SPIRIT OF THE CENTURY PRESENTS...

HELL COMES TO HOLLYWOOD

AUTHOR

ILLUSTRATOR

EDITOR

SYSTEM DEVELOPER

BRIAN ENGARD

JAYNA PAVLIN

JOHN ADAMUS

LEONARD BALSERA

2012 EVIL HAT PRODUCTIONS, LLC

Explain, Attach Gonga. Some of the Centurions, a rare few Some of them what. A rare few remain, ahhh, unaccounted for, though we are sure that Gorilla Khan backhanded the albino ape hard enough to knock the attach off the side of his mount. The fool hit the ground and scrambled to once more gain his footing. Who? Khan asked. Im sorry? I said, who! Who has escaped our grasp? Ahhh. Gonga stood, dusting himself off. Amelia Stone. Mack Silver. Benjamin Hu. Jet Black. Sally Slick. Ahhh. Reports are coming in of others. Just a few! Just a few . . . Gorilla Khan and Attach Gonga, in a conversation atop a Gigantosaurus. From the pages of Dinocalypse Now.

This is an adventure for Spirit of the Century based on the events of Chuck Wendigs novel Dinocalypse Now. The events within this adventure take place concurrently with those in the novel, but they happen on the other side of the country in a region not covered in the novel. This means that you (the GM and the players) have a lot of room to play in when you use this adventure. To play this adventure, youll need to have a copy of Spirit of the Century (or, at the very least, access to the SotC SRD). It would help to have read Dinocalypse Now, but thats not strictly necessary. You should though; its an awesome book. Youll also need some characters. You can make your own characters, tying them into the events and people presented in this adventure. If you want to jump right in though, there are some partially pregenerated characters at the end of this adventure. They provide a good starting point with ties to whats going on in the adventure and they also allow some room for development during play, using the rules for creating a hero on the fly. Well, what are you waiting for? Go out there and punch a dinosaur in the face!

WHAT IS THIS?

Mere hours ago, a worldwide invasion started. The simian despot Gorilla Khan, with the aid of an army of warrior apes, dinosaurs, and psychic saurian humanoids, launched an assault on virtually every major city of the world, bringing human society to its knees. To make matters worse, the Centurions were targeted first, taken out of commission so that they couldnt aid in the worlds defense. Though New York City (er . . . New Khan City) was hit hardest by the dinosaur invasion, Gorilla Khan sent his forces all over the world. Khan wanted his capitol to be on the East Coast of the United States, in the greatest monument to humankinds dependence upon there concrete boxes, but he was smart enough to know he needed bases of power all over the world. Even within a single country like the United States he knew he would need more than one place from which to rule, so he sent many of his forces to Los Angeles under the command of one of his most trusted lieutenants, Margh.

WHATS GOING ON?

Los Angeles fell quickly, as did the majority of the Century Club, during the initial attack. A few, however, escaped. It started with the Projector. Though outnumbered and outgunned (from a psychic standpoint) by psychosaurs, the small man had a last-ditch effort, a Hail Mary pass that, though hed never actually tried it before, would work . . . in theory. Luckily (for him), it did. When he woke several minutes later he was surrounded by the same trio of psychosaurs but they were standing stock-still, their eyes vacant, their jaws slack. He fought fire with fire, and using his great psychic powers, sent their minds elsewhere. He knew he had a precious opportunity here. Not only could he escape the psychosaurs, he might actually be able to study them and find their weakness. Further, he quickly discovered that there were still a few Centurions left in the clubhouse that he could bring back . . . you! The chapterhouse in Los Angeles was no longer safe, though. The ragged scraps of the Century Club would have to find somewhere else to plan their counter-offensive . . .

Though not hit quite as hard as the former New York City, Los Angeles has certainly seen its share of troubles. Not only that, but youre caught right in the middle of it! There are a variety of different plots going on in Los Angeles right now: Marghs dinosaur invasion force, the psychosaur attack on the Century Club, Neanderthal scouting groups around the city, and the machinations of the Black Baron! Who will you defeat first? The rest of this document is a description of a series of problems that the heroes have to solve and goals for them to accomplish. Its likely that your group will play through some of these but not others. Those that you do play through might not occur in the order presented here; thats fine! These problems and goals are all just potential for adventure, things that may or may not happen depending on whats important to your players and their characters. A Spirit of the Century adventure is at its best when its playerdriven, when the players are the ones making the decisions and steering the plot in directions that interest them. Embrace that and have fun!

DINOS TAKE LOS ANGElES!

ENCOUNTER GROUPS
Throughout the adventure portion of this document youll find sidebars containing encounter groups for the various problems presented. These groups are divided into easy, moderate, and hard encounters; feel free to grab one of these whenever you dont have something specific in mind. An easy encounter is a good way to showcase how skilled and awesome the PCs are, a moderate encounter will challenge them, and a hard encounter will require them to really work together and find clever solutions in order to succeedor to run away! You can also modify the encounter groups listed, adding or removing enemies to scale the difficulty for more or fewer players. The encounter groups below assume three or four Centurions, so add another bad guy or two for more, and remove one or two for fewer. You can also add encounter groups together to create mixed encounter groups (though thatll increase the difficulty of the encounter, too). Generally speaking, two easy groups added together is equivalent to a moderate group, two moderate groups is a hard group, and two hard groups will almost certainly be too much for your group.

PROBlEM: ESCAPE FROM THE CENTURY ClUB!

The players awaken in the Century Club headquarters of Los Angeles, the Projector standing over them and urging them to get up and come with him. He explains in hushed tones that the Century Club was attacked by strange psychic lizard-men and that most of the Centurions fell to their psychic attacks. The Projector was able to fight off the ones that came for him and, as he was fleeing the headquarters, he stumbled across the PCs supine forms, unguarded. After some trial and error he was able to rouse them from their slumber, but now they must escape! Make it clear to the PCs that the Century Club is overrun and that staying is not an option. They are hopelessly outnumbered and it would be to their advantage to retreat somewhere else, regroup, and plan a counter-attack of

some kind. Dont let the PCs sit around and talk too long; if things get too talky, throw some bad guys at them! Feel free to do the same as theyre making their escape, but be sure to vary the encounters somewhat. Its fun to have a knock-down drag-out fight from time to time, but its also just as good to sneak past a group of inattentive apes or even play through an exciting chase scene as the psychosaurs bear down on them.

WHAT HAPPENEd TO YOU?

To help get the players into the action and invested in whats going on, you can ask them to narrate how they were taken down by the psychosaurs prior to the start of the adventure. Use this material to generate plot hooks and story fodder; for example, if a PC was taken down trying to save a group of civilians, thats youre cue to endanger more civilians in front of that same PC later!

ENCOUNTER GROUPS FOR THE OPENING SCENE

EASY ENCOUNTERS
A warrior ape and six to eight warrior ape minions A single velociraptor A single psychosaur

MOdERATE ENCOUNTERS
Two warrior apes and eight to ten warrior ape minions Two velociraptors Two psychosaurs A velociraptor and two warrior apes Two warrior apes and a psychosaur

HARd ENCOUNTERS
Four to six warrior apes A pack of four velociraptors Two velociraptors, two warrior apes, and a psychosaur

THE PROJECTOR
The Projector is a moderately powerful psychic whose amplifying helmet boosts his modest mental powers to truly heroic levels! Both a psychic and a gadget-man, the Projector built his helmet himself. Hes not much of a fighter though, so the PCs will have to do the lions share of punching and shooting.

SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS
Fabulous Mental Powers! | Inventor Extraordinaire! | My Mind is My Weapon | Better Part of Valor | Showman | My Amplification Helmet | I sense a disturbance . . . | Now theyll take me seriously! | Fortress of Intellect | Well-Read, Well-Bred, Well-Educated

SKIllS
Superb Great Good Fair Average Mysteries Academics, Engineering Alertness, Empathy, Investigation Drive, Gambling, Pilot, Rapport Art, Athletics, Guns, Leadership, Resolve

STUNTS
Mysteries Mesmerist, Psychic, Words on the Wind Engineering Personal Gadget x 2

GEAR
Amplification Helmet: Unbelievable, Craftsmanship (Mysteries), Alternate Usage (Mysteries instead of Alertness).

SPECIAl RUlES
Psychic Defense: If only one psychosaur is present, the Projector can keep it locked down, preventing it from using its Psychic Whammy. If two are present, he can impose a -2 penalty on their Psychic Whammy powers. If three or more are present he can place a Psychic Distraction aspect on every psychosaur present, but itll have to be invoked to get any benefit from it. If the Projector does any of these things, hes using his action to do so.

STRESS
Health Composure

FATE POINTS: 5

CHOOSING GOAlS
So the PCs have escaped from the overrun Century Club and are out on the streets of Los Angeles. Now what? At the time of their escape, Los Angeles is in bad shape. Dinosaurs, warrior apes, and psychosaurs are everywhere. Citizens are being hunted down and rounded up, taken to who knows where. Worst of all, all of the other Centurions in the city have been taken captive and there seems to be no organized defense or resistance; the city was taken so much by surprise that theres simply nobody to oppose the invaders! Now the heroes need to figure out what their goals are. They might want to spend time gathering together and getting them out of the city, or the might decide they want to raise an army to defeat Gorilla Khans proxy in the city. They might want to do both! Here are some goals you can suggest if they seem to be floundering a bit. These goals are not mutually exclusive; the PCs can try to accomplish as many of these as theyd like to! Get civilians safely out of the city. Build an army to retake the city from the invading forces. Infiltrate Marghs stronghold and defeat the ape. Free the Centurions that Marghs forces have taken captive. Retake the Century Club from the apes occupying it.

I WANT TO RUN!
Some PCs may decide that the forces arrayed against them are too great and that theyd rather run and live to fight another day. There are a number of problems with that. For one, its not very heroic. There are still people in Los Angeles to be saved, and their fellow Centurions are depending on them. Let them know that running is a temporary solution at best; if they run now, sooner or later the dinosaur army will catch up with them. If the PCs are intent on leaving the city, give them a goal that will lead them back into the city later when theyre in a stronger position. Mentioning Fort Liberty (page11) as a place to get trained, equipped soldiers to help them fight off the apes might be enough to convince them to stay and fight rather than turning tail and taking off !

GOAl: FINdING A HEAdQUARTERS!

The heroes cant just stay out on the streets; they need to find somewhere relatively safe and defensible so that they can plan their next move. There are any number of houses or apartment buildings they can take as their headquarters, but theyll most likely have to share these with refugees and former citizens of Los Angeles. This may wind up being to their advantage. A populated building offers the possibility of many hands to make light work, and the heroes may even be able to train the citizens into some sort of fighting force in order to make striking back easier. There are disadvantages though to commandeering a house or apartment building. For one thing, its unlikely to provide much of a vantage point for surveying the whole city. For another, houses and apartment buildings are rarely built to withstand any sort of attack, much less an assault by rampaging dinosaurs. In addition, the people taking shelter in these places are likely not trained soldiers or even untrained fighters. They will need protection and training, and the density of population will likely draw the attention of the invaders or the Black Baron.

APARTMENT ASPECTS
Many Hands, Light Work Lots of Ways In and Out Well-Supplied and Furnished A Home, Not a Fortress

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A second option is to take shelter in the sewers. The sewers make it much easier to stay under the radar, but they present their own dangers (see page15 for dangers and scene aspects). They also have the disadvantage of offering no ability to see whats happening on the surface; if the PCs hole up under the streets, theyll likely lack for intel. Office buildings can make for good headquarters. They tend to be tall, commanding a good view of the city and offering plenty of early warning should enemies start converging on the building. Many citizens are also taking shelter in the offices of Los Angeles due to the space they offer; this means that they have some of the same advantages and disadvantages of houses and apartments. They tend to be a little bit easier to defend, though; more choke points, more places to hide and maneuver.

OFFICE ASPECTS
Good Vantage Point Choke Points Not a Place to Live Roomy

Another option is the military baseFort Libertyjust outside the city. (We know, its not actually there in real life. Who cares about historical accuracy in a pulp game? Go with whats fun!) A military base makes for an excellent headquarters for the Centurions. There are even Army personnel on-hand whom the heroes can try to lead as their very own army against the apes, dinosaurs, and other threats of the city. Treat these military personnel as minions of Good(+3) or Great(+4) quality. Some might even be henchmen or lieutenants who could follow the heroes for a short time without needing to spend a stunt on them, though theyll need convincing (Rapport, Deceit, or Intimidate) to be convinced to follow the Centurions.

FORT LIBERTY ASPECTS

Defensible Well-Supplied Full of Guns

PROBlEM: DINOSAURS EVERYwHERE!

Marghs invasion force is everywhere, mopping up the last of the resistance in LA. They are everywhere on the streets, and the heroes will have to contend with them frequently as they move around. Dinosaurs are the most significant and dangerous threat the PCs will run into. Start with an easy encounter, but escalate quickly the closer the PCs get to their goal. Velociraptors and T-Rexes are found out hunting, while a beast like a triceratops will be found guarding something important (like the Texaco Building). Any of these threats has the potential for a fight but, unless the PCs are well-equipped or exceptionally lucky, theyre unlikely to last very long against such beasts. Running might be the safer solution, which could (should?) lead to even more trouble! Dinosaurs are

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often set as guards for important locations, too; a triceratops in particular makes an excellent guard beast. Such a creature will defend its charge but is unlikely to pursue fleeing heroes due to behavioral constraints. The PCs will also run into one of the many roving bands of psychosaurs in Los Angeles. These creatures walk a deliberate and thorough pattern through the streets, making sure to cover as much ground as possible. They will pursue PCs that they see, using their Psychic Whammy to try to subdue them. This is another straight-up fight. Winning it will allow the Projector some time to study the psychosaurs and determine a possible counter to their powers (such as a brass crown), while losing can allow for an opportunity to put the PCs in front of Margh himselfalbeit very likely before theyre ready. Closer to Marghs seat of power (the Texaco Building, chosen for its height), the PCs will find find groups of five or six warrior apes, some even with dinosaurs accompanying them. These apes have instructions to hunt down survivors and rebels and capture them or, failing that, kill them. Its possible that the PCs could parlay their way into an audience with Margh if they were to fawn enough and be as obsequious as possible.

INVAdING ARMY ENCOUNTER GROUPS

EASY ENCOUNTERS
A mob of eight to ten warrior ape minions Two warrior apes A warrior ape and a psychosaur A velociraptor

MOdERATE ENCOUNTERS
Two psychosaurs and four to six warrior ape minions Four warrior apes Two or three velociraptors

HARd ENCOUNTERS
Two psychosaurs and four warrior apes Five or six velociraptors A T-Rex or triceratops

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PROBlEM: NEANdERTHAlS!
The Neanderthals of the Hollow Earth, led by the crafty Garrok, can be found all over the city. They have instructions to observe and gather information that could be used when the main force attacks the west coast, but that doesnt mean they wont get involved in fisticuffs if the opportunity presents itself. The Neanderthals are trying to escape notice; however, Garrok is the kind of Neanderthal who will use the Centurions presence to his advantage, playing his enemies against each other. Groups will strike quickly and retreat, only to strike again later. The Neanderthals have a code of honor that they adhere to, but Garrok hand-picked scouts for their moral flexibility and willingness to fight dirty when necessary. Once hes softened the PCs up a bit, Garrok will approach them with a deal: an alliance to defeat the invading army. What hell try very hard not to tell the PCs is that he fully plans on betraying them at some point, probably when it would cause the maximum amount of chaos to both Centurions and Marghs forces. Then he and his scouts will quietly slip away, reporting back to Atok.

ENCOUNTER GROUPS FOR THE STREETS

EASY ENCOUNTERS
Two Neanderthals

MOdERATE ENCOUNTERS
Four Neanderthals

HARd ENCOUNTERS
Five Neanderthals plus Garrok

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PROBlEM: THE BlACK BARON!

Shortly after emerging from the Century Club, while the PCs are dealing with the invading forces and the Neanderthal scouts, the Black Barons thugs start to harass them. These are minor problems at first, but should escalate to become real threats as the Baron becomes more and more aware of the potential threat (and the potential opportunity) that the PCs represent. The Baron is not trying to kill the PCs, though; hes testing them, testing their abilities and their personalities so that he can determine how best to approach them for an alliance.

BlACK BARON ENCOUNTERS

Always throw at least eight minions against the PCs, and as many as twelve or fourteen for truly difficult encounters. Start them at Average(+1) quality for easy encounters, Fair(+2) or Good(+3) for moderate encounters, or Great(+4) for really tough ones. To put the screws to the players, throw William Cutter into the mix,too.

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Eventually, the Baron will send some of his thugs with an offer of alliance. Itll be a large group of highly trained thugs and, should the PCs refuse, theyll simply attack and try to subdue the heroes anyway so they can bring them back to the Baron. The Black Baron is an incredibly wealthy man with a vast network of criminals and conspirators and access to cutting-edge (and in some cases, future) technology. His goal is to put all of Los Angeles under his thumb, then all of California, then the United States. Hes unlikely to stop there. Though a minor threat in the grand scheme of things now, if left unchecked he could be every bit as dangerous as Gorilla Khan is. If the PCs decide to deal with the Baron before he escalates things too far, its possible theyll get the drop on him. During the invasion hes preoccupied with fighting apes, learning how they control their dinosaur war machines, and gathering more thugs to his cause. As such his organization could be easy to infiltrate and his distraction could prove his undoing. To do so, though, theyll have to get into his lair in the sewers.

SEwER SCENE ASPECTS

Dark, Dank, and Disgusting No Road Signs or Landmarks Maze-Like Catacombs Rats and Refuse Everywhere Strange Echoes

All of the Barons thugs are minions of Average(+1) to Great(+4) quality, and are found in groups of at least eight; use the encounter groups in Under the Streets, above. In addition, the Baron has Cutting Edge Security and a Maze-Like Fortress to discourage people from taking him on directly. These two things usually allow him a significant amount of warning before he has to deal with intruders and, at that point, hes usually gathered at least twenty of his best thugs to help fight them off. That said, its possible that Centurions skilled in Stealth, Burglary, Deceit, Rapport, or Intimidate could get past the bulk of his security to deal with him more privately. Doing so is not easy. There are five checkpoints between the entryway to the Barons hideout and his inner sanctum.

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Sneaking past these checkpoints with Stealth starts at a difficulty of Fair(+2) and increases by one for every checkpoint closer to the Baron that the PCs get. Yes, that means the difficulty is Fantastic(+6) closest to the Baron. Security systems can be disabled to make the job easier; there are security consoles at the first, third, and fifth checkpoint. Disabling each requires a Burglary roll at Good(+3), and lowers the difficulty of Stealth rolls by 1 for each console disabled. Of course, the PCs could always take the direct approach and simply demand an audience with the Baron. This will take very little convincing, but the guards will insist on disarming the heroes before taking them to see their leader. Unless they can convince the thugs otherwise or hide weapons and tools on their personDeceit at Good(+3)theyll find themselves face to face with the Black Baron, twenty of his thugs, and possibly William Cutter, with nothing to defend themselves with should things turn sour. The Black Barons most dangerous level of protection is the assassin William Cutter. Cutter is intelligent, observant, and highly lethal. He spends most of his time acting as a bodyguard and second-in-command to the Black Baron, and hes very difficult to fool. When the Barons early warning systems fail him, Cutter rarely does. If Cutter can be separated from the pack and dealt with on his own, it would be significantly easier to take down the Baron. The good news is that, if the Black Baron is defeated, his thugs will swear fealty to whoever took him down. They respect strength and are also afraid of a world ruled by apes and dinosaurs; these two things working together can create a loyal, if volatile, army. If the heroes use the Barons help first and try to deal with him later, theyll have a much harder time of it. Hell be stronger, hell have more henchmen, he wont have the threat of the invasion to worry about, and he may even have figured out how to control the dinosaurs. In this case hell be much less likely to trust the PCs and much more likely to simply try to dispose of them out of hand. In addition, his thugs may be less inclined to switch sides if hes defeated. Theyll know that the law is back in effect, and might instead run or even try to take the Centurions down so that they dont have to deal with the consequences of their masters defeat.

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PROBlEM: WE NEEd A LAB!

Shortly after defeating their first or second group of psychosaurs, the Projector decides that hed like to do some research on the creatures in order to discern their weaknesses. The problem is that he needs a good lab. The lab in the Century Club is the best bet, and hes familiar with it; however, a military lab (such as the one at Fort Liberty) could do the job in a pinch. If the PCs manage to get the Projector to a lab that he can use for a day or two, hell come up with the idea of using a brass helmet to counteract the effects of the Psychosaurs psychic whammy (page38). Given a few more days, he can even figure out a way to take down all of the psychosaurs at once: if a live psychosaur can be captured and brought to the lab, the Projector can use his own psychic powers to cause a feedback loop within its mind. Since all psychosaurs are psychically linked, this feedback loop will take down all the psychosaurs in the city within a few minutes, rendering them comatose!

GOAl: RETAKE THE CENTURY ClUB!

Whether the PCs get this idea from the Projectors prodding above or they simply decide that the Clubhouse makes for the best headquarters, if theyve waited a day or two to launch a counteroffensive on it, then things have gotten significantly easier. After a few days, once its become clear that the all of the Centurions have either been captured or have escaped, Margh pulls most of the psychosaurs and some of the apes out of the clubhouse. He leaves some guards behind in case people get any ideas, but not nearly as many as there were before. . Use encounter groups from the opening scene for the guards left behind. Though the PCs are still outnumbered by the guards, its possible that they could gather some support or use clever tactics to take the guards out. If they do, they once again have control of the Century Club and have access to its resources. However, unless they capture or kill all of the guards, at least one of them will go back to Margh and report whats happened. Margh is not going to be pleased. The other option is to try to sneak in and take a few important things, then sneak out and go back to whatever temporary shelter the PCs have set up. This is probably the easier of the two options; the guards arent expecting anyone to be foolish enough to try to sneak back into the Century

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Club, so theyre not as attentive as they should be. The PCs can use Stealth versus the guards Alertness to try to sneak past them, but a failed roll or a scuffle will quickly wake the others. Moving silentlyor even taking the guards down silentlycould prove an incredibly effective strategy.

CENTURY ClUB SCENE ASPECTS

Skeleton Crew of Guards Empty Hallways Deactivated Security Systems Well-Stocked, but Looted

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GOAl: RAISE AN ARMY!

The PCs may be able to get into the Texaco Building and defeat Margh, but defeating one ape does not defeat the entire invading force. Theyre going to need some way to kick the army of apes and dinosaurs out of the city, and thats going to require more than just four or five people, Centurions or not! Theyre going to need allies. The easiest allies to recruit are the soldiers of Fort Liberty (see above). Theyre trained, equipped, and seeking someone with the gumption to lead them against an army of dinosaurs. There are only about fifty of them, though, which limits their ability to be effective. Throughout the city, though, there are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of civilians who have not yet been captured by apes or eaten by dinosaurs. Many of these people are frightened and incapable of fighting, but some of them will be able to help, and some of them will even be eager to do so. Finding groups of civilians isnt hard, but convincing them to rise up against the invaders is a Rapport roll of at least Good(+3) difficulty. Equipping them using extra supplies from Fort Liberty or supplies scavenged from the city can make them a somewhat effective, if not formidable, fighting force. Use a Resources roll with a Good(+3) difficulty to allow the PCs to equip the civilians; scene aspects could easily be invoked to increase the odds of success. Among these untrained citizens will be a few, though, who can help lead the army. Police officers, government agents, and other highly trained people can be quite useful! Finding highly trained citizens is not easy, though; it requires a Contacting roll at Fair(+2) difficulty. A Rapport roll at the same difficulty can convince these individuals to help; they may be harder to find, but theyre better equipped to handle whats going on right now. An exceptionally effectivethough also exceptionally dangerous source of help could even be the Black Baron and his own army. He commands a sizeable force of trained henchmen and minions, and his numbers swell every day as he recruits more criminals to his cause. His first priority is to defeat the apes and repel the invasionafter all, he cant rule the city if Margh beats him to it! He wont help the Centurions for free, though. The Baron has all the money he can use, but favors from powerful individuals are very interesting to him. He will target particularly honorable

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Centurions when negotiating, ensuring that the ones in debt to him are the ones most likely to make good on those debtseven if they hate the idea of doing so. Any alliance with the Baron will be short-lived, though. As soon as the immediate threat is overcome, the heroes will find themselves with a powerful enemy who is more than willing to betray them, particularly if theyre unwilling to pay their debts. A final place that the heroes may find aid is by freeing the other Centurions, the ones captured by Marghs forces. They are currently being held on his flagship, the Eagle of Terror. The Eagle is a massive zeppelin hovering above the city, several hundred feet above the Texaco Building. If the heroes manage to board it and defeat its crew (more on that later), they may find themselves able to liberate as many as forty Centurions held in mental stasis. This could provide a serious advantage to the heroes!

PROBlEM: THE CAPTUREd CENTURIONS!

Marghs flagship, the Eagle of Terror hovers above the city, near the Texaco Building. This was how the ape and many of his soldiers got into Los Angeles so quickly, but Margh took up residence in the Texaco Building, and left a skeleton crew aboard the Eagle to guard the comatose Centurions. This does not mean, however, that it will be easy to sneak aboard and free the Centurions. The first obstacle is actually getting aboard the zeppelin. A biplane or jetpack is the most likely way of getting onto the massive airship, but either method poses two problems. First, its difficult to be stealthy while flying a vehicle with a jet engine; a Stealth roll at a Great(+4) difficulty can be attempted, but feel free to compel aspects from The Skies (such as Out in The Open to make things . . . interesting. Second, apes riding pterosaurs patrol the skyways around the Eagle watching for just such a thing. Any assault on the Eagle of Terror is likely to be just that: a head-on assault. The PCs will also have to figure out how to dock with the Eagle. A skilled pilot can get into the docking bay with minimal damage to his or her craft; a Pilot roll at Great(+4) will do it smoothly, while each shift below will cause stress to the craft in question. The difficulty for a person on a jetpack is much lower, at Average(+1); small size, in this case, is an advantage.

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Once on the ship, though, things get easier. Margh doesnt expect an attack on his airship. Hes taken the airport and he thinks thats enough to keep the Eagle safe. As a result, the Eagle is not particularly well-guarded on the inside. There are ten apes aboard the zeppelin standing guard and maintaining the ship; throw them at the PCs in groups of two or three (theyre spread around the ship). There are also three psychosaurs, whose only job is to keep the Centurions in their blissful ignorance of the world around them; theyre unlikely to respond to anything short of an attack on the actual holding cells. The Eagle of Terror itself is a huge airship with a number of rooms. Its Built for War, but the balloon holding it aloft is Fragile. This may or may not be useful to the heroes. Either way, its A Long Way Down.

ENCOUNTERS AROUNd THE EAGLe OF TeRROR

The skies around the Eagle are patrolled by apes riding pterosaurs and wielding Atlantean weapons that function as guns. Both the apes and the pterosaurs can participate in the fight, though taking out a pterosaur will also take out the ape riding it. Throw large numbers of enemies against the PCs; the Eagle is wellguarded. Start with two or three, then amp it up to five or six. Keep the pressure on until the PCs are able to dock with the zeppelin.

SKIES ASPECTS
Out in the Open Room to Maneuver Long Way Down

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PROBlEM: AN INVASION TO STOP!

In order to stop the invasion of Los Angeles the heroes have to accomplish two things. First, they have to defeat Margh in some way, whether its single combat or during a massive firefight. Margh will not allow the invasion to stop while hes still in charge and his mener, apesrespect and fear him enough that they will not surrender until he is defeated. Seeing him defeated, however, could be massively demoralizing to the ape invasion force. Margh is most likely to be found in the Texaco Building, on the top floor. He chose this building for its superior vantage point and he keeps the top floor guarded by apes and psychosaurs at all times; the rest of the building is empty. Use medium or hard encounters for these, and include an encounter group with Margh; he will not be fought alone.

TEXACO BUIldING SCENE ASPECTS

Very High Up Large Windows Stronghold of the Invaders If the PCs have decided to free the rest of the Centurions, you can easily set the climactic battle against Margh there. In this case hes on the airship inspecting things, and hes brought his elite guard with him. In addition to the encounters specified under Freeing the Other Centurions, add a hard encounter group from this section and put Margh in it. Defeating Margh alone is not enough, though; Margh is but one ape, albeit a powerful one with a lot of authority. The heroes will have to gather a force large enough to repel the invaders or otherwise find some way to turn the tide of the invasion. Right now the humans of Los Angeles are on the run. Marghs forces are not superior numerically, but each ape is physically more powerful that a single human (or even two or three humans). Plus, dinosaurs. And psychosaurs. Things arent looking good. The psychosaurs are really the key to dealing with the invading force. Without the psychosaurs, theres nobody to control the dinosaurs and keep the local population in line. If the PCs were to somehow disable the

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psychosaurs under Marghs command (some sixty in total), it would very likely break the back of the invaders, turning the tide. This is an opportunity for the PCs to do some research and try to find some clever way to take them all out at once. Theyre psychically linked to each other after all, and that makes them vulnerable to some sort of psychic attack. The Projector is not powerful enough on his own to pull off such an attack, but the heroes might be able to find some way to amplify his power. This might be an opportunity to steer them toward retaking the Century Club.

BIG FINAlE ENCOUNTER GROUPS

MEdIUM
Four warrior apes Two warrior apes and ten ape minions Two warrior apes, a psychosaur, and six ape minions

HARd
Six warrior apes Four warrior apes and twelve ape minions Four warrior apes, a psychosaur, and six ape minions

CONClUSION
With the material above, its possible this could stretch out into multiple adventures as the PCs gather an army, free their captive fellow Centurions, take on the invading army, then deal with the new threat of the Black Baron. Once theyve gotten Los Angeles back into relative safety, theres the wider world to consider. The attack on Los Angeles (or New York City, for that matter) is simply one prong of an assault with many fronts. Apes and dinosaurs attacked every major city in the world in one night; thats a huge force with some serious clout behind it. Los Angeles may be safe for now, but the PCs will likely have to quickly turn their sights to defending the city and mounting some sort of resistance movement in a world already taken over by dinosaurs and apes. It seems like an impossible task. But hey, thats what heroes do!

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Los Angeles during the Dinocalypse is home to quite a few dangerous creatures and individuals. Dinosaurs, psychosaurs, soldier apes, even a few Shadow Centurions and Neanderthals!

MOOKS, CRITTERS, &NEER-DO-WEllS

THE BlACK BARON

Once merely another new money upstart in the Hollywood Hills, Archard Cole was not satisfied at being looked down upon by the true aristocracy of Los Angeles, despite his vast wealth and the fact that he was a Centurion. Cole made his money in the booming motion picture business, but that garnered little respect amongst the old money elite. His wounded ego, lack of moral fiber, and flare for the dramatic drove him to assume the persona of the Black Baron, criminal mastermind of Los Angeles. When Khans invasion started, Cole sensed an opportunity to make his one-time rivals beg aid. Which he would be too happy to provide, for the right price.

SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS
Flair for the Dramatic | Vast Resources | Driven by Ego | My intellect has no equal! | Cutting-Edge Gizmos | Tall, Dark, and EVIL | Ill make them beg. | Blinded by Vengeance | I recognize no authority but my own.

SKIllS
Superb Great Good Fair Average Resources Contacting, Leadership Academics, Deceit, Intimidation Athletics, Fists, Guns, Rapport Alertness, Empathy, Investigation, Mysteries, Weapons

STUNTS
Leadership Minions (SotC 168) Resources Headquarters, Lair, Stately Pleasure Dome (SotC 188-190)

STRESS
Health Composure

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FATE POINTS: 5

GARROK, CONNIVING NEANdERTHAl LEAdER

Though Atok is war leader of the Neanderthals of the Hollow Earth, he could not be in two places at once. He needed someone to lead the scouting team into Los Angeles, someone who would be able to observe and report back when his group rejoined the army. Garrok was known for being clever and intelligent and, though he sometimes played fast and loose with honor, nobody doubted his loyalty to the Hollow Earth. So said the Elders, and so Atok chose him.

SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS
Crafty and Clever | Lead from the Rear | Always Do the Unexpected | The Hollow Earth is my home. | I am NOT a coward! | I serve Atok . . . for now. | Brutally Efficient | Runt of the Litter | Old Grudges | Honor is Flexible

SKIllS
Superb Great Good Fair Average Alertness Investigation, Stealth Deceit, Empathy, Fists Athletics, Endurance, Leadership, Mysteries Intimidation, Might, Rapport, Resolve, Survival On Top of It (SotC 119) The Honest Lie, Clever Faade (SotC 137-138) In Plain Sight (SotC 197) Composure

STUNTS
Alertness Deceit Stealth

STRESS
Health

FATE POINTS: 6

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MARGH, APE COMMANdER

Though Khan does not share power lightly, he had to delegate command of parts of his offensive to other apes if he wanted to attack every major city simultaneously. He entrusted the assault on Los Angeles to his most trusted and capable lieutenant, Margh. Margh is a massive gorilla, his face missing one eye and adorned with deep, craggy battle scars. He has little in the way of mercy or a sense of humor and is completely loyal to Khan.

SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS
Built like a Tree Trunk | Khan is My Master | I could crush your skull in my palm. | Deceptively Quick | The Jungle Drums Call | Many Battles, Many Scars | Single-Minded Focus | Humans are weak. | The Sword of Atlantis | The Strong Survive

SKIllS
Superb Great Good Fair Average Weapons Endurance, Fists Athletics, Might, Resolve Alertness, Intimidation, Leadership, Mysteries Empathy, Investigation, Rapport, Stealth, Survival Acrobat (SotC 126), Climber (page38) Herculean Strength (SotC 171) Weapon of Destiny (SotC 206)

STUNTS
Athletics Might Weapons

GEAR
Sword of Atlantis: Sword with craftsmanship and arcane.

STRESS
Health Composure

FATE POINTS: 6

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NEANdERTHAl WARRIOR
Shortly after Khans invasion succeeded a second invasion hit: the Neanderthals of the Hollow Earth unleashed themselves upon the surface world. Though the primary forcelead by Atokattacked what was once New York City, Atoks second in command, Garrok, was dispatched to the West Coast to lead the secondary force. This force was much smaller and was to perform scouting missions, aimed at gathering information on the apes strength and that of the remaining humans.

SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS
Peerless Hunter | For the Hollow Earth! | Fight with Honor | Warrior Race

SKIllS
Superb Great Good Fair Weapons Endurance, Might Alertness, Fists, Survival Intimidation, Resolve, Stealth Last Leg (SotC 144) Brawler (SotC 150), Fists of Fury (SotC 152) Composure

STUNTS
Endurance Fists

STRESS
Health

FATE POINTS: 4

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PSYCHOSAUR
Though they can pass for human when they want to, psychosaurs are reptiles that walk on two legs. Worse than that, they have powerful psychic abilities able to rend your mind from your body and launch it back in time!

SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS
Lizard Grin | JUST LET GO | Pass for Human . . . Barely | Slaves to Khan | Psychically Linked

SKIllS
Superb Great Mysteries Fists, Endurance Psychic Whammy, Psychic Disguise (page38) Composure

STUNTS
Mysteries

STRESS
Health

FATE POINTS: 4

PTEROSAUR
Used for aerial support and scouting, Margh has a number of pterosaurs under his control (though not quite so many as Khan does). These creatures, while not particularly graceful in the air, are swift and their long, sharp beaks can be deadly to fleshy targets.

SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS
Clumsy on the Ground | Sharp Beak | Eyesight of a Hunter

SKIllS
Superb Great Good Athletics, Alertness Fists, Investigation Might, Endurance Flier (page38) Composure

STUNTS
Athletics

STRESS
Health

28 FATE POINTS: 2

TRICERATOPS
Though a Triceratops is an herbivore, the creature is basically a walking siege engine. Once provoked, these behemoths will charge through virtually anything in their path, goring and hurling whatever they come into contact with. Their armored neck-frills also make them hard to hurt head-on.

SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS
Walking Siege Engine | Violent Temper | Armored Neck-Frill

SKIllS
Superb Great Good Fists, Endurance Athletics, Might Alertness, Investigation Huge (page38) Charge! (page38) Composure

STUNTS
Endurance Fists

STRESS
Health

FATE POINTS: 1

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TYRANNOSAURUS REX
One of the deadliest predators to walk the earth is now in Los Angeles fighting for the apes! A T-Rex is big, hungry, and dangerous. Theyll eat anything that moves and theyre fast enough once that they get going its unlikely youll get away on foot. Good luck!

SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS
Huge Head, Little Arms | Big, Hungry, and Stupid | Apex Predator

SKIllS
Superb Great Good Fists, Endurance Athletics, Might Alertness, Investigation Huge (page38) Teeth (page38) Composure

STUNTS
Endurance Fists

STRESS
Health

FATE POINTS: 1

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VElOCIRAPTOR
Though they dont have the size of a T-Rex or the ability to swallow a person whole, velociraptors are every bit as dangerous. Theyre smaller, faster, and hunt in packs. Theyre extremely intelligent and frequently learn from their mistakes. Worst of all, they have claws capable of gutting someone in one swipe.

SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS
Pack Hunter | Smarter than it Looks | Quick and Deadly

SKIllS
Superb Great Good Athletics, Fists Alertness, Investigation Might, Endurance Claws (page38) Composure

STUNTS
Fists

STRESS
Health

FATE POINTS: 2

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WARRIOR APE
Khans forces in Los Angeles are legion and, even on their own, a single warrior ape is more than a match for your average human (though maybe not a Centurion!). Warrior apes are found all over Los Angeles, often in the company of dinosaurs or psychosaurs.

SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS
For Khan! | Tough and Mean | Warrior Spirit | The Wild Drums Beat

SKIllS
Superb Great Good Fair Fists Endurance, Athletics Intimidation, Might, Weapons Alertness, Investigation, Resolve, Survival Climber (page38) Composure

STUNTS
Athletics

STRESS
Health

MOBS OF APES!
The Warrior Ape provided here is a single, formidable opponent. This might be perfect for a massive gorilla with a sword or for a highlytrained soldier. But what if you want to model a bunch of grunts, a mob of apes who are not individually powerful but threatening as a group? If you want a mob of apes, use the minion rules from Spirit of the Century. A mob of apes would probably be at least Good(+3) minions (they are still apes after all) with the Climber stunt, and could easily be thrown in with one or two more potent Warrior Apes. Do what feels right for the scene at hand.

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WIllIAM CUTTER
A Centurion born, William Cutter was only ever good at one thing: getting to people and things thought to be untouchable. A spy, assassin, and sometimes thief, Cutter was freelance in Los Angeles until the Black Baron discovered him (stealing one of his priceless treasures, no less!) and offered him a better deal: work exclusively for the Baron, and live a life of luxury. Cutter, being an opportunistic man, accepted. At least, until a better offer comes along.

SIGNIFICANT ASPECTS
Unseen, Unheard | Man of Few Words | Ruthlessly Pragmatic | Stone Cold Killer | I can get to you. | Loyalty for Hire | Quietly Observant | Up Close and Personal | Stronger than He Looks | Cold Gray Eyes

SKIllS
Superb Great Good Fair Average Hand Stealth Burglary, Weapons Alertness, Empathy, Investigation Athletics, Contacting, Fists, Resolve Deceit, Endurance, Intimidation, Mysteries, Sleight of

STUNTS
Fists Stealth Weapons Martial Arts (SotC 152) In Plain Sight, Master of Shadows (SotC 197) Flawless Parry, Riposte (SotC 203) Composure

STRESS
Health

FATE POINTS: 5

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Its possible that your players will want to jump right into the action without spending a lot of time coming up with characters beforehand. Thats fine! If thats what you and your group want to do, here are three partially generated characters. Each consists of three aspects, three skills, and a single stunt. If you need more than three, feel free to modify these to create even more! Note that these characters are a little more detailed than an on-the-fly character usually starts out. If youd prefer to cleave a little closer to that method of character creation, drop one aspect, both of the Great skills, and the stunt. Remember to reduce starting fate points by 1 for each aspect dropped. Presto!

SAMPlE PlAYER CHARACTERS

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THE TwO-FISTEd DETECTIVE

The two-fisted detective is good at tracking people down but tends to mix things up first and ask questions later. She jumps right into the fray with little regard for her own safety and she can more than hold her own when she does. It does tend to get her into trouble from time to time, though.

ASPECTS
Mix it Up! | I know a guy. | I WILL catch William Cutter!

SKIllS
Superb Great Investigate Endurance, Fists Brawler (SotC 150) Composure

STUNTS
Fists

STRESS
Health

FATE POINTS: 3

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THE SIlVER-TONGUEd ARCHAEOlOGIST

When the dinosaurs invaded Los Angeles, the Archaeologist was the one everyone turned to. Hes always known a lot about the past and how to dig up information. The thing is, information about the past isnt the only thing he can dig up; hes a charmer, no two ways about it, and his silver tongue has served him well all those times hes had to go into dangerous territory in search of fabulous idols.

ASPECTS
The Past is My Livelihood | The Right Thing to Say | "Ive gotten out of way worse scrapes than this.

SKIllS
Superb Great Academics Empathy, Rapport Five Minute Friend (SotC 182) Composure

STUNTS
Rapport

STRESS
Health

FATE POINTS: 3

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THE ClAIRVOYANT SCHOlAR

Gifted with the ability to see glimpses of the unknown and to read minds, the Scholar has dedicated his life to solving the mysteries of the world. He has travelled far and wide studying ancient lore and forgotten religions, going where his visions take him. He tried to warn the other Centurions of the impending dinosaur invasion; he saw it coming three days in advance. Nobody believed him though. They do now.

ASPECTS
Three Moves Ahead | World-Wise | Everyones a Skeptic

SKIllS
Superb Great Mysteries Alertness, Resolve Psychic (SotC 177) Composure

STUNTS
Mysteries

STRESS
Health

FATE POINTS: 3

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NEw STUNTS
ATHlETICS
Climber: Apes can climb surfaces that humans cannot, and can do so with great speed and alacrity. They get a +2 bonus to any Athletics rolls made to climb and can do so one time increment faster. This may also allow them to ignore certain borders, like short fences or low walls. Flier: This dinosaur can fly. Though not particularly agile, they are capable of swift flight in a straight line. While flying, they can ignore any borders on the ground when moving from zone to zone.

ENdURANCE
Huge: This dinosaur is pretty damned big. It can attack anyone in its own zone or an adjacent zone with a Fists attack. It can also take an additional moderate physical consequence.

FISTS
Charge!: Once it gets its ire up, theres no stopping it! This dinosaur can charge through enemies, making an Athletics roll to sprint and then making a Fists attack against every creature in every zone the dinosaur enters. Claws: Whenever this dinosaur deals Health stress, it deals +1 stress. Teeth: Whenever this dinosaur deals Health stress, it deals +2 stress.

MYSTERIES
Psychic Disguise: Psychosaurs can project an illusion that makes them look kind of like a human, though not quite. The psychosaur rolls Deceit. Any human that comes into contact with a psychosaur can make an Alertness or Investigation roll to pierce the illusion, though by then its usually too late. Psychic Whammy: A psychosaur can make a Mysteries attack against a humans Resolve in order to deal Composure stress. A taken out result means that the humans mind has been separated from his or her body, leaving the human effectively comatose. This power doesnt work on apes, Neanderthals, dinosaurs, or any creatures other than humans. Brass offers protection against this effect: if a human has brass protecting his or her temples, all stress inflicted is reduced by 3. Additionally, distance offers some protection: for every zone between you and the psychosaur, you get a +2 bonus to your Resolve roll.

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Spirit of the Century Presents...

A new line of pulp-era ction! Talking apes, ying jet-men, and scrappy gadgeteering gals abound! Be on the look-out in the coming months for the following new titles in softcover and ebook, from Evil Hat Productions!
The Dinocalypse Trilogy, from author Chuck Wendig: Dinocalypse Now (ISBN 978-1-61317-003-8) Beyond Dinocalypse (ISBN 978-1-61317-016-8) Dinocalypse Forever (ISBN 978-1-61317-017-5)

King Khan by Harry Connolly (ISBN 978-1-61317-018-2) Khan of Mars by Stephen Blackmoore (ISBN 978-1-61317-019-9) ... As well as new novels by Atomic Robo scribe Brian Clevinger and Urban Shaman author C. E. Murphy!

Pick up Dinocalypse Now today, and watch the skies throughout the coming years for the rest! On sale from www.evilhat.com, as well as an online or brick & mortar bookstore near you!

Spirit of the Century is the pulp roleplaying game based on the awardwinning Fate system that started it all. If you enjoyed Dinocalypse Now and youre looking to tell your own tales of adventure from the Century Club, this is the game for you. Character creation can be done in just a few minutes or expanded to take up an evening. Adventure design is a snap with three methods for creating relevant, flavorful, player-focused stories at a moments notice. Spirit can be played as a fun pickup game requiring little preparation or as a longer term game delivering evenings of entertainment. All you need to play are some friends, some dice, and the game book. Pick up your copy of Spirit of the Century today at our websiteor wherever roleplaying games are sold.

www.evilhat.com
ISBN 978-0-9771534-0-4 EHP2000 US $30.00