Sunday, November 16, 2008

A New Character for Cartoon Action Hour Season 2

Recently I ordered a copy of Cartoon Action Hour Season 2 (CAH S2) from the fine folks at Spectrum Games. This new edition of their 80s cartoon roleplaying game is a great revamp. It has streamlines character creation and utilizes a make it yourself trait system that is extremely flexible.

I created a character for the new rules. The CAH S2 book comes with three ready-made cartoon series: Transbots (Transformers), Strikeforce Freedom (G.I. Joe), and the setting I chose, Warriors of the Cosmos (He-Man and the Masters of the Universe). The CAH S2 Playset here gives you a brief background of the setting. So without further ado I give you:

Traloc
“Loyal Lizard Centaur Detective of Shadestar”

Quick Bio: Traloc is a member of a race of lizard centaurs known as the Xoanon. They are refugees from another dimension that settled in Iconia a century ago. The Xoanon live in small communities scattered throughout Iconia. They are usually a reclusive people, but several of the Xoanon have entered the service of the kingdoms in which they reside. They cannot be changed into goop zombies, so Nekrottus usually imprisons them or forces them to work in one of his pet projects.

Traloc’s family lived in the Kingdom of Shadestar, in a small village near the royal lands. He grew up an inquisitive child, and became renowned for his prowess at solving puzzles. As he grew older, Traloc left his village and entered the Shadestar Guard. He soon became the personal detective for the new queen, a young woman named Noblara.

When Nekrottus attacked Shadestar, Traloc helped fight, but was captured by the Blackskull Empire. He was among those sent to the Castle Suspended, a prison run by the disgraced former Shadestar Guard Captain Rezlor. A raid by the Guardians of Iconia freed Traloc and his fellow prisoners. With Noblara’s support, he offered his services to King Rastor and the people of Haven. Today Traloc uses both his brains and his brawn to fight for the freedom of Iconia.

Appearance: Traloc is a Xoanon of average height (five feet tall) and length (four feet long). His upper torso is humanoid, and his lower body is similar to a small rhino with a long tail at the end. Traloc’s scales are green, with shades of gray here and there. His face is lizard like with no nose and eyes that seem to notice everything. When at official functions he wears a blue sash with his family sigils and symbols of his deeds. He always carries a mace given to him by his father when he became a member of the Shadestar Guard.

Factoids: “Former member of the Shadestar Guard” ”Uses both brains and strength to solve cases” ”Cannot be bought” ”One of the few Xoanon who leave their villages” ”Loyal to Noblara”

Subplots: Archenemy (Captain Rezlor), Vow (To help free his people)

Traits: Xoanon Mace 4 [Enhancer +2, Accessory], Tail Slap 3 [Enhancer +2], Trample 5 [Enhancer +3, Disadvantage (Must make a running start)], Scaly Skin 2, Shadestar Guard Detective 4, Xoanon Lore 1, Stamina 3, Brawling 3, Strong 3, Inconvenient Size 2X.

Oomph 2, Threshold 10, Battle Rating 5

Okay, you got me. Traloc is a Zoat. I just had to do that. Once you have a general idea of what you want, character creation is pretty easy. It does have some of the same daunting nature of a “make your own trait” system. It emulates the chosen genre well, and that is always a plus.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Hey, Mike, that's a great character. Of course, I'm a sucker for long-dead Warhammer/Warhammer 40,000 critters (I loves me some Fimirs and Squats), so I'm probably biased. Regardless, it's a great implementation of the race. Nice work!

Anonymous said...

That's a nice fleshing out of a player race. Very MotU!!