Fight Comics #1 - pt. 1

The first issue from the third title by Fiction House starts with George Tuska's Shark Brodie. Here we see some nautical transportation we don't see every comic -- a sloop and an outrigger. That the sloop is described as a "swift" sloop may suggest that it is a special trophy item and not just an ordinary sloop one might be able to buy.

This looks pretty good for early Tuska and makes me wonder if he didn't have help from a better inker...

Here we see a schooner.

There's some interesting details here that I'm going to guess are accurate about pearl diving, like the circle of weighted netting.

I think I've talked before about underwater clams -- traps or mobster-types? -- and am still leaning towards trap, rather than something that needs statting for combat.

But, come on, Nanka's been down there for 20 minutes already, and now you're wondering what happened to him? Ten minutes is good for a pearl diver. In fact, I'm thinking of extending how long Heroes can hold their breath underwater, from 1 turn to 1 turn per 2 points of Constitution (rounded down).

That actually is a pretty good idea -- if your main hideout is a less maneuverable boat like an old schooner, it would make sense to have more maneuverable motorboats patrolling around it.

I'm not crazy about the idea of letting Heroes make homemade grenades with gunpowder and pineapples; I think I would make them half as effective as real grenades.

I would also be inclined to say that, if you're using explosive weaponry like grenades, you should not be able to take your opponents by surprise afterwards -- though that is exactly what Shark manages to do on the next page (before getting captured).

If you're confused how Shark got captured, but still has a flare gun on him that wasn't confiscated, don't worry -- so I am, and I read the page I skipped sharing. I've talked before about letting players request a save vs. plot to keep a weapon unconfiscated on them when captured, but I was thinking of small things, like a knife in the boot. Here, they not only let him keep his flare gun, but his ammo belt as well. That would require some major penalties (-5?) to that plot save!

Now, I would be okay with allowing forcing a locked door as an expert skill check, but this door gets absolutely shattered, and Shark definitely doesn't seem like he's got superhero-level strength. So it's a good thing that I have non-superhero wrecking things rules (different in both editions; I prefer the newer, more streamlined mechanic) that account for this.

Hmm. Shark seems to be an amazingly good fighter for a guy who seems like he's been around only long enough to be level 1 still. Those are two lucky disarming hits in a row (disarming of a non-gun being tricky because your target has to be hit and miss a save vs. science). And what's this talk about "limitless strength?" Hyperbole? Is this the Editor telling us he's not using fatigue rules? Or is Shark a superhero after all...?

If Shark is a superhero, then he's a fighter/superhero, as demonstrated here by how he has no compunctions against using firearms (like all fighters in 2nd edition).

Alternate histories that have Germany winning WWII are a dime a dozen, but this unusual set-up from The Spy Fighter takes place in a 1997 where the smaller nations of the world have all been gobbled up into three competing superpowers representing Russia, the U.S., and China/Mongolia. I wonder if the board game Risk was based on this...

(Scans courtesy of Comic Book Plus.)

Star Comics v. 2 #7

Count Rocco may be the only count in comic books who's not a bad guy. Here, The Rat uses a cat o' nine tails on him. I've already added the whip to the weapons list in Hideouts & Hoodlums, but don't plan on a cat o'nine tails being different, mechanics-wise, from an ordinary whip.

Hanging from your thumbs is pretty serious torture, though. Maybe 1-2 points of damage per minute?  Sometimes time has to be measured in real time measurements instead of turns, since turns have a more flexible meaning, and torture that does 1-2 points over a 4-hour rest turn isn't that scary sounding.

Ooo, what's this? A haunted island? A land of underground caves? Sounds like a great set-up for a hideout crawl to me! And that this is the first stop on a quest to find the Lost Islands sounds like a full campaign! Sadly, this is the last installment we ever see of The Last Pirate.

The grappling attack only lasts one turn underwater. Shortening the length of the combat turn to 30 seconds will allow for longer underwater combats, since Heroes will now be able to hold their breath underwater for 1-12 combat turns.

This is from Dash of the 100th Century and, while a gag strip instead of an adventure strip, I include it because there's been no discussion anywhere else about how much an interplanetary rocket would weigh.  Five hundred tons seems a bit much for a rocket that size but...maybe it's made of super-dense metals, in order to survive the rigors of space, or to help establish gravity?

(Scans courtesy of Digital Comic Museum)