Crackajack Funnies #8

Sure, it's fun to play an alien superhero who can leap tall buildings in a single bound, but the challenge of getting into an upper story window without any super-leaping ability can be fun too. This is one of the reasons the Fighter class is still relevant in a campaign with Magic-Users and Superheroes.

If a Fighter like Dan Dunn wants to cross over to that window, he's going to have to find a ladder long enough to bridge the street, push it over to the window sill, and then balance across the ladder until he reaches the window.

Dan is quite confident that he's hidden the dictaphone well. There's no game mechanic for hiding it well, though -- it all depends on the luck of the searchers.

One of the many balancing acts of the Editor is to make hideouts challenging, but not so challenging that the players just decide to flood the place and be done with it. It's also a good idea not to tempt them by placing large bodies of water so that they would drain into the hideout.

This will not be the last portable time machine in comics. I don't recommend time machines be this portable or easy to use -- time travel could be a campaign wrecker in all but the most capable Editors' hands.

That said, the idea of going back in time and finding talking, intelligent dinosaurs, is intriguing...

(Scans courtesy of Digital Comic Museum)

Crackajack Funnies #5

The difference between role-playing and roll-playing is exemplified, to me, by this page of Dan Dunn.  Note how Dan's plan doesn't involve sneaking or fighting -- just talking. He's going to talk his way into the villain's hideout. The Editor could still add an element of randomness with encounter reaction rolls, but the players can just keep talking, come at it from a different angle, and try to change the dynamics.

This is Captain Frank Hawks, Air Ace.  Flying Blind should probably be a 1st or 2nd level Aviator stunt, allowing the Aviator to fly safely with zero visibility.

Still in the same adventure, Frank has locked himself into a ship's cabin and the mobsters after him try to break through with an axe. It seems a logical choice in real life, but there is currently no game mechanic bonus to wreck through a door. Maybe axes should have some kind of bonus, like a -1 penalty for the door to save vs. non-Superhero wrecking?

This is Myra North, Special Nurse, and she has a playing tip -- if you think someone has done something and you want to prove it, bribe them to stop and see how they react.

Canisters of anesthetic gas should be a trophy item. It only works in tandem with a grappling attack.

Clyde Beatty, Daredevil Lion Tamer reminds us that you should always keep poison antidotes handy. A lot of my players have all learned to stock up on anti-venom.

In Wash Tubbs, the circus manager (I don't think he was revealed to be an inventor until the story needed him to be) has a spray that makes claws too rubbery to do damage. I think a lot of players would want their Heroes to have this stuff.

(Scans courtesy of Comic Book Plus)

The Funnies #19

Dan Dunn is a funny one, and by that I mean curious-funny. Why does a G-Man bring a bow and arrows to a hideout siege? Why, to set the roof on fire, of course (or because his Editor is being a stickler with the save vs. plot to resort to gunplay, which used to apply to all classes).

Lions are statted in Book II: Mobsters & Trophies, but lion followers seem to be very rare.  The Explorer class (as seen in The Trophy Case v. 1 no. 2) did not allow animal followers until 9th level (!), but a later issue of TTC clarified that animals could be recruited as Supporting Cast Members (the distinction, for Explorers, being that followers are automatic and do not count against the number of SCMs determined by their Charisma score).

Interesting, that we just learned about Easy's previous plane costing $16,000, and this one being worth $20,000. It seems Easy isn't a soldier of fortune for the fun of it, but because he keeps going through planes so quickly!


(Scans courtesy of Digital Comic Museum)

The Funnies #17

So, what does Dell Comics have for us today? Well, this issue starts with Alley Oop still fighting crocodiles...

I include this page because it's the most detailed instructions for safe-cracking I've ever seen, and it might help for describing it in a H&H scenario.

Tad of the Tanbark has never had supernatural elements before, so there's probably a rational explanation for this...but it appears that the witch doctor has cast a new spell, like Summon Snakes. It can apparently summon at least 12 black mambas. Unless this is a Mobster Summoning spell which just happened to summon snakes...?

This page of Captain Easy is about easy deathtraps -- tie someone to a chair with a bomb in his lap, toss someone out a window with a rope around his neck, or, worst of all, threaten to marry him!

Hubba hubba!  I mean...where was I?

Oh yeah, hideouts!  I was about to type, some mobsters you might not expect to find in a hideout are railroad presidents and bankers. There is already a "corrupt politician" mobster in H&H (Book II: Mobsters & Trophies), but maybe there need to be stats for corrupt businessmen. They would be easy to defeat, but worth more XP because of the monetary value they represent?


(Scans courtesy of Digital Comic Museum)

The Funnies #14

Sneaky Dan Dunn imparts some good playing tips here on how to...be sneaky!  If your Heroes need to arrange a secret rendezvous, it's best to use a public payphone, meet via taxi at a random location, take a roundabout trip via taxi, and then walk the rest of the way, all to watch for tails.  Remember, the longer the trip, the more rolls you should get for spotting someone shadowing you (the same chance as finding secret doors).

In this age of miniaturization, it's important to keep in mind how BIG a mad science machine should be in Hideouts & Hoodlums.  Towering structures, operated by levers, huge pistons, gears, noisy, mechanical contrivances -- these are the hallmarks of comic book science.

If your Heroes stumbled into a vault filled with barrels of diamonds, what would they do?  The fastest way to level up in H&H is by finding valuable treasure, but if the Heroes keep trying to sell all their found treasure to the same merchants in the same area, they'll soon find they've caused significant inflation, turning their home base into a "boom town", perhaps as bad as back during the Gold Rush.

Superheroes can wreck their way out of binding ropes, but should other Heroes be able to wriggle themselves free?  Perhaps. As the Editor, I would have to rule on how expert the tyer was with rope use, if the job had been hasty enough to have allowed for some slack, etc. I would then decide if I would allow a single attempt at a save vs. plot to determine if the Hero can wriggle free.

Should hornet stings cause points of damage? Unless there was something unusual about the hornets (like giant hornets!), I would say no, let's not put half-pint Heroes in that much danger. Instead, I would require a save vs. science, per sting, or the victim is too miserable from the pain to do anything for a full turn.


(Scans courtesy of Digital Comic Museum)

The Funnies #12 - pt. 1

We begin our review of this issue with a page of Dan Dunn. We're in Bankok's secret hideout where, by simply hanging curtains, he can manipulate the air flow in his hideout and keep gas in certain sections. In most hideouts, doors would serve the same purpose, and be easier than having to hang curtains.

Poisonous incense, which gives off a toxic gas when heated, would be a trophy item.

In a more enclosed space, like a single room, this trap would be more efficient. Spread out through a portion of the hideout, the gas' onset time is slowed to 30 minutes.

A playing tip from this page of G-Man Jim is to always carry, or wear, a watch. If you're knocked unconscious and alone, it will be the quickest way to find out how long you were out.

Another playing tip, this time from Captain Easy, but again about having things on your person. If your Hero has to carry important pieces of paper, documents, etc., write them in a code (or rewrite them in code if someone else's papers, then burn the originals). This makes you a valuable prisoner if someone ever captures you for the papers you carry.

This page of Captain Easy is about the hideout. Here we have an ingenious waterfront hideout. The mobsters come and go via motorboat, entering from underneath via a ladder and trapdoor. Heroes entering the same way would have a hard time surprising the mobsters above the trapdoor, and would definitely have a height disadvantage.

Torture devices could be common features in a hideout. Here we see dental equipment set up in a separate room, reserved for torturing prisoners.

Note how the windows do not allow anyone to jump out into the water; all the windows face a walkway that encircles the building and is patrolled by mobsters.

A playing tip is to use police help wisely. Ask them to do leg work for you, like when you need to know where the mobsters' hideout is, but avoid bringing more than you need into the hideout with you -- you're just dividing the Experience Points more ways then.

Another word about the hideout, though -- note how much more challenging the scenario is made by the hideout employing a lookout who can alert the mobsters inside. Had Easy been able to surprise the hoodlums inside, this encounter would have gone much differently.

A good way to conceal a hideout is with a fake room in front of the hideout. Here, a false bedroom and a convincing hoodlum/actor almost fool the police officer and Easy into dismissing this as not the hideout they were looking for.

Checking small details, like the number of cigarettes in a tray, is a good tip for players. It may not always be important, but you may often learn something useful from such details.

Switching gears to Westerns and Bronc Peeler, we see an example of simultaneous initiative and the use of the Cowboy stunt Disarming Shot. These are the obvious features from this page, however. What is more curious is, how to play the part where Bronc slowly succumbs to a gunshot wound?

Combat in Hideouts & Hoodlums is already dangerous enough without adding complications, like continuous hit point loss from untreated wounds. I would prefer to explain this as a new stunt, Endure Injury, which lets a Hero continue acting for 1 turn past reaching zero hit points.

(Scans courtesy of Digital Comic Museum)

The Funnies #11 - pt. 1

I don't know how accurate it is to say people would pay $1-2 in the 1930s for retrieving golf balls, but if one were to run a Reg'lar Fellers-style game with kid characters, they would earn Experience Points slowly by earning money in such a fashion.

A player recently asked me why starting money is so much when everything was so cheap. It's true that competition and scarcity of money drove prices for most things pretty low, but when you absolutely have to have something -- like a secret plane trip to the coast -- and the pilot knows he's got you on the spot, $1,500 should not surprise you as his asking price.

Hideouts are often going to be guarded in some way, like by sentries expecting some sort of signal from those approaching.

It's also useful to not leave even "empty" rooms empty. A simple barrel in the corner makes an empty room more memorable and, if nothing else, gives the players something to visualize as they are exploring.

Dan Dunn's player isn't cheating; it's fair game to take a Supporting Cast Member with special skills, even if it's a trained dog with tracking skills, into the hideout with you. Of course, you risk putting your SCM(s) in harm's way the longer they are in a hideout, so use this strategy with great care.

Another playing tip from Captain Easy. If someone shows up claiming to be your new chauffeur, check them for a chauffeur's license. Pointing a gun at their head first is entirely optional.

It also pays to thoroughly search every new environment your Hero finds himself in. You never know where mobsters might be hiding!

This one's a tough call, game mechanics-wise. Should Supporting Cast Members be able to recruit other SCMs?  I'd probably allow it this time since the charismatic priest is not converting bad guys to directly aid Bronc Peeler, but there is definitely a dangerous precedent here for sending 1 SCM out to recruit 2 others, sending each of them out to recruit 2 others, and so on until the Hero has an army on his hands.

Of course, if the priest were a player-ran Hero, then this would all be fine.

Heroes turning down treasure should still be awarded Experience Points for earning it -- unless the 100 xp award for doing a good deed is larger, and then award that (provided the Hero is truly giving his share away to a good cause!).


(Scans courtesy of Digital Comic Museum)

The Funnies #8

We reach May 1937 today and this issue from Dell Comics gives us... goat joke #9!

We've already seen underwater entrances to hideouts, but this scenario has a twist on that -- the entrance is only visible for a few minutes while the tide is lower.

I'd say a horse throwing its body to the ground in an attempt to crush someone could do a lot of damage?  But how much?

A 180 lb. man falling on top of you might be uncomfortable, but I can't see it being able to knock anyone unconscious (not from weight alone, though you could factor in other possibilities, like an elbow strike while dropping).

But an obese man, let's say 210 lbs., maybe that alone could hurt you if that much bulk fell on you. Let's assume that a horse weighs 1,000 lbs.  If a 210-lb. man can do 1 point of damage, then a horse should only be able to do 1-4 (actually, it should probably be much higher, but recall that H&H game mechanics are incremental instead of exponential). Rounding up for other considerations (the continued movement of the horse, the length of time it crushes), 1-6 points of damage would not be unreasonable -- exactly the same as the default damage for weapons in H&H.

H&H allows for firing missile weapons into melee, though at the risk of hitting a random other target if the initial target is missed. In this case, the shark is certainly in melee range already, though because of the order of combat it will not get its melee attack until after being shot at. Both the shark and the damsel in distress have soft cover from swimming most under the surface of the water, so Tommy better be a lucky shooter...

Binding wounds does not figure into the early drafts of H&H rules, but two versions of house rules have entered the game since. One is that binding the wounds makes hp recovery happen twice as fast. The other gives you an immediate 1-3 hp back.  Each Editor can decide which, if either, rule to use.

(Scans courtesy of Digital Comic Museum)

Famous Funnies #24

Ah, Captain Easy, the gift that keeps on giving.  Here we are introduced to witches, a mobster-type so hideous that anyone seeing them must save vs. spells or fall prostrate in front of them!



Alley Oops's animal of the day is the glyptodon.  Never yet statted for Hideouts & Hoodlums, a glyptodon would be 11 Hit Dice, but using 12-siders because of their massive size and mass!

Hairbreadth Harry has me a little stumped this time. Catching something should normally be a simple act of hitting something in reverse, so I would use the same "to hit" mechanic -- but does catching in mid-air suggest something much tougher that should be a specific stunt?  I'm on the fence on this one...

You might not have guessed, at a glance, what I want to talk about from Flying to Fame this time. No, it's not the sub-machine gun, but you're close -- it's the use of cover by the sub-machine gunner, and how the girl in the fight turns the cover against him by slamming the door into him as a weapon.

Now, you might not think it on the face of it, but this has fairly large implications towards how cover works in combat. Should there ever be a chance of your cover being a liability?  Should Captain America have to worry about his opponent grabbing his shield and pushing it up in his face?

You may have guessed, based on my last example, but I feel this should not become a game mechanic. More likely, the gunner simply missed his to-hit roll and knocking him with the door was the flavor text for explaining how he managed to miss at point blank range.

This rare sighting of Nipper on this blog is for the glider, an excellent transport trophy for low-level Heroes, that solves the issue of how to make Heroes airborne, without giving them too big an advantage.

Can tapping a table really disrupt a dictagraph?  I don't know, but that's a pretty good tip for Heroes concerned that they're being recorded by a concealed one...

Ah, Seaweed Sam, you silly source of inspiration.  Here we have an unusual example, Pre-Clarke, of science being indistinguishable from magic. The "XYZ Ray" seems to be a sort of transmutation raygun that can change back anyone previously transformed into gold or stone, which does seem a handy thing to have around.

There is also a reminder here that helium tanks are on the minor trophies list.

This version of the sphinx is likely not a mobster, but some kind of trick -- but a good one, and one time-tested in that Other Game.  Just use a slightly harder riddle than this one.

I never thought I was going to have to refer to the extraordinarily bland Babe Bunting on this blog, but this page brings up the issue of, just who should be able to track?  Tracking started out in H&H just as a skill the Explorer class had.  Then Mysterymen picked up an urban version of that skill.  Then it became a stunt Cowboys could use.  But this page suggests that any Tom, Dick, or Harry can follow the faint tracks of  little girl through dense woods. Should tracking even still be a special skill, or should everyone get a chance to find tracks, like looking for secret doors?  It bears strong consideration.

Lastly, this section on forced landings would be educational for anyone playing an Aviator.

(Scans courtesy of Digital Comic Museum at http://www.digitalcomicmuseum.org/index.php?dlid=21647)

Famous Funnies #22

Following Captain Easy's continued exploration of a sunken lost city is a lot like watching a Hideouts & Hoodlums game scenario unfold. Here, he moves from encounter to encounter, from 1 hp baby octopi to 1/2 Hit Die large cutlassfish to 1 Hit Die large barracuda.  Will all of these make it into the next edition?  Well, maybe barracuda...

The reward for all this hideout delving?  The trophy is a giant gold statue of a monkey. But, as is often the case in H&H, sometimes the bigger challenge than finding the trophy is figuring out how to get it out of the hideout!

...Huh, Easy's solved that one already!  Maybe a saw should be on the starting equipment list. Also nice job calculating its value. Players who can do that kind of research and calculating should be rewarded for it -- I would not hand out this information with some kind of skill check!

Next up would be Easy vs. a giant octopus, armed with just a saw!


The Alley Oop dino of the day is dimetrodon (really just a 3 HD giant lizard with a sail on its back).

This installment of Hairbreadth Harry shows us three things:  a simple plot hook (find the tiger for money), yet another example of why I should have statted tigers for H&H, and the use of tracking to solve a scenario.

Here we see Dan Dunn is all equipped for a H&H adventure -- a hand grenade in each pocket, dynamite bombs on his back, and carrying a sub-machine gun.  All he's missing is a 10' pole and 50' of rope!



(Scans courtesy of Digital Comic Museum at http://digitalcomicmuseum.org/index.php?dlid=23785)