Issue 2 ACTION CHECK SCORE ACTION CHECK SCORE Marginal Ordinary Good Amazing Marginal Ordinary Good Amazing DIE ACTIONS PER ROUND DIE ACTIONS PER ROUND Published by Jeff Ibach Action Checks’ Disclaimer Ta b le of Content s Action Check is an on-line elec- tronic magazine dedicated to the Cover Art: “Klick Food” by Scott Thomas Alternity Role-Playing Game. Page 3 Editorial [James Sharkey] This work is offered free of charge Alternity lives on the World Wide Web. to all interested parties and is not to be sold in any form. It may be Page 4 Creature Conversions [Jeff Ibach] printed if distributed free of Part two of many, Third Edition Gamma World creatures charge. converted to work with the new Fifth Edition Alternity Gamma World campaign setting. This work supports the Alternity roleplaying line, specifically the Alternity Players Handbook and Page 8 Gridsites [Jeff Ibach] Gamemaster Guide. In addition it This month is a special look at the Microtactix website. TABLE OF CONTENTS CONTENTS OF TABLE supports the Campaign Settings Star*Drive, Gamma World, Star- Page 9 Mutant Animals [John William Grigsby] Craft, and Tangents by Wizards of One dozen mutated animals of the Vast Swamp for GW5. the Coast, Inc. Page 10 It’s Not Easy Being Green (John William Grigsby] Alternity is a registered trademark Updating the Gren as Heroes for Alternity Gamma World. of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. Page 11 Creature Feature StarCraft is a registered Trade- [Derek Holland / John William Grigsby / Neil Spicer] mark of Blizzard Entertainment. Giant Ant, Giant Hornet, the Orm, the Nay-Palm Etto tree This work is not authorized by Wiz- and the Kudzoom for Alternity Gamma World. ards of the Coast, Inc. The staff is not associated with Wizards of the Page 17 Beyond Ares [compiled by Jeff Ibach] Coast, Inc. The backlist of Alternity articles in Dragon Magazine. Wizards of the Coast, Inc.: http:// Page 18 Supporting Cast: P’Reena (John William Grigsby] www.wizards.com A mutant cougar with an attitude to add to your Alternity Gamma World setting. STAFF Publisher/Design: Jeff Ibach Page 20 Getting the Most out of Character Creation in GW5 Editing: Jim Sharkey [William E. Herrmann] How to build the best mutant you can. HOW TO SUBSCRIBE EE---MailMailMail: [email protected] Page 22 Uplifting Thoughts [James Sharkey] An overview of the Uplift universe for Alternity game play. Web SiteSite: Chris West’s Alternity GM Page 23 The Neo-Dolphin [James Sharkey] Resource Center An Uplift PC race for Alternity. http://home.earthlink.net/ ~westwinds/ Page 24 Gamma World Careers [Lord Irish] New generic careers for Alternity Gamma World. David Brin has granted us revoca- ble permission to use certain as- Page 25 The Forgotten Outpost [Gary M. Williams, Microtatix] pects of his UPLIFT universe for small-scale play by subscribers of A FREE foldup cardboard game set for Alternity campaigns. Action Check, on an amateur and a strictly non-fee, nonprofit basis. Action Check On-Line Magazine is published monthly by the New Jersey He retains all rights to the con- Role-Playing Game Association Network sanctioned club cepts and characters in his works. “The Third Floor Fellowship”. http://www.thirdfloor.8m.com To learn more about them, please Issue #2, July 2000 see the UPLIFT novels, or go to http://www.davidbrin.com/ for http://www.wizards.com/rpga more information. Action Check Magazine is not a publication of the RPGA Network. 2 Role Playing Games and the Internet: Perfect Together AActionction Check EDITORIAL If you’re getting Action Check, there’s a darn good chance that you’re as familiar Submissions with the Internet as you are with any other tool. In fact, I’m sure that there are many tools in your toolbox that you use less than the Internet. To submit an article to Action Check magazine: Like any tool, though, it has its limitations, regardless of what the over-hyped dot com companies would have you believe. If you’re like me, you may even be a little actioncheck@hotmail. sick of hearing about the Internet everywhere you go. Enough already, we know com it’s out there, and we know how to get to it. Thanks! And we’ll be in contact as However, the Internet shines in a way that really matters to folks like you, reading to the particulars. this editorial: it allows people of similar interests but vastly disparate geographi- cal locations to share ideas and information. Time was, if a company decided to Regular Features: end its support of an RPG, that was it, put the books away. Even the most creative group of players can’t sustain an unsupported game forever. TransmissionsTransmissions: adventure hooks, along the lines of But now, if you’re a GM trying to come up with a game to run on Sunday, and your those previously found in mind is drawing a blank, there are dozens of fan websites out there with their Dragon Magazine for the creators’ ideas posted free for the taking. Game companies support fan partici- various campaign set- pation, even for games they themselves will no longer support directly. The Inter- tings. net is a boon for Alternity; as long as there are folks out there who are interested in playing, and are willing to share their ideas, the game will live on. GridsitesGridsites: Alternity Web sites that deserve recog- The Internet makes things possible that would have been at best unlikely as re- nition and serve a spe- cently as five years ago. Right after playing Alternity for the first time, I read cific purpose. David Brin’s Uplift books. They frankly blew my socks right off, and I thought that the Uplift universe would be a great science fiction milieu for Alternity. Still, it Creature Feature: Aliens, wouldn’t have made sense to start a project involving creating all the races and Creatures, Xenoforms, rules and everything else for a small handful of people. etc. for the Alternity game campaign settings. Then Jeff told me he wanted to create an e-zine for Alternity. I saw my chance, right there. I could do Uplift articles for Action Check. There are so many fine FuturetechFuturetech: gear, equip- ideas contained in those six books that even if a GM wasn’t interested in the ment, vehicles, weapons, whole universe, he still might be interested in a new PC race for players, or a new armor and other hard- NPC race, or the technology, or whatever. ware for the Alternity game. The problem was, did I need permission? As a big fan of Dr. Brin’s work, I felt like I should ask for it, even if I didn’t need it. The question was how to get in touch Supporting Cast: NPC with Dr. Brin. Enter the Internet. After some searching, I found a website that stats for insertion in your seemed like it was created by someone who actually knew the man personally. I own games. wrote to the webmaster, telling him what I wished to do, and he was able to get me Dr. Brin’s e-mail address. System of the MonthMonth: a fully detailed star system. The author turned out to be gracious and easy-going regarding fans playing around in his universe, and gave me permission to start this Herculean task. His ReviewsReviews: of Alternity or only requirement was that we add a disclaimer asserting his rights to his work. If related-use product. you’ve never read the books, you should. Startide Rising and The Uplift War will be my major resources. If any of you are fans, and want to make suggestions, Skills/FX/Psi/Mutations mail your thoughts to [email protected]. Plus cartoons, details of Without the Internet, I could never have talked to the author. Without the Internet, campaign ideas, etc. there would be no Action Check, and quite possibly one day, no Alternity. But with Anything that you feel is the Internet, Alternity will continue to thrive, because fans from New Jersey to Cali- worthy to share with a fornia and beyond can share their ideas, and keep the best science fiction RPG wide Alternity audience! out there alive and kicking. 3 Creature Conversions By Jeff Ibach Continuing my work from last month’s issue, here I JAGETS pick up even more of my favorite 3rd edition critters and convert them to work with GW5. These mutated jaguars prowl the vast grasslands of what was once the Midwest. HOPPERS DescriptionDescription: (Also called Jacka- Graceful and lopes), Hoppers quick, jagets are are abysmally stu- not much larger pid herd animals than their parent sometimes used animal in size and as mounts. strength. DescriptionDescription: Each hopper stands 2.5 meters at the EncounterEncounter: Neu- shoulder and is generally large enough to carry one tral by nature, man-sized rider. jagets don’t usu- ALTERNITY GAMMA WORLD WORLD GAMMA ALTERNITY ally react violently upon first contact. They use their EncounterEncounter: These mutated jackrabbits have such a front paws to manipulate and examine objects, but rough gait that first-time riders must make an Animal don’t normally carry equipment. Their weapons are Handling—riding check with a +3 penalty or be their claws and teeth. thrown for damage as approximated by the Game- master (see page 56 in the Alternity Gamma World Habitat/SocietyHabitat/Society: Jagets have substantial mental pow- book). Hoppers employ their horns against that ers and can be found both in small family groups and which they see as a threat. Trying to mount one isn’t alone. They will often be found as followers or hire- necessarily considered a threat, though they are jit- lings of other species.