Aliens:Colonial Marines Technical Manual, Mirror Walk

Way back in 1975 I think I got an allowance of $2 a week. We were living in Virgina at the time and there was an Italian restaurant we went to once a month or so. In  the shopping center where the restaurant was there was also a small book store.  I can't remember the name of either but I recall two books in there. One was the  Star Fleet Technical Manual and the Star Trek Concordance. Combined I think they  were $14 and change. This is the first time I can ever remember saving money to  buy something. I mention this for reference to the Technical Manual and the fact that it took me back there for just a minute.

Now onto the item at hand. This review is not of actual gaming material but is so close I thought it OK. The Aliens technical manual is very much in line with  the Star Fleet as far as what it is. The book is not connected with any role  playing game but I could not imagine playing the Leading Edge Aliens game  without a copy of this nearby. It is written as if it were a real world book  with no gaming content what so ever.

Unlike most if not all of the newer books of this sort and like the Star Fleet  manual this is a book filled with substance over style. The book features many  line drawings and a fair number of illustration and a smattering of photos from  the movie but in the end it is most likely 50% to 60% text. That may not sound  like much but if you look at books of s similar nature for more recent movies  the ratio is painfully lower and there are mostly color images to add flash  making up for a lack of substance.

Though it contains material specific to the Aliens universe much of the material  would also work in a "low tech" space opera type of game. This is not the stuff  of ST:TOS but in a grittier space type of game it would work well. It is perhaps  too gritty for most of the games but there is information that is less gritty  than others. I think much of the information presented here would be in line with the technology level presented in Avatar or close to it.

In th e end I think the book is worth buying for some people. If you don't mind  reading what is close to an entry level or slightly above text book or perhaps  an actual military manual then this is for you. If you want something with  actual game type statistics or a book you can simply flip through and get visual  inspiration then it is not for you. For me it is worth it just for the  similarity to the old Star Trek Technical Manual.

Published: 1996
Pages: 160


From the back cover:

The ALIENS COLONIAL MARINES TECHNICAL MANUAL is your official guide to the  equipment and organisation (their spelling not mine) of the United States Colonial Marine Corps. Packed  with never-before-published diagrams, technical schematics and plans, the manual  takes a detailed look at the guns, vehicles and ships of the USCMC, and the men  and women who use them.

Description from Wayne's Books:

"An official guide to the technology of the United States Colonial Marines  shares detailed diagrams and technical schematics; a close-up look at the guns,  vehicles, and ships of the USCMC; and a hypothesis of what could have gone wrong  on the colony planet known as LV-426."


Spell:

Mirror Walk

Level: Fourth
Range: 9"
Duration: 2 Turns/Level
Area of Effect: One Mirror
Components: V,S
Casting Time: 6 Segments
Saving Throw: None

With the casting of this spell the magic user is able to use a pair of normal  mirrors as travel devices. Both mirrors must be in known locations with the  caster being at one of them.

In order to use a mirror on the receiving side the caster must have spent an  extended period of game time using the mirror. The minimum period of time for  safety purposes is 10 rounds. The caster must have spent that entire time simply  looking at their own reflection. If less time is spent than this there is a 10%  cumulative chance that the caster will be lost on the astral plane when they try  to use the spell.

If the spell is successful then the caster will emerge from the specified mirror  and along with any inanimate objects they were carrying. Only the caster will be  able to use the mirror for movement purposes. Once on the receiving side the  caster will have until the spell expires to use the mirror on that side to  return through the mirror on the departure side. The return trip does not have  the same viewing requirement as the original.

Disclaimer: The spells that you will see, for how ever long the write ups last,  were all written up or conceived of back in the 80's so the terminology may not  appropriate for anything other than 1e and depending on how well I did back then  it may be slightly off for that as well. If there is any duplication of spells  that exist now it is most likely I wrote mine first :) Please feel free to  comment on them but try not to be too hard on me. If anyone wishes to use these  in anything they print please let me know in advance and all I ask is proper  credit.

Hidden Invasion, Reclaim

Hidden Invasion is another in the long line of games I own but  have never played and have barely looked at. I was shocked to see  that I apparently have two copies of this game as I was scanning  through inventory to find something to write about. It is a game  of secret alien invasions and occupations of planet earth.

It was released by Nightshift Games in 1995 and is listed as  being one hundred and sixty pages long. Based on information from  rpggeek.com it is listed with Cinematic Adventures, FUDGE and  Theatrix under RPG Item Version. It includes conversion  information to let it work with those systems in addition to  being its own self contained system.

There is little doubt in my mind that the game had some  inspiration for it taken from the X-Files. The information on the  back of the book reads like it was taken from the episode lists  of the X-Files. The only problem with that is I liked the weird  episodes more often than than I liked the conspiracy ones. And  yet somehow I have two copies of it. Below is information from  the back of the book and some blurbs on Noble Knight.

* Mysterious lights appearing in the sky
* Strange sightings from remote parts of the world
* Men in Black harassing innocent people about what they have  seen
* People abducted from their homes in the dead of night, by  beings beyond description
* And there is nothing you can do about it
* Or is there?

Based on actual reports, Hidden Invasion is your best weapon  against the alien beings that threaten our world." Are they here  to help? Are they using us as Guinea Pigs for twisted genetic  experiments? Are all the Aliens working together?

Included is information on the alien races active on this planet,  as well as their technology, underground bases, secret networks  under the earth, and more. Also included is information on the  human co-conspirators, working with the aliens to turn the people  into cattle. You will not believe who the aliens control!

Hidden Invasion uses the innovative Cinematic Adventure System  created for ease of play and versatility. Also included are  complete conversion rules for using Hidden Invasion with Theatrix  by Backstage Press and FUDGE by Grey Ghost Games, as well as many  other popular role-playing systems.
 
Noble Knight:

They're here...and you've already lost. Greys have taken control  of our government. Reptilians use our population as test  subjects. And ancient conspiracies among humanity are helping  them. You, and a few like you, know what is happening. Only you  can do anything to stop it...

The first revelation of the conspiracy! Hidden Invasion uses the  innovative Cinematic Adventure system to simulate exciting action  and suspense without bogging down in useless rules. Includes  stats for all major alien races and 2 sample adventures plus  more! The most extensively researched alien-conspiracy game ever  published.


Spell:

Reclaim

Level: Second
Range: 3"
Duration: Permanent
Ares of Effect: One Cubic Foot/Level
Components: V,S
Casting Time: One Round/Component
Saving Throw: None

When this spell is cast the magic user is able to withdraw the  base components of an item and reclaim them as pure components.  This would allow them for example to extract copper and most  likely tin from a chunk of bronze. A block of mud could be  extracted out into water and earth.

The spell will require that the caster have some sort of  container for the reclaimed components otherwise they will simply  appear on the ground next to the caster. The magic user will need  to spend one round be base element that they wish to extract and  can stop the process at any point in time.

This spell may open itself up to some creative uses and the DM  may want to be selective on how the spell could be made to work.  It is intended to work on items that an amalgamation of multiple  elements. Using it to extract poison from a victim will not work  but removing one of the base metals in an alloy will work.

Disclaimer: The spells that you will see, for how ever long the  write ups last, were all written up or conceived of back in the  80's so the terminology may not appropriate for anything other  than 1e and depending on how well I did back then it may be  slightly off for that as well. If there is any duplication of  spells that exist now it is most likely I wrote mine first :)  Please feel free to comment on them but try not to be too hard on  me. If anyone wishes to use these in anything they print please  let me know in advance and all I ask is proper credit.