THE WORLD OF KONG
FLYING RATS
Ecology: Skull Island is home to a variety of flying mammals—all of whom are descended from rodents and not from bats. In effect nearly hairless rats with wings, the flying rodents of Skull Island dwell in the jungles and rocky uplands, eating mostly insects, small lizards, birds, small mammals, and each other. Terapusmordax is a true omnivore, eating fruit and nuts as well, while the rest of the flying rats stick strictly to a diet of meat.
Personality/Motivation: Typical animal motivations.
Powers/Tactics: Most Flying Rats take their prey on the wing, snatching their targets out of the air of off of exposed branches. Skin-Birds land to hunt, however, and aren't agile enough to take prey in-flight.
Appearance: All of the Flying Rats have the same basic body-shape as a bat, with elongated arms and fingers connected by sheets of skin. However, unlike bats, the Flying Rats tend to retain their long tails, and use them for balance and steering in flight.
Designer's Notes: The various Flying Rats were developed from the Athol character sheet found in HERO System Asian Bestiary Volume I. Terapusmordax appeared in King Kong, I'm unsure about the rest of them.
TERAPUSMORDAX OBSCENUS
"Filthy Pungent-Bat"
Val CHA Cost Roll Notes 3 STR -7 10- Lift 37.9 kg; 1/2d6 HTH Damage [1] 20 DEX 30 13- OCV: 7/DCV: 7 12 CON 4 11- 8 BODY -4 11- 8 INT -2 11- PER Roll 11-/15- 5 EGO -10 10- ECV: 2 15 PRE 5 12- PRE Attack: 3d6 4 COM -3 10- 4 PD 3 Total: 4 PD (0 rPD) 4 ED 2 Total: 4 ED (0 rED) 3 SPD 0 Phases: 4, 8, 12 3 REC 0 24 END 0 16 STUN 0 Total Characteristics Cost: 20 Movement: Running: 1"/2" Flight: 12"/24" Gliding: 12"/24" Leaping: 0"/0" Swimming: 1"/2" Cost Powers & Skills 10 Bite: HKA 1/2d6 1 8 Claws: HKA 1/2d6; Reduced Penetration (-1/4), END 1 42 Disgusting Stench I: Change Environment 2" radius, -6 to Smell/Taste Group PER Rolls, -4 to Con Rolls, Multiple Combat Effects, Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2), Persistent (+1/2); Always On (-1/2), No Range (-1/2) 32 Disgusting Stench II: Change Environment 2" radius, -2 DCV, -2 to DEX-Based Rolls, -2 to INT-Based Rolls, -2 to PRE-Based Rolls, Multiple Combat Effects, Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2), Persistent (+1/2); Always On (-1/2), No Range (-1/2), Only Applies If Victim Fails CON Roll (-1/2) 20 Wings: Multipower, 30-point reserve, all slots Restrainable (-1/2) 2u 1) Flying: Flight 12", Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4); Restrainable (-1/2), END 1 1u 2) Riding The Thermals: Gliding 12"; Restrainable (-1/2) -10 Awkward On The Ground: Running -5" (1" total) -1 Awkward Swimmer: Swimming -1" (1" total) 4 Sharp Eyes: +4 PER with Normal Sight 2 Sharp Eyes: +4 versus Range Modifier for Normal Sight Skills 6 +2 with Claws, Grab By, Move By 10 Hard To Hit: +2 with DCV 4 +2 with Flight Total Powers & Skill Cost: 130 Total Cost: 148 75+ Disadvantages 15 Physical Limitation: Animal Intelligence (Frequently, Greatly Impairing) 5 Physical Limitation: Small (8-10' wingspan, +3" KB) (Infrequently, Slightly Impairing) 15 Physical Limitation: Very Limited Manipulation (Frequently, Greatly Impairing) 38 Experience Points Total Disadvantage Points: 148
Description: Terapusmordax is a huge flying rat and possibly one of the largest flying mammals of all time. It has a body-length of 3-4 feet and a wingspan of 8 to 10 feet. It feeds on most anything else that flies, including birds and other flying rats. Terapusmordax will also eat fruit, nuts, lizards, rats, and other arboreal inhabitants.
Terapusmordax is totally hairless, with translucent naked skin and strong bones for its size. A highly agile flyer, they are able to easily keep up with much smaller birds and flying rats. They dwell in huge uplands caverns, roosting there by the hundreds in colonies ruled by the elder females. The males live in small colonies of a dozen or so and fight constantly among themselves, with injuries and death to infection common.
The most notable feature about Terapusmordax is its eye-watering stink. Its waste contains chemicals that cause an incredibly pungent reek, and since waste often is caked and smeared on the animals, they also tende to smell, regardless of where they go. Interestingly, this smell serves to keep predators away, as it is far too strong for many to deal with.
Terapusmordax Hero Designer File
SKIN-BIRD
Cutisaves Atroxoides
"Hideous-Form Skin-Bird"
Val CHA Cost Roll Notes 0 STR -10 9- Lift 25 kg; 0d6 HTH Damage [1] 15 DEX 15 12- OCV: 5/DCV: 5 11 CON 2 11- 7 BODY -6 10- 8 INT -2 11- PER Roll 11-/15- 5 EGO -10 10- ECV: 2 15 PRE 5 12- PRE Attack: 3d6 4 COM -3 10- 3 PD 3 Total: 3 PD (0 rPD) 3 ED 1 Total: 3 ED (0 rED) 3 SPD 5 Phases: 4, 8, 12 3 REC 2 22 END 0 15 STUN 2 Total Characteristic Cost: 4 Movement: Running: 1"/2" Flight: 6"/12" Gliding: 18"/36" Leaping: 0"/0" Swimming: 1"/2" Cost Powers & Skills 10 Bite: HKA 1/2d6, END 1 5 Claws: HKA 1 point, END 1 12 Wings: Multipower, 18-point reserve, all slots Restrainable (-1/2) 1u 1) Flying: Flight 6", Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4); Restrainable (-1/2), END 1 1u 2) Riding The Thermals: Gliding 18"; Restrainable (-1/2) -10 Awkward On The Ground: Running -5" (1" total) -1 Awkward Swimmer: Swimming -1" (1" total) 4 Sharp Eyes: +4 PER with Normal Sight 2 Sharp Eyes: +4 versus Range Modifier for Normal Sight Skills 5 +1 with HTH Combat 10 Hard To Hit: +2 with DCV Total Powers & Skill Cost: 39 Total Cost: 43 75+ Disadvantages 15 Physical Limitation: Animal Intelligence (Frequently, Greatly Impairing) 5 Physical Limitation: Small (5-7' wingspan, +3" KB) (Infrequently, Slightly Impairing) 15 Physical Limitation: Very Limited Manipulation (Frequently, Greatly Impairing) Total Disadvantage Points: 43
Description: Skin-birds are solitary animals who nest far up in the cliffs and mountains. Poor fliers, they tend to launch themselves into long glides, landing in the jungles and lowlands to catch small lizards, snakes, mammals, and the like. Some will even venture into Terapusmordax nests to steal pups, but have to be quick to avoid being attacked by the colony members.
A Skin-bird looks like a mostly naked winged rat, with a long neck, a narrow head, and a little stub of a tail.
HOWLER
Aligerattus Bombus
"Booming Winged-Rat"
Val CHA Cost Roll Notes -5 STR -15 8- Lift 12.5 kg; -1d6 HTH Damage 18 DEX 24 13- OCV: 6/DCV: 6 10 CON 0 11- 5 BODY -10 10- 8 INT -2 11- PER Roll 11-/15- 5 EGO -10 10- ECV: 2 10 PRE 0 11- PRE Attack: 2d6 4 COM -3 10- 2 PD 2 Total: 2 PD (0 rPD) 2 ED 0 Total: 2 ED (0 rED) 3 SPD 2 Phases: 4, 8, 12 3 REC 2 20 END 0 10 STUN 0 Total Characteristics Cost: -10 Movement: Running: 1"/2" Flight: 12"/24" Gliding: 12"/24" Leaping: 0"/0" Swimming: 1"/2" Cost Powers & Skills 8 Bite: HKA 1/2d6; Reduced Penetration (-1/4), END 1 20 Wings: Multipower, 30-point reserve, all slots Restrainable (-1/2) 2u 1) Flying: Flight 12", Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4); Restrainable (-1/2), END 1 1u 2) Riding The Thermals: Gliding 12"; Restrainable (-1/2) -10 Awkward On The Ground: Running -5" (1" total) -1 Awkward Swimmer: Swimming -1" (1" total) 8 Sharp Eyes: +4 PER with Sight Group 6 Sharp Eyes: +4 versus Range Modifier for Sight Group 5 Can See In The Gloom: Nightvision Skills 6 +2 with Claws, Grab By, Move By 10 Hard To Hit: +2 with DCV 4 +2 with Flight 3 Climbing 13- Total Powers & Skill Cost: 62 Total Cost: 52 75+ Disadvantages 15 Physical Limitation: Animal Intelligence (Frequently, Greatly Impairing) 5 Physical Limitation: Small (4-5' wingspan, +3" KB) (Infrequently, Slightly Impairing) 15 Physical Limitation: Very Limited Manipulation (Frequently, Greatly Impairing) Total Disadvantage Points: 52
Description: Howlers are flying rodents covered in a shaggy coat of hair. Keen-sighted, they hunt both day and night and can take the Skull Island White Bat (a blind flying rat who navigates by sonar) on the wing. They also feed on birds, insects, lizards, and rats.
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