Pyramid #3/40: Vehicles - Page 3

Kromm · 02-16-2012, 07:32 PM

Pedal to the floor
Engine roaring in the night
Dawn's light can't catch me!
— Some hack

Pyramid #3/40: Vehicles – the latest from e23 – is all about getting from A to B. As every gamer, action-movie lover, and fan of zippy spaceships knows, that isn't about the trip but the ride. And this great stuff certainly delivers:

Mecha Operations takes the ball from GURPS Spaceships 4: Fighters, Carriers, and Mecha and runs with it, expanding the rules for building and piloting mecha, and for running a campaign full of 'em. Sample builds show off the wide range of possibilities: a Stormhawk (GURPS Mecha), a Landstrider (Transhuman Space), and an evil, sapient, transforming robot that may evoke some childhood memories . . .
Every magical navy needs a fantastic shipyard – a place where expert craftsmen, crazed alchemists, and innovative wizards join forces to create the impossible on a daily basis. The Arsenal of Mageocracy can be that place in your campaign. With a detailed map, plenty of information on day-to-day operations, and a fleet of sample ships (both magical and of high mundane quality), this well-defended harbor is just waiting to fill your needs.
Is there any modern-day vehicle sexier than the sports car? Fast, maneuverable, expensive . . . you know all the PCs want one. In this month's Eidetic Memory, David Pulver makes your dreams come true with Hot Rides!, bringing you full details and stats for eight of the snazziest sports cars ever to hit the pavement.
Vehicles are great . . . when they work. But when Things Fall Apart, they get really interesting. This isn't just a set of breakdown rules – it's a look at three completely different approaches that the GM can take when narrating a breakdown, and the three different methods the PCs will need to take to fix it. If you want vehicular troubles to advance the plot, not just frustrate the players, then this article is a must-read.
Tales of haunted vehicles are ubiquitous in the modern world, and Spirited Rides shows us why. It conjures up three spooky transports: a classic ghost-ship, a pair of morally sensitive pickup trucks, and a kidnapping courier ship. Any of these would add some scary supernatural flavor if it were to drift into your campaign . . .
Instantaneous travel is the dream of any exploring civilization. What if that were simply dropped in our laps, at a steep cost? While you answer that, consider that it's also been dropped in the lap of every other race, everywhere, that's willing to pay the price! That changes things some, yes? The Between-Space offers this fully fleshed-out plot device, along with advice on using it in settings from fantasy through historical to the far future.
And you get your monthly fix of Pyramid goodness, including a Random Thought Table that helps make vehicular characters just as important as player characters, Odds and Ends that update spaceship dDR and make parking easier, and a Murphy's Rules that may change which car you grab when you have to dump a body!

— Rev. Pee Kitty & Kromm

02-16-2012, 07:32 PM	#1
Kromm *GURPS* Line Editor Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Montréal, Québec	Pyramid #3/40: Vehicles Pedal to the floor Engine roaring in the night Dawn's light can't catch me! — Some hack Pyramid #3/40: Vehicles – the latest from e23 – is all about getting from A to B. As every gamer, action-movie lover, and fan of zippy spaceships knows, that isn't about the trip but the ride. And this great stuff certainly delivers: Mecha Operations takes the ball from *GURPS Spaceships 4: Fighters, Carriers, and Mecha* and runs with it, expanding the rules for building and piloting mecha, and for running a campaign full of 'em. Sample builds show off the wide range of possibilities: a Stormhawk (*GURPS Mecha), a Landstrider* (*Transhuman Space), and an evil, sapient, transforming robot that may evoke some childhood memories . . . Every magical navy needs a fantastic shipyard – a place where expert craftsmen, crazed alchemists, and innovative wizards join forces to create the impossible on a daily basis. The Arsenal of Mageocracy* can be that place in your campaign. With a detailed map, plenty of information on day-to-day operations, and a fleet of sample ships (both magical and of high mundane quality), this well-defended harbor is just waiting to fill your needs. Is there any modern-day vehicle sexier than the sports car? Fast, maneuverable, expensive . . . you know all the PCs want one. In this month's Eidetic Memory, David Pulver makes your dreams come true with Hot Rides!, bringing you full details and stats for eight of the snazziest sports cars ever to hit the pavement. Vehicles are great . . . when they work. But when Things Fall Apart, they get really interesting. This isn't just a set of breakdown rules – it's a look at three completely different approaches that the GM can take when narrating a breakdown, and the three different methods the PCs will need to take to fix it. If you want vehicular troubles to advance the plot, not just frustrate the players, then this article is a must-read. Tales of haunted vehicles are ubiquitous in the modern world, and Spirited Rides shows us why. It conjures up three spooky transports: a classic ghost-ship, a pair of morally sensitive pickup trucks, and a kidnapping courier ship. Any of these would add some scary supernatural flavor if it were to drift into your campaign . . . Instantaneous travel is the dream of any exploring civilization. What if that were simply dropped in our laps, at a steep cost? While you answer that, consider that it's also been dropped in the lap of every other race, everywhere, that's willing to pay the price! That changes things some, yes? The Between-Space offers this fully fleshed-out plot device, along with advice on using it in settings from fantasy through historical to the far future. And you get your monthly fix of Pyramid goodness, including a Random Thought Table that helps make vehicular characters just as important as player characters, Odds and Ends that update spaceship dDR and make parking easier, and a Murphy's Rules that may change which car you grab when you have to dump a body! — Rev. Pee Kitty & Kromm __________________ Sean "Dr. Kromm" Punch <kromm@sjgames.com> *GURPS* Line Editor, Steve Jackson Games My DreamWidth [Just *GURPS* News]