Robot Commando

Background - 

Everyone had been called into the emergency meeting.  HR were busy explaining to Philippa why she could not break the writers legs to stop them escaping again.  Apparently they had these things called workers rights which were all the rage.  

Eventually she relents and sits back down on the high wingback chair, arms gripping the sides.  A closer inspection would show her nails digging into the leather.  

Before things got any worse Ian took the lead.

Ian "So, back to the main problem at hand.   How do we keep the series fresh and how to we sell more books?  What genre could we exploit to get the kids hooked?"

A few murmurs and head scratching followed.

Random grunt "How about football?"

A few people nodded in agreement.

Ian "What like how to be a hooligan?  Those people are savage!  Nope!"

Random grunt 2 "Return to Firetop Moutain?"

Ian "What?!  NO!?  I just wrote a sequel, besides its someone else's turn.  What do kids like to do these days?  You! What did you buy your kid last time you went to the shops?"

Random grunt 1 "What me?  Erm a toy Dinosaur."

Ian "Hmm dinosaurs, kind of did that in Island of the Lizard King but if its popular maybe.  What about you?"

Random grunt 2 "Me?  Erm I got my boy Optimus Prime?"

Ian "What the hell is an Optimus Prime?"

Random grunt 2 "Its a transformer, its a giant robot that changes into a truck."

Ian "What!?  A truck, why?"

Random grunt 2 stammering "I have no idea sir, but my kid and his pals love them."

Ian exasperated "Fine, ok then.  Will we do a book about dinosaurs or a book about giant robots?  Lets see a show of hands."

But before anyone can so much as raise a digit a weak voice pipes up in the distance.

Steve (2) "How about both?"

Ian "Who said that?  Oh imposter Steve Jackson.  You have intrigued me, I would like to know more."

Ian looks at Philippa who roles her eyes before nodding to a guard.  The guard immediately produces a key and releases the chains attached to Steve, leaving the other authors still attached to the bench they had been shackled to at the back of the room.

Steve (2) "I can write a book about someone that can pilot giant robots and they can use them to fight dinosaurs."

Ian "That sounds incredible, ok lets see you do it."

Steve (2) "On one condition."

Ian "I don't think you are any position to make demands but go on."

Steve (2) "I want to be released upon completion, and no more trackers, and passage back home to the US."

Ian looks at Philippa.

Philippa "Over my dead bo..."

HR Rep "Actually that's all very fare, after all he does not have a contract at Puffin.  We would just need you to sign an NDA and never talk about anything that's happened."

Steve (2) "As long as I get to go home its a deal."

Philippa storms out of the room.  Ian looks distressed before half running out after her.

I actually do not have much in actual fact about Robot Commando other than it is by Steve Jackson the second, the US games designer.  I have really enjoyed his first two efforts of Scorpion Swamp and Demons of the Deep so interested to see what he takes to a Sci-Fi setting.  It was released in September 1986 so they are still churning out these books at a crazy rate.  

Covers - 

Come on people, I mean come on what can I say!?  Its a giant mecha robot like something out of Pacific Rim fighting a T-Rex!  I mean is this not the greatest thing ever?  Imagine being a kid and seeing this?  Scratch that, imagine being a now 42 year old 80s kid and seeing this?!  Even the lettering of the title is awesome.  

There are no other covers as its never been re-released as part of Wizard or Scholastic.  But even if it was how could you possible improve on Transformers meets Jurassic Park?

In case its not obvious I like this cover.

Premise - 

Well where I am from, Commando means not wearing any underware.  I do not know why in this adventure are robot has decided to go out without any under garments.

Luckily it turns out to be the other type of Commando.

I am a rancher in the land of Thalos.  My people have built huge robots to help mine ore, erect buildings, move cargo etc.  It does say that they are capable of doing the jobs of a hundred men so I can only question the mass levels of unemployment in Thalos.

In the past rampaging dinosaurs were a bit of a problem so the people of Thalos turned to giant robots to solve that issue as well.  Now I am one of those people who make their living as a dinosaur rancher!  We use the Mark 5A utility robots known as Cowboys.  But the dinosaurs are still dangerous so the robots still have guns.

Early one morning before I start my shift one of my work colleagues comes in and declares how sleepy he is and promptly falls asleep on the table.  Apparently my character is alarmed by this but I have seen it many times in real life.

When I can not wake him up I go for help but everyone else is also falling asleep.  Desperate I turn on the radio (a logical choice in this situation...) and hear "Everybody asleep...Karossean Attack...can't stay awake..." Then even the radio goes silent.

I then start pouring cold water over my friends which to be honest would have been my first choice.  But to no avail as they stay asleep.

A loud thunder noise can then be heard outside so I go for a peek.  And lo and behold a Karossean Robojet streaks overhead!  My character then in this space of time figures out that the Karosseans have somehow made everyone fall asleep but for some reason I am immune.  That may be correct but that is some leap in logic from my guy.

I initially read the invaders names as Calrissian.  

Lando has sold us out to the empire again.

Anyway I then spend the next few hours listing in to their communications.  Wait what?  How?  Through the radio?  The Karosseans are so cocky they are all using an open channel that even a backwater hick of a dinosaur rancher can pick up?  

Apparently through this means I learn that in the past they have been to scared to attack due to all our brave warriors and many robots.  But their leader, Minos, has had his spies distribute capsules of a virulent sleeping sickness.

Soon Minos himself is on the radio.  An elite force of a thousand warriors with hundreds of robots have invaded.  He is going to strip us of our riches and robots and sell the population as slaves.  

With a sigh I walk back in the house and strap on my fathers sword and pick up some medi kits.  Its all going to be down to me to save everyone.  I head to the robot parking lot!

Playthrough - 

Ok for my guy its the normal Skill, Stamina and Luck.  The adventure sheet has put sword down for me along with 5 medipacks.  Each one restores 1 stamina.  Yep 1.  What kind of a world is this?  I am used to a cheese and onion sandwich giving me back 4 stamina!

But here is why we are all here, Robots!

You are limited to one robot at a time which makes sense.  Each robot has an armour score which is just basically robot stamina.  

The robots also have a speed setting.  Slow, Medium, Fast and Very Fast.  If your robot is faster you get a +1 bonus to your skill in the battle.  Is this more than initial skill?  Does not say but I am taking it as a yes.  

Robots can sometimes have a Combat Bonus.  When piloting a robot you use your own skill score but some give you a bonus, and some give you a penalty when in combat.  

Finally they can also have a special ability.  Looking forward to seeing what kinds we get.

Ah going onto the Robot Combat section you do indeed get plus 1 on your roll if your robot is faster.  Apart from that its just like fighting hand to hand.  But in an interesting twist if your robot is destroyed it says it might not be game over and its possible to continue on with another robot!

We also get a handy hints on play section where I learn there are three different ways to defeat the invaders.  One obvious and two less so.  I imagine this is like Scorpion Swamp having the three different quests then.

Take notes, make a map, yeah pretty standard that.

Not everywhere will be helpful, yep seen enough Fighting Fantasy to know that's true.

But it specifically says any player no matter how weak the initial roles are they can make it through each of the three paths when they know the true path.

Skill - 9

Stamina - 20

Luck - 8

Well not the best starting rolls so we can test that theory.   Right lets go.

Wait, no not ready.  We need some epic music.  1986 was also the release of the greatest film of all time, Transformers (not the tragic ones we get these days) and it has the best soundtrack ever.  Autobots Roll Out!

Its mandatory that everyone watches that before continuing.

Yep everyone has fallen asleep.  I decide to leave them in hilarious positions for when they wake up.

In the parking lot we do not have to wait long to get first big decision, do I go to the standard slow but sturdy cowboy robot that I use for all my dino wrangling.  Or do I go to the speedy and light flyer?  Wait I can get a flying robot straight off the bat?  Yes please.

I climb into the Dragonfly Model D.  

Armour - 5

Speed - Very Fast

Combat Bonus - 0

Special - I can escape from any combat including against other very fast robots.

I am then told the Karosseans base is at the capital city but I am nowhere near ready for that.  So I can go to the City of Knowledge or the City of Industry.  Very imaginative these Thalos people with their naming schemes.  Maybe used up all the best names on the robots.  Ok I am thinking industry would be better robots but I think Knowledge is where to go and find out how to wake everyone up or get some intel on the enemy.

As I am flying over though I am attacked by my first dinosaur, a Pteranodon!  He is also Skill 9 but only fast compared to my very fast so I get plus 1.  Its only armour 3 though which is just as well.  I take it down without being hit but only because I had the speed bonus!

I pass a small village and get the option to look around.  Not sure what a small village will have but lets have a look.

Another Robot!  To be honest I thought I had to fight him for a second.

The Digger Robot is a massive armour 16 but its slow.  It does have a special where you can use the shovel to cause 6 points of damage but the attack is -2 skill.  If I was high skill I might be tempted but with single digits I need that skill bonus with the speed.  Nothing else here so we continue on to the city.

Arriving in the city I get four options on where to visit.  The College of Medicine, The Thalian Museum, The Dinosaur Preserve and the War College.  They all sound fun but I think I will head to the College of Medicine first to see if I can wake people up.

I cautiously park up the robot and head in.  I am asked if I have been here before which sounds like Scorpion Swamp which would be great.  I can look for a cure or look to tend my wounds.  Well I am very healthy and I need to find the cure.  

I find a book that details the cure and go to find a lab.

Found a lab.

I follow the instructions and make a compound of the cure.  Not bad for a dino rancher.  Anyway game over mission solved.  Oh wait, there is not and I only have a blue potion that is 1 litre.  And it evaporates when its opened.  So not enough for the entire population so the mission continues.  I keep hearing a mysterious squeaking noise and there is a disturbing lack of sleeping staff members so its time to head out I think. 

But on my way out I find a room full of wired cages, empty cages, and I am promptly attacked by three giant lizards.  One of them gets a bite in but I dispatch them easily enough.

Now next I think the war college would be worth a visit.  Its hopefully got some ideas on how to combat these guys.  Unfortunately there is a Karossean robot outside.  I decide to just rush straight at it.  This takes the pilot by surprise and I get to roll 2d6 and take that damage off its armour.  I roll a very average 7.

An open handed slap!

Alas I am fighting a Myrmidon which is standard military robot for the Karosseans.  Its a flyer like me but its stuck on robot mode for this fight.  Its skill 10 but my speed advantage means its a straight shoot out.  Its got armour 12 but my roll of 7 took it down to 5 so we have same armour as well.  8 v 3, 7 v 6 and 8 v 6 means I take it down without getting hit.  I was quite nervous there but the dice were kind.  

The college is full of sleeping generals but I head to the library to see what I can learn.  Bad news though, I hear a noise from outside.

Oh bloody hell its the Decepticon Thrust!

Apparently there is three of them so I only have time to read one of the books that were in the process of being checked out.  City of Guardians, Emergency Procedures or Karossean military robots.  Ah yes I came here to find out about the enemy so lets read about their robots.

Its basically an instruction manual on how to use them, my character laughs at the thought of the surprise I will give them!

Luckily for me the Karosseans have left their robots parked outside to come in to look for me.  So I think lets have a go in one of their robots instead.

Its another Myrmidon

Human Form -

Armour - 12

Speed - Medium

Combat Bonus - +1

Plane Form - 

Armour - 10

Speed - Very Fast

Combat Bonus +1

Special rule is it can transform, if I transform in combat its a normal combat round but if I win I do no damage.  I can change outwith combat for free but if I am in Human form with armour 2 or less and I transform it all falls apart!  Well I am going to be in plane mode exclusively.

Oh wait I am being asked if I read the manual.  Yep just now in the library conveniently enough! 

I decide to blow up their robots to avoid pursuit.  Alas the last one fights back on auto pilot and my mecha takes 3 points of damage.  I fly away with the pilots shouting angrily from the window.  They can not follow but I am told I have lost the element of surprise as the Karosseans now know someone is still awake.

Where to go next.  Well I can not see the museum yielding much information other than something niche maybe.  And as cool as the dinosaur preserve would be good to go to I cant see how that helps me find a cure or help defeat the Karosseans.  So time for another city.

A lot more on offer this time including the City of Industry again.  But now we get the City of Jungle, the City of Storms or the City of Worship.  Ok a City of Jungle?  How does that work?  Storms sounds like a terrible place to live and Worship does not sound appealing either so lets go to Industry.

I just get told I am in the City of Industry, kind of like on an old spectrum text adventure.  But I am asked where will I go in my quest for useful artifacts.  Hmm must be at least one then.  Options are the fuel refining plant, Robot experimentation centre, the tunnels underneath the city or just explore.  Very interesting, aimless wandering around feels a recipe for disaster.  The tunnels might be some kind of resistance movement maybe?  Not sure I need fuel, its not been mentioned so far so I decide to go for the Robot experimentation centre.  

Again its just you are in the lobby.  Another four options.  Interface Mechanisms, Weapons Development, Amplifier Project or Detronics.  I head straight for Weapons Development.

I do not get very far.

I try to reason with it hoping these robots are more advanced than the ones in Space Assassin.  They are not and it picks me up and throws me back into the lift and I lose 1 stamina point.

Ill have a look at interface mechanisms then and see how that goes.  There I find an interface transponder helmet.  This little beauty increases my skill score in robot combat up to a maximum of 11.  Well my skill is 9 but for robot combat its now 10.  Coupled with my very fast and combat bonus my robot skill is now 12.  I need to stay in the robot as much as possible!

I doubt there is going to be anything better than that in here so I decide to head elsewhere.  I feel the tunnels under the city is an oddly specific choice so lets try that.

This was dumb, I just said I needed to stay in the robot and of course it cant go in there.  And I am doubly punished by a non descript T-Junction.  After last time outs disaster going left I am going against my rule of always left and head right.  

I come to a vault and its full of old rusted robots.  However there is a big cargo elevator so I poke around.  Which button do you press, green, red or blue?  This is terrifying.

I press green for go and the lift shudders, then drops a bit before stopping again.  Do you want to press another button or leave the lift?  Leave the lift, Leave the lift!

I continue on and there is another human sized lift.  Oh well lets try this one, its human sized so must be safer.  Well it goes up very fast and almost knocks me out.  But I am ok and step out....back into the Robot Experimental Centre.  

I immediately get back into my robot and opt to try out another city.  The choices are either back to Knowledge or Jungle, Pleasure or Guardians.  But I cant go to Guardians as the page ref is 1xx and I need to know the correct digits to go there which I don't have.  Hmm lets try Jungle then.

Am I on foot or flying, in flying mode still.  Roll a dice.  Erm ok.  I am intercepted by a Wasp Fighter.  Oh dear, its skill 11 and very fast so I do not get my speed bonus so also currently skill 11.  Also if it beats my attack by four or more it automatically wins the next combat round as it flies rings around me.  Its armour 6 and I am currently on 7 so its a straight shoot out again!  

7 v 9, not a good start.  10 v 10, 5 v 7, 5 v 7.  I am reduced to 1 and I have not touched the Wasp yet.  I get the option to eject so I take it.  

I am now the proud owner of an escape robot.  Lets check its stats - 

Escape Robot

Armour - 1 

Speed - Very Fast

Specials - none 

Great so I lose my +1 combat bonus as well and I am in one hit wonder.

So I arrive in the City of the Jungle.  Its a place of plant and dinosaur lovers.  I elect to go to the city first rather than the Jungle.  Do I want to go North or South?  Not much information to go on, its not quite a non descript T-junction but its not far off.

I head North and find lots of people sleeping close to the Jungle.  A scavenging Nothosaurus is on the prowl.  Its Armour 7, Skill 9 but at least its speed is slow.  So I have the speed advantage and my helmet so advantage of 2 but it only needs to hit me once.  

Of course it does, but I pass a luck test and I am able to flee as it chews on my robot.  Great, I am now robotless and in a jungle teaming with dinosaurs.  I decide to try south of the city.  

You see a gleaming pipe, do you want to investigate it, yeah I better in hope that its a robot.

Oh you little beauty!  

Its the Serpent VII -

Armour - 9

Speed - Fast in Jungle, Medium elsewhere

Combat Bonus +1

Special - If attack roll is 16+ it constricts the enemy and every combat round after takes 1 point of extra damage, even if you do not win the combat!

My word I thought my adventure was soon to be over but we are back in business.  Lets head into the Jungle proper!

Crap another non descript left or right choice.  Used to a bit better from Steve 2 to be honest.  I go left and another left or right choice but at least this one is interesting.  There is a sign saying danger man trap to the left.  Ok seems obvious so lets avoid that and go right.  

Its marshy but my super robot piloting skills save the day and I get through no problem.

The going is tough, and it costs me 2 armour points.  I end up back at the city disappointingly but there are Karosseans everywhere.  I keep having to stop my robot and hide to avoid them.  My character decides its far too dangerous to stay here and heads to another city.

This time I head to the City of Pleasure as its only one I have not been to yet other than the Capital City which is now an option but I do not feel that I am anywhere near ready for that.

So I can visit the arcade or the airfield.  Airfield sounds like a better chance of picking up an awesome flying robot so I slither over there.

Its here I find a WASP, the same type that downed me earlier!

Armour - 6

Speed - Very Fast

Combat Bonus - 2

Special - Win by 4 and automatically win the next round.

Yep I park up my Snake, give it a pat and hop into the Wasp!

I head over to the arcade and play a game of WASP Fighter, hoping it will help me familiarise myself with the controls and get a bonus.

I think this image is of the game.  It says you shoot down other robots and does not mention dinosaurs.  But it is a million miles away from the other references.  

I do quite well and then get offered a go at the advanced level.  Hmm sounds like a trap if I spend too much time playing games some Karosseans will show up.

I do not think I am going to learn anything by playing arcade games so I decide to leave.  I get asked if I am in the Wasp fighter.  Why yes I am.  Do you know the model number, if so turn to that reference.  Erm no it did not say when I picked it up. (Edit after I finished I figured out I did know it as it was on the arcade machine, doh!)

So as its an experimental model I do not get the +2 combat bonus until I have been through two combats with it.  Sigh.

As I leave I can go to the City of Jungle or City of Industry from here.  Well not much to do in Jungle so its back to Industry.

Only place I did not visit last time was the fuel refinery so lets have a look.  Unfortunately the Karosseans have left a guard here.  I can proceed normally, attack or try a ruse.  A ruse sounds great but I need to get a couple of combats to get my combat bonus so I just go straight for an attack.

Tripods!

This reminds of a show I saw as kid, do not remember much about it other than it terrified me.

I mean it looks terrible now.  Anyway I have to fight both at the same time and they are Skill 8 and Skill 10 and both fast.  Ok I am very fast and have my helmet so effective Skill 11.  Both armour 7.  The dice are kinder this time and I take out the real threat of skill 10 without taking a hit from either of them.  That allows me to take the other guy out in two turns using the Wasps special ability.  Id like to think this counts as two combats but that would be cheating.

Reinforcements are coming so I can either look through the wreckage or go into the fuel plant.  Well I came here to investigate the plant so we go in.  And I promptly get some radiation poisoning and lose 1 stamina point and I am forced to leave the area and can never return.

I feel I have to get to the City of Guardians so not really sure how to get it.  I need knowledge so I head back there.   As I have been here before though its slightly different this time.  A Karossean patrol is here and shouts 88 at me and I have no idea on the counter sign.  So I end up in a fight with an Air Fighter.

The City of Knowledge is looking rather barren and deserty?

It does get a hit on me, reducing my armour to 4 but I take it down thanks to my superior speed and a special free attack.  And that is two combats so I now get my +2 combat back.  

Well I never went to the museum so lets try that.  But as I approach I see smoke from out the front and lots of radio chatter from the bad guys.  Hmm probably a lot of bad guys here so lets try somewhere a bit safer.  The Dinosaur preserve sounds safe.  Life finds a way and all that....

I arrive and exit the robot to poke around the admin building.  If you are looking for something specific add 50 to its number.  Nope.  So I try searching thoroughly, and get zapped by an electric shock on a door to lose another stamina point.  I decide to use a couple of medi packs.

Lets try the other building, it says Danger Keep Out but I am getting a tad desperate.  I use my robot to open the door and find a Super Cowboy Robot.  Its got a whopping armour of 14 which looks great compared to my 4.  But its only medium speed and +1 combat so I feel I can not take the risk.  Its special only works on dinosaurs as well.

I fly over the preserve and find nothing.  The book even says it does not know what you expected to find here so my initial thoughts were right.  I try to go over to the War College again to try and read the other books but its swarming in baddies and my character decides its too dangerous so leaves.

I get the option this time to go to the city of storms which I have not been before.  Alas a storm hits and I have to roll a dice at random.  Nothing seems to happen though and I land.  I can go to the weather bureau or the coast.  Not sure what either will offer so I head to the bureau first.  

A nice walker robot, with terrible stats!

I go inside and lucky I seem to be a part time weather man as I can work out that a huge storm is about to roll in and cover all of Thalos.  Do you have a flask of potion?  Yes I do.  Well this could be your lucky day.  Get to the City of Worship where the storm will come ashore and release the potion into the heart of the storm and it will be distributed everywhere.  Nice, but I though it evaporated?  But you need a flyer to do this.  That's fine as well, I have the Wasp! 

I immediately head over and my character feels a bit overwhelmed as the gods must have all their focus on me since everyone is asleep!  I get the option to fly over the city which I take.

The storm is coming in so I fly into it.   I pass a skill test and only lose 1 stamina point.  I am now instructed if I have a flask of liquid to count the letters in both parts of its name and multiply by 10.  So Blue Potion would be 10, so 100 then?

I release the blue potion and smile, but when I land, everyone is still asleep, my potion was not potent enough....

Oh well since I am here I go and visit some temples.  I try the temple of peace first.  I get a chance to pray for something and since freedom is an option I go all braveheart and try that.  I get my luck restored to its initial level.  Not bad.

The rest of the temples (fear, nothingness and glory) sound ropey to me and I doubt any would have the coordinates for the City of Guardians so I decide to just head over to the Capital City.

It is a beautiful city of white marble but also the enemy base so I am told I may only visit each location once.  The choices are the hospital, capitol building, national treasure house, enemy encampment or just explore.

The Capitol Building sounds like it would have the big bad.  I head over in my robot but apparently I am too conspicuous and decide to leave it.  Do I have a cloak of invisibility, nope.  An enemy uniform, nope.  Oh well you cant get there, get back in your robot and pick something else.

Hospital might help with the sleeping sickness but I think that horse has bolted.  Treasure is clearly a trap for the greedy.  Oh well lets go to the enemy encampment.  I fly over in the Wasp and I am engaged by two flying Myrmidon's.  Both very fast so no bonus there.  Skill 11 and Skill 9 with both armour 8.

The Skill 11 is the threat, I can only afford to be hit once.  I win the first combat by 3 so just miss out on the special.  I use luck instead and reduce it to 4.  Great roll next though as I beat it by miles and get my free attack to knock it out.  The other fighter is dispatched easily.

More fighters are coming and I can retreat or press the attack.  I am on a role so I decide to press on!

And I am promptly blasted out of the sky.... my adventure ends here.

Notable Encounters -

At a point you come across an experimental suit called the amplifier suit, it allows the person to have the strength of a robot.  You punch through a table, throw around a hundred kilo filing cabinet before attempting to jump.  At this stage it all goes wrong and you bounce off the walls and ceiling repeatedly before eventually coming to a halt.  It just sounds like a great comedy scene out of a marvel movie.

The absurdity continues when exploring and a book falls on your head causing one stamina point loss.  This is enough for you to go nope I am done in here and leave.  So petulant but we have all been there.

Of course there is an ape in a scrapyard that can help repair robots.

    

Ah some peaceful longnecks.

Now will you peacefully move them out of the way, shout at them through your speakers or maybe shoot to scare them, I mean I am sure they won't stampede or anything!

The one that made me laugh the most though was in the capital city hospital where you bump into some Karossean doctors.  You can then fake fainting so they take you to a medical robot who gives you all your stamina back!

Two of the possible endings take place in the capital encampment which a pretty well put together area.  There are a lot of ways to get through but also a lot of ways to die.  Its far more fleshed out and interesting than some of the preceding sections.  It also allows a kind of heroic failure where you use a cloak of invisibility to get close to Minos and his generals and kill them all before the rest of the army can take you down.

But in a book featuring robots and dinosaurs, what would be even better?

A dinosaur robot!

Yep its MechaGodzilla!  Now you would think this must be the epic climax to a great set piece?  Nope only if you go back to the museum.  The daft Karossean's activated him and he is on a rampage but you need to save your fellow sleeping countrymen.  But the most criminal part is that instead of getting the illustration above at the start of the encounter, you only get it if you choose the escape option!  That makes no sense!  What a wasted opportunity.

Artwork - 

Gary Mayes is back in action.  We last saw him illustrating Rebel Planet.  It was a mixed bag there with a lot of odd selections and some confusing ones.  And it is a very similar story here.  From what we have seen already I really like the opening scene, the plane robot, the tripods and of course the Mecha Godzilla.  But the best is the Serpent Robot, I just love the look of it.  Also some you will see later in the menagerie section.

Love the Monkeys Scrapyard.

 

Fancy a Super Tank?  Yes Please!

He really gets the Mech Robots and for all the depicted ones he does a very good job.

But some things make me wonder why out of a book with some epic moments do these things get an illustration.  I can understand the lab from my playthrough but not one I would have picked.

You get this if you leave a shop and hear machinery going back to what they do.

You stepped in the goo and sank.

Also from my playthrough the Wasp Fighter arcade game picture bears no resemblance to the description in the text.  Also some good artwork is hidden behind poor game choices.  Such as - 

A cool underwater encounter but only if you decide to shoot at the Brontosaurs and they stampeded.

I am just going to leave this here.  Nothing like being able to hide your giant robot from super giant robots.  Its so absurd I think I love it.

The Big Bad - 

The man behind all your woes is Minos, the leader of the invading Karosseans.  I would love to tell you more about him but to be honest but we do not really get much about him which is disappointing.  I say this a lot but would have been cool to find out snippets of information on him during the adventure.

When you do meet him though he is a bit of a coward.  You can challenge him to ritual combat (hopefully if you have the Sword of State) but he is a bit reluctant.  Which is no surprise as he has pretty much won at this stage.  But his officers get a bit lippy so he feels he has to make the effort.  If you do not have the sword he makes you fight a stooge first and one of his officers is so disgusted by him taking advantage he gives you a drink to help recharge.  This is a great bit of insight that not all might be happy in the Karossean camp.  I would have loved to have seen more of this.

Anyway no idea why he was reluctant as he is Skill 12 so will decimate all but the highest skill rolls.

Maybe try fighting him in your robot instead.

He rolls up in a Super Tank!

Also Skill 12 and a whopping 16 Armour.  He also does 1 point of damage every round even when he loses.  At least though by now you should have a fair amount of combat bonuses so its not as daunting as its also slow. 

Or just release the right potion into a storm and avoid him completely! 

Menagerie - 

In a book featuring giant robots and dinosaurs, not much other encounters other than giant robots and dinosaurs.  Quite right, that's what we came for after all!  There is a fair amount of dinosaur encounters featuring both well known and some even I had never heard of species.

Of course there had to be a t-rex, pretty much at the start as well!

And this amazing fight between the super cowboy robot (Metroplex) and a pair of triceratops!  

The Ankylosaurs is another Godzilla classic. 

I had never heard of a Nothosaurus though, I had to look it up and still none the wiser.  And of course had to fight a Pterodactyl while flying!

Considering you have to fight a lot of Karosseans you hardly actually see any.  In fact I only found one illustration.  They are never described so I wondered what they looked like.  What do I look like come to think about it.

Ah, human then.  That's a bit disappointing.

However this guy is not even real, but a test from the temple of glory.

Plenty of variety in the robots as well.  Heavy brutes such as the crusher, or fast agile Wasps.  My favorite are the Myrmidions though.  Clearly Decepticon Seekers who I always loved.

Entertaining Deaths - 

Searching the college of medicine and being trapped in a dead end by hungry mad lab animals.  Even the book says a most embarrassing end for a hero.

Wandering around a hostile city without a robot.  You get captured and sent to the slave pens.

Wandering around a dinosaur preserve without a robot.  You get eaten.

Wandering around a jungle without a robot.  (Basically do not go anywhere without a robot).

Pressing the red button on a lift.

Driving you robot into a marsh.

Politely stepping out of the way of an Iguanodon... straight into some sinking goo.

Praying for peace in the temple of peace.  You get peace, by falling asleep like everyone else (this sounds great to me, if it really was happening to me I would be doing this).

Winner for this book though is going to the treasure house with a cargo crab robot and deciding to help yourself to some treasure.  A platoon of tanks and Karosseans catch you and instead of being a prisoner of war you are treated as a common criminal and sentenced to a life of hard labour in the slave pits.

Pete's Corner - 

Stay away from lifts.

Final Thoughts - 

My overwhelming feeling at the end of this was a sense of disappointment.  Do not misunderstand, this is a good fun book but I think my expectations were sky high.  With all the Transformer and Godzilla nods this had so many of my favorite thing included.  It gets off to a great start as well, the City of Knowledge and City of Industry are well fleshed out with a lot of different options.  It feels massive.  But the middle cities are paper thin and I just felt the book loses a lot of momentum there.  It picks up again at the Capital City but by then its a bit too late.

What I really enjoyed though is the implementation of the robots.  Different stats but also the special abilities keep them so varied and unique.  The choice of sticking or twisting every time you found a new one was interesting (and the fact you could come back to them) plus the way you could mod them and also gain combat bonuses!  Long time readers know I bemoan the inability to go above initial skill but the way the robots worked let you easily roll more than you start with.  Introducing speed to the robots was also a good way to introduce variety.  Go for fast and a skill bonus or take a slow one and sacrifice that bonus but probably get a lot more durability.  Oh and fliers!  I got sucked into that, not always the right choice but who wouldn't want that ability!  Very fun, very well implemented.

Steve Jackson 2 loves an open world feel.  I enjoyed in Scorpion Swamp where you could backtrack and it wouldn't be a reset of the same thing.  Robot Commando is very open world, you can explore easily and once again there is mechanism to show you have been there before.  But its not as extensive and normally its just along the lines of the place is crawling with enemies so you decide not to go.  I have to applaud and praise the design of this book with how open it is.  It is proper RPG (well as much as you can get into a book).  But I do feel with the scale and size of it did take away from the story a bit.  I will compare to say Metal Gear Solid for people who know.  Those early games were linear but that allowed to tell a story and have some epic set pieces.  Then Phantom Pain went open world and it was technically brilliant but the story suffered, it was too open.  Scorpion Swamp was more condensed so it worked better there.  

As I said it starts great but maybe too much space was spent here and it made the others feel light.  There are also a couple of sections which just seem to loop round and around, like the tunnels under the City of Industry.  They are just confusing and feel they have been included to give it a false perception of size.  Also the writing is not as good as previous efforts from Steve Jackson 2.  Not all the time but far too frequently I found the descriptions lacking when exploring.  Also the intro is just bonkers and makes no sense in parts.  How did my guy find out so much just by guessing and listening to the radio?  Why did only I not fall asleep?

I feel something went wrong with the editing of this book.  So can not be blamed on author or artist but far too many of the illustrations should have been at the start of the encounter and not after you had picked one of the options.  The Mecha Godzilla being the worst example of this, no excuse for it to be like that!

That's enough negativity though.  I like the three different paths to victory.  Especially how different they are including a non combat final encounter.  Coupled with the huge variety of robots it adds a ton of replayability to the book.  I do miss 400 not being the finish though.  Each path as well can be very different and each city needs to be explored.  Its also fun and does not take itself too seriously in tone.  

Difficulty is not crazy either.  Enemies are not impossible but they are not simple either.  Although a high skill roll might steamroller them easier than I did.  There were still some enemies where it was close for me.  But even then if the robot does go its not always game over.  I like that a lot!

The art is better than Rebel Planet.  Very happy with how the Robots are depicted.  Its style seems to fit the book really well, just need a bit better selection of what to illustrate.  

I am sad this is Steve Jackson 2s last effort in the Fighting Fantasy series as I have enjoyed all of them.  I do feel though that this is perhaps the weakest of the three despite the sensational premise.  

A bit of better editing though would have served it well but I suspect time pressures to get these books out would have been immense.  Well worth a play though if you like a fun change and giant robots!  It could not be more different to Trial of Champions!   

Score - 6 out of 10.