Funny Page v. 3 #8

The Arrow leads this issue, and I have to say I think this is the best installment yet.

This page tells us something about the value of gems, without really telling us much. A "set" of star-sapphires can be worth half a million dollars!  But how many are in a set? Assuming it was a set of 10, that would still be $50,000 each.  At the end of the story it is revealed that each set is mounted on a bracelet, so maybe this is more reflective of the value of jewelry.

Here we get an interesting tactic for bad guys to use. Borrowing a car for a getaway car is an unusual twist on the cliche of using a stolen car. The pro is that it's easier to trade cars afterwards, and the con is that you might leave a witness behind who can describe you and your "new" vehicle.

And here's a good tip from the other side -- our Hero, The Arrow, is chasing a car, but doesn't know if this is the right car or not (we don't know if the garage attendant gave him the license plate number or not). So he follows the car anyway and watches for a suspicious reaction. Even without knowing details of the car, he could have followed any car he saw on this road until one driver betrayed himself.

Just last post, I talked about that being the first time I'd ever seen a waterlogged gun not work in comics. Here we already see another dripping wet gun shooting normally again.

Wreck at range. An Editor can require an attack roll with wrecking, but it depends on circumstances (I would require it here, given the size of the target).

 Dark!

The price of duck was 32 cents per pound.

Windy, normally a one-page gag strip, was upgraded to two pages this issue. Though not a serious adventure strip, this haunted house could still make a good encounter area, and "Haunting Inc." is an idea worth exploring...

After a long absence, Abdallah finally returns with a new installment. Here we see that the "dragons" that inhabit Abdallah's Arabian fantasy world are actually dinosaurs. This is the first allosaurus in comics. Wisely, Abdallah high-tails it out of there on the next page and doesn't try to fight them. Dinosaurs would have such scary high Hit Dice that I haven't included any of them yet in the 2nd edition basic book (except for giant pterodactyls).

This is the 2nd griffin/gryphon in comics. Interestingly, it is an underworld guardian and not encountered outdoors where it could make use of its wings.

(Scans courtesy of Digital Comic Museum.)

Funnies #7

Robbers (found in Hideouts & Hoodlums Book II: Mobsters & Trophies) are a little boring, game mechanic-wise. They need some of the skills of the Mysteryman class, like open locks.

The Spinner tells a story of a deep-sea diver. Old-fashioned diving suits and acetlyene (cutting) torches are found in Book II.

Bighorn rams would be 2 HD animals.

Windy's talking crow gets him into trouble. But is it a mobster?  It's too small to even have a hit point.  It's not a trap, though it does get Windy into considerable trouble. No, it's a Supporting Cast Member!  SCMs do not have to be friendly or even supportive; you (the player) just have to be responsible for pulling them into your scenario. This talking crow could have just been the Editor's flavor text, but Windy's player decided to take it with him (after a successful recruitment roll) for the XP gain or simply just something to interact with in-character.

Another goat?  I need to go back and start a running tally!  Seriously, Golden Age, how many jokes do you really think you can get out of a goat?

Hobos are tough in a fight!  Did I err in never statting them as a mobster-type?  They're good at stealing things, too.  Or should this hobo simply be statted as a robber?

One of the advantages of having all weapons do the same damage is that Hezzy of the Hills can throw a rock and it's just as effective as shooting a gun at someone (except for range).  This, in actual practice, has never prevented H&H Heroes from stockpiling firearms but, sigh, it's a start.

(Scans courtesy of Digital Comic Museum)