Gone fishin'...



Astral Shark


I apologize for the complete lack of recent updates - I've been alternating between bouts of study, watching late night Champions League games, and a holiday down at the beach [not to mention an absolutely useless broadband connection for the past four weeks]. It hasn't been completely wasted though, as I did take Family Fantasy Game Book to the local Rayong Aquarium where we got to see all kinds of cool stuff! What follows is a brief look at some of the denizens of the deep we encountered, along with a batch of Advanced Fighting Fantasy stats for the gaming purists among you. After this, more maps by Steve Luxton and discussion on Titan geography to follow...

First up, my favourite, the Crocodile Needlefish (Tylosurus crocodilus)!  

CROCODILE NEEDLEFISH [SKILL 6 STAMINA 6, Large bite]

Nearly two meteres long and capable of launching themselves through the air to impale unlucky fishermen (Test for Luck to avoid), CROCODILE NEEDLEFISH appear superficially similar to Barracudas but are actually more closely related to the edible Garfish. A menace to all who trawl the equatorial waters of Titan!

The Pharaoh Cuttlefish (Sepia pharonis) is perhaps not as big as some of its relatives, but for Titan purposes we can always extrapolate!

 GIANT CUTTLEFISH [SKILL 9 STAMINA 10, Small claw or Large bite, 4 Attacks]

As well as their more mundane capabilities, the blinding colour changes of the GIANT CUTTLEFISH function as a Sleep spell for those unfortunate enough to view it underwater! These enormous cephalopods grow to three metres in length and are among the most intelligent of their kind.

Moray Eels are snake-like reef-dwelling fish that grow up to four metres long!

MORAY EEL [SKILL 7 STAMINA 12, Large bite, (from Jackson, 1986, ref#98)]

MORAY EELS live among rocks and coral in tropical marine waters and will defend their territory aggressively with a mouth full of large needle-like teeth. Their flesh is poisonous to eat. Giant Moral Eels have been reported from the vicinity of Solani Island off the southern coast of Allansia.

Biggest of the reef fish are the enormous Groupers - huge predators that grow to three metres long and weigh over 600 kilograms!

GROUPER [SKILL 8 STAMINA 12, Large Bite, (from Jackson, 1986, ref#119)]

Despite their size, GROUPERS prefer easy prey and if they are hit twice in succession in two Attack Rounds they will usually try and Escape. However, if they roll a double 6 when calculating their Attack Strength then they have swallowed their victim, who will then take 2 STAMINA points damage per Attack Round until they are dead or they have cut themselves free.

All photos by me!

References

Jackson, S. (1986). Demons of the Deep. London: Puffin Books