TEXT: 1
  Addendum
   HOLLOW EARTH EXPEDITION
  ADDENDUM
  EXPANDED CONTENT
  In addition to introducing new material, the informa-
  tion below covers Talents, Flaws, and equipment not ful-
  ly detailed in the Hollow Earth Expedition core rulebook. 
  Although most of it is appropriate for any character, some 
  material—such as the Atlantean Language Talent—may 
  be more suitable for NPCs or special player characters.
  ARCHETYPES
  Crewman
  Crewmen are the lifeblood of any expedition. They 
  may be general laborers carrying supplies and perform-
  ing routine maintenance or specialists such as cooks, 
  quartermasters, or carpenters. It is the tireless efforts of 
  these men and women that keep an expedition on the 
  move. Their job may not be glamorous, but no captain or 
  explorer would get very far without them.
  Examples: Aeronaut, Deckhand, Submariner
  Spy
  Spies are covert agents working to uncover (and pos-
  sibly thwart) the plans of their enemies. They might lurk 
  in the shadows and never show their face, or work in the 
  open using an alias. Spies have a variety of tools at their 
  disposal including seduction, sabotage, and assassination; 
  they will do whatever it takes to get the job done.
  Examples: Double Agent, Femme Fatale, Saboteur
  MOTIVATIONS
  Mystery
  Your character believes in privacy, security, and the 
  inscrutable nature of the universe. He generally takes 
  things at face value and doesn’t pry into other people’s 
  business. He believes that some things should be kept 
  secret until the world is ready for them, and that delving 
  too deeply into things man was not meant to know can 
  be dangerous. You earn Style points whenever your char-
  acter protects an important secret or convinces someone 
  not to go looking for the truth.
  Possessed by: Missionaries, Occultists, Spies
  TALENTS
  Atlantean Language
  Prerequisites: Linguistics 6
  Your character can ﬂuently read, write, and speak the 
  Atlantean language. However, it is a complex language, 
  and she has only begun to realize its true potential.
  Beneﬁt: Your character has basic proﬁciency in Atlan-
  tean. Advanced concepts may be lost on her, though, as 
  there is a difference between understanding the words 
  and unraveling their meaning.
  Normal: The Atlantean language is a mystery to your 
  character. Deciphering or translating basic concepts require 
  
  2
  Addendum
  a Linguistics roll with a difﬁculty rating of 4. Obscure or 
  esoteric concepts have a difﬁculty rating of 5 or greater.
  Advanced: You may purchase this Talent up to three 
  times, gaining your character a +2 Linguistics bonus for 
  each additional level. Advanced knowledge of Atlantean 
  also increases the number of languages your character is 
  ﬂuent in (see Hollow Earth Expedition, p. 56).
  Atlantean Power Words
  Prerequisites: Atlantean Language
  Your character has begun to tap into the true power 
  of the Atlantean language, allowing him to issue one-
  word commands that must be obeyed.
  Beneﬁt: As an attack action, your character may 
  attempt to issue a one-word command to a group of oppo-
  nents during combat. All sentient creatures who hear it 
  will understand the command, but beware: Atlantean is 
  a complex language and correct pronunciation is critical 
  in order to compel them to obey.
  When issuing a command, make a Linguistics roll 
  against all opponents within 10 feet of your character. 
  If you roll more successes than an opponent’s Willpower 
  rating, she must obey the command for a number of turns 
  equal to the number of extra successes you rolled. A com-
  manded opponent may defend herself normally, but the 
  control is broken if she is attacked during this time. If you 
  roll more than twice an opponent’s Willpower rating, she 
  loses her Active Defense and cannot disobey the com-
  mand even if attacked for a number of turns equal to the 
  total number of extra successes you rolled.
  Normal: Your character cannot use the Atlantean 
  language to command others.
  Advanced: You may purchase this Talent up to three 
  times, gaining your character a +2 Linguistics bonus for 
  each additional level. Advanced knowledge of Atlantean 
  also increases the number of languages your character is 
  ﬂuent in (see Hollow Earth Expedition, p. 56). Bonuses 
  from the Atlantean Language and Atlantean Power 
  Words Talents do not stack.
  Counterstrike
  Prerequisites: Brawl 4
  Your character may counterattack after blocking a 
  blow, shifting immediately from defense to offense.
  Beneﬁt: Your character may reﬂexively attack as part 
  of the Block maneuver (see Hollow Earth Expedition, 
  p.118). Resolve the Block normally, but your character 
  inﬂicts damage if you roll more successes than her attacker. 
  Any Defense modiﬁers that apply to the Block maneuver 
  apply to the Counterstrike ability; however, bonuses from 
  the Block and Counterstrike Talents do not stack. If your 
  character loses her Active Defense, she loses her Counter-
  strike ability as well.
  Normal: Your character Blocks normally.
  Advanced: You may purchase this Talent up to three 
  times, gaining your character a +2 Defense bonus against 
  Brawl attacks for each additional level.
  Quick Strike
  Prerequisites: None
  Your character can strike like lightning, allowing him 
  to land a blow before his foe has a chance to react.
  Beneﬁt: When making a Brawl or Melee attack, 
  your character gains a bonus Initiative success, raising 
  his total Initiative and allowing him to attack sooner. 
  If using Continuous Combat (see p. 4), your character 
  gains a -1 bonus to his Initiative Rate.
  Normal: Your character’s Initiative is unmodiﬁed.
  Advanced: You may purchase this Talent up to three 
  times, gaining your character an additional Initiative 
  bonus for each level.
  Riposte
  Prerequisites: Melee 4
  Your character may immediately attack after parrying 
  with a melee weapon, turning her opponent’s attack to 
  her advantage.
  Beneﬁt: Your character may reﬂexively attack as part 
  of the Parry maneuver (see Hollow Earth Expedition, 
  p.121). Resolve the Parry normally, but your charac-
  ter inﬂicts damage if you roll more successes than her 
  attacker. Any Defense modiﬁers that apply to the Parry 
  maneuver apply to the Riposte ability; however, bonuses 
  from the Parry and Riposte Talents do not stack. If your 
  character loses her Active Defense, she loses her Riposte 
  ability as well.
  Normal: Your character Parries normally.
  Advanced: You may purchase this Talent up to three 
  times, gaining your character a +2 Defense bonus against 
  Melee attacks for each additional level.
  
  3
  Addendum
  Modern Longarm  Dmg  Str  Rng     Cap  Rate  Spd  Cost      Wt
  Winchester            4L     2    100 ft.  4 (i) M       A      $50.00  8 lbs.
  M1895 .405
  Snapshot
  Prerequisite: None
  Your character can shoot from the hip, ﬁring intui-
  tively without requiring time to aim.
  Beneﬁt: When making a ranged attack, your character 
  gains a bonus Initiative success, raising his total Initiative and 
  allowing him to attack sooner. If using Continuous Combat, 
  your character gains a -1 bonus to his Initiative Rate.
  Normal: Your character’s Initiative is unmodiﬁed.
  Advanced: You may purchase this Talent up to three 
  times, gaining your character an additional Initiative 
  bonus for each level.
  FLAWS
  Mental
  Curious: Your character is insatiably curious. She 
  is fascinated by the unknown and will leave no stone 
  unturned in her search for answers. She cannot leave well 
  enough alone and often ends up in trouble. You earn a 
  Style point whenever your character’s curiosity gets her 
  or her companions into trouble.
  Thrill-Seeker: Your character is an adrenaline junkie. 
  He laughs in the face of danger and revels in putting 
  himself in extreme situations. As a result, he is much 
  more likely to get hurt or killed. You earn a Style point 
  whenever your character needlessly puts himself or his 
  companions in danger.
  Social
  Stubborn: Your character is obstinate and hardheaded. 
  She becomes unreasonably unmoving once her mind is 
  made up. You earn a Style point when your character’s 
  inﬂexibility causes her trouble or she forces others to go 
  along with her idea.
  Fanatic: Your character is passionately devoted to 
  a particular cause, ideal, or organization. He will act 
  in accordance with his beliefs even if it costs him his 
  life. You earn a Style point whenever your character’s 
  devotion causes him harm or he converts someone else 
  to his way of thinking.
  EQUIPMENT
  Modern Longarms
  Winchester M1895 .405: This Winchester riﬂe 
  was specially chambered for .405-caliber ammunition, 
  making it the most powerful lever-action riﬂe in its day. 
  Theodore Roosevelt had a special fondness for this riﬂe, 
  calling it “Big Medicine” for lions.
  ATLANTEAN ARTIFACTS
  Beastmaster Crystal
  Artifact 3
  This small, tooth-shaped crystal allows the user to 
  summon and control animals. The character simply 
  places it between the palms of her hands and concentrates 
  on the creatures she wishes to contact. She will feel her 
  mind expanding as the crystal begins to glow with gold-
  en light. If there are animals of the appropriate type in 
  the immediate area, she will feel their presence and may 
  attempt to control them. Make an Animal Handling roll. 
  If you roll more successes than an animal’s Willpower 
  rating, it is compelled to obey your character’s summons 
  as quickly and directly as possible. It will remain friendly 
  toward her for a number of turns equal to the number 
  of extra successes you rolled. The control is broken if it 
  is attacked during this time. If you roll more successes 
  than twice an animal’s Willpower rating, it is compelled 
  to obey your character’s commands (even if attacked) for 
  a number of turns equal to the total number of extra suc-
  cesses you rolled.
  
  4
  Addendum
  Continuous Combat is an optional system for run-
  ning action scenes in an ongoing progression rather than 
  by the usual round-robin cycle of turns. Unlike standard 
  combat, the sequence for character actions is ﬂuid and 
  ever-changing; characters performing fast actions will 
  act more often, and characters performing slow actions 
  will act less often. Thus, Continuous Combat offers a 
  better balance between speed and strength, and can add 
  a new dimension of strategy to combat. A Gamemaster 
  may also choose to switch back and forth, using standard 
  combat for smaller conﬂicts and preparing Continuous 
  Combat for climactic ﬁghts. 
  Normal round-robin combat is divided into a num-
  ber of turns, with each player performing one action 
  during each six-second turn. The duration of a single 
  action in Continuous Combat is measured not in turns 
  but in phases, where ten phases equal one turn of stan-
  dard combat (making each phase approximately one-half 
  second long). Actions performed in Continuous Combat 
  are identical to those in round-robin combat and have 
  a base duration of 10 phases. The difference is that the 
  duration of actions can be modiﬁed by individual attri-
  butes and other factors.
  During Continuous Combat the GM will count 
  through the phases until combat is ﬁnished. Each player 
  is responsible for announcing his action when the count 
  reaches the phase where he can act. The player executes 
  his action and then determines when his next action will 
  occur while the count continues and other players resolve 
  their actions.
  CONTINUOUS COMBAT 
  OVERVIEW
  During Continuous Combat, all characters follow 
  these basic steps:
  Step One: Calculate Initiative Rate
  Determine how long it takes for a character to com-
  plete a declared action
  Step Two: Continuous Movement (Optional)
  Characters move in small increments during each 
  phase of combat
  Step Three: Apply Modiﬁers
  Modiﬁers to a character’s rolls last until his next Ini-
  tiative phase
  Step Four: Resolve Action
  Resolve action normally 
  Step Five: Repeat 
  Repeat Steps Two through Four for each character 
  until combat is concluded
   CONTINUOUS COMBAT
  
  5
  Addendum
  CALCULATE INITIATIVE 
  RATE
  Bodies do not move at the speed of thought; there 
  is always a lag time between decision and action. The 
  Initiative Rate represents the time it takes to move in 
  for a punch, ﬁddle with the Atlantean artifact, or aim at 
  a target. The number of phases between actions varies 
  from character to character, and is determined by Initia-
  tive Rate. The base Initiative Rate for an action is 10 
  minus the character’s Initiative roll, modiﬁed by speciﬁc 
  actions, weapons, and Talents (minimum Initiative Rate 
  = 1). Each character’s base Initiative Rate is used for the 
  remainder of the combat.
  Initiative Rate = 10 – Initiative Successes + Initia-
  tive Rate Modiﬁers
  Example: Peter rolls 3 successes on his Initiative roll, so 
  his character will act on phase 7, plus or minus any modi-
  ﬁers. If he is wielding a fast weapon, such as a hunting knife 
  (-1 Initiative bonus), his character will strike on phase 6. If 
  he is wielding a slow weapon, such as an elephant gun (+1 
  Initiative penalty), his character will attack on phase 8. If he 
  switches weapons later, his character’s Initiative Rate will be 
  modiﬁed accordingly.
  In Continuous Combat, any effect or circumstance 
  with a duration measured in combat turns lasts for 10 
  phases per combat turn. Thus, if a ﬁre will burn for two 
  combat turns, it will last for 20 phases in Continuous 
  Combat; if a Body roll must be made to hold one’s breath 
  every turn, then it must be made every 10 phases.
  Combat Schedule
  Gamemasters using Continuous Combat may wish to 
  prepare a combat schedule. This might seem cumber-
  some at ﬁrst, but once the GM and players are used to 
  it, and all the numbers have been crunched, it can dra-
  matically simplify combat because the NPC actions are 
  pre-calculated and recorded on the schedule. This is 
  especially helpful when dealing with multiple opponents 
  with different Initiative Rates. 
  CONTINUOUS MOVEMENT 
  (OPTIONAL)
  Characters will normally both move and act on the 
  appropriate phase of combat. In certain circumstances, 
  however, it may be important to know how fast a char-
  acter is moving or where he is at any given instant. In 
  these situations, the GM can have characters distribute 
  their movement across several phases rather than using 
  it all at once.
  Initiative Rate Modiﬁers
  Action                             Modiﬁer       Notes
  Aim Maneuver
  Brawl Attack
  Called Shot 
  Maneuver
  Careful Action 
  Maneuver
  Charge Maneuver
  Hasty Action 
  Maneuver
  Non-attach Action
  Parry Maneuver
  Ready weapon
  Reload a weapon
  Reload weapon with 
  rate of ﬁre = 1/2
  Reload weapon with 
  rate of ﬁre = 1/3
  Style Points
  Surprised
  Total Attack 
  Maneuver
  Use Item
  Weapon speed is 
  “A” (Average)
  Weapon speed is 
  “F” (Fast)
  Weapon speed is 
  “S” (Slow)
  +10 penalty
  -1 bonus
  +1 penalty
  +1 penalty
  None
  -1 bonus
  None
  Weapon Speed
  None
  None
  +10 penalty
  +20 penalty
  Maximum –5 
  bonus (10 Style 
  points)
  +10 penalty
  +1 penalty
  None
  None
  -1 bonus
  +1 penalty
  Loses Active Defense 
  until shot is ﬁred; gains 
  +2 Aim bonus for each 
  10 phases spent aiming
  Includes disarm, grapple 
  throw, etc.
  +2 Defense bonus
  Loses Active Defense 
  until next action
  Includes dodge, stand up, 
  use skill, etc.
  A penalty may be imposed 
  if the weapon is securely 
  stowed or difﬁcult to reach
  Style bonus only lasts for 
  one action
  Includes Flurry, Full 
  Autoﬁre, etc.
  A modiﬁer may be im-
  posed depending on the 
  complexity of item
  (pressing a button is -1, 
  playing a few bars on a 
  piano is +2)
  
  6
  Addendum
  With Continuous Movement, characters spend some 
  of their Move rating each phase. Each Move rating buys 
  the appropriate distance for the movement type (e.g., 5 feet 
  while walking, 2.5 feet while swimming). A character’s 
  Move rating must be spent during contiguous phases lead-
  ing up to and including the phase he performs an action. 
  After completing that action the character’s Move rating 
  replenishes (any unspent Move rating is lost). A Character 
  must spend his Move rating during contiguous phases. If 
  he stops moving for any reason, he cannot move again.
  On each phase, a character may move up to his Move 
  rating divided by his Initiative Rate, rounded up (see 
  sidebar). For example, Mick has a Move rating of 6 and 
  a current Initiative Rate of 8, so he can spend 1 Move 
  rating per phase on up to six contiguous phases. Mean-
  while, a giant ape, with an Initiative Rate of 10 and a 
  Move rating of 24, can spend up to 3 Move rating per 
  contiguous phase.
   
  In normal round-robin combat, characters have the 
  option of moving then attacking, or of attacking then 
  moving. With Continuous Movement, characters do not 
  attack and move at the same time. Instead, movement 
  always happens prior to a character’s action. A character’s 
  Move rating refreshes after his next action.
  Players with the Mobile Attack Talent, however, do 
  not have to move contiguously. Additionally, they may 
  borrow up to half their total Move rating from their pre-
  vious action or carry over the same amount to their next 
  action. A character’s modiﬁed Move rating is used to cal-
  culate his current movement per phase.
  Note: A battle mat with a grid or hexagonal pattern is 
  useful when tracking movement for multiple characters.
  Example: Andrew’s character is trapped in a narrow canyon, 
  running away from a stampeding brontosaur. The GM wants 
  to keep things dramatic, so he decides to use Continuous Move-
  ment and lay out the scene on a battle mat; each square is equal 
  to 5 feet, and the dinosaur is 15 squares (75 feet) behind the hero. 
  The brontosaur has a Move rating of 56 (long strides!) and a 
  calculated Initiative Rate of 8 (10 – 2 successes on its Initiative 
  roll). Andrew rolls four successes on his Initiative and declares 
  that his character is sprinting (Move rating x4), giving him an 
  Initiative Rate of 6 and a Move rating of 28.
  Andrew sees that his speed of 28 is more than four times his 
  Initiative Rate of 6, so he can move up to 5 spaces per phase. 
  The brontosaurus, on the other hand, can move 7 spaces per 
  phase. Andrew’s character may not be able to outrun the dino-
  saur, but his comparative nimbleness and small size may keep 
  him alive for a short time.
  The GM calls for phase one and both characters move. The 
  brontosaurus narrows the gap to 13 spaces. The same hap-
  pens on phases two through ﬁve, reducing Andrew’s lead to 
  5 spaces. But when the GM calls for phase six, Andrew can’t 
  keep up the pace. He only has a 3 Move rating left, while the 
  brontosaur covers another 7 spaces. It is now only one square 
  behind him! Andrew didn’t have to spend all his Move rat-
  ing in the early phases, but not doing so would have meant 
  becoming road kill.
  Fortunately, Andrew gets to act on phase 6 and his Move 
  rating refreshes. He could continue sprinting, but he won’t be 
  able to outrun the brontosaurus. It will catch up to him on the 
  next phase, no matter what. Instead, he decides to risk it all 
  on a daring athletic maneuver. He declares that his character 
  is going to dive for cover behind a rock and hope the dinosaur 
  thunders past him.
  Using normal movement rules, Andrew’s character would 
  have moved and acted before the brontosaurus and never been 
  in any real danger. By using Continuous Movement, the GM 
  created tension and gave Andrew the sense that his character 
  made a narrow escape.
  APPLY MODIFIERS
  Whenever an action provides a modiﬁer to a roll, 
  bonuses or penalties remain in effect until the charac-
  ter performs a different action. Therefore, a character 
  using the Guardian Talent may grant an uninterrupted 
  Defense bonus to his allies for the remainder of combat, 
  so long as he takes no other actions.
  Example: On phase nine, the GM announces that a Nazi 
  soldier is carefully aiming at the explorers. He could ﬁre his 
  riﬂe as early as phase nine, but chooses instead to delay his 
  action until phase nineteen in order to get a +2 Aim bonus. 
  Meanwhile, Andrew’s survivor character has succeeded in 
  sneaking up on him, and attacks with his spear on phase 16. 
  The sniper is in the midst of performing the Aim maneuver, 
  so he cannot use his Active Defense against the attack because 
  his attention is elsewhere.
  Multiple Attacks: Characters performing an action 
  that allows them to attack multiple times (such as the 
  Flurry or Dual Wield maneuvers) may divide their Ini-
  tiative Rate into equal parts and attack once at the end of 
  each part. For example, if a character with an Initiative 
  Move rating is... 
  Move rating/phase
  Less than or equal to Initiative Rate 
  1
  Greater then Initiative Rate 
  2
  Double Initiative Rate 
  3
  Triple Initiative Rate  
  4
  Quadruple Initiative Rate 
  5
  
  7
  Addendum
  Rate of 8 were to attempt to shoot twice, then he would 
  ﬁre on phases four and eight. Even if a character chooses 
  to hold his ﬁrst attack for a number of phases, the second 
  attack must follow the ﬁrst by at least half his Initiative 
  Rate (rounded down). (Note: Autoﬁre attacks are not 
  considered multiple attacks for these purposes.)
  Multiple Attackers: Only attacks that fall within a 
  target’s Initiative Rate count as multiple attacks. Thus, 
  two characters must attack the same enemy between his 
  actions in order to reduce his Defense rating. If ﬁght-
  ing faster opponents, characters may want to hold their 
  attacks in order to gain this beneﬁt.
  Stunned: A character can perform no actions for 
  10 phases after being stunned. Any actions underway 
  are cancelled. Afterward, she may calculate her Initia-
  tive Rate normally, starting with the phase in which she 
  recovered from being stunned.
  Continuous Combat 
  Maneuvers
  Hasty Action: When speed is important, your char-
  acter may throw caution to the wind and perform a hasty 
  action. She gains a -1 bonus to her Initiative Rate for that 
  action, but it leaves your character overextended and she 
  cannot actively defend herself. If she is attacked before her 
  next action, you only get to roll her Passive Defense (plus 
  any applicable defense modiﬁers) for her Defense roll.
  Careful Action: Sometimes a character is willing 
  to sacriﬁce speed for safety, carefully defending herself 
  while she performs an action. By taking a +1 penalty to 
  her Initiative Rate, she gains a +2 Defense bonus until 
  her next action.
  RESOLVE ACTION
  When the GM’s count reaches the phase for a char-
  acter to act, that character performs his action just as in 
  standard combat. The character isn’t required to take an 
  action, and may hold his action for any number of phas-
  es, but he cannot calculate the Initiative Rate for his next 
  action until the current phase is complete. 
  Ties: If two or more characters are scheduled to per-
  form an action during the same phase, the tie is resolved in 
  the usual way: total Initiative rating acts as the tie breaker.
  Movement: Unless you are using the Continuous 
  Movement option (see above), characters both move and 
  act on the same phase as their action. 
  EXAMPLE OF PLAY
  The GM has decided the climax of his game will have 
  several different enemies converging on the site of a mystical 
  Atlantean gate, so he is running this capstone encounter using 
  the Continuous Combat system.
  Before the game begins, the GM calculates the Initiative 
  Rate for the heroes’ adversaries. The lizardmen guarding 
  the gate are wielding spears (an average speed weapon) and 
  have an Initiative rating of 5. Since the lizardmen’s average 
  Initiative is 2+, the GM rolls one die. It comes up a success, 
  so the lizardmen’s average Initiative Rate is 7 (10-3+0). To 
  make it even more interesting, he gives them the ability to 
  spit poison, but he keeps it simple by making their spit attack 
  follow the same Initiative Rate. There are also several Thule 
  Society soldiers who will join the combat. Based on the sol-
  diers’ Initiative rating and weapons, the GM determines that 
  their average Initiative Rate is 8. He ﬁnishes prepping for the 
  combat by jotting down “Lizards” on the combat schedule at 7, 
  14, 21, 28, etc., and “Nazis” at 8, 16, 24, and so on, well past 
  where he expects they’ll stop ﬁghting. Events during combat 
  could  rearrange this order, but it is most likely accurate. 
  When the combat begins, the players calculate their char-
  acters’ Initiative Rates. Alex rolls Initiative for his big game 
  hunter and gets an impressive four successes. He would nor-
  mally act on phase 6, but since he is wielding his elephant gun 
  (slow weapon speed), his modiﬁed Initiative Rate is 7. Andrew, 
  playing the survivor, and Peter, playing the professor, also roll 
  Initiative and score three successes each, giving them both Ini-
  tiative Rates of 7. Now that everyone’s Initiative Rates have 
  been calculated, combat is ready to begin.
  The GM counts the ﬁrst few phases quickly because no one has 
  an Initiative Rate that low. As he reaches ﬁve, Alex speaks up.
  “I use a hasty action to ﬁre my elephant gun on phase ﬁve,” 
  says Alex.
  “Really?” asks the GM. “Your Initiative Rate is 7. How 
  are you ﬁring so soon?”
  “I have the Snapshot Talent. Plus, I’m ﬁring as a hasty 
  action, which gives me an additional bonus.”
  Alex rolls his attack and deals a minor wound to one of the 
  lizardmen; while the GM counts on, Alex calculates when he 
  will take his next action. His base Initiative rate is 6, and 
  he knows he will ﬁre his elephant riﬂe again (+1 penalty), 
  modiﬁed by his Snapshot Talent (-1 bonus), so he will ﬁre 
  again on phase eleven.
  In the meantime, the GM resolves other actions. Phase 
  seven has a three-way tie, which is resolved by comparing 
  each character’s base Initiative rating. The professor has the 
  highest rating, so he goes ﬁrst. 
  
  8
  Addendum
  The professor  yells in German to the Nazis: “Let’s team 
  up against the lizardmen!” Peter makes a Diplomacy roll, 
  but only scores two successes. The Thule soldiers don’t look 
  convinced, but the GM rewards Peter with a Style point for 
  attempting to live up to the professor’s Paciﬁst Flaw. Next, 
  Andrew makes a Stealth roll to have his survivor character 
  sneak closer to the Atlantean gate. Finally, the lizardmen get 
  their turn:  they all  raise long horns—carved from the tusks 
  of some giant creature—and blow them in unison. The sound 
  echoes out into the jungle and is answered with a similar bel-
  low some distance away. 
  The GM lets Peter make a reﬂexive Anthropology roll 
  to see if the professor understands what the lizardmen have 
  done. Peter rolls and only scores two successes.
  “With that roll,” says the GM, “You can tell that the liz-
  ardmen are summoning reinforcements. But the trumpeting 
  also has a sort of ritual to it, like it might have some kind of 
  religious meaning.”
  The GM continues to count phases. On phase eight, the 
  Nazis move forward and open ﬁre. Two of them shoot at the 
  lizardmen, clipping them for minor wounds, while the other 
  two shoot at the hunter and the professor (“That’s what you 
  get for trying to make a deal with Nazis,” the GM notes sage-
  ly). The professor manages to avoid being hit, but the hunt-
  er—who is still off balance because of his hasty action—can 
  only roll his Passive Defense, plus a couple of bonus dice due 
  to cover. He takes three points of damage, enough to stun him, 
  so he spends two Style points to prevent one wound and avoid 
  being stunned.
  The GM counts on. On phase eleven, the hunter ﬁres at the 
  lizardmen again. This time he rolls a devastating eight suc-
  cesses, dropping his target in a shower of green scales. On phase 
  fourteen, the survivor bounds out of the undergrowth, taking 
  down a Nazi with one of his machetes. On that same phase, the 
  lizardmen leave their post to attack the intruders. One attacks 
  a Nazi and another jabs the survivor with a spear, inﬂicting 
  two lethal wounds. The other two lizardmen spit venom, strik-
  ing both the professor and the hunter. Both players make Body 
  rolls to overcome the toxin rating of the poison (which the GM 
  decides is a 4) but neither of them roll enough successes. Both 
  characters will continue to take damage over time. Now the GM 
  has another effect to track: the two poisoning victims will need to 
  make a Body roll every ten phases until the effect ends. It is now 
  phase fourteen, so he jots down “poison, prof & hunt” on phase 
  twenty-four to remind himself when to bring it up again.
  As an aside, the GM announces that a great crashing can 
  be heard out in the jungle; it would seem that the lizardmen 
  reinforcements are drawing near.
  ”Fifteen,” says the GM.
  “Oops,” says Peter. “I was supposed to go on fourteen. Dang! 
  If I had gone then, I could have avoided the lizardman. Oh 
  well. I’ll go now.” Phase fourteen was the earliest the professor 
  could have acted, but he is allowed to hold his action for any 
  number of phases until he chooses (or remembers) to go. The 
  professor moves toward the gate on phase ﬁfteen.
  On phase sixteen, the Nazis inﬂict another wound on the 
  hunter, the survivor, and one of the lizardmen. The hunter 
  reloads on phase seventeen.
  “Eighteen,” says the GM.
  “Me!” says Andrew. “I spend two Style points to boost my 
  Dual Wield Talent one level, and make my ﬁrst attack.”
  The survivor last performed an action on phase fourteen. 
  His Initiative Rate for his current action is 8 (due to the +1 
  penalty for the Total Attack maneuver) and since he’s attack-
  ing twice, he divides his Initiative Rate by two. The survi-
  vor makes his ﬁrst attack on phase eighteen, and will make his 
  second attack on phase twenty-two. Because he is making a 
  Total Attack, he loses his Active Defense until his next action 
  following his second attack.
  Once that’s clariﬁed, the survivor swings the machete in his 
  right hand, whacking it soundly into the thigh of his lizard-
  man opponent. This adversary has also been injured by Nazi 
  bullets, but somehow remains on its feet, hissing angrily.
  The lizardmen attack again on phase twenty-one. One 
  drops a Nazi soldier, while the other rushes the professor and 
  jabs him with a spear for one point of damage, hoping to chase 
  him away from the portal.
  On phase twenty-two, the professor runs to the gate (on 
  the next round, he will begin deciphering the runes inscribed 
  upon it). The survivor delivers his second blow, dropping a 
  lizardman.
  The hunter has reloaded and is ready to ﬁre on phase twen-
  ty-three. There are two lizardmen and two Thule soldiers left 
  standing. Since he dislikes them so much, the hunter shoots at 
  a Nazi with his big gun. Luck isn’t with him. Despite his 
  large dice pool, he only inﬂicts three points of damage. It isn’t 
  enough to kill the Nazi, but it’s enough to stun him. The GM 
  marks “N#2 unstunned” on phase thirty-three of the combat 
  schedule to indicate when the Nazi will be able to take action 
  again. This mean he’s out of sync with his fellow, but it won’t 
  be hard to track him separately.
  On phase twenty-four, the Nazi deals the survivor an 
  additional wound. In addition, the poison inﬂicts one more 
  wound on the professor and the hunter. 
  Nothing happens again until phase twenty-eight, when 
  one lizardman slays a Nazi and the other narrowly misses the 
  professor with a spear.
  
  9
  Addendum
  There is another three-way tie on phase twenty-nine, this 
  time between the three player characters.
  The professor is ﬁrst, so Peter makes a Linguistics roll to 
  operate the portal. The GM determines that he needs to accu-
  mulate 5 successes to open the portal; if he only rolls a portion 
  of that this round he could add more on his next action, but, 
  as injured as he is, waiting seems risky. “I’m all in,” he says, 
  pushing forward his entire stack of Style chips to buy four bonus 
  dice. His sacriﬁce pays off: he rolls six successes this phase.
  “The stone face of the portal shimmers and ripples with 
  energy,” says the GM. “It opens to show a high, snowy peak, 
  and a cold wind blows past your face. You may pass through 
  the portal at any time.”
  Unfortunately, this is easier said than done. The hunter and 
  the survivor aren’t close enough to get through the portal yet, but 
  they both intend to move toward it once they’ve taken out the 
  opposition. A good shot from the hunter fells the lizardman 
  attacking the professor, and the survivor ﬁnishes off the other 
  one, so the GM crosses the lizards off the combat schedule.
  The remaining Nazi regains consciousness on phase thirty-
  three, and may now plan on going eight phases later, meaning 
  that his next action will occur on phase forty-one. But he’s 
  never going to get there; as the stars clear from his eyes, he sees 
  the arrival of what the lizardmen summoned with their horn 
  blast. It isn’t a troop of reinforcements. It’s actually the creature 
  they worship as a god: a very large and angry T. Rex. The 
  Nazi’s scream of terror is cut short as the dinosaur’s massive 
  jaws clamp down on him. Its average Initiative Rate is 8 (10 
  – 2), so the GM determines that the T. Rex will attack again 
  on phase forty-one.
  On phase 34, the hunter and professor take another point of 
  damage from the poison, which renders the professor unconscious 
  and the Hunter nearly so. Andrew ﬁnally gets enough successes 
  on his Body roll but Peter still needs one more, so the GM notes 
  that the professor will have to roll again ten phases later.
  “Thirty-ﬁve, thirty-six, thirty-seven,” says the GM. 
  “Thirty-eight, thirty-nine, forty—nobody has an action yet?”
  “I was ready to go on 35,” says Alex. “I was holding my 
  action so Andrew could go through the portal ﬁrst.”
  “I was ready on 36,” says Andrew. “I was waiting for you! 
  Ok, let’s go now. I’ll drag the professor through the portal ﬁrst.”
  “I’ll help him with my held action,” says Alex.
  “The mighty T. Rex bellows in frustration as you drag the 
  professor to safety,” says the GM. “The portal seals behind you 
  and you ﬁnd yourself on a frigid, snowy mountain top, panting 
  with relief and exhaustion. You are all severely wounded, the 
  professor is unconscious and, unless I am mistaken, your guns are 
  empty. This is why it’s such a shock when you are surrounded by 
  a half dozen mighty apemen with shaggy, white hair. They’re 
  armed with spears and they don’t look pleased by your presence. 
  Well, gentlemen, would you like to continue this combat?”
  Example Combat Schedule
  01.
  02.
  03.
  04.
  05. Hunter hasty attack
  06. 
  07. Survivor sneaks; Prof diplomacy; lizards
  08. Nazis
  09.
  10.
  11. Hunter shoots
  12. 
  13. 
  14. Survivor charges; Lizards
  15. Prof runs
  16. Nazis 
  17. Hunter reloads
  18. Survivor Dual Wield 1
  19. 
  20. 
  21. Lizards
  22. Survivor Dual Wield 2; Prof runs 
  23. Hunter shoots
  24. Nazis; Poison: Prof & Hunter
  25. 
  26. 
  27. 
  28. Lizards
  29. Hunter; Prof deciphers; Survivor attacks
  30. 
  31. 
  32. Nazis
  33. Nazi #2 unstunned; T. Rex arrives
  34. Poison: Prof 
  35. Lizards
  36.
  37.
  38. Nazi#2
  39.
  40. Nazis Survivor and Hunter carry Prof 
  through gate 
  41. T. Rex
  42. Lizards
  
  10
  Addendum
  This adventure may be run as a one-shot game to 
  introduce players to Hollow Earth Expedition, or as a 
  new chapter in an ongoing story. It should take four to ﬁve 
  hours to complete, depending on the number of players 
  and how much the GM chooses to embellish the plot.
  Plot Synopsis
  Professor Scrumtumbler, a brilliant and eccentric sci-
  entist, has built a drilling machine to carry him and a few 
  select passengers to the Earth’s core. Unfortunately, the 
  Nazis would love to use his invention as a weapon. How far 
  will the player characters go to keep it out of Nazi hands?
  Archetypes
  If running a one-shot game, you’ll probably want 
  to provide pre-generated characters. Any of the sample 
  characters from the core rulebook should work ﬁne. 
  If you want your players to generate their own charac-
  ters, you’ll need to give them some guidance. The Arche-
  types best suited for this adventure are listed below.
  • Academic/Scientist: The professor has lost a lot of
  credibility and he’s keen to have other authorities
  (even rivals) verify his claims.
  • Doctor: It’s going to be dangerous journey; a traine
  medical expert may save someone’s life.
  • Engineer: It takes a lot of know-how and elbow
  grease to keep a drilling machine running.
  • Explorer: An expert is needed to help map and
  explore the Earth’s core.
  • Hunter: A skilled hunter can provide fresh meat
  and protection from predators.
  • Soldier: The professor has dealt with unscrupulous
  people, and he doesn’t begrudge himself some protection.
  • Reporter: A journalist can document the expedition’s
  ﬁndings (and hopefully repair the professor’s damaged
  reputation).
  Motivations
  The following Motivations are recommended:
  • Duty: You’ve been invited (or hired) to accompany
  the professor, and you won’t let him down.
  • Fame: If the professor’s right, you’ll go down in
  hitory. This is a chance to make your mark on the
  world!
  • Truth: Are the professor’s wild claims true? This is
  your chance to ﬁnd out.
  The Hook
  Once a renowned university scientist, Professor 
  Scrumtumbler fell into disrepute after claiming he dis-
  covered a “vast, unusual cavern” containing impossible 
  wonders. He has designed and built a drilling machine 
  that he insists will allow him to return with others. Most 
  people have written it off as a hoax, but a select few have 
  decided to accompany him and bring back proof.
  Unless players are familiar with the Hollow Earth, 
  keep descriptions as vague as possible. Anyone expect-
  ing to ﬁnd a “vast, unusual cavern” may be surprised by a 
  prehistoric land of perpetual noon. Players only get that 
  thrill of discovery once, so play it up!
   SAMPLE ADVENTURE: 
   TO THE EARTH’S CORE
  
  11
  Addendum
  South African Transvaal Basin, 1936
  As the players arrive at a research facility in the mid-
  dle of the African Scrublands, they see the shiny drilling 
  machine propped high on its gantries. Professor Scrum-
  tumbler is hustling back and forth in its shadow, shouting 
  orders at his crew, testing fuses, and tightening screws. He 
  will greet them warmly but curtly, asking them to go with 
  his chief engineer, Botta, as he helps make preparations.
  Botta will lead the team to a low airplane hangar that 
  contains the gear for the trip. Most notably, this room 
  contains a second drilling machine! Although this bat-
  tered prototype is much smaller and dirtier than the great 
  shiny ship outside, the professor has tested it on several 
  occasions. This is a good time for characters to introduce 
  themselves to each other and to question Botta, who will 
  happily answer to the best of his ability. 
  Botta tells the characters:
  • Professor Scrumtumbler discovered the “vast 
  cavern”on a spelunking expedition a few years back,
  but a cave-in prevented his return.
  • Only the professor has seen this “vast cavern,” and
  he hasn’t been inclined to discuss it after enduring the
  derision of the scientiﬁc community.
  • Scrumtumbler gained funds for this operation by
  selling the drilling machine plans to Nazi Germany
  ofﬁcials, but he kept his conscience clean by not
  including the power core in the sale.
  Nazi Aggression!
  The conversation is abruptly cut off by squealing tires 
  and raised voices from outside. Anyone going to the win-
  dow or opening the hangar doors will see a large covered 
  truck stopped near the drilling machine, and Nazi soldiers 
  piling out. At the head are two prominent ﬁgures: Com-
  mandant von Dassow—at whom the professor is yelling 
  angrily—and the impressively muscular Nazi Trooper 
  Schmidt. As the players glimpse the scene, the Comman-
  dant gestures to Schmidt, who drops the professor with 
  a thunderous left hook, then carries him like a sack of 
  potatoes as the Nazis board the drilling machine. The big 
  drill starts spinning, and it is time to roll Initiative.
  The drilling machine is about 75 feet away from 
  the hangar. Unless a player speciﬁcally stated she had a 
  weapon in hand prior to looking out the window, it will 
  take an action to ready ﬁrearms. The Nazis outnumber 
  the player characters 3-to-1, but aren’t expecting resis-
  tance; if attacked, only two or three will exchange cover 
  ﬁre while the rest move double-time onto the machine. 
  There are a dozen seats in the vehicle (adjusted as neces-
  sary for a larger or smaller expedition team) and, if unob-
  structed, four soldiers can pile up the ten-foot wide ramp 
  and board on each combat turn.
  By the third turn, the Nazis aboard will seal the hatch; 
  by the fourth turn, the only sign of the big drilling machine 
  will be a mound of pulverized dirt piled in its wake. The 
  machine ﬁlls in the hole after itself, so it will be unreachable 
  by any means other than the prototype drilling machine.
  Nazis remaining behind will either retreat or surren-
  der. Under duress, prisoners will reveal what they know 
  of the mission: they are to capture the professor and his 
  machine, bore into some big dark cave, then turn around 
  and come back out at a slightly different angle to await 
  pickup at a remote location.
  The Prototype
  If none of the player characters are skilled at piloting a 
  drilling machine, Botta will be pleased to pilot. The inside 
  of the prototype is cramped and the seats are designed to 
  swing like those of a Ferris wheel, so passengers will always 
  sit upright. Once the characters are inside, the drilling 
  machine shakes and rumbles while dirt boils up past the 
  portholes, sealing out the natural light. Botta will yell up 
  to them to get comfortable, because the journey will take 
  about two days. 
  There is no way to steer or reverse while underground. 
  They will follow the path of least resistance—the hole 
  made by the other machine. They can not attempt to outrun 
  their quarry, lest they bore through the other machine and 
  kill everyone aboard. Botta will bring up other grisly fates 
  the players may have neglected to consider: the machine 
  burning to a crisp in a magma ﬂow; skewing off course 
  to the bottom of the ocean and drowning; getting stuck 
  and running out of oxygen; or experiencing a hull breach, 
  causing the cabin to ﬁll with crushing dirt.
  The most important thing Botta must show the players 
  is the engine’s power core, which is the prototype’s source 
  of energy. When its containment cabinet is opened, the 
  players see that the power core is a three-foot long crystal. 
  It ﬂoods the entire cabinet with a bright green light and 
  a shrill, nails-on-chalkboard sound. Botta tells them 
  the professor discovered the crystals on his ﬁrst trip to 
  the “cavern,” and found them to be a powerful source 
  of abundant, waste-free energy. Unfortunately, tapping 
  into the crystal caused it to emit the shrill noise, and the 
  professor hasn’t been able to make it stop. There are only 
  two such power cores known to exist: one in the proto-
  type and one in the Nazi-captured machine.
  The cabin temperature rises for several hours until it 
  tops out at 120 degrees Fahrenheit. Then it creeps down 
  to just over 30 degrees, and continues to ﬂuctuate slow-
  
  12
  Addendum
  ly but erratically throughout the trip. Everyone’s wrist 
  watches begin to malfunction until none are reliable. The 
  seats gyrate occasionally, indicating that the machine is 
  shifting from pointing down to pointing up. After being 
  cooped up in a claustrophobic madhouse for what seems 
  like eternity, the characters will no doubt be overjoyed 
  when the machine ﬁnally breaks free of the earth.
  The Jungle Clearing
  The breakthrough isn’t all good news; when the 
  machine breaches the surface, it sputters and jerks, the 
  controls spark, and Botta ﬁlls the air with the foulest 
  curse words in his native Afrikaans language. The proto-
  type lurches to a stop, still protruding through the ground 
  vertically. As the characters get their ﬁrst glimpses of day-
  light through the windows, Botta opens the containment 
  cabinet and they all see that the power core now appears 
  dull and inert (but still gives off a low hum). He takes the 
  seemingly drained device outside to get a better look at it.
  When the characters disembark, they ﬁnd themselves 
  in a clearing surrounded by a towering wall of trees. 
  The sun is directly overhead, bigger and brighter than 
  they’ve ever seen. The players (or Botta) might reason 
  that they went off course and emerged at some distant 
  point on the surface. But where? Africa? A safari veteran 
  will recognize that this jungle is unlike any other on the 
  “dark continent,” and a biologist will note that many of 
  the plants and trees should be extinct, and the familiar 
  varieties have grown to unusual size.
  The most notable feature of the clearing is the other 
  drilling machine, lying 30 feet away from the hole, 
  locked and abandoned. Upon gaining access, characters 
  will see that it has been cleaned out, and the cabinet for 
  the power crystal is open and empty.
  A Perception roll of 2 or more will show that there 
  are ﬁve low-ﬂying “birds.” A roll of 3 or better tells that 
  they are actually very high-ﬂying but extremely large, 
  with unusual head plumage. An Investigation roll of 2 or 
  more will reveal empty bullet casings spread throughout 
  the clearing; just beyond the tree line are the bodies of 
  two Nazis who were obviously ravaged by some kind of 
  wild animal (the pterosaurs) before being placed in shal-
  low graves by their companions. On a roll of 2 or bet-
  ter, the Survival skill will allow a character to follow the 
  remaining Nazis’ tracks down a game trail. Of course, a 
  dedicated hunter may be more interested in those huge, 
  strange birds up there in the sky…
  Pterosaur Attack
  Two pterosaurs break off from their ﬂock and attack 
  just when the players are most spread out and preoccu-
  pied. They come in low over the thick canopy, making it 
  nearly impossible to spot them ahead of time (5 or more 
  successes on a Perception roll). On their ﬁrst round they 
  swoop to a landing on either side of the engineer and the 
  crystal, cawing shrilly and thrusting threateningly with 
  their massive, toothy beaks. On their next turn, whether 
  attacked or not, one will seize Botta (taking the average 
  is sufﬁcient) and one will snatch the power core off the 
  ground, then both will leap into the air.
  The players have one turn before the creatures carry 
  Botta and the crystal over the canopy and out of sight. 
  A single point of damage will cause a pterosaur to drop 
  what it’s carrying and not return, but characters may be 
  forced to choose between rescuing the engineer or the 
  power core. A dropped item or person will take two non-
  lethal wounds from the fall. If the power core is broken 
  or lost, the characters can cling to the hope that the other 
  one can be rescued from the Nazis.
  At this point, Botta isn’t needed for story purposes. 
  The GM might use him as a lackey, dinosaur fodder, 
  Nazi turncoat, Terra Arcanum agent, or anything else 
  that seems ﬁtting.
  German Casualties
  The Nazis will ideally outnumber the players in the 
  ﬁnal encounter by two to one (including the Comman-
  dant and Trooper Schmidt). The Nazis enter the Hol-
  low Earth with ample troops but players will discover 
  evidence that several of their foes have fallen prey to 
  various hazards along the way. Feel free to adjust or 
  obfuscate the number of Nazi casualties to ensure an 
  appropriate number of soldiers at the climax.
  The Power Core
  The two power cores are Atlantean power crystals 
  that provide abundant, clean-burning power. They do 
  get drained and must be recharged in the temple at 
  which they were found. Unfortunately, the professor’s 
  method of tapping into the crystals causes them to emit 
  a noise that attracts and enrages the local creatures. 
  The creatures that respond in greatest abundance 
  are the insects, including hummingbird-sized mos-
  quitoes and brightly colored hornets that will sting the 
  carrier of the crystal incessantly, gradually contribut-
  ing to a running total of non-lethal damage. Wrapping 
  the crystal in thick material does nothing to prevent 
  this onslaught; anyone within ﬁve feet of it will suffer
  
  13
  Addendum
  The March
  After the pterosaur encounter, the party may complete 
  its investigations before pursuing the Nazis. The GM 
  can take advantage of the march to parcel out hints about 
  the Hollow Earth (e.g., the unmoving sun, glimpses of a 
  horizon that curves up, a herd of tiny eohippus or other 
  extinct animals scattering before their approach). If the 
  party has the power core with them, they are harassed by 
  insects, and possibly by small animals ﬂinging unpleas-
  ant items at them from nearby trees (see sidebar).
  After 6 points of non-lethal damage have been dis-
  tributed to the carrier (or carriers) of the power core, they 
  hear gunshots in the distance ahead.
  Conquistador Outpost
  Even if hustling, the party will take about another 
  hour (and another point of nonlethal damage to the 
  power core bearer) before they reach the point where 
  the shots were ﬁred. Here they see a man-made clear-
  ing with a high-walled fort, made from the massive local 
  trees, in the center.
  Characters entering the clearing will be swiftly 
  noticed by the sentry atop the 30-foot wall, and he will 
  hail them in gruff Spanish. If the team lacks a linguist, 
  the GM can choose between a game of charades or hav-
  ing the Spaniard’s priest, Father Montoya, summoned to 
  the walls to translate. Either way, the guards will demand 
  to know who the players are and if they are aligned with 
  the “bastard Germans” who came by some time ago. If 
  the players speak English, they will be asked if Eng-
  land is still at war with Spain. (Someone in the party is 
  bound to know that there has been no war between those 
  nations for hundreds of years, so the easy answer is “no.”) 
  The Conquistadors will assume that this is because the 
  Spanish Empire successfully forced England back to 
  the Catholic Church, so the expedition team must be 
  Catholic as well. Thus, the gates are opened for “the ﬁrst 
  civilized Christians we have encountered in this land!”
  The Spaniards shouldn’t be hard to win over, but if 
  something goes wrong during the negotiations, the play-
  ers may press on. If they do so, they will all begin to 
  accumulate nonlethal damage from exhaustion. Setting 
  up camp in the wilderness could also elicit sadism from 
  a GM, who might interrupt their sleep with a charging 
  Triceratops, come to stamp out their camp ﬁre.
  Spanish Hospitality
  Upon entering the outpost, the players see that the 
  Conquistadors have established a stable frontier lifestyle. 
  They have butter churns, a blacksmith, muskets, and a 
  fenced pen for a small herd of domesticated Aurochs. 
  Everything is old and worn but well tended to, includ-
  ing the residents—elderly men in excellent health. They 
  quickly set a table with roasted Aurochs steaks, enor-
  mous vegetables, colorful fruits of myriad shape, and an 
  odd, dark liquid that approximates wine. As they eat, 
  Father Montoya will readily answer questions to the best 
  of his understanding.
  He explains that the Germans who appeared at their 
  gates weren’t Christian and wouldn’t explain their prison-
  er (Scrumtumbler). Shots were exchanged but the Nazis 
  had no hope of overcoming the walls, so they retreated 
  back into the jungle. Although this offended the honor 
  of the Conquistadors, he could not pursue because they 
  are under strict orders from their captain to hold the fort 
  until he returns from a mission far to the south.
  Father Montoya warns that the game trail leads to 
  “uncivilized ruins” and “Saracen stones” haunted by 
  “heathen savages and their hellhound hunting beasts.” 
  He expresses great resentment toward the local natives 
  because his attempts to convert them failed. The priest 
  and all of the Conquistadors are products of their time: 
  fanatically religious and prejudiced against those who do 
  not strictly adhere to the standards of the 16th century 
  Catholic Church. Their perspective colors their interpre-
  tation of the world. They speak of “dragons” and “dev-
  ils” alive and loose in the jungle, and will go so far as to 
  assert that this land must be the lost Garden of Eden. 
  Still, they are generous hosts and there is no need for 
  conﬂict during a single night’s stay.
  The Conquistadors provide beds, and in the morning 
  will make gifts of dried meat and fresh well water (see 
  sidebar). Should the party wish for something more, they 
  may trade for it. The Conquistadors are always willing 
  to trade for metal of any kind, which the blacksmith will 
  re-craft for various uses.
  Artifact 1              Size         Def         Strc         Notes
  Atlantean              -2            2             2            Carrier becomes
  Power Crystal                                                    “Monster Magnet”
  one non-lethal wound per hour. A Medicine roll may 
  only be made once against this damage, as ointments 
  only provide minimal help.
  The biggest danger comes from the large creatures. 
  However, although animals will target the crystal (even 
  if carried in a backpack), they will not contradict their 
  survival instinct.
  
  14
  Addendum
  The Lost City
  Striking out from the Conquistador fort, the characters 
  can follow the Nazis’ trail as it opens up into what was 
  once a wide, cobbled road. By this point, the power core 
  bearer (or bearers) has suffered 4 more points of non-
  lethal damage from bombardment by pests.
  The Bridge
  The road eventually turns to parallel a wide, dark riv-
  er and the trail turns sharply to a bridge arching over a 
  narrowing between the banks. The bridge is ancient and 
  severely weathered but appears sturdy. 
  A Perception roll of 2 or greater spots a wet, wadded-
  up cloth halfway across the bridge (closer inspection will 
  reveal a torn, bloodied, and sopping-wet Nazi uniform 
  sleeve).  A Perception roll of 4 or greater spots a plesio-
  saur lurking in the dark brown water in hopes of snag-
  ging a dessert to follow his lunchtime soldier.
  The plesiosaur’s head and sinewy neck will lash out of 
  the water and strike the ﬁrst character to reach the center 
  of the bridge. If a group of characters cross the bridge 
  together, it will aim for the power core or one of the mid-
  dle characters. But the plesiosaur is no T. Rex; after a 
  few injuries, it will submerge and glide off downstream. 
  Nor will it pursue prey out of water, so characters on the 
  trail are safe. An expedition team that spots the creature 
  before crossing the bridge could easily chase it away, or 
  backtrack to fell a tree and make their own bridge.
  The Natives are Restful
  The land begins to slope up and the growth thins sig-
  niﬁcantly. Ancient ruins of a once-great city protrude all 
  around the road. 
  Coming around one of the stone ediﬁces, the party 
  will see the bodies of four native warriors and a domes-
  ticated Smilodon hunting animal (obviously what Father 
  Montoya referred to as a “Hellhound”). All have been 
  riddled with Nazi bullets, and an Investigation roll of 
  2 or greater will reveal that none had their weapons 
  drawn—they were gunned down in cold blood.
  The Temple
  After another 2 points of non-lethal damage to the 
  power core bearer, the players will spot a tall, segmented 
  pyramid. Even from a distance, an Archaeology roll of 
  3 or better will reveal that it is mostly reminiscent of a 
  South American design, but also displays an inexplicable 
  combination of Sumerian and Ancient Chinese archi-
  tecture. The most important feature may be at the top: 
  the Nazis have set up a radio transmitter antenna, with a 
  soldier to guard it.
  If the party is not overburdened with subtleness, the 
  GM may choose to have the trooper relaxing with a cig-
  arette or dozing off at his post. In any case, a few Stealth 
  rolls and some Brawl or Melee is all that is needed to 
  dispatch him quietly. The only entrance to the pyramid 
  is at the top, and the radio cable runs from the antenna 
  through the threshold, down into the darkness below. 
  (The Nazis are not currently using the radio, so unscrew-
  ing or cutting the wire will not alert them prematurely.)
  As they descend into the pyramid, the characters will 
  enter a series of ornately carved rooms. A linguist may 
  attempt to interpret the ancient languages, recognizing 
  that many of the signiﬁcant murals feature a representa-
  tion of the Earth with a long line of humanoid ﬁgures 
  marching into it through gaps at the poles. In the center 
  of the Earth is a stylized sun, and around its inner perim-
  eter are representations of other temples shown to contain 
  what might be other power crystals. A Linguistics roll of 
  4 or greater is needed to translate a more recent etching 
  in an alphabet that differs from the rest: “From the sur-
  face they came/Now the Earth’s womb they roam/Their 
  secrets they claim/Within their hidden home.”
  The only other feature of these upper levels are bundles 
  of dynamite, carefully tucked away behind small piles of 
  rubble. A Perception roll of 3 or greater is required to 
  spot them. There is one bundle on the top ﬂoor and two 
  on the second ﬂoor, with all the fuses running down the 
  steps parallel to the cable for the radio antenna. Diffus-
  ing the simple fuse on these bombs is no trouble. What 
  the players don’t know is that there are more bundles on 
  the ﬂoors below where the Nazis await.
  The Final Showdown
  Electric lights and loud conversation alert the charac-
  ters to the Nazis’ exact location on the third ﬂoor. This 
  The Fountain of the Conquistadors
  The Conquistadors have resided here since being 
  shipwrecked en route to the New World in 1583. Even 
  considering the time-stretching effects of the Hollow 
  Earth, they have been around far longer than usual 
  because they drink from a well that serves as a rudi-
  mentary Fountain of Youth. So long as a person drinks 
  from the well, he will greatly retard his aging process. 
  Furthermore, a canteen of this water—which always 
  tastes crisp and refreshing—will heal two non-lethal 
  wounds (or one lethal wound), which could prove quite 
  a relief to the explorers on their upcoming march.
  
  15
  Addendum
  room, like the two above, is square with a staircase com-
  ing from above on one side and another leading down 
  on the opposite side. In the center of the room, a cylin-
  drical stone altar—three feet in diameter and four feet 
  tall—provides major cover (+4 to Defense bonus) to any-
  one hiding behind it. Nazi gear and radio equipment are 
  strewn around the corners.
  In addition to soldiers, the Commandant, Trooper 
  Schmidt, and Professor Scrumtumbler are in this room. 
  If the Nazis know of the character’s arrival, they will pre-
  pare to ambush the characters as soon as they enter the 
  room. Otherwise, they might be taken by surprise. If the 
  heroes eavesdrop, they can hear the Commandant inter-
  rogating Professor Scrumtumbler. (Commandant: “I vill 
  ask you again: how do ve recharge ze crystal?” Professor: 
  “I keep telling you, it’s broken. It cannot be recharged!”)
  When the battle begins, the Commandant will spend 
  at least one round using his Inspire Talent to aid his sol-
  diers. Trooper Schmidt will close in to disarm or KO the 
  heroes, heedless of whether he stands in the line of ﬁre. 
  If anyone attempts ﬁsticuffs, he will ignore all others to 
  prove himself the stronger man. The last two regular 
  troopers will run up the stairs on turn two and provide 
  reinforcement.
  Commandant von Dassow is a skilled soldier who will 
  use the central altar for cover. If the ﬁght isn’t going his 
  way, he’ll run down the stairs and set off the dynamite 
  once he’s out of the line of ﬁre. Even if the characters 
  caught the dynamite above, there is still another stick 
  at the base of the altar (doing ﬁve lethal wounds to any-
  one nearby) and two bundles on the fourth and the ﬁfth 
  ﬂoors below. There is also an escape tunnel, providing 
  von Dassow a way to come back as a future nemesis.
  Resolution
  If the Nazis were successful in demolishing the tem-
  ple, the heroes must scramble to get out as it collapses 
  around them (causing one non-lethal wound per turn to 
  each character on their way out). If the dynamite bun-
  dles on the lower levels were the only ones to go off, the 
  structure shakes and the players have a turn or two to get 
  out before the ceiling starts caving in.
  Professor Scrumtumbler is overjoyed at his rescue. If 
  the characters haven’t yet ﬁgured it out, he can reveal that 
  they are in the Hollow Earth. The power core stolen by 
  the Nazis was already destroyed, but if the players man-
  aged to preserve both their own crystal and the temple, 
  Scrumtumbler will show them how it can be recharged 
  by placing it on the temple’s altar.
  Trapped!
  Of course, even if the team makes it back to the drill-
  ing machines with a charged power core, they will ﬁnd 
  that the vehicles have been dismantled and all the vital 
  parts have been carried off by bipedal creatures with 
  strange, non-human footprints.
  What happens to the heroes next, and how (or if) 
  they get back home is another adventure.
  Where to Go from Here
  There are many paths to take from this scenario. 
  Some ideas for continuing include:
  • The Professor overheard the Commandant contacting
  someone on the radio, but who? Could the Nazis have
  a Hollow Earth outpost just waiting to be inﬁltrated
  by the expedition team?
  • The characters could be captured by natives, accused
  of the Nazis’ crimes, and subjected to trial by combat.
  • On the walls of the temple (or the remnants), there
  could be a puzzle or a map indicating that it leads
  to another temple similar to this one—possibly with
  its own power crystal.
  • Molemen could haul away pieces of the drilling
  machines to their underground city, where they wo
  ship them as gods.
  
  16
  Addendum
  Non-Player Characters
  Commandant Kraus von Dassow
  Mentor 3
  The Commandant is an extremely ambitious young 
  man, out to prove his worth as a member of the Thule 
  society. Among his Nazi squad, he alone is aware of the 
  existence of the Hollow Earth, and he is capable of sur-
  viving within it.
  Archetype: Soldier 
  Motivation: Power
  Style: 3 
  Health: 6
  Primary Attributes
  Body: 4 
  Charisma: 4
  Dexterity: 4 
  Intelligence: 4
  Strength: 3 
  Willpower: 2
  Secondary Attributes
  Size: 0 
  Initiative: 8
  Move: 7 
  Defense: 8 (10)*
  Perception: 6 
  Stun: 4
  Skills 
  Base 
  Levels 
  Rating 
  (Average)
  Brawl  
  3 
  3 
  6 
  (3)
  Diplomacy 
  4 
  3 
  7 
  (3+)
  Leadership 
   
   
  8 
  (4)
  Firearms 
  4 
  4 
  8 
  (4)
  Intimidation 
  4 
  4 
  8 
  (4)
  Investigation 
  4 
  3 
  7 
  (3+)
  Puzzles 
   
   
  8 
  (4)
  Linguistics 
  4 
  2 
  6 
  (3)
  Melee 
  3 
  3 
  6 
  (3)
  Survival 
  4 
  2 
  6 
  (3)
  Talents
  *Combat Skill 1: Diplomacy
  Inspire 1
  Resources
  Rank 2 (Thule Society)
  Flaw
  Condescending
  Weapons 
  Rating 
  Attack (Average) 
  Notes
  Lugar 
  2 
  10 
  (5)
  Punch 
  0 
  6N 
  (3) N
  Trooper Schmidt
  Follower 2
  Archetype: Soldier 
  Motivation: Fame
  Style: 1 
  Health: 6
  Primary Attributes
  Body: 4 
  Charisma: 1
  Dexterity: 2  
  Intelligence: 2 
  Strength: 5 
  Willpower: 2
  CREDITS
  Written by: Jeff Combos, Jim Cook, Chris Goe, 
  and M. Sechin Tower
  Lead Editor: Melissa McNally
  Graphics and Layout: Sandra Garavito/Ginormous 
  Industries
  Cover Art: Stephen Daniele
  4509 Interlake Ave N. #318
  Seattle, WA 98103
  USA
  ©2007 Exile Game Studio, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction without the 
  written permission of the publisher is expressly forbidden, except for the purposes of 
  reviews. Exile Game Studio, Hollow Earth Expedition, Ubiquity Roleplaying System 
  and logos are trademarks of Exile Game Studio, LLC. All rights reserved. All char-
  acters, names, places, and distinctive likenesses thereof are trademarks of Exile Game 
  Studio, LLC. All characters, names, places, and text herein are copyrighted by Exile 
  Game Studio, LLC.
  The mention of or reference to any company or product in these pages is not a 
  challenge to the trademark or copyright concerned.
  This product is a work of ﬁction. Any similarity to actual people, organizations, 
  places, or events is purely coincidental. This book contains mature content. Reader 
  discretion is advised
  Secondary Attributes
  Size: 0 
  Initiative: 4
  Move: 7 
  Defense: 6
  Perception: 4 
  Stun: 4
  Skills 
  Base 
  Levels 
  Rating 
  (Average)
  Athletics  
  5 
  1 
  6 
  (3)
  Brawl  
  5 
  5 
  10 
  (5)
  Firearms 
  2 
  2 
  4 
  (2)
  Intimidation 
  1 
  5 
  6 
  (3)
  Melee 
  5 
  2 
  7 
  (3+)
  Talents
  Knockout Blow 1
  Strong
  Resources
  None
  Flaw
  Overconﬁdent
  Weapons 
     Rating 
       Attack     (Average) Notes
  Punch 
  ON 
  10 N      (5) N
  Dagger 
  1 
   8 L      (4) L
  Mp35 SMG 
  2 
   6 L        (3) L       Autoﬁre
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Hollow Earth (ubiquity) [multi]/Exile Game Studio - HEX - GM Screen (Booklet).pdf