5. Destructo ray
6. Devitalization ray
7. Disintegrator ray
8. Electro ray
9. Force ray
10. Freeze ray
11. Heat ray
12. Immobilizing ray
13. Petrification ray
14. Shrink ray
15. Sleep ray
16. Sonic ray
17. Stasis ray
18. Stun ray
19. Telekinetic ray
20. Withering ray

Example:

A roll of 3, 2, 8, 3, 2, 14 yields an Adjustible Focus, Medium Range, High Audibility (140 dB), Bubble Beam, Orange Shrink Ray.

Notes:

• "Low Audibility (30 dB)" is the equivalent noise level of a whisper.
• "Low Audibility (60 dB)" is the equivalent noise level of normal conversation.
• "Normal Audibility (75 dB)" is the equivalent noise level of a vacuum cleaner.
• "Normal Audibility (80 dB)" is the equivalent noise level of an alarm clock.
• "Normal Audibility (85 dB)" is the equivalent noise level of a snow blower.
• "Normal Audibility (90 dB)" is the equivalent noise level of a lawn mower.
• "High Audibility (120 dB)" is the equivalent noise level of a chainsaw.
• "High Audibility (140 dB)" is the equivalent noise level of a gunshot.
• An "Arc Beam" is a zigzag stream of light resembling a lightning stroke.
• A "Bolt Beam" resembles a projectile of light.
• A "Bubble Beam" resembles a concentrated stream of bubbles.
• A "Continuous Beam" is a steady stream of light.
• A "Flash Beam" appears as a flash of light at the ray gun's muzzle.
• A "Flickering Beam" is an unsteady, irregular stream of light.
• A "Fluctuating Beam" is a pulsating or rippling stream of light.
• A "Pulsed Beam" is a rapid fire series of light bursts.
• A "Ringed Beam" consists of a series of individual rings emitted rapidly.
• A "Wave Beam" consists of a wavy stream of light.
• Type effects may be determined by using the nearest equivalent weapon, power, or spell from an existing Savage Worlds publication, devising your own, or awaiting an update once I familarize myself with upcoming SWADE-compatible source books. [Indeed, they may be adapted to any role-playing system.]

Elaborations

Power sources will vary depending on the setting. Some models may use power cells containing 10 or 20 charges each. Other models might be connected to external power packs of 100 or 200 charges each. Ray guns that can be directly recharged generally have a maximum capacity of 30 charges.

Recharging a ray gun, power cell, or power pack with a compatible power source requires 1 hour of recharging time per 10 charges of capacity.

Each shot will drain a ray gun, power cell, or power pack of one or more charges. Ray guns capable of variable settings will drain additional charges at higher settings. Long range ray guns typically drain substantially more charges (double or triple the rate of medium range ray guns).

Forecast for Savage Arts & Sciences 2022

The following is a list of my plans for Savage Arts & Sciences this year in no particular order. It is merely a starting point, not a complete itinerary, for this journey across Savage Worlds (and the Flash Gordon universe).

• Finish rewatching the Flash Gordon animated series.
• Rewatch the Flash Gordon movie from 1980 (and watch it with the Brian Blessed commentary for the first time).
• Run The Savage World of Flash Gordon.
• Buy and read the next volume of Flash Gordon Sunday comic strips.
• Buy and read the first volume of Flash Gordon daily comic strips.
• Run a non-Flash Gordon SWADE game.
• Blog about all of the above.
• Post some useful random tables.

Savage Worlds Thought of the Day 2021-12-25

After the recent news of Kickstarter's pivot to "blockchains," I just want to express my appreciation for Pinnacle Entertainment's decision (for other valid reasons) to pursue an alternative means of crowdfunding. I've already backed two projects (Flash Gordon: Legends of Mongo and the new edition of the Super Powers Companion) and I look forward to backing the new editions of the other Savage Worlds companions as well as anything and everything related to Flash Gordon. I hope other game publishers follow suit, because I do not intend to back any future Kickstarter projects.

The Smart Party Podcast Interviews Shane Hensley

As I raked the fallen leaves in my yard on this cold November day, my work was made lighter by listening to an episode of The Smart Party ("The UK's Premier RPG Podcast") in which Shane Hensley (founder of Pinnacle Entertainment Group and creator of Savage Worlds) was interviewed. If, as I suspect, you are an enthusiast of Pinnacle Entertainment Group's products, then I suggest you listen to Episode 153 — Shane Hensley Interview a.k.a. Shaken Not Stirred.

The Wild Die Podcast Plays Flash Gordon

If you are looking for examples of The Savage World of Flash Gordon as it might actually be played, The Wild Die Podcast has an episode in which the hosts actually play it with the game's author, Scott Woodard. Listen to The Wreck of War Rocket Prixus — A Flash Gordon Actual Play. It's quite entertaining.