The Christmas Rangers!

Here's a Christmas brainstorm! Maybe someday, we'll flesh this concept out with game stats and more!

INTRODUCING... THE CHRISTMAS RANGERS!

From their secret headquarters somewhere on the North Pole, the Christmas Rangers stand ready to assist Santa when those who are particular naughty try to ruin Christmas for others, or when the forces of evil try to target Santa directly (such as agents of the Martian Diktat, Americans for Freedom from Religion, or the Iranian Republican Guard), they leap into action, wielding supernatural powers and clad in hi-tech battle armor.
   The Christmas Rangers wear colored armor from which they derive their individual names and which matches the powers they wield. The armor fully encases the wearer so their race is concealed, and it is styled in such a way that it hides the wearer's sex so each Christmas Ranger is a representative of all of humanity.
   Thanks to their armor, all Christmas Rangers can fly as fast as Santa's reindeer, can fire multi-colored, powerful laser beams from their wrists, and have strength that rivals that of the legends such as Sampson, Herakles, and Chuck Norris. The powers of the individual Rangers are as follows:


   The Green Ranger: The power to cause Christmas trees to manifest, as well as to heal those who are injured or sick.
   The Gold Ranger: The power to inspire generosity of spirit in even the most self-centered and greedy person, as well as bolster the confidence and sense of community of all people of good will.
   The Red Ranger: The power to tell the naughty from the nice, as well as to reinvigorate the tired and fill those who feel defeated with renewed strength and purpose.
    White Ranger: The power to cause snow to fall in the nearby area in even the hottest of climates, as well as the ability to freeze enemies in their tracks and to muffle sound.

The White Ranger, unmasked.

Happy Christmas from NUELOW Games!

Happy Christmas to someone who never gets any Christmas well-wishes--Allah!





Our biggest desire is a worldwide ceasefire, because Santa is up in his sleigh!

"Merry Christmas, Allah!"

Harpy Feather of Caroling

This is a magic item that is simple to create and fun for the entire adventuring party. All actions described must be taken by the characters who will ultimately wear the Harpy Feather of Caroling.

First, one has to acquire a harpy feather. Any feather will do, but it must take taken from a live harpy... and the harpy must be alive after the feather has been acquired.

Second, the feather must be taken to the Grove of Yule where the Spirit of Christmas must be asked to bless it. This can be done on the night of the 24th into the 25th of every month of the year. Characters must enter the grove unarmed.

Third, the feather must be mounted in a setting and put on a necklace (Craft [jewelry] DC7). The setting and necklace can be made of any permanent material, and may be created by a third party, but the assembly must be performed by the character who will be the owner and wearer of the Harpy Feather of Caroling.

Once the item is complete, whenever the character wears it, he or she will unfailingly remember the lyrics to any uplifting or joyful song that he or she has read or heard at any point in her life. The item also grants a +10 bonus to Perform (singing) skill checks when such songs are sung by the character.

The Harpy Feather of Caroling radiates faint Enchantment magic, but it never works for any person but the intended wearer... unless that wearer gifts it to another person out of kindness and love, Then the magic transfers.

(The preceding text is released under the Open Game License and may be reproduced in accordance with it. Copyright Steve Miller 2016.)

You won't find more Christmas action this side of 'Die Hard'!

For some different Christmas action this Holiday Season, you need to get yourself A Christmas Box from NUELOW Games! It's got comics and battle scenarios featuring NUELOW stars Jill Trent & Daisy Smythe, the Black Cat, and Judy of the Jungle; it's got Santa and his daughter Sugar Plum, Jesus Christ, Martians, Bill Clinton, and many more, all battling with the Spirit of Christmas in their hearts; it's got a collection of horror-themed short stories; and the core rulebook for ROLF!: The Rollplaying Game of Big Dumb Fighters....


Basically, it's everything you need to have a different sort of gaming experience with the family and loved ones this Christmas, and to otherwise entertain yourself while you are waiting up for Santa to bring the presents. (You can even ask Santa if he wants to play himself and join you for a ROLF! battle or two!)


Click here to get A Christmas Box--which features 8 fantabulous NUELOW Games Christmas-themed releases for a super-low price!

Random Superhero Background/Origin Tables

Do you want to play a superhero character but are having a hard time coming up with an origin story/background? Use the following random tables to help jump-start your imagination. (This material is system free, and it's presented under the Open Game License and may be reproduced in accordance with it.)

How did the Hero Get His or Her Powers?
Roll 1d12. Consult the Table.
1. Rocketed to Earth from an Alien Planet
2. Learned Mysticism from Tibetan Monks
3. Learned to Unlock the Full Potential of Your Mind and Body from Secret Cult of Mystics
4. Scientific Accident
5. Industrial Accident
6. Purposeful Scientitic Experimentation
7. Inventions of Your Own Design
8. Inventions Stolen from Evil-doers or Alien Beings
9. Blessed or Cursed by a god.
10. Born into a lost/hidden civilization that you left behind.
11. You're a Ghost or Some Other Kind of Supernatural Being
12. You're Just a Person Who Has a Unique Set of Skills, a Passion for Justice, and a Cool Costume.

What is the Hero's Sex?
Roll 1d12. Consult the table
1-4. Male
5-7. Female
8-10. Alien (roll an additional 1d6 to determine superficial sexual characterisitcs; 1-2 Male, 3-4 Female, 5-6 Shapeshifter with no specific sex.)
11-12. Android (use the tables in NUELOW's Dynamic Man for additional details

What is the Hero's Gender?
(You can also use this table to determine sexual orientation.)
Roll 1d12. Consult the table.
1-4. Male
5-8. Female
10-11. Fluid/Bisexual
12. Asexual.

What is the Hero's Race?
You can use the table in this post ("d20 System Racial Templates") to determine that. You can ignore the game mechanics if you are using a different game system than the one it was intended for, or if they don't fit with the character generation system used in your game.

Christmas is almost here!

Are you excited yet? Here at NUELOW Games, we're counting the minutes until we find out whether Santa thinks we've been naughty or nice! (This year, L.L. Hundal went to hand-deliver our wish lists, since we think there was probably a mistake last year.)

Meanwhile, here's a Christmas song to get you into the spirit and/or pass some of those very, VERY long minutes!

Calm Animals Minor Power and the Command Animal Superpower Talent Tree

It's time for another addition to the growing NUELOW Games d20 Superpowers System. This time out, we present powers intended to allow for the creation of superheroes who communicate with animals like Aquaman.  The minor power feat Calm Animals can serve as a prerequisite for most superpowers from the various talent trees presented on this blog and in many of our RPG/Comics hybrid products, but it is also the only way a character can gain access to the Command Animal Superpower Talents. That is a departure from how most of the superpower talent trees we've presented have worked so far, because we are building a system where strange combinations of powers are possible, just like with some comic book heroes and villains.

CALM ANIMALS [Minor Power Feat]
You have the power to soothe even the most savage beast.
   Benefit: By taking a full round action and making a successful Charisma check (DC12), the character turns creatures with Intelligence scores of 1-2 friendly towards him and neutral toward allied characters. He can influence a number creatures equal to his Charisma bonus. The creatures remain calmed for the duration of the encounter with them, or until they are attacked by the character or his allies.
   Targeted creatures must be within 30 feet of the character, and they must be able to see him under normal visibility conditions.
   Special: When selecting this feat, you gain a +4 bonus to Handle Animal skill checks. Ranks in the Animal Empathy or Handle Animal skills are added as a bonus to the Charisma check when using the Calm Animal power.

The Calm Animal Minor Power in action.

COMMAND ANIMAL SUPERPOWER TALENT TREE
You have a special talent for communicating with types of animals and directing them to following your instructions, no matter how wild and savage they might be.
   Command Amphibians: From frogs to salamanders, you may calm amphibians as described under the Calm Animals Minor Power and telepathically issue simple one- or two-word commands to them, such as having them attack a foe, carry an object, guard an entryway, or let you ride them. You may affect a number of amphibious animals equal to five times your Charisma bonus.
   Prerequisite: Calm Animals Minor Power feat
   Command Birds: From finches to vultures, you may calm birds as described under the Calm Animals Minor Power and telepathically issue simple one- or two-word commands to them, such as having them attack a foe, carry an object, guard an entryway, and so forth. You may affect a number of birds equal to five times your Charisma bonus.
   Prerequisite: Calm Animals Minor Power feat
   Command Fish: From angelfish to sharks, you may calm fish as described under the Calm Animals Minor Power and telepathically issue simple one- or two-word commands to them, such as having them attack a foe, carry an object, guard an entryway, or let you ride them. You may affect a number of fish equal to five times your Charisma bonus.
   Prerequisite: Calm Animals Minor Power feat
   Command Mammals: From apes to zebras, you may calm mammals as described under the Calm Animals Minor Power and telepathically issue simple one- or two-word commands to them, such as having them attack a foe, carry an object, guard an entryway, or let you ride them. You may affect a number of mammalian animals equal to five times your Charisma bonus.
   Prerequisite: Calm Animals Minor Power feat
   Command Reptiles: From crocodiles to turtles, you may calm reptiles as described under the Calm Animals Minor Power and telepathically issue simple one- or two-word commands to them, such as having them attack a foe, carry an object, guard an entryway, or let you ride them. You may affect a number of reptilian animals equal to five times your Charisma bonus.
   Prerequisite: Calm Animals Minor Power feat
   Superior Command Animals: Pick an animal type (amphibian, bird, fish, mammal, or reptile). You may command a number of that type of animal up to 20 times your Charisma bonus, within a 60-foot radius of your location in the manner described in the Command Animal Talents.
   Prerequisite: A Command Animal talent that matches the designated animal for Superior Command Animal.

Santa has the Calm Animal minor power, as well as Command Mammals,
Superior Command Animals (Mammals), and a few other powers!