Dinosaur Planet - Broncosaurus Rex - Cretasus Adventure Guide

CRETASUS ADVENTURE GUIDE By Fred Bush, Joseph Goodman, and Mike Roberts

Welcome to the world of Broncosaurus Rex! Be sure to look for these products at your local game store: Core Rulebook, available now Dino Hunter’s Guide to Velociraptors, July 2002 Dino Hunter’s Guide to Tyrannosaurus Rex, Fall 2002 For more information, or to join our mailing list, contact us. www.broncosaurusrex.com [email protected]

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CRETASUS ADVENTURE GUIDE Table of Contents Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Chapter I: The Main Valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 New Savannah & Environs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 New Savannah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 Mount Crowe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 The Dukes and Butlers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23 The McQuarry Brothers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27 The Hideout Hills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 The Great Library of Logos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 The Crystal Desert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32 The Tecumseh Trail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 Fort Tecumseh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 The Dino Warriors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36 Fort Lincoln . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39 Federal Marshals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40 Ironclads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41 The Southwestern Plains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43 The Black Jungle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44 The Bayou . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 The Bay Trail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 The Inland Sea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 The Bay Side Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 Underglen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48 Fort Apache . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49 Plesiosaur Bay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51 The Northwestern Plains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54 Barrister House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54 The Warp Pirates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54 Chapter II: Dinosaurs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55 Dinosaur Intelligence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55 Cultural Habits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59 Dinosaurs in the Wild . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61 Dinosaurs in the Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64 Dinosaurs as Weapons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70 Dinosaur Combat Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73 Chapter III: Player Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74 Character Classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74 Prestige Class: Dino Warrior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74 Prestige Class: Federal Marshal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .76

Machinists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78 Skill Evolution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78 New Feats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78 New Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79 Chapter IV: Gamemaster Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .81 Generating Settlements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .81 Typical NPCs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84 Getting Around Cretasus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .88 Common Mounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .88 Vehicle Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89 Typical Vehicle Stats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92 Buying a Mount . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92 Treasure Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95 Encounter Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .100 Chapter V: Creature Statistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104 Coloration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104 Subspecies and Mutations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104 Albertosaurus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .107 Ceratopsians . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .108 Cheirolepis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .109 Dryosaurus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .110 Dunkleosteus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .111 Eurypterid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .111 Hadrosaurs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .112 Kronosaurus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .113 Leptoceratops (Zulep) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114 Plesiosaurus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116 Quetzalcoatlus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116 Scray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117 Small Game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119 Spinosaurus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120 Stenonychosaurus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122 Tanystropheus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123 Therizinosaurus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .124 Trilobite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125 Vulcanodon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125 Template: Ironclad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126 Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .128

Credits Writers: Fred Bush, Joseph Goodman, Mike Roberts Copy Editor: Derek Schubert Cover Artist: Walter Stuart Logo Designer: Derek Schubert

Interior Artists: Tim Burgard, Brianna Garcia, Dan Morton, Derek Schubert, V. Shane (vshane.com), Walter Stuart Concept Artist: Andrew Farago Graphic Designer: Joseph Goodman

Dinosaur Planet: Broncosaurus Rex created by Joseph Goodman Dedicated to my brother Mike. Thanks for all the good games.

Introduction Welcome to the world of Cretasus! Cretasus is the setting for Dinosaur Planet: Broncosaurus Rex, a game world where cowboys use laser rifles to hunt dinosaurs. If you haven’t read the Dinosaur Planet: Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook, you might want to do so before continuing in the Cretasus Adventure Guide. You could use this book in any d20 setting, but it is best suited to Dinosaur Planet: Broncosaurus Rex. We have divided the Cretasus world into several volumes. This first, the Adventure Guide, will give you all the information you need to start adventuring in the planet’s Main Valley, the most settled area of Cretasus. Future works will cover new dinosaur species and specific regions in greater detail, as well as some of the other great valleys of Cretasus. For those of you unfamiliar with Dinosaur Planet: Broncosaurus Rex, it is set in the year 2202. Dinosaurs have been discovered on the planet Cretasus. The two main factions in human politics – the Union and the Confederacy – rush to establish a military presence, even as pioneers from across the galaxy come to farm, hunt, and domesticate the dinos. Settlers on Cretasus have identified hundreds of varieties of dinosaurs virtually identical to those once found on Earth. Prehistoric mammals have been sighted in neighboring regions, engendering theories that the planet’s massive surface area has created numerous micro-climates separated by mountains or other impassable terrain. Some micro-climates have remained “frozen” in evolutionary time or have evolved along unusual lines, while

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others have evolved more normally. The result is widely different ecological results in close proximity to each other. Some of the dinosaurs are the classic dumb brutes we all know so well. But most are not. Velociraptors have near-human intelligence. They live in organized tribes which loosely connect into larger nations. Tyrannosaurus rex live in widely dispersed family groups whose members remember genealogies for hundreds of years. Triceratops travel in large herds with rigorous social organization. Almost every species has its own language, and the more intelligent ones have dialects specific to each region. Even though Cretasus is far outside established political borders, it has been brought to the forefront of galactic politics by its Earth-like environment and abundance of dinosaurs. The dinosaurs have great potential as weapons and beasts of burden, a point not lost on either the Confederacy or Union generals. Although the Union and Confederacy long ago ceased open warfare, they have never ended hostilities. Now the battle for Cretasus threatens to re-open a centuries-old conflict. Characters can choose from six new character classes presented in the Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook: Bronco Rider, Machinist, Soldier, Spy, Two-Fister, and Wild One. They can be Union or Confederate, staunch loyalists or complete impartials, or they may hail from one of several independent factions. Adventures abound on the newly settled planet, with aliens, warp pirates, the dinosaur nations, intergalactic trade, and rustlers, ranchers, robbers, and wranglers to round out the universe.

Chapter I: The Main Valley The Main Valley is ringed by steep mountains which isolate it from the rest of Cretasus. The only break in the mountain perimeter is the Fur River, which flows directly into Mammoth Valley to the west. One can travel to Mammoth Valley on the river itself or along the treacherous bluffs beside it. The Fur River earned its name from the occasional migrants who follow it out of Mammoth Valley – in the dinosaur-laden Main Valley, these mammalians are the only creatures to sport fur of any kind. The center of human civilization on Cretasus is New Savannah, the planet’s only city to speak of. Staunchly Confederate, it sits between Fort Tecumseh to the west and Fort Apache to the east. New Savannah houses the planet’s only civilian spaceport, although ships with wilderness landing capabilities can (and do) land in the wilderness. In contrast to the relative sophistication of New Savannah, the territories around it are the “wild west” of Cretasus. Stretching from Fort Tecumseh in the west to Fort Apache in the east, you will find the large farms and ranches, the watering holes and saloons, the small towns, the big herds of domesticated broncos, the rustlers, and the stables and mills and tanneries. This area is still quite wild, but human occupation is extensive enough that towns are relatively safe from wild dinosaurs (with the occasional dramatic exception). By now, most hunters and trappers have moved further into the frontier where the wild dinosaurs are still plentiful.

To the west of Fort Tecumseh, and to the east of Fort Apache, are the true frontiers. At any time of day, there is at least one wagon train leaving New Savannah for these frontiers, carrying pioneers lured by the promises of free land, undiscovered gold, and simple freedom. The passage west is called the Tecumseh Trail. As it heads into the great southwestern plains, it splits. Most settlers end their journey near the fork, setting up a farm somewhere on the plains. Some continue along the southern route, which leads to the forests, Lake Hope, and the frontier town of Garsville. A very few make the dangerous journey north along the edge of the swamp known as the Bayou: a route that ultimately crosses the Fur River and leads to the fertile northwestern plains. The passage east from New Savannah is called the Bay Trail. It soon turns north as it winds along the banks of the inland sea. Most settlers along this route make their living by fishing, but some have headed east into the deep valley forest. The forest is thick with dangerous dinosaurs, but lush and ideal for logging and raising a variety of crops on cleared land. The Bay Trail ends at Plesiosaur Bay, a lawless settlement on the very northern tip of the inland sea. These general regions – New Savannah, the Tecumseh Trail, and the Bay Trail – provide the structure for our description of the Main Valley. Together with the vast Northwestern Plains, they make up the valley’s four quadrants.

New Savannah & Environs New Savannah New Savannah is the first great city on Cretasus to have developed through the natural processes of settlement. Situated on the shore of a great land-locked ocean, it provides a focal point for the vast number of smaller habitations and farms that extend across the plains towards the distant frontiers and beyond. Ranchers and farmers come to New Savannah to sell their livestock and crops, making the city’s market place a hive of activity. Soldiers and Dino Warriors come to enjoy the loquacious atmos-

phere of New Savannah’s many watering holes and other distractions that help mentally postpone the next tour of duty. Trades of every kind are plied within its tall stone walls, some less salubrious than others, but all intrinsic to New Savannah’s rich and varied tapestry. Inside its granite boundaries, you’ll find people looking for a good time, others seeking a respite from the bitter conditions of frontier life, and still others hunting the rewards that such endeavors bring. If you want to make your mark on Cretasus, New Savannah is your best bet for a solid starting point, for without the security provided by its civilized community, your plans have foundations of sand.

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The History of New Savannah Early Developments New Savannah developed as the largest community on Cretasus soon after people discovered the great land-locked ocean. Finding food on Cretasus was always a major concern for the settlers, and a source of fresh water, untouched by man, would always guarantee food. Fishing expeditions quickly proved that New Savannah would have the bare necessities to sustain a population far larger than any other prospective site had yet offered, and the plains surrounding it were suitable for both pastoral and arable agriculture, due doubtless to the presence of the ocean. Quarries of stone, mines for fuel, forests for wood: all lay within relatively easy reach of the site chosen to establish the first settlement, and it soon became the center for the whole of the region’s activity. If farmers found their crops destroyed by the untamed dinosaurs wandering from the eastern forests, they knew they could find food at New Savannah. Many of the early victims of stampeding herbivores relinquished their land in return for a fishing vessel and a rudimentary wooden dwelling. These men and their families were the founders of “modern” New Savannah. Few families left after stopping on the shores of the picturesque ocean, so abundant were the fish and helpful neighbors. Those with an eye for commerce quickly purchased the land off disenchanted farmers, knowing that others would follow eager to try their hand at taming the land, and it was not long before much of the land surrounding New Savannah was in the hands of the Porter family and its patriarch, Hepsediah Porter.

The Porter Family A wealthy industrialist and philanthropist descended from Atlanta, Hepsediah Porter was committed to establishing a model community on Cretasus. Having successfully combined business interests with an often-contradictory devout belief in fair play, Porter had left for Cretasus in search of a fresh start after the heart-breaking death of his beloved wife Marie. His sons and daughters asked to travel with him, and the whole family left on a ship with little of the pomp and circumstance that their wealth had accustomed them to. Porter’s arrival on Cretasus was not auspicious. As the ship descended to the verdant plains he had identified for settlement, the crew saw an eighteen foot tall metal man below them. They had stumbled onto secret testing grounds for the Union’s ironclads, the powerful walking tanks that the Union hoped to someday deploy against the Confederacy. Porter retreated, but not before the ironclad’s warning shots breached the hull. After a wild descent, the damaged craft finally came to rest. Porter and his shipmates found that they were in the middle of a desert. They were way off course. Taking what supplies that they could carry, the party left the ship and struck out in search of the plains. Some stayed with the

stricken craft, insisting that they would be rescued when they were reported as missing, but most left, with Porter at their head. His strong personal charm, wise yet swift mind and keen skills of negotiation had made him a popular man on board ship: despite his age, it was only natural that he should lead the expedition into the distant depths of this unfamiliar planet. Several settlers wanted to set up a more permanent camp after only three days of travelling, but Porter persuaded them to continue. He spoke as if certain of brighter prospects ahead, and there were very few dissenting voices as he laid out his plans for a longer trek into the interior. They had plentiful supplies, wellserviced transports, and fuel supplies to see them right for several weeks’ touring. He sent motorcycle riders and horsemen out ahead of the main group to warn of obstacles and relay any good news, such as the discovery of a source of fresh water and food. For eight days and nights, each rider brought back the same story: that there was nothing but desert surrounding them, and that they had made their initial landing way off target. With the exception of unusual crystal formations and the occasional small dinosaur, there was nothing to be seen but sand and shale. Hepsediah realized that those who’d refused to come with him would be calling for help that would never come; they were nowhere near their intended destination, and there was no guarantee that the radios on the ship would be able to contact those who could save them. Porter’s eldest son, Daniel, volunteered to go back for the settlers that had stayed with the ship. Despite his gut feeling, Hepsediah allowed Daniel to do so. Several members of the party objected, because if Daniel were to make the return journey and catch up with the main contingent he would need a great deal of the remaining fuel and food. Others opined that the people at the ship would have already been rescued by now. Some families wanted to travel with Daniel, as they believed that Hepsediah was mistakenly leading them to starvation in a barren desert. At this point, the first cracks appeared in the settlers’ previous solidarity. Most were ignorant of Hepsediah’s concern for his son and the well-being of those who traveled with him; it would indeed be a great feat for anyone to make a return journey and survive. Critics showed more interest in the fact that they had been travelling for over a week, and yet had found nowhere to set up camp. Now that the convoy was going to be split, they would have fewer vehicles – none to spare if any broke down – and they would also have fewer supplies. They estimated that they could go on for only one more week without finding a supply of food; then, they would starve. Porter restricted rations to half their current level, which was unpopular, but the settlers stuck with the man who had brought them here so far unscathed by the hostile wilderness through which they drifted.

Parting of the Company The convoy split on September 12th, Hepsediah fighting back the tears as his son climbed into the cabin of the lead truck. The Porter family had always been renowned for their wanderlust;

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Hepsediah’s distant relatives had been at the frontiers of American settlement many generations ago, and it was evident that both Daniel and his father had inherited the trailblazing spirit. Neither had experienced such a split first-hand, however; they had always operated as a family, and found the parting difficult, especially before the eyes of those who had followed them into the desert. A few words of encouragement were exchanged, as were proud boasts of a speedy return. Their smiles that followed were forced through overwhelming sensations of loss for both father and son, the like of which they had not experienced since the death of Marie, wife and mother respectively to those facing this difficult separation. Both parted into a future of dire uncertainty. The mood in both camps hung heavy that night. Hepsediah’s expedition left the next morning, moving further into the interior and communicating with Daniel’s convoy through radio. After four days of travel, Hepsediah’s group found themselves on an incline. They were heading towards mountains, and all quickly realized that it would be almost impossible to get the trucks over them except by a pass. Motorcyclists were sent out once again, and after a day, the first returned with news that there was a gorge running through the mountains. The gorge was clearly hazardous, but the party could only continue onwards. They had seen large dust clouds behind them, and once it was clear that Daniel’s convoy was not responsible, the settlers became quite keen to delay any meeting with the cause of the disturbances. The storm or stampede behind them could damage their vehicles, but the way forward also seemed distinctly unforgiving. Choosing the lesser of the two perceived evils, the company set off toward the mountain pass. They were not long into the second day’s travel when an avalanche of rocks hurtled down the mountainside toward the lead vehicle. Other vehicles were knocked over as the rocks crashed into the gorge, killing several of the settlers and blocking the path forwards. It was far too hot to begin clearing the debris; after an initial search for survivors, it was decided to clear the way during the night. Those unharmed by the incident set up camp, whispering to their neighbors that they should have traveled with Daniel’s convoy. The party worked hard through the night to remove fallen rocks and crushed vehicles, but more remained. As they awoke the second night, many in the party

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echoed another’s dissatisfaction at Porter’s leadership. Hepsediah was despondent. He knew that if there was nothing beyond this mountain pass, they were doomed. The louder the murmurs of mistrust, the more he doubted his decision to lead them here. However, they now had little option but to continue onwards. That night, they cleared the gorge with superhuman effort. After travelling through the night, the party soon came to the other side of the range and gazed on a world wholly different from the desert dunes they had left days before.

Beyond the Mountains As the light of a new day suffused their senses, the settlers looked in awe at the plains that stretched before them. Desert quickly gave way to grasses, trees, and other plants: the first signs

of life they had seen for an age, a wild array disappearing into the horizon as far as the eye could see. Small herds of grazing dinosaurs could be seen in the distance, slowly making their way across the landscape that seemed an herbivorous utopia. To Hepsediah Porter, such lushness spoke of one thing: water. He would soon find water. His group would survive. Previous doubts gave way to jubilation, and Porter was hailed as a genius. Despite the excitement, Porter himself was less than gleeful, as the mountain range had severed the radio link with his son’s party. While the travelers celebrated, Hepsediah worked without rest on the radio, trying to catch a frequency through which he could hail his son. His labors went unrewarded, and while his company exulted, something inside him seemed to die. Instinctively, he knew that Daniel had perished.

The Inland Sea Now determined that the planet not take any more lives, Hepsediah sent motorcyclists to search for a river. There had be a river flowing from the mountains into this plain to give it such vibrant life. After a day’s searching, the scouts returned, two of them having found rivers that flowed from the mountains. Several members of the company asked why no such rivers had flowed into the other side, but their questions were quickly drowned in the excitement that followed the announcement that the nearest river would be followed to its destination. If it followed the same pattern as rivers on Earth, it would flow to the sea, where the travelers knew they would find a place to rest. As the river grew greater, so did the hopes of the settlers. After two more weeks of travel beside its lush green bank, they reached their destination. The river’s mouth opened into a vast lake, the likes of which the travelers had never seen. Lazy hadrosaurs splashed in the shallows, a huge herd of triceratops grazed the lush green shoots along the shore, and low-flying pterosaurs plucked fish from the gentle waves. The water was a deep blue, untarnished by man and primordially pure. Building small fishing vessels, the intrepid settlers soon discovered the vast array of aquatic life that proved not only easy to catch in their nets but eminently suitable for their cooking pots. Their first week passed with disarming swiftness, and the travelers knew that they had arrived.

The Birth of New Savannah It wasn’t long before the inhabitants of the planet began to show an interest in these new arrivals. The settlers’ first encounters with the dinosaurs did nothing to engender an open-minded attitude towards the creatures that were now their co-habitants, but Porter knew that if they were to survive, the settlers would have to somehow live with these giants. Some advocated shooting the dinosaurs if they came too close; however, the settlers’ weapons would merely irritate one of the creatures, perhaps enough to enrage it and cause the whole herd to stampede in

response. Preventive measures were needed, foundations on which could be built a permanent future for the settlement, and the ocean would be their ally. Porter proposed the construction of a deep, wide moat around the settlement, with a wooden palisade atop the earth thrown up by the digging of the channel. The deep water should discourage the casual visitor, and the palisade would protect the settlement from the more determinedly inquisitive while providing an excellent vantage point from which to espy the surrounding plain. Some parts of the plan would prove difficult to achieve; the construction of a lock to stop the water flowing away from the channel when the tide retreated seemed the most challenging mechanical problem. Some of the settlers balked at the sheer toil of that the scheme. Adapting well to the task ahead of them, the settlers modified some of their vehicles using the tools and equipment they had brought from Earth. The work took weeks, but fortunately the herds of herbivores kept their distance, possibly because they saw the trucks and diggers as a new kind of predator. Whatever the reason, it was a welcome piece of good fortune, for the small settlement could not have withstood the charge of a terrified herd. However, while all eyes were on the vast numbers of herbivores that moved along the coast, others slipped through the forest glades unseen. The settlers would soon discover that they were not the only ones capable of alarming the destructive mass of the triceratops.

Taming the Wild As night fell one balmy June evening, the lookouts reported swift creatures approaching from the edges of the forest towards the foremost members of the vast herd, which was now drinking at the ocean’s edge. It was clear the herd was unaware, as they remained fixed on quenching their thirst. With the benefit of their night-vision goggles, the lookouts saw that a pack of albertosaurs was on the move, intent on sating their hunger at the expense of the herd. Porter was alarmed. Much of the herd was now within a kilometer of the settlement, and should they stampede to escape the predators, there was a distinct possibility that they would charge the settlement. However, the albertosaurs had some considerable distance to travel over sparsely covered ground, and they too were in no hurry to panic their quarry. They began to move slowly as they came out of the forest, making the best use of the cover around them to hide from the herd. Porter knew it was now or never. Asking for volunteers from the unmarried men, he proposed that the settlers venture out and take the fight to the albertosaurs. Their vehicles could cover the ground in a few minutes, and if they could drive off the albertosaurs, they would be unlikely to return. One group was to drive the herd away from the village, while another group on the faster vehicles would take what fight they had in them to the hunters.

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Most of the young men volunteered. Taking the deadliest weapons in the settlement’s well-kept arsenal, they set out on the fastest motorcycles in teams of two: one to concentrate on driving, the other riding pillion to fire the guns. Their small size should not alarm the herbivores, whose attention was to be demanded by the pick-up trucks and massive engineering vehicles that seemed to have stayed the herd during the construction of the palisade and moat. The bikers took absurd risks in driving away the albertosaurs. Believing that a head shot was the only way to make the bullets count, they had to get in close. Young Abraham Jackson was the first to feel the powerful teeth of an enraged albertosaur close around his body, damning both him and his pillion passenger to a terrifying death and sending Abraham to rest with his family. Zeke Wylde, a seventeen-year-old dead-eye shot from Hazzard County, Mars, settled the debt, sending several hollow-point rounds through the hateful staring orb of the largest albertosaur, which had been watching Zeke and his driver as if sizing up its next meal. Another albertosaur fell as three gunmen riddled its face with bullet-holes, forever closing its mandibles of death. Whether it was the roar of the bikes’ engines or the simple fact that they were now on the receiving end of the kind of brutal aggression they usually handed out, the albertosaurs began to run towards the forest glade. Zeke downed another two as they fled, and other teams wounded several more. Though the albertosaurs were much hardier than the humans they’d fought, the horrific wounds inflicted by the hollow-point rounds ensured that at least a few escapees would die in the very near future. Here was the first sign that man had established himself on Cretasus. The natural order of the dinosaur planet was to be changed forever by mankind’s intervention; he was to play the role of a brutal shepherd, protecting the flock from all harm so that he could slaughter them himself. The first albertosaur pack that the settlers had encountered would soon starve to death, deprived of the food source that had always been available to them. Although they had only been here for weeks, all Cretasus now knew that the humans had arrived.

advisers were also to travel to the area, to survey it and measure its potential for expansion. Realizing that this would soon be the largest settlement on Cretasus, Porter decided that it needed a name. The community was unanimous in its opinion that Porter should choose the name for their piece of Cretasus, and it wasn’t difficult for him to make up his mind. Thinking of his beloved wife Marie and the splendor of the city of his ancestors, he proclaimed to rapturous applause that the settlement would be known as New Savannah. The first ships landed fourteen weeks after the albertosaur attack, by which time the inhabitants had prepared temporary accommodation for the new arrivals. Masses of machinery and supplies were unloaded, including fuel, mining tools, felling equipment, engineering vehicles, and temporary structures. Many of the settlers were specialists: miners, quarrymen, lumberjacks and machinists from all over the galaxy had come to New Savannah to aid in its development. Each had brought their families; Porter had requested that most of the new settlers be family men in order to avoid the problems that plagued developing communities in the old west, where the drinking and gambling of single men bored with the monotony of their solitary lives had stressed the mining towns to breaking point. The advisors sent to New Savannah were a great surprise to Porter. He had known all three of the senior post-holders from his earlier days, and they were delighted to see him. Edgar Winthorpe, his old business partner who had left to manage operations elsewhere, joined him as the industrial advisor; Jonas Crowe, an old university friend, had been appointed scientific advisor to the community; and finally, his old fishing friend Nathanial P. Hood, a descendant of the famous Civil War general, accompanied the new wave of settlers as military advisor. Other officials and specialists had been sent to help build a lasting community, including doctors, fire chiefs, and planning architects. With them at his disposal, Porter knew that New Savannah was ready to take its first major leap towards its destiny as the greatest example of human endeavor on all of Cretasus.

Building New Savannah The Second Wave After the albertosaur incident, many settlers who had previously been ranchers suggested dividing the herd. This would reduce the threat it posed and let it be used as a source of food. To do this, they would need more hands. Since the settlement had survived the initial threats posed to it by the planet’s environment, Hepsediah decided it was time to call for more settlers. News of the travelers’ success in establishing the community sparked a great deal of interest in the Confederacy. Drawing together an armada of ships for the journey to the fledgling settlement, Confederacy officials informed Porter that many new settlers would be heading for the inland ocean, with masses of machinery and materials so that they could take full advantage of the prime land he’d discovered. Scientific, industrial and military

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With the new machinery and skilled workers to use it, work started on the construction of a whole new city by the ocean. Builders worked night and day to erect permanent dwellings, following architects’ plans for town blocks based on the distinct squares in the original pattern of Savannah, Georgia. Heavily armed teams ventured into the mountains to assess their mineral value and begin mining ore, while workers prepared the foundations for the new factories that would process them. Ranchers got to work driving a portion of the vast triceratops herd away from the sea and into the plains, where they were watered and managed by the humans. Most of the ranches were founded along the river, extending the community onto the plains. It was then that the predators reared their ugly heads and caught the settlers unaware. A lack of security and a dearth of easy prey

saw the destruction of both the Jones’ ranch and the Caddocks’ before armed patrols could drive the predators away. Some of the ranchers figured that they had overstepped the boundary of safety. The older hands pulled back into the town until they could adequately protect themselves and their families out on the plain. Some families, determined to make the most of the land and the opportunities that it offered, stayed outside what the others considered a safe distance, but many paid a terrible price for doing so. With new buildings erected every day, the pace of New Savannah’s development had fooled these younger ranchers into believing the predatory dinosaurs were no longer a threat, and that the humans had scared them off for good. However, the original settlers’ determined resistance had forced the predators to take more risks and attack whenever hunger forced an opportunity. The ranchers living on the very edge of the community proved to be perfect targets. Most realized that New Savannah itself could not protect all who decided to live out on the plains. Nathanial P. Hood, New Savannah’s military advisor, suggested the construction of small outposts from which patrols could be launched against threatening predators. These would also act as an early warning system against other threats; Hood was all too aware that the Union would be equally interested in the rich land surrounding New Savannah, and he was determined not to give any ground to the enemies of his country. Four small wooden forts were erected along the bank of the river, each six kilometers apart: close enough to support each other but far enough apart to actually play a useful role in supporting the outlying ranches. Union spies and potential interlopers could be apprehended at one of these forts, and the forts’ very presence would increase the range that patrols could cover. They would also provide convenient resting places for the workers that traveled to and from the mountains, for rich deposits of ore had been discovered and work had begun in earnest to retrieve it. And all the time, the building of permanent structures continued in New Savannah. As the years progressed, more and more settlers came to New Savannah, until the town was forced to spread over the plains towards the forests and the mountains. Each influx brought more machinery, equipment and resources to develop the town. Soon, over two hundred thousand souls lived in New Savannah and its environs. The town had expanded out in a checkerboard fashion, copying the squares of old-time Savannah, and there were all the offices, facilities, and amenities that humans elsewhere would have expected to find. Farmers started to farm the vast plains, and ranchers herded the triceratops further and further from the new city. Ruthless purges against dinosaur predators were carried out to clear the way for further human development and for the security of the herds, but predators would always reappear just when the people thought them destroyed. As Hepsediah Porter and his family grew in years, so the city of New Savannah grew in size and maturity, until it was a self-sufficient and thriving community. Whether you come here for commerce or adventure or just to bask in its splendor, New Savannah is a must-see spot for anyone on Cretasus.

The City Today Governing the Wilderness If it were not for the presence of dinosaurs among them, the citizens of New Savannah could be forgiven for thinking that they’d never left Earth. All the raw materials valued on Earth can be found somewhere near the city, whether it be in the ocean, the earth or the mountains. In fact, the land is so fertile, so inviting to humanity, that some have even entertained thoughts that they’ve discovered Eden, while others (mostly conspiracy theorists) believe that it is some grand alien plan to lure humans to a single location, in order to make it easy for aliens to harvest them for their own sinister reasons. While the debate continues amongst those with very little to do, the majority of New Savannah’s people get on with the job of making Cretasus their home. A self-supporting community, New Savannah benefits from a sound organizational structure conceived by Porter and his advisors. As the city grew in size, so did the need for a system of law enforcement and social services to provide the infrastructure for the thriving community. All these services were provided by the Confederacy. They include a fire service, free public heath system, sanitation department, police department, and all the other public utilities and structures of government one would expect to find in a major city. Acting as head of the New Savannah community is Hepsediah Porter, now in his early fifties. He and his close advisors form what government there is; there are none to rival him, although there are sometimes voices of dissent, which usually manifest themselves in protest or pressure groups. There is very little in the way of political debate in the homesteads of the city, and it is unlikely that there will be a place for it in the near future. All of those who come to New Savannah do so out of choice; if they are unwilling to live by its laws or pay its taxes, they simply leave for the frontier. All who travel through space to New Savannah are fully aware what is expected of them, and those who refuse to comply are typically asked to leave.

Settling in New Savannah & Acquiring Land There are two ways one can come to live in New Savannah. The most common is through an employment contract, which guarantees the successful applicant a house and some land. The second way is through land purchase. The Confederacy has enough troops in the area to forcefully lay claim to the plains of New Savannah, and it can sell land to those who wish to live there. A nominal rent is paid to the Confederacy to help finance the army and forts in the area. Only a handful of the citizens resent paying the taxes and rent, as they’re all too well aware of what might happen if the patrols stop and the predators return in numbers. Those less well-off are also eligible for land purchase by mortgage, for which they purchase the land for a nominal fee, and

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then are expected to pay a greater sum of rent to the Confederacy to pay for the land. Failure to pay means eviction; New Savannah isn’t a socialist utopia, and life there can be as harsh for those who fail as it is back on Earth. Once the land has been purchased, the owner is free to do with it as he or she sees fit (providing the Confederacy gets its rent, of course). There are strict regulations preventing the mass purchase of land or monopolies of ownership, as Porter and the Confederacy are wary about potential land barons buying up all the land and then selling to Union settlers. This is one conceptual Mason-Dixon line that they’re determined to preserve. Of course, many visitors to New Savannah choose neither of the above options, opting instead to stay only long enough to gather supplies for passage to the frontier.

Industry All conceivable types of industry occur in or around New Savannah. All kinds of ore are mined, mostly around the mountains that separate the New Savannah plain from the desert that Porter’s initial expedition had to cross. Many of these industries are in the hands of the Confederacy, as they supply vital raw materials critical to any nation at times of war. The processing factories are kept close to their sources of supply, which means that New Savannah’s greatest industrial center is in fact many miles away from the city. Life for the families of the miners and other workers is harder than for those fortunate enough to live within New Savannah’s walls, but they have their own communities and small towns that support them. The largest town is called Mount Crowe, after Porter’s scientific advisor who discovered the main seams of ore in and around the mountains. It is probably the last major stopover point for anyone wishing to head off into the mountains or beyond into the desert, though very few come there for such a purpose. Most work for the mining companies, and there’s always work available for deadeye shots to guard the ponderous travelling freight wagons. Work is also underway on a railway between New Savannah and the factories to reduce the risk of dinosaur attack; none of the huge haulage wagons can travel very fast across the plain of New Savannah, and while the trucks are pretty indestructible, their crews aren’t. Pteranadons and pteradactyls from the mountains have been known to attack resting convoys, and there is always the threat of bandits. Drivers and outriders are always in demand too; if one is looking for passage between New Savannah and the mountains with food and pay, then the freight convoys are the best option.

Places of Note There are several places of particular importance in New Savannah: City Hall, where all the Offices are located; The Docks, where most commercial and military boats moor;

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The Grand Market, where most trade is done in New Savannah; Chatham Theatre, the largest and most popular theatre in New Savannah; and The Spaceport, the only one on Cretasus under civilian control.

City Government Hepsediah Porter is the man responsible for the development of what is essentially his city. As the population began to grow, he studied the design Robert Castell had developed and that James Oglethorpe used to create their magnificent Georgian city, the Earthly Savannah that Porter loved so much. Drafting plans for New Savannah, Porter and his team adopted the system of broad, straight streets interspersed with grassy squares and parks. Lining these streets were buildings of all kinds: houses and apartment buildings, food stores, neighborhood shops, etc. The prototype allowed for great flexibility and a pleasant human scale. Thirty such squares formed the basis of the early city, and as more people arrived, more squares were added. The moat and palisade system were replaced by stone walls, which soon had to be ringed by a second perimeter of massive wire fences as the city continued to grow. While not as secure as the palisade, the fences are strong enough to provide protection from the smaller dinosaurs now that the ranchers had reduced the threat of mass stampedes. Porter’s initial desire had been to re-create the eighteenth and nineteenth century architecture that Savannah was famed for, but simple economics and building pressures ruled out such ambitions in the short term. However, as more settlers arrived and the machinery to develop more impressive structures came available, some of his dreams became reality. New Savannah has a burgeoning business community, spectacular docks, the only civilian spaceport on Cretasus and much more to interest the adventurer. It is the epitome of sophistication and Southern gentility, and is even more outstanding given the harsh environment in which it thrives. Like a fragrant orchid of culture surrounded by an arid desert of plebieanism, the city is a marked contrast to the hardships that surround its strong stone walls. While ranchers and farmers fend off the natural world they so carefully tend, the inhabitants of New Savannah relish the new life they have made for themselves on Cretasus. For the majority, it has been a struggle, but some arrive with the money and background of privilege. However, most of New Savannah’s good citizens have endured their own hardships to get this far, and none intend to return to the trials of the life they’ve striven to escape. New Savannah is one of the few centers of habitation that has a formal government. Few of those that decide the city’s future are not “first generation,” and real authority lies with the Porter family and their close friends. Hepsediah Porter is still the overall “ruler” of New Savannah, acting as the head of the community as something crossed between a president and a mayor. There is no serious political opposition to the Porter patriarch, and it almost

seems that he is without critics, but this is not the case. Taxation is always a sore point, but most arguments are nipped in the bud by admitting only those willing to pay such taxes to live in New Savannah. The taxes pay for the infrastructure needed to keep New Savannah working: roads, street lighting, the fire service, hospitals, waterworks, militia guard, and other public utilities controlled by Porter’s government. Each department of the local government is responsible for keeping its part of the city in working order, and the Porter family oversees this conglomeration, meshing it into one unified whole. Individuals are elected by the citizens of New Savannah to run these utilities for terms of four years. The role of public servant is not a light one; the grave responsibility that comes with the office is not often reflected in the pay, and one needs a certain philanthropic bent to stand for one term, never mind run for a second. There is a great sense of achievement amongst those who have held office, as each and every one of the holders recognizes the significance of what they are building on Cretasus. Being part of the New Savannah success story is a great honor. There are six main offices: the Sheriff’s Office, the Office of Public Works, the Office of Agriculture, the Office of Civil Defense, the Office of Trade and Industry, and the Office of Public Welfare.

The Sheriff’s Office The current holder of the Sheriff’s Office is Nathanial Kelly, a devout Protestant whose Earthly ancestors lived in Virginia. A former Security Officer on one of the Confederacy’s largest space-craft, the CSS Shiloh, he is now in his fiftieth year and has kept crime in New Savannah so low that visitors may be unaware that there are any misdemeanors committed in the city. Every officer in the police force wears his badge of office on the left breast: a circle with the Lone Star in the center. The rest of the uniform resembles the grey worn at West Point before the Civil War, making these guardians of the public good instantly recognizable. They are trained to keep the public peace, but also to shoot; the new challenges that the dinosaur planet brings are also not lost on them. Their special division of Bronco Riders handles any threats posed by the herds, and often patrols outside the city to make sure that there are no external threats passing unnoticed. The police also keep a stable of horses and a crack posse that has been known to pursue criminals deep into the swamps and mountains, usually to return days later with their quarry in hand. Zeke Wylde, now a little older than when he fought the albertosaurs at the settlement’s birth, is the head of these Rough Riders. His knowledge of the mountains is second only to that of the criminals who make it their permanent home, and even they have been caught out several times by his tenacious raids into their territory. The city is split into separate precincts, each answerable to Kelly’s office, and is manned by between twenty to forty officers at one time. The Rough Riders are a city-wide elite, the result of

pooled resources from each precinct. All in all, Kelly does a good job in keeping the citizens safe from the potential dangers that surround them and strives to ensure that crime does not pay. The Sheriff’s Office is also responsible for the upkeep of the New Savannah prison, a large concrete structure often mistaken for a fort by those approaching the city from outside. Fifteen inhospitable miles separate the prison from the city, and if governor Jackson Wright has anything to do with it, its inhabitant won’t be making that journey until they’ve paid their debt to society in full – and then some. There is no death penalty on Cretasus, but doubtless your players will give cause for some to call for its introduction! Peterson Precinct: A typical precinct station located in the east of the city, Peterson Precinct is home to sixty officers and support personnel. Run by Evan Peterson (the city’s longest serving precinct officer) it has approximately forty police officers ready for action at any one time. At least half of these will be patrolling the streets, as Kelly strongly believes that a powerful police presence deters criminals. Peterson remains at the precinct throughout the day, meeting with Kelly weekly in the city hall to report on some of the initiatives that affect his precinct. The most serious problem in Peterson Precinct is public disorder, as its hotels and bars are popular with visitors from outside, who often bring their cash with every intention of spending it on either the finest wines available to humanity or cheap rot-gut whisky that still “does the job.” Ranch-hands frequent this part of the city when they are delivering to the market and they always bring drunken violence. The officers give short shrift to aggressive drunks; many ranch hands have awakened to find themselves slightly bruised and sore in the station’s cells. Here are the statistics for the average police officer on the New Savannah force should your players force their intervention at any time. New Savannah Police, Confederate War1: CR 1/2; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 1d8+3 (includes Toughness feat); Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 12 (+2 leather armor); Atk +2 melee (1d4+1/crit 19-20, knife), or +1 ranged (1d10/crit x3, Colt .45); AL LN; SV Fort +2, Ref +0, Will +0; Str 12, Con 11, Dex 10, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 10. Skills: Intimidate +4 (4), Handle Animal +2 (1), Jump (1), Listen +2 (0), Ride +2 (2), Spot +2 (0). Feats: Toughness, Alertness. Possessions: Knife, Colt .45 with 4d10 bullets, leather armor, flashlight, manacles, cash $1d6. Police may be equipped with Winchester rifles or shotguns for special missions. The Rough Riders: A posse of forty trained horsemen, the Rough Riders are chosen from the elite from each precinct. Led by Zeke Wylde, the Riders often go out into the wilderness to get their man, so all the Riders are expert horsemen and scouts. They wear no uniform as such but all carry photographic identification and a badge of office, though they rarely get called on to serve inside the city. They are a cut above the average officer, and their statistics reflect their specialist training.

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Rough Rider, Confederate War1/Bro1: CR 2; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 2d8+3; Init +1 (Dex); Spd 40 ft. (light horse); AC 13 (+1 Dex, +2 leather armor); Atk +1 melee (1d8/crit 19-20, longsword), or +2 ranged (1d10/crit x3, Colt .45)*; AL LN; SV Fort +2, Ref +3, Will +0; Str 11, Con 11, Dex 12, Int 11, Wis 10, Cha 12. * Does not include penalties for firing while riding, which are reduced due to Mounted Archery feat: -2 if mount makes double move, -4 if mount runs. Skills: Animal Empathy +6 (4), Balance +3 (2), Handle Animal +8 (5), Intimidate +5 (4), Intuit Direction +4 (4), Knowledge (nature) +2 (2), Jump +2 (2), Ride +7 (5), Wilderness Lore +4 (4). Feats: Mounted Combat, Mounted Archery, Toughness. Possessions: Light horse, longsword, Colt .45 with 4d10 bullets, Winchester rifle with 3d10 bullets, leather armor, cash $2d6. May be equipped with lances or other weapons for special missions. Scenario Hooks: The most likely point of involvement the characters will have with the police force is if they get a little rowdy or forget that New Savannah is a civilized city, not a place where you can kill without facing the consequences. However, if the characters are responsible citizens, they can volunteer as Special Officers or even be deputized to assist the Rough Riders if their reputation warrants it.

movie Alligator to you, but watch it; now imagine it’s a dinosaur down there.

The Office of Public Works

Porter’s eldest daughter, Catherine, is the head of this Office, which also deals with other sources of food vital to existence in New Savannah. The fishing ships fall under the control of this large department, as do the farms and ranches of the Main Valley. It is only recently that the office has started regulating the fishing ships, not because of fears of over fishing but because many unsuitable boats wound up at the bottom of the inland ocean after attacks by the larger sea dinosaurs. Small rowing boats look like perfect prey to some of the true leviathans that hunt in the same shoals as the fishermen, and more than one family has lost its founder through such misadventure. All land ownership is registered here, as are the individual farms and ranches that lie in the surrounding territory. While the Office covers most of the land within five days’ ride of New Savannah, it doesn’t stretch to the true frontier ranches, as most of those were founded by independent endeavor and don’t come under the jurisdiction of the city. All ranchers register their brand here to help settle cattle disputes, and the Office even has veterinarians who specialize in the fauna of Cretasus (as much as one can be skilled in something so new) who train some of the less transient ranch hands the skills needed to birth the young of their peculiar herds. The most arduous form of employment offered by the Office is the post of Ranch Inspector, which involves extensive and somewhat dangerous travel through the Main Valley to ensure that ranches are being kept on the land the rancher actually owns and that no one is collecting “stray” beasts from land that isn’t theirs.

Probably the least glamorous of all the public offices, the Office of Public Works is run by Winston Porter, the second-eldest son of the city patriarch. He is responsible for the smooth dayto-day running of the Office, which is the largest of the six. His department covers a lot of different ground; the fire service, health care, sewerage and waterworks, fuel supplies, land registration, power, communications, and many other amenities taken for granted by many citizens in New Savannah all fall under his jurisdiction. From clearing the sewers of rats and dinosaurs to providing the facilities for delicate surgery, the Office of Public Works is a multi-faceted machine that runs smoothly due only to the dedication of the people who work within it. Private medicine is unheard of, and all doctors must be registered with the Office before they can practice. Of course private doctors do exist, but they tend to serve those who don’t want their medical needs coming to the attention of the police. Scenario Hooks: As stated earlier, there usually isn’t much in the way of adventure to be found at the Office of Public Works, but without it and the services it supplies, the characters wouldn’t be able to live in the city or receive medical aid. Union or bandit sabotage of the public works is sometimes an issue, and dinosaurs mucking up the generators has caused problems in the past. There is always work for sewer cleaners; this can be a very dangerous job, and despite the generous pay offered by the Office, very few pursue this as a career. Not many people will recommend the

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The Office of Public Welfare Once again, this Office doesn’t provide a great opportunity for adventure; it handles social security and benefits for the sick, the elderly and the disabled. If you can’t work, then you should be able to find help here. Isaiah Mason heads the Office of Public Welfare and quietly gets on with it. There is an investigation department that deals with fraud, but other than catching cheats, there’s not much in the way of excitement at the Office of Public Welfare. The one source of controversy is usually the immigration system. The Office has to examine people who have arrived at New Savannah’s massive spaceport for viruses and also has to detain those who are on the planet illegally. The growing population of aliens on Cretasus has raised fears of exotic disease, and with the exception of the well-known Scray, most aliens are temporarily quarantined upon their arrival at the spaceport. Scenario Hooks: Unless you really want to go on a crusade to better the lot of the down at heel, there’s not much room for adventure here.

The Office of Agriculture

This is an unpopular job, as its other responsibilities include collecting the taxes due to the Office. If a farmer or rancher has had a bad year or disastrous month, there’s sometimes nothing left for the Inspector to take. Things can turn nasty, especially if the individual concerned feels that the department is at fault for not supporting him during his hour of need. The Inspector usually travels with at least one Rough Rider and several other paid representatives to both protect him from angry farmers and enforce his authority when necessary. Scenario Hooks: The Office usually hires outsiders to enforce its dictates, as the potential for corruption is quite high. This somewhat mercenary approach is regulated by a small force of professional officers, all of whom have been extensively vetted before being appointed. They oversee the hirelings and make sure the operation runs smoothly. Characters becoming involved with the Office can usually expect to have at least one NPC accompany them, no matter what task they are paid to undertake. Here are some typical missions: 1. Tax collection: This is a great opportunity to ride with the Rough Riders, but it can also be a harrowing experience for the more sensitive players. Many people struggle in the Main Valley, and a dinosaur attack can wipe out a great deal of hard work. Characters could find themselves in a situation where they support the farmer who can’t pay and refuses to abandon his farm, instead holing up with his rifle and enough ammunition and food to keep the officers off his family’s back. Grudges can develop if the players carry out their duty; if the same farmer, now ruined, catches up with them when the bandit gang he runs ambushes the characters, what will he do? 2. Rustling: Players can find themselves involved in antirustling investigations. The Butlers and Dukes, two families that you will meet later, are a common source of friction that the Office has to smooth over and this would be a perfect way to involve the players in their age-old feud. There are also the bandits who hide out in the hills, mountains and swamps; they still need to eat, and what easier way than stealing cattle (or other edible life-forms). There’s potential for an awful lot of scenarios here: What if they discover that the rustlers aren’t even human, but aliens or fierce dinosaur predators? 3. Hunting a deadly sea predator. While the Office’s ships are sturdier than most, no one really knows the true size of the monsters that dwell within the inland ocean. What terror may come from the deep? Jaws will seem like child’s play compared to some of the specimens chomping their way through the unlucky fishermen of New Savannah.

The Office of Civil Defense Under the leadership of Nathanial P. Hood, the Office of Civil Defense covers all military activity in New Savannah, including the patrols that man some of the smaller waypoint forts outside the city walls. Remarkably, there isn’t that much in the way of excitement for the military forces and the New Savannah Militia simply

because there’s no one to fight; the regular Confederate Army watches for any Union challenge and the force stationed at New Savannah is more or less a garrison to protect the city from the larger predators and the unlikely but possible prospect of an Union attack. The Militia is purely a Civil Defense Force, but they do train with the military, and could be a useful occupation for player characters who want to be soldiers but also to have the freedom with which to adventure on Cretasus. Militiaman, Confederate Sol1: CR 1; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 1d8+3 (includes Toughness feat); Init +1 (Dex); Spd 30 ft.; AC 16 (+5 flak jacket, +1 Dex); Atk +1 melee (1d4+1/crit 19-20, knife), +2 ranged (1d10/crit x3, automatic pistol), or +2 ranged (1d12/crit x3, Winchester rifle); AL LN; SV Fort +2, Ref +1, Will +0; Str 12, Con 11, Dex 12, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 10. Skills: Drive +5 (4), Intimidate +4 (4), Knowledge (strategy & tactics) +5 (4), Listen +4 (2), Pilot +3 (2), Spot +2 (0), Use Technical Equipment +5 (4). Feat: Toughness, Alertness. Possessions: Knife, automatic pistol with 1d4 cartridges (20 bullets each), Winchester rifle with 1d4 cartridges (20 bullets each), flak jacket, cash $1d4.

The Office of Trade and Industry Run by Jeremiah Othelthwaite, this Office is responsible for taxation of the local population and New Savannah businesses, as well as ensuring that there is fair play amongst the companies mining the rich ore from the mountains and the surrounding area. It is a very busy office, as new businesses are opening all the time, particularly in New Savannah and the industrial district around Mount Crowe. The Office covers such diverse functions as the transport infrastructure, and its main project now is the railway from Mount Crowe to the industrial district of New Savannah. It is also responsible for traffic coming in and out of the spaceport, and if the characters start the game by arriving from another planet, they will see representatives of both the Office of Public Welfare and the Office of Trade and Industry. After all, Porter is keen to limit the number of people wanting to live in New Savannah as he’s all too aware of the problems that overpopulation bring. The Office also deals with the thriving business community that has developed over the last few decades. Business leaders typically try to get taxes lowered; if there is ever to be a concerted challenge to the Porter patriarchy, more than likely it will come from the business sector. However, unless your players want to get involved in a political game, you don’t really need to worry about this, since Porter policies are popular with the vast majority of citizens, and businesses are strictly forbidden to sponsor candidates for election to any of the offices of government. The influence of business on policy is widely regarded as the beginning of the end for the Union’s once-democratic government, as those who had

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bankrolled candidates soon made it clear that they hadn’t done so for philanthropic reasons. Scenario Hooks: There are several ways that the characters could find themselves working for the Office of Trade and Industry. Here are just a few: 1. The Office employs a team of industrial investigators who ensure that businesses are playing by the rules. With the rise of competition among firms vying for Confederate contracts to mine ore, the investigators are kept extremely busy and there is always an opportunity for players to find employment with the Office in that capacity. A few gunslingers are always welcome, simply because if a business is acting in an underhanded manner, its owner would rather silence the investigator than give up a lucrative contract. After all, anything can happen en route between New Savannah and Mount Crowe. Many recent investigations have surrounded two large families, the Butlers and the Dukes, more of whom you’ll hear later. 2. Bandits have stolen a transport ship from the Spaceport and the characters are hired to retrieve it. This can bring them into conflict with pirates who are trading off-world and could be the start of a long campaign – assuming the players actually want to work with the authorities and not become outlaws themselves! 3. Supplies are disappearing en route to the railway, with whole shipments and their drivers leaving New Savannah, never to be seen again. The Office wants to know what is going on: is it the work of the Union, bandits, dinosaurs or something more sinister? Some ranch hands believe that they’ve seen the ghosts of the drivers begging for help but have been too spooked to take any action. Others claim to have seen strange lights in the sky; could it be aliens? It is up to the characters to get to the truth.

Life in New Savannah For the majority of citizens, life is very comfortable. The difficulties of early settlement have been overcome; new arrivals don’t realize how good they’ve got it. As discussed before, the city is arranged in an array of squares, which radiate out from the inland ocean like a vast checkerboard. The older squares contain both residential and commercial buildings, but as the city has grown, squares have tended to be separated more along lines of function. There are whole squares that contain shops and others that contain only residences, giving the city a more district-like feel. For example, around the huge market are many other business squares, drawn by the vast crowds that frequent the marketplace. The Chatham Theatre is surrounded by hotels, saloons, and other places of entertainment, all providing somewhere to have a drink before (and after) whatever show is currently in production. Even the residential areas have convenience stores that provide most of their needs.

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A Typical Residential District Houses make up the majority of buildings in the residential squares, with the occasional shop or bar breaking up the near perfect (or monotonous) symmetry of Porter’s architectural model. Most houses are two-story and hold between four and seven people, typically a single family. The district we’ll look at is called Stuart District, which consists of eight squares, and is of fairly recent construction. It is based near the southern wall of the city, far away from the inland ocean. The brief outline here leaves enough room for you to inhabit the district with anyone you like. Broadly speaking, it falls under the jurisdiction of the Stuart Precinct police station, and is fairly quiet. It has two bars, three diners, and myriad small coffee shops and convenience stores. Jerry’s (Residential Bar): Stuart District’s largest bar is a popular meeting place for after work drinks as it is based near the coach house, the point at which all the locals disembark after a hard day’s work in the city center. Popular attractions include live bands playing country music every weekday evening and dancing on the weekends. The bar takes its name from owner Gerald Dwight, a resident of three years who brought enough money with him to have first dibs on the bar when it was built. He used to work on the docks and has good knowledge of the ocean, even though he now lives at the opposite end of New Savannah from his former place of employment. His old buddies still drink here most evenings, bringing with them “fishy” tales: who has caught what, and in some cases what has caught whom. Uncle Moe’s (Family Restaurant): William Greenburg runs this family-oriented diner. The establishment’s second owner, Greenburg took over from Moe Williams when the latter died (of natural causes, not food poisoning). The diner holds places for about sixty people and you’re not allowed to bring firearms onto the premises or use foul language in front of the children. Greenburg is more than capable of throwing rebarbative customers out if they refuse his polite requests to leave, an offer only given once. Meals are good, the portions are fair, and the staff friendly if you play by their rules. Jackson the Grocer: Typical of many convenience stores in New Savannah, this one, run by fifty-year-old manager Andrew Jackson, sells everything from ironmongery to boiled sweets. Prices tend to be a little high, but the store is right on the doorstep of those who live nearby, and a long haul through the city is the last thing residents want if they just need a cup of sugar. Jackson keeps a shotgun under the counter and is ably assisted by his wife Megan, a forty-three-year-old redhead with a tongue sharper than bitter lemon candy. These stores should be the first port of call for characters wanting to get a good idea of the lay of the land. Everyone in the neighborhood pops into the shop for those lastminute items, and anyone not recognized by the Jackson family either plans their shopping like a military campaign or is hiding from humanity for some possibly sinister reason.

Dinosaurs in New Savannah Dinosaurs are quite difficult to domesticate, but people make pets out of them anyway. Small dinos in particular are kept in cages, in yards, on chains, or loose in people’s houses. It’s rare to find someone who doesn’t keep two or three small dinosaurs (squirrel- to dog-sized) around the house. Brightly-colored dinos are particularly popular; many of the domesticated versions are actually poisonous creatures with their venom sacs removed. Dinos smaller than dog-sized generally do not speak and range in cleverness from the level of a monkey to the level of a rabbit. They vary widely in temperament and habits. It’s also important to note that some of these dinos will bite, scratch, and attack their owners (who are not at all their masters). Most are not fully domesticated and do not toilet train. People keep them around at their own risk, but it seems to satisfy some deep psychological urge, or perhaps allay fears of the unconquered hordes of dinosaurs outside the settled areas. A few types of dino have been fully gentled for use in the house and are tame enough to be kept around small children. Butterfly lizards have a delicate pair of gliding wings and brightly colored scales; they are greedy and eager eaters which skitter around walls and ceilings like geckos on speed. White Jagers are

tiny pale nocturnal bipeds that keep the house clear of vermin by patient, quiet stalking of their prey. They imprint like ducks: once bonded to a particular person, they will respect, obey, and protect that person forever. Both of these species breed well in captivity, although butterfly lizards are notoriously frail and temperaturesensitive, requiring a warm, moist atmosphere or their wings dry out and they perish. It is illegal for dinosaurs to walk loose down the streets of New Savannah. Riding them or walking them on a leash is allowed, but otherwise they need to stay indoors. New arrivals are sometimes surprised to see compsognathus, clipped pterosaurs, and edaphosaurs wandering up and down the street on leashes. Raptors and protoceratops, being of human-level intelligence, are an exception to this rule, although raptors are rarely seen in the streets without a military escort. The larger dinosaurs are often under the tenuous control of an injection harness, but most civilians still give them a wide berth, remembering the rare (but infamous) lapses when they have mauled a passer-by or attacked each other or even turned on their owners. Even at their best, they leave enormous piles of dino dung in the middle of the roads. Dinosaur leashes are constructed of thin but sturdy links of metal, with a thick metal collar. Owners are required to wrap their

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dinosaurs’ leashes, not around their arm or hand, but around their torso: a mere handhold is not enough to restrain the larger ones and the authorities figure that people will try their hardest to avoid exciting their pets if failure means being dragged through the dusty streets! Electrified leashes are also available for especially wary owners. (Breaking a standard dinosaur leash is a DC 25 Strength check; slipping a chain is a DC 30 Escape Artist check. Attempting to restrain a dinosaur using a standard chain is a straight Strength contest, holder vs. dino; using a choke chain gives the human a +5 bonus to the roll, although it may antagonize the dinosaur!) Very large dinosaurs need not be chained to a person, but they do need to be linked in a chain that eventually leads to a dino ridden by a human, or to a vehicle. Strings of chained brachies are a common sight on the outskirts of New Savannah.

qrfel and Zagmo, Dinosaur Researchers qrfel is a representative of Underglen, a little-known protoceratops city to the north. He is the emissary to New Savannah. (qrfel comes from a group of protoceratops who do not capitalize their names; they feel it’s a sign of arrogance and too much attachment to the self.) There are two emissaries, actually: qrban, qrfel’s elder brother, handles negotiations with the Confederates, while qrfel aims to learn as much as he can from these strange outsiders. qrfel has somehow acquired the services of Zagmo, an ornitholestes. Zagmo obeys qrfel’s orders, and in general serves as his hands. qrfel is a common sight, walking around town with Zagmo in his special harness. At least, that’s the story that’s heard on the streets. In reality, qrfel and Zagmo are saboteurs. They represent the “aggressive pacifism” faction of the protoceratops, and work as best they can to prevent development in the Main Valley and the expansion of the Confederate military presence. They have contacts with various factions of smugglers, and work to facilitate weapons deals that put guns in the hands of raptors. Zagmo is an accomplished thief, and often enters houses in the dead of night to steal important documents. They also gather information which might be useful to various resistance groups (Dinozonians, wild ones, raptor tribes, and any other opponents of progress). qrfel and Zagmo finance their activities with sales of native artifacts through a fence named Anders. qrfel is soft-spoken and often buys rounds of drinks for newcomers at some of New Savannah’s many bars. If drawn out, he praises human science and human accomplishments and plays the role of humble student very well. Zagmo never speaks. In fact, his tongue was cut out by scientists interested in ornitholestes speech patterns, which led him to hate humankind. After they were finished with him, the scientists sold him to smugglers, who taught him to rob. He often swallowed stolen items in order to prevent them from being found. He was quite accomplished by the time he managed to slaughter his

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owners and escape, wounded, to the alleys, a feat which brought him to qrfel’s attention. qrfel nursed him back to health, for which he feels grateful, and he shares qrfel’s goal of sweeping the valley clean of humans. Zagmo often dresses in a fool’s motley, complete with jester’s cap, because it makes humans think he’s not a threat. He is. qrfel, Proteceratops Spy5: CR 7; Small Animal; HD 7d10+14; hp 52; Init +0; Spd 20 ft.; AC 18 front (+7 natural, +1 size)*, 14 sides and back (+2 natural, +1 size)*; Atk +7 melee (1d8+2, bite); SA Spy class abilities; AL LG (zealot); SV Fort +10, Ref +7, Will +10; Str 16, Con 18, Dex 10, Int 14, Wis 16, Cha 18. Skills: Bluff +15 (11), Ciphers +7 (5), Diplomacy +15 (11), Gather Information +10 (6), Intuit Direction +4 (1), Knowledge (nature) +8 (6), Knowledge (dinosaurs) +8 (6), Knowledge (geography) +8 (6), Knowledge (history) +11 (9), Knowledge (local) +11 (9), Knowledge (human society) +11 (9), Listen +13 (10), Sense Motive +15 (11), Speak Language (Common, Latin, Anglit, Protoceratops, Raptor), Search +5 (3), Spot +7 (4), Wilderness Lore +5 (2). Feats: Dodge, Mobility. Possessions: qrfel wears modified saddlebags to store his finds. * SA – Spy class: As with all fifth level spies, qrfel can use Slip of the Tongue fives times per day, receives a +1 dodge to AC vs. ranged weapons, and can use Nick of Time and Intriguing once per day. His dodge feat can also add +1 AC against a designated opponent. Zagmo, Ornitholestes Ftr1/Rog2: CR 4; Medium Animal (6 ft.); HD 5d10+20; hp 54; Init +7 (+3 Dex, +4 improved initiative); Spd 60 ft.; AC 16 (+3 Dex, +4 natural, 1 size); Atk +11 melee (2d8+7/crit 19-20, laser sword), +11 melee (1d4+7, bite), or +8 melee (1d3+5, 2 claws); AL NE; SV Fort +7, Ref +7, Will +2; Str 24, Con 19, Dex 16, Int 6, Wis 10, Cha 4. Skills: Hide +8 (5), Climb +8 (1), Move Silently +8 (5), Listen +4 (4), Spot +6 (6), Pick Pockets +8 (5). Feats: Weapon Proficiency: Laser Sword, Improved Initiative. Possessions: Cloak, laser sword. Zagmo’s archaic and specialized training gives him two levels of rogue and one of fighter. Like any second-level rogue, he can use the abilities evasion and sneak attack +1d6.

The Confederate Planets Center for Knowledge (C.P.C.K.) While New Savannah is famed for its hospitality, excitement, and picturesque way of life, it is also the last point of contact for many explorers before they venture into the unknown. There are many forests, mountains, and valleys far beyond the frontier of the inland ocean. Not only does New Savannah serve as the nerve center for all the farms, ranches, and industries on the plain, but

it’s also the origin point for many expeditions of discovery. Several offices offer contracts to brave souls willing to risk themselves in the wilderness to further the Confederacy’s knowledge. Whether the expeditions are to make maps of the area, search for resources, or simply to discover the fate of the last company that never returned, there is usually an opening for a determined and adventurous sort. Despite its rather official-sounding title, the C.P.C.K. is run by a private citizen by the name of Richard Montague. Montague is of old Louisiana stock and funds expeditions into the unknown on behalf of the Confederacy. He takes a keen interest in all the rumors brought in by other explorers and even the frontier. His people were the first to begin the task of cataloguing the dinosaurs that live in the swamplands, and this led to the discovery of several species previously unknown to the inhabitants of Cretasus. Montague is always looking for people to escort his scientists into the Bayou; characters can always find work here if they are handy with a gun or know something about dinosaurs. Frequented by survivalists (some of them deeply disturbing), the C.P.C.K. offices are also a good place for the characters to hire a scout. Montague used to lead some of the exploratory trips into the swamp, so he knows it well. He too can be hired. His familiarity with the swamps ensures that any party he accompanies has a better than even chance of survival. His brother James runs the center in Richard’s absence. The center has the best maps of the area available to outsiders; there are some locals out on the frontier who know a little more than these maps show (like common dinosaur haunts and trails), but the information at the center should be good enough for most journeys. Montague will always be interested in hearing any stories about travel on Cretasus, and he sometimes pays for maps, so players looking to make money from a routine journey would do well to proffer plans to the C.P.C.K. Richard Montague, Offworlder Male Twf3: CR 3; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 3d8+6; hp 21; Init +0; Spd 20 ft.; AC 13 (+3 crocodile hide armor – see stats on page 80); Atk +4 melee (1d4+2/crit 19-20, raptor claw dagger), +4 melee (1d6+2, unarmed), or +2 ranged (1d10/crit x3, Colt .45); AL N; SV Fort +3, Ref +3, Will +2; Str 15, Con 15, Dex 11, Int 10, Wis 13, Cha 9. Skills: Gather Information +4 (4), Wilderness Lore +4 (2). Feats: Track, Weapon Proficiency – Ballistic. Possessions: Raptor claw dagger, Colt .45 with 20 bullets, crocodile hide armor, cash $2d6. If on expedition, Montague will be well equipped with all the supplies he needs. Typical Survivalist, Offworlder Twf1: CR 1; Mediumsize Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 1d8+1; Init +4 (Improved Initiative); Spd 20 ft.; AC 13 (+3 hide armor); Atk +1 melee (1d4+1/crit 19-20, knife) or +1 melee (1d6+1, unarmed); AL CN; SV Fort +1, Ref +2, Will +0; Str 13, Con 13, Dex 10, Int 10, Wis 11, Cha 9. Skills: Gather Information +3 (4), Wilderness Lore +2 (0). Feat: Improved Initiative.

Possessions: Knife, hide armor, 1d4+1 days worth of hardtack, 1-gallon canteen with water, cash $1d4. Whenever they leave the house, survivalists carry enough supplies for several days – even if they’re only going out for a short while – “just in case.”

Mount Crowe: New Savannah’s Mining Town As mentioned earlier, the average citizen in Mount Crowe has a tougher life than one in New Savannah. With the discovery of the rich veins of ore in the mountains, the Confederacy called for volunteers to come and work the mines. Overriding Porter’s initial plea for “families only,” the Confederacy shipped in huge numbers of workers to exploit the wealth they had discovered. The character of the town is now like that of any frontier mining town in the early West: a massively disproportionate ration of men to women, stacks of drinking holes and gambling dens to relieve the workers’ pockets of their hard-earned cash, and enough “houses of ill repute” to surprise even the most liberal visitor. While some of the men might be mean and dirty, the law is just as rough. Primarily under the control of the military (and local commander Colonel Paul Decker), justice tends to be swift and final. Decker runs a “three strikes and you’re out” policy for what he considers lesser offenses like brawling and petty theft. In this case, “out” means that the offender is shipped off-planet. Usually, the presence of his soldiers is enough to quell a fist-fight over cards or women, with both parties denying anything happened after the event. For murder and other such crimes, wrongdoers typically have their possessions confiscated, followed by banishment or imprisonment until they can be shipped off-planet. Several have blamed Decker’s system for the growing number of bandits that hide in the mountains and the forests, men forced to go on the run to avoid the law. Some attribute him with the existence of the criminal colonies in both Plesiosaur Bay and the Hideout Hills. Whatever one’s opinion of Decker, his soldiers enforce the law in Mount Crowe, and you’d better not cross them. Colonel Paul Decker, Commander of Confederate Military Forces, Mount Crowe Mining Town: Descended from South Carolina stock, Colonel Paul Decker has served in the Confederate military for most of his life. Like his father before him, he served in the 2nd South Carolina Rifles and soon became the regiment’s Colonel. He has fought against all enemies the Confederacy has ever faced and is noted for his own personal bravery, not expecting anything more of his men than he himself would be willing to give. Decker runs a tight ship, very rarely taking time off from his duties as lawgiver and peacekeeper in Mount Crowe and the surrounding mining villages. He is now focused on the notorious Gaines Gang, who have been stealing shipments of processed materials (typically gold) and rustling livestock from the ranchers in the outlying district. He believes that they operate from caves

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in the mountainside, but expeditions have yet to uncover any evidence. His men have found the nests of several pteranadons, however, which usually ensure that the number of men that return with each expedition is substantially less than that which embarked. He is an impressive figure of a man; 6’ 4” tall, a champion athlete and a would-be Dino Warrior if the post appealed to him, he has thick dark hair and a beard that would be regarded as extremely long even by nineteenth-century Confederate commanders. He speaks with the classic southern drawl, always has a polite word for the ladies and spends his spare time fishing on the banks of the great river for all kinds of water life. Colonel Paul Decker, Confederate Male War3/Sol3: CR 6; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 3d8+3d10+18; hp 49; Init +6 (+2 Dex, +4 Improved Initiative); Spd 30 ft.; AC 17 (+2 Dex, +5 flak jacket); Atk +5 melee (2d8+2/crit 19-20, laser sword), +9 ranged (1d10/crit x3, heirloom Colt .45), +8 ranged (1d12/crit x3, Winchester rifle), or +8 ranged (special, shotgun); AL LN; SV Fort +8, Ref +4, Will +5; Str 15, Con 16, Dex 14, Int 13, Wis 12, Cha 13. Skills: Drive +5 (5), Handle Animal +6 (5), Intimidate +9 (9), Jump +4 (6), Knowledge (strategy & tactics) +6 (6), Listen +5 (5), Pilot +2 (2), Ride +6 (5), Use Technical Equipment +5 (5). Feats: Sense of Vulnerability, Combat Reflexes, Iron Will, Endurance, Improved Initiative. Possessions: Knife, lasso, laser sword, heirloom Colt .45 with 1d4+2 cartridges (20 bullets each), Winchester rifle with 1d4+2 cartridges (20 bullets each), shotgun (20 shells), cash $4d6. Colonel Decker is always armed with all the weapons listed above. At night, he sleeps with them! Rifleman, the 2nd South Carolina Rifles: These are the statistics for a typical recruit; they are all experienced in the art of war, and have adapted well to their new policing role. Always on the lookout for Union infiltrators, most of Decker’s Riflemen expect that the Union would strike the industrial wealth of Mount Crowe before they would assault New Savannah itself. Rifleman, the 2nd South Carolina Rifles, Confederate Sol1: CR 1; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 1d8; Init +5 (+1 Dex, +4 Improved Initiative); Spd 30 ft.; AC 16 (+5 flak jacket, +1 Dex); Atk +1 melee (1d4+1/crit 1920, knife), +2 ranged (1d10/crit x3, automatic pistol), or +2 ranged (1d12/crit x3, Winchester rifle); AL LN; SV Fort +2, Ref +1, Will +0; Str 12, Con 11, Dex 12, Int 11, Wis 10, Cha 10. Skills: Drive +5 (4), Intimidate +4 (4), Knowledge (strategy & tactics) +4 (4), Listen +6 (4), Spot +2 (0), Use Technical Equipment +4 (4). Feats: Improved Initiative, Alertness. Possessions: Knife, automatic pistol with 1d4 cartridges (20 bullets each), Winchester rifle with 1d4 cartridges (20 bullets each), flak jacket, cash $1d6.

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Mining Operations Mount Crowe is the largest of several communities that have sprung up around the main centers of industry on the New Savannah plain. Owned by the Confederacy, the outstanding resources available to new settlers are now professionally exploited. The mines are run by dedicated mining firms who believe in the cause of the Confederate planets, as are the quarries, smelting and processing plants and all the other industries and processes considered critical to a country at times of war. These companies are, of course, well paid by the Confederacy for their support. Even though the Confederacy technically owns the mines, there is some competition for the tenders between firms to actually carry out the work. Less patriotic members of the business community wouldn’t worry about carrying out a little sabotage if it meant the crippling of a rival firm and a revocation of the contract to be passed on to a company that could carry out the work, i.e. theirs. Confederacy officials frown upon such behavior, but it does go on. All kinds of mines can be found dotted around the mountains of the New Savannah plains: iron, lead, sulfur, gold, copper, tin, silver, and coal, to name the most prominent. Mount Crowe supports the huge iron ore mines of Frederick P. Anderson, who employs over one thousand men and women to work his highly mechanized plant, turning iron ore into steel. There’s usually work

available for anyone on Cretasus who wants it at the steel mills and the iron mines, ranging from laborers to highly trained technicians who ensure that the machines run smoothly. Research teams are often sent into the mountains to search likely spots and to take samples; Anderson is always looking for volunteers for these dangerous assignments. As the first settlers discovered, there are creatures living in the mountains, and many huge caverns and tunnels already thread through their slopes. The real danger posed by the dinosaurs and the Gaines Gang ensure that player characters with the right skills (and guns and guts to back them up) will find work as a research team if they wish to explore the mountains or are looking to earn some good money.

Entertainment Bowling, billiards, cinema, and baseball games provide the more wholesome entertainment within Mount Crowe. Most of the factories have baseball teams that compete in a league once a week; there are no professional players, so all games have to take place on the weekend or during special sporting holidays held every month. There are sometimes competitions in New Savannah during holiday season, when the top four teams from the Mount Crowe league compete with the top four teams in New Savannah for trophies. There are many bars and their ilk in Mount Crowe. Several are sports bars where one can play pool or go bowling, while others are less salubrious establishments, many serving as both watering holes and brothels. There are no laws against drinking or gambling in Mount Crowe, and while prostitution isn’t strictly legal in Mount Crowe, it isn’t strictly illegal either, with the vast majority of the population (of single men) turning a blind or keenly interested eye to it. Other popular attractions include the Bronco Trials, where competitors ride younger triceratops like the bulls of the west: the rider that stays on his mount the longest is the winner. There are often scouts from the Dino Warriors or the richer ranchers in the audience eyeing potential recruits, so Bronco Trials are an excellent opportunity for someone with the right skills to get noticed.

The Frog & Spanner Typical of the smaller bars in Mount Crowe, the Frog & Spanner has perhaps the most unusual name. Its proprietor, William T. Levers, a fifty-two year old former soldier, refuses to go into detail as to why he saddled the fruits of his pension fund with such a ridiculous moniker, but he’s willing to go into great detail about pretty much anything else. The bar has ten guest bedrooms, usually taken by men who travel with the convoys, with a generous discount for soldiers and ex-servicemen. Levers is a somewhat forgetful man; if he could establish a link between the facts lurking in his fair-haired head, he’d quickly realize that he knows too much. He knows many rumors about the activities of the Gaines Gang, ranging from the solid fact that

they operate from somewhere in the mountains to the rather more unlikely conjecture that Steve Gaines, the Gang’s leader, is actually a hyper-intelligent velociraptor. Even the drunkest listeners have disregarded this hypothesis, and Levers has no recollection of its source. Levers carries an automatic pistol at all times and is skilled in its use. He can also handle himself in a pub brawl, even with the soldiers, because while they’re usually drunk as skunks, Levers is stone cold sober. This is one publican who never dips into his stock. William T. Levers, Confederate Male War1: CR 1/2; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 1d8; 6 hp; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 11 (+1 padded smock); Atk +2 melee (1d3+1, unarmed), or +1 ranged (1d10/crit x3, automatic pistol); AL LN; SV Fort +2, Ref +0, Will +0; Str 13, Con 10, Dex 10, Int 8, Wis 10, Cha 11. Skills: Intimidate +2 (2), Listen +2 (0), Profession (Barkeep) +2 (2), Spot +2 (0). Feats: Alertness, Quick Draw. Possessions: Automatic pistol with 1 cartridge (20 bullets), padded smock, 3 flasks of various kinds of liquor, cash $1d4. Scenario Hooks: The William T. Levers Rumor Mill: Here are some of the rumors that surface regularly when speaking with Levers. • The Gaines Gang operate from a cave high up in the mountains. They use the gold they steal to buy weapons from gunrunners. • The Gang need these weapons as they plan to take Mount Crowe for themselves and ransom it to the Confederacy. • The Gang has about seventy members in its ranks, most exminers or renegade soldiers; the actual figure Levers gives varies between thirty and one hundred, as he can’t remember how many are in the gang at all. • There are several abandoned mines in the mountains. Work ceased at them due to pteranadon attacks, which were pretty ferocious – as if they were defending something sacred. • The mountains are haunted by the ghosts of a failed mining expedition; late at night, you can hear them crying out to be rescued. • Chesterton Winterfield, owner of the Virginian (a rival bar), is a Union spy. He gives the soldiers cheap liquor to get them drunk and asks them questions when they’re out of their minds on whisky. • Silvia Jameson, a local madam, is a Union spy, and uses her girls to elicit secrets from the soldiers. • Matthew Kelly, a local timber-merchant, is a Union spy. He supplies the army with most of its timber, and knows exactly what they intend to do with the lumber. • Someone else is a Union spy. This is his favorite rumor, and he’s heard so many names that those he can’t associate with their real story anymore fall under the umbrella suspicion of “Union spy.” • An intelligent velociraptor leads the Gaines Gang. It intends to use the gang to destroy humanity on Cretasus when the

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moons are in a specific phase. • There is a secret passage between Colonel Decker’s personal quarters and The Cathouse, a high-class brothel, which Decker uses often. (This is probably the one rumor that he doesn’t tell that often, as firstly it isn’t true, and secondly, Decker would beat him to a pulp if he discovered the originator of such slanderous gossip.) It’s up to you to decide which of these rumors have some element of truth. Due to the unreliable nature of Levers’ memory, many of these rumors are actually parts of different rumors amalgamated into one. For example, take the “pteranadon attacks and the abandoned mines” rumor. Levers has heard that there are pteranadon attacks in the mountains, and also knows that there are several empty mines there. He also knows that fishermen who use the great river once found something that interested Crowe’s scientific team since it resembled artifacts sacred to tribes of primitive humans. All these bits of information slowly merge into the one story, which may sound plausible enough to get player characters interested, but isn’t exactly what happened at all. Making up your own Levers gossip is fairly simple. Take three or four rumors you wish the player characters to explore. Use the start of the first rumor, the middle of the second and the end of the third, and you’ve got the gospel truth according to William T. Levers. Repeat until confused. Your players will be.

Kitty’s Owned by Silvia Jameson (who you’ll remember is a Union spy, if Levers is correct), Kitty’s is a dance club, with a large number of the staff dancers being available for more private sessions in the many upstairs rooms. This is the only one of her establishments that so openly displays its ulterior purpose; while most of the brothels tend to hide behind the façade of a simple bar, Kitty’s is far more frank about its operations. Silvia was born and raised in the outer reaches, but left to try to make it as an actress when she was seventeen. One of the fortunate few to find work, she was a minor cult figure in shocker films, her curvaceous figure proving popular with the genre’s male fans. She married a wealthy businessman named Carl Marks, who owned several clubs where she launched an unsuccessful singing career. She then turned her hand to business and found that she had a natural aptitude for getting what she wanted and for anticipating what others would demand. After Carl’s sudden death from a heart attack, she took over his clubs. As the calls for women to come to Cretasus became louder, she saw an opportunity to start her own little monopoly and a new mini-empire. Only in her early forties, Silvia is still an extremely attractive and curvaceous brunette. She regularly turns the heads of the wealthier and more influential men in Mount Crowe. She is believed to already have a lover, however, and spurns the attentions of all who try their luck. Silvia Jameson, Offworlder Female Com1: CR 1/2; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 1d4; 3 hp; Init +0; Spd 30

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ft.; AC 10; Atk +0 melee (1d3, unarmed); AL CN; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Will +1; Str 10, Con 11, Dex 11, Int 10, Wis 13, Cha 15 (17 with men). Skills: Profession (Entertainer) +4 (4). Feats: Great Lover. Possessions: 2 flasks of liquor, cash $2d20. Scenario Hooks: There are plenty of scenario possibilities that could involve a place like Kitty’s. Perhaps one of the Gaines Gang has decided to take some of the gold he’s captured into town and spend it a little too freely? Perhaps Levers is correct; that Jameson works for the Union? What if one of the girls is kidnapped or attracts the unwanted attention of a brutal “admirer”? Think of westerns like The Unforgiven and virtually all others based in a small frontier town; there’s always plenty going on at the cathouse.

Big Al’s Bronco Rodeo Al’s is the place in Mount Crowe to see Bronco Rodeos, and he has a small team of professional riders that take on all comers in monthly competitions. Formerly a rancher, “Al” J. Booth left for Cretasus as soon as he heard about the herds of triceratops roaming the plains around New Savannah. In his youth, Al had been one of the most enduring and skilled riders on the rodeo circuit, winning enough money and attracting enough sponsorship to eventually retire and buy his own land. Booth started a very successful ranch with his wife Sarah and his three sons, Isaac, Stephen, and Jason. He had mastered even the craziest steer in his lifetime of riding, so when the opportunity arose to try his hand at something new, he and his family decided to make the journey to Cretasus and a new life. Buying a small amount of land, Al had soon tamed a herd of triceratops – indeed, he was the first man to do so. His three sons quickly learned to ride the younger creatures, while Al mastered the art of staying atop one of the large males, which are often easily angered by the presence of something sitting on their back and prodding them to move on while all they want to do is graze. The military took an instant interest in Al’s technique, and he trained some of the early Dino Warriors before the military made it a secret. Al attracted the attention of other ranchers in the area, who also saw the advantages of being able to ride the larger triceratops (namely, that you don’t get squashed by the very creatures you’re trying to herd). He soon found himself riding the beasts out on the range, which quickly became his training school. He could charge big bucks to train riders, and soon made the decision to host competitions to promote what had once been his sport of choice. Riders that he had trained flocked to the venue. It soon became a popular way for ranch hands to spend their day off, competing for prizes and the chance to join the Dino Warriors. As warrants the name Big Al, Booth is a giant of a man. Rumors abound that he actually punched a steer out cold in his ranching days. Some even believe that given good reason and a

foul temper, some of the smaller dinosaurs would find him a struggle in a fist-fight. Wearing his hair close-cropped, he boasts a beard that gives him the look a thousand Harley riders would love to have. Big Al, Confederate Male Bro6: CR 6; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 6d8+21 (includes Toughness feat); 41 hp; Init +3 (Dex); Spd 30 ft. (run 5x); AC 13 (+3 Dex); Atk +7 melee (1d3+4, unarmed), +6 ranged touch (special, lasso), or +6 ranged (1d10/crit x3, automatic pistol); AL N; SV Fort +7, Ref +8, Will +2; Str 18, Con 16, Dex 16, Int 9, Wis 10, Cha 14. Skills: Animal Empathy +12 (9), Balance +5 (2), Handle Animal +18 (9), Intuit Direction +3 (3), Knowledge (nature) +5 (6), Ride +13 (9), Wilderness Lore +5 (5). Feats: Mounted Combat, Ride-by Attack, Trample, Spirited Charge, Toughness, Great Fortitude, Endurance, Run. Possessions: Lasso, automatic pistol with 10 bullets, cash $1d4.

The Dukes and Butlers If ever two families should never have met, the Dukes and Butlers are they. While the majority of settlers on Cretasus come to bury their past or to seek new horizons, one could be forgiven for thinking that the Butlers and Dukes had only come to the plains of New Savannah to continue their generations-old feud. Both families can trace their lineage back to the prominent farmers who founded the original city of Savannah, Georgia. As time passed, the Dukes invested more and more of the family’s money into farming, while the Butlers favored the growth that new industries offered, and this was the source of the initial quarrel that escalated into the now long-running feud. Both families ran for office during local elections to represent Chatham County, one advocating the potential growth that industry would bring, the other warning against the unemployment and low wages of “automated” factories. As both families had a lot of money invested in the future direction of Savannah, they had a great deal to lose if the election went the wrong way. As the contest progressed, the sometimes slanderous accusations and malicious gossip propagated by both parties became far more interesting to the general public than their actual policies, and soon the

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debate became nothing more than a slating match. Rumors of the elder Butler’s infidelity with a local saloon girl were countered by the more interesting revelation that Duke had first met his wife in a house of vice and that at least one of their sons was not the fruit of Duke’s loins. When Jesse Duke, the patriarch of the farming family, heard these rumors, he demanded “satisfaction” from Bernard Butler and declared that such malicious insults could only be buried if their originator was likewise “laid to rest.” Both men were bound over to keep the peace by the magistrate, but the law failed to take the fierce family loyalty of both sides into account; while Bernard and Jesse were stating their cases to the magistrate, William Duke, the youngest of Jesse’s sons, challenged Daniel Butler (Bernard’s eldest son) to a duel unless he formally apologized to the Dukes. Such demands agitated Daniel – the fact that they came from the mouth of a mere sixteen-year-old boy served only to anger him further. He agreed to the duel, and both sons were seriously wounded. William died of his wounds two days later. The race to represent Chatham County was quickly forgotten. Both families poured their energy into thwarting each other’s plans, each making ridiculous bids for land they knew the other wanted. These financial machinations began to take a heavy toll on the wealth of both the Butlers and the Dukes, who found themselves having to borrow heavily from the banks to maintain their land war. Other businessmen and landowners exploited the situation once the pattern of buying land the other desired had become clear. Simply informing a Butler that the Dukes were after your land guaranteed one a good price from Butler, irrespective of the truth to such a claim. As weeks became months, the two families destroyed each other, until they both had nothing and were forced back to the humble farming roots from which they had come. It was almost as if their fortunes had turned full circle, except that the two rings of life were now inextricably linked by blood. Whether rich or poor, the Dukes and Butlers wished nothing more than the complete destruction of the rival family, yet they would never see this through to the end. There always had to be one survivor, one to tell future generations of the power and prowess of the rival bloodline. The seeds of a bitter feud found fertile ground in the minds of both Butlers and Dukes, and they became destined to hate one another until both families existed no more. Both families learned valuable lessons from their downfall: first, that their demise was the fault of their rival, and second, that they should keep their intentions closer to their chest. The open feuding had made them easy prey for their competitors. If they were to build their empires again, they must resort to more covert dealings. Both families slowly acquired wealth, contacts, suppliers, and land, sometimes in different states and even in the Far East and Europe to conceal their improving fortunes from the other. As the decades passed, the Dukes and Butlers gradually regained the power they had both once held. By the time of the Civil War, each family had invested most of its wealth abroad to hide it from the other’s prying eyes. As the war progressed, the feuding lines accused one another of betraying the cause of the

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South, linking the other with Union industrialists and saboteurs undermining the Confederate infrastructure. Isaiah Butler was hanged by a lynch mob only hours after Ethen Duke published documents proving that the Butlers were involved in businesses manufacturing weaponry for the Federalist invaders. Anyone who had checked Duke’s source would have seen that these papers were outdated; the Butlers, staunchly loyal to the Confederacy, had severed all ties with the North as soon as war seemed inevitable. While the Butlers cried foul, they too were making disingenuous claims about the Dukes’ involvement with the North. Noting that one of the Duke girls had married a prominent agriculturist in Pennsylvania, Israel Butler claimed that the Dukes were passing freely through the Federal blockade to supply enemy soldiers at Gettysburg with provisions originally intended for Southern troops. Townspeople reacted badly to this news, burning down the Dukes’ family home and killing the youngest Duke in the fire. Regardless of the realities of war, the Butlers and Dukes continued their feud, seeing the conflict as nothing more than a way to damage the reputation of the other. The year 2136 marked a new era for thousands of Southerners. The Great Exodus threatened to bring a halt to the feud. There was no guarantee that the Butlers and Dukes would end up on the same planet, a fact that upset the elders of each family. As the ships carrying them on to their new futures apart left Earth, each secretly hoped that they would meet again. Fate was not about to disappoint them. Despite the fact they had both volunteered to travel through the same warp gate, their eventual destinations were as far separated as could (and perhaps should) have been. Years passed as they searched for each other through the known galaxy, convinced that the other had survived, driven by the peculiar determination engendered only by true loathing. As fresh generations were born, the feud looked like it would die a natural death, defeated by time and relegated to painful memory. Then came Cretasus.

Duke Meets Butler: The Cretasus Years Samuel Butler first heard of Cretasus in 2189 when New Savannah started to acquire its reputation as the first city of the Confederacy. Learning of the vast mineral resources allegedly located in the mountains of the Main Valley, he decided to make his way to Cretasus in search of a new fortune. He wasn’t the only one whose curiosity had been piqued by Cretasus: Ned Duke, patriarch of the opposing line, was also travelling to the rich planet. Cretasus sounded like a fanciful agrarian utopia to the farming leader – an unparalleled vista of unsullied land to nurture and tend for the benefit of mankind. The opposing ideals that had driven the two families apart over four hundred years ago were about to reunite them. And this was going to be no garden party. The initial meeting between the youngest male members of each family erupted with that blend of hot-headedness and pride that youth bestows, which only further emphasized the latent hatred they felt for one another. (See sidebar to right for the full

story.) When the Butlers’ commercial brachiosaur train set foot on the Dukes’ hallowed turf, a new war began. Cretasus was to be their new battleground. Several incidents developed out of this initial meeting. The Dukes had been tending the land and keeping herds since they arrived on Cretasus, so they probably knew the local fauna better than most. A particularly ferocious tyrannosaur matriarch had been creating some trouble for the Dukes, attacking their herds and trampling their crops. The Dukes had taken some risky measures to draw the creature away from the main herd, with Ned and Jake riding their broncos close by the monster in order to distract it. They had tried to catch the beast on several occasions, but had failed each time. Finally, they’d taken to isolating the older triceratops, staking them and leaving hunks of meat nearby in order to attract the attention of the tyrannosaur. The smell brought her near, and the sick or old triceratops became her next meal. This method succeeded in keeping the huge predator away from the main herd. Over time the family noticed that the tyrannosaur (affectionately dubbed “Big Momma” by Jake) returned to the stake sites looking for food on a regular basis. Discovering that the Butlers ran their brachy train only a few miles from one of the staking points, the Dukes started staking sick animals closer and closer to the route that the train used. The tyrannosaur soon worked out where all the food was to be found. Big Momma returned to the stake point one evening to find more than she had expected. The careless train drivers had failed to post guards, and their laughter and shouting attracted Big Momma’s keenly carnivorous interest. Drunk on cheap whisky and bloated on beans, the drivers proved to be an interesting variation to Big Momma’s diet. The Dukes found the caravan scattered and the crushed bodies of partly consumed Butler workers not far from their camp fire. Getting dinosaurs to do your dirty work is quite a tempting proposition for many of Cretasus’ more mischievous inhabitants, but it’s not always the best option. Although the Dukes succeeded in destroying the caravan, they had forgotten that eight brachiosaurs wandering about your land without handlers is not an ideal situation for people who grow crops. The first strike of the new war hurt both sides: it wasn’t long before the brachiosaurs had caused an incredible amount of damage, for which the Dukes blamed the Butlers. This came as no surprise; however, when the Butlers threatened to involve the Sheriff of New Savannah in the dispute, the Dukes fell strangely silent. As the year passed, the two families both caught wind of the developments in the swamps. Both sponsored parties from the C.P.C.K. to delve into the Bayou. In fact, this became the focal point for their new feud: who would claim the wealth that both suspected lay in the marshes? Whether it be minerals or something as yet unknown, each family was driven by one desire: to prevent the other from dominating the explorations. Whatever secrets existed to be discovered, only one line would know them. In addition to this new arena, both the Dukes and the Butlers have ventured into business and ranching respectively, figuring that if their rival can do it well, then they can do it better. It has to

As a warm Sunday afternoon slowly melded into a balmy night, Jake Duke was riding his young parasaurolophus mount through the rich foliage sprouting from the ploughed fields of his father’s farm, on the lookout for marauders. He could see and hear the distant approach of a brachiosaurus train, carrying supplies from the mountain towards New Savannah. They didn’t usually travel by night unless there were some emergency, and judging by the dust cloud thrown up by the huge dinosaurs, they must be heading this way. On occasion, riders and guards visited the ranch, needing supplies or food, but always providing news, materials or money in exchange. Indeed, such was the rewarding nature of good hospitality that Jake’s father had been talking about building a “halfway house” for roving supply caravans. Deciding that his father would look upon him favorably if he managed to secure more interested visitors, Jake gently spurred Yelper in the direction of the train. The massive dinosaurs soon came into full view, their triceratops-mounted guards ever vigilant and keenly aware of their visitor. Jake hollered, his greeting immediately matched by a raised hand and a wave from atop one of the brachiosaurs. The huge dinosaur halted, and a tall, dark-haired stranger descended a rope ladder hurriedly slung over the side of the howdah mounted upon the massive creature’s back. Yelper wriggled awkwardly beneath Jake, as if he could sense danger, but Jake ignored him; this train bore the mark of the Confederacy, and runners wouldn’t be out this far unless they’d gotten lost. The dark-haired man walked towards Jake, a large smile running the rather acne-ridden gauntlet of his face. As the stranger came closer, Jake realized that he was no more than a boy; fourteen or fifteen at most. With him came two armed men, one of whom Jake knew from the rodeo in Mount Crowe. These were tough customers, not nannies, and though he was presently the youngest of the Dukes, Jake considered himself a veritable elder compared to the whipper-snapper striding towards him. Dismounting as good manners and Southern hospitality demanded, Jake walked forwards, arm outstretched in greeting. It was grasped weakly but enthusiastically by the boy, who shook it with the excessive vigor of one unsure of himself. Jake noted this with surprise; surely anyone who represented a train of this size would be confident enough to meet a humble farmer? Additionally, there was something not right about this kid; even his fingers felt cold and clammy. Jake pulled his hand away, and the boy did likewise, eyeing Jake with new-found suspicion. There are those that claim love can last forever, but even they would be shocked by the irrepressibility of true enmity. If ever there were another meeting between two strangers on the great plains of the Main Valley that was to escalate so quickly into open hostility, it would have to be between the two armies of the North and South. Though the feud had seemed dead for over half a century, something in the heads of both boys flicked a switch from peace to war; memories flooded back that ones so young should not be able to recall. Jake Duke knew this boy was

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his sworn enemy, and the boy – none other than Matthew Butler – realized that he had met an old enemy he’d never seen before. “Lost?” asked Jake, hands placed firmly on hips, just above the butt of his pistols. “Are you?” responded the child with a phrase only one so young would think the height of wit. “You’re way off here, kid. This is Duke land. You need to head back. Those brachies should be about ten miles north if you’re heading for New Savannah.” “Don’t tell me where I should be,” retorted the youth, “my father said there was a good hostelry round here, and that we’d be welcome. I never expected to bump into a bumpkin.” The two guards looked at each other in surprise and alarm. Bill Yates, the taller and broader of the two men, interrupted. “Look, Matty, your father wants us to get to Savvy A.S.A.P. to make the Butler drop in time. This guy’s just tryin’ to…” “My father pays you, and for the purposes of this conversation, I am my father. Do as I say and don’t butt in,” ordered the boy. “That’s quite an achievement, kid, being your own father. You from the swamps? I hear anything goes there,” quipped Jake. “You’ve certainly got the look.” “How dare you! My father is Samuel Butler, the richest industrialist in these parts, and you’ll respect me, or I’ll have him buy up your miserable farm and send you into the back country.” “Butler, eh? I’ve heard of you. My name is Jake Duke, son of Ned Duke. Now get off my land, before I take my belt to you, kid.” “Duke? Wait a minute…” pondered Matt. “Yes, I know who you are. Your lot spread lies about us back in 1862, saying we worked with the Yankees.” “Only because Butlers murdered Will Duke back in 1798! Fair’s fair!” spat Jake. “He was put down, like the sick pig he was. You’d better get out of my way, Duke, or my men’ll kill you! We’ve got work to do!” yelled the boy, frothing with hatred for someone he’d only met a few minutes ago. “Make me, kid. Make me get out of your way.” “Ha! You’re not getting me on a murder charge like you did with cousin Obidiah back in 1970! We work within the law, Duke, and you’re gonna feel its full weight round your scrawny neck soon enough! Why, I’m gonna…” “Let’s go, Matt. We’ll do as the man says and head north ‘cause we’ve got to make the deadline. You don’t want to upset your pa now, do you?” reasoned Yates. “Hmm,” breathed Matt, “okay. Let’s go. I’d better tell pa that there’s vermin on this here land.” “Yeah, you do that, and I’ll whip your sorry behind, kid. Now…GIT!” And so the two companies parted but they were to meet again. It had taken just two minutes to rekindle the fierce flames of feud, and now, they were a-burnin’ bright.

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be noted that the Dukes’ small business ventures seek only to undermine those of the Butlers, and tend to run at a loss, which is currently absorbed by the success of their farms. Likewise the Butlers’ ranch is something of a failure, as they are neither interested nor enthusiastic about herding a bunch of dinosaurs or growing wheat. However, their triceratops are the cheapest at auction, and are popular with new arrivals to Cretasus as newcomers can always find a good head or two to begin their own ranch at these prices. For now, and possibly forever, the two families remain at each other’s throats, their hands wrapped tightly around one another’s necks; but not squeezing so hard as to kill their rival. The Butlers cannot exist without the Dukes, nor vice versa. The drive and determination radiated by each family comes only from a desire to best its opponent, and one without the other would surely lapse into lethargy.

Scenario Hooks There are almost limitless possibilities for scenarios involving the feuding families. Not many people on Cretasus are aware of the age-old dispute or its history, and unwitting adventurers may find themselves tools of the Dukes or Butlers in the bitter battle. Sabotage is the most common weapon in the arsenal of both broods, whether against a Butler business or a Duke farm. If there’s something that could go wrong with any venture, the devious minds of the pernicious patriarchs will find it and try to turn the potential problem into a demonstrable disaster for their rival. Typical plots involve the following: 1. Dukes hire the players to arrest the contraband runners operating near their ranch. A large caravan carrying stolen steel to the pirate’s drop ship passes within a few miles of the main holding (Ned’s house in fact), and this is where the caravan will be heading. There is a reward of $20,000 (Dead or Alive) for the handlers and drivers of the runners (said to be involved with the notorious Gaines Gang from the mountains), and given their “ready to rumble” reputation, Ned Duke recommends that they ignore the “Alive” bit of the wanted poster. Naturally, this isn’t a gang of runners; another brachy caravan is on the move, carrying steel to New Savannah. Since the tyrannosaur incident, the guards are ever vigilant and will shoot anyone who refuses to identify themselves, especially anyone riding dinosaurs. Incidentally, the Dukes can provide the characters with mounts should they need them. Any player wise enough to check with any proper authority figure (from New Savannah or Mount Crowe) will discover that their targets are in fact innocent drivers who work for the Butlers. The Dukes will deny all knowledge of the characters, and claim that the triceratops mounts were stolen from the Duke ranch. If the players try the job and die, the Dukes will claim that the Butlers have killed innocent ranch hands. This is dirty work. 2. Industry produces a great deal of waste, and some of this can be horribly poisonous. And what better way to test the toxic-

ity of any residue than on unsuspecting triceratops? Especially when they are the pride of your most hated rival, Ned Duke. The Butlers could involve characters in this mess with any number of lies: one might be that a ruined rancher wants to get revenge on the evil monopoly that destroyed him and his family by attacking the mutant creatures being genetically modified by the Duke farms (nonsense, by the way, but believable). A swift tug on the heartstrings followed by a sense of righteousness should be enough to con the characters into carrying out this Butler scheme to poison the Duke herd with industrial waste. 3. Rustlers have stolen the cattle belonging to a new arrival and he is desperate for help. Local ranchers resent the new man’s attempts to found a new ranch in the area and they have stolen his future. Can the players get the cattle back? Probably, but the cattle actually belong to the Dukes, so the players would be the real rustlers. Of course, the rancher would be grateful if the characters could escort the herd to New Savannah’s market and get a fair price, of which they may keep a certain percentage. This should fan the fires of greed for those players who relish the “ker-ching” of the cash register. However, it will more than likely find them in jail, claiming that a non-existent rancher hired them to do the job – a likely story! 4. The characters could be approached by either family to explore the swamps or to investigate the fate of a previous exploration. Unfortunately for the players, neither family is above murdering an entire expedition in cold blood and framing their rival for the crime, so it is possible that the characters may become targets for professional killers. Another possibility is that the characters themselves will discover the murdered explorers and bring back the planted evidence, which would naturally make them very unpopular with the perpetrators of the trick. As you should be able to gather by these examples, the feud is not a light-hearted family spat; this is a serious battle of nerves and minds, utilizing innocents to play the fall guy. Providing someone else does their dirty work, neither family cares how filthy the job may be if it means that their rival is inconvenienced.

The McQuarry Brothers Few men have eluded the Rough Riders for as long as the twins Kane and Abel McQuarry. Both men arrived in Mount Crowe four years ago to work in Israel Putnam’s coal mine and successfully stayed on the right side of the law for about three months before a drunken brawl turned into a murder. Reluctant to face justice, both men fled the mining town and hid in the mountains. Meeting up with the Gaines Gang, they got their first taste of an outlaw’s life when they held up their former employer’s pay wagons en route from the banks of New Savannah. The pay was good, but there were so few centers of civilization in the Main Valley that there was never anything to do with your new-found wealth. Living in caves with the ever-present threat of hostile pteranadons seemed to suit the desperadoes under Gaines, but the McQuarry brothers wanted something a little more luxurious.

Leaving the Gaines Gang to their own devices, the brothers blazed a trail across the Main Valley, committing random acts of violence against people clearly unprepared for their visitation. Passing themselves off as survivors of a wagon train attacked by T-rexes, the two were warmly welcomed by the good folk of the Main Valley, who offered food and shelter. Small farms were commonly targeted: the householders killed, their food stolen and their homestead burned after the twins had stayed the night. Their first mistake came after they had been on the run for two months. Settling at one of the small towns that dot the landscape between New Savannah and the mountains, the two had gone to celebrate their freedom at the saloon. Tax collectors had reported the deaths of two families on their route, and during a discussion over a beer too many a bartender overhead Kane laughing about the “gawkin’ face of that old farmer” as he killed him. Sending his son to fetch the local sheriff, the bartender plied the McQuarries with free alcohol to ensure that their wits were absent when the law arrived. Even though they were as drunk as skunks, the varmints realized that there was something afoot. They left the saloon just two minutes before the sheriff arrived. It was time to head for the hills again, but now the law knew who they were and what they’d done. They’d have to be far more careful in the future if they were to survive. By the time they reached the area known locally as the Hideout Hills, the two had lost the posse that had amassed since the incident at the saloon. The involuntary relocation of a small dinosaur family gave them a rather dank dwelling place, a small cave complex similar to many others burrowed beneath the Hideout Hills. Priority one was to ensure that potential intruders were discouraged, so they set an elaborate series of traps at the mouth of the cave, with far deadlier ones in its interior. Providing you kept to the left and knew when to jump, you were safe, but the to the uninitiated, it was a death trap. With their underground base now secure, they planned their first raid. Given that they’d left the Gaines Gang to escape a cavebound life in the first place, it had to be something that would quickly elevate them up the property ladder. Payroll wagons seemed an obvious target. They watched the well-ridden tracks between New Savannah and the expanse of the Main Valley with great trepidation. The brothers had been part of a large gang on their last payroll job but now they were but two. Even the small group of six outriders that accompanied the coach was enough to make any robbery attempt nearly suicidal. They would have to find another source of illegal income – and find it quick. After the final piece of dinosaur meat they’d carved from the former inhabitants of the cave went rotten, the two realized that if the law didn’t kill them, then hunger would. They decided to take a big risk: they’d have to go to New Savannah. Travelling into the city with a group of cattle hands, the pair managed to go unnoticed by the guards. Looking for targets, they noticed the hive of activity around the market and decided that some of the ranchers would provide an excellent source of income. The large amounts of money passing between the ranch-

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ers would take time to deposit in the banks, and some of the ranchers made it clear during casual conversation that they intended to spend some of their earnings first. Befriending two of the cattle ranchers was an easy task for the brothers, who could have easily found work as a comic double-act if they’d ever chosen to live on the right side of the law. Drinks and a few games of cards soon revealed that the two men worked for the Pollock ranch, one of the biggest in the Main Valley, and had traveled for ten days to reach New Savannah with a large group of broncos. They’d sold one hundred head of triceratops and were entrusted with bringing the money to the bank while their travelling companions (the other ranch hands and bronco drivers who’d helped them get the shipment through) enjoyed themselves. Boasting that they’d made the journey ten times without incident, the two luckless leaders had decided that it was their turn to have some fun too. Encouraged by Abel and Kane, the two went to the casino, hoping to have some fun. Inebriated almost to the point of unconsciousness, the two were the first victims of the McQuarries new crime spree. Dumping the bodies in the sewer, the brothers left for the other side of the city to enjoy themselves. Daring to stay overnight, they had a royal time and left the following day with provisions to last them three weeks and a small fortune in cash. They tried the same trick on three other ranchers before someone discovered the decomposed bodies of the original victims. Fortunately for the twins, no one had seen them with the two ranchers; people knew the two dead men, but couldn’t recollect any of their actions. The brothers had avoided the law so far, and there was nothing to link them with the killings. However, both realized that they couldn’t really keep the same modus operandi (although they didn’t call it that) or the law would be onto them straight away. So instead of robbing ranchers when they were in town, they decided to revert to their killing spree across the plains. The McQuarry seed must have been defective to make these criminals believe that they could commit such horrible crimes without attracting attention, and their previous offenses had attracted the keen interest of Zeke Wylde and his Rough Riders. Following the bloody trail the terrible twosome had left, Wylde had quickly concluded that they’d headed for the hills. Some of the farmsteads had been taken over by undercover Riders, who were to lie in wait and look for signs of the murderers. As luck would have it, Fate didn’t favor the twisted sons of mayhem: their first port of call resulted in a gun battle that left Abel less capable than his name would suggest. Nearly losing the use of his right arm, he fled off into the night covered by his brother’s more accurate gunfire. Hotly pursued by the Riders who had ambushed them, the twins made for the hills again and by some miracle lost their pursuers. It was as if they knew where the Riders would look – almost as if some outside force was guiding them to safety. Whether it was their skill, sheer luck or the hand of some malevolent god, the end result was the same; the McQuarry brothers made it back to their headquarters unnoticed. All planning was abandoned in the face of persistent good

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luck. Every raid, whether on a farmstead or in New Savannah, proved to be a resounding success. The McQuarries knew when trouble was coming and could foresee the path their futures would take if they followed a particular course of action. They don’t realize it, but the McQuarry brothers are a team that possesses a special gift. When they are together, they form a psychic link that gives them the ability to glimpse their futures. They are unaware of this ability, which only kicks in when they are thinking about a course of action. While some of us might imagine the results, they see what would actually happen, and trust this inner instinct to keep them alive. So far, they have escaped four attempts to capture them with traps that students of criminal history would realize have proved successful in similar circumstances. This gift separates the outlaws from the rest of their ilk. It will take a clever man to stop their career of evil. Abel McQuarry, Confederate Male Twf3: CR 3; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 3d8+9; 27 hp; Init +6 (+2 SA, +4 Improved Initiative); Spd 30 ft.; AC 14 (+2 SA, +2 leather armor); Atk +5 melee (1d6+2, unarmed), or +5 melee (1d4+2/crit 19-20, knife); SA Premonition; AL NE; SV Fort +4, Ref +7, Will +4; Str 14, Con 16, Dex 11, Int 10, Wis 17, Cha 11. Skills: Gather Information +7 (4), Hide +4 (4), Listen +5 (0), Spot +5 (0). Feats: Alertness, Lightning Reflexes, Improved Initiative. Possessions: Knife, leather armor, liquor flask, cash $4d10, various stolen goods. SA – Premonition (Su): As long as Abel and Kane are within 100 feet of each other, they each have an unerring instinct regarding imminent danger. When exposed to a situation or decision that might endanger them, both Abel and Kane may make a Will save against DC 5. If either passes the check, he feels a pang of instinct that guides him in avoiding the situation or resolving the decision favorably. For example, when picking farms to raid, Abel and Kane always seem to avoid the well-guarded ones; when traversing the mountain trails, they never fall prey to an ambush; and so on. They may make the Will save to avoid being caught flat-footed at the start of a combat. As a result of this ability, they also receive a +2 insight bonus to AC, initiative, and Reflex saves. Kane McQuarry, Confederate Male Twf2: CR 2; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 2d8+6; 20 hp; Init +3 (+1 Dex, +2 SA); Spd 30 ft.; AC 15 (+2 SA, +1 Dex, +2 leather armor); Atk +3 melee (1d6+1, unarmed), +3 melee (1d4+1/crit 19-20, knife); SA Premonition (see above); AL NE; SV Fort +2, Ref +7, Will +4; Str 13, Con 14, Dex 12, Int 10, Wis 18, Cha 10. Skills: Gather Information +4 (2), Hide +5 (4), Listen +6 (0), Spot +6 (0). Feats: Alertness, Lightning Reflexes. Possessions: Knife, leather armor, liquor flask, cash $4d10, various stolen goods.

Hideout Hills This is one of the most dangerous places to be if you live a lawful life, because although to the untrained eye it appears uninhabited, it is actually teeming with life: low-life, that is. In addition to the McQuarry brothers, there are other gangs using its difficult terrain as the perfect hideout. The well-trodden paths suggest that although nothing should live here, a great many things do, and you wouldn’t want to meet any of them on a dark night – or, for that matter, on a clear day. This bracken-cloaked cave-riddled hillscape has become such a haven for rustlers, fraudsters, killers and other undesirables that it has been dubbed the Hideout Hills, and boy, there’s a lot hiding out here. Whether the caves are natural or the burrows of some longforgotten race of creatures, the end result is the same: myriad hidey-holes that ensure any pursuit turn into a long game of hideand-seek through some incredibly dangerous terrain. Rustlers are the most common gangs to hide out here; some are well known to the Rough Riders, and several have been in the Main Valley Jail on a couple of occasions. In fact the very existence of the Hideout Hills have increased the likelihood of criminals being deported off the planet, because once they’re out of prison they head straight for the hills to continue their life of crime. Rustlers tend to use the Hideout Hills as a base from which to strike at the incoming caravans of meat, typically knocking out or killing the drivers and taking the herd to New Savannah themselves. They rotate the salesmen in the gang so that no one gets too suspicious, because the law regards rustling as one of the most heinous crimes. The opportunities for people to have their own ranches are limitless on the vast surface of Cretasus, so the industrious residents of the Main Valley despise thieves all the more. No one will offer the bandits sanctuary at any price. You can travel six or seven miles into the hills before seeing the first signs of habitation. The most common sign is a rotting corpse, usually a fugitive killed during a gang war between two groups of rustlers after the same prey. As farmers hang crows on their fences to deter other birds, the rustlers mark out their territory with the rotting carcasses of previous trespassers. Decaying flesh attracts the attention of predators and scavengers alike, making any journey into the Hideout Hills dangerous even without the threat of bandits. A typical rustler gang consists of between ten and twenty men, and many of the caves are too small to house all of them in one place. As a result of this, the rustlers live spread out over several caves, some of which are over a mile apart. Gang members don’t live in any one place permanently; they tend to rotate through the different caves so that all know the nearest hiding place should an emergency arise. Most gangs also know of a “dummy” cave, actually a tunnel that opens somewhere higher in the hills and is used to shake off pursuers. Several lawmen have been embarrassed by these networks of passageways; some have even made the mistake of standing guard outside the tunnel mouth, reckoning that sooner or later, their quarry will have to

come out. These tunnels are the perfect place for an ambush. Not even the Rough Riders will venture too far into them, as it would mean almost certain death. An average cave can hold up to five rustlers; roll 1D4+1 to see how many are there if the characters are unlucky enough to walk in on them by accident. The rustlers always set alarm traps at the mouth of the cave, so by the time the characters get inside, their enemies will be expecting them. Depending upon how long it was since the last raid, rustler gangs can have quite a lot of money on their person. Those fresh from a job can have hundreds of dollars in their pockets, but if pickings have been lean, the characters will just find a few cents. Typical Rustler, Offworlder Twf1: CR 1; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 1d8+1; Init +0; Spd 20 ft.; AC 13 (+3 hide armor); Atk +1 melee (1d4+1/crit 19-20, knife), +1 melee (1d6+1, unarmed), or +0 ranged (1d8, musket); AL CE; SV Fort +1, Ref +2, Will +0; Str 14, Con 13, Dex 10, Int 10, Wis 11, Cha 9. Skills: Hide +1 (4), Wilderness Lore +2 (0). Feat: Weapon Proficiency – Ballistic. Possessions: Knife, musket with 2d6-3 bullets, hide armor, cash 85% chance of $1d4-2, 15% chance of $5d10.

The Great Library of Logos Logos is an ancient protoceratops city that was destroyed five hundred years ago. At its height, it was the center of protoceratops civilization on Cretasus. It housed the legendary great library, a central repository of knowledge so vast it was said that no protoceratops had ever seen all of it. Its endless tunnels were polished and ornate, decorated with columns and flourishes more beautiful than anyone now could imagine. The rest of the city, built with the library at its center, boasted exquisite architecture constructed at the zenith of protoceratopsian artistry. Or so the protoceratops say. Now, Logos is only a story. A combination of flood and warfare decimated the city. The remains were lost over time, and completely forgotten for many generations. But the arrival of man has renewed interest in Logos. Many believe the city holds secrets about the origin of the planet. According to legend, the great library of Logos contained all the knowledge known to the protoceratops. Their present reputation for erudition, they say, is but a pale reflection on what they once knew. If true, Logos could unlock both scientific and commercial secrets about the planet and its resources. And, of course, it could return a vital bit of history to the protoceratops.

History Logos sat atop one of many low plateaus that flanked the Danjow river south of where New Savannah now is, not far from where the river ended in the scorching Crystal Desert. The foundations of the city were carved directly into the plateau. Typical

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low-lying protoceratops buildings were built onto those foundations out of adobe. The entire plateau was honeycombed with the tunnels of the great library, whose main entrance was in the center of the city. The ascent to the plateau, a gradually rising path along one face, was lined with buildings sheltering tunnels that led into the rock, most of which connected with the library at some point. The soil at the base of the plateau was irrigated by the Danjow and extremely fertile. It provided the protoceratops with a steady supply of food. The Danjow was (and still is) an unpredictable river, flooding irregularly every few years, and in times of flood the protoceratops could easily retreat to the top of the plateau and wait for it to pass. The small, cramped tunnels of the library were designed with protoceratops in mind. Most were four to five feet high and about as wide. Every surface of every tunnel – floor, ceiling, and wall – was inscribed with the protoceratops language. All together, the collected knowledge carved into the library’s tunnels spanned more than ten thousand years of protoceratops history. The great library was an architectural marvel. Its tunnels were arranged according to a protoceratops classification system. In the forty miles of narrow tunnels on the first level was general introductory information about every subject in the system. Dozens of staircases led to the next level, which contained more detailed information, with each subject area on level two directly below the area devoted to the same subject on level one. Level three, in turn, contained more detail, and so on. As new knowledge was added, new levels were excavated to record it. By the time one reached the twentieth level, there were moisture droplets visible on the ceilings, as the tunnels extended even below the basin of the adjacent river. On the first few levels, all the horizontal tunnels were connected. But in order to maintain the vertical organizational structure, new levels were sometimes added to a single subject area without taking the time to build tunnels connecting all areas on that level. Thus, the layout of each level became more and more fragmented as one descended. If one decided to look up the details of moon moss after researching astronomy on the fortieth level, for example, one might have to climb to the thirty-sixth floor to find a passage to the moon moss section, from which to descend to that part of the fortieth level. The only map of the library was a guide to the cataloguing system, which explained where to find information on the first level. From there, one simply had to descend to learn more. Researchers rarely descended all the way to the bottom, and even the few abstruse protoceratops who went that deep never did so for more than one or two subjects. Thus, though it was said there were at least one hundred levels, no one had ever plumbed the true depth of more than a few subjects, much less all of them.

The Zuleps Not far from Logos, in the Crystal Desert, lived a large tribe

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of barbaric leptoceratops who called themselves the zuleps. Barbaric relatives of the protoceratops, the leptoceratops inhabited a miserable part of the world. They survived on tough ground vegetation and very little water. Even though they were herbivores, they had a savage warrior culture and practiced piercing, tattoos, and scarification as rites of passage. They could walk on four legs or two, and their front claws could be used to grasp items – including the simple spears, shields, and knives they designed. The protoceratops looked down upon the zuleps as uneducated savages. For thousands of years, the zuleps had roamed the desert, their tribes too small to merit attention. The protoceratops ignored them – which proved to be a terrible mistake. Two consecutive years of good rains ignited a population explosion among the zuleps, and an ambitious warlord managed to organize the scattered tribes. The zuleps had for many years coveted the lush vegetation at the base of Logos, and now they had the strength to do something about it. The erudite protoceratops of Logos, noncombative to begin with, were happy to share – but the warlike zuleps had a different attitude. To them, there was room for only one tribe on the plateau. The zuleps launched an invasion of Logos. They fought with barbaric fervor. The hardy protoceratops tried to defend themselves, but were routed. All the defenses of Logos had been designed to defend against large theropods; the pits, gates, and small-aperture tunnels were of little use against opponents the same size as the defenders. Logos was soon occupied by chanting zuleps. The protoceratops launched several attempts to retake Logos, but they failed. Unfortunately for the protoceratops, inscribed stone tunnels are not portable. When they lost the city, they lost their great library.

The Great Flood Once the zuleps began feeding in the fertile river valley of the Danjow, their numbers grew rapidly. Although they initially ignored Logos itself in favor of the riverside areas, they soon had to expand upward into the city. They dug trenches from the river to the library’s lowest depths, which filled high enough to serve as wells for the plateau. They had flooded the great library. Logos was once a cosmopolitan city, thousands of years in the making, where the knowledge of the ages was culled and recorded. Now, occupied by the zuleps, the library became a well, offices became stables, observatories became hatcheries, and studies became gladiatorial rings. Then the Danjow flooded. Flooding was not unusual, but this time, the waters rose for weeks. The several years of good rains seemed to have reached their peak. The zuleps in the river valley were forced onto the plateau for protection. The protoceratops, now living in dispersed camps upriver, were forced into the hills. And the waters continued to rise. It was a thousand-year flood. After yet another evening of torrential rain, the overcrowded zuleps awoke to find their plateau

city completely surrounded by water. They were stranded. Before food could begin to be an issue, a massive storm moved in. The skies darkened far across the horizon, and the deep thunder could be heard for hours before the clouds descended on what was left of Logos. The storm arrived just as the sun set, and the ensuing hours of darkness were terror for the zuleps. The wet air was thick with lightning, every bolt of which seemed to hit the plateau. The lightning ignited sporadic fires which expired quickly under the fierce rain, but nonetheless lit again with each new strike. The zuleps could feel the point-blank thunder in their hearts. Around midnight, an even deeper noise rumbled below the thunder. It grew steadily louder, terrifying the zuleps all the more, until it revealed itself to be a forty-foot-tall wall of water cascading down the Danjow. The wave crested the plateau and washed through Logos, sweeping the zuleps over the edge. But there was something worse: the library, which honeycombed the very structure of the plateau, had been connected to the Danjow. The great wave swept below the plateau as well as above it. Moments after the crest washed across Logos, the water pressure inside the tunnels reached its limits. Rapidly growing fissures radiated forth from the staircases leading down to the library. The ground exploded as geysers erupted from the library’s entrances. Weak earth between the surface and lower levels fractured as a liquid earthquake forced the water to the surface. This proved to be the Danjow’s final flood. In the morning, the golden sunlight rose over a wide, sedate river. Drowned zulep corpses floated placidly downstream. Water drained slowly from the tops of several low plateaus, all flattened by the flood. Now all signs of Logos rested on the river bottom. The entrances to the great library were but nondescript lumps of mud atop one the many low plateaus that flanked the Danjow.

The Protoceratops Amnesia The protoceratops were devastated by the loss of Logos. It was the symbol of their civilization, and not only had it been sacked by barbarians, but now it was completely destroyed by flood. Even worse was the loss of the great library. For a culture based on knowledge, losing ten millennia of accumulated scholarship was crippling. The protoceratops came to refer to this as their “amnesia” – the enormous vacuum where once there was a shared memory, a memory that had been committed to written words now long gone. They have since tried to alleviate this sense of amnesia by creating new libraries, and many protoceratops cities include small libraries. But the species still suffers from a collective sense of lost knowledge and desperately desires to recover the vast erudition lost with the flood of Logos. The arrival of humans renewed interest in recovering the lost library. Since then, protoceratops explorers have begun scouring the Danjow where legends say Logos once was. They have found many artifacts along the length of the Danjow, including shards of pottery, statuettes, inscribed tablets, and ancient beak sheaths (the

stone “dentures” that protoceratops wear when they use their beaks to write in stone). But they have not yet found Logos. The most significant discovery to date is a series of tunnels embedded in the bank of the Danjow, near where it evaporates in the Crystal Desert. The tunnels, about a mile long over the course of all of their twists and turns, are a section of the library which broke loose as a single chunk and was apparently swept downriver. The cave made by the tunnels was occupied by various riverdwellers until explorers cleared them out a few years ago. Most of the wall inscriptions were worn off by the time they were found, but enough was legible to learn the tunnels were once a section of the library devoted to astronomy. Since then, the tunnels have been extensively explored and converted into an explorer’s outpost. Now called Sesquiped, it is the last point before the desert where one can find some modicum of civilization. A few wizened old protoceratops astronomers and a wild one live there, studying the wall inscriptions, and you can sometimes find an explorer or two passing through.

Scenario Hooks The area around the Danjow River provides fertile ground for adventure. It has been five hundred years since the loss of Logos. The protoceratops have rebuilt their civilization. Now they want to recover their great library. Human explorers want to uncover the secrets of Cretasus and its inhabitants. Military researchers want to understand the world’s mineral and resource distribution. And adventurers want to find the forgotten city. The Danjow is a very long river, flanked by several levels of terraces and plateaus. No one knows which might house the great library. Over time, the lay of the land has surely changed, and the plateau housing the library may now be at ground level – or perhaps the river has migrated away from it.

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The search for the great library makes for an epic campaign. The library is a major site, and it should not be found quickly. Its discovery will be an important event. Knowledge of its location can be sold to many parties (both protoceratops and human) for a princely sum. When it is found, explorers of all kinds – from protoceratops to zuleps to humans – will swarm there, and the knowledge it contains may create just as many mysteries as it unlocks.

The Crystal Desert

Environmental Dangers The Crystal Desert is extremely hot. Beginning about half a mile from its edges, it is considered very hot for purposes of heat danger. The desert interior, centered on the crater and including the area within a two mile radius, is considered extreme heat. There are no strong winds or sand storms in the Crystal Desert. Except for the occasional hot breeze, the air is still.

Crystal Formations The Crystal Desert is an arid region south of the mountains around New Savannah. It is where Hepsediah Porter’s ship crashlanded. Somewhere in the sandy plains, his ship still lies, perhaps littered with the skeletons of his son Daniel and the rest of his party who decided to wait by the ship for help. (That is, if they really did die there...) The desert begins quite abruptly – at an obvious line of demarcation, the grass browns and dies, plants wither and cease to grow, and the ground’s moisture content drops to nearly zero. The dirt soon turns into sand, heated to scalding temperatures by the clear sky above. Soon you see almost no living things, only hot dunes and rising heat waves. The mighty Danjow River strangely dissipates and finally evaporates into nothing. This swath of barrenness is the Crystal Desert. The area is so named because of the crystal formations throughout the desert. Careful examination of the sand reveals that its grains are much larger than usual and much more obviously crystalline. There are rough, irregular crystal formations throughout the desert, often in the lee of a sand dune or growing from the side of a crumbling rock wall. Sometimes tall quartz-like crystals project straight up from the sand, with no other terrain feature in sight. At the very center of the Crystal Desert is a great crater. This crater has no name, as the zuleps and protoceratops are the only civilizations to have seen it, and both regard it with a sacred, unnamable awe. As one approaches the crater, the sandy ground becomes more rocky, and soon is a bed of thick, shattered crystals. The crater is more than 200 feet deep and almost two miles across. At the very bottom one can see sun-scorched rubble of some kind.

Residents Few creatures live in the Crystal Desert, but those that do are tough. The zuleps are the most common inhabitants, and there are a variety of hardy reptiles and insects. The plant life is mostly cactus, some short, tough trees, a variety of cane, and a few other hardy shrubs and roots. There are some medium-sized dinosaurs and a few larger ones (most from families that have lived in the desert long enough to adapt). You may occasionally encounter other animals around the fringes of the desert, but non-native creatures quickly feel the heat and retreat.

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Hundreds of varieties of crystals can be found in the desert. In fact, it almost seems as if no two crystals are the same. There are pink, red, green, blue, yellow, brown, clear, and smoky gray crystals. Some are spotted, striated, translucent, opaque, or transparent. Some produce musical notes when struck, and some hum when even the slightest breeze passes them by. Some are soft and salty-tasting, while others are hard and glassy. There is no rhyme or reason to the placement of the crystals. Some patches of the desert are dotted with a crystal growth nearly every hundred feet, including some massive structures that are several stories tall, while other areas are bare sand for miles. The process by which the crystals form is also mysterious, for their growth rates vary from a few millimeters to more than a foot each year. Without pattern, new formations will grow out of barren sand. But once a crystal point is removed from its formation, it ceases to grow. The crystals are valued by machinists for their use in optics, lasers, and other items of high technology. Many machinists searching for the perfect material have journeyed to the desert to test crystal properties. Here is a list of several of the more useful crystals. They can be located on successful Spot or Wilderness Lore checks. One check can be made for every day of travel through the desert. Glass Blood: This is the name given to a blood-red crystal that grows in broad, short slabs. It is extremely rare, and also quite difficult to find due to its low profile. One formation provides 3d6 uses. If ground into a fine powder, mixed with liquid, and ingested, glass blood fortifies the body. It provides a +1d4 resistance bonus to Fortitude saves. The bonus lasts for one day. There is a great danger in ingesting glass blood, however: you are basically drinking glass shards. If the crystal is not ground properly into an extremely fine powder, it does 1d4 points of damage and gives no bonus whatsoever. Locating glass blood requires a Wilderness Lore check (DC 16), or a Spot check (DC 19). Grinding it properly requires an Alchemy/Chemistry check (DC 15). Lantern Crystal: This wide gray crystal appears completely opaque. In reality, it is very sensitive to light, and while its surface is solid, its interior is pellucid and finely faceted with an intricate interior structure. If broken off in sections which are then carefully sawed flat at each end to expose the clear interior, it becomes an incredible light magnifier. A light shown in one end of the resulting crystal wand is multiplied tenfold by the brilliant facets

within and emerges from the other end that much brighter. Lantern crystal is relatively easy to find (about one formation every square mile), and each formation provides 5d12 crystal wands. Locating lantern crystal requires a Wilderness Lore check (DC 14), or a Spot check (DC 16). Song Crystal: Song crystal is a faint, translucent blue color. It grows in thin reed-like prisms an inch wide and several feet long. It can only be found in the southernmost reaches of the desert. It is extraordinarily sensitive to touch, and produces a faint whispering noise when wind passes over it. Merely rubbing the crystal with a finger produces a melodious sound. It is valued by musicians as well as by many dinosaurs who find the sounds pleasing. Song crystal can be located with Wilderness Lore check (DC 16), or a Spot check (DC 18).

Secrets of the Desert The Crystal Desert is a geographic anomaly for a number of reasons. Its sudden beginning and obvious perimeter are strange. The crystals are inexplicable. Its location in the midst of an otherwise moist region is unusual. And the fact that the Danjow dries up and disappears as it enters the desert is simply unnatural. The secret of the desert lies in the crater. Resting beneath the shards of glass and clumped sand is the battered shell of a crashed alien spaceship. Its crash landing and the resulting reactor meltdown long ago changed the desert’s very nature. The rubble at the crater bottom is the only clue to the hull buried beneath. It has been empty for at least 10,000 years, for even the protoceratops’ great library, which contained 10,000 years of accumulated knowledge, described it as an aging, empty wreck. Traces of the wrecked ship can be found throughout the desert. These otherwise unidentified metal scraps originated at the crash site long ago. They are twisted and sun-baked, with nothing so intact that its original purpose can be discerned. Many scraps show signs of twisting or shredding, as the leptoceratops use the scraps to build weapons and tools. Staying in the crater is quite perilous. Aside from being

extremely hot, it is also very difficult to navigate. The loose crystal shards are crumbly and practically impossible to get a good footing on. Moving down the crater and around its bottom counts as a bad terrain surface (1/2 movement); climbing back up the crater wall counts as a very bad surface (1/4 movement). Moreover, characters moving uphill must constantly try to keep their footing, so they count as being flat-footed at all times. The ship itself is completely buried and is hard to see from the crater rim (Spot check at DC 22 to recognize that something is buried beneath the sand). But if characters descend into the crater and search the area, they will find numerous hatches, pits, and pipes leading into the buried craft (Spot check at DC 12 to notice). The ship is a mile wide and many levels deep. Although it was damaged in the crash, many of its passageways, cargo holds, launch bays, and other structures are intact. The first level of the ship has been stripped bare, thanks to thousands of years of decay and occupation. But as one descends further and further into the wreck, one will find ancient technology, some of it still working. Rumors of the technological windfall at the crash site have sent several machinists adventuring, but none has yet found it. Navigating the desert, discovering the site, and exploring the crashed ship could be a substantial adventure for characters. The ship has been the home of many zulep tribes over the years; two tribes live in it now. They occupy the first buried level of the ship, with one tribe being a recent arrival which has begun contesting the other tribe’s occupation. One notable feature of the zulep occupiers is their strange anatomical characteristics. All young born within the ship have mutations. Some are slight, such as crooked beaks or missing or extra fingers, while others are extreme, such as third eyes, feathers, horned frills, or no tails. Such is the peril of living in to the crater. (We have intentionally left the interior layout of the ship unspecified for now. Develop it as you see appropriate, adapting the ship to fit your campaign. Or await future developments in other supplements!)

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The Tecumseh Trail The Tecumseh Trail is the passage to the west. Gouged out of the soil by the parallel wagon ruts of a steady stream of pioneers, it is now the most traveled frontier route on Cretasus. Thousands of frontiersmen have lived and died along its path, and the graves that mark its miles remind observers of the pioneers’ determination. The trail leads to several major areas of Cretasus. The verdant southwestern plains are the most common destination. The Bayou, a gray swamp that borders the plains to the north, is a less common goal. The Black Jungle and Lake Hope lie to the west of the plains, while the Hampshire Mountains stand to the south. The trail is named for Fort Tecumseh, its original destination. Fort Tecumseh is now the last bastion of civilization before the trail enters the back country. Beyond the fort, settlements are sparse. Garsville, along the banks of Lake Hope, is the only population center large enough to be called a town. Tiny Miller’s Crossroads lies where the trail bifurcates at the beginning of the plains and is an important place for western frontiersmen to sell their wares to eastern merchants. Gilmore Homestead and Vicente Pass both serve as backwoods gathering points, but they are hard to reach. Pioneers with Union sympathies occasionally head for Fort Lincoln, the Union’s largest outpost, which lies below the plains in the Hampshire Mountains.

The Trail There is no sign proclaiming the Tecumseh Trail. The trail is marked only by the evidence of those who came before. Wagon marks, litter, the corpses of livestock, graves, scenes of battle, discarded belongings, extinguished fires, and trampled camp sites lead the pioneers in the steps of those who preceded them. A journey along the Tecumseh Trail is filled with hardship. Pioneers must contend with hunger, disease, robbery, and dinosaurs. They must time their departure with the seasons, lest they freeze on the plains while still mid-journey. They must choose carefully what to bring, balancing their desires with the risk of overloading their wagons or overburdening their livestock. All pioneers must contend with faulty information, that perpetual gnawing doubt at the back of every traveler’s mind. Few are the guides who have taken the Tecumseh Trail both west and back east again. Travelers receive tips and directions from the settlers or occasional hunters they encounter, as well as the marks of those before them – but there is no way to confirm the route. Was the best river passage to the north or south? Does this cut-off pro-

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vide a shortcut, like that miner said? After seeing four graves in five miles, should we have taken the other fork back at the bend? These questions are important, because the trail diverges in many places. Just past Fort Tecumseh, a traveler can head northwest along the inland sea, or cut west through the jungle. Most choose the former, but the latter is said to shave six days off the trip. These choices confront pioneers every step of the way. Two forks in the trail are especially important. The first is at Miller’s Crossroads. There, the north fork runs below the Bayou until it eventually crosses the Fur River into the northwestern plains. Those plains are the least settled and, if rumors are to be believed, the most prosperous. But reaching them requires great stamina and a stomach for danger, as the Bayou is infested with velociraptors and spinosauruses. The southern route from Miller’s Crossroads is the route more often traveled. It cuts directly across the plains. Most pioneers leave the trail in the plains to make their home. The land is still so vast as to be largely unsettled, but by now a traveler can expect to find a homesteader within several days’ journey of almost any point along this stretch. The second important fork is where this southern trail veers toward the Black Jungle. Here, the south branch of the trail heads into the jungle. Loggers, hunters, trappers, and bachelor farmers often choose this route. The other fork veers west into Lake Hope and Garsville. This stretch goes through light forest and is dotted with larger farms more inviting to less adventurous travelers.

Fort Tecumseh Fort Tecumseh is the Confederacy’s western stronghold. It was founded by General Bowie in 2189, just four years after New Savannah’s founding, as an important link in the Confederacy’s plans for the planet. General Bowie is a likable man who is nonetheless universally feared by his men, for he has never been in a fight that didn’t end with his opponent’s death. His first encounter on Cretasus only reinforced this reputation. He was attending the first wedding in New Savannah. It was a grand affair to join the children of two of the new society’s most prominent families. After the ceremony, the reception was held on a gorgeous wooded bluff overlooking the sea. As the bride and groom cut the cake, three velociraptors burst out of the underbrush. The guests panicked, but not General Bowie. He grabbed the cake knife and immediately impaled one of the raptors, killing it with a single stroke. With a second stroke he sliced the forearm off the

next raptor. At that, they retreated, and General Bowie wiped off the knife and served the rest of the cake. Most of the guests, however, had lost their appetite. When someone was needed to establish a fort to the west, General Bowie was the natural choice. He had earlier begun organizing the Army of Solaris, a loose-knit force of independent units from the dozens (later hundreds) of planets that had representatives on Cretasus. The Army of Solaris was a true frontier army, composed of whoever was willing to fight, and General Bowie took it west to build a fort. Bowie established his fort much farther west than anyone imagined. He eventually built Fort Tecumseh nearly 400 miles from New Savannah. Although this decision was unpopular at the time (“Whom is General Bowie protecting, the humans or the dinosaurs?” asked many New Savannah citizens), General Bowie realized that traffic on the frontier would grow. His decision was proven correct within a decade, as the Tecumseh Trail was traveled more and more. Fort Tecumseh became the first hub of frontier civilization. Fort Tecumseh is now the home of the Army of Solaris and several regiments of Dino Warriors. Its total population, both military and civilian, is about 10,000 people, give or take however many pioneers are currently passing through. There are 2,000 soldiers. The soldiers and about 500 civilians live in the fort, and the rest of the population is scattered among the farms and ranches that line its perimeter.

Layout The fort is arranged in three concentric squares. The innermost square is defined by a high palisade of thick, pointed logs beside a dry moat sixty feet wide and twenty feet deep. This square is a quarter-mile wide and houses the officers’ barracks, ammunition depot, and artillery. It is the most secure area and the center of the “fighting fort” – in a war, the population would retreat to this area. The middle square is surrounded by a fence made up variously of split logs, mud bricks, and piled stones. This square is about a mile wide at most points. Its sprawling interior includes the soldiers’ barracks, stables, mess halls, parade grounds, guard houses, and storage facilities. The area outside the fence is a mix of military and civilian domain. The military farms, practice ranges, and livestock herds are there. Most residential and commercial institutions are there, too: a dozen saloons, three general stores, a grain dealer, a leather dealer, a mill, a buying agency, two blacksmiths, a bank, two commercial stables, six hotels, and a theater which everyone knows is actually a front for a brothel. Civilians realize the safety inherent in staying close to the fort, so the lands around it are clustered with ranches and farms. There are constant encampments of pioneers at the fort’s edges. There is no large river near the fort, but several small streams flow near or through town and into the great sea. Timber is an expensive commodity, as it must be floated or hauled into town.

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The soldiers have a lot of time on their hands and have gone to the trouble to bring in lumber for the fort, but most civilian houses are made of sod.

The Dino Warriors

Missions

The Dino Warriors are the elite dinosaur cavalry of the Confederate army. They are the Confederacy’s newest military branch and the most visible of its soldiers on Cretasus. Their mission is threefold: first, to protect Confederate settlements and trade routes; second, to maintain relations with the dinosaur tribes and nations; and third, to establish hatcheries and grow their ranks to the point where they can fight against the Union on other planets. The Confederacy knows the Union is testing its ironclads on Cretasus. Officially there are no hostilities. Unofficially, there are regular encounters and even casualties as the two sides dispute borders and attempt sabotage. The Confederacy realizes the power of a trained T-rex and ultimately wants to train cadres of troops to be deployed on other planets as defenses against Union armor. Even on Cretasus, the Dino Warriors sometimes plan “covert ops” where they attack Union tanks or experimental ironclads, completely unprovoked, as a test or for a specific military purpose. Since most of the damage to the Union in these raids is in the form of bite marks, it’s easy to deny responsibility and blame it on a wild dinosaur (at least in diplomatic and public relations channels – the military on both sides knows what’s going on). The Dino Warriors also serve as dinosaur diplomats for the Confederacy. Because of their affinity with animals, they are the best equipped to communicate with the intelligent dinosaurs. On a number of occasions, the Dino Warriors have transformed hostile velociraptor tribes into willing allies, through a combination of gifts, trade, diplomacy, and display of force. Most Dino Warrior encampments include a combination of domesticated dinosaurs and wild but friendly dinosaurs acting as liaisons, advisors, diplomats, or even hired mercenaries (a common role for silverclaw raptors). There is no shortage of farmhands, hunters, pioneers, and other back country dwellers eager to become Dino Warriors. But becoming a Dino Warrior is not easy. Only bronco riders of high level, as well as normal civilians and regular soldiers who show exceptional aptitude with dinosaur handling, are admitted to the first stage of training. This first stage consists of one year training and raising dinosaurs in the hatcheries. During this time, the Dino Warriors closely observe the candidate’s interaction with dinosaurs. Depending on performance and the recommendations of their superiors, a select few are invited to take the Dino Warriors’ initiation tests. Successfully passing the initiation tests requires more than mere dinosaur empathy. Physical and strategic ability are very important. The tests vary by time of year and what’s available, but some common tests include surviving five days in the wilderness equipped with only a hunting knife, riding a wild

The Fort monitors the Union presence at Fort Lincoln, defends New Savannah from the great herds on the southwestern plains, and maintains law and order on the Tecumseh Trail. Its influence on the trail extends east almost as far as New Savannah, but settlers heading west leave its protection very quickly. The fort has lately been involved in an increasingly hostile war with a nearby velociraptor nation. The Lettoko raptors occupy the hill country south of the fort. They oppose human encroachment, as the humans are gradually chasing away the Lettoko’s traditional prey. In the past year, the Lettoko have become more aggressive, ambushing pioneers along the trail and occasionally even making forays into the farms and ranches around the fort. The fort has responded with increased patrols and raids on the Lettoko. The Lettoko are made up of at least six tribes, all situated in fairly close proximity, and are very dangerous opponents. They exploit the hill terrain masterfully, launching ambushes and hit-and-run attacks from out of nowhere. So far, five soldiers have been lost for every raptor killed.

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The Military The life of a soldier in Fort Tecumseh is actually fairly exciting. While at post, he (or she) must endure the usual chores of post life: mess duty, guard duty, drills, building and repairing facilities, cleaning, and so on. But if you’re going to be at post, Fort Tecumseh is a great post to be at, as there is a large civilian population nearby and it’s always ready to serve the soldiers. While not at post, soldiers go on patrol. Patrol around Fort Tecumseh is usually dangerous, which makes it rather exciting. The missions vary, but there is always trouble brewing somewhere. There are marauding dinosaurs, trail bandits, and dishonest traders; green pioneers to tend to; and the gradually escalating war against the Lettoko raptors. Whether it’s the great herds of the plains straying too close for comfort, or a vicious ceratosaurus stalking the trail, the soldiers of Fort Tecumseh always have something to worry about.

Sites of Interest Josie’s Review is the most happening place in town. It is a nightclub/theater famous for its singing showgirls, who are known for hundreds of miles around – their songs are the only entertainment for many back country farmers! Travelers returning from the back country relax there for a few days before resuming their trips, as do pioneers passing in the other direction. Miners

and hunters stop by when they are in town, and there is always a contingent of soldiers on leave from the fort. Many of the local farmers and ranchers are regulars. Josie’s is the best place to get a drink and learn the news from hundreds of miles in any direction. The four largest saloons in town are The Spur, Bud’s Brews, The Red Raptor, and the Three Horn Saloon. The Spur is a dirty hole in the wall known for its fistfights and all-night poker games. Bud’s Brews is a large, relaxed saloon frequented by local farmers – the closest thing Fort Tecumseh has to a family bar (if there is such a thing). The Red Raptor is known for its mascot, a stuffed raptor with unusually red skin; the bar attracts a mix of outdoorsmen and soldiers. The Three Horn Saloon is home to the stuffed head of a colossal bull triceratops, one of the largest ever seen; the saloon is decorated with other natural artifacts, including a T-rex skull, a beer keg made of a pachycephalosaurus skull, and tables with clawed feet from all manner of creatures. The Three Horn Saloon is a great place to meet dino hunters, safari guides, and Dino Warriors. The buying agency occupies a three-story wood-plank building labeled “Buying Agency.” For many frontiersmen, it is the most important building in town. Each of its twelve offices houses a buyer representing one or more merchants back in New Savannah. The buyers procure raw materials, which they then ship back to their employers. The building’s occupants vary depending on who is in town at any given time, but there are usually two mineral buyers (dealing in everything from aluminum to gold), two timber buyers, one leather and skins agent, three produce and crops buyers, one dealer in live dinosaurs, two mundane livestock dealers, and one exotic goods buyer (specializing in taxidermied dinosaurs, exotic skins, dinosaur artifacts, and the like). The buyers deal with farmers, hunters, and miners who don’t want to trek all the way to New Savannah to sell their goods. The buyers employ their own agents in Miller’s Crossroads to deal with prospects even deeper in the back country, and those agents in turn have their own agents as far west as Garsville. The First Bank of Fort Tecumseh is the biggest bank west of New Savannah. It is one of the very few secure places on the frontier to convert notes to gold, borrow money, and deposit savings. The bank holds the combined wealth of most of the area’s big farmers and ranchers, as well as the savings of General Bowie himself. At any given time, the bank’s vault holds 2d4 x1,000 dollars in cash and valuable metals. The bank is always guarded by three private guards and 1d4+1 soldiers.

Prominent Locals General Bowie: General Bowie is the most important man in town. He still runs the fort and the Army of Solaris. He also acts as the de facto mayor of the town, since all the important town positions (sheriff, treasurer, etc.) are filled by military men he appoints. He is a short, stocky, balding man who always wears

triceratops for a full minute, rounding up an escaped herd, and fighting a velociraptor in one-on-one combat. Dino Warrior duties are generally more exciting than those in the regular army. If a particularly dangerous dinosaur has been ambushing merchants along a trade route from New Savannah, it’s usually the Dino Warriors who get called to fix the problem. This is why the trails between Fort Tecumseh, New Savannah, and Fort Apache are fairly safe. Of course, there are never enough Dino Warriors to chase every carnivore, but they certainly make the areas they patrol safer than anywhere else on the planet. While not on patrol, a Dino Warrior is tending to his animals. He feeds them, cleans them, and trains them. Breaking and training newly acquired wild dinosaurs is an ever-present chore. So is raising young into domesticity. Some high-level Dino Warriors are promoted out of active duty. They have diplomatic or political jobs that take an officer away from the front lines. These are the Dino Warriors you’ll find as prominent citizens in New Savannah, the forts, and a few other large towns. They are revered as heroes. After all, they represent pretty much everything the Confederacy adores – strength, heroism, military prowess, and rural lifestyle. These are the men and women who sit on boards, organize charity balls, court the mayor’s children, and invest on the side in expeditions to faraway jungles reputed to have valuable sugar cane brakes. A Typical Dino Warrior: Dino Warriors usually begin their careers as soldiers or bronco riders. They are recruited into the Dino Warriors when they demonstrate unusual aptitude with handling animals. For more information, see the Dino Warrior prestige class elsewhere in this volume. Here is the profile of a typical Dino Warrior private. Dino Warrior Private, Confederate Bro3/Dnw2: CR 5; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 3d8+2d10; Init +2 (+2 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; AC 17 (+2 Dex, +5 flak jacket); Atk +4 ranged (1d10/crit x3, automatic pistol), +4 ranged touch (special, lasso), +4 melee (2d8+1/crit x3, laser lance), or +4 melee (1d6+1, laser prod); AL LN; SV Fort +4, Ref +4, Will +1; Str 12, Con 11, Dex 13, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 12. Skills: Animal Empathy +11 (8), Balance +5 (6), Handle Animal +16/+14* (8), Intimidate +6 (5), Intuit Direction +6 (6), Knowledge (nature) +7 (6), Knowledge (strategy & tactics) +4 (3), Ride +11/+9* (8), Wilderness Lore +6 (6). Feats: Dinopathy, Dinosaur Presence, Mounted Combat, Mounted Archery, Point Blank Shot. * Higher bonus applies when working with mount in which he specializes. Possessions: Automatic pistol, lasso, laser lance, laser prod, flak jacket, handheld communicator, cash $2d6.

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grey fatigues. He speaks in brief sentences and is very bossy – he forces all situations into a commander-soldier relationship. General Bowie, Confederate Sol8: CR 8; Mediumsize Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 8d10+16; hp 57; Init +1 (+1 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; AC 11 (+1 Dex); Atk +9/+4 ranged (2d10, laser pistol) or +2 melee (1d4+2/crit 19-20, heirloom dagger); AL LN; SV Fort +8, Ref +3, Will +6; Str 13, Con 14, Dex 12, Int 16, Wis 15, Cha 16. Skills: Bluff +8 (5), Drive +8 (7), Intimidate +14 (11), Knowledge (strategy and tactics) +14 (11), Listen +9 (7), Operate Ironclad +4 (3), Pilot +10 (7), Sense Motive +7 (5), Use Technical Equipment +14 (11). Feats: Combat Placement, Combat Tactician, Endurance, Iron Will, Leadership, Sense of Vulnerability, Weapon Proficiency – High Tech (Laser Pistol). Possessions: General Bowie carries a holstered laser pistol and a +1 heirloom dagger. His assistants carry everything else (usually papers and documents). He does not normally wear armor, as he is rarely near combat. If forced into battle, however, he has first pick from the fort’s arsenal. Honest Eddy: Honest Eddy (otherwise known as Edward Anderson) owns Honest Eddy’s Stables. He is a relaxed, congenial back-slapper who is friends with everyone in town. He is well known for his total honesty, and equally well known for his amazing salesmanship. His ability to close a sale at a good price, even

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after disclosing an animal’s faults, is legendary. Rumor has it that he once sold a lame, half-blind triceratops to a professional bronco rider for the same price his competitor was selling perfectly healthy ones. And the buyer was completely satisfied with the deal! Honest Eddy, Confederate Exp1: CR 1; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 1d4-1; hp 2; Init +0 (+0 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +0 melee (1d3, unarmed); AL N; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Will +4; Str 10, Con 8, Dex 10, Int 12, Wis 18, Cha 18. Skills: Appraise +5 (4), Bluff +8 (4), Diplomacy +8 (4), Profession (Animal Husbandry, Sales) +5 (4), Ride +4 (4), Sense Motive +8 (4). Feats: Lucky Cuss. Possessions: Lucky rabbit’s foot, cash $3d10 “Buckskin” Steiner: “Buckskin” Steiner is one of the best known wilderness guides at Fort Tecumseh. He spends most of his time on solitary trips into the hills south of the fort, where he hunts everything except raptors, as he is one of the few humans to be on good terms with the Lettoko raptors. “Buckskin” makes a good living selling his kills, though he occasionally moonlights as a guide. He is a wide-shouldered, broad, hairy bear of a man who wears a fringed dino-leather buckskin jacket and rarely speaks. When he’s in town, he spends his time at the Red Raptor, although lately he has been spending very little time in town. “Buckskin” Steiner, Offworlder Male Wil2: CR 3; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 2d8+2; hp 15; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 13 (+3 studded leather armor); Atk +2 melee (1d4+1/crit 19-20, raptor claw dagger), or +1 ranged (1d12/crit x3, Winchester rifle); SA Dinosaur Ally, Motivating Cause; AL CN; SV Fort +4, Ref +0, Will +4; Str 12, Con 12, Dex 11, Int 10, Wis 13, Cha 10/8*. * Base of 10 reduced to 8 when around humans. Skills: Animal Empathy +5 (5), Animal Peer +3 (2), Climb +3 (3), Heal +3 (2), Intuit Direction +6 (5), Wilderness Lore +6 (5). Feats: Weapon Proficiency – Ballistic. Possessions: Raptor claw dagger, Winchester rifle with 40 bullets, studded leather armor, cash $1d6. SA – Dinosaur Ally (Ex): “Buckskin” is allied with the Lettoko raptors. SA – Motivating Cause (Ex): “Buckskin” is spending so much time in the woods that he is starting to see the world from the eyes of the Lettoko raptors. He opposes human incursion into their territory, and receives a +1 bonus against enemies of the Lettoko.

Scenario Hooks Most of the city’s excitement comes from its status as the frontier’s biggest establishment and the center of law and order for many miles. Almost every dishonest man on the frontier has a reason to hate General Bowie or his men. There is always lots of excitement on the trail, whether it’s due to dinosaurs, stranded pioneers, or bandits. Missions against the Lettoko feed a constant

opportunity for adventure, as do the many trade links between the buying agency and its suppliers. Here are some rumors that characters might hear while in Fort Tecumseh. Remember, not all of these have to be true! You decide which are false leads and which point to real adventure. 1. General Bowie’s son went on patrol and still isn’t back. 2. A trail bandit recently released from the Fort Tecumseh prison is rounding up a new gang. 3. An ornery old miner must have found a deep vein of gold, because he comes in from the south hills with at least ten pounds of gold every few weeks. 4. A wealthy pioneer is offering top dollar to soldiers who desert and act as his trail guards, but General Bowie says he’ll hang any man that deserts. 5. Two Lettoko tribal chieftains are feuding. General Bowie needs someone to encourage their feud to help divide the Lettoko nation. 6. Union agents are buying up all the good mounts in an effort to slow down western migration. 7. Old “Smiley” Smith, a rancher on the edge of town, is organizing a posse to go get that ceratosaurus that keeps eating his broncos. 8. A protoceratops wanderer is offering a fortune to anyone who will escort him safely to the heart of Lettoko territory.

Long Ridge Hatchery About ten miles south of Fort Tecumseh is Long Ridge Hatchery, which the locals refer to as simply the hatchery. The hatchery is where the Dino Warriors train wild mounts, raise baby dinosaurs into domesticity, and refine the relatively new combat strategies for dinosaur warfare. It is the base of operations for about 60 Dino Warriors and their mounts, as well as support staff of double that number. The Dino Warriors’ most intelligent and most loyal mounts are allowed to roam free. The rest live in ten large barns arranged in an open rectangle. At the center of rectangle lie three wide rings in a row, like the rings of a circus. A spiked palisade three logs thick, anchored to the ground with heavy chains, surrounds each ring. Ten feet inside each palisade are a number of large iron cages. These are where wild-caught dinosaurs are kept until they are domesticated. A gate leading into what looks like a mound of earth is the entrance to the hatchery proper, which is built into a hill. Within the hill is a maze of tunnels that connect dozens of warm, cozy rooms in which dinosaur eggs are cared for. The earth mound helps insulate the eggs, some of which must be kept warm to hatch properly. Newborn dinosaurs are kept in the hatchery until they reach a certain size, whereupon they are removed to the barns. The hatchery is ostensibly a secret, although everyone at Fort Tecumseh knows about it. The important part is that the Union not learn about it. The Union is well aware of the Dino Warriors stationed there, but has no direct knowledge of the hatchery. The

hatchery’s underground architecture makes its full extent difficult to ascertain, an intentional reason for its construction thus. The hatchery is always buying dinosaur eggs, as well as young, untrained dinosaurs. Several grizzled ex-hunters now make a living snatching dino eggs to sell to the Dino Warriors. The hatchery also offers a bounty for the heads of oviraptors, since oviraptors directly compete with the hatchery’s needs and several have even been caught skulking around the hatchery entrance!

Fort Lincoln Fort Lincoln is the Union’s largest settlement on New Savannah. It is an official outpost of the Federal Union of Planets and is considered by the Union to be the formal base for its colonists on Cretasus. But because the Union arrived on Cretasus after Confederate sympathies had already been well established, many of its colonization attempts around New Savannah and the southwestern plains have ended with its government-sponsored pioneers being run out of town. Now Fort Lincoln serves as a refuge for Union colonists and a base from which to launch colonization efforts at the northwestern plains, an unsettled region where even the Confederacy lacks a toehold.

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Layout Federal Marshals The Federal Police Agency is one of the least centralized organizations in the Union. Its mission is to police Union colonies in the outer reaches, where formal governments are rare and “the law” is whoever has the biggest stick. The Agency consists of several dozen federal marshals, each of whom patrols one or more solar systems. Reporting to the marshals are federal sheriffs, who, with the aid of three or four deputies, patrol one or more planets. Due to their distant assignments, the marshals often go for months or sometimes years without contact with their superiors, making them nearly autonomous. Typically, there is a sheriff for every 100,000 people and a marshal for every 1,000,000 people. These populations are even more impressive when you consider that the usual Union colony consists of only a few thousand miners and their families. Marshals and sheriffs maintain law and order over vast distances, acting as the law for dozens or even hundreds of planets. To cope with this nearly impossible task, they are well equipped, well financed, and extremely well trained. Unlike the sheriffs of the old west, they are not just some tough local with a badge. Instead, they are always top-notch veterans of the army, navy, or civilian police forces who have decided to pursue a solitary life in the outer territories. Only the most experienced, highly decorated individuals are accepted into the Federal Police Agency. There they undergo a rigorous basic training program where at least 70% of them wash out. The survivors are trained in the special tactics often required of federal marshals. Then they are sent into the field to act as sheriffs deputies. The deputies are given nearly impossible tasks (stop planet-wide rioting, for example) and basically treated like cannon fodder. If an applicant survives his three-year deputy period (only 25% do), he is then eligible to become a sheriff – when and if a position becomes open. From there, he may someday be promoted to a marshal. The tactics required of marshals and sheriffs are very different from those of the regular military and police. Marshals and sheriffs spend much of their time acting as organizers, motivators, and disciplinarians. They must understand bureaucracy and politics as well as combat. They must organize police agencies on each of the colonies, see that they are competent and well supplied, support them in a crisis, and, often as not, keep them in check if they become corrupt or too authoritarian. The marshals’ worst fear is open conflict, for their available manpower is never sufficient to put down a full-fledged rebellion. It is by their ability to lead

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Fort Lincoln is situated at the top of a hill in the foothills of the Hampshire Mountains. The inner garrison (the fort proper) is at the crest of the hill. The rest of the fort stretches down the hill away from the garrison. Most of the northern face of the hill is covered in residences and temporary housing for colonists, while the other faces have military buildings. At the base of the south slope is a landing pad where the occasional spaceship brings supplies and fresh colonists. Structurally, Fort Lincoln is far superior to any Confederate fort on Cretasus. It is constructed of imported high-grade steel, prefabricated to fit a standard design template that the Union employs on all of its frontier planets. The fort proper is a quarter mile square, built of double walls of twenty-foot-tall steel plates. The prefab walls include watch towers in each corner, two gates, and three levels of ramparts with hundreds of firing ports. Local improvements help improve the standard design: the walls are reinforced by an inner stone wall quarried from local rock and an outer dry moat.

Population The fort’s population is fluid. Only 2,000 soldiers are stationed there, although they are supported by more heavy armor and artillery than the entire Confederate force on all of Cretasus. About 4,000 civilians live around the fort permanently, some of them relatives of the soldiers. The rest of the population – from zero to as many as 2,000 additional civilians – consists of colonists either leaving for or returning from the back country. Union freighters deliver a steady stream of colonists, who spend their first few weeks at Fort Lincoln before setting out. Because the colonists are government-sponsored, they are well equipped from the beginning. Unlike Confederate pioneers, Union colonists often have motorized vehicles to carry them across the plains. They have ample provisions and new weapons. And Fort Lincoln sends small detachments of soldiers to accompany them on the first stretch of the journey. When starting out, at least, Union colonists have a significant lead over the Confederates. But the lead is rapidly narrowed by the Union colonists’ inexperience with rural living. Most come from the sprawling Union super-cities and have no idea how to farm, ranch, fish, or hunt. That’s why Fort Lincoln is often filled with colonists returning from the back country – their farms failed or their livestock died, and now they need more training or more supplies. Because of this, Union colonists make up a disproportionate number of the loggers and miners on Cretasus, as both those vocations are easy to learn and they produce profits fast.

Missions The fort has three missions: establish a base of operations for Union military and civilian forces on Cretasus; protect the ironclad research facilities nearby; and impede Confederate settlement of the planet. The fort’s commander, Colonel Brisbane, has spent most of his energy on the first two missions since discovering just how much of a head start the Confederacy has.

Visiting Fort Lincoln is a surprisingly friendly place. Despite hostilities with the Confederacy, the Union commanders at Fort Lincoln realize the need for good public relations. After all, visitors are a good source of intelligence and poor relations with outsiders will only hurt the Union’s own colonists. The fort welcomes visitors in a variety of ways. A lodge at the base of the hill provides cheap housing for passing hunters. One of town’s saloons is intentionally off limits to Union soldiers, so that visitors from rebel lands will feel comfortable there. And a trading post at the edge of the fort offers Union manufactured goods for sale at prices cheaper than anywhere else on Cretasus. Despite Fort Lincoln’s hospitality, it has very few visitors from the east. It is still a Union fort. Confederate loyalists wouldn’t be caught dead there. Most of its visitors are from the plains and frontiers to the west, where loyalties are less stringent and the shared labors of frontier living form a stronger bond than loyalties imported from other worlds. Because of this contact, many products end up for sale in New Savannah without anyone realizing they are newly manufactured Union goods. The circuitous route begins at Fort Lincoln, where hunters or traders from the west buy weapons or technology off of Union colonists. They in turn sell the goods at Garsville or Miller’s Crossroads, by which route they are sold into Fort Tecumseh. There, buying agents send them on to New Savannah for sale in the big city. There are so many links in the chain that Fort Lincoln’s largest customer base doesn’t even know they are Union customers.

Sites of Interest Fort Lincoln has four saloons. The customer bases for The Limping Lizard, The Evening Drill, and The Off Duty are 90% soldiers, which discourages visitors and even most local civilians from stopping by. The fourth, called The Fat Chew Tavern, is offlimits to soldiers. It is where you will find the civilians, colonists, and passers-through “chewing the fat.” The Post, a store at the very edge of town, is a great source of supplies for anyone setting out into the frontier. Unlike most Confederate stores, it is well equipped with high-tech items, and on occasion will even have motorized vehicles for sale. The Hampshire mines are located a few miles south of Fort

and motivate civilians that they maintain order. When not dealing with local police forces, the marshals and sheriffs hunt down criminals and bandits, fend off warp pirates, ferret out Confederate sympathizers, and generally solve problems. Marshals act as roving judges: they settle disputes, mete out punishments, and confine criminals. For Union colonists in the outer reaches, the marshals are the law.

Ironclads Ironclads are the weapon that may tip the galaxy’s balance of power. Developed with alien assistance, they are the ultimate evolution of powered armor. Each of these one-man battle suits can match a Confederate tank gun-for-gun, yet has the mobility of an infantryman. Moreover, they are better armed and armored than anything else in the Confederate or Union military. About the only thing that can go head-to-head with a fully-armed ironclad is an enraged tyrannosaurus rex — and, in the eyes of many militaristic Union pilots, it is only the Confederacy’s retreat to Cretasus that has staved off their final victory. The basic ironclad hull is of Union design, but the propulsion, augmentation, gyroscope, and adaptive intelligence systems require the services of certain alien races to build and repair. This has produced a curious blend of enigmatic alien technology and cumbersome Union industrial machinery. Advanced artificial intelligence targeting systems are sometimes used on ancient cannons. The ironclad’s high-tech innards are protected by thick armored plates welded onto the superstructure. The Union’s alien vendors keep it supplied with powerful laser and plasma weapons, which are clumsily riveted and soldered onto the hull by the Union. Ironclads are generally divided into three classes. The Monitor class ironclads are the lightest, usually no more than twelve feet tall and used mostly for scouting and reconnaissance. The Ulysses class ironclads are of medium weight and height. The Sherman class ironclads are the heaviest: blundering mammoths up to twenty feet tall and bristling with weapons. Within these classes, each ironclad is unique. They are custom modified by their pilots, who are constantly tinkering with them. Some ironclads are hermetically sealed; others are open. Most opt for firepower, but some lighter models are built for speed. Almost all have been souped up in one way or another. In game terms, ironclads are treated as creature templates applied to their pilots. See the ironclad entry in chapter 5 for full details. Getting experience as an ironclad pilot requires joining the Union military. Barring that, no character will ever pilot one unless he steals it or captures it in battle – which is enough to provoke a major Union offensive aimed at getting it back!

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Lincoln. They are an example of Union industrialism at its best – and worst. While most Confederate mines use human and animal labor to mine the earth stone by stone, the Hampshire Mines use heavy equipment to raze the ground, dig deep pits, and send up massive amounts of earth which are sifted above ground. The miners spend less time swinging picks and more time operating machinery. Unfortunately, this process utterly destroys the natural landscape, and the mine operator, Ford Windham, is merciless. The wasted terrain at the Hampshire mines has incited the wrath of every intelligent dinosaur in the land, as well as numerous wild ones, and the mines must deal with regular attempts at sabotage by human and dinosaur alike. The officers’ club, situated in an ornate three-story stone building just outside the fort proper, is accessible only to Union officers and very prominent citizens. The interior is decorated with dark wood paneling, deep leather couches, stuffed dinosaur heads, blackjack tables, and cigar lounges. Why does an outer reaches backwater like Cretasus have such a fancy officers’ club? Because that’s not really what it is. The third floor of the building is off limits to just about everybody. If you ask around, you’ll find that most of the club’s members don’t even know who is allowed up there. In fact, the third floor is the secret meeting place for the Cretasus contingent of the Cabal (see the Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook, page 89). Only three locals – Colonel Brisbane, Marshal McCauley, and Ford Windham – have keys to the third floor. Their knowledge of the Cabal outside of Cretasus is murky, as their superiors like to keep things discreet. What they do know is that they will be well rewarded if they can carve out a foothold in the dinosaur trade and eventually control it. To this end, they covertly employ or control (through a variety of middlemen) dinosaur traders and ranchers throughout the planet, and are always looking to increase their influence. As they are already unscrupulous men, they also engage in a number of personal projects that directly profit themselves: luring failed colonists to distant areas of the hills to trap them in oppressive mining operations, illegally selling militaryissue weapons to bandits that prey on the Tecumseh Trail, and so on. The ironclad research facility lies a few miles south of the fort. It is a single large building that looks like an airplane hangar. It houses several fully operational ironclad suits, as well as high tech facilities for further developing the technologies that let ironclads walk, run, and jump. The researchers live in its spartan living quarters, along with a small military detachment that is always on hand. The Union’s ironclad designs are nearing completion, and their most important task is now testing the suits and training the pilots – a task for which Cretasus is ideal.

Prominent Locals Marshal McCauley: The best known Union official on Cretasus is Marshal McCauley, the Federal Marshal for the area of space that includes Cretasus. Cretasus has become so important to

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the local balance of power that McCauley spends much of his time on the planet overseeing Sheriff Wilder, the federal sheriff assigned to Cretasus. Marshal McCauley travels a regular circuit through the Union colonies. He has no love for Confederate sympathizers, but recognizes that the political balance on Cretasus makes it impossible for him to punish them – for now. Nonetheless, most Confederate settlers head the other way when they see him coming. Everyone else does, too. If anyone ever personified the law, it is Marshal McCauley. Tall and imposing, he never smiles. He always wears his uniform and badge, and is never without weapons. He is authoritative, commanding, and judgmental. If you break his laws, he makes you pay on the spot. Yet he long ago lost the idealism that led him here in the first place, and he has been slowly twisting the law to his benefit ever since. Federal Marshal McCauley, Union Sol6/Fdm7: CR 11; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 13d10; hp 105; Init +2 (+2 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; AC 21 physical, 19 energy (+2 Dex, +7 reactive armor, +2/+0 kinetic field); Atk +14/+9/+4 ranged (3d6/crit 19-20/x3, ROGUE rifle), +14/+9/+4 ranged (1d10/crit x3, automatic pistol), or +7/+2 melee (2d6/crit x3, screamer knife); SA Raise Posse, Issue Law (see Federal Marshal description); AL LE; SV Fort +10, Ref +6, Will +7; Str 12, Con 11, Dex 15, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 22/20*. * Base of 18 modified by +4 when dealing with Union sympathizers or +2 when dealing with anyone else familiar with federal marshals. All Cha-related skill bonuses are listed below in this Union/others format. Skills: Bluff +19/+18 (10), Diplomacy +17/+16 (11), Drive +8 (6), Gather Information +10/+9 (4), Intimidate +15 (11), Knowledge (strategy and tactics) +8 (7), Listen +6 (6), Pilot +7 (6), Search +11 (10), Sense Motive +10 (10), Spot +10 (10), Use Technical Equipment +9 (7). Feats: Combat Tactician, Leadership, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Quick Draw, Rapid Shot, Sense of Vulnerability. Possessions: ROGUE rifle with laser sight, automatic pistol, screamer knife, reactive armor, kinetic field, binoculars, flashlight, compass, scanner, cash $10d10.

Scenario Hooks Most of Fort Lincoln’s rumors are spread by the soldiers, who aren’t always entirely enthusiastic about being there. While they are loyal to the Union, they can’t help but notice that many of the colonists are becoming landowners while they toil away on guard duty. Desertion and low morale are a problem at the fort, and a lot of the rumors center on the fables of disenchanted soldiers. Here are some of the rumors characters may hear. Again, you decide whether they are true or not. 1. If you get guard duty at the mines, it’s easy to ride out one night with the trail bandits and never come back. 2. A wild one over the mountain is brokering deals between an intelligent allosaurus and some of the soldiers. The allosaurus

will “eat” you if you leave a fresh bronco carcass for him. He doesn’t really eat you, of course; he shows up at the tight time, picks you up in his mouth like a cat carries its kittens, and carries you off. Since everybody thinks you’re dead then you’re free to go! 3. If you send Colonel Brisbane $500 in gold, he’ll make sure the guard duty is light when the next shipment of ROGUE rifles comes in. 4. Ford Windham is using ornitholestes as forced labor in the mines. 5. The ironclads are just a cover-up. The real reason we’re here is to build cyborg dinosaurs. 6. I heard that Geof Wilkins would pay an arm and a leg for someone to “kidnap” him while he’s on patrol.

Old Ned the Allosaur Notorious among locals for his grumpiness and reclusiveness, Old Ned is an escapee from an early top-secret Union cyborg program. He was given low-light vision and a radio implant, and scientists were planning to give him some drug glands which would have responded to the radio signals and given him bursts of super-allosaur strength. However, Ned managed to figure out how to manipulate his radio, cracking into secure Union codes and learning their plans: to drug him into a mindless automaton and turn him loose in Confederate territory. He didn’t fancy that, so he escaped, using his radio to eavesdrop on Union communications and dodge patrols. He managed to reach an old cave complex and hide out, and he’s evaded the Union for eight years now. He loathes the Union and uses his knowledge of Union communications to snoop on any Union expeditions within his domain, doing his best to foil their plans. He doesn’t trust the Confederacy, either, but he occasionally alerts them to Union plots. So far they have yet to betray him, and he’s grudgingly coming to think that humans might not be all bad. Ned’s implants have gone bad on him over the years. One of his eyes, which originally gave him the low-light vision, is now useless, and although he still picks up radio signals in his left ear, the ear has gone deaf. He refuses to seek medical attention, letting the wounds fester. He’s having trouble hunting these days, and eventually he’ll either starve or just launch a suicide attack on the Union. Old Ned the Allosaur: CR 8; Gargantuan Animal (40 ft. with tail); HD 21d12+126; hp 279; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 13 (-6 size, +9 natural); Atk +21 melee (3d8+19, bite), +6 melee (1d4, 2 claws); Face/Reach 20 ft. by 20 ft./20 ft; SA Eavesdrop; AL CG; SV Fort +19, Ref +17, Will +14; Str 33, Con 22, Dex 10, Int 10, Wis 18, Cha 14. Skills: Listen +12 (8), Spot +12 (8), Wilderness Lore +5 (1), Knowledge (Union) +4 (4), Ciphers (radio codes) +4 (4), Hide +4 (20). Feats: Improved Grab, Scent. SA – Eavesdrop: Old Ned can eavesdrop on Union radio transmissions with a successful Ciphers skill check vs. the Ciphers skill of the transmitter.

The Southwestern Plains The gently rolling southwestern plains are the most settled of Cretasus’ frontier regions. They are only a few months away from New Savannah along the well-traveled Tecumseh Trail. The soil is hard and wild, but with some work it can be turned into good cropland. The generally flat landscape makes herds easy to control and farms easy to defend. But given the rapid influx of settlers, it won’t be too long before every pioneer will have a neighbor within 70 miles – the boundary which Daniel Boone long ago declared too close for comfort! The population of the southwestern plains now averages one person every twenty square miles. Most settlements consist of single families with a small farm. A few larger family groups operate ranches or larger farms. There are also groups of single men who have banded together to manage a herd of dinosaurs. They often wander with their herd, driving it into civilized territory once a year to sell livestock and buy supplies. The plains are where one can find the most spectacular panoramas of Cretasus’ dinosaurs. Herd after herd of triceratops and brachiosaurus stride across the grasslands, their imposing profiles silhouetted on the horizon from miles away. Smaller groups of stegosaurus and ankylosaurus surround them, with ceratosaurus and albertosaurus always lurking at the herds’ edges. A flattened farm, the house ground to dust and the crops eaten to the roots, is a common warning to those who would settle the plains. These are the farmers who couldn’t keep away the herds. The sight is terrifying and prompts many pioneers to carefully choose where they establish themselves. The smart ones read the terrain and settle away from the main migration routes. Others use ditches, barricades and fire to keep the dinosaurs away. Some are forced to shoot dinosaurs that wander too close, which is of mixed effectiveness – you can scare away a few herbivores with wellplaced shots, but if one bronco is within shooting range, there are usually more than you can possibly kill following close behind. The safest settlements are those composed of several families, who have the manpower and firepower to discourage most herbivores from getting too close. The intelligent carnivores, however, are another story entirely!

Towns In the past decade, the population in the southwestern plains has grown enough to support two small freetowns. One is Garsville, settled between the prosperous fishing areas along Lake Hope and the timber-rich forests surrounding it. Garsville is home to a lumber mill, forty wooden plank homes, two hundred sod or log homes, a general store, and a tannery, all enclosed in a spiked palisade built by the pioneers. The other town is Miller’s Crossroads, located at the fork in the Tecumseh Trail. Miller’s Crossroads is a town of transients. At any given time, at least 80% of the people in town will only be

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Life on the Frontier The Importance of Neighbors While many city-dwellers learn to hate their neighbors for their noise or unpleasant habits, most frontier families deeply appreciate of their neighbors. In fact, out on the frontier, the neighbor is the most important social relationship after family. People are scarce, so settlers depend on each other heavily. Many fundamental frontier tasks cannot be completed by a single family. Pioneers are quick to ask for help when they need it and their neighbors for miles around are quick to respond, out of good nature, a sense of responsibility, and the knowledge that someday the help will be reciprocated. Cabin-raisings and barnraisings are the most common cause for neighbors to get together, though sickness, birth, and drought are also good reasons.

The Association for Mutual Protection The Association for Mutual Protection is a group of ranchers and farmers near Garsville who have joined together for protection from the dinosaurs nearby. The forests are still very dangerous, but members of the Association receive some protection. Anyone can join the Association by paying regular dues. The dues pay for weapons and supplies but are primarily used as insurance for members whom the Association fails to protect. The dues are waived if the member volunteers to fight for the Association when needed. The Association mobilizes whenever there is a common threat. Whether it’s a carnivore or a stampeding herd, the Association is there. Runners race through the night alerting members, who gather at an appointed spot. When enough members have shown up, they go out to face the threat. Since the Association can mobilize nearly 30 members in a half hour, and almost 100 given several hours’ notice, it is usually successful at frightening off predators, steering stampeding herds away, protecting property from bandits, and dissuading herbivores from eating fresh crops. The Association has drawn criticism for one of its lesserknown policies: it only protects its members, even when a threat is common to the community at large. Its critics call it an extortionist protection racket. In a decision that still provokes storms of protest, the Association recently used fires to steer a stampeding herd clear of a member’s ranch – right into the ranch of a neighbor who was not a member of the Association! Members defend this behavior by pointing out that only enough resources exist to protect members, and that non-members choose to exclude themselves. Even if the motives of the Association are not purely philanthropic, it has done so well at fending off trouble that it has inspired similar organizations elsewhere.

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stopping over as they pass along the trail. That’s fine by Jed Miller, founder and self-appointed mayor of the town, for that’s how he has become rich: by catering to the needs of the pioneers. He long ago realized that traffic on the trail would steadily grow, and Miller’s Crossroads has evolved from his two-room storefront home to eight buildings where passersby can trade skins, leather, teeth and claws, gems, gold, silver, other ores, hard goods, livestock, timber, dried fish, salted meat, weapons, cotton, rice, wheat, sugar, tobacco, coffee, and just about anything else a pioneer might want to buy or sell. Miller’s Crossroads is now the primary link between the distant frontier and Fort Tecumseh. Pioneers on their way west pick up supplies, and settled frontiersmen bring their crops and livestock to sell. All the major New Savannah merchants have agents in Miller’s Crossroads, most via their intermediaries in Fort Tecumseh. Included among them is Jed Miller himself, who represents New Savannah’s largest dealers in leather, timber, and dinosaur ivory. Guides who accompany settlers from New Savannah to the southwestern plains stop by Miller’s Crossroads on their return trip, where they can hire on to transport goods back to the spaceport of New Savannah. Westward traffic on the Tecumseh Trail outnumbers eastward traffic by more than fifty to one – which tells Jed Miller half his business still stands to grow by at least fifty times! Gilmore Homestead is a hamlet in the center of the southwestern plains that is the closest thing to civilization for many miles around. The Homestead is occupied by the extensive Gilmore family, which comprises sixteen adults and almost as many children. Although essentially a family compound, the Homestead has become a social and commercial hub of sorts. Once a month, the Gilmores host a dance and market which attracts pioneers for nearly a hundred miles in every direction. Vicente Pass is a combative settlement on the south side of a narrow stretch of the Fur River. Its population, a dozen grizzled hunters, survives by hunting, fishing, and limited farming. To all appearances, they picked a terrible place to settle: the dangerous Bayou is not far to the east, the Fur River itself is home to all sorts of dangers (both mammalian and saurian), and the fertile northwestern plains (a much safer place to be) are not far away. However, the residents of Vicente Pass are firm believers in an incipient Cretasus philosophy similar to Manifest Destiny of old Earth, and they feel a self-imposed responsibility to help pioneers reach the still-unspoiled northwestern plains. Passersby can always expect assistance from the residents of Vicente Pass – as long as it lasts, that is. The raptors of the Bayou do not look kindly on their mission...

The Black Jungle There are extensive jungles in the southwest of the Main Valley, but one region stands out. The Black Jungle is the tangled jungle south of Lake Hope and Garsville. Its canopy stands more than two hundred feet high. Somehow the trees reached such an

enormous height that even the largest sauropods cannot reach their top-most limbs. As a result, the ground of the Black Jungle is covered by perpetual shadow. Most of the jungles of Cretasus hum with life, but the Black Jungle is different. Very little vegetation grows in its darkened glens. Herbivores shun its barren floor. Compared to the rest of the planet, the Black Jungle is preternaturally silent. There are three logging camps set up along the northern fringes of the Black Jungle. Each is home to around two dozen loggers, though the populations are constantly coming and going. They are unshaven, smelly, hard-working men who labor for months without seeing a bath or a woman. When they have a good stock of lumber, they haul it to Garsville, where it is sold for local use or exported to homesteaders on the plains. The loggers are loath to travel too far into the jungle, however. No dinosaur native will voluntarily enter the area; persuading brachiosaurs to haul felled trees out of the Black Jungle is nearly impossible. The loggers tell stories of strange lights and eerie noises coming from the Jungle; the one expedition sent in to explore never came back. No one knows what’s going on, and no one wants to venture in to find out.

The Bayou The Bayou is the name given to the enormous swamp that runs alongside the southern edge of the Fur River. Only the settlers know it as the Bayou, of course; the many dinosaur species have their own names for this area. Iguanodontids, hadrosaurs, compsognathus, pelycosaurs, and their cousins are common in the Bayou, as are several other marsh dwellers and their predators. There are millions of primitive amphibians, and no shortage of monstrous fish lurking in the murky water. The Bayou blocks access to the Fur River for several hundred miles, which prevents direct passage from the southwest plains to the northwest plains. Settlers must travel west until the swamp ends, at which point they can attempt a crossing of the Fur River. After crossing, they must then loop back eastward along the swamp’s northern edge until they reach the plains. A direct route through the swamp would shave at least a month off travel time to the northwest plains. Unfortunately, no human has found a way to cross the swamp. For hundreds of miles, it is nothing but muck, water, muddy marsh, and malformed water-dwelling trees, punctuated by the occasional mound of swamp grass. Most of the swamp is no deeper than six feet, but changes in depth are sudden and erratic. There are some islands, but they are unstable and drift over time. Even a large dinosaur passing through is enough to transform the soft, wet landscape. Areas that aren’t solid water are instead solid mud, and can’t be crossed by wagons or other human vehicles. The terrain is not the only hazard, however. The Bayou’s inhabitants aren’t exactly friendly. One group of settlers tried traversing the swamp by harnessing river skiffs to iguanodons, which are native to the terrain. But they never emerged from the

other side of the swamp. Boat travel is a possibility, but there are very few reliable channels. Those that do exist wind relentlessly, such that it may take as many as fifty miles of coiling river to advance ten straight land miles. And there are no humans who know the area well enough to guide a boat.

Dinosaur Inhabitants There are plenty of dinosaurs who know the area well, however. The native dinosaurs know the trails, river channels, and bedrock formations that provide reliable transportation through the Bayou. They also know where the quicksand is, where to lay an ambush, and where the water depth changes suddenly. Three velociraptor nations inhabit the Bayou. The best known are the vicious and feared Cree. The Cree never retreat from battle – they prefer to die a warrior’s death. They have four tribes which occupy the southeastern tip of the swamp and the adjacent jungle, hunting regularly in both areas. Their rivals, the Kerosaw, number three tribes and occupy the northeastern area, where the Fur River spills into the inland sea. The Kerosaw have been trying to uproot the Cree for generations, as the Cree block Kerosaw access to the jungle. A third nation is the Inaka, who are loosely allied with the Kerosaw. The Inaka once occupied the southwestern edge of the swamp, but they recently suffered heavy losses when the Cree decided to widen their hunting grounds into Inaka territory, which is more valuable now that supply-laden pioneers pass so close so often. The scattered remnants of the Inaka are now living on the opposite side of the Fur River, out of the way of the marauding Cree. Iguanodon herds are plentiful in the Bayou, and there are a seemingly endless number of duckbill herds. Edaphosaurus and smaller swamp-dwelling amphibians are also common. They are hunted by crocodilians, as well as by many ornitholestes tribes. Five tyrannosaurus families are known to inhabit the Bayou. There are four pairs, and a scarred, aging solitary male who has been seen on both sides of the Fur River. The nomadic old male has been nicknamed Old Spike Eye by settlers, for one of his eyes was long ago gouged out by an iguanodon thumb spike; the skeletal remains of the spike still protrude from his eye socket. The Bayou is also inhabited by the cunning spinosaurus, a large theropod which hunts exclusively in swampy areas. At least eight prides are known to live south of the river, and more on the north side. A number of carnivorous fish lurk in the swamp’s waterways. Some can also be found in the lakes and Fur River, while others are endemic to the brackish, slow-moving channels of the Bayou.

Flora The Bayou is important to dinosaurs across the valley for the medicinal plants that grow within its waters. Many of these plants grow nowhere else. The more intelligent dinosaurs pass on oral

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knowledge of specific properties, while others possess an instinctive urge to graze the swamp when they are ill. Velociraptor shamans undertake regular pilgrimages to the swamp to collect ingredients, which they sell or trade to other tribes on their return trip. The Cree, Kerosaw, and Inaka challenge any shamans they encounter, but a single raptor can usually avoid detection. The potential rewards include several healing roots and herbs unavailable anywhere else on the planet, as well as certain fungi useful in potions, great quantities of poisonous plants, and even a few obscure reptilians whose body parts can be used to mix acids. Some of the medicinal plants known to humans include the following. The DC to locate the plant via Wilderness Lore or a Spot check is also given; the check can be attempted once per day of travel through the swamp. Bubble Berry: Bubble berries grow on vines that twine around water-dwelling trees. The berries are translucent white in color, resembling little bubbles on the vine. They are potent pain relievers and also help fight off fevers, flu, and the common cold. Consuming an entire plant’s worth of bubble berries will heal a character of 1d3 points of damage over the next 12 hours. (It will also leave his stomach quite full!) Bubble berries can be located with a Wilderness Lore check (DC 12) or Spot check (DC 16). Duckbill Moss: This is a greenish moss that floats in vast quantities upon the most brackish waters of the swamp. Duckbilled dinosaurs munch it daily. It boosts the gastrointestinal system and is helpful against ingested poisons. A character who drinks a full pint of the slimy moss receives a +2 bonus to all saves against poison for the next 1d4 days. If any ingested poison is currently in the character’s system, he may re-take a save against it, though with no bonus. The difficult part is skimming off a full pint (which takes about 15 minutes) while in the presence of the large duckbilled dinosaurs that eat the moss! Duckbill moss is extremely common. It can be located with a Wilderness Lore or

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Spot check (DC 5 for both). Frog Gut: This uncommon plant sports broad, cupped leaves that are gray with light green spots. If ground and mixed with the innards of the common swamp frog, it immediately erupts into a hissing, steaming acid. Desperate characters in search of a weapon can mush frog gut leaves into a gutted frog, then throw the resulting chemical reaction to deal 1d2 points of damage. The most concentrated form of the acid requires a mixture of a dozen frogs and four leaves, which produces enough acid to cause 1d6 points of damage. Frog gut is uncommon, and requires a Wilderness Lore check (DC 16) or a Spot check (DC 19) to locate it. Sparkle Root: This hallucinogenic root causes one to see sparkling, dancing lights. When distilled and ingested, it causes visions. It is highly valued by velociraptor shamans. It can also be sold in the streets of Mount Crowe as a cheap stimulant. Sparkle root grows underground. It can be located with a Wilderness Lore check (DC 15), or spotted with a Spot check (DC 25).

Human Inhabitants Some early settlers had the not-so-bright idea of trying to farm rice at the swamp’s edges. The incessant iguanodon traffic and regular velociraptor raids quickly put an end to such thinking. The only humans now in the Bayou are adventurers, hunters, pirates, and a few wild ones. Adventurers can be found in the Bayou because there is money to be made in harvesting its plants. They can be sold to humans and dinosaurs (both velociraptors and protoceratops actively trade in medicinal herbs), or used to heal wounds. In addition to those listed above, there are many other useful plants, and there is a market for trading previously unknown plants to researchers, physicians, and wild ones. Human hunters come to the Bayou because of its dense duckbill population. Duckbilled dinosaurs are easy to kill and provide a lot of meat.

The Bay Trail The Bay Trail traces the inland sea from New Savannah past Fort Apache all the way north until it reaches Plesiosaur Bay. For most of its length, it winds between sandy beaches on one side and dark jungle on the other. While the Tecumseh Trail is the route for farmers and ranchers, the Bay Trail is the route for fishermen and loggers – and outlaws, for the lawless town of Plesiosaur Bay sits at the end of the trail. Unlike other trails carved by the wheels of innumerable wagons, the Bay Trail is hardly visible as a trail. In fact, much of the trail traffic actually travels by water – the fishermen who sail close to the shore until they find a good place to stop. The land traffic is usually loggers, small farmers, aspiring fishermen (who build their boats with wood from the jungle), and outlaws and explorers. There are many hamlets along the Bay Trail and even a few small towns. Most are fishing villages, some of which can be reached only by sea. They are united by the growing fleet of the Bay Side Company, an enterprise that ships dried fish, lumber, skins, and almost anything else that’s salable from the small towns of the Bay Trail to the merchants of New Savannah.

The Inland Sea The inland sea has had many names, but the only one to ever stick is the simplest – “the inland sea.” After all, when there’s only one sea, why does it need a proper noun? It is a vast freshwater ocean, home to as many sea creatures as the rest of the Main Valley is to land animals. Fishing is good, for the schools are large and seemingly endless. But they are also dangerous. Gigantic sea monsters swim below the surface. Some are large enough to consume a boat. Even the smaller ones can extend their long necks onto a deck to pluck off an unwary sailor. Almost all the traffic on the sea is related to either fishing or freight. Most of the freight is timber, dried fish, livestock, liquor, or crops destined for the markets of New Savannah. The boats were built on Cretasus, and are a mix of styles: some captains built antique galleons, others Mississippi Queens. The lack of advanced manufacturing facilities means most are made of wood. There are a few Confederate military vessels, used to police the trade lanes and combat the pirates that raid from their bases in Plesiosaur Bay. The inland sea has been a boon to settlement along the Bay Trail, as ocean travel is swifter and generally safer than land travel. But it has not helped settle the southwestern plains. Sea travel

can only get one as far as Fort Tecumseh. Shortly thereafter, the deadly Bayou juts out to meet the sea, and landing becomes dangerous. Moreover, most of the fishing vessels that would ferry passengers from New Savannah choose to head north or east, where the fishing is best, and there are not yet enough paying pioneers to persuade them to head west.

The Bay Side Company The Bay Side Company is the oldest organized business on Cretasus. It was founded to consolidate and wholesale the wares of the small farmers, fishermen, ranchers, and hunters who settled along the shores near New Savannah. It is now the most important trade link between New Savannah and the many small enterprises along the Bay Trail. The Bay Side Company buys raw materials (timber, dried fish, livestock, skins, meat, and some crops) and sells them in New Savannah. It pays much less than market price in the city, which is a source of some resentment. But the small farmers, fisherman, loggers, hunters, and ranchers who supply it could just as easily go to New Savannah themselves, and they choose not to. Moreover, the ships of the Bay Side Company will stop to trade at any farm, house, or ranch along the shore – no matter how small – which is the sort of respectful service the small enterprises definitely don’t get from the big New Savannah merchants. Since its founding in 2191, the Bay Side Company is now the largest commercial organization on Cretasus. It controls almost all trade along the Bay Trail. The Tecumseh Trail is outside its reach, as is most of the land traffic to New Savannah, but the Bay Side Company has made no secret of its ambitions to compete on every trade route on the planet. The interesting thing about the Company is that it is not owned by any one person. Each ship in the fleet has an individual owner-captain who chooses to sail under the Company banner. The captains meet once every three months, or more often if necessary, to discuss business. They also contribute dues, managed by an elected group of captains, which acts as an insurance fund for pirated ships. The Company has grown immensely under this laissez-faire system because there has always been enough trade to go around. Of course, sooner or later there will be no more trade routes to grow into, and some of the captains will have to start competing on the same routes. But for now, Cretasus is large and unsettled, and the Bay Side Company can keep growing.

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Underglen To the east of the Bay Trail, as it heads north beside the inland sea, is a large, tangled jungle. A number of pioneers have settled in its fringes as loggers or farmers, and some hunters have even penetrated its inner perimeter. A few of them have brought back stories of a protoceratops city they call Underglen. Underglen’s exact location is unknown to most humans. No protoceratops will reveal it. The gradual expansion of human territory means that perhaps a half-dozen hunters have accidentally blundered upon it. But even they have a difficult time retracing their steps, as there are no landmarks in the jungle to indicate where the city lies beneath the underbrush. Thus, Underglen is known to lie in a natural ravine that runs for several miles through the center of the forest, but the exact position of the ravine is a mystery. An observer at ground level does not know the ravine is there. There is no break in the tree cover – the ravine reaches no wider than ten feet, and the trees surrounding it lean as they reach upward to fight for sunlight. The rocky bottom of the ravine, one hundred feet below ground level, can barely be seen from the narrow mouth. The few seemingly natural slopes down the ravine’s sheer face soon change into narrow, winding passages that descend along its the rocky ledges. Medium-sized creatures can fit on the tiny ledges, but larger creatures cannot. After a long descent, the ravine’s narrow mouth suddenly widens into a deep bowl. The “bottom” of the ravine is only a wide ledge at the top of a massive subterranean cave with a city carved into its walls. Rope bridges and natural arches connect the square, stuccoed buildings embedded in all sides of the cave. The underground area is brightly lit by lanterns and fires, and the few people to have seen it estimate there must be at least two thousand protoceratops living there. Humans who do discover Underglen are treated hospitably, as protoceratops treat most guests. They are ushered out of the city, then given food and drink in a pleasant forest glen. A few protoceratops join them for dinner, have a nice chat, and then bid them on their way. The protoceratops do not issue warnings or threats, but it is clear that they do not want anyone delving into the city.

Dr. Ezekial P. Price Ranches, farms, and fishing villages are far from the madding crowds of New Savannah, and it is among these out of the way places that you’ll find men like Dr. Ezekial P. Price, a fast-talking quick-thinking bright-eyed blubbery ball of a man who plies his trade with unparalleled enthusiasm. After a minute of his flattering patter, even the hardest rancher might find himself considering the purchase of a lace doily to place atop an as yet unadorned tabletop. “A Fair Price All The Time” is what the good Doctor

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claims to offer, and while this is true at first glance, one can’t help but notice that Price seems reluctant to return to previous stomping grounds for a second run. Indeed, the few dollars that most customers hand over to Price seem less than fair considering the incredible performance he will put on in order to secure a sale, whether it be for a cure-all ointment or a battery-powered battery re-charger. Price approaches settlements in two stages. The first wave consists of leaflets distributed by his two sons, who ride ahead of the show to let everyone know that their father and his marvelous mobile warehouse are on the way. With the potential customers primed for his arrival, the portly Price finds it easy to attract locals. His driven approach seems to captivate his audience, and trade is always enough to make it worth his while. Inspired by the actions of one Dr. Henry Meadows, Price is trying to earn enough money to settle down with his own shop while his sons carry on the mobile end of the operation. Not realizing that he adopted the title of Doctor only to copy his idol and not through any accredited process, many ask why he has never started his own medical practice, a question he always answers with an offering of his own remedy for all ailments, Dr. Price’s Pick-Me-Up. His wife Mary still lives off-world, waiting for her husband to get a foothold on Cretasus. If he keeps up the good work, his lady wife will join him soon. However, both his sons believe that Ezekial will never give up the open road. Dr. Ezekial Price, Confederate Exp2: CR 1; Mediumsize Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 2d6-2; hp 4; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10 (no armor); Atk +0 melee (1d3-1, unarmed); AL CN; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Will +4; Str 8, Con 8, Dex 10, Int 11, Wis 13, Cha 14. Skills: Appraise +5 (5), Bluff +11 (5), Gather Information +7 (5), Listen +6 (5), Perform +7 (5), Sense Motive +6 (5). Feats: Lucky Cuss, Fast Talker (see new feat on page 78). Possessions: Dr. Price’s wagon carries every kind of common merchandise. There is a 25% chance he will have any given uncommon item up to a value of $100, provided it is useful enough that he thinks he can sell it, and a slight chance (GM’s call, from 0% to 5%) that he will have any other item of greater value. Dr. Price always has $5d10 stashed in several places on his person. Samuel and Andrew, Dr. Price’s Sons, Confederate Exp1: CR 1/2; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 1d6; hp 2; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10 (no armor); Atk +0 melee (1d8, musket) or +0 melee (1d3, unarmed); AL CN; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Will +3; Str 9, Con 9, Dex 10, Int 11, Wis 12, Cha 13. Skills: Appraise +4 (4), Bluff +9 (4), Gather Information +5 (4), Listen +5 (4), Perform +5 (4), Sense Motive +5 (4). Feats: Lucky Cuss, Fast Talker (see new feat on page 78).

Fort Apache Fort Apache was the first Confederate fort on Cretasus. It was built to guard New Savannah’s eastern approach, expand the city’s area of influence, and open more land for settlement. In the early days, the fort was a refuge for ranchers and farmers leaving the relatively safe areas around New Savannah. Nowadays, most of the natural predators that once forced the pioneers to seek shelter behind the fort’s walls have been driven off or placated. Unlike Fort Tecumseh, which is hundreds of miles from another town, Fort Apache is close to the big city. It doesn’t have to house many civilians; instead, it is surrounded by an established network of farms and ranches (some quite large) and a few small towns as well.

the nearby back country, protecting settlers as necessary. They also battle bandits along the Bay Trail and pirates in the inland sea, although they now spend a lot less time monitoring Plesiosaur Bay than they used to. Overall, their mission now is one of monitoring, rather than actively battling the wilderness.

Population From 500 to 1,000 soldiers will be in the fort, depending on patrols and other circumstances. There will always be from 100 to 300 civilians staying in or near the fort, mostly trappers, pioneers, and other transients.

Sites of Interest

Fort Apache is a simple quarter-mile-wide square of sharpened logs reinforced by thick sod walls. It is surrounded by a moat sixty feet wide and twenty feet deep. The first soldiers to occupy the fort found that a moat doesn’t always stop charging dinosaurs – they will often run right into the moat (especially when stampeding), and then you have to figure out how to get them out! On a number of occasions, the fort ended up with a moat full of writhing, angry triceratops. To solve this, they rigged up an irrigation system so the bottom of the moat is now mud. Dinosaurs that enter the moat are quickly bogged down and easy to kill, and the moat can be flooded and the carcasses floated away on rafts.

About a mile from the fort are five teepee-like structures that house the five velociraptors who work with the fort’s soldiers. Originally from the White Branch raptor tribe, these raptors decided to side with the Confederates when they saw the futility of battling the humans’ advance. The raptors deal exclusively with two officers from the fort who are good with animals and speak the raptor language, albeit poorly. Although the raptors aren’t aggressively hostile toward humans, they aren’t exactly friendly (even to soldiers in uniform) and defend themselves if threatened. They go on regular scouting missions and provide a great deal of information to the Confederate military about what’s happening with local dinosaur populations.

Missions

Prominent Locals

These days, Fort Apache is a base of operations for Confederate troops operating east of New Savannah and along the Bay Trail. Wild dinosaurs are only a minor problem in the fort’s immediate area, but they are still common as one gets further from New Savannah. The soldiers spend a lot of time in patrols through

Attacus Barnaby: Not many civilians live at Fort Apache. There are a few sutlers, but to buy anything but the most basic supplies, a visitor must know where to go in the surrounding area. Thus enters Attacus Barnaby. He makes a point of meeting newcomers before they meet anyone else. Barnaby is one part tourist

Layout

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Life on the Frontier Sports Life in the wilderness can be interminably boring, especially if your only neighbors are reptiles. Bored farmers, ranchers, and hunters have invented a variety of wilderness sports to amuse themselves. Many are now practiced even in more civilized areas, and some sports are popular enough to have regional champions whose periodic competitions are major country events. Bronco rodeos (a la Big Al’s) are the most frequently organized events. The most common wilderness sports are hunting and fishing, although these are sometimes modified to increase the challenge. Arrow fishing and knife hunting are particularly popular, as are “challenge hunts,” where the hunters try to bring back a very difficult-to-acquire trophy using only a rope and knife. A parasaurolophus crest is a common trophy – parasaurolophuses aren’t carnivores but they are quite large, and getting their crest with only a rope and a knife isn’t easy! Another popular sport is dino rubbing. Like many reptiles on Earth, some dinosaurs are susceptible to hypnosis when their bellies are rubbed. Of course, it takes an awful lot of rubbing to calm down a stegosaurus. Such large dinosaurs are rarely the target of a dino rubbing expedition, but gangs of adventurous farm hands will often try dino rubbing against smaller targets, such as edaphosaurus, protosuchus, and compsognathus. Dino Rubbing: To attempt to hypnotize a dinosaur by belly-rubbing, the attacker must grapple and successfully pin the dinosaur. Only when the dinosaur is pinned can the rubbing begin. The attacker himself can rub while still maintaining the pin if he is larger than the dinosaur. Otherwise, someone else must do the rubbing. It takes one person to rub a Medium-sized dinosaur and two for a Large, with the number doubling at each size increment thereafter. Once rubbing begins, make a Handle Animal check (using the lowest modifier among the rubbers) against the dinosaur’s opposed Will save. On the first round of rubbing, when the dinosaur is still resisting, a –20 penalty applies to the Handle Animal check. This drops to –15 in the second round as the dinosaur becomes soothed, then –10 and –5 before the check becomes unmodified from the fifth round on. After the first successful check, the dinosaur lapses into hypnosis. Once hypnotized, the dinosaur dozes peacefully. As long as the rubbing continues, the pin can then be abandoned and no additional check is necessary. If the dinosaur is wounded, jostled, or otherwise disturbed, a new opposed check must be made and the modifier to the Handle Animal check reverts to –20. If the check fails, the dinosaur awakens. If at any point the rubbing stops, the dinosaur automatically awakens. When more than one rubber is required, consider the rubbing to have ceased if even one of them breaks contact for a round.

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guide and one part hustler. He has arrangements with store keepers, peddlers, trail guides, farmers, and ranchers for miles around. Whatever a pioneer needs, Barnaby will find it for him, though it might be from a shop a few miles off the beaten path. Barnaby will insist that it’s the best shop around – it’s worth the extra hike – but he will never mention the kickback he gets from the shop keeper. As far as the pioneer knows, Barnaby is helping him because he seems like such a nice guy: he’s loquacious, energetic, and outgoing. He knows practically everything about the local geography, wilderness, and social scene. When the pioneers are fully equipped, of course, he expects a tip – fifty cents, two dollars, or even more, depending on how much they bought and how wealthy they look. (PCs can expect to be asked for at least $5.) A pioneer who rebuffs Barnaby’s assistance will simply have a hard time finding what he needs among the sprawling lands around the fort. A pioneer who refuses to tip Barnaby after accepting his aid will find afterward that most shops mysteriously close when he approaches. Attacus Barnaby, Confederate Male Com1: CR 1/2; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD d4; hp 4; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +0 melee (1d3/fists), or +0 ranged (1d8, musket); AL CN; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Will +0; Str 10, Con 10, Dex 10, Int 10, Wis 14, Cha 15. Skills: Gather Information +6/+10* (4), Listen +2 (0), Spot +2 (0). Feats: Alertness, Bargain Hunter. * Higher bonus applies when looking for bargains. Possessions: Musket with 1d6 bullets, flask, handkerchief, little black book full of scribbled notes about prices and shop inventories. Drunk Abner: Another prominent local is Drunk Abner. Drunk Abner is prominent not because of special ability or social standing, but because he is always splayed out drunk in a prominent place in the fort. The military police used to arrest him for public drunkenness, but after more than two years of locking him up every night, they decided he was a waste of public funds. Now he is left to drink on the streets, although no one thinks twice about kicking or dragging him aside if he gets in the way. Drunk Abner is most lucid in the morning and practically incomprehensible after a day of drinking. He shares his life story with everyone: he found a gold mine deep in the forest, hauled out one load, sold it for thousands of dollars, got drunk for six months, and then couldn’t find his way back to the mine so he decided to keep drinking. Most locals don’t believe a word of it, but one fact is incontrovertible: he has funded three years of hard drinking without ever appearing to work. And he only drinks good whiskey. Drunk Abner, Confederate Male Com1: CR 1/2; Medium-size Humanoid (6 ft.); HD d4; hp 1; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 8 (-2 Dex); Atk -1 melee (1d3-1/fists); AL NG; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Will +0; Str 8, Con 9, Dex 7, Int 10, Wis 9, Cha 11. Skills: Listen +2/+0* (0), Profession (Miner) +4/+2* (4), Spot +5/+3* (4). Feats: Alertness, Lucky Cuss. * Higher bonus applies in the morning, when he’s relatively sober; lower bonus applies in the evening or when otherwise inebriated.

Possessions: Several bottles of whiskey, several pages of indecipherable notes.

Scenario Hooks There aren’t a lot of politics in Fort Apache. The news and rumors come from passing pioneers and soldiers returning from patrol. Since patrols cover a wide swath to the north and east, rumors reach Fort Apache from miles around. Much of it is mundane social gossip. Some might include these: 1. Old man Hodge’s brachy got sick again. He’s looking for a new one. 2. A ceratosaurus moved in over near Bransenville. The sheriff wants some troops to help kill it before it eats somebody. 3. Young George Erickson is looking for work – he wants to get engaged to Suzy Wilkins, but Mr. Wilkins won’t hear of it until George can afford to buy a good ring. 4. Nobody knows what to do about them ornitholestes down south. They keep stealing supplies but the fort says getting rid of them isn’t a priority!

Plesiosaur Bay Plesiosaur Bay is a turbulent town on a turbulent bay at the northern tip of the inland sea. The town and the bay share the same name, derived from the schools of plesiosaurs and other dangerous creatures that swim in the bay. They are attracted by the bay’s unusually warm waters, a phenomenon believed to be caused by underwater hot springs. The warm water, coupled with the area’s periodic tremors, suggests an active volcano somewhere in the area. This natural danger and heated violence are a perfect metaphor for the town. Plesiosaur Bay is an outlaw’s refuge. Six hundred criminals, malingerers, lay-abouts, and ne’er-do-wells live there with no mayor, no sheriff, and no law. Several gangs protecting their individual territories constitute the only form of government. Of all the places on Cretasus, it is the one that most settlers try to avoid.

History The town originally formed as an outpost for hunters and trappers, who followed on the heels of unsuccessful fishermen. (The powerful sea creatures put an end to most fishing nets, as well as quite a few fishermen.) They were followed in turn by outlaws escaping the law of New Savannah. In the early days, fleeing criminals took refuge in the Hideout Hills. But as the population of the hills grew, living there became an exercise in “survival of the fittest,” with the fit usually being the most homicidal outlaws. The lesser felons started heading north along the Bay Trail, which is less populated than the Tecumseh Trail and a better place to lie low. Through an inexplicable natural process, Plesiosaur Bay

Life on the Frontier Duels Settling disputes in New Savannah and other civilized areas is facilitated by the presence of organized authority. But what do you do when you’re on the trail and there isn’t a lawman for 100 miles in any direction? If you’re a low-down skunk, you ambush your enemy; but if you’re remotely honorable (as most pioneers are), you resort to the code of the duel. The code of the duel is as old as civilization. As practiced in the wild west and subsequently on Cretasus, it provides a structured forum for resolving disputes. Of course, the results of the duel occasionally perpetuate the dispute if one side decides to seek revenge, but at the very least, the system prevents a complete breakdown into ambush, backstabbing, and open assault. Characters may become involved in duels as the instigator or recipient of a challenge. It’s vital that they know how to proceed. The rules of the duel are universally known on Cretasus as these: 1. The challenge is always delivered by a third party. Once the challenge is issued, the two participants are not to meet until the appointed day. 2. The challenged party chooses the weapon for the duel. 3. The location of the duel is mutually determined through intermediaries. 4. Each participant appoints a second. The second is obliged to go through with the duel if the participant cannot fight on the appointed day (whether due to sickness, traveling difficulty, or any other reason). If a challenged party is too old or feeble to fight, his second automatically takes his place. 5. The duel is not necessarily to the death. Sometimes duels are fought to first blood. If pistols are chosen as weapons, a common practice is to issue each participant only two or three bullets. If neither party is killed in the duel, it is considered a tie and the antagonists may attempt to find a compromise solution to their dispute.

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edges the utility of this outpost, where its unredeemables might occupy themselves productively, and has let Plesiosaur Bay on a longer leash. There are still regular clashes between the military and the brazen pirates who operate out of the area, but the expansion of hard law to the town is no longer a New Savannah priority. Even without the liquor industry, Plesiosaur Bay has reformed many hardened criminals. After all, there are only so many crimes you can commit against other criminals. Many outlaws arriving in Plesiosaur Bay are disappointed to find there are no banks to rob, no meek citizens to burgle, and no mines to plunder. One new arrival made the fatal mistake of robbing a saloon – the heavily armed customers didn’t appreciate the interruption of their drinking! Residents are forced to support themselves with an honest trade. Some become professional gamblers, extortionists, or pirates, but most end up as hunters, trappers, or laborers in the breweries.

Visiting

evolved into a stopping point for these people, the kind of visitors who are usually asked to keep moving. At Plesiosaur Bay, these men of ill repute had a chance to spend their ill-gained dollars, earn a living as a hunter or trapper, and even join a pirate raid to exact revenge on the town that had expelled them. The few honest residents soon left, and now Plesiosaur Bay is a roughneck’s retreat. New Savannah made multiple attempts to break up the young town, but was unsuccessful. The forces it deployed there were too far from New Savannah to resupply easily. The journey by land is long and slow, and the creatures in the bay make sea travel deadly. The only way to break up the town would be to establish a permanent garrison at Plesiosaur Bay. This option was seriously considered until the town evinced its one redeeming quality: liquor. Despite the character of its inhabitants (or perhaps because of it), Plesiosaur Bay produces the best alcoholic beverages in all of Cretasus. A “pint of Plesiosaur” is a common expression in New Savannah, and every bartender knows what it means. Some attribute the distinctive taste to the volcanic waters of the bay. Others claim there are mysterious secret ingredients – dinosaur byproducts, perhaps even plesiosaur blood. Only the brewers know for sure. Nine local breweries ship beer, whiskey, and other beverages from Plesiosaur Bay to New Savannah and beyond. The burgeoning industry employs many tough men whom polite society once considered unemployable. New Savannah grudgingly acknowl-

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Life in Plesiosaur Bay is not easy. A man there has to stand up for himself – on a regular basis. Knife fights, fist fights, and gun fights are the preferred methods of settling disputes (generally in that order). Murder doesn’t get the locals riled up unless the murdered party was popular or in debt – in which case, the murderer may be forced to repay the debt. The worst offense a man can commit in Plesiosaur Bay is to cheat at cards. Nobody objects to shooting a card shark, even in the back. The only reason cheating isn’t more common is that most of the town’s residents are hardened cheats who can spot their own tricks immediately. Visiting adventurers will find the town to be overwhelmingly male, lazy, and dishonest. Most residents only work when they’re hungry, thirsty, or broke. They have no compunctions about bullying someone else to do their work for them; this is the basic principle on which many of the gangs operate. The town’s buildings are ramshackle and poorly maintained, with the notable exceptions of those of the local gang leaders. Unwary characters are bound to be pick-pocketed, cheated, and perhaps even robbed – or they may be able to carve out a niche for their own gang. The nine major breweries (and dozens of private stills) are managed haphazardly. After all, they were founded by career drinkers as hobby ventures, not formal businesses. Shipments to New Savannah are erratic, and occasionally bizarre: a vessel may legally ferry liquor on its way south, then plunder other vessels on its way back north.

Sites of Interest Plesiosaur Bay has more saloons per capita than anywhere else on Cretasus. It ranks in the top 10% in the entire universe. None of the saloons are particularly distinctive, however. The best known local beverages are Rex Whiskey (“Strong Enough For A T-Rex”), Saurus Spirits (“So Natural The Dinosaurs

Drink It”), and Plesiosaurus Ale (“The Original Plesiosaur Pint”). If the town had tourists, they might visit the breweries responsible for these legends. But the town doesn’t have tourists and the breweries themselves are squalid. The bay itself is the most interesting wilderness locale. It is absolutely teeming with life. From shore, you can see the heads of plesiosaurs and elasmosaurs peeking through the waves; ancient sharks churn the water around them. Venturing into the waters is positively dangerous, no matter how large your vessel. Small boats will be destroyed or overturned immediately. Larger boats are safer, but their crews must still know the waters well. Otherwise, they will soon find themselves out of the safe shallows and in monster territory. Even in the shallows, they have to scan constantly for the silhouettes of kronosauruses, the “tyrannosauruses of the sea,” which hunt in the shallows despite their size. Except for the pirates and a few sea hunters (when you fish for plesiosaurs, you’re no longer called a fisherman!), the waters of the bay are practically deserted by humans.

Prominent Locals Captain Lefitte: The most powerful pirate gang is led by the fierce Captain Lefitte. The gang has made many an unlawful dollar at the expense of New Savannah merchants and fisherman. Captain Lefitte is well known to every lawman on Cretasus, and various victimized merchants have offered rewards of up to $300 for his head. A self-appointed French aristocrat (hence the name, which is surely a pseudonym), he lives in an elegant mansion by the sea. He is tall, lean, and an excellent swordsman – and not bad with a pistol, either. He always dresses in fancy Renaissance outfits (like a proper pirate) and speaks with an assumed French accent. His gang primarily targets the Bay Side Company ships as they leave New Savannah to trade on the Bay Trail, for they always carry cash and goods to exchange for the timber, fish, and livestock they will buy on the trail. Captain Lefitte, Confederate War4: CR 3; Mediumsize Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 4d8; hp 19; Init +2 (+2 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; AC 17 (+2 Dex, +4 chain shirt, +1 small steel shield); Atk +6 melee (1d6/crit 18-20, rapier), or +6 ranged (2d10, laser pistol); AL NE; SV Fort +4, Ref +1, Will +1; Str 11, Con 11, Dex 15, Int 16, Wis 14, Cha 13. Skills: Climb +7 (7), Handle Animal +8 (7), Intimidate +8 (7), Jump +7 (7), Swim +7 (7). Feats: Combat Reflexes, Weapon Finesse (Rapier), Weapon Proficiency (Laser Pistol). Possessions: Rapier, laser pistol with 3 energy packs, custom-made chain shirt fashioned to look like dinosaur scales, ornately engraved small steel shield, ivory cameo necklace (worth $60), 3 gold rings (worth $100, $130, and one with a diamond worth $1,200), cash $5d10. There are many other gangs in Plesiosaur Bay, but none quite so well organized as Captain Lefitte’s. Although violence is part of life in the town, the gangs rarely quarrel violently above and

beyond the usual state of affairs – that is, there are few gang wars per se. They realize that fighting turf battles over such a ramshackle town is a waste of energy. There is more than enough land to go around and no shortage of innocent vessels to plunder as they sail up the Bay Trail.

Scenario Hooks Conversation in Plesiosaur Bay always revolves around one of five things: the criminal background of someone in town, especially a famous townsman or an unknown newcomer; the latest raid by Captain Lefitte or another pirate; or the universally approved subjects of beer, women, and gambling. Considering the concentration of liars, cheats, and men who want to hide their past, any rumor heard in Plesiosaur Bay has a base 60% chance of being untrue (although it may be based on or derived from the truth). Here is a sampling of some of the rumors one may hear: 1. I heard Captain Lefitte ended up here after he killed a sheriff out in the back country. 2. No, I heard he robbed a wagon train on the Tecumseh Trail. 3. Did you hear that Red’s gang took in four iguanodons and 20 bushels of corn from a raid last week?

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4. I hear that Jim Butler’s gang picked up some real interesting trinkets on their last raid – they got some sort of dinosaur artifacts from a ship carrying explorers. 5. I could make a better beer than this Plesiosaurus Ale. It would taste better if they added the plesiosaur blood fresh and hot rather than letting it cool first.

6. There’s a pretty gal from New Savannah looking for a place to stay around here – they say she killed her husband. She’s welcome to stay with me! 7. Mort got all four aces twice yesterday. That just doesn’t happen. He must be up to something, but I can’t figure it out!

The Northwestern Plains The northwestern plains are still terra incognito to the citizens of New Savannah. They are difficult to reach, whether by land (where one must trace the Bayou and cross the Fur River) or by sea (where the northwestern shores of the inland sea are ringed by thick jungle). Few humans live there, and there are no towns. Little is known of the plains except for a variety of persistent rumors –that they are the most fertile area in the Main Valley, that unknown dinosaurs and even some ice age mammals roam there, that warp pirates have a base there, that a fabulous house stands unoccupied there. Who knows what fabulous mysteries await the characters to first chart this unexplored area?

Then Barrister was heard from no more. No one discovered what happened to Barrister. But, then again, no one has yet surveyed the northwestern plains. To this day, old-timers in New Savannah talk about the legendary grandeur of Barrister House. Is it now in ruins? Is it now occupied by velociraptors? Or did Barrister simply become a recluse? If the house still stands and stands unoccupied, whoever finds it will surely find a fortune in silver.

Barrister House

The wilds of Cretasus are the perfect place to hide out, as a contingent of warp pirates knows well. Warp pirates are spacefaring brigands who use the warp to escape capture. They know the warp gates inside and out, using the complex network to appear, raid a vessel, and then disappear to distant space in mere moments. Warp pirates come from all areas of space, all nations, and even all species – they are motley crews of outlaws whose primary allegiance is to plunder and outrunning authority. Since the discovery of Cretasus’ friendly atmosphere, a band of warp pirates has begun using Alacion Portal as a regular jumping-off point. They now have a base somewhere in the northwestern plains. They retreat there for a few weeks at a time between raids, which last for days or weeks. Confederate authorities in New Savannah know of the warp pirate base, and Union authorities must know of them as well. Neither side has done anything because the pirates make a point of not threatening anyone or anything near their base. They have never raided a vessel on, near, or around Cretasus or Alacion Portal. Because Cretasus is so far from the main power centers in galactic politics, and because the lawmen on Cretasus have far more pressing matters to concern themselves with, the warp pirates are safe – for now.

One of Cretasus’ early settlers was William Barrister, a haughty Confederate land owner and adventurer. He arrived shortly after the construction of New Savannah had begun. While Hepsediah Porter and his followers carved New Savannah out of the wilderness, Barrister and his retainers traveled in overlanders (heavy-duty trucks) on a mission to survey the Main Valley. They returned one year later with their overlanders overflowing in silver ingots. Barrister claimed to have found a silver mine of enormous depth. The mine was somewhere in the northwestern plains. He sold his load of silver, and used the money to purchase supplies: some picks and shovels, but mostly luxury household goods. Barrister intended to build an enormous mansion next to his silver mine in the middle of nowhere. Each year for eight years, Barrister returned to New Savannah laden in silver, trading it for supplies to carry back to his mansion. The employees who accompanied him on the New Savannah excursions told tales of his magnificent wealth, his generous salaries, and the opulent house he had built next to his silver mine.

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The Warp Pirates

Chapter II: Dinosaurs Cretasus is full of life, lush and boundless. Almost all of the valleys that have been surveyed are covered in endless fields of vegetation and teem with life. One desert valley, with a sparse population, does exist, but in all the others the ecology is bursting at the seams with energy. It needs to be. Plant-eating dinosaurs require massive supplies of vegetable life to keep up their active metabolisms. Since hundreds of plant-eaters are necessary to support just one large carnivore, the presence of countless titanic meat-eating dreadnoughts like the tyrannosaurs means that the total number of large creatures on Cretasus beggars the imagination. The valleys are incredibly noisy. Dinosaurs crash, stamp, and shuffle throughout the vegetation. The raucous cry of the pterosaurs echoes through the skies, and booming parasaurolophus yells rebound in the marshy areas. Brachiosaurs trample trees and crush rocks underfoot, but even their mighty stampings are sometimes drowned out by the thick ground cover.* Dinosaurs themselves span every color in the rainbow. Color variation within a species seems to be the rule: for example, individual ankylosaurs are identifiable by particular patterns in their mosaics of scales. Scholars publish such reports as “Sexual Selection for Color Divergences,” while trophy hunters gather rainbows of heads and awed photographers brave the wilds for a rare vermilion pachycephalosaur. Jaded locals just refer to “the grits-colored devil lizard what ate my broncos.” On a practical level, this makes it difficult for outsiders to instantly identify species of dinosaur – one must know body shapes, not just colors – although it makes it easy to tell individuals of the same species apart. An important exception to this general rule is raptor tribes; all raptors of a single tribe have the same general coloration scheme, although between tribes color varies widely.

Dinosaur Intelligence Professor Calhoun Carey of the University of New Houston is the leading scholar of Cretasus dinosaurs. His critics call him a near-savage who’s gotten a little too close to his subjects. Nevertheless, his works, Lectures on Dinosaur Life, are best-sellers across the inhabited worlds. Dinosaurs do not thrive in captivity; even those illegally captured and released in the wilds on other worlds often fail to display the unique behavior and intelligence that make Cretasus such an interesting place. So while dinosaur anatomy is well-under* Outside settled areas, characters without at least one rank of Wilderness Lore have a -2 circumstance penalty to Listen checks.

stood, with the standard textbooks published on Earth, outside “experts” are often clueless about the most basic dinosaur behaviors and make embarrassing gaffes. Scholars are a wimpy lot. Many expeditions to the jungles have just vanished – whether devoured, caught in the battles between Union and Confederacy, or gone native, it’s impossible to say. Institutions have grown wary of sending more researchers into the wilds until the situation becomes calmer. About the only group still sending out expeditions is Grant University on Luna; Grant’s well-organized teams often work with the Union military, which gives them the protection they need to accomplish their tasks, and most of their research has military implications. That means most non-military research is done by amateurs: enthusiastic folks without much equipment but with a lot of guts. Or rich fools with a pet theory, lots of money, and no chance in hell of surviving the wilds of Cretasus without some expert help! The first important scholarly conclusion about Cretasus dinosaurs is that they’re not quite the ones that we had on Earth. The most obvious difference is dinosaur language, no evidence of which exists in Earth’s historical record. The other important difference is intelligence and all that it entails. Protoceratops build structures, raptors use tools – as far as naturalists can determine, none of this ever happened on Earth. The dinosaurs on Cretasus represent various Earthly historical periods, some hundreds of millions of years apart. Dinosaurs that were common on Earth (well-represented in the fossil record) also seem to be common on Cretasus (wandering around in great numbers). One suggestion, first posed by Grant University’s William Ackerley, as to how dinosaurs ended up on Cretasus and Earth is the presence of a dimensional portal somewhere on Earth, not unlike a warp gate, where occasionally Earth dinosaurs would migrate and find themselves on Cretasus. However, biologists point out that the first of such settlers on Cretasus would likely branch out to fill all the available ecological niches, not unlike the finches of the Galapagos Islands, so if the dimetrodons had emerged, we would see giant sauropod dimetrodons, tiny geckosized dimetrodons, and so on. Such an effect has not been demonstrated, much to the chagrin of collectors, who would love to own a brachiosaur-sized sail. Moreover, many of the dinosaur species of Cretasus are physically different from those of Earth. The best-documented evidence is on protoceratops. Union naturalists have discovered a lot of Earthly protoceratops remains, primarily in the Gobi desert, and they were among the best-studied species before the exploration of Cretasus. Nowadays, naturalists have had many chances

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to study the living versions. Scholars agree that that Cretasus’ protoceratops have a larger cranial cavity, and almost certainly a larger brain, than the Earth variety. They point particularly to the language centers of the protoceratops brain, which have been identified in Cretasus specimens, and whose odd growth has caused some skull deformations not present in Earth protoceratops. Naturalists battle over whether this means that Cretasus protoceratops should be considered a separate species. However, since in all other respects Cretasus protoceratops exactly resemble Earth protoceratops, the larger implication is that an outside force may have enhanced the intelligence of these dinosaurs! All known alien races have denied intervention on Cretasus. Still, there are many rumors of alien ruins in faraway valleys and “alien treasure maps” are frequently sold to gullible new arrivals. Various oral myths of the brachiosaurs mention sky-gods landing in golden chariots, and some tantalizing pictures of the protoceratops knowledge cave at the Hollow Hills seemed to show images of humanlike creatures in hermetic suits, traveling in a flying vehicle of some sort. Some claimed these creatures resemble the alien Scray, but the Hollow Hills complex was destroyed in an unexplained explosion not long afterwards, and the dinosaurs have become notably silent on the subject. Cretasus’ fossil record has proven difficult to interpret. Digs around the main forts have established the presence of dinosaur species for at least 100 million years. However, one hotly-contested finding shows a layer of mammal strata suggesting that for a period of a million years, the Main Valley was inhabited solely by mammals, like Mammoth Valley to the west. Calhoun Carey suggests that all of Cretasus is a giant alien preserve, whose ecology is managed (and occasionally altered) and whose inhabitants are experimental subjects – hence the title of his autobiography, Poacher in the Lizard Park. Many locals also believe that dinosaurs have telepathic abilities to communicate, divine the weather, and predict fires, floods, and other natural disasters. While some of this no doubt relates to the long-range subsonic sounds that dinosaurs can emit, and their extensive knowledge of Cretasus (reflected in game terms by high Wilderness Lore ranks), both the Confederacy and the Union are taking seriously the idea of psychic dinosaurs, especially since several alien races are known to have developed psychic communications. Human scientists are particularly interested in studying the legendary tyrannosaur Tyrant Kings, which are rumored to possess the power to kill with a single thought! But no one has located one of these elusive creatures; for now, speculations on the psychic powers of dinosaurs must remain simply that, speculations.

Dinosaur Languages All dinosaurs, even the imbecile stegosaurs, can understand the language of Dinosaur Common, which is conveyed by postures and movements as well as by sound. Big dinos may not even notice tiny creatures performing Dinosaur Common. However,

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the primary element to dinosaur speech is sonic, or rather subsonic. Like those of elephants, most dino communications are below the frequencies which the human ear can hear. These sounds can carry for miles; the bellowing of brachiosaurs sometimes carries across mountains! All dinosaurs can hear the subsonic noises, but only the larger ones can actually produce sounds in that range. This means that big dinos are better at getting their meanings across than lesser ones. Most of the time, their communications consist of “get out of my way!” but this also means that the larger dinosaurs can call the others together more effectively. They can Thrum more persuasively, as will be described later. Large dinosaurs serve as the natural leaders for united dinosaur action. Because of this subsonic component of dinosaur speech, humans need help to fully communicate with dinosaurs. Devices called resonators can be attached to the ears, allowing the listener to hear the subsonic rumblings. These resonators are slightly distracting and can make it difficult to hear other noises. Similarly, humans can use so-called “shouters” to project into the subsonic range. These devices are necessary to speak some dinosaur languages properly, and the deeper tone, like a soothing bass, makes dinosaurs react more favorably to the speaker.

Tool Use Even before the arrival of humans, dinosaurs were already using technological devices. Raptors with their tools, herbs, and chemicals; protoceratops with their written language; and ornitholestes with their clubs were the most obvious examples of dino tech that early explorers encountered. More subtle uses of technology were also at work. Protoceratops understand agriculture, fertilizer, and irrigation; even without hands they dredge furrows and canals to produce vast fields of low-lying plants, their preferred diet. They use their knowledge of weather patterns and ecology to control the development of a region, including minimizing floods and erosion. Most of the time their mastery is used only to protect their way of life, but sometimes they’ll take more aggressive action, like diverting the course of rivers to flood humans who anger them or deprive them of water so they’re forced to leave. The big predators know how to preserve food. In colder areas, they keep frozen prey in their caves for lean times. In warmer climates, they leave portions of their kills to dry in the sun. Foolhardy humans will sometimes raid these stashes for food, but the furious owners will exact revenge if their prizes are taken. Humans often puzzle over why raptors, with their advanced technology, haven’t exterminated the other, larger species, like the early humans did to the mammoths. Grant University scholars point to the “ecological consciousness” of the raptors and their slow breeding, while Calhoun Corey thinks that raptors did wipe out all other life in one valley, but the valley was simply “re-seeded” by aliens. Both Corey and the Grant scholars think that the prey species would eventually Thrum if they were being exterminated by an expansionistic raptor tribe. The raptors themselves,

when asked, dismiss it as a “stupid mammal question.” Neither the Confederacy nor the Union is eager to see raptors get their hands on modern technology, particularly guns. Their claws are clumsy when it comes to using triggers, and they’re not able to rapidly and accurately maneuver long arms. However, they can aim rifles for ambushes, and they handle low-recoil pistols pretty well. Special weapons have even been designed for raptors by unscrupulous machinists. Luckily for humans, in the few cases where raptors have obtained serious firepower they could use, they rapidly ran out of ammunition, which taught them to distrust firearms. Most dinosaurs are also limited by their lack of an opposable thumb to grasp objects. Those not so limited, like ornitholestes and the raptors, often collect manufactured goods, and such items have become a currency. Knives, for example, are traded for territory and prey. In general, the tool-using dinosaurs prefer simple weapons like knives (which they know how to sharpen themselves) to charged tools or weapons with ammunition. Raptors love to get their claws on binoculars and scramblers, although they rarely can. Finally, most species of dinosaur are endlessly amused by holospheres of any sort, and value them far more highly than people do.

The Dinosaur Singers Some dinosaurs take it upon themselves to Sing – an art form more sacred than mere music as humans know it. Dinosaurs of all size and temperaments Sing, except for stegosaurs, who are tonedeaf. There is one Song in particular that has been passed down since time immemorial; its meaning is unknown, but the words hauntingly familiar to any saurian speaker. Both the Confederacy and the Union have clamped down tight on the Song; it has yet to be broadcast off-planet, and they censor the press to remove notice of it. It’s considered a military secret. Besides that one Song, Singers pick up a bewildering variety of tunes in a variety of languages; Allosaur is considered the most appropriate tongue for epics, while Raptor is quick and lively. Few Singers have the vocal range to speak all the tongues, but each strives to learn as many as he can. A Singer arriving in the area is a big event; the Singer announces his presence by screaming about it at the top of his lungs for the greater part of a day. That evening, dinosaurs gather. By tradition, a Singing is a safe time, when predators and prey can gather together to hear the Singer perform. The Singer sings through the night, beginning with the Song and continuing with his repertoire. If the Singer performs well, the crowd of dinosaurs slowly disperses until when the sun rises all are gone. If the Singer performs badly, the dinosaurs linger, and at sunup the Singer is messily killed by a few self-appointed critics while all present watch silently. Even meat-eating dinosaurs will not harm a successful Singer. After the Singer’s performance, the community of dinosaurs keeps the Singer fed for the next week – predators pro-

vide flesh, herbivores allow him to graze unmolested – after which he moves on. Singing is a Perform skill; Singing the Song is only DC 5 because dinosaurs are always pleased to hear it. Keeping the crowd of dinos entertained with other songs is not easy; only someone trained in Perform can do it, and the DC ranges from 10 to 20 if the dinosaurs are particularly surly for some reason! Most Singers have at least 5 ranks in Perform, or else they’re eaten before too long. Humans have been known to accompany Singers along their routes. This is an easy way to meet many varieties of dinosaur in a peaceful setting. Younger dinosaurs appreciate instrumental backup, but the old guard views instruments as an abomination, destroying the essence of the art form. Still, Jeremiah Fogart and his electric guitar are well-remembered in dinosaur society. No human singer has sufficiently mastered the Song to perform on his own; those who have tried have met a gruesome fate. However, above and beyond Singing, dinosaurs have a rich appreciation for human music. Country and western music is the favorite. Scientists speculate that the twanging of the guitar reminds the dinos of pterosaur cries; indeed, some modified guitars approximate the range of different pterosaur sounds. The smarter dinosaurs are often wary of the music, since clever hunters will sometimes pipe out some old-timey country and western to lure prey into ambushes. However, an obviously innocuous traveler can often break the ice with a dino by performing a classic Johnny Cash or Tennessee Ernie Ford song. Some humans have been known to tour dinosaur lands with a group of dinosaur accompanists. Pterosaurs imitate guitars pretty well, compsognathids produce a solid percussive clatter, but the best backer is a parasaurolophus. A veritable organic music synthesizer, these walking pipe organs are able to replicate just about any sound and project it at great volume! Other humans make a lot of money performing among other humans. Jeremiah Fogart is getting rich right now playing his guitar with the backing of two parasaurolophuses – he doesn’t need to worry about a sound system; he just picks a meadow and lets loose with some lonesome lyrics. His envious competitors suggest that the dinosaurs should be getting most of his gate receipts and his royalties. Fogart has publicly challenged his own rivals to try raising twin parasaurolophuses from eggs in order to train them to produce the perfect sound at the perfect moment. So far, no one else has been able to, so there’s a steady stream of composers and musicians to the Fogart household.

The Thunder and the Dark The Thunder and the Dark is the epic poem of the tyrannosaurs. They sing it at mournful times and at the birth of a particularly promising child when the stars are right. It’s been translated into most of Cretasus’ dinosaur languages by the protoceratops poet vrthu. Hearing the Thunder and the Dark intoned by a tyrannosaur, all dinos feel a chill.

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It speaks of the time of the great dying, of the Thunder that came and roared and the Dark that followed. Mythopaleontologists consider this to be a record of a massive meteor impact upon the planet, although humans have found no sign of such an impact. Grant University scholars use this evidence to prove their “dimensional gate” concept, arguing that some tyrannosaurs came through the gate from Earth just after a great asteroid struck the Yucatan peninsula with a great roar and created a year-long time of darkness. It is said that a tyrannosaur will spare any prey dinosaur who can give a proper rendering of the Thunder and the Dark. Of course, no dinosaur without a deep set of lungs (and the ability to project into the subsonic) can speak Tyrannosaur, so it’s a moot point for most smaller creatures, and the really big dinos are rarely preyed on by T-rexes, anyway.

The Thrum Another aspect of dinosaur culture is the Thrum. The language of Dinosaur Common is limited in what it can convey, although the Song also crosses species boundaries. But the terrible Thrum has a compelling force for all dinosaurs that hear it. It is a deep warbling noise that can be produced by a dinosaur of size Large or greater, or any four dinosaurs of Medium size. Small or Tiny dinos can’t Thrum. Marine dinosaurs Thrum underwater, where other marine creatures can hear them. Only a Singer, a dinosaur with five or more ranks of Perform, can Thrum effectively. A Singer begins to Thrum whenever he feels that the natural order of things has been destroyed. Ordinarily, a Thrum is a response to deliberate malice, an atrocity of some kind: when a tribe of raptors begins to kill every dinosaur in their hunting area; when protoceratops set an entire valley ablaze to avenge the death of one of their children; when explosives destroy a clutch of hatchlings; when machine guns are trained on a herd of iguanodons; when poison gas settles into protoceratops warrens... A Thrum represents the moral outrage of a planet, put into song. Many dinosaur noises carry for miles, but not a Thrum. The high-pitched primal urgency in a Thrum does not travel far. The effective distance equals the Thrumming Singer’s Perform check multiplied by 50 feet. Dinosaurs able to hear the Thrum need to make a Will save (against a DC of 10 + singer’s Perform check) or immediately break off their activities and carefully approach the dinosaur who makes the noise. If they too witness something outside of the natural, they will begin to stamp, bellow, and beat their paws to the music. Otherwise, they attempt to kill the Thrumming dinosaur. (Crying wolf is unpopular!) After ten minutes of stamping along to the Thrum, the dinosaurs enter a berserk fury (+4 strength and constitution, -4 intelligence and wisdom) against the offending creature. Not all dinosaurs are susceptible to the Thrum. Velociraptors seem completely immune. Protoceratops are usually unaffected (in game terms, they receive a +10 bonus to their Will save).

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Humans have been unable to replicate the Thrum. Dinosaurs recognize a sham Thrum immediately and take violent offense. Grant University scientists are convinced that certain pheromones released into the air during a Thrum are the key to controlling this aspect of saurian behavior, so they periodically send out research teams armed with a new perfume to spray into the air along with a Thrum recording. Nowadays, they also include some sort of speedy transportation for the team in case the natives get restless. Thrumming dinosaurs once besieged Fort Tecumseh but failed to break in; after a day of slaughter, the Thrum abruptly stopped and the dinosaurs melted back into the jungles. Ordinarily, however, a Thrum continues until all the dinosaurs who can hear it are dead or the targets have been destroyed, after which the dinosaur who began to Thrum stops, and slowly the fury of the Thrum dies down. The Thrum has proven very inconvenient to both the Union and the Confederacy as they attempt to tame Cretasus for human habitation. The Union once tried to clear an area of dinosaurs by lobbing poison gas in artillery shells. A Thrum and carnage ensued once the gas cleared. Dinosaurs rarely Thrum when struck by rifles; they consider ordinary firearms a part of nature, a sporting part of life like claws or teeth. They don’t object to airplanes or vehicles unless they are attack dinosaurs, who consider these machines unnatural. Once New Savannah’s spaceport was complete, some early settlers attempted to destroy dinosaurs from planes. The dangerous large beasts show up on ground radar and make admirable targets for strafing. Unfortunately, this induces a Thrum if a Singer is present, and pterosaurs inspired by a Thrum will throw themselves at planes. A pilot whose vehicle hits an angry swarm of pterosaurs needs to make a Piloting check, whose difficulty depends on how many pterosaurs manage to get in his way: for 15 pterosaurs, the DC is 10; for 6-10 pterosaurs, it is DC 15; and for more than 10 pterosaurs, it is DC 20. If the pilot fails his check, the plane is damaged: it stalls and the pilot will need to make a crash landing. However, the fact that a Thrum can be performed only by Singers makes things simpler for humans – kill the local Singers (or befriend them) and the job of civilization gets much easier. The Union often hires assassins to take out Singers who enter Union territories. Even raptor tribes occasionally kill unwanted Singers who enter their territory, lest they foil the tribe’s plans.

Dinopathy and Animal Empathy It’s unclear why some people relate so well to dinosaurs. Neither the Dinopathy feat nor the Animal Empathy skill is a product of practice or education; children seem to be born with them, or sometimes they manifest instantly in the field. Calhoun Carey is of the opinion that they’re psychic powers, just like a wild one’s Animal Peer ability, reflecting a deep inborn affinity with dinosaurs. He calls Dinopathy “reaching back to the reptile brain.” The folks at Grant University are working hard to quanti-

Cultural Habits Thunder Moon When the moons are right, early in the lunar year, the ankylosaurs hold their mating ceremony. They gather in the mud pits, hundreds and hundreds of them. Then they search for mates. Their mating ritual is long and slow but not stately. First the male and then the female take mud in their long tongues and smear it all over the mate, producing spirals, squares, and wavy lines in many colors of mud. Recently, some ankylosaurs have been seen to imitate writing, though it’s not clear that they understand the purpose of writing, perhaps viewing it as a more permanent symbol of the mating ritual. After daubing one another with mud, the ankylosaurs begin the Thundering. One by one, they stamp their feet in some primordial rhythm. (Recordings of Thundering have become popular dance tracks throughout known space.) Then they lay waste to the surrounding lands in an orgy of destruction similar to a Thrum, but not directed at living targets. Starting at moonrise, they rampage until the following moonrise, when their mating begins – and continues for a full 12 hours! Finally, exhausted, they lick the mud off one another and resume normal life. During the rampage, they smash anything larger than about 8 feet tall with their mighty tails, or sometimes by simply ramming into it head-first. They ignore anything that moves, although they will respond to attacks. In this state, they are berserk, getting a +4 rage bonus to strength and constitution and fighting on until they reach -20 hit points. Ecologists theorize that this rampage helps to clear large trees and promotes the growth of smaller trees and shrubs, the mainstay of ankylos’ diet. Most ordinary folks just

enjoy the spectacle (preferably from an airplane or at the very least from a safe distance). Cretasus natives have learned not to build their houses near ankylosaur mud flats.

Dancing with Oviraptors The oviraptor mating ritual is a long, protracted process where the male and the female dance around each other for hours before the female lays her eggs and the male fertilizes them. It includes both a ritual aspect and an improvisational aspect, as each dinosaur performs original steps to convince the other of their worthiness as a partner. At any time, either the male or the female can break off the courtship if they don’t like the other’s moves, sometimes even attacking a particularly ungraceful companion. Human dance club owners have discovered that oviraptors are natural showboats who will perform their dance steps with very little provocation, so they use oviraptors to enhance their music parlors. In the more sedate clubs, oviraptors are kept in cages in the middle of the dance floor or around the edges of the floor. In some of the wilder clubs, the oviraptors are unleashed into the middle of the dance floor, and the patrons are encouraged to dance with them! Many humans find it exhilarating to attempt to imitate the moves of the oviraptor, and others attempt to work its movements into their own dance moves, an even more challenging feat. Untamed oviraptors tend to go wild when confronted with the flashing lights and the pulsing music of a modern dance club. However, they can be trained (Handle Animal, DC 15) to display their mating moves when the music starts. The oviraptors usually pay no attention to the humans who dance around them, even if they mimic its moves. They are wild creatures, however, and will bite if they are attacked or feel threatened. They also are potentially dangerous to the knowledgeable human who attempts a “female” dance in front of a male oviraptor or vice versa. That will immediately get the oviraptor’s attention and it will perform a lengthy duet with the other person. However, if the human fails to properly execute the dance steps, the oviraptor will attack in anger. Otherwise, the oviraptor dances a few more minutes before realizing that Brianna Garcia

fy Dinopathy and reduce Dinosaur Common to a language that a machine can translate and perform. So far, they haven’t had much luck. It’s important to note a couple things about Dinopathy. First, it doesn’t work on offworld reptiles, like Earth alligators and crocodiles. Second, it makes characters vulnerable to a Thrum! A character with Dinopathy must make a Will saving throw (against a DC equal to the Singer’s Perform check, with a max DC of 20) or be drawn into a Thrum, thus becoming hostile towards the target of the Thrum. At some level, the character has become a dinosaur (in sensibility, at least), and so is affected by the heartrending cry. Wild ones are always affected by a Thrum, even if they do not have Dinopathy. Characters with Dinopathy, therefore, tend toward good and neutral alignments. So deep is their connection to the natural order of Cretasus that they may (uncontrollably) fight to the death any evil against the ecosystem. Players should choose Dinopathy for their characters carefully – and non-Dinopathic characters should mind how they interact with dinosaurs, lest a Dinopathic comrade become enraged!

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the other dancer is a human – not a potential mate – and returning to its solitary dance step in peace. Humans who can “dance with the dinos” are very popular with the opposite sex. Clubs have their patrons sign release forms before entering the dance floor with a oviraptor. Treat oviraptors as having Perform (Dance) of at least 5 ranks (giving a total bonus of +7 with the oviraptor’s Dex). In order to attract an oviraptor’s attention on the dance floor, a human needs to make a Perform check at DC 15. In order to continue the duet without being attacked, the human needs to make another Perform check at DC 20!

Raptor Kidnappings Frontier families tell their children: be good, or the raptors will come and get you in your sleep! It’s not an idle tale. Raptor tribes have been known to abduct human children. In fact, it’s often a badge of honor: if a raptor tribe kills a particularly brave and worthy human foe, then the raptor tribe will sometimes adopt the warrior’s child, whether son or daughter. This will only happen if the child is small (five years old at most); otherwise, the raptors will treat the child as a small warrior and kill it. It’s an extension of a custom that raptors usually apply to other raptor clans. Raptor children grow up to be wild ones. They are taught English and thereafter speak it with an atrocious lizardy accent – although most people will think that they’re just offworlders. In most ways, they are considered to be full members of their adoptive tribe. They are not expected to take a mate within the tribe, but they might bond with a raptor widow or another non-breeding raptor. Of the four raptor-raised children known to have been recaptured by humans, none has ever been successfully reintroduced to human society. They take any possible opportunity to escape into the wilds, and kill themselves if confined for too long period. They howl miserably when kept in confinement and hurl terrible curses at their jailers. Some of those curses have come true, which has also kept down the number of attempted captures. A raptor-raised human, Laila Iron, leads the Dark Heart tribe of raptors. Her wealthy uncles, meat merchants who have bought a Union senatorship, have tried to recapture her, but so far she has eluded them. Her underground autobiography is very popular – it describes her romance with the poet and country singer Elroy Jones, who took the dinosaur name of Mire Break while with the Dark Heart tribe, but Iron’s powerful relatives have prevented any large-scale printing of Heart of Iron. Laila Iron, Offworlder Female Wil4: CR 4; Mediumsize Humanoid (6 ft.); HD 4d8+12; hp 29; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 13 (+3 Studded Leather); Atk +4 melee (1d6+2, reaper claw – see page 124); SA Dinosaur Ally, Motivating Cause; AL NE; SV Fort +7, Ref +1, Will +6; Str 15, Con 16, Dex 11, Int 10, Wis 14, Cha 10/8*. * Base of 10 reduced to 8 around humans.

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Skills: Animal Empathy +7 (7), Animal Peer +6 (4), Heal +9 (7), Hide +6 (7), Intuit Direction +4 (2), Wilderness Lore +9 (5). Feats: Alertness, Lightning Reflexes. Possessions: Knife, leather armor, liquor flask, cash $4d10, various stolen goods. SA – Dinosaur Ally (Ex): Laila Iron is allied with the Dark Heart raptors. SA – Motivating Cause (Ex): Having been raised from a very young age by the Dark Heart raptors, Laila’s motivations are very similar to theirs. Her motivating cause is the expansion of her tribal hunting grounds. She receives a +1 attack bonus against other carnivores who compete with their territory, as well as humans who would restrict their hunting area.

Ornitholestes in the Ring Ornitholestes are naturally vicious dinosaurs who show little sympathy for their own race. They also have opposable thumbs, show a deftness with manual weapons, and are easily trained. Even more so than most dinosaurs, this makes them perfect for gladiatorial combat! Gladiatorial combat is officially banned in both Union and Confederate space. However, the Free Fleet sponsors numerous arenas, and clandestine operations exist wherever the local admin-

istrators are corrupt and willing to be bribed, which is a lot of places. Male ornitholestes are often eager to display their fighting prowess and become the heroes of millions, and give their assistance to smuggling themselves offplanet. Most training is done offplanet, but it’s proven difficult to get the creatures to breed away from Cretasus, and the steep casualties in the arenas means that there’s a desperate demand for more ornitholestes fighters. For years there have been rumors of a massive breeding operation on Cretasus – raising and training ornitholestes for the ring – but neither the Union nor the Confederacy can spare the manpower to track the rumor down. Ornitholestes that fight in the ring are usually covered with a garish shade of body paint, marking them with their owner’s colors. Because they are so valuable, they often fight not to the death (-10 hit points) but merely until one fighter is unconscious (0 hit points), and the damaged fighter is tended until he recovers. Some unscrupulous arena owners train their ornitholestes to fake a killing move on an unconscious opponent. The owner claims the apparent corpse, nurses it back to health, and gives it a second career with new paint and a new name! Ring dinosaurs are trained in a variety of manual weapons and armor similar to those of the historical gladiators: sword-andshield and trident-and-net are the most common weapon combinations. Others are trained in more exotic and amusing weapons like chainsaws, burning torches, and scythes. Some gladiators wear full armor while others wear pieces only over their arms or legs or torsos. Treat Ring Fighters as having at least one level of Fighter, although they start out proficient with only one specific manual weapon and one type of armor.

Protoceratops and the Conclave The protoceratops are the only dinosaurs on Cretasus to develop a written language. Deep in their caves of knowledge, they preserve the history of the planet, as well as wondrous stories and the Songs of the great singers. At first, they were eager to share their information. But several human-induced accidents destroyed or closed off protoceratops cave complexes, and a Grant University team despoiled an ancient protoceratops bone yard. They are now wary of sharing their wisdom with humans. While an individual protoceratops will often bond with a group of humans and share her knowledge with them, the clans have decided not to allow humans into their caves of knowledge without a conclave. Every year, the protoceratops gather for their conclave, where each member, from the eldest to the youngest, in turn raises its concerns and requests for the upcoming year. Only the most important requests, requiring the assent of the entire tribe, ever go before a conclave. Poetic and musical presentations are viewed with great favor by the dinosaurs, while naked threats are usually ignored. Only at a conclave would outsiders be allowed to view the caves of learning. Human communities who wish the protoceratops to take action on one of their proposals take their place at

the end of the line. Depending on how large the tribe is, this can take days, and the protoceratops will refuse to listen to those who do not patiently wait their turn. Rumors persist that the Union has nerve-gassed a network of protoceratops caves and is closely guarding the area as its researchers attempt to decipher the ancient writings. Several of the Union’s archaeological expeditions have indeed found exquisite, abandoned protoceratops cities, but they attribute their success to superior mapping techniques that reveal past settlement patterns. Protoceratops are frequently found in the major human settlements as interpreters and research assistants. It’s rare to find a library without at least one protoceratops shuffling around the stacks, carrying books carefully in his mouth. While they can’t manipulate things like card catalogs, they do have a phenomenal memory and can remember the exact location of thousands of individual items. They prefer the large library of New Savannah with its children’s wing, as they particularly enjoy small children and will let kids climb all over them. Most urban protoceratops cover the sharp surfaces of their beaks with a sheath so that they do not accidentally maim someone. This effectively renders them defenseless, but attacking a protoceratops is a cowardly and unpopular act that will often spur nearby two-fisters to tell you to “pick on something your own size!”

Dinosaurs in the Wild Dinosaurs are smart, but they’re also creatures of instinct. In general, wild dinosaurs react to people as they would react to other unfamiliar dinosaurs: predators stalk them if they’re of a proper size, prey dinosaurs watch them alertly and flee if they’re approached. However, dinosaurs also talk amongst themselves, so even the dimmest stegosaur in the Main Valley knows about the flesh-lumps that have powerful weapons. Nevertheless, the residents of different valleys do not communicate with each other. Even the pterosaurs don’t fly from one valley to another. Only the marine dinosaurs bridge the gaps, and land dinosaurs don’t listen to them. This means that in some remote valleys, the inhabitants haven’t heard of people and will react to them naively. However, it’s always best to expect a certain amount of savvy on the part of the dinosaurs.

Herbivore Herds It’s a dangerous world out there. Most herbivorous dinosaurs travel in herds for safety. The fiercest (like ankylosaurs) and the smallest (like edaphosaurs) often travel in smaller groups, but teeming hordes of grass-munching ’saurs are a common sight on the great plains of Cretasus. It’s important to note that herds are only useful where increased eyes bring increased vigilance and where food is relatively plentiful. Thus, herd behavior is rare in forests or mountains

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or deserts, but prevalent in lush grasslands and savanna. Herds will react initially to a single human or a pair of humans only by watching carefully. The only exception would be if they’re carrying swords or wearing raptor-claws; the herd might mistake them for raptors, and will either attack or flee. Otherwise, the herd will consider a few humans not dangerous because they’re too small. A group of humans half as big as the herd or bigger will be considered a threat, and the herd will shift away from it. A herd of dinosaurs is simple (DC 5) to track, and also simple (DC 5) to spot and hear. Getting surprised by a herd of dinosaurs is possible, although it will make you the laughingstock of the valley. A herd typically posts several adult scouts on its periphery. This means, essentially, that anyone attempting to sneak up on a herd makes their opposed Move Silently and Hide checks against at least two creatures, with one more for every twenty animals in the herd. If any of these scouts spots or hears the creeper, it will immediately alert the herd. This rule reflects the general watchfulness and wariness of the group. Herd dinosaurs have two basic strategies: run and “circle the wagons.” Most herbivores of size Large or smaller will flee a dangerous predator at their running speed (x3). An entire herd of dinosaurs fleeing raises enough dust and confusion that the herd gets a +2 dodge bonus to AC against all attacks. The herd will constantly shift position as it flees; this means that it’s almost impossible to attack the same target twice without cutting a member out of the herd. After one target is wounded, it moves back into the mass, where it has at least one-half cover (+4 AC). The way to hunt herd animals is to cut an animal out of the pack. First, you have to close to melee range (possibly incurring attacks of opportunity) and make a successful Grapple, Bluff, or Intimidate roll on a dinosaur. (Remember the penalties to Bluff checks against non-humanoid opponents.) If you succeed, you drive the dinosaur away from the herd and it loses its herd bonuses. If you fail, the dinosaur attacks you and continues on as part of the herd. In addition, you will be charged by 1d2 other dinosaurs the round you attempt your attack, whether or not you succeed. A dinosaur who is stunned, dazed, or entangled also falls out of the herd. It tries to sprint (run x4) to return to the group if it is not immediately killed. There’s a lot that ecologists don’t understand about Cretasus dinosaur herds. Some herds (like triceratops) seem to have set domains, which they travel across over the course of several years. The domains of different types of herd dinosaurs often overlap, but somehow the herds avoid being in the same place at the same time. Sometimes herd animals attack humans invading their migration paths, attempting to destroy the settlements, but at other times they simply alter their movements to avoid the new developments. Both the Union and the Confederacy are eagerly seeking techniques to guide dinosaur herds into the opposition’s settlements and forts, but so far, no luck.

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Large Carnivores Tyrannosaurs and other enormous predators are not always a great threat to humans. These beasts need a tremendous amount of food, about the equivalent of a Large creature each day. Tyrannosaurs gain much of their food just by scavenging. The powerful stench given off by a rotting brachiosaur travels for miles, attracting all tyrannosaurs. They get first dibs on any corpses; nothing is stupid enough to mess with them (except humans!). Allosaurs, ceratosaurs, and other big carnivores must rely on constant hunting. Many types of prey dinosaurs stay near watering holes, taking to deeper water for protection against the carnosaurs. Other types of prey (like the triceratops) can slaughter a carnosaur in a fair fight. So most large dinosaurs rely on a charging ambush to carry out their attacks. These large dinosaurs will rarely bother with human prey unless they’re quite hungry. However, the mounts that humans use often invite attacks from big beasts. Naive dinosaurs will also consider vehicles to be prey; many’s the jeep overturned by a hungry allosaur, whose usual good nature turns to rage as he realizes his prize is a foul-tasting tooth-breaking machine! Freetowners and those living in forts are often deathly afraid of T-rexes, allosaurs, and other monstrous carnivores. Whenever they spot one approaching their settlement, they’ll hire hunters to deal with it. A family of T-rexes is often enough to convince a group of settlers to stay away from a particular site. To a large extent, their fears are unfounded, since small settlements usually contain few prey creatures of interest to a large predator. Ranchers are the ones who suffer the depredations of the big meat-eaters the most. The same characteristics that make dinosaurs good animals to herd for their meat (large size and docile nature) make them perfect targets for hungry T-rexes. Ranchers carefully plot the hunting domains of T-rexes and allosaurs on their maps as they plan the routes they hope to take to bring their herds to market. While they hope to avoid conflict, they usually also instruct their riders to shoot without mercy any carnosaurs they see. Conflicts escalate as civilization encroaches on dinosaur terrain. Those giants who live near people are more likely to be hostile towards them than are dinosaurs living in the wilds. Less contact with humans means fewer opportunities to get shot at. Wild raptors, however, are a different story. Although they hunt single creatures extensively, they also use their intelligence to capture herds. Raptors have been known to chase smaller herds into fire pits or off of cliffs. Wild raptors located away from civilization are likely to view passing humans as food, not as equals. Unless a treaty is in effect, tribes will eagerly attack groups of humans who enter their territory.

Raptors at War Raptors are the only dinosaurs sufficiently civilization to be declared “warlike.” Other dinosaurs may go berserk when they hear the Thrum, or be combative and aggressive (such as the leptoceratops), but raptors aren’t affected by the Thrum; they’re the only known dinosaurs who completely ignore its effects. Raptors plan their violence carefully. Their intentionality makes them much more dangerous. Raptors with a grievance against another dinosaur tribe – or, more recently, against humans – prepare extensively. They store preserved meat in the wild for provisions, gather knives and sharpening stones for their claws, and, most importantly, have their shamans create sufficient supplies of deadly chemicals and healing draughts. Shamans are considered too important to go to war, but they perform the Rites of Separation upon the warband. The Rites of Separation are performed near a body of water under total darkness. Those raptors about to go to war emerge from an underground area, cast off their tribal insignias, bathe in the water, and have mystic symbols painted on their chests. They then go out to destroy their enemies. Raptors at war hunt nothing but their enemies; they say nothing but to scream victory; they do not sleep, except after a successful battle; they do not flee, except to gather the others of their warband. Even when at war, they still use cunning guerilla tactics and they will not attack a superior force. Warbands are led by a tactician if one is available. Raptors are growing more adept at destroying buildings. They’ve been known to tunnel under forts with their claws. Some tribes, understanding explosives, try to mine structures. Other strategies include infiltrating bases under the cover of night or in the cargo bay of large vehicles, or rushing through open gates when a caravan or large group of vehicles passes. Raptors have occasionally run into armored vehicles and ironclads. They recognize that they cannot penetrate such armor, so they retreat. But they also recognize that there are soft, vulnerable humans hiding inside those hard metal shells, so they wait until the humans emerge, striking quickly and brutally before fading away into the night. They’re masters of lightning raids on camps and settlements, their preferred mode of attack on a superior opponent.

Against humans who face them on even terms, without air support or heavy armor, raptors can be persuaded into a battle of honor – both sides approach each other in an open field, with no ambushes or surprises planned, and fight until one side is utterly defeated, after which that side admits its loss and returns home. Such battles need to be negotiated beforehand, and raptors will only undertake them against other raptor tribes or against humans who have proven to be honorable and trustworthy in the past. Those who violate a battle of honor will nevermore be trusted by raptors if word gets out, as various forts have discovered to their chagrin.

Wild Ones and Dinosaurs Wild ones often exist in the role of solitary hunter and hermit. Other meat-eating dinosaurs are wary of the solitary wild ones and will usually not bother them as long as they respect the dinosaur’s kills; not much meat on those human bones! However, wild ones who maintain their connections with human society are often mistrusted and disliked, particularly if they lead hunting parties into the wilds or if they serve as guides for military expeditions. Wild ones who join tribes of dinosaurs are treated very differently. Much as they might like it to be otherwise, wild ones are bound by certain limits of human physiology and cannot eat the same food as herbivorous dinosaurs, nor can they live on carrion alone, which means they’re most comfortable with fellow omnivores. In addition, they often find it difficult to communicate with very large or very small dinos, so they most commonly join

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groups of Medium or Large dinosaurs, often a tightly-knit family unit. Wild ones also often find themselves running with raptors. The authorities, both Union and Confederate, consider raptor tribes with attendant wild ones a great threat, because of the wild ones’ knowledge of human culture and human military techniques. However, most wild ones who adopt dinosaur ways try to forget their past, expunging their knowledge of corrupt human society from memory; thus, a wild one living amongst a group of dinos has a -4 to all Knowledge checks relating to humanity. Among a group of dinosaurs, wild ones rarely take the role of leaders, preferring to merely exist with as little thinking as possible. However, they often serve a role analogous to that of the raptor shaman, creating healing potions and advising the tribe through a superior knowledge of the natural world. Other wild ones, like the Dinozonians, live with a group of humans in the wild, hunting and behaving like a pack of dinosaurs. Usually renouncing technological devices, but not human language, these tribes of wild ones bewilder the Confederate and Union authorities, who aren’t sure what to make of them. Ranchers view them as a nuisance to be wiped out, since they sometimes prey on their herds. Raptor tribes treat them as other raptors, as do other dinos, calling them “soft raptors” or “blunt raptors.” Sometimes these tribes pitch camp just outside freetowns in order to carry out trading. Youths from the freetowns might even sneak outside to join them once the trading is done. No one ever goes after such children; they are considered lost to the wild, even if they return, many years later, silent about their experiences.

Dinosaurs in the Economy Dinosaur Ranching and Range Wars The open plains of the central Main Valley are the territory of the ranch barons: an aristocracy of meat, where hard-bitten men on enormous, scarred dinosaurs protect fat, succulent herds of dinosaurs from raptor tribes and rival ranches, then lead them every year hundreds or even thousands of miles to a slaughterhouse, where they are shipped to a hundred worlds. The ranchers own vast tracts of land, and their bronco riders often know that land better than the official maps; arrogant and touchy, the riders view themselves as the natural rulers of the terrain, beyond mere governments, an elemental force. Dinosaur ranching is most feasible in areas that are within reach of a settlement, or with allied tribes of raptors or wild ones. With hostile natives, it’s almost impossible to ranch. Ranching works best with Medium dinos, like camptosaurs. Most of the free-range dino meat shipped offplanet is camptosaur meat. Their big advantages are that they congregate in herds, they obey authority, they’re even-tempered, they’re small enough to be manageable while being large enough to put a lot of meat on the table

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– and they taste great. The biggest problem is that they don’t breed in captivity. So ranchers every year release half their herd into the wild and capture half to bring to the slaughterhouse. Luckily for the ranchers, the herd sticks together, so they can locate them easily next year come slaughterin’ season. Most camptosaur herds in the Main Valley are branded, meaning (in theory, at least) they belong to one particular rancher. Camptosaurs thumb spikes are cut off before they’re driven to the slaughterhouse; otherwise, the risk of a stampede or an attack is too great. Thumb-clipped camptosaurs have no natural weapons except for their bulk and their tails. In the wild, these defenseless herds attract lots of predators, which seek out the aged and infirm camptosaurs and attempt to separate them from the protection of the mass. Bronco riders ride point, defending against dangerous predators. It’s a hazardous job, especially in hostile territory. Often ranchers have to call in airstrikes against threatening packs of dinos, which can sometimes trigger a Thrum if a Singer is present. Other times they literally have to rely on the cavalry – dinosaur riders in remote outposts who are called in to deal with native incursions, Union attacks, or other emergencies. Other times, ranchers strike deals with the larger local predators, using protoceratops to speed the negotiations. Herding iguanodons and pachycephalosaurs is pretty similar to herding camptosaurs. Both types of dinos are even-tempered and require protection from outside threats. Stegosaurs are even easier, since all that’s required to bring them in to market is patience and a good set of laser prods. (Few predators will bother a healthy adult stegosaur, so the drovers don’t even need to worry about protecting the herd, merely guiding it.) However, the big money isn’t in iguanodonts or stegosaurs, it’s in horn-head broncos: triceratops and their kin. Triceratops are an enormous amount of meat on the hoof, and their meat is highly prized across human space. Connoisseurs agree that triceratops meat is the most tender and tasty of all dinosaur meats. It is sold in supermarkets on hundreds of worlds as “Filet Big,” “Cretasus’ Own Horn Cuts,” “Thunder Roasters” and other beloved brand names. The biggest problem with bringing in triceratops is simply preventing the herd from stampeding and attacking the drovers! Triceratops herds follow patterns from year to year, and they’re extremely resistant to being led out of their way (to a slaughterhouse, say). To do this, the drovers have to establish their authority by thoroughly cowing the larger male triceratops into obeying their orders! Most bronco riders who herd triceratops have their own triceratops mounts: hardened veterans of numerous fights for dominance. They use their mounts to batter some of the larger males into submission; the rest of the herd quickly obeys. The other time-honored technique to herd triceratops is to use mounts that they fear: allosaurs and tyrannosaurs. Preferably, several allosaurs and tyrannosaurs at once. A herd of triceratops will attack a single giant carnivore if it stays too close, so it takes two or three acting in concert to drive a herd. Ranchers don’t cut off a triceratops’ horns to render him less dangerous; it doesn’t make business sense. Triceratops who lose

their horns often seem to despair of their life, lie down, and die. So bronco herders are forced to spend all their waking hours around powerful, easily-angered dinosaurs who could skewer them in a heartbeat. It’s not a job for the faint-hearted. Bronco herders display an admirable sangfroid in the face of danger; some often take a stint in the cavalry after they’re done herding, finding mounted combat a little more relaxing than the constant stress of keeping a hundred six-ton dynamos in order. If triceratops are spooked by something – a tribe of raptors, heavy explosives, several large meat-eating dinosaurs – and their leaders attempt to guide them in any direction except away from the threat, they will often try to crush the leaders and flee as quickly as possible. This means that herders have to keep a constant lookout for danger, including rival ranchers who might attempt to disrupt the bronco drive. Ranchers operate in two different areas: their estates and their herd’s grazing areas. First, they clear extensive estates in defensible areas to live in. This is where the wealthy ranch owner himself may live, along with his family and a few prized breeding bulls. However, to maintain their herds, the ranchers require a vast foraging territory, so they let their massive herds roam across thousands of acres of public lands. They don’t own the spaces where they feed and water their herds; no one does. Ranchers often spar with one another over prime turf, and theft of herd dinos is also common. Ranchers keep the time-honored technique of branding to differentiate their herds during the fall and winter, as they graze on the common lands. Nowadays, it’s easy to apply a brand: branding guns painlessly apply the mark to the dinosaurs. But technology has also made it easier to steal branded dinos. Modern medical technology means that branding scars, in prior years indelible, can be repaired: a DC 20 Heal check with a tech level 5 healing kit allows one to eliminate burn scars. To counteract this, most ranchers maintain two sets of marks: a public brand, known to all and marked on the dino’s hide with a branding gun; and a private chemical mixture, secretly added to the dinosaur’s food, which enters the dino’s bones and stays in their system for years. Ranchers keep this chemical cocktail to themselves, and reveal it only to the authorities, when they think someone’s rustled their broncos and changed their brands. A blood test then reveals the “inner brand” of the contested dinos. Unfortunately for legitimate ranchers, most slaughterhouses don’t check whether all dinos in a herd have the same brand; they just buy the dinos at a fixed amount per head and process them quickly. They certainly won’t perform a blood test on their meat. This means that bold thieves often prosper. There are few police in the wilds, and freeholders are usually too intimidated by the ranchers to interfere in a range war. Occasionally, the military will intervene if things get particularly messy, but for the most part such low-intensity warfare is quietly encouraged by the Confederacy as a way to develop skilled cavalry! The fertile territory near the forts and freetowns is quickly being fenced off for agriculture, to the chagrin of ranchers. The Confederacy has already developed vast experimental farms in

order to test new agricultural techniques, and independent farmers have staked numerous claims. More importantly, many of the available rivers are being diverted to irrigate croplands. This is already causing strife between ranchers (who need open space) and farmers (who need organized, fenced territories). Soldiers are often called in to restore order between the two warring bands. Around the freetowns, however, the large ranchers are effectively the law, with their own private armies of bronco riders protecting their herds and intimidating the local population. Dinosaur ranching has not been successful on other planets. While individual dinosaurs have been able to survive, herds tend to go insane on other worlds, losing their high intelligence, degenerating into mere beasts, and finally entering a self-destructive rampage, smashing everything around them before gnawing each other to death. The reasons for this gruesome behavior are unknown. The practical effect has been to drive up the prices for dinosaur meat, as more people get to taste it and the supply lags behind demand. Regulation of ranches varies between Union and Confederate lands. The Union attempts to regulate its ranchers closely, with licenses, regular veterinary visits, and supervision by the Union military machine. The Confederates allow their ranchers to appeal to nearby Confederate outposts in time of danger, and they also allow meatpackers to operate within their forts, but they make no other attempts to control or regulate ranchers. As a result, thousands of ranches have popped up on Confederate-controlled areas, many of them vanishing quickly as a result of hostile dinosaur activity or attacks from other ranchers. Union ranches also suffer such attacks, but they don’t take the hint; their owners are businessmen with political connections who grow fat and soft while depending on Union military assistance to save their herds. Meanwhile Confederate ranchers are the cutting edge of the Confederate war machine, often able to repel attacks on their own, providing an ever-increasing number of recruits for the Dino Warriors.

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Dinosaur Labor Cretasus couldn’t survive without the workhorse sauropods – brachiosaurs, apatosaurs, vulcanodons, and diplodocus – that lift and carry enormous weights all around the planet. While Cretasus is rich in oil and metals, it doesn’t have the facilities to refine enormous amounts of oil and it doesn’t have factories to create highly complex machines. (Every time one faction sets up a factory to create machine parts, the other side works hard to sabotage it.) In addition, the moist climate of the Main Valley plays hell on the internal combustion engine, still humanity’s primary mode of propulsion. The results of these interconnected processes are visible every day to Cretasus dwellers. Jungle paths are dotted with rusting-out hulks of enormous trucks and cranes brought in from offworld. From time to time, a fort launches a reclamation campaign to recover the metals and parts from those vehicles, using brachiosaurs to haul the wreckage back to civilization. The irony of a beast of burden lifting and carrying a precise machine, the product of five hundred years of technological refinement, has not been lost on machinists. Both the Union and Confederacy have come to realize that it’s silly to build an industrial base when all you really need to do is feed the natives. Brachiosaurs and their smaller cousins are the most valuable dinosaurs anyone can own. They require an enormous capital investment, which is the only start of extensive operating costs fueled by their gargantuan appetites. Brachiosaur families strip entire hillsides and small forests of their vegetation in order to survive. Diplodocus pods will clear an entire lake of seaweed over the course of a couple weeks. Most freetowns designate a large portion of their land to be Giants Grazing Zones, preserves for their enormous laborers. These dinosaurs are unable to digest most grains, and they derive no more nutritional value from tree bark than from protein shakes: it’s quantity, not quality, that counts with these enormous creatures. The Confederates use brachiosaurs as construction aids, to haul goods between towns, and to dredge new irrigation canals. Typically brachies belong to the freetown or the government, since their feeding is a public expense. However, almost every large farm owns its own “workosaur,” as do many itinerant traders. These folks are eager to protect their investments, so brachiosaurs are among the most pampered creatures in known space. More veterinarians on Cretasus specialize in treating brachiosaurs than any other species, and freetowns will spend exorbitant amounts of money preparing gigantic medications when their enormous laborers fall ill. Killing a farmer’s brachiosaur is the simplest way to ruin her farm, and in the backcountry such an act is considered almost as despicable as murdering the farmer in her sleep. Union forces use brachies heavily around mining areas, both to clear rubble away from the mines and to build roads into mountainous areas. Sustaining a brachiosaur in such a barren area requires a supply chain focused entirely on importing food for the

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brachiosaur. Big believers in the power of vehicles, the Union doesn’t use the dinosaurs much to transport valuable goods, although they assign one or two to every loyal Union freetown. It’s traditional for farmers to purchase a brachiosaur hatchling whenever a child is born into their family. The farmer then lets the child and the brachiosaur grow together until both are ready to strike off on their own. A brachiosaur is ready to begin working full-time on a farm at about age 25 (even though it’s not fully mature) and that’s about the age when most farmers want to see their kids settled with farms of their own. Another common sight on the roads is the brachy-peddler. A brachiosaur holds an awful lot of cargo, and it’s not going to be attacked by anything smaller than a family of T-rexes or a tribe of raptors, so an enterprising individual will simply purchase hundreds of tons of varied goods at New Savannah and strike out into the wilderness to do some trading. When a brachy-peddler arrives at a new town, it usually takes her two whole days to unpack her goods for trading, although she might allow quick peeks to some of the town’s children. Her appearance is a festive event in town, marked by celebrations and corn liquor, since most locals don’t get much chance to trade their goods. Oftentimes the brachy-peddler has new offworld fabrics, spices, or technology – things which would never show up in the freetown’s general store – so the peddler usually ends up with most of the freetown’s liquid capital. Brachy-peddlers travel from freetown to freetown, spending a week or more in each town, buying anything

that’s not nailed down for future trades, picking up gossip, and remembering what’s popular in each town. Peddlers usually take a year or two to complete their circuit of small freeholds. After they return to New Savannah, they bank their profits and buy a new set of goods for another run through the towns. Mugging a brachy-peddler is a bad idea, even when the dinosaur isn’t around. Most brachies have spent decades forming friendships with their riders, and they can get a mite ornery when their masters fail to appear. Freetowns have been nearly flattened just because a peddler was sleeping off a hangover.

Cooking Dinosaurs People on Cretasus eat dinosaur meat and dinosaur eggs all the time. Dino meat is a delicacy offplanet. It’s legal to ship meat, and it’s a major export: folks all over the universe enjoy a good hunk of iguanodont. Munchasaurus is the premier offworld restaurant specializing in dinosaur meat. Their Brontoburgers, BrachLTs, and Igunanochomps (little bite-sized nuggets for the kiddies) are popular quick eats in every human city. Munchasaurus has seen meteoric growth in the last five years. Contrary to popular opinion, they do use 100% dinosaur meat in their meals, which means a lot of shipping. Munchasaurus is the primary exporter from Cretasus. Munchasaurus transports, featuring their distinctive logo (a dinner table with a tyrannosaurus bite taken out of it), are a common sight at New Savannah and Fort Lincoln, loading up flash-frozen dinosaur corpses for the long haul back to dinner tables on hundreds of worlds. Munchasaurus contracts with both the Union and the Confederacy to get its meat products, but its success has also interested the Cabal, which is working to take control of the corporation for its own nefarious purposes. Munchasaurus often hires groups of bronco riders to herd wild dinos into a slaughterhouse area; it charges a figurative arm and leg for the resulting “Guaranteed: Wild!” chops. Other restaurants are pickier about their meat. Gourmet restaurants want wild dinosaurs, since the meat is gamier and their knowledgeable customers can tell the difference. In addition, they seek dinosaurs that were unafraid when they were killed – the presence of certain fear-related hormones in the body at the time of death subtly alters the taste. A dino which is killed while asleep, or while flatfooted, is considered pristine for their purposes, and they’ll pay top dollar, up to five times the market price, for a pristine corpse of the desired species. They don’t mind messy kills, but they do insist on a swift death. Agents for these restaurants often hang around spaceports looking for a group willing to hunt down a dinosaur according to their specifications, but they find few takers – it’s very difficult to kill a ceratosaur in one shot, no matter what weapon you’re using, and most dinosaurs are notoriously light sleepers. Dinosaur meat has a distinctive, exciting flavor but is often tough. It is best simmered or boiled for a long period of time in

order to soften the meat. Its strong taste can put off many diners, so non-Cretasus natives add a lot of spices. Munchasaurus, for example, uses garlic and basil in most of their products. Confederates who preserve their Louisiana Cajun heritage have brought Cajun cuisine to Cretasus, dusting off their great-greatgreat-great-grandpappy’s alligator recipes for use with the new meat. It works great, and dino gumbo can be found a’cookin’ all over Confederate-held territory. Among the Union settlements , the preferred cooking style is slow-roasting on a spit over a fire pit. True dino warriors just chop up their kill, give it a quick burst with a flamer to sear it, and chow down. Raw dino is stomach-churning; characters need to make a Fortitude save (DC 10) to keep it down. Dried dinosaur meat, or “lizard jerky,” is best kept for emergencies. All sides agree on one thing – mincing a dinosaur is like eating quiche. Real men just don’t do it.

Dinosaur Smuggling To humans, dinosaurs are among the most valuable living things, anywhere. Cloning technology is highly regulated by the Union government; the technology necessary to clone and breed dinos is exorbitantly expensive, rarely found in public hands. It’s cheaper to send raiding ships to swoop down on Cretasus and escape quickly with a hold full of dinosaurs, trying to establish a breeding colony in a hidden locale. Passenger liners which tour Cretasus sometimes leave with more passengers than when they began. Both the Union and the Confederacy object to third parties attempting to smuggle dinos offplanet: the Union because it believes that dinosaurs in private hands are dangerous, and the Confederates because selling dinosaurs is a lucrative source of funds for the government, and they’re not about to give that up to some damn Yankee traders! Taking live dinosaurs offplanet is illegal, punishable by life imprisonment by the Confederacy and the annihilation chamber by the Union. So far, all the offplanet breeding projects have either been dismal failures or have been located by the authorities, but the smugglers keep trying. The most valuable dinosaurs are the meat-eaters, who are brought into fighting pits and gladiatorial arenas all over known space. As described above, ornitholestes are valued for their manlike stance, martial tendencies, quickness in learning to use weapons, and willingness to battle one another to the death. Trexes also command top dollar and deep respect for their legendary size; brutal arena masters pit them against elephants, rhinos, lions and tigers. Small, brightly-colored dinos are prized as pets. There’s little demand for the big herbivores, and the costs of transporting them are astronomical, so compsognathus and other smaller dinosaurs also make valuable quarry. Simply landing on Cretasus and grabbing all the dinos nearby is a viable strategy, although it means the raiders will only get whatever dinos are in the area, not necessarily the smallest and

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most valuable. Instead, most smugglers operate with the help of planetside accomplices. These accomplices catch an assortment of small dinosaurs, then hide in a cave or isolated area to await a rendezvous with their ship, which lands, loads, and runs. Authorities have broken up several such smuggling rings based in the Hideout Hills. Smugglers use expensive alien technology that can cloak a ship from most human sensors, and smugglers rely on this “shimmer field” to mask their presence. However, the shimmer field frequently causes fluctuations with ship’s engines, which means constant repairs and an uncertain approach time. Many a smuggling team has to wait for weeks as their ship limps toward Cretasus from the warp gate after an unexpected engine sputter! The shimmer field also does not completely eliminate a radar image, nor does it prevent visual sightings, and so the Union or the Confederacy may dispatch a patrol to investigate a possible sighting. Some smugglers will just brazen it out, sweeping through the Alacion Portal with a false flight plan and having their illegal cargo secretly brought to the spaceport. Well-established smuggling networks exist in all the major settlements. New Savannah has its share of corruption and theft. While the smugglers do bring wealth into these cities, they also commit crimes from assassination to sabotage as they try to protect their lucrative profession. Despite all this, the smugglers are folk heroes with the population, especially among some of the backwoods freetowners, and their deeds are common gossip. In the forts and in New Savannah, they are quite unpopular, but every smuggler has a friendly hometown where he can lie low and relax after a tough day’s work, which makes them very hard to track down. The most feared smugglers are the Red Claws, who use raptor-claw weapons as their assassination tools. The Red Claws are currently trying to eliminate the richer and older Dons, a group based on the legendary Earth mafia, whose secret leaders take pseudonyms like “Don Iguana” and “Don Tracho.” These battles occasionally spill into the streets, and the authorities are desperate to crack down on both groups. The Red Claws are known to run guns to raptors. The Dons view this as a betrayal of the human race, and are quick to point out the moral failings of their rivals, even as they work hard to assassinate every Red Claw man they can find. It’s common knowledge that any piece of mail addressed to “Red” and sent through the postal service will eventually find its way to the Red Claws, while the Dons operate Cretasus’ only winery.

Dinosaur Hunting Dinosaur hunting is a big deal on Cretasus. The rich from hundreds of worlds dream of testing their mettle against a tyrannosaur. Farmers make reprisal raids against raptor tribes. Confederate and Union troops try to capture entire herds of riding dinosaurs for cavalry mounts. Trophy hunting, since it doesn’t

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involve shipping live dinos offworld, is allowed, indeed encouraged by the Confederates as a test of strength and honor. Expeditions into the deep jungle do not rely on powered vehicles, which are likely to break down or draw unwelcome attention. Instead, hunters use dinosaur mounts both to travel and to carry the kills. Dinosaur mounts are expensive and hunting is very dangerous, so most hunters build money and skill either working on ranches or with the military forces of one or the other government. Others prove themselves by arriving in town with a ceratosaur carcass. Hunters face many threats: first, there’s the prey itself, difficult to kill even with modern, high-powered weaponry. It’s a mark of pride among “true hunters” not to use alien weaponry to take down their kills, which makes it even more challenging. Next, there’s the necessity of avoiding the competition: raptor tribes and other carnivores, who are an unwelcome sight for any hunting group that’s planning to go after big herbivores. Some expeditions outfit themselves to take on raptors or T-rex, but it’s an entirely different set of weaponry that’s appropriate, and those hoping to bag raptor also make sure to have a very fast escape route planned, in case the whole tribe makes an appearance. Professional hunters often use triceratops or allosaur mounts for solo expeditions. These combat-ready mounts can carry enormous amounts of trophies and meat. Alternatively, hunters may make deals with a raptor tribe, travelling on foot or on a lighter mount, giving the meat to the tribe and bringing home only valuable portions of the skeleton. However, most hunters make their money leading wealthy offplanet tourists into the jungles. Although exporting live dinosaurs is illegal, bringing dead dinos offplanet is perfectly fine. Dino hunters usually come bearing high-powered weapons and high-powered egos, eager to bring home a trophy for the corporate boardroom or the manor house. Taking a dino-hunting trip to Cretasus is an expensive proposition, so only the rich can afford to make the trip. A typical “hunting package” has the tourists starting out from one of the major forts, where they are met by a native hunter/guide who checks their gear, makes necessary purchases in town, then leads them to a stable to pick up their mounts. Part of the whole experience is riding a dinosaur, so the tourists spend a few days getting used to their mounts – typically camptosaurs, since they’re docile and easily led, although the native hunter will point to their thumb spikes as a sign of their dangerous nature. Guides also check that the tourists have at least a minimum degree of competence with the basic dino-hunting weapons. Once the guide is sure that they won’t embarrass themselves, they head into the jungles. Most hunting parties hire a raptor guide or a wild one to advise the group leader, tell the group where the dinos’ lairs are, and keep them apprised of raptor and T-rex movements. Wellequipped but foolish hunting parties launch reconnaissance probes to lead the way, but these drones don’t last long; pterosaurs, the climate, the Union, and the Confederates all work together to take them down. Dinosaur hunters typically want unblemished souvenirs of

their accomplishments, trophies which often include the three H’s: heads, hides, horns. Screamer rifles are the ideal tools for taking down dinosaurs and leaving the trophy parts untouched, but most hunters and hunt aficionados consider them a coward’s weapon because of their area effect. Besides the screamers, the following weapons do no damage to a dino’s corpse: amp bomb, laser pistol, laser rifle, and monofilament blade. The wealthy often come bearing masterwork laser rifles, considered the gun of choice for the sportsman. Responding to customer demand, Winchester Pyrotechnics has released a special laser rifle with an inertiadampening mount, meant to be fired from the back of a moving dino, which is what most Cretasus hunters now carry. Other weapons are classified as “messy,” “very messy,” or “unsuitable” for dinosaur hunting. Messy weapons have a 1% chance per point of damage inflicted of ruining the pelt, and prey killed with messy weapons has a 10% chance of having its head or horns damaged. A good shot will preserve the value of a pelt: prey killed with a critical hit always has its valuable parts undamaged. Very messy weapons have a 3% chance per point of damage inflicted of ruining the pelt, and prey killed with a very messy weapon has a 40% chance of having its head or horns damaged. Prey killed with a critical hit from a very messy weapon still has a 20% chance of having its valuable parts ruined. Unsuitable weapons always render the pelt unusable, and have an 80% chance of ruining the head or the horns, even with a critical hit. Messy weapons: All manual and melee weapons except monofilament blade, Colt .45, Absentee Voter, Automatic Pistol, Musket, ROGUE rifle, Whisper Gun, Shotgun, Winchester Rifle, Laser Lance, Laser Sword Very Messy Weapons: Monofilament Blade, Bronto Gun, Heavy Machine Gun, Frag Grenade, Pulse Rifle, Wide Beam Laser Unsuitable Weapons: Flamer, Howzer, Piledriver, Cryon Ray, Plasma Sling, Plasma Bomb, Chimera Fiend, Annihilator, Dust Gun

Dinosaur Tourism Dinosaurs are the most exciting thing on dozens of worlds. Researchers and rich folks alike are eager to see them in person! The tight military control that both sides put on Cretasus means that only the rich have a realistic chance of coming to Cretasus just to see dinosaurs. However, every grunt in the Union army and every Confederate colonel dreams of being reassigned to Cretasus, to see the dinosaurs. Frequent expeditions leave the bases with rather questionable objectives – really, they’re just to see the ‘saurs. Expeditions into the wilds are dangerous, of course, even if you’re planning to watch and not hunt. One of the few companies that has managed to establish a reputation as a safe and reliable service is Blue Pygmy Expeditions. Blue Pygmies are offworlders from a particularly hostile planet where some of the insects get as big as the dinos on Cretasus. Fifty years ago, the Blue Pygmy

president-for-life had a brainstorm, and his world’s economy shifted almost entirely from subsistence farming to tourism. He retrained his army to lead the curious and the wealthy through their terrain. Now, they’ve branched out into Cretasus, where they give their clients the full Cretasus experience: touring forts and breeding pens, and moving through protoceratops caves, raptor villages, and triceratops herds. Blue Pygmy routes often seem very dangerous to travelers, but it is all an illusion. The Blue Pygmies present themselves as super-tough super-strong battle dynamos, ready to take on any dinosaur that dares challenge them. The truth is that they’re extremely shrewd businessmen who plan every second of every expedition and pay dinosaurs very well in order to produce a false sense of danger. Blue Pygmies somehow drive off the ravening Trex just before it reaches the lumbering brachiosaur carrying the supplies; they always persuade the raptor tribe to reject its xenophobic warrior-chief and free its human captives; they head off the herd of triceratops at the last minute with a loud explosion. Never a dull moment, but never a truly dangerous one either. Most Blue Pygmies are Two-Fisters, and some are full-blown Bronco Riders, but they realize they aren’t totally well-adapted to Cretasus yet. For security, the Blue Pygmies hire mercenaries to travel with large groups, concealing them as fellow tourists. They also use outside help to scout new routes and begin negotiations with fierce-looking but greedy dinosaurs. There are persistent rumors that the Blue Pygmies are connected with the Dons’ smuggling operations.

Dinosaur Picture Shows Communications satellites do not last long in Cretasus orbit; one side or the other shoots them down as soon as they reveal themselves by transmitting. So television is broadcast at the ground level by powerful transmitters. Places outside of the Main Valley lack reception. Television sets themselves are rare, even in New Savannah and the few settlements that have electricity. That hasn’t stopped dinosaur television and dinosaur movies from becoming an important part of popular culture. The most popular television show in the world is “White Branch Raptors’ Hour.” The White Branch Raptors got their broadcasting equipment after they ate a particularly annoying paleoanthropologist who had some surprisingly good gear for a researcher. Their shaman learned how to use it after a lot of trial and error, eventually making contact with human television companies though a protoceratops intermediary. The humans were blown away by the sheer stark power of what they saw, and the ‘Hour was born. The ‘Hour usually involves a hunt, a meal scene, some philosophical expostulation (in Raptor, untranslated), and possibly an attack on a rival group that has entered White Branch lands. The raptors bring their raw footage to a heavily-guarded freetown studio where it is carefully but lightly edited (the White Branch group has eaten producers who made unwanted changes to their

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show). The show is broadcast around Cretasus, generally picking up 60% or more of the available audience. The White Branch clan is large and prosperous beyond the dreams of most raptors. Its success has led to recent intertribal friction over what to do with its newfound wealth, which makes even better television as its members challenge each other to fights to prove the worth of their arguments! So far no one has managed to replicate the success of the White Branchers. One well-funded attempt to copy this show, the Thunder Hills Raptors Hour, led to the extermination of the Thunder Hills Raptors by forces unknown. The smoking crater of the recording studio has helped to discourage others from bringing copycat shows to air. Sometimes raptors will adopt the mannerisms of the White Branch group in order to interact well with people. Some raptors go so far as to impersonate the White Branch crew, hoping for gifts from star-struck humans. Most people can’t tell raptors apart, so they frequently fall for these shams. Even outside the White Branch Raptors Hour, dinosaurs are the most popular subject of entertainment in the galaxy. Directors and creative artists are eager to record dinosaurs and use them in their shows. Holographic techniques can perfectly replicate reality, but some snobs claim to be able to tell the difference. A study of dinosaur life also leads to better, more “realistic” action. This means that entertainers are occasionally found wandering the wilds of Cretasus, negotiating with protoceratops or wild ones to get the perfect image for their work. The tools of the modern entertainment industry are microsensors. These fist-sized devices, developed from alien technology, are liberally deployed around an area and provide 360 degree coverage of that area, picking up several different kinds of input and storing them. In addition, conscientious entertainers will use handheld scopes with inertial dampers to capture the perfect image.

Dinosaurs as Weapons Both sides are eager to use dinosaurs as weapons in their military campaigns. Developing an industrial base on a newly conquered world is extremely difficult; raising and training a bunch of triceratops is a lot easier and cheaper than importing ironclads and trained pilots. Both sides view dinosaurs as a means to developing superb and inexpensive colonial troops.

Cavalry Mounts The simplest and most obvious military use for dinosaurs is in the cavalry. It’s important to note that technology in Broncosaurus Rex has taken a different track than modern technology has. Our Earth has supertanks that would run roughshod over triceratops cavalry. It’s true that Confederate dinosaur cavalry would have little chance attacking New York or any other

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Union cities on Earth. However, powered vehicles are not in common use on Cretasus, or most other colony worlds, because they tend to break down, because it’s difficult to repair them on a preindustrial world, and because they’re not designed for local weather, atmospheric, and gravity conditions. It takes time for a local economy to gear up to produce its own vehicles, and it takes time for technicians to discover which modifications are most appropriate for a particular vehicle for a particular planet. Dinosaurs, however, reproduce themselves, are hardy and adaptable, and mend quickly, so they’re ideal bioweapons. Triceratops: Much current cavalry research is on the horned dinosaurs (ceratopsians). They travel in large herds, so they’re used to close contact with one another. As plant-eaters, they can live off the land, and their upkeep is much less expensive than meat-eaters. They are easy to breed and relatively easy to train when a hatchling. Furthermore, their thundering charge is terrifying. In combat, their bony frills protect their riders as they charge. A rider on a charging triceratops gains one-half cover (+4 AC). Laser lances are the preferred weapon of the triceratops rider, because the mount’s instinctual attack mode also sets up the rider for a similar attack. Iguanodon: A lot of research has also gone into training iguanodons. Iguanodon mounts have become less popular as the market for their sumptuous meat has grown. Even so, many bronco riders who have tamed their iguanodons swear by their usefulness as mounts and refuse to eat them. While not nearly as effective as the triceratops in combat, they’re faster, lighter, and able to assume a more agile two-footed stance to navigate tricky terrain. They have many of the same advantages of triceratops: they’re herd beasts, able to accept human authority; they’re plant eaters, so they’re less of a logistical burden. Their great handicap right now is their unwillingness to breed in captivity. Scientists are scratching their heads in confusion over how to get these creatures into “mass production” – the group that figures out the mysteries of iguanodon breeding will be richly rewarded. Allosaurs: If you have to have a carnivorous mount, allosaurs are clearly the way to go, with their affability and eagerness to please. Wild allosaurs don’t really serve as mounts; they agree to take a position as a mount. They’re not sophisticated enough to want a salary, but they do expect frequent gifts, and will just walk away from a rude rider (they’re too polite to eat their riders... usually!). Allosaurs raised from the egg to be mounts are more docile and respectful than their wild cousins. Allosaurs are not used to traveling in large groups and are uncomfortable in formations. They are ideal for lone scouts, but not so useful for a mass charge. They spook most animals and even most dinosaurs smaller than a triceratops. Allosaurs are extremely expensive to maintain, another drawback. They can’t forage for themselves as they travel, as the herbivores can. After two days of travel, they need to spend one day hunting in order to maintain their fighting trim, or be provided with a Large carcass every three days. Besides their obvious combat prowess, the other advantage to

keeping an allosaur mount is that it is a knowledgeable and wise companion, willing to chat and provide companionship for lonely days. Allosaur riders have very high morale and are tightly bound to their mounts, and the camaraderie means that both rider and mount are willing to fight to protect one another, something missing with other types of dinosaurs. The Union views the high intelligence of the allosaur as a potential drawback, fearing a revolt of its “vehicles.” Union scientists have developed an operation to limit allosaur intelligence, which is often performed on allosaurs bred in captivity. This operation results in a stunted, withered allosaur, two-thirds normal size, with an Int of 6. These beasts are noticeably easier to train than standard allosaurs (DC 20 as a youth), while still retaining their good nature. So far Union scientists have been able to pass off these creatures as a heretofore unknown species, but if the allosaurs ever learn the truth about their lobotomized brethren, they will be out for blood.

Armored Dinosaurs Even during the early years of the Civil War, it was clear that horses were on their way out as cavalry mounts, mostly due to their vulnerability to modern weaponry. Dinosaurs are more robust than horses, but sometimes they also need help. The ideal dinosaur armor would be light, rugged, and would not affect mobility. Dinosaur mounts usually need to be able to pack their armor, since they spend a lot of time traveling across country, and they can’t wear armor for extended periods without an agony of chafing. For most circumstances, flak armor is good – it doesn’t weigh much and it’s only moderately expensive (especially compared to the cost of the dinosaur). Flak armor does require advanced technology to create, however, so it’s not logistically appropriate for colonial worlds; even on Cretasus it’s hard to get outside of the major forts. Most bronco riders use hide armor, because dinosaur hides are easy to get and prepare. It does slow down the dinos, but it’s perfect for an emerging colony since it’s grown, not manufactured. Of course, the well-equipped warrior surrounds her dino and herself with an absorption field. Any field big enough to surround a dino is also capable of surrounding its rider. Again, this is an expensive option, but with a flak vest and absorption field, the front AC of a triceratops rises to 25 against bullets, comparing very favorably with that of an armored vehicle.

Cyborged Dinosaurs Dinosaurs are not just animals. They are much smarter than the average creature and can learn to utilize high technology. Dinosaurs that can be used as mounts are unable to properly utilize machines, since they lack an opposable thumb. So machinists have been working to implant various devices into their dinosaurs to strengthen them. Most devices enhance the senses: low-light vision, enhanced hearing (+2 to listen rolls), and implanted radio

receivers are common enhancements (costing a mere $500 at a lab with an experienced machinist). However, some experiments consist of enhancing the natural powers of the dinosaur. Besides the silverclaw raptors, one experiment removed the horns of a triceratops and replaced them with laser lances (increasing gore damage to 4d8+7, doubled on a charge!), which unfortunately requires the dinosaur to be calmed and have the laser power packs recharged daily. Triceratops have also had armor plates surgically implanted (extra +4 natural armor bonus), although that cuts their speed to 20 feet. Scientists have also implanted poison glands into various dinos. The glands can be added to either the bite or the claw attack of a dinosaur; a gland stores enough poison for 10 attacks, and many varieties of poisons exist, including knockout (DC 15, 1 Con/unconsciousness), red agony (DC 18, 1d2 Dex/1d6 Dex), and screaming skull (DC 12, 1d6 Int/1d6 Int). If the poison gland bearer suffers any damage, there’s a 5% chance of the gland rupturing, with subsequent spillage of poison into the bearer’s system, with a penalty to the Fort save of -1 per remaining dose. In at least one case, the stress of these secret experiments caused a machinist to crack. After slipping out of a top secret research base, Canada Louie Wilhelm became legendary for his attempts to transplant human brains into ceratosaur bodies. When Union troops finally tracked him down, they found his base completely abandoned but surprisingly well-stocked. A few cryptic notes claimed success in the experiments. They also found the headless corpses of several wealthy elderly men. Union spies still keep a watchful eye for Canada Louie, who knows far too many secrets, although they scoff at his extravagant claims – in public. In private, they’re worried.

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Flying and Aquatic Dinosaurs Most strategists, quartermasters, and meatpackers view aquatic dinosaurs as less useful than the land creatures, but weapons masters are still trying to domesticate them and develop their capabilities for combat. Most training is similar to that of dolphins in the old Union Navy: plesiosaurs are used as minesweepers and to carry high explosives on suicide missions. In addition, unleashing a few elasmosaurs into swimming areas is a terror tactic not beyond the Cabal. Flying dinosaurs are an entirely different kettle of fish. Pteranodons can carry 200 pounds – enough for a slender rider and his gear. Saboteurs, snipers, and spies favor pteranodon mounts for their silence, their speed, and their ability to go where land creatures cannot. Pteranodons spend much of their time gliding, making them very quiet fliers, and they are difficult to pick out in the night sky. They don’t show up particularly well on radar screens since they’re not made of reflective metal. They’re perfect for infiltrating men into faraway places. They have a high metabolism rate for dinos – it takes 30 pounds of fish to feed a pterosaur for one day. But they can go several days without food in a pinch, and the seas are swarming with fish, so it’s easy to maintain their ravenous appetites. Both sides are engaged in crash breeding programs to create more tractable and easygoing pteranodon mounts, as well as slightly larger and heavier creatures that can carry more weight. They’re also looking for slim or short folks to serve as an elite pteranodon corps! The Blue Pygmies have already politely turned down a request by the Confederacy to serve as their elite flying corps, and the Union is actively recruiting the petite inhabitants of several distant offworld locations. Especially on Cretasus, where powered air vehicles are constantly swarmed by the native pterosaurs, an air force composed of pteranodon riders is very attractive to the military commanders. Pterosaurs are the most reliable communications medium on Cretasus. Since electronic communicators are limited to line-ofsight range and can be jammed with a scrambler, important or secret messages are usually consigned to couriers on pteranadons. They keep irregular schedules and are often difficult to distinguish from routine training flights, which makes it difficult to target the couriers and intercept the documents. However, it does mean that sometimes a dead man, a dead lizard, and some extremely valuable information comes falling from the sky into the middle of nowhere – victims of a lightning storm, another pterosaur, or a lucky shot from enemy troops. Locating and retrieving those documents from the middle of the Cretasus wilderness can be quite a challenge. Some of the freetowns have established an airborne express to deliver letters – pteranodon riders who carry mail and small packages between isolated settlements. These riders paint their pteranadons white, declaring themselves neutrals in the struggles between the Union and the Confederacy, and they’re usually welcome at any settlement or fort. Spies from both sides often pose as

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airborne express men to gather information; it gives them the perfect cover and a legitimate reason to be flying a pterosaur across the countryside.

Union vs. Confederate Strategies For Dinosaurs The Union has little respect for dinosaur life. Merely clever animals, they’re tools to be used in order to crush resistance and destroy the enemy. Raptors, allosaurs, and other intelligent dinosaurs are to be treated just like other less-developed aliens: as means to an end, as drones and cannon fodder. Union courts have ruled that dinosaurs are chattel with no rights: they can’t own property, can’t testify in court, can’t even travel in Union-controlled territories without government permission. (This last rule is rather hard to enforce, however.) The Union pours money and time into research on the military uses of dinosaurs. The Union is extremely interested in developing the Thrum to send hordes of berserk dinos against its foes. It also seeks to induce triceratops rampages and breed savage raptors to unleash upon foes. The Union views dinosaurs as the perfect bio-weapons, a sort of giant plague ready to be unleashed upon its opponents. Time and time again, Union expeditions into the wilderness are ambushed and destroyed because they underestimate the cleverness and abilities of the Cretasus dinosaurs. While natives of Cretasus know the dinosaurs better, Union tactical and strategic doctrine is set by generals and senators on Earth, whose policies in turn come from the Cabal, which has its own motives for keeping the Union from forming closer ties with the intelligent dinosaurs. Still, the Union does possess a powerful machine base and frequently sends out devastating expeditions to punish a dinosaur ambush. The dinosaurs often retaliate, and the cycle of violence escalates until one side or the other concedes after too many casualties – usually the dinosaurs. The Confederates view dinosaurs as allies, not tools. Confederates sign and respect treaties with raptor tribes. They value and treasure their relationships with lesser dinosaurs, even as they attempt to understand the sentience of the brighter species. The Confederacy has a deep respect for the capabilities and powers of the dinosaurs; even when they find themselves fighting a particular group of dinos, they’re always careful to treat their opponents with caution. Of course, the greed intrinsic in individual humans is still a limiting factor on the attitude of any particular Confederate citizen. Confederate research into dinosaurs has focused primarily on their abilities when combined with people, such as in a cavalry role. They’re less interested in using dinosaurs as terror weapons or bio-tools, and more interested in developing teamwork between men and dinosaurs. Dino Warriors are their ultimate goal, a fusion of man and dinosaur into a skilled and deadly juggernaut.

Dinosaur Combat Rules

Unarmed Combat with Dinosaurs

Fighting with Dinosaurs

Individual characters engaged in unarmed combat with dinos are at a huge disadvantage. Nevertheless, two-fisters will sometimes try it, especially when drunk, so here are some guidelines. Dinosaurs cannot be disarmed. Two-footed dinosaurs can be bull rushed; it is impractical to attempt this with a four-footed dinosaur and merely extremely unwise for a tyrannosaur. Characters can grab opponents which are very large, but they can’t hold anything two or more size classes larger than they are. Even if you grapple a smaller dinosaur, unless you pin him he’ll still be able to cut you up with his natural weapons. This rule doesn’t allow for certain crazy cinematic actions, like a horde of small dinos pulling down a tank, or for the “running of the triceratops.” Those sorts of swarming tactics are totally in keeping with our conception of the game, so here’s a rules change: if there are eight or more creatures colluding in a grapple, one of them may make a grapple attack on a creature three sizes larger. If sixty-four collude, then one of them may make a grapple attack on a creature four sizes larger. Allosaurs and ceratosaurs are quite fond of grappling, not really to hurt their opponents, but to keep them in one place so they can kill them easier! Tyrannosaur forelimbs are too tiny for an effective grapple. Overrun attacks don’t work on dinosaurs if they’re more than one size class larger than the character attempting it. Neither does the trip action. Most dinosaurs will overrun PCs blocking a path to food or if they feel trapped. Many of the larger herbivores trample instead of overrunning; read the description of the dinosaur to find out if it’s capable of trampling its opponents.

Fighting with dinosaurs requires a quick review of the rules for combat with large creatures. The rules about facing can make it complicated to determine exactly how many creatures can attack a large creature at once. The rules allow many, many creatures to attack dinosaurs at once. For example, fourteen humans (5 ft. x 5 ft.) can attack one stegosaurus (5 ft. by 20 ft.): one at each end, four along each side, and four on the corners. To make things simple when dealing with large creatures, remember that the rule of thumb is that eight creatures that have the same face (if square) can attack one another. So up to eight 10 ft. x 10 ft. dinosaurs (e.g., ceratosaurs) can attack one 10 ft. x 10 ft. camptosaurus. The more interesting rule, and one that will frequently arise when humans attack dinosaurs, is reach. A defender with longer reach than its attacker gets an attack of opportunity when the attacker moves within its threat zone. This includes most characters attacking dinosaurs. Most dinosaurs have at least a 10 ft. reach, and some have more; the tyrannosaur, for instance, has a 15 ft. reach. This also means that a tyrannosaur, with its 15 ft. reach, gets an attack of opportunity on a charging triceratops with a 10 ft. reach. Characters 5 ft. from a creature with 10 ft. reach, or 10 ft. from a creature with 15 ft. reach, are also unable to retreat without provoking an attack of opportunity. You get it coming and going.

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Chapter III: Player Reference Character Classes Prestige Class: Dino Warrior Dino Warriors are the Confederacy’s elite dinosaur cavalry. PCs who become Dino Warriors put themselves in the service of the Confederate military. They receive specialized training in raising and training dinosaurs, access to the Dino Warrior domesticated dinosaur herds, and the admiration of virtually all the settlers on Cretasus. But they are limited by their military role. Characters become Dino Warriors for many reasons. Bronco riders find that the rigorous training and experience in the hatcheries develops their animal handling skills beyond the limits of life on the ranch. Soldiers become Dino Warriors because they can apply their disciplined strategy and tactics to a kind of cavalry warfare that is unique in the galaxy. Some two-fisters become Dino Warriors because their adventurous, rough-and-tumble frontier life is appealing. Machinists and spies rarely become Dino Warriors, and wild ones cannot multiclass. Not all of the Confederacy’s dinosaur-mounted soldiers are members of the Dino Warriors prestige class. Multi-classed bronco riders/soldiers have a place in the Dino Warriors chain of command – usually quite low. These are simply the “riders” – a term the Dino Warriors use to describe soldiers who can ride dinosaurs but aren’t skilled enough to train or raise them. Hit Die: d10. Requirements To qualify to become a Dino Warrior, a character must fulfill the following criteria. Place of Origin: Confederate or Offworlder. Loyalty: Loyal to the Confederacy. Animal Empathy: 8 ranks (bonuses from Dinopathy feat count as ranks). Handle Animal: 8 ranks (bonuses from Dinosaur Presence feat and a bronco rider’s levels count as ranks). Ride: 6 ranks. Feats: Mounted Combat, Dinopathy. Special: After applying for membership, a character must spend a year working in the hatcheries. The first three months are pure drudgery – shoveling triceratops dung, hauling dinosaur

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feed, turning eggs under heat lamps at precise intervals, and so on. The next six months are more interesting: training wild dinosaurs, tending to injured animals, catching wild dinosaurs intact, and raising the young from the hatchery. The final three months are a taste of Dino Warrior life: accompanying patrols and basically living like a full-fledged Dino Warrior. At the end of the year, the character’s performance is evaluated. The training period should be role-played – although the first few months are pretty bland, the last portion involves some real adventure. If you as the GM want to speed past the bland parts, award some experience (500 XP is appropriate) to the Dino Warrior-in-training for nine months of service. The course of the training will test all of the requirements for being a Dino Warrior (loyalty, Animal Empathy, Handle Animal, Ride and mounted combat ability). In general, unless the character failed his checks repeatedly or did something very stupid, he will proceed on to the initiation rites. The initiation rites are a number of solo tasks similar to those described on pages 36-37. There should be at least three encounters of CR 4 or higher. If the character survives, he is inducted into the Dino Warriors. Adventures: The thing to remember about Dino Warriors is that they are part of the Confederate military. Their adventuring is limited by the call of duty. A GM can arrange his campaign to suit this fact, since there is no shortage of missions for Dino Warriors. But being part of the Confederate military places some fairly stringent obligations on a character’s behavior – consorting with Union sympathizers is obviously no longer acceptable! One benefit of military service is a wage: Dino Warriors are paid $10 a month per character level, and all of their room, board, and equipment is paid for. But even though they’re the cream of the crop, the Confederacy itself is quite poor and not always able to provide the best weapons. The Dino Warriors are supposed to give up loot captured on duty for military disposal. But nobody minds if they take a little weaponry or ammunition for themselves... Class Skills The Dino Warrior’s class skills (and the key abilities for each skill) are Animal Empathy (Cha), Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Intuit Direction (Wis), Jump (Str), Knowledge (nature, strategy and tactics, Int), Ride (Dex), Use Rope (Dex), Wilderness Lore (Wis). Skill Points at Each Level: 6 + Int modifier.

Class Features All of the following are class features of the Dino Warrior. Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A Dino Warrior is proficient with weapons suited to fighting with dinosaurs. This includes the lasso, bronto gun, laser lance, and laser prod, as well as one-handed weapons that can be used while riding: Colt .45, automatic pistol, laser sword, and laser pistol. They are also proficient with all ballistic weapons, all swords, daggers, knives, and lances, and light and medium armor. Special Weapons and Equipment: The Dino Warriors have the facilities and knowledge to produce weapons and equipment for dinosaurs not available anywhere else. Injection harnesses (Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook, page 58) are one such item. Others include resonators, shouters, and thud sensors. Furthermore, Dino Warriors often surgically modify their mounts. Silverclaw raptors came about in this way. One common modification is coating teeth with steel sheaths, which adds to the creature’s bite damage (+1d4 for large, +1d6 for his own rank in the skill. (“If you won’t listen to me, listen to huge). The availability of these and other such improvements HIM!”) depends on the military’s needs at the time, as well as seniority Visual Speech: At sixth level, the rider and mount can comwithin the Dino Warriors, as adjudicated by the GM. municate silently through subtle motions. As long as they can see Specialized Training: Dino Warriors train extensively with a each other, they can communicate just as well as if they were single kind of mount – for example, tyrannosaurus, allosaurus, or speaking. triceratops. The character can pick which mount is his specialty. One Claw: At eighth level, the rider and mount are so perWhen working with that kind of mount, the character receives a fectly attuned that no communication is needed. The mount senscompetency bonus equal to his Dino Warrior class level to all Ride es the slightest twitch from his rider and always knows the right and Handle Animal checks. This stacks with bonuses for being a thing to do. The rider automatically passes all Ride checks related bronco rider. to riding this mount, as long as the rider and mount are lucid and Dinospeak: At second level, the character has spent so much not influenced by anything that would break their bond (mindtime with his specialized breed that he picks up its language. altering substances, insanity, loss of touch sensation, and other One Mind: Once he is intimately familiar with one breed, a such things will interfere with this ability). When making a Ride Dino Warrior raises a specimen from birth to become his mount. check for purpose of the Mounted Combat feat, the Dino Warrior This forges a powerful parent-child bond between the rider and gets a bonus equal to half his mount’s CR (rounded down). mount. Only one such bond can exist at a time. When fighting with the mount that he raised, a Table 3-1: The Dino Warrior Dino Warrior has the following Base Fort Ref Will Special abilities: Level Attack Bonus Save Save Save Intimidate: At third level, 1 +1 +2 +0 +0 Specialized Training the character is proficient 2 +2 +3 +0 +0 Dinospeak enough to use his mount to 3 +3 +3 +1 +1 One Mind – Intimidate intimidate both other humans 4 +4 +4 +1 +1 Herd Tactics -1 and dinosaurs, although this 5 +5 +4 +1 +1 ability is limited by his class 6 +6/+1 +5 +2 +2 One Mind – Visual Speech level. Any time the character 7 +7/+2 +5 +2 +2 Herd Tactics -2 makes an Intimidate check 8 +8/+3 +6 +2 +2 One Mind – One Claw while riding his mount, he adds 9 +9/+4 +6 +3 +3 the smaller of his Dino Warrior 10 +10/+5 +7 +3 +3 Herd Tactics -3 class level or the mount’s CR to

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Herd Tactics: Beginning at fourth level, the character is able to control herds with amazing precision. Creatures he herds count as being one size smaller for purposes of determining how many he can control at once (see Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook, page 37), with +10 creatures herded for each negative size difference (e.g., a human herding small creatures). At seventh level, creatures count as being two sizes smaller, and at tenth level, they count as being three sizes smaller.

Prestige Class: Federal Marshal The federal marshals are the Union’s intergalactic frontier police. They maintain law and order in the Union’s distant colonies. Union citizens from the major metropolises will never meet a marshal, but those who live in the outer reaches learn to fear them. Yet even those who fear them are thankful for their presence – they may be terrifying, but at least they’re terrifying in the name of the law. Only Union sympathizers can become federal marshals. Union soldiers covet the post for the autonomy and adventure it provides. Even most regular citizens would love to be a marshal, if only they had the ability. Hit Die: d10. Requirements To qualify to become a federal marshal, a character must fulfill the following criteria. Place of Origin: Union. Loyalty: Loyal to the Union. Alignment: Lawful good, lawful neutral, lawful evil, neutral good, or chaotic good. Diplomacy: 4 ranks. Gather Information: 4 ranks. Intimidate: 4 ranks. Knowledge (Strategy & Tactics): 4 ranks Feats: Combat Tactician, Leadership. Special: After applying for membership, a character must spend six months training. Training sessions happen only once a year. At that time, all prospective recruits are sent to the nearest Marshal Academy. The training is absolutely brutal. The first phase involves tests of strength, stamina, coordination, reflexes, and leadership. It requires combat expertise, familiarity with a wide variety of weapons, and the ability to quickly organize combat units of ordinary people. Most candidates wash out by this point. Even those candidates who get through must then survive in a variety of extreme environments, where most of the

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rest either wash out or die. Those who survive must then endure the earlier tests again for the balance of the six months. You can resolve this training in two ways. You can role play it, or resolve it quickly with a series of checks. Either way you have to make the checks, but if you role play it, it can make a good extended single-player adventure. The training is filled with ordeals and trials suitable to the occasion. In order to pass, the character must make six separate saves, one for each month of training. They are: Month 1: Ref (DC 5) Month 2: Will (DC 6) Month 3: Fort (DC 7) Month 4: Ref (DC 8) Month 5: Will (DC 10) Month 6: Fort (DC 12) If the character passes the saves, he emerges from the training sessions alive and successful, though in need of quite a bit of rest! If he fails the saves, he fails the training. Characters who fail may apply for membership again in the following year. Either way, the training is worth 100 XP for every month endured. Adventures: Remember that federal marshals are in the service of the Union. They are highly autonomous, but still must fulfill their duties. The benefit is that a marshal has access to advanced equipment and a great deal of Union support. They receive a monthly salary of $20 per level, and the Union pays for all of their on-duty expenses (travel, housing, food, repairs, etc.). Class Skills The federal marshal’s class skills (and the key abilities for each skill) are Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Diplomacy (Cha), Drive (Dex), Gather Information (Cha), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Intuit Direction (Wis), Jump (Str), Knowledge (strategy & tactics, technology) (Int), Listen (Wis), Operate Ironclad (Dex), Pilot (Dex), Search (Int), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), and Use Technical Equipment (Int). Skill Points at Each Level: 6 + Int modifier. Class Features All of the following are class features of the Federal Marshal. Weapon and Armor Proficiency: A federal marshal is proficient with all manual and ballistic weapons, as well as all kinds of armor. Special Weapons and Equipment: Federal marshals are provided with the best equipment the Union has to offer. At each

new character level (including first), a federal marshal may requi- patrol. He is now in charge of enforcing the law in that territory. sition equipment from the Union. The value of the equipment at A sheriff who displays his badge receives a +3 circumstance each level is shown on the accompanying table. The equipment bonus to Charisma when dealing with Union citizens and sympamust have a tech level equal to or less than the character’s total thizers. Even when dealing with humans not sympathetic to the character level. (The character must be able to use the tech level Union, he receives a +1 bonus to Charisma when displaying his as well, of course; this rule reflects that the Union parcels out the badge – everybody knows how tough sheriffs are supposed to be! best high-tech equipment to the higher-level marshals, and the Issue Law: At sixth level, a marshal can issue law. He can lower-level ones have to take what they can get.) Requisitioned declare on the spot that something is or is not legal, and the locals equipment takes 1d4 months to arrive. will obey his edict – or so he expects. In order to issue law, the Deputy: A first level federal marshal is a called a deputy. He marshal simply makes a pronouncement in an appropriate cirwears a small silver deputy’s star. Deputies work closely with cumstance – during a trial, after a riot, or whenever the full force sheriffs, although they are occasionally sent out to take care of of his law will be felt. If necessary, he may have to call a special things on their own. A deputy who displays his star receives a +2 town meeting to issue his law. All those who hear his law first circumstance bonus to Charisma when dealing with Union citi- hand will obey it if the marshal passes a Diplomacy check. Add zens or sympathizers. the marshal’s class level as a bonus to the roll. The DC is 10 if the Raise Posse: At second level, a marshal can raise a posse. law doesn’t require behavioral change for most people (i.e., a law Marshals raise posses to assist them in hunting down criminals, against public drunkenness), 14 if it requires minor behavioral enforcing laws, and keeping people safe. Posses can’t be raised change (i.e., a law against drinking on Sundays), and 18 if it during calm times – they are spontaneous organizations that only form to Table 3-2: The Federal Marshal address a pressing issue. Base Fort Ref Will Special Req. Equipment In order to raise a posse, Level Attack Bonus Save Save Save the marshal must address 1 +1 +2 +0 +2 Deputy $100 a crowd. He makes a 2 +2 +3 +0 +3 Raise Posse $200 speech to motivate the cit3 +3 +3 +1 +3 $500 izens to help him enforce 4 +4 +4 +1 +4 Sheriff $1,000 the law. He isn’t just ask5 +5 +4 +1 +4 Issue Law $2,000 ing them to follow him; 6 +6/+1 +5 +2 +5 $3,000 he’s asking them to take 7 +7/+2 +5 +2 +5 Marshal $5,000 the law into their hands 8 +8/+3 +6 +2 +6 $7,000 and possibly risk their 9 +9/+4 +6 +3 +6 $9,000 own injury or death. The 10 +10/+5 +7 +3 +7 $12,000 trick is swaying the crowd as a whole; no one citizen will risk his life alone, but if enough of them believe that the rest requires major behavioral change (i.e., a prohibition on drinking). of them will go along with it, then they will form a posse. As with a posse, a +2 or –2 modifier applies if the community is Make a Diplomacy skill check to determine if the speech is lawful or chaotic. Failure means his law is ignored. If the marshal successful. Add the marshal’s class level as a bonus to the check. persuades at least 60% of a colony first hand, the rest will autoThe DC is 10 if the task is fairly safe (chasing down unarmed matically obey. If less than 60% hear his initial proclamation, then criminals), DC 14 if it is somewhat dangerous (raiding a gang’s he must make a second Diplomacy check a day after the first, well-defended hideout), and DC 18 if it is positively life-threaten- against the same DC, to determine if his message is successfully ing (defending the town against a rampaging T-rex). The crowd’s carried through the community. PCs subjected to a marshal’s sucalignment modifies the DC: if the crowd is lawful, reduce the DC cessful law may make a Will save to resist (using the marshal’s by 2; if the crowd is chaotic, increase the DC by 2. If the check Diplomacy roll as the DC). succeeds, the crowd rallies, grabs their weapons, and marches out Marshal: At seventh level, a sheriff is promoted to a marshal. behind the marshal. He is assigned a navy blue uniform with a gold marshal’s badge, A posse only lasts as long as its members are motivated. In and put in charge of ten or more sheriffs. A marshal in his uniform general, a posse will last for 1d4 hours per level of the marshal. and displaying his badge receives a +4 circumstance bonus to After that, members start to desert and the posse unravels. Charisma when dealing with Union citizens and sympathizers, Sheriff: At fourth level, a deputy is promoted to a sheriff. He and a +2 circumstance bonus when dealing with anyone else who is assigned a gold sheriff’s badge and a territory that is his to is familiar with federal marshals.

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Machinists Machinists have the ability to create custom weapons, armor, and equipment. Although most of their creations are inoperable outside their tender care, powerful machinists can create items with permanent bonuses. Many of the universe’s most powerful weapons were custom built by such machinists. This requires a special feat and significant expenditure in both money and XP. The feat Permanent Enhancement is required for these permanent creations. See the description for Permanent Enhancement in the New Feats section.

Skill Evolution The pioneers who travel to Cretasus’ frontiers are jacks of all trades. They know the basics of farming, hunting, fishing, mining and logging. When they find a place to settle, they learn a trade appropriate to the terrain. If a pioneer becomes a farmer, for example, he gradually learns more and more about farming. In the process, he may his skills in logging and fishing, or simply let them atrophy through lack of use. The ability to learn new skills at the expense of others, without advancing in character level, is called skill evolution. This new rule explains NPC “career changes” in a way that the existing rules cannot. It allows a pioneer to begin a journey with the skills Profession (Farming) +2, Profession (Fishing) +2, Profession (Mining) +2, and Profession (Logging) +2, and end up as a farmer several years later with the skill Profession (Farming) +8. Skill evolution allows a character to transfer skill points between different skills over time. The newly learned skill must be accessible, both in terms of class and place of origin availability (e.g., only Union characters can learn Operate Ironclad) and game world situation (e.g., a Union character in the middle of the desert with no military experience cannot teach himself Operate Ironclad). Given those restrictions, the skill point transfer takes place with these restrictions: 1. Ranks in the new skill cost the same skill points as they would normally, depending upon whether it is a class or crossclass skill. 2. The time required to learn a new skill is three to twelve months per skill point. The GM decides depending upon the complexity of the skill. As a rule of thumb, you can assume six months. For example, assume the pioneer in the above example wants to trade Profession (Fishing) +2 and Profession (Mining) +2 for four ranks in Profession (Farming). This will take roughly two years. 3. During each period of transition, the character may not use the skill point which is presumably atrophying from lack of use. If the character is losing a rank in an existing skill, he must use it at the lower rank. During this transition period, the character effectively has fewer skills than he did before – he can’t use the

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old one, but he hasn’t advanced in the new one yet. His skill point is in limbo. 4. At the end of transition period, the character has learned the new skill. He may now apply his skill point to the new skill. This rule is meant to explain real-life changes in skill sets that result from practice, active learning, and career changes. PCs should not be allowed to change skills every six months unless there is a very good game world reason!

New Feats BARGAIN HUNTER (General) Bargain hunting is not just the ability to recall prices. It also encompasses a talent for remembering inventory levels, understanding distribution systems, and knowing wholesalers who will cut under-the-table deals with end users – in other words, everything necessary to get goods for cheap. Prerequisites: Wis 13+. Benefits: The bargain hunter can use his Gather Information skill to find the cheapest source of an item. He receives a +4 bonus to all such checks. In general, the DC for finding a cheap item is determined by the item’s tech level and the size of the local population. Multiply the tech level by 4 to find the DC; if searching in New Savannah, the DC is reduced by 4 to account for the greater availability of goods. If the bargain hunter fails to find a cheap item, he must buy it at face value. If he succeeds, he finds it for cheaper than usual. Exactly how cheap is determined by rolling 1d4 for every point by which he exceeded his Gather Information check; the result is the percent discount off the normal price. For example, Attacus Barnaby is searching for a ROGUE rifle (tech level 5) around Fort Apache. The DC is 20 (5 times 4). His Gather Information skill has a +10 modifier. He rolls a 13, which with his +10 bonus yields a result of 23. He exceeds the DC by 3, so he finds the ROGUE rifle for 3d4% cheaper than usual. The source of a cheap item may not be the same from one visit to another – inventory and suppliers do change, after all, and prices that were cheap when business was good may go up when business gets bad. Your GM will let you know whether you have to find a new supplier. Special: This feat can also be used in reverse, to find buyers who will pay more for a good. FAST TALKER (General) Dr. Ezekial Price isn’t the only fast talker on Cretasus; any character may take this feat. A fast talker can connive, convince, and confuse his interlocutors, provided he closes the deal before they get a chance to think. Prerequisites: Cha 13+. Benefits: You receive a +4 bonus to Bluff skill checks. The bonus to Bluff applies only in conversational settings – you cannot use it to help feint in combat.

PERMANENT ENHANCEMENT (General) With Permanent Enhancement, a machinist may make the bonuses on his custom weapons permanent, as well as create devices that operate outside his maintenance. Prerequisites: Permanent Enhancement is only available to Machinists of 5th level or higher. Benefits: Permanent Enhancement allows a machinist to permanently modify his weapons. Modifying a weapon for permanent usage has significant costs associated with it, as follows. A permanently customized weapon has a base dollar cost of $100 per tech level of the weapon, plus the weapon’s bonus squared times $1,000. For example, a weapon of tech level 2 with a +1 bonus would cost $200 plus $1,000, while a similar weapon with a +2 bonus would cost $200 plus $4,000. This is the cost of the materials and specialized technology required for the bonus. In addition, the character must expend XP at one eighth of the dollar expense. Thus a +2 weapon would also require 500 XP. The time required to modify the weapon is roughly one month per bonus point. The permanently modified weapon’s tech level is increased. For each bonus past +1, a +1 applies to the tech level. For example, +2 Colt .45, which is normally tech level 3, would be tech level 4. A machinist may attempt to simplify the technology. Each point of reduced tech level has a bonus equivalent of +2 (per the tables on pages 22-23 of the Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook). Once a character has made a weapon’s bonuses permanent, it no longer counts toward the maximum customization bonus his level allows. There may be other secondary effects of the permanent bonus. The weapon may require a new power source or may be much heavier due to additional parts. These are at the discretion of GM.

Hollow-point Ammo: This special kind of ammunition is extremely deadly. Any cartridge or clip for a pistol or rifle can be hollow-point ammo at ten times the normal cost. Hollow-point ammunition causes an extra d6 damage (e.g., a Colt .45 with hollow-point ammo would cause 1d10+1d6 damage). However, hollow-point rounds crush easily, and suffer a –2 circumstance penalty to hit against any sort of medium or heavy armor. Animal hides of +3 or better armor count as medium armor. Hollow-point ammo is only manufactured in areas with advanced facilities, and is available in very limited quantities on Cretasus. Laser Sniper Rifle: This Winchester Pyrotechnics device, with a telescopic sight and an inertial tripod as standard equipment, is designed to be fired from the back of a dinosaur. It gives a +2 circumstance bonus to all attack rolls. Firing this gun is a full-round action, and it requires the shooter’s full concentration, meaning that the shooter gets no Dex bonus to armor class for that round. The Sniper Rifle gets no penalty due to a mount’s movement. It projects a tiny but extremely intense laser beam and is particularly deadly when hitting a vital area. Reactive Truncheon: The preferred weapon of federal marshals and sheriffs is the reactive truncheon. This high-tech baton is coated in a material very similar to reactive armor. The reactive truncheon bounces in response to impact. This magnifies the force of the blow almost tenfold. Even a slight jab from a reactive truncheon can knock a man out; a full-force swing can decapitate. The wide range of force possible with a reactive truncheon makes them useful for everything from crowd control to battlefield combat. A reactive truncheon has three settings: subdual (causes 2d4 subdual damage), riot (causes 1d4 regular damage plus 1d4 subdual damage), and military (causes 1d8 regular damage). Reactive truncheons are not considered energy weapons.

Dinosaur Hide Armor

New Equipment New Weapons Table 3-3 shows the stats for the new weapons discussed elsewhere in this book.

Table 3-4 (on the next page) summarizes the armor values of various dinosaur hides. The table here is scaled for human-sized armor; you’ll need to multiply by the values on page 54 of the Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook to get the proper weight and cost for mounts.

Table 3-3: New Weapons Size

Weapon

Cost Dam

Crit

Range Increment

Targeting Range

Weight

Tech Level

Type

BALLISTIC WEPAPONS - AMMUNITION Tiny Hollow-point Ammo x10

+1d6

-

-

-

x1

5

-

HIGH TECH WEAPONS – MELEE Medium Reactive Truncheon

30

Special

x2

-

-

3 lb.

6

Bludgeoning

HIGH TECH WEAPONS - RANGED Large Laser Sniper Rifle

500

3d8

19-20/x3

500

250

10 lb.

8

Special

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Table 3-4: Dinosaur Hide Armor Armor

Cost

Armor Bonus

Max Dex Bonus

Armor Check Penalty

Speed (30 ft.)

Tech Level

Wt.

Medium Armor Albertosaur or allosaur Ceratosaur Croc Tyrannosaur

600 600 150 2,500

+4 +4 +3 +5

+3 +4 +5 +4

-2 -3 -2 -2

20 20 20 20

1 1 1 1

20 30 15 30

Heavy Armor Stegosaur Ankylosaur

600 900

+5 +7

+2 +0

-4 -7

20 ft.* 20 ft.*

1 1

100 lb.** 300 lb.**

ft. ft. ft. ft.

lb. lb. lb. lb.

* When running in heavy armor, you only move triple your speed, not quadruple. ** These armors are generally used only for mounts.

New Equipment and Devices Table 3-5: Equipment and Devices Name Egg Warmer Microsensor Resonator Shouter Thud sensor Tyro Musk (1 use)

Cost 25 75 50 100 25 250

Weight 30 1 1 5 4 1

Tech Level 4 7 4 4 4 1

Egg Warmer: This is a padded cubical incubator, two feet to a side, whose flexible interior walls can be shaped around any dinosaur egg in order to keep it warm and stable. An Egg Warmer can also be used to keep a hatchling dinosaur warm and secure. Microsensor: These miniature recording devices record and store three-dimensional images. Hand-sized, they record for twenty-four hours on a microcrystal. They use special miniature energy packs which hold ten charges, and drain one charge per day of use; these energy packs cost $20 each. Resonator: This earpiece allows a character to hear the subsonic noises that dinosaurs make. A resonator gives a +4 enhancement bonus to Listen rolls against Large or bigger dinosaurs. Wearing a resonator gives a -1 enhancement penalty to all other Listen checks. For now, resonators are individually built and are not common equipment; they should be considered devices. Shouter: This handheld megaphone converts certain human sounds to subsonic noises. It gives a character a +2 enhancement bonus to Diplomacy rolls with dinosaurs. It also allows a character to communicate only at the subsonic level, so that other humans can’t hear what’s being said. To do this, make an

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Innuendo roll to communicate with dinosaurs or humans equipped with a Resonator. Provided there is a common language, the listener can make an untrained Innuendo check to understand the character. A Shouter can also be used as a simple megaphone, doubling the volume of a character’s voice. For now, shouters are individually built and are not common equipment; they should be considered devices. Thud Sensor: Thud sensors track terrestrial dinosaurs by monitoring vibrations. A good thud sensor can detect a Huge dinosaur at 400 yards, a Gargantuan dinosaur at 800 yards, and a Colossal dinosaur at 1600 yards. It only works if the creature is moving. On soft ground, the range is cut in half. A thud sensor requires a Use Technical Equipment check (DC 10). Tyro Musk: This is an extremely foul-smelling secretion that a tyrannosaur uses to mark its territory. Small amounts can be recovered by scraping a T-rex’s markings (which requires entering its territory!), or larger quantities can be procured by carving the appropriate glands out of a T-rex. Both methods are quite dangerous, so tyro musk is very expensive. The price is steep, but it is worth it. Dinosaurs will instinctively avoid a character covered with tyro musk. In order to attack a character who has not already attacked, a dinosaur must make a Will save, with a DC of 25 minus 1 per hour passed since the musk was applied. (For example, if the character applied the musk three hours ago, the DC would be 22.). If the save is failed but the character initiates an attack, the dinosaur is allowed to make a second save, this time at DC 15 minus 1 per hour passed since the musk was applied. If the second save is passed, the dinosaur can attack; if failed, the dinosaur will attempt to flee even after seeing that the character is not a tyrannosaur. (It is an instinctive response, remember.) Tyro musk will keep prey as well as predators away, and can be detected at a range of 200 yards minus 10 yards per hour of wear. When the range is reduced to 0, it has worn off.

Chapter IV: Gamemaster Reference Generating Settlements

ment, as most occupations require the presence of certain natural resources. For example, you can’t have a community of loggers without a forest nearby! Table 4-2 lets you generate the primary This section lets you quickly generate profiles of settlements industry randomly based on environment. A roll of 01-05 means in the Main Valley. You can use this for random generation, or as the town has a more complex economy with two or more primary guidelines for distributing settlements within an area of your own industries. The trading post requires a little explanation. These are the design. settlements that crop up alongside well-traveled trails, between You should use the standard town design tables for determinmajor cities, or halfway between a commodity’s demand and its ing alignment and other characteristics not specific to Cretasus, supply. They serve as a point of exchange for buyers and sellers. then use the tables below for aspects unique to Cretasus. A good example is Miller’s Crossroads, which provides pioneers with a final dose of civilized merchandise before they head into the frontier, and also gives frontiersmen a place to sell their raw goods to New Savannah merchants. Cretasus is a sparsely settled world. While the area around The “Other” result applies to settlements that support themNew Savannah is home to many settlements, the faraway frontiers selves in unusual ways. In frontier areas still heavily populated by are virtually uninhabited. Most settlements on Cretasus are thus dinosaurs, this could indicate a town of wilderness guides who quite small. cater to wealthy safari hunters. In areas near swampy trails, it Table 4-1 lets you randomly determine the size of a settle- could be a town of strong men who act as porters. A river commument based on its location: N.S. (around New Savannah), Fron. nity could make its living ferrying travelers from shore to shore. (in the settled frontier areas, such as along the Tecumseh Trail or Make up a result that suits the terrain and your own campaign. Support businesses (sawmills, grain silos, etc.) and other Bay Trail), and Wild (in the wild, unsettled frontiers – far from the local establishments (stores, saloons, blacksmiths, banks, etc.) trails). appear as a settlement grows. These support Table 4-1: Random Settlement Generation businesses depend more on the settled% by Location Size Population Tech Wealth NPC ment’s size than its N.S. Fron. Wild Level Limit Mod. primary industry, as 01-10 Individual 1 2 $5 -1 indicated on table 401-20 11-50 Family/Gang 2-7 3 $10 -3 3. 01-20 21-40 51-90 Neighbors 8-20 3 $30 -2 Stores: Between 21-40 41-70 91-100 Hamlet 21-60 4 $100 -1 50% and 100% will 41-60 71-80 Village 61-300 4 $500 0 be general stores, 61-80 81-95 Small town 301-1,000 4 $1,000 +1 with the rest special81-95 96-99 Large town 1,001-5,000 5 $10,000 +2 ized in a specific kind 96-100 100 Small city 5,001+ 5+ $20,000+ +3 of merchandise – clothing, leather goods, feed and seed, hardware/tools, etc. Support: These are the businesses that directly support the settlement’s primary industry, such as sawmills and lumberyards Most Cretasus settlements are centered around one (or some- for logging-based communities. times two) primary industry – farming, logging, fishing, and so Smiths: Depending on the town’s tech level, this could be a on. The primary industry depends on the neighboring environ- blacksmith or low-level machinist.

General Guidelines

Economy

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Table 4-2: Primary Industry d% based on environment Plains Forest Swamp 01-05 01-05 01-05 06-30 06-15 06-20 31-45 16-30 21-30 46-75 31-35 31-40 76-95 36-45 41-65 46-95 66-95 96-97 98-99 100

96-97 98-99 100

96-97 98-99 100

Primary Industry River 01-05 06-15 16-25 26-35 36-45

Hills 01-05 06-15 16-20 21-30 31-40

46-95 96-97 98-99 100

41-85 86-97 98-99 100

Roll again twice Farming – foodstuffs Farming – cash crops Livestock/ranching Hunting/trapping Logging Fishing Mining Oil drilling Trading Post Other

Table 4-3: Number of Local Establishments by Town Size Town Size: Saloons Stores Support Stables Smiths Specialists Professionals Banks

Neighbors 0-1 0-1 0 0 0 0 0 0

Hamlet 1d2 0-1 0-1 0-1 0-1 0 0 0

Village 1d4 1d2 1d2 1d2 0-1 0-1 0-1 0

Town 3d4 2d4 2d4 2d4 1d4 2d6 1d4 0-1

Specialists: Specialized tradesmen who operate their own shops, such as silversmiths, cobblers, carpenters, bridle makers, locksmiths, wheelwrights, and stonemasons. Professionals: Primarily lawyers and doctors, this category could also include accountants, notary publics, and others white-collar professions.

Power Centers In the wilds of Cretasus, lawlessness is a more common problem than despotism. Most small settlements have no formal government. Disputes are settled by the parties involved, often with fists or guns. If things get out of hand, the rest of the community may break up the fight or even take sides. Where there is a leader, it is a well-respected local hero, the town’s founder, or simply the bravest soul in town. Only in larger settlements with some semblance of a town center do formal governments exist. In the free lands of the frontiers, these are invariably democracies, although unless there is an unusually wide pool of prospective leaders, the same candidates (usually the town founders) win every election. The

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City 4d6 3d6 3d6 2d6 2d4 3d6 2d4 1d4

first post to be put to the vote is always mayor (sometimes as part of a town council), followed by sheriffs and judges. Large or complex governments are rare. In a few settlements, particularly those in the wildest frontiers, the power center may not be a rightful one. There are some towns run by bandits, rustlers, or even dinosaurs. The alignment of power centers can be determined using the table given in the core d20 rules. Wild one: A local wild one is obeyed because the townspeople either revere or fear his connections to nearby dinosaurs. Dinosaurs: A group of intelligent dinosaurs has taken over town affairs with or without the humans’ consent. The townspeople may be forced to pay tribute in the form of food or technology, or help the dinosaurs build their own cave system. The townspeople can’t seek help because the dinosaurs eat anyone caught leaving the town limits. Alternatively, the townspeople may have sought out an alliance with the dinosaurs, for protection or survival or out of some bizarre appreciation. None: The town is either so small, so new, or so friendly that it genuinely

Table 4-4: Power Centers d% by Population 1-20 21-300 01 01 02-05 02 06-55 03-12 56-80 13-27 81-95 28-52 96-100 53-57 58-62 63-72 73-82 83-92 93-96 97-98 99 100

Power Center(s) 301+

01-05 06-15 16-17 18-20 21-30 31-60 61-85 86-92 93-94 95-96 97-100

Wild one Dinosaurs None Local hero Town founder Maverick Wealthy rancher, farmer, or merchant Sheriff Mayor Town council Guild Outlaw gang Military post Roll again twice

has no power center. People get along as equals. If anything gets out of hand, the community rises up and makes sure affairs are settled. Local hero: This is a well-liked citizen whose advice is heeded by the townspeople. He isn’t necessarily a warrior (although he could be), but he is charismatic enough to arbitrate disputes. In very small settlements, he could simply be the family patriarch (or matriarch). Town founder: He may be respected for leading the townspeople to their new home – or he may be considered a tyrant. Regardless, he owns most of the local land and has the strongest connections, so he’s in charge. Maverick: A loner who settles things whether people like it or not. He may be a natural lawman, instilled with a strong sense of personal ethics, or he could be a troublemaker who likes getting into a fight. Either way, he shows up whenever there’s trouble and he always settles it. Wealthy rancher, farmer, or merchant: Whether or not there is an official government in place, the richest man in town maintains power through a combination of bribes, connections, reputation, and threats. Sheriff: Even though there’s a mayor, everybody knows the sheriff really runs things. He may be elected by the people or appointed by the mayor. Mayor: The town has organized democratic voting in order to elect a mayor. In most frontier towns, election day is either a day of revelry or a day to stay indoors with your shotgun at the ready. Town council: A council of several people, each representing a different part of town. One of the elected council members may be the nominal mayor for all or part of his term. Guild: This could be a merchants association, group of ranchers, or bankers’ club. Regardless of the town’s official structure, the guild keeps the wheels greased to make things easy for its members. Outlaw gang: A gang of bank robbers, dino rustlers, smugglers, or claim jumpers controls the town. They may do it through fear – or they may be so generous with their spoils that the town loves them. Military post: A Confederate or Union military post keeps things under control. The post may be secret, so the townspeople believe that another government runs things.

Table 4-5: Settlement Loyalty d% by Location N.S. Fron. 01-65 01-40 66-85 41-70 86-99 71-99 100 100

Loyalty Wild 01-25 26-96 97-98 99-100

Confederate Freetown (no loyalty) Union Other

Population Composition Most of the town’s population works in the primary industry or its supporting businesses. But there are still a few NPCs of a higher level than average. Apply the NPC modifier from table 41 to the results on table 4-6 to determine the highest-level locals in each class. The NPC modifier for a community of a single individual is only -1 because individuals brave enough to venture out on their own are often of high levels. A result of 0 or lower means no characters of that type are in the community.

Table 4-6: Highest Level NPCs PC Classes Bronco rider Machinist Soldier Spy Two-fister Wild one ***

Character Level 1d6 + NPC modifier * 1d2 + NPC modifier 1d3 + NPC modifier ** 1d3 + NPC modifier 1d6 + NPC modifier 1d4 - NPC modifier

NPC Classes Commoner Expert Warrior

Character Level 3d4 + NPC modifier 2d4 + NPC modifier 1d4 + NPC modifier

* If a bronco rider of level 6 or above is present, there is a 5% chance that he is a Dino Warrior.

Loyalties

** If a soldier of level 7 or above is present, there is a 5% chance that he is a federal marshal.

Table 4-5 lets you determine a settlement’s loyalties. If you want to make things interesting, roll twice: once for the power center, and once for the townspeople themselves. This can generate towns ready to rise up in rebellion at the slightest provocation. The “other” result indicates loyalty to the Free Fleet, a dinosaur tribe, aliens, a religious cult, or some nascent local government. Make up a result that fits your campaign.

*** This includes wild ones in the general area, since they probably won’t be living in town. Note that the NPC modifier is subtracted from the roll, not added as with other classes, so you get higher-level wild ones around smaller settlements, further away from civilization.

The vast majority of settlements are entirely human. But not all are! Use table 4-7 to determine if dinosaurs or aliens live in a

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settlement. Dinosaurs and aliens that live in a settlement are assumed to be friendly (or at least non-hostile). They live on the edge of town, or, occasionally, in a barn or shed or other space provided by an ally or employer. (Note that this table has no bearing on dinosaurs that kept as mounts or for other uses. It only indicates how many intelligent dinosaurs live locally and interact with resident humans as equals.) How to read table 4-7: The table shows the percent chance that a particular dinosaur will be present in a settlement according to the settlement’s location (using the abbreviations from table 41 for N.A., Fron., and Wild). If the dinosaur is present, it will make up a percentage of the town population equal to the d% roll. For example, in towns in the New Savannah area, there is a 15% chance that protoceratops will be present. If you roll 08, indicating that some protoceratops are present, they will compose 8% of the local population. If aliens are present, determine the type on your own (Scray or something else of your own design). As can be seen from the table, protoceratops that do live with humans prefer the more civilized areas near New Savannah. The other dinosaur species, however, become common only as the human population becomes more sparse.

Table 4-7: d% Chance and Population of Dinosaurs and Aliens Protoceratops Velociraptor Ornitholestes Aliens

N.S. 15% 2% 1% 10%

Fron. 10% 4% 3% 3%

Wild 5% 8% 6% 1%

Typical NPCs Here are some stats for typical NPCs from the frontier. No place of origin is listed except when it is relevant, as most NPCs can be Confederate, Union, or offworlders if born on Cretasus. Certain information is omitted from the profiles: all these NPC’s are Medium-size Humanoids (6 ft.), and unless noted otherwise, all ability scores are average (10).

A Note on NPC Abbreviations The skill bonuses and combat statistics for all NPC profiles in this volume include modifiers for ability scores, armor check penalties, racial characteristics, and special abilities. The skill rank is indicated in parenthesis after the skill bonus – for example, Handle Animal +6 (4) means the NPC has four ranks in Handle Animal, with the other +2 coming from another source

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(such as an ability score or class ability). Please note that modifiers due to skill synergies are not incorporated into the bonus. Remember that Confederate characters receive an extra feat at first level, which is why some low-level NPCs have two feats. However, this feat is only given to named NPCs; the typical NPC profiles (everyday people) do not receive the free feat. The free heirloom weapon for Confederate characters only applies to player characters and notable NPCs – not every low-level Confederate citizen carries around an heirloom! One final note about NPCs: The commoner of Cretasus has a different skill set than the commoner of other worlds. We have occasionally assumed that certain skills are class skills for commoners. The following class abbreviations are used in NPC profiles: Bro: Bronco Rider Com: Commoner Dnw: Dino Warrior Fdm: Federal Marshal Mac: Machinist Sol: Soldier Spy: Spy (I guess that one is obvious) Twf: Two-fister Wil: Wild One

Typical NPC Stats Bank Manager, Exp1: CR 1/2; HD 1d6; Init +0; Spd. 30 ft.; AC 15 (+5 flak jacket); Atk +0 ranged (1d10/crit x3, automatic pistol) or +0 melee (1d3, unarmed); AL LE; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Will +2; Int 12. Skills: Appraise +5 (4), Bluff +4 (4), Diplomacy +4 (4), Knowledge (Mathematics) +5 (4), Profession (Finance) +4 (4), Sense Motive +4 (4), Spot +4 (4). Feat: Iron Will. Possessions: Pen, pencil, calculator, 1d4 leather-bound ledgers, automatic pistol and 1d6 bullets, flak jacket, welltailored suit (which conceals the pistol and flak jacket), leather satchel containing $2d20 x10, personal cash $3d20. In public, the bank manager is always accompanied by a bodyguard with the profile of a sheriff’s deputy. Bartender, Com1: CR 1/2; HD 1d4; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +0 melee (1d3, unarmed); AL LG; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Will +1; Cha 12, Wis 12. Skills: Bluff +3 (2), Gather Information +3 (2), Listen +3 (0), Profession (Bartender) +3 (2), Sense Motive +3 (2), Spot +3 (0). Feat: Alertness. Possessions: 1d4 flasks of liquor, hunk of cheese, bread, cash $1d6-1. Blacksmith, Exp1: CR 1/2; HD 1d6; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 11 (+1 leather apron); Atk +1 melee (1d4+1, knife); AL N; SV Fort +2, Ref +0, Wil +2; Str 12. Skills: Appraise +4 (4), Chemistry/Alchemy +4 (4), Climb +5 (4), Concentration +4 (4), Craft (Blacksmithing) +4

(4), Listen +2 (2), Spot +2 (2). Feat: Great Fortitude. Possessions: Knife, hammer, tongs, leather apron, 2d4 metal ingots, cash $1d6. There is a 35% chance that a blacksmith who achieves 2nd level will decide to multi-class as a machinist. See Machinist NPC details for more information. Claim Jumper, Com1: CR 1/2; HD 1d4; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +0 (1d10/crit x3, Colt .45); AL CE; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Wil +0. Skills: Forgery +2 (2), Profession (Miner) +2 (2), Spot +2 (2), Wilderness Lore +2 (2). Feat: Track. Possessions: Knife, Colt .45 with 2d4 bullets, shovel, pick, chalk, bucket, blanket, bedroll, 1d4 empty sacks, 2d6 days of hardtack. Dino Rustler, Bro1: CR 1; HD 1d8; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 11 (+1 padded armor); Atk +0 ranged (1d10/crit x3, Colt .45), +0 ranged (1d12/crit x3, Winchester rifle), +0 ranged (special, lasso), or +1 melee (1d4+1, knife); AL CN; SV Fort +0, Ref +2, Wil +0; Str 12, Cha 12. Skills: Animal Empathy +5 (4), Balance +2 (2), Handle Animal +8 (4), Intimidate +3 (2), Intuit Direction +2 (2), Ride +4 (4), Wilderness Lore +4 (4). Feats: Mounted Combat, Dinosaur Presence. Possessions: Knife, lasso, Colt .45 and 3d10 bullets, Winchester rifle with 3d10 bullets, padded armor, bit and bridle, saddlebags, backpack, bedroll, blanket, clay jug, 3d20 pounds of animal feed, 4d6 days worth of hardtack, cash $1d10. Mount: Depends on region, employer, and character level; to randomize, roll d%: 01-25 parasaurolophus, 26-50 camptosaurus, 51-65 iguanodon, 66-75 pachycephalosaurus, 76-85 triceratops, 86-90 pteranodon. 91-97 allosaurus, 98-100 T-rex. Doctor/Veterinarian, Exp1: CR 1/2; HD 1d6; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +0 melee (1d4, knife); AL LG; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Wil +2; Int 12. Skills: Chemistry +3 (2), Concentration +4 (4), Handle Animal +4 (4), Heal +4 (4), Knowledge (medicine/healing) +5 (4), Profession (Doctor) +4 (4), Ride +3 (3), Spot +2 (2), Wilderness Lore (1). Feat: Endurance. Possessions: Knife, medical kit, blanket, sack, 30’ rope, flask of liquor. Farmer, Com1: CR 1/2; HD 1d4; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +0 melee (1d3, shovel); AL LN; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Wil +1; Wis 12. Skills: Craft (Carpentry or Leatherworking) (1), Handle Animal +3 (3), Profession (Farming) +5 (4). Feat: Endurance. Possessions: Spade, hoe, shovel, bucket, 1d4 small pouches filled with seeds (d%: 01-75 worth $1d4, 76-95 worth $2d6, 96-100 rare local plants worth $2d20 in New Savannah), cash $1d4-2. Fisherman, Com1: CR 1/2; HD 1d4; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +0 melee (1d4, knife); AL N; SV Fort +0, Ref +2,

Wil +1; Wis 12. Skills: Profession (Fishing) +4 (3), Spot +2 (2), Swim +2 (2), Use Rope (1). Feat: Lightning Reflexes. Possessions: Knife, fishing net, 2d6 fish hooks, 100 ft. fishing line, 20 ft. rope, 10 ft. pole, sack of bait, bucket, 2d4 fish, cash $1d6-2. Hunter/Trapper, War1: CR 1/2; HD 1d8+1; Init +0; Spd 20 ft.; AC 13 (+3 hide armor); Atk. +2 melee (1d4+1, knife), +1 ranged (1d10/crit x3, Colt .45), or +1 ranged (1d12/crit x3, Winchester rifle); AL CN; SV Fort +3, Ref +0, Wil +0; Str 12, Con 12. Skills: Climb -1 (1), Handle Animal (1), Intuit Direction +2 (2), Ride (1), Swim +2 (1), Wilderness Lore +2 (2). Feat: Track. Possessions: Knife, Colt .45 and 2d20 bullets, Winchester rifle and 1d20 bullets, hide armor, 20 ft. rope, canteen, bedroll, 1d4 leather sacks each filled with 5 pounds of salted meat, 1d4 uncured animal skins, 1d4-2 unbutchered recent kills, cash $2d6. Land Speculator, Exp1: CR 1/2; HD 1d4; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +0 melee (1d4, knife); AL CN; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Wil +5; Wis 13. Skills: Appraise +4 (4), Bluff +6 (4), Diplomacy +6 (4), Disguise +4 (4), Forgery +4 (4), Gather Information +6 (4), Perform +2 (0), Sense Motive +2 (0). Feat: Turncoat (see Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook, page 43). Possessions: Knife, pen, paper, land deeds, officiallooking seal, cash $6d10 in small bills suitable for bribes. Logger, Com1: CR 1/2; HD 1d4; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +1 melee (1d6+1/crit x3, handaxe); AL N; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Wil +0; Str 12. Skills: Climb +3 (2), Handle Animal (1), Jump +2 (1), Profession (Logging) +2 (2), Use Rope +2 (2). Feat: Endurance. Possessions: Handaxe, 100 ft. rope, 20 ft. chain, saw, cash $1d6-2.

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Machinist, Mac1: CR 1; HD 1d4; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk. +2 ranged (1d10/crit x3, custom +2 automatic pistol), or possibly another ranged weapon (see below); AL N; SV Fort +0, Ref +1, Wil +2; Int 13. Skills: Chemistry +3 (2), Craft (Blacksmith) +4 (3), Craft (Gunsmith) +4 (3), Disable Device +7 (4), Drive +2 (2), Knowledge (Science) +4 (3), Knowledge (Technology) +6 (3), Repair Device +7 (4), Use Technical Equipment +7 (4). Feat: Gearhead. Possessions: Custom +2 automatic pistol with 1d4 20bullet cartridges, binoculars, handheld communicator, compass, engineering tools, flashlight, scanner, cash $2d10, 25% chance of an exotic weapon (d%: 01-15 screamer knife, 16-30 laser sword, 31-50 flamer, 51-80 whisper gun, 81-95 laser pistol, 96-100 amp bomb). Mayor, Exp2: CR 1; HD 2d6; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk. +1 melee (1d4, knife); AL LN; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Wil +6; Cha 14, Int 12, Wis 12. Skills: Appraise +6 (5), Bluff +7 (5), Diplomacy +7 (5), Gather Information +7 (5), Intimidate +7 (5), Sense Motive +6 (5), Spot +6 (5). Feat: Iron Will. Possessions: Knife, pen, paper, seal of office, 1d4 local

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maps, book of tax records, 1d4 flasks of liquor, well tailored suit, cash $3d20. Miner/Prospector, Com1: CR 1/2; HD 1d4; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +0 melee (1d4, hammer) or +0 melee (1d4, pick); AL CN; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Wil +0. Skills: Profession (Mining) +3 (3), Listen +2 (0), Spot +7 (5). Feat: Alertness. Possessions: Hammer, pick, shovel, spade, hooded lantern (50% chance of having a flashlight as well), sieve, tin pan, chalk, flask, 4d6 days of hardtack, bedroll, blanket, backpack, 1d6-2 quarter-pound ingots (d%: 01-80 worth $2d6 each, 81-98 worth $4d6 each, 99-100 worth $2d10 x10 each), cash $2d6, 25% chance of a treasure map (d%: 01-25 fake, 26-50 real but leads to a mine long ago stripped bare, 51-80 real but the mine is nonvaluable metals, 81-100 real and the mine is valuable). Outlaw/Bandit/Bank Robber, War1: CR 1/2; HD 1d8; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 12 (+2 leather armor); Atk +1 ranged (1d10/crit x3, Colt .45), +1 ranged (1d12/crit x3, Winchester rifle), or +1 melee (1d4, knife); AL CE; SV Fort +2, Ref +0, Wil +0. Skills: Climb (1), Intimidate +3 (3), Jump (1), Ride +3 (3). Feat: Run. Possessions: Knife, Colt .45 and 2d10 bullets, Winchester rifle and 2d10 bullets, leather armor, bedroll, blanket, 2d4 sacks, 3d6 days worth of hardtack, cash $1d10-2, 25% chance of stolen loot worth $2d10 x10. Peddler/Trader, Com1: CR 1/2; HD 1d4; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +0 melee (1d4, knife); AL N; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Wil +0; Cha 12. Skills: Appraise +4 (4), Bluff +7 (2), Gather Information +3 (2). Feat: Fast Talker. Possessions: Knife, cart, cash $2d10, 25% chance of a common mount. Goods for trade: d8-2 of any common item, 1d4 common weapons (tech level 3 or lower), 1d6-2 uncommon weapons (tech level 4), as well as seeds, clothes, ore, and other items picked up along his route. Pioneer, Com1: CR 1/2; HD 1d4; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +0 melee (1d4, knife), or 25% chance of +0 ranged (1d10/crit x3, Colt .45); AL LN; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Wil +0. Skills: Handle Animal +2 (2), Profession (any 2 of Farming, Fishing, Mining, Logging) (each +2), Wilderness Lore +2 (2). Feat: Endurance. Possessions: Knife, 25% chance of Colt .45 with 1d10 bullets, shovel, hammer, pick, bucket, 20’ rope, canteen, bedroll, blanket, d4 sacks, 6d6 days worth of hardtack, hooded lantern, 10 ft. pole, fishing net, 1d4 fishing hooks, 1d4 small pouches filled with seeds (d%: 01-75 worth $1d4, 76-95 worth $2d6, 96-100 rare local plants worth $2d20 in New Savannah), cash $1d4-2. In addition to the equipment listed, a typical pioneer’s load could include a full wagon’s worth of equipment. Some of the more common items might be feather beds, ground

cloths, pillows, a tent, poles, stakes, a hatchet, bullet molds, lead, a keg of gunpowder, flour, bacon, coffee, baking soda, corn meal, dried beans, dried beef, dried fruit, molasses, vinegar, pepper, eggs, salt, sugar, rice, tea, a kettle, a skillet, a coffee grinder, a teapot, a butcher knife, a ladle, tin plates and silverware, a water keg, matches, a hoe, a plow, a spade, a whetstone, an extra axle and bolts, chains, trousers, boots, hats, bonnets, shirts, coats, bandages, campstool, chamber pot, washbowl, candles, candle molds, scissors, needle and thread, and perhaps even some of the trappings of home: books, family albums, china, silverware, and furniture. Ranch Hand, Bro1: CR 1; HD 1d8; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 11 (+1 padded armor); Atk +0 ranged (1d10/crit x3, Colt .45), +0 ranged (special, lasso), or +1 melee (1d4+1, knife); AL N; SV Fort +0, Ref +2, Wil +0; Str 12, Cha 12. Skills: Animal Empathy +5 (4), Balance +2 (2), Craft (Leatherworking) +2 (2), Handle Animal +7 (4), Intuit Direction +4 (4), Ride +4 (4), Wilderness Lore +4 (4). Feat: Mounted Combat, Dinosaur Presence. Possessions: Knife, lasso, Colt .45 and 2d20 bullets, padded armor, bit and bridle, saddlebags, backpack, bedroll, blanket, clay jug, 3d10 pounds of animal feed, 2d4 days of hardtack, cash $d10. Mount: Depends on region, employer, and character level, but in general (d%): 01-25 parasaurolophus, 26-50 camptosaurus, 51-65 iguanodon, 66-75 pachycephalosaurus, 76-85 triceratops, 86-90 pteranodon, 91-97 allosaurus, 98-100 T-rex. Sheriff, War2: CR 1; HD 2d8+5; Init +1 (Dex); Spd 30 ft.; AC 16 (+1 Dex, +5 flak jacket); Atk +3 ranged (1d10/crit x3, automatic pistol), +3 ranged (1d12/crit x3, Winchester rifle), +3 ranged (special, shotgun), +3 ranged (special, bronto gun), or +3 melee (1d4+1, knife); AL LG; SV Fort +4, Ref +1, Wil +0; Str 12, Dex 12, Con 12. Skills: Climb +1 (2), Intimidate +6 (5), Jump +1 (2), Ride +4 (3). Feat: Toughness. Possessions: Automatic pistol with 1d4+1 20-bullet cartridges, Winchester rifle with 1d4 30-bullet cartridges, shotgun with 3d10 shells, bronto gun with 2d4 shells, knife, flak jacket, binoculars, flashlight, medical kit, manacles, cash $5d6. Sheriff’s Deputy, War1: CR 1/2; HD 1d8+3; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 12 (+2 studded leather armor); Atk +1 ranged (1d10/crit x3, Colt .45), +1 ranged (1d12/crit x3, Winchester

rifle), or +2 melee (1d4+1, knife); AL LG; SV Fort +2, Ref +0, Wil +0; Str 12. Skills: Climb +1 (1), Intimidate +4 (4), Jump +2 (2), Ride (1). Feat: Toughness. Possessions: Knife, Colt .45 with 4d10 bullets, Winchester rifle with 3d10 bullets, studded leather armor, flashlight, manacles, cash $2d6. Shopkeeper, Com1: CR 1/2; HD 1d4; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +0 ranged (1d10/crit x3, Colt .45); AL LN; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Wil +0. Skills: Appraise +4 (4), Listen +2 (0), Profession (Merchant) +4 (4), Spot +2 (0). Feat: Alertness. Possessions: Colt .45 with 1d6 bullets, pen, paper, ledger, coin purse, cash $2d10 mostly in small coins. Soldier, Confederate Sol1: CR 1; HD 1d10+1; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 15 (+5 flak jacket); Atk +1 ranged (1d10/crit x3, automatic pistol), +1 ranged (1d12/crit x3, Winchester rifle), or +0 melee (1d4, knife); AL LN; SV Fort +3, Ref +0, Wil +0; Con 12. Skills: Climb +0 (2), Intimidate +4 (4), Jump +0 (2), Knowledge (strategy and tactics) +4 (4), Listen +2 (2), Use Technical Equipment +2 (2). Feat: Point Blank Shot. Possessions: Knife, automatic pistol with 3d6 20-bullet cartridges, Winchester rifle with 3d6 20-bullet cartridges, flashlight, binoculars, compass, flak jacket. Soldier, Union Sol1: CR 1; HD 1d10+1; Init +0; Spd 20 ft.; AC 16 (+6 riot gear); Atk +1 ranged (1d10/crit x3, automatic pistol), +1 ranged (1d12/crit x3, Marionette), or +0 melee (1d4, knife); AL LN; SV Fort +3, Ref +0, Wil +0; Con 12. Skills: Drive +2 (2), Intimidate +4 (4), Jump -2 (2), Knowledge (strategy and tactics) +4 (4), Listen +2 (2), Use Technical Equipment +2 (2). Feat: Point Blank Shot. Possessions: Knife, automatic pistol with 3d6 20-bullet cartridges, Marionette (a.k.a. Absentee Voter) with 3d6 20bullet cartridges, flashlight, binoculars, compass, riot gear. Wealthy Merchant, Exp2: CR 1; HD 2d6; Init +0; Spd 30 ft.; AC 10; Atk +1 melee (1d4, knife); AL N; SV Fort +0, Ref +0, Wil +3; Cha 12, Int 12. Skills: Appraise +6 (5), Bluff +6 (5), Diplomacy +6 (5), Gather Information +6 (5), Listen +5 (3), Profession (Merchant) +6 (5), Ride +2 (2), Sense Motive +6 (5), Spot +2 (0). Feat: Alertness. Possessions: Knife, pen, paper, ledger, 1d4 odd trinkets, coin purse, cash $10d10.

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Getting Around Cretasus Not everybody on Cretasus has a pet triceratops to cart them around town. Although livestock provide the most common means of locomotion, there are still quite a few motorized vehicles in service. The Confederacy is constructing a railroad between New Savannah and Mount Crowe. Air transport, though rare for civilians, is not unheard of, and there are even a few spaceships that have been adapted for atmospheric transport. This section gives a brief overview of common modes of transportation on Cretasus. It also provides basic rules for incorporating vehicles into your campaign.

Common Mounts As you might expect, most people on Cretasus travel by dinosaur. Within the confines of New Savannah and other civilized towns, you usually see only smaller dinosaurs; larger ones are common only on the outskirts of towns, or in frontier and wilderness areas. Several species of smaller herbivores can be easily trained and safely handled by most civilians. These are used as individual mounts, or as beasts of burden to haul carts, wagons, and stagecoaches. Monoclonius, styracosaurus, and bactrosaurus are sold by most stables and are used virtually everywhere. Larger herbivores carry larger loads or haul heavier wagons. Miners use convoys of edmontosaurus, triceratops, vulcanodon, or even brachiosaurus to transport large loads of ore, as do many farmers moving huge quantities of grain. Convoys of such huge creatures snake their way toward and from New Savannah in every direction. Theropods and other large carnivores are rarely used except by adventurers, soldiers, wilderness hunters, and hired hands who protect ranches and trade caravans. Most regular citizens are understandably nervous around an allosaurus or T-rex, even if the rider claims it’s domesticated. Furthermore, theropods make herbivorous mounts nervous, and at close quarters can even cause them to panic. As a result, large carnivores (and even most smaller ones) are banned from the city center of New Savannah and many of the towns around it, although frontier areas are more tolerant. Another regular sight is imported horses. Horses have been carried by the Confederacy to every planet it has visited; some traditionalist ranchers on Cretasus still raise them. It is easy to acquire a horse in New Savannah, though they become scarce very quickly as one enters the frontier. The problem with horses on Cretasus is that they spook easily around dinosaurs. This is an instinctive response, and even those born on the planet are subject to spooking. Pteranadons and other pterosaurs are not in common use.

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They are difficult to ride and they can’t carry much weight – only a single human with very little baggage. Most domesticated pteranadons are used by Dino Warrior scouts, by the few private messenger services, or by wild ones who travel light. The enormous quetzalcoatlus, a pterosaur almost twice the size of pteranodon, is considered by dino handlers to be a likely target for practical use, though no specimen has ever been domesticated. Quetzalcoatlus roost only at very high altitudes and have so far escaped human captivity. Recent explorations of the Fur River have revealed its western passage to Mammoth Valley. Prehistoric mammals are often found in the Main Valley around the mouth and western edges of the river. Some reckless animal handlers have taken to training mammoths, mastodons, prehistoric horses, and other mammals captured there. Such mounts are extremely rare, but are seen more often as more travelers reach (and return from) the Fur River. Spooking: Any herbivore within 100 ft. of carnivores of equal or higher challenge rating becomes nervous. All Ride or Handle Animal checks have a penalty equal to the difference between challenge ratings. (This reflects that the animal is more wary of more dangerous creatures.) Within 25 ft., the herbivore may actually panic. The rider or handler must make a Handle Animal check (DC 14) or the herbivore will buck (requiring a Ride check (DC 5) to stay in saddle) and try to run away. Horses are particularly afraid of dinosaurs. The penalties above apply for horses within 100 ft. or 25 ft. of any dinosaur. If the dinosaur is a carnivore, an additional -2 penalty applies to Ride and Handle Animal checks.

Getting Around Many stagecoach services operate between New Savannah and the neighboring towns. Direct transportation usually costs $0.03 to $0.50 per mile, depending on traffic, road conditions, and danger. For that price, you get your own seat inside the coach, and storage space for a backpack or two. Skinflints can hitch rides with non-commercial wagons for half or even a quarter of that price – but you may end up sitting on a sack of ore or a pile of grain, or even in a hammock slung under a dino’s belly. None of these is comfortable, and the last option is rather smelly. Outside New Savannah, transportation is less regular. Travel along the trails is possible by hitching a ride with a wagon train. However, many pioneers don’t actually ride in their wagons. They walk alongside to conserve their mounts’ energy. (Even a perfectly healthy mount can tire itself to the point of injury or even death on such a long journey. Moreover, heavier loads increase the risk of injury.) “Hitching a ride” in that case may only mean walking with the pioneers. The pioneers may charge a fee and will certainly require the characters to contribute to chores and common expenses. Well-armed characters may be able to negotiate their protection services as the fee for accompanying the caravan.

Transportation Speed Table 4-8 summarizes tactical and overland speeds for dinosaur mounts. The overland speeds are for one hour periods, and are divided into mount speed and load speed. Mount speed is the animal’s speed carrying nothing or only a single human as a mount. (The pteranodon is an exception to this; it slows to load speed when carrying a human.) Load speed is the animal’s speed while pulling more weight, whether carried on its back or towed in a wagon. (This is simplified but serves as an easy reference – feel free to adapt the more complicated encumbrance rules if you wish.) As you can see, dinosaur mounts move slowly. A heavy horse can outpace most dinosaurs, and a light horse can beat most of the rest. Dinosaur mounts are generally large, heavy-boned creatures. They support a lot of weight, but move slowly. There are several species of so-called “ostrich dinosaurs” (such as coelophysis and elaphrosaurus) which are very swift runners but which are useless

as mounts because of their bird-boned structure – a lightweight skeleton that can’t support much weight. The dryosaurus of the northwestern plains will prove to be a very popular mount if it can be successfully raised in New Savannah – but so far it is a rarity seen only in the hands of returning explorers.

Vehicle Rules

Like all other technologies on Cretasus, the vehicles in use range from ancient to ultra-tech. However, their use is dwindling. Because there are no vehicle manufacturing facilities on Cretasus, they cannot be replaced except through importation from offplanet. Maintaining and fuelling a vehicle costs a lot more than a domesticated dinosaur that can be grazed on the plains for free. Nonetheless, some vehicles are still in use. Union colonists use them on a regular basis, as well as many plains travelers. They are something of a status symbol in New Savannah, and are still quite useful in and around the city. This section gives descriptions of several common vehicle types, as well as an overview of basic vehicle Table 4-8: Movement Speed for Dinosaur Mounts rules. We won’t even attempt to go into detail on air or space vehicles – they would fill a whole book. The purMount Tactical Mount Load pose of the rules herein is to give you simple guidelines Speed Speed Speed for dealing with the typical overland adventure. Future Albertosaurus 30 ft. 3 miles 2 miles supplements will delve into greater detail. Allosaurus 40 ft. 4 miles 2 1/2 miles The skills Drive and Pilot (as presented in the Bactrosaurus 30 ft. 3 miles 2 miles Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook, pages 36 and 38-39) Brachiosaurus 80 ft. 8 miles 5 1/2 miles cover most driving situations. In most respects, the Camptosaurus 30 ft. 3 miles 2 miles existing d20 rules cover most tanks, cars, and walkers Ceratosaurus 30 ft. 3 miles 2 miles * just as well as they do wagons. There are only two areas Dryosaurus 70 ft. 7 miles 4 1/2 miles where vehicle rules need special attention: movement Edmontosaurus 50 ft. 5 miles 3 1/2 miles and maneuverability, and resolving damage. Iguanodon 40 ft. 4 miles 2 1/2 miles Monoclonius 30 ft. 3 miles 2 miles Movement and Maneuverability Pachycephalosaurus 40 ft. 4 miles 2 1/2 miles Parasaurolophus 40 ft. 4 miles 2 1/2 miles Pteranodon 50 ft. (fly) N/A** 3 1/2 miles A vehicle’s movement is governed by acceleration Quetzalcoatlus 80 ft. (fly) 8 miles 5 1/2 miles and handling ability. Stegosaurus 30 ft. 3 miles *** 2 miles The speed listed for a vehicle is its maximum speed Styracosaurus 20 ft. 2 miles 1 1/2 miles on a road. This speed is slowed by difficult terrain. In Therizinosaurus 20 ft. 2 miles 1 1/2 miles addition, getting to max speed requires acceleration. Triceratops 30 ft. 3 miles 2 miles Acceleration takes place at the rate per round indicated Tyrannosaurus rex 40 ft. 4 miles 2 1/2 miles * in the vehicle description. Deceleration is generally Vulcanodon 30 ft. 3 miles 2 miles three times as fast as acceleration. A vehicle carrying 50% or more of its payload accelerates and decelerates * Only when carrying a load on its back – even the best-trained at half the normal rate. ceratosaurus or T-rex would refuse to pull a wagon. ** A pteranodon can only carry 200 pounds. With such a low capacity, it slows to load speed when carrying even a single human. *** A stegosaurus cannot be ridden, of course – its plates leave no room for a rider.

Turns Turning is a tad more complex. Each vehicle has a specified “turn limit” statistic. For every 50 ft. of speed, the vehicle’s sharpest turning angle per round is equal to 90° minus its turn limit. The minimum turning angle is

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15°. A turn can be made at any point in the round’s movement. For example, imagine a lumbering truck with a turn limit of 15. At a speed of 100 ft., this vehicle’s maximum turn per round is 60° (90° base turning angle, minus 30° – twice the turn limit of 15). At 150 ft., this drops to 45° (50 ft. faster = 15° less), and at 200 ft. it drops to 30°. A character attempting a tighter turn than is normally possible must make a Drive or Pilot check (DC 13). The DC increases by 2 per increment of turn limit – i.e., if a 60° turn is safe and the vehicle has a turn limit of 10, the DC would be 13 for 70°; 15 for 80°; and 17 for 90°. Failure indicates the vehicle goes out of control.

Collisions

A vehicle that cannot decelerate or turn in time may collide with something. Collision damage is similar to falling damage in that distance moved determines the amount of damage. However, the two big distinctions are the mass of the colliding objects, and the speed of the collision. Damage is inflicted based on the size and speed of the objects involved, as referenced on table 4-10. Collisions of less than 15 mph (tactical speed of 150 ft. or less) do not cause damage – it is assumed a fender prevents serious injury; at worse, a human hit by a vehicle at that speed gets a bad bruise. Additionally, this rule prevents normal humans from inflicting collision damage merely Shooting While Driving by running into one another! In a collision with an immobile object (such as a jeep hitting Attempting to shoot or attack while driving – whether with a a wall), determine damage on table 4-10 based on the size of the hand-held weapon or a built-in weapon – requires a Drive check. moving object. For example, if the jeep (a Large object) were The DC is 5 (drive with one hand) if the shooting is not during moving 500 ft. or 50 mph, it would take 6d6 points of damage. full-fledged combat (e.g., taking a pot shot at a passing pterosaur), In a collision between two mobile objects (such as a jeep runbut DC 14 if the shooting is in active battle (e.g., a T-rex is lung- ning over a human), each object takes damage according to the ing for the car or a tank is firing at you). Failure means loss of other object’s size. Use the speed of the fastest-moving object. For control. Driving while being shot at or otherwise involved in com- example, if the jeep were moving 50 mph and the human were stabat requires a Drive check against DC 9 (as described in the tionary, the human would take 6d6 points of damage, and the jeep Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook, page 36). Otherwise, the pilot would take 4d6. loses control. Note that a jeep running into a canyon wall takes less damage than if it runs into a stationary T-rex (size Huge). The rationale behind this is that the T-rex would be moving, and all that mass Shooting At Vehicles would wallop the jeep as a force vector opposite its own trajectoSome vehicles move very fast. Fast objects are hard to hit. ry. A wall, on the other hand, just absorbs the blow. In reality, the damage should take into account the angle of impact, but that is The following attack penalties apply to any fast-moving object: beyond the scope of these rules, which are intended to provide only a simple, fast game mechanic. If a vehicle is destroyed in the collision, excess damage is applied evenly to Condition Penalty each occupant (e.g., if a vehicle has 12 hit Defender moved greater than 250 ft. in previous round (25 mph) -1 points and takes 32 hp of damage, each Defender moved greater than 500 ft. in previous round (50 mph) -2 occupant takes 20 hp of damage). Defender moved greater than 1,000 ft. in previous round (100 mph) -4 Furthermore, even if the vehicle is not destroyed, the occupants may take damage from the jostle of the crash itself. Roll d%; on a result of 35 or less, apply that percentage of the vehicle damage to each occupant Going Out of Control (e.g., if the crash causes 120 damage, a d% roll of 32 means each An out of control vehicle moves in a random direction each occupant takes 0.32 x 120 = 38 hp damage, whereas a d% roll of 67 indicates the occupants take no damage). round. Roll 1d8 on table 4-9 to determine the direction. The angle of an out of control turn is always less than the vehicle’s maximum turn angle. It is equal to the Table 4-9: Out of Control Vehicles (d8) vehicle’s current maximum turn radius (based on its speed and turn limit) minus d4 times its turn limit, with Roll Result a minimum turn of 15°. For example, if a vehicle’s cur1-2 Turns left rent max turn radius is 70°, and its turn radius is 10, a 3 Goes straight ahead and accelerates (if possible) roll of 3 on 1d4 would indicate the vehicle turned 70° – 4-5 Goes straight ahead at current speed (10° x 3) = 40°. 6 Goes straight ahead and decelerates maximum amount 7-8 Turns right

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pants take damage, with the exception of critical hits, collisions, and a few kinds of weapons. Even when the vehicle is reduced to Speed Damage by Object’s Size 0 hp, it still provides some protection, as Tactical Overland Small Medium Large Huge detailed below. Of course, a passenger or 160-200 ft. 16-20 mph 1d6 1d6 2d6 2d6 driver who can be seen through the closed 201-300 ft. 21-30 mph 1d6 2d6 2d6 4d6 vehicle (via a windshield, view slit, etc.) can 301-400 ft. 31-40 mph 2d6 2d6 4d6 6d6 be targeted with the normal cover rules. 401-500 ft. 41-50 mph 2d6 4d6 6d6 8d6 Certain weapons (such as psychic and 501-600 ft. 51-60 mph 4d6 6d6 8d6 12d6 genetic weapons) can penetrate a closed vehi601-700 ft. 61-70 mph 6d6 8d6 12d6 16d6 cle’s hull and injure the occupants while the 701-800 ft. 71-80 mph 8d6 12d6 16d6 24d6 vehicle has full hp. These are an exception to 801-900 ft. 81-90 mph 12d6 16d6 24d6 32d6 the usual rules. 901-1000 ft. 91-100 mph 16d6 24d6 32d6 48d6 Finally, note that vehicles are similar to constructs under the core d20 rules. Although Running Over Enemies (or Friends!) they do suffer critical hits, they do not suffer damage from poison and certain other sources. Use common sense to evaluate this. Running over an enemy is a great way to kill them. These sorts of collisions are resolved with a Drive check versus an Critical Hits opposed Reflex save. First, the driver must make a melee touch attack against the Unlike normal objects, vehicles are susceptible to critical victim, using his Drive skill bonus as the base attack bonus. The hits. Vehicles have critical components as well as weak spots higher the roll, the more accurate his driving. Faster vehicles are where damage may pass through to the occupants. harder to dodge, but they’re also much harder to aim accurately, It is possible for a vehicle to stop running while still at a sigso there are no modifiers for speed. nificant number of hit points. A single lucky hit might puncture a If the attack hits, the driver’s roll with all bonuses applied is tire or cause a fuel leak. When a vehicle is reduced to 50% of its the DC for the victim’s Reflex save. If successful, the victim starting hit points, the driver must make a Drive check against DC jumps out of the way at the last minute and takes no damage. If 8. If the check fails, the vehicle automatically takes a critical hit. unsuccessful, the target takes full collision damage. At 25% of its starting hit points, the driver must make another check against DC 12. This represents chance damage to tires, Damage engines, and other components. A good driver can maneuver his vehicle so the vulnerable parts face away from enemies. When a weapon causes a critical hit, determine damage with A vehicle has hit points, armor class, and hardness, like any the usual multipliers for a crit. Half applies to the vehicle and the other object. other half is applied to a single randomly determined occupant. In Unlike other objects, however, vehicles can be disabled long addition, roll d% on table 4-11, the Vehicle Critical Hits Table. before they are destroyed. The conventional rules for damaging Attackers can target specific areas of a vehicle, if the targets objects do not consider complex mechanical systems that can be are visible. Tires are the most common specific target. Raise the disabled by puncturing one tiny hose. In game terms, a single target’s AC based on its size – for example, a tire is Tiny, which is point of well-placed damage can immobilize a truck! a +2 AC bonus. Remember to remove penalties for the vehicle’s Thus, vehicle hit points represent not the amount of damage overall size – i.e., a Huge truck has a –2 size penalty to AC, so its necessary to physically destroy the vehicle, but the amount of tires would net out +4 above the truck’s body AC. A normal tire damage necessary to disable its functional systems and prevent it has 10 hit points; the number of tires that must be destroyed from operating. It is important to note that a vehicle at zero hit depends on the vehicle, but destroying enough (such as 1 for a points is not necessarily destroyed. It still provides cover for occumotorcycle, or 5 for a 3-axled, 10-tired truck) can cause locomopants, and can still be repaired. It just cannot move or otherwise tion system damage or even destruction. act as a vehicle.

Table 4-10: Collisions

Vehicles are divided into two classes: open or closed. A closed vehicle provides protection to its occupants. Open vehicles provide no protection, and the driver and passengers may be individually targeted. Note that a vehicle may be open for the driver and closed for passengers, or the reverse, depending on the design. A closed vehicle’s hit points are depleted before any occu-

Destruction When a vehicle’s hit points are reduced to 0, it ceases to function. It cannot accelerate, its weapons are damaged and unusable, and it will decelerate at its maximum rate until stopped. It cannot be steered and is out of control until it stops (use table 4-9 but do

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Table 4-11: Vehicle Critical Hits Table (d%) Roll 01-15

Result Locomotion system (tires, wheels, jets, etc.) destroyed: max speed reduced to 0; decelerate at max rate until stopped; Drive check against DC 12 or lose control 16-25 Locomotion system damaged: acceleration and max speed are halved; Drive check against DC 8 or lose control 26-35 Engine damage: engine cuts off; vehicle decelerates at max rate; Drive check against DC 12 to restart engine 36-50 Fuel leak: lose 1/4 gallon of fuel each round until repaired 51-75 Steering damage: turn limit doubled; DC to drive with one hand increased by +5 76-90 Brake damage: deceleration reduced to same rate as acceleration 91-100 Acceleration damage: acceleration rate halved not allow for acceleration). It is now an inert hulk. But even an inert hulk might still have quite a bit of substance. All damage down to –20 hit points is split evenly between a randomly determined occupant and the vehicle. (If the occupants disembark, the vehicle itself absorbs full damage.) Occupants in a vehicle that has 0 to –20 hit points can disembark safely as a full round action. A vehicle that reaches –21 hit points is a mangled mess that provides no cover to occupants. Anyone still in it is automatically helpless. They can escape only if someone with a blowtorch or saw cuts them out (which takes 1d6+6 rounds), or by passing an Escape Artist check (DC 18). (The character may repeat this check each round.) If a vehicle reaches –40 hit points, it is liable to explode. Each time thereafter that it suffers damage, roll d% and deduct its hit points from the roll. On a result of 0 or less it blows. Anyone still inside automatically takes 12d6 points of damage (no save). All other creatures within 30 ft. take 6d6 points of damage, with Reflex saves (DC 16) for half damage. Damage may be repaired with the Repair Device skill. Loss of up to 20% of system hp counts as minor repairs; loss of up to 60% counts as substantial; and loss of more than 60% counts as heavy damage. In addition to fixing the systems damage as explained in the Repair Device skill, it takes additional time and money to restore the vehicle to full hit points. It costs $1d6 and takes 1d6 minutes per hit point repaired. Note that hit points can be restored only if the systemic damage is repaired with the Repair Device skill.

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Fuel One final consideration for vehicles is fuel. The vehicle descriptions indicate how many gallons of petrol each vehicle’s tank holds, and how far they can go on that load. Most wilderness travelers carry along a lot of additional fuel. But petrol is expensive – it goes for $3 to $5 a gallon in New Savannah and for as much as ten times that in the back country. And petrol purchased in the back country could have who-knows-what mixed in – which could cause the vehicle to sub-perform or even break down...

Typical Vehicles On the following page are profiles of eight typical vehicles. They have damage reduction values based on their armor and the exposure of their technical innards. Motorcycle: A motorcycle has two wheels. Destroying one is enough to destroy the locomotion system. Some motorcycles have sidecars to hold larger weapons or a passenger. Jeep: A jeep has four wheels and is designed for 4x4 wilderness transportation. Characters driving jeeps need only check against DC 9 (not 11 as normal) to drive in the wilderness. Halftrack: A halftrack has two wheels on its front and two tracks on its rear. It is designed for moving over difficult terrain. A halftrack can move on roads and trails in jungle, swamp, hills, and mountains as if they were highways. Overlander: An overlander is a heavy truck. It has a large hood, a rumbling engine, and a ribbed canvas cover for the cargo bed behind the cab. Recon Walker: A recon walker is a basic walking vehicle. The cab stands on two legs about 10 feet from the ground but crouches for the driver to enter and exit. It moves slowly but is excellent at traversing difficult terrain. Light Tank: This is a typical light tank. Each of its passengers acts as a gunner for one weapon. Hover Car: Hover cars are uncommon on Cretasus, but the military and some well-to-do citizens do have them. They require the Pilot skill rather than the Drive skill. Prop Plane: This is the typical small open-topped propeller plane used by ranchers to patrol their territories. They have an unfortunate tendency to attract the attention of pteranadons.

Buying a Mount On page 94 is a list of prices for vehicles and trained mounts. The prices listed are New Savannah prices. Some dinosaurs are cheaper in their native terrain (as there is no need to pay transport costs to New Savannah), while most manufactured goods are much cheaper in New Savannah than anywhere else. Therefore, the multiplier column indicates how much more or less expensive each item is outside of New Savannah. For example, “x2” indi-

Typical Vehicle Statistics Type: Size: Tech Level: Driver(s): Passengers: Payload: Damage Reduction: Hp: Speed (Max): Acceleration: Turn Limit: AC:

Motorcycle Open wheeled Medium 3 1 0 or 1 450 lbs. 0 8 500’ 250’ 5 13 (+3 natural)

Weapons: Face: Fuel Load: Miles/gallon: Range:

Type: Size: Tech Level: Driver(s): Passengers: Payload: Damage Reduction: Hp: Speed (Max): Acceleration: Turn Limit: AC: Weapons: Face: Fuel Load: Miles/gallon: Range:

1 medium 5’ by 5’ 5 gallons 50 250 miles

Jeep Open wheeled Large 3 1 3 1,000 lbs. 5 48 400’ 90’ 10 13 (-1 size, +4 natural) 1 medium 10’ by 10’ 10 gallons 40 400 miles

Halftrack Closed tracked Large 4 1 7 4,000 lbs. 10 72 300’ 60’ 10 15 (-1 size, +6 natural) 1 large, 1 medium 10’ by 15’ 20 gallons 20 400 miles

Overlander Closed wheeled Large 3 1 15 6,000 lbs. 5 64 400’ 60’ 15 13 (-1 size, +4 natural) 1 large, 1 medium 10’ by 15’ 30 gallons 15 450 miles

Recon Walker Closed walker Large 5 1 0 400 lbs. 5 36 120’ 60’ 5 13 (-1 size, +4 natural) 1 medium 5’ by 5’ 8 gallons 30 240 miles

Light Tank Closed tracked Huge 4 1 3 5,000 lbs. 20 156 400’ 50’ 10 16 (-2 size, +8 natural) 1 huge, 1 large 15’ by 15’ 50 gallons 10 500 miles

Hover Car Open atmospheric Large 6 1 3 1,000 lbs. 5 48 800’ 120’ 5 11 (-1 size, +2 natural) 1 medium 5’ by 10’ 10 gallons 10 100 miles

Prop Plane Open atmospheric Large 4 1 1 800 lbs. 5 36 1600’ 80’ 10 10 (-1 size, +1 natural) 1 medium 10’ by 10’ 15 gallons 20 300 miles

cates the item may cost up to twice as much outside New Savannah, although it could be only x1.5 or 1.75 depending on market fluctuations. The availability column indicates the chance of finding this item for sale in and around New Savannah (N.S.) or in any given frontier settlement (Fron.). If an item is not available, you can move on to the next town, or wait a month and make another check in the same town. Prices for a mount are determined from a variety of factors, including supply and demand, training difficulty, transportation costs, availability (through ranchers or wild-caught?), opportunity costs (why sell an iguanodon as a mount for less than you

would sell the meat?), and the mount’s speed, fighting ability, and carrying capacity. Trained mounts aren’t always easy to come by, but untrained mounts are. Assume untrained mounts are available at twice the frequency of trained mounts. Prices for untrained mounts range from a quarter to half the price for a trained mount, depending on several factors: how hard it is to train; whether it is also used as a source of food; and whether the seller raised it, caught it, or bought it off others for resale. Vehicle prices are strictly a matter of supply and demand – the supply on Cretasus is limited, and demand is slowly dwindling as trained dinosaurs become more prevalent.

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Table 4-12: Vehicle and Trained Mount Costs and Availability Mount or Vehicle

Price

Multiplier

____Availability____ N.S. Fron.

Trained Mounts Albertosaurus Allosaurus Bactrosaurus Brachiosaurus Camptosaurus Ceratosaurus Dryosaurus Edmontosaurus Iguanodon Monoclonius Pachycephalosaurus Parasaurolophus Pteranodon Quetzalcoatlus Stegosaurus ** Styracosaurus Therizinosaurus Triceratops Tyrannosaurus rex Vulcanodon

$6,000 $8,000 $250 $19,000 $900 $6,500 $3,000 $2,500 $2,200 $400 $3,500 $900 $1,500 $5,000 $1,000 $350 $850 $2,000 $17,000 $1,700

x1 x1 x2 x1 x2 x3/4 x3/4 x3/4 x3/4 x1 x2 x1 x3 x3 x2 x1 x2 x2 x3 x1

5% 4% 75% 5% 10% 3% 1% 50% 5% 50% 15% 40% 7% * 60% 50% 10% 80% 2% 40%

10% 8% 60% 5% 5% 6% 1% 60% 10% 50% 10% 40% 3% * 40% 50% 5% 60% 1% 30%

Vehicles Motorcycle Jeep Halftrack Overlander Recon Walker Light Tank Hover Car Prop Plane

$1,000 $2,800 $8,000 $10,000 $5,000 $50,000 $30,000 $20,000

x2 x2 x3 x3 x4 x3 x4 x3

50% 40% 20% 30% 10% 5% 5% 20%

20% 15% 5% 10% 1% 1% 1% 5%

* No trained mounts are available. But if characters were to bring one back and train it, this is what they could get for it. ** These are not used as mounts, obviously, but they can haul goods.

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Treasure Tables These treasure tables allow you to customize treasure results for Cretasus. Use the standard treasure tables first to determine the value of a treasure horde. Where the GM must depart from the standard is in determining the coinage and objects which constitute that value.

Coinage and Currency Standard coinage should be substituted as follows: Copper pieces: Heavy chunks of rock or earth containing unprocessed ores (coal, aluminum, sulfur, tin, lead, or copper); byproducts (skulls, skins, etc.) from common dinosaurs; coinage from regional Confederate governments (actual coins, not paper). Silver pieces: Nuggets of semi-valuable ores (iron, nickel, silver); rare dinosaur byproducts; paper money (either Confederate or Union). Gold or platinum pieces: Valuable metals (gold or platinum); paper money; gems; high-denomination bank notes. There are many other currencies that can be spent on a new world like Cretasus, including: Alien currencies: Coins or paper from alien species. Some of the more common alien currencies may have recognized value on Cretasus, whereas others may be considered worthless by terrestrial merchants and only have worth when dealing with wide-traveling merchants (such as the Free Fleet). Regional Confederate currencies: Coins from local Confederate governments, including those on or off Cretasus. The spending power of these notes drops off rapidly from their face value the more distant one gets from the issuing government. Bank notes: Securities guaranteed by a bank’s reserves. The bearer is entitled to exchange the bank note for its face value in gold bullion at the issuing bank. Bank notes are a good lightweight way to carry a lot of money. They are readily spent as currency, but only in their initial denomination (usually in increments of $500). Unfortunately, their value rapidly drops to zero if the issuing bank has financial problems (or even if they’re rumored to have financial problems) – which may a great adventure hook for characters in possession of a lot of bank notes! Railroad bonds: A security sold by a railroad to finance its growth. Although still a rarity on Cretasus, this kind of currency is growing in popularity since New Savannah began construction on a railroad to Mount Crowe. The bonds are sold in increments of $50 and can be redeemed three years after their issuance date for cash plus a small amount of interest (usually around 5% per year). An investor with a large position in railroad bonds is eager to make sure a railroad does get built – otherwise his bonds will be worthless! Other bonds: Many companies on Cretasus have issued bonds, including the Bay Side Company, timber companies, ranchers, and even explorers who promise valuable discoveries.

The value of these bonds always depends on the solvency of their issuers. For example, an exploration in search of natural sugar cane fields might issue bonds to pay for their journey. The owners of the bonds are entitled to partial land rights on any fields discovered; sugar processors might buy the bonds, hoping to reduce the price of their primary ingredient. When an exploration party falls out of contact and is not heard from for three months, they are presumed dead and the value of their bonds falls to nearly zero. That’s when a high-risk investor steps in, buys up the bonds for pennies on the dollar, and hires the characters to find the sugar cane fields and bring the original explorers back alive. If they do, of course, the investor recoups a huge return on his investment – and has plenty of money to pay his brave troubleshooters. IOU: In the cash-poor frontiers, local residents may trade hand-written IOUs for goods and services. The IOU itself can in turn be used as currency, provided the recipient recognizes whoever wrote it. Eventually, the IOU is presented back to the issuer for redemption in cash or barter, often by a party far removed from the original recipient. If issued by someone prominent, the IOU may be called a letter of credit. The only problem is that the IOU is only good as long as the issuer is known – you can’t spend it very far from where it was issued. IOUs are standard practice on the frontier, and characters trying to sell goods in distant freetowns may have no alternative but to accept IOUs. This might create an adventure if the person who issued their IOUs is kidnapped or threatened – they’ll never get a pay-out if he’s killed!

Art Objects Art objects may be of human, dinosaur, or alien origin. On average, assume an equal chance of each, but modify this according to circumstances – in the unexplored back country, for example, most art objects will be of dinosaur origin. You can determine the value of the art objects using the standard tables, then come up with the appropriate type of object. Human art on Cretasus also incorporates dinosaur themes – for example, a necklace with a gold-plated T-rex incisor, an ornate shield made from a baby triceratops skull plated in silver, and so on. Alien art objects may be completely indecipherable. Characters without Appraise or the appropriate Knowledge skill may not realize they have value! Most dinosaur art objects are primitive art; their value is not in their refinement, but in the frenzied fashionability which dinosaur art has achieved in the art world. Dinosaur art includes sculptures, bas-relief, statuettes, ornate pillars and architectural elements, cave paintings, carved horns and skulls, primitive necklaces, helmets, earrings and other pierce-jewelry, and images scratched into bowls, urns, or simple rock faces. Most of the finer art objects are fashioned by protoceratops or velociraptors, sometimes utilizing the services of ornitholestes, but even the more clumsy species will occasionally feel the urge to scratch an image into a rock face, which, no matter how primitive, is of great value to art collectors and paleoanthropologists.

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Dinosaur art objects are also great adventure hooks. You should make up art objects that relate to whatever adventure the characters are on, or whatever adventure you want to steer them toward. For example, here are six art objects that might be discovered in the search for the Great Library of Logos: 1. A stone tablet detailing T-rex genealogy for thousands of years. It ends five hundred years ago, when the library was destroyed. Such an authoritative history would be incredibly valuable to any T-rex descended from those listed on the tablet. The characters might be able to wring some treasure or favors from the right T-rexes. Of course, they will also need someone to translate the Ceratopsian inscription into Tyrannosaurus... 2. A stone tablet describing the medicinal uses of the leptoceratops anatomy. See the leptoceratops description on page 115 for the benefits of using leptoceratops parts in Heal checks. 3. A “Rosetta stone” inscribed with a protoceratops fable written in Ceratopsian and 1d4+2 other languages. One of the languages is not a known language. A character can use the stone to learn the other languages. The stone can also be sold to researchers or collectors. 4. A map of the area that now contains New Savannah, with strange symbols dotting the area along the shoreline and the mountains. If the characters explore the areas, they will find that the symbols indicate areas rich in gold deposits. Some of them have already been discovered, but some of which haven’t. And who knows what may be guarding those that haven’t yet been found... 5. A tablet with a diagram explaining the cataloguing system and layout of the great library. This essentially serves as a map of the first level of the library. 6. Ancient protoceratops artifacts. These range from inscribed tablets to rough-hewn statuettes of local animals and long-gone heroes.

Items There is no magic in Broncosaurus Rex. But there is ultratech. The creations of aliens and advanced machinists make valuable rewards for characters. Item rewards can be weapons, armor, exotic equipment, and alien devices. The following tables allow you to randomly generate weapons and armor. Other item rewards should be determined by the GM as appropriate to an adventure or setting.

Weapons Special weapons come in three categories: heirloom weapons, which are well-constructed masterwork weapons providing a simple +1 enhancement bonus to attack rolls; custom weapons, which are refined by machinists (and sometimes aliens) to exceptional quality, sometimes incorporating a special ability of some sort; and alien weapons, some commonly known, but others rare or poorly understood.

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Table 4-13: Weapons Minor 01-50 51-70 71-85

Medium 01-05 06-10 11-20 21-58 59-62

Major

86-95

63-68 69-85

01-20 21-38 39-49 50-63 64-85

96-100

86-100

86-100

Weapon Bonus Heirloom weapon +1 custom weapon +2 custom weapon +3 custom weapon +4 custom weapon +5 custom weapon Alien weapon Custom weapon with special ability Roll again twice

Table 4-14: Heirloom Weapons d% 01-20 21-40 41-50 51-60 61-75 76-100

Weapon Longsword Greatsword Dagger Longbow Winchester rifle Colt .45

Table 4-15: Custom Weapons d% 01-10 11-12 13-15 16 17-19 20-25 26-27 28-29 30-37 38-41 42-44 45-53 54-56 57-70 71-74 75-76 77-78 79-84 85-87 88-90 91-94 95-96 97-99 100

Weapon Absentee Voter Ammunition only* Bronto Gun Cryon Ray Flamer Gauntlet, Energy Howzer Laser Lance Laser Pistol Laser Rifle Laser Sniper Rifle Laser Sword Piledriver Pistol, automatic Plasma Sling Pulse Rifle Reactive Truncheon ROGUE Rifle Screamer Knife Screamer Rifle Trank Gun Whisper Gun Wide Beam Laser Roll on alien weapons table

* Roll again to determine the weapon that the ammunition fits.

Table 4-16: Alien Weapons d% 01-30 31-45 46-60 61-80 81-90 91-100

Weapon Annihilator Chimera Fiend Dust Gun Monofilament Blade Warp Render New alien weapon (see below)

Table 4-17: Special Abilities* d% 01-08 09-12 13-25 26-29 30-36 37-45 46-53 54-65 66-73 74-81 82-86 87-91 92-95 96-97 98-100

Ability Armor piercing Defuser Duo Electric Explosion Extra penetration Flame Improved range Increased crit multiplier Increased threat range Lightweight Low-tech Plasma Rapid fire Trank

* Some special abilities may not apply to some weapons. Re-roll if the result doesn’t make sense. Armor piercing: The weapon is extremely effective against physical armor. It ignores up to 3 points of armor bonus from physical armor. For example, a flak jacket (normally +5) would only provide a +2 bonus against an armor piercing weapon. Padded armor (normally +1) would provide no bonus, but the user would not suffer a penalty to his AC. In addition, armor piercing weapons bypass object hardness up to a hardness of 10; hardness above 10 works normally. Defuser: The weapon is extremely effective against energy armor. It ignores up to 3 points of armor bonus from energy armor. Duo: The weapon has been combined with another weapon such that they can both be fired with the pull of a single trigger. Both weapons must be aimed at the same target. A single roll is used to determine whether both guns hit or miss. Roll again on the custom weapons table to determine which other weapon is involved. Electric: The weapon causes an electric shock. This adds 1d4 points of damage on a successful hit, plus another 1d4 if the target is wearing metal armor. Explosion: The weapon causes an explosion upon impact. The explosion causes the same damage as the weapon. Its area effect has a 1d3 x10 feet radius.

Extra penetration: The weapon causes extra damage. Increase damage by one-half after including all modifiers. Flame: The weapon causes fire damage. Targets must make a Reflex save (DC 15) or catch fire. Improved range: The weapon’s range increment is multiplied by 2. Increased crit multiplier: Add 1d2 to the crit multiplier. Increased threat range: Subtract 1d2 from the weapon’s threat range. For example, if the current threat range is 19-20 and you roll 2, the new threat range would be 17-20. Lightweight: The weapon’s weight is reduced by 50%. Low-tech: The weapon’s technology has been simplified. Its tech level is 1d2 points lower than normal. (Does not apply to weapons of tech level 3 or lower.) Plasma: The weapon uses plasma blasts. Targets must make a Reflex save (DC 15) or catch fire. In addition, the area within 5’ of the point of impact is embroiled in a fireball which dissipates in 1d3+6 rounds in still weather and 1d3+1 rounds in windy weather. Rapid fire: The user may make an extra attack per turn with the weapon. The attack is at the wielder’s highest base attack bonus, but each attack (the extra one and the normal one) suffers a –2 penalty. You must use the full attack action to use this special ability. Trank: The weapon carries tranquilizer fluid and inflicts subdual damage as well as normal damage. Targets take 1d6 points of subdual damage in addition to normal damage. Moreover, they must take a Fortitude save (DC 15). If the save fails, they take an additional 1d6 points of subdual damage on the next round, and must continue making saves each round thereafter until one is passed. New alien weapon: There is unlimited potential for introducing powerful alien weapons into your Broncosaurus Rex campaigns. They were transported to Cretasus by the Free Fleet, offworld adventurers, or even the aliens themselves (perhaps thousands of years ago, perhaps quite recently), and were in use until the untimely demise of their owners. You can create alien weapons as you deem appropriate, or you can use the following method to randomly determine them. Future Broncosaurus Rex supplements will have even more alien weapons. Here are the steps to generate a new alien weapon: 1. Roll 1d6 on the table on the next page to determine the tech type and tech level. This also determines how you will determine damage. (This method stops at tech level 16. To determine higher tech levels, roll 1d8 or 1d10 and add 10 to the result.) All weapons of tech level 12 and higher are modified touch weapons (only energy fields provide an armor bonus against modified touch weapons). All weapons of tech level 16 and above are touch weapons (even energy fields don’t give an armor bonus).

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Roll 1 2 3 4 5 6

Tech Type Monofilament Genetic Antimatter Disintegrator Beam Psychic

Tech Level 11 12 13 14 15 16

2. Determine damage by rolling d% according to the weapon’s tech level on the table to the right. For weapons with a die roll for damage, determine the crit modifier by rolling 1d3+1, and determine the threat range by subtracting 1d4 from 21. For weapons with a save against damage, the DC of the save is determined by adding 2d64 to the weapon’s tech level. Mutation: The weapon causes a physical mutation of some kind. Some weapons target specific organs (always mutating the

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d% by 11 01-20 21-50 51-70 71-85 86-90 91-95 96-97 98 99 100

Tech Level 12 13

01-20 21-40 41-50 51-60

01-10 11-20 21-30 31-40 41-70 71-80 81-85

61-85 86-100

Damage 14

01-20 21-40 41-60

61-100 86-100

15

16

3d10 3d12 4d10 4d12 01-15 4d20 subdual 16-40 6d20 subdual 41-50 5d10 01-10 6d10 11-25 4d20 26-35 Death (Ref save negates) Mutation (Fort save negates) Death (Fort save negates) 36-55 Blink 56-100 51-70 Energy drain (-1 level) (Will save negates) 71-80 Ability drain (-1 Int) (Will save negates) 81-100 Death (Will save negates)

arms or eyes, for example), while others are more general in their effects. Regardless, the mutations are never pleasant and usually harmful. Each mutation causes a permanent loss of 1d4-1 points of Cha. In addition to changes in physical appearance, the mutation causes damage – roll 3d20 as if on tech level 11 to determine how much. Blink: The target blinks into the warp. The effect is just like the warp render (see Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook, page 61). 3. Determine range increment by rolling d% according to tech level (see table below). d% by Tech Level 11 12 13 01-25 01-15 26-40 16-30 01-20 41-55 31-45 21-50 56-80 46-47 51-65 81-95 48-59 66-75 96-100 50-53 76-95 54-60 96-100 61-85 86-98 99-100

Table 4-18: Random Armor Type

Range Increment 14

15

16

01-20 21-40 41-50 51-70 71-90 91-95 01-25 01-10 96-98 26-50 11-25 99-100 51-85 26-50 86-95 51-75 96-100 76-100

None (Melee) Grenade – 10 ft./20 ft. Grenade – 10 ft./40 ft. 10 ft. 25 ft. 50 ft. 100 ft. 250 ft. 400 ft. 1 mile None – limited only by sight range

4. To determine the weapon’s weight, roll 1d20. On 1-10, record the result as the weapon’s weight in pounds. On 11-20, record the result and then roll 1d20 again. If the second roll is 110, the weight is the sum of the two rolls. If the second roll is 1120, record the two rolls and repeat the process until you roll 1-10.

Armor Armor and shield bonuses can be randomly determined according to the standard rules. The type of armor or shield can be determined according to the tables that follow. Many of the standard special abilities make sense in Broncosaurus Rex – fire resistance, energy resistance, and so on. If the resulting special ability does not make sense in your campaign, re-roll or pick. There is a 10% chance that armor will not be built for a medium-size creature, but instead be designed for a mount. If so, it will be designed for Large (01-50), Huge (51-90), or Gargantuan (91100) creatures.

d% 01-07 08-12 13-20 21-24 25-27 28-40 41-55 56-60 61-65 66-68 69-70 71-74 76-78 79-85 86 87-89 90-92 93 94 95 96-97 98 99 100

Armor Type Hermetic suit Padded Leather Studded leather Chain shirt Flak jacket Hide Chainmail Reflective armor Riot gear Vacuum suit Reactive armor Bomb suit Powered armor Bioceramic armor * Kinetic field Absorption field Vibrofield Allosaur hide Ceratosaur hide Croc hide Tyrannosaur hide Stegosaur hide Ankylosaur hide

* As given in the Scray creature description on page 119. Bioceramic armor discovered as treasure has a 75% chance of having been already fitted to its original wearer, and is thus useless to anyone else. A machinist might still buy fitted bioceramic armor to study its composition and see if he can duplicate it; these suits are rare and even fitted ones can fetch $500 or more. If not fitted, it conforms to the shape of the first person to don it. Roll 1d6 for type: 1-2 light, 3-4 medium, 5-6 heavy.

Table 4-19: Random Shield Type d% 01-50 51-65 66-80 81-90 91-100

Shield Type Small steel Large steel Riot Energy Reinforced dinosaur skull

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Encounter Tables The following tables allow you to create random encounters by challenge rating and terrain. For encounters in ruins, caves, or other underground areas, use the column corresponding to the terrain that surrounds the encounter area (because creatures from the surrounding terrain will seek shelter there). You can then use the standard CR rules to determine the number of creatures encountered. These encounter tables lump CRs in increments of two. That should work for most encounters – just remember to increase the number of creatures if the CR is below the party’s level, and decrease the number of creatures if above the party’s level.

Table 4-20: Encounters of CR 1/10 through 1 CR

Creature

1/10 1/8 1/8 1/6 1/6 1/4 1/4 1/4 1/4 1/3 1/3 1/3 1/2 1/2 1/2 1/2 1/2 1/2 1/2 1/2 1/2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

100

Toad Mon. Centipede, Tiny Trilobite, Common Lizard Small Game, Tiny Cheirolepis Mon. Centipede, Small Mon. Scorpion., Tiny Mon. Spider, Tiny Giant Beetle, Fire Small Game, Small Snake, Tiny Viper Claim Jumper (NPC) Compsognathus Giant Bee Mon. Centipede, Med. Mon. Scorpion, Small Mon. Spider, Small Pterodactylus Snake, Small Viper Tanystropheus Dino Rustler (NPC) Dryosaurus Edaphosaurus Eurypterid Giant Ant, Worker Mon. Centipede, Large Mon. Scorpion, Med. Mon. Spider, Med. Octopus Ornitholestes Outlaws/Bandits (NPCs) Oviraptor Protosuchus Shark, Medium Snake, Medium Viper Soldier (NPC) Squid Stenonychosaurus Trilobite, Giant

d% by Terrain Forest Plains 01-02 03-04

01

05-07 08-12

02-03 04-09

13-14 15 16 17-18 19-26 27

10-11 12 13 14-15 16-23 24

28-31 32-33 34-35 36-38 39-40

25-28 29-30 31-32 33-35 36-37 38-43 44-45

41-42 43-47 48-49

Riverine/ Swamp 01-04 05-14 15-17 18-25

26-35 36-40 41-50

51-55

46-49 50-54

50-57

Hills/ Desert Mountain 01-04

01-09

05-06 07-11

10-12 13-20

12-13 14-15 16-17 18-19 20-25 26-29 30-33 34-45 46-47 48-49 50-51 52-53 54-65 66-67

21-25 26-30 31-33 34-35 36-40 41-43

Aquatic (Any)

01-15 16-25 26-35

36-45 46-50

44 45-49 50-54 55-60 61-65

51-55

68-69 56-65 56-65

58-60 61-63 64-65 66-67

55-56 57-58 59-60 61-62

70-71 72-73 74-75 76-77

66-67 68-72 73-77 78-80

68-77 78-80 81-86 87-95

63-72 73-75 76-85 86-92

66-70 71-73

78-83 84-90

74-80

91-95

81-84 85-90 91-92

96-97 98-99

93-95 96-99

81-83 84-86

96-97 98-99

93-96 97-99

100

100

87 88-100

100

100

66-75 76-80

81-85 86-88 89-95 96-100

Table 4-21: Encounters of CR 2 and 3 CR

2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3

Creature

Bactrosaurus Camptosaurus Crocodile Dimetrodon Dunkleosteus Giant Ant, Soldier Giant Ant, Queen Giant Beetle, Bombardier Giant Dragonfly Giant Lizard Giant Praying Mantis Leptoceratops Mon. Centipede, Huge Mon. Scorpion, Large Mon. Spider, Large Plesiosaurus Protoceratops Scray Shark, Large Snake, Constrictor Snake, Large Viper Giant Wasp Parasaurolophus Snake, Huge Viper Stegoceras Velociraptor

d% by Terrain Forest Plains

01-05 06-12

Riverine/ Swamp 01-10 11-20 21-30 31-40

Hills/ Desert Mountain

Aquatic (Any)

01-20 21-40

13-17 18-19 20-25

01-10 11-13 14-18

26-35 36-40

19-28

41-45 46-50 51-55

29-34 35-39 40-44

56-65 66-67

45-56 57-58

41-60 61-65

01-10 11-13 14-18

01-15 16-19 20-25

19-28

26-35

29-38 39-44 45-49 50-54

36-45 46-50 51-55 56-60

55-70 71-72

61-79 81-85

41-70

68-71 72-73 74-75

59-62

76 77-79 89-100

71-74 75-85 86-100

66-70 71-72 73-82

73-75

86-95 96-98

83-87 88-90

76-77

99-100

91-100

90-100

Riverine/ Swamp

Hills/ Desert Mountain

71-90 91-95 96-98

99-100

Table 4-22: Encounters of CR 4 and 5 CR

4 4 4 4 4 4 3 5 5 5 5 5 5 5

Creature

Giant Beetle, Stag Giant Crocodile Monoclonius Mon. Spider, Huge Pteranodon Shark, Huge Styracosaurus Edmontosaurus Elasmosaurus Iguanodon Pachycephalosaurus Quetzalcoatlus Snake, Giant Constrictor Therizinosaurus

d% by Terrain Forest Plains

Aquatic (Any)

01-05 01-20 06-10

01-20 21-35 36-50

01-30 01-15 16-45

01-100 31-60

11-30

46-75 21-50 61-90

31-60 61-75 76-85 86-100

51-85 51-70 71-80

76-85 86-100

81-100

91-100 86-100

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Table 4-23: Encounters of CR 6 and 7 CR

Creature

6 6 6 6 6 6 7 7 7 7 7 7 7

Ceratosaurus Deinosuchus Megaraptor Mon. Centipede, Garg. Mon. Scorpion, Huge Vulcanodon Albertosaurus Allosaurus Ankylosaurus Mon. Spider, Gargantuan Spinosaurus Stegosaurus Triceratops

d% by Terrain Forest Plains 01-05 06-15 16-25 26-30 31-40 41-50 51-60 61-70

01-13 04-09 10-16 17-18 19-20

71-80

21-35 36-45 46-60 61-65

81-90 91-100

66-75 76-100

Riverine/ Swamp 01-10 11-35 36-45

46-60 61-70

Hills/ Desert Mountain 01-20 21-35 36-45 46-55

Aquatic (Any)

01-20 21-50

56-65 66-70

51-85 86-100

71-100 71-85 86-100

Table 4-24: Encounters of CR 8 and 9 CR

Creature

8 8 8 8 9 9

Kronosaurus Mon. Centipede, Col. Octopus, Giant Tyrannosaurus Mon. Scorpion, Garg. Squid, Giant

d% by Terrain Forest Plains

01-35

01-25

36-85 86-100

26-75 76-100

Riverine/ Swamp

Hills/ Desert Mountain 01-25

Aquatic (Any) 01-60

01-40 61-85

01-100

26-75 76-100

41-100 86-100

Table 4-25: Encounters of CR 10 and 11 CR

Creature

10 11 11

Mon. Spider, Colossal Brachiosaurus Mon. Scorpion, Colossal

d% by Terrain Forest Plains 01-25 26-75 76-100

01-30 31-70 71-100

Riverine/ Swamp

Hills/ Desert Mountain 01-20 01-40 21-70 76-100 41-100

In addition to the random encounter tables such as those above, there are tables for encounters that are specific to certain areas of Cretasus. These encounters need not be creatures – on trails, for example, they could be simple travel hazards. Here are two tables to generate encounters relating to travel along the Tecumseh or Bay Trails, and the lost library of Logos. The Logos encounters are more detailed and can be fleshed out into mini-adventures. You can create similar tables for other areas that your characters will frequent.

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Aquatic (Any)

Table 4-26: Trail Encounters d% 01-05

Result Steep rocky hill. Going around takes two full days. Wagons hauled uphill may break loose (5% chance) or flip over (5% chance). 06-10 Steep downhill slope. Going around takes three full days. Wagons must be carefully skidded downhill, but there is a chance they may go out of control (10%). 11-15 River or stream which must be crossed. If the party camps overnight before crossing, there is a 15% chance that a nighttime thunderstorm will raise the water level to impassable levels for 2d6 days. 16-20 Marauding dinosaurs (determine randomly). 21-25 2d4 outlaws on horses. 26-27 1d4 outlaws on triceratops. 28-35 1d6 graves alongside the trail. Disturbing them yields $1d6 in salable goods (boots, belt buckles, hats, etc.). 36-37 1d6+3 graves clustered in one spot alongside the trail. Characters who examine them closely must make a Fort. save against DC 7 or contract a disease (incubation 1d4 days, damage 1d4 Con). 38-50 Unusual rock formations, which are interesting to look at but impede movement (reduce speed by half). 51-60 Deep wagon ruts filled with mud. Movement speeds reduced by half. 61-65 A crying child, whose caravan accidentally left her behind. 66-75 A natural spring – an oasis of sorts. Food and water are plentiful. 76-85 Various belongings dumped by earlier pioneers to lighten their load: a chest of clothes, kitchen table, anvil, stove, window glass, bureau, etc. 86-90 A dry riverbed. 91-100 Natural springs; use d%: with (01-15) geysers, (16-30) high salt content, (31-50) natural carbonation, (51-85) pure, delicious water, (86-95) slight intoxicating effect, (96-100) harmful bacteria (Fort save DC 12 vs. disease; incubation 3d6 days; damage 1d3 Str).

Table 4-27: Encounters in the Search for Logos d6 1

2

3

4

5

6

Result The characters discover a small boat wrecked on the shores of the Danjow. The crew has been killed and scalped. It is the work of an adolescent zulep who needs just one more scalp to complete his coming-of-age ritual. He returned to his tribe to tell them about the boat he has captured. As they are traveling along the Danjow, the characters hear a human cry for help. After a difficult search, they find the person at the bottom of a pit, less than four feet square and more than thirty feet deep. The pit is at the crest of a bluff along the river. It leads into a section of the library which broke loose in the great flood and now makes a medium-sized cave. The person is an explorer in search of the great library; he climbed down but his rope broke and now he can’t make his way back up. A section of the library tunnels that broke loose during the great flood has washed up on the shore of the Danjow. A zulep band has moved in, using it as shelter. This enrages some protoceratops who live nearby, so they are preparing a raid to chase out the zuleps and reclaim the library section for their study. Logos was well known for the series of grand gates that guarded its entrance. While the opening on the first gate was enormous, the aperture on each successive gate grew progressively smaller until the final gate was a wall forty feet tall with a door less than four feet high. The gates provided protection from large theropods, and a system for trapping predators foolish enough to pursue their prey to the city’s edge. Now one of the gates – nearly intact – is discovered being used as a wall in a settler’s barn. He found it in the Danjow, hauled it to his plot of land, and is only interested in its practical uses. It is covered in Ceratopsian script. Despite its value, he won’t sell it for any price unless the buyer also helps him build a new barn. The characters encounter a tribe of ornitholestes carrying ancient gold-leafed tablets inscribed in Ceratopsian. The ornitholestes decorate their nesting areas with the sparkly, pretty tablets. They won’t divulge where they found them, but if the characters observe them for several days they will find that the ornitholestes frequent an unremarkable group of caves along the Danjow. A well-known protoceratops explorer sent news back to his relatives that he had found a stone tablet with a map to Logos. He was on his way home when he was eaten by a ceratosaurus known to the local protoceratops. They now want to kill and gut the ceratosaurus in the hope that it ate but cannot digest the tablet.

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Chapter V: Creature Statistics Coloration Each dinosaur species has a characteristic coloration, but the colors of individuals vary depending on local conditions. Some wide-ranging dinosaurs have evolved different skin colors and patterns for camouflage in the regions they inhabit. Others have bright colors to frighten off competitors. Genetic anomalies may produce unusual coloration unrelated to the environment. Giving your dinosaurs unusual skin tones can add adventure to the game. Big game hunters may want to capture a specimen of the elusive tiger-striped tyrannosauruses of the northwestern plains. Characters about to face a dinosaur in combat may be thrown off by the bright red spots on its skin – is it diseased? is it a mutant with unusual abilities? or is it simply an unusual but natural marking? The following tables summarize standard color schemes for dinosaurs, and provide a random generation method for producing variants. (Start with table 5-1, which is on the following page... layout of tables is harder than you might think!) The variants are divided into habitat-based color schemes and unusual color schemes. Habitat-based schemes usually evolve to suit a particular environment; they are rarely found outside that environment. Aquatic dinosaurs have no habitat-based variants listed because their habitat is always the water (although you could allow for albino deep-sea inhabitants). You can pick from this table if characters are in the appropriate region. Unusual color schemes can evolve from cross-breeding or from intimidation advantages, or by random genetic mutation. For unusual schemes, roll once on table 5-3 to determine the colors, then roll on table 5-4 to determine the pattern.

Table 5-2: Habitat-Based Color Schemes d% 01-10 11-20 21-25 26-30 31-40 41-45 46-50 51-60 61-70 71-80 81-90 91-95 96-97 98-100

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Color Scheme Desert: Brown and tan Desert: Black and brown Forest: Green and black Forest: Dark green and light green Forest: Gray and green Plains: Black and tan Plains: Green and tan Plains: Green and brown Hills/mountains: Black and brown Hills/mountains: Gray, green, and black Marsh/river: Gray and blue Marsh/river: Gray and dark green Nocturnal: Gray and black Nocturnal: Dark gray and navy

Table 5-3: Unusual Colors d% 01-03 04-05 06-10 01-15 16-20 21-25 26-30 31-40 41-50 51-55 56-60 61-65 66-70 71-75 76-100

Colors Albino Black (melanistic) Black and blue Black and red Red and blue Red and yellow Yellow and blue White and red Black and white Black and yellow Green and red Orange and white Blue and white Purple and orange Roll again twice and combine the colors

Table 5-4: Unusual Patterns d% 01-10 11-20 21-30 31-40 41-50 51-60 61-70 71-80 81-90 91-100

Pattern Tiger stripes Zebra stripes Polka dots Leopard spots Giraffe spots Alternating bands Random smudges Camouflage pattern Long dorsal stripes (parallel to the spine) Different-sized splotches

Subspecies and Mutations Cretasus is a large planet, and its parallel evolution with Earth remains a mystery. Unlike on Earth, however, the evolution of dinosaurs continues on Cretasus. There are dinosaur subspecies with special abilities, and some unusual mutations whose origins (natural or artificial) are unknown. Many zoologists, biologists, paleoanthropologists, and explorers are interested in tracking down subspecies for their own uses – research, taxidermy, or trophies. Some safari hunters want to bag a rare creature. A few machinists with an interest in genetic research want to trace the origins of the dinosaurs or duplicate unusual abilities. Finding and capturing subspecies can be a profitable vocation. It can also be dangerous. Subspecies and mutations can be a

Table 5-1: Color Schemes and Chance of Variant Creature

Common Colors

Albertosaurus Allosaurus Ankylosaurus Bactrosaurus Brachiosaurus Camptosaurus Ceratosaurus Compsognathus Deinosuchus Dimetrodon Dryosaurus Edaphosaurus Edmonotosaurus Elasmosaurus Iguanodon Kronosaurus Leptoceratops Monoclonius Ornitholestes Oviraptor Pachycephalosaurus Parasaurolophus Plesiosaurus Protoceratops Protosuchus Pteranodon Pterodactylus Quetzalcoatlus Spinosaurus Stegoceras Stegosaurus Stenonychosaurus Styracosaurus Tanystropheus Therizinosaurus Triceratops Tyrannosaurus Rex Velociraptor Vulcanodon

Red Yellow, red, blue Yellow, brown Gray, green Brown, gray, olive Green, gray Olive, brown Blue-gray Dark green Red, blue Pale green, tan Brown, green Gray, green, brown Brown w/ gray spots Green, gray Brown w/ tan stripes Brown, tan Tan, green Pale red Black, gray, white Brown, gray Gray, brown Grayish-red Green, brown, blue Brown, tan, dark gray Gray Gray Gray Dark gray, black Brown, gray Brown, blue, gray Pale gray-blue Green, olive Green, olive Green, brown Brown, olive, black Brown, olive, black Brown, black, green Red and yellow

way to throw your characters for a loop. Just when they think it’s yet another stegosaurus... These unusual specimens never associate with normal animals of their kind. If the creature is geographically isolated from the rest of its kind, call it a subspecies. It is possible to encounter entire herds of subspecies dinosaurs. If the animal is not isolated, however, it is a mutation of some sort, and no more than one family will ever be encountered.

% Chance of Variant Habitat Unusual 01-03 04-06 01-05 06-10 01-05 06-07 01 02-04 01 02-03 01-06 07-12 01-02 03-05 01 02 01-02 03-05 01-03 06-15 01 02-03 01-03 06-15 01 02-04 N/A 01-03 01-06 07-12 N/A 01 01 02 01 02-03 01-05 06-10 01-05 06-10 01-02 03-04 01 02-04 N/A 01-05 01-10 11-20 01-05 06-08 01 02 01 02 01 02 01 02-10 01-02 03-04 01-05 06-15 01 02 01 02-03 01-03 04-06 01-02 03-05 01-10 11-25 01-15 16-30 01-15 16-30 01-05 06-10

None 07-100 11-100 08-100 05-100 04-100 13-100 06-100 03-100 06-100 16-100 04-100 16-100 05-100 04-100 13-100 02-100 03-100 04-100 11-100 11-100 05-100 05-100 06-100 21-100 09-100 03-100 03-100 03-100 11-100 05-100 16-100 03-100 04-100 07-100 06-100 26-100 31-100 31-100 11-100

Table 5-5 provides a guide for randomly determining subspecies and mutations. Roll again if you get a result that is redundant or doesn’t make sense (like a kronosaurus that can breathe underwater or a sneaky brachiosaurus). Avoid the temptation to overpopulate your world with anomalies. No more than 1 out every 1,000 creatures will be a subspecies or mutation – and even then, the mutation may be insignificant. Side note: One of the more interesting evolutionary routes is

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that followed by the cetaceans. The modern cetaceans are known as whales... but their ancestors were land-dwellers. This means they evolved from primitive sea-dwelling amphibious mammals to land-dwelling ungulates, then back to the sea as the whales we know. If you really want to throw a monkey-wrench into your campaign, the cetaceans provide empirical precedent for an evolutionary process that could result in plesiosauruses with legs or allosauruses with fins...

A Note on Stats As noted in the Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook, we treat dinosaurs as type animal, not beast as in the core d20 rules. Nevertheless, we have given our dinosaurs the hit dice of beasts (d10), not animals (d8), to conform to previously published d20 stats for dinosaurs. A T-rex on Cretasus shouldn’t be any less

tough than a T-rex in another d20 game just because one is an animal and the other is a beast! You may notice one other inconsistency in our stat blocks: we do not always apply Str bonuses evenly across all of an animal’s attacks. Str bonuses are applied based on how the creature’s muscular system works. Many large herbivores are have strong legs and bodies, but their jaws are quite weak. In game terms, the creature’s Str bonus should not apply to its bite. Or, for a more dramatic example, consider the T-rex. The muscles in a T-rex’s jaw and neck are much more powerful than the muscles in its arms. Some paleontologists conjecture that T-rex’s arms could only lift 50 pounds! The legendary crushing power of the T-rex’s jaws makes it obvious that there are two Str stats at work here: one for the jaws, and one for the arms. This “relevant muscular group” approach to Str bonuses is why some Broncosaurus Rex dinosaurs do not have Str bonuses applied evenly to all of their attacks.

Table 5-5: Subspecies and Mutations

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d% 01-02

Mutation Fur or feathers

03-10 11-15 16-20 21-30 31-35

Unusual color Short legs Long legs Long neck or tail Poisoned bite

36-40

Spits poison

41-45 46-50

High intelligence Opposable thumbs/claws

51-55

Very strong

56-65 66-70

Very fast Chameleon

71-75 76-80 81-85 86-90 91-95 96-100

Breathe underwater Swim/walk Good eyesight Good hearing Canny Sneaky

Effect Extremely rare specimen on cusp of major physiological evolution – of great value to biologists Roll on tables 5-3 and 5-4 Speed half normal Speed twice normal Double range of bite or tail attack Injury causes poison – DC 1d10+10, initial and secondary damage of 1d3 to (roll 1d4) Dex (1), Str, (2), Con (3), or Int (4) Range 1d6 x 10 feet – poisoned touch attack – determine type as above +2d4 Int Depending on Int, may have advanced tools and weapons +2d4 Str; this increases attack bonus and damage Increase speed by 50%, +1d4 Dex Can change color to suit environment: one-half concealment at all times (20% miss chance) due to ability to blend in to background, +15 to Hide checks Can breathe underwater indefinitely Swimming (walking) speed equal to normal speed +6 to Spot checks +6 to Listen checks +6 to Bluff checks +6 to Hide and Move Silently checks

Statistics For Dinosaurs And Other Creatures ALBERTOSAURUS (“PACKMOUTHS”)

Skills:

Albertosaurus Huge Animal 14d10+42 (119 hp) +2 (Dex) 30 ft. 14 (-2 size, +2 Dex, +4 natural) Bite +15 melee, kick +6 melee Bite 3d8+9, kick 1d6+3 10 ft. by 10 ft./15 ft. bite, 10 ft. kick None Scent Fort +12, Ref +11, Will +8 Str 24, Dex 14, Con 17, Int 7, Wis 18, Cha 10 Listen +8, Spot +8, Wilderness Lore +5

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Warm forest, plains Pack (7-12 adults and 1-6 young) 7 Standard Usually neutral 15-21 HD (Huge)

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

Albertosauruses are highly social carnosaurs, slightly smaller than allosaurus. They reach 30 feet in length. Unlike allosauruses, ceratosauruses, and tyrannosauruses, they are pack animals, and as many as a dozen will hunt together. A keen observer will quickly distinguish an albertosaurus from other theropods by the way it moves: it is quite agile and light on its feet for a creature its size.

SOCIETY Albertosaurus live in packs of up to a dozen adults. During mating season, the pack may have as many as half that number of additional young. Albertosaurus packs are ruled by the largest animal, who may be male or female, as both genders grow to similar proportions. Albertosaurus packs spend their time much as lions do. Almost all of their day is spent lounging in the shade. When an opportunity presents itself, they will rise groggily, shake themselves awake, and stalk a potential meal. Albertosaurus packs are not against attacking large herds of herbivores, which they will try to splinter into smaller groups that can be safely attacked.

All large theropods compete for hunting grounds. Because of their pack nature, albertosaurus are a particular threat to their competitors. Although an allosaurus or tyrannosaurus would easily win a one-on-one fight, they are almost always outnumbered because albertosaurus travel in packs. Enemies of albertosauruses focus on ambushes and hit-and-run tactics when fighting them. They also make a concerted effort to kill albertosaurus youth whenever they get the chance. Albertosauruses speak their own language, Albertosaur, which has no dialects.

COMBAT Albertosauruses are enthusiastic hunters. They enjoy stalking, chasing, and fighting prey. They attack with their jaws. When

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fighting at close range, they also employ short, powerful strikes with their wellclawed hind legs. They are the only large theropods to employ kick attacks.

BYPRODUCTS

CERATOPSIANS (“HORN LIZARDS,” “BRONCOS”)

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC:

Styracosaurus (“Thrasher”) Large Animal 6d10+30 (63 hp) -1 (Dex) 20 ft. 14 front (-1 size, -1 Dex, +6 natural),

Monoclonius (“Longhorn”) Large Animal 6d10+30 (63 hp) -1 (Dex) 30 ft. 14 front (-1 size, -1 Dex, +6 natural), 10 sides (-1 size, -1 Dex, +2 natural) Gore +7 melee Gore 1d10+4 5 ft. by 10 ft./5 ft. Charge for double damage Scent Fort +10, Ref +4, Will +3 Str 19, Dex 9, Con 21, Int 6, Wis 12, Cha 6 Listen +2, Spot +2

Ranchers hate albertosauruses. Because of their 10 sides (-1 size, -1 Dex, +2 natural) pack habits, they can do more damage in a shorter Attacks: 3 gores +7 melee time than any other large Damage: Gore 1d4+4 theropod. Many ranchers Face/Reach: 5 ft. by 10 ft./5 ft. offer a standing bounty for Special Attacks: None any albertosaurus killed on Special Qualities: Scent their land. Saves: Fort +10, Ref +4, Will +3 Albertosaurus skins can Abilities: Str 18, Dex 9, Con 20, be used to make one suit of Int 5, Wis 12, Cha 6 human-sized masterwork Skills: Listen +2, Spot +2 hide armor, and their claws Warm forest and hills Warm plains and teeth can be used to Climate/Terrain: Pair or herd (9-16) Herd (21-40) make daggers. An intact hide Organization: 4 4 can be sold for $400. A full Challenge Rating: None None set of claws and teeth can be Treasure: Alignment: Always neutral Always neutral sold for $200. 7-9 HD (Large) 7-9 HD (Large) Albertosauruses are no Advancement: easier to train than most There are many kinds of ceratopsians on Cretasus, with other large theropods, so their eggs are not in especially high demand. The Dino Warriors will occasionally purchase them, triceratops being the best known. But several smaller varieties though they prefer allosaurus and T-rex eggs. A single alber- also inhabit the planet, and their small size makes them preferred for many domestic uses. All share the same basic build, similar to tosaurus egg can fetch $200. a triceratops, with the arrangement of their horns being their defining characteristic. TRAINING Styracosaurus has a crown of horns emerging from its neck Young albertosaurus can be trained as mounts at DC 27, crest. Unlike the horns of a triceratops, these horns point to the while adults can be trained at DC 34. An adult albertosaurus can side, not the front. Three long horns protrude from each side of the carry 2,000 pounds. crest, as well as many smaller horns along the crest’s edge and a shorter spike on the creature’s nose. Monoclonius has only a single horn coming from its snout, but it is long and deadly. Styracosaurus can grow as long as 18 feet, but most specimens are shorter. Monoclonius is slightly larger, with some known to have reached 20 feet. These lengths include their tails and their rather long skulls; their bodies are only about half as long.

SOCIETY These ceratopsians share similar societal traits. Like triceratops, they wander in herds without fixed leaders. Males compete for mating rights in non-lethal contests, but are otherwise not combative. The various herds ignore each other except in cases of territorial infringement. Styracosaurus and monoclonius follow migration patterns, much like triceratops. They travel the same circuit year after year.

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COMBAT Ceratopsians are herbivores. They don’t attack unless threatened. Predators are obviously a threat, as are any creatures that can endanger their nesting grounds. Since the arrival of man, ceratopsians have learned to fear humans, who hunt them and rope them. Most herds will go on alert at the sight of a human. The AC of a ceratopsian depends on the angle of attack. Any attack coming from the forward 90° arc hits the neck crest, which has a much higher AC than the creature’s fleshy sides. If forced to fight, all ceratopsians fight with their horns. Styracosaurus is the least graceful– its sideways-facing horns make it hard to directly gore an enemy, so it comes in close and thrashes its head around wildly. The sheer number of horns being flailed about makes this attack quite dangerous. The damage inflicted by this counts as slashing, not piercing. Monoclonius makes powerful stabbing motions with the long horn that extends from its snout. The horn inflicts double damage on a charge.

BYPRODUCTS Both monoclonius and styracosaurus are valued as mounts. They are small and easily handled (compared to their larger cousins, at least). However, their eggs are not particularly valuable, as they have been heavily domesticated and are easy to acquire from tame creatures. Eggs can be sold for $10 each to ranchers for breeding, or for much less to farmers for dinner!

TRAINING Adult monoclonius and styracosaurus are the size of very large oxen (not counting their tails, of course!) and are now in common use as mounts and beasts of burden. Both can be trained as adults at DC 22, or as youth at DC 18. Fully grown styracosaurus can carry 1,200 pounds, and monoclonius can carry 1,400 pounds.

CHEIROLEPIS (“NEEDLE-BITER”)

Skills: Feats:

Cheirolepis Tiny Animal (Aquatic) 1/2 d8 (2 hp) +2 (Dex) Swim 10 ft. 15 (+2 size, +2 Dex, +1 natural) Bite +4 melee Bite 1d6-3 2 1/2 ft. by 2 1/2 ft./0 ft. None None Fort +2, Ref +4, Will +1 Str 4, Dex 14, Con 10, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 1 Spot +3 Weapon Finesse (bite)

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Temperate aquatic School (4-40) 1/4 Standard Always neutral -

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

Cheirolepis is a primitive predatory fish that lives in slowmoving water, such as swamps. It grows up to 22 inches long, has thick, heavy scales, and has large eyes at the front of its armored head. Its most unusual feature is its mouth, which is filled with irregular rows of sharp, angled teeth. Although its jaw is only four inches long, cheirolepis can open its mouth wide enough to engulf prey up to two-thirds of its length. A single cheirolepis is no danger to a human, but a school of them can tear apart prey much larger than themselves.

COMBAT Cheirolepis will attack just about anything when they are hungry. Characters moving through swampy areas are bound to encounter them.

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DRYOSAURUS (“GRASS-RUNNER,” “DINOSAUR GAZELLE”)

Skills:

Dryosaurus Large Animal 4d10 (22 hp) +3 (Dex) 70 ft. 13 (-1 size, +3 Dex, +1 natural) Bite +0 melee Bite 1d4 5 ft. by 10 ft./5 ft. None None Fort +4, Ref +7, Will +2 Str 11, Dex 17, Con 10, Int 3, Wis 12, Cha 10 Spot +10, Listen +8, Jump +10

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Warm plains Herd (41-60+) 1 None Always neutral 6-8 HD (Huge)

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

Dryosaurus is a recently discovered dinosaur native to the northwestern plains. It has been nicknamed the “dinosaur gazelle” for its constant sprinting, playful antics, alert herds, and jumping behavior. Dryosaurus’ speed makes it valuable as a mount, and the few that have been brought back from the northwestern plains have been sold for high prices to New Savannah residents. There is a great demand for faster dinosaur mounts, and the first person to raise a herd of trained dryosauruses will be very successful. So far, however, their natural habitat is so distant that no one has managed this. Although dryosaurus reaches a length of 13 feet, it is very lightweight. Half of its length is its straight, counter-balancing tail. Its hips are only a foot or so taller than a human’s hips. Its skeletal structure is much more substantial than many of the other fleet-footed dinosaurs, so it can carry a human mount.

SOCIETY Dryosauruses dart across the northwestern plains in enormous herds. At watering holes or good grazing areas, several herds sometimes coalesce into even larger uber-herds, which then dissipate as the constituent herds move on separately. A herd of dryosauruses is marked by the fact that at least half the animals are always alert. The herd is always scouting for potential danger. At the slightest sign of trouble, they jump up and

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prance off. Their alertness combined with their great speed makes them difficult prey. Dryosaurus herds do not have a single leader or an organized social system. They are social creatures but they lack a complex language. During mating season, the entire herd stops for five weeks to tend to the eggs. As soon as the eggs hatch, the herd immediately moves on and the young learn very quickly how to walk, run, and jump. The herd is most vulnerable during mating season, when it loses the mobility that protects it from predators; dryosauruses carefully conceal their nests during this time.

COMBAT Dryosauruses do not like to fight. Given the choice, they retreat from combat. Their speed, agility, and jumping ability give them the ability to outrun or outmaneuver most opponents. If cornered, they use their bite until they get an opening to retreat.

BYPRODUCTS Dryosaurus are playful and cute – a difficult standard for most dinosaurs to meet. Humans enjoy their presence. A trained adult dryosaurus currently fetches $3,000 in the New Savannah livestock markets. Eggs would probably fetch $350 each or more, but none have been brought back. Prices are high, because demand exceeds supply. As more dryosauruses are caught, these prices will fall. But there will always be a demand for them, as they are very fast mounts.

TRAINING Dryosauruses can carry up to 250 pounds. An adult can be trained at DC 20, and a youth at DC 16.

DUNKLEOSTEUS (“HELMET-FISH”)

Skills:

Dunkleosteus Large Animal (Aquatic) 6d8+6 (33 hp) +0 Swim 60 ft. 15 (-1 size, +6 natural) Bite +6 melee Bite 1d8+3 5 ft. by 10 ft./5 ft. Improved Grab, Grind None Fort +6, Ref +5, Will +2 Str 16, Dex 11, Con 13, Int 1, Wis 10, Cha 1 Spot +3

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Any aquatic Solitary or school (2-5) 2 Standard Always neutral 7-12 HD (Huge), possibly larger

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

The dunkleosteus is a barrel-shaped primitive fish with massive armored plates covering its head. This bony shield extends as far as its pectoral fins, giving its scale-less body and eel-like tail a moderate degree of maneuverability. The most frightening feature of dunkleosteus is its jaws. It does not have teeth; rather, it has two large dental plates with varied edges. The fronts are edged with powerful fangs, while the back are flat, molar-like surfaces for grinding. Most dunkleosteus are 12 to 15 feet in length. However, a few survive to reach a size of near-invulnerability, at which point they continue growing almost indefinitely. The largest dunkleosteus known was 35 feet long, but there are doubtless even larger ones swimming the seas.

COMBAT Dunkleosteus lurks below the surface of the water waiting for prey. It has been found in water as shallow as four feet; in such circumstances, characters who pass Spot checks may see the dunkleosteus’ silhouette under the water before it attacks (DC 8 to 12 depending on the water’s clarity). Because they patrol fixed territories, the remains of former kills may be found in the area. This means treasure – but it might be underwater! Improved Grab (Ex): Dunkleosteus attack with a ferocious bite. Once they land a successful bite, they lock their jaws and begin grinding with the rear section of their dental plates. This quickly dissolves most victims. A dunkleosteus may use its improved grab ability if it lands a bite attack. Grind (Ex): A target grabbed by a dunkleosteus will be subjected to a gruesome grinding by its rear dental plates. The grinding does 2d8+6 damage on a successful grapple check. The dunkleosteus cannot use its bite attack while it is grinding an enemy.

EURYPTERID (“SEA SCORPION”)

Skills: Feats:

Eurypterid Medium-Size Vermin (Aquatic) 3d8 (13 hp) +2 (Dex) 10 ft., swim 30 ft. 14 (+2 Dex, +2 natural) Claws +4 melee Claws 1d6 5 ft. by 10 ft./5 ft. None Vermin Fort +3, Ref +2, Will +0 Str 11, Dex 14, Con 10, Int -, Wis 10, Cha 2 Spot +6 Weapon Finesse (claws)

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Any aquatic Solitary or pack (2-5) 1 None Always neutral 4-6 HD (Medium), 7-9 HD (Large)

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

Eurypterids are ancient arthropods that resemble aquatic scorpions. They have two long pincers extending from their head, which they use to catch their prey. Their tail has small barbs but is used to swim, not fight, and it does not have poison glands. The common eurypterid is eight feet long.

COMBAT Eurypterids swim through the water, always on the lookout for prey. They are not a threat to boats but are a real danger for swimmers.

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HADROSAURS (“DUCKBILLED DINOSAURS”)

Skills:

Bactrosaurus Large Animal 4d10 (22 hp) +0 30 ft., swim 30 ft. 10 (-1 size, +1 natural) Bite +1 melee Bite 1d4 5 ft. by 10 ft./5 ft. Trample Scent Fort +4, Ref +4, Will +2 Str 12, Dex 11, Con 11, Int 4, Wis 13, Cha 11 Listen +6, Spot +6

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Warm marsh, lakeshore, riverbank Herd (10-40) 2 None Always neutral 5-8 HD (Large)

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

Many species of hadrosaurs, or duckbilled dinosaurs, graze along the lakes and rivers of Cretasus. Superficially, they are very different, sporting a wide variety of colors, crests, and skin textures. Structurally, however, they are very similar, with their unifying characteristic being the broad, flat snout with a toothless beak. For game purposes, the primary distinction is their size. Parasaurolophus, described in the Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook (p. 75), is an example of a Huge hadrosaur. Here we describe typical examples of Large and Gargantuan hadrosaurs: bactrosaurus (13 feet long) and edmontosaurus (45 feet long).

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SOCIETY

Hadrosaurs graze in large herds. The herds will Edmontosaurus congregate where the grass Gargantuan Animal is greenest (so to speak), 16d10+16 (104 hp) forming enormous popula-1 (Dex) tions in rather small areas. 50 ft., swim 40 ft. These roving “hadrosaur 8 (-1 Dex, -4 size, +3 natural) cities” graze as a single Bite +9 melee mass, with herds of many Bite 1d8+6 different species intermin40 ft. by 15 ft./10 ft. gling. Following close Trample behind are the many predaScent tors that survive by picking Fort +11, Ref +9, Will +6 off the old, young, and sick. Str 22, Dex 8, Con 13, When not grazing alongInt 4, Wis 13, Cha 12 side a river or lake, hadrosaurs Listen +10, Spot +10 spend their time wading in the Warm marsh, lakeshore, riverbank shallow waters near the bank. Herd (10-40) It is very rare to encounter a 5 herd of hadrosaurs far from None other hadrosaurs. They are Always neutral weak herbivores and they 17-24 (Gargantuan) know their greatest strength is in numbers. Each species of hadrosaur has its own language (Parasaurolophus, Bactrosaurus, Edmonotosaurus, etc.), but they are derived from a single source. A person who speaks one can communicate in another hadrosaur language, much as if it were a

different dialect, but with a 25% chance of misunderstanding rather than the usual 10%.

KRONOSAURUS (“OCEANIUS REX”)

COMBAT Hadrosaurs are timid plant-eaters that do not enjoy combat. If attacked, they attempt to flee. If they must fight, they use their duckbilled bite in defense. Trample (Ex): Small groups of predators will rarely cause a hadrosaur herd to panic. But if many enemies attack, the herd will move in unison in a giant stampede. Although no hadrosaur voluntarily approaches a predator, the panic and crazed trampling of animals in the rear of a herd may cause the entire herd to move directly toward predators. The ensuing trampling can be deadly. Hadrosaur tramples cause 1d8 (bactrosaurus) or 2d10 (edmontosaurus) points of damage. Opponents who don’t make attacks of opportunity may make a Reflex save (DC 13) to take half damage.

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks:

BYPRODUCTS

Skills:

Hadrosaurs are most valued for their meat. They are basically the dinosaur equivalent of cattle. A bactrosaurus carcass can be sold for $200, and an edmontosaurus carcass for $800.

Climate/Terrain:

TRAINING Bactrosauruses are common civilian mounts. They can be trained as a mount at DC 23 for an adult, and DC 19 for a youth. Edmontosauruses are less common as mounts, as their bulk makes them unwieldy; there are smaller creatures that are almost as strong. An edmontosaurus can be trained at DC 35 for an adult, and DC 31 for a youth. Bactrosaurus can carry 500 pounds; edmontosaurus can carry 16,000 pounds.

Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Kronosaurus Huge Animal (Aquatic) 16d10+64 (152 hp) +1 (Dex) 10 ft., swim 60 ft. 13 (-2 size, +1 Dex, +4 natural) Bite +26 melee Bite 6d8+16 15 ft. by 40 ft./10 ft. Hurdle, improved grab, swallow whole Scent Fort +14, Ref +11, Will +6 Str 32, Dex 12, Con 18, Int 7, Wis 12, Cha 10 Listen +3, Spot +5 Any aquatic – deep sea or shallow shorelines Solitary 8 None Usually neutral evil 17-32 HD (Gargantuan)

Kronosaurus is the tyrannosaurus rex of the seas. Although not the longest marine reptile, it is the deadliest. Its short-necked 45-foot long body is thick and muscular, giving it far more strength and mass than its long-necked competitors. Fully grown kronosauruses have been known to weigh 20 tons or more. Fortunately, kronosaurus is extremely rare. Encounters with kronosauruses are notable enough to quickly become gossip for miles around.

SOCIETY Kronosauruses are solitary hunters. They cruise the ocean devouring anything large enough to merit their attention. They are feared by all sea dwellers. Kronosaurus have a compact, highly maneuverable body which is surprisingly agile for their size. They are adroit swimmers in both deep and shallow water, and have been encountered in water as shallow as 10 feet deep. No one knows their mating or social habits. Kronosaurus encounters are usually singular events – only a dozen or so

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encounters are reported each year, rarely in the same places. It is unknown whether this is because the kronosauruses are few but far-ranging, or many but reclusive.

LEPTOCERATOPS (“ZULEPS”)

COMBAT

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities:

Kronosauruses take massive gulps out of whatever stands in their way. Their jaws are longer than a T-rex’s and their bites are justifiably feared. Hurdle (Ex): Kronosauruses are so strong that they can hurl their entire body out of the water. They use this ability to attack ships and even low-flying pterosaurs. As a move-equivalent action, the kronosaurus can hurdle itself out of the water. A hurdle can only take place if the kronosaurus ran its full distance in the previous round. The hurdle covers a distance of 100’ and reaches 30’ above sea level at the arc’s apex. One of the most famous kronosaurus attacks concerned the merchant vessel Plentiful. While bearing liquor from Plesiosaur Bay to New Savannah, Plentiful encountered a kronosaurus. The beast hurled itself into the masts, shattering both of them in two leaps. It completely cleared the decks with each jump. After destroying the masts, it bit several large holes in the hull. It then followed lazily behind until the boat sank, whereupon it picked off the sailors one by one. Other captains learned from the Plentiful encounter. When a kronosaurus was spotted approaching the vessel New World in shallows near Plesiosaur Bay, the captain steered the boat parallel to the shore in very shallow water. The kronosaurus hurdled over the boat, grabbing several crewmen. But the water on the other side of the boat was too shallow and the creature ran aground! By the time the kronosaurus waddled off the beach, New World had sped safely away. Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, the kronosaurus must hit a Medium-size or smaller creature with its bite attack. If it gets a hold, it can try to swallow the foe. Swallow Whole (Ex): A kronosaurus can swallow a Medium-size or smaller foe with a successful grapple check. The swallowed creature takes 2d8+8 points of damage plus 8 points of acid damage each round. A swallowed creature can cut its way out with claws or a small or tiny slashing weapon. It must cause 25 points of damage to the gizzard (AC 20) to escape.

BYPRODUCTS So few kronosaurus have been sighted that it is not known whether they have any useful byproducts. Many hunters would crown their collections with a kronosaurus skull trophy, but the beasts are so difficult to locate that no one has yet killed one.

TRAINING The well-known dino handler “Jaws” Giovanni, famed for having trained four T-rexes with his own hands, met his death while trying to capture and train a kronosaurus. They are hard to locate and nearly impossible to capture. No one has ever trained one. If characters do manage to locate and isolate one, they can attempt to train it at DC 36.

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Skills:

Leptoceratops Medium-Size Animal 2d10+6 (17 hp) +0 (Dex) 25 ft. 13 (+3 natural) Bite +4 melee Bite 1d8+3 5 ft. by 5 ft./5 ft. None Scent, fire resistance 10, cold vulnerability, barbarian rage Fort +6, Ref +3, Will +2 Str 17, Dex 11, Con 17, Int 6, Wis 15, Cha 9 Listen +8, Spot +8

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Warm desert, hills, and mountains Solitary, pack (4-5), or entire tribe (9-16) 2 Standard Usually chaotic neutral By character class

Saves: Abilities:

The leptoceratops are primitive relatives of the protoceratops. Although more lightly built and not as hardy, they are much more ferocious. They are unusually bloodthirsty for herbivorous creatures, a development that can be traced to their proud warrior culture forged by the harsh environment of the Crystal Desert. It is this warrior culture that allowed them to survive where their weaker cousins, such as the psittacosaurus or bagaceratops, did not. An adult leptoceratops can be as long as seven feet. They have five toes and strong grasping ability with their front arms, though they lack a true opposable thumb. They walk on their rear legs, but sometimes drop to all fours to run.

SOCIETY The desert-dwelling zuleps have always had to battle for limited supplies of food and water, against both other animals and neighboring tribes. Long ago, they developed a martial code which has since evolved into a strong warrior culture. Although herbivores, they eat flesh for ceremonial purposes. All zuleps, both male and female, must undergo a coming-ofage ritual that involves leaving the tribe and not returning until they have scalped a certain number of enemies. They must return with one scalp for every year of their own age, and the scalped enemies must be no smaller than their own size. Zulep adolescents can choose to undergo this ritual at any time from the age of 7 to 12 years. Obviously, the ritual is more difficult for older creatures – even though they are older and stronger, they must capture more scalps from larger creatures. But the most militant zuleps intentionally delay their coming-of-age

COMBAT Zuleps value strength and power. They are aggressive – especially so for herbivores. Their violent culture produces great warriors, and a horde of screaming, charging zuleps is a terrifying sight. But they are barbarian warriors – individual heroes with very little coordination, strategy, or formation to tie them together. They are vulnerable to organized, regimented opponents. Although they have a powerful natural bite, zuleps prefer to use spears, clubs, and shields in battle. They produce their own stone, metal, and crystal spear heads, which they attach to cane shafts; they also wield other weapons acquired through trade or plunder. Individual zuleps are armed as follows. Zuleps should be considered proficient in whatever weapons they bear: d% 1-40 41-60 61-80 81-95 95-100

as a sign of strength. Those that succeed in the ritual at the latest ages often become leaders in their tribes. Throughout their lives, zuleps practice tattooing, scarification, and piercing. Some tattoos and scars commemorate passages or successes, while others are purely aesthetic. Many zuleps exhibit unusual mutations, including malformed limbs, extra or missing fingers, strangely shaped beaks, or extra eyes. This is due to the radiation immanent in the Crystal Desert they inhabit. Leptoceratops live in nomadic tribes. They wander in search of food, living off of the rugged shrubs that grow in the Crystal Desert and the foothills of the Danjow. They stay in one place for a few weeks or months, until they have exhausted nearby supplies, then move on to somewhere else in the same general region. They are intimately familiar with the desert and know the uses of its more common crystals. Zulep tribes are frequently at war, both with neighboring tribes of zuleps and with other species of dinosaurs. When a predator approaches, they usually face it head on. War is their usual state of affairs. Each zulep tribe speaks a different dialect of their own language, a corrupted version of Ceratopsian which is no longer recognizable as such.

Armament Club Longspear Halfspear and large wooden shield Battleaxe and large wooden shield Other (GM’s choice – acquired through trade or plunder)

Zulep weapons often have straps so they can be slung over the creature’s back when it runs on all fours. Zuleps often carry trophies from previous battles. These trophies range from mundane (a velociraptor claw or human scalp) to exotic (a laser pistol which they don’t know how to use). Fire Resistance 10 (Ex): Zuleps are raised in extreme temperatures and are accustomed to great heat. They ignore the first 10 points of fire damage dealt to them each round. Cold Vulnerability (Ex): Zuleps suffer double damage from all cold attacks except on a successful save (as if of the fire subtype). Barbarian Rage (Ex): Once per day, a zulep can rage exactly as a first-level barbarian. This stacks with rages gained by zuleps who have barbarian class levels.

BYPRODUCTS Zuleps have unusual anatomies. They can endure extreme heat and frequent dehydration. Many of their organs have medicinal uses. Any character with the Heal skill can learn how to use leptoceratops parts in healing. This takes two months with instruction (whether teacher or text), or six months if self-taught. The character must also be able to gather the leptoceratops parts, which requires the Wilderness Lore skill (see Dinosaur Byproducts, Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook p. 63). One leptoceratops corpse will yield 1d3 uses of healing agents. After studying the leptoceratops anatomy, the character receives a +1 competence bonus to Heal when he uses leptoceratops healing agents.

TRAINING Due to their antagonistic nature, zuleps are practically impossible to train.

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PLESIOSAURUS (“SEA WOLF”)

Skills:

Plesiosaurus Medium-Size Animal (Aquatic) 3d10+6 (23 hp) +3 (Dex) 20 ft., swim 40 ft. 15 (+3 Dex, +2 natural) Bite +5 melee Bite 1d6+3 5 ft. by 10 ft./5 ft. None Scent Fort +5, Ref +6, Will +0 Str 16, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 3, Wis 9, Cha 6 Listen +2, Spot +3

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Ocean School (3-10) 2 None Always neutral 4-6 HD (Large), 7-9 HD (Huge)

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

down, and move on to the next target. Plesiosaurs often follow right behind fishing expeditions, grabbing fish out of the nets as fast as the fishermen can haul them in. They are the bane of fishermen throughout the inland sea, but especially in the northern waters of Plesiosaur Bay, where they are so numerous as to make fishing expeditions pointless.

COMBAT Plesiosaurs do not actively threaten humans, but their daring attempts to steal fish from under fishermens’ noses inevitably get them into trouble. They will defend themselves if attacked, as many a fisherman has learned when clubbing one with an oar. Nevertheless, plesiosaurs will not initiate attacks against humans except against injured swimmers or children, as their mouths are too small to easily eat humans.

BYPRODUCTS Plesiosaurs are considered pests with no usable byproducts.

TRAINING It is rumored that some wild ones have taught plesiosaurs to fish for them. Characters can attempt this at DC 23.

QUETZALCOATLUS (“GRAYWING”)

Skills:

Quetzalcoatlus Gargantuan Animal 13d8+26 (85 hp) +2 (Dex) 20 ft., fly 80 ft. (good) 10 (-4 size, +2 Dex, +2 natural) Bite +9 melee Bite 3d8+4 20 ft. by 40 ft./15 ft. Improved grab Scent Fort +10, Ref +10, Will +5 Str 19, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 7, Wis 12, Cha 6 Listen +5, Spot +6*

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Any mountains Solitary or pair 5 None Always neutral -

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

Plesiosaurus is the most common of the sea predators. It reaches a length of 8 feet, with a neck as long as 3 feet – just long enough to threaten fisherman in small boats. Plesiosaurus is built for maneuverability, not speed, and is extremely skilled at snatching fish out of nets without being captured itself. When they are caught in nets, plesiosaurs are usually able to gnaw their way out.

SOCIETY Plesiosaurus schools are constantly on the move. They dart among the fish, snatch them in their jaws, quickly gulp them

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Quetzalcoatlus is the largest flying creature of all time. Its forty-foot wingspan and seven-foot-long beak frighten humans and dinosaurs alike, although it feeds primarily on carrion and shellfish. Quetzalcoatlus has incredible eyesight and can spot food from several miles away.

SOCIETY

TRAINING

Quetzalcoatluses live in lofty, inaccessible rooks far from human settlements. They are sometimes seen cruising over human settlements at high altitudes, but it is very rare for a human to encounter one close-up. High in their cliff-side dwellings, they seem to live a life of their own, unconcerned with what the rest of the world is doing. They speak pterosaur.

Many dino trainers covet the chance to train a quetzalcoatlus, as they make strong, fast mounts. An adult can be trained at DC 32. A youth can be trained at DC 26, although the youth grow up at such high altitudes that they are extremely rare. An adult can carry up to 900 pounds.

COMBAT Quetzalcoatluses are not predators, so they generally will not attack unless provoked. However, they will swoop down from above to feed on the body of a recent kill – which may be a problem for humans intent on recovering some trophy from the carcass. Quetzalcoatluses have claws, but they only use their bite in combat. They first try to intimidate opponents by snapping their huge beaks. If that doesn’t work, they will take a few bites. If the enemy is still not cowed, the quetzalcoatlus will resort to picking them up and dropping them from very high up. Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, the quetzalcoatlus must hit a Large or smaller sized creature with its bite attack. It can then carry the target to a great height and drop it (often for the maximum of 20d6 points of falling damage). It can continue to bite whatever it is carrying, automatically inflicting 3d8+4 damage until the creature escapes or is dropped. If it tries to bite something else, the carried creature is automatically dropped. Skills: *Quetzalcoatlus gain a +8 racial bonus to Spot checks in daylight.

SCRAY

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities: Skills:

BYPRODUCTS Quetzalcoatluses are valued as mounts. Their eggs would surely go for a good price – if any could be found! The creatures roost at such high altitudes that none of their eggs has ever hatched in captivity.

Feats: Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Scray Medium-Size Humanoid (Alien) 1d8 (4 hp) +0 (Dex) 30 ft. 21 (+6 vibrofield, +5 light bioceramic armor) Laser pistol +1 ranged or monofilament blade +1 melee Laser pistol 2d10 or monofilament blade 3d12 5 ft. by 5 ft./5 ft. Fast healing 4 Fort +0, Ref +2, Will +2 Str 13, Dex 10, Con 11, Int 18, Wis 11, Cha 13 Chemistry +5, Disable Device +10, Drive +2, Knowledge (nature) +5, Knowledge (science) +5, Knowledge (technology) +5, Listen +1, Operate Ironclad +2, Pilot +2, Repair Device +10, Use Technical Equipment +10 Weapon proficiency (all alien weapons), Gearhead Any Any; on Cretasus, usually found in pairs or small groups (3-6) 2 Standard plus technology (see below) Usually chaotic neutral By character class

The Scray were the first aliens that humanity encountered. They are native to the Scray system, though they can now be found across the universe. All Scray look menacing to humans. They are thin, bipedal humanoids who stand about seven feet tall, with arms that are noticeably longer than human proportions. They are always sheathed in fringed black cloaks. The occasional glimpse beneath the cloak reveals complex Giger-like ridged body armor. In human atmospheres, they must wear coiled, bio-organic gas masks to breathe. Examining a Scray corpse reveals a thin, dusky, gray-skinned creature with near-human proportions (except for

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the skinny arms that reach almost to their calves), a small head with two pinprick eyes, and a small mouth with omnivorous teeth. The Scray are much more technologically advanced than humans. Although they speak their own languages (at least twenty-six have been identified by human scholars), they are always equipped with translator devices which make them understood by almost any creature.

SOCIETY Scray civilization predates humanity by at least four hundred thousand years. But the Scray are an introverted race whose galactic ambitions fall far short of humanity’s. Had we not found them, they would have avoided us. Like humans, the Scray have their own varied nations and allegiances. Most humans are familiar with only a small portion of their society. The Scray that humans encounter are invariably researchers, adventurers, explorers, or traders, and it is by these acquaintances that most humans form their perceptions. At the simplest level, the Scray are aloof, stand-offish, and silent. They seem eerily quiet even when not around humans, with the rasping of their gas masks providing a noisy contrast to their own silence.

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The Scray are uninterested in human politics. They seem interested only in technology. Much of their interaction with humans comes about because of their many gadgets – they invariably have a miniaturized handheld machine for doing whatever a human needs to do. Except for meeting their basic needs, they are not interested in human wealth, and prefer to trade their technology for interesting machines, artifacts, or chemicals. There are very few human technologies unknown to them, but our raw materials sometimes mystify them. Even the most basic human chemicals may be exotic to the Scray who first encounters them. Savvy traders sometimes walk away with amazing deals – it is rumored that the first dust gun to fall into human hands was traded for a pack of cigarettes! Communication with a Scray is not easy. They are naturally reticent, and easily annoyed by humans who are loquacious, overbearing, or noisy. At the same time, Scray have been known to offend humans by refusing to accept “normal” wealth for their goods. Fortunes have been offered for Scray technology, only to be refused. Of course, the failed buyer is none too happy to learn the Scray later traded their gadgets for the equivalent of cigarettes. Scray interests are eclectic and inscrutable to humans, and attempts to acquire their technology with human riches rarely succeed. The Scray may demand an obscure chemical or strange device in trade for their goods – or, as they once did, they may trade powerful technology only if the purchaser arranges an introduction with a well-known human biochemist. No human has yet to understand, much less predict, what a Scray will want. Scray come to Cretasus for three primary reasons. First, it is the Scray who provide the technology that the Union uses to build ironclads, so they are most common in Union areas in and around the ironclad research center near Fort Lincoln. (Only the highest Union officers know what they have offered the Scray in return for their assistance.) Second, much as they explore all new planets, the Scray are exploring Cretasus in search of interesting raw materials and native life forms they can use in their bio-tech research. Finally, some Scray are there simply for adventure.

COMBAT Scray do not enjoy bloodshed. They prefer to resolve disputes peacefully. But when forced to fight, Scray fight viciously with their advanced technology. A typical Scray has a tech level of 15; more intelligent ones may be even higher. They have human-like hands and most of their inventions can be used by humans. A typical Scray carries a laser pistol and monofilament blade, but they may be encountered with almost any combination of weapons. Fast Healing 4 (Ex): The Scray have self-repairing medical systems built into their armor. This allows them to heal quickly. The medical systems only work with their physiology, although it is rumored that they have designed similar systems for humans.

BYPRODUCTS Scray wear a lightweight bioceramic armor that is custommolded to their body shape. The armor is literally grown to match

their build,; one Scray’s bioceramic armor cannot be worn by any other creature, even another Scray. Bioceramic armor is tech level 12, and can be grown in varying thickness, as follows. Growing bioceramic armor requires advanced facilities, which a Scray might be persuaded to provide. Bioceramic Armor

Armor Bonus

Max Dex Bonus

Light Medium Heavy

+5 +6 +7

+4 +3 +2

Armor Check Penalty -2 -3 -4

SCRAY NPCS Many Scray adventurers have character levels. The stats provided are for a Scray commoner. 60% of all Scray encountered on Cretasus have character levels. Of those with character levels, 75% are machinists, 20% soldiers, and 5% spies. Scray Speed Wt. wild ones and bronco riders are unheard (30 ft.) of, and although they do have two-fisters, they’re not encountered on alien 30 ft. 8 lb. planets like Cretasus. Roll 1d6 to deter20 ft. 16 lb. mine a Scray’s character level. If you 20 ft. 24 lb. roll a 6, re-roll and add 5 to the result, rolling again and adding 10 if you roll another 6, and so on.

Scray carry a variety of technological doodads. Assume each Scray has 1d4 randomly determined tech items (2d4 if the Scray is a machinist). Some will be in use; others will be carried for trade or examination. You can use this table to determine what the Scray has, or you can pick or create an item. Remember that they often carry minor items that humans find immensely useful – for example, a handheld metal detector that lets miners find minute veins up to 100 ft. underground. d% 01-05 06-07 08-10 11 12-13 14-16 17 18-20 21-22 23-26 27-31 32-37 38-43 44-46 47-56 57-58 59-68 69-70 71-76 77-82 83-85 86-88 89-91 92-93 94-96 97-98 99 100

Tech Item Ankle jets Annihilator Bionic arm Bionic ear Bionic eye Bionic leg Chimera fiend Cryon ray Dust Gun Dyno-mites Electron field Energy gauntlet Energy packs (2d6) Energy shield Engineering tools Grav field Holosphere Jet pack Laser rifle Medical kit Plasma charges (1d6) Plasma sling Powered armor Pulse rifle Scanner Spibot Tractor beam Warp render

SMALL GAME Small Game, Tiny Tiny Animal 1/2 d8 (2 hp) +2 (Dex) 20 ft. 14 (+2 size, +2 Dex)

Small Game, Small Small Animal 1d8+2 (6 hp) +3 (Dex) 40 ft. 15 (+1 size, +3 Dex, +1 natu-

Skills:

Bite or claw +1 melee Bite or claw 1d3-4 2 1/2 ft. by 2 1/2 ft./0 ft. None Scent Fort +2, Ref +4, Will +1 Str 3, Dex 15, Con 10, Int 2, Wis 12, Cha 5 Listen +2, Spot +3, see below

Bite or claw +3 melee Bite or claw 1d4 5 ft. by 5 ft./5 ft. None Scent Fort +4, Ref +5, Will +1 Str 11, Dex 17, Con 15, Int 2, Wis 12, Cha 6 Listen +4, Spot +5, see below

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Various Solitary, pair, or pack 1/6 None Always neutral -

Various Solitary, pair, or pack 1/3 None Always neutral -

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: ral) Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

The hunters of Cretasus do not spend all their time tracking T-rexes. An endless variety of small game skitters across the landscape. Small-time hunters, independent farmers, and trappers devote a lot of their energy to capturing these smaller creatures, which are less dangerous, more common, and easier to transport than large dinosaurs.

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Labidosaurus (“Gizzard Lizard”) (Tiny – 2 ft. long; skills: Balance +10, Climb +10; climate: warm forest, plains, desert): Labidosaurus is a fat, squat lizard that eats insects, snails, and vegetation. Coelurosauravus (“Glider”) (Tiny – 1 1/2 ft. long; glide 40 ft.; skills: Balance +13, Climb +16, Move Silently +8; climate: warm forest): Coelurosauravus is an unusual early reptile that is adapted for gliding. It looks like a thin lizard, but its ribs are greatly elongated to form two rigid “wings” emerging from either side of the body. Flaps of skin between the ribs allow it to glide. It falls 5 ft. downward for every full 20 ft. that it glides. Some forest clearings on Cretasus are practically alive with the constant gliding of coelurosauravuses. Sharp-shooting them in mid-air is a favorite sport of bored farm hands.

SPINOSAURUS (“SWAMP LURKER”) The small game profiles can be applied to a variety of small amphibians and reptilians living on Cretasus. They are the prehistoric equivalent of rabbits, beavers, weasels, pheasants, raccoons, dogs, and other such creatures. Since small game will likely play a small part in most campaigns, we have not described it here in great detail; the entries below give specific details for some of the many creatures that fit the profiles above. They can be used to flesh out wilderness encounters, give results to hunting expeditions, and explain what’s for dinner when the characters stop by Farmer Brown’s house. Platyhystrix (“Spinyback”) (Small – 3 ft. long; swim 20 ft.; climate/terrain: warm swamp, forest, river and lake shore): Platyhystrix is a sail-backed, semi-aquatic creature. Its brightly colored skin is red with green and yellow sails. It bites if attacked. Peltrobatrachus (“Fatball”) (Tiny – 2 ft. long; speed 10 ft., swim 10 ft.; AC 14 when moving, 15 when balled up (no Dex bonus, +3 bonus to natural armor); climate: warm swamp, forest, plains): Peltrobatrachus looks like a cross between a salamander and an armadillo. Hunters value this slow-moving armored amphibian because it is extremely easy to kill – rather than running, it rolls up into an armored ball. Unfortunately for the peltrobatrachus, its armadillo armor is easily penetrated by modern weapons (especially when it loses its Dex bonus after rolling up), and the ball defense is nearly useless against humans. If it actually survives an attack, it unrolls and bites. Gerrothorax (“Flathead”) (Small – 3 ft. long; swim 30 ft.; AC 12 until hit (no Dex bonus), then AC 15; skills: Hide +9; climate: warm swamp, shallow water): Gerrothorax is a flat amphibian that looks sort of like a fat lizard that has been run over. Its eyes are on the top of its flattened head. It hunts by digging into a shallow river bottom, covering itself with sand or rocks, and biting the first thing to come by. It is difficult to spot, but once spotted extremely easy to kill because it won’t move until attacked. Gerrothorax always counts as flat-footed until it has been hit.

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Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities: Skills: Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Spinosaurus Huge Animal 14d10+56 (133 hp) +1 (Dex) 40 ft., swim 20 ft. 13 (-2 size, +1 Dex, +4 natural) Bite +15 melee, claws +2 melee Bite 3d8+7, claws 1d4 10 ft. by 10 ft./15 ft. None Scent Fort +13, Ref +10, Will +6 Str 24, Dex 13, Con 18, Int 5, Wis 15, Cha 11 Listen +12, Spot +12, Wilderness Lore +5, Hide +0*, Move Silently +0* Swamp or marsh Solitary or pride (3-5 adults and 0-4 young) 7 Standard Usually neutral evil 15-30 HD (Gargantuan)

Spinosauruses are large theropods distinguished by the sixfoot-tall spine that runs down the length of their backs, much like that of the dimetrodon. They are huge carnivores, growing to 40 feet in length (as long as an allosaurus) and six tons in weight. They dwell exclusively in swamps and are the most feared denizens of the Bayou. No survivor ever forgets the sight of a dripping, moss-laden spine slicing menacingly through the water as the spinosaurus pursues its victim. Spinosauruses spend a great deal of time lurking just below the water’s surface, much like crocodiles. Spinosaurus seek out water that is about ten feet deep – just the right depth for their lurking. If water of the right depth can’t be found, they dig pits in

hunt alone or in pairs, bringing their kills back to the rest of the pride to eat. They alternate on hunting duty. When not hunting, the other spinosauruses laze about in the water. Each pride has its own territory. They aggressively contest any other large carnivore within their territory. They don’t attack velociraptors or other smaller predators because they don’t consider them competition. Spinosauruses speak their own language.

COMBAT Spinosauruses fight with their jaws and front claws. Their jaws are noticeably slimmer than those of the other large theropods. They are no match in a head-on fight with an allosaurus or T-rex, but their ambushing abilities make them just as feared among prey. They consider humans to be eligible meals. Skills: * Spinosauruses receive a racial bonus of +9 to Hide checks in water or swamp. They have an uncanny ability to move silently through water and muck, and receive a +6 racial bonus to Move Silently in water or swamp terrain. They can move silently while swimming or while walking.

BYPRODUCTS

shallow water so they can hide, waiting for prey to pass. The spine serves several purposes. It helps regulate body temperature, absorbing heat while the rest of the spinosaurus is submerged. A submerged spinosaurus often hides among reeds or swamp grass to conceal its spine which extends above the water line. The spine can also be inflated slightly to help the spinosaurus float.

SOCIETY Spinosauruses live in prides of three to five adults: one an adult male, and the rest adult females. The pride may have as many one child per female. Spinosauruses generally hunt large hadrosaurs. The adults

At close range, spinosaurus have an unbearable stench. This usually doesn’t affect their ambushing ability, as they will have attacked by the time their prey could have smelled them, but it reduces their resale value. Nobody wants spinosaurus leather! The only part of the spinosaurus that has value is its sail, and then only as a trophy for the dino hunter who bagged it himself.

TRAINING Nobody in their right mind would try to train a spinosaurus, since they stink, they have a huge spine right where you’d want to sit, and their native environment is the swamp. But if you really want to try, go for it. The DC is 34 for an adult and 27 for a youth. An adult can carry 3,500 pounds, though it is impossible to find saddle bags that accommodate their spine.

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STENONYCHOSAURUS (“MOON LIZARD,” “GHOST DINO”)

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities: Skills:

Feats: Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Stenonychosaurus Small Animal 1d10 (6 hp) +4 (Dex) 40 ft. 16 (+1 size, +4 Dex, +1 natural) Kick +1 melee, bite +0 melee Kick 1d6, bite 1d4 5 ft. by 5 ft./5 ft. None Scent Fort +2, Ref +6, Will +5 Str 11, Dex 18, Con 11, Int 17, Wis 20, Cha 13 Balance +4, Climb +3, Hide +8*, Jump +5, Knowledge (nature) +8, Knowledge (dinosaurs) +8, Knowledge (arcana) +8, Knowledge (geography) +8, Knowledge (history) +8, Knowledge (local) +8, Move Silently +8, Listen +5, Spot +5, Wilderness Lore +12 Blind-fight Any Nocturnal Solitary or flock (20-40 adults and 515 young) 1 None Usually neutral By character class

Stenonychosauruses are light, nimble dinosaurs of exceptional intelligence. They are similar in structure to a velociraptor, although smaller and weaker. Relative to their body size, they have the largest brain of any dinosaur. They are extremely rare due to their small size, stealthy habits, and nocturnal lifestyle. Most settlers on Cretasus will never see one, even though they are native to every terrain.

SOCIETY Very little is known about the reclusive stenonychosauruses. They are active only at night, though no one has ever found their daytime hiding places. Given that the three fingers on their hand are very useful for grasping, it is possible that stenonychosaurus build hidden dwellings. Their large, round eyes reflect light like an owl’s, and their pale gray-blue skin is haunting in moonlight. These two traits have earned them the nicknames “moon lizards” and “ghost dinos.” Stenonychosauruses try to remain hidden; they always flee if

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discovered. Their hiding ability makes encountering them very different from discovering them, however. Many a nighttime traveler has been startled to realize he is only a few feet from one of the creatures, which promptly sprints away. Groups of stenonychosaurus are almost never seen. When encountered, though, they are surreal: an oblivious passer-by will witness a seemingly still forest come to sudden life as twenty or more previously hidden ghost dinos suddenly flee. Stenonychosauruses have limited relations with other intelligent dinosaurs. They are known to engage in trade with velociraptors and protoceratops. Dinosaur legends hold that they are the guardians of long-hidden secrets. Protoceratops claim they are the servants of a mysterious race of humanoid dinosaurids. The only humans to have initiated communication with a live stenonychosaurus are wild ones, and they have not divulged what they’ve heard. On the other hand, stenonychosaurus have initiated communication with humans, albeit rarely. Their enormous intelligence has let some learn to read and write human languages, and this is their method of communication (as they lack the vocal abilities to speak properly). They are enigmatic and their messages do not always make sense. Moreover, the communication process is terrifying: a human who thinks himself alone will suddenly find ten stenonychosaurus

TANYSTROPHEUS (“LONG BITER”)

Skills: Feats:

Tanystropheus Medium-Size Animal 1d10 (6 hp) +1 (Dex) 30 ft. 13 (+2 natural, +1 Dex) Bite +0 melee Bite 1d4 5 ft. by 5 ft./10 ft. (see below) Poison None Fort +2, Ref +3, Will +0 Str 10, Dex 13, Con 11, Int 2, Wis 10, Cha 5 Spot +6, Listen +1, Hide +4 Combat reflexes

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Warm Forest Solitary 1/2 Standard Always neutral 2-4 HD (Large)

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

materialize out of the darkness around him, drop off a rock or log with a message scratched on it, then disappear just as suddenly. But the communication is often useful, at least in retrospect. There is no pattern to their decisions to communicate; the messages passed have ranged from “fruit red good” (which apparently thanked a farmer for the apples he had imported to grow in his orchard) to “danger hole mouth” (a warning to a Confederate sergeant about a ceratosaurus lurking in a ravine near his unit).

COMBAT It is highly unlikely that a stenonychosaurus will ever be pinned down in combat. They always try to flee. If forced to fight, they bite and kick and look for any opportunity to escape. Skills: *Stenonychosaurus receive a racial bonus of +8 to Hide checks at night.

BYPRODUCTS Stenonychosaurus have no known useful byproducts, but when killed they are often stuffed and displayed as rarities.

TRAINING No one has ever captured a live stenonychosaurus to train. However, given their intelligence, “training” isn’t an issue. They will probably be smarter than their trainer. The issue would be persuading them to cooperate.

Tanystropheus is a bizarre ancient reptile of ridiculous proportions. It resembles a modern lizard, with one gigantic exception: its neck is three times as long as its body. Its body is about two feet long with a tail of equal size, while its neck extends a full six feet in front of the body before terminating in a small lizardlike head. Strangely, the neck is not particularly flexible, as it only has ten vertebrae!

SOCIETY Tanystropheus are always found alone, although they are usually alone in the same general area – that is, if you find one by itself, you’ll probably find others nearby.

COMBAT Tanystropheus lurk in tangled jungles. They especially like areas with vines and thick underbrush. They position their body in a protected area, then snake their head around to observe the area around them. When an enemy approaches, they thrust out a series of quick bites. Their bite range is aided by their long neck, but the neck’s inflexibility also prevents them from striking enemies at close range. Their bite attack should be treated as a reach weapon. Tanystropheus’ hiding ability is due to their skill at blending into areas of dense underbrush, where their projecting neck will be mistaken for a vine. Poison (Ex): Tanystropheus has a poisonous bite. The poison is transmitted via injury, and requires a Fort save (DC 16) to counter. Initial and secondary damage are each 1d4 temporary Dex.

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BYPRODUCTS

COMBAT

Tanystropheus poison is released from a pair of glands at the base of its neck. These glands can be harvested and sold for the poison they contain. Each gland provides 1d4 uses. A gland can be sold for $50, though harvesting it is dangerous – it requires a Wilderness Lore check (DC 6), and failure has a 50% chance of subjecting the character to the poison.

Compared to the other large theropods, therizinosaurus is slow, fat, and weak. It does not need strength or power to survive, so it does not have such strength or power. It is considered potential prey by many carnivores, although its claws are intimidating and most predators would prefer a defenseless duckbill. Therizinosaurs spend most of their time gazing at the ground as they root around for insects. They count on their hearing to alert them to danger.

THERIZINOSAURUS (“REAPER”)

Skills:

Therizinosaurus Huge Animal 12d10+36 (102 hp) +0 20 ft. 11 (-2 size, +3 natural) 2 claws +13 melee Claw 2d6+6 10 ft. by 10 ft./10 ft. None Scent Fort +11, Ref +8, Will +4 Str 22, Dex 11, Con 17, Int 4, Wis 11, Cha 7 Listen +8, Spot +2

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Warm plains, forest, hills Solitary or herd (3-5 adults) 5 None Always neutral 13-18 HD (Gargantuan)

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

Therizinosauruses are eccentric theropods. Unlike T-rex and the other theropods, their 35-foot long bodies are rather plump (almost like the sauropods), with a long neck, small head, and weak jaws. Their front legs are eight feet long and fully functional, and they sometimes saunter about on all fours. Most notably, they have three-foot long scythe-like claws on their front feet.

SOCIETY Therizinosauruses are highly specialized carnivores. They feed only on insects. They use their enormous claws to dig up dirt, river bottoms, and even tree trunks in search of prey. They have a voracious appetite and eat constantly, as creatures their size must eat a lot of bugs to stay full! Some farmers on the plains have used therizinosauruses to help till and plow their fields. Simply letting one of the beasts loose on a field will ensure it is well plowed, though a bit erratically. Some farmers have had limited success training them to plow in a straight line. Therizinosauruses speak a dialect of sauropod.

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BYPRODUCTS Humans use therizinosaur claws as weapons. They can be shaped into swords, scimitars, and other weapons of various lengths. Many wild ones fight with a “reaper claw,” a simple, unhewn therizinosaur claw. A reaper claw has the stats of a longsword.

TRAINING Therizinosaurs can be trained at DC 27 for an adult and DC 20 for a youth. They can carry 1,000 pounds.

TRILOBITE (“SEA BUGS,” “SCURRIES”)

Skills:

Trilobite, Common Tiny Vermin (Aquatic) 1/2 1d8 (2 hp) +1 (Dex) 20 ft., swim 20 ft. 13 (+2 size, +1 Dex) Bite +1 melee Bite 1d4-4 2 1/2 ft. by 2 1/2 ft./0 ft. None Vermin Fort +2, Ref +1, Will +0 Str 2, Dex 13, Con 10, Int -, Wis 10, Cha 2 Hide +5, Spot +2

Trilobite, Giant Medium-Size Vermin (Aquatic) 3d8+3 (17 hp) -1 (Dex) 20 ft., swim 20 ft. 10 (+1 natural, -1 Dex) Bite +2 melee Bite 1d4-1 5 ft. by 10 ft./5 ft. None Vermin Fort +4, Ref +0, Will +1 Str 10, Dex 9, Con 12, Int -, Wis 10, Cha 5 Hide +2, Spot +4

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Any aquatic, shorelines Colony (5-10) or swarm (30-100) 1/8 None Always neutral 1-2 HD (Small)

Any aquatic, shorelines Colony (5-10) or swarm (30-100) 1 None Always neutral 4-6 HD (Large)

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

Trilobites are the primordial arthropods of the sea. They can still be found in many of the waterways of Cretasus. They swim along river bottoms and scurry in the rocks beside shore, scavenging for tidbits of plant and animal matter. Many seaside villages must deal with swarms of trilobites attracted by the leftovers of fishing expeditions. Trilobites are not good for eating (they’re more shell than meat) and are considered pests at best and predators at worst. Although most are only a few inches in length, some common species reach two feet long. The six-foot-long giant trilobites are

mostly found deep at sea, although they have been seen near shore in Plesiosaur Bay.

COMBAT Although individual trilobites are mere vermin, swarms are sometimes dangerous. Humans who have fallen asleep near a swarm have awakened to the rasping bites of feeding trilobites. A misstep on a rocky shore could accidentally disturb a hidden trilobite colony, prompting them to file out from beneath the rocks and defend themselves.

VULCANODON (“FLAMER,” “STOMPER”)

Skills:

Vulcanodon Huge Animal 14d10+98 (175 hp) -2 (Dex) 30 ft. 8 (-2 size, -2 Dex, +2 natural) Bite +9 melee Bite 1d6+6 20 ft. by 10 ft./10 ft. Trample Scent Fort +16, Ref +7, Will +7 Str 22, Dex 7, Con 25, Int 5, Wis 16, Cha 6 Spot +6, Listen +4

Climate/Terrain: Organization: Challenge Rating: Treasure: Alignment: Advancement:

Warm forest Herd (5-20) 6 Standard Always neutral 2-4 HD (Large)

Hit Dice: Initiative: Speed: AC: Attacks: Damage: Face/Reach: Special Attacks: Special Qualities: Saves: Abilities:

Vulcanodons are ponderous, slow sauropods. They grow to 20 feet long, which is small for a sauropod. Their powerful build but (relatively) small size makes them useful as mounts and beasts of burden, for they are much more easily trained than their larger

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Templates IRONCLAD (Template) Ironclads are the bipedal walking tanks developed by the Union with alien assistance. They require a human pilot. In game terms, an ironclad is treated as a template applied to the pilot when he activates the armor. Ironclad armor without a pilot is simply an inert hulk – like a vehicle, it needs someone to drive it! There are three classes of ironclads. The Monitor is the smallest, the Ulysses is larger, and the Sherman is the largest.

CREATING AN IRONCLAD

sauropod relatives. They are named after their brilliant flame-like red and yellow coloration.

SOCIETY Vulcanodons prefer forests to open areas. They push their way through the underbrush, munching as they go. They are quite easy to find, as they are brightly colored and leave a trail of flattened vegetation. As mounts, they grudgingly travel in open areas – mildly agoraphobic, they get nervous on the plains. They do make good city mounts, being quite comfortable with lots of close-range distractions. Vulcanodons speak a dialect of Sauropod.

COMBAT The bit of a vulcanodon is designed for plants and thus not particularly dangerous, but sometimes enough to convince a predator to go fight something else. Trample (Ex): Vulcanodons can trample creatures of Medium size or smaller. The trample causes 2d12+6 points of damage. Opponents who do not make attacks of opportunity may make a Reflex save (DC 23) to take half damage.

BYPRODUCTS Vulcanodons eggs are prized as the hatchlings are relatively easy to train. A single egg can go for $200.

TRAINING Vulcanodons are highly valued as beasts of burden and, to a lesser degree, as mounts. It takes less effort to train a herd of vulcanodons than a single brachiosaurus, and the herd of vulcanodons can carry more. More and more caravans are coming to rely on vulcanodons. A vulcanodon adult can be trained at DC 29, and a youth at DC 22. An adult vulcanodon can carry 13,000 pounds.

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“Ironclad” is a template that can be added to any pilot who boards an ironclad and who has the Operate Ironclad skill (see Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook, page 38). Pilots without the Operate Ironclad skill are unable to activate the ironclad. An ironclad uses the pilot’s statistics and special abilities except as noted here. Size: Monitor class ironclads are Large (12 ft. tall). Ulysses (16 ft.) and Sherman (20 ft.) class ironclads are Huge. Hit Dice: The ironclad is fundamentally an armored vehicle. It does not replace the pilot’s hit dice, but it does add hit points, which represent the superstructure of the ironclad itself. These hit points are depleted before the pilot takes damage – but critical hits and a few kinds of weapons may damage the pilot before the superstructure is destroyed. If the pilot is killed, the ironclad ceases to function. An ironclad’s hit dice depend on its class. Monitor class ironclads have 8d10+24 HD (68 hp). Ulysses class ironclads have 12d10+36 HD (102 hp), and Sherman class have 18d10+72 HD (171 hp). You don’t have to roll for hit points for standard military-issue ironclads; they have 68, 102, or 171 hit points depending on class. The HD entry provides limits on the hit points of customized (“souped-up”) ironclads. A critical hit against an ironclad indicates a lucky shot that has penetrated the hull. Determine the crit damage as usual. Half of it applies to the ironclad itself, and the other half is applied to the pilot. Ironclads are treated as vehicles for purposes of critical hits and negative hit points. Initiative: The ironclad uses the pilot’s initiative modifier. No Operate Ironclad check is required – a quick pilot (even if unskilled) makes for a quick ironclad. Speed: 50 ft. for Monitor; 40 ft. for Ulysses and Sherman. Monitor-class ironclads are usually equipped with jump jets which allow the ironclad to move up to 300 feet in a single jump. This distance is limited by the jets’ power and cannot be increased by running. As stated in the Jump skill description, the height of a jump for maximum distance is one-quarter its length. The jets cannot be fired in two successive rounds and they carry enough fuel for 12 uses. The pilot must make an Operate Ironclad check (DC

10) to land the suit safely after jumping. AC: Ironclads are fundamentally oversized suits of powered armor. They have a base AC which indicates the strength of their armor. This is modified by the ironclad’s size. In addition, a skilled pilot can maneuver the ironclad well enough to add his Dex bonus. The pilot’s Dex bonus only applies if he succeeds at an Operate Ironclad check (DC 10) (see Broncosaurus Rex Core Rulebook, page 38). The max Dex modifier of an ironclad suit is +2. It is added to these base ACs: Monitor AC 22/20 (-1 size, +9 armor, +4/+2 absorption field), Ulysses AC 22/20 (-2 size, +10 armor, +4/+2 absorption field), Sherman AC 25 (-2 size, +11 armor, +6 vibrofield). Attacks: An ironclad has two weapon mounts, one on each shoulder. In Monitor and Ulysses ironclads, these can hold any weapon up to Large size; in Shermans; they can hold weapons up to Huge size. Some custom suits have a third mount in the chest or on the back, though this is not standard Union issue. All ironclads also feature a grenade dispenser at the waist. Since the primary and secondary weapon depends only on where the pilot is focusing his attention, the pilot can declare each round which weapon is primary and which is secondary. The standard ironclad armament is as follows, though this is modified for special missions. Attack modifiers are not listed; they vary according to ability score modifiers and the usual rules for fighting with multiple weapons. Monitor: Two oversized hydraulic claws; grenade launcher, 10 smoke and 10 frag grenades Ulysses: Oversized hydraulic claw, heavy machine gun; grenade launcher, 10 smoke and 10 frag grenades Sherman: Heavy machine gun, howzer; grenade launcher, 10 smoke and 10 frag grenades Damage: Damage by weapon plus the appropriate ability modifier. A hydraulic claw does 3d8 points of damage plus the ironclad’s Str modifier. Face/Reach: 10 ft. by 10 ft./10 ft. Special Attacks: Trample (Ex): An ironclad can trample creatures smaller than itself, although only a good pilot can remain standing after a trample! The pilot must succeed at an Operate Ironclad check (DC 15) or the ironclad falls over. Even if it falls over, there is a 25% chance that it will trample an opponent in the process. Trampled opponents take damage according to the ironclad’s size: 1d8+5 for Monitors, 2d8+7 for Ulysses, and 3d8+10 for Shermans. Trampled opponents who do not make attacks of opportunity can attempt Reflex saves for half damage. The save is DC 18 for Monitors, 21 for Ulysses, and 25 for Shermans. Special Defenses: Damage Reduction 20; Construct. An ironclad is a machine. As such, it is not affected by poisons. The ironclad suit itself is not vulnerable to genetic or psychic weapons, though powerful examples of those weapons may penetrate the suit and damage the pilot.

Saves: Ref and Will saves use the pilot’s save. Fort saves depend on the ironclad’s construction, as follows: Monitor +8, Ulysses +12, Sherman +18. Use the pilot’s Fort save if it is better. Abilities: The ironclad uses the Dex, Int, Wis, and Cha scores of its pilot. Its Str and Con depend on its class as follows: Str Con Monitor 20 (+5) 16 (+3) Ulysses 24 (+7) 17 (+3) Sherman 30 (+10) 18 (+4) Skills: All ironclads have the Jump skill: 16 ranks for Monitors, 12 for Ulysses, and 8 for Sherman. Including Str and armor check modifiers, this nets out to Jump +13 for Monitors, Jump +11 for Ulysses, and Jump +10 for Shermans. You should use the pilot’s Jump skill if better. All other skills are as the pilot, though the ironclad’s ability scores are used if applicable. An ironclad suit has a -8 armor check penalty. Feats: Same as the pilot. Challenge Rating: As pilot, plus 6 (Monitor), 7 (Ulysses), or 8 (Sherman).

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Index Albertosaurus . . . . . . . . . .9-10, 107 Alien Weapons . . . . . . . . . . . .97-99 Aliens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .See Scray Allosaur, Old Ned the . . . . . . . . . .43 Animal Empathy . . . . . . . . . . .58-59 Armor As Treasure . . . . . . . . . . . . .99 Bioceramic . . . . . .99, 118-119 Dino Hide . . . . . . . . . . . .79-80 Dinosaurs and . . . . . . . . . . . .71 Army of Solaris . . . . . . . . . . .35, 37 Art Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95-96 Assoc. for Mutual Protection . . . .44 Bargain Hunter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78 Barrister House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54 Bay Side Company . . . . . .47-48, 95 Bay Trail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47-54 Bayou . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45-46 Big Al’s Bronco Rodeo . . . . . .22-23 Black Jungle . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44-45 Bowie, General . . . . . .34-35, 37-39 Brisbane, Colonel . . . . . . . . . .41-43 Bubble Berry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46 Butlers, The . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23-26 C.P.C.K. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18-19 Cabal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42, 67, 72 Carey, Calhoun . . . . . . . . .55, 56, 58 Ceratopsians . . . . . . . . . . . . .70, 108 Chatham Theatre . . . . . . . . . .12, 16 Cheirolepis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .109 City Hall (of New Savannah) . . . .12 Coelurosauravus . . . . . . . . . . . . .120 Crowe, Jonas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Crystal Desert . . . . . .30-33, 114-115 Danjow River . . . . . . . . .29-32, 103 Decker, Col. Paul . . . . . . .19-20, 22 Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79, 80 Dino Warriors . . . .21-22, 35-37, 65 Dinosaur Cavalry . . . . . .70-71 Hatcheries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39 Prestige Class . . . . . . . . .74-76 Dinopathy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58-59 Dinosaurs . . . . .55-73, 88-94, 104-126 Aquatic . . . . . . . . .72, 113, 116 Belly Rubbing . . . . . . . . . . .50 Coloration . . . . . . . . . .104-105 Combat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73 Cooking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67 Cyborged . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71 Flying . . . . . . .72, 88, 116-117 Hunting . . . . . . . . . . . . . .68-69 Intelligence . . . . . . . . . . .55-58 Labor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66-67 Languages . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56 Mounts . . . . . . . . .88-89, 92-94 Movement Speed . . . . . . . . .89 Mutations . . . . . . . . . .104-106 New Savannah, In . . . . . .17-18 Picture Shows . . . . . . . . .69-70 Prices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94

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Ranching . . . . . . . . . . . . .64-65 Singers . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57, 58 Smuggling . . . . . . . . .61, 67-68 Subspecies . . . . . . . . . .104-106 Thrum . . . . . . . . .58, 59, 63, 72 Tool Use . . . . . . . . . . . . .56-57 See also individual species Dons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .68 Dryosaurus . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89, 108 Duckbill Moss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46 Duckbilled Dinosaurs . . . . . . . . .112 Duels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51 Dukes, The . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23-26 Dunkleosteus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .111 Egg Warmer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80 Encounter Tables . . . . . . . . .100-103 Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79-80 Eurypterid . . . . . . . . . . . . . .111-112 Fast Talker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78 Federal Marshals . . . . .40-42, 76-77 Fort Apache . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49-51 Fort Lincoln . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39-43 Fort Tecumseh . . . . . . . . . . . . .34-39 Frog & Spanner . . . . . . . . . . . .21-22 Frot Gut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46 Fur River . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44, 45, 88 Gaines Gang . . . . .19, 20, 21, 22, 26 Garsville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43 Gerrothorax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120 Gilmore Homestead . . . . . . . . . . .44 Glass Blood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32 Grand Market . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Great Library . . . . . . . . . .see Logos Hadrosaurs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .112 Hampshire Mines . . . . . . . . . .41-42 Hideout Hills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Hollow Hills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56 Hollow-point Ammo . . . . . . . .10, 79 Hood, Nathanial . . . . . . . .10-11, 15 Inland Sea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 Iron, Laila . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60 Ironclads . . . .7, 41-42, 63, 126-127 See also Scray Kelly, Nathanial . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 Kitty’s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22 Kronosaurus . . . . . . . . . . . . .113-114 Labidosaurus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120 Lake Hope . . . . . . . . . . . . .34, 43-44 Lantern Crystal . . . . . . . . . . . .32-33 Laser Sniper Rifle . . . . . . . . . .69, 79 Lefitte, Captain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53 Leptoceratops . . . . . . . . . .see Zuleps Levers, William T. . . . . . . . . . .21-22 Listen checks and Cretasus . . . . . .55 Logos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29-32 Encounters . . . . . . . . . . . . .103 See also Crystal Desert Long Ridge Hatchery . . . . . . . . . .39 Machinists . . . . . . . . .32, 71, 78, 79 Main Valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5-54

Mammoth Valley . . . . . . . .5, 56, 58 McCauley, Marshal . . . . . . . . . . . .42 McQuarry Brothers . . . . . . . . .27-28 Microsensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70, 80 Miller’s Crossroads . . .37, 41, 43-44 Monoclonius . . . . . . . . .88, 108-109 Monitor . . . . . . . . . . . . .See Ironclad Montague, Richard . . . . . . . . . . . .19 Mount Crowe . . . . . . . . . . . . .19-23 New Savannah . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5-19 Northwestern Plains . . . . . . . . . . .54 NPCs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84-87 See also individual NPCs Office of Agriculture . . . . . . . .14-15 Office of Civil Defense . . . . . . . .15 Office of Public Welfare . . . . . . . .14 Office of Public Works . . . . . . . . .14 Office of Trade and Industry . . .15-16 Old Ned the Allosaur . . . . . . . . . .43 Ornitholestes . . . . . . . .60-61, 67, 95 See also Zagmo Othelthwaite, Jeremiah . . . . . .15-16 Oviraptors . . . . . . . . . . . . .39, 59-60 Permanent Enhancement . . . . . . .79 Peltrobatrachus . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120 Peterson Precinct . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 Platyhystrix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120 Plesiosaur Bay . . . . . . . . . . . . .51-54 Plesiosaurus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116 Police, New Savannah . . . . . . . . .13 Porter, Hepsediah . . . . . . . .5-19, 32 Price, Dr. Ezekial P. . . . . . . . . . . .48 Protoceratops Amnesia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31 Art Objects . . . . . . . . . . .95-96 Conclave . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61 Hollow Hills . . . . . . . . . . . . .56 Intelligence . . . . . . . . . . .55-56 New Savannah, In . . . . .17, 84 Thrum and . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58 Underglen . . . . . . . . . . . .18,48 See also Logos, qrfel, vrthu qrfel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18 Quetzalcoatlus . . . . . . . .88, 116-117 Raptors . . . . . . . . .See Velociraptors Reactive Truncheon . . . . . . . . . . .79 Reaper Claw . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .124 Red Claws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .68 Resonator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56, 80 Rifleman, 2nd South Carolina . . . .20 Rough Riders . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13-14 Scray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56, 117-118 New Savannah, In . . . . .14, 84 See also Ironclads Sea Scorpions . . . . . . . . . . .111-112 Sesquiped . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31 Settlements, Generating . . . . .81-84 Sheriff’s Office . . . . . . . . . . . .13-14 Sherman . . . . . . . . . . . . .see Ironclad Shouter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56, 80

Silvia Jameson . . . . . . . . . . . .21, 22 Singers, Dinosaur . . . . . . . . . .57, 58 Skill Evolution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78 Small Game . . . . . . . . . . . .119, 120 Song Crystal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 Southwestern Plains . . . . . . . .43-45 Spaceport . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12, 14-15 Sparkle Root . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46 Spinosaurus . . . . . . . . . . . . .120-121 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21, 50 Stenonychosaurus . . . . . . . .122-123 Styracosaurus . . . . . . . . . . .108-109 Tanystropheus . . . . . . . . . . .123-124 Tax Collection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 Tecumseh Trail . . . . . . . . . . . .34-46 Therizinosaurus . . . . . . . . . . . . .124 Thrum . . . . . . . . . . . . .58, 59, 63, 72 Thud Sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80 Thunder Moon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59 Towns, Generating . . . . . . . . .81-84 Trail Encounters . . . . . . . . . . . . .103 Treasure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95-100 Trilobite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125 Tyro Musk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80 Ulysses . . . . . . . . . . . . .See Ironclad Underglen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18, 48 Vehicles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89-94 Prices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94 Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89-92 Typical Stats . . . . . . . . . . . . .93 Velociraptors Coloration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55 Cree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 Dark Heart . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60 Inaka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 Kerosaw . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 Kidnappings . . . . . . . . . . . . .60 Lettoko . . . . . . . . . . .36, 38-39 New Savannah, In . . . . . . . .17 Thunder Hills . . . . . . . . . . . .70 Thrum and . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63 Tool use and . . . . . . . . . .56-57 War . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63 White Branch . . . . . .49. 69-70 Wild Ones and . . . . . . . . . . .64 Vicente Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44 vrthu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57 Vulcanodon . . . . . . . . . . . . .125-126 Warp Pirates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54 Weapons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79 Dinosaur hunting and . . . . . .69 Wild Ones . . . . . . . . . .59, 63-64, 82 Wilderness Lore and Listen . . . . .55 Windham, Ford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42 Winthorpe, Edgar . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Wylde, Zeke . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10, 13 Zagmo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Zuleps . . . . . . . .30-33, 103, 114-115