Hells Horde

Hell’s Horde

Author: Steven S. Long Development: Jason Walters

Cover Artwork: Tony Vassalo Layout and Graphic Design: Ruben Smith-Zempel

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Copyright 2013 DOJ, Inc, d/b/a as Hero Games. HERO SystemTM is DOJ, Inc’s trademark for its roleplaying system.

1

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Bridget Alaine, inspired by Bridget’s Dad.....................................................................................2 Gideon Bayerfaust, inspired by Ben G. Abrams.........................................................................4 Staff Sergeant Mark Benson and Buckley, inspired by Jason Hobbs...................................5 Brain Grub, inspired by James Bell................................................................................................7 Gunnery Sergeant R. Lee Brownie, inspired by Byron Ginn..................................................8 Miguel Art Chester, inspired by Michael Gutterres................................................................ 10 Daniela Corvin, inspired by Greg Flierl.......................................................................................11 The Grey Man, inspired by Jim Curtis........................................................................................14 Harrison “Harry” Grolnick, inspired by Greg Cueto............................................................... 15 Special Agent Geoffrey Hendrickson, inspired by Tom O’Hara..........................................16 Killsand, inspired by Michael Putlack......................................................................................... 18 Lapir, inspired by Boris....................................................................................................................19 Todd McLawhorn, Jr., inspired by Alixandra Greene............................................................ 20 The Nail-Driving Pistol of Barnabas the Mad, inspired by Ruben Smith-Zempel................................................................................................ 21 People for the Ethical Treatment of Exotic Races (PETER), inspired by Rabbit Boyett............................................................................................. 21 Thomas Robertson, inspired by Thomas Strayhorn.............................................................. 22 The Scepter of Set, inspired by James Renfroe...................................................................... 23 Sewer Squid, inspired by Jason Walters.................................................................................... 24 Shadow Lurker, inspired by Ryan Miesen................................................................................. 25 Shelly, inspired by Larry Correia.................................................................................................. 26 Mike Swatowski, inspired by Kurt “Telas” Schneider............................................................. 27 Swift-Foot, the Elven Pickup Truck, inspired by Howard Taylor....................................... 29 Richard Talbot, inspired by Greg Radabaugh.......................................................................... 29 Vampire Kudzu, inspired by Carl Rigney....................................................................................31 The Vicenzi Tarot, by Steven S. Long......................................................................................... 32

Hell’s Horde

EQUIPMENT

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

BRIDGET ALAINE Val Char

Cost Roll Notes

10

STR

0

11-

13

DEX

6

12-

13

CON

3

12-

15

INT

5

12-

15

EGO

5

12-

15

PRE

5

12-

5

OCV

10

6

DCV

15

3

OMCV 0

5

DMCV 6

4

SPD

20

Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12

4

PD

2

Total: 4 PD (0 rPD)

4

ED

2

Total: 4 ED (0 rED)

6

REC

2

30

END

2

12

BODY

2

28

STUN

4

Movement:

Weapon Winchester 1300

+0

+0

2½d6

+1

7

10

PER Roll 12-

Colt M1911

+1

+0

2d6-1

+1

7

9

2H, AE1, LR(40m), RR, RP

Armor None Gear: Flashlight, smartphone, novel

PRE Attack: 3d6

BRIDGET ALAINE Inspired by the ideas of Bridget’s Dad Background/History: Bridget Alaine had just turned 15 the night some new customers came into her father’s gaming store (where she worked to earn spending money). She’d gone into the back to take care of some paperwork when she heard screams from out front. Without a thought for her own safety she ran to see what was happening and discovered that the new “customers” were actually vampires! Unfortunately for the bloodsuckers, Bridget’s father was from the relatively rare conservative/redneck subspecies of game store owner. He had plenty of guns, and Bridget was well acquainted with how to use them. She grabbed a pistol from its secured, concealed location and began firing. She couldn’t really hurt the vampires with ordinary ammunition, of course, but they quickly realized that the “easy pickings” they’d been expecting were anything but. Rather than risk a confrontation with better-armed mortals, they dropped their victims and departed for greener pastures (so to speak) — though they intend to come back and get revenge on the little brat someday. That incident opened Bridget’s eyes to what the world’s really like. As idealistic as any young person, and far more intelligent and determined than most, she’s decided she’s going to help make the world a better place — by killing monsters. Now she sneaks out most nights, armed with some of her father’s guns, and hunts monsters. So far she’s only killed a couple of hobgoblins and knows nothing about the PUFF system (or the MCB, or MHI...), but she’ll learn in time — if she survives. Personality/Motivation: Bridget Alaine is bright, driven, and observant. She’s also in more than a little over her head. Her desire to improve the world, and to keep people safe from the monsters she knows are out there, does her tremendous credit. But unless she gets lucky and some professional hunters (like MHI) take her under their wing, sooner or later (probably sooner) she’s going to run into something too powerful for her to handle, and tragedy will result. Having read a lot of horror novels, Bridget particularly hates vampires and werewolves. The Twilight series just about sent her over the edge; to try to cleanse them from her mind she’s been rewatching a lot of Buffy, The Vampire Slayer on DVD and taking notes. She also enjoys games of all sorts, reading, and many sports. Quote: “No way those monsters are gonna hurt anyone when I’m on patrol.”

Total Characteristics Cost: 89 Running:

12m

Cost Powers 2 Observant: +1 to PER Rolls with Normal Sight

END 0

Talents 3

STR OCV RMod Damage STUN Shots Min Notes

Lift 100 kg; 2d6 HTH damage [1]

Striking Appearance +1/+1d6 Skills

3

Concealment 12-

3

Conversation 12-

1

KS: Monsters 8-

3

Persuasion 12-

5

Stealth 13-

2

WF: Small Arms

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 22 Total Cost: 111 200

Matching Complications (50)

15

Hunted: the two vampires she scared off (Infrequently, Mo Pow, Kill)

15

Social Limitation: Adolescent (Very Frequently, Minor)

Total Complications Points: 30 Experience Points: 0

2

Hell’s Horde Powers/Tactics: Bridget Alaine is a smart (top 2% of her class), inquisitive, athletic young woman with a lot of drive and ambition. She also likes to help people, and currently that manifests in her career as a monster hunter. She arms herself with a couple of weapons from her father’s gun collection (though sadly, no body armor). She knows she’s no match for most monsters in a straight-up fight, so if she ever comes across one she intends to attack it from surprise and/ or try to take advantage of any weaknesses she knows about. If she has to she’ll call 911 on her smartphone and report a monster as a burglar, rapist, or something else the cops will respond to right away. Appearance: Bridget is an attractive 15 year old girl. She’s 5’ 9”, about 135 pounds, and has very curly light brown hair. She wears glasses. She has no particular interest in fashion; she prefers to wear jeans and dark/earth-tone t-shirts.

3 1 3 3 9 2 2 6 3 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 2 6

GIDEON BAYERFAUST Cost Roll

Notes

10

STR

0

11-

Lift 100 kg; 2d6 HTH damage [1]

15

DEX

10

12-

10

CON

0

11-

15

INT

5

12-

15

EGO

5

12-

18

PRE

8

13-

7

OCV

20

6

DCV

15

3

OMCV 0

5

DMCV 6

4

SPD

PER Roll 12PRE Attack: 3½d6

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 91 Total Cost: 193

20

Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12

5

PD

3

Total: 5 PD (0 rPD)

5

ED

3

Total: 5 ED (0 rED)

6

REC

2

25

END

1

10

BODY

0

28

STUN

4

Movement:

Hunted: Lucinda Hood (Infrequently, Mo Pow, Kill)

15

Hunted: various cults, including remnants of the Condition (Infrequently, Mo Pow, Kill)

15

Psychological Complication: Cults (Common, Strong)

Dedicated To Destroying

Total Complications Points: 45 Experience Points: 0

Total Characteristics Cost: 102 Running:

Weapon OCV RMod Damage STUN Shots STR Notes Min

12m

Hits Pretty Hard: HA +1d6

END 1

Hand-To-Hand Attack (-¼)

2

Matching Complications (50)

15

EQUIPMENT

Cost Powers 4

200

Observant: +1 to PER Rolls with Normal Sight

0

Skills 5

+1 with Firearms

8

Range Skill Levels: +4 versus the Range Modifier with Firearms

4

Targeting Skill Levels: +2 versus Hit Location Modifiers with Firearms

AMD-65

+1

+7

2d6

+1

30

12

AF5, 2H, FS, mounted light

FN-FAL

+1

+14

2d6+1

+1

20

13

2H, AF5, FS, Supp (-4)

M1911

+0

+0

1½d6

+0

8

6

M1905 Bayonet

+0

—

1d6-1

+0

—

6

Hatchet

+0

+0

1d6

+0

—

6

Can Be Thrown

Armor Flak jacket (Resistant Protection (6 PD/6 ED), covers Hit Locations 9-11) Gear: Torah, cigarette lighter

3

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Val Char

Skills Combat Driving 12Computer Programming 8Deduction 12Disguise 12Faith 15Fast Draw 10High Society 10KS: Cults 15KS: Jewish Theology 12KS: Monsters 11Language: Arabic (fluent conversation; English is Native) Language: German (fluent conversation) Language: Hebrew (completely fluent) Oratory 13Persuasion 13Shadowing 12Stealth 12Survival 12Tracking 12TF: Ground Vehicles WF: Small Arms, Uncommon Modern Weapons, Blades, Axes

Hell’s Horde

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

GIDEON BAYERFAUST

Although his intelligence and experience make him a good Hunter, Bayerfaust is not without his weaknesses. Despite years of exercise and training, he doesn’t have the strength and hardiness that most Hunters do; they’re simply not in him. He tries to compensate for this with careful planning and preparation. When first meeting people he’s not sure he can trust, Bayerfaust often pretends that he doesn’t speak much English. This tends to make people indiscreet around him, allowing him to gather valuable intelligence. Appearance: Gideon Bayerfaust is 6’1” tall and a stocky 225 pounds. He has brown hair he cuts short and a medium-length brown beard. In the field he typically wears Flecktarn camo clothing, an old flak jacket, black boots, and aviator sunglasses; his favored weapons are an AMD-65 with ACOG sight and mounted light, a 1911 semiautomatic handgun chambered for 10mm, a silvered M1905 bayonet, and a silvered hatchet. He wears an iron cross in a Star of David charm around his neck, but keeps it under his shirt (the same symbol appears on some of his gear as well). He has been known to chant psalms and prayers in Hebrew while fighting.

Inspired by the ideas of Ben G. Abrams Background/History: Gideon Bayerfaust had just completed his studies to become a rabbi when his sister became deeply involved a dark, mysterious cult. He didn’t know it at the time, but that cult was the Sanctified Church of the Temporary Mortal Condition, worshippers of the Old Ones. He tried repeatedly to convince her how evil the cult was, but she refused to listen. Lacking any alternative, he infiltrated the cult in disguise, waited for his opportunity, and then destroyed it. He shot a few cultists and killed the rest by setting the building they were in on fire. His sister lived just long enough to make it outside, collapse in his arms, and confess that she’d been wrong. Bayerfaust learned about the PUFF system from a friend on the police force. Abandoning his rabbinical studies for good, he used his first bounty check to equip himself and become a full-fledged monster hunter. Specializing in cults, he often hires his services to people who want to get friends and family out of such situations alive and healthy. He sometimes partners up with larger groups (twice with MHI, and one completely unpleasant experience with the Vermont Stump Jumpers), particularly when they need help or consultation on cults. Personality/Motivation: Bayerfaust is a grim, determined individual. He tends to be quiet and brooding, though those who get to know him well discover that he loves to make puns and enjoys classic literature (particularly Goethe). His particular focus is on uncovering and destroying cults, especially those dedicated to serving the Old Ones; this has earned him the enmity of some powerful foes. Quote: “You have fallen from the path of true reason and duty, and so you must be destroyed.” Powers/Tactics: In pursuit of his goal to eradicate cults, Gideon Bayerfaust has equipped himself with plenty of firepower. His main weapon is Contra Malus, an AMD-65 assault rifle with an ACOG sight and mounted light. When he can attack his foes from a long distance he uses Lacrima Ignis, an FN-FAL with a long-range scope and a suppressor. Hidden in the FAL’s stock is a handwritten note with instructions for a traditional Jewish burial. (In both cases he’s not strong enough to meet the weapons’ STR Minima, so he either has to Brace and Set or suffer the standard penalties.) For closer-range shooting he uses an M1911 chambered for 10mm. In melee combat he relies on two blackened but silver-edged weapons, an M1905 bayonet and a hatchet. Each of them has subtle gold inlays of Deuteronomy 6:7 in Hebrew along the blade. Since PUFF bounties only go so far (and he can’t always claim a bounty when fighting cultists), Bayerfaust ha a habit of “looting the bodies” of his victims in search of valuables and usable resources. (Once he’s done with his “looting,” he cleanses the scene with fire before leaving, unless there’s a good reason not to.) In addition to cash and some jewelry, he’s accumulated a varied stock of weapons and ammo. His headquarters, a cabin in the New Hampshire woods, contains dozens of firearms (including some World War II-era pieces), several thousand rounds of ammunition (7.62x39mm, 7.62x51mm NATO, 10mm, miscellaneous) of various flavors, a reloading set, dry food stores, a relatively large library, and a small collection of British sovereigns. Of course, getting to all that requires finding a way around his extensive security measures. He prefers, and most often operates in, rural areas, particularly New England, upstate New York, and occasionally southeastern Canada.

STAFF SERGEANT MARK BENSON Val

Char

Cost Roll Notes

13

STR

3

12-

14

DEX

8

12-

15

CON

5

12-

15

INT

5

12-

15

EGO

5

12-

15

PRE

5

12-

7

OCV

20

6

DCV

15

3

OMCV 0

5

DMCV 6

4

SPD

20

Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12

6

PD

4

Total: 6 PD (0 rPD)

6

ED

4

Total: 6 ED (0 rED)

8

REC

4

30

END

2

14

BODY

4

30

STUN

5

Movement:

Lift 150 kg; 2½d6 HTH damage [1]

PER Roll 12PRE Attack: 3d6

Total Characteristics Cost: 116 Running:

12m

Cost Powers 18

Make It Go Boom Real Good: Aid RKA 6d6 Reduced Endurance (0 END; ½); Only Works On Explosives-Based RKAs (-1), Points Fade Immediately After One Use (-½), Cannot Add More Than +2 DCs (-0), Requires A Demolitions Roll (-½)

4

END 0

Hell’s Horde

STAFF SERGEANT MARK BENSON

Perks 2

Fringe Benefit: Military Rank (Staff Sergeant in the US Army) Skills

10

+1 with All Combat

3

Animal Handler 12-

1

Computer Programming 8-

9

Demolitions 15-

3

Electronics 12-

1

KS: MCB 8-

2

KS: Monsters 11-

2

KS: The US Army 11-

2

PS: Soldier 11-

3

Stealth 12-

3

Tactics 12-

5

WF: Small Arms, Uncommon Modern Weapons, Blades

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 64 Total Cost: 180 200

Matching Complications (50)

10

Hunted: MCB (Infrequently, Mo Pow, NCI, Watching)

15

Psychological Complication: Heroic; Will Risk His Life To Save Others (Common, Strong)

15

Psychological Complication: Strong)

20

Social Complication: Subject To Orders (Very Frequently, Major)

Loves Buckley (Common,

Total Complications Points: 50 Experience Points: 0

EQUIPMENT Weapon

OCV RMod Damage STUN Shots

STR Min Notes

Beretta M9

+0

+0

1d6+1

+0

15

7

Colt M4

+1

+1

2d6

+1

30

11

2H, AF5, FS

Combat Knife

+0

+0

1d6

+0

—

8

Can Be Thrown

Grenades

—

—

2½d6X

+1

var

—

RBS

Armor MCB Body Armor (9 PD/9 ED) Gear: Demolitions kit

5

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Inspired by the ideas of Jason Hobbs Background/History: There are two kinds of people in the world, according to Mark Benson’s mother: good, wholesome, decent folk... and people who’ll drag your soul to the Devil. The former were the sort to associate with while the latter were to be avoided at all costs. Unfortunately for the Army Staff Sergeant, circumstance had forced him to live among the latter in recent years, attached as an Army liaison to the Monster Control Bureau. The son of an old Mesabi Iron Range miner, Benson grew up in northeastern Minnesota and wanted nothing more than to escape his family’s small town black hole. He enlisted into the Army immediately out of high school and shipped out to Fort Benning, GA, within weeks of graduation. When he completed Basic Training, the Army sent him to Redstone Arsenal, Alabama for the first phase of his training in Explosive Ordinance Disposal. While growing up he’d spent a lot of time learning the art of handling explosives from his father, and this informal training gave Benson an advantage in the Army school. He almost effortlessly rose to top of his class, gaining the respect of both his classmates and his instructors. The Army subsequently assigned him to the 717th Ordnance Company (EOD) out of Fort Campbell, Kentucky. On his first deployment to Iraq he distinguished himself with his seemingly supernatural ability to detect and defuse explosive devices before they could do any harm. By the end of his first tour he’d been promoted to sergeant and a new door had opened itself to him: the chance to become a Military Working Dog handler. Much like Benson himself, the dog the Army paired him with stood out among his peers. It was a huge specimen, a mutt of a German Shepherd bitch and an unknown sire. Ironically, the dog had started out as the runt of the litter and had seemed scared of even its own shadow, much less everything else in the world. Reminded of a character from a book he’d read, one of the training cadre had named the dog “Buckley.” In time the dog filled out to near-mastiff size. Benson and Buckley deployed soon again, bound this time for Afghanistan where once more they distinguished themselves. Soldiers on patrol quickly learned to trust Buckley’s sense for danger and nose for explosives. Upon their return stateside, the pair were promoted again and given orders to a newly formed Company out of Fort Bragg. But after getting to North Carolina, Benson discovered that his new unit was considered “undeployed.” Shortly thereafter found he and Buckley found themselves on a plane bound for Iraq and his third deployment in four years. Upon arrival in theatre, the pair were attached to the 1st BN 508th PIR and promptly forgotten about by their leadership. The 1/508th proceeded to pass them around between its companies, wherever an EOD tech and his dog seemed to be needed. This circus was the norm for the first few months of the deployment until their entire world turned inside out during an investigation patrol. The locals began reporting a spate of murders, mostly of children, all looking as if they’d been mauled by some wild animal. The captain to which Benson and Buckley were then assigned decided they should accompany the infantry squad sent to investigate, his assumption being that a dog could easily track a wild animal.

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Hell’s Horde On the second night, they made contact with the unexpected. Buckley sounded a warning, but the soldiers, who didn’t yet know how good the dog was, didn’t respond quickly enough. Out of the shadows a vaguely canine shape leaped, then drug a screaming infantryman away. Giving chase, the squad soon found the abducted soldier, his throat torn out and body drained of blood. Buckley warned them a second time, and a second man was taken away to his death. The third time the soldiers listened to Buckley’s warning, and as the monster left the shadows they greeted it with a barrage of M4 fire. The creature fell short of the infantry, a broken mass of flesh and bone bleeding out into the sand. It looked vaguely like a hyena, but its front legs were almost human with thumbs and clawed fingers. Its head had an almost human look about it, and a private stepped forward to take a closer look, rifle at the ready. Buckley growled again, but before the private could react the werehyena surged up from the ground and took his head, the wounds from the bullets already closing. The infantry attempted to fire again, but it was now among them, sinking its fangs into a fourth man’s neck. Turning its gaze towards Benson, it leaped again — but this time Buckley intervened, his bulk smashing the were-beast aside. The huge dog and monster snarled and snapped at one another, the latter tearing long gashes into Buckley’s flanks, but Buckley seemed to hardly notice as he ripped chunks of flesh from the opposing creature. After several moments of intense fury, the two animals separated, the were-beast’s wounds closing once more, albeit more slowly this time. Again, the beast looked towards Benson, who realized it wasn’t likely going to die unless he could inflict massive injuries upon it very quickly. He stood ready, bayonet drawn in one hand and the other holding his M9. He told Buckley and the remaining two men to stay back. Miraculously, they all listened. The beast charged Benson again and as it made contact, he slammed the blade deep into the its ribs and twisted, making it scream in rage and pain. Into its wide open maw he forced the handgun and pulled the trigger twice, sending two rounds exploding out the back of its throat and the werehyena fell away, its snarls gurgling in the ruin. Benson rolled away and covered his head as he squeezed a radio detonator, setting off the pair of charges he’d wrapped around the hilt of his bayonet. The overpressure wave slammed him into unconsciousness as the blast spread the werehyena’s giblets over the entire area. Two days later, Benson and Buckley found themselves on a plane headed back to the States. His injuries from the fight had been negligible and Buckley’d healed quickly as well. After they landed and the company medics gave them both a clean bill of health, Benson received orders attaching the two of them as liaisons to an agency in DC. Since that reassignment, Benson discovered there are worse things lurking in the shadows than werehyenas — and sometimes that includes the MCB, the agency he now works with. With Buckley to watch his back, Benson hopes he can keep the Bureau, much less any monsters, from stealing his soul. Personality/Motivation: Mark Benson is an example of that rarest of men, the truly noble and heroic person. He genuinely cares about his fellow men and is willing to put his life on the line to protect them. That impulse drove him to join the US Army, and in recent years it’s come to focus on protecting America from monsters. He doesn’t approve of the way the government’s handling that responsibility, but as a good soldier he follows orders — for now.

The other emotion that dominates Benson’s personality is his love for his long-time canine companion, Buckley. If he were put in a position where he had to choose between saving Buckley and saving a human being, he’d agonize over the decision — perhaps just long enough for tragedy to occur. Quote: ::to Special Agent in charge:: “Yes, sir!” ::to Buckley:: “C’mon, boy, we’ve got a job to do!” Powers/Tactics: Benson is a highly-experienced military man whose training emphasized demolitions and electronics. But he’s no slouch with his other weapons: with his M9 he qualified Marksman (26/40, alternate qualification), and with the M4 he qualified Sharpshooter (34/40, pop-up range). He’s been in plenty of firefights, monster hunts, and other tense situations, and knows exactly how to handle himself in a crisis. In combat Benson functions as an almost perfect unit with his dog Buckley. The two of them practically seem to be able to read one another’s minds and to coordinate their actions accordingly. The GM should run them accordingly, making their sum greater than the total of their parts. Appearance: Mark Benson is a 28 year old white male with the fairly muscular, athletic build of someone who engages in intensive regular exercise. He has sandy blonde hair cut high and tight, and is cleanshaven. He usually wears military fatigues or uniform appropriate to his expected daily duties; in the field he wears MCB body armor and carries his M4, his M9, a combat knife, and if necessary a selection of grenades.

BUCKLEY Val

Char

Cost

Roll Notes

15

STR

5

12-

15

DEX

10

12-

16

CON

6

12-

8

INT

-2

11-

5

EGO

-5

10-

20

PRE

10

13-

6

OCV

15

5

DCV

10

2

OMCV -3

2

DMCV -3

3

SPD

10

Phases: 4, 8, 12

8

PD

6

Total: 8 PD (2 rPD)

5

ED

3

Total: 5 ED (2 rED)

6

REC

2

30

END

2

12

BODY

2

30

STUN

5

Movement:

6

Lift 200 kg; 3d6 HTH damage [1]

PER Roll 11PRE Attack: 4d6

Total Characteristics Cost: 73 Running:

19m

Hell’s Horde

Cost

Powers

END

15

Bite: HKA 1d6 (2d6 with STR)

1

2

Tough Skin: Resistant (+½) for 2 PD/2 ED

0

3

Heavy: Knockback Resistance -3m

0

7

Swift: Running +7m (19m total)

1

3

Canine Senses: +1 PER with all Sense Groups but 0 Sight Group

5

Canine Eyes: Nightvision

0

4

Canine Nose: +2 PER with Smell/Taste Group

0

2

Crossbreed Nose: +2 PER with Smell/Taste Group

0

BRAIN GRUB

Only To Perceive Explosives And Supernatural Things (-1)

10

Canine Nose: Tracking Smell

0

6

Canine Ears: +3 PER with Hearing Group

0

3

Canine Ears: Ultrasonic Hearing

0

Val

Char

Cost Roll Notes

1

STR

-9

9-

10

DEX

0

11-

8

CON

-4

11-

10

INT

0

11-

15

EGO

5

12-

10

PRE

0

11-

3

OCV

0

11

DCV

40

5

OMCV

6

5

DMCV

6

2

SPD

0

Phases: 6, 12

Lift 8 kg; 0d6 HTH damage [1]

PER Roll 11PRE Attack: 2d6

2

PD

0

Total: 2 PD (1 rPD)

PS: Attack 11-

2

ED

0

Total: 2 ED (1 rED)

2

PS: Guard 11-

4

REC

0

2

PS: Retrieve/Fetch 11-

15

END

-1

2

PS: Stop Attacking 11-

4

BODY

-6

3

Stealth 12-

10

STUN

-5

3

Tactics 11-

Movement:

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 74 Total Cost: 147 175

Matching Complications (50)

20

Physical Complication: Animal Intelligence (Frequently, Greatly Impairing)

20

Physical Complication: Very Limited Manipulation (Frequently, Greatly Impairing)

15

Psychological Complication: (Common, Strong)

Total Characteristics Cost: 32 Running:

2m

Leaping:

2m

Cost Powers 5 Barbs: HKA 1 point (1 point with STR) 56 Neural Control: Mind Control 15d6

END 1 0

Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½); Skin Contact Required (-1)

34

Loves Mark Benson

Total Complications Points: 50 Experience Points: 0 Description: Buckley is a German Shepherd/warg cross out of a small breeder in Alabama. The owner was irate when he discovered his prize female had already been visited, but he made the best of it and sold the litter of large pups to the government as working dogs. Buckley happens to be good at sniffing out things that go boom as well as the warg side allowing him to sniff out otherworldly danger. Buckley looks like a huge German Shepherd with grey fur; just the sight of him intimidates most people. He’s generally mistrustful of anyone but Approved People — meaning Mark Benson and anyone Benson indicates is a friend. He doesn’t get along with Douglas Stark, Special Agent Franks, or Agent Grant Jefferson at all, but seems to have a mysterious affection for Special Agent Myers.

Harm To The Parasite Harms The Host: Major 0 Transform 8d6 (standard effect: 24 BODY) (humans to humans with Physical Complication Victim Takes All Damage Brain Grub Takes; heals back automatically when grub leaves or is removed) Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½); All Or Nothing (-½), Limited Target (humans; -½), Skin Contact Required (-1), Only Works On Victims Under Its Mind Control (EGO+20 or better required; -½)

12

Nutrition Loss: Drain BODY 1d6 (standard effect: 1 BODY)

[1]

Delayed Return Rate (points return at the rate of 5 per Month, or begin healing normally once brain grub is removed; +2¾), Penetrating (+½), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½); Skin Contact Required (-1), 1 Charge (-2)

10

Telepathic Communication: Telepathy 4d6

0

Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½); Only To Communicate With Other Brain Grubs (-2)

1 -10 -1 6

7

Tough Body: Resistant (+½) for 1 PD/1 ED Short Legs: Running -10m (2m total) Springy Legs: Leaping -2m (2m total) Heightened Senses: +2 PER with all Sense Groups

0 1 0

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Skills 2

Hell’s Horde

GUNNERY SERGEANT R. LEE BROWNIE

Skills 19

Stealth 19-

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 132 Total Cost: 164

Char

Cost

Roll Notes

10

STR

0

11-

18

DEX

16

13-

Lift 100 kg; 2d6 HTH damage [2]

175

Matching Complications (50)

13

CON

3

12-

15

Physical Complication: Limited Manipulation (Frequently, Slightly Impairing)

18

INT

8

13-

20

Physical Complication: Minuscule (about 3-5 inches long; +24m KB) (Frequently, Greatly Impairing)

15

EGO

5

12-

15

PRE

5

12-

15

Physical Complication: Near-Human (Frequently, Slightly Impairing)

6

OCV

15

8

DCV

25

5

OMCV

6

5

DMCV

6

BRAIN GRUB

4

SPD

20

Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12

Inspired by the ideas of James Bell Ecology: Brain grubs survive by latching onto and taking control of sentient beings, thereby deriving nutriment. Individually, outside of the hive, an individual grub is about as smart as a puppy; it’s driven by instinct rather than intellect. Once it takes over a human host it can exert its full sentience. Within the hive brain grubs communicate by a sort of telepathy and possess most of their intelligence (particularly when in proximity to the queen, who’s about twice as large as a regular grub). Personality/Motivation: Normal animal motivations. But to many sentient beings, the actions of the brain grub seem tinged with malice, and they may be so. Powers/Tactics: A brain grub attacks by surprise, typically dropping onto the back of the victim’s neck from above (it must have access to the spinal cord or brain, so it never attacks other parts of the body). Once it makes skin contact, it digs the barbs on its feet into the victim’s flesh and latches onto his spine. This allows it to take control of the victim (i.e., attack with its Mind Control) and make him do its bidding. In doing so it establishes a one-way neurochemical link. This means that once it’s firmly attached to a victim, any damage a brain grub suffers its victim suffers as well, but the parasite itself doesn’t suffer if its host is harmed. The brain grub remains attached to its host (and usually hides itself under the host’s collar, hat, shirt, long hair, or the like) until the host dies and it seeks another, or it’s somehow removed. Typically a host loses 1 BODY per day a parasite is attached due to the strain of being controlled and the diminished nutrition his body receives. Another character can remove a brain grub without harming the host by succeeding with a DEX Roll at -2, or with a Paramedics, SS: Medicine, SS: Neurobiology, or SS: Surgery roll at no penalty. Failure on this roll may cause significant harm (or even death) to the victim, but kills the grub as well. Appearance: Brain grubs are insect-like creatures no more than five inches long. They have six or more legs or barbs with which they attach themselves to a victim’s flesh.

4

PD

2

Total: 4 PD (4 rPD)

4

ED

2

Total: 4 ED (4 rED)

10

REC

6

80

END

12

10

BODY

0

30

STUN

5

Intelligence

Total Complications Points: 50 Experience Points: 0

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Val

Movement:

PER Roll 13PRE Attack: 3d6

Total Characteristics Cost: 136 Running:

6m

Teleportation:

20m

Cost Powers

END

150

Fey Powers: 150 Character Points’ worth of Spells var and other magical abilities

4

Fey Form: Resistant (+½) for 4 PD/4 ED

0

15

Fey Form: Damage Negation (-6 DCs Physical)

0

Doesn’t Work Against Iron Attacks (-1)

30

Fey Form: Damage Negation (-6 DCs Energy)

0

10

Fey Mind: Mental Defense (10 points)

0

10

Fey Form: Power Defense (10 points)

0

40

Fey Nature: Life Support (Total, including 0 Longevity: Immortality)

45

Fey Concealment: Invisibility to Sight Group, No 0 Fringe Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½)

60

Vanishing: Teleportation 40m Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½)

8

0

Hell’s Horde But as the world has modernized, many people have forgotten these ancient traditions and rituals. For the most part modern 3 High Society 12brownies take the only jobs they can get: with elves. Even a brownie 3 KS: Arcane And Occult Lore 13can’t keep up with many elves’ slovenliness, but at least having them around prevents elves from descending into total squalor. 3 KS: Legends And Lore 13 Back in 1987, a brownie named Troomtrisk, having nothing to 37 Magic 30do, snuck into a movie theater to see what all the fuss was. He found 2 PS: House And Farm Chores 11himself watching a film called Full Metal Jacket, and it changed his 7 Stealth 15life. He changed his name to “Gunnery Sergeant R. Lee Brownie” and set out to, in his words, ‘liberate the bejesus out of those worthless 3 Tactics 13maggots and turn them into something resembling Marines.” In 2 WF: Small Arms other words, he’s given a bunch of his brownie comrades a purpose in life: to hunt monsters. A few of them have even spent time around Total Powers & Skills Cost: 424 the MHI compound, studying the ways of human Hunters, and have Total Cost: 560 occasionally helped their human “colleagues” with missions. 175 Matching Complications (50) Personality/Motivation: Traditionally, a brownie’s devoted to the 10 Physical Complication: Small (1m; +6m KB) (Infrequently, good of the household to which he attaches himself. When everyone’s Slightly Impairing) asleep he does all sorts of tasks not yet done — cleaning, washing, 15 Psychological Complication: Capricious Faerie Nature looking after livestock, ironing, and so on. If he becomes particularly devoted to a specific person in the house (which sometimes occurs), (Very Common, Moderate) 15 Psychological Complication: Must Destroy Monsters To he may appear to give advice to or run errands for that person. However, they hate cats and dogs, and will go so far as to kill them. Give Brownies A Purpose In Life (Common, Strong) Gunny Brownie and his “soldiers” have chosen a different way 15 Psychological Complication: Hates Cats And Dogs of life. Since no one in the modern world seems to understand the (Common, Strong) old ways, Gunny’s found another way for himself and his brownies to 15 Susceptibility: takes 1d6 per Turn from iron (Common) help humans: by fighting and destroying monsters. In other words, he’s helping humans through superior firepower. Despite the MCB’s 15 Susceptibility: takes 1d6 per Turn from salt (Common) efforts to eradicate them, they continue to wage their war from the Total Complications Points: 50 shadows. Experience Points: 385 Like all brownies, though, Gunny and his followers tend to be capricious and mischievous at times. They protect humans, but they also enjoy playing tricks on them when they’re not on “missions.” EQUIPMENT Quote: “All right you maggots, listen up! We’re gonna take that STR werewolf using standard tactics. Watch your fire, I don’t want any Weapon OCV RMod Damage STUN Shots Min Notes friendly casualties!” Powers/Tactics: Gunny Brownie is as gung-ho as a movie Marine. SIG/SAUER +1 +0 1d6+1 +0 15 5 P226 Unfortunately, he and his followers are neither tall nor especially strong, so they stick to lighter handguns and submachine guns — Mini-Uzi +0 +0 1d6+1 +0 20 10 AF5 assault rifles are beyond them, for the most part. However, they Armor have a wide range of mystical powers, and that tends to even up the None odds when fighting monsters. (For example, they have a Spell that Gear: Cigar transforms ordinary bullets to silver, but without losing any of the useful properties of lead.) Their ability to teleport, and to become invisible, are major assets in gunfights. Appearance: Gunnery Sergeant R. Lee Brownie is a militarized version of the three foot tall friendly household faerie of lore. He wears military fatigues, a helmet that looks like 1960s-era US Army issue, and constantly smokes a minature stogie. He carries a SIG/ Inspired by the ideas of Byron Ginn Background/History: Brownies (or brunaidh) are domestic faeries. SAUER P226 and a Mini-Uzi. Like most brownies, his face is flat, his Traditionally they live in the houses of people they favor, coming out eyes large, his nostrils tiny, and his skin a bit wrinkled. at night to do chores while the other inhabitants sleep. During the day they hide in dark corners of the house, or sometimes in a hollow tree or ruin nearby. Their people repay them by leaving out food they like (such as cream and freshly-baked barley cakes with honey) and treating them with courtesy and respect. Skills

9

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

GUNNERY SERGEANT R. LEE BROWNIE

Hell’s Horde

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

MIGUEL ART CHESTER

Skills 10

+1 with All Combat

20

+4 with Firearms

3

Breakfall 13-

PER Roll 12-

3

Climbing 13-

7

Faith 14-

PRE Attack: 3d6

5

Fast Draw 14-

2

CK: Central California 11-

5

KS: Firearms 14-

5

KS: Trivia 14-

3

Lockpicking 13-

3

Paramedics 12-

Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12

2

PS: Civil Engineer 11-

3

Riding 13-

4

Total: 6 PD (0 rPD)

2

SS: Civil Engineering 11-

ED

3

Total: 5 ED (0 rED)

3

Stealth 13-

10

REC

6

3

Survival 12-

40

END

4

4

TF: Ground Vehicles, SCUBA, Snow Skiing

13

BODY

3

6

34

STUN

7

WF: Common Melee Weapons, Small Arms, Uncommon Modern Weapons

Val Char

Cost Roll Notes

13

STR

3

12-

20

DEX

20

13-

13

CON

3

12-

13

INT

3

12-

13

EGO

3

12-

15

PRE

5

12-

7

OCV

20

7

DCV

20

3

OMCV 0

4

DMCV 3

4

SPD

20

6

PD

5

Movement:

Lift 150 kg; 2½d6 HTH damage [1]

Total Characteristics Cost: 127 Running:

12m

Cost Powers

END

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 124 Total Cost: 251

Martial Arts: Hokoshin Shitoryn Karate Maneuver

OCV DCV Notes

4

Block

+2

+2

Block, Abort

4

Disarm

-1

+1

Disarm, 28 STR

4

Dodge

+0

+5

Dodge all attacks, Abort

3

Joint Lock/Grab

-1

-1

Grab, 28 STR

5

Kick

-2

+1

6½d6 Strike

3

Legsweep

+2

-1

3½d6; Target Falls

4

Punch

+0

+2

4½d6 Strike

3

Throw

+0

+1

3½d6 +v/10, Target Falls

4

+1 Damage Class (already added in)

1

Perks License: Registered Civil Engineer

200

Matching Complications (50)

10

Hunted: MCB (Infrequently, Mo Pow, NCI, Watching)

15

Psychological Complication: Loves His Family (Common, Strong)

15

Psychological Complication: Devout Catholic (Common, Strong)

Total Complications Points: 40 Experience Points: 61

EQUIPMENT STR Weapon OCV RMod Damage STUN Shots Min Notes AR-15

+2

+1

2d6

+1

30

12

2H, AF5, FS

Glock 22

+0

+0

1d6+1

+0

20

6

Uses Arrando +5 magazine extensions

Combat Knife

+0

+0

1d6

+0

—

8

Can Be Thrown

Armor US Army Interceptor Armor (Resistant Protection (8 PD/8 ED)) with Level IV plates (+3 PD/+3 ED, Hardened, protects Hit Locations 1011) Gear: Smartphone, Bible

10

Hell’s Horde

MIGUEL ART CHESTER

DANIELA CORVIN

11

Val 20 20 20 15 18 20

Char STR DEX CON INT EGO PRE

Cost 10 20 10 5 8 10

7 7 3 6 5

OCV DCV OMCV DMCV SPD

20 20 0 9 30

10 10 12 50 20 56

PD ED REC END BODY STUN

8 8 8 6 10 13

Movement:

Roll 131313121313-

Notes Lift 400 kg; 4d6 HTH damage [2]

PER Roll 12PRE Attack: 4d6

Phases: 3, 5, 8, 10, 12 Total: 10 PD (2 rPD) Total: 10 ED (2 rED)

Total Characteristics Cost: 195 Running:

20m

Leaping:

8m

Swimming:

6m

Cost Powers

END

Martial Arts: Corvin Family Combat Training Maneuver

OCV

DCV

Notes

4

Block

+2

+2

Block, Abort

4

Disarm

-1

+1

Disarm, 30 STR

4

Dodge

+0

+5

Dodge all attacks, Abort

5

Kick

-2

+1

8d6 Strike

4

Killing Blow -2

+0

HKA ½d6 (2d6 with STR)

3

Legsweep

+2

-1

5d6; Target Falls

4

Nerve Strike -1

+1

2d6 NND(1)

4

Punch

+2

6d6 Strike

4 2

Use Art with Axes, Blades, Polearms, Staffs Tough: Resistant (+½) for 2 PD/2 ED

8

Fast: Running +8m (20m total)

2 1 41

+0

0

1 Strong Leaper: Leaping +4m (8m forward, 4m upward) 1 Strong Swimmer: Swimming +2m (6m total) 1 Perceive Through The Senses Of Ravens: Clairsentience 0 (Sight and Hearing Groups), x32 Range (9,600m) Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½); Only Through The Senses Of Ravens (-1)

5

Good Night Eyes: Nightvision

1

Corvin Longevity: Life Support (Longevity: double 0 normal lifespan)

0

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Inspired by the ideas of Michael Gutterres Background/History: Miguel Chester, avid outdoorsman and shooter and devoted family man, was on a camping trip with his family one weekend when they were attacked by monsters: some sort of evil manitou, or American Indian demon. Using his trusty AR-15, his ingenuity, and his willpower, Chester kept his family safe from the horrors and killed all of them, sustaining only a few relatively minor injuries in the process. Chester planned to go public with his story, but a visit from the MCB soon convinced him to keep his mouth shut. This left him frustrated and angry, because he knew there was a problem out there that he could help solve. The solution came in the form of a visit from his local bishop as a representative of the Secret Guard, the Vatican’s monster-hunting arm. The Guard occasionally needed help on missions, and it wanted to recruit Chester as its “local field representative” in central California. Chester agreed immediately, and has helped the Secret Guard on several hunting expeditions ever since. Personality/Motivation: Three aspects dominate Miguel Chester’s personality. The first is his love of family. He comes from a large, extended family of mixed Portuguese and Chinese ancestry, and has three young children of his own with his wife Monica. There’s nothing he wouldn’t do to help them or protect them. This can cause problems with the second aspect, his devout Roman Catholicism. The Secret Guard sometimes puts demands on his time and attention that lead to difficulties with his family, but he balances his responsibilities as best he can. The third is a love of action and adventure. Usually he scratches this itch by pursuing his outdoor hobbies — camping, SCUBA diving, skiing, horseback riding — but lately the bigger thrill of monster hunting has taken top position on his list of interests. He’s started doing some solo hunting in between times when the Secret Guard calls on him for help, and this could easily get him into some serious trouble. Quote: “By God’s grace we’ll send these horrors to Hell. Let’s get ’em!” Powers/Tactics: Although he hasn’t had formal monster hunting training by MHI or the Secret Guard, you could say that in a way Miguel Chester’s been training for his “side job” all his life. He’s a highly skilled shooter who’s placed in several national competitions, a second degree black belt in Hokoshin Shitoryn Karate, and a skilled outdoorsman. Perhaps more importantly, he knows how to keep his head in dangerous situations and has a natural gift for being a member of a small tactical unit. His favored weapons are his AR-15 assault rifle and a .40 Glock 22 with Arrando magazine extensions (so it has 20 shots instead of the usual 15). Appearance: Miguel Art Chester is a 5’6” tall man of mixed Portuguese and Chinese ancestry, which gives him a bit of “natural tan” all year round. His hair is black; his eyes brown. In the field he wears his US Army Interceptor body armor and carries his AR-15 and Glock 22 in addition to a knife and various other pieces of gear.

Hell’s Horde

Perks 21

Followers: flock of 16 ravens (see text)

5

Money: Well Off (see text)

EQUIPMENT Weapon

Talents 3

Ambidexterity

5

Eidetic Memory

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Skills 20

+2 with All Combat

3

Acrobatics 13-

3

Breakfall 13-

3

Combat Driving 13-

1

Computer Programming 8-

2

Demolitions 10-

3

Deduction 12-

1

Electronics 8-

7

Faith 15-

3

Fast Draw 13-

3

High Society 13-

5

KS: Monsters 14-

1

Mechanics 8-

1

Navigation 8-

3

Paramedics 12-

3

Stealth 13-

2

TF: Ground Vehicles

7

WF: Common Melee Weapons, Common Missile Weapons, Small Arms, Staffs

2

Weaponsmith 10-

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 203 Total Cost: 398 200

Matching Complications (50)

25

Enraged: in combat (Very Common), go 11-, recover 11-

20

Hunted: Interpol and various police forces (Infrequently, Mo Pow, NCI, Capture/Kill)

20

Physical Complication: abilities reduced in sunlight (see text) (Frequently, Greatly Impairing)

15

Psychological Complication: Determined To Protect People From Monsters No Matter What The Cost (Common, Strong)

Total Complications Points: 50 Experience Points: 198

OCV RMod Damage STUN Shots STR Notes Min

FN Five SeveN

+1

+0

1d6+1

+0

20

5

See text

FN P90

+1

+0

2d6

+0

50

10

AF5, clear magazine, see text

Short Sword

+0

—

1d6

+0

10

See text

Armor Body armor (Resistant Protection (9 PD/9 ED)) Gear: Flashlight, cigarette lighter, smartphone, field medical kit

DANIELA CORVIN Inspired by the ideas of Greg Flierl Background/History: The founder of the Corvin family, Bertok Corvin, was born in 1427, the illegitimate son of Janos Hunyadi, the Regent-Governor of the Kingdom of Hungary and Voivode of Transylvania. At the age of 20, Bertok was the only survivor of the group of Hunyadi supporters who killed a powerful master vampire. Exactly what happened to him during that battle and afterward are secrets he never gave up, although there are family rumors concerning vampire blood. But since that time his direct descendants have been blessed with long life and good health, enhanced speed and strength, and an ability to communicate with ravens. It has also made them extremely aggressive, reckless in combat, egotistical, better night fighters than day fighters, and fanatical monster hunters. The ability with ravens led the family to adopt the name “Corvin” (“Of The Raven”) and formed the basis for the Corvin family crest: a black raven in front of four white rays of light from top left, on a field of red, its wings spread and its head turned to the left in a triumphant scream while its talons grip the head of a fanged golden dragon whose eyes are closed. Bertok and his son Alexandru fought and killed a second master vampire in 1512, a battle that cost Bertok his life. The seriously wounded bloodsucker grabbed Bertok to use as a hostage, but Alexandru beheaded him, mortally wounding his father in the process. The vampire’s worldly wealth provided the bulk of the Corvin family fortune. Augmented through the miracle of compound interest, those assets finance the family’s monster hunting to this day. In the depths of the vampire’s castle they also found a strange, enchanted short sword that each member of the family has since carried. The Corvin family has two traditions handed down since its founding. The first tradition involves names. Direct descendants of Bertok are given temporary names at birth. After a Corvin participates in his first successful monster hunt, he’s allowed to choose his own name. The family records this name in its official histories and forgets the birth name. The second tradition is that the family chooses its leader through unarmed combat. Any family member may challenge the current head for the right to lead the family. The winner receives the honorary title of Captain and is responsible for all decisions regarding finances and monster hunts. He also leads the family in combat.

12

Hell’s Horde

13

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

The following list includes the names of all Corvin family Powers/Tactics: Daniela Corvin leads a band of private monster members in the direct line of descent from Bertok to Daniela, with hunters who’ve worked out of a secret base in the Carpathian their ages at the time of death: Mountains for nearly 600 years. They primarily operate in the western territory of the former Soviet Union, Central Asia, and Eastern Bertok (Bright Raven) 1427-1512 (85) Europe. The Corvin Family doesn’t claim government monster Alexandru (Defender of Mankind) 1473-1589 (116) bounties (since that would require all sorts of paperwork and public Gaviril (Strong Man of God) 1551-1660 (109) revelations they prefer to avoid). Instead it funds itself through its own personal fortune and assets seized from monsters it kills. (The Grigore (Vigilant) 1629-1778 (149) Corvin Family often uses some of its money to assist the families of Marku (Warlike) 1724-1787 (63) victims of the monsters they kill, which is one cause for its downward Danut (Judge) 1775-1887 (112) financial spiral in recent decades.) Nicolae (Victor of the People) 1841-1963 (122) Because of the vampiric blood that flows in her veins, Daniela is much stronger, tougher, and faster than an ordinary human being Beniamin (Son of the Right Hand) 1933-1981 (48) (or even most trained Hunters). But she’s also overly aggressive and Daniela (God is My Judge) 1980prone to losing control of herself in the heat of battle. If an opponent The Corvin family has fought and slain countless monsters across can survive combat with her long enough for her to become Enraged, the generations. Two of its victories — one in 1787 and one in 1981 she usually begins to leave herself open to counterattacks in her — were also great tragedies, both caused by the members’ typical eagerness to defeat her enemy. The Corvin Family has trained Daniela almost since birth in the overconfidence in battle. In both cases the family Captain and several other Bertok descendants died. In fact, the 1981 battle left Daniela, combat skills it’s developed over the centuries. She’s not only skilled only one year old at the time, as the only direct descendant of Bertok with guns but can hold her own with any black belt in unarmed Corvin still living. That loss, combined with the fact that the family’s combat. (Her ambidexterity sometimes give her an edge in HTH money has for the past several decades been spent at a faster rate Combat; she favors her right hand but can easily switch to her left to than it has earned interest, has left Daniela nad her family in a tight take an opponent by surprise.) Her favored firearms are a twin set of spot. To make matters worse the family seems to have lost focus, with FN Five SeveN semiautomatic handguns and an FN P90 submachine several of the Captains before Daniela being weak, vacillating men. gun. They shoot special Corvin Family-designed silver bullets As the new Captain, Daniela must decide whether to disband the (equivalent to MHI silver bullets for game purposes). She also carries family monster hunter team due to a severe shortage of manpower, to the Corvin Family short sword in a shoulder sheath. It does its regular attempt to work with other hunters, or to allow non-family members damage to most foes, but 1½d6 against vampires, werewolves, and to join the team. Any decision but the first will force her and the rest of any monster with a weakness to silver (and it reduces the effectiveness the family more into the open, something none of them particularly of such monsters’ Regeneration by 25% as well). Daniela’s vampiric blood also gives her a special “link” with want. Personality/Motivation: Daniela is fanatically devoted to the cause ravens and crows. She has a flock of 16 ravens who follow and assist of hunting and destroying monsters to protect people from them. her when she needs them. If you have a copy of The HERO System She doesn’t care what it costs, or how much property she ends up Bestiary, you can use the Raven character sheet on page 430 for them; destroying, as long as the monster dies and people are safe once if not, just use them in a common sense way (they can pick up and more. She has been known to use humans as monster bait, although carry small objects, confuse her enemies by flying in their faces, and these are usually criminals captured by the family in their role as the so on). She can see and hear through their senses, or through those of any other raven or crow within 9,600m (about six miles). unofficial protectors of villages in the Carpathians. Her blood isn’t all beneficial, though. In addition to her tendency Like all of her ancestors before her, Daniela is a devout Catholic, and her faith has protected her from supernatural horrors on more to become Enraged in battle, she’s weaker in direct sunlight: reduce than one occasion. In general the Corvins believe that only God may her physical Characteristics and other abilities by 20%. For this judge their actions in the fight against the forces of evil; they answer reason she prefers to conduct her missions at night or on overcast days (fortunately she has excellent night vision). to no human authority. In person Daniela comes across as strong, confident, self-assured Last but not least, Daniela has access to the Corvin Family (to the point of arrogance), confrontational, and defensive. She fortune. It isn’t nearly as large as it used to be, but at least for the doesn’t trust people outside her family easily; the Corvin mentality time being it provides her with a large, steady income and plenty of is that “no one understands us” and “anyone in power hates us for reserves for emergencies. being uncompromising and honest.” It will take the PCs a lot of time Appearance: Danieal Corvin is an atractive Romanian woman in and effort to overcome this attitude and make her (and the rest of her her early thirties with long, brown hair and blue eyes. She’s 5’7” tall with an athletic, muscular build. In the field she wears special body family) into the valuable allies they could be. Quote: “We have a job to do here, whether you understand that or armor specifically tailored to her form and preferred fighting style and carries her favored weapons, twin FN Five SeveN pistols and an not. Get out of our way immediately, or you’ll regret it.” FN P90 submachine gun.

Hell’s Horde Total Complications Points: 25 Experience Points: 0

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

THE GREY MAN Val Char

Cost

Roll Notes

10

STR

0

11-

14

DEX

8

12-

13

CON

3

12-

15

INT

5

12-

13

EGO

3

12-

15

PRE

5

12-

6

OCV

15

4

DCV

5

3

OMCV

0

5

DMCV

6

3

SPD

10

Phases: 4, 8, 12

4

PD

2

Total: 4 PD (0 rPD)

4

ED

2

Total: 4 ED (0 rED)

5

REC

1

25

END

1

12

BODY

2

26

STUN

3

Movement:

Lift 100 kg; 2d6 HTH damage [1]

PER Roll 12PRE Attack: 3d6

12 2 2 3 3 3 2 2 7

Weapon

STR OCV RMod Damage STUN Shots Min

.308 Rifle

+1

+3

2d6+1

+1

4

10

.338 Rifle

+1

+3

2½d6

+1

1

10

Colt M1911 +1

+0

2d6-1

+1

7

9

Notes

Armor None Gear: Chewing tobacco, compass

THE GREY MAN

Total Characteristics Cost: 71 Running:

6m

Cost Powers 4 Good Eyes: +2 to PER Rolls with Sight Group -6 Slow: Running -6m (6m total) 10 16

EQUIPMENT

END 0

Skills +2 with Firearms Range Skill Levels: +8 versus the Range Modifier with Firearms Targeting Skill Levels: +6 versus Hit Location Modifiers with Firearms Demolitions 10Language: Spanish (fluent conversation; English is Native) Navigation 12Shadowing 12Stealth 12TF: Ground Vehicles WF: Small Arms Weaponsmith 14-

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 60 Total Cost: 131 200 Matching Complications (50) 15

Psychological Complication: Must Destroy Monsters (Common, Strong)

10

Social Limitation: Harmful Secret (GM’s choice) (Infrequently, Major)

Inspired by the ideas of Jim Curtis Background/History: No one in MHI, not even Earl Harbinger, knows much about the Grey Man — not even his real name (they started calling him “the Grey Man” because of his clothes). An MHI team was on an assignment in Texas when he ambled up carrying one of his custom-made rifles and began helping the Hunters with his sniping skills. Since then he’s put in an appearance at several other MHI missions in and around Texas, occasionally accompanied by a young girl who acts as his spotter and refers to him as “Grandpa.” How he finds out what MHI’s up to, and how he’s eluded the attempts to follow him afterwards, remains unknown. Based on a few cryptic statements he’s made he may be some relation to Jack Wylder of Team TALON, but Wylder claims to know nothing about him. Personality/Motivation: The Grey Man is a laconic individual who seems totally focused on the job at hand: killing monsters. What gave him this fanatic dedication to such a strange and dangerous task remains unknown. Most MHI employees think he lost his family (possibly including his spotter’s parents) to a monster attack and is determined to get revenge. Others believe he once committed some great sin or evil deed, and is now trying to make up for it, while some think he’s a former military sniper who’s just happy to keep using his skills in a good cause. Quote: None. The Grey Man rarely says much of significance, other than to tell Hunters where he’s setting up and so forth. Powers/Tactics: The Grey Man is a highly skilled sniper — so skilled that some people in MHI are convinced he’s got some kind of military and/or espionage background. He uses .308 and .338 rifles of his own design, the former with a four-shot clip and the latter requiring reloading after each shot. He loads them with frangible silver ammunition equivalent, in game terms, to MHI’s own silver ammo. He favors head and neck shots, and can often take out a monster with one well-placed bullet. If a creature shrugs off his shots and comes after him he’ll flee as best he can, but he’s well aware that he can’t move very quickly at his age and that he’s more likely to get lucky with an eye shot than by running away. Appearance: The Grey Man is a white male, 5’8” tall, apparently in his sixties. His hair is grey-white, but he still seems to have most of it. His skin is tanned and leathery from spending so much time outdoors. He typically wears old grey Dickies work shirts and pants and carries one of his custom-made sniper rifles.

14

Hell’s Horde Total Powers & Skills Cost: 64 Total Cost: 168

HARRISON “HARRY” GROLNICK Val Char

Cost Roll Notes

12

STR

2

11-

14

DEX

8

12-

14

CON

4

12-

10

INT

0

11-

10

EGO

0

11-

15

PRE

5

12-

6

OCV

15

6

DCV

15

3

OMCV

0

3

DMCV

0

4

SPD

20

Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12

6

PD

4

Total: 6 PD (0 rPD)

8

ED

6

Total: 8 ED (4 rED)

10

REC

6

40

END

4

15

BODY

5

40

STUN

10

PER Roll 11-

Matching Complications (50)

10

Hunted: MCB (Infrequently, Mo Pow, NCI, Watching)

10

Psychological Complication: Doesn’t Like Dogs (Common, Moderate)

20

Social Complication: Subject To Orders (Very Frequently, Major)

Total Complications Points: 40 Experience Points: 0

PRE Attack: 3d6

EQUIPMENT Weapon

Total Characteristics Cost: 104 Running:

20m

Cost Powers

END

2

Demonhound’s Resilience: Resistant (+½) for 4 ED 0

10

Demonhound’s Resilience: Damage Negation (-3 DCs Energy)

0

Only Works Against Fire/Heat (-½)

8

Demonhound’s Speed: Running +8m (20m total)

1

5

Demonhound’s Eyes: Infrared Vision

0

10

Demonhound’s Nose: Tracking Smell

0

6

Demonhound’s Senses: +2 PER with all Sense Groups 0 Perks

3

200

Fringe Benefits: Weapon Permit; Concealed Weapon Permit Skills

3

Concealment 11-

1

Criminology 8-

1

Forensic Medicine 8-

3

Gambling 11-

2

KS: Crime And Mystery Novels 11-

2

KS: MHI 11-

2

KS: Monsters 11-

2

KS: Werewolves 11-

2

TF: Ground Vehicles

2

WF: Small Arms

STR OCV RMod Damage STUN Shots Min Notes

STI Ranger II

+1

+1

2d6-1

+1

8

6

Remington 870 P

+0

+0

2½d6

+1

8

10

2H, AE1, LR(40m), RR, RP

KRISS Vector SBR

+1

+1

2d6-1

+1

30

10

AF5, Supp (-5)

AR-10

+1

+0

2d6+1

+1

20

12

2H, AF5, FS

Armor MHI Body Armor (Resistant Protection (8 PD/8 ED)) MHI Earplugs (Hearing Group Flash Defense (10 points); Radio Perception/Transmission) Gear: Small bag of dog biscuits

HARRISON “HARRY” GROLNICK Inspired by the ideas of Greg Cueto Background/History: Harry Grolnick was pretty much your average guy. After graduating community college he got a job as a security guard and was planning to apply to the police academy. But a strange encounter one night changed his mind — and his body. He was patrolling the grounds of the factory where he worked when he saw a tall, thin man with a big dog approaching. He ordered the man to stop and leave the premises, but the man silently sicced his dog on him. Harry drew his gun and began firing — and the dog began breathing fire on him! To this day Harry’s not entirely sure what happened. What he remembers is realizing the man had fled, he was out of bullets, and the dog was dead. He was covered with its... blood? goo? ichor? He wasn’t sure what to call it, but the stuff was all over him; some had even gotten in his mouth, and boy did it taste foul. He figured he was certain to get interviewed by the papers and make the national news, but then the MCB showed up and squelched that idea faster than a NASCAR driver. He was so annoyed by them that he didn’t tell them that... things... were happening to his body. Ever since the fight he felt stronger and tougher, and his senses were much more acute. He could even follow people by scent! He had no idea where these new abilities came from, but he figured he could find a way to make money with them somehow.

15

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Movement:

Lift 133 kg; 2d6 HTH damage [1]

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Hell’s Horde He was right. When MHI came a-calling, he recognized a good job offer when he heard it. This would be even better than being a cop! He made it through training easily, and after being made a fulltime employee he explained to Director Harbinger what he could do. Director Harbinger filed that useful piece of information away, and assigned Grolnick to Team Con Furia so he’d always have him on hand in Cazador in case he needed a skilled tracker. Personality/Motivation: Harry Grolnick is a happy-go-lucky, live life to the fullest kind of guy. He gets along well with most people, particularly those who share his general attitude (like Trip Jones). However, the accident that gave him his canine-like senses also gave him an intense dislike of dogs, wolves, foxes, and the like. If he encounters one he feels compelled to establish dominance over it, even if that means fighting it. As a result he avoids places where he’s likely to meet or see dogs, and has become pretty knowledgeable about werewolves. Quote: ::sniff sniff:: “I can smell them over that way. Keep your lights low and follow me.” Powers/Tactics: Exposure to a hell hound’s ichor (especially the fact that he ingested some of it) somehow gave Harry Grolnick canine abilities. It sharpened his senses (particularly smell) and made him much more resistant to fire, heat, and other forms of energy than most humans. He’s also a little stronger and faster than he used to be without having to exercise regularly. As a Hunter, Grolnick pays attention to his commanders and his teaching. He’s not aggressive enough to be the first guy in the room most of the time, but he doesn’t hang back either. Everyone he’s worked with has enjoyed the experience and had nothing but nice things to say about him. Ever since getting his “hell hound powers,” Grolnick has loved the taste of dog biscuits and treats. He usually carries a small bag of them to snack on. Appearance: Harry Grolnick is a 5’8” tall white man with a shaggy head of dark brown hair. He used to be cleanshaven, but his hair now grows so fast that he has five o’clock shadow two hours after he shaves, so he usually just lets a beard grow out a few inches and then chops it off. He wears jeans and t-shirts when not in the field, and carries the standard MHI weapons.

SPECIAL AGENT GEOFFREY HENDRICKSON Val Char

Cost

Roll Notes

13

STR

3

12-

13

DEX

6

12-

15

CON

5

12-

20

INT

10

13-

20

EGO

10

13-

20

PRE

10

13-

5

OCV

10

5

DCV

10

3

OMCV 0

6

DMCV 9

4

SPD

20

Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12

5

PD

3

Total: 5 PD (0 rPD)

5

ED

3

Total: 5 ED (0 rED)

6

REC

2

30

END

2

15

BODY

5

30

STUN

5

Movement:

Lift 150 kg; 2½d6 HTH damage [1]

PER Roll 13PRE Attack: 4d6

Total Characteristics Cost: 113 Running:

Cost Powers 10

Unflappable: +20 PRE Only To Protect Against Presence Attacks (-1)

Perks 3

Fringe Benefit: Federal Police Powers

7

Fringe Benefit: Membership: MCB Special Agent

1

Fringe Benefit: Weapon Permit

5

Talents Eidetic Memory Skills

16

12m

5

+1 with Firearms

3

Bureaucratics 13-

2

Combat Piloting 10-

1

Computer Programming 8-

3

Cryptography 13-

1

High Society 8-

1

KS: Arcane And Occult Lore 8-

2

KS: History 11-

3

KS: MCB 13-

END 0

Hell’s Horde

Skills 3

KS: Monsters 13-

2

KS: US Military 11-

3

Persuasion 13-

3

Stealth 12-

4

TF: Air Vehicles, Ground Vehicles

2

WF: Small Arms

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 64 Total Cost: 177 200

Matching Complications (50)

10

Hunted: MCB (Infrequently, Mo Pow, NCI, Watching)

15

Psychological Complication: Ruthlessly Pragmatic, No Matter The Cost To Himself Or Others (Common, Strong)

20

Social Complication: Subject To Orders (Very Frequently, Major)

Total Complications Points: 45 Experience Points: 0

EQUIPMENT STR OCV RMod Damage STUN Shots Min Notes

Glock 20

+0

+0

1½d6

+0

15

6

H&K MP7

+1

+1

2d6

+0

40

10

AF5

FN-F2000

+1

+2

2d6

+1

30

12

2H, AF5, FS

Armor MCB Body Armor (9 PD/9 ED) Gear: Fountain pen, smartphone

SPECIAL AGENT GEOFFREY HENDRICKSON Inspired by the ideas of Tom O’Hara Background/History: The Monster Control Bureau by its very nature has to deal with some highly unusual situations, and allocate the use of some decidedly unconventional resources. The man in charge of making many of the MCB’s toughest decision, the only agent who sleeps even less than Dwayne Myers, is Geoffrey Hendrickson, the Special Agent whose formal title is “Special Projects Officer.” Hendrickson began his career in service of the American public by joining the United States Air Force out of college. Having proven unsuitable for combat pilot training due to minor vision issues, he was eventually assigned to serve as a Missile Combat Crew Commander at one of America’s strategic missile facilities. He was later reassigned to “treaty verification” in conjunction with certain other government agencies he’s not allowed to name. He did so well at that job he was recruited to work directly for NORAD.

17

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Weapon

For over a decade Hendrickson contemplated the unthinkable aspects of nuclear war on a daily basis. In time he came to realize the underground cables in the missile fields were woven to form symbols, and that there were strange patterns in the blast shadows on the rocks at America’s nuclear weapons test sites. The day he came to work, saw a liquescent black thing straining against an invisible barrier in front of a NORAD blast door, and shrugged, certain persons in official circles realized his talents were being wasted. He soon found himself honrably discharged from the Air Force and working for the Monster Control Bureau. Thanks to his ability to “see” things others seemingly cannot, and to accept the eldritch eeriness behind the facade of reality seemingly without going mad, Hendrickson was put in charge of the MCB’s “special projects” section, known to many agents as “the Nuthouse” because of the sort of personalities assigned to it. Now he has passed beyond contemplation of nuclear war to tasks far stranger. He audits the feeds from the mad screaming muse chained in a shielded room under the Pentagon, trying to sift wisdom from the chaff of her ravings. He negotiates with the hags of the east, trading them the inexplicable things they covet for their magical aid to help the MCB accomplish its goals. In a darkened room beneath a Colonial-era building in Washington he gazes into the preserved eyes of Grigoriy Rasputin to take auguries of the future — probable, possible, impossible, fractal futures. Then he advises Myers on the most likely courses of action to prevent the destruction or conquest of Earth. Personality/Motivation: Even by the standards of the MCB and MHI, Geoffrey Hendrickson is something of an odd duck. He has a Gift, but his Gift is a subtle one: he can look at and understand things that would cause other men to flee into the comforting depths of insanity. He’s utterly unflappable. It’s as if the things he’s seen have simply burned out of him any ability to be impressed or concerned in an obvious way. The only person in the world less likely to be scared of something is Earl Harbinger — but even Harbinger gets shivers up his spine from things Hedrickson shrugs at, takes another sip of his coffee, and goes on analyzing. Hendrickson is ruthlessly pragmatic — for example, he sees no moral dilemma in the British allowing the Nazis to bomb Coventry so that the Germans wouldn’t realize their codes had been broken, nor in Roosevelt letting the Japanese destroy Pearl Harbor as a way of motivating the Americans to get into the war. Both were absolutely the right decision, in his opinion. He’s also a strong believer in the principle of overkill. In his view the bombing of Dresden was an excellent allocation of military resources, and he fully supported Special Agent Myers’s use of nuclear weapons during the DeSoya Caverns incident (though he was intensely annoyed that Myers chose to use such a small nuke). In a room full of bureaucrats Hendrickson is largely unnoticeable... until you get close to him. Then, if you look carefully into his eyes, you can see the intensity he keeps bottled within, the fanatic desire to protect the United States (and himself!) from everything that’s lurking out there beyond the comfortable realms of human perception. With one eye he always stares into the outer blackness, with the other he looks around himself for a weapon to use against whatever dwells there.

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Hell’s Horde Special Agent Hendrickson despises Douglas Stark and has as little to do with him as possible. He still reports to Special Agent Myers as if Myers were the Director of the MCB. Stark would have fired him long ago, but even he realizes Hendrickson is basically irreplaceable; just one of the duties Hendrickson performs would drive most men mad. Agent Stricken’s attempts to lure Hendrickson to STFU have been met with blank stares and passive denial. Quote: “Intel indicates a 67% probability of the destruction of Arizona, New Mexico, and possibly West Texas unless the MCB takes appropriate action within 24 hours. I’m gonna get some more coffee; anyone else want a cup?” Powers/Tactics: Special Agent Hendrickson still retains some of the skills he developed during Air Force (and later MCB) training, but the truth is he’s an office agent, not the sort of person who goes into the field very often. He deals with problems by studying them, analyzing them, and developing a counter-strategy, not by shooting them. But he carries his Glock 20 (or some other handgun) with him everywhere he goes — he knows that sooner or later the darkness will come for him and he refuses to be taken alive. When the time comes he’ll put a bullet in his own brain, praying all the time that in the next world he’ll be safe from the things that threaten this one. Appearance: Special Agent Geoffrey Hendrickson was once a fit, athletic, handsome man. But that was too many years and too many horrors ago. Now he’s washed out, pallid from spending all his time underneath flourescent lights, and paunchy; what little hair he has left is going grey. He almost always looks exhausted; he drinks coffee practically non-stop. He usually speaks in an unwavering monotone, displaying no emotion even when describing the most horrific things imaginable.

Movement:

Running:

1m

Leaping:

0m

Cost Powers 13

END

Drags You Down Into Itself: Entangle 4d6, 4 PD/4 ED Lockout (a killsand can only have one Entangle in use at a time; -½), No Range (-½), Feedback (killsand takes all damage done to Entangle; -1)

5

Strangling And Crushing: +10 STR

1

Only For Grabs (-1)

4

Tough Form Resistant (+½) for 4 PD/4 ED

0

30

Tough Form: Damage Negation (-6 DCs Physical)

0

10

Tough Form: Damage Negation (-2 DCs Energy)

0

21

Unusual Body: Life Support (Self-Contained 0 Breathing; Diminished Eating: once per week; Immunity: all diseases and poisons)

10

Unusual Body: No Hit Locations (see text)

0

10

Unperturbable: +20 PRE

0

Only To Protect Against Presence Attacks (-1)

-11

Slow: Running -11m (1m total)

-2

Poor Leaper: Leaping -4m (0m total) Skills

KILLSAND

6

+3 OCV with Drags You Down Into Itself

9

Stealth 14-

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 105 Total Cost: 150

Val Char

Cost Roll

Notes

20

STR

10

13-

Lift 400 kg; 4d6 HTH damage [2]

12

DEX

4

11-

18

CON

8

13-

8

INT

-2

11-

5

EGO

-5

10-

10

PRE

0

11-

5

OCV

10

4

DCV

5

2

OMCV

-3

2

DMCV

-3

2

SPD

0

Phases: 6, 12

KILLSAND

7

PD

5

Total: 7 PD (4 rPD)

6

ED

4

Total: 6 ED (4 rED)

8

REC

4

35

END

3

10

BODY

0

30

STUN

5

Inspired by the ideas of Michael Putlack Ecology: A killsand is a swamp-dwelling carnivore that obtains its prey by trickery. It looks like a patch of ordinary quicksand or deep mud (the more it’s fed, the larger it tends to be). It waits until a hapless victim steps on or falls into it, then “grabs” the victim to pull him down and “drown” him within itself. Personality/Motivation: Normal animal motivations.

175 Matching Complications (50) 15

PER Roll 11-

Physical Complication: Near-Human Intelligence (Frequently, Slightly Impairing)

20

Physical Complication: Very Limited Manipulation (Frequently, Greatly Impairing)

PRE Attack: 2d6

0

Physical Complication: Human Size

20

Vulnerability: 2 x BODY from Fire (Common)

20

Vulnerability: 2 x STUN from Fire (Common)

Total Complications Points: 50 Experience Points: 0

Total Characteristics Cost: 45

18

Hell’s Horde Powers/Tactics: A killsand’s only attack is its ability to “grab” onto someone with its strong, sticky “hands” (more like very short pseudopds) and pull them into itself to suffocate. (Due to its appearance it usually receives a Surprise Move bonus for its first attack.) While inside a killsand the victim is Entangled and is subject to the “Holding Breath and Drowning” rules from the MHI RPG. If he breaks free (or is broken free from) the Entangle, he’s clawed his way back to the surface and can breath once more — at least until the killsand drags him down again. The killsand has the No Hit Locations Automaton Power, even though it’s not an Automaton, to reflect the unusual nature of its body. The best way to attack it is with fire, which kills it quickly. Appearance: A killsand appears to be a seemingly ordinary patch of quicksand or deep mud.

Cost Powers

LAPIR Char

Cost Roll Notes

15

STR

5

12-

18

DEX

16

13-

18

CON

8

13-

15

INT

5

12-

18

EGO

8

13-

20

PRE

10

13-

6

OCV

15

6

DCV

15

3

OMCV

0

7

DMCV

12

6

SPD

40

Phases: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12

10

PD

8

Total: 10 PD (4 rPD)

10

ED

8

Total: 10 ED (4 rED)

10

REC

6

40

END

4

15

BODY

5

50

STUN

15

Movement:

Lift 200 kg; 3d6 HTH damage [1]

Undead Vitality: Life Support: Total (except 0 Diminished Eating; including Longevity: Immortality)

4

Swift: Running +4m (16m total)

1

3

Lapir’s Senses: +1 PER with all Sense Groups

0

5

Lapir’s Eyes: Nightvision

0

12

No Bones: Stretching 2m, x4 body dimensions

1

Skills 16

+2 HTH

30

Skills and Talents (abilities and interests in life, or learned since undeath)

3

Climbing 13-

5

Stealth 14-

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 201 Total Cost: 381

PER Roll 12PRE Attack: 3d6

175

Matching Complications (50)

0

Physical Complication: Human Size

15

Physical Complication: can be fought off with Faith (see text; Infrequently, Greatly Impairing)

10

Psychological Complication: Considers Humanity Cattle (Common, Moderate)

Total Complications Points: 25 Experience Points: 231

LAPIR

Total Characteristics Cost: 180 Running:

16m

Cost Powers

END

10

Claws: HKA ½d6 (1½d6 with STR)

1

7

Fangs: HKA ½d6

1

No STR Bonus (-½)

15

37

Drink Blood: RKA 1d6

0

Constant (+½), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½); No Range (-½), Fangs Must Do BODY First (-½)

50

Undead Body: Damage Negation (-5 DCs Physical 0 and Energy)

4

Undead Body: Resistant (+½) for 4 PD/4 ED

0

Inspired by the ideas of Boris Ecology: Lapirs are a vampire-like creature found in the Balkans (though a few have “emigrated” to other countries and regions). Like a vampire it sucks blood (of both humans and animals) for its sustenance. Victims of its attacks do not become vampires themselves upon death, though; a lapir is created under certain conditions when a burial isn’t properly performed, or when the deceased is a wizard or witch. According to legend horses and oxen can easily sense the presence of a lapir. This makes them uneasy, and if it gets too close they’ll flee if they can. Personality/Motivation: Lapirs are just as cruel and evil as vampires. They look on human beings as nothing but fodder, and think nothing of committing the most heinous acts, even against people who were, in life, their family or close friends. Powers/Tactics: A lapir is similar to a vampire, though weaker in most respects. (On the other hand, it also lacks most of the vampire’s weaknesses and vulnerabilities.) It’s at least twice as strong as most humans, and has both fangs and claws as natural weapons. Furthermore its body has no bones, allowing it to stretch itself for short distances and to fit through tiny openings. Appearance: A lapir looks like a short human, though its body is covered from head to foot with long, thick, black hair. Its teeth are long and sharp, and its eyes a burning red.

19

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Val

END

Hell’s Horde Total Powers & Skills Cost: 58 Total Cost: 163

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

TODD McLAWHORN, JR. Val Char

Cost Roll Notes

15

STR

5

12-

13

DEX

6

12-

17

CON

7

12-

10

INT

0

11-

10

EGO

0

11-

15

PRE

5

12-

7

OCV

20

5

DCV

10

3

OMCV

0

3

DMCV

0

3

SPD

10

Phases: 4, 8, 12

8

PD

6

Total: 8 PD (0 rPD)

8

ED

6

Total: 8 ED (0 rED)

8

REC

4

40

END

4

20

BODY

10

44

STUN

12

Movement:

PER Roll 11-

Social Complication: Subject To Orders (Very Frequently, Major)

Weapon

Total Characteristics Cost: 105 Running:

Hits Hard: HA +2d6 Fast: Running +3m (15m total)

STR OCV RMod Damage STUN Shots Min Notes

STI Ranger II

+1

+1

2d6-1

+1

8

6

Remington 870 P

+0

+0

2½d6

+1

8

10

2H, AE1, LR(40m), RR, RP

KRISS Vector SBR

+1

+1

2d6-1

+1

30

10

AF5, Supp (-5)

AR-10

+1

+0

2d6+1

+1

20

12

2H, AF5, FS

Combat Knife

+0

+0

1d6

+0

—

8

Can Be Thrown

1

Armor MHI Body Armor (Resistant Protection (8 PD/8 ED)) MHI Earplugs (Hearing Group Flash Defense (10 points); Radio Perception/Transmission) Gear: Gun magazine

1

TODD McLAWHORN, JR.

15m END

Perks 3

Hunted: MCB (Infrequently, Mo Pow, NCI, Watching)

20

EQUIPMENT

Hand-To-Hand Attack (-¼)

3

10

Total Complications Points: 30 Experience Points: 0

PRE Attack: 3d6

Cost Powers 8

200 Matching Complications (50)

Lift 200 kg; 3d6 HTH damage [1]

Fringe Benefits: Weapon Permit; Concealed Weapon Permit Skills

10

+2 with Firearms

8

Range Skill Levels: +4 versus the Range Modifier with Firearms

4

Targeting Skill Levels: +2 versus Hit Location Modifiers with Firearms

3

Climbing 12-

3

Fast Draw 12-

2

KS: Firearms 11-

2

KS: Football 11-

2

KS: MHI 11-

2

KS: Monsters 11-

2

PS: Construction Worker 11-

2

Stealth 10-

2

TF: Ground Vehicles

2

WF: Small Arms

Inspired by the ideas of Alixandra Greene Background/History: Todd McLawhorn, Jr. (never forget the Jr., it upsets his dad) is a back-country fellow from south Mississippi. After attending the University of Southern Mississippi on a football scholarship, he returned home and got a job on a construction crew. His life took a turn for the unusual when his truck broke down on a lonely road and a Mississippi swamp monster thought he’d make a delicious snack. He killed that critter using a welding torch, thus earning himself a visit from the MCB. That scared him pretty good — but then MHI sent a recruiting team to visit him. He jumped at the chance to pursue higher-paying work that would let him indulge his love of firearms and shooting. After he made it through training with flying colors, Director Harbinger assigned him to Team Cassidy. Personality/Motivation: McLawhorn is an enthusiastic, happy-golucky kind of guy — a bit of a bull in a china shop at times, but his heart’s in the right place. Some people in MHI tend to think he’s a tad slow, but he’s not. He just isn’t as intense and driven as many of his colleagues. But when it comes down to it, he’s as serious about killing monsters as his co-workers. He’s found that he really enjoys having a job with purpose to it. Still, an awful lot of his personal stories begin with, “It thought it probably wasn’t a good idea at the time, but I figured, what the hell, it sounds life fun, so I...”.

20

Hell’s Horde McLawhorn loves big guns and has a serious case of “Abomination envy.” He has a habit of following Milo Anderson around and trying to “charm” him into making him his own special weapon. So far Milo’s not falling for it. Quote: “C’mon, man, with a gun like that I could really kick monster ass!” Powers/Tactics: McLawhorn has been shooting since he was a kid, and MHI training has only honed his skills. At this point he’s an expert marksman, and with some serious practicing could become a top-notch sniper. There’s nothing especially noteworthy about his performance on the job — he’s just one of the many solid, strongwilled, ready for action MHI employees who are the backbone of the company. Appearance: Todd McLawhorn, Jr. is a pretty big guy: 6’2” tall, 240 pounds of solid muscle, with black hair. In the field he wears his MHI body armor (complete with Team Cassidy patch) and carries his AR10 assault rifle.

IN GAME TERMS

THE NAIL-DRIVING PISTOL OF BARNABAS THE MAD

Inspired by the ideas of Rabbit Boyett People for the Ethical Treatment of Exotic Races (PETER) is an American “exotic races” organization based out of San Francisco, California. (PETER loathes the politically incorrect term “monster,” arguing that it’s not only unfairly pejorative, but incorrect in many cases.) It’s led by the charismatic and passionate Emile D. Goldman, who serves as the organization’s international president (for which he receives a six-figure annual salary). It claims to be the largest exotic races rights group in the world, and that’s probably true — though with the MCB watching it like a hawk, it doesn’t make that claim loudly or publicly. Founded on September 13, 1964 by billionaire Emile Goldman and fellow wealthy activist Christian Rand, PETER first gained notoriety (to the extent one can use that term to refer to an organization that advocates about something the government keeps secret) in the summer of 1975 during what became known as the Golden Gulf Devil Monkey case. This was a dispute about experiments being conducted on five devil monkeys inside the government’s top-secret Monster Research Institute in Golden Gulf, Oregon. How PETER found out about the MRI and what was going on there is unknown (the authorities suspected an inside leak, but could never prove anything). Since then PETER’s worked tirelessly to halt any scientific experimentation on monsters — and to discredit and demonize monster hunters. According to PETER’s philosophy, as expressed in its slogan, “They Were Here First.” The Old Ones, the Fey, vampires, werewolves, orcs, zombies — all of them pre-date mankind (the illogic of undead preceding humanity aside). Thus they have “first claim” on the planet. They’re simply misunderstood; humans can and must work harder to better live with exotic races in harmony and understanding. According to PETER, monsters prey on humans because they have no other choice; if they were treated properly, and/or left to their native environments, they’d find other sources of food. Because of the US government’s policy of keeping the existence of the supernatural secret, PETER operates primarily behind the scenes. It lobbies politicians in the know to expand exotic races’ rights, files amicus briefs when courts consider cases pertaining to exotic races, and so on. The organization focuses on three core activities:

PEOPLE FOR THE ETHICAL TREATMENT OF EXOTIC RACES (PETER)

21

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Inspired by the ideas of Ruben Smith-Zempel Over a hundred years ago an unbalanced wizard and alchemist named Jonas Barnabas became obsessed with killing a demon he thought was tormenting him. He decided that if he could make a gun that was accurate enough, he could hit and kill anything. Whether that idea is valid is a matter of debate among certain members of the Hunting World, but there’s no denying that Barnabas created a strange and powerful weapon. He started with a Winchester 1902 bolt-action pistol, a special Winchester factory prototype. Using his alchemical arts, he forged a new barrel for it out of what looks like gunmetal but is in truth an alloy that doesn’t normally exist in Earth’s dimension. He also manufactured other replacement parts for the pistol, some of which aren’t a part of regular pistols. After affixing the barrel and other parts to the stock, he enchanted the whole thing with powerful Spells of accuracy, retribution, and protection. Unfortunately for him, Barnabas never had the chance to use the Nail-Driving Pistol — the strain of so much intense work and spellcasting caused him to have a fatal heart attack not long after he completed the ritual. His heirs found the pistol and, not realizing its importance, sold it to a gun dealer. Since then the Nail-Driving Pistol has passed through many hands; some owners knew of (or eventually learned) of its power and treasured it highly; others considered it only a rare, collectible, valuable antique firearm. It hasn’t been seen or catalogued since being sold to a mysterious collector at auction in 1987.

In HERO System terms, the Nail-Driving Pistol of Barnabas the Mad is a .22 caliber bolt action pistol — it has to be reloaded after each shot. Reloading it requires a Full Phase Action (at the GM’s option, a character who succeeds with a Fast Draw roll can reduce this to a Half Phase Action). It does RKA 1d6 damage with a STR Minimum of 6, but has +1 OCV, +6 versus the Range Modifier, and +6 versus Hit Location modifiers. Thus, even though it does relatively little damage in and of itself, a trained user can easily shoot targets in the eye or other vulnerable spots, making the gun much more effective than its low caliber indicates.

Hell’s Horde 1) Discrediting professional monster hunting and the people who do it. PETER has enough political connections that even the MCB’s sometimes pressured to go a little overboard in coming up with cover stories to prevent anything positive being said about people who kill monsters for a living. In more than one case this has effectively ruined the lives of survivors of monster attacks. 2) Increasing support for monsters in the general public through various entertainment endeavors. PETER’s work in the entertainment industry really began to take off in the Nineties and is responsible for most of the “vampires are beautiful, wise creatures who just need to be understood” entertainment out there. 3) Garnering support for anti-hunting legislation. Political advocacy by PETER was partly responsible for the suspension of the PUFF bounty system in the late Nineties.

THOMAS ROBERTSON

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

THE EXOTIC RACES LIBERATION FRONT An extreme militant offshoot of PETER, the ERLF (Exotic Race Liberation Front), has been known to sabotage monster hunter to varying degrees — everything from exposing their presence to vandalizing their equipment. PETER representatives publicly denounce the actions of the ERLF, but the ERLF is a little too wellfunded for many people to believe the two organizations aren’t associated somehow. The US government formally considers the ERLF a terrorist organization. However, law enforcement efforts to stop the Front have been spotty at best. For one thing, the government’s policy of secrecy about the supernatural means it can’t acknowledge the existence of the ERLF in any formal way or devote significant resources to bringing it to justice. Usually the job falls to the MCB, and the Bureau usually has far more important things to do, particularly since the ERLF has never stepped over the line and broken the laws of secrecy. Furthermore, the ERLF has learned to play the terrorism game well. It operates through a series of autonomous cells who communicate using encrypted modern methods. and seems on the surface to be mostly leaderless. Stopping one cell often has little impact on the organization as a whole. The ERLF’s efforts against hunters vary from minor annoyances to potentially fatal sabotage. A few examples of some of their tactics: following teams on a mission and making as much noise as possible to alert the monsters; calling in false monster sightings to hunters to distract them from actual menaces; talking to hunters “off the record” in a casual environment and posting the resulting secretly taped footage online under the hunter’s names to get their PUFF charter revoked; tipping off local law enforcement about hunter teams carrying unlawful weapons (which even if the hunters can prove lawful ownership and use, the delay usually means the team’s targets escape); and deliberately infiltrating silver ammo manufacturer’s factories and replacing ammo so what hunters believe is silver ammo turns out to be nothing but regular rounds (not a good thing to find out when fighting werewolves).

22

Val

Char

Cost Roll Notes

12

STR

2

11-

13

DEX

6

12-

15

CON

5

12-

18

INT

8

13-

14

EGO

4

12-

15

PRE

5

12-

6

OCV

15

6

DCV

15

3

OMCV 0

5

DMCV 6

4

SPD

20

Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12

5

PD

3

Total: 5 PD (0 rPD)

5

ED

3

Total: 5 ED (0 rED)

6

REC

2

30

END

2

15

BODY

5

36

STUN

8

Movement:

Lift 133 kg; 2d6 HTH damage [1]

PER Roll 13PRE Attack: 3d6

Total Characteristics Cost: 109 Running:

Cost Powers 2 Fast: Running +2m (14m total)

14m END 1

3

Perks Fringe Benefits: Weapon Permit; Concealed Weapon Permit

3 3 3 1 3 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 3 3 3 5 2 2

Skills Computer Programming 13Cryptography 13Deduction 13Demolitions 8Electronics 13Fast Draw 10Inventor 10KS: Computers And Software 11KS: MHI 11KS: Monsters 11Lockpicking 8Mechanics 8PS: Crossword Puzzles 13Security Systems 13Stealth 12Systems Operation 14TF: Ground Vehicles WF: Small Arms

Hell’s Horde Total Powers & Skills Cost: 48 Total Cost: 157 200 Matching Complications (50) 10 Hunted: MCB (Infrequently, Mo Pow, NCI, Watching) 10 Psychological Complication: Tinkerer; Can’t Resist Trying To “Improve” Gadgetry (Common, Moderate) 20 Social Complication: Subject To Orders (Very Frequently, Major) Total Complications Points: 40 Experience Points: 0

THOMAS ROBERTSON

Inspired by the ideas of Thomas Strayhorn Background/History: Thomas Robertson was a software engineer at a company in Virginia that makes tactical radios for the police and military. He loved his job, but then one month in the dark of the moon a flock of small but vicious bat-winged creatures built a nest in his ham radio tower and started to eat his neighbors. He did a little amateur detective work, figured out what was going on, and formulated a plan to deal with it (since he knew the cops wouldn’t believe monsters had committed the killings). He cut the guy-wires and collapsed the tower, then he and his German Shepherds Bailey and Daisy killed all the monsters. He used an old Colt M1911 .45 ACP pistol and his grandfather’s double-barreled shotgun to get the job done. A visit from the MCB soon followed. Robertson didn’t entirely believe their threats, but then MHI showed up with a job offer. Jumping at the chance, he quit his job and went to Cazador, where he made it through training without too much trouble. (MHI allowed him to bring Bailey and Daisy along, though they don’t go with him on missions.) He’s currently assigned to Team Con Furia.

THE SCEPTER OF SET Inspired by the ideas of James Renfroe During the French Campaign in Egypt (1798-1801), the French forces (and the Commission des Sciences et des Artes which at one point joined them) made many amazing discoveries. The best known of these is the famed Rosetta Stone, which made it possible for modern man to translate the ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. But the most powerful and dangerous of these items is one that has remained a secret ever since. In 1800, a Commission archaeologist investigating what seemed to be a minor tomb uncovered a strange, elaborately-made sarcophagus. The name inscribed on the tomb walls — Ophren-Katha — did not match that of any known pharaoh or official, but based on the luxuriousness of his burial the man was certainly important. Upon opening the sarcophagus, the archaeologist discovered a remarkably well-preserved mummy clutching a was scepter — a staff-like object associated with the Egyptian gods, with a strange animal’s head on top and a bifurcated foot. Even to the archaeologist’s dry, scientific mind, the scepter seemed to pulse with power.

23

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

An inveterate tinkerer who’s convinced he can improve just about any sort of gadget, Robertson has recently been working on a communication system to let MHI send local text messages to each other even when the MCB jams voice signals, a linked set of video gear for teams to attach to their helmets to provide the commander with a view of what everyone sees, and an in-building location system to keep track of Hunters similar to what firemen use. He’s making progress, though he hasn’t had the breakthroughs he needs just yet. He’s also spent a lot of time hanging around with Milo Anderson, and learned a bit about demolitions work and mechanical engineering in the process. Realizing what a tinkerer Robertson is, Milo has so far refused to teach him gunsmithing because he doesn’t want Robertson EQUIPMENT “improving” his firearms, only to have them stop working in the middle of a fight. STR Weapon OCV RMod Damage STUN Shots Min Notes Personality/Motivation: Robertson is an optimistic, cheerful guy who can become just about anyone’s friend (though some people find STI Ranger +1 +1 2d6-1 +1 8 6 his sunny attitude annoying if exposed to it too much). His hobbies II include tinkering with gadgets (see above) and working crossword 2H, AE1, Remington +0 +0 2½d6 +1 8 10 LR(40m), puzzles. He sometimes peppers his conversation with references to 870 P RR, RP the puzzles, and occasionally can use something he learned from a KRISS +1 +1 2d6-1 +1 30 10 AF5, Supp puzzle to help his team. (-5) Vector SBR Quote: “What’s a two-letter word for “kicks your ass”? That’s right — ME!” AR-10 +1 +0 2d6+1 +1 20 12 2H, AF5, FS Powers/Tactics: Robertson has received the standard MHI training and is more than capable of holding his own in a fight. Combat +0 +0 1d6 +0 — 8 Can Be Thrown Knife However, he usually prefers to use his skills to maintain MHI’s local communications net, man whatever sensing equipment it has, and Armor so forth. Sometimes his ability to keep the team members in contact MHI Body Armor (Resistant Protection (8 PD/8 ED)) with one another has meant the difference between success (and a fat MHI Earplugs (Hearing Group Flash Defense (10 points); Radio PUFF bounty payment) and holding several Hunters’ Funerals. Perception/Transmission) Appearance: Thomas Robertson is an athletic black male, 5’11” tall. Gear: Electronics kit, walkie-talkie, smartphone When not armored up for a mission, he prefers to wear jeans, t-shirts, and sneakers; when working he often has some sort of tool belt on as well.

Hell’s Horde He took the staff to his commanding officer, who in turn passed it up the chain of command until it came into the possession of the Emperor Napoleon himself. Its power, combined with Napoleon’s own tactical genius, made him unbeatable on the battlefield for many years. But the Scepter of Set — for the necromancer Ophren-Katha who’d created it had dedicated it to the god of evil and darkness — was a fickle servant, and it hated the cold weather. So when Napoleon invaded Russia the Scepter turned on him, abandoning him to his own folly. Defeat soon followed. Napoleon took the Scepter into exile with him, and brought it back for the Hundred Days. By the time he died on St. Helena in 1821, his servants and attendants had become convinced the Scepter was cursed, and that it even slowly poisoned him to his death. Accordingly they arranged for Napoleon to be buried in not one but four coffins — first a tin one, then a mahogany one, then a lead one, and finally an outer mahogany coffin over the other three — to seal the Scepter in with him forever. Such, alas, was not to be. When the coffins were opened in 1840, Napoleon’s extremely well-preserved corpse was inside — but the Scepter of Set had vanished. Since then, no one can say for sure where it is or who has it. But experts on the occult have no doubt it’s out there somewhere, working its evil will for purposes known only to itself... or to Set.

SEWER SQUID

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

IN GAME TERMS In HERO System terms, the Scepter of Set provides the following powers to its wielder: Aura Of Power: +15 PRE; OAF (-1), Only For Presence Attacks (-1)

25

Aura Of Command: Mind Control 10d6; OAF (-1)

7

Aura Of Battle Wisdom: Tactics (INT Roll +6); OAF (-1)

Char

Cost Roll Notes

20

STR

10

13-

15

DEX

10

12-

22

CON

12

13-

8

INT

-2

11-

8

EGO

-2

11-

25

PRE

15

14-

7

OCV

20

5

DCV

10

2

OMCV -3

2

DMCV -3

4

SPD

20

Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12

10

PD

8

Total: 10 PD (4 rPD)

10

ED

8

Total: 10 ED (4 rED)

12

REC

8

45

END

5

22

BODY

12

60

STUN

20

Movement:

Cost Power 5

Val

Cost 15 4 8 8 -10 6 10

Total cost: 37 points. Additionally, if buried with someone, the Scepter preserves the body so that it only decays roughly one year’s worth for every century that passes. If the GM permits Spells or powers in his campaign that can raise the dead, and those abilities require a Skill Roll (or have a chance to fail), the Scepter adds +4 to any such rolls (or similarly reduces the chance of failure). The Scepter is quasi-intelligent and prefers warm climates (like the Egyptian desert in which it was created). If forced to spend large amounts of time in cold places, it may retaliate by withdrawing its powers from its possessor (base 8- chance for a temperate climate similar to Europe or northern North America, increasing steadily as one goes further north, and also increasing by a minimum of 1 per year it’s kept in such areas). The Scepter’s made of ebony and is very difficult to damage in any way. When carrying or using it the wielder seems to hear it whisper, ever so faintly, in his ear in strange languages that he shouldn’t understand but somehow does. He can never be entirely sure whether major decisions he makes are his own — or the promptings of the Scepter.

5 4

Lift 400 kg; 4d6 HTH damage [2]

PER Roll 11PRE Attack: 5d6

Total Characteristics Cost: 148 Running:

2m

Swimming:

24m

Powers Barbed Tentacles: HKA 1d6 (2d6+1 with STR) Tough Skin: Resistant (+½) for 4 PD/4 ED Heavy: Knockback Resistance -8m Squid’s Body: Swimming +24m (28m total) Mostly Swims: Running -10m (2m total) Squid’s Senses: +2 PER with all Sense Groups Eye On Its Tentacles: Increased Arc Of Perception (360 Degrees) for Sight Group Can Breathe Air: Life Support (Expanded Breathing: can breathe in air as well as water) Tentacles: Extra Limbs Limited Manipulation (-¼)

Talents 4

Environmental Movement: Aquatic Movement (no penalties underwater) Skills

4

+2 OCV with Grab

3

Stealth 12-

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 61 Total Cost: 209

24

END 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0

Hell’s Horde

SHADOW LURKER

175

Matching Complications (50)

15

Physical Complication: Enormous (up to 13m long; +4 OCV for others to hit, +4 to PER Rolls for others to perceive) (Frequently, Slightly Impairing)

15

Physical Complication: Near-Human (Frequently, Slightly Impairing)

20

Physical Complication: Very Limited Manipulation (Frequently, Greatly Impairing)

Intelligence

Total Complications Points: 50 Experience Points: 34

SEWER SQUID

Char STR DEX CON INT EGO PRE

Cost 5 16 8 6 6 10

6 8 7 7 4

OCV DCV OMCV DMCV SPD

15 25 12 12 20

8 8 10 45 17 40

PD ED REC END BODY STUN

6 6 6 5 7 10

Movement:

Roll 12131312121x-

Notes Lift 200 kg; 3d6 HTH damage [1]

PER Roll 12PRE Attack: xd6

Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12 Total: 8 PD (4 rPD) Total: 8 ED (4 rED)

Total Characteristics Cost: 175 Running:

12m

Cost Powers 5 Inspire Fear: +10 PRE

END 0

Only For Fear-Based Presence Attacks (-1)

40

Illusions Of Fear: Mental Illusions 12d6

6

Effectiveness Depends On Fear (see text; -½)

4 20

Tough: Resistant (+½) for 4 PD/4 ED Hiding In Shadows: Invisibility to Sight Group

0 0

Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½); Only In Shadows/ Darkness (-½)

20

Travel Through Shadows: Teleportation 30m

3

Only Through Shadows/Darkness (-½)

15 22

Read Emotions: Detect Emotions 15- (no Sense 0 Group), Range, Sense Child Form: Shape Shift (see text) 0 Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½)

Skills 3

Concealment 12-

3

Stealth 13-

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 132 Total Cost: 307 175

Matching Complications (50)

15

Psychological Complication: Must Inspire Fear In Others (Common, Strong)

Total Complications Points: 15 Experience Points: 167

25

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Inspired by the ideas of Jason Walters Ecology: Descended from the giant squid which inhabits the depths of the world’s oceans, the Sewer Squid (Architeuthis cloaca) is found in such large and ancient metropolises as London, Paris, Istanbul, and Rome. As its name suggests, the Sewer Squid is cunning nocturnal predator which lives in vast, crumbling sewer and water drainage systems. During the day it lies hidden beneath the surface of pools of sewage deep within forgotten tunnels and cisterns. But on rainy night it climbs slowly upward, squeezing through passages and pipes until its entire bulk is crouched beneath a single manhole cover or a particularly large storm grate. It then pushes two or three of its arms through so that it can watch for a lone passerby to snatch from an inconspicuous position close to the ground. When it spots likely prey within range of its tentacles, it flings the cover or grate open with its arms, grabs him with its terrible tentacles, and then pulls its hapless victim to his doom deep within the most wretched bowels of the city. Sewer Squid have relatively slow metabolisms, requiring only one or two victims the size of an adult human each month to survive. They are territorial and solitary, with no more than three or four adults of the species inhabiting a single metropolitan area at one time. (They are also hermaphroditic, needing no other member of the species to reproduce.) Sewer squid are believed to be responsible for the mysterious disappearances of street people in many of the world’s oldest cities. Personality/Motivation: Normal animal motivations, though for an animal it’s unusually intelligent and cunning. Powers/Tactics: A sewer squid attacks with the razor-sharp, hookshaped barbs on the ends of its tentacles. Typically it Grabs a target with one of their tentacles, then uses another to claw the victim to death while he struggles futilely to escape. (It eats the flesh with a beak it extrudes from its central mass; the beak isn’t useful in combat.) Since it has an eye on the end of each tentacle, surprising a sewer squid is next to impossible. Appearance: A sewer squid can grow up to 13 meters (40 feet) in length, with ten tentacles that can be as long as five meters (16 feet). However, unlike its ocean-going ancestor, its mantle is eyeless and narrow, giving it an almost serpentine appearance when it moves through the fetid waters. Instead, it has smaller but highly sensitive eyes on the ends of its eight arms, and its two tentacles are tipped with dozens razor-sharp claws resembling barbed fishhooks. It has mottled green-and-brown coloration helps conceal it within its native habitat.

Val 15 18 18 16 16 20

Hell’s Horde

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

SHADOW LURKER

Val 5 4 6 30 13 30

Char PD ED REC END BODY STUN

Cost 3 2 2 2 3 5

Roll Notes Total: 5 PD (1 rPD) Total: 4 ED (1 rED)

Inspired by the ideas of Ryan Miesen Ecology: A shadow lurker is a humanoid monster that preys on humans. Monster experts have yet to determine whether it’s a singular individual or a species, though its presence in multiple places over decades (if not centuries) argues in favor of it being a species. Researchers have also found references to a shadow lurkerTotal Characteristics Cost: 109 like creature in ancient texts. Running: 12m A shadow lurker seems to feed upon fear. It seems to prefer Movement: not to kill, but rather sustains itself by inspiring panic and even Cost Powers END driving people mad. It particularly enjoys attacking schools, asylums, Fangs: HKA ½d6 (1d6+1 with STR) 0 hospitals, isolated mansions full of people trapped there by a sudden 15 Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½) blizzard, and other places where people tend to be weak and have limited ability to flee. 2 Gun Strength: +5 STR 0 Personality/Motivation: Uncertain. A shadow lurker is clearly Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½); Only To Meet The motivated to ensure its own survival by (a) hiding from humans, STR Minimum For Firearms (-2) while (b) feeding off human fear. What motivations it may have 1 Orcish Hide: Resistant (+½) for 1 PD/1 ED 0 beyond that have not yet been determined, and if it’s a species may 5 Orcish Eyes: Nightvision 0 vary from individual to individual. 3 Orcish Senses: +1 PER with all Sense Groups 0 Powers/Tactics: A shadow lurker has many powers that enhance its ability to feed of peoples’ fear. It can sense emotions, and is Skills particularly skilled at sensing fear (which its very appearance can +6 with Firearms inspire). Once it knows what a person fears, it uses its power to create 30 illusions to cause a person to feel that fear. (If it hasn’t successfully 24 Range Skill Levels: +12 versus the Range Modifier with used Read Emotions on a target of its Mental Illusions power, it can Firearms only use Mental Illusions at half effect.) 16 Targeting Skill Levels: +8 versus Hit Location Modifiers A shadow lurker’s name comes from the fact that it has certain with Firearms powers that only work in shadows or darkness. First, it can merge with the shadows to become invisible; second, it can travel from one Fast Draw 16patch of shadow to another within 30m without passing through the 9 intervening space. (These patches of shadow have to be big enough to 2 KS: Firearms 11cover its entire body.) 3 Stealth 13Appearance: A shadow lurker usually looks like a child around WF: Common Melee Weapons, Small Arms, Uncommon ten years old, typically wearing pajamas from many years past. But 6 Modern Weapons this is just a disguise; in its true form it’s taller and lankier, and when a human looks at it it’s edges seem “soft,” as if fading into the Total Powers & Skills Cost: 116 surroundings in light. Total Cost: 225 200 Matching Complications (50)

SHELLY Val 10 18 13 13 10 10

Char STR DEX CON INT EGO PRE

Cost 0 16 3 3 0 0

9 5 3 3 5

OCV DCV OMCV DMCV SPD

30 10 0 0 30

Roll 111312121111-

Notes Lift 100 kg; 2d6 HTH damage [1]

PER Roll 12-

10

Distinctive Features: orc (Easily Concealed, Causes Major Reaction)

15

Psychological Complication: Hatred Of Elves (Common, Strong)

Total Complications Points: 25 Experience Points: 50

PRE Attack: 2d6

Phases: 3, 5, 8, 10, 12

26

Hell’s Horde

EQUIPMENT Weapon

MIKE SWATOWSKI

STR OCV RMod Damage STUN Shots Min Notes

Ruger Redhawk

+0

+0

2d6

+1

6

7

Carries two

Remington 870 P

+0

+0

2½d6

+1

8

10

2H, AE1, LR(40m), RR, RP

KRISS Vector SBR

+1

+1

2d6-1

+1

30

10

AF5, Supp (-5)

AK-47

+1

+1

2d6

+1

30

12

2H, AF5

Combat Knife

+0

+0

1d6

+0

—

8

Can Be Thrown

Armor None Gear: Speedloaders, fetishes and talismans

SHELLY

27

Char STR DEX CON INT EGO PRE

Cost -2 0 1 3 3 0

3 3 3 3 2

OCV DCV OMCV DMCV SPD

0 0 0 0 0

2 2 4 20 15 20

PD ED REC END BODY STUN

0 0 0 0 5 0

Movement:

Roll 111111121211-

Notes Lift 75 kg; 1½d6 HTH damage [1]

PER Roll 12PRE Attack: 2d6

Phases: 6, 12 Total: 2 PD (0 rPD) Total: 2 ED (0 rED)

Total Characteristics Cost: 10 Running: Leaping: Swimming:

5m 1m 1m

Cost 11 11 3 5

Spells Clairvoyance Dreamspeech Perceive Magic Take On The Appearance Of Another

END 4 6 1 0

-7 -1 -1

Powers Fat And Slow: Running -7m (5m total) Fat And Slow: Leaping -3m (1m total) Fat And Slow: Swimming -3m (1m total)

3 3 3 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 2 15 1

Skills Computer Programming 12Cryptography 12Deduction 12KS: History 11KS: Medieval History 11KS: Monsters 8Language: Anglo-Saxon (basic conversation; English is Native) Language: Medieval French (basic conversation) Language: Ancient Greek (basic conversation) Language: Hebrew (basic conversation) Language: Latin (fluent conversation) Magic 18SS: Physics 8-

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Inspired by the ideas of Larry Correia Background/History: See page 47 of the MHI RPG. Personality/Motivation: Shelly is still a rather shy, somewhat awkward teenager (except when it comes to shooting). Her usual adolescent problems are exacerbated by the fact that she and her family are newcomers to Tribe Harb Anger, so she doesn’t have many friends yet. But her life gift is so impressive she’s become more and more popular since she revealed it, so things are definitely looking up for her. Quote: “Cover your ears, this is loud.” Powers/Tactics: Shelly’s life gift is a preternatural skill with firearms. It doesn’t matter what type of gun it is — she knows how to use it, how to fire it with an accuracy that makes a world champion shooter look fumble-fingered, and how to reload it in the blink of an eye. Her abilities are nothing short of phenomenal; Skippy and Earl Harbinger are convinced she’s going to be one of the greatest monster hunters that ever lived when she’s old enough to start going out with MHI teams full-time. For now she just helps out occasionally when Harbinger thinks it’s not too dangerous for her. Appearance: Even for an orc, Shelly is not, unfortunately, particularly attractive. She’s squat and dumpy, with misshapen tusks and one crazy eyeball which kept looking in different directions. But to be fair, she’s still only an adolescent, and many a teenager who was rather awkward at that stage of life grows up to look and move better.

Val 8 10 11 13 13 10

Hell’s Horde Total Powers & Skills Cost: 57 Total Cost: 67

Swatowski abhors violence and danger. He claims this is because “violence is the tool of the foolish and brutal man,” but the truth is he’s a coward, plain and simple. 200 Matching Complications (50) Quote: “I have transcended the limits of computer games and 20 Hunted: MCB (Infrequently, Mo Pow, NCI, Capture roleplaying — now I know how to wield the powers of magic for true!” 15 Psychological Complication: Coward (Common, Strong) Powers/Tactics: Swatowski has the Gift of being able to cast Spells. He has only found a few so far, but as time goes by is likely to grow in Total Complications Points: 35 power. His desire to acquire more occult lore might even be enough Experience Points: 0 to overcome his cowardice in some situations. Swatowski is no combatant. He will flee rather than fight, and if unable to flee, will beg to be let go. Appearance: Mike Swatowski is a white male, 5’9” tall. He’s obese Inspired by the ideas of Kurt “Telas” Schneider with poorly-combed black hair and a patchy “proto-beard.” He wears Background/History: Graduate student Mike Swatowski was pretty t-shirts, jeans, and sneakers, and usually has a backpack full of books, much the stereotypical nerd: under-tanned, under-socialized, and papers, and a laptop computer with him. overweight. He’d probably have spent the rest of his life as a highly educated non-entity had it not been for a fateful discovery he made NEW SPELL in the university’s rare book room while “doing research for his Ph.D thesis in medieval history” (translation: researching the spellcasting TAKE ON THE APPEARANCE OF ANOTHER rules for the “revolutionary” tabletop roleplaying game system he’d Effect: Shape Shift (any humanoid form), Only To Imitate Others been working on since the late Eighties). Target: Self Tucked in between two pages of the manuscript he found a Casting Time: 1 Minute piece of parchment covered in strange writing. He didn’t recognize it, Casting Procedures: Focus, Gestures, Incantations and even after spending a few hours researching the matter couldn’t Duration: Persistent identify it. But using his knowledge of medieval languages and Range: Self his skill at puzzles, he translated what turned out to be a spell for Magic Roll Penalty: -3 changing a person’s appearance — an actual spell! END Cost: 0 Naturally, he couldn’t resist trying it out — “all in the name of Description: This Spell allows the caster to assume the appearance scholarship,” of course. He obtained a hair clipping from one of the of another person — right down to imitating his voice, fingerprints, most popular jocks at the university. At dawn on the vernal equinox retina prints, and even DNA if someone tests for that. The change he cast the Spell. Excruciating pain ripped through his body, causing slowly wears off over the course of a week; after a day fingerprints, him to collapse to his knees, but then it passed. When he looked down DNA, and the like are no longer identical to the person copied. at himself, he resembled the jock in every conceivable way, right Casting it requires a lock of hair from that person. down to the fingerprints. The change wore off after a week, but in the Game Information: Shape Shift (any humanoid form), Persistent meantime it was the best Spring Break he ever had. (change wears off at the rate one one-seventh per day for seven Since then Swatowski’s traveled the country, using his credentials days, unless the caster cancels the Spell before then; +¼), Reduced as a grad student to gain access to countless libraries (particularly Endurance (0 END; +½) (35 Active Points); OAF Expendable (lock their collections of medieval and ancient manuscripts). He’s hunting of hair from the person to be copied; -1¼), Can Only Be Used To for more Spells, and has actually found a few; he’s also learned a bit “Copy” Another Person (-½), Extra Time (1 Minute; -1½), Gestures of information about monsters and other supernatural weirdness. All (throughout casting; -½), Incantations (throughout casting; -½), this has only whetted his appetite to learn more. Requires A Magic Roll (-½), Side Effects (automatically suffer Drain Personality/Motivation: Now that he knows magic is real, Mike STUN 3d6; -1). Total cost: 5 points. Swatowski desperately yearns to learn more. He’s far too timid to get involved in studying black magic, but he’ll do just about anything else to increase his store of arcane lore (such as stealing books from libraries). Although Swatowski’s basically a nice guy, particularly once you get to know him, he likes using his Spells to “get even with anyone who’s ever treated me badly” (i.e., in his mind, pretty much everyone). For example, he has no qualms about shapechanging into handsome young men and then sleeping with beautiful women. As far as he’s concerned, they ought to be sleeping with him because he’s a great guy, and if the only reason they will is because of his looks, he has every right to take advantage of that. Sooner or later (hopefully sooner) something might bring out more of his innate nobility and he’ll stop doing such things.

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

MIKE SWATOWSKI

28

Hell’s Horde

SWIFT-FOOT, THE ELVEN PICKUP TRUCK Val 5 40 15 5 5 3 3 3 18

Char Size STR DEX OCV DCV SPD PD ED BODY

Cost 25 5 0 10 10 0 2 1 3

Movement:

RICHARD TALBOT

Notes

Val

Char

Cost Roll

Notes

6.4m x 3.2m x 3.2m; mass 3.2 tons; -5 KB; OCV+ 3

13

STR

3

12-

Lift 150 kg; 2½d6 HTH damage [1]

15

DEX

10

12-

16

CON

6

12-

18

INT

8

13-

18

EGO

8

13-

20

PRE

10

13-

7

OCV

20

6

DCV

15

3

OMCV

0

6

DMCV

9

4

SPD

20

Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12

7

PD

5

Total: 7 PD (0 rPD)

5

ED

3

Total: 5 ED (0 rED)

10

REC

6

40

END

4

15

BODY

5

40

STUN

10

Lift 6,400 kg; 8d6 HTH [0]

Phases: 4, 8, 12

Total Characteristic Cost: 56 Ground:

48m

Abilities & Equipment Cost Power END 41 Four Bald Tires: Ground Movement (Running) 0 +36m (48m total), x4 Noncombat 10 Can Drive Almost Anywhere: Clinging (normal STR) 0 6

Skills Offroad Suspension: +3 Offroad Skill Levels (only offset penalties for driving offroad)

Value 0

Complications

Movement:

Distinctive Features: always looks like a trailer trash truck (see text)

Total Complication Points: 0 Total Cost: 113/5 = 23 Inspired by the ideas of Howard Taylor Description: Swift-Foot is a pickup truck. A magical, elven pickup truck. It’s got a jacked-up offroad suspension, seats three across the bench seat, and can reach speeds of 107 miles per hour on the open road. It can drive nearly anywhere, in fact. The suspension’s enchanted, and this enchantment extends to the tires whenever they get replaced (though the moment someone puts new tires on Swift-Foot, they immediately go bald; the change is so fast it’s visible). It can drive up trees, up cliff faces, and is rumored to have driven atop clouds (though this would require greater magic on the part of the driver). But Swift-Foot’s not without its drawbacks, too. First, it’s uncomfortable. The upholstery is ragged. You can swap it out, but the new seats grow holes and pop springs in minutes. It always looks like a trailer trash truck, no matter what the owner does to it. Second, the owner has to make an EGO Roll (or Mechanics roll, if he has that Skill and prefers to use it) every time he tries to start the truck; if he fails, it won’t start. (The GM may also call for periodic rolls while the truck’s in motion to have it stall out; if it does this on a vertical surface it falls.) When this happens, the character has to spend 15 minutes fiddling around under the hood before he can make another roll to try to get Swift-Foot going — which may be difficult, depending on the circumstances. (Note: the Elven Pickup Truck is written up using the full HERO System 6th Edition rules, though everything you see on its character sheet works just fine with the Basic Rules found in the MHI RPG.)

29

PRE Attack: 4d6

Total Characteristics Cost: 142 Running:

14m

Cost Powers

END

Martial Arts: Commando Training Maneuver

OCV DCV Notes

3

Aikido Throw

+0

+1

2½d6 + v/10, Target Falls

4

Boxing Cross

+0

+2

4½d6 Strike

4

Choke

-2

+0

Grab One Limb, 2d6 NND (2)

4

Escape

+0

+0

28 STR vs. Grabs

4

Hold

-1

-1

Grab Three Limbs, 23 STR

4

Judo Disarm

-1

+1

Disarm, 23 STR

4

Kung Fu Block

+2

+2

Block, Abort

2

Strong Runner: Running +2m (14m total) Perks

3

Fringe Benefit: Espionage Rank

5

Fringe Benefit: Security Clearance

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Total Abilities & Equipment Cost: 57 Total Vehicle Cost: 113

PER Roll 13-

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Hell’s Horde

RICHARD TALBOT

20

Skills +2 with All Combat

3 3 1 3 2 3 1 2 1 2 2 1 2 2 3 3 2 3 3 3 3 3 5

Charm 13Climbing 12Computer Programming 8Deduction 13Demolitions 10Fast Draw 12Forgery 8KS: CIA 11KS: MCB 8KS: Monsters 11KS: Ranger History And Traditions 11Language: Arabic (basic conversation; English is Native) Language: Farsi (fluent conversation) Language: Spanish (fluent conversation) Navigation 13Persuasion 13PS: Ranger 11Stealth 12Survival 13Tactics 13Tracking 13TF: Ground Vehicles, Parachuting WF: Small Arms, Uncommon Modern Weapons, Blades

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 113 Total Cost: 255 200

Matching Complications (50)

10

Hunted: CIA (Infrequently, Mo Pow, NCI, Watching)

20

Psychological Complication: Must Protect The US And Her Citizens From The Supernatural No Matter What The Cost (Common, Total)

20

Social Complication: Subject To Orders (Very Frequently, Major)

Total Complications Points: 50 Experience Points: 55

EQUIPMENT Weapon

OCV RMod Damage STUN Shots STR Notes Min

H&K MK 23 SOCOM

+1

+1

2d6-1

+1

7

7

Supp (-3), FS, Laser

FN-F2000

+1

+2

2d6

+1

30

12

2H, AF5, FS

Combat Knife

+0

+0

1d6

+0

—

8

Can Be Thrown

Armor Level III-A body armor (Resistant Protection (8 PD/8 ED)) Gear: CIA smartphone

Inspired by the ideas of Greg Radabaugh Background/History: Not much is known about Richard Talbot — and that’s the way he prefers it. After he fought in Iraq, Afghanistan, and a number of less publicly well-known conflicts as a US Army Ranger, the CIA recruited Talbot to serve as an agent in its Directorate of Operations’s paramilitary division. Due to some of the things he saw (and killed) during his military career, he soon found himself assigned to be the liaison between the CIA and the MCB. The CIA’s interest in monster hunting differs from the MCB’s. The Agency’s main concern is to learn what other governments and organizations (particularly those hostile to the US) know about the supernatural, and most importantly to ensure that hostiles don’t use “supernatural assets” to fight US forces and/or conduct operations contrary to America’s best interests. The MCB may think it spearheads such activities (since the military often calls it in to deal with incidents in which troops abroad encounter monsters), but the CIA knows the truth — and Talbot sees to it that things go as smoothly as possible between the Agency and the Bureau. Personality/Motivation: Years of military discipline have made Talbot a very serious, by-the-book kind of guy. He realizes there are times when one has to “call an audible” regardless of what the regulations say, but he believes that most of the time the country’s interests — which are always first and foremost in his mind — are best served by following the rules. In this respect he gets along pretty well with Special Agents Myers and Franks (both of which he worked with, briefly, while a Ranger). He isn’t on as good terms with Earl Harbinger (whom he also worked with once), though they respect each other. Many MHI Hunters, including Owen Pitt and Milo Anderson, would probably take an almost instant dislike to him — and the feeling would be mutual. Talbot is very much a “wild card” in the MHI setting, since what he does and how he does it depends on the CIA’s often mysterious motives. He may step in and take out a monster to help the PCs — or he may not. It all depends on how doing so affects his current mission and the Agency’s long-term plans. He’s definitely a good guy, but it takes a lot to get him to step outside of his orders to assist if he’s not specifically ordered to do so. Quote: “That’s contraindicated. We don’t have time to “observe.” Orders are to wipe out this cell and whatever that thing working with it is, and if we don’t move now we’ll lose them. So we follow orders and damn the risk.” Powers/Tactics: Talbot is an experienced soldier who knows how to use all sorts of weapons, though it’s rare that he goes into the field on missions where he needs heavy armaments anymore. Usually he can get by with his beloved matched set of H&K Mark 23 semiautomatic handguns, which he’s engraved with the names “Apollo” and “Artemis.” In combat, Talbot’s first action is to get to the best cover available. Once he feels protected enough he’ll open fire, relying on Snap Shot to keep himself safe (and Rapid Fire if he sees an opening worth exploiting). He’s also skilled at hand-to-hand combat and almost always has a knife with him (a combat dagger on field missions; a large Spyderco folding knife at other times). Appearance: Richard Talbot is a handsome, rawboned man in his mid-thirties. He’s 6’1” with stylishly-cut black hair; he’s cleanshaven. On most days he wears a standard black men’s suit (with his handguns concealed in shoulder holsters and behind his back); in the field he wears body armor.

30

Hell’s Horde

VAMPIRE KUDZU

175

Matching Complications (50)

20

Physical Complication: Animal Intelligence (Frequently, Greatly Impairing)

10

PER Roll 11-

Physical Complication: Large (4m; +2 OCV for others to hit, +2 to PER Rolls for others to perceive) (Infrequently, Slightly Impairing)

15

Physical Complication: Limited Manipulation (Frequently, Slightly Impairing)

PRE Attack: 4d6

20

Physical Complication: Poor Eyesight, suffers -2 to all Sight PER Rolls (Frequently, Greatly Impairing)

15

Physical Complication: Poor Hearing, suffers -2 to all Hearing PER Rolls (Frequently, Slightly Impairing)

Val

Char

Cost Roll

Notes

15

STR

5

12-

Lift 200 kg; 3d6 HTH damage [1]

15

DEX

10

12-

16

CON

6

12-

8

INT

-2

11-

5

EGO

-5

10-

20

PRE

10

13-

6

OCV

15

4

DCV

5

2

OMCV

-3

2

DMCV

-3

4

SPD

20

Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12

10

PD

8

Total: 10 PD (3 rPD)

6

ED

4

Total: 6 ED (3 rED)

8

REC

4

30

END

2

18

BODY

8

36

STUN

8

Total Characteristics Cost: 92 Running:

0m

Leaping:

0m

Swimming:

0m

Cost Powers 15

VAMPIRE KUDZU

Drain Blood: RKA 1d6

END 0

Constant (+½), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½); Must Grab Target (-½), No Range (-½)

3

Tough Fibers: Resistant (+½) for 3 PD/3 ED

0

25

Diffuse Form: Damage Negation (-5 DCs Physical)

0

24

Rooted: Knockback Resistance -24m

0

-12

Can’t Move: Running -12m (0m total)

-2

Can’t Move: Leaping -4m (0m total)

-2

Can’t Move: Swimming -4m (0m total)

39

Sense Vibrations: Detect Physical Vibrations 13- 0 (Touch Group), Discriminatory, Analyze, Range, Targeting

4

Tendrils: Extra Limbs (3d6 worth)

Inspired by the ideas of Carl Rigney Ecology: Vampire kudzu is as much a scourge of the southeastern United States (and a few other parts of the country) as its nonvampiric cousin (though thankfully it’s not nearly so widespread). It feeds by catching mammals — from mice all the way up to humans — and sucking the blood out of their bodies with the hollow, strong, tiny “hairs” on its tendrils. It then drops the corpses near its roots to further fertilize itself. It carefully covers large corpses with enough of its tendrils that no potential prey can see them. This character sheet represents a typical patch of vampire kudzu that’s several times larger than a man. In theory a patch of vampire kudzu could become much, much larger than this, though its food rquirements would be so extensive that it’s unlikely it could feed itself. Personality/Motivation: Normal animal (well, plant) motivations. Powers/Tactics: A vampire kudzu pretends to be an ordinary kudzu until a prey animal wanders too close. Then it lashes out with some of its tendrils, Grabs the target, and sucks it dry of blood. Few small animals, or even large ones, can escape its strong grasp, but some people are muscular enough to break free. Appearance: Vampire kudzu looks like ordinary kudzu. But on closer examination, the tiny “hairs” on its vines are “needles” it uses to drink its victims’ blood.

0

Limited Manipulation (-¼)

Skills 4

+2 OCV with Grab

Total Powers & Skills Cost: 100 Total Cost: 192

31

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

Movement:

Total Complications Points: 50 Experience Points: 17

Hell’s Horde

Property of Monster Hunter International, Inc. Do not distribute without MHI permission.

THE VICENZI TAROT The Vicenzi Tarot is a full deck of 78 tarot cards, painted with exquisite skill on thin ivory plaques. Each card has its own unique illustration, similar to the well-known Rider-Waite Tarot. The illustrations generally follow traditional tarot symbolism, with two exceptions. First, the color red features prominently in many of them even when it typically does not in other decks, and for this reason the deck is sometimes known as the Scarlet Tarot. Second, somewhere in most of the illustrations can be found one or more lines of text written in an unknown alphabet (and probably in an unknown language as well). No one has ever even come close to translating these texts, so their import remains unknown... ...just like the origins of the deck itself. Based on the style of the illustrations most experts date it to the late seventeenth or early eighteenth centuries, and probably northern Italy or southern Switzerland, but it’s possible the deck could have been created at a later date in a style that mimics earlier conventions. The first known mention of it in historical records is in a chronicle of the notable properties of the Vicenzi family, (in)famous Italian mystics and occultists, in 1752 (hence the deck’s name). After the Vicenzi ancestral home was burned to the ground with the family inside by superstitious peasants in 1771, the deck disappeared from history for many years. Unconfirmed reports claim it was briefly owned by Cagliostro prior to his death in 1795, that a French mystic named Beauchamp possessed it in Paris in the 1840s, and that the notorious “occult mastermind” who styled himself Dr. Arcanus used it to help him commit crimes in New York City during the 1930s. Since then no clue has surfaced as to the deck’s whereabouts or owner. And that may be for the best, for not all the Vicenzi Tarot’s powers are necessarily beneficial. Sensitives who’ve examined it claim it possesses a potent mystic energy, and that readings performed with it tend to be phenomenally precise and accurate. But it also seems to be cursed, for those who possess it often have horrible fates befall them. The Vicenzis themselves were burned alive, for example, and Dr. Arcanus is said to have met his end at the hands of demon who tortured him to death over the space of a year and a day. Despite this, many wizards, mystics, and collectors eagerly seek the Vicenzi Tarot to this day.

IN GAME TERMS In HERO System terms, the Vicenzi Tarot provides the following ability: Clairsentience (Sight Group), Precognition, Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½) (60 Active Points); OAF (-1), Concentration (0 DCV throughout reading; -1), Extra Time (a minimum of 1 Minute to perform a reading, and often longer; -1½), Requires A Magic Roll (-½), Side Effects (possessor has Unluck 3d6, see text; -½). Total cost: 11 points. As a Side Effect, the possessor of the Vicenzi Tarot automatically has Unluck 3d6. For the most part this manifests as trivial inconveniences. But at least once every thirteen moons it puts the possessor in a situation with the potential for significant tragic consequences — typically his death, or the death of someone he loves.

32