Invaderz review by Sean McConkey

If you are a looking for a deep and philosophical game to explore the intricacies of your mind, then this is not the game for you.  However, if you are looking for a light-hearted and whimsical romp in between long running campaigns then this game can easily fill that need.  Early on the game touts itself as a ‘Beer and Crisps’ game (or a Beer and Pretzels game in the States), and it adheres to this easygoing philosophy. 

One takes on the role of a Jerkian Warrior, a clone of the great leader and whose purpose in life is to entertain the Exalted Emperor and feed the Exalted Emperor.  It’s not an easy life being among the lowest ranks, and a gruesome (though entertaining) death is almost a certainty.  One of the few ways to ensure your own survival is through treachery and betrayal of your fellow Jerkian Warriors, rank hath many privileges.. one of the most obvious being fewer missions in which death is likely.  Much of the book reads as a form of propaganda from the Jerkian Command to the freshly graduated Jerkian Warriors which make up the bulk of the populace.

While reading I could not help but be reminded of Paranoia’s dark humor and Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy sense of whimsy.  The introduction gently brings you into the world of role-playing games in general and begins building the over-all genre of this particular game.  The second chapter, Orientation, is a delightful romp into what is to be a Jerkian and the Jerkian Empire. Physiology, naming, duty, and other minutia of indoctrination are also covered.

Chapter three begins character creation and gives descriptions of the various Jerkians one can play.  A player might also find that he or she is saddled with one of the slave races that the Jerkians have conquered in their never ending pursuit to keep their Emperor pleased.  Each career has its own stats, special abilities, skills, and standard equipment.  One of my personal favorites were the Hamstoids Minesweepers, a race of extremely cute, chipper, and prolific creatures used to clear any and all explosives so that the Jerkian Warriors might pass through safely.  The one bonus of being a Hamstoid is that they are just so darn cute that people attacking a Jerkian patrol that has a Hamstoid in its party will always attack them last.

Chapter four covers rank and it’s privileges.  Players start of at rank three, Troopers, placing them above civilians and slaves. The following chapter is entitled Rules of Engagement, and goes into finer dtail of what an rpg is, what one needs to play, tone of the game, rules, and completes character creation.  Chapter four is truly the ‘guts’ of the game.  The rules are sparse, meant to be fun and easy instead of heavy and ponderous.

There is a decent list of equipment and experimental equipment included and a primer on what the Jerkians know of Earth.  Listed under the Field Guide chapter are the many enemies a Jerkian can bump into while on assignment and the Battle Plans chapter gives a slew of adventure ideas.  Finally, the book is completed with a guide to the other planets of that the Jerkians control.

• Artwork: 2 out of 5, the artwork is pretty basic.. yet extremely entertaining.
• Writing: 4 out of 5. It is clear, concise, and passes along the intended expression
• Overall: 4.5 out of 5.  A delightful game, easy to learn and play and laugh over.

You can buy Invaderz HERE

Gamma World: Nazi Origin

After all, what’s a gonzo-setting without Nazis? 

Nazis appear throughout post-apocalyptic, pulp, weird and other fictional forms as ‘baddies’, either as themselves (living on the moon, in the centre of the Earth, South America or dimensional/other worldly portals) or similar philosophies turn up with mutants thinking themselves superior, alien races running death/experimentation camps and so on. In gaming you have examples like Reich Star or the Coalition forces in RIFTs, through cinematic and pulp history you have any number of campy or serious examples from Planet of the Apes and Ralph Bakshi’s Wizards. Even Daleks are really just Nazis dressed up in a tin-can. As such it’s a ripe trope for any sort of gonzo setting, my own ’45 or the new Gamma World being great examples. They’re a quick, easy way to hit some well understood tropes and to bring them into a game.A stranded ‘uber’ from another dimension can make an interesting, reluctant ally and even a powerful antihero. For the ‘oldies’ amongst you, ‘Planet of the Damned’ from the obscure UK comic Starlord might be a good springboard for some ideas.

NAZI
………………………………………………………………..
YOU ARE A MEMBER OF THE MASTER RACE, WHICH JUST HAPPENS TO BE WHATEVER RACE YOU’RE A MEMBER OF. YOU ARE DESTINED TO RULE ALL OF GAMMA TERRA WITH YOUR FELLOWS. IT IS YOUR DESTINY! IT IS IN YOUR BLOOD!

The idea of inherent supremacy to a particular race or type is prevalent in many nations, many fascist ideologies and many dimensions. The concept is particularly appealing to those who have fallen upon hard times and need a convenient excuse to hate everyone else. You are the current iteration/result of one of these ideologies. Indoctrinated with unpleasant and scientifically questionable ideas, bred to be a perfect member of your particular ‘type’ and given over to frothing rants about the inferiority of everyone and everything else.

Nazis are looked down upon by almost all other sentient beings across Gamma Terra but they do tend to have nice looking uniforms and if you can get past the rabid rhetoric they’re more than willing to work with anyone who can further their cause. Nazi settlements tend to be paranoid and dangerous, but well organised with a lot of stockpiled Omega Technology.

Appearance: Most Nazis are either shining examples of the perfection of their particular type (your other origin roll) or quite the opposite. They wear natty black/brown uniforms and armour and always keep their boots nicely polished – where appropriate. Being the result of eugenics experiments rather than the more advanced techniques used to produce Engineered Humans, Nazis may display some of the effects of inbreeding.

NAZI TRAITS
Mutant Type: Charisma, Dark, +2 to Dark overcharge.
Skill Bonus (Level 1): Gain a +4 bonus to Interaction and Conspiracy checks.
Unbridled Hate (Level 1): Gain a +2 bonus to hit and damage against any enemy that doesn’t share traits/similarity of your origins. GM discretion determines what you can and cannot get this bonus against, a Nazi felinoid, for example, wouldn’t get the bonus against other supremacists (such as Hoops) or against any feline form of enemy.
Tech Cache (Level 1): When you draw Omega Tech you can draw an extra card and discard the one that you don’t like.
Nazi Critical (Level 2 or 6): When you score a critical hit the attack deals 1d10 extra damage + your level, with the same caveat as Unbridled Hate.

NAZI POWERS
HATE-FUELLED ATTACK – NAZI NOVICE
Your loathing for anything that isn’t like you lends itself to powerful strikes that harm your enemies, but expose you.
At-Will, Physical, Weapon
Standard Action, Melee or Ranged weapon
Target: One creature
Attack: d20+ Weapon accuracy + Your level Vs. AC.
Hit: 2[W] + your level physical damage and your AC is considered two lower until your next turn.

VILLAINOUS ARROGANCE – NAZI UTILITY
You laugh in the face of death. The truly superior cannot die!
Encounter, Dark
Minor Action, Personal
Effect: You gain resist 5 physical for the rest of the encounter but your Fortitude, Reflex and Will values are reduced by -2, after all, nothing can hurt you.

CRUELTY – NAZI EXPERT
When you destroy an enemy you do it in such a cruel and painful manner that their fellows cannot help but wince and turn away.
Encounter, Physical, Weapon
Standard Action, Melee or Ranged weapon
Effect: After an attack destroys or kills an enemy you can activate this power. Each enemy within 10 squares takes an attack of Charisma, plus your level vs. Will. If affected they may only make a minor action on their next turn as they are too disgusted and scared by what you just did to their fellow.

Invaderz: Lamethrower

A new experimental device, ready for use on the Earthian front, the Lamethrower is a combination of Jerkian military engineering and Gellarite alternative science.

When the device is activated it flings out a field that collapses quantum wavefronts, colliding universes until it finds the absolute worst incarnation of anything it is aimed at. A tank hit by this field may collapse into rust or turn into a number of ex-soviet tractors. A human soldier may transform from being a member of the elite special forces to an indolent, fat, unemployed peon without any of his weaponry or equipment.

The Lamethrower is powered by twin Chopra D-Packs giving it more than enough energy endurance to last a complete mission. The only problem comes with the fact that the field baffles degrade very quickly and this can result in a massive blow-back of quantum energy that can affect the wielder.

When the Lamethrower works all the target’s statistics are reduced to 1 and it is no longer Good or Very good at anything. If the Lamethrower goes wrong it backfires reducing the user’s statistics in the same way and breaking.

Lamethrowers can have their polarity reversed by an engineer with enough gubbins, turning it into a Leet-Ray. The Leet-Ray raises all statistics to 5 (if lower) and makes the target Very Good at every skill they have. If the Leet-Ray goes wrong it explodes, killing the user and hitting everyone in 100 feet with the effects of the Lamethrower.

You can buy Invaderz HERE