Brian Rogers (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
subplotkudzu) wrote2007-07-19 07:11 am
subplotkudzu) wrote2007-07-19 07:11 am
Entry tags:
THUNDER claps
One of the comics that turned up for my birthday was the THUNDER Agents volume 2. I fell in love with the world of the The Higher United Nations Defense Enforcement Reserves back in the 80's when I read one of the attempts to re-start the title and spent two decades scrounging comic stores trying to find back issues of the originals. Now DC is reprinting the whole run in hardcover.
On one level, it takes all the fun out of the hunt, but having only secured 3 of the 19 originals I wasn't doing too hot. On another level - Yea! I get my THUNDER Agents! The book was a gem of the silver age, with all the flaws that you would expect when looking at it with modern eyes.
On one level, it takes all the fun out of the hunt, but having only secured 3 of the 19 originals I wasn't doing too hot. On another level - Yea! I get my THUNDER Agents! The book was a gem of the silver age, with all the flaws that you would expect when looking at it with modern eyes.
What most strikes me is how well it would work as a game. Our heroes are all members of a small but skilled international force designed to protect UN member states from the external threat of the Warlord, a mysterious figure who is collecting all scientific knowledge for his own nefarious aims. In issue 1 the Warlord raids the base of THUNDER's best scientist, the brilliant-but-misanthropic Professor Jennings; Jennnings is killed, he kept no notes, had no assistants and THUNDER is able to recover just a handful of devices. They have no idea how the devices work so they can't be reproduced, but they have figured out what a few of them do - they give people super-powers...with some drawbacks.
Top THUNDER agents are chosen to use these devices - each only gets one to limit the loss if they are defeated - and are used as aces in the hole for fighting the Warlord (and, this being the 60's, the Commies, no matter how little sense it makes for the UN Security Counsel to back that). For example, Dynamo becomes super-strong and indestructible, but gets weaker the long he uses the 'thunderbelt' and eventually they install a time regulator to stop the headstrong agent from killing himself via over-exertion in the field - 30 minutes of power a day, but when powered up he can knock over buildings and resist tank shells. For a GM looking for ways to control PC power levels, the device based, limited use powers in THUNDER stacked onto highly skilled agents it a great way to go.
Of course, it's a shame that I don't have time to run a THUNDER campaign - but players from the Host might recognize some parts of the concept - but if it's still rattling around in my cage come the next prospectus I might put it on there. After all, none of my players have read these, and are totally unaware of the Warlord's great secrets. Mooahahahahahahahaha!
Top THUNDER agents are chosen to use these devices - each only gets one to limit the loss if they are defeated - and are used as aces in the hole for fighting the Warlord (and, this being the 60's, the Commies, no matter how little sense it makes for the UN Security Counsel to back that). For example, Dynamo becomes super-strong and indestructible, but gets weaker the long he uses the 'thunderbelt' and eventually they install a time regulator to stop the headstrong agent from killing himself via over-exertion in the field - 30 minutes of power a day, but when powered up he can knock over buildings and resist tank shells. For a GM looking for ways to control PC power levels, the device based, limited use powers in THUNDER stacked onto highly skilled agents it a great way to go.
Of course, it's a shame that I don't have time to run a THUNDER campaign - but players from the Host might recognize some parts of the concept - but if it's still rattling around in my cage come the next prospectus I might put it on there. After all, none of my players have read these, and are totally unaware of the Warlord's great secrets. Mooahahahahahahahaha!