02-105 Cute and Fuzzy Seizure Monsters

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WRITTEN by Emily K. Dresner-Thornber

T R I-S T A T S Y S T E M ™ D E S I G N S B Y Mark C. MacKinnon

Mark C. MacKinnon, David L. Pulver, Lucien Soulban

Jeff Mackintosh

C o ver A R T W O R K Julie Dillon

IN T E R IO R A K T W O R K B Y Syrena Done, Juno Kim, Ed Northcott, Irma Suriani Ahmed © 200 2001 1 Guardia Guardians ns Of Order, Order, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Reserved.

GUARDIANS OF ORDER and an d TRI-STAT SYSTEM are ar e trademarks of G of G U A R D I A N S O F ORDER, INC. First First Printi Printing ng — December 2000. 2000.

Printed Printed in Canada

All All rights rights reserved under inter int ernati national onal law. No part of this book may be reproduced in part or in whole, in any form or by any means, without permission from the publisher, except for personal copies of the character sheet, or brief quotes for use in reviews.

GUARDIANS OF ORDER, INC.



























TABLE OF CO N TEN TS 1

C H A P T E R 1 . I N T R O D U C T IOI O N 9

USING USI NG THIS THIS SUPPLEM ENT

10 CHAPTER 2 U N TIL D EA TH D o U s PART: P etM O N S T E R C A M P A I G N S 11 15 24 28 33 36 43 46

51

O R IG IN S O F C U T E M O N S T ER S M O N S T E R R A I S IINN G S O C I E T IE IE S C U T E M O N S T E R A C Q U I S IT I T IO IO N R A I S IINN G T H E M O N S T E R S T O R IN G M O N S T ER S T H E W O N D E R F U L W O R L D O F M O N S TE R S PO R T S P R O T E S T A T IO I O N S A N D O T H E R H O B B IE IE S C A M P A IG N S T YL ES

C H A P T E R 3 : C R E A T INI N G T R A I N E R S & M O N S T E R S 52 66 67 67 74 74 79 81 81

C R E A T IN IN G M O N S T E R T R A I N E R S C R E A T IN IN G C U T E M O N S T E R S STEP 1: GM DISCUSSION S T E P 2 : M O N S T E R O U T L IN IN E STEP 3: ASSIGN STATS S T EP 4: M O N S T E R A T T R IB U T E S S T E P 5: M O N S T E R D E F E C T S S T E P 6: M O N S T E R S K IL L S (O P T IO N A L ) S T EP 7: M O N S T E R D E R IV E D V A L U E S



























9 0 S a m p lel e T R A I N E R S 91 92 94

I f

and

M ONSTERS

E R I C A N D E D D I E , T H E M A Y O N N A I S E S L IM IM E M A T IL IL D A K A W A I A N D S P U D B O Y , DARK POTATO OF THE BLACK CAVES S TE TE V E W O N D R O U S A N D A P O R K A L Y PS E N o w

C H A P T E R 4: M O N S T E R C O M B A T 97

C U T E M O N S T E R C O M B A T ID E O L O G Y

104RandomNameSelection 106 INDEX 110 A B O U T T H E A R T IST S

About the Author Emily was born bor n in Livonia, Michigan and grew up up in Brighton. While in high school, she was best known for writing strange bits of fiction, particularly a tale about rampaging rampa ging biker grandmothers grandmot hers and an auspiciou auspiciouss poem about about pocket pocket lint. lint. In college, she joined Animania, the local local anime fan f an society society,, and enjoyed it immensely until she became toxic on too much Kimagure Orange Road one infamous Sunday. Emily earned a B.S.E (Computer Engineering) and an M.S.E. (Computer Science and Engineering) from the University of Michigan, fleeing the dark grasp of graduate school in 1997. Since that time, she has worked on several projects for In Nomine Nomine (SJ Games) and as a columnist for Pyramid Magazine. When not programming or writing, Emily enjoys playing electric guitar, endlessly arguing philosophy, spending time with friends, playing video games, and claiming she knows nothing nothing about about computer comput ers. s. Emily can be reached through her pers personal onal email at [email protected].

AUTHOR's DEDICATION



























FOREWORD Love it or hate it, we would be remiss if we didn't publish this book. The pet monster anime genre has exploded across Japan, North America, and the entire entir e world. Anime Anime has has never never been been more "trendy" "trendy" than it is today, thanks tha nks to a little yellow rat and his pre-adolescent trainer. So why is it so popular? Good Good question. I believe believe the answer lies in the near perfe pe rfect ct const construction ruction of of the genre's ringleader, Pokemon. The phenomenon has a very strong base in video games — a steadily growing market thanks to state-of-the-game-art technology that make ma kess the game experience experience more dynamic and exci excitin ting g every day. Adding to this base is Pokemon s broad broa d appeal appea l to both young boys and girls. girls. Conside Considerr the stereotypes: for boys, there are battles and cool monsters and mean villains; for girls, there are strong women and oh-so-cute fuzzy animals and friendly relationshi relat ionships. ps. Finally, Finally, when when you you add the addictiv add ictivee elements ele ments of collec collectabili tability ty (anyone remember Cabbage Patch Kids?), the creators of Pokemon had a can't-miss hit on their hands. Strong mark ma rket eting ing and promotion by Nintendo and its partners partne rs snared the North American market. Then the plethora of others came along, each adding their own take on the subject. subje ct. The genre had take ta ken n root. root. I strugg str uggled led over over the decision decision to publish publish this book. We wanted want ed to serve ser ve the fan base of the popular popula r genre, genre , but didn't want wa nt to loo look k like we were "sellin "s elling g out." That just jus t isn't isn't our style. When When Emily approached David David (the (the anime line line developer) developer) and told him that she'd she'd like like to do a serious serious tre t reat atme ment nt of the genre but in a satirical tone, I gave the green light for the project. Admittedly, I still have reservations, but if we can please the fans and have some fun at the same time, then the risk is worth it. We hope you agree.

Mark C. MacKinnon Decembe 2000























































From anime's inception, there have always been cute, small monsters as sidekicks of maj ma j or characters charact ers.. From magical girl girl shows shows to mecha anime, talking talking cats, robots, puppies, mini-dragons, bats and penguins often accompanied the protagonists, looking cute, dispensing sage advice, and occasionally saving their bacon. bacon. What they rarely rar ely did was fight. It is only only recently rece ntly that anime and video video games focusing on battles between adorable little sidekicks spawned a genre all its own — and an overwhelmingly popular one at that. In 1999, pet monster merchandise outsold all competing toys, games, and collec collectable table cards in both Japan and the United States. States. It has has transcended tr anscended the normal norma l fads fad s and a nd work worked ed its way into into popular culture with millions of little boys boys and girls imagining they can own and train cute monsters, just like their digital pals. Anime inspired by the pet monster concept does not focus on complex plots or in-depth character character development. Instead, the stories revolv revolvee around the triumph of will, will, expressed expressed through t hrough the ideal of of conquest conquest and a nd batt battle. le. Rathe Ra therr than depicting angst-ridden teenagers and their giant robots, the spotlight here is on children and their pet monsters. monster s. These pint-siz pint-sized ed protagonists protagonists are in a journey jour ney of of personal selfselfdiscovery. discovery. They learn lea rn importa impor tant nt moral mora l lesso lessons ns by striving striving to become the world's best fighting monster trainers or raising armies of tiny terrorists to battle evil. Whatever the moral justification is for the ensuing mayhem, pet monster anime always combines humour and combat together to bring a half hour spectacle of flash, flas h, tension, and battle. batt le. Punches Punches fly! Monsters transfor tra nsform! m! In the end, the hero emerges victorious with smiles all around, his good friend the (slightly battered) pet monster perched perkily perkily on on his his shoulder and his gal-pal at his his side. No harm, har m, no foul, and everyone is happy (except the losing monsters). The pet monster genre did not originate in anime, nor even in collectable card games games.. It emerged emer ged in the world of electronic electr onic gaming gaming with the Februar February y 19 1996 release of the Nintendo GameBoy game Poketta Monstaa (Pocket Monsters, shortened to Pokemon). Pokemon was the brainchild of the small computer game studio Gam Gamee Freak, Inc, and involv involved ed collecting collecting small monsters monster s and comba com batt ... .. . lots of ba hours of ba miles of combat! combat! T beat the the player player had





























There was was also a very successful collectabl collectablee card car d game. game . The anime, base ba sed d on the adventures of a Pokemon trainer and his friends, began broadcast in Japan in early 199 1997, followed swiftly swift ly by two maj ma j or motion pictures. A fad was horn. hor n. The success of its Pocket Monster cartridge game in Japan inspired Nintendo to extend distribution distr ibution to North North America. America. Fickle American audiences audie nces found Pokemon Green unacceptable, however, because of blurred animation and amateur ama teur production quality. So, Pokemon Green received a graphic update to become Pokemon Blue. Both Gameboy cartridges went on sale in September 1998 with explosive explosive results. Coupled Coupled with with Warner Brother's purchase of the anim an imee series, shown on their WB! Network during prime cartoon viewing hours, Ya mamot moto o could could not. It cro crosse ssed d the Pacifi Pacific c to conquer Pokemon did what Admiral Yama America in less less than th an a year. Capitalizing Capitaliz ing on their suc succes cess, s, Nintendo Ninte ndo continued continue d producing sequels like Pokemon Yellow, Pokemon Pinball, Pokemon Silver and were far more mor e terr te rrifying ifying things in store, however. however. The pet pet Pokemon Gold. There were monsters were breeding. Step back in time tim e to 199 1996. About the same sa me period per iod that th at Pokemon first appeared, giant Japanese toy maker Bandai released Tamagotchi, the cute virtual pet. Invented by housewife Aki Maita, this toy displayed a small electronic image of a monste mons terr contained containe d in in a tiny unit uni t the size size of a key chain chain.. This required requir ed constant constant attention, att ention, much m uch like lik e a real pet, pet , or else it would would grow sick and die. die. Peopl Peoplee put their lives on hold, even when driving in traffic, to feed and care for their virtual pets. Many owners purposely let their pet die, just to see what would happen. Tamagotchi sold eight million units in its first year, and it was imported to North America in 1997, thus beating Pokemon to these these shores. Its meteori m eteoric c succ success ess wit wi th American consumers spawned an entire line of "me-too" products, notably Tiger Electronics' Giga Pets. Giga Pets introduced the concept of collectable virtual pets released in limited production runs in 1997, whetting the appetite for what was to come. Tamagotchi itself did not have the legs of Pokemon, but the digital pet phenomena stubbornl st ubbornly y refused refus ed to die. It lived lived on in conso console le games.





























Bandai Ba ndai was not about about to be left out in the cold. cold. The toy empire empir e struck st ruck back with their own Pokemon homage, Digimon: Digital Monsters Monsters , a fusion of elements from both its own Tamagotchi and its rival Pokemon. Released as an anime in 1998, Digimon first met with resistance, as the more popular Pokemon still held court court and the differences differe nces between the two seemed nebulous nebulous at best. best . After the young target audience finally tired of Pokemon, however, Digimon's popularity swelled. The Pokemon story line had emphasized the personal development of the heroes while they collected and trained their fuzzy gladiators, but Digimon was subtly diffe di ffere rent. nt. Its story was epic, closer closer to a trad tr aditional itional computer compute r RPG. The heroes were scrappy kids fighting a war against evil, with their pet monsters as junior coalitio coalition n partners part ners.. With its beachhead beachhead secured, secured, Bandai, along along with Saban Saban Entertainment, supported Digimon with a wave of motion pictures, video games, and their own collectable card game. Pet monster king Pokemon has lost some steam in the face of market saturation and competition, but the genre itself remains as fecund as ever. Games and anime attempting to either challenge the industry's leaders or carve out their own niches have flooded the marketplace over the last few years. Azure Dreams, a game based on collecting eggs, raising and, eventually, selling the monsters came out on Playstation Playsta tion in 19 1998 and for the GameBoy Game Boy in 2000. If trad tr ading ing in monster monst er flesh did not appeal to consumers, there was always Jade Cocoon: The Story of Tamamayu, release rele ased d for Playst Playstat ation ion in 19 1999. This was essentially esse ntially Pokemon with monster breeding, better graphics, and a mythic plot involving the powers of light and darkness. Some believed that this endless parade of fuzzy ferocity was becoming too much even for Japan, especially after the anime Cyber Team in Akihabara appear appe ared ed.. Released Relea sed in 1998, Cyber Team parodied magical girls, digital pets and cute monsters. monste rs. This his was was prema pre matur ture, e, however, however, with companies releasing more pet monster-inspired games and anime. Flint, the Time Detective (2000) featured a prehistoric boy who travelled through time with his friends and their monsters to





























USING

fin

SUPPLEMENT

This book is a satirical look at the pet monster genre that adds a "not-veryserious" monster creation, design, and combat rules to the Big Eyes, Small Mouth (BESM) role-playing role-pla ying game. game . It supplies supplies guidelines for GM GMs who wish wish to design campaigns or adventures adventure s inspired inspired by pet monsters. It provi provides des rules for players to create small sma ll cute cute fuzzy fuz zy creatures and use use them (or use them up) in in a quest for fame and glory or a crusade against evil and ugliness. The Pet Monster genre is not just monster battles. GMs who wish to explore the implications of fantasy societies that treat adorable little beasties as pro-wrestlers; gladiators or slave-soldiers will find useful material for this weighty theme. them e. In the process process they may teach their players many valuable lessons (like "God "God is On the Side Side of the Cute Batt B attalions"). alions"). Even Even if pet monster campaigns are not on the agenda, the GM may find the critter rules and guidelines useful for other BESM campaigns.



























































Pet Monster campaigns campaigns can can take place at anytime anyt ime,, anywher a nywhere. e. A young ninja from ancient Japan might train large ice-spitting eyeballs to slay his enemies, or a teenage space captain keep one or two pet critters on board her star cruiser for vermin vermi n control control against alien creat cre ature uress infesting infest ing the vessel. Most pet monster monst er games, however, take place on a fantasy or alternate Earth where monster ownership is accepted, expected, and universal for everybody (much like people believe all Texans own six-shooters). It is not not the time period period that matters. matte rs. It's It's the culture culture of the mass mas s ownership ownership of small, cute, cuddly, fuzzy battle monsters trained to attack at the whim and whimsy whimsy of of their owners. owners. It is a soci society ety that lives lives for fights, fights, fame fame and fortune, fortune , a society born to battle. This chapter focuses on that society's customs and conventions: the thrill of ownership (and dominance) of small creatures, the excitement of winning in the ring, the fraternal bonds of friendship between trainer and monster, and the joyful adventure adve nturess they share while while the t he critter is sent into harms har ms way to do its best pal's pal's bidding. Cute monster-ra monste r-raising ising cultures are complex, complex, filled with strange stra nge sights and stranger str anger people. people. They even have their own own poetry: poetr y: the heinous heinous rhyming battle-motto.

ORIGINS Of CUTE MONSTERS From where do cute monsters originate? How did they get here? Why are they































Today, monster palaeontology is a fast-growing field of scientific research. What did the critters of yore eat? What did they look like? Can scientists dig up an extinct monster fossil, clone it, and create a race of super-monsters to dominate the planet, or at least, the tournament circuit? The smarter trainers from around the world sign up for study programs, hoping to be the lucky one picked to dig up something really nasty and horrifying, clone it in a test tube, and add it to their monster monst er collectio collections. ns. The dumb ones ones walk around ar ound the wilds wilds all day, waiting wait ing to bushwhack some perky and unsuspecting beast.

S P A W N o f TH E A T O M A nuclear power plant melted down and blew fallout over the whole of the continent continent or or home home islands. islands. Cute Cute forest life life suffered suffer ed beneath horrible horrible mutating mutat ing radiat ra diation. ion. Adorable bunny rabbits and a nd foxes foxes gave gave birth birt h to a new generation generation of of even cuter super transforming electric rabbits and implacable fox-golems made out of chewy rubber cement. ceme nt. There were were also a whole whole lot lot of of other mutant mut ant things resembling nothing more than the fevered dreams of graphic artists in thrall to video game industry market mar keting ing exec execs. s. An army arm y of of maraudi mar auding ng creatures yen-crazed yen-crazed video were born, eating the small and defenseless, destroying homes, and invading the dream dr eamss of children. children. Someone had to stop these beasts, or better yet, harness them for the greater good good of mankind. mank ind. After the disaster, the first trainers stepped forth, girded with with monster-captur monste r-capturing ing gear, perky smiles, smiles, and advertising endorsements. endorsements. They used































Frankenmon White-coated scientists hunched over beakers full of frothing DNA molecules, mutte mut tering ring sinister incantations incanta tions to Watson Wat son and Crick. Crick. They spent their lives lives cracking the monster monst er genetic code, code, and work work feverishly to improve it. it. A little protein sequence prod here, a tweak of chromosome there, and a new species was born, intended to serve as weapons of war. Once, the monsters were what they appeared to be: fuzzy little gophers, adorable man-eat man-e ating ing tigers, cudd cuddly ly giant giant lizards lizards,, and the simple tomato. toma to. With the injection of a retrovirus that modified the genetic structures of these creatures, they became battling monsters with fully loaded weaponry and bullet-resistant armour. ar mour. Sure, Sure, the back room cages cages brimmed brimm ed with with horrific failures, failure s, and a nd the dump dum p with aborted monstrosities, but one cannot make an omelette without breaking a few fe w ova. Succ Success ess was achieved. achieved. The monster mons terss grew in height, girth, and length (or (or if they were alre al read ady y big, big, they shrunk down down to a much handier handie r size). Their teet te eth h became whiter than white, their eyes larger than saucers, and their voices sounded like Japanese voice actresses imitating kittens. People really liked them. The monsters, being far too huggable to break the enemy's moral, were a wash out out as far fa r as militar m ilitary y weapons wer weree concerned. concerned. The corporation corporation that created crea ted them































them as mascots and rat-hunters, and some were shipwrecked on Caribbean islands, where they thrived in the New World, smoking wild pigs with their fiery breat bre ath. h. These "Bucc "Buccamon amonsteers" steers" became the terror of the Spani Spanish sh Main, attacki at tacking ng treasure ships for their gold, and teaming up with dashing teenage pirates. In Europe Europe,, the cute monste m onsterr was was a pet beloved by all. Napoleon gave one to Josephine. Josephine. Karl Marx Marx saw how their battles diverted the lower lower classes classes from their miserable existence, and wrote that cute fuzzy monsters were the opiate of the people. people. Queen Victoria Victoria kept ke pt pure-br pure -bred edss in Buckingham Bucki ngham Palace, Palace, and exploration explorat ion societies organized expeditions to Darkest Africa to search for the Source of the Monsters. During World War II, II, cute monsters monster s and their spunky spunk y trainers trainer s chased down Nazi spies while at the terrible siege of Leningrad they sustained the Russian garrison.































In modern times, the monsters continued following mankind, or sometimes even preceding preceding them. the m. Sput Sp utni nik k carried a cute cute monster into space, where it orbited orbite d the Earth, Ear th, making makin g adorable noises noises that were broadcast across across the planet. plane t. As the the cold war intensified, evil geniuses stroked them tenderly, plotting the demise of dapper dappe r British spies spies.. NASA sent a boy and his monst mon ster er to the moon, wher wh eree they had many exciting adventures and collected the first lunar monster eggs.... If pet monsters have always existed alongside mankind, it not only explains why they are all over the place today, but it also offers plenty of scope for campaigns where boys, girls and their spunky little pets leave their paw prints on the pages pages of history. histor y.

SOMETHING Else ENTIRELY If cute monsters did not evolve, were not caused by radiation mutation, and are not the product of a genetic experiment, how did they end up running all over the place? They could be natives of another fantasy world (always a good choice), or have hav e arrived on Earth through thro ugh interstellar interstell ar cross-p cross-polli ollination nation.. Maybe UFO aliens aliens are using Eart Ea rth h as a dumpin dum ping g ground for unw ante an ted d pets pets.. Perhaps they are are the products of a magic magical al experime expe riment nt gone gone horribly awry. awr y. They They might even be the devil's servants — familiars sent here to corrupt unsuspecting innocent children. Who knows? They could have simply manifested one day, and now no one can get rid of the little suckers.

































Communities often practice a form of coming-of-age ritual involving cute monsters. It is not not uncommon for pre-adolesc pre-adolescent ent boy boyss and girls to beco become me trainers at the tende te nderr age age of 10, 11 or or 12 12. They then the n spend week weekss or or months month s (but usually usual ly no more than 52 episodes) absent from family and school on an extended combat safari. safa ri. If they come back covered covered with glory glory and trailing trail ing dozens of pet monste mons ters rs they are considered considered full-fle full-f ledge dged d traine tr ainers. rs. Those hose who who do not make mak e the grade usually usual ly become so thoroughly sick of the bugs, the lost battles, and the cute little fuzzy monsters' monste rs' high-pitched high-pitched voic voices es that they give give up their dream. dre am. These last unfortunates normally end up becoming high school students, where they meet other ordinary guys or girls, graduate, get jobs, marry and have children who dream of becoming monster trainers. In other othe r societies, societies, it is not so extre ext reme me.. Kids still go to school, school, and it is No Monsters in Class on pain of detention or (gasp!) confiscation. A lucky few, however, may have the opportunity to attend special academies or summer camps where professional trainers show them how to teach real, but very small, darling monsters monsters to obey obey their commands Not Not all kids are so lucky, lucky, though, though, and some

































































MONSTER

Safari!

What if collecting cute monsters were not a means to an end, but an end in itself, like goldfish fancying or collecting antiques? Trainers might trade pet monster monst erss back and forth for th in the hop hopee of securing a complete complete collec collection tion.. Rare Rar e monster monst erss could could garner garne r outrageous outra geous prices prices should should they come to auction. Even mainstr ma instrea eam m malls or superstores migh mightt have pet monster departme depar tments. nts. Some Some individuals could even become addicted to monster collecting, obsessively trying to catch each and every creature, regardless of cost. If monsters are pets, the true adventurers are those hunters who safari into dangerous places, trackless wastes or even alien planets to collect or discover new and rare breeds. Often one one or two pets accompany accompany the safari. Like Like trained hunting dogs, their goal is to leap on and subdue wild monsters, so that the brave young hunter hunt er may ma y stuff st uff them the m in his his or her storage devic device. e. A few hunters hunter s may even denounce the practice of capturing and selling monsters, preferring instead to snap

photos of rare creatures in their natural habitat.

































torpid and heavy, Since cute monsters lack the ability to play video games or surf the net, there the re is only only one one activity activity to share with with their traine tr ainers rs ... ... eating. eat ing. With nothing to do but stare longingly at the monster sports channels and munch on junk ju nk food, food, they gradually increase increase in bulk, eventually attainin atta ining g awkward awkwa rd,, ponderous sizes. sizes. (In a few rare rar e cases this this leads to a career on the monste mons terr sumo circuit.) Even Even more pitiful pit iful are their owners owners.. These woefu woefully lly obsessed individuals individua ls endure a lonely, solitary existence, living in smelly basement rooms filled with monster droppings, dr oppings, and getting little or no fresh fre sh air or exerci exercise. se. They talk only with other other fans like themselves — if they can speak at all. Indeed, Indeed , some of these cute monster fans no longer speak coherent human sentences, instead communicating communicat ing only only through a pidgin of of monster monste r talk. talk . There is one one thing we we can be thankful for: they do not breed.

WAR and Peace Knights nights rode warhorses. warhorses . The Aztecs traine tr ained d war war dogs. dogs. Is there some law that

































perilous journey jour ney to the great grea t white white north. No pet monster monst er can make mak e it to across the border alone, however however.. Heck, Heck , most of them the m couldn't cross cross the street str eet without help. If the monster is to escape, its trainer must run away with it, abandoning family and flag. The monster stares st ares at a t its its owner owner with with soulful soulful eyes, eyes, ignorant of of its fate. fat e. On a distant battlefield half the world away, cute things go over the top and into the fire. fire . Every day da y at school, school, little boys and girls girls are receivin r eceiving g "T "The Army regrets regret s to inform infor m the owner of.. of..." ." letters. lette rs. It's a har hard d cho choice, ice, but there the re are a re only two decisions. decisions. Or are there? Perhaps Perha ps serving or running run ning isn't the answer. ans wer. Maybe society society itself is sick. sick. Is there a cancer in the body politic? How can the President send cute fuzzy creatures into violent mass combat? (Violent single combat is fine, though.) Was war even declared?



































Enough Enough is enough. The genetic genetic manipula mani pulati tion on and mass mas s production of these creature crea turess is cruel. Conscriptio Conscription n is slavery! End the war! Bring our fuzzy fuz zy monste monsters rs home! Protest groups form around the lunch counters in the elementary schools and high high schoo schools. ls. The pint-sized radicals prepare prepa re to march. ma rch. They dress dre ss in tank ta nk tops, sailor sa ilor suits, suits, and perky perk y caps. caps. Society ciety recognizes recognizes them by their unkempt unke mpt,, spiky multi-chromatic hair, their anime sticker-emblazoned lunch boxes, their fuzzy little monsters, their t heir pocket pocket con consol soles. es. They wave large, crayon-writ cra yon-writte ten n sig signs reading "Give our monsters back!," "Fight duels, not war!" and "Our monsters are



































secret passwords to get in, and the ever-present chance of being raided by the cops. Organized crime, which promotes illegal gambling and especially brutal monster duels, may m ay take over over some some fight fight club clubs. s. Others may ma y simply be outlaw outlaw frate fra ternitie rnitiess of fighters and fans who live only for the thrill of the ring. Inner-city street gangs could also dominate cute monster ownership, with rival factions competing for control of city turf and staging regular duels in back alleys behind housing housing projects project s or bleak blea k inner-city inner-cit y parks par ks.. Their initiation rituals would would include kidnapping baby monsters or monster eggs from rival gang territories, or running a gauntlet gauntlet of fuzzy fuz zy terrors. Some Some gangs gangs may do it just jus t for the fighting fighting and and



































to mass limitations in the extra-dimensional spell used to bring them here, they all happen to be kids. Will Will these interdimens interd imensional ional exiles exiles have the necessary necessar y guts, fortitude, youth and favour of destiny to oppose evil and corruption? Maybe, but just to make ma ke sure, the surviving cute cute monsters realize there is only one one card left to play ... ... their own bodies. bodies. They will become cute cut e pets for the visiting heroes. heroes . This way they can motivate the Earthlings to seek out and liberate more cute monsters from the forces of evil. evil. It is a dirty job, jo b, but some pet monsters monste rs have to do it. it.



































monsters, acclimated to only fighting to the first faint, desert at the first sign of real bloo bloodshed. dshed. In the end, there the re will will be one, one, last, hear he artfe tfelt lt battle that t hat destroys d estroys the rebel monsters and their cause. The trainers tra iners win. win. Monsters, traitorous tra itorous and errant, err ant, return ret urn to their homes. The rebel rebel leaders lead ers are sent to the glu gluee factories and turned t urned into pet food. The only only survivors are those monsters monst ers that t hat did not not get carried carrie d away and chose chose to flee into the wilderness rathe ra therr than stand sta nd and fight. fight . The story ends in a short voiceover, explaining how the rebellion was crushed, but, despite orders from their trainers, a few pet monste m onsters rs continue continue whispering the names nam es of the rebels in secret, preserving the memory of what was, and what might yet be.



































The easiest way to obtain a cute monste m onsterr is to have have one one handed hande d out. out. A mentor may bequeath a small creature onto the young trainer, or a character may belong to a school or academy that gives out small, baby-sized monsters or ready-to-hatch eggs to the students. Hero teams or magical girls often recieve their first cute monster through what seems to be sheer accident — the character simply stumbles upon the critter and bonds with it, thus learning that it is his or her destiny to join forces and fight evil.





































• SNACKS!



























































There can also be secret auctions, where sellers present monsters, often considered too dangerous or rare, to a select clientele in secret meeting places.



































• BALANCED



































• INHUMANE Some Some trai tr ainer nerss just jus t don't know when to stop. Believin Believing g pain will will make their t heir











































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































All Normal Defects are appropriate for the character (though No Arms is rather rat her unlikely unlikely). ). Special Defects are usually inappropriate, unless the GM feels they fit the campaign setti setting. ng. Here are a few suggesti suggestions ons for No rmal rm al Defects: Ageism, Awkward and Easily Distracted are common since many trainers are kids. Girl/Guy Magnet can represent a star trainer with obsessive fans. Not So Strong and No t So Fast are good good for kids who are athletic athletic but not very big. Nemesis is extremely common in the Pet Monster genre, and is treated at greater greater length belo w. One Hand is appropriate for a trainer with an especially fierce pet monster. Recurring Nightmares could plague a trainer whose pet died in battle. Significant Other might represent a monster that the character treats as a real frien d an d not just a battle comrade. It also also works for kid kid brothers, sister sisterss and other hangers-on . Skeleton in the Closet can portray a trainer with dark secrets, like having cheated cheated in a major tournam ent.

This is an interpretation of the existing Nemesis Defect (see BESM, page 49). The Arch Rival Rival can be a profession al adversa ry, like like a me mbe r of a team from another country who competes against the character regularly, or someone who vies vies with the character character fo r better better monsters. The Arch Rival can can also be more personal, like the childhood friend who has sworn to defeat the character in competiti competition on to to restore restore family fam ily honour. hon our. He or she she should should make ma ke the character's character's life difficult, and not be easily dispatched, but he or she does not need to be a mortal enemy. 1 BP 2 BP

The chara cter has a single single Arch Rival that tries to stop stop him or her at every turn. The character has an entire team of Arch Ar ch Rivals who appear at the most inconvenient times.



























S K IL L S FO R T R A IN E R S At the heart of the pet monster genre, Skills are not especially important — it comes down to the trainer's ability with monsters (the Monster Trainer Attribute) an d the the prowe ss of his or her cute pets. As a re sult, Skill Skillss are n ot necessary nece ssary for most pet monster campaigns, though GMs can ignore this advice, or create crossgenre settings where Skill Skillss are m ore im porta po rtant. nt. If so, here is a suggested suggested Skill Skill Cost Chart for a typical game in the hybrid modern-fantasy world of pet monster competitions. com petitions. For mixed settings settings (for example, pet mo nster s in the world of heroic fantasy) use the higher of these costs and the other genre's Skill Costs.

Table 3-1 : Skill Costs for Monster Trainers Genera Gene rall Skill

Cost Cost 3

Acrobatics 5 An imal Training Training 2 Architecture 2 Artisan Biological Sciences 3 2 Boating 2 Burglary Busines Businesss Man ageme age ment nt 4 2 Computers C ontrolled ontrolled Breathing 1 2 Cooking

Cultural Arts Demolitions Disguise Driving Electronics Forgery Gaming

2 1

2

1

3 3 4

General Gener al Skill Skill Mechanics Medical Military Sciences Navigation Performing Arts Physical Sciences Piloting

Poisons Police Police Sciences Riding Seduction Sleight of Hand Social Sciences Sports Stealth Swimming U rban Tracking Tracking Visual Arts

Cost 3 3 2

1 2 1

1 4 2

1 1 2 2 1

4 2

3 1

Combat Skill Archery Gun Combat Heavy Weapons

Melee Melee A ttack Melee Defense Ranged Defense Thrown Weapons Un armed A ttack ttack Unarmed Defense

Cost 3 — — 4 4

3 3 3 3



























The most useful skills are likely to be Animal Training (for training monsters), Biological Sciences (for serious study or genetic engineering of cute monsters), Business Management (for running monster ranches, signing team contracts, and so forth), Electronics or Mechanics (for building monster storage devices or traps), Gaming (for betting on fights or knowing statistics), Forgery (for entering fights without qualifications), Medical (for treat tr eating ing monster monsters), s), Navigation Navigati on (to (to avoi avoid d getting getti ng lost in the wild), Poisons (for treachery), Stealth (for sneaking up on monsters prior to capturing capturi ng them), them) , Urban U rban or Wilderness Tracking (for (for tracking tra cking down down monsters in the wild) and Wilderness Survival (for finding food and shelter during safari expeditions).

P ER S O N A L G E A R FOR T R A I N E R S Here are some examples of Personal Gear appropriate to the pet monster genre. The GM GM can modify this if necessary; necess ary; for f or example, exam ple, technolog technological ical items ite ms may not be available in some fantasy worlds:

• D IG IT A L C A M E R A For For filming film ing monster monsterss in the wild. wild. A minor item.

• DISCIPLINE GEAR The necessary collars, whips, chains, prods, eye clamps, and bad TV episodes required to use the Instil Discipline ability described in Train a Cute Monster. Without Wit hout this item, ite m, the process process of disciplin disciplining ing takes tak es twi t wice ce as long. long. A minor item.

• G O T H IC IC M O N S T E R A R M O U R Specially made for the combat monster, but banned in many tournaments. Provides 4 points of protection, but has an unprotected spot (partial armour). While While worn, worn, reduces red uces the monster's Appearance Appeara nce by one. one. This his is a major maj or item. ite m.

• H E A L I N G PO PO T IO N Instantly Insta ntly restores five lost lost Health Points Points to a pet monster. monst er. Usable only once once in a game session, but characters can restock the item between sessions if they find a supplier. A minor minor item. ite m.

• IR O N C A G E For secure monster transpor tr ansport. t. A Body Stat check check at -5 is needed to break brea k the bars. bars . A minor item, item , but but heavy and difficult diff icult to transpor tr ansport. t.

• M O N S T ER LE A S H A N D C H A IN C O L LA R This his requires req uires a Body Body Stat check check at +4 to break bre ak.. A remote re mote-controlle -controlled d shockshock-



























• M O N S T E R S T E R O ID S Adds +1 to monster's Body Stat for an hour (adding +5 Health Points and Energy En ergy Point Points, s, and possibly possibly increasing increasing Com bat Value). A fter it wea rs off, these bonuses vanish and, additionally, the monster loses 10 Health Points (which it can heal norm ally). Usable only once once per game session, session, but trainer can restock item item between sessi sessions ons if if he or she finds a supplier. supplier. A minor item.



























• MONSTER STORAGE DEVICE A special magical or electronic transport container that holds one small monster. monst er. While inside the device the monster is asleep and does does not not need food or drink. drink . A minor item.

• M O N S T E R S T O R A G E -C -C A P T U R E D E V I C E A monster storage device that can also suck an unwary monster into it and capture capt ure it inside. The device device requires requires a successful Attack Roll Roll and operates operates at melee range. It has has no effect on anything other other than cute monsters monsters.. A major item.

• P ET F O O D , G O U R M E T A week's supply; it raises monster morale. A minor minor item.

• RANCH A facility for breeding breed ing cute monsters monsters.. Counts Counts as two major items.

• STABLE A fully-equipped cute monster home with running water, little monster bed, feeding feed ing area, and so on. Not Not portable, porta ble, not necessary, necessa ry, but makes mak es the monster happy. happ y. A minor item.

• S U P E R V IT IT A M IN S Instantly Insta ntly restores restore s five Energy Energy Poin Points ts to a pet pet monster. monst er. Usable only once once per game session, but trainer can restock item between sessions if he or she finds a supplier. A minor item.

• MUNDANE Clothing, a flashlight, a low-end game console system, a television, candy bars, a backpack, a plastic monster carrier, a supply of monster pet food.

• MINOR Tailored team uniform, sports bicycle, monster medical kit, copy of Manos the Hands Hands of Fate, Fate, black leather collars, thick rubber gloves, personal computer, a high-end game console, and voting stock in low-end video-game company.

• MAJOR These could also include highly illegal super drugs, advanced monster-





























Cute Cute monsters m onsters are the soul soul of of any small creature crea ture campaign. ca mpaign. If there were no cute monsters, trainers would just be ordinary kids, their options for displaying their true grit and fighting prowess limited to playing video games and shaking down other kids for for ultra-rar ultra-r aree collectab collectable le cards. Once Once a boy boy or girl girl has has found a fierce, cute and fuzzy monster, however, he or she can transcend such petty-ante activities. The character characte r need no no longer longer fear fea r the rules rules and regulations of of outrageous outr ageous bullies, bullies, parents and teachers. teachers. A pet monster is like a six-gun six-gun:: the ultimate equalizer.

STEP 1: GM DISCUSSION Players should talk to the GM about the upcoming game, to understand the rules that the GM will use, use, the the limitations limitations on the cute monsters, and a nything else that m ay pe rtain to the the campaign campaign such such as genre, duration of game, and time commitme com mitme nt. See page 67.

IN E S T E P 2 : M O N S T E R O U T L IN Players should use the game boundaries established through their talk with the GM to sketc sketchh out a rough monster outline. outline. See page page 67.

STEP

3:

Using the Character Points purchased from the character's Monster Attribute, players should give their monsters Mind, Body and Soul Stats while making sure that each Stat is no lower lower than 1 and an d no higher than 12. See page 74.

S T E P 4 : Monster A t t r i b u t e s Players can use any remaining points left over from assigning Stats to acquire Monster Attributes, Attributes, rated from fr om Levels 1 to 6. See page 74.

STEP 5:

Monster

DEFECTS





























It should should be be emphasized emphas ized,, however however,, that one one pet monster monste r is never never enough. enough. Just as a gun gun own owner er knows that t hat one needs a wide varie va riety ty of weapons for differ di fferent ent situatio s ituations ns (from hunting to shooting down the black helicopters of the UN's New World Order), so is is a proper arsenal ars enal of pet monster mons terss also required. require d. A growing growing boy or girl girl faces many ma ny challenges challenges on a day-toda y-to-da day y basis. He or she she can meet some with with a friendly frie ndly smile smile and good good sportsmanship, sportsmanship, but a fair number require openin opening g a can of fuz fu z z y whoop-ass with with just jus t the right right combata comba tant, nt, targeted targete d like a smart smar t bomb on the enemy's enemy's exact exact point point of weakness. For this reason, reas on, players players may ma y find it expedient expedient for their their trainer tra iner characters to create more than one monster, taking multiple versions of Servant (Pet Monster) or even dividing dividing their available points among their menager me nagerie ie of critters. critter s. In order to create a pet monster the trainer character must have the Servant (Pet Monst Monster) er) Attribute Attr ibute (see page 55) 55).. The player should s hould work out out the details of the creature with the GM, working through the multi-step monster generation sequence, based on the character creation process in BESM.

Once the GM decides to run a Pet Monster game, the players should conceptualize conceptua lize the kind of monster they want as their companion. The GM GM can prohibit any concept deemed inappropriate, out of genre, or just plain sick. If the player is creating a monster for a trainer character, the creature's Character Points are based on its trainer's Level in the Servant Attribute (see page 55 and BESM, page 134) 134).. If the player is creating the monster monste r as a player character, its Character Points are that of the starting total for the game.

The monster outline is a broad sketch of the pet type the player wants to create. creat e. Cute monsters monsters are a combination of two qualities: a species, species, or or creat cre ature ure





























• A Q U A T IC IC The ocean ocean is a natura nat urall place place to collec collectt fears fea rsome ome and awful a wful monste monsters. rs. As seemingly harmless harmle ss as a goldfish goldfish or or as terr te rrifying ifying as a loch loch monster, monster , aquatics aq uatics come in a huge huge assortment assort ment of shapes, sizes sizes and foreign accents. accents. Some Some trainers traine rs prefer pre fer the rapacious shark, the slippery electric eel or the stinging jellyfish, while others ... the gupp guppy. y. Most wat water er creatures creat ures have only only one one weakness: weak ness: they cannot breathe breat he air, and a nd tend te nd to flop flop about about a lot lot on dry land, without really getting anywhere. anywhere . Some Some monsters have transcend tra nscended ed this, becoming becoming amphibious. Even so, so, fish fight best best in wat water er..

• BEAST Grrr! Fttt! Pounce! Beasts include dogs, cats, wolves, lions, tigers, bears, and (oh (oh my!) other critte critters. rs. They are fuzz fu zzy y but too too mundane munda ne to be be good good cute cute monste m onsters rs on their own; with a minor modification however, they can become a two-headed wolf, fanged teddy bear or a cat with electric blue fur.

• BIRD Death eat h from fr om abov above! e! Birds are often ofte n amaz am azing ing foes because their wings wings allow allow them a wide range of attacking att acking manoeuvres, and a fast way to escape. escape. Birds also also are smaller than other monsters, controllable with the use of hoods and harnesses, and simple simple to transport. tr ansport. While While some some trainers tra iners are lucky enough enough to train trai n aweinspiring mutant falcons and monster eagles, far more use variations of pigeons, sparrows, parrots, and the occasional killer penguin.

• BUG Giant beetles, spiders, dragonflies, ants, worms, butterflies, mantises and other bugs bugs can all make ma ke a goo good base for a pet monster's species. The main ma in trouble with bugs is they look icky unless they are beetles or butterflies with lots of pretty colours, which is often the case.

• D R A G O N A N D O T H E R R E P T IL IL E S From cute, tiny-winged lizards perched on their trainer's head to enormous





























by trainers with a twisted sense of humour, these creatures are bred for a combination of their effective optic beam weapons, their shock value, and the bizarre sight of watching them eat. • GERBIL GERBIL OR OTHER OTHER SMALL SMALL RODENT

It's cute! It's small! It's a gerbil! gerbil! N o one expe cts a gerbil on the aren ar en a battlefield, and certainly not one that breathes fire and tears apart its enemy with its huge huge razor -sharp fa ngs. A t the same time, time, they make fine pets for trainers, ofte n run nin g throu gh entertaining plasti plasticc mazes a nd on cute wheels. Just as long as there are not two in a cage.... Pretty much the same goes for mice, rats, squirrels, ferrets and bunny rabbits. There is no thing like like seeming small and ino ffen sive to draw the en em y into throatbiting distance.

• GOLEM G olems are huge, slow, and strong. O ften m ade of earth or rock, but sometimes sometimes formed from other substances, these magical creatures come to life thanks to the mystic ma rk on their foreh ea ds; the y loyally loyally fight fight on the side side of their their trainer trainer un til they are e ither ither destroyed or m elt afte r being left outside outside in the rain. They are slow, slow, pon de rou s crea tures who take orde rs very literal literally. ly. Traine rs need to to care fully phrase their commands, or the golem may suddenly stuff its face with a pastry while grabbing one of its legs when the trainer really meant for it to attack. They are the main exception to monsters being small and cute, since golems are often neither.

• METAMORPH One minute the monster is a cute, little fuzz ball sitting on the character's shoulder, and the next moment, it is a three-metre tall horror with acid dripping fr om its fan gs! (See Gerbil.) Gerbil.) A me tam or ph is a critter critter that lacks the good grace to wait to evolve; instead it can transform itself into a different creature altogether





























• SPIRIT Ranging from awe-inspiring angels to terrifying devils or the angry spirits of deceased ancestors, these monsters monsters are often ofte n as beautiful as they are unpredictable, fickle, stubborn, s tubborn, and difficult to train. tra in. Spirits, Spirits, for example, might leave leave their their trainers in favour of seeking vengeance on their enemies, while pet demons will try to tempt te mpt owners owners with winn winning ing matches matches in exch exchang angee for his his or her trainer's soul. soul. Like Like golems they are rarely cute, and often appear in more serious anime.

• VEGGIE Some plants have learned how to be predators, like Venus flytraps, only cuter and often ofte n somewhat some what more mobile. mobile. These monsters can possess possess a potentially destructive des tructive arsenal arse nal of vine vine whips, thorn attacks, atta cks, dissolving dissolving toxins, toxins, allergy-induc aller gy-inducing ing pollen pollenss and fresh fres h floral floral scents. Vegetable monsters monste rs may m ay wilt wilt if not not giv given en a sufficient dose of sunlight and water, however.

ELEM ENTAL TYPE When speaking of an element, one usually means something written on a chemistry student's student 's periodic table ... not so with most cute monsters. monster s. In rockpaper-scissors, rock defeats scissors by crushing the scissors, paper defeats rock by enveloping enveloping the rock, rock, and scissor scissorss defeat de feat paper pape r by cutting the paper. paper . Monster attacks are not too different from this basic principle: fire melts ice, water douses fire, fire , and wood wood withstands withst ands gusts of wind. Elementa lem entall monsters monster s embody certain certa in characteristics — dragons breathe fire, mutant birds create tornadoes with their mighty wings, basilisks transform their opponents to stone, and sea creatures spray water geysers from whatever orifice sea monsters spray from. "Elements" "Elements" are rarely literal literal elements eleme nts from the t he periodic periodic table. There are few monsters made from xenon, lanthanum, pure nickel or radioactive plutonium, though the GM is free fre e to prohibit prohibit these. these . No one said monsters monste rs could could not not also be walking nuclear nuclear disasters disas ters This, his, afte a fterr all, all, has a long tradition tra dition in Japan, Japa n, though though





























































A playe r should should feel free to ma ke up an y new e lemen ts not included included o n this this lis list, t, and have them ap proved by the GM. If the GM w ishes ishes to to create a more cohesive cohesive (or less silly) setting, however, he or she may also create a list of the unique elem ents that exist exist in his his or her campaign before be ginning play. The following are ju j u s t a f e w e x a m p le s o f sui s uita tabl blee e le m e n ts. ts .

• CELESTIAL Monsters of this type wield star power. Scientists say stars are energy-based, but anime experts all know it means the mystical energies of pseudo-science most often accessible to Magical Girls. Monsters of this element can unleash blazingcomet blasts, Saturn capture rings, black-hole super-crusher waves and other mass-destruction abilities all conveniently limited in collateral damage.

• DARKNESS The mon ster's powe r lies lies in in the absence of light. light. D arkne ar kne ss mo nster s might live live un de rgro un d. They can sometimes blind blind their their enemies, envelop them in shadow , or even produce attacks attacks simil similar ar to Ice Ice or D eath monsters. They are ofte n vulnera ble to fire o r light light..

• DEATH Som etimes, monsters die die with with hono ur on the field of battle. More ofte n, monsters die horribly in training accidents, which are usually hushed up and never appear on any of the animated documen taries. taries. These These dead monsters can































• FIRE OR LIGHT Some traine rs are trad itionalists. itionalists. They know there there is something reliable reliable about about a monster with fire- base d attacks, and they pref er it that wa y. Fire-based Fire-based mon sters are multi-purpose: barbec ues, welding, setti setting ng off firewo rks. C reatures using fire-based abilities often breathe flame, spit fireballs, and toss the occasional na pa lm air burst. D ragon s and reptiles are often of this this elemental type. Light is similar to fire, and could represent a blinding flash, a searing laser beam , or headlights. Some trainers have even even taught their their light-based light-based monsters to respon d to their claps, claps, turnin g their their powe rs on and off in this this fashion.

• G A S O R W IN D Monsters with this element may attack with a strong wind, toxic gas, or possess noxious no xious intestinal intestinal processes that gener ate both at once . Of course, of the latter, these crea tures m ight be vulnerable to f lam e attacks that spark their their putrid putrid gases.

• ICE Som e monster mo nsterss are cool cool ... literally! literally! Ice mon sters fight with blizzard s, cold cold rays, an d salvos salvos of razo r-sha rp icic icicle les. s. They can also also be be hand y on war m days for ma king ice ice cubes or convincing convincing other mo nsters to try an d lick lick them .

• METAL OR MINERA LS These monsters are typically strong and resistant to a variety of offensive































M E R G I N G E L E M E N T S A N D S P E C IE IE S — T H E C O M P L E T E M O N S T E R To create the complete monster, the player needs to fuse an element with the species. species. The playe r is is welcome to be as imaginative with this this as possible, possible, includ ing creating new elem ents or fusing two or more d iffere nt species species or multiple elemen ts together to create a completely unique creature.

Monster Stats are the same as any other characters (see BESM, page 18). Emphasis on Stats makes the monster tougher in battle at the cost of life-saving shticks. Most mo nster s should have a relatively low Mind S tat (1-3) (1-3),, but the occasional one that is as smart or even smarter than his or her trainer can be interestin inte restin g. This is often ofte n appro pria te for spirits or psionic psionic monsters. mo nsters.

Monsters will will always always have both Nor mal ma l and Specia Speciall Attributes. Attributes. Players shoul shouldd choose choose A ttributes to reflect the monster's speci species es and ele men t. If the GM w ants to impart a particular feel to a setting, he or she may also require everyone take an A ttribute or two two to reinfor ce the the campaign's environs. For exam ple, if the game's prim ary focus is on teenage occultist occultists/ s/witc witches hes sum mo nin g and training things from beyond, the GM might require all monsters to have Natural Weapons (Tentacle).

• N O R M A L A T TR IB U T E S FO R C U T E M O N S T ER S































Appearance (cute) is something that almost every cute monster should have. Aggressive Aggressive (see (see below), below), C omb at Mastery, Ma stery, D am n Healthy!, Healthy!, Divine Divine Relationship, Energy Bonus, Focused Damage, and Massive Damage are all appropriate for fierce, tough or lucky critters. Extra Attacks is appropriate for monsters with lots of arms, multiple natural wea pons or fast reflexes. Heightened Awareness can simulate the enhanced senses of many wild creatures. The GM may allow for other Normal Attributes providing the player offers a good rationale. rationale. For example, Aura of C om ma nd might be appro priate for a free dom -loving pet monster that leads a m onster revolt, or Art of Distracti Distraction on for a cute monster that (with his or her trainer) becomes a TV star.

COST: 1 point/Level point/Level R E L E V A N T S TA TA T : B o d y TYPE: Racial The monster liv lives es to fight. The trainer can barely hold its fury in check, and when unleashed on the battlefield, it becomes a screaming ball of destructio n. Faster tha n the

































S P E C IA L A T T R I B U T E S F O R C U T E M O N S T E R S Special Attributes are what makes a cute monster unique and different from other ado rable critters. critters. All cute mon sters should take the We apon A ttack A ttribute, repre senting the mon ster's special special elem en tal attack. O ther appr opria te Special Attributes are: Displacement is a new Attribute that some monsters possess; see page 77. Elastici Elasticity ty is is a ppropriate fo r slime slime or reptile (snake) mo nster s. Environmental Control may be appropriate as a form of elemental manipulation. E xtra Ar ms is appropria te for bug, octopus, octopus, squid squid or jellyfish mo nsters, as well as some slimes. Features cover various minor abilities like warm fur, an Eyeball's multiple eyes or a cat-thing's night vision. Flight is appropriate for birds, dragons and some bugs and spirits.

































Trainable is a new Attribute (see below) that any monster may possess. Tunnelling is good for creatures like mutant gophers, worms or rock golems. Water Speed is appropriate for aquatic and maybe water element monsters. Weapon Attack is covered in detail on page 78. Other Speci Special al Attributes Attributes are not recomm end ed . In high-powered high-powered campaigns the GM may consider Magic but should not generally allow Dynamic Sorcery, Servant or Own a Big Mecha.

DISPLACEMENT COST: 4 or 8 points/Level R E L E V A N T S TA TA T : M in d Paranormal TYPE: Displacement is exactly like Teleport (see BESM, page 154) except better suited to the scale scale of pet monsters, monste rs, and an d with only two two Levels. The monster mon ster can can teleport around a small battlefield, or right through walls or doors, occasionally

































W E A P O N A T T A C K S fo r C U T E M O N S T E R S Cute monsters can wield exotic attacks to overcome their rivals, shocking, blasting, rending, burning, poisoning, folding, spindling, or mangling them into submission. submissi on. The attacks atta cks have names name s like "Vapulash," "Vapulash," "Dou "Double ble Thunder-Shock," "Hyper-D "Hyper -Dea eadly dly Tentacle Poke," Poke," and "A "Alien lien Probe Probe Surprise." Surprise." Freezing breath, brea th, streams of caustic acid, storms of poison-tipped leaves and fur-frying lightning bolts can all smite the foe ... except, like the monsters themselves, they are all bit on the dinky side. Players should create a pet monster's special attacks using the Weapon Attack Attribute (see BESM, page 157), but no monster should have more than two Levels of Weapon Attack, nor nor atta at tacks cks whose whose dama d amage ge exceeds exceeds 45 points. points. Instead, players should should pile pile up up various special special abil abiliti ities es to make ma ke these atta a ttacks cks more interesting. interes ting. The GM can make exceptions for powerful NPC monsters intended as major villains, and may allow a gradual powering-up as the campaign continues in the spirit of game sequels and second seasons.

































Mo nsters are rarely flawless. In the spirit spirit of keeping things things interesting, interesting, the GM should encourage players to take a minimum of two defects for his or her mon ster. Heck, take lots lots!! Most mo nsters have the the Marked Defect (at 2 BP) BP) while while Vulnerability Vulnerability Defect is strongl stronglyy recommen ded an d the N o Ha nds and C anno t Tal Talk k D efects are comm on. Other Defects are strict strictly ly optional. R eco mm en ded D efects are are list listed ed below. O ther D efects should should not be taken without GM permission, since they are often inappropriate for the pet monster genre. The GM m ay ma ke exceptions exceptions if if the players take pet mo nsters as playa ble characters rather than as servants. servants.

Attack Restriction may represent a monster who has reservations about fighting, or who will not attack members of his or her own species.

































Marked Marke d at the 2 BP level level is a necessity for most most monsters. monsters . It repres re presents ents the fact that the monster does not look human, and as a result is treated either as an animal or a monster. Nemesis emesis might be another another monster monste r that is the pet monster m onster's 's rival. More More often ofte n it means there are "Sinister Forces" conspiring to kidnap the monster for themselves. Not Not So Fast Fast is good good for golems golems or other slow-moving-but-big-a s low-moving-but-big-and-s nd-str trong ong monsters. monster s. Not So Strong and Not So Tough are for monsters with decent Body Stats but that are tiny in stature, such as a swift but small gerbil or kitten monster. One Arm/No Arm/No Arms Arms is good good for monster monst erss that tha t (like (like most animals) animals ) lack hands. A monster with only paws or hooves (like most dogs, cats or horses) counts as No Arms, while one with a trunk like an elephant, or an eyeball with a tentacle coming from its mouth, has One Arm. Owned By a Megacorp could represent the monster pet of a character, but which which is actually actually the legal propert prope rty y of of someone some one else. This could could lead to significant conflicts.



































Restricted Ground Movement may simulate aquatic or veggie monsters. Volatile is appropriate for fiery, gaseous or acidic monsters, who might blow up. up . Vulnerability is a Defect for just about every monster, and should reflect its elemen t or speci species es (for exa mple, a fire-bre athing phoenix beast may not like like water attacks). The Vulnerability D efect is is against a particular existi existing ng Ele ment me nt (and the GM should feel free to create species whose attacks are based on the elements that tha t the players choose) choose).. Occasio Occasionall nally y other vulnerabilities, vulnerabilities, such as a veggie veggie ster' vulnerable to being eaten, are also also possible. possible. Whe ther Vulne rability is



































Carmen, the GM, sits down with one of her players, Bob, to discuss the new gam e she she is going to run . It wil will be a Pet Pet Mo nsters ca mpa ign wher e the players and their monster companions are recruited by a Time Patrol to travel through the eons to to stop stop ev evil il mo nste r trainers trainers from changing history. history. A long the way, the players will encounter strange monsters, wacky foes, and heart-stopping battles. Carmen decides that characters are to be made on 25 points. Bob uses BESM to create a young trainer, Eric (see Sample Trainers, page 91).



































Weapon Attack at Level 1 allows Eddie to inflict 15 points of damage, but that does not not seem quite right for a poisono poisonous us green slime. Bob Bob examine exa miness the list list of Abilities Abilities and Disabilities. Disabilities. He give givess Eddie's Weapon Wea pon Attack the Irrit Ir ritant ant Ability, Ability, because it is poisonou poisonous. s. Bob also decides the attack att ack is a jelly je lly whip whip made mad e out of Eddie's body, so the Melee Disability (which counts as two Disabilities) applies. The one Ability subtracts 15 from Damage and each Disability adds 15, so now Eddie's weapon does 15 - 15 (Irritant) + 30 (Melee) = 30 points damage: a poisonous whip. Bob Bob calls this thi s weapon the "Dripping "Dripping Green Gree n Death ea th Whip." Whip." The final fi nal weapon wea pon is Weapon Attack Level 1: Dripping Green Death Whip (Damage: 30, Irritant,



































In a pet monster campaign, the GM awards award s normal bonus bonus Character Points to to the player characters (typically one character point every five sessions). In addition, the GM might offer each trainer character an additional Monster Characte Char acterr Point after aft er every sess session ion.. Players can save or use these points towards training (see (see below below). ). Characters may not not use use them towards the trainer's trainer's own Stats, Attributes or Defects, however.



































• T R A I N I N G A M O N S T E R IN I N A N E X IS IS T I N G A T T A C K A monster can also practice an existing attack to make it more dangerous. This means acquiring Levels of Focused Damage in that Weapon Attack (or A lternate ltern ate A ttack). The proce dure is is iden tical to trainin g it in an A lternative lternative Attack, except that one Monster Character Point acquires one Level of Focused Damage rather than gaining a new Alternative Attack.

• T R A I N I N G A M O N S T E R IN I N P H Y S IC I C A L F IT IT N E S S This involves special diets and exercise, such as the trainer jogging with the pet monster around a scenic mountain dojo to the score for Chariots of Fire, or the





































TRAINER ADVANCEMENT A trainer character improves his or her own Stats and Attributes using bonus



































For exam ple, instead of being a "vanilla-pudding "vanilla-pudding mo nster," the creatur e m ight now be a "megachocolat "megachocolatee vanilla-pud din g mo nster with extra topping topping." ." If mo nsters

































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































02-105 Cute and Fuzzy Seizure Monsters

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