Cloning dinosaurs for use as a theme park attraction is an objectively bad idea. However, if pop culture has taught us anything, it’s that if something goes horribly wrong the first time, you should probably just keep trying until you get it right, regardless of common sense, logic, or the wretched screams of terrified innocents as they’re torn limb from limb by angry prehistoric monsters.
Dinosaurs can be a great addition to any role-playing game, but are particularly well suited to superhero stories. Whether the cloned experiments of some mad scientist, denizens of some hidden land untouched by millennia, or the result of a time-travel accident, nothing says we need a hero like terrible lizards rampaging their way through the downtown core. That’s why every day for Dinosaur Week, the Gamer Nation Blog is presenting stats for two different dinosaurs for use in your Mutants & Masterminds 3E games.
Stegosaurus
Name: Roof Lizard
Size: 2.75 m x 9 m
Diet: Herbivore
Habitat: Europe, North America
Age: Late Jurassic
Stegosaurus was one of the many dinosaurs discovered during the Bone Wars of the late 19th Century, and their unique traits have been a source of debate for paleontologists ever since. The modern belief is that the rows of plates along the stegosaur’s back — originally thought to lie flat as protection — would fill with blood when it was under threat, blushing and causing a threat display to intimidate their attacker. The stegosaurus tail was also very flexible, and modern evidence suggests the four tail spikes were arranged to protrude from the sides as opposed to the top, lending further credence to the idea it was used as a weapon.
The stegosaur build has a high Intimidation to represent the blushing threat display, and their tail strike scores a critical hit on a roll of 18 or higher.
Stegosaurus • PL 8, MR 3
Str 10 Sta 9 Agl 2 Dex -3 Fgt 3 Int -5 Awe 0 Pre 0
Powers: Strength-based Damage 4 [Tail Strike], Growth 9 (Innate, Permanent), Protection 2, Senses 1 (Low-light Vision)
Advantages: All-out Attack, Great Endurance, Improved Critical: Tail Strike 2
Skills: Athletics 4 (+14), Close Combat: Tail Strike 3 (+6), Intimidation 6 (+10), Perception 3 (+3)
Offense: Initiative +2, Tail Strike +6 (Close, Damage 14, Crit 18-20)
Defense: Dodge 0, Parry 3, Fortitude 9, Toughness 11, Will 1
Totals: Abilities -4 + Powers 26 + Advantages 4 + Sills 8 + Defenses 7 = Total 41 points
Mosasaurus
Name: Lizard of the Meuse River
Size: 18 m
Diet: Carnivore
Habitat: Western Europe, North America
Age: Late Cretaceous
Though not actually a dinosaur, mosasaurus, would have been a dominant aquatic predator of the late Cretaceous, preying on fish, birds, ammonites, and other aquatic reptiles. Though it lived its entire life in the water, mosasurus did need to breath air, and would have stayed close to the surface.
The mosasaurus had a second row of teeth in its pallet, and a highly developed jaw. Anything it bit down on would have found it incredibly difficult to escape. The build uses Fast Grab and Improved Hold to represent the mosasurus jaws snapping shut on prey, and not letting go.
Mosasaurus • PL 6, MR 3
Str 8 Sta 8 Agl 4 Dex 1 Fgt 5 Int -5 Awe 0 Pre 0
Powers: Damage 5 [Bite], Growth 13 (Innate, Permanent), Senses 2 (Low-light Vision, Ultra-hearing)
Advantages: Fast Grab, Improved Hold, Improved Initiative
Skills: Athletics 2 (+10), Close Combat: Bite 2 (+7), Perception 6 (+6)
Offense: Init +6, Bite +7 (Close, Damage 5)
Defense: Dodge 2, Parry 4, Fortitude 8, Toughness 8, Will 0
Totals: Abilities 10 + Powers 37 + Advantages 3 + Skills 5 + Defenses 9 = Total 55 points
