From: "David & Robin" <gpfarm@...>
Reply-To: TIrpg@yahoogroups.com
Date: Wed, 12 Jan 2005 11:14:11 -0500
To: <TIrpg@yahoogroups.com>
Subject: [TIrpg] Beyond the Supernatural

A few thoughts on this game prompted by the NAGS webpage today.



I played 1st ed way back in my misspent youth and liked it quite a bit.  It does suffer somewhat from the usual Palladium Books faults, over powered combat characters, sometimes clunky rules mechanics etc. On the whole however it was a favorite of our group.



Some highlights were the rules for ³victims² that is playing ordinary people with almost no useful skills up against the supernatural. Great fun, even if they did die in droves.



The background was in the X-Files, Eric Von Daniken pseudo-scientific explanations for the supernatural.  Well put together, the Vampire rules reminded me of the alien vampires in the movie ³Lifeforce².  



The rules for different types of psychic characters were very good. Every character type in the game has channeled their personal psychic potential in one way or another. In some it manifests as overt psychic powers, in others it is focused into an aptitude for certain skills or physical prowess. The most fun was the ³Nega-psychic² a complete 100% nonbeliever in the paranormal, who¹s disbelief was so strong that it could actually dampen psychic phenomena.



Some interesting new creatures as well as the traditional ones.  The Lazlo Agency was never fully developed in the game, but was a sort of Bureau 13, X-Files agency investigating the supernatural.





Fans have been waiting well over 10 years for this one, and I will look for a copy this weekend at my FLGS.



It is likely that if I run it I will use a different set of game mechanics for much of it. It should be very easy to adapt to D20, and of course Fudge.



Let me know if there are any specific questions I can answer.



Cheers,



--dave





Now reading ³The Making of Bigfoot² about the Roger Patterson film hoax.

---

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John Reiher on the Space: 1889 Yahoo Group (message
number 19261)

http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/S1889/

passed along an interesting list of books, the text of which is
available online for free from the excellent Project Gutenberg.
Among the titles were:

The Book of Were-Wolves
http://www.gutenberg.net/etext/5324

Clairvoyance and Occult Powers, and
http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/12480

Steam Steel and Electricity
http://www.gutenberg.net/etext/7886

One does not usually think Shirley Temple when thinking of good
colonial era movies, but I just thoroughly enjoyed John Ford's
Wee Willie Winkie (1937).

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0029751/

The backdrop of the Northwest Frontier in 1897 is helpful to
gamers, but better yet are the characters, any of whom would
translate wonderfully into role-playing.

Nothing helps one to derive maximum enjoyment from one's
VSF or colonial games as obtaining the proper accoutrements.
As I type this I wear the Superb sun hat and goggles pictured on
the Rivets & Steam website.

http://home.dejazzd.com/broadsword/Rivets_N_Steam/RS_VSF_
Game_Links_Page.html#Where%20Did%20You%20Get%20Th
ose%20Goggles%20&%20Pith%20Helmet?!

My online transactions with Studio Foglio and the Village Hat
Shop were both expeditious and satisfactory. And, somehow, my
games take on a more realistic quality when I take off my helmet
to mop my fevered brow.

Totally off topic, but cool.

Cheers,

--dave
-----Original Message-----
From: Maksim [mailto:max200@...]
Sent: Saturday, November 06, 2004 2:39 PM
To: 6mm_Miniatures@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [6mm_Minis] The City Of Los Angeles Proclaims November As Godzilla
Month



This was too good not to share:

The City Of Los Angeles Proclaims November As Godzilla Month

http://www.kensforce.com/Godzilla_Month.html

Shabbat Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.







Yahoo! Groups Links

-----Original Message-----
From: Steven Flanagan [mailto:steve@...]
Sent: Thursday, October 28, 2004 3:29 AM
To: SFSFW
Subject: (SFSFW) Real "Hobbits" in Indonesia


It isn't April 1st, and the report is on the BBC, so I assume this is no
hoax:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3948165.stm

No mention of foot size, though!


Steve Flanagan
steve@...






Yahoo! Groups Links

-----Original Message-----
From: Strange-aeons-bounces@...
[mailto:Strange-aeons-bounces@...] On Behalf Of Janice
Sellers
Sent: Thursday, October 28, 2004 7:11 PM
To: Strange Aeons
Subject: [Strange-aeons] Ancient short people!

from Bill Nichols <themaninawhitecar@...>:

Ancient short people's remains found!
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20041027/ap_on_sc/dwarf_cavewoma
n_2

Scientists Find Prehistoric Dwarf Skeleton

Wed Oct 27, 2:09 PM ET

By JOSEPH B. VERRENGIA, AP Science Writer

In a breathtaking discovery, scientists working on a remote Indonesian
island say they have uncovered the bones of a human dwarf species marooned
for eons while modern man rapidly colonized the rest of the planet.

One tiny specimen, an adult female measuring about 3 feet tall, is
described as "the most extreme" figure to be included in the extended human
family. Certainly, she is the shortest.

This hobbit-sized creature appears to have lived as recently as 18,000
years ago on the island of Flores, a kind of tropical Lost World populated
by giant lizards and miniature elephants.

She is the best example of a trove of fragmented bones that account for as
many as seven of these primitive individuals. Scientists have named the new
species Homo floresiensis, or Flores Man. The specimens' ages range from
95,000 to 12,000 years old.

The discovery has astonished anthropologists unlike any in recent memory.
Flores Man is a totally new creature that was fundamentally different from
modern humans. Yet it lived until the threshold of recorded human history,
probably crossing paths with the ancestors of today's islanders.

"This finding really does rewrite our knowledge of human evolution," said
Chris Stringer, who directs human origins studies at the Natural History
Museum in London. "And to have them present less than 20,000 years ago is
frankly astonishing."

Flores Man was hardly formidable. His grapefruit-sized brain was about a
quarter the size of the brain of our species, Homo sapiens. It is closer in
size to the brains of transitional prehuman species in Africa more than 3
million years ago.

Yet evidence suggests Flores Man made stone tools, lit fires and organized
group hunts for meat.

Just how this primitive, remnant species managed to hang on is unclear.
Geologic evidence suggests a massive volcanic eruption sealed its fate some
12,000 years ago, along with other unusual species on the island.

Still, researchers say the perseverance of Flores Man smashes the
conventional wisdom that modern humans began to systematically crowd out
other upright-walking species 160,000 years ago and have dominated the
planet alone for tens of thousands of years.

And it demonstrates that Africa, the acknowledged cradle of humanity, does
not hold all the answers to persistent questions of how - and where - we
came to be.

"It is arguably the most significant discovery concerning our own genus in
my lifetime," said anthropologist Bernard Wood of George Washington
University, who reviewed the research independently.

Discoveries simply "don't get any better than that," proclaimed Robert
Foley and Marta Mirazon Lahr of Cambridge University in a written analysis.

To others, the specimen's baffling combination of slight dimensions and
coarse features bears almost no meaningful resemblance either to modern
humans or to our large, archaic cousins.

They suggest that Flores Man doesn't belong in the genus Homo at all, even
if it was a recent contemporary. But they are unsure how to classify the
species.

"I don't think anybody can pigeonhole this into the very simple-minded
theories of what is human," anthropologist Jeffery Schwartz of the
University of Pittsburgh. "There is no biological reason to call it Homo.
We have to rethink what it is."

Details of the discovery appear in Thursday's issue of the journal Nature.

Researchers from Australia and Indonesia found the partial skeleton 13
months ago in a shallow limestone cave known as Liang Bua. The cave, which
extends into a hillside for about 130 feet, has been the subject of
scientific analysis since 1964.

The female skeleton and fragments from the six other individuals are being
stored in a laboratory in Jakarta, Indonesia. The cave, which now is
surrounded by coffee farms, is fenced off and patrolled by guards.

Near the skeleton were stone tools and animal remains, including teeth from
a young stegodon, or prehistoric dwarf elephant, as well as fish, birds and
rodents. Some of the bones were charred, suggesting they were cooked.

Excavations are continuing. In 1998, stone tools and other evidence found
on Flores suggested the presence 900,000 years ago of another early human,
Homo erectus. The tools were found a century after the celebrated discovery
in the 1890s of big-boned H. erectus fossils in eastern Java.

Now, researchers suggest H. erectus spread to remote Flores and throughout
the region, perhaps on bamboo rafts. Caves on surrounding islands are the
target of future studies, they said.

Researchers suspect that Flores Man probably is an H. erectus descendant
that was squeezed by evolutionary pressures.

Nature is full of mammals - deer, squirrels and pigs, for example - living
in marginal, isolated environments that gradually dwarf when food isn't
plentiful and predators aren't threatening.

On Flores, the Komodo dragon and other large meat-eating lizards prowled.
But Flores Man didn't have to worry about violent human neighbors.

This is the first time that the evolution of dwarfism has been recorded in
a human relative, said the study's lead author, Peter Brown of the
University of New England in Australia.

Scientists are still struggling to identify its jumbled features.

Many say its face and skull features show sufficient traits to be included
in the Homo family that includes modern humans. It would be the eighth
species in the Homo category.

George Washington's Wood, for example, finds it "convincing."

Others aren't sure.

For example, they say the skull is wide like H. erectus. But the sides are
rounder and the crown traces an arc from ear to ear. The skull of H.
erectus has steeper sides and a pointed crown, they said.

The lower jaw contains large, blunt teeth and roots like Australopithecus,
a prehuman ancestor in Africa more than 3 million years ago. The front
teeth are smaller than modern human teeth.

The eye sockets are big and round, but they don't carry a prominent
browline.

The shinbone in the leg shares similarities with apes.

"I've spent a sleepless night trying to figure out what to do with this
thing," said Schwartz. "It makes me think of nothing else in this world."

___

Associated Press writers Emma Ross in London and Chris Brummit in Jakarta
contributed to this report.

=====

from Michael Beck <oberon_kestral@...>:

Tcho-Tcho anyone?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3948165.stm

'Hobbit' joins human family tree
Chris Stringer and LB1, PA

Scientists have discovered a new and tiny species of human that lived in
Indonesia at the same time our own ancestors were colonising the world.

The three-foot (one-metre) tall species - dubbed "the Hobbit" - lived on
Flores island until at least 12,000 years ago.

The fact that little people feature in the legends of modern Flores
islanders suggests we might have to take tales of Leprechauns and Yeti more
seriously.

Details of the sensational find are described in the journal Nature.

The whole idea that you need a particular brain size to do anything
intelligent is completely blown away by this find
Dr Henry Gee, Nature

Australian archaeologists unearthed the bones while digging at a site
called Liang Bua, one of numerous limestone caves on Flores.

The remains of the partial skeleton were found at a depth of 5.9m. At
first, the researchers thought it was the body of a child. But further
investigation revealed otherwise.

Wear on the teeth and growth lines on the skull confirm it was an adult,
features of the pelvis identify it as female and a leg bone confirms that
it walked upright like we do.

"When we got the dates back from the skeleton and we found out how young it
was, one anthropologist working with us said it must be wrong because it
had so many archaic [primitive] traits," said co-discoverer Mike Morwood,
associate professor of archaeology at the University of New England,
Australia.

King of the swingers?

The 18,000-year-old specimen, known as Liang Bua 1 or LB1, has been
assigned to a new species called Homo floresiensis. It had long arms and a
skull the size of a large grapefruit.

The researchers have since found remains belonging to six other individuals
from the same species.

LB1 shared its island with a golden retriever-sized rat, giant tortoises
and huge lizards - including Komodo dragons - and a pony-sized dwarf
elephant called Stegodon which the "hobbits" probably hunted.

Chris Stringer, head of human origins at London's Natural History Museum
said the long arms were an intriguing feature and might even suggest H.
floresiensis spent much of its time in the trees.

"We don't know this. But if there were Komodo dragons about you might want
to be up in the trees with your babies where it's safe. It's something for
future research, but the fact they had long arms is at least suggestive,"
Professor Stringer told BBC News Online.

Studies of its hands and feet, which have not yet been described, may shed
light on this question, he added.

H. floresiensis probably evolved from another species called Homo erectus,
whose remains have been discovered on the Indonesian island of Java.

Homo erectus may have arrived on Flores about one million years ago,
evolving its tiny physique in the isolation provided by the island.

What is surprising about this is that this species must have made it to
Flores by boat. Yet building craft for travel on open water is
traditionally thought to have been beyond the intellectual abilities of
Homo erectus.

Legendary creatures

Even more intriguing is the fact that Flores' inhabitants have incredibly
detailed legends about the existence of little people on the island they
call Ebu Gogo.

The islanders describe Ebu Gogo as being about one metre tall, hairy and
prone to "murmuring" to each other in some form of language. They were also
able to repeat what islanders said to them in a parrot-like fashion.

"There have always been myths about small people - Ireland has its
Leprechauns and Australia has the Yowies. I suppose there's some feeling
that this is an oral history going back to the survival of these small
people into recent times," said co-discoverer Peter Brown, an associate
professor of archaeology at New England.

When we got the dates back from the skeleton and we found out how young it
was, one anthropologist working with us said it must be wrong
Mike Morwood, University of New England

The last evidence of this human at Liang Bua dates to just before 12,000
years ago, when a volcanic eruption snuffed out much of Flores' unique
wildlife.

Yet there are hints H. floresiensis could have lived on much later than
this. The last legend featuring the mythical creatures dates to just 100
years ago.

But Henry Gee, senior editor at Nature magazine, goes further. He
speculates that species like H. floresiensis might still exist, somewhere
in the unexplored tropical forest of Indonesia.

Textbook rewrite

Professor Stringer said the find "rewrites our knowledge of human
evolution." He added: "To have [this species] present 12,000 years ago is
frankly astonishing."

Homo floresiensis might have evolved its small size in response to the
scarcity of resources on the island.

"When creatures get marooned on islands they evolve in new and
unpredictable courses. Some species grow very big and some species grow
very small," Dr Gee explained.

LB1 was an adult female that stood just one metre in height

The sophistication of stone tools found with the "hobbit" has surprised
some scientists given the human's small brain size of 380cc (around the
same size as a chimpanzee).

"The whole idea that you need a particular brain size to do anything
intelligent is completely blown away by this find," Dr Gee commented.

Because the remains are relatively recent and not fossilised, scientists
are even hopeful they might yield DNA, which could provide an entirely new
perspective on the evolution of the human lineage.

_______________________________________________
Strange-aeons mailing list
Strange-aeons@...
http://lists.chaosium.com/mailman/listinfo/strange-aeons_lists.chaosium.com

In a message dated 9/25/2004 6:11:55 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
gpfarm@... writes:

<<Well, I finally got to see Sky Captain last night.  Mixed review from me.
The Zeppelins were awe inspiring, well done. As were the other flying
machines.  >>

No mixed reviews here!

<<If this movie is the state of CGI I am very impressed. Apparently
everything except the actors is CGI. It showed in a few shots but not many.  The
film
has a definite retro-future look to it. Not quite Art Deco, but that sort of
feel. Very stylized. Everything is in a not quite black&white, not quite sepia
tone, that is really fun for atmosphere, although it is unfortunately too dark
to see details. >>

agreed

<<Some nifty gadgets. A few good lines. Parts of the plot were a bit hokey,
and some of the characters were weak. Bring popcorn.>>

I thought that the plot was pretty authentic - typical of the pulp era.

I guess I liked the feel of the movie - yes, there were cliches but that was
fun.

I sort of jumped when someone said something happened after World War I - of
course, it wasn't World War I then. It was the Great War.

Peter Hildreth

Cheers,

--dave


“Just once can’t we die with out bickering?”   Said as it looked, once
again, like our heroes were about to die.

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Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.

Howdy,

I have started a new Yahoo Group called "Jimland".

I did this so as not to use the TI group for a different game
system. Thanks to Scott and others for directly and indirectly
urging me on.

I will be removing the Jimland Rules and Reports. They will be
available on the Jimland Group.

So, come on over and join up.

Ever Forward.

Jim

Greetings,

As the list owner/moderator let me say that Jimland and other subjects even
vaguely related to Terra Incognita are quite welcome here. This list is very
low traffic anyway.

I will certainly be joining the Jimland group and think such a group could
be a great venue to share our adventures and expeditions.

Cheers,

--dave


-----Original Message-----
From: wright_jim [mailto:jimw31@...]
Sent: Sunday, September 12, 2004 5:12 PM
To: TIrpg@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [TIrpg] Adventures in JImland


Howdy,

I have started a new Yahoo Group called "Jimland".

I did this so as not to compete with TI in its own group.  Thanks to
Scott and others for directly and indirectly urging me on.

I will be removing the Jimland Rules and Reports.  They will be
available on the Jimland Group.

So, come on over and join up.

Ever Forward.

Jim





Yahoo! Groups Links

Welcome Jim,

And thank you for sharing your wonderful creation with us.  I actually play
with my 6mm figures (when I am not using them for Tusk).

Cheers,

--dave


-----Original Message-----
From: wright_jim [mailto:jimw31@...]
Sent: Thursday, September 09, 2004 9:19 PM
To: TIrpg@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [TIrpg] Re: Adventures in Jimland

Adventures in Jimland, where anything can happen.

Howdy to one and all!

I see there is some interest in Jimland, so I have uploaded the
rules and reports. Enjoy the game and the reports.  I will be happy
to answer any questions and fix any typos.  Reports of your
Adventures will be forwarded to the Editor of the Herald for
possible inclusion in the continuing series of Reports.  The Editor
accepts MS Word .doc files or plain text files (preferred).

The LATEST rules and cards are in the files section - Adventures in
Jimland - Rules.

Report Volumes 1 to 5 are in the files section - Adventures in
Jimland - Reports.  Volume 5 is in progress.  I will update
it as things develop.

Jim
Owner/Operator
Adventures in Jimland, Where anything can happen.

PS. I didn't start out naming everything Jim.  My players, Fearless
and Famous Explorers one and all, starting naming things by sticking
Jim at one end or the other.  This place does have a life of its own!






Yahoo! Groups Links

Adventures in Jimland, where anything can happen.

Howdy to one and all!

I see there is some interest in Jimland, so I have uploaded the
rules and reports. Enjoy the game and the reports.  I will be happy
to answer any questions and fix any typos.  Reports of your
Adventures will be forwarded to the Editor of the Herald for
possible inclusion in the continuing series of Reports.  The Editor
accepts MS Word .doc files or plain text files (preferred).

The LATEST rules and cards are in the files section - Adventures in
Jimland - Rules.

Report Volumes 1 to 5 are in the files section - Adventures in
Jimland - Reports.  Volume 5 is in progress.  I will update
it as things develop.

Jim
Owner/Operator
Adventures in Jimland, Where anything can happen.

PS. I didn't start out naming everything Jim.  My players, Fearless
and Famous Explorers one and all, starting naming things by sticking
Jim at one end or the other.  This place does have a life of its own!

Dave--

The Battle Reports were html on the Jimland site, rather than pdfs like the
rules. I spend HOURS cutting and pasting then formatting them in order to
print them out. Over 200 pages in 10 point type!

However, Jim has just pdf'ed them himself and sent them to me (in 12 pt
type, so they're over 300 pages, I believe). I just emailed him to see if
either he would send them to you or would give permission for me to send
them. I've asked if he would like us to store them in the Files section of
the TI Yahoo group, but he may have something else in mind.

I love the battle reports. I'm sure you realize they're quite
silly--everything is named Jim--but I love the humor in the first 150 or so,
and then in the later reports he settles into a pulp/cliffhanger style that
is really exciting. I've found them incredibly inspiring.

I'll let you know what I hear.

Take care,

Scott

Scott,

I did some digging in my files and I think I have all the rules. I was
hoping for some of the battle reports and Jimland background. I have been
bitten by the Colonial gaming bug again recently.

A pity he took it down as it is a great game.

Cheers,

--dave


-----Original Message-----
From: Scott Larson & Paige Johnson [mailto:paigescott@...]
Sent: Wednesday, September 08, 2004 7:37 PM
To: TIrpg@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [TIrpg] Adventures in Jimland

Dave--

No, Jim took it off the ætherwaves and doesn't seem to be putting it back
up. You can get the .9 version at the By Jingo! website
(http://www.geocities.com/cdferree/) and I have the 1.0 version, which I
would be happy to email to you. If you only need parts, let me know which
files as I have an excruciatingly slow internet connection.

Scott




Yahoo! Groups Links

Dave--

No, Jim took it off the ætherwaves and doesn't seem to be putting it back
up. You can get the .9 version at the By Jingo! website
(http://www.geocities.com/cdferree/) and I have the 1.0 version, which I
would be happy to email to you. If you only need parts, let me know which
files as I have an excruciatingly slow internet connection.

Scott

A new graphic novel that may be of interest
"Voyage into the Deep" by Francois Riviere and Serge Micheli.

This tells the story of Jules Verne, Captain Nemo and teh writing of
20,000 Leagues. I haven't had a chance to do more than glance at it
yet, but it looks promisng.

cheers,

--dave